Tony and Gaius stood outside the newly completed workshop for a few monts longer before finally approaching the entrance.
The building was exactly what Tony had intended.
Functional.
Efficient.
Built for work rather than appearance.
The glass entrance reflected the afternoon light as the two approached.
Tony reached the door first.
He placed a hand against it and pushed.
The glass door slid open smoothly.
Without a word, he stepped inside.
Gaius followed imdiately behind him.
The interior was spacious.
Workstations occupied sections of the floor. Storage areas lined the walls. Fabrication equipnt sat ready for use, smaller and far more compact than before. It seed Tony had redesigned much of it to require less space. Computer terminals remained dormant, waiting for instructions. Analysis stations had already been assembled throughout the structure.
The workshop was complete.
Almost.
As they walked deeper inside, one detail imdiately stood out.
The center of the workshop remained unfinished.
A large circular section in the floor sat completely empty.
It looked almost like a missing puzzle piece.
Tony walked directly toward it.
Then stopped.
Gaius stopped behind him.
The giant warrior lowered his gaze toward the circular opening.
There was no visible machinery beneath it.
No exposed wiring.
No construction equipnt.
Just an empty space clearly reserved for sothing important.
Before Gaius could ask, Tony spoke.
"This will be the core of the workshop."
Then he waved a hand.
A large arc reactor appeared.
Unlike the smaller reactors Tony commonly used, this one was enormous.
Nearly one ter in diater.
The reactor materialized directly above the circular opening before lowering itself perfectly into place.
The fit was exact.
The mont it settled into position, a low hum filled the workshop.
Power surged through the facility.
Lights flickered on.
Computer terminals awakened.
Displays illuminated.
Systems throughout the building activated one after another.
A second later, Jarvis's voice echoed through the workshop.
"The workshop is complete and fully powered on."
Tony smiled slightly.
"Good."
The lighting stabilized.
The hum settled into a steady background sound.
Everything was operational.
Tony turned toward Gaius.
"Shall we start?"
Gaius gave a small nod.
"Contact Commander Osman."
Despite everything that had happened since their arrival, Gaius continued referring to Osman by her rank.
Commander.
It wasn't politeness alone.
The woman carried responsibility for humanity's interests here.
That alone earned a degree of respect in Gaius's eyes.
Tony nodded.
"Fair enough."
He raised his communicator.
A holographic display expanded outward.
Contacts.
ssages.
Maps.
Various applications.
Tony tapped several floating icons.
The contact list appeared.
Commander Osman.
He selected it.
The call began.
Only two seconds passed before it was accepted.
A holographic image appeared.
"Commander Osman speaking," the woman said. "What can I do for you, Tony Stark?"
Tony got straight to the point.
"We're ready to cooperate for our technology exchange."
Osman listened.
Tony continued.
"But we need most of the elents and materials from your universe first."
He gestured toward the workshop around him.
"We need to study them before we start sharing anything."
"We need to determine whether our technology is compatible with yours."
Osman was silent for a mont.
Then she nodded.
"Understood."
The reasoning was straightforward.
"We'll send them as soon as possible."
Tony smiled.
"Great."
Then Osman hesitated slightly.
"And Tony…"
Tony imdiately noticed it.
"What is it?"
A brief pause followed.
"For this technology exchange, I would like one of our lead scientists to be present."
Tony glanced toward Gaius.
Gaius showed no objection.
Tony shrugged.
"That seems reasonable."
So of the hesitation left Osman's expression.
"Good."
Tony leaned casually against a nearby workbench.
"Anyone important?"
There was another brief silence.
Then Osman answered.
"Very."
That imdiately caught Tony's interest.
"Oh?"
"The scientist in question was responsible for so of humanity's greatest technological achievents."
Tony straightened slightly.
Now he was genuinely curious.
"Achievents like?"
Osman's answer ca imdiately.
"The SPARTAN Program."
The workshop beca quiet.
Even Tony recognized the significance of that title.
The Spartans were among humanity's greatest military assets.
Super soldiers.
Tony's thoughts briefly went to Captain Arica.
Then to Gaius.
More specifically, the Space Marines.
They were the Imperium's own super soldiers.
His thoughts imdiately drifted elsewhere.
The Super Soldier Serum.
He had studied it before.
Not extensively.
But enough to understand its significance.
Tony didn't rely on physical strength to fight.
His armor handled that.
Still, having a stronger body was never a disadvantage.
Especially considering everything he had experienced recently.
Sea King at.
Exercise.
Training.
His physical condition had improved dramatically compared to his old self.
He was comfortably beyond the level of a normal athlete now.
Yet compared to monsters like Gaius?
Still human.
Very human.
The thought lingered for a mont.
He made a ntal note to learn more about the Spartan program while he was here. Once he returned to his own world, he could revisit his research on the Super Soldier Serum and see whether there was anything worth pursuing.
Tony pushed the thought aside.
"The creator?" he asked.
"One of them," Osman replied.
Tony exchanged a glance with Gaius.
"Then sure."
Osman nodded.
"I'll arrange it."
The call ended.
The hologram disappeared.
Silence settled over the workshop.
For several monts neither man spoke.
Then Tony smiled.
"Now I'm curious."
Gaius folded his arms.
The movent produced a soft tallic sound from his armor.
"If she created warriors capable of defending humanity," he said, "then she deserves respect."
Tony chuckled.
"Sothing tells she's not going to be as simple as that."
Gaius made no comnt.
Instead, the conversation shifted toward sothing far more relevant.
Technology.
Specifically, the technology Gaius intended to share.
Before returning to the residence, they spent ti discussing it in detail.
Tony listened carefully as Gaius outlined what would be offered.
Lasguns.
Ceramite.
Industrial production thods.
Supporting knowledge.
The more Tony listened, the more interested he beca.
He already knew lasguns were dangerous weapons.
Anyone who dismissed them simply because they were standard issue would be making a mistake.
The Imperium fielded them by the countless billions for a reason.
Likewise, Tony had already studied ceramite.
Its durability alone made it valuable.
Yet as the discussion continued, he realized sothing surprising.
He had underestimated the lasgun.
Not because of firepower.
Because of logistics.
Tony rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"The ceramite and especially the lasguns…"
He looked toward Gaius.
"If they can use this technology and properly digest it, humanity here could leap forward technologically."
Gaius nodded.
Tony continued.
"The weapon itself is good."
He paused.
"But that's not the impressive part."
"The power pack is."
Gaius nodded again.
Tony raised a finger.
"Ammunition is one of the biggest logistical burdens any military has."
Another finger joined it.
"A rechargeable power source that can be replenished through infrastructure is already valuable."
He raised a third.
"One that can keep functioning in the field with minimal support?"
Tony shook his head.
"You could reduce supply requirents dramatically."
After a mont he added,
"No wonder the Imperium uses these things everywhere."
The more he thought about it, the more impressive the system beca.
Entire supply chains could be simplified.
Transportation requirents reduced.
Long-term operational capability increased.
For an interstellar civilization constantly at war, that was invaluable.
Tony looked around the workshop.
"Jarvis."
"Yes, sir."
"Prepare material analysis stations."
"Already beginning preparation."
Tony nodded.
"And set aside workspace for our guests."
"Already in progress."
Workstations imdiately began updating.
Equipnt activated.
Sections of the workshop were reorganized automatically.
Testing areas appeared.
Analysis spaces were prepared.
Guest workstations were assigned.
Everything progressed smoothly.
After that, there was little reason to remain.
The materials hadn't arrived yet.
The scientist hadn't arrived yet.
Waiting inside an empty workshop served no purpose.
So Tony and Gaius left.
The trip back to the residence was uneventful.
When they arrived, the atmosphere was much more relaxed than the workshop.
Naruto and Mindy were arguing over gas again.
Diana watched with amusent.
Saeko sat nearby.
The familiar routine had returned.
Tony inford everyone about the workshop and the upcoming scientist.
The information was received with varying levels of interest.
After that, the rest of the afternoon passed peacefully.
The group spent ti together.
Talking.
Relaxing.
Watching gas.
Arguing over gas.
Playing gas.
Even Gaius remained nearby.
He didn't join directly.
But he watched.
Which, for Gaius, already counted as participation.
Eventually dinner arrived.
Everyone gathered around the table.
Gaius's al imdiately stood apart from everyone else's.
Large portions of Sea King at occupied much of his plate.
Additional specialized nutritional rations accompanied it.
His requirents were simply different.
An eleven-foot transhuman warrior consud energy on a scale normal people couldn't match.
The Sea King at helped considerably.
But even that wasn't enough by itself.
Gaius could fight for days if necessary.
He could survive without food for extended periods.
Yet there was no reason to neglect his body when resources were available.
Maintaining peak condition was simply practical.
The al continued peacefully.
Then Tony's communicator activated.
A holographic notification appeared above the table.
Tony glanced at it.
"Commander Osman."
With a swipe of his finger, he opened the ssage while continuing to eat.
The contents appeared.
"The materials you requested have arrived at the workshop."
"The scientist joining you will arrive in Cascade in a day and a half."
Tony finished chewing.
Then swallowed.
"It seems the scientist joining us isn't from this planet."
Saeko nodded imdiately.
"Of course."
She set down her utensils.
"Isn't this planet an outer colony?"
"One of the scientists responsible for the Spartans shouldn't be stationed sowhere like this."
Tony considered that.
"I suppose so."
Then he shrugged.
"Let's hope this one is good."
His tone remained casual.
"Otherwise he'll be kicked out by ."
Nobody objected.
The group understood exactly what he ant.
Good relations with Commander Osman did not an unlimited patience.
If the scientist beca a problem.
If they interfered.
If they contributed little and caused headaches.
Tony would remove them from the project without hesitation.
The title alone wasn't enough to impress anyone here.
They had all experienced things far stranger than famous scientists.
None of them had even t this person yet.
For now, they remained simply another na.
Tony typed a quick response.
"Understood."
The ssage was sent.
The conversation resud.
While eating, Gaius had heard everything.
After a mont he spoke.
"That's good."
Everyone glanced toward him.
"The sooner the materials arrive," Gaius continued, "the sooner compatibility testing can begin."
That was all he said.
He didn't ntion the scientist.
Didn't comnt on their achievents.
Didn't speculate.
His priorities remained elsewhere.
Technology.
Materials.
Production.
Cooperation.
As long as the incoming scientist did not interfere with those objectives, Gaius simply didn't care.
The conversation gradually moved on.
Dinner continued.
~~~
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