Seraphs of the Emperor’s Judgment

Chapter 2: Recruit (1)

The air was so thin it caused his lungs to arbitrarily spasm. Soshyan sat upright in his chair, his peripheral vision occasionally sweeping the surroundings.

There was a total of twenty boys inside the transport aircraft, along with over a hundred empty seats.

Perhaps it had never been fully occupied here.

The special academy in Soms recruited over five thousand boys from all social classes every year. A considerable portion of them would not survive until graduation. Most of them were children from prominent families in the middle and upper levels of the Hive City, but in that place, their identities were entirely useless. They were nothing more than green recruits capable of being ravaged at will by the hands of the instructors.

In the academy, besides studying cultural courses, they also had to undergo exceedingly grueling, even inhumane, physical training—or rather, devastation.

During the years of study, everyone was pushed to the absolute limits of their abilities.

Yet, on the other hand, most of them possessed a bright future. They could become commanders in the Astra Militarum, high-ranking civil officials, diplomats, or priests. A small number would become engineers, regional governors, Judges, or even Enforcers. They might even set foot on the sacred soil of Terra, becoming individuals with even greater honor and higher status.

But that was not the ultimate goal for the academy's founding.

Among the many graduates every year, at most—and it was only "at most"—twenty individuals could join the Astral Knights Chapter.

This planet was originally not an honored recruiting world. However, over two hundred years ago, a certain Chapter Master established a recruitment site on this planet, beginning to conscript what they considered to be sufficiently excellent Recruits from the aristocratic academies.In the whispers of the night, Soshyan had inadvertently heard that, in the ancient past, the selection criteria had never been this strict.

But after the Horus Heresy, many things changed.

That was a rebellion that had once torn the entire Imperium apart. Horus, the cursed beloved son of the Emperor, had raised the banner of rebellion against his father, embroiling nearly half of the Space Marines in the insurgency.

That was also a war impossible for their young minds to imagine. The many beloved sons of the Emperor perished within it, and even the Emperor Himself suffered grave injuries in the final decisive battle, forcing Him to enter the throne deep within the Imperial Palace on Terra to preserve His life. Thereafter, the supreme power of the Imperium of Man fell into the hands of the High Lords Council on Terra.

The era of Mortals had arrived.

But this did not mean that those mighty warriors vanished into the long river of history. They were still the Emperor's most deeply loved and sharpest blades. No matter how critical the battlefield, as long as they appeared, the danger would surely be averted.

They were the Angels of Death of the Emperor, the harbingers of extermination for Xenos and Heretics, and humanity's most elite armed force. Every single one was an immortal superhuman.

If this was true, then the fact that Soshyan Alexei had been selected was even more inconceivable.

He still could not believe all of this. He felt a sense of disbelief when his name was called out. He was still in a dream-like state during the farewell speech, and the same was true when everyone saluted their small handful of lucky individuals.

Even when he was brought onto the transport aircraft bearing the Chapter's emblem, this still felt like an illusion.

Because ever since childhood, Soshyan had fervently desired to become a Space Marine.

Although Soshyan's family could not be considered prominent locally, it had a very ancient history. Its lineage could even be traced back to the Great Crusade era. Despite experiencing numerous hardships over that period, this family had still stubbornly survived and continued to this day.

Although the ancestors of the Alexei Family throughout the generations had never held any important positions, the local aristocrats still held a considerable amount of respect for this ancient bloodline. This consistently allowed the members of this family to remain in the upper-middle class of the Hive City.

However, by Soshyan's generation, their ancient family seemed to have reached a dead end. The only young descendants remaining were himself and a younger cousin.

Therefore, even though becoming a Space Marine was a matter of immense honor for a family, for the pitiful Alexei Family, this highly likely meant the severance of a bloodline that had continued for tens of thousands of years—Soshyan's younger cousin's health had always been poor, frequently causing people to doubt whether he could live until adulthood.

He had listened silently whenever his father spoke to him countless times over the course of many years about the heavy responsibility he shouldered to continue the family bloodline. He had just listened silently, and then invested even more effort into his studies and training.

His mother had also tearfully pleaded with him late at night, hoping that Soshyan would think about the descendants he might never have, the only hope for this ancient family.

Although he was still young at the time, his response was this.

"Everyone fears the darkness, so who will stand to block the darkness?"

People said he was an overly precocious child, and some said he was too strange. There were even rumors that Soshyan might have heard the holy words of the Emperor or some kind of calling in the church. But such rumors were quickly stifled by the local Ministorum.

However, one point was universally acknowledged: Soshyan was not an ordinary child. He possessed a certain innate, extraordinary trait.

This trait brought him praise, and it also brought slander.

And he never explained himself to anyone.

Because he single-mindedly only wanted to become an Adeptus Astartes.

But only Soshyan himself clearly knew that his heart was not truly made of stone or iron, because when his parents saw him off for the last time, he cried.

He became their pride, but he also failed to live up to their expectations. As a son, he would never be able to fulfill his duties. As a descendant of a family, he would never be able to fulfill his familial responsibilities. The ancient bloodline would highly likely be severed right here.

Many years later, he would often think that this was probably the most important reason why some of his human emotional capacity was able to be retained.

But Mortal emotions were a part that one must first discard in order to become an Astartes.

Soshyan thought of this and secretly sighed. Although in principle he should not feel regret, he would never deceive himself as well as others.

In this moment, he felt a slight sense of regret.

Meanwhile, the other boys sat in their crash couches, firmly strapped in by safety harnesses. Every single one stared straight ahead, as unyielding as ancient statues.

They were trying to grow into adults, transforming into the appearance of the warriors they anticipated being.

Soshyan sat in the front row, in the seat closest to the main doors. This meant that in the eyes of others, he was highly capable.

He knew his innate talents surpassed the vast majority of candidates, and he also understood how the sentiment of jealousy could take root in people's hearts. In the academy, he had encountered conflicts arising from jealousy on more than one occasion.

Therefore, Soshyan always knew to speak and act with caution, avoiding letting his every action appear proud or boastful in the eyes of others.

Suddenly, the transport aircraft began to shudder. This also meant they were breaking free from the atmosphere's restraints.

Soshyan reined in his mood, suppressing his emotions.

Soon, the vibrations disappeared. The readiness indicator light in the cabin turned red, and the boys looked at each other in confusion.

"Are we here? That was way too fast."

A fragmented voice whispered.

With a slow hissing sound, the cabin door ramp opened, revealing the Spaceport and the planetary orbital station behind it, which Soshyan had originally thought he would never have the chance to see again in this lifetime.

Appearing simultaneously were three human figures outside the cabin door.

They were all as tall as giants. When they entered the cabin, every step stirred up a heavy echo.

Soshyan blinked his eyes, which ached due to the change in air pressure. He could confirm that these were Space Marines, humanity's guardians, the Emperor's Angels of Death.

Wearing thick Power Armor, they were a full two meters tall, and every single one of their fists was larger than the upper halves of the boys' bodies.

The indicator light dyed the cold Plasteel beneath their white tabards red. They wore no helmets, instead using indifferent eyes to patrol back and forth among the boys.

The slightly trembling children blinked nervously at these giants, their disguise of feigned calm shattering instantly.

Soshyan recognized their silver-gray Power Armor bearing patches of blue color, as well as the emblem of twin swords crossed upwards on their shoulder pads. In front of the golden eagle crest on their chests, a long ribbon leaped from their left shoulders to their cuffs. The helmets hanging at their waists also bore special spear-shaped patterns. This was the Honour Guard of the Astral Knights Chapter.

All the details were swiftly captured and etched into his mind. This was the ability he prided himself on the most.

One of the Space Marines glanced at the Dataslate in his left hand.

"Soshyan Alexei?"

Nineteen boys looked at him simultaneously. Soshyan did not utter a sound to confirm his identity to them, but that Space Marine still raised his arm and pointed at him.

"You, come with us."

The Space Marine who spoke had a rigid face and deep blue eyes. Two Service Studs were pinned to his forehead, and there was a distinct scar at the corner of his mouth.

It was only a long time later that Soshyan found out he was Everich, the Company Commander of the 7th Company—the very company he would be placed in in the future.

"What?"

Soshyan had a bad premonition, but he still feigned a calm facade.

"You come with us. Now."

With a dark expression, that Space Marine walked to Soshyan's side, tore off his safety harness, and half-dragged him from the seat. For the first time, he experienced the immense strength of a Space Marine, which left him with absolutely no possibility of resisting.

Moreover, for the current situation, resisting was also extremely dangerous.

"But we're going to the Obsidian Fortress! Please tell me the reason for doing this!"

In an instant, Soshyan finally stopped maintaining his adult-like posture, yet he still persisted with an obstinate tone of voice. However, they did not give him the chance.

"Obey orders."

Before he could finish speaking, cold metal pierced into Soshyan's neck.

Feeling the chill transmitted from his skin, Soshyan made no further movements. His consciousness shattered along with his hopes, plunging into an abyss of darkness...

"Mmh..."

An unknown amount of time later, accompanied by the swaying of his body, Soshyan's consciousness briefly recovered for a moment.

But he felt cold, exceedingly cold, as if he had been placed in an ice cellar.

At the same time, his temples were throbbing. Even though he had no way of knowing what that meant, he at least knew he was still alive.

Suddenly, a voice came from beside his ear.

"This is a good prospect. His assessed rank far exceeds the qualified parameter line. The Chapter Master would want this one."

This was a high-pitched voice with a slight nasal tone.

"That will only be known after he accepts the Grey Marrow."

The other voice was flat and indifferent, accompanied by the sound of many metal objects clattering against a metal tray.

"You think he can endure it?"

The nasal voice spoke up again.

"We'll only know after trying."

And the second voice seemed somewhat impatient.

"This specimen has a very high adaptability. Compared to the previous dozen or so, his success rate is the highest. If he still can't do it, we might just..."

Gradually, these voices became blurry, like the sound of drums on the horizon, seemingly far and seemingly near.

A warm liquid was slowly being injected into his body, which once again shattered his slightly recovered consciousness. He plummeted back into an endless fantasy.

The future transformed into a mass of unpredictable dense fog, wrapping him tightly...

(End of Chapter)