Terra, the Throneworld of the Divine Emperor. Within the deep, breathtakingly magnificent halls of the Imperial Palace, the High Lords were gathered around the massive black obsidian table. The air here felt frozen for millennia, every inch of space filled with the weight of history and the oppression of power.
"Alright, gentlemen," Urse, the representative of the Inquisition, broke the suffocating silence, leaning his hands on the cold obsidian table. His voice echoed through the vast hall, carrying barely suppressed fury. "Calgar claimed the Combined Chapter Force was merely an emergency measure to deal with the Tyranids. Fine, the war against the Tyranids is over. Has he disbanded those Chapters?"
He paused, his sharp gaze sweeping across every colleague present.
"Ha! No! He claims that another new Xenos threat has conveniently emerged from Orpheus, menacing the security of the entire galactic East, and thus, this emergency measure must continue, and all those hundreds of Chapter Masters unanimously agreed! By the Emperor, last time at least a few Chapter Masters kept silent!"
"I am certain that after this 'new threat' is dealt with, another new one will pop up! Maybe Chaos, maybe Orks, maybe—maybe who the hell cares what! And this emergency measure will continue indefinitely until every single one of the Imperium's Astartes changes their paint job to goddamn blue!"
Urse struck the obsidian table hard, producing a dull thud. The other High Lords—didn't react. Some were inspecting the lines on their fingernails, others were studying the intricate murals on the ceiling, and still others were simply resting with their eyes closed.
Finally, after the silence had stretched for a while, the Lord Commander of the Administratum seemed to wake up from a phantom mountain of paperwork: "Oh, so all Imperial planets will become like Macragge? That would significantly increase tax revenue. That's a good thing."
The Lord Commander turned to the Lord High Admiral beside him, a bureaucratic joy for numbers on his face: "Your shipbuilding plan from yesterday has found its footing, Admiral."
The Lord High Admiral responded dryly: "That is indeed good news, Lord Commander."
The Inquisitorial Representative, Urse, felt a vein throb on his forehead: "What in the Warp are you talking about?"
"I'm saying," the Lord Commander replied slowly, "you're talking as if something catastrophic has happened, but perhaps nothing has happened? From a financial statement perspective, this is even a positive development."
Urse roared: "Calgar has gathered over a hundred thousand Space Marines and is parading them all over the galactic East! You're telling me nothing has happened?!"
"Alright, alright," Ecclesiarch Litra began attempting to mediate, his silken robes rustling slightly with his movement, his tone as gentle and smooth as ever. "Perhaps something has indeed happened, but I think we should observe further rather than act rashly."
Litra turned to Urse: "I recall you dispatched a delegation last time? Have they not sent back any reports?"
Urse sank back into his chair, his voice squeezed out through clenched teeth: "No! They just departed. How could they send back information already?"
"See, there is no concrete information, only hearsay," Litra spread his hands in a gesture of helplessness. "Even if the situation is as serious as you claim, perhaps we should act, but we can't do anything."
"We should at least take a stance!" Urse exclaimed. "We are the nominal rulers of this Imperium, and we maintain practical control through various means. Now Calgar is doing this, and we have zero reaction?"
"Heh, a reaction, what kind of reaction do you want?" Litra chuckled, though the smile held no warmth. "Encouragement and praise, or serious criticism? The former goes without saying; we cannot praise this, or the Imperium will instantly collapse. Serious criticism? Condemnation without military backing is meaningless; it will only expose our weakness, leading to the same result as the former."
"Perhaps when Calgar first began gathering the Space Marine Chapters, we should have done something," the previously silent Grand Master of the Officio Assassinorum interjected. "But now, it is too late."
"Therefore, we might as well—Maintain the Status Quo," Ecclesiarch Litra concluded, a phrase that might as well have been the sacred word of the High Lords' session.
"Maintain. The. Status. Quo," Urse repeated, enunciating each word, his voice filled with endless fatigue and mockery. "I think this council no longer needs to convene. No matter what we discuss, the final conclusion will always be 'Maintain the Status Quo.' We are just sitting in a car that has already stopped, vigorously shaking our upper bodies, pretending the car is still moving forward!"
"And what do you propose, Urse? Try to change things, find a new driver, or inspect this car?" Litra's tone grew serious. "I must remind you, that is a decision that requires immense, immense courage. Only stubborn fools, fanciful lunatics, the legendary Primarchs, and—the Emperor, would dare to do that."
"Hmph," Urse snorted, sinking deep into the shadows of his chair. "Although you named four types of people, I only hear one—and only that one type can wield the arm of a giant. We can only guard this corpse and rot along with it."
"Woah, woah, woah," the Grand Master of the Officio Assassinorum interceded, knowing the conversation was approaching true taboos. "Our discussion seems to be sliding into dangerous territory. Shall we move on to the next agenda item?"
"Er!" The Master of the Astra Telepathica, who had been constantly dozing in his chair, suddenly jolted awake. He was clearly startled by the passionate emotions of the last few sentences, and based on the few scattered words he vaguely heard, he straightened up and shouted with all his might, "We must support Orpheus!"
An immediate, deathly silence fell over the hall. All the High Lords turned to look at him. Seeing everyone looking at him, the Master was a little bewildered. Did he say something wrong? It shouldn't be. Didn't he vaguely hear them talking about the Xenos threat to Orpheus?
"Let's vote," finally, the Fabricator-General of Mars, who had remained silent the entire time, brought down the gavel. Everyone knew this particular individual was overjoyed due to the massive orders placed by Calgar and Robert.
Ultimately, the resolution to support the Orpheus Sector passed smoothly. The Master of the Astra Telepathica quietly leaned in close to the Navigator Ambassador and asked in a voice barely audible, "Um—where is Orpheus?"