Dawn of Immortality

In the distant past, the necrontyr are a race cursed by short, painful lives under a deadly sun. Their desperation for immortality leads them to the C'tan, star gods who promise eternal life but instead trick the necrontyr into biotransference—transferring their souls into undying metal bodies. This act grants them deathless existence but at the cost of their souls, creativity, and much of their memory. The necrons become a race of immortal, soulless machines, ruled by ancient dynasties and haunted by the loss of their former selves. The galaxy is shaped by their wars, betrayals, and the shadow of the C'tan's manipulations.

The Collector and the Seer

Trazyn the Infinite, an obsessive collector and archivist, and Orikan the Diviner, a master chronomancer and astromancer, are two of the most eccentric and powerful necrons. Trazyn's passion is to acquire and preserve the wonders of the galaxy in his vast galleries, while Orikan seeks to master time and shape the future. Their paths cross over the pursuit of rare artefacts, especially the mysterious Astrarium Mysterios, a puzzle box said to hold the key to a lost tomb and perhaps the future of their kind. Their rivalry is marked by theft, sabotage, and a grudging respect, each seeing in the other both a peer and a nemesis.

Rivalry Across Millennia

Over millions of years, Trazyn and Orikan's feud escalates into a series of elaborate heists, betrayals, and battles. Each tries to outwit the other, using their unique talents—Trazyn's cunning and resourcefulness, Orikan's mastery of time and fate. Their contests range from subtle manipulations to open conflict, often dragging entire worlds and civilizations into their schemes. Despite their antagonism, they are bound by a shared sense of loss and the knowledge that only beings as ancient as themselves can truly understand the weight of eternity.

The World Spirit's Secret

Trazyn's quest for rare artefacts leads him to an aeldari Exodite world, where he seeks a gemstone embedded in the planet's World Spirit—a psychic construct housing the souls of the dead. The world's defenders, both aeldari and saurian beasts, fight desperately to protect their heritage. Trazyn's incursion is met with fierce resistance, but he ultimately seizes the gem, setting off a chain of events that will echo through the ages. The theft wounds the world and hints at the deeper connections between artefacts, souls, and the fate of civilizations.

The Astrarium Mysterios

The Astrarium Mysterios is a legendary artefact, a puzzle box encoded with cryptic glyphs and celestial alignments. Both Trazyn and Orikan become obsessed with unlocking its secrets, believing it to be the key to the tomb of Nephreth the Untouched, the last uncorrupted necrontyr phaeron. The box's mechanisms are tied to the stars, time, and hidden knowledge, requiring both mathematical genius and esoteric insight to open. Its pursuit becomes the central focus of their rivalry, as each believes it holds the answer to the necrons' future.

Theft, Betrayal, and Trial

Their struggle over the Astrarium leads to a dramatic confrontation in Trazyn's galleries, resulting in the destruction of priceless artefacts and the theft of the puzzle box. The feud spills into the political arena, as both accuse each other of theft, sabotage, and even murder before the Awakened Council—a rare assembly of necron overlords and executioners. The trial exposes the deep-seated mistrust and ambition within necron society, as well as the fragility of their ancient laws. Ultimately, the Council decrees that the Astrarium's secrets belong to all necrons, setting the stage for a race to claim its prize.

The Tomb's Hidden Curse

The Astrarium's solution points to the lost tomb of Nephreth, hidden on a world now known as Serenade. As Trazyn and Orikan race to unlock the tomb, they encounter cryptic warnings, deadly traps, and the lingering curse of the flayer virus—a memetic plague that drives necrons to madness and cannibalism. The tomb is protected by layers of misdirection, psychic defenses, and the enigmatic legacy of Vishani, the tomb's architect. The deeper they delve, the more they realize the tomb is not just a prize, but a prison for something far more dangerous.

The Song of Serenade

Serenade is haunted by a mysterious signal—the Song of Serenade—a repeating numerical code that permeates its geology, culture, and even the DNA of its inhabitants. The signal is both a lure and a warning, infecting those who dwell on it with obsession and madness. Trazyn and Orikan, each in their own way, become ensnared by the song, their rivalry turning into a shared compulsion to solve its riddle. The song's true purpose is revealed to be a failsafe, a message encoded by Vishani to warn against opening the tomb and unleashing what lies within.

The Flayer's Madness

The tomb's defenses include the unleashed flayer virus, which transforms necrons into mindless, flesh-hungry monsters. The virus spreads through data, song, and psychic resonance, threatening to consume not only the tomb's explorers but the entire planet. The fate of High Metallurgist Quellkah, driven mad and transformed into a flayer by the song, serves as a grim warning. The line between guardian and destroyer blurs, as the necrons' own technology and programming become weapons against them.

The Council's Judgment

After the disastrous events on Serenade, Trazyn and Orikan are brought before the necron authorities. The Council, now fractured by civil war and the Great Awakening, sentences them to work together to solve the tomb's mysteries and prevent further catastrophe. Supervised by the relentless Executioner Phillias, they are forced into an uneasy alliance, combining their talents to decipher the song, bypass the tomb's defenses, and confront the consequences of their actions. Their partnership is fraught with mistrust, but necessity compels them to cooperate.

The Exterminatus Approaches

As the tomb's opening nears, the planet Serenade becomes the target of an Imperial Exterminatus—a planet-killing bombardment intended to cleanse it of xenos corruption. The arrival of Imperial forces, ork invasions, and genestealer cult uprisings turn the world into a battlefield. Trazyn and Orikan must race against time, navigating the chaos above and below ground, to reach the tomb before it is destroyed forever. The impending apocalypse forces them to confront the limits of their power and the cost of their obsessions.

The Final Descent

In the planet's dying days, Trazyn and Orikan descend into the deepest vaults of the tomb, pursued by enemies and haunted by the song. They face the last of the tomb's guardians, the remnants of ancient armies, and the final traps set by Vishani. The Astrarium Mysterios is finally solved, opening the way to the heart of the tomb. But what they find is not salvation, but a revelation that will shake the foundations of necron history and identity.

The Deceiver Unleashed

The tomb's true purpose is revealed: it is not the resting place of Nephreth, but the prison of the C'tan known as the Deceiver, the most cunning and malevolent of the star gods. The legend of Nephreth was a ruse, a lure to draw the ambitious and the curious. Trazyn and Orikan, manipulated by the Deceiver through the song and the artefacts, have unwittingly broken its seals. The Deceiver is unleashed, its power magnified by the energies of the tomb and the chaos of the dying world.

Battle of the Dead World

The release of the Deceiver triggers a cataclysmic battle in the tomb's depths. Trazyn and Orikan, forced to set aside their rivalry, marshal every resource at their disposal—summoning armies from tesseract vaults, unleashing genestealers, orks, aeldari, and even Imperial Guard units from their collections. The Deceiver, fracturing into multiple shards, corrupts necron forces and spreads the flayer virus. The battle is a desperate struggle of mortals and immortals against a god, with the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance.

Apotheosis and Aftermath

In the final confrontation, Orikan achieves a brief apotheosis, drawing on the power of the aeldari gem and the energies of the tomb to become a being of pure energy, matching the Deceiver's might. Together, he and Trazyn manage to shatter and imprison the Deceiver's shards in tesseract labyrinths, but at great cost. The tomb is sealed, the artefacts hidden, and the world left a dead, haunted place. Both rivals are changed—Orikan scarred by his brush with godhood, Trazyn burdened by the knowledge of what he has unleashed and contained.

The Wheel Turns Again

In the aftermath, Trazyn and Orikan return to their old patterns—scheming, collecting, and seeking knowledge. The Deceiver remains imprisoned, but its influence lingers, and the lessons of the tomb haunt both necrons. The galaxy moves on, new empires rise and fall, but the rivalry between the Infinite and the Divine endures. The story closes with the sense that history is a wheel, ever turning, and that the struggle between preservation and ambition, past and future, will never end.

Characters

Trazyn the Infinite

Trazyn is the necron overlord of Solemnace, renowned for his vast galleries of artefacts, specimens, and historical tableaux. His compulsion to collect is both a passion and a pathology, driving him to extraordinary lengths to acquire and preserve the wonders of the galaxy. Trazyn is cunning, resourceful, and often amoral, seeing the universe as a museum to be catalogued. His rivalry with Orikan is both personal and philosophical—Trazyn seeks to preserve the past, while Orikan seeks to shape the future. Psychologically, Trazyn is haunted by the loss of his soul and the meaninglessness of immortality, using his collections to impose order and stave off madness. Over the course of the story, he is forced to confront the consequences of his actions and the limits of his control.

Orikan the Diviner

Orikan is a chronomancer and astromancer, obsessed with mastering the flow of time and bending destiny to his will. He is Trazyn's equal in intellect but opposite in temperament—where Trazyn is a curator, Orikan is a manipulator. Orikan's pursuit of the Astrarium Mysterios is driven by a desire to unlock the future and transcend the limitations of his metal form. He is arrogant, secretive, and often ruthless, but also capable of deep insight and rare moments of vulnerability. His psychological struggle centers on the tension between isolation and connection, as well as the fear of losing himself to the powers he seeks to command. His brief apotheosis reveals both the allure and the danger of godhood.

The Deceiver (Mephet'ran)

The Deceiver is the most insidious of the C'tan, the star gods who once ruled the necrontyr and orchestrated their transformation into necrons. Imprisoned in the tomb under the guise of Nephreth, the Deceiver manipulates events across millennia, using the song, the artefacts, and the ambitions of Trazyn and Orikan to engineer its release. It embodies the themes of deception, hunger, and the cyclical nature of history. The Deceiver's psychological profile is that of a cosmic trickster—amoral, predatory, and endlessly amused by the follies of mortals. Its release is both a personal and cosmic catastrophe, forcing its enemies to unite against a common threat.

Vishani

Vishani is the legendary cryptek who designed the tomb and the Astrarium Mysterios. Her intellect and foresight are unmatched, but her fate is tragic—she is killed maintaining the tomb's systems, her consciousness lingering as a warning encoded in the tomb's defences and the song. Vishani's presence is felt as both a guide and a cautionary tale, her warnings often ignored or misunderstood. She represents the dangers of unchecked ambition and the cost of knowledge. Her relationship with Orikan is complex, blending mentorship, rivalry, and the echo of lost kinship.

Executioner Phillias

Phillias is a Triarch praetorian, tasked with enforcing the laws and judgments of the necron council. She is implacable, disciplined, and incorruptible, serving as both jailer and supervisor to Trazyn and Orikan. Her presence is a constant reminder of the consequences of their actions and the fragility of necron society. Psychologically, Phillias is defined by duty and a sense of justice, but she is not without empathy, recognizing the necessity of her charges' work even as she mistrusts them.

High Metallurgist Quellkah

Quellkah is a necron cryptek who becomes obsessed with the Song of Serenade and is ultimately driven mad, transformed into a flayer by the tomb's memetic virus. His fate serves as a warning of the dangers inherent in the tomb and the song, as well as the vulnerability of even the most powerful necrons to corruption. Quellkah's madness is both a personal tragedy and a symbol of the broader risks facing necron civilization.

Nephreth the Untouched

Nephreth is the legendary last uncorrupted necrontyr, whose tomb is the object of Trazyn and Orikan's quest. In truth, Nephreth is a fiction, a mask for the Deceiver's prison. The myth of Nephreth embodies the necrons' longing for their lost flesh and the hope of redemption, but also the dangers of nostalgia and manipulation. The revelation of Nephreth's true nature is a shattering moment for both protagonists.

Sannet

Sannet is Trazyn's chief curator, a once-brilliant cryptek whose mind has decayed over millennia. He represents the slow erosion of necron faculties and the cost of immortality. Sannet's loyalty and technical skill are invaluable to Trazyn, but his deterioration is a constant reminder of the fragility of even the undying.

The Song of Serenade

Though not a character in the traditional sense, the Song of Serenade is a pervasive presence, infecting minds, shaping destinies, and serving as both a lure and a warning. It is the voice of the tomb, the echo of Vishani's last message, and the instrument of the Deceiver's manipulation. Its psychological effect is obsession, madness, and the blurring of the line between knowledge and destruction.

The Flayer Virus

Another non-traditional character, the flayer virus is a memetic and psychic plague that transforms necrons into cannibalistic monsters. It is both a literal and symbolic manifestation of the dangers of forbidden knowledge, the loss of self, and the breakdown of order. Its spread is a constant threat, and its presence in the tomb is a key element of the story's horror.

Plot Devices

Dual Protagonist Structure

The story is told through the alternating viewpoints of Trazyn and Orikan, whose rivalry and contrasting philosophies provide both conflict and complementarity. Their dynamic allows for exploration of themes such as memory, ambition, and the meaning of immortality. The structure also enables the use of unreliable narration, as each character's biases and limitations shape the reader's understanding of events.

Artefact Quest and Puzzle Mystery

The pursuit of the Astrarium Mysterios serves as the central plot device, driving the action and providing a framework for the unfolding mystery. The artefact's cryptic nature, tied to celestial alignments and hidden codes, creates a layered puzzle that requires both intellect and intuition to solve. The quest structure allows for episodic adventures, escalating stakes, and the gradual revelation of deeper truths.

Foreshadowing and Misdirection

The narrative is rich in foreshadowing, with warnings from Vishani, encoded messages, and the ever-present Song of Serenade hinting at the true nature of the tomb and the dangers within. Misdirection is used to great effect, as both protagonists and readers are led to believe in the promise of Nephreth's redemption, only to discover the Deceiver's trap. The use of unreliable narrators and shifting perspectives heightens the sense of uncertainty and suspense.

Cosmic Horror and Memetic Contagion

The story employs elements of cosmic horror, with the Deceiver as an ancient, incomprehensible evil manipulating events across eons. The flayer virus and the Song of Serenade function as memetic contagions, spreading madness and corruption through information, song, and psychic resonance. This device blurs the line between physical and psychological threat, making knowledge itself dangerous.

Cyclical History and the Wheel of Fate

A central theme is the cyclical nature of history—the rise and fall of civilizations, the repetition of mistakes, and the eternal rivalry between preservation and ambition. The story's structure, with its echoes of past and future, reinforces the idea that the wheel of fate turns endlessly, grinding all beneath it. The protagonists' inability to escape their patterns is both tragic and darkly comic.

Analysis

The Infinite and the Divine is a darkly witty, deeply philosophical exploration of immortality, obsession, and the dangers of unchecked ambition. Through the lens of Trazyn and Orikan's millennia-spanning rivalry, the novel interrogates the meaning of history, the cost of knowledge, and the psychological toll of eternity. The story is both a cosmic mystery and a character study, blending Warhammer 40,000's grimdark grandeur with sharp humor and existential dread. The central lesson is that the past cannot be reclaimed, and the future cannot be controlled—attempts to do either risk unleashing horrors beyond comprehension. The novel warns against the seduction of nostalgia and the hubris of those who would play god, while also celebrating the strange, stubborn persistence of curiosity and rivalry. In the end, the wheel of history turns on, and the only certainty is that the struggle between the infinite and the divine—between preservation and transformation—will never end.

Last updated: May 14, 2025