After the victory in the Battle of Hades, a large number of orphans appeared on the battlefield, so Soshyan made a decision.
Recruit troops on the spot!
But what he wants to recruit is not a mortal army, he wants to recruit the brothers Astartes.
The Chapter Master of the Astral Knights announced that they could take any male orphan between the ages of 8 and 14 who had lost his parents and was willing to join the Astartes.
In the future, these children will participate in trials with local candidates at Naisen No. 4 to compete for the one in 10,000 chance.
Although this is not in line with the rules, no one came out to object. After all, so many orphans are actually a burden for the Ministry of the Interior. Soshyan is willing to bear these burdens, which is what they want, and this one-time recruitment is available in many places.
It's happened before, it's not unusual.
Armin is responsible for the recruitment of Hades's Hive, with other recruits assisting.
But in addition, the Astral Knights have another secret recruitment plan, but the targets of recruitment are not limited to orphans after the war, and the executor is Talos——
Slowly, blood dripped onto the floor, but Sabourin paid no attention.
"Little Sablin."
The older criminal named Mir stirred and looked down at him with wide, worried eyes.
"Your nose."
The man handed over a piece of rag torn from his dirty prison uniform. Sablin stared at it with a puzzled expression.
Mir even wondered if he had a concussion.
"Forget it, you are always so nervous."
After a while, Mir stuffed the rag back into his pocket.
Sabourin's eyes became empty again, and then he leaned on the edge of the cell. The nosebleeds continued to flow, one drop after another.
Mir ignored him and climbed back to his bunk, making a face.
The sounds of the prison filtered in around them, amplified by the grid floor of the cell and framed by the bars of the cell window—raised voices, slamming doors, the buzz of activated alarm systems and image monitors, thumping boots
and the clatter of shackles.
Sabourin had only been here five months, but he wished he was dead now, at least he wouldn't be forced to dig and dig with his swollen, bleeding hands.
This is a prison on the northern continent of Armageddon, filled with all kinds of prisoners, ranging from thieves to murderers.
Their only purpose in living here is to mine raw materials for the Mechanicum's factories and hives from hundreds of veins underground.
Day after day, year after year.
He grew up at the bottom of the hive city, but he has no parents. His real parents may be thieves, blackmailers, psychedelic drug addicts, prostitutes, or murderers.
They could be any of the hive's lower-level criminals, but he didn't know them, he'd never seen them.
Sabourin's adoptive father was a small gang leader in the hive city. When his adoptive father was cut into pieces by his rivals, he was only seven years old and could only cower under the table and close his eyes.
There is no room for the weak in the bottom nest life. When he was nine years old, he learned how to kill. By the time he was twelve years old, he was already a well-known thief leader in the neighborhood.
Until he reached out to the treasure house of a powerful man in the middle nest——
After a long time, Sablin finally noticed his nosebleed and tried in vain to stop it with his dirt-stained fingers.
He was now thirteen, by Terran standards, or so he claimed - yet most of the time his behavior was more tempered than that of a twenty-year-old adult.
In addition to his strong body and his willingness to solve problems with his fists, what has really allowed him to survive for so long is his innate talent. Since he was very young, he has occasionally been able to foresee what is about to happen.
.
He consulted the witch playing with the crystal ball on the street. The old thing said that this was the potential of witchcraft, but Sabourin just gave her a kick.
He never considered himself a wizard.
"Something is coming."
Suddenly, Sablin felt something in his heart and looked towards the darkness behind the window.
"What?"
His roommate Mir raised his head blankly. This guy was just a poor smuggler who made meager profits by selling illegal liquor.
But after offending the monopoly wine dealer in the hive city, this is what happened.
"Bad stuff."
The pressure in the cell was still there, like a dark, persistent headache that continued to build in his temples.
He had never felt so strong.
"But at least it can't be worse than this place."
Sablin said it was easy, but in fact he was very scared.
The thing he just mentioned could often be seen in his dreams, the claws and sharp claws spinning out of the shadows and the vicious red eyes - which did not bring him any comfort.
Worst of all was the face, it was a skeleton, a death mask, lurking in the dark void.
Whenever he saw it, it came closer, grinning savagely and fiercely without blinking.
"Ready for dinner."
There was a lazy sound in the corridor.
Since the greenskin invasion, although the prison has not been attacked, supplies have been almost cut off, which also means that the prisoners have to starve.
Sablin has heard that cannibalism has occurred in some prison areas. With no other solution, it seems that the guards are not going to take care of it.
They just put a very small amount of food into the prison area in a daily quota. As for how to distribute it, it is none of their business.
Naturally, the gangs that already existed have grown rapidly due to this situation. If you want to get a bite, you must find a backer and fight with your life.
But Sablin disdains this and has his own way.
"get ready."
Looking at the crowds of people crowding out of the corridor, Sablin calmly leaned against the iron railing.
"Wait until they're all gone."
Mir nodded, dug at the bottom of the bed with his hands, and then pulled out a thin wooden stick with iron spikes - in such a lawless place, it was almost impossible to survive without someone to defend himself.
After the crowd had left, Sablin and Mir quietly opened the iron fence and left through another way.
They found a vent just big enough for the two of them to crawl in. After crawling inside for about ten minutes, they arrived at a place.
This place was originally a gym, but it was abandoned a long time ago. Now it has become the "warehouse" of the Da Diao Gang. Except for the meager rations distributed to the gang members every day, the rest is here.
The Big Eagle Gang is the most violent gang in this prison area. There are hundreds of them. The boss is a humanoid beast who has raped and killed hundreds of women. As for why he is still alive, Sablin heard that it is because he has a relationship with a certain person.
He has connections with the planet's powerful families. Anyway, ever since the guy came in, the guards haven't given him much trouble, and they have cigarettes and alcohol every week.
Probably, there is someone up there.
"Hey!"
Sabourin jumped down from the vent and had already wrapped his feet in cloth. He did not move immediately, but squatted on the ground and observed his surroundings vigilantly.
After confirming that no one was there, he sent out the secret signal, and Mir jumped down immediately.
This small room is full of scattered equipment, and in one corner, there is a pile of supplies as tall as a person.
Sabourin rubbed his hands and walked up, opening a corner of a package, and a ration bar immediately slipped out of it.
"Take up to two at a time, don't take too many."
Sabrin bit the ration bar with his teeth, and while devouring it, he whispered to his roommates who were also munching.
But suddenly, the red emergency light on the roof of the warehouse suddenly lit up, washing the narrow, cold place with angry light.