Chapter 34: Retribution Crusade
The vessel which would carry Fredrick to the next step of the Vengeance Campaign was about to be launched. They would've set out earlier but mapping the area's Hyper Lanes was slow progress. All of the systems they connected too were dead, some lacking planets entirely, others having barren worlds. Several possessed gas giants that were of note for their potential for resource extraction. But establishing an interstellar enclave was next upon the list. The Kursk System had droid outposts upon all major bodies and its ship building capacity was expanding rapidly. New dockyards being constructed among the resource rich asteroid belt, with access to resources mined from the inner rocky planets shoring up any deficiencies.
Their first Subjugator Heavy Cruiser was approaching completion and it couldn't come soon enough. Alongside it were a pair of Providence class Dreadnoughts, the initial foundations for their skeletons being laid down. They were being slotted into the role of light cruisers by HK-217, the size of many capital ships was nothing compared to what this galaxy used and they were being downgraded, the only vessel to maintain its pre anomaly designation were the Subjugators, and even then, they had been downgraded in doctrine from super capital ship to merely a capital ship. The new Super Lucrehulk design that HK had put together was in the spinning up phases, merely waiting for shipyard space to be opened for its construction.
Fredrick had transformed the planet's orbit from nearly naked to that of an ever growing foundry world in the making. The site of the initial Droid Factories upon the planet had transformed, in a sprawling factory, forge and development complex that covered miles of the planet's surface. It had been growing for a decade now, ever since the initial prefabricated droid foundry had been constructed following their initial landing.
They were churning out new space craft by the dozens, more and more as the months past to flood the star lines and find the Word Bearers. The majority of these were Hardcells, their design modified, removing most of the cargo capacity to house sensor equipment and the other pieces of technology which made hyperlane mapping possible.
Many had been expended in the search for the Word Bearers. Some succumbing to space borne hazards, others being used to create small listening posts on various planetary and asteroid bodies. They had maintained an infantry battalion of droids per vessel and a large host of engineer droids allowing them to use the vessel as material to establish a communications outpost. These station were instrumental in mapping out their sector of the galaxy, as Imperial charts did not feature hyperlanes, instead relying upon a more direct form of wormhole drive. They couldn't make the technology work and considering descriptions Fredrick had of the Warp, the dimension they traveled through, perhaps hyperspace was the better choice.
He had changed in ways he would have never pictured in his life prior to arriving on Kursk. He had become a true Cyborg, entrapped within his armor as it sustained his body. In touch with the mechanical more than his own flesh. He had also become a tyrant, a military dictator who would outlive his subjects as his life was prolonged by machines. He had also grown to care for the people of Kursk, they were strong, far more enduring than the by comparison spoiled people he had fought both for and against during the Clone War. They had nothing but a war time economy, sending a portion of their population to their greater Empire's war time needs every few years and equipping them with sufficient equipment to be usable upon the battlefield.
The scale of the galactic war startled him, along with its duration. Ten thousand years of constant grinding conflict, no peaceful periods, merely lulls in the battle. He had been consumed by the burdens of war and managing his new found realm that its history had taken a backseat. Yet it was important to understand a people, and there was no better way to do so then studying their past. It was clouded in a heavy religious bent, the sagas of martyrs and the faith echoing above all others in most texts, yet there were many references to some great Civil War in the Imperium's past that had rent it asunder, the aftershocks of it still reverberating through time's annals. The Horus Heresy, the casting down of the Archtraitor had been one of the greatest wars of this Empire. Yet it seemed clouded by religious framing, Fredrick could only relate the Primarchs to stories of the Archangels of his homeworld, those chiefs of their orders serving their God. The Choirs of those Angels and the Legions of the Space Marines seemed akin to another.
Fredrick shuddered, wondering how a people could be at war for so long that their founding generals and their armies could become what they worshipped. An Astartes was a formidable combatant, and they could match many times their number in heavy war droids; they were merely the most elite soldiers of a Galaxy spanning Empire. But their combat records against a fully mobilized and militarized droid world spoke for itself, they were beyond any Clone soldier in prowess.
He read while observing the progress of the ship yards. Countless laborers, both organic and metal worked to bring more vessels on line. While a Munificent was no match for a Sword class Frigate in a one on one fight, they could be churned out in mass. While two vessels if well commanded could face off lone frigates, it took eight to ensure a kill and losses on the Confederate side would be likely. Hence why Fredrick had placed priority for minor frigate shipyards to be constructed in the system to begin maximizing their production. The much larger capital ship gantries were one main limits to his production capacity. He could produce two of them at the same time. As such the Subjugator Heavy cruiser and a new Lucrehulk were being worked upon. Providence Dreadnoughts while they were considered required gantries larger than the various escorts and as such were not being considered until medium sized gantries were installed.
This and many other debates about allocation of resources and training schedules, along side production quotas filled his time as the Tactical Droids bombarded him for requests for approval for their pet projects. Since memory wipes were no longer given to droids of that rank, their personalities had become difficult to manage. It was a mark of low stature amongst the cast to retain the factory settings for their behaviors once they arose to prominence among their kind. The dynamics of their relations with the population, was problematic, many viewing them with poorly concealed hatred. The society of the Imperium despised droids, far beyond even anything Fredrick had witnessed before. The only thing preventing outright rebellion in many areas was the presence of massive droid armies ready to crush any such uprising, along with their service in protecting the population during the Word Bearer's incursion. Those areas that had been struck and defended by Droids were a different matter. Hard to hate the machines that interceded in the face of your religion's affectation of Demons.
Mapping the local area was taking too long for Fredrick's liking, salvaged Cogitators having no information about this sector's hyperlanes, those with star charts showed the stars and a few even had models which would show their moving positions as the galaxy turned around its center. But there was no mention of hyperlane routes, only of using the Warp to travel from system to system. Descriptions of it varied, some putting it in religious terms as the Realm of Souls, others as an alternative dimension that required strange mutations to properly navigate.
Soon, Fredrick would find the Word Bearers. They had to be close, their raids came from the system's outskirts which indicated that they were making imprecise light speed jumps but no hyper space signatures could be detected, work was being done in the field of developing interdictors for that sort of work, to stop them from escaping.
Yet shadowing his efforts were the visions. They bothered him most nights, he was beset by recurring dreams, some showed the massive shadow of the creature engulfing countless star systems. Others were of a more mundane nature, the natural consequence of multiple wartime engagements. He struggled with those especially.
Fredrick had noted a large increase in the number of dreams he had since being interned in his armor. His host of droid doctors had assured him that this was the predicted outcome and it had been observed in several others, though in the most complete augmentations could eliminate that issue.
Some of them seemed over eager to cut out his human parts and replace them with machines. It was disturbing given how many injuries he had accrued in his time here. He still had the inferno pistol that had almost killed him, kept on a wall mount as a trophy from the day of his triumph.
His quarters were remarkably sparse.. A set of metal chairs and a table were the only furniture in the room, aside from the rack where he would rest and that would recharge his armor.. A set of lights kept it brightly lit, but he preferred the natural light that came in through a window, it was his only concession the grandeur that could come from someone who owned a planet, it was richly decorated, gold fittings and carved wood marked its frame and its glass was stained in scenes of his arrival and conquest of the planet.
It was a study in contrasts. His body's need for life support had kept him from becoming too indulgent. How could one succumb to hedonism if they could hardly feel anything. A part of him wondered if he would eventually become like one of his tactical droids, cold and inhuman. He valued them but they were not gifted with the capacity to ask why. That had always been reserved for humans. Stories of Droid Rebellions were common as cautionary tales in engineering institutions and amongst those who gifted them with their artificial life. The complexities of building true Artificial Sapience were beyond him…
This was how Fredrick spent some of his days. Secluded compilation of his place as the Cyborg King of a growing Empire of machines. Its human roots would keep it anchored along the proper path, but it would be metal that ascended to the stars.
A quartet of D-100 droids stood in his chambers, still as statues but they could be roused to wrath within moments of an intruder being detected. They were the final line of the layered defenses that surrounded him. B7782 was developing a fixation of protecting him from assassination attempts. IG-100s were often seen on roof tops following him about the city, scanning for any dissent. Many veterans had witnessed the sheer strength of the droids against normal humans during the wars. A IG series droid could shatter bones and break men like frail sticks. The majority of battle droids could replicate this, if they were aware of the threat.
"C223, notify my shuttle crew, I am going to observe the teams charting our stellar neighborhood."
A beeping affirmative came from the Tactical Droid who served as his personal aide. Several more servant droids were in the room where they stood in silent vigil awaiting his orders.
…
The shuttle took him to the dockyard's viewing station. Several senior foremen were issuing orders to their subordinates. The Subjugator cruisers were mammoth projects and this one was already nearing its second year of construction. As many resources as were available were being poured into it. Triple shifts ensured round the clock work was being lavished upon this vessel. They had completed a pair of Providence Destroyers in the mean time, reports of progress, delays and other things were crying for attention at his desk when one appeared, flashing red priority codes, from one of the scouting ships.
"Enemy planet found. Images enroute."
Their incomplete holonet system made images slow to arrive compared to text."
Fredrick waited, and he began to receive pending requests for conference from both B7782 and HK-217.
The first image appeared, projected onto a screen in front of him. It was of a semi arid planet, with several red patches around its few bodies of water. It was capped in frozen poles and several mountain ranges crisscrossed its surface. Another image followed the first, several glowing areas on the planet's night time surface followed by a closer image, this one was tagged with a note staying it had been taken from one of the probe droids that had been sent to its surface.
A brazen, black stone symbol in the shape of an eight pointed star and a sprawling settlement.
The streets were choked with humans. Some in rags, emaciated, others dressed in the clothing that had become associated with the Cultists that made up the majority of the Word's Bearer's army. Following these were a dump of images showcasing various other settlements, strange red plant life and distorted images depicting several religious ceremonies. Farms and industry dotted the planet. Only a handful of Marines were seen, some leading the ceremonies, others managing the largest industrial centers. Those pictures were always from a distance.
Fredrick accepted the hails from his two lieutenants. Their images appearing before him on his hologram projectors, and before they could speak he raised one of his hands.
"Hk, bring the fleet to muster. I want a course chartered and supply lines detailed. Have reconnaissance assets continue to observe this planet. It will be the first to fall before the sword."
"B7782 marshall all of our legions, have freighters ready to begin to transport an invasion army. Draft up three seperate landing schemes for the beach head. Bring me reports on any Ground to Space batteries and the impact of such guns on our invasion."
B7782 was the first to speak,
"Lord, we can be ready for a planetary invasion in two months, if you want to be hasty, four if you want a normal scope. Fine details will up too HK-217 as I will need data that his assets acquire."
"Lord, we can secure that planet's orbital space for an invasion, given our past experience with the Word Bearer's on Kursk, I can provide a 75% chance that our invasion is contested in some fashion, in addition, surface batteries should be anticipated, our probes will have more information, I will begin dispatching true naval assets to begin our analysis and initial sweeps of the system. It is several Lightspeed jumps as the hyper lanes of this region are heavily fragments and few run far without branching and requiring a recalculation."
"Excellent, both of you will begin preparations at once. I want our intelligence sections to have reports on my desk by next week detailing initial analysis and progress updates twice a standard month from both of you."
"It shall be done" The two Super Tactical Droids seemed to have anticipated his response, they had become quite adept at guessing his responses to reports with only a partial read on its subject. It could be worrisome.
No matter, he would press onward. Fredrick turned and began to concentrate on his work
...
HK-217 walked into the room flanked by a quartet of lesser Tactical droids.
"What is our lord thinking, our fleet is not ready for a general engagement, launching an assault at this point in our buildup will result in us being caught in battles we are not ready for. The vast majority…"
"You are questioning our Lord, HK-300?"
"Sir, we are not ready to face off against enemy Cruisers and Battlecruisers, we lack the strength of capital ships. We have by the new classification system, a pair of "Pocket Battleships" and a light cruiser, in addition to several destroyers and frigate squadrons."
"Commodore, leave this matter to the Admiralty, we will handle the Lord and this operation. I will assume that your objections are born of insufficient data. Review intelligence reports and recalculate your odds, new intel is arriving by the day."
HK-217 turned and summoned a OOM Droid officer, "Send a message to the Rear and Vice Admirals, along will all commodores, have them meet in the naval briefing room in four hours, we will have our initial operation plan for Lord Fredrick prepared."
Turning from the Battle droid, HK-217 accessed the data stream and began to gather reports and intelligence, delegating rolls to his Vice and Rear Admiral.
He began organizing the primary task forces and setting up flows of logistics that would occupy most of the fleet's duties in this action, no major enemy fleet elements were seen, and neither were any major orbital facilities. This planet should fall rapidly."
That was the end of that, but HK-217 could not be certain, several elements of the growing Tactical droid class were expressing doubts regarding their highest leadership. That was not their place and he would have to bring this to IG-105. That one was monitoring such elements, and had made it perfectly clear he would "delete" such irregularities from the system.
The Super Tactical Droid could not feel fear, but it did have a response to potentially coming under that chopping block.
They would fight the enemy and put themselves onto the offensive, it was always better to attack than to defend. Survival of their growing nation state would depend on his navy, in order to ensure that the navy flourished, he could not be caught up in an internal purge.
…
They gathered around a holographic representation of the Stellar System, it had been labeled SO-074 as the 74th system that had been surveyed for signs of enemy presence. Hyper Lane travel put it two jump points away from the Kursk system .
"We will lead in with our Escort Squadrons, Commodores the vanguard will fall under the command of Vice Admiral HK-258 and will secure stations throughout the system. We will calculate the points within system which enemy Warp Travel is possible and mines will be laid by frigates and converted Hardcells, this will mark phase one of the battle. HK-258 will have the Providence Dreadnaught "Freedom's Spear" as your command vessel."
The images of these advance groups arriving in the system and taking their actions to secure it were displayed.
"Once phase one is complete the bulk of the fleet will arrive, Star Hammer and Confederate will enter in this formation. The two Providence Squadrons will escort them in, they will invest the planet and commence ground assault. Meanwhile Rear Admiral HK-272 will run patrols of the jump points while transports and freighters will begin to set up our supply chain, HK-272 you will have the Providence Destroyer/Carrier "Valeria" as your command vessel.
"In the event of a major fleet asset assaulting our convoys at these two jump points, orders will be to scatter and regroup at the next jump point. Escorting warships will engage the vessel but once those transport have made a hyper space jump, your orders are to disengage. Any vessel under light cruiser classification is not to engage a superior enemy vessel in a one on one engagement. Instead Rules of engagement will be to launch strike craft and harry them from a distance."
If the enemy engages while phase two is underway with major fleet assets the course of action will be to have our Lucrehulks engage any "Cruiser" class vessels as they appear. In the event of "Battleship" Class vessels, several sacrificial Hardcell ram vessels will detach from the main fleet body, they are specially equipped for boarding assaults and should at least four make it to the vessel, disabling the vessel should prove to be likely. Should this fail, general disengagement will occur. Should any squadrons be totally destroyed Admirals you will inform me aboard the Star Hammer. Should either Lucrehulk be disabled we will retrograde back to the second Jump Point, there we will reform the fleet into one cohesive element and engage pursurors."
Fredrick listened as the various contingencies and plans that HK-247 had put together along with his admiralty. B7882 had a hand in picking out the four separate landing points for their land assault and he perked up at this point. A set of the Star Hammer's Escorts had been earmarked to provide close in fire support for any hotspots during the invasion with their secondary battery. Using the main guns could prove too damaging for battlefield support. The sheer extensive nature of the plans took hours to go over and he was merely receiving the overview. Accompanying Fredrick were several human generals who had been recruited from those who had surrendered at the end of the Conquest. They would prove reliable by Fredrick's assessment provided they were never used against other Imperial Forces. Each had been assigned a set of IG-100 Body guards who served as measure of trust. He had given orders for them to be killed at the first attempt to be disloyal.
They all watched as first HK-217 laid out the entire strategy for the void war before B7882 and made his introduction to the planned land borne offenses and how they could accomplish the objectives Fredrick desired. They were nearing the end of his brief when one of the human officers stood up and spoke.
"You know that you'll have to cleanse the planet's population correct. Throughout this plan you have neglected to section units for the extermination of the rabble hordes employed by the Word Bearers. They'll turn against you and will endless provoke rebellion amongst any settlers. In addition they could summon more of the Word Bearer's unnatural allies from the realm of Chaos, the armies of those devils who oppose the Master of Mankind."
"Exterminating the population is not allowed by our laws of war, Major General Savelievich, as distasteful as you may find that" Said B8002, one of the Tactical Droid Generals who had helped to plan the invasion.
"You don't understand, once tainted by the enemy's power the population will never be able to be reincorporated, besides it would be blasphemy to try. They turned from the Master's light and cannot be welcome in his house."
"Don't start by pretending that while this empire of yours is independent of the Imperium, you have taken one of his worlds and developed it, made it stable and built it a fleet and armies. You fight against his enemies and prevent harm from coming to his subjects. I do not understand what gave you, Abominable Intelligences cause to stay your hands and even bring us men into your confidences but the people will not stomach this, and neither will they."
"You are suggesting wholesale slaughter of the population of an entire world, and borderline treasonous thoughts in the presence of your Sovereign." said IG-105, "Explain your meaning and be precise."
"My Lord," said General Savelievich, ask any of us or consult the records in the Governor's old archive, the population of a world in service to the Ruinous powers cannot be brought into the fold. We've all seen the pict footage from the War. These cultists are rabid dogs, putting them down to face His Holy Judgement is not only our duty but a mercy."
The general adjusted his uniform, fixing some non-existent creases.
"You are our worldly Sovereign, yet I will stand before the Golden Throne when my soul passes into the afterlife, and to tolerate the heretic is to damn myself. You must understand Lord, you are blessed with this opportunity. Your methods may be unorthodox, but you can see the Emperor's blessings in your actions, you must understand that we are to be his sword in this endeavour."
Fredrick stared at the man through his suit's viewport.
"You will not call my Droids Abominable Intelligences again, I will tolerate Silica Animus but not that one. Second you put forward the Genocide of the Civilian population of SO-74c's people. I am not inclined to believe that they may be tainted beyond redemption. Accidents occur during Droid Invasions, but we do not go to war to exterminate, yet you say that they can call daemons into our reality. That is a threat which cannot be ignored."
B7782 's face could not move but Fredrick could tell that he looked shocked at this.
"I have consulted records from before our time here. They state of worlds devoured by creatures who can use the minds of the faithless and unwary as portals. Those who walk in the Emperor's Light are said to be protected from this threat. At first I dismissed this as superstition but we all saw the Word Bearer's and their servants, and several minor Daemonic Incursions did occur. We cannot risk a major breach of realities veil here. If the Major General is correct and our data shows he has a high probability of being so, the unthinkable may have to become policy with Chaos Tainted populations."
B7782 spoke, "Lord shall we prepare Gas Droids for this endeavour, along with defoliator ordinance?"
Speaking in a solemn voice Fredrick gave his verdict.
"I give my authorization for chemical destruction of the Word Bearer's population, they are to be considered enemy war material and destroyed as nonrecoverable assets. This order can only be revoked by me. We cannot risk our people becoming hosts to those creatures. Any sites of daemonic summoning are to be targeted for orbital bombardment, by the guns of the Star Hammer. If this sword must fall, I will be the one to wield it."
The Droids began to pulse to one another, and Fredrick could understand it, many of them were objecting to this but would not do so out loud. Their speechless talk was not hidden from him but it had become custom to allow unspoken dissent, provided they could work out their discord before speaking to him.
"IG-105, B7782, HK-217, begin your preparations for this new war at once. Let the Retribution Crusade begin.
