The journey back to the mountain fortress was made in heavy silence inside the Dropship. Caleb Valerius, wrapped in a survival blanket, stared at the wall in front of him, his eyes lost in millennia-old memories. Julius respected him, not speaking. The shock must have been immense.
When the Dropship doors opened, it was not onto the rocky, desolate landscape Caleb expected, but into the heart of a civilization.
His breath was taken away.
Under the giant plastisteel dome, bathed in artificial light, sprawled a city of metal and light. Buildings with angular, robust lines rose on multiple levels, connected by aerial walkways where vehicles circulated. The hum was omnipresent, organized: the roar of generators, the rhythmic pounding of factories, short orders transmitted by radios.
Men and women in work suits or combat armor went about their business with an efficiency that reminded him of tales of the Golden Age of Technology, before the Long Night.
"By all the ancient gods..." he murmured, his raspy voice barely audible.
His gaze was drawn to movements in the interior sky. Stealthy Wraiths glided silently, appearing and disappearing like ghosts. Further away, the massive, imposing forms of the three Battlecruisers, docked in special berths, dominated everything. Their flanks were studded with lights and turrets, a display of power that made him shiver.
"Are those... warships?" he asked Julius, unable to tear his eyes from the steel giants.
"Minotaur-class Battlecruisers," Julius confirmed with contained pride. "The pillar of our fleet."
They descended the ramp. Marines, crossing their path, stopped to salute Julius with a sharp "Commander!" Caleb noticed their armor, their weapons, their iron discipline. This was a professional army, well-equipped, well-trained. Nothing like the disorganized militias or pirate ship crews of his time.
Then he saw Data. The android, in his glaring red uniform, approached with a fluid step, his golden eyes settling on Caleb with analytical curiosity.
"Commander, the recovered individual appears to be showing signs of psychological distress related to cultural and temporal shock. I recommend a period of quarantine and observation."
"That won't be necessary, Data," replied Julius. "Captain Valerius, this is my executive officer, Lieutenant Commander Data."
Caleb stared at the android, stunned. An artificial intelligence this advanced, and one that seemed to interact completely autonomously? Such things were only theorems in his time.
"Pleased to meet you," he articulated, completely overwhelmed.
Data inclined his head. "Historical data from your period is fragmentary. Your testimony could prove invaluable."
As they crossed the central square, Caleb saw a woman with white hair and a piercing gaze studying a holographic map. She looked up at him, and he felt his old soldier's instinct sound an alarm. This woman was a predator. An assassin.
"Nova Terra, our best agent," Julius introduced.
Nova gave him a simple, cold, professional nod before returning to her work.
Finally, they reached the Command Center. Inside, the wall screens displayed stellar maps, data streams, live images of troops maneuvering on the planet. Caleb saw giant bipedal tanks – Goliaths – crushing xeno formations, supported by artillery salvos from tanks transformed into fixed positions.
He sank into a chair offered to him, body and mind exhausted.
"I... I must be dreaming," he said finally, looking at Julius. "My ship, the Aethelstan... we were proud of our technology. We could travel the stars. But this... All this... it's the work of centuries. Of millennia. How... who are you really?"
Julius took a seat opposite him.
"I am just a man, Caleb. A man who inherited a formidable tool and is trying to build a future in a universe that forgives nothing. Your time, the Age of Darkness, is over. Humanity is being reunified by a man they call the Emperor."
Caleb's face fell. "An... emperor?"
"The Great Crusade is underway. And we are here, in the midst of it all. You sought a refuge, Captain. You have found one. But it is a refuge that fights. And a man of your experience... your value is inestimable."
Caleb Valerius looked around, his heart heavy with the weight of all he had lost, but also awestruck, despite everything, by the formidable machine of war and survival that surrounded him. He was not home. But he had perhaps arrived at a place where he could still be useful. Where his final chapter was not yet written.