"They're here!"
"Governor, we've detected a large number of unknown creatures approaching."
"There are a hundred, no, five hundred, no, a thousand. No, the number is still growing. They're gathering!"
"All researchers, fall back. Imperial soldiers, protect the Governor. Everyone, activate your Brown Force Field Shields." Brown activated the force field shield on his own armor. It consumed a lot of power, but against so many enemies, activating it early was only sensible. "Governor, please be careful. If things get really bad, we can perform a surgical strike on this planet first, then explore it at our leisure."
"."
"I'll have to tell the people at the Research Stations to work on developing weapons of mass destruction. These natives really aren't very friendly."
The soldiers with their force field shields activated moved toward Cisrain.
The civilians in the church had also been swept into the whirlpool of war. They were of little use on the battlefield and might even become a burden. But Cisrain still had to inherit the Emperor's empire, so they were still needed.
Cisrain looked at the Astra Militarum behind the church. "Soldiers, take them somewhere safe."
"Leave the rest to us."
Outside Vulkan Castle, Chaos's minions streamed in from the outskirts.
Their blood-red skin gave off a repulsive stench.
Their grotesque mutations profaned every inch of Imperial land.
These corrupted mortal soldiers—Imperial Guard, civilian politicians, and others—had lost all loyalty. They had become soulless puppets manipulated by Chaos, charging toward the church.
In Vulkan Castle, the mortal soldiers who had been affected by the power of the Warp finally remembered the duty the Imperium had called upon them to fulfill decades ago.
Hide? What a disloyal word!
Even if they were Imperial Guard, they were still soldiers of the Imperium. They could die in battle, but hiding was out of the question.
"Sir, we can still fight!"
"Sir, we can keep serving the Imperium. Just give us the order!"
Seeing that they refused to retreat, Cisrain could only give them a simple command. "Soldiers, hold your position."
"Brothers, hold the line! Show the Governor that we haven't lost our fighting spirit. Cover his assault!"
"Hold the line, for the Emperor!"
"For the Emperor!"
Among the crowd, children watched wide-eyed as the Astra Militarum soldiers in front of them sprang into action. Some hauled ammunition crates that hadn't been moved in who knew how many years, some set up machine guns, and others climbed to the church's strategic positions.
In front of these soldiers stood warriors in silver-and-gold Power Armor, their force field shields fully activated.
Their arrival brought back memories of the battles of long ago.
Loyal roars mingled with profane Chaos cries.
Like two opposing waves, they crashed into each other.
The great doors outside the church shattered with a deafening boom.
A thick wall was blasted to dust by Chaos's minions. From the shadow cast outside emerged a gigantic Chaos creature.
It was a Chaos creature encased in massive machinery. It had smashed through the heavy fortress walls outside the castle and broken through Vulkan Castle's defenses. Chaos's servants poured through the breach it had made.
Among those Chaos servants appeared three Chaos Space Marines, their bodies awash in blood-red hues.
But they were very different from the Chaos Warband they had encountered before.
Their equipment was far more advanced.
One Chaos Space Marine was already difficult to deal with, let alone a monster combining a gigantic mechanical creature and Chaos. Meanwhile, countless more Chaos servants continued pouring in behind them.
"Is this a planet occupied by Chaos? If it really was just the survey ship and these researchers, this expedition team would be wiped out by Chaos before they even began exploring the planet."
"Whether you're Chaos or Xenos, you're in my way."
"Push the front line outward!"
Fighting inside the church made the cover useless and only left them too constrained.
They might as well push the battle line outside.
Cisrain rolled his neck.
Chaos, huh?
Then let's do this!
Let's see who's more chaotic.
The silver-and-gold Planetary Governor charged at the head of the advance.
The soldiers beside him raised their kinetic weapons and fired high-energy particle shells, following close behind Cisrain.
Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The technology of the Gamma Empire, where Cisrain resided, had developed over a very short time. But with the Stellaris Template backing it, once industry reached scale and internal production began to circulate, it became a force to be reckoned with.
Of course, the key was to colonize a large number of planets to obtain the resources he needed.
And now, Chaos stood in the way of his resources.
"Smash them!"
Outside.
On a barren mountain.
Purple light shot up from the ground.
It seemed to activate some kind of signal.
The purple light flared, startling the Adeptus Astartes who were fighting desperately.
A Blood Raven Chapter warrior crushed the last Chaos servant, who had tried to make a desperate stand. Its severed limbs flew through the air and caught on the branches of a tree. He looked up at the purple pillar of light.
"Captain Cyrus, what's that? Chaos is fleeing in that direction."
"A Chaos Beacon." Cyrus narrowed his eyes as he watched the glowing purple pillar. "Chaos is summoning its minions. The beacon will draw all the Chaos in the surrounding area together. Whatever the reason, it's bad for us if Chaos gathers in one place."
Chaos!
Even for some Space Marines who had spent years fighting wars abroad, it was an absolutely taboo word.
In the Imperium, it was a subject that couldn't be mentioned at all.
A considerable number of Space Marines knew almost nothing about Chaos.
Only Chapters like the Blood Ravens, who had spent years fighting beyond Imperial borders, knew how terrifying Chaos could be. After coming across some of the Imperium's most classified intelligence, they had caught glimpses of the darkest chapters in the history of Chaos and the Imperium.
Even Cyrus, who had served for more than two hundred years, had only seen a Chaos Beacon twice.
And both times had led to a great battle, one so fierce it had even drawn the Chapter Master into the ultimate conflict.
Who were these Chaos forces going after?
What could have made them use a Chaos Beacon?
Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Several torpedoes fell from the sky.
They detonated more than ten kilometers away.
The violent blasts sent shockwaves surging toward them, forcing them to brace against the impact.
"The explosions are close to the Chaos Beacon. Some force must be fighting Chaos."
"Talon, abandon the Battle Barge for now and head to the blast site. I've sent you the rendezvous point." Inside his heavy armor, Cyrus calculated the explosions' location and yield.
"Captain, we're evacuating the Battle Barge now. We'll assemble at the rendezvous point."
Cyrus watched the Chaos Beacon.
"Chaos. Vile traitors."
Before you continue