"You two, we are here to discuss the situation of the war, not to attack each other."
Seeing that the dispute between Seth and Samuel escalated, Soshyan immediately knocked on the table, and all the sounds disappeared again.
"And I don't want to hear similar remarks and accusations in the expeditionary force in the future. Here are all loyal servants of the emperor, and those present here are also leaders and warriors who bear the honor of the chapter. Perhaps each chapter's The fighting styles will be different, but that is also the result of history and tradition. No one should be jealous or suspicious, and everyone’s words represent more than just themselves. Our number is far less than the heretics. If we are not united, then what will happen to us? You will surely live up to the Emperor’s wishes.”
Upon hearing these words, Seth snorted and said nothing, while Samuel looked at Soshyan.
"Commander-in-Chief, the Badab sector is very important and must not be abandoned."
Soshiyang smiled and nodded, comforting:
"Don't worry, Teacher Samuel. As the top leader of the expeditionary force, I naturally have the responsibility to defend the territory. I will not abandon any world or people of the empire easily unless it is absolutely necessary."
Then he looked at Lysander.
"But Captain Lysander's opinions are also mature and prudent."
Then he stood up.
"Everyone, I once discussed the situation of the Maelstrom with the great sage of Reza, and we finally reached a consensus... Let me be a little presumptuous here. Let me ask everyone, Huron and Abaddon are related. Which one is stronger and which one is weaker?"
After a while, Captain Cadulon of the Iron Knights said:
"Abaddon without a doubt."
As soon as he spoke, everyone expressed their opinions that it was indeed Abaddon.
"Why? In terms of warriors and fleets, Huron is not much worse than Abaddon. Is it because Abaddon has more direct subordinates? But he has also experienced several failures."
"Because Abaddon can afford to lose."
Helbrecht answered Soshyan's question calmly.
"The heretical Mechanicum worlds in the Eye of Fear basically support him. As long as his main force is not damaged and relying on the equipment and materials provided by those forging worlds, he can immediately organize a steady stream of legions, but there is no such condition in the center of the maelstrom. Huron would not be able to easily recover if he lost the capital he had on hand, and could only replenish the losses he suffered through constant plunder.”
Soshiyang nodded, even more amazed at the strategic vision of the Black Templar Marshal, and realized that there were still too few heroes he had met before, and there were still many such characters in the galaxy.
"Yes, the consensus I reached with Great Sage Reza is that the Red Pirates seem to be in full swing, but their foundation is still shallow. Huron absorbs a large number of traitors like a sponge, and has to pay a corresponding cost, so it must continue to Expand the scale and frequency of plundering, and once Huron's channels for replenishing supplies and equipment through plundering are cut off, the huge red pirates will be like clay-footed giants, and their fragile self-sustainability will be unable to support their huge bodies and eventually crush themselves."
Everyone nodded.
"Then it stands to reason that a quick victory would be more beneficial to Huron. However, in the past two years, he has not really launched an active attack. He even did not take action when the expeditionary force was still in its infancy. Why do you think it is because of this? And Or to go even further, why has he never really driven the empire’s forces out of the Badab sector in these decades?”
"He is worried, or there are still some unresolved issues, so he does not dare to really provoke a full-scale war with the empire."
Malakin's deep voice answered Soshyan.
"There are not only red pirates in the maelstrom, but also another group of larger-scale traitors."
"who?"
"Although the Word Bearers were only part of the former legion, they have remained standing for ten thousand years. Before the rebellion, Huron had repeatedly attacked the Word Bearers on the demonic world of Galmyk. Both sides suffered casualties. , and the Black Templars also organized an expedition during this period, which almost destroyed Garmyk. Huron once ordered several cyclone torpedoes to be launched into the world, but they seemed to have no effect due to some evil witchcraft... ..I believe that even if Huron has become a traitor, the Word Bearers are still hostile to him. Before the Word Bearers are dealt with, the main force of Huron may not dare to launch a long-distance surprise attack easily... In addition, although the expeditionary force There are not many warriors now, but with four to five thousand Space Marines cooperating with the local Astra Militarum and Guards, as well as the Titan Legion, it is difficult for the Red Pirates who came from afar to achieve any results without 40,000 to 50,000 people, and this number is almost impossible. We have all the core troops of Huron. As for sending out those peripheral war gangs, not to mention whether they can fight or not, for such a thankless task, how can they risk their lives for Huron?"
At this time, Helbrecht suddenly spoke.
"Captain Malakin, are you talking about the operation called the Crusade of Wrath conducted by Grand Marshal Cordell against the Maelstrom in the 41st period?"
Malakin nodded.
"Exactly that time."
"I have read the records of that battle. Star Claws, Lamenters and Mantis Warriors all sent their main forces, and the expeditionary force recovered many occupied planets, including New Badab, which is now occupied by the Hurons. Destroyed some completely corrupted planets controlled by the Word Bearers, killed several high-ranking Word Bearers commanders, and eliminated a large number of demons they summoned, including a Khorne demon, and almost invaded the demon world of Garmyk. "
"But before the end of the battle, the Black Templars suddenly withdrew and claimed to have been recalled by the empire. We still don't know the reason."
Helbrecht answered Malakin expressionlessly.
"The Grand Marshal was transferred to support the Tyranid threat in the Ultramar region. Terra's attitude is very resolute."
"Well, it turned out to be like this, but we didn't know it at the time. We had to withdraw from the inside of the maelstrom, and we couldn't continue to complete the original mission. And because of this retreat, the area we originally occupied was lost again, but the Word Bearers and Huron's hatred was completely forged, and countless small-scale battles broke out between the two sides in the following decades... Even during the Huron rebellion, the Word Bearers continued to cause trouble for him, Constantly fomenting heretical riots and attacking Huron outposts and supply lines in the rear."
Soshyan thought for a moment, and then raised his question.
"What is the situation in the world occupied by the Word Bearers? How can it still stand firm under the siege of the Black Templars and the entire Maelstrom Guardians?"
Malakin, who had personally participated in the war, explained to him:
"It was not a simple demon world. I have no way of knowing exactly where this world came from, but it looked more like a forging world with huge furnaces and smelting plants. But what was produced was not ordinary machinery. All kinds of blasphemous demonic engines rely on these Word Bearers to compete with the military power of the Empire."
"It's actually the Forge World... How many troops do the Word Bearers have there?"
"We estimated that the number of troops during the Crusade of Wrath was around 6,000, at least half of whom were new recruits. Garmyk is also a major source of recruits for the Word Bearers. The boys of suitable age they plundered from various worlds will be gathered here for transformation... …As for the size of the Word Bearers’ fleet, it didn’t seem huge at the time. However, we also considered that most of the Word Bearers’ power was in the Eye of Terror, and they might come to reinforce them if the war went unfavorably, so we didn’t dare Deploy all the warships at once to attack it, and always keep half of the fleet as a reserve force."
"Who is the ruler or person in charge of this demonic world?"
"Well... the information I received at that time was that this world was directly led by the so-called Dark Council of the Word Bearers. The leader of Garmyk was also selected by the Dark Council from among the Dark Apostles, and in Wrath During the expedition, its leader was named Erebus, a heretic traitor who was notorious during the Great Crusade. As for who leads it now, it’s hard to say, but the Word Bearers have always been known for their retribution, no matter it is No one who leads will easily reconcile with the Red Pirates.”
