chsdbacks Chapter 46 Foundation
Chapter 46 Foundation
Garros's data was already etched into his mind. Atmospheric composition, mineral vein distribution, gravity coefficient, rotation period—every page of the exploration report Vitellius had retrieved from the Temple archives was engraved there. Water resources were trapped in the permafrost beneath the polar ice caps, and surface water was nearly dried up. Transformation would require a massive investment of resources, but that was a matter for later.
The data marks a plain near the equator, the only flat area on the entire planet with a stable crust and no volcanic activity.
Enp arrived at the surface of the main planet Garros in the shuttle. The servant landed the shuttle on the rocky terrain, then took off back, its trail of flames quickly disappearing into the gray-yellow sky.
He stood on the open plain. The area expanded outwards from his body, with a radius of about twenty meters. The wind whipped up dust that lashed against his power armor visor, and the ground temperature was around zero degrees Celsius. He crouched down, his palms pressed against the ground—cold, rough, pure rock dust.
The Imperial Standard Governor's Mansion's architectural specifications were combined with military-grade reinforcement schemes, and every detail was meticulously researched and refined. The foundation began to solidify, and atoms were retrieved from the high-dimensional warehouse, taking shape on the plain.
It is approximately one kilometer long on each side, and is square in shape overall. There is a hexagonal defensive tower at each of the four corners, with a light anti-aircraft laser cannon mounted on top. The outer wall is made of gray-black ceramic steel composite armor plate, with the thickness decreasing from half a meter at the bottom upwards.
The facade strictly adheres to Imperial Gothic tradition. At the base are rugged buttresses that extend from the ground to the second-floor windowsills, their surfaces inscribed with prayers in a mixture of Low Gothic and binary scripts, the characters filled with adamantite powder. The windows are narrow, pointed arches, with bulletproof glass set within adamantite frames, the outer edges of which are decorated with reliefs of alternating gears and double-headed eagles. Pied columns extend from the ground to the cornice, their capitals carved with the gear and skull emblem of the Mechanicus.
The main entrance, located at the center of the south facade, is a colossal archway, fifteen meters high and eight meters wide, composed of three tiers of inward-progressing pointed arches. Above the archway is a circular rose window, its stained-glass interior displaying the gear emblem of the Mechanicus. The doors are two massive, cast-in-a-millennium doors, each weighing over forty tons, their surfaces etched with the opening chapters of the Mechanicus Bible in High Gothic script. The hinges are exposed, each as thick as an adult's arm.
At each of the four corners of the building stands an octagonal tower, nearly twenty meters taller than the main building, topped with a conical spire and a cast-iron statue of the Imperial double-headed eagle. The main tower, located above the main entrance on the building's central axis, is even taller than the corner towers. Embedded on the front of the tower is a statue of the Emperor in his warlike form, over ten meters high, cast from a single piece of pure gold without any weld marks. Below the statue is an inscription: "The Emperor's gaze is upon, all affairs are favored." The walls are covered with etched prayers, alternating between Low Gothic and Binary High Gothic.
Descending the stone steps from the plaza in front of the main entrance, passing through the airtight, gold-plated doors, one enters the basement level. The floor is thirty meters high, with each side still measuring one kilometer. The dome is a cylindrical arch, constructed of gold-plated ribbed arches and ceramic steel infill panels. The floor is paved with anti-static synthetic stone. The storage area is divided into dozens of large warehouses, each with its own independent gold-plated fire doors and ventilation system. Shelving extends from the ground to the dome. The bases of the load-bearing columns are secured with twelve gold-plated bolts. Lighting is embedded between the dome's ribbed arches, with cool white light strips spreading along the curved surfaces.
Descending thirty meters through the elevator shaft, one reaches the second basement level. Twenty meters high, the ceiling is filled with dense pipe and cable trays. At the very center is a massive array hall. Dozens of Thinker mainframes are arranged side-by-side, each three meters tall, with a ceramic steel armor plate casing. The core processors are integrally molded at the atomic level by Enpu, with a lattice density far exceeding the casting world standard. The mainframes are arranged in three concentric rings: the inner ring is the core processing unit, the middle ring is the data exchange node, and the outer ring is the storage array. They will govern the city's operation within the dome, the scheduling of surface facilities, energy distribution, and logistics management.
A row of data terminals is located on the north side of the hall, while the maintenance station is on the south side. Communication devices and sensor interfaces are embedded in the east and west walls. Air circulation devices are located at the four corners, and the inner walls are covered with an electromagnetic shielding layer. The maintenance servitors' standby bays are located on both sides of the entrance.
The third underground level is the lowest level of the Governor's Palace on the surface, and also the starting point for the future access to the deep industrial zone. It is fifty meters high and one kilometer long on each side. The dome is semi-circular, with ribbed gold arches spreading overhead like the ribs of a giant beast.
At the very center stands a plasma reactor with a diameter exceeding two hundred meters, its output power sufficient to supply all surface equipment and systems in the entire city. The outer casing is covered with heat dissipation fins and sensors, and standby indicator lights form a dark red patch. Surrounding the reactor is a ring-shaped maintenance channel, inside which is a concentrated area of cooling pipes, the low-frequency circulation of the coolant producing a deep and stable sound.
At the very center of the third underground level—outside the reactor annular tunnel—stands a massive, adamantine gate. Five meters high, it is double-leafed; the left gate is etched with the Emperor's double-headed eagle emblem, while the right gate bears the gear and skull symbol of the Mechanicus. The gate is constructed from four welded adamantine plates. Embedded above the gate frame are triple verification sensors: genetic sequence, mechanical implant identification signals, and atomic-level identity markers. Without these, the gate would simply be an adamantine wall.
The door was tightly shut, its seams sealed with duct tape. The rock layer behind it remained unexcavated—this was the reserved space for a future personnel elevator leading a kilometer into the depths, a vertical passage for him and his accompanying crew. No construction had begun, but the door was already there. When needed in the future, he would push it open, and behind it lay the path downwards.
Passing through the main entrance, one enters the main hall. The hall is over fifty meters long on one side, and its dome is nearly thirty meters high, supported by four fine gold pillars. Between the pillars are pointed arched windows.
At the very center stands the Imperial Shrine, atop seven tiers of adamantite steps. A towering adamantite statue of the Emperor, over six meters tall, stands at the center, his hands resting on a ceremonial longsword, its tip embedded in the pedestal. Around the pedestal are eternally burning cauldrons, from which the fragrance of frankincense continuously rises from hidden atomizers. The dome is adorned with a fresco—a combination of the Emperor's and the Mechanicus's gear and skull emblems, flanked by angels and mech servants. The walls of the hall are inlaid with massive reliefs: the left depicts the Imperial Navy fleet arrayed, the right a scene of the Mechanicus forging. The floor is paved with dark synthetic stone, polished to reflect light. On either side of the shrine stand rows of wooden benches—though never sat upon, they are "what should be" in this building.
The top floor is located inside the main tower and is reached via a spiral staircase or a small elevator. The corridors are narrow and dark, with cool white light spreading across the silver-gray metal walls.
The office is the largest room, with floor-to-ceiling windows facing southeast. The desk is made of dark wood, with data interfaces and control panels embedded in the desktop, and the Imperial double-headed eagle flag hangs on the wall behind it. Three walls of the study are lined with empty bookshelves, waiting to be filled at any time. A data board and a Thinker terminal are fixed in the center of the workbench. The bedroom is small, with a standard-sized bed and a small lamp on the bedside table.
Embedded in the side wall is a life support pod—an integrated long-term living device with an airtight, locked door, an observation window on the front, and internal nutrient fluid circulation tubing and a vital signs monitoring panel. If Cohen is unable to switch back for an extended period, the life support pod can maintain this body's metabolism and health.
After several days of continuous high-intensity use of his abilities, Enp felt exhausted. These past few days, he would channel his consciousness into Cohen for several hours each day, as Cohen worked out blueprints and decomposed subspace matter aboard the Black Pearl. Everything on the Black Pearl was normal; it was still navigating through subspace.
He stepped onto the ground and sat down on a rock outside the governor's mansion. Garros had no satellites, and its night sky had far more stars than Lucis's. The spaceport was not yet ready for deployment. Service servitors stood by, administrative servitors were on duty, combat servitors patrolled, and beetle servitors continued to expand under the command of the Thinker Array.
Next, he will build the true industrial heart deep within the rock strata, thousands of meters below the surface. Once things are on track, he won't need to handle everything himself anymore.
Five months later, a transparent dome with a diameter of 200 kilometers will be completed, enveloping the entire city and providing a constant atmospheric temperature and air circulation. Inside the dome will be dense residential buildings, agricultural facilities, food factories, roads, warehouses, administrative centers, and training centers. The immigrants will build their homes under the dome. Conditions here will be basic, but at least better than living in their dark and gloomy hives.
Garros will transform from a forgotten frontier planet of the Empire into an industrial and habitable world on the eastern frontier.