Inspirational Friday 2017: If Horus had won... (until 11/24)

[Kierdale]

For those who do not know it, Inspiration Friday is a (generally) fortnightly weekly event within its home in the Chaos Space Marines forum (but open to all members of the B&C), in which a topic is set for members to write short (or long if the muse takes you) fluff/fan-fic pieces about their war bands, characters and models.

And here begins our twenty-first challenge of Inspirational Friday 2017: If Horus had won...

In Legion, before the outbreak of the Horus Heresy the xenos Cabal presented the primarchs Alpharius and Omegon with a vision - the Acuity - of the fate of the galaxy. Two paths:

Excerpt from Legion, by Dan Abnett

Hidden Content

+ Regard, then, the future. Horus wins and Chaos triumphs, a terrible prospect, but likely. The Cabal sees a scintilla of honour remaining in bright Lupercal. He will secretly hate himself for the atrocities committed in his name. If he wins his fury will accelerate along with his self-loathing. He will immolate the human species inside two or three generations. The self-destructive, redemptive urge in Horus will deive him to exterminate mankind in shame. Even his closest allies will war against him in a final armageddon. Chaos will burn brighter than ever before and will then be extinguished. It’s great victory will flare and then gutter as the dying Imperium takes it to the grave. Races of the Galaxy will be spared, through the sacrifice of the human race.

Consider the alternative, Oregon Primarch. This is what we have foreseen. The Emperor will give his life to achieve victory. He will fall, at Terra, striking Horus down. This will be his destiny, see.

If the Emperor wins, stagnation will seize the Imperium. It will seek to perpetuate itself, over and again, across thousands of years, but it will decay, slowly and surely. It will decay, and gradually allow Chaos to seep back in and consume it.

If the Emperor wins, Alpharius, Chaos will ultimately triumph. Ten, twenty thousand years of misery and rot will follow, until the Primordial Annihilator at last achieves ascendancy.

The slow, inexorable conquest of Chaos, or a brief period of terror and frenzy. Creeping damnation, or a bloody century or two as the human race rips itself apart, and expunges Chaos from the galaxy. This is the choice we present to you. The human race is a weapon. It can save the galaxy or destroy it.

And as we all know, at the siege of Terra the (false ) Emperor was victorious, at a terrible price.

But what would have been the fate of the galaxy, in your opinion, had Horus slain his father and survived?

I ask you to tell us what you believe would have happened had fate taken a different path. Whether or not you follow what the (foul, never to be trusted) xenos Cabal predicted or not is entirely up to you.

IF2017: If Horus had won... runs until the 24th of November.

Let us be inspired.

The most inspirational piece will earn rewards. Not only the Octed amulet...

(For lapdogs of the False Emperor to hide away, or for the followers of the Four to prize)

...but also the honour of judging who wins the next Inspiration Friday (the latter of which you can relinquish to me if you wish).

Please submit your entries (and any questions you might have) in the main IF thread linked to above.