Chapter 402: Purification! Consolidating Control! Subjugating the Zerg!
The sky-darkening Mutalisks and Swarm Hosts vanished under the onslaught of the Keystone's psionic shockwave, as if dark clouds had been dispersed by the sun. Even the Tunnelers they had launched disintegrated midair.
On the ground, the Infinity tide of Zerg was vaporized in an instant by the searing brilliance of the Keystone. With no enemy units to target, the AI-controlled turret arrays finally powered down and began self-repair protocols on their damaged components.
Not even the Zerg fleet in orbit could escape the wrath of the Keystone. Its psionic burst shot upward like a blade of light, lancing directly into the sky toward the monstrous Leviathan.
When the beam reached its target, the Leviathan twisted in agony like an insect impaled on a molten skewer, powerless to resist the searing pain devouring its body.
It quickly began to break apart—its tentacles and limbs sheared off, its internal organs bursting in rapid succession, showering the void with a grotesque rain of blood and gore.
After annihilating the Leviathan, the Keystone's energy surge continued outward into space, sweeping through every Zerg-infested orbital battlefield.
The pulse repeated at a frequency of three to four times per second, and with each pulse, more of the enemy forces were vaporized. By the time the wave passed, the alien swarm had been thoroughly erased from the front lines.
If even the mighty Leviathan couldn't withstand the Keystone's power, the rest of the bio-ships didn't stand a chance. Many were obliterated before they could even begin warp jump procedures.
Trillions upon trillions of Zerg were incinerated in a brilliant firestorm more spectacular than any fireworks display.
Such was the power of the psionic shockwave—every last Zerg forcibly wiped out. Even the Queen of Blades, under the Keystone's influence, began reverting back into a human.
As the energy dug deeper, her Zerg traits began to fade. Her once-purple skin lightened to a natural human complexion.
Her once-terrifying bone wings crumbled and fell away, and the bio-armor covering her body gradually peeled off.
She let out a helpless, anguished cry as the malevolent will inside her slowly separated and dissipated. Amon's control was completely purged.
At last, the Queen of Blades was purified and restored to her human form—Sarah Kerrigan.
Only her hair remained in its serpentine neural-tendril form, suggesting that the potential still lingered for her to return to her Zerg form if necessary.
Witnessing her transformation, Jim Raynor rushed forward, embracing her tightly as his eyes locked lovingly onto the long-lost woman he cherished.
David Martinez said nothing, allowing the two a rare moment of peace. Soon, however, Kerrigan would be transported to the headquarters of the Multiverse Base for neural matrix integration.
Amon's downfall was now only a matter of time.
Seeing the warfront secured, Li Ang knew he could temporarily step away from the StarCraft universe. Everything else could be handled by his subordinates.
Securing Kerrigan meant securing more than half the progress toward universal integration. With the path now set, Amon could no longer disrupt the plan.
All that remained was for the Megacorp to follow the trajectory of the original storyline: retrieve artifacts for Kerrigan, feed her essence, and prepare her for godhood ascension.
David Martinez would handle that entire progression— Li Ang simply had to wait at Multiverse Base for updates.
"Boss, we found something unusual on the Keystone—a mysterious coordinate system. According to intel from the Moebius Foundation, it appears to be a gateway to Ulnar," came a report via video from Chisaji Fox.
Li Ang nodded without changing expression. The Temple of Ulnar was the origin point of everything in the StarCraft universe—the nexus between the Void and the physical universe.
It was also the final resting place of the slain Xel'Naga, victims of Amon's betrayal.
According to StarCraft canon, the Protoss, Zerg, and Terrans would unite to open the gate to the Ulnar temple using the Keystone and face Amon in a climactic final battle.
Eventually, Amon would fall, the dust would settle, and the saga would end in resolution.
For the Megacorp, which held a massive strategic advantage, this was a necessary step. The final confrontation with Amon was expected to take place within the next two to three years.
But Li Ang wouldn't need to personally oversee that part—his subordinates could handle it. He was already preparing to begin integration of the next multiversal world.
"Let David handle it. Have him collaborate with the Protoss to investigate the Ulnar Temple and extract as much intel as possible."
With that, Li Ang officially handed over command of the StarCraft universe to David Martinez, who was poised to become the next Supreme Governor of the stars.
"Yes, sir," Chisaji Fox acknowledged.
"Has the expedition team for Char been prepped?" Li Ang continued.
Char had once been a central planet of the Terran Confederacy, but after the Zerg invasion, it became the primary nest of the swarm—the Zerg's de facto capital.
Now, without the Queen of Blades, the swarm was leaderless. And since she hadn't left behind many Brood Mothers, internal fragmentation was inevitable.
It was the perfect time to bring the Zerg under their control.
"I've already sent Din Djarin ahead. Paul and the science team will follow shortly," Chisaji replied.
"Good. This needs to happen fast."
Li Ang understood that the surviving Brood Mothers would rapidly vie for dominance, establishing new Zerg factions in the power vacuum.
No species, no matter how seemingly mindless, leaves a vacuum of authority unfilled—not even the Zerg.
"Also, I'll be assigning Reed, Moriko, and Terrence to stabilize the Terran Confederacy and the Earth Directorate. We need to unify the human factions as well."
"It's going to be a tough period for all of you," Li Ang added, setting in motion a series of high-level personnel shifts.
Now that the Megacorp held the Keystone, Kerrigan, and the Raiders, they had control of every critical chess piece. Unless they made a massive blunder, they were poised to steamroll through the remainder of the StarCraft campaign.
This was how overwhelming advantage worked.
The hardest part was always the early-stage accumulation of power—like the painful, ruthless first steps of capital accumulation. No matter how the advantage was gained, once the ball started rolling, it only accelerated.
After that, every encounter was a one-shot kill.
"Understood!" Chisaji replied once more.
After ending the call, Chisaji headed straight to the Science Nexus, taking with her the newly developed Collective Neural Network 2.0 device.
This advanced polymer-based system was engineered specifically for Zerg control. With assistance from the master biotechnician Quintinsha, the control artifact was now fully complete.
All that remained was for Paul's team to head to Char and bring the Zerg under control.
If the entire Zerg race could be subjugated, the Megacorp's combat strength would soar to a whole new tier, while war costs would plummet.
This plan had long been in place—waiting only for the Queen of Blades to fall.
As the most gifted psionic talent in the Megacorp, Paul was naturally the best candidate for this mission.
Though he had just finished a grueling battle with the Queen of Blades and barely had time to rest, he was already being sent back out into the field.
But the more you contribute, the faster you rise.Paul's unwavering motivation was fueled by the drive to grow stronger.
Before long, he and Chisaji Fox, along with the research team, boarded the Wanderer-class Dreadnought and set course for the heart of the swarm—Char.
Midway through their journey, Paul rendezvoused with Din Djarin, who had gone ahead to scout. Their fleets merged, and the two met face-to-face aboard the flagship.
"Boss, after this mission, we're definitely making it into the Elite Vanguard Team, right?" Din Djarin said with a grin. He had already caught wind that David Martinez was about to be promoted to Supreme Governor of the Stars.
And as was often the case, when the boss rises, the trusted subordinates get to ride the wave.
For instance, Paul had just been promoted from head of the operations unit to the captain of the Multiverse Vanguard, with a provisional post in the Elite Vanguard Team and a pending slot on the Megacorp's executive track.
As Paul's inner circle, the others would naturally benefit from the same tide.
"Quit obsessing over that stuff," Paul replied with a chuckle. The higher the rank, the heavier the burden.
In the Megacorp, no one dared slack off under the boss's nose—after all, personnel decisions rested entirely in Li Ang's hands.
If he wanted you out, you were out.
For Paul, the desire to rise wasn't just about power—it was also about uncovering the greater truths, like the mysterious visions he had seen when awakening his psionic abilities.
Some knowledge could only be seen from the highest vantage point.
And Li Ang was the only one in the multiverse who had come close to understanding the truth. The closer Paul got to him, the closer he came to that truth as well.
As the two conversed, the Wanderer-class Dreadnought completed its warp and arrived in orbit around Char.
The planet below was a volcanic hellscape—a red world whose surface glowed like molten iron. Rivers of lava flowed like coiled serpents, slithering across every corner of the terrain.
And yet, this was the Zerg's stronghold.
The orbital platforms once built by human colonists had been transformed into hives and hatcheries for the swarm.
Its extreme environment and dense Zerg infestation had earned Char the nickname "Death World" among Terrans.
Under normal circumstances, any ship or lifeform approaching Char would be swiftly torn apart by the Zerg.
But this time, Paul and his team encountered no resistance—only a few Mutalisks flew past the Nomad, entirely indifferent to its presence.
Captain Andrew was bewildered. "What the hell? They're just letting us approach?"
"Without the Queen of Blades, most of the swarm is out of control," Chisaji Fox explained. "These Zerg aren't under any Brood Mother's command—they're essentially just wild animals now."
"As long as we don't provoke them, they won't attack."
It was simple biological instinct—seek advantage, avoid danger. The reason Zerg had always seemed fearless was because of the hive mind's suppressive control.
Now, with the Brood Mothers locked in a civil war for dominance, none of them had time to care about a passing human warship.
Paul's team landed with ease and began searching for hives that had not yet been claimed by a Brood Mother.
Their plan was to use the Collective Neural System to seize control of one such hive, establish their own Zerg force, and gradually absorb the rest of the swarm.
Using orbital scans from the Dreadnought, Paul quickly identified a chaotic, disorganized hive—a clear sign it hadn't been claimed by a Brood Mother.
Perfect for a test run.
When Paul and his team arrived near the hive, the resident Zerg showed little response. A few skittish creatures merely scurried away at the first sign of humans, clearly just trying to avoid danger.
Their behavior was indistinguishable from that of wild animals.
During the entry, Din Djarin accidentally startled a Zergling. The little brute bared its fangs and charged, ready to teach the intruding human a lesson for interrupting its nap.
Din instinctively raised his rifle to shoot, but Paul stepped in and stopped him, emitting a controlled psionic pulse to repel the creature.
As expected, the Zergling immediately sensed Paul's overwhelming power and backed off with a whimper, fleeing while letting out high-pitched warning cries.
The whole scene was eerily reminiscent of a barking but cowardly chihuahua.
"Huh, never thought Zerg could be scared. I always assumed they were all fearless killers," Din remarked, a bit thrown off after fighting the swarm for so long.
"They're still just living organisms," Paul explained. "Without a Brood Mother's control, their instinct is to survive, not fight."
As they scouted the hive's interior, Paul confirmed there were no Brood Mothers present—it was unclaimed territory, ready for takeover.
He gave the order to deploy drones carrying the neural-control polymers. At first, the Zerg panicked and tried to scatter.
But once they realized the transparent substance was edible, they swarmed toward it, eagerly devouring what they saw as a heavenly gift.
Meanwhile, Chisaji had already linked the upgraded control system—a ring-shaped device that allowed a psionic user to issue commands via neural signals.
Paul slipped on the ring. As his psionic energy flowed outward, his will was transmitted directly into the minds of the nearby Zerg.
The effect was immediate. Under the combined influence of the polymers and Paul's psionic field, the chaotic, scattered Zerg suddenly froze in place—calm, orderly, awaiting further instruction.
All basic Zerg units were born to serve higher consciousness. With no Brood Mother interference, Paul had no trouble taking control.
Where once the Zerg had growled and glared in hostility, now they stood silently, submissive and alert.
Paul stepped forward and gently reached out to pet a Zergling. The once-defiant creature lowered its head, fully accepting his touch with no signs of aggression.
"We did it!" Din Djarin said excitedly, marveling at the docile swarm. The mission had gone smoother than he ever imagined.
"Yeah, this hive is ours now," Paul confirmed with a nod.
With a mere thought, he could now order the Drones to resume construction and resource collection.
The living structures within the creep reactivated, absorbing nutrients and kicking production lines back into motion.
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