Chapter Summaries

Pollux accused Dantioch of being a danger to Macragge because he was an Iron Warrior, but Guilliman and Lox persuaded them to cooperate on the planet’s defenses. Pollux agreed to supervise Dantioch, while Guilliman revealed that their partnership was a deliberate test of whether old Legion rivalries could be overcome.

• Dantioch asked Pollux whether he shared the suspicions other loyalists held toward him, and Pollux admitted that he hated the Iron Warriors for their betrayal.
• Pollux declared Dantioch Macragge’s greatest defensive weakness, arguing that an Iron Warrior could not be trusted with the Pharos.
• Lox defended Dantioch’s loyalty and urged him and Pollux to work together, and Guilliman assigned them to strengthen Macragge’s defenses.
• Dantioch offered Pollux access to his plans and the Iron Warriors’ techniques, and Pollux agreed to supervise him and report any suspicious behavior.
• After Dantioch and Pollux left, Guilliman and Lox discussed Guilliman’s deliberate experiment in bringing rival Legions together.

Elina Vella arrived on Macragge with her daughter Joy, hoping to find Lox, the Primarch’s personal advisor, for help with Joy’s dangerous psychic power. In the crowded immigration center, Oll Persson recognized Elina and offered to guide her, while quietly sensing that her situation involved something extraordinary.

• Elina Vella and Joy disembarked from a ship carrying Calthian refugees and entered Macragge’s crowded immigration center.
• Elina remembered that Lox had helped deliver Joy and decided to seek him out because she believed he could help with Joy’s psychic power.
• Elina struggled to find her way through the immigration hall and doubted that someone as important as Lox would remember her.
• A middle-aged man marked by Calth approached Elina, identified himself as Oll Persson, and recognized her.
• Oll Persson took some of Elina’s belongings and led her and Joy toward a quieter rest area while sensing psychic power and wondering about their connection to Lox.

John, a Cabal agent and Perpetual posing as Oll Persson, tried to use Elina Vella’s connection to Lox while trapped in Macragge’s immigrant center. An Ultramarines sergeant told him the identity review would take longer because the Dark Angels were arriving to meet Roboute Guilliman for a military parade.

• John, disguised as Oll Persson, comforted Elina and coaxed her to recall what she knew about Lox.
• John reflected on his secret Cabal mission and considered using Elina to investigate the unpredictable man connected to her.
• John collected free food for Elina and encountered a Thallax soldier while returning through the immigrant center.
• John asked the Ultramarines about the identity review and spoke with Sergeant Zairo, who confirmed that Oll Persson was on the passenger roster.
• Zairo told John that the review would be delayed because the Dark Angels were arriving for a military review in the capital.

John Persson used his meeting with Zairo to learn about Macragge and help Alina and her child reach the planet’s surface through a green channel. As he observed the Ultramarines and the arriving Dark Angels, he reflected on Macragge’s mysterious xenos technology and the Cabal’s order to ensure the Lord of Drakes was dead.

• John learned that the Dark Angels were arriving in force and that Zairo would arrange protection and assistance for women and children.
• John told Zairo that Alina had come to find Lox, and Zairo promised to arrange passage for her and her child if her business was urgent.
• John told Alina that Lox was on Macragge and asked to accompany her through the green channel; she agreed.
• Zairo verified Alina’s connection to Lox and arranged a transport ship to take her and Joey to Macragge.
• John entered the orbital platform with Alina and observed the Dark Angels fleet, while considering Guilliman’s possible intentions and the planet’s ancient xenos technology.
• John recalled that the Cabal had tasked him with making certain that the Emperor’s eighteenth son, the Lord of Drakes, was dead.

Macragge held a grand victory parade as Guilliman reviewed the forces defending the Five Hundred Worlds. Lox introduced the Apocalypse, a powerful Dark Age of Technology ground vehicle, and Guilliman recognized its potential in the Imperium’s wars.

• Macragge’s citizens gathered to celebrate as the parade began with ceremonial war horns and the XIII Legion military band.
• Guilliman and Lox watched the crowds from the Titan Gate while Dark Angels landing craft approached with Lion El'Jonson aboard.
• Ten thousand Victrix Guardsmen marched through the plaza, followed by Ultramarines First Company, Dreadnoughts, and the Ultramar Auxilia.
• Guilliman noticed the Apocalypse vehicle among the armored formation and asked Lox about its capabilities.
• Lox explained that the Apocalypse could challenge a Reaver-class Titan, be operated by mortal crews, and be produced quickly at Mustafar.
• Tech-Priests blessed the Apocalypse and praised the Omnissiah as it continued through the parade.

Ultramar held a military parade showcasing its Auxilia, Knight mechs, Tengu Mechs, and more than forty Titan god-engines. As Guilliman watched, he anticipated the arrival of his battle-hardened brother and a turning point for the Five Hundred Worlds.

• A child told his father he wanted to join the Ultramar Auxilia, while the crowd cheered for Guilliman.
• Lox teased Guilliman about the crowd’s support and considered pushing him to accept the throne of the Second Imperium.
• More than fifty Knight Houses paraded their mechs, followed by White Scar Captain Gantula and Qin Xin leading the Tengu Mechs through aerial maneuvers and a dramatic landing.
• The Titan Theology Council’s force of Titans, including an Emperor-class Titan, entered the military square and awed the gathered crowd.
• Guilliman watched the parade and expected his brother to arrive, marking a turning point for Ultramar’s Five Hundred Worlds.

Guilliman prepared a grand military welcome on Macragge for Lion, while Lox teased him about his mixed feelings toward his brother. The Dark Angels arrived in flawless formations, and Lion finally stepped from his Stormbird, leaving Lox shaken by his ferocious presence.

• Guilliman authorized the lifting of Macragge's airspace defenses by kissing a data-slate, and Lox joked that he could have spat on it instead.
• The Dark Angels descended in precise formations, prompting Lox to praise their discipline and Guilliman to insist that the Ultramarines could match them.
• Two thousand Dark Angels performed intricate weapons drills and formation changes before the Titan Gate as Guilliman watched sourly.
• Lion emerged from the foremost Stormbird wearing dark armor and no helmet, and Lox felt dread when their eyes briefly met.

Guilliman brought Lox and a reluctant pack of Space Wolves to meet Lion El'Jonson, hoping for a formal encounter between the Ultramarines and Dark Angels. The meeting turned toward a duel when Fafnir broke his promise and challenged the Dark Angels to name a champion.

• Guilliman felt Lion's oppressive presence during their brief clash of wills and decided to meet him with Lox and Glod.
• Fafnir insisted that the Space Wolves accompany Guilliman, citing their Legion's old grudge with the Dark Angels over Dulan, and Guilliman reluctantly allowed them to follow.
• Guilliman and Lion greeted each other warmly, and Guilliman introduced Lox as his mortal adviser and ally.
• Lion confronted Fafnir and offered to fight him or the entire pack; Fafnir accepted a duel and asked whether Holguin or Redloss would represent the Dark Angels.

Lion El'Jonson personally dueled Fafnir during the meeting of the Dark Angels and Space Wolves, defeating him and demonstrating the strength of Guilliman's new adamantium armor. The duel eased the tension between Lion and Guilliman, and they headed to Hera Fortress for a private conversation.

• Lox recalled the bitter rivalry between the Dark Angels and Space Wolves, while Fafnir faced the Dark Angels commanders in a ceremonial duel.
• Lion stopped Hoguin and Redloss from fighting and declared himself the First Legion's champion.
• Fafnir attacked Lion with his power axe, but Lion caught it and struck Fafnir's helmet, briefly knocking him to his knees.
• Lion returned Fafnir's axe after studying the adamantium armor, and Fafnir's pack celebrated the duel as an honor despite his defeat.
• Lox recognized that Lion's intervention had prevented a dangerous fight and served as a warning to anyone with disloyal intentions.
• Guilliman and Lion continued toward Hera Fortress to speak in private.

Lion assessed Guilliman’s military strength on Macragge and questioned his loyalty, but Guilliman won him over with praise and an account of Lox’s role as his ally. In Hera Castle, Lion discovered the twenty-one chairs prepared for the primarchs and recognized the sentiment behind them, while also acknowledging Lox as a kindred human soul.

• Lion surveyed the forces on Macragge and considered seizing Guilliman, but held back because he believed reconciliation was still possible.
• Guilliman welcomed Lion, praised his judgment and suitability to have been Warmaster, and eased his suspicions.
• Guilliman introduced Lox as a survivor of the Dark Age of Technology and an ally who had helped defeat Lorgar and Angron’s Shadow Crusade.
• Guilliman led Lion and Lox into a private chamber in Hera Castle, where they found a long table surrounded by twenty-one chairs bearing the Legions’ banners.
• Lion praised Guilliman for keeping a seat for every brother and told Lox that people of the Dark Age of Technology shared the primarchs’ kind of soul.

Guilliman and Lion confronted their suspicions and considered joining forces, while each concealed a dangerous secret from the other. Their tentative understanding was interrupted when Lion received word that Konrad Curze had escaped aboard the Unyielding Truth.

• Lion and Guilliman discussed Guilliman’s room of seats reserved for all their brothers, including the traitors, and Guilliman reaffirmed his hope that they might one day reunite.
• Guilliman concealed that Vulkan had died, while Lion concealed that Konrad Curze was imprisoned aboard the Unyielding Truth.
• Lion challenged Guilliman’s loyalty and accused him of planning a second Imperium, but Guilliman explained that he had only tried to preserve humanity if Terra fell.
• Lox challenged Lion to prove his own loyalty, and Guilliman urged Lion to join him in a temporary alliance under a single leader.
• Lion’s communication device sounded an alarm, and a terrified crew member reported that Curze had escaped and was coming.

Konrad Curze seized the Lion’s absence from the Invincible Reason to begin an attack, driven by his visions and hatred of Guilliman. He emerged into the void and slaughtered a Stormwing squad that confronted him at an airlock.

• Curze reflected on his prophetic visions and resolved to make his brothers witness the hopeless future he believed was inevitable.
• Curze followed a prophetic route through the Invincible Reason and escaped through a cargo airlock into space.
• Curze waited outside another airlock for his predicted prey, but a Stormwing assault squad arrived instead of a maintenance crew.
• Curze charged the Dark Angels and killed the entire squad with Mercy and Forgiveness.

Konrad sabotaged the Invincible Reason and launched all four hundred Dark Angels drop pods toward Macragge, provoking Guilliman to suspect the Lion. The Lion pleaded for Guilliman to save the four thousand warriors, and Guilliman deactivated Macragge’s Void Shields before demanding the truth from his brother.

• Konrad infiltrated the drop control room, killed its guards, bypassed the Lion’s gene-lock, and hid in a drop pod as all four hundred pods launched.
• Glod warned Guilliman that the Dark Angels had begun their descent, while Lox called for reinforcements and the Lion realized Konrad had caused the launch.
• Guilliman confronted the Lion with his sword, suspecting that the attack was part of a deception, as the battle planet Amatara locked its weapons onto the Invincible Reason.
• The Lion pleaded with Guilliman to spare the four thousand Dark Angels aboard the pods, explaining that their descent was a mistake.
• Guilliman ordered Glod to deactivate the Void Shields, allowing the pods to pass, then demanded that the Lion reveal what he had been hiding.

Lox sent the Hera space dock to capture the Dark Angels fleet while the Lion finally told Guilliman that Konrad Curze was aboard the Invincible Truth. Guilliman set out to find Curze, and the chapter ended with the Invincible Truth trapped inside the dock as the Dark Angels refused to let the Ultramarines board.

• Lox redirected the Hera space dock toward Macragge to restrain the Invincible Truth and activated a hidden contingency on Mustafar.
• Guilliman demanded that the Lion explain what he had concealed, while the Dark Angels in drop pods redirected their descent away from Macragge City.
• The Lion confessed that he had brought Konrad Curze to Macragge and imprisoned him aboard the Invincible Truth.
• Guilliman left to gather forces and search for Curze before he could disappear.
• The Hera dock captured the Invincible Truth and the rest of the Dark Angels fleet with force fields, and Lion ordered his crew not to resist but to bar Ultramarines from boarding.

Guilliman learned that Konrad Curze had escaped into Macragge after slaughtering Dark Angels in a drop pod, and he organized a citywide hunt. Lion agreed to pursue Curze himself while Lox’s Iron Man secretly stood by; Curze remained at large.

• Lox reported that the Dark Angels fleet had been impounded and that 367 of their drop pods had been recovered, leaving thirty-three unaccounted for.
• Guilliman learned that Curze had massacred the Dark Angels inside a drop pod and that he had escaped after attacking the Ultramarines who found him.
• Guilliman confronted Lion over bringing Curze to Macragge and risking the forbidden weapons aboard the Invincible Reason.
• Lox announced that the Dark Angels and Ultramarines were conducting a joint exercise, while Guilliman placed Macragge under martial law and deployed forces to locate Curze.
• Lion vowed to kill Curze, and Guilliman ordered him to take responsibility for the escape as Lox’s Iron Man waited in the inner palace.

Konrad Curze infiltrated Hera Fortress and used an explosion to draw the Ultramarines into a deadly pursuit. After killing Captain Celsus and disappearing into the darkness, he left Auguston and Holguin’s forces trying to surround him.

• Konrad Curze evaded the search of Macragge and secretly entered Hera Fortress.
• Lox reported that the Night Haunter remained somewhere in Macragge, while Titus said psychic divination could not locate him.
• An explosion engulfed part of Hera Fortress, prompting Guilliman and the Lion to rush back and pursue Curze.
• Curze tricked Captain Celsus’s squad with a false trap, killed Celsus, and escaped into the darkness as the squad opened fire.
• Auguston joined forces with Holguin and the Dark Angels, then formed an encirclement around the area where Curze had appeared.

Augoston led the Ultramarines in a bid to trap Night Haunter inside Hera Fortress, then fought Konrad in the dark using his advanced armor to withstand the primarch’s attacks. Night Haunter pierced Augoston’s eye with a psychic-assisted strike, but Augoston counterattacked and drove his power sword through Konrad’s lower back.

• Augoston rallied the Ultramarines and ordered them to secure the routes around the Memorial Hall while Guilliman told him to wait for reinforcements.
• Night Haunter hacked the Ultramarines’ communications and plunged the hall into darkness, then killed a Dark Angel and wounded Hoguine.
• Augoston pursued Night Haunter, baited him with insults, and used his armor to block an attack and seize him in a crushing hold.
• Night Haunter exploited Augoston’s visor weakness with a psychic assault and pierced his eye, leaving the commander badly wounded.
• Augoston struck back with his power sword, driving it through Night Haunter’s lower back as Hoguine watched.

Auguston wounded Konrad before falling, and Dantioch guided Pollux through the Night Haunter’s attacks until the Pharos beacon pulled him away. Konrad remained in the memorial hall as Guilliman and the Lion closed in.

• Auguston wounded Konrad with his sword, but Konrad overwhelmed him and broke his weapon.
• Dantioch sensed that Auguston was still alive and directed Pollux toward the memorial hall.
• Konrad ambushed Pollux and made his Ultramarines disappear into the darkness, leaving Pollux alone.
• Dantioch used the Pharos beacon to guide Pollux around Konrad’s attacks, and Pollux briefly trapped Konrad’s power claw with his sword.
• Dantioch activated the Pharos beacon and pulled Pollux away from Konrad across hundreds of thousands of light-years.
• Konrad sensed Guilliman and the Lion approaching from opposite sides.

Lox watched Guilliman and Lion El'Jonson corner Konrad Curze in the memorial hall while the Warsmith used Pharos to teleport Captain Pollux to Sotha. Konrad's hidden bombs nearly killed the gathered warriors, but an awakened thinking Iron Man teleported the explosives away and faced him.

• The Warsmith activated Pharos to bring Captain Pollux from Hera Fortress to Sotha, where Pollux recovered from the transfer.
• Guilliman and Lion El'Jonson attacked Konrad Curze together, wounding him but failing to overcome his precognition.
• Konrad wounded Lion El'Jonson and triggered bombs hidden in the memorial hall's columns.
• An awakened thinking Iron Man teleported the bombs and surrounding structure away before they exploded, then turned its attention to Konrad.

Lox’s Iron Man Veronica overwhelmed Konrad Curze and captured him alive at Hera Fortress. With Macragge secure, the Lion warned Guilliman that his interest in forbidden technology put him in dangerous territory.

• Veronica entered the fight, and the Lion compared her to the Men of Iron he knew.
• Lox lifted Veronica’s protocol restrictions, and she used a magnetic field to drag Konrad into her disintegration-field fists.
• Veronica battered Konrad unconscious, restrained him, and contained him in a stasis field.
• Guilliman ordered the wounded treated and the dead secured after Veronica reported the mission complete.
• The Lion warned Guilliman about his dealings with forbidden technology, then left Hera Fortress with Holguin and the surviving Dark Angels.