A beam of light tore through the darkness between the stars like a dagger, leaving a jagged crack in the intertwined curtain of space and time.
Then, the crack expanded incredibly quickly until it turned into a hole filled with light.
Time seemed to stand still, and every moment seemed to last as long as eternity, until something emerged from the light.
The first thing to enter the physical universe is the bow of the starship.
A blood-red heart with teardrops is imprinted on the bow of the ship, challenging anything that dares to stand in its way.
She belongs to the Lamenters Chapter, one of the Blood Angels' sub-chapters, founded in the Founding of the Damned.
After a ripple in the space, the rest of the battleship became clear in the crack, and finally entered the physical universe.
They were followed by two smaller, scarred frigates - compared to the flagship, they were like antoasts following a whale.
Then, the light hole shuddered and closed in the battleship's trajectory.
Normally, the dark paint of starships makes them almost undetectable against the black background of space, but the racing light of the planet's distant sun began to flicker, outlining the outline of this monster created by Adeptus Mechanicum technology.
.
Along its bow, the words "Mother of Tears" written in High Gothic are clearly legible, and the two-winged blood drop emblem symbolizing the Blood Angel is clearly displayed on the writing.
Chapter Master Malakin Foros is sitting on the bridge of the battleship and commanding.
Although he rarely visits places in person, everything seems to be in order.
Very handsome, but with a melancholy expression, he stared at each control panel to make sure everything was under control.
In the current situation, any negligence is unacceptable. He is the master of everything on this battleship.
"Leader of the Chapter, we have successfully entered the physical universe from the subspace, and now we are entering the Fulen galaxy."
It could be heard from the officer's voice that he felt very relaxed at this time.
Malakin unconsciously stroked the 'Questioner' melta pistol hanging on his belt. A golden rose hung from the gold chain around his chest. The wings decorated on the breastplate were decorated with blood hearts on the burqa.
The bottom is looming.
His face was hidden in the shadows. Ever since the Battle of Barbuda, he had become accustomed to hiding himself in the shadows.
His Blood Saber, an ancient weapon from Baal, rests on his left hand.
Although somewhat reluctant, Malakin still agreed to meet with the leader of the Astral Knights Chapter - simply out of consideration for maintaining the last dignity of the Chapter.
He didn't want them to be treated like street rats in the future. Even after all they had gone through, he believed they could still live side by side with other war groups in an upright manner.
"How far is it to Gage?"
Malakin asked, his voice laced with lament.
"About fifteen million kilometers, my lord."
The Chapter Master of the Lamenters nodded.
"Communication tower, contact the Astral Knights to see if they respond."
With that said, he stood up and strode towards the communication station.
"Sir...yes, we received a signal."
Malakin turned on the main communicator.
"This is the Mother of Tears. My name is Malakin Foros. Please answer."
After speaking, he stopped and waited for a while.
"This is the Astral Knight, I am Soshyan Alexey, saluting you and your Chapter."
After a while, a young voice suddenly came from the intercom of the communication station.
"Captain Soshyan, we are about to arrive at the low orbit of Gages."
"The Imperial Navy has established a temporary airport in Gages, where your fleet can dock."
There was a pause there for a while.
"I, and Lord Magyar of the Ascetic Chapter, are here to await your arrival."
"Well, it seems that there are more people to meet."
Malakin tried to hide his disappointment.
"Not what you think."
"We'll see."
After the communication ended, the two parties never communicated again.
The Weeper Chapter's flagship, the Mother of Tears, ran directly towards Gages' temporary orbital station——
The interior of the orbital platform was pitch black, and only when the spacecraft passed through the atmosphere did the lighthouse lights barely come back to life.
The outline of the tarpaulin showed that it covered several aircraft awaiting maintenance, and the tarpaulin's frayed edges were stirred by the downdraft of the Thunderhawk's thrusters for the first time in nearly a month.
On the deck, empty storage boxes and cargo boxes were stacked far away from the operating grid line. Malakin carefully observed every obstacle through the armored glass with frost on the edges, trying to park the gunship in the dark as carefully as possible.
In place.
As the gunboat landed, one of the landing struts brushed against an abandoned tool rack, and a pile of oily engine parts fell to the floor.
A Space Marine in the cabin cursed:
"What a shame. Didn't anyone clean up the landing port for our arrival?"
Malakin stood behind the empty passenger seat.
"No one knew we were coming."
He replied in a low voice:
"This is my request. We don't need to cause any more trouble."
The technical sergeant turned off the engine, turned around and said:
"Forgive me, Chapter Master, but we came here with good intentions this time. Isn't this worthless?"
Malakin shook his head.
"No, brother, no one cares about our good intentions except ourselves. We are still traitors now."
The last three words sounded extremely bitter when they came out of his mouth.
The technical sergeant grunted in grievance, stood up from his seat, and moved his heavily armed body from the side of the cockpit to the rear cabin.
Malakin walked around the autopilot console, took out his helmet from the overhead locker, and stepped forward.
He touched the edge of the bloody heart carved on his forehead with one finger and thought about what it represented.
Then he led the soldiers out of the cabin.
The air here was cold and stale, and the corridor decks felt as rough as gravel beneath the Space Marines' armored boots.
They met the staff of the Sosa Orbital Platform, who were all support staff, but most of them were servants and elderly people.
The men and women saluted stiffly and walked with the stiffness of someone who has lived a lifetime under artificial gravity and the thick calluses of long hours of toil.
They looked exhausted and had clearly been forgotten by the Empire.
Perhaps just like the mourners who arrived here, they were exhausted physically and mentally and no one remembered them.
Malakin walked through the passage with a heavy heart. At the end of the airport was a heavy metal gate. The owner of this place should be visible through it.
He stood in front of the door and turned on the communicator.
"We are here, Chapter Master Soshyan."
The other party hummed in response, and then the heavy gate slowly opened——