Lox watched Dulles's expression darken and immediately knew that he must have thought of something.
"Having no soul does not necessarily mean anything. In this universe, having no soul might even be a good thing." Lox recalled the human souls devoured by Warp daemons on Nuceria. Few of those people could have been called good, but they had still been human.
The Word Bearers and World Eaters used bloody slaughter and the souls of the dead to please Warp daemons in exchange for power. The fate of the humans sacrificed to them went without saying.
They would be tortured in the Warp until the end of time. Those loathsome things would wring out every last drop of pain and despair from them. That was far more terrifying than death.
"A good thing?" Dulles froze, unable to understand what the man before him was talking about.
Lox offered him a "cigarette," a specialty of the Five Hundred Worlds made from a plant similar to the tobacco of old Earth.
Many mortal auxiliary soldiers smoked these cigarettes, which could calm and relax them. The chemicals within stimulated dopamine while suppressing manic depression.
Dulles took the cigarette with practiced ease and struck it against his electromagnetic wristband. Smoke immediately curled through the air, and the underhive godfather smoked every last bit without wasting any.
This was a rare luxury.
After speaking with this Untouchable for a while, Lox successfully eased much of his tension and vigilance. He got straight to the point and stated his intentions.
"You are citizens of the Five Hundred Worlds. Now, the Lord of Ultramar needs your strength."
"Citizens, you have been conscripted."
Dulles knew of the Five Hundred Worlds, but only through rumor. He knew that his planet was part of Ultramar's Five Hundred Worlds, but he had