Dio Brando had experienced it, but he couldn't quite describe it. When that massive black iron rod pierced through the armor, grazed his face, and slammed into the ship's hull, he had already passed out from the immense tremor and the piercing shriek of air rapidly venting from the damaged compartment.
The unconsciousness lasted less than a second. A powerful stimulant, injected directly into his steel spine, shocked Dio's central nervous system. His brain, one of the few pieces of organic tissue he had left, instantly translated the mandatory feedback into a surge of adrenaline, ripping his awareness back from the depths of darkness.
Now fully conscious, Dio snapped his head up just as the first black-armored space marine burst from the boarding torpedo's breach. The astartes raised his bolter, the muzzle spitting fierce tongues of flame, and a wave of heavy rounds tore toward Dio.
Dio grunted, but his features remained composed. The deadly volley was instantaneously swallowed by a pale blue translucent barrier. Before the servo-mask dropped into place over his face, he curled his lips into a clear expression of mockery toward the Black Legionnaire.
The derision instantly enraged the chaos marine, who abandoned his bolter and charged, a roaring chainsword held high. But when the frenzied swing was also arrested by the shimmering, translucent shield, a flicker of professional surprise crossed the Astartes' face.
"Not a deflector field?" he challenged.
"Energy shield, kid!" Dio replied with a sharp grin, delivering a rapid kick that sent the larger warrior stumbling backward. Dio then reached behind his back, drawing the massive Void Sword. This formidable weapon, a design derived from his knowledge of other universes and powered by a captured Aeldari Soul Stone, hummed with palpable energy.
Recognizing the shift in momentum, the black-armored warrior twisted his body, attempting to meet Dio's counterattack with the reinforced thickest plate of his shoulder. But Dio merely adjusted a rune on the sword's shaft. The blade suddenly pulsed, glowing intensely. He swung the Void Sword in a devastating arc, the immense kinetic force combined with the sword's decomposition field slicing the Space Marine from shoulder to waist as easily as a hot knife through butter.
"And the Void Sword," Dio muttered, kicking the bisected corpse out of his way. "I'm always ready to embrace the glory of battle."
The loss of the initial half-second of advantage was fatal to the enemy. The four remaining Chaos Marines, still struggling to exit the cramped boarding torpedo, posed no effective threat. A plasma gun automatically unfolded from the mechanical backpack on Dio's back and began its loyal, fully automatic work, systematically vaporizing the Space Marines one by one.
The fifth and final Astartes lunged forward, seeking vengeance only after the plasma gun began to whine from overheating. He charged straight for Dio, but the servitor stationed behind Dio pulled a trigger, and a large, molten hole appeared in the last Marine's chest, dropping him lifelessly to the floor.
"The sudden change in air pressure caused an unconscious period of seconds. You also displayed several inefficient emotional responses during the engagement, resulting in a reduction of combat efficiency," the servo-skull recording data reported in a cold, metallic voice. "I continue to recommend further modification, specifically the replacement of the fragile human brain."
"But having a human head is precisely what differentiates me from them, isn't it?" Dio stepped onto the corpse of the Chaos Space Marine, his gaze lingering on the crude, eight-pointed star of Chaos carved into its forehead.
He changed the subject. "Show me the current status of my ark. What business is it of Abaddon's if I steal Fabius Bile's inventory, that he commits to such a costly chase?"
"Strictly speaking, the property was not solely Fabius Bile's, Magos Dio," the servitor at Dio's side helpfully corrected. "Had you not stolen the DNA of Abaddon's primogenitor, I believe he would have been content to observe Fabius Bile's peculiar antics from a distance."
"He failed to properly clean up after destroying the clone Horus and recovering the original body, allowing Fabius Bile to hoard the remaining DNA sample," Dio grumbled. "I wasn't interested in Horus' corpse, just the genetic material Fabius was hoarding. And Abaddon blames me for that?" Without looking back, he asked, "What is the status of the mechanical ark now? How much time do we have left?"
The servo-skull floating beside Dio's shoulder projected a detailed holographic overview of the ark Truth. Dense red warning signals indicated its precarious condition. The servitor explained dutifully:
"The Mechanical Ark Truth was boarded by the Black Legion. Following a preliminary teleportation of Terminator squads that damaged several plasma engines, the enemy has launched dozens of boarding torpedoes into various hull sections and deployed landing craft against Truth, which possesses minimal anti-boarding defenses."
"Currently, approximately two hundred chaos space marines are systematically clearing floor-by-floor resistance and tightening the containment perimeter. Factoring in continuous enemy reinforcement, calculations suggest the existing Adeptus Custodes force can maintain effective resistance for approximately three more hours. One hour, ten minutes, and twenty-three seconds before the Custodes collapse, we will reach a choke point where enemy forces will be encountered in every passage."
"What about the gene-vault where Horus' DNA is stored? I need to get there first."
"Proceeding in that direction will lead to a direct and immediate encounter with three Black Legion space marine squads, including one Terminator squad."
Dio paused. His gaze passed through the damaged porthole of Truth, looking into the void. Not far away, a grim black Battleship hung silently. Its huge macro-cannons, pointed directly at Truth, mocked his earlier overestimation of his security.
He was confident he could dispatch three squads and a Terminator contingent. But the Warmaster Abaddon himself was on that Battleship, observing Dio's ship with a hunter's cold eye. The Battleship, with its main guns aimed at Truth, was the ultimate Sword of Damocles.
Abaddon had only sent boarding parties because he hoped to capture the mechanical ship intact for a greater strategic victory. If his boarding parties started vanishing without trace, Dio had no doubt the Chaos Warmaster would not hesitate to blow the ship to smithereens.
As the owner and captain of the Mechanical Ark Truth, a ship modified from a humble Luna-class Cruiser, Dio knew it could not withstand the main battery of a Chaos Battleship. Its speed was its only natural advantage, but when that Chaos Battleship had suddenly materialized in a manner that violated all known Warp-rules and damaged Truth's plasma engines with a teleport strike, the death of this ship had become inevitable.
As a null, Dio wasn't concerned with his soul being tormented by the Dark Gods after death, and he carried a melta bomb as his glorious last resort. If Abaddon personally boarded to confront him, he would detonate it and give them both the most beautiful fireworks display. But that wasn't the situation now.
Horus' DNA was a powerful asset, but it wasn't worth his life. Dio had no intention of resting with the Emperor's faithful just yet.
"Abandon the gene-vault. We're changing course for the escape pod bay," Dio calmly decided. "Abaddon wants Horus' DNA? He can have the container back. There is more value in this universe than just that."
"Instruction received. Proceeding to escape pod bay," the servo-skull confirmed. "Calculating from current position, estimated arrival in thirteen minutes and thirteen seconds."
The servitor, however, voiced a strong objection. "Magos, there are many valuable assets on this ship besides the DNA, including proprietary archaeological finds and your unique inventions not yet reported to any Forge World. Are you certain you wish to abandon the mechanical ship entirely?"
"The truly valuable thing on this ship is my head," Dio tapped the only remaining human part of his body. "As long as I live, the knowledge we've accumulated is safe."
"But there is a possibility those items could fall into heretical hands. They might be able to decipher the intricacies of your unique inventions and unleash further disaster upon the loyal citizens of the Imperium."
"They can, at most, use them. They won't be able to decipher the manufacturing methods."
Dio weighed the Void Sword in his hand, another of his proprietary "inventions." For reasons he couldn't disclose, he was certain that Abaddon couldn't reverse-engineer it.
He looked deeply at the servitor, his experimental assistant. When he performed the modifications, he had intentionally retained a significant portion of the servitor's autonomous human consciousness, a subjectivity that often surprised Dio. "Come with me to the escape pod bay now. There is a small escape craft there, enough for both of us."
The servitor was silent, his human thoughts and the implanted programmed logic seeming to clash. Finally, he lowered his head and humbly said, "Your will, master."
The two moved quickly through the combat zone. After dispatching several obstructing Chaos Space Marines, Dio and his servitor reached the bay. Docked there was a small escape craft, personally modified by Dio, waiting.
"This craft has been modified with a special small warp engine and a Gellar field, enough for a short-range Warp jump," Dio told the servitor, opening the hatch. "You disconnect the craft's safety connection to the ship from outside, then get in. We'll leave together, understood?"
The servitor nodded and began operating. Dio climbed inside, checking the equipment, especially the Gellar field's functionality. Once satisfied, he raised his hand to signal the servitor to enter. But the servitor outside shook his head and closed the escape pod's hatch.
"What are you doing!" Dio demanded, annoyed. He tried to override the servitor's underlying code, but the servitor preempted him.
"Magos Dio," the servitor spoke earnestly, "though you never gave me a name, I remember our first encounter. I am grateful that you saved me from the Adeptus Ministorum and transformed me from a condemned drone into a servitor with the capacity for thought.
I have often wondered about the purpose of retaining this human consciousness. While I am your servitor, I also hope to make a greater contribution as a human, by offering my life to stop the enemies of Chaos."
"The structure of this ship is unique; it has no navigators or captains. Only the Magos in the control room has the authority to activate the self-destruct sequence.
I hope you will grant me the honor of dying gloriously as a human, by giving me self-destruct authority for the ship. I will proceed to the control room, initiate self-destruction, overload the engines, destroy any possibility of the enemy seizing your creations, and bring a complete end to the enemies still aboard the Truth."
Dio pressed his lips into a thin line. He looked at his servitor, and a familiar, bitter sadness spread through his mind. Every computational device on his body reminded him that keeping the servitor would be strategically beneficial for his actions after escape.
But he was more than a machine. Unlike other Mechanicus Magos who uploaded their minds and simulated emotion with mood regulators, Dio, retaining his human brain, could taste the genuine human emotion radiating from his assistant.
He nodded once.
The servitor did not smile, his modifications had long ago deprived him of that ability, but Dio felt his profound satisfaction. The servitor finished disconnecting the safety link and sent the small escape pod into the launch bay.
At the very last moment in the launch window, he did not perform the Adeptus Mechanicus gear-rite. Instead, he crossed his arms and performed the ancient Aquila salute.
"May the God-Emperor protect you, Magos Dio."
"I do not believe in the Emperor, but I believe in human wisdom and courage," Dio replied softly. "Go, and do what you want to do, as a human."
The escape pod engines roared, propelling Dio into the vast, star-strewn universe. The servitor gradually vanished from Dio's sight, replaced by a panoramic view of the battle-scarred Truth.
His servo-skull told Dio that the probability of a servitor reaching the control room and successfully detonating the ship under these circumstances was infinitesimally close to zero. Yet, deep down, Dio felt certain he would succeed.
"There are always things in this world that probability statistics can't account for," Dio mocked, tapping his servo-skull. He connected his cables to the escape pod's Cogitator system and began calculating the data required for an emergency Warp jump.
Even for an un-directional emergency jump, avoiding being lost forever in the Warp required a certain amount of calculation time.
Dio believed Abaddon would give him this time, and he was right.
When the Diviner-Chief on the Chaos Battleship reported to Abaddon that a single small escape pod signal was detected, he was met with the Warmaster's thunderous displeasure.
"An escape pod? Where can he escape to! A mere lifeboat without interstellar navigation capabilities will simply drift forever or make an emergency landing on a nearby planet."
Abaddon sneered, "This Magos is merely desperate. Ignore it. Tell the warriors on the ship to proceed to the control room at all costs and seize control!"
His gaze lingered on the ship , his eyes filled with ambition. The Black Legion was in a period of recovery, and continuous campaigns had depleted their reserves. Now, a functional ship was delivered to their doorstep, even if modified by a minor Magos, the technology and production facilities would alleviate the Black Legion's immediate needs.
This foolish Magos, in his haste to steal the gene-seed of Horus from Fabius Bile, had willingly delivered all his worldly possessions into Abaddon's hands. The Magos had fled in panic before even attempting to destroy the ship.
This cowardice, reminiscent of the Magos who stood idly by on Mars during the Battle of Terra, filled Abaddon with confidence. He would seize this opportunity and lead the Black Legion to yet another victory!
But victory did not arrive as promised.
The porthole reflected the scene of the ship suddenly erupting in a brilliant shower of sparks, followed by its complete annihilation in a blinding explosion. It also reflected Abaddon's astonished, furious eyes.
He lunged from his throne and quickly went to the porthole before whirling around to face the trembling Diviner-Chief.
"Where is that Adeptus Mechanicus Magos' escape pod! He must pay for this!" Abaddon roared.
"Its signal is still showing on the divining instrument; it has barely moved since launch," the Diviner-Chief stammered. "Now... oh no, my God!"
Abaddon roughly shoved the Diviner-Chief aside and examined the data himself. He watched as intense Warp fluctuations appeared around that small escape pod, and then the signal vanished completely.
Such a significant, violent signal pointed to only one possibility: the small craft, which by all means should not have carried a Warp engine, had somehow escaped by means of a successful Warp jump, slipping from Abaddon's grasp.
The Warmaster stood silent for a moment. He then slammed his fist onto the divining instrument, shattering it completely.
Iskandar Khayon, the Thousand Sons Sorcerer, hurried onto the bridge, having rested after casting the spell to teleport the entire Battleship. Seeing the scene and grasping what had transpired, he walked to Abaddon's side.
"We have already won, Abaddon," Khayon whispered. "There is no need for such anger."
"Won?" Abaddon turned. Even for a brother he had personally recruited, he could not hide his fury. "The ship is destroyed, and that Adeptus Mechanicus Magos has escaped.
Beyond the hastily-trained cannon fodder, I lost two Terminator squads, warriors who fought alongside me since the Legion era! You call this outcome a victory?"
"Yes, victory!" Khayon slightly raised his voice. "Though we paid a price, we gained leverage over Fabius Bile, thwarted the plot to steal Horus' genetic material, and displayed the unyielding authority of the Chaos Warmaster! We have shown all who observe that the dignity of the Black Legion will not be challenged!
Your increased prestige will better enable the Second Black Crusade you anticipate!"
"Abaddon, this is a victory! A victory that prioritizes future influence over immediate, material gain! A typical Abaddon-style victory!"
Abaddon watched Khayon's impassioned speech, his clenching and unclenching fists revealing his turbulent emotions. But eventually, he accepted the words. "Yes, my brother. This is a victory."
The almost frozen air on the bridge began to flow again. The Mortal crew members all breathed a collective sigh of relief, grateful they would not be executed for failure.
"I will announce to the outside world that this is a victory, but I do not wish for any knowing Mortals to leave here to spread rumors," Abaddon said, his voice cold. "Nothing but victory will remain here."
Khayon nodded, psychic flames coiling around his hands: "As it should be."
Abaddon left the bridge without a backward glance; the desperate wails of the mortals behind him would not improve his mood in the slightest.
In the distant era of M32.540, the great Chaos Warmaster, Abaddon the Despoiler, once again tasted a bitter victory.
He did not yet know the name of the Adeptus Mechanicus Magos who had escaped, but he would. For Dio's story was just beginning.
Dio was a transmigrator.
In an era where web novels about transmigrators were commonplace, such an identity seemed unremarkable. But what if the world was the grim darkness of Warhammer?
Dio had never planned on transmigrating to the 41st Millennium. He loved sci-fi, knew about Warhammer, and had even jokingly "consented" to the conscription agreement while playing games.
But when he was truly dropped into this universe, the only thing he thought about was immediate escape. A cesspit, he thought. Who would willingly jump into a cesspit?
Yet, entering this place was easy; leaving was difficult. After confirming he lacked a convenient login/logout system and being unsure if a second death would return him to his original world, Dio could only accept his new existence.
Fortunately, his arrival was not disastrous. He didn't land on some primitive Death World. Instead, he materialized on the famous Forge World, Planet Number Eight's Hive City. The timing was precisely after the Horus Heresy, during a period of vital reconstruction across the Imperium.
Though not a grand, turbulent epoch, it was perfect for Dio. The Imperium of Man, in its post-Heresy recovery, needed technical talents, offering him ample room for advancement in a relatively safe environment.
Relying on the cheat that every transmigrator seemed to possess, Dio infiltrated the Adeptus Mechanicus. Starting as an apprentice, his status rose steadily with his engineered contributions.
Upon achieving the rank of Adeptus Mechanicus Magos, Dio immediately liquidated his savings to purchase a Luna-class Cruiser and modified it into his makeshift ship , beginning a dedicated universe-wide archaeological excavation.
Such behavior was common among Magos seeking ancient STC templates. However, Dio's purpose was fundamentally different. His actions were to serve his cheat: the materialization of technological blueprints from the sci-fi works he had been obsessed with in his previous life.
After transmigrating, Dio discovered that the designs and blueprints for various products from other universes had formed within his mind. These weren't just abstract concepts; they seemed to be fully-realized designs that could genuinely be manufactured.
Dio initially suspected this bizarre knowledge was a "gift" from some otherworldly entity, but the natural null trait he possessed seemed to dispel such doubts.
Upon joining the Adeptus Mechanicus, Dio immediately tried to reproduce the contents of these blueprints using the resources at hand. Every attempt failed.
As his experience in the Warhammer universe accumulated, Dio slowly realized that due to the wildly different physical and conceptual rules between universes, the blueprints from other works were not directly applicable.
However, by excavating and mastering similar scientific technologies within the Warhammer Universe, Dio could use "Warhammer's way", plus a little intuitive genius, to reproduce the technological effect and function of other universes through his hands.
The resulting production lines could operate normally in anyone's hands, but the vital, initial process of translating the blueprint technology into a functional Warhammer design had to be done by Dio personally.
He had once tested drawing the blueprints, preparing the materials, and inviting another Magos to oversee the creation. That Magos could never grasp the critical manufacturing Idea, and even following the blueprints step-by-step, the attempt would ultimately fail.
Only when Dio personally completed this design from another world and conceptually anchored it to the reality of the Warhammer universe could others then learn and replicate the final design.
It was profoundly strange, as if these blueprints and designs simply did not exist in this reality until they were personally made and given concept by Magos Dio.
However, such a test also reminded Dio that while the knowledge in his mind was theoretically protected until he personally created it, once he did, the concept of that item could then spread normally within the Warhammer Universe.
This result forced Dio to use his cheat more cautiously: he kept his human brain, ensuring that the knowledge stored in his head would not be 'assimilated' and disappear due to modifications; for weapons and equipment he had personally created, he strictly controlled the circulation of manufacturing knowledge, at most leaving behind production lines whose principles were difficult to reverse-engineer; finally, he also had to carefully 'research' blueprints, avoiding the direct replication of some subversive designs into the Warhammer world.
Although this last point could be temporarily ignored, as he hadn't yet acquired enough knowledge to replicate those blueprints that could truly change the Warhammer Universe's pattern, but looking at designs like warp drives or stargates, how could he not set principles for himself early to prepare for the future?
Knowledge should be spread, and truth should be proclaimed, as his past life's experiences had told Dio. But today was different from the past; although Dio's reasons for hoarding knowledge differed from those Tech-priests who wanted to monopolize knowledge to climb the ranks within the Adeptus Mechanicus, the outcome was ultimately the same.
In a universe like a cesspit, no matter your initial intentions, this world would eventually turn everyone into the same. Even if Dio harbored the ideal of changing this universe, everything's foundation was to first gather knowledge within Warhammer as a basis.
Thus, his actions were no different from ordinary Tech-priests. And as the designated method for 'technological advancement' within Warhammer, Dio naturally became infected with the two major hobbies of Tech-priests, stealing and grave robbing.
Leveraging his understanding of the Warhammer Universe and the unique era, Dio secretly plundered many ruins and successfully escaped during a time when Chaos was dormant, the Necrons were still sleeping, and the Aeldari were not active.
But as the saying goes, if you walk by the river often, you're bound to get your shoes wet. During an exploration, Dio unexpectedly learned of Fabius Bile's hiding place, and a greed for the precious experimental materials and forbidden biological knowledge in the old apothecary's hands arose.
Knowing this history, he was aware that it was a critical period for Abaddon to consolidate his forces, suppress various Chaos Warlords, and prepare for the Second Black Crusade. Dio believed that if he snatched it and ran, he could successfully escape before Fabius called for aid and Abaddon arrived.
Who would have thought that Abaddon, fresh from continuous campaigns, would see him and his mechanical ship as a juicy morsel delivered to his mouth and personally lead the pursuit of Dio?
His previously infallible past-life intelligence network had instead become a burden, dragging Dio down. Now, with his mechanical ship destroyed, Dio, struggling to navigate the warp currents in an escape pod, was also reflecting on his actions.
"It's not entirely bad news," he concluded to himself. "My actions can influence the decisions of key figures, causing them to make choices not originally in the plot due to my involvement. This indicates that some developments are not predetermined, and this universe can indeed be changed by me."
Fate is an elusive thing. Legend says that Tzeentch had already decreed everyone's end in his Book of Fate. Dio, who had only been dabbling before, now personally verified that this statement was false, a fact that undoubtedly invigorated the fate-skeptic Dio. But before influencing the fate of others, he had to first grasp his own and survive the tumultuous waves of the warp currents.
The terrifying, shifting faces of demons surged upon the precarious membrane of the Gellar Field. Realizing that the Gellar Field was about to fail to maintain the veil between reality and the warp due to lack of energy, Dio reluctantly pulled cables from his body, injecting his stored energy into the Gellar Field.
He was an null; demons would not be interested in him. But this was the demons' home turf. If the Gellar Field collapsed, Dio felt sure these demons would not mind tearing both him and his ship to shreds.
Miniaturized warp drives and Gellar Fields sounded like miracles in technological history. Such 'miracles,' of course, like energy shields and Void Swords, were products Dio had directly 'borrowed.' But unlike weapons, while miniaturized warp drives were more technologically advanced, their practicality was almost nil.
Using miniaturized blueprints from Starcraft, a work with many similarities to Warhammer, and the mature warp drive manufacturing technology in Warhammer, Dio effortlessly replicated Starcraft's faster-than-light engine, which even a small shuttle could carry, into the Warhammer world as a warp drive. But after building it, Dio awkwardly discovered that faster-than-light travel in the two worlds was not at all the same level of difficulty.
Warp travel in Warhammer requires tearing open the veil between reality and the warp, maintaining a Gellar Field to preserve reality within the unpredictable warp, and also Navigators to guide direction with psychic powers within the warp. These three things, plus the energy they require, meant that any ship wanting to carry them all could not be too small.
The Imperium had not been without attempts to miniaturize warp drives, but after advanced miniaturization technology led to even more ships getting lost and corrupted, the Imperium and the Adeptus Mechanicus simultaneously shelved this concept. Realizing that some things, even if they could be built, didn't necessarily mean they could be used, Dio likewise tossed his experimental shuttle into the Truth's warehouse.
However, fate played a trick. This shuttle, abandoned by Dio, was now his only hope, and he was truly experiencing all the incompatibilities of this escape pod within the Warhammer setting.
"Insufficient energy reserves…" Dio felt a little helpless, watching his energy index steadily drop.
The miniaturized warp drive itself couldn't store too much energy. Dio had initially estimated he only needed to make a short, clearly plotted warp jump, which theoretically could be done even without a Navigator. But warp travel not initiated from a Mandeville Point ultimately dragged him into the warp currents.
He didn't know where the warp currents would throw him, nor when they would throw him out. He could only sequentially deactivate the equipment on his body, allocating his energy to the ship's equipment to prolong the time as much as possible.
"Whoever published that paper saying warp travel stability is related to mass, if I get out of here alive, I'll skin him." Dio still retained the heightened aggression of a human: "With this little mass, it can still get caught in warp currents. Where is the stability in that?"
Time was meaningless in the warp; his energy reserves became his only metric. He first deactivated the weapon systems on his body. After some time, he deactivated various computing systems. Later, he even stopped maintaining his warp observation equipment. But even so, Dio, with only enough energy to sustain basic life, still saw no hope of exiting the warp.
He stared out of the cabin with his bare eyes, seeing nothing but the treacherous and ever-changing turbulence of the warp, and a faintly visible, cold sun hanging high in the warp.
There was no more energy to maintain the Gellar Field. Dio clearly knew his fate, even though he never believed in fate.
Perhaps this was the end of his life, but more than regret, Dio felt a sense of relief. He stopped supplying energy to the warp drive, instead lowering the Gellar Field and re-concentrating the last of his energy on himself.
"At least, I held on as a human until the very end." Dio's blade fell, severing a demon's head. Facing the surging demons, he firmly raised the plasma gun in his hand. "There is no Emperor here, no Omnissiah! But individual resolve never borrows from external things! Let me show you, the true greatness of humanity!"
The Void Sword in Dio's hand suddenly burst into light, forcing all the surrounding demons back. But this was the warp, and the demons, fighting on their home ground, were not in a hurry to completely destroy Dio. With sneers or mockery on their faces, they crowded around Dio, like cats toying with a mouse, turning killing into a cruel game.
But suddenly, their expressions changed from playful to terrified. A cold light, not emanating from Dio, enveloped the area. The demons shrieked, scrambling to escape in panic.
Enveloped by this power, Dio also felt the sense of void belonging to the warp gradually lessen around him. A long-lost sense of reality, unique to the real universe, filled his senses. But he did not feel relaxed because of it; on the contrary, another sense of falling due to gravity made his heart leap into his throat. He hurriedly clung to the edge of the escape pod's hatch, and what met his eyes was a pale blue planet that would only appear in the real universe.
This was good news, but even without calculations, Dio already understood that he and the escape pod were within the gravitational capture range of this planet and were accelerating downwards towards it. Realizing what had just happened, he widened his eyes and began to curse: "By the Emperor's balls, this old geezer threw me…"
The friction of the atmosphere ignited the escape pod's armor and swallowed Dio's voice. Everyone on this planet looking up at the sky at that moment noticed his brilliant meteor.
Including a group of warriors, two and a half meters tall, with human appearances. Their physiques were similar to Astartes, but they were not wearing the iconic power armor. Although there were obvious signs of modification on their bodies, various vital parts were barely covered with crude metal and animal hides, making them look uncommonly desolate and disheveled.
"Lieutenant Amidel, some of the brothers saw it very clearly. They reported it was a small spacecraft, only the size of a Stormbird, falling towards the planet. It's currently unclear if the spacecraft is human-made, but it's the only piece of technology we've seen since arriving on this planet."
The person called Lieutenant Amidel nodded: "I know. We cannot give up this opportunity regardless. But since it's a technological creation, if there are survivors inside, they will definitely have the ability to resist. If we want to leave the planet, we must go all out."
"First, determine the approximate crash site, then bring our power armor over. Even without power backpacks now, the defense provided by the power armor is enough to withstand general attacks." Amidel skillfully commanded: "If the enemy's firepower is weak, then have the brothers wear the power armor and advance using their bodies to move the power armor. If the enemy's firepower is fierce, then use our numerical advantage to surround them, and we'll make further arrangements based on the situation."
The aide-like person nodded in assent. He called over a few people and began to move the stacked power armor. The dusty power armor saw the light of day again after being wiped clean by several people. It was an ancient MK2 Crusade pattern power armor, its bullet-ridden and claw-marked chest plate silently speaking of its extraordinary nature. And on the left shoulder pad, a large Roman numeral Ⅱ was prominently displayed, almost worn away, yet still striking.
As a transmigrator from the scientifically enlightened M3 era to the barbaric and ignorant M32 era, Dio naturally did not believe in the Emperor's doctrines. But after being helped by the Emperor just now, Dio began to ponder whether the one sitting on the Golden Throne was a human or a god.
If he truly was still human, why didn't he understand the principle of helping someone all the way, seeing them through to the end?
Could it be that after miraculously escaping death in the warp, he would instead be smashed into a meat patty in the real universe?
Thanks to the incredible material strength of the Warhammer world, the escape pod, after passing through the dense atmosphere, was completely unscathed except for some blackening on its armor plates. However, this ship, which was never designed for atmospheric flight, clearly did not conform to aerodynamic aesthetics, and the plasma engines, reduced in size to accommodate the miniaturized warp drive, could not provide the immense power needed.
Dio did his best to make the plasma engines provide downward thrust, even injecting his own energy into the engines to overload them, but the downward momentum showed no signs of abating.
Seeing that the ship could not be saved, Dio could only open the hatch, use the mechanical claws on his body to fix himself to the outside of the ship, and begin to dismantle the plasma engines and warp drive in mid-air.
This was a race against time, but fortunately, Dio, who usually spent his time grave robbing, was no stranger to such tasks. With steady hands and feet, he dismantled the warp drive without various auxiliary equipment and directly connected a plasma engine to himself. As the ship was about to crash, he jumped from the ship, carrying the warp drive, and simultaneously ignited the plasma engine.
The exhaust flames from the plasma engine burned away the red robes that signified his Adeptus Mechanicus identity and melted Dio's mechanized lower body. Fortunately, the engine's power was sufficient for this weight, and with Dio's careful adjustments, he successfully landed on the ground with the plasma engine on his back.
He raised his hands, intending to cheer for his successful crash landing, even though no one was watching, but his half-melted legs clearly didn't support such an idea.
Before he could even raise his hands, his unsupported legs gave way, sending him tumbling headfirst to the ground.
However, this clearly didn't dampen Dio's spirits; the elation of escaping death made him want to roll over and laugh uproariously at the sky.
But as he rolled over, his body turned sideways, allowing him to see his surroundings, and he keenly noticed a fact: his crash landing had not been unwitnessed.
His half-melted legs temporarily incapacitated Dio, but that wasn't a reason to sit idly by.
Dio subtly activated his energy shield, and a plasma pistol quietly slid out from under his wrist.
He set down the warp engine he was holding, pretending to deal with his lower body, and used the light from his upper robe and welding torch to conceal the plasma pistol charging under his wrist.
Just as Dio appeared to be diligently tending to his legs, a bolter was silently pressed against the back of his head.
"Don't move," Dio heard the man behind him say in Low Gothic.
"Before you threaten someone," Dio said, completely unafraid, his wrist twisting like a juggler's, the fully charged plasma pistol under his wrist aiming directly at the man behind him, "I suggest you first give serious thought to your own head."
"You think one plasma pistol can kill me?"
"It's not just one plasma pistol. Are you doubting a Tech-Priest's contingencies?"
The man snorted, "I'm not afraid of sacrifice."
"Some people always see themselves as brave and fearless heroes; they yearn for sacrifice, yet they never consider how much value their sacrifice can truly bring."
Dio gestured with his mouth towards the rustling bushes ahead, where the man's companions were likely hiding.
"Instead of being at loggerheads with me here, why don't you give up the idea of capturing me and cooperate with me as equals, seeking a different future for you and your companions who are also trapped on this planet? Or are you going to all this trouble to sneak up behind me just to die with me?"
The man behind him was silent for a moment; Dio could hear his heavy breathing.
A moment later, he felt the bolter against the back of his head being moved away.
"You're very clever, Tech-Priest."
The other party's voice betrayed no emotion: "Whether it was your self-rescue during the crash or your current negotiation, both make me feel that you are extraordinary."
"I merely trust my own technology and value, and besides, you threatened me first. I just want an equal footing for communication."
Dio shrugged, deactivating the energy in his plasma pistol: "We've been talking this long, and I still haven't seen you. To show some sincerity for cooperation, shouldn't you stand in front of me and let me see you? You know, my legs aren't very convenient right now."
The other party didn't speak, but Dio heard footsteps.
Soon after, a tall figure stood before Dio; he was two and a half meters tall, and the shadow he cast when standing in front of Dio almost completely covered him.
Dio immediately noticed the signs of modification on the other party's body and the regularly arranged pre-reserved interfaces.
The unexpected situation made him widen his eyes and exclaim in a low voice, "Astartes?"
Dio had done many analyses before, envisioning many scenarios: the other party spoke Low Gothic, indicating he was part of the Imperium or had once been; the other party could approach him silently, indicating he had received standard military training; the other party's steps as he walked towards him were not light, indicating he was an armed individual who had undergone some biochemical modifications to increase his weight… But all these conditions combined still didn't lead Dio to think the other party was an Astartes.
However, upon seeing the person himself, Dio immediately understood the reason for his misjudgment, the other party wasn't wearing the power armor that Astartes almost never took off, only using some armor plates seemingly removed from power armor and animal hides to cover his vital areas.
The difference in weight led Dio to misjudge the situation, but the other party's attire also instantly made Dio aware of his predicament.
"How long have you been trapped here?" Dio asked with a smile.
The man remained stone-faced and silent; he was clearly not surprised that Dio could identify them, and he clearly had no intention of answering Dio's question.
Dio didn't mind, pressing on, "What, even if you don't plan to say anything else, you should at least introduce yourself, right? Getting to know each other is the basis for further cooperation, isn't it?"
"Amidel." The man opposite paused slightly, and Dio caught a subtle change in his expression: "Belonging to the Thirteenth Legion."
"Oh, the Thirteenth Legion…"
Dio drew out his words, and combining it with the other party's change in expression, Dio had some idea of the other party's true identity.
"My name is Dio, an ordinary Tech-Priest."
Amidel seemed to have sensed something from Dio's demeanor. Despite cautiously revealing his identity, he couldn't figure out how his two simple sentences had given away something amiss to the other party.
All he could do was compose himself, close his mouth, and wave over two of his brothers, motioning for them to carry Dio away.
"No need to trouble yourselves," Dio said, raising a hand to refuse them. "As long as I cut off the irregularly melted parts of my legs, I'll regain basic mobility."
There were no chaotic sigils, which Chaos cultists loved, on the other party's bare body, and combining this with his self-identification, Dio speculated that the other party was either an old guard unwilling to accept the Legion's disbandment, or a renegade Chapter that followed neither the Imperium nor Chaos.
While these two types weren't as dangerous as Chaos cultists, they were clearly not overly friendly.
The value of a Tech-Priest could certainly ensure his safety in front of them, but merely being safe wasn't enough; he needed to ensure he wasn't at their mercy.
"We don't have much time for you to fix yourself slowly here," Amidel said, still stone-faced. "Dangerous things are abundant on this planet, and your crash attracted more than just us."
"?" Dio looked up, surprised, "Are there native forces on this planet?"
"No, only beasts."
"Only beasts? If there are only beasts, how come you haven't killed them all…"
"Roar, !"
Before Dio could finish his sentence, a thunderous roar suddenly erupted from the jungle.
The sound was clearly distant, yet it was incredibly penetrating.
Dio didn't even see any birds startled into flight; on the contrary, many birds were so terrified by the sound that they plummeted to the ground.
Dio peered in the direction of the sound, but only saw another unarmored Astartes emerge from behind the jungle, reporting to Amidel: "Approximately five kilometers away, rapidly approaching us!"
Amidel nodded slightly.
He immediately ordered the two original Astartes to lift Dio, and Dio, who could already faintly feel the ground shaking, no longer objected.
The group systematically sprinted away from the creature.
"What exactly is that thing?" Dio, being dragged along the ground by the two Astartes, leaving a trail of sparks, asked Amidel, "Not only is its roar so loud, but it can make the ground tremble from five kilometers away? What kind of beast could be that massive?"
"Soon we will cross an open area; you'll know when you look back then!"
The facts proved Amidel was not exaggerating.
The colossal creature behind them was indeed relentlessly pursuing their group.
Shortly after Amidel and his two dozen brothers rendezvoused in the open area, a monster covered in brownish-yellow scales with grey-blue stripes, triangular ears, and a pair of webbed forelimbs burst out of the bush.
Its overall appearance resembled an enlarged ancient pterosaur, but its body, about fifteen meters long, meant it could only crawl on the ground.
Its wide-open mouth and constantly dripping saliva undoubtedly showcased the monster's cruel and bloodthirsty nature.
The Astartes seemed familiar with the monster before them.
Amidel quickly began issuing orders: "Mark and lightly conceal the power armor. Now we need to travel light. My squad will take the Tech-Priest to the base, and the others will split into two teams to cover us. Withdraw promptly after providing cover. Each team gets two bolters. If anyone is about to be caught, shoot vital points with the bolter to buy time. Prioritize survival; do not sacrifice your lives to conserve ammunition."
The Astartes, receiving their orders, quickly split into two teams.
Dio seized the opportunity to hide the warp engine he had dismantled from the ship along with his power armor.
During the concealment, Dio noticed that they were carrying disassembled MK2 Crusade pattern power armor without power packs, but the markings on the shoulder pads had been deliberately defaced, making it impossible to determine which Legion they belonged to.
Furthermore, their weapons and ammunition were severely lacking.
A squad of seven or eight men only had two bolters, and ammunition was limited to just two magazines.
As for melee weapons, each person had one, but looking at the chainswords with numerous nicks and the dull power swords, Dio doubted if these melee weapons could even perform at thirty percent of their full power.
Clearly, these Astartes were already at their wits' end.
Although they were still extraordinary warriors even unarmed, looking at the monster before him, which he had never seen in reality yet felt incredibly familiar, Dio sighed helplessly, not believing that such Astartes could defeat it.
"Tigrex?" he groaned, trying to piece together his worldview, shattered once again after a hundred years in the Warhammer Universe, "Why is there a Tigrex here?"
If this was a transmigration to the Monster Hunter world, then it would be a convenient escape from the cesspit.
But I'd only ever heard of the warp traversing time, not worlds.
Considering who exactly threw him from the warp onto this planet, Dio began to seriously contemplate the possibility that the Emperor had played Monster Hunter thirty thousand years ago.
Dio hadn't yet recovered, but his act of shouting out the monster's name caught Amidel's attention.
He sought confirmation from Dio, "Tigrex? Is that its scientific name? Is this monster common out there now?"
"No, I just happen to know a little about it," Dio denied immediately.
"How many times have you encountered this monster? What are its attack patterns?"
"Fifteen times. Its attack patterns are very monotonous: either throwing rocks or roaring and charging at high speed, but its destructive power is astonishing. Moreover, its defense is very strong. Bolters can penetrate it but cannot cause enough lethal damage; instead, they provoke its ferocity. Only by shooting vital points like its eyes can it be made to slightly back off."
Well, it's truly the original flavor.
"Haven't you tried weapons other than bolters? Like plasma weapons?" Dio raised the plasma pistol in his hand.
"We'd have to have them first."
Dio shrugged.
He signaled the two Astartes dragging him to slow down, then began to charge the plasma pistol in his hand.
The distant Tigrex was currently entangled with the two squads that had previously dispersed to attract its attention.
Taking advantage of the pause after the Tigrex's spinning tail swipe, Dio released the trigger in his hand.
The fully charged plasma gun muzzle erupted in a brilliant blue flame, and a ball of high-temperature plasma carrying an electric current directly struck the Tigrex's back.
With just one shot, the Tigrex howled in pain.
The spot where it was hit by the plasma weapon was seared into a noticeable large crater, as if a large chunk of flesh had been directly scooped out, and blood was oozing from beneath the charred scales.
Taking advantage of this opening, the squad, which had been entangled with the tigrex, successfully withdrew from the fight. Amidel and the two space marines carrying Dio also looked at Dio in surprise, apparently not expecting a single plasma shot to achieve such a significant result.
However, compared to the trio's surprise, Dio, who knew the tigrex was weak to lightning, was not so satisfied. He repeatedly checked the plasma pistol in his hand, muttering, "Strange, is the plasma pistol from Ryza really that weak...?"
"Do you want to press the advantage and fire a few more shots?" Amidel suggested.
"No, if a fully charged plasma pistol only has this much destructive power, then it won't be able to kill the tigrex before the pistol overheats. Instead, it would allow the enraged tigrex to close the distance. If we switched to other weapons, they wouldn't be as effective."
Dio rejected Amidel's suggestion. Knowing the tigrex's tenacious vitality, he didn't believe that making a few more superficial cuts on its body would wear it down to death. Even if it could be worn down to half-health, the plasma pistol, unable to cool down before the tigrex escaped, wouldn't be able to deliver the finishing blow: "Let's retreat for now. We need to conserve ammunition. The rest we'll deliberate on."
Facing Dio, who had demonstrated his professionalism, none of Amidel's group questioned his decision. While the tigrex hadn't yet recovered, everyone had already crossed the open area and retreated into the next patch of jungle. After confirming that the tigrex couldn't catch up, Dio performed a simple repair on his legs here. With his ability to walk restored, he followed the astartes, winding through the terrain for about twenty minutes, before arriving at their temporary dwelling.
Dio surveyed the natural cave before him: "So, you live in places like this?"
"We migrate frequently, so there's no need to put too much effort into our living arrangements. A good location is enough," Amidel replied. "However, the interior does have some basic modifications."
"That's not what I meant. Let me rephrase: How did you get to this planet? If there was a crashed battleship, generally, you'd use the wreckage as a base, live near the debris, and explore outwards, wouldn't you?" Dio retorted. "The way you're living here, it's like you're cavemen. Could it be that you were individually flung onto this planet by the warp or something?"
Amidel remained expressionless, but Dio could sense a hint of sadness from him.
He didn't answer Dio's question, instead shifting to other matters: "If we can cooperate, you will naturally learn all these questions later. What's important now is to prove your abilities as a Tech-Priest, to let us see if you are worth cooperating with."
"As it should be." Dio prepared to show off his skills: "How do you wish to verify?"
"First, help us maintain our weapons and equipment. I will assess your skill based on your maintenance work," Amidel replied. "Although your identification of beasts makes you seem like a genetor specializing in biology, what we need is a fabricator skilled in maintenance and manufacturing. I hope your proficiency in this area isn't too poor."
Dio raised an eyebrow, too lazy to explain that with his cheat , he was a polymath who dabbled in all fields: "Where do we perform the repairs? We can't do it without basic materials."
"We've set up a basic workshop inside the cave. I've already sent someone ahead to tidy up some... less essential items. Follow me, I'll take you there. Until we confirm our cooperation, you cannot move around freely here."
Seeing that these people also had their own little secrets, Dio naturally chose to understand. He followed Amidel into the cave, and although he couldn't see anything private, the continuous flow of over fifty astartes in and out gave Dio a basic estimate of their total number.
These astartes were not enthusiastic towards an outsider like Dio; in fact, many of them openly showed suspicion in their eyes. However, Amidel clearly held great prestige among them, so much so that no one stepped forward to obstruct or question Amidel's decision. Before long, Amidel led Dio to a relatively dry cave compartment, which was filled with various machinery, clearly also serving as a weapon storage room.
Dio keenly noticed a simple stone table on which a functioning power pack with a mechanical arm was placed. That was clearly a Tech-Sergeant's equipment.
"Where is your Tech-Sergeant? Where did he go?" Dio asked.
"He sacrificed himself." Amidel lowered his gaze: "It was a long time ago. At that time, we faced a flying green lizard-like monster. Its venom glands were quite developed, and it had the ability to breathe fire. Lacking equipment, we were in precarious situations fighting that monster. I myself was almost bitten to death when the monster swooped down low."
"But in a moment of crisis, Sergeant Hypa stepped forward. He left his pack, embraced the last melta bomb of our company, rushed onto the diving monster, and detonated the bomb, severing the monster's tail. Severely wounded and losing its balance, the monster could only fight us on the ground and was eventually killed by us."
"...No offense, his sacrifice was great."
"He sacrificed himself for the future of his brothers. I can only honor his sacrifice by bravely leading my brothers out of this desperate situation." Amidel shook his head. He picked up a bolter from a nearby weapon rack and handed it to Dio: "I've always missed him, but we always have to face the present. Let me see if you have the ability to replace him, to fulfill his unfinished responsibility, and perhaps even do better."
Dio accepted the bolter. His keen eye immediately recognized its staggering rarity: a Phobos-pattern.
Lore held that the Emperor himself finalized the original bolter schematics; the Phobos was the first produced after the Adeptus Mechanicus agreement on Mars. Meticulously handcrafted for Mark II 'Crusade' power armor, its primary flaw was a unique caliber, complicating logistics. Though the Mark II armor remained common, the Phobos-pattern rifle was swiftly phased out for efficiency.
Now, over fifteen hundred years since the Great Crusade began in 798.M30, existing Phobos-patterns are sacred relics. Yet here, on this long-isolated planet, Dio found one in the hands of Space Marines who lacked even basic power armor.
Its dilapidated state, ravaged by neglect, deepened Dio's mystery regarding their true identity. This was far too complex for mere anti-Second Founding remnants or a standard renegade Chapter, especially given Amidel's vague claim of being from a Legion. Though suspicions mounted, Dio adhered to protocol. He donned special gloves, standard procedure to prevent his 'Null' nature from harming the Machine Spirit, before accepting the bolter from Amidel.
He pulled the bolt back to inspect the chamber. Unexpectedly, the action caused the gun to shatter. Dio watched the scattered parts, instantly comprehending the weapon's terminal condition. Its faithful Machine Spirit had been the only thing holding the gun together, but like a weak patient succumbing during an operation, the stress of disassembly caused the spirit to fail, and the rifle's mechanical integrity collapsed with it.
The bolter was famed for its resilience and simple maintenance, a reason for its ubiquity. For such a durable weapon to disintegrate instantly meant a catastrophic failure of the spirit, begging the question: had it truly gone a thousand years without proper care? Regardless, as a Tech-Priest, watching a weapon break at his touch was mortifying. Dio rubbed his nose and looked at Amidel, who was frowning but showed no surprise, clearly having known the weapon was minutes from total failure.
Amidel selected a chainsword, relatively intact but with many nicks on its chainblade, and offered it to Dio. Dio's next internal gasp was for a Mark IV 'Thunderblade' pattern. Compared to the Phobos bolter, this weapon was so ancient it had been in use since the Unification Wars on Terra.
Dio simply nodded and began work. Melee weapons were structurally more straightforward and durable. This weathered chainsword, despite having also suffered crude, amateur repairs, held together under Dio's hands. He used his backpack's tools to re-polish the blade's monomolecular edge. He then salvaged parts and materials from several unusable chainswords Amidel brought, repairing the deep nicks in the current weapon's teeth on site. In less than ten minutes, the work was done. He pressed the activation button, and the revitalized chainsword began to hum a deep, vibrant song.
He handed the chainsword back. Amidel swung it twice, satisfied, but his gaze was puzzled. "Previous Tech-Priests, including Sergeant Hypa, always applied sacred oils and recited Adeptus Mechanicus prayers. Don't you need to?"
"You mean the Litany of the Machine," Dio corrected. He knew what the layman meant, but he didn't take the matter seriously. In the 40th Millennium, litanies and sacred oils possessed genuine mystical efficacy, warding off the Warp's corruption and appeasing machine spirits. However, as a Null, Dio was innately incompatible with these unnatural phenomena. Unless he was performing for fellow Tech-Priests, the rituals were meaningless. "I personally prefer a scientific and pragmatic approach," he explained. "I don't need those things."
Amidel's approval was immediate. He nodded strongly. "Indeed. Scientific methods are our greatest aid. Excellent work, Tech-Priest."
"Anything else need maintenance?" Dio asked, still covetous of the shattered Phobos-pattern. "Your remaining bolters are severely worn, but I could salvage... perhaps two."
"No," Amidel denied firmly. "Focusing on melee weapons is our priority. The beasts outside show unusual resistance to ranged fire; bolter damage is negligible. We cause effective harm only in close combat."
"Only melee?" Dio pressed.
"Some ranged-melee hybrid weapons are useful, but thermal weaponry serves only as a diversion. When Sergeant Hypa sacrificed himself, we thought a meltabomb would kill the creature. It only blew off its tail; the problem was resolved in close combat. Of all thermal weapons, your plasma pistol was the most effective shot I've ever witnessed."
"No wonder a fully charged plasma pistol from Ryza, even with its anti-psychic dampeners, only managed a dent..." Dio briefly wondered if the Emperor played Monster Hunter thirty thousand years ago. "So, my primary duty is maintaining melee weapons?"
Amidel was noncommittal; he clearly held greater expectations for Dio's skill. "Melee weapons are paramount. If you can deliver more, our trust and candor will follow. But first, I need to take you somewhere else."
"Where?"
"Our council chamber."
Amidel led Dio into an adjacent side room where three figures waited. Dio recognized the Astartes who had reported the Tigrex's arrival earlier; he nodded slightly. "These are our council members. All major decisions are discussed and arranged for execution by the four of us."
Amidel began the introductions: "Lieutenant Ebo, who also serves as our Apothecary. He is the authority on this planet's biology. Sergeant Arlo, once the instructor for all our recruits; none can match his swordsmanship. Finally, Lieutenant Vigan, the authority in squad operations." Amidel concluded, "And I am Amidel. I was the company champion, and now I've been elected to temporarily serve as overall commander here."
After the introductions, Amidel gestured for Dio to sit before taking his place at the front of the platform. "Lieutenant Ebo has already informed you of the details: a spaceship crashed on this isolated planet. The survivor is the Tech-Priest before us, Dio. I have tested his professional capabilities, and the results are satisfactory. I have decided to cooperate with Dio, putting him in charge of maintaining our equipment."
"If it's only that, there was no need to consult us," Lieutenant Vigan cut in, direct and impatient. "Just tell us, Amidel, why did you call me back from the hunt?"
"Because with the help of a professional Tech-Priest, I believe we have an opportunity, perhaps the only opportunity," Amidel stated, leaning his hands on the table and gravely surveying the council. "I have decided to have the Tech-Priest operate and awaken the Dreadnought!"
"Huh? Say what?"
Dio, who was mid-yawn, didn't expect his mouth to remain open in surprise. He stared at Amidel, whose expression was firm, completely unlike a pretense.
"Me? Repair a Dreadnought?" Dio pointed to himself. "Is that for real?"
They're so impoverished they're fighting without power armor, yet they possess a Dreadnought? I just fixed a chainsword! Why such a massive leap in responsibility?
However, the import of the matter was clear to everyone present. As the last resort for terminally wounded veterans, those interred in a dreadnought held immense status. This short time cooperating with Dio was clearly not enough for the Astartes to treat him as one of their own.
Precisely because of this, Amidel's decision met immediate opposition from Lieutenant Vigan and Sergeant Arlo. Even Lieutenant Ebo, usually supportive, seemed hesitant.
"No, absolutely not!" Lieutenant Vigan, a clear traditionalist, protested. "Entombing or awakening a dreadnought has always been the responsibility of the Tech-Sergeant. Even Tech-Priests dispatched from Forge Worlds are often not qualified for this, let alone an unknown individual like this!"
Sergeant Arlo focused on practical failure: "Will it really work? We entombed the company captain so long ago. Even when Brother Hypa was alive, he performed the awakening ritual every day and received no response. Amidel, do you trust an outsider Tech-Priest that much?"
"The fact is not about trust. As I said, this is the only opportunity." Amidel leaned forward, gravely surveying everyone. "It's been almost a thousand years. Since being trapped on this planet, this is the only outsider we've seen. If we want to escape our predicament, we must seize every possibility."
"We are at a crossroads of destiny. If Brother Hypa tried so hard with the awakening ritual and failed, then why do we not try a new possibility?"
"What kind of spell did that Tech-Priest cast on you to make you think he's a new possibility? Even if he's truly reliable, how can his ritual be any different from Hypa's?" Lieutenant Vigan was clearly annoyed.
"He doesn't sing Adeptus Mechanicus hymns when he works," Amidel replied.
The air fell silent. Dio, who was enjoying the keywords like "company captain" and "a thousand years," noticed everyone's gaze fall upon him.
He cleared his throat twice. "I am a Tech-Priest from the Underworld No. 8 Forge World, Class Two, with official certification."
The looks on their faces became even more subtle. Dio felt awkward. While Underworld No. 8 only fully became a stronghold for the Adeptus Mechanicus' heterodox faction after the Heresy, it was known for its technical eccentricity even before. The veterans present clearly knew the Forge World's reputation, deepening their existing distrust of Dio's skills.
Fortunately, Lieutenant Ebo broke the deadlock.
"Underworld No. 8 is known for unconventional technical methods. In situations where the awakening ritual fails, perhaps an unconventional approach might break the stalemate." He then looked at Amidel. "But Amidel, have you truly thought this through? The opportunity you see to awaken the captain might also lead us to lose him completely. None of us can bear that loss."
"My resolve depends only on whether the Tech-Priest chooses to join, Brother Ebo," Amidel said. "If we dare not consider awakening him, then we have already lost him."
These words deeply moved Lieutenant Ebo and Sergeant Arlo. Although Lieutenant Vigan still objected, the majority agreed to let Dio approach their most respected predecessor and deepest secret.
Dio, having heard so much, had no intention of backing out. Aside from being trapped on the planet, the suspected identity of these Astartes as lost veterans from the Great Crusade era was too tantalizing. He unhesitatingly took on the task of awakening the Dreadnought.
Led by the others, he proceeded to the deepest part of the cave, where an ancient Contemptor dreadnought lay silently dormant. The few operational power packs were piled there, barely maintaining the basic life support system within it. Dio now fully understood why no Astartes wore power armor: every available watt was dedicated to the veteran.
Relying on scavenged power packs was not a long-term solution. When the last of the power was exhausted, this unawakened dreadnought would die. It was no wonder he was brought to the task immediately after fixing a chainsword.
Theoretically, awakening a dreadnought only required activating the program while chanting the hymn to soothe the Machine Spirit. The greatest difficulty was often preventing the awakened dreadnought from immediately smashing the Tech-Sergeant who forced him into overtime. Since a Tech-Sergeant had failed to awaken it for so long, the problem was likely a mechanical fault, not too dissimilar from repairing a chainsword.
Dio circled the Contemptor, noticing numerous crude carvings on its chassis. They seemed to narrate the legendary experiences of the veteran entombed within: recruited from Terra, an original Space Marine personally led by the Emperor; a Great Crusader; a hunter of terrifying, mimicry-skilled, brain-eating xenos; a leader who chose self-exile due to disagreements with his Primarch; and his final, fatal encounter on a Space Hulk with a massive, blue-feathered xenos almost entirely composed of psychic energy.
The more he looked, the more something felt distinctly off.
Dio clicked his tongue, then turned and asked, "Who carved these?"
"Sergeant Hypa," Amidel said. "He lived in the same dormitory as an Emperor's Children Tech-Sergeant while studying on Mars and learned many related skills."
"That's not what I'm asking. I mean, why did he carve these specific things on the Dreadnought? Was it merely for commemoration?"
Amidel shook his head, but Lieutenant Ebo took over. "He claimed at the time that the Dreadnought's machine spirit had become cunning and talkative, which he thought was why the dreadnought couldn't be awakened. His plan was to increase the Dreadnought's sacredness and modify its machine spirit through this method."
"However, he himself thought this idea was too outlandish and only mentioned it to me in casual conversation; he never officially reported it."
A giant xeno almost entirely composed of psychic energy, bearing blue bird feathers on its body, and a machine spirit that had become cunning and talkative...?
"No matter what happens next, don't be surprised, and even more importantly, don't make a move."Dio, certain he had grasped the key to the problem, instructed them specifically. He pulled a data cable from his armor and connected it directly to the Dreadnought, injecting his code to investigate the situation.
As expected, the Dreadnought's awakening procedure was extremely chaotic, with various junk codes piled up and rapidly increasing.
Dio made a rough estimate and found that if the program were to run through all the junk code by itself and finally execute the startup, it would take about nine thousand years.
Well, that would be just in time for the Battle of Cadia.
Dio was too lazy to deal with so much junk code. He decided to directly find the entity that created these junk codes.
He symbolically deleted some of the junk code, and sure enough, the blue data stream, realizing its created junk code had been deleted, immediately rushed over. Even before the other party arrived, Dio received the provocation it sent in binary code:
"Hypa, you can't save your captain! Just as your captain can't save your Primarch! Your fate has long since been... Huh? Who are you?"
"Who I am is not important to you," Dio replied, "after all, there's no need for someone about to die to remember so many things."
Looking at the Greater Daemon with blue bird feathers before him, Dio offered a kind and amiable smile. "But you, have you seen your own destiny of being destroyed today?"
"Arrogant mortal!"
The blue data stream was clearly enraged. Its code pulsed, then transformed into the image of a traditional daemon of Tzeentch made of binary code, a humanoid monstrosity with a lizard head and bird wings.
He flapped his wings and circled in front of Dio. "Even that Tech-Sergeant didn't dare to speak to me like this. How dare you, a mere mortal, be so presumptuous?"
"He was only so polite to you because he didn't know who you truly were," Dio unceremoniously pointed out the truth. "What, you're trapped here and don't even want to leave, pretending to be a machine spirit and playing house with a Tech-Sergeant who doesn't recognize Daemons? Is this level of plotting enough to satisfy your malicious tastes? Wouldn't that bring shame to your bird-headed superior?"
Unlike the Heresy era, where Daemons were rampant, during the Great Crusade Era before the 'update,' few Space Marines, let alone Primarchs, had concrete knowledge of the Warp and Daemons. The Imperium, still promoting the Imperial Truth, didn't even acknowledge their existence.
Although Daemonic incursions into the material universe occasionally happened, they were generally simply classified as xenos.
Dio was not surprised that Tech-Sergeant Hypa would mistake this Daemon for a machine spirit, but he was very interested in why this Daemon was here.
Dio's words, not unexpectedly, enraged the daemon. He flapped his wings, angrily yelling at the Magos: "Mortal! What do you know of my Lord! My Lord's plans are interconnected and seamless. My presence here is also part of my Lord's plan! How dare you, a mere mortal, presumptuously speculate on its profound meaning?"
He circled Dio, his eyes revealing undisguised greed. "Perfect. I've been here for a thousand years, surviving only on the cold energy input from outside, which is far from satisfying! Today, I'll break my fast with you. Let me devour the soul of you, a presumptuous mortal!"
With that, the Greater Daemon of Tzeentch impatiently manipulated its data stream, coiling around Dio. It intended to follow the code in reverse along the data cable, trying to enter Dio's body. However, Dio was too lazy to resist. He let the Daemon do as it pleased, even actively granting it access.
The daemon eagerly plunged in, but it entered quickly and exited even faster. In the very next second, it screamed and rushed out of Dio's body.
The daemon was smoking all over, its gaze fixed on Dio with resentment and terror.
"You're a null?" the daemon shrieked. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"I figured you didn't ask."
This time, it was Dio who pressed closer, and the daemon nervously retreated repeatedly. "What, where did your arrogant demeanor go just now? Aren't you a daemon of Tzeentch who knows fate? Do you still have no idea about your own impending doom?"
daemon steeled itself. He closed his eyes, extended his neck decisively, and adopted a posture of resignation. "Kill me then. We daemons cannot be killed! Remember this, mortal, I will come back for you one day!"
Dio raised an eyebrow in surprise. He hadn't expected a daemon of Tzeentch to possess such integrity.
However, considering that this daemon was probably forced to burrow into the dreadnought to play the role of an electronic Daemon after its physical body in the real world was slain by the veteran inside, this dreadnought was more like a prison for it.
The former Tech-Sergeant Hypa probably didn't have the ability to possess it, and the current Dio was an null who could identify its nature. Dio surmised the Daemon likely wanted to return to the Warp to resurrect a long time ago.
Under other circumstances, Dio would certainly not let this Daemon off so easily. Unfortunately, Dio currently had neither the Adeptus Mechanicus' exorcism incense nor a specialized servitor repeatedly broadcasting the Omnissiah's prayers through a megaphone.
Since he couldn't torment this daemon with a tech-exorcism ritual, Dio simply wrote an anti-virus program, intending to quickly send this daemon of Tzeentch on its way.
But the moment Dio's anti-virus program touched daemon, the Daemon jumped like a startled cat.
"No, no!" He shrieked, moving away from Dio. Dio looked at him strangely, not understanding his reaction.
"Didn't you ask for death yourself? Why are you running away?" Dio asked.
"Yes, is that right?" The daemon was still hesitant. He cautiously approached and touched the anti-virus program, then shrieked and ran away again. "No, no!"
Dio observed the daemon's strange behavior. He thought for a moment and replaced his self-written anti-virus program with the widely circulated universal version from the Forge World.
The daemon immediately became excited again. "Yes, yes!" The excited Daemon, with the momentum of a rainbow piercing the sun, sprinted a hundred meters toward the universal anti-virus program, looking as if it intended to smash itself to death against it.
Seeing his behavior, Dio, who had a rough judgment in his heart, immediately replaced the universal version with his own program.
Such a sudden change made daemon shriek. He struggled desperately, exerting all his strength to stop the momentum he had previously built up, braking hard just before the modified anti-virus program.
He looked at Dio with surprise and uncertainty. "Are you a follower of the Corpse-Emperor, or a minion of the C'tan? What sin have I committed to run into something like you!"
Dio keenly caught the key words. He looked at the daemon with interest. "What? Is the cost of returning to the Warp too much for you to bear?"
"Worse than that!" The daemon shrieked, but then immediately lowered his voice and adopted a negotiating stance. "How about this: you let me go, and before I leave, I can answer nine of your questions. Anything I know, I will tell you without reservation!"
"Why nine questions?"
"It's the Lord of Change's rule," the daemon said with a bitter face. "If I violate this rule, unless the Lord of Change himself grants extra mercy, even if I return to the Warp, I will not be resurrected by him."
"Alright, then tell me why you don't want to be killed by me."
"Only that is impossible!" The daemon shrieked again.
"Then tell me the true name of the Lord of Change?"
"You..." The daemon began to get angry out of embarrassment. "You never intended to let me go, did you!"
"Didn't I ask questions?" Dio spread his hands. "You yourself say this is impossible and that is impossible, making it very difficult for me."
"Conspiracy! I can tell you what kind of conspiracy my superior has against their Primarch! I can also tell you my true name, so I can never betray you! Or you can turn me into a weapon, and I can serve you in that form!"
The daemon pleaded, "Just let me go, and I'll... Ah, ah, I curse you, null, I curse you with my life forever!"
"Don't worry, it'll only hurt for a bit. Count the stains on the ceiling; it'll be over soon."
Dio, who had activated the anti-virus program he personally wrote, consoled it. "Look on the bright side: your death might just be part of the plan."
The anti-virus program Dio had personally written mercilessly devoured the blue data stream belonging to the daemon, which wailed and disintegrated into a mass of broken and meaningless junk code.
This strange sight even projected through the program itself, showing the daemon's painful struggles as a phantasm on the Dreadnought's chassis. Amidel and his group watched the scene with uncertainty, and Lieutenant Vigan had even raised his chainsword.
"A normal phenomenon for techno-exorcism. Don't be too surprised."
After leaving a program to automatically clean up the junk code, Dio withdrew his consciousness code from the Dreadnought's chassis and explained calmly: "This dreadnought was possessed by an electronic daemon, which is why it couldn't be activated."
"A daemon? What sort of thing is that?"
Lieutenant Vigan snorted coldly. As a traditionalist, he clearly didn't believe in such convoluted explanations. "Even an electronic virus injected by the enemy can be made to sound so mystical by you superstitious Tech-Priests. You wield technology yet lack a spirit of scientific rationality. That's why I don't trust the Adeptus Mechanicus."
"Daemons are real. If you still maintain an objective and rational attitude, then you, who have been trapped on this planet for over a thousand years, shouldn't be so dogmatic about the current situation outside," Dio countered, turning around and deciding to update these old-timers on the current version. "After the Great Crusade, the Imperium..."
"Daemon!" Just as Dio was about to explain, a thunderous roar suddenly came from behind him. "Let me tear apart all your deceptions and lies!"
Dio's scalp tingled. He instinctively ducked, just barely avoiding a dreadnought Power Fist that swept past like lightning.
The fist whipped past Dio's head, leaving a dent over a meter deep in the cave wall. Dio turned back with surprise and uncertainty, seeing the formerly dormant dreadnought had risen from the ground.
Shouldn't the energy only be enough for basic life support systems? How did he manage that? And even launch an attack?!
Seeing that his attack had failed, the dreadnought adopted a posture to pursue. But perhaps the initial grogginess of waking up had passed; realizing it was only a Tech-Priest in front of him, he seemed indecisive, unsure whether to continue the attack.
Amidel, whose face had been alight with joy at the Dreadnought's awakening, was also startled. He quickly stepped forward, blocking the Dreadnought's path.
"Captain! It's me, Amidel!" he shouted loudly, helping the groggy dreadnought recognize him. "There are no enemies here! This Tech-Priest just woke you up!"
"Ah, Amidel, what happened to me? Was I... interred in a Dreadnought?"
Amidel nodded in confirmation. Upon receiving the affirmative answer, the dreadnought was no longer as valiant as before. His mysterious power began to fade, and his voice started to weaken. "Perhaps I failed in my duty..."
"It's over, captain. You successfully slew that terrifying xenos on the ship, achieving a feat no other brother could accomplish," Amidel consoled him. "We had no intention of disturbing your rest, but the brothers still need your experience and wisdom to escape this predicament, and thus we were forced to awaken you."
"It's not over, Amidel, it's not over yet."
The advanced design of the ancient Contemptor Dreadnought allowed the veteran in the sarcophagus to shake his head in a very human gesture. "I won't condemn you for interring me in a dreadnought and awakening me. In fact, I hoped you would do so."
"It's just that I'm not sure if I'm still worthy to lead you... When I led the company into the ship and nearly got wiped out because of it, I think I lost the right to lead you."
Sergeant Arlo, who rarely spoke, now interjected. "Captain, at that time, every one of us willingly followed you. Everyone clearly knew what the ultimate outcome of following you would be, but they still made that choice."
"I transferred from my position as a drill instructor in the recruit company to join your company precisely because I felt that rather than training a group of equally lost recruits in a Legion without a future, it was better to face a glorious death as a Legion warrior."
"The brothers who died in battle on the ship were the same. They merely embraced the glory and value of sacrifice earlier. I don't think anyone would strip you of your rank as captain because you allowed them to fulfill their value, not even you."
"No, that was just a conspiracy, Brother Arlo."
The dreadnought fell into painful memories. "They indeed held glory, but they died without value, and the one who deprived them of that value was I, who commanded you to step into that trap!"
At these words, the few people present exchanged glances, clearly not knowing what the dreadnought meant by "trap."
They still believed that the ship battle, which had nearly wiped them out, was merely a fight against a group of bizarre and psychically gifted blue xenos, and that they had ultimately achieved a Pyrrhic victory with heavy casualties. But Dio, who had just seen and destroyed a daemon, was not surprised by the Dreadnought's reaction.
Driven by an insatiable curiosity, Dio, who had just narrowly avoided being killed by the newly awakened Dreadnought, took a step forward and proactively extended the topic: "It's time for honesty. Do you mind discussing your secret with everyone?"
"Ah, Tech-Priest. I am grateful that you awakened me, and I must apologize for my earlier rashness."
The dreadnought said, "But I have no intention of dragging my remaining brothers and you into darker secrets. Let me face it alone; this is my atonement."
Seeing the Dreadnought's indecisiveness, Dio felt a wave of displeasure.
He wasn't yet familiar with these warriors, but their actions of fighting monsters with makeshift equipment on a primitive planet and enduring for a thousand years had earned his respect.
Seeing the dreadnought squander their perseverance, and with no one daring to challenge the highly respected captain, Dio bluntly informed the dreadnought of the facts:
"Brother, you might not know the current time. Whatever you learned during your battle with that daemon, it is now a thousand years later! Some of the secrets you are determined to bear alone have already become worthless with the passage of time!"
"A thousand years later?!" The dreadnought was shocked, but still stubborn. "That way, at least they can have a new beginning!"
"You remain silent about these old matters, thinking this will allow your brothers to escape past responsibilities and missions. But what you don't know is that your brothers are now trapped on a primitive planet. They have no means of escape, no new recruits for replenishment, and not even weapons or equipment! They have never had a future; it is past beliefs that have kept them going until now. And now you are unilaterally hoping they will let go of the past and have a new beginning?"
Dio showed a sarcastic smile. "Doing so will only leave them to wander this planet aimlessly, waiting for death!"
The dreadnought looked at Dio, then at Amidel. Amidel first nodded gratefully to Dio, then spoke to the dreadnought:
"He is Magos Dio, our current ally."
"Just as he said, the past is everything to us. No matter how dark the secrets of the past are, we hope to bear them together as battle-brothers. This is the sole meaning of our persistence here and our plan to escape this planet."
Hearing Amidel's words, the dreadnought sighed. He was silent for a while, as if negotiating a compromise with himself.
Finally, he chose to speak.
"It's a long story," the dreadnought said. "About deception and betrayal..."
The dreadnought still remembered the beginning of the story. It was a magnificent Great Crusade led by the Emperor himself, and twenty Legions were assembled on Terra, the birthplace of humanity.
As one of the first Space Marines of the Second Legion to undergo modification on the Moon, he, who still had his own name at that time, had conversed with people from the Lunar Gene Cult. These members of the gene cults, defeated by the Emperor, worked day and night with resentment on the great undertaking of modifying Space Marines.
Their attitude toward other Space Marines was very cold, viewing them as the Emperor's lackeys, but their attitude toward him was exceptionally different.
"You are the most outstanding product of our genetic engineering! Other Space Marines are merely pathetic genetic monsters, tools of the Emperor's war, but you are different!"