The Astral Express traveled through the boundless sea of stars, weaving routes that connected different worlds and civilizations.
Following the train's path, the Primarchs journeyed from frozen Jarilo to the magnificent Luofu of the Xianzhou Alliance, then onward to other bizarre worlds where dangers and opportunities coexisted.
Over the long journey, the adventures and crises they had faced together steadily deepened the bond between the Primarchs and the Express crew.
Under the warm lights of the observation car, they would occasionally tell stories of a distant realm—a vast, dark, and cruel Imperium of Man, struggling amid despair and fighting endless wars against xenos, heretics, and Chaos.
They concealed their true identities as they spoke of the Emperor's great deeds, the conflicts among the Primarchs, the loyalty and sacrifice of the Adeptus Astartes, and the Warp's whispers that shrouded all things.
Himeko held a cup of coffee, her gaze profound.
She could hear the heavy truth and weathered sorrow behind those stories. They were certainly not idle fabrications from travelers passing the time.
The details and emotions within those accounts carried a weight that only those who had lived through them could possess.
Welt Yang adjusted his glasses and listened in silence.
He came from a world that had suffered immense catastrophes as well, so he understood all too well the resilience required to seek hope in the depths of despair.
He had also vaguely sensed the extraordinary qualities of these "travelers." It was not merely their immense power, but a presence forged and tempered through endless wars.
And Stelle, this special Stellaron vessel, was like a walking magnet for Paths.
As she continued blazing trails and resolving one Stellaron crisis after another, the Path powers gathering around her became increasingly complex and increasingly powerful.
Destruction, Preservation, The Hunt, Abundance... and