Chapter 355 - 352 — The First Breakthrough

Chapter 355: Chapter 352 — The First Breakthrough

Chapter 352 — The First Breakthrough

Halsey looked at the group chat again.

The messages were still coming in.

Naruto:

"So when are you coming?"

Mindy:

"Naruto, she literally just joined."

Naruto:

"So?"

Saeko:

"He really doesn’t like waiting."

Tanya:

"Nothing new."

Halsey read the messages for a moment.

Then she stood from her workstation.

"Well."

She looked around the workshop.

"I suppose I should go see them."

Cortana’s hologram appeared beside the workstation.

"You’re leaving?"

"For a while."

Halsey picked up a data pad from the desk.

"Keep the workshop running."

"Of course."

Halsey paused.

"And don’t touch Stark’s unfinished projects."

Cortana looked at her.

"I wasn’t planning to."

"Good."

Halsey turned toward the door.

Another message appeared.

Naruto:

"Where are you?"

Halsey looked at the screen.

She typed.

Catherine Halsey:

"I’m coming."

Naruto replied almost immediately.

Naruto:

"Alright."

Halsey shook her head.

She had barely joined the group, and she already knew Naruto hadn’t changed.

When Halsey finally arrived at the residence, she was greeted warmly.

It felt different from before.

Back then, they had known one another, but there had always been a little distance.

Now there wasn’t.

Naruto was the first to greet her.

"Hey, Halsey."

"Hello, Naruto."

Mindy came over next.

"Glad you came."

Saeko smiled.

"It’s good to see you again."

Tanya gave her a small nod.

"Welcome."

Halsey smiled.

"Thank you."

Naruto gestured toward the dining table.

"Come on. We saved you a seat."

Halsey followed them inside.

A large meal had already been prepared.

Plates of Sea King meat covered the table, along with side dishes, desserts, and several cups of tea.

Halsey looked over the table.

"You prepared all this?"

Mindy nodded.

"Of course. It’s your welcome dinner."

Naruto pulled out a chair.

"Sit."

Halsey took the seat.

She looked around the table.

It was strangely comfortable.

Halsey picked up her tea.

"So this is what you all do when you’re not off saving the world?"

Naruto grinned.

"Mostly."

Tanya looked at him.

"That’s not true."

Naruto glanced at her.

"What?"

"We eat more than we save worlds."

Naruto thought about it.

"Okay."

He nodded.

"Yeah, that’s probably true."

Halsey laughed softly.

The conversation quickly became relaxed.

They talked about what had happened on Cascade after the others had left.

Halsey told them about the work that had piled up.

Mindy asked about the Spartans.

Saeko asked about the repairs and the remaining Covenant presence.

Tanya joined in whenever the conversation turned toward military matters.

Halsey answered while eating, occasionally asking a question of her own.

After a while, she picked up another piece of Sea King meat.

"This is really good."

Naruto looked at her.

"I told you."

Halsey raised an eyebrow.

"When did you tell me that?"

Naruto shrugged.

"You didn’t ask."

Mindy laughed.

Saeko smiled.

Halsey shook her head.

"Right."

She took another bite.

"Now I know."

The Group Chat interface remained available to her.

Tony’s name was still there.

Diana’s.

Gaius’s.

Even though they were physically in another universe, they were still part of the conversation.

A message appeared.

Tony:

"How’s the food?"

Halsey glanced at the interface.

"Still as good as before."

Tony:

"Knew it."

Naruto leaned over slightly.

"What did he say?"

Halsey looked at him.

"He asked about the food."

Naruto laughed.

"Of course he did."

Another message appeared.

Diana:

"Enjoy your evening, Doctor Halsey."

Halsey smiled.

Catherine Halsey:

"Thank you."

Then Gaius sent a message.

Gaius:

"It is good that you have joined them."

Halsey looked at the message for a moment.

Then typed back.

Catherine Halsey:

"It is."

She set the interface aside.

Naruto looked at her.

"So."

Halsey raised an eyebrow.

"So?"

"You still haven’t asked anything."

Halsey smiled.

"I have plenty of questions."

Mindy laughed.

"We knew it."

Halsey picked up her tea.

"But they can wait."

Naruto nodded.

"Fair."

~~~

On Varrak Prime, Gaius stood inside one of the newly restored sections of the industrial district.

The area had changed considerably since his arrival.

New structures had begun rising around the old ruins.

Factories were being repaired.

Roads were being cleared.

Power lines and supply routes were being restored.

The work was far from finished, but the district was slowly becoming useful again.

Gaius walked through the facility in silence.

Several workers moved around him, carrying equipment and materials.

Some noticed him as he passed.

They acknowledged him briefly before returning to their work.

The Ultramarines had already instructed the workers on how to conduct themselves around their commanders. There was no need to stop working simply because Gaius had entered the facility.

Gaius preferred it that way.

The workers understood their duties, and Gaius had no desire to disrupt them simply by being present.

A Techmarine approached from the side.

He wore the red armor of the Mechanicum, with several mechanical cables running from his backpack into his armor. A pair of servo-arms rested behind his shoulders, their tools folded neatly against his back.

His armor was worn from years of service, with several scratches and marks across the red plating.

"Lord Gaius."

Gaius stopped.

"Report."

"The repairs to the western fabrication lines are progressing. Two production halls are already operational."

"Good."

"The remaining halls should be ready within several days."

Gaius nodded.

"And the industrial components?"

"Still arriving."

"Then continue."

The Techmarine nodded before returning to his work.

Gaius continued walking.

His attention moved across the facility.

The machines were old, but many had survived the war.

Some only needed repairs.

Others had been damaged beyond practical recovery.

Those were being dismantled for usable parts.

Nothing was being wasted.

Varrak had lost too much already.

Every functioning machine mattered.

Every recovered weapon mattered.

Every building that could be restored was one less structure that needed to be rebuilt from nothing.

Gaius stopped beside a large viewing platform.

Beyond it, the industrial district stretched across the horizon.

Construction vehicles moved between buildings.

Workers cleared rubble.

Imperial personnel established new checkpoints.

The city was still scarred.

But it was alive.

The progress, however, was slower than Gaius would have liked.

At this rate, restoring the planet to its former state could take a year.

Gaius looked across the damaged structures.

Waiting was not an option.

His thoughts turned toward the nearby systems.

There were other Imperial worlds in the region.

Their resources could be redirected to Varrak.

Gaius had the authority to do so.

He also knew what life was like for most Imperial citizens.

Long hours in manufactoria.

Cramped habs.

Poor air.

Little privacy.

Little choice.

For many, their entire lives were spent working, sleeping, eating, and repeating the same labor until their bodies could no longer keep up.

They served the Imperium because that was what was expected of them.

Few would ever see anything beyond the world they were born on.

Gaius had seen enough of the Imperium to know that this was considered normal.

He did not intend to leave it that way.

The humans living on those worlds would be better served under his authority.

Their resources would be brought to Varrak, but so would his attention.

If they were to serve him, then he would ensure they received something in return.

Protection.

Food.

Infrastructure.

And a life that amounted to more than merely surviving long enough to continue working.

Gaius looked across the damaged city.

He would not rebuild Varrak while leaving the people under his authority to live as they had before.

Gaius’s attention briefly shifted toward the Group Chat interface.

It remained open at the edge of his vision.

The conversation between Halsey and the others was still visible.

Naruto had already sent several messages.

Most of them concerned food.

Gaius had stopped reading after the third one.

Tony had also commented.

Diana had sent a brief message.

Halsey had replied.

Gaius looked at her name for a moment.

She had joined only recently.

Yet it already felt as though she had been part of the group for much longer.

That was partly because she already knew the others.

Gaius considered that useful.

A voice came from behind him.

"Lord Gaius."

He turned.

Titus approached with several data slates in hand.

Metaurus followed behind him.

Titus stopped a few meters away.

"We have the latest reports."

Gaius looked at the slates.

"Proceed."

Titus opened the first report.

"Repairs to the southern districts are progressing. The PDF has also begun reorganizing its forces."

Gaius nodded.

"And the wounded?"

"The medical facilities are still treating them. Most of the critical cases have stabilized."

"Good."

Metaurus stepped forward.

"The supplies gathered from the remaining stockpiles have also been distributed."

Gaius nodded.

"Continue prioritizing the settlements that suffered the most damage."

Titus nodded.

"We have."

Gaius looked toward the city again.

"How many requests remain?"

"Several hundred."

Gaius was silent for a moment.

"Then we have work to do."

Titus gave a small nod.

"Yes, my lord."

They continued through the facility.

Gaius occasionally stopped to inspect damaged equipment or speak with personnel.

There was no ceremony to it.

He simply wanted to know what was actually happening.

A damaged generator was pointed out.

A shipment that had arrived late was mentioned.

One of the restored workshops had begun producing replacement components ahead of schedule.

Gaius listened to each report.

Then he gave his decisions.

Simple.

Direct.

Practical.

Several minutes later, Gaius entered another section of the facility.

This area was quieter.

Several Techmarines were working around damaged weapons and pieces of armor.

Gaius stopped briefly to inspect the work.

A few moments later, familiar footsteps approached from behind.

"Gaius."

Gaius turned.

Tony walked toward him.

A data tablet rested in one hand, while the other remained free. There was an unmistakable look of satisfaction on his face.

Gaius turned toward him.

"Tony."

Tony stopped a few steps away.

"I figured it out."

Gaius regarded him.

"Figured what out?"

Tony raised the tablet slightly.

"Your power sword."

Gaius remembered.

Tony had been interested in the weapon for some time, particularly because of how smoothly it cut through materials.

"You finished your analysis?"

"Finally."

Tony tapped the tablet and brought up several scans.

"I went through everything I recorded before. The blade, the energy field, the materials it cut through, the way the field changed when it made contact."

He turned the tablet toward Gaius.

"The field around the blade isn’t just some high-powered energy field."

Gaius looked at the display.

Tony continued.

"It’s interacting with the material at the molecular level."

Titus and Metaurus, who had been inspecting a damaged section of machinery nearby, turned their attention toward him.

Tony gestured toward the tablet.

"Instead of forcing its way through whatever it hits, the field is disrupting the bonds ahead of the blade."

He made a short cutting motion with his hand.

"So the sword isn’t doing all the work by physically cutting through the material. It’s weakening what the blade is about to pass through."

Gaius considered the explanation.

"It does not simply cut through the material."

"Exactly."

Tony pointed at him.

"That’s the interesting part."

He lowered the tablet.

"And I’ve already managed to reproduce part of it."

Gaius’s attention shifted to him.

"Part?"

Tony immediately raised a finger.

"Yes. Part."

A brief pause.

"I said part."

"Understood."

Tony narrowed his eyes.

"Don’t sound so disappointed."

"I am not."

Titus looked between them.

"You have already reproduced the effect?"

Tony nodded.

"A limited version."

He stepped toward an open section of the facility floor.

"Actually, I brought the prototype."

The nanites began moving across Tony’s right arm.

They flowed from beneath his sleeve and spread over his forearm, forming a metallic layer around it. The material continued moving until it covered his hand and fingers, reshaping itself into a compact armored gauntlet.

It was not a copy of Gaius’s sword.

There was no blade.

Instead, the nanites had formed a dense layer around Tony’s hand and forearm, with a faint energy field beginning to build around the surface.

Tony flexed his fingers., testing the movement.

The gauntlet adjusted immediately.

"Still rough."

Metaurus looked at the gauntlet.

Outwardly, his expression remained composed.

Internally, however, he was surprised.

Metaurus looked at the gauntlet again. Tony had only studied a power weapon for a short time, yet he had already understood enough of its principle to create a functioning prototype and integrate it into his own technology.

"That appears functional."

Tony glanced at him.

"Thank you. I think."

He crouched beside a damaged section of metal lying near the edge of the work area.

It was a thick plate salvaged from one of the damaged machines.

Tony placed two fingers against its surface.

Nothing happened.

He adjusted the energy output.

A faint vibration passed through the gauntlet.

Tony pressed his fingers down again.

This time, the metal beneath them gave way.

There was no loud impact.

No crushing force.

The gauntlet simply passed through the surface with surprising ease, leaving a narrow, clean groove in the plate.

Tony stopped.

He looked at the result.

Then he looked at Gaius.

"See?"

Gaius stepped closer and examined the cut.

The metal had not been smashed or torn apart. The edges were clean, almost as though the material had simply ceased resisting the gauntlet.

Tony straightened.

"The nanites are generating a localized field around the gauntlet."

He tapped the side of it.

"Not strong enough to reproduce your sword completely. But it’s disrupting the material’s structure immediately where I make contact."

Titus stepped closer and examined the damaged plate.

"That is considerably different from simply increasing the gauntlet’s strength."

"Exactly."

Tony looked pleased again.

"If I just made the gauntlet stronger, I’d need ridiculous amounts of energy to force my way through something like this."

He pointed at the clean groove.

"This does the opposite."

Gaius looked at the gauntlet.

"You have reproduced the principle of a power weapon and localized it into a smaller combat weapon."

Tony’s eyebrows rose.

"That’s a better idea than just turning it into another sword or gauntlet."

He looked down at his prototype.

"A power field doesn’t have to be built around a blade or a massive power fist."

Tony flexed his fingers.

"I can put the same principle into smaller weapons and let the nanites shape the field wherever I need it."

Gaius regarded the gauntlet for another moment.

"The field is the weapon."

Tony pointed at him and grinned.

"Exactly."

Metaurus looked at the damaged plate.

"And you believe it can be improved?"

Tony gave him an incredulous look.

"Obviously."

He lifted his arm and examined the gauntlet.

"The field is unstable at higher output. I can already tell there’s some energy loss around the contact point."

He rotated his wrist, checking the readings on the tablet.

"And I’ve only studied a power sword briefly. I haven’t gone deep enough into how the technology actually works."

Tony looked at Gaius.

"I basically copied the principle behind how the power field disrupts the material."

He tapped the gauntlet.

"Everything else is just me figuring out how to make that principle work with my own technology."

He looked at Gaius.

"But there’s enough here to work with."

Gaius nodded.

"Then proceed."

Tony smiled.

"Already am."

~~

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