The new laboratory was built into a hollowed-out asteroid, about a quarter the size of the moon.
Yapool had powerful psychic abilities, not as strong as Mefilas who could move a whole planet, but for an asteroid, it was no problem.
This asteroid, formed from others in the Kuiper Belt, was reshaped by three scientists with help from some of Rhodes' legion's Kipps.
With the assistance of Belisarius Cawl, it was turned into a mobile space fortress. Only Rhodes' scientists, Cawl, and Rhodes himself had access.
Yapool even erected an extra-dimensional spatial barrier—ordinary Imperial ships or others passing nearby would detect nothing.
Inside, the equipment had been upgraded by Cawl, and the Emperor himself had allocated funds.
The Martian Mechanicus provided new top-tier equipment, assembled by Rhodes' scientists.
Now there were a dozen giant incubation tanks, each holding massive beings—sixty meters tall. These were the latest modified Zettons.
"Welcome home, Master! Your servants have been awaiting your return," Yapool and Balt greeted Rhodes with a bow.
"These are your newly created Zettons?" Rhodes asked, looking at the giants in the tanks.
"Yes, Master. These improved Zettons were created by the three of us. We call them Zetton Mark III, or Primarch Zettons.
Cawl, a top scientist, used extra-dimensional and regenerative metals to create new tendon coils and implant them in Zettons.
With these new coils implanted, Zettons' defense, melee ability, and strength are greatly enhanced.
We also improved the Cawl Furnace and Hymn Gland and implanted them as well, further boosting Zetton's fighting power.
The Cawl Furnace increases Zetton's energy reserves and allows short bursts of even greater power.
The Hymn Gland can to some extent resist some warp chaos corruption and defend against psychic attacks," Balt explained.
They had been working closely with Cawl during this time.
Cawl, even in a universe full of geniuses, was among the very best. He only lacked exposure to new technologies.
The new technologies mastered by themselves, Yapool, Zett, and Salome all fueled Cawl's growth.
And Zetton's upgrade was just one of Cawl's projects; he was also involved in the Super-Beast project, but the main focus for these six months was the Primarch Zetton modification.
Rhodes nodded in satisfaction. Zetton's strength was beyond doubt. In the recent battle with the Necrons, Zetton had shown formidable power—such a monster legion, the more the better!
With Cawl's improvements, these new Zettons were even stronger. With Primaris Astartes organs adapted for Zetton, Cawl was truly a genius!
But "Zetton Mark III" didn't sound quite right—"Primarch Zetton" was better.
"Well done. I see these Zettons have a mechanical device on their backs. What does it do?" Rhodes asked, pointing.
"Master, since Yapool's technology also removed some of Zetton's pain nerves, we could install mechanical devices.
Cawl installed devices in Zetton's back, forming a void shield array.
Powered by the Cawl Furnace and Zetton's own energy, it absorbs ranged attacks and transmits them into the warp.
Originally we planned to install a macro-cannon on Zetton's chest, but with its megaton fireballs and ultimate beam, it was already powerful enough," Balt explained.
The new Zettons were far stronger than Zetton Mark II—a single Primarch Zetton could crush Mark II, even defeating two or three at once, or battling four without losing. An incredible improvement!
"Excellent. These new Zettons are truly worthy of being called Space Marines," Rhodes remarked.
In the future, if he summoned Hyper Zetton and used its genes to make gene seeds, then had Cawl create 19 organs specifically for Zetton—wouldn't that make a Space Marine version of Zetton?
Rhodes thought this was promising. If Cawl could implant some Space Marine organs in Zetton, why not the others?
But that required a gene-seed, so he had to extract Hyper Zetton and make it the gene-primarch of the Zetton Legion.
Then he could create a monster version of the Space Marines. Rhodes shared his idea with the Yapool and Balt.
"What do you think? With these super-modifications, Zetton's combat power should rise even further," Rhodes said.
"Master, theoretically it's possible, but practically there are many problems to solve.
We'll discuss your idea with Cawl when he arrives, but the key is the gene-seed—you must provide it," Balt replied.
With current technology, it was feasible to make superhuman organs for Zetton.
In fact, Zetton's modifications could be even more perfect than for humans, since it was already a biological weapon.
"All right, wait a moment!" Rhodes immediately headed to the Mechanicus headquarters and brought Cawl, who was instructing students, to the secret base.
…
"Lord Rhodes, do you have urgent business?" Cawl asked.
Was it about the new Zettons? They'd agreed to report together in a few days.
"Lord Rhodes came today for an inspection, so we reported early. He also has some ideas for the new Zettons," Balt explained.
"Oh! That's perfect, Lord Rhodes. I have some good news for you as well—please share your thoughts first," Cawl said.
"Cawl, my idea is this: if these Zettons can get a gene-seed in the future, they can be fully transformed into Space Marines, with 19 custom organs."
"No problem, Lord Rhodes, that's entirely feasible—provided you solve a prerequisite," Cawl replied after some thought.
If there truly existed a Hyper Zetton much stronger than normal Zetton, it could serve as gene-primarch.
"What prerequisite?"
"All superhuman organs are evolved from gene seeds. Without a gene-seed, we cannot create the organs from scratch.
The three superhuman organs I developed are independent of gene seeds, so they can be implanted in Zetton. But to start from zero, the gene-seed is needed," Cawl explained.
"Understood. Don't worry, I'll provide an appropriate gene-seed within a century at most," Rhodes replied.
The Zetton he had pulled from the shop could already undergo EX transformation. After that, with more advanced enhancements, a century would be enough to create a Zetton gene-seed.
"Lord Rhodes, let me share my new discovery. For Primaris Space Marines, I've found a new direction for improvement. Previously, we couldn't implant tendon coils, but now we can," Cawl reported.
"Oh? So the next-generation Astartes can be further upgraded? Tell me your idea," Rhodes nodded.
"My thought, Lord Rhodes, is to use extra-dimensional or regenerative metals to make tendon coils, perfectly replacing the old version.
These new coils greatly support bio-muscles, further enhancing Space Marines' defense and combat ability," Cawl explained.
Previously, standard coils were incompatible with Primaris Space Marines because they didn't match Zetton's bio-muscle, which was a hundred times harder than steel.
Coils made from ordinary metal couldn't enhance Zetton's combat power. But now, with regenerative and extra-dimensional metals, the new coils fit perfectly.
"That's a good idea, but the only problem is the low yield of these two metals.
There isn't enough to equip the whole legion, let alone all the Imperium's Space Marines," Rhodes noted.
"I'm aware, Lord Rhodes. That's why only elites will be equipped with this surgery," Cawl replied.
He had already considered this—due to material constraints, only elite warriors would receive this upgrade: chapter masters, brigade commanders, think tank members, and deputy commanders. Ordinary warriors would use the original surgery.
Extra-dimensional metal was somewhat available, but regenerative metal was scarce—only Rhodes' special Titan could produce a few tons.
"Don't worry, I have a solution. This time, I brought a new material. You know about Necron living metal, right?
If we use it, it can replace regenerative metal, increasing output.
That way, all Imperial Space Marines and even newly modified Sisters of Battle could use this technology," Rhodes said.
"Necron living metal could indeed replace regenerative metal, but Lord Rhodes, I don't have the formula for it," Cawl replied.
"On my trip to the Space Wolves' homeworld, I also wiped out a small Necron tomb world.
I obtained a large amount of Necron tech from them. You can do some reverse-engineering, with Balt and Yapool assisting.
As for living metal, I've got their raw materials for it—you've heard of black dwarfs, right?" Rhodes said.
After destroying the Necron dynasty, Rhodes packed up all their tech to bring home for his scientists to study. The Mechanicus couldn't handle it, but his own scientists could.
"Necron tech is indeed valuable. We humans have fought Necrons many times.
But we'd never recovered suitable research equipment—even their ship wreckage is reclaimed by their own tech.
As for black dwarfs, Lord Rhodes, I suspect they are the raw material for living metal.
Necrons can compress stellar energy and manipulate star lifespans at will," Cawl mused, stroking his chin.
He quickly guessed Rhodes' intent—living metal's special material was likely a stellar core.
With Necron tech and raw materials, extracting living metal wouldn't be a problem.
"You're right. This time, I obtained a cooled stellar core—its hardness is insane. I believe it's the material for living metal.
The core is the size of a whole Terra. If refined, it should be more than enough," Rhodes said.
After his son was born, he still needed to deal with the Void Dragon shard. Once that was settled, he'd absorb a red giant, gaining another stellar core.
"No problem, Lord Rhodes. I can't wait to get my hands on Necron tech," Cawl replied eagerly.
"I'll leave the reverse engineering to you, Balt, Yapool, and Salome—work together on this," Rhodes ordered.
"Lord Rhodes, actually, I have another special talent in mind who could help us crack this even more effectively," Cawl said.