(Bonus release 8/20)
The moment the Warp Jump ended, the full vista of the Bakka Battlefield slammed into Mortarion's vision.
The Death Guard fleet emerged from the shadows of the Warp, its enormous gray-green warships sailing out of that dimly glowing realm. The readings flashing across the instrument screens had not yet fully returned to zero, but Mortarion's gaze had already pierced the bridge's observation window and settled on the battlefield burning furiously beyond.
The Raven Guard Legion's warships stood on the brink of destruction.
The fleet, once renowned for its ghostlike maneuverability and stealth, was now under concentrated fire from countless Word Bearers warships.
Macro-cannon volleys, lance batteries, and thousands of torpedoes tore apart the warships of the Raven Guard and the Sons of Horus Legion, one after another.
Dark hulls shattered in explosions, becoming vast clouds of wreckage and flame.
The Word Bearers' shipboard guns showed no sign of letting up. Clearly, they intended to grind every Raven Guard hull to dust, leaving not even wreckage behind.
Meanwhile, the Sons of Horus fleet was gradually withdrawing from the battlefield.
The warships that should have been covering the Raven Guard's attack from the flanks were retreating in an orderly rhythm.
Their battle line contracted, the range widened, and their engine trails pointed away from the battlefield.
The Sons of Horus were preparing to leave this region as it turned into a meat grinder, abandoning the Raven Guard to bear the Word Bearers' wrath alone.
Mortarion watched it all in silence. His respirator concealed most of his expression, but his gaze lingered on the retreating ships for several seconds.
The Death Guard had only just entered the battlefield as the campaign neared its end.
His original plan had been sound: wait, wear them down, then enter the fray-until that unforeseen