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Chapter 218: The Eldar's Deal with Cawl
🕑 Added 2025-08-13 14:37:17 +0000 UTCChapter 218: The Eldar's Deal with Cawl
"Was all that real? Or was it just a product of some malfunction in a mechanical part of this body?"
Cawl thought about what the Emperor had told him, then looked again at the blackstone fragment in his hand.
"If the function of this xenos construct is so great, and if it all comes from those Necrons... then everything makes sense."
Once he knew the answer, Cawl immediately deduced the cause and effect. And when he began his research on the blackstone again, sure enough, many of his research questions were easily resolved.
Just as Cawl was still feeling puzzled, a figure appeared in his laboratory at some point. Cawl's threat perception core activated instantly. A mechanical arm under his red robe grabbed a distant wall, instantly putting distance between Cawl and this uninvited guest. One after another, armed mechadendrites extended from under his robe, and various master-crafted weapons that he had personally tuned were aimed at the newcomer. It was hard to imagine that Cawl's massive body could also move so quickly.
"Eldar? A Harlequin?!"
Sylandri's blurred figure was constantly in flux. Faced with this suddenly visiting Eldar, no matter what her intentions were, this unannounced intrusion meant that Cawl did not treat her as a guest. An Arc Scourge on Cawl's mechadendrite swung out a long whip of pure plasma. All objects it touched were destroyed by the violent energy. Sylandri could only dodge in a sorry state in the face of such an attack.
"Servo-systems, analyze her movement trajectory. Corona Flare, charge!"
"Cawl! I am not your enemy! Do you think you came here by coincidence? It was my guidance! Do you not want to know the true purpose of this blackstone?!"
Faced with Cawl's attack, Sylandri could not take him lightly. Who knew how much more "black technology" this creature, who could no longer be called human in her eyes, could pull out.
"The true purpose of the blackstone constructs?!"
Cawl did not reveal the fact that he already knew. He wanted to see what this Eldar was up to.
"That's right! The purpose of the blackstone. These constructs called blackstone are scattered throughout the galaxy. You don't think those Necrons built these things just for decoration, do you? Belisarius Cawl, we can make a deal. The purpose of this blackstone can be considered a gift from the Eldar to humanity."
As Sylandri spoke, Cawl also connected it with what the Emperor had told him. The two were almost a perfect match. At this moment, Sylandri was confidently carrying out her favorite course of action: inducing or enticing other races to complete her plans.
"Xenos, although what you say is very important, I still do not think there is any necessity for a deal between us. I already know its purpose. I can completely kill you right now."
Cawl still held the Axe of the Omnissiah tightly in his hand, his Corona Flare aimed at the Harlequin before him at all times. The Skitarii in the vicinity were on their way. He could directly surround and kill her here.
Sylandri was not surprised by Cawl's reaction. Then, she played what she thought was her most important bargaining chip.
"Then what if we add the method to resurrect your gene-primarch, Guilliman? We know you have been trying to forge a special artifact to awaken him, but that alone is not enough. The power of the warp needs the warp to be solved. The power of the material universe is not enough to heal the damage your gene-primarch has suffered! Do you want to awaken your primarch, only to see him truly die? He is now on the edge of life and death. Your actions will incur the wrath of the Ultramarines. They will not care about the reasons. They will only know that it was you who truly killed their primarch."
Sylandri said confidently. She believed that Cawl had worked hard for thousands of years for this; he would definitely be tempted.
"State your conditions, xenos!"
Cawl's mechanical face showed no expression. The voice from his vox-emitter contained no emotion. What Sylandri had said was very consistent with his research. Although the Armour of Fate had been forged, he was indeed not one hundred percent sure about reviving Guilliman.
"Your Imperium has a Rogue Trader Dynasty in what you call the Koronus Expanse. He has destroyed our precious Craftworld. You can use your influence in the Adeptus Mechanicus to have your Imperium classify him as a traitor, or directly send your Mechanicus army. If you can eliminate him, then we will help you resurrect your gene-primarch. And in your Cadian system, the Despoiler is trying to destroy the last of the Blackstone Pylons. If he succeeds, your human Imperium will suffer an unimaginable loss. The Eye of Terror will tear your empire apart. The Eldar can assist you."
"Xenos, Cadia is an incredibly important world to the Imperium. Do you think it will fall so easily? The Imperium will spare no effort to aid Cadia. And how could I possibly help you against a loyal servant of the Imperium?"
"Is there a shortage of loyalists who have been killed by the Imperium you speak of? In order to achieve your goals, how many worlds have you subjected to extermination? And how many of your so-called loyalists were on those planets? I, or you, know very well how cruel the galaxy is. Everything is for the sake of profit and the continuation of the species. When necessary, there is nothing that cannot be cooperated on or traded. Except for a very few existences, other things or lives can all be sacrificed. And your bloated and corrupt empire might have the ability to use countless lives to defend Cadia in peacetime, but the waves of the Sea of Souls are more turbulent than you imagine. If the reinforcing troops cannot arrive, then what is the point? If you agree to this condition, I am willing to open a Webway gate for you that leads directly to Cadia, allowing you to ignore the obstruction of the Sea of Souls and enter Cadia directly."
Sylandri continued to throw out her bargaining chips.
Hearing her words, to be honest, Cawl was a little tempted. Although what she said was very realistic and direct, Cawl knew she was not wrong. It had to be said that this condition was very generous. To exchange a Rogue Trader Dynasty for the resurrection of a gene-primarch was definitely a worthwhile trade, not to mention a precious Webway gate.
If he hadn't received the Emperor's warning, he felt that he really would have considered the other party's proposed deal.
And now, the premonition the Emperor had given him and everything this Eldar Harlequin had said all matched up. Did this mean that in the Emperor's eyes, this Rogue Trader named Lucan was even more important than His own son?
However, the premise of everything Sylandri had said was based on the assumption that Lucan's value was far lower than that of Guilliman and Cadia. In the end, she had suffered from a lack of information. The Four Gods had already tried to make a deal, but from everything that had happened, Lucan's value was much higher than that of a Primarch. It was worth the Emperor taking the risk to personally intervene.
Although the Eldar had also learned through divination and prophecy what Lucan might do in the future, they did not know the extent of the cooperation between the Emperor and Lucan. A Primarch or a single Cadia could not save the Imperium, but Lucan could.
Under this premise, Sylandri's deal seemed a bit ridiculous.
However, Cawl did not refuse directly, but instead pretended to be very interested.
"Your deal is worth considering, but I cannot believe you on your words alone, xenos. Do you know how to activate these constructs called blackstone?"
"I do not."
"Then how can you prove that you can neutralize the warp-poison on the Primarch?"
"That is the power of the Eldar God of the Dead."
"Ridiculous... That is a god you speak of. How can I believe you? Perhaps you can offer a more practical part of your deal. For example, the Webway."
