"Do you need me to dispose of him, Father?"
The atmosphere abruptly turned icy at Chapter Master Rockefeller's undisguised request.
His voice came through his helmet's speaker, clear and cold, without the slightest attempt to lower it or conceal his words, as though he were merely confirming a routine procedure he was about to carry out.
But everyone present understood what those words meant.
They were practically a death sentence for the loose-tongued Interior Ministry official.
By the Legion's logic, publicly questioning the Primarch's authority, especially before a world that had only just submitted, was an extremely serious offense.
The instant the Department of Internal Affairs official heard those words, his body shuddered violently. His already pale face lost its last trace of color, turning as white as a corpse.
Overwhelming terror seized his heart, leaving him barely able to breathe.
He wanted to beg for mercy, to explain himself, but the two Word Bearers veterans standing on either side of him in heavy Terminator Armour had already silently extended their huge metal hands, each resting one on his shoulder with apparent nonchalance.
Those seemingly "gentle" touches held enough force to crush a Rhino.
The cold seeped through his thin official's uniform like two iron bands he could never escape. They not only immobilized him completely, but forced every scrap of courage and every word of protest back down his throat.
He stood frozen, like a lamb pinned beneath a tiger's claws, unable even to tremble. All he could feel was cold sweat streaming down his spine.
Amid that suffocating silence, Primarch Lorgar Aurelian slowly turned around.
The gentle, even faintly merciful smile on his face remained unchanged, as though he had just heard an inconsequential question.
His gaze passed over the terrified, silent official, then settled on Rockefeller, who