So, his adoptive father had come after all.
But why had he not appeared at Prospero?
"Let us review the sequence of events, Lord Valdor. Please recount the full details of the mission you received. And you as well, Lion El'Jonson, tell me the orders you were given," Axis said.
Lion El'Jonson and Valdor nodded, recounting the entire affair to Axis.
It began with the sudden psychic shockwave that struck Holy Terra, shattering the Webway and forcing the Emperor onto the Golden Throne. The Emperor had then ordered Valdor and the Sisters of Silence to travel to Prospero, where they were to assist the Wolf King, Leman Russ, in escorting both Axis and Magnus back to Holy Terra.
The Emperor had explicitly stressed that they were not being sent to apprehend them.
Lion El'Jonson, however, had received his orders from Warmaster Horus. He was commanded to come to Prospero and put down the great rebellion supposedly initiated by Axis and Magnus.
While en route, Valdor and his contingent received a second message, also from the Warmaster. Axis was already aware of what followed.
As the three parties compared their stories, Lion El'Jonson realized the truth. The Emperor had never intended for him to be here at all. Horus had commanded him to come on his own authority.
"So, that means Russ is likely lost in the Warp," Axis stated, posing it as a question.
"It's a strong possibility," Valdor confirmed. "It would also explain why he failed to arrive at Prospero on schedule. Given the speed of Leman Russ's fleet, he should have arrived at the same time we did."
"That is not good news at all," Axis said, his brow furrowed in thought.
The fact that his adoptive father had not arrived on time was likely due to some scheme concocted by Horus. While Horus knew some things about Axis, he did not know about his previous duel with the Emperor, a duel witnessed by Lion El'Jonson. Nor did he know about the existence of the Saibamen.
The Warmaster had likely assumed that Axis and the Lion would inevitably come to blows. Had Leman Russ arrived, he would have cleared up the misunderstanding, and no conflict would have broken out. Therefore, Horus must have used some means to ensnare the Wolf King.
"Do not worry, Axis. I will use my psychic sight to help you look for him," Magnus said, clapping a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"I am counting on you, Magnus" Axis replied with a nod, "Your psychic power is our only hope now."
Magnus's abilities were indeed reliable.
The sheer number of Imperial warships currently docked at Prospero was a testament to his guidance over the past several days. He had located numerous Imperial vessels that had been lost in the nearby Warp and guided them safely out of the Immaterium.
"Sisters of Silence, I must ask that you stand back a little," Magnus said, turning to the silent warrior-women.
He needed to unleash his full psychic potential to find Leman Russ, and the null-aura projected by the Sisters would be a significant hindrance.
The Sisters of Silence nodded and quickly moved a considerable distance away.
Once they were gone, Magnus sat on the ground and focused, channeling all his psychic might into the search for Leman Russ.
If the Wolf King's fleet was truly lost in the Immaterium, Magnus could act as a beacon. He would call upon his power over the Warp to guide his brother's fleet back to realspace.
Axis placed a hand on Magnus's shoulder, lending his own purest psychic energy to the effort.
His power helped Magnus cut through the mists and storms of the Warp, granting him a clearer view into the empyrean depths.
They had perfected this very technique before to successfully contact the Laughing God, Cegorach, which had secured the aid of the Harlequins.
Several hours later, Magnus opened his eyes. His expression was grim as he looked at Axis.
"Well? Did you find the Wolves?"
"Axis, I have located Leman Russ's fleet," Magnus began, heaving a sigh, "They have already exited the Warp, but the place they emerged is far from safe."
"What do you mean?"
"Russ's fleet reappeared at the farthest edge of the Segmentum Obscurus, on the border with the Rangda Empire. My senses detected a massive concentration of Rangdan fleets there. A billion soldiers, hundreds of warships, and at least two moon-sized weapons platforms. A terrifyingly vast army is mustering on the Imperium's western front."
"Are you saying Russ is about to engage this Rangdan army?" Axis asked, his voice tight.
"Not about to. He already has," Magnus corrected him, "And he is at a severe disadvantage. The Space Wolves' fleet is no match for that Rangdan armada."
Confronting a Xenos force of that magnitude was a death sentence.
While Russ commanded an entire Legion, it was not nearly enough to stand against a force of that scale.
"Not necessarily. Russ has his own secret weapons," Axis said with a small smile.
His adoptive father had two of his Saibamen offspring with him. After consuming the Fruit of the Tree of Might, their power levels were in the hundreds of thousands.
Destroying a fleet should not be an issue. The fighting prowess of the Space Wolves was nothing to scoff at.
"You don't understand, Axis," Valdor interjected from the side, "Decades ago, the Imperium was on the verge of launching a war of extermination against the Rangda. But the xenos revealed a new secret weapon, one whose power shocked even the Emperor. He had to deploy a secret weapon of his own from Mars just to hold them back. In the end, we were forced to sign a fragile peace treaty."
The Great Crusade had been at its zenith, and the Emperor had decided to commit to the Rangdan Xenocides. But the appearance of that terrible weapon had inflicted devastating losses on the Imperium.
"A new weapon? What was it?" Axis demanded.
"They were humanoid weapons capable of releasing immense energy," Magnus explained, "They possessed terrifying combat strength, much like you used to, and could obliterate an entire fleet with ease. They could even travel unprotected through the void of space. The energy they unleashed could tear through the void shields of an Imperial battleship and blast it to atoms. Before them, there was no difference between a Space Marine and a mortal; a single wave of a hand was enough to annihilate either."
Magnus had taken part in that war, a conflict that had seen the deployment of nearly half of the primarchs and their Legions.
The final result was a pyrrhic victory for both sides, a bloody stalemate. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Rangda's level of technology surpassed that of the human Imperium.
"How is that possible?" Axis said, completely stunned, "The Rangdan have such a weapon?" He remembered his last encounter with them. He had utterly dominated them. They had been powerless to resist.
"Father believes the Rangdan may have harnessed the power of C'tan shards to create these personified weapons," Magnus continued, "If Father had not arrived on the battlefield with the secret weapon from Mars, we would have lost that war."
That was why the Imperium had opted for a temporary truce. According to the Emperor, if Axis had been present during that war, the outcome would have been different.
The Rangda would have been utterly annihilated.
"Weapons made from C'tan shards? And what was the Emperor's secret weapon?" Axis asked. The Rangdan possessing C'tan shard weaponry was unheard of. Weren't those the exclusive domain of the Necrons?
Magnus and Valdor exchanged a glance before waving their hands, dismissing the nearby Space Marines.
"The Emperor deployed a shard from Mars," Valdor revealed, his voice low, "It was a sliver of the Star God known as the Void Dragon. This shard possessed a terrifying power, capable of destroying an entire planet or even a star system in an instant."
If not for the deterrent of that weapon and the Emperor himself, the Rangdan would have launched a full-scale invasion long ago. Before such terrifying power, even a primarch was virtually defenseless.
"I see," Axis said, "So if Russ is there alone, he is guaranteed to lose this battle, isn't he?"
"Yes, defeat is almost certain, unless he can withdraw immediately," the Lion confirmed, "But if he retreats, the Imperium's western front will likely collapse. If I'm not mistaken, Horus must have made some kind of pact with the Rangda." He had been the one leading the First Legion in defending that front, keeping the Rangda at bay.
His sudden redeployment had left a defensive void, which the Wolves were now ill-equipped to fill.
"Magnus, can you send a message to Russ?" Axis asked, "Tell them to retreat immediately and rendezvous with us here on Prospero, or return to Holy Terra or even Fenris."
It was hard to believe Horus would stoop to collaborating with xenos. The man had become utterly depraved in his quest for victory. Because of Axis's interference, the timeline had shifted; now the Rangda Xenos were rearing their ugly head during the Great Heresy, and they had come with even newer weapons.
"I am afraid that is impossible, Axis," Magnus replied gravely, "The entire western front is shrouded in a violent Warp storm. Even if I could send an astrotelepathic message, no astropath could survive receiving a psychic communication from me through that maelstrom." Even Russ would not survive it. The power was comparable to the blast that shattered the Webway; if it hit Russ, he would be gravely wounded, if not killed outright.
Their only choice was to dispatch a relief fleet.
Axis sighed. It was a dilemma. Horus had played his hand masterfully, thinking one, two, even three moves ahead.
Axis now faced two options.
He could ignore the plight of Russ and go directly to Holy Terra to aid the Emperor. Or, he could go to rescue his adoptive father, but by the time he defeated the Rangda, the Heresy might already be over.
In that scenario, Axis would have been absent from the civil war's main stage, and Horus could have focused his entire strength against the Imperium.
If he didn't go, his father might perish.
If he did go, the Emperor might fall.
"Axis, perhaps you should go and save Russ," Magnus suggested, "The Custodes and I can return to Holy Terra and help Father repair the Webway. You are the Imperium's greatest warrior now. Only your presence can truly turn the tide of that battle. Otherwise, the Wolf King may be doomed. I can travel aboard a Custodian ship back to Terra and help stabilize the situation with the Webway."
At present, only four Legions had turned traitor.
If the main loyalist armies returned in time, the rebellion could still be crushed. But the Rangdan threat was not a small matter; someone had to go and stop them.
"Do not worry, Axis," Lion El'Jonson said, rising to his feet, "You and Magnus go to Holy Terra. I will personally lead the First Legion to reinforce Russ."
The western front had been his responsibility. His departure had created this opportunity for the Rangda, and now he would personally rectify his mistake. Two full Legions should be enough to hold back the xenos.
For years, the Lion had been able to contend with the Rangda in large part due to Lucifer. With him, and the two sibaman son with Russ, they could handle up to three of the C'tan incarnate weapons.
If they were truly outmatched, he could always fall back with Russ. Conquering the entire Segmentum Obscurus would not be simple for the Rangdan.
As long as Axis could return to the Imperium's core, reinforcements could be dispatched. The most urgent task now was for Axis to return to the heart of the Imperium and suppress Horus's great rebellion.
The others nodded in agreement.
The Lion's proposal was the best course of action. Axis and Magnus returning to Holy Terra would be of far greater help to the Imperium.
"I have an idea," Axis declared, "Magnus and I will travel light and proceed directly to Holy Terra through the Webway. Magnu's legion now numbers over a hundred thousand.
"Lion, you will take command of both our Legions and go to the aid of the Wolf King."
Thanks to the flawless gene-seed, the Thousand Sons Legion had grown to over a hundred thousand Space Marines over the years.
Combined with the Dark Angels' two hundred thousand and the Space Wolves' hundred thousand, a force of nearly half a million Astartes across three Legions would be more than enough to stop the Rangdan.
Meanwhile, Axis and Magnus, accompanied by the Custodes and other loyalists, would use the Webway to reach Holy Terra.
This was a matter he could negotiate with Cegorach.
"Excellent," Magnus agreed, "Lion, take my Legion and reinforce Leman Russ."
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ps?