After the Thousand Sons First Council concluded, Magnus drew the sickle-blade. With a swing, the invisible barrier of the Sothmes Sigil was dispelled.
The Thousand Sons felt their connection to the Warp restored, powerful energy returning to their grasp.
As Magnus re-hung the sickle at his waist, he raised his left arm, swiftly tracing a rune in the air.
The pattern of a pentagon nested within a circle was quickly completed. The Thousand Sons sensed the Warp's tides beating against the rune, gathering around their gene-father.
"This rune can channel the Warp's tides. Its effect is quite good."
Ahzek Ahriman's eyes were profound. "Indeed. Hathor has contributed a useful rune to us."
Magnus slowly traced the pattern again, ensuring all Thousand Sons remembered it.
As the Thousand Sons departed, he said to Hathor Maat:
"Hathor, you stay."
When only Magnus, Hathor, and the shadowed Amon remained on the deck, the red-skinned Cyclops spoke.
"Hathor, that rune, did you discover it together with my brother, Nareth?"
"Father, yes." Hathor's eyes flashed. He had already guessed his father's purpose for asking. The endless thirst for knowledge.
"It is part of an array. There are other runes."
"Nareth may possess other runes."
Through communication on Prospero, Magnus knew Nareth possessed powerful psychic strength and skill.
Among his brothers, he was only slightly weaker than Magnus himself. In telepathy and telekinesis, the might be evenly matced.
If Hathor had discovered something, Nareth likely found more.
"You shall serve as my representative, under the pretext of communicating negotiation progress, to attempt to obtain other runes."
"As you command, Father." Hathor acknowledged. This provided an opportunity to report to his Lord.
Hathor then boarded a Stormbird, flying towards the Forge-Hammer.
Two hours later, he entered the lower decks' Fane. He approached the black-armored giant, who wore a sword at his right hip and a plasma pistol at his left.
The plasma gun personally forged by Perturabo was a two-handed weapon for an Astartes, but for a gene-primarch, it was merely a pistol.
"My Lord." After bowing, Hathor, somewhat anxious about not achieving the desired outcome, decided to start with the positive.
"In the recently concluded First Council, I became the Magister Templi of the Pavoni Cul' and was formally appointed Third Captain."
"Well done. Congratulations." Nareth nodded with satisfaction. His investment in Hathor was beginning to yield returns.
Before the Great Slaughter, the Thousand Sons were the smallest of the eighteen Astartes Legions in terms of numbers, yet still numbered eighty-five thousand.
In the future, the Thousand Sons would have only nine Fellowships. Although they currently had ten, during the middle phase of the Great Crusade, they suffered heavy casualties in the war against the Orks in the Kamenka Ulizarna system.
The Captain of the Fifth Fellowship, the Magister Templi of the Corvidae Cult, Ahriman's close friend Apophis, also perished in that battle.
Magnus restructured the Legion, reducing it from ten to nine Fellowships, modeled after the ancient Egyptian Ennead.
Moreover, the five Cults were distributed among the nine Fellowships to enable coordinated use of their different psychic powers.
Of course, the Captain's Cult would dominate within their respective companies.
As Captain of the Third Fellowship and Magister Templi of the Pavoni Cult, before the Great Slaughter, the number of Thousand Sons Hathor could influence would conservatively reach ten thousand.
"Provide details about the First Council proceedings."
"Yes." Seeing his Lord was relatively pleased, Hathor relaxed slightly, "As the leading member of the First Council, second only to the Primarch, I was responsible for opening the council."
"After Ahzek Ahriman and other Thousand Sons announced their names in turn, I reported to the gene-father."
"Father then drew the sickle, tapped the solar disc, and traced the Sothmes Sigil on the floor."
Nareth's eyes brightened. He knew this sigil was one of the most powerful among the many sigils created by Magnus.
"Yes, the Sothmes Sigil. It severs connection to the Warp on one side. All Thousand Sons present lose their psychic powers."
"No one can perceive the council's proceedings through technological or psychic means."
"Father once said that once the Sothmes Sigil is deployed, even the Emperor himself could not penetrate the invisible barrier."
After listening to Hathor's description, Nareth thought to himself:
'Perhaps the Emperor truly cannot break through, or perhaps only the versions etched into Prospero or Magnus's flagship, made from precious warp-reactive materials, can truly bar him.'
'But hastily or temporarily deployed ones in places like campaign tents might not withstand the Emperor's scrutiny.'
'If Magnus possessed an artifact like the Spear of the Phoenician, personally infused with power by the Emperor, he could see through it regardless."
Quietly assessing this in his mind, while listening to Hathor continue describing the process, Nareth thought:
'The Kingdom of Disorder can block all scrutiny. But in the real space, I indeed lack such means.'
'The range of "Burial" isn't broad enough. While Freddy is on the Darkness pathway, he hasn't mastered this type of ability.'
'Psychic wards can block scrutiny to some extent, but they aren't particularly powerful, unable to stop potent psykers.
As Nareth pondered, Hathor spoke with slight tension:
"Since Father's return, he has not established the position of Chief Librarian."
"Unlike the Shadows of Order and other Legions, in the Thousand Sons, a Fellowship Captain can also hold the position of Chief Librarian."
"Brother Ahriman commanded the Legion before the gene-father's return. Although Ormuzd died, Ahzek's position has grown more solid. To become Chief Librarian and serve you, I must win Father's favor before Ahriman completes his secondment."
The "Telephatist" looked towards Nareth and continued:
"Therefore, I shared the rune you told me about during the First Council."
Nareth nodded slightly and smiled, "Since I entrusted it to you, you naturally could decide based on the situation. No need for concern."
Hathor breathed a sigh of relief. Nareth asked:
"Do you know the Sothmes Sigil?"
"I do not." Hathor said helplessly.
"Only Father can complete the Sothmes Sigil." He explained in detail.
"Although the Sothmes Sigil's pattern is complex, it's not difficult for a Thousand Son. The reason it cannot be completed lies in the psychic application during its tracing."
"Every tap must be precisely executed with the psychic force, without the slightest error. Only Father can achieve this."
Hathor knew that even Ahzek couldn't complete the Sothmes Sigil. Perhaps the mysterious Amon might be able to, but he didn't think the Primarch Attendant could either.
"I can only trace about one-third of it."
"Open your mind to me. I wish to personally explore its mysteries." Nareth said.
Since Magnus had obtained his rune, it was only reasonable for him to acquire the sigil Magnus created.
Although the value between the two was vastly different, they were both runes. No need to haggle over such details.
By obtaining the Sothmes Sigil, he could use it as a foundation to create his own sigils for secrecy, useful in many situations.
Hathor hesitated slightly. Any psyker, especially a Thousand Son, knew the consequences of opening one's mind to another.
Powerful telepathic psykers needed to breach mental defenses to manipulate minds.
Opening one's mind meant even a psyker with some skill could seize the opportunity to control the mind, even enslave the will.
But Hathor knew he lacked the ability to refuse.
Hathor could not resist the "Baron of Corruptions" command. He compliantly opened his mind to Nareth.
"As you wish."
Nareth's consciousness extended, seeping into Hathor's mind.
On the flesh-and-blood mental gateway forged by Pavoni arts, embedded with sparkling eyes, the "Telephatist's" psychic reflection, Nareth's consciousness encountered no obstruction.
Seeping into Hathor's mind, he swiftly located two mental images.
In the Prospero hall, Magnus tracing the Sothmes Sigil.
On the flagship's palace, him tracing the Sothmes Sigil again.
Every movement of Magnus wielding the sickle unfolded before Nareth like a playing film.
Every motion was deeply etched into the Primarch's superhuman brain.
.....
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