New Cerberex alliance fends of Nemesis probe

At the very time the tau were preparing an invasion of the Imperial world of Tyranteous, they were also working in partnership with the empire of man in the Mabb Nebula. While rarely on good terms and often at war over territory, both the tau and the imperium had a vested interest in preventing the tyranids from overrunning any more worlds in the Zadoc subsector. The tyranids left nothing to conquer or settle, and the continued push by the tendril of nemesis into the Shadow worlds was alarming to both parties.

It was difficult for general Brooke or the imperial guard as whole to discuss mutual assistance with aliens against common enemies. Bound by the inquisition and the iron gaze of the commissariat, lower level field commanders knew better than to fraternise with aliens, and senior commanders were very aware of the various positions the inquisition would take on any overt or covert alliances with the tau. Inquisitor lord Hathek had arranged an alliance with them to fight the necrons, chaos and tyranids in 011M42, but that had ended badly with the imperium fighting itself and the loss of Tyndareous to the Tau empire. Hathek himself had been badly damaged by the affair and had subsequently decided to embark on an expedition into the Hadron Expanse. Without Hathek around, the idea of a tau-imperial alliance appeared dead.

However the astartes were as ever less bound by suspicion and creed, independent of the commissariat, and generally too strong to be pushed around by the inquisition. Therefore when the tendrils of nemesis reached out for New Cerberex, it was not a total surprise when the Knights of Dorn chapter showed up in alliance with a Tau hunter cadre. The allied force had been working together for years, tracking the movements of Nemesis in the depths of inter-sector space, and had finally arrived in the Zadoc subsector. They immediately attacked the tyranid vanguard forces, defeating them and cleansing the Cerberex system of tyranid spores, at least for now. The allied force moved off in late 12.012M42, with the tau having faced much suspicion and distrust from the New Cerberex population which was barely held in check by the presence of the awe inspiring astartes company.

Whether or not the space marine force and their tau allies would be able to stay together for their common good in the hostile and unpredictable political climate of the Aleph Sector remained to be seen, but for now the insidious spread of nemesis had been halted, and perhaps an alliance of tau, imperial and eldar forces united against the great devourer would finally see nemesis broken by force of arms.