The medical deck of the Epona was a large but sterile and austere space, a far cry from the ornate decorations on the rest of the ship. The walls and floors were pristine white, with rows of beds also furnished in white, and stainless steel cabinets and trolleys containing all the machines and tools the Emperor's doctors could require.
There were also a few private rooms attached to the medical deck, and it was in one of these that Isha was examining the currently slumbering Horus, laid upon a large bed, the Emperor looming on the other side as he waited for Isha to finish her scans...and to strike her down if she dared to harm the boy.
Fortunately, Isha had no intention of doing anything of that, and she made an effort to telegraph what she was doing, so the Emperor could see every last drop of her power and exactly what she was doing with it.
The child was an amazing example of gene-forging, Isha had to admit. His genetic sequence was absolutely perfect, not a single gene out of place. His brain was superbly crafted, an organic machine that could process and store information on a scale impossible for mortals. His body could endure and recover from damage in ways that no mortal, whether human or Eldar, could.
Horus was young, but within him lay the potential to rival the mightiest demigods of ages past, to wield enough power to slay the greatest of daemons and perhaps even battle the shards of the Yngir.
But it was not his physical shell that truly amazed Isha, but the spirit that lay within it.
Isha had known from the moment that she had sensed Horus that the Emperor's sons, the Primarchs, were no mere demigods. Their souls blazed with such power and had been sculpted in such a manner that there was no mistaking the fact that they were the result of god-forging.
The boy was not an actual god, of course. His power was but the palest shadow of her own, and even further from the Emperor's. He had no domain, no worshippers. He didn't even really know what powers he had.
But he had been created through god-forging nevertheless. Isha could see the techniques of the Old Ones in the very shape of his soul. She had seen them on Gorkamorka, on the K'nib Overmind, on the various gods that had died during the War in Heaven. On her own family, albeit to a lesser extent than the others, since they had existed even before the Old Ones had taken them and reforged them as weapons.
Isha had used those techniques herself, with Kurnous's aid, to create Lileath.
The boy's soul reminded her of how her daughter had been back then, if far less powerful. The same shining innocence and clarity of children, filled with impossible power and potential.
But that was not what mattered here. The question was, how had the Emperor learned god-forging? Isha had suspicions of where the Emperor had come from, and this lent credence to them, but to think he was not only a result of god-forging, but capable of doing so himself...
It raised even more questions than before. Isha had remained silent and not attempted to broach the Emperor on the subject of his birth before, but now, the curiosity was almost overwhelming.
Though perhaps after she had finished examining Horus. The Emperor seemed even more tense than usual.
The Emperor watched as Isha scanned Horus, strangling the urge to pull the boy away.
After they had boarded the shuttle once more, the Emperor had immediately touched Horus's mind, gently pushing the boy to fall asleep. Once they had returned to the Epona proper, he had taken his son to the medical deck, and immediately conducted an extensive scan of his mind, body and soul, searching for any trace of Chaos.
He had found nothing, but his paranoia was not so easily sated. After that, he had commanded Isha to work on it.
Still, even though it was for the best, and he doubted Isha would actually do anything, it set the Emperor on edge to watch an alien warp-construct examine his son's mind, body and soul, even with as light a touch as Isha was using, clearly aware of his mood.
At last, Isha pulled back, the green light fading from both her eyes and Horus's body.
"He is absolutely fine, Your Majesty," Isha affirmed. "Chaos has not left a single mark on him."
The Emperor exhaled, feeling unusually relieved, before immediately feeling slightly embarrassed at having done so. Usually, his psychic aura covered any of his weaker moments or reactions, but Isha was perhaps the only person who could see right through it. Even Malcador could not do so unless the Emperor suppressed most of his power. Powerful blanks could, but ones strong enough to do so were not common.
But Isha was capable of seeing straight through his aura, and though the Emperor would never admit it, it made him uncomfortable. It had been the better part of ten thousand years since he had bothered to suppress his aura to any significant degree unless it was in private with the closest of his companions, most of whom were dead now. Even to those he had wished to present a humbler or more ascetic image of himself, it was a matter of modulating his aura rather than suppressing it.
It had become a shield of sorts, allowing him to veil his true self from those he did not wish to see it.
The fact that an Eldar warp-construct was able to see through it with absolutely no effort still disconcerted him on some level.
"That is good to know," He said in response to Isha's report. "I am glad he is unharmed." The Emperor waited for a moment, suspecting Isha clearly had other questions. There was no way her examination of Horus had not sparked her curiosity.
He was not disappointed.
"You created your sons through god-forging." Isha said, clearly bursting with questions.
The Emperor nodded reluctantly. He did not wish to admit it, but there was no point in pretending otherwise. "I did, though I prefer to think of it as...soul-forging instead. My sons are not gods."
Isha arched an eyebrow, but did not press him on his choice of phrasing. "How in the world did you do it?" She asked, her voice brimming with curiosity. "Even in this limited manner, performing...soul-forging with the current state of the Immaterium should be impossible. Chaos would notice and interfere immediately," She paused, a look of realization crossing her face "...unless they were distracted."
The Emperor had hoped a little that she wouldn't pick up on that, but it wasn't exactly difficult to deduce that he had created the 'seeds' that would become the souls of the Primarchs while Chaos had devoted most of its attention to overwhelming the Eldar Pantheon as the Age of Strife raged.
"Still," Isha continued. "Even with Chaos largely distracted, you would need a reasonably safe place in the Aethyr to perform the ritual. Soul-forging is not an easily concealed process. How?"
"That information is not relevant to our agreement," The Emperor said evasively, trying to quell his annoyance at how much she had deduced from so little. "I see no reason to share it with you."
"I realize that, but I would still like to know." Isha pressed. "To find a place within the Immaterium hidden from the gaze of Chaos, where you could create your children without disturbance...it's an extraordinary feat. How did you do it?"
"As I said before, that is not relevant to our agreement," The Emperor said, irritation rising. "You have no need to know of it, and in any case, it is not a method that would work again, with Chaos no longer distracted." He reluctantly added, hoping it would make her back off.
Isha frowned, clearly annoyed by his refusal to answer but realizing there was nothing she could do to convince him. "Very well," She said, crossing her arms. "But I have a different question. Would you be willing to answer it?"
"That depends on what the question is." The Emperor said, wondering what she wanted to know now.
"How were you created?" Isha asked, her gaze sharpening. "Or rather, who created you? It was an Old One, was it not? Or a fragment of one, at least. It took an interest in your people when they were young, and decided to create you for some purpose, most likely to fight Chaos. And you likely inherited the knowledge of god...soul-forging from your creator."
The Emperor stiffened abruptly at her question. For a long moment, there was silence before the Emperor finally spoke. "Well, you appear to have deduced everything quite easily, so I don't understand why you're asking me what you already know." He said, an edge creeping into his voice.
Isha's eyes widened, as she seemed to realize she might have misstepped. "I was merely hoping for some confirmation," She said carefully. "And I wished to know whether or not you were created to fight Chaos-"
"Then you have your confirmation," The Emperor said tersely. "And yes, I was created to fight Chaos, if that is what you wished to know." By some of his creators, at least.
"I...see," Isha said, clearly having recognized she had broached a deeply sensitive matter, but unsure of what exactly the issue was. Not that the Emperor felt any desire to clarify them for her.
The circumstances and beings involved in his creation had always been a deeply complicated matter for him, and he had never explained the full details to anyone. Even his closest confidants and allies had only been given a basic summary.
The Emperor certainly wasn't going to have a heart to heart about it with an Eldar warp-construct.
For several moments, there was an uncomfortable silence, before Isha bowed. "My apologies for overstepping, Your Majesty," She said awkwardly. "I will return to my chambers, if there is nothing else you require of me?
The Emperor nodded curtly, turning his attention back to Horus as Isha backed away.
The Emperor ignored her as she left, focusing his attention on the still slumbering Horus. Isha's questions had awakened old memories, and as he looked at the peaceful, sleeping face of his son, the Lord of Terra could not help but wonder if he had repeated the same mistakes with the Primarchs that his own makers had made with him. With the Eldar Pantheon, with Gork and Mork, with all those immeasurably mighty and dangerous weapons of war masquerading as gods that the Old Ones had forged for the War in Heaven.
And yet, what choice did he have? What choice did any of them have?
For a long while, the Emperor sat at his son's bedside and brooded, but eventually, he sensed Juno marching towards the private chamber, and a moment later, there was a sharp rap on the door.
"Come in," He said, crossing his arms, and Juno entered, offering a brief salute. "Report, Shield-Captain."
"We have finished transportation of all of the Lord Primarch's companions to the ship, my lord," Juno said briskly. "We have also retrieved everything they had stolen, and have identified and separated everything they took from the Mechanicum Expedition."
Ah, yes, the Mechanicum. Appeasing them wouldn't be terribly hard and this was merely an expedition distant from Mars, so it truthfully mattered little even if they weren't too happy with him. Still, the Emperor would have to make an effort to soothe their ruffled feathers. Horus clearly had some attachment to this world, and even if it faded in time, Cthonia would be part of the Imperium one day, and it would be best to ensure the Tech-Priests here accepted that willingly.
"Very good," He said in response to Juno's question. "Have the children been made comfortable?"
"Yes, sire. We placed them within the chambers for the diplomats, as you commanded and the cooks made a feast for them. They appear to be enthralled by their surroundings and the food, though some of them are asking for Horus."
The Emperor nodded absently. He had expected as much. Horus would grow apart from the children in time, he was too far above them and a proper education would consume much of his son's time, but perhaps some of them would grow into valuable servants of the Imperium and become retainers for his son, if Horus still cared by then. Perhaps even an Astartes or two.
It mattered little for the moment.
"Tend to them as best as you can," The Guardian of Mankind said. "Have the doctors check them over once they've eaten, and also locate any soldiers among the crew who might have experience dealing with children, and tell them they'll be rewarded if they take some time to look after these."
"As you wish," Juno said, bowing. "Was there anything else, my lord?"
"No, you may go. I will see you in a little while." The Emperor said. Normally, he would have left with her, to speak to Captain Alexandros and deal with the Mechanicum, but he could sense Horus stirring from his sleep behind him.
Juno saluted, then left the chamber, just as Horus awakened.
"Where-where am I?" His son said groggily as the Emperor turned back to him. Actually feeling sleep weighing him down was clearly a new experience for the boy, but he was alert soon enough as he looked around. "Oh!" Horus said, his gaze filled with a mixture of uncertainty and excitement. "Hello, um, father."
"Hello, my son," The Emperor said, nodding. "It is good to see you awake. And you are aboard my ship, the Epona, specifically in a private room attached to the medical deck."
"Uh, thanks," Horus replied. "I just felt really tired all of a sudden, never happened to me before." He trailed off with a puzzled frown. "And wait, I'm on the ship? You mean I missed the flight on the shuttle? The boy seemed immeasurably disappointed by that, which the Emperor could understand. Even after all these millennia, he could never quite forget the wonder he had felt at venturing beyond Terra and into the void beyond for the first time.
"My doctors thought you were overwhelmed by the excitement," The Emperor said, his tone as non-committal as he could make it. "It happens."
"Yeah, but not to me." Horus protested.
"Clearly, it does." The Emperor said, feeling a spark of amusement at the childish annoyance on the boy's face. He might have looked like a teenager, but the Emperor could verify from experience that Horus's expression in that moment resembled that of a toddler his true age more than anything.
The boy cast around for a response, clearly trying to think of a viable counter-argument, before visibly deciding it wasn't worth it.
"Can I see the ship?" Horus asked instead, a hopeful look entering his eyes. "It's always been a dream of mine."
The Emperor's amusement intensified at the boy's attempt to manipulate him. The widening of his eyes, the earnestness injected into his voice, the attempt at emotional manipulation by saying it was a dream of his, the genuine hope and curiosity beneath the guile...all of it made the Emperor want to laugh and pat the boy on the head.
But he knew Horus would be offended by what he would perceive as condescension, so the Emperor instead offered him a faint smile and stood. "Of course, my son. Come, I will show you all that you wish to know about this vessel."
Horus nodded, though the Emperor felt his uncertainty spike at the word 'son'. He would learn in time, it was understandable given how new they were to each other.
The boy jumped to his feet, visibly excited. "Great!" He paused, before reigning himself in. "I mean, thank you."
The Emperor nodded, once more suppressing his amusement, before striding towards the door, Horus behind him. Father and son of them stepped out, and the pair of Custodians guarding the door immediately saluted.
"Lord Emperor, Lord Primarch." They said in unison.
Horus blinked, visibly taken aback, especially at the fact that the Custodians were taller than him, the Emperor noted. "Hello. Uh, who are these guys?" He said, looking to the Emperor.
"These are two of my Custodes, my elite bodyguards," The Emperor answered. An oversimplification, but it would do for now. "And now yours as well."
Horus frowned, looking somewhat offended at the implication he needed bodyguards. "Right," He said slowly. "And...what's a Primarch?"
"It is the title I chose for you," And his brothers, but that was a revelation for later. "You may think of it as akin to being a prince. I will explain it to you in more detail at a later time."
Horus nodded slowly, clearly unsatisfied with the explanation but still a little too wary to press.
"This is the main medical deck," The Emperor said, gesturing to the vast, sterile area. "It's where the ill and wounded are tended to."
Horus looked around, his eyes lingering on the machines he had never seen before, but he seemed a little...unimpressed. "Is that it?" He said. "Not very impressive, is it? I mean, it's big, but..."
The Emperor chuckled. "The medical deck is not meant to look impressive, but I think you will find the rest of the ship more to your liking."
The two of them made their way out of the medical deck, and as the Emperor had expected, Horus's eyes widened at the large, richly furnished and painted corridors of the Epona.
"Wow," His son said, regarding the gleaming, gilded ship with pleased surprise.
Smiling, the Emperor continued walking. "Come, there is something I would like to show you."
The two of them walked for several minutes, with strides impossible for humans. Some of the soldiers they saw along the way bowed and saluted, a reaction which clearly surprised Horus, and pleased him.
Finally, they arrived at the doors of the bridge, large and ornate, decorated with a golden eagle against a gleaming black surface, with two more Custodians standing guard. At the Emperor's nod, they opened the doors and he entered the strategium, Horus close behind.
"Your Majesty!" Captain Alexandros sprang her to feet from the command chair as did the rest of the crew when they entered, all of them saluting sharply. "And Lord Primarch, we are honoured to meet you." She said, nodding to Horus and bowing deeply.
"I am honoured to meet you as well." Horus said, clearly trying to make his language more formal and project a more regal image. To most mortals, his attempt at courtly manners would have appeared flawless, enhanced as it was by the boy's own psychic aura, but the Emperor saw it for the child's clumsy attempt at emulating others that it was. Better than any mortal child could manage, of course, but that was still what it was at its core.
It was a start.
"Captain," The Emperor said, making his voice resonate across the bridge with a thought. "We will speak later, but I would like some privacy, please. Kindly empty the bridge for the moment, I will summon you all back later."
Alexandors blinked, visibly surprised but obeyed. "Of course, my lord," She said with another bow before straightening and turning to her crew. "You heard the Emperor, let's clear out!"
The crew was clearly bemused by the command, but they were the best of the best, and their professionalism overrode anything else. In short order, they had all dispersed, leaving the Emperor and Horus alone on the bridge.
"Come here, Horus, I believe you will enjoy this." The Emperor told his son, striding forward to the front of the bridge. Horus followed, and his eyes widened even more as they saw where the Emperor was leading him.
At the front of the bridge was a large window, out of which one could see the void and the stars. It was better protected than it seemed, the Emperor had layered wards over it to ensure it was as strong as any other part of the ship, but it was the view which truly mattered right now.
Outside, the stars twinkled, A million million shining gems in the darkness of the void. Below them, Cthonia itself was visible, a large, grey sphere covered mostly in clouds of pollution, but still an awe-inspiring sight to people who had never been beyond a planet before. Cthonia's star could be seen as well, a vast, burning golden orb, brighter and clearer from here than it ever could be from below the planet's polluted atmosphere. And the other planet closest to Cthonia, a massive green gas giant, could be seen as well.
Horus sucked in a sharp breath at the sight, and childlike wonder and awe swelled within him, emotions far more sharp and potent than anything a mortal could feel.
"It's...it's amazing," Horus whispered. "I always wanted to, but I never thought…"
"Yes, it is." The Emperor agreed quietly. He had long become jaded to the beauty of the cosmos, but standing here, reunited with one of his lost sons at last and introducing him to the stars properly for the first time…it brought back some of the wonder he had felt, so long ago, when he had been a different person entirely.
This would not last. Soon, he would have to placate the Mechanicum, talk to Isha, return to Terra, begin educating and training Horus properly, introduce the boy to the horrors that plagued the galaxy and many other tasks besides.
But for now, the Emperor allowed himself to enjoy the view of the stars with his son.