Magnus struggled to maintain the barrier. The protective construct manifested from Psychic Power had already begun to crack.
Whenever the Emperor and Horus clashed at close quarters, the cracks multiplied or widened.
Some wanted to help Magnus. Others wanted to join the battle rather than merely watch. But without exception, none of them could offer much help.
Clone Horus watched the Emperor fight his original self. He did not know they were echoes, nor did he know why they had appeared. He could only see the present.
At least for now, his original self was fighting the Emperor.
Their battle was not merely a contest of force, but a clash of minds.
Having only just awakened and learned a little about the Great Heresy, Clone Horus had been unable to believe that his original self had rebelled. Searching his own heart, he could find no reason to rebel.
Believing that Astartes stood above mortals was a problem.
But even if there was no place for Astartes in a mortal council, that was hardly enough to warrant rebellion.
Yet Clone Horus later came to understand. He understood why the rebellion had happened.
Just as he did now.
Horus constantly roared about how much he had done for humanity, endlessly condemning the Emperor's ambitions and schemes.
His entire way of thinking rested on the premise that the Emperor harbored a scheme. He believed he was fighting for humanity, not worshipping some god and carrying out its will like that bastard Lorgar.
From the current perspective, Horus's concerns were entirely meaningless, more like rhetoric meant to conceal the truth. In reality, he had yielded to the powers of destruction. Whether he even retained a self was unknown.
But on further reflection, Clone Horus felt that the historical claim that the Emperor had used