Fortress Monastery

Finally, all 112 Neophytes assembled and followed Captain Wonaby toward the battle warband's still-under-construction Fortress Monastery.

This group was disheveled and starving; many were injured, their wounds already festering with infection. They silently trailed behind Captain Wonaby into the Monastery's Neophyte barracks hall.

Yet one man stood out from the crowd—a burly giant wielding a massive axe. He looked as strong as a bear, with brown stubble on his face and a chest bared to reveal a palm-wide patch of chest hair. He didn't look under fifteen; one would believe he was thirty.

He walked among the crowd, chatting and laughing with a friend beside him: "I swung my axe right then and split that kid's head open. Trying to steal our ship? That was just asking to die."

His teammate chimed in with a taunt: "Enough, Randolph, my ears are worn out from hearing it. You've been telling that story since the shore, and now we're on the island, you're still at it."

Fortunately, an angel soon interrupted their conversation. Their leader, Wonaby, addressed them: "For a long time to come, you will live here. You need proper treatment and rest to have any chance of surviving the modifications ahead. Around this hall are many rooms; choose freely. You may keep your weapons, but if anyone kills another candidate, they will be disqualified and turned into a Servitor."

With that, he let the boys move about the Neophyte barracks on their own.

Barring unforeseen events, in half a month the Apothecary would screen these boys. Those most compatible with the Gene-seed would enter the surgical process, the next tier would serve as reserves, and the highly unsuitable would become battle warband servants, serving as mortals for life.

On the open ground outside the Fortress Monastery, Peter spread out a parchment blueprint and studied it with Filon, discussing the structure and zoning of the Monastery fortress.

According to the plan, the Monastery would be divided into these main areas:

Meditation Chamber: Since the warband had no faith in Chaos or the Emperor, the meditation chamber lacked prayer functions. It was merely a quiet place for warriors to adjust their state through meditation.

Disciplinary Room: Any brother who erred would face punishments here, including confinement and flogging. After all, they were a military organization, and appropriate discipline was necessary.

Private Rooms: Personal quarters for each brother to rest. Typically, only Astartes, Auxiliary Army officers, Astropaths, and other high-ranking personnel could have an individual room.

Public Dormitory: The living and resting area for servants, mortal guards, and technical staff.

Reception Hall: A room for receiving important visitors, usually representatives of the Dark Mechanicus, Rogue Traders, or other warbands and legions.

Guest Rooms: Rooms prepared for important guests.

Foundry: Where weapons and equipment were produced and repaired, managed by Voidsmiths and Tech Sergeants. In truth, there wasn't much difference between them, except that Voidsmiths had learned techniques to bind daemons.

Armory: Underground complexes for storing weapons and ammunition, usually not far from the Foundry, with a robust defense system. As an arsenal, only high-ranking warband members could access it.

Apothecarion: A facility combining hospital, research, and biochemical lab functions, managed by the Apothecary. It was also where Space Marine modifications took place, and the Gene-seed was stored here, protected by the Apothecaries.

Airfield and Hangar: For parking and storing aircraft.

Assembly Hall: Used for large meetings and warband banquets.

Mess Hall: Including kitchens, storage rooms, etc., responsible for the brothers' meals, with a separate area for mortal food.

Briefing Room: Used for private meetings, teaching, briefings, and small gatherings.

Nursery: For cultivating and breeding plants or animals needed by the warband.

Dungeon: Where ordinary prisoners were held, including anti-Psyker zones for detaining witches or even Librarians.

Wizard's Sanctum: The private domain of the warband's wizards, where they explored the mysteries of Warp energy. This was usually built at a considerable distance from the main structure to ensure the Monastery's safety. Although the warband currently had no Psykers, Peter decided to build it first—better safe than sorry.

Library: Where brothers searched for information and Neophytes primarily studied. Here, vast amounts of data on tactics, xenos, equipment, historical battles, etc., were stored on parchment books and data-slates—a place for battle brothers to learn.

Training Grounds: Providing training areas for unarmed combat, weapon drills, and marksmanship, including the fighting cage. There were also simulators for fighters and vehicles; Neophytes could only touch the real things after passing their training.

Neophyte Barracks: Connected to the Training Grounds, or rather, they were one and the same. Neophytes lived in communal dormitories, not private rooms. They trained, ate, and studied together as a group, only earning a private room after donning Power Armour.

Teleportarium: A facility for teleportation. Due to its instability, brothers only used it in emergencies.

Tomb Chamber: The burial place for warband brothers and a place for the living to remember them. Neophytes would also visit and learn about the combat deeds of their predecessors. Even if a brother's body couldn't be recovered, a symbolic stone coffin would be made.

Defensive Installations: Composed of laser cannons, anti-aircraft guns, and other defensive weapons, supplemented by extensive reconnaissance sensor equipment. These defended against enemies from the sky, ground, or even space. Of course, the strongest defense was the Space Marines stationed within the Monastery.

Filon had previously surveyed most of the planet, searching for several sites to build the warband's Fortress Monastery. The location needed stable continental plates, easy takeoff and landing for aircraft, and be defensible. Material transport also had to be somewhat convenient.

Filon had earlier suggested choosing the northern continent, which was perpetually frozen with only a few animals active. Or marking off a zone on the main continent as a military control area.

In the end, Peter decided to keep some distance from mortals, maintain the Space Marines' mystique, and build the Fortress Monastery on a massive island.

Then, the Dark Mechanicus's equipment and resources began to be mobilized, slowly constructing the Fortress Monastery. Once the basic facilities were complete, construction immediately halted. After all, the warband didn't have many brothers yet; the basics were enough, and the Dark Mechanicus's production capacity had to be used elsewhere.

Filon looked at the blueprint and said, "Boss, you really are someone who helped build the Iron Cage alongside the Primarch back in the day. You know it all—I can't find any flaws in this blueprint."

Peter merely replied quietly, "Back then, I was just a squad leader in charge of seven or eight men, following orders to build. The design work was never up to me."

But there was one thing Peter didn't say: he felt a sense of ease when designing the Fortress Monastery, as if he enjoyed it. His inner feelings were completely different from when he participated in building the Iron Cage.

Filon laughed heartily: "And what about those Neophyte training plans and tactical manuals? I remember you didn't train Neophytes back then either. How do you know so much?"

Peter raised an eyebrow, a bit speechless, but decided to satisfy his brother's curiosity: "You want to know?"

"Of course."

Peter silently pulled a book from behind his power pack—a brown leather-bound tome with the words Codex Astartes stamped in gold-leaf High Gothic on its cover.

The air fell silent. Filon stood frozen on the spot.

"What's going on here?"

Peter simply shoved the book into his hands and said:

"After all, it's a book written by the Primarch himself. Treat all that nonsense about Chapter organization and Chaplain duties like a fart in the wind—just let it go. When you have time, read it as a military manual. It's actually somewhat useful."

Filon scratched his bald head, not knowing what to say, so he changed the subject:

"Speaking of which, boss. There are still some people floating out on the sea right now. They might never make it to land. Should we go save them?"

Peter didn't even look up as he replied:

"No need. Let them fend for themselves. If we help them survive, the rest will mistakenly think the trial's failure rate is low, or even that someone will save them if they fail."

"Let them die here. That's better than letting them become examples that encourage the weak-willed to take the trial. Their deaths now will save many more who come after."