Death Guard

Endurance.

Now.

.

In the somewhat empty personal quarters of a Space Marine, Hades sat on the edge of his bed, holding a mirror in one hand and a round censer in the other as he silently stared into space.

His original goal had always been to lie low on Barbarus until he became a Space Marine. Though the process had differed somewhat from what he had imagined, the result was the same.

But after becoming a Space Marine, he only had more questions.

After thinking it over, Hades felt that the key to determining his own stance might lie with the Emperor alone.

What was certain was that after the battle on Barbarus ended, it had been the Emperor who saved Mortarion.

Which meant the Emperor must have seen Hades as well.

Hades did not believe that the Emperor had failed to notice anything about his bizarre physique.

But what reason had there been for him to simply return Hades to the Fourteenth Legion after treating him?

And Hades touched the left side of his head again, feeling the smooth metallic texture.

Had the Emperor been involved in his treatment? If he had, had the changes in Hades's Null Field been caused by the Emperor?

Or had his Null Field changed because he had nearly died? Or because he had been transformed into a Space Marine?

No, the more he thought about it, the more wrong it seemed. Besides, there was no way to verify any of these hypotheses.

Hades could not go ask the Emperor for answers either. He had no means of getting anywhere near the Emperor right now.

Mortarion probably did not know, either. If he knew anything about Hades, he would have said so.

And after thinking about it, Hades realized that thinking too much sometimes meant Tzeentch had set his sights on you!

Hades had only just tried to snatch Mortarion away from Nurgle. He did not want Tzeentch setting his sights on him as well.

Forget it. Thinking about it this much was useless. He would just take things one step at a time.

.

Hades had wanted to study how to use his new brain and left eye a little longer, but Mortarion was still waiting outside. He could not delay for too long, so he rose to find Mortarion—

Only after standing did Hades realize that he had grown taller! He was now at least two-point-six meters tall!

He had not merely grown taller. Hades felt as though every part of his body was brimming with strength.

His taut muscles sent out signals of power, his two hearts beat forcefully, blood surged swiftly through his veins, his lungs rose and fell in a steady rhythm, and his mind was clearer than it had ever been.

Never before had Hades possessed such absolute control over his own body.

He felt like leaping into the air or sprinting a lap around the ship. He was strong—powerfully strong!

After suppressing the urge to punch the wall, Hades tossed the mirror onto the bed, gripped the censer, and left.

Gray-green and dark gray were the dominant colors of the corridor. The unadorned passage was broad and long, its floor dark gray and its walls deep green, with off-white trim along the seams between wall and floor.

Aside from the necessary lighting, the corridor was dim as fog, like the perpetually overcast daylight on Barbarus.

Doors identical to Hades's own lined the long corridor.

This should be the personal rest area for the Space Marines, Hades thought.

At the moment, the corridor was empty except for Mortarion.

Mortarion leaned against the corridor wall, staring blankly ahead as he absentmindedly toyed with a round censer.

When he saw Hades approach, Mortarion came back to himself and prepared to show him around the Endurance.

Hades walked over and handed the censer back to Mortarion.

The air is still a little pungent, but I can bear it. Hades did not want to become a walking poison canister.

Mortarion looked at him.

"You don't want it? I can give it to you."

"No, no. If this is what the environment will be like in the future, I should get used to it as soon as possible."

Hades quickly refused. Though he wanted to say something else and advise Mortarion, he managed to stop himself in time.

Respect other people's hobbies. It starts with you and me.

"All right."

Mortarion casually took the censer, then hung it back on the bronze chain at his shoulder.

"Come on. Let me show you the Endurance. This will be our second home from now on."

Hades shrugged. That was true. After becoming Space Marines, most people were completely severed from their pasts.

But Hades would still remember.

Seeing Mortarion begin to move, Hades followed him.

"These are the personal quarters for the Space Marines. This deck, as well as the deck above and below it, are all your personal quarters."

"Originally, rooms were supposed to be assigned by Company, and the Endurance would not house the entire Legion. Some Companies would be stationed aboard other battle flagships."

"But the Legion is still in its adjustment period, so for now, all the Companies are concentrated aboard the Endurance."

"And the Barbarus recruits have not yet been assigned to Companies."

"This Legion was originally called the Dusk Raiders, but after I took command, it was renamed the Death Guard."

Mortarion smiled.

"To commemorate those warriors of Barbarus."

Yes, those brave and fearless warriors.

Mortarion paused, then spoke solemnly.

"You are my unbreakable blades. You are the Death Guard."

Hades knew those words. When Primarch Mortarion had first met the Dusk Raiders, Mortarion had spoken them.

Those words had also been carved onto the airlocks of the battle barge Scythe of Death.

After those words, the Fourteenth Dusk Raiders were no more.

Only the Fourteenth Legion remained: the Death Guard.

The dull, monotonous footsteps kept their steady rhythm, echoing through the corridor for a long time.

Mortarion continued introducing the newly reorganized Death Guard to Hades.

"I have divided the Death Guard into seven grand Companies. Of them, the First Company, Second Company, and Seventh Company are special."

"The First Company's captain is the chief commander. It is currently led by Barasyn of Terra."

"The Second Company's captain is a commander. It is currently led by Typhus of Terra."

"The Seventh Company's captain is the battle captain. It is currently led by Garo of Terra."

As if deliberately, Mortarion emphasized the name "Terra" in Barbarus dialect every time he said it.

Of course Hades knew what Mortarion was thinking.

The Fourteenth Legion was like a toy in Primarch Mortarion's hands. Naturally, he would throw away anything he did not like.

Mortarion wanted to give the Legion new blood.

In truth, every Legion would more or less go through this process. When their Primarch was found, the Legion's former glories would be drowned beneath the grand occasion of their Primarch's return.

Not every Legion was willing to submit directly to a Primarch who had only just been found.

Even with the genetic bond between them, those battle-hardened veterans would not simply yield.

Conflict was inevitable.

Hades knew this was bound to happen.

I could not find the original English term for Dusk Raiders. Also, it has been translated as Twilight Raiders, but I thought Dusk Raiders sounded cooler, so I used that translation.

After Mortarion integrated the Death Guard, they became a force that placed great emphasis on order and obedience. But I think conflict between the old and new Legion was inevitable, because many other Legions have descriptions like this, and the portrayals of loyalists during the betrayal also show that a Legion was not a single solid block. Hence this depiction.

Enjoy reading. ()

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Book recommendation: it is also a 40k story. The protagonist starts out as a big head. It is not a power fantasy, the author is a Warhammer fan dedicated to writing Warhammer, and it is currently in its new-release period. Everyone, go check it out! (σ′▽‵)′▽‵)σ