The entire fight in the secret stronghold was watched by the Astartes in the Thunderhawk.
What surprised them was not the bloody cruelty. Compared with the real battlefield, this was not even a competition. What surprised them was the people inside.
"His name is Bahram."
Soshyan pulled out a data pad from the side, which displayed the boy's information, including information about his parents and family and his past.
"The descendants of the Tate family. This family was once prominent in the upper class a hundred years ago, but was later relegated to the lower class hive."
Sol pointed to the boy on the screen with his face covered in blood and breathing heavily, and said:
"His agility is abnormal. From a technical point of view, he is not an experienced warrior, but he has the reactions of an experienced warrior."
"Could it be a psyker?"
Thor shook his head.
"It's not like that. I'm more inclined to think that he might be——"
He suddenly lowered his voice and said:
"Do you still remember the legend of the Black Templar?"
"Do you think he is..."
Soshyan couldn't help being startled by Sol's idea.
"But even if he really is, he should appear in the Black Temple, not here, and shouldn't such a champion appear after transformation? He is still just a candidate."
"Who can guess the emperor's will? There was no such precedent before Sigismund."
"this--"
Soshyan's brows suddenly knitted together.
Thor suddenly put his hand on his shoulder and said:
"Don't worry, leave him to me."
"It's uncertain whether he will survive the rehabilitation."
"My gut tells me he can get through it."
At this time, there were only two of them in the cabin, so Sol said the next sentence with confidence.
"Including gray marrow transplantation, I believe he can survive."
Soshyan nodded, he also hoped so.
Not long ago, the pharmacist who joined the association extracted a part of the gray marrow liquid from his spine. According to Brother Said, the success rate of this batch of liquid has been greatly improved. In addition to being able to be transplanted into existing warriors, it can also be directly transplanted into
Added during the transformation stage of new recruits - the effect of the latter is much better than that of the former.
But Soshyan still maintained a cautious attitude and planned to select only two recruits for experimental transplantation.
"The results this time are pretty good."
Thor turned his attention to the screen that was constantly beating with data. After the trial, a total of 284 people survived, and 61 of them successfully advanced.
Compared with the previous 20 recruits each year, this batch is not only three times the number, but the quality is definitely much better than before - after all, the selection at that time was relatively peaceful.
Moreover, the 223 people who were eliminated are not completely useless. They will be the preparation for the future command level of the Chapter Fleet, the outstanding officer reserve force of the Mortal Auxiliary Army, and can also expand the scale of the Mechanicus within the Chapter.
In short, this addition is a big relief for the Astral Knights who are half-stepping on the edge of destruction.
Now let’s see what the outcome of the transformation will be.
"Okay, now let's go meet our young man."
When the transport plane carried the winners of the trial back to the landing site, Soshyan was already waiting here with his team.
The losers have already taken other transport planes and been sent to the new assembly point, where they will usher in a new future - a future more suitable for mankind.
As the door of the transport plane opened, soulless bodies walked out of the cabin one by one.
Most of them had unkempt hair, dirty clothes, and were covered in blood. Some even had lame legs and broken hands and needed help from others to move forward.
Compared with the lively scene before, the current scene seems extremely deserted.
The boys just walked in silence, and occasionally the injured groaned.
Soon, they gathered together and faced the angels. Most of them had no joy on their faces, only tiredness and numbness.
"children."
Soshyan took a step forward and said loudly:
"Congratulations, you became the final winner."
There were no cheers or applause, only faint sobs.
"I know this is difficult for you, especially when you kill someone for the first time, but this is an obstacle you must overcome, because what you will face in the future is a war that you can't even imagine now. Its cruelty and darkness are...
What you are experiencing now is 10,000 times greater!”
Soshyan's loud shout finally brought these candidates back to their senses. They breathed heavily and straightened their backs.
"From this moment on, your lives will no longer belong to you, but to the Chapter and the Emperor! You will no longer be children! We will call you by your first name and call you brothers in the future,
"
As he spoke, a giant airship belonging to the state religion slowly floated down, with the eagle emblem on it shining golden light in the sun.
"This Instructor Sol will be your team leader, and you will go to the Chapter's temporary monastery fortress to adjust your body functions."
With that said, Sol next to Soshyan stood up.
He glanced at the boys and suddenly grinned.
"Okay, boys, let's go."
Under his leadership, the boys lined up in three rows and walked towards the airship, but Soshyan suddenly stopped someone.
"Robin, come to me."
Upon hearing this, everyone in Bahram and Oscar's team turned their attention to the boy who always had a gloomy face.
The other party stopped but did not move towards Soshyan.
"Hey, the Chapter Leader is calling you."
Hao Mo touched the opponent's shoulder with his hand, but Robin threw him away.
"I know."
After saying that, he walked straight towards Soshyan.
Soshyan looked at the other person standing in front of him without saying a word, and then waved his hand.
"follow me."
After following Soshyan into the Thunderhawk, he was taken to a separate cabin.
There was only a small table in the cabin, and a piece of paper was placed on the table.
Soshyan walked to the table, twisted the piece of paper, and read softly:
"Roswell Veneiser, the eldest son of Governor Battis Veneiser, was considered an illegitimate child because his mother was a maid. After his mother's death, he was fostered by a wealthy family in an upper-class nest city and studied at a high school.
Soames Noble Academy, he once won the Academy's first-class outstanding student award twice, then suddenly dropped out of school, escaped into the low-level hive incognito, and mingled with the bounty hunter group, when he was... twelve years old."
After Soshyan finished speaking, he loosened his fingers and let the piece of paper fall to the ground.
"Sign up with a false identity and deceive the Astartes Chapter. Do you know what this crime is?"
Facing Soshyan's questioning, the boy raised his head, looked directly into his eyes fearlessly, and said calmly:
"The name is just a symbol. I believe that the emperor values the soul itself, not the label on the body."
"So your label is deception?"
Soshyan sneered and tapped the table with his fingers.
"The governor seems to value you very much. He begged me not to recruit you into the war group no matter what. Think about it from another perspective. Compared to becoming a lifelong fighting ascetic, being a planet governor gives you the best material comforts and benefits.
It doesn’t seem bad to have the best woman to accompany you.”
"I reject."
Robin, or Roswell, replied stiffly, feeling his limbs shaking and trying to control them.
A dissatisfied frown crossed Soshyan's brow.
"Why?"
"Because struggle is the meaning of life."
In the cabin, silence spread.
A few minutes later, Soshyan spoke:
"I have no intention of interfering in your family affairs, but judging from experience, your father doesn't seem to owe you much. He is more inclined to hand over the inheritance rights to you than your cowardly brother."
Roswell started shaking his head.
"I know I'm not the governor's material, and I know what's hidden in that palace."
He took out a pendant from his neck, on which was a very worn silver emperor icon.
"Before she died, my mother told me to stay away from that place and never, ever go back. There was only betrayal, conspiracy and corruption."
At this time, Roswell suddenly showed a strange smile and said softly:
"There is a secret that even my father doesn't know. My mother is actually...his biological brother and sister."
Sosh raised his eyebrows and jumped slightly, but there was no expression on his face.
"My grandfather gave birth to my mother with a maid. Everyone thought that my mother had been drowned when she was a baby, but no, she lived in that nest until she was drunk by her brother.
Then raped.”
Roswell had an expression on his face that didn't know whether he was laughing or crying, and said in a hoarse voice:
"Chapter Commander, are you still willing to accept a monster born from incest between close relatives?"
Soshyan looked at him and said calmly:
"I promised the governor to give you one last chance to make a choice, Roswell."
"What if I don't want to?"
"Then you will follow us on the same path."
The boy nodded, swallowing the blood to retain the aftertaste in his mouth.