Chapter 334: A New Deal with Trazyn
Zardathusa still had no idea that his dynasty was being plundered before he had even fully awakened.
The battle in the Cryptus System continued for another half a month. On Iphix, the war between the Tyranids and the Zerg grew even more intense. The Tyranids were constantly evolving and adapting, while the Zerg were constantly acquiring the Tyranids' genetic sequences and biomass to grow and strengthen themselves. The number of units that died on both sides every day was incalculable.
At that moment, in the city of Phodia, unmanned Raven drones continuously circled the starport, serving as anti-stealth units to ensure the area would not be surprised by a Lictor attack. No one knew if there were any Tyranid remnants left on the planet. These AI-equipped drones could deploy Widow Mines and Auto-Turrets and could fire seeker missiles, but their most important function was their reconnaissance and anti-stealth capabilities.
However, they did not detect a Lictor. They detected someone unexpected.
It was a duplicate of Trazyn.
He was continuously phasing in and out of his pocket dimension. When he briefly materialized, he noticed the Raven drone overhead. In the pict-feed transmitted back, Lucan even saw Trazyn wave at the drone, as if he were greeting him.
"Trazyn... what is he doing here?!"
Following Trazyn's gesture, the Raven's servo-system was hacked, and a message was sent back in High Gothic.
"Lord Lucan, do you remember our agreement to meet? Our last transaction was very pleasant. I believe we will have more opportunities to cooperate here. I mean you no harm. I think we need to have a meeting."
Looking at the communication from Trazyn, Lucan had to marvel at how unique this Necron was. He had never expected Trazyn to also come to the Cryptus System.
Lucan glanced back at Dante, who was discussing strategic deployments with Mellen, and did not inform him of Trazyn's arrival. Lucan walked out of the command post by himself and headed for a mechanical workshop belonging to the Cult of the Holy Machine.
After dismissing the Enginseers and Tech-priests inside the workshop, Trazyn tore open a dimensional rift and stepped out. Lucan had a smile on his face, and Trazyn's metallic visage also seemed to be smiling. Although they had interacted before, this was their first true face-to-face meeting.
"Lord Lucan, I have been looking forward to this meeting for a long time," Trazyn said. "But what is the meaning of bringing these guards? Do you not trust me? Since when did you humans start to enjoy cooperating with xenos?"
As Trazyn finished speaking, one by one, Ghosts and Dark Templar emerged from their cloaks. Zeratul stood directly behind Trazyn, holding a psi-blade to his neck. From outside, Night Sentinels and Blood Ravens poured in, aiming countless weapons at him.
However, Trazyn was completely unconcerned by this deadly threat.
Lucan was not surprised that Trazyn could detect the surrounding Ghosts and Dark Templar; the old Necron had far too many tricks up his sleeve. Although Lucan didn't think he would try to kill him, he had still gathered these cloaked units just in case.
"Zeratul, put away your blade. Damon, Gabriel, lower your weapons."
Lucan knew this was just one of Trazyn's duplicates. He would never use his true body to meet him.
"Trazyn, speak. What did you come to me for?"
"Have you forgotten our agreement to meet? This is what you promised me. And I have come to thank you, and also to seek new opportunities for cooperation. I must say, wherever you are, one can always find many fine things! That Chosen of the Four is a very nice piece in my collection."
"The Chosen? Abaddon was collected by you?!"
Only now did Lucan understand why there had been no trace of Abaddon after the Battle for Cadia. Poor ol' Donny... after a lifetime of war, to end up like this.
"Yes. It's a pity, I thought he would fight to the death. Collecting him along with a scene like that would have been more valuable. Who would have thought he would actually retreat? It has lowered his value considerably."
"Aren't you afraid the Four Gods will use him as an anchor and destroy your museum?" Lucan asked. "Speak. What do you want to trade?"
"I would certainly not place him with my other collectibles. That Bell of Saint Gerstahl of yours already made a mess of my museum." During the Battle for Cadia, the bell had rung, crossing time and space. The power released by the bell, which was imbued with the Emperor's divine might, had caused a massive containment breach in Trazyn's museum. The problem was so severe that Trazyn had been forced to take this rather fine collectible and just toss it into the Webway.
Hearing Trazyn speak of cooperation, Lucan's interest was piqued. If he had to cooperate with a Necron, compared to Zardathusa and Anrakyr, Trazyn was clearly a more suitable partner.
"Cooperation? What help could you possibly offer me at a time like this, Trazyn? Or rather, what do you want from me? I don't believe you would do anything for free. You're not that kind."
Hearing this, Trazyn was no longer reserved. He held out the SCV he had sealed in a tesseract. The moment he saw it, Lucan knew Trazyn's purpose. The SCV was useful to him, but for a purely mechanical race like the Necrons, it was even more useful. Although the Necrons had, in a sense, achieved immortality, it was not true immortality. Their bodies could still be damaged.
"Tell me its operating principle," Trazyn said. "In all my years of existence, I have never seen such a creation. I even believe it is not from this world. The power it displays has already transcended the laws of both the physical universe and the Empyrean. If you are willing, I can give you a technology for harnessing the energy of a star."
Hearing Trazyn say "not from this world," Lucan's nerves tensed. He had a feeling Trazyn knew something. Seeing the flicker in Trazyn's glowing green eyes, Lucan knew that his slight loss of composure had been noticed.
Trazyn, too, had keenly sensed Lucan's almost imperceptible reaction. But compared to Lucan's shock, Trazyn was even more astonished. It had originally just been a bold guess, but had he actually been right?!
Looking at the SCV, even if Lucan wanted to use it as a bargaining chip, he couldn't. The SCV was completely reliant on the System. But Trazyn's offer was very tempting. The Grand Prism in the Cryptus System was just one. If he could build two more and link the energy of several nearby star systems together, he would no longer have to worry about the energy supply for the Synaptic Lathe.
"Stellar technology? Are you talking about the Grand Prism on Tartarus?! That should be one of your creations, right?"
"You already know?" Trazyn was surprised. "Although I do not know how you learned of it, it certainly saves me the time of explaining. How about it? It is not just a source of energy, but also a weapon. As long as you are willing to sacrifice some of your own kind, the problem in this system will be quickly solved. I will tell you how to use this construct to weaponize it."
Trazyn's tone was full of temptation. In his eyes, a normal human would not refuse. Sacrificing population to achieve a strategic objective was all too common in the Imperium. After all, the Imperium was willing to issue an Exterminatus on hundreds of planets just to create a firebreak to change the direction of a Hive Fleet. A single system like Cryptus was nothing.
And if Lucan refused, he was prepared to offer even more in exchange.
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