The two conversed as they walked, soon arriving at Magnus's private meditation chamber. After a few more words with Axis, Magnus sat cross-legged and entered a meditative state, his soul venturing into the Warp to contact the Emperor himself.
A moment later, the connection was established. Axis activated his own psychic powers and joined the communion.
"Father, look who I have brought back!" Magnus said with excitement, "I have completed the task you gave me. I have successfully rescued Axis from the Warp."
"Is it really you, Axis?" the Emperor's voice echoed from distant Holy Terra, filled with equal excitement, "It is wonderful news that you could return to the Imperium at this very moment!"
He had never expected Axis to return after ninety-eight years. After all, Axis had been directly targeted by a Chaos God.
The Emperor had thought he might be lost for millennia, or even forever.
"It has been a long time, Father-in-law," Axis said, offering a greeting, "It was not in my expectation to be targetted a and trapped by the Chaos Gods. To my senses, less than a day has passed."
"It is good that you have returned," the Emperor said, "Your Legion will be yours to command once more. However, I plan to transfer one hundred thousand men from it to form a new Space Marine Legion, which your son will lead." As a high-ranking marshal appointed by the Emperor himself, the boy could not be a commander without an army. He needed men under his command.
"That is no problem," Axis replied, "But I only just learned about my son. I have some questions."
"Hahaha–haaa! I know what you want to ask," the Emperor said, "Rest assured, Lady Euten bears no taint of Chaos corruption. I have confirmed this myself. As for your son, he is her adopted son, just like Guilliman."
Magnus nodded, but Axis just looked on with a not so pleasant expression.
"This is a long story," the Emperor said, "In truth, he is your son with Kasha. He is my grandson!"
"Only myself and a handful of personnel in the entire Imperium know the truth of this matter," the Emperor said. "I only revealed the truth to him ten years ago when I appointed him Warmaster."
Axis nodded. "Please explain," more like demanded.
"The truth is, Kasha was already pregnant on Nuceria, for about two months," the Emperor began, recounting the events of ninety-eight years past. "It was Slaanesh's scheming that caused you two to be separated, one lost and the other cast into a coma. The situation at the time was dire. It was Mader who reported it directly to me. I ordered him to tell no one, not even Magnus."
Kasha was grievously wounded, her soul deep in slumber. The first person Mader had contacted was not Magnus, but the Emperor himself.
Mader had realized that Kasha's condition could affect the child.
If nothing was done, the child would most certainly be lost.
The emperor had acted in time to transplant the child to an artificial womb that he himself manned.
After the period of gestation, Lady Euten, feeling immensely guilty for his parents, took responsibility for the boys upbringing.
The Emperor did not object, for he had already made sure Lady Euten did not have a trace of taint left in her and had made measures to make sure something like that never happened.
To keep the morale of the Golden legion and other armies affiliated with Axis alive, and to not halt the momentum of thegreat crusade, the Emperor did not disclose the information on Axis and Kasha.
Instead, he publicly put forward Axis' son as a means to divert the attention of the armies and populace, explaining him as Axis and Lady Eutens' child. Not many question arose, and Lady Euten had no objection. For the harm she had inervertedly done to Axis and Kasha, she was willing to do anything.
Axis nodded. He was now relieved. He had expected some foul play to be involved with genetics and stuff, as Lady Euten's Infatuation with him in the earlier years were creepy to say the least.
"Axis, I will arrange for you to meet him," the Emperor said, "Then you, as his father, will personally bestow his name. Originally, that name was to be given by his mother when she awakens in two years."
If Axis had not returned, Kasha would have named her son herself upon waking. The boy would have then formally inherited Axis's Golden Legion. But now that Axis was back, it was better to form a new Legion from a portion of his forces.
"I understand," Axis said with a nod, "But, first."
Axis still had a lot he wanted to ask the Emperor.
"Axis... I... you," the Emperor's voice suddenly began to break up, becoming intermittent.
Then, the psychic link with Axis and Magnus snapped.
A ferocious storm erupted throughout the Warp, severing all psychic communications.
"Strange," Magnus murmured, "Why would such a violent storm suddenly appear in the Warp?"
...
...
ps?