+++The Star Child+++

As the spirit of the Emperor drifted through the warp it gradually dissolved into the flow of energy, returning to the cosmic of the nature of the warp in its uncorrupted form. Only a tiny core of the Emperor's humanity remained whole, like a small child bobbing upon the tide of a colossal storm in a tiny reed boat.

Thus the soul of the Emperor was cast adrift into the warp. While the Emperor's soul survived there was still hope for mankind. For just as the New Man had been born from the collective souls of the shamans of old, so the Emperor's soul might be reborn one day. But the day would lie far in the future, when the cries for a new saviour would strengthen the core of the Emperor's soul and rekindle it into new life.

Meanwhile the soul of the Emperor was merely a potential, a child awaiting birth, the Star Child.

The humans that were left in charge of the Imperium had no real understanding of what had ahppened to the Emperor. The concept that he could be born again never occurred to them. To the rulers of the Imperium, the Emperor continues to live, though his body was broken, by means of his indisputable powers.

Only a few select individuals learned the secret over the following millennia, and they became the highly secret brotherhood known as the Illuminati. The Illuminati await the birth of the Star Child and the second coming of the New Man. They know that their knowledge makes them dangerous heretics in the eyes of the Imperium, and consequently maintain a strict secrecy over their activities.

Meanwhile the Illuminati remains a secret force in human space, working away behind the machinery of government, preparing the way for the rebirth of the New Man.

The Sensei

When a Champion of Khorne, Nurgle or any other Chaos Power pledges himself to the service of his Patron Power, his very soul becomes part of the Power's energies. The Star Child also has his Champions, known as the Sensei. Although they do not necessarily know their true identity, these people are actually descended from the Emperor's own descendants, and their genetic structure is similar to his. Not all the Emperor's descendants are Sensei, and almost none of them realise that they carry genes from the Emperor or that it is this which gives them their powers.

The fortuitous combination of genes the Sensei have inherited from the Emperor makes them very special. Their most important trait is their immortality. Although they can be killed they do not age, and possess amazing powers of recovery. They are also protected from the Chaos Powers, and the untainted flow of the warp can move through them unimpeded. A Sensei cannot experience hate, bitterness, or irrational anger, because these things are part of the disharmony of the Chaos Powers. They radiate natural confidence and harmony, and can even draw upon the energies of the warp to use their psychic powers. Sensei do not risk attracting daemons or other malicious psychic forces by using their powers. Being untainted by Chaos Powers they are utterly invulnerable to the predations of the Chaos Powers. In fact because they harbour no trace trace of the emotions and concepts embodied by the Chaos powers they are largely invisible to them.

Sensei are heroes who wander throughout the galaxy, sometimes in the company of a select band of other powerful heroes. The psychic powers of a Sensei make him dangerous heretic in the eyes of the Imperium, so that he and his followers risk capture and death at the hands of the Inquisition or other Imperial forces. They are not so much the enemies of the Imperium as of Repression and injustice in all their guises. Repression exists throughout the Imperium, much of which is justified, but not all by any means. Wherever a Sensei appears he can be sure of huge popular support, while the forces of oppressive goverment recognise him as an implacable foe.

The Sensei Adventurer Bands

The Imperium regards the Sensei and their followers as dangerous bandits, nihilists and psyker who, if not actually in league with Chaos, are weakening the bulwark which the Imperium has set against its threat.

All over the Imperium, forces are deployed to chase groups of Sensei, and in their turn the Sensei are forced to operate as outlaws. However the conflict does not weaken the resolve of either side. The Imperium is strengthened by the resolve of the Imperial forces, while the Sensei are spurred by their battle against cruelty and oppression.

Sensei outlaw bands are known as Adventurer Bands. They occur all over the Imperium as the champions of underdogs and scourge of authority. They hide in underground caverns, or deep inside cities, or lead freedom fighters from the forest and mountains. Some sail the seas as pirates and operate from secret islands and coves. Others sail space itself as pirates of a different kind, boarding and robbing Imperial cargo vessels as they move ponderously between planets. Everywhere they champion the poor against the rich, the oppressed against the oppressors. They are brave, they are popular, and they see themselves as the enemies of both Chaos and oppression.