Chapter 26: A Much Needed Talk

"My betrayal is mild in comparison to your Imperium's"

- Traitor Primarch Fulgrim, Emperor's Children

Tired brown eyes squinted upon the blinding darkness. His irises attempted to adjust on the severe lack of light but failed miserably. The man swiveled his head, and although he could feel his body's movements, his sight was filled with nothing but a void of nothingness. Eerily enough, he experimented on his limbs to which he felt were still intact. But something gnawed at him.

Perhaps it was the unusual feeling of being weightless, one that he had only experienced once and did not relish it considering who had caused it. Another reason could be of how his whole body shivered as if naked. There was no wind or anything that could cause the temperature to drop so drastically and yet, if he could only see, he swore that swirls of mist would've exited through his nose and mouth.

"Where…am I?" The guardsman asked himself as well as any possible listener within earshot.

But alas none answered. His calm mind began to waver as memories of the previous events started to fill him with dread. As if he was watching a helmet camera feed, Rodeman's last cohesive memories flashed in his mind. The second massacre that had enveloped Roliter's platoon, the fight against Leona and Farseer Lofn's intervention, it all returned in full glory. But what troubled him the most was his last memory before blacking out. Specifically the unconscious and bloodied form of a certain silver haired eldar as everything burned.

"Uelesh…where is she?" He mumbled as his stoic walls born from years of being a guardsman slowly crumbled.

He blinked his eyes rapidly in an effort to clear whatever was hindering his sight. He flailed wildly as he searched for solid ground as Rodemman continued to move his head almost constantly. The thought that he might have been sucked into the warp after his body lost to fatigue did not help with the situation. A myriad of emotions began to swirl in his chest. Fear, anger, hopelessness, these were all negative human emotions that would've called the attention of daemons if he was in the warp as it often became a beacon for a feast for them, or so he was told by the navigator of the Senatus.

"Emperor, preserve me." He found himself silently calling out for the man that had created the Imperium.

He was unsure of where he now stood when it comes to the worship of the Emperor of mankind. Yet it did not change the fact that it was still him who had created the bastion for humanity. Thus his belief, faith in him never wavered but merely altered. But given his current predicament, he decided to push the issue away for another time. He prepared himself to raise his voice but as soon as he had opened his mouth, a sudden blinding light engulfed his being. Rodemman's eyes burned, both literally and metaphorically as his mouth fell wide open in a silent scream. No voice was produced as his body spammed from the burst of light.

Soon, after what seemed to be centuries of torment, the familiar pull of gravity caused him to fall onto all fours whizzing for air. His head came into contact with a smooth yet hardened surface of what seemed to be the floor of wherever he was. No pain erupted despite his fall simply because it was duller than compared to that of the rapidly ceasing pain that he had been put through. Still, it was more than enough for him to start slamming his right fist onto the floor as he clenched his eyes shut and lay to his side in a fetal position. Rodemman's ears rang as if an explosive ordinance detonated right beside him. A few moments passed before he was able to regain his bearings.

Shakily and with still slight discomfort to his muscles, the guardsman stood up. He rubbed his eyes in an attempt to disperse the tingling sensation before opening them. The first thing that he noticed was his lack of armor and weapons. He did however, still wore the same black shirt, khaki cargo pants and dark green combat boots. There were no signs of the battle beforehand and looked as if it were newly issued to him. Looking up, his mouth fell wide open.

"What…the…" Rodemman's voice trailed off as he beheld ornate walls and ceilings.

Pristine, cream marble floors surrounded him and a pair of gate like doors stood toweringly in front of him. Imperial gothic design showed the known history of the Imperium. From massive men with a lightning symbol on their armor's chest plate up to guardsmen, space marines and sororitas fighting side by side against a wave of tyranids. He examined the sculptures and paintings that designed, wherever he was. Vibrations and the rather loud thumping of metal boots phased through the amazed guardsman.

"Heir of the noble house of Luludilius." Rodemman spun around, brought back from his stupor by a masculine voice.

He was first met what it seemed to be the lower portion of the man's power armor, it too was colored in gold. Slowly, Rodemman trailed his head up the giant of a man until he saw a pointed helmet looking down at him. The guardsman audibly gulped and backed a few steps due to the daunting figure that stood in front of him.

"He awaits." The man's voice boomed with authority yet with compassion.

'Noble house of what?' The guardsman asked silently.

Movement caught the attention of Rodemman. His head snapped towards the opening gates. It never gave out a sound, not even a simple creek which both baffled and awed the agri-world born man. Looking back at the golden figure that was watching him, a motion of a gauntleted hand told him to proceed. He nodded humbly as he made strides towards the still opening gates. Normally, Rodemman would be suspicious considering his earlier predicament but strangely enough, he didn't. He held up his hand to protect his eyes from the intense brightness that emanated from the room. He continued to march on the pure golden room.

He squinted as his sight struggled to see through the vibrant color.

"Rodemman Luludilius, a former corporal of the 27th Kallidian Imperial Guard Regiment and now a Lieutenant in Wyvern platoon of the 178th Fonrali Guard Regiment. The son of former Captain Rexinius Luludilius and former Lieutenant Eliada Maxotis Luludilius of the 111th Corusian Imperial Guardsman Regiment." A more imposing man announced as he sat upon a golden throne.

He had raven black hair on top of his well-defined features fit for an aristocrat. Golden leaves adorned his forehead as he wore golden power armor reminiscent of a space marine albeit larger and more decorated.

"By the…" Rodemman's words failed as the man in front of him smiled at him.

"Do you know who I am, heir of the Luludilius name?" His name was music to the guardsman's ears who managed to nod.

Rodemman gulped and steeled himself as he stood in front of the very man who had created the Imperium itself, the primarchs and the space marines amongst many others.

"I-th-ye-yes. E-Emperor." The humble guardsman managed to stammer out a reply.

He was frozen in shock, unable to move or even tear away his gaze from the man. Then realizing his mistake, he began to fall onto his knees caused by the faith that had been instilled upon him since birth despite him questioning it. Halfway through, an unknown force halted his movements and soon forced him to stand upright once again. Brown eyes met black as the prior had a dumbfounded and inquiring look while the other had a slight frown on his face.

"There is no need for such…gestures guardsman. I am as human as you are despite my rather larger and much stronger body and psyche. That, I can assure you." The Emperor explained as he began to rub his temples.

"Seriously, despite everything that I have worked hard to achieve, humanity has merely taken a step forward then five steps back. I wouldn't mind wiping out those who tainted the Imperium with such religious superstitions. If only I have my body." He sighed with a still flabbergasted Rodemman watching him.

"But at the very least, I know that one of my people is smart enough to question millenniums of religious superstition crafted after my mortal body's fall."

Rodemman was about to raise his voice as several questions regarding the topic swirled in is mind when a gauntleted palm stopped him.

"Another time, Rodemman. There are more important matters to attend to and I'm afraid that the remains of my psyche can only hold this meeting for so long."

"U-understood, your grace." The guardsman agreed with a slight bow to his body.

"Good. Now that we have firmly planted the fact that I am not a god, I believe that you are curious as to the sudden turn of events that had transpired, especially of your…newfound power." The Emperor said as the same that he vaguely remembered using against Leona materialized out of thin air in front of him.

He had neither the time nor the focus to inspect it given the circumstances. Now however, away from the flames of war, he could finally marvel at the blade that he had used. It was a simple longsword but it is obviously not a simple blade despite its standard design. Its sharpness was unlike any other and even the power swords that some commissar wielded could not match it. Plus, he was sure that the blades of the Imperium could not send out slashes of pure energy towards an opponent a few meters away from him. The blade looked like it was made out of a mixture of gold and iron in a more traditional manner. It had the more precious material abundant than compared to the latter making it glow with a golden hue.

On it, there were several inscribed runes and the Imperium Aquila by the base of the blade. Its silver guard with golden trims was shaped as a pair of angel like wings with a red jewel emplaced on its center. The hilt was wrapped in blue leather and its pommel was crafted to into a four pointed star and held a green, oval stone. It looked somewhat similar to the stone placed on Lofn's chest.

"This is your heritage. A sword both crafted from materials of human and eldar origins. A token of the alliance formed between the Luludilius family, by extension the Imperium and the eldar Craftworld of Yulath. It is not a normal blade seeing that it is deeply rooted to the souls of the children of Luludilius' and could only be summoned and used by those worthy and pure enough to wield it." The Emperor explained causing another awed reaction from him.

"Now…" The stoic voice asked for Rodemman's attention to which he was more than glad to spare.

"First order of business, do you know anything about your family?" The Emperor asked.

"Yes, sir. As you already know, both of my parents were former guardsmen whom both served in the 111th Corusian Imperial Guardsman Regiment. They were assigned to the same platoon where they first met and eventually fell in love. Such relationship was slow to progress but once they both came into terms of their feeling, they were said to be inseparable since then. Or so that was what my father told me." Rodemman explained.

The Emperor nodded slowly as he stroked his chin.

"Yes, that is true. But I was asking about your 'family' not your parents." Rodemman blinked as he failed to grasp the concept.

'But I already told him the general information regarding my family.'

"I mean, do you know anything about your heritage? Your bloodline aside from your parents?" Rodemman shook his head.

He thought about it and found it somewhat…odd. Never did his father or even mother told him anything worthy of note regarding his 'bloodline' aside from the occasional tales of his father's childhood mishaps in the Hive World of Corus prior to his enlistment to the guard. Not even the names of his grandparents were known to him or whether his father and mother had any siblings. Not that he bothered to ask anyway, he was contented with his parents. But part of which was that the Imperium was terrible with keeping tabs on its own people.

"Very well then, let me explain it to you then." The Emperor announced before snapping his fingers.

Suddenly, a huge holographic screen materialized on the guardsman's right flank. Its greenish hue greatly contrasted to the surrounding area and was happy to see a different color. Names appeared in green boxes then a line began to connect each of it forming what seemed to be a family tree. Rodemman saw both the names of his parents and his own at the lowest part of the tree which indicated that he was the latest addition to the family. Studying the graph, he noticed that the tree which started from a pair of names grew. It seemed that the original patriarch and matriarch of his bloodline had four sons and three daughters which further gave birth to many more children. But as he flipped through the names, he noticed that many would fail to sire an offspring and as the generations passed, the family dwindled in number.

Thus came to his name which showed a lonely line connected to his parents. His father apparently had two older sisters but no names were connected to them to denote to be their husband or child. His mother's name was connected to the 'Luludilius family' through his father much like the husbands and wives of his ancestors. After examining it, the guardsman came into two conclusions. One was that his family came from a long line of ancestry and seemed to have started somewhere, long before the dreaded Horus Heresy to which the family began to dwindle more rapidly. Second and was somewhat saddening. He was the sole heir to the name, meaning that he was responsible with continuing their line lest it falls to obscurity.

"You came from an old line of nobles hailing from Terra itself." Rodemman looked back at the seated figure.

"Your ancestor and the first patriarch of your family, Cornelius Luludilius was also from an older line of nobles and heroes but chose to shed the name and start his own. So in a sense, you are also an heir to the said family but that is a story for another time." He explained causing Rodemman to scratch his head in slight confusion.

"Ancestry is very complicated." He muttered causing a chuckle from the Emperor of mankind.

"True, very true." He replied before slipping back to his stoic and serious nature but had a small smile on his face.

"Your family has fought alongside me for generations, on many different wars and is one of the very few houses that I trusted completely." The emperor explained, his smile never wavering albeit with some saddened eyes.

"I remember how I watched men and women from your line, all great in their own way, live and die for their people." Rodemman nodded, honored of how his family was deeply trusted by the Emperor and surprised that he apparently came from a long line of heroes not to mention his nobility.

"But again, a story for another time. As I was saying, your family was among the few that I trusted and thus gave them an important task."

"Which is?" Rodemman found his curiosity voicing out and promptly had his hands to shut his mouth.

The Emperor chuckled again. "Do not fret Rodemman, you are free to speak out your thoughts and I understand your curiosity but beware of it. Everything must be kept in moderation lest you fall into the hands of Chaos much like one of my sons."

Rodemman nodded in silence.

"The task that I gave them was the pacification and formation of a stable alliance between mankind and the eldar." The Emperor continued.

"But…I thought that we were at war with them even before the Horus Heresy." The guardsman said, baffled at the notion of his ancestors doing acts that he was now doing in Fonral.

"Yes and no. It's rather complicated really, I blame it on the eldars entirely but I digress. You see, the eldar race was once a galaxy fairing civilization or empire much like the Imperium is today, only much technologically and biologically advanced than us. But due to an event known simply as 'The Fall,' their race was almost annihilated. The remnants of their empire broke into several factions that now lived in either isolated planets or in gargantuan ships."

"The exodite worlds and craftworlds." Rodemman interjected.

"Correct. And although they were of one race, each world or at least each craftworlds are fully independent and thus has their own culture and form of leadership. Exodite worlds mostly rely on their craftworld brethren in terms of assistance in technology, arms and in warfare if it is needed but other than that, each has their own views on humanity." The Emperor explained.

"Some views us as inferior and thus often engage us in warfare. But others chose to have an alliance with us, mostly uneasy and full of suspicion but an alliance nonetheless. Of course, your ancestors greatly helped in forging these alliances with those craftworlds and exodite worlds that either wishes peace or under the cause to fight a mutual enemy."

At the mention of a common enemy, one thought raced through his mind.

'Chaos.'

"And thus explains the existence of embassies on some of their worlds" The Emperor snorted which felt was something of his stature wouldn't do.

"I swear, those fools of the Inquisition thought that they were the first ones to do such things. Honestly if only I could just wipe them out with all the troubles that they have caused." The Emperor sighed.

"I'll seriously have to ask someone to cut Guiliman's life support systems. He was the root of all of this Imperial Cult nonsense." He said causing the guardsman to flinch at the idea that the Emperor was openly considering killing off one of his loyal sons.

"Ummm…why wo-"

"Now, before the Horus Heresy, I'm sure you know how it went. One of our scouting fleets has discovered a potential agri-world at the outer fringes of Segmentum Tempestus." The Emperor returned to his tales, cutting off a humble and slightly terrified Rodemman.

Although he was eternally grateful with meeting the Emperor, he couldn't help but reminisce about one of the older farmers back in his home planet.

"Considering that the Great Crusade is at its peak, the Imperium is in great need of such precious resources such as food. Thus, I sent an expeditionary force in order to claim it. Amongst them were three guardsman regiments and some few thousand civilians who gathered themselves at the prospect of pioneering an agri-world."

Things clicked into place as Rodemman's eyes widened. "Fonral."

The Emperor nodded. "The rest are already known to you, although vague."

"And what is my part in all of this?" Rodemman asked, uncertain as to where he literally fit in with the history that the Emperor had recounted.

He smiled. "I would have told you sooner but I saw that you must first be…reeducated of your family history."

Suddenly, lines began to appear obscuring much of his sight. It was as if he was watching a holo-transmission with a bad signal.

"Which had eaten up our time. But do not fret, young heir. Your part will soon be revealed to you in due time. Simply continue on assisting Fonral in their fight against the forces of Chaos."

Rodemman snapped into attention and gave his best salute.

"I will not let you down, your excellency." The warm and encouraging smile was the last thing he saw before everything was enveloped with static.

"Do what you think and feel is right." His voice said before everything went dark.