[ Chapter III (3): "THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE" ]

[ Chapter III (3): "THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE" ]

Placing a hand on his chin, Felix began to ponder on what book to skim on first, or, well, spent his hours, or probably days in reading. As a fanatic of reading, Felix could do that, he could potentially even starve himself if he found a good book.

But thankfully in knowing the dire situation he is in, he set those type of hobbies of his to the side, as he instead picked a decently sized book in random.

[ For the Emperor! ] A goldish bright book that practically shines when reflected by the light of the room, slightly dusty, slightly losing its touch. But to Felix it still looked fine.

Opening it he could immediately see that the book contains frantic writing of a mad man, devoted to a man named the Emperor — of mankind apparently. From the way the author talks, Felix could immediately realize that this man isn't right in the head.

Or is more likely to be writing about a story, the book being in the form of his character writing about the in-universe of his story. The title, the frantic writing, and the fanaticism in it made Felix immediately think that this is a satire.

Trying to hold on to the heavy-looking book, Felix began to flip to other pages. Skipping tens each time, only reading a paragraph or a sentence. And yes, his hypothesis was immediately answered back in seeing absurd claims.

[ For the God-Emperor of Mankind... ] [ Space Marines, Chapters... ] [ Holy Terra... ] [ Prosperity in the 3rd Millennium... ] What the hell is this? This is a wonderful story.

Feeling engrossed on what he is reading, Felix began to read more words the more he flipped the pages. Before ultimately stumbling on to the last page, [ For the Imperium... ] Okay that's enough.

Immediately closing the book with a thud, Felix placed it on the side. His eyes slightly darting on the posters on his right, the word Imperium being highlighted by his eyes before ultimately moving forward.

Placing the book on the farthest right corner, Felix then began to pick on another book. The words he has learnt in the previous book having gave him much further insight on what kind of universe he found himself in, possibly one that is in the far-distant future. Obviously.

If what he read earlier is to be believed, then the strongest individual in this world is God. Or, well, the Emperor which they call a God, the Emperor of Mankind.

From what he read from the fanatic, the guy is either exaggerating, or truthfully saying what he knows. Absurd words were placed there, the English was weird also, akin to that of a writer in the 18th century or something — a poetic writing.

And because of that even though Felix had a great understanding in such vocabularies wasn't able to fully understand what the text was saying.

This is a blank slate of a universe for him, he'll take whatever the hell kind of knowledge he can gather. From what he remembers, Warhammer 40,000 is a... board game...?

He doesn't clearly remember, he never got involved with it that much, and what he knows of is only little information at the point that you could say that he knows nothing. Except for Marines in Space, apparently.

Space Marines, Space Marines, Space... Marines? He did read about it, and skimmed past the heavy feeling book, the words in it having been written in small inks that it is compacted.

Almost no place for the white of the paper which is slightly yellowing due to age was visible to him. In annoyance, Felix picked another book this one having the title of [ Letters from a Soldier ] in it, with a dull black cover other than the white text of the title.

Opening it, Felix immediately noticed that most of the pages in it were already yellowish, the book having dust in it all-around.

Lifting his hand, Felix noticed that it was covered in dust, looking at the back of the book he noticed an imprint of his hand around the dust.

[ "Huh...?" ]

[ "How even is this book... still alive?" ]

Alive in the sense that it hasn't already been turned to dust, or destroyed completely, the black ink in it supposedly being nonsensical at this point.

But to Felix's shock and excitement, other than the rough parts in the papers, yellowish color, and slightly fading ink, nothing seems to be amidst. In excitement he flipped back on the first page ready to read it.

[ My love, I pray to the Emperor that this letter may find you well... ] [ The cultist have been growing rampant for the past months, and I fear that I may lose by life in the line of today before that day... ] [ But fear not my love, I'll be back a... ]

Felix wasn't able to stomach reading further, he felt like he was trespassing on a private call, one he shouldn't peer into. So in response he flipped to a less personal random page, one which he began reading.

[ For the Imperium. For the God-Emperor... ] [ On this day one of our sectors was breached by those bloody heretics! ] [ Cultist of Khorne, they have been growing wild lately, I fear that this may be the last time... ] [ I survived! ]

Felix slightly snickers at seeing the kind of luck the writer has. His interest in the book becoming more evident as he flips to the next page.

His eyes having noticed the word Imperium, and Emperor again, alongside a new word he thinks he should remember — Cultist of Khorne. Blood thirsty brutes from how they are described.

He began to read further and bit-by-bit he could see the man who was writing the book to become worse and worse, before ultimately dying from a demonic curse.

This book having been short, but still recounts the story of one Astra Militarum Soldier... A guard for short, and how he battles with both Heretics and will to go back home, ultimately not being able to as he transforms into a monster.

In dismay if he should believe the story or not, Felix began to ponder and ponder before ultimately realizing he should just read more, and cross check each facts and stories he reads with one another;

[ A Year in the Fields ] a story about a lowly human farmer living in a far distant lands populated to the brim with people, spanning tens of billions, and on how due to lack of food supplies they have to resort to farming people and turning them into what they call as Corpse Starch.

[ The Merchant's Ledger ] a story of one rogue merchant that pondered planets after planets, this having been the story on how he could have possibly done so. Writen from the perspective of the one who killed the said rogue trader.

In disgust at what he is reading, Felix began to realize the grotestque of the universe he found himself in. This isn't Harry Potter, this isn't that hopeful kind of universe, this is one shit hole that he doesn't want to live in filled with uncertainty and death.

[ "God, I'm gonna puke..." ] Thankfully he didn't, as Felix's trembling hands silently began to reach out for a book, but at the last minute something caught his fancy as he instead took that.

[ Planets and Environments ] looking at the cover, he could see it green. Unlike the other thought, it doesn't have an author on the front. In interest Felix opened it, wasting no time.

And immediately words like Forge Worlds, Agri-Worlds, Death Worlds, Hive Worlds, Feral Worlds, and Tomb Worlds began to enter his field of vision — this getting the attention of his as he flipped the paged further:

[ Forge Worlds characterized by their dedication to production of war materials, controlled oftentimes by Adeptus Mechanicus, crucial for supplying the Imperium with weapons, vehicles, and other military equipment ]

[ Vulcan Prime ] [ Ironhand ] [ Stygian Forge ] [ Cinderstone ] [ Pyros ] [ ... ]

[ Agri-Worlds as the name suggests, these planets are primarily focused on agriculture. They produce vast amounts of food to feed the population of Hive Worlds and other such planets within the Imperium of Man ]

[ Virdian ] [ Granary IV ] [ Elysium ] [ Harest Moon ] [ Panem et Circenses ] [ ... ]

[ Death Worlds are incredibly harsh and dangerous planets with extreme environments. They might have toxic atmosphere, scorching heat, or constant violent storms. Life on a Death World is a constant struggle for survival, and the inhabitants are often hardened and resilient. ]

[ Skullstone ] [ Crimson Sun ] [ Serpent's Hand ] [ Abyssal ] [ Mortis Prime ] [ ... ]

[ Hive Worlds are planets densely populated woth vast urban sprawl covering most of the surface. Gigantic Hive Cities, towering structures that house billions of people that dominate the landscape. Hive Worlds are often overcrowded and polluted, with life for the majority of the population being grim and oppressive. ]

[ Necropolis ] [ Kryptan ] [ Grimluck ] [ Infestation ] [ Styx Prime ] [ ... ]

[ Fetal Worlds are planets where humanity has regressed to a more primitive state, often living in tribal societies with limited technology. They may have been cut off from the rest of the Imperium for centuries, leading to unique cultural and societal development. ]

[ Fang ] [ Pandemonium ] [ The Maw ] [ Jungle Prime ] [ The Howling ] [ ... ]

[ THUD ] Closing the book with a thud, Felix's who's already sweating profusely could be seen having his pupils slightly dilated. Worry evident to him as he TRULY realizes what kind of hell hole he found himself in.

[ "T-that's enough reading for today." ]

[ ——— ] [ ——— ] [ ——— ] [ ——— ]

[ WRITTEN: 02/06/2025 ]

[ POSTED: 02/08/2025 ]