The Talon System.
Construction of the orbital defensive ring proceeded as planned.
Today, however, Qin Mo set aside his research to dedicate a day to converse with Vanessa.
Vanessa's eyes gleamed with a golden light, a clear sign that the presence before Qin Mo was not merely a young girl but a faint fragment of the Emperor's will emanating from the Golden Throne.
"Was the warning from that psyker aboard Northern Bastion One instigated by you?" Qin Mo inquired. "What exactly is going on here?"
"It was proposed by a friendlier aspect of my consciousness," Vanessa replied, shaking her head. "But I don't know much beyond that. You must understand, my will is fragmented. What you see before you is merely a tiny stream in an endless ocean of thought."
Qin Mo sighed in resignation. "Then why couldn't that friendlier aspect embody her?"
"Because that aspect is so potent it could foresee the future of the Talon Sector. If it took over, this girl's body would be consumed in an instant, reduced to ash by psychic flames."
Through their conversation, Qin Mo gradually unraveled the enigma of Vanessa.
First, Vanessa possessed extraordinary gifts—her tolerance for the Emperor's psychic presence far surpassed that of ordinary humans. Yet, even the greatest talents had limits. The Emperor's will now conversing with him was but a faint ember, powerless to do more than observe. Yet, it was also the most human-like facet of His fractured consciousness.
It spoke volumes about the torment the Emperor had endured over millennia, bound to the Golden Throne and sustained by faith twisted into chains.
"If Guilliman has been revived and he travels to Terra to meet you, what will you say to him about me?" Qin Mo pressed.
"Allow me to speculate," Vanessa said thoughtfully. "I might tell him you are a second Ullanor, a foe so perilous you must be destroyed. Or perhaps that you are an ancient adversary with insidious intent. Conversely, I might declare you his ally, one he must join forces with... He will hear a chorus of voices, each proclaiming a different truth."
Qin Mo was reminded of the scene when Guilliman met the Emperor on Terra. For the Primarch, the encounter was akin to enduring torment. The Emperor's fragmented voices named him tool, traitor, master of the Thirteenth Legion… some even chastised him for his nation-within-a-nation schemes or for failing to arrive in time during Horus' siege of the Imperial Palace—failures that condemned the Emperor to the Throne.
"So, it's possible that once he meets the Emperor, he'll see me as an enemy," Qin Mo muttered grimly. "I only want humanity to escape its quagmire, to stop feeding the Warp with every misstep. Be it through the Webway or dimension engines... Is it so hard to do a little good in this universe?"
Silence followed.
Perhaps the faint humanity in the Emperor's will sympathized with Qin Mo's frustration, or perhaps there were no words to be said.
After a minute, the voice returned.
"My son has awakened. He is coming to you. I can sense it."
"What?"
Qin Mo was stunned. He had thought Guilliman's revival would be delayed—surely Cawl couldn't have acted so swiftly amidst the chaos of Macragge. Yet it was clear that the Archmagos' obsession with his millennia-long endeavor had borne fruit far sooner than expected.
Qin Mo paced the room, contemplating why Guilliman would journey to him before heading to Terra.
It must be the dimension engines.
Guilliman wouldn't travel alone on Cawl's prototype ship to Terra, nor would he appear unannounced before the High Lords. He would need an Ultramarine fleet to cement his identity and authority.
Though the galaxy's situation had improved since Cadia stood firm, countless crises still demanded Guilliman's attention. He had to reach Terra swiftly to proclaim his return, then move to address other matters. The dimension engines were critical.
But that wasn't the only reason.
Guilliman might be coming to gauge Qin Mo's intentions, or perhaps to pacify the tension between the Talon Sector and the Inquisition.
Regardless, Guilliman was a Primarch—possessing unparalleled authority within both the Ecclesiarchy and the Imperium.
"He is a rational thinker, a rare and reasonable man," Qin Mo declared, turning to Vanessa and the will within her. "I will welcome him with the highest honors."
---
Two weeks later, seventy light-years from the Talon Sector...
The *King of Explorers* drifted alone in the void. Guilliman stood on the bridge, reflecting on the peculiar sensations of the Warp transit.
"Prepare for the next jump in three minutes," a broadcast echoed through the ship.
Then, Greyfax's voice cut through the comms.
"You should not be venturing into the Talon Sector alone. If they harbor ill intent, we may not escape."
Guilliman responded with silence.
His decision to come without a full Chapter was based on certainty—there was no danger here.
Had the Talon Sector not aided Cadia, armed an honorable warband, and sent fleets to assist Baal, his safety might indeed have been questionable.
"My ship's engine is an early prototype," Cawl interjected as he approached. "This journey will take another week."
"Are there others in the Imperium who use dimension engines as you do?" Guilliman asked.
"Plenty," Cawl replied. "To my knowledge, at least twenty-one Navigator family heads utilize them. Two Lord Inquisitors rely on them for transit to and from Terra, and three High Lords even use them for vacations."
The revelation failed to please Guilliman.
High Lords, Navigators, Inquisitors—all used the very technology they vehemently opposed. This only proved their hypocrisy; they knew the engines worked but rejected them out of self-interest.
A crew member entered the bridge and reported to Cawl, "The engine is fully charged but cannot activate due to interference from force fields."
Cawl's experience with the engines allowed him to deduce the issue immediately. If numerous ships with dimension engines attempted to open Warp rifts simultaneously in one system, it would cause such interference.
Guilliman glanced out the viewport.
The cold, unyielding void was torn open by a massive rift, through which nearly a thousand vessels emerged. As they entered realspace, their forms shifted into tangible, immense warships.
These were Talon Navy vessels, and their sheer size left Guilliman awestruck.
"This is the Talon Navy," a voice broke through the *King of Explorers'* comm channel. The deep tones belonged to Admiral Adam.
"The stellar engine has activated the dimensional beacon. Please engage your engine and join us on the journey."
"I, on behalf of the fleet and the Lord of Talon, extend a warm welcome to the Sage and the Primarch."