As time ticked away, the moment for the campaign's commencement drew near.
The Battle of Cadia was hailed as the most famous conflict accompanying the opening of the Great Rift. This apocalypse-level engagement directly tore the galaxy in half, bringing the Imperium of Man to the very brink of an endless abyss.
Meanwhile, Caleb discovered that the Emperor was already preparing to repair the Webway pipelines. Every Custodian had taken position at the Webway portal, readying themselves to unleash another Webway War. Concurrently, vast fleets across the galaxy were being requisitioned to embark upon a grand Indomitus Crusade.
Of course, Guilliman was not completely unprepared for Cadia—just as shown by the chessboard rewards, the support fleet of the Indomitus Crusade would participate in this battle. Thus, Caleb did not need to worry about the frontline forces. At the same time, Sanguinius would join the battlefield carrying his instructions.
As for how the Iron Warriors would be brought into these reinforcements, Caleb remained unsure. However, it wasn't completely without leads; Barabas Dantioch, for instance, had already been dispatched near Cadia by his loving mother to construct fortresses.
At this moment, various factions within the Imperium had their own affairs to manage. Only poor Abaddon remained entirely in the dark regarding the news of these Primarchs.
"You're telling me the Primarchs have returned?"
"How is that possible?"
"This is no longer the era of the Primarchs. How could they possibly return?"
Receiving the latest intelligence, Abaddon looked completely astonished. Had a Tzeentchian Sorcerer not leaked this information, he wouldn't even know that the loyalist Primarchs of the Imperium were back.
Following the 12th Black Crusade, the Black Legion was stronger and more formidable than ever. Although Huron Blackheart had not appeared in this timeline, the absence of this figure allowed Abaddon to assemble a legion even larger than the original. Now fully in control of the Blackstone Fortress, Abaddon intended to use this leviathan to fulfill his ultimate destiny: destroy Cadia and tear open the Rift. This would unleash a storm upon realspace, plunging the Corpse-Emperor on the Golden Throne into total despair.
After a moment of shock, Abaddon quickly composed himself. Guilliman hadn't actually died back in his own era; his sudden return now fell within the realm of reason. As for the resurrective rumors surrounding Lion El'Jonson and Sanguinius, he didn't believe a single word. The Tzeentchian Sorcerer had only stuttered out incomplete fragments, unable to confirm whether those two Primarchs were truly alive!
Prophecies from Tzeentch were notoriously unreliable—the ultimate outcome might turn out correct, but the process would be utterly absurd. Now, Abaddon considered Guilliman's return a set fact. And he knew all too well what kind of threat Guilliman posed should he regain control of the Imperium.
"We must muster the host immediately!"
"For the 13th Black Crusade, we shall strike the Imperium a devastating blow with our absolute strongest force!"
"Let the galaxy burn once more!"
"I will show the False Emperor where the true future lies!"
Abaddon maintained his typical arrogance and swagger. In truth, he was not acting solely out of selfish vengeance, but also to prove that he could lead the way into a superior future. In his propaganda and actions, he consistently drew an ideological line between himself and his father; though he raised the banner of vengeance, he remained confident he would not be corrupted by Chaos.
The last person to hold such a belief was his father. Now, Abaddon was treading that very same path.
As the Chaos host gathered, the Dark Gods threw open the doors of convenience for their Warmaster. The fleets of the Black Legion suffered no warp-drift, jumping rapidly to arrive at their destinations in record time. Simultaneously, they received ever more generous blessings from the Ruinous Powers.
The mutations plaguing the Black Crusade fleet were far more severe than in the past. Mysterious Warp phenomena squirmed within the hulls; the fusion of iron and twisted flesh granted the ships terrifying, grotesque performance capabilities. Even though Vashtorr's Daemon Engines were unusable, the four Chaos Gods had their own ways to restart the machinery.
Engines crafted by Khorne could run on blood as fuel. Slaanesh's engines were appeased through music and frenzied debauchery. Nurgle's engines contained infinite fermenting plagues within, requiring only enough living sacrifices to generate violent thrust. As for Tzeentch, his engines required nothing at all—the sole downside being that your flight path would very likely be twisted by Tzeentch himself.
The moment the massive fleet entered warp transit, it was instantly sensed by the Imperium's Astropaths.
Within Guilliman's Indomitus Crusade fleet, his flagship, the Macragge's Honour, would serve as the command vessel for the crusade. Indeed, as Lord Regent, Guilliman was personally leading his forces to the battlefront, accompanied by several Battle Barges and hundreds of thousands of Ultramarines.
[The Battle of Cadia is about to begin. This campaign will unlock 20,000 Deployment Points.]
[Naval forces will also receive 20,000 Deployment Points.]
[Campaign Objective: Repel Abaddon the Despoiler. Destroy the Blackstone Fortress.]
[Bonus Objective: Seize the Blackstone Fortress and decipher the secrets of the Old Ones.]
[Mission Rewards: Construction Blueprint for Ecumenopolis / City World, Perfect Forge World.]
[Special Reward: Obtain the Legacy of the Old Ones — Warp Shaper.]
[Note: The ancient Old Ones were Warp Shapers, capable of freely molding their own pockets of the Warp.]
[Their understanding of the Warp surpassed that of the Dark Gods. A skilled Warp Shaper can even construct their own Warp Pantheon.]
"What a prize!"
Caleb had never expected the system to hand out such massive rewards this time. Although it only offered a path, it was infinitely better than blindly groping in the dark as he currently was. Caleb made up his mind: not only would he crush the Black Crusade fleet, but he would also seize the Blackstone Fortress.
However, capturing an enemy Blackstone Fortress was a task of extreme difficulty. It would likely require the cooperation of the Aeldari, given that the construction of such fortresses was deeply intertwined with the Aeldari at the height of their empire.
Coincidentally, Lion had already locked onto Guilliman's crusade fleet. With information shared by his "father," Lion could act as a Warp wanderer, roaming wherever he pleased.
"Anywhere Door!"
As Doraemon pulled out the Anywhere Door, Lion arrived before Guilliman, bringing along Yvraine, his new "sister-in-law."
The two Primarchs exchanged a brief look, spending a few minutes expressing mutual disdain. Then, they sat down amicably at the negotiation table to discuss the upcoming operations.
"Ahem—Guilliman, Malcador must have mentioned this to you already, right?"
"Brace yourself. Your dear sister here went out and nabbed an Aeldari wife for you. Don't go getting upset now!"
Lion's smile stretched practically from ear to ear.
Despite being sold out by this cheap sister of his, she still made it sound so grand.
"Heh."
Guilliman looked on coldly at his unreliable older sister. Lion El'Jonson's skin was truly growing thicker by the day.
That mouth of hers was even more insufferable than his own. This rotten idea had to be a joint pitch from Lion and the Emperor—otherwise, the Emperor would never have agreed to something so absurd.
"Sister Lion, since you're so capable, why don't you find a stepmother for our father instead?"
"With your talent, who knows? Maybe you'll manage to kidnap an Aeldari Goddess one of these days."
The instant those words left his mouth, Guilliman bracingly prepared to receive a psychic slap. Yet, the Warp remained quiet; it seemed their father hadn't heard a thing.
"Uh, well..."
Beside them, Yvraine looked equally bewildered. Were the children of the King of Shadows all this unhinged? They dared to say anything! Suggesting they capture an Aeldari Goddess for their own father—wasn't that literally trying to get themselves a stepmother? How could things get this ridiculous?
In an instant, the meeting room fell dead silent. In truth, both Primarchs were bracing for the Emperor's psychic slap, but no response came.
Lion glanced upward and asked in confusion, "Guilliman, do you even know what you're saying? Still, it's really odd... Father's psychic slap should have landed by now. Why hasn't it?"
Guilliman felt equally perplexed. He had puffed out his cheeks in anticipation of the hit. Alas, where was mother's palm?
[Caleb: Guilliman, now that you've said it out loud, what else can I say?]
[If you want to find a stepmother, go right ahead!]
[I'll leave my word right here: if you actually manage to abduct an Aeldari Goddess, I'll admit you're impressive.]
[From then on, not only will Father refrain from slapping you with psychic energy, but I'll also grant you a lavish reward.]
[Guilliman: ...]
[Lion: ...]
Malcador, standing by as the Warp interpreter, felt intensely embarrassed. But thinking carefully, the old man Emperor really sounded like he would say such a thing.
"Holy shit!"
Even Lion was dumbfounded; he hadn't expected their father to be such an unconventional parent. And the most absurd part was yet to come: Guilliman had actually fallen into deep thought.
While Lion was still recovering from the shock, Guilliman was already planning the feasibility of the idea.
"Hmm... it seems this plan is remarkably feasible!"
"By the way, Lion, how much do you know about the Aeldari Goddesses? Should we go handle this right after we finish the current mission?"
"Sounds good!" Lion slammed her hand on the table and stood up. At first, she thought it was just a joke, but thinking it through, it actually seemed doable! "Your Ultramarine brat has been walking so closely with the Aeldari Goddess Isha!"
"So you had this mapped out all along! As expected of you, my ambitious Lord Regent!"
"The task of finding a stepmother for our dad is all yours. That daemon named... Ku'Gath, was it? That must be your doing!"
"Huh?"
Hearing Lion's barrage of words, Guilliman—who knew nothing of the "Great Ultramarine"—was left with a head full of question marks.
Who on earth was Ku'Gath?
Since when did the Ultramarines have a daemon?
What did she mean by 'my brat is walking closely with an Aeldari Goddess'?
Why were both Father and Sister saying such unbelievable things?
Listening to the two Primarch sisters exchange such outrageous banter, Yvraine—who was completely controlled by Momotaro—heard things she would never have dared to dream of in her entire life. Yvraine now genuinely doubted whether she had already perished at the hands of Slaanesh. Why else would her ears be filled with such absurdities? Was this not Slaanesh whispering in her ear?
Still, watching Guilliman's flustered and helpless posture, Yvraine didn't care much about whether Guilliman's words were logically sound. To her, this daughter of the Emperor looked extraordinarily cute when she panicked.
At this moment, Visarch, one of the three figures of the Ynnari, wanted to chime in with some advice. He truly felt that the ambitions of these two unreliable Primarchs were far too dangerous.
"Yvraine, I don't think these two are trustworthy!"
"Cooperating with these fanatics might lead to disaster. These brash little monkeys might ruin our entire plan!"
"You silence yourself!"
Yvraine darted a glare at Visarch. By now, Visarch realized what Yvraine was about to say.
Come to think of it, he was the one who lost the Crone Sword in the first place. Had he not engaged in a duel with Lion, he might have gracefully vanished into the shadows, making a clean exit. Now, Visarch had lost both his weapon and his standing. Not only was his weapon taken, but the object of his secret affection was being carried off by someone else.
Fortunately, looking at the opponent, she appeared to be a female among the little monkeys. Both being of the same gender, aside from playing around in some personal space, there probably wasn't much else they could do.
"It's fine. I think she's quite cute," Yvraine mused. "I never expected my political marriage partner to be such an adorable girl."
"Frankly, if Guilliman appeared in Commorragh, with her cute looks, she might even become a high-ranking human pet!"
Having been born an Asuryani of the Craftworlds and lived through the dark streets of Commorragh, Yvraine knew full well how impressive Guilliman's present appearance was. There wasn't a speck of dust on Guilliman's skin, and that refined face frequently displayed expressions reminiscent of a cute doll. Right now, her high-pitched argument with her older sister felt almost weak and powerless. Every word she spoke was packed with logic and philosophy, yet her tone sounded as if she were pleading with her older sister.
"Please, Sister Lion, explain it clearly!"
"When did a Great Unclean One join my ranks?!"
"You say that child is Ku'Gath? If he claims he used to be an Ultramarine, why on earth did he turn into a Greater Daemon of Nurgle?!"
Growing annoyed by the badgering, Lion snapped back irritably, "How should I know, Guilliman?! That's your own business, how would I know?!"
"Word is Sanguinius ran into that guy too. He's the one who said your child was getting very close with the Aeldari Goddess. I don't know anything beyond that!"
Guilliman was shocked: "Sanguinius is involved in this too?"
Guilliman knew about Sanguinius's resurrection. But over such a long period, neither Primarch had found the opportunity to meet Sanguinius in person. Most of the time, they could only gather fragments of information through Malcador's psychic transmissions.
As for how Sanguinius was currently faring, both of them were actually in the dark. Lion was slightly better off, since she could get general updates on Sanguinius directly from Caleb. Guilliman, on the other hand, received third-hand information: news about Sanguinius had to pass through Caleb and the Emperor, then filter through Malcador, before finally reaching Guilliman's ears in tiny, outdated fragments.
If anyone was to blame, it was Guilliman's atrocious signal reception. After all, if fun updates couldn't be shared in real time, there was little point in bringing them up.
Seeing her older sister grow impatient, Guilliman had no choice but to drop the subject for now, planning to send people to investigate Ku'Gath later. Worst case, she could just ask Sister Sanguinius directly. Given the close relationship between Guilliman and Sister Sanguinius, surely Sister Sanguinius wouldn't pull a prank on her.
[Caleb: Sanguinius not pulling a prank? That'd be a miracle!]
[With that black-hearted intelligence of Sanguinius, he could trick Guilliman right out of her underwear without her realizing it.]
[Guilliman probably doesn't even know that Sanguinius has already prepared an exquisite school swimsuit set for her!]
[Loli Guilliman plus a school swimsuit set... I'm afraid Guilliman won't have the nerve to show her face in public ever again!]