Within Eden's field of vision floated the holographic image of the female Necron Phaerakh.
Unlike other Phaerons, she wasn't built like a metal skeleton. She possessed an exquisitely sculpted feminine form, giving her a unique kind of beauty.
Simply put, she was an exceptionally well-built mechanical woman standing roughly five meters tall—exactly the sort of thing certain tech-priests found irresistible.
That apparently included Eden himself.
He suspected that inhabiting a mechanical clone body had subtly altered his aesthetic preferences.
Of course, it might also have been the influence of his Authorities over Pleasure, Life, and Procreation. Those powers had made him far less resistant to the idea of crossing species boundaries.
They had also made him exceptionally open-minded.
"Damn. Necrontyr culture really does have its redeeming qualities. Anime fans would go wild over this!"
Eden was deeply impressed.
After all, tech-priests frequently shared pictures of mechanical girls within the private sections of the Mechanicus forums.
A voluptuous mechanical Phaerakh with the air of a mature beauty would almost certainly become wildly popular among the tech-priests. The comments would soon fill with messages like, "Not all heroes wear capes," and, "I'm all set now."
But none of that was important.
According to the intelligence report, the Necrontyr Phaerakh named Fahra possessed a fanatical desire to reverse biotransference.
Her thought processes were also comparatively stable. She wasn't obsessed with war and displayed little aggression, making her a suitable candidate for Eden's first attempt at establishing contact.
Afterward, he could convert her into a believer of the Sacred Soul Cult.
"Savi—Lord Divine Emissary, we have failed to meet your expectations. We are prepared to accept punishment!"
At that moment, Zabok and several Necrontyr nobles arrived. They placed their hands over their chests and bowed.
They were deeply ashamed.
These Necrontyr of the Kalozasa Dynasty had received the blessing of the new god and accepted the sacred duty of spreading the faith. They had come to the Zone of Silence to preach the gospel to the lost.
Yet several years had passed without meaningful progress. Worse still, attacks by unbelievers had cost them a considerable portion of the forces that rightfully belonged to the new god.
Their failures had forced the Savior—the one and only Divine Emissary—to personally enter the Zone of Silence and spread the gospel.
To them, this represented a grave dereliction of duty.
That was why Zabok and the others had immediately come to pay their respects after Eden used the communication links in his clone body to summon them.
"Your faith has remained strong. I can see that the new god's favor upon you has deepened."
Eden did not blame them. Instead, he spoke gently.
He could tell that Zabok and the others had become more animated in both expression and behavior. They seemed increasingly like living beings.
The believers had altered their appearances. Their faces were no longer cold and rigid, but capable of displaying a wider range of expressions.
Living metal was capable of growth and regeneration. In many ways, it resembled a living metallic organism.
This allowed Necrons to reshape their appearances more easily and even simulate the texture of flesh.
Whatever the explanation, the changes in Zabok and the others were an extremely positive sign.
They proved that Eden wasn't merely deceiving them.
When Eden spoke, his mouth did not move. Instead, the Mechanical Angel hovering before him emitted a voice intertwined with particle-energy signals.
Those wondrous particles effortlessly penetrated the cortical fields of Zabok and the others, filling them with an inexplicable sense of reverence and spiritual elevation.
They had never experienced emotions like these before.
It made the believers even more convinced that the new god could restore their bodies and souls.
Zabok and the others were overwhelmed with gratitude for the Divine Emissary's mercy and gift.
They were also deeply envious.
This proved that the Divine Emissary had received even greater favor from the new god and acquired the power to command emotions.
According to the doctrines of the Sacred Soul Cult, emotion was the key to the resurrection of the soul.
In reality, Eden was transmitting a new strain of emotional virus.
The Machine Goddess, the Goddess of Life, and the relevant research institutes had jointly developed a more advanced version.
Derived from the Flayer Virus, this upgraded strain could use the Necrons' living-metal nodal command systems to infiltrate the deepest layers of their cortical fields.
It caused their cold, data-based consciousnesses to stir, simulating something resembling emotion—much as Flayed Ones experienced an overwhelming craving for flesh.
Even now, the Machine Goddess, the Goddess of Life, and the Archmagi responsible for the project could not determine whether Necron consciousnesses were merely data or some unusual form of soul.
The soul was far too mysterious.
Necron consciousness consisted of clusters of electronic particles and streams of data, but wasn't human consciousness also made up of countless bioelectrical signals?
Perhaps that was the true essence of every living soul.
No one knew.
Even so, the researchers could use the Flayer Virus left behind by the C'tan—a phenomenon resembling a piece of underlying source code—to influence Necron consciousness.
It was a flaw embedded in them at the very beginning of biotransference.
Or perhaps it was a back door.
Some Archmagi argued that the phenomenon represented fragments of living consciousness that had never been completely stripped from the Necrons.
According to them, the Flayer Virus wasn't truly harming its victims. It was merely restoring their ability to feel emotion.
Those emotions simply happened to be extreme.
Regardless, Eden possessed an emotional virus capable of influencing Necron consciousness. It wasn't a form of control, but rather a gift.
It was similar to how Drukhari could consume soul elixirs to gain extraordinary sensory experiences.
Nor was the process compulsory.
Necrons could voluntarily accept the emotional virus or forcibly sever the nodal link that transmitted it.
However, any Necron who experienced those sensations would find it almost impossible to reject them afterward.
They had been imprisoned within cold metal for far too long.
They yearned to feel their consciousness stir.
"Looking at it that way, I—the Savior and sole Divine Emissary—really am the great benefactor who came to deliver the Necrons from suffering!"
Eden found that interpretation quite satisfying.
Unfortunately, the C'tan had deceived the Necrontyr—or Necrons—so thoroughly that they instinctively resisted both the Sacred Soul Cult and its new god.
But that wasn't a problem.
Their dread and awe of the C'tan's power had been engraved into their very beings. Otherwise, they would never have worshiped the Star Gods so fervently in the first place.
As long as Eden demonstrated the new god's benevolence and favor toward the Necrons, he could awaken the instinctive desire to worship that remained buried within them.
Eden looked toward Zabok, and the Mechanical Angel hovering before him spoke.
"The path you previously followed to spread the gospel was misguided. You must correct it immediately.
"The Sacred Soul Cult must establish territory of its own and organize its own army of defenders. Our forces must be stronger than those of the unbelievers. Only then can we prevent them from obstructing the gospel."
Simply put, Eden intended to establish a permanent stronghold.
In his opinion, the difficulty they had encountered in spreading the faith was only temporary. Once they achieved a single major breakthrough, the gospel would spread rapidly.
But Zabok's approach of wandering from one territory to another made it difficult to consolidate the cult's beliefs or gather its strength.
After all, the enemy Eden intended to confront was the Silent King, who commanded a vast Necron force comparable to the Imperium itself.
If all the Necrons united, they possessed enough power to reduce the Imperium's territory—and even the entire galaxy—to ruins, erasing whole sectors from existence.
Eden therefore needed to establish a permanent base: an immense theocratic Necron power belonging entirely to the Sacred Soul Cult.
That would attract more Necrons seeking refuge and salvation.
Every Phaeron and dynasty absorbed into the cult would indirectly weaken the Silent King.
It would also give Eden the foundation he needed to oppose Szarekh, preventing him from fighting entirely on the enemy's home ground.
Once Eden established a stronghold within the Pariah Nexus and eliminated the surrounding blackstone curtain, the armies of humanity could use it as both a transit base and a bridgehead.
They could then join the Necrons of the Sacred Soul Cult in waging war against the Silent King.
Furthermore, Eden could deploy Tyranid swarms and Chaos Daemons into the region, further strengthening his military power within the Pariah Nexus.
"Lord Divine Emissary, where should we establish the cult's holy land?" Zabok asked.
Most star systems within the Zone of Silence were already occupied. If they wanted territory, they would have to take it from another Phaeron.
That would not be easy.
It might require a war.
The problem was that the Kalozasa Dynasty was considered weak by the standards of the Zone of Silence. They would struggle to defeat another high-ranking Phaeron, much less seize that ruler's territory completely.
"We'll begin here."
Eden pointed at a ghostly green stellar map projected in midair.
It displayed the Alama System, territory belonging to the Necrontyr Phaerakh Fahra.
This was the perfect opening Eden had been searching for.
It would also be the critical first step in spreading the faith.
Zabok's expression shifted slightly when he saw the system.
"We previously traveled to the Fahra Dynasty to spread the gospel.
"Although the Phaerakh showed some interest, she did not choose to join the Sacred Soul Cult or worship the great Pluto, God of the Underworld. Instead, she ordered us to leave as soon as possible.
"Furthermore, the Fahra Dynasty is one of the most powerful dynasties in the surrounding sectors. With our current forces, we would have little chance of conquering it."
The missionary's meaning was obvious.
Winning over Phaerakh Fahra would be extremely difficult. Ignoring her previous warning and returning to her territory might easily trigger a war.
He would have preferred to occupy the territory of an Overlord and gradually expand outward.
The military forces currently controlled by the Sacred Soul Cult could easily conquer an Overlord, giving the missionaries ample opportunity to preach within that ruler's territory.
Confronting a Phaeron—or Phaerakh—would be far more difficult.
"Your methods were wrong. The great Pluto does not advocate spreading the gospel through force.
"What we must do is show the unbelievers the beauty of possessing a soul and persuade them to join us of their own free will."
Eden shook his head, his tone permitting no argument.
"This will not be easy, but I will personally travel to the Fahra Dynasty. I will persuade its Phaerakh to join the Sacred Soul Cult and become its most devout believer."
He no longer had time to expand slowly.
Danger could arrive at any moment. Without a powerful territory and dynasty under its control, the Sacred Soul Cult could be destroyed without warning.
The Silent King wouldn't even need to act personally.
All Szarekh had to do was notice them, dispatch an army, or issue a command ordering their extermination.
The Sacred Soul Cult, still in its infancy, would be annihilated.
Of course, the Silent King was probably still focused on the Stormlord and likely considered the Sacred Soul Cult beneath his notice.
But if Szarekh remembered them one day and issued a single decree, it would already be too late to save anything.
Eden had to race against time.
Before the Silent King realized what was happening, the cult needed to expand until it became a problem too troublesome to eliminate easily.
If it reached that scale, Szarekh would probably leave the Sacred Soul Cult alone until he had dealt with the Stormlord.
Eden might even be able to form an alliance with Imotekh and deliver a devastating blow to the Silent King.
Not long afterward, the Tomb Ship departed for the Fahra Dynasty.
To reduce the Fahra Dynasty's wariness and hostility, Eden did not bring the Kalozasa Dynasty's tomb fleet. He traveled aboard only his own tomb flagship.
The risks were considerable, but it was still the best approach.
Even if he brought the entire tomb fleet, it wouldn't be enough to survive an attack from that Phaerakh.
"I hope my plan works. Fahra is a seriously wealthy lady by Necron standards…"
Eden gazed into the ink-black reaches of the Zone of Silence, his mood growing somber.
He wasn't completely confident.
According to his assessment models, the plan had at most an eighty-percent chance of success.
By his standards, that made it extremely risky.
…
Alama, the Tomb World.
A red sun shone upon weathered pyramid structures.
Canoptek Spyders and Immortals traveled through the streets between the buildings in perfect order.
Everything here appeared quiet and peaceful.
At the summit of one pyramid tomb complex stood a bedchamber paved in marble.
It belonged to Phaerakh Fahra.
The room was decorated with luxurious fabrics, while numerous Necrontyr relics adorned the walls.
There was no question that the bedchamber was unusual. It resembled the dwelling of an organic life-form rather than that of a being made from living metal.
High-ranking Necrontyr had no need for sleep. Their living-metal bodies allowed them to remain active without ever growing tired.
Most preferred to sit upon their thrones, connected to their communication links, eternally watching over their dynasties.
Fahra, however, was different.
Despite possessing an impressive feminine body of living metal, she preferred to rest as living beings did.
The Phaerakh had excavated the habit from the deepest layers of her memories, recalling a time before biotransference.
Back then, she had loved sleeping within a soft bedchamber. She had also enjoyed standing upon her balcony and watching the sun slowly set beyond the Valley of Eternity.
The red sun's fading light would wash over the pyramids, glimmering faintly upon their surfaces as though life itself were dancing atop every spire.
Fahra had not yet undergone biotransference in those days.
She had still possessed a body of flesh.
She could feel the sunset's lingering warmth and the gentle breeze blowing through the city.
Everything had been so beautiful.
The lives of the Necrontyr had been brief. That was why they savored life's beauty as deeply as possible, refusing to waste even a moment.
Fahra had been no different.
"The gods deceived the Necrontyr. The price of eternity was an endless prison. They condemned us to everlasting torment…"
Fahra stood upon the weathered balcony, her voice heavy with suppressed pain.
She hated those gods.
The Phaerakh closed her eyes and raised a slender, pale hand that gleamed with metallic light. She extended it beyond the balcony, just as she had millions of years ago, trying to feel the beauty granted by life.
But there was no warmth from the sunlight.
There was no wind.
According to the data gathered by her sensors, both the sunlight and the breeze were real. The readings measured approximately four surface thermodynamic units and a level-three microcurrent, considerably higher than the values recorded millions of years ago.
But Fahra felt nothing.
Nothing at all.
This hateful living-metal body could provide no sensation. It was no different from a cold and lifeless object.
She couldn't even feel anticipation, anger, or despair.
"An existence like this is meaningless."
The Phaerakh's hand slowly traced the curves of her body, her voice low and somber.
She had done everything possible to make this body resemble that of a living being.
But resemblance was all it amounted to.
Even the sorrow in her voice had been generated through data simulation.
She no longer knew what sorrow truly felt like.
She could barely even describe it.
Fahra lowered her head and struggled to remember.
She tried to recall her former body.
She tried to remember what it had felt like for flesh to envelop a soul.
But she could no longer remember…
(End of Chapter)
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