Immediately after discovering Erda, Axis had sensed something unusual about her by relying on his ki sense.
Even secrets that not even a psyker of the Emperor's magnitude could detect, ki revealed to him. Within Erda's body was a trace of Warp taint, deploy intertwined, and extremely well hidden.
It was faint, almost imperceptible, but its presence was enough to nudge her into making grave mistakes at crucial moments.
Scattering the Primarchs across the galaxy was not something Erda could have accomplished on her own.
There were other human Perpetuals who had grown discontent with the Emperor's tyranny and ambitions who had left him. They too had secretly joined in the action.
While their objectives and ideals could be argued to be seen as good from the side of morals, inevitably, their intent had aligned with the Chaos Gods. And they became easy pawns to be manipulated with little effort from the Chaos Gods. While perpetuals would be a little bit more resistant to Warp curropotion, they weren't immune.
In truth, Erda had only been a pawn on the board. While Erda's existence that spanned tens of millania may have prevented her from becoming fully corrpoted, she was still, inevitably manipulated.
Maybe, in the origins timeline, the Emperor had purified her of all the warp taint before horus heresy even began, leading her to maintaining her rationality and not be corrupted by the warp?
In any way, her actions had inevitably given the chance for the Chaos to corrupt the primarchs.
And what had urged the women, who had remained in self exile until the Siege of Terra to come to the Imperium at this time? His ascension as the primarch was a thing only few knew in the imperium and so was Kasha's reassignment. Surely, it couldn't be a coincidence. Even if it was a coincidence and he was being overly cautions, Axis refused to overlook givien the taint that was thriving in the women.
He resolved to keep her here at all costs.
He could not allow the Emperor to simply let this woman go.
That was why he had nudged Horus with invisible ki, forcing him down toward Erda.
Axis wanted everything laid bare.
Only by seeing the terror of Chaos firsthand would others take precautions. He wanted to test whether the future could be altered, whether the Horus Heresy could truly be averted.
"Mother! You—you've been used? This is Warp power! Were you manipulated by powerful psykers?" Horus demanded.
Though he had returned as the Primarch of the Luna Wolves, Horus knew nothing of Chaos. The Emperor had, in his infinite wisdom, hidden the truth completely.
To most, the Warp was merely a dimension suitable for travel, with the occasional danger of encountering daemons and warp storms. The truth of the entities that dwelled within was known only to Russ and Magnus.
Thus Horus assumed that it was rogue psykers who had swayed his mother, driving her to betray his father and cast the Primarchs across the galaxy.
"No! That is not it!" Erda suddenly raised her head, her eyes mad, etched with despair, "Even if I was influenced, my intent was never wrong!
"Look at the Imperium now, look at the conquered worlds! Do you truly care for humanity's freedom?" she shouted at the Emperor.
"Erda, you have been trapped too long in the prison woven by those abominations. The world is far darker than you can imagine," the Emperor answered.
She laughed bitterly. "I was influenced by abominations… sure and yet you will not even name them? Why not tell your sons? Why not tell them what you once—ahhh!"
Her words broke into a piercing scream as the Emperor shone with golden light.
His psychic power overwhelmed her, wracking her body until she collapsed unconscious.
Had he allowed her to continue, she might have revealed too much.
She might have told them that the Emperor himself had once bargained with the four Chaos Gods, and that the Primarchs were born of those dealings.
He had broken that pact, seizing the Primarchs for himself and refusing to give the gods humanity's faith in return.
The bastards had started scheming against him the he departed the Warp.
By an Inevitably nailed by Erda's actions, half his sons would one day betray him, and in time the Primarchs would return to their true masters.
The truth of the Primarchs' origins was the Emperor's deepest secret. Only Malcador knew in full.
Erda had only guessed at fragments.
"Mother! Father, please, do not harm her!" Horus pleaded with bowed head, stepping protectively in front of her.
"I will not harm her. She will be imprisoned in the deepest dungeons of Holy Terra, sealed away until the day she recognizes her folly," the Emperor replied.
It was the most prudent course.
Axis then stepped forward. "Father-in-law, it would be better to speak openly. Dorn and Horus deserve to know some of the truth. If you remain silent, they may assume far worse."
Many tragedies in this world had been born from silence, from failures to communicate.
The Emperor had already loosened his secrecy once at Prospero. Doing so again would change little.
Hearing this, Malcador inclined his head to Axis, then looked to the Emperor. He too agreed the Primarchs should hear the truth.
The emperor took a deep breath. Had he divulged all the secrets to Erda beforehand, would she have remained by his side? Would she have agreed with his ideals? Would the warp not have manipulated her? There were things he needed to consider.
"You are right. Some things must be told. Once we return to the Imperial Palace, I will recount what truly happened," the Emperor said.
He had already revealed part of the truth to Magnus and Russ. Now, with Chaos already moving against his sons, he judged it time to prepare defenses.
"Clear this place. Dispose of the Thunder Warriors' corpses and take Erda to the dungeons," the Emperor commanded.
The Custodians moved swiftly, cleansing the square of blood and bodies.
Erda was carried away unconscious. Within moments, the plaza was pristine once more.
The Emperor led them back up to the high dais. Then he released his psychic control, erasing the memory of the crowd.
None of the citizens of Holy Terra remembered what had transpired.
They remembered only that the Emperor had proclaimed an important announcement: the Imperial Princess was to be wed.
"My daughter shall marry the newly returned Primarch, Axis. He is not my blood. He is someone I discovered as a child and remade on Holy Terra," the Emperor declared, announcing the wedding of Axis and Kasha.
Only then did Rogal Dorn and Horus understand that Axis was not their brother by blood.
Though he bore the Emperor's alterations, there was no kinship of flesh between them.
As for the citizens of the Imperium, although they found it unusual that a Primarch would marry the Emperor's daughter, since the Emperor had given his explanation, they did not concern themselves further.
The square once more erupted in thunderous cheers, though at that moment, few besides Axis had any mood left to celebrate.
The Emperor led Axis and Kasha on a parade through the outer avenues of the Imperial Palace on Holy Terra.
They received the blessings of countless citizens before returning to the palace. The ceremony concluded, though its recordings would soon be transmitted across the colonies of the Imperium.
Every world would know that a new Primarch had returned, that the Imperial Princess had come home, and that a grand wedding was soon to take place.
Deep within the Imperial Palace, the Emperor gathered all before his throne.
"I had planned to wait longer before telling you the truth," he began, "but what occurred today leaves me no choice but to reveal it sooner.
"Humanity stands in great peril. Within the Warp are ancient and malevolent beings who forever watch us. They are known as the Four Chaos Gods.
"Khorne, embodiment of war, blood, and violence. Nurgle, lord of plague, disease, and decay. Slaanesh, born of excess, indulgence, and forbidden pleasures. And Tzeentch, master of change, deceit, and sorcery."
The Emperor revealed the existence of the four powers, though he framed them carefully, explaining further.
They were not true gods, but entities born of negative emotions, coalesced into monstrous forms within the Warp.
Horus exclaimed, "The Warp contains such…terrifying beings? Then traveling through it must not be safe for humanity!"
"It is indeed dangerous," the Emperor replied, "Which is why I took precautions: the Gellar Fields on our vessels, the Astropaths, the Navigator Houses I placed under your command.
"And above Holy Terra burns the Astronomican. All of these safeguard our journeys through the Immaterium, shielding us from those abominations."
Once faster-than-light engines or the Webway Project succeeded, there would be no more need for Warp travel.
"Then… Mother cast us across the galaxy because of the corruption of these Chaos entities?" Horus asked.
"You saw it with your own eyes," the Emperor answered, "The taint of the Warp that I tore from her body is proof enough.
"But she was not only swayed by Chaos. Among the Perpetuals, there are factions. Though I am the strongest of them, my will does not represent all. And Erda clearly had different views than me, which led to the exploitation of the warp,."
The Perpetual order was composed of deathless ones and a few mortals who had undergone radical genetic alteration. Yet even they had faltered during the Iron Men revolt. Humanity of that era had grown decadent, entrusting all labor to the Stone Men and Iron Men, while indulging in pleasures borrowed from the Eldar.
The Emperor even suspected that if the Eldar had not birthed Slaanesh, then after millennia, humanity might well have given rise to such an abomination, or perhaps to an even darker god of its own making.
"I have done all of this to shield you from the Warp's corruption. But now you must know some of the truth.
"Chaos has already moved against you. When you were still infants, they struck once.
"Your brother Magnus possesses the most formidable psychic strength of all. He was the first to draw their gaze. But he reported it to me, and together we safeguarded him. I have freed him from their influence."
For decades, the Emperor had kept Magnus close, nurturing him under his watch, ensuring that no blue bastard could seize him. Only recently had he returned to Holy Terra to resolve the matter of Axis, only to find Erda crossing their path.
"I understand, Father. We will never fall prey to their corruption. We will remain vigilant, and we will impose stricter controls on psykers," Rogal Dorn said firmly.
He had always distrusted psykers.
Even Magnus's proposed Librarius Project, already admired by several Primarchs and entertained by the Emperor himself, was something Dorn opposed.
He would not allow such a program in his Legion.
"Do not cast your hatred upon all psykers," Axis interjected, "They did not choose their gifts."
"But their recklessness costs lives," Dorn countered, "I have witnessed too many accidents, where psykers slaughtered innocents without intent. Innocent or not, their mistakes are paid for by others. Are those civilians guilty of anything? yet they died."
"That is why we must regulate them," Axis said, "The Imperium cannot function without sanctioned psykers. The Astropaths, the Navigators…without them, our empire collapses."
"You are correct, Axis," Kasha added, "Which is why we must form a proper order, to gather psykers, train them, and make them useful to the Imperium. The strongest among them can join the Adeptus Astartes as Librarians.
"Under our supervision, we can protect them and those around them."
This was the very plan she had devised with Magnus on Prospero: to create a special order.
Vessels would scour the galaxy, searching for psykers before their powers harmed others.
Those found would be brought back, taught control, and sanctioned. Those who could not master their abilities could be sent to Prospero for safekeeping.
"This is Magnus's proposal, then. I see he has already shared it with you. But I remain unconvinced. My Legion has no need of Librarians," Dorn declared.
"Psykers are part of humanity," the Emperor said, "Their gifts are not of their choosing. And even among your brothers, there are those who wield the power of the Warp."
If the Primarchs truly understood their nature, they would realize that each of you carries the mightiest psychic potential of all. Indeed, their souls are godlike, born of the Warp itself.
"I support the Librarius Project. My Legion already counts one Librarian among its ranks," Axis said.
"I too support it," Horus added.
//
Here's your bonus chapter!!!
MOreeeeeee more powerstonesssssss!!!!!!