"I understand. I'll depart at once," Axis said with a nod.
The opportunity to thrash Horus was a rare one. He was particularly looking forward to facing Horus empowered by the Four Chaos Gods; the man would make a perfect punching bag.
"Axis, I will prepare a force of five thousand Space Marines for you, all chosen from my own sons. Take these Imperial Fists with you," Rogal Dorn offered.
Five thousand was the largest force he could currently spare.
If he diverted any more troops, the defenses of Holy Terra would be critically weakened.
"That won't be necessary." Axis waved a dismissive hand, "Keep your five thousand Space Marines here to defend Terra. I am all that is needed."
The Imperium's defensive forces were already stretched thin, and Axis had no intention of bringing conventional Space Marines along.
Besides, in his eyes, ordinary warriors were of little consequence. For a being of his power level, numbers had ceased to be relevant.
Kasha, standing nearby, smiled and nodded in agreement. "Rest assured, Dorn. Axis and I are more than enough to turn the tide of this war. Bringing too many men would only hinder our movements."
"Axis, this time, do you intend to use the Aeldari Webway?" the Emperor asked.
"Yes, Father-in-law," Axis replied, "Warp travel is too slow, and with the current ferocity of the Warp storms, the Webway is the safest route."
Moreover, if he were to travel through the Immaterium, he would require at least a Sword-class frigate.
Such a vessel would be crewed by tens of thousands of mortals, and Axis had no time to look after them. By using the Webway, he and Kasha could travel light.
"Even if you use the Webway, Axis, you should travel aboard an Imperial vessel. Using the ships of those… xenos, seems inappropriate," Rogal Dorn insisted.
"He is right, Axis," the Emperor interjected, "Coincidentally, the Imperium has just completed several new vessels equipped with engines capable of traveling at twenty times the speed of light. One is a Sword-class frigate that can carry tens of thousands. It is the latest model. You should take it. If you encounter any danger, you can rely on its superior speed."
This was one of the first true faster-than-light escort ships, newly commissioned and representing the Imperium's first real warship capable of both FTL travel and navigating the Warp.
The next generation of these engines was already planned to reach thirty times lightspeed, with designs to scale them up for installation on cruisers and, eventually, even battleships.
"Very well. I will take the ship with the new engine," Axis said after a moment of consideration.
He was genuinely curious to see the Imperium's first true FTL vessel in action. Twenty times lightspeed would be sufficient.
"Good. Dorn, you will be responsible for assigning a crew for Axis. I need him to depart within three days," the Emperor commanded.
"Yes, Father. I will see to it at once," Rogal Dorn said with a nod.
"Excellent. Now, the rest of you may leave. Axis and Magnus will remain. I have some words for them," the Emperor announced.
Rogal Dorn, Malcador, and Kasha bowed their heads to the Emperor and slowly exited the chamber.
Even the Sisters of Silence and the Custodians standing vigil by the Golden Throne withdrew, leaving the Emperor and Magnus seated upon it, confident that no daemons would breach the Webway for the moment.
Once they were alone, the Emperor turned to Axis, his expression grim.
"Father-in-law, is there something troubling you?"
"Axis, I have felt the power of the Dark King and I have further glimpsed my ultimate fate. I am destined to sit upon this Golden Throne for eternity," the Emperor said with a sigh.
While he and Magnus had joined their psychic might moments ago, he had perceived the Dark King's influence and understood the destiny it had arranged for him.
Axis nodded.
The Dark King was indeed a grave problem for the Emperor. The Emperor's human form was merely a vessel, a shackle.
Upon ascending, he could burn the entire galaxy to cinders.
"Father, just now, I felt a terrifying, immense dark power. Was… was that you?" asked Magnus, who sat beside the Emperor on the Throne.
For a fleeting instant, he had sensed the true magnitude of his father's strength, or rather, the strength of his soul.
It was a power he could never hope to match: a supreme and overwhelming darkness, cold and filled with despair, yet blindingly radiant.
"It was me, and yet it was not. I do not know how to explain it," the Emperor began, attempting to describe the nature of the Dark King to Magnus. "I am the chosen vessel of the Dark King. I am the Dark King, but the Dark King is not me." He explained that the moment the Dark King awakened, his own personality would be assimilated, and he would be reborn as a god of cosmic annihilation.
"Father, will you… will you one day become that thing? That… Dark King?" Magnus's voice trembled. He had glimpsed it's power, and he could somewhat understand the magnitude of what his father was saying.
"Yes. In a future of darkness and despair, it is my inescapable fate to become the Dark King," the Emperor confirmed, "In a sense, I am nothing more than kindling for its awakening."
"Even if I kill Horus, this cannot be changed?" Axis asked.
"Indeed. I do not wish to dampen your confidence, Axis, but that is the truth."
Not necessarily, Axis thought. Perhaps nothing in the Warhammer universe can kill the Dark King, but I possess something that might. I refuse to believe it has reached a multiversal level. As long as it hasn't, once I fully master the Power of Destruction, I can erase it from existence.
"Axis, you must be prepared," the Emperor said, his gaze fixed on him, "Your enemies are no longer just the Four Chaos Gods. The Dark King is now your potential foe. Do you understand? This means I, too, am one of your enemies."
"Father! What are you saying? How could you be one of Axis's enemies?" Magnus exclaimed.
"Don't you understand, Magnus?" the Emperor replied, "The moment I become the Dark King, I will die. Or rather, my personality will no longer be what it used to be. When the last of my humanity is gone, when I no longer care whether the human race lives or dies, that is when the Dark King will be born. And its birth will cause the entire universe, including the Warp, to be consumed. Therefore, if anyone is to stop me, it must be Axis."
He could now faintly grasp the Dark King's plan. The irony of being locked in a battle of wits with himself was not lost on him.
"This is not the time to discuss such things. That day is still far off," Axis said, waving a hand. "Let us first deal with the Horus Heresy."
"Axis is right, Father. There is no need to worry about this now. I will remain by your side, always," Magnus added.
"Very well. Go and prepare, Axis. You will depart in three days," the Emperor instructed, "For this mission, I grant you my full authority. If you discover any Primarch has betrayed the Imperium and turned against me on the battlefield, you have the right to execute them on the spot. Whomever it may be, if they dare defy your command, do not hesitate. Eliminate them."
"I understand, my Emperor." Axis nodded, bowed deeply, and then turned to leave.
Over the next three days, Axis spent his time meeting with the Emperor and Magnus and dedicating the rest to his wife. Though they had been separated for nearly a century, for the two of them, the time had not felt so long. After all, one had been in a deep slumber while the other had only been in the Warp for a few days.
"Axis, have you thought of a name for our son?"
"I did have one in mind. How about Vegeta?" Axis suggested with a playful grin, "Our son will be a prince, after all."
"No. I feel a certain malicious intent in that name. Pick another one," Kasha said, shaking her head firmly. Seriously? Naming our son after vegetable?
"Kakarot?"
"You wretch, pick a normal name! That one just sounds strange. Who would name their son 'carrot'?" she snapped, slightly annoyed.
"Hahaha! Alright, alright, I'll stop teasing you. Though it is a tradition of Saiyan naming. How about… Kratos?" Axis offered.
Kasha narrowed her eyes, but… Indeed that name felt like a good match.
"That will do. With a name like that, no one will doubt he is your son," Kasha said, nodding in agreement.
The time passed swiftly.
Three days later, Axis and Kasha boarded the new Sword-class frigate with its twenty-times-lightspeed engine.
Guided by a group of Harlequins, their ship entered the Webway and set a course for the Isstvan system.
...
Meanwhile, on Holy Terra, the Emperor and Magnus returned their full focus to repairing the damaged Webway. No sooner had Axis departed than the daemons within launched another ferocious assault. It seemed they somehow knew that a certain god of slaughter had left their world behind.
...
...
ps?