Kayvaa no sadness, only pride. His brothers had died gloriously, fighting for the Emperor—a death worth h. He knew his turn would e soon. For the Raven Guard, there was reat. If victory was impossible, theh was their only fate.

  Suddenly, the ground trembled violently. In the distance, a t figure emerged from the enemy ranks, an immense war mae that radiated despair. Kayvaan's heart sank. He reized it immediately: a Traitor Titan. Ohe most fearsome on of the Imperium, it had bee a symbol of betrayal. The Emperor’s Hammer, now turned against His loyal soldiers.

  Kayvaan sighed deeply. "Damn it. It's a Titan!" he shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. "Fall back! Ravens, retreat and reform the line a hundred meters back! Brother Alen, call for heavy on support! Protect the Emperor at all costs! May the Emperor bless us!"

  His brothers echoed his cry, "May the Emperor bless us!" Their voices carried determination, but the Titan’s shadow loomed ever closer.

  The Titan was a monstrosity. Standing well over 30 meters tall, its immense frame moved like an a, meical god of war. Its ons—massive Vul mega-bolters—jutted from its shoulders, each barrel rger than the average soldier. As it advanced, its arsenal unleashed a storm of firepower that tore through everything in its path.

  The groued beh the relentless barrage. Solid earth rippled like water uhe Titan’s devastating assault. Chariots, artillery, and bunkers were obliterated, flung into the air like discarded toys. The defense line disied in moments, reduced to sm ruins.

  The Titan was a relic of the Dark Age of Teology, the pinnacle of humanity's military engineering. Now, it was the harbinger of despair. Its t frame seemed invincible, its firepower unstoppable. It crushed all resistance beh its meical feet and rained death from above with ruthless efficy.

  Kayvaan Shrike made his decision in an instant. “For the Emperor!” he roared, dragging his cws as he charged at the t Titan.

  At that moment, the deep thuds of mortars echoed across the battlefield. Kayvaan’s call had worked; the artillery in the rear had finally taken notice of the massive Titan. Shells shrieked through the air, crashing into the meical colossus. Explosioed, filling the sky with fire and thunder. But the devastation was absorbed by an invisible barrier surrounding the Titan—a void shield.

  “Damn it, it’s a void shield! Keep firing—drain its energy!” someone shouted over the s. Titans weren’t just ons; they were fortresses on legs. With yers of heavy armor and void shields—advanced energy barriers usually reserved for capital warships—Titans were nearly invincible. Fround forces, entering one was akin to fag a walking nightmare.

  Despite the barrage, the Titan remained unscathed. The artillery crews, unwilling to waste all their munitions in one pce, began shifting their aim beyond the massive mae, leaving it unharmed.

  But Kayvaan didn’t stop. He dashed forward at full speed, leaping onto araitor Marine who tried to block his path. With the sheer power of his power armor and his enhanced body, Kayvaan drove the man’s head into his chest with a siomp. Using the momentum, he pushed off the mangled body, s higher. This time, he reached the Titan’s waist.

  Seizing the opportunity, Kayvaan jammed his Raven's Talons into the Titan’s armor, ging to it like a steel i on a giant.

  The enemy ander’s voice bred angrily through the s, and within seds, all nearby guns turheir attention to Kayvaan. A hailstorm of explosive rounds and energy beams rained down, the sky lit with destructive power. “Captain Shrike, watch out!” Selena’s panicked voice crackled over the el.

  Yet Kayvaan remained calm. The Titan’s own void shield fred to life, blog the ining fire. It was almost ironic—the shield meant to protect the Titan was now shielding him instead.

  “It’s the void shield,” Alen murmured, watg the se in disbelief. For a moment, he’d thought his captain was doomed, but then it hit him. Of course, the void shield didn’t distinguish between friend or foe. It simply repelled anything that threatehe Titan.

  Kayvaa climbing, uerred. His Raven's Talons fshed faintly with energy as he drove them into the armor, pulling himself upward, one hand at a time. Step by step, he scaled the giant mae. He reached the Titan’s head, where its and deck was housed.

  Kayvaan cut into the armor, peeling back the and deck’s shell like the rind of a fruit. Ihree terrified faces stared back at him. “H-how is this possible?!” one of them stammered, his voice trembling.

  Kayvaan didn’t give him a ce to say more. He lunged into the , his cws fshing. In an instant, the octs were reduced to mangled remains.

  From her position on the ground, Selena watched in stunned silence as the massive Titan froze in pce. “It stopped… it’s down!” she gasped.

  Without its crew, the Titan became a lifeless hulk—a moo its former power. The battlefield erupted with cheers. Kayvaan's single-haakedown of the Tita a wave of hope and exhiration through the ranks. But the celebration was short-lived. The ground trembled. A low, ominous rumble grew louder with every passing sed.

  Emerging from the smoke on the horizon were more Titans, their colossal forms blotting out the sky. They advanced in a slow, relentless line, each step shaking the earth like a drumbeat of despair. “Owo… eleven, twelve… there are too many,” Alen whispered, his voice trembling. “This… this is impossible. We ’t stop them.”

  Kayvaan stood on the shoulder of the Titan he had just killed, gazing silently at the approag army. He couldn’t bme Alen for being scared. The young man had been his apprentice for five years, and Kayvaan knew him well. Alen was no coward. He had the heart of a warrior, determined and unyielding. But even the bravest could falter in the face of such overwhelming odds.

  Victory was no longer possible. All that remained was the ce for an honorable death. Kayvaan sighed, brag himself for what was to e. Before he could act, a voice cut through the battlefield like a divine procmation. “Warriors, you have fought valiantly. I have seen your ce, your strength. On behalf of the Emperor, I thank you. You have done enough. Now, step back. Leave the rest to me.”

  The voice came from the outer wall, where the massive Gate stood. A figure stepped forward, noble and radiant, like a god desding from the heavens. Every soldier otlefield knew who it was. Sanguinius, the angelic primarch, stood tall, his presence alone igniting hope in their hearts.

  Sanguinius stood at the ter of the battlefield like a radiant bea, his golden armleaming even in the shadows cast by the chaos around him. Behind him, a pair of immacute white wings spread wide, shimmering with an otherworldly glow. He gripped a massive sword, its edge refleg the light of the blood-red skies, and stood proudly before the colossal Gate. His lifted slightly as he gazed at the overwhelming horde of enemies, his expression calm yet disdainful. It wasn’t arroga was the quiet fidence of a warrior who knew his enemies were unworthy. These were oath-breakers and traitors, beings who had abaheir beliefs. To Sanguinius, they deserved no respect.