Denied the demi-gods he intended as generals of his armies, the Emperor has spent longer on the front-lines of the Great Crusade than even he originally envisaged. Forced to jump from warzone to warzone to quench the fires his murdered sons should have snuffed out, it has been a long road to ensuring humanity’s ascendance.

However, his efforts have not gone unrewarded, and as the first decade of the 31st Millennium draws to a close, he has at last been able to leave the final scouring of the Great Crusade in the capable hands of his loyal Space Marine Legions.

Returning to Terra, his attention has turned to the next step in his grand plan: The Imperial Webway. In this, however, he is not unopposed. The Cabal, sensing his intention and realising it would be the final death knell of their own aspirations, seeks to oppose him at every turn, a secret war playing out in that labyrinthine dimension as the Legio Custodes and their golden lord take on a myriad of forces led by the perfidious Eldar seer, Eldrad Ulthran, even as the Space Marine Legions battle the same forces across the vast gulfs of real-space.

And yet, the Emperor’s plan relied upon having a golden son to sit upon a similarly resplendent throne, guaranteeing the stability of his realm. Even if he achieves total victory here, will he be consigning himself to an eternity of lonely vigil, so that his empire might flourish without him?