40K Lore: Szarekh The Silent King
Loremasters, today we learn about the Necron’s last ruler – Szarekh the Silent King.Szarekh, also known as the Silent King, was the last ruler of the Triarch of the Necrontyr and later Necron race.
The Triarch
The Triarch was the ruling council of the Necrontyr empire before their transformation into the Necrons. Frequently undermined by rebellions in the Wars of Secession, the Triarch repeatedly attempted to find ways to unify the Necrontyr race once more, be it through a common enemy such as the Old Ones or the promises of immortality made by the C’tan.
The Triarch itself consisted of three Phaerons and the rulers of individual Necrontyr dynasties were themselves governed by the Triarch. The head of the Triarch was known as the Silent King, for he addressed his subjects only through the other two Phaerons. Nominally a hereditary position, the short lifespans of the Necrontyr ensured that the title of Silent King passed from one royal dynasty to another many times. The last Silent King of the Triarch was Szarekh.
Szarekh and the Great Sleep
At the time of his rule, the Necrontyr empire was already engaged in a vicious struggle against the Old Ones. In desperation, Szarekh agreed to form an alliance with the C’tan and transfer the Necrontyr into new bodies of living metal, becoming the Necrons. However while they now lived immortal lives and were finally able to emerge victorious in the War in Heaven, Szarekh realised that his people had become soulless pawns of the C’tan and before the war even ended was determined to exact vengeance against the star gods.
Biding his time, Szarekh waited until the Old Ones were defeated before finally leading a Necron revolt against the C’tan, eventually defeating their former masters and shattering them into shards. However Szarekh saw that the new races created by the Old Ones such as the Eldar were now becoming dominant, and the Necrons, exhausted by aeons of war, could not stand against them.
He ordered that the Necrons withdraw into their Tomb Worlds and slumber in the Great Sleep, to reawaken sixty million years in the future and assert their dominance over the galaxy once more. The Silent King, however, did not join his people in slumber. He destroyed the command protocol that allowed him control over the Necron race and journeyed into the void of intergalactic space, where he may find not only solace but also penance for dooming the Necrontyr race.
The Return of the King
In 744.M41, the Silent King ended his self-imposed exile and returned to the galaxy after encountering the Tyranids within the intergalactic void and realising the threat they pose. He has begun a journey across the galaxy with a band of his loyal Triarch Praetorians to reawaken Tomb Worlds that still slumber so they may unite against the Tyranids.
In 995.M41, the Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter engaged a Necron army under the Silent King. In what became known as the Gehenna Campaign, when Tyranids appeared over Gehenna the Blood Angels and Necrons of the Silent King were forced to join forces to defeat their common foe.
Want to learn more about the Necrons? Check out the Lexicanum!
