Chapter 106: Feudal World
Vaporis, as a feudal world, still maintained a social system similar to the Middle Ages.
On the planet, apart from the armed forces of the Knight House, there was only a token Planetary Defence Force stationed here by the Winterscale Dynasty.
The rulers were still these Knight-nobles.
It was laughable, really. They possessed Knight mechs, yet the commoners under the rule of this Knight House lived lives without even electric lights.
These Knights restricted the development of these people, giving them no opportunity to learn. Only their own retainers and attendants could enjoy the benefits brought by civilization.
Tattered linen clothing barely covered their frail bodies.
Yet, the harvesting of agricultural products was done by various mechanical constructs.
They only knew how to use them, not the principles behind them.
For these serf-like commoners, learning to read or understanding various mechanical concepts was, in the eyes of the Knight House, completely superfluous and unnecessary.
So when the Knight House chose to completely betray the Imperium and join Chaos, these commoners lacked even the most basic power to resist, unlike the citizens of a hive world.
Perhaps a Space Marine could be killed by crude weapons, but an Imperial Knight, absolutely not.
The Knight House, leading their private armies, swept through all the settlements, forcing everyone to accept the "gifts" of the Blood God.
If you were unwilling to join in the slaughter for the Blood God, then you became a sacrifice for others.
The number of Chaos cultists, under the devastating power of the Knights and their long-standing authority, grew like a snowball.
The Raiders' warships had already approached the planet's orbit.
Edgar looked at the planet below. He had seen such worlds before. If this was not curbed, perhaps there was only one end awaiting this planet: an Exterminatus order.
"Commissar! Please proceed to the armory and change into a combat suit!"
"What do you mean? Are you planning to land on this world? There are only thirty thousand of you! Landing on a world with Knights now is suicide, is it not?"
Edgar did not approve of this action. A commissar's duty was to make soldiers charge when they should charge, but also to make them hold their ground when they shouldn't be sent to a pointless death.
However, in all his time as a commissar, Edgar had rarely had the opportunity to do the latter.
"I'm sorry, Commissar Edgar, but Lord Lucan's orders must be carried out!"
"Lord Lucan? Aren't all astropathic communications blocked? How did he give the order?"
But no matter what Edgar said, he could not change the fact.
The landing craft began to embark one Raider after another.
Edgar also braced himself and walked into a drop pod. He had already changed into a combat suit and was holding a C-14. If these Raiders were going, there was no reason for him, the commissar, to remain on the warship.
Edgar's mind continuously repeated "Emperor protect me."
The other Raiders, however, appeared much calmer.
It was the same old formula, the same old flavor.
The Banshees had already entered orbit to strike at the ground defense batteries.
The surviving Planetary Defence Force had provided the fleet with the coordinates for these batteries, but alas, they had long since stopped responding to communications.
The last communication had been the sounds of the traitor Knights breaking through their positions.
"Banshee 1, target destroyed."
"Banshee 2, target destroyed."
...…
As one Banshee after another completed its mission, the alarms in the drop pods also began to sound. The Raiders would seize a beachhead for the subsequent armored forces to land.
The drop pods launched. Distinct from Imperial drop pods, these interstellar drop pods descended towards the surface.
The target of this 5,000-man Raider force was a town, observed from orbit, that was currently being ravaged.
Besides the traitors who had pledged themselves to Khorne, a Knight Gallant and a Knight Styrix were also present on the battlefield.
"Run! Anna, run quickly!" Ymir urged his younger sister.
Ymir had spent all twenty years of his life centered around this town they lived in.
He had little knowledge of the outside world; the High King and the nobles did not allow commoners like them to leave the city at will.
He didn't know of the existence of the Imperium, nor did he even have a concept of the God-Emperor. All the ideas instilled in them were to serve the High King and his Knights; they were their masters.
They knew even less about what Chaos was, or what daemons were. He only knew that the high and mighty Knights seemed to have gone mad.
Although the Knights would usually make people participate in bloody gladiatorial combat, it had little to do with farming peasants like them. But now?
He had personally seen the Knights' retainers force their neighbor, Uncle Andrew, to engage in a life-or-death duel with his wife and child.
Uncle Andrew couldn't bring himself to do it, but his son had chopped off his own parents' heads, and afterwards, he seemed to have become a different person.
Ymir was very familiar with that fifteen-year-old boy; he was usually a quiet and timid person.
But now? His eyes were bloodshot, just like those crazed retainers of the Knights.
He seemed to be enjoying it all.
And the noble's Knight stood just outside the city walls, overlooking everything happening in this city.
"Brother… my legs are weak… I can't run…"
Ymir heard his sister's voice. Anna had already collapsed to the ground.
Her whole body trembled. She tried several times to get up but simply couldn't.
Everything happening around them made it impossible for this ten-year-old girl to take another step.
Ymir rushed forward and scooped Anna up. But just as he was about to flee, the noise he made still attracted the attention of those Khornate cultists.
Seeing Ymir and his sister, they immediately charged towards them, not showing any hesitation just because Anna was a child.
In their eyes, there was only the distinction between the strong and the weak, not between the old and the young.
Under the gaze of the Blood God, everyone had to fight. Only the strong were qualified to survive.
Ymir, of course, knew the consequences of being discovered. He knew he couldn't possibly bring himself to harm Anna, and likewise for her. And the result of that would be that both of them would be killed.
But how could he, who barely had enough to eat, possibly outrun a traitor influenced by the power of Khorne?
He put Anna down, picked up a nearby pitchfork, intending to make a final struggle. Seeing Ymir pick up a weapon, these Khornate cultists became even more excited. Killing someone who wouldn't fight back couldn't please Khorne, but since the opponent was willing to resist, that could be considered a basic form of combat.
Just as Ymir was about to be caught, a roaring sound came from the sky. The two Chaos Knights, who had been standing motionless, also looked up towards the sky.
Countless drop pods were plummeting towards them.
"Are those… shooting stars?" Ymir couldn't help but mutter. He had seen shooting stars at night, but so many in broad daylight – was that normal?
He had heard that you could make a wish on a shooting star. Although it had never come true, Ymir once again made a wish from the bottom of his heart.
"Save us…"
Several hundred drop pods landed directly in various parts of this town. Some Khornate cultists were even directly crushed to death.
As the hatches opened, the Raiders immediately began to attack every traitor in sight.
Many of these cultists were converted from illiterate peasants. Khornate corruption had already turned them into madmen who only knew how to fight.
Wielding choppas, they charged towards the Raiders.
But these mortals were not Orks; with just these weapons, they couldn't even breach their armor.
Soon, large numbers of Khornate cultists were killed.
Ymir watched these soldiers he had never seen before. They shouted "For the Dynasty!", although he didn't understand what that meant.
But these people had protected him and his sister, and had killed those who had fallen into madness.
His wish had come true!
"Get up, children! Hide in a house! This is no place for civilians!"
Edgar had also joined the battle. He urged these two civilians to get away from here.
The mortal rebels were easy enough to deal with; the difficult part was those two corrupted Knights over there.
(End of Chapter)
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