Lion ElJonson and Zahariel chose to set off at daybreak.
Zahariel's original Chainsword had been lost over three hundred years ago in a battle against the traitor Aeldari; his current Chainsword was taken from those who called themselves the "Angels of Redemption" in a counter-ambush thirty years later.
However, his two bolter pistols had been with him since the Great Crusade, and despite the long years, these weapons remained reliable—truly, the older, the stronger!
It was just that his ammunition was running low. Once, when the Imperium's order still held, resupplying these bolter rounds was not difficult, but ever since The Minor Rift opened, they were located right within The Minor Rift. Zahariel could only scavenge for ammunition or collect uncorrupted bolter rounds from killed enemies.
Lion ElJonson had nothing but a small knife for skinning. The automatic pistols, semi-automatic carbines from the camp, and the double-barreled shotguns of the local women were all too small for his hands. He also refused to take weapons essential for self-defense from these survivors.
Launching an attack with such scarce equipment seemed foolish, but Zahariel felt an unexpected calm. After all, he was fighting alongside a Primarch of the Emperor, and Lion ElJonson was undoubtedly the most suitable choice for this kind of operation.
The planet Calmas was once an advanced world of the Imperium, and its people, unlike primitive villagers, did not view the Astartes and their lords as angels or divine messengers.
Therefore, Zahariel was not too surprised when he encountered the Space Marine of the "Ruby Crescents" stationed there.
This Space Marine Chapter bravely fought against enemies far outnumbering them. Their fortress, Red Moon Keep, once stood atop the Holy Mountain. The Holy Mountain was a heavily forested dormant volcano, and the road at its base leading to a city fifty kilometers away had long been abandoned.
The two did not risk traveling along the road. As they climbed a slope leading to the volcano, Lion ElJonson stopped, looking down at the forest in the distance. His gaze fixed on the only high ground in sight: the Holy Mountain. To the east, the Great River Yamato snaked through the forest.
"Is that where your refugees escaped from?" Lion ElJonson asked, pointing at the city.
"Yes," Zahariel replied. The city's ruined towers and factories shimmered in the sunlight, and the surrounding plasma orbital bombardment had once incinerated any vegetation it touched, but now it was gradually being consumed by green.
"The color of these canopies," Lion ElJonson pointed to a large area of unusual color in the forest, "are they also naturally formed?"
"My understanding of this planet's ecology is limited, but these discolored areas should not be natural phenomena," Zahariel admitted. "Even so, Calmas's forests are equally dangerous to any creature. Local survivors have warned us that those areas might be contaminated."
"Signs of Chaos corruption," Lion ElJonson murmured, "but this planet has not yet completely fallen."
Zahariel was silent, he noticed a certain similarity between the Calmas forest and the old Caliban, which made him uneasy, but he did not want to bring it up for fear of angering Lion ElJonson.
Nevertheless, Lion ElJonson's return always seemed to be accompanied by these similar scenes.
The two continued forward. Lion ElJonson moved through the vegetation like a fish in water, as if returning to old hunting grounds, while Zahariel followed closely, trying his best not to fall behind. He found that Lion ElJonson always chose the path of least resistance.
"Do we need to worry about patrols?" Lion ElJonson asked as he moved through the foliage.
"I've mostly avoided this area, but these traitors are very undisciplined," Zahariel replied. "They occasionally hunt survivors and set fires, but they seem to have no plan. The forests of Calmas are as unforgiving to them as they are to the Imperium."
"In that case, our actions will be even more unexpected," Lion ElJonson nodded.
"Do you have a specific attack plan?" Zahariel asked tentatively.
"Kill them all..." Lion ElJonson replied without turning his head. But after a moment's thought, he added, "I need to observe the terrain firsthand before making a detailed plan."
After a brief silence, he turned to Zahariel.
"My brother Sanguinius once spoke of destiny. He foresaw his death and how he would die, but I find such predestination hard to accept. However," Lion ElJonson paused, taking a deep breath, "perhaps my survival is not accidental."
Zahariel shrugged, trying to conceal the turmoil within him.
"After becoming a Space Marine, I accepted the inevitability of death. For the past few centuries, I have lived only because I saw no reason worth dying for."
"I detest those mysterious fatalistic notions; they are simply disgusting," Lion ElJonson said coldly. "Of course, this is not a reason, but a duty. I hope that after this operation, you will continue to live, Zahariel from Terra."
Zahariel was shaken by these words. He followed Lion ElJonson up the volcano, a strange hope rising in his heart. Lion ElJonson did not see this operation as a desperate last stand, but as a beginning, a prelude to a great endeavor.
Zahariel had tried his best to protect the people of this absurd Imperium, but he never imagined that one day he would witness such a Primarch's vision. And now, he actually wanted to see what he could achieve for it...
With the basic signing of the unified front memorandum with Commorragh completed, the Imperium's army was also about to leave Commorragh and return to the real universe.
This time, Russ and Khan came on Li Feng's "Emperor's Whip" battleship, but the yacht parked inside had been taken by Sanguinius and left on the Dominus.
So, Li Feng could only stay in the captain's cabin he had never lived in before, and although the environment was very good... there was no hot spring or sauna... Under Li Feng's arrangement, Yvraine left some of her trusted Death God Army members to be stationed in Commorragh, serving as a bridge for communication between humans, the Death God Army, the Ark Aeldari, and the Drukhari / Dark Aeldari. Of course, some of the Ark refugees also remained in the landing zone previously established by the Imperium, as their new home.
The fleet's next destination was Macragge, the capital of the Ultima Segmentum. Sanguinius had already led the main force there, and Li Feng would also lead the Death God Army to Macragge to rendezvous with his wife.
Because according to the news brought by Russ and Khan, Cawl there had already prepared the armor of destiny for Guilliman, and here Yvraine was about to fulfill her agreement with humanity. She had prepared the old womans sword to resurrect Guilliman and ally with the Imperium.
Li Feng was on the bridge at this time, and as the fleet entered the Webway rift, they soon left the Webway, which was in the gap between the real universe and the Warp, under the fluctuations of the Webway.
As they entered the real universe, a strange phenomenon appeared on the bridge's navigation map. Li Feng looked at the star map, and a region within it had turned completely black, and their Webway exit was right next to the rift.
At this moment, Kassia, the Navigator, walked over. In Commorragh, she could not leave the ship and go to the surface of Commorragh due to her Warp affinity.
Now, seeing Li Feng safe and sound again, she walked over and gently hugged Li Feng. Li Feng was surprised to find that the gills that had grown on Kassia's face due to the Navigator gene mutation had closed, and even the fingers with sharp nails had begun to gradually become less sharp.
Kassia saw Li Feng looking at the star map, so she explained to Li Feng:
"This is the rift, a product of the Battle of Cadia... The galaxy was torn apart, causing serious consequences for the Imperium. Similarly, the current Warp fluctuations have become very limited; the further away from the rift, the smaller the impact of the Warp."
Li Feng looked at this rift. Compared to the original "Great Rift that tore the galaxy," this rift could only be said to have torn about half of the galaxy, and the Nachmund Gauntlet just happened to form in the torn part, like a bridge connecting the two sides of the galaxy.
If there was an impact, there certainly was, but it was not that great. Unlike the original Great Rift, where humanity could only reach the other side of the Imperium through the Nachmund Gauntlet. Now, if one wanted to safely go to the other side of the Imperium, they could take a detour and still pass safely.
"Kassia, where are we going next?"
Kassia pointed to the next node on the star map and said:
"We will be passing through Avalon's, and from there to Macragge is the fastest route."
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