[h2][Center]???. Closest inhabited celestial body: Pentious.[/Center][/h2]

With the Warp Drive of code name 'Blood Labyrinth' having been successfully detonated, Rik had lead the expedition back to their landing shuttle for resupply and extraction. Blessed ammunition had been spent, cleansing and maintenance rituals were badly needed, but in truth the most vital of supplies that needed to be replenished were also the most basic for life: Air, Water, Food. 

Since none of those keystones of human life that were somehow on the Space Hulk could be [i]trusted[/i] in any capacity outside of the most tragic and dire of situations, the various expeditions had needed to bring their own supplies of all three. A logistical challenge to be sure, but one that the children of Pentious and heirs of distant Mars were more then equipped to face. However, no matter how gifted the logistical minds planning the campaign, there was only so much room within each individual shuttle to carry the supplies needed to keep its cargo alive. 

Every expedition had a time limit in which if it didn't return to Pentious, it was going to perish. The exact number could be drawn out and flex with changing circumstance, but there was always a point where the supplies ran out. The overwhelming success of Rik's expedition, ironically enough, ensured that they needed to go back planet side sooner then later. The limited casualties meant that the drain on resources hadn't decreased by any meaningful amount.          

So they had loaded up and began the four day journey back to Pentious. 

It was on Day Two that the situation on Pentious started to change.

[center]..........................................................[/center]

"[color=0072bc][Professional and restrained, but emotionally charged.] Myrmidax Uixien, this is Magos GC-118. Respond.[/color]"

Rik couldn't help but allow some degree of concern to linger in his mind as he moved towards the shuttle's long range vox caster. While he suspected that his partner had been worried for his well being since he had departed for operations in one of the most uncertain and dangerous sections of the Space Hulk, he knew her well enough to know that she wouldn't have been using a long ranged vox like this just to silence her doubts and ensure that he was okay; Both of them liked to keep their relationship out of the public eye. If she was reaching out like this...

"[color=9e0b0f]This is Myrmidax Uixien. The mission was a success. What situation requires our attention?[/color]"

Despite the power and range of the Vox Units in use, the distance meant that there was a delay of a couple of seconds. Encryption and Decryption added a few extra seconds. But the response did come.

"[color=0054a6][Professional, but nervous.] There has been a development at Forge Delta. Magos Dak Virellan and Head Enginseer Dorox Xixos, alongside a number of their subordinates, have perished in what, on the surface, appears to be a tragic accident.[/color]"

Rik was quiet as he processed that statement. He had personally appointed Magos Virellan and Head Engineer Xixos to oversee the purification and restoration of Forge Delta in his absence. Both of them had been the best candidate for the job and their sudden loss was going to set things back considerably. Lacyraemarta Volkov was almost certainly going to be frustrated due to the sudden death of one of their more successful students in Virellan; At least they had themselves to fall back on for support. 

However, that wasn't the priority of GC's statement. "[color=9e0b0f]An apparent tragic accident?[/color]" He asked, seeking clarification. 

"[color=0054a6][Disbelieving tone]'Apparently', Generator-Y536K1 suffered a series of catastrophic failures and detonated, taking Magos Virellan, Head Engineer Xixos and a number of subordinates with it.[/color]" 

Rik had been tempted to interrupt her partner with a rather base 'That isn't possible' the moment she had spoke of the Generator-Y536K1 suffering a catastrophic failure, let alone several, but he had squashed the impulse. After all, she had clearly come to the same conclusion that he had. Generator-Y536K1 was a Anyanwu-class generator; It was designed to be as stable and 'idiot-proof' as a power generator could physically be. It didn't produce the most power for a generator of its size, but its stability and calm temperament made it next to impossible for it to suffer catastrophic level failures. It had suffered abuse and neglect from orkish hands for [i]decades[/i] and all it had required to be restored to perfect working order was a few replacement parts and a basic data cleansing ritual. 

They had still given it a full inspection and proper deep dive examination because it was better to be safe then sorry, but that had been done shortly after they had retaken the Forge. Even if something had been [i]missed[/i], between its fail safes and fundamental design, if something was seriously wrong with Generator-Y536K1 it wouldn't have been hiding its pain until the point of critical failure. 

The only way Generator-Y536K1 would have detonated like this was if it had been [i]made[/i] to detonate.              

"[color=9e0b0f]Any recorded evidence of what happened?[/color]" 

"[color=0054a6]Frustrated sigh]No. Surviving recording devices of the area around the time are proving [i]difficult[/i] to locate. It would seem the blast has consumed them. Attempts to find the stored recordings themselves has also proven difficult. Cybernetica Syncwarden has taken over that aspect of the investigation and believes that the explosion caused an EMP effect that has wiped a number of data bases.[/color]"

Rik suppressed a sigh. Cybernetica Syncwarden's unpredictability and wandering mind if regards to projects made them difficult to work with at the best of times, outright frustrating to get to focus on the matter at hand at worst... but he didn't doubt their ability with communicating with machine spirits and searching the noosphere; If they couldn't find any traces of any stored recording data, there was likely none to be found. 

"[color=0054a6][Additional Sigh]It gets worse. Macrotek Omnicron has flooded Forge Delta with their subordinates in wake of the disaster. Their personal student Magos Mu Vladimus has been put in overall command of restoration. Malagra Flux has also mobilized their forces in the Prefecture Magisterium, focusing their attention on those who survived the destruction for signs of heresy and negligence.[/color]"

This required the suppression of a wince from Rik. Omnicron and Flux were natural allies on the Council of Pentious due to their shared Fundamentalism. This strict adherence to the Rules and Strictures placed down by Mars had caused... some degree of strife to existence between himself and them. The fact that an impossible 'accident' had just given them both the perfect excuse to expand their influence on Forge Delta and Pentious as a whole while diminishing that of himself and Lacyraemarta Volkov...

"[color=9e0b0f]I'll be back planet side within two days. Do what you can to try and find out what happened, but don't directly get in the way of the Prefecture Magisterium and their duties.[/color]" Rik paused... before adding softly in a somewhat comforting tone "[color=9e0b0f]We'll work this all out.[/color]"