Within the Crystal Region, Carlos gazed upon the future vision of the soulless armies wreaking havoc, yet he still couldn't comprehend how these soulless beings had managed to transport themselves into this area.
Through the Sight of the Mind That Sees the Past, Carlos observed his lesser kin instinctively yielding an expansive area for the soulless to appear. The other Greater Demons accompanying Carlos understood, for they had glimpsed a lone soulless figure, weapon in hand, carving out a clearing. Yet, a peculiar silence fell over them; none of them dared to reveal this to Carlos.
Regardless of how they arrived, Carlos understood one thing clearly: the soulless had seized the initiative. In countless past battles, he had rallied all his power to crush these unforeseen foes, but now he found himself distanced from them, with none of the demons swarming to drown the soulless.
Carlos blamed the Book of Destiny—had it foreseen this, he would never have been caught unprepared.
"You," he spoke, each of his two heads turning towards a different demon, one of whom was Taree.
Taree knew Carlos well; whichever head looked his way meant truth. Thus, he was certain Carlos was addressing him.
"Go deal with these soulless ones. I will provide you with the utmost support," Carlos promised, "and I shall join you in confronting them."
Taree hesitated, deciphering which of Carlos's heads spoke genuinely. Seeing him turn back to guard a crystalline figure, Taree discerned that the earlier command was indeed true. He swiftly spread his wings, soaring towards the Crystal Region's edge.
Carlos kept his word, summoning an army of demons from the Crystal Region, each bound to his will, surrounding the soulless despite their own evident terror, legs moving against their will, driven forward in throngs.
At the edge, Taree landed, brandishing his staff as he summoned his psionic might. Despite the region's abundant energies, casting in the presence of approaching soulless was a challenging feat. To Taree's gaze, the etheric streams flowed like waves, yet each soulless being resembled a void, a black hole drawing psionic energies into oblivion. As they advanced, it became clear that the Crystal Region itself would shrink in their wake.
The strain gnawed at Taree's mind, making concentration a battle of its own. He managed to gather psionic energy, only to find himself unclear on how best to wield it.
Seeing Taree's impending failure to halt the soulless, Carlos seized control. Using Taree as a conduit, he unleashed a psionic spell capable of incinerating an entire expanse, seeking to obliterate all within. Despite hundreds of soulless figures advancing, Carlos, wielding the Staff of Tomorrow, could cast through the past, bringing forth the spell into the present.
Yet, just as the spell was to be released, Carlos's Sight of the Future yielded nothing but void, the pages of the Book of Destiny flipping rapidly to blankness.
As present caught up with future, all demons beheld the emptiness Carlos had foreseen.
Then, in the sight of the soulless and Space Marines alike, a towering figure, five meters tall and gleaming like silver, appeared before them.
Flames erupted across the plains of Tohoko, devouring the demon-ridden field and even reaching the defensive line established by mortal forces, who found themselves unharmed amidst the inferno. Bewildered soldiers watched as the demons that had moments ago attacked them turned to ash, realizing the flames meant them no harm.
The Tohoko plains were swept clean, the Crystal Region now the sole stain upon them.
"Praise be to the God of Creation!" cried Yaen, raising his chainsword in exultation.
The figure responsible was Qin Mo himself. Driven from his study beneath the Blackstone Obelisk by the roiling psionic forces, he now surveyed the battlefield.
The Staff of Tomorrow in Carlos's hand dimmed, its psionic spell thwarted. Qin Mo's presence hadn't dampened the psionics, but had somehow stabilized the realm itself, like a dam blocking a torrent.
Qin Mo turned, observing Yaen, the 13th Battalion, and the Space Wolves in the distance. They, too, could not ignore the towering metallic figure amidst the plains.
Then, he shifted his gaze toward the Crystal Region, which had become a malignant domain, a twisted fragment of the demonic realms piercing reality. Thus, the celestial flames and celestial engine had been powerless against it.
But, as they say, "For every force, there is a counterforce." With unyielding determination, Qin Mo continued his work, bending time and space with ease, swiftly relocating the soulless and Space Marines to positions beyond the Crystal Region.
Under Yaen's lead, the 13th Battalion surged forward, their mere presence cleansing the crystalline ground, forcing the region itself to shrink.
Sven and the Space Wolves cleared the path, eliminating demons that screamed in agony or recklessly charged at the soulless to end their own suffering. The Crystal Region and its demonic inhabitants would soon be purged, though cracks in the galaxy's fabric remained open, tethering chaos to reality.
Qin Mo returned to the Blackstone Obelisk, resuming his research into the energies within. He was close to understanding how to activate the array of obelisks, but it would take a bit longer.
On the battlefield, the struggle continued.
As the soulless and Space Marines fought on, Kreed remained vigilant, coordinating the Talon forces against the demons' attempts to breach Cadia. Though relentless, their teleportation abilities matched the demons, enabling a fierce resistance.
While the battle raged in ordered chaos, a lone silver figure, bent and ancient, observed the events unfold from a distant mountaintop.
"This does not align with what the astrologers foretold," it murmured.