49 The Preserver
Next day,
The death of a dozen guards caused more tension in the royal palace. The nobles tighten their groups as they leer at each other suspiciously while royal guards and knights of the capital city lockdown the palace.
William, the only survivor of the massacre, told the captain of the knight what happened last night but left the part about how he killed the assassin. After all, the Eversor's body vanished after William retrieved the loot from the dead assassin's body and piece of machinery that caused William to panic for a short time.
"After arming myself with my sword, I fought the assassin, but before I could deliver the killing blow, the assassin escaped through the window and disappeared into the night. The room was dark, so I didn't see much except the assassin's blade (This is a lie as a Space Marine can see in near darkness almost as daylight)." William 'gave' his side of the story to the knight captain and his two other knights as he recreated the last night incident. The story is believable and makes sense since there is no trace of blood or body, not to mention this incident brought shame to the royal guards' reputation for they failed to guard the Crown Prince's guest.
"Thank you. I will have this report to the Prime Minister. I'll leave a few of my knights to guard you since you are the target, and I'm sure Legellan is up to no good for what you did yesterday. Personally, when I heard the news, I felt little satisfaction since they need to be reminded of what they did three years ago." The captain said to William and was about to leave his knights to William when Rana and three Black Templars entered the building.
"That won't be necessary, captain. I believe William prefers his brothers beside him before meeting the King today." Rana said to the captain and sent them away while she and three Black Templars closed the door to have some privacy.
"So, 12 more dead, and we don't know who sent the assassin. What is going on, William?" Rana asks William with great concern on her face as she starts to believe William's enemy once again appeared in her front door. At first, Rana thought Legellan sent one of their assassins to handle William for his action against one of their priests. But once she heard that the assassin escaped from William's grasp, she knew it was something else and more deadly. This is why she called back William's three battle brothers to protect William once again, for they are much more lethal than anyone she has ever met.
"I think I know what is going on, and I have a plan, but you are not going to like it," William said to the Duchess as he put his helmet on his head. He told Rana about what happened last night, including the identity of the assassin. That one of his faction's assassins went for his life and how he handled the problem with his swords. The problem now is how to handle the situation since representatives of Legellan might be related to last night's incident.
"Ok, so what is your plan?"
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"Your majesty, may I present to you William the Giant, the Paladin of the God-Emperor." The royal court officer announced William's presence to the central court as the door opened, and a giant man, fully armored with a helmet in his left hand, entered the room with a fearsome presence.
Many noblemen watched William pass by them as many tried to hide fear, and some admired his armor and the very presence of confidence. Many noblewomen were more focused on William's height and appearance as they hid their giggles and blush behind their fan.
The representatives of the Legellan can be seen not far away from the throne on the right side. The priests' leader, Archbishop Elashor Herydark, stood tall with a slight smile on his face as he watched William approach closer and closer. Meanwhile, his followers show smirks on their faces, for they are filled with revenge and overconfidence. They are ready to present their defense and put William in the corner using diplomacy and politics, just like what politicians do.
Behind William, three of his battle-brothers followed him a few steps away as they kept their hamlet on but maintained their weapons on the holster. Meanwhile, Prince Benton and Rana stood near the left side of the throne while the Prime Minister stood next to the King and the Queen sat next to her husband.
As for the King, his appearance was a mess. The King of the Alderim sat on his throne with a hunch on his back while his clothes resembled a dark bedgown than what the King of the country should be wearing. His hair and beard are white and messy as if he didn't wash for many days, while his skin is pale as if he's been sick from bad flu or something. The only thing that shows the appearance of the King is the fancy gold crown and metallic green emerald ring on his right finger.
William stopped a few paces away from the throne and stood still. Few seconds passed, and many nobles started to whisper to each other as William was supposed to kneel before the King to present himself in a royal court tradition. William's ill manners against the royal court angered a few nobles, including the royalist faction. Finally, one nobleman steps forward to teach William a proper manner if he must force William to kneel.
"You uneducated fool! Kneel before the King and swear your loyalty and thanks." The young nobleman shouted with anger as he stepped forward from the sideline. Many nobles nod their heads and agree with a young nobleman as their fear vanishes, and confidence in nobility starts to grow once again. Before the entire courtroom gets out of control, William turns his head towards the young noble and says something unimaginable.
"I do not kneel to mere mortals. I serve the God-Emperor and only him, for I'm his champion and his weapon. Your words are nothing but squeals from the mouse, so return to your corner and silence your mouth." William's words silenced the entire room as both minor and major nobles of all ranks were too shocked to process what they just heard.
Meanwhile, Rana laughs silently while Prince Benton covers his face with one hand as he knew this would happen. As for both the Prime Minister and the Queen, their reaction was the same as yesterday when William's men disintegrated eight Legellan guards.
"Now, back to business. King Benton, aren't you a sore sight for your eyes. I expected more from the father of the Crown Prince, but there is no help if you are under mind control." William's last word once again shocked the courtroom, including Rana and Prince Benton, as they didn't know about this information from William beforehand.
"What do you mean mind control? Who is doing this to my father?" Prince Benton asked William for an answer and fear for his father, but before he could get his answer, William drew his bolter pistol and fired the weapon at Archbishop Elashor Herydark.
The bullet from William's bolter pistol hit Archbishop's head as the leading representative of the Legellan fell to the ground. The courtroom turned to chaos as nobles ran for their lives while three Black Templars and royal guards drew their weapons, but the royal guards didn't draw their weapons at William instead towards the remaining Legellan priests.
"What is the meaning of this? We have an alliance agreement!" One of the Legellan priests said with a fearful voice while guards surrounded him and his colleagues to the corner.
"That doesn't count if the King was under mind control. After all, Mindshackle Scarab from the Necron Overlord should be foul for proper diplomacy." William said to the priest as he approached the dead elf's body to see if it transforms into Necron. To William's surprise, he saw no change coming from the headless Archbishop's body as his body remained the same while red blood spewed where the head used to be.
"Any minute now…." William said to himself, but he started to doubt as the Archbishop didn't change into an undead robotic skeleton after a few seconds. Before William can turn around to face Rana, William gets hit with a green blast in the side, but thanks to his personal iron halo, it shields William from deadly disintegration. Everyone turned around to see who fired the weapon, and to their surprise, the green blast came from Prime Minister Waylon as he levitated from the floor with green energy surrounding him.
"You were correct on mind control but mistaken in who is controlling who," Prime Minister Waylon's voice changed from regular humanoid to unnatural machine as an advanced hologram changed his appearance from top to bottom.
The flesh turns to a living metal known as Necrodermis as Waylon's entire body turns into a robotic skeleton, and his clothes are replaced with similar metal materials with various symbols of unknown language while glowing in green light. The metal hood covers the head while the cape flares behind him as if the wind blew it gently. With his secret revealed, the Necron reaches out with his left hand, and Archbishop's staff levitates from the ground and returns to its true owner, with appearance also changing into Necron origin.
Trazyn the Infinite, Overlord of Solemnace, master of the Prismatic Galleries, a great liberator of ancient artifacts, and a being who has known death a thousand times, reveals his true identity to the New World.
