manynovel Chapter 55 Meeting
Chapter 55 Meeting
The sixth week of subspace. The Black Pearl glides smoothly through the chaotic sea, its porthole armored panels tightly closed, leaving only the faint glow of instrument dials and indicator lights in the bridge.
Liu En gathered the core personnel in the reception room. Marcus, Kara, Phyllis, and several senior sergeants from the garrison regiment were present. On the long table were several data panels displaying the meager records of the Black Pearl's wrecked spaceship from its database: a set of coordinates, a few lines of navigation log summaries, and a note that read, "Genestealer infection confirmed, signs of green-skinned spread."
Marcus projected the contents of the data panel onto a small projection area above the table. It was just a few lines of text and a rough diagram. "The coordinates are stored in the database, dated over three thousand years ago. Someone went up there back then, and the conclusion was that the risks were manageable. But three thousand years have passed, and this wrecked ship has moved in and out of the subspace and physical universe countless times, its volume has expanded many times over, and its internal structure is far more complex. Subspace radiation has accumulated on its outer shell for thousands of years. Nobody can say for sure what its current situation is."
Commander Kara crossed her arms. "What preparations can we make?"
Liu En leaned back in his chair. "First, scout. The first thing to do after jumping out is to deploy scanning bee sergeants. Figure out the route of the passage, the location of the collapse, and the distribution of heat sources. At the same time, signal relay sergeants should establish communication nodes at the landing site."
Marcus zoomed in on the diagram. "This is a possible entry point marked in historical records. A relatively complete section of the ship's structure, with the entrance leading to the main passageway inside the wrecked ship. But three thousand years have passed, and it's uncertain whether the entrance is still there, whether the passageway is blocked, or what the situation inside is."
"The Imperial Navy usually only entrusts the exploration of space wrecked ships to the Terminator squads of Astartes," Liu En said. "It's not that we can't defeat what's inside, it's that the environment is too deadly. According to the description, the passageways inside the wrecked ship are extremely narrow. Two people walking side by side will have their shoulders brushing against the walls, and sometimes even people wearing power armor have to slightly lower their heads and turn sideways to pass through. Above, there are dense pipes and collapsed cable trays, and if you're not careful, your helmet will hit them. Underfoot are rusted gratings that creak when you step on them, and you never know which piece will suddenly break, leaving behind a cargo hold abyss tens of meters deep. Every few dozen meters, the passageway has a sharp turn, and behind the bend, you can't see anything but darkness." Darkness. Thermal imaging is practically useless inside the wreck—the temperature of the metal walls and subspace deposits remains constant near zero degrees Celsius, and the body temperature of living beings is mixed with the background noise of the ventilation pipes, making it impossible to distinguish between a vent and aliens. Communication signals are distorted, and a group separated by fifty meters could lose contact. The depth is unknown, the corridors lead to unknown places, and the ceiling could collapse at any moment. Most critically, there is only one escape route—you have to get out the same way you got in; there are no shortcuts. Once you get lost or your escape route is cut off, you become part of the wrecked ship.
A few seconds of silence fell over the reception room. The veterans exchanged glances, but no one spoke. Carlos's fingers paused on the edge of the table.
Liu En glanced around, his tone softening. "But this time is different." He opened his data panel, pretending to click and browse. "The Black Pearl has an artifact from the ancient technological era, given to me by the elder who gave me this ship. Geological exploration arrays, pollution analysis modules, remote heat source scanning—and so on—are all integrated inside. The radiation deposits inside the wrecked ship act as a barrier for conventional sensors, but not for this equipment. I can operate it to know in advance the structural integrity of the passage, the distribution of heat sources, and even the concentration of pollutants. In other words, before I step into a passage, I already know whether it will collapse or if there's anything waiting ahead."
He looked at Kara. "So I don't need you to rush ahead. You follow me, I'll only take the safe route. The environment inside the wrecked ship is a disadvantage for others, but not for us."
Carlos looked up, glanced at Liu En, then looked down again. The veterans' shoulders visibly relaxed a bit. Marcus didn't ask any questions.
Liu En didn't continue. But in his own mind, that explanation was only meant for them.
His true confidence lay not in any fabricated equipment. The field of influence, with a radius of over twenty meters centered on his body, encompassed every inch of the narrow passageways within the wrecked ship. The cracks in the ceiling, the rust on the sidewalls, the loose deck beneath his feet—his conscious perception had already marked all the structural weaknesses as he walked. He didn't need to detour, he didn't need reinforcements. Within the field, his consciousness touched, and a new material skeleton grew from within the rusted walls, firmly locking the loose structure in place. Those invisible reinforcement marks became silent load-bearing walls behind him. Regardless of the size of the cabins or the width of the passageways within the wrecked ship, he had ample confidence.
The contamination layer formed by subspace sediments on the surface of the wrecked ship is a deadly source of radiation for ordinary powered armor. For him, it's an atomic-level impurity. The decomposition command is issued, and the toxic crystalline structure is stripped away, transforming into a harmless cloud of atoms. As he walks through the tunnel, the radiation reading behind him will be an order of magnitude lower than when he arrived. No one will know; the sensors will only display "radiation value fluctuates and then decreases."
He had already made a preliminary judgment even during his warp travels. The universal atoms he captured in the warp carried faint signals characteristic of sediments from the wrecked ship's surface—a blurry fingerprint. But it was enough for him to confirm one thing: his field could decompose those contaminants. Because in the warp, he had decomposed countless substances with similar properties—and occasionally encountered substances that had fallen from the real world. What he needed was to verify this in the real universe, to confirm this judgment through the decomposition of physical objects. That was another reason why he was ahead of the curve.
As for the creatures inside the wrecked ship—greenskins, gene-stealers, or whatever other aliens—the engagement distance in narrow passages is usually no more than a few dozen meters. Within the radius of his field of influence, any physical matter is under his control. Bullets can be disintegrated, claws can be disintegrated, and even the aliens blocking his path can be disintegrated. As long as it's not a super-fast long-range shot, his mental reach is much faster than his finger pulling the trigger. Even with high-speed beams, there are field shields to protect him. In large compartments or open spaces, he can discreetly defuse most of the crises faced by the guards, and they will provide him with powerful firepower support.
But these were just his thoughts. The others thought: the captain has powerful ancient technology, the captain is confident, the captain goes first, and we follow.
Marcus pulled up the route data. "After jumping out, there's still a regular voyage to the wrecked ship. Reconnaissance needs to be preliminarily planned before arrival. In addition, the landing site requires sufficient transport boat capacity for two companies, plus some armed sergeants and mechanized infantry."
Liu En nodded. "I'll lead the mechs and armed servitors to land first. Kara, you'll lead two companies and some service servitors to follow behind. We might be inside for several months, so we need to carry plenty of supplies. The servitors will handle the supply recovery."
"I understand," Kara said.
Liu En stood up. "Meeting adjourned. We'll talk again after we jump out. Follow orders and don't make any decisions on your own."
The people on both sides of the long table rose one after another and left the reception room. Liu En sat in his chair for a while. To him, the derelict spaceship wasn't a maze, but a ready-made blueprint warehouse—various military, controlled, and rare equipment, which, after dismantling, could provide support for the future of Garros. It was just a little dirty. The remaining valuable supplies were brought back by the servants.