As heaps of raw minerals were fed into the processing bays, the Quantum Disintegrator, silent for untold eons, stirred once more into frantic life.
A pale blue radiance deconstructed the ore, stripping it down to its fundamental molecular components. At the opposite end of the assembly line, the Quantum Printing Module began synthesizing matte-black cubes, each measuring one meter per side. These dense blocks were the inactive physical clusters of the nanite swarm, each weighing in excess of two tons.
Axion refused to let this opportunity slip. To his logic-driven mind, the inefficient manufacturing protocols of the Imperium were a grotesque squandering of resources. As the mineral stockpiles dwindled, the black cubes tumbled one after another from the line, where waiting automata stacked them in silent, rhythmic precision.
Taking direct command of the industrial vessel's intelligence and core logic engines, Axion initiated a unified activation of the nanomachinic polymers.
Arc-light flickered.
The mounds of black cubes transitioned to a brilliant silver and began to collapse. Like melting promethium-wax, they dissolved into a shimmering metallic lake. From the center of this silver expanse, a complex mechanical structure, interlaced like a Mobius strip, slowly breached the surface.
The silver mechanism pulsed with a faint blue luminescence as colossal energies surged through its frame. Defying gravity, the device drifted into the air, achieving a state of energetic self-sustenance.
This was the Nanite Mother-Machine.
It was a specialized apparatus designed to constrain vast quantities of nanites within a specific energetic lattice, restructuring their very alignment. So long as a nanite carried any usable molecular matter through the Mother-Machine's aperture, that matter would be continuously transmuted into new nanomachinic entities. Furthermore, the Mother-Machine possessed the capacity to store the data-essence of any matter consumed by the swarm.
As the construction of this unique relic reached completion, the silver lake below began to rapidly evaporate.
A silver mist billowed outward as the Nanite Swarm commenced its work. The newly repaired production lines were the first to be consumed, devoured utterly by the swarm. The silver haze swept through the entire compartment, scouring away every piece of machinery. Having consumed the structures of the Quantum Disintegrator and the Quantum Printing Module, the swarm uploaded their schematic essence to the Mother-Machine, which in turn transmitted the data to Axion's core for permanent archival.
In that moment, Axion truly mastered the capability to manufacture standardized production lines at will.
With the compartment thoroughly deconstructed, the molecularly laden nanites surged toward the center of the Mother-Machine. Like a graceful silver current passing through the ring's center, the flow transformed into a cascading waterfall on the other side. Before the newly birthed nanites could even hit the deck, they dispersed into a fine mist, spreading throughout the ship.
Soon, nothing remained of the industrial ship's interior save for its outer hull and the core logic modules. The Automatons and Eight-Legs drifted in the void of the hollowed decks alongside the hovering Mother-Machine. Every other internal structure and every scrap of mineral had been reduced to its base components.
The silver swarm, saturated with an immense volume of molecular matter, occupied half of the vessel's internal volume. The mist had thickened into a turbid, multi-hued liquid that drifted through the hull—the maximum density the nanites could maintain without synthesizing further units.
The reconstruction began.
The ship's once-convoluted internal geometry was erased. The industrial vessel was partitioned into three primary sections, with deck heights recalibrated for future manufacturing requirements. The smallest decks stood at a mere ten meters, while the largest exceeded a height of one hundred meters.
While the core modules for small, medium, and large standardized production lines operated on identical principles, they differed in scale, not merely due to energy consumption, but because of their physical footprints. Axion, however, disregarded such terrestrial limitations.
Following the new deck specifications, Axion did more than just construct nearly a hundred production lines of varying scales; he replaced the ship's very heart. The ancient plasma reactor, a relic of the hives, was swallowed by a silver tide, leaving only a standard mounting plinth. In its place, a brand-new Antimatter Power Core materialized in a seamless transition.
Boundless energy surged through the industrial ship's conduits.
A ripple of silver light swept across the vessel's exterior, and the ship's primary drives roared back to life. Upon closer inspection, the changes to the Machine Weaver were profound. Every seam and joint on the hull had vanished. The armor plating and the structural keel had fused into a single, contiguous entity. To any observer, the ship now appeared as if it had been cast from a single, flawless pour of metal.
The massive hangars and cavernous cargo bays were expanded once more. The efficiency of these standardized lines dwarfed those of the Adeptus Mechanicus, bypassing redundant stages of smelting, joining, and assembly. Every spare cubic meter was converted into storage for raw materials, while the hangars doubled as warehouses for finished ordnance.
As the hangar bay doors cycled open for the first time, swarms of transport craft departed, their holds overflowing with the nanite swarm as they made for the rest of the fleet. Upon arrival, the nanites would consume the transports themselves, recycling their frames into molecular material for other purposes.
Every ship in the fleet was soon polished to a mirror sheen. This was particularly true for the four Heavy Assault Cruisers. Following the nanite boarding, their hulls became more compact, their armor plates fused, and all evidence of riveting, welding, or modular construction disappeared. The structural integrity of the hulls increased by over 12%.
The two transport ships were the primary beneficiaries of this silver tide. Half of the transports launched from the industrial ship were diverted to them. Their hulls were reinforced, and massive quantities of nanites poured into their laden cargo bays.
Every unit, beginning with the basic Automated Sentry-Troopers, was slated for reinforcement. Beyond allocating vast processing power for physical upgrades, Axion granted all units nanite-control authorization.
The Iron Men, the true Silica Animus, were soon to walk the stars once more in their full, terrible glory.
The nanite mass that had filled the industrial ship was rapidly depleted, leaving only the Mother-Machine and a few hundred liters of reserve stock. The internal materials had been exhausted, the ship's structure rewritten, and the warehouses sat empty. Only a few dozen chunks of Auramite ore remained, piled obediently in a corner. Axion had yet to test this material; he needed to determine the optimal method for alloying it with other elements.
As the fleet finished its miraculous refit, Axion signaled the order to get underway. Bolstered by its new power core, the industrial ship finally overcame its sluggish sub-light speeds.
Resources were spent. Axion needed to return to the Segmentum Pacificus immediately. The Machine Weaver was now worthy of its name, and he required the shattered remnants of those xenos "squid tentacles" to refine more minerals.
Those fragments were his trophies of war. And not even Guilliman had the authority to stand in his way.