Warhammer: Lord of the Endless Monster Horde [309]

Led by the four gigantic Emperor avatars, the massed human armies surged forward.

Following the avatars and Rhodes' monster army, they slaughtered daemons across the planet.

Rhodes himself stood before the gates of the palace, his immense form intimidating the daemons. The lesser daemons didn't even dare approach.

Trajan nodded, leading his remaining Custodians into the fray. The Emperor's order was absolute—if the Emperor commanded them to follow Rhodes, they would obey any order, short of harming the Emperor himself.

As a shrewd politician, Trajan realized what was happening. After all, he was not just a Custodian Captain-General, but also a High Lord.

Besides Rhodes, the new Primarch, two others had just entered the palace—one was Roboute Guilliman, the other unrecognized by Trajan.

But to be summoned to the palace, he must surely have been called by the Emperor himself. Whoever this new Primarch was, he had the Emperor's trust.

 Little did Trajan know that the other was the traitor Magnus.

After Trajan left, Rhodes prepared to deal with the High Lords and Senate!

Rhodes and Guilliman's plan had been to use their armies to seize control of Terra, then swiftly purge the Senate and the High Lords.

Most important was to use the Emperor's avatar to communicate with the Emperor himself and secure the Custodians' support—the real elite defenders of the palace.

Once they had the Custodians, everything else would be easy.

But now plans had changed. This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Rhodes scanned Terra with his psychic senses.

The entire planet, except for the palace in the Himalayas, had fallen. Only a handful of humans hid in underground shelters.

The highest-ranking High Lords, the Senate, and the most important Imperial nobles and power brokers were, of course, afforded the best protection—all hiding in the Imperial Palace.

Protected by their private armies, these lofty High Lords controlled the fate of the Imperium.

But their actions were thoroughly repugnant. These bastards were the true parasites!

At this moment, in the palace, the Imperial Fists were engaged in a heated argument with the cowering nobles.

"The Emperor has given the order—all who can fight must go to battle, including your private soldiers. They are hereby requisitioned," declared the Imperial Fists captain.

After Rhodes took command, he also ordered the Imperial Fists to mobilize. This company was assigned to take the nobles' private armies.

These nobles' personal troops were far better equipped than normal Astra Militarum, nearly as good as Space Marines or even Battle Sisters. Many wore power armor.

They were elite, and numerous—over a hundred thousand. Their participation would greatly ease the burden on the Imperial Guard.

So, the Fists arrived to requisition these troops.

But the High Lords and nobles fiercely resisted.

"The Emperor bless us! If Terra falls, then you Fists must escort us to safety, not strip us of our guards to fight daemons," a High Lord objected.

"You're sending our loyal troops to die. We won't allow it!

 And this Lord Rhodes—we've never heard of him. The Emperor hasn't issued an order in ten thousand years—how could he now? You should obey the High Lords," said a Senate member.

"Soldier, I order you to take your men and escort us to the ships, so we can escape Terra and preserve humanity elsewhere," another High Lord ordered.

"We High Lords are the core, the brain of the Imperium. Without us, the Imperium is finished."

Who could order the High Lords?

 No one but the being upon the Golden Throne!

Not even a Primarch had that authority—and Rhodes only claimed to be a Primarch, who could prove it?

 Such things required certification by the Senate and the High Lords.

Even if he was a Primarch, that was ancient history.

Some respect, perhaps—but they must obey the Senate and High Lords.

"All Custodians now obey Lord Rhodes. This is the Emperor's will. The Imperial Fists also take his orders. I won't say it again.

Your private armies are now requisitioned. Go, defend the palace, and attack the daemons!" the Fists captain declared.

"Impossible! Let Rhodes himself come to see us!

And by the order of the High Lords, even the Custodians cannot leave the palace. If they do, they endanger the Emperor's life!" shouted a High Lord.

"And you have no right to take our forces. There are nine High Lords here. By the highest authority, we order you to evacuate us from Terra—it's lost," said another High Lord.

"Is that so? Such words are treason. I could execute you right here," Rhodes said, appearing with his Space Marines.

Looking around, he saw tens of thousands of nobles and more than a hundred thousand private soldiers.

These were no minor nobles—each one here could rival a planetary governor, or outrank one.

Rhodes even spotted some familiar faces: the three High Lords who'd once recruited him, and the rogue trader Kania.

They recognized Rhodes too. Wasn't this the servant of Lord Loki?

They remembered him well—back then, Trajan had tried to recruit him, thanks to his pure human gene stock, ideal for Custodian conversion.

But now, he was a Primarch, commanding Custodians and Marines!

"Who are you? You were never appointed by the High Lords. You're not a Primarch. You have no authority here."

"I know him—he's a Xenos servant, not a Primarch," a High Lord sneered.

"I won't bother explaining. You have two choices.

First: surrender your private armies to fight the daemons, and obey the Emperor's order.

Second: I execute all of you, including your soldiers," Rhodes said.

Today turned out to be a good day—he'd expected more from the High Lords, but they were just making excuses for their deaths.

No need for subterfuge, no need to have a monster accidentally kill them. Now he had justification for execution.

As for the private soldier. Their combat power was only a little above the Astra Militarum. They posed no threat to Rhodes.

"Heretic! Traitor! You control these Space Marines with some unknown method, and deceive the Custodians—but you can't fool us!" a High Lord shrieked.

"That's right! You're a Xenos lackey, unworthy of being a Primarch.

You might have fooled the Custodians and the Fists, but not us High Lords!" another shouted.

He'd wondered who this new Primarch was, but he turned out to be a nobody.

"Seems you've chosen your fate," Rhodes was about to order their execution when someone spoke.

"Lord Rhodes—or Lord Loki—you may remember me, I'm Rogue Trader Kania, you once traveled on my ship.

I will obey your orders—I have over 10,000 troops at your disposal," Kania said.

He had sensed the way things were going. After Rhodes left Terra, he'd investigated and found that Rhodes had close ties with Belisarius Cawl of the Mechanicus.

With two Primarchs having just entered the palace, and the giant Emperor avatar outside, it was clear things had changed.

The High Lords were indeed a cancer, and as a shrewd trader, Kania had no intention of sinking with them.

"I will also support Lord Rhodes. I was among those who asked you to repair the Throne, and I have 15,000 troops for you.

I believe the Emperor's order is correct—I just heard his voice and saw the golden Emperor avatar," said a High Lord beside Kania.

He and the Kania family were close, and Kania was a sharp operator. If he'd chosen this side, it must be right.

"Traitors! Kania, Sanchez, are you betraying the High Lords and the Imperium?" another High Lord screamed.

Why panic? The Custodians had left, the Fists too, but the nobles still had over 100,000 troops. Even if a Primarch arrived, a few hundred Marines wouldn't be enough to kill them.

Their private troops were as well-equipped as Battle Sisters, and many had ties to the Ecclesiarchy.

"Kania, from the first time we met, I respected you.

 You've made a wise choice. Bring your troops over," Rhodes said.

"Blasphemy! Traitors! Soldiers, open fire!" a High Lord commanded.

The soldiers raised their bolters, firing at Kania's men, but Rhodes laughed, raising a psychic barrier to block the shots, allowing Kania and his troops to join him safely.

"Now I declare the Emperor's order! You High Lords, Senate, and nobles, at Terra's darkest hour, chose to betray the Imperium.

You chose to be cowards and deserters. You will all be executed.

I will execute you," Rhodes said coldly.