"We'll stay," you say, as Durge nods.


"Well... this'll be interesting," Meliodas grins, twisting Meliodas' daemonic face.


"Alright," Elios grunts. "What's next on the agenda?"


"The ship," Primus says. "Or me, for lack of a better word. I have gotten it running to a degree and it's capable of travel, there's no way it will be able to hold up in a fight or operate long-term."


"How do we fix it?" you ask.


"The death of the Tech-Priests has left us lacking men specialized to repair the ship. I've found three groups that could hypothetically fulfill that role, as well as two other solutions."


"Go on," you reply.


"There is the Rutherford-Dalton-Boyle Think Tank, a faction hidden away in several space stations, researching and creating in the gas giant of Ingenium-IV. A good negotiator should be able to convince at least some of them to leave their stations to come aboard the Roar of the Vortex to continue their research aboard our vessel as well as having access to huge archives of intelligence here, being able to research the ship and maintaining that the technology isn't lost."


"Who else?" you ask, 


"The Iron Smiths of Daeranthium. Daeranthium is a planet that contains several ancient factories and forges, with massive amounts of resources such as huge, ancient mines. The planet, while tribal in culture, are advanced enough to produce weapons, vehicles, armor and more for the Imperium. We could attempt to negotiate with them to take some of their men aboard to fulfill the role of engineers."


"And the final group?"


"The Dark Mechanicus is Chaos' version of the Adeptus Mechanicus, whether it be those from the Adeptus Mechanicus who went rogue and were corrupted by Chaos, or those recruited by them. Their work requires manpower that they don't have. I've found reports of a Dark Mechanicus group known as the Harbringers of Menedez. They've already made a reputation for selling slaves trained with skills such as the ones we desire. For five million Thrones, we could have them soon to fulfill the required role."


"You said you have two other options. What are they?"


"Option one involves the funding an education program to educate the mutant workers. For ten million Thrones, we could educate the mutant population. They wouldn't be as experienced as other options, but quantity has a whole quality all it's own."


"And...?" you say before Primus interrupts you. The


"Option two is more cruel. We have the technology and cybernetics taken from the dead Techpriests and Servitors. If you were willing to lobotomize a few of the mutant workers we have, the least intelligent and productive, to create a new legion of servitors under my control. This would be cheap, effective and we could have it done in the night to avoid breaking night, framing it as accidents. So, which option shall it be?"

You convert workers to servitors

The process is... unnerving. Carefree mutants, completely trusting in your benevolence to them, have their personality taken, their soul distinguished and large parts of their brain removed, as well as heavy cybernetization. You make sure their distinguishing features are removed, and their faces are covered with featureless metal masks with only two eye-holes and a small feeding slit, so none of their friends notice them and realize what their fate has become. They work as expected, giving your Man of Iron the ability to completely repair and operate the ship. So all in all, a success.