Hundreds of landing craft surged forward toward Concordia IX, flying under the protection of TIE Fighters and X-Wing Vikings trailing behind them.
Inside one of the main transports, a calm yet deeply moving voice broke the silence.
"Everyone... welcome back to our homeland."
James spoke softly, dressed in his political commissar uniform, eyes fixed on the blue planet visible through the viewport.
Around him stood young soldiers-many barely more than children-silent as they gazed out the windows. Born in slave camps, this was their first glimpse of the world their ancestors once called home.
"The national flower of the FUW, the Edelweiss, blooms between snow and stone. Like us, it survives in hopelessness-yet it continues to bloom for one purpose: to return home. Like that flower, we too shall return... whether with wounded bodies, or as names etched into stone monuments."
James turned to face the young troops around him. His voice was steady, but his eyes burned with purpose.
"For the Emperor! For the homeland we lost!"
The landing craft-carrying 3,000 death-bound warriors-broke through the atmosphere of Concordia IX, shielded by more than a dozen TIE Fighters, X-Wings, and Viking jets. The planetary shield had begun to falter under orbital bombardment.
"We've entered the atmosphere! Altitude: 2,300 meters and dropping!"
"Everyone, prepare for landing!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Orc anti-air defenses were blasted directly by the Space Marine drop pods. Time was running out, and the pods were nearly being shot down simultaneously from the warships orbiting above.
A thick cloud of dust immediately covered half of the defense positions. Before the Orcs could even react, three purple-painted Space Marines shot out from the drop pod compartments.
This would be the last sight the Orcs ever saw-bolter fire tore through them, shattering their ranks into pieces with brutal ease.
One Space Marine, bearing the eagle skull insignia on one shoulder plate and the Roman numeral III on his right pauldron, charged fiercely at the Orcs.
"For the Emperor!"
I watched as the purple-clad Space Marines relentlessly destroyed the Orcs' anti-air weapons, even under the hailstorm of bullets and artillery shells raining down.
"Is that some kind of monster?"
An Orc screamed in terror as it witnessed the carnage.
In the blink of an eye, the Orc was split in two.
A hundred Space Marines divided their tasks and began dismantling the enemy's air defense installations. Meanwhile, the World Eaters and Dark Angels Space Marines scoured the battlefield, seeking out the enemy's shield generators.
"Move fast! Set up defensive lines here!"
The assault troops disembarking from the landing crafts, led by James, quickly organized into squads to carry out their missions.
"Here... our homeland?"
Some recruits with Concordia IX blood in their veins stared silently at the shattered planet beneath them.
"Form defensive lines! Assist the Angels in destroying the enemy's shield launchers as quickly as possible!"
Though stunned by the ferocity of the initial attack, the Orcs caught in the Space Marines' coordinated assault were overwhelmed almost instantly.
"For the Emperor!"
Several soldiers raised their flamethrowers, flushing out the Orcs hiding in air-raid shelters and underground bunkers. There was no mercy - they unleashed all the years of oppression they had suffered back onto the monstrous creatures.
Flames roared through the darkness, and the screams of burning Orcs echoed through the tunnels. There was nowhere left to run.
Meanwhile, James took the initiative and leapt into the Orc trenches, gripping a roaring chainsword nearly half the height of a man.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The chainsword activated with a mechanical snarl, its rotating teeth tearing through Orcs like a horn of death. Each swing sent blood and metal flying in a violent spray.
At the same time, two Space Marines from the Dark Angels Legion breached the control chamber of the enemy's shield launcher. They moved with precision, ready to disable the planet's primary defense system from within.