Just then, AlphaBravo's footsteps suddenly paused.
The two behind him tensed up instantly, like cats whose tails had been stepped on, and the safeties on their weapons were quietly disengaged.
"What happened?" Name asked in a low voice.
"As soon as I enter the hall ahead, I will have seen the entire structure of the Governor's mansion," AlphaBravo's voice sounded a little hoarse over the comms channel.
"But... there's someone ahead?" Name immediately understood his meaning.
"Hmm..." AlphaBravo was silent for a moment, seemingly discerning the massive energy signature in his vision, "And he's very strong, extremely strong."
"Can we go around?" Garry naturally preferred to avoid combat if possible, as their mission was reconnaissance, not fighting.
"No," AlphaBravo's right eye twitched violently. "The only detour is very far. If we take that route, my eye will hit its ten-minute expiration limit before we even get around."
"Then there's nothing more to say, let's go in," Garry said decisively. "Anyway, once we're in, you'll see the final structure, right?"
"What if we alert the enemy?" Name considered more comprehensively.
AlphaBravo said in a deep voice, "In fact, I've been sending out the structures I've reconnoitered in real-time. The command center outside has already received most of the structural diagrams, and they just responded that preparations are complete."
He paused, then continued, "Moreover, I can infer the remaining unknown area by understanding the other structures. It's highly likely a closed basement with only one entrance and exit."
"Then why do you still insist on going in to see?" Garry asked, puzzled.
"Curiosity," AlphaBravo said frankly. "Aren't you curious what's hidden in a highly concealed basement within a planetary Governor's Mansion, a basement with only an entrance and no exit?"
Garry and Name exchanged glances.
"Now that you mention it... I'm actually starting to get curious," Garry stroked his chin.
"And the outside definitely needs intelligence on who the enemy inside the Governor's Mansion is," Name added. "We really need to witness it firsthand; it's better than them facing an unknown enemy."
No more words were needed; a consensus was reached. The three no longer hesitated, pushing open the massive, intricately carved door ahead and stepping into the dark hall.
As soon as they stepped through the door, the three men's expressions changed.
The reason was simple: the enemy had discovered them. A viscous, sweet, yet aggressive malevolence instantly locked onto them, and the IFF system immediately highlighted the silhouette of a massive presence deep within the hall with a blinding white border.
"Look what I've found," a lazy, luxurious voice drifted from the darkness. A massive figure slowly rose from a long-backed chair that seemed to be made of flesh and blood, causing the chair to emit groans of unbearable pain. "Three followers of the Corpse Emperor, three... brand new toys."
Garry immediately turned his head and whispered to AlphaBravo, "Why can't you even distinguish space marines?"
"I told you, this is my first time using the Byakugan, and my first time seeing a Slaanesh space marine. To establish effective cognition, I need to see it at least twice," AlphaBravo said in a deep voice, staring intently at the energy mass. "I don't know what energy flow are like within a Slaanesh space marine, so I can only vaguely judge that the opponent is very strong."
AlphaBravo then explained, "Moreover, the psychic energy here is simply too dense. There's diffused energy everywhere, severely interfering with my vision. The architectural structure is fine, but the surroundings of such a high-intensity unit are completely enveloped by a psychic aura, preventing me from even using the 'infer enemy by physique' method."
"Hey, hey, hey, three of you, are you done with your chitchat?" The Slaanesh space marine then said loudly, with a playful tone. "If you still need time to discuss how to deal with me, I can mercifully give you six minutes."
"Quite polite," Name quipped, then raised his voice in response, "Alright, we'll discuss it. By the way, may I ask your esteemed Name?"
"Heh heh, just call me Gerard," Gerard seemed to enjoy this cat-and-mouse game, and he elegantly waved a hand.
"Bang!"
The lights in the hall instantly flickered on, and blinding golden light illuminated the entire space. The three players could finally see the scene within the entire hall.
And because of this, all three of their faces turned incredibly grim.
It was clear that this place was originally an exhibition hall for artworks. Of course, it still was, but all the exhibits had been transformed into "artworks" made of various kinds of flesh and blood from different species... and these flesh and blood artworks were still alive. They trembled and twitched incessantly on their pedestals, their exposed blood vessels and nerves clearly visible, as if engaged in a silent scream. Just looking at them caused intense phantom pain.
And in the center of these "artworks" stood Gerard. He wore a set of power armor in a pale purple and ivory white color scheme, adorned with ornate and corrupted runes. He wore no helmet, revealing an unsettlingly perfect face, a perpetual pleasant smile playing on his lips. An elegantly slender power sword hung at his waist, its hilt inlaid with a large, seemingly breathing purple gem.
"Have you figured out how to deal with him?" AlphaBravo asked, blood tears already beginning to stream from his right eye.
"What else can we do?" Kaelen's voice was strained, barely audible over the thump of the enemy dropships.
Garry, already checking the seal on his syringe, just gave a grim, tight shrug. "There's only one lever left to pull, mate. Extreme Sublimation."
Don't let the high-falutin' name fool you. When a Helldiver talks about Extreme Sublimation, they're simply referring to dumping a full, uncut 750 milliliters of combat solution—the whole damn bottle—directly into their bloodstream in one go.
It's just a slang term for going past the red line, emptying the tank, and temporarily turning yourself into a highly unstable, extremely lethal, and very, very fast mess. The name changes, but the effect is the same: pure, unfiltered combat stimulant to win the fight now.
No sooner had Garry finished speaking—
"Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!"
Three perfectly synchronized mechanical injection sounds rang out simultaneously. Almost at the same moment, all three, through the built-in system of their carapace armor, injected the massive amount of solution—enough to instantly burst a mortal's blood vessels—into their circulatory systems.
The next moment, like three arrows released from a bowstring, they drew their humming power swords and charged towards Gerard in the center of the hall from three different directions, with a furious, air-ripping momentum!
"Hmm? This speed..." Gerard's lazy smile on his face slightly receded, replaced by a hint of surprise. "They're taking such a dose all at once?"
His surprise quickly transformed into a morbid ecstasy, like an old drunkard seeing a rookie pick up a whole bottle of hard liquor, ready to chug it. He was delighted by the hunt, letting out a joyful laugh: "Heh heh heh, how interesting! Then I'll join you a little!"
He pulled out an equally grotesque syringe from his waist and savagely plunged it into the interface on his neck.
"Oh oh oh oh—this is amazing!"
Feeling a large amount of pure hallucinogenic drugs explode within his body, Gerard trembled slightly, and his eyes glowed with an eerie purple light. He grabbed his power sword, extended a long, forked tongue like a snake to lick his lips, and let out a piercing laugh: "Heh heh heh... Come on, for the Emperor!"