"The Dark King?! It was the Dark King who sent that Chaos-corrupted Khârn here!"
This revelation completely subverted Axis's expectations. He had originally assumed it was a conspiracy of the Four Gods.
The Emperor, however, had once revealed the truth to him: his internment upon the Golden Throne to usher in humanity's grim, cold, and hopeless future was itself the Dark King's insidious trap.
That supreme curse, shrouding the entire universe, was the ultimate conspiracy targeting the human race.
"And why would he do such a thing?" Axis asked in a low voice.
"To be precise... this is a warning," Khorne rumbled.
"The Dark King's grand design, his plan for humanity's future…its essence is a catastrophic sacrifice. Psykers, Astartes, mortals, countless other races... and even himself. All are mere tribute.
"In the end, everything is sacrificed to forge a soulless, dark empire ruled by pure despair, cold and dead.
"...When he sits upon the Golden Throne on the verge of oblivion, when his will expands infinitely amidst despair and agony, when the wailing and faith of trillions of souls converge... his inner darkness, that supreme entity known as the 'Dark King,' will awaken!"
Khorne had revealed the true nature of the Dark King to Axis.
To put it bluntly, the Emperor's very birth was merely one link in the Dark King's colossal plan.
To think that ancient shamans from a single planet, those feeble, archaic psykers, could drag a supreme deity from the Warp and seal it within a mortal shell?
It was a delusion.
It was a grand sacrificial ritual from its inception. Even the rise of humanity was a carefully orchestrated rite by the Dark King.
Humanity's ascension dealt near-extinction level blows to most species in the galaxy; even those xenos who submitted faced eventual destruction.
The Emperor appeared to be humanity's savior, but in reality, he had personally dragged them into an abyss of eternal damnation!
Humanity was merely the executioner carrying out the Dark King's will. When the executioner had slaughtered enough lives, they too would become the final sacrifice.
The Emperor would inevitably ascend as the Dark King!
"You mean to say... the Dark King is warning the Emperor? Forcing him not to interfere with preordained fate and compelling him to accept that conclusion?" Axis pressed.
"Precisely, my friend. The Dark King has seen you. You the 'variable.' You, Axis, hail from beyond this world. Your power system, your actions, the 'hope' you bring... these are all massive sources of interference in his grand design.
"He sent Khârn here to test the Emperor's response. The Dark King is forcing the Emperor to accept his plan... perhaps even forcing the Emperor to personally eliminate you, the destabilizing factor," Khorne stated.
Axis nodded. Combined with the intelligence provided by the Emperor, Khorne's words rang true.
Moreover, given Khorne's nature, lies were shameful and intolerable to him. Of course, Axis would still anything the Chaos Gods said with a grain of salt, he had even inspected the soul shard countless times.
It was in their name, Chaos. Their very fundamental nature was that of chaos. Nothing could be certain. But compared to the other bastards, Khrone was more trustworthy, as his nature was more predictable.
First, it could be confirmed that the Emperor of this universe would never be eternally bound to the Golden Throne like his counterparts in other universes, because Axis had strengthened him with Ki for a full decade and even aided him in consuming the Fruit of the Tree of Might.
His physical resilience far exceeded that of any Emperor in parallel worlds.
Even if gravely wounded and near death, Axis could use life-force Ki to pull him back from the brink of the Throne's curse.
Precisely because of this, the Dark King had sent the future Khârn as a warning to the Emperor, forcing him to execute the established sacrifice.
"You mean... the Emperor wants to deal with me now?"
"Of course no! The Emperor is protecting you! Protecting you with almost everything he has!" Khorne roared with a trace of strange approval, "Right now, he must burn the souls of a thousand psykers every single day!
"This amplifies his psychic might to suppress the restless Dark King within him.
"But now, the Dark King has given the Emperor a choice: either accept the arrangement, or... humanity dies instantly!
"He could birth himself now, devour all human souls, and exterminate the entire race!
"So, my friend, imagine—if the Emperor were forced to choose between you and the human race, who do you think he would choose?" Khorne asked.
"Why tell me this? It benefits you nothing," Axis said.
It required no thought. The Emperor's love for humanity transcended everything; he would sacrifice all for its survival.
If the Dark King truly placed such a cruel choice before him... the golden pineapple would likely choose to move against Axis without hesitation.
It was a pity... time. What Axis lacked most was time!
"Humanity's extinction was ordained the moment the Dark King chose them."
"Impossible! I will stop him! I will defeat the Dark King! I will shatter this so-called fate!" Axis declared resolutely.
"Hahaha! Well said! This is exactly what I appreciate about you, Axis!" Khorne erupted into deafening laughter, causing the entire Skull Throne to tremble and boom.
"But you must realize one thing, my friend: the Dark King is currently 'formless'! He is unborn. He has no physical location, nor can anyone trace him. He doesn't even have a tangible form in any meaningful sense.
"How will you defeat an enemy that does not yet exist? Wait for his birth?
"If the Dark King is born, the human race ends! And if he is not born... you have no way to defeat him!" Khorne laid out the insoluble paradox.
To defeat the Dark King, you had to let him be born, and the price of his birth was human extinction.
It was an impossible multiple-choice question for Axis.
"Enough, my friend. We have spoken enough for today. Go! Take your trophies and return.
"I look forward immensely to seeing your clash with the Dark King! That will surely be a war to shake the very foundations of the galaxy!" Khorne's voice carried a bloodthirsty zeal.
What did the Dark King's birth matter to him?
He only desired Axis to become stronger, and then to fight him! Axis was human, but not a human of this universe; the Dark King's birth would not affect him.
"Do you not fear the Dark King's birth? If he truly descends, you Four Gods will also be destroyed by him, will you not?
"As far as I know, the Dark King symbolizes the end of the universe. His birth means the entire cosmos will be burned to ash," Axis challenged.
"Why should I fear? I simply yearn for the day I can battle the Dark King! Success or failure means nothing; I only enjoy the process of battle!" Khorne's answer was filled with pure desire for destruction.
Boy, you don't truly believe I care about the Dark King's "theoretical" destruction of the universe, do you? That is mere theory! He wants to destroy the universe? He'll have to step over my corpse first!
"How can I stop the Dark King's birth? Or... delay it?" Axis asked urgently.
He did not doubt Khorne; the Emperor had confessed that the Dark King had secretly moved against him several times, targeting Axis as his rival.
Now, what Axis needed most was time. He had to delay the Dark King's arrival.
"Simple. Follow His plan," Khorne stated the key. "The Dark King is not absolutely certain he can deal with us Four Gods, or perhaps, certain other entities in this universe.
"Therefore, he needs to accumulate supreme power. Simultaneously, as his vessel, the Emperor must also possess enough power to 'suppress' him." Khorne revealed the contradiction.
Axis understood. Khorne meant that the Horus Heresy must play out according to the script.
Horus must duel the Emperor, finally forcing the Emperor onto the Golden Throne.
Humanity had to struggle in desperate waters, generating immense power of faith directed at the Emperor, and this faith would, to a certain extent, bind and suppress the Dark King.
"You aren't trying to get me to join you and help you deal with the Emperor, are you?" Axis's eyes were cold, his tone unfriendly.
This was clearly implying that if Horus failed to beat the Emperor onto the Golden Throne, the Dark King would arrive prematurely.
Or perhaps... the old man in gold would personally enter the fray to deal with Axis.
"I never said that." Khorne's voice sounded almost amused, "I'm letting you leave. It was you who insisted on asking. As for whether my words are true or false... you know the answer yourself."
Axis gave a cold snort and turned to leave the Brass Throne.
His mind was in turmoil. If the Emperor was truly pushed to the brink and determined to deal with him, how should he respond?
The Dark King was forcing the Emperor's hand. Although the Emperor resisted with all his might, it was likely... with little success.
To stop the Dark King's birth, the Emperor had to sit on the Golden Throne as fate decreed. But because of Axis's existence, Horus dared not even invade Holy Terra!
"Actually... there is one other way," Khorne's voice echoed behind Axis.
"What way? You don't want me to join Horus, do you?"
"You wouldn't join Horus, I know that well. You just need to stay out of it. Stop interfering in this war between the Emperor and Horus.
"The Dark King doesn't want to push the Emperor completely over the edge, which is why he sent Khârn from another timeline to force the Emperor's hand against you, it was just a means for them to break their stalemate.
"Haven't you noticed? The Emperor has intentionally kept you away, repeatedly hinting that you should stay far from Holy Terra and this war.
"Yet you... you keep strengthening the loyalist forces. The Dark King has run out of patience with you." Khorne pointed with a grin.
He had no intention of corrupting Axis; he saw Axis as a worthy opponent!
When they first met, he indeed had such thoughts, but ever since that exhilarating battle with Axis, he had changed his mind.
Axis was the opponent he had long awaited!
"..." Axis's expression was dark. if this was true... was all his hard work in vain?
Was it all... just a joke?
"The choice is yours, Axis. I have merely told you the truth of this ending, the inside story of this process. Whether to believe it or not... is for you to decide!" said Khorne.
...
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ps?!