Lion and Zabriel closely followed Kaiser's massive Imperial Fleet, heading towards the Calmas system along a temporary route.
During this journey, they not only gathered more and more returning Fallen Angels, but even the Fallen Angels pirate groups wandering in deep space submitted under Lion's call, becoming part of his fighting force.
The Fallen Angels: "No more words! Father! Since you've returned! We, your children, will definitely help out!"
The once scattered and fragmented Dark Angels remnants, who fought independently, were now gradually coalescing into a powerful and formidable armed force.
However, just as this massive fleet approached Calmas, an urgent report arrived—the Chaos "Thousand Eyes Warband" had already launched a fierce attack on Calmas.
And the leader of this infamous Chaos Legions, the cunning and insane Serafakos, was waiting for Lion's arrival on a planet named Sable.
Clearly, Serafakos had not come merely to invade Calmas; his true target was Lion. He had set up a "Hongmen Banquet," attempting to lure the Primarch of the First Legion into a trap. However, he clearly underestimated Lion's caution and Kaiser's power.
The Warp lane opened, and Calmas, which would normally take weeks to reach, was now accessible in less than a day thanks to Kaiser's abilities.
At this moment, Serafakos on the Chaos battleship was completely unprepared. His attack on Calmas had only begun less than two days ago, and Lion had already arrived?
"They come with ill intent..." Serafakos said, but... when the Imperial Fleet passed through the stargate and entered the Calmas Star Sector, the entire starry sky seemed to be swallowed by the Imperial torrent of steel. A colossal fleet composed of battleships, cruisers, destroyers, and a large number of auxiliary vessels spread out in the void, like a slowly moving steel bulwark, carrying a suffocating sense of oppression.
And the fleet led by Kaiser possessed combat power that could be called the pinnacle of the Imperium; the muzzles of every warship were charged and ready, prepared to unleash a devastating rain of fire upon the Heretics at any moment.
When Serafakos finally realized he was facing not just Lion, but an entire Imperial main fleet, his arrogance instantly turned into fear. His carefully planned "hunt" instantly became a one-sided slaughter with no suspense.
"You are the one who has come."
The Imperial Fleet swept through the star system like a tide, precise artillery fire tearing apart the hulls of Chaos ships, and orbital bombardments descended like thunder, instantly ripping apart Serafakos's defenses.
The Chaos Warband, which had originally tried to encircle Lion, now became trapped, scattering one after another under the relentless firepower.
Finally, Sable was completely surrounded, and all escape routes were blockaded by the Imperial Fleet. Serafakos had once arrogantly and confidently awaited his prey, but now, he himself was the trapped beast in a cage.
The Dark Angels' revenge was about to come, and the hour of judgment had arrived.
When the Imperial Fleet emerged from the Warp, the nebula in the Calmas Star Sector was tinged crimson by Chaos psychic energy. Lion stood on the observation deck of his flagship, the 'Wrath of Caliban,' with Zabriel behind him, who had already changed into the standard Dark Angels uniform—a hooded robe.
"Seven former Lions Guard pirate groups have been integrated into the main fleet, including the strike cruiser 'Black Rose' and the battle-docking cluster of the 'Penitent'... But their loyalty still needs to be proven in a bloodbath."
Lion's knuckles tapped on Kaiser's electronic tactical table... "Tell Serafakos," Lion's voice was cold as iron, "The Lion is here."
The Thousand Eyes Warband's fleet erupted in frenzied psychic shrieks upon receiving the communication. Three hundred Chaos battleships emerged from Sable's shadow, the thousand eyes carved on their prows opening simultaneously, and Warp pus dripped down their gun barrels.
Serafakos's holographic image exploded in the void, the Chaos Lord, whose body was inlaid with eye runes, spread his arms, laughing madly:
"Look who the prey is? You didn't expect me to have an ambush, did you? Your fleet isn't even enough fuel for my Daemon Engines..."
A roar interrupted his declaration.
Twelve ethereal blue light spears shot out from the Imperial Fleet's flank, the Fallen Angels pirate fleet's assault cruisers tearing open their stealth fields, and silent torpedo salvos blossomed into cold flowers of death on the Chaos warships' reactors.
Kaiser's main fleet fired simultaneously, countless cruise missiles launching from the 'Emperor's Whip' battleship's vertical launch cells, the quantum trails of the cruise missiles slicing the starry sky into a burning chessboard.
"The hunt begins." Lion drew his lion sword.
As the landing pods slammed into Sable's corrupted earth, Zabriel's Fallen Angels vanguard was locked in combat with Daemon Engines. These exiles, once hunted, wore dark green power armor, with the Dark Angels winged insignia on their shoulder pads now adorned with pure white wings.
Interrogator-Chaplain Asmodai's power fist left five indentations on the armrest, his comms display filled with real-time ground battlefield footage. Zabriel was using his Chainsword to cut open a Daemon Engine's fuel tank, the pure white winged insignia, stained with corrosive fluid, particularly striking in the explosion's firelight.
"It should have been our glory!" The Chief Deathwing Knight's Terminator armor let out a muffled growl, "Those traitors don't even deserve to kneel and confess in the Rock, damn it! Why do they..."
"Because they got to the drop pods first." Russ took a swig of Kaiser's brewed IPA beer. In the holographic projection, Lion was smashing the Thousand Eyes Warband's skull totems with his bare fists. "If you ask me, you Dark Angels should learn from the Blood Angels. My brother told them to relax about everything..."
"Enough!" Azrael's Bolter slammed heavily onto the control panel, the crimson robes of the Inner Circle members billowing in the data storm. "You don't understand! The blood of Caliban flows in those Fallen Angels!"
Kaiser suddenly zoomed the holographic map to a certain canyon: "Russ, 30 cases of beer. In three minutes, Lion will detonate the crustal fault from here."
The corrupted earth cracked beneath Lion's feet, the Chaos energy absorbed by Chaos runes transforming into fiery flames. Six of the Thousand Eyes Warband's Daemon Engines crawled out of the magma, their gun barrels spiraled from thousands of wailing eyeballs.
"In the name of the Emperor, The Lion, and the Lions Guard!" The Lions Guard led by Zabriel launched their assault, their newly painted pure white wings leaving trails of holy flame behind them.
Their bolter rounds precisely targeted the eyeball nodes at the Daemon Engines' joints, a weakness known only to the Dark Angels archives.
"How could traitors know classified information from the archives!" The Dark Angels Techmarine in orbit nearly crushed their data-slates.
Azrael looked helplessly at his brothers around him: "Every Fallen... Lions Guard is a veteran of ten thousand years, having experienced the Great Crusade. They once followed The Lion to fight xenos and Heretics throughout the galaxy."
A tremendous roar came from the ground. Lion commanded the Lions Guard to insert implosion devices into the crustal fissures, and countless high-energy particle bombs poured into the planet's Core as a golden torrent. The entire surface of Sable fractured like a shattered eggshell, and the Thousand Eyes Warband's sorcerous shield evaporated in the face of absolute explosive yield.
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