From the towers of their residences, the governor's kin observed the fierce clash unfolding around the Hall of Audiences. It had become increasingly apparent that Anton, since Andrada's first arrival on Nestra-1, had been prepared to flip the table and reveal his hand—not from fear of losing power, but out of anxiety that the transition into the Talon Sector would go poorly.
The forces atop the spire had been on high alert, with heavy weapons and armored vehicles ready to unleash their formidable firepower. A storm of bullets and flashing lights enveloped the three Guardsmen and the lone Space Marine, making their figures appear obscured as though overwhelmed by the intensity of the assault. But this was mere illusion.
The Guardsmen's grav-shields could block any physical ammunition and most energy-based projectiles, while Chen Ye, though lacking a grav-shield, was protected by armor that only required him to dodge the searing laser beams; regular bullets left only faint scratches upon his ceramic armor. Andrada, without powered armor or a grav-shield, relied on his reinforced skeleton and internal nanobot systems that swiftly mended any wounds.
Only meltaguns and plasma rifles could pose any genuine threat to them, and such weapons were rare in the distant systems. Fewer than twenty men held these prized firearms, hidden among the ranks or shielded beneath armored vehicles, waiting in silence. Though their comrades were torn apart by dazzling beams of energy, they lay in wait, poised to strike when a Guard or Space Marine turned their back.
But not all forces relied on mere sight to locate their foes. A wave of weapons-sensing technology scanned everything within a five-kilometer radius, marking any lethal weaponry on the Guardsmen's shared display. With a silent glance, they agreed on who would hunt down the wielders of meltaguns and plasma rifles.
Gray withdrew his chainsword from an officer's gut and activated bullet-time, dashing through the enemy lines. Those crouching beneath vehicles disintegrated under his shoulder cannon's beam, while soldiers hiding within the infantry ranks were skewered on his blade. In moments, Gray moved like a dark shadow across the field, leaving death in his wake.
The final line of defense against the Guardsmen and the Space Marine had crumbled. Now the purge would begin in earnest.
Andrada and Chen Ye hunted down officers, while Gray and Yaon dismantled the armored vehicles and mopped up the remaining troops. Amidst the chaos, Andrada shared the family emblems of the traitorous houses with Gray, sending the information directly to his database.
Gray's Guard ship loomed in orbit above Nestra-1. Although not every noble family had allied with the gene-stealers, targeting specific districts for controlled bombardments was still an option.
The spectators atop the spire found their gaze drawn skyward as narrow beams of red light descended. The beams exploded upon impact, reducing whole estates to rubble, turning anyone inside into fragments amid a whirlwind of debris. Entire family estates vanished in flames if their association with gene-stealers was confirmed.
Within half an hour, the spire's soldiers began to falter; those leading them, the gene-stealers, broke even faster. For each gene-stealer slain by Gray's chainsword, an unearthly wail filled the air, echoing the anguish of their fallen kind. As the slaughter continued, these traitors began to hallucinate, their vision layered with images from some nightmare.
A man with a chainsword stood over a patriarch's severed head. A man with a chainsword beheaded gene-stealer prisoners, one by one.
Were Gray and the others able to see the hallucinations, they would recognize these scenes from the Talon Sector's propaganda posters—images that had spread like wildfire seven years ago, portraying Qin Mo's victorious exploits. Though Qin Mo had never lifted a chainsword to display his enemy's head, the posters immortalized this version of events, and most people in the Talon Sector believed it to be true.
The chainsword had become a symbol of history, imbued with the awe and reverence of billions. Though Qin Mo remained unaffected, the psychic weight of belief and myth infused the weapon, turning it into a nightmare for any gene-stealer on the field, and hastening their collapse.
As the battle concluded, Andrada began burning the corpses and collecting family crests as evidence of their betrayal. The others gathered to discuss their next steps.
"We must capture the governor and put an end to him," Gray declared.
Chen Ye and Yaon nodded in agreement, though Chen had an alternative idea. "Your warships remain in orbit; why not simply bombard the spire? That way, both the governor and the traitors will be destroyed."
"There are innocents within the spire, and we cannot condemn them without concrete proof," Andrada replied as he finished recording the scanned data and shared it with Gray and Yaon.
"We aren't here to play judge, but we must ensure that the innocent don't perish with the guilty," Gray agreed. "It would tarnish our sector's image and undermine our plans. We aim for Nestra-1 to follow the path of Talon-2, purging all traitors while rewarding those who stand with us and securing their loyalty."
Chen nodded, realizing that these men were not simply here to finish a task and return to their battlegroups. They bore the responsibility of shaping a future for the sector, one that demanded precision, not reckless destruction.