The Great Crusade
The Emperor did not remain long on Mars after the signing of the eponymous treaty; the galaxy was shrouded in darkness and he knew long labor lay ahead before he could bring it to light. Trusting the Mechanicum of Mars would honor their promises, he led the Great Crusade into the endless night.
By his side as his first-lieutenant was Horus Lupercal, Primarch of the Luna Wolves, later Warmaster and even later still Archtraitor and pawn of the Ruinous Powers. It was with Horus that the Emperor conferred most frequently, often taking private counsel with his favorite son, but during the early years of the Great Crusade the Emperor was less-withdrawn, even approachable for those in his immediate entourage. One of these was the young tech-priestess Verity. The Emperor called on her often, having her within the ranks of his landing party when they made planetfall on a newly-discovered human world. He would listen to the threats, entreaties or blandishments of the local rulers, chieftains or petty tyrants and then turn to Verity, silently asking her opinion. Invariably, her answer would be the same; "He lies."
Surely, of course, the Emperor knew this himself - no cogitator or auspex, no matter how sophisticated or delicate, could hope to match the ineffable mind of the Master of Mankind. Yet he continued to ask her opinion, and hers alone - something she did not understand until Horus himself explained it to her;
"He asks you, little one, because you are not him. It suits his purpose to reveal your power to those who will be his subjects or enemies, a power they do not possess. They do not understand the Emperor, and all men lie when faced with a power they do not understand. For him to know they lie would not shock them. But for him to turn to you? It surprises them - for it elevates you and it lowers him; they think you possess a power he does not and yet you serve him. Without lying, he makes them believe a lie ... and a man who believes a lie is easy prey indeed."
For nearly three decades, a generation of men, the Emperor and Horus led the Great Crusade alone. Eventually, other Primarchs were discovered - each having risen to a position of power on their adoptive homeworld - and one by one they were brought into the fold of the Emperor's love and made aware of the great destiny and duty that awaited them as generals in his Great Crusade.
Looking back on it, the first thirty years of the Crusade were the happiest for Verity - for while she was not a favored daughter of the Emperor to be dandled on his knee (as some of the Primarchs would mock and taunt her) he had time for her and sought her counsel. But now, as more and more of his sons were reunited with their Legions, the Crusade's military might grew and the Emperor relied on her unique ability less and less. Increasingly, he spent his time with his generals, the Primarchs, and came to rely on their military solutions to problems. It was Horus, shortly before he left to lead the 63rd Expeditionary Fleet, who gave her some measure of comfort;
"The Emperor's will is fixed - it cannot change. But how he accomplishes that will - through diplomacy, or science, military force or bureaucratic politics - that can change, and should! For the galaxy is not fixed, nor do the obstacles in the path of humanity's destiny stand still. He will always have need of you - and I - little one; never forget that, even if it seems he may have done."
Yet it seemed the Emperor did not forget Verity, for although he called on her less and less frequently, he kept her close to him. As the Great Crusade splintered into separate Expeditionary Fleets led by Primarchs, Chapter Masters and Generals, she remained ever in his entourage.
Until she left his side after Pacification of Ophelia, Verity was present when the Emperor discovered each of the Primarchs (with the possible exception of Horus, whose history is veiled in not only mystery, but deliberate obfuscation following his treachery), yet most did not regard her highly, if they even acknowledged her at all. There were three exceptions - the first, of course, was Horus, whom she had known during the early years of the Great Crusade, and who recognized the value of the tech-priestess' unique gift to the Emperor and the Crusade.
The second was Sanguinius, the angel-winged Primarch of the IX Legion. At the Conclave of the Blood on Baal Secundus, after the Emperor had accepted Sanguinius' fealty, the Primarch sought out Verity and - gifted with the power of foresight - spoke a poetic prophecy;
"Though we walk with him today,
we will not do so forever,
although we will never leave the fold of his love.
Though we will fight to defend him,
we shall fall before our foes,
although we will never leave the fold of his love.
Though we shall triumph over our enemies,
we will be marred by them,
although we will never leave the fold of his love.
Though we shall call ourselves pure,
we will carry secret shame within us,
although we will never leave the fold of his love."
Even if Verity had not been a devotee of the Omnissiah, possessed of augmented memory circuits, she would never have forgotten such a prophecy, delivered as it was by the supernatural angel-son of her god. While Sanguinius himself had been worshiped as divine by the primitive tribes of Baal and thus fervently embraced the Imperial Truth, his very presence deepened Verity's faith. To her, Sanguinius was something greater than any of the other Primarchs - he was, uniquely among them, possessed of a shard of the Emperor's divinity and nobility of soul. In him, she saw a kindred spirit; an angel devoted to the spread of truth and a driving back of ignorance, and not merely military conquest. Even when he departed to lead his Legion in the Great Crusade, Verity never wavered from her devotion.
But while Sanguinius was an object of veneration for Verity, it was one of his brothers who would give her worship shape and order, inducting her into a secret and subversive cult that would - millennia later - grow to dominate the Imperium of Man. This was the Lectitio Divinitatus and the Primarch was Lorgar.
