ca-book Chapter 694: The Fate of the Fools
Chapter 694: The Fate of the Fools
Chapter 694: The Fate of the Fools
"Battle Moon is coming!"
Vera Nora said with a look of horror.
Even though she had read the original novel of "Beast Wars" and had been exposed to a lot of top-secret intelligence sent back from the front lines, when she saw with her own eyes the "new moon" that was much bigger, rounder and clearer than the moon emerging in the deep blue and hazy night sky, she still felt an indescribable shock.
Her astronomical knowledge told her that the scene before her meant that either the battle moon was larger than the moon, or the battle moon was closer to the earth than the moon.
Fei Yi also stared blankly at the sky.
The half-open mouth looks quite cute.
"As expected, isn't it?"
Fu Qinghai nodded calmly, and took the two women with him and walked back to the secret base. The two women were led by him and looked back at the bright and strange moon in the sky from time to time. The reflection of the sunlight made the ugly abstract face composed of artificial hills on the moon clearly visible.
And around that big face, there were tiny flashes of light, and after the flashes, meteors began to streak across the hazy deep blue sky. This silent beauty represented a cruel fact - that was the fire caused by the friction of the destroyed orbital facilities falling in the atmosphere.
“Bang…Crack.”
Until Fu Qinghai closed the door and locked it.
The scene in the sky disappears from the eyes.
Fu Qinghai sat down again at the dining table leisurely. His relaxed expression and posture made Vera feel a little relieved. She seemed no longer so tense, so she also pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Does the Inquisition know that you are a reincarnation? Or, does anyone in the upper echelons of the empire know about the existence of reincarnations?"
Fu Qinghai knocked on the table and asked seriously, bringing the topic back to the topic. It was as if the panic riots that were erupting in the hive outside, and the orc battle moon that suddenly appeared in the sky, were just a trivial episode.
"The Inquisition does not know about the existence of Reincarnationists. My mother destroyed all the information about them before she left office. I don't know whether other high-ranking officials in the empire know about it. It is highly likely that they don't know either. The Inquisition is the institution with the strongest intelligence capabilities."
Vera said, shaking her head.
"To protect you?"
Fu Qinghai looked at her and asked.
Vera nodded silently.
Fu Qinghai couldn't help but smile.
Vera kept calling her her "cheap mother", but in fact, what Sid Nora did for this "cheap daughter" was not that simple. Just to protect his daughter, he violated his duty as the Grand Master of the Inquisition and concealed the important fact of the existence of the Reincarnators from the Empire.
"It's good not to know that reincarnations exist."
Fu Qinghai leaned back in his chair and nodded:
“That eliminates one variable.”
For those who know the plot and want to use it to their advantage, the fewer variables the better.
Fu Qinghai picked up the character cards spread out on the dining table and looked at the portraits of the twelve people again.
The High Lords Council consists of twelve people at most.
He didn't know whether it was because GW's screenwriters lacked knowledge or there was some other hidden secret. This setting, just the number "twelve", showed a lack of political common sense.
Generally speaking, in small parliaments that require a show of hands to make key decisions, the number of people participating in the vote is set to an odd number to avoid tie votes, for example: the Security Council has only five permanent members, and a country's Supreme Court has nine justices. Occasionally, the number of people becomes even due to additions or other reasons, but it will not be set to an even number from the beginning.
Twelve high lords... This setting has been full of endless wrangling from the very beginning. What was they thinking?
Fu Qinghai curled his lips and shook his head.
Regarding the point Vera made earlier:
The Reincarnators may have an impact on Terran politics.
Fu Qinghai thinks this is not true.
Not to mention that the High Lords are heavily guarded, and their life and death cannot be decided so easily by players. Even if some players are really powerful and can threaten the High Lords, the essence of the High Lords is the spokesperson nominated by various interest groups within the empire. If the entire interest group is not completely eliminated but only a spokesperson is killed, the overall situation cannot be changed. At most, another one can be nominated - Hess died on the front line, didn't the Imperial Guard immediately elect a new commander-in-chief?
How did Wangerich do it? The Grand Master of the Assassin's Chamber not only killed most of the High Lords, but also replaced them with people loyal to him, or simply a Callidus Assassin disguised as a High Lord to continue to rule, so that the entire parliament would obey him.
So just killing people is useless.
So what if we change our thinking?
Is it okay to just kill Wangorichi directly?
Objectively speaking, killing the Grand Master of the Assassin's Court himself may greatly change the plot, and even completely change the plot direction and the final ending. However, Fu Qinghai carefully analyzed the feasibility and felt that it was not very feasible - what kind of monsters and demons are there in the six major assassin temples?
You say you are skilled in martial arts, but the potion-berserker Iverson Assassin can fight the Space Marines head-on; you say you sneak in quietly, but the Callidus Assassin can be called the Mystique of Warhammer 40K; you say you poison secretly, but Wangorich himself is a Veninum Assassin poison master; you say you have boundless magic power, but the Chulisas Assassin can make your magic useless...
An assassination attempt is likely to be discovered by the Vanus Assassins during the planning stage, and then be dealt with by the Iverson Assassins and the Vindicare Assassins during the preparation stage.
So, to sum up, we need to consider the impact of the reincarnations, but we don't need to consider the impact of the reincarnations in particular. Unless they have a huge military force like Qingshan Khan, the impact they can cause is very limited. The game of Beast Wars is huge. If you don't put down enough chips and just do some petty thefts and small fights, you are not qualified to play at the table.
The possibility of the plot being changed by players is not very high.
The real effect of Vera's words was to awaken Fu Qinghai.
It made him realize that a group of dying people also have value.
In fact, this was not the first time he had done such a thing: during the Iron Belt War, Fu Qinghai discovered that the Sage-Ruler of the Mechanicus had inadvertently leaked information to the Dark Mechanicus. Using this handle, he blackmailed the Sage-Ruler several times and obtained a batch of free Swordtail-class interceptors, which later became the main force of the Chapter's air superiority fighters.
It is difficult for other players to significantly change the plot...
Fu Qinghai thought silently in his heart:
But I can do it, and I will!
Just replacing a group of incompetent high lords? His previous plan was too conservative. He could no longer pursue the strategy of hiding in the border and quietly cultivating the land. It was time for Qingshan Khan's name to appear on the historical stage of Warhammer 40K. Throughout the history of the human empire, there was no other moment like the Beast Wars, which gave Fu Qinghai, a Space Marine, the opportunity to completely control the High Lords' Council.
Even if it's just for a period of time.
It is also enough for him to gain infinite benefits.
Fu Qinghai thought of the key point.
I couldn't help but lick my lips.
He was a little excited.
Vera looked at the man in front of her who was thinking with his chin up. His eyes kept changing, as if he had come to some conclusion or made some kind of decision. After waiting for a long time, she couldn't help but feel curious and asked:
"Hey, I've told you everything I know, so why don't you share some of your information with me?"
Fu Qinghai looked up at her:
"What do you want to know?"
"You won't come in pairs."
Vera's eyes also sparkled with excitement:
"Your warband is here too, right?"
Vera felt that she had told the truth. She had not experienced the Second Battle of the Iron Ring, so she was looking forward to seeing what the invincible regiment described by her cheap mother looked like, and how it was different from other Astartes regiments. Could it resist the ferocious beasts?
My chapter...is smaller in scope.
Fu Qinghai smiled when he heard that.
That's my legion!
Do you know what they call me?
In the absence of the Primarch, I am the Legion Commander!
Although he thought so in his heart, Fu Qinghai did not pretend to be useless with Vera. If things are not kept secret, harm will come. Although the female judge should be trustworthy at present, it makes no sense for her to share intelligence in both directions.
"What will happen if you know?"
Fu Qinghai brushed her off with a casual remark.
After saying that, he pushed open the dining table, stood up and walked towards the door.
Seeing this, Fei Yi immediately stood up and followed.
"Where are you going?"
Vera asked, looking at his back.
"To the place where we first met."
Fu Qinghai said without turning his head.
…………
Terra, the Imperial Palace, the Hall of Glory.
The entire Hall of Glory was in visibly chaos.
Because the battle moon came too suddenly and caught people off guard, the high lords didn't even have time to blame each other. Up to this moment, they were still busy confirming the news with their subordinates and followers to confirm the authenticity of the news.
However, the truth is beyond doubt, and any previous and current attempts to block the news or keep it secret have been in vain. The moon is in the sky, and you can see it by looking up, at night and during the day.
Billions of people on Terra's surface can see it.
"Where are the Lansong people? Why haven't they come yet?"
The Supreme Commander of the Empire, Lord Guilliman, Udo, asked, looking at the empty seat of the Supreme Lord Admiral.
"As far as I know, Admiral Lanson returned to the naval fleet in orbital space an hour ago, sir."
An attendant nearby answered in a low voice.
"What does he want to do? Why didn't he attend the meeting? Even if he didn't come in person, there wasn't even a holographic projection?"
Udo spewed out another string of questions.
However, no one around could answer.
The entire Glory Hall was in a mess.
Followers kept coming in and out to report the news.
"There are riots happening in the Tashkent Hive and the Jericho Hive? Should we bring this matter to the Hall of Glory? Where is the arbitrator of the Ministry of Justice? Let Zeke handle it! The Twelve Supremes of the Empire need to discuss more important matters."
The confusing information made Wu Duo very impatient. He waved his hand and instructed the Ministry of Justice to handle the matter.
“We are severely understaffed.”
Minister of Justice Zeke had a pair of tired eyes full of red bloodshot and large eye bags. His entourage came and went. He leaned his hands on the edge of the conference table and said in a hoarse voice:
"We are in urgent need of support. Lucifer Black Guards, Imperial Guards, any unit will do. Otherwise, we will lose control of these hive cities. I am not exaggerating!"
"Lucifer's Black Guards need to guard the Imperial Palace area and protect the High Lords present here. They cannot be sent to the distant Tashkent Hive and Jericho Hive to suppress the riots."
The newly appointed commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guard, Williot, shook his head and refused. The Lucifer Black Guard was the only Imperial Guard regiment stationed in Holy Terra.
"The Imperial Guards will not set foot outside the palace either."
Interior Minister Ekas also shook his head and said:
“This is the agreement between us and them.”
The High Lords took inventory of all the Imperial troops stationed on Terra and were suddenly surprised to find that there were no troops available in the heart of the human empire.
"Originally we had another company of Space Marines available for deployment. The Imperial Fists were stationed in the Daylight Wall Company of the Imperial Palace. Unfortunately, Lanson proposed to send them to the Adamantua Sector not long ago, and everyone present voted in favor."
Navigator Ambassador Gibran reminded lightly.
The high lords were silent for a moment after hearing this.
"Then we'll just sit back and watch..."
Zeke hadn't finished his anxious words yet.
A female voice suddenly interrupted the conversation:
"The Firebee Legion also has several Titans stationed in Terra and the city of Scathhalax, as well as some of the Knight Mechas of the Knights of the Taranis Family, a vassal of the Firebee Legion."
The city of Scathhalax is a permanent enclave of the Mechanicum on Holy Terra, where a number of Titan Legions, Knight Families and Skitarii are stationed to guard it.
"Are you serious, Winand?"
The Minister of the Interior looked at the representative of the court in shock:
"Send the Titan Legion? We are here to suppress the riots of the unruly people, not to raze the two hives to the ground."
"I'm not sending an army of Titans."
Wienand sat calmly in his seat, his eyes swept coldly over all the high lords in front of him, and said:
"I want to remind everyone here that in addition to the Imperial Navy and the Imperial Guard, the Adeptus Mechanicus is also a part of the Imperium of Man! Mars not only has troops on Terra, but also troops throughout the solar system, fleets, soldiers, war machines... The Ork Battle Moon is right above our heads at this moment."
"And where are the Martian troops?"
The representative of the Wei Tribunal asked sternly:
"Where is the Forge Commander?"
The High Lords looked at each other in bewilderment. Because the news of the Battle Moon descending over Terra was too sudden, they did not notice that the Mars Forge Commander was not present at the meeting.
Of course, this is also related to Mars's special and transcendent status. The Forge Commander is mostly doing his own research behind closed doors, and rarely participates in the voting of the Imperial Senate and the High Lords Council. Even if there is a vote, it is through communication links and holographic projections, rather than in person.
“Now is not the time to blame each other.”
Udo sighed and said:
"Take the initiative to contact Mars and continue to contact Lansong. Also, notify all the armies of the empire, the nine founding chapters, the five star domain fleets, any, I mean any force with interstellar navigation capabilities, and ask them to rush to Terra's aid immediately."
"Can you make it?"
An Wa, the abbot of Xingyu Court, whispered.
"What if it's too late?"
Abbot Sak of the Star Torch Court lamented:
"Do we have any other options?"
"No!"
Just as the high lords were close to reaching a consensus, a loud shout suddenly rang out from the end of the conference table. Everyone turned their heads and saw a woman wearing a gorgeous Gothic corset dress and a beautifully braided spiral bun suddenly standing up, clenching her fists and saying:
"It's too late. Stop deceiving yourself and stop comforting yourself. Everyone here knows very well that it's too late to ask for help now! We have no way of counting on those armies far away, but we can save ourselves!"
Merchant Fleet spokeswoman, Yuskina Tull.
As the representative of all Rogue Traders in Terra, Yuskina and her family possess enormous wealth far exceeding that of anyone present. The combined effects of rejuvenation and life extension surgeries have allowed this centuries-old woman to remain youthful and beautiful. Her high-spirited posture and unwavering tone at this moment demonstrate the adventurous spirit and high-spiritedness that are unique to Rogue Traders.
"How do you want to save yourself?"
Udo asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Look at that satellite.”
Yuskina raised her finger to the sky:
"How big is it? Even if every inch of the satellite is full of greenskins, how many orcs can it accommodate? And what about Terra? This is the birthplace of mankind. We have a population of tens of billions. Each of us can drown the Orks on the satellite with a spit! Why should we be afraid of them?"
The high lords were slightly stunned after hearing this.
Yuskina continued to explain her plan.
It's more of an incitement than a plan:
"We can launch a holy war. We don't have troops, but we have faith! Faith in the Emperor is our most powerful weapon. We can organize and arm our most pious and loyal people. The navy is no longer reliable, but the Rogue Traders still have a fleet! We can gather all the merchant ships stranded on Terra and transport the holy war troops to land on the orc-armed satellite. The unparalleled faith and overwhelming numbers are enough to overwhelm them! The green-skinned aliens will eventually know that Holy Terra cannot be violated, and victory will belong to the Human Empire!"
After saying this, Yuskina turned around and stared at the Pope of the state religion, Meslin, who was sitting diagonally opposite her.
"I need the cooperation of the Imperial Church."
Yuskina finally said.
…………
Terra, the slums of the Eternal City hive.
Fu Qinghai wore a hood and a large cloak. Feiyi and Vera, who were dressed in the same way, followed behind him. They walked hurriedly in the dirty and narrow streets of the hive city. Occasionally they looked up. The strange big face was still hanging high in the sky, staring at all humans on the surface with malice.
"Battle Moon or no action?"
Fu Qinghai asked as he walked.
"Yes. Apart from destroying Damocles Airport and its surrounding facilities when it first appeared, the Battle Moon has not made any moves so far. It has not bombed the surface, nor has it deployed landing troops. I don't know what these greenskins are thinking."
Vera nodded.
"Psychological tactics."
Fu Qinghai said without hesitation:
"Perhaps humans are still unwilling to admit it, but the Orks are now using psychological tactics to defeat the enemy without fighting. Even though they have lost orbital air superiority, after experiencing the baptism of the Siege of Terra, the numerous fortresses and underground fortifications on Terra's surface are still enough to give the Ork landing troops a hard time. In the past, the greenskins would not consider these losses, and their minds were full of thoughts about fighting, but now they will. They want to create huge pressure to force humans to collapse, so that they can occupy the capital of the human empire without losing a single soldier."
"agree."
Vera agreed.
The three of them climbed up the spiral staircase protruding from the edge of the tower, passed through the arch, and walked into the crowded street. Several servo skulls floated over the heads of the crowd, and blue holographic projections were projected from their eye sockets:
A woman with a black captain's cloak inlaid with gold thread hanging from her shoulders was standing on a high platform, waving her arms and giving a passionate speech. Beside her stood a white-haired old man wearing a dark blue velvet robe and a triple-gem crown on his head.
"Yuskina, the spokeswoman for the merchant fleet."
Vera Nora glanced and whispered:
"And the Pope of the Ecclesiarchy, Meslin."
"Zizizi...We must unite!"
Servo skull and jaw synchronized sound:
"Unite and destroy those aliens. Pick up your weapons and strengthen your faith. The orcs are vulnerable. The Emperor will bless us, and his most devout servant stands by my side. Now, join the crusade, we will complete the assembly at Lion's Gate Skyport, and then completely wipe out the blasphemous moon!"
"You heard me."
Vera turned her head and looked at Fu Qinghai:
"They called on the people to rally and ascend to the Battle Moon."
"Suicidal act."
Fu Qinghai said expressionlessly.
Above the Endin Hive World, more than 8,000 Space Marines from seven regiments landed on the Battle Moon. During their advance into the depths of the satellite, they were once in a stalemate and were almost pushed back by the Orks. It was simply a pipe dream to gather a group of civilians and want to occupy the Battle Moon.
"I know it's a suicide act, but don't you care?"
Vera asked anxiously, even stopping for a moment:
"I am only a trainee Inquisitor, but you have the power to stop them, your Chapter, your Fleet..."
Fu Qinghai turned around and looked at Vera:
"But why should I stop them?"
"Millions of people will die..."
"Your wording was not precise enough."
Fu Qinghai interrupted her ruthlessly:
"You have to add a qualifier - millions of ignorant, blind, fanatical people with low cognitive level who really believe that faith can replace macro cannons, light spears and torpedoes to defeat the orcs will die. What the merchant ship leaders and the pope of the state church are doing now is essentially a kind of screening, screening out the fools in the crowd and sending them to die."
In Fu Qinghai's opinion, the peasant crusade organized by Yuskina was in some aspects very similar to the cultists in the movie "Zhou Chu Eliminates Three Evils", foolish, fanatical and unrepentant.
"So the lives of the fools are not lives?"
Vera looked up at Fu Qinghai and asked in a low voice:
“Do ignorant people deserve to be exploited by their rulers?”
“The lives of the ignorant are also lives.”
Fu Qinghai also looked down at Vera and said:
"But their lives are not worth such a huge price to pay! Do you know how much resources it takes to train a brand new alien space marine? Do everything possible to obtain gene seeds, screen qualified candidates, transform, train, equip weapons, vehicles and power armor... My warriors can sacrifice at any time, but they will not die for a group of fools!"
"Maybe they're not all fools."
Vera is still trying to defend herself:
"Perhaps some of them knew that landing on the moon meant suicide, but their loyalty and courage made them unwilling to sit and wait for death."
"You're right, maybe there are such people."
Fu Qinghai raised his head and looked into the distance.
This Peasant Crusade organized by the merchant ship leader is very similar to the Warhammer Boxer Rebellion in the 32K era. You cannot deny that it contains certain positive ideas such as loyalty to the emperor, patriotism, and national salvation, but it is more of feudal superstition and ignorance.
"So when everything is over, I will settle accounts one by one, settle accounts with those who initiated this holy war, and those who condoned it, and give an explanation to those people who are destined to die on the Battle Moon. This is the only thing I can do."
After saying this, Fu Qinghai turned around and continued walking forward.
…………