23
" They shall never have it. They may take all other worlds, they may master the warp, they may despoil the very arch of heaven, but they shall never have this place. It has our mark upon it. It is sacred."
One by one, the khans were doing as Shiban did - planting their feet squarely, mastering their hate, returning to their right mind, restoring equilibrium.
"When we fight again, it will not be for conquest, nor for vengeance, but to preserve this. "
― , Warhawk (The Siege of Terra #6)
26
" Perhaps I was fated to make the choice I did. I dislike the idea of fate, though. I dislike the idea that the things we do are ordained for us by higher powers; that our actions are like shadow-plays performed for their amusement. Most of all, I dislike the idea that the future is set, running away from us in clear lines that we are compelled to follow, with only the illusion of a sovereign will to comfort us on the journey. Nothing I have learned since my ascension has convinced me that I am wrong to think those things. I have learned of the deep metaphysics of the universe, and the long, tired games of the immortals, but I retain faith in our ability to choose. We are the authors of our actions. When the test comes, we can go in either direction: we can triumph, or we can fail, and the universe cares not which. "
― , Brotherhood of the Storm (The Horus Heresy Novella)