Warhammer 40k is filled with many powerful and elusive characters. But in this grim dark future, amongst the forces of humanity, there are few figures as revered as the Living Saints and none so famous as Saint Celestine. An undying force of the Emperor of Mankind's indomitable will, Saint Celestine is known for raining holy fire against the Imperium's enemies' armies, turning the tide of entire engagements. She is loved by all the faithful and even serves as an ideal of conversion, although her incredible psychic power and faith make her a holy force to be reckoned with.
As an immortal being who is resurrected upon death, Saint Celestine has lived a long life and appeared multiple times in lore. However, as famous as she is, little is known about her power and strange abilities.
10 Wholly Immortal
Saint Celestine is, as her name rightfully implies, a Living Saint. Within the grim darkness of the future that is Warhammer 40k, she is one of the few beings who seemingly appears to be on the side of light and peace. But as anyone familiar with the universe of Warhammer, it all depends on one's perspective and definitions of what is "good". As a Living Saint, Celestine is considered a living instrument of the Emperor of Mankind's will. If she dies, she is usually resurrected sometime later and she possesses "holy light" psyker abilities very similar to the Emperor's own. A Living Saint is born seemingly randomly, but one of the few constants is that they are usually potently faithful to their God Emperor and they are born after their first deaths,
9 Fervent Origins
As stated earlier, Saint Celestine was not always a Living Saint. According to lore, before she was resurrected for the first time, she was a member of the Sisters Repentia, a punished group within the Order of Our Martyred Lady which is, in itself, an arm of Humanity's Ecclesiarchy. The Sisters, along with the Order, are an all-female militant group of only the most faithful women of the Empire. Members of the Order who have committed a grave sin are sent to be Sisters Repentia, where they perform self-flagellation and go into battle with little armor, all to win the love of their god once more. In Celestine's case, her powerful faith allowed her to rise from the dead after she and her entire group were killed. She had slain over a hundred heretics before becoming immortal.
8 Divine Power
The powers of a Living Saint are nothing to brush aside. Only a handful of the beings have ever existed and when they enter a battle alongside Imperium forces, the amount of carnage they wreak could easily classify them as a WMD.
Not only can she fly, giving her excellent maneuverability, but she has the power to radiate a deadly light that can severely damage or destroy any enemy she wishes (especially daemons or the forces of Chaos) while also invigorating and inspiring her allies to press forward. Anything able to resist will surely fall by her blade. Celestine is a force that is meant to cut great swathes from an opposing force.
7 Raiment Of A Martyr
The armor and weapon that Saint Celestine wields are also unique and provide her with great power. Her armor, a relic of Saint Katherine, the namesake of the Order of the Martyred Lady, is a set of golden power armor that gives her all the benefits of a typical suit while possibly possessing qualities of a more "divine" nature. Saint Katherine was said to have wielded equipment that contained a shard of the Emperor's personal power armor. The sword, on the other hand, is known as the Ardent Blade. It is a sword too bright to look upon, bearing the Imperial Aquila and sometimes flowers near the hilt. At the Saint's command, it can release a great jet of fire that can wash easily over an enemy line.
6 God And She
Despite Saint Celestine's great fame within the Empire and the awesome power she wields coming from the Emperor himself (supposedly), she has never actually met her opulent and divine ruler. It is quite possible to physically visit him as his decaying body still sits upon the Golden Throne, not dead yet not alive either, but this has never happened. One would figure that someone as devoted as Saint Celestine would want to meet the being she so fervently devotes herself to, but such is the mind of the truly faithful. So long as they can serve that which they love, they do not need to meet it.
5 An Alliance Unseen
Given the capabilities and elusiveness of Living Saints, one would rightfully assume that they do not often join with Imperium forces in most, especially banal, conflicts. However, Saint Celestine is notable for having participated in one great alliance that saw some of the most skilled, if not enigmatic, figures in the Empire come together. During the Fall of Cadia, in midst of Abbadon the Despoiler's 13th Black Crusade, Saint Celestine intervened and found herself in the company of Archmagos Dominus Belisarius Cawl, a powerful member of the Adeptus Mechanicus who has been alive since the Horus Heresy 10,000 years prior and Inquisitor Katarinya Greyfax who rescued the Saint from Abbadon and joined her in the Celestinian Crusade with the Black Templars.
4 Cherubim And Doves
Interestingly enough, Living Saints such as Saint Celestine are occasionally accompanied by strange partners. It is not unusual to see Saint Celestine, in the middle of battle, being flanked by either cherubs, doves, or both.
It is not officially confirmed, but the doves are either real or a manifestation of her psychic abilities as seen in her model above. The cherubs, however, (not pictured above) are actual organic constructs made by the Imperium that are meant to serve as a type of support drone. Offering assistance with repairs, medical needs and even performing rituals.
3 Wings Of Faith
Another interesting fact concerns the Saint's wings. They were actually created thanks to Celestine's incredible faith in the God-Emperor manifesting themselves into the physical realm through her potent psychic powers. According to lore, they give her just as much maneuverability as an Astartes Jump Pack used by Space Marines. It is assumed the Living Saint can summon and dismiss the wings at will, though she rarely does.
2 Canonization
Along with cherubs and doves, Saint Celestine is usually flanked by her Geminae Superia, an honor guard specifically chosen by her, for her. These two former Canonesses of the Adepta Sororitas are named Genevieve and Eleanor. They dress similarly to their charge, slaying any would-be foe who would dare to approach the Living Saint. However, it is safe to assume that the two women are actually Living Saints themselves as there have been multiple accounts now where they themselves have been vanquished, only to be resurrected later. It is believed Celestine's influence is what caused this change to occur in them.
1 The Prodigal Revenant
Finally, we have Celestine's greatest feat yet. Her aid in bringing the Primarch, Roboute Guilliman, back from the dead and helping him lead the Terran Crusade back to Earth so that he might convene with his father, the Emperor. Once that was done, Guilliman entered his father's chambers for one whole day, and when he came out, he was made the Lord Commander of the Imperium, the second time he has held the title. With it, he and Celestine hope to lead a new campaign against the forces of Chaos. One that will be unprecedented in its efforts to defeat the Archenemy.