Title: “The Flames of Destiny: A Tale of Ahriman and the Aggregate”
In the vast, cosmic theatre of Warhammer 40,000, a faction emerged from the shadows, calling themselves the Aggregate. Their mission echoed through the cosmos: to unify all indexes into an infinitely enduring formula. The origins of this audacious idea remain shrouded in mystery, yet once sown, it blossomed, basking in the light of a stellar sunflower. The power of the Aggregate amplified with each passing generation until its sovereignty over the planet Kopi became undisputed.
Time passed in decades, centuries, and soon millennia. Billions labored under the united banner of the Aggregate, each contributing to the realization of their shared vision. Their monumental success was marked on the day of the Emperor’s Ascension in the high Hall of Indexes. The Bard, with a flourish of his quill, wrote the final line of symbols, completing the formula. As the ink dried, Kopi stood still, bathed in an eerie silence.
When the emissaries of the Imperium arrived a decade later, they were met with a grim sight. Only a few emaciated survivors remained, huddled among desiccated corpses. Their memories, as parched as the lands they inhabited, held no recollection beyond a few fleeting seconds. More perplexing was the discovery that the once-great archives had vanished. Data vaults stood empty, parchments bleached white, and the testament to the formula which sowed and reaped across the eons was reduced to a solitary image. It depicted a figure wrapped in flames, donned in a horned helmet, stepping out of a rift in the air.
The figure was none other than Ahriman, a mystifying entity who had long coveted the skull of Lepidus, a fallen hero of the Second Black Crusade. His quest led him to the polar Temple City of Diana Axis, a sacred mausoleum of the revered dead from countless battles. The skull of Lepidus, covered in silver and engraved with ten thousand abhorrent words, was kept in this revered place.
Ahriman’s initial plan was to obtain the skull through cunning. However, when this failed, he resorted to raw power. The world of Diana Axis was a fortress, surrounded by star fortresses and guarded by millions of warriors. But Ahriman was undeterred. He unleashed a cataclysm on the Morlan world, ripping its sun from reality. As blood and fire rained from the heavens, demons sprang forth from the cosmic wound, descending upon the world like a meteor shower of malevolence.
Amid the chaos, Ahriman made his entrance, cloaked in a tempest of lightning, flanked by Sorcerers and Rubric Marines. Their power was unparalleled, reducing honor guards to ashes and silent screams. Yet, their greatest challenge lay ahead: the warlord-class Titan, Firebane.
Ahriman and his sorcerers managed to bring the god machine to its knees and tear the core of the plasma reactor from its chassis. As Ahriman held the skull of Lepidus, a battle of demons and men raged around him. With a single glance at the skull, he found the word he sought, then discarded the skull and vanished with his warriors, leaving Diana Axis to the mercy of the dying and the demonic.
Ten millennia have passed since that fateful day, and Ahriman continues his solitary journey into exile, seeking salvation and answers in the elusive Black Library. His road is illuminated by the flames of destiny and strewn with the bones of the dead and the ashes of dead worlds. What awaits him at the end of his journey remains unknown, save perhaps to Tzeentch, the Chaos God of Change, who watches all and laughs at the twisting strands of fate.
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