Chapter 37: The Endless God
Sage Julius stepped forward and spoke with solemn gravity. "My lord, the Cult Mechanicus is a sect that signed the Treaty of Olympus Mons with the Emperor and is recognized by the Imperium. I am the son of the Omnissiah, a follower of the Pantheon."
He paused, and the other tech-priests moved with synchronized precision, staging a formal religious ceremony. Their actions demonstrated clearly and deliberately that the Cult Mechanicus should not be confused with alien religions.
Alpharius, appeased by this display, relaxed slightly. Omega, seeing an opportunity to move forward, quickly tried to warm the atmosphere again, though, inwardly, he complained that these tech enthusiasts took everything far too seriously.
Russell methodically worked through the categories of gods that Omega had mentioned earlier, then spoke again with great solemnity. "My lords, what I must tell you is this: the Rangdan civilization may have discovered true gods. I'm referring to those mighty beings that Lord Omega spoke of. The entire colossal fortress is dedicated to studying fragments of these gods."
"WHAT?" Omega, Alpharius, and the gathered tech-priests were utterly shocked.
Despite their disbelief and skepticism, Apothecary Russell pressed forward, revealing a truth that shook them to their core. The god he spoke of was a powerful being beyond reason; calling it a god would not be an exaggeration.
"In its early years," Russell explained, "the Rangdan civilization covered a vast star field and enslaved numerous alien races. They discovered a fragment of a god within the base of an ancient, collapsed civilization of extraordinary advancement. This base is estimated to be tens of millions of years old."
"At first, the Rangdan didn't understand the fragment's purpose. It seemed to possess only infinite energy. But as they researched it, various problems emerged. The logic of subjects studying it began to deteriorate, resulting in amnesia, consciousness alteration, and memory corruption."
"The aliens gradually realized that the mystery of this fragment transcended known technology. It could not be defined by existing physical science."
Russell paused to let this sink in before continuing. "Because the fragments were too dangerous for direct study, even the limited research results significantly improved the Rangdan technological level. Unwilling to abandon their discovery, they deployed powerful artificial intelligence to conduct the research instead."
"Strong artificial intelligence possesses potent cognitive and spiritual abilities. It can effectively resist the consciousness- and memory-altering effects the god fragment inflicts. The Rangdan only needed to fight the artificial intelligence afterward to extract the research results."
Russell gestured toward the data they had recovered. "This massive fortress, spanning thousands of kilometers, was created specifically to study that god fragment. Its name was..."
He took a breath. "The Endless God."
Alpharius's expression hardened. "The Endless God? Is it truly a powerful being beyond reason?" He trusted Russell's judgment; the man was a sage, but the sudden appearance of a god still left him skeptical.
Apothecary Russell nodded firmly. "My lords, it is true. The monster we encountered earlier, stretching for thousands of kilometers, was formed from tens of millions of war-beasts. This was merely a small result of Rangdan's research into the god fragment."
"That is why I insisted we hold this meeting in space. I feared that discussing this from a ground base might result in our conversation being overheard or our memories being altered by the fragment's influence."
"The Rangdan aren't sending personnel to maintain this base. They're using their incredibly powerful artificial intelligence solely to combat the erosion caused by the divine fragment. They don't even possess the confidence to suppress it themselves."
Omega, his shock evident, asked urgently, "Can't it be destroyed? Use an antimatter bomb. Surely anything composed of matter can be neutralized and destroyed?"
The other tech-priests voiced strong agreement.
When Alpharius looked on expectantly, Apothecary Russell shook his head slowly and spoke with unmistakable gravity. "No. Ordinary matter and antimatter are ineffective against god fragments. Even theoretically sound dark matter weapons cannot destroy this fragment."
"The only method would be high-dimensional space technology. Even a fragment is an immortal being."
Russell gestured to the archived data. "This is all recorded in the base's super library. Perhaps the stronger a creature's consciousness, the stronger its resistance to fragments, such as a Primarch possesses. But even that may not be enough."
Omega fell silent, genuinely shocked. He had always believed he could be eliminated by antimatter weapons or even killed by a nuclear bomb. A Primarch was not an unkillable being.
Yet the fact that even theoretically sound weapons based on fundamental physics could not destroy a single fragment was beyond comprehension. The word "god" truly sufficed to describe such a being.
"Dark matter," Russell continued, sensing the need for explanation, "does not interact with ordinary matter or antimatter. It passes directly through ordinary matter, through the human body, without any reaction whatsoever. It is like a ghost. Dark matter and ordinary matter cannot interact through electromagnetic forces."
"Some dark matter lacks both the strong force and the electromagnetic force. It only interacts with ordinary particles through gravity, and even that interaction is minimal. Gravity becomes significant only when matter accumulates in vast quantities or when space curvature increases dramatically."
"Only advanced civilizations that have thoroughly researched gravity technology, civilizations that have created gravity bombs and anti-gravity devices, can collect and manipulate dark matter. Gravity technology represents the next stage beyond force field defense, marking an entirely new level of civilization."
Omega added quietly, "I've only ever encountered such technology among those rib-like aliens. It appears almost like magic to us."
"The Imperium," Alpharius said coldly, "has virtually no gravity technology or weapons. We rely entirely on the Legiones Astartes as our vanguard. By contrast, the Rangdan have developed both gravity bombs and space jump technology."
He turned his gaze to Russell with finality in his expression. Alpharius's fear was palpable: if this Endless God could alter the memories of Alpha Legion warriors and the Cult Mechanicus, the danger would be catastrophic. He made his decision immediately.
"Move all data from that super library away from this base. The secret facility will be sealed and preserved for future research."
"Regarding the matter of the Endless God, no one except those present may mention it again. Anyone who does will be eliminated."
Russell, seized by a sudden impulse, spoke up. "Lord Alpharius, would it be possible to preserve some of the alien biotechnology?"
As an apothecary, he felt genuine anguish watching vast quantities of biotechnology being destroyed before his eyes. He hoped to retain some samples to advance his own technological capabilities.
Alpharius's response was just a cold snort and said nothing further.
Seeing the desperate look Russell directed toward him, Omega offered a gentle reminder, his voice steady and measured. "The Rangdan are notorious for enslaving entire races using bio-neural technology. The Emperor abhors this practice. Preserving biotechnology is not only risky but also carries the enormous danger of leaking and causing a future catastrophe."
"If that happens, Alpharius, everyone present, and I will face immediate purge."
Omega paused meaningfully. "However, I believe that as the mechanical technology of the Cult Mechanicus improves, their pharmaceutical technology will naturally improve in parallel. Mechanical advances and biological applications are not as separated as they may appear."
The members of the Mechanicum exchanged quiet glances of approval upon hearing this.
They recognized the wisdom in Omega's logic, and he trusted their capability to advance through alternative means. Russell, too, seemed to abandon his preservation impulse.
With neither the Emperor nor the Primarch providing support, Russell recognized he had no choice but to accept Omega's proposed path: improving mechanical technology to elevate pharmaceutical technology subsequently.
Clarity returned to Russell's mind as the realization took hold. He looked at Omega with profound respect and offered his thanks. "Thank you for your guidance, sir. Your rationality and wisdom prevented me from walking down a reckless and dangerous path."
The other tech-priests expressed similar respect for Omega's logic. They acknowledged a truth about themselves: they were technically skilled, but when confronted with the temptation of advanced technology, they unconsciously ignored the risks. They did not, in fact, possess the rationality and self-control one might have imagined.
After everyone reached consensus, the Alpha Legion and the Imperial Army withdrew from the surface and conducted rigorous consciousness audits to identify any corruption or alteration.
The Mechanicum army began evacuating the Great Fortress's library. Three additional warships were commandeered to house the vast quantity of data being removed.
The Tech-Priests expressed great excitement and passion for the immense wealth of knowledge they were preserving.
Seven days later, after the alien knowledge had been removed from all fifty warships in orbit, Omega ceased his concern for the super artificial intelligence and the god fragment remaining in the base below.
On the bridge, Omega stood before the assembled tech-priests and various commanders. Alpharius delivered his comprehensive report.
"The investigation revealed that over thirty Alpha Legion warriors exhibited signs of amnesia, but they retained their self-awareness and loyalty without suffering additional adverse effects. Conversely, over a thousand Imperial Army personnel suffered from amnesia and memory loss. There were even dozens who became followers of the Endless God during their exposure."
He paused, his expression grave. "However, without direct contact with the god fragment, the immediate impact is not as severe as we initially feared. The worst effects only manifest with sustained, concentrated exposure."
Alpharius looked across the assembled commanders and sages. "We got what we came for. The fortress is sealed. The god fragment remains contained, and that will have to be sufficient for now."
[End of Chapter]