The war between the Death Guard and the Drakasi on Brumm had grown so intense that it was being fought across every landmass on the planet.
The Black Legion had not been putting in much effort, so Ubondrak, who commanded the Drakasi forces, was not under much pressure.
During the war, every sorcerer foresaw the enemy fleet's imminent arrival. The Black Legion finally began to contribute, building fortresses and orbital defense weapons on Brumm, while the Death Guard and the Drakasi worked twice as hard, constructing fortifications while fighting.
Taifon had long known that the Golden Expedition Fleet was about to reach Brumm. He should have led his fleet away to avoid its edge, or simply pulled out of the quagmire of war on Brumm.
But the problem was that the Death Guard could not easily abandon a sacred relic, because abandoning it meant casting aside the god's blessing. The consequences might be unbearable for the entire Death Guard and could even bring disaster upon other followers of Nurgle.
Yet with the Golden Expedition Fleet about to arrive, Taifon had no choice but to consider the consequences of continuing to commit forces to Brumm.
If the entire Death Guard suffered devastating losses because of this, and before that so-called Golden Crusade had even truly begun...
Taifon did not dare dwell on the consequences. Before leading the Plague Fleet to Brumm, he had yet to decide whether to gamble on his fleet and ground forces securing the sacred relic deep within Drakasi-held territory, or leave together with the subordinates fighting on Brumm.
War was not something one could begin whenever one pleased, much less stop whenever one wished.
If he truly intended to retreat, it might take a long time to prepare and carry out. As a commander, Taifon could not