Warhammer: Start with a dog.

Chapter 565 Interlude : The Return of the Argonauts
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"——No matter how impregnable the barrier is, you can always find a mountain path that is "only wide enough for one person to pass through" and "few people know about it but the guide happens to know about it" so that a group of brave warriors can go around it in the dark and open up the situation. This is the method passed down by the storytellers' ancestors."

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At some point before Cadia split open and the scarlet tide surged out, within the Eye of Terror that had not yet been completely torn open, a captured freight ship was disguising itself as an Imperial transport ship, attempting to leave here and head to their destination through some narrow routes beyond the Cadia Gate that could only accommodate a few ships but not large fleets.

However, this simple voyage, which was carried out to avoid fighting as much as possible, was destined not to be as ordinary as the parties had planned, because some of the crew members carried by this freighter were born to be watched by the gods.

This is the highest blessing in the eyes of some people, but it is also the most vicious curse in the eyes of some people, and it is also the best entertainment and gamble in the eyes of some gods.

The moment the freighter jumped into the highest sky, a gamble targeting several special passengers on the ship had quietly unfolded in the vast ocean.

As soon as the Shendao entered the warp, all the lights on the ship began to flicker, and various systems issued shrill alarms. Sailors and technical officers recruited by the Olympia Academy from the rescued slaves and soldiers ran back and forth, inputting more data and instructions into the new Thinkers installed on the ancient system, trying to make the hull more stable and maintain their planned course.

The storm in the subspace became more and more violent. The already surging and blurry route maps and various instruction diagrams on the screens of the auspicious array and other scanning and observation instruments became even more blurred, as if everyone who viewed it was covered with a layer of light blood-red mist in front of their eyes, and as if the entire screen had turned into a strange blue laser light.

Sometimes, those staring at these images would feel as if vague scales and clamp-like limbs were swimming past the corner of their eyes, but when the observer turned away in alarm or fear, there was nothing there.

If these sailors and officers were not recruited from the demon factories and fortresses on Medlengard, and many of them had already seen many more terrifying things than this, they might not have been able to hold on until now.

Through the porthole of the bridge, the people on the command throne could see that the Geller position of the freighter was also precarious amid the constant attacks and roars of monsters trying to approach them, like a soap bubble that was deformed and swayed by a naughty child, which invisibly increased the pressure.

Moreover, even by the standards of the human empire where the service life of ships or some special vehicles is measured in thousands or tens of thousands of years, the "Deep Mourning" can be considered an old ship.

The keel of the ship made a creaking sound in the fierce storm of the Vast Ocean, which made people feel uneasy even after being repaired. Its bow and side armor plates were hit by interstellar dust, micro-comets or other things blown by the solar wind of stars at different times over thousands of years, forming dense pits and depressions.

The interiors of these places had actually been reinforced by the careful Soltan before setting off, but without a well-resourced orbital dock to perform further repairs and upkeep on the ships, relying solely on internal repairs would always be somewhat unsatisfactory.

But in general, given that this was the most suitable larger ship they could find, which did not require a large crew and was capable of warp jumps, these travelers who were eager to return home could not ask for more - it was better than driving the Thunderhawk that had been temporarily hoisted in. Trying to cross the galaxy in just one Thunderhawk was a near-suicidal act for a Space Marine - although two of the main passengers did take a death oath at the beginning, once they had really completed it, their desire would become "how to get back to the regiment faster and more reliably", which was also human nature.

Some crew members on the bridge who were too close to the portholes shuddered and moved away from the windows. Vast waves, whirlpools, curtains and light smoke of various colors rolled over the bow, as if countless invisible forces were watching, laughing, and critically observing the Deep Mourning, just like a group of gourmets holding napkins and knives and forks, looking at this delicious fish with a steel plate shell with critical eyes. If they find a gap, they will immediately tear out the tender flesh from it and share it.

"Connect me to the navigator's bubble tank." Uriel Ventress on the command throne asked the communications officer, and the latter did so.

"Hello, Mr. Thorvann, I was wondering why our ship's course and the Geller's position seem to be a little shaky right now. Can you explain? Are we still on course?"

"I... I feel bad, Lord Ventress. I'm sorry. I'll try to steady them. We're not off course, I just... I just..."

Navigator Thor Vann's voice came from the loudspeaker on the bridge, "I've never been separated from the Astronomican for so long... I haven't felt anything like this... but there's no other information here to refer to. Although we should be getting out of the Eye of Terror, I... I looked towards Terra... The light I saw was separated by layers of veils, vortices and other things. It was too faint... I couldn't be sure if it was... if it was... the light of the Astronomican, my lord. So I took some time to distinguish and confirm it."

They heard the navigator's teeth chattering, making a slight clicking sound.

Thor Vane's navigator bloodline comes from a high-ranking family on Terra, which is ancient, powerful and pure enough, which ensures his mental toughness, clairvoyance and professional training, which is also reflected in his clothing.

This was also the reason why he was not killed immediately when he was attacked, but was merely knocked unconscious and taken away as a prisoner - in fact, what was even more coincidental was that a refrigerated ship like the Deep Mourning that was only sent to transport corpses would generally not have a senior navigator like Thorvann as a navigator.

This temporary transfer order that was a waste of talent was really a coincidence. Thor Vane was just drawn to cover the shift. Although a corpse transport ship sounded bad, the route was absolutely empty. No imperial ship would choose to share the route and coordinate points with a corpse transport ship if given a choice. Even pirate ships would avoid special ships like the Deep Mourning. So Thor Vane thought from the beginning that he could go back to the Solar System to continue serving after his term expired. He preferred the bright and abundant starlight there.

But no one expected that this seemingly simple and boring journey was actually full of blood and misfortune, which would eventually lead him to fall into the hands of the Iron Warriors rebels.

...But how did things turn out like this? Thor vane, who had fainted and then woken up, was completely unbelievable and confused. First of all, he remembered that the steel monster that crawled out of the corpse transport freezer killed Mrs. Matang, the captain of the Deep Mourning, and others, including the three Ultramarines who were originally responsible for the safety of the ship, before knocking him out... right...?
...But the man sitting on the command throne now, although his shoulder armor is not painted with the inverted Ω-shaped white chapter emblem of the Ultramarines, his power armor is indeed painted the special ultramarine color that Thor Vane is familiar with. His every move is completely that of the most senior Ultramarines. Moreover, the navigator has also seen the big man guarding outside his room. Although he is bigger than the average Space Marine, he is also a standard Ultramarines in his impression. From temperament to attitude, as well as Thor Vane's psychic intuition, all tell him that these two people are not only Ultramarines, but should even be two senior Ultramarines veterans.

But the problem was the third one in power armor... uh, he didn't know what to call him. The two Ultramarines looked, spoke and commanded very much like the children of Ultramar, but the problem lay with the third one.

The third man's armor was not originally ultramarine - Thor vann still remembered how angry and helpless Ventress looked when he and Pasanius pulled the frozen guy out of the freezer door, mixed with some uneasiness, which was more obvious on Pasanius's face, but Ventress stopped the blond warrior from speaking. After a round of internal communication, the third man's gun silver and black armor was painted into the ultramarine color of the Ultramarines with the paint left on the ship.

The exposed skin of the third Space Marine was a distinct dark pink, as if he had been peeled off and had just grown new skin, but his face was equally regular. Except for the different hair color, this warrior named Samokwan looked very similar to the leading Ultramarine, Uriel Ventris, to the extent that he looked like Ventris's son - but Space Marines should not have naturally produced children, at least Thor Vane had never heard of a case of having children with the opposite sex like mortals.

The coincidences here made Thor vane, who had spent his whole life in prophecy, interpretation and reading comprehension, hesitate. If the third person, Samokan, was also an Ultramarines, then wouldn't it be three Ultramarines... the same as he remembered? Only Captain Matang and the others were missing... But, was this a revelation from the unknown? A new path revealed to him by the Emperor?
After all, Thor vann knew that once the fact that he had been captured by Chaos was confirmed, it would be a permanent stain on him. Without a better reason, even if he returned to the Empire, he would be investigated by his family and would most likely be abandoned and thrown onto some unpopular ship, becoming a commodity for money transactions between his family and wealthy businessmen, rather than serving on more noble void ships and more glorious missions.

But if the three Ultramarines vouch for him, it seems that he really has a chance to return to the Empire. Captain Matang is indeed a good person, and everyone else is good too, but if they all disappear... and won't talk... Thor vane's palms were sweaty and cold, and he quietly wiped his hands on his robe.

It is not too much to say that Thorvann needs to consider his future career and destiny.

In view of this, the Navigator ultimately remained silent about everything that happened before he returned to the Navigator's Bubble Chamber.

The memories ended, and Thorvane gathered all his energy again. He started jumping from the edge of the Eye of Terror to the next Mandeville point. Although the distance was not too far and it was a mapped trail, the weak star torch and the unfamiliar route still required him to give it his all and concentrate.

The navigator's third eye held fast in his mind's eye the flickering light of a distant torch.

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The angry red formed huge waves that impacted the vortex formed by pain and other emotions. The two collided violently, stirring up the waves of billions of aliens or human souls that changed and disappeared. The yellow-green mist formed by despair was like a low-hanging cloud on the sea, quietly but completely covering everything below. There seemed to be something behind the clouds, black, powerful, platinum, powerful, stars, stars, nebulae, suns... But as a competent and professional navigator, Thorvann forced himself to move his eyes away from trying to see clearly behind the clouds and continue to focus on the little light in front of him. Only in this way can they escape from the storm of the subspace ocean.

The bright light of the lighthouse in the distance seemed to become more obvious, and the beautiful flickering colorful light made the navigator's mind unconsciously calm down.

But this time the storm raged for quite a while. Thor vann pondered, using the pale and slender fingers of a navigator to type on the keyboard to calculate and correct the course. It was like two giant white-fronted spiders lying on the keyboard. The error time was quite long...

"Get me through to the bridge," he said into a brass voice tube at his side. "I have some forecasts for Lord Ventress."

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"Where is this?" Uriel Ventress asked, looking at the extremely busy space near the Mandeville Point in front of him. For void ships, it could be described as a crowded and busy space. "Aren't we jumping out to a Mandeville Point on the edge of the Solar Segmentum, Mr. Thorvane?"

"Actually..." the navigator replied, "The report I submitted earlier made it very clear, sir. It's good enough that we can pass through the boundary between the subspace and reality safely. My prediction is that the time difference may be between one and one hundred years, and we even successfully appeared in a territory controlled by the Empire. My lord, I can't ask for more."

"Well, you're right. We can't rush this. We just need to get out of the Eye of Terror first. We can find a nearby Imperial world and the Astropathic Choir to try to make contact. So where is this place? Didn't you say you jumped towards the light of the Astronomican?"

"I swear on the throne of Terra and the honor of my family, that is right, my lord. My navigator's orders were to jump towards the nearest, brightest light." Thor vane's voice was confused and uncertain, "but there is... there is also a torch. I don't understand, my lord, but it can indeed be observed in the warp, and it also guided me out."

Something invisible and mysterious touched Uriel Ventress's senses as he looked into the depths of the Rubicon II system. He couldn't put his finger on it, but... there was something very important there.

When he raised his eyes, he saw that Pasanius had the same thoughtful expression, so he nodded.

"Then let's see what's going on here."

(End of this chapter)