Beta'd and Edited by The Grand Cogitator and Dystopian God
Septimus: Old and Busted Vs New Hotness
The snap and hiss of lasgun fire filled the air, punctuated by deeper rumbling explosions of artillery and the ripsaw noise of autocannons and heavy bolters, along with the screams of the dead and dying. The landscape of Reladon Quintus was a blasted and blacked one, the very ground tained and corrupted by the ruinous powers. Here, the mighty armies of the Imperium of Man had clashed with a great force of Chaos Undivided, led by the treacherous Black Legion Astartes.
To counter the most feared enemies of humanity, and to take the fight to their bitter foes once more, the Blood Angels had sent two full companies of their finest warriors, including their dreaded Death Company. So fearsome was the fighting, that the Blood Angels alone were not enough to stem the tide of chaos, and they had called upon no less than four of their successor chapters: the Flesh Tearers, the Angels Encarmine, the Sanguine Host, and the Red Seraphs. Against the Black Legion and the forces of Chaos Undivided, each chapter had dispatched brothers afflicted by the Black Rage: the psychic scar left upon the chapter by the death of Sanguinius, their Primarch, and the curse of their gene seed.
And, it seemed, fragments of the very soul of the Brightest One.
With the Blood Angels fought many of the greatest warriors of Mankind: the Death Corps of Krieg had sent the 673rd Division of Infantry, along with the 12th Siege Division. From Cadia came two regiments of Infantry, and the 23rd and 74th Armored division. As Reladon Quintus had been a forge world, the Titan Legion Indominus had joined the fray, along with vast numbers of skitarii. Countless more Imperial Guard Divisions battled as well, nothing but numbers in the endless calculus of war.
But alongside the Black Legion, there were not only traitor titans, but seemingly endless hordes of traitor guardsmen, and even mighty demons of the warp. The conflict had already lasted several years, and looked to go on for many more. At this point, the former Forge world was destroyed beyond salvaging, and the war had simply become yet another pointless battle in the neverending conflict between Humanity and the Ruinous powers. It was bleak, hopeless, and endless.
Until upon that field, stepped two lights. Dim, for the time, but holding great power. At first, not even the eyes of the Ruinous Powers focused overly much on Reladon Quintus, beyond sending ever more legions to fight and die there.
The Empress and her party appeared in the bombed out remains of a mechanicus building, which was serving as the headquarters for the Astartes Chapters upon Reladon Prime. Instead of a robe, the Empress had been outfitted by the finest craftsmen of the Ultramarines, and in mere days they had turned out the finest power armor for her frame. She was bedecked in golden glory, and a radiant aura surrounded her, though for now it was dampened.
WOW. I KNEW THAT THE IMPERIUM HAD GOT TO CRAP IN MY ABSENCE, BUT THIS IS SOMETHING ELSE. DO NOT EVEN MY SPACE MARINES REMEMBER HOW TO KICK ASS AND TAKE NAMES?
"To be fair, mother, they fight the Black Legion, who were once the Luna Wolves," Magnus said quietly. He closed his eyes, grimacing. "And...I sense my own sons upon this world. Not many, but...there are several dozen Thousand Suns who have taken the field here."
"I don't like this place," Madoka whispered, shuddering slightly as she folded her wings about herself. "There's no hope here. The people cry out in agony...Sigmari...we have to help them."
WE'RE HERE TO GET MY SON'S SOUL BITS, THEN WE'RE GOING TO THE NEXT HELLHOLE. ONCE I'M BACK IN CONTROL, THEN WE CAN END POINTLESS SLAP FESTS LIKE THIS BY KILLING THE FOUR TUMORS FOREVER.
"But...but they need us now," Madoka cried, trembling slightly. "Sigmari...you're their goddess. Can't you hear them!? They're begging for you to help them!"
I AM NO GODDESS. I CANNOT HEAR PRAYERS, DON'T BE ABSURD. NO GOD CAN. THEY ARE JUST THE SUPERSTITIOUS MUTTERINGS OF-
Madoka leapt up, flapping her wings once, then spread her arms wide and placed her hands on the Empress's ears.
Holy Emperor, protect me and my brothers, let us live just one more day. Shield us from-
-Emperor protects, The Emperor protecst, I will not fall, I will not yield, oh Emperor, the pain, the-
Oh Emperor, it hurts, it hurts! Please, Oh Glorious Overlord, save me! Don't let me-
-guide these sacred munitions this day. Ave Imperator, Overlord of Mankind, we recite the artilleryman's hymn for thee. Let our aim be true, let our-
-commit the souls of these, the Glorious Dead, to thee, O Savior of mankind. Shelter their souls from Chaos, and may these heroes know only peace in thy-
Madoka removed her hands as tears streamed down her face, and the Empress staggered back, horror and shock painted on her face. Madoka hovered slightly in the air, her wings flapping slowly.
"Didn't you hear? They're not praying to me. All these lost souls...they pray to you. You are their goddess. Won't you answer them?"
Before the Empress could answer, there was a crackle and a dozen terminators in varying shades of red armor appeared around the group. Kitten raised his bolter, while Mangus raised his hands.
"Hold, sons of Sanginius!" Kitten called. "I am Captain General Kittenus of the Custodes. We are here to aid you, not to harm."
"We have detected warp signatures in this area, and you seem accompanied by a demon," one of the terminators, a librarian by his war gear rumbled, stepping forward and raising a force axe.
STAND DOWN. DO YOU NOT KNOW YOUR EMPRESS WHEN SHE STAND BEFORE YOU?
Ever so slightly, Sigmari unleashed her golden aura, and light filled the battered ruin. The terminators of the Blood Angels and their successor chapters gasped, and as one, knelt before their Liege.
"H-holy Emperor," the Librarian gasped. "I...I am Lucius Antros, Librarian of the Blood Angles. But...but you...you are whole? And a woman?"
LET'S FOCUS ON THE ME NOT BEING A CORPSE BIT. I'LL DEAL WITH THE FACT THAT I'M MISSING A PENIS AFTER I SAVE MY PRECIOUS ANGEL. BESIDES, CONSIDERING WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU WHEN YOU GET IMPLANTED WITH GENESEED, YOU REALLY DON'T HAVE ANY BASIS FOR A DICK MEASURING CONTEST. EXCEPT THE DAMN SPACE CORGIS. I SHOULD HAVE HAD RUSS AND HIS FURRY BRIGADE SPAYED AND NEUTERED.
"My Liege? But...but is that not a daemon that accompanies you?" Antros asked, squinting through the light at Magnus. "I would swear that is Magnus the Red."
"You'd be right," Magnus said, and instantly the Terminators were on their feet, ready to charge. "However, I have renounced my allegiance to the ruinous powers. I serve different mistresses now."
"That is...good news? But there are Thousand Sons yet here to fight alongside the Black Legion. Do you mean to turn them as well?"
Before Magnus could answer, Madoka spoke up. "Yes! All who repent shall be saved! It is not too late, for anyone!"
The Blood Angels seemed confused by this, but as Magnus the Red, the Sorcerous Daemon Prince apparently stood at the side of the Empress once more, they did not argue. It was not theirs to question the Empress of Mankind.
"Is this an angel you have brought with you, my Liege?" Antros asked, reeling slightly at the implications of the Emperor...ess...being alive again.
SHE IS MADOKA, AND SHE CLAIMS TO BE A GODDESS. SHE SAYS SHE CAN BRING ME BACK MY SON, SANGUINIUS.
"Sanguinius? A goddess? I...Yes! Yes, my Liege! How can the Blood Angels serve you?"
The representatives of the successor chapters called their agreement as well, and the terminators formed up as an honor guard, escorting the Empress and her party to the armored bunker beneath the ruined factory. All looked up as the Empress approached, her golden light bathing the faces of battle brothers of the astartes and servitors alike. Simply seeing her was enough for most to realize who she was, and the cries of the terminators that "THE EMPEROR LIVES, AND WALKS AMONG US" were enough to convince the rest, as was the presence of a custodes.
By the time they reached the command center deep underground, word had already spread, and they found the officers who were not already in battle waiting for them, kneeling in supplication.
"Blessed Empress, we are humbled by your presence," the Blood Angels Captain cried as she entered into the chamber. "I am Captain Donatos Aphael of the Second Company of the Blood Angels. How can I serve you this day?"
I AM HERE TO RECLAIM THE LOST SOUL OF MY SON, SANGUINIUS. IT SEEMS HE IS NOT BEYOND SAVING YET.
There was a gasp, and the space marines looked up, astonished.
"Sanguinius? He...our beloved Primarch can yet be restored to us?"
SO THIS BEING CLAIMS. SHE IS MADOKA, AND SHE AND HER COMPANIONS HEALED ME, AND MY SON, ROBOUTE GUILLIMAN. SHE SAYS SHE IS A GODDESS. WHILE I AM LOATH TO ADMIT SUCH A BEING WHO IS NOT AN WART ON THE ASSHOLE OF THE UNIVERSE EXISTS, SO FAR SHE HAS BEEN...DIFFERENT.
"I can sense fragments of Sangunius here," Madoka said, closing her eyes. She pointed a finger to a kneeling figure in black armor. "There. He carries a bit of Sanguinius."
The marine in question stood, the icons of his office of Chaplin clearly visible. As was the Death Company badge. "The soul of the Primarch? What do you mean?"
"I think you call it the Black Rage," Madoka explained, walking over to peer up at the chaplain. "It's a bit of Sanguinius's soul, finding purchase in the souls of his children. It's wounded, bleeding. I think I can help heal it. If you would?"
"I… I would give anything to restore my Primarch. If this is the Empress's will?"
THERE IS NOTHING I WOULD NOT DO TO RECLAIM MY SON. DO AS SHE SAYS.
"Kneel, please," Madoka said, and the chaplain lowered himself. "What is your name?"
"I am Daenor, Chaplain of the Death Company. I am...surprised that you know of the Black Rage. It is a closely guarded secret."
"I'm the Goddess of Hope. And I am here to bring it back to the lost sons of Sangunius." Reaching up, Madoka took the kneeling chaplain's head in her hands. She closed her eyes, breathing out. "Yes. It's here. It's small, but...there."
A glowing spark emerged from Daenor's mouth, and he groaned, slumping over. Surprisingly, Madoka caught him, despite being a fraction of his size. She easily held the weight until two Blood Angels took their chaplain in hand. Slowly, she walked over to the Empress, holding up the fragment of soul
"This is a bit of Sangunius. Not much, but it's a start. I would give it to you to hold, as you are his mother. Will you keep it safe?"
I WILL LET NOTHING HARM MY SON, OR HIS SOUL. The Empress reached out, gently taking the spark, then holding it up, before slowly closing her hand over it, and absorbing the soul shard. She would be able to reclaim it at will now.
"Brother Daenor, are you well?" Captain Aphael asked as the chaplin slowly stood, shaking his head.
"I...I am, Brother. But the Black Rage...it is gone. I...I am no longer cursed. The flaw, it is...it is healed. I know not now, but...but I believe this being may indeed be able to restore Sangunius to us."
"Emperor be praised," Aphael breathed, then jerked. "Ah, I mean Empress."
I AM NOT A GOD. NO NEED TO PRAISE ME. JUST DO WHAT I SAY WITHOUT QUESTION. AND NOW, I SAY YOU WILL NEED TO RECALL YOUR MARINES. WE MUST GO TO BAAL TO HEAL MY SON.
"Everyone?" Aphael asked, looking worried. "Just the Blood Angels?"
NO. ALL OF YOUR SUCCESSOR CHAPTERS. ALL AFFECTED BY THIS BLACK RAGE.
"I...yes, my Emperor. It shall be done. It will take some time to withdraw our brothers and fight free of this world, but we shall do so." Alphael looked troubled, as did the other marines, but none of them questioned the order.
"Mother...we should help them," Magnus said quietly. "I want Sangunius back as much as anyone, but...we can't just abandon this battle. It would leave the enemy to overrun your remaining forces, and millions will die."
I CAN'T WASTE MY TIME PUTTING OUT EVERY LITTLE BRUSHFIRE. ONCE YOUR BROTHER IS RETURNED TO US, THEN WE CAN PUT AN END TO CHAOS ONCE AND FOR ALL. THIS IS JUST A SIDESHOW.
"But the people here don't think that! Didn't you hear their prayers?!" Madoka demanded, her eyes once more wet with tears. "Please! You HAVE to help them."
THERE IS NO TIME. WE HAVE OTHER WORLDS TO VISIT. THESE LOYAL SONS OF SANGUINIUS WILL RALLY TO OUR CAUSE, AND THAT IS ENOUGH FOR NOW. YOU HAVE TO SEE THE BIGGER PICTURE.
"What I see are hopeless men and women dying by the thousand every moment! Can't you hear the wail of their souls!? Can't you feel their pain and despair!?"
I CAN. BUT I HEARD BILLIONS WEEP AND DIE EVERY MOMENT I SAT UPON THE GOLDEN THRONE. SURELY IF YOU ARE A GODDESS, YOU HEAR THE SAME THING.
"Yes. But unlike you, I care." Madoka glared at the Empress, then suddenly spread her wings. "I am the Hope of Mankind. And I will NOT abandon this world to Tzeentch, the False One, nor to Khorn the Butcher, Nurgle the Pestilent, or Slaanesh the Perverse!"
DO NOT SPEAK THOSE NAMES, FOOLISH GIRL! TO SPEAK THEM IS TO-
"Oh, they will know I'm here. EVERYONE will know I am here," Madoka snarled. "Fine. Leave your followers to die. If you won't save them, I will." The goddess raised a hand, and vanished in a shower of light.
"Mother! We have to move, now!" Magnus roared, his own own rainbow wings springing into existence. "They are here, now!"
DAMN THAT GODDESS! SHE IS GOING TO RUIN EVERYTHING! The Empress looked up, gritting her teeth as the eyes of the Ruinous powers suddenly bore down on Reladon Quintus. For high above the battlefield, Hope spread Her Wings, and for the first time in years, sunlight, golden and pure broke through the smoke and fog of war, bathing the land below it in brilliant light.
SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF HUMANITY. I AM MADOKA, GODDESS OF HOPE. FOR TOO LONG, THIS UNIVERSE HAS LIVED WITH ONLY THE FALSE, EMPTY LIGHT OF EVIL GODS. TODAY, THAT CHANGES. REPENT, O SINNERS. FOR JUDGEMENT IS AT HAND.
The words pounded into the skulls all present, and the Empress drew her sword. TO ARMS. IF THAT FOOL DIES, MY SON IS LOST FOR ALL TIME.
"Sons of Sanguniius, your empress calls you to battle!" Alphael roared. "Shall you answer?!"
"FOR THE EMPRESS!" the astartes bellowed, and raced for wargear or to fighting positions. Alphael and his honor guard joined the Empress as she raced back to the surface. It was not hard to locate Madoka, for she stood high in the sky, glowing like the sun, a bow of pure light in her hands. Arrows that sparkled like the stars themselves rained down on the lines of chaos, smiting demons and destroying twisted monstrosities wherever they fell.
Such actions, however, drew the attention of more than dark gods. They also awoke the fury of titans.
The war trumpets of traitor titans echoed across the battlefield, and a twisted abomination that had once been a Warhound Titan trained its weapons upon Madoka, for she was not hard to locate. The thing fired, but the Empress stretched out a hand. Her golden brilliance swelled, her light pulsing, and the path of the turbo laser beams. The beams bent, going around Madoka. The feral titan staggered, but refocused its aim.
MAGNUS, DAEMONS APPROACH. WARD ME, The Empress ordered.
"As you say," Magnus agreed, and his hands were bathed in warp light as the air around them distorted, and demons of every kind hissed and began to emerge from the warp, drawn to the materium by the raw display of power. The Space Marines roared out battle cries and engaged, and soon all around the Empress was swirling chaos as Kitten and Magnus guarded her.
But she was not done with the twisted titan. Stretching out a hand, the Empress drew deeply upon the Warp, and with a slashing motion, sent out a ball of pure energy at the dark machine. The titan buckled as the attack impacted it, but did not fall. With a roar, the Empress flung out both hands, and the air around the chaos machine turned as hot as the surface of a sun. Warbling in pain, the titan swayed, then fell, its metal body bubbling and blistering as it turned molten.
Above, Madoka had been engaged by an entire host of daemons, as well as a swarm of enemy strike craft. Her arrows unerringly struck them down, but more and more were appearing at every moment, and soon she would be overwhelmed. The Empress reached out once more, swatting down entire flights of demons with a gesture. So focused on her efforts was she, that the Empress failed to notice another feral Warhound approaching, until it was too late. The thing roared, and fired, and the Empress had time only to swear at Madoka's idiocy.
Before the titan attacked , however, the air before the empress shimmered with white light, and the titans weapons sparked off the shield harmlessly. Then, the sky for miles around burst with brilliant illumination as a pillar of pure, raw divine power stabbed down from Madoka and enveloped the second warhound. When the light faded, nothing remained.
The Empress had no time to think on this, as around her, Chaos Marines had started to appear, teleporting in bursts of warp power, or with the aid of twisted technology. Among them were sorcerers of the Thousand Sons, and upon seeing Magnus the Red standing with what could only be the Emperor of Mankind reborn, they roared in anger.
"MY LORD MAGNUS, WHY DO YOU SIDE WITH THE RISEN CORPSE KING? WHY DO YOU BEND TO THE FALSE EMPEROR?" one Sorcerer cried.
"You fools! Don't you see, my son?" Magnus pointed to Madoka, who still fought in the sky. "There is a true goddess! There is real hope! The salvation for this fallen galaxy! Turn aside from Chaos! That path leads only to ruin, we know that! This is a CHANCE, man! A real chance for humanity to FINALLY be able to become what it should be! For knowledge to increase, for us to push beyond our horizons for the first time in 10,000 years!"
"SHE IS A FALSE GODDESS. WHAT LIES HAS THE CORPSE EMPEROR TOLD YOU, FATHER?"
Magnus sighed as his son edged closer. "You can't be saved. I knew it. I'm sorry." Magnus reached out as the Sorcerer sprang for him, roaring in mad rage as he swung his warp staff.
NO!
A star seemed to explode between Magnus as his son, as Madoka appeared. She was not in the form of a young woman now, but of an alabaster titan, with eyes of glowing light, and a bow that blazed with green, encrusted with living vines and roses.
DO NOT! HE IS YOUR SON! HE IS YOUR FATHER! YOU CAN BE SAVED, SIMPLY-
The Thousand Sorcerer ignored Madoka, and Magnus cried out in panic as his son smote the goddess with a burst of warp power. Cracks appeared in her skin, and she stumbled back, stunned.
"I DO NOT WISH TO BE SAVED! I SHALL STRIKE YOU DOWN, AND THE FALSE-"
Barreling forward, Magnus grabbed his son's head in one massive red hand, and squeezed. The sorcerer's helm shattered, and blood and brains splattered Magnus's face as he gritted his teeth in pain. More from the armor digging into his hand than the fact he had killed one of his gene children. Tossing aside the corpse, Magnus turned to the wounded Madoka.
HE...HE WAS YOUR SON. DID YOU NOT LOVE HIM? She asked, her voice somehow less, hot diamonds burning down her cheeks to spatter molten on the ground.
"I did. But he was too far gone. Nearly all my sons are. Madoka. Not all can be saved. Especially not those who still fight. They will kill us all."
BUT- The great golden eyes squeezed shut. VERY WELL. SIGMARI!
THIS HAD BETTER BE GOOD, YOU IDIOT CHILD! YOU HAVE DRAWN DAEMONS AND THE EYES OF THE FOUR TUMORS THEMSELVES!
WE MUST END THIS. WE CANNOT LEAVE YOUR FOLLOWERS HELPLESS WITHOUT THEIR MIGHTIEST WARRIORS. TOGETHER, WE CAN STOP IT. STOP IT ALL.
YOU ARE INSANE. BUT THE EYES OF THE DEVOURER ARE UPON US ALREADY. FINE. I SHALL AID YOU.
Her wounds closing, Madoka stood, and reached out a hand to the Empress, who grasped the great marble hand, now the same size as her own, though the Empress wore thick armor. Together, the goddess and the Empress took off into the sky. For a day and a night, they flew across the world, and thunder, lightning, and the wrath of the goddess slit heaven and ruptured the earth.
But when it was over, only a fraction of the forces of Chaos remained on the world of Reladon Quintus. Even as their forces were destroyed, the Dark Gods laughed. For this was yet another victory for them. Now, they had the measure of their foes. And they were not impressed.
After the destruction, Madoka and the Empress stood atop a mostly intact tower, looking out over the battlefield. The forces of Chaos were routed, the traitor titans destroyed, daemons banished, and Black Legion decimated, leaving only rank and file cultists and traitor guardsmen to face the embolden fury of the Imperial Legions.
"See?" Madoka panted, leaning against her bowstave, a triumphant grin on her face. "We won. We saved them. Now, if we can get those fallen guardsman to surrender, then-"
THEY WILL CORRUPT MY LOYALIST FORCES. THEY MUST BE HUNTED DOWN AND EXTERMINATED TO THE LAST MAN, the Empress declared, her expression grim.
"What?! No! Some of them are surrendering, they can still be saved they-"
THEY CANNOT. The Empress glared at Madoka, then opened her mouth. "You are perhaps the most arrogant, stubborn, reckless individual I have ever met."
"Arrogant?! You call me arrogant! You're the one who doesn't listen to the prayers of her own followers! You ignore the pleas of the dead and the dying! I'm going to have to send for Aqua and Ristarte. It will take months to heal everyone, but-"
The Empress made a cutting motion with one hand. "No. We are moving on. We have what we came for. We cannot tarry here."
"But we are here! We can't just leave them! We-"
The Empress interrupted Madoka, grabbing her head in both hands and gazing into the goddess's eyes. "You showed me once the suffering of the few. Now, I show you the good of the many."
Suddenly, the goddess and the ruler of humanity were transported beyond Reladon, beyond even that system. Before them spread out the galaxy at their feet, hundreds of billions of stars, planets beyond counting.
Madoka blinked, looking down and frowning. "I know what this is. I've stepped outside of time and space before. Why are you showing me this?"
"You look, but you do not SEE. Here is Reladon." The Empress touched the planet. "Can you hear the voices and screams from it?"
"Yes, of course. I'm here now. I can feel the pain and suffering of the mortals here," Madoka said, looking melancholy and wan. "But we can help them, we-"
"We have done too much already. The planet is now doomed. We'll have to evacuate what forces we can, and then leave it to its destruction for now. A pity. It was a useful forge world. The lack of supplies and munitions is going to cause serious problems, but it is beyond saving now."
"Beyond saving!? We just defeated Chaos here! How can you say that!? Look at all your armies, they can defeat anything that comes here!" Madoka ranted.
"No. They can't. Do you not sense it? The shadow on the Warp that now approaches?" the Empress demanded. She took Madoka's hand, thrusting it into a blackness between the stars.
Madoka recoiled as a gnawing, desperate hunger filled her mind, and the hissing alien whispers of a vast mind and power comparable to her own. "What...was that...tyranids? But how? They're just mindless beasts!"
"Tyrands are far more than mindless beasts. They are the Great Devourer. You drew the attention of it, and it has responded with an entire Hive Fleet. An entirely unknown one, and it has now turned for Reladon, as the light the two of us unleashed on the Warp will draw the Great Devourer towards the system, and it shall be utterly consumed. Our display has doomed these worlds as well." The Empress indicated two score and more planets. "All told, there will be over a trillion dead for your temper tantrum over the next few decades. Because you could not stick to the mission. Yes. Reladon would have been lost. Every Imperial Soul upon that world would have been slain. But it would have been a worthy price to pay to get Sanguinius back, and they could have kept those forces of Chaos occupied while we invaded the Eye. Now, the Black Legion has retreated, and instead of being tied up, the Warband will be ready to help fight us when I start my Last Crusade."
Madoka could only stare in horror, her eyes wide, her wings drooping slightly. "But...but they needed me…"
"What they need is a strong Imperium, which means a strong Humanity. They need the pointless infighting of my supposed servants to end. They need for Chaos to be destroyed. And they need a bulwark that is the coming storm. Look.
The Empress pointed beyond the galaxy, to endless dark forms that drifted slowly towards it.
"No...no! There are more of them!?" Madoka flapped her wings, hovering over the hungry shadow that inched closer towards the galaxy. "But this...this would destroy everything!"
"And it is but one challenge I face," the Empress declared, glaring at Madoka. "The Tyranids are-"
"We."
Pausing in her tirade, the Empress scowled. "What?"
"We. We will face it. Do you honestly think you're going to scare me off by pointing this out?" Madoka glared at the Empress. "Ok. So I messed up here. But we can fix this, if we work together. I knew this galaxy was full of horrors and terrors. I didn't understand the full scale. I still don't. But there is a way to stop all this."
"Perhaps. It will take all of humanity united to do so. We must divide and conquer. First Chaos, then the xenos. It will be Mankind's darkest hour."
"It will be. They will need their goddesses." Madoka looked at Sigmari. "And we will need them."
"I will not allow Mankind to become your slaves, Madoka. I do not think you evil. You are unlike the Ruinous Powers, but you are every bit as dangerous and reckless, and the others I have seen are no better."
"You don't get it, do you? We're not here to rule," Madoka fluttered down, looking up at the Empress with an exasperated expression. "None of my friends or I want to enslave people. We want to free them! But we need your help and there's to do it."
"And how would they help you? Will you demand temples? Offerings of gold or blood? A lifetime of servitude?"
"I never ask for temples, but they get built anyway. Just as there are millions dedicated to you," Madoka pointed out. "But I will need their prayers and offerings. Not blood, never that. But it will have to be a sacrifice. Good deeds, prayers, something. That's what powers us goddesses."
"And so you enslave humanity to your yoke with the offering of Hope, just as Tzeentch. You are just like-"
The galaxy suddenly vanished as the Empress found herself knocked through the floor of the tower they'd been standing on. Her body hurtled through mortar and stone, before slamming out into open air. She barely managed to arrest her flight, skidding to a stop on the ground amidst dust and rubble. Madoka followed close behind, her glowing wings spread wide, and fury written on her face.
"Do not compare me to that monstrosity. You do, and I call off this alliance. I'll have it out with you, the same as those evil gods if I have to, but understand this: I come to SERVE humanity. Not enslave them. Those prayers and offerings are what I need to keep people safe. To give them hope. With their faith, I multiply their blessings, and am their sword and shield. But from where I'm standing, Sigmari? The tyrant and enslaver is YOU."
I WOULD SEE HUMANITY REBORN AS IT SHOULD BE! MADE INTO THE MASTERS OF THIS GALAXY, NOT MY SLAVES!
"And to do it, you demand they kneel to you. Tell me, what's the difference between the Chaos gods drinking the souls of their followers, and the millions the Black Ships brought to you?"
Golden light erupted from the Empress, and she launched herself at Madoka in a fury. Her blow sent the young goddess careening into the base of the tower, which then proceeded to topple over, burying the goddess under the rubble. The Empress stood there, panting, feeling something she had not felt in ages: Respect. She did not love Madoka, but she did realize something. Just like the goddess, for the first time in her entire life, she had found someone who was, more or less, her equal in power, if not experience, and at the same time was not her foe. It was galling, to say the least.
Growling, the Empress stalked over, waving her hand and moving aside a mountain of rubble at the same time as Madoka exerted her will and flung aside a massive section of the ruined tower. She stood over Madoka, panting, her eyes glowing with smoldering anger."I never asked for those sacrifices, nor did I want them. It galled me, but it was the only way. I could devour millions and damn them, or I could let untold trillions die in screaming horror and darkness. I hate myself for that, more than even for killing Horus. If there is one reason, ONE REASON, that I am willing to tolerate you goddesses, it is that you freed me from ever needing to feast on another soul."
Shaking her wings, the goddess stood, covered in dust. "Ow. I suppose I deserved that. Are we even now?"
The Empress slowly nodded, speaking once more. "I suppose we are. I still don't like you, or the concept of gods demanding humanities loyalty."
"I'm not demanding, Sigmari. I'm asking. And trying to prove myself worthy of it."
"You are young, foolish, headstrong and reckless."
"And you are old and set in your ways, grumpy and overly cautious."
"I might be grumpy, but I am not cautious. I merely understand the risks associated with my every deed. Do you understand now WHY I cannot save every single individual? Why I must focus on the larger picture? I am speaking now not as the Empress, but as Sigmari. Much as it galls me, with you, I cannot simply declare myself to be right by virtue of being wise and stronger than you."
"And I'm sort of irritated that I have to listen to a grump like you. Even worse, that you're actually right and have a reason for being grumpy," Madoka shook her head, then stuck out a hand. "Friends?"
"No. But allies. This, however, is my galaxy, and my Empire. You will discuss with me any plans you would undertake, and gain my approval of them."
Madoka kept her hand out. "I can't always come to you with every little thing. Sometimes, action has to be taken, and fast."
"Like the actions that threaten to send humanity into another civil war as the Imperium splinters without me on the Golden Throne, or lures a hive fleet to destroy a sector?"
"The actions that return your son to life, restore you to power, save at least one world from tyranids, and will regain you Sanguinius."
The Empress considered that, then clasped Madoka's hand, her armored gauntlet enveloping the dainty arm. "I suppose for that, I owe you a small degree of trust. Fine. Small actions you may undertake without seeking approval. But for larger campaigns, we have to coordinate."
"That's probably for the best. I do want to help. And you could use someone to keep track of the little guy in this."
"So long as the needs of the few do not outstrip the good of the many," the Empress agreed.
Madoka gave an impudent grin as the Empress let her hand go. "The many is made up of the few. Never forget that."
YOU ARE GOING TO CONTINUALLY TRY MY PATIENCE, AREN'T YOU?
"And you're going to constantly be a cynical schemer that wears on my own nerves, aren't you?"
The Empress glared at Madoka for a long moment, then jerked her head towards the Blood Angels command post. COME. I SUPPOSE I'M USED TO PEOPLE GRATING ON MY NERVES BY NOW.
The winged goddess fluttered along by the Empress as the two of them made their way over the broken landscape. "Will trillions really die because of what I did?" Madoka asked quietly.
The Empress kept her eyes fixed forward, and gave the blunt and honest reply. YES.
When tears filled Madoka's eyes and she sniffed and wiped at her eyes, the Empress relented slightly. DO NOT MOURN OVERMUCH. IF YOU HAD NOT ACTED, MANY WOULD HAVE DIED REGARDLESS. THAT HIVE FLEET WAS GOING TO IMPACT THE IMPERIUM AT SOME POINT, AND IF CHAOS HAD GOTTEN A HOLD HERE AND TURNED THIS INTO A FORGE WORLD OF THEIR OWN, THEY WOULD HAVE LAUNCHED A CRUSADE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN NEARLY AS DESTRUCTIVE. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED HERE, THE CONSEQUENCES WOULD HAVE BEEN GRIEVOUS. SIMPLY LEARN YOUR LESSON AND MOVE ON. I HAVE KILLED FAR MORE WITH POOR DECISIONS IN MY TIME.
"I'll learn from it, but I have to grieve. That is in my nature. Still, I will nurture the hope that somehow, we can avert that future, and save those in the path of disaster."
IT IS A FOOLISH HOPE. BILLIONS DIE IN WAR DAILY IN THE IMPERIUM.
"You don't get it yet, do you? I AM hope, Sigmari. I can no more stop hoping and trying to save people than most people can stop breathing or eating. That's what it means to be a goddess. I'm not mortal, any more than you are."
WHAT YOU ARE IS A PAIN IN THE ASS.
The goddess only giggled in response.