=== Vulkan ===
The corridors of the SunEater had become hell for the Empire. Fire rolled across the ceiling in choking waves as ruptured conduits spat sparks and molten metal across the deck plating, while corpses in Imperial armor littered every passage Vulkan and his sons crossed.
The Primarch of the Salamanders strode at the center of the carnage, every step of his massive frame shaking the steel beneath him. His emerald armor was blackened with soot and drenched in blood, yet the giant seemed utterly tireless as Urdrakule rose and fell in his colossal hands, each swing annihilating anything unfortunate enough to stand before him.
Clone troopers vanished beneath the thunderhammer in sprays of shattered armor and liquified flesh, while stormtroopers attempting to form firing lines were simply crushed beneath the advancing wall of Salamanders. Bolter fire roared through the corridors with deafening fury, every explosive shell detonating bodies apart and painting the walls red.
The resistance within this section of the station had grown increasingly desperate. Imperial officers screamed commands over blaring alarms while Dark Jedi hurled themselves into the battle in wild attempts to halt the advance, their blades flashing violently through the smoke.
One of them leapt from an overhead walkway directly toward Vulkan, robes whipping behind him as he unleashed a savage overhead strike empowered by the Force. The Primarch barely acknowledged the attack. Urdrakule came up in one brutal arc and collided with the lightsaber mid-swing.
Lightning erupted from the hammerhead and the Dark Jedi exploded apart in a shower of burning meat and shattered bone that splattered across the surrounding area. Another attempted to crush Vulkan beneath telekinetic force, veins bulging in his neck as the very corridor screamed and twisted around the Primarch, but Vulkan simply continued walking through it all. The invisible pressure broke apart against him like ocean waves against a mountain.
Behind him, the Salamanders advanced with terrifying discipline. Tu'Shan himself crushed through a barricade of troopers, Stormbearer roaring as it pulped armor and bodies alike, while He'stan drove his thunder hammer through a clone captain before immolating three more soldiers with his drake-scale flamer.
Even when Dark Jedi managed to throw Marines from their feet or tear chunks from their armor with the Force, the Astartes answered with ruthlessness. One Jedi attempted to impale a Salamander through the throat only for another Marine to seize the attacker by the arm and hold him still while a third blasted his head apart point blank with a bolt pistol. The corridor became a slaughterhouse within moments.
Eventually the resistance broke completely. The surviving Dark Jedi died screaming beneath chainswords and thunder hammers while the last remaining troopers tried fleeing deeper into the station, only to be cut down from behind by bolter fire.
Vulkan stepped over the ruin of the battlefield without slowing, smoke curling around his massive silhouette as his burning red eyes scanned the corridors ahead. Somewhere deeper within the SunEater, he could feel the immense psychic presence of Sanguinius moving like a blazing star through the darkness of the vessel. The Primarch turned toward the next passageway when movement caught his eye.
At the far end of the corridor stood two figures, battered and exhausted beneath the flickering emergency lights. Obi-Wan Kenobi held his blue lightsaber low at his side, his robes torn and stained with blood while bruises darkened his face. Beside him stood Ahsoka Tano, breathing heavily with one green blade still ignited in her remaining hand. Both of them froze the instant they saw the wall of towering Space Marines emerging from the smoke.
For a long moment, nobody moved.
Then Ahsoka slowly lowered her blade.
"We surrender," she said carefully, her voice rough from exhaustion. "We're not your enemy."
The Salamanders immediately raised weapons toward them regardless. Bolters tracked their every movement while several Marines shifted to surround the pair. Tu'Shan stepped forward slightly, thunder hammer resting against his shoulder as he eyed the two Jedi with obvious distrust.
Vulkan, however, stared at Obi-Wan with widening recognition.
Then, to the utter confusion of everyone present, the Primarch broke into a broad grin.
"Well," Vulkan rumbled, his deep voice almost warm despite the battlefield surrounding them, "it seems we both made it to the other side safely."
Obi-Wan blinked in confusion. "I… beg your pardon?"
The Primarch approached, towering over the Jedi Master. Even standing battered and weary, Obi-Wan barely reached Vulkan's waist. The Salamanders around them visibly relaxed slightly at their father's demeanor, though their weapons remained ready.
"You truly do not remember me," Vulkan said, more statement than question. "Ten years together in the madness of the warp, and now you look at me like a stranger."
Obi-Wan frowned deeply. "I'm afraid I would remember someone of your… stature." He hesitated before continuing carefully. "I suffered a memory wipe several years ago. There are gaps in my past I've never been able to recover."
At that, Vulkan's expression softened slightly. "Ah." The Primarch nodded once. "Then that explains it. Much must be sacrificed for protection from the Warp."
Ahsoka looked between them completely bewildered. "Master… what is he talking about?"
"I honestly have no idea," Obi-Wan admitted quietly.
For a brief moment Vulkan seemed almost saddened, but then the Primarch straightened once more and the warmth vanished beneath the iron resolve of war. Around them the SunEater continued trembling violently from the battle raging throughout its colossal structure. Distant explosions rolled through the corridors while alarms screamed endlessly overhead.
"All of this can wait," Vulkan said firmly. He turned toward Tu'Shan. "Take these two into custody and ensure no harm comes to them. They are not to be mistreated."
Tu'Shan slammed a fist against his chestplate immediately. "By your will, my lord."
Ahsoka narrowed her eyes cautiously. "And what exactly happens to us now?"
Vulkan looked back at her. "Now?" The Primarch hefted Urdrakule onto his shoulder, his burning eyes turning toward the depths of the station where war still raged. "Now I go to find my brother."
Without another word, Vulkan began walking once more, the Salamanders reforming around him instantly as the unstoppable force of the Legion surged deeper into the SunEater. Bolters thundered again moments later as fresh Imperial defenders collided with the advancing Astartes, and the entire corridor erupted back into violence.
=== Darth Vader ===
The command chamber of the SunEater trembled constantly now, every distant impact reverberating through the colossal battlestation.
Beyond the massive viewport, space itself had become a raging inferno. Imperial Star Destroyers burned in orbit around Mandalore while the newly arrived Imperium fleet carved bloody paths through the Empire's formation. Entire ships vanished beneath bombardments from the battle barge, and countless fighters twisted through the void in desperate dogfights that painted the stars with fire.
The Dark Lord remained utterly motionless before the viewport, his black cape hanging heavily behind him while the burning reflection of dying ships flickered across the polished surface of his mask. Below, Mandalore burned beneath artillery bombardments, entire cities reduced to smoldering ruin while millions fought and died across the barren planet. Even from orbit, the scale of the slaughter was unimaginable.
A nervous Imperial officer approached cautiously from behind, visibly trembling despite trying to maintain his discipline. "M-My lord…"
Vader did not turn.
The officer swallowed hard before continuing. "We've received the final report from the Reaper unit."
The man's hands tightened around the datapad he carried. "They failed, my lord. The retrieval team engaged hostile forces near the children's last known location, but…" He hesitated for only a second too long. "The unit was wiped out in under a minute."
Something in the room changed.
It was subtle at first. The air itself seemed to grow heavier, as though some invisible pressure had suddenly descended upon everyone present. Several nearby crew members visibly stiffened as unease crawled through the chamber like poison.
"And the children?" Vader finally asked.
The officer's throat bobbed. "Their last known location was inside one of the Imperium's hangers. We… we no longer believe they are on Mandalore."
The moment the words left his mouth, Vader's gloved hand slowly clenched into a fist.
The transparisteel viewport before him groaned violently.
Hairline fractures began spreading across the massive glass pane in jagged spiderwebs as the Dark Side flooded the chamber with suffocating intensity.
Consoles nearby sparked and flickered while loose objects began rattling across the floor. Several officers instinctively backed away from Vader, terror spreading through the bridge as the temperature seemed to plummet.
His children were gone. They had taken them from him again.
His children. The last remnants of Padmé. The final proof that something of his old life had survived the fire and betrayal and endless war.
Now they were gone.
And the whispers began again.
"They have stolen them from you… again." The soft voice hissed.
Vader's breathing deepened.
"Destroy them."
The voice curled through his mind like venom, smooth and ancient and impossibly patient.
"Burn Mandalore to ash. Let them suffer as you have suffered."
Far beyond the physical universe, within the madness of the Warp, Abeloth smiled.
She watched through the veil as Vader stood upon the precipice of absolute fury, and she fed the fire carefully, lovingly, whispering into every crack in his soul. Around her, the tides of the Warp churned in delight while her monstrous form continued to fight.
"They lied to you." She whispered into his thoughts. "They hide your children from you. They mock your pain."
The cracks across the viewport spread wider.
The bridge crew exchanged nervous glances as the entire chamber began trembling slightly beneath the pressure radiating from the Sith Lord. Several officers could barely breathe now, their lungs tightening beneath the suffocating aura of rage pouring from Vader like heat from a furnace.
Finally, The Dark Lord turned.
His mask reflected the burning battle outside while his lenses seemed almost alive beneath the bridge lighting. When he spoke again, his voice carried absolute finality.
"Prepare the SunEater to fire."
The bridge froze.
One officer stared at him in disbelief. "M-My lord… there are still Imperial forces engaged on the surface. Millions of our own soldiers—"
Vader's head tilted slightly toward the man.
The officer suddenly flew to his neck as invisible fingers closed around his throat. His datapad clattered uselessly onto the deck while he clawed desperately at the unseen force crushing his windpipe.
"My soldiers exist," Vader said coldly, "to serve the Empire."
The officer's eyes bulged.
"And if their deaths bring victory…" Vader continued, "…then they die with purpose."
With a single twitch of his fingers, the officer's neck snapped violently.
His body crumpled to the floor.
Nobody spoke after that.
The crew immediately sprang into action, terror driving them faster than any command ever could.
"Primary weapon systems coming online!"
"Redirecting power to the core!"
"Charging sequence initiated!"
Deep within the colossal superstructure of the SunEater, ancient machinery began to awaken. Massive reactors thundered to life beneath the station while unimaginable amounts of energy surged through conduits the size of cities. Outside, the gigantic blue core at the heart of the battlestation slowly began to glow, bathing nearby ships in an eerie azure light.
Across the battlefield, alarms began screaming aboard vessels on both sides as the weapon prepared to fire once more.
And somewhere within the Warp, Abeloth laughed.
===
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