Chapter 145

---Dharrovar System---

Taking the Chaos fleet in orbit above Dharrovar by surprise, thanks to Victor's Force Storm, the Imperial fleet launched a devastating assault upon their exposed rear. Sending several dozen crippled vessels plummeting toward the surface, Chaos Lord Haarken Worldclaimer commanded all functional vessels to quickly turn around and return fire. Demanding to know the current status of his flagship, the Herald of Damnation, the Hereteks could not answer because they were fully focused on keeping vital systems online.

"Someone fucking answer me!", Worldclaimer shouted over his Vox, feeling his vessel beginning to tilt.

"My Lord, you have several massive hull breaches on the lower decks, and a fire appears to have broken out near the reactor core.", one of his soldiers answered as he surveyed the damage from his Swiftdeath Fighter. "From my viewpoint, your ship appears to be drifting into decaying orbit."

"Are we able to correct it and get back into the fight?", Worldclaimer asked his ship's captain.

"I will try my absolute best to do so, sir!", Captain Warppiercer swore, feathering the ship's engines, fearing they might go out, 'Come on, do not fail me now, damn it!'

While the captain struggled to regain control of the ship, the Chaos Lord turned to his perplexed radar operator. Wanting to know how the enemy could have snuck up on them without anyone noticing, he grabbed hold of the marine and hoisted him into the air.

"How is it possible that all our radar operators failed to notice an approaching Imperial Fleet?", Worldclaimer growled, squeezing the life out of him. "Tell me!"

"I am sorry… sir! I do not… have an answer for you!", Radar Officer Foegouger wheezed, equally as confused as him, "One moment… nothing was there; the next… an entire fleet of Imperial ships appeared. It does not make sense!"

Releasing his subordinate, the Chaos Lord took a moment to reflect upon recent happenings to determine how this happened. Their sensor-arrays had worked flawlessly up until now, which meant the problem happened within the last few weeks. Thinking back over that period, a realization struck him.

'Those lunatic Hereteks from Omega-Threx performed some 'upgrades' to our ships two weeks ago. Fucking hell, I should have followed my gut and never let them touch my fleet!', Worldclaimer thought, "Send word down to Dharrovar that an Imperial fleet has arrived to invade the planet. What is the status on Omega-Threx?"

"Omega-Threx is currently under attack by an Adeptus Mechanicus fleet, sir!", Comms Officer Fleshrider answered, receiving additional updates from vessels engaging the Imperial fleet. "Also… several fighters and vessels have reported seeing the Imperator Somnium at the front of the Imperial fleet."

"This is no time for jokes, you miserable fools.", Worldclaimer scoffed, walking back to his seat.

"I am afraid this is not a joke, sir…", Fleshrider insisted, turning to his lord with a pale expression, "The Imperator Somnium is cutting a path straight through our ranks. Multiple vessels have already been destroyed, and not one of them could penetrate its shielding."

"Get my ship operational immediately, and destroy the fake Corpse Emperor's ship!", Worldclaimer demanded, still uncertain if the reports were accurate.

Fearing for their lives, the Heretek scrambled to restore power and reroute controls through backup systems. Managing to get most systems online, after ten minutes of fighting with the antiquated equipment, they gave Captain Warppiercer the green light to rejoin the fight. Squeezing all the power he could out of the engines, the ship began to lean toward port as they swung around. Coming face to face with the Imperator Somnium, as it rammed through the middle of a Despoiler Class Battleship, Worldclaimer and his bridge crew stared at it in horror.

Witnessing its destruction firsthand during the Siege of Terra, the Chaos Lord was unable to process the sight before him. Acutely aware of the fact that the Imperium of Man would not send the vessel into battle without the Corpse Emperor onboard, his bridge crew began to fly into a panic. Realizing this battle was lost to them, they requested his permission to sound the retreat and flee the system.

'How can this be possible!? The Corpse Emperor should be interred upon the Golden Throne!! Has he been revived somehow?!', Worldclaimer thought, snapping back to reality, "Belay my order to alert Dharrovar. Send word to Lord Abaddon immediately that the Corpse Emperor has been revived!"

Acknowledging the Chaos Lord's order, the psyker on the bridge began transmitting the message to Abaddon's fleet. Getting only the first few words out, his body spontaneously burst into flames. Falling to the floor in excruciating agony, the Chaos Marine pleaded for mercy from the Emperor before suddenly exploding in a burst of psychic energy.

'He really is here!', Worldclaimer mentally screamed, "Captain Warppiercer, get us out of here immediately! We cannot get a message out with the Corpse Emperor near us! Fleshrider, tell the surviving vessels they are to cover our retreat. Once we are out of the system, they are free to follow us!"

"By your orders, sir!", Fleshrider answered, transmitting the message throughout the fleet.

Turning his Vox off to avoid listening to their complaints, Worldclaimer let out an exhausted sigh as they began to run. While the loss of his fleet would significantly impact his standing amongst his peers, he would at least be alive to regain his status again. Sinking into his seat, as the celestial bodies fell away from their viewing window, his relief was cut short when a series of impacts rocked the ship and took out the power.

"Did the Imperator Somnium catch us?!", Worldclaimer inquired, grabbing his spear. 'I know I am far from his equal, but I refuse to go down without a fight or plead for his mercy!'

"Sir… The Imperial Fist's Phalanx has appeared portside. It was using the moon to hide from our sensor-arrays.", Foegouger stated, bashing his head on his console. 'We are not making it out of this alive...'

Switching his Vox back on, the Chaos Lord toggled it to local communication to address the crew. Ordering everyone to prepare for the Imperial Fist boarding party, he was certain they would try and capture the ship for repurposing. Wanting his men to go down fighting so they could die with a bit of dignity, he stood up and prepared to leave the bridge. Gathering the men, they turned toward the exit and were immediately blinded by a brilliant flash. Confused by what was happening, the sounds of footsteps began echoing through the room.

"You fools; do not start running around without- ", Worldclaimer began berating his men, as a large metal fist appeared from within the light and struck him squarely in the face.

Flying across the bridge, the Chaos Lord slammed into the opposite wall and fell to the floor. Blind and dazed, he gripped his spear tightly and staggered back onto his feet. Hearing the distinct sound of flesh and metal being cut open, it was evident the Imperials had a new method for boarding ships.

"Fuck your Corpse Emperor and all of you bastards!", Worldclaimer howled, his vision beginning to return, "I do not give a damn how many of you there are; I will kill every one of… Rogal Dorn!?"

Standing before him, flanked by Black Templar and Imperial Fists, Dorn stared at the Chaos Lord with disdain. Vividly recalling his presence at the Siege of Terra, the Primarch's hand tightened around Storm's Teeth.

"I bet you are very surprised to see me alive and well.", Dorn commented, stepping toward him, "In a few minutes, the rest of your crew will be captured or dead. Which will you choose?"

"If you expect me to beg for my life, you are sorely mistaken.", Worldclaimer growled, pointing his spear at Dorn.

"Good, I was hoping you would choose the latter option.", Dorn said, the rage in his heart burning brightly in his eyes.

Charging at one another, Dorn effortlessly sidestepped Worldclaimer's spear thrust and threw an elbow straight into his face. Feeling bone crunch under the impact, the Primarch brought his beloved sword straight down on the Chaos Lord's head. Raising his spear to block the attack for a few seconds, as the sword's momentum slowed for an instant, Worldclaimer let go of one side and ripped the Bolter Pistol off his waist. Unloading a full magazine into the Primarch's face, he looked up in confusion as the bullets atomized millimeters from his skull.

"Fuck me…", Worldclaimer laughed dryly, as Storm's Teeth cut through the spear and then his body.

Bisected vertically, the Chaos Lord's corpse fell to either side with a loud thud. Removing his blood and gut with a flick of the wrist, Dorn turned to his men with a nod.

"You make it look easy, my Lord!", Imperial Fist Lieutenant Fasieger commented.

"Why did you let him fire off several rounds at you, Lord Dorn?", Black Templar Sergeant Janden asked, "What if Lord Stark's shield unit failed?"

"I have absolute faith in my nephew; if he says it will work, I know it will.", Dorn told them, "What are your thoughts on the new upgrades he made to the Phalanx?"

"It will drastically reduce our losses in the future.", Imperial Fist Chaplain Yonnaegez replied. "Being able to see where our enemies are aboard their ship and send adequate firepower in to neutralize them is truly amazing. On top of that, our enemies are blinded and disoriented for a few moments after our arrival, giving us an edge in our engagements. My only question now is, does it work going back to the Phalanx?"

"Yes, it works both ways.", Dorn acknowledged, activating his Vox. "How are we looking?"

"Aside from our forces, there are no life signs aboard the vessel now.", Imperial Fist Techmarine Bacchigrius responded from aboard the Phalanx. "Pulling everyone back now."

Startled by how quickly they were able to overwhelm the enemy, the Imperial Fist Legion was happy to have these new systems available to them. Leaving the Herald of Damnation for the Adeptus Mechanicus to retrieve, Dorn had the Phalanx move into position to stop any more escaping ships. Once the Chaos fleet was annihilated, the Emperor gave the order to begin the assault on Dharrovar.

---Vigilius---

While the fighting was beginning to wind down on Sangua Terra and Sigil, the same thing could not be said for Vigilus. Waging their fight on four different fronts, as the three Black Legion Chaos Lords and Death Guard Lord on the planet refused to work together, the Imperial forces were steadily gaining ground. With each moment that passed, millions of daemons were being cast back into the Warp, drastically reducing the number of enemies they had to contend with. Utilizing the artillery on the walls of Hyperia and Battle Group Alphus' firepower, Guilliman was confident they would rout the enemy within the next twenty minutes.

"How are things going on Vigilus? Are you in need of assistance?", El Johnson inquired over the radio, clearly not satisfied with the meager resistance they encountered.

"We are gaining substantial ground on traitors here.", Vulkan answered, reducing a traitor marine into a flapjack with his hammer. "Is Sangua Terra too much for you to handle?"

"Far from it… Victor's armada practically decimated the enemy before they could reach us.", Russ complained, "Only a few hundred thousand survived the bombardment so the fighting ended quickly. Let us come over there and help you!"

"How about, no.", Guilliman chuckled, happy to banter with his brothers once again. "If you are satisfied the enemy has been eliminated from Sangua Terra, Victor can send you onward to Dharrovar."

"Yeah, there is plenty of fighting to be had here.", Dorn chimed in, having just arrived on the planet himself.

"Oh dear nephew of ours!", Russ laughed in a playful tone. "Could you send us over, please?"

"If you ever dare to request something of me in that manner again, I will send your ass into the heart of a star. I almost vomited in my helmet.", Victor scolded him before letting out a chuckle. "Sending you knuckleheads over now. Draigo, Ionica, and I will join you on Dharrovar shortly."

Taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Guilliman noticed a large cloud of dust rapidly approaching them from the south. Radioing the fire teams on the wall, he asked them to verify who it was, in case the Orks had decided to join in the fight now. Fumbling around with their binoculars, the closest team focused on the indicated dust cloud.

"My Lord, a large fleet of Aeldari ships is racing toward your location.", a guardsman informed him. "I can recognize the symbol on a few of the vessels; they are from the Craftworld Saim-Hann."

"I was beginning to think they were not going to show up.", Vulkan stated. "All forces, hold your positions!"

"Victor warned us they might be delayed. Chaos activity within the Webway has increased significantly over the past few decades. Thankfully the enemy has not used it to attack our worlds, but the Aeldari have suffered greatly.", Guilliman said as the ships came into visual range. "It would appear my savior is among them."

Opening fire, as soon as they were within range, the Aeldari ships began obliterating the forces of Chaos with vengeful fury. Having been alerted to the fates of the Craftworlds swallowed up by the Great Rift by the surviving Eldar, every Craftworld that could spare manpower sent warriors to Vigilus to avenge their fallen kin. Jumping off her ship as it flew by, Yvraine and her Gyrinx land close by the two Primarchs.

"I am happy to see you made a full recovery.", Yvraine stated, with a nod.

"All thanks to your kindness.", Guilliman replied, "Thank you for coming here today to assist us."

"No, we are the ones who should be thanking all of you. If not for Lord Stark's generosity and kindness, our kin would have been sacrificed to our mortal enemy.", Yvraine corrected him, "This is the least we can do to repay him for his assistance."

Giving the order to advance, once the dust began to settle, Vulkan's words hung in his mouth as an all-too-familiar figure appeared opposite them. Standing in front of several hundred of his Death Guard marines, their brother Mortarion stared at them warily.

"I did not think we would meet again so soon… Mortarion.", Guilliman said, tightly gripping the holy sword that Victor lent him for this fight.

"Neither did I.", Mortarion agreed. "Vulkan is here with you as well…"

"My Lord, I am truly thankful you answered our call!", one of Mortarion's subordinates sighed, "Please aid us!"

Uncertain if he could fight both of his brothers at once, Mortarion began thinking of a way to turn things in his favor. Surveying the area quickly, he stopped when his eyes fell upon several guardsmen pointing their laser rifles at him. Instead of trembling in fear, the guardsmen stood there defiantly glaring at him with hatred. Finding their actions amusing, Mortarion inquired what they thought they were doing.

"Our homeworld of Ysol's Haven was wiped out because of you bastards…", one of the guardsmen said, his tone dripping with venom, "Our families… our friends… you took everything from us!!"

"And you think those are going to hurt me?", Mortarion mocked them, "Go ahead, take your shot. My foolish brothers will not save you from me afterward."

"Primarch Stark granted us the power to smite our enemies!!", another guardsman shouted, "Die, all of you filthy traitors!!"

"Who is Primarch Stark?", Mortarion inquired, looking at Guilliman and Vulkan.

Choosing to remain silent, the guardsmen unleashed a hailstorm of laser fire upon the traitor Primarch. Making no attempt to avoid their attack, his arrogance quickly soured as a terrible pain began racking his body. Thanks to Victor's enchantments, their attacks were imbued with holy magic, something that everyone had been blissfully unaware of. Watching their fallen brother stumble backward screaming like a banshee as his soul was being cleansed shot by shot, Guilliman quickly radioed Victor for an explanation.

"Uh, Victor… What kind of weapons did you give Vigilus' defenders?", Guilliman inquired, watching his brother collapse into the fetal position.

"Normal laser rifles? Why?", Victor answered.

"Well… a group of guardsmen are pushing Mortarion back.", Guilliman elaborated, trying not to laugh at the ridiculous display before his eyes.

"Oh, that is due to one of the enchantments I placed on everyone. Every attack we deal is imbued with a small amount of holy magic, meaning the daemons and traitors we kill today experience True Death.", Victor chuckled, "His soul is slowly being purified with every shot."

"I see…", Guilliman said, drawing his bolter with a smirk, "All forces, focus fire on Mortarion!!"

"YOU BASTARD!!", Mortarion screeched.

Pointing the pistol at him, Guilliman began firing upon Mortarion with a cold look. Crying out in pain with every hit, the fallen Primarch attempted to retreat into the Warp but found his power was not functioning properly. Following his orders, Astartes and other guardsmen began unloading on the Death Guard and Mortarion. Shielding their lord with their bodies, most of them were cleansed instantly. Crying out for Nurgle to help him, a portal opened beneath him, pulling Mortarion back to Nurgle's garden.

"Haha, I doubt he is going to live that one down.", Guilliman laughed, "Good work, everyone! Now let us finish things up here and join the Emperor on Dharrovar!"

Supported by their temporary Aeldari allies, the Imperial Forces purged Vigilus of enemies before regrouping and calling Victor for transport.