When Soshyan opened his eyes again, the first thing that caught his eye were the worried faces of Talos and Thor.
The first thing he said after sitting up from the bed was——
"Sorry, I was careless."
Thor was the first to ask:
"what happened?"
"The Necrons deployed a trap, and if I wasn't careful, I almost capsized the boat in a small ditch."
After gently raising the subject, Soshyan turned to ask:
"How about Amnak?"
Talos answered him.
"Nothing's wrong."
"It's also thanks to him this time."
Sol, however, seemed to still want to know what happened to Soshyan.
"Do the Necron have weapons against you?"
"Sure, but I don't know what it is, it seems to be coming from orbit."
Sol looked at him and stopped asking any more questions, just nodded.
"It's okay."
Soshyan looked at Talos.
"How long has it been?"
"Nine days."
"That's okay. What happened recently?"
"No big deal, just some reinforcements are coming one after another. Now the number of Astra Militarum has reached 10 million, and the number of Orps militia is still increasing. It is currently more than 120 million. Oh, there are still some scattered ones.
The naval forces drawn from the surrounding star regions are all old ships, the largest of which are cruisers."
"Thank you for your hard work. I will deal with these matters as soon as possible."
With that said, Soshyan got off the bed, stepped on the cold floor with his bare feet, then walked to the clothes rack nearby, picked up a robe, put it on, and then left the medical cabin.
Thor looked at his back, then turned to Talos.
"This is the first time I've seen him so... flustered. Before, he had always had a high degree of confidence, even a little arrogant, but now he suddenly seems to be a different person."
"Let him handle it."
Talos did not respond directly and turned around and walked out of the medical cabin. Thor stood there thinking for a moment and sighed softly.
After briefly handling military affairs and proving to everyone that he had "come out", Soshyan went to another place uncharacteristically, a place he had not been to for a long, long time.
"call--"
Amidst the deep breathing, the simple two-handed sword shone in the soft light, and wherever the blade passed, the light seemed to be briefly divided.
Soshyan was just wearing a simple blue waist training uniform, sweating in the training room. It seemed that only the weight of the sword in his hand gave him comfort, keeping him grounded, and making him feel that he was actually there at this moment.
Be here.
It is a place of peace and tranquility, of pure purpose, simple and uncomplicated.
He turned around and let the hilt slip through his palm, letting it become an extension of his arm, an extension of his soul.
As he moved, a strange halo began to flicker around him, and then the light surged up and turned into images of Necrons.
Soshyan's breathing became heavy. He concentrated his will and moved forward. Although his body was strong, his movements were elegant.
A stab, a pick, a swing...
The realistic hostile shadows fade into nothingness, but there is more.
Surrounded by countless cold metal souls, Soshiyang's attention began to be distracted again unconsciously. He tried hard to force himself not to think about those things, but he couldn't control it...
His worries were confirmed. Easily gained power always comes at a price, whether it's physical or other aspects.
Now Soshyan felt like a broken vessel that had been poorly repaired. Everything he was proud of was being lost, although this thought made him uneasy.
Sometimes his mind was filled with fragments - snippets of conversations he couldn't remember if they ever really existed, faces without names, names without faces.
Embers of old emotions burn into new life and then fade away again.
The souls of the dead he knew or forgotten, the souls of the dead he killed.
In a daze, he felt a ghostly cold air blow against his face, and could clearly hear the footsteps on the marble floor, as well as the howling from the skinner's throat, all of which became louder and louder...
His skin tingled, the book in his hand felt heavy, and the Phoenix Gate of the Supreme Heaven suddenly opened, and then...
Soshyan shook his head vigorously, exhaled a breath, and grasped the sword tightly, trying to draw strength from the mechanical training he had been familiar with countless times and gain confidence from its use.
This is not an unfamiliar book!
He turned and pierced the air, letting the weight of the blade complete his thoughts, just as he had been taught by Thor.
But those memory fragments don't come alone.
A cold silver hand stretched out towards him, and Soshyan suddenly retreated, the sword in his hand cutting through the air in a panic.
He heard the wild laughter, and the image in front of him shook and dissipated, and another broken memory emerged. The crazy god was raging among the stars. It had arrogant desires and ambitions, trying to rush to the ultimate origin that transcended matter and spirit.
...
"Keeping your mind still, as if you are still sick, forgetting life and death, this is your true nature..."
Soshiyang whispered repeatedly that this was the secret formula given to him by Master Ananda, which could calm his depressed mind.
Gradually, his voice echoed in the training ground, becoming one with the ethereal roar of the Necron.
The reflection of the sword melted into the starlight. His movements slowed down and became more determined. He began to relax his muscles and let his attention wander away from the shattered sight.
No matter what, he doesn't need to be reminded of who he is: he will stick to everything he holds dear, no matter what the cost.
And one of the most important points is that he is the Astartes, the embodiment of death, who in the name of the Lord of Mankind launches war, fights, dies, and fights again, until he achieves the final victory, or until everything collapses.
Although this thought did not bring him much comfort, victory was uncertain, and sometimes the cost seemed beyond his ability to bear, it was this thought and experience that shaped him as a person. If he gave up on this, he would be giving up.
If he loses himself, what he clings to will be swallowed up, there is no doubt that his love for his wife cannot replace this anchor point.
His spirit was soothed, and he was able to focus more on the sword in his hand and the stars shining on the blade - the mad god was still there, reminding him of this all the time.
If he was truly forging a weapon for a purpose, he would work hard to achieve it.
Soshyan assumed a defensive posture, turned his wrist, raised his sword, and took a step to the left.
Then, he stopped, put down his sword, and felt a new presence behind him.
"Few people can conquer their own fears with their own sword."
Soshyan turned around.
"I can't beat it either."
When Talos walked over with a smile, those virtual shadows also disappeared, and the lights lit up, and the light returned to the training room.