Orbital Strike and Homeworld Development

The Blackrock activated its engines, shifting position in the planet's orbit, and as the vessel adjusted its speed to match the planet's rotation, the interior of the Shortsword-class frigate Blackrock began to bustle with activity.

Below the ship, orbital lance batteries began gathering energy, and soon a crimson lance shot down from above the atmosphere. It struck the battlefield where Peter had fought the daemons, and with the first lance's conclusion, a second and third followed in succession.

The orbital lances bombarded the entire area, including the pyramid ruins, across a radius of over a dozen kilometers.

The searing energy of the lances continuously scorched the earth, triggering a physical reaction with the silicate minerals that made up over 90% of the crust.

On the outermost fringes of the orbital strike, all organic matter within the soil was incinerated by the high heat. No humus or moisture remained; the land would be barren for years, even decades.

At the strike's epicenter, the minerals in the soil underwent melting and crystallization under the extreme temperatures, forming a dense, sintered mass. The soil's structure transformed entirely, its atomic bonds breaking down and recrystallizing into a glassy, amorphous substance akin to ceramic.

It would no longer be soil that a shovel could turn—it would be artificial "granite," requiring specialized mining equipment to process. This land would become a barren sheet of glass, which was why some within the Imperium called this kind of strike "glassing."

This was also why Peter had initially been reluctant to solve the problem with orbital bombardment. If an entire continent were treated this way, it would no longer support any plant or animal life—no farming, no livestock.

The Dark Mechanicus might mine here, but once the ore was exhausted, the land would hold no further value. Perhaps they could build industrial lines or even a hive city, but it would rely entirely on external supplies of food and water.

Fortunately, the war was over now. Peter had successfully reclaimed this land from Tzeentch and Khorne, though at the cost of two brothers' lives.

According to the Dark Mechanicus's calculations, if this continent were used for agriculture—even without resorting to extreme industrial farming methods—it could feed ten to fifteen billion people.

Over the next five to ten years, the continent would undergo a planned drought, a gentle method to exterminate the local flora and fauna.

Simultaneously, the Dark Mechanicus would deploy mining equipment at the Center of the Continent, extracting resources and beginning construction of fertilizer plants, agricultural servitor modification facilities, and farming machinery production lines.

Though, as Magos Yamila put it, "Error. Corpse starch production is sufficient. No need to build an agricultural continent."

Now, nearly a month into Operation Drought, Peter—having shed his battle armor for a silver-gray robe—was hunched over his desk in the private office of the Fortress Monastery, writing furiously.

What Peter was signing now was a parchment requisition for ammunition and maintenance materials for the War Band's armory. He scrawled his name and set the parchment aside. A servitor would later deliver it to Magos Yamila, who would provide Filon with the materials at a pre-agreed price—even offering doorstep delivery.

Then both parties would transfer a batch of resources, held by the Dark Mechanicus and belonging to the Forged Steel Brethren War Band, from the books to the Dark Mechanicus. It seemed convenient—the materials didn't even need to move.

But Peter had always known the Dark Mechanicus was playing tricks with the quantity of resources they extracted. He just didn't have the time or energy to deal with it. Compared to mining, refining, building storage, and transporting everything himself, relying on the Dark Mechanicus was far more convenient.

His brothers had no energy for such trivialities, and mortals were even worse than the Dark Mechanicus. Perhaps they'd skim less, but their output wouldn't amount to a fraction of what the Mechanicus produced.

The Dark Mechanicus had contributed significantly to the planet's development over the past few years. Whether improving the climate or advancing agriculture and industry, results were already visible.

Hundreds of algae farms, stretching dozens of kilometers each, had been established on the seas, producing countless tons of algae annually. These could be turned into supplementary food or used as livestock feed.

Limnos III now had a shipyard, with steel ships and fishing vessels sailing the oceans, marking the beginning of industrialized fishing. Almost anything hauled up in the massive trawl nets could be tossed into a grinder, mixed with chemical preservatives, and turned into protein bars that could be stored for decades or even centuries.

And then there was the most abundant food: corpse starch. With the extraction of Promethium on Limnos III, IV, and V, this byproduct was in oversupply. Fortunately, it was extremely shelf-stable, and most of the planet's slaves now subsisted on this cheap, filling fare.

The Dark Mechanicus was also using enormous machines to flatten uneven terrain. To the locals, these methods of leveling "mountains" seemed almost miraculous.

After flattening the land, they spread fertilizer, pumped groundwater, and began planting everything needed. Cotton, in particular, was a fabric the people of this land had never seen before.

Because the Dark Mechanicus was unwilling to use refined metal for civilian buildings, they had also set up equipment to crush rock into powder, mix it with a binding agent, and cast it into houses. These structures were quite popular with the locals, though their weakness was that two or three stories was the limit.

The planet also had civilian heavy industry lines capable of producing simple motorcycles, cars, trucks, and even atmospheric aircraft.

As for military industry, the Dark Mechanicus had helped establish production lines for basic Flak Armour, Laser Guns, Autoguns, Logging Guns, Grenade Launchers, hand grenades, Rocket Launchers, and their ammunition. But no one could win a real war with just these light weapons.

To be fair, aside from some slyness in resource extraction, the Dark Mechanicus had fully supported the War Band over the past few years. But in certain areas, they were exceptionally stingy—namely, the true war-winning weapons.

The Leman Russ Battle Tank, the Petrifying Lizard Cannon, the Hydra Flak Tank, the Buffalo Armoured Car, the Medusa Siege Tank, the Fury Interceptor, the Valkyrie transport—these were the real mainstays of the battlefield.

Whether ground tanks and armored vehicles or atmospheric fighters and transports capable of void flight, the Dark Mechanicus's stance was always: you can buy them directly, but no production lines.

Let alone Power Armour, Terminator Armour, Bolter Guns, Void Ships, or exterminatus weapons like Whirlwind Missiles and Virus Bombs.

Even Plasma Guns, Meltaguns, Hellguns, and Meltabombs—items of considerable power—the Dark Mechanicus deliberately refused to provide production equipment for.

Every time Peter faced Magos Yamila, she would repeat the same line:

"Confirmed. Available for purchase."

Now, sitting at his desk, Peter was tearing his hair out over the Dark Mechanicus's stranglehold on him:

"I fucking know I can buy it. You don't need to tell me."