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ADEPTUS CUSTODES[/B}. The Emperor's Guard or Custodians are the palace guards of the Emperor, and their duty is to protect the Imperial Palace. As the Imperial Palace covers such a large area of the planet the Custodians act as a defensive army. Only a select inner corps of three hundred, called the Companions, actually serve the Emperor as personal bodyguards.
[B]The High Lord Falls [NB: From the tale of Vandire]
Since the Reign of Blood started, another organisation had remained apart from the bloodshed and devastation. Within the secure walls of the Imperial palace, the Adeptus Custodes continued their eternal vigil over the Golden Throne. To escape the anarchy that prevailed, and to ensure the protection of the Emperor himself, the Custodians had cut themselves off from the outside completely. Only scraps of information passed through the sealed walls of the most holy of places, and it was only when the Space Marines and Adeptus Mechanicus moved against Vandire that the true extent of the treachery perpetrated by the High Lord became known to them. In secret meetings with the commanders of the Space Marines, the Adeptus Custodes learnt of the Reign of Blood and the Brides of the Emperor defending the traitor High Lord. The mysterious order advised the Space Marines to continue their attack while they would do what they could.
The defences of the Ecclesiarchal palace were no obstacle to the Adeptus Custodes, with their lifelong knowledge of the Imperial palace and its thousands of miles of hidden conduits and secret corridors. A small contingent of Custodians, led by a Centurion of the Companions, made its way into the very heart of Vandire's domain. Surfacing not far from Vandire's audience chamber, they were confronted by the Brides of the Emperor. Calling for a truce and a parley, the Centurion laid down his weapons and walked unarmed to meet the guardians of Vandire. For an hour he made an impassioned plea for the Brides to revoke their oaths, striving to convince them that they were fighting for evil, not the Emperor. However, they were not to be swayed by his arguments, and the nameless Centurion had only one option left. Leaving his men as hostages, the Centurion guided their leader and a bodyguard of five female warriors back into the tunnels. [NB: For an audience with the Emperor]
[Unknown source, 40k Fluff Bible]
"Nothing is known of the fate of Rogal Dorn, Primarch of the Imperial Fists. Some myths claim that he yet lives, secretly commanding the Companions of the Adeptus Custodes - the exceptionally deadly warriors who guard the Golden Throne itself."
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