Herald of the Stars: Chapter Seventy-Six (Patreon)

Christian Mordal, Patrick Bean, Jan Tholen, Random, and adam beech for purchasing Distant Sun's war bonds.

This is the final army list chapter.

I collate everything in my head that Daithí has told me and say, “We have seventy-three squadrons, nineteen of whom are assigned to logistics support for the Stellar Corps. A total of seven thousand and eight personnel, eight hundred and seventy-six class one D-POTs, and two hundred and nineteen class two D-POTs. This does not include any of the D-POT squadrons assigned to our fleet or infrastructure in orbit.”

“That matches with my report, Magos. Ocean navy next?”

“Go ahead.”

“Our ocean navy has three fleets, set up in the same way as the D-POT squadrons with three larger ships escorted by twelve smaller ones: three missile cruisers, eight destroyers, and four submarines. At one hundred thousand per cruiser, twenty thousand per destroyer, and forty thousand per submarine, our total tonnage is one point eight six million tonnes.

With five hundred crew per destroyer, two hundred per submarine, and two thousand per cruiser, there are sixty one thousand and four hundred crew for our three fleets.”

“We do not have a logistics fleet as the ocean fleet is supplied by D-POTs from orbit, or one of our three continental fortresses, via the Stellar Corps logistics companies. The D-POTs are nimble enough to hover over a ship, or float in the water, though they don’t have to do it that often as the ships are fairly self-sustaining.”

“I worked on those designs personally,” I say. “The compact atomic, fusion reactors, and other power sources available to us are remarkable. Did you know our fleets filter the heavy water they need from the oceans they traverse, or can extend their food supplies almost indefinitely with fish and algae? Even metals can be extracted in small amounts, or gathered from the ocean floor.”

“I have my hands full with learning the intricacies of the Distant Sun” Daithí shakes his head, “and preparing for my advancement to other vessels in the fleet. The ocean navy has always felt rather distant to me. Sticking my nose into the details of someone else's responsibilities wouldn’t help my career either.”

I laugh, “Fair enough, Daithí. Those are valid reasons, but you’re missing the bigger picture. It’s all technology; understanding machines exposed to a different set of environments and the unique engineering challenges that come with them, compared to the issues that you are used to dealing with, will open avenues for improvements in your own work.

“For all you know, the specific plasteel alloy used in an ocean ship for its extra corrosion resistance, might be three percent heavier, but be the perfect material for a highly caustic coolant you’ve spend a decade working on for some ultra-light drone, and because you’d set a weight limit in your data search you’d filtered the exact material you’d needed and your project came to a dead end.”

“That’s a highly specific example, Magos,” Daithí raises an eyebrow. “Did that happen to you?”

“Ah, something similar. I initially limited my search for blood replacement for all our servitors to non-psycho active, instead of typing non-psyker. When, on a whim, I went to look for sacred oils instead, I didn’t add that qualifier and found a blessed oil that could be used as a blood substitute but required a psycho-active chemical. A chemical that would have no effect because of how it was bonded to the oil and was warp resistant, even if it required rare, warp sensitive elements to make.”

Daithí smiles, “I’ll make sure to study the ocean ships, Magos.”

“Good. Now, what was Eire able to gather about the PDF?”

“The majority of PDF forces are held by the Gael Democracy. They have almost five hundred thousand infantry, though only a fifth of that is mechanised, like ours, nor do they have cyber mastiffs. Most of their logistics are completed by train.

“The PDF follows the same organisational structure as the Stellar Corps, though they have few tech-adepts or tech-priests within their ranks and are reliant on civilian contractors for most of their maintenance, most of whom are start up companies funded by you. One of Purser Brataich’s initiatives, I believe.”

“We have a lot of those,” I say. “Building wealth and ownership is an important tool in promoting cooperation and reducing discontent when uplifting lost worlds. It may not provide much of a monetary return, if any at all, and less scrupulous sorts might believe we are an easy mark. Meanwhile they are doing what we actually want, with their own efforts and giving us legitimate reasons to follow their every move.”

“That’s not what I thought those programs were about at all, Magos.”

“You didn’t think I’d sell all those weapons and forget about them did you? While few traders care about the exact consequences once they leave a planet, they are concerned about getting positive results. A strong ally can trade for much more than a divided one, even if I have to create said ally from scratch.”

“They do perform their advertised task as well, right, Magos? I sent my parents most of my pay to invest in those programs.”

“Of course! Destroying trust is a terrible way to run a business. It’s why Brigid has as many auditors as she does accountants.”

“Glad to hear it, Magos. Back to the report: the PDF personnel have no implants and do not benefit from extensive virtual training or accelerated learning programs. The PDF has had a few minor clashes with the tau, but nothing to really test them.

“They only have flak armour, and no hyperweave undersuits, denying them advanced optics or Marwolv pattern lasguns. They do not have MOA shields either. Instead, the PDF is fitted with triplex pattern lasguns, phosphex pistols, and special weapons squads with grenade launchers, rocket launchers, auto-cannons, and flamers. They don’t have any lascannons, heavy bolters, or plasma rifles.”

I nod, “A good balance between cost and power, if a little reliant on ammunition stocks. What are the triplex pattern lasguns like?”

“Triplex pattern lasguns can vary their shot power, much like you plan to do for the mark two Marwolv. They don’t go up to ‘hellfire’ or ‘hot-shot’ levels, nor do they have the extended range of the Marwolv. They’re still much better and more efficient than most PDF forces are granted though.”

“There you go, Daithí, even the report you’re reading to me says we don’t sell rubbish. No las-lock rifles, low powered ammunition, or other such nonsense.”

“I appreciate it, Magos. I suspect the whole crew do as well. We’re all from Marwolv, after all and this is the second xenos invasion we’ve had in less than forty years, even if the first one took twenty years before they showed their true colours.”

“We won’t be running, Daithí. My fleet will remain and assist until the orks are pacified. You’ll never be free of them though. Those spores are almost impossible to root out.

Daithí sighs, “Thank you, Magos. I have heard of volkite weapons and their great efficiency at limiting ork corruption. Could we make those?”

“We could, but volkite weapons are an awkward middle child; they are much more complex to manufacture and maintain than lasguns or bolter weapons, neither are they as efficient as lasguns, nor as versatile as bolters. I will admit they make good mobile armour and fixed defence weapons though, where their ‘tech-burden’ on a military, matches their power and practicality.” I sigh, and shake my head, “They are something that we could field, but it would do no good to sell them to the PDF, at least for another decade, and I hope to be long gone by then. Perhaps Marwolv will be able to make its own by then.”

“That’s a more complex situation than I was led to believe,” says Daithí.

“That’s almost always the case. You’ve told me about the state of the PDF on Brisgean. How about Dôl, and Llannerch?”

“There are three kingdoms on Llannerch and an empire and a republic on Dôl. The three kingdoms support about two hundred thousand infantry each while the empire and republic are less militant, maintaining a hundred and fifty thousand infantry and minimal mechanisation. All countries are bereft of an air force and possess, on average, twenty-five tank squadrons and ten batteries.

“Thirty percent of the PDF funding comes from you, Magos, the rest is paid by the Marwolv’s polities. We manufacture everything in orbit, or at our continental fortresses, Dimpsy Fortress on Brisgean, Drumbledrone on Dôl, and Anglewitch on Llanerch.

“Mawolv has undergone significant industrialisation since you arrived, but most of that has been building out infrastructure, such as gentoriums, power grids, roads, rail, and ports as well as the facilities needed to construct them, like ferrocrete plants, mines, and foundries.

“You are still the only polity that can manufacture the required industrial equipment, especially cogitators, precision instruments, and medical equipment. The knowledge has been traded for and schools are in session, but they aren’t there yet and still owe significant numbers of personnel and resources to you for all your assistance.

“If you were charging ‘imperial rates’ for these items, they’d never pay it back. As it is, you effectively own Marwolv and all its polities through debt for the next three centuries, their international trading currency is bytes, and all their modernised financial infrastructure is reliant on your good will to function at cost.”

“Three centuries? That’s a considerable incentive to return.”

Daithí  sighs, “You even control whether or not they can pay it back, as all the rare elements that are needed to produce the most advanced facilities and products, production that would generate the required income in a reasonable timescale, can only be gathered or synthesised in sufficient quantities from within the system and you are the only one with void based infrastructure and transport.”

I wince, “I did not realise it had become so out of hand. What happened to the Gael Democracy’s policy of only purchasing goods they could maintain without reliance on my resources?”

“The tau, Magos. If they hadn’t made such a mess, the only leverage you would have had is the threat of your ships in orbit, which you can’t use without ruining the environment of the planet you’ve been trying to advance, and killing off the people you want to recruit.

“Psyker presence on Marwolv is too high for subtle assassinations and leader replacements as well. Not to mention, it would be a challenge to enforce discipline and make your crew fire on their own world, or march towards their own homes.”

“I am aware of that, it’s why the tau never attacked openly either, but I hadn’t realised the tau were the ones to whom I owe my fortune, so long as I am able to return and collect it. I will have to talk to Eire, Brigid, Meave and Thorfinn about further investment and security if so much is at stake.”

“I think it would leave a positive impression on the crew, Magos, to know that, when they depart, their homeworld is safe. It certainly would for me.”

I nod, “I will definitely rethink my plans. The orks messed up my timetable anyway. Alright, back to the PDF. You mentioned what they’re supposed to have, how much do they have left?”

“We don’t know, Magos. Judging from the estimated energy of the strike, anything within three hundred kilometres is dead unless they were inside a ferrocrete and armourglass building. Anywhere near the coast, where the majority of the population is, has been flooded by tsunamis.

“All Marwolv is vulnerable to earthquakes, so buildings are designed to endure them and their aftereffects, so for now all we can do is hope such preparations have worked.

“Knowing where all the bases are and how they were built, Eire has estimated three hundred and fifty-thousand PDF personnel remain on Dôl, five hundred and ninety-thousand on Llanerch, and four hundred and ninety-eight thousand on Brisgean.

“The Monadh Republic and Pailt Empire kept most of their armour on their borders and have likely lost most of it. The other countries should be fine.”

“Thank you, second officer, Daithí Quill. Is there anything else in that report I need to know right this moment?”

“No, Magos. That’s everything in the summary. I’ve forwarded the report, so you won’t miss any details if you go looking.”

“Excellent work, thank you.”

“I’ll pass your words to first officer Lobhdain.”