Chapter 2799 A Letter from the Atoner
The sudden arrival of the Mantis Warrior surprised Soshyan, but then he remembered that the other party did say that he would come to visit him after the matter with Terra was over, but There was no news from the other party for a long time, so he forgot about it.
So Soshyan received the Chapter who had ended the Atonement Expedition ahead of schedule at the Chapter Monastery Fortress of the Astral Knights. The Mantis Warriors had obviously been replenished, with the number of personnel increased to more than 500, and the battleship The number of ships has increased from three to seven. I don't know if the additional frigates were obtained from the High Lords Council or from other sources.
In addition, the person who leads the Mantis Warriors is not their original Chapter Master, but the Second Captain Metellus who returned from the Maelstrom Expedition. He became the new Chapter Master of the Mantis Warriors. This made Soshyan a little confused.
These doubts were not finally solved until the welcome banquet was over and Soshyan talked with Metellus in private.
"Captain Metellus, oh no, it should be called Chapter Commander Metellus now. You came too suddenly and the reception was not good. Please forgive me."
One of the high-rise towers of the Chapter Monastery On the open platform, Soshyan and Metellus stood behind the parapet, from where they could see the bustling lights of the distant city.
Metellus wore a brand new set of finely crafted power armor, and his temperament was deeper.
“It’s our sudden visit, so I hope it doesn’t cause you any trouble.”
“Nearly ten years have passed since the last time we said goodbye. After leaving Terra, you— —”
Metellus said nothing, but took out a letter and handed it to Soshyan.
Soshyan took it and saw a line of words written on the envelope.
Yours sincerely, Lord of the Astral Knights and Chapter Master Soshyan Alexey.
Opening the seal, there was a piece of lightly folded letter paper inside. Shaking it gently, Soshiyang carefully studied the words on it.
Dear Chapter Master Soshyan Alexei, thank you very much for severely injuring the traitor Huron, assisting the Mantis Warriors to clear their names, and putting an end to the chaos caused by our mistakes. After I was sentenced After being imprisoned for life, I have been thinking about one question, that is, how did everything get to this point? I have sworn loyalty to the throne and the empire to the death. Loyalty and obedience have been engraved in my soul from the moment I served. I am the guardian of the realm of Modrina and Usyca, the leader of the Maelstrom. Watcher, I should have returned to the throne with a clean soul after a glorious death. But I ended up becoming a traitor. I have been thinking, how did I get to this point?
Even the Inquisition believes that my mistake was not caused by hatred and selfish desires, but by being misled, deceived and confused by people with ulterior motives, like an imperial civilian who believed that Chaos could promise wealth, power and honor. Perhaps this shows that I am An unqualified Astartes, weak-willed and dull-minded, allows the brothers of the Chapter to do evil things without knowing it, but this is far from my concern.
Metro Si told me a lot about you, your words and deeds, your style of conduct and your leadership charisma. He admired you very much, especially your wisdom and skills in fighting against the imperial bureaucracy. He firmly believed that you are the most important person for us in this era. The best among them, but even so, I still feel uneasy, no offense, but I finally realized how everything got to this point - it all comes from gullibility, a kind of fall into based on my own knowledge. Blindly credulous, I too believed that Huron was the best among us.
When we were together in private, he often expressed anger and concern about the state of the Empire. When the war on Badab first ignited, Huron told me the burden of saving the Adeptus Astartes. It fell on us, we were the Emperor's last hope. In the end, I chose to trust him unconditionally, and this was the beginning of everything.
Originally I thought that this kind of gullibility would not appear in Metellus, because he is the wisest among us, and he was also the most opposed to joining the Huron's war alliance at first, but now I am in him Seeing my shadow, could it be said that this gullibility is really an overall flaw in the gene-seed of the Mantis Warrior? I am not accusing you of being like Huron, but I cannot help being afraid, which means that I no longer trust anyone. This is also a mistake, a suspicion rooted in the soul, which has enveloped me for too long. I can no longer get rid of it. I can no longer assume the position of Chapter Master. I handed over the position of Chapter Master to Metellus, but I don’t want him to make the same mistake again. After all, if the same mistake happens again, then the Empire Is there still room for a mantis warrior in China? I just hope that all these tragedies will never happen again. Dear Chapter Master Soshyan Alexey, I am extremely grateful for everything you have done for the Empire, for humanity, for the Mantis Warriors, and for me. If you hadn’t extended a helping hand, In the end, I am just a rotting living corpse in a dark dungeon. I may not be able to repay you with anything in this life. Metellus and the Mantis Warriors will become your staunch allies. I hope you will always remember that His light is not It is vague, on the contrary, it is bright, firm, and does not tolerate suspicion and doubt.
I am a sinner, I don't need forgiveness and I don't seek mercy.
May you always shine brightly and be fearless of evil.
——Atonement Mantis, Hessen Neotra
After reading this handwritten letter from the former Mantis Warriors Chapter Master, Soshyan had many thoughts, Asta Most of them have an extremely determined and even stubborn temperament, which can make an Astartes doubt and self-examine like this. It is hard to imagine what Hessen Neotra went through in the dark prison of the Inquisition.
And the words above were like fire, burning Soshiyang's soul. If the other party stood in front of him and asked this question, how could he answer?
He doesn't know.
Doing what you think is right does not necessarily lead to the right result. This fact is often chilling. Soshyan himself cannot guarantee that everything he does now will have a good outcome in the future.
After a moment of silence, Soshyan put away the letter. Metellus didn't know what was written in the letter, but looked at Soshyan's expression and thought it contained something bad, so he explained.
"Hessen has been locked up for too long, coupled with the various humiliating tortures he received from the trial court before, which may have made him..."
Soshiyang waved his hand.
"It doesn't matter, then where did he go after he was released from prison?"
"He insisted on serving in the Death Watch, and we can only respect his wishes."
"The Death Watch also Okay."
Soshiyang nodded slightly.
“No one there will talk about his past, and I hope he can find his own peace in the battle with the aliens. The emperor is tolerant and will forgive his mistakes, although life always One wrong step can lead to abyss, but if there is a chance to reform, I think it is more meaningful than a simple punishment.”