Steel & Oil: Warhammer 32K

"As the price of victory in the Siege of Terra, most of the Imperial Fists today have already lost their Sus-an Membrane and Betcher's Gland."

"So that's how it is... But these warriors were converted long before the Great Heresy. Chapter Master Sorn, I trust your Sus-an Membrane and Betcher's Gland still function normally?"

Sorn nodded, confirming Lin's statement. But before Lin could say anything, he continued: "Precisely because of this, I hope that after the battle you can provide the Imperial Fists with some Gene-Seeds."

"?"

Lin hadn't expected Sorn to make such a request. He furrowed his brow and cast Sorn a questioning look. Sorn, for his part, calmly explained his thinking.

"Though we are on the brink of annihilation, this is also an opportunity to reconstitute the Imperial Fists. I hope we can use the most original Gene-Seeds to rebuild a true Imperial Fists."

"Those warriors—even though their Gene-Seeds have developed defects, I don't believe that makes them false sons of Dorn." Lin only wanted to gloss over the topic.

"I am not denying the glory of those warriors. Kurande is likewise a newly raised son of Dorn, and his resolve is something even I admire. But neither will I overlook the symbolic significance of the Gene-Seed; a parent Chapter with intact seed will surely command an appeal far greater than before."

Sorn's gaze turned to the Black Templars off to one side. A small number of Black Templars warriors had returned aboard the Hunter, and they were now passing by Sorn and Lin, heading back to their own formation.

The Black Templars.....

Lin had formed a judgment in his heart about Sorn's intentions.

The Black Templars—a successor chapter founded by Sigismund, the former first-company captain of the Imperial Fists.

In accordance with the requirements of the Codex Astartes, Dorn personally reorganized the Imperial Fists into a standard Codex chapter, to demonstrate the Imperial Fists' obedience to the Codex. But Dorn—who had always felt that Guilliman had merely written a roll of toilet paper—handed all of the Legion's treasures to Sigismund, his most beloved scion, and had him found the Black Templars, a successor chapter that exploited a loophole in the Codex.

And these treasures even included the Gloriana-class battleship that the Emperor had bestowed upon him back then—the Eternal Crusader.

That had originally been the Seventh Legion's flagship.

Although the Imperial Fists still held Terra, commanding the ancient star fortress Shanzheng, the favoritism Dorn himself displayed placed the Black Templars' influence on a par with the Imperial Fists among the sons of Dorn.

This issue would have been nothing in itself—after all, the Imperial Fists were stationed at Terra year-round, so having a big brother out campaigning abroad year-round was a good thing for the Fists' lineage.

But now, with the Imperial Fists on the brink of being wiped out and the Ultimate Wall reassembled once more...

"You're worried about the question of leadership over the Ultimate Wall?" Lin cut straight to the heart of the matter.

"I do have such considerations," Sorn answered. "But in any case, rebuilding an Imperial Fists free of genetic defects is absolutely a matter of lasting benefit for generations to come."

"On this matter, I think you'd do well to consult the opinion of your own first-company captain—the Ultimate Wall has reassembled the chapters of the sons of Dorn, but they remain chapters all the same."

Lin carefully arranged his words; he didn't want his deflection to seem too direct: Kurande was the Chapter Master of the Imperial Fists, and how to proceed should be his decision to make.

Sorn looked at Lin, his gaze turning sharp.

"I'd thought you weren't one to stick so closely to the rules, Magos Lin."

"I am merely respecting the rules as they stand. Castellan Evander entrusted these honorable warriors to me, so I must be responsible for them to the very end."

Sorn's gaze circled between Lin and the warriors of the Second Legion. After a long while, he slowly nodded.

"You're right, Magos Lin. For now I am merely the Chapter Master of the Exemplary Fists, so of course I cannot overstep my bounds. However, should I fall on the battlefield, then in the name of having once been a warrior of the Imperial Fists, I will donate my final Gene-Seed to the Imperial Fists."

A secret bitterness welled up in Lin's heart.

This seemed like a step back, but in truth it was a way of pressuring others. With Sorn taking the lead in making such a declaration, how could Admidel and the others—veterans who were likewise Imperial Fists—not be moved by it?

Although it was only a promise to hand over the seed after falling in battle, war inevitably comes with sacrifice. When that time came, the seed would have to be turned in, and then the Apothecary would conduct an inspection...

Lin understood clearly that Sorn did not yet quite trust them.

Rebuilding the Imperial Fists was of course his genuine intention, and he truly would hand his own Gene-Seed over to the Imperial Fists after his death. But beyond that, he had clearly also turned this idea into an opportunity to probe them further.

As the man who would succeed to the position of Imperial Fists Chapter Master after Kurande's death, this veteran of the Great Heresy era did indeed have a few tricks up his sleeve.

With things having developed to this point, in essence they were no longer permitted to refuse. Admidel, who saw the situation clearly, took the initiative to step forward and said in a low voice:

"Unlike the present-day Imperial Fists, we will inherit the will of Lord Castellan Evander. But before that, should we fall, we too will contribute to our Legion in the name of the Imperial Fists."

"That said, these matters will at least have to wait until after we return to the Shanzheng," Lin added from the side.

This answer satisfied Sorn; his brow unfurled and much of his doubt was set aside. "Perhaps this is the last contribution that we remnants of the old era can make to today's Imperial Fists."

He gave Lin and the others a slight nod to show his respect, then took his leave.

The Perfectionist and the warriors of the Exemplary Fists still needed him to direct them; he truly could not linger here long.

But the moment he left, Lin and the veterans of the Second Legion were left once more staring at one another in dismay.

"What do we do now?" Admidel asked.

Posing as Imperial Fists veterans to slip into the Ultimate Wall had certainly been exhilarating, but now they seemed to be suffering the backlash of that decision.

"What else can we do?" Lin waved his hand. "If it's too hard to handle, then don't handle it!"

There was no real countermeasure for this sort of thing at the moment, but there was still a long stretch of time before the Imperial Fists returned to the Shanzheng, and a turning point afterward was hardly out of the question.

It wasn't that Lin was being overly optimistic—it was just that this was all he could do for now. The opening of the War of the Beast had already been rendered unrecognizable by his hand; rather than insist on drawing inferences from the original storyline, it was better to counter each move as it came.

The veterans thought it over and found the logic sound, so they simply stopped fretting about it.

Lin rubbed his hands together. "Never mind all that—did you swipe any good stuff back from the Orks' side?"

This was what he cared about more right now.

The veterans of the Second Legion broke into laughter. After no short time spent together, they had come to understand Lin's character.

This unorthodox Magos was, in a sense, rather easy to please. So long as there was some novel gadget, he would be thoroughly satisfied.

"The fighting was fierce, but we did indeed find something out of the ordinary."

Admidel clapped his hands, signaling the tech-sergeant Gamas to bring up the thing they had taken into custody earlier. "You'll definitely be astonished when you see it."

This remark stirred Lin's curiosity, and he craned his neck expectantly. And what he saw did indeed make his jaw drop.

"A greenskin? How did you bring a greenskin back?!"

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