"Tell me," Axis asked aboard the small transport craft, "who do you think is more likely to betray the Imperium? Perturabo, or Karl, the Second Primarch?"
"To be honest, I believe both of them should be loyal to the Emperor," Ferrus Manus replied. "But after Fulgrim, and then Horus… I am not so sure about anything anymore."
"Yes," Vulkan added. "They are both incredibly loyal to the Emperor. Whether it is the Iron Warriors or the Second Primarch's Children of Tomorrow, they fight with exceptional bravery."
"I heard that the Iron Warriors have a rule called decimation," Axis said, "Supposedly, if a mission fails or a siege is lost, they pick one man out of every ten, and the other nine are forced to kill him."
In the history he knew, three Primarchs were known to enjoy the practice of Decimation. One was Angron of the World Eaters, but he had already been dealt with ahead of time. His Twelfth Legion had even been reformed into Axis's own Golden Legion, so that fate was avoided.
The second was Konrad Curze of the Night Lords, and the third was Perturabo, Primarch of the Iron Warriors. All three of these Primarchs harbored a deep dislike for their sons, often considering them to be failures.
"What?" Vulkan looked utterly baffled, "Axis, where did you hear such a rumour? Who told you this? The Iron Warriors have never practiced decimation. Only the Night Lords have engaged in such acts."
In this timeline, Perturabo had never done such a thing.
The Iron Warriors were known to be a remarkably cohesive legion, renowned for their expertise in siege warfare.
Now it was Axis's turn to be stunned. Has things truly changed? What in the warp was going on? His recent experience had discouraged Axis into thinking not much had changed even after his involvement in the imperium. Now, it seemed, that wasn't entirely the case.
"What is the current situation with Perturabo's Iron Warriors?" Axis asked, a sense of urgency in his voice. He realized he needed to properly understand the state of his brother Primarchs.
"The Iron Warriors are an exceptionally powerful Space Marine force," Ferrus Manus explained. "When it comes to siege warfare, they could be ranked second among all the Legions of the Imperium."
"Wait," Axis interrupted, his confusion growing. "You said they're the second-best at siege warfare. Then who is first?"
The Lord of Iron's legion wasn't the master of siegecraft?
This had to be some kind of mistake. What Legion could possibly be better at breaking fortifications than the Iron Warriors?
"Of course, it's your Golden Legion, Axis," Ferrus said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "Your Golden Legion is the one most eager for siege warfare in the entire Imperium, the one always willing to crack the toughest nuts. Every hard-fought campaign, every grueling battle, every nigh-impregnable fortress in the Imperium has been conquered by your gene-sons."
The fighting prowess of Axis's Golden Legion was formidable. Their very nature made them stronger than a typical legion.
Axis's sons were incredibly adept at combat, and so the most dangerous and arduous siege missions in the Imperium were invariably assigned to the Golden Legion. Under the leadership of the Son of Axis and the valiant Captains of the Golden Legion, their reputation had spread across the galaxy.
They were even hailed as a symbol of the Emperor himself. If the title "Emperor's Children" had not already been given away, Axis's Golden Legion would have been the most deserving of the name.
"So, all the toughest fights, all the most difficult fortresses… my sons handled them all?" Axis asked for confirmation.
The two Primarchs glanced at each other and then nodded in unison, wondering why he found this strange.
Ever since Axis's disappearance, every time the Golden Legion went to war, the Space Marines would charge into battle with the same resounding cry: "For the Golden Father! For the Golden Blood! For the Son of Axis!"
"Alright then," Axis said, changing the subject, "What about Karl, the Second Primarch, and his Children of Tomorrow?"
"The Children of Tomorrow is the new name for the Second Legion," Vulkan explained, "It's said the Legion suffered a devastating blow long ago that nearly led to its complete annihilation. Afterwards, the Second Primarch returned to Holy Terra and rebuilt the Legion from the ground up."
Hearing this, Kasha glanced at Axis.
She knew the truth. After all, wasn't it Axis himself who had wiped out the original Second Legion?
In his mind, Axis considered it an act of mercy that indirectly saved the Second Primarch. At the time, all the Second Legion's Astartes had been controlled by xenos technology, and killing them had been the most merciful course of action.
"I heard Perturabo has a sister. What's the situation on his homeworld, Olympia?" Axis asked, probing another critical point.
The final straw that had broken Perturabo and his Iron Warriors in the original timeline had been the rebellion on Olympia. The planet's populace, groaning under the brutal rule of the Imperium and the bloody culture of the Iron Warriors Legion, rose up in defiance.
Perturabo's own sister, personally led the glorious uprising with the goal of seceding from the Imperium.
His adoptive sister stood forth and decried his cruelty, only to be strangled to death by Perturabo's own hands. He then proceeded to slaughter the population of Olympia until it was little more than a graveyard.
Immediately after this brutal war, Horus extended an invitation, and the Primarch of the Iron Warriors joined the Warmaster's side without a moment's hesitation, setting him on the path of rebellion. Yet even that path brought him little but misery.
He was first tricked by Fulgrim, who drained his power to complete his own daemon ascension ritual. Later, during the Siege of Terra, he was meant to be the lead commander, only to have the position stripped from him by Horus.
The life of Perturabo was a tragedy from beginning to end, a man who had wished to be a scholar or a diplomat but was forged into a weapon.
When the Emperor first arrived, he thought he had found salvation, only to discover that the Emperor, like his adoptive father, merely wanted to use him as an instrument of war.
His sister's fate was therefore crucial. If she was dead and Olympia had been ravaged, it would mean Perturabo had already fallen to Chaos.
"His sister is doing very well," Vulkan replied, oblivious to Axis's inner turmoil, "Father used that Tree of Might fruit of yours to create a treatment that can be given to some of our relatives. It grants those not blessed with the strength for battle a long life and a physique comparable to that of a Space Marine. His sister has been serving as the head of logistics and recruitment on the Iron Warriors' homeworld for many years."
The Fruit of the Tree of Might that Axis had provided had indeed been a significant boon to the Imperium.
"Axis, your questions are a bit strange," Ferrus Manus said, his brow furrowed, "Why would you think Perturabo is a traitor?"
To a normal person, Axis's questions might have seemed random, but a Primarch's intellect could easily discern the underlying suspicion.
Axis was testing the possibility of Perturabo's betrayal.
"When I was lost in the Warp, I saw certain visions," Axis said, weaving a plausible explanation, "The Perturabo I saw was completely different from the one you describe. In my visions, the Iron Warriors were the undisputed masters of siege warfare, and they regularly practiced decimation. I even saw… I even saw Perturabo strangle his own sister with his bare hands." He presented the knowledge from his past life as glimpses of a future he had witnessed in the Immaterium.
The excuse was perfect.
The two Primarchs nodded in understanding. The Warp was indeed a mysterious and treacherous place.
For someone who had been lost within it for so long, seeing visions of possible futures was not at all unbelievable. However, based on what they knew, neither Perturabo nor the Iron Warriors were anything like what Axis had described.
"Axis, it's possible that the vision you saw was flawed," Kasha interjected gently, "Didn't some of the things Father foresaw also change?"
She reminded them all of the terrible tragedy that had been predicted for the Twelfth Legion: the horrifying decimation, the implantation of the Butcher's Nails across the entire legion.
But now, the War Hounds would never become that monstrous force. They were Axis's Golden Legion, his Golden Sons.
"Let's take it one step at a time," Axis said with a weary shrug, "I'm not sure what to make of the situation anymore."
Soon, their landing craft arrived at the flagship of the Second Primarch. The Iron Warriors' vessel had docked at nearly the same time.
Guided by a detail of Children of Tomorrow, the group made their way to the reception hall of the Gloriana-class battleship, where Karl, the Primarch of the Second Legion, was waiting for them.
"Hahaha! It has been too long, Axis! I have missed you dearly," Karl boomed with genuine warmth as soon as he saw them.
He strode forward and enveloped Axis in a massive hug, a gesture so enthusiastic it made Axis feel slightly awkward.
"It has been a long time, Karl," Axis said with a small smile, "The last time we saw each other was during the Rangda Xenocides."
At the same time, he gave Kasha a subtle look.
She understood immediately and began to discreetly use her psychic powers to probe the minds of the surrounding Astartes.
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ps?