120 Return to the City of Deron
Five Days Later,
William's army crossed the border between the two countries and made a quick stop the day before at new Greenhills. Many of the nobles from the Alderim didn't agree to this sudden arrival of the foreign army but they couldn't do much as Crown Prince Benton himself gave William permission to cross the Alderim as long as William's army doesn't cause any trouble.
For the past few days, William made sure his troops move without any issues and send messengers ahead of time to notify the major cities and towns that foreign forces are passing by. This helped the defense force to make the preparation to clear the road while citizens simply watched the parade of soldiers and vehicles they have never seen before.
The front formation is met with a welcome as Astartes and their shining armor and weapons gave the feeling of noble knights on a quest to slay a dragon or fight off invaders. In total, four companies of Space Marines (400 total) gathered under Chapter Master William's order and were ready to crush anyone or anything standing in their way.
The middle formation is comprised of various Astra Militarum and officers of each regiment. Leading the Astra Militarum is the one and only Lord Creed and his mighty Baneblade named Cadia's Warth. Behind him and his tank, his personal Cadian guardsmen took the honor of the first formation while Mordian Iron Guard, Valhallan Ice Warriors, and Catachans follow in order. In total, over 3000 Imperial Guards gathered under the order of Lord Creed and Chapter Master. This sudden call to action was rather welcoming to them as they had been itching for action for quite some time.
Behind the Astra Militarum are a small group of warrior women in black armor. Their hairs are white as snow and armed with weapons that are heavy for an adult man to carry. Their appearance silenced any cat callers while women of all ages admire their presence. Around 100 Sisters of Battle gathered to join the cleansing of the mutants, traitors, and unclean while carrying the banner of Golden Lioness to represent the Living Saint herself.
When natives of the world saw walking Imperial Knights, they all panicked and prayed to their gods to deliver salvation due to fear of certain death. Never in their lives did they ever imagine witnessing the walking metal giants armed to teeth and shaking the very ground as two Imperial Knights followed William's forces.
Behind the knights, the artillery unit of Kreig follows the formation as their heavy artilleries and ammunition vehicles took the rear. Even though the Kreigs are support units, their appearances of gas masks and silence made even the criminals nervous as their temptation to steal military goods diminished right away.
While the massive formation of the Imperial might astound the citizens of Alderim, their first gaze at the one leading the army made them remember it for the rest of their lives. The Chapter Master William in his all glory rode his assault bike while his honor guards followed behind on their own bikes. Riding next to William, his counterpart, the Living Saint Rana sits in her custom-made vehicle as her entourage of Sisters handles the vehicle itself.
William's forces weren't stopped by anyone or anything until they arrive at their destination. No noble house dare to challenge the Crown Prince's decree or William's authority as supreme commander of the Imperium's finest fighting force. No monsters or highwaymen were encountered during the whole travel as no sane being will dare to fight and wish to survive the encounter.
By the time William left the Greenhill, the story of his armies and destination became a national topic. Some speculated that William is going back to the land of the vampire to finish the job once and for all. Some start to believe that his mission is divinely given by the gods of their own religion. Very few knew of the reason why William is heading towards the land of the vampire and wait patiently to hear the report from their own messengers.
At the end of William's campaign, the vampire faction was completely eradicated and Alderim absorb the land after more than 100 years of separation from the nation. William on the other hand obtain more than what he expected from this war as this gave him advancement and one step ahead to return to the 40k universe.
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The City of Deron, half day away from Fort Stormfist,
The fifth company welcomes the arrival of William's forces as they open the gates with supplies and places ready for them to rest. After successfully rescuing Countess Shaw, Wolf Seer and his company of Astartes eliminated any remaining henchmen of the Alpha Legion and relocated to the Deron to rendezvous with William's armies.
With support from Countess Shaw, the City of Deron made preparation to welcome come the forces and assist if it comes to military numbers. Deron is a strategic location as it is the only city to locate before entering the only path that leads to the vampire's land. Also, the land is rich with resources such as iron from iron mines and lumber from the forest which provides multiple resources for trading. Finally, the city itself is the supply line to the fortress that acts as a bottleneck in case the vampire lord decides to invade. In short, Deron is the linchpin of the Alderim's defense against vampires and their undead army.
"Welcome Chapter Master. I have my men already secured the fortress and we prepared enough supplies to leave immediately on your command." Wolf Seer put his right fist on his chest and welcome the Chapter Master.
With armies exhausted from the long travel, William informs Lord Creed to settle in the city until William is informed of the current situation. Due to Alpha Legion's masterful skill in espionage, William didn't want to risk vox communication being intercepted by the enemy forces. So, when he arrived at the City of Deron, the first thing he needed to do was to be briefed on the current enemy movement.
"Well done, captain. Let us move to the command tent for the salutation update." William said in a neutral tone and by his order, every senior officer gathered to be brief.
The command center is a large tent with a big open space to hold long tables and chairs of all sizes. Sitting in the center of the table, William sat and to his right, Rana, and to William's left, Lord Creed sat down. After a few minutes of side conversations and servants serving drinks and snacks, the meeting began with William tapping the table with his index finger.
"Let us begin this war meeting. I know you all are excited to dirty your hands once again after our previous battle. Lord Creed, give us what you gathered so far."
"Yes, my lord. Major Cross, start the intelligence briefing," Said Lord Creed.
A young man in his mid 20's steps forward and activate a hologram projector to show a green-colored map in bird's eye view. On the far left side is the city of Deron and not far away, the Fort Stormfist can be seen with the symbol of a fist holding a lightning bolt circling on top. On the far right side, a large city can be seen with the symbol of hydra on top, representing the Alpha Legion.
"During our movement to rendezvous with the fifth company, the captain of the fifth send out a few of his scout teams to check the enemy territory." With that said, the group of black armored Space Marines with a net of forest camouflage nod their heads in silence. They are the recent recruit and former Raven Guards who merged with every company. In the short future, William is planning to add a sixth company with former Raven Guard as captain in command and master of stealth if the situation demands it.
"According to their report, there are no enemy activities from the fortress to miles ahead. It is as if the enemy pull all their forces to make the last stand even before the war started. Without our orbital support to observe the enemy territory, we don't have accurate intel regarding the movement or position of the defense but for now, we know the enemy positions their defense on major cities including their capital city known as 'Black Phalanx'. To reach the Black Phalanx, we must pass five major cities and crush their defense if we don't want to watch our back."
"Is this intelligence accurate? How do we know of these cities?" One of the officers from Lord Creed's side asked as he question the legitimacy of the intel regarding cities.
"Unfortunately, due to the limitation of aerial surveillance, we don't have exact intel. The fifth managed to retrieve this intel from the old archive thanks to Countess Shaw who provided the access to her family library. The intel isn't perfect but this is all we can gather for now."
"Thank you, Major Cross. This is a good intelligence briefing considering who our enemies are. Don't forget, we are about to enter the land that no Alderim ever ventured into in over 100 years. Not to mention that we are about to face Alpha Legion, the 20th and traitor legion of the Great Heresy. We are about to face a legion notorious for their sabotage and espionage expertise. I want everyone to stay alert and triple our night guards." Said William as he observe everyone in the command tent. William saw certainty in everyone's eyes as their duty to the Golden Throne demanded beyond their limit.
"The second company will send engineers to the fortress to refit the fortress for our vehicles to go through. The first company will provide security outside of the city wall while the third company secures the path leading to the fortress. The fourth and fifth will stay in the Deron to prepare the rest of the armies for the departure in two days. Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to enter the enemy territory unlike we have experienced before. Prepare yourselves, we are officially at war."
