Chapter 55: The Ultramarines are So Annoying
"We have approached the Grand Manufactorum several times so far, but we have yet to truly break through the Nurgle daemons' blockade."
Captain Ventris briefed his newly arrived cousins on the current battle situation. "Although we have been unable to establish contact due to the warp energy interference, from the signs of firefights we've observed, the Grand Manufactorum has not fallen. Archmagos Veyl and his forces are still resisting stubbornly."
"The location of the warp rift has been identified. In addition to the daemonic legions pouring out of the warp, there is also a Great Unclean One guarding the rift. We have attempted to attack it, but even the faith-enhanced mortal soldiers cannot withstand the Great Unclean One's psychic influence. We were ultimately forced to retreat."
Chapter Master Isaac of the Knights of Iron said, "Splitting our forces to relieve the Grand Manufactorum is not a good idea. We should concentrate all our strength on attacking the warp rift. Banish the Great Unclean One, close the rift, and the crisis at the Grand Manufactorum will resolve itself."
Inquisitor Griffin explained, "We need to lure the daemonic legions away from the warp rift to reduce the number of daemons there. Otherwise, it will be very difficult to attack."
"Then let us, the Knights of Iron, lead the main assault. This is what we excel at," Chapter Master Isaac said resolutely.
Hearing Isaac's words, the commanders in the meeting were all inwardly pleased. To have a Space Marine Chapter willing to lead the main assault was undoubtedly good news for the current stalemate. It wasn't that they were afraid of those abominations, but their soldiers could not face those monsters.
Ventris and Griffin exchanged a look. Their eyes both conveyed the same message: they wanted the other to persuade the Chapter Master to abandon this plan. But he had come to support them, and now he was actively seeking battle. How could they say, "Wait, don't be hasty"?
Just then, Chaplain Colin of the Covenant of Fire spoke to Isaac. "Chapter Master Isaac, I can understand your resolve and will to destroy the enemies of the Emperor, but I must advise you to put aside this plan for now, for three reasons."
Chapter Master Isaac's heart was pounding with the desire for battle, but he had not lost his reason. He didn't mind spending a few minutes to hear his cousin's reasons. "Please, speak, my cousin."
"First, according to the knowledge I have obtained from my Chapter's library, a world center like the Grand Manufactorum has a special significance in the mystic arts. If the daemons occupy it and perform a sacrificial ritual there, we cannot predict the consequences. The entire planet could even be dragged into the warp and become a daemon world."
"Second, Captain Ventris said that the mortal soldiers cannot face the Great Unclean One. But we need these soldiers to hold the line for us, to ensure that we are not disturbed by other factors when we are banishing the Great Unclean One, and to ensure that we have a path of retreat if we fail."
"Third, since the mortal soldiers cannot face the Great Unclean One, that distance must be defended by us. And our numbers are limited. Therefore, we need to reduce the number of daemons there, so that we can accomplish this with fewer men and concentrate more of our strength on the Great Unclean One and his guards."
After hearing Colin's explanation, Chapter Master Isaac lowered his head in thought for a moment. "Thank you for the reminder, Chaplain Colin."
Seeing that Colin had gotten him out of a difficult situation, Ventris quickly presented the plan he had already prepared. "We can commit the majority of our mortal soldiers to the direction of the Grand Manufactorum, making a move to support them. To prevent the Grand Manufactorum from being reinforced, the daemons will certainly send more of their forces there to stop us. This will reduce the number of daemons at the warp rift. Then, with us Space Marines as the spearhead, we will launch a sudden attack on the warp rift. A small number of soldiers will be responsible for following behind us and defending the forward positions. The rear, where the daemonic interference is severe, will be defended by us and the soldiers who have undergone the extreme faith enhancement. These soldiers, who have accepted the side effects, have a stronger resistance to the daemons' corruption of mortal will. However, their numbers are small, and because of the side effects, they require someone to command them to complete complex combat tasks."
"Oh, this plan sounds like it has a high chance of success," Isaac said.
"Indeed," Colin agreed.
They both also understood that their Ultramarine cousin had already formulated this plan before they had even arrived. He had just been too polite to say so.
Chapter Master Isaac's thought: Just like their Primarch, always caring about unimportant things. But since you were considering us, I'll forgive you this time. Don't do it again. It makes it seem like we Knights of Iron are petty. Hmph. (So twisted...)
Chaplain Colin's thought: Just as hypocritical as their Primarch. Not at all like our Lord Vulkan, who is so honest and kind. And this blue power armor is so annoying. Annoying Ultramarines! (Archmagos Cawl, you...)
Seeing that the reinforcements had approved Ventris's battle plan, the other commanders no longer remained silent. They began to make minor adjustments and additions to the plan.
[IMPERIAL HISTORY INSERT: THE LEGIONES ASTARTES]
While Omega was fighting daemons and the allied forces were planning how to fight daemons, let's talk about why the Adeptus Astartes were changed from the original Legions to the current Chapters.
No matter how many stories there are, there is one man who cannot be avoided: the current Lord Regent of the Imperium, Roboute Guilliman, and his magnum opus, the Codex Astartes. This book maintained the stability of the Imperium, but it also destroyed the Imperium's most powerful military force. It could be said that Horus crippled the Emperor, and Guilliman crippled the Imperium.
The origin of it all begins with that great war—the Great Crusade. The Great Crusade was a galaxy-spanning counter-attack launched by the Emperor for humanity to return to the pinnacle of the galaxy. To ensure that this war, which would decide the fate of humanity, would achieve the Emperor's expectations and grand vision, the Emperor made many preparations, the most important of which was the creation of the twenty-one Primarchs.
"They shall be my sons, and in them shall be vested the hope of a unified humanity. They will have the strength of victory, not just when it is at hand, but when it seems a universe away, when the shadow of doom and death falls like a shroud. In that dark hour, my noble sons shall shine the brightest."
—The Emperor of Mankind
The Primarchs were twenty-one superhuman "sons" created by the Emperor in the late 30th Millennium through incredibly advanced and unbelievable genetic engineering. They were intentionally designed to be immortal, superhuman generals and leaders, and during the magnificent era of the Great Crusade, they commanded the great armies of the Imperium, sweeping across the galaxy and reuniting the scattered human worlds under the Emperor's leadership. Each Primarch was different, but they all possessed a kind of "perfection" on both a biological and spiritual level. In the eyes of mortals, they were "perfect" commanders, generals, warriors, and politicians, possessing a powerful and extraordinary, even "unnatural," charisma and military ability. In form alone, they were taller, stronger, more agile, wiser, and smarter than any mortal, making them seem like the gods of ancient myths, unaffected by disease, aging, and the other "minor" flaws and weaknesses that plague mortal life and thought. But unfortunately, the intervention of the Chaos Gods thwarted the Emperor's plans. Through a warp storm, the infant Primarchs were scattered to lost human worlds across the galaxy. Lacking the Emperor's personal care and guidance, each Primarch developed their own unique personality in their own growth, a microcosm of their second home. All the Primarchs reflected the unique atmosphere, environment, culture, and temperament of the second homes that "adopted" them. Some of these were constructive, others were detrimental. Each Primarch was further shaped by the people or things that accepted or adopted them, inheriting their values, thoughts, kindness, and cruelty, shaped by fate into heroes, kings, tyrants, or devils. But in the end, despite possessing talents, strength, and wisdom that were unattainable for mortals, their external essence was still human. Their more human characteristics also gave them the inherent imperfections and flaws of humanity, which ultimately proved to be a great hidden danger to the Emperor's grand dream.
With the superhuman "generals" and "commanders" that were the Primarchs, there needed to be superhuman soldiers who could obey, cooperate with, and support their leadership. The Emperor then, using the twenty-one Primarchs as a genetic template, created for each of them a superhuman legion—the Space Marine Legions (Legiones Astartes).
"They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. Like clay I shall mould them and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great armour shall I clad them and with the mightiest guns will they be armed. They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have tactics, strategies and machines such that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against the Terror. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my Space Marines and they shall know no fear."
—The Emperor of Mankind
Because of the genetic and psychic link, these soldiers, after undergoing the nineteen implantation surgeries, would develop a natural dependence on and obedience to their respective Primarchs. Coupled with the Primarch's own inhuman charisma, these Legions were可以说是 loyal to their Primarchs, their loyalty to their Primarch being higher than their loyalty to the Emperor. After the Emperor found the scattered Primarchs and gave them command of their Legions, the Primarchs also brought the unique atmosphere and culture of their home worlds, and their own acquired unique personalities shaped by their environment, into their Space Marine Legions.