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mwnciboo wrote:But the options they have been given are side with Horus and Kill humanity in a "Humane" way by destroying the race with 3 generations. Or Side with the Emperor defeat Horus and watch the Imperium slowly descend and stagnate before being snuffed out over 10,000 years? They are looking for another way, a third option. They are percieved to have sided with Chaos because they haven't openly declared for the Imperium.

To save the Emperors Ideal, they may have to sacrafice the Imperium, but they will save humanity. Plus it maybe easier for them to achieve their aims outside of the Imperiums Perview. A wonderfully complex and interesting idea, the world is not Black and White so why should 40k be any different.

Exactly. I don't see why people are taking the events in Legion at face value. I keep seeing references to "the reason the Alphas fell". The big question of the book is not the reason they fell, but whether they ever fell at all.

Ok, so some aliens told the Alphas to turn traitor. This would be the end of humanity, but would save all other life in the universe. Seemingly the Alphas go along with their plan. But what are the greatest skills of the Legion? Lying and misinformation. Been a while since I read the book, but I don't think Alpharius ever explicitly states "Yes, we will follow your plan." And even if he did, are you going to believe anything he says? What do the Alphas care about saving the lives of a bunch of aliens, especially if it causes humanity to be wiped out?

Alpharius (and probably every other member of the legion) would have recognized this for what it is: a false dichotomy. The aliens offer only two choices, but if you think about it, there are more options available. The Alphas would almost certainly choose to follow their own path, rather than follow someone else's carefully laid-out plan.

Not to sound like too much of a conspiracy nut, but the appearance of them falling to chaos suggests that they have, in fact, not fallen to chaos. Whichever side they appear to work for is the side where the Alphas are most trusted with sensitive information. Which is where they can do the most damage. If they had actually fallen to chaos, they would appear to remain loyal, to stay close to their true enemies.