Starhammer 50k: The First Wave - Spuddies (2025)

First of all: This is completely non-profit, I write all this for fun, and I am essentially putting together the best parts of different well-known franchises together, to make a crossover multiverse with some changes made to the original stuff (such as the Star Wars galaxy.)

BRACE YOURSELVES FOR THE ULTIMATE SCIENCE FANTASY CROSSOVER!

Just a note for the audience: Of course, this crossover does not cover EVERY sci-fi universe and magic system. In fact, it only covers the ones I'm familiar with.

So prepare your butts for this epic campaign of universal domination!

STARHAMMER 50K: THE FIRST WAVE

But first I'd like to credit all the existing content from various creators and authors, that I'm blending together to make this multiverse:

The realms of Starhammer 50k are spread over a vast plane of existence that is at least 10 major galaxies and 50 million light years wide:
The Milky Way Galaxy, (M01,) the Andromeda Galaxy (M31,) the Triangulum Galaxy (M33,) the Pinwheel Galaxy (M101,) and the Sombrero Galaxy, (M104,) as well as M87 Virgo, the Sunflower Galaxy, (M63,) the Whirlpool Galaxy, (M51,) Centaurus Zeta (NGC 5128,) and the Ursa Prime Galaxy (M81.)

It combines lore, worldbuilding, characters, timelines, and content from dozens of fictional universes and franchises, the big three being Star Wars, Warhammer and Halo, but also including many others, such as Undertale, Dungeons and Dragons, Transformers, RWBY, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Starbound, Battletech, Genshin Impact, Thrones and Bones, EXO (a book by Fonda Lee,) N.E.R.D.S, (by Michael Buckley,) Ranger's Apprentice Book 1, (by John Flanagan,) even Doctor Who!

Sorry, Star Trek. I just never got interested in the Federation when I had other favorites in my childhood and puberty like the Galactic Republic, the Covenant and the Imperium.

Now for the intro:

It is a dark time for the Galactic Republic. For a thousand years, war has raged across space and time, and it shows no signs of stopping. The Enemy Within and the Enemy Without continue to grow in strength and number, while the Republic's people are more divided than ever. Every day, the forces of tyranny grow stronger, and the Arsenal of Democracy is beginning to lose its sheer dominance.

Among the manifold enemies of democracy are the Covenant, an alliance of religious alien zealots, the genocidal superorganism which mortals call the Mind Flayer, the teeming hordes of the Orks and their numerous subspecies, the Flood, a parasite that perfected the capabilities of necromancy, the Confederacy of Independent Systems, a separatist movement from the Republic which wages war using a droid army, the Creatures of Grimm, a race of demons who seek to obliterate all other sapient beings, the Daleks, a tyrannical group of alien bigots with cybernetic bodies, and many, many others.

But even in these dark times, there is still hope. As long as there is evil... good will rise up against it. After all, freedom is the right of all sentient beings. It certainly isn't free... but it's definitely worth fighting for.

"I went to war with murderers, thieves, with slavers and dealers, the parasites who preyed on human weakness. That weakness was a feeding ground that stretched beyond the infinite. The evil it fed would never end. So I decided, neither would my war."

-Lieutenant Frank Castle, "the Punisher," veteran Space Marine and urban vigilante on Coruscant

And YES, Space Marines and Jedi coexist and fight side by side in this version of the Galactic Republic that I put into the story. BURN THE HERETIC!

Now that you've read the intro to Starhammer 50k, where a very different Galactic Republic in a very different galaxy (The Milky Way) is besieged on all sides by tyranny, prejudice and authoritarian attackers, you should probably read how the story is gonna be organized.

It's not a typical novel. Starhammer 50k is instead, an ANTHOLOGY.

Author note: I'm much more comfortable writing a compilation of shorter stories than putting together one big novel.

To be clear, this means there will be relatively long "episodes" of Starhammer 50k, each with multiple chapters, describing a campaign being fought in the intergalactic war. Which also means that the chapters will be shorter than you'd expect.

In a nutshell, it will be like Star Wars: The Clone Wars! And there's plans to write Starhammer 50k Waves 2 and 3 as well.

Author's note 2: If you have comments on how I could improve my style of writing, feel free to make them. But honestly, after failing Nanowrimo last year, I much prefer making anthologies over novels.

Here is a list of episodes for Wave 1, Wave 2, and Wave 3 of Starhammer 50k, in order: Each one is named after a planet or star system where the battles are taking place.

WAVE 1: (episodes 1-6)

Geonosis- Episode 1: Factory-Fresh Assault

Koentus- Episode 2: Rookie Courage

Hoth- Episode 3: Blizzard Force Deployed

Pandora- Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

Kaurava- Episode 5: The Avatar's Wrath

Gordasha- Episode 6: The Green Tide

WAVE 2: (episodes 7-12)

Aerwiar- Episode 7: Let's Go, Mechwarriors!

Kronos Alpha- Episode 8: Titanic Clash

Skythern- Episode 9: Paratrooper Party!

Cadia- Episode 10: Gunship Cavalry

Reach- Episode 11: Defending The Armory

Harvest- Episode 12: That Ain't My Tail, B*ch!

WAVE 3: (episodes 13-18)

Remnant- Episode 13: The Wizard And The Dragon King

Kamino- Episode 14: Their Finest Hour

Sirius- Episode 15: The Last Line Of Defense

Alpha Centauri- Episode 16: The Penultimate Peril

Coruscant- (Terra:) Episode 17: The Final Battle, Part 1

Zenith- Episode 18: The Final Battle, Part 2

Episode 1: Factory-Fresh Assault

Chapter 1: Portal Preparations

"Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid in battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood."

"Wars may be fought with weapons, but they are won by men."

-George S. Patton.

In other words: "Without struggle, there is no progress. Without conflict, we cannot evolve. Our hardships, big or small, are what make us human."

I have plans to keep writing Starhammer 50K for years to come, at least until 2025. It could end up being ridiculously long and drawn-out, like The Wheel Of Time book series.

Maybe I should make the universe and the story smaller and not nearly as gigantic, but I'm still deciding on that.

Episode 1 intro:

The Republic's military forces are launching an attack on the planet of Geonosis, a major battle droid production site, just like in the Star Wars prequel trilogy… but there's plenty of twists and changes.

First off, the Grand Army of the Republic will be deploying a very wide variety of unusual troops: Clones, Spartans, Mandalorians, UNSC Marines, Adeptus Astartes, Guardsmen, and more, will all be fighting side by side, on the same team.

(Yes, that means this version of the Galactic Republic essentially merges the elements from the Republic in Star Wars, the Imperium in Warhammer, and the UNSC in Halo to create an Uber-Tier interstellar democracy.)

Secondly, the Geonosians have surrounded their droid factories with hundreds of miles of fortifications crammed with battle droids and droid vehicles of all shapes and sizes. And there are orbital defense platforms around the planet ready to strike at any enemy ships that foolishly come near.

However, the Geonosians didn't account for another, more esoteric method that the Republic would use to attack them...

And NO, I haven't watched the new Buzz Lightyear movie. I don't wanna see it, either, but I DO have the perfect crossover character concept for Toy Story's Space Ranger.

STORY STARTS HERE

Legion Praetor Captain Buzz Lightyear of the Ultramarines stood on top of a gigantic Baneblade super-heavy tank, in the middle of a major Republic army base, overseeing the preparations for the mission that his troops would soon carry out. Beta Cordatus, the planet which the base was situated on, was entirely dedicated to the production of military equipment and hardware.

Understandably, Captain Lightyear had diverted all those resources to his campaign, which would make use of a groundbreaking new prototype sorcery that allowed for transporting armies across the stellar realms in mere hours- the Stargates.

These new enchanted portals, conjured by specially trained psykers, mages and wizards with the random risk of causing themselves serious injuries, acted as bridges between distant worlds, making a "wrinkle" in time and space that tremendously shortened the distance it took to go somewhere in the Milky Way and its neighboring galaxies.

This meant that a Stargate was even more effective than the best of hyperdrives. Not even the fabled Millennium Falcon, the pirate ship flown by Republic Admiral Han Solo, and one of the fastest starships in the Milky Way, could match the least efficient Stargates in terms of travel distance shortened.

Footnote: The magic users in SH50K derive their power from the Force (like the Jedi,) and use four mediums to channel it: Body, mind, soul and emotion.

Now that the prototype Stargates were finally complete, Buzz Lightyear was going to rally his troops. He needed to know the capabilities of every force he planned on bringing to Geonosis if he was going to make an effective strategy. Besides, Venator-class star destroyers were already trying to hammer the hive world from orbit, while simultaneously battling with the orbital defense platforms.

Wouldn't someone like this version of Buzz Lightyear be familiar with the entire Republic military though? Well, turns out he spends 99 percent of his time working with other Space Marines, and that 1 percent of free time playing Pai Sho (that tile game from Avatar The Last Airbender.)

"Alrighty then! Before we make a plan and head through the Gate to Geonosis, I want whatever Chapters, Ordos and Battalions present to identify themselves. Who are you, and what's your purpose on the battlefield?"

Footnote: I made quite a few custom characters for the individual franchises that are going to be part of Starhammer 50k. Playing DnD gave me the idea.

Clone Captain Rags: Clone troopers of the 451st Grand Battalion! I'm an OC version of Captain Rex!

Space Marine Warsmith Gaius: Heavy Weapons Teams of the Legio Astartes, present! We've got plenty of firepower to spare!

2nd Lieutenant Ruby Rose: Remnant Spartan Strike Forces, locked and loaded! We're here to curb stomp Covenant and exorcise Grimm!

Commissar Lycan Pictus: Astra Militarum Regiment, Rosnian Spears, rolling out! Nothing escapes our precision fire!

Field Commander Din Djarin: Mandalorian Assault Squads, striking from the skies! We're so tough, weapons are part of our religion!

Sergeant Avery Johnson: Colonial Marines, ready to crush some clankers! And it's time to chew bubble gum and shoot big guns!

Colonel Ragnar Jotun: Forgotten Realms Frost Giant Comrades, armed and ready! SHOOT, SMASH, CHOMP, STOMP!

Grandmaster Kaldor Draigo: Ordo Draigo present! WE WILL PROVIDE THE HAMS!

Once the order of battle was made, Captain Lightyear had to come up with a strategy to breach the nigh-impenetrable defenses of the Geonosian hive cities and droid factories, and deliver it to the troops in a speech. An uneasy silence loomed over the immense crowd of soldiers surrounding Lightyear's Baneblade, who were anticipating something truly patriotic, something that made a whole galaxy's freedom worth dying for.

However, Buzz Lightyear made his speech as direct as possible, instead of resorting to something grand and eloquent, like the real-life Dream of a certain Civil Rights activist.

"Listen up, comrades. The security of this entire universe is in jeopardy, and we are the first and often the last line of defense that stands between survival and extinction."

"Which is why I believe in only three tenets of battle, principles we are going to use to smash the cities of Geonosis to bits: Firepower, more firepower, and even more firepower. That's literally all we need. Because our Navy's Star Destroyers can't get close to the planet to deliver landing forces or perform an orbital bombardment, we will use our Stargates to attack the Confederates from an unexpected angle.

"Just shoot at every clanker and blow up every obstacle in sight. That's an order, by the way! We have to cause just enough damage to completely halt the droid assembly lines."

After that, the millions of soldiers made an uproarious cheer and raised their weapons over their heads, eager to lay waste to the hive cities of Geonosis. It was a whole army of gung-ho maniacs and boisterous bruisers who all had a bizarre obsession with warfare. Compare it to how George Patton viewed things, but on an intergalactic scale.

The Stargates finally opened, bathing the enormous military base in otherworldly, ethereal light, and Captain Lightyear's amphibious battleship on tracks, the Baneblade, was first through the breach.

Once everyone was through, including whole companies of mobile artillery, battle tanks, combat walkers, and other death machines, the legions of warriors ended up on a vast, polluted wasteland with a megacity wider than the prehistoric nation of Greenland looming over the horizon, whose heights reached into the upper atmosphere of Geonosis.

It was all dedicated to making droids, and since the mission was all about causing loads of damage, that would mean permanently disabling the factory.

But could Buzz Lightyear's army pull it off? Time will tell…

Episode 1: Factory-Fresh Assault

Chapter 2: Carnage, Calamity, And Courage

"When surrounded by war, one must eventually choose a side."

-Star Wars The Clone Wars, best intro quotes

Last chapter, Buzz Lightyear the Ultramarine General gathered his mighty army to attack the Separatist stronghold of Geonosis, from an angle no enemy would normally expect (they used Stargates, and those things are actually a top-secret new advancement in techno-sorcery.)

As he said in Toy Story, TO INFINITY AND BEYOND! Yep, that's gonna be his battle cry.

Now the warriors of the Republic stand before an expertly fortified, unimaginably vast hive city on the planet, which has been churning out countless battle droids over the course of the multiverse's various armed conflicts. It bristles with formidable defenses, as expected, and Trade Federation droid starfighters swarm around its heights like a plague of locusts.

So what did Captain Lightyear do to make a breach in the supposedly impenetrable structure? Well, last chapter he talked about how obsessed and infatuated he was with firepower. So he naturally called up half a million self-propelled artillery batteries to fire volley after volley after VOLLEY of shells, grenades and guided missiles at the outer layers of the hive city, for 12 hours straight!

Of course, the big guns were protected from air attack and any approaching droid armies by Guardsman, Spartan and Clone Trooper heavy weapons specialists.

"Ready, steady, AND FIRE! KEEP AT IT AS LONG AS YOU CAN!," Lightyear bellowed, giving his big gun crews the order to shoot.

"Give those bastards all you got!," shouted Sergeant Avery Johnson, earnest as ever.

"It's gonna be raining damn hard today, and we're in a desert!," Mando (AKA Din Djarin) wrote in his journal, before joining up with the rest of the heavy hitters.

And just to tell you how technologically advanced this artillery is, look at this detailed guide to the ammunition being used, taken from the Warhammer Lexicanum wiki:

ALL OF THIS IS COPIED FROM THE WARHAMMER 40K WIKI, THIS IS NOT MINE

READING THIS IS OPTIONAL, IT'S JUST HERE FOR FUN

All shell warheads here can come in the alternate form of a guided missile or large-caliber grenade.

Known Shell Types
Frag Shells - Anti-Personnel Fragmentation Weapons
Heavy Mortar Frag Shells
High Explosive Shells - Standard explosive round. The shell has a thin walled case, inside of which is an explosive charge with an impact fuse which detonates when it impacts. The explosion shatters the case, sending shrapnel in all directions as an explosive shockwave creates a lethal blast. Because a HE shell does not require a high velocity to penetrate a target, it does not need a large propellant charge, which leaves room for more explosives. The shell is also fitted with a ballistic cap to improve in-flight ballistics. These shells are most effective against light vehicles and infantry but are unlikely to damage tanks. High Explosive Shells can be fitted with a variety of fuses. Some are used to force the shell to explode on impact or in the air above while others are set to explode only after the shell has penetrated a short distance into the ground.
Mk.3-G4 High Explosive Round - Used by the Leman Russ Battle Tank.
Leman Russ Vanquisher High Explosive Shell
Heavy Mortar High Explosive Shells
Earthshaker High Explosive Shell - 132mm Shell used by Basilisk Self-Propelled Artillery and Earthshaker Cannons
Conqueror High Explosive Shells
Baneblade High-Explosive Shell - Super-heavy shell used by the Baneblade Tank.
Macro-Cannon High Explosive Shells
Armour Piercing Shells - These heavy shells were designed to withstand the shock of penetrating through thick armour and feature a greatly strengthened case along with a hardened, shaped tip and a small explosive, making the shell function like a solid missile. Some have a softer metal cap, improving penetration by reducing initial impact shock, which otherwise has a chance to shatter the shell. Though the shell's kinetic energy is unlikely to outright destroy an enemy tank, even a glancing impact can often stun the crew, halting the enemy vehicle and allowing it to be engaged and destroyed by multiple shells.
Anti-Tank Shells - Used against hardened targets such as enemy tanks or bunkers. The shell is a solid round with a hard adamantium tip, over which the tip of a soft metal cap is added. This cap melts upon impact, creating a "sticking" effect which helps to prevent the following adamantine tip from glancing off sloped armour or breaking up. Some Anti-Tank Shells contain a small explosive charge and will explode on penetration. However most do not contain explosives and rely on sheer kinetic energy and heat of impact to cause damage. To generate enough kinetic energy for the kill, these shells have considerable propellant charge. Other Anti-Tank Shells have an explosive shaped charge which produces a hypersonic jet of molten metal on impact. Easily penetrating through the thickest armour, the plasma jet even incinerates the enemy crew.
Mk.12-G4 Anti-Tank Round - Used by the Leman Russ Battle Tank.
'Vanquisher Anti-Tank Shell' - Used by the Leman Russ Vanquisher. This advanced version is a solid dart of super-dense metal contained within a lightweight exterior casing. Once fired, the case will drop away leaving just the speeding dart. The shell is fired from a large charge of high energy propellant powder to generate increased velocity down the long barrel. This combined effect of the heavy dart and the high velocity creates a massive kinetic impact, making it effective against almost any armor.
Conqueror Anti-Tank Shells
Bandeblade Anti-Tank Shell - Super-heavy rocket-assisted shell fired by the Baneblade.
Macro-Cannon Armour-Piercing Shells
Krak Shells - Designed for cracking open armor.
Demolisher Shells - These shells are heavier than standard battle cannon shells, being a larger version of the Anti-Tank Shell. They have an outer layer of standard high explosives and shrapnel surrounding a chemical core. As soon as the shell hits a target, the high explosives both blast through armour, scattering shrapnel in its wake, and start a chemical reaction superheating the second layer, resulting in a scorching plasma jet. The molten metal follows through the hole in the armour, destroying the target from the inside.
Mine Laying Shells - These shells scatter smaller submunitions, often anti-personnel and anti-tank mines over the battlefield. They are most often used during preliminary bombardments to impede enemy advances. Mine Laying Shells are fired by both tanks, nautical vessels and artillery.
Siege Shells - These large shells are only issued to artillery vehicles and combine the technology of both Anti-Tank and High-Explosive Shells into one round, having the armor piercing tips and heavy casing of the former while also having the large charge of high explosives of the latter. This explosive is fused to explode micro-seconds after impact, allowing for penetration through fortifications. To achieve a high enough velocity for penetration, these shells have significant propellant charges. The shells are large and heavy, making the cannons which fire them high calibre. The weight and size means they become inaccurate over longer ranges, but this is compensated by the devastating effect.
Mk.4-M Siege Shell - Used by Leman Russ Demolishers.
Heavy Mortar Siege Shells
Vindicator Siege Shell - Used by the Space Marine Vindicator.
Medusa Siege Shell - Heavy shell used by the Medusa Siege Tank and Medusa Siege Gun.
Dominus Shield Shells - Heavy shells used by the Dominus Armoured Bombard.
Colossus Shells - High-Explosive Concussive shells fired from the Colossus Bombard
Baneblade Siege Shell - Super-heavy rocket-assisted shell used by the Baneblade Tank.
Tremor Shell - Super-heavy self-burrowing projectile fired from Banehammer Super-heavy tanks.
Stormsword Siege Shell - Super-heavy shell fired from the Stormsword tank, capable of destroying an entire structure in a single shot.
Auger Shells - Developed specifically for the Leman Russ Conqueror, this warhead consists of a soft explosive in a thin shell that is designed to break open upon impact, spreading the explosive over a target's surface during the microsecond delay before the base-mounted fuse detonates. This causes cratering and cracking on the outer armour whilst inside the tank, causing ricochets in the vehicle interior. This is liable to kill or wound any occupations and can also disable controls and instruments. This shell however was not regarded as a success and few were produced from its manufacturer, Gryphonne IV.
Mk.2-G4 Auger Round- an improved version of the Auger Shell with better ballistic performance and greater destructive power
Hunter Shell - Considered a cutting-edge weapon by the Imperium, this shell was developed on Tigrus. It is considered to have a blessed Machine Spirit in the form of a simple logic engine which directs the shell after firing. Upon locking onto the target, it will track its movement and then just before impact steer upwards so as to drop down on the top of the target where its armour is thinnest. With the capture of Tigrus to the Orks the technology has been considered lost.
Inferno Shells - Spread incendiary material over an area. Inferno Shells use a highly volatile mix of phosphorus and synthesised compounds distilled from promethium, set off by a small explosive charge. The explosion spreads the chemicals over a wide area, where they ignite upon contact with the air, clinging to exposed flesh and burning long after the initial explosion, even melting through armour.
Leman Russ Infernus Shell
Phosphex Shells - Uses deadly Phosphex, a radioactive, corrosive, necromantic chemical compound that is attracted to movement, and hates all life
Heavy Mortar Inferno Shells
Melta Shells - Melta Technology that creates a subatomic reaction upon impact which releases a blast of intense heat. Capable of melting vehicles and reducing troops to ash.
Heavy Mortar Melta Shells
Flak Shells - Fragmenting shells used for use against aircraft.
Smoke Shells - Used for laying down smokescreens. Smoke Shells come in two types, some using white phosphorus and others simply scatter smoke grenades.
Illumination Shells - Light up the battlefield. Illumination Shells have a fuse that eject a pyrotechnic flare emitting white or infrared light at a preset altitude, whereupon it slowly drifts downwards on a heat resistant parachute.
Earthshaker Illumination Shell
Autocannon Shells - Light Calibre.
Plasma Shell - Releases a cloud of super-hot Plasma over its affected area.
Gas Shells - Fire a variety of chemical weapons from poisonous to hallucinogenic gas.
Cryo Shells- Splashes liquid nitrogen and frozen methane gas over the target, freezing them so hard that they shatter like glass.
Anti-Plant Shells- Contains chemicals that defoliate an area, killing even the thickest plant and fungus life as well as the algae that feed coral and lichens.
Xeno-Filament Shells- Explodes into razor sharp monofilament shards that slice through flesh and steel with equal ease.
Leaper Shells- Solid shot that ricochets and bounces, decimating infantry and light vehicles alike.
Superball Shells- a version of the Leaper shell that contains cluster submunitions, which are just as bouncy and also home in on targets after ricocheting
Spitfire Shells- a munition type that combines high explosive fragmentation charges with flammable incendiary material and corrosive toxic compounds, lethal against hordes of all kinds
Thasteron Shells- psychically-charged sorcerous ammunition that is launched using electromagnetic force, in a railgun or coilgun, flying at high-end hypersonic speeds and impacting with tremendous physical and magical kinetic force
Thasphalt Shells- artillery rounds that spew huge quantities of molten rock, superheated crude oil, electrified stone shards and molten metal over a wide radius, the quintessential area-denial weapon
Nailstorm Shells- one of two artillery projectile types that use experimental robotics in their function, detonating in a swarm of burning hot, razor sharp buzzing nanobots which actively chase enemies and rip them to shreds
Thermoferric Shells- the second type of projectile round that uses complicated robotic principles, only this time, it converts a large area of solid material within its explosion radius into an instant small army of fresh battle droids, allowing for instantaneous mass deployment of troops
Warp Dust Shells- borrowing the magic gunpowder from the world of RWBY, these crystalline artillery rounds come in all the colors of the rainbow and beyond, and can cause all kinds of destructive improbabilities corresponding to the elements of nature
Virus Shells - Unleash a variety of biological weapons.
Haywire Shells - Emits an electromagnetic Burst that disables enemy machinery.
Photon Shells - Releases a blinding light energy that blinds foes and scrambles light-sensitive machinery.
Rad Shells - Release a lethal wave of radiation.
Psyk-Out Shell Releases a wave of negative psychic energy that is devastating to Psykers and psychic technology.
Tanglefoot Shells - Create a localized gravitic distortion in its area of effect, slowing enemies.
Stasis Shells - Freezes a target within space-time
Vortex Shells - Extremely rare type of shell that creates a miniaturized Warp Rift.
Hellhammer Shells - Rare type of super-heavy shell fired from Stormsword and Hellhammer tanks. They either detonate with a focused or a widely dispersed nuclear blast.
Quake Shells - Extremely rare type of super-heavy shell fired from the Quake Cannon, sporting unparalleled penetration.
Behemoth Shells - Massive shell of unprecedented size, fired by Capitol Imperialis Behemoth Cannons.

Now that that's out of the way... it's time for Buzz Lightyear and his comrades to enter the inferno.

After the pounding blasts of the artillery pieces stopped, the Republic's forces charged into the breach caused by the explosions, and began to rain hell on the Separatist droid defenders, aiming to destroy their factory in the center of the city. But they weren't going down without a fight.

And since this metropolis was so huge, traversing it required all the armored vehicles in the army to accompany the infantry in case a ride was needed. And that's not even mentioning the rubble that was scattered everywhere due to the preliminary bombardment...

Lightyear parked his Baneblade just outside the breach, crushing a mob of homing spider droids, crab droids and Persuader droid tanks in the process, and just left it there on autopilot while he and the crew members left, creating a distraction and fire support platform that would attract the attention of more enemies, drawing them away from the factory.

"Alright boys, we're leaving Tankzilla behind us to make a diversion for our foes. Clankers are gonna keep coming, so let's get moving! We need to destroy the factory and teleport outta here!," he said over the Vox transmitter in his helmet, while blasting three dozen buzz droids with his wrist-mounted, twin-linked repeating blasters.

"Sounds like a good plan to me, Buzzy!," Spartan Sergeant Yang Xiao Long replied over the communications.

Since the super-heavy tank was the size of a nautical battleship, and the battle droids' simple programming automatically directed them towards the biggest targets on the battlefield, this was a good strategy to take the pressure off the rest of Lightyear's forces. Besides, he ultimately considered the Baneblade expendable, as the Republic's assembly line could easily build a new one for him.

Once everyone was into the breach, all hell truly broke loose, and the carnage was an astonishing sight to behold. Individual skirmishes between smaller units were also common, because the fighting had quickly spread all throughout the city.

Blaster bolts and autogun rounds flew everywhere, guaranteeing a quick death to anyone caught in the open for too long, as their meat was stripped from the bone or just outright vaporized.

Meanwhile, armored vehicles, combat walkers, and landspeeders ferried infantry from place to place, redeploying soldiers wherever it was necessary.

A squad of a dozen clone troopers led by a Sergeant named Kaiser took shelter behind a column of rock and steel, only to be swiftly annihilated by the incendiary missiles of a hailfire droid tank.

"Sergeant Kaiser, we gotta take cover!"

"Affirmative. We are moving now."

"But what's that heavy vehicle heading towards us with the hoop wheels? Hey, wait a second-"

*panicked screaming* *BOOM!*

At the same time, a bunch of UNSC Marines were being gunned down by droidekas, but fortunately, Ruby Rose and her Remnant Spartan-II unit were there to save them from the relentless assault.

"Oh, thank the God-Emperor you're here! We would've been dead men if it wasn't for you," said Edward Buck.

"Just watching out for you, like any good comrade, you don't have to flatter me," Ruby told Buck.

And maybe that's why Edward Buck would become a Spartan later in the story (like how he went from being a UNSC Marine to a Spartan-IV?)

Each shielded droideka was eventually brought down by sustained fire from Yang's shotgun gauntlets, Ruby's sniper railgun, Coco's heavy bolter, and Nora's automatic grenade launcher.

Meanwhile, much closer to the droid factory...

"Die, puny tin man!," shouted Colonel Ragnar, a frost giant from Faerun, as he kicked a B2 super battle droid like a football, before turning his tremendous car-sized gatling cannon on a horde of B1 battle droids and blowing them all to smithereens. His companions, Corswain (a fire giant,) Vajra (a cloud giant,) Barbatus (a stone giant) and Mikhail (a storm giant,) were aiding him in the task of wreaking havoc on everything that came their way.

These giants had all served the Republic's military for almost 800 years, and were still kicking ass.

All four giants were clad in Terminator Armor, and were basically the equivalent of War Machine and the Hulkbuster Iron Man Suit from Marvel Comics. Nothing could stop them... but then Barbatus took off his helmet to better observe his surroundings, leaving him vulnerable to a headshot from an AAT droid tank... which is exactly what happened.

"NOOOOO!," Ragnar screamed at the top of his lungs, reacting to the death of a longtime friend the way you'd expect. He emptied his Gatling cannon's drum magazine on the offending tank, and fired so many shots, over 25 other droid army vehicles were destroyed in the process.

The giant veterans took a moment to mourn their loss.

"We won't ever forget about Barbatus, he's in our hearts," Vajra said to Ragnar.

"But there's time to grieve later," Corswain replied.

"Wait," Mikhail interrupted. "This tiny man wants us to see something."

The other giant soldiers looked in his direction to see a Space Marine Captain- more specifically, a Warsmith- pointing his finger at a very peculiar looking building in the distance.

"Hey, big lads! That's the droid factory! We finally made it, after hitching 30 rides on combat vehicles! By the way, my name is Gaius."

Then three busloads of Space Marines, Mandalorians, magic-users and Spartans showed up aboard a trio of Mastodon transports, clearly being directed by Warsmith Gaius.

"How'd you fit in a transport?," a Republic Commissar by the name of Lycan asked Ragnar the frost giant.

Ragnar shrugged.

"We giants pretty much used the transports as chairs that could move us around. Which is to say we sat down on them."

While Commissar Lycan and Ragnar were talking about how size clearly mattered, Gaius began contacting Buzz Lightyear.

"We found the droid factory, and we're ready to destroy it. After that, we'll rendezvous with you at the closest spot possible, gather the rest of our troops, and call upon the Stargates to teleport us outta here, back to the base. Is that a good plan?"

"You can proceed, but just hurry," said Lightyear. "The longer our soldiers are scattered, the more casualties we will suffer."

Footnote: Many religious people in the Galactic Republic worship an ancient God-Emperor, who was an actual person responsible for founding their great democracy... through interstellar imperialism and conquest.

Call it an alternate version of the Great Crusade.

Episode 1: Factory-Fresh Assault

Chapter 3: Die C.I.S. Scum! (Prequel Memes)

Previously on SH50K:

The Galactic Republic's war with the Confederacy Of Independent Systems has reached its peak, as the top-secret experimental Stargates were deployed for the first time, and what started out as just a simple artillery bombardment became a full-on close-quarters urban slaughterhouse of epic proportions.

Buzz Lightyear and his battle-buddies are knee-deep in scrap metal from broken battle droids, who just keep coming with no end in sight. Spartans, Astartes, DnD adventurers, and Mandalorians are all brought into the swirling carnage, with casualties mounting on both sides.

If they don't destroy the droid factory deep inside the hive city, there won't be an end to this!

But good news has arrived! The Space Marines have located the facility churning out all these metal soldiers, and are planning on planting explosives to bring it down. It won't be easy, though... all the Geonosians in the city have holed up in the factory, explaining their absence everywhere else, and plan on defending to the death.

First to the droid factory's entrance, before any of Lightyear's other field commanders, was Warsmith Gaius of the Legio Astartes, and his battalion of fire support Space Marines. There were eight types of warrior in this formation, including:

Hellblasters (plasma rifle equipped specialists,)

Eradicators (using Melta microwave weapons,)

Eliminators (veteran snipers and marksmen,)

Suppressors (bulky airborne troops with heavy autocannons,)

Moritats (nimble airborne troops with dual volkite death-ray pistols,)

Aggressors (heavily armored ground troops with auto boltstorm gauntlets and rocket launcher racks,)

Devastators (default heavy weapons specialists,)

and Devastator Centurions (super-heavy infantry in house-sized battlesuits which count as mobile artillery platforms.)

Author's note: There will be female Space Marines in this story, which I labeled as Battle-Sisters, please don't be mad, I just like the idea of 7-foot tall Amazonian warriors looking somewhat like Cara Dune, Ellen Ripley, or Lara Croft. I made sure they weren't as thick and swollen as how Space Marines are usually depicted.

Each Astartes warrior carried an additional pack of explosives with them, to destroy the factory through a chain reaction of big blasts.

Towering over the crowd of super-soldiers was a squad of giant warriors from Faerun and the Forgotten Realms, who had just lost a man to the precision shots of an AAT droid battle tank. Complementing the giants' immense physical strength was a cadre of specialized wizards (also known as Psykers,) some of whom had sacrificed their lives at the very start of the conflict in order to summon the Stargate.

Needless to say, this was the perfect unit for the job at hand. The droid factory was essentially a giant bunker filled with industrial equipment, stretching many miles underground. Explosives, giant fists, and telekinesis would be SUPER EFFECTIVE here (that was a Pokémon reference!)

"Captain Lightyear said we are free to carry out our operation," said Gaius. "However, we gotta do it as quickly as possible. Commissar Lycan will be leading the way in."

The Commissar, who was said to have a terrible werewolf curse upon him, hence his name, took out a war horn, and blew it, beginning the attack on the Geonosians' industrial foundry.

"SHOOT, SMASH, CHOMP, STOMP!," roared Ragnar and his fellow giants. They smashed the massive gate of the factory down, expecting a raging tide of adversaries.

But strangely, when the small army charged into the dim, cavernous interior of the building, there were no defenders to be seen. Still, the tension was high as ever.

"Stay on your guard," Commissar Lycan said. "We don't know exactly what awaits us down here."

Suddenly, a bolt of pure kinetic energy from a sonic disruptor gun streaked out from the darkness, and hit a single Space Marine sharpshooter, causing her to explode in a shower of gore, splattering blood and showering armor fragments all over her battle-brothers.

"AMBUSH!"

Then mayhem erupted inside the cavern, as Geonosian workers, soldiers and alates swarmed out of rapidly expanding holes in the walls, firing their sonic weaponry and causing a catastrophic cacophony that mowed down Astartes left and right.

The four remaining giant fighters, Ragnar, Corswain, Vajra, and Mikhail, used their immense power-armored bodies to shield their allies from the shockwaves the Geonosians' weapons were causing. A curious thing that Vajra and Mikhail noticed was that the concussive impacts of the sonic guns had no effect on the structural integrity of the droid factory.

"Why aren't we all buried in rubble yet?," Vajra asked Mikhail, in sign language.

"Maybe because we need a much stronger explosion," Corswain chimed in.

Noticing what the giants were saying, Gaius made a grim statement over the vox-caster communications (which were supplemented by sign language:)

"I'm sorry to say this, my fellow warriors, but we might be on a suicide mission. We do indeed have enough explosive power to make the droid foundry collapse on itself. But detonating the munitions will be the death of us."

After he said this, the last of the Geonosian attackers had been driven off or killed. But more were inevitably coming. The heroes needed to act fast.

Lycan: How do we get out of this alive?

Ragnar: Beats me.

Gaius: Hold on... I forgot something! The wizard squad that came along!

Gaius pointed at the battle psykers, and they turned to look at him.

"You there! I don't remember the name of the leader of your platoon! Tell me his name!"

"It's Sergeant Lucas Cauthon, sir," the head sorcerer said. "What orders will you give us, lord Astartes?"

"I want you to put up a really strong force field, AND THEN detonate ALL the explosives we are carrying!"

Sergeant Cauthon was very alarmed by this idea. He knew the risks.

"You acknowledge the possibility of the force field collapsing and us all getting buried alive?"

"I don't care," Gaius said. "Just try your best to protect us from the explosions."

The psykers then began constructing their force field, concentrating their physical and mental stamina to power it up, but the magic had the unfortunate side effect of activating Commissar Lycan's lycanthropy.

He turned into a werewolf, and pounced on a nearby Mandalorian soldier, but Ragnar the giant plucked him off the ground and held him still, preventing him from potentially interfering with the spell.

At that moment, more Geonosians burst from the deeper layers of the foundry to try and stop what was happening, but it was too late for them.

The magic-users were able to put up a suitably strong force field, and then activate the explosives, causing a detonation bigger than an average nuclear bomb to shake the hive city, and completely destroying the Separatists' biggest droid factory.

When the smoke cleared, after an hour passed, Gaius discovered that he and all his allies were completely unharmed. The wizards had severe bloody noses and terrible headaches from channeling so much power, but no permanent or debilitating damage had been caused to their bodies.

Noticing that they were still alive, the warriors applauded Sergeant Cauthon and his sorcerer platoon for saving everyone's asses.

"Three cheers for Cauthon and his unyielding protection! The God-Emperor is with us today!"

Following the destruction of the factory, Buzz Lightyear was informed of the success, and he rallied all the troops to gather together and find Gaius's group.

To make a long story short: They destroyed the remaining battle droids in the way and made a rendezvous at the ruins of the droid factory.

The Stargate was a two-way door between worlds, which meant that the surviving soldiers could all return to their base. The campaign was a success, a blow to the Separatists that would significantly weaken them.

"Mission accomplished, ladies and gentlemen," Lightyear announced. "We're headed home now. Your courage and willpower is what's keeping the Republic strong, don't forget that!"

But... the war is just getting started... even though it's been going on for quite some time already!

END OF EPISODE 1

Stay tuned for more!

Next time on Starhammer 50k: Episode 2: Rookie Courage

Interlude: Galactic Knight Houses (not to be confused with the Jedi Knights)

I'll admit, I know almost nothing about Battletech, I just started reading about the Great Houses, and I'm gonna be incorporating them more and more into SH50k. I'll be changing things though, to make the Mechwarriors fit into my fanfiction crossover.

NOTE: This is an Encyclopedia Chapter, which means it is dedicated to describing the mixed lore of the Starhammer 50k Multiverse.

Actual stories are only present within Episode Chapters.

This lore guide may also (possibly) contain spoilers for Book 1 of the Wingfeather Saga and has little details from the Great Houses of Battletech.

LORE STARTS HERE

The 6 Great Knight Houses are one of the many, many different military forces that can be called upon by the Galactic Republic's government during times of crisis.

They are miniature empires of their own, bound by contracts that demand they serve the cause of democracy in exchange for a supply of advanced technology and vital imports of natural resources.

Each Great House commands an entire solar system as well as its nearby neighbors, and together, they wield some of the most devastating weaponry in the Milky Way Galaxy.

From youngest to oldest in the SH50k timeline, they are:

House Anniera of the Shining Beacon. Known for possessing more firepower and more 'Mechs than all the other Great Houses put together, and for testing dangerous experimental weapons and equipment, under the designation "Jewels of Anniera." They put this innovation in battlefield technology to good use against the Flood outbreak on Kashyyyk, saving the Wookiee Kingdom from certain annihilation.

House Liao of the Capellan Confederation. Extremely wealthy because of their proximity to various industrial and agricultural worlds, uses their 'Mechs to protect civilians more so than the other Houses. They don't need the Republic's shipments of natural resources, but are still part of the contracts, because they are a strong democratic ally that has inflicted defeats on both the Daleks and the Orks.

House Kurita of the Draconis Combine. Obsessed with dragons and fire, uses a lot of flamers, phosphor guns, volkite weapons, and electrical arc weapons, also rides actual dragons into battle. They are one of the Republic's biggest consumers of fuels and combustible materials.

House Davion of the Federated Suns. Took a lot of casualties in the battle against the Mind Flayer, and got pounded by the Covenant. Still in the fight though, as they were aided by reinforcements from the Jedi Order and the warriors of Planescape.

House Steiner of the Lyran Alliance. Responsible for protecting the colossal space shipyards of Kronos Alpha, the largest gas giant planet in the Milky Way, which has rings 200 times bigger than Saturn's, and is more than 20 times the size of Jupiter. Kronos Alpha is responsible for an enormous amount of naval war material and civilian spacecraft types, making House Steiner's duty especially important.

House Marik of the Free Worlds League. Has more leeway than the other Great Houses, as they can act independently from the Republic and pursue their own interests, often trading with certain marginalized alien species and fantasy races that face prejudice in the Milky Way's dominant superpower. They still aid the Republic in its war effort, however.

The defining attribute of the Great Houses are the various versatile legged war machines that both its soldiers and politicians ride to war: Imperial Knights, Battlemechs, Gundam Battlesuits, and Autobot Regiments. As mentioned before, they possess what could be the most advanced weapons ever developed by the Republic, which can be divided into diverse categories:

Bolt weapons: Firing rocket propelled explosive shells at a high speed

Volkite weapons: Bolts of superheated or supercooled gas, harvested from gas giant planets

Blaster and laser weapons: Focusing an intense beam of light or tight particle beam to deal damage

Gravity weapons: Using the target's weight against it, flinging heavy things around, or crushing things with sheer force

Flamers: Various types of flamethrowers, each more deadly than the last

Auto weapons: Basically 20th century automatic firearms, but more efficient, with more ammo capacity, and with higher velocity

Missile and rocket launchers: Projectiles much larger than bolt shells that explode, and may or may not have a homing guidance system

Kinetic destroyers: Bombards targets with pure kinetic energy, causing atomic bonds to break up

Melta weapons: Microwave radiation taken to extremes, which becomes hot enough to vaporize metal

Plasma weapons: Fires bolts of solar fusion energy, compromising any type of armor

Sonic weapons: Vibrations so violent and noises so loud they shatter solid rockcrete and durasteel

Phosphor weapons: Like flamethrowers, but with solid shot fireballs made of white phosphorus, marking targets out

Phosphex weapons: A cursed radioactive inferno that burns bright green and deep red, which cannot be extinguished by water, extreme cold, or even the vacuum of space

Rad weapons: Radioactive bullets and shells that cause intense poison damage

Darkfire cannons: Uses pure dark matter to obliterate a target on a subatomic level

Conversion beamers: Converts anything it hits into an explosive plastic substance, which then detonates with subsequent hits

Adrathic weapons: Uses the essence of the Big Bang itself to transmit teratons of energy into an incredibly small area, more than enough power to destroy a planet used on a single, human sized target

Helfrost weapons: Splashes liquid nitrogen and frozen methane gas all over the enemy, freezing them so hard they shatter like glass

Galvanic weapons: Solid shot projectile weapons that run on a powerful battery instead of gunpowder

Railguns and coilguns: Uses a power station or reactor to generate immense amounts of energy, in order to create sufficient electromagnetic force to hurl a massive solid projectile at ridiculous speeds (up to 4 percent of the speed of light)

So needless to say, there are some pretty absurd armaments in the Great Houses' arsenals, which are seen NOWHERE ELSE.

As for the inhabitants of these semi-independent states, most of the people living in Mechwarrior space are humans, but there are significant populations of other sentient species within their borders too.

Wookiees, Twi'leks, Sangheili, Unggoy, Tau, Eldar, Githyanki, and Minotaurs are the most dominant aliens here.

Aliens rarely have a chance to pilot a 'Mech into battle, as they often face prejudice within Great House society, (with the exception of House Marik,) but many of them are at least lucky enough to serve as squires, advisors and assistants for Mechwarriors.

Alien species often make up considerable portions of the Great Houses' footsoldiers, too.

Lastly, the cultures of the Great Houses, just like in Battletech canon, are inspired by real-world nations.

House Liao is Space China, House Anniera is Space USA, House Davion is Space British Isles, House Kurita is Space Japan, House Steiner is Space Scandinavia, Belgium, and Germany, and House Marik takes elements from Yugoslavia, Austria-Hungary, AND the USA.

Episode 2: Rookie Courage

Chapter 1: The Meteor Mystery

"Trust in your friends, and they'll have reason to trust in you."

-Star Wars, The Clone Wars, quote of the day

Intro: The yellow giant star system of Polaris, known in ages past on ancient Coruscant as the North Star, is one of the Galactic Republic's countless bustling metropolitan districts, famous for manufacturing spaceship components, industrial machinery, unique metal alloys, electronics and other forms of high-tech products.

More than 500 billion people work ceaselessly in vast factory buildings on 5 dozen planets to supply the greater Republic with these goods.

But Polaris is also important to the nation for a very different reason- in the far-flung asteroid-filled outskirts of the system, specifically on the blue rocky crystal moon of Koentus, there is a Republic Navy outpost which functions as a communications station, transmitting, disseminating and relaying messages between ships and planets that are oftentimes tens of thousands of light-years away.

If this outpost station's functionality was compromised, a large chunk of the Republic's naval forces would be completely cut off from contacting each other.

But what adversary would be bold and cunning enough to attack a target of such paramount importance? Time to find out!

Oh, and also: Here's a preview for some new faces I'm introducing in this episode of the SH50k anthology. They're special enough to be featured in multiple episodes, unlike (most of) the huge character cast of episode 1.

CHALLENGERS APPROACHING:

Thianna Frostborn: The main protagonist of Lou Anders' Thrones And Bones novels, which were made into a DnD campaign setting in late 2021. She is an adventurer and mercenary who is half giant and half human, and even though she is too short to be taken seriously as a giant, and too tall to blend in with humans, her name is nonetheless HIGHLY FEARED on the battlefield.

I highly recommend reading Thrones And Bones if you like good strong female characters, and if you wanna get into Dungeons and Dragons.

Clone Captain Rags: He was mentioned last episode, as a potential replacement for Clone Captain Rex. He'll be a major player in this episode.

The main difference between him and Rex is that he doesn't work with the Jedi, preferring to stay in the company of Astartes and Spartans, as he finds he has more in common with some of the super-soldiers personality-wise, and also, he's armed with a custom Bowcaster instead of dual blaster pistols, which he got from a Wookiee warrior who he challenged to a sharpshooting contest.

Noelle Youngblood: Oh look, it's Noelle, the knight maid from Genshin Impact... except now she pilots a freaking Battlemech! She's no pushover outside her walking war machine, either, wielding a massive two-handed chainsword that can cleave through rock and smash down reinforced bunker doors. However, she doesn't have a lot of experience in combat, as she is still technically considered a squire instead of a knight. As a rookie, she relies more on brute force than actual tactics.

Ahsoka Tano: Definitely the most well-known of the four people in this preview, a colorful Togruta Jedi Padawan as brash and reckless as she is talented.

Anakin Skywalker, her Master, chose to drop her off on Koentus so she could get to know other kinds of people in the Republic's military besides Jedi (having spent most of her time training in the Jedi Temple, she's never seen a Space Marine, a Spartan OR any kind of elf, giant, dragon or dwarf.)

Story Starts Here

-Azurite Outpost, Blue Moon of Koentus-

-Polaris Star System-

"It's been so boring, staying at this isolated base and passing on communications. Do you guys agree with me? We need to make this place feel more lively and comfortable, like home, as any privileged and lucky civilian would say."

Clone Captain Rags was talking to the squad of rookie soldiers and cadets who were stationed at Azurite Outpost.

They included a small group of clone troopers and Guardsmen, two astromech droids named Finn and Jake (after the two protagonists of that Cartoon Network show, Adventure Time,) Thianna Frostborn, a mighty half-giant warrior, Noelle Youngblood, a Mechwarrior pilot and squire from House Anniera, and Ahsoka Tano, a Jedi Padawan under the tutelage of Anakin Skywalker.

And they all agreed with Rags. The outpost was boring as hell, lacking any sort of luxuries, entertainment or distractions that the cadets could make use of while off duty (which they were, like, 95 percent of the time.)

The remaining 5 percent of that time was spent relaying messages between the Republic's Starfleet battle groups and checking for meteor showers, which were all too common in the scattered disk and asteroid belts surrounding Koentus and its host dwarf planet, Hefru.

"So what should we get to make this place more hospitable?," Noelle said. "I'm fine with cleaning all the messes that might happen, I am a maid too, after all."

Thianna started flexing one of her arms, and announced what she wanted to buy to spice up the base.

"A punching bag, a gymnasium room, and lots of weights."

Noelle sighed in exasperation.

"Of course the big, strong half-giant wants those things. And besides, every military base has a punching bag."

"We don't," Thianna replied.

"Screw that," said Ahsoka. "Maybe we can get bullseye targets so we can practice with our laser guns! And maybe a pinball machine, a terraforming garden, a swimming pool, and a better cooking station..."

Many of the cadets nodded in agreement.

"Those sound like good ideas!"

"I'm all for making a garden for fresh vegetables."

"Maybe Finn and Jake can serve drinks, if we modified both of their chassis."

The conversation was bringing up some great concepts for refurbishing and overhauling Azurite Outpost, but then a loud alarm interrupted everyone, catching them off guard.

The rookies all recognized the sound. It was a meteor shower! And the base's shields were off!

"Shit, shit, SHIT!," Thianna said as she stomped up a staircase and got to the control center of the outpost. She mashed the big red button, and the energy shields came online just in time, blocking the rain of flaming debris.

Many other meteors struck the land just outside the base, where they wouldn't cause any harm, but something weird happened on Thianna's scanners: The ocular detectors registered the big space rocks as being completely intact! They hadn't disintegrated upon impact!

"Guys, you might wanna see this," the giantess said.

Rags looked at the scanner screen.

"How did those objects not explode when they collided with the ground at that velocity? These are no ordinary meteors. Contact the security personnel on the base's outskirts."

Sergeant Orloff and his Vostroyan Firstborn Guardsmen were the soldiers responsible for protecting the outer layers of Azurite Outpost. They had seen the meteors fall when Clone Captain Rags contacted him on his comlink.

"Sergeant Orloff! Keep your eyes peeled for danger! Prepare to defend your positions! Whatever landed out there, it's not ordinary space rocks!"

But foolishly, the Vostroyan sergeant ignored Rags' warning, instead believing his forces to be ready for an offensive skirmish. He hung up on the comlink.

"Pfft! That clone trooper doubts the capabilities and vigilance of my own troops? He wants them to just be on the defensive? You know what, I'll send some of them to see what fell from the sky! Platoon one, search the craters!"

The guardsmen put on their armored space suits and oxygen tanks, left the habitable area of the station, and hopped out onto the desolate deep blue rocky landscape, keeping their formidable, heavy lasguns and blasters primed for action. They approached the craters and saw that the fallen objects had indeed survived the collision.

Nothing else seemed abnormal. The Vostroyans began to think that Rags was incredibly stupid for telling them to stay put.

BUT THEN...

Slimy, oozing black vines burst out of the crater's edges, grabbing the guardsmen and dragging them towards the "meteor," which wasn't a meteor at all- it burst open in an explosion of gore, revealing grotesque, faceless creatures with flower-shaped maws, that fell upon the screaming soldiers and began to devour them whole.

The faceless monsters didn't need oxygen to breathe, and extreme temperatures didn't bother them, which is why they were able to survive on Koentus' airless surface, and furthermore, they were all dedicated killing machines that could take a tremendous amount of punishment before dying.

They swarmed out of their landing site and stalked the remaining guardsmen on the outskirts of the base, coming up to where the artificial oxygen atmosphere was, killing them one by one, until only Sergeant Orloff was left.

He tried contacting his troops... but no response came. He assumed the gunfire that he heard had taken care of any enemies that had emerged from the craters.

Suddenly, a 9-foot tall abomination with no face knocked the sergeant off his feet, and as he realized with horror why his comlink remained silent, the monster bit his head off and feasted on his organs.

Rags tried contacting the security personnel again... but there was only grim silence.

The Mind Flayer's army has arrived.

You remember our old friend, the Demogorgon, right? Maybe Vecna will show up in the finale of this episode.

Episode 2: Rookie Courage

Chapter 2: Attack Of The Faceless Fiends

"Attention, personnel of Azurite Outpost: We are under attack. This is not a drill."

Previously on SH50k: The bored crew managing Azurite Outpost were just coming up with ways to liven things up and make the station feel more like home when a shower of what seemed to be meteors interrupted the conversation, putting people on alert.

Things quickly spiraled out of control when the "meteors" were revealed to be fleshy drop pods carrying terrifying monsters from the Mind Flayer's Upside Down army, and the troops guarding the outer perimeters of the base were silenced and butchered one by one. Clone Captain Rags, the most senior member of Azurite's personnel, gets a real bad feeling when his calls to the guardsmen go unanswered...

Story Starts Here

The clone cadets and Spartan-IV recruits in the base's main entrance area took up tactical positions behind supply crates, spare parts and fluid pipes, planning to shoot from cover as a defensive strategy, since Rags had already given them the orders to do so. MA5 assault rifles, Phobos bolt pistols, and E-11 blaster rifles poked out of every available nook and cranny in the room.

The rookies realized that there was much at stake, because if they lost this battle, a huge segment of the Republic would be completely cut off from interstellar and interplanetary communication. This was a decisive struggle, and the newbies were going to fight to the bitter end in defense of the free galaxy. They had guts, and fear wasn't bothering them.

But even with all that, the rookies still weren't prepared for what bashed the gate down and came rushing into the base.

Two kinds of faceless aberrations with toothy flower-shaped jaws, the Demogorgons and the Demodogs, proceeded to assault the remaining defenders of Azurite Outpost, resulting in a ferocious firefight with losses on both sides.

The monsters were durable and tenacious, taking multiple hits from military-grade automatic weapons to bring down, and also moved at terrifyingly fast speeds, tackling troopers before they could land a killing shot and tearing them to bloody shreds.

Fortunately for the rookie troops protecting the gate section, reinforcements arrived from other parts of the base, and with them came Captain Rags and his companions, who were much better in frontline combat and had better gear.

Thianna spun her machine-gun-spear hybrid in an arc, cutting through tough exoskeletons like a hot knife through butter, while Rags fired off multiple bolts from his Wookiee bowcaster, and Noelle decapitated a Demogorgon with her oversized chainsword. Ahsoka used a Force Push to send the astro droids Finn and Jake flying through the air, to make sure they were out of harm's way.

Then, the biggest monster of the bunch knocked Thianna over, and tried to bite her head off, but luckily for the half giant, Noelle came to the rescue and cut the Demogorgon in half, sawing through its midsection with a grotesque crunch.

"Thanks," Thianna said to the knight maid. "I would've been dead meat right there!"

"No problem! We gotta look out for each other in situations like this!"

Roughly three dozen monsters from the Upside Down were killed in the skirmish, but the battle was far from over- just as the Republic forces regrouped, loud roaring noises came from outside the base. That shouldn't even be technically possible due to the lack of atmosphere, meaning that some kind of dark magic was at work.

"They've already opened portals to make way for a larger invasion force," the Jedi Padawan Ahsoka said. "My Master told me the Upside Down is like a cancer, spreading through worlds and tainting their terrain and environment."

Meanwhile, Captain Rags addressed his troops, preparing them for the inevitable clash.

"As Ahsoka was saying, we know who our enemy is, and what they do. The Mind Flayer is a well studied, active threat in the Milky Way. So we're gonna try to stop those faceless fiends before things get even more ugly. You survived this far, and you've done great work. You're the bravest cadets I've ever met, most newbies don't even get to see horrors like this, let alone come out on top. But we must finish the job. Who's gonna follow us into hell and back? You guys, of course!"

"Courage and honor!," the troopers chanted, answering Rags' call.

With haste, they made their way to the armory, and suited themselves up for warfare in the vacuum of space, taking various blasters and plasma guns with them, as well as thermal detonators, seismic grenades, and satchel charges, for destroying the portals. Everyone was wearing a heavy duty armored spacesuit made of reinforced mithril plating, able to hold up against a Demogorgon's sheer bite force (but only for a short period of time.)

You could say, it was time to turn the Upside Down right side up.

Rags paid a quick visit to the control room, and saw on the scanners that eldritch gateways had indeed opened on Koentus' surface where the drop pods had landed, just as predicted.

All he and his crew had to do was make the portals collapse with explosives, but there was a time limit on the mission, since the monsters would get bigger and nastier the longer the breaches in reality stayed open. Also, lots more foul creatures had already shown up in the time that passed during the skirmish at the base entrance.

Rags led the way. "We gotta get moving, lock and load, ladies and gentlemen!"

"There's no time to lose, let's go kick some demon butt!," Thianna shouted, raising her gun-polearm hybrid high.

And so the REAL battle for Azurite Outpost began.

A note from Spuddies (the writer, me:) Geez, I haven't edited one of my fanfics in almost a month!

I've been busy designing and writing about my own original character concepts, basically remixes of my favorite superheroes like Batman, Green Lantern, Spider-Man, and Captain America. I hope to share them with people someday!

But now, back to the story.

Next chapter will have a lot of really crazy DND monsters!

Episode 2: Rookie Courage

Chapter 3: Battle Of The Blue Moon

"This is Clone Captain Rags, reporting on the status of Azurite Outpost. We are in a state of emergency, the station is under siege. We don't have much time left. Send us aid before it's too late!"

-An SOS message sent to the Republic's naval base in the Bellatrix solar system, right before communications at Azurite were severed by the Mind Flayer's psychic powers. Whether it reached its intended destination is currently unknown.

Out in the blue mountains of Koentus, where the incursion from the Upside Down had occurred, Captain Rags and his warrior spacemen were positioning themselves behind big piles of jagged rocks, trying to stay hidden from the hideous aberrations patrolling the area, so they could launch an effective ambush and blow up the enemy's portals.

But staying hidden was easier said than done when you had a 9-foot tall half-giant on your team, who really wanted to run in guns blazing, even if it got everyone killed. Not to mention that the team had to act and make decisions quickly, because the longer the portals stayed open, the more powerful the monsters became.

"Thianna!," Rags said through his comlink. "You gotta find a better spot for cover! We don't have enough ammunition to deal with all the monsters at once if they find out we're in their territory! If even one of them spots us, the whole horde will be on our backs. Hive mind, remember?"

"I know, but I'm aching for combat time! When are we gonna start our counterattack? You said we had to hurry with this mission. We can't hide for long."

Behind a blue boulder not very far away, Noelle and Ahsoka were observing the rift site connected to the Upside Down with their electrobinoculars, and reported the situation to Rags.

"There's only a few enemies guarding the rift," Ahsoka said. "I see a Displacer Beast, a Rust Monster, a Remorhaze, and an Otyugh. Shouldn't be a problem if we catch them off guard with a volley of heavy blaster fire, even if they can breathe in the vacuum of space."

Author's note: Here's some descriptions of the beasts I mentioned:

Otyugh: A grotesque, bulbous, bulky creature with three sturdy legs, a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth, two tentacles equipped with spikes, and a vine-like stalk with eyes and a nose on it.

Displacer Beast: A six-legged feline predator with pitch black fur and two extendable squid-like tentacles covered in barbs and hooks. It can also turn invisible and blur its prey's eyesight.

Rust Monster: An insectoid creature similar to an enormous beetle, with a hard, lumpy brown exoskeleton, a long tail with a bony protrusion, and two feathery antennae. It can corrode just about any metal with its venom, though harder metals will take longer to turn to rust.

Remorhaze: An arctic abomination resembling a titanic blue and white centipede with winglike fins along its sides, serrated mandibles, long antennae, and heated spikes on its body. It can generate heat inside its body, and release it in devastating explosions.

"Are we clear to press the assault?," Ahsoka asked Rags. His response was:

"Here's how we're doing things: In sixty seconds, we jump out from between these boulders and spam as many blaster bolts as we can. Weight of fire will bring down these beasts before the hive mind brings more trouble our way."

"In the event that we're outmatched, I sent a message to Bellatrix Naval Academy, to bring us reinforcements, hopefully before we're overrun. Now, whatever you do, don't engage them in close combat- HEY, THIANNA, GET BACK HERE!"

The half-giant heroine had taken the blunt approach to things and disobeyed Captain Rags' orders, charging into melee range so she could skewer the monsters with her polearm, compromising the location of the strike team and reducing the chances of its survival, because the Mind Flayer's minions were more effective in close combat.

"LEEEEEROY JENKINS!"

"Should we go in with her?," one of the Spartan-IV cadets asked Rags. "No turning back now, she broke the fourth wall with her battle cry!," another one said.

"Screw it," Rags replied. "There's no point in hiding any longer."

And so everyone charged into the fray, blasters blazing.

The battle took a heavy toll on Rags' available forces. The Displacer Beast and Otyugh were grabbing troopers with their spiked tentacles and bashing them against the ground, in an attempt to crack open their armor plating and expose their flesh to the lethal vacuum of space outside.

The Remorhaze was shooting bolts of fire in all directions, and the Rust Monster was squirting jets of metal-corroding acid as well, which meant that the soldiers had to take cover.

Azurite Outpost's common grunts died in droves, and even the four team leaders weren't safe- Ahsoka's lightsaber was grabbed by a tentacle, and she narrowly avoided being chomped by the Otyugh in the process of retrieving it.

If the crew had carried out a quick surprise attack as planned, the abominations wouldn't have gotten a chance to fight back and give everybody trouble. But Thianna had ruined that opportunity by charging into the fray and drawing the beasts into close quarters.

Fortunately, she was competent and skilled enough to kill two of the beasts with her polearm (which was also a machine gun.) She twirled her long, heavy weapon in a sweeping circle, and cut through the Otyugh's tentacles, and then shoved the business end down its maw, filling it with two hundred rounds of copper and lead.

To deal with the Displacer Beast, she tripped it with her weapon's haft, before cutting off its tentacles, thrusting the spear's head through the creature's side, and filling its head with lead just like she did with the Otyugh.

"Two down, two to go!," Thianna shouted.

However, after she said that, she heard a voice from Noelle, who was busy dealing with the Rust Monster.

"Look out behind you!"

Thianna turned around too late, resulting in the Remorhaze grabbing her with its frontal pincers and aiming to bite her in half with its extremely strong, armor-piercing mandibles.

Thankfully, Rags was fast enough to stop the giant arcane centipede from eating his half-giant ally. He fired bolt after bolt from his modified Wookiee bowcaster, in a relentless barrage, making the Remorhaze's head and thorax explode, killing it.

"Seriously?," he said to Thianna. "This is the second time someone had to rescue you from certain death. Next time this happens, you're gonna have to start paying me and Noelle."

"Who cares," she retorted. "Let's just finish the job already!"

The Rust Monster was still alive, but it wasn't for long, because Ahsoka chucked a grenade between its feet, and the blast was directed at its soft underside.

"Take that!"

And with that, the last of the four fiendish beasts had been defeated.

Rags, Thianna, Ahsoka, Noelle, and the six remaining cadets who survived the brutal skirmish then moved on to the next part of their plan.

"Alright, listen up. There are ten portals connected to the Upside Down within a two kilometer radius, and we have more than enough explosives to level them all. Since we spent so much time fighting the monsters guarding the area, the hive mind knows we're here. We just gotta keep moving."

"As I said before, I sent an SOS message to a Republic Navy base in case our mission fails. Even then, I'm not entirely sure if the signal reached them, so we are most likely on our own. I could be wrong, but bloody conflict has made me somewhat pessimistic. Now let's finish the job, which is what Thianna said."

And just as he said that, the ground started to shake violently, and three gargantuan spider monsters made of squirming rotten flesh (like the massive creature at the end of Stranger Things 3) burst out of a nearby hollow hillside, and after a brief pursuit, they had cornered Rags and friends against a wall.

"Huh, shit," Thianna cursed. "It was nice to meet you all, but now our time is finally up."

Rags slammed his eyes shut as his inevitable demise came forth in the form of a toothy, armor-piercing tentacle, and the rest of his team did the same... but then, they realized they weren't dying yet, and the morbid, grotesque creatures that were supposed to terminate them were now... screaming in agony?!

A fusillade of incendiary cluster missiles had plunged down from the skies and ignited the fleshy hides of the demonic spider monsters. They collapsed to the ground and began to melt.

"An airstrike?!," Ahsoka said incredulously.

"But that would mean only one thing," gasped Noelle.

"My SOS message reached its destination!," Rags shouted in triumph. "But how? It was only sent recently, using my super-slow backpack vector. How could it be transmitted at such a speed with Azurite Outpost's communications broken?..."

"Oh my God-Emperor. Finn and Jake. We left our astromech droids behind because this mission was too dangerous for them, and they found a way to fix the comms and remove the Upside Down's interference while all the enemies focused their attention on us!"

Then, several UNSC Vulture dropships descended from orbit, proving Rags right, and they delivered mixed groups of Spartan-IIs, Spartan IIIs, and Spartan IVs to clean up the mess that the Upside Down made.

The portals were eradicated with plasma charges, and whatever monsters remained were gunned down by the dropships' quad autocannons and Gatling blaster cannons, as well as the Spartans' own portable cutting lasers.

After that, Rags and the survivors of the Battle of Koentus returned to Azurite Outpost and had a talk with their rescuers, Spartan Master Sergeants Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, Kelly-087, and Edward Buck (who had helped decimate the Confederacy's droid armies on Geonosis not too long ago.)

Previously, Buck had been a Colonial Marine, but he had passed the tests for genetic enhancements, and became a full-on Spartan IV.

Thianna: Wow, you're fast! You and your troops arrived here at precisely the right time.

Kelly-087: Well then, I should tell you this: When it comes to sprinting, I'm the fastest Spartan out of the whole bunch at Bellatrix Academy. How's Captain Rags doing?

Ahsoka: Ask him that question. He's just realized that most of the cadets that followed us into battle died horribly.

Kelly-087: You know what... maybe Ruby and Yang should talk to him instead. I don't want to offend him by saying the wrong thing.

Rags: So, Ruby. What am I supposed to do now, after all this? Almost all my cadets died in the skirmish, and the ones that did survive are in the hospital.

Ruby Rose: My advice? I guess you have no other choice than to talk to their families, offer them condolences, and tell them their sons and daughters died as heroes... tell them the truth.

Yang Xiao Long: Hey, sis! After you finish talking to the clone captain, you might want to come with me, plus Kelly and Buck. There's some important news on intergalactic television that needs to be heard.

Ruby Rose: Gotta go, Captain. Please take care of those families who all lost someone.

Rags: See you later. Thanks for the advice.

Edward Buck: So, you're Ahsoka Tano, huh? I heard your Master, Skywalker, has a big reputation in the Jedi Order, and that he's the best star pilot in the Republic.

Ahsoka: His reputation speaks for itself. Though he is a bit reckless, of course. I should tell him about my time at Azurite, apart from the battle with the Upside Down. I met a lot of new people, and I became familiar with what Spartans, Astartes, Giants, Mandalorians, and other super-soldiers are capable of, even as fresh cadets.

Thianna: Yeah, I was told that Anakin Skywalker won a Podrace at the age of nine years old.

Then, out of nowhere, Yang, the Spartan-II heavy weapons specialist in yellow armor, interrupted the conversation.

"Hey guys, come into the transmission room! You're not gonna believe this stuff on the news. People are calling it the biggest scientific and historic discovery since the founding of the Galactic Republic."

Following her, all the heroes of Azurite Outpost huddled around the advanced holographic television, and waited, expecting bad news, because they were still shaken up by the recent catastrophe involving the Upside Down.

Finn and Jake plugged themselves into a wall and turned the TV on.

"This is Milky Way Network, reporting on Anakin Skywalker and the Jedi Order's breakthrough on the ice planet of Hoth. And Mace Windu, you say this machinery predates the dinosaurs on prehistoric Coruscant?"

"It predates almost every society in the known universe, or at least that's how old the species that built this was. We've seen similar ruins on different planets, but never this intact and with this much activity. The Republic's government has unofficially named the extinct species responsible for these ancient buildings as the Time Lords."

"And Master Windu, you say Skywalker and his associates are trying to access the technology of these so-called Time Lords, and incorporate the data into the Republic's war effort?

"That is emphatically his mission."

The Azurite crew's reaction was mixed, to say the least.

Ahsoka: My Master found an ancient scientific relic? He better get a promotion.

Ruby Rose: I think it's a boon for us.

Yang Xiao Long: What kind of weapons do you think the Time Lords had?

Thianna: Who cares, I think it's a hoax!

Rags: Let's not get our hopes up until we find out more.

Noelle: As a maid would say, we would have to clean up any big mess this prehistoric technology could cause, metaphorically speaking.

Meanwhile... deep in the Upside Down, in the center of the Hive Mind

A vampiric Chaos Space Marine champion, Strahd Von Zarovich, walked up some stairs, and then proceeded to kneel before his master. Then he told his master, the culprit behind the attack on Azurite, about what had happened in that situation.

"Master Vecna. I bring you news of our landing on Koentus."

"Did we seize the base and cut off all communications?"

"We had severed the communications, but the base's defenders were able to make them functional again, and call reinforcements, leading to the destruction of our gates. With that, the mission failed. I am deeply sorry, my Master."

"Sorry, sorry, sorry. Is that the only word you know?! Give me results for once! But looking on the positive side... all my other plans are right on schedule."

"We now know that the Time Lords have left one of their hoards of primordial technology on Hoth, where a huge Republic Army stronghold is located. And we have the perfect pawns in place to not only decimate the Jedi scum and their wretched allies, but also to hand us the spoils of war."

"Count Strahd, your associates have been infiltrating galactic governments for several centuries now, am I right? Well, now is the time to have them use all their resources to locate the other Time Lord remnants."

"The time to destroy the Republic has come! And with the false tenets of liberty, equality and justice out of the way... he who waits behind the wall, shall come."

L̴͉̔̅ͅo̶̠͆̏r̸̨͎͐d̶͙͍̈́͝ ̷̠͑Z̷͚͎̉͝a̶̛̝ͅl̴͇̓ḡ̸̞͘o̵͔͆…̵̸̨̱̰̰̐̌I̴̦̖̚ ̶͈͉̋w̴͓͎̅͋ḯ̴̘̺́l̵͚̲̕l̵̰͐ ̷̤̑n̶̹͌̒o̴͍̞̔t̴͙́ ̴͙́t̶̉́ͅḛ̶̭͗̂s̵̜͙̑ṱ̶̌͌ ̸̯͝y̶̺̓̚ọ̶͖͛̐u̶̠̒̑r̶̩̟͐ ̵̜͈̋p̵̃̚͜a̴̩̽ț̵̜̽̊î̵̭̙ė̴̠̤n̸̲͋̚c̷̜̺̈́e̵̱͘ ̶̱͕̐a̷͎͍͗͐n̴͓̕͜y̷̼̍ ̷͚̺̑͘l̵̛̖o̵̒ͅñ̴̗g̸̩̓e̴̫̻͆͝r̶͉̪͐.̵̬͌̔ ̵̭̎.

Note from the Author:

This is a setup for things to come, and who the main overarching antagonist might possibly be. I promised Vecna would be in this episode, but I chose to put him at the very end. He had bigger plans, anyway.

Next episode will be set on Hoth, and like this episode, it'll have new characters and stuff. Anakin Skywalker will be there, too.

Also, I've been busy brainstorming my own original anthology story project, which I call the Final Furry Frontier, (the FFF,) inspired by Star Fox, Zootopia, Mickey Mouse and friends, and Looney Toons.

It's a galaxy full of anthropomorphic animals, featuring a crazy, motley and intrepid crew of mammals who are part of a Grand Resistance fighting the Archosaurs, who are basically reptilian Nazis in SPACE!

It's essentially a Star Wars knockoff, but everyone is some kind of woodland critter.

I really hope you enjoy Starhammer 50k! More stuff will come!

Interlude: Unforgiving Cold- The Throne Warden of Snezhnaya

In other words...

Turning Elsa from Frozen into a badass science fantasy space opera character!

Watch me remold a character to fit into a different setting! If you've watched the awesome videos on the Popcross Studios Youtube channel, you'll know what I'm doing here!

I chose to give Elsa a new Russian-inspired feel for Starhammer 50k. In addition, I dubbed her homeworld as Snezhnaya, which is the name of one of the nations from Genshin Impact (but this time, it's VERY DIFFERENT.)

Oh, and to make things more interesting, I'm gonna be pulling details and storytelling data from the Wingfeather Saga books to build Elsa's backstory.

The characters from the Wingfeather Saga, very much changed from the original source, will show up in a future episode featuring Battletech content and Mechwarriors.

One powerful Princess... or should I say Baroness? Meh, that's not what her title will be at all.

NOTE: This is an Encyclopedia Chapter, which means it is dedicated to describing the mixed lore of the Starhammer 50k Multiverse.

I'm still planning the next chapter in the anthology, which will take place on Hoth.

LORE STARTS HERE

Born as the eldest daughter of Count Igor and Countess Irina, in the frozen kingdom of Snezhnaya, Elsa Volkoff grew up with tremendous responsibility upon her shoulders, not just because she was part of a royal family with significant diplomatic ties to the greater Galactic Republic, but because of her unique political position.

You see, Snezhnaya, as a planet and an enclave of the Republic, located in the Sirius star system, along with its fellow worlds Vostroya, Khador and Valhalla, had suffered from many terrible civil wars and invasions from foreign enemies (which the Republic often paid for.)

Due to this volatility and instability, Snezhnaya, and the Sirius system as a whole, came together to completely reconstruct its government.

The royal family's children would inherit positions specifically designed to prevent corruption, and instead of one individual having all the power, the responsibility was shared between siblings and relatives.

In the Sirius system, kingship was not to be given to the eldest child. Instead, the second born, the Wolf King, (or Wolf Queen,) would wear the crown.

And the position of highest distinction would be that of protector, because too many kingdoms have fallen to greed, envy and lust for power.

Thus, the eldest sibling, the Throne Warden, would become the bodyguard of the king, and handle any military matters that the government may run into.

They would would be trained in all forms of combat, mastering every fighting style, and hone themselves to physical and mental perfection, learning a staggering variety of skills and topics along the way, anything that would make their body and mind stronger.

A Throne Warden had to be ready for anything, the bane of any foe to threaten the Tsardom or the free galaxy, and held a spot as one of the greatest assets the Galactic Republic could count on.

So when Elsa became the first woman to inherit this role in the history of the Sirius system... she pushed herself even harder than anyone else who had taken the job, trying to prove herself at every opportunity.

This certainly wasn't always the case, though.

At first, Elsa felt envious of her younger brother, Alexei, for getting to be the Wolf King. She had been reminded her whole life that it was her duty to protect her three siblings, including Alexei as well as Anton and Anna.

It had always felt so stifling, and now she imagined herself as a wrinkly old woman, chained to her two brothers and one sister forever, unable to do anything for herself, while Alexei reigned as Wolf King, Anna managed diplomatic assignments as Song Maiden, and Anton gave advice to the king as Lore Master.

But her mother, Irina, reminded her that being a Throne Warden of Snezhnaya was a great honor. It was no small thing, and it wasn't as bad as it sounded.

The Throne Wardens had been sung about by bards and musicians across the Galactic Republic and beyond for 5 whole centuries, and are accorded a place of respect and merit like no other leader in the whole Milky Way, not because they were lords, but because they were servants.

Many times had Alexei wished that he was a Throne Warden, running the military, instead of the Wolf King, who had to handle all the pressuring political problems plaguing the Tsardom.

However, Elsa's training and studying had an unexpected side effect, that drastically changed her life in more ways than one.

While preparing to take on the responsibilities of her mantle, more specifically practicing with a power sword, she swung her blade at an imaginary target... and was shocked and speechless after a torrent of hoarfrost shot out of the edge.

Just so you know, this happened when she was still a teenager, along with her siblings.

Testing this newfound ability more, Elsa realized she somehow had innate talents for cryokinesis, or frost magic, control over frozen water, liquid oxygen and carbon dioxide, as well as nitrogen, methane and ammonia.

The Force had blessed her, but she saw it as a curse.

Which meant that initially, the apprentice Throne Warden hid her new powers from her tutors and relatives, fearing it might attract prejudice, since anti-wizard sentiment was strong in Snezhnaya and her neighboring astral territories.

In fact, the Jedi never even came near the Sirius system to recruit, and avoided it like the plague, because of how much hate there was for channelers of magic.

But one day, she was forced into a situation where she had no choice but to reveal her powers- when her dearest brother Alexei's life was in danger, because terrifying demonic assassins from the Nine Hells had infiltrated the Volkoff Palace!

Elsa used a blast of water ice to extinguish the flames of the speedy demons, and eviscerated them with a barrage of icicles made of frozen nitrogen and solid carbon dioxide.

Her family was watching all of this... and they had very mixed feelings. Alexei was thankful for his big sister watching out for him and saving his life, and Anna very much agreed with his stance, while Anton, and Elsa's father, Igor, were completely disgusted and appalled that the eldest child of the Volkoff family was a magic-user.

They wouldn't stop bickering!

But then, Irina, trying her best to be a good mother, put a stop to the argument with her wisdom and logic.

She said that any bigotry people had towards wizards, mages and psykers was inherently wrong, because these people had talents that they could use to help society as a whole, and they should be appreciated, instead of feared, and that included Elsa, who should probably incorporate her new supernatural skills into her career as Throne Warden.

With that, the Volkoff family agreed to accept Elsa for who she truly was, and let her make her own decisions.

Then Anna, Alexei and Anton, as Song Maiden, Wolf King and Lore Master of Snezhnaya, began devising plans to enact laws protecting the basic rights of magic users, meant to encourage people to be more tolerant of supernatural folks, those who had a strong connection to the Force.

Maybe the Jedi would change their minds about Snezhnaya one day.

Years passed, and Elsa became fully involved in her role as Throne Warden. She led her armies across thousands of battlefields on hundreds of worlds, serving the Republic's will and interests and using the military might of Sirius to do it in a very efficient manner.

Taking a lot of risks, her siblings always accompanied her on her journeys, and Alexei was never far away from his big sister.

Over the years that the Republic had fought against tyranny and authoritarian powers in the known universe, Elsa had served besides more sentient species than she could name, witnessed the deployment of weaponry that could melt the biggest hive cities, housing billions, into molten slag, and heard rumors of an eldritch spider God "waiting behind the wall" who represented chaos, evil and corruption itself, as well as his polar opposite, a celestial turtle whose shell contained all the kindness, compassion, and hope of countless civilizations throughout the eons.

Needless to say, it was nothing a Throne Warden of Snezhnaya couldn't handle.

Then again, Elsa's most recent assignment was to visit an ice planet called Hoth, while taking Alexei with her. As for what was happening, the Republic forces under Jedi General Anakin Skywalker had built a city-sized army base around a stash of primordial technology, apparently belonging by the Time Lords who may or may not have had a connection to the eldritch spider god and his cosmic turtle rival.

Anakin and his Padawan apparently wanted an examination and survey of Hoth's defenses. He wanted them to be absolutely impenetrable.

Guess it was time to check this Jedi's ego.

A fanfiction tribute to Kevin Conroy, who will forever be remembered as the best Batman voice actor

Starhammer 50k: Legend Of The Night

Space Batman with Warhammer and Star Wars elements! Popcross Studios did it first.

NOTE: This is an Encyclopedia Chapter, which means it is dedicated to describing the mixed lore of the Starhammer 50k Multiverse.

Blizzard Force Hoth will be a more ambitious crossover battlefield project than my last two episodes put together, and I'm taking my time to plan well and make it as sublime as I can.

LORE STARTS HERE

You already know the story of Bruce Wayne.

The only son of a wealthy family in Gotham City, who tragically lost his parents when a petty criminal shot them both dead. Two bullets from a gangster's gun destroyed Bruce's childhood and removed any sense of innocence.

However, he wasn't alone... his family's butler, Alfred, was there to be a foster father for him. And Alfred was completely fed up with the rampant crime in Gotham, an attitude that Bruce came to share, obviously.

So much so, that the young Wayne began desiring a chance to fight back against the criminals who had taken his parents from him and caused so much suffering in the city. And so Bruce went on a journey with Alfred, visiting country after country, learning all the skills and abilities he would need to bring justice to the mob.

He had all the money he needed to pay the best teachers and tutors, who would school him in every form of combat, stealth, and survival, as well as dozens of other things, ranging from escape artistry, detective work and disguises, to 12 PhD's worth of knowledge in virtually all subjects.

He trained himself to physical and mental perfection, rendering himself a living weapon without equal, and came back to Gotham a changed man.

But before he started his crime-fighting career, Bruce realized he was lacking in one quality: How to make criminals afraid.

Just then, a bat crashed through one of the windows in the mansion, and Bruce remembered that there was a huge cave full of bats underneath Wayne Manor. This gave him the inspiration he needed to forge a persona that would strike terror into the cold, black hearts of hardened criminals.

And so Bruce Wayne became Batman, a Dark Knight waging a crusade against crime and corruption!

Now... how do we fit that character arc into this sci-fi fantasy multiverse that I've got going here? How do we modify Batman's story to be more appropriate for the 51st Millennium?

I know exactly how!

Remember the Night Lords from Warhammer, which were basically the Space Marine equivalent of the Joker, because of how sadistic and cruel they were? Well, imagine if the Night Lords were a force for justice instead, and Batman was one of their foremost leaders!

So combine all the insane skill and intellect of Batman, with the superhuman abilities of the Adeptus Astartes, in particular the vampire powers of the Night Lords. And then make them serve my customized Galactic Republic.

Here's Space Batman's story (and I should remind you, the YouTuber called Popcross Studios already did this sort of thing on his channel.)

Brutus Wayne was the sole heir to his wealthy aristocratic family, and enjoyed a life of luxury that most children growing up on the urban planet of Nostramo wouldn't even come close to having.

But his young life, (and his future too,) changed forever when his mother and father, Tigris and Minerva Wayne, were brutally murdered in front of him by a street thug, who wasn't merely content with robbing the wealthy family.

It seemed as if young Brutus would be left alone to suffer, with no one to take care of him. But luckily, someone, a father figure, was there for him- his family's butler, Alphys Pennyworth. He's not related to Alphys from Undertale at all.

Alphys was charged with looking after the boy, and oftentimes he would ramble about how infuriated he was with the rampant, seemingly omnipresent crime in planet Nostramo's hive cities, as well as the fact that the criminals and outlaws just kept getting away with their heinous acts. It was almost as if the mafia had control over the city government... oh, wait, they totally did.

This desire for justice that the family butler spoke of rubbed off on young Brutus Wayne, and he realized that he had the potential to do something to fight against the injustice going on.

His dream of becoming a crusader against interstellar vice and villainy was something he'd vow to make a reality.

At the age of 13, Brutus went on an odyssey across the realms, learning every skill, studying every subject, and educating himself in every field of knowledge he needed to keep his vow, while training his body and mind to perfection (much like normal Batman.)

He...

Learned the arts of stealth, espionage and assassination from the Dark Elves of Gomorrah and the Tieflings of the Nine Hells,

Mastered every martial art and fighting style listed in the Galactic Republic's military database,

Picked up on detective work, escape artistry, multilingualism, and spy disguise in the Adeptus Arbites,

Got invested in survival techniques, tracking, vehicle piloting and engineering know-how while enrolling at Bellatrix Naval Academy,

And of course, has 12 PhD's worth of knowledge in his brain, and is twice as strong and twice as fast as the best Olympic athletes, with reaction times that blur the human eye, and tenacity and endurance beyond anything seen in real life.

But... there was one last crucial segment in Brutus Wayne's quest to become stronger. Up to this point, he was a normal human.

That's right, he signed up for Space Marine training, and got the Primaris gene-seed conversion for adults, which gave him 23 new organs, all with different purposes and unique quirks.

The Night Lords Legion was built to cast down the multiverse's tyrants, despots, demagogues, and crime lords. They strike out against injustice, and liberate the oppressed from the oppressors.

The Night Lords' unique superhuman traits, sourced from their Primarch, Konrad Curze, (who acts as one of the Republic's 101 chief governors,) include a sonic scream attack (like Black Canary!) and creating terrifying illusions, in addition to perfect vision in complete darkness.

Brutus Wayne, grown to manhood, and having gone through thick and thin to fulfill his oath of vengeance, was a perfect recruit for the Night Lords. When he became an official battle-brother, he climbed through the ranks, fighting on battlefield after battlefield, and single-handedly toppling authoritarian regimes, until he became the Chapter Master, his Primarch's envoy and the person who commanded the Night Lords fleet in most of their engagements (because Konrad Curze and his fellow Primarchs were usually very busy with political matters on the home front.)

Finally, but most importantly, he came home, and exacted his revenge on the gangs of Nostramo, cleaning them up within a few months.

Hell, even the Hutts were scared. No crime lord was safe from Brutus Wayne, the Night Haunter.

Author's Note: The Primarchs only command their legions of Space Marines, Spartans, Dungeons and Dragons party characters and Jedi Knights when a particularly dire threat needs to be addressed, such as someone like Vecna (from the end of Episode 2) showing up on an important planet.

Gradually, the Night Lords would gain many more gifted members, (which I will call the Bat-Family of the 51st Millennium,) including Darius "Rick" Grayson, Tim Drakkus, Barbaria Gordos, James Gordos, Katernia Kane, Selina Kyros, Azrael Dreemurr, and Jarvis Todd.

And they maintained a watch over Nostramo and its surrounding worlds, keeping their eyes peeled for lawbreakers.

So, to put it into perspective: The first 3 Robins, Batgirl, Batwoman, Commissioner Gordon, Catwoman, and Azrael (Jean-Paul Valley,) with a metric ton of Warhammer and Star Wars themes and crossover lore attached to them.

Future plans: Brutus Wayne will show up in Episode 3: Blizzard Force Deployed

He and a certain ice queen... I mean Throne Warden, will inspect the defenses of the new Echo Megabase on Hoth. Whether it will prove sufficient to withstand any invading force is still a mystery.

One last thing to know about Episode 3 is that it will feature the first notable alien and otherwise non-human named characters. Ahsoka Tano and the giants from Forgotten Realms didn't really count.

Episode 3: Blizzard Force Deploys

Chapter 1: Skywalker's Basics In Fortification And Sieges!

Quotes of the day:

"To be the best hunter, you have to think like your prey."

"History shows there are no invincible armies and that there never have been."

Intro: This will be a much longer synopsis than the one I had for my previous episodes.

Ten billion years ago, when the multiverse was young, there existed one civilization of sentient beings that surpassed all others in technology, innovation, reach, influence and raw power: The Time Lords.

They developed everything from vehicles that were "bigger on the inside," powered by black holes, which let them travel throughout the entirety of the multiverse, (including parallel universes, going backwards or forwards in time, and getting near the edge of reality itself,) to weapons that could actually destroy entire universes and erase whole timelines, and even portable devices that let them basically rewrite the laws of physics, known or unknown, in addition to storing unlimited amounts of energy.

The Time Lords had all of the cosmos at their command, and could probably bend literally everything in existence to their will. It seemed as if they would rule for eternity.

They did have one significant rival, however.

While the Time Lords were paragons of progress and science, so much so that they felt no need to advance anymore as a species, or intervene in the matters of lesser beings, they certainly weren't loved by all.

In fact, there was one species that sought to destroy them all, and use their secrets to conquer the multiverse, forged by a nameless evil beyond mortal comprehension:

The Daleks, a race of murderous alien cyborgs, and their creator, Lord Zalgo- an ancient, trans-dimensional, shapeshifting evil spirit, just as old as the Time Lords, who is the incarnation of pure tyranny, corruption, hatred and malice.

Remember Pennywise the Clown from Stephen King's IT? And HP Lovecraft's monsters?

I wanted a famous Creepypasta character to be the overarching villain of all my fanfiction productions, and maybe a derivative character for any original projects.

The Daleks had weapons and technology equivalent to those of the Time Lords, thanks to Zalgo's fathomless dark powers. And they waged a war on the enemy they were programmed to destroy, that lasted for 5 billion years... the War in Heaven, as modern historians in the Galactic Republic call it.

This conflict made the present-day calamity that the Milky Way, Andromeda, Double Helix and Triangulum galaxies are trapped in, seem completely insignificant, like a two-year old human throwing a tantrum.

It got so out of hand, that one of the Time Lords' leaders, an individual known only as the Doctor, used a last-resort superweapon that destroyed thousands of galaxies and seemingly killed every other Time Lord, rendering the masters of the multiverse extinct- but this also tremendously weakened the Daleks, making it so just about any interstellar species could fight on equal terms with them.

In other words, the Time Lords all died out, the Daleks are now comparatively trivial in the scheme of all things, and the cosmic damage from the War in Heaven took billions of years to heal, as countless new stars were born to replace the ones that had died, and with them, new sentient species to build kingdoms rising from the ashes.

What became of that ancient civilization? Did anyone survive? None remain who know.

But answers lie in wait.

Although the memory of the Time Lords vanished, their legend survived on the solar wind's breath.

Across the Milky Way and its neighboring galaxies, primordial relics have been unearthed, remnants of the old ones' work. It soon became a race for intergalactic superpowers to unlock the secrets of these treasures left behind, so they could ascend to become economic and military hegemonies.

And on the ice planet of Hoth, the Galactic Republic of the Milky Way has finally gotten its hands on Time Lord remains. General Anakin Skywalker and his fellow Jedi Knights have consolidated a colossal amount of resources to protect this treasure trove, building an entire hive city housing over a billion soldiers and laborers around the excavation site, over the course of 9 Terran months.

The mighty defenses around Hoth are only exceeded by those surrounding the Core systems of the Republic, such as Alpha Centauri, Sirius, Tau Ceti, Epsilon Eridani, Altair, and Vega, (plus Terra/Coruscant, of course,) and the numerous Forge Worlds which maintain production to sustain democracy's arsenal, including Corellia, Kronos Alpha, Mon Calamari, Kuat, Thica, Gordasha, Norrongard, Eberron, Lucius, Graia, and Ryza.

Anakin and his subordinates and allies believe their city fortress, Echo Base, is completely impenetrable. So much so that they've hired two of the greatest tacticians and strategists the Milky Way has to offer, Princess Elsa of Snezhnaya and the Night Lord Brutus Wayne of Nostramo, in order to prove it.

But will the pair approve of General Skywalker's skills in fortification? And, more importantly, will the hive city on Hoth be able to withstand a potential full scale invasion?

STORY STARTS HERE

Location: Aboard the Lupus Rex, Spelljammer Sail Battleship of the Sirius Expeditionary Fleet

Commanded by Throne Warden Elsa Volkoff

Currently approaching the Hoth system

Author's Note: Spelljamming ship crews are exposed to the vacuum of space, because their vessels look like seaborne nautical ones, butnever fear! They can equip portable atmosphere bubbles to protect themselves.

"This place we're going to visit sure reminds you of home, doesn't it?"

Brutus Wayne was talking to an unusual human woman by the name of Elsa, whose eccentric qualities weren't just limited to her snow-white hair- she could bend all kinds of ice and frost to her will, including frozen and liquid carbon dioxide, nitrogen, methane and ammonia, as well as all forms of water. She was a cryomancer of the highest degree, and her talents had won the Republic many battles.

Elsa found Night Lord Wayne's question to be very repetitive, for crystal clear reasons. So she wanted to speak about alternative matters.

"Well yes, OBVIOUSLY. But let's talk about why you and I went out of the way to visit this particular frozen wasteland, and why I commissioned a spelljamming battleship and its crew, worth 300 billion credits, to come with us."

"You're referring to the hive fortress that Anakin Skywalker built? Oh yeah, we have to do a survey for him. Find out if the defenses surrounding the primordial artifacts are truly ready to hold the line against any possible invading force."

This task was paramount to the Republic's war effort, because if the enemies of democracy got their hands on stolen Time Lord tech, who knows what terrible things they might be capable of doing? The good news was, neither the Republic nor its foes knew how to restore the functionality of the priceless relics. Yet.

Elsa and Wayne stood on an anti-gravity hovering balcony perched under the canopy of mountain-sized magical sails that helped the Lupus Rex fly through space, in tandem with the wizard navigator who directed its movements. It looked like a nautical ship of the line, (a pirate ship,) and was constructed from alchemically hardened armored wood, but came with the sheer size and girth that space navy combat demanded, at 15 kilometers in length.

The high balcony let the pair oversee everything that was happening on the colossal deck of the ship- millions of power-armored soldiers and their ground vehicles parading back and forth, appearing as little more than a mass of black specks, like a colony of ants, and portside and starboard turbolaser batteries, each 600 meters wide, that could punch through thick vibranium armor, overload the stoutest deflector shields, boil entire oceans, and reduce whole continental surfaces to molten slag.

The heavy artillery on the Lupus Rex in particular benefited greatly from superior Snezhnayan military engineering, and the turbolasers and plasma cleansing beams had a much faster recharge rate than that of their common contemporaries in the Republic's Grand Navy.

These sights would be often be considered mind-boggling and astonishing, especially in the standards of people from backwater planets, but Brutus Wayne and Elsa Volkoff were accustomed to it. City-sized, and even moon-sized ships were not uncommon in modern intergalactic warfare, and Spelljammers were usually meant to be smaller vanguard vessels in charge of exploration and colonization (which meant the Lupus Rex stood out.)

After a few minutes of tense silence, between both Elsa and Bruce and the armies on the upper deck, the ship had arrived at Hoth, in high orbit above the barely habitable ice planet, and to confirm that the Jedi were at work, a squadron of X-Wing, Y-Wing and ARC-170 starfighters made a close flyby of the spelljamming battleship.

The fighter wings were apparently brought there by Mace Windu before he left Anakin Skywalker in charge of the hive city fortress. Not that it mattered much, the majority of the defenses surrounding the eons-old treasure were on the ground. It was worth noting that were no warships of any kind in orbit besides the Lupus Rex. All the cargo haulers had long since left, too.

"And we will find that out soon. Now that we're finally here, did you bring a ride to get us down from high orbit?," Elsa asked. "I know a lot of you billionaires from Nostramo and Coruscant like pimping out your vehicles."

"You wanna see the Darkwing?," Wayne replied. "It's a pretty stealthy and snazzy dropship."

The floating balcony lowered itself down to the main deck level, and Republic Army troopers of all different species were running to board planetary transports bound for Hoth. The most expensive-looking one, which was painted pitch black and blue, belonged to the Night Lords Space Marines.

Elsa and Wayne walked into the enormous, open forward cargo compartment of the Darkwing dropship, which was at least 11 meters tall, big enough to let a Wingfeather Battlemech stride through. After they got on board, the dropship took off from the deck, and made planetfall.

And then it was off to see Master Skywalker, the Jedi Order's "Hero With No Fear."

Meanwhile, in the hive city's central grand conference room:

Anakin Skywalker and his associates were in the middle of a very important conversation. He had hired two very important people to study the defenses of the newly-built Hive Boreas and probe them for any weaknesses.

And he had worked hard in order to impress and satisfy these two individuals, having had to sign contracts with a dozen Forge Worlds to acquire the materials needed to undertake such a massive construction project, and gain the connections and trust of multiple banking organizations to provide adequate payment and services for 1.4 billion workers and soldiers.

In the case of the Forge Worlds, he had offered them military protection and therefore complete safety for their shipyards and factories in exchange for the supply of materials, and he had told the banking companies that reviving Time Lord technology would make the rich even richer, despite the fact that they were now donating money to support over a billion laborers.

So needless to say, these two people were A BIG DEAL.

"Alright folks, let's address the elephant in the room: My fellow Jedi have questioned if Hive Boreas' defenses were satisfactory in the event of an attack by one of our enemies. Nobody really wanted to talk about this, because we're all deep down secretly trying to convince ourselves that this fortress is unbreakable. So now we have to prove that it is."

"I have hired two people that are among the best strategists and tacticians the vast reaches of the Republic has to offer. If I can gain their respect, all our work will have paid off, and we will be able to commit ourselves fully to researching and reactivating the Time Lord heirlooms."

One person in the room raised his scaly, leathery arm- Senin Vant, a Githyanki infantry officer who commanded the 301st "Vey's Lightning" special weapons regiment. The reptilian humanoid wanted to know who Anakin hired for the survey, and everybody around the table recognized his voice, by the way he rolled some of his S's.

"Ssssir Anakin, must I asssk you, who are these individualsss? You treat them as if they deserve your utmossst attention."

"They're on the news a lot," Anakin said back. "Prepare to meet Throne Warden Elsa and Night Lord Brutus Wayne. I'm sure you and everyone else will be quite fond of them."

Back on the Lupus Rex...

One of thousands of hidden compartments on the ship's upper deck opened up, and Tsar Alexei Volkoff popped out, dressed in Sirius Army regimental attire and carrying a blaster rifle. He was in truth, sick and tired of having to accompany his big sister wherever she went, because of her job to protect him and be together with him, and now, a moment had finally came where she had inexplicably forgotten about him for a brief period of time.

Elsa had gotten so caught up in the discussion with the leader of the Night Lords, that she had lost track of her original task, watching over the king.

Now that he was free to do as he pleased, without his strict, overprotective big sister watching, Alexei was going to explore the vast depths of this ship in his spare time, and throw a pub party with all the troopers he had gotten to know on the journey. A king's duty was so boring and tedious, so why not take a break and get drunk?

Back on Hoth (once again)

Githyanki Senin Vant and his diverse footsoldiers of the 301st Infantry Regiment had left the conference room with Anakin, heading towards one of Hive Boreas' many landing pads and aviation facilities, patiently awaiting the arrival of the special guests.

It didn't take a certified genius to figure out which space plane belonged to Elsa Volkoff and Brutus Wayne. It was of course, the biggest one, a monstrous, four-engine, fat-bodied dropship with rotary cannon turret guns, top hatches that could reveal missile launchers, four exit doors for deploying troops, vehicles and cargo, and an accompanying escort of X-Wings and V-Wings.

The Grim Darkwing.

"Holy sssshit!," Vant hissed. "The guests really went all out with their ride."

"And I can't wait to meet the Space Marines," said Beidou, a female Tau Jedi Knight. (Reminder: This isn't Beidou from Genshin Impact, the Tau are from Warhammer 40k.)

"Don't get all excited yet," Anakin told both of them. "We have business to do. Celebrate instead after they tell us how superb we are at our job."

As the Darkwing got closer to the landing pad, the alien infantry were blasted with gusts of wind from its big atmospheric ramjet engines, and they had to fall back to prevent themselves from being sent flying. The engines of the dropship were so powerful, anyone within a mile would feel great warmth utterly out of place on Hoth.

Once the craft had landed and the engines powered down, Beidou and Vant saw the frontal door open, and out came two individuals surrounded by Astartes in black and blue power armor- one of them was a beautiful, pale-skinned, white-haired woman in a dress evoking Scandinavian and Slavic elements (but in space,) and the other one was a grim and serious, abnormally pale, black-haired Space Marine clad in the finest power armor, with a pointy-eared cowl and a spread-out cape that painted the impression of a giant bat.

"Remarkable regalia, isn't it?," commented an eloquent, not-so-clumsy Gungan alchemy professor by the name of Har Har Bunks (the opposite of Jar Jar Binks.)

Anakin ignored Professor Bunks and proceeded to talk to his new audience right away.

"So, you must be the Throne Warden and the Night Haunter. Welcome to Hive Boreas on Hoth, I hope you enjoy your stay... You know what, let's move on from greetings. Please examine the potency and determine the effectiveness of my big fortress project. I spent a good amount of time preparing it, about 9 months, so I hope it impresses you."

Elsa nodded her head accordingly.

"Lord Wayne and I have come here for that exact purpose. Now give us a tour of the defenders' bastion."

And Wayne noticed a noteworthy problem already, by using his scanning device.

"Your landing pads, or at least the one we're standing on, don't have any adamantium or vibranium in their composition. They won't hold up for long against heavy bombings, magic missiles and high-caliber artillery fire."

"Yeah, Master Skywalker, landing pads, fueling stations and runways are kinda important for the operation of aircraft and spacecraft," Beidou said.

"Just great," Anakin grumbled, clearly upset about this detail that he could've easily fixed in the past.

Hopefully the base wouldn't have any more significant weaknesses to be exposed. Right?

In addition, it's only a matter of time before Elsa remembers she left her little brother back on the Spelljammer in orbit.

Episode 3: Blizzard Force Deploys

Chapter 2: A Tour Of Hive Boreas

Last time we saw Anakin Skywalker and his helpers on Hoth, they had just met Brutus Wayne and Elsa Volkoff, two VIP's whose goal was to take a peek at the hive city's defensive capabilities and see if they were good or not. The young Jedi General is hoping that his fortifications will pass the test, but even the slightest mistake in the design will severely damage his reputation... and the test hasn't even started yet.

"Now that we know the aviation facilities are poorly armored, we should probably move on to other parts of the hive's overall structure," Wayne said, gesturing towards a teleporter that would take Anakin and the rest of the 301st to the opposite end of the city fortress.

Gungan Professor Bunks did have a key question to bring up though.

"Remember the Stargates that were used back in Episode 1? Do we have any of those, by chance?"

"Actually, yes, we do," Anakin said. "But they're rather incomplete at the moment, our mages need more training and practice in order to conjure them, and by the way, quit breaking the 4th Wall!"

Then, out of absolutely nowhere, Elsa remembered something that would greatly trouble her, something that was unforgivable for a Throne Warden of Snezhnaya... she had left her brother Alexei, the ruler she had sworn to protect, BACK ON THE SAILING SPACESHIP IN ORBIT!

"WAIT! Hold on, I accidentally left someone behind back in space, my brother! He's the king of the realms of Sirius, and it's my duty in the royal family to protect him! I need to commission a landing craft to bring him back down here. It would be nice if you'd lend me a hand, Anakin."

But Anakin didn't care, and neither did Wayne.

"Well, isn't it your fault for leaving him up there in the first place?," Anakin said.

"Don't worry about it, we will be able to fetch him later."

Elsa felt angry that her new teammates were getting in the way of her responsibilities, but she kept her frustration contained.

"Okay then, but I have to make sure Alexei's safe. So we better be relatively quick here."

Following that, the crew moved on and began their tour of Hive Boreas, which covered so much distance, every segment required teleportation.

Survey 1: The Surface-to-Orbit Turbolaser Batteries

Anakin Skywalker was in charge of introducing Wayne and Elsa to the different parts of the fortress, with Senin Vant, Har Har Bunks, and Beidou tuning in whenever they needed to.

"Thisss here is a W-165 heavy planetary sssiege gun, designed to engage the very biggesst fleets of starshipsss at immense distances, with a maximum yield of 40 petatons, or 40 quadrillion tonz of TNT," Vant said, gesturing to a sky-piercing, armored cylindrical tower surrounded by flak cannon batteries, with an enormous twin-barreled turret poking out of the top. The laser barrels alone were big enough to fit an AT-AT walker inside of them, and still have room for more.

"How many of these do you have working?," Wayne asked. "And are they only limited to this spot on this planet?"

Anakin scratched his head.

"The thing is... yes, I put all of the turbolaser turrets in one area. C'mon, why would I need to scatter them across the Hoth system?"

"Because in this case, you're putting all your eggs in one basket," Elsa said. "If you had the turrets stationed on all the different planets, their ranges and blast zones would overlap with each other, and they'd just be able to shoot at more ships throughout the whole solar system. Think about it! Overlapping fields of fire."

"That's a good point," Anakin replied. "But I'm just getting started, and you'll want to see the rest of my mastery in base-building."

Survey 2: The Living Quarters and Barracks Management

"If this is a hive city, where are the residential areas for everyone that built it?," Elsa asked.

Professor Bunks pushed the teleporter button again. "Right here."

The team reappeared in a different section of the complex, this time on a vehicle bridge hanging over a vast array of barracks and housing districts. Outside of them, loads of people were marching in the freezing weather of Hoth.

"Bring us inside," Wayne requested.

Now they were in a cramped dorm room, filled with a mess of bunk beds, heated blankets, and pillows, workbenches, cooking gear, plumbing equipment, cleaning supplies, and assorted furniture, in addition to soldiers' weaponry hung on racks. This chaotic pattern of living space was all too common in Hive Boreas, at least 95 percent of the Republic troopers' quarters were like this.

"What a pigsty!," Elsa proclaimed.

"Ehh, I don't think it's that bad," Beidou told the snow queen.

Survey 3: Naval Spacecraft

"Did you assign a fleet to defend the Hoth system?," said Wayne. "Because I didn't see anything accompanying the Lupus Rex when it got here."

Anakin didn't feel ashamed, or even troubled by this blunder.

"Umm... I kinda spent all my resources putting together and fortifying this hive city stronghold. I don't have any warships on hand. All the vessels that helped with construction went back to their owners."

"You can't be serious!," Elsa yelled, in annoyance. "How could you mess up logistics this badly?!"

"Relax," Anakin said back. "I'm sure you'll like what's next. This project has a lot of surprises left."

"I dunno," went Beidou. "This whole master plan of defense has proven to be pretty mediocre in terms of strategic value. We do have brute force and sheer numbers on our side, though, and I'm grateful for that."

To change the chat, Har Har Bunks spilled the beans about the 301st Regiment's most embarrassing secret (or, perhaps, its commander's most embarrassing secret.)

"What's mediocre is that Senin Vant, one of our commanding officers, used to work for the Covenant."

The Githyanki soldier picked up on this instantly and flew into a rage.

"SHUT YOUR FFFFUCKING MOUTH, FROGFACE!," he screamed at the Gungan alchemy professor.

Everyone heard it.

And Anakin found this hard to believe.

"Vant, you used to serve the Covenant? Why didn't you tell me this?"

"Because it would've gotten me plenty of hate!," he retorted. "I'm loyal to the Republic now, so what's it matter? In fact, I despise the Prophetsss so much, I wish the Covenant would invade this place, so I could eviscerate their asssses!"

"Wow, he's a defector!," Beidou said, her breath taken away by the revelation.

"We need to keep him around to tell us more," Wayne declared. "You know, about how people actively resist one of the multiverse's most dangerous authoritarian regimes, who will go out of their way to exterminate entire civilizations that don't comply to their demands."

"I guessss I could give you more details, now that you know," Vant told them. "It's a long story."

Then Anakin used a remote control to activate the teleporter again, and this time, the destination wasn't even near the hive city at all.

Survey 4: The Not-So-Secret-Weapon

"Where are we now?," Elsa said, clearly mesmerized by the ceiling and walls of the dim room, which were decked and adorned with all manner of glowing wires made of magical metals, such as Chlorophyte, Shroomite, Terrasteel, Manasteel, Mythril, Ghoulium, and Pig Iron.

"If you wanna find out," Anakin told her, "let's head through that door on the other side."

And so they did.

What was on the other end of the door gradually gave away the ludicrous scale of what the Republic forces had been building.

Hundreds of artificial constructs, robotic sentient beings known as Warforged, were locked in stasis pods, using their immense brainpower to move... whatever THING that Anakin and company were standing inside. A "tiny" window port 10 meters high in the colossal control room revealed just how big that THING was. Har Har Bunks looked down and almost fainted from shock and awe alone, because he could see thick layers of clouds several hundred meters below.

"This is the Overlord Titan we're inside of," Anakin said to the party. "It's the ultimate failsafe in case a massive fleet of warships shows up in orbit above Hoth. An 8,500 meter tall behemoth war machine that bears a fusion generator big enough to supply energy to 2 dozen turbolaser guns. And it's piloted by an extremely advanced artificial intelligence system, utilizing Warforged constructs."

The party was speechless for a little bit.

Then Wayne brought up a valid point:

"What if someone hacks the system and makes the robots turn against us?"

To which Anakin responded:

"Yeah, that'll never happen. Let's finish this job, so you can judge my decisions."

Survey 5: Communications, command and control

The second-to-last stop was the StarCom Center: A wide chamber dedicated to efficient communication across the hive, filled with a dense tangle of electronic components connected to a central supercomputer, including wires, cabling, circuits, transistors, capacitors, diodes, dynamos, switches, motors, solenoids, and God Emperor knows what else.

"I'm amazed, this is a really clean and orderly room," Elsa muttered, somewhat sarcastically.

"It has to be messy," Anakin claimed, "because Beidou insisted on cramming as many electronics in here as she possibly could, in order to ensure people all across the hive city can communicate effectively."

"How effective are communications, command and control around here, anyway?," asked Wayne.

Beidou grinned ecstatically, because now she could brag about how she masterminded the systems that the Night Lord was asking about. After all, she didn't agree with many of Anakin's designs.

"This unspeakably complex bundle of machinery is connected to a small, common comlink, that every person in the hive city wears on their clothing. That way, not only can everyone talk to each other telepathically, if they desire to, but we can also broadcast widespread telepathic messages in case of dire emergencies, that are able to reach a billion people in just a few minutes. And even better, everyone has a portable teleportation device to get them where they need to go most!"

"The whole fortress complex can assemble and prepare for battle in a very short time due to these factors, which is remarkable when you consider how many people live and work here. But wait, there's more to know. The command, control and communication array can be used to automatically pilot any vehicles, vessels or war machines we have here, meaning we can preserve the lives of crew members, and make calls to our allies in deep space, meaning we're never without help for long."

"This is probably the most profound, astute and clever feature I've seen so far in the hive fortress," Wayne proclaimed.

Anakin gave Beidou a dirty look, envious of her getting the praise, and she just grinned maniacally.

Survey 6: Order of Battle

The very last test was the most important:

"What equipment do the soldiers have, what is the numerical strength of the army, and how well defended is Hive Boreas overall?," Wayne asked Anakin and the three aliens by his side.

"To summarize things," Anakin said, "Our troops are exceptionally well-armed, even by elite standards. Vant, tell him what I mean."

Senin Vant's response was:

"There are nine different main laser firearms in circulation at sssquad level. The E-11, A280, DC-15, and DLT-20A blaster rifles, the S-5, DL-44, DH-17, and SE-14C blaster pistols, and the A180 modular blaster family. Every trooper also has ak-sess to various handheld explosives, like armor-piercing grenadez, demolition charges, landmine kits, thermal detonators, and melta bombs."

Elsa was taking notes on everything she had heard.

"Best handheld weapons, check. Ideal use of portable ordnance, check."

Har Har Bunks continued the summary.

"We also have full access to the massive vehicle motorpool that the Grand Army of the Republic has standardized. Armored tanks, both tracked ones and antigravity models, military walkers, airspeeders, nautical warships and submarines in the frozen seas, various combat aircraft and spacecraft, like bombers and fighters, gunships, dropships, transports, recon planes, you name it, it's here to defend the hive city. In addition, we have genius tacticians like Brutus Wayne and Elsa Volkoff to help us coordinate plans!"

"And yet I had to basically waste 300 billion credits on a spelljamming battleship because Master Skyblunderer here had the idiocy to not make use of a defensive fleet," Elsa said scornfully. "Hurry up already with this talk! I need to get my brother down here safely!"

Anakin didn't know how to respond to the Throne Warden's sudden impatience and anger.

"I..."

Wayne interrupted the argument that was about to start, with a compromise. He also gave Anakin a lecture and his honest opinion about Hive Boreas.

"How about instead, I give him some criticism that's actually constructive, and then we fetch Alexei," he said first.

"Lord Skywalker, now that we've finished analyzing what you've been working on, I will tell you what I personally think. Don't mind Elsa, here's my words:"

"Your ideas for defending the hive city were not that bad, and you did a splendid job with the immense resources at your disposal. The issue is that you put all your defenses in one place, or rather close to each other, and you didn't invest in any sort of naval battle group to counter enemy warships in orbit. It was executed poorly."

"Speaking of naval tactics, you do remember that all spaceships leaving hyperspace have to do it just outside any solar system's heliosphere to avoid collisions with planets, asteroid belts and moons, right? If you put some of your stuff on other worlds in the Hoth system, it would dramatically delay or damage any warships forced to cruise through interplanetary space. And that's everything I can say about your project which became Hive Boreas."

Anakin STILL didn't know what to say.

Then he took a deep breath, and said,

"I'm glad you gave me this advice, and informed me of my mistakes in tactics, strategy and logistics. I have 5 more months to spend on Hoth, and I will use that time to improve our battlements."

"Now can I have a shuttle and get my brother back?," Elsa said.

Wayne smiled, which was something he rarely did. Maybe Elsa having a family member (somewhat) nearby reminded him of his dead parents, taken from him by cold-blooded crime.

"Nobody's stopping you," Anakin replied, noticing the hopeful look on Wayne's face, which he knew hid tragedy and woe behind it.

But just as he told Elsa that she was free to reunite with her brother after the long, tense discussion about siege warfare that nobody liked, he received a call from someone he hadn't heard from in a long time: His former Padawan, Ahsoka Tano.

"Master Skywalker? I'm on my way right now, on a race against time. Unfortunately, I have some really bad news to share."

Back in orbit, on the Lupus Rex...

Alexei Volkoff and the Snezhnayan troopers in the spelljammer's cabin were having the revelry of their lives. First everyone had eaten plant-based bacon-wrapped steak made of astral marijuana and hemp, getting them really, really high, and then they washed it down with fruit juice-infused amasec wine. The resulting intoxication made the troopers behave in the most repulsive and disgusting ways, engaging in acts of despicable debauchery and sadism.

They rampaged into the agricultural greenhouse section of the ship, which produced all the crew's food, and killed a bunch of Squigs, Banthas, Dewback Lizards and Direhorses, shooting and beating the poor herbivores to death. Fortunately, the gardens of the greenhouse were left (mostly) intact, but all the animal protein had been wasted, minus the seafood.

Then they started firing their guns into the air, burning holes into the superstructure of the spelljamming ship. It was a complete waste of ammunition, silly and pointless.

And they even went a step further, taking off their clothes and running around naked, while hooting and screeching like apes... including the crewmen who were aliens or from a fantasy race.

Because most of the other troops on board were busy maintaining the gunnery stations and patching up the star sails, it was up to the spelljammer captain, a powerful High Elf mage who moved the ship and took orders from Elsa, to stop the ridiculous spaceship orgy from getting any bigger and any more deranged.

ZZZAP!

The Spelljammer scrambled Alexei and everyone else's brains and nervous systems with a lightning bolt, causing them to spasm in pain uncontrollably. They all groaned in agony, regretting every single immoral choice they had made in the last 30 minutes.

"STAND DOWN, BASTARDS!," the Spelljammer screamed.

"I, Captain Tarragon, do not tolerate misbehaving or lollygagging of any kind! Wait until your sister finds out what you did, Alexei!"

The nobleman quickly realized what horrible things he had done, especially for royal standards, and he was afraid what his protector and older sibling might think of him because of his misdeeds. He had betrayed her trust. And beforehand, he certainly didn't think he'd feel this guilty.

Back down on Hoth...

Elsa tried calling Alexei on her comlink, but he wouldn't answer. When that failed, she tried calling the spelljammer captain, Tarragon, but he ignored her too.

"What the devil is going on up there?," she thought. "They dare disobey me?"

Anakin was talking on the comlink with his Padawan, Ahsoka, who was en route to Hoth, but not for a good reason. Quite the opposite, actually.

"I hope your project to fortify Hoth has been a success," Ahsoka said, sounding scared to death, and very worried. "Because two teams of Spartan-IIs, RWBY and JNPR, told me a whole navy of zealot aliens obsessed with Time Lord artifacts are on their way to the Hoth System."

A gathering winter storm approaches... and the Covenant is closing in on its objective. Yet the Prophets don't even realize that they are pawns in an even bigger conspiracy, one that will shake the multiverse to its core...

TO BE CONTINUED...

This is just a little chapter on the status of SH50K and what the plans are gonna be for the new year... 2023.

I hope you all had a good holiday season!

First of all, I'll likely finish Blizzard Force in some part of January. Two of four chapters are already published, and I'm nearly done with the third, which is a ridiculous fight scene with a stupidly large amount of characters and way too much action going on. Admiral Ackbar, the Master Chief, and a retconned version of Elsa from Frozen, just to name a few.

Second, I want to address a problem with the anthology that I've been aware of since day 1: The planned complete story is just too long and too massive, with too many franchises. I will definitely cut down on the number of episodes, since I'm still writing episode 3 after more than 5 months.

The contents list will be updated sometime soon. I don't want to get burned out writing this anthology.

And lastly, I should mention I'm actually juggling stories at this point, I've been doing so since the beginning. I'm trying to come up with the plot for the Legend of Genshin: A Tale of Two Heroes, while also planning for my Disney Smash Bros fic, not to mention a new project which hasn't even been put on the platform yet, Captain America: Power of the Patriots.

I might need to cancel one of the four, or put three on hiatus so I can focus on SH50k.

One more thing to know: The later episodes of SH50K, down the clock in 2023-2024, will feature more original characters from my own designs.

Good day, and happy new year!

Episode 3: Blizzard Force Deployed

Chapter 3: Winter's Merciless Wrath

Special guest character appearance: Dicktor Van Doomcock from the Overlord DVD YouTube channel! He's here to kick ass and take names,and I just really like his pop culture and movie reviews.

General Anakin Skywalker had hired two geniuses in military strategy to search for weaknesses in the defenses surrounding Hive Boreas on Hoth, themselves a measure to keep ancient and godly Time Lord technology out of the hands of the Republic's enemies. However, after an unexpected call from his apprentice, Ahsoka Tano, he is given reason to believe that even the greatest fortresses will fall... including his own. And it will happen VERY SOON.

"I have news for everybody," Anakin said to his companions, after hanging up on the comlink. "There's been a change of plans. We are all in mortal danger."

Everybody looked at him as if he wasn't serious, especially Beidou.

"What? Why?"

"Because I just talked to my apprentice, and she said the Covenant were on their way here. I'm guessing they'll bring their whole fleet to overwhelm us, because they'd do anything to swipe Time Lord artifacts for their own use. And I mean literally ANYTHING. Except for maybe glassing Hoth with plasma lances... because that might damage the loot and make it impossible to use."

Since Senin Vant was a defector from the Covenant, this baleful premonition got his green blood boiling with rage. He would no longer speak rolling his S's.

"They're coming here? And they're surrounding us on all sides? GOOD! We can kill as many of those bastards as we can, and fire in every direction. Even if we eventually get buried alive in Grunt corpses."

"Good thinking, Vant!," Wayne shouted. "We're not going down without a fight. And with our aerospace forces, we're gonna wing it this time around. Get it? Wing it? It's a Bat-Pun."

There was one more thing that needed to be discussed before the preparations for battle could begin, though. Har Har Bunks brought it up.

"We never really discussed this in the past 2 chapters, but the whole reason we're here on this ball of ice is to find out how to properly use the Time Lord tech. If we can get it working, we can rip the Covenant a new asshole!"

"VERY good thinking, Professor Bunks!," Anakin replied. "Though we might need to assign a crew of scientists to do just that. I order you to get started."

The Gungan researcher ran off, and disappeared in a flash using his teleporter. Hopefully he could gather some assistance and think of something before the Covenant was on top of everybody.

Then Elsa finally got a response from her brother on the comlink:

"My lord, my sister... I'm so, so sorry. I shouldn't have hid back on the ship and deliberately made you forget about me. But it's what I did for entertainment that will put shame and embarrassment on the whole family. Punish me as you see fit once you come back up here."

Her response?

"You know what, Alexei? Whatever stupid shit you got involved in while playing hide and seek with me, I'll forgive you for. Now get your ass down here before I have to come up there myself!"

If this episode had a happy ending, you'd think Elsa and Alexei would come back together, be more careful with their choices, and stop messing with each other. But it was Alexei's decision to remain on the Lupus Rex in the first place that unfortunately cost him his life.

A volley of cleansing beams fired from the edge of the Hoth system struck the spelljamming battleship and punched massive holes in its hardened wooden armor. A second barrage burnt up the solar sails on its deck, and a third one tore the ship apart and killed everyone on board.

Most appalling of all, the Lupus Rex hadn't even gotten a chance to counterattack, as its turbolaser batteries had a much shorter range, and could not hit the slowly approaching Covenant fleet.

The resulting explosion was visible from the ground, all over Hive Boreas.

"No..."

Elsa was speechless with guilt. Her brother, the Tsar of Snezhnaya and monarch of the Sirius system, the one person she had dedicated her life to protecting and serving, was gone forever. She had failed and dishonored her family, and it was all because she let her brother out of sight, JUST ONE TIME.

She just stood there, too heartbroken to utter a word.

"There's no time to grieve," Wayne told the Throne Warden. "We have to fight an inevitable battle."

And so Anakin gave the order to issue a truly chilling message to the whole hive city (even more chilling than the cold on Hoth...)

"Attention, all personnel and workers: An enemy fleet has been spotted in the heliosphere. This is not a drill."

Within minutes, people were teleporting everywhere and getting to where they needed to be with all manner of sci-fi weaponry in their hands. The immense steel gates of Hive Boreas opened, and a legion of armored vehicles spilled out into the ice plains.

General Anakin Skywalker stood at the forefront of the defensive force, on the back of an All Terrain Tactical Enforcer, ready to grind down his foes in a brutal war of attrition. Standing close at hand were Beidou, Admiral Ackbar and Senin Vant, and many more legendary alien heroes- in the trench network, Neytiri and a group of Na'vi warriors stood steadfast with repeating blasters in hand, while the cyborg Dicktor Van Doomcock and his reprogrammed Separatist combat droids formed a redoubtable phalanx near the secondary gate.

At the same time, Brutus Wayne and Elsa Volkoff oversaw the army assembling aboard the Darkwing dropship, hovering above the hive city's lower layers, and Ahsoka's Jedi transport finally arrived, carrying a cargo of Spartan super-soldiers, including the Master Chief himself and the renowned Team RWBY (from the American anime that had so much potential but ultimately failed and flopped.)

Everyone was here... but unexpectedly, the enemy hadn't shown itself. A deathly silence filled the freezing air as Republic troops stood positioned all around the hive city, a conglomeration so large it could be seen from space.

Then... the icy ground shook violently, the air became alarmingly warm, and the light of Hoth's blue star was blotted out by a tremendous shadow:

The High Charity Battle Fleet.

In mere minutes, planetary turbolaser turrets and the Overlord Titan engaged the attackers, turning 2,000 Covenant ships into piles of charred scrap. But for every naval starship the heavy artillery destroyed, four more would arrive to take its place. And soon enough, the turbolaser batteries were gone, the Overlord Titan fell, and ground forces were deployed.

Swarms of Phantom and Spirit dropships descended from orbit like bioluminescent insects in flight, and drop pods smashed into the Republic battle line, causing grievous casualties. Tick boarding craft complemented the damage by scattering plasma charges and tesla landmines.

All of this is to say, the Covenant struck first and struck hard.

The Republic fought back in earnest, though, and the initial assault hadn't killed any named characters, either.

The endless waves of Grunts, Jackals and Drones were mowed down by Neytiri and her Na'vi soldiers, and Doomcock's destroyer droids, who wielded heavy weapons like repeating blasters, autocannons, heavy bolters, arcane siege staves, and plasma rifles.

"Eat THIS!," Neytiri said while hurling grenades at a nearby squadron of Grunts.

"Fire in all directions!," Elsa screamed, aboard the Darkwing, whose crew answered her request by unleashing a salvo of plasma blasts, laser beams, guided missiles and Gatling cannon shells from 16 different ends.

Lieutenant General Doomcock wielded a modified lightsaber in the swirl of conflict, slashing apart his enemies and crushing Covenant vehicles with psychic blasts. His droids provided a wraparound field of fire, too, making it very difficult for foes to even approach him without being blown to shreds.

Elites, Hunters and Brutes joined the battle, too, alongside a plethora of heavy tanks like Scarabs, Locusts, and Wraiths. But they were met with fierce resistance by General Skywalker, Beidou and Vant, who had dismounted from their assault walker and were leading elite clone troopers into the fray.

Anakin was strong enough with the Force to drag Covenant ships down from orbit and crash them into the distant frozen seas with the force of a small asteroid, while Beidou was using a two-handed lightsaber claymore to decapitate Brutes and Hunters, leaping over their heads in an acrobatic somersault and beheading them in one quick stroke. Ahsoka saw this strategy, and went with copying Beidou.

Vant was spinning his Astral Plane quarterstaff around, the traditional weapon of a Githyanki commando, creating a lethal vortex of searing energy which fried Grunts inside their exoskeletons.

Admiral Ackbar hitched a ride on a heavy battle tank, and plowed through hordes of enemies while telling the crew to lash out with TWENTY BARRELS OF HELL!

And last but not least to arrive at the bloodbath, Master Chief, Ruby Rose, and a cadre of anime UNSC Spartans sprung into action and rained down hell upon the alien zealots with a number of different armaments- Yang's shotgun gauntlets and rocket launcher, John-117's flamethrower, Ruby's sniper cannon, Blake's submachine guns, Coco's rotary cannon, Nora's automatic grenade launcher, and Pyrrha's laser lance.

Everything was mayhem. The Covenant tried to gain an upper edge by utilizing super-heavy siegeworks vehicles like the Kraken, Harvester and Draugr, but even these massive bulwarks could be brought down by a combination of sustained artillery fire, aerial bombardment and mass volley attacks.

As the bloodshed went on, though, things gradually got worse for the Republic forces, which were both outnumbered and outgunned by a 30-1 ratio. Vant and his Astral Plane troops were brutally crushed under the foot of a Scarab, Beidou and Neytiri were forced to retreat aboard a speeder bike, fleeing from Hunters carrying ultra-fast firing assault cannons, Doomcock self-destructed himself and his droids to take out a large portion of the Brutes, Elites and their Engineer escorts, Admiral Ackbar did the same kamikaze move when his tank had nowhere to go, and even Anakin Skywalker himself had to fall back with his men, Ahsoka close behind.

The RWBY Spartans and the Chief teleported out of there and repositioned themselves around the Time Lord laboratory, where they would make a final stand once everyone else was pushed all the way back.

Brutus Wayne dropped down from the Darkwing with his squads of Night Lords in a desperate attempt to stem the tide of adversaries, slashing away with power swords, lances and axes, and firing their volkite death rays point-blank into the mob, but to no avail. Wayne and his Space Marines were cut down one by one, knee-deep in scorched corpses and fighting to the last man.

Elsa gave the signal for the Darkwing to withdraw, too, but she knew she would have to get involved on the ground in the end.

The battle went from a relatively fair match to an all-out massacre as more and more Covenant soldiers arrived, and the Republic units were driven back into the hive city's inner layers, forced to fight in cramped urban areas full of cover, where an enemy could attack from anywhere.

Clones, guardsmen, and other infantrymen were burnt alive standing in their positions by packs of Brutes wielding flamers, volkites and phosphorus blasters, the raging inferno only adding to the carnage.

As the hive city fell, flooded with Covenant armies, there was one last bastion, one last chance for the heroes to make it out alive: The laboratory, where the Time Lord archaeotech was stored. If anything could save Anakin's friends and comrades, it would be the hidden, unknown powers from the past.

"No, not that one! Try the other circuit opening!"

Professor Har Har Bunks and his crew of scientists, alchemists and programmers were in a last-ditch, eleventh-hour attempt to get the primordial artifacts operational. He had no idea what would happen if the tech started running, and had very little idea of how to fix it, so he had to rely on the next closest thing to Time Lord hardware: Current-day Dalek robot parts, for rudimentary repairs.

"This one isn't working either, sir!," a Hutt scientist by the name of Larg said, clearly just as terrified as the rest of his colleagues. The Covenant baddies were getting closer and closer, explosions could be heard in the distance, even though the laboratory was a mile underground, and the only thing that stood between the heroic nerds and a painful death was whatever remained of the Republic's army on the surface.

And worst of all, the whole tinkering process had to be done from scratch, because as we mentioned beforehand, nobody knew how Time Lord technology worked.

Fortunately, the people defending the entrance to the subterranean Time Lord lab were some of the best soldiers fighting for democracy.

"Larg, your hands are too slippery," Bunks told the Hutt. "Anyone else wanna have a go with this thing? Apparently it's called a sonic screwdriver, and it goes into one of these circuit outlets, connected to the Dalek capacitors. I'm not sure which circuit it belongs in, though, or if any of them will work at all."

Then, when the scientists least expected it, the elevator door to the lab opened, and out came the remnants of the Republic's high command: Anakin, Ahsoka, Beidou, Neytiri, the RWBY Spartans, (Ruby and Yang were the only Spartan-2s still standing,) the Master Chief, and Elsa.

"To put it simply, we're out of ammo, almost everyone is dead or wounded, and we're pretty much all that's left of the chain of command," Anakin told Har Har Bunks. "SO WHY HAVEN'T YOU GOTTEN THE LAB PROJECT TO DO ANYTHING YET?! WE'RE GONNA GET BURIED ALIVE IF WE DON'T HAVE A WAY OUT!"

"WHY DON'T YOU TRY FIGURING THIS PUZZLE OUT?!," the Gungan shouted back at his Jedi superior, resulting in the two exchanging dirty looks, then resume yelling at each other again, including curses and phrases too profane and outrageous for the Maker to write down.

It seemed as if the survivors of Blizzard Force were doomed, with their last potential hope of escape compromised.

But in spite of that notion, Beidou, the colorful Tau Jedi Knight, had a plan.

"You know, I have a method that can make any machine do what you want it to do, if you're lucky enough," she informed everyone.

"And what would THAT be?," Elsa said back, sarcastically. "Just so you know, we've lost too many good people today for any unnecessary idiotic shenanigans to take place! My brother is gone forever, and so are a lot of our friends, so whatever you do better be worth it!"

Beidou reached into her backpack and pulled out a construction hammer, and began smashing the Dalek capacitor that was connected to the barely understood Time Lord tech, causing quite a racket.

Somehow, through insane troll logic, energy began flowing through the capacitor, and the archaic devices began to hum with energy for the first time in FOREVER (get it? Like the song in Frozen? Never mind.)

Everyone gasped.

"How in the name of the God-Emperor did that even work?," said Ahsoka.

"You can't just smash something with a hammer and expect it to fix anything!," Ruby Rose remarked.

Beidou's answer?

"You see, the Force isn't the only multiverse-level magic system we can harness for good or evil. There is another technique to use the arcane... it's called cartoon physics!"

Neytiri, the stoic Na'vi warrior, just facepalmed at this.

"This is probably the dumbest writing the Maker has ever come up with, but I don't want to keep breaking the 4th wall."

A minute after Beidou's cartoon hammer trick, the air began to fill with sparks and whirring noises, and a small Stargate opened in front of the Time Lord tech cache. This revelation was confusing, because in the current Galactic Republic, Stargate technology was in its infancy. Maybe the Time Lords had much better Stargates?

Turns out this was a travel device after all... but that might have been a mere secondary function, nothing compared to the mechanism's capabilities at its prime, billions of years ago. Would it even be possible to restore the Time Lord relics to their former glory? Was Hive Boreas a huge waste of resources, considering nobody was able to do the latter?

Those questions could wait. Now, it was time to escape to... whatever place was on the other side of this gate.

"There's no going back now," Anakin said. We gotta go through, or die like everyone else who defended this stronghold.

"But we don't even know where the gate will take us!," Yang replied, with Ruby shaking her head. "And if we leave, the Covenant will get their filthy hands, claws and tentacles on these priceless primordial relics!"

"Does it look like we've got any other options?," Ahsoka told Yang and Ruby. "We lost this battle. But we can't lose the war. We must flee to fight another day."

The group universally agreed on this notion.

And so, without hesitating, the heroes of Blizzard Force stepped into the ancient Stargate... and their destination was indeed beyond anything they expected.

When Anakin opened his eyes, he saw him and his companions at the top of a cliff, with an alien jungle behind him and a blue gas giant in the sky. Presumably, they had come to a tropical habitable moon of some sort.

But what really caught the party's attention was what was at the bottom of the cliff: An army consisting of both clone troopers and battle droids, plus vehicles, marching in perfect sync.

They weren't fighting each other, they were working together instead! When did this alliance happen?

Anakin was the most shocked of all, being a Jedi.

"What the hell...?"

Why were Republic soldiers marching alongside Confederate droids? What was the galaxy coming to?

Anakin Skywalker and his intrepid crew will have to find out!

END OF EPISODE 3

...Just kidding. There's one more issue I forgot to address, that the party will soon take notice of:

When Har Har Bunks and the Blizzard Force scientists tried following Anakin and friends through the Stargate, the damn thing shut off!

"Skywalker! Can you hear me? We can't get through!"

No response came.

So the poor Gungan researcher and his fellow nerds were stranded underground, waiting for their imminent death... and that's when the Covenant beamed them up with a teleportation ray that penetrated a mile of solid ice, capturing the Republic scientists as prisoners of war.

Soon enough, a Covenant ship extracted the entirety of the laboratory's contents from the smoldering ruins of Hive Boreas, and it was off to deliver it to the tyrant god of necromancy, the arch-lich who had manipulated the Prophets into invading Hoth.

This catastrophe was all Vecna's doing- not to mention it one of the Galactic Republic's most disastrous defeats. And what's worse, the Covenant is just one of many pawns in his game, his task to revive his Master.

The crossroads of fate meet in the next episode:

Anakin has to find out where he is stranded and why the Confederacy has stopped fighting with the Republic, Har Har Bunks will have to endure loads of torture at the hands of the zealots who took him captive, and the first signs of a diabolical intergalactic conspiracy will be revealed.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Upcoming content:

Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

World: Pandora (from James Cameron's Avatar)

Lore Chapters:

Kasmari Assembly Forges: Building the ULTIMATE space navy

Adventurer's Guild: Exploring the multiverse with Dungeons and Dragons characters

Stormbird Dropships: The Millennium Falcon on steroids

Interlude: Kasmari Assembly Forges, Canis Sapiens

These guys are basically the Lombaxes from Ratchet and Clank, ON STEROIDS. Also, they're modeled after dogs instead of cats.

NOTE: This is an Encyclopedia Chapter, which means it is dedicated to describing the mixed lore of the Starhammer 50k Multiverse.

LORE STARTS HERE

There exists many competing shipbuilders and engineering companies that supply the Galactic Republic and its tens of millions of solar systems with military hardware and other supplies needed for national defense, needed to hold the line against the multifarious enemies of democracy.

Many big names come to mind, like Kuat Drive Yards, Corellian Engineering Corporation, Fondor Shipyards, Misriah Armory, Eberron Smithy, BlasTech Industries, Alpha Centauri Technologies, the Rock of Bral, the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Brotherhood of Steel, among other industrial titans.

But none of these are as venerated as the first major shipbuilding corporation established in the Republic's history, Kasmari Assembly Forges.

This company is different from the rest solely because of the people that run it- instead of the mixed race and species demographics that make up the labor force of democracy's other arms manufacturers, Kasmari Assembly Forges is staffed exclusively by the Maru, canine humanoids that are best described as anthropomorphic dogs, foxes and wolves.

Footnote: Ancient primitive humans called the Maru "Canis Sapiens" or "wise dogs." They had visited Terra/Earth/Coruscant during the era of the Roman Empire and given rise to myths of werewolves. Though the Maru were far from the bloody savages they were depicted as by the ancients.

Footnote #2: The Maru themselves hail from Durga, an Earth-sized habitable moon covered by all kinds of forest, from tropical jungles and wetlands, to deciduous woods and boreal taiga, orbiting the ringed gas giant Kasmari, which looks much like Jupiter, but even bigger, and is wracked by storms and hurricanes powerful enough to swallow Terra, Venus and Mars multiple times over.

The gas giant planet is the source of the shipbuilding company's name, and the Maru have left the moon of Durga's ecosystem largely intact, moving all their industry and cities to other worlds away from the endless trees that feed their immense population.

They are unique because they have an innate talent for engineering and science, and are born with the knowledge to build wonders of technology. They even use the Force to infuse various systems of magic into their greatest masterworks, and were responsible for inventing the Stargates recently used by the Republic's military forces... though they certainly weren't the first to pioneer such techno-magical miracles, as there existed proof of Stargates on the planet Eberron long before the Maru civilization even evolved.

Stargates aside, it goes to show, that the dogs are much better at their job than everyone else, which is why they were hired by the Republic's politicians and generals during the Milky Way Galaxy's colonial era.

The semi-mythical God-Emperor who first established the Galactic Republic, and charged his 20 superhuman sons, the Primarchs, with conquering new territory and establishing "manifest destiny," put his sole trust in the Maru to manufacture "the most powerful navy the known universe has ever seen."

Whether that statement was true or not is still up for debate, but the Republic Grand Navy was a powerhouse even during its days of imperialism. The Maru's instinctual knowledge and intuition regarding military technologies meant that the Great Crusade wouldn't have gotten shit done without their help.

The reason why Canis Sapiens joined in on the Great Crusade? They wanted to capitalize on the effects of imperialism, and profit was their main goal.

The Maru had dominion over 10,000 gas giants, ice giants and asteroid belts, as well as hundreds of old supergiant stars that held solar systems thousands of times more extensive than the one Terra belongs to. As if that wasn't enough, in the 51st Millennium of today, they control the shipyards around Kronos Alpha and Zeus Omega, the two largest gas giants in the Milky Way, each almost 30 times the size of Jupiter and with rings 200 times bigger than those around Saturn.

The dog people made use of the seemingly infinite amount of rock, wood, ice and metal they had lying around to construct the hulls of billions of ships used in the Great Crusade, and the fleet was diverse as it was powerful.

What's more, the Maru even had a sorcery technique that could transform biological matter into industrial materials and complex technological components, such as computer chips and batteries.

Here's a list of the Republic Grand Navy's ship types:

HYPERSPACE CAPABLE: These are part of the main fleet, designed for combat with other vessels, and range in size from just under 1 kilometer in length (the absolute smallest patrol boats) to more than 3,500 kilometers in diameter (the very largest armored space stations and supercarriers.) They all use hyperspace to get where they're going, NOT magic (with the exception of Force-powered frigates.)

Aircraft/Spacecraft carrier

Supercarrier (the biggest ships of all)

• Anti-hyperspace warfare carrier (used to sink Subwarps, which are simply put, "space submarines")

• VTOL carrier

• Air-cushioned landing ship

• Planetary assault ship

• Battlecruiser

• Battleship

• Pocket battleship

• CSM ship (catapult spacecraft merchant)

• Corvette

• Cruiser

• Armored cruiser

• Light cruiser

• Heavy cruiser

Grand cruiser

• Aircraft cruiser

• Destroyer

• Dreadnought (basically a super battleship)

• Escort carrier

• Frigate

• Force-powered frigates, including Force sloops and corvettes

• Fast attack craft

• Gunboat

• Hospital ship

• Hydrofoil ocean lander

• Adamantium ironclad (designed to shield other ships from damage)

• Landing craft

• Kuiper Belt combat ship

• Mine planter

• Minesweeper

• Missile boat

• Monitor (big guns on a little ship)

Space station (may or may not be fully mobile)

• Patrol boat

• Torpedo boat

• Patrol Torpedo (PT) boat

• Q-ship (merchant ship with concealed weaponry)

• Space station tender

• Subwarp (vessels that "submerge" in hyperspace)

• Subwarp carrier

SPELLJAMMING SHIPS: These are usually under a kilometer in length, with a few exceptions, and more resemble nautical vessels from the age of sail, being used more for exploration, investigation, adventuring, research and reconnaissance, instead of full-on naval combat. As such, they can land on both solid ground and water, unlike the vast majority of official naval craft.

They are powered by the Force, which is to say all kinds of magic systems, and a magic user in a Spelljamming helm (sorcerer's throne) is always the commanding officer aboard such ships.

• Barque

• Barquentine

• Bireme

• Bomb vessel (used to sabotage enemy shipyards)

• Brig (prison ship)

• Brigantine

• Caravel (has scorpion legs for crawling on land)

• Clipper

• Cog

• Cutter

• Dromon

• Flyboat

• Full-rigged ship

• Galley

• Galleon (the largest Spelljamming vessels, akin to bite sized carriers)

• Hulk (like a battleship, but SO MUCH SMALLER)

• Junk

• Liburnian

• Longship

• Man-of-war

• Quadrireme (spy satellite)

• Quinquereme (camera ship)

• Rocket vessel (armed with ballistic missiles)

• Schooner

• Ship of the line

• Sloop-of-war

• Trireme

Of course, what space navy would be complete without weapons of mass destruction? The Maru manufacture only the best armaments for the Republic's crusades, and it is said the Great Knight Houses and their Battlemech units have received experimental devices from Kasmari's vaults, which they have no shame in using against the most hated foes of freedom.

All of these weapons' destructive yields follow Star Wars standards, and make real nukes look absolutely puny and insignificant.

NAVAL WEAPONS OF THE REPUBLIC:

Turbolasers: These are the most obvious, and by far the most powerful weapons on a space warship, firing highly concussive and unstable particle beams, much like Iron Man's Repulsor Rays. They're not actually lasers, scientifically speaking.

They come in five tiers, and the weakest examples can expel the same amount of destructive energy as multiple Tsar Bombs in a fraction of a second.

Tier 1 turbolaser: Gigatons minimum, hundreds of gigatons maximum (equivalent to the entire combined nuclear arsenal of Real Earth)

Tier 2 turbolaser: Teratons minimum, hundreds of teratons maximum (equivalent to the meteor that killed the dinosaurs)

Tier 3 turbolaser: Petatons minimum, hundreds of petatons maximum (equivalent to a blast that can melt all of Earth's crust and vaporize its oceans)

Tier 4 turbolaser: Exatons minimum, hundreds of exatons maximum (equivalent to a blast which can shatter Earth's moon twice over, and destroy a good portion of the Kuiper belt)

Tier 5 turbolaser: Zetatons minimum, hundreds of zetatons maximum (equivalent to a blast capable of completely destroying an Earth sized planet, with more power to spare)

Macrocannons: These are mass drivers that use electromagnetic force to accelerate enormous explosive shells weighing thousands of tons minimum, up to velocities measuring a fraction of the speed of light, leaving the barrel encased in a cocoon of plasma. The combined power of the explosives, velocity and plasma casing is what gives them their destructive effects.

They are very labor intensive, take up lots of space, and are nowhere near as ludicrous as turbolasers, but are MUCH CHEAPER, can more easily pierce energy shields, and can be installed on more ships.

Tier 1 macrocannon: Tens of megatons minimum, hundreds of megatons maximum, velocity up to 0.2 percent of the speed of light

Tier 2 macrocannon: Tens of gigatons minimum, hundreds of gigatons maximum, velocity up to 15 percent of the speed of light

Tier 3 macrocannon: Teratons minimum, tens of teratons maximum, velocity up to 40 percent of the speed of light

Plasma Lances: A sister weapon to turbolasers which harnesses the power of literal miniature suns to create a beam akin to a solar flare. Higher tiers fire white or blue star energy, while lower end weapons shoot out red, orange or yellow. Unlike turbolasers or macrocannons, they do not have variable yields or settings to change the intensity of the blast, making them less flexible and even more suited to missions with guaranteed collateral damage.

Tier 1 plasma lance: Red beam, 200 gigatons per shot

Tier 2 plasma lance: Orange beam, 5 teratons per shot

Tier 3 plasma lance: Yellow beam, 100 teratons per shot

Tier 4 plasma lance: White beam, 10 petatons per shot

Tier 5 plasma lance: Blue beam, 1 exaton per shot

Torpedo Launchers: Also called Interplanetary Ballistic Missiles (IPBMS,) these are enormous rocket-fueled, computer-guided, magically-activated projectiles packing hundreds to thousands of tons of extremely volatile explosives. They can be several hundred meters in length, and have a range that can reach billions of miles, pretty much a weapon launched from Earth that can strike targets past Pluto.

Torpedoes aren't as powerful as turbolasers or plasma lances, but again, are much more affordable in larger quantities.

Tier 1 IPBM: 150 megaton warhead

Tier 2 IPBM: 10 gigaton warhead

Tier 3 IPBM: 200 gigaton warhead

Tier 4 IPBM: 1 teraton warhead

Stormlight Guns: Yes, the Maker had to stick a Sanderverse (or Cosmere) reference in here. This class of naval space weapon is exactly what the name says it is: A laser beam of sheer light and heat guided by staggering amounts of electricity that burns and zaps whatever it hits. Somewhere between torpedoes and turbolasers in effectiveness and damage potential.

Tier 1 stormlight gun: 120 gigatons per shot

Tier 2 stormlight gun: 12 teratons per shot

Tier 3 stormlight gun: 12 petatons per shot

Cosmere pattern stormlight gun: 500 megatons per shot, per centisecond (one hundredth of a second)

Magma Bombs: When you want to destroy an entire enemy fleet with sheer explosive force but don't want the focused and precise attacks of the turbolaser or plasma lance. Blast radius is of paramount importance in getting rid of exceptionally numerous and tenacious adversaries, like the Orks, Daleks, Tyranids, Confederate Droids, Plasmoids, Xenomorphs, Grimm, Mind Flayers, and worse.

Magma Bombs are simply put, skyscraper-sized containers crammed full of the most ruinous, volatile and dangerous explosive materials in the universe, which detonate when their built-in sensor systems detect an enemy vessel. Think of them as space minefields that can fling moons out of orbit and send asteroids scattering in every direction.

But despite their fearsome reputation and area of effect, they are weaker than every other major armament aboard Republic warships, and life on planets can actually endure after the explosion of a magma bomb, whereas most orbital bombardments render worlds inhospitable to all living things.

Tier 1 magma bomb: 50 megatons in a 20 million mile radius

Tier 2 magma bomb: 500 megatons in a 150 million mile radius

Tier 3 magma bomb: 5 gigatons in a 750 million mile radius

Tier 4 magma bomb: 50 gigatons in a 1.5 billion mile radius

NOVA CANNON:

When you want to destroy ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING and want NOTHING LEFT. A weapon to snuff out the stars themselves, mounted only on the biggest and baddest of Republic Navy warships.

Minimum yield of 25,000 yottatons (one yottaton is equivalent to the Sun's energy output in 4 months,) and the maximum yield makes a star go SUPERNOVA (hence the name.)

Secondary, tertiary quaternary, and quinary weapons: Any sci-fi or fantasy ranged weapon you can imagine has been attached to the hulls of these fearless space-borne behemoths.

I wasn't kidding when I said SH50K was the ultimate crossover. Here's a list of armaments from 1d6chan, (THIS IS NOT MINE, I JUST COPIED THIS TO GIVE YOU MORE TO READ.)

Absolvor Bolt Pistol • Archaeotech Repeater •
Archeotech Revolver • Assault Grenade Launcher • Autopistol
• Belasco Galvian Needler • Bolter Cane • Bolt Launcher •
Bolt Pistol • Condemnor Stakethrower • Exitus Pistol •
Ballistics
Flechette Blaster • Flechette Pistol • Flintlock Pistol •
Grenade Discharger • Hand Cannon • Handbow •
Heavy Bolt Pistol • Kinetic Destroyer • Needle Pistol •
Radium Pistol • Radium Serpenta • Ripper Pistol •
Sawn-Off Shotgun • Shotgun Pistol • Stub Gun
Chemical
Alchem Pistol
Arc Pistol • Bale Eye • Blast Pistol • Digital Weapons •
Disintegration Pistol • Electrostatic Gauntlet • Eradication Pistol
• Gamma Pistol • Helfrost Pistol • Hellpistol • Hotshot Laspistol
Directed-Energy • Inferno Pistol • Laspistol • Neo-Volkite Pistol •
Photon Gauntlet • Plasma-Caster • Plasma Cutter •
Plasma Pistol • Rad Beamer • Voltaic Blaster •
Volkite Discharger • Volkite Serpenta
Gravitational
Grav-Pistol
Exterminator • Hand Flamer • Phosphor Blast Pistol •
Incendiary
Phosphor Pistol • Phosphor Serpenta • Sulphur Breath
Sonic
Vox-Amp Face Mask
Chimera Pistol Sword • Dartmask • Flare Gun •
Other
Grapnel Launcher • Medusian Projector • Neural Shredder •
Reductor Pistol • Snare Gun • Web Pistol • Web Spinner
Ballistics
Angelus Bolt Carbine • Astartes Assault Shotgun • Bolter •
Autogun • Battle Rifle • Blunderbuss • Bolt Carbine • Bolt Rifle •
Bow • Combat Shotgun • Concussion Carbine • Crossbow •
Galvanic Carbine • Gun Axe • Imperial Boltgun • Longrifle •
Macrostubber • Musket • Pump-Action Shotgun •
Radium Carbine • Sling • Solo Boltgun • Sororitas Boltgun •
Special Issue Boltgun • Storm Bolter • Stub Cannon • Stub Rifle
• Stubcarbine • Stubber
Arc Rifle • Blast Rifle • Lascutter • Hellgun • Lasgun
(Lasgun Patterns) • Phased Plasma-Fusil • Plasma Blaster •
Plasma Incinerator • Suppression Laser • Hotshot Lascarbine •
Directed-Energy
Hotshot Lasgun • Hotshot Volley Gun • Mining Laser •
Lascarbine • Laser Gauntlet • Auxilia Lasrifle • Las-Lock •
Mitralock • Plasma Carbine • Rad Gun
Gravitational
Incendiary
Other
Grav-Gun
Assault Flamer • Flamer • Pyreblaster
Webber
Ballistics
Assault Bolter • Balistus Grenade Launcher •

Executioner Shotgun • Exitus Rifle • Flechette Carbine •
Forge Bolter • Galvanic Caster • Galvanic Rifle •
Grenade Launcher • Guardian Bolter • Krumper Rivet Cannon
• Lastrum Storm Bolter • Light Mortar • Magnarail Lance •
Mark IX Sniper Rifle • Mk.III Shrike Pattern Bolt Sniper Rifle •
Missile Gauntlet • Mole Mortar • Needle Sniper Rifle •
Nemesis Bolter • Purgatus Crossbow • Radium Jezzail •

Sniper Rifle • Stake Crossbow • Transuranic Arquebus •
Vengeance Grenade Launcher

Chemical
Alchem Flamer • Chem-Thrower
Special

Conversion Beamer • Long-Las • Meltagun • Plasma Caliver •
Plasma Gun • Adrathic Destructor • Plasma Repeater •
Volkite Charger • Photon Thruster • Melta Rifle • Plasma Talon
Directed-Energy • Plasma Exterminator • Las-Fusil • Lightning Gun •
Proteus Plasma Projector • Volkite Incinerator • Plasma Burner
• Arc Scourge • Arc Lance • Eradication Ray •
Hotshot Marksman Rifle • Melta Carbine • Spirit Stave
Weapons
Gravitational
Incendiary
Grav-Amp
Balefire Gun • Immolation Rifle • Incinerator •
Phosphor Blast Carbine • Phosphor Torch

Sonic
Transonic Cannon

Warpcraft
Animus Speculum • Psilencer • Psycannon

Combi-Weapons
Adrastus Bolt Caliver • Combi-Flamer • Combi-Grav •
Combi-Grenade Launcher • Combi-Mancatcher • Combi-Melta
• Combi-Needler • Combi-Plasma • Combi-Volkite •
Condemner Boltgun • Disintegration Combi-Gun •
Executioner Pistol • Infernus Heavy Bolter•
Magna-Needle Mk.X Pattern Pistol • Needlespine Blaster •
Stub Gun-Plasma Combi-Pistol •
Ultra-Needle Mk.IX Pattern Pistol

Other
Chaff Launcher • Crozius Arkanos • Heavy Bolter Sentry Turret
• Infernum Halo Launcher • SLHG Pattern Assault Ram •
Stormcaller Stave • Tarantula Sentry Gun • Trazior Sentry Gun
• Venom Caster • Vox-Interceptor
Heavy
Weapons
Ballistics
Autocannon • Auto-Launcher • Assault Cannon • Balefire Gun •
Boltstorm Gauntlet • Bombast Field Gun • Castellan Launcher (Superfrag Rocket Launcher, Superkrak Rocket Launcher, Vengor Launcher) • Cerberus Launcher • Charge Caster • Concussion Cannon • Cyclone Missile Launcher • Deathwatch Frag Cannon • Grenadier Gauntlet •
Grenade Harness • Harpoon Gun • Harpoon Launcher •
Heavy Bolter • Heavy Crossbow • Heavy Mortar •
Heavy Shotgun • Heavy Stubber • Hermes Grenade Launcher
• Icarus Rocket Pod • Ironhail Heavy Stubber •
Lorenz Mk V Kickback • Lorenz Mk VI Rumbler •
Lucius Pattern Heavy Quad-Launcher •
Malleus Rocket Launcher • Maxima Bolter •
Mauler Bolt Cannon • Missile Launcher • Mole Launcher •
Multiple Rocket Launcher • Rad Grenade Launcher • Rad Missile Launcher • Ravenwing Grenade Launcher •
Ripper Gun • Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher •
Rotor Cannon • Salvo Launcher • Scatter Cannon •
Scatterbolt Launcher • Siege Cannon •
Skyhammer Missile Launcher • Tempest Bolter •
Tempest Salvo Launcher • Thunderfire Cannon •
Typhoon Missile Launcher
Chemical
Alchem Heavy Flamer • Death Cloud Projector

Corve Las-Pulser • Darkfire Cannon • Heavy Arc Rifle •
Heavy Lascannon • Heavy Mining Laser • Helfrost Cannon •

Irradiation Engine • Irradiation Projector • Las-Ripper •
Las-Volley • Lascannon • Melta Destroyer • Multi-Melta •
Multilaser • Plasma Cannon • Plasma Culverin • Rad Cannon •
Storm-Welder • Tankstopper Rifle • Volkite Blaster •
Volkite Caliver • Volkite Cavitor • Volkite Culverin •
Volkite Falconet Battery • Vultarax Arc Blaster
Gravitational
Grav-Cannon • Graviton Pulsar • Graviton Ram •
Heavy Grav-Cannon
Incendiary
Sonic
Other
Ballistics
Ballistics
Chemical
Atalan Incinerator • Flamestorm Gauntlet • Heavy Flamer •
Incendine Combustor • Infernus Firepike • Phosphor Blaster •
Pyroclast Flame Projector
Seismic Cannon
Firestrike Servo-Turret • Heavy Webber • Mancatcher •
Sabre Weapons Battery • Torsion Cannon
Hellrifle
Aiolos Missile Launcher • Anvilus Autocannon Battery •
Anvilus Snub Autocannon • Arcus Launcher •
Avenger Bolt Cannon • Ballistus Missile Launcher •
Bellicatus Missile Array • Blackstar Cluster Launcher •
Blackstar Rocket Launcher • Boreas Air Defence Missile •
Castigator Gatling Cannon • Conqueror Battle Cannon •
Demolisher Cannon • Disruptor Missile Launcher •
Eradicator Nova Cannon • Ferrumite Cannon • Frag Cannon • Fragstorm Grenade Launcher • Hammerfall Missile Launcher •
Hammerstrike Missile Launcher • Hellfury Missile•
Hellion Pattern Heavy Cannon Array • Hellstrike Missile •
Heavy Onslaught Gatling Cannon • Hunter-Killer Missile • Hyperios Missile Launcher • Icarus Stormcannon Array •
Ironclad Assault Launcher • Ironhail Skytalon Array•
Iliastus Accelerator Cannon • Kratos Battlecannon •
Krakstorm Grenade Launcher • Lastrum Bolt Cannon •
Leviathan Storm Cannon • Macharius Battle Cannon •
Multiple Rocket Pod • Onslaught Gatling Cannon • Oppressor Cannon • Punisher Gatling Cannon•
Punisher Rotary Cannon • Pulveriser Cannon • Sabre Missile Launcher • Scorpius Launcher•
Sentinel Missile Launcher • Siegebreaker Cannon •
Skyreaper Battery • Skyspear Missile Launcher • Storm Launcher • Stormstrike Missile Launcher •
Taurox Battle Cannon • Taurox Gatling Cannon •
Terrebrax Rocket Battery • Vanquisher Battle Cannon • Vengeance Launcher • Xiphon Rotary Missile Launcher
Chem Cannon
Adrathic Devastator • Arachnus Blaze Cannon •
Arachnus Heavy Blaze Cannon•
Arachnus Heavy Lascannon Battery • Arachnus Storm Cannon

• Cyclonic Melta Lance • Eradication Beamer •
Heavy Conversion Beamer • Heavy Laser Destroyer •

Hellfire Plasma Cannonade • Helfrost Destructor

Irradiation Blaster • Laser Destroyer • Laser Destroyer Array •
Directed-Energy Las-Talon • Macro Plasma Incinerator • Magna-Melta •
Magma Cannon • Melta Blastgun • Melta-Cutter • Neutron Laser • Neutron Laser Projector •
Omega Plasma Array • Plasma Destroyer • Plasma Eradicator
• Plasma Storm Battery • Pulsar-Fusil • Sabre Neutron Blaster
• Siege Melta Array • Solex Heavy Lascannon • Thermal Spear
• Volkite Cardanelle • Volkite Demi-Culverin • Volkite Saker • Volkite Sentinel • Volcano Cannon
Incendiary
Clearance Incinerator • Flamestorm Cannon • Heavy Incinerator • Heavy Phosphor Blaster•
Incendium Cannon • Inferno Cannon • Infernus Incinerator

Sonic
Heavy Seismic Cannon • Laud Hailer

Warcraft
Gatling Psilencer • Heavy Psycannon • Rift Cannon
Combi-Weapons Cerastus Shock Lance
Ordnance
Ballistics
Apocalypse Missile Launcher • Basilisk Magnus • Colossus Siege Mortar • Deathstrike Cannon • Deathstrike Missile • Dreadhammer Cannon •
Earthshaker Cannon • Griffon Heavy Mortar • Manticore Missile
• Medusa Siege Cannon • Quake Cannon • Spicula Rocket System • Stormshard Mortar • Stormsword Siege Cannon • Tremor Cannon • Nemesis Quake Cannon • Doomsday Cannon • Exorcist Multiple Missile Launcher • Taurox Missile Launcher • Ironstorm Missile Pod • Stormspear Rocket Pod • Spiculus Bolt Launcher • Karacnos Mortar Battery •
Praetor Multiple Missile Launcher • Morbus Heavy Bombard • Dominus Triple Bombard • Behemoth Cannon • Whirlwind Multiple Missile Launcher

Directed-Energy Belleros Energy Cannon • Hellex Plasma Mortar

Gravitational
Warpcraft
Graviton-Charge Cannon • Grav Flux Bombard
Vortex Missile

Ballistics
Accelerator Autocannon • Ardex Defensor Mega-Bolter • Avenger Gatling Cannon • Doomstrike Missile Launcher • Gatling Blaster • Thunderhawk Cannon • Vulcan Mega Bolter • Trident • Thundercoil Harpoon • Castigator Bolt Cannon • Shieldbreaker Missile • Helios Defence Missile Pod •

Hellion Missile • Accelerator Cannon • Baneblade Cannon • Stormhammer Cannon • Hellhammer Cannon •
Macro-Accelerator Cannon • Revelator Missile Launcher • Cruciator Gatling Array • Stormsabre Cannon • Warhound Missile Pod
Super-Heavy
Weapons
Directed-Energy
Atrapos Lascutter • Hellstorm Cannon • Lightning Cannon • Melta Cannon • Plasma Annihilator • Plasma Blastgun • Plasma Destructor • Plasma Obliterator•
Turbo-Laser Destructor • Vengeance Cannon • Arachnus Magna-Blaze Cannon • Thermal Cannon • Plasma Decimator • Volkite Veuglaire • Las-Impulsor • Volcano Lance • Volkite Chieorovile • Volkite Carronade • Defence Laser • Lightning Lock • Conversion Beam Cannon • Volkite Eradicator • Volkite Destructor •
Conversion Beam Dissipator • Conversion Beam Dissolutor

Conversion Beam Extirpator • Melta-Lance

Gravitational
Graviton Destructor • Graviton Imploder • Graviton Ruinator •
Graviton Singularity Cannon • Krius Grav Imploder

Incendiary
Acheron Flame Cannon • Conflagration Cannon • Inferno Gun

Sonic
Sonic Destructor

Warpcraft
Warp Missile • Warp Missile Rack • Psi-Cannon
Ship
Weapons
Ballistics
Annihilator Cannon • Bombardment Cannon •
Doomstorm Missile • Hellfire Missile • Macro Cannon •
Massif Ballistus • Nova Cannon • Torpedo
Sonic
Directed-Energy Lance Weapon • Volkite Storm Accelerator
Sonic Disruptor

Melee
Chain Weapons • C'tan Phase Weapons • Daemonblade •
Force Weapons • Power Weapons •
Arc Close Combat Weapons • Transonic Weapons •
Basic Close Combat Weapons •
Imperial Miscellaneous Weapons •
Grav Close Combat Weapons • Poison Weapons
Non-Firearm
Weapons
Explosives
Arc Grenade • Blind Grenade • Choke Gas Bomb •
Colossus Bomb • Demolition Charge • Egerian Geode •
Frag Bomb • Frag Grenade • Gunk Bomb • Haywire Mine •
Heavy Bomb • Immolation Grenade • Incendiary Charge •
Krak Grenade • Melta Bomb • Melta Mine •
Mindscrambler Grenade • Phosphex Bomb •
Poison Globe Grenade • Smoke Grenade • Shock Grenade •
Stasis Bomb • Stasis Grenade • Psyk-Out Grenade •
Rad Grenade • Tectomagnic Munitions • Toxin Gas Grenade •
Vortex Grenade

Gotta hand it to the FREAKING FURRIES for bringing the Milky Way and its neighboring galaxies to their collective knees. Do NOT underestimate the Maru, they are basically my interpretation of the Lombaxes from Ratchet & Clank.

Master And Apprentice: My two original Star Wars Jedi characters for the Starhammer 50k Multiverse, compared.

Beidou is already in the story, I'll probably talk about her Master and adoptive father figure, Amaranth, in a later part of my fanfiction.

Gale Amaranth (the Master)

-Is a generic dark-skinned human, probably would be played by Will Smith or Samuel Jackson, kind of like Mace Windu, Lando Calrissian, Finn, and Grand Moff Gideon

-Wields an orange lightsaber

-Is very calm and composed, the least likely character to be reckless, brash or risk-taking, doesn't mindlessly charge into dangerous situations without a plan

-Knows how to fight very well, like all Jedi Knights, but doesn't actively seek out or enjoy combat

-Respects the Jedi Code, and follows the rules to the utmost degree, always follows orders too

-The complete opposite of a Devil-may-care individual

-Wears uniforms almost all the time, unnerved by those who dress unconventionally

-Fights using Jedi Stance 3: Soresu, which focuses on defense and using an enemy's mistakes against them

-Not very good with mechanical problems (that's a skill he'll have to learn from his apprentice, ironically)

-Hates piloting

Beidou Haishan (the apprentice)

-Is a colorful blue-skinned Tau, we might need the acting equivalent of a female version of Bruce Lee to roleplay her

-Wields a green lightsaber

-Reckless, brash, and overconfident in her abilities, always barges into dangerous places without a plan

-A Jedi who is not only exceptionally skilled in battle, with a roundhouse kick that can smash people through concrete walls, but also one who enjoys fighting and being in the center of a heated conflict… which makes other Jedi uncomfortable and distressed

-Has no respect for the dress code, and she has often worn a tube top, torn pants, and a mechanic's scarf, at the age of 14 and onwards, exposing a considerable portion of her skin, and relying on the Force for protection instead of armor. She HATES the Jedi uniform robes.

-Doesn't really like following the Jedi Code, and rarely spends time in the Jedi Temple ever since she graduated and became a Knight, leaving her master and adoptive father behind. She frequently disobeys the orders of military superiors if she finds them to be immoral or violating the rights of innocent people.

-Absolutely Devil-May-Care

-Fights in Jedi Stance 4, Ataru, which enhances strength, speed, and stamina using the Force, focusing on physical power

-An expert mechanic and pilot who has genius-level intellect regarding a wide variety of machinery (she actually mentored her own Master in this regard)

-Loves piloting, commonly flies an X-Wing or A-Wing into battle

Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

Chapter 1: Reunions And Reconstructions

"Sometimes the threat of tyranny is so great, that even the worst of enemies must become the best of friends, to win in the name of freedom."

PREVIOUSLY ON SH50K:

Har Har Bunks, the polar opposite of Jar Jar Binks, and leader of the Republic science crew on Hoth during the Covenant siege, was kidnapped by enemy forces along with his fellow scientists, right after Anakin and his crew members managed to escape from the siege by going through a Time Lord Stargate.

The Gungan professor is probably gonna get slapped by Hunter tentacles, as a form of torture and interrogation... because the Covenant want to know the secrets behind the tech they're delivering to Vecna.

Meanwhile, Anakin and his big group of friends have arrived on some kind of habitable forest moon, on the other end of the Stargate. The heroes quickly notice a seemingly improbable sight, a legion of clone troopers marching side to side with battle droids. Wanting to investigate further, they follow the marching army back to their base, at Hell's Gate.

What's more, Sergeant Neytiri recognizes this lush, beautiful location, the moon of Pandora, as her homeworld and birthplace! She is eager to get to Hell's Gate to meet up with her husband, Jake Sully, who she has not seen in several months.

Author's Note: In this case, Pandora's atmosphere is NOT POISONOUS. Humans and other oxygen breathing species can breathe here, with no problem whatsoever.

Also: The Na'vi had mixed reactions when the Republic colonized their homeworld. Many clans joined, appreciating the advanced technology and new ways of life, but others resisted, fighting back against the outsiders, because they valued their traditions. Those days are long gone, and the people of Eywa have moved on and adapted to the new age.

Their warrior cultures made fine recruits for the Republic's Grand Army, and Neytiri and Jake Sully, now a married couple, have both served their country.

During the walk to Hell's Gate, Master Chief, who is part of Anakin's group, gets a call from Beacon Academy, one of the Republic Grand Army's boot camps, which he just ignores. Perhaps someone in the group is needed for a different assignment abroad?

But the main task at hand is to get updated on the status quo and find out why the Separatists are working together with the Republic. Is the droid insurgency finally over?

"Sergeant Neytiri, are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

John-117 was pointing his armored finger at the battalion of soldiers marching at the bottom of the cliff. It consisted of a very odd pairing, odd since these soldiers were supposed to be on opposite sides in a miniature galactic civil war- battle droids and clone troopers.

Neytiri, the Na'vi warrior, was focused on something else, though.

"I recognize this place... I'm back on Pandora! This is where I grew up, learned my survival instincts, and enlisted in the Republic's Grand Army! Everybody, welcome to my homeworld! I don't know why the Stargate brought us here, but I can make sure we all get a warm greeting, once I contact my fellow natives. Also, my husband works at the military base nearby. I haven't seen him in so long, ever since I went to Hoth..."

As for Anakin, he had his own problems to worry about, realizing that a group of scientists was supposed to accompany the party, and now they were probably in the hands of the Covenant.

"God-Emperor DAMN IT! The Stargate didn't take Professor Bunks and his entourage through with us! Now he's gonna get kidnapped and interrogated by the Covenant soldiers searching whatever's left of Hive Boreas back on Hoth! Hopefully he doesn't know anything about how the Time Lord tech works..."

Author's note: Fourth Wall Break incoming!

"Maybe it's for the best," Ruby Rose said. "The Maker would have a hard time doing his thing with so many notable named individuals in one place. And Professor Bunks is clueless about the primordial garbage, from what we know. The only thing we saw that affected the Time Lord hardware was Beidou's cartoon hammer."

Beidou, the young Tau Jedi Knight, smirked at what Ruby was saying. She had a thing for hammers and repairing advanced technology.

"Good thing the Covenant don't have any Acme repair hammers lying around. That's what I used to make the Stargate appear, apparently."

"Stop getting off topic, everyone!," the Master Chief (John 117) shouted. "We have to follow those troopers and droids back to their headquarters. And since there's Republic clones here, we know the people on this part of Pandora are friendly. Maybe Neytiri can be our guide. She might know where these clankers and expendable humans are marching."

Neytiri nodded, and so the group chose to keep up with the army below them.

"First thing's first," Ahsoka said, "here's a bunch of Clawshots so we can safely descend the cliff. Using one is pretty straightforward, just don't drop too fast."

With that, all 8 heroes attached their clawshot grappling hooks to the side of the cliff, and lowered themselves to the floor. Master Chief, Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long all dropped much faster than everyone else due to their power armor's weight, but the fall didn't hurt them because of their shock-absorbing boots.

Elsa was particularly enthusiastic about this new gadget, one of several things that Ahsoka and Beidou had made while working under the tutelage of Anakin.

"These Clawshots you invented are pretty neat. Why not mass produce them for the Republic's army? Maybe they already have stuff like this, portable commando climbing gear."

She also brought up a vital point, which never really got mentioned in the story earlier:

"I'm feeling really overheated in these clothes from Hoth. We're on a jungle-covered moon, after all. You all agree with me, right?"

The group said yes in unison.

So right before they proceeded with pursuing the platoon, the team members took off their extra layers of warm clothing, leaving them in their standard Republic uniforms, except for the Spartans, whose armor maintained the right temperature in any environment.

"Ha!," the Chief said. "Looks like Ruby, Yang and I don't have to take anything off. Lucky us."

30 minutes later, after walking closely behind the marching troopers...

The trek ended at the spaceport and army base that Neytiri called "Hell's Gate." It was a fitting name, since the whole complex had a baleful, menacing look, with barbed wire fences, electrified barriers, siege gun towers, air traffic controllers, drone control centers, power plants belching steam and smoke, and most ominously, a tall spire of unbreakable obsidian in the middle of everything, presumably something the Republic and Separatist armies had come together to try and investigate.

"The reason the base was built like this is to keep out all the dangerous animals and plants commanded by Eywa," Neytiri told her teammates.

"Who the hell is Eywa?," Yang said.

Neytiri gave a concise explanation.

"According to my people, she's the goddess who maintains the balance of nature on Pandora. But when we were enlightened by outsiders, we learned the science behind her workings- she's a moon-wide nervous system and brain that connects all the plant and fungal life on Pandora, and since the animals eat the plants and fungi and each other, she basically controls everything like a puppet master. A hive mind, to put it simply."

"So on this world, Mother Nature herself is trying to find ways to kill you the most effectively. It's just as unnerving as that giant pylon of black rock in the central section of Hell's Gate."

"Maybe my husband, Jake Sully, will know the purpose behind the black rock," Neytiri replied. "He works here."

The two blue alien women were very different, one a Jedi and the other a Republic shock trooper, but they both understood the convoluted topics they discussed with astute wisdom.

Then the watchtower keepers spotted Anakin and company. They were startled by the proximity alarm's sound, but luckily, the two long-horned minotaurs keeping watch recognized General Skywalker.

"Oh, sorry. Are you authorized personnel? Wait a minute... You're Anakin Skywalker! We recently heard about the mass attack on Hoth. How'd you get here? How are you even alive?"

"It's a LONG STORY!," Anakin shouted. "I have Neytiri with me, so you should probably let us in."

"No problemo!," the second bull-headed man said back.

Now that they were inside, the group could get some answers behind the sudden collaboration between the Republic and the Confederacy.

Inside the fort:

Hell's Gate was one hell of a fortress. To say it was well defended was an understatement. And yet the inside of the base was just as much of a technological wonder, with elaborate facilities for maintaining all kinds of vanguard starfighters (like the ARC-170, K-Wing, Mandalorian P-38, V-19 Torrent and Pelican gunships,) and a historical armory museum carrying weaponry from eons past in the Milky Way's history, including Na'vi war artifacts and firearms from ancient 2nd Millennium Coruscant.

Anakin and his pals were lucky enough to not encounter any large Pandoran beasts on the path to Hell's Gate, probably because the clone troopers and battle droids had gotten rid of the animals, and they had entered it through one of the smaller gates for letting infantry patrols in.

The latest update in intel:

"So the CIS has been attacked by the same forces that are besieging our Republic? And they want a ceasefire, because we share a common enemy?"

"Apparently so. Remember, the main reason the CIS seceded from us in the first place was because of how aliens and other nonhumans were being discriminated against and systematically oppressed. The foes we've been fighting- the Upside Down, the Nine Hells, the Covenant, the Necrons, the Grimm, and many more- oppressing people is pretty much their main game. So we have more than just a simple reason to come together."

Anakin was speaking with Clone Commander Semicolon, the chief officer in charge of Hell's Gate military spaceport on Pandora. There was an exchange of intel between the two, and following that, good news was being broadcasted on the HoloNet, specifically the official reunification of the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, which meant the forces of democracy had a better chance of winning this war.

"Skywalker, you should probably find out what to do next with your crew," Clone Commander Semicolon said to the famous Jedi. "I hear Neytiri's husband is stopping by. Maybe you should talk to him or something. Additionally, some of your teammates got letters from Beacon Academy, saying they have to return to their headquarters. And I still can't believe you actually survived the Siege of Hoth... you don't need to tell me how, everyone here knows you escaped intact against the odds, the method should definitely remain a secret."

And so Anakin asked his team about the schedule.

"We don't really have anything planned for the near future, but I do have some questions because of what Commander Semicolon said. Elsa, Ruby, Yang. You got holographic letters in the mail telling you to do what?"

"Oh yeah," Elsa said. "Beacon Academy wants us back for a Quidditch championship. I bet you didn't know that space wizards and UNSC Spartans played flying broomstick games. Helps me get over the trauma I've suffered during our harrowing journey, and I'm sure Ruby and Yang can agree."

"Agreed!," the red and yellow sisters replied.

"Quidditch is such a badass sport!," Yang added.

"We're doing it to raise charity money for helping refugees in the Outer Rim, that's what makes it a priority," Ruby explained.

"Which leaves me, Anakin, Beidou, Ahsoka, and Neytiri," said the Master Chief. "Sometimes I wish I could fly on a broomstick, but I haven't put effort or training into using any magic system."

Then Beidou pointed at someone, while trying to get Neytiri's attention.

"Oh, is that your husband over there? He's the only Na'vi I've seen in the base who wears the same feathers in his hair as you! And he has the same pilot's uniform as you, too."

She looked, and realized that she had finally gotten the chance to reunite with her one true love.

Jake Sully and Neytiri both saw each other, and immediately embraced in a hug.

"I'm so sorry for leaving you so long! I won't do it again, I promise you!"

"I thought I lost you when Hoth was attacked by the Covenant! I'm just grateful you're alive, really!"

"Let's go home and see the kids. Maybe I can bring my new friends with too."

"Home, huh?," Ahsoka said. "Where do you guys live?"

"It's not what you're used to, but we've added some modernized features and furniture," Sully said. "We Na'vi have the biggest treehouse you can possibly think of. And we're having a rodizio-style barbecue to celebrate the CIS rejoining the Union."

"My friends and I would be glad to join in," Anakin told him.

"It would be a welcome respite!," Neytiri remarked.

Later that day...

The gang said goodbye to Ruby, Yang and Elsa, who boarded a Theta-class shuttle and headed off to their Quidditch game. Before she left, though, Ruby Rose said one thing under her breath to herself:

"I remember losing a lot of my fellow Spartans during the horrors on Hoth. To the contrary, though, my red power armor suit keeps track of the life signatures of all my comrades... and the lights are still on. They're still alive, maybe captured by the Covenant, and I'm going to demand a rescue mission from Headmaster Oz until my voice croaks. I don't have time for Quidditch. And I gotta inform Elsa and Yang, too..."

Plus, Anakin was thinking about something that bothered him and made him feel like something bad was about to happen: He hadn't asked anyone around about the purpose of the black pylon.

"Damn," he thought. "I should've brought up the elephant in the room when it came to the fort's construction. I have a gut feeling that nobody would know what it really is, though, possibly for the better. Oh well, let's just focus on visiting Neytiri's hometown. Maybe the Confederates were invited to dinner just like us."

Next Chapter: Hoth's Aftermath

I'm returning to work on SH50K. I hope to complete Wave 1 by the end of this year. That is, if I am truly dedicated to finishing it. The good news is, I'm planning out the plot of Episode 5, which comes after Welcome To The Jungle.

Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

Chapter 2: Clobber The Covenant

"You can't win a war without logistics, stable supply lines and innovation."

This chapter has a special guest appearance from another one of my favorite fantasy novels!

I'll give you a hint: Remember the first Lore Chapter I wrote for SH50K?

With Hoth's bastion of hope destroyed, and Anakin and his companions stuck on Pandora, the Covenant have no opposition preventing them from reaping the spoils of the Time Lord archaeotech that was left behind after the massive battle on the ice planet. Their orders are to deliver it to the Dark Lord necromancer, who actually promised to give them something in return... or maybe Vecna's lying, and he'll backstab the Prophets of the Covenant. Time will tell.

Currently, aboard the Forerunner Dreadnought (also known as the Anodyne Spirit,) sanctimonious San'shyuum Prophets Regret and Mercy have been interrogating and torturing Har Har Bunks, a Gungan Republic scientist who was assigned with working on the primordial devices originally belonging to the Time Lords. He isn't giving away details the Prophets can make sense of, though...

"You're only making this more difficult for yourself. We will know how to use this technology eventually."

Prophet Regret was getting frustrated with his most recent job. He had spent hours using the fundamental forces of the multiverse (yes, THE Force) to torture this strangely articulate native of Naboo, and no matter how hard he tried, Har Har Bunks would just keep mocking him with well-chosen words and clever rhymes.

"ACK! Talent and intuition is a waste... when the beholder has no taste!"

"You'll have to cooperate sooner or later, foolish degenerate. Because if you don't, you'll be faced with a grim ordeal... one that I could only describe as worse than death."

Force lightning discharge*

"Aaaah, the excruciating pain... Worse than death? There might be a day when you and your rabid zealot friends take your last breath!"

force chokes*

"That tickles!"

"SHUT UP! I'm manipulating the forces of the cosmos to torture you, not give you an excuse for horrible poetry, you infidel!"

Prophet Regret just walked out of the room. His efforts at extracting information from Har Har Bunks and the other captured Republic scientists were of no use, for two reasons: One, the scientists almost certainly didn't understand how the Time Lord items functioned, and two, they were surprisingly resistant to torture. All the abuse just rolled off of Bunks' rubbery skin.

He hated this assignment, hated the overly sarcastic, witty remarks the prisoners would make, and being a high-ranking Prophet, hated being stuck without his hoverchair for long periods of time (the prison aboard the Forerunner Dreadnought had a security mechanism that disabled all antigravity devices.)

So Prophet Regret naturally chose to report to his partner, Mercy, on the failed attempts to acquire intel on the tech from Hoth.

"How'd the interrogation go?"

"Let's face it, the Republic dross does not know how this junk works. I've tried everything to get them talk, and they just taunt and mock me when I'm inflicting pain on them!"

"That tells me you're doing an absolutely abysmal job at it. Let me show you how to do an interrogation, THE RIGHT WAY."

Then, out of the blue, the artificial ground and the walls of the vessel began to shake violently, as if the Forerunner Dreadnought was nearing a black hole.

"WHAT WAS THAT?," Mercy said to Regret accusingly.

"Don't blame me for something wrong with our holy chariot!," he snapped back.

Then, a Sangheili (Covenant Elite) warrior, Kal Kadam, burst into the room, in a panic. Elites were known amongst the Covenant for their fearlessness and courage, so seeing Kadam afraid was a BIG DEAL.

"You have to see this, my lords. Slipspace wormholes are opening up in our vessel's combat spacecraft hangar!"

Mercy didn't believe it.

"Wormholes? Deliberately being opened inside a ship? That is IMPOSSIBLE, only the Forerunners could do such a thing!"

"Come and see," Kadam replied.

In the Dreadnought's hangar...

An assortment of alien warriors from all the different Covenant worlds were gawking at the rifts in reality that had opened up in the middle of their capital ship's interior. They didn't know what was happening, and by the time someone got suspicious about the circumstances, it was too late.

Without warning, an Atlas BattleMech from House Anniera leaped out of one of the rifts, which were in truth Stargates opened by a Republic breacher regiment, and it pulverized the closest Covenant Brute with a swing of its piston-driven pile bunker. Hundreds of other Mechwarriors, Gundam suits and manually operated Autobots poured out of the Stargates within minutes, and began slaughtering the crew of the Forerunner Dreadnought.

The Knights of House Anniera, led by the Wingfeather family, had been ordered to teleport directly into an enemy vessel! But why would they perform such a risky operation?

While this was happening, a Gloriana-class battleship belonging to the Republic's Grand Navy opened fire on the Anodyne Spirit's escorts with turbolasers, plasma lances, and pulsar howitzers, leaving it practically defenseless.

Granted, the Covenant crew members were not helpless, and their plasma firearms brought down dozens of 'Mechs. But the Annierans were extremely determined, and the deaths of their comrades would only spur them to fight harder and cover each other's flanks.

What's more, House Anniera had access to baleful experimental weaponry and esoteric techno-sorcery, kept secret from the rest of the Republic, that greatly bolstered the sheer firepower of their assorted combat walkers.

So when Janner Wingfeather, the Lord Commander of House Anniera's regiments, spearheaded the attack, he knew exactly how to take control of the battlefield.

The Annieran general destroyed multiple Locust and Wraith artillery platforms before they could fire on his Knights, then moved on to eliminate the Covenant Hunter bioforms so their heavy weapons wouldn't be a problem either. He was skilled enough with his heavily modified Stalker Battlemech's weapons to land kill shots on virtually everything he fired at, and when lasers, missiles, flamethrowers and repulsor rays wouldn't do the job, he used his signature Achilles plasma cutter to slice up Elites who were trying to reach the controls of nearby vehicles.

Somehow, Prophets Mercy and Regret hadn't been targeted by the ambush party yet (though it is worth mentioning the hangar was a pretty damn big room to be inside of.) Naturally, they were quite shocked to still be alive.

"I'll fight to the end!," Kadam the Elite said, as he prepared to make his final stand. Unfortunately for him, Regret and Mercy used their Force powers to telekinetically drag him away from the carnage, both wanting to have the gratification of saving one life, which was unusual for Prophets in general.

"Now is not the time to fight," Mercy told Kadam. "Now is the time to run the hell away!"

That wouldn't matter, though, because the Annierans were ordered to not take any prisoners. They were going to continue the massacre, irrespective of the resistance they met.

Within 90 minutes of fighting, the Covenant crew of the Dreadnought had been exterminated, all the Prophets aboard were dead, including the High Prophet of Truth, and Lord Wingfeather was going to get what he came for.

The prison section of the ship was left untouched by the breaching attack, and the nobles of House Anniera were tasked with storming it and liberating everyone that had been held captive by the agents of the Covenant, in order to acquire valuable intel, and of course, take the Time Lord artifacts back to Republic laboratories to be studied.

Meanwhile, in the jail cells, right before the Dreadnought was boarded...

Turns out H.H Bunks wasn't the only important person to be taken captive during the sacking of Hoth. A handful of Grimm-slaying Spartan-IIs who had survived the siege of Hoth were also locked up, including Blake Belladonna, Pyrrha Nikos, and Coco Adel. These three female super-soldiers were thought to have been casualties of the icy planetary siege, but as fate would have it, they were still alive.

"Damn preachers keep coming back to the Gungan even though he's proved to be completely devoid of useful intel," Coco remarked, having heard the interrogation involving Har Har Bunks from her cell, where she was chained to the wall with her two comrades, Pyrrha and Blake.

"Yeah, they're not the sharpest heads on the dick," Pyrrha said in reply.

Then Blake noticed something the other two Spartans didn't- her ears were twitching, her Faunus senses telling her that something was going on outside the cell.

"Is it just me, or are the walls around us softly vibrating?"

Surely enough, Pyrrha and Coco picked up the suspicious detail too.

"Wait a minute," Pyrrha said. "Why is the ground shaking? Aren't we in a colossal spaceship with its own gravity? You think the Covenant fleet has reached its destination?"

Instantaneously, just seconds later, the screams of dying alien terrorists and the roaring of explosions broke the silence. Coco was the first to say something about it.

"Holy SHIT! Is someone attacking the Covenant's fleet? What in the God-Emperor's name is going on outside?"

The cacophony kept going for around 300 seconds, then stopped as quickly as it had started. Coco, Pyrrha and Blake were tensed up in the back of their cell, waiting for the inevitable... but it wasn't what they expected.

A young man of lanky build dressed in knightly attire, including a green and brown tunic and chain mail, opened the door to the cell. He was without a doubt a MechWarrior, and one of particular notoriety as well.

"Spartan sisters! I have good news, you should join the rest of us! The Knights of Anniera are commandeering this ship and flying back to Republic territory. The Covenant has stolen something that we desperately need for the war effort, and my older brother, Janner, is handling the whole operation. The devastation of Hoth wasn't all for naught. And here's something else you should know: Ruby Rose was the one to suggest attacking the Anodyne Spirit! She wanted a rescue mission, and we delivered!

Following this statement, Pyrrha miraculously recognized the young Battlemech pilot.

"You're Kalmar Wingfeather, right? I know your brother has a big reputation as the head of a Great Knight House. I guess I should save my questions for him... Coco, Blake, let's go! And make sure to thank Ruby and Yang for not giving up on us."

The prison block was being emptied, and scientists and soldiers taken captive at Hoth were joining up with Janner's task force of 'Mechs, who had orders to deliver the Time Lord treasure back to Republic authorities who could get a better look at it.

Shortly thereafter, on the Dreadnought's flight deck bridge:

Janner pushed a big pile of Grunt corpses out of the way with his 'Mech, and ordered his men to set coordinates to Kronos Alpha, a major Republic space shipyard.

On the other end of the bridge deck, the three RWBY Spartans were discussing the most recent news in the war effort with Kalmar and Leeli, Janner's younger siblings and equally formidable Mechwarriors in their own right.

Blake: So you're telling us there's ONE PERSON out of over a trillion at Kronos Alpha, that knows how Time Lord tech operates?

Leeli: Yes, according to our agents in House Steiner. He goes by the name of The Collector, and claims he's a descendant of the Time Lords, who actually have many other names.

Kalmar: Here's something to know, the Covenant call the Time Lords by the name of the Forerunners, which probably means this Dreadnought we're on is a hand-me-down pile of junk left behind from the multiverse's earliest civilization.

Author's Footnote: It should be noted that Janner had Warforged spies operating on Hoth when it was attacked. Some of them escaped to tell the tale, and they informed their master of the events that transpired.

Pyrrha: Aaaand they don't know how any of it works. What a shame, but also what a delight- can you imagine what would happen if the Covenant discovered how primordial technology really worked? Nobody would stand a chance!

Coco: Which is why we need to understand how the software package from Hoth runs. I'm inferring that unlike this ship, it's actually the real deal, not just something the Time Lords saw as totally obsolete.

Blake: Tell us more about this Collector guy. You think he's actually a descendant of the primordials, or just a phony nutjob?

Leeli: I personally think he's a phony, but on the contrary, his DNA samples we secretly collected registered as completely unknown and unique- one of a kind, not to be repeated anywhere else in the multiverse. Which is suspicious beyond belief, because history shows the Time Lords were wiped out in a cosmic war across time and space billions of years ago.

Kalmar: All we can hypothesize is that there is some massive malevolent force out there that has been orchestrating past events and keeping the war going as long as possible. Whoever- or whatever the Covenant may be working with, it's a big deal. We don't even know the full story on how the Time Lords were all killed. And I think the perpetrator of our galactic war, the manipulator and motivator of our enemies, knows something that we don't about primordial history.

Pyrrha: Shall we gather more intel on this matter?

Leeli: Janner's getting us there. When we get to Kronos Alpha, and announce to the docks that we've commandeered the biggest Covenant flagship, we'll be able to contact the Collector and see if he has more info on the War in Heaven, plus data about this Time Lord tech we plundered.

Professor Bunks overheard the whole conversation, and chose to ask a question when he should've gotten involved earlier.

"Pardon me for not speaking on this issue earlier, but may I tell you about a supposition I have regarding our scientific loot?"

"We're listening," Coco said.

"Back on Hoth, I saw a Jedi girl, a Tau named Beidou, hit one of the Time Lord objects with a hammer. Almost immediately, it produced a Stargate that let some people escape the subglacial tunnels. Beidou called it cartoon physics, told us that there are other magical systems out there besides the Force and its many categories. Do you think we just have to resort to the most unorthodox ways of fixing things in order to get proper results?"

Leeli shrugged.

"I'm gonna have to meet this Beidou person if I wanna be sure. That goes for the rest of us. If she escaped Hoth, we have a chance. Still, if someone really is pulling the strings behind all the past events... I'd have a reason to be pretty scared, and I'm usually not scared of anything."

Speaking of the person pulling the strings all along...

In the fathomless depths of Zenith- the deepest layer of the Nine Hells

Vecna was busy with managing more of his pawns and subordinates. He was waiting on his infernal throne, one of many thrones he owned, waiting for a package to be delivered by the High Prophets of the Covenant.

Then someone came into his throne room- a fungal zombie, Count Olaf, with poorly groomed facial hair and surprisingly classy clothes. He was a spy for the necromancer and one of Zalgo the Nameless's countless worshippers in the Nine Hells, Lower Planes, Upside Down, and the Abyss.

"Any status reports on the Time Lord package?," Vecna asked him.

Olaf remained silent.

"TELL ME NOW!," the arch-lich demanded.

"Umm... uhh... here's the truth. House Anniera hijacked the Covenant flagship and stole the primordial technology before it could reach us."

Vecna was FUMING at this point. Once again, the goody-two-shoes "freedom fighters" had beaten him at his own game, just like on Koentus. He hated his enemies even more than he already had, and wanted nothing more than to prove that the ideals of liberty, egalitarianism and democracy were merely lies and fallacies.

But while he was hopping up and down in a mad fury, causing earthquakes in the layers of Hell directly above Zenith, something suddenly popped back into his mind... a perfect opportunity for a step towards victory, that he had once forgotten, because even calculating evil masterminds have brain farts sometimes.

"Oh... on the other hand, I just remembered something that might make up for these wretched failures! Count Olaf! Tell my armies in the Upside Down to set up their breaching gate portals, and connect them to the forest moon of Pandora! Also, keep their growth delayed, so we can catch our enemies by surprise. There's a catalyst of destruction and doom, just ripe for the taking, flat out in the open- like a big blood-filled gift on a holiday morning."

The whole multiverse will one day bow before me...

Ả̴̧̢̙̮̯̙̖̓̂ṋ̷̹̹̱̯̩̀̆̓͝d̷̜͊̈̿̌̌͑̕ ̵̹͇͙̩̄t̵͚͍͓͍̙̆̋ͅh̴͖̜̉̋͐̉̂̕͝e̴̬̓̉̊̒̑̊͝ ̸̛̝̊͊̽͌Ñ̵͉̜͚̯͔̒̈̂̓ȧ̷̧̲̼̙̹̙̀̀̅̂̈́͘m̸̨̨̤͕̖͕͎̒̿͆̽̾ę̷͚̫̀͑̑͆͝ͅl̷͍̮̲͈͓͍͐è̷͑̅͊̀̚͜s̶̛̜̺̳̺̻̣̑̽͌͑̕s̸̢̥̖͎͈̐͌͒̃̓̔͘͜ ̵̡̟̞̥̼̎ͅŎ̸͚͇̠̟̱̏͜ṉ̷͂ę̷́͑͝ ̴̛̣̂͑͆̍̕͝s̶̨̜̙͍͚̉ͅh̷̤͙̕a̵̞̟͎̜͋͘l̵̦̬̘̹̦͚͋͑̑̒̾̆ͅl̵̰͉̙̰̙̤͂̊̇̃̀ ̵̨̦̑̇͒͆̅͐s̵̢̢̬̯̝͐̆̍̈́͛̀ơ̴̪͛̆o̵̮̽̅͋̃̇͊n̶͕̅̑̾́̎͋̊ ̵̡̧̹͕̝̱̽̓͛̎̔b̵̡̝̯͓̈̒̆e̴̝̭̹̱̙̐̇͐ ̴̡̛̮͚͇̑͑̽͝f̸̟̿̄̃͆̚͝rẻ̸͎̲̍̀̒̋́ë̸̟̻͚̬͔́͊́ͅ!̵̗͇̲͇͝

The Potato Lab: Talking about writing with a terrible, horrible fanfiction author (me!)

Spuddies here, I wrote this on May The 4th... Star Wars day, as in May The 4th Be With You. I'm here to discuss four questions which will be both relevant to my fanfiction projects, and to any original projects (which I hope I can share with people online, because I have a really hard time getting anything significant done.) Also, I wanna discuss inspiration, which is very important to any author, professional or not.

1: When will SH50k Wave 1 be finished?

Since I consider it my most prized fanfiction work, the ultimate science fantasy kitchen sink battlefield simulator, I'll probably be done with Wave 1 by the end of 2023, if I choose to put all my spare time into it.

2: Are there any other upcoming fanfictions to churn out? The Genshin Impact Zelda crossover was canceled.

Yes, plenty of them. Here's a list:

For starters, I almost certainly will be planning on rebooting Legend of Genshin when Tears of the Kingdom comes out. It'll be taken in a different direction, though.

Dreamforge: Journey To Imaginationland

Remember that South Park episode of the same name? Well, this is an anthology of stories that goes out of its way to mock, parody and criticize every single fictional universe I can think of. Expect a lot of fandom nerd trivia and filthy jokes and offensive memes.

Avatar: Hammer of the Elements

What happens when the Imperium of Man from Warhammer visits the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender? Insanity will ensue, and the story will follow the lives of Aang, Katara, Sokka, Zuko and Toph as adults, who have become commanders of the Imperial Guard, in a regiment made up solely of Benders. Will their supernatural martial arts skills prove to be useful in the eyes of the Emperor's servants? Who knows!

Project Entropy:

A grand crossover of works of fiction that have commented on environmental issues and the declining health of our sickened planet, which is probably already doomed to die if you ask me. Still, I wanted to point out why people still care, and so I put together everything from the Lorax and Captain Planet to Final Fantasy 7, Michael Vey, that one game where pigs farm humans, and Avatar (both James Cameron's movies and the one by Nickelodeon.)

Bravo, PETA, you gave me an idea for creative writing. And that's sincere, by the way. As for the name of the crossover, the word "entropy" means "decline into disorder or chaos." Which certainly describes the whole climate change and overall ecological crisis of the 21st century.

Captain America: Power of the Patriot

Think of the Spider-Verse, but for Captain America, and with military men from all over the country with enormously varied and diverse backgrounds. I have EIGHT different versions of Captain America written down somewhere, and YES, I KNOW, the superhero genre is overdone as hell. I'll address that issue later.

Godzilla NES Creepypasta: Zenith's Wrath

The ultimate battle of demon destroyers, facing off against the powers of Hell. Based on the bestselling video game creepypasta, but with other characters besides Godzilla, Mothra and the rest of the classic Kaiju. Who is here to kill demons, fiends and devils, you ask? None other than Tanjiro Kamado, John Constantine, Bayonetta, Dante, Guts, Ruby Rose, Kaldor Draigo, and of course, the Doom Slayer.

3: What original works have you put out or at least planned? Do you ever talk about your actual life apart from fanfiction?

Can't give you any of my personal information or big details about my life, I wanna stay anonymous and faceless. Spuddies is just a fried, potato-flavored avatar meant to be cranking out crazy stories for the sake of entertainment, nothing more. But I do have original content ideas from time to time.

Such as:

A Crowded Universe:

Think what would happen in history if the Moon, Mars AND Venus were ALL habitable. And if interstellar travel wasn't so difficult to achieve. We're talking about a full-blown "imperialism and colonization in space" scenario, woe be to alien civilizations in our way.

There will be interstellar expeditions parodying Lewis and Clark, space piracy resembling what happened in the Spanish Main, colonial wars akin to the American Revolutionary War and the Native Americans' battle for survival, and of course, massive ecological devastation.

The Elemental Chronicles:

Not the most creative name, and not the best attempt at epic fantasy, but I'm putting it up here nonetheless. Imagine if the Four Nations from Avatar were represented by European countries (or perhaps colonial New World countries) instead. It would make for a lot of interesting worldbuilding, and martial arts wouldn't be the sole way of channeling a magic system.

I'm carefully studying the history and culture of countries like Brazil, Mexico and Argentina as well as Canada and the United States to make sure I can understand what I'm doing here with this ATLA spin-off concept.

The Limit Breakers:

Are you tired of DC and Marvel dominating the superhero genre? Do you want more stuff in the same "indie dev comic book" category as The Boys, My Hero Academia and Invincible? Well then this one's all for you!

Limit Breakers takes place in a timeline when superhuman powers and mutations have slowly but surely started to manifest in certain humans over the course of history, and it just gets more common as time goes on. Tall tales like those about John Henry, Paul Bunyan, Johnny Appleseed, and even Chuck Norris are completely rooted in reality, and a whole cast of other heroes and villains is bound to show up and clash in an earthshaking battle. What will you use your newfound powers for? How will you break your limits?

In other news, regarding the status quo of the world in this alternate universe, the Soviet Union becomes the United States' closest ally just after WW2, when Stalin is overthrown by a new rebellion of capitalist pigs, who set out to rebuild their once glorious country and make it rise from the ashes of war... but a bunch of other countries become Communist regimes to even things out, so America and Russia won't have it all easy as the dominant nations on the globe.

The P.F (Peregrine Falcons) Squad:

Precisely what happens when you watch Spy Kids and read N.E.R.D.S (National Espionage, Rescue and Defense Society, it's a good series,) and you also want to also jump on the bandwagon of making kids into secret agents. Except it's more like Kim Possible because all my characters in this tale are older teenagers, whereas the characters in N.E.R.D.S were between 11-13 years old.

4: What is the primary source of inspiration you've had to write on the fanfiction platform?

I really can't say. There's no one chief source.

Starhammer 50k is as ridiculous and over-the-top as it is because I watched some YouTube videos editing the final battle scene in Avengers: Endgame to literally include everyone. Entire legions of fictional heroes and villains trampling each other and causing multiverse-spanning mayhem. Watch the videos by Kuba Preisner, McSuperfly and ToxicFirepower if you wanna know what I'm referring to.

Then there's my personal wish that Genshin Impact wasn't a horrible gacha game with medicore gameplay mechanics... if Hoyoverse dropped the gacha focus, Genshin could be just as good as Breath of the Wild and other famous modern Zelda titles. That was what made me start writing The Legend of Genshin: A Tale of Two Heroes.

I also grew up playing Smash Bros and Kingdom Hearts, and after realizing how many fictional properties Disney owned, I thought a platform fighter would be the perfect way for the Mouse and company to succeed while also giving gamers the best possible experience.

But that hope went down the drain after seeing how badly Warner Bros Multiversus failed. I still wrote something about a Disney Smash Bros fic though, and shared it, it was otherwise unrelated to the much more popular works in the same basket.

Happy May The 4th and Revenge of the 5th! Also, it's been 40 years since Return of the Jedi was released.

Stay tuned for more.

Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

Chapter 3: 51st Millennium Barbecue

"What will food look like in the far future? How would alien lifeforms end up on our menu? Is there really a moon out there that's made of cheese? Those are wild but tantalizing prospects to think about, not just for actual chefs, but also for worldbuilding authors and speculative astronomers."

Read DND: Heroes' Feast, to learn more.

"That's the biggest damn tree I've ever seen! It looks even more stupendous and massive than the ones Ahsoka and I climbed on Kashyyyk!"

Anakin was just getting used to the look of megaflora on Pandora, in this case a 100-millennium old tree that was at least mile high and hosted an entire Na'vi village, which had been improved with biotechnology like organic metal alloys such as chlorophyte and shroomite, to make the hanging buildings more sturdy and fireproof.

"My Master is correct," Ahsoka added. "I remember scaling Wroshyr trees on the Wookiee home planet when the Confederate droid army attacked. Just by tapping into the Force, I can tell the Hometree makes Kashyyyk's most prodigious plants look minuscule by comparison."

On the talking point of big trees and other plants, Jake Sully had a wealth of knowledge to offer... some of it was secret information that no one apart from the Na'vi were supposed to know, since the natives of Pandora had never completely forgotten their deep connection to nature, even with the arrival of colonial powers and the introduction of advanced technology. Jake trusted his new friends, though, and so he told everyone this:

"Crazy thing is, the Hometree doesn't even come close to being the largest plant in the known multiverse, much less the largest living organism. Ever heard of Yggdrasil, the World Tree? Colonizers from the Republic have been exploring it for millennia, yet they were ordered by the Central Government of Coruscant to keep the expedition a secret from the rest of intergalactic society."

"Oh yes, PLEASE DO bring up the topic of the government keeping secrets," Master Chief replied. "We've all witnessed or heard of our fair share of suspicious activity associated with the Senate, and it scares even the likes of me... which is saying something."

Beidou finished the discussion by saying something everyone was ready to do after a long, burdensome and arduous journey:

"Let's eat! We can talk about politics later!"

The Na'vi of the Omaticaya clan roasted their meat in fire pits using wood planks gathered from smaller rainforest trees, in a manner not unlike prehistoric humans on ancient Coruscant, when Earthlings were just beginning to perceive their role and destiny in history.

There were also skewered vegetables of all kinds, many of them were bioluminescent and colorful even after being cooked, and even the former Separatist alien leaders were being catered to, with stewed krayt dragon tongue- a Hutt delicacy- being present on the table alongside a jug of bantha milk and a plate of Dagobah swamp croquettes.

While Anakin, Ahsoka, Jake, and John-117 (who had taken off his helmet) wolfed down their food following days of going without eating, Beidou was entertaining Neytiri's kids with her breathtaking acrobatic skills, which she had learned in the Jedi Temple's gymnasium and obstacle courses. Even Lo'ak and Spider were impressed by the Tau girl's performance, and the two brothers were constantly competing in athletic endeavors.

"You think this short Jedi girl could be better at climbing rock walls than me?," Spider asked his sibling.

"I wouldn't doubt it," Lo'ak said. "I was told she was very gifted in parkour, and grew up in Galactic City on Coruscant. She's practically an urban ninja."

Beidou came down from the tree canopy she had just leapt into, and told Lo'ak and Spider, "Are you gonna keep talking, or are you gonna show me your moves?"

One moment, Ahsoka noticed something strange in her taro root skewer, and remarked on it:

"Is this a crispy cockroach in my dinner?"

"Just eat it," Jake told her, "people are starving en masse in the hive cities, they'd kill for this kind of grub!"

Then things got uncomfortable when the Confederate representatives arrived for dinner- here comes Jabba the Hutt, accompanied by General Grievous and Nute Gunray, a rather infamous trio.

Anakin braced himself for a fight when Grievous made eye contact with him, and Ahsoka and Beidou did the exact same. The man, the myth, the legend, he was a Jedi KILLER.

Beidou in particular remembered when the merciless Confederate general sadistically tortured, mutilated and murdered Aalya Secura, the decorated Twi'lek Jedi Master, who had been practically like an older sister to her, teaching her almost everything she knew and inspiring her to stand for what is right. And he did this right in front of her.

She wanted to run Grievous through with her green lightsaber, but knew that would be a suicidal notion, because she would be totally outmatched in a duel, and so she restrained her burning anger and deep hatred- exactly what a Jedi should do, at least according to the code. But how could you forgive a person who sinned so unrepentantly and so gleefully?

Anakin and Ahsoka kept their distance from Grievous, but eventually Anakin felt like saying something, since he had previously been involved in multiple fights to the death with him before being transferred to Hoth.

"What exactly are you doing here? Jabba and Nute Gunray actually have some semblance of talent in diplomacy, but you're just a mass murderer without any additional role."

"Well then, pot meets kettle!," Grievous spat. "Look at your Republic. Its political structure is rotten from the inside out. Leaders are almost never held accountable for their actions, and the war effort only serves to give Palpatine and his imperialist cohorts more power! Democracies aren't ever overthrown... they're given away. That's a lesson you should learn, kid. Maybe the enemies we're fighting on the outside are secretly in league with the people on the inside."

"A fair observation, General," Nute Gunray said. "Speaking of hypocrisy, I lately came upon a plot by Republic military leaders to invade some backwater planet known as Kaurava, because apparently there's a person known as the Avatar living there who does crazy martial arts to cast magic, like a natural upgrade over the Force. Any means necessary, right? You Loyalists are guilty of the same crimes as us Separatists."

While stuffing his face with the Dagobah croquettes, Jabba the Hutt felt the urge to make a lewd comment on Beidou's revealing choice of outfit, because he's a massive pervert. Not only that, but the space mafia boss wanted to say something that would REALLY get on her nerves. So he did it, brilliantly.

Note: Jabba the Hutt can speak Common like everyone else in this scenario, unlike most scenes with him in Star Wars

"I didn't know Jedi Knights recruited prostitutes to be part of their ranks! Oh, wait. Aalya Secura was already there, and she got demolished by Grievous a while back. Good times. And look, Ahsoka Tano is part of this historic event too!"

Beidou and Ahsoka both lit their lightsabers in response to this offensive slander.

"Keep talking, and we'll cut off more than just your tail."

"Try it, bitch and bimbo!," Jabba jeered back.

"Grievous and I would recommend you to NOT test your luck," Nute Gunray said, trying to de-escalate the situation.

Thankfully, Neytiri and the Master Chief interrupted the squabble.

"Alright, everybody, sit down and SHUT UP! This is a place for rational discussion, not throwing around trivial and meaningless ad hominem insults."

"You heard him. If we want to talk serious status quo, we need to cooperate, and stay focused and disciplined. Nobody is killing each other tonight. Remember, this dinner invite is for diplomacy."

The group calmed down, and they began realizing that "acting the mickey" hadn't really solved any problems.

...An outcome that seemed a little too good to be true. It didn't take long for the barbecue peace treaty to be rudely interrupted by a massive explosion that came from Hell's Gate, one that shook the ground and made the air very hot, even though the Hometree was at least 30 miles away from the spaceport.

Anakin had a very bad feeling about this turn of events.

"Did that blast come from the one thing I was afraid of when we got here? I didn't want to bring it up, but now it's too late for small talk!"

"What's he referring to?," Beidou asked.

Jake was irritated at her not acknowledging the obvious details.

"You IDIOT! Didn't you notice the big black obsidian COCK that was poking out of the center of Hell's Gate? It's right there for everyone to see!"

"Why were we researching it, exactly?," Ahsoka asked. "And did the scientists know something like this would eventually happen?"

"There's only one way to find out," Master Chief told her.

Anakin gave the orders on who went where, since he was the highest ranking Republic officer present and a Jedi as well.

"Jake, Neytiri, you'd best steer clear and protect your kids, and the former Separatists might be too cowardly to help us anyway, so they're staying here. Beidou, Ahsoka, and the Chief will accompany me en route to Hell's Gate. We better prepare for the worst."

"Who you calling coward, Jedi?," Grievous hissed.

"I'll take my statement back if you come with us," Anakin spoke softly.

That offer perplexed the cyborg general, since he had sworn to never fight alongside the Jedi ever again, and he didn't want to break his oath, yet he didn't want to live with being labeled as a coward. He didn't say anything else.

With that settled, Anakin and three of his fellow patriots hopped in their Jedi turbo speeder, and drove off into the jungle towards the now rapidly burning structure of Hell's Gate, which had become very literal in a naming sense.

Master Skywalker hoped there would still be survivors of the unexplained conflagration who could explain to him what the deal was with the ancient pitch black pillar, but inside he knew that asking questions was pointless, since it was extremely evident that the source of the danger was right smack dab in front of him.

What transpired inside the inferno would bring about the most alarming revelation since the siege of Hoth... and the latter had nothing to do with the black monolith itself.

One step closer to an ugly, terrible truth.

Episode 4: Welcome To The Jungle

Chapter 4: An Infernal Truth

In the preceding chapter, we observed a diplomatic banquet with Separatist guests, which was suddenly and dramatically interrupted by a freak firestorm coming out of nowhere and laying waste to Hell's Gate (the Republic's biggest spaceport on the moon of Pandora.)

Anakin and company feared the worst, speculating that the scientists at Hell's Gate had been messing around with unknown forces that mortal sentient beings were never meant to comprehend, and that the black obelisk in the central district of the base was the root cause of the problem. Whether or not this paranormal event was related to the supposedly extinct evil practice of channeling the "Dark Side of the Force" was still a question up for debate.

But what General Skywalker and his colleagues would discover in the scorched, dusty, slimy ruins of the base would prove to be more horrifying and insidious than anything they could possibly imagine.

Cue music: Godzilla NES Creepypasta- Red Chase Theme

"Oozing tentacles and rotten fungi everywhere? If only I hadn't seen that a dozen times! Seems like another case of the Upside Down..."

Anakin had seen the characteristic look of eldritch horror taint before, so he knew what to be on guard for. Beidou and Ahsoka kept their lightsabers ignited, while the Master Chief dual wielded submachine guns, ready to open fire on any monster that came around the corner. Still, even though the Mind Flayer and its army of Demogorgons was a well known and frequently researched threat to the Republic, practically nobody was aware of the true extent of the Upside Down's corruption.

Master Skywalker, like everyone else, had initially assumed the Mind Flayer was the main kingpin in control of the tainting process, and believed that the Upside Down wasn't very high on the list of enemies of liberty to be prioritized. How wrong he was...

As the four heroes progressed deeper into ground zero, they came across dead bodies of clone troopers and scientists which had disgusting fungal fruiting bodies growing out of them.

Anakin, Beidou and Ahsoka all choked and gagged on the putrid clouds of spores which were becoming thicker by the second, and if it hadn't been for Chief handing them gas masks, they would've succumbed to the same horrific infection that had claimed the lives and souls of the personnel at Hell's Gate. Within half an hour, the team had reached the black obelisk.

Oddly enough, though, there were no Demogorgons or any other kind of aberration in sight. The remnants of the base were apparently, completely silent and empty- until the Jedi's Force senses kicked in, warning them of danger just SECONDS before it struck.

A high ranking clone trooper who the party recognized as Commander Semicolon rabidly attacked Beidou with a silenced chainsword in his hands, but got a roundhouse kick to the chest in return, breaking his ribs, puncturing a lung and paralyzing him.

His helmet came flying off from the force of the blow, too, and Anakin and friends were shocked to see that the trooper had turned into an Ork, with the trademark luscious green skin, red eyes and pointed ears of the infamous barbaric beast race.

Ahsoka started to question her sanity when she saw this.

"The most genetically stable humans ever known, the spawn of Jango Fett, mutating all of a sudden and turning into Orks? What kind of madness is the multiverse coming to?"

Then the heroes heard the voice.

"You speak as if madness is a bad thing. No, no, can't you see? It's all a monstrous, demented gag... your morals, virtues and life itself are all meaningless."

"WHO SAID THAT?," Master Chief shouted, expecting the Flood (maybe the Gravemind?) to show up.

After a few seconds passed, he realized the sentence came from the black obelisk, exactly what Anakin had warned everybody about. Beidou and Ahsoka felt fear... but not the typical kind. No, this was fear of the unknown, the strongest fear of all.

"Why do you keep fighting? Your cause is doomed to fail, and all will fade away given enough time. History shows that every unity eventually breaks or changes. There is no one ideal that suits every single person. Soon, you'll see the truth..."

Then Anakin dared himself to ask a question to the eldritch abomination that had somehow wound up inside of the pillar of darkness... and immediately regretted the answer.

"Who are you, really?"

"Since you have the audacity to ask that, I'll give you my whole story."

"I am the thing that haunts your nightmares and pulls the strings of entire nations from the shadows. I am the one who will awaken the Nameless Evil and bring petrifying fear into the hearts of even the most stoic and valiant. I am the first host of a rapidly spreading pathogen that is corrupting your entire pitiful, pathetic Republic, and destroying it from within. The multiverse will know no rest for a billion years once my goals have been achieved. Tell your allies and leaders everything you have heard... SEE IF THEY BELIEVE YOU! Your fate is set in stone, and there is no stopping the inevitable. The Dark Side will RISE AGAIN."

And with those last few words, the ruins fell silent once more, and the four witnesses were left speechless. The obelisk had straight-up vanished, too.

Following the close encounter with an unknown cosmic horror, Master Chief proposed a next course of action.

"Should we try to find a way off-world and tell the Senate about everything we heard? I recorded it all in my helmet's comlink system. Who do you think that was, speaking from inside the pitch black spire?"

"I don't know who from the Upside Down spoke to us and caused Hell's Gate to become literal," Beidou said. "But we should mention this instance to our leadership as soon as possible."

"Isn't that what our new enemy wants?," Anakin replied, doubting if passing on the information was the right thing to do.

Later...

It took hours of searching through the desolate rubble that was once Pandora's only spaceport, but Anakin and his crew eventually did find an untouched Theta-class shuttlecraft to ferry them to Alpha Centauri, the United Galactic Republic's secondary capital next to Coruscant in the Sol System. The Senate just HAD to listen, because treason was one of the most heinous crimes a politician could commit, and nobody wanted to be caught and prosecuted.

Note: In this story, Pandora is located in a totally different star system than Alpha Centauri, its parent gas giant, Polyphemus, orbits a white main sequence star instead of ACA and ACB, 50 light-years from Terra/Coruscant.

However, when Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, Vice President Malcador, Prime Minister Jacob Keyes and a bunch of Senators received information of a twisted conspiracy rooted in the Republic's highest seats of government, from Anakin Skywalker of all people, they burst into nervous laughter and dismissed the conversation, as if they were trying to hide something.

Anakin and company flat-out ignored this detail, which wasn't wise, and when Neytiri and Jake Sully, both Republic Army veterans, accused the politicians and bankers of covering something up, they were escorted out of the room by armed guards.

General Grievous and his accompanying former Confederates brought up the idea once again during a meeting with the Jedi Council, to which Yoda grimly concluded:

"Only begun, the war has. Trust no one, we must."

And to everyone's shock, Grievous agreed with the Jedi.

EPISODE 4 END

Make sure to leave a review, so I can improve my fanfiction and address any problems with my writing!

I'm pretty sure you all know who was controlling the pitch-black obelisk/pillar/spire of Odium. He'll be out on a major battlefield for everyone to see in Episode 6, the FINALE, using the power he obtained from the Obelisk of Odium.

Next time on SH50K: Episode 5: The Avatar's Wrath

Additional Lore Chapters: Skyborn Drop Troops expansion, Biomes of the Milky Way Galaxy

Episode 5: The Avatar's Wrath

Chapter 1: The Bender Busters

Oh boy, you ordinary civilians thought the Republic was always playing the good guy? Think again! The Confederacy existed for a reason, after all, and in any diverse society full of differing opinions, there is bound to be some form of dividing and problematic prejudice. Even 50,000 years in the future, the idea of a perfect utopia is EXTREMELY unrealistic.

This time around we're gonna be looking at an example of how the United Galactic Republic engages in cruel imperialism solely for the sake of profit, while silencing people who protest against the atrocities.

What gave me the motivation and ideas to write this part of Starhammer 50k? Well, there's been a lot of talk about where the story of Avatar: The Last Airbender will continue, and if a sequel will live up to the standards of the beloved and legendary animated series.

But that's for discussion another time.

Today we will be asking the question, "What happens when the world of Avatar collides with Star Wars, Warhammer, and other sci-fi universes?"

To make a long story short, it isn't going to end well for the Gaang, and something very unfair and unjust will happen to the Four Nations. Keep in mind that Aang and friends are all adults by now in this timeline.

Enough procrastinating, let's get on with the epic tales.

-Aboard The Dragon Reborn, Resurgent-Class Battlecruiser-

-Currently in high orbit above the backwater civilized planet of Kaurava-

The Galactic Republic Navy's (GRN's) 101st Expedition Fleet, commanded by Jedi Grandmaster Mace Windu himself, had entered orbit around an uncharted planet completely devoid of outside influence not long ago. And "devoid of outside influence" emphatically meant that this world had never developed technology necessary for faster-than-light travel, much less the capability to launch artificial satellites.

Yet as Master Windu did his research, while holding a hologram chat with Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, he discovered that this isolated world, the planet of Kaurava, actually had numerous people in its civilization practicing a unique magic system which allowed for kinetic manipulation of the elements, through martial arts, very similar to the most physical doctrines of harnessing the Force.

This physically demanding and militaristic magic was dubbed simply as "Bending" by the native people of Kaurava, and Benders came in an incredible variety, manipulating the elements of water, earth, fire, air, and possibly others, to form a rigid class of warriors.

Perhaps the most fascinating discovery surrounding the art of Bending was the existence of an individual known as the Avatar, who was continuously reincarnated by an unknown spiritual power, with hundreds of past lives, for the purpose of keeping the world in balance and protecting those who couldn't help themselves.

But the only way to gather more valuable information (and maybe coerce Kaurava into joining the Republic) was to land on the planet and talk to the leaders of its four great nations.

The following hologram chat is between Mace Windu and his temporary advisors, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi:

"This place will have great potential if it becomes part of the Republic, Skywalker and Obi-Wan. But we must try to do things peacefully instead of immediately resorting to violence."

"I'm not so sure these folks would be willing to join us, Master Windu, even if we show them the benefits. Violence is always an option, or at least that's what many people have told me."

"Careful what you wish for, Anakin. We have already suffered enough from wars beyond count. Obi-Wan, what is your stance on this matter?"

"Perhaps a compromise can be reached. The natives keep their sovereignty, but the Republic establishes diplomatic ties with their government and shares advanced technology to those willing to make use of it."

"That doesn't sound half bad, Kenobi! Though I am taking precautions in case this diplomatic mission gets dangerous."

To begin the expedition, Master Windu and a bunch of mercenary soldiers and Republic Senators boarded a modified LAAT-I (Low Altitude Assault Transport, Infantry) dropship, which was outfitted to operate in planetary orbital space. They then took off and chose to land just outside of Ba Sing Se, the capital of the Earth Kingdom, where the Avatar and his companions were having an important diplomatic meeting of their own...

Walking through the streets, as a citizen of Ba Sing Se, you'd expect these outsiders from the great beyond to be attracting a lot of eyeballing and scrutiny, since they were dressed in attire that nobody in the Avatar world had ever seen before, and some of them were clearly not even human.

But little did you know, these people were the heralds of a colonial invasion from the stars that would bring the world to its knees... well, let's see what the Gaang has to say about it. It's not their first time tangling with imperialist forces.

Next chapter will introduce Mace Windu's entourage, who are about to cross paths with Team Avatar!

Episode 5: The Avatar's Wrath

Chapter 2: There Are No Aliens In Ba Sing Se

"People may die, nations may rise and fall, but ideas will live on."

-Words of wisdom from a certain US President

On the last chapter of this grimdark Clone Wars knock-off, where dozens of sci-fi and fantasy universes have been thrown into the meat grinder, Jedi Master Mace Windu arrived on Kaurava, the planet where Avatar: The Last Airbender takes place, bringing a handful of diplomats with him to the Earth Kingdom's capital, as well as a few clone troopers in case anyone in Ba Sing Se attacks the party out of xenophobia.

His primary objective appears to be establishing a diplomatic alliance between this feudal world and the United Galactic Republic, which is a massive, bloated empire of its own, (consisting of tens of millions of star systems,) just barely able to keep its democracy functional and ethical without devolving into authoritarianism.

But you'd be foolish to believe that the Jedi in this era are all about being peaceful, cooperative and honest. Exceptions have been made before. What will Master Windu do if the natives stubbornly resist?

"I don't like the way they're looking and pointing at us," a clone trooper said to the stoic Jedi, taking note of the locals, who were either awestruck, fearful or curious as to where these foreigners came from. They had seen the dropship descend from orbit in a ball of fire, a sight they didn't quite know how to comprehend, the impact of advanced technology eons ahead of anything on their planet.

Mace Windu merely shook his head. "Just ignore them, the real problem will be getting an audience with the Avatar."

As they progressed deeper into the city, the diplomats were met with increasing amounts of visible distrust, to the point where people began to actively avoid them.

"Now it looks like they're scared of us," the Twi'lek marshal called Cham Syndulla remarked.

"They have reason to be," Rodian Senator Onaconda Farr mentioned.

"Quit your yapping," Mace Windu told both of his colleagues. "See those stairs? We're almost there, so save your chit-chat for the Avatar and his followers."

At the Earth Monarch's Palace, in the center of the city:

The Republic's representatives stood before the most important building in Ba Sing Se, the palace that served as the personal residence of the current Earth King, Kuei, as well as a temporary place for Avatar Aang and company to stay overnight as important guests. There were important discussions between historic figures about the future of the world currently underway.

Little did these people know, their future was soon to be crushed under the boot of colonial troops from outer space.

"So this is where the local monarch resides," Syndulla said, while admiring the architecture.

"Looks like he's compensating for something, judging by the size and colors," uttered Senator Farr, who couldn't help but chuckle a little.

Windu strolled up to the single spear-carrying soldier guarding the front door of the palace, who did his job predictably, but immediately freaked out when he saw the aliens and clone troopers standing next to the dark-skinned human from deep space.

"Halt!," the guard shouted. "This is a private and restricted area! ...Wait a minute, who are those two hideous THINGS escorting you? And are those six things really men made of iron?"

In response, Windu utilized a signature Jedi gimmick so his entourage could get inside without complications.

"Actually, this isn't a private and restricted area."

"This isn't a private and restricted area."

"You will let us go about our business."

"You can go about your business."

"And you will apologize for being so rude and calling my friends things."

"I'm sorry for labeling your friends."

The guard let the intruders through without a second thought. Following this, the clones were left in awe, wondering what kind of Force power Master Windu had used to hypnotize the gatekeeper.

"How'd you do that?," another trooper asked.

"It's pretty simple, a Jedi mind trick. Any Force user can learn it easily, but there's a catch: You can only hypnotize people into forgetting their most recent actions or into performing relatively simple tasks."

Later, inside the palace's dining room:

Avatar Aang and his companions were exchanging views on how the Four Nations' governments should be run, how their leaders should be held accountable for their actions, and what to do when Aang finally died and the next Avatar arrived. Meanwhile, the Earth Monarch, Kuei, was busy taking a nap, because he had already discussed matters with his guests.

The chivalrous team included the Last Airbender himself, as well as Katara, Sokka, Toph, Zuko, Suki, and their noble steed Appa of course.

Their conversation for the past few minutes:

Sokka: Like I said before, our main intention should be to make sure something like the Hundred Year War never happens again.

Suki: What about preparing for the next Avatar's reincarnation, though? That's the tricky part, since Aang could possibly die in battle one day... and we don't know when that'll happen. After all, there are still remnants of the Fire Nation's imperial army hidden across the world, planning to rise up. We mustn't falter in our vigilance.

Aang: You don't have to worry, Suki, I can handle a bunch of terrorists quite easily by now!

Katara: Well, if you DID die earlier than expected, people would need to search the entirety of the North and South poles looking for the new Avatar, because they will be born into the Water Tribes.

Aang: Come on, give me some credit! I'm not dying anytime soon.

Zuko: In that case, our priority should be preventing another imperialist faction from gaining traction. I have faith in Aang's combat ability, and he's the Avatar, so you don't have to lose your cool thinking he'll fall.

Toph: Wait a second, I feel footsteps! Someone else is in the palace!

Katara: An assassin?

Suki: I'm on guard!

It was then that Mace Windu and his band of ambassadors came out of the shadows and made themselves visible to the Gaang.

"Who are these creepy looking strangers?," Sokka said loudly.

"They look like they came from another planet!," Katara added.

"Indeed, we hail from other worlds out there," Senator Onaconda Farr mentioned, taking note of what Katara said.

"What do you want?" Aang asked. "We haven't ever seen aliens before, and you can't just barge into this palace without getting an invitation first."

"Yes, tell us!," insisted Toph. "You're from beyond the stars, so tell us why you came here, and what your intentions are! This is a moment that changes everything for our world."

Mace Windu took everything being said into consideration. Then he gave Team Avatar a question that would go down in history:

"Would you like to become part of something bigger and more significant than your petty squabbles, such as our Galactic Republic?"

If you're reading this, please consider telling me what's wrong with the fanfiction material I'm writing. Recently, I chose to write a Starhammer 50K episode talking about what would happen if my multiversal version of the Galactic Republic invaded the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

A few people have had a negative reaction to my newest episode, "The Avatar's Wrath," some of them have stopped following the story altogether, and they just don't leave a review or any sort of criticism on the subject. The last review I got for SH50K was back in 2022.

Because nobody is informing me of my errors, or leaving any reviews, I don't know why people are ceasing to support my crazy crossover stories. Which is a shame, because this is just something I do in my spare time for fun.

Since people don't really like this new episode of my multiverse anthology, I'm probably going to skip to the finale, Episode 6, the Green Tide, in hopes that I can come up with something that will bring in more favorites, and hopefully someone will come along and give me some advice.

Maybe people were upset because I was going to subject the world of Avatar to a curb-stomp battle. I can understand this, I probably don't know enough about The Last Airbender's lore to make these statements and comparisons (I haven't watched the show in a very long time.)

Anyway...

Hopefully my next episode of SH50K will be better. It's the finale of my fanfic's first season, 2022-2023, so I need to think big and maybe come up with an epic speech, like the villainous monologue I made for my adaptation of Vecna from DND at the end of Episode 4.

Here comes the FINALE for Starhammer 50k Season 1! I'm about to make a milestone for my fanfictions!

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 1: Meet The Team... Again

Just when you thought things couldn't get worse for the United Galactic Republic... a series of unfortunate, ominous and baleful events culminates in what might be the most cataclysmic crisis to strike intergalactic democracy in hundreds of years. The true cost of heroism, the fear of the unknown, and the destructive nature of fungus will all be revealed in time to come. What's more, the mastermind of this unholy calamity is hidden in plain sight.

Now a disastrous ruin weighs upon us, but how did things get to this breaking point? You'll have to follow along and find out...

Current location:

-Gordasha, Republic Forge World-

Aboard the armored military space station Randland, in low orbit

At the forefront of supporting the United Galactic Republic's colossal war machine are its Forge Worlds- entire terrestrial planets, substantially bigger than the Coruscant-Terra standard, which have been entirely devoted to manufacturing all kinds of goods needed throughout interstellar society. Oftentimes they are covered in one giant globe-spanning city, an ecumenopolis, with a staggeringly massive population dedicated to working in its factories, industrial facilities and workshops.

These teeming masses of sapient beings can only be fed and cared for because of nearby worlds that are deliberately terraformed to be agricultural paradises, as well as providing everything else the citizens might need in their day-to-day lives.

Due to their paramount importance to the Republic, Forge Worlds utilize marvels of technology, science and magic unseen in most other places in the Milky Way and beyond.

This includes whole fortified cities that continuously move on tracks or legs (or float on antigravity cushions,) orbital elevators reaching from planetary sea level into the depths of space like gargantuan skeletal fingers, mineral refineries that process arcane materials containing the essence of life and death itself, (such as the Dust Crystals from RWBY and Materia from Final Fantasy,) munitions factories producing a veritable candy shop of destruction every day with hundreds of weapon patterns and brands to supply democracy's armies, energy-shielded space stations maintaining vigilance against invading enemy fleets by operating exquisite arrays of sensors, and chemical laboratories sorting out innumerable types of fluids and gases for equally innumerable practical purposes.

Yet even with the incomprehensibly vast amount of general productivity these planets output, they also have their own favored specialties in what they make and distribute. Ryza is renowned for its diverse selection of directed-energy weapons, Norrongard churns out endless lines of tanks, walkers, repulsorcraft and other armored ground vehicles, and Gordasha, the setting for today's valiant tale, excels at both quantity and quality, with the widest possible range of products.

It was widely feared that Gordasha would feel the ruinous wrath of the Republic's enemies, because of its significance in high-end manufacturing and vital position in the war effort. Everything from RWBY-style mix and match weapons to spaceship components and toilet paper was made here.

And that leads us to the path of the Jedi- well, a specific, very unorthodox Jedi Master, who is looking for clues behind something horrific he saw that could potentially doom democracy and liberty to extinction. His name is of course, Anakin Skywalker, and the first stop he made on his desperate quest was the space station Randland, currently in orbit above Gordasha.

Why here of all places, you ask? He believed the source of the voice he heard in the obelisk, whatever eldritch horror that spoke to him and his select few comrades, would definitely choose to target and strike at something like a valuable Forge World. Anakin wasn't going to fall for his enemy's trap by rushing to locate and confront the monster directly- he wanted to wait for his shadowy foe to make the first move, then take action in an unexpected way. Prep time was his key stratagem.

With his priorities set, Anakin wanted to make a measured, carefully thought-out analysis of the defenses surrounding Gordasha, and speak with the people that were in charge of the overall order of battle. Hopefully they were better prepared and organized than the armies he led at Hoth, which were squashed by the Covenant. That being said, however, asking for bastions sturdier than those on Hoth was a preposterous and outrageous request. How would anyone in the Republic Grand Army be able to meet that kind of standard?

Master Skywalker had to play things extra smart... but first, he had to speak with the people he was going to work with.

Shortly after parking his Jedi Interceptor inside one of Randland Station's five dozen different hangar facilities, he came across a guarded entrance doorway leading directly to the command center of the space station, via elevator.

Two Lizardmen in bulky plate armor, carrying general-purpose machine guns, were standing watch, and they both tensed up when they saw Anakin.

"Halt! No unauthorized perssssonel may enter this part of the sssstation!"

All the Jedi had to do was pull out his lightsaber and ignite it, to signify his authority and high position in the Republic's armies.

"That's all the evidence I needed to ssssee, you're clear to enter!," the second reptilian brute said. "By the way, Beidou sssstoped by earlier, you could ask the troopas where she's headed."

Anakin grimaced when he heard the last words that came out of the guard's mouth. He had specifically ordered the female Tau to not follow him. But he quickly changed his stance on this, because honestly, he needed as much help with his mission as he could get.

"Wait, Beidou was here? I thought I told her to stay out of this investigation of mine! She was supposed to be tasked with training Padawans in swordsmanship back at the Capitol! Then again, she's a valuable asset, and it's inevitable that other people will have to know the details about the voice we heard in the depths of Hell's Gate..."

He then proceeded to the command center, where he was going to meet some very... interesting people who were in charge of operations aboard Randland. "Interesting" was an understatement of the highest order, though, because this was no ordinary team of super soldiers, like the Spartan-2s, Astartes, or even Mandalorians.

These were members of the Crimson Jaegers, professional mercenaries solely employed to protect Forge Worlds. Think Vox Machina from Critical Role DND, only with different characters from wildly varying franchises.

And in fact, one of them was indeed a half-elf Druid who maintained a gigantic greenhouse aboard the station (that provided the crew with sustenance.)

"Anakin Skywalker," Keyleth said. "What business do you have coming here? Are you looking for the Tau who just left 3 hours ago? Because she's busy recruiting Jedi to bring back to our space station."

"So then she already knows why I'm staying here," the veteran Jedi replied. "We both think Gordasha will eventually be the target of a massive attack conducted by the Republic's worst enemies. I'm here to conduct a survey of the Forge World's defenses."

"Well, in that case, we might want to show you around the place, and introduce you to my comrades."

The command and control center of Randland Station was effectively the brain that ran Gordasha's orbital bulwarks against invasion. Dozens of Yordles- those furry gremlins from the League of Legends game setting with exceptional skill in engineering- managed the computer consoles which in turn helped funnel and coordinate data through a star-system-wide battle network.

Keyleth's comrades were the ones giving the Yordles orders. And thus we must go through another session of "Meet The Team" in the manner of Team Fortress 2:

Thianna Frostborn, the stoic half-giant mercenary from the Thrones and Bones books by author Lou Anders (which also have a dedicated DND campaign setting) has returned from her trip to Faerun where she massacred demons alongside the Doom Slayer.

Noelle, the selfless shieldmaiden from Genshin Impact, is also returning from Episode 2, and she might actually have a use for the Atlas Battlemech she borrowed from House Steiner (one of the factions in Battletech.)

Sidon, the Zora Prince from Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Tears of the Kingdom, has joined the battle too! A plague of mud has struck his homeland, and he has reason to believe it is part of a greater threat coming from the stars. The Republic Grand Army hired him as a volunteer and agreed to help the kingdom of Hyrule with its problems.

Ziggs, the hairy chief of demolitions from League of Legends, is ready to blow his new foes to smithereens! He and several other influential Yordles departed from Bandle City on an interstellar journey to discover and then bring technomagical advancements back to the realm of Runeterra.

Thianna was the next person to engage in dialogue with Anakin, and she pretty much knew what he was thinking.

"Just so you know, we all received news of what happened on Hoth and what you went through. We aren't gonna make the same mistakes here, especially since this is a goddamn Forge World."

Anakin rolled his eyes in disbelief. He had clearly forgotten to learn from his failures, even though he promised to do so back on Hoth.

"Oh please. I took every step to ensure that Hoth was one of the most well protected worlds under our nation's governance. You're implying I did a bad job? The Covenant overwhelmed us with raw numbers! That wasn't my fault!"

"You should listen to Thianna," Ziggs said. "You know, her father was one of the Grand Army's highest ranking and most respected generals. She's got a lot of experience when it comes to overseeing an order of battle. What I do in explosives, she does for logistics and tactics."

"Alright," Anakin scoffed. "Lemme hear about the errors I made."

To Be Continued...

Author's note: Sorry about the lack of updates for the fanfiction I'm supposed to finish. I was sick and had to take a hiatus for a while. But SH50K Wave 1 is my main priority, so I gotta finish this episode and complete the story. Then I'll move on to other stuff, most likely.

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 2: Robert Jordan's Space Station (because the realm of Randland is where the Wheel of Time takes place)

Thought of the day:

"There is no good without evil, but evil must not be allowed to flourish."

Anakin Skywalker's quest to save his beloved democracy from an unknown, yet somehow near-omnipresent malevolent threat has brought him to a planet of imperative importance to the Republic war effort: Gordasha, a place responsible for producing weapons, armor and vehicles of exemplary quality and value.

He expects the factory planet to be the ideal target for an all-out-attack orchestrated by the Republic's enemies. As such, he demands that Gordasha's protectors do a better job than the people he worked with to fortify Hoth (back in Episode 3.) It's also worth noting that Randland Station serves as the effective hub of the Forge World's defenses.

However, the mercenary commanders running the operation, known as the Crimson Jaegers, (including Thianna Frostborn from Thrones and Bones, as well as Keyleth from The Legend of Vox Machina,) aren't having any of Anakin's shit, and explicitly inform him that they're more than ready for anything nasty that comes their way.

Also, it's worth noting that all the money the Jaegers make as soldiers of fortune goes to charity to help impoverished, struggling, war-torn worlds in need of emergency aid and help from first responders.

Here's the discourse regarding the status quo on Gordasha:

"On Hoth, you put all your eggs in one basket," Thianna told Anakin. "That's not the case on this Forge World of ours. We spread out our assets, so we wouldn't be overly dependent on one single fortified area."

She was going to give him a long lecture, so he wouldn't forget his fatal screwups so easily.

"All of your turbolaser batteries were installed in close proximity to each other, right next to the hive city HQ, with the fusion generator power source right out in the open, conspicuous for everyone to see! From what I recall, the Covenant first showed up at the outer edges of the Hoth system. If you stationed some of those pieces of heavy artillery on Hoth's neighboring planets, dwarf planets and large moons, then maybe most of the Covenant ships would've been destroyed or damaged early on!"

Noelle, the shieldmaiden Mechwarrior, also had something to say about Anakin's terrible tactics.

"Not to mention, you didn't even have any dedicated naval spacecraft protecting Hoth, except for Baroness Elsa's spelljamming ship! And the whole electronics system connecting the army's infrastructure together was extremely susceptible to hacking."

Then Sidon, the Zora Prince, pointed out a subtle detail that was still quite visible in the story: Anakin wasn't ever criticized, reprimanded or dishonorably discharged for unintentionally causing one of the Republic's biggest military defeats.

"The only reason you haven't been held responsible and punished by Republic High Command yet is because you're a Jedi, and the Jedi Knights hold almost absolute authority over our military... they don't get held accountable for messing shit up, EVER!"

Anakin sighed, embarrassed by the facts, and feeling ashamed and guilty for the deaths of his fellow warriors, now more so than ever.

He really did mess up badly. Because he was a Jedi, he had privileges that many of his comrades didn't. Now he needed to use that privilege to help out the best he could.

"You're both right. In this case, I deserve to lose my job. But because I can't legally lose my job, apparently, I have to find different ways of doing it. It's like what my old mentor Obi-Wan said: From failing, you learn. From success, not so much."

There was a brief silence, as the heroes sat in contemplation. However, there was much work to be done.

"In the meantime," Ziggs said, "you should check out the various facilities aboard this station. I've set up an entire armory called the Explosive Emporium, Sidon manages an aquarium that feeds everyone on board, Keyleth tends to a greenhouse whose plants and fungi can be processed into provisions, magic items and medicinal products, Noelle spends most of her time in the hangar where all the gnarly combat vehicles are, and Thianna, of course, has a training gym where she spends four hours a Terran day honing her spearmanship and mixed martial arts techniques."

After some time meditating in isolation to get in touch with the Force, Anakin agreed to go on a tour of Randland Station. His first stop was Ziggs' Explosive Emporium, an overdone armory and weapons storage area that the yordle took great pride in servicing.

The Emporium was little more than a modified bank vault, secured by a holographic combination lock on a nearly indestructible adamantium door. Only Ziggs and his fellow Jaegers knew how to open it, though he could give the password away to other people in case of a breach of the Forge World's security.

Master Skywalker was astonished by the sheer variety of destructive implements and tools of ruin kept in the Emporium, which was saying something, since the Jedi essentially run the Republic's whole military.

"Seriously? I know our job sometimes requires us to utilize every weapon at our disposal, but this is pushing my boundaries. This is OBSCENE. Who the hell keeps radioactive napalm bombs, dark matter lasers, and swarms of flesh-eating nanobots in their closet?"

Ziggs grinned maniacally.

"Hideous, horrifying war crimes and weapons of mass destruction are both necessary evils when you're dealing with Xenomorph infestations or hordes of demons and devils from the Nine Hells."

"What's the least dangerous armament you have in here?," Anakin asked.

In response, Ziggs tossed him a heavy black-and-gray colored canister container, which had a time-adjustable fuse on it.

"This is a Shroud Bomb," the yordle replied. "It's the most state-of-the-art, techno-magically advanced version of a common smoke grenade. Basically, it blocks or interferes with almost all kinds of senses, including vision, hearing, and smell, as well as perception and kinesthetic functions. Hell, it even messes with artificial senses like scanners, communication devices, navigation computers and sensors. And the best part? It doesn't even affect allied troops, only your enemies, because of the esoteric reality-warping magic involved in the detonation process. The only problem is that they're also exorbitantly expensive."

"Judging by what you told me, you should save the Shroud Bombs for when you really need them," said Anakin. "Anyway, I'll be paying Thianna a visit in the barracks."

At the training grounds (which double as a gymnasium)

Thianna Frostborn was twirling her halberd and sticking it into a reinforced training dummy when Anakin walked in.

"Oh, Master Skywalker! I didn't expect you to be staying around for much longer. I thought our criticism would get to you. But, since you're here, do you wanna see the features of this combat practice zone?"

"Sure. By the way, why do you use a polearm as your weapon of choice?"

"Well, this is gonna sound funny to you, but it's because I grew up in a community where everyone was twice my size. I was the only half human hybrid in a village full of frost giants. I got picked on and bullied a lot for being the smallest giant... it hurt, to say the least."

"Luckily, my ex-military frost giant dad taught me how to stand up for myself, and thanks to the training I received from him, I even got to take my school bullies down a peg. Which brings me to the reason why I wield a polearm as a soldier for hire: I craved having the long reach of a true giant."

Hearing this life story made Anakin proud of Thianna.

"Now that I know what makes you who you are, I can safely say that I will be honored to fight alongside you, on any battlefield we march upon. People who come face to face with death together develop stronger bonds than anyone else in the galaxy."

The giantess blushed at this.

"Oh, quit it with the compliments! You're putting my humility and humbleness at stake!"

"Can I see what this practice station can do now?," Anakin asked.

"It will be my pleasure to show you."

Thianna got out a remote control and pressed a green button, which unveiled a hidden compartment behind a wall, where all kinds of melee weapons were stored, both primitive and futuristic, with swords, spears and axes being displayed alongside lightsabers, phasers and elemental blades. A bunch of makeshift weapons were in there too, including a Qudditch Beater's Bat, a back scratcher, and a big shaft of well-treated durable wood.

"You can use any of these tools of war on the automaton training dummies I have set up. Be careful, though- the dummies can hit back, and can be surprisingly difficult opponents in sparring matches if their intensity setting is dialed up."

Anakin then fetched himself a sorcerous longsword that could switch between fire, lightning, wind, and ice damage types, and tested it on one of Thianna's robotic punching bags. He burnt the dummy's left arm off with a fiery slash, and kicked it in the chest, but it retaliated with a blindingly fast right arm swing that barely missed him. After dodging another blow, Anakin put the test subject down for good with a lightning-infused stab to its torso.

"You're impressive even for Jedi standards," Thianna remarked, praising how dynamic Anakin's swordplay was. "And not to toot my own horn, but I am a professional fighter with decades of experience, so I kind of have a right to positively judge your performance."

Anakin grinned.

"It's time for me to visit a different part of the space station we're on. I'm on a tour, and my next destination is Keyleth's greenhouse. She's a Druid, right? So the big-ass garden is probably the only thing keeping her from ditching everyone and going back to the woods."

"That could be true to some extent," Thianna said. "Tell Keyleth I said hello."

At the Dendronos Greenhouse:

From what Anakin heard, Keyleth was very shy, and also a warm and friendly person, but in times of war, she had an almost beastlike ferocity and thirst for violence, acting impulsively and often getting her fellow mercenaries in trouble. Despite this, she was a valued member of the Jaegers, since her talents included healing magic, shapeshifting and manipulation of the elements (the usefulness of which outweighed the potential negative consequences of her personal flaws.)

She resided in Dendronos Greenhouse, a much, much smaller version of the solar-system spanning biodiversity conservation area of the same name, which supplied all the breathable air, water, and other life support provisions aboard Randland Station.

"Welcome, Master Skywalker. What brings you to my verdant island nature preserve floating in an ocean of artificial materials and armored steel?"

Anakin was astounded by the sheer amount of iridescent flora surrounding him when he entered the room and started talking with Keyleth. It truly came in all colors, shapes and sizes.

"One question, first. How did you gather all this material and make it into a greenhouse?"

"It's simpler than you think. I just requested a bunch of reproductive samples from hundreds of different biomes, and my kin brought them to me for me to grow and raise here. The Druids from my home planet of Exandria are always gathering and cataloguing more and more forms of life across the multiverse. Obviously a task that will never be complete. And conservation of ecosystems is of crucial significance in a time when hive cities are destroying the biospheres of planets on a record scale."

"This sanctuary of mine contains tens of thousands of species of plants, fungi and coral, and the crazy thing is, it's actually considered a small refuge by the standards of the Druids. There are greenhouses that practically span whole planets and even whole solar systems."

Anakin walked around the greenhouse, and let his curiosity run wild. He took pictures of every plant, fungus and coral he could see, until his data slate had a thousand photos.

The conservatory had names of planets and parallel dimensions on signs attached to many of the flora specimens, including (this will be a long list, for the sake of worldbuilding)

The names of the planets and planes of existence are originally from the Minecraft mod Advent of Ascension.

Haven Islands- Rainbow oak leaves, havendales, daylooms (purple, yellow, cyan,) cyan haven grass

Dustopia- Dawn grass, Dawn stocks, Dawn bulbs, Dawn flowers, Dawn bushes, (color is almost black with some shades of grey)

Everlands- Blocky yellow, black, pink and purple colored leaves, black grass, vines, pixel bulbs and crystals

Ethereus- Ghost grass, ghost lilies, ethereal vines and bushes, spirit bulbs, ghostly oaks, ghoul canes, all shades of dark blue, black, turquoise and silver

Creeponia- Creeping grass, creep vines and flowers, bio-explosive trees, green and black colors

Shirelands- Gold and blue shire flowers, shire stocks and vines, turquoise and cyan leaves, golden wood

Aquarius Prime- Blue and red ocealites, green, yellow, red and gray waterweeds, green fungi, green tentacles, boreal stocks, glowing pink and green coral, blue coral, clear bubble leaves, feathered coral, white brain coral, red polyps, pink coral, green coral, yellow coral, orange coral

Mysterium- Rainbow grass, purple, orange, red, blue, yellow, and green giant timber mushrooms, heart fruits, magic marangs, azure thorns, bubble berries, deep blue mystic ferns, mystic brush

Vox Ponds- Green Vox shrooms, toxic resin wood, green glowing tentacles, blood spikes, eye bulbs

Precasia- Melumia trees (with purple leaves,) Domiguous and Ecuadon trees (with greenish-black and light green leaves,) pink Mellian and pertonia flower plants, cycade trees (with slightly dark green leaves,) Lucalus trees (with standard green leaves and pink fruits,) Stranglewood trees (with dark green leaves, thorns and vines,) tangle thorn bushes, lime green lucon grass

Gardencia- Blue lylip flowers, yellow daileers, garden rope grass, gigantic flowers in all colors, aqua and peach timber mushrooms and mushroom sprouts, thickened orange and purple swamp flowers

Celeve- Circus stocks and bulbs, in blue, red, purple, white, green and yellow, circus trees in the same colors

Barathos- Pinkish gray flake vines, Opollo trees with maroon-purple wood and leaves, purple lunalons, green and yellow floricals, sandy brown rosidons

The Deeplands- Deepshine glowing vines, bulbs and flowers, colored black and yellow, black and gray cave mushrooms, deep black bulbs, flowers, grass and bushes

Iromine- Silver and gold box leaves on golden, brown and black trees, gold flowers on dark gray lurchian and irotop plants, gold glass leaves

Lelyetia- Orange and dark orange stems, vines and wigglers, yellow churry and orange achony trees with white, orange and yellow leaves, green and lime green ancient vines, orange grass, slimy bright green and cyan grass, slimy lime green trees with slippery turquoise leaves, purple slime grass, gray bone plants

Lunalus- Pink and purple lunide and lunosso trees with similarly colored leaves, glowing pink astral blooms and purple tulips, grass that is various shades of pink and purple

The Abyss- Eyeball plants, shadow shrubs, blood pines, black shadicles, eyeball vines, blood vines, visceral tentacles, vein leaves, red tubicles, gore bulb stocks, red and orange eye shrubs

Runandor- All shades of blue, plants like rune bulbs, magias, and runic bushes, turquoise glass leaves on arcane blue and black trees

Playtopia- A rainbow of colors, on plants that resemble artificial objects, golden hanging vines with blue, yellow, red and green lights, blocky bushes, red grass with green, yellow and blue lights, golden-gray grass, green, orange and purple false plastic leaves and wood, crimson and indigo moss

Greckon- Haunted forests and flower fields with purple hues as well as brownish-black wood, skull-shaped bushes and fruits, glowing red eyeball vines, and violet ectoplasm moss

"Do your teammates take much interest in the field of studying and interacting with nature?," Anakin said, knowing the question was a bit sensitive.

Keyleth didn't get annoyed by it, proving his expectations right.

"I recommended it to them, but they seemed more comfortable working with their high-tech gadgets and convoluted magic systems. It's a real shame. Ironically, the only time they pay attention to the galactic ecosystem is when we're fighting a battle in some uncharted biome on a distant world."

"You'd think they'd see the source of our oxygen, food and life support as something worth their time," Anakin stated.

"Don't worry, it doesn't bug me THAT much," the Druid replied. "Go see Sidon next if you want further lessons in biology. Because he runs an aquarium on board, seafood's always on the menu for our personnel."

At the Aquaculture Center:

Prince Sidon of the Zora was occupied with refilling the nutrient solution in Randland Station's seafood supply tanks when Anakin came by to explore.

"My goodness, look who it is! So you've chosen to remain here, master Jedi. I apologize for shouting at you earlier... I just hope you're planning on making better critical decisions in the future. I'll admit, you're lucky the Senate didn't chastise you. Anyway, do you want to see what people on board this space station eat?"

"Haven't ever thought about it," Anakin mentioned.

Sidon guided the Jedi to the surface of a large artificial body of freshwater rich in nutrients and minerals, which was filled to the brim with multicolored lake coral, aquatic plants, and the fish and shellfish that relied upon them for survival.

Of particular note were the fish that had feathers on their fins, which came in various hues, including red, green, yellow, and blue. Sidon described why they were commercially valuable:

"You see those fish that look like they've been cross-bred with birds? Those are Fowlfins. Just like poultry, and dinosaur meat, Fowlfin is an incredibly versatile animal protein, and can be cooked in almost any way you can think of. Usually, we get pan fried feather filets alongside mixed rainbow greens and mushrooms from Keyleth's greenhouse as a standard meal."

"Should I try it?," Anakin wondered. "Does the diet of the fish affect its taste in the end?"

"Of course!," said Sidon. "Here, the Fowlfins are fed with oily, calorie-rich olives, seeds, nuts, and edible fungi. This increases the amount of healthy fats in their bodies, and when we fish them out and grill them, the fat turns into extra flavor. What you eat on board Randland Station is 99.9 percent better than anything most Republic soldiers and mercenaries eat."

Anakin felt his taste buds calling, but made a decision to hold off on eating for now.

"Sorry, I gotta go now, Sidon. Noelle is expecting a visit from me in the spaceport, someone has probably told her by now that I've always had a talent for engineering and fixing stuff."

"Stop by and grab some seafood if you're hungry!," Sidon said as the Jedi left.

And last, but not least:

Inside the vehicle garage of the station:

Noelle Youngblood, the courageous shieldmaiden from Mondstadt, was responsible for commanding the various armored ground vehicles, aerospace fighters, and nautical vessels that were stored inside Randland Station's enormous hangar bay.

She was busy working on her own personal customized deathmachine- an Atlas Battlemech dubbed as Lupus Boreas, the Wolf Of The North Wind.

When Anakin walked in, an ecstatic smile grew on her face.

"I just recently remembered what Beidou told me about you before she left. You're a total geek in the fields of mechanical engineering and vehicle design and operation. I even heard from her that you're one of the best pilots in the entire Galactic Republic. Is that really true?"

"I don't like to toot my own horn," Anakin said, "but my Jedi mentor and adoptive father figure, Obi-Wan Kenobi, would let me take charge of space battles because he hates piloting. And Beidou is a certified, professional critic too, especially when it comes to driving, sailing, flying, or repairing stuff. I've seen her build a flight computer and Magitek navigation system out of random garbage she found in a scrapyard."

Noelle was listening intently.

"Would you like to take a closer look at my mech? Lupus Boreas is one of the finest fighting machines ever built by the Galactic Knight Houses, specifically House Steiner. It has mechanical and sorcerous components you won't see anywhere else."

Anakin was already inspecting the walking weapon before she could finish her sentence. He climbed up a ladder and used the Force to levitate himself around the chassis to do a good deal of scrutiny. Then he had questions to bring forward.

"How'd you make an elemental Dust combustion engine operate in space? From what I've learned about magical fuels, Dust is useless outside the natural atmosphere of a planet. And why do you have so many historically priceless relic weapons from the Age of Technology, before the birth of the Republic, 40 millennia ago? So far I can see dark matter rifles, neutron lasers, nuclear radiation death rays, white phosphorus fireball shooters, repeating plasma cannons, gravity manipulation guns, an antimatter transformation beam, and whatever this suspiciously ordinary-looking broadsword actually is."

As predicted, Noelle had answers for the Jedi's observations.

"I've been helping to pioneer a way to make Dust function in space, in collaboration with several of Kuat Drive Yards' scientists and researchers. The arcane engine powering Lupus Boreas is a prototype and the first working product of their toils."

"With enough effort, this project can revolutionize how magic is used in the vacuum of space- do you understand the ramifications of that? There isn't any magic system currently capable of being utilized in the void with the same kind of versatility as Dust. If our experiments succeed, we'll end up with a tool just as useful, if not more useful, than the Stargates."

"As for the weapons on this puppy, I made sure Lupus Boreas was equipped with ancient weapons of historic significance, to better serve as a bastion of morale for educated warriors. Some of the armaments from antiquity, right before the God-Emperor founded his Galactic Republic, are also extremely potent and lethal even in comparison to anything created by the Forge Worlds today."

Anakin nodded with interest, understanding everything she was talking about.

But just as he was about to make a comment, and complete his tour...

A blaring alarm combined with flashing red lights caught the attention of everyone on board the space station!

Noelle's enthusiastic, friendly demeanor instantly shifted to a look of dread paired with feelings of trepidation.

"It's the Special Circumstances emergency alert. Something terrible with significant magnitude must be happening right now, otherwise this tone wouldn't be ringing- wait, Anakin?! What's happening? Why are you lying on the ground screaming like that?!"

Through the Force, he had seen something horrific, a gruesome crime against sapient beings that would drive any ordinary man insane.

When Anakin recovered from his seizure and the torturous vision in his head, he uttered the infamous words you might've heard in Episode IV: A New Hope. More specifically, the words his teacher and mentor voiced in an alternate timeline.

"I feel a great disturbance in the Force... as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced forever."

Noelle became gravely somber, thinking about what the usually fearless Jedi Master witnessed, the hypothetical event that had unnerved and sickened him.

"I guess we should begin preparing for the worst, if what the Force showed you was true... I'm just praying that the reason behind the alarm isn't connected to what you saw. Even then, what can go wrong, will go wrong. We've got no choice but to head to the war room, and confront our fears, TOGETHER."

What do you think Anakin saw?

Make your predictions... the finale of this first crazy crossover anthology will be up ahead.

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 3: An Impending Disaster

Thought of the day:

"If Murphy's Law says that what can go wrong, will go wrong... do you get RICH by trying to become POOR?"

Anakin's stay at Randland Station has been quite a unique experience, even for a prescient, galaxy-trotting Jedi, and so far, things have gone smoothly.

But of course, since we are talking about Murphy's Law, it wasn't very long until something went horribly wrong... but not in the way you'd expect from a multiverse at war. The moon-sized armored space station most certainly didn't instantly get surprised and bum-rushed by raging abominations. That would be too easy, and also poor writing by the Maker's standards. The crisis was a little more subtle, it was an enigma. For now...

"You've got to be kidding me. How could anything like this actually happen?"

Ziggs' expression of disbelief was totally understandable. His Jaeger comrades were totally skeptical about the most recent bad news too. But Anakin's incredibly disturbing vision completely validated what Professor Cecil B. Heimerdinger was telling everyone.

"Just minutes ago, on our HoloNet monitors, my science team and I witnessed a whole solar system's population vanish without a trace. As if they've ceased to exist. Is it true that Anakin saw images of a comparable event occur inside his mind?"

The Jedi nodded.

"I'll repeat myself, it's like countless souls cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced forever. That's the only way I can describe it. The people in my nightmare simply... disappeared. And you're informing us that a settlement of that size literally blinked out of existence?"

"The work of a coward, preying on innocent civilians, albeit the most powerful coward in the multiverse," Thianna growled. "Why can't our enemies come right to us, so I can punch them more?"

"Probably because our enemies are a lot smarter than we give them credit for," Noelle stated.

"A disaster of this magnitude demands our utmost attention," Keyleth declared. "We should head to the Tertius System, the place where this mass disappearance happened."

"I have a bad feeling about this," Sidon said. "But even if we fail, and tyranny flourishes, bringing a new dark age, at least we fought for what we believed in."

The party made a beeline for the hangar bay and boarded a Corvus Blackstar stealth transport shuttle, which had the uncanny capability of cloaking itself, so nobody could see it, while sensor systems didn't register a thing. Then they were off to inspect ground zero at Tertius.

After dropping out from hyperspace and approaching the intended destination, Thianna (who was piloting the Blackstar) initiated a flyby of the third and (formerly) most populous planet in the system, Tertius III.

The dreadful sight of the planet's desecrated surface actually creeped out the frost giantess, which was saying something, since Thianna had fought in thousands of battles across the stars, taking on truly terrifying opponents and grotesque monsters in the process. She only expressed scarred silence in reaction to what she glimpsed.

Suffocating fumes of dark magic filled the atmosphere, which were almost certainly responsible for the mass disappearance. Similar fumes were present on all the other worlds in the system, too. It was similar to what the Upside Down looked like, minus the gigantic fungi, dead organisms and tentacles, so it wasn't exactly clear whether the voice Anakin heard in the obelisk was responsible or not.

"What do you think the gas did to everyone?," Noelle wondered. "There's no clue behind the exact fate of the populace."

"You know what? Let's take a sample of the vapor," Anakin suggested. "Then we can see what it's made of, and what it does to people who breathe it in."

"I'm way ahead of you on that," Keyleth said. "Now deploying my bio-analysis probe! It's what Druids use to test the chemical makeup of pollutants in a natural ecosystem."

The Blackstar released a small droid spacecraft, barely bigger than a large pumpkin, which flew into the atmosphere of Tertius III and gathered enough foul toxic air to produce several dozen flask samples in a chemical laboratory.

It came back to its mothership intact, and successfully docked with the Blackstar, with no damage of any kind. Things were getting really weird... but then Ziggs received an emergency call from Randland Station.

"Guys, we're getting an SOS alert from the station! They say an unknown vessel has entered Gordasha's gravity well! And according to the personnel's observations, it's unlike any spacecraft people in the Republic have ever seen, in terms of appearance. I hope I get to blow it up."

The party was briefly unsure of what course of action to take. Sidon chose to be decisive, though.

"There's only one way to find out what our new potential complication is, and it's quite obvious."

"You heard what the fishy guy said," Anakin told everyone. "Fire up the hyperdrive!"

When the Blackstar shuttle arrived back at Randland Station, the first thing the crew noticed was the enormous silver and cyan orb rapidly approaching the orbital defense network.

"What the hell is that THING?," Thianna shouted.

"It ain't like any spaceship I've ever seen before on my travels," Ziggs said.

Whatever the orb was, it was coming closer and closer, and it wasn't long until the gunners officers aboard Randland Station requested permission from the Jaegers to fire on the unidentified object.

"This is Gunnery Sergeant Hopper, coming in. What is the recommended procedure for dealing with this likely threat?"

Thianna messaged him back with an order you'd totally see coming:

"Over. Blow that thing to kingdom come. Leave no survivors."

However, her teammates (save for perhaps Ziggs) were not as eager to be this extreme.

"Hold on, Frostborn! Can't you see that we don't even know who this object belongs to?!," Keyleth said, somewhat exasperated.

"We can't take any chances with a possible breach in our fortifications," Thianna replied. "Sergeant Hopper, commence fire with a quad laser cannon barrage."

Keyleth and Noelle tried to cancel the order, but it was too late. Several quad laser batteries, Randland Station's main close in weapons systems (CIWS,) locked onto the silver and blue orb, and carved it up like a ripe melon with pinpoint accuracy, using beams hotter than the surface of an average yellow star.

Anakin was furious with this resolution.

"Thianna, you asinine fool! Do you realize the ramifications of this? Blowing up a spacecraft we have no intel on could legitimately start yet another intergalactic conflict!"

"That just means more fights for me!," Thianna said, grinning maniacally.

"I'm gonna knock that smile off your face," Anakin threatened.

"COME ON OVER, THEN," the frost giantess shot back.

"Both of you, SHUT UP!," Sidon ordered. "There's something bizarre within view."

"What is it?," asked Noelle.

Ziggs zoomed in on the wreckage of the orb with the Blackstar's integrated electrobinoculars.

"The destroyed object has released a probe, which attached itself to our command center. Someone is attempting to make it inside the station."

"We better intercept them, then," Keyleth stated. "Then again, we did blow up their ship. The person who is probably just trying to make contact with us is going to be pretty pissed off."

The Blackstar shuttle docked at a smaller hangar right next to Randland Station's command module, and Anakin led the way inside, expecting an ugly surprise from the angry crew of the shattered spherical spacecraft.

What the Jaegers got instead was anticlimactic in the extreme.

The sole pilot of the sphere craft was a sea otter. Not just an ordinary one, though, but a sea otter that walked upright on two legs, spoke numerous complex languages, and wore a classy wizard's robe, as well as a fancy pointed hat with feathers attached to it.

He was still mad, though, of course.

"How idiotic do you mortals have to be, blowing up my only means of travel across dimensions? Can't you understand that I've spent millennia trying to get to the Milky Way, just to help save you from imminent ruin?"

"You're expecting us to understand your motives when you wouldn't even try to communicate with us?," Thianna grumbled. "If you told us why you flew so close to our space station, we wouldn't have perceived you as a threat!"

"Be quiet, Thianna, you're not helping," said Anakin. "Let us introduce ourselves before you tell us why you're here. I'm Anakin Skywalker, and these are my comrades-in-arms and friends to the end, Keyleth, Ziggs, Thianna, Sidon, and Noelle."

The highly evolved sea otter knew how to respond, as these people needed to hear his name first before any further action could be made. After this, he summarized everything he intended to tell the party.

"My full name is Montgomery Bernard Oum... but you can just call me Monty Oum. Or just Monty. To give you some insight on why I'm here, what my background is, and who I am, I'll need to delve into a lot of primordial history. Sit tight, this is a lengthy tale."

"In the long gone epochs, billions of years ago, the Otterman Empire was one of the first nations of the multiverse, alongside the all-powerful Time Lords. In these days, the Time Lords spent their time seeding worlds with intelligent life, and building civilizations from scratch."

"But a great, nameless evil, hatred and malice incarnate, sought to corrupt the Time Lords' technology and use it against them, for the purpose of tyranny and destruction instead of creation and equality. This is where the genocidal Dalek menace originated, from an event you all have heard of, but know nothing about: The War In Heaven. The current iterations of Daleks pale in comparison to what they used to be, when the Nameless One first created them."

"When the Time Lords fought back against the very incarnation of hatred and malice, we sea otters aided them by mass-producing a device that could literally bring back the dead without any negative consequences. When the war finally ended, because of the Doctor's ultimate sacrifice, and the subsequent annihilation and rebirth of the multiverse, the schematics behind the life-giving, death-undoing machine, the Eternity Matrix, were lost to time, just like the rest of the primordial gadgets... until now.

"From the information I had received, back when I was in the Triangulum Galaxy, 3,000 years ago, there was a prediction that Time Lord and Otterman devices would start to be uncovered by archaeologists in the future. Naturally, I wanted to find them before the Nameless One and his minions could."

"The good news is, the nameless evil is still sealed away in his prison, in the crevices between dimensions, and your Galactic Republic has a head start on recovering the relics. The bad news is, that eldritch abomination lacking a name won't remain in the seal for very much longer. His most trusted and powerful servant, the Dark Lord, VECNA, is making progress as we speak. Time is ticking. And if my worst fears are correct, Vecna might be disguising himself as one of the Republic's own leaders."

"I have spent millennia trying to search for an army of heroes who could assist me in the quest to find the primordial artifacts and use them to stop the Nameless One from returning, foiling Vecna's plot. The modern Galactic Republic seems to be the best hope against the blight, even though it has many flaws. I have read tales of the valiant and heroic, of individuals who sacrificed everything for a righteous cause they were devoted to. I only hope I can honor my ancestors, as the last of the Ottermen, by trusting you as the free realms' first and last line of defense..."

After that long explanation, there was yet another period where no one talked, which Anakin ended after a minute or so:

"So that's the true scale of things out there. We are now fully aware of the main adversary we're fighting against. How could our military's intel fail to uncover these hidden details after a thousand years of war?... That being said, Monty, I do have questions to ask, ones that you'll probably have an answer for."

"Of course. The fate of the free realms and nations might depend on it."

The veteran Jedi handed Monty a transparent flask full of the unknown toxic gas collected from the deserted remnants of Tertius.

"Can you tell what this is?"

The immortal otter wizard inspected it for a few moments using an instrument similar to a microscope, then suddenly had a look of ghastly horror on his face. His thick brown fur actually turned white for a moment, signifying that he had caught sight of something that mere mortals were never meant to see.

"When did you sample this material?"

"Just under 8 hours ago," Thianna replied. "What's the matter?"

"This is one of the Dark Lord Vecna's bioweapons. The Eschaton Fungal Infection. It turns sapient and sentient beings into hyper-aggressive, musclebound green monsters. Anakin, provide me with whatever information you have available. A disaster of biblical proportions is about to take place."

"To put one moment in a nutshell," Anakin said, "When I was on the forest moon of Pandora, in a spaceport that had been razed to the ground by some unknown enemy, my closest partners and I came across an obelisk made of pitch black rock, which spoke to us in a menacing, monstrous voice. It said that the Dark Side will rise again. Who do you think that was?"

Monty shook his head.

"Vecna was trying to mess with your head and drive you permanently insane. I'm afraid his legions are about to go on an all-out unholy jihad rampage. And the fungal plague inside that flask you handed me is where the troops are coming from."

"So that unveils the reason why everyone in the Tertius system disappeared," Sidon remarked. "They were infected with spores from the Eschaton Fungus, and some kind of evil magic was used to move them somewhere else in the vastness of space, so they could complete their metamorphosis and begin preparing to invade Republic worlds."

"How could Vecna prepare such a dangerous and unstoppable army in under a Terran day?," Noelle asked.

"It's because he's been waiting for the perfect time to do this," Monty said grimly. "Once he had the means to create a fungal disease with such a horrific effect, he proceeded to distribute it as rapidly as possible, and make sure the transformation of the infected was equally swift. We're in for a terrible time..."

"And when might that be?," Anakin asked, not wanting to know the truth.

Then a Yordle scientist from the command and control center interrupted the discussion.

"My lords, you might want to see this. Take a look outside the observation deck."

The heroes hurried to Randland Station's main viewing area, where crew members could get the clearest picture of the void of space (it was used by astronomers to make detailed maps of intergalactic space.)

Just outside Gordasha's gravitational field was an enormous, dwarf planet sized version of the obelisk Anakin saw on Pandora, at least 200 kilometers in diameter and 900 kilometers in height.

It had emerged from a glowing green vortex, bypassing the entire solar system's outer defenses, and countless tiny splinters of itself were breaking off and accelerating towards the battle network protecting the Forge World.

"Oh, crap," Anakin muttered, realizing what this all meant.

The battle begins...

Good luck surviving the FUNGAL FALLOUT.

Big muscular green-skinned monsters... hmm... I wonder what that term might be referring to. It should be obvious by now.

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 4: Up Your Arsenal

Right where we left off, Anakin and his new friends met a talking sea otter, named Monty Oum, (after the famous animator who created RWBY, who passed away in 2015,) claiming to be one of the last descendants of a primordial nation that existed alongside the Time Lords. He wanted to gain an audience with the Galactic Republic to give its heroes and champions some vital information on what they were really up against, and gather a team of said heroes for the purpose of ending the multiverse war, once and for all, by gathering all the lost relics the Time Lords had built.

Monty also explained that there was a mastermind behind everything, Lord Vecna, and the colossal conflict engulfing the Republic was just a microcosm of a bigger scheme hatched by the dark god of necromancy, whose ultimate goal was to unleash a Lovecraftian eldritch abomination upon the realms.

Astutely predicting that the wise otter might know something about what happened to all the people living in Tertius, Anakin hands him a jar of spore gas sampled from the mysteriously emptied ruins of that densely packed interplanetary settlement.

With shock and horror, Monty confirms that the spore gas is a fungal bioweapon made by Vecna, and that the Dark Lord was using it alongside the countless billions of harvested bodies from Tertius to build an army, specifically by infecting and mutating the living cells of the captives (who were still alive while this was happening to them.)

The otter wizard then panics, and even claims that Vecna's new army might be heading right this way, towards the Forge World of Gordasha.

Then, just when things couldn't get any worse, a moon-sized version of the Obelisk of Odium from Pandora suddenly appears in orbit, and immediately begins summoning onrushing waves of attack ships and landing craft, confirming Monty's claims, and making it seem like creation itself is trying to curse the Galactic Republic.

With the rhythmic thumping sound of boarding pods slamming into Randland Station's steel hull came the subsequent, unmistakable noise of guttural roars and stereotypical British football hooligan accents!

Author's footnote: By this point, you can probably guess why this whole episode is called "The Green Tide." Let's all shout "WAAAGH!"

Some key information for the readers:

All Republic space stations have stasis fields around their exterior that keeps the vacuum of space from getting in, even during a breach. However, the stasis fields can be compromised, should an attacking force damage a station's main power generator...

And with all that out of the way...

The Siege of Gordasha begins!

Everyone looked at Monty when the chaos started to unfold.

"Don't expect good answers from me! You're supposed to be the real badasses and fighters here, not me. I'm just a diplomat, informant and a researcher in the fields of magic."

Then the leadership job fell to Anakin.

"You're the Jedi here, what would you have us do?," Sidon asked.

"Let's head to the armory first, and gear up. Then we go to the hangar, because it's the most heavily defended part of the station, and most likely, all the other people on board here will be trying to launch squads of piloted fighters and gunships into space to begin a counterattack. I'm also assuming the station's weapons will probably be automated, so we don't have to worry about personnel risking their lives further by directly manning the gun batteries."

"The last thing I'll point out is that if shit hits the fan, being in the hangar will hopefully let us take off and escape in some sort of vessel before the orbital complex is overrun or goes kaboom."

Anakin admitted he wasn't the best tactician, even with lessons from Obi-Wan, but right now, everyone was counting on him. So they agreed to follow this initial plan, especially since there wasn't a better option at the moment.

But right before the party could head to the armory and join the rest of Randland Station's crew in the hangar bay, a huge hole appeared in the walls of the command center room they were in, smashed open by a seismic hammer, and four big, burly green berserkers with heavy melee weapons jumped inside.

Keyleth sighed in exasperation.

"It's a mob of Orks, what a surprise. Of course Vecna would turn people beyond count into Orks. They have no respect for nature, even when compared to everyone else."

The four Greenskins howled at the top of their lungs and charged, but Keyleth used her Druid staff to fire off a shotgun blast of poisonous plant projectiles, killing the Orks by destroying the nutrient-distributing spores and blood cells in their circulatory systems. In other words, she completely deprived them of oxygen in their bodily fluids, making them keel over and die instantly.

"Let's head to the armory and lock n' load before things get ugly," Ziggs suggested. The others agreed to do this task wholeheartedly.

After entering the secret password to the weapons storage room (Ziggs set it to be 12-INCH P3NIS, because WHO WOULD honestly guess a password like that?,) Thianna threw the heavy door open with a loud crash, and the gang went inside to take whatever they needed for the inevitable full-blown Orkish assault on Randland Station.

It was readily apparent that the station's staff and crew had already taken weapons from the vault, because numerous stowage sections, racks and containers were completely empty. There was still plenty of firepower to go around, though, and everyone correctly assumed that the Orks would try to gain access to the arsenal, so destroying it later was a key necessity.

Time was ticking, and the green menace was beginning to gain momentum, slowly chipping away at the defenses while their numbers grew steadily.

One wall in the vault had three rows of heavy blaster rifles- BlasTech Industries A280s, around forty to fifty in all. Sidon put on a robotic harness he found, with eight strong, clawed tentacle arms made of vibranium, and grabbed eight of the blasters, holding one in each limb, while his signature magic trident remained in the grip of his actual hands.

"Look, I'm Doctor Octorok! See my new set of arms?"

"Quit goofing around, Sidon," Anakin said. "We got some serious business to take care of." The Jedi prodigy had gone full commando, taking an E-11 blaster submachine gun, two DL-44 heavy blaster pistols (the same kind of pistol Han Solo used,) a bandolier with 6 grenades, one of each type, ranging from incendiary, cryo, fragmentation, heavy gravity, plasma, and EMP, two belts of blaster power cells, and a thermite flamethrower, both of which he slung over his back. Last but not least, he still had his trademark blue lightsaber attached to his belt.

The opposite wall was a grocery store of carnage and annihilation, anything a soldier of fortune could possibly dream of. Blasters, slug-thrower rifles, machine guns, missile and grenade launchers, Dust-powered magic guns, weaponized wands, dozens of different kinds of grenades, land mines, four varieties of flamethrowers each with a specific chemical effect, various calibers of Gatling guns, assorted melee weapons, including primitive, fantastical and futuristic patterns, even a portal gun.

Unsurprisingly, Thianna was ecstatic just looking at it all, like a kid in a candy store. She browsed the aisles and found herself a rotary laser cannon, then came across something better:

"Check this out. It's a Variable Weapons System. The kind of technology they put in Mega Man Power Armor, that lets you carry more than 25 weapons at once without being weighed down."

She slung the VWS backpack over her broad shoulders, stuffed it with 30 different big guns, then helped the rest of her fellows arm themselves.

Thianna gave Keyleth a disposable belt that had seven wands attached to it, an asset which would be able to channel a great deal of destructive sorcery. The half-elf druid also took a few flame chomper grenades and a zapper shock pistol as backup weapons for her staff and spellcasting abilities.

Ziggs crammed a huge backpack full of all sorts of specialty explosives, and brandished two oversized pistols that could chuck grenades using a belt feed linked to said backpack. He also had three powerful anti-tank land mines attached to his fuzzy chest armor, which he could lob and detonate with a voice command.

Monty and Noelle both held portable devices that could build many kinds of battlefield tools, ammunition and armaments out of nanobots, primarily for the use of construction and utility but also for intense combat situations as well. If you could imagine an object, the nanobots would attempt to build it, provided there were enough of them.

And of course, the otter diplomat and the shieldmaiden carried backup equipment as well, including blaster pistols, smoke grenades and explosive gel sprayers. Noelle had her signature two-handed chainsword sheathed for action too, and she desperately hoped that her Battlemech was still intact inside the vehicle barracks, since it could be a useful asset.

Following this, Monty set up a simple, timed explosive charge to destroy whatever else remained inside the armory, preventing any possibility of the invaders getting handheld super-weapons.

After loading everything up, the only thing left to do was to RIP AND TEAR, and perform a hero's duty.

At what cost, though?

After sprinting through a dozen corridors and hurrying to the nearest teleportation facility, Anakin and company joined tens of thousands of Republic troops huddling behind a large armored barricade, guns sticking out of every crevice, who were waiting for the Orks to begin pouring into the station in their teeming hordes. The purpose of this barricade was to hold back the approaching Greenskins long enough for a force of 200 starfighters (including X-Wings, Y-Wings, A-Wings, B-Wings, V-Wings AND K-Wings) to take off and engage in an orbital dogfight.

The roaring and growling noises from the breach in Randland Station's fortified hull grew louder and louder, indicating that the Orks were beginning to make their way on board in unprecedented numbers. The defenders tensed themselves up for a fight.

Then, with terrifying finality, the closed entrance gates to the hangar crumbled to rubble, and a tide of Greenskin warriors came forth, eager for slaughter!

The battle continues for the next few chapters, in this epic crossover climax…

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 5: WAAAGH Back At Ya (Part 1)

"I've got to know a great deal more about these green fungal creatures over the last century or so, since that first disconcerting encounter, and one thing I've seen time and time again is that dismissing them as simple, unsophisticated brutes is a fast route to the graveyard (or sometimes their stomachs.)"

-Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi

The Orks were not a new phenomenon plaguing the Galactic Republic. These green-hued monsters had as a matter of fact fought in battles with countless civilizations across space and time, and any species that developed the capability of interstellar travel, even of the most rudimentary kind possible, was inevitably going to encounter them.

Turning people INTO Orks, however, was a totally different concept, one that was all but unknown until the Siege of Gordasha.

The Republic veterans protecting the Forge World from the onslaught were totally unaware that these particular Greenskins were all either former humans or former humanoid beings. Perhaps that ignorance was for the best, because the carnage would continue to draw on with no signs of stopping, and the chain of command was unexpectedly thrown into complete disarray- there was so much chaos going on, giving disciplined orders was nigh impossible, even for the important commanders of the Crimson Jaegers.

The warriors aboard Randland Station in Gordasha's orbit had all barricaded themselves into the starship hangar, aiming to kill as many charging Orks as possible by saturating the garage entrance with heavy weapons fire.

Of course, this strategy possessed a brilliant hidden advantage- the belligerent Orks were naturally drawn towards the large assembly of Republic troops in the hangar, seeking a good fight, and probably wouldn't even bother to consider the option of blowing up the space station from the inside, much less prevent the defenders from launching combat spacecraft into the void to blitz the horde's space fleet.

Raising her machine-gun polearm hybrid high over her head, Thianna Frostborn led the counterattack, with her allies blasting every ugly green beast in sight.

"On my command, UNLEASH HELL!"

And everybody certainly did.

On and on, the Orks came to fight and to die, trying to get within engagement range so they could return fire with their inaccurate, unreliable guns, (which were literally made of scrap metal.) Even the most heavily armored Greenskin infantry units were utterly eviscerated by a fusillade of solid projectiles, directed-energy shots, bolts of magic, chemical munitions, incendiary devices and explosive ordnance.

Anakin's telekinetic Force powers and Keyleth's Druid magic proved especially potent, with the fungal foe getting smashed by huge chunks of flying rubble falling from the ceiling and ripped apart by rapidly accelerating vines, roots and cacti torn from the greenhouse.

Taking full advantage of his precise, superlative pitching skills, Ziggs hurled grenades and satchel charges like baseballs, while a squad of Confederate commando droids wielded heavy-duty portable lascannons, vaporizing a dozen Orks with every shot.

Noelle even climbed inside her Battlemech, which was surprisingly unscathed, and controlled the field of battle by eradicating anything green that managed to somehow get through the crosshairs of her companions.

Millions of Orks were killed aboard Randland Station, their bodies disintegrating and leaving no trace behind, not even fungal spores- perhaps a key weakness the heroes could exploit, if it wasn't for the ludicrous abundance of enemy combatants. No, this part of the horde was but a drop in the ocean compared to its true numbers.

Things made a turn for the worse when Orkish armored vehicles started making their way through the massive hole in the wall, including War Trukks, Warbuggies, Deff Dreads, and a few heavy Battlewagons.

The thick plasteel and ceramite plating on these war engines was somehow able to repair itself, almost as if the layers of armor could regenerate at will. Such a feature made them extremely difficult to destroy, and it took at least 5 minutes of densely concentrated firepower to blow up each enemy vehicle- costing the heroes precious time.

This "nanobot repair system" was to be just one of many diabolical tricks Vecna's army would employ against the guardians of democracy.

The Republic commandos started to suffer casualties, as hundreds of Ork firearms scored a bullseye, clone troopers, guardsmen and colonial marines getting instantly torn to pieces by the storm of dakka. Indeed, the barricade provided protection from most of the Ork projectile weapons, but it did not span across the entire hangar bay, and there were numerous gaps in the armor segments.

Anakin was drenched in the blood of both his allies and his enemies, and everyone around him was engaged in a mad struggle for survival.

This was just the beginning of that struggle, though.

Right when he thought things couldn't get any worse, a massive explosion rocked the whole station and knocked everybody aboard off their feet!

The surrounding area was wracked with white-hot flames, and the Orks began heading away from the spacecraft hangar, ignoring their previous victims and focusing on a new goal, as if directed by a hive mind.

Sidon knew exactly what was happening.

"Randland Station is falling apart! The enemy fleet must be opening fire on us!"

As he said that, Republic troops started to make haste for transport vessels, avoiding the flames and abandoning their positions.

"Why do you think the Orks are ignoring us now?," Keyleth asked, in the midst of the storm.

Ziggs thought about the possibilities, then panicked.

"Hold on a second... Oh, no! They're going to seek out the station's hypermatter power plant reactor, and blow it up, which would not only kill all of us aboard, but also destroy the entire orbital battle network! And as Sidon pointed out, Randland Station is already under heavy fire. We need to get out of here, right the F now!"

The group tried to make their way onto a Lambda-class shuttle transport, the very last one inside the service garage, but the pilot was exceptionally selfish and took off without them, ditching his superiors in an attempt at preserving his own life as well as the lives of his passengers.

"Stupid asshole!," Thianna shouted, loud enough for the others to hear her over the raging noise of battle. "You're gonna get killed by the Orks eventually, just like the rest of us!"

"Don't say that!," Noelle snapped. "Now look, there's gotta be another way out of here. We just have to rely on our ingenuity."

"To be honest, I don't think we'll survive an exploding space station without something like an escape pod to help us," Keyleth said grimly. "What if this is it, and our time in this life has come to an end?"

Then, an unexpected voice chimed in: The eloquent sea otter diplomat.

"Actually, I have a little something prepared that's going to save us all," Monty told his new companions, who he had faced death with, side by side. "Just be ready to vomit, because it'll make your insides feel incredibly heavy!"

The others stared at him like he was joking.

Monty clearly wasn't, though, because he already had some kind of gadget in his paws.

He pushed a button on a mechanical glove of sorts, and in the blink of an eye, the party was safely teleported out of the rapidly collapsing space station, landing safely on the concrete ground of an airfield, allowing them to escape death... for now.

The successful escape did come with a caveat, though- everyone except for Monty was briefly retching on the pavement, due to the unexplainable side effects of being teleported through a different dimension meant to be exclusively used by one species. It wasn't the kind of common, reliable and safe teleportation device the Republic commonly used aboard its immense naval starships, but it did the trick, preventing the heroes from meeting an explosive demise.

Anakin looked up and saw that the sky was beginning to fill with burning debris, falling from the upper atmosphere of Gordasha, without a doubt evidence that the Orks were coming close to winning the space battle and making planetfall. He made haste for the shelter on the outskirts of the airfield, as did his companions.

Once everybody was inside, they immediately noticed that they were far from alone- Dr. Heimerdinger, the hairy Yordle scientist from before, had survived the battle aboard Randland Station, and he was accompanied by several squads of Republic super-soldiers, including Spartan-IIs, Astartes of various Legions, Mandalorian commandos, and hired mages from the Forgotten Realms.

Heimerdinger delivered the latest intel to the recent arrivals:

"Well hello there, lucky lads. It's a relief to see that you survived. My calculations estimate that the Orkish invasion army is already in the process of assembling massed concentrations of ground troops for deployment, along with heavy artillery and armored units. I fear our defenses may be inadequate. Nevertheless, we need to form a plan of counterattack, even though our chances of success are slim. If there's anything new that you need to know about our current predicament, ask me now. Then, we take action as soon as possible."

"The gremlin with the goggles is a lot more intelligent than he looks," a Mandalorian soldier said. "Whatever questions you have about those green bastards, he'll answer them."

Fittingly, Anakin had only one question.

"Where do we head next if we want to put the biggest dent in the horde?"

"The Grand Core armaments factory is where the largest portion of our forces is amassing, for the sake of safeguarding the Republic's most valuable military assets from the grubby hands of the Orks," Heimerdinger answered. "You'd better head there now, the sooner the better, using these troop carriers over here. Take all these super-commandos with you, too. As for me, I'll remain in this bunker, contacting every source of reinforcements I can reach."

"Your wisdom is much appreciated," said Monty. "As for me, I'm here to start diplomatic negotiations with some of the Republic's leaders, that is, if we survive this siege. May the Force be with us."

Wasting no time, every person climbed into an open-topped, AI-driven Separatist troop transport, originally intended for conveying battle droids, and sped away from the airfield. They eventually reached a city street surrounded by abandoned buildings and vehicles- the civilians were all hiding in the nearly endless system of catacombs beneath Gordasha's surface, meant to protect from a planetary invasion.

Up ahead was Grand Core, the most important factory complex in the entire sector, which is to say it provided a big enough industrial output to support the economy of every world within a 100 light-year radius. To merely call it productive was an understatement of the highest order.

Predictably, enormous battalions of armored vehicles, combat walkers and anti-gravity tanks were stationed on the outskirts of the manufacturing plant, and the defenses just got thicker and thicker as Anakin's mounted squads progressed deeper within the area.

Would this sanctum hold up against the inevitable Greenskin threat? It depended entirely on how many Orks Vecna had created with his unwilling test subjects.

An immense, heavily fortified checkpoint gate was established all around the inner perimeter to prevent any invaders from reaching the actual interior of the Grand Core Factory. The guards patrolling it were all Giffs- humanoid hippopotamuses whose entire culture revolved around mercenary work, warfare, and general conflict. The benefits of keeping these bulky, bloodthirsty lunatics around as reserve shock troops largely outweighed the negative effects of all the problems they caused on civilized planets.

Yes, the same hippo people from Spelljammer DND are also here too.

One particularly large Giff, a hippo man carrying a heavy bolter that fired miniature rocket-propelled grenades on full auto, was in charge of letting people in and out of the complex. He spoke to Anakin's group in a unique accent that those on the other side of the fourth wall would describe as sounding like a Black American from the Deep South.

"Hold on, aren't you the Crimson Jaegers mercenary group, the ones who were in charge of the orbital bastion? I recognize some of you. How'd you survive when Randland Station was boarded and then blown up? Eh, it doesn't matter now. You're here. And we need all the help we can get if we're to survive this crisis. Intel says that the Orks are almost done obliterating the rest of the defensive structures in orbit. Within a few hours, they'll blot out the sun with their landing craft. You'd best come inside if you want to keep staying alive. Oh, and as for my name, I go by Captain Merik, siegecraft specialist."

"Very well then, Captain Merik," Sidon said. "I'm glad to be fighting alongside you. Let us in and we'll spend the last few hours we have left discussing how to humble the horde."

Inside the final sanctum:

Once again, Anakin Skywalker had to depend on his skills as a general. Whatever gambit he employed here would determine the outcome of the siege.

"We don't have very much time, but here's the plan, for all of us here: We know how Orks generally think. They'll follow the biggest, meanest and most capable individual in sight. So we're gonna deprive them of their leadership, striking a blow precisely aimed at their command structure."

"Our armored vehicle battalions will distract the majority of the Greenskin infantry and mechanized units, and allow our more elite forces to take out key targets, like Warbosses, Warlords, and Warchiefs. But at the same time, we shouldn't underestimate our foe."

"My master, Obi-Wan, knew that dismissing the Orks as simple, unthinking and straightforward brutes was a fatal mistake. They're smarter than we give them credit for. For all we know, the Dark Lord Vecna could have empowered them with additional knowledge in tactics, logistics and overall battlefield strategy."

"The odds may certainly be against us, but if Gordasha falls, the consequences will damage the Republic's infrastructure, PERMANENTLY. We may not live to tell the tale, but it's better to die fighting for something you believe in than to live the rest of your life as a slave to tyranny. We cannot fail. Failure is not an option. Does anyone have anything to say before we march, together?"

Nobody said anything, indicating that Anakin had made his point clear.

Then, Ziggs raised his paw.

"What is it?," Anakin asked.

"This might make us feel even more justifiably terrified and afraid than we already are, but I need to address the elephant in the room. It's the numbers game. How many innocent people did Vecna put into creating each individual Ork? Because if it's just one person for every Greenskin warrior, we are totally screwed. After all, tens of billions were sacrificed in the ritual that wiped out Tertius."

The crowd of Republic commandos was shocked and horrified by this revelation, which was saying something, since all of them were used to witnessing death, suffering, atrocities, and general douchebaggery on a weekly basis. Was it really true that someone had learned to convert the biomass of sentient beings into making bloodthirsty Orks? And the recent mass disappearance at Tertius was somehow caused by this dark form of alchemy? It hardly seemed believable, yet that was exactly what happened.

Ziggs' statement was proven and confirmed when the earth itself started to violently shake with the stomping of billions of combat boots, the Green Tide flooding out from thousands of portals that Vecna had summoned, most likely an evil prototype version of the Stargates the Republic used.

Anakin could sense the presence of foes beyond count, thanks to the Force, as could anyone else in the room who had a connection to a magic system. The horde engulfed Gordasha's entire northern hemisphere and completely surrounded Grand Core and its outer city layers.

The only good news was that all the civilians were safely evacuated to the catacombs and tunnels deep beneath the surface of the planet, but they wouldn't remain safe for long. Everyone knew what was about to happen, and it seemed like the defense of the Forge World was a lost cause.

Thianna stomped over to an observation computer screen, monitoring the situation outside the factory, and her face turned pale with dread. Not because she was afraid of dying, but because she and everyone else were going to die, and as a consequence, her career of traveling the realms to seek out challenges and strong opponents was going to end, forever.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME? WHY ARE THE ODDS ALWAYS STACKED AGAINST US?! Then again, it'll be more fun that way... gotta look on the bright side of things."

"Well, it was nice knowing all of you," Noelle said. "This is a mess too big even for a housekeeping knight maid like myself to clean up."

But then Anakin remembered something, a detail that seemed too ludicrous to be true, due to it being hopeful. Also, he broke the fourth wall while telling everyone about it.

"Hold on... remember back in the first chapter of this episode, when I was seeking out a certain someone in the Jedi Order who could help bring additional aid here? I think we have one more ace up our sleeve."

"Oh, please!," Keyleth said. "Even if someone did bring reinforcements, who could they possibly bring that would make a difference? The only factor that would seriously affect the Orks' numbers advantage would be a superabundance of elemental magic powers, since that's the most efficient way at breaking down fungal biomass, apart from biological weapons of mass destruction... which is not an option, obviously."

"We can't wait," Monty grumbled. "The mushroom men are already here and will be knocking on our door within minutes. This is IMPOSSIBLE."

Then an unexpected voice heard from the ceiling joined the conversation of desperation:

"Impossible is not a word in the Jedi vocabulary, my friend."

"Who said that?!," Sidon hissed.

Suddenly, the roof of the building opened up, and a BTL Y-Wing starfighter descended into the large war room where everyone was standing.

It was a two-seater fighter bomber, with a twin swiveling turret gun, rotary missile launchers, customized plasma turbofan engines, a blue and gold paint scheme, and unique Chinese characters written on the side, that translated to "Jade Dragon," or Lin Yulong (in Pinyin.)

The cockpit hatch opened, and a familiar blue-skinned, red-haired, attractive and exquisite alien woman leaped out in an aerial somersault, landing nimbly on her feet like a cat. A lightsaber strapped to her hip proved her allegiance and occupation, and as usual, her outfit of choice exposed a considerable amount of her skin.

"Oh, am I glad to see you, Beidou!," Anakin exclaimed. "You finally made it! And you're still insisting on wearing a tube top, a mechanic's scarf and torn up jeans, even on Greenskin D-Day."

"Not only that," the Tau Jedi replied, "but I brought my Master with, too! Plus a whole bunch of other people he recruited, who all share one thing in common with the Orks... they really like to get stuck in a good fun fight."

Beidou's mentor and adoptive father, Gale Amaranth (my OC character concept for a stoic, wise Jedi Council member,) stepped out of the Y-Wing starfighter and addressed Anakin.

"General Skywalker. You certainly have been busy. I can understand your courage knows no bounds, which is why you're always in the center of the action. But if you tried to fight the Orks here without outside help, it would be considered foolishness, not bravery. Thankfully, my apprentice and I have brought some new challengers to even out the playing field."

"Oh, and by the way, I am fully aware that you and Beidou know things that I do not. You can discuss those matters with me after we win this battle."

"How do we win here?," Monty asked. "What power and weaponry do your troops command?"

Beidou smiled.

"Excellent question, my furry teammate. Let's just say they'll... BEND the battleground to their will."

TO BE CONTINUED

You'll just have to wait and see to find out what that last part means!

But... you might be aware already!

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 6: WAAAGH Back At Ya (Part 2)

Truth of the day:

"War is worse than Hell. Want to know why? In Hell, there's no innocent people. War, on the other hand, is chock full of innocent bystanders."

NOTE: This chapter contains RETCONNED CONTENT from an earlier version of the story, which means I'll be changing something I didn't want to work with in order to use it again, in a better way. In this case, I'm bringing back the warriors from the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender, so they can turn the tide against the Dark Lord Vecna's hordes and show the Orks how to do war properly.

In the previous episode, the world of Avatar was to be conquered and colonized by the Greater Galactic Republic. Now, things are tweaked so that the Four Nations were peacefully assimilated instead, in a mutual diplomatic partnership.

Because Episode 5 has been completely retconned, the Benders and the Avatar (and ALL their past lives) are playing a role as elite shock troops in the Republic's mage department, so yes, they are already an integral part of an interstellar empire. I just couldn't help but bring the Gaang back into this train wreck crossover, because I'll admit that I'm a rabid fan of ATLA. Plus, I thought the elemental martial artists would be even better if someone decked them out in power armor.

Also: I want to address a review for SH50K that was written a while ago, giving constructive criticism and feedback. Judging what this person said, I do finally feel like my story has a feature creep problem because of just how many franchises it incorporates into its multiverse.

Well, I specifically wanted to make something akin to "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny," or "Avengers Endgame with LITERALLY EVERYONE," but with my own twist on the multiverse war genre. And here's the truth: I should probably downscale this fanfic a bit in later episodes, to help fix the feature creep problem. I agree that this crossover has gotten TOO LARGE.

The reviewer also pointed out that I should make the battle scenes in SH50K more detailed. A picture is worth a thousand words, after all, so these last two chapters in Wave 1 will definitely be longer and more descriptive... but at the same time, I am not very good at writing novel-length work. It's actually my biggest weakness. I struggle to make epic scenes long enough, but maybe the extra struggle will be worth it.

Between those issues needing to be addressed, and all the other crazy fanfic ideas I'm planning on writing down and archiving, I'm not sure if I'll be able to finish SH50K by the end of this year. But nonetheless, I'm really excited that I'm about to complete a sizable project, one that will probably have more than 60,000 words by the end.

With all that said... Here we go again!

Once more, into the fray. It doesn't matter if I live or die this day... this world's doomed anyway! Or so the preachers commonly say.

By this point, our company of heroes was getting a bit... BIG, and RIDICULOUS, even by the standards of a multiverse war. The arrival of Jedi Master Gale Amaranth, (Beidou's mentor,) not to mention the reinforcements he brought from Strike Team Avatar and Jedi Special Ops, put a serious strain on the party's structural integrity and ability to cooperate and coordinate effectively in battle.

Luckily, Anakin had formulated a solution to this predicament. He and Amaranth worked together to split the company of heroes into multiple squads, each in charge of killing Orks in a different area of the hive city, and holding the line as well.

With luck, skill and patience, the practically unlimited firepower available to the Republic's defenders, combined with the Benders' elemental attacks, would slowly whittle down the Greenskin horde's biomass until nothing remained, not even any possible spore residue.

There were many tenants of war meant for dealing with an enemy that vastly outnumbered you- acting decisively and judiciously, using the surrounding terrain to your advantage, maintaining morale, having a leader with especially gritty determination, having a better disciplined fighting force, and taking advantage of every single tactical mistake the adversary made. Now, more than ever, was the time to utilize these stratagems.

Author's note: Splitting this big battle into a bunch of smaller skirmishes makes writing the fight scenes and the collective whole easier, and helps deal with the problem of having too many characters in one scene.

Once again, I promise the next edition of SH50K will deal with the feature creep complications, it won't be as oversaturated with content from different franchises. But for now, I have to finish this anthology. And that means trying to get everything I've already incorporated to run smoothly.

SIMPLIFIED ORDER OF BATTLE: (just a list of everyone involved in this cataclysmic finale. Let's see how well this works out.)

First Cordon, guarding the outer gates to Grand Core:

Commanders:

Field Marshal Korra of the "Ursa Major" mechanized infantry regiment (in this story, it is possible for multiple Avatars to exist at the same time, thanks to experimental and extremely expensive soul cloning technology)

Crimson Jaeger mercenary members, Thianna Frostborn, Keyleth and Ziggs

Spelljamming Giff artillery unit, the "Hungry Hippos," commanded by Captain Merik

Assorted types of infantry from Star Wars, Warhammer 40K and Halo (that's what makes up the bulk of the defending army)

Second Cordon, backing up the gatekeepers in the outer zone:

Commanders:

Eagle Guard General Aang of the "Garuda" airborne attack division

Wolfpack Sergeants Katara and Sokka of the "Amarok" heavy armored brigade

2nd Lieutenant Toph's "Badger Mole" Trench and Minefield Infantry

Colonel Zuko's "Ruby Dragons" Pyro Trooper detachment

3rd Lieutenant Suki and the "Kyoshi Warriors" stealth sabotage unit

The Meat Grinders: The first, and most abundant major opposition the Orks will face if they breach the formidable outer defenses of Grand Core, and make it inside the manufacturing plant.

Commanders:

Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker, Gale Amaranth and Beidou Haishan, leading the 101st Clone Trooper division

Crimson Jaeger crewmen, Prince Sidon, Shieldmaiden Noelle, and Otter Ambassador Monty Oum

The Stormguard:

A special operations force consisting of 500 experienced veteran Jedi Knights, located directly in the most valuable and strategically important area of the factory, in case of the worst possible outcome- such as the Orks overwhelming every other defensive position, and the Republic army standing on the brink of annihilation. Anakin, Amaranth and Beidou will take command, should the Stormguard attempt to engage the enemy.

With all that over with... let's go massacre some sentient mushrooms.

-THE SIEGE OF GORDASHA-

WAR FOR THE GREAT FOUNDRY

THE FREEDOM FIGHTERS VS. THE DARK ONE'S ARMY

Author's recommendation:

Music to listen to while reading this epic crossover climax: War In The Depths Of Hyrule, from Tears of the Kingdom

I think the endgame and final battle music from the most recent Zelda game will fit quite well here.

Phase One- at the outermost portion of the stronghold:

The road leading to Grand Core was already a bloodbath of shot and shell, mangled machinery, charred debris and bomb craters swollen with broken bodies, even before the Republic forces were fully assembled. Greenskin warriors beyond count scrambled over the rubble and ruin, bellowing at the top of their lungs while raising their assorted bayonet-equipped firearms overhead and flinging grenades around like a bunch of kids in a dodgeball game. And just like kids playing dodgeball, the Orks and their goblinoid relatives were enjoying every second of the mayhem.

To add insult to injury, the entire battlefield reeked in the same manner as feces and rotting flesh, thanks to the fungal odor generated by billions of verdant green monsters.

All of these appalling factors and sights combined would have probably deterred the vast majority of soldiers from standing their ground. But these were no ordinary soldiers.

These were in fact some of the United Galactic Republic's best and bravest, including the heavy weapons unit known as the "Hungry Hippos" and the elemental martial artists of the "Ursa Major" regiment, led by a legendary, renowned commander, Veteran Field Marshal Korra, who had accumulated centuries of combat experience thanks to her lifespan-increasing augmentations.

Against all odds, they tenaciously stood their ground.

"DYING IS SUPERFLUOUS, EVERYONE! CHARGE!," Korra shouted!

Captain Merik, the one in charge of the hippo gunnery squads, mercilessly mowed down scores of enemies with his highly modified Gatling gun, which weighed 150 kilograms and fired 200-credit custom tooled cartridges at 10,000 rounds per minute... which sounds awfully familiar if you're into the first person shooter genre!

While the Giff were dishing out pure, genuine Gatling gun goodness, Field Marshal Korra plowed into the thickest part of the horde like an elemental wrecking ball. Wearing one of the finest suits of human-sized Power Armor ever made, a uniquely customized Mega Man X model, bolter shells, dart shots, arrow rounds, hollow point bullets and blaster beams all bounced off of her like they were made of rubber. She didn't even need a helmet because of a built-in deflector force field projector protecting her head.

Korra went all out as soon as she got within melee range, swatting enemy tanks away like they were insects, chopping up the biggest Ork Nobz and Warbosses with a flaming katana, causing localized earthquakes that immobilized entire formations of armored vehicles, and setting off massive, colorful chromatic explosions of Dust Crystals (magic gunpowder.)

Seeing the Water Tribe warrior do most of the heavy lifting, (and appreciating it,) some troopers led by Thianna, Ziggs and Keyleth chose to set up kill zones for any Greenskins attempting to get around the primary defenses and penetrate deeper into the fortified area.

"Let's see how hungry these rabid berserkers are," Thianna said.

"Time to test out your plan, Little Miss Lorax!," Ziggs added.

To establish the kill zones, Keyleth had the idea of luring the Orks into a dead-end trap with Juicy Squigs- fungal-animal hybrids that were basically the equivalent of an expensive restaurant delicacy to Greenskins, delicious food that they would literally kill each other to have a taste of. Apparently other species found the Juicy Squigs appetizing too, because the nearby barracks had an enormous surplus of them to cook for special occasions like weekend barbecue, though non-Orks weren't actually crazy enough to murder others just for good grub.

While Korra, the Giff and the rest of the army's spearhead focused on preventing too many Orks from breaking through the frustratingly wide defensive perimeter, (which was already rapidly crumbling,) the three Jaeger agents and their smaller secondary army placed thousands of immobile, live Juicy Squigs in narrow spaces, alleyways, bunkers, warehouses, trenches and tunnel systems, then deployed hidden automated sentry turrets in each "bait station." With luck, the Orks would catch a whiff of Squig and come sprinting for dinner en masse.

Ziggs had a multi-spectrum spy camera ready, recording one of the bait stations, as well as all the others. And... he was delighted to see that the ingenious strategy turned out to be a success.

A single Ork strolled into a forsaken, ravaged bunker full of dead bodies that were riddled with laser and bullet holes, and began hunting the source of the aroma he detected earlier. Then, within ten seconds, hundreds of other Orks barged in, and they were all pushing and shoving each other looking for the Squig.

Almost immediately after the bunker reached its maximum occupancy, the E-Web repeating blaster turrets concealed in the walls unveiled themselves, and killed every Ork in the room with a hailstorm of charged plasma beams.

Across the besieged hive city, the same scenario played out over and over again, the invaders being enticed by a certain smell, until their hunger-driven curiosity overwhelmed their thirst for blood and carnage, and they were led to their untimely deaths.

Unfortunately, this fiendishly clever gambit was a reprieve, NOT a victory. It wasn't even close to that.

The Greenskins just kept coming, swarming like locusts past the broken buildings and steadily gaining ground. There was some good news, though, in relative terms- the defending army of the Republic still had plenty of ways to thin the horde, and even if the damage done was insufficient, at least the Orks weren't invincible.

But would the next cordon and line of battle be able to buy enough time for reinforcements to arrive? Or better yet, buy time for more efficient forms of weaponry to be prepared and deployed?

Phase Two: Inside the hive city bastion, further inwards towards the factory complex

The legions of Benders from the Republic's special forces units were well prepared for the brutal close-quarters firefight that was about to erupt. They had fought Orks dozens of times in the past decade or so, and had grown accustomed to taking part in campaigns where the enemy held a major numbers advantage. Horde armies, including Skaven, Illithids and their puppets, Modrons, Tyranids, Lizardmen, Tau, Gnolls, and Dryads had all been sundered by the might of the elemental Avatar and his various incarnations and subordinates.

Still, the ferocious masses summoned by Vecna would prove to be the Grand Army Benders' greatest challenge yet, for reasons that are soon to be explained.

When General Aang and his legions of paratroopers perched atop a skyscraper spotted the marauding Orks on the horizon, they noticed something wasn't quite right with their body appearance.

"My gods... what in the Maker's name is happening down there? Whatever it is, it's ugly, and we need to put an end to it!"

A closer examination via electro-binoculars revealed that they had begun to mutate to a ghastly degree, developing plates of chitinous fungal armor, clusters of explosive, corrosive pustules, embedded hives of flesh-eating insects, and even armor made from living, biological metal alloys (dubbed as Shroomite and Chlorophyte, respectively.)

The mutations had only spread to insignificantly small portions of the horde, however, which was a good thing, but now the conflict had become an even more dangerous and costly affair. The situation would only continue to escalate if action was not immediately taken.

Coming to grips with this phenomenon, Avatar Aang and the airborne assault cadre leaped off the building and glided into battle. Below them, legions of Republic shock troops were already in the thick of it, pulling out all the stops to halt the advance of the green mob.

"Swift as birds of prey, we shall rain death upon our foes today! We have hit our lowest point, but when that happens... we are open to our greatest change. Our sacrifice will not be in vain!"

On the ground, the firefight had become very literal as Colonel Zuko and his "Ruby Dragons" arrived on the scene, a regiment notorious for their spectacular displays of pyrotechnics and use of extremely destructive incendiary weapons. Flames and chemical fumes of all colors danced across the battlefield, the hellish conflagration engulfing crowds of Greenskins like the wrath of an erupting volcano mixed with the beauty of a rainbow, while Zuko's soldiers were protected from the worst of the heat and corrosion by their advanced suits of energy-dispersing armor, which worked by dissipating any kind of extreme thermal or electromagnetic radiation, as well as toxic gases.

Zuko himself was fighting on the front line alongside his soldiers, a compulsory role for Bender commanders, and lived up to his infamous title of "Ruby Dragon," in the most obvious way possible- creating a firestorm so intense that entire city blocks would be turned into molten slag.

Naturally, this type of combat would cause immense collateral damage, but thankfully, all of it took place in a wrecked part of the city with no strategic value or underground shelters holding civilians directly beneath it. All the unprotected Republic troops had been purposely relocated to avoid friendly fire casualties from the scorched earth protocol.

The whole point of Zuko's arrival was to funnel the stampeding mutant Orks into another trap and use fire and poison to cleanse the area. Yet again, they were too dumb to realize that running at an enemy yelling with no plan or discipline was a generally bad idea, even with the extra strength granted by their mutations.

Because of the immensely damaging inferno that Colonel Zuko and his soldiers ignited, the horde began to split up, with the biggest, baddest Greenskins branching off and leading their own miniature armies- visible evidence that they wouldn't stay stupid for long, if the physical fungal mutations were any indication. Time was running out, and the Allied Republic armies were stuck in an uphill battle.

Meanwhile, in one sector of the hive city with a densely packed agglomeration of now-abandoned apartment buildings, immense explosive devices had been triggered to utterly flatten the area, rendering it a perfect spot for groups of armored vehicles to assemble. Battle tanks and combat walkers, elaborately decorated with Water Tribe iconography, war paint and regalia, rumbled into position, their finely polished mounted gun barrels gleaming in the sun. This was the Amarok Wolf brigade showing up to stalk the battleground.

Sokka was waiting for the Orks to appear, while standing firm in the turret of his Rogal Dorn heavy MBT, which bristled with exotic elemental armaments, while Katara was at the helm of a Gundam-type mecha that could shapeshift from humanoid form into a blast-protected military truck (like a Transformer!)

And surely enough, the Greenskins did come, sweeping over the landscape like a floral, fungal tidal wave.

"They're here to entertain us, let's pound them all to DUST!," Sokka roared, his statement literally being a pun on the crystallized magic gunpowder that enhanced the functions of his vehicle's weapons and engines. The earth shook with apocalyptic fury as the tanks' turrets hurled shells, missiles, mines, canister shot, torpedoes and bombs into the thickest, most congested parts of the green tide, while sponson, pintle and hull gunners laid down murderous secondary barrages of their own.

On the other hand, Katara's squads of Gundams and non-sentient Autobots would be the piercing lance to Sokka's crushing hammer blow.

"Activate your kill counters, everyone, just like Legolas and Gimli! If we die this day, we die enjoying our final moments! Nobody can rob us of our dignity!"

Utilizing speed and precision over raw strength and firepower, they went toe-to-toe with the Orks' scrap metal constructs, the Deff Dreads and Gorkanauts, and annihilated them with pinpoint motorized melee strikes. Circular saws, pile bunkers, mono-edged bayonets, power lances, phaseblades, Dust cutters, chainblades, electro-whips, venom injectors, and even dinosaur-grade cattle prods were put to bloody use in the mechanized brawl.

That being said, many of Katara's troops were killed in the process of engaging the Greenskin walker contingent, due to unexpected and occasional land mines being present on the ground, doubtlessly dropped by the enemy, and some of Sokka's command tanks had been damaged or destroyed by Mek Gunz (very long range Ork artillery.) It seemed like the Orks were fighting smarter... by a small margin. The fungal mutations were doing them a big favor, too.

The Water Tribe troopers were running out of fuel, ammunition and physical stamina and water for bending anyways, and wisely chose to forsake their vehicles, then fall back to relative safety, rigging the tanks with Dust Crystal explosives in case the Orks tried to hijack them.

Right before the green menace could pursue the remaining Water Tribe warriors under Katara and Sokka's command, they were surprised from above and below, by two different obstacles- the Badger Mole trench fighters, led by Toph Beifong, who were emerging from a hidden tunnel entrance to knock the Orks off guard, and the Garuda paratroopers, helmed by Avatar-General Aang, who descended from many different high places (like skyscrapers and transport aircraft) to further disrupt the horde's movements.

The Badger Moles, being a mining regiment, were responsible for the explosive charges that flattened the apartment building sector and enabled the Amarok tank battalion to have the advantage of decent mobility, as well as allowing the latter to put all their vehicles in one location.

Toph's forces were also equipped with portable long-range repeating blasters meant to scythe down the larger Orks akin to how a combine harvester machine would shred a field of ripe grain. They pragmatically applied heavy firepower to the thickest part of the horde, shrinking it to a manageable size, while staying out of the reach of the Greenskins' slug-throwers.

As for Toph herself... she was having a field day, launching massive boulders through the air to crush approaching Ork battle-wagons that could pose a threat to her infantry. She also was under the impression that talking smack would instill fear into the Greenskin mob.

"You overgrown mushrooms think you can STOP ME?! Think AGAIN! I'm blind, yet I'm still standing! Come at me!"

When an adversary came too close, the sightless powerhouse would turn the nearby ground into quicksand, burying the Orks alive under thousands of tons of earth.

While Toph and the trench troopers pushed the enemy back, denying them access to nearby strategic locations (including the main entrance to Grand Core,) Aang's jetpack airbending infantry relentlessly harassed them from above.

These warriors, sourced from the most fanatically religious of the Air Nomad monks, and often employed as exceptional star pilots, were literally armed with piston-driven talons on their mountain boots, which could crush bone and rend flesh with sickening ease.

The chainsaw-bladed melee weapons and hypersonic flechette guns they carried had the same gruesome effect, and their airbending abilities and jetpacks allowed them to blitz through the battlefield at lightning fast speeds, each paratrooper striking at dozens of opponents within the span of a single second.

Aang, being an Avatar, much like Korra, was naturally inclined towards the thickest and most ferocious of the fighting, where his mastery of the elements could be put to the most pragmatic use.

He used his gale force airbending technique to knock over a gargantuan water tower, one holding more than 500,000 US gallons of liquid, and turned all of it into fragments and chunks of ice, to bombard the Orks with a lethal hailstorm. He then summoned pillars of earth and walls of fire to keep Greenskin reinforcements from entering the skirmish and striking at his comrades.

The odds were looking somewhat more fair for the Republic's army than beforehand, because of the Benders' unrelenting perseverance in defending their positions, but as usual, a change for the worse was on the horizon. Somebody tried to stop it from happening, though, regardless of how futile the attempt might have been.

The Kyoshi Warriors, an all-female regiment of saboteurs, stealth operatives and assassins, were paying close attention to the status quo of the ongoing battle. Led by Lieutenants Suki and Ty Lee, they snuck around the ruined city hoping to catch the gunners of an Orkish artillery battery by surprise. These big guns were getting ready to fire upon Aang, Katara, Sokka and Toph's combined forces, which would be a disastrous blow to the freedom fighters' ranks, should the ordnance hit its targets properly.

"Time to knock the malevolent mycelium down a peg," Suki whispered, in case her smelly opponents could hear her and the approach of her teammates.

Ty Lee communicated with sign language, signaling the Kyoshi Warriors to ready their arsenal of exotic weapons- explosive kunai, electrified war fans, vibranium polearms, lasguns, grenade launchers, blaster pistols, chemical throwers, modified autoguns, stalking knives, and a selection of armor piercing, incendiary and anti fungal grenades.

"Wait for it... wait for it... NOW!," she gestured, in aggressive body movements.

On a count of five, they exploded from the shadows in bursts of smoke, fire and electricity... only to be ambushed from behind by Ork commandos who had painted themselves PURPLE. In a horrific turn of events, the hunters had become the hunted, solely because of the color of their enemy's skin. After all, when have you ever seen a purple Ork? Exactly, nobody has!

Bursts of staccato gunfire cut down the disciples of Avatar Kyoshi, all while explosions of gaseous mycotoxins forced them to hold their breath. Suki and Ty Lee barely made it out alive, and only a handful of Kyoshi Warriors managed to escape the surprise attack. It was like trying to fight a literal ghost, metaphorically speaking.

As you probably guessed, it would take a long time for the Kyoshi Warriors' numbers to reach adequate levels for another campaign. The two acrobatic Amazons wearing elaborate makeup snuck their way back into Grand Core to report the dire news to the Jedi in charge, limping all the while from their injuries.

Since Suki and Ty Lee had failed to prevent the Greenskins' artillery barrage, the other divisions of Republic commandos were in serious trouble. High-capacity bombshells rained down on Aang's army, killing 90 percent of the personnel and seriously wounding Katara and Sokka, who would've been dead if they were any closer to the epicenter of the cyclone of explosions.

"Fall back to the main complex!," Toph shouted with utmost urgency, as Aang used what elemental power he had left to help evacuate his fellow warriors from the surrounding ruins.

Korra's detachments, meanwhile, were completely and utterly surrounded by the enemy, which meant that the remaining survivors in the first cordon likely only had minutes to live. It looked as if only a miracle could save Gordasha... but who would believe in miracles during a time like this?

THE CONCLUSION TO SH50K SEASON 1 ARRIVES NEXT CHAPTER!

Which means Phases Three and Four of the Forge World siege will be the finale, while the ending will come shortly after that.

I've been busy with my real life, away from my potato-flavored avatar, this is why the update took so long. Also, I was too invested in what I was currently writing to drop the Avatar characters. My decision is final.

Regardless, I will finish Wave 1 of Starhammer 50K once I brainstorm the scenario for this last chapter. Things are not looking good for the heroes, and I'm pretty sure the final chapter will throw a lot of curveballs your way. It will be quite unpredictable.

But my main goal is finishing this darn fanfic anthology, so I can move on to other fanfic ideas, and maybe even some of my original ideas, which I will someday post on the Internet for all to see. I gotta finish it, even if it means disappointing someone in the audience.

I'll be back for the finale.

-Spuddies

Episode 6: The Green Tide

Chapter 7: WAAAGH Back At Ya (Part 3)

"Never before was so much owed by so many to so few."

-Winston Churchill

"Do not go gentle into the endless night, rage, rage against the dying of the light."

-A quote that sums up the grimdark genre of fiction... which arguably includes everything from Warhammer and Berserk to Shadowrun and Game of Thrones.

The real multiverse war has begun. The Dark Lord Vecna has unleashed his brand-new army upon an intergalactic manufacturing center. And at the center of it, the defenders of peace and freedom fight a seemingly hopeless battle, beset on all sides by foulness and corruption. All appears lost... but maybe this game of chess still has a few moves left.

Phase Three: Inside the Grand Core factory complex, with the Orks closing in on all sides (continued from the last chapter)

The surviving Kyoshi Warriors had delivered the worst news yet- the Greenskin menace had gotten past all the outer defenses, forcing the Republic's defenders to retreat or evacuate, and was rapidly making progress towards Grand Core itself. Furthermore, Korra's army unit was cut off from assistance, about to be slaughtered to a man, with no hope of rescue, and all the other troops were crammed inside the factory complex, with nowhere else to go.

In their darkest hour, the company of heroes continued to frantically search for a way to avert their impending demise, but nobody believed in miracles, especially in circumstances like this.

"So, this is it, huh?," Anakin said, with a lack of emotion his voice. "We're all going to die here, in a short while?"

"Well, I hate to admit it, but the jig is up," Noelle uttered.

"It's game over, and we're the ones in the video game," Prince Sidon added.

Even Jedi Master Amaranth, Anakin's close friend and Beidou's mentor, was ready to admit defeat.

"You are all being truthful, to say the least. And given how long we've served our Republic, I suppose our doom was going to arrive one way or another. I don't have anything else to say."

But one person was not accepting the inevitable. Once again, it was Monty Oum, the sea otter emissary who had joined the battle for the purpose of giving vital information and secrets of paramount importance to the Republic's defenders.

"Oh, COME ON! When were you people ever the ones to give up, even in the face of overwhelming, even impossible odds? My mother once taught me that there's always a way out. Ships and sharks, that's what she called the expression. There's always light at the end of the tunnel. So, accordingly, there's gotta be something we can do to turn the tables."

Anakin wasn't convinced by this notion.

"How are we supposed to be optimistic when the odds are stacked against us a billion to one? And what can we possibly do to turn the tables?"

There was a brief pause in the conversation, which ended when Beidou brought up an idea to address what Anakin and Monty were discussing.

"Come to think of it... I just remembered something! The only way to effectively fight magic, such as the light and dark sides of the Force, is with stronger magic. The Orks attacking us were created using dark side sorcery, specifically by spreading a specialized fungal plague to countless hosts. And I do recall that there is an extremely powerful light side spell in the Jedi archives that explicitly targets fungal biology. One of us should ask Master Amaranth about it, he certainly knows more than I do."

Amaranth had a look of shock and horror on his face, implying that the spell Beidou was describing had potentially catastrophic consequences and side effects.

"No! I won't allow it. The Cleansing Blaze is a blatant Force-fueled weapon of mass destruction. Additionally, channeling that much power and energy through a Jedi's body could very likely burn up their soul in the process. It's too risky."

"Does it look like we have a choice?," Sidon noted.

"I don't care if I get put in a coma, or end up dying horribly!," Beidou shouted. "What matters is a future where people can live in peace and freedom! I'll gladly sacrifice myself."

"It's better than letting this whole planet get destroyed, depriving trillions of people of essential goods and services," Monty pointed out.

Amaranth realized he had no other options.

"Assemble all the Jedi here, and every other magic user we can get our hands on," he said grimly. "They already know that if they refuse, they'll die later anyways."

In just 90 seconds, over 500 of the Republic's greatest heroes had assembled in the factory's main hall. They had all been informed that this forbidden ritual, the Cleansing Blaze, was the only way to save the Forge World from total destruction, and as a consequence, they were willing to put their lives on the line as the source of the procedure's Force energy.

"I wonder how many Jedi will end up dying because of this course of action," Noelle said, bringing up a valid concern.

"If the act is meant to be taken for the greater good, and more importantly, the battle somehow turns in our favor, then their sacrifice will be unequivocally worth it," Monty replied.

"Let's hope this works," Sidon commented.

Amaranth, Beidou and Anakin led the Jedi Knights in channeling the Force. The main issue with the Cleansing Blaze was that while it was extremely deadly to fungal creatures like the Orks, merely performing the technique drained the user's life force. So the performance had to be as quick as possible, to minimize casualties, otherwise the Jedi would begin to drop like flies.

To be more specific on how the Cleansing Blaze worked, it was in truth a holy bacterial pathogen conjured by the light side of the Force, which spread through a planet's atmosphere and caused the cells of parasitic fungi to spontaneously combust. The spell was harmless to every other type of lifeform, as it was solely meant to cleanse a location of fungal necromancy, hence its name.

The other soldiers in the main hall watched the intensely focused Jedi with shocked and awestruck expressions, as they were rendered speechless by the fact that the swashbuckling space wizards would actually be willing to go this far, potentially sacrificing their own lives for the sake of saving this planet and its infrastructure.

The entire occupied space inside the factory began to glow with the chromatic iridescence of an intense rainbow, as the power of the Force began surging forth from where the legion of Jedi was standing. The increasing brilliance of the colors was surreal to look at, like something out of a vivid dream, but it was in no way a pleasant experience. Everybody could see what was happening to the Jedi involved in the ritual- their bodies literally began to melt, and then disintegrate into dust. For every few seconds that passed, one Force user met a tragic end.

If this kept going on, Anakin, Beidou and Amaranth would die too, and the remnants of the Republic forces would be deprived of their leadership and their strongest fighters. Was the sacrifice really necessary, and was it going to accomplish its goal?

One thing was for certain, though, the Force users were digging their own graves, while following the orders they had been assigned.

This grim truth undoubtedly meant that it was only a matter of time before someone else tried to forcibly cancel the ritual, nolens volens style, whether the Jedi liked it or not.

Several people pointed blasters at Amaranth, Beidou and Anakin, in a last-ditch effort to get them to halt the magic.

"I can't believe I am saying this... but stop the spell, or we'll shoot you, and ourselves too!," Noelle roared.

"You heard her, that's more than enough suicide!," Monty insisted.

The Jedi listened, and Amaranth made a gesture, putting an end to the ritual of the Cleansing Blaze. Only 100 Jedi remained out of the 500 that had landed on Gordasha. The rest had put their lives into the God-Emperor's hands.

"Woe to me, what a waste of life," Master Amaranth lamented. "It was all for nothing. I was wrong when I believed in being positive."

He had taken Anakin's now unconscious, barely breathing body, and laid it down on a table for everyone to see. Master Skywalker had put himself into a coma during the conjuring of the Cleansing Blaze. Regardless of that fact, he was going to join the same fate as his comrades.

OR WAS HE?

Right when the company of heroes was utterly devoid of hope, Beidou noticed something odd on Grand Core's computers and planetary maps.

"EVERYONE! You gotta see this! YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE IT! We're BACK FROM THE BRINK!"

Her teammates evidently had no idea what she was referring to, but they headed over to the monitor screens anyway.

What the protagonists saw was something straight out of a miracle- the very concept that they were firmly instructed to not believe in.

Up until this point, the global maps of Gordasha shown on the computer monitors were largely covered byenormous splotches of green- representing the largest horde of Orks on record in recent history.

Now, the green splotches had disappeared entirely. And everyone knew what this meant.

"Holy hell, our precarious gamble actually worked!," Sidon said, jumping for joy.

"The day is won!," Monty declared. "Once Anakin is out of his coma, we can tell him the good news!"

The survivors cheered, laughed and did a big victory dance of sorts. Some of them were reacting to the apparent miracle in humorous ways.

Just outside the factory entrance, Sergeants Katara and Sokka had recovered from their injuries after a few hours of immersion in a medical bacta tank, and were playing a game of fùtbol with an Ork's head, while Aang, Toph, Zuko, and the Kyoshi Warriors handled the bloated corpses of the mutated Greenskins, stuffed them full of magic explosives, and created fireworks that looked spectacular but smelled like a pile of crap.

Meanwhile, Korra's army was knee deep in rapidly disintegrating Ork bodies. The Republic commandos were just seconds away from being torn to shreds, when suddenly, the fungus monsters began twitching rapidly, like they were sick with a fever, and began dropping to the floor, lifeless, as if the Grim Reaper himself had decided to intervene and start cutting some puppet strings, putting an end to the act.

"Is it really over?," Korra said, in an incredulous voice.

"Just like that, we've won?," Keyleth replied, equally shocked by the unforeseen change of events.

"Don't get too cocky," Thianna told both of them. "I should have mentioned earlier that Captain Merik and our hippopotamus fire support squads are all DEAD. We could have ended up the same way if this unexpected anomaly didn't occur."

"I agree on that, we shouldn't let our guard down," Ziggs added.

In spite of what Thianna had said, the surviving Republic commandos began celebrating their abrupt and instant victory, setting up fireworks, grilling food on the barbecue, doing spray paint art on the city's rubble, and partying in whatever way was possible. The civilian population were quick to notice that they were out of danger, and as a result, lots more guests joined the V-Day festivities.

However, back in Grand Core's main building, a very different attitude had spread amongst the galactic patriots. Amaranth and Beidou were still uneasy and tense, as were their companions. What could possibly be the problem now?

It turned out to be extremely blatant.

In a shocking sudden revelation, Anakin woke up from his coma, having been tenacious enough to shrug off the side effects of the Cleansing Blaze, and mentioned a detail that nobody else had thought of, surprisingly:

"Was the ritual... successful? I'm not dead, and there are still Jedi left standing, so I'm guessing it was. If that's the case, we still need to destroy the obelisk back in orbit."

Everyone turned and looked at him.

"What did you say?," Beidou asked, having not paid close enough attention to what Anakin was speaking of.

"Oh, NO!," Amaranth exclaimed. "We somehow forgot to destroy the one thing that brought all the Orks here in the first place! How could this be? Then again, the Maker isn't exactly good at writing certain types of plot twists."

"Enough with the metafiction stuff, Master Jedi!," Monty said, scolding him. "This is no time for jokes! The longer that enormous chunk of magic space rock remains intact in orbit, the more likely that bad things will keep happening to us!"

"Well, I don't think anything that happens now could possibly be worse than fighting a billion smelly, heavily armed, homicidal fungus monsters," Noelle assumed.

How wrong she was...

Just as Noelle said that, and many of the heroes were beginning to acknowledge their single fatal mistake, a hellish howling roar punctuated by blaring static echoed throughout the entire ruined city, instantly turning the sudden victory over vile tyranny into asituation devoid of hope, where everyone was going to lose... except for Vecna, of course.

Piles of Ork corpses, stacked as high as mountains, began to pour out from "evilized" Stargates in the wastelands just outside Gordasha's futuristic arcology cities, and the fungal biomass started to contort, then fuse together. The giant heaps of fungus flesh were reassembling themselves into vaguely humanoid shapes, with external features rapidly emerging, including clawed hands and lumpy feet big enough to crush skyscrapers, and armored skin protected by layers of chitin more than a hundred meters thick.

The transformation concluded with a truly horrific sight, as the mycological constructs each grew a goat-horned head with demonic red eyes, pointed ears, a bulbous nose, and most noticeably, a drooling mouth with adamantium tusks jutting out from it, which could chew on nautical warships like a domestic dog would do with jerky treats.

The Beasts of Armageddon had arrived.

Expectedly, the defenders in the city ruins were the first to see the Orkish Kaiju monsters. The citizens who had previously emerged from the subterranean safe haven to celebrate fled back into the tunnels in an uncontrollable panic, and once again, everything spiraled into chaos.

"I knew something was off about our little victory," Katara grumbled.

"And evacuating everyone isn't an option, there's just too many people!," Sokka added.

"It's not like the tunnels or our available escape spacecraft will protect us from those... THINGS," Zuko said, stating another fact.

"Just imagine the destructive impact of the weapons they could hold and wield! They could probably blow up the very planet we're standing on!," Aang admitted in frustration.

The people in the outskirts of the city, specifically in the first defensive cordon, (including Korra's platoon,) were in the most danger of being utterly eviscerated by the newly summoned eldritch abominations, and yet again, the odds were stacked against the Republic's forces in the outright worst way possible.

"Why the HELL do things keep going south?!," Korra shouted.

"Maybe that's just the way things are meant to be," Thianna grumbled. "No matter what we do, it's always futile."

Keyleth and Ziggs weren't on board with the attitude of their comrades, though. The gremlin and the druid were still looking at the glass half full, for some reason.

"You may think I'm delusional, but we should already have a solution to big-ass Kaiju," Ziggs pointed out. "Maybe the factory could supply us with some very, very large bombs! I mean, it's meant to be used to construct some of the Republic Grand Army's most crucial assets."

"Ziggs might be correct," Keyleth told the despairing crowd of troopers. "Grand Core's Standard Template Constructs are all intact, and they should hypothetically be ready to build new weapons."

Then Thianna received a message on her comlink from Anakin, which reminded her that there was a single catalyst making the whole invasion possible:

"If anyone out there is listening, pay attention! We've been doing the wrong thing the WHOLE TIME. The answer to getting rid of the Orks is floating above our heads in orbit around Gordasha. I'll elaborate... all we need to do is destroy the moon-sized obelisk which brought the enemy here in the first place."

"No matter how much ammunition we spend, we cannot fight off a horde which has the power to keep regenerating its numbers. Our new plan will rely on every skilled star pilot we can get our hands on, including the best ones the Republic can offer. The only hope we have at stopping this crisis is pulling off a spaceflight maneuver which has been dubbed nearly impossible, with only one recorded successful attempt in ten millennia... the Holdo Maneuver."

"I believe this is our only chance at ending the Siege of Gordasha and putting the odds back in our favor. Good luck, everyone, and may the Force be with you."

After Thianna read the urgent message from Anakin, everyone else's comlinks in the squad were pinged too, and soon, the entirety of the remaining Republic personnel knew what the final objective was. Time was running out, though- the Beasts of Armageddon, the Orkish Kaiju, were beginning to glow brightly with fungal bioluminescence, while standing in place, as if they were on a countdown to triggering a truly catastrophic event...

Phase Four: Warping To Victory With The "Holdo Maneuver"

Author's Note: Yeah, I hate the Star Wars sequels, but I just thought this particular moment from the Last Jedi was so absurd, it needed to have some kind of stupid explanation for why it works at all, and why it DOESN'T make all other forms of interstellar combat obsolete.

The entirety of the Jedi-led strike force assembled around a table with a holographic display showing the Obelisk of Odium in orbit around Gordasha, as well as the dozens of Armageddon Beasts just outside the world's ravaged urban areas.

The discussion at hand was rather troubling, to say the least- it focused on the question of how to achieve the Holdo Maneuver, ramming an enemy vessel at lightspeed, during a spaceflight battle, which meant being reduced to subatomic particles... something that was considered a necessary loss.

Beidou had repeatedly insisted that Anakin's idea was based on nothing more than an anecdotal tale from thousands of years ago, and argued that even if the Holdo Maneuver was legitimately possible and able to be weaponized, it was still dependent on a one-in-a-million chance at best.

To which her master, Amaranth, said:

"Do you have any better ideas to suggest, my dear Padawan?"

After Beidou stopped trying to debate with Anakin, the team went onwards with the plan. Finding eager pilots wasn't the hard part- plenty of civilians had lost their homes and families during the siege, and were perfectly willing to blow themselves up in a selfless sacrifice, proving that a man with nothing to lose was a force to be reckoned with... HOWEVER, the hard part was estimating just how many pilots needed to be sacrificed in order to perform the Holdo Maneuver successfully.

The amount of time between a spaceship accelerating fast enough to distort reality and proceeding to entering hyperspace was so minuscule, it was classified as Planck time- the smallest unit of time possible. Nobody could have superpowered reflexes fast enough to get this right, so an alternative solution needed to be found.

Fortunately, that solution wasn't far away at all.

Digging through the factory's standard template construct (STC) archives, Noelle, Beidou, Anakin, and several other engineering experts uncovered a hefty stockpile of prototypes of a potent device, the Distortion Motor, that could slow down the effects of time during spaceflight, by utilizing the power of the Force.

In a more accurate description, it channeled arcane energies through the pilot's body, letting them make decisions in unbelievably small amounts of time. In a nutshell, if the Distortion Motor was powerful enough, it could enable a spaceman to exploit the tiniest window of opportunity possible, and react fast enough to crash a ship at lightspeed just before it boosted into hyperspace.

"According to the research we've done," Sidon explained, "these prototype devices should be able to let us better exploit the absurdly tiny period of time it takes to make the Holdo Maneuver work properly."

"That is correct," Monty confirmed. "Precise timing is of paramount importance. Though Anakin should probably explain who Admiral Holdo was, to give us more context on what we're doing, and how desperate our mission is."

Hearing what the space otter diplomat said, Anakin elaborated the details:

"Admiral Holdo was just a half-baked, incompetent naval commander serving during the Galactic Republic's early colonial days, a buffoon who got all of her comrades killed during the First Battle of Exandria."

"Her plan during that battle was to hide an entire expedition fleet in the clouds of a nebula, unaware that the indigenous forces, piloting enormous versions of spelljamming ships, were skilled in probing and navigating through those birthplaces of stars."

"When Holdo's stratagem backfired, and her comrades were blown to oblivion, she felt so guilty, she tried to ram the enemy fleet at lightspeed, kamikaze style. And for some strange reason, God Emperor only knows, she had the means to make this space combat maneuver succeed, against all odds."

"Well spoken, Master Skywalker," Noelle said. "Without further ado, let's get these Distortion Motors hooked up to our starfighters."

Since the crew members knew that every second mattered in this operation, the task at hand was done with unprecedented speed and haste. To do any less would condemn the entirety of Gordasha to being terminated by fungus nukes the size of skyscrapers.

"We need the best pilots available," Beidou told her allies. "I'll fly if nobody else wants to go out with a bang."

Luckily, (and woefully,) there was a surplus of people who believed in the cause with enough conviction to sacrifice themselves.

"I'll do whatever it takes to ensure a better future, even if I won't ever get to see it," said Clone Captain Rags, who you might remember from Episode 2.

He was leading a suicide attack on the Obelisk of Odium, alongside 150 other pilots, including several veteran clone troopers, most of which would serve to distract enemy orbital defenses and Orkish starfighters, leaving the remainder to conduct some Holdo Maneuvers themselves.

Joining Rags was an ensemble of other accomplished veterans, including Sergeants Sokka and Katara, whose Bender unit had been relocated to the last intact airfield, and a Spirit Bomber Squadron directed by two field commanders, Thianna and Korra.

"We'll teach our mortal enemies that mushrooms are meant to be used for food and medicine, not for nuking planets!," Sokka exclaimed, trying to make the best of his situation.

"How can you be enthusiastic at a time like this?!," Korra growled, scolding her subordinate.

"Might as well be a jester when you're part of The Expendables!," Thianna smugly said.

"Let's just get this death trap of a space battle over with," Katara concluded.

The last-ditch, last stand attack on the Obelisk of Odium incorporated several of the most advanced and state-of-the-art models of starfighter that the Republic had in its arsenal, such as A/SF-01 B-Wing heavy fighters, GA-TL1 Longsword strike bombers, KB-12 Fire Raptor dogfight gunships, and V-65 Xiphos super-maneuverable interceptors.

It was worth noting that there were enough prototype Distortion Motors lying around in the STC stockpile to equip every single ship, but that detail hardly affected the odds the pilots were up against.

There was another concerning and demoralizing fact to acknowledge, as well- the Grand Core contingent, which included Anakin, Beidou, Amaranth, Noelle and Sidon, largely stayed behind, as did all the other members of the 1st and 2nd defensive cordons, like Aang, Toph, Ziggs and Keyleth, but only because there were no operational combat spacecraft left behind for them to fly.

To the company of heroes, inconveniences like this didn't matter.

Because once the preparations were complete, there was only one thing left to do: FINISH THE FIGHT.

Either the day would be won, or the Republic's economic power and morale would be permanently crippled. The only possible path to victory for the freedom fighters relied on an infinitesimally small suitable moment, but still they stood firmly, against an unstoppable bastion of evil. They acted in defiance of the cruel indifference of the universe, in defiance of what could be called fate.

If a higher power would not intervene and save everyone from this hopeless situation, then ordinary people would take action, and make the choices to determine the outcome.

What happened next could be changed! Even in the bleakest moments, there was always a choice! A better future, of progress, unity and forgiveness, was WORTH FIGHTING FOR, no matter how distant it seemed.

And most of all... courage need not be remembered... for it is never forgotten.

Soundtrack for this scene in particular: Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, Demon Dragon Final Boss Theme

The orbital assault:

In a matter of minutes, the Republic legion's last surviving squadrons of starfighters were on their final approach to the Obelisk of Odium, positioned some 500,000 kilometers out from Gordasha itself.

But before they even came within firing range, they were immediately swarmed by thousands of Orkish space superiority fighters. The ugly and brutal enemy vessels were literally cobbled together out of scrap metal and other salvaged trash, yet still flew reliably, thanks to Lord Vecna's incomprehensible reality-warping powers.

"They're attacking us from all sides!," Clone Captain Rags announced, as if the urgency of the scenario was not apparent already.

"Less talk, more shooting!," Sergeant Sokka responded, while satisfying his itchy trigger finger with a computer keyboard, which was hooked up to the weapons systems of the Y-Wing he and Katara were piloting.

"Sokka, memorize your weapon keys!," Katara told her battle-brother. "We've got to get these garbage attack craft away from our Holdo Manuever crewmen!"

"Wait, who's going to make the sacrifice?," Thianna asked, not out of fear, but out of morbid curiosity. "We've got nothing to lose here! Right?"

To put everyone's doubts to rest, a UNSC Longsword strike fighter painted in Glorious Water Tribe Regalia sped ahead of the main squadron.

"Korra?!"

"Yeah, the goddamn Avatar is back in action! I'll handle this, so all of you can go home and watch the sunset... that, I promise!"

Sokka and Katara made a sharp turn with their Y-Wing and then flew directly behind Korra's starfighter.

"If you need a turret gunner to watch your flanks, we've got your back," Katara said, while giving Sokka the signal to operate the Y-Wing's fearsome tail gun, consisting of a twin-linked rotary blaster cannon that could fire at a rate of 10,000 shots per minute.

Korra's attackers began to drop like flies, the explosions from the Orkish planes creating a virtual fireworks display in space. Rags then promptly moved his X-Wing into position and began chasing away any other bogies that got too close.

"They can't hold us back forever!"

Thianna reinforced that statement by firing a salvo of cluster munitions at the Obelisk of Odium's closest point-defense turrets, giving her allies more precious time.

"Make your ancestors proud, for the glory of the Republic!"

Thanks to all those contributions, the Obelisk's outermost systems of protection were now temporarily weakened. It was time to put the Holdo Maneuver into action.

Korra's ship made the final push:

"Activating Distortion Motor in 3... 2... 1..."

BOOOOM!

An enormous explosion engulfed the entire structure of the Obelisk, sending the Republic starfighters spinning out of control but otherwise unharmed, while a cloud of cosmic dust was left behind from the cataclysmic collision.

"Is it... finally over?," Sokka asked, trembling in his seat, as if he was freezing, like the vacuum of space just outside his cockpit.

"We have no choice but to wait and see," Katara replied, visibly tense and on alert.

"Surely Korra's selfless act of martyrdom will have meant something?," Thianna mused.

When the miniature nebula left over from the explosion dissipated, the squad's worst fear was made dreadfully obvious: The Obelisk was not destroyed by the blast made by Avatar Korra's ship going supernova. In fact, the massive object didn't even appear to have a single scratch on its surface.

Even the company's most prominent optimist, Katara, was stricken with despair.

"After all we've done... it's still not enough? Are we predestined to fail?"

Clearly not caring what the Water Tribe warrior said, Thianna persisted with trying to keep the group's fighting spirit and morale alive.

"We've fought this hard, and come this far. And there's no such thing as a truly invincible enemy. We will regroup our squadron and fight our way through the gauntlet again!"

"Hold on," Sokka voiced with concern. "We've just lost all communications with Captain Rags! Where'd he go? And what's he doing?"

There was an agonizing moment of silence over the radio before a voice answered the call:

"You already know the answer to that, young wolf. Remember Thianna's joke about us pilots being expendable?"

Rags was going full-on Leeroy Jenkins, accelerating his X-Wing in a rapid attack run back towards the Obelisk. Except it wasn't a Leeroy Jenkins moment, because he had a scheme for victory in mind, plus the aid of all the clone trooper pilots involved in the space battle.

"Oh, my God-Emperor. Is he going to ram the space monolith too?!," Thianna said, somehow bewildered and stunned by the clone captain's audacity. "And look at that, our entire wing of escort pilots is accompanying him!"

"Even if all the clones planned to do the Holdo Maneuver simultaneously or in rapid succession, with the goal of having at least one person out of many getting it right, a good portion of them would not make it past the enemy defenses," Sokka summarized.

"Then what are we waiting for?," Katara voiced. "There's no time to lose, and everything is at stake! Let's help out our comrades, one last time!"

With that said, the reinvigorated Space Suicide Squad went in for another round of skirmishing and dogfights, to settle things here and now, once and for all.

If there was any good news, it was that the blast from Korra's unsuccessful Holdo Maneuver had utterly eradicated the initial swarms of flimsy, ramshackle Ork attack craft that had proved problematic for the Expendables.

Furthermore, the nova blast didn't destroy any Republic vessels, it merely threw them off course, since their energy shields were extremely durable, and designed to handle large indirect explosions from turbolasers and macrocannons.

The bad news, however, was that bigger, more durable and more heavily armed Greenskin starfighters were taking the place of the little ones.

Rags and his clone pilots were quickly assailed by a collection of gunships, fighter-bombers and interceptors, and were forced to steer away from the Obelisk, making a nerve-racking, painstaking effort to shake off their pursuers. At this point, they wouldn't last long, unless someone came up with a tactic to turn things around.

Fortunately, Sokka had an idea. Years of meticulously studying spacecraft functions and systems meant he knew hidden information about certain vessels that even the clone trooper pilots weren't aware of.

"Captain Rags! Your shield generators can do something special to get rid of these pests!"

"What might that be, Sokka? I'm in a bit of a life-and-death struggle right now, so make it quick!"

"Tap these buttons on your X-Wing's control panel, in the order I tell you! Green 12, Yellow 5, Red 3, Purple 18. They should trigger a hidden functionality that is universal to all the ship models we brought to this dogfight!"

Not even hesitating, Rags pressed those four designated buttons, as did Katara and Thianna.

Without warning, a mystical layer of rainbow-colored Force energy emerged from the hull of each starfighter in the Republic contingent. Whenever an enemy ship shot at this peculiar chromatic energy shield, their attack was reflected back at them, dealing ten times more damage in measurement of explosive energy.

The resulting colors from the detonations shined so bright, it briefly looked as if Gordasha had a second, very small sun. Now that their spacecraft were essentially invincible for the time being, the heroes could concentrate on their main objective.

"These are the best buttons ever!," Thianna exclaimed. "Now let's break the fourth wall and put an end to this madness!"

Rags led the way in his X-Wing, through a churning maelstrom of directed-energy beams and explosive ordnance. The Obelisk was immense, with the diameter of a dwarf planet, but it was ultimately meant to be destroyed by tiny, expendable fighters, not expensive capital ships like Star Destroyers.

Such a weakness wasn't actually that easy to exploit, though, even with the rainbow force fields Sokka had managed to activate- because within minutes of intense void combat, three dozen clone pilots had lost their lives, their force fields overloaded by extremely excessive amounts of enemy fire. If the squadron didn't pick up the pace, and carry out that impossible spaceflight technique, then this whole desperate gamble would all be for nothing.

"Forget the mission, we're dead anyways!," Sokka said, his mind beginning to shatter from the pressure of the dire circumstances.

"SHUT UP!," Katara snapped back, her fanatical anger overtaking her in the heat of the battle, though even she grudgingly admitted that there was no escape from this doomsday event.

The already disproportionately unfair dogfight had turned into a one-sided massacre, and the few remaining survivors closed their eyes and waited for the inevitable... but Rags, that ever-faithful clone trooper... well, let's just say, HE WASN'T HAVING IT.

At first, he seemed to accept his terrible fate, like everyone else.

"Damn it... Just like that, I've failed you... Obi-Wan, Anakin, Ahsoka... my dear friends. It really was all for nothing."

However... by some extraordinary cosmic miracle, his determination and conviction returned to him.

"...You know what? NO. I refuse to believe this is the end. My mind feels like it's splitting apart, insanity setting in, like everything I've ever been taught is a lie. But deep down in my heart, in my soul, there's a burning feeling that won't let me give up, even if my destiny is to die."

"This isn't just about the Galactic Republic, is it? If the puppet master orchestrating this entire war gets past us... they'll spread tyranny and chaos across all of existence. Everyone's hopes, dreams, freedoms, and desires for peace, vanquished in an instant. A multiverse without love, compassion or empathy."

"BUT I WILL NOT LET THAT HAPPEN. Not even in a billion years. Right now, everyone in my life, everyone in this moment of existence... I can feel their hearts beating as one."

"And we all have ONE purpose, ONE GOAL. To defeat YOU."

"Nameless Evil, Tyrant of the Cosmos, Corruptor of the Noble, Destroyer of Innocence, MURDERER OF MY FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND BROTHERS IN ARMS, I DEFY YOUR AUTHORITY!"

Right when morale had dropped to zero, and the concept of victory here seemed completely nonexistent throughout the entire multiverse, the clone soldier in charge of the failing operation did the unthinkable, and accomplished the impossible:

He turned on his Distortion Motor, and through sheer willpower, fulfilled his duty as a defender of the Republic. Admiral Holdo would be proud indeed, even if she was as incompetent as the history books suggested.

The resulting cosmic explosion sent the dreaded Obelisk of Odium and its payload of invasion forces back to the beginning of everything, which is to say, the enemy was reduced to nothingness, not even subatomic particles remained.

And by some extraordinary, miraculous coincidence, the blast didn't even harm the remaining Republic starfighter forces. Maybe Rags and Korra's acts of selfless altruism, giving up their own lives in order to save the lives of countless people they didn't know, somehow attracted the favor of an unknown being that was the polar opposite of the Nameless Evil. Or maybe it was just cartoonishly bad writing on the Maker's part.

Either way, it was a deus ex machina. When all hope was lost, an unexpected event saved the day.

"He... actually did it," Thianna said over the communications, both saddened and relieved. "We've won at last. But was the price truly worth it?"

"Regardless of the death toll, we can all agree that Rags' shot was one in a million," Sokka stated.

"Now let's go home, my partners in crime," Katara gratefully told her comrades and older brother, as they flew back to Grand Core, a beautiful sunrise on the now clear horizon, shining upon the rubble and ruin of a civilization that refused to die that day, in spite of the suffering and destruction.

A new wave of cheers and festivities broke out across the utterly wrecked hive city when the last remnants of the brave and the bold came swooping down in their battered starfighters. Meanwhile, the green menace had disintegrated and faded away, the fungal Beasts of Armageddon stopped mere minutes before they had the chance to detonate.

After a long, bloody and unimaginably costly battle, which was reported to have lasted seven terrible Terran days and nights, Vecna's latest insidious scheme had finally been thwarted, and the Dark Lord had suffered his first defeat as well as a major setback in his plans.

Gordasha was still standing, and Galactic Republic bureaucrats were already working on a plan to rebuild the Forge World's infrastructure, stronger than ever before, with even more industrial output. That being said, the plan would have undeniably been scrapped if Gordasha was destroyed by the Greenskin horde.

But although the battle had been won, and a decisive blow had been struck, the war was far from over.

Nonetheless, that last statement really didn't matter to Anakin, Keyleth, Thianna, Sidon, the Bender Crew, or any other member of the big, badass, over-the-top company of heroes that had contributed to the victory.

All that was important right now was that this nightmare was finally over, and that Gordasha was able to be rebuilt. The protectors of liberty would deal with future problems and threats when the time came.

For now, though, they had a moment of respite and solace.

"If one desires peace, you must be prepared for war."

EPILOGUE:

In the aftermath of the planetary invasion that devastated Gordasha, Anakin Skywalker and his fellow Republic commandos were providing much-needed aid to the homeless civilians, working at a soup kitchen, cleaning up large piles of rubble, and hauling construction supplies, among other jobs.

The restoration effort was picking up its pace, but it still had a long way to go before the Forge World would be able to produce large quantities of industrial goods again.

In a surprising move, Anakin took the role of Mr. Control Freak, being one of the Jedi Order members overseeing and monitoring the city cleanup effort.

"The medical products you gathered go in this stack of crates, Beidou. And Thianna, make sure to use that strength of yours to help the firefighters move around their hoses and extinguishers. Moving on with things... Sokka, Katara, you two are in charge of debris removal. Join the other Benders in the effort, they are short on sorely needed manpower since many of their comrades were wounded or killed during the battle."

His partners and assistants were happy to obey these orders, honestly.

"Yes sir, Master Jedi!," Sokka, Katara, Thianna and Beidou said in unison, before moving on to work on their designated tasks.

"There is still a long road ahead... but let's just take this day by day," Anakin thought to himself.

Taking a brief break from his job of community service, he sighed, sat down, and felt a pleasant sensation that he hadn't felt in years... he was at peace, knowing that people were working together for the common good of civilization during hard times.

Yes, the war was inevitably going to continue, but the famous Jedi felt content to live in the moment.

That's when the Force proceeded to rudely intervene and fill his head with NONSENSE!... or perhaps extremely important information.

"What the hell... WHERE AM I?"

A hallucination wormed its way into Anakin's brain, shifting his view to a strangely-designed space vessel flying through the stellar void- the Covenant's Forerunner Dreadnought, also known as the Anodyne Spirit, which had been hijacked and turned towards a new destination by House Anniera's cyber warriors back in Episode 4, Chapter 2.

The lucid vision then gave Anakin a clear look at the Time Lord device originally stolen by the Covenant in Episode 3, at the climax of the Siege of Hoth. It had been properly stolen back by pragmatic folks who planned to uncover its secrets for the good of the Republic.

The primordial relic, which was shaped like an archaic police box, of all things, was beginning to faintly radiate energy, and when this happened, a voice in the prophetic dream spoke to Anakin:

"If you truly desire to win the war to end all wars, you must continue your journey elsewhere, Knight of the Republic. Seek an audience with the Mechwarriors of House Anniera, who are currently traveling to the naval base and shipyard of Kronos Alpha."

"They are on a quest to solve the mystery behind the Revenant Box... but in reality, it is you who will inform them of its purpose, the power to bring beings back from the dead."

"Your mission is to deliver this crucial message to Janner Wingfeather and his two siblings. You must hurry, though- the Dark Lord and the Nameless Evil are getting closer to discovering our plans as we speak. If Vecna gets his hands on the Revenant Box, the consequences will be irreversibly catastrophic."

Anakin had one question for the theoretical Force ghost, who had yet to reveal their identity:

"I've received visions like this before... most recently, right before Gordasha was besieged. Are you the same voice from before? Who are you?"

The Force ghost wouldn't budge on this topic, but stated precisely why it was Anakin that was so important in this grand scheme.

"As of now, that matters not. The answer will come in time... so make your old master Obi-Wan Kenobi proud, and do what you believe is right. This mission needs you, Anakin. There are not many people in the Milky Way Galaxy, or even beyond, in other galaxies, who have the sheer determination that you do, combined with your passion for engineering and science. Your unique skill set is instrumental to winning the war to end all wars. And you certainly don't want to see a future where everyone is a slave from childhood, right? You would fight against that, harder than everyone else... because you used to be a slave yourself!"

Anakin made up his mind, and with that, the apparition departed, seemingly content with Anakin's resolve.

"I guess I've gotta stay true to myself... I can always do more to help my country. If this is a war to end all wars, then I'm going to keep fighting until my duty is fulfilled. Whatever comes next, you can bet I'll be thereto make a difference."

"Everyone's doing their part, right? And I know I'm not alone in my dream."

"So what can people do against such reckless hate?"

"Ride out and meet it, and end it for good."

When Anakin woke up from the trance, he was in a hospital bed, accompanied by Ahsoka, of all people. She had recently received news of where her Master was, and was understandably very thankful he had survived the absolute chaos of the attack on Gordasha.

"Master Skywalker, you're awake! You suddenly fell asleep in the middle of helping with the city rubble cleanup! And nobody could shake you awake! Aside from that... what do you plan on doing, now that the latest crisis to strike the Republic has come to a halt?"

Anakin's response?

"Get the keys to our starfighters... we've got another mission on our hands. But this time, it's just me and you. We've got business to take care of."

"Because from what I'm predicting, this mess is about to get a whole lot bigger."

SEASON 1 FINISHED!

Author's Note: After a year and a half, Starhammer 50k: Wave 1 is finally complete. I'm proud to announce it! But there are issues to be addressed with this storyline, too.

As I pointed out earlier, this fanfic does have the feature creep problem of incorporating too many franchises, which is why Season 2 will try to stick with the ones I have already derived content and characters from. Franchises will be added to the SH50K multiverse at a much slower pace.

Additionally, the biggest problem with my writing is that I struggle to write especially long and detailed story plots. Novel-length works aren't really something I am able to write, and as such, I prefer anthologies and short stories. Detail in particular was something I had a hard time with here, too- I often have an epic picture in my head, but I am unable to bring it to paper. I don't know if I'll ever get over those obstacles, but as long as I write, I'm probably going to end up learning something.

Honestly, I just wanted to finish SH50K Wave 1 by the end of this year, because I have a lot of other projects to work on, including some original ideas and amateur worldbuilding concepts that I might share on the Internet someday.

Now that I've finally completed my first fanfiction book, it's time to get working on my second, or add more details to my original tales, which may not ever become published novels, but will almost certainly be out on the Internet for everyone to see at some point.

Thank you for reading my stuff.

-Spuddies

Looks like I'm back. I might as well keep going, because for once, I was actually able to finish one of my projects! That's a milestone!

It may not have been an original story, but I still had a really good time writing Starhammer 50k. And it had a word count of almost 70,000 words! So why not continue?

In addition, I still have a whole year to figure out how to showcase my ideas for original stories on the Internet. While I have tried and failed to write a novel during NanoWrimo, and subsequently concluded that I didn't really want to write for a living, I'm still thinking about posting my ideas and novel concepts somewhere.

But anyways...

THE ULTIMATE SCIENCE FANTASY CROSSOVER RETURNS FOR A FANTASTIC FANFICTION SEQUEL!

Starhammer 50k: Wave 2

Read Wave 1 if you want to be familiar and caught up with what happens here!

Our last adventure concluded with Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano departing from Gordasha, after a catastrophic planetary siege that left one of the Republic's most productive industrial worlds in ruins. Fortunately, a clean-up operation has been initiated to repair Gordasha's infrastructure and hopefully return it to its former level of productivity.

Unfortunately, Anakin and Ahsoka have yet another mission on their hands, and another mystery to solve. To begin, they are trying to contact the Mechwarriors of House Anniera, members of a proud warrior society who have sworn their allegiance to defend the peace in the Republic, who ride into battle atop all manner of walking robotic war machines.

The Knights of Anniera have constantly been on the move since the Siege of Hoth, where an object of great importance was stolen, one which could indisputably turn the tides of the war. They managed to steal it back in the name of the Republic, and are now in charge of finding out how the relic works, and what it does.

However, just after Gordasha was liberated, Anakin received a prophetic Force vision that gave him the hidden truth that the Annieran nobles are seeking, information that changed everything, which would result in disaster if the enemies of the Republic acquired it.

Now Skywalker and Ahsoka are on a race against time to find the Knights and inform them of what they must do, before the vital intel falls into the wrong hands.

However, that's not going to be the focus of Season 2's first episode. While Anakin's quest continues, another story is waiting to be told... the tale of a young man who aspires to join the ranks of the Mechwarriors, and become a Knight of the Republic.

There are many sacred, elite brotherhoods of soldiers defending democracy in the multiverse, (including the Jedi Order,) and joining any of them requires being subjected to countless tests and trials, a rite of passage designed to separate the weak from the strong.

Once those devoted enough managed to pass all the necessary tests, they would then swear an oath, and say the Immortal Words... if you've read the beginning of Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series, you'll know what I'm referring to.

But basically, it's a common pattern, and a unifying motto, that all heroes should live up to.

This next chapter of SH50K will tell the story of a humble young servant, who dreams of doing great things, and following the ideal of the Immortal Words. He will have his resolve tested on his arduous journey, and he will have to learn to work with his fellow squires in training.

Our subject of the day is a fable of finding courage and seeking hope in hopeless places.

And although the road ahead is long... and the future is uncertain... there will always be a light at the end of the tunnel.

Starhammer 50K: Wave 2

Contents:

Episode 7: Let's Go, Mechwarriors! (Planned, plot in development)

Episode 8: Titanic Clash (Planned, plot in development)

Episode 9: Paratrooper Party! (To be developed soon after Episode 7 and 8 are done)

Episode 10: Gunship Cavalry (Currently uncertain, no plans yet)

Episode 11: Defending The Armory (Currently uncertain, no plans yet)

Episode 12: That Ain't My Tail Bitch (Currently uncertain, no plans yet)

The Multiverse Saga Continues...

History becomes memory, memory becomes legend, and legend fades to myth, as the Wheel of Time turns, and eons come and go.

In the end, the story of civilization repeats itself, continuing the cycle.

BONUS: Original Worldbuilding Experiment

Potato Entertainment Studios Presents

An epic space fantasy whose story and setting steals from many, and combines ideas for maximum efficiency... this probably isn’t even legal in the current era of copyright!

A CROWDED UNIVERSE: MILKY WAY HISTORY ENCYCLOPEDIA

Not so long ago, in a galaxy quite close to home…

This idea for a tale is in the same genre as Star Wars, yet it is the complete opposite of the latter in terms of WHEN and WHERE it takes place.

Imagine if the universe we existed in was absolutely teeming with life, in every place imaginable, and our interplanetary backyard was home to diverse ecosystems and civilizations, the antithesis of the wastelands that define Mars, Venus and the Moon in our reality.

For better or for worse, those civilizations would frequently come into contact with one another, and the rest is history.

We humans evolved in a densely populated cosmic community, and we traveled out from Earth as pioneers, explorers and colonists... though we certainly weren’t the only sapient species to develop a taste for imperialism and adventuring.

12 billion years from its formation, shortly after the Big Bang, the whole Milky Way Galaxy is pretty much free real estate for everyone willing to get involved, with endlessly varied worlds like we’d never imagine, defying both the laws of logical science and superstitious religion in many cases.

Empires will rise and fall. Alliances will be forged. Wars will be waged. Destiny will be shaped. History will become legend. Legend will fade to myth. Ages will come and pass… and the metaphorical Wheel of Time will inevitably keep turning, through all of this.

Welcome to...
A Crowded Universe.

PART I: NEW EARTH, THE COMMONWEALTH OF GAIA
Time period: 18th to 21st Centuries

In this alternate timeline, human history has gone on much like it has in our real world, with one enormous key difference.

See, the mere realization that our planetary neighborhood was crammed with not only life, but whole ecosystems, treasure troves of natural resources, and even complex sapient civilizations, was quite a bit of a motivational factor for progress, unity and technological advancement, all across humanity.

Everybody wanted to lay claim to these faraway places and share in the loot, and the powers that be would ensure that nobody would have the shame of being left out.

Great empires and nations rooted in the classical era of colonialism gradually sought out better solutions to their major problems, which meant treating their subjects and previously marginalized groups with more respect, all while encouraging international cooperation and a drive for invention and innovation.

Something to note, though, is that this rapid enlightenment and progress wasn’t entirely due to the presence of abundant extraterrestrial life- in this version of reality, humanity as a species was much more likely to correct its mistakes and amend for its failures.

Globalization, baby! We’re stronger together, after all, and elements of division only weaken and corrupt the human spirit.
At least that’s what people were beginning to believe in this era- imagine if the imperialist powers of the globe actually chose to be more egalitarian and meritocratic, and less authoritarian and prejudiced, integrating everyone into a unified society, no matter the cost.

Not everyone on Earth would tolerate this mass emergence of globalization, though, and a cultural, tribalistic sentiment of rebellion festered in the hidden corners of human civilization, patiently waiting for the best possible moment to emerge from the shadows.
…Pay attention to those last details, because they would end up being crucially important in the future, when mass interstellar travel becomes cheap and affordable, bringing obvious opportunities and risks.

Here’s a description of what happened in different countries at the same time when we began to realize just how crowded things were in space:

Somewhat shortly after its founding, the United States would go on to conquer and annex the lands which are otherwise known as Canada and Mexico in the real world, with the colonial European kingdoms too concerned with their other territories to care much about what would happen to North America, now that it was out of their grasp.

When the southern states and parts of erstwhile Mexico rebelled in a civil war, wanting to keep the practice of slavery alive, which was increasingly frowned upon, they were swiftly crushed by the Union’s technologically superior forces, and with that, the slaves in North America were finally liberated, and given their very own free lands in the West, Midwest and Northeastern United States, in order to distance them from their former slave masters.

Year by year, the United States was able to successfully amend for its mistakes, taking greater and greater strides towards true equality between all groups of humans.

The demographic melange became a natural part of American culture, one that was perceived as totally normal, with groups of immigrants settling in communities that were often in close proximity to each other, and widespread forms of prejudice were actually fading away.

Of course, there were always people who hated what the United States had turned out to be in the end, but these individuals almost never had any kind of political power to cause significant harm to the Union.

God had truly blessed America, in a way... but while all these events were happening through the passage of time, people in not only the United States, but also in other nations across the globe, were looking starward (or skyward, in a more literal sense.)

Before we discuss why everybody was looking up at the night sky, though, we must address the status quo in other powerful empires that existed at the same time as the United States of America- one such being the agglomeration of European powers which were in the process of carving up Africa for themselves.

To nobody’s surprise, the same thing that happened in the United States also occurred in most of Africa, too, as well as the rest of the world at large.
The Europeans weren’t consumed by their own hubris and hatred like they were in another, more familiar timeline, and came to the intelligent conclusion that treating their subjects in Africa with better manners and giving them some kind of political autonomy would make them much more loyal to the imperial government overseas.

This meant that the kingdoms of Africa were never robbed of their ability to develop and grow as human societies, and with the added assistance of European contributions, the central continent where mankind was born became one of the most technologically sophisticated, economically prosperous, culturally diverse, and militarily formidable sovereign nations on the planet, with its only real rivals being the Indochinese Empire, the Russian Tsardom, the United States of America, and the Enclaves of Western Europe.

These five grand empires controlled just over 90 percent of the globe, with the remainder of territory, on both land and water, belonging to anti-globalist peoples and cultures who stood against the idea of a unified humanity… too bad they couldn’t really do anything about it, for now.

With that information out of the way, it’s time to talk about mankind’s desperate yearning for a journey through the cosmos, and how that endless journey was initiated.

In the timeline me and you live in, Earth’s moon is a barren, dusty, lifeless wasteland, just like every other moon in our solar system (when it comes to the “lifeless” part, anyway.)

Meanwhile, in this alternative scenario, the Moon is a biodiverse world of shallow oceans dotted with islands, volcanoes and archipelagos.
The low gravity and the thick, oxygen-rich atmosphere makes the seas behave very differently from those on Earth, since atmospheric pressure is lower, and therefore, water evaporates faster, and flows more slowly. The deepest points of Luna’s maria seas do not even exceed 350 meters because of these conditions, and floating plants and ecosystems are more prominent here than they are on Earth, with floating coral reefs forming the basis of many food webs.

On land, across the lunar archipelagos, arid regions have an even harder time retaining water than Earth’s deserts, while conversely, humid regions are even wetter than those on Earth.

Despite the obvious differences between Luna’s oceanic geography and the geography of the Polynesian islands that we’re more intimate with, the desire to settle this place is still strong, infinitely stronger than any motive in the real world to colonize Mars or Jupiter’s moons, for clear and concise reasons.

In the mid-1900s, at the same time World War 2 would have normally happened, large exploration teams from all five of the great international empires began landing on Earth’s sole natural satellite, whose thick atmosphere concealed most of its alien beauty from observers on the ground- they could only see past the shroud by using relatively powerful telescopes, at the very least, the kind of device that needed multiple people and maybe a small vehicle to transport and assemble it.

The various discoveries and samples brought back by these first few expeditions astonished the world, and without a doubt, signified that the space age had truly begun.

Now, there was no turning back.

In truth, these dauntless missions were the genesis of the governmental entity that would ultimately become the interstellar imperial power known as the Commonwealth of Gaia, later renamed to the United Nations of Terra.

Under the meritocratic, tyrannical, unity-focused rule of this newborn Commonwealth, which was the final result of a whole cabal of powerful people all over the world working together to further their ambitions and common interests in the vastness of space, the various nations and groups of people on Earth were to coexist and cooperate, or risk quite literally being wiped from the records of history.

Simply put, those who refused to join the Commonwealth’s global order were doomed to be destroyed, painted as traitors to the human species who glorified their differences for selfish reasons, and were assumed by the unified majority to be a real threat to the stability of society.

As the reach of Gaia’s new empire began to expand past Luna, the entire solar system quickly fell under Earthling control.

From the tropical rainforests and dense freshwater swamps of Venus, to the hurricane-ravaged rocky plains and stormy cold seas of Mars, Terran colonists were flooding the landscapes of neighboring worlds in a mad dash to exploit any natural resources and material wealth they could find, triggering frequent and destructive wars with the natives of each world.

Among the victims of this first colonization spree included the humanoid, dolphin-like cetaceans of Luna’s seas known as the Noatak, the Lashuntas, proud reptilian warriors of the Venusian jungles with body features like that of a lizard, and the Varyag, enormous horned humanoids reminiscent of Norse giants that are native to Mars, whose skin tone and horn shape varies greatly in different regions.

Further out, past the habitable zone of the Sun, the frozen oceans of Jupiter’s moons Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, and Saturn’s moon Enceladus, which are all filled to the brim with aquatic lifeforms and mineral wealth, are now being subject to unsustainable overfishing and destructive mining operations, while the equally biodiverse methane-based extremophile ecosystems of Saturn’s largest moon Titan are shrinking rapidly, due to a massive demand for natural gas and petrochemicals.

Even in the totally lifeless outer limits of the solar system, a substantial profit was able to be made, as probes were sent into the deepest, most pressurized depths of Uranus and Neptune to collect large amounts of diamonds, rubies and other crystals, pure carbon squeezed so hard that it solidified in the most extreme way possible, and that isn’t even getting into the mining operations going on in the Kuiper Belt and inner Oort Cloud, whose countless rocky and icy objects are a collective treasure trove of valuable precious metals and minerals.

By the beginning of the 21st century, the entire Solar System was fully mapped out and explored down to the smallest celestial bodies, its natural resources heavily depleted, and its extraterrestrial civilizations fighting a losing war, all destined to be sacrificed upon the altar of progress.

But as we will come to know, the empire of Earth was hardly satisfied with conquering its own neighboring planets. Things were just getting started.

The only problem? Efficient interstellar travel was something yet to be achieved.

The fastest spacecraft of the time would take at least 5,000 years to reach Alpha Centauri, the nearest other star system to Earth, which consisted of 3 main-sequence stars and an estimated total of 25 planets- a tempting target for further exploration, documentation and colonization, though it was totally out of reach with the current technology, and there would certainly would never be any technology capable of violating the laws of physics in order to traverse such immense distances.

But what if I told you that the powers of technology and science weren’t the right tools for proper interstellar travel, and that the secret to sailing the sea of stars lay somewhere else beyond scientific knowledge, in the study of non-physical phenomena and supernatural activity?

Yes... what if I told you that magic is real, and that it is a whole category of knowledge on its own, independent from science, just waiting for advanced civilizations to discover it?

If you can’t go faster than light, and you can’t break the laws of physics... then you have to find a loophole somewhere, a shortcut that makes the staggering distance in space more manageable in terms of effective travel.

Turns out, mankind was bound to crack the code sooner or later.

Deep beneath the surface of specific celestial bodies in the solar system lay an exotic metallic element with reality-distorting properties, a metal fittingly known as Godsteel, and one possible solution to the problem of not being able to exceed the cosmic speed limit.

During the years it was utilized in abundance, the origins of Godsteel would also be revealed by further research and experiments- it was in truth, bits and pieces of primordial matter left over from the Big Bang, the creation of the universe itself.

It came as no surprise then, that nuclear reactors splitting Godsteel atoms produced a nigh-inexhaustible amount of energy that warped time and space, creating a wormhole of sorts that a vehicle or person could pass through, ending up in a completely different part of the universe, by briefly passing through another plane of existence, commonly referred to as “The Shift” due to the sudden transition from one place to another.

However, this process had an obvious flaw which made it unsuitable for use- there was no control system determining what the destination would be, making a journey through the Shift completely randomized, and so anyone who passed through the wormhole would be effectively lost in space, unable to ever return home.

Mechanisms of guidance, control, navigation and direction clearly had to be implemented before Godsteel engines could be considered viable for the first interstellar journeys.

And as usual, pioneers and inventors eventually came forward with fully functional developments.

Only a few months after the discovery of Godsteel on Jupiter’s moon Ganymede, computer manufacturers incorporated trace amounts of the magic metal into their microprocessors and other components.

The effects were beyond what anyone imagined- when these modified computers connected to the Internet, they opened up a gateway to what could only be described as a parallel universe, one with many varying characteristics, roughly corresponding to regions- a virtual sea of sentient thoughts and emotions, a place that was effectively a mirror of our own universe, where imagination and religious beliefs became real, and all magic was ultimately derived from, heaven, hell, and everything in between. It was an extension of the wormhole-accessed Shift, and the key to galactic domination for every sufficiently advanced civilization in the Milky Way and beyond.

Humanity had just made its first forays into Nowhere, the central dimension of the multiverse that tied together every part of existence, which could basically be described as a combination of the afterlife, a dream world and cyberspace.

It was assigned a variety of names in different languages around the globe- the Japanese, for instance, dubbed the newly discovered unpredictable plane of reality as “Ni No Kuni,” meaning “The Second World,” while astronomers in the Nordic countries labeled Nowhere as the “Kalevala,” or “Land of Stories,” after the famous anthology chronicling the tales of Finnish mythology.

After the different peoples and cultures of Earth came up with titles for the realized realm of the supernatural, it was back to coming up with a way to traverse it.

By connecting the Godsteel-enhanced computers to Nowhere’s so-called network of flowing energy and data, much like how a device connects to the Internet, a path through the dimension could be plotted and coordinated if the computer was aboard a moving space vehicle, equipped with a Godsteel fission reactor (to coast the remaining distance to the destination in realspace, and to open the wormholes in the first place, respectively.)

In short, by combining the use of various machines infused with the power of a reality-warping metal, a more precise wormhole could be opened, and the spacecraft flying through could actually determine where it was going.

However, the speed, accuracy and endurance of a spaceship using the Godsteel system to travel through Nowhere relies on four factors.

First, different alloys and isotopes of Godsteel produced different levels of performance in the computers directing and navigating the ship, meaning the accuracy of the journey could vary depending upon the quality of the materials used in the fabrication of the electronics.

Secondly, those same forms of the magic metal yielded a huge range of power levels for the fission reactor and engines propelling a vessel, with some Godsteel types (like the Fool’s Gold) being totally worthless because they only allowed speeds 10 percent faster than light, while on the other end of the scale, there existed near-flawless, 99% pure Auric Tesla Bars which could speed a small probe all the way to the Andromeda Galaxy in under 6 months.

Thirdly, the fission reaction with the Godsteel atom nuclei being split in chain reactions needed to be carefully monitored and maintained by dedicated scientific and mystical personnel, as if it ceased to work, the ship would effectively be stranded in interstellar space- but as long as the nuclear fission process is stable, and well-managed, the ship can continue flying through Nowhere until it reaches its destination, no matter how long it takes... all that’s needed is for the fission to keep going.

Fourth, and finally, smaller spaceships don’t carry as much Godsteel as bigger ones, limiting the duration of their fission reactions, and thus, limiting their range, meaning they are better suited to using tiny quantities of high-quality magic metal when it comes to rapidly crossing the largest distances in space.

Through the expansion of the Terran Commonwealth, and its evolution into a full-blown interstellar imperial power, the future United Nations of Terra, many more ways of traveling through Nowhere would be discovered, which didn’t necessarily have to involve applying nuclear fission to a heavy metal with mystical properties. Their speed and effectiveness varied tremendously, and so did their accessibility and cost, creating a burgeoning market for star hopping, as well as a lucrative spaceship building industry.

Ranging from digging through the depths of hell itself with tunneling equipment meant to drill holes in the spacetime continuum, to sailing through an Elysian paradise with arrays of tiles that generate kinetic force when hit by tachyon particles in Nowhere’s environment, widespread interstellar travel knew no bounds when it came to manipulating energetic forces and types of matter that could not exist in the material universe.

“Soft magic” was the way to go if you wanted to build the first successful intergalactic empire. Bending the rules of reality to be as flexible as possible in order to benefit your endeavors.

Realizing the sheer potential of their rapid series of discoveries, the inhabitants of Earth would one day spread out all across the Milky Way, and even further, traveling to nearby galaxies and parallel universes, in the name of their “Manifest Destiny.”

Let’s talk about how that grand crusade got started:

PART II: THE UNITED NATIONS OF TERRA

According to the latest stellar census in the second half of the 21st century, there are more than 10,000 stars within 100 light-years of Earth’s position in the cosmos, 1,000 alone of which are yellow Class G main-sequence stars like the Sun, and each and every one of these gigantic balls of plasma holds its own unique planetary system akin to our own solar system.
The Terran Commonwealth’s grand ambitions to conquer and seize control of this vast frontier demanded yet another change in government policy- allowing the individual faiths, cultures and nations under the global empire’s rule to independently forge their own destiny amongst the stars, which is, to put it lightly, giving every single distinct group of humans an equal opportunity to found new settlements and communities outside the Sun’s borders.

This sudden change in the status quo was a gamble on the Commonwealth government’s leaders to assure the loyalty and good will of the people, by giving them more freedoms and independence to pursue their own goals in the depths of space, in an exceptionally rare offer of generosity, handing more power to the individual for the sake of social cohesion.

When this new legislation for independent interstellar colonization was introduced, the Commonwealth of Terra was officially renamed as the United Nations of Terra, a society where all humans would remain equal to the end of time, but all alien species were treated as second-class citizens, and therefore unequal.

The last defeated remnants of the great extraterrestrial civilizations on Luna, Mars, and Venus had been forced to live on reservations, now dependent on the state that had utterly destroyed them- a sad fate indeed, and unfortunately, one that countless other societies would suffer as well.

Little did the imperialist elites know, this offer of limited political and corporate autonomy and greater individual liberties would come back to bite them in the rear, and the specters of their crimes against alien civilizations would return to haunt them as well.

At this time, though, the first symptoms of a potential downward spiral into chaos and civil war were virtually unnoticeable, mostly because the majority of humans were willing to ignore the voices of the oppressed and not bat an eye at the irredeemable actions of their government. Some would inevitably take a stand, but their dissent had little impact.

Nevertheless, judgement would eventually come, and the fight for equality would not end with merely securing and upholding the civil rights of Earthlings. The struggle was just beginning, and it would ultimately span a thousand generations of history.

Now that the stage was set, the United Nations would ironically end up needing the crucial aid of its second-class nonhuman citizens in order to conquer the final frontier. The aliens would do everything in their power to earn the respect, sympathy and dignity of their overlords, prepared to fight to the death in brutal wars if it meant becoming equal.

…That’s a story for another time, though. If we are to understand the endgame fate of any burgeoning imperial state, we must first understand how its overwhelming growth and rise to power came to be.

Multiple factors contributed to this outcome, the most significant being the ascension of mankind as a species utilizing sorcery.

Here’s a closer look at what that actually means:

With the newly achieved capability of traveling through the parallel universe of Nowhere, the nexus between all realities, Mankind wasted no time on making its mark on a crowded universe... and this was but the first page of the history books, the onset of a long, unpredictable and turbulent journey.

However, using the medium of magic to create shortcuts to other star systems had its own unexpected consequences for the humans embarking on such an odyssey.

…Strange things began happening within the migrating human populace settling on the first designated frontier worlds.

These were unexplained phenomena which varied from merely harmless and annoying events, like graffiti in the shape of a penis suddenly appearing on a wall without any rhyme or reason, to calamitous natural disasters that destroyed whole cities, also without any sort of explanation.

However, it was quickly realized that these anomalies were being indirectly caused by humans themselves, specifically people with special powers who had no control over their newfound abilities.

This in turn led to many violent conflicts, with these so-called witches and wizards often being lynched and burnt at the stake for bringing about extremely inconvenient and often dangerous situations- something that caused them to band together, and learn to defend themselves, while also desperately searching for a way to understand and properly control their superpowers.

The Constellation Clan, as it was called, was the first organization in human history which was dedicated to studying the effects of magic in association with the human body, as well as researching how arcane energies from the dimension of Nowhere could be used to shape the material universe, a practice that could only be described as “spellcasting,” “wizardry,” or “channeling the unknown.”

Members were most often persecuted magic users themselves, now designated by the United Federation government as “Sixers” after having a “sixth sense,” or otherwise superhuman or supernatural ability, though many normal people without powers joined, intrigued and fascinated with this new phenomenon and how it could perhaps change the course of history.

Of course, this gradually led to the establishment of another activist movement, this time campaigning for the civil liberties of the Sixers, which directly influenced the already existing alien liberation movement, to the point where they became
intrinsically linked.

Sixers and Xenos, in spite of being persecuted, exploited and segregated, commonly believed firmly that helping the United Nations of Terra achieve its hegemonic goals would earn them the position in society that they deserved, proving their worth to a government and species which had almost always looked down on them.

Somewhere later in another age, a third party would join them in the eternal pursuit of equity and justice.

But for now, it was time to put these ambitious people’s abilities and willpower to the test, as the First Sphere Expansion was mapped out by the oligarchy, and the Terran conglomerate made its imperialist debut by launching a full-scale military invasion of the six nearest solar systems to Terra- those being Alpha Centauri, Barnard’s Star, Sirius, Tau Ceti, Epsilon Eridani, and Procyon, in order of distance from the Sun.

The birth of a new era in the Milky Way’s history was now underway.

PART III: GROUND ZERO IN ALPHA CENTAURI

The Five Sphere Expansions were periods in the United Nations of Terra’s (UNT’s) approximately 30,000 year long historical record where colonial migrations, manifest destinies, alliance treaties, assimilation pacts, and imperialist wars were all at their most frequent.

Each time this happened, the empire grew exponentially in its territorial reach and sphere of influence, hence the name, but it always came at a dire cost, provoking widespread rebellion, civil war, and even a few apocalyptic events that detonated stars, moved black holes, and ripped permanent holes in the fabric of reality.

Through this process, the nation which originated on Earth would be reborn into countless different incarnations, though the legend of humanity’s determination and ambition would always persist in the midst of the greatest change, as would the twin dreams of absolute unity and equality for all, ideals worth fighting for that would spawn heroes beyond number.

The First Sphere Expansion took place in the spring of March 2110, an entire century after the Varyag, Noatak and Lashunta people were first forced to endure the bleak hardships of life on the Xeno Reservation territories.

Now, the oppressed peoples of Mars, Venus and Luna would get a chance to be seen as worthy, upstanding citizens in the eyes of the arrogant bigots who unjustly seized dominion over their homelands. They had the opportunity of a lifetime now, as it appeared to be. Service would earn them freedom.

Alpha Centauri would be the first domino to fall in humanity’s mad quest for absolute power. It proved to be an easy target, its native civilizations significantly lagging behind in technological progress and completely unaware of the existence of Nowhere and the power of magic.

Still, with 3 stars, 26 planets, 5 asteroid belts, and 1,250 moons and dwarf planets to establish a beachhead on, the operation would be no small task. If Terra’s people were to put their mark on the map, then they would have to devote every resource and asset possible to the art of war and conquest.

Fact File: The Alpha Centauri System Geography Sheet

Overview:

The closest neighboring solar system to the cradle world of human civilization consists of a trio of main-sequence stars individually separated by a distance of 120 AU, with each one being a different color, size and temperature (the way of measuring the properties of a star in real life is called spectral classification.)

Alpha Centauri A: (Rigil Kentaurus)

Spectral Class: Type G0 (the Sun is Type G4, meaning it is moderately smaller)
Diameter: 145% Solar Diameter
Mass: 120% Solar Mass
Luminosity: 2x Solar Brightness
Temperature: 5,900 Degrees Kelvin (5,627 degrees Celsius)

Planets:
Paimon (terrestrial, molten metal)
Baal (terrestrial, molten rock)
Beelzebub (terrestrial, sulfuric acid)
Morax (terrestrial, boiling water)
Alacran (terrestrial, toxic swamps and saltwater wetlands)
Sevika (terrestrial, forests of all kinds, coniferous, tropical and deciduous)
Centra (terrestrial, Earthlike planet with even more ecosystem variety)
Desna (terrestrial, tundra, glaciers and cold deserts)
Ruria (terrestrial, Mars-like world with lifeless red deserts and tall mountains)
Sorean Belt (innermost asteroid belt, 0.75 Earth masses)
Terastios (gas giant, largest in the system, 17.5x Earth diameter, 300 moons)
Kalevala (ringed gas giant, second largest, 15x Earth diameter, 267 moons)
Okazor (sideways ringed gas giant, third largest, 12x Earth diameter, 89 moons)
Varuna (blue gas giant, fourth largest, 9.5x Earth diameter, 125 moons)
Ratadan Belt (middle asteroid belt, 0.90 Earth masses)
Vendatha (peach gas giant, fifth largest, 8x Earth diameter, 41 moons)
Onashin (sideways gas giant, sixth largest, 7.5x Earth diameter, 11 moons)
Nairo (ringed gas giant, seventh largest, 6x Earth diameter, 6 moons)
Erilipah Belt (outermost asteroid belt, 10x Earth masses)
Typhon (ice dwarf, 0.2x Earth diameter, 5 moons)
Caspar (ice dwarf, 0.1x Earth diameter, 1 moon)
Oreaz (ice dwarf, 0.3x Earth diameter, 8 moons)
Venhub (ice planet, 0.8x Earth diameter, 3 moons)
Iriali (ice planet, 1.1x Earth diameter, 2 moons)
Uriah (ice dwarf, 0.4 Earth diameter, 12 moons)

Alpha Centauri B: (Toliman)
Spectral Class: Type K0 (it is among the largest known orange dwarf stars)
Diameter: 94% Solar Diameter
Mass: 92% Solar Mass
Luminosity: 50% Solar Brightness
Temperature: 5,300 Degrees Kelvin (5,027 degrees Celsius)

Planets:
Haborym (terrestrial, molten rock and intense radiation)
Asmodai (terrestrial, highly volcanic and corrosive)
Buer (terrestrial, boiling water and sulfuric acid)
Scendora (tropical ocean paradise, islands and archipelagos)
Scendile (Earthlike world, with a variety of biomes and climates)
Scenagia (cold desert world, barely habitable, with glaciers and tall mountains)
Vedena (ice planet with cryovolcanoes, geysers and a subsurface ocean)
Grangia (ringed gas giant, 12.5x Earth diameter, 150 moons)
Akkada (gas giant, 10x Earth diameter, 110 moons)
Arila (ringed gas giant, 9.5x Earth diameter, 5 moons)
Noqual (ringed ice giant, 7x Earth diameter, 75 moons)
Inubrix (ringed ice giant, 6x Earth diameter, 61 moons)
Naroda (ice giant, 5x Earth diameter, 18 moons)
Oniaga (ice giant, 4x Earth diameter, 9 moons)
Persephone (artificial planet/space station, 1.1x Earth diameter)
Aeneas (ice dwarf, 0.35x Earth diameter, 2 moons)
Thales (artificial dwarf planet/space station, 0.25x Earth diameter)
Ptolemaeus (artificial planet/space station, 0.8x Earth diameter)
Leto and Astoria (binary ice dwarf planets, 0.1x and 0.09x Earth diameters)
Yixing (artificial dwarf planet/space station, 0.15x Earth diameter)

Alpha Centauri C (Proxima:)
Spectral Class: Type M0 (it is very large for a red dwarf star)
Diameter: 45% Solar Diameter
Mass: 47% Solar Mass
Luminosity: 9% Solar Brightness
Temperature: 3,450 Degrees Kelvin (3,177 degrees Celsius)

Planets:
Osiris (superheated metal-rich planet, akin to Mercury, 0.4x Earth diameter)
Horus (artificial planet, constructed by an ancient empire, 1.2x Earth diameter)
Anansi (tidally locked planet with a scorching hot and bright front side, a freezing cold and dark back side, and a habitable twilight tropical forest zone in the middle)
Amun (Earth-like desert planet, most habitable at the poles, 1.15x Earth diameter)
Isis (icy rock planet, battered by meteor impacts, 1.5x Earth diameter)
Maat (ice planet with a thick nitrogen atmosphere and surface liquid methane bodies, as well as towering mountains and icy hydrocarbon sand)
Cleopatra (artificial dwarf planet/space station, 0.08 Earth diameters)
Mark Antony (artificial dwarf planet/space station, 0.1 Earth diameters)
Sagan (artificial dwarf planet/space station, 0.15 Earth diameters)
Anubis (ringed gas giant, 8.75x Earth diameter, 28 moons)
Seth (ringed ice giant, 5x Earth diameter, 63 moons)
Thoth (ice giant, 4.5x Earth diameter, 19 moons)
Hathor (icy rocky super-Earth, 2.58x Earth diameter, 11 moons)
Anput (icy rocky super-Earth, 3.15 Earth diameter, 4 moons)
Duat Belt (outer asteroid belt, 5x Earth masses)
Apophis Belt (outermost asteroid belt, 10x Earth masses)
Apophis Belt and Duat Belt Objects: Includes ice dwarfs and ice moons like Temith, Khatek, Amn, Apep, Ammut, Mehen, Nakith, Perit, Ptah, Sokar, Khonsu, Nefertem, Pesi, Rekhit, Heh, Deshret, Dehya, Mahatra and Tutankhamun. These are the largest objects by far out of a densely packed area of space with hundreds of billions or even trillions of objects, with only a few million of these being more than 100 kilometers in diameter.)

Proxima Centauri Sneak Peek:

The Alpha Centauri system was already inhabited by dozens of nations and 6 different sapient species, all of which were competing for influence and power, and at least one of them would have at some point harnessed the full potential of magic, thus unlocking the possibilities of interstellar travel.

Perhaps unfortunately, the Taurcians’ closest neighbors beat them to the punch, and it would cost them dearly.

First to defend itself from Terra’s imperialist onslaught was the Kingdom of Thorns on the “eyeball planet” of Anansi, a planetary power which controlled the humid Twilight Forest region of Proxima Centauri’s first habitable world.

Anansi’s landmass was divided into three regions- the Scorch, which always faced the sun and was as hot as boiling water, the Permafrost, which never faced the sun and was as cold as the Antarctic winter on Earth, and the Midlands, better known as the Twilight Forest, a habitable middle ground with a wide range of coniferous trees, broadleaved trees, and tropical trees, as well as subterranean mushroom forests and anti-gravity slime fungus islands.

The Kingdom of Thorns and its protectorates maintained modern technology equivalent to the real world’s 20th century, whose sophistication varied widely, but it was all bioengineered and organically synthesized rather than built, allowing the arachnid humanoid spider people, the Neogi, who were the dominant race of Anansi, to live in harmony with nature while also enjoying the benefits of modern society.

The Kingdom of Thorns also had a strong linguistic and cultural resemblance to both Earth’s Sub-Saharan African civilizations as well as the Nordic, Celtic and Germanic societies of Western Europe.

Spare Notes: The Sphere Expansions’ Ultimate Objective

Though it has been completely erased from our species’ memory, human beings, in fact, used to be the dominant intergalactic power in the entire known universe, 100 million years before the fateful events of the 20th century that lead to the formation of the Alliance of Free Worlds.

We went by a different name in that bygone era- Homo Invictus, today commonly referred to as the Forerunners, and originally came from a different world, which was much like the Earth we call home now, but located on the opposite end of the Milky Way Galaxy, 150,000 light-years away, a place utterly forgotten by history, shrouded in layers of mystery which have yet to be lifted.

With unrivaled mastery of technology and sorcery, we bent alternate universes to our will, constructed pocket dimensions, and even embarked on the very first journeys of time travel. We were well on our way to becoming the Time Lords from Gallifrey in Doctor Who!

So what happened to this nameless kingdom spanning the multiverse, then?

History shows that what goes up, must come down, and the Primordial Empire was brought to its knees by the most unexpected, yet blatantly typical thing of all- a reemergence of prejudice and discrimination between the different facets of humanity, essentially a rise of tribalism and identity politics that made people ever more selfish, only looking out for themselves or others they saw as inherently better.

The Forerunners went out with a bang following only a few centuries of interracial tensions, and this cataclysmic chain of explosions happened when thousands of supermassive black holes were deliberately transformed into enormous, all-devouring quasars, bringing about the horrific destruction of star systems, ecosystems and celestial bodies on an incomprehensibly massive scale.

Among the casualties of the quasar bombings were the dinosaurs in Earth’s Early Cretaceous Period of evolution, interestingly enough.

It took at least 90 million years for biodiversity and sapient species’ civilizations to recover, which was far less time than what would normally be expected from such a catastrophe, thanks to the automatic bioengineering, terraforming, physics-bending, and galaxy-shaping safeguard systems that were established across existence by the Forerunners, who had long believed that even their society would eventually come to an end, and thus, wanted to preserve their legacy with an archive- a practical cosmic reset button, allowing for a fresh start for the new generation of life arising from the ruin.

Eventually, in the long run, a tiny surviving remnant of the Forerunners, nomads fleeing from their nation’s on-and-off hatred towards individuals with darker skin, came to Earth and completely abandoned their sophisticated ways, reverting back to their hunter-gatherer prehistoric roots when they settled down in the continent of Africa.

This leftover population of Homo Invictus, now confined to just one continent on a single planet, would develop more bestial, apelike traits to survive in the harsh ice age, then lose those hairy characteristics once the planet began to warm again, giving rise to Homo Sapiens, a new intelligent, civilization-building species that had absolutely no idea where it truly came from.

Following the spread of roughly modern humans out from Africa to the rest of the globe, history would continue as usual, with no evidence of the Forerunners or their ludicrously advanced multiverse empire making an appearance in the records.

But, as humans spread to the stars, out from the solar system, things would finally change, and the cosmic pioneers and star sailors would soon discover remains of a civilization that looked completely alien, yet eerily familiar, littered with intact hominid fossils that could not be mistaken for anything else.

The first of these “Golden Age” ruins was dug up on the fertile frontier world of Aerwiar, the sixth planet orbiting in the Sirius System, just 8.5 light-years from Earth, during the very beginning of the Sphere Expansions.

The reveal would drive forward a frenzy of astronomical archaeology and paleontology where a whole generation of explorers, scholars and scientists raced across the galaxy to uncover the truth behind the Golden Age of Humanity, pissing off a lot of locals in the Sirius System in the process- since the rural folks certainly weren’t happy with the prospect of a bunch of city folk and elitist fools forcibly pushing them out of their homelands.

Little did the curious ones know about the dark truths that awaited them, in the depths of the void, smoldering remains that served as a warning to any successors who dared trespass on the cursed grounds… and as if that wasn’t enough, many malevolent mystical beings and unseen cosmic horrors hiding in the great beyond of Nowhere had been biding their time for Homo Sapiens to come to power, seeing as how the great Homo Invictus had so easily destroyed itself through petty, self-sabotaging disputes.

Our rabidly expansionist species would potentially be the perfect future tool for the hidden nightmares within the realm of imagination and emotion to make widespread breaches into reality, giving the very essence of evil a physical, literal form.

We must tread carefully and take extreme caution in our journey through the interstellar void, for when you gaze into the abyss, there is always a chance that it will look right back at you.

This last piece of dialogue is to say, the raw, primal desire to survive can sometimes lead us to do things we simply wouldn’t do in the name of mere ambition and life goals.

To conclude this cautionary tale, here’s a metaphor regarding taking well-intentioned acts of progress and discovery too far-

Curiosity killed the cat!

Who knows what awaits us in the depths of space…
Is the possible salvation of humanity and our species’ planned spread to multiple star systems really worth the enormous effort and the exceptionally perilous risks?

Sirius System Sneak Peek:

Two planets are planned.

Columbina, the Little Dove: (Sirius I)

An exotic, extremely inhospitable world, the innermost planet of the Sirius system, with a shiny surface made primarily of pure diamond, and average temperatures hotter than molten iron, where volcanic lava zones formed from liquid rock bubbling up from inside are the “coldest” places on the planet.

Yet, despite these absolutely austere conditions, Columbina hosts a very small and rudimentary ecosystem of life, consisting of artificial metallic beings and creatures that were likely deliberately engineered to withstand extremes of heat, radiation and pressure, by a long-gone prehistoric intergalactic superpower, one whose history is still largely unexplored. Elementals from the Fane of Fire, one of Nowhere’s many dimensional segments, have also been spotted roaming Columbina’s surface, marking the first time in human history that lifeforms from the magical world have been documented living and thriving in the physical world, a discovery that strongly suggests the existence of permanent gates between the planes of existence.

Aerwiar, the Haven: (Sirius VI)

This subtropical paradise world lies smack dab in Sirius A’s Goldilocks zone, and a truly massive array of biodiversity has emerged here as a result, with plants, colonial animals and symbiotic fungi coming in nearly every color of the rainbow thanks to the parent star’s neutral white light, as opposed to the Sun’s overwhelmingly yellow light that encourages green vegetation to absorb red and blue spectra.

Its lush terrain, plentiful natural resources, visual beauty, staggering variety of edible organisms, and subterranean archaeological sites all made it a prime target for the Terran Federation’s first generations of pioneers and colonists.

The outsiders who settled here were a ragtag bunch of farmers, ranchers, fishermen, hunters and gatherers who integrated quite well with the native culture, the humanoid canines known as the Maru people, a bunch of anthropomorphic dogs who were themselves a predominantly agricultural civilization. As a result, the immigrants and indigenous communities coexisted in a rural redneck paradise with vast amounts of untouched wilderness.

The planet’s given name is even a pun, to reflect the peaceful mixed society, abundant harvests and spectacular biodiversity- “Aerwiar” is an old Celtic loanword from medieval English which roughly means “Here We Are.”

But everything changed when the Federation’s society of scholars, the Wayfinder Group, uncovered the archeological discovery of the century in the caverns deep beneath Aerwiar’s surface- the ruins of an ancient empire that once nearly dominated the multiverse.

A war for independence would break out in the Sirian System, which began with the Dog Star’s planetary inhabitants striking back at the intellectuals brutally mistreating them and labeling them as hedonistic savages.

The Sirius War of Independence would gain such traction in the early Terran Federation, a schism would erupt in its naval ranks, where turncoats would side with the rebels on Aerwiar and its neighboring worlds, fighting to protect individual rights and to end the overbearing political dominance of the Wayfinder Society.

All of this ignores the fact that Aerwiar’s hollow planetary interior hides important clues to the great prehistoric empire’s origins- valuable knowledge and physical evidence that is protected from trespassers by an incomparably hostile subterranean ecosystem, filled with terrifying alien beasts and demonic beings of myth, creatures that adapted to survive the fallout of the greatest cataclysm the known universe has ever seen.

Vega System Sneak Peek:

Two planets are planned so far:

Pelucidar, the Lost World: (Vega X)

Another subterranean “Hollow Earth” Forerunner outpost, discovered after the very first encounter in the Sirius System, but with much more substantial evidence of primordial military might and more detailed records of the technological advances made by “Homo Superior.”

Truth be told, Homo Sapiens hasn’t even scratched the tip of the iceberg yet, when it comes to the monumental task of rediscovering its lost glory.

Our species presses on regardless, no matter how many warnings pop up, telling us to curb our ambitions in favor of introspection and empathy.

Aurelius, the Enduring Legacy: (Vega XXV)

A major shipbuilding zone and Vega’s largest brown dwarf companion, outsizing all the other planetary-level bodies in the star system combined with its sheer mass and bulging diameter, Aurelius is also home to many artificial satellites and abandoned immobile starships the size of small planets, which had been built prior to the arrival of the Federation, just more proof that humanity was settling in the graveyard of another civilization… an intergalactic catacomb of untapped wonders, whose myriad remains could lead potentially any group of sapient beings to become the undisputed masters of the universe.

The race is just beginning, though, and countless empires and nations have fought and died to control this unimaginably vast frontier territory.

Procyon System Sneak Peek:

One planet is planned so far:

Ulthwe, the Oasis: (Procyon IV)

Red algae blooms, gravel and mud clay beaches, tropical fruit trees and gardens, and submerged mining caves can all be found on this slice of paradise, which quickly became a chief exporter of nautical vessels and equipment as well as fresh produce and seafood, thanks to the Federation’s introduction of interstellar trade.

Message and idea behind this worldbuilding project!

“The Crowded Universe” aims to ask one very important question about the loneliness of human existence, because we long to explore new horizons:

Since the disappointing reality of the universe is that life in general is scarce, with intelligent, sentient life being even more exceedingly rare, what would happen to humanity if the exact opposite were true?

What if we lived in a universe absolutely packed with life in all its forms, including advanced civilizations much like ours?

Our decisions sure would be different, wouldn’t they?
Assuming that we figured out quickly that our closest planetary neighbors were habitable to some extent, I think Mankind would progress much more quickly in terms of technological advancement.

Really, these are classic sci-fi kinds of questions, ideas akin to what you’d see in Star Trek and H.G Wells’ old books.

Yes... what if exploring the universe was an experience similar to that of exploring the globe, just on an infinitely larger scale?

Tips to make good worldbuilding while separating your creation from the real world, and making your fictional cultures and nations less derivative of real ones:

1: Use ubiquitous, universal elements and concepts from real life that aren’t specific to any one culture or country, but are found in multiple

2: Combine cultural elements and traditions from a wide range of real world sources, to make the finished product less blatantly recognizable as representing any one particular culture

3: Don’t go too direct with your historical allegories (instead of having a terrifying event in your war horror story that is meant to be a direct reference and parable of the Holocaust, with Jewish and Nazi German tropes, for example, you could just make your calamity a non-specific representation and portrayal of genocide, by citing widely differing causes that fit with the story and context of your world.)

The Crowded Universe: Novel Titles

Just pure speculation, in all honesty, every idea that ever came out of someone’s head has been repeated and elaborated on endless times.

Even with the extremely oppressive nature of our intellectual property laws, there is still a window of success, and although it is small (only 1 to 2 percent of books that are written actually get published, and within specific genres, niches and categories, this number falls even lower,) the window is still open.

So let’s brainstorm some epic novel names and titles for A Crowded Universe, based on the evolution of civilizations across the cosmos:

Book 1: Across The Dark Sea
Book 2: The Long Road Of Magic
Book 3: Destiny Made Manifest

Book 4: Rhythm of War
Book 5: Apex of Evolution
Book 6: Conclusion of Ambitions

Book 7: A Memory of Light

Why the Forerunners fell, and Homo Invictus became no more:

“AMBITION AND PROGRESS ARE THE ONLY VIRTUES. THAT IS THE CREED OF OUR SPECIES, THE PATH THAT WILL LEAD US INTO IMMORTALITY AND THE APEX OF ENLIGHTENMENT.”

Having a so-called “utopia” run by a meritocratic oligarchy, where everyone was equal and everyone coexisted based on the standard of contribution, just seemed boring, predictable, and downright antithetical to certain minds, who wanted to bring back the old ways of tribalism, nationalism and identity-focused culture, challenging the predominant notion of unified progress marching ever onwards.

The populist leaders would gain more and more traction, as they did make good points and ask wise questions- for example, could progress really keep going on forever, and is the peace created by the enforcers of the greater good truly righteous? Why can’t we celebrate our differences?

Why did everyone have to comply with these rules and ideals, meant to supposedly maintain a monopoly on virtue and morality, to the point it often infringed upon their individual freedoms?

The reactionaries would deface the eight-pointed star of reason and rationality, claiming it symbolized a goal that had never been achieved to begin with… pure blasphemy.

The empire of Homo Invictus would one day destroy itself in a cataclysmic civil war, one that shook the very foundations of the physical universe and even sent shockwaves of energy coursing through other dimensions.

But when one story ends, another begins- astro-archaeologists from a new era of civilizations would pick up on where the Forerunners left off by translating their languages, bit by bit, and piecing together an interpretation of what the hell happened, judging from all the remnants of the once great nation.

One ominous truth became clear, as the mystery of the Forerunner state was unraveled over the millennia of the interstellar Renaissance and modern intergalactic history:

Approximately 100 million years ago, humanity had reached a stage of development and success that no mortal being, sapient robot or organic lifeform should ever have achieved, for it led to suffering and strife on a scale utterly incomprehensible to the current inhabitants of this crowded universe.

Cloudbreak Islands Trailer:

Twenty million years ago, long after the fall of the Primordial Empire and the schism of its Forerunner founders, an enormous white hypergiant star, Kaladin, some 400 times more massive than the Sun and around 1,500 times as large in diameter, detonated in a cataclysmic hypernova explosion that shook the cosmos, creating a nebula some 10 light-years wide which would serve as a nursery for thousands upon thousands of new stars.
What the majority of sapient civilizations didn’t know about the Skywalker Nebula, was that the explosive death of the star Kaladin preceding it was so violent, the event ripped a hole in reality, creating a breach between universes that seeded a small pocket of the inhospitable irradiated vacuum with limitless potential for life and evolution.
This habitable sanctuary hidden deep within the perilous nebula territory, covering an area roughly 10 times that of Jupiter’s diameter, came to be known as the Cloudbreak Archipelago, the first environment of its kind to be discovered by humanity, although other species had documented this part of space long before Homo Sapiens took to the stars.

In this region, the laws of physics themselves have changed significantly, and rapidly outpouring energies from the Immaterial Universe, better known as Nowhere, have enabled all manner of fantastical and mystical ecosystems and lifeforms to rapidly evolve, creating a diverse landscape with very few direct contemporaries in the explored universe.

The Cloudbreak Isles, as a result, rank among the most highly desired regions in the entire galactic Local Group for exploration, conservation and colonization.

Segments of space like these, where a dimensional rift merges the best properties of two universes, are exceptionally rare, and ever since the Cloudbreak Nebula was successfully surveyed in the Terran galactic census, burgeoning empires and hegemonies have been on an intense lookout for more “pockets of paradise.”

Nibiru: The Closest Brown Dwarf To Earth

Floating in the interstellar void, some 2.2 light-years from us, about halfway to the nearest star system, lies a world shrouded in perpetual darkness, surrounded by a pale white ring system that makes Saturn’s look tiny, as well as a vast array of natural satellites, many of which periodically get loose and find their way into the inner solar system, getting labeled by observant humans as comets.

This object, most commonly known on Terran-centric galactic maps as Nibiru, is the closest substellar object to Earth, the homeworld of Mankind, lurking in the interstellar medium between the Solar System and Alpha Centauri.

At 5.5 times Jupiter’s diameter, and 22 times as massive, Nibiru is far too large to be considered a planet, yet far too small to undergo nuclear fusion in order to be designated as a true star.

It is therefore classified as a brown dwarf, being one step below red dwarfs, the smallest true stars- and its relatively warm cloud-top temperature of -90 degrees Celsius demonstrates why it belongs in this intermediate category.

Like the rest of its brown dwarf brethren, Nibiru radiates considerably more heat than even the largest gas giant planets.
However, it does this by engaging in the exact same life cycle process as an aging gas giant, its gaseous and liquid layers gravitationally contracting, slowly shrinking over time.
This means brown dwarfs start out with a lot of residual heat, which is gradually lost to space as the object compresses itself over billions of years.

Young brown dwarfs are differentiated from young gas giant planets by being much hotter during their infancy, which is a time period of around 3-10 million years when they can potentially be almost as hot as the smallest true star.

The majority of a brown dwarf’s heat is thus dissipated in the astronomical blink of an eye, meaning their temperature still largely stays the same as the giant planets in the Solar System, perhaps being even colder or hotter depending on various other factors.

Factual information aside, the brown dwarf Nibiru is often speculated by astronomers and space scientists to have indirectly caused multiple mass extinctions on Earth in the past, with its random movement through the interstellar void disrupting the Oort Cloud and sending massive barrages of rocky asteroids and icy comets towards the planets, with Earth having been explosively impacted hundreds of times throughout its long history- Jupiter and Saturn, thankfully, soak up the vast majority of these bombardments, acting as an effective shield for the inner solar system.

This eerie explanation for Earth’s greatest past ecological disasters gives the name “Nibiru” a reputation for being a symbol of bad luck in Federation star charts, although the settled brown dwarf itself gives off the exact opposite vibes, being the site of an important shipbuilding complex churning out high-quality, reliable vessels, and some of the most renowned and techno-magically advanced observatories in the whole Milky Way, drawing in billions of lucky visitors every year, all pilgrims and tourists who wish to learn about their place in the universe, and how the limitless cosmos are charted.

The name “Nibiru” itself, however, originates from the prehistoric Babylonian languages of Old Earth, and it roughly translates to “place of crossing” or “point of transition” in Akkadian.

This etymology turned out to be spectacularly fitting, as the closest brown dwarf to Earth marks the halfway point between the Solar System and its closest neighboring star system, Alpha Centauri, wandering at an average distance of 135,000 AU from the Sun- with one AU being the average distance from Earth to the Sun, an utterly insignificant figure of 150 million kilometers.

Omega Centauri Campaign Trailer:

Crossing the cosmos has never been this productive and lucrative... so let’s take a trip on the Rainbow Road, visiting countless places along the way in our space odyssey.

A CROWDED UNIVERSE: OMEGA CENTAURI CHAPTER

It is the 21st Millennium, a time that saw the apparent zenith of Mankind’s interstellar empire and its technological developments. The Fourth Sphere Expansion is well underway, surveying and exploring territory in multiple galaxies across tens of millions of light-years for our species to eventually conquer and control.

Magic is in widespread use in society too, unbound by the taboos and fears of previous millennia, and the dangers of faster-than-light travel through the afterlife and other parallel dimensions are now better understood by galactic sailors, allowing for a new era of imperial expansion.

But humanity and its numerous alien and robotic allies are far from the only colonial empire on the rise in the final frontier. In this new era of intergalactic domination and relentless colonialism, other great powers have achieved a similar level of success as the United Federation of Terra.

Chief among them are the slender grey arrogant scholars of the Vodoni Caliphate, the all-devouring arthropod horde of the Locust Legion, the merciless yet proud warrior society of the Jurassic Confederacy, the furious radical environmentalists of the Biowarden Leagues, the hyper-conservative feudal medieval overlords of the Triangulum Enclaves, the vengeful genocidal activist movement of the Android Liberation Front, the profit-obsessed corrupt corporate aristocracy of the Andromeda Cartel, the elusive, diabolical shapeshifting Lovecraftian cultists of the Voidborn Pact, and the superstitious religious sorcerer fanatics of the Elemental Alliance.

These ten superpowers have all converged on one part of the crowded universe with immense potential yet to be exploited, and resources and assets beyond count for the worthy to seize- a star cluster of obscene size and unique composition, known as Omega Centauri to the Terran government and the peoples under its rule.

The intergalactic trade route system known as the Rainbow Road has gorged upon the resources of worlds beyond count, and ideas, inventions, philosophies and cultures all spread across its area of influence, affecting the decisions and lives of quintillions of sapient beings with each passing solar month.

Now, the Rainbow Road has attached itself to what could be the most important historic location in the timeline so far, and the events of the past 20 millennia are now finally reaching their climax.

This is the opportunity of a lifetime for people living within the borders and communities of the great powers… but it will be a nightmare for the native inhabitants of the previously untouched star cluster.

THE CROWDED UNIVERSE WILL CONTINUE TO BE CHRONICLED AND UPDATED IN THE FUTURE OF SPUD PRODUCTIONS, I’M HERE TO STAY A WHILE WRITING