"Found it, Theo."
"Really? Show me."
Ana gestures, and a hologram blooms into existence before us. It is a star system with seven planets. My target is the fourth planet in the system.
"I've cross-referenced the data in my database," Ana says. "In my time, this planet was called Tellos Prime. It was colonized by a Federation exploration team equipped with a basic STC package. However, according to the quick scan, the people on the planet do not use any high-tech technology."
"Then they either lost it… or it was destroyed," I reply. "Because if I remember correctly, this world regresses to a pre-atomic industrial level. Not only that, but this planet also regressed to a Feudal type of government."
While saying that, I can hear a pitter-patter of footsteps getting close to me. It is incredibly light and almost impossible to notice if you are a regular human or even an Astartes.
I ignore it and continue to talk with Ana, who already knows who the person approaching us is.
"That aligns with my projections," she continues. "The planet was heavily strip-mined to support expansion across the system. The Federation may have had good intentions… but corporate interests outweighed them. Profit took priority. They are more than happy to strip a planet bare just to fuel their greed."
"Was someone like that part of the original team?"
"Yes."
"I see."
A small smile tugs at my lips as I feel tiny arms wrap around my leg. I glance down and see Kassandra. She looks at me with a smug smile, and I say.
"Oh no," I say dramatically. "I've been captured by a tiny gremlin. Whatever shall I do?"
"Up!"
She demands cutely. I laugh for a second, and I scoop her up without hesitation, spinning her once before settling her on my shoulder.
"Finished eating, Kassandra?"
"En. It was delicious."
"Of course it was. Ana made it."
Ana smiles faintly.
"It was the Epicurean module, Theo. I merely executed the process."
"That module only provides ingredients. You're the one who turned them into something perfect."
She lets out a soft laugh.
"Oh, you… You'll make me blush."
I chuckle a little and feel Kassandra climb into my head, sitting on my head. The little gremlin loves climbing and sitting on things while high above ground. She is a cat, basically. If there is something new, she will sit on it.
And her favorite spot is my head.
"Anyway," Ana says, "when do we depart, Theo?"
"In twenty-four hours, Earth time. She'll arrive in four days. I want to be there first. I want to be the first person she sees when she leaves her pod."
"Where are we going?"
Kassandra leans forward, peering into my eyes. Her purple eyes look at me curiously.
"We're going to rescue our sister."
"Sister?"
"Yes. She'll land on that planet. And we'll be there to greet her."
I can feel her psychic power flare subtly. I can see her looking at the hologram of Olympia, and her eyes shine a little. After a few seconds, she nods her head and says.
"We should bring toys for her."
I raise a brow.
"Oh?"
"She needs to build. Her gift… is also her weakness. She needs to build something to ignore the bad thing."
"What do you mean, Kassandra?"
"She sees a Dark Eye in the Void."
Ah.
I understand.
Perturabo in the canon timeline can see the Eye of Terror from anywhere. Seeing a hell butthole every day will make you grumpy and prone to anger. The only thing that can distract him is creating something. His hobby is creating wonders and technological marvels.
Sadly… our father denied him that. It becomes a slow poison that amplifies his bitterness and anger. It will slowly build and then explode when Horus changes his last name to Heresy.
"Can you help her, brother?" Kassandra asks softly. "The Dark Eye is bad."
I gently pat her leg.
"Don't worry, sis. I'll help her—just like I helped you."
"En. That's good. You're the best."
"Oh, you—"
I lift her up and smother her cheeks with kisses.
Her laughter rings out—bright, unrestrained. Her laughter makes Ana and me smile brightly. This is how it should be. Children shouldn't suffer.
They should laugh and be happy.
== Line Break ==
I look at the planet in the distance. It looks red from this distance, and I can see the ring around the planet, carrying debris and all kinds of trash from bygone eras. The Star Explorer is currently hidden, waiting for my next decision.
"How should we approach this, Theo?" Ana asks.
"Full stealth," I answer. "We avoid contact. Retrieve my sister. Leave."
"That aligns with my recommendation. I've prepared our most stealth-capable craft. Ready for deployment."
I nod and look at Kassandra, who is looking at the planet with her eyes slightly glowing. I can feel her psychic power subtly searching for an answer. Because of my intervention, her power becomes a blessing instead of a curse.
"What do you think?"
"It is the best choice."
"Good. Then let's move."
I step toward the fabricator to have a suit tailored for her. It will be comfortable, flexible, and aesthetically pleasing. Not only that, but it is also resistant to all kinds of attacks. Hell, it can take a high-caliber bullet from the M2 era.
I help her put on the clothes and smile a little at the adorable gremlin in front of me. I pinch her cheek and say.
"You're too cute."
She beams.
I pick her up, and Ana joins us, giving Kassandra's cheek a playful pinch of her own before we head to the hangar.
The craft waiting for us is one of Ana's newer designs.
A stealth carrier called Star Stalker.
This craft is built for stealth, not battle. It integrates technologies inspired by Necron designs and Stellaris-grade cloaking systems. The Dark Matter Cloaking Field warps space-time, making detection nearly impossible.
Because of its lack of firepower, we put a powerful thruster into the craft that allows it to maneuver and run away from battle. It makes this carrier a perfect carrier to get our troops behind enemy lines.
We're also working on integrating this system into the Star Explorer. Sadly, because I want to rescue my sisters, I need to delay for now.
"Let's go."
We enter the ship, and I take the main pilot seat while Ana takes the secondary seat with Kassandra sitting on the back. She looks around curiously, and I know that she is learning all she can. Even though she is not created to make technology like Perturabo or Vulkan, she is still a Primarch, and her mind can create the technology I own.
Hell, she already created a new type of weapon. She creates a bio pistol that fires a thin layer of bio-needles that pierce someone's skin. When inside, the needle will dissolve and paralyze them.
Perfect for law enforcement.
When all systems turn green, we deploy.
Anyway, when everything is ready and green, we depart. Even though we are on the planet's surface, she can still control Star Explorer. As long as she is not more than a thousand light-years away from Star Explorer, she can control the ship completely. Above that, she can only send an emergency signal and let the ship enter auto mode, which will take it to her location.
So it is not a problem for me to take her along with us to the planet's surface, where we will land, where Perturabo will land soon.
It does not take long for us to breach the atmosphere and arrive in the middle of a hidden, barren valley between two massive cliffs. When we leave the ship, Kassandra immediately looks around for a few seconds before pointing at a place not too far away from us.
"There. She will land there."
I nod and activate my wrist device. A hologram flickers to life.
With a few inputs, a dozen drones deploy from the ship. They immediately use the matter around us as fuel to fabricate a camp for us.
"Ana, I'll handle shelter construction. You focus on reconnaissance."
"What parameters?"
"Government structure. Planetary conditions. And find out what happened to the STC."
"Understood."
She returns to the ship, already issuing commands to the bigger fabricator inside the ship. For now, we need to wait for my sister to arrive.
== Line Break ==
I can feel it. After a few days of waiting, I can see a shift in the air happening. I can feel the power of the warp appear not too far away from our camp. I look up and just in time to see a portal appear above us with a massive pod coming out of the portal.
It comes at us at high speed, but before it can even land, I move my hand and stop it using my psychic power.
The pod halts mid-air, caught in the grip of my power.
Slowly, carefully, I lower it to the ground.
I can see my sister inside the pod, still sleeping. I check the pod and immediately notice it is on the verge of breaking.
With a quiet sigh, I step back as it enters emergency protocol—flooding the chamber with fluid my father created. I watch as my sister absorbs the liquid quickly, and I hear a hiss.
The hatch releases, and I can see my sister open her eyes.
She steps out.
Her eyes sweep across us. She looks at me, Ana, and Kassandra. She looks at me curiously, but I can see she feels a deep connection between the three of us. She knows that we are related to her.
I offer her a gentle smile.
"Good morning, sister."
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