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The '''Talledus War''' is a conflict being waged between the [[Imperium]] and [[Forces of Chaos]] in the [[Talledus System]].{{Fn|1a}}

Though initially untouched by the horrors of the [[Great Rift]], the bastion of [[Imperial]] faith that was the [[Veritus Sub-Sector]] was eventually targeted by the infamous [[Kor Phaeron]]. Acting as the Keeper of the Faith of the [[Word Bearers]] and confidant of the [[Daemon Primarch]] [[Lorgar]] himself. The Sub-Sector represented everything Kor Phaeron despised: ignorance, weakness, and petty mortal greed. Moreover, he believed that if the great [[Shrine World]] of [[Benediction]] were to fall, it would spread pure terror across [[Segmentum Solar]] that would allow for a Chaos foothold in the region. Even before the coming of the Rift, the Word Bearers [[Dark Apostle]]s planted [[Cult]]s across the [[Talledus System|Talledus]], [[Leonus System|Leonus]], and [[Keyfire System|Keyfire]] Systems. These demagogues did not yet reveal their full treachery, instead posing as splinter-sects of the [[Imperial Cult]] to gather their strength and avoid persecution by the [[Ecclesiarchy]] and [[Inquisition]]. One such example was the Witnessers of [[Boras Minor]], who espoused that only through enduring grief and loss could one become close to the [[God-Emperor]]. Nonetheless, these cults suffered greatly at the hands of the conservative regent of the Sub-Sector, [[Cardinal]] [[Bolifax]]. Deploying teams of brutal [[Missionaries]], any caught practicing in these sects were subjected to immediate execution.{{Fn|1b}}

Soon enough these persecuted cults began to align with the Dark Gods, rallying against the tyrannical rule of Bolifax and comparing him to the infamous [[Goge Vandire]]. The Cultist demagogues used Bolifax's own brutality to sow the seeds of true heresy, guiding disenfranchised souls into the hands of the [[Chaos Gods]]. This was all directed by the Dark Apostles as they prepared for their eventual invasion of Talledus. Meanwhile Kor Phaeron called upon thousand-year debts to assemble a conglomeration of [[Chaos Space Marine]] forces from a variety of warbands and [[Legion]]s, most notably the [[Night Lords]] and [[Iron Warriors]]. He also acquired [[Dark Mechanicum]] support in the form of [[Renegade Knight]] houses as well as [[Traitor Guard]] and [[Cultist]] armies. As the Chaos forces prepared, Cultists within the Talledus System paved way for their arrival. On Boras Minor the [[Cult of Loss]] planted explosives and smuggled in weapons while on [[Coras Veltis]] cultist miners used excavation lasers to burn eight-pointed stars into the planets surface. Shortly after, the [[Great Rift]] opened up. Kor Phaeron fumed from the news of [[Roboute Guilliman]]'s return, and only approved the go-ahead for the invasion after receiving a vision that the [[Primarch]] would be far from [[Segmentum Solar]] due to the [[Indomitus Crusade]].{{Fn|1b}}

The invasion of the [[Talledus System]] began as thirteen massive Word Bearers [[Battleship]]s emerged from the [[Warp]]. Eight of these made for Benediction, while the rest set out for the Systems' other prominent worlds. Accompanying this force was an armada of lesser vessels, raiders, [[Space Hulk]]s, and cargo cutters. As the Word Bearers smashed into the outnumbered and outgunned [[Battlefleet Sentanis]] around Benediction, it vomited force [[Dreadclaw]] [[Drop Pod]]s to invade the world itself. As the Word Bearers commenced the assault, their Cults rose up in rebellion, shutting down the [[Astropath]]ic Choirs on Boras Minor and [[Ghreddask]]. Talledus was alone as the enemy landed. Kor Phaeron knew that for his plan to succeed, Benediction must burn. As his own Word Bearers attacked the Shrine World, his allies assailed the outer system to draw away Imperial defenders and reinforcements.{{Fn|1b}}

Even before the Word Bearers had fired their first shots upon Benediction, the Night Lords under [[Yharas Kine]] landed a kill-team on [[Satrapol]]'s Astropathic Station, butchering its occupants and detonating a [[Cyclonic Torpedo|Cyclonic charge]] at its heart. At the same time the Battleship ''[[Nightmare of Celyx]]'' slipped from the Warp at the far edge of the System, carrying thousands of captured [[Astropath]]s strapped into torment engines. Driven mad by their agony, their combined psychic scream interfered with long-range [[Vox]] communication and scrambled the minds of nearby [[Navigator]]s. Imperial reinforcements were dragged out of the Warp into the Talledus System's asteroid field known as the Tears of the Emperor. There, the Night Lords fleet ambushed them and oversaw a feast of terror and plunder. Meanwhile, the [[Iron Warriors]] under [[Warpsmith]] [[Etrogar]] besieged the formidably defended world of [[Ghreddask]]. The Warpsmith saw the planet as a prime testing ground for his [[Soul Harvester]]s. The [[Imperial Navy]] [[Battlefleet]]s at Ghreddask, [[Battlefleet Ios|Ios]] and [[Battlefleet Cemeres|Cemeres]], attempted to flee to Benediction but suffered terrible losses due to the deaths of their Navigators. Other naval assets simply drew towards the psychic scream out of desperation.{{Fn|1c}}

The Imperial defenders had no warning of the Chaos invasion, and initially reeled from the assault. On Benediction, the Imperials rallied around [[Canoness]] [[Serita]] at the '''Grand Honorificum''', the central cathedral spires of the world. On all fronts the Chaos forces surged forward, committing terrible atrocities in order to weaken the barrier between the [[Materium]] and [[Immaterium]]. Within the Sanctum Solaris ten thousand [[Priest]]s, acolytes, and [[Sororitas]] gathered in communal prayer, not moving, eating, or drinking for days even as the guns of the Word Bearers bombarded them relentlessly. Praying to the God Emperor for salvation, their whispers were answered in the form of the [[Salamanders]] [[Strike Cruiser]] ''[[Fulminating Hammer]]'' under [[Space Marine Captain|Captain]] [[Pellas Mir'san]]. Kor Phaeron soon made landfall upon the River Carmine, unworried of the Imperial reinforcements.{{Fn|1c}}

While spirited, the Imperial defense could not stand before Kor Phaeron. A thousand flayed priests were thrown into the River Carmine as his ritual reached its crescendo, beginning a great summoning that saw a wave of superheated gore sweep aside the [[Battle Sister]]s and [[Guardsmen]]. The blood tsunami struck the shielding of the Honorificum, causing the edifice to fizzle out and die. With the way open, Kor Phaeron led his warriors forth as [[Greater Daemon]]s were summoned into reality. Entire districts of Benediction were overrun and the Daemons spilled into the halls of the Grand Honorificum itself. The Battle Sisters staged a desperate room-to-room defense as Canoness Serita refused to yield. They were joined by ad-hoc Ecclesiarchy militias and [[Zealot]]s. Initially dismissed by the Chaos forces, it is said that the zeal and faith of these outmatched defenders caused the dead souls of Benediction to join in its defense. Golden skull-faced spirits swept forth from ancient tombs and rose high into the heavens to encircle the Grand Honorificum. These manifestations formed a shield of impassable light, blocking the way for Chaos forces. Known as the Miracle of the Saint's Wall, its radiant light caused the Daemonic allies of the Word Bearers to disintegrate into nothingness. At this moment the Salamanders launched a counterattack, driving the Word Bearers back over the bridges of the River Carmine. The Battle for Benediction had not been decided, but the Imperial defenders were able to gain a reprieve.{{Fn|1d}}

Just as the Iron Warriors [[Cruiser]]s prepared an orbital bombardment that would have smashed the last vestigaes of Ghreddask, the [[Black Templars]] arrived under [[Castellan (Black Templars)|Castellan]] [[Dramos]]. The Templars had a small force from the [[Rutherian Crusade]], all that could be spared due to their extensive campaigns elsewhere. Fortunately for Dramos, he could also call upon Imperial [[Knight]]s from [[House Mortan]] under Sir [[Dirkwald]]. Dramos surmised that the true threat on Ghreddask was the ''Scarax Krond'' and launched a strike force against the mobile Daemon Forge as Mortan's Knights landed on the planets surface. The Iron Warriors viciously defended the ''Scarax Krond'' as Dramos personally led an [[Inceptor]] assault. The Black Templars managed to breach the engines carapace, allowing Dramos to move into its heart with a force of veterans. While they suffered grievous losses, Dramos and his command squad managed to detonate a [[Cyclonic Torpedo|Cyclonic]] charge at its heart. The resulting explosion immolated both the loyalists and heretics.{{Fn|1e}}

The Night Lords under Yharas Kine swept through the Tears of the Emperor asteroid field from the ''Nightmare of Celyx''. Leading a reaver strike force, the Night Lords ravaged disorientated Imperial Navy cruisers and escorts. Such was the horror let loose by the Night Lords that the asteroid field itself soon burned blood red. As the battle for Talledus raged on, more and more incoming Imperial forces vanished in this kill-box. Salvation for the Imperials eventually came in the form of the [[White Scars]] under [[Jodagha Khan]]. Tracking the Night Lords movements for several month from the psychic spoor of their victims, the Scars stealth cruisers were able to corner the ''Nightmare of Celyx'' and its smaller brethren. The resulting void battle was swift and brutal. The smaller Night Lords force had approched under the cover of asteroids before the White Scars could bring their [[Lance]] batteries to bear. The Cruiser ''[[Thunderstone]]'' was boarded by [[Chaos Raptor]]s before being driven off by White Scars [[Vanguard Infiltrator|Infiltrators]]. As soon as the tide of the battle turned, the Night Lords slipped back into the asteroid fields cover. The Scars attempted to pursue, but were confronted by traps such as Cyclonic mines and rogue astropathic signals that drew them into ambushes.{{Fn|1f}}

However, the Scars were eventually able to use precognition arrays to navigate a path through the haunted darkness. So began a shadow war of escalating brutality as the White Scars attempted to track down the Night Lords. As they hunted the Night Lords, the Scars came upon ambush sites of Raptors and [[Daemon Engine]]s. Scars [[Incursor]]s took a heavy toll clearing out each site, utilizing divinator-class [[auspex]]es to fashion a full-spectrum analysis of the battlefield and disperse this vital data to their [[Battle-Brother]]s. Meanwhile, claws of elite [[Chaos Terminator]]s launched teleportation strikes into the heart of White Scars formations and [[Heldrake]]s prayed upon their dropships in the vaccum of space. Nightmarish [[Warp Talon]]s breached the hulls of Space Marine Cruisers, running amok in the darkness. Yet for all the efforts of the Night Lords, the Scars were able to continually adapt with remarkable speed. They feigned retreats, drawing the Night Lords into ambushes of their own. Yet even as the battle shifted, the ''Nightmare of Celyx'' could not be hunted down.{{Fn|1f}}

According to the novel [[Throne of Light (Novel)|Throne of Light]], Imperial forces eventually emerged victorious in the Talledus War.{{Fn|2}}

*[[Space Marines]]

**[[Salamanders]] - 1 Demi-Company

*[[House Mortan]]

*[[Chaos Space Marines]]

**[[Word Bearers]] - 1 Company, 13 Battleships

**[[Wyreblood]] [[Combat-Servitor]]s - 45 Packs

*1: [[Psychic Awakening: Faith and Fury]]:

**{{Endn|1a}}: pg. 9