Plague Warrior

They would cleanse every planet in Ultramar, then spread out to the Imperium's other star regions, saving humanity as it continually slid toward the abyss and preventing the destiny of the Imperium of Man's destruction.

Countless war engines were activated amid the prayers of the Tech-priests, trailing immense plumes of flame as they departed the starport and headed into the void.

The Geller Fields of one warship after another activated, shrouding their massive hulls in a faint glow.

The Geller Field was one of the crucial technologies that allowed humanity to travel through the Warp.

This field could effectively prevent Imperial ships from being corrupted by the Warp and stop The Unliving lurking beneath its tides from attacking them.

Guilliman's awakening and his frenzied declaration of war had long since drawn the attention of the gods.

For a Primarch to dare declare war on them was an unforgivable offense.

Their response was equally simple and brutal.

The Warp boiled with the gods' fury, and the raging Sea of Aether raised storms like towering waves.

The tides of Aether roiled and roared as destructive storms battered them without cease.

Arrogance became surging whirlpools. Wrath and desire merged into maddened tempests, while despair became steep straits, their sheer cliffs concealing countless hungry Daemons.

They waited for Imperial ships to reveal even the slightest weakness before launching their attacks.

The bound Navigators floated in nutrient fluid, their arms and heads connected to the ship's machinery by cables.

They used their third eyes with all their strength to peer into the flow of Aether currents and guide the ship's course.

Navigators were a special kind of existence with a history stretching back tens of thousands of years.

When humanity first entered the stars and began colonizing worlds across the Milky Way, Navigators had already appeared among mankind.

During that Golden Age, some of the humans who first came into contact with the Warp underwent subtle genetic mutations.

They were exceptionally sensitive to the flow of Warp energy and could provide ships with effective guidance and navigation during Warp travel.

After being altered and refined, such people became Navigators.

Navigators possessed third eyes, either implanted through cyborg technology or born of natural mutation.

The third eye could observe the flow of Aether energy within the Warp, determine direction, and, most importantly, see the light of the Astronomican.

The Astronomican was the Imperium's vital beacon for Warp travel. It had been created by the Emperor during the Great Crusade and was now maintained by the Adeptus Astra Telepathica.

The fleet's voyage was exceedingly dangerous. Though he had prepared himself mentally, Guilliman still felt apprehensive when confronting the Warp storms directly.

The Astronomican's light was almost impossible to perceive and had become exceedingly faint. The Navigators had to expend far more effort to identify their route.

Imperial ships could no longer remain in the Warp for extended periods as they had in the past. They had to exit the Warp at regular intervals.

Thanks to the Tech-priests' maintenance, the Geller Fields aboard every ship in the fleet were functioning normally.

Without Geller Fields, humanity was nothing more than meat on a Daemon's chopping block in the Warp.

"It seems we need to find a way to calm the Warp storms." Guilliman looked at the data-slate in his hand, his expression turning solemn. The Warp storms were even more severe than he had anticipated.

Either they found a way to calm the Warp storms, or they strengthened Imperial ships against them.

If they could accomplish neither, then striking back against the gods would be a joke.

Daemons and traitors had no need to fear the effects of Warp storms, while the Imperium of Man struggled at every step. It was easy to imagine how difficult victory would be for the Imperium.

Guilliman pondered where he could find the resources and technology needed to solve the problem of navigation and ensure that Imperial fleets reached their destinations without error.

Footsteps sounded, and a young man in robes, his eyes entirely white, entered the Primarch's private chamber.

"My lord."

The young man's eyes had long been blind, yet he easily found Guilliman and respectfully bowed.

"Roshan, what is it?"

Guilliman interrupted his thoughts and looked up at the young man who had entered.

He paid no attention to the other man's completely white eyes. Such eyes were nothing unusual.

Astropaths' eyes were generally like that. Put simply, they were all blind, but they possessed the mind's eye, which could replace the function of physical sight.

The Imperium's faster-than-light travel relied on the Warp.

Naturally, faster-than-light communication between the stars also relied on the Warp.

The distances between star systems were simply too vast, often spanning dozens or even hundreds of light-years.

Ordinary communication methods lagged far too far behind and could not meet the Imperium's needs at all.

Warp communication was inevitable.

Astropaths were the key figures who allowed the Imperium to use the Warp to transmit information.

Every sector, subsector, and star region established Astropathic Fortresses to gather and relay information.

Astropaths transformed the messages they needed to send into thought-dreams. They then used psychic power to send them into the Warp, across the Milky Way, and to other Astropaths.

Communication between Astropaths did not take the form of words, but thought-dreams.

The receiving Astropath had to describe everything within the dream before interpreting it to obtain the message.

To strengthen these transmissions and ensure they would not be altered by certain entities in the Warp, Astropathic Fortresses often formed Astropathic Choirs, increasing transmission power and ensuring the Imperium could receive their messages.

All Astropathic Fortresses and Astropaths active across the various fleets were controlled by Terra's Astropathic Court, which regularly replenished each fortress with Astropaths.

Every Astropath underwent a special process that shaped their abilities: the Soul-Binding Ritual.

At regular intervals, the Astropathic Court sent selected Psykers to the Imperial Palace.

These Psykers were purified by the Emperor's power, allowing them to remain sane beneath the gaze and whispers of Warp Daemons without being corrupted or devoured.

Yet the Soul-Binding Ritual also carried risks. Because of the Emperor's powerful will and psychic might, ordinary Psykers could not directly behold his existence within the Warp. Their visual organs were often damaged, causing blindness.

Those less fortunate could also lose their sense of smell and hearing.

Roshan was considered fortunate. He had not lost everything, only his eyes.

"New information, my lord. A distress message from the Sara System. Chaos forces are still ravaging the region, and the local garrison claims to have come under attack from Plague Warriors."

"Plague Warriors?"

Guilliman frowned slightly, but his brow soon relaxed as he made his arrangements.

"Have the fleet continue toward the industrial system of Konor. I will lead a small force to deal with this matter."

"My lord, is that truly appropriate? You should not risk yourself personally. Perhaps you could simply order several Captains to handle it."

Roshan tried to persuade Guilliman not to go in person and to assign the task to others.

"No place is absolutely safe. Danger is what a Primarch must face. I need some victories to steady the hearts of Imperial citizens. Even an insignificant victory will be interpreted by those yearning for one as proof that the Imperium is striking back and Chaos is losing. Do you understand, Roshan? They are too afraid. They need victories to comfort them and restore their confidence."

Guilliman looked at Roshan standing before him and smiled.

"But I still do not think this is a good idea. You are too important. If anything happens to you, who will guide the Imperium?"

"I am not some ornament. I am a Primarch, a Primarch with great power. I was created to help the Imperium win war after war, not to be placed on a shelf as a mascot. Our conversation ends here. I hope you will return to your post and continue gathering information from the Warp. I look forward to the next report you bring me."

"Roshan obeys your command, my lord."

"Good. Go, and have Sicarius at the door come in. I have something to discuss with him."

Roshan bowed again and left. He understood that once a Primarch had made a decision, it could not be shaken. He could offer advice, but it was nothing more than advice.

A Primarch's authority could not be challenged. Having heard Guilliman's words, Roshan obediently departed and sent Sicarius in to see the Primarch.

The contract is signed. Two updates a day, and after it goes premium, there will be a flood of updates. Brothers, please support me.