In the void, a large number of Thunderhawks and Stormbirds were descending vertically along the edge of the hulk, passing in front of the huge statue, passing between two bridge-sized piers, and in front of them was a tall window. .
The next moment, a silent flash of light flashed across, the glass window sank inward, and was reduced to a puddle of debris by the hot melt. The plastic steel shutters inside the glass collapsed with white heat.
Air burst from the breach, shaking the entire ship, and the vehicles continued to fire behind the windows until a gap opened large enough for the formation to pass through.
Soon, the air leakage ended, and the drivers carefully drove the vehicle in.
Darkness surrounded the formation, and then the Thunderhawk shook violently.
"The artificial gravity field here is still working."
Talos, who was sitting next to Soshyan, suddenly spoke.
The Stormbird's searchlight was turned on, and the small lighting system illuminated the silent stone statue - a church, extremely huge.
The pilot then lowered the Stormbird near the church door and penetrated 200 meters into the church ship. Other aircraft with the logos of the White Templar, Dark Angels, Ranger Warriors, Ascetics and Lamenters Chapters followed closely. Landing not far away.
After a loud bang, the Stormbird's ramp door opened, and with the heavy sound of metal and the start-up buzz of the Terminator's large power system, Soshyan strode out.
"Brothers, move forward."
The Terminators took action. From the light of the Storm Bird into the darkness of the church, the warriors of the Astral Knights, including those from other chapters, also poured out of their vehicles and quickly and silently swung out in the vacuum. In defensive formation, only the Terminator Armor's sensors could detect slight vibrations.
In an instant, the place was occupied by more than five hundred Astartes.
In fact, Soshiyang was bluffing when talking to the sages before. This time, the five battle groups combined did not have a thousand soldiers. The Deathwing Company of the Dark Angel only came with more than 60 warriors, and the four from the Tribulation Alliance came. The total number of battle groups is less than 700, of which the Astral Knights account for 300, the ascetics and ranger warriors add up to more than 300, and the Lamenters are the least, with a company of 100 people.
After everyone left the vehicle, Ezekiel, the Librarian of the Dark Angels, was the last to appear. His psychic halo was almost visible to the naked eye, and his scepter was hanging beside him.
The first time they entered, the Space Marines used all technical means to detect the church and sent brothers to various passages to expand the capture area.
Then the Mechanic Cults also entered the church, their loyal censers flashing with fire around their waists, symbolizing their undying fanaticism to bring the glory of the Mechanic God to the darkness. Although each forging world does not need to contribute, some personnel still have to It was also given to reassure them.
When Soshyan asked them if they had a diagram of the internal structure of the hulk, no one had a reason to provide this, and he was not surprised. He believed that someone must have sent someone to enter the hulk, but since he was unwilling to cooperate with him Don't force it either.
In the darkness, the Terminator's searchlight shines brightest, dispelling the darkness around them.
"There are no signs of danger."
Deathwing Grand Master Belial is near the side of the church. His green robe and bone-white paint look a bit eerie in the darkness.
The floor had cracks under the weight of the Terminator. The walls were dark bronze and engraved with pious scriptures. The Grand Master of Deathwing turned his attention to the broken windows.
"I shall repent for thirteen days for the damage I have done to this sacred place."
Belial chanted loudly in front of everyone:
"Because we had no choice but to destroy this sacred place of the Emperor, may the Light of Terra forgive us for our sins, even if they were committed in the line of duty."
The words and deeds of the Deathwing Grand Master made Soshyan a little confused, but this was someone else's business and he didn't bother to express his opinion. He just focused on what was in front of him.
Judging from this magnificent church, Soshyan concluded that they were walking on a huge pilgrim ship.
The Pilgrim is a unique class of starships of the Empire. They have no class, insignia or plan. Each one is unique, a magnificent baroque display of devotion to a divine and ineffable plan.
They were funded by the Ecclesiarchy, and their purpose was to carry hundreds of millions of pilgrims from one Holy Land to another, and to bring the Emperor's Light to other Imperial worlds.
To put it simply, it is a "shuttle bus" that travels back and forth among many holy places in the galaxy. Its routes are basically fixed.
Perhaps it was once full of religious glory, but now it is just a monument in a huge space cemetery. Along the way, Soshyan saw that the parapet was covered with tall statues of saints and heroes, and it was several hundred meters long. , corridor decorated with icons.
But all this beauty becomes the desolate beauty of a dead body, silent and lifeless.
The huge protruding buildings and corridor portholes reflect the distant sunlight, but there is nothing inside. Darkness rolls between the jagged vertical baffles, and secrets are hidden in this grinning skeleton.
The gleaming ship built for the God-Emperor had become a mausoleum, not just architecturally dead - but also with an alien aura pointing towards its end.
Considering that the number of people that can be carried on this ship can often reach hundreds of millions or even billions, Soshyan has a new estimate of the number of aliens in the hulk.
According to the originally formulated tactics, the coalition forces of the Tribulation Alliance and the Dark Angels would choose to land at the same place, establish a safe forward base, and then separate into the hulk to search.
The purpose of this is mainly to avoid the danger in the initial stage of landing and to facilitate subsequent support.
As for the other two battle groups, Soshyan ignored them and had no need to communicate with their command.
On the one hand, he was really unfamiliar, and on the other hand, that malicious warrior had such a bad reputation.
The Malicious Warriors are also an ancient Astartes Chapter, said to have been founded during the M32 period. They are a Chapter known for their brutality, aggressiveness, disregard for life, and their collateral damage. Their name has always been Carnage. and synonymous with destruction.
Despite their zeal to wage war against the enemies of the Imperium of Man and the Emperor, they have always been accused of excessive use of force against civilians, and have even been accused by other Astartes Chapters, who have been asked to denounce and investigate them.
While the Malice Warriors can be considered paragons based on their combat record, many of their allies during the war have questioned the Chapter's conduct during the war, although none doubt their effectiveness during the war. gender, but several Chapters considered the Malevolent Warriors to be aggressive and hostile, lacking brotherhood with other Astartes, leading many factions in the Imperium to refuse to fight alongside this notorious Chapter.
Soshyan is not a hearsay person, but the reputation of this group of people is too bad. Even if there may be some misunderstandings, Soshyan does not want to get into so much trouble in such an important operation - although the Blood Knight has similar reputation, but that is because of problems with their gene seeds, and the Malicious Warriors have never said anything about the problems with their gene seeds.
There is something wrong with their simple thinking.
No matter what the truth is, Soshyan's attitude towards the two war groups is very simple. If they don't meet, they will live in peace. If they run into each other and there is a conflict, then he will never show mercy.
He reasoned with the Mechanicus out of respect and practical considerations, but it did not mean that he was a very easy-to-talk person.
Therefore, Soshyan chose to enter from the direction of the pilgrim ship for two reasons. One is that it is far away from the landing points of the other two battle groups, and the other is because according to the scan results, the ship was integrated into the hulk relatively late and is still very new. Perhaps the energy source The system can still start.
If you can restore some of the system, it's a great base to move forward from.
