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From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
→The Great Crusade
In his spartan quarters, Fulgrim was faced by armoured warriors from the stars. Their faces bore the scars of many battles, and from their shoulders hung scrolls listing their achievements. Their armour and weapons were finely-worked, and their banners and pennants were works of art. Fulgrim recognised that these men were not merely advanced, but civilised — his lost brothers from the stars had preserved the arts he had longed to return to Chemos. From the midst of these warriors stepped their leader, the Emperor of Humanity. Fulgrim surveyed him and, without a word, knelt and offered his sword. On that day Fulgrim swore to serve the Imperium with all his heart. From the Emperor, Fulgrim learned of the distant world of [[Terra]], of the [[Great Crusade]] to reclaim the sundered galaxy, and of his own origins. It is unknown when exactly this event occurred; however, it is recorded that the construction of a starship for the Primarch of the III Legion was completed around 160 years before the beginning of the [[Horus Heresy]].{{Fn|2b}}
Traveling to Terra to meet his new genetic Legion, Fulgrim learned that an accident had destroyed the majority of the [[gene-seed ]] designated for his legion, and without their Primarch, replacing it was a slow and laborious process. Fulgrim came to address the two hundred [[Space Marines]] of his legion, and the words he spoke were said to inspire the Emperor so much that he named the legion the [[Emperor's Children]], and allowed them to bear the sign of the [[Aquila]], the double-headed eagle that was the Emperor's personal symbol, on their [[Power Armour]].{{Fn|1}}
Fulgrim became driven by the notion that his genetic descendants sons should strive to live up to this honour and the perfection of the Emperor and his vision of Imperial culture. This drive to achieve perfection soon applied to all things the Primarch and his sons became concerned with, from military tactics to the embrace of artistic culture that didn't exist on Chemos to their very appearances. Fulgrim was a particularly imposing sight, with shimmering white shoulder-length hair, large, friendly-seeming eyes and a mouth that was never far from a smile. His armour was of the finest quality, and intricately decorated. Over it he often wore one of a variety of high-collared cloaks.{{Fn|2a}}
Fulgrim was anxious to make his contribution to the Great Crusade, but the comparatively small size of his Legion meant that the Emperor's Children were placed under the command of [[Horus]] and his [[Luna Wolves]]. Horus and Fulgrim grew close to one another while pacifying the [[Eastern Fringe]]. Eventually, swelled by recruits from both Chemos and Terra, Fulgrim was soon able to lead a crusade of his own, bringing countless worlds into the light of the Imperium.{{Fn|1}} Fulgrim sought perfection and spectacle in these campaigns, as demonstrated when he took the world of [[Byzas]] with only seven men, despite nearly dying in the process.{{Fn|12}} Fulgrim also established a close friendship with his brother [[Ferrus Manus]], who also attempted to purge imperfection from himself. Ferrus and Fulgrim eventually came to each try to build the perfect weapon, resulting in Fulgrim crafting [[Forgebreaker]] and Ferrus [[Fireblade (Weapon)|Fireblade]]. The two exchanged weapons and they became synonymous with their respective Primarchs thereafter.{{Fn|2D}} In the later stages of the Crusade the Emperor's Children soon made a name for themselves during the Crusade, battling fearsome enemies such as the [[Megarachnids]]{{Cite this}} and [[Diasporex]]{{fn|2e}}.
