Warhammer 40k: The Lost Primarch

As the third day arrived, Caelion sat down with his brother to talk about the Adeptus Ministorum. Sitting across from him, Guilliman was eager to hear what his brother had come up with.

"Brother, first I believe that the Adeptus Ministorum must be reformed. I don't think the path of directly opposing the worship of the Emperor is viable as it affects trillions of lives. Instead, the Emperor should be viewed as the Pinnacle of Mankind, a being who become divine through his will, sacrifice, and reason. He would become a living concept, not a god of miracles, but a god of discipline and duty among other things." Guilliman nodded, agreeing with every word that his brother said.

"I won't lie, I hate the Adeptus Ministorum as from what I have seen, they build these lavish cathedrals with bones one Hive Worlds but ignore the fact that the worlds are starving. Then the Priests speak of miracles to the people but flee from battle. The faith has been twisted into blind fanaticism, rather than purpose. As such, I plan to implement a tone of reforms. To name a few, confessors will only speak of Duty, Sacrifice, and Judgment, not miracles or divine intervention. The Chaplains will serve as philosopher soldiers rather than sermonizers. The soldiers of the Imperium won't just pray for the Emperor's protection, they will fight so that his vision of a united humanity survives the test of time."

"Brother, this might just be the path I was looking for. I'm sure there is more that you have planned, just know that I am 100% in support of these reforms brother. This will get rid of this harsh and punishing religious control over the people and eventually bring back some semblance of the old Imperium." Guilliman voiced his thoughts and support.

"Thank you, brother. I will go directly to the Adeptus Ministorum and start issue these changes immediately." Guilliman nodded as the two of them stood up.

"Take some Custodians with you brother in the meantime. The Ultramarine chapter that I have transferred to your command will arrive in a week." Caelion nodded, then departed to head to the Adeptus Ministorum headquarters which was a massive continent spanning palace.

The leader of the Adeptus Ministorum held the title of Ecclesiarch, which is the nominal high priest of the Imperial Cult and the chief administrator of the Adeptus Ministorum. The trip to the palace was relatively short and Caelion was greeted by the Ecclesiarch and a number of Cardinals at his arrival. They immediately bowed at his feet seeing his appearance and seeing the Custodes behind him.

"My lord, we are honored by your arrival." Said Baldo Slyst the current sitting Ecclesiarch.

Caelion ignored his greeting and looked at him in disdain, deciding whether he should kill him right here or wait. Ultimately, he decided to wait. "Gather all the high-ranking Priest, Cardinals, and other officials of the Adeptus Ministorum in the chamber now." Caelion said that last part as a direct command.

Baldo quickly yelled at a few of the others to gather the most important people within the chamber immediately. Within an hour, thousands of people had gathered within the large chamber and quietly watched as Caelion stood in the center. He waited for a few more minutes for the room to fill up a little more. Then he began.

"Cardinals, Administrators, Priests of all echelons and specialties," he called out. "For ten thousand years you have presided over your flocks in the Emperor's sight. What began as righteous order corrupted into mindless ritual, mindless ritual into petty tyranny, and tyranny into a machine that swallows men and spits out corpses and faithless dust."

"I do not speak to you today as a conqueror or a tyrant. I speak as the Emperor's son." he said. "His will is not only to wage war, but to guard the soul of Mankind. You have made the Emperor into a corpse-idol atop a throne of lies, and it ends now." No one dared to interrupt. Even the Cardinals who had wielded near-absolute power for millennia were frozen in place, awash in the presence of yet another living Primarch who was preaching to them what most believed to be guiding them towards the correct path.

"You have shrouded the Emperor in superstition and chained the human spirit in dogma. You recite litanies while billions die in silence. You build cathedrals of bone while worlds rot beneath your feet. This is not faith. This is stagnation. And the Emperor did not burn his sons and sacrifice his dreams so that you may live fat on fear and ignorance."

The hall was quiet as he let his words sink in. "But I am not here to destroy you. Not yet." Some flinched at the word 'yet'. "I am here to reshape the Adeptus Ministorum. To reforge this rotting edifice of blind fanaticism into a faith that can lead, serve, and inspire. One that will purge weakness and hypocrisy, not with fire, but with truth and discipline." Caelion looked over the crowd, identifying those who showed signs of nervousness or opposition.

"Effective immediately, the following reforms are law, by decree of the Imperator Custodius Aeternum — sanctioned by the Lord Commander Guilliman, blessed by the Emperor's will."

1. The Emperor Recast:

"The Emperor is no longer to be portrayed as a miracle working deity, but as the Pinnacle of Mankind, a divine archetype forged through will, discipline, and sacrifice. Let his divinity reflect the perfection of potential, not the passivity of idolatry."

2. Creed of Purpose:

"All sermons, chants, and teachings must now uphold the Three Pillars: Duty, Sacrifice, and Unity. Any invocation of miracles, divine wrath, or supernatural intervention will be deemed archaic poison unless framed as allegory or moral lesson."

3. Confessors Reforged:

"The office of Confessor will be remade. All current Confessors must undergo reeducation. They are to become stewards of clarity, discipline, and social harmony, not fearmongers."

4. Weaponized Faith:

"All personnel who accompany military units must be retrained as Philosopher-Warriors. They will speak not of divine salvation, but of why we fight and what we must become to endure. The first Ordo Veritatis shall be formed for this purpose."

5. Audit of Ecclesiarchal Wealth:

"The Ordo Custodius will begin an audit of all wealth, relics, and tithes held by the Ecclesiarchy. All resources that do not serve the faithful directly, through food, arms, shelter, or education, will be seized and reallocated."

6. The Burning of Lies:

"All literature and scrolls that promote passive worship, miracles, or depictions of the Emperor as an unknowable god detached from man shall be either rewritten or destroyed. The Lex Veritatis will be issued as the new canonical standard."

7. Ecclesiarchal Vetting:

"All high-ranking members of the Ministorum will undergo personal evaluation. Those found guilty of cowardice, avarice, heresy, or treason shall be stripped of office, and if necessary, excommunicated by sword."

Once the final decree echoed through the chamber, Caelion looked down at Baldo Slyst, the Ecclesiarch who stood trembling beneath his gaze. "You have two choices, Baldo. Accept these reforms and become a shepherd to a new era of human unity and purpose, or cling to your illusions and be swept aside as all false idols are."

"My lord… I… I accept. I pledge my loyalty to you and to the Emperor's true will."

Caelion nodded. "Then rise, Cardinal Baldo. Your title of Ecclesiarch is hereby suspended pending review." One Custodian stepped forward, taking the staff of office from Baldo's trembling hands.

"I will appoint a new High Ecclesiarch once the Ordo Veritatis has proven its worth." As Caelion left the Chamber with Custodian's, he left behind a room that was in disarray with this sudden change. But they were also quietly in awe as a Primarch for the first time had spoken about how to perceive the Emperor.

Across Terra, scribes began writing the new canon. The Lex Veritatis. On Shrine Worlds, preachers whispered of a new age. Some feared it. Others welcomed it. But all knew: nothing would be the same again. In the shadows, those who had grown fat on fear began to oppose this new reform, not afraid of Primarch as they doubted his abilities as he had no history.

However, they severely doubted just how influential the words of a Primarch could be. The Emperor was seen as a God, and the Primarchs, his sons were seen as Demi-gods. Their efforts would only result in their deaths, though some may be able to do something, their fate was determined the moment Caelion was awakened.

With this done and the initial stages of the reformation taking route, Caelion had practically taken control of the Adeptus Ministorum in order to fix it. He and Guilliman knew how powerful and influential the Ministorum was, so simply getting rid of it was something that would cause a ton of instability and confusion to appear across the Imperium.

This is why Caelion came up with this method instead of killing a lot of people as they already had a lot to do to fix things. In the wake of this, Caelion had finally visited the Golden Throne upon which his father sat. Approaching the throne, he knelt on one knee and gazed at the rotting corpse of his father. He remembered the last time he saw the Emperor alive. Before he was a figure of authority, vision, and unity. Now, he could feel no warmth, no humanity, only a crushing psychic presence that filled the room.

"Father," he whispered. "By your will, I have returned to help restore the Imperium to some semblance of what it once was. Though there will be a lot of changes made."

There was silence, long, deafening silence. Then, after a while, a presence filled the chamber. Caelion felt his mind split open as images flooded in. Ten thousand years of war, of sacrifice, of betrayal. The fall of his brothers. The rise of Chaos. And the slow, grinding decay of the Imperium.

And then, he heard a voice.

"I don't have much time before my power diminishes, so I will say just this." stated the Emperor of Mankind as he used what power he could muster to speak to Caelion, the same way he spoke to Guilliman.

"Over ten thousand years ago, the Imperium was not ready for you nor what you were capable of. But now, things have changed. I always saw you as the strongest of the Primarchs, yet I also saw that your strength was not needed at the current time. Which is why after you eliminated your traitorous brother, the 2nd Primarch, I erased both your legions from Imperial records and put you in stasis for knowing the truth. But now, your strength is need more than ever to fight Chaos and ensure the survival of humanity."

"Your reforms will make a lot of enemies. Those who claim to serve me will betray you. But I trust that you will cleanse the rot and make me remembered not as a Myth, but as a man." Caelion lowered his head, feeling his anger which has been building up since his return ready to burst.

"I will bring the truth Father. And I will fight together with Guilliman until we rid the Galaxy of the Imperium's enemies, one world at a time." With that, he didn't hear the Emperor's voice again, but he felt a faint sense of approval before the presence disappeared.

He turned and walked out of the Throne Room, returning to his duties. There was a lot that he and Guilliman had to do.