Eclipse of Hope
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This article is about the ship; for the short story by David Annandale, see Eclipse of Hope (Short Story). |
The Eclipse of Hope was a Battle Barge of the Blood Angels Chapter that was lost in the 5th Black Crusade.[1]
In M41, a task force from the Blood Angels 4th Company, led by Chief Librarian Mephiston, responded to a distress call from the Supplicium System. Arriving in orbit of Supplicium Secundus, they found that the population of the planet had massacred themselves, infected by a Warp-borne rage-plague. Following this discovery, the Space Marines received another plea for aid, this time from Supplicium Tertius. On the journey to Tertius, they encountered the shadow of the Eclipse of Hope, corrupted by the power of Chaos, which was the source of the madness afflicting the system and the Blood Angels were forced to board it, as it was unaffected by their Strike Cruiser's weapons.[1]
Mephiston himself led the boarding action, accompanied by Epistolary Stolas, Chaplain Dantalion, Sanguinary Priest Albinus, Techmarine Phenex and Sergeant Gamigin. After determining that the source of the Chaos corruption on the Eclipse of Hope was located in the ship's Librarium, the Marines fought through a small army of Bloodletters to make their way there, with Mephiston and Stolas entering the Librarium alone to confront the warp-taint.[1]
However, the warp presence wanted the Librarians to go there, so it could attempt to corrupt them. The Chaos at work animating the ship was able to tempt Stolas, who succumbed to the promise of infinite knowledge on offer. Mephiston, on the other hand, refused anything that it offered him, going on to burn the Librarium, which killed Stolas and purged the shadow-vessel.[1]
Although the Blood Angels were still unable to destroy the Eclipse of Hope, they had saved Supplicium Tertius, along with potentially thousands of other Imperial worlds. Mephiston was also able to glean one piece of information from the trap in the Librarium - a warning related to the Pallevon System.[1]
