Not much is known of the Necrons
or the god-like C'tan. What is known
has been gathered from Eldar legend,
transcribed and archived by out Imperial
servitor-scribes of the Ordo Xenos.
+++Commit to: Imperial Record+++
+++EST 03/8567INQUISITORIS 8353/1453+++
+++Crossfile to: Aliens/Ultima Segmentum+++
+++Xenos/text: Eldar+++
+++Input Date: 998.M41+++
+++Input Clearance: Inquisitor Malachai+++
+++Authors: MUNG, Ralamine, Langstri,
Obelius+++
+++Thought for the Day: Blessed are
the Ignorant+++
My Lords,
First, may I apologize for the inevitable
delay of these texts. As well as the
infamous vox-record of an exchange
between His Revered Highness Inquisitor
Horst
and Tech-Priest Alagos, I have included
a transcription from a witness of a
Harlequin dance that I believe may
be of relevance. I also thought it
fitting
to include an approximate translation
of a fragment from the Seven Scrolls
of H'sann, a collection of ancient
texts uncovered and translated by
my mentor
Obelius Mung over the last 30 years.
This is in itself valuable as evidence
that the Eldar have detailed knowledge
of the Necron threat. However, in light
of the appearance of puissant xenos
entities leading Necron raids, I believe
the content bears further examination.
As all historians know, many an obscure
truth is shrouded in legend.
Your servant in life and beyond,
Ralamine Mung
THE BIRTH OF FEAR
There was a time when the Eldar
were not wracked by fear, and did
not live
their lives in mortal apprehension
of the dark fate that awaited them
upon
death. A warrior could meet
foes without a thought for his
mortal
shell; his soul would live on,
reborn as
a phoenix from the flame.
In that manner did the Eldar join
their gods to wage war against
the Yngir,
the immortal star-spawn that plagued
the universe with their eternal
thirst and undying warriors. Their
minions,
the silvered host, parted like
a sea before Khaine's wrath, and
his
followers,
the most battle-hardened of all,
blazed a flaming path across the
galaxy.
Ulthanash and Eldanesh, noble kings
of their houses, fought at Khaine's
side. Lanthrilaq the Swift and
Jaeriela Thrice-Blessed led their
peoples,
and none could stand before them.
Then came Kaelis Ra, the Death-bringer.
Its rampage stained the stars
with blood, and none could stand against
it, for
it wielded the power of death
itself.
Populations fell before its scythe,
its very gaze killed even the greatest
of Eldar heroes. Those that died
lost everything, even their souls.
But the gods of the Eldar had strengths
other than force of arms. The
greatest among the Soul-Dancers had
begun
to convince the C'tan to turn
their hunger
inward, to consume their brethren
in unholy feasts of star-flesh.
Kaelis Ra took its blade to its
kin and butchered
them without mercy as it had the
sons of Isha.
While the Death-bringer sought
ever darker ways to slake its
unquenchable thirst, Khaine was not
idle. He
struck
a bargain with Vaul the Smith-God;
in exchange for Kurnous's and Isha's
release
from Khaine's dungeons, Vaul would
forge one hundred swords for Khaine's
war
against the Yngir. Thus were born
the Swords of Vaul, the Blade-Wraiths.
Khaine led his people to war once
more, his rage incandescent, the
remnants of his army aflame with
the heat of
vengeance. A hundred Eldar, each
armed with a Blade-Wraith, faced
a horde
of silvered Necrontyr so vast
the horizon
glittered with metal bodies in
every direction. Yet they knew
no dread.
The Eldar fought in a great circle,
the Swords of Vaul flashing, and
the Necrontyr could not penetrate
their
defense. The soul-might contained
within the swords invigorated
their wielders,
and every blow smashed apart an
unholy foe. Khaine was unstoppable,
and
his warriors fought with the knowledge
that their god was pleased.
The battle lasted seven days and
seven nights before the Eldar
began to fall.
The Yngir's servants had found
a weak spot in the circle; Lanthrilaq
the
Swift was tiring, his face pale,
his imperfect
sword dull and blunt. The ring
of
warriors buckled and broke, and
the ground shook
as Khaine bellowed his anger.
Vaul had cheated him. One of the swords
was lifeless.
From the ground beneath them burst
Kaelis Ra, the Nightbringer, and
the Eldar
fell back for they knew their
doom was at hand. With a gesture, Kaelis
Ra slew
all those near it. With a glance,
it condemned the souls of great
warriors to an eternity of dust.
With a great
roar, Khaine leveled his spear
and charged.
Scythe and spear clashed over a
mound of corpses in a struggle
that tore
the skies asunder. Khaine's speed
and skill
were breathtaking, but the Nightbringer
was a being of shadow. The
Spear of Khaine could not find its mark.
Kaelis Ra let its foe exhaust
his
rage with
the patience of death.
Without warning, the Nightbringer
swung mightily with his scythe and aimed for
Khaine's throat. But Khaine had
heeded the counsel of the Laughing
God well.
As the Nightbringer's form became
solid to deliver its blow, Khaine
lunged,
and the tip of his spear drove clean
through the Yngir's chest.
Kaelis Ra burst apart in an explosion
of silvered shards that nearly
cleft Khaine in two as the Yngir's
essence
tore free of physical form. The
silvered warriors around him fell
to the earth
as the impact spread ever outward,
returning to the ground from whence
they came.
Soon, only Khaine remained, howling
his victory.
However, all was not well. Shards
of the Yngir's flesh, driven deep
into Khaine's body by the cataclysmic
demise
of his foe, melted in the fires
of the War God's wrath. The silver
poison
flowed
into his bloodstream and forever
tainted his physical incarnation with
the
aspect of the Reaper.
Kaelis Ra cannot truly die, for
it is death incarnate. Raging
at its
defeat, its quintessence howled
throughout space,
entering every one of the Eldar
race and cursing them with the
terror of the grave. Thus it was
that the
seed
of the Eldar's downfall was sown,
and
ultimately, the way of reincarnation
was closed to them forever.
source:
http://web.archive.org/web/20080103133732/us.games-workshop.com/games/40k/necrons/extras/dawnofctan/default.htm
