Editing The Atalantos Worlds (section)

====Kellstone Tertius, the Lost Hive====
{{Infobox 40k Planet
|name= Kellstone Tertius
|bgcolor=black
|fgcolor=white
|image=
|class= Hive World
|orbdist= 1.3 AU 
|gravity= .88G
|temp= 30C
|pop= 7,000,000,000
|governor= Lord Protector Michael van Dreis
|system= Kellstone
|sector= Uralis
|subsector= Kellstone 
|segmentum= Ultima Segmentum
}}

There are many worlds which the War Scribes and their allies have pulled from the clutches of decay, barbarism, and the grasping hands of filthy xenos. Those lucky planets grace the screens and holovids of a thousand Imperial worlds, courtesy of the Imperium's ever-vigilant propaganda arm. Worlds like Kellstone Tertius on the other hand, third of five benighted rocks, are rarely spoken of by decent Imperial citizenry. 

There were high hopes for Kellstone when the van Dreis family first settled there. They raised tall towers, built vast industrial works, tapped the resources of the other four planets to feed their growing population's needs. The economy grew resilient and diversified, producing refined goods to be shipped across the entire Segmentum. Indeed, few among the Atalantos Worlds could claim such a vaunted position in the hierarchy. 

Over time the van Dreis clan extended their reach to the Galaxy at large, and with the Emperor's blessing founded a Rogue Trader house of their very own. It is rare in the Imperium for citizens to elevate themselves to such a position, no matter how deep their coffers, but the van Dreis family's ambitions were boundless. With an entire planetary system under their thrall, it was childs' play to outfit dozens of mighty voidships to spread their influence far and wide. 

And so the merchants of Foldham VII took note. This was a bridge too far, and the van Dreises threatened to undermine their economic power so long in the making. And they went to war with knife, legal writ, and Throne gelt. The Imperium keeps few records of the titanic struggle between Kellstone and Foldham, for nearly all was kept behind closed doors and inside back alleys. Even the document-loving War Scribes can shed precious few insights into these mercantile affairs. 

What is known speaks volumes though. Within eight years Kellstone Tertius' industrial output had all but collapsed. Internal sabotage, state-sponsored terrorism, economic brain drain, and the vicissitudes of the Heresy all coalesced to bring down a mighty House. Fortunately for Kellstone Tertius, the Foldham merchant guilds met their own obstacles and were crushed mercilessly by Legio Secundus before all was lost. This was little consolation to the returning Rogue Trader family members, expecting a hero's welcome rather than warning shots. 

So much had been lost that the Hives themselves were teetering on the brink of social and physical collapse. The effort to rebuild would bankrupt the van Dreises utterly, and their success was no sure thing. Almost as one, they voted to take what they could salvage and leave, abandoning billions to their fate and virtually gutting what resources remained on-planet. Today the van Dreis are one of the most infamous Houses in the Imperium. Though ostensibly loyal to the Golden Throne, they skirt the bleeding edge of legal technicalities at every turn and think nothing of destroying entire worlds for a handful of jewels or the favor of a well-placed noble. For ten thousand years they have been little better than mercenary predators. 

All that is, save one. Eric van Dreis, future First Lord Protector of Kellstone Tertius. Lord Commander of the 912th Imperial Expedition Fleet. A thirty year old stripling, tactical and strategic genius, and familial black sheep. So far down the line of inheritance he would need binoculars to see those illustrious names at the forefront from where he stood. 

Eric charted his own course through life, and through the Heresy. He rose to prominence rapidly as the Heresy consumed his superior officers like kindling, but proved himself an able commander of men. Performing such "dirty work" was considered beneath his exalted line. He was all but disowned. But when his homeworld teetered on the brink of damnation and Chaos cults seemingly sprang fully formed from every destitute laborer and disillusioned merchant, Eric answered their unspoken cry for help. In fire and wrath he rallied the 912th Fleet to his banner, claiming the authority for independent action in the midst of clear and present Traitor threats. 

For five years Kellstone Tertius felt the pain of open conflict. But at the end of it all, Eric stood victorious. Much of the 912th Expeditionary Fleet was broken up and sent elsewhere in the Imperium as were all Army units, but many of its soldiers "voluntarily re-enlisted" in the newly founded Kellstone PDF, and a surprising number of voidship captains transmitted "extended repair and re-armament" requests to Terra. 

Ten thousand years and a host of van Dreises have come and gone. Kellstone Tertius has yet to regain its former glory, and almost certainly never will. Most of its hives are damaged, some totally destroyed and fit only for the occasional nomad band's shelter. Industrial output is dismal, barely enough to keep the Hives self-sufficient, to say nothing of profitable exports. Chaos cults are repressed but never truly eliminated. Occasionally the War Scribes deploy a squad or two to crack down on the worst problems, but their resources are stretched thin since the Heresy, and Kellstone is far down on their list of priorities. 

To the outside observer Kellstone is a failed world in every way, contributing little to the Imperium but Guard Regiments. But the people believe. Because someone came back for them. Not every van Dreis has been a good leader or a good person. None have clean hands or consciences. But they all put their shoulders to the grindstone and did what they could. Sometimes that just meant staving off total collapse for one more day. And that is enough. 

The Guardsmen from Kellstone are not particularly well-equipped, nor are they well trained. Many of them have friends and family who turned to the Ruinous Powers, or sought a better life with privateers and brigands. Quite a few of them harbor unorthodox thoughts regarding the Imperium and the Emperor, and many bear the Inquisition's brand or the Ecclesiarchy's whip-marks on their backs. But they believe in hard work, and a better tomorrow. 

As a Hive World, the demanded tithes of manpower are terrifyingly high. Most planets would bleed themselves dry and empty every prison cell to fulfill such quotas. 

Every Kellstone Guard Regiment is composed entirely of volunteers.

Not for ten thousand years have Kellstone's requirements gone unmet.