I was sitting on the bridge, while the new crew members wandered around me.
Mr. Augustus Furg was responsible for the navigation and computer systems. His right arm had been torn off and then eaten by members of his own family during a famine on their home planet. That's why it had been replaced with a mechanical prosthesis. He usually wore a squinting, grim expression, which earned him the nickname "Grump."
Mr. Cornelius, a veteran of the war on Calth, had served in the Imperial Army when the traitors attacked. His unit was completely wiped out; he was one of the few who survived, discovered barely alive under a pile of corpses. The heretics were using the bodies for some sort of ritual. Fortunately for him, they didn't reach him before reinforcements arrived. After enduring such horrors, he volunteered to join a pirate crew in search of peace. He became responsible for the weapon and targeting systems. Since he was even more silent than the Captain himself, he earned the nickname "Mute."
Then there was the kind Ms. Alexandra—petite in build, with black hair and green eyes. She was quite short, roughly 1.6 meters tall. Not exactly a beauty, but certainly not ugly. What many saw in her was her incredible talent for fast calculations. And so, we found ourselves a quartermaster.
At first, when they saw Nibe, they wanted to kill her—after all, she was a filthy xenos. But a few corpses were enough to make them understand that I was the one in command here. Not the Primarch. Not the Emperor. Me. I made it very clear that Nibe was untouchable. They didn't like it—but they had no choice.
"Captain, route is set," said August, still not entirely familiar with how the ship's systems functioned."Targeting systems nominal. Ammunition fully stocked," added Cornelius.I nodded slightly. "All ahead."
Arcadia's engines, glowing red-hot, belched out columns of golden-orange flame, trembling with accumulated power. The ship's massive structure seemed to hold its breath like a predator before the leap. The restraining cables holding the ship in place were taut from the engines' force—waiting for just one thing: the release of the final brake.
When Harlock's command echoed through the vox, the clamps gave way with a sharp crack. A thunderous roar followed, as if the docking bay itself had collapsed. Clouds of dust exploded from the deck, flung in every direction by a shockwave. In the haze and grinding of metal, Arcadia tore free from the steel chains of the station, shaking the entire hangar. The blast wave slammed into everyone present. The gust was so powerful that even the mighty Astartes were thrown against the walls. Some managed to hold their ground by clinging to railings—but there was one thing they all had in common: none of them had expected such force.
Leaving behind a thick trail of black mist, Arcadia shot out of the hangar. The transition through the surrounding forces shook the vessel.
"Thrust within normal range. Slight deviation relative to the star. Solar winds minimal. No signs of external interference," reported Grump, his eyes jumping between indicators. "Coordinates confirmed. Ready for jump," he added quickly, giving a thumbs-up.
"Execute."
A pulse slammed into the ship, and it vanished from Calth's observable orbit. Every system unanimously reported the same thing: the ship could not be located. Whether in realspace or the Warp—there was only one result: 0.
Arcadia raced forward at unfathomable speed, slamming into gravitational fields that sought to drag and slow it down. Inside the ship, on the bridge, people could barely comprehend the projections of flickering lights outside the viewport—stars, planets, maybe even black holes.
Navigation stabilized. Arrival time... Grump froze as he saw the numbers on the screen."What's the ETA?" I asked, directing my sharp gaze at him."Two days," he said, unable to believe his own eyes or ears."Notify me one hour before arrival. Let the crew get used to a functioning ship and stick to the schedule. I'll be in my cabin. Don't disturb me unless something happens." I ordered, standing up and heading toward my quarters.
Upon entering, I found Nibe lying on the couch. After a brief glance at her, I walked over to the desk where I usually sat.My cabin was spacious—but mostly empty. Aside from the desk and the couch Nibe was lying on, there were a few decorations, some paintings, and a shelf filled with various types of alcohol. There was also a globe showing the known galaxy. I was just about to sit down when Nibe spoke.
"Before you sit, bring us something to drink," she said, playing with the globe beside the couch."White? Red?" I asked, approaching the shelf."White. Sweet."
We didn't leave the cabin for two days, talking about things I wanted to know—and things I didn't. About the effects of being connected to the Dark Matter, and its consequences. She told me what was happening to my body. How, slowly, my insides would turn into a void—until only my external shell remained. That would be the moment I'd become truly immortal.Or at least, as long as the Dark Matter engines remained functional—or didn't burn out from massive overuse. Long battles were dangerous. A few hours of fighting shouldn't pose a threat. But if the conflict dragged on, eventually wounded crewmembers would begin to die for real—until the entire chain of preservation reached me. I was at the very end of it.Damage to the ship counted toward that limit too. I already knew most of this. But my body had also been enhanced. I was stronger. Faster. Smarter. I had greater emotional control. I could hear better, feel more, see further. All my cognitive functions had evolved beyond anything considered normal in this universe.Theoretically, I could survive a fall from orbit onto a planet—but I wasn't Vulkan to try something like that.
"What about my eye?" I asked, removing my eyepatch and revealing the black mist shaped like an eye."It's your mark—proof of your link to the Dark Matter. Only you bear that sign. Once you learn to control it, you'll be able to see the world in terms of energy... or emotions, depending on who's talking about it."
I covered the eye again with the patch and kept listening.Time passed—faster than we thought. As beings linked to the Dark Matter, hunger, sleep, and fatigue no longer concerned us—so long as we were connected to the engines.
"Captain?" a voice called. "We'll be arriving near the planet in one hour."
I looked at Nibe and left the room."Let's go."
Walking through the corridor, the heavy thud of my boots echoed against the metal floor. The sound carried, and people moved aside to make way.I saw crewmen in pirate uniforms retrieved from the storage vaults. Some were cleaning the floors. Others were transporting supplies from one section to another. There was even a squad of pirates maintaining order, ensuring no brawls broke out on deck.
"Mr. Augustus, report," I said upon entering the bridge, instantly drawing everyone's attention."Forty minutes until arrival. We've already received the signal and passcodes from Lord Guilliman.""Mr. Cornelius, are the systems ready?""Yes, everything's nominal," he replied curtly."Once we arrive, I want full intel on every ship in the system," I added, sitting down on the throne-like command chair."Set condition two alert. All hands to battle stations."
The alarm sounded, accompanied by a short signal chime that echoed through the entire ship.Everyone dropped what they were doing, retrieved weapons from the armory, and manned their assigned posts, prepared for anything.It took them a while—only about fifteen thousand were trained soldiers. The rest were volunteers.
"Exiting in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... IMPACT!"