Evan had gotten a little full of himself over the past few years. This small region had completed its initial Reddening, his Chapter had grown in numbers and strength, and he sat here like a petty emperor... but playing the little local landlord was no way to carry on.
During the Great Crusade, the Ultramarines Legion had conquered the Five Hundred Worlds to support their grand expedition. Those five hundred worlds meant exceptionally wealthy planets; impoverished worlds that could barely defend themselves did not count.
Even by the most optimistic reckoning, Evan's territory amounted to only one and a half worlds. Mavrek's Forge World counted as one, while Scaria, home to the Temporary Segmentum Pacificus Second Council, counted as half.
No, my territory's too small. I need to find a way to expand.
As he mulled it over, the Chapter arrived at the Forge World of Stolov.
The planetary cannons were deployed, but they could not instantly destroy two Battle Barges. The Adeptus Mechanicus's five Heavy Cruisers, converted into Fire Ships, also appeared. They only had one Forge World, after all; they could not possibly possess a powerful fleet like Mavrek's.
Evan's seven cruisers followed close behind, arriving at the Adeptus Mechanicus's Forge World.
Archmagos Phinnis was not worried in the slightest that Evan would attack. Both sides were merely flexing their muscles and warning each other. This was just the groundwork for negotiations.
Time to talk.
For negotiations this important, all the key figures had to attend.
Chapter Master Evan and Archmagos Phinnis exchanged a look.
One glance confirmed it: neither wanted trouble.
The two sides traded verbal blows throughout the negotiations, with harmonious voices ringing out everywhere. Binary mingled with High Gothic as they held in-depth discussions and made substantial progress.
After seven hours of friendly negotiations, the