"You know about my super-beast modification tech, right?" Rhodes asked.
"You mean the surgery you did on my Dreadnought veterans?" Guilliman asked.
"Exactly! And on the way to Baal, I modified an Emperor's Custodian too—he can now enlarge himself, with combat power multiplied and no side effects, since I fused him with flesh from an Emperor-Avatar."
Rhodes then explained the super-beast Custodian Ultraman to Guilliman in detail.
"Incredible! You want to use Sanguinius's body and Emperor Avatar's flesh to create a vessel, right?"
Guilliman immediately guessed Rhodes' plan.
"Yes, but that's just one method. I have another: soon, I'll fully merge with a cosmic beast, elevating my life level. Sanguinius could then be reborn as my son—what do you think?"
"No! Absolutely not, just use the super-beast plan. Sanguinius would never agree to be someone else's son—he'd rather not be resurrected at all.
And this would make the generational relations too convoluted.
Theoretically, we're brothers now—Sister Elena would be Sanguinius's little sister, not mother.
Besides, newborns have their souls—would you sacrifice your child's soul?
When the Emperor raised us, he didn't use clone tanks—he found suitable mothers."
Guilliman was adamant.
Much of this was because no mother could bear a Primarch's power, but the Emperor also didn't want the Primarchs to have a biological mother.
Rhodes hadn't expected Guilliman to refuse so quickly.
"Rhodes! Sanguinius's soul is not what you imagine. He is indeed a noble angel, but you'll know when you see him—you'll never want him as your son, trust me," Guilliman said, meaningfully.
Rhodes was very curious. What did Guilliman mean?
"All right, I've connected to Sanguinius. I'll use my psychic power to pull us into a shared space. Don't resist," Guilliman said.
Rhodes nodded, relaxed his mind, and let Guilliman's power guide him into a mysterious realm.
First, he saw Guilliman's soul.
From this angle, Guilliman looked divine, radiating golden light, wearing Roman garb and a laurel crown. Although his face was the same, he seemed even more radiant.
If Rhodes hadn't merged with a cosmic beast and become a super life-form, he wouldn't even be able to look at these minor gods' souls. In terms of soul, he still lagged behind the Primarchs.
Guilliman looked at Rhodes, and nodded in satisfaction—his soul was finally strong enough to speak with them.
Rhodes looked at the other figure—the legendary archangel Sanguinius—and was shocked.
This was Sanguinius!
Come on! If you hadn't told me, I'd have thought he was Count Dracula!
Before him stood a blood-red figure with huge crimson wings, an eerily handsome face, pale skin, blood-red eyes and hair, and giant fangs.
Utterly strange. Being stared at by those crimson eyes, Rhodes' soul trembled—a feeling of being stalked by a savage predator.
Was this what an archangel looked like? Rhodes thought he looked more like a vampire!
The first sight of Sanguinius left Rhodes deeply shaken.
It was nothing like the halo-crowned, golden-winged, holy archangel he'd imagined.
"Sorry, my new brother, did I frighten you? But this is my true form.
When I first saw myself in the Warp, I was shocked too, and couldn't accept it for a long time, said the crimson-haired man, sighing.
He expected Rhodes' reaction.
"All right, Rhodes, don't act so shocked. I told you to be ready—this is the real Sanguinius, the Blood Angel," Guilliman said.
"Ahem, sorry, Sanguinius, you just surprised me," Rhodes said, a bit awkward.
"It's all right, I understand. If Guilliman hadn't awakened his god-soul, I wouldn't have appeared before him either.
I don't even want my gene-descendants to see me like this, so I always appear to them as a blurred image.
But to you, my brother, I want to show my true self," Sanguinius said.
"What exactly is your god-soul made of? There's some angel in there, sure, but is there something else?" Rhodes asked.
"Part angel, but also born from humanity's worship of vampires—a blood god," Sanguinius answered.
After ten thousand years in the Warp, the worship of Baal's people gradually made him a true minor god.
He understood what had happened to him.
He had some angelic parts, but also some blood-god parts.
When creating him, the Emperor had hoped the archangel's power could purify the blood-god's power, but the two merged unexpectedly.
His appearance was holy, but his essence was a vampire—the progenitor, the god of vampires!
No wonder Guilliman said Rhodes wouldn't want Sanguinius as a son—giving birth to a vampire would be terrifying.
Not good for the mother, or Rhodes. Better stick to the super-beast plan!
"Thank you, my brother, for all you've done. I can sense that my gene-sons are safe, my home is safe—I sincerely thank you."
The crimson-winged Sanguinius bowed to Rhodes.
Through the Warp, he had confirmed his gene-sons were safe. Rhodes and Guilliman had fulfilled their promise and saved Baal.
"Sanguinius, Rhodes asked me to set up this communication to get your opinion on the Red Thirst and Black Rage. My advice is to refuse. What do you say?"
Guilliman recounted Rhodes' meeting with Dante and the others.
"Sorry, Guilliman, but I disagree.
Brother Rhodes, if you can, I sincerely hope you'll save my sons.
The Red Thirst will devour them no matter what—that's my curse.
Give them a stabilizer! Your transformation control at least lets them better control this state," said Sanguinius.
Unless his gene-seed was abandoned entirely, the Red Thirst was inevitable.
So adding a safeguard was a good choice.
As for Rhodes and Guilliman's worries, Sanguinius thought they were irrelevant—his sons would become vampires anyway, no matter what.
Sanguinius believed his sons could restrain themselves and not become vampires.
"Understood! I'll have my scientists make improvements to help your gene-sons control the blood transformation," Rhodes nodded.
"So what else brings you here?" Sanguinius asked, seeing through their intentions.
"Sanguinius, Rhodes has a way to make a body for your soul—return to the Imperium! We need your help, the Emperor needs your help,"
Guilliman said.
"My brothers, you're not joking? Do you have a suitable body?
If I'm resurrected, will I look like this? If so, I'd rather not be resurrected."
Sanguinius asked several questions in a row.
He knew his brothers had many miracles—Emperor-Avatars, Giant Custodians, even Guilliman had a True Primarch body now.
Preparing a body for him wouldn't be hard, but his soul was already fully awakened.
Once he possessed the vessel, he'd transform into his blood angel form—something he couldn't accept.
He would only return as an archangel, not a vampire-god.
"I'll use your remaining archangel body and Emperor-Avatar flesh to make your vessel," Rhodes said.