Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 901

Chapter 894, The Saint’s Savior

Another orbital defense platform on Vigilance, melted into molten iron in the foul flames of the Warp.

Raymond Weiss gazed through the porthole at the orbital defenses, crumbling under the Chaos surge.

What else could he say?

Only a long sigh.

“Prepare! We’re breaking out,” he gave the order.

Reactions were mixed.

Some were in disbelief, while others questioned,

“Are we abandoning Vigilance?!”

This was not an easy decision to accept.

Vigilance’s defense, from a broader perspective, had lasted for decades; from a more current perspective, this Chaos invasion had lasted seven months. While the fighting was arduous, the enemy’s strength was merely moderate compared to the numerous crises Vigilance had faced in the past.

So many dangers had passed, so this one wasn’t serious. What was there to fear?

The reason Vigilance’s defenders requested assistance was primarily because their war resources were stretched thin, and their manpower had dwindled over the course of seven months of fighting.

However, they firmly believed that as long as supplies were normalized, they would have no problem repelling this mild Chaos invasion.

Everything was proceeding as the defenders had expected.

Reinforcements had indeed arrived, and they were led by the main force of the Saints Chapter, the “Lord of the Rift,” the Chapter Master known as the “Lord of the Rift,” who had led the people to

defend the Corridor. Given this, what was their chance of victory?

Therefore, when Raymond Ves ordered a breakout, practically tantamount to abandoning Vigil, they seemed so unacceptable.

But in reality, most people accepted Raymond Ves’s order.

The battle was truly impossible.

This time, the invading enemy wasn’t much stronger than before. With Raymond Ves’s support, they might be able to win, but what about next time?

With the combined strength of a single sector, the Mercifate, thirty years of resistance would already be the limit.

While the enemy hadn’t grown stronger, their own weakening was an irreversible trend. Shortages of troops, generals, and supplies would become the norm.

The days of supplies arriving as needed and missing troops quickly replenished are long gone.

Yet, the situation on Vigil is steadily worsening.

Not only do they face constant waves of Chaos forces emanating from the Scarlet Scar, but within the planet itself, this world, once home to over two billion people, is also plagued by numerous internal disasters.

Its proximity to the Scarlet Scar has led to a constant influx of Chaos corruption. This has not only led to numerous cults and rebellions, but also to widespread supernatural plagues. The Nurgle Plague

, which transforms people into zombies and spreads them further, and the Khorne Plague, which drives people mad and bloodthirsty, are both terrifying.

Furthermore, the licentious and conspiratorial cults are likely influenced by the other two Warp powers.

These problems are so severe that they have absorbed half of the defensive forces and severely undermined Vigil’s economic production capacity.

And beyond the Chaos threat, there’s also the xenos threat. On Vigilance, despite thirty years of attempts to eradicate the greenskins, there’s a parasitic infestation that keeps resurfacing despite repeated attempts to eliminate the so-called Number One Infector and Clan Leader.

The pre-war population was two billion, but now, thirty years later, it’s down to just six hundred million.

Economic production has been severely damaged, unable even to meet the needs of the military, forcing the planet to import food from outside sources to sustain itself.

Vigilance is undoubtedly a massive burden.

And it’s not just Vigilance; the same applies to all seven worlds of the Corridor.

However, Vigilance bears the greatest pressure.

Not only is its problem the most severe, but it’s also the farthest from the Saints’ headquarters, Mursiphat.

Before the Cataclysm, the distance of seven interstellar tunnels wasn’t a big deal; it could be reached in just over half a month or even a month. After the Cataclysm, the risks increased dramatically, but for the Saints, who were able to quickly unite an entire sector, it remained within acceptable limits and presented no significant challenges.

But the key is this “corridor,” crossing the Scarlet Scar, making navigation ten times more difficult than usual.

The difficulty of sending reinforcements from Mursiphat to Vigil is imaginable.

They had attempted to reclaim some human worlds from the Empire’s dark side, on Vigil’s side, and provide support from there.

However, that was still equivalent to an expedition across the “corridor,” and

no less challenging .

They conquered several worlds, but found them difficult to maintain and ultimately lost. The entire operation, far from relieving pressure or generating profit, resulted in even greater losses.

As the Mursiphat sector became increasingly unsustainable, even experiencing some non-Chaos influences and rebellions caused solely by excessive exploitation, Raymond Weiss was forced to make this difficult decision.

He personally led the main force to Vigil, not simply to provide support or relief, but also to personally lead a force to recover as much of the investment of the past thirty years from Vigil as possible.

The troops and vital military supplies must be taken away; some production plants and a few people deemed not to pose a major threat should also be taken away as much as possible.

Of course, only a small portion could ultimately be taken away.

The majority of the population would eventually be abandoned along with the abandoned Alert Planet.

But what could be done?

All opposition was suppressed by Raymond Weiss’s prestige and the tacit understanding of the people who breathed a sigh of relief.

Preparations for the breakout began.

Fifteen days remained.

During these fifteen days, everything that needed to be loaded onto ships would be shipped. This was the final evacuation deadline.

At that point, the entire army would abandon all existing defenses and the fleet would break out.

On the eighth day of the breakout preparations, human astropaths detected significant movement at the Alert Planet’s interstellar tunnel jump point.

Raymond Weiss initially thought it was another Chaos fleet.

As the astropathic signal was received, converted into visual signals, and a holographic image was created, revealing the entire fleet. Raymond Weiss’s hands trembled.

Those ships, painted a mix of silver and blue, looked well-maintained and brand new. The winged eagle emblem of humanity on the bows made everyone present cheer for joy—it was the first time in thirty years they had seen a new warship that wasn’t the tangled flesh and blood, shabby metal of the Chaos demons!

Besides the Skyhawk emblem, symbolizing the Imperium of Man, they could also observe another emblem clasped tightly in their hands. This emblem seemed unfamiliar to them, having never encountered it before. However, with a moment’s recollection, they could recognize it—the Alliance.

The communication signal quickly traversed the waves of the Warp, unstable and tinged with electronic noise, but it sounded quite reassuring.

“This is the Fourth Advance Fleet of the Alliance’s Western Expeditionary Force. I am Admiral Yemel, the fleet commander. On behalf of Marshal Yan Fangxu and High Lord Gu Hang, the savior of the Imperium’s dark side, I salute all those who remain steadfast. We are en route to the battlefield and anticipate launching an attack on the Chaos fleet in orbit within sixteen hours. We request your support as appropriate.”

After a full fifteen minutes of deliberation, Raymond Weiss made his decision.

He replied to the astropathic signal, identifying himself and promising cooperation in the attack.

…

In the ensuing war, the Saints witnessed the strength of the Alliance fleet.

The Chaos fleet besieging Vigil Planet was no small force in their eyes. They were able to hold their ground and repel the enemy, but it came at a significant cost.

However, under the onslaught of the Alliance fleet, they quickly collapsed.

The Alliance’s naval tactics were sophisticated. It was clear that this was a battle-hardened fleet, its experience accumulated through countless battles. Furthermore, they appeared quite familiar with how to combat Chaos fleets.

This navy was by no means a rookie force.

But their appearance betrayed nothing of the sort.

Their ships were incredibly new.

They must have undergone extensive care and maintenance before entering the battle.

Even before the Cataclysm, let alone after, many Imperial navies struggled to maintain such meticulous shipbuilding.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say these were brand new ships.

The Alliance fleet’s formidable combat effectiveness stemmed not only from the quality and experience of its crews, but also, more importantly, from the sheer strength of its ships!

Well-maintained equipment is simply superior.

Not to mention, those battleships and aircraft carriers, deployed in formation, accompanied by a comprehensive fleet of over two hundred cruisers and destroyers… that was a formidable force.

Superior in both numbers and quality, the Chaos fleet was completely powerless.

Raymond Vess gazed upon this brand-new fleet with envy.

Currently, even if the entire Saints Chapter assembled its fleets, it would likely only be this size—excluding the Saints’ thousand-year-old Glorious Queen.

However, according to Admiral Yemel, they were merely a detachment of the Alliance’s Western Expeditionary Force. There were likely many such detachments, along with a much larger main fleet, to constitute a so-called Western Expeditionary Force. The Alliance had four expeditionary fronts of this magnitude, divided into four directions: east, west, south, and north.

How could one not envy such a force?

Even more enviable, even terrifying, was the depth of power inherent in this force.

Raymond Vess couldn’t help but compare it to Holy Terra.

Thirty years of pleading for help, with nothing but repetitive nonsense, and not a shred of support. Furthermore, from the scant information he deduced, Holy Terra’s current situation seemed a shambles, overwhelmed.

Compare that to the Alliance. The Dark Side Crusade had fought its way all the way from the Spider Web and Eastern Spaces, arguably the most remote regions of the Imperium, to here…

the difference was immediately apparent.

…

The naval battle was over, with humanity undeniably victorious. The Chaos fleet had suffered a crushing defeat, with only a handful of ships escaping.

Atop the orbital defense platform, the two sides met in triumph.

Raymond Weiss met Admiral Yemel.

He was somewhat surprised by the young mortal general.

Beside him were the Chapter Masters of two Chapters.

After a brief exchange, he learned that these were two fully staffed Chapters, founded during the Fourth Dark Side Founding.

One of them, the Light Satin, was a Successor Chapter of the Saints.

Chapter Captain Zhao Farong of the Light Satin Chapter greeted him with a rather longing handshake, his expression no different from any other Saints’ daughter Chapter meeting their mother Chapter.

However, Raymond Weiss felt something was amiss.

What was this Dark Side Founding? Why hadn’t I heard of it? The fourth time?

The Light Satin Chapter? Why didn’t I know our Saints had such a daughter Chapter?

Gu Hang was a High Lord, but did he have the authority to establish a new Space Marine Chapter?

While establishing a new Chapter, even one using Saints’ gene-seed, theoretically had nothing to do with the mother Chapter, it was a decision made by Holy Terra and Mars, and at most, the founding Chapter would be informed.

Let’s just consider this a special measure for special times… But where would the Alliance get enough Saints’ gene-seed to form a fully staffed Chapter? And

with the ability to replenish them quickly and at any time?

It was too much…

But despite all his doubts, he had to admit that his savior had arrived.

Giving up Vigil Star hadn’t been his original intention. He’d been tormented by the decision.

Now, the pain was over.

The advance fleet boasts not only a formidable naval force, but also boasts two fully staffed regiments, a powerful marine corps, and a significant number of Alliance ground forces.

With their support, the threat on the surface of Vigilant Planet will be swiftly quelled.

It all felt like a dream.

Raymond Weiss waited thirty years for support from Holy Terra, but nothing came of it.

Just when he was about to give up, the Alliance arrived.

…

(End of Chapter)