Chapter 238 — Is the PDF in rebellion?
Silence finally returned to the throne chamber.
Not complete silence.
Pieces of broken marble still shifted occasionally. Small sections of the damaged ceiling continued collapsing somewhere deeper in the Palace Spire. Fires crackled quietly among ruined debris.
But the whispers were gone.
The pressure inside everyone's minds had vanished.
The Warp tear was closed.
The False Emperor was dead.
And for the first time since entering the throne chamber, the surviving civilians could breathe normally again.
The ruined hall looked completely different now that the illusion had disappeared.
The beautiful golden chamber no longer existed.
The walls were rotten beneath the false light that had hidden them. Veins of black flesh still clung to the cracked stone in places. The massive throne at the center of the chamber looked less like a seat now and more like the remains of some dead creature fused into marble.
Warp ash drifted slowly through the air.
Bodies covered the floor.
Some were civilians.
Some were corrupted worshippers.
Others were so twisted by the Warp that it was difficult to tell what they had once been.
The surviving civilians huddled together near one side of the ruined chamber. Some held injured family members. Others simply stared blankly at the destruction around them.
No one knew what to say anymore.
A little girl quietly cried into her mother's shoulder.
An old worker sat against a cracked pillar staring at the ruined throne with hollow eyes.
A few civilians still whispered prayers under their breath.
Not because they trusted the False Emperor anymore.
But because he truly had fed them.
Protected them.
Given them warmth when the rest of the hive abandoned them.
Now they knew what he really was.
But emotions were not simple enough to disappear instantly.
Mindy watched quietly through the Multiversal Chat.
"…they don't even know how to feel."
"No," Diana said softly. "They don't."
Naruto remained silent while looking at the civilians.
Even he understood the situation was complicated.
The False Emperor had become a monster.
But before that, he had also helped people the Imperium ignored.
That truth made everything harder.
At the center of the ruined hall, Gaius stood silently while dust drifted around him.
His armor was badly damaged now.
Several sections were cracked open from the battle. Blood remained visible beneath broken armor plates around his shoulder and ribs, though the wounds themselves were already healing slowly.
The Emperor's Claw had vanished.
Only the damaged gauntlet remained.
Gaius activated the vox calmly.
"To the Oath of Rectitude."
Static answered briefly before the ship's communication officer responded.
"We hear you, Lord Gaius."
Gaius spoke without hesitation.
"Begin full planetary scans for remaining Warp corruption."
His eyes moved across the ruined chamber while he continued.
"Deploy Ultramarines into key districts immediately. Secure all spaceports, communication towers, government centers, and military command structures."
He paused briefly.
"Lock down all orbital traffic until further notice."
"Understood."
"Monitor for psychic disturbances across the system."
The response came instantly.
"Yes, Lord Gaius."
The vox channel closed.
Far above Varrak Prime, the Oath of Rectitude immediately came alive with activity.
Warning signals spread through command decks. Servitors relayed orders between stations while Techmarines began scanning the planet below for signs of lingering Warp corruption.
In one of the deployment bays, Metaurus looked up as the order arrived through the vox system.
Beside him, Titus was already standing from his position near the Thunderhawk ramp.
Both Ultramarines immediately understood the situation.
The battle below was over.
Now came the harder part.
Restoring order.
"Prepare deployment," Metaurus ordered.
Around them, dozens of Ultramarines began moving immediately.
Thunderhawk engines roared to life across the launch bay.
Servitors loaded ammunition crates while Techmarines performed rapid checks on weapon systems and engines.
One by one, the Thunderhawks launched from the battle barge.
Massive gunships descended through the darkness of space toward the burning world below.
Inside the transports, Ultramarines checked bolters and monitored incoming reports from the surface.
Riots.
Fires.
Civilian panic.
PDF units no longer responding consistently.
The corruption had damaged the planet deeply even after the Warp tear closed.
In some districts, gunfire still echoed through the streets as frightened civilians fought over supplies or attacked anyone suspected of corruption.
Some citizens fled in panic whenever Thunderhawks passed overhead, unable to tell whether the Space Marines had come as saviors or executioners.
Across Varrak Prime, Thunderhawks streaked through the clouds toward key districts.
Some moved toward military headquarters.
Others descended toward hive transportation sectors.
Others targeted communication towers and government centers.
Chaos rarely ended cleanly.
If order was not restored immediately, the planet could still collapse into anarchy.
Back inside the ruined throne chamber, Gaius looked toward the four remaining Ultramarines nearby.
"Secure this spire," he ordered calmly.
The Space Marines immediately turned toward him.
"Contact a nearby PDF force. We will place the military under Imperial control."
"Understood, Praetor."
The four Ultramarines split apart immediately.
Two left the throne chamber through the shattered corridor beyond the staircase.
The remaining two stayed behind and began securing the area.
The surviving civilians flinched every time the giant warriors moved nearby.
Not because the Ultramarines threatened them directly.
But because they had just watched these same warriors execute corrupted civilians without hesitation minutes earlier.
And honestly,
many of them still did not know whether those killings had been mercy or murder.
The two Ultramarines began searching the ruined chamber carefully.
Any corpse showing signs of movement was immediately destroyed.
The civilians quickly realized the Ultramarines alone decided what counted as corruption.
One corrupted worshipper suddenly twitched near a collapsed pillar.
Before anyone could react, a bolter round exploded through its skull.
The civilians nearby screamed quietly and backed away.
Another body near the ruined staircase began mutating again. Flesh twisted unnaturally while gold light leaked from beneath split skin.
A second bolter shot ended it instantly.
The Ultramarines continued their work without emotion.
They did not waste time comforting the civilians. The planet was still unstable.
To them, hesitation only allowed corruption to spread further.
The surviving civilians were eventually gathered together near one side of the chamber away from unstable debris.
Even then, the civilians remained tense.
One man looked toward the shattered throne and whispered quietly,
"He fed us…"
Another survivor looked down at the floor.
"But he became… that thing."
No one truly knew what to think anymore.
Some still could not decide whether the Ultramarines had saved them… or destroyed the only ruler who had ever cared if they survived another winter.
Time passed slowly inside the ruined Palace Spire.
Eventually, heavy footsteps echoed through the corridor again.
The two Ultramarines sent outside returned.
Between them walked a human officer in dark PDF armor.
Captain Vale.
The man tried to remain composed, but nervousness still showed clearly on his face.
It was impossible not to feel small walking beside two Ultramarines.
And now he was about to stand before another one.
A Praetor.
The PDF had ignored an Imperial command earlier.
Captain Vale knew that under normal Imperial law, that failure alone could justify immediate execution.
Still, he forced himself to stay calm.
If they wanted him dead, he would already be dead.
The fact that he was still here meant he still had value.
Captain Vale knew that failing to answer an Angel of the Emperor's command could end with an execution order before the conversation even began.
The Ultramarines stopped in front of Gaius.
Captain Vale straightened immediately.
Gaius looked down at him calmly.
"What is your rank, soldier?"
The man swallowed once before answering.
"I am Captain Vale of the Planetary Defence Force, sir."
Gaius stepped closer slightly.
Even standing still, the size difference was overwhelming.
"Is the PDF in rebellion?"
The question was direct.
Simple.
~~~
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