"Come in, Lord Malcador!" Tech-priest Tolreb called. He was excited enough to be jittery, which slightly worried Malcador. His attention was quickly turned away from the tech-priest to a large cylindrical device in the middle of the lab. It struck him as very similar to the photon torpedo casing used as a coffin in The Wrath of Khan, which made him worry more.
"What is that?" He asked, unsure what he wanted it to be. Tolreb had specifically asked him to come alone, saying that he wanted Malcador's help in providing a surprise for the Emperor. The Emperor and Valdor were dealing with a delicate situation involving the forgeworld of Graia.
"it's my new break through in rejuvenat treatment," Tolreb said. "I call it the Fountain of Youth."
"And this has something to do with the surprise you wanted my assistance with?" Malcador asked. He didn't use rejuvenat himself, though he knew several people who did. Tolreb nodded energetically.
"It is, I would like to use it on.... you, my lord," Tolreb said. His nerves getting the better of him just as he was getting to the point. "Give your youth and vitality back, to further serve the Omnissiah."
Malcador thought about it a moment. He had his own reasons for not doing rejuvenat treatments. Mostly because he didn't have to, his own power and the Emperor's together kept him alive. However, he did find he wanted some kind of renewal. The adventure on Teramyn had restored him mentally, but had almost the opposite effect physically. He had even joked with the Emperor about needing a "staycation" to recover from their vacation, but had soundly refused time off when it had been offered.
"Alright," he said. "How does it work?"
"All you need to do is step into the Fountain," Tolreb said. "It will just take one session to do the job."
Malcador approached the Fountain, eyeing it a bit uncertainly. He set aside his staff, and went to get into the open tube. Tolreb stopped him suddenly, looking as embarrassed as a tech-priest could.
"I almost forgot, your...." Tolreb trailed off, focused on Malcador's archaeotech collar.
"Oh, yes," Malcador said. "The collar stays on."
"Naturally, lord," Tolreb said a shade too quickly. "But...."
Malcador nodded, and reached under the wires, touching a few controls that were hidden amongst them. "There, that should do it."
"Thank you, lord," Tolreb said. No one really talked about the archaeotech collar, but no one had seen Malcador without it either. Except perhaps the Emperor, and he never mentioned if it was there when they met the first time or not. Malcador never provided a description of himself when he spoke of his past, letting everyone imagine him as they would, or most commonly as they saw him.
"Alright, and all I do is get in?" Malcador asked. It was Tolreb's turn to nod, stepping aside so Malcador could get in. He then turned to a bank of controls, carefully programming the Fountain. He set it to run, and settled in nervously to watch the gauges.
Inside the Fountain Malcador was surrounded by a warm light, it was relaxing and peaceful. He also began to feel it working. I haven't felt this good since the Emperor was forging the Dionysian and Apollonian spears. He thought briefly about the two spears, Valdor of course carried one, but the Emperor hadn't told him who would take the other. It took a moment for him to realize something wasn't quite right.
Tolreb squeaked in alarm as the dials on the gauges started turning to the red, dangerous zones. He quickly began an emergency shut down procedure, but the dials remained stubbornly in the dangerous zones.
<Cawl?> Tolreb canted over the noosphere.
<Yes?> Cawl responded quickly. He wasn't fully monitoring Torleb anymore, but he was determined to stay close by for a bit.
<I need assistance,> Tolreb said. <My Fountain of Youth is misbehaving.>
<I am coming,> Cawl said. <You are attempting to shut it down?>
<Yes.>
<What is your test object?>
<Not a what, the Sigillite.>
Cawl didn't dignify that with a response, other than to sprint out of his lab and down the hall to Tolreb's. He cursed soundly to himself that he hadn't insisted that Tolreb keep the lab across the hall. Sparks were flying when Cawl arrived in the lab, Tolreb at the controls, still fighting with the machine spirit. Finally, it capitulated. The Fountain shut down, and the door popped open.
**************************
Magnus sat bolt upright, causing Gerryn to look over at him with a questioning glance. With Valdor accompanying the Emperor to Graia, Gerryn had offered to babysit while Malcador learned what Tolreb wanted. So far everything had gone smoothly.
"Something's wrong with Uncle Malcador," Magnus said. Several of the other psychically inclined Primarchs also tensed. Gerryn stood, and opened a vox channel down to Tolreb's lab.
**************************
<We need to make him be quiet,> Tolreb said. He was terrified of what had happened.
Cawl nodded, and carefully lifted the now infant Malcador through the loop of the archaeotech collar. Grabbing the Sigillite's robes, he quickly wrapped them around the wailing infant. Then, unsure how to calm a human baby, he decided to put one of his human fingers in Malcador's mouth, hoping to at least muffle the noise. He could hear Tolreb answer the vox summon finally and try to assure the Custodian on the other end.
This ended abruptly as Malcador bit Cawl's finger, causing him to jerk it out of the Sigillite's mouth. Obstruction removed, Malcador began to wail once again in an ear-splitting cacophony.
"Is that the crying of a child?" Gerryn asked sharply.
"Ye.... yes, Lord Gerryn," Tolreb said. "There... was an... accident in my demonstration." This last was said in a rush, his voice dropping in volume. There was a long pause on the other end of the vox line.
"I will be sending Lord Magnus and a squad of Sisters of Silence to retrieve the Sigillite," Gerryn said. "I trust you have a way of reversing this?"
"Not.... not at present," Tolreb said. "But I will start work on it right away."
"That would be the wisest thing," Gerryn said. "Our lord is expected within the week." With that he closed the vox channel.
**************************
"Sister Kendel, please select four of your sisters and meet Lord Magnus at Tech-priest Tolreb's lab," Gerryn's request caused Oblivion Knight Amendera Kendel to pause.
What has happened? She asked in a series of vox clicks.
"There's been an... incident involving the Sigillite," Gerryn said with a pause that was most uncharacteristic for a Custodian.
Do we need to bring a medicae? She continued.
"No, that will not be necessary," Gerryn said. "The Sigillite is unharmed, as far as I am aware. It's a complicated situation, and one better left to an in person explanation."
Intrigued, she signaled to Thayla, Kaelana, Cettalinya, and Lynnora to accompany her. They quickly arrived at Tolreb's lab, meeting Lord Magnus out in the hall. The red Primarch turned a very deep pink, reacting to their presence. However, unlike other times the Sisters of Silence had encountered him, Lord Magnus seemed happy with their presence this time.
"Thank you for coming, mamzels," Magnus said. "Uncle Malcador has been... deaged... I guess that's the right word, and we will be taking him to the Imperial Residence."
Understood, Lord Magnus, Kendel signed. Do you want to proceed us and assess the situation?
"That's probably good idea," Magnus agreed. The door opened, and Kendel heard the wailing of a baby. She stepped up so that the door wouldn't close, but didn't follow Lord Magnus in. The Primarch paused, and the baby stopped crying. she watched curiously as Magnus and Malcador stared at each other. Magnus broke eye contact, and turned to the Sisters.
"Uncle Malcador's mind is intact, at least for now," Magnus said. "I will carry him. Lady Kendel, please bring the archaeotech collar, he wants it kept close to him. Lady Cettalinya, please bring his staff."
Kendel signaled to Thayla, Kaelana, and Lynnora to go ahead of them and make sure the hallways were clear. She then grabbed the archaeotech collar from the Fountain while Cettalinya grabbed the Sigillite's staff. Magnus carefully took Malcador from Cawl, and they headed out.
**************************
Gerryn and the other Primarchs were busy in the residence, trying to baby-proof it. They weren't sure what Malcador's mental state would be, and were working on making sure all the psy-wards from when they were babies were in place. Cavlor had been sent down to the storage silos to try and find one of the cribs that the Primarchs had used when they were infants. A three way fight broke out when he found all of them. Jaghatai, representing Magnus, Leman, and to everyone's surprise: Alpharius. Omegon wasn't willing to back down, Malcador knew about both of them, and was about the only one other than the Emperor who could properly tell which twin was which. This was important to Omegon, and he knew Alpharius would understand.
"Enough," Gerryn said, finally stepping in to break up the fight. "We will use Lord Alpharius's crib as it is marginally smaller than the other two. They are all psy-warded as well, not just Lord Magnus's."
"Alright," Jaghatai said, admitting defeat. The psy-warding had been his biggest argument for using Magnus's. Other than of course that's what Magnus would want, being the closest with Malcador.
Gerryn nodded and went back to assisting Rogal in placing the baby gates. They were interrupted by the Lion suddenly going stiff.
"What about Freki and Geri?" the Lion asked. "They might be dangerous to Malcador."
"But it's their home too," Leman said, still in fight mode. He paused and realized something. "But that could be a problem, it's their territory, and they may think he's food or a danger."
"There's ways of introducing animals and babies," Roboute said. "We may need to keep a close eye on them. And there's the chance that Malcador's mind hasn't deaged, if that's the case he'll know not to irritate them."
"And he'll still smell like himself," Leman said, following Roboute's logic. "It's still going to confuse them though."
"We'll have to assess that when he arrives," Gerryn said. He glanced over at Jaghatai, who was Magnus's point of contact. The Primarch sensed his gaze, looked over, and shook his head. They knew Magnus would need to be fairly close before he could get through with the Sisters accompanying him.
"Have any of you ever seen Malcador in colors?" Fulgrim asked suddenly. He was focusing on clothing and bedding. He was also taking charge of feeding Malcador. Except at night, that would be Konrad, Corvus, and Gerryn.
"No?" Ferrus said, thinking about it a moment. Fulgrim glanced around at the others, hoping someone had noticed.
"Uh, khaki's a color right?" Mortarion said. "He wore khaki when we were in M3."
"Gray, and those really faded jeans," Sanguinius added. "But that's not any different from the pale robes he wears normally. Even his bodygloves from Teramyn were gray."
"Oh!" Angron said as if suddenly realizing something. "There's the shirt we got the Triad."
"That doesn't count," Fulgrim said. The background color of those shirts was a bright, vibrant blue.
"But we did see him wearing it," Angron said stubbornly. "And it's colorful."
"Still doesn't count, we bought those with the intention of making them stand out," Fulgrim said.
"It really was the best design there," Konrad said. He knew he didn't really have to defend his choice of shirt, but still got a tiny bit touchy when it came up.
"Besides, that's the only thing of his in that color," Fulgrim said. "And we want to keep that."
"I think he's enshrined it," Lorgar said. By that he meant put in a stasis display.
"They're almost here," Jaghatai said suddenly. "Magnus says Malcador's mind's intact for now."
"That's possibly not as encouraging as he meant for it to be," the Lion said.
"We'll find out soon enough," Horus said. The door opened, and Magnus walked in, Kendel and Cettalinya behind him. Gerryn directed the two Sisters through the baby gates and to place the archaeotech collar and staff in the Emperor's room. That was where Cavlor had placed Alpharius's crib, and they would be having Malcador sleep. Gerryn went with the Sisters, intending to secure Malcador's belongings.
Once they were out of the room Malcador looked around at the Primarchs, taking in the various baby-proofing measures they had taken. It was still possible to see Malcador's actual age in his eyes, but they stood out on his infant face which made it eerie.
+Horus, I assume you--+ Malcador's psychic voice cut off as a look that was as close to horror as an infant could make crossed his face. Magnus shifted uncomfortably, and Horus quickly signaled to Mortarion.
"Over here, Magnus," Mortarion said. He was the in charge of laundry and diaper supplies. All the Primarchs, Fulgrim included, had agreed to changing diapers as needed. The two got to work, Mortarion showing Magnus how.
The adults came back into the room, and got intercepted by the Lion, Leman, and Horus. They steered the adults away until Mortarion and Magnus were done. Mortarion picked up Malcador while Magnus went to clean himself up.
+Horus, please tell Lady Kendel and Lady Cettalinya that they may leave.+ Malcador sent. +I do want them to set up a rotation of Sisters close by, in case I mentally regress to the point of not being able to control my powers.+
"What of myself, Lord Malcador?" Gerryn asked after the two Sisters left.
+You'll stay here, in charge of all of us.+ Malcador said. +You can rotate with Cavlor and Tolax as needed.+
"Lord Luprecal has already doled out assignments to assist in managing you," Gerryn said.
"Wait, what about when we're at Nova?" Ferrus asked suddenly.
"Cavlor, Tolax, and myself will take care of Lord Malcador while you are at tutorium, Lord Manus," Gerryn said simply. "I believe it will be best to have as few people know about the Sigillite's condition as possible."
+I'm not ill.+ Malcador said grumpily.
"Gerryn's got a point though," Roboute said. "You can't run the Imperium as you are, at least not on a visual level. It would cause a lot of distress if it gets out that you got deaged into an infant."
+I guess I have to concede that point.+ Malcador said. +Gerryn, can you relay orders to the Council for me?+
"Of course, Lord Malcador," Gerryn said.
**************************
The Primarchs headed to Nova the next day, doing their best to make it seem like nothing was going on. Cavlor had relieved Gerryn and was hoping that everything would go smoothly that day. It turned out to not quite be the case. There was an insistent knocking on the door of the residence.
"Who is there?" Cavlor asked, setting Malcador down on the large sofa, making sure he wasn't too close to the edge. Malcador was having issues with remembering that he couldn't nod his head while an infant without unbalancing himself.
"It's Baxter!" the functionary called. "Where is Lord Malcador?"
"Unavailable," Cavlor said firmly. He had heard of Baxter. The functionary was known among the Custodians for being one of the most stubborn of the base line humans who served at the Palace. This gave Cavlor some concern, normally being told someone was unavailable by a Custodian was enough, but it might not be for Baxter.
"Unacceptable," Baxter snarled.
"It will have to be acceptable," Cavlor said. He was not known for having an even temperament, and was quick to anger.
"No, it doesn't. Why is he unavailable?" Baxter said. Cavlor glanced over his shoulder at Malcador, looking for what to say.
+I am... indisposed.+ Malcador sent so Baxter could hear as well. He didn't sound well, trying to craft his psychic voice to match how he had sounded when he was sick.
"No, you're avoiding me," Baxter raged. There was a pause, then Baxter was assaulted by the wailing of a baby that was both psychic and audible. +GOOOOOOOO!!!!!!+
Baxter heard the sound of running feet, and was smashed to the side by a Silent Sister. She disappeared through the door, which closed quickly behind her. The psychic screaming faltered and abated. He began to pound on the closed door again. The door opened slightly, but only enough for him to see half of a Custodian's face.
"Leave at once," Cavlor growled. "Or I will set Lord Russ's wolves on you."
It finally sank in for Baxter that he had way over stepped himself. He heard one of the wolves growling, and quickly ran away. This relieved Cavlor who didn't really want to let Freki and Geri out because then he would have to catch them.
Closing the door sharply, he turned to Sister Lynnora, who was holding the still screaming Malcador. She was checking him over for injury or anything that he needed, meeting his gaze she shook her head, nothing. Malcador looked pained being held by Lynnora, and Cavlor reached out to take him.
"My lord? Cavlor asked. "Is something wrong?"
Instead of answering, Malcador continued screaming.
"Lord Malcador, do you require something?" Cavlor asked, trying a different tack.
"'Ev...ev..ashun!" Malcador called out, wriggling around in Cavlor's grasp, clearly upset with him as well.
"Lord, please answer psychically," Cavlor implored. Instead he received an image of the Emperor's face.
"Our king isn't here, Lord Malcador," Cavlor said. "He's off-planet." This was greeted by fresh peals of screaming from Malcador. Cavlor was totally at a loss for what to do. Lynnora suddenly snapped her fingers to get his attention.
Lord Magnus? she suggested.
"Lord Malcador, the Emperor isn't here, but Lord Magnus is on-world, just at tutorium," Cavlor said. "Would he be acceptable?"
This was answered by an image of Magnus's face. Cavlor took that response as a "yes" and moved over to the vox. Making sure Malcador was secure, he put in the vox code for Nova.
"Nova Tutorium, Brienne speaking," the secretary of Nova answered.
"This is Cavlor from the Palace," Cavlor said. "I need to pull Lord Magnus out of classes for the rest of the day. Something has happened and his... uncle is asking for him."
"Any other information for me to pass along?" Brienne asked.
"No," Cavlor said, seeing that Lynnora was programming one of the pilot servitors. "He'll be given more information when he's picked up."
"Very well," Brienne answered and clicked off the vox line.
**************************
"Very well," Mamzel Byth said into the vox. She clicked off and turned around to the class. "Magnus, do you know someone at the Palace named Cavlor?"
"I do, Mamzel Byth," Magnus said. "Has something happened?"
"It would appear so," Mamzel Byth said. "He says your uncle is asking for you. Your transport should be here shortly."
Magnus shared a concerned look with Leman and Lorgar before packing up his supplies, then running from the room. He reached the landing pad just as the Thurnderhawk was landing and got in, finding a servitor pilot that had a recorded message for him.
**************************
How do we make him stop crying? Lynnora asked. Malcador was still screaming and crying. Cavlor got the signal from the servitor saying that it would be landing soon.
"Hopefully Lord Magnus can assist," he said, turning to look at the door to the landing pad. "Lord Malcador, Lord Magnus is here."
"What happened?" Magnus asked as he rushed in.
"Ma'us!" Malcador wailed, stretching his arms out to Magnus. Cavlor quickly passed off the infant Sigillite, who snuggled into Magnus, and finally stopped wailing. Magnus looked nonplussed, and the two adults sighed in relief.
"Um, what happened?" Magnus asked. "Uncle Malcador's mind seems to have regressed massively. It looks like he was distressed about something."
"Baxter," Cavlor said, making the name a curse. "I should have set the wolves on him."
"The functionary?" Magnus asked.
"He was demanding to speak with Lord Malcador," Cavlor said. "And then accused him of avoiding him."
"He picks the worst times to demand a meeting with Uncle Malcador," Magnus grumbled. Malcador squirmed and whimpered a bit. "It's alright, Uncle Malcador, I'm here. Why did you guys ask for me?"
It was my idea Lynnora signed. He was originally asking for your father apparently.
"Oh," Magnus said. "That makes sense."
The now calmed Malcador fell asleep, Cavlor helped Magnus through the baby gates to the Emperor's room. Magnus placed him in Alpharius's crib and set the monitor they had found.
**************************
Tolreb opened the Fountain of Youth (Inverted), and to his distress discovered a skeleton.
<Another failure, Cawl> he reported.
<More dust?> Cawl asked.
<No, a skeleton,>
<This is improvement,> Cawl said. <Take heart from that.> He was right that it was an improvement. Tolreb was using vat-grown test subjects, matured to match the physical age of the Sigillite, and all other trials of the modified device had resulted in dust.
<But I can't turn the Sigillite into a skeleton,> Tolreb whined.
<This is only the first full day of adjustments and tests,> Cawl said firmly. <We've made great progress considering that. We will fix this situation.>
Tolreb's shoulders dipped. He was getting tired, and antsy. There was a lot of pressure to get this right. He wasn't even hoping to get a younger, refreshed Malcador out of this, he wanted everything to go back to how it was.
<How long until the next batch is ready?>
<Twenty minutes,>
<We should break for a meal then.>
Tolreb nodded his agreement and the two headed off.
**************************
Malcador awoke, somewhat confused as to how he had gotten into the Emperor's room. Pushing himself into a seated position, he looked around for whichever Primarch was watching him. He didn't see anyone, but did hear a rustling in the closet. Turning himself, Malcador went towards the end of the crib to try and investigate. A toy that had been shoved down the side of the matress rattled, causing him to pause. Konrad's head popped out of the closet, his height telling Malcador that he was on a shelf.
"Oh, you're awake!" Konrad called. Shifting, Konrad overbalanced himself and fell gracelessly into the eclectic collection of shoes the Emperor kept on the floor of his closet. Malcador laughed at the sight.
"I'm alright!" Konrad called out, knowing that the sound of him falling would bring the others running.
"What's going on in there?" Horus called.
"I'm just.... enteraining Uncle Malcador," Konrad said. "You won't tell them I was snooping in Father's closet? Or Father?"
+I have no reason to tell them you were snooping,+ Malcador sent.
"You're... better?" Konrad asked.
+Better?+
"Yeah, you... regressed," Konrad said. "We're not really sure why, Baxter was here demanding to see you right before though."
+I do remember him being here,+ Malcador said. +How long ago was that?+
"A couple of hours," Konrad said. "Cavlor actually had to pull Magnus out of Nova to help."
+I was that bad?+ Malcador said. +What happened with Baxter?+
"Apparently, yes you were," Konrad said. "And Cavlor threatened to turn Freki and Geri on Baxter."
+Ah+ Malcador said. He pulled himself up the crib's rails. Konrad quickly opened the gate and pulled Malcador out.
"Dinner's supposed to be ready shortly," he said. "Fulgrim's making your food special."
+So I shouldn't refuse to eat it?+ Malcador asked, a sly note in his sending.
"At least not on the first night," Konrad chuckled. "Maybe we'll have fun with him a different time."
+Good point,+ Malcador agreed as they came out into the living room. +Sister Lynnora left?+
"Yes," Magnus said. "She left after you fell asleep. I believe Sister Kendel is the one on call right now. She wants to keep it between her and the four she initially brought with her."
+And Jenetia Crowle is alright with that?+
"I'm not actually sure that they discussed it," Horus said. "Trying to keep it... quiet?"
+That is one way to put it,+ Malcador said while giggling.
"It's hard to get quieter than the Sisters," the Lion said. This made Malcador giggle harder. Then he realized something.
+Where's Cavlor?+
"In the hall, trading off with Tolax," Roboute said. Malcador nodded as Konrad put him in the high chair they had scrounged. Tolax entered a moment later.
"Any news from Tolreb?" Ferrus asked.
"No," Tolax said. "How is Lord Malcador?"
+Better than I was,+ Malcador answered for himself.
"Lord," Tolax said. "Cavlor was concerned that you were no longer yourself."
+I don't think I was,+ Malcador said. +It's... hazy.+
"You were tired," Magnus asserted. "This whole situation is stressful, and Baxter wasn't helping."
+You're probably right,+ Malcador agreed. +Fulgrim, I think that smells good.+
"You think?" Fulgrim asked.
+Baby nose, not as good as my normal one.+
"I guess that's fair," Fulgrim said, unsure if Malcador was trying to mess with him or not.
"I was hoping that there would be progress," Ferrus muttered.
"We have to have patience," Sagnuinius said, though he didn't look like he had a lot of patience himself. "Cawl will fix it."
"I don't want Cawl to fix it," Konrad cut in. "I want Tolreb to fix it because he's the reason this happened."
"Of course Tolreb will be fixing it," Perturabo said. "He's going to need Cawl's help though."
"He still needs to be punished," Konrad said with a grunt.
+He will face your father's judgement,+ Malcador said. +Or did you think that he wouldn't find out?+
"I wasn't going to tell him," Lorgar said.
+I was.+ Malcador said, and took another bite Vulkan was offering him. All of the Primarchs were taking turns feeding Malcador as needed. Vulkan was having the easiest time as the tallest Primarch. The chair was adjustable, letting the others to take their turns.
"Fair," Alpharius said.
Dinner ended and the Primarchs set about their chores. Tolax brought Malcador into the living room, and set him on the floor. Malcador moved closer towards one of the smaller couches and pulled himself to his feet. He was determined to work on walking. He knew a 10-month-old could walk but not very far. He also knew that the Primarchs would probably prefer that he crawled to get places as it was safer. However, the very idea of crawling made the memory of his knees ache.
"What are you doing, lord?" Tolax asked him.
+Trying to walk,+ Malcador answered. +It's been.... millennia since I've walked without either a staff or a cane. It'll be different.+
"Indeed," Tolax said, though he wasn't sure he understood why.
+It changes your balance,+ Malcador answered. He pushed himself away from the couch and took a few wobbly steps, holding his arms out from his sides to keep his balance. He made it several steps before stumbling, and falling over. Tolax stood up quickly, unsure what to do.
+I'm alright,+ Malcador said, sitting up. +It's not far to fall.+
"Are you sure, Malcador?" Fulgrim said popping his head into the room.
+I'm sure,+ Malcador said. +That goes for you too, Magnus.+
"Alright," Magnus called.
"Maybe wait for the Lord Primarchs to all be here before trying again?" Tolax suggested.
+Possibly a good idea,+ Malcador conceded.
The Primarchs all settled in for the evening and Malcador was more successful in making his way from Primarch to Primarch. At bedtime Tolax carried Malcador to bed.
**************************
The next day was smoother for Gerryn who relieved Tolax the next morning. He had ensured that Baxter wouldn't be an issue. Turns out the Master of Astropaths had a sudden urgent need for someone of Baxter's, admittedly limited, skills in the Tower of Sight. Everything was fine, perhaps even a little boring, until the Primarchs returned. It seemed that several of the Primarchs had had a rough day at Nova, Magnus included. He and Leman were mid-argument when they came through the door.
"-- and then you ran into me during dodgeball on purpose!" Magnus said sharply.
"I did not," Leman interjected. "It's dodgeball, you're responsible for covering your own blind side."
Gerryn looked concerned, but wasn't sure if he should intervene or not. Vulkan glanced at Malcador, seeing his face turning red, and decided to break up the argument.
"Guys, we're home now, let's focus on other things," Vulkan said.
"You stay out of this," Leman snarled. Which served to just drag Vulkan deeper into the argument.
"You're distressing..." Vulkan trailed off, he had gone to gesture at Malcador, but he wasn't there. "Mal?"
"Uncle Malcador!" Magnus cried, looking around for him. Most of the other Primarchs, and Gerryn started looking around in a bit of a panic.
"Guys, Corvus has him in the shadow walk," the Lion said. He was the only one not looking panicked at this point. Corvus dropped out of the shadow walk, standing near the back door. Malcador was sucking one of his fingers.
"Where were you taking him?" Magnus growled.
"Just out into the backyard," Corvus said. "He's upset, and his garden helps him find peace. We can't take him down there now, it's too risky, but the backyard is right there."
"His mind's regressed again," Magnus said, quickly trying to calm himself and focus on Malcador.
"Uh, can we find something else for him to suck on?" Corvus asked. "My finger's going to look like one of his normal fingers when I get it back."
"Here's something," Perturabo said. He held out a thing that looked like a pacifier. "Don't worry, it's clean." It in fact looked like he had made it himself, it was colored in hazard stripes.
"On three?" Corvus suggested, Perturabo nodded.
"One, two, three!" Perturabo counted out. Corvus pulled his finger out, and Perturabo slid in the pacifier. Malcador seemed surprised, and then began sucking on the pacifier.
"What causes these regressions?" Horus asked.
"I'm not sure," Magnus said. "It's happened both days since he got deaged, maybe it's a time thing?"
"But it hasn't happened at the same time of the day," Leman said.
"Maybe it's a reaction to anger around him," Angron said. "Baxter was mad that he wasn't being allowed to see Malcador yesterday. Today, it's Leman and Magnus who are angry."
"I'm not angry," Magnus objected.
"The only people who believe that are the Sisters, and that's because they can't be touched by psychic powers," Angron said. "Malcador's regression happened in conjunction with people around him being angry."
"Angron's got a point," Roboute said. "It's hard to determine causality because we only have the two instances to work with, and it could be correlation instead of causation. However, his theoretical fits the facts we have."
"That's a nerdy way of putting it," Angron muttered.
"Hm, and when he calms down he's back to normal?" Fulgrim asked.
"That tracks with what happened yesterday," Konrad said. "He was fine when he woke up."
"Well, we don't really want him napping that long this time," Corvus said. "He'll be up all night if we let him do that."
"He's also not acting sleepy," Gerryn said. "Lord Corax, you can take him outside and see if that helps."
"Alright," Corvus said, opening the door and going out. After a moment Leman grabbed Freki and Gerri and went outside with Corvus. The two watched Malcador carefully, knowing that at his current state he may annoy the wolves. Everything went well, and they came inside when dinner was ready.
Angron took charge of Malcador, as he would be the one feeding him that night. Malcador was getting fussy, and Angron wasn't sure if it was him, or being hungry. He understood hanger, so he hoped it was that and not that Malcador was unhappy with him. He took the baby food that Fulgrim handed him and grabbed a spoonful. Malcador refused to open his mouth for it.
"For Fulgrim?" Angron asked, noting that Fulgrim was watching. Malcador still refused.
"For Magnus?" This was met with a similar rejection. Magnus looked uncomfortable with that. Angron however, was frustrated
"For the Imperium?!" he shouted. Magnus, Horus, and Gerryn glared at him. To everyone's surprise, Malcador ate it, eagerly going for the spoon. This continued for the rest of the meal.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you, Uncle Mal," Angron said as they finished dinner.
"What can we do now?" Lorgar asked, gesturing to Malcador, who didn't appear to be back to what was passing for normal.
"We can read to him," Rogal suggested.
"Not The Principles of Proper Construction I hope?" Perturabo asked.
"No, that's not what I was thinking," Rogal said somewhat defensively. He considered it good reading, but was aware that it probably wouldn't work for Malcador.
"It might be a good bedtime book though," Leman said.
"Maybe," Rogal admitted. He was hoping that wouldn't be necessary though, Malcador had reportedly gone to sleep without issues the previous night. Cavlor arrived, apologizing for being delayed.
"There is progress from the tech-priests though," Cavlor added after being updated by Gerryn. "They were able to age a vat-grown test subject, but it died shortly after."
"Well, that's something," Horus said into the silence that greeted Cavlor's report.
"Not very encouraging though," Magnus said.
"It may be," Cavlor said. "Cawl told me that all was dust and skeletons yesterday."
"Definitely improvement," Roboute said. "Though, if they keep on this pace they should have something before Father gets home."
**************************
Once again, Malcador found himself waking up in Alpharius' crib in the Emperor's room. The first major difference this time was that it was night, the second was that there was not a Primarch with him, but Cavlor.
+Cavlor?+
"Lord Malcador, you are yourself again," Cavlor answered quietly, but with clear relief.
+I regressed again?+ Malcador asked, turning his head slightly, trying to get a better view of Cavlor through the rails. +How long?+
"You did, but it seems to have not been as catastrophic this time," Cavlor said. "It happened just after the Primarchs returned from tutorium. Lord Angron postulates that it's a reaction to anger around you."
+That's very reasonable,+ Malcador said. +Who was angry?+
"Lords Russ and Magnus, or so Gerryn told me," Cavlor said.
+Ah. And I was regressed when you took over?+
"Yes. I was late, after getting an update from the tech-priests," Cavlor said. "There was a mild debate about what book to read to you. Lord Sanguinius took over and started telling children's tales from Baal. You were fussy when it was bedtime, and Lord Dorn read from his construction book until you fell asleep."
+How far did he get?+
"Three chapters," Cavlor said with a chuckle. "Lords Jonson and Russ fell asleep well before you did."
+Lion can fall asleep at the drop of a hat if he wants to,+ Malcador said with a giggle. He paused, looking towards the door and hoping he hadn't woken Corvus up. Infant giggles tended to be loud. After a moment of silence he relaxed. +How have you been keeping yourself busy?+
"Meditating," Cavlor said. "And reading."
+No curiosity about what our lord keeps in here?+ Malcador asked teasingly.
"Never," Cavlor said a shade too fast, and not meeting Malcador's eyes. This earned another giggle from Malcador.
+What do you think of the shoes?+
Cavlor sputtered, then blurted out the only thing he could come up with, "Why?"
+I don't know,+ Malcador said. He could sense Cavlor's embarrassment more than see it in the dim lighting of the room.
"You never asked?"
+On the contrary, he's never answered,+ Malcador said. +I've asked multiple times.+
"Speaking of asking," Cavlor said, trying to get away from the awkward topic of what the Emperor kept in his closet. "The tech-priests want to examine your archaeotech collar. Cawl believes it may be responsible for the initial accident, and important to returning you."
+I put it in safe mode,+ Malcador grumbled. He made a noise in his throat that would have been an annoyed growl if he was older, but sounded very weird coming from an infant. +Alright, they can look. I don't want them changing any of the settings though.+
"Alright. I'll let them know, later in the morning," Cavlor said.
+What time is it?+
"Zero one forty," Cavlor said.
+Ah, I should try to go back to sleep then,+ Malcador said, shifting around in the crib to try and get comfortable. There was a long silence, and Cavlor was just beginning to relax again when a foul odor came his way from the crib. Malcador made another frustrated noise, though there was also embarrassment there.
+You'll need to wake one of the Primarchs,+ Malcador said. It had already been determined that Custodian hands were too large to be able to safely change a diaper. One of the Sisters assisted with that when the Primarchs were at Nova. +I would recommend Mortarion, I'm going to need a bath as well.+
"As you say, lord," Cavlor said, shifting somewhat awkwardly. He rose and quickly slipped out of the room to get Moration.
**************************
Clade Vanus had several layers of operatives in its ranks. One of the lowest ranks was commonly called a data dredger. These were people assigned to monitor all of the data coming into and out of a specific part of the Imperium, and flag anything interesting for further review. Lygis was one such data dredger, and had ended up assigned to the Palace. This was typically considered one of the most boring assignments. Clade Vanus operatives were far from the only ones vigorously monitoring incoming and outbound transmissions to the Palace, and the Custodians got first call on anything concerning.
Lygis however, was determined to make the most of the assignment, and find something for Clade Vanus to use in the internal jockeying that passed for inter-clade relations. It was in her pursuit of this that she had come across a pair of odd patterns. The first was a rotation of three Custodians trading off at the Imperial Residence, and the second was a rotation of five Sisters of Silence at a guard station just down the hall.
She knew it had something to do with the Sigillite's sudden reclusiveness. Malcador was of course known for being secretive, and sometimes straight up vanished, but he never did that if he was watching the Primarchs for the Emperor. There was also the abrupt transfer of Baxter from the Inner Palace to the Tower of Sight. Baxter kept a diary on a cogitator, which made it subject to the perusal of Clade Vanus, he had mentioned hearing a baby cry in the Imperial Residence, but there were no babies there.
"I have to get in there and find out what's going on," Lygis said resolutely. "Something's happened to the Sigillite, I know it." Then it dawned on her. Malcador hadn't been seen since he went to the lab of Tolreb of the Cult Mechanicus. Lord Magnus and the five Sisters of Silence had been sent to the lab, and returned to the Imperial Residence, with two of the Sisters carrying the Sigillite's staff, and the archaeotech collar that no one had ever seen Malcador without. Tolreb must have taken the Sigillite captive, and was trying to pass off a baby as some kind of replacement, a way to make a cover story for the Emperor.
"Now, how to I get the real Sigillite back?" she asked herself. The first challenge she knew was getting the baby/false Malcador away from the Custodians. It would have to be during the day when the Primarchs were at tutorium. It was much easier to separate a baby from one person, even a transhuman, than from eighteen. What she needed was a distraction, but what?
"Think, Lygis, think," she muttered. "It has to be something that gets the Custodian out of the residence, but doesn't bring the Sister in replacement..... Lord Russ's wolves!" She quickly began working on a program that would tunnel through the cyber defenses and cause the door connecting the Imperial Residence with the rest of the Palace to open somewhat randomly. An additional layer would cause the vox chime to sound before the door opened. That would attract the attention of the wolves, and they would go charging out the door to find who had triggered it. After several hours of ensuring the code was perfect, and that the Primarchs would be away for the day, she set it into motion.
**************************
+I don't like having to leave it with them,+ Malcador told Tolax as they left Tolreb's lab.
"Unfortunately it will take time for them to complete their examination," Tolax said evenly. "Besides, I think you make Tolreb very uncomfortable."
+I guess that's fair,+ Malcador said distractedly as he shifted uncomfortably in Tolax's grasp.
"Is something wrong?"
+No,+ Malcador admitted. +I just wish Mortarion had found something less..... flamboyant.+ Mortarion had understandably grabbed the first onesie he found, which just so happened to be in Emperor's Children purple. It turned out that most of the onesies Fulgrim had gotten came in their Legion colors, or secondary colors for those Legions like the White Scars, World Eaters, and Death Guard who were primarily white. No one thought that was a good idea.
"I think it looks good on you," Tolax said, finding it hard not to poke at the Sigillite. Malcador responded with making a noise in his throat. Tolax slowed and carefully checked the area before making the last turn towards the Imperial Residence. There was a chime, the howling of Freki and Geri, and then a brief flash of auburn hair as Cettalinya ran past them.
"That's not good," Tolax said, quickly realizing that Freki and Geri had somehow escaped the residence.
+Leave me in the... playpen,+ Malcador said with a bit of embarassment. +Having me will slow you down.+
"Very well, lord," Tolax said. "I will let Gerryn know and he can come."
**************************
Lygis watched as the Custodian left the impostor baby Malcador in the residence. She waited long enough that the Custodian's footfalls had faded, and she knew that it wouldn't take him and the Sister long to catch the wolves. She surged across the hall, triggering the door and picked up the false Malcador while simultaneously putting a psy-dampening cuff on its arm. She was aware that it had tremendous psychic power, which was probably how it was faking out the Primarchs, Lord Magnus was known to be close with Lord Malcador, and should have caught on. Unless of course he was aware and playing along to get the real Sigillite back.
"You're coming with me," she said, holding the baby close and darting back out the door. Heading in the other direction, they headed back towards Tolreb's lab. Lygis silently celebrating her success. It was rare that anything Clade Vanus did worked so well on the Custodians. The false Malcador struggled against her grasp, and then began to wail loudly.
<Do you hear that?> Cawl canted suddenly, looking towards the door to the lab.
<Yes,> Tolreb said, also looking up from the archaeotech collar. <It sounds like the Lord Malcador.>
<Agreed, but why would they be coming back?>
<Unknown.>
The door to the lab opened, and a somewhat haggard looking Lygis came in, holding Malcador in front of her. He was screaming at the top of his lungs, but stopped abruptly as they crossed the threshold.
"Who are you?" Tolreb asked.
"What have you done with the Sigillite?" Lygis asked.
"You're holding him?" Cawl questioned.
"No, I'm holding some kind of placeholder, false Sigillite," Lygis said, then thrust Malcador out towards Tolreb. "He's captured the real Lord Malcador and is trying to pass this off as some kind of replacement to manipulate the Lord Primarchs."
There was silence in the lab after Lygis finished. Malcador found his concentration flagging between the psy-dampener and Lygis' obsession and righteousness. Tolreb and Cawl both had slightly glazed looks, like their minds were still processing what the deranged looking woman in front of them had said. Cawl got there first and started howling in static laced laughter.
<Don't laugh at me,> Tolreb complained over the noosphere.
"What's so funny?" Lygis snapped.
"You... give him far too much credit," Cawl said around his laughter.
<Hey! I am right here,> Tolreb interjected.
"Where is the Lord Malcador?!" Lygis shouted, shaking Malcador. Cawl froze, realizing that they were dealing with something serious.
"Don't shake the Sigillite!" Tolreb squeaked, speaking audibly to Lygis for the first time. <One of us needs to alert the Custodians.>
<I will,> Cawl said. <We need to keep her here.>
<Agreed,> Tolreb sent, then got an idea. "Alright, you have found me out. Cawl, stop the joking, she's seen through us."
"You will take me to the real Sigillite," Lygis said sharply.
"I will, but first, place the... baby, here," Tolreb said, pointing to the Fountain of Youth (Inverted) with a mechadendrite. "Cawl will watch the baby and I will take you to where we have the Sigillite."
"Why?" Lygis asked.
"You didn't think that we'd be able to convince the Lord Primarchs that a vat-grown infant was the Sigillite do you?" Cawl asked, picking up on Tolreb's plan. They had succeeded in getting one aged test subject into stasis, and they could use that as the "real" Sigillite.
"He's correct," Tolreb said. "I forced a psychic bridge between the Sigillite and the baby. If we get them too close together it will cause a catastrophic feedback loop."
"Ah," Lygis said, placing the false Malcador in the indicated contraption. Tolreb then led her away, shooting a quick glance at Cawl, who nodded.
After Tolreb had taken the woman to the farthest back reaches of the lab. This meant they were out of sight, and earshot. Cawl carefully lifted Malcador, and used one mechadendrite to gently remove the psy-dampener.
"My lord?" Cawl asked quietly as he tossed the psy-dampener away.
+Cawl,+ Malcador sent after a moment. +I didn't intend to be back so soon.+
"Understandable," Cawl said with a bit of a chuckle. "I have already alerted Lord Gerryn, and he is on his way."
+Good,+ Malcador said. +I will need to arrange with the Master of Assassins to discuss this person with the master of Clade Vanus.+
"That does not surprise me," Cawl said. He looked like he was about to go on, but the door opened, and a fully armored and armed Gerryn stepped in. There was a pause as he assessed the situation, then set his guardian spear aside and pulled off his helmet.
"My lord?" Gerryn said, looking to Malcador.
+I am unharmed,+ Malcador said. +What of Cettalinya, Tolax, and the wolves?+
"Tolax and Cettalinya were able to catch them," Gerryn answered. "But they made it pretty far. What happened to your abductor?"
"Tolreb has --" Cawl started.
"I WILL PUT AN END TO YOU AND THIS DECEPTION!" came Lygis' voice from the far back of the lab. This was accompanied by the sound of an autopistol being fired, and a startled cry of pain from Tolreb. Gerryn quickly put his helmet back on, and grabbed his spear. Cawl ran with the Custodian, immediately forgetting Tolreb's line about the feedback loop.
Tolreb had stumbled away from the woman with the autopistol, the tip of one mechadendrite hanging limply at an odd angle. It was leaking oil down onto his face, making it harder for him to see in the normal spectra.
"Identify yourself," Gerryn said, bringing his guardian spear into a ready position. He wanted to take her alive for questioning if possible.
"This is a Clade Vanus concern," Lygis snapped, not looking at who had addressed her.
"No, this matter concerns the lord regent," Gerryn said. "And that makes it a matter for the Custodian Guard."
"I will free the Sigillite!" Lygis shouted, going to the controls for the stasis unit.
"Don't!" Cawl called out, but too late. Lygis hit the release, and the aged test subject almost instantly died.
"What...?" Lygis faltered, then became livid. "What did you do to him?!"
"Cawl, remove Tolreb and the Sigillite immediately," Gerryn said. Cawl nodded, and waved Tolreb ahead of him.
"You're not going anywhere!" Lygis shouted, trying to move around Gerryn. He quickly alerted Kendel to come to the lab, telling her it was urgent. He could see Malcador's eyes losing their keenness, and his face beginning to screw up.
On my way Kendel sent back.
"Cawl, don't just stand there, go," Gerryn growled. "Get the Sigillite to Sister Kendel. We will need her to help contain him."
"No one is going anywhere," Lygis said, pointing her autopistol past Gerryn at Cawl.
"That is a bad idea," Gerryn said. "Unless it's your intention to calm down."
"My intention is to get the Sigillite back," Lygis said, pointing at the dead subject with her free hand. "The damaged one can hold the baby, I want the other one to revive the Sigillite."
Cawl glanced at Gerryn, not sure if he should make a break for it or not. Malcador had begun to whimper, and Cawl wasn't sure what to do. Gerryn considered for a moment, he didn't want to push the woman, who was clearly out of her mind. There was too much risk that a stray shot could injure Malcador, which he was not alright with.
"You don't understand," Cawl said, even as he passed Malcador over to Tolreb. "I can't just bring people back to life."
"There has to be a way!" Lygis snapped. Malcador squirmed in Tolreb's grasp, nearly slipping out. Gerryn was impressed that he wasn't screaming yet, but knew it was coming. Malcador had thankfully not screamed the previous day, but Cavlor had painted a very clear picture of how loud Malcador could scream.
"Even if I could bring someone back from the dead, that's not the Sigillite," Cawl said, trying to reason with the woman. "The baby is the Sigillite."
"No, that's the Sigillite," Lygis said, pointing to the body.
"It's really not," Gerryn muttered. Lygis glared up at the Custodian, her fervor making her brazen.
**************************
Kendel ran down the hallway, projecting her aura forward to get people out of her way. She was worried that she wouldn't be enough on her own, but she was the closest to the lab. It was known that Malcador was powerful enough that it took a large number of Sisters to prevent him from being able to use his powers. From Lynnora's report she would just need to contain him until he could be calmed down, then his natural control would reassert itself.
She was surprised then to hear two more sets of steps joining her. A quick glance revealed Valdor and the Emperor joining her. She raised a questioning eyebrow, but got a shake of the head from Valdor. No one had been expecting the Emperor for another two days. Leading the way, Kendel slid to a stop in front of Tolreb's lab, and just as the last time she had been there, there was a wailing baby. This time the cries were angry, and there was the sound of things flying around.
Who should go first? Kendel signed.
"You first, I'll come in second," the Emperor said. "He's out of control in there, we need you to curb him."
Kendel nodded her agreement, and stepped into the lab. She had to duck right away as something flew towards the door. The Emperor caught the psy-dampener, and tossed it aside. Valdor came in a step behind the Emperor, quickly moving to the side when he could. A moment to confirm where the noise was coming from, and they headed to the back, where they found a very strange sight.
Gerryn was still in place, but only because of a metal plate in the floor that let him mag-lock his boots. Lygis was up against the wall, Cawl had dug in himself, and was holding onto Tolreb, who was getting caught up in the psychic wind. Malcador was hovering above the floor, wreathed in psychic energy. That energy dimmed only slightly as Kendel arrived. The Emperor approached, coming up behind Malcador. Once in position he grabbed the Sigillite, holding him firmly, but carefully.
"Malcador, that is enough," the Emperor said.
"'Evashun?" Malcador asked aloud, clearly very confused. The energy dimmed further, and Cawl took advantage, dragging Tolreb back to the floor. Lygis also took advantage, taking a wild shot with her auto pistol at Malcador. The Emperor whisked him aside, but not quite far enough, Malcador got a scratch as the round went past him. This got Malcador crying in earnest again. Valdor shot forward, pinning Lygis to the wall again with one hand. He forced her to drop the auto pistol which he kicked away, Kendel picked it up.
"Hush, hush, Malcador, you're alright," the Emperor said. "Gerryn, what is going on here? From the beginning."
"Tech-priest Tolreb had a surprise he wanted to present to you, my king," Gerryn said. "But he wanted Lord Malcador's assistance. It seems that the intended surprise was to rejuevenate him in a new device. There were... unintended results."
"I see," the Emperor said. "How long?"
"Four days ago, lord," Gerryn said. "The Lord Primarchs have been most helpful with him. Cavlor, Tolax, and myself have been on a rotation to keep an eye on everyone, and watch Lord Malcador during the day. There was some kind of door malfunction and Lord Russ's wolves escaped the residence. At Lord Malcador's request Tolax left him the residence to assist Sister Cettalinya with retrieving them. I went to the residence, and found Lord Malcador missing, then received word from Cawl that he was here."
"Identify yourself," Valdor said sharply to Lygis.
"Lygis, of Clade Vanus," Lygis said, glaring at Valdor.
"Clade Vanus does not have permission to perform field operations within the Palace grounds," Valdor said. "I will have to speak with the Master of Assassins about this."
"That's what Lord Malcador said earlier," Cawl said.
"Explain," the Emperor said.
"Lord Malcador's mind is usually intact," Gerryn said. "This allowed him to communicate psychically with us. However, there are times that he has regressed, such as he is now."
"Cause?" Valdor asked.
"Unknown," Gerryn reported. "However, Lord Angron apparently thinks it's a reaction to anger around him."
"Interesting," the Emperor said. "How long does it last?"
"We're not sure, my kind," Gerryn said. "It seems that he needs to sleep first."
"Hm, take him back to the residence," the Emperor said. "I assume that is why you requested Sister Kendel?"
"Yes, lord," Gerryn said, holding his free hand out to take Malcador. The Sigillite had calmed down, but didn't seem too happy to be passed off to someone else.
"Evashun!" Malcador called out, reaching out his hands for the Emperor.
"You're alright, Malcador," the Emperor said. "Gerryn and Tolax will take care of you for a bit. I'll be there after I deal with the mean lady."
"Hurt," Malcador whimpered, one hand coming up to his cheek where he'd been scratched.
"It's not bad, barely a scratch," the Emperor said, then motioned Gerryn away. Malcador wailed almost the whole way back to the residence, and only stopped when he passed out.
At least he's quiet now, Gerryn though to himself. And will hopefully be back to himself when he wakes.
"What happened?" Tolax asked as Gerryn entered the residence.
"Clade Vanus has either overstepped themselves, or they have a rogue operative," Gerryn said. "My guess would be rogue operative though, they usually aren't quite that fanatical."
"Is Lord Malcador alright?" Tolax asked.
"He got scratched, but that's it," Gerryn said. "I assume you informed our king where we were?"
"Yes," Tolax said. "It was a little hard to hide the baby gates when we didn't know he was here."
**************************
It happened again, Malcador thought as he woke up in the crib. Why do I always end up here?
"Mal?" Vulkan asked, coming up to crib so Malcador could see him.
+Vulkan,+ Malcador said. +The last thing I remember was being in Tolreb's lab again. Some woman had gotten in and taken me.+ He rolled a bit in the crib, and felt something on his face pull. Putting a hand up to his face, he found a scab. +What happened?+
"You were taken," Vulkan said. "You got scratched by an auto pistol round. Father is home early, and he prevented you from getting hurt worse."
+Where is your father?+
"In Tolreb's lab, helping him and Cawl finish the device to get you back to normal," Vulkan said. "Valdor's here instead of Gerryn."
+That makes sense,+ Malcador said. +What about the Sisters?+
"I don't know," Vulkan said. "You were already asleep by the time we came home. I assume with Father here they aren't needed on stand-by."
+That makes sense. I'm a bit surprised Magnus isn't the one in here.+
"We're not all allowed to be concerned?" Vulkan asked, faking being hurt. "He lost the rock, paper, scissors tournament."
+That must have been one intense tournament,+ Malcador quipped. +Almost sad I missed it.+
"I think Magnus is happy you did," Vulkan said with a chuckle. "He got knocked out by Leman in the first round."
+Nicely done, Leman,+ Malcador said with a giggle. +How late is it?+
"Not too late," Vulkan said, then lowered the rails and pulled Malcador out. "In fact, it'll probably be dinner soon."
"How is he?" Valdor asked as Vulkan carried Malcador in.
+Better,+ Malcador sent. Valdor nodded, seeming relieved. +Any updates from the Emepror?+
"Not really," Valdor said. "He did let me know he may be all night getting everything set."
+Another night in the crib I guess,+ Malcador said. He didn't really like the idea, it was getting old.
"Probably just the one more though," Magnus said.
"And since you're more yourself this evening you can enjoy it," Leman said. "I bet I can get Freki or Geri to let you ride one of them."
"That's not a good idea, Leman," Valdor said right away.
+Valdor's right,+ Malcador said. +Though the idea is kind of amusing.+
**************************
Malcador did his best to make the most of the evening. He walked around the living room again, much to the concern of Valdor. Freki and Geri did try to play with him, the Primarchs had come to the conclusion that they thought Malcador was some kind of large toy.
"Alright Primarchs, it's bedtime," Valdor called. "Um, how do we...?"
"We have my crib set up in Father's room," Omegon said. "I can carry him if you want."
"Thank you, Alpharius," Valdor said, going through ahead. "I suppose he's my problem during the night?"
+I can still hear you,+ Malcador said. +I sleep through the night, even in this body. It'll be fine.+ Valdor chuckled, and ducked his head.
**************************
Morning came, and Malcador woke to find the room's proper occupant watching him. He turned himself around, and worked to pull himself to his feet. The Emperor waited, watching him intently.
"Let me look at your boo-boo," the Emperor said in what he had said was called "baby talk". Malcador reached up one hand to his face, finding just the faintest trace of the scratch.
+I think it'll be fine,+ he sent, enjoying the look of surprise on the Emperor's face.
"Gerryn said your mind may be back," the Emperor said.
+It was back last night,+ Malcador said. +Didn't Valdor tell you?+
"...."
+Wait, you didn't even ask?+
"I... may have had other things on my mind," the Emperor said, embarrassed.
+Please tell me you're close to fixing this situation?+
"Yes," the Emperor said, looking more excited. "It went faster once Tolreb was finally convinced I wasn't going to take him apart."
+Is he back under Cawl's watch?+
"For now," the Emperor said. "I'm working on sending him to Graia. I think he can do good there."
+Ah,+ Malcador said with understanding. +And it keeps him away from us. I thought it was three strikes before someone was out?+
"I don't want to imagine what would happen if he got a third chance," the Emperor said. "The first time he crossed our path all of my sons were in danger, and Rogal was hurt. This time it was you in danger, and you got hurt."
+Grazes both times,+ Malcador said dismissively. +You made sure of that from what I was told last night.+
"True," the Emperor said. "But you were both still hurt."
+You know, neither of them were your fault,+ Malcador said. +Or Tolreb's for that matter. He was the catalyst, sure, but he didn't pull the trigger himself either time. Rogal got hurt because Konrad bent the rules of the safety program. I got hurt because of someone in Clade Vanus who's... What was the phrase? Off their rocker?+
The Emperor huffed a laugh at that. "Yes, that was the saying."
+We're getting a bit off topic,+ Malcador said. +You have a way out of this for me?+
"Yes," the Emperor said. "It's not ready quite yet, but will be soon."
+That's good,+ Malcador said. +I want to be independent again.+
The Emperor pulled him out of the crib, they would need to be leaving shortly. "Anything you need before we leave?"
+Not really,+ Malcador said. +Though breakfast would be nice if that won't mess things up.+
"It shouldn't," the Emperor said. "Though it may have caused issues the first time."
+What happened to my robes? Did Mortarion wash them?+
"Yes," the Emperor said. "They're in the closet, and I almost forgot to grab them."
+Don't want to forget those,+ Malcador said. +Otherwise it will be very awkward.+
The Emperor grabbed the robes, tossing them in the air slightly so he could lay them over his arm. He then headed out to the living room. Roboute greeted him, offering to take Malcador so he could be fed. Having missed it the previous night the Emperor passed Malcador over, and watched his sons take care of the Sigillite for a bit.
"Magnus, will you bring Malcador's staff with us?" the Emperor asked. Understandably, Magnus wanted to be there when Malcador was restored, and nodded his head quickly. Once breakfast was over and the Emperor had confirmed with Cawl that all was ready, they gathered everything, and Malcador, and headed to the lab.
**************************
The Fountain of Youth (Inverted) still reminded Malcador of the photon torpedo casing, but he realized suddenly it was more like The Search for Spock instead of The Wrath of Khan. The Emperor had everyone clear out of the lab as he prepared Malcador, and would run the machine himself this time. He intended to preserve as much of Malcador's dignity as he could. It took a bit of work, the Emperor had to undress Malcador, then arrange his robes so that he could breathe, but they wouldn't ride up weirdly as his body grew to more properly fill them. Then there was the collar, it was too big for Malcador to have it on him to start, but as humans had a cephalopodan growth pattern, it couldn't wait too long before Malcador's head wouldn't be able to go through it. Finally, everything was set.
"Ready?" the Emperor asked, trying to hide his amusement at the sight of Malcador swathed in his own robes.
+As ready as I can be,+ Malcador said. He privately didn't think he would mind if the Emperor stopped a few centuries early, but that was basically back to what he should be, so it wouldn't be too different. The Emperor nodded and closed the lid of the contraption, then set the machine to run. He signalled to Magnus that it was safe to come over.
The Fountain of Youth (Inverted) made a gentle chiming noise to indicate it was done, then powered off and the door popped open slightly, as it had before. There was a long pause where nothing happened. He's being dramatic about this the Emperor mused, making sure to keep it in his own head. Tolreb glanced at the Emperor, and extended one mechadendrite carefully towards the device.
It was then that fingers appeared around the edge of the door. A slight grunt, and the door opened the rest of the way, revealing Malcador, looking exactly as he had before the misadventure with the Fountain had happened. The Sigillite turned to Tolreb, who had quickly backed away.
"Did you have to make that door so heavy?" Malcador asked. Magnus chuckled, then handed Malcador his staff. Tolreb succeeded in looking embarassed, a look that was hard for a tech-priest to present. There was a slightly awkward pause.
"How do you feel, Uncle Malcador?" Magnus asked. Malcador thought about it a long moment. He wasn't quite sure how he felt, and it felt very much like a mixed bag.
"It's... strange," he finally said. "I'm independent again, like I wanted to be, which is a good thing. But, it was kind of nice to experience being in a child's body again. Even a very small child."
"It was really weird," Magnus agreed. "But everything's back to normal, right?" This last was said while twisting back around towards the Emperor.
"Yes, everything's back to normal," the Emperor said.
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