In the magnificent council chamber of the Arx Angelicum, the Legion's throne, which had been sealed in dust for ten thousand years, once again welcomed its true master.
Sanguinius gazed upon his sons. The potential of the one named Mephiston was incredibly strong, surpassing even all of the Angel's sons from the 30k era.
Then there was the child named Dante. His true age exceeded one thousand seven hundred years; for a Space Marine to live so long was virtually impossible.
This child, too, was worthy of receiving the power of the Holy Light.
"To answer my great Father, we have currently assembled a force of over twenty-nine thousand Space Marines, all of whom are your sons," Dante reported, standing immediately to address his primarch.
"There are also large detachments of the Adepta Sororitas numbering in the hundreds of thousands, along with Imperial Knight households and a significant number of Titan Legions. In addition, we have deployed tens of millions of troops from the Astra Militarum, serving as our mortal regiments. As for the naval assets, there are over two thousand warships of various sizes. This includes at least one hundred capital class Battleships, while the rest are Cruisers and a large number of Battle Barges."
Sanguinius nodded as he listened. The numbers disappointed him slightly.
Compared to the grandeur of the Blood Angels Legion of old, this military strength was dreadfully insufficient. It seemed the project of the thousand-man Chapters was indeed a mistake. This world had followed Guilliman's dictates on Chapter organization and the resulting military decline was pathetic.
Not long ago, Sanguinius had conducted a psychic negotiation with Axis through the Warp. Both parties agreed that the restrictions of the Codex Astartes regarding Chapter limits should be thoroughly abolished.
"Now, introduce me to the Tyranids," Sanguinius commanded. "What manner of faction is this? How many troops do they possess?"
To know one's enemy is to win a hundred battles, and Sanguinius needed to understand this alien threat properly.
"Great Father, the Tyranids... they are the locusts of the galaxy, the incarnation of pure destruction. Hive Fleet Leviathan is one of their most massive and aggressive tendrils," Dante explained, gesturing for attendants to bring forward a massive holographic screen that displayed all known Imperial intelligence on the xenos.
"They are not an army as we understand it, but a single, unified super-organism starved to the point of madness. They are extensions of the Hive Mind. The lower-tier Tyranid bio-forms possess no intelligence of their own; they are entirely commanded by Synapse Creatures."
Dante pointed to the display. "In the void, the Tyranids possess massive Hive Ships. These represent gigantic bio-vessels exceeding twenty-five kilometers in length, equivalent to a massive biological hatchery. No one knows exactly what lies inside a Hive Ship, but each one possesses incredibly potent psychic power. They are likely some form of super-heavy Synapse Creature."
Hearing this, Sanguinius frowned. A size class of twenty-five kilometers rivaled the Gloriana-class battleships of the Great Crusade, perhaps even exceeding the average Gloriana.
Since the Tyranids possessed many such mother-ships, they would indeed be difficult to deal with.
"Beyond the Hive Ships, the Tyranids field massive numbers of bio-ships ranging from several kilometers to over a dozen kilometers in length," Dante continued. "The firepower of these bio-ships is not inferior to our Imperial cruisers, and they possess powerful psychic shielding."
In short, these creatures were formidable.
"Once the Tyranids initiate a planetary invasion, their method is... saturation," Dante said. "They launch 'Mycetic Spores' like a lethal meteor shower, bombarding the surface in numbers impossible to intercept. Massive waves of lesser gaunts hit the ground, coordinated by Synapse Creatures such as Hive Tyrants, Tyrant Guards, Carnifexes, Gargoyles, Tyranid Warriors, Zoanthropes, and biotitans like the Hierophants."
"Simultaneous with their slaughter, they utilize Ripper Swarms to devour all organic matter on the spot, using the biomass to mass-produce more troops immediately."
Sanguinius nodded. "When they commit to a ground assault, what constitute their troop numbers? Give me an estimate, and tell me of their combat capability."
"The numbers of ground troops..." Dante hesitated. "Great Father, please forgive me, but I cannot give a precise figure. Any attempt to compile statistics is rendered obsolete the moment it is made. Conservatively, the number of Tyranid bio-forms in the first wave alone, landing on Baal Primus and its moons, is at least several thousand times—perhaps ten thousand times—the sum of all our Space Marines, mortal auxiliaries, Skitarii, Battle Sisters, Knights, and Titans combined."
Dante revealed the desperate disparity in force. "As for their combat power: the common gaunts are no weaker than Astra Militarum guardsmen. Tyranid Warriors are the physical equal of a Space Marine. A Hive Tyrant requires a squad of at least five veteran Terminators to hunt down. And the Tyranid biotitans can only be countered by our own Titan engines."
"Do these Tyranids have any obvious weaknesses?" Sanguinius asked.
The situation was grimmer than he had anticipated. The combat power of this Hive Fleet far exceeded his imagination. He had assumed a Hive Tyrant was the equivalent of a Space Marine, but it turned out the Space Marine equivalent was merely the mid-tier Warrior.
"Great Father, based on our combat experience, if we can destroy their Synapse Creatures, the swarm falls into confusion," Dante replied. "Key targets include the mid-level Synapse nodes like Tyranid Warriors, high-level leaders like the Hive Tyrants, and the Norn Queens hidden deep within the Hive Ships."
"They are endless, Father," a voice rasped. It was a Captain from the Flesh Tearers. "If we kill a hundred, a thousand more surge forward. They have no fear, no individual will. They have only the hunger for biomass driven by the Hive Mind."
Sanguinius nodded slowly. He understood now. To fight a war of attrition against the Tyranids, pitting number against number, offered no chance of victory. Unless one possessed the absurd power of someone like Axis, to whom numbers meant nothing and a billion insects could be erased with a single energy blast, brute force was inefficient.
Of course, Sanguinius was no weakling. Reborn as a deity of the Warp within the material universe, he could personally carve apart a battleship single-handedly.
"Then we shall execute a decapitation strike," Sanguinius decided after a moment of thought. "I will personally lead the elite of the Blood Angels and members of the successor Chapters to form a boarding party. We will penetrate the Tyranid Hive Ships and detonate their bio-vessels from within."
This was the most prudent and effective strike method available. Against the Tyranids, cutting off the head was the only way.
"But Father," the Chapter Master of the Blood Swords spoke up. "We have considered this, and the Imperium has attempted such tactics before. But our boarding torpedoes cannot get close to the Hive Ships. They are destroyed by the escorting bio-ships before they even reach the target. As for teleportation via Librarian powers, we have tried that as well. The Norn Queens, Norn Emissaries, and Neurothropes aboard the mother-ships possess immense psychic power. Combined with the Shadow in the Warp, we cannot teleport inside."
"You speak of how it was before," Sanguinius said, his voice resonant. "Now, I am leading the team. I will unleash psychic teleportation far beyond your understanding to deliver us into boarding range. Furthermore, I shall grant you new power to enhance your combat capabilities."
Sanguinius sat upon his throne, a soft golden radiance diffusing from his being, dispelling the gloom and despair that had accumulated in the fortress depths over ten millennia. He was no longer a cold statue or a tragic legend, but a living presence radiating divinity and might.
Below him, every Chapter Master, whether Captains of the Blood Angels or leaders of successors like the Flesh Tearers, Knights of Blood, and Blood Swords, knelt on one knee, heads bowed in supreme reverence and loyalty.
"My children, dark age calls for new strength," Sanguinius announced. "The Emperor has not only allowed my return but has permitted me to master a new power. This power is called the 'Holy Light'."
A cluster of golden brilliance ignited in Sanguinius's palm. It burst in the air above them, showering countless motes of light into the bodies of everyone present.
The light was incredibly warm. It brought comfort, settling their minds into a tranquility they had never known, vanishing their fatigue in an instant.
"The power of the Holy Light is not the treacherous sorcery of the Warp," Sanguinius explained as his gaze swept over them. "It originates from the deepest convictions of the soul, the will to sacrifice, the pure longing for light, and faith. It purifies corruption, heals wounds, and grants you a new blade to wield against Chaos and the darkness of the xenos."
His eyes finally rested on the Chief Librarian.
"Mephiston. Lord of Death. You are a pillar of wisdom and strength for the Blood Angels. Your soul is as tough as steel, your faith as pure as diamond. You shall be the first to bear this gift and forge it into a shield of guardianship and a sword of purification. Are you willing to accept the Holy Light I bestow?"
Mephiston did not hesitate. He stepped forward and bowed deeply. "For the Emperor, for the Blood Angels, and for you, Great Father. I, Mephiston, am willing to accept this power to guard our home."
"Very well. You shall be the first." Sanguinius descended from the throne and stood before Mephiston. He gently pressed a hand burning with holy fire against the Librarian's forehead.
Sanguinius planted the seed of the Holy Light. In an instant, a vast and warm torrent of power surged into Mephiston's body. This force did not conflict with his own formidable psychic abilities; instead, it found the perfect vessel, fusing with his soul and growing rapidly.
Mephiston's body trembled violently. He kept his eyes shut as golden divine light poured from his skin, outshining even his original psychic aura.
He could clearly feel the cold shadows accumulated from years of touching the Warp and the mental exhaustion of fighting the Black Rage being washed away. The warmth scrubbed his soul clean. He felt his will, his faith in the Imperium, in the Emperor, in his Father, and in the Chapter coalescing as never before.
His mental barriers became impregnable. When Mephiston opened his eyes again, deep swirls of golden divine energy seemed to rotate within his pupils. A powerful aura of order and sanctity surged around him, forming a faint golden halo.
He realized with shock that the constant struggle to suppress the Black Rage and the Red Thirst had quieted. The craving was no longer so demanding.
"I... I can feel it..." Mephiston's voice trembled with awe. He opened his palm, and a ball of holy fire, smaller than Sanguinius's but equally pure and hot, danced in his hand.
"This power... it responds to conviction. It calls to faith... It is hope itself!" Mephiston looked at Sanguinius with unprecedented reverence.
This power was not merely strong; it seemed to fundamentally alleviate the agitation of the gene-seed curse. Although not fully eradicated, it was like lighting a brilliant lamp in endless darkness.
Sanguinius nodded with satisfaction. "Feel it. Master it. Mephiston. Now, Dante, come forward."
In terms of raw power, Dante fell short of Mephiston, but in terms of prestige, Dante far exceeded him. Like the Chief Librarian, Dante knelt immediately before Sanguinius, bowing his head to receive the blessing of his sire.
Repeating the process, Sanguinius imbued the Chapter Master of the Blood Angels, and Dante's body soon emitted the same golden radiance.
Then, Sanguinius turned his gaze to the other Chapter Masters and high-ranking psykers and Chaplains.
"You, the elite of Sanguinius's bloodline, the backbone of the Legion, shall also bathe in this Holy Light. Open your hearts. Call upon the courage and the will to sacrifice that lies deep in your souls!"
Sanguinius spread his arms wide. A far more majestic tide of Holy Light erupted from him, sweeping outward to wrap around every leader of his lineage gentle yet firm.
Low chanting seemed to resonate from the void itself, ancient prayers praising sacrifice, extolling courage, and beseeching the light.
The Chapter Masters closed their eyes, feeling the baptism of power.
Gabriel Seth of the Flesh Tearers felt his fists tremble. The manic Red Thirst within him felt as though it had been doused with cool spring water. While the thirst for blood was not gone, he felt a clarity and control he had never possessed before.
The Chapter Master of the Knights of Blood felt a solemn sense of mission fill his chest, dispelling the haze of facing the insectoid ocean. The Chapter Master of the Blood Swords felt a pure cleansing power flow through his limbs.
Even the ordinary Space Marines present began to acquire the Holy Light.
"Prepare yourselves, my sons," Sanguinius commanded. "I shall personally lead you to launch the boarding operations."
With the power of a Warp God at his disposal, the Norn Queens of the Tyranid Hive were powerless to stop his passage. Confidence swelled in the hearts of every son of Sanguinius.
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ps!!