Osiris returned to Holy Terra. His current status, within the Imperium's strict hierarchy, was quite unique—he held no prominent official title, no powerful concrete office, nor any inherited noble rank.
However, this in no way diminished his current "prominence" within the human Imperium's centers of power. He was the bearer of the Warp drive, the holder of the technology that the Emperor Himself had commanded to be implemented, and a key individual highly valued by the Primarch Rogal Dorn. His name, in itself, was the eye of the era's storm of change.
Almost the moment his flagship, the Eternal Quest, arrived at the periphery of the Sol System, before completing its docking procedures, the colossal power machine of Terra had already accelerated its operations due to his return. Countless overt and covert gazes focused on him, and innumerable precise calculations were adjusted because of him.
Invitations from certain factions within the High Lords of Terra, accompanied by veiled promises of profit, were the first to arrive via encrypted channels. Several ancient noble houses attempted to establish contact under the guise of "academic exchange" or "research sponsorship."
Within the Mechanicum, besides greetings from allies like Neksum, there were also tentative feelers from other watch-and-see factions, and even internal voices from Mars.
Even some well-informed Rogue Trader Dynasties sought to deliver calling cards through various means, desperate to make an acquaintance with this "new dignitary."
It was as if the entire political magnetic field of Holy Terra was, at this moment, twisting and rotating around Osiris, this "singularity."
Yet, Osiris, at the center of the storm, displayed near-absolute indifference.
His massive mechanical body passed through the layered defenses of the Imperial Palace, ignoring the myriad of gazes and encrypted communication requests that attempted to catch his attention along the way.
He returned directly to the highly guarded laboratory deep within the Palace that had been assigned to him for technical research.
The laboratory doors silently sealed behind him, cutting off the outside noise and distractions. Inside, there was only the low hum of Servitors, the cooling fans of the Thinker Arrays, and the faint echo of his own mechanical footfalls in the empty space.
He did not indulge in the joy of success or the illusion of power. He knew well that this sudden influx of attention was fundamentally the pursuit of the interests represented by the Warp drive, not personal admiration for him.
He proceeded to start the laboratory's routine research projects, seemingly conducting business as usual, as if he had merely returned from a normal excursion and was resuming his tedious academic work. But beneath his calm exterior, his core processor ran at peak efficiency.
He was waiting.
Waiting for the summons from the deepest part of the Palace, the fortress that symbolized the highest authority and will of the Imperium—Rogal Dorn.
He had brought back complete test data and the actual operational records of the Eternal Quest, which were key to advancing the next phase of the plan.
He needed to report to the Primarch and determine how the Imperium would truly use this newly forged key to unlock the door to the future.
Until he met Dorn, any external interference was merely background noise that needed to be filtered out.
Rogal Dorn's summons came quickly, just as Osiris had anticipated.
In the spartan, rigorously solid tactical chamber deep within the Palace—a room reflecting the austere style of its master—the conversation between the two beings who would shape the Imperium's future direction cut straight to the core.
Dorn's immense figure stood before a large star chart, marked with the Imperium's territory and main trade routes, many areas appearing blurred due to communication and logistics delays.
He skipped all formalities and turned directly to Osiris, his voice like grinding stone: "I have reviewed the test data. The Eternal Quest has proven its value. Now, give me your judgment, Fabricator-Magos Osiris. Is the Novamoon-class, equipped with the Warp drive, ready for mass deployment in the Imperial Navy and the Astartes Legions?"
Osiris' crimson optical lenses remained steady, and his synthesized voice calmly replied: "My Lord Primarch, the technology is provisionally mature, but a large-scale rollout is not the optimal solution."
He paused slightly, projecting a data set next to the star chart: "The Imperial treasury cannot support refitting all capital ships with Warp drives in the short term, and the Mechanicum's production capacity, even under the new framework, will require time to ramp up.
More importantly, such radical change is bound to cause violent upheaval in the Imperium's existing power and logistics structures, and the reaction could be beyond control."
Dorn's brow imperceptibly furrowed, but he did not interrupt, signaling him to continue.
"I propose that implementation should be phased and focused." Osiris' core argument was clearly presented: "The Navy and the Space Marine Legions, as the Imperium's blades and shields, can receive a prioritized quota to form rapid-response fleets or execute specific high-priority missions. This immediately enhances the Imperium's military projection capability while remaining manageable in scale."
His words led to the real crux of his strategy: "However, there is one department whose importance is severely underestimated, yet whose need for this technology is more urgent than any combat unit—the Imperium's Charter Fleets."
Osiris displayed information regarding the Charter Fleets. These vessels are typically large but slow, relying on conventional sub-light engines or inefficient older FTL drives to ply fixed routes in real space, performing seemingly mundane but vitally important material transport.
They carry the food produced by countless Agricultural Worlds, sustaining trillions of lives, and transport the Imperial Tithe—materials unsuitable for Warp travel due to various reasons, such as extremely high psychic sensitivity or unstable Warp conditions in the originating sector.
"Precisely because of their slow speed, the Imperium's material distribution and tax cycle often span centuries, resulting in extremely low efficiency," Osiris pointed out. "The Charter Fleets are not the Imperium's cutting edge, but they are the 'veins' that maintain the life and function of the Imperium's colossal body. If the blood flow is slow, the body will stiffen and decay."
He concluded his strategic reasoning: "Prioritizing the refitting of the Charter Fleets with the Novamoon-class or similar Warp transport vessels will vastly improve the Imperium's logistical efficiency, shorten the turnaround time for critical resources, and fundamentally strengthen the Imperium's resilience and stability.
Simultaneously, this action focuses on improving internal efficiency rather than directly boosting any single military faction. This minimizes the provocation of vested interests such as the Navy, the Space Marine Chapters, and especially the Navigator Houses, reducing resistance to implementation. This is a path that is both more secure and better ensures the overall health of the Imperium."
Osiris' proposal shifted the focus from mere military application to a deeper structural transformation of the Imperium's lifeblood. It was not just a technology implementation suggestion but a strategic plan based on a profound understanding of the Imperium's overall structure.
Rogal Dorn silently stared at the star chart, at the nearly stagnant routes that represented slow logistics.
His stern face was expressionless, but in the depths of his keen, luminous gaze, profound deliberation was clearly taking place. Osiris' proposal undoubtedly addressed a problem far more fundamental than simply replacing a warship's engine.