Chapter 69 — The Cleansing Light
The Thunderhawk cut through the storm, engines thundering as it rose above the canyon.
Inside, the air was heavy with the scent of burned metal and ozone. The blue glow of the console screens reflected off the golden plates of Gaius's armor. Across from him, Titus and his squad sat in silence, their armor blackened from battle, their eyes calm, watchful.
Outside the viewport, lightning rippled across the dark sky. The beam of light that had pierced the clouds earlier had faded, leaving behind only drifting ash and the distant echo of thunder. The warp's corruption had been banished from this place, at least for now. But The mission isn't finished yet.
He opened his vox-link. "Lieutenant Titus," he said evenly, his tone quiet but firm.
Titus turned from the viewport. "Captain."
"Contact the Invictus. I want orbital bombardment on our last coordinates. The canyon we were extracted from."
"Yes, Captain." Titus switched frequencies, his voice steady. "Invictus, this is Lieutenant Titus. Target coordinates transmitting now. Prepare bombardment pattern Sigma-Seven, high-yield shells."
Static crackled, then a deep voice came through the line. "Acknowledged, Lieutenant. Target received. Charging bombardment cannons."
Gaius shifted his gaze toward the Techmarine seated at the opposite end of the hold. The red-armored figure looked up as his Captain spoke.
"Techmarine," Gaius ordered. "Coordinate with Invictus. Prepare Oath of Rectitude's bombardment cannons for synchronized strike. We cleanse this world before we leave orbit."
The Techmarine inclined his head. "By your command, Captain. Vox link established. Target data syncing now."
Through the storm clouds, far above the world, two strike cruisers adjusted their position, the Invictus and Oath of Rectitude.
Their hulls glowed faintly against the darkness as power surged through their weapon decks. Massive bombardment cannons rotated, locking onto the same region below.
"Target lock confirmed," came the Techmarine's voice through the vox. "Coordinates synced between both cruisers."
On the Thunderhawk, Gaius stood, his broad silhouette framed by the glow of the viewport.
He watched the darkened planet below, its surface still burning from the battle. The last traces of warp energy pulsed faintly across the land, a dying ember in the storm.
He gave the order.
"Execute."
In orbit, silence turned to thunder.
The bombardment cannons of both cruisers roared to life, releasing twin salvos of plasma-encased shells, each the size of a Rhino transport. The rounds streaked through the void, trailing lines of blue light as they fell toward the planet below.
Seconds later, the world erupted.
The first impact struck like a second sunrise. The ground convulsed as a blinding sphere of energy tore across the canyon, vaporizing stone and metal alike. The second shell hit moments later, merging with the first, the combined explosion swallowing the horizon in molten light.
The shockwave flattened everything for kilometers. Mountains melted into rivers of glass, every chaos cultist in that explosion was vaporized from existance. A hurricane of molten wind swept across the terrain, carving a crater that glowed blue-white under the rain.
The Thunderhawk's hull trembled from the impact even at high altitude. Through the viewport, the world below bloomed in light, terrible, beautiful, final.
The Multiversal Chat's members infront of Gaius, translucent and faint, visible only to him.
The faces of the others appeared, Tony, Diana, Mindy, Naruto, Saeko, their voices overlapping as they watched the devastation unfold.
Tony exhaled softly, leaning forward in his holographic frame. "That's… impressive," he said, his voice calm. "Not surprising though. Humanity at this stage must have weapons like these. Interstellar civilization means interstellar wars." And from the first broadcast, he already encountered the ability of humanity here that were able to cleansed planets
Diana's gaze stayed fixed on the burning world. "That power," she murmured. "It's beyond the power of nuclear bomb of my world. It's not just destruction, it's judgment."
Saeko's voice was quiet, almost a whisper. "It's beautiful."
Her expression was still, eyes reflecting the swirling light of the explosion.
Mindy nodded faintly beside her. "Yeah," she said softly. "Beautiful and terrifying."
Naruto, wide-eyed, could barely form words. "That was awesome! They wiped everything out in one hit!" Naruto is toughen up by the past broadcast, he already knows these enemy are past the saving point, so he didn't care that attack killed a lot of people.
Tony smirked slightly. "Two hits, technically," he corrected. "But yes, they indeed wiped everything out."
The group fell silent again, watching as the light slowly faded. What remained of the canyon was gone, replaced by a sea of molten glass stretching to the horizon.
Inside the Thunderhawk, the glow from the explosion dimmed. The storm outside had quieted, leaving only the low hum of engines and the distant rumble of thunder.
Titus broke the silence. "The mission is now done, Captain."
Gaius's eyes lingered on the viewport a moment longer before he replied. "Not yet," he said calmly. "Lord Guilliman has requested to speak with you."
Before Titus could respond, the door to the passenger hold slid open. A young serf entered, bowing quickly. His uniform was stained with grease, his hands trembling slightly under the weight of his task.
"Lord Captain Gaius," the serf said, head lowered. "Message from the Astropath. She asked that I deliver it at once."
Gaius turned toward him and nodded. "Carry on."
The serf stepped forward, handing over a sealed parchment marked with the sigil of Ultramar. Then he bowed again and left the chamber without another word.
Gaius broke the seal and unfolded the parchment. The ink was fresh, written in precise High Gothic script.
By order of Lord Guilliman, Captain Titus and his squad of Bladeguard Veterans are to be placed under the command of Captain Gaius. Effective immediately.
He read the line twice before folding it back.
"Quite the timing," he murmured. It's quite the timing with the reward with the last mission of the multiversal chat, The "Shared Gate", it's function are to allow Gaius to travels with 10 members, to others Worlds.
He turned toward Titus, who was waiting silently nearby. "Lieutenant," Gaius said, handing him the parchment. "Orders from Macragge."
Titus accepted the document and scanned it quickly. His expression didn't change, but his voice grew steadier as he read aloud:
"By order of Lord Guilliman, Captain Titus and his squad of Bladeguard Veterans are to be placed under the command of Captain Gaius."
Metaraus, standing beside him, stepped forward. The old veteran with four golden service studs took the parchment, reading it himself.
After a moment, he returned it to Titus and gave a firm nod. "It's authentic."
Titus turned back to Gaius. "Then we are at your disposal, Captain."
He clenched his right fist against his chest, the traditional sign of loyalty.
The rest of his squad followed suit, their fists striking their armor plates in unison.
"Good," Gaius said simply. "You and your men will report to the Oath of Rectitude. Maintain your armor and rest. You've earned it."
Titus nodded. "Understood."
He switched frequencies to the Invictus. "This is Lieutenant Titus. As of now, command transfers to Captain Gaius. Confirm."
A calm voice replied through the vox. "Acknowledged, Lieutenant Titus. Safe journey. Emperor guide you."
The channel closed. Outside, the Invictus slowly adjusted course, breaking formation and beginning its return to fleet orbit.
Later, in the command deck of the Oath of Rectitude, Gaius stood before the projection interface of the Multiversal Chat once again.
The mission had ended, but the others were still talking, their translucent forms flickering above the holotable.
Tony was explaining something to Diana, gesturing with his hands. "You can actually download the broadcasts," he said. "If your world's tech can handle it, like a memory drive or some kind of device capable of storing mental data. But it takes a massive amount of space."
Diana tilted her head, intrigued. "So in theory, anyone could store Gaius's Broadcast? Even upload them to The internet?"
Tony paused, considering it. "Yeah. The impact would be massive though. You'd be showing your entire world of other worlds, of others humanities, but that won't likely happen, they might just think it's from a movie."
Mindy crossed her arms. "That could still mess with people's heads."
Saeko shrugged slightly. "My world's already dead. There's no one left to show it to."
Naruto blinked, confused. "Internet? I don't even know what that is!"
Tony chuckled quietly. "Don't worry about it, kid. You're fine where you are."
Gaius watched them, his expression calm.
After a moment, he spoke. "The mission for now is complete. I'll end the broadcast here."
Naruto opened his mouth quickly. "B-but I wanna see wha,"
The projection cut off before he could finish.
The command deck fell silent once again, leaving only the hum of the ship's systems.
Gaius turned toward the viewport, where the planet below still glowed faintly from the bombardment.
Another world cleansed.
He folded his hands behind his back.
"mission completed," he said quietly.
Outside, the Oath of Rectitude drifted onward, a spear of humanity cutting through the void, bound for whatever came next.
~~~
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