His master and his radiance still amazed him to this day, his light with every room he entered, his aura of clarity and strength.

But what surprised him most now was that even in his decaying body, even just his organs not having abandoned him in a moment of such despair and need, with his body being only a skeleton, he still held himself upright.

He didn't know how, and he didn't question, he just basked in his master's magnificence and thanked him every second he was privileged for it.

"My companions, even though I am very happy to be reunited with my most trusted companions, I am again in need of your services." her lord's wonderful voice would explode.

"Of course my emperor, say it and it will be done."

The Emperor nodded in what looked like appreciation.

"As you know... My body... My body is dying." Everyone would step out of their deep bow position and rise in alarm.

"Dying…my lord?"

He looked up at what looked like an expression of irritation.

"Yes, from what you can see, I'm a walking corpse, dying is a light way to describe it." Many of the golden guards bowed their heads in shame.

"We are sorry my lor-"

"I don't need you to be sorry, I need you to be better." He says as if disciplining him.

"Underneath my palace... Or what is left of it. There is an ancient and powerful body, and if what i forrsee is correct, intact. Its spirit has long since abandoned it." He explained as he walked past his custodians, who accompanied him through the huge golden walls.

"Bring it to me no matter the species, i can sense it is enough to hold my collective psyche, I need a new body for me to remain on the material plane permanently" He said with final resolve as all the guards bowed and marched to do their master's orders.

"My lord... I need to ask." He said, ignoring the hesitation in his soul with all his might, something that made his master look over (Curious? He didn't know how a skull could do such an act.)

"What about the Immaterium? You're pointlessly depleting your strength to keep that body and much more walking." The question seemed to stop the emperor completely, who would turn his full attention to the Custodes, who held all his strength not to do something embarrassing in front of his master.

"I didn't expect such a question coming from you Captain-General, I remembered Custodes of your rank as soldiers who followed orders without hesitation and question." He said in a tone Trajann couldn't decipher.

"My apologies my lord, i didn't me-"

"I'm glad my companions are more than just soulless drones" He said with an amused tone as he walked past him, who was in shock for a while before running after his master.

"I am also in such doubt, even with my strength depleted, I expected an absurdly greater resistance from the evil powers, but the Immaterium is quiet... No... Quiet is not the correct description, it is in complete silence." This sent the Captain-General into shock.

"That... That's not possible my lord, only if..." His eyes widened.

"Yes. Only if the Ruinous Powers didn't exist." The Emperor says with a surprisingly cheerful tone.

Cheerful? It wasn't possible... Had the chaos gods completely disappeared? His lord showing emotions? It was a lot to rationalize with at the same time, even with their very improved cognitive abilities.

"My liege, with all due respect, this is impossible! Even at an absurd distance from being on the fringe of the galaxy, the Chaos Gods would still reach us! And of all of us, you could feel them easily!" He tried to argue, while his lord didn't even look back.

"Even so, they're not, just dust. We're no longer in the galaxy we knew. We're in another dimension. One with it's own rules and it's own Realm of Souls." He said with finality, leaving the Captain General behind in complete shock.

The Emperor stopped after standing a few meters in front of the Custodes, turning his head to the side to catch a glimpse of the golden soldier who would raise his own to meet his master's.

"Make no mistake, our work is far from over." He turned completely to the Custodes who appeared to be questioning himself.

"That's why I need all of you more than ever." He says as he placed a hand on the guardian's shoulder, who looked shocked at the hand and returned his gaze to his master's skull, his golden eyes gleaming with a much more potent and magnificent radiance.

"Forever my master, my creator. I will follow you to the deepest pits of Warp if need be.

The emperor's gaze seemed to soften, and he could have sworn the skull seemed to smile at that.

"Thank you, my son." These words were the last motivations needed to fully drive the soldier foward, who gave a deep bow, and then ran in super-human speeds to catch up with his comrades.

The emperor smiled inwardly and watched him leave, turning back to his throne room.

It was time to release them from his influence.

An ancient terran said: 'the eyes are the reflection of the soul'. Looking at Horus, he could clearly see that this saying was very real.

The darkness that had taken hold of his brother, the Chaos gods had made a point of consuming every drop of good in his soul.

Before him stood the traitor, one day he was kind, trustworthy brother. An honorable skilled diplomat with a heart of gold.

Now? Now he didn't know anymore, but whatever it was, it wasn't his brother anymore.

The Dark Gods had poisoned him words, offering power and glory, they impressively kept their promises.

His psychic energy's was surreal, the power given to him by the Ruinous Powers had made him so powerful that his aura could rival their father's, but at what price?

Trillions of innocent and guilty souls alike were put to the sword, brother turned against brother and planets went up in flames at the black tide that his brother had unleashed.

Only by being present to his brother could he see how outmatched he was, and how little chance he had. But even so, he knew what his fate was, his visions all linked to his encounter with Horus.

From the day he landed on Baal he was perhaps cursed or blessed with visions of the future just like his brother Konrad. These visions more and more as time were proving to come true.

The Confrontation against Horus was no different.

He slowly lifted his gaze to meet that of the primaarch of the Black Legion, the Arch-Traitor and leader of the rebellion against the Imperium, the man he had once called his brother.

"Horus..." He said in a bitter tone as his eyes met Warmaster's, who gave a huge predatorial smile.

"Ahh Sanguinius, how good to see you brother, come to join the light?" He would say with a small chuckle, Sanguinius' face closed at that.

"Horus, please stop this madness, this war has gone far enough! Do the right thing and surrender!" Sanguinius pleaded with his brother as he took a few steps forward, Horus's smile immediately vanishing causing him to frown.

"You disappoint me little brother, our father's lies are still planted in your soul like our other foolish brothers, I beg you to do the right thing." He says with a smile that cut his face in half, betraying his plea as he extended his hand.

"And join me."

That was the last straw, was that what he cared about? lies? All the secrets they were kept were very frustrating it was true, but it shouldn't have shaken their loyalty, their father kept them in the dark for it, because of corruption, because of the barbarity of Chaos.

He could no longer take it for granted, trillions of innocent lives were extinguished in a wave of destruction and death, their sufferings being used as fuel for the rebellion's war machine.

He refused to believe the reports at first sight, but now he could see very well the person Horus had become, his pride held strong as ever, but his kindness turned to barbarity, his empathy turned to arrogance and loyalty turned to greed .

The Emperor was right to keep such secrets from them, if the Ruinous powers did this to one of his dearest brothers, it pained to think what they could do with the rest of them.

All his sadness had bubbled into unstoppable fury, a hatred that exploded in a streak of light from the depths of the angel's soul, his anger the fueling to an explosion of a sudden, swift attack on the monster in front of him as he drew. immediately his trusted Power Sword, The Blade Encarmine, which he once called his brother, with a roar that shook the flagship in it's core.

A fury so powerful that it would echo through the time itself, that it would make all his Sons feel it just for having a piece of his genes. A Black Rage that terrified everyone in that room.

Horus had been surprised by his brother's sudden and spontaneous aggression, expecting him to see the futility of opposition and stand down. Instead, he was met with the righteous fury of an angel who was thirsting for the blood of a traitor.

He scoffed at the action and drew his infamous Power Maul, The WorldBreaker while immediately activating his Power Claw The Warmaster's Talion. Charging back with a roar of its own.

The shockwaves of their confrontation made shockwaves felt throughout Horus' fleet. A clash of gods.

However, the end was expected, both by Horus and Sanguinius.

The Warmaster completely ripped apart the angel's body, with his psychic powers directly attacking his opponent's soul, Sanguinius was no death being as slow and as painful as the Warmaster could. He wanted to make his brother suffer.

That's what Horus had thought when the emperor arrived. The same still kept his serene gaze before Horus.

The despoiler immediately concluded that his father simply didn't care, that Sanguinius' sacrifice was just like the loss of a tool he would easily replace. Just as Logar had told him. Typical of a tyrant who wanted to ascend to divinity.

What Horus had not realized was that Sanguinius had only lost his body on the material plane, but his soul still held firm and strong in his father's protection. The emperor insisted that the sacrifice of his son was not in vain.

And even trying everything to kill Horus, even wanting to end his favorite, the one who had so many chances to become the greatest of the Primarchs, the same one who had exterminated trillions without hesitation. He just couldn't.

Sanguinius surprisingly, along with his psychic colletive as a whole, insisted that Horus' death would be mercy killing, that he would finally be freed from the temptations of Chaos. But the emperor still hesitated.

Horus was the first, Horus had fought at the Emperor's side for a good 30 years before any other Primarchs were recovered. He with Malcador always supported him and always volunteered in everything the Emperor needed, he carried all the virtues of humanity, the pinnacle of everything that could be completed.

The Emperor has always tried to show an aura of total coolness, mainly to show firmness and determination in his pursuit of a good future for humanity, for his subjects and the imperium as a hole as a strong leader in the most difficult times. But he was still only human. And even though he tried with all his might, he still couldn't put his feelings aside.

He truly loved Horus, as he loved his children.

He could excel at everything imaginable, from the most complicated sciences in human history to the most difficult theological questions. As a master of the best crafted military tactics to an unstoppable martial artist. A master of architecture to one of the most capable administrators imaginable.

But as a parent? It proved to be a complete disaster.

And even when one of his arms was destroyed, just when multiples of his organs and bones were crushed, he still couldn't deliver the final blow.

Only with the sacrifice of a nameless Solar Auxilia, who did the untinkable act of trying to protect him from his son. A man with a courage he hadn't seen in a long time.

His death showed that his son. The Beacon of light for the future of humanity, the very one he helped grow and taught, No longer existed.

His soul was just darkness, Chaos had insisted on dominating him completely.

He never admitted it. But he looked like he lost part of his own being when he was forced to destroy Horus.

But he didn't just kill him. He completely decimated his soul from the material plane and the immaterium, Chaos would never again use him as a pawn in his sadistic games.

But now he had another chance.

Entering the deepest parts of his collective, with a huge streak of light, the throne room was again engulfed by a splendor of light that would easily rival a dawn. However, unlike before, it was much more subtle and ended quickly.

In the aftermath, two figures found themselves in the throne room, kneeling in front of the master of humanity.

"W-where... What...?" One of the figures would say in a completely confused and exhausted tone. Trying to get up, only to lose balance and almost fall to the ground.

Being held at the last second by the emperor. He looked at it and his eyes bulged, the skeletal skull eyes seemed to warm up.

"Hello again my children." He says cheerful to the newcomers.

The figure in his arms quickly broke free of the embrace and would back away, its wings opening in alarm.

"S-Sons...? H-How do you... W-what...?" He asked completely conflicted.

"Sanguinius, it's me, The Emperor. Your father." He says taking a few steps forward.

"It's good to see you again."