Have you ever experienced the feeling of being let go and waiting for a whole day but still not daring to leave? Or have you ever been under constant surveillance with guns and live ammunition, and even had someone accompany you when you went to the toilet?
Brayton tried it, and was suffering in this state. He swore that the noble blood flowing in his body had never made him suffer such humiliation since he was born.
At dusk, Terra's Government Office was already brightly lit.
According to past practice, if the executive meeting of the high lords needs to be postponed, then this should also be a relaxing moment for the Emperor's Shadows to rest and have a meal.
But today is obviously an exception.
Not only did the powerful Supreme Lords of Terra not show up at the meal, they revealed their future policies in an understated manner while changing cups and cups, and there was no order to deliver the food into the conference room.
On the contrary, since the arrival of several fighter planes from the throne room at noon, the rulers of the empire have not heard a single message from the room that determines the fate of the empire.
The strange and quiet atmosphere spread rapidly with the abnormal disappearance of the Terra lords.
And as this abnormality continued, the mortal institutions headed by the Imperial Administrative Council, the Military Command, the Imperial Senate, and the Imperial Navy Office in Terra also fell into some kind of "false busyness."
No one dares to leave at this time, even those who have no work at hand or have completed the handover of work.
But these nobles remained calm and maintained their order and dignity under certain established rules.
In the corridors of the Government Office, in the high-end restaurants on the commercial streets on the edge of the palace district, intelligence and information are secretly circulating in every corner and on the dining table;
And these channels also abide by the default "order". The local officials who come from out of town to meet with them and the local bureaucrats and nobles are like two distinct rivers, clearly distinguishable.
Some people may not be able to tell the difference between the two, but in the eyes of Terra natives, both groups have extremely obvious characteristics.
The former are gorgeously dressed, but due to the restriction of being far away from the cultural center, the specific clothing styles always look old-fashioned.
At this time, because of the lack of information, they were in a panic and overwhelmed by the sudden shutdown of the central government.
The latter's outfit may seem simple, but the details are full of extravagance. Often an inconspicuous cuff can be traced back to the era of strife, which is enough for the former to spend all their wealth to obtain it.
These local bureaucrats who are proficient in political affairs are more like a group of old fishermen. In the early stages of the storm's brewing, they have already smelled the smell of typhoon or blood from the salty tide.
What they are most concerned about at this time is who will win and who will lose in this fight, and which department will enjoy the policy dividends for decades or hundreds of years in the coming changes...
But they still misjudged the situation at this time.
Just like the emperor's golden hoe in the eyes of farmers, the situation in the conference room of Terra's Government Affairs Council was not the close-quarters confrontation they imagined.
On the contrary, stemming from the absolute sequence of rights, the high lords in the conference room were completely unable to resist the pressure from the Forbidden Army.
Because in a sense, they are the embodiment of the Emperor's will in the human world.
But the complexity of politics lies in the unpredictability of people's hearts, and even if they are as far-sighted as an emperor, they still cannot predict how the system he established will evolve after nearly ten thousand years.
The relationship between the high lords is never as simple as it appears to the outside world, and under tens of thousands of years of intertwining, even the most hostile forces will leave countless allusions over time. and tacit understanding.
In contrast, Mars' position is quite clear. The foundry generals of this generation are from traditional technocratic backgrounds. After just experiencing the disputes and beast wars in the Age of Apostasy, Mars is in urgent need of thousands of years of experience. Time to re-establish trust with Terra.
The relationship between the remaining forces is much more complicated, but they can still be roughly divided into several categories according to each other's interests and needs:
The real power faction headed by the Government Affairs Council, the neutral faction headed by the Star Language Tribunal, the transcendent faction headed by the Forbidden Army, and the restriction faction headed by the Tribunal.
Needless to say, the power of the Government Affairs Council.
Overview of everything in the empire, control of the empire's policies, personnel, and taxation, everywhere and everywhere is the most true portrayal of it.
If the High Lords of Terra are called the echoes and shadows of the Emperor, then the Chancellor, the head of the Imperial Council, is undoubtedly the loudest of all echoes.
It has two staunchest allies: the Imperial Navy and the Rogue Traders. Well, the Military Command actually counts as one.
As a typical asset-heavy and investment-heavy military service, the development of the former undoubtedly relies on the financial support of the Government Affairs Council.
After all, without the empire's endless tax revenue, the oil guys on Mars can't be fooled by just a word of dedication.
The latter is absolutely dependent on the Imperial Administration Council.
As a supplement to the commercial cycle of the empire's material circulation, all professional licenses and waterway access for the Rogue Traders, and even the channels for purchasing decommissioned warships from the navy, are firmly in the hands of the Imperial Administration.
The so-called county officials are not as good as the current management, and the essence of the rogue merchants is actually a white glove of the Government Affairs Council (extra fiscal and tax supplement).
The fact that they were able to flourish over these thousands of years and eventually occupy a place in the Terran Senate was in itself a manifestation of the overflow of power from the Government Affairs Department.
The Astra Militarum is in a more awkward situation. On the one hand, they are restricted by the supplies of the Administrative Council, and on the other hand, they rely on the warships of the Imperial Navy for inter-sector mobilization.
In the context of the Imperial Senate and the strange existence of the "Sun Lord" who specializes in war, the last wartime rights of the Military Command Company have also been replaced. They have hardly made their voices heard since the establishment of the Senate. .
The neutral faction is headed by Xingyu Ting, which includes the Star Torch Ting, the Navigator Family Alliance, and the Imperial State Church.
Their characteristics are that on the one hand they have no interest in the imperial armed forces, on the other hand they each have indispensable but irreplaceable resources for the operation of the empire.
And they happen to be not too short of money, so in the eyes of these neutrals, no matter who comes to power, they will still be treated favorably as those whose status remains unchanged.
There is no need to say more about the Custodes. Ever since the Great Heresy ended and the Emperor fell silent, these Eagle Guards have blamed themselves for their dereliction of duty, and the Webway War itself caused heavy losses to this powerful legion known as the "Legion of Ten Thousand Soldiers" at its peak. .
So since the beginning of the 32nd millennium, these emperor's personal guards have almost faded out of people's sight, but they only guard the palace all year round and rarely go out.
But it was not that they had done nothing. In other words, after the former Wanfu Group recovered from a long rest, they also wanted to find opportunities to step outside the palace.
However, due to the opposition of the mortal bureaucrats headed by the Government Affairs Council, they had no choice but to give up. It was not that they did not want to, but they were just waiting for the opportunity.
The last faction is Calvin's Inquisition.
The Inquisition is a small group of Constraints, only the Inquisition itself and the much-questioned and now unrecognizable Chamber of Assassins.
As the name suggests, they initially existed only as backup insurance to restrain the most powerful people.
However, in the several major events that the empire has experienced, there are always people who try to cross the boundaries of rights and put individuals above the empire.
It was through these rescues that they unknowingly developed into the behemoth they are today.
However, the empire's power base is limited, and has even been shrinking without growing in the past thousands of years.
Fixed financial and material resources are destined to be competed by countless people, regardless of whether they are motivated by public intentions. As this competition becomes more and more intense, as the tribunal in charge of imperial intelligence and special forces at home and abroad, it is destined to have conflicts with the Administrative Council, the head of the traditional forces. A fight.
This is the general trend, and it is also a self-cleansing of the traditional forces by the new forces as the empire adapts to the current situation.
It was destined to happen even without Calvin, it was just sooner or later.
——
The two Imperial Guards behind him have been standing for a full eight hours, and will continue to stand according to this trend.
Breton tried to find reasons to leave, and also tried to get the accompanying secretary to deliver the news.
But Trajan, the marshal of the imperial army opposite, sat firmly and completely ignored his meaning. Faced with the sharp standard spear in the hands of the three-meter-tall Forbidden Army, his secretary did not dare to take a step further.
The naval marshal also tried to leave on the grounds of defense, but after a staff officer walked out of the door with a pale face, he also lost the last thought of struggling:
Just two hours ago, all the battleships belonging to the Custodes were unsealed and with the cooperation of the Imperial Fists, hundreds of Custodes guards took over the naval defense of the entire solar system in the name of military exercises.
At the same time, the Forbidden Army and the Inquisition were also conducting raids on the residences and subordinate departments of the three high lords...
The situation is over, it's just a way to die.
Similar thoughts flashed through the minds of several high lords with evil intentions, and the remaining high lords would inevitably die in grief.
In the conference hall, Trajan felt more and more pressure. Several high lords were either gentle or stern, but this hero with legendary experience still stuck to his post, no matter how the other high lords exerted pressure. Still not moving.
The navy marshal was the first to be unable to bear the long ordeal. His fat body slumped on the seat like a dead man. Sweat flowed uncontrollably on his greasy face. He didn't even care that the military ranks woven with golden silk thread on his collar got wet. .
The Rogue Trader's face was dark and gloomy, but his eyes were wandering and he didn't know what he was thinking. As the party with the least power in the three-person alliance, it would not be surprising if they were abandoned first in the later struggle.
The Chief of the Government Council, Breton, sat quietly in his seat and fell into a long examination. He was also guessing how much evidence the trial court had, and what he could do for the other party after Calvin arrived...
At this time, the Thunderhawk that Calvin was riding on was also escorted by the fleet and had just arrived above the Government Affairs Office.
null! null! null! null!
The heavy steel boots of the power armor made a dull sound on the thick carpet of the Government Office. Guarded by the Honor Guard and Imperial Guards, Calvin's figure appeared in the corridor of the Government Office complex.
The crowds on the planned route have been evacuated in advance. In the quiet corridors and palaces, apart from the friction of power armor components, there is only the low-frequency noise of the servo driving the electromagnetic muscles.
Under the dim yellow light in the distance, vague eyes were peeking behind the colored gemstone glass window, but under Calvin's own psychic aura, these were a group of normal Astartes and Imperial Guards. Team.
"Did you get the evidence?" Calvin, who was constantly walking, asked Nicholas on the communication channel.
"Already got it."
The shield captain behind him compared the results of the raid on the Chief Secretary's residence with the documents sent from the Antarctic direction, and then sent the highlighted results to Calvin's personal terminal.
The latter glanced at the received documents on his pupil, but stayed for a long time on the words marked in scarlet in several places later.
"...Another cult?" The original body's brows frowned slightly, but the corners of his mouth turned up abnormally.
The honor guards who were familiar with him looked at each other:
The angrier the angrier, the brighter the smile. This is the classic expression of the original body's power to kill...
The cold thunder brewed deep in the pupils of the original body, and the equivalent was the understatement in Calvin's tone:
"Order Antarctica to check his background information and make a list of family members. Well, no direct lineage!"
"Yes." Nicholas nodded, with no expression on his face but in his heart he had already sentenced this family to death.
The group of people continued to move forward until they reached the door of the conference hall in the depths of the Government Council. The Imperial Guard stationed outside the gate had already been notified and pushed open the door as soon as they saw Calvin and others.
People in the hall followed the sound and looked towards the door, just in time to see Calvin, who was wearing armor and terrifying, more than 4 meters tall, walked straight to the Chief of Political Affairs Breton with the cold wind outside, looking down at him word by word. said:
"Sinner, your end has come!"
Updated, but no more votes.
I have written, deleted, and written. From the time I sat down in the morning until now, I have tried my best. In the name of the throne, good night everyone!
(End of chapter)
