Today, His Holy Majesty made a rare return to the rear.
He was still talking with Malcador in his room when he heard a shout from far away.
"Father!"
He spotted a strapping young man rushing toward him. The Emperor smiled and embraced him, gently stroking his head.
"It's been a long time. Have you been listening to Grandpa Malcador?"
"No, I've diligently completed every task you gave me."
Malcador chuckled as well.
"The boy is very clever. He can already take some of the less important work off my hands."
"Oh, excellent." The Emperor smiled, deeply pleased.
Bona was quite proud of himself.
"I've been working hard, Father."
"I can last three rounds against Uncle Malak now. Can you take me to the front?"
"Oh, excellent."
The Emperor had long known that Bona had been clamoring to learn martial arts back at the rear. More precisely, Bona had only been able to receive that training with his approval.
Bona's progress surprised him somewhat. After all, Bona's body was currently no stronger than that of a "frail mortal." Any genetically modified human picked at random from the planet would be physically stronger than him.
Yet even so, he could last three rounds against one of the Adeptus Custodes, whom the Emperor took such pride in.
But the Emperor had allowed Bona to train not because he wanted him to fight on the battlefield, but merely to strengthen his body and build his courage.
"My child, let's leave the battlefield out of this. It's a very dangerous place."
Disappointment filled Bona's eyes.
But he quickly hid it.
"Father, I'll behave on the battlefield. I only want to learn about war."
"I won't go into combat. I'll only be learning. At the very least, I can help you handle logistics."
"Please?"
For a moment, the Emperor did not know how to respond. Or rather, he was utterly inept at dealing with family affection. He had never learned how in all his tens of thousands of years.
He could only turn to Malcador for help, but Malcador was smiling.
"I think it's a good idea, too. After all, if he stays in the rear forever, I'll soon run out of things to teach him."
With Grandpa Malcador's support, Bona's eyes practically sparkled as he looked eagerly at the Emperor.
Utterly helpless, the Emperor could only choose to trust Malcador.
"Then... all right. But you must do as you're told."
"Hooray!"
Bona ran off happily to pack his things.
Only the Emperor and Malcador remained.
"Old friend, why did you do that?" the Emperor asked helplessly.
"Heh, children need their fathers beside them as they grow up. The boy may not say anything, but he prays for you every night."
The Emperor fell silent, unsure what to say.
"Besides, Bona's psyker power keeps swelling. It's becoming increasingly difficult for me to suppress it."
The Emperor was somewhat surprised, but soon regained his composure.
"All right."
"How is the project beneath the mountains coming along?"
"Very smoothly. Bona's genes have spared us many detours."
The Emperor nodded gently.
"Sorry for all the trouble lately. Terra's last enemies will soon be destroyed, bringing us a great step closer to humanity's grand undertaking."
"Yes."
Bona finally got his wish and followed his father to the front.
The atmosphere at the front was intensely tense. Wounded soldiers withdrawn from battle and supply convoys hurtling along at full speed were everywhere along the way.
Of course, Bona did not have to worry about any of that. The number of guards around him had doubled outright.
As soon as they arrived at the front, a crowd of military staff officers and legion commanders sought out the Emperor to deliver urgent reports on the fighting.
"My child, you may look around, but you must not leave the camp."
With that, the Emperor walked straight into headquarters.
Bona looked around.
He felt like an outsider here. The Astartes, Thunder Warriors, and even mortals passing by all gave him strange looks.
Hmm, was there anything he could do?
Suddenly, Bona sensed an intense emotion.
Agonizing pain, pain fierce enough to shatter the mind, mingled with resentment and seemed to roar right beside his ears.
Bona covered his ears, but that heart-wrenching roar continued to echo.
Where was it coming from?
Bona followed that aura of despair until he reached a...
Ward for the wounded.
More precisely, it was not an ordinary ward, but one for wounded Thunder Warriors.
Even from outside, he could hear the agonized screams. Wounded men crowded the ground outside the tents, and he could see several warriors holding down a wounded man on a bed.
Bona found it strange. Even grievously wounded men should not be so frenzied.
The Thunder Warriors clearly did not welcome the arrival of the Adeptus Custodes. They rose to their feet, even those missing arms or legs standing with their comrades' support.
Bona spotted a noncommissioned officer clutching a bundle of identity tags, his eyes fixed on them.
The Thunder Warrior strapped to the bed struggled wildly, throwing off another warrior who was holding him down. Two more hurried forward to restrain him.
"What's wrong with him? Why is he in so much pain?"
The noncommissioned officer gave a small wave of his hand. A warrior picked up a gun and went inside.
With brisk efficiency, he leveled the muzzle at the frenzied wounded man, aiming at his maddened comrade's forehead as Bona watched in shock.
Bang!
In an instant, overwhelming regret, anger, and even relief flooded Bona's heart, as though he were that crazed warrior himself.
In that single second, he seemed to experience the noble warrior's brief but glorious life, while the man's regretful sigh seemed to echo in his ears.
The intensity of those emotions nearly broke Bona. He sank to his knees in agony.
His Adeptus Custodes guards and the Sisters of Silence erupted into action, immediately surrounding Bona in layer upon layer of fully armed protection. Everyone nearby, including the Thunder Warriors, was marked as a potential target.
But Bona struggled to his feet, pushed his way out, and shouted in something close to a roar:
"Why did you kill him?"
The noncommissioned officer merely looked at Bona in silence, his face expressionless beneath his mask.
"This is our business."
With that, he left.
Yet Bona felt as though he could see the despair and helplessness in the man's eyes.
"Second Company, move to the next assignment!"
The Thunder Warriors left, supporting one another as they walked toward the setting sun and an unknown destination.
Bona wanted to say something, but no words came.
So he left, intending to find his father and see whether he could solve this problem.
But the moment he entered, he heard the Emperor roaring.
"I want to know why the legions in the northern sector have fallen back!" the Emperor all but roared, slamming his fist hard against the table.
The staff officers beside him looked grim.
"Your Majesty, the enemy deployed the 'Reaper.' The Thunderhawk Fifth Company and the Kante Fifth Legion stationed there were almost completely wiped out."
"I don't care about that. All I know is that our flank is now almost entirely exposed to the Nordics. Where do we still have troops?"
The staff officers all fell silent.
They knew very well that the entire front was now locked in fierce fighting. It would be difficult to spare any substantial force.
"Perhaps... there's an Imperial Army undergoing retraining in the rear."
"Send them up immediately," the Emperor said impatiently.
"They haven't had much training. If they're thrown against the 'Reaper,' they may rout outright."
The Emperor was about to rebuke them when he heard a soft voice.
"Father."
He saw Bona standing in the doorway.
Bona held one hand over his heart and looked at him with resolute eyes.
"We still have one force, don't we?"
The Emperor knew exactly which force he meant: the guard detail he had assigned to Bona, eighteen members of the Adeptus Custodes in all, with Malak in particular a veteran of countless battles.
There were also thirty or so Sisters of Silence, but facing an enemy of this purely physical nature was not their specialty.
"All right. Stay beside me and have Malak come in."
But Bona did not obey the Emperor's command as he always had.
He looked at Bona in puzzlement.
"Father, I know you can't leave. They need someone there to steady their hearts."
"Damn it, you cannot go. Do you hear me?"
Bona shook his head.
The atmosphere inside the command post instantly froze.
The Emperor walked over.
Outside, a heavy shell of some unknown type flew across the sky and struck somewhere behind them. The little command post trembled slightly.
"My child, you cannot go."
"You know that eighteen members of the Adeptus Custodes alone cannot resolve the fighting there. Even if the Custodian uncles can destroy that 'Reaper,' they can't rally the scattered troops. We'll still lose."
"You don't understand. This..."
"I understand perfectly."
There was a burning fervor in Bona's eyes. It reminded the Emperor of the young soldiers he had seen in ages long past, warriors who had dared risk their lives on the battlefield even before they could hold their guns steady.
Yet they had dared to go to war, spending their lives to slow the invaders' advance.
He sighed helplessly.
"My child, go."
The Emperor turned and walked back into the command post.
Bona saluted, then turned and left without hesitation.
The Emperor raised his head, his thoughts unreadable.
But in the end, he did not look back.
Before you continue