A Primarch had been found.
One of his sons had been found.
The Emperor was frozen for a single heartbeat, before his voice returned to him and he spoke. "Valdor, prepare a ship for me immediately, the fastest one we have. You will accompany me, and a detachment of a hundred Custodians besides, along with as many soldiers as you deem appropriate. Do not bother with any astropaths or navigators, I will handle that part myself. This is the top priority, and we set out today. You have my full authority to do whatever needs to be done to speed up the process."
Valdor bowed, and departed as swiftly as he had arrived. There were times when the Emperor regretted the unhesitating obedience and loyalty he had indoctrinated all his Custodians with. Now was not one of them.
But as Valdor left, Malcador recovered from his surprise at least. "My friend, are you sure this is wise? Setting out so swiftly, without any preparations-"
"It is necessary," The Emperor cut him off sharply. "Who knows what Chaos will do if we do not retrieve the Primarch immediately? And a Primarch would be an enormous aid with the unification of Terra and Sol. It is vital that we retrieve him so that we can repair any damage that might have been done to him, prevent any further damage and begin preparing him for his role as soon as possible."
It was a perfectly logical, rational argument. But from Malcador's narrowed eyes, he clearly suspected that it was not logic which drove the Emperor...and he wasn't wrong.
But the Sigillite didn't argue further. "What do you wish for me to do in your absence, then?" Malcador inquired.
"You will serve as Imperial Regent, of course," The Emperor said, pleased that his old friend wasn't arguing. "You will be my voice and right hand, and all should obey you as they obey me while I am gone."
Malcador nodded. "I'll start preparing, then. We'll have to be ready, in case any of our enemies decide to take advantage of your absence."
The Emperor suppressed a grimace. He knew they would, but what choice did he have? His son had to be retrieved immediately, and nobody else could be trusted, not even Malcador or Valdor.
Because depending on what the Four had done...the Emperor might not return to Terra with his son at his side, but with his hands stained with the blood of yet another of his children.
It never got easier. He had killed too many of his children. Whether lost to daemonic corruption, or gone mad with power, or grief, or...suffering...
He had given them the only peace he could, and for that he carried each and every one of their faces with him. Haunting his every step. The thought of another joining them flooded him with revulsion.
But it might have to be done, nevertheless, though the Emperor hoped it would not be so.
Revelation voiced none of this, instead speaking again. "I will leave Valdor behind to aid you, then. I do not strictly need him along, and his military expertise will be useful."
"Yes," Malcador agreed, pausing for a moment before speaking. "What of Isha?"
Isha, yes. He had almost forgotten her. What was he going to do with her?
He could not simply allow her to run free while he was gone, not even with the tentative trust they had built up over the years. He could confine her to her chambers once more...but even then, the risk was too high. All of his instincts screamed at the idea of leaving an alien warp-construct on Terra in his absence.
There was only one solution.
"She will come with me," the Emperor said. "I cannot afford to leave her without my supervision."
"As you wish, my lord," Malcador said, looking relieved at his decision.
And, the Emperor thought silently. If anything has happened to my son, perhaps Isha can cure him where I cannot.
"You've grown big and strong," Isha chuckled as she scratched the enormous white tiger on the head, the beast purring under her touch. The creature was still as strong and healthy as it had been when she had first recreated it from the DNA samples and genetic records the Emperor had provided, and needed neither healing nor any corrections to its genetic code at the moment.
Patting it affectionately on the head one last time, Isha turned her attention to the tiger's mate, who was lying nearby, curled protectively around her cubs. Not wanting to disturb them, Isha probed them gently without touching them, making sure they were healthy. The cubs appeared to be suffering from a mild illness, which Isha quickly cured.
Satisfied, Isha conjured a few large hunks of meat with a snap of her fingers, allowing them to drop to the floor where the tigers eagerly fell upon them. Isha's smile widened at the sight of them eagerly tearing apart and eating the meat. She knew that some of the mortal scientists found such a sight...uncomfortable, but Isha knew it was simply the way of life.
Leaving the tigers to their meal, Isha strode away to examine her next set of patients, enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin, the cool breeze and the sense of life all around her, from the great trees to every insect and blade of grass.
The wildlife sanctuary, as the Emperor had called it, was one of the projects that Isha had enjoyed most during her time on Terra. It had only been a year ago that he had finally permitted her to create a forest near his capital, where she could recreate many of the Terran animals that had gone extinct in the eons past. Cloning and tending to these various animals, as well as creating an ecosystem which could cope with such drastically different animals who had co-existed before had been most enjoyable
For a time, Isha simply strolled through the woods, taking a few moments to analyze the trees and help them grow a little where they needed it, until she stumbled upon a clearing, where there was a bear.
The bear was feasting, ripping away at the carcass of a deer, it's teeth and claws stained with blood and meat.
Isha felt a little pity for the deer, but such was the circle of life. One day, the bear would die, and it's body would become part of the nutrients that deer in the future would eat.
She strode over to the bear, which froze at her approach. Isha could tell that its instincts were screaming at it that she was a threat, a greater and more terrible predator.
Which she was, she supposed, but she meant no harm. Isha raised a hand to placate it, but the bear had decided retreat was the best option, and promptly turned and fled.
Isha could have stopped it easily, but that would have been unnecessary and cruel.
Sighing slightly, Isha knelt to pluck a piece of meat from the deer's carcass and popped it into her mouth, enjoying the taste of the raw, juicy meat.
Once she had eaten, Isha began humming to herself softly, an old song composed in her honour by her children long before the War in Heaven. It was crude and primitive compared to the wondrous melodies they had devised in the ages since, but it remained one of Isha's favourites.
And as she hummed, the animals responded to her call. Many birds came to her call, sparrows settling on her shoulder, a few crows circling some ways above her head and a few vultures and wolves coming down to nip at the deer carcass. Isha idly scanned them all, making sure they were all healthy and happy, making sure to stop them from fighting, though that required cloning some more of the deer so that there was enough for everyone.
Other animals came too, squirrels coming by, for whom Isha conjured nuts to eat. A serpent twined around her leg and even had the audacity to try and sink it's fangs into her leg, though it only harmed itself in doing so. Laughing slightly, Isha patted the snake on the head, healing the damage to its mouth.
Eventually, the bear returned as well, its curiosity and the call of the song overcoming its fear. When it saw the vultures feasting on its prey, the bear growled, but subsided when Isha gave it a warning look. To soothe it, Isha cloned more of the deer carcass and tossed it to the beast, who eagerly fell upon the meat.
Smiling slightly in amusement, Isha sat down on the grass and leaned against the bear as it ate, idly watching the animals come and go from the clearing.
For a long while, she stayed like that, drawing the animals to her with her humming and checking them over, cloning more deer carcass to eat.
It was on this scene that a Custodian arrived, striding into the clearing and stopping a few metres away from Isha.
"Yes, what is it?" Isha asked lazily. She had sensed the Custodian's approach several minutes ago, but she didn't feel like getting up at the moment.
"His Majesty has an urgent message for you," The Custodian informed Isha, her voice as cool and robotic as usual. "He says that he intends to depart Terra shortly, and intends to take you with him. You are to report to his study as soon as possible."
Isha jolted, genuinely surprised by the message. The Emperor intended to leave the planet? And take her with him? What in the world was going on?
She rose to her feet, gently shoo-ing the disappointed animals away. "Let's go," Isha said briskly, striding over to join the Custodian, who inclined her head.
Walking alongside the Custodians, Isha could feel the future shifting. She was not Lileath, but she was still a goddess and she had spent the last few years trying to hone her long neglected skills whenever she could. Isha could tell that something important had happened, and was going to happen. Whatever it was, it was going to change a great deal...
Malcador sat down in his chambers, taking a sip of the hot cup of tea he'd just made. Despite the army of servants at his disposal, he had always enjoyed making food and drink himself, and it was safer too, so his chambers had a large, well equipped kitchen attached.
Here, in the privacy of his chambers, was one of the few places where he could truly be. The warm wooden floor, the cream coloured walls, the soft blue couch and cushioned chairs which wouldn't have been out of place in the house of a well-off but normal family, yet would have had the elite of the Imperium turning up their noses in the incredibly unlikely scenario they were given access to his private sanctum...all of it had been crafted very specifically to his tastes, to help him relax so that he could consider troubling matters with a clear mind.
Leaning back, Malcador considered what had just happened. The Emperor was usually highly rational and calculating, if somewhat more prone to taking risks than Malcador would have liked, but if he had a blindspot, it was the Primarchs.
It was true the Primarchs had been created to serve as the Emperor's closest companions and aids, to help him raise humanity to new heights, surpassing what they had achieved in the Golden Age, and it was indeed a good thing that his friend, who had so few personal connections, considered the Primarchs his children, but all the same, Malcador couldn't help but fear that the Chaos Gods would take advantage of that affection.
It would have been less of a problem if the Primarchs had been raised on Terra, but now...if his friend could not deal with the Primarchs objectively, it might be catastrophic. If the Primarch on Cthonia had been corrupted, and the Emperor had to kill him...Malcador did not what that would do to his old friend, but he was certain that it would be nothing good.
Malcador could only hope he was wrong.
"One of your sons has been found?" Isha exclaimed, astonished for the second time in as many hours. But she was also pleased. "That is wonderful news." She said warmly. It also made sense now why he wanted to take her along, he didn't want to leave Isha alone on Terra.
The Emperor gave a terse nod in response. "Yes, in Cthonia. It's not too far from Terra, and I can guide the ship to reach there swiftly. I will need you along to help me, in case anything has happened to my son."
Isha sobered at the words. He was right, there was no telling what Chaos might have done to the boy. "I will help you in any way I can," She assured him. "If your son has been harmed in any way, I am sure the two of us together can heal him."
The Emperor simply nodded in response, though Isha didn't take offense, that was simply his way.
For a few moments there was silence, before the Emperor spoke again. "I assume your projects will all be fine with you?"
"Yes, they're all progressing very well," Isha replied. "They can do without me for a while, your Biotechnical Divison should be able to take care of them easily."
"Good," The Emperor replied, taking a deep breath. "Now, shall we?"
"Yes," Isha smiled, anticipation rising in her chest at the thought of leaving Terra and seeing another world for the first time in years. "Let's."
Author's Note: Isha is possibly the Goddess of Disney Princesses, but it's also entirely possible that she isn't. Open to interpretation, really.
And since nothing in canon explicitly states women can't be Custodes, I have decided to roll with it.
As last time, the next chapter is already up on my P-a-t-r-e-o-n, the link to which can be found on Spacebattles and SufficentVelocity threads for this chapter.