Adjacent to the surgery area was the severe injury monitoring ward.
When Mikhail was brought here, he glimpsed several familiar figures.
They were the brothers who had charged the Warboss with him, and the two warriors severely wounded by the Warboss's Power Claw.
They lay in individual life support pods, their bodies covered in tubes, immersed in a pale green nutrient solution.
The powerful regenerative capabilities brought by the Belisarius Furnace were still at work, and the wounds slowly writhed and healed visibly to the naked eye, but the process was clearly extremely painful.
Aside from the beeping of instruments, the air was filled only with the heavy, suppressed gasps of the injured, filtered by their breathing masks.
To ensure Mikhail could rest and recover better, a medical servitor injected him with a sleep-inducing agent.
Soon, Mikhail fell into a deep slumber.
— —
When Mikhail regained consciousness from the drug-induced coma, he was informed he was to attend a ceremony.
His injuries had stabilized under the superhuman self-healing ability and the Apothecary's superb skill; though still needing recuperation, he was able to move.
Supported by a silent Chapter Servitor, he walked through the cold, solemn corridors of the battleship, arriving at the Sanctum area in the ship's core.
The atmosphere here was completely different from the tense busyness of the medical area.
It was solemn, heavy, filled with the scent of oil, incense, and adamantium coolant.
The light was dim, with only the eternal flames of candles burning before the colossal Emperor's effigy and around the central platform.
At the center of the Sanctum, a massive metal sarcophagus, inscribed with sacred texts and the Chapter's emblem, stood silently; it was a pure black Redeemer Dreadnought.
The Dreadnought's front armor was not yet fully closed, revealing a dazzlingly complex array of neural interfaces and life support conduits within, as well as a large recess for installing the life support sarcophagus.
Around the Dreadnought, a Tech-Priest, assisted by several Adeptus Mechanicus acolytes clad in red robes and chanting binary hymns, was conducting the final mechanical preparations and blessings.
An Apothecary focused on checking the life support interfaces, spraying holy oil and incense onto the sarcophagus.
Placed beside the Dreadnought, connected to a mobile platform with complex life support equipment, was Mikhail's Sergeant — Vasily.
And next to the mobile life support platform was an open life support sarcophagus.
He was a stark contrast to the valiant figure Mikhail had last seen on the battlefield, his body having suffered devastating damage.
Sergeant Vasily's lower body was almost entirely gone, crushed by the Ork Heavy Armor Boss's power weapon; his remaining upper body was covered in horrific lacerations and burns, with multiple comminuted bone fractures and severely damaged internal organs.
Even with the vitality of an Astartes and the miracles of the Belisarius Furnace, such injuries far exceeded the limits of natural regeneration.
His remaining limbs were further amputated to ensure they could fit into the life support sarcophagus.
His face was hidden beneath a breathing mask, but his eyes, once sharp as an eagle's, were now exceptionally bright, burning with an unyielding will and dedication to the Emperor's duty.
Chapter Master Shi Dong was personally present, his towering figure like a moving mountain in the candlelight.
Behind him stood several Captains and Librarian members, all silent.
The Apothecary walked to Vasily's side, leaned down, and spoke in a low, clear voice: "Sergeant Vasily, your body has served the Emperor to its utmost limit.
But your will, your fury, your experience, the Chapter still relies upon.
Are you willing to continue fighting for the Emperor in another form? To become the Chapter's eternal bulwark, a monument for new blood to look up to, within the sacred Dreadnought Sarcophagus?"
A faint exhalation of air escaped Vasily's throat; he could not speak, but his gaze was locked on the Apothecary, and then, with extreme difficulty yet immense resolve, he nodded once.
The light in his eyes was pure, a desire to continue fighting, a promise of duty until death.
"In the name of the Emperor and Dorn, your will shall be done!" the Apothecary proclaimed loudly.
The Tech-Priest and acolytes' binary hymns grew more fervent, like the whispers of mechanical souls.
Under the combined direction of the Apothecary and the Tech-Priest, Chapter Servitors carefully disconnected Vasily from the mobile life support platform, slowly lifting his broken body as if offering the most precious relic, and placing it into the cold, indicator-light-flashing interior of the life support sarcophagus.
Countless hair-thin neural probes and life support conduits extended automatically like living things, piercing into Vasily's pre-arranged neural interfaces and main blood vessels under the precise operation of the Apothecary and the Tech-Priest.
"Neural bundles connected securely… Life signs stable… Secondary power core preheating initiated…" The Tech-Priest's report was exceptionally clear amidst the hymns.
The life support sarcophagus began to close, and simultaneously, two Chapter Servitors lifted the sarcophagus, placing it into the Dreadnought's chest recess under the Tech-Priest's guidance and connecting it to the Dreadnought.
As the Dreadnought activated, its previously open front armor began to close.
At the last moment, just before the armor fully closed, Mikhail seemed to glimpse, through the gap, the Sergeant's burning eyes once more.
Then, with a resounding clang, the heavy adamantium armor locked completely.
The entire Sanctum fell into absolute silence, save for the crackling of burning candles and the low hum of the life support system.
A few seconds later, it was as if an ancient, slumbering giant had awakened.
Boom—!
A low, deep roar, with the texture of grinding metal yet imbued with unmatched power and fury, erupted from within the sarcophagus!
The indicator lights on the sarcophagus's exterior instantly changed from a soft blue (standby) to a blinding blood-red, signifying activation and combat status!
The Dreadnought's massive, heavy-cannon-like arm weapon servo systems emitted a series of heart-pounding calibration hums, and its heavy metal feet subtly adjusted their stance.
"Systems fully activated! Neural link stable! Life signs stable! Praise the omnissiah! Praise the Emperor!" The Tech-Priest's voice held a trace of barely perceptible excitement.
A mechanically synthesized, infinitely amplified voice, yet still recognizably Sergeant Vasily's unique tone, filled with unyielding resolve and battle intent, echoed through the Sanctum like thunder, shaking the soul of every person present: "For the Emperor! To Ash!!"
This was no longer the voice of a mortal; it was an oath forged of steel and fury, the roar of an immortal warrior!
The newly born Dreadnought — Vasily — officially became a living relic of the Ashen Knights Chapter, an eternal war machine.
Mikhail stood among the crowd, his chest surging with inexpressible emotions.
There was profound respect for Sergeant Vasily, deep awe for death and transformation, and, even more, a heavy sense of mission.
He looked down at the black and white Maltese cross insignia on his chest, which had been cleaned and shone anew in the medical pod.
A warrior's life is the Emperor's currency, and the Ash Knights' flame shall never be extinguished, whether among the living or the Dreadnoughts.
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