"Year 2552. The year of the decisive battle between the Unified Earth Government and the Covenant. Madrigal... In other words, those 'ostriches' of the Covenant have already found the location of Reach."
Inside a luxurious cabin near the bridge of an Imperial Navy fleet flagship, Selene stood with her hands clasped behind her back, holding a letter as she gazed through the floor-to-ceiling viewport at the alien sea shimmering beneath the slanting light of sunset.
The afterglow of dusk spilled across the vast, azure waters. The sea breeze brushed her face, stirring ripples of gold across the surface, flecks of light scattering like broken stars.
Waves rolled in again and again, washing over the untouched golden shoreline of this primeval world. Above the heavens, colossal silhouettes roared past, and on the horizon, construction sites rose one after another from the earth.
Across the immense expanse of open ground, surrounding the ancient ruins left behind by the so-called "Creator"—the Precursors—Imperial scientific and forging personnel moved about in dense numbers. The scene was loud and fervent, alive with industry.
The moment thousands of massive engineering machines descended from Imperial Navy warships in orbit, they began intense environmental transformation work. Hills were leveled. Ravines were filled. Forests were bulldozed flat... The thunderous roar of engines shook the air, and heavy transport craft took off and landed repeatedly, kicking up rolling clouds of dust.
This was the beauty of industry—a rough and frenzied symphony.
"The Battle of Reach is imminent."
Knock—knock.
Drawing her gaze away from the alien seascape beyond the viewport, Selene tapped lightly on the long table beside her and let out a slow breath.
After reading the intelligence reports sent by Budo and Konrad Curze, she now had a general understanding of the current situation in the galaxy, as well as the recent actions taken by the Covenant and the Unified Earth Government.
Pacing back toward the tea table, Selene glanced through the documents in her hand once more before casually tossing them aside. She leaned back into the soft sofa in a thoroughly relaxed posture.
The doors, desks, and folding screens within the cabin were carved from precious woods—golden nanmu, agarwood, red sandalwood—each piece exquisitely crafted. The interior decoration was extravagantly opulent.
Even the sofa against which Selene reclined was stitched from the hide of a Super-class Danger Beast native to the Empire's extreme northern territories. The stuffing inside was made from the down of a flying Danger Beast.
On the crystal table before her sat various high-value wines, fruits, and pastries.
Tilting her head slightly to look up at the crystal chandelier overhead, Selene murmured, "Spartan soldiers."
Though she appeared completely relaxed, the etiquette drilled into her by Sebas since childhood had long since become muscle memory. Even her lazy posture remained impeccably dignified.
Well—aside from Sebas, no one in the Empire would dare nitpick her over minor lapses in daily etiquette.
"Aside from the ORION Project and the low surgical success rate of Phase II, the later Phase III and IV Spartan augmentation procedures reportedly have very high success rates..."
In Selene's view, however, even the strongest Phase II Spartans were merely adequate. Whether they could defeat a freshly enlisted Imperial Auxilia recruit was debatable—let alone an Astartes warrior.
Across the Empire's home territories and within the Honkai Dimension's recruitment worlds, the baseline physical quality of the population had steadily risen under the subtle influence of Honkai energy.
The effect was gradual and faint. It was not as dramatic as the energy feedback received by Royal Guards or Astartes warriors as Selene herself grew stronger with the Empire's expansion. But the improvement was real. With time, it would only become more pronounced.
After a pause, Selene spoke another name.
"Dr. Catherine Elizabeth Halsey."
What mattered was not the biochemical enhancement technology of the Spartans.
What mattered were people. Scientists. Technology. And the industrial production system of the Unified Earth Government.
"Attend me."
"Your Majesty."
The ornately carved door swung open. A golden-armored Royal Guard quietly closed it behind him before approaching to within ten paces of Selene and kneeling respectfully on one knee.
"Summon the fleet admiral and the Forge Governor to see me."
Seated cross-legged upon the sofa, Selene's fair skin shimmered with healthy vitality, smooth and luminous, while her shapely legs, wrapped in white tights and lifted by crystal high heels, added a striking elegance. Her entire being radiated a unique aura of noble grace.
"Yes!"
"It is time to pay humanity a visit. The descendants of the ancient humans created by the Precursors..."
One of the Precursor relics—the Star Roads—had already been infiltrated by Selene. All that remained was to assimilate it step by step without causing unnecessary damage.
As for another vital Precursor legacy—the Domain—there were traces of it within the Precursor ruins scattered across the surface of this very planet.
Beyond the Star Roads, the most extraordinary creation of the Precursors was the Domain: the total collection of all Precursor knowledge and experience, spanning eras far beyond hundreds of millions of years. Much of that knowledge even predated the creation of life elsewhere in the galaxy.
The Forerunners believed that every Precursor structure contained access to the Domain, that its reach was so vast individuals could connect to it from anywhere at any time, and that the Domain itself possessed consciousness.
Whether the Forerunners were correct in their interpretation did not matter. What mattered was that the Domain stored an immeasurable trove of scientific knowledge.
Later, the Forerunner civilization had even used it to preserve their own knowledge and memories, embedding within it immense quantities of Forerunner technology.
Unfortunately, like most Precursor creations across the galaxy, the Domain within the galactic region had been destroyed one hundred thousand years ago at the end of the Flood War, obliterated by the cross-phased neutrino pulse unleashed by the Halo Array.
It truly pained Selene.
Yet regret was one thing; understanding was another. The Flood had been engineered by the Precursors through their extraordinary neural technologies. The Star Roads were built upon that foundation. So too was the Domain. Their underlying architectures were rooted in neural science.
At the brink of extinction, the Forerunners had no luxury of hesitation.
After all, the Domain had become one of the most vital pillars of Forerunner culture—their lifeline. Its destruction dealt a devastating blow to a civilization already crippled by war, extinguishing any hope of returning to its former glory.
Now, within the galaxy, aside from Precursor relics that might still remain inside Forerunner ring installations or Shield Worlds, all other Precursor ruins had been thoroughly erased. What remained were almost exclusively Forerunner ruins.
It was to the point that if Selene wished to "study Precursor antiquity," she would have to travel to the Large Magellanic Cloud.
The planet beneath her feet now was among the largest and most intact batches of Precursor ruins discovered in recent times. Personnel from the Imperial Science Bureau and the Imperial Forge had already descended to the surface.
Judging by their preparations, they intended to establish a permanent research base for long-term study.
The same was true of Precursor relic fragments discovered in other star sectors. All were now under Imperial Army garrison.
As for Selene's final objective in coming here—exterminating the Flood—that, too, was already underway.
And it had been underway all along.
...
After returning to the flagship, Selene had chased the signal emitted by the Proto-Gravemind relentlessly. Several Flood hibernation clusters that had only just received the signal—before they could even "wake"—were caught and brutally beaten down by Selene, incinerated into ash until not a trace remained.
Countless Flood-infected planets were destroyed along the way.
Before long, after issuing instructions regarding precautions in the extermination of the Flood, Selene set out and returned to the Milky Way.
...
Reach. Underground interrogation chamber of the Command Tower base.
Clang!
The technique Nathaniel used was none other than one of the Navy Six Powers—Iron Body—renowned as the move that meant death for whoever tried to withstand it.
A defensive art among the Six Powers, it forced strength into a rigorously trained body, granting it the hardness of iron.
Though among the Navy and CP9 and CP0, this so-called invincible defensive technique had never truly blocked anyone from start to finish...
It had now been formally incorporated into the infantry doctrine of the Holy Selene Empire's Imperial Recruit Training Camp. The instructor responsible for teaching the Six Powers in the Imperial Capital's recruit camp was none other than the former Navy Headquarters Admiral known as "Black Arm" Zephyr.
After suffering successive blows—the murder of his family by pirates, an attack on his training vessel that cost him his right arm and nearly all his cadets, and the sight of his sworn enemy joining the Seven Warlords—Zephyr had already left the Navy during the campaign of the Ninth Astartes Legion, the Blood Angels, in the pirate world. He founded the "Neo Navy" with the aim of annihilating all pirates across the seas.
Yet the first policy enacted by Sanguinius, Lord of the Blood Angels—hailed as the "Great Angel"—and the Empire's newly appointed Minister of Internal Affairs was the total eradication of all pirates. Even the pirate inmates in Impel Down were dragged out and executed, let alone those still active at sea.
If you dared to set sail under the skull-and-crossbones flag of a pirate, there was only one word for you: death.
Such policy suited Zephyr perfectly. Watching pirates across the seas cut down like stalks of wheat—one harvest after another, until none remained—he ultimately lost his purpose, disbanded the Neo Navy, and returned to his homeland to retire.
Until Sengoku and Kuzan, both serving in the Imperial Army, visited their home world on leave and invited their old friend—and teacher—back into service. In return, the Empire restored Zephyr's right arm.
Having no desire to return to frontline combat, Zephyr was appointed by the Imperial Ministry of War as the Six Powers instructor at the Imperial Capital's recruit camp. It was, in a sense, a return to his old profession—making full use of his talents.
Boom!
With a thunderous crash, the tables and chairs inside the interrogation chamber were flipped and shattered.
Outside the thick bulletproof glass, Parangosky did not hesitate. Ever vigilant, she sprinted toward the alloy blast door.
As she ran, she barked sharply, "Target out of control! Heavy weapons authorized—dead or alive! Quickly, seal the blast doors! Lock down this sector and eliminate them! Leave none alive!"
She understood too well the power of these bio-enhanced warriors. She was familiar with the outrageous battlefield records of the Spartans. They must not be allowed room for maneuver warfare. Seal them here. Use overwhelming force to destroy them.
"Order Hangar Seven security forces to eliminate these rogue bio-enhanced soldiers! Instruct the orbital defense platforms—board it or shoot it down! In any case, seize control of that old ship!"
By the end, Parangosky's face was as dark as iron.
"Add this: Dr. Halsey is colluding with insurgents from the Outer Colonies. Arrest her! Effective immediately, strip Catherine Elizabeth Halsey of all positions. Execute at once!"
Inside the interrogation chamber, more than a dozen towering giants in heavy armor landed. The boltguns in their hands roared at once.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Rumble! Rumble! Crack!
Under the bombardment of 0.75-inch explosive bolt shells, the several-meter-thick heavy bulletproof glass was blasted apart in moments.
Shhk!
Razor-sharp shards of glass burst outward like a storm of shrapnel, piercing through the unfortunate personnel who had not yet escaped. The force hurled their broken bodies into the air like rag dolls before slamming them down again, blood spraying. None would survive.
"You can't escape! Continued resistance will only make things worse! This is the United Nations Space Command—this is Reach! Where could you possibly run?"
A severely wounded staff officer, clutching his abdomen and drenched in blood, leaned against the wall as he spoke.
"Still loyal. A real man. We'll leave you an intact corpse," a giant in white armor trimmed with blue snorted, a chainsaw axe resting on his shoulder, his presence radiating lethal menace.
"Chainsword. Not as good as your master-crafted lightning claws—but it'll do."
"Praise be to Her Majesty! Move out!"
After receiving the chainsword, accompanied by a hoarse oath, the group swiftly departed the area. Led by Nathaniel, they pursued in the direction Parangosky had fled.
At the far end of the corridor, blast doors were rapidly sealing shut.
Nathaniel did not slow in the slightest. Raising his left arm, he declared, "Iron Body—Shatter!"
Two forces erupted simultaneously. A deep violet-red sheen suddenly surfaced along the armor of his left forearm, gleaming with the dense, metallic luster of forged steel.
Boom—!
Without hesitation, the immense impact blasted the door apart. The shattered remains of the valve door were hurled forward, instantly unleashing a storm of blood and carnage. Multiple craters appeared in the opposite wall, rubble and debris scattering across the floor.
From afar, Nathaniel fixed his gaze on the stout figure vanishing in panic at the end of the corridor and sneered.
"Run? Do you think you can escape?"
At that moment, explosions thundered from every direction.
Nathaniel knew what it meant. The teleport beacons they had planted were activating. Not only did every Night Lords warrior carry one, even the cages holding Covenant prisoners had been implanted with beacons.
"For Selene—!"
They roared in unison.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
With the combined weight of their armor, equipment, and their own massive physiques, each step of an Astartes warrior tore dust from the ground and echoed like a heavy tank charging forward.
In mere moments, they smashed through several UNSC defensive lines and arrived at a more open underground transit platform within the base.
Countless military vehicles and heavy weapons stood ready. The moment UNSC defense soldiers saw the giant figures burst forth, they shouted toward the Astartes.
"Get down immediately! Drop your weapons, disengage your powered armor, do not resist! Get down at once or you will—"
Boom!
Before the warning could finish, a heavy explosive bolt tore through one of the armored weapon vehicles and detonated.
"Open fire!"
Rat-a-tat-tat!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Diving into an elevator and repeatedly slamming the close button, Parangosky stared at the slaughter unfolding on the monitor. Her limbs turned cold.
"Damn it! How did it come to this? Where is Halsey?!"