Once both parties heard each other's words, they instantly realized a misunderstanding had occurred.
After the initial shock, they both grasped the underlying logic:
The surging psychic storm, although it caused no tangible harm, had left remnants in the Materium that wouldn't simply vanish in the short term. They felt like an imperceptible background noise, not only interfering with communication but even cutting off most signals.
It was as if this prison had suddenly fallen into a thin, non-destructive micro-Warp Storm.
Calgar was certainly baffled. It was one thing for him to deliberately breach security in a heavily fortified area; let's assume he had confidence in the equipment. What mattered was that he and the main force were still here—how did a Daemon Primarch make an entrance?
As long as it wasn't a Traitor Primarch or a Greater Daemon, if Abaddon showed up today, he would have to take at least two plates of armor off him.
Blythe, meanwhile, had just been chatting with Amilia moments before encountering the "enemy attack." The timing of checking the communications coincided perfectly with the "enemy attack," leading him to reasonably conclude it was enemy interference.
Of course, despite clarifying the logic, they still maintained a necessary vigilance.
After going through a complex identity verification process that included various tokens, the two sides confirmed their identities amidst this tense atmosphere.
Once Calgar and Blythe had cleared up what had happened through simple exchanges, Calgar nodded to Blythe, turned, and strode up to Zhang Ge. Lifting his huge Power Fist, he pointed at Zhang Ge's sword and asked, "What is the name of this sword?"
"Ascalon."
Upon hearing this extremely unfamiliar word, even Calgar fell into contemplation.
This was not a moniker like the "Sword of the Emperor"; it was the true name of the blade, and he could feel the power contained within it.
He rifled through every book and each piece of wisdom he had encountered, but there was no trace of relevant information.
If he himself was unaware of the origin of this word, it was no wonder that the Victrix Honour Guard had sent such vague messages.
This ancient and mysterious thing, residing within an ordinary person, could only mean one thing—its host possessed certain qualities that even they could not fathom.
Coincidence wouldn't occur in matters like this.
In an instant, Calgar found himself wanting to summon a fast ship to take this person to the Primarch. After that, the Primarch would make a determination. But the next moment, he dismissed that thought.
Even if he could break through the Chaos Fleet and the remnants of the Ork ships' blockade, navigating through the Warp was too dangerous and uncertain. If such a mysterious object were to be lost in the Warp, he would have committed sins too great to atone for, even if he had ten of himself.
But he could not withdraw his fleet just for this individual. If it were an ordinary planet, that would have been fine, but the one beneath his feet was under the direct command of the Primarch to be held at all costs. Even without that order, Calgar would have fought tooth and nail to defend it; it was simply too important for the Imperium.
If it fell, the impact would be no less than the shattering of Cadia.
Caught in this dilemma, Calgar's astounding intellect reached its peak, and in a flash, an idea ignited within him:
Of course, the Primarch.
Since the great Primarch could foresee his resurrection a thousand years hence and tasked Belisarius Cawl to forge a life-sustaining suit of armor, why should he not anticipate the current situation?
The sole reason for not disclosing any information to Calgar was that he did not need to know it. In other words, if Calgar were to learn this and act upon it, it could very well jeopardize the grand plan of the Primarch.
With this thought, Calgar and Blythe, despite originating from different starting points and essentially having nothing in common apart from their end goal, both made the same decision:
To not intervene for now.
Or rather, they believed their non-intervention was part of the plan of some great existence.
It was no longer something to dismiss as impossible—Calgar had experienced this firsthand, and it left a profound impression on him.
Because it had occurred during the Primarch's awakening.
As a Primarch, there was no doubt that the 13th Company—at least its Captain—was the most cherished, and why should Calgar know less than Cawl, an outsider? Why hadn't the Primarch imparted any relevant information to the Ultramarines about this?
Of course, it was because his obstruction of the awakening ritual fell within the confines of the grand design devised by the Primarch's intellect, spanning a millennium.
Just because Calgar had interfered, the Primarch's awakening was slightly delayed, luring the enemy deeper into their trap for the Primarch to tear apart over a hundred elite Chaos Terminators upon awakening.
Even though he himself had been pinned to the ground by a group of Black Legion Space Marines and misidentified by the Primarch as merely some passing Space Marine, it could be said that he had made a significant contribution to this thousand-year strategem against the hundred elite Chaos Terminators—at least that's what he believed.
And why couldn't this be another of the Primarch's plans?
He looked at the "short" Zhang Ge, who barely reached his waist, and continued, "Ascalon is a fine sword. Since it has chosen you and passed the scrutiny, take good care of it."
Zhang Ge saw through this statement at a glance.
Even Calgar couldn't identify what this thing was, so he said so.
Otherwise, had he known it could be older than his own genetic forefather, Calgar would certainly not have been so indifferent. He regarded even the desks and furniture used by the Primarch a millennium ago as sacred artifacts and felt immense regret at using them after the Primarch's awakening.
But for Zhang Ge, the trouble wasn't about this little detail of deception; it was that such a statement undoubtedly added a layer of legitimacy to Ascalon.
If he ever faced the Inquisition, Zhang Ge would undoubtedly have to divulge that Calgar had seen this and deemed it acceptable. If the Inquisition insisted on pursuing him regardless, then it could at least be considered reasonable death; otherwise, if someone stood up and intentionally didn't mention it, they might be seen as purposely seeking demise.
He could only hope that the old Inquisitor would be lenient.
With the situation evolving like this, even Zhang Ge found himself beginning to doubt the so-called scrutiny he had placed his hopes upon for so long.
Fortunately, he still had the opportunity to return to the battlefield. In five days, he would find himself once more amidst the flames of war, and while the Astra Militarum Colonel was indeed somewhat obstructive, in the grand scheme of things, it was merely a slight hindrance; such a scale of war meant that he was, at most, a high-value consumable.
He still had hope.
And as if to validate this sentiment, Calgar's voice continued to resonate:
"Additionally, in discussions with Sister Blythe, I've found a mission that matches your current situation."
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