Chapter Summaries

Ron named the salvaged Golden Age warship the Dreamer and approved more than ten years of repairs and refitting. When genetic engineering research stalled for lack of Gene-seed, Carter proposed sharing Grant House’s Forbidden Laboratory with Moss, leaving Ron confused about the facility and the Custodes’ origins.

• Cawl inspected the recovered warship while Ron left him in charge of its evaluation and repairs.
• Ron named the warship the Dreamer after discussing possible names with senior staff.
• A month later, Ron reviewed the Dreamer’s powerful engine, shields, and planned weapons, then approved its repair and refitting.
• Moss told Ron that genetic engineering research could take at least a hundred years without Gene-seed or foundational data.
• Carter urged Ron to let Moss use Grant House’s Forbidden Laboratory, and Ron realized he had no memory of the laboratory or how the Custodes had been created.

Ron uncovered Grant House’s secret laboratory and its stockpile of Gene-seeds, then redirected Earth Planet’s resources to repair the Dreamer and introduced policies to increase the population. Five years later, his fleet punished Chak Planet’s royal family for questioning the Imperial Tithe and continued toward Earth Planet to collect more taxes.

• Ron opened the underground laboratory and discovered Grant House had secretly stored many Gene-seeds there.
• Ron gave Moss access to the laboratory, and Moss estimated that the first enhancement experiments could begin in five years.
• After Sage Cawl requested more resources for the Dreamer, Ron approved the request and diverted Earth Planet’s projects, workers, and factories to the repairs.
• Ron canceled his plan for a song-and-dance troupe and issued policies that rewarded families for having children.
• Five years later, the Governor’s fleet punished Chak Planet’s royal family, seized resources, and demanded the Imperial Tithe.
• The fleet returned to Matila with people and resources while the remaining ships headed toward Earth Planet to collect taxes.

On the eve of the God-Emperor’s Ascension Day, Mika celebrated Earth Planet’s prosperity with his fellow miners while Ron reflected on the planet’s recovery. During the ceremony, Ron learned an Imperial Fleet was approaching, and a Cruiser descended over Sacred Plaza without docking at the Spaceport.

• Mika returned from a mining shift and gathered his family to celebrate at Mr. Will’s house with fellow mining captains.
• Ron looked over Earth Planet’s brightened Hive Cities and recalled the Red Moon damage caused by the Nova Cannon, which had revealed valuable minerals and aided the Dreamer’s repairs.
• Alila attended the Ascension Day ceremony with Paddy and their daughter as Bishop Dony led the blessing at Sacred Plaza.
• Ron received word that an Imperial Fleet was heading to Earth Planet and ordered preparations before addressing the citizens.
• An enormous Cruiser descended over Sacred Plaza instead of following Imperium docking regulations, prompting the Hive City’s defensive shield to rise.

Ron’s defiance of the Sector Governor’s tax decree led to a clash between Earth Planet’s defenders and the Governor’s forces. After the Thunder Custodes killed the Royal Court Guards, the fleet commander ordered the destruction of the Upper Hive.

• The fleet carrying the Sector Governor’s representatives arrived above Earth Planet, and its Royal Court Guards landed at Sacred Plaza to demand taxes and insist that Ron kneel before Marius IX’s decree.
• Ron questioned whether Marius IX was a legitimate emperor, and a Royal Court Guard attacked him.
• Carter intervened, forced the Royal Court Guard to kneel, and killed him before the Thunder Custodes defeated the other guards and soldiers.
• Ron confronted the Ceremonial Officer, who fell to his knees and begged for mercy.
• After receiving the Royal Court Guards’ final message, the fleet commander ordered his warships to destroy the Upper Hive and kill everyone there.

Ron watched the Dreamer enter battle against the fleet attacking the Hive City. After its five-layer Void Shield Array shrugged off the fleet’s volleys, Cawl charged the Nova Cannon, leaving the enemy commander terrified as its weapon gathered energy.

• The fleet attacked the Hive City's failing Void Shield, but it held through the first barrage.
• The Dreamer emerged from concealment and destroyed several Frigates, prompting the fleet to pursue it.
• The fleet commander ordered a full-strength attack on the Dreamer, but its five layers of Void Shields withstood repeated volleys.
• Cawl took over the weapons console and charged the Nova Cannon to maximum power.
• The fleet commander saw the Nova Cannon's immense plasma mass and screamed for the fleet to run.

Cawl charged the Dreamer’s Holy Nova Cannon and nearly endangered the ship and Earth Planet before Ron ordered him to fire it safely. The terrifying shot broke the enemy fleet’s resolve, and the Dreamer disabled the fleeing ships, while the fleet commander ordered his Cruiser to self-destruct if boarded.

• Cawl charged the Nova Cannon at the enemy fleet, and Ron stripped him of command authority before the unstable weapon could be fired.
• Ron ordered Cawl to redirect the cannon and discharge its nearly critical plasma charge away from the fleet.
• The Nova Cannon’s shot narrowly missed the enemy ships but shattered a Cruiser’s Void Shield and exploded with immense force, prompting the fleet to flee.
• The Dreamer caught up with the scattered warships and used Interference Macro-cannons to overload their systems and slow their escape.
• The fleet commander shot several attendants in anger, then ordered his Cruiser’s self-destruct system activated for the moment the enemy boarded.

The Dreamer’s boarding teams captured the rebel fleet after Duke’s warriors and the Thunder Custodes seized its flagship and Xiao Ling took control of its systems. Ron then rushed to inspect the fleet’s spoils, eager to replenish the resources needed for his stalled projects.

• The Dreamer launched Teleport Homers into enemy ships, while Duke led a hundred Void-Born warriors and five Thunder Custodes in a teleportation assault on the flagship.
• The Thunder Custodes fought their way to the Bridge, killing the Royal Court Guards and forcing the fleet commander to plead for surrender.
• The fleet commander threatened to trigger the self-destruct system, but a Thunder Custode revealed it had already been disabled and took him into custody.
• Xiao Ling seized control of the flagship through the data node, and the boarding teams captured the rest of the fleet.
• Ron arrived at the Space Elevator to inspect the captured fleet’s transport ships and their cargo.

Ron inspected the captured transport ships and discovered a vast population of valuable specialists, warriors, and a dance troupe among the cargo. After receiving the fleet commander’s interrogation report, he learned the cargo was connected to a sacred relic.

• Ron encouraged the Spaceport personnel and reviewed the spoils from the captured fleet while Cawl was taken away by Devere for punishment over firing the Nova Cannon.
• Ron found that five of the sixteen transport ships were empty, then boarded a passenger ship carrying hundreds of millions of people.
• Ron discovered more than a thousand beautiful performers in the ship’s upper compartments and ordered the Logistics Department to protect them.
• Ron inspected compartments containing researchers, skilled individuals, and powerful warriors, recognizing their potential value to Earth Planet.
• Ron received the fleet commander’s interrogation report and reacted with surprise when it mentioned a sacred relic.

Ron searched the captured Cruiser for the Fleet Commander's hidden treasury and had Xiao Ling crack its system. Inside, he found an ancient stone slab with a parchment bearing a startling mark, leaving him questioning whether it was genuine.

• The Fleet Commander offered Ron his loyalty and the treasury's location in exchange for a pardon, but Ron rejected him and ordered the interrogation to continue.
• The Fleet Commander claimed a special password was needed to open the treasury safely, and Ron used the information about its location and defenses to guide the search.
• Xiao Ling searched surveillance blind spots aboard the Cruiser while Ron's teams fought Mutants and Chaos Monsters in the lower decks.
• The search team found the treasury disguised as a filthy drainage outlet in the final surveillance blind spot.
• Xiao Ling cracked the treasury system and shut down its Melta trap, revealing that the Fleet Commander had invented a password to lure Ron into certain death.
• Ron entered the treasury and found an ancient stone slab with a parchment embedded in it; a bloody fingerprint on the parchment made him question its authenticity.

Ron discovered an ancient Rogue Trader Warrant bearing the Emperor’s blood fingerprint and considered the freedom and wealth it could bring him. He realized the warrant required the Covendi family bloodline to function, leaving him to find out whether any descendants remained.

• Ron examined the Emperor’s Blood Rogue Trader Warrant and recognized its authority to grant him broad freedom to travel, trade, explore, and plunder.
• Ron considered studying the Emperor’s Blood to create useful beings, but knew Bishop Dony must not learn of his plan.
• Ron recalled that the warrant’s authentication required the Covendi family bloodline and that Rogue Trader ships also depended on their descendants.
• Ron realized he possessed the warrant but no Covendi heirs, and wondered whether the fleet commander had killed them or the bloodline had died out.

Ron found and awakened Sahim Covendi and Milia Covendi, the young twins and surviving heirs of Covendi House. After earning their trust and learning how the Governor's Tax Fleet had destroyed their family, he took them to seek revenge.

• Ron searched the treasury and found a functioning life-support device containing two healthy children.
• Ron awakened the twins, removed his frightening mask, and reassured them that he had rescued them.
• Ron fed the hungry children and learned that they were Sahim Covendi and Milia Covendi, heirs of the Covendi Rogue Trader Dynasty.
• Sahim and Milia told Ron that a fleet commander had seized their Warrant and slaughtered their family, leaving only them alive.
• Ron asked the twins if they wanted revenge, and Sahim agreed.
• Ron took Sahim and Milia by the hand and led them out to get their revenge.

Ron tortured the fleet commander to death after foiling his attempt to trap him with a vault password, then oversaw Earth Planet’s gains and continued planning for the Matila Campaign. Meanwhile, a warband roared through the Warp, leaving its destination unclear.

• The fleet commander tried to lure Ron into a deadly vault trap, but Ron refused to hear the password and had the Interrogator torture him to death.
• Ron left with Sahim and his sister while the Interrogators questioned other captives, and he learned that captured officers would be executed while ordinary soldiers and crew would become prisoners of war.
• At Spire Mansion, Ron watched a dance performance, considered using catchy songs against Slaanesh’s forces, and approved a report detailing the immense ships, people, supplies, and technology seized in the battle.
• Ron attended a preliminary meeting about the Matila Campaign and later shared dinner with Sahim and his sister, who were studying at the Schola Progenium.
• In the Warp, hideous warships sped forward as their occupants roared.

Warboss Big Claw Ulla led the Ork Legion aboard the Kool Killa-Kruiser through the Warp, eager to find a huge battle. After randomly stabbing a star map, he unknowingly sent the warship toward the Goli Sector near Earth Planet.

• The chapter described how Orks grew stronger through battle, reproduced through spores, and built crude but effective technology with Waaagh Energy.
• Big Claw Ulla stood aboard the Kool Killa-Kruiser and ordered Snotlings to bring him a star map.
• Big Claw could not read the map, so he randomly poked a hole in it and handed it to the Mekboy navigating the ship.
• The Mekboy steered the warship toward the marked destination, which was the Goli Sector near Earth Planet.

Big Steel Claw ordered the Big Mek to make the Kool Killa-Kruiser travel faster toward the Goli Sector, and the Big Mek used Ork color beliefs to boost its engine with red paint. The warship sped through the Warp as the Mekboyz painted the Protective Force Field Engine red too, causing it to flicker with purple sparks.

• Big Steel Claw demanded that the warship move faster, and the Big Mek went to the Mek Workshop to find a solution.
• The Big Mek built a Mechanical Cauldron and made vivid red paint that he believed would increase the warship’s speed.
• The Mekboyz painted the Ship Engine red, and the Kool Killa-Kruiser accelerated through the Warp toward the Goli Sector.
• Big Steel Claw roared with excitement as the Orks celebrated reaching their destination sooner.
• The Mekboyz used the leftover red paint on the Protective Force Field Engine, which flickered with purple sparks.

Two Mekboyz accidentally disabled the Ork warship’s force field, leaving the Ork Legion exposed to the Warp until it emerged near Earth Planet and was destroyed by Cawl’s Holy Nova Cannon. Half a month later, Cawl left the Black Prison and planned to use Silicone Profanity technology to win more research funding.

• Two Mekboyz painted over the Protective Force Field Engine’s lucky blue coating, then fought until Warp energy corroded the engine and shut it down.
• The unshielded Ork warship broke apart in the Warp, but Big Steel Claw and the surviving Orks emerged into Realspace in the Goli Sector near Earth Planet.
• Big Steel Claw ordered the Orks to attack Earth Planet, but Cawl’s Holy Nova Cannon obliterated the warship and nearly the entire Ork Legion.
• Half a month later, Devere released Cawl from the Inquisition Black Prison and warned him that surveillance would be stricter.
• Devere left to investigate Chaos traces in the B146 Citizen District of the Lower Hive, while Cawl returned to the Mechanicus Forum and challenged Moss over Mechanical Fuel Drink.
• Cawl remembered his new idea for using Silicone Profanity technology and planned to turn it into a source of research funding.

Ron learned that Guilliman had not yet awakened, giving him time to strengthen his influence before the Galaxy descended into greater chaos. After approving Cawl’s funding request, Ron planned to use Silicon-based Camouflage Technology to send Eridan fanatics as pilgrims to spread faith and prepare for reclaiming Matila.

• Ron ended his call with Cawl after warning him not to get locked in Black Prison again.
• Ron learned through the Warp that the Great Rift was still in its early stage and Guilliman remained asleep on Lethis.
• Ron approved Cawl’s funding request for Silicon-based Camouflage Technology.
• Ron planned to disguise Eridan fanatics as pilgrims so they could spread tales of him as The Savior and expand the Little Sun’s reach.
• Ron decided the first disguised fanatics would infiltrate Matila and prepare the way for its future reclamation.
• Ron received another message and frowned.

Ron approved Cawl’s Mechanicus Workshop relocation and expanded Earth Planet’s plans to turn abundant resources into military and industrial strength. The Hive City Renovation Project became part of a ten-year development plan aimed at preparing Earth Planet to conquer the stars.

• Cawl requested resources to move and expand the Mechanicus Workshop, and Ron urged him to ask for far more than he had proposed.
• Ron approved the relocation, granted extra resources, and planned a Mechanicus City for Cawl’s and Moss’s research institutes.
• Cawl discovered Moss’s planned institute would be several times larger than his own and regretted not requesting more.
• Ron sent Bayev plans to move factories, farms, and ordinary residences out of the Upper Hive and transform it into a prestigious, fortified district.
• Ron set out the Earth Planet Ten-Year Plan to develop its population, industry, and armed forces before expanding into space.

Ron reviewed Earth Planet’s unified military organization and its ongoing expansion, then relaxed at the Spire Mansion. He decided to visit the Schola Progenium to see the planet’s future recruits.

• Ron reviewed plans for military construction and development, including the expansion of the Storm Trooper Corps, Navy Fleet, Adepta Sororitas, and Void Angel Chapter.
• Ron confirmed that the Departmento Munitorum coordinated Earth Planet’s Armed Forces under unified management, with Ari, Kais, Duke, and Maya leading its main branches.
• Ron finished reviewing military documents and noted that his Psyker Network and Citizen Tier System let him transmit orders throughout his territory.
• Linda served Ron afternoon tea and massaged him at the Spire Mansion.
• After relaxing and eating, Ron decided to visit the Schola Progenium.

Ron toured the Upper Hive as its renovation and greening projects progressed, reflecting on how life had changed since his first visit. He arrived at the Schola Progenium, where a colossal statue caught his attention.

• Ron observed that plants cultivated with Little Sun's energy could resist contamination, and hoped the research would eventually improve agriculture.
• The hover car left Spire Mansion and passed demolition sites, where residents received compensation and workers rebuilt the Upper Hive.
• Ron recalled the hunger and desperation he had witnessed in the shantytown, then saw its workers laboring with hope as citizens and prisoners of war pursued better lives.
• Ron praised the Spirit Net's reliable payroll system, which recorded wages and overtime pay in real time.
• Ron reached the Schola Progenium and looked toward a colossal statue beyond its gate.

Ron inspected the Schola Progenium, the vast elite school he had established to train Earth Planet's future leaders, and considered how its graduates might serve his rule. He arrived at a classroom where a Sisters Academy teacher was teaching children a lesson on loyalty and virtue.

• Ron admired the gilded statue depicting himself alongside the Holy Sun and explained how its paired imagery helped spread faith in both the God-Emperor and the Savior.
• Baruk welcomed Ron to the Schola Progenium and guided him around the expanding academy.
• Ron learned that the independent institution trained millions of students across dozens of specialized academies, with strict standards and dangerous instruction.
• Ron imagined a gifted student named Long Aotian rising through the academy and becoming a powerful general under his command.
• Ron visited a classroom where a Sisters Academy teacher was teaching a lesson called "Loyalty and Virtue."