83: Chapter 83: The Ancient Sage's Next Round of Test Questions Has Been Announced

The Testament Station's signal automatically switched to silent standby mode after the coalition completed all log transcriptions. The spherical broadcast station, encased in ancient composite materials, hung quietly in the center of the asteroid belt, its outer sealing layer transferred to the coalition for long-term preservation. Marcus Aurelian returned to the bridge from the briefing room, and just as his right fingertips touched the edge of the command console, an emergency notification from the Void Throat Defense Command lit up. Canoptek-7's quantum-state monitoring array had detected a delayed command within the underlying protocols of the Void Throat sealing logs, which had previously been obscured by multiple encryption layers. The trigger condition for the command was perfectly synchronized with the termination of the Testament Station's broadcast. The original text of the sealing logs was translated word-for-word into Imperial high gothic by the Brood Queen's quantum-state translator, and lines of cold green text spread across the main screen.

“Activator has completed the Sweep Protocol. Creator Testament Station has been successfully deciphered. Sealing Protocol full-cycle verification passed. Next evaluation stage activated: Old Ones Final Evaluation Protocol. The following is the main content of the evaluation—” Marcus read downward. The sentences were concise to the point of being cold, but each paragraph felt like a precise scalpel piercing the coalition's most sensitive nerves.

“Article One: At the end of the War in Heaven, the Old Ones sealed an unfinished Living Psionic Network prototype in an ancient facility codenamed ‘Origin’ at the edge of the galaxy. The coordinates of this facility have been decrypted along with this protocol. The Activator must reach the Origin Facility within a limited time period, complete the final engineering of the Living Psionic Network, and interface it with the Activator's existing Psionic Void Network. Article Two: The interior of the Origin Facility is equipped with defense arrays left behind by the Old Ones. The defense arrays will subject the Activator to a composite test of combat capability, technical deciphering capability, and multi-civilization coordination capability. No pre-set scenarios are provided for the test content. Article Three: If the Activator fails to complete the Origin Facility interface within the limited time period, the Void Throat will initiate its Self-destruct Protocol. The Self-destruct Protocol is irrevocable, non-extendable, and non-appealable. Note: The Old Ones did not have time to complete this network at the end of the War in Heaven. Now, it is your turn.”

No one spoke in the briefing room. Heinrich's holographic image was at the edge of the screen, the red light of his mechanical eye fixed unmoving on those clauses. After a long while, he was the first to speak, his voice raspy but his speech rapid: “Limited time periods, composite tests, self-destruct countdowns—the Old Ones' exams get harsher every time. Failing isn't about losing points; it's about blowing up the entire Void Throat.” Bern slowly spoke, resting his Holy Hammer across his knees: “The Old Ones don't want us dead. They want the completed version of the Living Psionic Network. They sealed the prototype and blueprints in the Origin Facility, and the key is in our hands. If we don't go, the seal self-destructs; if we do go, we must take the entire coalition inside, complete the engineering the Old Ones didn't have time to finish within the time limit, and endure the composite tests of the defense arrays simultaneously. This isn't an exam; it's handing in homework. The Old Ones are the coalition's most unreasonable technical supervisors.”

Sebastian flipped his helmet over and set it on the table, the coalition universal armor plating on his power armor's breastplate glinting with a cold green light. He didn't offer a long speech, only saying one thing—regardless of what defense arrays were in the Origin Facility, the coalition had just finished fighting the Tyranid Main Fleet, repelled the Tzeentch Error-correction code, swept away the Chaos Hulk Fleets, and deciphered the Testament Station. If the Old Ones wanted to collect homework, then let them; the Ultramarines did not have the gene for refusing exams.

The Brood Queen's quantum-state translator lit up on one side of the main screen as the Overmind sent a brief combat assessment. He entered the full text of the Old Ones Final Evaluation Protocol into the Hive Mind and confirmed three key points: the Origin Facility coordinates were in the empty zone between the edge of the Ultima Segmentum and the galactic boundary, and the route required re-surveying by the coalition fleet; the composite tests of the defense arrays were expected to simultaneously involve psionic, Quantum Resonance, and Living Neural Network levels, requiring the coalition to complete three parallel mission lines—deciphering, engineering interfacing, and combat cover—within the limited time period according to the existing committee structure; the time window for the Void Throat's Self-destruct Protocol had no flexibility, and the coalition had to return with a complete Living Psionic Network before the countdown reached zero. The Overmind's conclusion consisted of only four words: Accept the exam.

Marcus forwarded the Overmind's assessment to all members of the War Council, then stood up and opened the War Council's all-channel broadcast, his voice raspy but every word sounding as if it were driven into a steel plate by a rivet gun: “The Coalition War Council formally accepts the Old Ones Final Evaluation Protocol. The Joint Fleet Command is responsible for forming and commanding the Expeditionary Fleet, with Admiral Heinrich serving as the Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Fleet and Deputy Commander Oldenburg responsible for orbital defense and fleet integration. The Psionic Void Network Technical Committee is responsible for the Living Psionic Network interfacing project at the Origin Facility, with the Brood Queen serving as the Technical Commander-in-Chief, and the Iyanden Farseer and Canoptek-7 serving as Deputy Commanders-in-Chief. The Void Throat Defense Command is responsible for monitoring the Self-destruct Protocol countdown and the tactical cracking of the Origin Facility's defense arrays, with the Blackstone Cerebrate serving as the Chief Commander, Bern's Grey Knight squad providing Holy Power cover, and the Eldar Spiritseers providing precognitive monitoring of the defense arrays. Metallis, Griffin IV, and the Blackstone Defense Line will be maintained at the highest alert by the United Fleet's stay-behind fleet during the Expeditionary Fleet's departure, with stay-behind authority for the Coalition War Council delegated to Deputy Commander Oldenburg.”

Heinrich stood at attention and saluted, replying that the Expeditionary Fleet would set sail from the Gravity Reef Anchorage in several standard time cycles, following the surveyed route provided by the Brood Queen to enter the Origin Facility sector. The Brood Queen's translator immediately added: The Overmind has sent the estimated defense parameter package for the Origin Facility to the coalition's shared database, and the Titan-Eater will depart with the Expeditionary Fleet; an additional reminder—there is a tiny footnote in the remarks of the Old Ones Evaluation Protocol, which, after comparison with The Swarm's genetic code comparison table, translates semantically as: ‘Examinees may carry all sealed Coalition assets, including but not limited to the Void Throat, the Blackstone Defense Line, and the current version of the Living Psionic Network.’ Marcus looked at that footnote, his lips twitching slightly. He told the Comms Officer that he wanted to include this note in the main text of the Expeditionary Order, so that Terra would know the Old Ones allowed the coalition to bring all their assets into the examination hall, lest the Council of High Lords later accuse them of smuggling in unauthorized aids. Bern shouldered his Holy Hammer, Sebastian donned his helmet once more, and the coalition emblem on the prow of Heinrich's Shield of the Emperor gleamed under the starlight of the Gravity Reef Anchorage as the countdown for the Expeditionary Fleet's departure began to tick.