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The suffocating eternal hum and aura of pain from the Golden Throne Hall had yet to fade from Guilliman and Obi-Wan's hearts when a new, far more violent warning stabbed into Obi-Wan Kenobi's perception through the Force like an icy steel needle!

Just as the fragment of the Emperor's will fell silent, Obi-Wan abruptly closed his eyes.

The gentleness on his face was instantly replaced by grave solemnity.

The Force's vision pierced through the Imperial Palace's massive Bulwark walls, only to be swallowed by a churning sea of blood and shrieking, frenzied roars!

Countless twisted, savage figures clad in heavy brass armor and wielding enormous chain-axes and flamethrowers surged through Terra's labyrinthine arteries like a breached crimson flood, charging madly toward the Imperial Palace!

The sky had been stained an ominous scarlet by filthy psychic flames, while the air reeked of sulfur, blood, and pure lust for slaughter! Worse still, at the forefront of that tide of Destruction, eight terrifying presences rose into the heavens like moving mountains—eight Bloodthirsters of differing forms, each radiating the pure oppressive might of Khorne!

Like vanguards leading Destruction itself, they tore apart every obstacle in their path, heading straight for the heart of the Imperial Palace!

"Regent Guilliman!" Obi-Wan's eyes snapped open, urgency unlike anything before flashing in their blue depths. His voice carried the penetrating force of the Force itself. "Danger! The prophecy warns us! Countless daemons have descended upon Terra! There are eight powerful entities! They are breaching the defenses at incredible speed, and their target... is the Imperial Palace!"

Obi-Wan's prophecy struck the deathly silent Throne Hall like a thunderclap!

Guilliman's expression changed drastically beneath his helmet! Given Terra's current chaos, the rampant cults, and the reality that the Emperor's Astronomican had been weakened by the Great Rift, Obi-Wan's prophecy was instantly confirmed by grim logic!

The rotten rule of the High Lords' Council had finally borne its bitter fruit. The Chaos Gods had seized this once-in-an-age opportunity born of weakness!

Though Marshal Trajan's golden mask remained expressionless, his fists had already clenched tight.

As guardian of the Throne Hall, he was instinctively wary of any prophecy, especially one from an alien envoy whose power system was unfamiliar to him.

But in the instant he hesitated—

A shrill, highest-level invasion alarm abruptly tore through the silence of every communication channel within the Imperial Palace!

"Emergency report! A massive Warp rift has erupted in the lower levels of Terra's hive cities! Khorne daemons! Vast numbers of Khorne daemons are pouring through!!"

"The defensive forces have collapsed! Repeat! The defensive forces have collapsed! They have breached the Inner Circle Bulwark!"

"Multiple... Greater Daemon psychic signatures detected! Their target is the Imperial Palace!"

Marshal Trajan's body jolted! His last trace of doubt vanished without a trace! Obi-Wan's prophecy had come true, but it was already too late!

Trajan rose sharply, his golden cloak billowing without wind.

Without sparing Obi-Wan another glance, he turned and shot from the Throne Hall like a bolt of gold. His cold, efficient orders spread through the entire Imperial Palace over the Adeptus Custodes' private communication network. "All Adeptus Custodes! Battle stations! Activate the Throne Hall defense array at full power! Seal all Eternal Gates leading to the Throne Hall! Outer defense nodes, delay the daemons at any cost! Buy time for the inner defenses! Fight for the Emperor! Hold to the death!"

The Adeptus Custodes, the Imperium of Man's most powerful and most loyal military force, sprang into motion at high speed like a precision war machine! Heavy footsteps, the hum of charging energy weapons, and the low whine of anti-psychic fields activating intertwined through the grand, frigid corridors of the Imperial Palace, forming the prelude to a symphony of death.

Guilliman struck his breastplate heavily in salute to the Emperor, cold fury and resolve burning in his eyes.

He gave the eternally suffering figure upon the throne a deep look, then turned sharply. "Master Obi-Wan! We go! Terra needs its regent!"

Obi-Wan bowed slightly toward the throne, showing his respect for that sacrifice and burden, then followed Guilliman in long strides out of that oppressive heart of the palace.

When they burst through the heavy Adamantium doors of the Throne Hall, an entirely different sight awaited them outside.

A murderous chill filled the depths of the Imperial Palace.

The Adeptus Custodes flowed toward every defensive node like a golden tide, their heavy footsteps echoing through the vast corridors.

Complex energy barriers rose at critical passageways, casting a dim blue glow.

The stench of sulfur mingled with blood was already faintly discernible in the air—and growing stronger by the second! In the distance, from the outer reaches of the Imperial Palace, came muffled explosions, the shriek of energy weapons, and... inhuman, bloodthirsty roars that made the soul tremble!

Terra, the heart of the Imperium of Man, had been utterly set aflame!

As Guilliman hurried onward, he forcibly broke into Terra's chaotic global communications network using his authority as regent. His voice was like thunder, drowning out every alarm and cry of confusion:

"All Terra defense forces loyal to the Emperor, remnants of the Astra Militarum, Department of Justice Arbitrators, Sisters of Battle, and Adeptus Mechanicus Skitarii! I am Roboute Guilliman! The Emperor's Thirteenth Son! Regent of the Imperium! I have returned!"

"Khorne's daemon hordes have trampled Holy Terra! The blasphemers are charging toward the Emperor's throne!"

"I command it! All who can still grip a weapon, assemble immediately toward the Imperial Palace! Use every building, fortification, and ruin! Resist them layer by layer! Fight them step by step! With your lives, buy time for the Emperor and for Terra!"

"Cowards die! Those who retreat die! Those who surrender die! Only the souls of those who die fighting shall return to the Emperor's light! For the Emperor! For Terra! Fight to the death!!!"

Guilliman's voice was like a powerful stimulant injected directly into chaotic Terra.

Countless soldiers struggling in despair, civilians driven to the brink by cultists, and even hive gangs still resisting saw hope and the will to die fighting reignite in their eyes upon hearing that familiar, authoritative voice! They seized whatever weapons they could find and, either spontaneously or under the organization of surviving officers, began forming fragile yet unyielding barricades of flesh and blood toward the Imperial Palace, toward the ever-nearing roar of daemons!

Yet the advance of Khorne's daemon host far exceeded all expectations.

Driven by the purest desire for slaughter, Bloodletters, Khorne Berserkers, Skullcrushers, and Skull Cannons, led by the eight Greater Daemons of Khorne, tore through the hastily organized defenses with insane force, like red-hot iron cutting through butter.

The hive cities' forest of steel became a bloody slaughterhouse, every inch of ground soaked in blood.

When Guilliman and Obi-Wan reached the heart of the Imperial Palace's outer defensive perimeter—Eternal Gate Square—the sight before them was enough to leave even the strongest warriors breathless.

The grand square, once the site of Imperium ceremonies, had become a grinder of flesh and blood.

The golden Adeptus Custodes stood like immortal rocks, forming the strongest defensive line.

Silent as golden statues yet swift as lightning, every thrust of their Guardian Spears precisely claimed a daemon's life, while the roar of their Bolters stirred storms of gore amid the daemon hordes.

But there were simply too many daemons! An endless crimson tide! They trampled the corpses of their comrades and burning wreckage beneath their feet, howling as they hurled themselves against the golden line.

More terrifying still, those eight dreadful presences, like moving calamities, had already reached the edge of the square!

"Guilliman! You have finally shown yourself!" A deafening roar overflowing with endless hunger for slaughter rang out from the square's edge! A Greater Daemon of Khorne, seemingly forged from lava and enormous brass gears, crashed through an alloy wall with a blazing giant axe in hand. Its single crimson eye locked tightly onto the newly arrived Guilliman! It was Anglas, one of the Eightfold Blood Pact, Khorne's engine of war!

"Blood for the Blood God! Skulls for the Skull Throne!!" Anglas roared madly, swinging his colossal battle-axe with force enough to tear space itself apart. Ignoring the Adeptus Custodes and barricades in his path, he charged straight at Guilliman! The ground melted beneath his feet, and the air ignited in his wake!

The battle to defend the Imperial Palace entered its most brutal, bloodiest climax the instant Guilliman reached the front lines! The Golden Throne was in grave peril! Terra's fate hung by a thread!