The Emperor’s Angel of Death

With the intervention of the Space Marines and the Adepta Sororitas, along with the distribution of some relief food, the riots on the planet were quickly quelled. At the same time, major chambers of commerce "conjured" a large number of commodities into the market, slightly curbing prices. However, the impact of the war could not be completely erased, and everyone had to bear the cost, which was unavoidable.

While the rioting civilians were mainly pacified, the mutinous troops faced much harsher punishments. The leaders were basically executed on the spot, and the remaining soldiers were handed over to the Adeptus Mechanicus. Mutiny was a red line for the Imperium, and anyone who crossed it would be severely punished, regardless of the reasons.

In fact, with the Decapolis system's overall population of over 50 billion, a mere few million troops was not a large number. However, the key was that Amara imposed various restrictions on Decapolis, including prohibiting the construction of large-scale military factories and limiting the number of military academies. This was a facet of the Imperium's political ecology: just as Terra restricted various sectors, each sector would follow suit in restricting its systems, especially Decapolis, which had almost raised the flag of rebellion. Military restrictions would only be stricter.

After Soshyan arrived, the first major thing he did was to liberate Decapolis' strength, allowing them to build new military factories and training camps. For example, Soshyan planned to establish several production lines for the 'Terror Lion' tanks in Decapolis. At the same time, the forge world's factory ships would begin producing weapons and equipment nearby, utilizing local resources. As an important logistical base, the lack of armed forces was clearly unacceptable. According to the governor, Decapolis would be able to have 30 million troops in about two years. Of course, their combat effectiveness was hard to say, but at least the quantity could be guaranteed.

Naturally, this decision was opposed by the monitoring station established in Decapolis by the sector governor. They didn't dare to directly say no to Soshyan, but subtly suggested that he should first obtain the sector governor's consent, as he was the ruler of the sector. Soshyan's response was simple: the war was urgent, so he could only get on the bus first and buy the ticket later. He would personally present the matter to the sector governor when he went to Amara.

In addition to meeting these people, Soshyan also met another important figure: Inquisitor Dreska, the Ordo Xenos Inquisitor with the longest tenure in Orpheus.

Regarding the sudden appearance of the Necrons, the old Inquisitor, over 130 years old, couldn't say much. However, he confidently asserted that there were definitely no records of Necron activity in Orpheus in the past, and these Necrons must have launched an attack from outside the sector.

Currently, the other members of the Ordo Xenos were working hard on the front lines and in the fallen areas to investigate the movements and clues of these Necrons. He was staying behind because of his age and lack of agility, mainly to gather intelligence and relay information to other Inquisitorial branches.

However, there was also someone Soshyan knew in Orpheus, namely Skarman Havas. He was also active in Orpheus. This pro-alien Inquisitor was still handling affairs, not just focusing on his secret endeavors. However, even Dreska didn't know his current location, but he should come to meet Soshyan after hearing the news.

During the conversation, the old Inquisitor also expressed his concern to Soshyan about the mental state of the sector governor. He bluntly stated that the immense pressure may have overwhelmed the mortal governor's fragile mind, leading to a series of seemingly very paranoid decisions and orders. Therefore, he hinted that Soshyan should take over supreme command to prevent the situation from further deteriorating.

Soshyan didn't say anything about this, merely stating that he would decide based on the situation.

Just as he was preparing to set off for Amara, a force transferred from a distant sector to provide support arrived at Decapolis.

This was a large army of two million men, from the Imperium's renowned fortress world.

"All officers of the Krieg Death Korps Orpheus Task Force, salute the glorious Chapter Master Soshyan Alexey!"

As Soshyan stepped onto the huge Galaxy-class troop transport ship, hundreds of officers were already lined up on the landing pad, saluting in unison. They wore gleaming breastplates, unique helmets emblazoned with the Aquila, red greatcoats, command swords at their waists, and long boots. They had almost no personal markings. If they hadn't taken off their signature gas masks, revealing faces with a high degree of similarity, it would have been difficult to distinguish them.

It must be said that the Krieg officer corps had a high degree of similarity and recognition. Their greatest feature was the absence of any medals or awards. Soshyan had experienced this during the Maelstrom campaign. The Death Korps normally wouldn't issue these, because Krieg officers believed that such rewards for courage were unnecessary for Krieg soldiers, as they all had the courage to die. They wouldn't have accepted medals if Soshyan hadn't personally awarded them.

Another noteworthy point was that Krieg regimental officers often used their regiment's number to replace their name. The same was true in the company level. For example, the commander of the first company was called Major Alpha, the third company was called Major Gamma, and the commander of the 186th Regiment was called Colonel 186.

Of course, this was limited to junior officers.

Leading the officer corps were several white-haired veterans, draped in ornate gold-threaded greatcoats, with sashes and rare medals hanging on their breastplates. Even though their faces were full of wrinkles, their backs were still straight.

"Greetings, Marshal Karis Venner."

After the Terminators carrying the banners behind him stopped, Soshyan nodded slightly to the leading old man. He had a broad and pale face, and one eye had been replaced by a mechanical one.

After receiving Soshyan's salute, he raised his head slightly and responded in a loud voice.

"It is an honor to fight alongside the Krieg Death Korps once again."

Soshyan hadn't expected Terra to be so generous, directly transferring such a large Krieg force. It seemed that Orpheus' manpower was indeed very important to the Storm region.

Afterward, he inspected the force in the troop transport ship. It had to be said that the Krieg Death Korps lived up to its reputation. Even in the crowded and narrow compartments, the officers could proudly display their prized internal affairs. It could only be said that the Krieg Korps' discipline was indeed exaggerated.

With these two million elite troops, Soshyan had more confidence in the war. Afterward, he inspected the armored forces and artillery. It had to be said that the Krieg Korps really favored equipment with poor mobility but reliable performance, which also proved their preference for positional warfare. However, whether this hard-hitting mode could be effective against enemies like the Necrons remained to be seen, but it did fit Soshyan's idea of fighting a war of attrition.