Simply training and teaching officers is boring.

I need to work on more STC designs, and Gyron isn't very inventive. Good head for math and science, of course. But the Mechanicus have stagnated for a reason.

When they invent new things, they tend to overcomplicate and go for broke, usually with disastrous results. Many Forge worlds have been lost to genius scientists that open the jar and peek inside nasty things.

What I do is rather the opposite, most of the time. Simplify the machine and make it easier to construct, repair and maintain.

And so far, this has worked great, with improved results going from a few percents to 300 percent in a few cases.

"What are you doing?" the big Astartes asks as I sit at my cogitator and play with a couple Hydra and Manticore STC templates.

"Trying to save the universe. Imagine this, my friend. There are about 5 billion armored vehicles in the Imperium. Half of them are based on the Chimera template, This ugly thing here." I begin my explanation, going from the far to the close.

"So it is. We have techmarines in our chapter." the veteran Astartes confirms amused.

"Of those Chimera variants, 1 billion sit unused in various Munitorum depots, for various reasons like strategic reserve or replacements in case of invasion. But about 10 percent are simply broken. For example, the tracks wear out and nobody can repair 100 million tanks, because only tech-priests know how." I explain further, and zoom in on the tracks.

"I know, Lord Pef. Knowledge is dangerous and all that. I hear the same from our tech-marines, very often." Lord Ludvaius says softly.

"But now imagine these tracks were more resilient and very simple to repair. Just the tracks. Broken machines in the field would be fewer. The Munitorum could repair and release the damaged tanks back to their regiments. The Imperium would gain 100 million tanks right now, and would lose millions less every year. The Forge Worlds could produce them faster and free a few forges to craft more fighters or gunships." I announce proudly, and produce the simpler track design.

Astartes are very smart. Lord Ludvaius immediately notes the simpler design, that even himself can understand now.

"Is this for real? I saw you gave Metalica a lot of advanced designs with fancy names. Nothing this simple." he wonders out loud.

"Yes. It is a real design. My best invention so far. Taking a complicated machine and making it simpler." I say in a meek voice.

If there's a bolter round coming...

To my surprise, the Astartes chuckles and pats my head. "So this is your big secret, huh? Making crazy complicated machines into easy ones. More durable too, I assume?"

I sigh in relief. "Well...only by 10 percent. The ancients were very smart and didn't make huge mistakes in picking the right materials or such. They just had better forges and technology, so complicated mechanisms were easier to do. But now, they are relics and can't be made anymore. Only if they were simplified."

"I understand. If your tracks are 10 percent more durable, humanity will lose 10 percent fewer tanks during maneuvers, perhaps even during combat." Lord Ludvaius comments in a friendly tone.

I close the schematic and open the Atomantic reactor. "This is a Forge Tigrus made tank reactor. They install them in Fellblades. Very small and expensive to make. Enormous energy output though. Enough to support shields, in fact beside energy weapons."

"Cogheads are smart, everyone knows that. They make wondrous artifacts. Just like the armor I wear. Weapons too."

I hold my hands up. "Not the point. It's complicated, expensive and very hard to produce. A whole planet makes one such reactor per year. Now look at this. My own variant."

The holoscreen splits up, to produce the larger but cheaper Retribution pattern reactor.

"It's bigger and uglier." the marine says dismissively.

"But a Forge world can make 100 of them per year. And they are cheaper and easier to repair. This other variant is even bigger, but can be installed on space fighters and bombers. Maybe even water based navy, like submarines." I reply turning to observe his reaction.

He understands, I realize in surprise. Eyes wide and thinking deeply.

"And they are cheaper too?" he asks to make sure.

"At least 10 times. No need for adamantium binders. Osmium plated with gold on the outside." Gyron speaks for the first time.

Osmium can be mined from asteroids. It's difficult...but incomparably easier than forging adamantium. Especially if you want delicate stuff, not big beams of metal.

"In a decade, you could produce a thousand heavy tanks...enough to push back a Chaos invasion." Lord Ludvaius mutters to himself.

I decide to ignore his ramblings and start working. If he didn't blow up my brains by now, he won't do it.

Gyron opens up the krak missile STC and starts taking apart every component, while I measure them for reliability and damage range.

We mark two parts as improvable, one a tiny silver pin that is prone to rupture or melting prematurely. We replace that with gold-plated steel.

The other is the proximity sensor, which was simply awful. This will take more work, but I have experience with other auspex sensors. Late in the morning, we finish upgrading the sensor to the Retribution standard.

Now we have to build a hundred such new missiles and test them.

"Going to bed..." I mutter and fall asleep.

Luckily nobody makes fun of me now. I am only human, and these two are not.

The trip to Anvilus continues in much the same pattern, but my concubines end up pregnant and Decima gives birth to another Blank, this time a girl.

Well...she can become an officer without problem. Even a Captain.

The Empire doesn't discriminate on sex, not much. There are jobs reserved for a certain sex, like Astartes or Battle Sisters.

They discriminate on everything else though. The Mutant, the Heretic and the Xeno. Flesh, belief and race make up like 99 percent of the actual discrimination.

Blanks and psykers are also considered mutants, which is a good reason to spend time away from the Empire.

Now, there are some things out there which does make sense to discriminate against, with any and every level of firepower available.

Demons, Tyranids, Dark Eldar...and many others.

As it happens they would gladly kill mutants, heretics and xeno without prejudice. For biomass, for souls or for pain. They all just want to consume your essence.

And the best defense against such predators? The Blank gene!

Offense as well, for those with dominant Pariah genes, whose mere presence can banish demons or chase away Tyranid Bio-titans.

Pariahs would make a great weapon against these enemies, and some groups out there already use them for this purpose. The Culexus assassin clade, the Sisters of Silence, even the Necrons or the Harlequins.

Rogue Psykers or Traitor Librarians can simply be shut off by sending a Pariah in their vicinity. And without their powers...they can be killed with normal weapons.

It is my hope some of my descendants will gain this dominant gene, and be able to fight back effectively.

Tanks are useless against a Greater Demon or a Hive Queen. Not to mention the Traitor Primarchs or corrupted Farseers and Saints which can tear apart planets with their minds.

Finally, by the time we arrive at Anvilus Nine, the new krak missile is ready, in three different patterns.

One is a small shoulder-launched weapon, useful versus power armor or light tanks. The classic version, mounted on vehicles, will damage nearly any tank, as well as gunships and fighters.

The heavy missile can damage heavy tanks, bombers and small Titans. It is also very expensive and slow to make, but not as hard as a Titan would be.

It also needs a dedicated carrier, like the Manticore tank, a missile gunship or a Space fighter.

As we arrive at Anvilus, we immediately discover signs of heavy fighting, damaged ship hulls and drifting hulks.

All are of Mechanicus origin, which doesn't bode well. "Every auspex station, sever links and go autistic." I demand in a few seconds.

If there's Scrap Code flying around...things might get ugly.

I send out a dozen Mechanicus servitor pilots in their fighters, to collect scans and observe the Forge world with a close flyby.

Meanwhile, I turn my squadron around and prepare for emergency Warp to the nearest star.

If there is a Dark Mechanicus planet here...I don't know of anything I could do.

And then we wait, tensely for more data to be collected and analyzed by the sensors and then filtered by tech-priests.

Even looking directly at an auspex sensor could infect your eyes with Ruin Code.

The stuff is evil, working on memetic principles instead of machine logic.

Imagine a viral video, that you can't ever forget. Slowly drilling into your mind until you go insane. And then you eat your fingers, or the nearby person.

Damn 40k universe.

My Astartes guard pats my shoulder. "The Emperor protects." he advises me in a calm voice.

I sigh inward. I wanted to protect him!