The Third Fleet was still stranded in the Warp.
And the reason for it all was the being Bona saw before him.
A deity.
She had the body of a T'au, but many different kinds of arms.
T'au, Kroot, Vespid, human, Nicassar...
Each arm was different, yet all were the "arms" of different species, holding different objects such as precious blades, pens, gems, and shields.
This was the deity of the T'au-T'au'va.
No definitive illustration of the goddess T'au'va was currently available.
Magnus made no attempt to hide the disgust on his face. If he hated his father's mystical airs, then a Xenos deity was undoubtedly even more loathsome than his father.
"You can't keep us trapped for long. The veil of reality is growing stronger," Bona said.
"I know," she said.
She had not opened her eyes, but Bona knew she was watching him all along.
"I am merely buying time for those I love, however insignificant that time may be."
"Your power is feeble, mongrel. It seems your people haven't even given you the strength you ought to have," Magnus sneered.
"My power is indeed feeble, but even a towering tree begins as a seedling, and the Greater Good will be the finest fuel for its growth."
"One day, the Greater Good will become the shared faith of every species in the universe. It will end all bloody wars."
Both Bona and Magnus could clearly sense how different the deity before them was.
She had firm control over herself, unlike the God-Emperor or the Chaos Gods, whose complicated congregations left them unable to control their own power.
This was also what Bona hoped his father would become. Such a deity was more like a leader than a being who drove her followers toward destruction.
"What we should have