Several months later.
Footsteps echoed across the metal deck of the Oathbreaker's corridors, their rhythm steady and powerful.
The extensively modified Retribution-class Battleship had become the central stronghold from which Brutus advanced his ideals.
The ship's interior differed from that of other Sons of Horus warships. Alongside the Legion Insignia, new symbols and inscriptions adorned the walls. Those inscriptions praised the greatness and glory of the Space Marines, emphasizing the exalted position the Astartes deserved within the Imperium.
Drawing on the ancient tradition of the Warrior Lodge, Brutus rapidly spread the ideology of Great Astartes-ism throughout the Sons of Horus Legion.
The Warrior Lodges—informal organizations that arose spontaneously within companies, founded on shared beliefs and bonds forged in battle—became the ideal channels for spreading this ideology.
On the training grounds, in the mess halls, in the lounges, and at every post-battle debriefing, warriors who had embraced Brutus's ideas conveyed them to their brothers in every way they could.
Space Marines were the pinnacle of humanity, the Emperor's greatest creation, and the foundation that kept the Imperium standing.
They deserved greater status, greater authority, and greater respect, rather than being treated as tools to be allocated at will by Terran bureaucrats who had never even set foot on a battlefield.
Countless Legion warriors embraced Great Astartes-ism.
Deep down, they agreed with its principles. They were indeed stronger, more resilient, and more loyal than Mortals. They had made greater sacrifices and endured greater suffering, and they deserved greater recognition and respect.
At the same time, they were genuinely dissatisfied with the Emperor's policies curtailing the Space Marines' authority. The reports from Terra, the new regulations, the clauses intended to sideline Space Marines as mere instruments of war—every provision planted a seed of resentment in their hearts.
Yet most of that resentment remained