Chapter Text
Arion Whitemane wasn't sure what to make of his new brother.
Horus was…impressive, to put it mildly. He was taller than Arion, broader, older, and simply…more. His confidence might have come across as arrogance in another person, but Horus was so friendly and charming that Arion found it didn't bother him at all.
It was difficult not to like him.
Certainly, Horus was warmer and more approachable than their father, the so-called Emperor of Mankind.
Yet, Horus obviously admired the man. It was clear he loved the Emperor dearly. Idolized him, even.
It was a sentiment that Arion found difficult to share. Queen Meril had explained to him that the Emperor possessed an even more potent version of Arion's own psychic aura, one that meant that unless you were also a god, one only saw the Emperor through a lens distorted by his power and the observer's own preconceptions.
So where Arion saw a cold and fearsome angel of death, Horus likely saw someone else entirely.
But even taking that into account, Arion found it difficult to reconcile the cold and distant man he had met with the father that Horus described: stern but warm, who had high expectations for them, but also great faith in their abilities.
So as the Festival of Isha continued around them and they sat down for the grand feast that the Queen had arranged, Arion kept quiet as Horus talked, absorbing his words and listening intently.
And he couldn't help but wonder: did the Emperor's aura influence Horus in the same way that Arion had once influenced the other children? Did Horus see the Emperor for what he truly was, or had he just been soaked in the Emperor's aura for so long that he could not even think that the man could do anything wrong?
Was Arion going to end up the same way, after spending time with the Emperor? Not convinced or even deceived, merely overwhelmed into submission, his mind unable to withstand the radiance of a living god?
It was a distinctly unpleasant thought.
Arion was shaken from his thoughts when a hand fell on his shoulder.
“Primarch Horus,” His mother said in the human language, white teeth flashing in a broad smile. “Could I borrow my son? We have something we need to talk about.”
His brother shifted slightly, a flicker of discomfort in his eyes when Kaia described Arion as her son, but he inclined his head graciously. “Of course, Captain Whitemane.”
Relieved, Arion nodded to his brother before rising from his seat and following his mother deeper into the halls of the palace-tree, until they reached a private balcony. The night breeze was cool but refreshing, and the two moons glimmered overhead like sparkling crystals set in the sky.
“What did you need, mother?” Arion asked.
“Nothing,” Kaia answered, her lips twisting into an amused smile. “You just looked like you needed to be rescued from your new brother.”
Arion blushed. It was a little embarrassing how easily his mother could still read him, even at thirteen years of age.
But he was grateful.
“Thank you, mother,” he said. “I did need that,”
“Though I must admit, I'm not sure exactly why you needed rescuing,” Kaia said with a raised eyebrow. “The boy seems perfectly nice, if a little full of himself.”
Arion grimaced, rubbing the back of his head. “Well…"
He quickly relayed the thought that had occurred to him and his fears to his mother.
Kaia listened intently and once he finished, she leaned against the railing. Arion wrung his hands, waiting anxiously for her to respond.
“Your concerns are not unfounded, Arion,” She said finally. “But I have faith in the Everqueen. For all that the Dominion's madness and stupidity has pushed her to extreme measures, I do not believe she would ally with someone who would forcibly bend the will of his own children. At the very least, she would have warned us to take precautions.”
Arion chewed on his lip. His mother was right, but it still worried him. There were parts of the Emperor's vision that were appealing, even admirable, but Arion didn't want to lose who he was.
Kaia rested a hand on his shoulder. “If it helps, we can speak with the Worldsingers and Rune Priests on techniques for hardening your mind against foreign interference,” She said gently. “And of course, I am certain the Everqueen will aid you. She has likely forgotten more ways to protect the mind than all of Laurelon has ever known. If you ask her, I am certain she will be willing to teach you.”
Arion nodded, his heart lightening at her words. His mother had always been better than anyone at calming him.
His fears were not gone, and he still wasn't sure how much he trusted his creator, but there were ways to keep himself safe.
“I should go back,” He said with a sigh.
“Are you sure?” Kaia asked, looking concerned. “You don't have to, I can make excuses,”
Arion shook his head. “I do like Horus, and I don't want to make a bad impression on him. It's…kind of nice to have a brother.”
With everyone else, for years there had been a niggling feeling at the back of Arion's mind that he was influencing them, controlling them. Even with the adults who knew how to withstand his aura like his mother, the discomfort never went away.
But Horus was like him. He wasn't vulnerable to Arion's aura, nor did he tower far above Arion like the Emperor and Everqueen.
Despite his worries, it was…nice, to simply talk to someone else like this.
Kaia's expression softened as she looked at him. “Enjoying having a brother, eh?” She said wryly. “Alright then, go ahead. But make sure to play nice and not get into trouble, or to let him lead you into trouble,” She added teasingly.
“Mother!” Arion said, blushing again. “I'm not a child anymore.”
Kaia laughed, ruffling his hair. “Children are always children to their parents, Arion. You'll understand if you ever have children of your own.”
Arion huffed and definitely did not pout as he pushed her hands away and tried to straighten his hair. “I'll see you later, Mother,”
“Of course,” Kaia said, watching him go with a slightly melancholy smile.
Arion returned to the great hall, taking his seat next to Horus once more.
“What did your…mother want to talk about?” Horus asked, his green eyes alight with curiosity.
Arion frowned slightly at the way that Horus stumbled over the word 'mother’ but then he realized he hadn't come up with a lie for why he had been pulled away.
He could hardly say that his mother had thought (and correctly so) that Arion needed to be rescued from interacting with Horus.
“Just some things about my training,” Arion fibbed, unable to come up with anything better.
“Your psychic training?” Horus asked, looking intrigued.
Arion shook his head. “No. I learned warpcraft from the Worldsingers and Rune Priests, and my mother is neither. She's been teaching me how to fight with various weapons. We started with axes, but she's teaching me how to use a mace now.” Kaia had been equal parts surprised and delighted by how quickly he picked up everything she taught him. Arion did not yet have her centuries of experience, but he had mastered weapons in months that his mother had expected would take years.
“I can help with that,” Horus offered eagerly. “I'm quite good with a mace, it's my favourite weapon. I would love to spar with you.”
“Er…” The idea of training with Horus was intriguing and disconcerting in equal measure. “I'll have to ask her.”
“Very well,” Horus said, looking a little disappointed, before his eyes drifted to the head of the table.
Queen Meril sat there, with the Everqueen on her right and the Emperor at her left. The high seat had been offered to the Everqueen first, but the goddess had insisted this was Meril's kingdom, and she would sit on the right.
Arion wondered how the Emperor felt about that, but the human god's cold mask (or at least the mask he seemed to be wearing to Arion's eyes) was impossible to read.
The Everqueen, by contrast, was smiling and laughing as she talked with Meril, sipping from a glass of wine. The entire hall was watching her, Arion knew, everyone in awe that their queen, mother and goddess had returned to them.
The food tonight was especially good. Not that it was ever bad, but Arion could tell that extra effort had been put in today. The wine was from the old Dominion, from the Queen's private reserves, so strong that even he had nearly been startled by it. The finest vegetables and fruits had been placed on crystal platters, and the meat was from the largest animals.
A full Megadon had been butchered and roasted for the event! A whole adult one, placed on an enormous platter which was floating in the air above them, casting a shadow across the entire hall. It had been roasted and spiced in a display of excess entirely unusual for Arion.
A Megadon!
Usually, to kill any of the dragons was a terrible crime. There were plenty of livestock for food, and to kill the companions of the Eldar for such a petty thing? Unforgivable.
But this Megadon had not merely been killed for food, it had been sacrificed. It was an offering, to the Everqueen, to their god.
Fortunately, Lady Isha seemed to appreciate it and was eating a piece now.
A rather large piece, one that shouldn't have fit into her mouth, especially with the graceful dainty bites she took, but somehow it did.
“I asked her for biomancy lessons once, you know,” Horus remarked, still looking at Lady Isha.
Arion choked slightly at the way Horus spoke so casually of requesting to be taught by a god, as if he was just discussing the weather.
His brother didn't know, Arion reminded himself. That strange Imperial Truth and the idea there were no gods…Horus believed in it wholeheartedly.
He thought the Everqueen was merely an ancient and powerful Eldar, not a god in the flesh.
“Did she say yes?” Arion couldn't help but ask once he had regained control over himself.
"No,” Horus said, looking sullen for the first time that evening. “She said it wasn't her place, and that it was up to father. Father said I would have other teachers, and that Lady Isha wouldn't be one of them.”
"Are you…especially interested in biomancy?” Arion asked uncertainly. It hadn't struck him as something Horus was passionate about in their discussions so far. His own interests and experience with the arts of Ghyran were limited, his talents leaning more towards Azyr and Chamon.
(And a part of him wondered now if his father had anything to do with that.)
"No,” Horus admitted, somewhat reluctantly. “The medical arts have never really been my thing. But I was curious then, and it annoyed me that she said no.”
He seemed so petulantly annoyed at being told “no” that Arion didn't know how to respond.
He couldn't quite grasp feeling entitled to lessons from a god.
“Well, she couldn't go against y-, our father,” Arion settled on what seemed like the most diplomatic response, even if referring to that merciless angel of death as his father felt wrong.
Fortunately, Horus didn't seem to notice, still distracted by frowning at the Everqueen and the Emperor.
“I guess so,” Horus said with a sigh, the formality slipping for a moment. “It would have been really fun, though.”
That, Arion couldn't argue against. Even if he didn't have the courage to directly demand lessons from the Everqueen, it was hardly as if he would refuse if she offered to teach him.
An idea came to Arion then. He hesitated for a moment, before making up his mind.
“Want me to show you some of the magic I can do?” Arion offered in a low tone of voice. “I'm not as good as Her Serenity, of course, but…”
Green eyes flickered with interest. “Sure,” Horus answered.
“Then let's go,” Arion said. “I'll show you outside.”
The two Primarchs slipped out of the hall and festivities. Unknown to them, their departure was noted, by Isha with amusement, and by the Emperor with a mixture of that and exasperation.
But in the end, George huffed and let it go.
Perhaps some bonding time alone would do his sons some good.