"An endless horde of daemons was assaulting the Webway," the Emperor began, "I have managed to erect a psychic barrier, but it only serves to slow the power of the Four Chaos Gods. It cannot stop them from attempting to destroy this section of the Webway entirely. A ceaseless tide of daemons still pours through towards Holy Terra, as you must have already seen."
He continued, his voice heavy.
"There is not a single Custodian standing guard within my Palace. Almost all of the Legio Custodes and the Sisters of Silence have been committed to the battlefield within the Webway. They have fought for months without rest, and many Custodians have already fallen, not to daemonic blades, but to sheer exhaustion.
"Now, I have been forced to commit contingents of the Imperial Army, and even some of the Imperial Fists under Rogal Dorn's command, just to plug the gap."
The Emperor's thoughts were grim.
The brutality of the War in the Webway had far exceeded his expectations. The Legio Custodes, his proud Ten Thousand, forged over centuries using the genetic science of the Golden Age, had suffered dearly.
In just over four months of fighting, a thousand of them had been lost. If the battle continued at this pace, their numbers would be catastrophically reduced.
He desperately needed fresh forces to bolster the defense of Holy Terra.
According to Rogal Dorn's original plan, the best course of action would have been to recall the White Scars legion, who were currently operating outside the Sol System, and throw them into the grinding war.
Now, however, if Axis could summon his Golden Legion back to Terra, they would be the ideal candidates to deploy into the fray. The sons of Axis possessed formidable combat prowess, and their Golden Transformation made them far more powerful than any ordinary Space Marine.
If they could take the front line, it would at least grant the beleaguered Custodes a moment of respite and prevent more of them from succumbing to exhaustion.
"I understand, Father-in-law," Axis replied, "If I can contact my Legion, I will have them return to Holy Terra and join the War in the Webway. However, if the situation is urgent, you can withdraw all of the Custodes now. I can hold the line against those Chaos daemons myself."
It was just as he had suspected.
Holy Terra was facing not only an external threat but also a secret, brutal war raging from within.
The War in the Webway, unknown to the citizens of the Imperium, was a horrific and bloody conflict.
But his own combat power was more than that of the entire Adeptus Custodes. If he took the field, the Custodians could finally fall back.
He could grant these giants, who had fought without sleep for months, a chance to breathe.
"Only you would dare to conceive such a mad idea," the Emperor remarked, a faint hint of admiration in his psychic voice, "But you do indeed have the strength to do it. There is one thing I must tell you, however. You may slaughter the daemons within, Axis, but you must not use the power of Ki to unleash large-scale bombardments."
"Why?" Axis asked, his brow furrowed, "If I used my Ki, I could annihilate them with ease." The thought of unleashing his full power, of crushing and disintegrating those daemons with overwhelming force, was intensely appealing.
He sort of understood though.
"I have my reasons," the Emperor explained patiently, "The Webway is exceedingly fragile in its current state. The slightest impact from a high-energy blast could shatter it completely. Do you not know the sheer destructive force your Ki possesses?"
He sounded almost weary.
If not for this critical limitation, he would have long ago deployed titan-class weaponry into the lower levels of the Palace to stem the tide of daemons. The use of such weapons of mass destruction carried too high a risk of rupturing the Webway further, widening the tear into the Immaterium.
"I understand now," Axis said. "In that case, could I push the front line forward? Perhaps take the fight directly into the Immaterium?"
"No, Axis," the Emperor warned immediately, "I can only control this single section of the Webway connected to Holy Terra and maintain a relative sphere of safety around it. If you were to charge into the Immaterium itself, I could not control what might happen. You know the horrors of the Warp. If you become lost within it, where the very concept of time does not exist, I do not know when, or even if, I could find you and bring you back."
Only a madman would willingly enter the Immaterium in physical form. If not for Axis's immense personal power, he would have been lost in its depths long ago.
"Understood," Axis affirmed, "I will enter the Webway now and relieve the Custodes. I will not use my Ki for ranged attacks. My fists and feet alone will be more than enough for them." Even using only his physical strength, the destructive power of Axis in his transformation state was terrifyingly immense.
"Very well," the Emperor said, "You only need to hold them for one day. A single day will be enough for my Custodes to recover." The arrival of Axis was a timely salvation that eased a desperate crisis.
"I don't intend to stay for just one day," Axis declared with a predatory grin, "I will fight until I've had my fill, until every last daemon learns to fear my name." This was an excellent opportunity he could not miss. Axis eagerly anticipated the slaughter that awaited him among the Chaos daemons of the Webway.
"By the way, how is Kasha? Is her soul fully recovered yet?"
"Rest assured," the Emperor's voice soothed. "I have personally cared for Kasha all these years, using my own psychic energies to guide and mend her soul. After being enhanced by your Ki and consuming that unique fruit of life, her spirit is already very strong. At most, she will need another year and a half to make a full recovery. After you have dealt with the daemons in the Webway, go and spend time with her. Perhaps the presence of her husband will hasten her healing."
Axis nodded and, under the Emperor's guidance, descended to the chamber beneath the Golden Throne.
"This is the place, Axis," the Emperor stated, "I have already ordered the Custodes within to withdraw. You may enter now."
Axis gave a final nod and turned, striding into the shimmering portal of the Webway.
Upon receiving the Emperor's command, the Custodians, Sisters of Silence, and the handful of Imperial Fists Space Marines locked in a desperate struggle against the endless Chaos hordes breathed a collective sigh of relief.
It seemed they would finally have a reprieve from this unending battle.
The moment Axis stepped into the Webway, he was hit by a putrid stench of decay.
Twisted energies of the Immaterium flowed like living things along the fractured walls of the corridor. In the distance, a cacophony of daemonic shrieks, the clang of metal, and the explosive crackle of psychic power echoed relentlessly.
"All Custodian Guards and Sisters of Silence, withdraw! I will take it from here!" Axis's voice boomed over the psychic comms channel.
The blood-soaked Custodes looked back in astonishment, seeing a golden-haired figure streak over their heads like a thunderbolt.
The Shield-Captain in command, a warrior named Kashar, immediately recognized the primarch.
His arrival was a monumental boost to their flagging morale. With a being like him present, victory was certain.
"You heard Lord Axis! Execute his command! All units, withdraw from the Webway!" Kashar bellowed.
As he passed by Axis, Kashar dropped to one knee. "Lord Axis," he said with a respectful nod, "the battle is now in your hands."
"Rest assured," Axis replied with a firm nod.
When the last Custodian and Sister of Silence had cleared the entrance, Axis was finally able to unleash himself.
He took a deep breath, and the Super Saiyan blood within him began to boil.
"Haaaaaa!"
A blinding golden light erupted from him.
Axis's black hair flashed to a brilliant gold, then ignited with a vibrant green aura, each strand standing on end. The violent wave of energy made the entire Webway tunnel tremble, yet he controlled it with such precision that it did not damage the delicate structure.
When the golden-green light subsided, Axis, the Legendary Super Saiyan, stood proudly before the daemonic army.
He stood at a towering three and a half meters, his body a mass of explosive muscle.
"Come on, you dregs of the Warp," Axis sneered, launching himself into the throng of Chaos daemons, "Try to keep me entertained."
The first to swarm him was a pack of shrieking Daemonettes.
These minions of Slaanesh brandished their grotesque claws, their cackles echoing with insanity. Axis's lips curled into a cold smirk as his form blurred.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
A series of sickening impacts followed, and dozens of Daemonettes simultaneously exploded into fountains of gore.
Axis's fists were so fast that they left only afterimages in their wake, each strike precisely targeting a daemon's vital point.
A rain of black and red ichor fell, only to be vaporized by his golden aura before it could touch the ground. Though he could not bombard them with blasts of Ki, he could certainly use its power to incinerate their remains and shroud his body in an untouchable energy field.
More daemons swarmed him from all sides. Blue Horrors of Tzeentch wove deadly spells in the air, Bloodcrushers of Khorne spewed molten blood, and lithe Daemonettes of Slaanesh danced with lethal blades.
Axis laughed, charging deeper into the enemy horde.
Every one of his punches carried the force to shatter mountains, and every kick could splinter the thickest daemonic hide.
A Bloodletter of Khorne raised its great axe to strike, but Axis caught the weapon with one hand. Before the daemon could process its shock, Axis crushed the axe and the arm holding it into pulp, then followed with an elbow strike that vaporized the creature's upper torso in a spray of blood.
"Is that all you have?" Axis taunted.
He executed a spinning kick that bisected three Horrors of Tzeentch, their bodies winking out of existence in his golden aura.
Suddenly, a piercing shriek echoed from the depths of the Webway. Axis looked up to see a colossal beast of Nurgle slithering toward him.
The mass of putrid flesh was covered in weeping pustules and gaping maws, dripping a deadly plague with every inch of its movement.
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ps?