"Let me consider it."
Abaddon was desperate, seeking an alliance against a dark giant! In terms of raw combat power, the Ace assassin was confident he could rival a Giant of Light, even without their enhancements. The Dark Giants were just another variant of the Light Warriors; even without further upgrades, he felt sure he could fight one, especially after his own recent empowerment.
In overall combat power, he felt no weaker than the dark giants. But—this dark giant was one of his own kind! Why should he help Abaddon? There was no benefit. So he tossed the question to his boss, Rhodes, via remote communication.
"Is something up?" Rhodes, busy as usual, took the call.
"Master, I have two matters to report," the assassin said.
"Oh? Go on," Rhodes replied.
"First, after gaining the trust of Slaanesh, I received some Chaos power and two fragments of a lesser deity, but…" the assassin began.
"Did you absorb the god fragments?" Rhodes asked eagerly.
"That's the thing. I was able to absorb Slaanesh's power, but not the lesser god fragments," the assassin sighed.
"Why not? If your life level can withstand Chaos power, you should be able to absorb the fragments," Rhodes said, sitting up and startling Aisha.
"My soul is too weak, Master. I've only recently gained full consciousness, thanks to your power. My soul is only slightly stronger than a mortal's. My body can handle Chaos power, but my soul can't bear the fragments. If I forced it, my soul might collapse," the assassin explained.
Such was the tragedy of being a manufactured weapon—physically strong, but spiritually weak. Without Slaanesh's protection, even a greater daemon could possess him.
"I understand. Absorbing Chaos power is already impressive. Stay undercover; don't worry about the fragments. You're already strong enough to defeat daemon princes and even Primarch-level daemons," Rhodes said.
He couldn't ask for too much. In the world of Ultraman, soul strength was always a weak point for bio-weapons.
"Master, the other matter is that Abaddon wants to ally with me against Horus," the assassin continued.
"Oh? Abaddon wants to take on Horus? I thought he'd be happy his father returned."
"It's not like that, Master. Abaddon actually hates Horus, for many complicated reasons. He absolutely does not want Horus back," the assassin explained.
Abaddon's only goal was to overthrow the Imperium, kill the Emperor on the Golden Throne, break from the Chaos gods, and become the new ruler.
"That's interesting. How strong is Abaddon?" Rhodes asked.
The assassin's identity was a closely-held secret; even the Emperor and Horus didn't know.
"Master, Abaddon is very strong. He can fight me to a standstill, even when I'm holding back. In terms of soul level, he's stronger than me," the assassin said.
They'd fought once; neither could beat the other, but the assassin hadn't fought seriously. With Slaanesh's power, he could easily crush Abaddon.
"You can beat Fulgrim even when holding back, so Abaddon is even stronger?" Rhodes asked.
Abaddon was famed as the greatest below the Primarchs, able to slay a custodian with a single blow, but even as a daemon prince, he shouldn't surpass a Primarch.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been crushed by Elena on the ice world.
"Master, there's a twist—Abaddon didn't become a daemon prince but was upgraded by a mysterious being to a daemon Primarch," the assassin revealed.
He had learned this from a Chaos sorcerer.
"Tell me what you know," Rhodes said.
He had assumed Abaddon would become a daemon prince, but not a daemon Primarch. Did he have some secret fortune?
"Master, after being defeated by Lady Elena, Abaddon's body was destroyed but his soul was saved. A special Chaos god used a 'life furnace' and Horus's former body to craft a new vessel, infusing it with countless daemon essences and having Abaddon consume many lesser god fragments.
Now, Abaddon can grow to seventy meters tall. When we fought, I had no size advantage. His magic sword is now on par with my Frostmourne," the assassin said.
A special Chaos god! Rhodes guessed it was a minor Chaos deity—Vashtorr, most likely.
According to official lore, only Vashtorr could use the life furnace. After the Arks of Omen event, he was upgrading to full Chaos godhood.
Rhodes had not expected it to be Vashtorr who saved and upgraded Abaddon.
"I see. Stay undercover—don't reveal your power. Let Abaddon and Horus fight first," Rhodes said.
Horus was quick to divide Abaddon's forces. Rhodes doubted Abaddon could survive till the Siege of Vigilus; he might get taken out by his own father first.
Even as a daemon Primarch, Rhodes doubted Abaddon could beat Horus, now possessed by the dark giant Daram and able to assume a dark Emperor form.
Even without transforming, Rhodes figured Abaddon might not win.
"I understand, Master. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."
"One more thing: if Abaddon can't beat Horus, help him. But don't defeat Horus; just fight him to a draw," Rhodes instructed.
It was not yet time for Abaddon to fall. If he did, the four Chaos gods might move against Horus immediately, and even fused with the dark giant, Horus would not be enough.
The assassin received his orders and left the system space.
"Slannesh's child Sidonis, what are you thinking about? You should ally with me—Horus is not one of us, not truly of Chaos," Abaddon pressed.
Since asking, Sidonis had been deep in thought—perhaps a bit too long.
"No problem, Abaddon. I'll help you. Horus's sudden return is indeed suspicious," the assassin finally replied.
"Good. I'll duel him first. If I win, you stay out. If not, we'll fight him together," Abaddon said.