Warhammer 40K in a box

Chapter 556 The Canyon of Frozen Time and Space

The massive hulls of the "Iron Will" and the "Analyst" were like two cold metal seeds thrown into a boiling furnace, silently piercing the void at the edge of the Kuiper Belt, a space torn apart by violent subspace energy and physical turbulence.

The energy deflection shield generator on the thick armor shell was operating at maximum load, with fine blue-white arcs jumping and flashing on the shield surface, struggling against the invisible tearing forces coming from all directions.

The target—the entrance coordinates to the “Pioneer-IV” ruins—is guarded by a terrifying cosmic scar stretching across the void: “Pioneer Throat.”

This is a deep rift formed by the forced distortion and freezing of the spacetime structure itself.

Its cliffs are not rock, but solidified, deep blue spacetime matrix, mixed with ancient asteroids and stardust debris that have been captured and embedded in its gravity over billions of years.

These substances were not scattered randomly, but under the influence of a powerful spacetime distortion force field, they melted and solidified with the frozen spacetime matrix, forming an unnatural composite structure that shimmered with a strange metallic luster.

The rift is incredibly wide; at its widest point, it can accommodate an entire Imperial main fleet in standard battle formation.

However, at the entrance, a complex network of giant spacetime folds and asteroid clusters squeezes it into a narrow and treacherous passage, becoming the only choke point to the ruins.

Inside the bridge, the deep resonance of the engines transmitted through the heavy deck, creating a constant, chest-suppressing hum.

The steady buzzing of countless servers, Thinker arrays, and environmental maintenance systems intertwined, forming the background noise of the ship's life.

The air circulation system filters out the ship's unique odors: ozone, engine oil, metal coolant, and the smell of incense and burning candles.

Outside the main observation window, the pale light of distant stars was filtered by the deep blue spacetime barrier of the rift valley, projecting a cold, lifeless glow.

The light reflected off the exposed, shimmering silver-gray, copper-green, and dark gold metal veins on the cliff face, forming countless tiny, cold specks of light, like scales embedded in the skeleton of a giant beast.

Those ancient asteroids, deeply embedded in the matrix of spacetime, are covered with thick layers of ice, appearing grayish-white or pale blue in the dim light. Their distorted outlines resemble the remains of ancient behemoths frozen in amber of spacetime, forming a huge and silent relief written by dead matter and distorted physical laws.

"'Pioneer's Throat' designated airspace reached, relative coordinates stabilized. 'Analyst' in position, outer perimeter alert array activated, scan cone coverage expanded to maximum safety threshold." The navigator's voice came through the ship's communicator, striving to maintain a rigid calm, but a barely perceptible tension at the end of his tone betrayed the pressure of venturing into such a remote area.

“Received, 'Analyst'. Maintain standard escort formation, Delta-3. Move the scan cone forward and focus on the core channel.” Felus’s deep voice echoed across the bridge.

He stood on the central command platform, his repaired silver power armor gleaming with a cold, metallic sheen under the dim emergency lighting.

With eyes as sharp as a hawk, he quickly scanned the tactical holographic star map hovering in front of him, constantly updating its data: "Sage Olegana, report the environmental readings in detail."

Located in the technical station on the side of the bridge, Oregana's semi-mechanical body is almost integrated with the control panel.

Several mechanical cats have taken over the function of the servo skull and are now surrounding her.

The artificial eye array implanted in the skull flashes a high-speed, eerie green data stream, as if countless compound eyes are observing simultaneously.

Multiple sophisticated servo robotic arms moved silently behind and beside her, their end-effectors—data probes, analyzers, and calibrators—precisely connecting to countless interfaces on the control panel, emitting subtle clicking sounds and the hum of energy coupling. "The energy turbulence level is climbing exponentially, sir," her synthesized voice said, carrying the characteristic, perfectly precise tone of the Mechanicus, though slightly faster: "Current reading: Delta-7, peaking at the Delta-8 threshold, exceeding the mission briefing's expectations by 370 percent."

Spectral analysis revealed multiple superimposed field effects: high-frequency spacetime ripples, low-order gravitational distortions, and high-energy particle streams of unknown spectral systems.

The source is unknown, and the match rate with natural phenomena or known alien technology characteristics recorded in the Imperial Star Language Institute's database is less than 15.3%.

A robotic arm points to the main sensor screen, where a chaotic stream of data and distorted energy waveforms flow like a waterfall: "Active scanning performance is severely limited. The signal distortion rate of the long-range scanning array has reached 43.8 percent and continues to rise."

The short-range, high-precision scanning was completely drowned out by the strong background noise.

Passive receiving sensors are also susceptible to high-intensity, wide-spectrum electromagnetic and subspace harmonic interference, resulting in an effective information extraction rate of less than 20%.

Recommendation: Immediately reduce the main engine output power to the minimum threshold required to maintain basic attitude and vector control.

The thruster array switched to minimum nozzle mode to avoid all unstable spacetime-matter structures with a mass exceeding one hundred metric tons in its path, as any violent maneuver could trigger a chain reaction of resonance.

Ferrus nodded slightly, his silver, living metal-covered hand rapidly typing commands on the control panel: "Execute, main engine output reduced to 15%. Attitude thrusters remain online. Ferrus, call Maria, Knight Mech, standby?"

On the dedicated mecha deck separated by an enhanced force field in the hangar on the upper deck, a knight mecha painted with the Nearl family paint scheme stands like a sleeping steel behemoth, its height almost touching the hangar dome.

Ancient family crests and sacred prayers were etched onto the heavy, fine gold armor.

At the mech's massive joints, multi-stage hydraulic buffers and servo motors emitted a deep, rumbling sound, like the breathing of a giant beast.

Inside the cockpit, Maria's voice came through the helmet-mounted communicator, clear and steady, carrying the unique composure and power of a noble knight: "Mech joint locks to be released, posture stable."

The core temperature of the thermal cannon was raised to the critical preheating value, the Avenger Gatling gun chain was loaded, and the ion shield generator was charged to the ready-to-activate state.

We are ready to answer your call, my lord. May the Emperor guide the sharpness of our swords.

The sensor array on the mech's head flickered with a faint red light, like the eyes of a sleeping behemoth opening.

“Carleon Intelligence, psionic level? Report your perception.” Feralus turned to the other side of the bridge.

Carleon was clad in a deep blue think tank curator's armor, inlaid with psionic runes and suppressors.

He closed his eyes and focused intently, his brow furrowed beneath his helmet, as invisible psionic tendrils struggled to extend and probe against the backdrop of raging energy outside the ship's Geller force field.

Sweat seeped from his forehead, condensing into tiny droplets in the cold air.

(End of this chapter)