The communication link connected, and a mechanical face surrounded by scrolling data streams appeared on the holoscreen.
"Greetings, Magos Osiris. By order of Archmagos Dominus Xol, I am calling to confirm the first-stage resource delivery for the Titan Guard project and to inquire about your projected cultivation timeline," the caller said, his voice stiff and direct.
"The resources have been received and passed initial inspection. The first fifty cultivation vats have entered the pre-assembly stage. We expect to complete the basic implants and start cultivation for the first hundred candidates within thirty standard days," Osiris replied, transmitting a concise schedule over to him.
"Archmagos Xol is keeping a close eye on this timeline. Given the urgent need for Titan-attached infantry in the frontier sectors, he hopes your team can compress the cultivation cycle as much as possible without sacrificing quality. The request for additional resources has already entered the approval process and will be delivered shortly," the logistics Magos urged.
"Understood. The optimization process itself is designed to improve efficiency. We will evaluate the possibility of accelerating growth while ensuring total stability. I look forward to the arrival of the follow-up resources," Osiris responded, showing his willingness to cooperate while firmly prioritizing quality and resource availability.
The call ended. The pressure from the Collegia Titanica was direct, but they were providing the necessary resources in exchange. It was a fair trade. Osiris quickly factored the new time constraints into his project planning models, slightly shifting the priorities of a few non-critical tasks.
Almost immediately, a soft chime rang inside the laboratory. It wasn't a danger alarm, but a warning that a parameter had drifted.
"Warning: Subject B-15's psychic radiation absorption rate has exceeded our projection by five percent. The growth activity of the Black Carapace cells is abnormally high. Recommend immediate intervention," a monitoring Tech-Priest reported.
Osiris focused his attention on the station instantly. A mechanical tendril pulled up B-15's detailed real-time data and medical history, running a quick comparison and analysis.
"Halt the psychic radiation for B-15. Step up his vital sign monitoring, especially neural activity and cell division rates. Draw a backup fluid sample for analysis. Leave the rest of the subjects on their original schedules," he ordered.
Unexpected variables were a normal part of experimentation. The key was to identify, isolate, and analyze the causes early, which only added to their growing pool of data.
The laboratory settled back into its quiet hum of running machinery and scrolling data. Osiris remained completely anchored, managing internal experiments, demands from partners, and even the needs of his distant avatar worlds.
The secrets of the genetic code, the structures of life, and the pathways to enhancement were all being methodically taken apart, adjusted, and rebuilt in this cold, precise space. Every step came with risks and unknowns, but every step also opened the door to greater power, a stronger foundation, and a grander future. For someone with a deep hunger for knowledge and control, making steady progress along these dangerous boundaries offered a unique sense of satisfaction.
Thirty standard days slipped away quietly beneath the constant lights of the Eternal Seeker's laboratory, marked only by the gentle sloshing of circulating nutrient fluid and the collection of countless data points. The genetic modification phase for the second batch of subjects wrapped up smoothly.
Inside the incubation vats, newly grown enhanced organs were pulsing rhythmically in the nutrient liquid. The vast majority of the physical data fell right within the optimized safety zones.
Even Subject B-15, who had experienced the abnormal psychic absorption, had stabilized after they cut the radiation and stepped up monitoring. The unusual cell activity in his Black Carapace leveled out without causing any uncontrollable mutations or organ rejection. In fact, he showed a much higher early compatibility for neural interfaces than the rest of his group. This unexpected result was carefully logged as an invaluable data point for future experiments.
The first batch of customized cultivation vats for the Titan Guard was also complete and through basic environmental testing. Ten candidates selected from the lists provided by the Collegia Titanica had entered the early conditioning and basic reinforcement phase.
The specialized modifications designed for them—including the growth of enhanced electro-magnetic sensing nerve endings, anti-interference endocrine adjusters, and deep-level mental conditioning in the Cult Mechanicus creed—had all begun on schedule. Progress matched their expectations, and while it was a bit more complex than the standard project, they hadn't run into any major technical walls.
Osiris stood before the main console, reviewing the latest master report. His crimson optical lenses swept across rows of data as his mind evaluated the health of each sub-project.
"Gene-seed optimization phase two: the physiological stability rate of the first modified test subjects has hit 92.5%, exceeding our baseline goals. Specialized traits are starting to show, though they will require subsequent awakening and live combat trials to fully verify."
"Titan Guard cultivation line: initial infrastructure and baseline adjustments are complete. Candidates are adapting well with no severe rejection. Resource consumption matches the budget."
"STC fragment parsing sequence Beta-4497: discovered an ancient algorithm snippet that partially matches the synthesis pathway for neural enhancement enzymes. It has been submitted to the logic engines for deep comparison and simulation, which could improve existing catalyst efficiency by three to five percent."
The results were undeniable. Yet, he didn't feel anything resembling joy; he simply filed it away as a normal milestone in a running plan. His attention remained fixed on the tiny deviations, potential bottlenecks, and future resource requirements.
For instance, the next shipment of resources promised by the Collegia Titanica hadn't arrived yet. Though the approval tracker showed it was moving, any delay could disrupt the continuity of the cultivation line. He instructed a subordinate to send a polite follow-up message to Mars.
Additionally, periodic reports from the Death World base noted that the systematic surface survey of the Predator homeworld was fully underway. Early returns showed massive mineral reserves, particularly several rare elements used in high-end alloys and energy weapons.
However, the large-scale extraction of biomass from the Predator prisoners had hit a bottleneck. Under normal stimulation, the secretion levels among the individuals varied wildly and tended to drop off over time. They needed a more delicate physiological approach, or an environment that better simulated their natural hunting states to keep their adrenaline up.
This would likely require the bio-psychic analysis techniques previously promised by Ulthwé, or a heavier investment of his own research teams. Osiris marked this information as "requires coordination," intending to make a formal request for technical assistance during his next talk with Elendil. Meanwhile, he ordered the research team at the Death World base to start designing controlled experiments, exploring how different environmental triggers, social structures, and even limited combat training might affect the prisoners' biomass production.