Seraphs of the Emperor’s Judgment

Chapter 135: The Past

The two Chapters marched shoulder to shoulder along the broad avenue. Walking on the right side of the formation were the Astral Knights, while the Excoriators were on the left.

Servants from other regiments followed closely behind, and further back were the Servitors and thralls. The bronze bells along both sides of the broad avenue rang out in time with the warriors' strides.

"It has been almost a hundred years since I last marched alongside another Chapter."

Magyar couldn't help but sigh. At this moment, he was walking empty-handed side by side with Soshyan; his terrifying giant Scythe had been handed over to the Servants for safekeeping.

"We are all scattered among the stars."

They walked shoulder to shoulder at the very front of the formation, the Chapter banners held high behind them casting a shadow over them.

"It is my honor to march alongside a hero like you."

Soshyan said cautiously. This was his first time hosting a ceremonial event as Chapter Master; to say he felt absolutely no emotional ripples would be impossible.

"I hope you will tell me in detail about what happened in the Vidar System."

"I will.""I heard the Xenos you attacked at the time were Necrons?"

"Yes, those soulless machines. They piloted a maddening war fortress called the World Engine, attempting to destroy the entire star system."

Magyar suddenly glanced at the helmeted Sol. This seemingly ordinary warrior always gave him a strange illusion.

That sword on his waist, regardless of the distance, could threaten his own neck.

Even though it was still sheathed.

"A dozen Chapters were assembled at the time?"

Magyar withdrew his gaze, hoping he was just overthinking things.

"Yes."

Soshyan nodded.

"Including the Ultramarines. They dispatched the entire 7th Company."

"Then why was the outcome so tragic?"

"Because at the time, there was no means whatsoever to put an end to the World Engine. Or rather, we had tried all available means, and the only way left was to sacrifice the Chapter's flagship, the Storm, to make a Desperate struggle."

As they spoke, the procession arrived at the Hall of Mourning within the Monastery-Fortress. At the far end of this hall stood a black monument.

This monument was a scaled-down replica Soshyan had the artisans craft, modeled after the real one in the Vidar System. Judging from its appearance, it was almost identical, except it lacked the decorations made from Necron wreckage.

"Was this decision made by your Chapter Master?"

"Yes. It was a plan he executed by overcoming all dissenting views."

Arriving before that black monument, Magyar looked up, gazing at the engraved numbers and rows of names. 771 Space Marines were buried just like that in the cold void.

"What was his name?"

"Amulad."

"Amulad. I will remember it."

Before the black monument, an atmosphere of solemnity spread. All the Space Marines removed their helmets, their right fists clenched over their chests as they deeply bowed their noble heads.

Everyone, regardless of their status or rank, was mourning these fallen Heroes of the Imperium.

It was exactly because they had burned themselves up that humanity had a glimmer of light and hope in the dark galaxy.

"The names of heroes should not fade away."

Ten minutes later, Magyar raised his head again and looked at Soshyan.

"The responsibility on your shoulders is heavy. Although I know that under such terrible circumstances, the vast majority of Chapters would inevitably head toward annihilation, I can see that you have always been striving to reverse all of this."

"I once swore an oath that I would absolutely never let the Chapter's banner fall."

"Actually, we once encountered a situation identical to yours."

Speaking up to this point, Magyar's tone suddenly became heavy.

"In M41.820, our Chapter encountered the remnants of the Tyranid Xenos' Hive Fleet Behemoth in the void. In order to wipe out this group of Xenos, I led the Chapter in a boarding action onto their Hive Ship."

Hearing this, the expressions of the several accompanying veterans all showed looks of pain.

"That was a cruel and bloody battle. We understood too little about the Tyranids, and even less about their Hive Ships. The complex terrain inside and the endless spawning pools caused us to suffer tremendous losses."

Remorse was mixed into the words of this Hero of the Imperium.

"Although we ultimately killed it, the casualty rate for the entire Chapter was close to 90%. Over half of the companies were completely wiped out... They were all nurtured by me, bit by bit, ever since they underwent Augmentation. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were my children."

Soshyan suddenly noticed that, at this moment, this Hero of the Imperium was no longer that warrior who always maintained high morale; he looked more like an aggrieved old man.

The traces of time had finally appeared upon Chapter Master Magyar at this moment—a kind of vicissitude and sorrow that reached deep into his soul.

For a moment, Soshyan didn't know what to say.

Fortunately, Lord Malakim immediately gathered his emotions.

"Were it not for a batch of Neophytes still on our homeworld, as well as the Gene-seed accumulated over the years, we might not have been able to get back on our feet even if given another hundred years. But even so, up until now, we only have a little over five hundred warriors—recovering merely half of our former strength."

As an ancient Chapter from the era of the Second Founding, the Excoriators Chapter naturally possessed a much thicker foundation than the Astral Knights, but such a devastating blow could only be endured once.

"So... I deeply understand your resolve and the difficulties of rebuilding a Chapter."

"Nathan IV is a pretty good planet. I have confidence that here, the Chapter's banner will once again flutter in the void, continuing to fight for the Emperor."

"Exactly, that's the spirit."

Lord Malakim laughed heartily.

The procession then crossed through the Hall of Mourning, moving toward the Great Hall. The Servants had already prepared a banquet for the Astartes there.

Entering the corridor connecting the two mountain peaks, Lord Malakim gazed into the distance at the main keep of the monastery ahead and that towering Chapel.

"What a magnificent place."

He couldn't help but praise.

"You haven't been here for very long, have you? These achievements are astonishing. I hope you will give me a proper tour."

"Of course."

Subsequently, Soshyan postponed the banquet and personally took Lord Malakim on a tour around the Monastery-Fortress. During this process, the two engaged in a close conversation.

However, it didn't touch upon too much Chapter diplomacy or missions; they mostly talked about what they had seen and heard—primarily with Lord Malakim speaking and Soshyan acting as the listener.

He was quite grateful that this Hero of the Imperium was willing to share his knowledge and experience with him, especially regarding Xenos like the Tyranids.

Soshyan had clashed with Greenskins, Necrons, and even the Eldar. Only the Tyranids were an enemy he had never met face-to-face.

The earliest records of the Tyranids appeared in M41.735. When Imperial explorers were conducting routine planetary surveys, they discovered that life on some worlds toward the fringes of the Eastern Fringe had suddenly disappeared. There was no theory to explain why vibrant worlds previously teeming with flora and fauna had suddenly turned into barren, empty boulders.

When time reached M41.745, outposts in the Tyran System of the Eastern Fringe began being attacked by an unknown Xenos race.

Within a few days, the primary planet Tyran and its heavily defended outposts were completely destroyed. Thus occurred the first recorded contact between the Imperium and the swarm. They were correspondingly named after the Tyran System where they were discovered, becoming known as the Tyranids.