[In the sixth week, a truly massive fleet from the Black Templars arrives, crowding the void of the Calixis sector. Thousands of ships, large and small, blot out the stars as they establish a high-anchor orbit around the hive planet, preparing for the upcoming great expedition.]
[Right in front of the brass-inlaid doors of the Astropathic Hall on the 'Eternal Crusader' flagship, you and Marshal Ludoldus stand in shared, armored silence, waiting for the High Marshal's astrotelepathic reply.]
[Soon after, a female astropath, holding a scepter and wearing a black robe, slowly walks out. Her footsteps are a soft shuffle on the stone deck. She comes to you, lifting her chin, her sightless eyes aimed toward you both.]
["Honorable Emperor's Champion and Lord Marshal, the Warp undercurrents in the entire star region are surging. This has caused the astropathic communication from the High Marshal to be intermittent," the female astropath says. Her voice is a dry, reedy whisper, yet carries the weight of the message. "Therefore, the High Marshal simply expressed one meaning: The Black Templars will carry out this expedition at all costs to eradicate this rebellious psychic heresy for the Emperor and eliminate this brewing rebellion."]
[You narrow your eyes. The recycled air of the flagship feels suddenly colder. You take a deep, slow breath.]
[You turn your head to Marshal Ludoldus. He meets your gaze. Without a word, you both nod heavily.]
[With the issuance of the Marshal's order, the flagship comes alive. The decks thrum with the sound of armored footsteps and shouted orders. All Astartes, aside from the necessary guard forces within the battle group, begin preparations for battle. Their numbers are close to more than eight hundred.]
[Countless monk servitors rattle and whir through the passageways, their metal feet scraping the deck, providing any help to the Battle-Brothers.]
[You have accepted the final repairs and calibration of your 'Armor of Faith' by the Techmarines.]
[You stand immobile as the Reclusiarch himself, flanked by a team of Chaplains, recites a low, booming litany, anointing your armor with holy oils.]
[Your power armor is covered with new purity seals. Long strips of parchment, inscribed with oaths and prayers, are affixed to your armor with red wax seals.]
[The head of the 'Traitor to the People' you obtained before is made into a sacred object that can defend against some psychic powers, after a long, complicated ritual by Horamir and the help of more Librarians.]
[You choose to have the Techmarines mount the skull, now engraved with glowing runes, directly to the pinnacle of your Iron Halo.]
[You hesitate for a moment, standing in the armory, fully blessed and repaired, but a sense of unease lingers. It feels like it is not enough.]
[You find the Techmarine again.]
[You obtain a heavy storm shield, its face wrought into a large, iron cross.]
[You ask for three melta bombs from his hand and secure them to the magnetic clamps on your power backpack.]
[Then you leave the armory, a grim satisfaction of a warrior who has prepared for the worst.]
[In the seventh week, with a battle barge and three strike cruisers as the core, the expedition fleet, escorted by dozens of Sword-class frigates, detaches from the huge main fleet. It is a small, predatory wolfpack.]
[Because you did not obtain the specific coordinates of the rebel planet from the psychic illusion before, you discuss the matter with Marshal Ludoldus. You decide on a grim, systematic sweep of every ice-covered planet in the entire sector.]
[The orders are simple. Any Imperial Navy ship that encounters your fleet and launches an attack is an enemy controlled by Cacodominus and will suffer a devastating blow from the Black Templars.]
[Not long after, the first strange planet covered by ice and snow looms into the augur range.]
[Countless ships belonging to the Imperial Navy, their vox channels dead silent, do not respond to hails and immediately launch a near-suicidal attack on your fleet.]
[The next moment, a wall of coherent light and plasma erupts from the Black Templar fleet.]
[Just one salvo breaks the opponent's void shields and annihilates most of the navy's ships, shredding them into burning wreckage.]
[Assault boats quickly jump out of the strike cruisers and launch boarding actions toward the remaining, crippled naval ships.]
[As the Emperor's Champion, you are still gearing up in the assault bay when the 'all clear' is sounded. The fierce battle in the cold void is completely over.]
[According to reports from the battle-brothers, all members of the naval ships were controlled by out-of-control Astropaths and Navigators.]
[This seems to be the real reason why Cacodominus can remotely control the Imperial Navy.]
[Horamir believes that any psyker controlled by Cacodominus will become an amplifier for the other party's terrifying psionic power.]
[So, in order to prevent it from affecting the psykers in the battle group, Marshal Ludoldus issues an order without hesitation.]
[Three strike cruisers arrive near the planet and launch a ruthless orbital bombardment. Lances of energy and batteries of macro-cannon shells rain down, scouring the planet's surface.]
[Subsequently, a large number of roaring drop pods, carrying the Black Templar Battle-Brothers, descend into the scorched, blackened earth.]
[As the Emperor's Champion, you are the first to set foot on the surface of the planet.]
[You do not find any sky-reaching pillar of golden light. It seems that the horrific orbital bombardment has eliminated the heretical psykers who controlled the planet.]
[Subsequently, the Black Templars begin the grim work of clearing away the remaining mortal puppets and recovering the entire planet.]
[In the eighth week, the grim crusade continues. As the entire expedition fleet continues to advance, about thirteen fallen planets, occupied due to out-of-control psykers, have been successfully recovered. As many as ten psychic puppet heads, all of the 'Traitor to the People' puppets, have been captured by you, one by one.]
[However, the psychic tide caused by the death of each psyker also brings near-extinction and horrific, destructive shockwaves to the entire planet.]
[You clench your gauntlet, frustrated. You have not yet found a way to eliminate this loss.]
[At the same time, there are still three hive planets whose environments are naturally covered with ice and snow, but due to the panic and foolish judgment of the Planetary Governor, they suffer orbital attacks from the Black Templars.]
[In the end, as the Emperor's Champion, you intervene, invoking your authority and citing time constraints to temporarily stop the next attack of the war group.]
[At this moment, a psychic prophecy from Horamir provides you with the coordinates of the next planet.]
[It is a marginal planet called Cacodomins, and most of the population on it belongs to the star zone border defense force of the Astra Militarum.]
[You confirm by consulting the fleet's ancient data-stacks that it is the rebellious planet where Cacodominus is located.]
[However, just when Marshal Ludoldus is about to issue an attack order, you hold up a hand.]
["Marshal, wait."]
[After the death of the ordinary heretic psyker 'traitors', a psychic tide sweeping across the entire planet erupts.]
[You explain that if the more powerful Cacodominus dies, the terrifying psychic energy erupted might sweep across the entire star zone, destroying countless planets and the Imperium's shipping lanes.]
[Even if the Black Templars are not afraid of sacrifice, they need to think about the huge losses the Imperium will suffer.]
[Marshal Ludoldus's armored fist clenches. He frowns and falls into a deep, troubled silence.]
[You also stand aside, racking your brains to think about countermeasures.]
[At this moment, Horamir suddenly proposes a hesitant, immature idea to you.]
[The psychic hoods that the Librarians usually use to amplify psychic energy... perhaps they may be used in reverse, to form an anti-psychic energy suppression device.]
[And according to the ancient knowledge he has mastered, when enough anti-psychic energy suppression devices exist in one place at the same time, the surrounding environment may produce a psychic vacuum zone, temporarily blocking the influence of psychic energy.]
[Of course, as for success or failure, Horamir cannot guarantee it. He meets your gaze. "I cannot guarantee it, Champion. It is only theory."]
[You and Marshal Ludoldus subconsciously look at each other. It is a desperate gamble.]
[You decide to let the Librarians give it a try. You nod. "Try it."]
[And so, the Librarians of the Black Templars will contribute their own strength to this expedition.]
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