80: Chapter 80 Several Unidentified Signals Discovered on the Border of the Extreme Star Sector

While the civilian transport fleet from the Lead-Gray Abyss was still on its course back to Metallis, the Void Throat Defense Command sent an emergency report to the War Council. Canoptek-7's quantum-state monitoring array had captured several signals entirely absent from the Joint Fleet's known databases during a routine full-spectrum calibration following the Rift Cleansing. The signals originated from an immense distance, positioned right against the void between the Ultima Segmentum and the edge of the Milky Way. Their waveform characteristics did not match any known protocols of the Imperium, Chaos, Necrons, Aeldari, or Tyranids, nor did they appear in the Necron Dynasty's Old One Archives or the Iyanden Web of Prophecy. The modulation of these signals exhibited extreme mathematical complexity, yet they carried no offensive protocol layers; they simply broadcasted outward continuously and regularly, like some long-forgotten automated call sign.

Marcus Aurelian stood before the holographic projection in the briefing room of the Wrath of the Emperor, taking a sip of cold coffee, his eyes never leaving the unnamed coordinates circled in cold green cursors by Canoptek. "Can the transmission source be pinpointed?"

The Brood Queen's quantum-state translator lit up on one side of the main screen. The Void Throat's passive scanning could only locate the general sector; precise coordinates would require the Joint Fleet to dispatch a reconnaissance fleet for close-range confirmation. The signal energy was extremely weak, suggesting the broadcast source was not on a main space lane but perhaps buried on an unmarked rogue planet or a deep-space derelict facility. The existence of these signals was clearly not intended for discovery, but rather to evade external tracking. Canoptek attached a technical note at the end of the report—the broadcast source was actively evading standard Imperial scanning frequencies, Chaos psychic detection, and the passive precognition layers of the Aeldari Web of Prophecy; only the Old One passive scanning arrays of the Void Throat could capture it.

Silence fell over the briefing room for a moment. Bern was the first to speak, his Holy Hammer resting on his knees and his Psychic Talisman pressed quietly against his breastplate. "The Old One evaluation window is still open. We've just finished the sweep, and the next round of testing could come at any time. An unknown signal appearing at this juncture—if it's the next question in the Old One evaluation, it shouldn't be hidden this deep. If it's a trap, Tzeentch just lost the Lead-Gray Abyss; it's unlikely he'd throw out a new card so quickly."

Sebastian flipped his helmet over and set it on the conference table, the Joint Fleet universal armor plates on his power armor chest glowing with a cold green light. "It's not Chaos, not Tyranids, and not something belonging to any of us. That leaves only one possibility—a civilization we haven't encountered yet. Or worse, an automated broadcast left by a civilization we thought was extinct. Regardless, if it can evade the scans of so many factions, its technological level isn't low. If the Joint Fleet doesn't figure it out now, and this thing suddenly stops being silent when the next campaign starts—no one knows what kind of explosion that would trigger."

Heinrich's bionic eye flashed red on the screen. He exchanged a look with Oldenburg and then briefly deployed a reconnaissance plan: the Shield of the Emperor, accompanied by two Strike Cruisers, would enter that sector to establish a reconnaissance outpost on the periphery of the unknown signal source. The Joint Fleet's Psionic Void Network would provide communication and intelligence support, while the Void Throat would provide necessary passive navigation targeting as needed. The old naval officer finally said in a tone that was almost like talking to himself, "The last time I was ordered to search for a lost Imperial outpost was several years ago. We didn't find it then; I hope we find something this time." Oldenburg did not object, only adding that the reconnaissance fleet must maintain constant quantum-state communication with Joint Fleet Command, with the Void Throat responsible for all relay links.

Just as Marcus was about to finalize the reconnaissance formation, the Iyanden Farseer's wraithbone staff lightly traced a path over the holographic projection. He stepped forward, projecting the Web of Prophecy before everyone. Within the ghostly blue light patterns, several Aeldari symbols surfaced over the locations of the unnamed sectors—not a prophecy, but a type of signal echo marker. The Farseer spoke calmly, stating that the Web of Prophecy had captured signal echoes that did not belong to any known civilization, resembling instead some sort of encapsulated ancient remnant. He had already had the Craftworld Council confirm that in that general direction, the Necron Dynasty's Old One Archives held several vague ancient sighting records; approximately tens of millions of years ago, unknown celestial objects had been observed briefly active in extremely remote regions.

The Brood Queen then translated and projected the Overmind's decision onto the main screen: "Establish a temporary observation post on the periphery of the unknown sector; do not cross the warning boundary. If reconnaissance confirms the signal source has no direct hostility, the Joint Fleet will immediately dispatch a technical team to board and investigate. A reminder—the Void Throat's evaluation window remains active. The Old One evaluation protocols have never prohibited the Joint Fleet from autonomously responding to external unknown signals during mission intervals. You have just cleared the Chaos remnants; going now to identify the unknown in the void is not considered outside the scope of the test."