The war cry of the Black Templars:
"No Pity! No Remorse! No Fear!"
They are truly a heroic Chapter, inheriting all the noble qualities of the Imperial Fists' Primarch, Rogal Dorn. Their history dates back to the Siege of Terra, and they have proven their loyalty over time.
The first Grand Marshal and founder of the Black Templars was Sigismund, the Emperor's Champion, a title bestowed upon him by the Emperor, possessing strength second only to a Primarch.
To solidify this supreme honor, since the Black Templars' inception, they have been engaged in an endless crusade.
They don't even have a home world; recruitment is done directly from conquered worlds.
On the battlefield, the astartes of the Black Templars wield Black Swords, and with their absolute numerical superiority and desire for slaughter, their enemies call them Black Orks.
Moreover, there's an interesting point about the Black Templars: they do not absolutely adhere to the Codex astartes, written by the Ultramarines' Primarch Roboute Guilliman, who became the Imperial Regent and Supreme Commander after the Emperor's death. They possess the autonomy to choose whether to follow the internal organizational and leadership frameworks of their Chapter.
The Codex astartes explicitly states that each Chapter should have only one thousand Battle Brothers, but the Black Templars continue to maintain the large company and over-strength Chapter organization as their standard, just like before the Horus Heresy, madly increasing their numbers. This results in them openly having over six thousand Battle Brothers.
These grim-looking astartes even dare to disregard the words of the Supreme Commander, Roboute Guilliman.
Furthermore, the Black Templars are famous for their stubbornness and strict adherence to honor, which is why Kenmyo Isayama's adjutant, Battle Sister Elena, found it very difficult to understand why Horst-Eisenholm, one of the Inquisitor Lords, would assign such a Chapter to guard Macarnus-Elfman.
If the Black Templars don't even listen to the Regent's commands, how could they possibly listen to the Inquisition's commands?
An Inquisitor has the right to mobilize all military forces of the Imperium, but it's also perfectly normal for those 'big armored guys' to ignore you; not all astartes will give face to the notorious Inquisition.
The Black Templars are even known for not giving a damn about the High Lords of Terra, making it hard to imagine them obeying the Inquisition's orders to protect Kenmyo Isayama.
If the Inquisition were to summon Space Marine Chapters that typically follow the Codex astartes, known as "Codex-compliant Chapters," they would be more obedient and helpful for various tasks.
If obedience were the primary consideration, the Black Templars' astartes would definitely not be the first choice.
"They will come; don't demonize the Black Templars so much."
Kenmyo Isayama saw through Elena's little thoughts, even though she usually managed all of Macarnus-Elfman's affairs down to the smallest detail.
"No matter how fierce those Black Orks are, they are fierce towards the enemies of the Imperium, not towards their own compatriots."
But those were all things Elena could control within her capabilities; the Black Templars' monks were an unknown variable beyond her control.
Furthermore, this time the Inquisition fleet deployed only three ships, which was just a small fraction of the massive Black Ship fleet from last time.
Not to mention Elena, even Kenmyo Isayama felt a bit of a phobia of insufficient firepower.
Kenmyo Isayama was only part of the oversight team investigating heresy, not a participant in the actual Exterminatus later on.
The real main force was the Black Templars' warships.
Therefore, Kenmyo Isayama had to rendezvous with the Black Templars' warships before going to that Shrine World; if he were stood up, it would be a huge embarrassment.
However, Kenmyo Isayama was quite sure that wouldn't happen.
Because the Black Templars would absolutely not allow any heretics to run rampant in worlds under the Ecclesiarchy's jurisdiction!
That uncle, Horst-Eisenholm, knew this—the Black Templars' true Achilles' heel—which is why he brought this Chapter over.
The Black Templars, especially, would need to assess before departure whether the petitioner was unworthy of help or at risk of corruption.
However, worlds ruled by the Ecclesiarchy were an exception; no matter how many star systems away, the Black Templars would come with their warships.
The astartes of the Black Templars Chapter would gladly die in battle protecting such sacred things, and this is where the Black Templars fundamentally differ from other Chapters.
Unlike the secular idealism and ancestor worship of other Space Marines, the Black Templars' faith is absolute. They regard the Emperor of the Imperium as a deity, a real and tangible god that can be believed in and worshipped, and dying on the battlefield is their due.
And the Ecclesiarchy is the embodiment of the Emperor's will; if the Imperium hadn't stopped them, the Black Templars probably would have wanted to join the Ecclesiarchy.
After all, the Black Templars are sworn to loyalty unto death to the Emperor, and the Ecclesiarchy considers the Emperor the only deity; this perfectly suits their tastes.
"Warp surge detected, a total of twenty-five warships."
Inside Kenmyo Isayama's command post, staff were reporting what the radar had detected: a total of twenty-five warships.
"Static..."
Twenty-five massive circular ripples appeared out of thin air in the black galaxy, and the space torn by the Warp was slowly emerging from within.
Soon, when the spatial distortion reached its peak, the first magnificent black steel behemoth warped out of the Warp, forcibly tearing through the tides generated by the Warp's Sea of Souls, which scraped against the warship's purple "Geller Field" shield with colossal screeching sounds, while bright, long exhaust flames spewed from the huge stern.
Kenmyo Isayama saw the iconic black cross on the Black Templars' warships and knew those were his guards. The Black Orks, who struck fear into countless xenos, had arrived.
The largest battleship was the Black Templars' Gloriana-class flagship, "Eternal Glory," which was given to them by the Imperial Fists' Primarch Dorn during their second founding after the promulgation of the Codex astartes.
Its name should be "Eternal Glory."
Sigismund, the first Grand Marshal of the Black Templars, piloted this very warship to fight Abaddon to the death in the Eye of Terror.
Ultimately, his soul returned to the Emperor's throne.
Today, that great warship still serves as the Black Templars Chapter's largest monastery and the eternal core of countless Black Templars crusade fleets.
"Report, the other party has sent a boarding request."
"Has the other party's identity been verified?"
Kenmyo Isayama knew it was the Black Templars, but the necessary procedures still had to be followed.