Repairs took weeks to complete, as the battle had strained most ships' systems to their limit.

Reactors needed refueling, weapons needed cleaning and spare parts, not to mention replenishing missiles and torpedoes, plus the Nova Shells and drop pods.

It was much easier this time, due to the very Forge World we had been defending. Their techpriests worked arduously side-by-side with my own, not just to repay the unspoken debt but also to have a chance to examine new machines and analyze their battle effectiveness in comparison with their own.

The Deus Ex Machina demi-legion received extra care, since their advanced weaponry and systems put to shame the god-machines of the Legio Praesidium Vortex, since every single one of them had atomantic reactors and shields, self-repair devices and long-forgotten weapons of cataclysmic power. And then, there were Knights and Dreadknights, armed with fearsome weapons as well, plus new devices like Logic Shields and blackstone armor covering the battle carapace.

However, unlike other Space Marine Chapters who guarded their secrets jealously, my Lamenters not only allowed the Mechanicus examination but welcomed it, adding their advice and expertise from wielding these mighty walkers in combat.

Luckily the ground combat had been sparse, mostly due to my own personal efforts to keep the orbit safe and destroy most invaders before they could reach the surface.

A month later, just as I was filtering through thousands of pleas for aid and support from other places under attack, a single transmission sparked my attention.

There was a Cardinal World called Shadowbrink which normally I would have gladly ignored, leaving the rabid Ministorum priests to their fate.

But, as Sanguinius took over the Imperial Cult and Janice had leadership over the Adepta Sororitas, I had a different view on the matter now.

Plus, I smelled precious loot on the horizon, and a chance to exterminate another Hive Fleet tendril. Multiple reasons to go there.

And I still had to finish dealing with the leader of Agripinaa.

"Fabricator, I expect your Forge World to expand a hundred times over the next century. Import eight billion people from nearby Hive Worlds, and in doing that clean up their underhives of gangs and criminals for extra servitors. Set up more Planetary Gellar fields and Bastion forcefields over Hive Cities, and orbital defense forts. Plus, don't forget you owe me a fleet carrier." I demanded from the Archmagos, who nodded slowly.

"Suggestion acceptable, +welcomed. Statistical certainty of increased attacks on the Imperium, from Tyranids and Chaos both. Acquisition of lost STC patterns, +++welcomed. Fleet carrier pattern-Icarus will be provided to your Dynasty." the techpriest replied in a monotone voice.

I smiled inward at his antics, as there was no need to speak in techno-lingua, but he reverted to it due to familiarity.

"Your aid in repairing my ships is welcomed as well, Magos. As for blackstone deposits, I can suggest mining it from the world of Zapennec, although you'll need to clear out the Necrons dormant under the surface. And lastly...the Eldar. They were helpful this time, correct?" I asked rhetorically.

"This time, Lord Lancefire. But they will inevitably betray the trust and attack humanity again, when we feel safe. Over the millennia, this simple fact had been proven beyond doubt." the techpriest argued with a logical tone.

"Perhaps it is so. But I have a glimpse into their reasoning, Fabricator. As a society, they are all psykers and led by even stronger psykers, their Farseers and Phoenix Lords. They receive visions of threats and impending doom in a certain place, or from a certain person. And then they act on that vision, causing the very disaster they were trying to prevent. For example, they would see a certain traitor Primarch destroying dozens of their Exodite Worlds. And what do they do? They would seek the guy out, and try to negotiate and appease the traitor with gifts and threats. You can imagine the rest quite well, using simple logic." I explained in a slightly amused voice.

The old Magos chuckled as well. "A fallacy of reasoning indeed. They would invite retaliation on themselves, by trying to act mighty and knowledgeable with a demented and corrupted Daemon Prince. I can extrapolate their conduct now, Lord Lancefire. This precious data will be forever inscribed into the noosphere, and used to anticipate and defuse further incidents from the Eldar. Any other such advice?" he asked curious.

"The Necrons are split into enemy Dynasties right now, and we should take care to keep it that way, much like we do with Orks. The Tyranids revert to feral state once their controlling organisms are killed. Also, the Narvhals bioships have to be targeted with priority to prevent them using gravity propulsion, and slow them down a thousand times. And keep in mind they adapt by ingestion of biomass, so every time they eat a new world, they gain new traits and abilities. And for Chaos...Gellar fields everywhere, then many more Null Rods and Blanks. Converting humanity entirely into Blanks would solve that problem, one day." I said and raised myself to depart.

I could see the cogs spinning inside the techpriest's mind, as his logic processors analyzed my words and calculated thousands of possible variations.

"When it is possible, I shall send a Manufactorum ship to your Machine Forge World in the Eastern Fringe, Lord Lancefire. All crew formed from female techpriests and enginseers, to provide your Blank sons with more wombs. Genetic Blanks are very rare though. Chance of success for this proposal, less than one a billion." he estimated after a minute.

"More than that, my friend. My own Blank descendants number in the thousands now. And they have children and their children have children. It has only been four generations since I've started but I estimate six more generations at most, until everyone under my rule will have Blank genes. A billion becomes ten then a hundred, and then a trillion. Our galaxy has fewer stars than that." I replied with a soft voice, and vanished.

Time to depart for Shadowbrink, and en route enjoy the Blank harem and my blonde Inquisitor. It was my duty after all, and this duty was always very pleasant.

And if both parties enjoyed the experience, even better.

By the time we reached the besieged world, I had 200 new pregnant women settling in the nursery ward, detached from combat duties and resuming a teacher role for the Lancefire kids, plus their own lessons.

There was no reason to deny the Blank women a full education and technical expertise, and every reason for it. With their prolonged lifespan and immunity to the Warp, I could gain a new force of loyal tech and combat experts as there was always more to learn. From machine systems to melee tactics and grand strategy, I had filled the neural chairs with millions of data-stack libraries.

The Lamenters had their own stores of knowledge, from herbs and drugs to weapon maintenance rites and observed enemy patterns and counters.

For my own project to work, I needed to integrate both forces into one. Possibly expanding the ranks of Apothecaries and techmarines with Blank female recruits, using MIU implants instead of gene-seed to enhance their abilities.

There was no rule about preventing women as medicae and tech support in a Space Marine chapter, and not even the harshest examination could claim I was overstepping my bounds with hidden Battle-Brothers.

And lastly, this was a way to prevent the disconnection from humanity that most Astartes experienced by living among only their Brothers and the Chapter serfs. A woman's touch was often more delicate and gentle, both when repairing a machine or body or even a damaged psyche. What better way to make my Astartes sons feel at home on this black and dour battlestation, than by living among their own family?

As the fleet entered the star system, we began blasting away at the incoming Tyranids, and launching our corvettes and starfighters for extra defense screens.

The planet itself had only a modicum of defenses, three defense platforms and a squadron of old Cobra destroyers.

But they also had a small garrison of Grey Knights, which will make my endeavor a little more complicated. The armed gangs called the Frateris_Militia would be of little use, and quite a flagrant violation of the Decree Passive forbidding the Imperial Cult to have men under arms. I could see millions of men with arms quite clearly, led by Confessors and Preachers, digging trenches and chanting praise to the God Emperor.

Stupid attempt at defenses too. Trenches were quite useless against swarms of hungry insects. It wouldn't protect them one bit against sharp claws and teeth, nor against psychic storms and fear auras of the Tyranid Zoantropes and Broodlords.

My drop-cruisers rushed towards the planet to provide increased defenses, just as heavy landers departed filled with my regiments and heavy walkers.

Land combat was a certainty with the impending Tyranid invasion, while the Grey Knights presence guarding the Dark Age of Technology relics was another worry.

Soon enough, servitors and Armed Sentinels began digging rock and unloading it into steel-wire cages, one meter on all sides when unfolded.

A cheap and effective way to construct field fortifications that could actually protect troops and create overlapping fields of fire for our Tarantula turrets and Hyperios missile launchers.

The Hive City of Rossov was under direct command of the Grey Knights, and they seemed reluctant to allow my troops and techpriests to provide extra defenses, so we established improvised forts on nearby hills and on the slopes of a moutain range some 30 kilometers away. A bit too far, but still in range of our heavy artillery.

The far side of the Hive City to the east was left unprotected, except for flanking fire from the nearest bastions to the north and south. With only weeks to spare, Void Shields, Gellar fields and Bastion forcefields were emplaced to protect our troops,

while munitions and troops debarked and prepared to receive the invaders.

Millions of civilians fled into the Western perimeter, because few were allowed inside the capital. Mainly Nobles and high ranking priests and their retinues.

This meant a larger logistic strain on my forces, as the civilians had to be housed and fed, while also preventing them from going nuts and fighting my troops or each other.

Generally, I wouldn't be worried about the safety of my troops when faced with civilians, but millions of people panicking and rioting would cause me extra headaches.

So I sent my contingent of Sisters to oversee the civil defense, while Armed Sentinels and Knights served as construction machines for improvised shelters. Squat walls of wire and rocks, plated over with blackstone plates, meant as replecement armor sideskirts for my corvettes. Durable and Warp resistant too, blackstone plates would serve great for this temporary post.

We also had to chase away every Militia contingent, because rable rousers were not welcomed. Not even their Preachers were allowed in, since my troops were not allowed in the Hive City.

Plus they would serve as a great distraction when the Tyranid landed.

For the other celestial bodies in the system, I prepared about 50 Ork Bands to attract Tyranid splinters away from the human planet, a strategy that should allow me to defeat each splinter in detail, much like I tried at Forge Gryphonne.

I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.