In the distant future the Emperor of mankind (not yet referred to as “God Emperor” as the official position, at this time, of the Imperium of mankind is that the Emperor is not a God) faces a terrible revolt led by his son Horus – a war that future generations will call the “Horus Heresy”.
Horus has been seduced by what future generations would call the “Chaos Gods” or “Infernal Powers” – but which the Imperium presently describes as creatures of the warp, the dimension that craft use to travel between solar systems faster than the speed of light in normal space.
Many worlds have been reduced to burned husks, and many millions of people have been (and are being) killed as the war spreads across the galaxy and the forces of the enemy advance towards the Earth itself. But worse even than this – many of the Emperor’s most trusted warriors (the genetically enhanced Marines) have sided with Horus – who was, after all, the Warmaster (commander) of the Imperial armed forces. The behaviour of those genetically enhanced Marines who side with Horus is baffling – they ignore all rules of engagement, and revel in the torture and killing of civilians. They have also scored massive victories by surprise attacks on Imperial forces – turning on their own brothers in arms without warning and with a savagery (and sadism) that leaves their opponents (and former brothers) first baffled and then dead. At least the fortunate opponents are dead.
At first stunned by its terrible defeats the Empire of Mankind slowly responds – using interrogation (often brutal) to reveal traitors, both ordinary human and genetically enhanced, before they can strike. And the Empire strikes back (no Star Wars reference intended) in space – attacking worlds that are either captured or declare for Horus, literally meeting fire with fire.
Many planets hesitate in deciding which side to declare for – after all either side may prove the victor and both sides are destroying planets.
Indeed on some important planets representatives of both sides may arrive to put the case for the planet to either side with the Emperor or with Horus in the war.
On one such planet the Loyalist Marine Heka-tan dies – one dead out of countless millions across the galaxy, but his death is note worthy as he dies so that an enemy can live. A man (ordinary human) by the name Vorkellen – representing the side of Horus in the diplomatic mission to the planet. The faithless enemy had decided to destroy the planet (including their own representative) rather than have it side with the Imperium.
The pathetic Vorkellen is screaming “do not let me die, please do not let me die” to which Heka-Tan notes “Protect the weak – no matter who that is” and dies so the traitor can be saved. Was he right to do so?
The sacrifice is undoubtedly noble – although influenced by a desire to “be with my brothers” (the fellow members of Heka-Tan’s Legion who have already been killed, mostly at the start of the war). But the Empire is cost a warrior – and one of the elite genetically enhanced ones at that (superior in body and mind to ordinary humans). And the life saved is that of a traitor – who has betrayed the Empire indeed has betrayed humanity itself.
At the other end of the war…
In the Earth Solar System itself a spaceship (a single craft) appears from the warp – its fanatical crew fight to death when bordered by Imperial forces (themselves now ruthless and brutal) – all save one man, found chained in an isolated room separated from the rest of the ship. A man surrounded by writings in his own hand. He introduces himself as the “Last Remembrancer” (historian) Solomon Voss.
The commander of the defences the Earth Solar System is (by chance – or perhaps not) an old friend of Solomon Voss – Rogal Dorn commander of the “Imperial Fists” Marine Chapter of genetically enhanced warriors.
Solomon Voss calmly explains to his old friend that he could not understand why Horus had rebelled against the Emperor – and so, with other academics, had gone to see Horus who, after all, had also once been a close friend of his, to find out WHY he had done what he had done. Although Solomon Voss also admits that he was angered by the decision of the Imperium to close down the “Remembrancers” essentially closing down academic history (and independent record keeping – what we might call serious journalism) during the war.
Horus receives those who come to visit him by having everyone with Mr Voss savagely murdered – but Solomon Voss himself he “spares”. Indeed Mr Voss will get to see everything he wants to see (and also what he does not want to see) – starting with the decoration of the room, mutilated bodies of dead people and not quite dead people. Mr Voss gets to see (in detail) all the atrocities of the war that Horus can show him – “for a time I went mad” says Mr Voss. However, Solomon Voss is a dedicated historian and philosopher and he carefully studies all the information he is given (including the atrocities committed by BOTH sides) – coming up with an academic thesis.
This academic thesis is that “The Future is Dead” – whoever wins the war humanity is doomed. If Horus wins humanity will either be exterminated or kept in perpetual torment to worship the warp creatures who call themselves the Gods of Chaos. But if the Imperium wins it will be so corrupted and brutalised that civilisation will never recover. The Imperium will crush all dissent and all independent research – it will become a totalitarian theocracy, with the Emperor (or the memory of the Emperor) worshipped as a God – and everything becoming a religious ritual, even basic maintenance of simple technological devices. All true knowledge of science will be lost – along with all independent thought and creativity. All will just be a nightmare of endless repression – for the Imperium will be able to TRUST no one and will exist in perpetual terror of the “Infernal Powers”, who will not go away just because Horus is killed.
Rogal Thorn is in anguish – partly because he fears that the thesis “The Future is Dead” may well be true – indeed that the hope of the Imperium may always have been a delusion. But also because he fears that if the thesis becomes known the morale of the Imperium will collapse bringing on the defeat of humanity and the victory of evil-without-end. Solomon Voss is the best known intellectual of the Imperium – if he has lost faith, how can ordinary people be expected to fight on?
Rogal Thorn, with his own hand, executes his old friend Solomon Voss – and orders both the body and all the writings burned. Not even jailers can be trusted to know the opinions of Solomon Voss. Mr Voss himself meets his death calmly – indeed sees it as the confirmation of academic thesis, with even the honourable Rogal Thorn turning to murder and censorship, indeed the murder of an old friend and the destruction of his most important work. Whether the insane laughter of Horus or the brutal anguish of men such as Rogal Thorn wins – humanity is doomed.
As for Rogal Thorn he feels that the powers behind Horus are laughing – and that Horus sent him his old friend (a single ship, set up to be captured, with a safe room with Mr Voss chained inside it) for this very outcome.
Indeed perhaps the Emperor himself is at fault.
The Emperor had the highest motives, that is made clear. But it was he who launched the “Imperial Crusade” for “unification” of humanity.
True much of humanity had slipped into savagery, chaos and despotism (chaos and despotism being, of course, close kin) due to a disaster long ago which had made inter stellar space flight impossible for centuries.
But the Imperium sincerely coming to restore civilisation – had sometimes done so with a clinched fist. The very military that Horus now uses against humanity was first created by the Emperor – and the part of the military that Rogal Dorn is himself is part of (indeed commands) was also first created for the “Great Crusade” of “Unification”.
The Emperor had the purist of motives – but it was he who opened the door to…
So who is right – Heka’tan – who dies so an enemy may live, or Rogal Thorn who murders an old friend and destroys his most important research work – out of fear for the fate of humanity?
Perhaps neither of them is right. As Aristotle might have said there may be a “Golden Mean” between the suicidal conduct of Heka’tan and the brutal anguish of Rogal Thorn.
Do not despair, whatever the odds, and tolerate dissent, no matter what the risk to the “home front”. And if people do not wish for the gifts of civilisation (if they wish to remain in savage chaos) do not FORCE civilisation upon them.
But all that is a lot less difficult to hold about a fictional universe than it is about the real world.