Admiral Doenitz crushed by Pendragon

Inquisitor Vorushko's Crusade received an unexpected boost in late 02.015M42, when the battlefleet commanded by Admiral Doenitz arrived in the system. Doenitz had arrived under orders from the segmentum command to reinforce Jellicoe's battlefleet in its war against the forces of chaos and the alliance on Zadoc. However the fleet had become scattered by a warp storm and a journey which should have taken weeks ended up taking more than a year to complete. Upon arrival at the Libria jump point the admiral was surprised to find the war on Zadoc already lost and Libria itself under threat of invasion by the tau. As soon as Doenitz's vessels translated into realspace they were hailed by a patrolling Charcharadon strike cruiser. Realising their luck, Doenitz was soon visited by Vorushko herself.

the lord inquisitor explained the treachery of the Librians, and the traitorous actions of Inquisitor Hathek in countermanding her edict. She went on to explain that the so-called "loyalist" forces on Libria V would soon be reinforced by more of Hathek's misguided men, and even the navy had turned against the imperial light. Filled with Vorushko's words the admiral dutifully began the blockade of the system, aided by the small force of strike cruisers and escorts already allied to the inquisitor's cause.

Admiral Pendragon, en route to Libria V to deliver supplies to the beleagured forces of General Abrahams, was surprised to find Doesnitz's fleet barring his way. A tense standoff followed while the two admirals engaged in brief communications. Doenitz demanded that Pendragon's forces withdraw, which only irritated Pendragon. He was aware of Jellicoe's desire to stay out of the escalating civil war, but he would not yield or recognise the authority of his fellow admiral. He had orders from his superior and no-one would stand in his way.

The two fleets closed rapidly and aggressively and it is unclear who fired the first shots in the encounter. Either way Pendragon used his recent hard earned experience to batter Doenitz's fleet, destroying at least three capital vessels and forcing the rest, some heavily damaged, to withdraw. Pendragon had scored a victory over the crusade and at the loss of only teo damaged cruisers, but he knew the imperium had lost overall as a result. He railed against the senseless loss of good imperial warships and sent an urgent message to Jellicoe on Vastrid, asking him to take a clear stance on the Librian matter. If the imperial fleet threw its weight behind one of the inquisitors, perhaps the war could be contained and further unpleasant incidents averted.