Lorgar Aurelian intended to hold a sacrifice to commune with a god. More precisely, he intended to hold a sacrifice to commune with the god of mankind.
Hm. Without question, it sounded very strange.
The Word Bearers and their Primarch were infamous for despising religion, in an age when most people had become believers in gods, worshiping scriptures and arming themselves with fanaticism and ignorance. Yet they still firmly believed in the Imperial Truth, and this brought them a great many troubles.
One of them was fighting alone. They received almost no support from other powers, and people did not understand why they disparaged religion so much—but the Word Bearers never expected their understanding.
Truth was often held in the hands of the few.
And now, a man who firmly believed in truth intended to personally pick up the ignorance and fanaticism he had cast aside. Well, if those slain cultists knew from beyond the grave, they would probably burst into wild laughter. In truth, even Lorgar himself found it somewhat laughable.
But what else could he do?
Some things had to be done by someone.
"Those cultists held countless rituals. I have read their scriptures, and I have spoken face-to-face with some of them. Communing with gods often requires certain rather special people, people who usually possess qualities that They recognize."
"Gods favor them, and grant them power and tolerance. In short, without such people, even if the ritual can be carried out smoothly, it will probably require a greater price."
As Lorgar analyzed, he watched his First Company place Ecclesiarchy scriptures, temporarily borrowed from a nearby world, on the ground. The Librarians bustled back and forth, sketching complex formations across the floor with molten gold. A freezing chill had already assaulted the ship, and the Word Bearer sighed.