Chapter 102: The Forge Ship
Returning his focus to the Warhammer universe, Ignis's report confirmed that his foundational assets remained secure.
"With Ignis commanding the sanctum, the situation is stable," he assessed.
The three thousand heavily augmented, well-equipped, and utterly loyal Skitarii Vanguard formed an unbreakable shield around the Death World outpost and its perimeter, ensuring absolute control and security.
The preliminary functional modifications to the ruin containing the original Sextant had successfully transformed it from a mere archeological site into a forward operating base and laboratory capable of supporting basic operations, providing the necessary physical infrastructure for deeper research and future maneuvers.
Simultaneously, the critical step for his future development—the Magos Ascension protocol—had been initiated strictly according to the pre-set process.
For Joric, this ascension was not about vanity or title. Its core value lay in the elevated clearance levels it granted—the necessary credentials to access higher-tier resources and operational autonomy.
"The rank of Magos... is merely a beginning. A necessary authentication-key," Joric's thoughts moved decisively beyond the promotion itself.
His post-ascension strategy was coherent and practical.
The promotion was the means to an end: the qualification to requisition and command a Forge Ship of his own.
His objective was pragmatic and clear: not the resource-devouring, attention-magnet Ark Mechanicus behemoths, but a Cruiser-class Forge Ship based on mature Imperial Navy hulls—like the Lunar-class Cruiser or similar patterns—modified for specific mission profiles.
These vessels struck an optimal balance between volume, function, and cost. They possessed sufficient internal space to house his core laboratories, compact refining facilities, basic manufactorums, Skitarii barracks, and the necessary Tech-Priest support cadre. They also offered reliable self-sufficiency, multi-role adaptability, and manageable operational and maintenance overheads.
"A vessel of our own... a true mobile sanctum." His synthesized voice carried the cautious weight of planning.
In his grand strategy, this customized Forge Ship would play an irreplaceable, central role—it would become his true mobile base and research hub.
Then, he could integrate Ignis, his elite Vanguard, all critical research apparatus, his accumulated technical archives, and unique samples from different realities onto this unified platform.
This would grant him unprecedented strategic mobility.
"Consider," Joric's mechadendrite tapped unconsciously on the console's edge, as if sketching the blueprint of the future ship, "whether operating under the guise of 'sanctioned exploration' within Imperial space, or utilizing our unique conduit," he indicated the Dimensional Sextant, "to travel to that neon-drenched Cyberpunk world, or other unknown domains in the future... all will become as accessible as standard operations."
This ship would, in essence, become his strategic fulcrum connecting different universes, a true interstellar mobile base supporting his sustained exploration and long-term designs.
Retracting his thoughts, Joric's gaze refocused on the scrolling data-stream before him.
The path must be walked step by step. The immediate priority was to completely digest the harvest of this experiment, laying a solid foundation for the next leap.
Simultaneously, Joric did not neglect the unique value and strategic positioning of the current Cyberpunk world.
He clearly recognized that while the overall technological tier of this world was lower than the Warhammer universe, it exhibited worthy traits in specific fields—such as highly developed neural-interface technology, experience in the miniaturization and mass-application of bionic prosthetics, unique local network architectures, and the anomalous Rogue AI entity he had captured.
Crucially, this dimension was physically independent of the Warhammer universe. It was untouched by the chaotic, unpredictable influence of the Warp, and far removed from the direct oversight and restrictive dogma of the Mechanicus hierarchy.
This provided him with an invaluable, relatively "clean" and "private" testing ground, perfect for conducting research projects that might be deemed heretical, too radical, or politically sensitive in the Warhammer world.
For example, conducting undisturbed deep-analysis and functional testing on the Rogue AI; verifying new material or energy-weapon prototypes not yet formally sanctioned by Imperial standards; or utilizing local resources for small-scale, low-profile secondary verification of trans-dimensional technologies.
Based on this assessment, Joric clearly realized that the key to achieving complementary advantages and efficient resource integration between the two worlds lay in establishing a stable, efficient, and fully controlled trans-dimensional conduit for materiel and information exchange.
The current transit method—plagued by high energy consumption, mandatory cooling cycles, and significant physiological load on living units—was obviously insufficient for long-term, large-scale resource logistics and strategic coordination.
Therefore, concentrating resources to further enhance the comprehensive performance of the dimensional transit technology—including its stability, energy efficiency, transmission safety, and compatibility with various cargo types—became the core prerequisite and highest-priority technical objective driving all subsequent plans.
His gaze shifted to another set of data on the main console—feedback from the manufactorum's internal monitoring systems and the sensors implanted within Maine's crew.
The data showed that after returning to the bastion, most of the crew had entered a state of deep rest, their physiological metrics gradually normalizing.
Their bodies would fully adapt to the effects of this trans-dimensional journey within the next few days.
Joric silently updated his task list: within the next seventy-two hours, complete comprehensive physiological data collection on Maine's crew, focusing on analyzing the potential long-term effects of dimensional transit on their augmented cybernetics and nervous systems; based on their recovery, assess their subsequent mission-readiness; simultaneously, continue to collect high-performance cybernetics and technological samples from the Cyberpunk world through them and channels like Gloria, further enriching the local research database.
Regarding any doubts or psychological fluctuations Maine's crew might harbor, Joric deemed active intervention unnecessary.
As long as they recovered combat effectiveness and clearly recognized that the power gains and potential benefits of following him far outweighed the risks, their loyalty and obedience would naturally remain at acceptable levels.
Efficiency and tangible power growth were the most effective bonds for maintaining this team.
Joric's metallic fingers input a series of commands on the console, pulling up detailed operation logs and dynamic energy-flow analysis charts for the Dimensional Sextant.
His entire attention was once again immersed in the parsing and simulation of the massive experimental data.
Every transit experiment, regardless of the outcome, was a precious data source.
He needed to extract patterns, optimize energy-injection curve parameters, improve the material formulation and structural design of the resonance chamber, and calculate feasible solutions for achieving more stable transit under existing resource conditions.
Within the manufactorum, only the low thrum of equipment, the faint hiss of energy flowing through conduits, and the almost imperceptible electronic whisper of Joric's tireless logic-core processing data remained.
The turmoil of the outside world, the confusion of Maine's crew, and even the grand backgrounds of two vast universes were now converted into cold parameter variables and probability calculations within his logic.
His goal was clear and unwavering: perfect the transit technology, acquire the Forge Ship, integrate the resources of two worlds, and march into broader fields of research.
Every step required precise calculation, absolute patience, and a sustained pursuit of efficiency.
And all of this had only just begun.
(End of Chapter)