The Lost Primarch Quest (2024)

Kesar had always been honest to a fault. Despite the strategic, economic, social, and political benefits to wait until the last moment before seceding he didn't think that was for the best. It would lead to a period of hybrid warfare, where Alpha Legion operatives and Sigillites could act openly either in support or opposition. The thought of having to fight and kill his nephews made his stomach churn, and so Kesar wanted to pursue the option that was least likely to lead to their deaths.

"Oriacarius," Kesar uttered as the room looked at him. "Stay, the rest of you are dismissed."

The other members of the Legion trailed out of the room along with Karcer. The only delay was from Oriacarius taking Maticus to the side and handing a dataslate before telling him to enact one of the plans on it.

Once the room was empty save the two of them, the First Captain of the Wardens sighed. "So, we're doing this then?"

Kesar nodded seriously, before gesturing to the empty board next to them. "We have a lot to plan."

"We should start with the timing." Oriacarius looked at the board before writing a brief timeline on it. "Most of our planning will be dependent on it."

"How much of a plan do you have?" Kesar asked seriously, "I don't think we can contest the Imperium in the shadows, but if you have an alternative …"

"I have one," Oriacarius admitted easily, "but it's a skeleton due to the complexity. It highlights the important decisions to make and pitfalls that'll occur."

"I believe it's best to leave as soon as possible," Kesar explained, "a hybrid war is not in our best interests."

"I fully agree," Oriacarius said, marking on the board when the secession would be publicly announced and implemented. "Next is how we will go about planning within the Legion." At this, the First Captain sighed, "Based on how Mortarion's secession went, I must reluctantly caution against full secrecy."

The Primarch of the Wardens looked at his son. It was an unexpected warning from Oriacarius as he fully expected him to support keeping it as secret as possible. "Go on," he said, gesturing with his hand.

"Mortarion made many mistakes due to a lack of complete information. While I believe our administrative system is better as is our information handling metrics, I've realized it's extremely important to avoid issues that'll result from unknown unknowns." The First Captain stated, writing several bullet points on the board as he did. "It's important to stress that this doesn't mean I support freely sharing this information, rather I favor contacting experts within the Legion such as Auro and Solarus. They may not have an opinion on secession, but they are knowledgeable in fields we are not."

"Hmm," it was an avenue Kesar had considered, although in his eyes it would blindside many of his sons. "Would it not cause an increase in the number of Wardens that choose to leave the Legion? As well as an increase in the amount of information that leaks from displeased Astartes?"

Oriacarius conceded the point with a nod, "Yes, but I view hostile action as a greater threat than internal unity."

"I don't feel the same," Kesar replied, ensuring he kept his tone neutral to avoid sounding judgemental. "Acting in the dark while keeping this secret from my sons does not sit well with me." Turning it over in his mind, Kesar could almost feel the sense of betrayal that wound coil within the hearts of some of the more loyalist-minded. "One of the major issues I've seen in rebellions has been a lack of internal unity," he began to think of it from a utilitarian perspective, trying to avoid his emotions coloring his thought process. "I think it's important the secession starts off on the right foot."

"I can accept the reasoning," the First Captain said, neither pleased nor displeased by the decision. Marking it down on the board, he gazed over it before coming to the next focal point. "There are a few planets that are likely to remain loyalist," taking out a dataslate, Oriacarius quickly opened up a database on it before filtering it according to a set of complex variables. "Of them, four would cause significant issues for the Legion should they be allowed to act against us."

"You're suggesting we preemptively secure them?" Kesar asked, having considered a similar line of thought. "While Mortarion's method was poorly implemented, allowing them to choose their side would be the right decision morally."

"Losing access to Zhen IV, Undel, Mezoa, or Mannheim would cause us considerable strife," Oriacarius replied, providing the dataslate to Kesar who began to peruse it.

Kesar recognized all of these names as notable past compliances. Baldur had used Kesar's notes to bring Zhen IV into compliance over 4 decades ago, Maticus fought a series of snipers on Undel, Mezoa had been a frustrating diplomatic mission for Baldur, and Mannheim produced a truly massive quantity of lasguns. Losing any of them would mean losing access to the majority supplier of a specific war material within Svarga. Zhen IV produced the outright majority of aquatic vehicles in the Imperium while Mannheim produced 40% of all las DMRs. Mezoa was a truly prosperous forge world whose Knights fought alongside his sons while 20% of Solar Auxilia snipers were trained by Undel.

"And yet, strong-arming them into joining would alienate others." Kesar succinctly put it after he read through the dataslate and learned what these worlds were currently producing.

"We don't have to be obvious about it," Oriacarius retorted. "A single squad meeting with the Mezoan Fabricator-General can 'convince' them while stationing a garrison above the planet would exert enough pressure to modify their decisions." Writing down the benefits of this form of aggressive diplomacy, the First Captain added yet another reason for it. "We can even excuse it by saying these worlds deserved to know personally rather than through a mortal auxiliary."

Kesar thought about the suggestion for the moment, realizing some of the benefits of this position. "If we make it clear we won't stop them with force, I could accept this," he agreed. Attempting to persuade worlds to stay with him was more than acceptable, it was only if he stopped them via force that would make it wrong. "There are a few diplomats we could send alongside a few Wardens."

"Yes," Oriacarius said slowly, clearly having something to add. As such, Kesar remained silent, gesturing for the First Captain to continue. "Most of our diplomatic core has been modified and altered by Captain Baldur. He could do a lot of damage simply by leveraging his soft power."

"Or a lot of good." Kesar pointed out concealing his annoyance. While Baldur was hard to read, that didn't mean he should assume the worst of him. And while Oriacarius' innate suspicion of everyone made him an exceptional commander, it occasionally caused issues like this. "He will be read into this regardless, he is welcome to make his decision on whether he will support the Wardens or the Imperium."

A flash of irritation crossed Oriacarius' face at the dismissal. "I wish to be the one to read him into this new chapter of history."

"Very well," the Second Anathema could readily agree to that. While he trusted his sons, a touch of caution was warranted in this case. "Do so at your discretion."

The First Captain slowly nodded, already piecing together a plan for his approach. As he did, he continued to write on the board, "We also need to determine how hostile we want to be. Anywhere from denouncing the Emperor and the Imperium to simply declaring it a parting of ways."

"We won't be taking a hardline stance," Kesar outright declared, understanding such a stance would immediately force the Emperor to war. Despite everything, he still wanted to give the Imperium every off-ramp it could even if it was futile. "But we do need to decide the specifics. Do we say it's an amiable transition, or do we call out specific policy failures?"

"And what policy failures do we call attention to?" Oriacarius continued. "Do we focus on economics and the coup on Terra? Or do we specifically draw attention to the Gamma Camps?"

"The latter would seem to align us against the Gammas," Kesar warned. "But that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing."

"It'd imply we wanted a more orderly galaxy," Oriacarius observed. "But I would caution against taking such a stance due to the sheer number of Gammas and Gamma sympathizers."

Kesar was starting to see the dark humor in this, "Either I express my disapproval toward the Emperor and Terra, risking their wrath, or toward the Gammas, which could incite rebellion across multiple worlds and create more camps."

"I would remind you that at least three of the Gamma Blocs are helmed by people the Imperial Army looks up to." Ori warned him once more, "Terra is far away and the Emperor is distracted."

Both were excellent points, and Kesar had to think carefully about what he chose.

[] A Friendly Departure - Not providing a reason for the departure will lead to more loyalists, but it will also ensure relatively cordial relations and ideally prevent further escalation.
[] Economic Concerns - Citing concerns of the economy and Terran Coup, this will irritate the Emperor moderately but would win the approval of a plurality of Gamma Camps.
[] A Lack of Order - Saying the formation of Gamma Camps is a failure of Imperial policy will anger the Gamma Camps, but would be politically acceptable even on Terra ensuring cordial relations.
[] Write-in

Following a rather extensive discussion on the pros and cons of all possible declarations (including a rather odd one from Oriacarius pinning the reasoning on the actions of an Astartes pilot), the First Captain and Primarch shifted to the next important topic. "What are your thoughts on prepositioning units?" Kesar asked. "While I don't expect an immediate reprisal, caution is warranted."

"As long as we're campaigning in the Maelstrom we may not be able to adequately defend our borders," Oriacarius analyzed the situation quickly, coming to the same conclusion Kesar had.

"A tripwire force would serve adequately, as would a rapid response force." Came the Primarch's reply. "While it's not ideal, we could give up a sector before pivoting with our main forces."

"We would have to keep Astartes numbers high," Oriacarius mused, "which would fit nicely with Karcer's thoughts on slowing the rate of fighting within the Maelstrom."

"Morale will be an issue …" Kesar reluctantly accepted. While the Wardens under his command were managing the Maelstrom adequately, the Imperial Army was being run ragged. Initially, he hadn't thought it was an issue, but the situation on the ground had begun to trickle up through the guardsmen-Astartes squads. And they painted a worrying picture of a casual acceptance of their certain death in cruel and brutal fashions. "But I suspect we may disagree on the rate of compliance."

"She favors reducing the current rate by 50%," Oriacarius explained. "While I don't think it's a mistake, I also don't believe that's optimal."

Running through thousands of calculations in his mind, Kesar came to an ideal number. But he thought to get his son's calculations first. "And what do you suggest?"

"A reduction of 20%, enough to allow consistent rotations of units to alleviate the worst of the problems."

"Ask if Karcer will accept a reduction of 30%, while I agree with your idea, the Lord General Militant's advice shouldn't be disregarded." Kesar declared.

"Understandable," the First Captain replied, clearly pleased with Kesar's reasoning.

"That's two of the main issues decided," stated the Primarch. Sighing as he realized how much there was left, he continued onwards. "I have some economic plans for decoupling from the Imperium as much as possible, although they aren't ideal."

"Will revenue and spending be impacted?" Oriacarius asked seriously. "I've had some serfs run calculations, but you're certainly more qualified than them."

"We're stable at our level," Kesar began to explain. "Revenue and expenditures along a domain-wide level can be managed with some financial restructuring alongside a few supply chain alterations. The problem will mainly be focused on a more local level."

"How so?" Oriacarius asked, beginning to take notes.

Explaining it over the course of the next two hours, Kesar began to dive into the fundamentals of economics as he understood them. While he was no Guilliman nor had he developed a true mastery of the subject, he had learned passively over the last half-century.

*Kesar gains Supply Chain Management - Reduced effect of difficult supply lines within Svarga*

Much of his focus was on the management of supply chains in difficult circ*mstances. Based in part on his work to optimize the inter-sector trade due to his rather developed economy, it had developed into a more military-minded aspect during his time in the Maelstrom. As he explained it, much of the difficulties for Svarga would be locally on select worlds that required massive imports for their larger facilities. Battleship yards in particular would be the most affected by this due to the required importation of parts from within the Imperium's core.

Managing this aspect of the supply line would be critical, or many of these yards would have to shut down. This left Kesar with a few options that had a variety of trade-offs involved. A few of which he had learned from trying to resolve supply lines within the Maelstrom.

The first and simplest was to begin producing these parts domestically. He'd identified a few worlds capable of doing so in Asgard, Sector 17, and Vadon. Most of the production would be focused on the Vadon Sector by necessity, primarily due to their current project focused on large-scale manufacturers of high-end industrial materials. A few incentives would allow those projects to instead be utilized for ship components. The downside, however, would be the ten-year period where the shipyards would be empty due to the spool-up time required. While the problems caused would be mostly alleviated by preordering, there would nonetheless be a short, sharp hit to a variety of planetary incomes.

The second possibility was to partner directly with the Mechanicum. Bypassing the Imperium entirely, Kesar could send Kelbor-Hal a few letters and ensure a source of high-technology components for shipbuilding. It would publicly tie him to the Mechanicum, but that was a moot point considering he was one of the organization's most popular Primarchs. He was also rather certain that the Fabricator General would do so for almost no cost. He was both a friend and disliked the Emperor which made things simpler. The only downside would be some additional Mechanicum soft power within his domain, which was already rather considerable.

The last idea was likely to be the most controversial. Importing components from Vulkan would be a rather simple strategy by the formation of an extended trade route through Magnus' domain. The Lord of Drakes had had decades to prepare for a secession and as such had domestic manufacturing of everything apart from certain components used in Glorianas. As such, if he was willing to tie himself to Vulkan and Konrad he could resolve much of his domain's issues rather easily.

[] Internal Production - Causing a temporary dip in production due to the lead times, this is nonetheless the best way to ensure independent supply lines
[] Mechanicum Suppliers - At the cost of Mechanicum influence, the supply line disruption can be minimized rather easily. There are some risks convoys could be intercepted.
-[] Plan to switch over to internal production in 10 years
[] Vulkan's Domain - Tying yourself to Vulkan and Konrad would resolve these issues. But also cause a decent level of discontent from detractors of their ideas.
-[] Plan to switch over to internal production in 10 years
[] Write-in

Now that they had a broad overview of their plans, Kesar and Oriacarius began to discuss the minutia. During this Kesar thought back to what he had learned from the Eldar and Orban. He still didn't know if he could trust it, and he was glad that he hadn't shared it with his Legion yet. If he had, the other reasons for secession would have taken a back seat as they investigated. Ironically it likely would have delayed it for another 5-10 years.

He knew he couldn't share it with everyone without solid proof. Proof that would be incredibly difficult to find. That is if it was even possible. It was the nature of divination, trying to use it as evidence was flimsy. And knowing the Emperor, if this was his plan he would never write anything down. It would all exist in the minds of him and Malcador.

There was the faint possibility that the twins may be able to find something. But in Kesar's eyes, even their impossible skill would likely be insufficient. Then there was his First Captain. Kesar felt his gaze drift towards Oriacarius. He may not be able to investigate thanks to his position among the Wardens, but he undoubtedly had some scenario for this situation he could advance. At the very least informing him would allow for additional contingencies to be planned and implemented.

[] Do not share the Emperor's plans - They will never see the light of day as long as you live. The risks associated with slandering him should this be an Eldar ploy are too high.
[] Share the Emperor's Plans with Oriacarius - A man who can easily adapt to suspect information with a series of contingencies, he will certainly assuage your mind.
[] Share them with the Twins - If there is anyone capable of finding tangible proof, it is the Hydra. When you meet them, share what you have heard.
[] Write-in