The Death of Innocence: How Mars Fell to Chaos

When the scrap code hit, it didn't discriminate. Within moments, the death toll on Mars reached into the millions. Forges turned their guns on themselves. Reactors went into meltdown. Data tethers spread corruption from installation to installation, turning convoys into wreckage and engram banks into madness. The event would become known as the Death of Innocence—though as one host dryly noted, it's worth wondering how much innocence was really present on Mars in the first place.

The Warmaster's Gambit

Horus understood something essential about the Great Crusade: a war effort is only as strong as its arsenal. The Mechanicum had always been an uneasy partner to the Imperium, and their alliance was cracking at the seams. Horus needed the factories on his side, and he knew exactly how to swing them.

The key was Kelbor Hal, Fabricator General of Mars. Hal had been present when the Emperor first set foot on the red planet, and unlike those around him who believed the Emperor was the living embodiment of the Omnissiah, Hal was unimpressed. He nursed a deep fear that the Emperor would eventually strip away Mars's autonomy. When Horus sent Magister Lexanicus Regulus with an offer, Hal was ready to listen.