**Author's note: Early post because I finished the editing early. I really enjoy casual slice of life chapters now and again, so this was a fun little treat to write.**
After a short bit of prodding through my stacks of new clothes, I decided to wear a long comfortable grey tunic and a shin length skirt of similar fabric and color. The soft flowing fabric was gentle against my skin, which felt like I had a really nasty sunburn. With my laurel crown reapplied to my wet hair, I even discovered some Roman-style sandals to polish off my "Roman space Empress" look in my new wardrobe. My recent height gain wasn't so bad that my clothes didn't fit, but it might be a problem later concerning some of my more form-fitting outfits.
I was very tired, both physically and mentally, and I knew that as soon as I was able to enjoy a good meal that I would likely pass out. I was really looking forward to a good rest.
Before leaving my suite, I briefly checked the rest of the furnishings inside my lavishly styled apartment. There were many tapestries on the walls depicting heroic events and individuals of the Imperium, each beautifully woven in great care. The threadbare sofa in the small side sitting room/parlor had been replaced with a fancy grey-cushioned plush sofa with red throw pillows, and all remaining dusty mess had been cleared aside. The framed ornithopter sketch that hung over the sofa remained where it was, and seeing it made me smile. I recognized that piece of art from Leonardo DaVinci, and wondered if it was the ancient original that had been sealed in some kind of stasis frame.
The last space of the suite, the area I called the "game room", had also been tidied. Bookshelves were now filled with interesting historical tomes, and the large central table that stood at roughly waist height had been buffed and shined. The tiny metal figurines had also been cleaned, and placed atop the table.
Sebastian really had been a wargaming guy, I observed as I picked up a tiny gold figurine holding a long spear. I turned the miniature around in my hand, and idly wondered if he had gotten the idea for Primarchs and Space Marines from the hobbies of his previous life. Do what you know, I guess, I thought as I placed the little sculpture down on the table. There was something very poignantly sad about this room, I thought with a sigh as a knock at my door interrupted my melancholy.
"Inheritor, are you ready for dinner?" Virgil asked me through the door.
"Yeah, I'm coming," I replied. With another sad look at Sebastian's wargaming figurines, I turned and left my suite.
As I made my way to the galley, I observed that the interior of the Divine Retribution had been excellently decorated. More inspiring Imperial-styled tapestries were hung tastefully about the walls, and I wondered who had been responsible for decorating the ship. It honestly looked great, I thought with a grin while pointing out a portrait of what appeared to be a white-haired angelic-winged Imperial saint lady wearing gleaming gold armor. Also of interest was the very delicious scent of spiced cooking meat that was now wafting through the air.
"That is what we call a Living Saint. They're living testaments to the Emperor's peerless power that inspires humanity," Virgil indicated with pride beside me as we walked. "I hung this one myself, and many others across the main areas of the vessel. Many objects of art were found in the supply shipment, and I and and the two sisters helped to refurnish this vessel with the aid of the servitors. What an excellent choice it was to outfit the Divine Retribution in such inspiring artistic décor! Thank you for including such things in the supply order!"
"I didn't even make the order for these," I informed Virgil as we approached the open door to the galley. The delicious scent of what smelled like roasting meat and vegetables caused my stomach to audibly growl. "Null's friend set us up with all this," I explained to the hologram.
Virgil sniffed in irritation when I mentioned Null, but said nothing in protest. We continued making our way to dinner. As we walked, a watery ghost with pointed ears and alien proportions passed us before vanishing into mist. Virgil sneered in response to seeing the bright alien shade.
One of the Skitarii stood perfectly still at attention outside the entrance to the galley, and Alberich was observing her with curious eyes as Virgil and I approached. This metal warrior was vaguely female in shape, and she was about head taller than I was, and broad shouldered. The Skitarii woman wore a long red robe with a large black scorch mark over her mostly metal body, which was plated in bronze and silvery metal. Three green glowing eyes peered out emotionlessly ahead under her red cowl, and she held her green rifle in a very stiff pose of attention.
Alberich noticed my arrival and bowed slightly in a polite greeting of deference. The German psyker had changed into his new clothes, which were luckily somewhat close in size to his old body. Alberich now wore an uncannily evil dark military-styled uniform with tall boots and silver buttons accenting his black shirt, and his white-blond hair was perfectly combed and styled. His appearance was honestly frighteningly close to an idealized SS Nazi officer with his pale hair and skin. But, at least he wasn't heiling me like Hitler, I thought gratefully. Alberich indicated toward the Skitarii who continued to stand at attention before the galley. "This woman has a strange nature. Do either or you understand her at all? It is almost as if she is a robot, and has less vivacity than Null."
I stopped before both individuals. "She's what they call a Skitarii, Alberich. These are the soldiers of the Adeptus Mechanicus on Mars. They are altered humans, and they're fashioned to defend people like Null. This means that they're trained and programmed for efficient combat, but I think I read that they don't have much in the way of personality. I'm not sure on that, though."
"Does she even have a name?" Alberich asked.
"My name is Kaas," the Skitarii replied unexpectedly in a grinding deadpan voice. "I serve Archmagos Null."
"Hi, Kaas," I responded. "I'm Erika, but everyone calls me Inheritor now. Care to join us for dinner instead of standing out here?"
"I have been purged of any superfluous inefficiencies, and exist to offer protection to those I serve," Kaas informed us in an unsettling artificial voice.
"Alright, great. Nice to meet you, Kaas. Come to dinner. I'm starving," I replied with a gentle touch to the Skitarii's metal shoulder. Kaas flinched, but then, relaxed.
"I obey," she replied.
The galley was actually mostly empty as our small band walked inside. Rasputin was not in attendance as he was presumably still asleep, completely drained from his recent experience, and Null was busy repairing the other injured Skitarii. The delicious fragrance of cooking meat hung in the air, and Lian sat on a long bench along with both Blank sisters, who were signing to each other in an animated conversation. Both sisters had changed into what appeared to be comfortable sleeveless black martial arts training uniforms. Their dark clothes made their placid gold masks appear particularly striking.
Lian was no longer wearing his armor, and now wore his black fatigues and long grey shroud while he watched the sisters sign with tired green eyes. It appeared that the Fallen had washed himself up before dinner, and his short tawny hair was damp and combed. Seeing that Space Marines had cleanliness standards like this was pleasant to see.
Upon seeing me walk into the dining space, my three crewmembers immediately stood and saluted me.
"Hey, it's just me," I responded with a smile, and the three sat back down.
"I'm eager for sustenance," the Fallen spoke. Before Lian's space on the table I saw a small brown square the size of my palm, and beside it, a small pile of plastic wrap. This appeared to be a nutrient loaf, similar to what I had seen the Fallen of Angel's Respite eat with their meals yesterday. Lian was nervously tapping the table beside the small loaf, obviously anxiously hungry, but not eating just yet. "It has been a trying many days."
"Greetings, Omega," Ennoia replied in English in an accented voice before switching to ancient Nubuan again. "My sister has been injured, but not severely enough that she will not regenerate."
"I've sustained worse," Morai responded with a short laugh, touching her bundled arm with a gentle hand. "We will be eating soon? I can smell that the new bird man cooks a feast!"
"Dinner is coming, yeah," I responded happily in both Nubuan and English. I walked further into the galley, my crew dutifully trailing me. "We're all hungry!"
"It smells delicious," Alberich responded beside me. "Like a hearty roast pork. This will be the first meal my excellent new Aryan body has, and I cannot wait to eat!"
"Is everyone here?" Zok called out to us from another room, presumably preparing our food. The tinny sound of metal utensils striking various surfaces was audible from the kitchen.
"We're missing a couple, but all the people who're going to be having dinner are present now," I called back to Zok in the kitchen, who then briefly stuck his blue-feathered and beaked head through the door, noting how many of us were in attendance. The Tzaangor had decided to saw off much of his remaining horn to match his broken one, which made him look less unbalanced.
"Mind you, er, cook, I do not require food, as I am a hologram," Virgil added with a raised voice as he float-walked beside me. Zok nodded, and retreated back to the kitchen. The hologram then gently tapped my shoulder, his hazel eyes appearing anxious. Our group stopped beside the table that Lian, Ennoia, and Morai sat before, and in a hushed voice, Virgil spoke, "Forgive me my worry, Inheritor, but will you be safe with a mutant preparing our ship's food?"
"I hired him, Virg. He's fine, and his name is Zok," I replied easily. "It got really old eating paste, so I figured we needed a cook. Zok worked as a chef in the governor's palace in Evna, so if the ruling body of that world trusted him even if he was a mutant, he must be good."
Virgil nodded in reluctant understanding, and turned away from me, his form shimmering in concern.
I walked deeper into the galley toward my large wing-backed captain's chair and my special personal table with Kaas, Virgil, and Alberich trailing behind me. Seeing this, the two sisters stood and followed as they continued their silent conversation in animated gestures. Lian also picked up his nutrient loaf and began to follow where I walked.
My special seating area was a broad gold square tabletop, and stood before the elaborately crafted (and still way too large) captain's chair that was decorated with spread stylized wings along its back. At some point, someone had placed a gold vase with fine sculptures of flowers crafted of metal lace in the center of my table. This added a nice classy touch to my eating area.
Directly ahead of my personal eating area, a long and similarly crafted table stood nearby, and it appeared to seat approximately eight to twelve people, and four generously-sized chairs along with two long benches offered seating. I deduced that this table was probably for senior officers.
I didn't sit down just yet, and I called out to Zok again, "So, yeah, we're a few folks short because Null is saving the other Skitarii's life right now and Rasputin is asleep, but everyone else is here. Normally, I'm gathering that we'd have three more people eating with us." The Tzaangor made an affirmative noise in response from the kitchen. "And hey, how is our food situation? How good are our supplies?" I called out toward the kitchen. And wow, whatever he was cooking smelled amazing, and it reminded me of a very rich pork. My stomach continued to growl.
"Good. Very well stocked. Whoever supplied you did an excellent job, captain. A good amount of frozen and even some fresh meats. Vacuum-sealed vegetables, fruits, and other stable-packaged ingredients. Many canned and powdered staples. Generous salts, herbs, and seasonings. Very good, yes."
"That's great. And whatever you're cooking smells fantastic!" I shouted back.
"Some of these foodstuffs are quite expensive," Zok added with an appreciative hum. "And there are some ingredients here that I have only ever seen in the governor's palace in Evna. As such, in celebration, we will be eating a special treat this evening. Local fresh durong from the lagoons of Rash, a delicacy."
"A world named... Rash?" Alberich asked me, his nose crinkling.
Zok's keen hearing perceived Alberich's doubts. "Rash is a world in the Conglomeration of Ev. Supposed to be a tropical paradise, but I've never been there. It's a world filled with good fish, kelp, and other aquatic-sourced foods," the Tzaangor cook answered. The sound of a saucepan being stirred was heard, and I walked to my too-large fancy seat at the rear left corner of the galley to sit down.
I settled in to my wing-backed captain's chair. While I was still a bit too small for this seat, I was slowly getting larger. Come to think of it, the dining room itself seemed slightly larger, but I wasn't sure if that was just because my perception was off due to psychic exhaustion. Following my lead, my crew joined me at the long table beside mine. Lian placed his muscular bulk to my right on a chair that was slightly too small for him, and Alberich sat to my left. Kaas had to be specifically instructed to sit down but eventually did so, putting her tall metal body in another gold chair beside Lian. Virgil reluctantly sat himself next to Alberich, and continued to nervously peer in the direction of the kitchen. The two sisters sat on one of the benches beside Virgil, and they continued their silent conversation, which was apparently about how good the food smelled.
Zok walked out of the kitchen, and he was now holding a short stack of gold plates and utensils. The Tzaangor wore a dark apron over a long (and somewhat oversized) short sleeved black shirt, and one of his arms now sported a fresh bandage. "Excuse me," he said to us before placing a gold plate before each person, and a knife and fork bundled in a red napkin. He then quickly walked back to the kitchen, and returned with a cart of what appeared to be fine gold chalices beside two wine bottles in two ice buckets. Each of these chalices were passed around, and it was now very apparent that this was going to be a fancy meal!
The bottles contained sweet mead, and each of us (aside from Virgil) enjoyed a full glass after Alberich took it upon himself to deftly fill the five chalices for our little group with the deft grace of a sommelier. An additional place setting for Zok was set up beside Kaas, and his glass was also filled.
"Pardon me, but can you, uh, eat and drink normally?" I asked Kaas before Alberich poured her beverage.
She turned her head to me, her glowing green eyes emotionless. "Consumption of this method is woefully inefficient, but we are permitted to imbibe by order of Magos Nimmie Amee and Archmagos Null to maintain social cohesion in groups of the uninitiated." Kaas reached up with a metal finger, and hit some sort of switch on her jaw, which caused some of her lower facial implants to retract, revealing a mouth with sharp shiny metal teeth and artificial paper white skin. This was extremely unsettling, and I looked away.
After retreating into the kitchen a third time, Zok opened the door with his back, and before him, he was now pushing along another wide food cart. On the cart, the Tzaangor displayed a broad platter of what appeared to be little fried meatballs along with a wide bowl of stewed green vegetables that looked like either spinach or kelp. Steam rose enticingly from the platter, and my mouth began to water.
"This looks great, but what is durong?" I finally asked as Zok began to plate us. He had even made a brown sauce for the meatballs!
"A creature native to the tropical lagoons of Rash, and nowhere else," Zok spoke proudly as he continued plating us before serving himself. He then sat down, and continued to explain what we'd be eating, "Durong is an aquatic slow-moving mammalian creature that resembles a large lumbering seal twice the size of a human man. Its flesh is fatty and delicious. You must have spent a good deal of money to get this good quality meat, captain." Zok grinned.
"That kind of sounds like manatee, a creature from my reality," I observed with a sip of my mead. Alberich seemed to recognize what a manatee was, and blanched before studying his plate again. My companions all watched me expectantly after everyone had been served. For a moment, I felt guilty as I looked at the steaming delicious meatballs covered in brown sauce before me. I reminded myself that in the last day I had strangled someone to death so violently that I had broken their neck, so with a sigh, I conceded that I was indeed the kind of person that would eat manatee. "Okay, let's eat, everyone!"
Despite the main course likely being space manatee, our dinner was absolutely spectacular, and everyone praised Zok continuously. Durong tasted as good as it smelled, reminding me of a very juicy and savory peppered combination between lamb and pork. I couldn't believe that the Tzaangor cook had come up with this meal simply with an hour to spare inside a brand new kitchen. If we were in my old universe, Zok could be an excellent contestant for Iron Chef when I considered how good this was.
Near the end of the meal, Null entered the galley. His red robes were stained with black oil and blood, and he pulled up another bench to seat himself near us, but at his own table. Zok asked the exhausted Tech-priest if he wanted anything, and Null requested only a cup of tea. The Tzaangor stood and headed to the kitchen to prepare Null's beverage.
Kaas stared blankly at Null, her glowing green eyes showing no emotion whatsoever as her jaw implants snapped back together to cover the lower portion of her face. "Status report concerning guardian protector unit Rahm?" she asked.
Null settled himself with a heavy slouch on his bench before responding. "I have done what I could, my friend. Rahm's left arm, left lung, and heart had to be removed and replaced, and he is in a coma as he regenerates. We need to wait to see if his body accepts the new implantations."
Kaas responded with her flat artificial grinding voice. "Expression of gratitude. Expression of good will. May Rahm continue to serve the glory of the Machine God. Praise Omnissiah in all things."
Alberich turned to me, his eyes questioning the stilted behavior of the Skitarii woman. I shrugged.
After a short dessert of fresh citrus fruits from the unfortunately named world of Rash, contagious yawns began to move through the galley, and eyes began to droop as my crew became sleepy from our large delicious meal. Nothing terribly important was spoken of during this meeting aside from the introduction of the Skitarii woman, who described herself as a "Warrior for the will of the Omnissiah" in all aspects. Alberich decided to get into a little bit of trouble by curiously inquiring if the Emperor and the Omnissiah were actually the same entity. After a short moment of frazzled disagreeable tempers, I raised my voice to remind everyone to not get into fights, and that I would not tolerate any difficulty this evening from anyone. In an expression of offense, Kaas turned to Null for backup, who continued to quietly nurse his metal tumbler of tea, ignoring everyone. Null eventually simply responded with, "She is who she is, and you will obey her over me."
I ordered my crew to pitch in to help Zok clean up, and Null broke his quiet to offer to program a servitor or two to obey our new cook and to aid him in his duties. Zok was grateful for this, and I informed him that we could work out a meal schedule soon.
After dinner, my tired crew all retreated to their respective quarters, and I had Lian leave a ration in Rasputin's room, who was apparently still out cold. I now stood sipping a gold chalice of chilled mead in the galley, and Null was still here at his lonely table. He had exchanged his tea for amasec, and my strengthening physical senses could smell it from here. I recognized the bottle as the same celebratory bottle I had drank from back on Levant and before visiting the pyramid on Nubua.
"So," I began, not knowing how to talk to someone who helped to cripple the Imperium along with Horus fucking Lupercal. Maybe if I go to bed, I'll wake up tomorrow and all my problems will be solved?
"Thank you for not telling them of my identity," Null quietly said, holding his mug of liquor in metal fingers like it was a mug of hot chocolate. His green eyes animated a blinking motion. "You've given me another chance, and I will not waste it. I will serve you eternally. I witnessed your light when I nearly died after Nubua, and I have not forgotten that."
I did not respond, and I briefly watched Null stare into his cup. An image of the deformed metal beast that had been Kelbor-Hal flickered in my mind's eye once again before fading.
"The same glow. Same gold. Same everything, but weaker. I remember now. How could I have ever forgotten?" Null breathed quietly, and continued to drink his amasec. "Come to think of it, when I think back, the Omnissiah's avatar never held the Divine Retribution when I knew him ages ago. Maybe this memory is still locked away within me?"
"So, did you know he buried this ship intentionally on Levant? He told me all about it," I answered Null, letting my Corona leak out along my head, neck, and shoulders. My halo was getting brighter and larger as I got stronger. "He was planning on intentionally rediscovering this ship at the end of the Great Crusade and parade it around propaganda outlets as a symbol for the victory of humanity, I think."
Null did not appear surprised, and even choked a laugh. "Sounds like him, you know. He had a talent for understanding how to manipulate the masses, and I remember finding that distasteful. I suspected that he would do things for the express purpose of performance in order to inspire humankind with the belief that it would positively effect the Warp. I heard a rumor that he actually found the mantle of gold warlord distasteful. But, at the same time, he felt that he should be as inspiring as possible so that he could influence humanity, and certain iconographic imagery seems to speak to the unconscious thoughts of mankind. And so, I theorize, the outward symbol of the creature of the Emperor was cultivated and tended."
"He actually didn't like it? All the gold and eagles?" I asked with a small smile. "Well, this ship is a gold eagle. And it does love being seen. When I fly it, I feel it bask and smile when it senses people admiring it. Maybe Sebastian didn't like it but the power in him did, if that makes sense."
Null laughed darkly, and finished his drink. "This causes one to wonder just how much remained of his mundane humanity by the time I knew him, and how much of him was actually the animating imperative of this vessel." The Tech-priest turned to me again, and his eyes narrowed. "What does it feel like? The machine spirit. The divine oversoul. Can you tell me?"
I looked away, and began to shake my head as I was reminded of the barrage of torture visions the Divine Retribution had burned into me a short time ago, punishing me for my lack of heroism. "It's giving me visions; it's making me aggressive. It sometimes even tempts me by showing me how awesome it would feel to lead armies and conquer. This might sound great, but it really isn't. It's like I'm some kind of a host, and that this thing is hollowing my soul out in order to make something new. Sometimes I even catch myself saying things I would never say, almost as if the ship overrides me."
"It's a terrible burden to you I imagine, yes," Null sighed before pouring himself more liquor. "But a righteous one that will elevate trillions of people in this reality. Interesting to see how history ultimately rhymes as time passes, really. Would you care for a drink?"
I shook my head as I sipped the rest of my mead in my chalice. "No thanks. Not like liquor would really work for me at all anyway now."
"Very well," Null explained as he continued to sip. "And it turns out that the Traveler caches left about the galaxy, I suspect that I was the one who had left them," the Tech-priest chuckled hoarsely.
"All that 'The Name of the Traveler is Blessed' stuff was planted by you?" I asked with a laugh. "Funny how life works."
"Yes, I believe so, and there are more codes and caches out there too. I only regained a third to a fifth of my memories with this last code. Maybe I could unlock the entirety of who I was, and you'd have a vast advantage in conquering the galaxy? My knowledge contained the manufacturing cores of entire Forge Worlds, and their deepest operational security codes. Entire worlds could fall to you with a short spoken code!"
"Well, let's wait a little bit before becoming ambitious," I replied, not liking where this conversation was going. "So, that means that you're the one who sent me my laurel crown then, eh?" I asked, touching the gold leaves of the wreath on my hair.
Null paused, and turned to me, his eyes searching. "That is actually something that puzzles me. I do not remember having such a foresight to send such an artifact to you from so many thousands of years past, but reality can be strange."
"You don't remember sending this?" I removed my laurel crown and held it in my hands. "This crown belonged to Spoiled Prince. Does this mean you raided his tomb?"
Null did not answer, and tapped one of his metal fingers against his metal tumbler. "I do not have an answer for this. It may mean that I did, and that I simply do not have the memory of such an event, but also, it could mean that others are prowling the galaxy operating under the motto of the Travelers. Nimmie Amee, for example, also had knowledge of such beings as yourself, so it stands reason to believe that other parties know about Travelers, and if that laurel wreath was delivered to you, others know that you exist, and wish you to succeed while they remain secret. Perhaps this will all make sense once I have the rest of my memories, I don't know." The Tech-priest shrugged, and finished his drink.
And that was definitely true, I thought as I remembered Word Bear's uncanny knowledge. I held my laurel wreath in my hands. It was warm, gold, and slightly luminous around the edges of each pliant leaf. What had happened to the Spoiled Prince, I wondered as I placed my wreath back atop my head.
"Anyway, I also need to speak with you concerning another pressing issue, I'm afraid," Null explained. "You might want to sit down for this, and speak softly, as I do not want to elicit panic."
Uh oh. I pulled up a chair and sat beside Null.
"That belt. The one that had been attached to me. The one that had saved my life," Null began quietly, unease in his tenor voice. "The Nome King's belt. It isn't just a piece of Necron technology that regenerates metal as I understand now."
I nodded. That thing was trouble. "Yeah, I remember. And I'm happy it has detached from you now. You're making it sound like it has a daemon or something by the way you're speaking, Null," I weakly joked.
The Tech-priest involuntarily shuddered before speaking again.
"That belt holds an extraordinarily dangerous power. Not a daemon, as the Necron race does not work with such entities, but something arguably even more foul. I have placed it in a stasis containment box, and I hope that works to contain it, but we need a plan in order to figure out what to do with it."
"Yeah, I don't want the Necrons coming after us again," I replied. "I imagine it contains some kind of corruptive programming along with a tracking device or something by how I saw it manipulate you, but I don't really understand why I wasn't able to feel that it was harmful when I examined it with Sight. Maybe I'm just not strong enough to see into Necron artifacts yet?" I offered.
Null sat with his two sets of hands folded before him, his animated eyes rapidly moving to and fro. When he spoke again, the Tech-priest's voice was in a low frightful whisper. "Tell me, does your universe write of creatures named the C'tan?"
I recoiled, and my jaw dropped. Deep inside of me, I felt an unexpected searing anger and revulsion rise through my heart, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. My Corona brightened hotly, even causing my burned skin to tingle in pain.
"I know what the C'tan are," I responded, my voice resonant in anger. My resonant voice was beginning to sound like a female dragon.
Null noticed my anger, braced himself, and continued to speak in a low voice. I saw that he was trembling. "The belt, I now know, contains one of these imprisoned entities, a shard of an unknown shattered alien fiend from millions of years past. It has a sympathetic connection to one or maybe two other shards, from what I can glean. I suspect that whoever is in possession of a shard of this particular C'tan can sense the location and general state of another shard if it is being used. This is how the Nome King found us."
Taking a deep breath, I willed myself to calm down before responding to Null. "And you put it in stasis?" I asked in a whisper.
Null nodded. "Nimmie Amee sent me away from the Tower of Reason with numerous eclectic artifacts of technology, of which includes two stasis boxes. Hopefully this keeps the C'tan within the belt's jewel from deciphering our location through the Nome King's will."
"Why couldn't I sense it before? I examined that belt with Sight, and found that it was safe!" I exclaimed, confused and frustrated with myself. I had specifically examined that artifact, and found it to be harmless! How could I have missed something so big and obviously evil?
The Tech-priest poured himself even more amasec into his tumbler. "I don't know. C'tan, even imprisoned shards, can bend the laws of reality to their will. They are unknowable entities, and perhaps, the creature within simply wished to hide from you, and it succeeded. These aliens deserve the moniker of Star Gods due to their incredible power."
I did not speak, still completely shocked that we had been running around with a goddamn C'tan shard on board!
Null continued to elaborate, his voice low and serious. "Your predecessor spoke of a specific burning hatred toward the C'tan, and had even claimed to have even personally defeated one in the distant past. According to the xenos Orikan, this divine vessel fought directly against those creatures and their servants eons ago. It stands reason to believe that within the Divine Retribution, an inborn hatred of C'tan exists. The C'tan shard within the Nome King's belt, if it is at least somewhat sapient, perhaps even knows who and what you are, and has decided that you are its enemy."
I sensed someone walking down the corridor beside the galley, and Null and I both turned toward the noise. We paused our conversation.
"I simply don't understand it," I overheard Alberich speaking to someone. "Omnissiah or Emperor. Or, Empress. Whatever you say. They're the same? How can that be? My leader is not some 'Machine God'."
"You will not question your place here and nor will you be needlessly curious, Alberich," I heard Lian's deep voice rumble in the hallway. "That you even exist on this vessel under the favor of the Inheritor is a privilege. Direct your thoughts to more productive pursuits, and look away from unhealthy curiosity."
The two crewmembers soon passed, and they continued to chat as they did so. When they were gone, I turned back to Null, whose animated eyes appeared filled with tired shame.
"I remember saying the same things so long ago. I remember standing before this man of flesh and blood, and feeling his gold aura, and I wondered how could such an individual be an avatar of our blessed Omnissiah if I saw that no machine was integrated within his avatar's form. My doubts and curiosity eventually curdled my soul, and led me down a dark path."
"Okay, so, we have a C'tan shard on board now," I said, changing the subject. "What do we do with it? Can we destroy it? Throw it out of an airlock so the Nome King doesn't come after us again?"
"Unfortunately I do not think we presently have the power to destroy it. Destroying a C'tan is a monumental effort, and one fraught with great danger. Simply discarding such a creature might mean that it is found by someone with evil goals, so I also do not recommend that. Even attempting to hurl it into the depths of a black hole might not destroy it, such is the power of a C'tan."
Null continued to drink, and did not offer any solution, which was terrible. On top of having to deal with everything else, we now had an extraordinarily dangerous artifact aboard, one that the Necrons could use to continue to track us. This felt like I was in possession of the One Ring from Lord of the Rings, and that as long as we possessed such an artifact, a dark lord would chase us around looking to reclaim it. After the too-long pause, I asked, "So, do you have any suggestion on what to do with it? Anything at all?"
The Tech-priest seemed to exhale in defeat. "It is a difficult situation, I'm afraid. For now, we keep the artifact within the stasis box, and hope that it does not call to another shard. But, I may have some direction as to what we should do going forward."
Since Null wasn't being immediately forthcoming, I was not feeling confident about whatever he was about to say. I nodded sternly. "What is it?"
The Tech-priest turned his half-full metal tumbler around in his hands. "When I was Kelbor-Hal, I studied and consumed vast amounts of information concerning the history of the galaxy. This included studies of various xenos empires, and their various sciences and cultures." Null took another drink, and went to pour himself more amasec, only to discover that his bottle was empty. The Tech-priest placed the empty liquor bottle roughly on the table, causing it to crack. I sensed that Null was actually intoxicated, and he continued speaking in a low furtive voice. "Deep within me, I discovered an incomplete memory of both the Necron race and their C'tan masters from when the Necrons served the Star Gods. If more of my memories are uncovered, perhaps within myself I have the knowledge to uncover the nature and name of this particular C'tan, and maybe, even the means to handle such a creature safely. Maybe even effectively destroy it."
"You want to unlock more of your memories," I answered dubiously.
Null nodded. "Yes, and as I said earlier, within my old memories I may even have knowledge that you could use to defend yourself against the Imperium should they attempt to organize against you. I, well, have unfortunate experience against such measures. I will never fall as I have fallen before, I assure you, and I act purely in my motivations to you now."
This sounded extremely dangerous, and I was a bit too tired to examine this request with Sight at the present. "I guess we don't have much of a choice, really," I sighed in concession. We couldn't destroy the belt and we couldn't safely use it without being at risk for being pursued by the Nome King. We could maybe throw it into space and run away from it, but this wasn't good as such artifacts were at risk for being found by others and used for bad outcomes against humanity, and my ship had punished me enough that I found myself dissuaded from doing that. There were no good easy options available. "Look, let me think about it," I said as I stood up. "I'm tired after all we've been through. I want to rest before making any big decisions. You're telling me that for now the shard is safe inside the stasis box?"
"Yes, I believe so," Null answered. "From what I understand, it cannot be used to actively track us unless it is in active use, and now that it is off my body, it is no longer in such use."
"Okay," I yawned widely. "Keep it in the stasis box and store it somewhere safe so no one stumbles across it for now, please. I'll think about what we should do going forward after tonight. And, tell everyone to meet here in the galley at around noon tomorrow so we can have a talk about what our goals should be on this world."
"I will do so, Inheritor," Null answered as he watched me stand before him. His animated green eyes were exhausted, and the Tech-priest appeared cowed. "I serve under your blessed command."
"Great. I'm now going to my suite. Don't contact me unless it's an emergency."
"Goodnight, Inheritor. You won't regret your choice in sparing me," Null said to my back as I left the galley, and began to make my way eagerly back to my quarters.
"I'd better not," I mumbled under my breath.
A translucent ghost passed me on my way back to my suite, and a whisper of a conversation was heard once again as its astral form passed through my left arm. "...and I told him, 'Don't listen to Malachi. He's not your friend, and he's being manipulative again', but then he says..."
I paused, but by then, the ghost had already vanished. I now stood beside my captain's quarters, and gratefully stepped inside.
In relief, I stripped my clothes off of my burned body, and placed them over the backs of one of the chairs in the sitting area. Wincing in pain from my sensitive skin, I climbed into my new luxuriously soft bed, ordered the lights to turn off, and within minutes, I began to nod off, distantly hoping that all my problems would just magically go away instead of having to deal with them.