The world trembled under the weight of metal and fire. Across four continents—Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas—the Behemoth tanks and Combat Drones coordinated a global assault. A million shells and laser beams converged on the Catastrophic. The Titan didn't flinch, its massive form absorbing the punishment like a mountain absorbs rain, though fine spiderwebs of cracks were finally beginning to mar its obsidian armor.
Deep within the GDA Command Center, the Advisor's fingers were a blur across his consoles. Suddenly, the temperature in the room plummeted. A thick, oily black mist swirled behind him. Under his helmet, the Advisor's eyes widened, but he did not turn around. "You look like you could use some help, Advisor," a voice rumbled from the smoke. It was Tenebris Marcam, his form shifting like a living shadow.
"Who are you?" the Advisor demanded, his voice tight.
"I am one who wishes to intervene," Tenebris said, gliding through the darkness. "I've seen what is happening to your world. Do you want help, or do you want to preside over a graveyard?"
The Advisor continued to tap aggressively at his panels. "Help? What could a Relician possibly offer us that our own technology hasn't already tried?"
Tenebris Marcam's glowing eyes squinted. "I can give you the power of the Calamity Rock—but a refined spark of it. We call it the Relic Rock. It is infused with Calamity energy, but of a different, more stable breed. The Plague Doctor has studied the source for ages... why not give it a try?"
"And if it's a trap?" the Advisor spat.
Tenebris laughed, a dry, hollow sound. "Why would I bother? We are not cruel like the others. Listen, son. If you really want to save this world, use this rock as an immediate weapon. But heed my warning: do not overuse it. You might accidentally summon the Wall Pusher."
Back on the battlefield, the chaos reached a fever pitch. Laura, moving with her signature acrobatic flair, spun to face a new wave of entities. She gritted her teeth, drawing her blade—but she was a fraction of a second too slow. Splash. In a horrific spray of crimson, Laura was silenced. Her body collapsed into the ash, twitching reflexively as the light left her eyes.
"LAURA!" John's scream was torn from his throat. He lunged toward her, but a shockwave from a nearby blast sent him hurtling through the air. He slammed into a jagged rock formation, a sharp stone spike impaling his thigh. He let out a strangled cry of agony, his face contorting as he gripped the stone. Victoria saw it all. Through the sea of black blood and monsters, she reached John, hoisting his arm over her shoulder to drag him to safety.
But then, the sky changed. A pillar of brilliant green energy erupted from the GDA base, piercing the clouds. A massive sphere formed in the atmosphere, shimmering with a giant Relic symbol. Every soldier on the field froze, their eyes turned toward the heavens. Even the Catastrophic stopped its mindless summoning, its massive head slowly tilting upward.
POOF. The clouds shattered. Out of the rift fell the Overseer. The celestial guardian plummeted like a meteor, slamming its fist into the Catastrophic with a force that sent the Titan reeling backward, its feet carving canyons into the earth. The Catastrophic let out a gargantuan roar of challenge. The Overseer didn't hesitate, its own fist glowing with celestial light as they clashed again. BOOM. The Earth shook to its core. Further out in the solar system, the very stars seemed to tremble from the impact. The Overseer let out a deafening, screeching battle cry and leaped at the Titan. In response, the Catastrophic's core began to glow a violent, pulsing red. It unleashed a massive Gamma Red Burn, a beam of pure annihilation that caught the Overseer mid-air and sent the guardian flying back into the stratosphere.
Back in the sterile command center, Tenebris Marcam stood over a terminal, the glowing blueprint for the Behemoth Tank clutched in his shadowy hand. "Thank you for the blueprint," Tenebris rumbled. "Don't worry. We won't do anything evil with this design; we are simply going to try making one of our own." His gaze shifted to another encrypted blueprint on the side of the screen.
The Advisor stepped forward, his voice firm and weary. "No more."
Tenebris slowly turned his head. "Very well..." He reached for the glowing Relic Rock.
"I thought that was ours?" the Advisor questioned.
Tenebris looked up, his eyes two pinpricks of light. "I never said that. I only said I was giving you the rock to facilitate the Overseer's summoning. You may keep the Overseer, but the catalyst returns to me." The Advisor let out a breath he had been holding. "Oh. Alright. I guess." With a slow, deliberate step backward, Tenebris Marcam vanished into a thick, swirling vortex of black smoke.
High above the scorched plains, the Overseer roared, ramming its entire celestial mass into the Catastrophic. The impact sent the Titan reeling, its massive back hitting the earth with the force of an asteroid. Before the Catastrophic could right itself, a massive ring of infernal fire erupted beneath it. From the molten cracks, a gargantuan, black-and-red hand—veined with hellfire—seized the Titan's throat. The Catastrophic let out a final, agonizing screech as it was dragged, inch by inch, into the depths of the abyss. The earth sealed shut, leaving only a scar of cooling lava.
The sky began its slow transition back to a bruised blue. Across the continents, the fires died down, leaving behind a graveyard of civilizations. Nearly 30% of the global population had been wiped away.
Two years later, rows upon rows of white markers stretched toward the horizon. One marker stood alone: LAURA. The GDA had consolidated power, rebuilding cities with the efficiency of a war machine. John stood on a balcony overlooking the new capital, his face older, marked by deep lines of exhaustion. Victoria approached him quietly. "Are you good?" she asked softly. John didn't look at her. His eyes remained fixed on the stars above. "Yes," he replied, his voice devoid of warmth.
Elsewhere, Juan sat in the shadows of a prison cell, stripped of his rank. Outside, his replacement, General Leah, walked down the corridor, her boots clicking sharply against the floor. In the vacuum of space, a massive vessel bearing the GDA logo drifted past the moon.
Back in the Relic World, Tenebris Marcam handed the Behemoth blueprints to the Plague Doctor. The Doctor examined the complex schematics, a low hum of approval vibrating in his chest. "Magnificent," the Plague Doctor whispered. "Are you ready for the creation, Tenebris Marcam?" Tenebris gave a slow, solemn nod.
Deep in a hidden X-Faction facility, Dr. Xenon kicked open the heavy blast doors of her private lab. She was battered, wiping a streak of blood from her lip with a trembling hand. She looked up at a containment unit in the center of the room, and her eyes suddenly widen. A slow, menacing grin spread across her face. She reached out, her hand brushing against a shard of Pure Calamity Energy—vibrating with a power far beyond the rocks they had fought over before.
"You should've fought like hell, GDA," Dr. Xenon whispered, her reflection in the glass looking like a monster. "Because now... I'm coming for you."