2nd Primarch

The great expedition had finally arrived at the day of departure.

The majestic Soul Fire hung suspended in outer orbit.

Dukel walked out of the temple, and the Astra Militarum formed a path for him, isolating his way to the interstellar port.

"We will win!"

"We will win!"

"We will win!"

The chants of the people rang out like a battle hymn. To them, the image of the Primarch was that of a god of war, a figure destined to lead them to victory.

Humanity, desperate for triumph, hoped this expedition would allow them to bask in glory once more. Amid the jubilant shouts, it felt as though they had returned to the golden age when all other races bent the knee to mankind.

In this grand era, forged by the Emperor and the Primarchs, no human would ever again endure a life of suffering.

Among the gathered crowd stood a group of spectators who observed the ceremony with a mix of emotions.

They were members of a once-powerful family, purged by Dukel in an iron-fisted act of justice. Stripped of their influence and kin, they had arrived harboring hatred, prepared to curse this expedition.

But now, amidst the fervent cheers of the people, they found themselves silent.

The curses they carried felt hollow and powerless in the face of the crowd's unwavering zeal.

Though they loathed the resurrected Primarch for taking everything from them, they couldn't help but feel a strange reverence as they gazed upon his towering figure. Against their will, they longed to follow him, to find purpose for their restless souls within the grand expedition.

With the Primarch's return, a new era had begun, and the eternal war between humanity, Chaos, and the alien menace continued.

The glory of the Imperium would once again illuminate the galaxy, and all who partook in this era's trials would be remembered for eternity.

Caught in the tide of history, the exiled families reflected on the rights they had lost.

Some among them, leaders of knightly houses, lowered their heads in shame.

Ten millennia of complacency had eroded the sacred oaths of their forebears, tarnishing the noble ideals they once held.

But now, the ancient vow to fight for humanity was rekindled.

They renewed their oaths, pledging to battle for mankind until their final breaths.

Swallowing their bitterness, they slipped away from the crowd with quiet resolve.

They would follow this great expedition and would not retreat, even at the cost of their lives.

Amid the cheers, the vast fleet, composed of countless warships, began its journey. Millions of engines flared like distant stars, their fiery trails illuminating the void.

The fleet's first destination was clear: the Nanlis Galaxy, located at the edge of the Storm Star Region.

As the fleet entered the Warp, the boundless Sea of Souls boiled with violent energy.

The turbulent tides of the Immaterium surged like waves, threatening to swallow the fleet whole.

In such a chaotic expanse, human fleets in the past relied heavily on navigators to locate stable realspace nodes for short Warp jumps.

Yet even with their guidance, countless ships were lost, their crews doomed to drift eternally in the depths of the Warp.

Standing on the command deck of the Soul Fire, Dukel surveyed the surreal, treacherous spectacle outside.

Amid the violent storms of the Immaterium, even psychic communications faltered, becoming unstable.

Dukel issued commands through the Mind Network, with tens of thousands of psykers across the fleet acting as nodes. An invisible, translucent force field enveloped the fleet.

Within this Mind Matrix, the raging tides of the Warp felt like nothing more than a gentle breeze.

The fleet pressed forward like an unyielding rock, cutting through the Sea of Souls without fear of capsizing.

This miraculous display of stability hardened the resolve of every heart aboard.

Safe within the Warp, Dukel summoned the astropaths, pushing them to pierce through the fog of the Immaterium and gather intelligence about the Imperium's current state.

Much of what they uncovered was fragmented and chaotic, but what they could decipher painted a bleak and desperate picture.

Supernatural disasters ravaged entire galaxies. Chaos invasions swelled, demons roamed unchecked, and the cries of humanity echoed endlessly across the Sea of Souls.

Mutants and psykers emerged at an unprecedented rate, while betrayal and corruption spread like wildfire.

Amid the horrors, the loyal defenders of the Imperium were reduced to screams of despair. Star Fortresses called weakly for reinforcements that would never arrive. Indestructible bastions were breached by the forces of Chaos.

Within the Warp, Dukel received only despair—an endless chorus of anguish from the shattered Imperium.

As the fleet approached the Nanlis Galaxy, the warriors aboard steeled themselves.

They vowed to make the heretics and xenos tremble before the wrath of humanity.