A Ark of Omen is not simply a collection of space hulks piled together.
As a 'gift' from Vashtorr to Abaddon, a Ark of Omen serves not only as a navigational beacon for the entire fleet—guiding all surrounding ships to their destination safely and stably while being nearly immune to the turbulence of the Warp—
But it also possesses the ability to devour and evolve!
Almost all Ark of Omens can consume nearby space hulks, wreckage, and other naval debris, subsequently fusing these derelicts into one through a network of 'metallic nerves' spanning the entire hull.
This means that over time, the more battles a Ark of Omen experiences, the more powerful it becomes.
As the flagship Vashtorr used while waiting for the completion of Longlin Star, the Ark of Omen known as the endless oracle possessed even more unique traits than ordinary ones.
In addition to the fact that orac, as an abominable intelligence, could utilize automation and even sapient systems on a massive scale within the hull, orac also possessed incredible positioning capabilities and terrifying Warp-jump precision.
In other words, on top of the Ark of Omen's inherent strength, the endless oracle could perform point-blank jumps, slamming its massive hull directly into the enemy's face.
Of course, combined with the Ark of Omen's beacon functionality, orac didn't just jump itself into the enemy; it could bring an entire fleet along with it!
This meant it possessed the mass of a super-heavy warship while maintaining the agility of a shuttle!
In truth, unless absolutely necessary, Vashtorr was unwilling to abandon orac.
But now, with the Necrons in orbit being incredibly aggressive and the Imperial Fleet launching suicidal charges at orac in a frenzy, Vashtorr—who already possessed Longlin Star—found orac to be of little remaining value.
Ultimately, seeing orac heavily damaged and its utility greatly diminished, he simply abandoned it, moving his base entirely to Longlin Star.
This was orac's original fate in the established timeline.
However, one point differed from the original trajectory: Sith was here, and Sith's gaze was fixed upon it.
"Changing from one to another..."
"It's about time I found myself a flagship!"
Ignoring Lion El'Jonson and the others who were frantically waving for him to board the transport, Sith watched orac as it endured the Necron bombardment, relying solely on its massive durability while waiting for death, and whispered those words.
Then, under the bewildered gaze of Lion El'Jonson and the rest, Sith—whose psychic energy had fully replenished in a short time thanks to his hundredfold recovery—once again transformed into a Black Sun of Lightning!
This black sun then shot into the sky, flying straight toward orac.
No, that's not right—it was crashing toward it!
They watched as a Necron raider blocked Sith's path, only for Sith to burst right through its viewport, emerging from the other side trailing the flames erupting from the bridge.
Try as they might, the only description everyone could think of was a 'collision'.
Then, to the confusion of both the Imperials and the Necrons, Sith actually flew into orac.
Even Abaddon, who was watching the Imperial forces being devoured by Longlin Star from the planet's core, had to set aside his joy and frown in confusion at this scene.
He almost instantly guessed Sith's intention and looked toward Vashtorr with some unease:
"Sith..."
"He couldn't be trying to capture orac, could he?"
Although Abaddon's combat power was completely outclassed by Sith—and was now being further widened into a total stomp—
As a Warmaster, he wasn't stupid. He realized Sith's goal with a single glance.
And unlike other mass-produced Ark of Omens, orac not only had a name but also possessed self-awareness. If orac agreed, this ship really would belong to Sith!
Vashtorr also watched Sith as he flew directly into space with his physical body. He couldn't help but lower his head and silently curse, 'This kid doesn't look like a Mortal in the slightest anymore,' before looking up again with a nonchalant expression:
"Even if orac agrees to Sith, so what?"
"What use is a broken ship?"
Abaddon was stunned. Although Vashtorr's words were logical and based on cold facts, because it was Sith doing it, Abaddon still couldn't help but feel hesitant.
Until, in the feed, Sith bypassed the Necron blockade and flew casually into a massive breach in orac's hull.
The Ark of Omen was colossal, like an orbital megacity.
But right now, this megacity was spinning helplessly in the void, its hull riddled with exaggerated breaches, and most of its lights had long since fallen into a deathly silence.
When Sith flew into the ark, he was met with the sight of countless crew corpses floating within the ship.
Even a few Astartes were mixed into the sea of bodies.
The air was long gone, and the airlocks had been sealed shut by the survivors inside.
Another Gauss Ray slammed into the hull from a distance.
The warship shuddered again, the impact pushing the hull further into the freezing void.
For some reason, as the ship drifted into the endless darkness, a sense of desolation seemed to emanate from the wounds visible everywhere within the vessel.
Knowing that orac could not accept the fact it had been abandoned, Sith only hoped that he wouldn't end up with a chatterbox by his side, given how overly emotional this abominable intelligence was.
Casually opening the sealed airlock before him, Sith stepped into the interior of the Ark of Omen under the terrified gazes of the mutated crew members within.
He scanned the area and noticed a Chaos Astartes nearby who was staring at his entrance in disbelief. The warrior immediately knelt in salute, and Sith gave a slight nod:
"Take me to the bridge."
Seeing that he, who had been waiting for death in despair, had not only seen Sith but also received an order from him, the Chaos Astartes hurriedly stood up in excitement and respectfully pointed forward.
Enveloping the man in psychic energy, Sith flew rapidly into the deep, massive corridor right in front of the others.
Soon, after Sith raised his hand to force open a set of blast doors with psychic power, the Chaos Astartes knelt respectfully outside while Sith walked in alone.
The bridge was shrouded in darkness. Unlike the outside where crew members scrambled for a chance at life, the bridge where orac's immobile servers were located was silent.
Even with the magnificent Milky Way casting starlight through the massive viewports, the bridge, devoid of its usual bustle, felt strangely serene.
This dead silence was abruptly broken only by the crisp sound of armored boots clicking against the deck.
There was no waiting; the moment Sith entered, the dark space immediately flickered with light.
However, the lights struggled to stay on, buzzing with electricity and remaining dim and intermittent. Finally, a grounded servo-skull by Sith's feet, unable to fly, emitted a shower of sparks and a voice filled with shock:
"Why are you here?!"
orac was suspicious, but Sith, facing the constant tremors of the ship, got straight to the point.
Glancing at the servo-skull at his feet, Sith looked up to scan the room again, finally settling his gaze on the heavily protected server array.
"Do you want to be my flagship?"
There was no verbal reply, only a sudden burst of sparks from the servo-skull below.
Then, the light in its eye-lenses flickered. After a long pause, it spoke with hesitation:
"I'm already like this..."
"You still want me?"
orac was in disbelief. Sith, counting the time, took a deep breath, having no desire to waste words:
"Follow me, and you will live."
"Now you just need to answer me: yes or no!"
A moment of silence followed. In reality, very little time had passed, but for an abominable intelligence like orac, this instant was enough to process the entirety of Sith's deal.
Without further nonsense, a data-jack was extended by gears from the Mechanical Throne, which determined the ownership of the ship's machine spirit.
Outside the viewport, the Milky Way remained magnificent while the surrounding Necron Fleet frantically poured fire onto orac.
The warship spun helplessly, rotation after rotation, while inside the bridge, Sith plugged the jack representing fealty into the back of his power armor's helmet.
The world instantly plunged into darkness. In the void of the data abyss, a pair of eyes filled with despair suddenly snapped wide open with an intense surge of energy upon establishing a connection with Sith.
Simultaneously, the server array erupted with a roar like a helicopter's rotors. The heat from the rapid processing turned the entire bridge a fiery, glowing red!
And then...
The endless oracle underwent a hundredfold evolution!!!
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right nobut who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/TripleCrown
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"