[ That teasing finger moves upward, as if to chase the tilting planes of Eridanus' face. Claw-tips pass them by, however; black enamel instead threads itself into the ash blond of Eridanus' hair, and there it grasps, Lucius' overlarge hand holding Eridanus still with a grip to remind him of the totality of devotion he had pledged the Eternal. ]

And loyalty to myself meant retaking my rightful place among the IIIrd Legion, under my primarch's eye. What about it do you find so difficult to understand?

[ After all, loyalty to Fulgrim and loyalty to himself are one in the same. He has never found a circumstance to test that to the contrary.

Lucius' face looms nearer, until there is no space to separate them at all. His scarred forehead presses to Eridanus', fleshy horns and protruding opal and all, and the breath from his jagged teeth blows against his skin. ]

But Saul's death was for me. It was his lack of vision that forced me to crawl through mud and carrion for a chance at regaining my rightful status, and he tried to stand in my way even when his foolish resistance was already undone by my machinations. As I watched that rock blasted to fiery ruin behind me, there was nothing in my heart but satisfaction — like a man fresh from feeling a tumor cut from his gut.

[ With the passing of every word, the childlike playfulness that so often buoys his voice gives way to the sadist's malice that always lurks behind it, voice growing as dark in its intensity as the vicious gleam of his eyes. As the last syllable leaves his lips, he pauses, savoring the flavor of it on his tongue—but then, with the question he asks next, his tone is bright and conversational once more. ]

But I believe we were talking about Lord Commander Eidolon, weren't we?