Chapter 60 Medals
"Go. Take your brother with you."
"Absolutely not."
The Emperor ended the psychic transmission without another word.
Vulkan did not wish to depart Nocturne immediately.
He had no illusions about himself.
He was strong. He could endure hardship. He could craft weapons and fortresses.
But command?
War?
Conquest?
He believed himself unsuited to lead armies.
So he made a request.
He wished to learn first.
To observe.
To understand how war was fought before he took responsibility for thousands of lives.
The Emperor agreed.
Privately, he shared Vulkan's concern.
Vulkan was not born to be a conqueror.
But he might become something far more important.
The Webway Ruins
Nocturne contained ancient webway portals — shattered remnants of forgotten Eldar routes.
For centuries, raiders had used these passages to descend upon the world and harvest slaves.
The Emperor had intended to study these portals.
Their strategic value was immeasurable.
Their destruction was… unfortunate.
Vulkan had collapsed most of the gateways during his war against the raiders.
Though the Emperor felt a sharp pang of loss, he still hoped the ruins might yield insight.
Thus, when Vulkan asked to accompany him and learn, the Emperor devised a solution.
Yuki and Mordecai Threxion were currently unassigned.
If Yuki resumed expedition duties, Vulkan could observe.
Mordecai Threxion would accompany them.
The problem solved itself.
Yuki stared at the silent psychic channel.
"…Coward."
She couldn't physically cross the void to throttle him.
Even if she could, she would lose.
Still, she added a few creative insults to the mental image she maintained of the Emperor.
It helped.
Now her responsibilities included:
monitoring her brothers' psychological states
• advising Malcador on imperial restructuring
• guiding Vulkan in expedition warfare
• preventing Mordecai Threxion from collapsing again
She dragged two towering Primarchs down the corridor by their wrists like an exhausted mother hauling children home from school.
If this were a stage play, she thought, she would be the tragic wife abandoned by a negligent husband.
Unfortunately, the resemblance felt uncomfortably accurate.
Their vessel carried only a skeletal force:
scattered Astartes detachments
Mechanicum adepts
fleet personnel
The Salamanders Legion could not assemble until Vulkan formally assumed command.
The Zero Legion was deployed on the far side of the galaxy.
For the moment, they traveled light.
"Which Legion is nearest?" Yuki asked.
"The Third Legion, Your Highness."
"The main strength?"
"Yes. Primarch Fulgrim is present."
She paused.
"…Inform them we are joining operations."
She leaned back and rubbed her temples.
They had exchanged letters.
They had avoided discussing that day.
Now they would meet again.
Awkward did not begin to describe it.
"Where are Vulkan and Mordecai Threxion?"
"In the engine chamber."
The Engine Room
Mordecai Threxion was fascinated.
Vulkan possessed a mind that grasped mechanical systems intuitively — not merely function, but harmony between materials, heat, pressure, and structural stress.
Their discussion ranged across:
reactor thermal cycling
plasma conduit reinforcement
stress tolerances in voidcraft hulls
forge tempering techniques for vacuum conditions
A Mechanicum adept nearby lay collapsed against a bulkhead, oil staining his robes.
To witness such discourse between demi-gods of craft was a sacred revelation.
If he died now, he believed, he would die enlightened.
"My lords," an Astartes announced.
"The warp translation will conclude shortly. We will rendezvous with Lord Fulgrim."
Fulgrim
"Father?"
"What is it, Tavitz?"
"…are you well?"
"Of course."
Tavitz did not believe him.
Since their previous conversation, Fulgrim had changed.
He no longer spent hours studying sculpture, music, or aesthetics.
He cut his once-prized hair.
He drank heavily instead of savoring wine.
He neglected the ritual maintenance of his armor.
To many, it looked like madness.
Tavitz saw something else:
a man searching for a life beyond perfection.
Fulgrim had built his identity on perfection.
Now that ideal had been shaken.
If perfection was not the destination…
what remained?
Tavitz watched the exhaustion beneath his father's eyes.
This could not continue.
When he learned Yuki's fleet was arriving, he made a decision.
He did not inform Fulgrim.
Instead, he arranged a private meeting.
The Plea
In a secluded chamber, Tavitz bowed.
"Your Highness… I beg you. Save him."
Vulkan rose immediately.
Mordecai Threxion held him back.
"Brother, where are you going?"
Vulkan's eyes were already wet.
"Are we going to watch him break?"
Yuki placed a hand on his arm.
"Only I can untie the knot I tied."
She sighed.
If all her brothers were like Vulkan, she thought, her life would be far simpler.
Fulgrim's Crisis
Confusion.
That was all that remained.
Fulgrim stared at the vast portrait of his former self — radiant, flawless, untouchable.
Was that wrong?
Was striving for perfection wrong?
"Sister… is it wrong to want to be better?"
"No, Fulgrim."
Her hands rested gently on his temples.
He inhaled the faint scent of flowers.
His shoulders trembled.
"Why do you seek perfection?" she asked.
"…I don't know. I only know I must."
Soft light shimmered.
His hair flowed again, restored to its radiant length.
He straightened instinctively.
From his breastplate, he revealed the medal she had once given him.
"Do you remember?" she asked.
"Outward medals are displays. True glory lies within."
"Yes," she said softly. "Perfection can become a medal — something displayed for others… and for yourself."
"If everything you do is for perfection itself… then perfection has become the goal, not the path."
"Sister…"
"There is nothing wrong with self-improvement. Horus wants to be the best so Father will notice him."
Fulgrim laughed weakly.
"But your striving must grow from belief. You improve because you believe in what you are doing — not because perfection demands it."
He turned.
The old radiance returned — not flawless, but alive.
"How do I find that belief?"
"I don't know," she admitted. "But perhaps… ask your new brother."
"A new brother?"
"He is a role model to all of us."
Fulgrim's eyes brightened slightly.
"Then I wish to meet him."
Yuki smiled.
"Yes," she said.
"I think you do."
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