Chapter 549: For the Sake of Being Fellow Countrymen, Give Your Brother a Hand

He was a Saintblood Angel, a child of Saint Guilliman, a member of the Penitent Angels.

Once, they were called the Radiant Angels, forged from the Ninth Legion's gene-seed during the Ninth Founding, their homeworld Mappeth orbiting the ninth world of a toxic star, whose very nature was nine.

Nine, how sacred a number—the Ninth Legion, the Ninth Son, the Ninth Planet, the Ninth Star. Perhaps this was why they received enlightenment.

Once, they fell into foolish painting, indulgence, art, and calligraphy taught by the White Scars, using these to combat Black Rage and Crimson Hunger.

This nearly made their Chapter the least affected by Black Rage and Blood Hunger among Saint Guilliman's sons.

But this was wrong, it was corruption, folly, betrayal of Saint Guilliman.

Only a century ago, when Chapter Master Valzival led the First Company, most of the Librarium, and the Company Captains on an expedition, leaving only the Chapter's Chaplains to guard it, did they return to the true path.

The Prophet appeared beside the Chapter's monastery, where cold, toxic rivers lashed the banks, washing the Prophet ashore at the monastery's edge.

The Prophet was as gaunt as a desiccated corpse, yet nearly as tall as an Astartes, with a deep scar across his abdomen—yet after centuries immersed in toxic waters, his eyes still burned with fierce clarity.

The Prophet spoke with the Chaplains for nineteen days and nights, ultimately delivering the River Styx Enlightenment to the sinful Radiant Angels.

As the Prophet wrote in the Thirteenth Psalm of *The Thorned Covenant*: "Beauty blinds the beholder, deceiving the eyes with grace or splendor, luring the soul with promises of hope. These two are the very forge of the Great Enemy; to cherish beauty is to flirt with corruption, and those who fabricate, spread, and display hope are the foremost heretics."

Thus, they were deeply sinful, vile and base—but thankfully, the Prophet granted them redemption.

They shattered the artworks they had once forged themselves, burned the paintings, smashed the relics, and coated their power armor in blackened tar.

The Librarian Master attempted to resist the Prophet's truth, but was purged as a heretic.

In the end, the former Radiant Angels donned thorned crowns and became the Penitent Angels.

And now, their penance had finally been answered.

Saint Guilliman had returned; the Crimson Angels, another Saintblood Chapter, brought word that Saint Guilliman had been reborn in the blood pools of their homeworld, Korenal.

The Thorned Angels would soon answer the call, journeying to Korenal to receive the Blood Blessing.

The only thing he regretted was the Penitent Angel companies sent to Baal—those poor souls were likely devoured by the Tyranids, denied the chance to witness Saint Guilliman's return.

But just as they prepared to depart for Korenal and receive the Blood Blessing, a fleet of unknown origin suddenly surrounded their homeworld, Mappeth.

Terrifying, twisted monsters poured from their ships and ravaged their homeworld, even besieging their monastery.

And the Penitent Angels' pleas for aid to the Imperium received not a single reply.

He roared and charged the largest monster.

The monster was horrifying—a mass of surging blood and black rage, grotesque and dreadful, its body scarred with hideous wounds from which poured blasphemous energies from the Warp.

But he would not retreat, for behind him lay the Prophet's dwelling—he, as Chief Chaplain, must protect the Prophet.

The Spear of Bicong glowed with silver frost, its teardrop tip piercing his chest.

Sulphurous blood streamed from his wound.

The veil of deception and mist over his eyes vanished instantly; a mocking, giddy laughter echoed in his ears.

Out of cruel amusement, the deity who had blinded him dispelled the fog from his vision in his final moment.

So he saw the truth—understood the terrible error he had committed.

The Spear of Bicong withdrew gently; beneath the fine golden-thread headwrap flowed hair brighter than gold, yet beneath it, the face held only sorrow.

"Father," the Chief Chaplain of the Penitent Angels cried out, collapsing heavily to the ground.

Saint Guilliman gazed down at the twisted face of the Penitent Angel's Chief Chaplain.

He resembled a grotesque, mutated bat—cheeks curled upward, fangs protruding, no eyelids, eyes turned entirely crimson, and a coil of black thorns embedded into his narrow forehead, piercing his flesh.

"He's more mutated than we were," muttered an Astartes beside Saint Guilliman, clad in silver-and-red power armor.

He was the last survivor of the former Blood Knights Chapter, later reborn as Chapter Master of the new Blood Knights after receiving Primaris reinforcements, and now honored as one of Saint Guilliman's three personal guards.

Beside him stood a grim-faced Astartes in black armor—Reilian, the Penitent Angels' Hermit Master, one of their Company Captains, who had been sent to Baal to reinforce Dante and thus escaped his Chapter's terrible fate.

More pallid than Reilian was Captain Fenney of the Crimson Angels; his Chapter, too, had ignored Saint Guilliman's call, and from gathered intelligence, the Crimson Angels were almost certainly the core of the corruption.

"This mutation is not from a flaw in our bloodline," sighed Saint Guilliman. "It is a Warp blasphemy, born of a shameful lie."

Saint Guilliman swung the Spear of Bicong—the massive door before him exploded open with psychic force, shards of iron hurtling inward like meteors.

Yet the tall, emaciated man at the room's center, his abdomen bearing a grotesque wound, showed no reaction, only a mocking smile as Saint Guilliman entered.

He was the so-called Prophet who had deceived the entire Penitent Angels Chapter.

Reilian, Hermit Master of the Penitent Angels, gripped his power sword so tightly his knuckles turned white, veins bulging on his face, black rage swirling in his eyes.

Had Saint Guilliman not been present, Reilian would have been consumed by fury and torn this deceiver who destroyed his Chapter into pieces.

Saint Guilliman's eyes reflected the so-called Prophet's form—beneath his mortal frame, two colors flickered: blood-red and ever-shifting blue.

"Praise your arrival, Saint Guilliman! The Primarch destined to return to the twin gods of Blood and Change!"