PART 13

DOGMA AND HERESY

Despite the official version of Imperial history concerning Unification, the Great Crusade, the Horus Heresy, and what followed, there appears to be enough contrary evidence to suggest a wealth of untold events that raise several disconcerting questions which suggest the Imperium is not what it claims. The Legions Astartes appear to predate the Great Crusade by at least a century and may, in fact, be the legendary Thunder Warriors of the Unification Wars on Terra and Mars.

 Descent of Angels, 2007, Mitchel Scanlon

He pulled back as he sensed the rampant hostility of the man’s unconscious mental defences, all belligerent and vicious barbs – like an attack dog guarding a threshold. There would be no dominating this man with the Athanaean arts. Arthava opened his eyes, looking at the bulky, crudely-armoured form of the man with a new sense of wonder and awe.     The Horus Heresy, volume XVII, The Outcast Dead, p338

The claims that the Thunder Warriors were all wiped out during the Battle of Mount Ararat, the last great conflict of the Unification Wars on Terra, seem to be contradicted by the continued existence of Babu Dhakal and Ghota. Dhakal was once known as Arik Taranis, a Thunder Warrior known as the Lightning Bearer. Dhakal carried the Banner of Lightning at the declaration of Unity, which seems to predate his ‘death’ during the Battle of Mount Ararat in the Kingdom of Urartu.

Ghota was also a Thunder Warrior, another survivor, and served as Dhakal’s enforcer and ‘attack dog’. It is the “like an attack dog guarding a threshold” remark that reminds the audience of the assumed personality of Gavriel Loken during his time surviving in the virus bombed ruins of Istvaan III. The loyalist Lunar Wolf referred to himself as Cerberus, the name of a fabled three-headed war dog that guarded the gates to Hades, the threshold between the living and the dead.

There is a very real possibility that the Thunder Warriors were the first legionnaires, and that Ghota and Loken were once part of the same gene-source that formed one of the two unrecorded Legions. If this is true, Cerberus may have been the title carried by their Primarch, just as Ferrus Manus was referred to as the Gorgon, and his purpose seems to be that of a guarding a threshold. In the Imperium, it seems likely the Emperor created such a Primarch to ensure the creatures of the warp remained where they were.

“You should know better than to take what history says literally. Such tales as are told of us come from the mouth of the last man standing, and it would not do for the Emperor to have to share his victory with others. Where is the glory when you conquer a world with an unstoppable army at your back? To begin a legend, you must win that war single-handedly, and there must be no one left alive to contradict your version of events.” The Horus Heresy, volume XVII, The Outcast Dead, pp405-6

It becomes apparent in The Outcast Dead that whatever method was used to create the Thunder Warriors was flawed. Dhakal was dying by instalments, his mind and body failing. He could not remember the name he had before being recreated as a Thunder Warrior, and his violent behaviour revealed serious psychological failures and sociopathy. Dhakal’s obsession with securing gene-seed appears to suggest the method used to correct these flaws, and it seems he knew this would work. Given his background, it is likely that gene-seed was used to in the creation of the Astartes to regulate whatever caused the problems that afflicted the Thunder Warriors.

This could explain some of the time discrepancies that appear in regards to certain legionnaires. There is a very real possibility that Bulveye and Jugen of the Space Wolves, and Iacton Qruze of the Lunar Wolves, were once Thunder Warriors but were implanted with gene-seed to counter any inherent genetic failure resulting from the methods used to create them. Dhakal and Ghota, for whatever reason, do not appear to have been given the same treatment for their condition, and in some cases this did not work – the genetic flaws in the Emperor’s Children, Blood Angels, and Thousand Sons being good examples.

There is even a very real possibility that some of the Thunder Warriors, a chosen few generals, may have been given some form of rejuvenation treatment for the process of further enhancement to become the Primarchs. Although it sounds implausible, it would explain a great deal. The Primarchs appeared to possess knowledge and memories that they would not normally have as infants, and hypno-indoctrination during their gestation alone cannot explain it all. Indeed, Ferrus had memories of Vulkan leading the Salamanders Legion around the year 804M30 yet he and Vulkan were located and reunited with the Emperor in 840M30 and 846M30.

Why the thought of defeat should be painful to him when he did not fear to die he did not know. After all, what did a man with no memory or future have to fear? On the heels of that thought came another. Looking at the thinness of his arms and imagined height, he guessed he was not a man, but a boy. The Horus Heresy, volume XXIII, Angel Exterminatus, p15

Since Horus was located and reunited with the Emperor in 802M30, it is possible that Ferrus was rounding the time down - it is unlikely he would round it up by just over forty years, and makes more sense if the time of his memory predated the recovery of Horus. Perhaps the first stages of the Great Crusade occurred before 800M30 and successes were so limited that the Emperor was forced to adopt a new strategy to deal with the resistance – creating the Primarchs.

As a simple Space Marine, albeit one enhanced with gene-seed to off-set the flaws suffered by the Thunder Warriors, the individuals who became Primarchs were still – in a sense – only human. Infused with the genetic material of the Emperor (if that is what it was), and conditioned with hypno-indoctrination to further enhance them, these chosen few would suddenly become so much more. It would also help to create a myth around them to cement their status as ‘supermen’ amongst populations where they would be deployed, providing a ready seed for that adopted homeworld to submit to the Emperor’s rule as the people of one of his demi-god ‘sons’.

In addition to evidence that some Primarchs appear to have been reunited earlier or later than the official timeline of their rediscovery indicates, the evidence seems to support the idea that they were created after the Astartes, not before. There is also enough evidence to suggest that whatever fate befell the unrecorded Primarchs and their Legions appear to have occurred around the same time as the Squat Leagues left the Imperium, and loyalist elements of the two unrecorded Legions were disbanded and reassigned to other Legions.

CONCLUSION

Simple math discredits the claim that the treachery that occurred in the Istvaan System actually occurred in the Isstvan System on the northern fringes of the galaxy, and that the Raven Guard were ever part of the first wave. There is also no possible way that seven entire Legions could have formed the Istvaan reprisal force because a number of them were already divided by loyalties or unable to muster due to the locations of various elements. The treachery on Calth appears to have occurred within months of the Istvaan atrocities, and the math behind distances and travel times does not coincide with these events.

There were many stories: that Mortarion of the Death Guard was incapable of feeling pain, that Corax could cloud the minds of men with but a thought or the Khan could talk to the storms…These were a strange intertwining of myth and cold truth, and when one was speaking of beings like the primarchs it was impossible to say where fact ended and fiction began.  The Horus Heresy, volume XXI, Fear to Tread, p93

It is clear that the commandeering of the Furious Abyss occurred years before the treachery on Calth, and that traitor elements joined those already in the Ultramar Systems after the treachery in the Istvaan System by other means rather than travelling through the warp aboard space faring vessels. The math undermines any claims to the contrary. It seems likely that the Emperor’s efforts to take control of the Eldar Webway not only failed, but that the traitor Legion managed to access corrupted parts of this network or ancient Necron teleportation systems which may have been present on Istvaan V and other worlds scattered across the galaxy.

Simple math also raises serious doubts about the numbers of legionnaires that were supposedly involved in the Istvaan V dropsite massacres. Even if the four Legions recorded as being involved in the Istvaan III atrocity had each numbered a hundred-thousand legionnaires, the purge appears to have halved their fighting strength in both loyalist and renegade losses. There is also the absence of renegade fleet forces to consider, and other tasks the renegade Legions embarked upon – the remaining strength of the four renegade Legions could not have been present in their entirety upon Istvaan V during the dropsite massacres.

It seems far more likely that only a quarter, at most, of the original fighting strength of the renegade Legions was present during the Istvaan V incident, no more than a hundred-thousand renegade Space Marines altogether. There are also serious flaws in the claims concerning the official version of that incident, and not just who was involved, and in what capacity. The renegades were entrenched in a fortified stronghold and Perturabo had been assigned to the reprisal fleet.

Dorn and Perturabo didn’t get along, but Dorn knew that Perturabo and his Iron Warriors were the Legion that was needed to breach the renegade fortifications. It makes no strategic sense for the Iron Hands, Salamanders, and Raven Guard to launch a full-scale assault as part of a first wave. These forces would be used to secure a landing site and defend it while the second wave established their own fortifications, and no Primarch would be so idiotic as to march into the killing field that was the Urgal Depression.

Any plan to destroy the renegade Legions on the ground would have exploited whatever weakness Perturabo could find, and this would have included the caves and tunnels around and under the fortress on Istvaan V. The loyalist forces would have been used to defend against renegade counter-attacks to disrupt their siege. Ferrus Manus was easily goaded into making the kind of reckless decisions Angron made, wasting the lives of his own legionnaires, but Vulkan was a thinker and Corax favoured hit and run attacks on weak-points. Official accounts of the dropsite massacre make absolutely no sense.

           

He same can be said of the official accounts about the incidents on Calth. The losses the Ultramarines suffered on Calth, and during the conflict in the Ultramar system with World Eater and Word Bearers forces, contradict earlier official records that claim the XIII Legion were largely unscathed by the Horus Heresy, and were able to field twenty-three Second Founding Chapters after the Horus Heresy. The new version of official history raises serious doubts, and seems to support the idea that loyalists from Legions branded traitor, who managed to avoid death during the Horus Heresy, may be the source of some of the ‘Ultramarines’ Second Founding Chapters.

And, finally, the final battle between the Emperor and Horus would appear to have occurred on Terra, not aboard the Vengeful Spirit as official records claim. It would appear that the official history of the Imperium is rife with obfuscation, misinformation and outright lies upheld and enforced by the dogma of the Ecclesiarchy and brutal reprisals of the Inquisition in response to the so-called heresy of those that dare to point out the obvious flaws, anomalies and contradictions.

Fear to Tread, 2012, by James Swallow

But despite these irregularities, and the fascism Imperial sycophants unleash on those who do not accept their ranting dogma without question, the hints of an untold story present something far more exciting and inclusive environment in which to engage. There appears to have been several human cultures outside Imperial control that may have survived the Great Crusade, and the Squat Leagues present a counter-culture to that of the Imperium – one where humans possess advanced technology and trade (possibly even affiliate) with various xenos species.

Whether by accident or design, Games Workshop has a great opportunity to engage with their market, expanding from a narrow base to something much broader – older, original enthusiasts (those that remain at any rate), other fringe dwellers, and potential audiences excluded by poorly considered Company attitudes. These anomalies and contradictions are something to build on, not tear down, conceal, and write out using the aggression the Company has become infamous for unleashing upon its market - a behaviour and practice that is disturbingly similar to the background literature of the Imperium where oppression, arrogance, elitism, and fascism leads to stagnation, failure, decline, and, inevitably, doom. The time for positive change is long overdue. 

PART 12

PART 12

THE ATTACK ON EARTH

When the traitors finally made their attack on Terra, several Legions were absent, isolated far from Terra by the deceptions of their treacherous Warmaster. The loyalist forces of Terra were comprised of the Custodian Guard, White Scars, Imperial Fists, Blood Angels, Imperial Army and Navy elements, and several Titan Legions. Horus arrived with the Sons of Horus, Emperor’s Children, Iron Warriors, World Eaters, Death Guard, Thousand Sons, traitor Army and Navy elements, and traitor Titan Legions.   

The Dark King and The Lightning Tower, 2007, by Dan Abnett and Graham McNeill 

THE ATTACK ON EARTH All across the galaxy many of the Emperor’s greatest works had fallen and his worlds were in disarray, having either been corrupted by Chaos or locked in bloody conflict with the servants of the Chaos Gods.  Such was the position when the forces of Horus gathered around Earth.  The Lunar bases, bastion of the fleet, fell to Horus following brief but hard fighting, and soon the rebel fleet was in control of the orbital space around Earth.  Raining down upon the Imperial Seat, Horus’ battleships duelled with planetary defence lasers, crushing them with a heavy bombardment from space – the Space Marine Legions had been created with planetary assault as their primary role and it was a strategy they had perfected during the Great crusade.  The last squadrons of loyal starfighters poured volley after volley into the traitor ships, but could not penetrate their shields.  Seeing no other course of action, the pilots rammed their fighters into the hulls of the orbiting rebel fleet.  It was a defiant gesture, nothing more. The Traitor Legions’ drop ships fell like rain upon the Imperial Palace and the starports surrounding it, disgorging thousands of Space Marines warped and bolstered by the power of Chaos.  The defenders refused to give way, and the attackers forced their way forward step-by-step over the fallen on both sides.  As the traitors assaulted the hundreds of square miles of towers, walls and bastions, the dead were so thickly that corridors were blocked by the press of corpses. Still, the forces loyal to the Emperor withstood the initial assault but could not prevent Horus’ Space Marines setting up siege lines. Gigantic dropships landed at Lion’s Gate and the other starports bringing a second wave of Chaos Space Marines. Bloodthirsty Berzerkers of the World Eaters Legion were the first to attempt an all-out assault against the Imperial Palace, and were hurled back after days of bloody fighting. With the Initial attack stalled, Horus opted to bring forth his entire arsenal of weapons and warriors to overthrow the Emperor. For over a month, the gigantic cannons of the rebel army pounded the walls, foremost among them the siege weapons of the Legio Mortis Titan Legion, which had turned to Chaos in the earliest days of the Heresy.  Eventually, after heavy bombardment, part of the curtain wall came crashing down and the Traitor Legions hurled themselves at the breach to pour into the inner palace. Along banner-lined corridors, through mile-long galleries, the loyalists and rebels tore at each other.  At the heart of the fighting stood the Primarchs. Rogal Dorn of the Imperial Fists and Sanguinius of the Blood Angels fought a desperate rearguard action to halt the force pouring through the breach. Angron of the World Eaters slew loyalist Space Marines by the dozen, while Mortarion of the Death Guard led his pustulent Plague Marines into the thickest fighting. Codex: Chaos Space Marines, 2007, p14

Unlike the conflict on Istvaan V, this battle involved Imperial and renegade army elements, not just Titan crews, specialist Adeptus Mechanicus forces, and Space Marines. While it seems incredibly implausible, traitor forces were able to rampage throughout the region surrounding the Imperial palace, accessing the countless thousands of kilometres of tunnels and chambers that honeycombed the mountains upon which the Palace was constructed, where they tortured, murdered and even took as slaves the civilian population. These actions had the unfortunate consequence of destroying vast quantities of data and historical records.   

   

With his landing sites secured, the next units deployed by Horus were the Storm Lords and Flaming Skulls Titan Legions. The Siege of the Emperor’s Palace, White Dwarf, volume 262

But of all the Legions involved, only three were mentioned specifically in The Siege of the Emperor’s Palace, although these may not have been the names of the Titan Legions at all. The Iron Warriors were given command of the Deaths Heads Titans, but there is evidence that suggests the Deaths Heads may have been legionnaires of a traitor Legion, a Chapter that served alongside the Titans of Legio Mortis. If the Deaths Heads were actually renegade legionnaires, it raises questions about the real nature of the Storm Lords and Flaming Skulls.

Among the Titan Legions, Indias Cavelerio, Princeps of the Warlord Titan Victorix Magna of Legio Tempestus, was known as the Stormlord, but there seems to be no reference to a specific Titan Legion bearing the name Storm Lords. There is, however, a Second Founding Chapter of the V ‘White Scars’ Legion Astartes which has the name Storm Lords, and the Legion itself was divided in its loyalties during the Horus Heresy. If the reference in The Siege of the Emperor’s Palace refers to the Titans attached to renegade Chapters of the White Scars and a traitor Legion, then it seems likely that the Flaming Skulls were also a Chapter of another Legion.

The account also mentions Khornate Battle Titans, but since that particular phase of the attack took place in the region between the Eternity Wall and Lions Gate to link the two traitor landing sites, and involved the Death Guard and World Eaters Legions, it is possible this referred to Titans attached to the World Eaters Legion. The Legion source of the Flaming Skulls, therefore, remains a mystery. 

Most official accounts indicate that the conflict on Terra raged for months, and that the populations surrounding the Imperial Palace suffered the excesses of the traitors while the loyalists within managed to hold-out. But what happened at the end of the siege is something that raises many questions. The two loyalist Legions approaching Terra were listed as the Space Wolves and Dark Angel, but even this is something that raises questions.

The Dark Angels were recorded as having travelled to Ultramar following the treachery in the Istvaan System. A journey from Ultramar to Terra was just over 50,000 Light Years. Under ideal conditions this would take just over four years, although this would only be just over six weeks for those on board the vessel travelling through the warp. Less ideal conditions, like the warp storms that began as the Horus Heresy began, tripled these times. After their visit to Perditus, however, the Dark Angels were able to make journeys like this in far less time.

The Space Wolves, on the other hand, did not have access to such a device. The last recorded campaign for their Legion suggests they were deployed on Prospero, the homeworld of the Thousand Sons, just before the Horus Heresy began. But this is where official records conflict, again. Some accounts claim Magnus tried to warn the Emperor of the impending treachery before the traitors purged their loyalist elements on Istvaan III, while others appear to suggest the warning from Magnus occurred after this.

The final attack was never launched. Horus sensed the approach of the Space Wolves and the Dark Angels. With all his reserves except his own Sons of Horus committed, the arrival of two fresh legions could be decisive. Horus knew that he had but one card left to play. He dropped his shields on his flagship and awaited the Emperor’s arrival. Horus had always known that the war must end with the death of the Emperor and that he alone had enough power to accomplish the task. He had hoped to make the task easier by fighting a weakened and demoralised Emperor, but that advantage had been lost on the battlefield thanks to the courage and resolve of the Emperor’s soldiers. There were no witnesses to the final confrontation between the Emperor and Horus aboard the Warmaster’s battle barge, but we know the events and Emperor’s ultimate victory through the teachings of the Eccles-iarchy. With Horus’ death the remaining Chaos Legions on Terra broke up. The Chaos Space Marines react-ing first, evacuating with practiced efficiency, leaving their minions to suffer the wrath of the loyalists. The Siege of the Emperor’s Palace, White Dwarf, volume 262

Obviously, using his powers and violating the Nikaea Edict to delivering the warning after the event is not only pointless, but incredibly stupid. It makes more sense that the warning was delivered before what occurred in the Istvaan System, otherwise the Space Wolves would probably have been deployed as part of the reprisal fleet. It doesn’t make sense that the VI Legion would remain on Prospero for the duration of the Horus Heresy though, and since Prospero is only about 12,000Light Years from Terra. The evidence suggests the Space Wolves were either deployed on other duties during the Horus Heresy, or somehow prevented from reaching Terra without an extended period of time spent in warp travel.

The final stages of the siege on Terra also make little sense. If Horus and his traitors were aware of the loyalist reinforcements then the Emperor’s loyalists on Terra would also have known. The Emperor would not have to teleport upon the Vengeful Spirit to confront Horus. If the traitors were going to overrun the defenders, then the attack makes sense, but doing so would reduce the defences in the Imperial Palace. If the Emperor had waited for the loyalist reinforcements to arrive, the traitors would be caught between them and destroyed.

Kroeger shook his head. “Perhaps, but whoever is left standing in the Palace will be master of the largest ruin on Terra,” he said. The Horus Heresy, volume XXIII, Angel Exterminatus, p236

Even if the traitors managed to defeat the loyalists on Terra, their numbers were depleted and the conflict would render the defences of the Imperial Palace useless. The traitors could not defend what they had captured. They had no choice but to retreat. But Horus was determined to kill the Emperor, believing this would end the conflict, destroying the moral of loyalist military elements and forcing the civilian population to accept his rule. While there is a reason for Horus to teleport to the Imperial Palace, there is no reason for the Emperor to teleport onto the Vengeful Spirit. Unless he was attempting to escape.

Imperial forces fought a battle on two fronts during the siege of the Emperor’s Palace: the traitors that arrived in orbit and deployed on the surface of Terra, and the creatures of the warp that were attempting to breach the fortified entrance to the ruptured Webway in the dungeons beneath. If the theory suggesting the ruined fortress on Istvaan V may have contained an entrance to the Webway was accurate, then the idea Horus wanted to use it to gain access to the Emperor’s Palace on Terra might not have been the intention at all.

Unspoken understanding flowed between Magnus and the Emperor. Everything Magnus had done was laid bare, and everything the Emperor had planned flowed into him. He saw himself atop the Golden Throne, using his fearsome powers to guide humanity to its destiny as rulers of the galaxy. He was to be his father’s chosen instrument of ultimate victory. It broke him to know that his unthinking hubris had shattered that dream. Without will, the spell that had sent him to Terra was nothing, and Magnus had felt the pull of flesh dragging his spirit back through the gateway. He did not fight it, but let his essence fly through the golden lattice to the tear he had so carelessly torn in its fabric. Vast shoals of void predators were already massing, swirling armies of formless monsters, fanged beasts and awesomely powerful entities that lived only for destruction. The Horus Heresy, volume XII, A Thousand Sons, p447

There is a very real possibility that Horus and his traitors intended to breach the Webway, in the same way that Magnus did, specifically to allow the entities of the warp to use it as a conduit to enter the Emperor’s Palace. It is even possible they were in the process of doing this when Magnus ripped an entrance into the Webway. The access to the Webway beneath the Emperor’s Palace was no longer viable. Perhaps, in time, warp spiders from the Eldar Craftworlds might be able to repair it, but during the Horus Heresy, it was inaccessible.

The Emperor could not allow the technology within the dungeons of the palace to fall into the hands of Horus and his traitors. There were only the two options: defend the palace at all costs, or destroy it and escape to fight another day. While the force fields protected the palace from orbital attack and forced traitor forces to breach the walls of the palace to gain entry, the Emperor’s loyalists could hold.

Then, as hundreds of Orks rushed to join the battle on the perimeter walls. Horus and the entire Terminator armoured 1st Company teleported directly to the foot of the great central tower. As the Luna Wolves blasted away the guards, mobs from the walls raced back to protect Urlakk. Horus left most of the terminators to hold back the Orks and pushed on up the tower with just ten Space Marines at his side. Sons of Horus: The Black Legion Space Marine Legion, Index Astartes IV, 2004 Sons of Horus: The Black Legion Space Marine Chapter, White Dwarf, volume 168

Perturabo and the Iron Warriors may have used the Legio Mortis Titans to create an entrance through the walls, but it was one that simply funnelled and contained the attacking traitors. If a larger section of the wall had been brought destroyed by their efforts, the defenders could have been overrun by a wave of traitors. Logic indicates no reason for the Emperor to teleport to the Vengeful Spirit and fight Horus. The reason for there being “no witnesses to the final confrontation between the Emperor and Horus aboard the Warmaster’s battle barge” could be because it never happened there. The teachings of the Ecclesiarchy may well be fiction.

Horus was well known for his audacity in regards to attacking the leaders of an enemy force using teleportation, as demonstrated during the turning point of the Ullanor Crusade. The outcome of the battle makes more sense if part of the protective shields over the palace failed, even for a moment, and allowed Horus to repeat what he had done to Warlord Urlakk on Ullanor. With the loyalists hard pressed defending the walls, the Emperor was isolated as he orchestrated the defencefrom inside the palace.

The idea that the emperor, Sanguinius and Rogal Dorn would abandon the palace to all make a teleport attack against the Vengeful Spirit is ludicrous. The idea that Dorn would even consider leaving the palace walls adds to the unlikelihood of such an action. There is also the potential damage of loyalist morale to consider as their three greatest assets all decide to leave to attack a single vessel in orbit, one with less defences than the palace itself, and which could be destroyed during an orbital engagement.

Attacking the Vengeful Spirit in this manner was foolhardy. It could have easily been a trap. The vessel could easily have been rigged to explode, killing them all. It was territory Horus and his traitors knew better than the loyalist boarders, an unknown risk only worth taking as a last resort if the plan was to commandeer the vessel or as part of a scorched earth policy. While it is possible there was a boarding action as part of a counter-attack, it seems very unlikely the Emperor, Sanguinius and Rogal Dorn were involved.

Perhaps the Emperor permitted Sanguinius to take the fight to the Vengeful Spirit. The Blood Angels were the foremost drop pod and deep strike Legion, but Horus was well aware of this given the two Legions had fought beside one another using the tactic. It is entirely possible that Horus teleported down with the body of Sanguinius after killing him during a counter-attack against Horus aboard the Vengeful spirit.   

PART 11

PART 13

PART 11

THE IMPERIAL TRUTH

Throughout the many volumes of The Horus Heresy, it becomes apparent that the so-called Imperial Truth is a social construct no different to any other – the ideologies and assertions include as many falsehoods as facts, as well as deliberate obfuscation and elements of extremism. The Emperor has destroyed things that are opposed to his own rhetoric, branding them as evil and ensuring nothing remains to be studied at a later date or even as evidence they existed at all.

“Not at all; dogma and belief are not reliant on the predisposed belief in a godhead or cloak of religion. They might simply be a regime or set of social values, such as we are bringing to the galaxy even now. To resist or rebel against that could easily be considered heresy, I suppose.” The Horus Heresy, volume V, Fulgrim, p184

The Unremembered Empire, 2013, by Dan Abnett

The Emperor was no different to any other self-centred, narcissistic sociopath with ambitions to become a fascist dictator, albeit one who wanted to rule over the entire galaxy. All of the claims the Emperor and his sycophants made that it was religion that was responsible for every injustice that had afflicted Mankind were self-serving, founded on ignorance, bigotry, delusion and, sometimes, projection. Those flawed intellectual and personality traits, combined with a lust for power and control over others were responsible for the woes of Mankind.

The brutal genocide inflicted on those who dared oppose the Emperor was no different to that inflicted by any other dictator throughout history, religious or otherwise. Demands under the terms of Compliance, and promises of Enlightenment under these conditions, reduced the Emperor and those who enforced his will to hypocrites, deceitful or mindless thugs, bullies, liars.  

The Emperor’s efforts to literally rewrite history by purging all evidence of anything that could contradict his own version created an environment he could not control. Reality imposed itself regardless of his own desires, leaving those exposed to the worst the galaxy had to offer with no means to comprehend or defend against those things. As the entities of the warp began to impose themselves on real space, the Emperor’s efforts to deceive Mankind began to unravel, and the trust others placed in him was not the only casualty.

“My truth is better than your truth” is a school-yard squabble, not the basis of a culture. “I am right so you are wrong” is a syllogism that collapses as soon as one applies any of a number of fundamental ethical tools. I am right, ergo, you are wrong. We can’t construct a constitution on that, and we cannot, should not, will not be persuaded to iterate on its basis. It would make us what?” He looked out across his audience. A number of hands were raised. “There?” “Liars.” Sindermann smiled. His words were being amplified by the array of vox mics set around his podium, and his face magnified by picter onto the hololithic wall behind him. On the wall, his smile was three metres wide. “I was thinking bullies, or demagogues, Memed, but “liars” is apt. In fact, it cuts deeper than my suggestions. Well done. Liars. This is the one thing we iterators can never allow ourselves to become.” The Horus Heresy, volume II, Horus Rising, p57-8

The sheer volume of information flooding back to Terra about other worlds and cultures in the galaxy was not something that could be easily catalogued by the administration. It was overwhelming. The more information, the longer it took to analyse for useful intelligence. The process took even longer because the information was also purged of anything that conflicted with the Emperor’s version of reality before it could be analysed by the menials serving within the administration.

  

His father denied such things, kept his people ignorant of the true powers that existed in the galaxy, and though he promulgated a doctrine of science and reason, it was naught but a lie, a comforting blanket thrown over humanity to shield them from the truth. The Horus Heresy, volume II, False Gods, p172

The average citizen might be aware of general knowledge concerning other worlds, albeit years or decades after these places had been brought to Compliance, but they remained ignorant of the truth concerning alien species, including warp entities. The Carnivals of Light on Sarosh are a good example, but while some had heard of this, knowledge of the Melachim had been expunged and restricted to all but those with the highest clearance.

Neither would she ever learn more of the Carnival of Light on Sarosh, or vicariously live tales of battle like the Victory on Murder or the vanquishing of the Hexen Guild. The Horus Heresy, volume IX, Mechanicum, p306

Knowledge of the Melachim was not even available to the Astartes that sometimes encountered them. In some cases, certain individuals were aware of ‘things’ that existed in the warp, and some had even encountered them outside the warp. These would, eventually, be referred to as daemons, creatures that appeared and attacked if a ship’s Gellar field failed, or possessed living creatures.

“You may have heard the high exalter talk of beings known as the Melachim during his outburst against the Imperium. It is my belief that this is the Saroshi name for a certain breed of xenos creature that dwells in the warp.”  The Horus Heresy, volume VI, Descent of Angels, p377

Depending on the culture where they were encountered, these creatures were also known by other names – Cryptos, Dominators, Enslavers, Ji’atrix, Krell, Psyrens, and Puppeteers being but a few. This presents a very interesting possibility concerning several other species. One account claims warp entities refer to themselves as the Gida’Ljal, although they are notoriously deceptive so this may be just another lie.  

It told me it was one of the Gida’Ljal, the spawn of the Ruinous Powers. The Horus Heresy, volume XXI, Fear to Tread, p345

The Psychneuein mentioned in in A Thousand Sons were referred to as being similar to Vespidae, and could be ancestors of the Vespid. It also seems likely that these creature were Vespidae and the Psychneuein were actually a parasitic warp-entity possessing the creatures. Given the descriptions, the Arachen, Brachyura, Caradochians, Chromes, Cythor Fiends, Kathap, Laer, Psy-gore, Q’orl, Rak Gol and Urisarach may have also been insectoid or arachnid species, possibly even Vespid – or sub-species of Vespid – by other names.

Then she heard it, a droning buzz like a hive of vespidae, and the excited flutter of what sounded like an explosion of wings as a flock of predatory birds took flight. The Horus Heresy, volume XII, A Thousand Sons, p394

But if the suspicions concerning the Psychneuein and Laer are accurate, then warp-entities are able to possess a number of different species, not just humans. Perhaps the most interesting possibility concerning the possession of insectoids, however, is what this may mean in regards to the Tyranids. Not only do the descriptions of Laer sound a lot like Tyranids – particularly Reavers – but it seems entirely possible the Tyranids are literally Vespid possessed and mutated by warp-entities.  

“…the method of war on Keylek gave us all pause. This was eighty years ago. The keylekid were a grotesque alien kind, of a manner you might describe as reptilian. They were greatly skilled in the arts of combat, and rise against us angrily the moment we made contact. Their world was a harsh place. I remember crimson rock and indigo water. The commander – this was long before he was made Warmaster – expected a prolonged and brutal struggle, for the keylekid were large and strong creatures. Even the least of their warriors took three or four bolt rounds to bring down.” The Horus Heresy, volume I, Horus Rising, p172-3

The Keylekid that were believed to have been eradicated by the Lunar Wolves provide further evidence which appears to support the theory that several species may actually be the same but with different names. Keylikid were a reptilian species like the Naga, Tarellians and Viskeons,possibly even sub-species of a single race.  They were named for the world on which the Lunar Wolves found them, much like the Laer were named for the world on which they were located. It seems likely that even if a similar species had been found before, the information concerning them may not have been available to the expedition encountering that species.

“I saw him on Nove Shendak. World Eight-Two-Seventeen. A world of worms. Giant creatures, intelligent. Hateful. Their weapons were filaments, metal feathers that they embedded in themselves to conduct energies out of their bodies. I remember we saw the surface roil with the filaments before the worms broke out of it almost at our feet. Thick as a man, longer than you, sire, are tall. Three mouths in their faces, a dozen teeth in their mouths. They spoke through the mud in sonic screams and witch whispers.” The Horus Heresy, volume X, Tales of Heresy, p401

The Nagi are another good example. This highly intelligent worm-like species was known for their mind control abilities, but sounds similar in nature to the giant worms from Nove Shendak  (although it seems likely they had “three eyes in their faces” rather than three mouths). It is also possible that they may be related to – or even the same species as – the worm-like Drugh, invertebrate Greet, and Nicassar – a species described only psychic. And then there are the Galgs.

Although the Galgs are sometimes described as green, scaled, frog-like creatures, other descriptions indicate a similarity to the Thyrrus, a squid-like race with color-changing skin, and even the K’nib. However, while Galgs appear relatively sociable, Thyrrus are unpredictable and regard conflict as a performance, tactical decisions being made based on spectacle, flash and inflicting heavy casualties on both sides rather than what might seem strategically sensible. Of the K’nib, there is only the reference that they are “festering clawed fiends” and appear to have as many as ten limbs.

“What are those?” I ask next, indicating three multi-limbed creatures splayed on a bench along one side of the bar. They have no heads, but clusters of eye-like organs wave towards us, like grass in a breeze. They have no arms or legs, just a set of six tentacle limbs which I guess must serve them for both purposes. Oriel thinks for a moment before replying. “I’ve never seen one before, but they match the description of galgs,” he tells me as we stop by the drinks counter. Kill Team, 2001, p194

It seems likely that the Thyrrus and K’nib are actually Galgs infected and mutated by warp-entities. This may also explain why information on the hyper-violent Barghesi, mind-eating Krave, and Lacrymole Shape-shifters is limited – in some cases to that description alone. It is entirely possible the Barghesi is the name of a species possessed and mutated by warp-entities aligned with Khorne, while the Krave may be responsible for plagues that reduce victims to a zombi-like state, and the Lacrymole appear to behave in a manner in keeping with the deceptions and manipulations of Tzeentch.    

The Rak Gol in particular appear to be aligned with warp-entities, their affiliation with the Yu’vath (or at least technology created by the Yu’vath) – a race of warp-worshipping sorcerer-slavers from the Koronus Expanse –being considered incontrovertible evidence. The identity of the Yu’vath remains a mystery, although there are some who believe the Yu’vath may be descendants of the Necrontyr, and that they, the Necrons are Tau might actually be three factions of the same species.

“The demiurg are a spacefaring race that rarely enters Imperial territory.” “That at least explains why I have never heard of them,” Setebos murmured. “Hostile?” “They are technologically advanced but seem to enjoy cordial relations with other xenos cultures, several of which were eradicated during the Great Crusade,” the artisan told them. “Principally they are miners and traders.” The Horus Heresy, volume XX, The Primarchs, p377

There is a growing suspicion among many who research the topic that information concerning particular species and sub-species of xenos is being changed or even purged from official records altogether. The descriptions for Galgs and the Hrud are very good examples where there are contrary accounts and images, while assumptions have created all manner of unfounded and foolish controversy.

In the case of the Hrud, for example, there are two very different images and descriptions. Official accounts do tend to agree that they are scavengers whose societies are teeming warrens, and that the Hrud fight using sheer weight of numbers. Yet some point to references concerning high-tech or warp-based weaponry and insist, using flawed logic, that every Hrud carries such weaponry rather than a few specialists. There is no evidence to support either claim, but if it were true then a tide of Hrud armed with hi-tech weaponry would overrun any foe.

Regardless of the evidence and irrational claims concerning the Hrud or any other species, the Demiurg provide ample evidence of duplicity. The Demiurg are described an avid mining species and expert traders who possess technology more advanced than that possessed by the Imperium. It is claimed they are entirely space-borne race which either lost or abandoned its homeworld, spreading out through the stars to mine new resources and trade, and are shorter than humans but have a sturdier build.

The appearance of the Demiurg coincides with the expunging of all records to the Squats in official records. Ian Watson’s Inquisitor trilogy originally included records referring to one of Draco’s henchmen, Grimm the Squat, but in subsequent editions these references were removed and replaced with a member of the Mechanicum. It was part of a much larger purge of all references to the abhuman Squats, and coincided with claims that Tyranid Hive Fleets had specifically targeted Squat populations and eaten every last one of them while, oddly enough, leaving other populations alone.

According to the official accounts, the Demiurg are xenos, and yet their appearance and technology is incredibly similar to those of the Squats. It seems far more likely that there was a falling out between the Squats and their supporters and the Imperium and its loyalists, the end result being a galactic wide tantrum whereby the Imperial authorities passed orders to purge and erase all mention and memory of the Squats, and begin a dedicated and bizarre campaign to recreate the abhumans as xenos, enemies of the Imperium, and nomadic.

In all likelihood, the Squats are exactly where they have always been, occupying mostly core worlds where the Squat Leagues function in a counter-culture to Imperial society while the Imperium does its best to ignore them, and – of course – ensure none of their own citizens get any ideas about relocating to where the grass is greener (ie, they can escape the stagnant ignorance, extremism and oppression of the Imperium and the Imperial fascists can’t execute them if they want to trade with xenos species for superior technology).

The chronometer above the doorway mocked him with a date over half a year in the past. The primarch’s words were an unwanted truth: seconds had passed at the edge of the warp anomaly. Months dragged by within. The Horus Heresy, volume XIV, The First Heretic, p208

Then there are the timelines. In most cases, a vessel travelling through the warp can reach a distant destination hours or days after entering the warp, but days or months will have passed in real space. Vessels that find themselves marooned for any reason, yet able to maintain a Gellar field or otherwise survive, may emerge after several centuries have passed, or mere moments since they entered even though only days, weeks or months may have elapsed on board. This random time-lapse effect creates confusion in official records.

The passage of time within warp anomalies are another point of interest. Many of the traitors emerging from places like the Eye of Terror ten thousand years after the Horus Heresy are (or so they claim) the very same as the ones that fought in those conflicts. It is believed that while thousands of years may have passed in real space, time within regions affected by warp anomalies may have slowed to a fraction of this.

“The Warmaster conquered half the galaxy, didn’t he? The Emperor’s been hiding back on Terra for half a century.” The Horus Heresy, volume XIV, The First Heretic, p408

Anybody who has read Asimov’s Foundation trilogy may find many of the entries there rather revealing. They speak of a stagnant Imperium twelve thousand years old, collapsing under the weight of bureaucracy and internal corruption and strife presided over by a series of power mad dictators claiming the title of Emperor. It predates the official records of the Imperium established under the Emperor during the Great Crusade. It is almost as if Asimov’s work provided the foundation (pun intended) for the Imperium of Man.

“Forgive me, sire. Another primarch. One of the first we found. I was new to the War Hounds when the message went through the fleets, and I almost didn’t understand what it meant. Not until I saw the Iron Warriors and how they reacted. The very air seemed to change around them. They and we and the Ultra-marines, we were travelling together. We envied them. They had found their blood-sire and their general. Now we have found ours.” The Horus Heresy, volume X, Tales of Heresy, p406

Again, the timeline upon which the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy is founded is fraught with contradictions. The First Heretic includes an odd reference to the Emperor having returned to Terra fifty years before the Horus Heresy begins when other records indicate it is actually half a decade. It would seem that entire decades are not recorded in the official timeline of the Great Crusade, suggesting it lasted longer than the official two-hundred years most documents claim.

“Yes. Sensitive data and information relating to the placement of Alpha Legionnaries and operatives, on both sides of the conflict.” “I don’t believe it,” Ranko said. “I mean, I do, obviously. But how is this possible?” “This is a civil war,” Omegon reminded him.  “There are those placed among the Legions loyal to the Emperor who secretly supply the Warmaster with intelligence and appropriate material. Why not the other way round?” The Horus Heresy, volume XX, The Primarchs, pp335-6

The timeline recording the order of recovery of each Primarch is, again, called into question when the records in Tales of Heresy are considered. While the entry indicates Perturabo was one of the first Primarchs to be found and reunited with the Emperor, but the official timeline contradicts this, indicating he was the twelfth, located in 854M30, one of the last. Even taking into account the discrepancy concerning Lion El’Jonson’s recovery, the discovery of Perturabo only moves to eleventh. Perhaps the reference is meant to be the Iron Hands rather than the Iron Warriors, as Ferrus Manus is listed as being the fourth Primarch recovered.

The discussion between Omegon and Ranko in The Primarchs also confirms that Alpha Legionnaires and their operatives were placed in both loyalist and traitor Legions – not only their own Legion – and passing on material to the both loyalist and traitor factions as appropriate. The Alpha Legion was as divided by loyalties as much as any other Legion, be it by design or circumstance. But The Primarchs also revealed that the Alpha Legion was not the only Legion that deployed infiltrators disguised as members of another Legion.

“Enough of this,” Arvas Janic said. “Remove your helmet. You will identify yourself and your designs on this installation. You will reveal how you came to know of its location. You will admit to your true Legion and deliver the name of the commanding officer foolish enough to despatch you here on a suicide mission.” The Horus Heresy, volume XX, The Primarchs, p424

The comments by Arvas Janic suggest the Alpha Legion suspected other Legions were capable and even willing to infiltrate another by disguising their armour to match the target Legion. The Raven Guard had the skills and capacity for such actions, and the White Scars had demonstrated the ability to ambush foes, but only one other Legion had trained for combat against the other Legions… the Ultramarines.

The Legion armourers were already repainting suits of battle-plate and vehicles that had masqueraded upon the field of battle in the Sons of Horus livery. The halls of the Legion stank of thinner and paint as ‘enemy’ colours and markings were once again removed from armoured plates and weaponry. The Horus Heresy, volume XVI, Age of Darkness, pp60-1

Roboute Guilliman, of all the Primarchs, demonstrated the most adaptability to circumstances. He was well known for adopting useful tactics from other Legions and his treatise on both combat and administration, during and after, conflict was considered unmatched and studied by every other Legion and Imperial officers and administrators. Admittedly, the other Primarchs disregarded whatever tactics they did not favour, and the traitors ultimately used it to exploit the methods used by the Ultramarines to turn against them during the Horus Heresy, but the adaptability of the teachings allowed the XIII Legion to prevail by learning from every encounter and assimilating certain advantageous tactics and strategies.

“In order to properly honour the combat teachings of Roboute Guilliman, we must cast his rules aside for the day. I have always considered his greatest wisdom to be Remark 101.x-” Gage nods. “I know it. “What wins the fight is what wins the fight. Ultimately, nothing should be excluded if that exclusion leads to defeat”.” “Precisely so, sir.” “The “by any means” edict,” Gage says. “The ultimate rule that no rule is unbreakable. You know, that idea always troubled him. He told me he often thought to excise the remark. He thought it too dangerous. He feared it would stand, in posterity, as a justification for any action.”    The Horus Heresy, volume XIX, Know No Fear, p247

If the ultimate outcome of the Horus Heresy concerning the fate of the Legions was any indication, Guiliman’s concern for the livery of any individual legionnaire did not concern him as much as the nature of their character. As far as Guilliman was concerned, the genetic heritage of a legionnaire was a secondary consideration – their loyalty to the Emperor and Imperium determined his attitude toward both them and their fate. This attitude may have influenced, or at least been shared by, Rogal Dorn and Malcador the Sigillite.

The excommunicate loyalists of various traitor and loyalist Legions that formed the Knights Errant, Chosen of Malcador, demonstrated the purpose Guilliman, Dorn and Malcador had in mind for those who were no longer part of a Legion. They may have been disbanded, but they were repurposed and reassigned, and in the wake of the Horus Heresy it seems likely these loyalists became the first legionnaires of Second Founding Ultramarines Chapters, each bearing the gene-seed of a single traitor or unrecorded Primarch.

PART 10

PART 12