People,
This theme of the Emperor dying has been interesting. But there se=
ems to be a fair range of opinions because people are quoting different sou=
rces. Being an old gamer I have most of the old fluff. So thought everyone =
should see what the old fluff is about. So I have sat down and typed upon t=
he section on the emperor from the old Rogue Trader. This should be as it a=
ppears word for word so everyone can maker ytheir mind up. I think this ans=
wers the question of what would happen without the Emperor.
John
HERE IT =
IS ====>
THE EMPEROR
The Emperor of the Imperium, master of manki=
nd, Lord of Humanity and God of the human race, has ruled his vast spacial =
realm for longer than any living man can remember. Countless millennia ago =
he was born to mortal parents, growing into manhood realising the fate awai=
ting him. As a youth he began to manifest strange powers which intensified =
and multiplied as he grew older. Not least amoungst these powers was longev=
ity – a virtual immortality that gave him time to develop his abilities f=
ully. For long ages he lived secretly amoungst mankind, as empires grew and=
fell, and mankind discovered how to control and exploit the earth. As his =
powers evolved he learned of the dangers beyond his own world, of the psych=
ically attuned creatures that roamed the voids in between space, hungering =
and clawing for the life-stuff of living creatures. For countless ages he h=
id within humanity, nurturing his powers and waiting.
At last, over ten =
thousand years ago he began his struggle, for he knew that humanity was on =
the verge of a revolution, a genetic revolution that would create a new psy=
chically aware race, a race of which he was the first and most powerful. Wi=
thout his guidance he realised the emerging race of psychics would fall pre=
y to the dangers he had already faced, the perils of entities that fed upon=
psychic energy, or who used that energy for their own horrific purposes. S=
o, the Emperor emerged from long hiding, creating the Age of the Imperium o=
ver ten millennia ago in a series of wars now remembered by none save their=
victor. His rule has been long and a harsh one, for there is much at stake=
– the life of humanity itself. The strain of his constant vigilance has =
taken a heavy toll upon the man that was once human, for now his body can n=
o longer support life, and his shattered carcass remains intact only becaus=
e it is held by a spirit itself sustained by the strangest of machinery –=
ancient artifacts constructed by the Emperor in an elder age.
It is iron=
ic that this creature, whose will extends to over a million worlds, is now =
unable to leave the life giving machinery of his imperial throne, unable to=
so much as lift a shriveled finger or twitch a shrunken eye. The living ca=
rcass of the Emperor is immobile, held fast within the bio-machine that sus=
tains his sprit. The mass of this machine is contained within the imperial =
palace; room upon room of twisted technology, pulsing with a life and will =
of its own – living, breathing, reproducing and writhing like a giant, mi=
ndless organism. Held within the perversion of science lies the Emperor him=
self, or rather what now remains of his carcass, the seat of his omnipotent=
will.
The Emperor understands the dangers that face his race, and has as=
sumed the role which seems pre-ordained for him, that of its guardian. Perh=
aps he is a freak, or perhaps nature created him as the protector of her me=
tamorphosis. Either way, the emperor is now custodian of his race, and he a=
lone, bears the knowledge of its fate. To this end the emperor maintains st=
rict control over the development of humanity and contributes directly to i=
ts survival by utilising his powers.
He plays a vital role in space trav=
el within the Imperium. In order to steer a craft over great distances, a h=
uman navigator uses a mental homing signal, a sort of psychic beacon to gui=
de him through warp space. To provide a mental signal throughout human cont=
rolled space would not be possible to any ordinary psyker. However the Empe=
ror is no ordinary psyker – his powers go beyond those of mortals. Even s=
o, the strain of transmitting a continuous signal would prove far too stren=
uous, and he merely concentrates his powers on directing a signal created b=
y others. These are the Imperial servants known as the Adeptus Astronomica,=
psykers whose bodies and souls are leeched of energy. This energy is proje=
cted by the mind of the emperor in the form of the psychic beacon known as =
the Astronomican. The sheer quantity of mental energy is vast, and only the=
mind of the Emperor is sufficient to handle so much raw power.
The fate =
of the Adeptus Astronomica is a sad one, for their efforts soon reduce them=
to empty husks of bone and dry flesh. Many die every day. They are not the=
only pyskers who are asked to make the ultimate sacrifice, for the emperor=
cannot eat as men eat, or drink fluids, or breathe air. His life has passe=
d beyond a point where such things can sustain him. For the Emperor the onl=
y viable sustenance is human life-force – soul – and he has a great and=
insatiable appetite. Nor will just any human suffice for this purpose, for=
the soul-donor must be a very special person in their own right, someone w=
ith psychic powers. The Inquisition scours the Imperium in a tireless searc=
h for emergent psykers, individuals too vulnerable to be left alone. Some o=
f these men and women will be recruited into the Adeptus Terra (especially =
the Adeptus Astronomica and Adeptus Astra Telepathica) but many more will s=
erve the emperor in a more gruesome way. Given up to the weird machinery th=
at surrounds the master of mankind, their souls will be gradually leeched f=
rom their bodies to feed the Emperors spirit. Hundreds must die in this way=
every day if the Emperor, the Imperium, and humanity are to survive.
It =
would be simple to think of the emperor as an evil corruption of nature. Ye=
t, as the Adeptus Terra teach, the sorrow and slaughter that feeds his divi=
ne corpse is a trifling price to pay for the survival of the race. Without =
the Emperor there would be little space travel and no protection in a hosti=
le universe. Left uncontrolled, the emerging race of psychic humans would b=
ecome the unwitting vehicle of humanities destruction. For there are many f=
oul aliens which not only feed upon the life-force of other races, but whic=
h use that life-force as a means of opening portals in warp space, infiltra=
ting populated planets via the poorly protected minds of inexperienced psyk=
ers. The Master of Mankind knows that to protect his race he must survive, =
must live forever if necessary, or until such time as psychic humans have e=
volved sufficient strength to withstand the dangers they face. If thousands=
must endure pain and death for his sake, how considerable must be the agon=
y of a creature whose body is all but destroyed, whose mind is incased insi=
de a rotting shell and whose every thought is enslaved to the task of servi=
ng his race.
------------------------
Received on Fri Jul 03 1998 - 11:01:41 UTC
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