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Erda moved silently, slipping past the guards of the Imperial Palace. She entered the hidden vault—the place where she and her oldest friend had nurtured their children. **His** Primarchs. One to twenty, suspended in their gestation pods.
She stepped closer, pressing a trembling hand against one of the pods. *Beautiful*—it was the only word that came to mind. Their children, the Emperor's and hers, were magnificent. The thought of scattering them across the galaxy felt like a dagger twisting in her chest, but she had no choice.
For their safety. For their freedom.
Gathering her psychic strength, she tore a hole into the fabric of reality. One last glance at them—at the children she would never see again—before she let the Warp take them. A voice whispered in the back of her mind.
*Let them go. Free them from the tyrant's grasp. Give them a life of happiness.*
She barely noticed the tears on her face as she wove the Immaterium around them.
Footsteps. Heavy. Fast.
The Emperor was coming.
Erda hid herself as he burst into the chamber, golden light flaring around him. His gaze locked onto the pods—just as they began to detach. He reached out with his power, but the vortex of the Warp had already taken them, swirling into a violent storm. Shadows and faces flickered in the chaos, unrecognizable and otherworldly.
He had failed.
But he managed to cast a spell upon them just after the first pod had gone through.
She did not wait to see his reaction. With a final look at the chaos she had wrought, Erda vanished into the shadows.
The Master of Mankind watched as the vortex began to close, but not before it twisted into mocking faces, cackling at his failure. He saw the Immaterium vanish from existence. He had run as fast as he could when Malcador told him of his dead Custodians and the failing Gellar field he had personally crafted to protect his creations.
He had ordered his most trusted warrior, Valdor, to rush to the vault. But it was too late. The future generals of his conquest, the sons who would lead humanity's resurgence, had been stolen away.
Yet, in the final moment, as the last pod was about to be lost to the Sea of Souls, he reached out with his power, wrapping them in the protective light of his will, shielding them from the horrors of the Warp.
The doors burst open once more. His honor guard. His Custodes. Malcador. His oldest companion stepped forward, eyes falling upon the empty pods. He understood the loss in an instant.
He turned to his lord and friend. *"What now?"*
The Emperor stared at the place where his sons had once been. His expression was unreadable, but Malcador could feel the storm of emotions beneath the surface. Finally, the Emperor spoke.
*"It is time to prepare for the creation of the Imperium. We must find and unite my sons. What better way than by using their sons?"*
Malcador nodded, already deep in thought, considering the best course of action to recover from this setback.
Valdor, ever the warrior, stepped forward. *"My lord, what of the intruder?"*
*"Gone,"* Malcador answered. *"The moment the Warp vanished, so did they, as if they were no more than a fleeting illusion."*
*"Then I shall clear the palace once more,"* Valdor said, turning on his heel as the Custodes moved out to secure the halls.
Malcador turned back to the Emperor. *"She has betrayed us. Only she has the power to open a path to the Immaterium on Terra, other than us."*
The Emperor said nothing. He only stared ahead, but Malcador could *feel* his anger boiling beneath the surface.
Neoth was furious. But more than that, he was confused.
Why?
Why had she done this?
She *knew* what was at stake. She *knew* how much he cared for humanity. Why had she betrayed him? Why scatter their progeny? Why try to thwart his plans, when his vision was humanity's best hope of reclaiming the stars?
He sighed internally.
A cold, efficient part of him whispered that this was not a complete loss. Now, Chaos would not be as cautious of him or his creations. And this… this would serve as ample motivation for the Legions he was building. They would travel the stars, seeking their lost sires.
The Emperor took one final glance at the vault before turning away.
*"Tell Amar Astarte to accelerate the project. There are still parts of Terra that must be brought into compliance."*
Malcador hummed in thought, already considering their next moves.