Even in what could only be called a desperate situation, Magnus still intended to resist to the bitter end.
It was unclear whether he truly preferred death to surrender, or whether he was arrogant enough to believe his power could carry him out alive from the encirclement of seven primarchs.
His mind churned violently, not only because the brother he had trusted wholeheartedly had deceived him from the very beginning, but also because he sensed the fragment of himself that represented his kind side.
That fragment was very close. At this very moment, it was within the Imperial Palace on Terra.
Magnus also sensed the presence of one of his sons and recognized him: Revuel Arvida, a loyalist within the Legion.
Ever since his soul had been shattered by Leman Russ, Magnus had desperately longed to make himself whole again. It had even become an obsession, the anchor and meaning of his existence.
After all, he was no longer Magnus in the truest sense. He was an entity known as the Crimson King, formed after Ahriman and the Thousand Sons' upper ranks fused together the soul fragments they had gathered.
Even now, surrounded on all sides, Magnus remained unwilling to let go of the soul fragment within his grasp.
The longing rising from the depths of his heart made him abandon any thought of escape. Even if he had to fight to the death, he would reclaim what belonged to him.
Power, I need more power...
Magnus roared inwardly as he frantically drew upon the energies of the Warp to strengthen himself.
At the end of the Battle of Prospero, he had made a pact with the Changer of Ways to save his Legion and had transferred his sons to the Planet of Sorcerers within the Warp.
The Crimson King