Deep within the hidden regions beyond the galaxy, the vast industrial complexes of the Thokt Dynasty continued operating without pause.
Entire artificial stars were harvested.
World-sized forges burned continuously.
Slipspace gateways connected thousands of facilities spread across countless hidden systems.
At the center of it all rested one of Mike’s greatest achievements.
The containment complex of the Void Dragon.
The imprisoned shard of Mag’ladroth remained trapped within layers of Blackstone, hard-light barriers, dimensional anchors, and C’tan suppression fields.
Millions of calculations occur every second to maintain the prison.
The star god hated it.
Mike could feel its rage every time he visited.
Yet the Void Dragon could do nothing.
Its power was no longer its own.
Massive siphoning conduits extended from the containment sphere into an enormous energy-processing structure built around the prison.
Streams of divine energy flowed continuously through the facility before being redirected toward another artifact.
The AllSpark.
Suspended within a cathedral-sized chamber, the artifact floated above an ocean of energy.
Blue-white lightning danced across its surface while divine power extracted from the Void Dragon poured into it continuously.
The artifact was evolving.
Growing stronger.
Its creation energies had become vastly more potent than when Mike first obtained it from the Transformers universe.
Every day, it became capable of greater feats.
Every day, it moved closer to becoming something entirely new.
Something even the Primes had never imagined.
Meanwhile, events within the galaxy unfolded exactly as Mike had predicted.
The Aeldari Empire had reached the peak of its power.
Their civilization stretched across the stars.
Their technology remained among the most advanced in existence.
Their mastery of the Warp surpassed nearly every race that had come before them.
And yet
They had stopped growing.
Stopped innovating.
Stopped adapting.
Their empire had become stagnant.
The very fate that had destroyed countless civilizations before them.
Mike studied reports gathered over centuries.
Political infighting.
Growing decadence.
Increasing obsession with pleasure and excess.
Declining scientific progress.
The signs were obvious.
But its foundations were rotting.
“They are approaching collapse,” Halsey observed while reviewing the latest projections.
Mike nodded.
“They believe themselves eternal.”
“A mistake every empire eventually makes.”
“Exactly.”
His calculations remained unchanged.
Within a few millennia, the Aeldari would destroy themselves.
Not through invasion.
Not through war.
But through their own arrogance.
Mars required observation as well.
Although Mike had removed the Void Dragon, humanity still possessed the potential for technological advancement.
Limited.
Primitive.
But not impossible.
To monitor developments, Mike had dispatched one of his perfected clones.
The clone had infiltrated the Mechanicum centuries earlier.
Now it existed comfortably among the red-robed priests of Mars.
Its mechanical augmentations blended seamlessly with the increasingly cybernetic population.
The clone sent regular reports.
Most disappointed Mike.
The priests worshipped machines they barely understood.
Ancient STC fragments were treated like holy relics.
Innovation was discouraged.
Experimentation bordered on heresy.
Knowledge had become religion.
“Any breakthroughs?” Mike asked during one transmission.
The clone processed the question.
“None of significance.”
Mike was unsurprised.
The Age of Technology was dead.
Humanity would not reclaim it anytime soon.
Far beyond the galaxy, research continued.
Mike and Halsey devoted increasing amounts of time toward understanding the Halo Array.
The rings remained among the most powerful weapons ever created.
Every system had been dissected.
Improved.
The crypteks continued incorporating Necron science into Forerunner designs while Halsey expanded upon original Builder concepts.
The results were astonishing.
The Array had become significantly more dangerous than the original Forerunner version.
Yet one question remained unanswered.
Would it work against the Tyranids?
The temptation to test the weapon grew stronger with every passing century.
Mike stood before a massive holographic projection displaying the complete Halo network.
Seven rings.
Fully operational.
Capable of firing at a moment’s notice.
One command.
One activation.
And entire regions of the galaxy could be sterilized.
Halsey appeared beside him.
“You are considering a test.”
Mike remained silent.
“Against whom?” she asked.
“Anyone.”
The answer came after several moments.
Halsey studied the projection.
“Then why haven’t you done it?”
Mike’s glowing eyes focused on the galactic map.
A distant region beyond known space had been marked in red.
The approaching threat.
The Great Devourer.
The Tyranids.
“I do not wish to reveal the weapon.”
Understanding crossed Halsey’s features.
If the Halo Array proved capable of devastating Tyranid hive fleets, the Hive Mind would eventually adapt.
Every enemy adapted eventually.
Every weakness became temporary.
Mike preferred surprises.
The first encounter with the Tyranids would occur on his terms.
Not theirs.
So the Halo Array remained silent.
Waiting.
Hidden beyond the edge of the galaxy.
A weapon capable of reshaping the future of the Warhammer universe.
And Mike intended to keep it that way until the perfect moment arrived.