《Warhammer 40k: Redemtion The Kingdom》 Hope The legend of an immeasurable power that lies hidden beneath the decadent mountains resonates in the myths of the world. A power so immense that it is capable of razing cities to the ground and leaving nothing but embers and ashes. ¡°Or so the myths of Runt say.¡± -They are not just myths. My family has been here for hundreds of years, and you will understand once you look at it- A short man with dozens of wrinkles on his face was the one who spoke. He was the leader of this platoon of soldiers who had arrived in search of hope for his people. -I still can''t believe we are wasting our time on these stupid children''s stories instead of fighting the demons that plague our people out there,-- Markin, his frustration was evident in his voice, but what seemed to bother him the most was the idea of his people being slaughtered in thousands by the second. -We have already talked about this, even if we were there, our lives would not be worth more than a few seconds for the civilians,-- answered Emil, Corporal second in command of the platoon and who after a vote decided to come in search of a miracle, --If we succeed in this, maybe we could increase that figure to a few hours. -Maybe even save everyone - Vendria, war medic and Emil''s right hand man, had participated in dozens of battles together, and there were rumors that the two had had an affair in the past. -They won''t seriously believe that nonsense. If the Inquisition finds out, we will be executed, and I''m not talking about a simple firing squad. -Silence, it has been centuries since these mines have had people walking on them. -The Old Man spoke again as he looked down the passages of the cave. He was the guide in charge, and his family had navigated the hundreds of different passages of the mine until it was closed. -Please, old man, there are more important matters than giving importance to some simple mines. -Rodrik was the one who answered the old man. As did Markin. -With the old man''s words, all the others looked to where the old man was looking, noticing the traces of something that seemed to have destroyed everything. With dozens of footprints all over the place. Rodrik approached the tracks. as he reached his hand towards the ground and grabbed some ash between his fingers. -Flesh Hounds, at least two dozen, and led by a lesser demon. -So the tales were true; there is something here that interests the demons enough to send forces in search of them. -We are dead if we fight in this place, with its labyrinthine passages. -This time, it was Aaron who spoke, a quiet man who always read in his spare time. -We''ll be dead anyway if we let them get that power. - Emil turned to the ten men in his platoon who accompanied him. -We''ll go on no matter what. After that, they put aside their conversation and continued walking, following the old man''s lead. He was not someone they had chosen at random to be their guide. In the area, his family had been recognized for being one of the few who knew all the passages of the mines to the letter. Something they didn''t seem to take as a joke, since despite his wrinkled skin, tattoos of the mine passages could be seen all over his body. -What the fuck are those voices old man, I doubt the demons have anything like songs-Markin was the one who spoke after hours of walking. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The others hadn''t paid attention to him the first time he said it, believing it to be madness, but he continued. -The old man answered calmly; he knew what Markin was talking about. -Then there were the unfortunate ones, those who had lost their family. They all said something different when asked what they said or what they sounded like, but they all agreed that they were beautiful songs. -So this idiot here is complaining about a few simple songs? - Vendria''s joke caused the whole group to laugh. -They give me chills. I feel how it strangely affects my mind every time I hear it.... -I''ve heard about something similar with demon worshippers. They say they hear the voices of their masters in their heads, commanding them to bring chaos and destruction. -What if the power they are talking about is a demon? What if it is something they sealed millennia ago, and that is why they have come to our planet? We could be accelerating the fall of Magog instead of saving it. -It is not the first time that Magog has been threatened by demons and I have also heard the stories. But why explain it?- The old man turned to Markin, -Tell them what the chants cause in you. Markin seemed hesitant to explain what he was experiencing, but the expectant looks of his companions left him no choice. -...Calm, my mind feels clearer and at the same time frightened by the strange calmness in me. Everyone was astonished by his words, and some, curious to know what he was referring to, tried to pay more attention to their surroundings, trying to listen to those chants. -It doesn''t matter what''s there; we''ve all seen the fissure this time. We''ll be lucky if the defenses last a few weeks; the planet will fall this time, no matter what we do. If we release something worse, maybe it will save our suffering and do it faster. - Emil''s voice returned to his commanding tone as he made sure everyone was clear. -Let''s move on, old man. We can''t waste any more time, I don''t want the demons to secure the place first. -No matter what kind of demons or beasts they are, they won''t get there before us. Even the most capable bloodhound couldn''t find the place without getting lost hundreds of times along these paths. -That''s why they closed this place. Why did everyone get lost? - I would come. I had always been curious about the history of places, and a place like this was only worse. -It was one of many, but not the main one. Hundreds of families had already become accustomed to its strange mysteries; the value of Bauxanium was worth it. But although many came for the mineral, others wanted the source of the rumors. -Had there been prospectors before? - The question came from Rodrik, who was in charge of checking the motion sensor to make sure they weren''t ambushed. -Thousands for centuries, dug endlessly. With countless of them dead to the point of exhaustion, coveting from the depths of their souls that power for themselves. It was not until two hundred years ago, after thousands of searchers'' deaths, that a discovery was made. A giant chamber full of strange figures, all with the same appearance. But the rumors reached the inquisition, who decided to close the mine and shut it down, declaring it to be heretical despite the pleas of the surrounding citizens. -The cult of the rock. - Aaron intervened. -A stupid name given to simple citizens by the Inquisition, all with the excuse of being able to murder them all. -The old man seemed annoyed by the words, almost insulted. But in their attempts to wipe everyone out, they managed to create what they feared: a cult of something worse. -So this is where the demon worshippers who caused the rift came from? - Emil had never heard about something like that, something normal since they were simple soldiers and the high command would never inform on simple disposable pieces. -That''s right, some were innocent children who didn''t understand why their superiors wanted to kill them, but they grew up with resentment, and although they tried to make the ¡°rock¡± listen to them, they fell on deaf ears until apparently something did. -Then someone reminds me, what are we doing in a place that no one has managed to free whatever it is that is here? -Two days ago, a signature of unknown power lit up the sky as thousands of demonic creatures ravaged the area. Which caused the death of any demonic creature or follower. -It was Paul who had spoken; he was one of those who believed that whatever was in this place could help them. - From now on, keep quiet. We will cross through the strangest passages to get there sooner, and you can hear voices that want to guide you to other places. focus on my song, and everything will be fine. -The old man''s voice gave no room for replies, and everyone followed his instructions. Chapter 2 The group continued to follow the old man, where some, after walking in silence, without hearing or feeling anything strange, thought that the old man''s words had been nothing more than mere ravings. Until he started, they all felt it within themselves, that there was nothing normal around them and dozens of voices seemed to sound in their heads. Some calling and others pleading for their attention. But just as the old man had instructed, they followed their strange chant, which seemed to sound louder than any voice around them. Only Markin could tell that their song was similar to those he had heard on the way here. After that came complete silence, an absolute silence in which none of them could hear even their footsteps or breaths. -The Emperor is great and strong. Someone in the group had begun to pray, but his voice was abruptly silenced. -We will soon reach the chamber. Once there, things will be back to normal, but you must be very careful about your prayers in this place. -Be prepared. I don''t want to run into an ambush of demons after all this time - Emil''s orders reminded the whole platoon that they still had an enemy to face more dangerous than the strange place they were in. Just as the old man had said, half an hour later, they arrived at what looked like a chamber that seemed to have been brought from a totally different place. Not only had the landscape changed, leaving behind the hard rock floor to a smooth and molded marble floor, with walls of a totally different rock than the one seen before. It almost seemed as if the chamber had been brought from somewhere else and had been embedded in the same mountain, replacing the previous material and taking its place as if it were something natural. "It is still too early to be surprised. We still have to advance a little more," said the old man, lighting his lighter and bringing it closer to a part of the wall. The fire came to life throughout the room. It is a very old lighting system. Have you found out how many years it has been here? Vendria seemed excited, looking around and watching as the fire spread throughout the room. -Scholars from all over the world have tried to figure out what it is and where it came from, but they all contradict each other in their conclusions about it. As a young man, he listened to some of the debates, and they all seemed just as lost as the simple miners as to what it was. -The old man, though he must have been used to the view, had a wistful smile on his face as he looked around the chamber. The chamber was immense, with hundreds of pillars all leading a path to the center of it. Each pillar seemed to have the utmost detail and care. -Who is that old man? -Rodrik pointed to a statue at the side of the path, the figure of a beautiful and serious woman. It almost looked as if she was born of stone and would speak to them at any moment, so detailed did her figure appear. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. -No one knows. Some believed she was the goddess to whom this construction was given, but it was ruled out because she was not the only figure there. -You say there are more of these works? They would pay fortunes in any hive city for just one of these no matter who it is. -Vendria put her hand on the statue, while admiring all the details of it. -You''re not the first to think so, but no one has ever been able to take anything from this place. Rumor has it that the Inquisition itself tried to destroy the whole place with explosives, only to see the futility of their attempts. -They are all beautiful. - They had arrived at the hall of the statues, or so the miners called it because of the great quantity of them and the great variety that there was in all, without a clear relation of them. -Here are some soldiers or warriors. I have never seen uniforms like these, but it is obvious that some of them have an imperial aesthetic. -Aaron noticed that he was looking at some of the statues, which had armor and weapons from different eras. -They also look like some poets or saints of the empire or perhaps of much older times. -That is where many believe the problem lies; for many in the empire, humanity only followed heretical gods in the history before the emperor. -This time, it was not the old man who had expressed his opinion but Emil, who was leading the march. -So you think we are in something from the time before the empire. -For Vendria, it seemed to be a good idea. However, she was no scholar; she knew what a mystery the history of mankind was before the empire''s founding, and all records of it seemed to be carefully guarded by the inquisition. So it would make sense why she was interested in these ruins, -I don''t think so. Although it is said that the technology of that time is still better than today''s, it is impossible that we can''t recognize a part of it in their constructions. Emil''s conclusion seemed to have convinced everyone, since they began to explore the temple they had not seen a hint of a machine, the whole building seemed rudimentary but at the same time modern. Which only left each one of them with more questions and they seemed to understand how those scholars who had decided to discover more about this place felt. -Listen... that sound is the sound of battle. The platoon began to run towards the constant gunshots and screams that could be heard. The light from the camera, although enough to see the surroundings, did not help to see what was happening in that direction. -Shit old man, you promised we''d get there before any group. -We''d get there before that group of demons we saw their trail; they may not have been the only ones. -You''re right. That sounds like bolters. According to the records, demons don''t have any such weapon. -Prepare for contact, -There''s one floor down after you go down some stairs; that''s where the shots come from; it''s the end of the ruins.
Finally, after a short time, the platoon made contact with the hostiles. The enemy combatants were armed men in bulletproof armor covered by improvised combat uniforms, demonic cultists who had taken over the place and seemed to have been there for days. But the platoon had not faced the bloody battle they expected. They had all died once they arrived, with their severed and destroyed bodies all over the place as evidence that they had ever been here. Their faces of terror were something none of them could get out of their heads even if they looked away from them. -What the hell happened here? It''s only been about fifteen minutes since we heard the shots. -Hey, gear and weapons like this would have wiped us out in a matter of minutes, and yet they didn''t stand a chance. -Be alert; whatever it is, it''s still here. -Emil''s order returned the platoon to their training, and everyone got ready. Silence fell all over the place, while the whole platoon barricaded themselves in their places as much as they could, waiting for the attack of whatever was lurking around them. Chapter 3 -Shit, I knew I was going to die, I knew this would be a bad idea,¡± Reenek cried as he tried to grab his rifle in his hands. -Shut up you idiot, I swear I will kill you if you don''t,¡± Markin grabbed the collar of his uniform pulled him towards him, and screamed in his face. No one else seemed to care about what was going on or they were too busy watching their surroundings. -Here he comes,¡± said someone in the group, pointing in a direction where they could hear someone coming towards them. This caused everyone to point in that direction. The footsteps sounded closer and closer and more desperate to reach them, and it wasn''t long before a figure emerged from the darkness and was greeted by a few shots from the most nervous of the bunch. -Shit it''s a cultist, Vendria and Rondrik secure him, let''s see if we can find out more about what we''re up against. The two did not hesitate to follow his orders as they went out to drag the cultist who seemed to still be alive despite the gunfire. While the rest of the platoon covered his back. They soon brought him to the center of the group and left him in front of Emil. -What did you and your group face? -It''s coming... It''s coming... -His voice was losing strength with each moment, as he became more ungraceful than he could handle on the ground. -What is coming, tell me what are we facing?¡± Emil felt annoyed knowing that she would not have much time left to live. -The executrix of sins- His eyes lost strength as they lost any glimmer of life left in them. Everyone was silent as they looked at the dead cultist, thinking about what he meant by his last words. No one had ever heard of anything like that. -Do you know anything about this old man? -said Rondrik. -No, I''ve never heard of such a title. -He looked confused with everything that was happening while staring at the dead cultist. -Get it out of your heads, I''ve heard stories of demons so powerful that just thinking about their titles can corrupt your mind. -That information doesn''t help me to do it, you idiot. -Markin exclaimed. They waited for several minutes until they heard nothing and nothing seemed to approach them. -We will have to continue, we don''t know when the others will arrive and I don''t want to fight a battle on both sides. - roared Emil, his voice echoing with concern. Emil dedicated himself to observe each potential danger while they continued advancing, he was aware that their mission would not be easy and that they could die without success. Although at least he hoped that he could die knowing what the cause was. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. That''s why he understood that everyone was nervous and was acting like recruits scared by the slightest sound that happened in the environment, it didn''t help that there was blood all over the place. But something told him that they would soon find more bodies. He was proven right less than ten minutes later, with dozens of bodies sprawled on the ground, and all the bodies this time had a scorching burn on their stomachs. ¡°there''s someone alive here and I don''t think it''s a cultist.¡± They all approached to check the recruit''s words, only to find the figure of a woman on a stone altar. Her beauty was immaculate and her black attire appeared to be so elaborate that a single piece could be worth a fortune. Emil was from a baroness family and had never seen clothes like the ones she had. -She looks like a noble hostage that has been brought for a sacrifice. -We can ask her, she seems to be awakening.
I was aware of my death as soon as it happened, but I had no idea where I had come from after it, it was pure darkness from the beginning. I was somewhat comfortable until the primal desire within me asked for some light. Which caused a world of pure white as far as the eye could see, time passed and I just walked around hoping to find something to see, until deep desire was born in me again, and the longing for a homemade in the middle of the pure white, a simple house. The house I had grown up in as a child. Time passed and my desires were increasing, but there was one that I could not fulfill, companionship. The absolute loneliness was devastating, hundreds of thousands of hobbies came to my mind but none of them could take away that feeling. But time was torture and I didn''t know how much I had spent in this place, the memories of my previous life seemed to fade little by little. Something that was to be expected, my body seemed to be timeless but the brain still had its limitations, until I came up with the idea of changing my body just like the environment. Something that turned out to be much easier than expected. It became my next hobby such as devising, how to create even more bodies, all to come up with the result of a perfect body for the human being in every way. Playing with your own brain gives you risky ideas and if you add to that a lot of time in solitude, things happen that I will regret forever and I had given it a name. Those experiences had caused a desire for the first time in me, to end it all, but just when I was about to do it something had changed. They had called for me, I had never heard that name or title but I knew it was me they wanted. They were begging for my help between sobs and their pain was felt in each of their words. Something was killing them. For the first time in a long time, someone was talking to me and they were being killed. -They must be punished,¡± "It" said. ¡°That''s right, they couldn''t take this away from me.¡± -We can save them. ¡°We have never tried anything like this, we could finish them off too¡± -I didn''t know how they knew me, but they seemed to have a high image of me, they loved me some of them. -They are being tortured to death, they ask you to avenge their dead and give them a quick death. -His voice was merciless, but he was right, I understood the intention of every word they said to me, their fear and their thirst for revenge. ¡°I will give you the torch, make sure you comply with everything they ask¡± I was being cowardly, it was something I knew, but I didn''t want to disappoint them because of my doubts. My conscience was almost completely lost, as I saw theirs resurface and very soon everything was solved, their pain was over and even better it seemed that some of them had survived. But the reactions to her actions had not been few, a gap had opened in her reality, i could feel it. I could feel what was beyond and the terrifying dangers on the other side could also feel it. Right now I could close that gap, avoid those terrors and live again without danger. But there were people who needed me beyond and I did not want to return to loneliness. ¡°It¡± understood her intentions and decided to cross, i was anxious to see what was beyond but for now she would have to rest, her body had also received damage and i would have to focus on repairing it while ¡®It¡¯ took care of what was to come.