Chapter 264 — First Prototype
Nearly an hour passed inside the workshop.
Throughout that time, Gaius remained within the holographic design workspace while Tony focused on the compatibility testing results and the data Jarvis continued compiling from the materials provided by ONI.
The workshop itself remained quiet.
The low hum of active systems filled the background.
Displays floated throughout the room.
Data updated continuously.
Material composition reports.
Atomic analysis results.
Engineering references.
Physics models.
Everything Jarvis had gathered remained available for review.
Meanwhile, Gaius worked.
Point by point.
Connection by connection.
Layer by layer.
The holographic workspace gradually filled with structure.
Unlike a human engineer who might pause to reconsider measurements or revisit previous decisions, Gaius moved with unwavering certainty.
Every component already existed within his mind.
The holographic system merely served as a method of translating that knowledge into a blueprint the fabrication systems could understand.
Eventually, the work came to an end.
The lasgun now existed as a complete three-dimensional design floating within the workspace.
Every component had been represented.
The focusing assembly.
The emitter.
The power pack.
The internal wiring.
The structural housing.
Every internal mechanism.
Every measurement.
Every tolerance.
Everything was represented down to the smallest detail.
Satisfied, Gaius stepped down from the platform.
Tony noticed immediately.
He looked up from one of the nearby displays.
"Done?"
Gaius nodded.
"The design is complete."
His gaze shifted toward the fabrication systems waiting nearby.
"We will only know for certain once a functional prototype is produced."
His voice remained calm.
"If there are incompatibilities, we can adjust the materials accordingly."
Tony nodded.
That seemed perfectly reasonable.
The entire purpose of today's work was verification.
The blueprint could be flawless and still fail if the materials behaved differently during production.
Fortunately, lasguns were not particularly demanding weapons by Imperial standards.
One of the reasons they had spread across the Imperium was adaptability.
Thousands of worlds manufactured lasguns.
Every one of those worlds possessed different industries.
Different resources.
Different manufacturing capabilities.
Different environmental conditions.
Yet lasguns remained common throughout the Imperium because local substitutions were often possible.
As long as certain requirements were met, performance remained largely unchanged.
Tony understood the logic.
"Fair enough."
He turned toward the fabricator.
"Jarvis, transfer the lasgun blueprint."
"Already transferring, sir."
A holographic progress indicator briefly appeared.
The bar climbed rapidly.
Then vanished.
"Blueprint uploaded."
Gaius immediately began walking toward the fabrication controls.
Tony followed.
"Jarvis, gather the required materials."
"Right away, sir."
The workshop responded instantly.
Nanites flowed from storage compartments.
Containers opened.
Small portions of refined metals and compounds were extracted from the ONI samples.
Iron.
Copper.
Aluminum.
Various supporting compounds.
Other materials required for production.
Fortunately, the lasgun was not a particularly large weapon.
A single prototype required only modest amounts of material.
The samples provided by ONI were more than sufficient.
The nanites transported everything toward the fabricator.
Unlike the analysis stations, the fabrication machine occupied a substantial portion of the workshop floor.
It consisted of two heavily reinforced alloy chambers connected by conduits, processing systems, and assembly networks.
A machine designed not merely to manufacture objects, but to construct them with extraordinary precision.
"The materials have been loaded, sir," Jarvis reported.
Tony selected the lasgun blueprint.
Then activated the fabrication sequence.
A low hum echoed through the workshop.
Most people would never have noticed it.
Gaius did.
His enhanced hearing immediately picked up the subtle sound.
Beneath the workshop floor, the massive arc reactor embedded at the facility's core increased output.
Power surged through the machine.
Inside the first chamber, the raw materials began changing.
They did not melt.
Neither were they crushed.
Instead, their structure was broken down into a state that allowed the machine to reorganize matter with incredible precision.
Streams of material flowed through the system.
Component by component.
Layer by layer.
The lasgun gradually took shape within the second chamber.
Through the monitor, both men watched the process unfold.
Neither spoke.
The process lasted less than a minute.
Then the hum faded.
The machine became silent.
A soft hiss escaped from the fabrication compartment.
Moments later, the chamber opened.
A completed weapon rested inside.
Freshly manufactured.
Unpainted.
Without markings.
Its metallic surface reflected the workshop lights.
Even without the familiar military finish, there was no mistaking what it was.
The M36 Kantrael Pattern Lasgun.
The standard weapon carried by countless Imperial Guardsmen across the Imperium.
Gaius reached inside and picked it up.
For a brief moment, the weapon appeared almost small in his massive hand.
Then he turned and handed it toward Tony.
"Test it."
Tony accepted the weapon without hesitation.
He immediately understood why Gaius had passed it over.
The trigger guard had been designed for normal human hands.
There was no chance Gaius's armored fingers would fit inside it.
A smirk appeared on Tony's face.
"You know, Gaius, you should try taking that armor off once in a while."
Silence followed.
Gaius considered the statement.
Then slowly nodded.
He neither agreed nor disagreed.
Tony chuckled.
It had only been a joke.
Whether Gaius wore armor or not made very little difference to him.
What Tony didn't realize was that Gaius was actually considering the suggestion.
Not because of comfort.
Space Marines rarely cared about comfort.
But because the observation itself was practical.
Still, he said nothing.
Tony turned toward the exit.
"Let's see what this thing can do."
The two left the workshop and entered the nearby testing area.
The open space provided ample room for controlled experimentation.
Tony stopped roughly five meters from a clear section of ground.
"Jarvis, deploy nanite shield for weapon analysis."
"Confirmed, sir."
Nanites immediately emerged from workshop systems.
The metallic swarm flowed through the air before assembling into a reinforced energy lattice.
The shield stabilized quickly.
Designed specifically for controlled testing.
Tony raised the lasgun.
He took aim.
Then fired.
A focused beam of coherent light shot forward.
The beam struck the shield.
Ripples spread across the energy surface.
A brief distortion passed through the lattice.
Then the shield stabilized almost immediately.
No penetration.
No failure.
No structural damage.
The test had succeeded.
"Analysis complete, sir," Jarvis reported.
Tony lowered the weapon slightly.
Jarvis continued.
"Lethality exceeds standard modern rifle classifications."
"A direct impact would result in lethal penetration on unarmored targets."
"Severe limb severance is also highly probable depending on impact location."
Tony nodded.
"Expected."
Nothing there surprised him.
The weapon was doing exactly what it was supposed to do.
He adjusted his grip.
Preparing to continue testing.
Durability.
Heat buildup.
Power efficiency.
Additional firing cycles.
There was still plenty of data to collect.
Before he could proceed, Gaius spoke.
"Tony."
Tony looked toward him.
"The identification."
Tony blinked.
Then lightly slapped his forehead.
"Right."
A small laugh escaped him.
"I completely forgot about that."
His scientist instincts had taken over.
He had focused entirely on practical testing and Jarvis's analytical systems.
In the process, he had completely forgotten the identification ability granted by the Multiversal Chat Group.
Tony activated the function.
A soft interface appeared before him.
Data began populating the display.
The results appeared almost immediately.
M36 Kantrael Pattern Lasgun (Thassor Pattern)
A masterwork variant of the M36 Kantrael Pattern Lasgun designed by Gaius Maximor Thassor using knowledge blessed by the Emperor. Produced through Tony Stark's advanced fabrication systems, it is manufactured to near-perfect tolerances, surpassing standard Imperial lasguns in accuracy, power output, thermal stability, and reliability while preserving the durability and efficiency of the original design. Without access to a Magnus Structor, few Imperial forge worlds could replicate a lasgun of comparable quality.
Silence followed.
Tony looked at the display.
Then at Gaius.
Gaius looked back.
Tony slowly exhaled.
"Oh..."
A faint smirk appeared.
"So the Emperor is... involved?"
Gaius did not deny it.
He simply nodded once.
Tony shrugged.
"Fair enough."
The answer honestly explained quite a few things.
At this point, learning that an immortal galactic ruler could bless people with knowledge barely registered as unusual.
Compared to everything else he had learned about the Imperium, it was almost reasonable.
After all, the Emperor of Mankind had spent ten thousand years as a corpse on the Golden Throne.
Now he was alive again and walking among his people.
Compared to that, blessing someone with knowledge hardly seemed impossible.
Tony lowered the weapon slightly.
"Well, whatever the source, it works."
His eyes shifted toward the testing results.
"No malfunctions."
"No instability."
"No material incompatibility."
He looked back at the lasgun.
"This thing is clean."
Gaius gave a single approving nod.
"Then it is acceptable."
That was high praise coming from him.
The first compatibility test had succeeded.
The materials worked.
The fabrication process worked.
The weapon functioned properly.
The first stage of technological exchange had produced results.
At that moment, Tony's communicator activated.
A holographic notification appeared.
Commander Osman.
Tony accepted the call.
Her holographic image stabilized moments later.
"She will arrive shortly," Osman said immediately.
"The scientist is en route to your place and should arrive within minutes."
Tony nodded.
"Understood."
As the conversation continued, Osman's gaze shifted slightly.
Not toward Tony.
Toward the weapon in his hand.
A brief hesitation crossed her expression before disappearing.
Her composure returned almost immediately.
She said nothing.
But the thought was easy enough to guess.
This was probably the first technology exchange item.
And if it was the first item, it was probably a relatively low-priority demonstration.
Something simple.
Something introductory.
Tony noticed the glance.
A small smile appeared.
"This?"
He raised the lasgun slightly into view.
"This is going to be our first technology exchange item."
Osman's expression remained unchanged.
But her silence spoke volumes.
She was unimpressed.
Not dismissive.
Not disrespectful.
Simply unconvinced.
Tony chuckled softly.
"Don't underestimate it."
He rotated the weapon slightly.
"The technology inside this is extremely efficient."
Osman remained silent.
Tony continued.
"It can significantly improve your military capability."
He tapped the side of the weapon.
"And indirectly, your entire human logistical structure."
That finally caused her to pause.
"...That weapon?"
Her tone wasn't disbelief.
It was measured skepticism.
Even with all the respect she had developed for Tony Stark, accepting that a single rifle could meaningfully affect humanity's technological baseline was difficult.
After all, humanity already possessed rifles.
Humanity already possessed advanced weapons.
At first glance, the lasgun looked like exactly that.
Another rifle.
Nothing more.
Tony recognized the reaction immediately.
He had expected it.
And as the scientist approached the workshop and the first true technology exchange prepared to begin, Commander Osman found herself looking at the seemingly ordinary weapon and wondering whether Tony Stark was serious.
While Tony simply smiled.
Because he knew something she didn't.
The rifle wasn't the important part.
The technology behind it was.
And soon enough, humanity would see exactly why.
(Image of the lasgun)
~~~
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