"Lord Guilliman, Solar Lord Leontus has returned to Segmentum Solar, accompanied by a Man of Iron who calls himself Iax. He requests an audience with you."
A guard strode into Guilliman's office, saluted, and loudly delivered his report to Guilliman, who sat behind his desk.
Guilliman narrowed his eyes slightly, then nodded.
"Understood. Bring that Man of Iron to me once he arrives."
In the Warp, Leontus was getting his first close look at the mechanical ally who had saved the Imperium from disaster.
A fully humanoid machine stood beside him, not much taller than an ordinary person. Gleaming metal covered its body, and its electronic eyes glowed a faint blue.
This was a newly manufactured spare body for Iax.
Unlike his original body, this one was no taller than a mortal. Its construction emphasized a humanlike form, with all combat structures removed.
He had named this model the Emissary and incorporated several additional new materials refined through Votann technology.
The ultrahigh-density neutron armor covering its entire body meant that, though no larger than an ordinary human, it possessed strength surpassing the Imperium's Auramite Material and weighed more than a Dreadnought.
An individual shield of the same type used by the Automated Sentry also provided it with energy shielding.
In Iax's view, the strongest weapon this body possessed was the body itself.
Even a Particle Oscillation Sword would be useless against this tightly bound neutron armor.
Unless large industrial equipment or Titan-class power sources were used to disrupt its structure.
Otherwise, under normal circumstances, there was virtually no possibility of destroying this body.
Its minimalist structural design left enormous reserves of power. That energy was used to move the excessive weight of these extraordinary materials, while various built-in miniature antigravity modules neatly addressed the body's excessive mass.
It would