Chapter 236: The Invasion Battle

The blow that disrupted the Celestial Engine drained all psychic energy from the system.

"It's over."

On Cadia, Carlos could see the Past's head raised toward the heavens, letting out a mournful cry. The torrent of psychic energy that once coursed over Cadia had vanished entirely, and the Crystal Domain's extension was rapidly receding.

Before the war officially began, the Chaos sorcerers and Abaddon had performed a ritual across the entire Veiled Region, weakening the boundaries of realspace and tearing open a rift within the Cadian system. Every moment, this rift released psychic energy into the system.

Carlos used the mark of the Changer of Ways on Cadia, creating an extension of the Crystal Domain upon the Tuyok Plain, channeling its shelter to unleash demons and psychic energies through a gate forged from the flesh and blood of psykers. But Carlos did not enjoy the fruits of his plans, his efforts thwarted by the soulless Nulls that plagued him at every turn.

Meanwhile, the psychic energy that could have turned Cadia into a daemon world was siphoned by a rival of the Changer of Ways. Begrudgingly, Carlos had to admit that this scenario was far from his original scheme.

"Stay."

In his despair, Carlos heard a voice urging him to remain. Soon, more voices echoed around him, not as complete sentences but fragments of words or concepts. Carlos, adept at deciphering such cryptic messages, interpreted the command: Stay on Cadia and await interference and aid from the Changer of Ways.

Without hesitation, Carlos opened a psychic gate, retreating alone and leaving his kin on Cadia.

…

The Chaos fleet was moving toward the Celestial Engine's satellite, where Abaddon himself resided, but the advance was far from smooth.

The Talon Navy fleet, which had been dispatched on a defensive mission, had received word of Cadia's renewed assault and immediately turned back. More and more Talon ships dropped out of the Warp near Cadia, intercepting the enemy ships en route to the satellite.

Blackstone Fortress sailed at the forefront, followed closely by the heavily damaged *Vengeful Spirit*, with the *End of Days* and *Conqueror* flanking on either side. Other vessels formed a protective shield around the warships. The Chaos fleet's objective was clear: to escort the transports to the satellite, where they would deploy ground forces to support the Warmaster's capture of the satellite, the planet, and eventually, all three Iron Moons. Achieving this goal, however, would demand sacrifices.

Twelve cruisers slowed, gradually taking positions around the transports. Talon Navy's warships skirted around Blackstone Fortress, assailing the fleet's flanks, but the cruisers absorbed the barrage, shielding the transports as they pressed onward.

Before long, several cruisers lost their void shields under the Talon ships' relentless assault. These vessels veered off course, aiming for the nearest Talon ships in kamikaze attacks, their crews shouting the Warmaster's name as they and their ships shattered into fragments. Each fallen cruiser was quickly replaced by another. 

By the time the Chaos fleet reached the satellite's orbit, having sacrificed seven cruisers, the Talon Navy was still regathering its forces in the system.

The assault unfolded with startling speed; less than twenty minutes had passed since the battle began, and the larger capital ships at strategic points were only just powering up their Warp engines. The sky above the satellite turned a deep red as drop pods, assault craft, and countless landing ships streaked down.

As thousands of Chaos Space Marines and millions of mortal thralls made landfall, three massive assault ships hovered fifty meters above the ground, deploying thirty Titans of varying classes, followed by their Knight escorts. These Titans bore the colors black and gold, and on their shoulders, the profane symbol of the eight-pointed star marked them as the Legion of the Skull of Death. The colossal Reaper Titan advanced, flanked by an ancient Knight wielding a lance, tasked with its protection.

…

**Cadia High Command**

Creed gazed intently at the hololithic display.

The display revealed the situation across two worlds. The crystalline region on Cadia had been purged, though the daemons continued to teleport in and launch attacks, which the Talon ground forces were assigned to handle. Combat with the daemons offered no stable front; one moment, Talon soldiers would be trading fire on a plain, the next, clawing through the icy tundra of the polar regions.

Despite the shifting battlefield, the situation on Cadia remained under control. What truly troubled Creed was the war unfolding on the Celestial Engine's intact satellite.

The hololith revealed the full strength of the enemy forces, showing Space Marines, mortal troops, and even a Titan Legion. The enemy's infantry could be managed; the Space Wolves and other Space Marine Chapters had already been redeployed onto assault cruisers, prepared to drop into the satellite conflict. Eighty regiments of Cadian Shock Troops and Mordian Iron Guard had been pulled from various bastions and loaded onto transports, with orders to assist on the satellite. The Talon forces, of course, could simply teleport.

But the Titans—how would they contend with those?

Even the mightiest Titan would succumb to a lance strike from orbit, but the Chaos fleet loomed over the satellite's orbit, and Talon's navy, newly arrived, was far from able to engage the enemy Titans in a direct bombardment.

While Cadia held its own Titan Legions—more than one, in fact—they had only just emerged from a grueling fight and were in the midst of resupply, a process that would take time. After resupply, they'd need to secure transports to ferry them to the satellite.

Creed knew the Herculean logistics of transporting a Titan Legion; simply installing the stabilizing harnesses for the Titans within the transport ships would take Mechanicum adepts at least a week.

"Let us join the satellite battle." The Prioress, kneeling in prayer in a shadowed corner of the command center, suddenly spoke up.

Since the battle began, she had been praying to the Emperor. Creed hadn't intended to send the Battle Sisters to the satellite conflict, as the Prioress harbored reservations about everything Talon-related.

"Are you certain?" Creed asked.

"The Emperor bids us to fight upon the Iron Moon," she replied solemnly. "I will find a way to contend with those Titans."

"Thank you." Creed nodded.

The Sisters' willingness to join the fight was a welcome aid, but they could not solve the problem of the Titan Legion. Knights could be countered by infantry, but a Titan was another matter entirely.

Deploying a regiment against Titans would see them wiped out in hours. Titans were needed to fight Titans.

Zzt—zzt—

The hololithic device crackled, and the image of Gray projected into the command center.

"The Celestial Engine is under attack…" Gray began, aware that the Talon forces were locked in a protracted teleportation battle against the daemons, and so didn't directly request reinforcements.

"I need Talon forces to contend with the enemy's teleporting troops, but I've dispatched sufficient ground forces to the Celestial Engine. They're en route." Creed replied. "Without Titans, our soldiers, even the Space Marines, would be fodder."

Gray responded calmly, "There is a Titan Legion on the Celestial Engine."

Creed wondered why the Talon would have a Titan Legion, but now wasn't the time to question. He shifted his focus from Cadia, assuming direct command over the Celestial Engine battle.