My Life as A Death Guard
Chapter 498: Malcador Is About to Strike Hard
"Mortarion, you need to listen carefully to what I'm about to say."
Malcador sat in an armchair, his sunken eye sockets glowing red as though he were burning with a fever.
After leaving the others behind, the old man had returned to his quarters aboard the Endurance—the only room filled with an abundance of useless decorations. Seated in the center on an ornate chair, he rested his staff across his knees.
Mortarion stood before him, staring at the seated Malcador.
In the past, no matter how harshly Malcador reprimanded him—even resorting to psychic force as a form of physical persuasion—he would never speak to a Primarch while sitting down. Other than the Emperor, everyone was expected to show a Primarch proper respect.
Mortarion's eyes shifted slightly. In the end, he remained silent and stood before Malcador, giving only a casual acknowledgment.
Malcador looked at him in silence.
The silence stretched on for so long that even Mortarion began to grow impatient before Malcador finally withdrew his meaningful gaze.
"This time, I'm afraid the odds are against me," Malcador spoke calmly.
Mortarion's heart skipped a beat, though nothing showed on his face.
Raising a hand, Malcador stopped him from speaking.
"A one-for-one trade. It's worth it. There's no need to mourn me."
"Trading for the Deceased One?"
Malcador nodded slightly.
Mortarion frowned.
"The value isn't equal," The Pale King pointed it out without hesitation.
Malcador froze for a moment, then burst into loud laughter.
"That's why I need additional strength!" the old man shouted.
He kept laughing, but there was an unmistakable bitterness in his voice.
Once he had laughed enough, Malcador took a deep breath.
"I truly don't know whether ending up with you at my side is a blessing or a curse."
"I am merely stating facts," Mortarion replied, folding his arms.
"Thank goodness the Imperium doesn't need you handling government affairs. Nor do I need to improve your already nonexistent political awareness and social skills."
Malcador waved a hand, deciding to let the matter drop.
His expression became serious again.
Mortarion wanted to argue further, but remembering the current situation, he moved his lips and ultimately said nothing.
"But you must listen carefully from here on," Malcador said,
"I won't be able to remain with you forever. Some things will have to be done by you."
The Imperial Regent paused and looked at Mortarion.
After receiving a confirming nod, he continued.
"Right now," purple light flickered along Malcador's staff, "He is in Slaanesh's palace. Meanwhile, the other three gods have reached a temporary understanding with the Emperor."
"We must draw His Black Domain back to the vicinity of his physical body."
"It's not inside his body?"
The Pale King immediately caught the subtle distinction.
"It is not inside his body," Malcador confirmed.
"The place where it will truly descend will be aboard the Vengeful Spirit."
Mortarion frowned but remained silent.
"As for why it won't happen on Cadia..."
Malcador spoke quietly.
"First, because bringing back Him cannot be an operation carried out solely by the Imperium. And once He returns, the war will resume. At that point, you can make use of His unique characteristics."
"And second..."
The old man stared directly into Mortarion's eyes.
"When He descends upon the Vengeful Spirit, I will go to Cadia and remove the seal placed upon his physical body."
"I'll go with you," Mortarion said without hesitation.
"My psychic abilities are no weaker than yours."
"No!" Malcador barked immediately.
Then he realized he had lost his composure.
Taking a deep breath, he continued, speaking slowly and firmly.
"When the time comes, you must remain aboard the Vengeful Spirit."
"To hold Horus back?"
Malcador nodded.
"Yes and no."
The Imperial Regent said, "To hold back Horus... to hold back the Four Gods... to hold back your friend."
Mortarion fell silent.
Beneath his hood, his amber eyes gleamed faintly.
Finally, he spoke softly, "That won't be easy."
Then he casually looked away.
"But I like it."
Malcador laughed through a fit of coughing.
"Just for a little while, at least until I pull out that arrow."
"Mm," Mortarion said. "Understood."
"I go to the Vengeful Spirit and hold all of them back. Then you go to Cadia and save Him."
Mortarion fell silent for a moment before speaking in an easy tone, "If I stake my life on it, I can make every last one of them suffer."
Malcador smiled at him.
"It won't be that simple. Though I suppose I finally understand why the leadership of the Death Guard has such decent political instincts."
He continued, "Have you seen Horus's fleet? What he has gathered from the dark side of the Imperium is far more than a single army. Fleets, Knights, Titans... The Khan was only able to board his ship before because Horus allowed it."
"The Death Guard fleet is no weak force," Mortarion replied. "And there is also the White Scars fleet. If it's merely a boarding assault, then with enough bloodshed, we can reach him."
"No."
Malcador waved his hand again.
"We will board without difficulty."
Mortarion narrowed his eyes.
There were two things in Malcador's words that he did not understand.
First: without difficulty.
Second: we.
Malcador patiently explained,
"As I said before, the Emperor and They have reached a temporary balance. The Three Gods are desperate to bring back the Deceased One. They will allow us to board without interference. When the time comes, the Vengeful Spirit will become a blazing psychic beacon."
"But after that..."
Malcador's voice grew quieter.
"You and the Khan must hold out until Guilliman and the reinforcements arrive."
"Holding Horus back also means preventing him, as much as possible, from breaking away to attack Cadia."
"Wait," Mortarion said. "Why we? You're going to the Vengeful Spirit as well?"
Malcador let out a long breath.
"Yes," the old man replied.
"...To catch up with an old friend."
"I don't understand."
"I need other sources of power. More power. What Slaanesh can provide alone is not enough."
Understanding dawned on Mortarion.
"I can share part of my strength with you. Could that replace... that being's power?"
Malcador smiled.
"It could."
Then Mortarion thought for a moment.
"So, are you going to catch up with Fulgrim or with Alpharius?"
"Alpharius," Malcador answered somewhat dejectedly.
But then the old man started laughing again.
For some reason, that irritated Mortarion.
Malcador was acting like one of those people who knew they were about to die and had already made peace with it.
"I once complained to the Deceased One," the old man said with a smile. "I said that if the Emperor had simply sat down and talked properly with the Primarchs, many tragedies could have been avoided."
"Then," Malcador paused, "He told me I had no right to criticize the Emperor."
In the original timeline, Alpharius had been personally mentored by Malcador.
The result had been the galaxy's greatest cryptic schemer.
In this timeline, Malcador had personally mentored both Alpharius and Mortarion.
His reputation had somehow become even worse.
Mortarion considered it.
"Fair enough."
Malcador coughed and stopped laughing.
Muttering to himself in a low voice, he seemed to be lamenting the consequences of his own actions.
"Alpharius..."
The old man's eyes grew cloudy.
"I don't know whether he truly... or whether that foolish child believed it again..."
"What?"
"Nothing."
"....So the sequence is this: We board the ship. You find Alpharius. After obtaining the power you need, you go to Cadia and save your friend. Meanwhile, I remain aboard the Vengeful Spirit and hold them back until you've rescued him and the reinforcements arrive?"
Malcador nodded in approval.
"That's correct."
Then he added, "You won't be alone when the time comes... Lorgar will help you as well."
Lorgar and Fulgrim would also board the Vengeful Spirit.
But at the same time...
"You need to think beyond that, Mortarion."
"If I succeed on Cadia, then the Deceased One aboard the Vengeful Spirit will depart. The pressure on all of you will increase dramatically. And you'll also need to coordinate his withdrawal."
Malcador's expression darkened.
"He may not be conscious when it happens."
The sound of Mortarion's heavy breathing filled the room.
"I can defeat Horus."
"That was before," Malcador replied dismissively.
"Do you know what the situation on the dark side of the Imperium looks like now?"
Mortarion remained silent.
"Slaanesh has completely thrown Their plans into disarray. Right now, across the dark side of the Imperium, on the worlds controlled by the False Gods, massive planetary-scale sacrifices are underway. Once the rituals are completed, not a single living thing will remain on an entire planet."
"They have completely abandoned any concern for the future. However many followers they possess, they are harvesting that many souls for power."
"And that means they will pour even more of that power into Horus. At the same time, the loss of Slaanesh's strength will make Horus even more unstable."
"A temporary balance has been achieved."
Mortarion repeated Malcador's earlier words in an oddly mocking tone.
"Only a temporary ceasefire," Malcador replied. "You cannot continue being this straightforward, Mortarion."
"Me? Straightforward?"
"Being silent and saying nothing does not make someone subtle," Malcador pointed that out cleanly and directly.
Mortarion let out a couple of sarcastic laughs.
"And yet, up until now, I have followed the Imperial Regent's instructions exactly."
"Have you?"
Malcador raised an eyebrow.
"Then there is indeed one more matter. Before we travel to the Vengeful Spirit, we must visit a certain individual who can save the Deceased One."
"I will sincerely thank him for his help," Mortarion said, completely failing to catch the implication hidden in Malcador's words.
Seeing Mortarion's reaction, Malcador laughed once again.
But the smile quickly faded from his face.
"Mortarion," Malcador said gravely, "I will die during the process of removing the seal from the Deceased One. And the war will not end simply because he has been rescued."
Mortarion froze.
Malcador ignored the reaction and continued.
"You, the Khan, and Lorgar will need to receive the Deceased One when the time comes, wait for the right opportunity, and act accordingly—while withdrawing as much as possible."
"If you truly wish for your friend to remain safe and unharmed, then you must learn patience."
"I know you're capable of enduring hardship, but I want you to truly understand what that word means."
"Months. Years. Centuries. Millennia... The price you may have to pay could extend far beyond even that."
Malcador drew a deep breath.
"You need to become... less straight."
"Do you understand, Mortarion? You cannot keep standing out the way you do now. You cannot keep being so obviously out of place."
"You can no longer act solely according to your likes and dislikes."
Across from him, Mortarion stared at Malcador without blinking, lifeless eyes fixed upon the old man.
At last, Mortarion's unblinking gaze shifted.
"The individual you mentioned... the one who can save Him..."
"Who exactly is he?"
"Trazyn."
"Xenos or Chaos?"
"Xenos."
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Tn: I updated the story once every 2 days, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
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[2] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/my-life-as-death-164167815