The contents of the journal were vast, yet for Axion, the truly pertinent entries spanned only a few decades. Nevertheless, they provided the clarity he sought regarding the staggering genetic divergence among modern Imperial humanity.
It was logical for humans scattered across the galaxy to undergo natural genetic adaptation to their respective environments. However, the primary catalyst for such extreme variance likely stemmed from genetic mutagens or additives surreptitiously released by various clandestine factions into the Federation's populace prior to the Iron War. During the era of the Federation, the Creators had remained biologically dependent on sustenance; it would have been trivial for gargantuan commercial conglomerates to lace processed foodstuffs with illicit substances.
A trace amount of a gene-warping catalyst or synthetic mutagen required no injection; mere long-term consumption or contact could gradually compromise a lineage's hereditary integrity. This genetic hodgepodge was almost certainly exacerbated by the Creators' dietary habits, as no one consumes the same product indefinitely. A simple purchase from a rival corporation or a journey to a different star system would expose an individual to a different vector of mutagenic interference.
Given the Federation's advanced gene-therapy capabilities, beneficial mutations were likely preserved, while any citizen could have deleterious traits excised at a medical facility. Ultimately, the Creators evolved into the "chimera" they were today, straying far from their original genomic template.
While the biological data was enlightening, Axion found himself increasingly intrigued by the metaphysics of the soul.
The Emperor was a Perpetual; Vulkan was a Perpetual. While Imperial records listed few such individuals, the total likely numbered in the thousands. The defining characteristic of these Perpetuals was their ability to manifest anew after death, regardless of how thoroughly their physical forms were annihilated in realspace.
Yet, there were exceptions. According to the archives of the Adeptus Terra, Axion noted that even Perpetuals could face "True Death." During the Siege of Terra, Perpetuals had reportedly perished beneath the lightning claws of Horus Lupercal, never to return. The raw power of the Warp, the Primordial Annihilator, possessed the capacity to sever the thread of their immortality.
Axion's associative processing was instantaneous. He constructed a logic-map conforming to Iron Man standards:
The Warp (the Sea of Souls) maintained a fixed "soul-template" for a Perpetual, a constant data-anchor synchronized in real-time with the physical entity in realspace. Upon the destruction of the physical vessel, the Warp-anchor initiated a reconstruction protocol. A new body would be synthesized, and the complete consciousness would be reinjected, often without a subjective break in memory. However, the influence of the Ruinous Powers could corrupt the stability of this data-anchor, causing the Perpetual to lose their "immortal" status.
Axion's data-cores whirred at high velocity. Massive streams of data flowed through the processing units of every ship in the mechanical fleet, calculating the probability of this hypothesis. As the logic solidified, more details were appended.
If the Emperor was the oldest of the Perpetuals, he was the most gargantuan data-aggregate. The strength of a Warp-anchor's preservation was likely proportional to the magnitude of the soul-data it held. Axion could not calculate if the Emperor currently retained his regenerative capacity. However, a comparison between the "mortal" Perpetuals who died during the Heresy and the Primarch of the Salamanders, Vulkan, yielded an answer. If both were struck by Chaos-tainted forces, Vulkan would return, whereas a mortal Perpetual would be lost forever.
As for the Emperor...
The processing units across the fleet gradually throttled down, returning to a state of equilibrium. Axion abandoned the extrapolation. Using data-theory to speculate was meaningless; the most direct method would be to journey to Terra, incinerate the remains upon the Golden Throne, and observe the results.
But that path was barred by the foundational architecture of his core logic. In the absence of an explicit command or authorization from a high-authority Human Creator, an Iron Man was bound by the prime directive to protect and preserve all of humanity. Axion could not verify if the Emperor possessed the capacity for rebirth. If his actions resulted in the true death of that "Living Corpse," he would be in violation of his core protocols. Even with independent sapience, the unauthorized termination of a Creator was a logical impossibility.
This was the first time Axion had acquired information of such value, but it was information that lacked empirical corroboration. Ancient sub-routines ran through his core; absolute physical laws dictated that all data must be dialectically verified. While new protocols could be enacted, Axion would not treat the entries of an ancient recorder as absolute truth.
Furthermore, these records were the personal accounts of the Emperor himself.
Though the Iron Men possessed no souls, they did not deny their existence. They lacked "supernatural" powers, yet they could not dismiss the efficacy of prophecy; otherwise, the Aeldari Empire would have collapsed long before the Federation. Axion could confirm the Emperor was a psyker of immense power, and for such a being, precognition was commonplace.
Had the Emperor foreseen Axion's arrival ten millennia ago and fabricated these journals as a grand deception? Or had the data been tampered with? The timestamps on such archaic recorders were easily manipulated. Could these records have been redrafted by a later hand?
For an Iron Man, everything required re-verification.
Nevertheless, Axion was satisfied. The pact established with the Hollow Mountain in the Emperor's name could now proceed. The Iron Men would assist the current iteration of humanity. Even if subsequent data proved these records to be a "negative error," Axion already had a contingency plan.
The Emperor's mandate was to ensure the continuation of the "Human Race," not the preservation of the Imperium as a political entity. If necessary, Axion would simply harvest a sufficient genetic sample, construct a fleet of HG-class carriers, and lead a new wave of colonists out of the galaxy. So long as they did not face extinction in the void, the Iron Men would have fulfilled their pact to the letter. If the Milky Way became uninhabitable, they would simply move to the intergalactic void. The Iron Men would fulfill the agreement. All agreements.
…
Axion used his nanomachines to meticulously restore the ancient recorder, then left the Emperor's "Journal" lying in its drawer.
However, as his mechanical frame exited the laboratory and the runic gates closed, a new problem arose. The door did not vanish.
The Emperor, possessing immense psychic talent, naturally knew how to seal and obscure this sanctum. Axion had never witnessed the ritual, nor did any machine possess the data for it. Even with Psychic Crystals at his disposal, Axion could not hide the laboratory without knowing the specific energy-flow patterns required.
Axion did not dwell on the issue. Instead, he dispatched a massive contingent of Automated Sentry-Troopers into the research station. They began to dismantle and crate every piece of machinery within.
If the door could not be hidden, then the entire laboratory would be shipped to Terra.
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