Interlude 66: Reflections of Days Past

"What else did he say?" Garviel Loken asked.

He wore a gray robe, his hands tightly clasped together, veins bulging on the back of his hands.

Tarik Torgaddon Torgaddon sat beside him, shirtless, receiving treatment from a Servitor. He had a deep, irreparable wound on his back that required constant cleaning and removal of rotting flesh.

The process was extremely painful, but for the Astartes, pain was by no means unbearable. After undergoing the modification surgery, they were transformed into warriors who existed only for killing, and pain was simply another side of the battle. They were already used to it.

What they truly cannot refuse is the weakness that comes with illness. This is something no soldier can tolerate; soldiers are competitive people, and for someone to accept weakness due to illness is tantamount to accepting weakness themselves.

A warrior who loses his competitive spirit is no longer a warrior.

But pain, that's the price—that's the price you pay to fight those things on the Vengeful Spirit.

They leaped from the thick fog, carrying a pungent stench. Festering wounds were their name, and bloodshed their desire. These unclean creatures could easily tear apart Ceramite and devour the flesh within. Without a doubt, they were monsters among monsters.

At this moment, Horus Aximand, who was sitting opposite them and being pressed by Garviel Loken for answers, also struggled to continue speaking.

He said he was ruined, along with his honors and achievements, and we were all ruined.

"By whom? By what?" Garviel Loken pressed again.

His temples were throbbing, his fingers were rubbing against each other, and his bones were making a cracking sound from the accumulated force.

Tarik Torgaddon Torgaddon sighed, turned and gestured for his Servitor to leave, then raised his hand and patted Garviel Loken on the back. "Calm down, Garviel Loken, then we can continue our talk."

"I'm perfectly calm," Luna Wolves said expressionlessly. "So what exactly constitutes calm, brother?"

"You need to restrain yourself." Torgaddon straightened his face, forcing him to look him in the eye, his expression very serious.

"Listen to me, Garviel Loken, you have to control yourself. It's hard, I know. But if we're not rational, we can't stay sane. We need rationality to help us get through this disaster. The mastermind behind this will pay the price, and although his true identity is still unclear, don't we already have a suspect?"

Garviel Loken nodded, his breathing heavy.

"Erebus?"

Horus Aximand uttered the name, his flesh contorting, his face shifting from sorrow to rage in an instant. "Yes, it's him. His damned methods, and those damned natives."

"And that damned Ezekyle Abaddon," Garviel Loken said coldly. "Don't forget him, Aximand. And yourself, didn't you support him back then? Now look what we've gotten?"

"Let's not dwell on the past." Tarik Torgaddon Torgaddon forcefully entered their conversation, nipping a potential argument or conflict in the bud.

He frowned, looking worried. The cheerful, joking Tarik Torgaddon of the past was suddenly gone, leaving only a serious man.

"Let's look to the future, understand? Now, Aximand."

Horus Aximand hesitated for a moment, his behavior only irritating Garviel Loken more, but Torgaddon remained patient and did not urge him. A few minutes later, Horus Aximand finally spoke, looking as if he had been relieved.

He said there was a monster or something that would steal his body after he died. That thing would wear his skin and do evil in his name. He also praised you, saying you did a good job of staying away from him.

Garviel Loken lowered his head and covered his face with his hands. Torgaddon, no longer calm, let out a sudden sound from his throat and quickly tilted his head back.

"Not good at all," Garviel Loken said sullenly. "We failed in our duty, except for you, Aximand."

A pale smile appeared on Horus Aximand's face; their little argument vanished. For a moment, they seemed to have returned to the past. But, the next second, Horus Aximand's words pulled them back to reality.

"And then there's Ezekyle," he continued mercilessly. "He said Ezekyle would drag the entire Legion into the abyss to join him because of his stubbornness, and he didn't seem to blame him at all."

"Father certainly won't blame him," Torgaddon said softly. "But we will. No one can go unpunished after making a mistake, and his stubbornness has cost Father so dearly that he must die."

Garviel Loken lowered his hand, raised his head, and felt a slight sense of bewilderment at his brother's cold words.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Tarik Torgaddon Torgaddon gave him a slight, mocking smile. "Weren't you just furious, Garviel Loken? Prepare yourself, anger alone isn't enough."

"Abaddon and those still on the Vengeful Spirit are no longer our brothers. You and I both know what that ship looks like now. And since they chose to stay, they are simply our enemies."

"You're right," Garviel Loken replied in a muffled voice.

He was a little annoyed, obviously, but not at Torgaddon, but at himself.

"And what about you?" Torgaddon asked Horus Aximand. "You're the only one of us who made it to him, Aximand. He told you about Garviel Loken, about me, and about Abaddon. Don't tell me he forgot about you."

"He told me to live," Horus Aximand said. "He said I had to live because I had to witness it all and tell it all."

"What a noble duty," Torgaddon said, smiling with a hint of sadness.

He probably meant to make a joke, but failed. The phrase "noble duty" should have sounded slightly sarcastic, but now it sounded more like a subtle form of comfort.

"But what does he want me to witness?" Horus Aximand asked, somewhat bewildered. "He also said I am the last Sons of Horus, what does that mean? I don't understand, Tarik Torgaddon, I really don't."

"Everything," Garviel Loken whispered. "The death of the one who stole his identity and name, the death of Abaddon and his band of traitors. He wants you to witness these things, and then tell them to others. He wants you to restore his tarnished glory, Aximand."

"But I'm not the last one." As if sensing something, Horus Aximand.'s face tightened as he looked at his brothers. "I'm not, am I? I still have you all."

Garviel Loken and Torgaddon slowly shook their heads.

"We're just Luna Wolves now, brother," Torgaddon said.

"What?"

"We both made two very important oaths. We swore to be loyal to the Emperor, to defend the Imperial Truth, and to stand firmly against the Imperium's enemies, no matter who they may be. We kept those oaths, both internally and externally, but you didn't. You considered abandoning them. Don't deny it, I know you did."

Horus Aximand nodded silently.

"But we also made another vow. This one is one that only you have fulfilled; neither I, Garviel Loken, nor that fool Abaddon have."

After saying this, Tarik Torgaddon Torgaddon paused for a few seconds, then burst into laughter. "In the Water Gardens! Do you remember that night, Aximand? You cried like a child, and then recited the vows with Abaddon and me. Do you remember it?"

"I remember," Horus Aximand said, trembling.

"I will always be loyal to Horus, I will protect him, advise him when he needs it, and kill all that tries to harm him. I am his son, reborn by his blood, and will always stand by his side."

"So we are traitors, traitors to the Sons of Horus, but you are not," Torgaddon said, his smile fading. "So you will end up alone. You cannot die, and you will not die, Aximand. You must live, and then tell everyone our story."

"That's too difficult, brother," Horus Aximand looked at him with a hint of pleading, Torgaddon shook his head and refused.

He then looked at Garviel Loken, only to find the latter's reaction was even more intense. He left the bench, rushed to Horus Aximand, and lifted him from his seat.

"Don't give me that look!" Garviel Loken glared at him and yelled. "And don't worry about how hard it is, just do it!"

"But--"

"--But what? Shut up! Your biggest flaw, you idiot, is that you overthink. Terra, just this once, throw those damn thoughts out of your head!" Garviel Loken yelled at him, already raising his fist.

"He tells you to live, so you live. He tells you to tell everything, so you tell everything! Live, understand, Aximand? I want to see you publish books, just like that Eighth Legion Remembrancers, Bellros, publishing books nonstop!"

Garviel Loken suddenly softened his tone, released his grip, and gave Horus Aximand a tight hug. It was so sudden, so unexpected. He rested his head on his brother's shoulder, and Horus Aximand heard a slight tremor in his voice.

"Yes, it's tough. But you're the bravest of us, brother. You're brave enough to go back and face him. Me, Tarik Torgaddon, and that idiot Abaddon couldn't do it. Only you did, so I'm begging you, I'm pleading with you. Live."

The Sons of Horus closed his eyes.

"Very well," he said. "I swear, I will witness everything. I will witness the death of those who stole the skin of our fathers, I will witness the destruction of the Vengeful Spirit and the traitors upon them, I will witness the glory of the Luna Wolves. I will record it all and tell it to all."

Update complete.