Choral Engine
The Choral Engine was an ancient psychic beacon, that resided on the world Malakbael and dated back to the Dark Age of Technology.[1a]
Overview
A device of immense size and power, the Choral Engine had the ability to act as a localized psychic beacon similar to the Astronomican, a prospect which could greatly improve the fortunes of the Imperium Nihilus. The Engine required Human Psykers to act as both its foci and its fuel.[1a]
Key components of the Choral Engine included:[1a]
- The Resonatum: The outer ring around the engine with a diameter precisely 401 feet. It is akin to a huge electromagnet or particle collider, its smooth tunnel ringed every hundred feet with a collar of bristling technologies. When the Choral Engine was activated, it served to amplify the signal from the engine.
- The Sanctum: The central chamber of the Choral Engine, it was a vast cavernous dome thick with cables and circuitry. A ring of Cogitators formed a hundred-foot-high toroid at the heart of the chamber. It was from here that the operation and monitoring of the Choral Engine took place.
- The Choristry Pits: A series of catacombs below the Sanctum, it was lined with techno-sarcophagi which allowed Psykers installed within to feed the engine for three to ten days until their death.
- The Siphon Coil: A massive structure that extended down from the base and speared through Malakbael's crust to pierce its very core. It fed on the minerals within the planets crust to help facilitate the Engine's self-repair systems.
- The Focusing Vane: A network of gantries criss-crossing the apex of the Sanctum's domed ceiling. It stretched down to within two hundred feet of the coigitator toroid and pointed right at its very center. It contained a quartet of chambers into which were wired exceptionally powerful Astropaths, and it was through them that the Choral Engine flowed into the Warp.
History
The Choral Engine was first discovered by Inquisitor Glori Emagna on Malakbael during the Age of the Dark Imperium. The Inquisitor quickly told Indomitus Crusade Fleet Quartus of their discovery, hoping to use it to allow for the betterment of Imperium Nihilus. The Imperials were successful in reactivating the ancient device, not only allowing for more efficient warp travel and astropathic communication but also causing Warp Storms nearby to recede. This allowed several Battlegroups of Fleet Quartus to advance into new territories with unprecedented speed and efficiency.[1a]
However, the light of the Choral Engine also attracted the unwanted attention of Angron. The Daemon Primarch led a great host against Malakbael and Fleet Quartus in the subsequent Battle of Malak. In the final stages of the battle, Angron was a conduit through which the very power of Khorne was channeled and delivered a deathblow to the Choral Engine which destroyed the ancient device. The psychic backlash that erupted in its wake served to drive much of Fleet Quartus mad and it erupted into a indiscriminate killing frenzy. In the spot where the Choral Engine once stood was a great Warp Rift through which Daemons of Khorne flowed.[1b]
The core of Malakbael where the Choral Engine had once been connected to was later recovered by Vashtorr the Arkifane.[1b]
