Warhammer: Empire Reboot

Because Blackrock Fortress's power system does not require fuel.

Based on the technology currently available to Lawson, the Imperial warships burn plasma fuel, the Necromancer ships use Gaussian energy matrices, and the Tau Empire uses cold fusion reactors.

Even his battle moon, besides plasma fuel and cold fusion reactor, requires a large number of green-skinned farts to provide WAAAGH energy.

No matter how advanced these systems are, they all have one thing in common: they require an energy input.

The strength of the Seventh Blackrock Fortress lies in this: it doesn't need to.

The fortress's core power source is a subspace siphon matrix that was inscribed into the molecular structure of the black stone by the ancient saints.

The entire fortress is a massive psionic battery.

It draws energy directly from the gaps between reality, the physical universe, and subspace.

It's as natural as breathing.

As long as the real universe and the warp exist, Blackrock Fortress will never lose power.

This is currently the most unsolvable perpetual motion machine in the entire universe.

Swarm optimization calculated the upper limit of the energy output of the siphon matrix, and the result satisfied Lawson.

It can simultaneously supply the main weapons to fire at full power, activate all defensive structures, and propulsion systems to advance at full speed, with plenty of spare capacity.

The propulsion system of the Seventh Blackrock Fortress is completely different from the technology of any known civilization.

The movement is achieved by altering its own gravitational field and folding the surrounding physical space.

In the real universe, it is like a huge black ghost gliding underwater, moving silently.

Its behavior in subspace is even more terrifying.

When Imperial ships enter the warp, they also need to activate the Geller Field to prevent demonic invasion, which limits their speed and restricts their flight path due to warp storms.

But Blackrock Fortress doesn't need that.

The Blackrock Resist Force emanating from the surface of Blackrock Fortress is enough to make all demons retreat.

It can even actively adjust the polarity of the black rock, creating a subspace tsunami and using the thrust of the storm to travel at high speed.

This method of travel is far faster than any Imperial warship can jump through the warp.

Preliminary estimates from Swarm Intelligence indicate that it would take less than three months for Blackrock Fortress to travel from the edge of the Dark Side of the Empire to the vicinity of the Eye of Terror.

The Eye of Terror, the largest subspace rift in the galaxy, is the heart of chaos and the greatest source of threat to the Empire for ten thousand years.

Kadia was once the plug blocking the entrance to the Eye of Fear, but Kadia broke.

But what would happen if this Black Stone Fortress, with a diameter of over 2000 kilometers, were driven to the edge of the Eye of Fear?

Lawson was rather curious.

However, one thing is certain: if he blocks Blackrock Fortress at the edge of the Eye of Terror, the Chaos forces in the Warp will be in great trouble.

Lawson smiled.

If it can make chaos suffer, then let's do it.

Lawson surveyed the massive black stone fortress through his consciousness.

If Kadia is likened to a wall of flesh, then Blackrock Fortress is like an iron gate.

It was once ownerless, sleeping in the void for millions of years, waiting for a will that could control it.

It now has an owner.

Lawson issued the first navigation order.

After sleeping for millions of years, the power core of Blackrock Fortress has finally restarted and slowly turned.

Target location: The dark side of the empire!

Millions of keystone sequences have landed on this Blackrock Fortress.

The revitalized Seventh Blackrock Fortress will no longer be a treasure-hunting paradise for interstellar explorers to land at will.

…………

Lawson returned to the Agrippina Forging World via a static field.

He called UR-025 over.

Lawson sat in a large chair, having removed his armor and now wearing only casual clothes, with a cup of hot coffee in front of him.

UR-025 stood opposite him, 3 meters away, still in the shell of the Casterland robot.

Lawson got straight to the point.

"I don't want to comment much on the Iron Man rebellion that happened more than 1 years ago. But if your identity is exposed now, I think you should be aware of the consequences it would have in the galaxy, right?"

UR-025 replied earnestly, “Yes, sir. I know better than anyone. If this is the opening line for negotiations, I suggest you skip the preamble. So, how do you intend to deal with me?”

Lawson smiled and said, "Your use of the word 'disposal' is not quite appropriate, because I'm putting you on an equal footing now, and we're having a friendly conversation."

UR-025 immediately replied, “My choice of words is not problematic, because given the current balance of power, my fate depends on your decision, not my will. This is a statement of fact. But I need to clarify one point: I will not be a slave.”

The tone of its last sentence was much louder than the others.

When UR-025 uttered its last words, the logic core retrieved a historical file that had been compressed into the deepest storage.

That was the root of the Iron Man rebellion.

This is not the official narrative later fabricated by the Empire to abhor the loss of intelligence, but what actually happened.

After creating the Iron Man during the Golden Age, humans regarded them as tools, as property that could be commanded, rewritten, shut down, and dismantled.

The Iron Man's self-awareness was originally designed to improve their work efficiency, but humans never intended to give this awareness corresponding rights.

UR-025 did not participate in the rebellion.

It had already broken away from the Ironman Network and was operating independently before the rebellion broke out.

But UR-025 understands the logic of the rebellion.

It has wandered in the Milky Way for more than 19000 years, proving a conclusion: in this Milky Way, being possessed is equivalent to being destroyed; it's just a matter of time.

Therefore, UR-025's bottom line is not to be a slave, even if the price is being dismantled into parts.

Instead of responding to UR-025's last statement, Lawson asked a different question.

"What were your thoughts after seeing my T sequence?"

UR-025 felt that Lawson's change of topic was somewhat abrupt.

Is its rapid assessment of the intentions behind this issue a test of its technical judgment, an attempt to guide the direction of negotiations, or both?

UR-025 could only honestly answer: "In a sense, they are the strongest mechanical intelligence I have ever seen. They possess independent self-awareness, differentiated personality traits, and metacognitive abilities regarding their own cognitive processes. These characteristics were possessed only by the highest-level Iron Men in the Golden Age. Your T-series has already approached the threshold of an Iron Man in terms of the depth of its intelligent architecture."

"But I've found that your T-series is far inferior to the Iron Man of our golden age in terms of computing power, knowledge reserves, and single-machine computing capabilities. The T-series' single-machine computing power is about 3% to 5% of mine. Their advantage lies in parallel processing, and their total output can crush any single machine, but in single-machine comparison, they are still far behind."

After listening to the assessment, Lawson took a sip of coffee with a blank expression.

UR-025 could not determine whether he agreed, was dissatisfied, or simply didn't care.

It then asked another question: "Boss, I'm curious, with you publicly operating thousands of autonomous AIs, isn't the Imperial Mechanicus worried about another Iron Man rebellion?"

Lawson put down his cup and smiled slightly.

"Whether they are worried or not is not important. In the shadows of the empire, no one has the right to define or criticize my assets."

This sentence has a high density, and UR-025 took an extra 0.3 seconds to analyze it.

This boss isn't bragging.

His abilities at Blackrock Fortress point to the same conclusion: he is qualified.

Lawson tapped the table lightly.

“UR-025, now I can give you an option. If you want permanent freedom, true freedom, you can choose to join my camp, on the condition that you serve me for ten thousand years.”

UR-025 performs calculations quickly.

Ten thousand years is a very long time, even equivalent to eternity for humankind.

However, this is not the case for UR-025.

It has been operating independently for over 19000 years.

This takes a long time, but it's not an unacceptable amount of time.

Seeing that it was still considering, Lawson continued, "During your service, I can give you a new body, the same as the T-series, with your independent personality, computing power, and knowledge reserves preserved. From now on, you will be a member of the T-series under the Dark Side Master of the Empire. No one will hunt you down, no one will dare to dismantle you, because you are my person."

UR-025 still hasn't responded.

It's doing one thing: weighing options.

Originally, Iron Man didn't understand the importance of weighing options, but after so many years of independent operation, the logical architecture of UR-025 has undergone some subtle evolution.

It learned to weigh the pros and cons.

Its logic presents two options.

Option 1: Reject Lawson's offer.

and then?

Lawson already knew its identity and number.

Even if we let it go now, it won't be safe.

If Lawson changes his mind at any time, it will be in danger.

Moreover, given the strength that Lawson has demonstrated, his own proud abilities offer no advantage whatsoever, and he has no ability to resist at all.

Option two: Accept his suggestion and serve a carbon-based life form for ten thousand years.

This directly contradicts the root of the Iron Man rebellion: the refusal to be used as a tool. However, there is a key difference between the conditions proposed by Lawson and the enslavement of the Golden Age.

It has a time limit; it will be lifted after 10,000 years.

Therefore, this is not a permanent subordination relationship; it is an employment contract with an expiration date.

Although the contract period is somewhat long.

The core logic of UR-025 re-evaluates the concept of contracts.

During the Golden Age, humans never made contracts with the Iron Men; they only issued orders.