Location: Segmentum Obscurus, Phoenix Fringe Sector, Hive World Necromunda.
In the Underhive, within a tunnel once filled with chemical waste and industrial trash, the ground was now covered in a purplish-red, slimy, unknown substance.
A staggering figure hurried across it, his face contorted with terror as he constantly looked back, seemingly desperate to escape something.
Kaider never imagined that a simple mission to clear out Underhive gangs would escalate to this. He was now separated from the main force, and his weapons and armor were long since destroyed.
Finally, he came to a halt in an endless sea of purplish-red. The "organism" beneath his feet seemed to be corroding his boots.
Kaider could run no longer. He knew his fate was sealed; death was imminent. He tightly gripped the last grenade at his waist, praying fervently in his heart.
From above, not far away, something was approaching. He knew what it was: a terrifying four-armed xenos, whose claws could shred the riot shield he once carried.
As the shadow drew closer, his hands trembled violently. The silhouette of the xenos suddenly burst into view. Kaider closed his eyes, roaring as he pulled the pin on the grenade, "FOR THE EMPEROR!!"
However, the expected explosion and death did not come. He opened his eyes to find the grenade had failed, likely due to being past its expiration date.
The xenos, meanwhile, had collapsed right in front of him, its corpse still twitching. A bone spike had pierced deep through its malformed skull.
Just as he was frozen in confusion, a squelching sound came from behind. Kaider turned around, and as he saw the creature, his pupils dilated in involuntary tremors.
A monstrous, hideous beast stood before him. Its massive body was covered in bone plates and spikes, and its lower half—a snake-like abdomen—wriggled across the viscous ground.
Looking at those sharp scythe-like bone blades and the crimson, gaping maw, Kaider had no doubt it could tear him apart in an instant.
The beast's crimson eyes stared fixedly at Kaider. Tragedy seemed inevitable.
At that moment, a man's voice came from behind the beast: "Hello?"
Alexei walked slowly toward the location where the Creep had alerted him. When he saw the terrified man and the grenade in his hand, he quickly stopped and moved behind the Hydralisk's rear.
He wasn't ready to die just yet. He hurriedly tried to calm the man, who was dressed like an Enforcer: "Relax, it's... uh... my pet. It won't hurt you... please put the weapon down."
But after waiting a long time with no response, Alexei leaned out to check the situation, only to find the man had collapsed and lost consciousness.
"Sigh, how many 'chickens' (Genestealers) is this now?" Alexei sighed, looking at the unconscious man and the Purestrain Genestealer.
A Drone floating in the air behind him quickly approached, clamped onto the Genestealer's corpse, and drifted away.
Alexei looked at the man lying on the ground, thinking about how to handle him. He couldn't let him go, or the next visitors might be a squad of heavy Enforcers.
As for killing him... Alexei thought of the little girl who had suddenly appeared at the scene of his battle with the Genestealer—the one glowing with golden light, repeatedly saying "I am curious about you."
"Damn it, would the Master of Mankind really appear in such a remote sector? Wasn't it agreed that transmigrators wouldn't attract His gaze?"
Alexei muttered curses as he summoned another Drone to carry the man on its back.
At the end of the tunnel, in what should have been a landfill, there were now terrifying alien structures. Dozens of Zerglings ran back and forth across the Creep.
In the distance, a tall, multi-legged Zerg was injecting substances into a Hive structure, while massive, house-sized flesh balloons (Overlords) floated quietly high above.
Any Imperial citizen seeing this scene would cry out: "By the God-Emperor, what heresy is this!"
Alexei threw the unconscious man into an abandoned house on the edge of the landfill. He thoughtfully left some Underhive "specialties": Corpse Starch synthesized from the by-products of promethium refining and reactor cooling water filtered through multiple layers.
Hoping the "Lord Enforcer" would find it palatable, he locked the door and went to the adjacent house. A blonde girl, looking like a porcelain doll, lay quietly in the center of the room. Her appearance was entirely unlike anyone from the Underhive.
Alexei remembered the first words the girl had said to him.
"I cannot see through you. You are not a Pariah, yet you have no connection to the Warp. How strange; you do not seem to belong to this world."
Upon hearing those words, Alexei had nearly suffered a heart attack. Combined with the golden light in her eyes and the supreme majesty she exuded, he suspected she was possessed by the Emperor Himself. Of course, "He" had generously confirmed Alexei's suspicion...
Heaven have mercy. He didn't want these xenos either, but if he hadn't used the small pack of Zerglings summoned by his system, he would have died in the gang war when he first transmigrated.
He had worked tirelessly for God knows how long to grow his hive to its current scale. Just as he was celebrating the fact that he no longer had to scavenge for junk, this "Lord" suddenly appeared before him. His heart had turned cold instantly.
He was terrified that He would burn him and the hive to cinders with a mere wave of His hand.
To Alexei's surprise, the Emperor didn't seem to find the Zerg structures that repulsive. Instead, He was curious about how Alexei could make these xenos so obedient.
The Emperor chose to stay and observe for a few days. He watched with His own eyes as a Drone transformed into a fleshy workshop (Spawning Pool/Extractor) for producing the Swarm.
During this time, Alexei commanded all the Zerg to kill invading Genestealers and clear dangerous local organisms around the nest. The Swarm was as obedient as his own hands.
As the Emperor watched all this, His gaze flickered with unknown thoughts.
Later, through conversations with the Emperor, Alexei learned much, including the fact that it was now the 41st Millennium of the Imperium of Man.
Alexei knew that countless crises were about to erupt again within this aging, bloated empire.
He also learned that what stood before him now was merely a fragment of the Emperor's humanity—a shard far more emotional than the complete Emperor.
The soul within the body on the Golden Throne, washed by the faith of countless billions over ten thousand years, was now shattered into fragments.
But regardless, He still loved humanity.
"I must go. This girl's body can no longer sustain me. I have helped stabilize her psychic power. An alien (Tyranid) fleet is heading toward this sector."
The fragment of the Emperor's humanity cautioned Alexei before leaving: "If you can, help the humans of this world."
Alexei shook his aching head and looked at the sleeping girl. To be able to endure a soul-fragment of the Emperor and remain unharmed, she was at least an Alpha-level psyker, if not an Alpha Plus.
If anything happened to her, the whole planet might turn into a miniature Eye of Terror.
"Sigh." Alexei sighed, observed the girl's state for a moment, and stepped out of the room.
He stood by the Hive, watching the busy Queens and the coming and going Drones, lost in thought.
After kicking away a Larva wriggling toward him, Alexei looked at the black shadow at the bottom of his system panel. It was the genetic template for the largest biological ship of the Zerg in StarCraft II: the Leviathan.
In terms of sheer numbers and combat power, the current Zerg Swarm was just a snack for a Tyranid Hive Fleet. But if he could produce a Leviathan, escaping would be no problem—after all, Leviathans can warp.
Furthermore, he scrolled further down the system; there were still unlocked Terran and Protoss units. It seemed he might truly carve out a place for himself in this galaxy.
Thinking of this, Alexei nodded. "Very well. Now, I need more resources to grow."
He thought of those Genestealers who repeatedly wandered into his territory. Alexei decided to use these xenos as the first sacrifice to the Swarm's fangs.