The Warp journey from Wolf 359 to Helia goes smoothly, though Navigator Yasha does order an inordinate number of course changes, as if tacking the Aegis back and forth against a headwind. She manages to hold the Aegis close enough to that 'headwind' that it feels like the deck is shaking underfoot at times, the immaterial winds of the warp literally buffeting the hull. But nothing ill occurs during the journey, and Yasha places your exit from the Warp right on top of your first survey waypoint, allowing the work to begin as soon as your sensors clear.

With all of the hull-shaking that happened over the latest Warp transit, you decide that it would be a good idea to speak with Jace Echo, your Enginseer Primus, and check up on the state of the ship. Querying the Aegis' internal sensors, you find him down in the Hydroponics Workshop. As you enter a few minutes later, you find Jace hard at work on some sort of small robot. He looks up as you enter, "Good afternoon, Sir. What brings you down into the maintenance areas?"

"I was just looking for you actually. Hows the Aegis doing? that last warp transit didn't knock anything loose did it?"

"Nothing major Sir. Oh, some minor nuts and bolts like this little cleaning robot here, but all major systems are fully functional. The Aegis is one built ship, and it shows. Where did you find her, if I may ask?"

"At the fringe of the Kania Maw, but I knew before I set about acquiring the Aegis that she had history. My Thesis was on her history, and I accompanied the recovery effort as part of completing it. I know the Aegis served with distinction in the cleanup of the Eldarim Incident, and fought well during the Kania Incursion, but not much is on-record other than that. I was hoping to dig into her data-logs to find more."

Jace nods his head, "The Aegis is even older than you know, Sir. Although she has been rebuilt at least twice and refitted many more times, her bridge, life sustainers, and targeting matrix are all originals. Mark one, Mod zero diaspora-era originals forged in low martian orbit by the proof marks. Any ship with one of those venerable systems would be blessed. One with three of them must surely have been built in that legendary time. To serve aboard a ship such as the Aegis is a dreamstuff of any Enginseer worth his Iron, and to be Enginseer Primus of one..." Jace trails off and you can hear the reverence and awe in his voice.

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"That old? Surely there are better and more modern systems available!"

"Yes and no. There are more modern systems available that can match the performance, but they are all the way back on Mars, not out here on the edge of Imperial space. There are also more powerful systems available, but nothing that would fit in or on the Aegis' hull. The auspex arrays fitted to an Imperator-class battleship, for example, but those would never fit into or on a frigate's hull." Jace returns to fixing the cleaning robot.

"So how did you end up a mere Enginemaster? You had the Aegis fixed up faster than anyone else would claim to be able to do."

Jace visibly pauses in his work, processing the question, "Doctrinal dispute. Adeptus Mechanicus version of political infighting, but with fewer assassinations. I think. Short version of the story was that I was talented enough to be headed for the ranks of Enginseers from the beginning. Fairly standard 'Child of the Omnissiah' early life, same as most other initiates into the Adeptus Mechanicus, but I ran afoul of one Magos Alieus Rex. Dogmatic Hardliner who wouldn't even locally manufacture parts, much less bless a macgyvered repair until such parts could be made. So I transferred from a Heavy Industry Specialist to the Explorators, and wound up assigned to the Aegis. The rest you know, Sir."

Your microbead decides that now would be a good time to start buzzing. You hold up a finger to Jace and tap the microbead, "Tristan here, go ahead."

"Zheeves here Sir. The Golden butterfly just jumped into the system."

"The Golden Butterfly? What in the Warp is she doing here?"

Jace visibly jerks at the name, "Sir, may I recommend that we get a good scan of that ship. Something is not right with her."

You cock an eyebrow at Jace, "and what makes you say that? So far, she has only followed us back from Altiar to Viking. Odd enough to sail in so close company to another ship, I will grant you, but hardly a reason to get a hull map of her."

"Because Sir, the last time I saw the Golden Butterfly, Alieus Rex was her Shipmaster. And the Golden Butterfly's course out of Viking was to Procyon, where we know a void pirate is operating. Why would a Dogmatic Magos in good standing be headed out to a pirate-infested system, much less in a cargo vessel? Something is not right here Sir."