By the end of the decade, Forge Retribution had finally completed the long shaft towards the planet mantle and installed the Reality Cage, which did in fact prevent Warp-engines from working next to it, and also gave hundreds of techpriests and acolytes terminal seizures. Nobody was certain why that happened, but many humans did have latent psyker genes, including the Cult Mechanicus members.

However, it wasn't all bad. Those psyker techpriests were also the most likely to fall to Chaos, like the Dark Mechanicum had.

As for FTL communication, we had the Forge's astropaths secluded on a distant moon, near the edge of the system, and they weren't blown up by the island of reality. They just couldn't see the planet or commnicate directly, instead having to use Manifold transmissions via encrypted gravity waves, or even laser or vox communiques for pict or voice messages.

It wasn't perfect, but it worked well enough that I gave the go ahead to install such devices on every large world in the Lancefire Dynasty. From Natale to Radium, then Illevar and Liberation, then lastly Salvation.

We should work out the kinks and potential problems before using the Reality Cage on the Cardinal World. Well, it was more of an agri-world and Fortress World now, the first Hive City being slowly dug downwards instead of raised.

The Hive City would be much less exposed to air and orbital attacks that way, plus the earth itself will provide structural resistance, instead of relying on expensive materials and complex technologies to keep those spires up.

I had a much better use for adamantium than holding up a thousand skyscrapers dozens of kilometers tall.

For example, building a thousand starships.

Imports of immigrants continued at increased rate, both criminals and indentured serfs from the nearest Hive Worlds.

And when Amberley finally arrived, she did not come alone. Beside the Catachans and the Drop-cruisers, she had brought her daughter Cyrene, and another Inquisitor of her Order called Ashuria_Indris.

Cyrene had the psyker gift, which wasn't actually good, but I kinda expected that. All of my kids with Rose have been psykers after all. Must be my damned luck.

And Ashuria...well she wanted something from me, as expected. Turns out it wasn't a wonderful romance or gifted children, but instead Ashuria wanted xeno technology and weapons she could use.

Well, I did have plenty of that, as it happens. Inquisitors did have a seventh sense for smelling a rich bounty and that sense led her right towards me.

But the woman should be used in other ways too, not just as a weapon against the terror.

Although Ashuria had a plain face, with brunette hair reaching her shoulders and brown eyes watching me calm and restrained, I wasn't easily convinced.

Especially not when Ashuria glanced at Amberley as she played with the Null bone staff, something like envy and greed flashing in those eyes before resuming a homely demeanor.

"Xenos technology, huh? I suppose I can help, dear Ashuria. Are you a psyker?" I asked to make sure. Not all Inquisitors were, but those with psyker powers were the most likely to survive.

"A very minor talent, Lord Lancefire. Lambda-level." the brunette woman complained in a soft voice.

I nodded thoughtfully and considered a few options. I could help her, quite a lot. Perhaps even make her a Beta-level psyker with the Shadowlight artifact from Prelia.

"And you, Amberley? How much power do you have with the relic staff in your hand?" I asked the other Inquisitor.

Amberley grimaced and struggled to lift a few tarot cards. "About Lambda-level as well. Your Rose is much stronger, even with this staff."

"You'll get stronger, my love. As for Lady Indris, we will need to work very hard together. Perhaps a dozen children, before we obtain one child bridging the Emperor's gift and my own. Only after that feat, would an artifact like Amberley's work for you." I proposed with a shameless smile, and sipped some expensive Dammassine.

Good stuff, and also very expensive to import. A barrel of it was as expensive as a Fury starfighter.

The new Inquisitor lady measured me with suspicious eyes, before turning to her colleague. "Are you okay with this, Inquisitor Vail?"

Amberley just shrugged and began taking off her leather suit in response. "Just sit back and observe, esteemed colleague. I kinda missed my lover, and he's grown even taller. Should be a lot of fun, my Pef darling."

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A couple of hours later, Ashuria had emptied my bottle of Dammassine and her face seemed rather red and hot. I waved her closer, and stole a gentle kiss. She tasted like almonds, which was very sexy.

Much later, I had both women resting beside me, while I caressed their sweaty skin.

"I could get used to this, even if it would delay my task." Ashuria murmured and kissed my shoulder.

"Then we shall do our best, for a month or so. Afterwards, I have to visit Forge Retribution and check the progress of the anti-Ork virus."

Both Ordo Xenos Inquisitors raised themselves and started interrogating me in various ways, until I spilled the beans.

"I'm quite certain experimenting with xenos weapons is forbidden and considered heresy." Amberley muttered while playing with my progenoid glands.

I shrugged and drew Ashuria into a long kiss. "Out here in the Fringe, I speak for the Emperor. Everything I say or do is divinely inspired. To disobey me is heresy." I explained in a patient voice, while playing with Ashuria's body as a counter-point.

"One more time, Pef?" she pleaded in my ear in a throaty voice.

I smiled inward. Angelic genes were quite useful today.

By the third week, I decided to test the Ancient device on Amberley, and see what it could do. Should I have been surprised, to see her psyker powers jump from Gamma to Alpha-level in ten minutes of exposure?

Well, I wasn't. The device was working exactly as promised. Amberley now had her own powers back at Gamma-level even with the Null-bone staff, and the Inquisitor was very grateful for my gift.

"This is amazing, lover! Oh, you're getting so fucked this week, til you won't be able to walk!" the blonde woman claimed in a determined voice, making Ludvaius chuckle to himself.

I signaled 'Silence!' with two fingers before grabbing the horny woman and making her look in my eyes. "This one time, for fun. You're pregnant already and our friend Ashuria is not. Plus I have many other concubines."

Amberley pouted and jumped on the bed, her bountiful body enticing me to just keep her in bed for a few decades. "I'll be back in two years anyway. And perhaps I may find you a nice gift in return."

Sadly, my duty demanded more than just pleasure.

I still had a hundred Catachans, a hundred nobles, a hundred Valhallans and a thousand Blank women to impregnate, and then a thousand Ogryn females waiting for me at Forge Retribution.

Yes, I did not forget about that project, although I might spread that difficult duty to some of my sons as well. Even their prettiest exemplars, and not yet fully mature, and they were taller than me and twice as muscular. And not that pretty, as you can imagine.

Perhaps do it from behind and lights turned off? And then close my eyes and think of Terra.

And on Terra, things were going quite bad from what I could glean. Of course, most reports were Redacted, or expunged or mere propaganda but a Cardinal dying couldn't be hidden. Nor could the Master of Astra Telepathica, despite claims of a long illness.

Their place in the Senatoris Imperialis had been taken by the Lord Commanders of the Astra Militarum and the Imperial Navy, which pointed to a more militaristic conduct for the Imperium in the next decades.

Primarch Khan was merrily butchering his way somewhere in the Segmentum Tempestus, reinforcing Forges and moving dozens of Astartes Chapters over Hive Worlds instead of their preferred Feral Worlds, which had nearly no value.

In the east, Primarch Guilliman was still gathering troops and ships for the Defendarius Crusade, which simply meant more and more Sentinel Worlds being set up, and his characteristically brutal cleansing of corrupt officials.

If the Imperium had three more Primarchs they might make it through the future crisis, but they did not.

It seemed I had to 'accidentally' wake up Lion El'Johnson, the Primarch of the Dark Angels.

And also, chat up my insane Necron friend, and obtain extra technology based on the Tau database.

The next week however, I did depart for Retribution with Ashuria and her retinue on board the Canticle. She even had a Genetor Magos willing to follow her, which would be quite a boon for the Fungal Research Division, those making the glass-virus against the Orks.

My battlecruiser finally had warp-less engines now, plus megatonnes of extra armor and a Nova Cannon, and so did all the battlebarges and battlecruisers under my command. The Lamenter Starfort was being plated over with even more armor and Blackstone, and configured to serve as a mobile base for future operations.

However, the battleships will still take decades to be ready for combat, even those sent for repair at Forge Triplex Phall.

They were just too big and complex machines, and some of the upgrades I demanded wouldn't be easy to install anyway.