'Calling for the abolition of the Librarius, while surrounding myself with bone-waving priests.' Russ smiled, almost secretly. 'Maybe I am a hypocrite.'

'There have always been exceptions for you, Leman,' said Malcador.

Russ nodded. 'I know. Father has been generous to me.'

'Your purpose is singular, and He relies on you to perform it. So many of the others have been disappointments, first those we do not name, then Horus and the rest, but not you. He trusts you, Leman. I need to know I can too.'

Russ raised an eyebrow. He took his move without looking at the board.

'Dorn has a point. You should be careful. Do not abandon the restraint you have always shown. Do not let pride drive you on to embrace powers you cannot control.' Malcador shut his eyes, turning his vision inwards upon private vistas. His voice assumed the stem certainty of prophecy. 'In your eagerness to save your father and kill your brother, you will be tempted to turn the weapons of the enemy back on him. This mistake has snared men for millennia, and xenos and the great beings of distant times. There is a greater enemy behind Horus. Do not listen to its lies.' He opened his eyes, and smiled pleasantly. 'Still, l tear if you set yourself on this course YOU will destroy yourself Death will not come for you with flashing tangs, but slowly, through the poison of doubt. That is the power of the enemy we lace.'

Russ' face twisted. 'If father knew this foe was so dangerous, this Chaos, He should have told us about it. Then this whole sorry mess of a war would never have happened.'

'Tie kept it from you to protect you,' said Malcador. 'If He had told the truth, the outcome may well have been worse. More of your brothers may have been tempted to actively seek greater power. See what happened to Magnus.' Malcador took a move, placing a piece somewhere that seemed to give him no advantage whatsoever. Russ stared at him levelly.

'Well, you don't need to worry about me. Magnus did the sorcery, not I,' said Russ. He returned his attention to the game.

'Be sure it stays that way. You spoke to Dorn of limits. Make sure you remember them.'

Russ leaned on the table. 'Now why do you think I would forget where the lines lie, when my entire life I have sought them out, danced over them and back again to test them, but never strayed far beyond? Ever!

'Then you will not seek to turn the power of the warp against Horus?'

'In truth?' He shrugged. 'If I must, yes, though my gothi would fight me every step if I made that choice.'

Malcador looked at him concernedly. Russ growled.

'I will find a cleaner way, I swear.'