MOSS controlled thousands of space fighters, roaring as they attacked the Predator Fleet.
These fighters were originally consumables, packed with high-power weapons from head to toe.
Each space fighter was almost equivalent to a more agile smart missile.
Moreover, without a pilot, MOSS could fully utilize all the capabilities of these space fighters.
All sorts of incredible evasive maneuvers could be performed at will.
A large number of space fighters began to outflank, divide, and besiege Predator warships.
Missiles flew towards these warships as if they were free.
Taking advantage of the chaos caused by the space fighters, the main warships on the Universal Union's first line of defense also began maneuvering.
Under Dugall's command, the Unyielding-class Heavy Frigates began a 'dynamic defense,' maximizing their agility advantage.
MAC cannons continuously tied down the Predator Fleet's forces, while a few space carriers aimed their terrifying particle cannons at the enemy ships.
The true melee had begun.
Hidden in the darkness on the far side of Mars, within a medium-sized fleet composed of numerous high-speed boarding vessels.
Tyberos, the Charcarodon chapter master, was conducting the final pre-battle mobilization.
Every Charcarodon had completed their final preparations before boarding.
Bolter rounds chambered, chainswords activated.
The powerful engines of the boarding vessels began to roar.
"In the name of the Void Father, purge the xenos enemy!"
Accompanied by Tyberos's muffled voice, the boarding fleet surged out from behind Mars, heading straight for the Predator Fleet that had already reached its position.
"Cover the Charcarodons boarding force!"
Commander Dugall immediately ordered.
Some warships from the second line of defense broke from their original positions, further increasing their firepower output against the Predator Fleet.
At the same time, another boarding force composed of Tyrants and Pursuers launched a suicidal attack from the front.
As expected, the Union Fleet's cover worked.
The Predators were not fools; after the painful experience of being defeated by boarding last time, they would certainly be prepared for boarding tactics.
Although time was tight, some Predator warships were still equipped with arrays of small Plasma autocannons on their broadsides to serve as close-in defensive firepower.
At this moment, most of the close-in defensive firepower was attracted by the space fighters controlled by MOSS.
Not only that, under suicidal impacts, some close-in defensive firepower had even completely caught fire and become paralyzed.
The high-speed boarding vessels carrying the Charcarodons successfully reached extremely close range.
Turbo lasers blasted away all obstacles in front, and the boarding vessels plunged straight into the giant mother ships.
Meanwhile, from the front, the Tyrant and Pursuer boarding vessels completed their boarding operations after suffering nearly half their numbers.
The truly brutal boarding bloodbath had now begun.
As before, Tyberos, the Chapter Master, still led the charge, bringing ten elite Terminator veterans to board the largest Predator mother ship.
To break through the mother ship's close-in Plasma arrays, their boarding vessel was already on the verge of disintegration.
Fortunately, it held out until the Charcarodons stepped into the mother ship.
Immediately after leaping from the boarding vessel, Tyberos encountered an attack from Predator forces.
Large numbers of Predators surrounded them from all directions.
And having learned from the previous lesson, every Predator had adjusted their Plasma shoulder cannons to an appropriate power, ensuring it wouldn't be too powerful and damage the hull, nor too weak to be ineffective.
The Tribe's leader had ordered that no war honor or etiquette was necessary when dealing with these unknown individuals.
Plasma bolts continuously struck the Terminators.
Every Predator on this largest mother ship had at least a hundred years of hunting experience and was extremely proficient in teamwork.
Each of them was no weaker than an elite Predator, a "Lone Wolf."
And at this moment, hundreds of Predators were simultaneously attacking Tyberos and the ten Terminators.
Tyberos instantly raised his vortex shield, absorbing most of the Plasma shots fired from the front.
"Fall back, find cover."
Tyberos said curtly.
The storm Bolters held by the Terminators roared continuously, tearing apart the lightly armored bodies of the Predators, while they dodged incoming Plasma shots as much as possible.
If they couldn't dodge in time, they used their thickest shoulder plates to deflect the attack; the hardness of terminator armour was sufficient to withstand several Plasma shots with the shoulder plates.
Using the severely damaged boarding vessel, which had plunged into the corridor, as cover, Tyberos and the Terminators began to counterattack.
Two Terminators wielding rotary assault cannons unleashed terrifying firepower.
Instantly, hundreds of Bolter rounds were unleashed, practically shredding all the Predators in one side of the corridor.
"Keep up the suppression."
Tyberos ordered, while he and two other Terminator sergeants wielding power swords charged out of cover, heading straight for the Predators on the other side of the corridor.
The remaining Terminators stayed in place, providing long-range suppressive fire.
Relying on the formidable defense of their terminator armour and the covering fire from the Terminators behind them.
Tyberos successfully crushed all obstacles in his path and charged into the crowd.
The already activated hunger and slaughter continuously swung, and the lightning claws and chainfists had already reaped the lives of a dozen Predators within a second.
Beside Tyberos, two red-helmeted Terminator sergeants also continuously swung their power swords, easily cutting through the bodies of the Predators in front of them.
Few substances in the real universe could stop power swords, which could decompose matter at a molecular level.
Three grey figures, like a bloody whirlwind, swept through dozens of Predators in an entire corridor in less than ten seconds.
"Scan the location of this mother ship's bridge; we're launching a decapitation strike."
Tyberos ordered.
The Terminators equipped with high-power Augur Arrays immediately began scanning the surrounding area.
However, this mother ship was massive, comparable to an Imperium of Man battlecruiser, and a single-person Augur Array couldn't scan the entire ship at once.
This meant Tyberos and his team would need to change positions several times to pinpoint the target's exact location.
Without further ado, the Terminators, led by Tyberos, moved again, beginning to break out in another direction.
They planned to first rendezvous with another boarding party and then collect more data information along the way.
Finally, they would assault the bridge, decapitate the leader of the "Lonely" Tribe, and thereby disrupt the entire Predator Fleet's operations.
Although the boarding Predators were well-prepared, they were still unable to resist when personally facing the Charcarodons.
The "Hunting Ritual" that the Predators were so proud of was nothing more than child's play in the eyes of the Charcarodons.
When it came to slaughter and hunting, the Charcarodons, who had been roaming the Darkness Beyond the Domain for thousands of years, were the true masters.
The guards on the Predator warships were no more ferocious than the bugs inside the tyranids bio-ships, nor was their equipment better than the Triarch Stalkers in the Necrons tomb ships.
As usual, the Charcarodons were constantly sowing chaos within the Predator Fleet.
Warships had their critical areas destroyed, engines lost power, and weapon systems failed to fire, turning them into huge coffins ready to be harvested by the Union Warships.
"Chief! The fleet has suffered heavy losses, we need to regroup our forces!"
On the largest flagship, an Elder roared to the Tribe's leader, the Chief who had defeated many challengers.
"No!"
The Chief suddenly turned his head, his bone-like dreadlocks crackling in the air.
"This is the entire strength of the Tribe's fleet! Continue forward! Even if we are completely annihilated, we absolutely cannot disgrace the Tribe's honor!"
Predators and humans are two completely different species, and their ways of thinking are naturally entirely different.
Most Predators valued the Tribe's honor more than their own lives.
This was a "shackle" imprinted deep within their bloodline.
The rebuffed Elder retreated helplessly.
The higher the rank within the Tribe, the more these Elders had to consider compared to the lower-ranking Predators.
Not all Predators wished to see the entire strength of the Tribe wasted in this inexplicable war.
In fact, some Elders had argued with the Chief before the fleet finished assembling and officially set sail.
The final solution was simple: the Chief single-handedly beat down the dissenting Elders.
"Chief, no matter what, we must find a way to contact other Tribes and send them a warning message."
Another Elder advised.
This time, the Tribe Chief did not refuse, but permitted the suggestion.
In the space outside, the battle remained deadlocked.
Although the Universal Union already held the advantage, the Predator Fleet was still considerable in size.
Regardless of the final outcome, this battle was destined to last for a long time.
And the Tribe Chief decided to first clear out the Gray-Armored Giants who had boarded his flagship.
Obviously, to a normal person, it was unreasonable for the Supreme Commander to suddenly abandon overall control and personally deal with the boarding forces.
"Chief! The Gray-Armored Giants' offensive is too fierce. You cannot risk yourself personally; please leave the task of encirclement and suppression to the guards on the ship!"
An Elder strongly advised.
But in the end, the Tribe Chief still led a large detachment of the Honor Guard into the flagship's interior to begin the cleanup operation.
The elite Honor Guard were equipped with weapons far superior to those of ordinary guards, capable of at least piercing the defenses of common Charcarodon warriors.
Soon, the Tribe Chief and the Honor Guard encountered a Charcarodon squad of ten head-on.
Intense fighting suddenly erupted.
Bolter rounds and Plasma echoed each other in the dark cabin.
The Squad Leader commanding this Charcarodon squad keenly noticed the difference between the Honor Guard and the other Predators.
Not only that.
The Tribe Chief, who was even taller than an ordinary armored Charcarodon, was even more conspicuous.
At this very moment, the Tribe Chief was personally wielding his weapon and fighting a Charcarodon.
For a moment, the Charcarodon, equipped with a Chainsword, found it difficult to inflict any effective damage on the Tribe Chief.
On the contrary, the opponent was constantly exploiting his advantage of knowing the ship's structure better.
"I am the Chief of the lone Tribe! State your names, you ants who dared to board my ship without permission!"
The Tribe Chief roared.
The Charcarodons naturally couldn't understand what the opponent was saying, but the nearby Squad Leader immediately reported the discovery of a special target and requested more support.
Coincidentally, the nearest Charcarodon unit was the elite Terminators squad led by Chapter Master Tyberos.
Just a few minutes later, an extremely heavy set of footsteps sounded from above.
Immediately afterward, the sound of metal being ripped apart entered the ears of everyone present—"Boom!"
A large hole was torn through the solid metal ceiling.
A colossal figure leaped down heavily from it.
Tyberos had forcefully torn through all the metal and cables blocking his path using the hunger and slaughter, arriving at the scene at the fastest possible speed.
Without needing to say more, Tyberos immediately locked onto the target and charged straight toward the Predator Tribe Chief.
But the next second, a volley of Plasma slammed down toward Tyberos.
The Predator Honor Guard members were extremely nervous; in their eyes, this suddenly appearing giant was far more dangerous than the ordinary Gray-Armored Giants.
"Chief! We must retreat!"
The Honor Guard Captain shouted sternly while firing to obstruct the Charcarodons' movements.
But before the Chief could reply, Tyberos made his move first.
The Vortex Shield absorbed and dissipated most of the incoming Plasma.
At the same time, ten more elite Terminators jumped down from the ceiling behind him, beginning to suppress the Predator Honor Guard with firepower.
The terrifying torrent of Bolter rounds nearly prevented the Honor Guard from raising their heads; they could only huddle in the corner, watching helplessly as Tyberos charged toward their Tribe Chief.
Watching the rapidly approaching Tyberos, the Tribe Chief showed no fear, nor did he choose to retreat cowardly; instead, he launched a counterattack.
Unfortunately, all of this was futile.
When this Chief of the lone Tribe chose to leave the heavily defended bridge, foolishly attempting to personally clear out the boarding Charcarodons, his fate was already sealed.
The hunger and slaughter cut through the air, and the Disintegration Field instantly reached the Tribe Chief's face.
The only thing that slightly surprised Tyberos was that this Predator, who clearly had a special identity, managed to narrowly dodge the strike.
Since engaging the Predators, this was the first one Tyberos had encountered who could do this.
"Quick, help the Chief!"
The Honor Guard, suppressed by the Terminators' firepower, finally couldn't sit still anymore.
The news that the Chief was besieged immediately drew countless Predators, who launched a counterattack and drew the Charcarodons' attention.
The Honor Guard surged forward, attempting to attack Tyberos and save their Chief.
Seeing this, Tyberos roughly guessed the identity of the Predator who had dodged his attack.
A few minutes later, the previously intense battlefield fell silent.
Countless Predator corpses were piled up everywhere in the narrow corridor, leaving almost no room to step.
The Tribe leader, who had been incredibly agile just moments ago, was now clutched in Tyberos's hand like a chick.
Beside Tyberos were the bodies of dozens of elite personal guards.
To rescue their leader, these Predators had all died one after another at Tyberos's hands.
"Let go of me!"
The Tribe leader in Tyberos's hand was still struggling and roaring.
With one slap, the strong Predator immediately fell into a coma, his body going limp.
"Chapter Master, what should we do next?"
A Terminator sergeant came to Tyberos's side and asked.
Their main objective for this boarding action was decapitation, but they hadn't expected the leader of the lone Tribe to deliver himself to them, captured alive.
This meant the mission was overfulfilled.
Tyberos glanced at the Tribe leader in his hand and threw him to the Charcarodons squad wearing regular power armor.
"You all take this guy and retreat to the still-intact boarding ships, hold your ground, and await further orders."
"Yes!"
Tyberos and the Terminators also had their own tasks to continue.
Although the alien leader had been captured, thousands of Predators on this giant mothership were still stubbornly resisting and continuously firing terrifying destructive lasers at the Union Warships.
Tyberos and the Terminators needed to find a way to completely disable the mothership's weapon systems or power systems to expand the Universal Union's advantage in space combat.
Fortunately, they weren't the only ones on this ship.
Moreover, without their leader, the Predators' previously unified actions would fall into disarray.
This was the best time for Tyberos and his team to act.
"Elder! What now? We've lost the leader's signal!"
On the mothership's bridge, the Predators were already in chaos.
Not to mention the low- and mid-level Predators, even several Elders were bickering.
"I told you! We shouldn't have let that rash brute act on his own like that, and now look! Who knows if he's been captured by the enemy!?"
An Elder jumped out and criticized sharply.
The Predator Tribe was not monolithic; there was a certain degree of power struggle within it.
Perhaps this was an inevitable phenomenon for intelligent individual species.
"Enough! What's done is done! Let's think about what to do next! Should we continue fighting, or retreat directly?"
Another Elder said in a deep voice.
With the Tribe leader out of contact, these Elders, by rights, had the authority to act independently.
But this large-scale space battle had already entered a white-hot stage, and the Elders knew that acting separately would only lead to death. They needed to unify their opinions and direction first.
"Fight what? Retreating quickly to preserve the Tribe's living forces is the most important thing."
Said the Elder who had just criticized the Tribe leader.
But then an Elder immediately stood up to refute.
"Do you think retreating is that simple? The question now isn't whether we want to or can retreat, but whether the enemy's fleet will let us retreat!"
Just as the Predator Elders were still bickering, even though disaster was imminent, a dull thud echoed throughout the mothership.
Thousands of Predators on board could hear it clearly.
"Elder! Portside weapon systems have lost power, laser cannons are offline!"
A Predator immediately reported.
"Pull up surveillance, find out what's happening there."
"Yes!"
Real-time footage was brought up, showing Tyberos and the Terminators standing in a huge compartment, installing powerful bombs at various locations, preparing to completely destroy the laser cannon array there.
Beside them were hundreds of Predator guard corpses, now in pieces.
"These monsters––––"
The Predators who saw this scene couldn't help but feel terrified.
Even terrifying creatures like the Xenomorph Queen, among the universe's most formidable, could be kept and bred by Predators for their hunts.
But Tyberos and the Terminators were ten, even a hundred times more terrifying than the Xenomorph Queen!
"Thud!"
The most senior Ancient Elder slammed his spear on the floor, bringing the other Elders and Predators back to their senses.
"Face the facts, we've charged too deep, and now we can't retreat.
All we can do is inflict as much damage as possible on the enemy before we are annihilated."
Having said this, the Ancient Elder glanced at the Elder who had proposed retreating.
"You can take a few warships and try to break through; we will provide cover as much as possible, but you must swear that if you succeed in breaking through, you will bring everything that happened here to the other Tribes, so they can avenge the lone Tribe."
Although their opinions differed, every Predator Elder genuinely loved their Tribe, without exception.
Now, the lone Tribe was completely beyond saving; they could only hope that their kin in other Tribes would avenge them.
Given the urgency, this Elder, entrusted with the task, immediately swore by the Tribe's honor, an absolute oath in Predator culture.
"Remember, you must warn the other Tribes to be vigilant, and it's best if they unite to face this terrifying enemy, otherwise they will suffer the same fate as our Tribe."
Before leaving, the Ancient Elder instructed.
"Our Tribe has completely failed, but other Tribes should not walk the same path as us."
Although massive in scale, this space battle between the lone Tribe and the Universal Union did not last long.
After all, setting aside tactics, space combat is essentially a real shootout with almost no cover.
Hours later.
On a space aircraft carrier serving as the flagship, Dugall was multitasking.
He continued to issue real-time commands to each warship with terrifying precision while listening to brief reports.
"Half of the Predator warships have been sunk, another third of the warships boarded by Charcarodons have lost their ability to move and fire, and the last portion of warships were released as planned. Our losses are within acceptable limits––––"
"Withdraw all damaged warships and send them back to Earth for temporary repairs; they are not to rejoin the battle.
Also, send a message to notify the Charcarodons to withdraw and have our soldiers take over those warships––––"
Dugall issued commands unhurriedly, one after another.
This war, in the end, concluded with an Union victory, just like always.
"The first phase of the mission in the "Alien vs. Predator" world has been successfully completed. What we need to do next is to wait for the day when other Predator Tribes actively contact us."
The high-ranking officials of the Universal Union once again gathered for a meeting through the world gate.
"We cannot wait completely passively. We must also send out reconnaissance troops to investigate other Tribes and find those willing to cooperate with us and join our Tribe."
"Agreed."
"Seconded."
Plans were quickly discussed and would be arranged and implemented after the meeting.
Alexia, still stationed at Avarax and responsible for Warhammer World affairs, brought up her most pressing concern.
"Since the war has ended, there's no need for the fleet to remain there. I suggest immediately recalling most of the fleet to re-garrison the Sabbath Star Cluster."
One hundred warships are not a small number. The battle with the lone Tribe forced the Universal Union to mobilize most of its deployable warships.
Warhammer World, the Universal Union's fundamental base, is currently in a state of weak defense.
"Our shipyards on Mars are mostly built. Damaged warships can be temporarily left there for nearby repairs, while the remaining combat-ready warships return to Warhammer World."
Isaac suggested.
This suggestion received unanimous approval from everyone.
"What we need to do is not just continue to guard a single star sector in the Sabbath Star Cluster."
Marcus spoke at this moment.
the Universal Union's total number of warships has long exceeded the two hundred mark, and shipyards in various worlds are producing more warships every moment.
Perhaps even as this meeting is taking place, a Resolute-class heavy cruiser or space carrier is being built and can be put into actual combat.
Such a massive fleet, just by its sheer numbers, has long surpassed the scope of a normal star sector.
"It's time to continue expanding the Universal Union's territory outwards. Next, our target is the entire Sabbath Star Cluster."
The Sabbath Star Cluster is located in the southwestern part of the Pacific Segmentum and contains about ten star sectors, including the Universal Union's current territory.
Among the most famous worlds in the Sabbath Star Cluster are the following:
Tanith, the homeworld of the Tanith First and Only Regiment, led by the famous Political Commissar Gaunt.
A Forge World garrisoned by a Titan Legion, Ata-Median.
If such an entire star cluster could be brought under control, it would greatly enhance the Universal Union's current strength, even allowing it to directly become one of the overlords of the Pacific Segmentum.
Regarding Marcus's proposal, the high-ranking officials had no objections.
To firmly establish itself in Warhammer World and use it to support other worlds, the Universal Union's expansion must never stop.
The only problem is that for the current Union, devouring an entire star cluster requires a slow approach and a detailed development plan.
And this is clearly not something that can be discussed and finalized in a single meeting.
Marcus did not elaborate further, so the others redirected the topic back to the follow-up disposal plan for the "Alien vs. Predator" world.
Hours later, Isaac let out a long breath and shut down the RIG terminal in front of him.
Although the war with the lone Tribe was over, he still had many tasks to complete.
In fact, Isaac preferred the days when he led a squad on missions to being an administrator now.
However, Isaac had no complaints about this; if the Universal Union needed it, he would do it.
First and foremost, the most crucial issue currently is the warship wreckage floating in space, as well as the Predator warships controlled by the Universal Union.
The method for dealing with these things is simple: just hand them over to the Tech-Priests and the Universal Union's engineering department.
The engine and weapon systems of Predator warships have aspects that the Universal Union can learn from.
Especially the devastating laser weapons; if they could be replicated, it would further enhance the Union Fleet's strength.
After assigning the plan, Isaac walked out of the room and headed towards another building in the base.
That was Wesker's laboratory.
During the meeting just now, Wesker briefly mentioned that his research on controlling Aliens had made new progress, but he didn't elaborate.
Isaac decided to go and see for himself.
Passing through layers of security checkpoints, Isaac successfully met Wesker.
The latter was standing in front of a specialized glass pane, on the other side of which was a Predalien that had fully matured into an adult.
"Sit."
Wesker glanced at Isaac as he entered and said curtly.
Then, without any further ado, he began to showcase the results of his Alien research during this period.
An Alien corpse with obvious signs of Adeptus Mechanicus modification was pushed out and placed before Isaac.
Wesker skillfully used Psionics to manipulate a scalpel, cutting open the corpse while explaining:
"The Tech-Priests' proposal to control Aliens using mechanical devices has stalled and is difficult to advance further."
"Reason?"
Isaac knew about the two approaches to controlling Aliens, but he didn't expect one of them to fail so quickly.
"Very simple, the corrosive nature of Alien blood far exceeded our previous expectations."
Wesker presented a set of data.
"Even our most corrosion-resistant metals currently have difficulty remaining inside an Alien for long periods, lasting a maximum of only one week.
Not only that, we also discovered that mechanical devices seem to trigger the Alien organism's self-protection mechanism, further promoting its active secretion of corrosive blood to corrode the internal devices."
Wesker used a scalpel to open the brain of this Alien corpse.
"This Alien was the first to break free from device control and even almost injured a Tech-Priest.
Those red-robed fellows clearly didn't expect that a mere Alien could escape their control so quickly."
After removing the mechanical device, which was mostly corroded and completely dysfunctional, Wesker tossed it to Isaac.
"Unless we can achieve a breakthrough in materials science in a short period, Aliens that can only be controlled for less than a week clearly have no practical value."
As Wesker said, although frequent replacement of parts could extend the control time, once on the battlefield, who could guarantee that the device would be replaced in time?
Once an Alien, an allied unit, loses control, it would cause immense casualties to its own side.
"So, your biological control plan has made progress?"
Isaac tossed the device back.
Wesker nodded, put down the scalpel, and turned to look at the Predalien on the other side of the glass wall.
the Universal Union is not a collection of political regimes belonging to one nation or civilization.
Rather, it is more akin to an organization.
It's just that the scale of this organization is "a little bit" huge.
Therefore, in essence, the Universal Union is not very interested in territories or domains within the Warhammer World.
After all, the Universal Union has several other worlds and is not short on territory at all.
Compared to these, the Universal Union is more in need of the population, materials, and potentially existing technological artifacts from the hundreds of life-bearing planets in the Sabbath Star Cluster.
And the Forge World, Atta-Median, which is guarded by the "Kindle" Titan Legion, is the Universal Union's next target for Union.
The large number of Tech-Priests and valuable technical data there are exactly what the Universal Union urgently needs now.
Many Forge Worlds are located at the junction of the Pacific Segmentum and the Storm Zone, and this entire area is known as the "Iron Belt."
--
Among the numerous Forge Worlds in the "Iron Belt" region, Atta-Median is the most famous.
Atta-Median was established during the Great Crusade, a product of the political maneuvers of another Forge World, "Phaethon."
One-third of the military forces, personnel, and supplies from "Phaethon" were dispatched to Atta-Median for colonization.
This move was viewed by Mars as an open provocation, and consequently, the people of Atta-Median were also ostracized by other mainstream Forge Worlds.
But it was precisely in this environment that the Tech-Priests on Atta-Median grew more prosperous and stronger, possessing an enterprising spirit beyond that of their typical colleagues, and personally forged the Titan Legion named "Kindle."
Not only that, but Atta-Median was also among the first Forge Worlds to condemn the Horus Heresy.
In that epic battle on Isstvan V, which best represented the Horus Heresy, a full half of the "Kindle" Titan Legion was destroyed by the rebels.
In the ten thousand years that followed, the Tech-Priests on Atta-Median remained keen on exploring knowledge while using their powerful Titan Legion to purge those they deemed despicable traitors, especially those of the Dark Mechanicum.
To the far west of the Pacific Segmentum, the world controlled by the Dark Mechanicum—Silent Forge—is one of the main targets for Atta-Median's frequent crusades.
For the Tech-Priests on Atta-Median, their daily routine involves praying to the machine god, studying ancient technology they have excavated, and commanding the Titan Legions and Skitarii Legions to launch crusades.
If nothing unexpected occurred, such days would continue until the day the Imperium of Man perished.
But today, something unexpected by the Tech-Priests of Atta-Median occurred.
A massive fleet composed of strange, small warships appeared in the star system with almost no warning.
Not until the fleet activated its engines and began sailing toward Atta-Median.
Did the Tech-Priests there react and immediately implement countermeasures.
The Forge World's equally massive escort fleet immediately intercepted the Union Fleet and sent an identification signal to the latter.
"What is the status of the signal identification?"
Atta-Median's supreme leader, the Fabricator-Director, had been urgently awakened from his research and personally arrived at the massive ground command center.
A Tech-Priest quickly reported.
"Unable to identify the opposing signal."
"Unable to identify? That's impossible!"
The Fabricator-Director's obviously half-mechanized face showed an expression of surprise.
Atta-Median's database contained the identification signals of almost all factions in the galaxy; it could even identify most Xenos and Heretic fleets.
Just as the Fabricator-Director was wondering who this massive fleet, which had suddenly appeared in the system through unknown means, belonged to.
The Techno-Priests suddenly identified an unexpected, special signal originating from within the Adeptus Mechanicus.
"It is the identification signal of Halifax the Sage!"
"Halifax?"
The Fabricator-Director briefly searched his memory core and found information about the individual.
"That Biological Sage?"
The Fabricator-Director had no dealings with Halifax; he merely knew such a person existed.
Moreover, the Fabricator-Director did not believe that the massive fleet before him could belong to a Biological Sage.
"We have received a communication signal, my Lord."
After some thought, the Fabricator-Director still ordered the signal to be connected.
Unfortunately, a large portion of Atta-Median's fleet forces had just left to launch a crusade against Silent Forge.
Before figuring out the origins of this fleet, the Fabricator-Director did not want to rashly engage in conflict with them.
The communication was connected, and unexpectedly, those who appeared before the Fabricator-Director were Tech-Priests.
Furthermore, they did not exhibit obvious characteristics of the Dark Mechanicum.
"This is Atta-Median, the blessed land of the machine god. I am the Fabricator-Director here. Tell me, outsiders, who exactly are you, and why have you come here?"
The Fabricator-Director inquired directly.
Communication within the Adeptus Mechanicus is always this simple and direct.
"Omnissiah bless this planet, Fabricator-Director."
The leading Tech-Priest replied.
"We are Tech-Priests under Halifax the Sage, and we are now members of the Universal Union.
"
"the Universal Union?"
The Fabricator-Director frowned; having lived a long life, he had never heard of this term.
Before the Fabricator-Director could ask further questions, the Tech-Priests of the Universal Union continued.
"We have come here, representing the Universal Union, hoping to establish a cooperative relationship with Atta-Median."
"What do you think is the probability of Atta-Median accepting our invitation?"
In the top-floor office of the Avarax Central Hive, Alexia was asking Marcus, who was seated before her.
"Do not underestimate the Adeptus Mechanicus's desire for knowledge."
Marcus said unhurriedly.
"Believe me, no Tech-Priest can refuse the temptation to explore other worlds and scientific technology."
For the Adeptus Mechanicus, the pursuit of knowledge is the absolute first priority.
In the eyes of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the knowledge a person possesses inherently represents their value.
The more profound a person's knowledge, the higher their status will be, and the closer they will be to the Omniscient machine god.
Therefore, the vast majority of Tech-Priests value knowledge more than anything else they possess, and this is not without reason.
Sure enough, a message soon reached Marcus and Alexia via the wormhole.
Just as Marcus had predicted, the Tech-Priests on Atta-Median agreed to establish a cooperative relationship with the Universal Union.
"For the Adeptus Mechanicus, violence is only a means to an end; their ultimate goal is to embark upon the Quest for Knowledge. The more knowledge they obtain, the closer they believe they come to the machine god they worship."
Marcus glanced at the incoming report.
"In a way, these fellows of the Adeptus Mechanicus can be counted among the most single-minded beings in this world.
The tyranids exist only to devour, the Orks only to fight, and the Adeptus Mechanicus only for knowledge."
With that, Marcus stood and looked toward Alexia.
"Come, we too should meet our new allies."
"Director, are we truly going to cooperate with these he— uh, these visitors of unknown origin?"
Inside one of Atar Mean's towering forges, the Fabricator-Locum—second only to the Fabricator-General—swallowed the word "heretic" before it could leave his lips.
"Speak plainly."
—
The Fabricator-General regarded his deputy coolly.
"Many junior Tech-Priests already know of this matter, and some claim it is tantamount to treason—"
the Fabricator-Locum ventured cautiously.
At that, the Fabricator-General gave a cold laugh.
"Treason? Against whom—Mars or Holy Terra?.
"Do not forget how the Martian Synod has treated us these ten thousand years."
"As for Terra—what betrayal? We have merely found ourselves another ally; Terra's reach does not extend here."
Every Forge World enjoys wide autonomy, and Atar Mean lies on the very frontier of the Imperium—so far from the Emperor's gaze that even light grows tired.
So long as Atar Mean does not openly oppose the Imperium, no one will waste the effort to intervene.
The Fabricator-General understood this perfectly.
"Besides, did you not see the exotic technologies those who call themselves 'the Universal Union' possess?"
In the end, it was those very wonders that convinced the Fabricator-General to ally with the Universal Union.
"It is indeed strange: our sub-sector Warp-readers detected no fluctuations, and the Mandeville Point remains calm."
The Fabricator-Locum mused.
"This fleet did not arrive by Warp travel; they may possess an alternative super-luminal method—neither the Aeldari Webway nor the Necron inertia-less drive!"
At this, the Fabricator-Locum grew animated.
"If we could master super-luminal travel without the Warp, our Quest for Knowledge would leap forward—other Forge Worlds, even Mars itself, would eat our exhaust!"
"Now do you understand what must be done?"
Calmly, the Fabricator-General left his deputy to quell the rumors circulating across the Forge World.
Once the other had left the spire's control chamber, the Fabricator-General allowed his mask of composure to slip.
He had maintained it only to preserve authority before his subordinates.
In truth, the Fabricator-General was ecstatic.
"Mars? Terra? Hah—seize this chance and Atar Mean could become a second Mars, the new Synod of the Adeptus Mechanicus!"
Though Atar Mean commanded a Titan Legion, its remote position in the neglected Pacific Segmentum—barely within the Astronomican's light—plus old grievances left it shunned by other Forge Worlds.
The Fabricator-General sensed that, if he grasped this sudden opportunity, Atar Mean could rise again to greatness.
"This shall become the galaxy's new sanctuary of knowledge!"
At the thought, even the Fabricator-General's cold, half-mechanical frame thrilled with excitement.
But the sensation was quickly suppressed.
Cold rationality reclaimed the heights of his mind.
He knew that, though Atar Mean was now nominally partner to this unknown "Union," he understood far too little about them.
Beyond their mysterious super-luminal travel, almost everything else remained a blank.
Conversely, the Universal Union had quietly recruited a Biological Sage and several Tech-Priests—proof of deep insight into Atar Mean.
That was no comforting prospect.
To wrest new knowledge from this "partner," advance his own Quest for Knowledge, and restore Atar Mean's glory, the Fabricator-General first had to learn all he could about the Universal Union.
He promptly sent a private communiqué to the Union Fleet.
But before any reply arrived,
a voice from a Dominus within his own implanted vox-net broke in.
"General, the fleet has dispatched a landing force—what are your orders?"
The Fabricator-General's other, better-known title was Fabricator-General.
"Do not intercept. Dispatch First Macro to the landing site to receive them; I will go myself."
"Acknowledged."
The link severed, and the Fabricator-General gazed through the spire window at the dust-choked ochre sky.
His augur-optics pierced the perpetual sandstorm, revealing Union landers streaking through the atmosphere toward the surface.
It was a perfect chance to observe the Universal Union, and he would not miss it.
He left the spire at once, boarded a flyer, and sped toward the landing zone.
En route he could see First Macro—garrison of Atar Mean—already marching toward the site on his order.
On every Forge World the Skitarii are divided into Macros; each Macro contains four Battle Maniples, each Maniple three Combat Squads—one of the Mechanicus' sacred doctrines.
First Macro's duty: to guard the Forge World's greatest asset—the Titan Legion.
First Macro's march meant the Titans were stirring.
Boom! Boom!! Boom!!!
Even inside the flyer the Fabricator-General clearly felt the god-machines striding across the irradiated wastes.
"Praise the Omnissiah."
The "Firebrand" Titan Legion was the source of his confidence.
Though it was only a meeting, he had deployed several Warlord-class Titans, a dozen Reavers, and packs of Warhounds to overawe the visitors.
After a time the flyer set down on a stretch of windless badland.
The Universal Union landers had already touched down, unloading crates of materiel and strange equipment—apparently preparing to build something on the spot.