Chapter Summaries

Ovisus and Hols used the Spear of Isha to cut through the Webway, but lost control and opened a breach into the Warp. As Daemon Calamity attacked, Hols activated the artifact again, and Black Death emerged to fight it.

• Lady Malys urged Ovisus to use the Spear of Isha and sacrifice her chance of rescue for the Aeldari, then ordered the Incubi to protect or kill Ovisus depending on her choice.
• Ovisus persuaded Hols to help her channel psychic power into the Spear of Isha and cut a section of the Webway free.
• The Spear of Isha overwhelmed Ovisus and Hols, blasted open the Webway, and released Daemon Calamity, which attacked Rebels and Drukhari alike.
• As Daemon Calamity advanced on the injured Ovisus, Hols heard Grandfather's voice and placed his hand on the Spear of Isha.
• The Spear of Isha vanished and opened another Warp breach, from which Black Death emerged and charged at Daemon Calamity.

Boss Slick fought Vashtorr in a hidden realm, where he endured a devastating attack and glimpsed a lonely future as a god. He continued onward past visions of the Orks who had once accompanied him, while the fighting in the Webway raged on.

• The Daemonic Scourge fought Black Death as the plague legions and Emperor’s Children poured into the Webway, trapping the surviving Drukhari between them.
• Vashtorr sent a massive monster of machinery and flesh to engulf Boss Slick, but Boss Slick destroyed it with a roar powered by waaagh energy.
• Vashtorr attacked Boss Slick with spikes formed from the monster’s fragments, and Boss Slick deliberately took the hits, allowing green power to flow from his wounds.
• Boss Slick glimpsed himself walking alone through the stars as a god, burdened by an approaching choice.
• Boss Slick passed visions of Cleverhead Boss and Kuka, who faded into memories as he moved forward.
• Clever Git warned Boss Slick to be careful in battle and disappeared after recalling how the other Boys might not bring him back if he was hurt.

Boss Slick hunted down Vashtorr’s avatars and absorbed their divine authority, growing stronger as he approached godhood. When he finally fought Vashtorr directly, Vashtorr revealed that the stolen power was sabotaging Boss Slick from within.

• Boss Slick pulled the spikes from his body and began hunting Vashtorr’s avatars while Vashtorr hid his main consciousness among them.
• Boss Slick destroyed Vashtorr’s avatars, absorbing fragments of Vashtorr’s authority over machinery and using the growing power to locate more of them.
• Boss Slick found the avatar housing Vashtorr’s main consciousness, but Vashtorr refused to negotiate and attacked him.
• Boss Slick and Vashtorr fought fiercely as Vashtorr absorbed the power of daemons and machines around them to grow stronger.
• Vashtorr caught Boss Slick’s wrist with a newly formed arm and revealed that the divine authority Boss Slick had absorbed was disrupting his control of his own body.

Vashtorr defeated Boss Slick and began ascending, but Boss Slick forced him to surrender the Key of Truth before the ascension was completed. Vashtorr became the new Chaos God Forgefiend, whose birth expanded the Great Rift and plunged the T'au Empire into chaos as its artificial intelligences malfunctioned.

• Vashtorr pierced Boss Slick's chest and called on the Giant Tower to grant his ascension to godhood.
• Boss Slick punched through Vashtorr's chest and threatened to destroy them both, forcing Vashtorr to negotiate.
• Boss Slick demanded the Key of Truth, and Vashtorr signed a pact granting it and his promised benefits in exchange for being allowed to ascend.
• Vashtorr ascended as Forgefiend, god of forging, machinery, invention, and related domains, and the fifth point of the Chaos Star lit up.
• Forgefiend's birth expanded the Great Rift by a tenth and swallowed several T'au planets.
• The T'au Empire's artificial intelligences malfunctioned, causing widespread destruction and leaving its armies in disarray.

Guilliman’s fleet battle against Ghazghkull Thraka turned disastrous when the new Machine God’s birth crippled Imperial ships, but Guilliman launched a boarding assault and gained the upper hand with Custodes reinforcements and Jaghatai’s unexpected arrival. Ghazghkull found himself isolated against two Primarchs and prepared to retreat.

• The new Machine God consumed most of the Adeptus Mechanicus, while Screw Clan faithful awakened a fully mechanical robot and began a new race.
• Forgefiend’s birth caused Imperial warships to malfunction, so Ghazghkull Thraka ordered his Orks to attack the collapsing human fleet.
• Guilliman and his First Company veterans boarded Ghazghkull Thraka’s flagship, where Guilliman struggled against the powerful Warboss.
• Over a hundred Adeptus Custodes teleported behind the Ork Mega Bosses, and Guilliman recognized human heads on Ghazghkull Thraka’s Boss Rack.
• A Warp Portal appeared among the Mega Bosses and delivered Jaghatai, who transformed into an eagle and attacked Ghazghkull Thraka.
• Jaghatai and Guilliman, aided by the Custodes, broke the Ork formation and isolated Ghazghkull Thraka, who decided to retreat.

Guilliman and Jaghatai failed to kill Ghazghkull Thraka, who escaped by teleporting away and scattered the Ork Waaagh! fleet. Trazyn and Afentis recovered Ghazghkull, and Trazyn began transplanting him into a stronger Krork body after warning that the birth of a fifth Warp god was a dire omen.

• Ghazghkull Thraka used an explosion on his armor to break free of his attackers, but the Primarchs and Custodians surrounded him again.
• Ghazghkull triggered a high-energy reaction, and Jaghatai realized he was attempting to teleport away and tried to disrupt him with Warp energy.
• Ghazghkull teleported away despite Jaghatai's attack, leaving body parts behind, and the Ork fleet broke apart as its morale collapsed.
• Trazyn and Afentis examined the mangled Ghazghkull aboard a concealed Necron warship and found him still alive after a severe teleportation failure.
• Trazyn warned Afentis that the birth of a fifth Warp god was a bad omen and began surgery to give Ghazghkull a stronger Krork body.
• Afentis followed Trazyn and suggested they use a nearby Singularity Gate to leave after Ghazghkull was released.

Trazyn and Afentis weighed their next move as the Silent King halted the Pariah Nexus campaign and revealed the universe’s impending destruction to the Necron rulers. The Dynasties pledged blackstone to his survival plan, but the council remained divided over the growing Storm King rebellion.

• Trazyn and Afentis considered seeking the Silent King or joining the Storm King while looking over Trazyn’s collection.
• The Silent King ordered the Necron Dynasties to stop attacking and terminate the Pariah Nexus project after reports of mass disappearances and the Great Rift’s renewed expansion.
• At a secret council, the Silent King disclosed that their world was false, a fifth Warp god had been born, and an ancient prophecy foretold the universe’s destruction.
• The Silent King requested blackstone to build a shelter that could preserve Necron information until it was opened in the future.
• Most Phaerons, including Phaeron Krispekh of the Nihilakh Dynasty, pledged their blackstone, while one questioned how they should handle the Storm King’s growing rebellion.

The Silent King chose to activate the Celestial Orrery to open a route through the Great Rift for the Necron fleet, accepting that its use would cost him and others their memories or lives. Boss Slick sent Big Blade to build a Squig Webway Gate and lead an Ork force to rescue Hols.

• The Silent King told the Phaerons he would share the meeting with the Storm King and said activating the Celestial Orrery would end the Necron civil war.
• The Silent King’s meeting concluded with a plan to use the Celestial Orrery to blast a passage through the Great Rift toward the Nachmund Gauntlet.
• Boss Slick checked that the Key of Truth was safe and realized his growing divinity prevented him from returning fully to his original body.
• Boss Slick told Big Blade to build a Squig Webway Gate using the Key of Truth and sent him the coordinates to rescue Hols.
• Big Blade put on Boss Slick’s tusk, gathered Orks for the rescue, and asked what his reward would be; Boss Slick promised him another tooth.

Boss Slick used his Pact with Vashtorr to demand divine assistance and began trying to contact Boss Copperhead through the Webway. As Boss Copperhead’s forces continued their rampage, Little Slick stirred aboard the Battle Fortress and crushed a Gretchin who noticed.

• Big Blade gathered reinforcements and had his Painboys build a Squig gate, while Boss Slick prepared the Key of Truth.
• Boss Slick invoked the Pact, and Vashtorr reluctantly agreed to help him in a future fight despite recognizing the likely danger.
• Boss Slick began painfully dividing himself so he could send a message through the Webway to Boss Copperhead.
• Boss Copperhead led his Orks through the Webway, crushing Drukhari forces and settlements while carrying the bedridden Little Slick aboard his Battle Fortress.
• Little Slick’s finger twitched, and when a Gretchin approached to investigate, Little Slick crushed him with his hand.

Boss Slick sent a fragment of his consciousness into a Gretchin to recruit Boss Copperhead and the Orks for a Waaagh! to Commorragh. As Commorragh descended into a catastrophic war involving all four Chaos gods and the Aeldari, Boss Slick feared the Orks might not arrive in time.

• Boss Copperhead laughed at the Gretchin who claimed to be Boss Slick, but believed him after the Gretchin delivered a psychic slap.
• Boss Slick told Boss Copperhead that Big Mudball was surrounded and ordered him to join Big Blade and lead the Orks to Commorragh.
• Boss Copperhead agreed to prepare a Great Waaagh!, then kept the Gretchin as a pet after Boss Slick's consciousness departed.
• Boss Slick considered the spreading Warp corruption as Slaanesh, Nurgle, Khorne, and Tzeentch poured forces into Commorragh.
• Vect abandoned the Gate of Khaine and fled, while Drukhari Archons organized resistance in the power vacuum.
• Yvraine entered Commorragh with the Reaper Host and the Avatar of Ynnead, and Khaine's avatars led Aeldari warriors against the Daemons.

Slaanesh’s forces fought Mortarion’s Death Guard, whose resilience and plagues countered the Emperor’s Children’s speed and close-combat skill. After a Slaaneshi counterattack was checked by Great Unclean Ones, a winged Squig Beast defeated a Keeper of Secrets by swallowing its head.

• A Daemonette carved into Plaguebearers but succumbed to their plagues and was smashed apart.
• Noise Marines used Blastmasters to destroy Plaguebearers, while Mortarion’s Plagueburst Crawlers and Plague Engines battered the Slaaneshi line with plague fire.
• Keepers of Secrets and Slaaneshi Beasts broke into the Death Guard’s flank, cutting through its troops and Plague Engines.
• Three Great Unclean Ones halted the breakthrough by slowing and weakening the Slaaneshi attackers with filth and viral plagues.
• A winged Squig Beast pinned an ambushing Keeper of Secrets, endured its attacks behind his wings, then knocked it down and swallowed its head.

After Nurgle’s forces defeated Slaanesh’s army, Hols delivered supplies to the Aeldari survivors and reassured Ovisus that they could soon escape Commorragh. A month later, Nurgle’s advance reached Khorne’s domain, where a bloody battle began as Tzeentch daemons invaded the Garden of Nurgle.

• Mortarion gave Hols clean food and water, then warned him that Ovisus might put her people before their friendship, but Hols said he valued what she had shared with him.
• Hols left most of Mortarion’s supplies for the Aeldari survivors, visited the wounded Parker Pan and Ovisus, and told them Nurgle’s forces might capture a Webway Portal within a month.
• Ovisus quietly thanked Hols, who promised things would get better and left, missing his former life among the Orks.
• A month later, Nurgle’s army had taken a third of Slaanesh’s holdings and reached Khorne’s Domain of Slaughter, where Mortarion planned to rest before attacking.
• Khorne’s Bloodletters charged Nurgle’s forces, while a group of fleeing Aeldari emerged through a Webway Gate and were slaughtered by Tzeentch daemons in the Garden of Nurgle.

Hols stabilized Nurgle’s front against Khorne, established a forward base, and began transporting Drukhari builders to construct a Webway Gate. As he relaxed and hurried to move the remaining builders, Daemon Calamity secretly prepared to ambush him.

• Hols took command of Nurgle’s front, reinforced its defensive line, and used Plague Cannons to destroy Khorne’s Skull Cannons and weaken its daemons.
• Over the following week, Hols led the Plague Host in a counterattack, captured a Slaughter Spire, and established a Forward Base beside Khorne’s Domain of Slaughter and Slaanesh’s Pleasure Grounds.
• Hols returned to the rear, transformed into a hollow creature, and carried the first group of Drukhari builders and their equipment to the Webway Gate construction site.
• Hols created a protected shelter for the Drukhari technicians, who signaled that their work was proceeding smoothly.
• As Hols increased his transport runs, Daemon Calamity secretly gathered power in a higher dimension, preparing to ensnare him.

Miriael urged Daemon Calamity to focus on pleasing Slaanesh as Khorne's armies attacked, while Hols hurried Ovisus and the wounded toward the Webway Gate under the shadow of an approaching threat. Fulgrim joined the battle against Mortarion, who transformed into a towering reaper and struck at Fulgrim's descent.

• Daemon Calamity questioned Miriael about preparing for battle, but she remained absorbed in her desires until Khorne's armies launched a massive assault.
• Miriael persuaded Daemon Calamity to wait for a chance to please Slaanesh rather than charge into battle, while Hols carried Ovisus and the wounded toward the Webway Gate.
• Ovisus sensed a looming prophetic threat, and Hols learned that Fulgrim had joined the Blue Skins Chaos Sorcerers against Mortarion.
• Fulgrim descended as a purple phoenix and prepared to burn away his enemies, while Mortarion summoned his power and grew into a giant reaper.
• Mortarion rose toward Fulgrim's purple sun and brought his scythe down in a vicious slash.

Hols fought to protect Ovisus and the wounded while Daemon Calamity threatened the Webway Portal. The Reaper Host intervened, and Ork reinforcements arrived, leaving Boss Copperhead ready to face Daemon Calamity.

• Mortarion and Fulgrim clashed after trading insults, while a Silver Figure cut Hols in half and wounded Ovisus as Aeldari ships entered the Plague Zone.
• Hols brought Ovisus and the wounded to the Portal site, found it under attack, and joined the battle against Daemon Calamity.
• Hols fought Daemon Calamity in Krork form, but the Keeper of Secrets exploited his concern for the Portal and wounded him with deceptive attacks.
• The Reaper Host bombarded Daemon Calamity, giving Hols a chance to escape as Slaaneshi forces threatened the Portal.
• Ork reinforcements poured through a green Spatial Rift, and Boss Copperhead landed before Daemon Calamity and declared him his opponent.

Hols tore through the Slaanesh forces attacking the Aeldari Portal and rescued the wounded Tyranda and Ovisus, but Lucius’s hidden plot turned the Aeldari against him and left him as a sacrifice to Slaanesh. As Hols was tormented beneath a vast vortex, two powerful consciousnesses stirred within it.

• Hols killed the Chaos Dreadnoughts and carved through the Slaanesh Space Marines to reach the Aeldari defensive line.
• Hols unleashed a Psychic Storm that struck the enemies while sparing the Aeldari, then healed the wounded Ovisus.
• Lucius’s plot took effect, and Tyranda and other corrupted Aeldari stabbed Hols with their weapons.
• Ovisus recognized Lucius’s face among the attackers as the many Luciuses revealed themselves and began extracting Hols’s flesh and soul for Slaanesh.
• Corrupted tentacles raised an altar around Hols as an enormous vortex appeared across Commorragh, where one consciousness felt ecstasy and another burned with fury.

Yvraine ordered the Reaper Host to enter the newly forming Warp vortex despite the catastrophic corruption it caused, while Orks poured through an unaffected portal into the chaos. In Slaanesh’s garden, Nurgle attacked over Slaanesh’s consumption of Hols, only to discover that the feast had greatly increased Slaanesh’s power.

• A prophet who looked into the vortex mutated and rotted, so Yvraine killed her and ordered the Reaper Host to slay the corrupted and pray to Ynnead.
• Yvraine insisted that the fleet remain and sail into the vortex, and the Avatar of Ynnead appeared to support her command.
• A Warp storm spawned Nurgle and Slaanesh daemons around Commorragh, while the stable Key of Truth passage let more Orks enter and fight eagerly.
• Nurgle entered Slaanesh’s garden and demanded the return of Hols, but Slaanesh admitted to devouring him and refused to give him back yet.
• Nurgle struck Slaanesh with the Slayer Sword, but Slaanesh blocked his attacks and revealed that consuming Hols had made Slaanesh much stronger.

Slaanesh tested their newly increased power against Nurgle, but Vashtorr intervened and forged armor that strengthened Nurgle. Slaanesh split into male and female forms to continue the battle against the armored Nurgle and Vashtorr.

• Slaanesh unleashed purple beams and a swarm of tentacles against Nurgle, but his mouths devoured the beams and his resilience let him endure the attacks.
• Nurgle explained that decay governed the cycle of life and death as the tentacles withered and his wounds regenerated.
• Vashtorr declared himself a fifth chief god and used his power to forge powerful armor around Nurgle.
• Nurgle's shoulder-mounted rocket launchers blasted Slaanesh's eyes across the sky, while Slaanesh realized they had underestimated Vashtorr.
• Slaanesh split into male and female forms and joined the tentacles in attacking Nurgle, whose armor withstood their blows.

Slaanesh and Forgefiend Nurgle pushed their battle into a punishing contest of divine power, while Boss Slick empowered Boss Copperhead to defeat Daemon Calamity. Boss Slick then persuaded Daft to leave his bombing run and tell Boss Copperhead to find Big Mudball.

• Slaanesh Female severed Forgefiend Nurgle's shoulder, and the detached arm became a miniature Forgefiend Nurgle before the two Nurgles merged again.
• Slaanesh Male swallowed the Forgefiend Nurgles' flames to protect Slaanesh Female, then the two Slaaneshes attacked with purple storms that shattered Nurgle's armor.
• In Commorragh, Boss Slick channelled Waaagh! power into Boss Copperhead, who killed Daemon Calamity and mounted the daemon's head on his Boss Rack.
• Boss Copperhead ignored Boss Slick's plan to search for Hols and continued fighting daemons, so Boss Slick contacted Daft through the Bomber's dashboard.
• Daft agreed to tell Boss Copperhead to find Big Mudball after Boss Slick offered to bring him his No. 2 Mech.

Boss Slick learned that Slaanesh had killed Hols and that Ynnead had allowed it to happen in hopes of using him to kill Slaanesh. After absorbing billions of Aeldari souls and taking the four Crone Swords, Boss Slick left to face Slaanesh alone.

• Boss Slick traced the Aeldari divinity to Ynnead and learned from Ovisus's and Yvraine's memories that Slaanesh's champion had killed Hols and sacrificed him.
• Boss Slick discovered that Ynnead wanted him to kill Slaanesh so the Aeldari god of death could be born, and Yvraine offered him four Crone Swords and Aeldari souls.
• Ynnead sent Boss Slick billions of Aeldari souls, increasing his power by roughly thirty percent and allowing him to create a replica of the Key of Truth.
• Boss Slick rejected Yvraine's offer to fight beside the Reaper Host, took the four Crone Swords, and sent the Reaper Host and the Aeldari in Commorragh to Realspace.
• Boss Slick departed for Slaanesh's Palace to face Slaanesh alone, leaving Ynnead unable to intervene without Yvraine as an anchor.