Erioch System
Watch Fortress Erioch, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
Hrothgar remains silent. He tries to detect if there is anything wrong with the scent of anyone here. As always, Hrothgar's perception of the universe is influenced greatly by his sense of smell.
The Space Wolf sniffs deeply, concerned that Brother Emeric's sudden malady has somehow changed him or the others in some way. He is briefly reassured to note that the scents of all of his Battle-Brothers, even the Black Templar, as well as the marines of Kill-team Mordant are much as they were before the strange occurrence with the techmarine.
However...
Sniffing deeply and turning completely around to face back the way they came, he detects something else, something that does not belong to the faint smell of antiquity that pervades the Omega Vault. It is the scent of polished, lacquered wood and tarnished brass, the faint aroma of ancient dust in the interstices of old furniture.
It is so baffling and unexpected, Brother Hrothgar draws deeply of his own smells to sniff out the possibility that somehow madness has overcome him as well.
Erioch System
Watch Fortress Erioch, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
"This is but just one step of many still to come, but victory will not be ours unless we figure out what it is."
Brother Drogan all but snorts in contempt, his mounting frustration clearly evident.
"Hrmmpphh! The Hammers of Dorn are not made to suss out riddles and find answers where an Adept Mathematica would cringe and cower, and suck at his thumb. Were this a fortress or bastion, no matter how clever the design, we would be at our goal already, I would assure that. But how can we find what it is we are seeking when we know not what it is? How does one navigate a maze whose dimensions never remain the same, whose very walls defy the laws of reality? Tell me this then, Iron Snake, do we find the solution with the mumbling of platitudes? Or this poor techmarine's speaking in binary tongues? We are hours gone---or so we are led to believe---within the Vault this could be days or weeks already, my chronometer was useless some time ago!"
He turns his attentions to the Ultramarine, Quintus, the rivalry and outright dislike between their chapters evident, causing the younger Ultramarine in their own, squad, Tavius, to cringe at Drogan's sharp words.
"You are right in one thing, Brother Quintus, we know nothing of what is happening to us, NOTHING!"
He practically spits the last word.
"It is well known you have shared counsel with Brother Hyzeron, he who hears these murmurs of the Vault," continues Brother Drogan sarcastically, "yet you have no answers for our predicament, no direction for our exploration save to march on blindly ahead---what is it we are even meant to find? Did the Vault neglect to mention this to either you or your mentor!?"
Brother Ghaeman, apparently well-used to such outbursts from his second, places a steadying hand on Drogan's shoulder but does not refute the words the Hammer of Dorn speaks, only trying to temper his tone and remind him in his stoic fashion that he dangerously closes in upon outright disrespect.
Not liking Brother Ghaeman's tone. It reminds me of a certain Epistolary. This moment is suppose to bring our squads together. Not words of discord.
My tone even and soft spoken as always. My face shadowed behind my hood.
"All that matters is that we do your duty. Take solace in that. It may not be our place to understand what is before us. Or for how long we are away in this duty. Just for us to record our experiences for another to decipher."
Decius ignoring the words of the brother as simply misguided anger and answering "Where there is doubt, I shall sow faith. Where there is rage, I shall show its course. My word in the soul shall be as my bolter in the field." as he then walks forward "Let us move for we are wasting time here, and let us face what the vault has for us"
"Brother Drogan, it is well known the the Vault acts as it does without pattern, but with purpose and weight, I am glad of Brother Hyzeron's council. It is a honour to have been given his advice. He told me of the Vault was about to be opened and that it foretells something important to the Deathwatch. It is a honour to be chosen to be here. As it has been told to me, the vault will reveal what it will, when it will. We must be prepared for when it happens, and it will happen, we be there for it."
"Hrmmpphh! The Hammers of Dorn are not made to suss out riddles and find answers where an Adept Mathematica would cringe and cower, and suck at his thumb... But how can we find what it is we are seeking when we know not what it is? How does one navigate a maze whose dimensions never remain the same, whose very walls defy the laws of reality?
As Brother Drogan prattles with such bluster, I recall that Dorn himself was responsible for carrying out instructions for the galaxy's most wondrous construct--The Golden Throne.
Instead of wasting time cogitating the cause of Drogan's outburst (frustration? jealousy? ignorance?) I take another auspex reading. Having been... incapacitated, I wonder if the physical environment has changed.
Apparently my reboot is still affecting inputs.
Erioch System
Watch Fortress Erioch, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
"All that matters is that we do your duty. Take solace in that. It may not be our place to understand what is before us. Or for how long we are away in this duty. Just for us to record our experiences for another to decipher."
"Brother Drogan, it is well known the the Vault acts as it does without pattern, but with purpose and weight, I am glad of Brother Hyzeron's council. It is a honour to have been given his advice. He told me of the Vault was about to be opened and that it foretells something important to the Deathwatch. It is a honour to be chosen to be here. As it has been told to me, the vault will reveal what it will, when it will. We must be prepared for when it happens, and it will happen, we be there for it."
Brother Ghaeman, curtly nods his agreement with both Brothers Quintus and Vex, and gives the still-seething Drogan a cold glance that brooks no misunderstanding.
"Do not forget yourself, Brother Drogan. We have been tasked by the Watch Commander himself with discovering the reason for the Vault's opening. I am in agreement with both our brethren from Kill-team Umbra; the answer will come, and we will maintain proper discipline until such a time as it does, whether it takes hours or years, is this understood?"
Drogan, still glowering, nods in assent before replying.
"Aye, I understand Brother-Sergeant."
Unable to resist a parting shot, as if reading Brother Emeric's thoughts, he mutters:
"No construct of Dorn would be built such as this place, the creations of the Primarch are of a purpose; tools with clear intent and use, and with none of this buggering technomancy. I hope for all our sakes the answer we find is the one we seek. We have already seen that the Vault holds a fell influence on some."
Erioch System
????? ???????? Erioch, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
While Hrothgar's brow crinkles in confusion at the strange new scents, Brother Emeric utters a benediction of reactivation and consults his auspex, only to find that its readings continue to return aberrant results. The chrono fluctuates between several points in the near future and several thousand years ago, while the electromagnetic, radiological, and cartographic displays flicker and fade, never giving results that correlate with prior scans or observable phenomena.
Sighing in frustration, still deeply shaken from his brush with the true nature of the Vault, Brother Emeric stares miserably back down the corridor from whence they came and feels his twin hearts stutter in his chest.
At a distance of what appears to be thirty or so meters from where he stands, is the upright wooden grandpater's clock from his vision. It is almost as if it looks back at him, the gleaming glass of its face reflecting the blurred forms of the two Kill-teams, like a cyclopean eye passing some inscrutable judgment. The pendulum swings back and forth, marking the passage of time, and the techmarine watches as the minute hand and second hand finally meet at midnight like some inevitable celestial conjunction.
The other brothers start, Drogan's bolter coming up again reflexively in surprise as a deep, hollow, tolling begins to mark the hour. They spin back around the way they had come to discern the source, but see nothing. In that precise instant, the clock is gone for Brother Emeric as well, even as part of him begins to wonder if it was ever there at all.
At a distance of what appears to be thirty or so meters from where he stands, is the upright wooden grandpater's clock from his vision. It is almost as if it looks back at him... the clock is gone for Brother Emeric as well, even as part of him begins to wonder if it was ever there at all.
The Vault plays mischief with my Mechanicus hardware. Nor can I trust my biological eyes, it seems. But the tolling of the bell--The others heard it. Why else the startled reaction?
The bell. Is time of the essence? Is this a sign to move quickly? Dare I try to make something of this vision? Some Brothers already question my sanity...
"Squad Umbra, Mordant, maintain defensive posture. I wish to check the area to our rear. The Vault may be... communicating. Brothers Ius, Hrothgar, with me."
Cogitating the exact spot as best I can, I lead the Tech and Assault Marine to the where I saw the clock.
"Auspex reading," to my Mechanicus-trained counterpart. To the Space Wolf, "What do your senses tell you?"
Turning to Emeric.
"Follow your instincts Brother. We all heard the chime."
Dark Angels know better than most that certain secrets are privy to just a few.
Brother Decius nods in acknowledgement of Brother Emeric words and keeps close guard to him The light of the Emperor guide you Emeric... putting all his hopes that Brother Emeric can give them something to go on.
"Brother Emeric, I am confused. I detect some things that should not be here."
"Brother Emeric, I am confused. I detect some things that should not be here."
To Brother Hrothgar, "Clarification requested: enumerate anomalous or suspect 'things' detected with sensory organs."
"Second request: do you now detect anything different since hearing the tolling bell?"
Erioch System
????? ???????? Erioch, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
As the clock tolls, Brother Emeric backtracks down the corridor, retracing their steps, all the while noting the blinking auspex readings flickering inside the periphery of his helmet display.
The results seem impossible, but something within him has ineluctably changed since his brief communion with the undeniable sentience of the Omega Vault. He no longer instinctively rails against or dogmatically denies what he perceives, either through his faith in the Emperor or the Mechanicus creed. Instead he seems to have gained a practical acceptance of everything, his mind profoundly open in a manner that is devoid of guilt or self-recrimination.
It is the most fundamentally jarring existential crisis of faith that he has ever experienced.
He cannot help but ponder if this is how it feels to become a heretic.
The readings are precise; now accurate to a degree of calibration that cannot be denied. The very corridor they have just traversed over the last hour, once rail-straight, is now curving exponentially inward going back the way they came from. It has transformed into an inwardly receding hyperbolic spiral---no a logarithmically Golden Spiral---its precise dimensions already calculable and visible with each step he takes.
'KUNG---KUNG---KUNG---KUNG---KUNG'...
The perfectly still clock continues to toll, clearly visible at the very edge of the Black Templar's vision, but somehow receding just around the ever-growing curve in the corridor, always remaining 3.
1415926535897932384626433 meters ahead of him according to the auspex. Brother Emeric glances just behind him to either side. Brother Hrothgar sniffs deep draughts of the air as he follows, loping along with a clear expression of bafflement at the unexpected scents, while Brother Ius directs an auger/auspex utility mechadendrite before him like a curious serpent, the Iron Hand's pace slowing, hesitating as he attempts to formulate an explicative hypothesis where there can be none.
"Auspex reading," to my Mechanicus-trained counterpart.
<<<[...Verification/needed...Fibonacci/curvature/present/in/previously/cartographically/defined/corridor/bearing/dexter/by/exponentially/incrementing/quantity...posit/auspex/auger/sensory/malfunction]>>>
The remaining Battle-Brothers of Kill-teams Mordant and Umbra follow just behind Emeric, Brother Hrothgar, and Brother Ius cautiously, and with a measure of trepidation. Although they still cannot perceive the vision of the grandpater clock, only hearing its mournful tolling, there is no question that the way back is no longer what is once was. Brother Ghaeman intones a breathless benediction, Drogan a disbelieving curse.
<<<[...Verification/needed...Fibonacci/curvature/present/in/previously/cartographically/defined/corridor/bearing/dexter
/by/exponentially/incrementing/quantity...posit/auspex/auger/sensory/malfunction]>>>
The Techmarine asks if the laws of Omnissiah are broken. If we travel inside an impossibility. Ius knows this and seeks refuge, hoping he received faulty data.
"Curvature confirmed. Auspex fully functional."
Despite everything I have been taught, despite every Mechanicus creed and dogma hard-wired into my cogitators, despite all that I cherish and love, despite my total faith in the Omnissiah--There is undeniably a beauty and... logic about this place.
I turn and look back at my Brothers. I feel the Librarians gaze upon me. Does he know what I experience? That I walk along vistas unfathomable yet knowable at the same time?
"Umbra! Mordant! Follow for the Vault reveals a path."
Silently I hope and pray it does not lead to my damnation.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
'KUNG---KUNG---KUNG---KUNG---KUNG'...
Brother Emeric begins to consciously note the synchronicity of his mag-boots striking the polished adamantine flooring of the Omega Vault, resounding in perfect time with the tolling of the clock. With each step he takes, his brethren follow closely behind.
"Curvature confirmed. Auspex fully functional."
Brother Ius replies to his fellow techmarine in his stentorian vox, a note of relief and very human dubiousness in his voice patterns.
<<<[...Verification/confirmed...curvature/present...curvature/present...auspex/auger/sensory/malfunction/confirmed...[[override]]...defaulting/to/organic/sensory/data/provided]>>>
The image of the clock continues to recede as the curvature steadily increases, but despite the tightening of the spiral, it always seems to be just out of arm's reach to the Black Templar---the interval of distance in meters between he and the ancient, beckoning chrono always a verifiable factor of measurable mathematical constant (as if it is passively communicating with him): 3.1415926536 [pi, π], 1.45136 92349 [the Ramanujan-Soldner constant, µ], until terminating at a distance of less than half a meter---0.5671432904 [the Omega Constant, Ω]---at which time the clock abruptly vanishes to Emeric as the curvature in the corridor begins to collapse in on itself, forcing the marines into single file.
As the walls of the Omega Vault's central corridor narrow still further, the omnipresent doors to either side of the twelve-marine column terminate as well, and the brothers find their pauldron's scraping against the sides of the walls, where they were once able to stand nearly five abreast.
Brother Emeric lowers his servo-arm, bringing it as close to his back as possible as he rounds the ever narrowing curvature ahead and still it scrapes audibly from his passage. The others, thinking the collapsing nature of the corridor can only terminate in a dead end, as they are most assuredly well within the coils of the tightening spiral that has been created, for some reason defer to the techmarine, voicing no contradiction even as they must turn sideways to follow him.
Just when Brother Emeric thinks he can proceed no further, the exponentially shrinking spiral ahead suddenly opens into a long, wide, rectangular atrium, flanked on either side by a colonnade of tall adamantine arches carved by exceptional means to resemble blocky Gothic stone. Glancing to the left and right it is clear that each of the eight alcoves to either side holds a columnar pedestal of dark stone, atop which sits a single human skull of unknown provenance.
The atrium's dimensions defy what has any right to exist at the terminating point of the decrementing spiral, fully seventy meters long and half that wide, a physical and geometric impossibility.
At the very end of the chamber stand two, identically sized doors of shining adamant, more similar to the entry door of the Omega Vault than the ubiquitous doors you found within the central corridor, but far smaller in scale. Each door is engraved with a pair of meter high, stylistic runes in Gothic script.
The one to the sinister side bears the letters for Upsilon:
The one to the dexter side bears the letters for Mu:
The clock finally ceases tolling.
So The Vault brings us here. Two doors: Upsilon to the left for Umbra and Mu on the right for Mordant. My Brothers gain access to the atrium and the bell stops... after so much ringing the silence seems disquieting.
...each of the eight alcoves to either side holds a columnar pedestal of dark stone, atop which sits a single human skull of unknown provenance.
I examine the alcoves leading to the left-side door in turn. Are there signs of violence on these skulls? Do they large enough to have been Astartes? Do any have service studs embedded in their foreheads?
"Scanning..."
"No apparent radiation or electro-magnetic abnormalities."
Why array skulls in such fashion? Are they for veneration? A warning?
"Apothecary, what do you make of these? Could they be our Brethren?"
Eli examines the skulls, turning them over in his armored hands and running his fingers along the curves of the cranial vault.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
As the twelve marines come to a halt near the center of the vast chamber, Brother Emeric scans the immediate area with his auspex, but is not surprised to find that the device's machine spirits are again maddened by the baffling nature of the Vault. Brother Ius confirms that his own readings are unreliable as well, a terse shake of his head confirming this when the Black Templar glances his way.
Adjusting to a spread formation from a closed phalanx, the Battle-Brothers fan out to reconnoiter the atrium.
Brother Syne moves to his left to examine the nearest of the evenly-spaced alcoves on his side of the expansive room.
He stops just shy of the high-arched hollow, his eyes following the curve of the fluted spiral of dark stone that comprises the pedestal holding the ossified artifact that stares back at him with hollow eyes. His knowledge of anatomy, combined with the potency of the auto-senses in his armor are enough to reveal to him even at several meters distance that the skulls are human. As he draws nearer still, he can see clearly that they are of greater than mortal proportions. They are almost certainly the bones of Astartes.
With utmost care he lifts the ancient skull from its circular plinth gently passing his hands over the jaw and occipital bone, finding a pair of adamantine studs protruding from just above the brow-line that verify his assumption.
Holding the skull in hand with due reverence, his eyes are drawn to what was hidden beneath it. Situated in the middle of the plinth is a dust-lined recess of dark metal, roughly ovular in shape, a device of some kind, judging by the intricate web of circuitry limning the hollow.
After fanning out with the rest I finally overcome the awe that I have been felling since I have entered these Halls. I take a closer look at our surroundings seeing if there is anything that I might see that would help us once we are through those doors.
"They most certainly are Brother Emeric."
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
The Storm Warden strides through the atrium, Brother Decius following close behind his older mentor, both searching for anything else that may have been overlooked during the first sweep by the Kill-teams.
Finding nothing, they stop before the twin doors, still baffled by how this grand chamber can exist given the winding, ever-constricting path that brought them here.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
As Brother-Apothecary Syne examines the skull, the White Scar Librarian from Kill-team Mordant, Kuzhuk, comments from over his right shoulder, "These are all Astartes, faithfuls of the Deathwatch who have been interred in a place of honor, following our traditions---I take this discovery, coupled with our Kill-team's designators on the two great doors, as a sign that the Vault for all of its confounding riddles is speaking to us still. It has foreseen our coming. These fallen marines serve as both a memento mori and somehow as guides to where we must go next."
He pauses, scanning the chamber, eyes alighting on each niche in turn.
"It is our task to hear their voices through the pale, and decipher the means to continue on our journey."
Holding the skull in hand with due reverence, his eyes are drawn to what was hidden beneath it. Situated in the middle of the plinth is a dust-lined recess of dark metal, roughly ovular in shape, a device of some kind, judging by the intricate web of circuitry limning the hollow...
White Scar Librarian from Kill-team Mordant, Kuzhuk... pauses, scanning the chamber, eyes alighting on each niche in turn.
My gaze follows that of the White Scar, finally settling on the depression on the plinth. By the Omnissiah, what sort of device is this?
"It is our task to hear their voices through the pale, and decipher the means to continue on our journey."
Stepping forward I examine the circuitry hidden within the pedestal and try to discern its possible functions.
My gaze follows that of the White Scar, finally settling on the depression on the plinth. By the Omnissiah, what sort of device is this?
Stepping forward I examine the circuitry hidden within the pedestal and try to discern its possible functions.
The Black Templar approaches the plinth where Brother Syne still stands examining the Astartes skull, Brother-Librarian Kuzhuk following just behind him. Analyzing the declivity in the center, it is soon clear to Brother Emeric that the recessed device is a work of masterful artifice, combining elements of both a biometric reader and three-dimensional holo-lith projector. Inset into the interior of the hollow are two studs, one interfacing with the circuitry to activate the gene-reader, the other to initiate a projection stored in the on-board cogitator's data-vault.
I continue my duties as a scribe. Writing in exacting detail everything that has come to pass, and actions taken. I still actively ping the Omega Vault telepathically from time to time to see if I get anything other than nothingness.
Other than that I try to remember if I came aross any other notes that may be of benefit about the Omega Vault for my Brothers.
I think you are right Brother Huzhuk. From what I heard, we do have to listen to The Vault to find out what it wants from us, and what it is to reveal to us.
"That being the case, Brother Quintus, shall I activate the holo-lith or do you prefer to attempt the door?"
"I think we should listen Holo-lith first, and depending what it says, open the door, if the Vault will allow us. What do you think Brother Ghaeman?"
Brother Decius speaks no word hoping that Brother Emeric will not suffer a weird meltdown trying something in the vault. He would rather go with the door, but he will let the Emperor guide him as he guides the bullets from his bolter.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
Brother Ghaeman confers silently with Brother Ius by way of a meaningful glance (at least on the part of the Dark Son), and the Iron Hand inclines his head almost imperceptibly in agreement.
The leader of Kill-team Mordant gives a curt nod to Brothers Quintus and Emeric, and the latter delicately depresses the stud.
The antiquated holo-lith device flickers into life with a droning hiss of static, projecting a life-size representation of a helmet-less Astartes clad in pitch-black, Crusade-era Mark IV 'Maximus' armor. The space marine depicted wears the heraldry of the Deathwatch upon one shoulder, and the sigil of the Dark Angels on the other pauldron. The three-dimensional holo-lith's detail is full-color, uncannily lifelike, and far superior to any projections that the two tech-marines, or any of the other marines for that matter, have witnessed in the course of their service. The verisimilitude is such that two adamantine service studs embedded in the craggy, stoic, brow of the Dark Angel are clearly visible as he stares blankly off into the middle distance over the gathered heads of the two Kill-teams.
Common Lore: Adeptus Astrates/Dark Angels (1d100=33)
I look at the hologram with interest. I wonder if this is an image of the late Captain Ramiel, and what message he holds for us. To many parallels to ignore to think this is a coincidence considering my investigations. Regardless I remain vigilant for any clues or words that the image may speak. I can confirm who the Battle Brother is later through the Chapter or Death Watch records. Now is a time to listen and observe.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
Brother Vex watches the silent, flickering apparition of his long-fallen brother intently, soon dismissing that this could be Brother Ramiel. It is abundantly clear from the heraldic markings and age of this Battle-Brother's antiquated armor that his death likely preceded the Achilus Crusade by several hundred years. While it is unclear just who this Astartes is, Brother Vex promises himself he will find out at the earliest opportunity.
While this occurs, and the marines wait for the statue-still holo-lith of the unknown Dark Angel to speak, gesture or otherwise provide some guidance, Brother Vex's counterpart in Kill-team Mordant, Brother Kuzhuk, moves to the right-hand side of the chamber and activates the stud beneath one of the other skulls. The staccato hiss of the image buzzing into life startles the marines from their reverie, and they turn as one to see the White Scar standing before the projection of a brooding, brutish looking warrior of his own chapter, equally still and silent, glowering at the room, yet seeing none of its living occupants.
The severe-looking, but pleasant-mannered Kuzhuk lets out a low, "Hmmmmm", as he considers the import of this discovery, glancing at the remaining pedestals on either side of the atrium, as he turns the large skull over in his hands.
I activate the remaining seven projectors on the sinister side of the ante-chamber.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
Brother Emeric activates the remaining holo-lith projectors on the left-hand side of the chamber, moving from one to the next as his brethren raptly look on. As each flickering apparition resolves into view, each of the marine's images girded in the armor of the Deathwatch, Brother Vex reverently records the originating chapter affiliation of each upon his data-slate:
{OMEGA VAULT-REFERENCE VI-A//BROTHER-LIBRARIAN LYRIEL VEX}
'ATRIUM OF THE FALLEN'-ASTARTES CHAPTER DESIGNATIONS-SINISTER SIDE
{CHRONO-STAMP: Unavailable}
Note: Astartes chapters listed below are denoted in observed sequence from the Vault door designated Ϋ, ϋ to the atrium's entry at the termination of the architectural feature designated 'Impossible-Spiral'.
- (1) Ultramarine, rank sergeant, identity unknown, iron halo and platinum cingulum, prominent adornments.
- (2) Storm Warden, rank indeterminate, identity unknown, wears Terminator Armor with Crux Terminatus and bears oversized Sacris power claymore, point down, hands clenched atop same.
- (3) Black Templar, Techmarine, rank indeterminate, unknown identity, helmeted, wears Mark V Heresy pattern armor coupled with servo-arm, stylized silver rose and cog sigil prominent on chest-plate.
- (4) Dark Angel, Librarian of unknown rank, identity unknown, hood/cowl obscures features, holds crystalline globe in cupped hands.
- (5) Dark Angel, rank indeterminate, identity unknown, Apothecary trappings (?), first holo-lith activated of eight on sinister side of room, two service studs prominent.
- (6) Space Wolf, rank indeterminate, possible Wolf Priest (suggestion put forth by Brother Hrothgar) identity unknown, bears chainsword and unidentifiable designation plasma pistol, one eye missing, bearded, hair unkempt beneath wolf-helm.
- (7) Iron Snake, rank indeterminate, phratry/squad designation illegible on recording image, identity unknown, wears Mark VI Corvus armor and bears sea-lance in left hand, stoppered water flask of some type in right hand.
- (8) Space Wolf, rank indeterminate, identity unknown, bearded, younger man, wears scout armor, wolf-pelt mantle covers shoulders, cradles power axe in two hands.
As the marines of Kill-team Umbra look upon these fallen brothers, Brother-Librarian Kuzhuk begins to repeat the process on the dexter side of the atrium.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
After the White Scar Librarian activates the holo-liths on the right side of the atrium, eerily similar results are produced.
From the great doors back, the chapters of the Deathwatch marines that appear are as follows:
Dark Sons, Hammers of Dorn, White Scars, Iron Hands, Ultramarines, Raven Guard, Flesh Tearers, and Imperial Fists.
None of these marines are identifiable by Brother Kuzhuk or his brethren, nor are their individual provenances known.
The import of the first seven and first five of the projections on the respective sides of the chamber is not lost on the assembled Battle-Brothers of Kill-teams Umbra and Mordant. It is final one on the sinister side, and the final three on the dexter that confound.
The brothers of both teams congregate together in the middle of the vast atrium to debate what course of action is best to follow next.
Could it be that The Vault sees coming events and presents a picture of our future selves? How in the name of the Throne can this be?
I dare not voice my thoughts and cause more concern among my Brothers. They already suspect my behavior here in the Vault.
There is a gene-reader on each plinth, however. What if...
So am I not to survive this? as he begins to wonder why his chapter is not amongst those shown.
Well we shall see Vault, for even you must submit to the Emperor's will.
I look upon the Brothers displayed before me. Quickly entering descriptions that would later identify them all to me. Including wargear as it would narrow my search in there timeline once identified. The Globe will definitely be in Chapter Records. If this is to show that history is on the verge of repeating itself. Then I must learn what transpired, and learn from this history. Or we will be doomed to repeat it. Then again the irony may be that it may be our duty to repeat it.
As if reading Emeric's mind, I walk up to the unknown Storm Wardens skull. Unlocking the putted gauntlet of my power armor I raise my bare hand to the afore mentioned gene-reader, and press my thumb against its surface.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
At their core, Astartes are preternatural beings of action, averse to hesitancy in any and all things. Even as Brother Emeric wonders what will come of activating the biometric reader, Brother Caledonii does it, depressing his bare thumb into the cavity as he holds the hoary skull of his predecessor.
There is the barest twinge of pain; a pinprick to the Storm Warden, and his blood drains into the depression's internal reservoir.
Removing his hand, he palms the skull in both hands contemplatively, a thin streak of of reddish-black blood dribbling down the long-fallen marine's temple.
From somewhere without comes the single, percussive KUNG! of the ancient clock tolling. The image of the weathered Storm Warden in the terminator armor flickers, and then is abruptly gone, replaced by a holo-lith likeness of Brother Caledonii, one that eerily mirrors his present movements, as if some unseen picter records him now in real-time.
He looks up from where his own blood has spattered on the adamantine floor of the Omega Vault to find the marines from both Kill-teams all looking at him with varying expressions as the resounding echo of the clock fades throughout the atrium.
"Well it looks like I am not the first to do that. Brothers Sign the guest book so we may enter."
I follow the Storm Warden's example and approach the plinth projecting the image of the Black Templar (me?!?) Techmarine and activate the gene-reader.
I step up to my double and follow what Brothers Caledonii and Emeric did.
Erioch System
????? ???????? ??????, The Omega Vault
???.???.???
Hour ? System Sidereal Time
Following a brief consultation between the paired Librarians and Techmarines of both Kill-teams, as if compelled into necessary action by Brother Caledonii's leap of faith, the rest of the Battle-Brothers follow the Storm Warden's lead. The somber toll of the great, unseen clock sounds in succession each time their blood is drunk by the gene-readers.
Each of the Astartes stares into the hololithic projection above their respective plinth, wondering at what they see.
Is it predecessor, doppleganger, or successor? None can rightly say given the confounding nature of time in the Omega Vault.
As he watches the hololith flickering to display his own image, Brother Hrothgar considers again the second, absent, Space Wolf, who could this eighth station represent?
Watching the Space Wolf's wrinkled brow, Brother Vex turns to the dexter side of the atrium, positing that the present members of Kill-team Mordant must be wondering too about the trio of absent chapters on their own side of the atrium, perhaps even moreso given that it represents over half again as many of their current quintet.
After each of the space marines has offered his blood to the gene-readers, and the flickering images (save those of the marines not present) have changed to become representative of their activators, the Astartes listen as the last echo of the final, hollow, tolling of the clock recedes.
At first, nothing happens, and Brother Emeric and his counterpart, Brother Ius, share a long, silent look that communicates the doubt they both share---that perhaps every marine depicted need be represented for the doors to part. Just as the contrarian Brother Drogan begins to verbalize this doubt, there is a terrific vibration that shakes the adamantine plating of the floor, followed by a relentless grinding of unseen cogs and gear-work. There are then nearly simultaneous, staggered squeals of parting metal, and both of the great vault doors begin to rise, revealing long, illuminated corridors beyond that recede into the distance.
Standing on opposite sides of the room, the two Kill-teams stare deeper into the perplexing vastness of the Omega Vault.
It is Brother Ghaeman that finally breaks the pronounced silence.
"It would appear, then, that this is the point in our journey where we must part ways, my Brothers."
Looking at Brother Ghaeman.
"I will record what transpires to our squad so when we reunited we can combine our notes for a full report."
"I agree. Brothers of Kill-team Mordant, We will see you when we leave the vault. Keep alert and be sharp as we will be and both teams will succeed."
After approaching the sinister-side door, auspex reading.
"The Emperor Protects" as Decius gives then a nod and carries on with his duty to his squad.