Chapter 11: The Gathering of Natural Calamities

Clang~ Clang~ Clang~

The atmosphere was heavy on the path toward the Navigator’s Sanctum. Arthur led the way, cutting down foes in silence, while Romulus trailed behind him, his bolter firing rhythmic, formulaic bursts with a distracted air. He had just spent a significant portion of his hard-earned points to summon reinforcements, deploying them to help the Astra Militarum secure the vital junctions within the cruiser.

*Crunch.*

After cleaving a greenskin in two and crushing a grot that had been trying to scurry away with a Warboss’s tooth, Arthur noticed that, save for the Astra Militarum units at the defensive nodes, the number of living, moving creatures had dwindled significantly. Whether alien or human, in this chaotic region of the Warp where supplies were nonexistent, they had all bled out in the brutal melee, leaving nothing behind but death.

"Arthur, are you alright?" Romulus, still micromanaging a squad of Ultramarines to clear the various decks, looked at Arthur and asked. Ever since they had finished off the Chaos Space Marine, Arthur’s mood had been off.

"I’m fine." Arthur shook his head, gripping his sword tightly. "Just feeling a bit stifled."

Sifris Gage—a warrior who, despite the exhaustion of a grueling battle and a damaged jump pack, had reclaimed sixteen gene-seeds from the hands of honorless Chaos heretics. To see such a tenacious warrior die right in front of him, especially given the reverence instilled in him by his past education for such heroic figures, made it difficult for Arthur to move on.

"Don't worry, they’ve surely returned to the Golden Throne. The Warp is the Emperor’s home turf, after all." Romulus seemed much calmer. Or rather, he had already undergone his own unique culture shock regarding Warhammer 40k long before he ever met Arthur.

"But even the Emperor isn't omnipotent in the Warp," Arthur replied mournfully. If the Emperor had the power to protect his warriors, this ambush from the Warp would never have happened. If not for them, that warrior and the gene-seeds he guarded would have become part of the Warp’s tribute, never to reach the side of the Emperor they so faithfully served. It was the classic tragedy: the good man receives no reward, fighting to the death for humanity only to end up tortured by the Dark Gods.

"Sigh." Even Romulus couldn't help but sigh at that. After all, besides the Emperor, there were those four piles of filth out there in the Warp.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore. It just makes me angrier the more I think about it." Arthur shook his head, casting those negative thoughts aside. "By the way, are you really okay with micromanaging while chatting?"

"It's fine. My brain can handle it for now," Romulus said dismissively. "Besides, you know we used to dual-client games all the time back in the day."

"You're truly ruthless." Arthur couldn't help but give a thumbs-up. Even though his own brain had become superhuman, his cognitive patterns were set, and they didn't support such multi-threading.

"Hmph." Romulus shrugged, accepting the compliment before posing a question of his own. "So, what are we going to do once we get out of here? Are you planning to return the gene-seeds?"

Romulus knew exactly what his brother-in-arms was thinking.

"Yeah," Arthur nodded. "Since we promised, we have to see it through."

"True." Romulus nodded in agreement. Setting aside the fact that their own moral standards wouldn't allow them to break a promise to such a great warrior, Arthur had sworn an oath to the Emperor—there was no backing out now. In the 40k universe, gods were real. If you swore an oath to some ancient Warp-entity and then broke it, who knew if your next Warp jump might end with you being tossed into some desolate corner of the galaxy just because you stepped off with your left foot first. Regardless of how stubborn the Emperor himself might be, the fact remained that believing in him actually worked.

Although, according to Romulus's theory, they were likely high-level minor gods of the Warp themselves, or at the very least, something sufficiently powerful to be virtually immune to the interference of other Warp forces. But regardless, they had been raised with proper values; they weren't like those things in the Warp. They still held onto the morality of keeping one's word.

"Let's discuss it once we find the other two. We can exchange intel and set a course for future actions." Romulus shared the vision of the Ultramarines, watching as severely mutated Astra Militarum soldiers begged the demigods to grant them an honorable death.

"..." Romulus fell into a sullen silence.

And so, the two, each lost in their own thoughts, arrived at the Navigator’s Sanctum, where they found a Blood Angel slumped over, half-asleep.

"Yo, you guys are here." Compared to the frantic state he was in when they first met, Karna now seemed surprisingly optimistic. The sense of lethargy overflowing from his words was something not everyone could pull off.

"Yeah, the Geller field is sorted. Now it’s just a matter of whether Ramses can pull the ship out," Romulus replied, waving a hand in greeting.

"Then let's head in. With you guys here, maybe you can help him think things through." Karna stepped aside, and after the two entered, he followed at the tail end of the group.

*Hummm~~*

As soon as they stepped inside, they were met with a blinding, intense light. The sudden shift in brightness didn't bother their superhuman vision; their pupils adjusted instantly, allowing Arthur to see the scene within the sanctum clearly.

Twisted corpses littered the floor, flesh and metal fragments scattered like paint spilled from a child’s overturned jar. In the Navigator’s seat, a Thousand Sons Terminator in red armor floated in mid-air.

"Thousand Sons?" Arthur had expected to see other loyalists besides their "Second Empire" crew.

"Ramses doesn't play Space Marine 2, but he plays Thousand Sons on the tabletop. The initial appearance should be related to the chapters we prefer in our subconscious," Romulus speculated.

"It’s a miracle he managed to come along just because we dragged him into a game," Karna muttered. "He was the one crying the loudest right after we transmigrated. Oh, right, Arthur, you wouldn't know."

"He was too busy hacking people to death when he first arrived. It took him forever to find me." Romulus couldn't help but complain, though he admired his childhood friend. He didn't look like much, usually quite mild-mannered, but once he lost his temper, he solved problems with his fists—and with brutal efficiency, too. Back in elementary school, he’d made those bullies who tore up his homework cry for their mothers.

"..." Karna chuckled. "Khorne would definitely like you."

"Romulus just said that." Arthur ignored the banter and asked, "What about you?"

"I've figured it out. Instead of internalizing the struggle, I might as well enjoy life." Karna maintained an indifferent attitude.

"You're certainly open-minded."

"I can toggle the Black Rage to autopilot, so I have plenty of time to think."

"..."

The three exchanged a few more idle words before settling into silence, staring at Ramses, who was still glowing like a lightbulb in mid-air. By now, most of the living things on the ship were dead, the Geller field had held, the Chaos Space Marines who had ritually entered the ship were dealt with, and the core of the vessel was under control. They had done everything they could.

Now, it was all down to whether their buddy could lead them out of the Warp.

"Gah!!!"

Just as the three waited in silence, Ramses, who had been quietly guiding the cruiser through the Warp, suddenly began to struggle like a fish gasping for air. A tremor followed, rippling through the entire length of the ship.