Everyone who mattered attended the meeting convened by Guilliman.
Chapter Master Calgar, along with the captains of various Chapters, Saints, Fabricator-Generals, and many others, all gathered in the council hall of Fortress Hera, where Guilliman was located.
This fortress was ancient, existing ten thousand years ago, and had witnessed many extraordinary historical events.
Looking back, when Horus rebelled, and the warp storms raged, communication between the various star systems was cut off, the Emperor was trapped on Terra, and many loyalist armies were leaderless.
The Primarchs of the three Legions gathered here to discuss the future destiny of humanity.
In a flash, ten thousand years had passed since those days.
Everything had changed; people and things were no longer the same.
The long ten thousand years had taken away many things and brought many things as well.
Traces left by numerous invaders could still be faintly seen on Fortress Hera.
Tyranids, orks, and Chaos had all invaded this place.
As an important defensive location for Macragge, Fortress Hera was always listed as a key attack target by the enemy.
Not long ago, it was also listed as a target that must be destroyed by the forces of Chaos, who dispatched a large number of cultists, chaos warriors, and daemons to invade this place.
When Guilliman awoke, the Chaos forces had already reached the interior of the fortress, which was filled with ruins and corpses.
Now, it had been mostly repaired, and the corpses had been removed.
Broken marble pillars and floors were replaced, and the damaged streets were repaired.
The cogitators used for tactical projections and data storage had several new wetware components replaced, allowing them to resume normal operation.
Guilliman surveyed the many heroes of the Imperium. If not for his identity as the Emperor's son - a Primarch, it is unlikely that anyone could have gathered so many high-ranking individuals.
Every person here held the authority to independently deploy and command fleets of the Imperium.
A single word from them could decide the future of millions of humans, and annihilate planets and individuals they deemed a threat to human survival.
Every person here possessed courage, strategy, a sense of the bigger picture, boundless love for humanity, and infinite loyalty to the Imperium, and would not hesitate to sacrifice others and themselves for the continuation of the Imperium and the survival of humanity.
In the center of the council hall was an oval table, and the mechanical equipment within it emitted a soft hum as everyone took their seats, with tactical projections appearing one after another, suspended in the air.
These projections displayed the threats currently faced by the Ultima Segmentum.
The Cadian Gate had fallen, and the Great Rift had already affected this area.
Daemons and xenos were ravaging human planets.
The citizens of the Imperium living in fear desperately needed salvation.
Beside everyone, tech-priests and servitors in stained red robes were moving back and forth, maintaining the cogitators and various mechanical equipment used in the hall.
It is worth mentioning that cogitators are computers that use human brains as core components.
Humanity experienced the rebellion of intelligent AI during the Golden Age, and for this reason, the Imperium absolutely forbids the existence of robots and computers without human flesh and blood; this is one of the Imperium's red lines.
Anyone who crosses this red line will be declared a traitor to humanity, and the Imperial forces will eradicate them at all costs.
The human brains used in cogitators, also known as wetware, come from unforgivable Imperial criminals or cloned brains from the Adeptus Mechanicus.
These brains, after special programming, are placed in hardened glass jars, and a large number of data cables connect the brains to the machines, thus forming a cogitator.
After everyone was seated, Guilliman walked to his main seat.
Everyone watched him, their eyes openly revealing fanaticism and excitement.
Their gazes followed Guilliman as he moved.
To be in the presence of a lord Primarch, a mythical genetic being, was undoubtedly a great honor for them, the loyal, an honor to be remembered for a lifetime.
Guilliman could feel these gazes and felt a little pressure in his heart.
Everyone was waiting for him to lead the Imperium and save humanity. Anyone would feel uneasy facing such a task, as it was a confrontation with the gods, and losing meant annihilation.
"The current situation of the Imperium is still very bad. In addition to the invasion of Chaos, the ravages of xenos races like the tyranids and necrons have also left us under attack from both sides. You can speak freely with any thoughts and opinions you have, without regard for status or position."
Guilliman's voice was not loud but was extremely penetrating.
His voice echoed throughout the council hall, ensuring that everyone could hear clearly.
"Regent, you must go to Terra. It is the center of the Imperium, the place with the most human elites. There, you will gain the power and resources to rebuild the Human Imperium."
High Marshal of the Black Templars Chapter, High Marshal Amalrich, was the first to speak.
His reasoning was very sound. Terra was the most important capital world of the Imperium, and all elites of the Imperium who could go to Terra would go.
Wealth, status, everything there was so attractive.
As the Primarch, a mythical genetic being, Guilliman had a very legitimate reason to return to the origin of humanity, Terra.
He had the right to take over the highest authority of the Imperium, the High Lords of Terra, and restore his authority as Regent.
Hearing the words of the Black Templars Marshal, Guilliman said,
"Now is not the best time to return to Terra. We cannot save the Imperium all at once. We need some preparation, we need a stable rear. Who knows what the situation is like on Terra after the Great Rift?? Rushing back will only make us more passive. The Five Hundred Worlds under Ultramar need to be saved. This is the best situation in the entire Imperium and can provide us with enough warships and warriors."
Return to Terra??
The Emperor would probably kill him on the spot!
Guilliman greatly doubted how long the secret of having a transmigrator's soul within him could be hidden from the Chaos Gods and the Emperor??
Before his identity was exposed, Guilliman decided to gather his trusted followers as much as possible, build his rear, and enhance his self-preservation capabilities.
More importantly, there was another matter. Terra and even the entire Sol System were the territory of the High Lords of Terra, the Inquisition, the Ecclesiarchy, and the Adeptus Mechanicus.
While there were many loyalists, there would also be many people who were keen on power. These people would absolutely not willingly give up the power in their hands just for a word of loyalty.
Didn't the former Horus also choose to rebel and launch the massive Horus Heresy because the Emperor had excluded the Primarchs and Space Marines when he created the High Lords of Terra, which had always been a thorn in his side, and he was then tempted by Chaos?
Power is too intoxicating.
If Guilliman went, he would have to consolidate power, reorganize Terra, and reunite the Imperium. The resistance would definitely not be small, and a slight misstep could cause unrest and turmoil.
Now was not the time to go there. Instead of wasting time on political balancing, it was better to build up his army first and break the situation with brute force.
Guilliman's words caused some discussion. Regarding his plan to first reorganize Ultramar as a rear, there was not much opposition from the others.
Ultramar is a collective term for the Five Hundred Worlds, and compared to other worlds of the Imperium, each world here could be called a paradise.
Each world had complete industry, healthcare, and self-sufficient food, which was unimaginable in other Imperial worlds.
Restoring the security and production of the Five Hundred Worlds under Ultramar was an extremely important matter for saving the Imperium and humanity.
Guilliman presented numerous war proposals, preparing to clear the entire Ultramar and maintain the stability of this sub-sector.
The direction of the meeting also shifted to how to pacify the territory within Ultramar.
After discussion, everyone decided to launch a full-scale counterattack war centered on Macragge.
Guilliman named this full-scale counterattack war the Indomitus Crusade, symbolizing that humanity would not succumb to the dark fate spoken by the Chaos Gods and would fight back with all its might.
After the meeting concluded, Guilliman kept Fabricator-General Cawl behind.
He had some important matters to discuss privately, things that would concern the future of the Imperium and humanity.