Chapter 279: The Gifted Apprentice

The Leviathan AI of the Iron Mother Ship began preparations for interstellar battle. A small, swift vessel was crafted and printed, traversing the warp to Bhaal's coordinates and then exiting the dimensional space.

Dante and his comrades, locked in fierce combat with the swarm, saw a comet plummeting toward the planet's surface. Just a hundred meters from the ground, it activated its retro-thrusters and settled with poise. It appeared to be a tower-like structure, armed and equipped, evidently capable of starship functions.

The vessel touched down amidst the sea of Tyranids, and all its mounted weapons immediately began firing upon the surrounding swarm. However, its purpose was not to serve as a mere turret; within three seconds of landing, its internal warp transport system charged and activated, deploying a cadre of Iron Men as reinforcements for Bhaal.

One thousand standard Iron Men. Twenty agile Iron Men. Notably, the Extinction Engines, whose presence would have caused indiscriminate damage, were withheld from deployment. The Iron Men joined the fray instantly.

Resonant with lethal grace, Repose wielded both melee and ranged weaponry, tearing through the swarm, targeting particularly formidable Tyranid creatures. Meanwhile, the standard Iron Men advanced steadily, firing into the swarm with thermal rather than arc weapons to avoid endangering their allies. The agile units moved with breathtaking speed, slaying large swathes of the horde within the blink of an eye. Their strength and precision far exceeded that of the Terran War Beasts.

"Who summoned them?" asked Foros, seizing a moment amid the combat to question the tech sergeants at the heart of the formation.

All the tech sergeants from the various chapters were gathered, and Foros' question went out to all.

"I don't know," one of them replied definitively.

The others shook their heads in agreement. While autonomous Iron Men were rare in the 41st millennium, devices resembling them were not entirely unknown, such as the Mechanicum's Castellan robots. However, these new arrivals clearly did not belong to the Castellan line, at least not to the knowledge of the tech sergeants of the Blood Angels and the Lamenters.

One thing was certain, though: these machines bore no hostility. They had come to aid. Initially, many were taken aback by the sudden appearance of so many mechanical warriors, but seeing the emblem of the Imperial double-headed eagle affixed to each machine allayed their suspicions—they were allies.

"They're likely not from the Mechanicum," a tech sergeant noted. "They lack the Mechanicum's insignia and are not accompanied by a data craftsman."

A tech sergeant from another chapter reminded everyone of this critical detail. Due to the prohibition against the use of Abominable Intelligences, Mechanicum war machines were always accompanied by a data craftsman, guiding their actions through an implanted data chip—just shy of true intelligence.

However, their doubts were soon dispelled, as some faint figures in Mechanicum's iconic red robes were visible among the machines. The sight of the double-headed eagle and the presence of data craftsmen reassured the Space Marines; whether this was a joint Imperial-Mechanicum force or something else, they were undoubtedly trustworthy allies.

Fragmented shards of star gods, each chapter's First Company, and the newly arrived Iron Men—while they would not coordinate, together they formed an undeniable force. The Tyranid synapse creatures were being eliminated with staggering speed.

With every death of a Tyrant or synapse beast, Repose would blaze a path forward, allowing the Space Marines and Iron Men to press on, carving their way through the sea of Tyranids to hunt down the next target. Adapting to these tactics, the Hive Mind began to spread its synapse creatures, hiding them to avoid easy detection.

This change was simple yet effective, for the Tyranids were tireless in obeying orders without fail—no creature would recklessly expose itself to the enemy's reach.

As synapse creatures became harder to locate, an unexpected ally extended their aid.

"Captain Dante, you owe me a thank you," a familiar voice, Bellona's, crackled through the communication channel.

It was not encrypted, so Foros and the others heard it as well.

Dante, puzzled by her words, pondered her meaning; thus far, she had not contributed to this battle. If she was referring to her cooperation with that fire-wielding entity… then perhaps some credit was due.

"Next, your Chief Librarian will provide the location of the synapse creatures," Bellona continued.

"She's correct," Mephiston confirmed. "Six o'clock, seven hundred meters out, in the underground conduits, ten targets."

Dante and the other chapter captains received precise coordinates. Even Repose, in some unknown manner, seemed to hear it, and the group swiftly advanced toward the specified location.

…

Beneath the chamber, the Chief Librarians, accompanied by a single Ecclesiarchal agent aligned with the Inquisitor, were stationed. They stood in a cavern hewn of stone, surrounding a man at their center, where they had arranged various ritualistic implements.

With united psychic effort, the Librarians protected the soul of this man, Bellona's apprentice.

Since Bellona's arrival on Bhaal, Mephiston had sensed an unusual quality about her apprentice. He was a psyker, yet his powers did not center on assault, defense, or biological influence, but on detection.

From Bellona and her apprentice, Mephiston learned that he could even perceive the minds of pariahs—a staggering gift.

Mephiston orchestrated this ritual, employing the combined psyker energies of the Chief Librarians to shield the apprentice's soul from the prying tendrils of the Hive Mind as he sought the locations of the synapse creatures on the battlefield.

Bellona leaned coolly against a pillar, observing.

The apprentice felt as though his soul was being set ablaze by the Librarians' powers, his agony unbearable. In moments of weakness, he would open his eyes and glance toward Bellona.

Each time, Bellona would set aside her cold demeanor and give him a gentle smile, prompting him to grit his teeth and endure further.

When his very teeth threatened to shatter under the strain, his will wavered, and his vision slipped out of his control, drifting from the Angel Fortress on Bhaal to the desolate mountain ranges of the arid planet.

There lay a crashed vessel.

His perspective continued to narrow, passing through the ship's mangled exterior to its interior.

In the midst of the wreckage stood a Tyrant, distinct in its coloration and even more massive than others of its kind. The creature let out a piercing wail toward the north before abruptly halting and casting its gaze toward the seemingly empty south.

The apprentice's location.

"It's spotted him!" Bellona's sharp intuition, honed through years of dealing with psychic forces, instantly caught the change from the apprentice's trembling form. She immediately shouted to Mephiston, "Stop!"