---Victor POV, Three Days Later---
With the Imperator Somnium in the final stage of construction, all that was left was to test all its systems for any faults. Leaving the testing to Bannister and her team, I moved forward with the final two projects I had on the docket before my journey to Terra. The first project involved repairing the Golden Throne and giving the Emperor of Mankind a sorely needed power boost for the impending conflict. My hope was that these two measures would allow the Emperor of Mankind to field all his Saints, as we would need all the assistance we could get against Abaddon's forces.
As for the second project, I intended to activate my dormant Primarch genetics and inoculate myself with both the Extremis virus and Super Soldier serum. Both items had been sitting in my inventory for years now because I was uncertain how to best utilize them. Giving my soldiers such immense power could potentially bite me in the ass, and I initially thought I did not need them personally… Until I received that rude awakening during our conquest of the fortress. Seeing no other alternative now, I was ready to take the plunge to ensure I lived to bring my dreams to fruition.
"If I wait until after my debut, I will be too busy fixing shit to worry about the Emperor of Mankind and the Golden Throne.", I answered, gathering various electronic parts and tools. "UR-025, has the tank been filled with Elixir and High Potions? Upon my return, I plan to begin the procedure to enhance my physical body and mind."
"Thank you.", I replied, stowing the last part in my inventory. "Alright, I will be back in a bit. If anyone asks, I am in a meeting with Dorn and Guilliman."
Moving to the throne room, via a Force Storm, I stepped into the ornately decorated room half expecting to be greeted by Custodies at spear point. Finding the space completely devoid of people, save for the Emperor of Mankind himself, I closed the portal behind me and made my way toward the throne. Glancing up at him for a moment, his piercing red eyes stared into my soul for an instant before he began speaking to me.
"You possess quite a wide array of abilities, grandson.", the Emperor commented telepathically. "What brings you here today? From what I gather, you should not be here for a few more days yet."
"I came here today to work on the Golden Throne and install a new power source for you to use in the coming battle ahead of us.", I answered, retrieving a ZPM unit from my inventory. "Using the technology I obtained from the fortress, I was able to redirect pure Void Energy into this containment unit. While I cannot be certain, as I am not a psyker, the fortress' AI estimates that each unit holds the power of approximately ten billion psykers each. Installing five of these should provide you with more than enough power to field all your resources when we go to retake Cadia and seal the Great Rift."
"Interesting… I did not believe it was possible to safely capture and store Void Energy. We tried that early on during my reign, but all our attempts failed due to the containment unit's inability to prevent the Warp's taint from radiating out of it. Your method appears to have resolved that problem, so I see no problem with using them.", the Emperor agreed. "That said, before I will allow you to tinker with the throne, I want to ensure you are competent enough to do so. Look at the writing on this throne and tell me what you see."
Guiding me to the backside of the chair, the Emperor of Mankind indicated that the text he wanted me to check was below the seat itself. Crouching down to have a better look, as I leaned in to examine it closely, I was surprised to find Ogham runes hammered into the metal. Thanks to my translation ability, I was able to read the writing perfectly and discovered it contained detailed notes of the throne's construction.
"Uh…is there any particular reason someone wrote a manual for this chair in Ogham?", I inquired.
"Not only do you know the language, but you also can read it... Very interesting.", the Emperor remarked, pleased by this revelation. "As for why I chose to write things out in Ogham, I did so to prevent others from copying my work and replicating it elsewhere. Aside from the two of us, no one else alive has the knowledge necessary to read it. I would ask that you not disclose any of the information I wrote down to anyone."
"Not a problem; I have no desire to replicate this death trap, so your secret is safe with me.", I chuckled as I read his notes in their entirety.
Getting to work, once I had a firm grasp on things, I popped up the access panel and watched as a rat's nest of cable fell out. Mutually disgusted by the handiwork of those before me, organizing the wiring and resoldering connections took a substantial amount of time. Under normal circumstances, ripping it out and starting from scratch would be the best method, but this machine was the only thing keeping him alive, so that was not an option. Once I had the cabling addressed, I moved to testing components to figure out what was causing the chair's systems to fail.
Using the documentation as a guide, I metered all connections into the machine for continuity, power, and resistance. Replacing failed components with higher-quality replacements I brought, as I dug into things more, an audible hum began to echo throughout the chamber. Deciding to ignore it, since he was not complaining, I pressed forward until all systems appeared to be back online again. More than satisfied with my work, I buttoned up things and walked around to the front of the throne.
"Alright, I believe everything should be working now. Give it a try and let me know if you experience any discomfort. There are a few things I can tweak to make it easier on you, if needed.", I told him telepathically.
"I can say with absolute certainty that your work has drastically improved my overall situation. Not only am I no longer in agonizing pain, but this damnable throne is also no longer parasitizing my body. For the first time in over ten thousand years, I can feel my body beginning to heal itself from my battle with fallen son Horus.", the Emperor replied, his relief evident in his tone, "You have my utmost gratitude, my dear grandson. In a few months I should be able to move around normally, and in a year's time I will be ready to lead my people again."
"Unless you have a reason to delay your recovery, I can mend your wounds in a matter of seconds with Healing Magic.", I offered.
"If you do not mind, I would be extremely grateful to you. While I will not be able to leave the throne room until something is done about the Webway portal beneath our feet, being able to properly eat and drink again would be wonderful.", the Emperor chuckled, having sustained himself with only psychic power all these years.
Happy to oblige his request, I cast High Heal and Regrowth on him. Watching as his flesh, muscle, organs, and sinew regrew, he let out a sigh of relief as he stretched his body out for the first time in millennia. Tossing him a set of clothing from my inventory, the Emperor put the clothing on and got up to walk around a bit. As he strode around the room pondering something, I took a moment to observe him closely.
Seeing him for the first time in the flesh, I was surprised how ordinary he looked compared to other Imperials I had met up till now. Aside from being fourteen feet tall, he looked like an average businessman that you could find walking around New York City. Wondering where his sons got their genetics, as they looked nothing like him in the slightest, I opted to not ask as it might open a can of worms that I was not ready to deal with.
"Can I assume that this entire room is part of the device?", I inquired, looking around the room.
"Yes, this space was initially supposed to be a rallying point before entering the Webway directly. It was going to be heavily guarded to protect against Dark Eldar and Daemon attacks, but all those plans were ruined by my fallen sons.", the Emperor sighed, with a pained look, "May I have a look at one of those containment units you intend to install while you get things ready?"
"Yeah, that is fine.", I acknowledged, handing one over to him.
While he carefully looked it over, I picked up one of the harnesses meant for psyker sacrifices and ripped the wiring harness out. Taking a few minutes to determine which wires went to which terminal in the Golden Throne, I terminated the harness to the ZPM pedestals I brought to install them out. Assisting me with the terminations, once his curiosity was pacified, the two of us installed the modules on each of the five pedestals before tinkering with the throne's power inputs.
"As a safety precaution, I think we should install an inline breaker or fuse to prevent the throne from being overloaded. What do you think?", I inquired, looking at him.
"Given that we have wired them in series and not parallel, I would agree that a breaker or fuse would be a good idea.", the Emperor agreed.
Retrieving a specialized breaker meant for standard warp engines, I got it installed between the throne and ZPMs before giving him the go-ahead. Taking a seat on the throne again, he began adjusting the setting via a touchscreen in the throne's right armrest. Happy with the changes he made, the Emperor began drawing upon the power stored within the ZPMs to fuel the Astronomican and the barrier holding back the daemonic threat hammering away at the Webway portal to Terra.
Feeling the floor beneath my feet begin to shake violently, the room began to glow brightly as the Emperor of Mankind's power began to surge to newfound heights. Distorting the space around us, a horrible scream of agony and anguish began to come from under the throne itself. Uncertain if the daemons were forcing their way in, I drew my lightsabers, ready to engage anything that came through the portal. Hearing footsteps outside the room, Trajann Valoris and several of his Custodies stormed into the room with their weapons at the ready.
"What is going on?!", Guilliman called out as he and several dozen Ultramarines arrived to back them up. "Victor, what are you doing here? Do you realize where you are right now!?"
"Are they about to breach, or is this your doing?", I asked, looking up at the Emperor of Mankind.
Glancing up at the throne, all the men froze as they saw their leader's healed form. Initially believing they were seeing things, their doubt quickly disappeared as he looked upon them fondly. Realizing that it was indeed the Emperor of Mankind, every one of them dropped to their knees and bowed their heads.
"Victor, I must say I had my doubts about the power you said those devices possessed, but now I believe you. Using the immense power stored within them, I forcibly collapsed the portion of the Webway that humanity created and took the device we used to create it offline. For the moment, Terra is safe from a daemonic invasion.", the Emperor remarked with a pleased smile, "All that is left is to automate the Astronomican again, and I will be free to leave this space again."
"Phew, I really thought we were about to experience a shitshow.", I laughed, as the Lion and several Dark Angels arrived.
"What is going on here?", Lion asked, seeing Astartes and Custodies bowing their heads. "Why are you here, boy? You are not supposed to be on Terra for a few more days."
"Lift your heads, my son and faithful followers; there is no need to stand on ceremony this day. Thanks to the efforts of Primarch Stark, I have been brought back from the brink of death to help our Imperium in its darkest hour.", the Emperor spoke, causing Lion and his men to instinctively drop to their knees in respect. "While my body has been healed completely, it is still very weak from my prolonged stay upon this machine. Until I am fit to pick up my sword and lead the Imperium of Man, Guilliman will continue to lead the nation in my stead. My loyal Custodies and Lion, I have work for you that needs to be carried out prior to Dorn's return home. During my internment, many noble Terran households have fallen from grace and become a cancer to our Imperium and its people. I command you to root out the decay and dispense my judgment upon them."
"It shall be done, my Lord!", Valoris acknowledged, "Give us their names, and I swear to you that none shall live to see the sunset tonight!"
"The Dark Angels and I are ready to serve you, father. Give the word, and it shall be done!", Lion swore, ready to cull the blight upon their people.
Looking upon all of them fondly, the Emperor of Mankind was happy to be conversing with his people once again. Glancing over to me, he gave me a grateful nod and thanked me for all the support I had given the Imperium of Man. Certain that the Imperium was in a far better position than it was a few weeks ago, from this point on, things would only get better for their nation and their people.
"Go now, my beloved grandson; I will take care of things from here. You will need all the strength you have to withstand the painful procedure you are about to inflict upon yourself.", the Emperor remarked telepathically. "I look forward to welcoming both Dorn and you home in a few days' time."
A bit surprised that he was aware of what I had planned, I cracked a smile and excused myself. Retiring back to my laboratory, Jarvis removed my armor and disinfected my body as I entered the armory. Injecting myself with some penicillin, as a safety precaution, Luxion affixed several needles into my arms and thighs before escorting me to the tank at the center of the room.
"Of course not; the procedure is going to be agonizing and gruesome. None of them would ever want me to undergo such a painful operation, but I have no choice in the matter. A normal human body and technology are only going to help me so much; I need to be much stronger if I am to see my dreams come to fruition.", I remarked, "Under no circumstances are you to tell them about this. If they ask where I am, I am currently working on a time-sensitive project. This process will have me out cold for three to four days, so please keep them away from here until I awaken."
"You are telling me….", I sighed, "I appreciate all of your assistance; see you all in a few days."
Slipping into the large tank, I let myself sink into the fluid as the Vita-Ray emitters came online. Slowly administering the Extremis virus and Super Soldier serum to me, the nanites that were already in my body began disassembling and reassembling my genetic coding to activate my latent genes. At first, I felt nothing, but as they began spreading rapidly throughout my body, an ungodly amount of pain washed over me. Allowing my mind to fade into unconsciousness, I left things to my AI assistants and let things take their course.