Aeldari and the Webway

The female savage Aeldari’s wraithbone armor was easily sliced apart. The phase weapon’s properties severed flesh and bone at a spatial level. Her right hand fell to the ground, and scarlet blood gushed out.

The Aeldari’s powerful heart accelerated her blood loss. She forcibly pressed down on the wound, then, with willpower unimaginable to ordinary people, tore out the ruptured arteries and tied them into knots, stopping much of the bleeding.

Barabas Dantioch gave the female savage Aeldari another look, then turned to stare into the leader’s eyes.

"Our leader asked me to convey his intentions. He only wants Pandora. He has no interest in you savage Aeldari."

"No!"

The increasingly weak Kien suddenly voiced his refusal in a hysterical roar.

"You despicable upright apes, Pandora is our planet. Our ancestors dwell within the World Spirit; they have long become one with this planet. We will never abandon the World Spirit and flee."

"We are proud Aeldari. You may kill us, but do not dream of making us submit."

Barabas Dantioch did not choose to argue with them, because it was meaningless. He simply took out a powerful anesthetic and injected it into each of the savage Aeldari.

These savage Aeldari were incredibly tough. Ordinary anesthetics might have been nothing more than fizzy drinks with a strong kick to them, so Lox had specifically sent over a batch of potent stuff.

Fafnir wandered over, tore off a chunk of flesh from the savage Aeldari leader, and placed it in his mouth to savor it carefully.

Though the Space Wolves’ genetic detection nerves were not as powerful as those of the Ninth Legion’s Blood Angels, they still surpassed those of the other Legion brothers.

A flood of detailed memories emerged in his mind. The savage Aeldari’s lair, the exact location of the sacred tree Eywa, and the most mysterious Webway were all laid bare before the Space Wolves’ eyes.

"These Aeldari who cowered on their own planet have never fought us before. If they were experienced Craftworld pointy-ears, they wouldn’t even leave behind corpses."

"They all know that leaving a corpse behind is no different from leaving intelligence behind. If they truly cannot take the bodies with them, some damned Craftworld Aeldari will even leave lethal poison inside the corpses."

Fafnir chuckled. Naturally, forces that had never fought Space Marines would not know their traits. These superhumans, who had undergone nineteen enhancement surgeries, could dig up most secrets from the dead.

Of course, the memories obtained from the living were clearer.

The Dragon Rider leader, already unconscious, naturally had no idea that his impassioned determination to die had instead provided humanity with so much valuable intelligence.

If he had known, he would likely have regretted his rash actions.

"But this Webway… what the fuck is it?" Fafnir was confused, but he quickly cast the matter aside. It had nothing to do with him anyway. All he had to do was report the intelligence and let the decision-makers worry about it.

The Ultramarines swiftly began clearing the battlefield. These dead beasts were precious genetic samples, and they carefully collected the materials according to guidelines issued by the Adeptus Mechanicus.

The accompanying Tech-Priests, meanwhile, were overjoyed. This expedition had been more than worthwhile. These distinctive alien beasts would become material for their operating tables.

Sage Lawrence of the Adeptus Mechanicus was particularly interested in the giant six-winged wyverns and the self-detonating toads. If the former could be cloned and tamed, humanity might gain a special biological weapon. Flying beasts were more valuable than ground-bound creatures and could prove extraordinarily effective in certain situations.

As for the latter, Sage Lawrence’s interest was even more obvious. The destructive power of these nuclear toads surpassed many human technological weapons. Even Lawrence had never seen toxins so potent.

Lox and Sage Lawrence rode a skimmer onto the battlefield. The latter was more impatient than Lox; the moment he landed, he ordered the Servitor laborers to gather biological samples from the various giant beasts.

"Fafnir, tell me about the intelligence you acquired," Lox said.

This Space Wolf leader claimed to have discovered important intelligence in the savage Aeldari’s mind and had strongly requested that Lox come to the scene.

Nykona followed Lox like a shadow. His lack of presence was so profound that even many passing mortals failed to notice him.

"Heh heh, my lord, we found something incredible." The Wolf Lord rubbed his hands excitedly, utterly devoid of his earlier aloof demeanor.

Ever since Lox had brought them out to cut loose, the Space Wolves’ attitude toward him had taken a complete turn.

"In that Aeldari brat’s mind, there was a record of an agreement between him and a Craftworld Aeldari. A Craftworld called Alaitoc was coming to support the savage Aeldari and drive us out completely."

Lox thought back and confirmed that he had never heard of this so-called Craftworld of Alaitoc. He knew little about the Aeldari, and the Imperium knew equally little about the internal divisions among these Aeldari.

In any case, to the Imperium, whether they were white pointy-ears, black pointy-ears, or wild pointy-ears, they were all xenos that deserved extermination.

"It seems the Aeldari are as unreliable as ever. They came too late. The savage Aeldari’s final resistance has already been destroyed, and only five Dragon Riders remain." Lox shook his head. Another problem was clearly waiting for him to handle.

The Craftworld Aeldari were coming.

Those white pointy-ears were not like the savage Aeldari. They possessed psychic technology more advanced than the Imperium’s, and their individual combat capabilities were formidable as well.

Against the Craftworld Aeldari, Lox’s expeditionary force could no longer remain so relaxed.

The good news, however, was that they had learned of this in advance and could prepare sooner.

"So the secret behind how the Aeldari come and go across the galaxy without a trace is this so-called Webway? A method of faster-than-light travel unlike those of other races?"

Lox raised an eyebrow, seizing upon the key point.

Unfortunately, Fafnir had only learned from the savage Aeldari’s memories that something called the Webway existed. As for what it truly was, he had no way of knowing.

Humanity could only travel faster than light through the Warp, while the Necron technology they currently possessed—the Pharos Beacon—could achieve faster-than-light travel through purely physical means.

The Aeldari, meanwhile, appeared to move freely through their Webway. This immediately made Lox itch with interest.

Who would ever complain about having too many good things in their pocket? Though they had so far deciphered some of the Pharos Beacon’s special capabilities, having two options was still better than having only one.

"Once the battlefield has been cleared and all units have replenished their numbers and rested, we will go to the savage Aeldari’s lair and set an ambush. We will wait for the Craftworld Aeldari at the ancestral land of the savage Aeldari, where the sacred tree Eywa stands."

According to Kien’s memories, the entrance to the Webway lay in the savage Aeldari’s lair. Through that miraculous construct, they communicated over long distances with their distant kin.

"If we arrange things properly, we can wait for the rabbit by the stump. This time, we will take complete control of this planet. We may even be able to carve another piece of meat off the Craftworld Aeldari who come running."

Having won a complete victory over the xenos, the Space Marines’ morale was soaring. They had used the blood of the damned xenos to prove their loyalty to the Emperor, and when they heard Lox’s order to relentlessly pursue the Aeldari, they became even more fervent.

The White Scars emerged from their vehicles and joined their captain in clearing the battlefield.

Unlike their rigid Ultramarines cousins, however, the White Scars were keen on selecting sufficiently ferocious beasts from among the fallen giants, then carefully shaving the flesh from around their skulls with power swords or chainswords.

They wanted to bring back some Pandora specialties, something of great importance in their homeworld culture.

The Chogorians were exceptionally skilled. When their power swords reached areas they could no longer effectively access, they did not hesitate to brave the overwhelming stench of blood and gore, climb bodily into the giant beasts’ flesh, and patiently separate bone, meat, and tendon with the tactical knives they carried.

Captain Gantula had set his sights on the Chief Dragon Rider’s mount. He had intended to add a ferocious giant beast’s head to his collection, but when he prepared to cut into it, he was surprised to find that the beast beneath him was not quite dead.

"Biologis, please lend a hand and treat this beast. It isn’t dead yet."

The dragon, which resembled a tyrannosaur, was blackened all over. Its cobblestone-like scales had been burnt into charcoal by the Knight’s overloaded reactor, yet it still clung to its last breath, wheezing and bleeding.

"You are overthinking it. It does not need treatment at all. Give it some time to recover, and it will be lively again. These Pandoran creatures are tougher than you imagine." The Biologis walked away with a look of disgust. He knew perfectly well what this White Scars captain wanted: he simply wanted to ride the dragon.

The Chogorian excitedly stroked the dragon’s head. A beast that looked imposing and could be ridden and raced—wasn’t that the finest mount possible?

If he could take a dragon away from Pandora, that sounded rather wonderful.