A brief silence settled over the conference room.
Tax Bro clenched his fists, loosened them, then clenched them again.
He took a deep breath, struggling to suppress the emotions churning inside him.
"Blood Angel, keep going."
Blood Angel nodded and swiped across the holographic controls once more.
The projection changed, revealing an enormous three-dimensional map of the galaxy.
Countless points of light covered the star map, each glowing a different color.
Gold represented the Imperial faction.
Black represented the Chaos faction.
And crimson represented Crimson Dawn.
When Blood Angel spoke again, his voice carried the gravity of a commander preparing for a decisive battle.
"It won't be long before Magnus breaches the Webway, forcing the Emperor to take his place upon the Golden Throne."
"The War Within the Webway will begin."
"And once that happens, the entire galaxy will be consumed by war."
Tax Bro frowned.
"The War Within the Webway?"
"Doesn't that take place on Terra?"
Blood Angel nodded.
"That's right. Beneath the Imperial Palace."
"Countless daemons will pour through the breaches in the Webway, forcing the Adeptus Custodes, Sisters of Silence, and Imperial Fists into a desperate battle."
He paused, his gaze growing thoughtful.
"We've already spoken with representatives of the Terran Dragon Guard."
"They're willing to form a temporary alliance with Crimson Dawn. At least until we get through this period when the Chaos faction has the upper hand."
Loyalty raised an eyebrow.
"An alliance?"
"Exactly."
Blood Angel gestured toward the golden markers scattered across the star map.
"The Sacred Tribunal will take responsibility for dealing with the War Within the Webway and the threat emerging from Terra's underhive."
"Meanwhile, the other Imperial-aligned Chapters will distribute their members among the loyalist Legions, doing everything they can to prevent those Legions from suffering catastrophic casualties."
Tax Bro couldn't help interrupting.
"What about God's Scythe?"
"Are those bastards willing to cooperate too?"
Blood Angel shook his head, a helpless smile appearing on his face.
"No."
"God's Scythe and its subsidiary Chapters are only willing to defend the Segmentum Solar."
"Even the Terran Dragon Guard is frustrated with them."
Schrödinger Bro leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully.
"Defending the Segmentum Solar..."
"So, basically, they're protecting their own territory and the holdings of those High Lords."
"They don't want to risk their forces helping anyone else."
He shook his head.
"Then again, that fits their ideology perfectly."
"Protect your own interests first. Everyone else can go to hell."
Tax Bro spat in disgust.
"Figures. Same selfish bastards as always."
Blood Angel continued.
"That's why the Terran Dragon Guard approached Crimson Dawn."
"They want us to intervene on Isstvan III and save the loyalist Astartes who are about to be betrayed."
"Between the four Legions, we're talking about well over a hundred thousand loyalist Space Marines."
His gaze swept across the conference table.
"The Terran Dragon Guard and Second Imperium will send some of their players to support our operation."
"In exchange, the Imperial faction will do everything it can to secure victories during the Battle of Calth and the Burning of Prospero."
The conference room fell silent again.
Then, almost simultaneously, everyone turned toward the golden figure seated at the head of the table.
Paul finally spoke.
His voice was calm, but it carried a reassuring strength.
"After discussing the proposal, we've decided to accept their offer."
Tax Bro's frown eased slightly.
"All right, Paul. What's your reasoning?"
Paul looked around the room.
"My reasoning is simple."
"If we can't prevent these events from happening..."
"Then we'll change how they end."
He paused before continuing more firmly.
"The loyalists aren't guaranteed to lose the Battle of Isstvan III. I'll personally lead our forces there, with Helovia accompanying me."
"And from Crimson Dawn's perspective, those loyalist Astartes represent an enormous military asset."
"If we can save them, the benefits to our faction will be considerable."
Tax Bro nodded.
"That makes sense."
"Over a hundred thousand Astartes is no joke."
"In the 41st Millennium, a force that size could practically tear its way across the galaxy, charge straight into the Eye of Terror, and start slaughtering everything in sight."
Paul continued.
"Exactly."
"Which is why we'll use everything Crimson Dawn has accumulated over these years to crush the traitors on Isstvan III."
His voice grew louder, echoing through the conference room.
"Let Isstvan III become Crimson Dawn's first great battle before the Imperium of Man and the forces of Chaos."
"The battle where we show the galaxy the Light of Dawn!"
Paul rose to his feet.
His golden Aquilon Terminator armor gleamed beneath the overhead lights, and his dark-golden eyes swept across the assembled players.
"We'll proclaim our ideals to the entire galaxy."
"Labor builds the future."
"And the Dawn shall surely come!"
The moment those words left his mouth, dozens of figures rose from their seats.
Tax Bro, White Scars, Loyalty...
[I'm Not the Regent I'm Just Passing By Guilliman], [Execute Old Man the War Criminal], [Papa Nurgle Loves All Mankind]...
Their voices rang out in perfect unison, powerful enough to make the air tremble.
"LABOR BUILDS THE FUTURE!"
"THE DAWN SHALL SURELY COME!"
Paul looked at the brothers standing before him.
Deep within his dark-golden eyes, five tiny stars slowly revolved.
He straightened to his full height, his 3.88-meter golden figure appearing especially imposing beneath the light of the holographic projection.
When he spoke again, his voice was calm, yet carried an authority that left no room for doubt.
"Although we're cooperating with the Terran Dragon Guard, and Isstvan III will be our primary battlefield, expanding our territory remains one of Crimson Dawn's most important objectives."
He surveyed everyone present.
"Crimson Dawn currently has more than 110,000 players."
"Some of them will continue accompanying the Second and Third Dawn Expeditionary Fleets as they explore and colonize new star systems."
"We need more worlds, more resources, and more people under Crimson Dawn's protection."
He paused, his gaze sharpening.
"Is that understood?"
Dozens of voices answered simultaneously.
"UNDERSTOOD!"
Tax Bro was the first to step forward, his broad face practically glowing with excitement.
"Don't worry, Paul!"
"When the fighting starts on Isstvan III, our Crimson Fist Chapter will be right at the front!"
"We'll show those traitorous bastards what a real fist looks like!"
Paul nodded before addressing the room one final time.
"Brothers..."
"A new storm is approaching."
"But this time..."
"We won't be powerless spectators."
"We won't be some insignificant faction developing quietly in the shadows."
"We're going to step onto the galaxy's greatest stage."
"And we'll make the entire galaxy..."
He paused.
The five stars within his dark-golden eyes began spinning faster.
"Witness the Dawn."
--
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