I summoned the Fourth Scourge in Warhammer

Chapter 176 The Guardians are Mechanicus Priests of the Astronautical Army

This is a beautiful planet. From orbit, it looks like a polished sapphire, with vast oceans covering most of its surface. Emerald-like landmasses are surrounded by azure waters, scattered like precious pieces on a divine chessboard.

However, as the view zooms in on the land, this natural tranquility is completely shattered by the incessant roar of machinery and the acrid fumes. On one of the largest islands, scattered here and there are some crudely constructed dwellings made of prefabricated panels and metal scaffolding. Moving in and out of these makeshift buildings are mostly Skitali soldiers, clad in red robes and heavily mechanized, numbering around a hundred.

This small Mechanicus exploration team, led by Mechanicus Priest Taron Wick, was responsible for exploring the geology and biological environment of the newly discovered planet and compiling the data into a report.

“Nine standard Terra years, six months, thirteen days, and four hours remain until the Imperial Navy arrives for the handover.” In his simple personal room, Wick murmured in binary prayer while calibrating a timer, “May the Archon Om Messiah protect us and not let them arrive too early. The environment here is excellent, and the data flow is stable. I am willing to dedicate a few more days here to this sacred cause of exploration.”

Just then, the implanted chip in Wick's head suddenly received a communication request. He found it very strange; his logic engine raced, but he couldn't find a reasonable explanation: "Other Imperial ships are actually passing through this desolate star field?"

He answered the call. A processed electronic voice, also belonging to the cyborg priest, spoke: "Excuse me, is this Tyron Primus?"

“No, my name is Taren Wick…” Wick paused halfway through his sentence before realizing the question was asking for the name of the planet. He tapped his head with his mechanical arm. “Uh, logical fallacy. If you’re referring to a planet, then yes, this is Tyren Primus.”

“Great, Father Taren Wick,” the other person’s joy almost overflowed the communication channel, “We’re here to support you. Please note that our ship is about to land.”

“Support? But…” Before Wick could express his doubts, the other party cut off the communication, clearly impatient.

He could only mutter to himself in the silent room, "What kind of support does a geological exploration mission need? If it really needs support, why not go support the alien war in Damocles Bay?"

Despite his doubts, he still got up and prepared to leave the room to greet his colleagues. He had expected to see a few Valkyrie transport planes, or at most a few Thunderhawk gunships. However, when he stepped out of the camp, a massive shadow almost covered the entire island. Wick's optical sensors instantly zoomed in to their limit, data racing through his mind.

"Length... at least 1.5 kilometers... a frigate?!"

"There are no facilities for anchoring on this island... Wait, they're going to anchor right on land?! Oh Messiah, aren't they planning to set sail again?!"

Amid Wick's exclamation and a deafening roar that shook the earth, the frigate made a forced landing on the island, its massive hull nearly crushing the exploration team's camp. Several enormous hatches eagerly opened as soon as the ship came to a stop, but instead of Skitali, the first to emerge were a large number of Imperial Guard soldiers clad in full black armor.

"The Astral Army?" Wickton sensed something was wrong, but he still stood there, bracing himself for the worst, waiting for the "colleague" he had been communicating with.

Instead of his colleagues, they were greeted by the commander of this Astral Army unit. The commander strode over, removed his helmet to reveal a young but composed face, and extended his hand in a friendly manner: "Hello, Father Taren Wick. You can call me [JK]."

“Hello.” Wick shook hands with the other person using his mechanical hand. “Excuse me, are you sure you’ve come to the right planet? There are no aliens here… if you count the native amphibians.” “If there isn’t another Tyron Primus on the eastern edge of the galaxy, then we’ve definitely come to the right place.” JK said, taking out a data panel. “You’ve been exploring this place for a while, so you should have some knowledge of the surrounding terrain, right?”

“The data is complete. I’ll transfer it to you.” Wick asked uneasily as he operated the system, “What exactly is your mission objective here?”

“If nothing unexpected happens, you’ll see it for yourself soon,” JK said meaningfully. He was about to turn around and take command of the troops when he was interrupted by seeing three figures, also dressed in red robes, disembarking from the ship.

JK rushed over, trying to stop them: "Wait, you three, we haven't confirmed that the external environment is absolutely safe yet..."

"Go away," the one in front shoved him aside impatiently, "Don't worry about those bullshit safety rules in the game."

“Yes, Ping is right,” another red-robed figure chimed in. “Don’t worry about all that. What I hate most are all those miscellaneous restrictions! This place is like God’s paradise to me. I can do research however I want! If I have to follow the rules here, then what’s the point of coming here?”

The last one simply shrugged, said nothing, and quickly caught up with the first two.

JK looked angrily at the two men who had just emerged from the cabin to face their deaths: "Lang! Gregory! Didn't we agree that you two would stop them?"

Gregory spread his hands helplessly: "Why do you think the two of us can stop them...?"

Lang added, "After Professor Bonnie underwent a mad scientist-like transformation, he could take on a hundred of me."

JK felt powerless, knowing that what the two said was true. Moreover, even if he could beat them, he couldn't touch any of these three masters. It would be strange if he could stop them.

He finally just sighed heavily and said, "Alright, let's discuss building up our position..."

Meanwhile, Taron Wick felt increasingly uneasy.

This so-called "support force" was not there for planetary exploration at all, and they made no attempt to conceal it. The moment they disembarked, they began constructing fortifications on the spot, and Wick could clearly see that the prefabricated components and weapon pedestals were not temporary; they were intended to create a permanent fortress.

Furthermore, Wick noticed that these three Mechapriests were not accompanied by any Guardians! Yet the Astraklans, who were theoretically unrelated to the Mechach Church, treated them with great respect... This was truly strange; the Mechapriests' guards were not the Skitali, but the Astraklans?
(End of this chapter)