Warhammer 40k: Melee Warriors

However, Komi still has a way, it just depends on what Demas chooses.

“Listen, Demas,” Komi asked as he approached Demas. “If you want to live now, I have no choice but to have your men integrate you into the warship’s system.”

Integrate into the warship system?

The Iron Warriors wanted to immediately object to Komi's suggestion.

The battleship's system can be described as an ocean of data, in which ancient mechanical spirits traverse.

Every time you delve into the sea of ​​data, it means your soul will be washed away by the massive amount of data. Those who lack talent will have their self-awareness washed away and will eventually become a living part of the data ocean.

By connecting Demas to the warship's systems, Komi essentially tied Demas's life to the entire warship.

Once installed, it cannot be removed.

Even if Demas can withstand the onslaught of data for a while, he can't withstand it forever.

The long silence made people wonder if Demas was already dead in the sarcophagus. Then a hoarse, distorted mechanical voice came through, "If it weren't for you, I might have died down there long ago... Since you think this is feasible, I'm willing to give it a try. I've heard that those Titan pilots often communicate with machine spirits... I'm actually quite curious about that."

"Maybe the warship's machine spirit is quite a handsome fellow."

"Really?" Antoine, who had been lying down, sat up when he heard Komi's joke and asked, his eyes revealing a clear desire to go in and check on Demas.

The Iron Warriors brought over some iron plates, intending to seal Demas's sarcophagus, but Komi stopped them, saying that he might need to have some close contact with Demas.

Demas was welded to the side of the captain's throne, with numerous cables connecting to the back of the sarcophagus and the system.

The most important key was inserted into an interface at the back of Demas's head amidst the slight trembling of the Iron Warrior's fingers.

In an instant, the narrow space of the sarcophagus vanished, and what appeared before Demas was a dark and boundless ocean, with numerous instructions and operating codes accumulated over ancient times becoming hidden reefs beneath its surface.

No matter how many times he let his consciousness dive into the sea of ​​data, Demas would always marvel at the wonders of the machine, his machine spirit weaving through it, asking his purpose in a faint yet cold voice.

[Weapon system...connection failed...Void Shield energy output too high, Geller Field pressure exceeds standard value...recommend leaving warp]

With just a few simple words, Demas was able to see the entire battleship in an instant, and he was pained by the sudden influx of data.

There was no compassionate response to Demas's suffering; the battleship continued to broadcast its status incessantly.

On the bridge, the Steel Warriors, analyzing the data from the sarcophagus, declared, "Demas is about to merge into the data sea; we cannot disconnect!"

“There’s no need to disconnect. Let’s keep it in this state.” Koji clenched his fist, then reached into the stone coffin and firmly gripped Demas’s remains.

This hand, like a stabilizing force, descended from the sky to Demas's side, creating a small island in the terrifying Black Ocean that was enough for him to rest.

Demas struggled to escape the sea of ​​data, and as he lay on the shore, he felt his fading consciousness return, and he was safe for the time being.

"This...how is this possible?!" The Iron Warriors looked at Komi in astonishment; they had witnessed far too many miracles today.

Komi didn't answer, but plopped down on the captain's throne and gave orders.

"Demas... take us to a safe place."

Sparks flew from the cables connected to the back of the sarcophagus, and then Demas's voice echoed throughout the warship via the sound array system.

"Come on, Captain Markus. We'd like you to give this warship a new name."

Koji looked at his hands and said slowly before falling into a deep sleep.

"Let's call her... Fifth Walker, the Fifth Walker battleship."

Demas wouldn't object, but he was still curious about the deeper meaning behind Komi's name.

The only response to Demas was the sound of exhausted snoring, and the soft exclamation of surprise from the machine spirits in the sea of ​​data regarding that small island.

An ancient scent wafted from the island, exceeding the limits of her analytical abilities.

Chapter 158: Antoine's Feeding

Komi opened his eyes and saw Elaine diligently wiping her armor with a clean cloth. He tried to move his body but found it as stiff as a stone.

The slight movement startled Elaine, who was working hard. She looked up and met Komi's eyes. Her face immediately lit up with surprise. "Master Markus, you're finally awake."

"How many days?"

“You have been sleeping on this throne for five months.”

"Five months...nothing happened during that time?"

"No, these days have been quite peaceful. We're adrift in the warp tides, avoiding those dangerous creatures. The Fifth Walker is powerful, but we need time and resources to restore her to her former glory."

The one who answered Komi at this moment was the stone coffin beside his throne. Demas had already established a close connection with the data sea of ​​this behemoth warship, and in a sense, he had become the so-called 'machine soul'.

Komi turned his head and saw that the damaged stone coffin had been repaired. He reached out and touched the handle that had been added to the surface of the stone coffin, asking, "What is this?"

Click.

Turning the handle, the stone coffin quietly opened, revealing Demas's mangled body to Komi.

It seems this handle was left for Komi, so that if Demas ever gets out of control, Komi can easily reach in and choke Demas.

Glug glug...

Komi felt a surge of hunger, and Elaine also heard his roar from beneath his armor, "Antoine was in charge of your meals before, they should be ready by now."

"Antoine? Why Antoine?"

"I...can't get your mouth open."

"Oh..."

Antoine...

Komi pondered the name for a long time before suddenly realizing what it meant.

Antoine? Did Antoine feed me?

He immediately became agitated, grabbing Elaine's shoulders and pulling her close, demanding, "How did Antoine feed me? What did he do to me? Did you just stand by and watch it all happen?"

Elaine was a little dizzy from being shaken, and gently comforted Komi's excited heart and trembling hands, "Antoine was thinking of feeding you by mouth... but I won't let him do those things while you're weak. Now Antoine will only use a tube to feed you some soft liquid food to ensure that you get enough nutrition while you're unconscious."

Oh... a hose.

That's alright.

Komi breathed a sigh of relief and carefully put Elaine down. He had been thinking about Antoine's blushing face the whole time, and he didn't want to die after a good night's sleep.

The hatch opened, and a warm voice called out, "Hey! Elaine, I've brought the food."

It was Antoine's voice. Komi leaned to the side of the throne, tilting his head back and peering back.

Antoine obtained new armor from the warship's armory. This armor, which originally had a simple style full of steel warriors, was also artistically modified by Antoine, with a large number of carvings covering it without affecting the strength of the armor itself.

Whenever Elaine saw the exquisite carvings on Antoine's body that perfectly showcased the art of nudity and sexuality, she would click her tongue and then turn her head away so she wouldn't see any more details.

The art of nudity and sex is full of sinful pleasures, which are far beyond what the beauty of nature can encompass. Even ordinary people who pride themselves on their dissolute lives will question their existence upon seeing these carvings.

Komi's gaze did not linger on Antoine's armor for long. He noticed that the emperor's son had a soft tube in his mouth and seemed quite engrossed in it.

"Antoine... what are you doing?" Komi asked in a deep voice. Antoine, who had just arrived, was taken aback, then became excited and overjoyed, and ran to Komi's side in a few steps.

"Oh my god! Master Markus, you're finally awake! That's wonderful!"

Ignoring Antoine's joyful greeting, Komi pointed to the tube in Antoine's mouth and asked, "What's that tube for?"

In truth, Komi already had the answer in his heart, but he still clung to a sliver of illusion and was unwilling to admit it.

Antoine pulled the tube out of his mouth, which was still damp. The emperor's son, who had always indulged his desires, now looked embarrassed and shy. He looked at Komi awkwardly and replied, "This is the tube I used to feed you... I think you must be hungry, right? I'll feed you now."

After saying that, he was about to bring the water-stained section of the hose to Komi's face. Komi frowned and scrutinized Antoine's face, discovering that beneath the guy's embarrassed expression was anticipation and impatience.

He clenched his fists tightly and gritted his teeth at Antoine.

Demas remained silent, pretending not to know anything, and busied himself with processing the ship's navigation parameters.

Elaine lowered her head, feeling deep regret that she couldn't feed Komi in place of Antoine.

With a slap, Antoine cried out and fell to the side with his hands behind his back.

His voice drew the attention of everyone on the bridge. The busy Iron Warriors and the crew members with their various warp mutations were all curious about what was going on with Antoine's strange calls.

Komi stood up, still unwilling to let Antoine go, and kicked him hard.

Antoine didn't resist, not even bothering to protect his head with his arms. His body trembled under Komi's fierce kicks, and in his excitement, he tightly wrapped the hose around his neck and sucked on one end of the hose.

"You perverted bastard! I shouldn't have saved you in the first place! I should have just watched you get thrown into the demon's womb!" Koji kicked him a few times in a huff, the exhaustion from overworking his body forcing him to sit back on the throne, panting.

Amidst Antoine's whimpering, Elaine handed the bag containing the nutritious porridge to Komi.

Elaine was quite sensible; she simply unscrewed the cap with her hand and did nothing else.

Komi ruffled Elaine's hair as if she were a daughter, then sighed, wondering when Antoine would finally be a little more sensible, instead of making him feel disgusted the moment they met.

The nutritious porridge contained ceramic powder, which made it a bit harsh on the throat when consumed.

After finishing the bag of drinks, Komi felt full and began to seriously inquire about their location and next destination.

Demas answered carefully, giving Komi a full understanding of the current situation.

They were far from Broken Steel Fortress, and Honso and his men did not pursue them, presumably busy cleaning up the mess caused by the war in Broken Steel Fortress and the rebellion of his Skinless soldiers.

The subspace here is filled with pitch-black smoke and dust. The battleship floats in it like a bird plunging into an industrial area dense with chimneys. The huge clumps of smoke and dust are tens of thousands of times larger than the battleship itself, and crimson lightning occasionally surges out from them.

Demas tried to keep the warship away from the clouds of smoke and dust, maneuvering through relatively narrow gaps.

As for the destination... we'll just have to wait for Komi to wake up and give the warships its orders.

Chapter 159: Two Curses? More debts are never a burden.

USS Fifth Walker, a Marauder-class battleship.

The battleship's weapon system had only had its bow torpedo tubes and stern torpedo tubes repaired. The side weapon arrays had been torn apart in ancient battles long ago, and the four sets of carrier-based aircraft launch platforms and the rear-side light lance arrays were also lacking personnel for maintenance.

At the last moment, Demas managed to gather only 150 veteran Iron Warriors; the rest were almost entirely wiped out by other warbands and traitorous warriors besieging Broken Steel Fortress.

Leaving the Shattered Steel Fortress was far too hasty; the lack of personnel and supplies was unsettling.

The warehouse was mostly filled with steel alloys used to repair ship damage, and according to Demas's precise calculations, not a single pound was wasted.

The human slaves and machine servants who were originally working hard under the supervision of the Iron Warriors took on more work. It was the tireless labor of these 30,000 people that allowed the warship to continue drifting in the warp. But this situation would not last long, as the rate at which the laborers died and were injured had exceeded their reproductive capacity.

Now they need to find a safe place to get some supplies, preferably to fill the battleships’ empty warehouses and capture a large number of slaves.

Amidst the bad news, there was some good news that could comfort Komi: Demas had previously put in considerable effort to repair the Fifth Walker.