"This is MacTavish. Roger that." Soap's voice crackled over the comms in response to Serene's report.
"The units securing the SkyNet core should remain on standby. We're sending in engineering and tech teams to take over all SkyNet assets."
He added, "Serene, we'll need you to command the remaining Terminators, Hunters, and factories under SkyNet's control to assist Atlas in completing the integration."
"Yes, Major."
With the order given, Serene's eyes glowed an intense violet as she simultaneously took control of billions of SkyNet units—Terminators, Hunters, and manufacturing facilities. Atlas had effectively gained a vast, robotic army in mere moments.
The T-600 and T-800 series would now replace clone soldiers as the primary "frontline force," while the immense production facilities on Terminator Earth would meet Atlas's need for war machines, surpassing even Akra's advanced production lines in resources and efficiency.
The trust Atlas placed in Serene's capabilities was clear. Satisfied with this, Garan and his five Dark Angels lowered their guard and began moving out of the core area.
David exhaled a quiet sigh of relief. Although he wasn't privy to the exact orders given to the Dark Angels, the tense atmosphere had been obvious. Now, with the towering giants departing, the air felt considerably lighter.
Qiang, eyeing Serene as she continued to control SkyNet's machines, turned to the team. "You heard the major. Everyone, take a breather. Experimental unit, head to the bio-lab and see if there are any valuable samples left to recover. Synthetics, log into the network and assist Serene with the machine operations."
"Yes, Lieutenant."
The group responded in unison. Two synthetics approached Serene, uploading their main processes into the network to assist her and monitor her for any signs of "SkyNet corruption" or influence.
The synthetics confirmed that Serene's code had entirely replaced SkyNet's, verifying her loyalty to Atlas. Serene, fully aware of these precautions from the beginning, harbored no resentment. She saw it as a necessary protocol. In fact, she would have been suspicious if Atlas hadn't taken such measures.
Meanwhile, David, Lucy, Rebecca, and the rest of the experimental team left the core area. As they returned to the bio-lab, David whispered to Lucy, "Hey, how long do you think it'll take the company to fully integrate this universe?"
"For full integration? A week at most," Lucy replied, her electronic eyes glowing faintly as she scanned through the records in the archive. "But reconstruction will take longer."
"A week?" David echoed, surprised. Integrating this universe seemed significantly faster than Atlas's operations in Universe 09 (Cyberpunk).
With billions of machines under its control, Atlas indeed had a considerable advantage. And the only remaining obstacle was the human resistance. Since SkyNet's existence had kept them at a disadvantage, Atlas's forces would now face minimal opposition.
Reflecting on the swift conclusion of the operation, David felt a surreal sense of disbelief. Everything had moved so fast that the grand "battlefield scenes" he had anticipated seemed to vanish almost as soon as they began. Still, he reasoned that large-scale conflicts were best avoided. He recalled the grueling integration campaign in the Halo universe, which had cost Atlas tens of thousands of lives, not including the countless clone soldiers.
This shift in perspective marked a new maturity in David. By the time he and his peers in the experimental unit turned twenty, they would be reassigned according to their skills or desires or transferred based on orders. David aspired to join the investigative division, inspired by legendary agents like Jill Valentine and Leon S. Kennedy.
Becoming an investigator would grant him the opportunity to travel between universes, seeking out high-value assets for Atlas—lost relics, ancient artifacts, and even entire civilizations ripe for research. This role appealed to David's adventurous spirit and also gave him a slight hope of partnering with Lucy. Their relationship had grown closer, though it had yet to reach a significant turning point. Perhaps a bit of travel together was just what they needed.
---
In the Halo universe, near the home planet of the Prophet species, San'Shyuum, the combined fleet of Atlas and the Sangheili had established a full blockade. Floating debris scattered across the planet's orbit and gravity fields marked the site of a massive battle, with the Atlas-Sangheili fleet having shattered the last military defenses of the Prophet species.
Without orbital control, the Prophet's remaining ground forces were left vulnerable to relentless bombardments from above. Fighter squads roamed freely, and transports were able to land troops unopposed, ensuring there was no chance for the Prophets to rally.
Without the Brutes, who once formed the main infantry for the Covenant, the Prophet species stood no chance against the forces of Atlas and the Sangheili. Even now, Samuel Young himself fought on the ground, wearing his custom power armor and wielding the Emperor's Sword in his right hand and the Emperor's Claw on his left.
The extinction of the Prophet species was only a matter of time. Any survivors who had managed to hide in unoccupied zones or lawless star systems were of little consequence. Atlas and the Sangheili had placed bounties on the Prophets across the galaxy, and now even the once-distrustful mercenaries and pirates were eagerly capturing or eliminating the remnants to curry favor with the new ruling alliance.
The galaxy now hunted down the Prophet species with collective fervor, eliminating every last one.
---
Meanwhile, on the sunlit side of San'Shyuum's equator, at the heart of the Prophet palace—
"Haha! Bunch of weaklings!"
"Die! Die! You dare raise a weapon against us with our 'grandfather' here?"
"For the Emperor! For humanity!"
On the palace grounds, Space Wolves in their Titan IV armor charged without the usual profanities but fiercely called Samuel Young their "grandfather," bellowing rallying cries of "For the Emperor!" as they tore through the Prophet's forces.
The Covenant soldiers attempting to defend the palace fell swiftly to the unrelenting Space Wolves, who didn't even offer them a chance to surrender. And as for the Grunt Honor Guards with their ornate armor? They were obliterated as soon as they clashed with the battle-hungry Wolves.
In the center of the formation, the towering figure of Samuel Young advanced calmly, guarded by the Space Wolves and joined by over five hundred elite Astartes from the Ultramarines, Blood Angels, and Dark Angels chapters. These carefully chosen veterans overwhelmed the remaining Covenant forces.
Only when hordes of Hunters emerged did Samuel unleash psionic storms and waves of fiery psychic energy, roasting and incinerating anything in his path.
At last, they reached the depths of the palace, wiping out the final Prophet high councilors. The battle had been swift and decisive.
Elsewhere on the planet, resistance collapsed as the remaining defenders scattered, unable to match the power of Atlas and Sangheili forces. Though over 5,000 clone soldiers fell in the conflict, this loss was within Samuel's acceptable range.
Satisfied with the outcome, Samuel emerged from the palace as thirty Thunder Warriors stood guard around him, alert to any remaining threats. The other Astartes continued their sweep, ensuring no survivors remained.
Listening to the distant echo of explosive rounds and the hum of the Emperor's Sword sheathed at his waist, Samuel dismissed the psionic lightning crackling around his gauntlet, glancing skyward toward San'Shyuum's sun.
A slight sigh escaped his lips, more from a sense of relaxation than any disappointment. The fall of the Prophet homeworld marked a significant victory in the long and arduous Halo universe integration campaign. Atlas now governed a population exceeding four hundred billion, with humans and Sangheili making up the majority, followed by the Grunts.
Though the Grunts were weak individually, they held their place in the new hierarchy as "second-class citizens," while the Sangheili and humans shared "first-class" status. Other allied species from Terela, such as the powerful but rare dragons, would also retain their place as first-class citizens, having proven themselves in battles against the demonic Moid.
Yet one remaining issue weighed on Samuel's mind: appointing a governor for the Halo universe.
Five Primarchs had distinguished themselves in the integration wars—Fulgrim, Leman Russ, Angron, Mortarion, and Corax. Together, these Primarchs had each led daring, strategically brilliant campaigns, conquering star systems weekly and slaughtering millions of Covenant soldiers. Each had "torn apart" around two hundred thousand enemies in brutal close combat, which raised troop morale and shattered Covenant morale.
Given the Primarchs' equal accomplishments, Samuel couldn't favor any one of them, even though he preferred Fulgrim or Angron for the role of Halo's supreme governor. Vulkan was also present in the Halo universe, but he primarily served as the security detail for Halsey, Cortana, and the other research teams and rarely engaged in frontline combat.
'I'll appoint all five as provisional governors,' Samuel decided.
Each Primarch would govern a section of the galaxy, with the best-governed region determining who would ultimately receive the position of Halo's supreme governor.
"Sir."
At that moment, his comms crackled to life, and App's voice reported: "Major MacTavish and Serene have fully seized control of all SkyNet assets."
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