hh2节译：解救Melkeji

Before the Great Crusade, humanity was a broken race scattered across the galaxy at the mercy of its own weaknesses and the predations of other creatures which lurked amongst the unkind stars. Melkeji was one such fragment of humanity: a world on the trailing edge of the galactic rim which had retained many of the technological marvels of the lost Golden Age. Star docks ringed its orbit and moons, and electric light bathed its cities which rose in metal and stone from plains, mountains and blue sea shores. Winged craft skimmed its atmosphere, while gene grafts and bio-cleansing technologies allowed much of its population to live for many centuries. On the surface Melkeji was a jewel of light still burning in the night, but darkness coiled at the heart of this perfect realm.

人类在大远征之前是一个散落于银河间的破碎种族，他们任由自己的软弱摆布，遭受着冷酷群星间其他贪婪生物的猎捕。Melkeji就是这样一个人类文明的碎片：这个世界位于银河系缓慢旋转的悬臂边缘，保留了大量失落的黄金时代的技术奇迹。星球轨道和卫星上环绕着星港，平原上、群山中和蓝色的海岸边矗立着用金属和岩石搭建的城市沐浴在电力照明的光辉之中。有翼的飞行器从高空中掠过，而基因工程和生理净化技术允许大多数人口存活数个世纪之久。表面上Melkeji依旧是夜空中熠熠生辉的璀璨珠宝，但实际上黑暗盘踞在这片完美国度的核心区域。

A parasitic alien race held control over Melkeji. Accounts describe these creatures as clouds of shattered black crystal when glimpsed without their hosts. Unable to exist outside of a biological sentient host, these nameless creatures ruled Melkeji through a class referred to as the Ascended. Wearing the faces of human men and women, the Ascended ran their domain with a single purpose guiding their every action: the maintenance of a pool of future hosts. The Ascended hosts lasted little more than a year before they withered and died. When this happened, a new host would be drawn from the population at random. The chosen host would be fated, their every whim provided for until the moment when the creature took them. This had been the way for so long that to the humans of Melkeji it had become a sacred rite: their flesh offered up to renew their eternal rulers. Such was the Melkeji world's ingrained devotion to their parasitic masters, that when the Great Crusade found them, they rose up to resist the invaders who sought to free them.

某种寄生外星种族控制着Melkeji。报告描述称这种生物在没有宿主时看起来就如同一团破碎的黑色水晶所构成的云团。这种无名的生物离开具有生物感知力的宿主就无法生存，它们通过一个被称为降临者的阶级统治着Melkeji。降临者们披着人类的外皮，他们统治着这片国度，而他们行动的目标只有一个：维持未来宿主的储备资源。降临者宿主们只能存活不到一年的时间，之后他们就会变得枯槁并死亡。当这种情况发生时，一位新的宿主就要被从当地人口中随机选出。被选中的宿主将会是命中注定的，他们会被提供各种幻觉，直到这些生物带走他们的那一刻。这种情况已经极为长久了，以至于对Melkeji上的人类而言这已经成为了一个神圣的仪式：他们献上自己血肉，用于延续自己永恒的统治者们的寿命。Melkeji世界人民对于寄生体主子们的献祭是如此的根深蒂固，以至于当大远征的部队发现他们时，他们起来对抗这些试图解放他们的“入侵者”。

First contact with Melkeji was made by a small Expeditionary fleet under the command of Grand Marshal Kulth. After encountering heavy resistance, the fleet withdrew with a small number of human captives. From these captives the nature of the Melkeji's enslavement became clear. Knowing that he could not capture the planet, Kulth sent a message into the Ether asking for aid. When that aid came, it was more than Kulth could have dared to hope for. Lorgar himself came to Melkeji with eight full chapters of his Legion. Having talked to the captives in person, Lord Aurelian is said to have given a single order: "Light the first fire'.

首次接触Melkeji的帝国部队是大元帅库尔斯指挥的一支小型远征探索舰队。在遭到了顽强的抵抗之后，舰队带着少量人类战俘撤退。帝国从这些战俘口中清楚得了解到了Melkeji遭受奴役的状况。库尔斯明白自己无法征服这个世界，他向亚空间中发出讯息以寻求援助，而到来的援助是大元帅远不敢期望的：珞珈本人率领军团中整整八个战团前来协助。据说在亲自与俘虏交谈过之后，奥雷利安尊主只下达了一条命令：“点亮初火。”

Perhaps out of fear that their cattle might one day turn on them, the Ascended dwelt in a chain of nine orbital cities far above the planet's surface. Layered with huge polished plates, the cities rose in the planet's night skies as the brightest of stars. The light of the Ascended had looked down on Melkeji for longer than any could remember, eternal and unchanging. The Word Bearers, ever aware of the power of symbolism, changed that night sky. As the fifth Ascended city rose into the black dome of the night, it exploded with a light so bright that for several seconds the night was banished.

或许是害怕某一天他们的牲口会转而对抗他们，降临者们龟缩于远离星球表面的九座轨道城市中。轨道城市上堆叠了数层抛光装甲板，它们宛如最明亮的晨星一般悬挂在星球的夜空中。降临者的目光俯视Melkeji的岁月比任何人能记住的时间都要长久，这种注视永恒且不变。而意识到象征主义力量的怀言者们改变了这片夜空。随着第十五座降临者之城升入黑色墓穴般的夜空，它在强光中爆炸，火光是如此强烈，以至于黑夜都被驱散了数秒。

Approaching without power, the war barge Castigator had slid towards Melkeji from its system's edge. Unseen and silent, it had waited until it was deep behind the planet's sphere of defences. Then it had fired its payload, a nova shell and a cluster of melta and plasma-tipped torpedoes timed to strike at the same moment. When the Melkeji realised what was going on, a second sun was already heralding a new dawn and the death of its past. Its task complete, the Castigator turned and dove from the open void. As the Melkeji ships turned to chase it, Lorgar’s fleet met them. The void battle lasted a single hour, and at its end the Melkeji ships were scattered fragments of debris.

战争母舰“惩戒者号”从星系边缘向着Melkeji无动力滑行以接近这个世界，这艘战舰不可见，也保持着缄默，她在等待着，直到深入了星球大气，行驶到了星球防御圈后侧。之后她发射了自己的载荷：一发新星炮和一组被设定好时间同时攻击的热熔与电浆弹头的鱼雷。当Melkeji意识到正在发生什么之后，第二轮红日已经升起，标志着新黎明的到来与往昔的逝去。惩戒者号完成了任务，她调转方向潜回到开阔的虚空中，而转向前去追逐她的Melkeji舰船则迎上了珞珈的舰队。虚空战只持续了一个小时，Melkeji舰船最终都被轰成了碎片。

The Word Bearers moved past the orbital cities to land on the planet's surface.Five thousand Word Bearers and 100,000 auxiliaries fell on the planet in a single drop. Even in the face of such might, the Melkeji resisted. Several million died in the first hour of the engagement. Then, just as the defenders reached into their reserves of will, Lorgar attacked the remaining cities of the Ascended. Boarding companies in gunships punched through the turret fire and armour, and began to advance through the cities. Throughout the assault the Ascended called on their forces to resist, their voices reaching across the planet on signal waves. Lorgar made no move to stop the signals until his assault companies had reached the orbital cities’ reactors. Then, one after another, the Ascended voices were silenced and a chain of explosions ringed the besieged world. Shielding their eyes, the people of Melkeji knew in a single moment that their masters were gone and that they were facing a power greater and more terrible than they could have dreamed of. Most of the Melkeji surrendered at that moment, the rest a few days later. A decade after, Melkeji was a world faithful to the God Emperor. Half a century later, half a million of its sons and daughters came to Ultramar with the names of alien gods on their lips.

怀言者们越过轨道城市直扑星球表面，5000名怀言者军团战士和100000名辅助军一次性空降到了星球上。即便面对如此雄兵，Melkeji依旧进行抵抗，而在交战的第一个小时就有数百万人死亡。之后，随着防御者们的意志撑到了极限，珞珈进攻了剩余的降临者之城。跳帮连队乘坐着炮艇穿过炮塔火网和装甲部队，开始向城市前进。在进攻的整个过程中降临者们都在号召他们的部队进行抵抗，他们的声音通过信号波传遍了整个星球。珞珈没有动手掐断这些信号，直到攻击连队抵达了轨道城市的反应堆。之后，降临者们的声音一个接一个地寂灭，一连串的爆炸悬挂在被围困世界的夜空中。Melkeji的民众护住自己的双眼，他们明白自己的主子已经完蛋了，他们同时所面对的是比梦中见到的都更为伟大和恐怖的权能。绝大多数人都在这个时刻投降了，剩余的人则在几天之后宣布投降。十年之后，Melkeji成为了信仰神皇的世界；而一个世纪之后，五十万名Melkeji儿女高呼着外星神明的名讳前往奥特拉玛。