Imperium retake initiative on Mordecai

By 08.021M42 Imperial intelligence was well aware of the rising power of chaos on Mordecai especially with the arrival of the particularly effective Disciples of Belakor. On his war council, there was some disagreement over how to proceed. Should the Imperium merely hold and wait for the inevitable chaos offensive, or should proactive measures be taken?

In the end Kutuzov decided on a moderate counter offensive to disrupt the chaos lines, particularly where intelligence had noted a large build up of enemy forces. In the south, this was conducted by the Sisters of Battle, who were facing off against the bulk of the Death Guard armies that massed around the Sarkar Traps, while in the north, the Adeptus Mechanicus prepared to conduct offensive missions against the forces of chaos massing on the Northern Howl.

In the north the Adeptus Mechanicus carried out their mission with technical precision, disrupting the chaos build up for their offensive and returning to the Imperial lines with their forces largely intact. Further south,  the Adeptus Sororitas took the Death Guard by surprise, sending in their flamer retributors with devastating effect. Poxwalkers and plague marines massing for their own offensive were obliterated, and although Typhus himself was on hand with a large force of elite terminators, his intervention was distracted by constant harrassment by rearguard forces, and the elite of the Death Guard were not in position to change the course of the battle. As they chased smaller forces around the ruins of Burroneus, the rest of the Sororitas continued to blast apart the sons of Mortarion.

Having severely disrupted the chaos offensive plans, the Imperial forces retreated to their own lines. Both missions had been successful, but Kutuzov knew that he had only bought his forces time. Time they badly needed to shore up the lines and rebuild their ruined fortifications.