Chapter Summaries

He Shenyan ended Fulgrim’s battle with the daemon and confronted it with the truth about love before embracing it as it faded away. The chapter then shifted to Sanguinius keeping Angron in a Medical Pod, while the author noted that 2,000 words were owed due to writer’s block.

• He Shenyan introduced himself to Russ with outrageous boasts before revealing that he was a mage serving as the Empire’s Living Saint.
• He Shenyan dispelled the Warp’s darkness, revealing a wounded Fulgrim and the battered daemon wearing his face.
• He Shenyan told the daemon that its pursuit of perfection had cost it the ability to love, and that Slaanesh did not love it.
• The daemon released Fulgrim, and He Shenyan embraced it as it broke apart and died in peace.
• The Emperor’s Children carried Fulgrim away for care, while He Shenyan and Russ remained behind.
• Sanguinius refused to release Angron from the Medical Pod, then abandoned a catalogue of Baal’s art after seeing its sculptures.

Sanguinius spoke with the gravely wounded Fulgrim while the Emperor told He Shenyan he had sent Angron’s purified soul to another version of himself, prompting He Shenyan to criticize his decision. Guilliman heard Lelith Hesperax’s warning that two Orc leaders were heading toward Octarius and authorized her mission to stop them under Sicarius’s supervision.

• Sanguinius learned that Fulgrim had been injured and spoke with him after he awoke in a Medical Pod, while Fulgrim asked about his sons and Angron.
• The Emperor told He Shenyan that he had given Angron’s purified soul to another version of himself so Angron could have a new beginning, and He Shenyan chastised him for not asking Angron first.
• While immobilized after practicing magic, Guilliman handled state reports and agreed to receive Lelith Hesperax after Yvraine explained that Ynnead had sent her a warning.
• Lelith told Guilliman that the Orcs Old Captain and Face-Ripper were heading toward the Octarius Sector, where their forces could become an enormous threat after gaining the upper hand over the Tyranids.
• Guilliman approved Lelith’s mission to intercept the Orcs and assigned Sicarius to supervise her, with warriors from the Black Templars accompanying them.

Frank and Steve sparred aboard the ship while their companions discussed upcoming plans and repairs. As the ship neared Terra Space Station, Pedro learned Steve would seek support for the Crimson Fists, and Steve looked forward to meeting Guilliman and receiving a mission.

• Steve and Frank sparred for more than seven hours before Frank stopped and acknowledged Steve had landed more punches.
• Frank visited Bonavia to maintain her bionic eye and learned Cran was traveling to Terra Space Station with the Sword of the Emperor.
• Bonavia explained that Cran required former Inquisitors to record their experiences so their actions could be reviewed.
• Pedro told Steve the Crimson Fists had insufficient numbers, and Steve offered to apply for a recruiting world or new base for them.
• Steve learned the ship would reach Terra Space Station in forty-seven hours and anticipated meeting Guilliman for a mission.

Roboute Guilliman challenged Helbrecht over the Black Templars’ hatred of xenos and ordered him to undertake a mission alongside a xenos commander. Helbrecht struggled with the order and his faith, while the Emperor’s voice urged him to recognize humanity’s own strength; afterward, the Emperor and He Shenyan heard a desperate prayer about an Empire’s cruelty.

• Helbrecht and the Black Templars boarded Macragge's Honour, where Guilliman questioned Helbrecht’s willingness to tolerate peaceful coexistence between humans and xenos.
• Guilliman ordered Helbrecht to hunt Old Captain and Face-Ripper, then added that Helbrecht must travel with a xenos and obey her orders.
• Helbrecht called the order blasphemous, and Guilliman rebuked him for fanaticism and reminded him of his oath to the Empire.
• Helbrecht prayed in anguish, and the Emperor’s voice told him that his strength came from himself and that humanity did not need a god to direct it.
• The Emperor told He Shenyan that he had intervened to keep Helbrecht from harming himself, then he and He Shenyan listened to a desperate prayer asking what the Empire had done wrong.
• A rebel leader threatened a planetary governor, who replied that the underhive could not afford rope; the next day, the authorities issued loans to buy it.

Volturno defended the last civilians on Malvolion, refusing to abandon them despite the Lamenters’ losses and their lack of a way off the planet. In orbit, Chapter Master Phobos Lileo ordered a desperate rescue mission and cried out to the Emperor over the Lamenters’ cruel fate.

• Volturno counted his dwindling ammunition and returned to the surviving civilians, whom he had sworn to protect.
• Solishi urged Volturno to withdraw, but Volturno said the Stormravens were down and he would stay with the civilians.
• Volturno comforted Solishi by admitting his own failure and explaining that no reinforcements could come.
• After the Tyranids arrived, Phobos Lileo ordered the remaining Lamenters to take their last Thunderhawk down and rescue survivors and civilians.
• Phobos Lileo recalled the Lamenters’ losses and misfortunes, then pleaded with the Emperor to explain their suffering.

The Emperor intervened on Malvolion, showing Phobos Lileo the destruction of the Tyranid swarm and declaring the Lamenters innocent of sin. The chapter ended with the Lamenters’ Banner of Tears transformed by golden light as Volturno and the survivors realized they had been saved.

• Phobos Lileo heard the Emperor promise that the Lamenters’ suffering would end and was taken to witness the Tyranids being destroyed across Malvolion.
• The Emperor froze time around Volturno, the Iron Guard, and civilians, then disintegrated the Hormagaunt threatening them and killed the Tyranid commander.
• Phobos felt the Emperor’s grief and rage, but the Emperor told him those emotions were not his to bear and showed him the vast Tyranid bio-fleet retreating.
• The Techmarine brought the assembled Lamenters to Phobos and reported that their remaining serfs were safe and their Thunderhawk was ready.
• Golden light transformed the Lamenters’ Banner of Tears as the Emperor declared them innocent of sin and promised them a reward for their fight.
• Volturno found the Tyranids gone and the civilians unharmed, acknowledged the Emperor’s miracle, and watched a Thunderhawk arrive.

Cato Sicarius discovered that Lelith Hesperax had secretly followed him to his room, while Helbrecht confronted his faith after a vision of the Emperor challenged him to examine his guilt. The Emperor discussed religion and fanaticism with He Shenyan, who then left to plan reinforcements for the Lamenters.

• Cato Sicarius found Lelith Hesperax waiting in his room and explained that his role as her watcher was mainly to buffer her from the Black Templars.
• Lelith Hesperax admitted she did not want to leave because Sicarius was the only person aboard who showed her no hostility, and Sicarius persuaded her to go.
• Helbrecht prayed over the Sword of Sigismund and asked whether he was guilty, then the Emperor appeared and urged him to think critically rather than let faith rule him.
• The Emperor told He Shenyan that religion had become a source of ignorance and violence, while He Shenyan warned him not to give up on changing the Imperium.
• He Shenyan left to discuss reinforcing the Lamenters Chapter with Guilliman, and the Emperor said the Chapter deserved the best.

Guilliman learned of the Lamenters’ suffering and moved to honor the surviving members, while vowing to prevent similar injustices. As the nine remaining Lamenters prepared to return to Terra, Volturno learned that their Chapter had been declared innocent.

• Guilliman discussed money and the future he hoped to build with Little Horus before He Shenyan arrived.
• He Shenyan showed Guilliman the Lamenters’ memories, and Guilliman was enraged by their wrongful punishment and loyalty.
• Guilliman called a meeting with Ecclesiarchy leaders and promised the Lamenters recruitment and recognition as heroes.
• He Shenyan said he would give the Lamenters a fortress and warned Guilliman that Sanguinius would seek answers about their treatment.
• Volturno recovered in the foundry and learned that the Lamenters were returning to Terra after being declared innocent.

Cato Sicarius met with High Marshal Helbrecht aboard the ship to discuss confidential matters after challenging his view that Space Marines’ personal feelings were unimportant. Elsewhere, No-Door and Only-Door robbed civilians for shiny valuables, while Gambler Old Captain prepared to support Boss Salaka.

• Cato Sicarius left his room without his Power Armor and made his way to the Black Templars’ training ground to meet High Marshal Helbrecht.
• Sicarius and Helbrecht discussed whether their feelings mattered as servants of the Emperor before Sicarius requested a private conversation.
• No-Door broke into a church, frightened the civilians, and took their jewelry after rejecting their Imperial currency.
• No-Door met Only-Door outside, and they argued about their loot and No-Door’s scar from fighting a Space Marine.
• Gambler Old Captain felt uneasy beside a wrecked Knight Titan, then ordered his Orcs to gather and support Boss Salaka.

Sicarius and Lelith led a ram assault on the Orc fleet, where Lelith killed the powerful Old Captain while the Black Templars fought through its ship. After the battle, Steve sensed a distant call and warned Pedro that they were about to fight Orcs.

• Sicarius explained the stealth-and-assassination plan to Lelith before their ship rammed the Orc flagship and the Black Templars teleported aboard.
• Old Captain mistook a request for a doctor as news of a fight and rallied its Orcs as the Glyph Array’s influence heightened its aggression.
• Helbrecht led the Black Templars against the Orcs, killed a towering Orc boss, and sent Angard with twenty brothers to guard their flank.
• Sicarius and Lelith found Old Captain, but it struck Sicarius into a wall before Lelith wounded it and Sicarius and Lelith finished it with its own gun.
• Lelith returned Storm Blade to Sicarius, who acknowledged her, and she asked to go back for ice cream.
• Steve felt distant voices and unusual movement outside the ship, then told Pedro to notify everyone that they were about to fight Orcs.

Angard, the Black Templars' Emperor's Champion, was gravely wounded by an Ork but rescued by Steve Rogers and his companions. Steve contacted the Black Templars and Ultramarines, setting up a rendezvous amid the battle aboard an Ork flagship.

• Angard held the corridor against an Ork, but the beast's flamer blast sent him crashing to the floor and left him unable to move or speak.
• Steve Rogers healed Angard enough to save him, then ordered Pedro and the others to secure the area and arranged for Angard and his black sword to receive treatment.
• Steve used Angard's helmet to contact the Black Templars, and Pedro Kantor confirmed that Angard was being treated.
• Helbrecht questioned why the Crimson Fists had entered the battle, and Pedro proposed meeting to explain.
• Helbrecht called for Cato Sicarius, who recognized Steve and shared the ship's map; Steve said he and Frank would rendezvous with them.

Steve Rogers revealed to Helbrecht that he was a Primarch, then used an emergency teleportation arranged by He Shenyan to pull the endangered ships away from the Orc attack. After the groups regrouped remotely, Lelith explained that another Orc remained to be killed, while that Orc, Face-Ripper Gragga, woke from a prophetic dream and wondered if a blue “tin can” was meant to be its boss.

• Steve introduced himself to Helbrecht as a soldier and a Primarch after Helbrecht sensed his extraordinary presence and Frank’s menace.
• With the Black Templars’ void shields close to failing, He Shenyan teleported the people and their ships away from the battlefield and into safety.
• Steve contacted Sicarius and Helbrecht, explained that their ships would regroup after traveling for several days, and told Helbrecht that the Emperor’s Champion was still recovering in a Medical Pod.
• Lelith revealed that she and Sicarius still had another Orc to kill, while Helbrecht threatened her and Steve asked where the Orc was.
• Face-Ripper Gragga woke from a dream about Gork and Mork, prompting its Orcs to spread the news and fill their ship with a Waaagh! field.
• Gragga remembered an image of a blue tin can blocking the way and wondered aloud whether it had to take a tin can as its boss.

He Shenyan and the Emperor discussed the Orc gods choosing Steve as their champion, while Steve met the recovered Angard aboard their ship. He Shenyan reassured Steve that his new influence was meant for him and took responsibility for the Avengers’ collapse, leaving Steve to reconsider his leadership and powers.

• He Shenyan questioned the Orc gods’ choice of Steve, and the Emperor warned him against trying to understand their nature.
• Angard awoke healed in a treatment pod, mistook the ship’s Glyph Array core for an Abominable Intelligence, and was escorted by Kalido to meet Steve.
• Steve told Angard that his Chapter was safe, their mission was complete, and Old Captain was dead; Angard then shared memories of his life with him.
• After Angard left, Steve worried that his Psionic power made people trust him too easily, and He Shenyan told him the power belonged with him.
• He Shenyan said he had failed the Avengers by leaving and blamed himself for their downfall, urging Steve to accept and use his power.

He Shenyan stopped Sister Ankesha from publishing Corporal Jones’s account of the battle on Ink Drop and revealed that he had turned the planet into the Vengeance. He showed her that the fallen soldiers and Astartes survived as spirits aboard the ship, still protecting those they had fought for.

• He Shenyan reviewed the Vengeance’s reports and learned that Jaghatai Khan was spending his days riding horses, the Iron Snakes Chapter had finished recruiting, and Sister Ankesha was interviewing the Astra Militarum soldiers.
• Corporal Jones told Ankesha how the Demons devastated Ink Drop, how Captain Ezekiel’s company fought alongside the soldiers, and how they were driven back to a monastery as their forces dwindled.
• He Shenyan interrupted Jones before he could finish describing the golden lightning that struck the Demons, then told Ankesha that he could not let her learn the rest of the story.
• He Shenyan revealed that Ink Drop and everyone at the monastery had survived because he had transformed the planet into the Vengeance.
• He Shenyan guided Ankesha into a vision of the dead soldiers, officers, and Astartes aboard the ship, then explained that they had chosen to remain and protect the living.

He Shenyan examined the broken Lance of Longinus while Jaghatai Khan spent eighteen days fighting simulated enemies aboard the Vengeance. Guilliman arrived to meet the Lamenters as they approached Terra Space Station, and found He Shenyan and the Khan in the captain's quarters.

• He Shenyan asked the Emperor about the broken Lance of Longinus, and the Emperor offered him other relics for experiments.
• Jaghatai Khan kept fighting simulations until He Shenyan ended the session and told him Guilliman had arrived.
• Guilliman arrived aboard the Vengeance with five Victrix Guard and explained that he intended to meet the returning Lamenters and protect them from political interference.
• Guilliman entered the captain's quarters, found Jaghatai Khan reading there, and realized He Shenyan had tailored the chair to fit him.
• He Shenyan appeared from The Void and laughed as Guilliman accused him of making fun of him.

He Shenyan, Guilliman, and the Khan planned a modest ceremony for the returning Lamenters, deciding it would take place on the First Bridge. As the Chapter approached Terra, Phobos Lileo and his brothers prepared nervously for their arrival and received instructions from Terra Space Station.

• Guilliman proposed an elaborate return ceremony, but He Shenyan rejected statues, hymns, and other religious pageantry.
• He Shenyan decided to hold the ceremony on the First Bridge, and Guilliman offered to receive the Lamenters.
• Phobos Lileo worried about the ceremony and carried the Chapter banner as his brothers watched Terra approach.
• Phobos and the Lamenters saw Terra's restored natural landscape and the enormous ring surrounding the planet.
• Terra Space Station contacted Phobos, said the Glyph Array would guide the Mater Lachryma through a separate port, and told the Chapter to secure themselves.
• Phobos ordered his brothers to hurry to the hangar and prepare for arrival.

Guilliman welcomed the Lamenters back to the Empire and brought them to the Vengeance, where a banquet would celebrate their return. He Shenyan challenged Jaghatai Khan to stop avoiding the Lamenters and attend the banquet, and the Khan admitted he had lost confidence in himself.

• Guilliman greeted Chapter Master Phobos Lileo and the Lamenters at Terra Space Station, calling them heroes and asking them not to kneel.
• Guilliman told Phobos that the Lamenters would be stationed aboard the Vengeance and invited them to a banquet celebrating their return.
• Guilliman led the Lamenters through Terra Space Station and warned them that using its Portal might make them feel unwell.
• He Shenyan told Jaghatai Khan that the Lamenters would soon arrive and planned to explain the ship and recruitment to them together.
• He Shenyan urged Jaghatai to attend the banquet, and the Khan admitted he had been running from involvement out of habit and had lost confidence in himself.
• He Shenyan left Jaghatai with a reminder to attend the banquet and said the Empire needed him.

He Shenyan welcomed the Lamenters to a banquet, then ended their Penitent Crusade and offered them new recruits, advanced equipment, and a place in a future expedition. The chapter left them learning that Sanguinius had returned and looking toward a future without grief.

• Guilliman welcomed the Lamenters to a banquet aboard the Vengeance, where He Shenyan introduced himself as its captain and Jaghatai Khan joined them.
• After the banquet, He Shenyan told Forbo that the Penitent Crusade had officially ended, the Lamenters would be declared innocent, and they could choose one of seven recruiting worlds.
• He Shenyan offered the Lamenters a new implantation procedure with a ninety-seven percent success rate, a Behemoth-class flagship, and Walking Titan Power Armor.
• Forbo questioned whether the depleted Lamenters deserved such valuable equipment, and He Shenyan assured him that the Chapter would recover within five years and join an expedition.
• Guilliman revealed that Sanguinius had returned and promised to arrange a meeting, while hinting that the Empire had changed considerably.

Cato Sicarius endured Lelith’s unsettling visit while Steve’s crew prepared to rendezvous with the Black Templars. Steve learned more about Frank’s traumatic past and insistence on fighting alone, then told Angard that he would join the mission against the Orc Face-Ripper without taking command.

• Lelith admitted she had feigned fear of the Black Templars, praised Sicarius as a potential opponent, and refused to leave his room until he walked out.
• Steve spoke with Pedro Kantor and learned that Frank would follow orders but refused to fight alongside others because he feared shooting an ally in battle.
• Frank recounted how his daughter and wife had been killed, and Steve recognized the loss of his family as the anchor behind his isolation.
• Steve summoned Angard, told him the ships would soon rendezvous, and confirmed he would join the mission to kill Face-Ripper without taking over command.
• Angard questioned Pedro Kantor for not handing command to Steve, and Steve redirected the conversation to their coming mission.

He Shenyan let Belisarius Cawl try the simulation pods, while the Vengeance Expedition and plans to expand the Planetary Network continued preparing. Inside the simulation, Cawl encountered a steel colossus and lost consciousness without looking away.

• Angard told Steve and Pedro that Face-Ripper had destroyed the Obsidian Swords Chapter and its homeworld, prompting Steve to order the ship to maintain full speed.
• He Shenyan failed in his thirty-seventh attempt to communicate with the Orc gods, then visited the Iron Snakes and discussed their recruits’ training.
• Cawl told Insel that the simulation pods surpassed forbidden Mechanicus experiments and expressed fascination with their technology.
• He Shenyan invited Cawl to try a simulation pod after discussing its capacity and the plan to distribute the technology to other Chapters.
• Cawl explored a silent forest in the simulation, saw a steel colossus, and was ejected after losing consciousness.