The air was so thin that his lungs occasionally spasmed, and Soshian sat upright in his chair, his peripheral vision occasionally sweeping his surroundings.
There were twenty Boys in the transport, and over a hundred empty seats.
Perhaps it had never been full.
Somus's special academy recruited over five thousand Boys each year from all social strata, a significant portion of whom would not live to graduate; most of them were children from prominent families in the middle and upper Hive Cities, but in that place, their status was useless, merely New Recruitss to be arbitrarily trampled by the instructors.
At the academy, besides cultural classes, they also underwent extremely arduous, even inhumane, physical training or, rather, torment.
Over several years of study, everyone was pushed to the limits of their abilities.
However, from another perspective, most of them had bright futures: Commanders in the Astra Militarum, high-ranking civil officials, diplomats, or priests; a small number would become engineers, local magistrates, judges, or even enforcers, or even set foot on the sacred soil of Terra, becoming more honored and distinguished individuals.
But this was not the ultimate goal of the academy's founding.
Among the many graduates each year, at most, and only "at most," twenty individuals could join the Astral Knights Chapter.
This planet was not originally a glorious recruitment world, but over two hundred years ago, a certain Chapter Master established a recruitment point on this planet, beginning to recruit New Recruitss deemed excellent enough from noble academies.
In the whispers of the night, Soshian had inadvertently heard that in the ancient past, the selection criteria had never been so strict.
But after the Horus Heresy, many things changed.
It was a rebellion that once tore apart the entire Imperium; Horus, the cursed beloved son of the Emperor, raised a rebellious banner against his father, dragging nearly half of the Space Marines into the rebellion.
It was also a war beyond the imagination of their young minds, in which several of the Emperor's beloved sons fell, and even the Emperor himself was gravely wounded in the final battle, forced to enter the throne deep within the Terra Imperial Palace to preserve his life, after which the authority of the Imperium of Man fell into the Terra High Lords Council.
The age of mortals had arrived.
But this did not mean that those powerful warriors disappeared into the river of history; they were still the Emperor's most beloved and sharpest blades; no matter how critical the battlefield, as long as they appeared, they could surely turn danger into safety.
They were the Emperor's Angels of Death, the exterminators of xenos and heretics, and the Imperium's most elite armed force; each one an immortal superhuman.
If this were true, then the fact that Soshyan Alexei was chosen was even more incredible.
He still couldn't believe any of it; he was incredulous when his name was called, and he was still in a dreamlike state during the farewell speech, and likewise when everyone paid tribute to their small group of lucky ones.
Even when he was led onto the transport bearing the Chapter's insignia, it still felt like a dream.
Because since childhood, Soshian had intensely yearned to become a Space Marine.
Although Soshian's family was not considered prominent locally, it had a very ancient history, its lineage even traceable back to the Great Crusade Era, and despite numerous hardships, the Alexei Family had stubbornly survived and continued to this day.
Although the ancestors of the Alexei Family had never held any important positions, the local nobles still greatly respected this ancient bloodline, always ensuring that members of this family remained in the upper-middle class of the Hive City.
However, by Soshian's generation, their ancient family seemed to have reached its end, with only him and one of his cousins remaining as young descendants.
Therefore, even though becoming a Space Marine was a very glorious thing for a family, for the poor Alexei Family, this likely meant the extinction of a bloodline that had continued for tens of thousands of years—Soshian's cousin had always been in poor health, often making people doubt whether he would live to adulthood.
Over many years, Soshian's father countless times spoke to him of the heavy responsibility he bore to continue the family bloodline, and he merely listened silently, then immersed himself even more diligently in study and training.
His mother also cried and pleaded with him late at night, hoping Soshian would think of the descendants he might never have, the sole hope of this ancient family.
Though still young at the time, his answer was thus.
"Everyone fears the darkness, but who will stop the darkness?"
People said he was a too precocious child, some said he was too strange, and there were even rumors that Soshian might have heard the Emperor's holy word or some kind of calling in the church, but such rumors were quickly suppressed by the local Ecclesiarchy.
But one thing was universally acknowledged: Soshian was not an ordinary child; he possessed some innate extraordinary quality.
This quality brought him praise, and also brought him defamation.
And he never explained himself to anyone.
Because he was single-mindedly determined to become an Astartes.
But only Soshian himself knew that he was not truly heartless, for he cried when his parents last saw him off.
He became their pride, yet also disappointed their expectations; as a son, he would forever be unable to fulfill his duties, and as a descendant of a family, he would never be able to fulfill family responsibilities, and the ancient bloodline would likely end here.
Years later, he often thought that this was probably the most important reason why some of his human emotions could remain.
But mortal emotions are a part that must first be abandoned to become an Astartes.
Soshian sighed inwardly at these thoughts; although in principle he should not regret, he never deceived himself.
At this moment, he felt a slight regret.
The other Boys sat in their cushioned seats, firmly strapped in by safety belts, each one staring straight ahead, rigid as ancient statues.
They were trying to grow up, to become the warriors they aspired to be.
Soshian sat in the front row, closest to the door, which meant he was seen as very capable by others.
He knew his talent surpassed most candidates, and he also understood how jealousy could take root in people's hearts; in the academy, he had more than once encountered conflicts arising from jealousy.
Therefore, Soshian always knew to speak and act cautiously, avoiding any of his actions appearing arrogant or proud in the eyes of others.
Suddenly, the transport began to shake, which meant they were breaking free from the atmosphere's embrace.
Soshian composed himself, suppressing his emotions.
Soon, the shaking ceased, and the ready indicator light in the cabin turned red; the Boys looked at each other in confusion.
"Are we there? That was too fast."
A faint whisper said.
With a slow hiss, the ramp of the hatch opened, revealing the Air Port and, beyond it, the planetary orbital station that Soshian had thought he would never see again in this life.
At the same time, three figures appeared outside the hatch.
They were all as tall as giants; as they entered the cabin, each step echoed heavily.
Soshian blinked his eyes, which were aching from the change in air pressure; he could confirm that these were Space Marines, the guardians of humanity, the Emperor's Angels of Death.
Clad in thick power armor, they were over two meters tall, each fist larger than the upper body of the Boys.
The indicator lights dyed the cold plasteel beneath their white robes red; they wore no helmets, but instead surveyed the Boys with indifferent eyes.
The slightly trembling children blinked nervously at these giants, their feigned composure immediately shattering.
Soshian recognized their silver-grey power armor with blue accents, and the emblem of crossed swords pointing upwards on their shoulder pads; in front of the golden eagle emblem on their chests, a long ribbon flowed from their left shoulder to their cuff, and the helmets hanging at their waists bore special spear-shaped markings—this was the Honor Guard of the Astral Knights Chapter.
All the details were quickly captured and etched into his mind; this was the strength he was most proud of.
One of the Space Marines glanced at the data pad in his left hand.
"Soshian Alexey?"
The nineteen Boys all looked at him simultaneously; Soshian did not speak to confirm his identity to them, but the Space Marine still raised his arm and pointed at him.
"You, come with us."
The Space Marine who spoke had a stern face and deep blue eyes, with two service studs embedded in his forehead and a distinct scar at the corner of his mouth.
Much later, Soshian would learn that he was Everich, the Captain of the Seventh Company—which would be his future company.
"What?"
Soshian had a bad feeling, but he still feigned composure.
"You come with us, now."
The Space Marine, with a grim face, walked over to Soshian, tore open his seatbelt, and half-dragged him from his seat; for the first time, he experienced the immense strength of a Space Marine, which left him no possibility of resistance.
Moreover, resistance would be very dangerous in the current situation.
"But we are going to Obsidian Fortress! Please tell me the reason for this!"
For a moment, Soshian finally could not maintain his adult demeanor, yet still insisted with a stubborn tone, but they gave him no chance.
"Obey orders."
Before he finished speaking, cold metal pierced Soshian's neck.
Feeling the chill on his skin, Soshian made no further movement; his consciousness shattered along with his hope, plunging into the abyss of darkness…
"Ugh…"
After an unknown period, with the shaking of his body, Soshian's consciousness briefly revived for a moment.
But he felt very cold, extremely cold, as if he were in an ice cellar.
At the same time, his temples were throbbing, and although he didn't know what that meant, he at least knew he was alive.
Suddenly, a voice came from beside his ear.
"This is a good candidate; his evaluation score is far above the passing parameters. The Chapter Master will want this one."
It was a high-pitched voice with a slight nasal quality.
"We'll only know after he receives the grey marrow."
The other voice was flat and indifferent, accompanied by the clinking of many metal objects on a metal tray.
"Do you think he can endure it?"
The nasal voice spoke again.
"Only one way to find out."
The second voice sounded a little impatient.
"This sample has very high adaptability; compared to the previous dozen, his success rate is the highest. If he still doesn't make it, we might just…"
Gradually, these voices became blurred, like drums on the horizon, seemingly far and near.
A warm liquid was slowly being injected into his body, again shattering his slightly revived consciousness, and he plunged once more into endless dreams.
The future became an unpredictable mist, tightly enveloping him…