"Seeing a land once teeming with life ravaged by war to this extent saddened me." Leman Russ passed through the portal, crouched down, and grabbed a handful of dust that had been carbonized several times over. Its moisture had been vaporized by bombs, and every bit of nourishment had been drained away by the awakened undead. For it to naturally recover to its former state would take at least several centuries.
Beside the contemplative Leman Russ, auxiliary troops and Space Wolves were establishing positions around the portal. With Titans guarding the outer perimeter, they had no need to worry about enemy attacks.
Heavy artillery pieces whose range easily exceeded that of spellcasting were installed one after another. Deeper trenches and sturdier breastworks were built through the soldiers' efforts. Never had the Imperium of Man's defenses on this side of the portal been so solid.
Everything within a radius of two hundred kilometers lay within the Imperium's strike range. Any nonhuman presence could draw artillery bombardment or a purge by Knight suits.
Leman Russ scattered the dust in his hand into the sky and irritably rolled his neck.
A Space Wolf noticed Leman Russ's discomfort and asked with concern, "My lord, you seem ill at ease with the environment here. Do you miss Fenris's cold winds?"
"No... I do not miss Fenris." Leman Russ rested a hand on the Space Wolf's shoulder plate. He glanced back at the portal before continuing, "I miss the world that belonged to us..."
"The world that belonged to us? My lord, this place will soon belong to the Imperium of Man as well." The Space Wolf declared his resolve to Leman Russ. The Wolf King merely smiled. He knew his son could not understand what he meant.
Our world...
Those brief words echoed through Leman