Over a year later, the Rangda had been driven completely out of the Imperium's territory.
All the northern territories of the Imperium that had suffered Rangda invasions were successfully reclaimed, though some Imperial worlds had been utterly destroyed by the xenos.
The price paid by the Rangda was no less staggering.
During this campaign, Axis had brought at least fifty star systems under Imperial control, rescued over eighty Imperial worlds, and saved billions of Imperial citizens.
He had become the greatest hero of the Rangda War.
The combined achievements of the other three Primarchs did not surpass his alone.
It could not be helped.
Axis's methods of attack were simply too brutal. When he arrived at a star system, all it took was for Kasha to make a teleportation, and within a few hours the Rangda fleets would be annihilated.
The golden war god rampaged through the Rangda fleets, leaving only wreckage and debris in his wake.
No vessel could withstand his ki blasts.
Landing on the planets, he would then deliver devastating strikes to the Rangda ground forces.
During this campaign, Axis even encountered Rangda War-moon.
He chose not to capture it, but destroyed it outright, turning over all salvaged materials to the Solus Prime for upgrades.
Unlike the Solus Prime, whose advanced AI possessed complex emotions, each of these War-Moons were unique, some even hosted the digitized minds of the Rangda Imperial high command.
Such constructs had no concept of surrender.
Axis destroyed them all without mercy.
The name of the Golden War God resounded throughout the Imperium's north.
Countless citizens witnessed his radiant, golden figure, though the battles in the void could not be seen by the common people, the planetary engagements certainly could.
Emperor's Avatar. The Emperor's Envoy. The Emperor's Wrath. The War God of Mankind. The Protector of Humanity.
These titles and more were heaped upon Axis.
In this war against the Rangda, he had stolen the spotlight entirely.
For a time, he even outshone the other Primarchs.
They were powerful beyond compare, yet none had displayed feats as outrageous as Axis, like single-handedly annihilating fleets, reclaiming worlds on his own.
Within Axis's forces, whether mortal soldiers or members of the Wolf Pack, their sole duty was to clean up the battlefield after him.
Nothing else.
The morale of the mortal regiments under his banner soared to unprecedented heights.
They advanced from victory to victory, and it would have been strange if their spirits were not high.
On the other side, the Rangda's morale had sunk to rock bottom under Axis's relentless strikes.
Faced with such a monster, how could they fight? How could anyone fight?
No matter what they tried, victory was impossible.
This was an enemy that could not be defeated.
Thanks to Axis's rapid offensives, the other Primarchs' campaigns progressed with unusual ease.
The prolonged stalemates faced by Jaghatai Khan and the Wolf King Leman Russ began to shift.
Every few days, a new report arrived;
Axis had reclaimed another Imperial world.
Axis had destroyed another Rangda fleet.
Axis had judged another band of vile xenos.
Such messages came at a steady pace, and the only thing slowing Axis down was not the enemy, but time itself.
Russ and Lion El'Jonson had no doubt: if given enough time, Axis could wipe out every Rangda fleet invading the Imperium in one campaign.
So long as they were concentrated in one place, he could do it.
In recent days, the three Primarchs felt as if they were dreaming.
They watched with their own eyes as the once-fierce Rangda went from fighting with high morale, to flagging spirits, to despair.
Soon, the Xenos began to flee in panic, only to be struck down in one decisive blow.
Axis's victories benefitted every front of the war.
With such a killing figure on their side, how could the enemy's spirit not break?
The Rangda had fallen into despair.
This Imperial expansion was proving far more difficult than they had imagined.
Their so-called Great Galactic Empire had met a foe beyond anything they had ever faced.
Within the Imperium, the one with the most complicated feelings was Jaghatai Khan.
He had never before witnessed Axis in battle.
When footage of Axis's combat reached him, the Khan from the steppes fell silent, his entire Legion fell silent.
That gleaming, golden figure.
That monster tearing through Rangda ships in the void as if dismantling toys…was that truly…a human?
Even a Primarch like himself could at best take on thousands, perhaps tens of thousands.
Given enough time, Jaghatai Khan could take a power sword and cut his way from the south pole of a planet to its north pole.
Thanks to a Primarch's monstrous physique and regenerative abilities, he would only need to rest for a few minutes before fighting again.
Given a few months, he could slaughter every enemy on an entire world.
For him, this was possible.
But doing all of that in a single day? It was Impossible, even for a Primarch.
The White Scars' warriors were practically in shock. They were all Adeptus Astartes, yet was there truly such a gulf in power?
Was this man really a Space Marine?
It was warrior who could fly freely in the void, move across a planet's surface with the speed of a monster, and hurl golden and white blasts from his hands.
Each shot was the equivalent of a macro-cannon or a lance strike. Every burst was like a cyclone torpedo bombardment tearing into the ground.
This level of combat was far beyond anything they had imagined.
White Scars Space Marines who were seeing footage of Axis in action for the first time found their bodies trembling.
"Khan! How is this possible? How can a human possess such power? Even the E…," one of the White Scars Khans blurted, but he held his words.
It was a statement bordering on heresy, and the man had clearly heald his thouge. But everyone abrod could underand the man's thoughts ..
Only the Emperor possessed such might, power worthy of being called divine.
The Imperial Truth might deny gods, yet when it came to describing Axis's strength, the only word they could think of was god.
He was too strong, so strong it defied belief, suffocating any witness.
"Khan! Who exactly is this Axis?" another Khan finally asked, unable to restrain himself, turning toward his \father.
"My sons," Jaghatai Khan began, "I have spoken to Lion El'Jonson about Axis. His origins are… special. For now, they must remain secret. In time, you will learn the truth, but you are not to inquire further for the moment.
"You should not compare yourselves to him. You and he are fundamentally different. He is not a normal Space Marine. In truth, he is not even a Space Marine at all."
Jaghatai spoke from what Lion had hinted to him. Axis wielded the power of ki, a force unique to him alone.
He had not undergone the transformation into an Astartes, but had instead been subjected to a mysterious modification deep within the Imperial Palace in the Himalazian mountains.
Lion had not said what exactly that was, but Jaghatai could guess enough.
"No matter who this Axis is, he's helped us win this war. Ever since his arrival, the Rangda have been terrified out of their wits. All of you can feel how much easier our battles have become these past days," one White Scars Khan said.
"Indeed," Jaghatai replied, "This war is nearly over. We will soon combine our forces to face the last of the Rangda. Prepare yourselves. In this battle, you must fight well, do not let that man look down on you."
He hoped his sons would not be too crushed by the comparison.
Truthfully, even he had been shaken.
If he were to face Axis, this monster capable of annihilating fleets, he had no confidence of victory.
He did not even know if his father could match him, for he truly did not know what his Father could do..
A few days later, the fleets of Axis, Lion El'Jonson, Leman Russ, and Jaghatai Khan finally gathered together.
By now, the Rangda were rapidly withdrawing their forces, retreating all the way back to their former borders, making no further attempts to expand into the Imperium.
But the fact that they no longer attacked did not mean the Imperium would not strike back.
Imperial scouts had already discovered a Rangda bridgehead world.
It was a special star system with over a dozen heavily modified fortress-worlds, complete with an intact industrial chain and home to countless Xenos, over a hundred different species.
This was the staging ground from which the Rangda launched their assaults on Imperial space.
All their fleets that struck at Imperial worlds had departed from here.
It also served a role akin to that of an Imperial Forge World, supplying the front lines with a constant stream of weapons and ammunition.
Aboard the Invincible Reason, Axis met Jaghatai Khan for the first time.
The Khan wore white power armour, his hair tied in the traditional braid.
He stood roughly 3.7 meters tall, half a head shorter than Axis's father, and was built with the same towering, imposing frame.
Around him were Space Marines in white power armour, some of them clearly his personal guard.
When Axis entered, all eyes turned immediately toward him.
For the past six months, his name had been the loudest on every battlefield report. Every day, they heard the same news. Axis had won again, killing yet more enemies of the Imperium.
"So, you are Axis," Jaghatai said, stepping forward, and performed the 'Sign of the Aquila' "I have heard of you from the Lion. I salute you, warrior of the Imperium. In this war, you are its true champion."
"And I salute you, Lord of the Fifth Legion, Jaghatai Khan of the White Scars," Axis replied courteously, returning the gesture..
He held no ill will toward the famed 'Warhawk'. The Khan was a loyal Primarch, after all.
After meeting Jaghatai, Axis proceeded into the grand strategium. Lion and Russ greeted him with a nod, and soon all were gathered.
"First," Lion began, "we must celebrate our victory. In just eighteen months, we have repelled the Rangda and saved over a hundred Imperial worlds. The greatest credit belongs to Axis. I salute our hero!"
As supreme commander of this campaign, Lion had studied all intelligence on the Rangda before coming here.
He had expected a war lasting decades, perhaps a bitter quagmire.
But Axis had single-handedly reversed the tide, tipping the scales decisively toward the Imperium.
"For the Imperium! For the Emperor! We salute you, Lord Axis!," they proclaimed.
Led by the Primarchs, every Imperial officer and soldier straightened their backs, and performed theSign of the Aquila.
Axis nodded, accepting their acclaim, and returning the gesture.
"Now that we have driven the Xenos plague from our borders, we have located their bridgehead world. We will take it for the Imperium, and let these foul xenos learn the price of crossing Mankind.
"They will know the newborn Imperium is not to be provoked," Lion declared.
"The best defence is attack," Jaghatai agreed, "If the Rangda strike again, we can intercept them early, holding them outside the gates of Imperial space."
Fighting on enemy soil was a far different thing from fighting on one's own. Wars in foreign territory spared many troubles.
"I agree," Russ added, "My children of Fenris will also join this battle. We will take the enemy's front-line world and make it our own."
After all, with Axis present, there was little cause for worry.
"Should we go further?" Axis asked, "Strike into the Rangda heartlands and bring the war to their very homes?"
"Not yet," Lion said, "Other Primarchs are still fighting mighty foes in the south and west. Humanity has yet to be fully united.
"Not long ago, I spoke with Father. He told me that the time for a final reckoning with the Rangda has not yet come.
"For now, we will seize their bridgehead world and transform it into a bastion-fortress. That is the goal of this campaign."
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Guys!!! we need more powerstones! also, the bonus chapter will be updated in an hour!