The interior of the subterranean transport shuddered violently. The deafening, grinding roar of the massive forward drills devouring solid rock echoed relentlessly through the tal bulkheads, but everyone aboard understood that, for the mont at least, they were relatively safe.
Soshyan quickly assessed the squad's condition. Miraculously, they had suffered no fatalities.
However, nearly every warrior had sustained injuries, so severe. The most grievous wound belonged to a battle-brother nad Hinya; his left arm had been cleanly severed just below the elbow. The amputated limb lay beside him on the deck plates. The absolute priority upon returning to the surface would be to have the Apothecary successfully reattach it.
Wall had also suffered a crippling injury. His left hand had been entirely violently amputated and lost amidst the chaos of the battlefield. Upon returning to the monastery-fortress, he would require the Techmarines to fabricate and successfully integrate a master-crafted bionic replacent.
Despite the brutality of the desperate, bloody engagent they had just survived, the overall morale and physical condition of the squad remained admirably high. This realization brought Soshyan a profound sense of relief.
However, there was another, far more glaring issue demanding attention—
"Chapter Master, who... who is this?"
Ever since scrambling into the transport, Armin had absolutely been unable to tear his eyes away from the imposing figure seated near the cockpit, casually cradling his massive chain-glaive.
Finally, entirely unable to suppress his burning curiosity, he voiced the question that was entirely consuming the thoughts of the other eight warriors.
It was glaringly obvious. Aside from Soshyan and Sol, no one present had the faintest idea who Sevatar was. However, his transhuman, towering physique imdiately betrayed his identity as a mber of the Adeptus Astartes.
To the rest of the squad, this unarmored Space Marine wielding a terrifying, ancient weapon was an absolute enigma, radiating a powerful, unsettling aura of mystery.
Furthermore, he had erged from the deepest, most hidden recesses of the ancient temple alongside their Chapter Master.
Despite lacking any concrete information, almost every warrior had independently arrived at the exact sa conclusion: this imposing figure was highly likely the enigmatic 'Raven Lord' the cultists worshipped.
"He is..."
Soshyan hesitated for a mont, carefully wording his response.
"...He is a forr Company Commander of the Raven Guard Legion, hailing from the era of the Great Crusade. Tasked with executing a highly classified mission by his Primarch, he has remained concealed upon this world for ten millennia. You are not to inquire further regarding this matter."
"Oh, I see. Understood, sir."
Armin nodded thoughtfully. However, a short distance away, Sevatar let out a brief, distinct scoff. Though fleeting, the derisive sound was clearly audible to everyone in the rattling cabin.
The squad exchanged slightly bewildered glances, while Soshyan rely shot the traitor a warning look.
"This information is strictly classified. Speak of it to no one."
"Acknowledged, Chapter Master."
Having affird the order, Armin muttered softly to himself,
"Our Chapter certainly seems to have a knack for stumbling into these bizarre situations."
"Did you say sothing, Armin?"
"Nothing, sir. I was rely wondering... what is our next operational objective?"
"Next..."
Soshyan lowered his head, sinking into deep thought for a mont.
"The Genestealer infiltration has proven to be extraordinarily severe. Eradicating the contagion in the short term is completely impossible. Upon returning to the surface, we will mobilize the local PDF garrisons to systematically purge the upper mining levels. Concurrently, we must ascertain if any Astra Militarum regints are operating within the sector and request imdiate deploynt... Ultimately, this will be a protracted, grueling war of attrition. It is a task far more suited for mortal armies to execute."
"Chapter Master, are you saying our mission here is concluded?"
"Precisely."
Soshyan nodded.
While the squad had completely avoided fatalities, witnessing his battle-brothers sustain permanent, crippling injuries pained him deeply.
The Astral Knights had already paid an agonizingly high price in blood here. A single tactical squad simply possessed nowhere near the required manpower to systematically cleanse an entire planet of a Genestealer infestation—that would require the deploynt of at least a full Company.
Suddenly, Sevatar, who had remained entirely silent since boarding, spoke up, his tone dripping with characteristic mockery.
"Concluded? You honestly believe this is concluded? Mark my words, the absolute second you turn your backs, those pathetic, incompetent mortals will be rcilessly slaughtered and routed by the Genestealers."
Soshyan firmly suppressed the flare of anger tightening his chest, responding with forced calm:
"And what profound insight do you possess to offer, veteran?"
"A single, mature Genestealer brood may possess multiple Alphas, and perhaps even a Magus. But they will only ever serve one true, supre master: the Hive Lord."
As he spoke, Sevatar casually leaned his chain-glaive against the iron coffin secured beside him. Folding his massive arms across his chest, he leaned back comfortably against the vibrating bulkhead.
"It has undoubtedly been ticulously orchestrating this entire campaign for an incredibly long ti... I hunted it for years, but it proved exceptionally adept at hiding. It fully understood that it was incapable of surviving a direct confrontation with . Therefore, it carefully orchestrated this elaborate trap, manipulating you into hunting down. It inherently understands the nature of the Astartes; it actively deduced that only an Astartes could reliably eliminate another Astartes... It utilized a myriad of subtle thods to steadily herd you toward my likely location. And right up until the very end, it even managed to plant a sleeper agent directly within your ranks. Its plan was to wait until you finally breached my sanctuary, and then utterly annihilate us all in a single, catastrophic stroke—and it ca terrifyingly close to succeeding."
"A sleeper agent..."
Soshyan instantly latched onto the crucial detail. He snapped his gaze toward Armin, instantly realizing the squad was missing a single, specific individual.
But he couldn't bring himself to voice the horrific realization.
Ultimately, the catastrophic failure of judgnt lay entirely on his own shoulders.
"Hah, an exceptionally cunning, treacherous beast. I genuinely cannot wait to slowly flay the hide from its miserable flesh."
Sevatar offered a distinctly unpleasant smile, tilting his head to look directly at Soshyan. The jagged, pale scars framing his mouth lent his expression an aura of perpetual, mocking cruelty.
"Therefore, until that specific beast is utterly destroyed, this miserable ss remains completely unresolved."
"You seem unusually well-inford regarding the Tyranids."
"Hmph. Did you honestly believe I've simply been squatting in the dark like a blind mole-rat, entirely ignorant of the galaxy? Ever since those overgrown pests handed Guilliman's precious, arrogant whelps a humiliating, bloody defeat on Macragge, I've made it a point to study this particular xenos threat."
"Then where, exactly, do you propose this Hive Lord is hiding?"
Sol's sudden, highly unexpected question caught Sevatar slightly off guard.
"Are you actually asking for my assistance?"
"Consider it an inquiry."
Sevatar straightened his posture slightly, spreading his massive hands.
"In all honesty, I don't know for certain. That creature just triggered a catastrophic, apocalyptic event in the lower levels. Unless it possesses absolute, irrefutable confirmation of my demise, it will remain entirely subrged."
"Let us approach this from a different angle..."
Soshyan slowly leaned back against the bulkhead, tilting his head slightly to stare thoughtfully at the luminescent globe illuminating the low ceiling.
"...Even assuming its objective was entirely successful, the sudden, unexplained disappearance of a full Adeptus Astartes squad is not sothing the Imperium will simply ignore. A massive, comprehensive investigation by the Chapter and the Inquisition will inevitably be launched. A creature possessing that level of intelligence would absolutely anticipate this."
He then lowered his gaze, his eyes locking onto a slightly bewildered Armin.
"If this Hive Lord truly is as cunning and patient a survivor as you claim, I highly doubt it would remain within a heavily compromised, incredibly obvious environnt. It will inevitably seek out a location that guarantees absolute security, even under the scrutiny of a massive Imperial investigation—a location that also provides multiple, imdiate avenues of escape... and that location is absolutely not anywhere underground."
"Then where could it be..."
Armin blinked rapidly, his mind struggling to keep pace.
Soshyan didn't respond imdiately. He maintained his intense, unwavering stare on Armin, his gaze so piercing it made the Captain feel deeply uncomfortable.
Then, with absolute, unwavering conviction, Soshyan delivered the answer.
"The orbital void-station!"
A stunned silence instantly descended upon the rattling cabin, broken a few seconds later by the sound of slow, completely sincere applause.
"Not bad. Not bad at all. Your tactical acun is surprisingly sharp, boy. I confess, even I hadn't considered that specific angle..."
Sevatar praised, continuing his slow applause.
"Exactly. The orbital void-station. It makes perfect, logical sense. They have been exclusively conducting their operations deep underground; who would imdiately prioritize investigating an orbital facility in space? A truly masterful infiltrator doesn't simply hide in the deepest, most obvious shadows—they hide securely within the blind spots of their enemy's logic."
Sol nodded in grim agreent.
"Indeed. The void-station is an absolutely flawless sanctuary. Assuming they have thoroughly compromised or replaced the senior administrative personnel, the vast, entirely unmonitored cargo bays and abandoned storage sectors would effortlessly conceal a creature of that size. Furthermore, if the situation turns completely untenable, it rely needs to board a departing transport vessel to completely escape."
"Then our subsequent operational paraters are exceedingly clear."
Soshyan rose smoothly to his feet, the cramped confines of the transport emphasizing his imposing height.
"We seize control of the void-station, drag that abhorrent monstrosity out of its hole, and crush it to death!"
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