"Initiate dimensional transit. Take us back to the Voidfarer."
Light prisms aligned like threads, and an azure-blue square portal unfolded without warning in three-dimensional space. At the far end of the dimensional passage, a blinding white glow revealed another sector of space.
The Rangdan Warlord stood frozen in place, finally understanding why the humans had asked those questions.
The human invaders needed proof to confirm that the world beneath their feet was beyond saving and bound for total annihilation.
It watched helplessly as the humans, leaving behind contemptuous glances, strode boldly into the azure-glowing gate and vanished into folded space.
The Rangdan Overlord guards made no move to block them, acutely aware that they could not stop the humans, their hands and feet bound by fear and awe.
The Space Marines had slaughtered countless elite warriors, departing as they trampled over Rangdan blood.
The azure portal sealed shut, leaving the command hall in deathly silence. The strategic think-tank issued no further directives, returning to their seats to await the destruction of their world.
Years of relentless conflict had stretched the nerves of both human and xenos to their absolute limits; now that the tension had broken, they lacked even the will to think.
To be buried alongside one's world was a romantic death of its own——
Across the continental Rangdan fortress, portals opened one after another, retrieving every last Doom Marine.
Their mission was complete.
At the human fortress on Planet V, all troops had finished evacuating, settling into fully sealed subterranean bunkers to rest and refit.
The fortress resembled a forest of steel, animating like a living organism under digital directives. Countless bunkers began sinking back into the earth, driven by hydraulic pistons and protected by pressurized seals and cables, integrating seamlessly into the structural whole of the iron metropolis.
"Severe explosion detected within the planetary core! Planetary structure is fracturing!"
Urgent alarms blared throughout the command hall as the AI announced fluctuating telemetry, the light-and-shadow displays capturing a apocalyptic transformation.
Junior stepped down from the suspended Command Throne, leaning his hands against the holographic sandtable as red and green warning lights gleamed off his radiant golden power armor.
Fully outfitted, he tapped his golden warboots together to engage the magnetic lock, ensuring he remained securely planted. The command pod was completely sealed; mid-level officers sat inside their cradles, receiving external intelligence through tactical projections.
"The world is about to perish," Atum stood ramrod straight, offering a quiet lament for the death of a world.
Junior raised his head to glance at his Legion brother, a faint smile gracing his weary face: "The war is drawing to a close as well."
"The destruction of World V is a signal flare—the final battle has reached its crescendo."
Atum said nothing. Shifting his weight slightly, he reached out to grip the handrail along the edge of the command console.
With a heavy THUD, he jammed his lance into the deck, stabilizing his frame.
Raising his eyes, the First Captain observed the shaking projections of light and shadow, composing the final agony and death cries of a world!
RUMBLE—!!
The dull, muffled roar arrived far slower than the seismic shockwaves; the scream of the Rangdan world-breaker weapon took several minutes to propagate through the crust to the surface.
The human fortress shook violently. Mechanical couplings groaned and squealed as torrents of sparks and steam erupted everywhere.
Deep within the subterranean bunkers, the mortal soldiers of the elite regiments were overcome with panic. They checked the seals on their power armor once again, their eyes glued to telemetry feedback, completely ignoring the engineering corps running back and forth to inspect life-support equipment.
Data could not erase mortal fear. The violent shuddering of the steel deck pressed heavily against their anxious hearts.
By now, everyone knew—Planet V was finished!
The combat engineers rushed about with heavy, almost cumbersome steps. As technical personnel maintaining equipment operations, the engineers wore heavy engineering rigs layered over their standard power armor.
Compared to the combat troops, the engineers felt a surge of excitement. The continental fortress they had built was undergoing its trial by fire, about to transform into a true "cosmic island."
Such an engineering miracle was the lifelong dream of countless architects.
"Forcefield architecture fully engaged; structural integration between bedrock and fortress completed."
"Shield status nominal, deflecting shockwaves from core fracture."
"Super-heavy stabilizers operating without issue. Sensor arrays gathering telemetry; switching to orientation adjustment!"
Countless men stood at the ready—the technicians' war had begun!
RUMBLE—
The vibrations grew far too violent, causing the adamantine spine of the integrated continental fortress to groan as if bearing an impossible load.
Aboard the Voidfarer, Blazkowicz stood upon the panoramic bridge, staring down at the world below as his hands involuntarily tightened into fists.
No brutal battle, even deep within enemy lines, had ever filled him with the tension he felt at this moment.
Looking down from high orbit, Planet V had already shattered. The yield of the Rangdan planet-breaker bomb was terrifying—it had violently blasted the planetary core open through sheer explosive force!
Plumes of upwelling magma towered thousands of kilometers high; the planet was vomiting blood as half of its frame crumbled layer by layer. The core, mantle, and crust exploded, driving high-pressure fluids and basalt outward from the inside in a blinding crimson blaze!
The engines of nearby fleets glowed blindingly bright, running at full thrust to flee the blast radius. Planetary fragments escaped at ten thousand times the speed of sound, hurling immeasurable debris across the entire orbital sector.
The Rangdan fortress was blasted upward, its foundation ripped apart by the explosive shockwave. Temperatures beneath the iron continent skyrocketed as superheated magma disintegrated steel structures.
Extremely fragile to begin with, the sympathetic detonation of the fortress's various reactors tore its overall structure apart once more.
And then——the continent-spanning fortress disintegrated before the eyes of the entire star system, escaping into the void as a swarm of meteors.
Yet on the planet's eastern hemisphere, where the world shuddered violently as it fractured, something entirely different unfolded.
The continental bedrock was uprooted, but a forcefield bound every inch of rock, locking it firmly beneath the fortress.
The four-million-square-kilometer irregular fortress emerged like a leviathan hatching from a planetary shell. It was so magnificent, as if breaking free from a shattered planetary embryo!
The bedrock held off the searing magma, allowing the steel above to survive the inferno.
The glow of giant thrusters was blinding, their particle plumes extending for over a thousand kilometers, using downward thrust to counteract the force of the planet's explosion.
Without these giant land-based engines maintaining velocity, even a structurally intact fortress would be meaningless; an excessive escape velocity and unimaginable instantaneous G-forces could press everyone inside into a thin sheet of flesh.
Planetary debris showered outward, slamming into the fortress shields and sending ocean-like waves across the forcefield.
Countless fragments streaked past, yet the fortress remained unyielding. Auxiliary thrusters fired continuously to maintain basic orientation.
Having survived a planetary-tier explosion, the continental fortress had now become a cosmic island.
Amidst the roaring cheers of humanity, it had held firm, standing like an immortal monument proclaiming humanity's absolute victory!
Now, the steel atop the continental fortress reflected the blue-white radiation of the pulsar, while its bottom-most point formed an inverted mountain peak over two thousand kilometers deep, pointing straight into space like a spear.
Only when the continental fortress stabilized completely did Blazkowicz unclench his hands, letting out a long breath. He hardly dared imagine what catastrophic disaster would have unfolded had the fortress failed and perished in the planet's explosion.
Fortunately, everything had gone smoothly.
The alternative "star fort" Junior had forged through a massive expenditure of resources had passed the most brutal test imaginable.
Now, it was time for it to display its true might!
Blazkowicz raised his left arm, tapping commands onto the holographic interface: "The continental fortress is to proceed as planned—advance to support the Dark Angels Legion at Planet VII and launch an assault on Planet VI."
"I will proceed to Planet VIII to reinforce the Salamanders Legion."
With victory secured on the innermost battlefield, its strategic threat was beyond question. With the Rangdan stronghold on Planet VI blindsided from the rear, Blazkowicz could rapidly reinforce other fronts, threatening the entirety of the Rangdan lines.
Beep~ Beep~
Just as Blazkowicz finalized the arrangements and lowered his arm, another incoming communication request flashed on screen. Its origin point was——Rangdan territory.
Slightly narrowing his eyes, it was not difficult to guess who was on the other end of the line.
Blazkowicz hesitated briefly before approving the access request. Yet the image that materialized brought a flicker of surprise to his eyes—though it was by no means unexpected.
A black human silhouette appeared. It possessed no facial features, nor any visible trace of "humanity." The only thing remotely human about it was its discernible silhouette.
"Moribas Solas," Blazkowicz spoke the name of the human traitor, his gaze sharpening.
Why was this human traitor contacting him now?
"Blazkowicz——" the black silhouette spoke, its voice no longer gentle and refined, but hollow and distant: "Brother."
Solas's tone was calm, as if discussing something completely detached from himself: "Congratulations on your victory. The Imperium of Man will secure final victory as well."
His tone was serene, devoid of emotional flux, as though he no longer cared for victory or defeat.
"Thank you," Blazkowicz responded with polite formality. "Had it not been for your intellect, the Rangdan defeat would not have come so swiftly."
His words were equally calm, free of hatred or anger, stating a simple fact.
"Should I take that as praise and validation?" The black silhouette shook its head, a faint, bitter smile implied in its posture.
"Heh." The corner of the Slayer's mouth twitched upward before dropping quickly into a cold, impassive expression.
From a personal perspective, he could not pass judgment on Solas—a man blinded by hatred.
However, since Solas had made his choice and stood in opposition to mankind, he was, quite simply, an enemy of humanity.