"The war had progressed even faster than we imagined."
"Several victories on the southern front had brought us ever closer to the heart of the Ork Empire."
"And the great victory on the western battlefield had smashed the Greenskin Orks' momentum in one stroke. Their main force had been wiped out on the western front, and the entire Ghoul Stars were now utterly empty."
"The death knell of the Ork Empire has sounded."
Lox and Guilliman stood on the command bridge of the Emperor's Wrath. They had received the victory report sent by Luther, the commander from Caliban.
There was much eye-catching content in that report, but the most shocking news concerned Warsmith Dantioch.
"You know Dantioch better than any of us, Guilliman."
"He had remained on Sotha, helping you study the Pharos system. You should know what exactly happened to Dantioch."
Yet Guilliman wore a thoroughly bewildered expression as he listened to Lox's question.
"I wish I knew Dantioch's circumstances as well, but I know very little."
"My sons stationed on Sotha told me that Mount Pharos once suffered a severe earthquake. The geological upheaval even caused serious problems with the Pharos system. The only fortunate thing was that Dantioch's life was not endangered."
The two exchanged a glance, immediately suspecting that the earthquake was likely directly connected to Dantioch's transformation.
"I know that a C'tan shard is imprisoned beneath Pharos. It is the inexhaustible energy source the Necrons use to power Pharos."
"Could that C'tan shard have escaped, taken control of Dantioch, and granted him such power?"
"Or perhaps it reached some sort of agreement with Dantioch?"
Lox voiced his suspicion, while Guilliman gripped the Hand of Dominion with utter resolve.
"It had better not be that. Dantioch is a man I value. Without him, we would have