"You plan to offer him a boon?"

"Yes." The spirit replied. "To thank him for saving me from the darkness."

"I know him well enough. Do not wait for him to ask. Simply give him what you want. Otherwise, he's going to ask for a boon that isn't for himself and I think he deserves a reward, at least."

"Ah, I see. Very well."

"You do not want your name to be known to those you saved?"

The God-Emperor and I were... somewhere that both existed and did not, a place that wasn't entirely physical, but solid enough that I was able to look down and watch and smile as the world that I'd struggled so hard to save was now... well... saved. The traitor and heretic forces were all but wiped out, their presence cleansed by the counterattack of the Guard, alongside the Carcharodons, engaging in shock and awe tactics. A great sea of green was spreading across the surface of the planet, even the formerly-barren lands that'd been bled dry by the presence of the Hive City of Kuresh, now little more than blasted ruins. The Mechanicus Fleets had arrived, as well – a little too late, I'd say, but all loyalist forces were welcome. And the STC, which I'd left behind for them in a place that they couldn't possibly miss, would only aid the Imperium in the long term. I cared not for fame or recognition – not for wealth or glory. I only wished to serve mankind, to see its ascension with my own two eyes.

Untold billions lay dead, a veritable ocean of corpses to be processed into corpse starch, a process that the Mechanicum, I thought, would be very amenable to performing. Eventually, Praxtor would rise again. It wouldn't be anytime soon, for the world had suffered truly devastating wounds and blows, but it will rise again – stronger and purer than it ever was. Athulhum's blessing, alongside the God-Emperor's edict that no resources were to be taken from Praxtor for the next five hundred years, would see to that rise.

I shook my head. "I do not want my name to be known, my lord. I did what anyone in my place would've done."

The God-Emperor, beside me, smiled and nodded. "Then, let it be known that it was not Perry Anatinus, who aided my healing, who arose from the dead to strike back against the Great Enemy, and who saved an entire planet from the clutches of those who would see it burn; not Perry Anatinus, but a simple Guardsman – humble, loyal, and dutiful. A hero that every man, woman, and child in my Imperium may strive towards."

"You honor me, my lord," I bowed my head and kept my gaze low in the presence of the Master of Mankind. Despite everything, it was all still so surreal, being here, right beside the God-Emperor of the Imperium, the one true god. "So... what now?"

"Now, you wait." The God-Emperor commanded. "My Aquilon Shields are coming. I am guiding their journey through the Immaterium as we speak. They will be here shortly. They will accompany you in dealing with the threats and problems I'm sending your way, Perry. Think of it an insurance policy on my part; you've become an asset to the Imperium, hence, it is in my best interests to you keep you alive and unharmed."

Custodes, the God-Emperor's personal legion, his body-guards, his favored creations, legendary warriors in golden armor, said to be even greater and higher than the Astartes themselves. And I would be serving with them. This honor was... beyond me. I am unworthy of it. Still, despite that, I would endeavor to be worthy, to be better. The power I now wielded, despite its origins, also came with responsibility – a duty of mine to better serve the Imperium of Mankind.

I nodded. "I understand, my lord. I will do everything in my power to serve you, the Imperium, and mankind."

"What of Athulhum, my lord?" I asked, mostly out of curiosity. The spirit disappeared after our very brief meeting, vanishing in a haze of light. Athulhum's creation remained, a veritable forest that grew on blasted and irradiated soil, a great tree that bore healing fruits, each one potent enough to soothe even the God-Emperor's wounds, according to himself.

"Athulhum will move to another world after it is done with this one," The God-Emperor said, frowning slightly. "I still cannot make sense of what sort of being that 'spirit' actually is... a living avatar of Enuncia, perhaps? Inconceivable. Such a thing cannot exist and yet I have two examples of them, right here."

"My lord?"

"Ah, never mind my musings. Whatever the case, Perry, Athulhum has taken upon itself a monumental task for the sake of mankind; it is best, I believe, for us to leave it well-enough alone." The God-Emperor finished. And I would ask no more on that topic, I supposed. "I will send you down now, Perry. We shall talk once again when the time is right. I have already briefed the Aquilon Shields on your peculiar talents. They will know what to expect."

"What of my mission, lord?" I asked. Once again, I was curious. Where was I headed? Who was I meant to kill? What was I meant to do? These were merely some of the questions that raged across my head. The God-Emperor turned to me and knelt. "What would you have of me, my lord?"

A moment passed, before the God-Emperor answered. "There is an... item that you must retrieve, an artifact from the ancient days of mankind, a device of incredible power. It is known as a Golden Core. There used to be millions of them, but now only one remains. You must journey to the world of Garrekk... or, at least, that what it used to be called, before it was overrun and conquered by Orks, and retrieve the Golden Core from the stronghold of the ruling Warboss. The Aquilon Shields will know what to do with it; do not worry. Your problem, the solution to which I leave entirely to you, is the acquisition of the artifact itself; you will be in charge of planning. Consider this a test of your creativity and resourcefulness."

I nodded. I'd never faced Greenskins before, but I've heard of them many times from veterans. Those who've faced them before, I recalled, shuddered in fear at the mere mention of them. Others claimed they were little more than mindless brutes, pests to be eradicated by bolter and holy fire. I wasn't sure which was which, but – logically – if the Imperium considered them a grave threat, then Orks were very likely NOT mindless brutes, but likely cunning soldiers as well. They wouldn't be considered one of mankind's greatest enemies, otherwise, but merely another xenos race to be stomped into the dust and left extinct in mankind's trail.

And here I was, about to launch an assault on a world that was full of them. Fortunately, I will be fighting with the Emperor's chosen, the legendary Custodes themselves – not alone. Truth be told, the hard part would be the planning itself, simply because I'd be shooting in the dark, so to speak, having absolutely no experience on the matter. Still, that did not mean I couldn't learn. With my powers, I was now functionally immortal, which meant I had as much time as I needed to figure out how to plan and coordinate, a task that usually required attending an Officer's Academy, but I didn't have that luxury; what I did have, however, was the luxury of failing as many times as necessary. "I will do as you command, my lord; consider it done."

"I have have come to expect many things from you, Perry Anatinus, my loyal Guardsman." The God-Emperor said, his presence fading... no, not fading, but pulling away. My eyes widened for a moment, before I realized that the form before me was merely a projection of the Master of Mankind's truer and greater self on Terra. I blinked once and, very briefly, found myself at the foot of a great throne of gold and fire, of glimmering starlight and winged angels. And upon that throne sat the God-Emperor, shining and glorious, a golden giant with blazing eyes, beautiful and awesome. My heart quickened as I fell to a knee and dropped my head low. This was the God-Emperor's true form, I realized. How amazing it was to look upon him, even if only briefly. And, when my lord spoke, the universe paused and his voice echoed across the cosmos. "Do not fail me, Perry. Do not fail mankind."

"I live only to serve, my lord."

And then, everything faded and I soon found myself back on the ground, surrounded by fields of green. But this wasn't just any patch of forestry. This place, all of it, every living thing here, was created by Athulhum's power, saturating the very soil beneath my feet. I breathed in for a moment, uttering a prayer to the God-Emperor, before I started walking westward. With Kuresh now little more than rubble and the former High Command reduced to charred corpses, the only other city within a reasonable walking distance was Halfor – not quite a Hive City, since it was a refueling hub at heart and not an industrial complex as Kuresh had been, it was no less imposing and prosperous. And the other survivors, of which I hoped there were plenty, would likely make their way there.

With my newfound 'healing' ability – which, really, was just an added function of my evolved [Flesh Shaping] skill – I could go about fixing as many loyal imperial citizens as I could and I suspect there were plenty of injured right about now, suffering and dying, having little access to proper medication. Athulhum's fruits likely wouldn't begin circulating until several days – if we were lucky – or weeks, which was the more likely possibility, from now. But the injured camps were full now. In such places, there were many who simply sought death, over suffering – understandable, but also a grievous waste of life that would've otherwise been better spent on the battlefield, against the enemies of mankind. I couldn't allow such a thing, especially not when I had the solution.

West... that was all I knew. The city of Halfor was somewhere to the west.

Ah... before that.

I stopped at the edge of the greenery and looked into my [Inventory]. I still had both the [Random Weapon Card] and the [Random Entity Card]; combined with my Admin's admission to boosting my 'luck' – I wasn't sure how that worked, at all – I was quite excited to see just what I'd get from both of them. It'd been a while since I last got anything resembling a Gacha Token; these weren't quite the same, but I'd argue that they were better, since I already had an idea as to what would come out of them as opposed to a Gacha Token that was wholly random.

I took the [Random Weapon Card] from my [Inventory] and flung it straight to the air, where it exploded into motes of shimmering light. And then, a new item appeared.

Common Item Received!
Poor Man's Rose – A relatively small and low-yield thermonuclear device that is meant to release vast amounts of radiation through neutrons, alongside a host of airborne chemicals that break down the molecular bonds of any and all carbon molecules within its maximum range of three kilometers. Used best against living targets.

My eyes widened. This was a common item? It was essentially a weapon of mass destruction. What was perhaps the strangest part about it was its size. This thing was... small.. extremely small, actually, about the size of a single bolter round – maybe even smaller. And it was powerful enough to wipe out even the largest Hive Cities; if the initial explosion didn't kill everyone, then the resulting fallout certainly would. This was... very interesting. I could definitely use this for the coming mission.

Next, I took the [Random Entity Card] and tossed it into the air as well. I didn't have high hopes for this one, however, as I wasn't quite sure I was interested in summoning more entities, like that rabbit. But, I'd take all that I could get. Besides, I technically already had an entity in my [Inventory], after all, what with the Catachan Devil nestled in there, something I desperately wanted to drop atop my enemies. The [Random Entity Card] broke down into motes of light as well.

Uncommon Item Received!
Entity Card (Catachan Greater Barking Toad) – Good luck with this one lol!

Yep, this one is staying in my [Inventory] for a very long time.

Shaking my head, I resumed my sprint.

AN: Chapter 32 is now up on (Pat)reon, where the resurgent Primarch is introduced!