The forces I had brought with me were seemingly small, if you consider classic organization in the Imperium.

Merely 5 Auxilia regiments, only one of them armored, plus 4 Astartes Companies and our pilot techmarines.

But when the drop-pods began falling in the defense of my Salamanders Brothers, then kept coming and coming, and then still kept coming.

I had 20 Drop-cruisers now, each able to launch 80 thousand small drop-pods containing mostly Tarantula turrets, but also light vehicles like Armed Sentinels and Guardian walkers.

They also carried attack drones, fighter squadrons, and a bomber squadron, plus the normal capital ships weapons, mostly lance and plasma batteries.

The Heavy Cruisers and the Battlecruisers provided the main long range fire, with both torpedoes and lances, while the Battle barges brought the slow rear with ground invasion forces, plus thousands of techpriests and millions of servitors for battlefield repairs or rapid conscription.

Gone were the days when my ships' lower decks were filled with malnourished indentured serfs, prone to revolts and chaos infiltration. Servitors could do the same jobs without complaints, and were very unlikely to revolt.

In an anvil and hammer tactic, our faster cruisers struck from the flank while the battle barges took the brunt of the invasion fleet head on, while fighters and bombers struck at the more vulnerable escorts with missiles and bombs.

It seemed these Chaos traitors lacked numbers and filled their ranks with xenos, mostly corrupted Kharateg hunter-packs from the Maelstrom zone.

Well then, ugly bastards, you made my shit list now and your small stellar kingdom will soon suffer nine deep-strike with nicely inscribed torpedoes in High Gothic.

Yes, I admit I cheated a little at the end, when the last 5 ships of the traitors were about to escape in the Warp. Couldn't chase after them, especially with warpless engines, could I?

So, those ships didn't enter Warp, but instead vanished into system's sun, fueling the star with more atoms.

Chapter Master Tu'Shan welcomed me with some suspicion, despite an Ordo Hereticus Inquisitor at my right side, a giant space wolf to my left, and a bodyguard of Blood Angels, Silent Sisters and even a lone White Scar Captain named Khan.

"Hello Brother. You seem displeased at our timely rescue?" I asked in a teasing voice.

"...There are a million drop-pods on my world, Master Lancefire, plus Knights and tanks and a legion of combat walkers. Makes me feel a bit anxious." the black-skinned man muttered while his red eyes measured Canis with some surprise.

I shrugged and didn't comment on that. It was true. "We're inducting only Blanks now, so we have to compensate for low numbers of Battle Brothers with other types of troops. You have to admit the turrets are effective, right?"

"...Only Blanks? And those Silent Sisters provide fresh recruits, I suspect?" the Master of the Salamanders wondered with a curious glance towards the Pariah women.

I avoided the delicate subject, at least for now.

"It is an effective solution for the constant traitor problem that plagues all Astartes Chapters. I'm also providing some Blank recruits to the Blood Angels and the Blood Ravens, as Blanks are immune to certain mutations." I explained patiently as I examined the big holomap of the star system.

It seemed the Salamanders were constructing a warpless transceiver relay, as well as outfitting a battlebarge with warpless engines. I didn't ask where they got the STC templates from, but Forge Angstrom was quite close as was Accatran.

The man nodded slowly and gestured for another Space Marine to come closer. "This is Captain Jorn_Tanna, from the Black Dragons." he introduced his ally.

"Captain Tanna. I sense you have a problem?" I asked in a soft tone.

The black-skinned man nodded politely and shook my hand, then and pointed at a side door. "If you have some spare time, Master Lancefire?"

Sure enough, the Black Dragons had a small mutation problem and were willing to test a Company of Blank Dragons.

"Helping your parent Chapter here, Captain?" I asked instead.

"...my ships were in this area, and we simply did our duty, Lord Lancefire." he answered in a gruff tone. Fine, don't admit it then.

"Yours is a fleet based Chapter, correct?" I asked to make sure.

"Just as your Lamenters." Captain Tanna answered curtly.

"What I propose is this, Captain. Meet your boss, and have your Chapter travel to Machine Forge in the Fringe. Try to bring something to trade, derelict cruisers or large hulls that can hold warpless engines. We'll outfit your ships with the best technology of the Mechanicus, including blackstone armor. Then, we'll conduct a series of tests to find a suitable bloodline that accepts your gene-seed." I offered with a large smile.

"So it's a compatibility problem. Bloodlines?" the Black Dragon mused in deep thought.

"Yes, not every Blank is an accepted recruit. Some get poisoned during implantation. Mostly wild Blanks, dragged from slums and lower decks. My own children are much more resilient, but there's a hard limit of how many kids a Blank can have. Also, I do have a hundred Blank daughters training to become ship Captains. In time, they will also give birth to more Blanks." I said with a thin smile.

"I see. That's why you remain a Neophyte, to produce more recruits. Makes your weaker personally, but straightens your Chapter over time. A harsh sacrifice to make." the Captain said in a pitiful tone.

I think he misunderstood the situation, but sure. Call me a saint for my sacrifice if it helps.

"I prefer to fight with my mind. I got Lorgar and Abaddon after all, plus I burned down Commorragh. Ah, let me introduce you to my new companion!" I announced in a cheerful voice, and moved Custodian Ossian next to me.

"... Stop doing that, Lord Lancefire! I get dizzy!" the morose Adeptus Custodes protested in my mind and punched my shoulder, hard enough I felt it through my artificer power armor.

"An Adeptus Custodes? And a Warden at that." the Captain observed in surprise and saluted his superior in golden power armor.

"None of that, Brother. Inquisitor Greyfax and me will need to travel a bit, so we'll borrow your Strike Cruiser til we reach Forge Ryza. If you agree, of course." the Custodian asked politely, but it was an order anyway.

"It will be my honour, Warden. Travelling to Ryza is acceptable, as long as you keep the Lady Inquisitor off my back." The Captain muttered not too pleased.

Introduction made, I moved the Custodian again, letting the Black Dragon think the Custodian had magic powers or something.

"I can walk just fine!" Ossian shouted in my mind.

"Yes, but it is more fun this way, golden Brother. Plus it enhances your stature to move anywhere at will." I explained patiently.

"One day I will punch that angelic face of yours!" he promised in retribution.

Again with punching my face. Nobody knew to have fun in this damned horror galaxy!

"I can see you'll be glad to escape from the Inquisitor and Custodian. He even left a dent on your pauldron." Captain Tanna pointed out with a wry voice.

"He is a good guy, but eats too much. Luckily, I have a space wolf and the meat pellets were enough to feed them both." I answered with shrug.

Ossian did eat the pellets too, damn his over-energetic stomach. At least he didn't eat them from the same bowl.

"Perhaps it is he who is glad to leave your company. Anyway, that Steel Rain strategy of yours...perhaps other Chapters can try it, once they have Drop-cruisers." he proposed in a curious tone.

"I would prefer my children drop among a million of friendly turrets, especially amidst an Ork Waagh or some Tyranid swarm. Swords and pistols are rather feeble force multipliers. So if you want Blank Astartes of my bloodline, you will not spend them like bolter rounds." I retorted in a colder voice.

Then I turned and left, leaving the Captain to sort things out in his mind.

Soon after, I sat down with Master Tu'Shan to negotiate some technology and machinery transfer.

"This dataslate...no wonder your Chapter has so many tanks and turrets. You make them yourselves?" the man asked curious.

"Why would I do that? I have two Forge Worlds in the Eastern Fringe, producing armor and vehicles for my Chapter, my Auxilia regiments and my Trader Dynasty. Plus, I trade with thirty Forge Worlds for more regiments and ships. Burn a Necron World, locate blackstone deposits, trade it to a Forge. Chase after pirates, board their ships and return them to service after upgrades. I even found a Glorianna Battleship left derelict somewhere." I explained with a smug tone.

"A Glorianna? What name?" he asked a bit wary.

"It was called Light of Terra, a dozen millennia ago. Needs a new name, maybe Singularity. Yeah, it isn't like anybody makes them anymore." I mused in a thoughtful voice.

"You do have too much luck, Lord Lancefire! Our own Glorianna, the Flamewrought has disappeared somewhere." The Salamanders' Master muttered in dismay.

"Well, I can offer you 10 Los Angeles destroyers and 40 Retribution-pattern Land Raiders, plus 3 Blank Captains for your battle barges. But in exchange, I want you to offer protection to several Hive Worlds nearby. Set up orbitals forts, clean the underhives of gangs and genstealers, and recruit a hundred Auxilia regiments. When the Tyranids arrive, a thousand Astartes will not be nearly enough. We'll need trillions of soldiers, and millions of warships. We are the defenders of humanity, not of magma worlds." I demanded in a stern voice.

"So that's your big plan? Throw untrained guardsmen at space bugs until they drown in blood?" Tu'Shan exclaimed in outrage.

"Guardsmen, PDF, turrets and Sentinels and every weapon we have. Or everyone will die, Master Tu'Shan. I do have plenty of destroyers now, and I'll start spreading them to frontier Chapters as soon as they get modified to the stronger patterns. But they are only useful for defense. To attack, we need cruisers with Nova Cannons, and warpless engines. Carriers too, if you can capture say Ork Kroozers or Terror Ships and have them refitted to carry corvettes and starfighters." I concluded and sat up from the plastel dais.

"...Looting the Orks. Where has the Imperium fell?" he grumbled in displeasure.

I completely agreed, but reality was like that. Harsh and unpleasant. I will do my part, and help other do theirs, even if they didn't like it.

We're still going to get eaten by Tyranids, most likely.