The Emperor’s Angel of Death

Seeing the sudden action of his attendant, Arnie immediately raised his head and saw, above them, a corpse as bloodless as a frozen fish hanging from the ceiling.

It was a strong middle-aged man, completely naked and with a shaved head, his eyes open and staring, his throat cut as if he were livestock bled before slaughter, a clean cut extending from his neck to his ear.

At the same time, his hands and feet were bound and hooked with a sharp metal hook, piercing his ankles.

Suhkrab, having seen much of the world, showed no surprise, cleared his throat, and said:

"Gyorgi, don't be alarmed. This is the Temple of Omnissiah. Be reverent."

The leading priest then chanted a prayer.

"All life returns to the embrace of Omnissiah."

Then Suhkrab walked to Arnie's side.

"Young master, let's go."

Pale-faced, Arnie nodded and began to walk. In truth, he wasn't shocked by the corpse. He had seen all kinds of corpses in his days in the military. No corpse could surprise him anymore.

What truly shocked him was the way people were manipulated like livestock. Above them, a conveyor belt hung a row after row of human bodies, each with their head bowed, frozen stiff in the cold. There were old and young, male and female, pale skin and dark skin, emaciated bodies exposed.

The human superiority proclaimed by the priests seemed as laughable here as a broken Aquila trampled in the mud.

The Mechanicum's standardization was embodied in cold cruelty. Each person was pierced with a hook, tagged on their ears and toes, and had an identical cut on their throat.

Arnie hoped in his heart that these people were rioters, but he saw tattoos on some of them, a common type among the Astra Militarum.

Perhaps, for the Magi of the Mechanicum, the honor and dignity of the dead were worthless.

The next room was even larger and colder.

The floors and walls were clean, off-white, colored by different colored lights. Rows of neat assembly lines worked busily, clumsy mechanical arms rising and falling, conveyor belts rolling forward, tools gleaming in the frost, various screens flashing on humming cogitator arrays, and lifeless servitors moving back and forth. At the head of each conveyor belt stood a member of the Adeptus Mechanicus, their red robes stained with frost, and the metal on their bodies as cold as their hearts.

Arnie didn't want to look at the things on the conveyor belt, but his attention was completely out of his control. Some corpses had their arms and legs broken off or were being removed, their torsos and heads still intact. Near the walls were huge steel devices written in binary language, and cages in the corners held rows of specimen jars, their glass covered in frost, inside were floating brains—

And those corpses that had been cut open would have higher-ranking personnel cut open their skulls and begin the real modification. Those brains that could no longer be used would be transplanted with new brain wetware according to the actual condition of the body. And where would those corpses that were confirmed to have little value be sent?

Arnie remembered the previous food processing plant—

"This is Magos Phi-Patrick."

They came to a huge cogitator array. Suhkrab walked up to a priest in crimson robes with silver trim. His legs had been replaced by multi-structured metal prosthetic walking devices. His body was covered with a large number of modified metal organs. His back was high and bulging, showing some chemical reagent metal tanks, and his face, well, it was hard to call it a face, just a metal mask composed of many observation units and detectors.

Arnie was quite familiar with these people. On the one hand, there were Mechanicum priests serving in his family, and on the other hand, his father often invited some high-ranking Mechanicus members who worked in the hive city to his home as guests.

He did not perform the Aquila salute, but took out a cogwheel badge, held it in his hand, and bowed slightly.

"May the Omnissiah bless these great and holy machines. Greetings, Magos Phi-Patrick."

"Greetings, Commander Arnie."

The monotonous mechanical sound came from under the mask. Although some emotional unit simulation components were added, it was still difficult to speak with the tone of a living person.

Moreover, while he was speaking to Arnie, the mechanical arm behind him kept tapping on the cogitator array, showing superb multitasking skills.

"Magos, I heard you have three Termite Assault Drills here?"

"I told Mr. Suhkrab this."

"Uh, yes, we plan to launch a quick strike against those traitors and strive to end the battle in the shortest possible time, so we hope to borrow those three Termite Assault Drills."

The mechanical Magos's visual observation unit flickered slightly, and then replied:

"You may."

Arnie was a little surprised by his straightforwardness. He even thought that he would at least make some conditions.

Then he immediately realized that Suhkrab had probably already negotiated the conditions with him, or reached some kind of deal, but the specific content was probably related to the planet's mining operations. After all, Arnie's father was still the main logistics person in charge of the expeditionary force, and there were still many benefits that could be exchanged. In other words, it didn't matter whether he came this time or not.

Suhkrab's intention for him to come here was obviously not only to get to know this Magos who might be closely related to his family's business in the future, but more likely to make him realize the truly "cruel" side of war and weaken his unnecessary compassion.

Arnie wasn't sure if his views had loosened, but looking at those corpses, he suddenly realized that there was indeed an insurmountable gap between himself and the soldiers.

"Commander Arnie, why did you refuse my request to use the fallen soldiers of your regiment? We are now in urgent need of a large amount of biomass. Burying them in the ground or burning them is an unnecessary waste."

Hearing the question suddenly raised by the other party, Arnie pondered for a moment and replied:

"Because they are my soldiers."

"Soldiers are just consumables. They have a 1% overlap in positioning and function with servitors."

Arnie pursed his lips. He didn't like this way of speaking, and he also found that his views hadn't wavered.

"This is a promise, and also an obligation. I have the right to let them die, and I also have the responsibility to let them leave with dignity."

The Magos looked at him, said nothing, and turned to continue his work.

Arnie also borrowed the Termite Assault Drills he needed as he wished. Then he found Orlanos and told him his decision. The other party said nothing, just asked for a lot of weapons and equipment. Arnie was not stingy and gave him whatever he wanted, as much as he wanted.