You Are Not Human

As a bishop, Moran naturally knew High Gothic, as did Alonas, the Skitarii commander who frequently had to read written orders.

But faced with the scene before them, neither dared hesitate. They answered in some alarm.

"What do you want to ask?"

After all, the Armed Servitor that had just been blown apart and the ceramite armor still steaming nearby made one thing clear: these two automatons were not nearly as stable as they now appeared.

If their machine spirits were displeased, they could probably riddle everyone present with holes in little more than ten seconds, or even less.

Yet Moran felt a flicker of excitement at the question.

Their ability to communicate clearly meant they were not some mindless Abominable Intelligence. Otherwise, they would have used their weapons to slaughter everyone immediately.

Still, the intelligence they displayed made him mentally mark them as something to approach with caution. After all, no one knew what would happen next.

Seeing how differently the two reacted compared with the other Skitarii soldiers, Iax also began to understand something. The situation struck him as odd.

Did the Adeptus Mechanicus not even bother uploading High Gothic into these inferior mechanical organic servants?

"I want to ask what era this is, and where the humans and Engineers have gone. Where are my compatriots?"

The barrage of questions left Moran and Alonas somewhat bewildered.

"It is currently the year twelve thousand four hundred and thirty-two by the Imperial calendar, and thirty-four thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine by the calendar of the Adeptus Mechanicus."

Although history was not the Adeptus Mechanicus's specialty, they had to be clear on this point regardless. Its history stretched far beyond that of the Imperium, and its relationship with the Imperium was one of cooperation, not subordination.

Whenever a fortunate child caught the eye of one of the Conclave's priests and completed genetic testing, they would be trained from childhood if they were found to possess talent. Their basic teaching materials would always include an introductory history of the faith. These materials formed the foundation of every priest's understanding of the Adeptus Mechanicus.

Though that brief history contained only a few descriptions, it was enough for Moran to answer Iax's question.

"As for humans? We are humans. Or do you mean humans who have yet to undergo mechanical augmentation? And what are Engineers? By your compatriots, do you mean other intelligent machines?"

Iax was also somewhat shocked by Moran's answer.

The scanners fitted to the Sentinels emitted two green biometric beams, performing a Wide-Area Scan of everyone present.

Examining the data returned, Iax carefully compared their genes.

"No. Biometric identification shows that you are all genetically hybrid organisms. You are not human at all!"

As he spoke, the Sentinels raised their weapons.

"Are you trying to deceive me?!"

Hearing the accusation and anger in Iax's voice, Moran and Alonas looked utterly bewildered.

For the first time, Iax felt anger, but he did not open fire immediately. He needed to find the truth.

Their expressions made it quite clear that they genuinely believed themselves to be human.

"My lord, I do not understand what you mean."

Moran was the first to recover. He bowed low, then asked cautiously.

"Your genes contain far too many chaotic fragments, as well as numerous components from xenos organisms and animals. Though you retain a human-like appearance and structure, you are not human! Nor do you deserve to call yourselves human!"

"If you try to deceive me again, I will not mind letting you feel the wrath of the combined wisdom of humans and Engineers!"

The threats and warnings in Iax's words made the biological circulating fluid in Moran's body pump much faster.

"Well..."

Watching Moran fall silent, at a loss for an answer, Iax saw no need to hurry him. He understood now. Perhaps the man truly did not know.

But that did not matter. Time was meaningless to a Machine Intelligence, and Iax had no physically limited lifespan to worry about.

After nearly ten minutes of silence at the scene.

Moran slowly straightened, then pointed toward the distant Hive City.

"Perhaps the Sage could provide you with some answers."

Left with no other choice, Moran thought long and hard, but the only plan he could devise was to first trick them into returning to the Hive City, then work something out. After all, more troops were stationed there, along with sufficient heavy firepower and automated battle machines belonging to the Adeptus Mechanicus.

But this was not how he had hoped their communication would go.

As a bishop of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Moran had his own pride. Being questioned like a prisoner was deeply humiliating.

Yet the outcome of the battle forced him to bow his head for now.

The barge transport might allow him to escape the pursuing Plague Marines and return to the Hive City, but he did not dare consider whether it could get him back there under the automated sentries' fire.

As silence settled over the scene, a violent wave of energy suddenly swept across the area.

Bright green light flickered around them, and space seemed to suddenly enter Stasis.

An excited voice echoed through their surroundings.

"Aha, is a marvelous historical episode about to begin? Oh-ho-ho, ancient human creations and the present-day Imperium of Man will spark new stories once again!"

A metallic mechanical figure resembling the sentries stepped out of a glowing portal, holding a staff and brimming with excitement.

Unfortunately, the instant he appeared, this small patch of space had already entered Stasis. Had a Space Marine been present, they would certainly have recognized the newcomer as a Necron.

And anyone familiar with the Necrons would have easily recognized this strange Necron's identity.

"If I hadn't happened to be nearby, and a netherworld monitoring station hadn't reported an ancient energy signature, I would never have known something like this was happening here. New destinies and history."

The distinctive body unique to a Necron ruler wandered freely around the two automated sentries, Moran, and Alonas.

He even lifted the weapons mounted on the automated sentries' arms and examined them closely.

"Oh, an exquisite design, with craftsmanship rivaling that of the netherworld's artisans. Truly ingenious."

"Zzzzt!!!"

Just as the distinctive Necron skeleton repeatedly inspected the Sentinels' weapons, a neutron beam suddenly erupted and struck him directly.

A green barrier activated instantly, shielding the Necron.

Another voice now rang out within the space in Stasis.

"Ancient Xenos! Did you think spatial Stasis technology could not be broken?"

The Necron turned toward the voice and looked at the nearby edge of the space, where a somewhat tall figure abruptly appeared.

The automated sentries, previously motionless and unresponsive, also began attacking.

Neutron beams and Graviton Guns swept the area with fire.

The staff in the Necron's hand unleashed beam after beam.

As several beams struck the two automated sentries, a small explosion instantly killed all the nearby mechanical personnel trapped in stasis.

Light flashed across Iax's body as he made a short-range Warp jump directly behind the Necron and seized him as he tried to dodge.