Chapter Summaries

The Imperium prepared its forces to capture Sarah Kerrigan alive, while Gao Zan escorted Dr. Hanson through New City on Mar Sara. Hanson saw the refugees rebuilding their lives in a rapidly growing community, leaving her with a view of Agria’s recovery and the people’s new home.

• Athena told Sigismund, Tyberos, Malakim Phoros, Jim Raynor, and Leon that the fleets would depart after twenty-four hours of repairs to pursue Sarah Kerrigan.
• Gao Zan took Hanson from the Unyielding Holy Flame to New City, where she saw the planetary shield, the Space Gate, and the city’s expanding infrastructure.
• Hanson visited the plaza, saw the Agria memorial, and praised Lina’s handmade model of the Space Gate.
• Gao Zan escorted Hanson through the western district, where refugees, Dwarves, Elves, and other residents worked, traded, and socialized.
• Hanson saw a community bulletin honoring her work and observed that the resettled Agria refugees had begun rebuilding their lives.

Hanson rejected Gao Zan’s offer of a safe laboratory post and chose to support Third Company on the front lines, earning upgraded equipment and a long-term place with the unit. In New City, Athena cared for the sleeping Sui Meng while Sui Yang discussed the coming assault on the Zerg nest and an impending uprising within the Terran Dominion.

• Hanson admired New City’s peaceful life before Gao Zan offered her a post at the Empire Biological Department.
• Hanson declined the safe transfer and told Gao Zan she would analyze Xenomorph samples on the front lines.
• Gao Zan dismissed his guards and arranged for a new quantum processor for Hanson’s biological analysis team aboard the Unyielding Holy Flame.
• Athena watched over Sui Meng as he slept and considered the political support he could gain from the Greek Demigods.
• Sui Yang projected himself into Athena’s bedchamber and asked about the planned assault on the Zerg nest.
• Athena confirmed the assault would aim to draw out Amon or another Xel'Naga, and Sui Yang revealed that covert operatives would soon provoke unrest within the Terran Dominion.

Athena's combined fleet traveled to a massive derelict where the final Artifact fragment was believed to be hidden. After the fleet devastated the Tal'darim's defending ships, Athena ordered the ground forces to seize the vault and investigate the unknown beings imprisoned aboard.

• Athena led the combined fleet through Nerva's jump passage after granting its ships a temporary Psychic Power barrier.
• Leon reported that the final Artifact fragment was likely inside the derelict, while Gao Zan identified a route through damaged sector seven and the commanders prepared their assault.
• The fleet arrived at the derelict and detected Tal'darim warriors and unknown biological signals inside the green-barrier chambers.
• The Tal'darim launched their warships, but Sigismund's Forerunner prism array destroyed seven Motherships and helped the fleet trap the survivors.
• Athena ordered the ground forces to seize the Artifact vault and identify the imprisoned beings, then tens of thousands of Drop Pods descended toward the derelict.

The combined fleet launched a devastating assault on the derelict ship, overwhelming the Tal'darim and freeing hundreds of imprisoned Dark Templars. Sigismund secured the Xel'Naga Artifact Fragment, and Athena ordered the fleet to destroy the ship and head toward Char.

• The combined fleet bombarded the derelict ship as tens of thousands of Drop Pods delivered Astartes, Helljumpers, Knight Mechs, and Tyrants to fight the Tal'darim.
• Tyberos slaughtered Tal'darim forces as the combined force secured most of the ship, while Gao Zan and Phoros freed the imprisoned Dark Templars.
• The freed Dark Templars joined the attack, and Sigismund led Black Templars into the central chamber and claimed the Xel'Naga Artifact Fragment.
• The fleet finished eliminating the Tal'darim, evacuated its personnel and the Dark Templars, then vaporized the derelict ship with the Nerva's Purification beam.
• Athena declared the first-stage objective complete and ordered the fleet to tell the prince to proceed to Char.

Valerian Mengsk gathered the Terran Dominion Fleet at Char to face the Imperium of Man, but Athena forced him and his forces to accept auxiliary status. As a massive Zerg fleet approached, Valerian ordered his ships to follow the Imperium’s command.

• Valerian asked Horace Warfield whether the Dominion Fleet at Char could face the Imperium of Man’s roughly two hundred and forty ships.
• The Imperium’s Fleet arrived, and Sigismund declared the Dominion forces temporarily conscripted as auxiliary forces.
• Athena exposed Valerian’s ambitions, threatened him with visions of Korhal’s destruction, and made him accept the Imperium’s command.
• Alarms announced that Zerg ships were approaching in exponentially growing numbers, and Athena told the Dominion to witness real war.
• Valerian ordered more than five hundred Terran warships to follow the Imperium of Man’s command.

The Imperium of Man devastated the Zerg vanguard and joined Valerian’s forces in a ground assault on Char. Leon’s team deployed the Artifact as bait to draw out the Queen of Blades, and the allied forces prepared to hold their position for three hours as the Zerg swarm approached.

• The Black Templars’ Sojourner-class vessel destroyed much of the Zerg vanguard with two Matrix Beam salvos, convincing Valerian that his fleet could not oppose the Imperium of Man.
• Valerian ordered the Terran forces to prepare for orbital deployment, while Warfield volunteered to lead them on the ground.
• The Imperium of Man and Terran fleets landed troops and equipment on Char, and Tychus Findlay led Raynor’s Raiders out of a Drop Pod.
• Leon, Mike, and Chris deployed the Artifact and explained that it would take about three hours to activate and was intended to lure the Queen of Blades out for Athena to capture alive.
• Tyberos and other allied forces joined the landing zone, but the tactical sensors soon detected the Zerg swarm advancing toward them.

Terran forces and their allies held off the Zerg swarm while the Xel'Naga Artifact charged, and their soldiers adapted to fighting alongside the Astartes. The Queen of Blades regrouped the swarm and launched a planetary-class psychic attack, leaving the defenders facing a far greater threat.

• Titan Combat Mechs, gunships, Astartes, and Terran forces blasted back the advancing Zerg while Leon monitored the Artifact's energy buildup.
• Flame Salamanders praised Corporal Marco Layton's marksmanship and invited him to apply to join the Helljumpers after the battle.
• Lamenters Captain Malakim Phoros commended a Terran tank crew whose precise shot helped kill an Ultralisk, as Terran Marines increasingly adopted Astartes tactics.
• As the Artifact's energy reached 67%, the Zerg withdrew and regrouped while Leon and Mike detected surging Creep energy and massive biological signals underground.
• The Queen of Blades addressed Raynor through a psychic broadcast, and the Raiders' AI adjutant detected a Level 12 psychic fluctuation with planetary-class yield.

The Queen of Blades overwhelmed the Terran and Astartes forces until four Space Marine captains coordinated an attack that shattered her defenses and weakened her. When an ancient Xel'Naga presence awakened inside Kerrigan and trapped the captains, Athena arrived and confronted the power within her.

• The Queen of Blades empowered the Zerg, whose assault overwhelmed the defenders and caused Terran soldiers and machines to suffer psychic corruption.
• Tyberos, Sigismund, Malakim Phoros, and Gao Zan attacked the Queen together, breaking her psychic barrier and steadily suppressing her regeneration and power.
• The Queen's severed wings transformed into psychic serpents that restrained the four captains as a Xel'Naga energy signature awakened inside her.
• An ancient will spoke through the Queen and began invading the captains' armor and neural interfaces.
• Athena arrived in a burst of golden light, freed the captains from the psychic restraints, and aimed the Spear of Victory at the Queen's glowing chest core.

Athena exposed Amon inside Sarah Kerrigan and fought the Queen of Blades on an isolated island on Char. The human forces evacuated with the Artifact as Amon drew the Zerg into a massive biomass surge, while Athena and Amon’s battle continued.

• Athena identified Amon as the entity possessing Sarah Kerrigan, then vanished with the Queen of Blades in a spatial collapse.
• Sigismund ordered an evacuation, and the Space Marine companies, Terran troops, and Raynor’s group defended the landing zone while recovering the Artifact.
• The Nerva covered the retreat, and the human fleet escaped as the Zerg reclaimed the drop zone.
• A spatial fold appeared on Char, and hundreds of millions of Zerg self-destructed as their biomass surged toward its center.
• Athena hurled the Queen of Blades onto an isolated volcanic island and exchanged attacks with Amon, kicking the possessed Kerrigan through three basalt hills.

Athena defeated Amon by transforming into a colossal divine form and destroying Char, while Sui Yang used the opening to overwrite and absorb the void. Kerrigan survived purified, and Athena told Jim Raynor that someone had already paid the ransom for her soul.

• Amon drew power from Char’s core and the Zerg, but Athena pierced him with the Spear of Victory and bound him with void chains.
• Amon broke free, accelerated Char’s collapse, and continued battling Athena as the planet disintegrated.
• Athena transformed into a planetary-scale Colossus and destroyed Char, trapping and devouring Amon along with Kerrigan’s possessed body.
• Sui Yang entered the void through the opening created by Athena’s victory and expanded his Paradise Domain until it absorbed the void.
• Athena restored Kerrigan, purified her of Amon’s contamination, and told Jim Raynor that someone had already paid the ransom for her soul.

After Char’s destruction, Valerian Mengsk faced the Imperium of Man’s demand that he choose between war and surrender. He accepted the Imperium’s dragon crest and agreed to help secure a peaceful transition, saving tens of billions from the coming conflict.

• Valerian worried that Terran Dominion troops would abandon the Mengsk family and considered breaking with his father to protect loyal soldiers and officers.
• Warfield told Valerian that the Imperium of Man had summoned him to the Nerva, and they traveled there together.
• Athena and Sui Yang offered Valerian a choice between fighting to the bitter end and ending the conflict with as little bloodshed as possible.
• Valerian saw that peaceful surrender would lead to Arcturus Mengsk’s execution, but accepted the deal to spare civilians and received the Imperium’s dragon crest.
• Athena told Valerian that saving tens of billions of people outweighed all of his father’s achievements.

Sarah Kerrigan awakened from her coma and unleashed a Psychic Power shockwave that wrecked the Hyperion's medical bay and injured Jim Raynor, Tychus Findlay, and Egon Stetmann. She recognized Jim, reunited with him, and was told the Investigation Department would wait to discuss their request until everyone had received treatment.

• Leon asked Jim to let Kerrigan return to the Main Universe for research after she awakened, and Jim said he would respect her choice if she agreed.
• Egon reported that Kerrigan's brainwave activity was accelerating, and she awakened with a powerful Psychic Power shockwave that injured Jim, Tychus, and Egon and damaged the medical bay.
• Kerrigan initially reacted with hostility toward Leon, Mike, and Chris, but her Psychic Power faded when she heard Jim call her name.
• Kerrigan remembered fragments of Amon's control, accepted Jim's apology, and reunited with him as they exchanged familiar teasing.
• Leon postponed the discussion about the Investigation Department's request until everyone was treated, while medical robots began tending to the injured and Jim promised Kerrigan he would not let go again.

As Valerian's fleet approached Korhal under the Imperium of Man's banner, Arcturus Mengsk prepared to use civilian shelters as leverage and kept a planet-destroying escape plan in reserve. Nova Terra and her allies assembled a covert operation to capture him, ending as they prepared to begin their assault.

• A Ghost Agent told Arcturus Mengsk that Valerian had returned to Korhal with the defecting fleet, now bearing the Imperium of Man's dragon emblem.
• Mengsk ordered fission mines and orbital cannons aimed at populated shelter districts, intending to force the Imperium to accept his terms.
• Mengsk activated his contingency plan's biometric key, which could destroy Korhal while giving him a chance to escape.
• Nova Terra, Stone, Chirrut Imwe, Baze Malbus, and their Jedi and Stormtrooper allies gathered at the Crown hotel to plan their approach to the palace.
• Nova divided the team into groups to reach Mengsk's escape shuttle, disable communications, and create a diversion, and Baze prepared to make the attack noisy.

Nova Terra, Stone, Chirrut Imwe, Baze Malbus, and their allies launched a coordinated assault on Mengsk's palace, using a noisy frontal attack to cover covert teams infiltrating the complex. Chirrut and the Jedi turned captured Marines against Mengsk while Nova's team approached his private quarters and Chirrut's group headed for his escape shuttle.

• Nova Terra and Stone used camouflage to infiltrate the palace grounds as Baze Malbus and the Stormtroopers attacked the hotel entrance and drew the Dominion's attention.
• Chirrut Imwe stopped the Marines' bullets, broke Mengsk's brainwashing, and persuaded the soldiers to lay down their weapons and fight for their true home.
• Baze and the Stormtroopers stormed the palace gate while the Jedi disabled Royal Guard armor and weapons with their Lightsabers.
• Chirrut's psychic pulse disrupted palace surveillance, and he led two Jedi through underground passages toward Mengsk's escape shuttle.
• Nova Terra and Stone climbed the palace exterior and neared Mengsk's private domain, while Mengsk remained unaware of their approach.

Nova and her companions survived Mengsk’s palace trap, while the battle outside turned against his forces. Mengsk reached his hidden escape chamber, but his Omega Guard betrayed him as Jedi arrived to arrest him.

• Nova and her companions entered Mengsk’s quarters, where Nova’s psychic blast disrupted the brainwashing of the Ghost Agents and revealed the palace’s self-destruct trap.
• Nova overloaded the palace’s Psychic Suppressors and shifted her group away just before the purification program engulfed the top floor in plasma.
• The explosion shook the defenders, prompting soldiers and Korhal factions to abandon Mengsk, while Nova controlled the Royal Guard and sent them toward the main gate.
• Mengsk reached the Doomsday Ark and prepared to escape aboard the Phoenix, but his Omega Guard seized him and tore out his detonator wiring.
• Chirrut Imwe and another Jedi emerged from the shuttle and confronted Mengsk as an Emperor-class Battleship of the Imperium of Man descended over the palace.

The Imperium of Man took control of Korhal after Arcturus Mengsk was captured and Terran forces surrendered. As Imperial troops secured Augustgrad, civilians began to question the propaganda that Astartes were monsters.

• Athena disrupted Terran defenses and offered amnesty, prompting Korhal’s orbital platforms and warships to surrender.
• Valerian Mengsk revealed that Arcturus had been captured and persuaded the last holdouts, including the captain of the Day of Vengeance, to disarm.
• Imperial forces took over Korhal’s stations and starports as Nova Terra, Baze Malbus, and others surveyed the battle-scarred capital.
• A Lamenters Astartes helped an old man gather his food, while Flame Salamanders aided civilians and gave children supplies.
• A bakery owner left bread for a Lamenters Astartes, who accepted it and left a gold Imperium commemorative coin in return.

Arcturus Mengsk faced a public trial in Augustgrad as evidence of his crimes was broadcast across the Terran worlds. Sui Yang appeared through a Psychic Power projection, condemned Mengsk to eternal torment, and promised humanity freedom paired with responsibility.

• Tychus Findlay, Nova, and others confronted the captured Arcturus Mengsk, while Nova declared that his trial was only beginning.
• Valerian Mengsk presented preliminary figures for Korhal’s secret burial grounds, and Leon defined justice as protecting children from fear, war, and hunger.
• Athena brought Mengsk before disarmed soldiers in Augustgrad Central Square, where Kate Rockwell broadcast the tribunal’s evidence of his crimes.
• Athena revealed Mengsk’s planned Scorched Earth Protocol, and Sui Yang appeared above the platform and showed the crowd his Hell Domain.
• Sui Yang sent Mengsk into the Hell Domain and told humanity that tyranny had ended, while warning that freedom required responsibility.

The Imperium of Man enacted welfare measures and seized the private assets and military forces of Korhal’s nobles, improving life for civilians while provoking resistance. The chapter ended with a noble proposing to abduct the god’s child and use the child as leverage.

• The Imperium of Man provided modular homes, food, and medical care to Korhal’s poor, while a Lamenters warrior confirmed a disabled veteran’s lifelong benefits and Cyberware entitlement.
• The Imperium of Man began declaring family assets and nationalizing an unregistered airship, while Flame Salamanders demonstrated an Engineering Mecha to children.
• The Siren family’s elderly lord ordered his butler to contact other nobles and gather them in a secret chamber.
• The nobles debated surrendering their private armies, and one young noble warned that they could not oppose the god who had crushed Char.
• The elderly lord proposed abducting the god’s child as leverage and placed a data chip containing contact information for his old subordinates on the table.

Leon S. Kennedy and his allies uncovered a noble plot to abduct Sui Meng and learned that Chaos had corrupted the conspirators. The corruption erupted before Athena’s forces could intervene, and a Blood Moon rose over Augustgrad as Chaos began its attack.

• An old noble revealed that he had spent years watching Sui Meng and planned to capture him when Athena attended a meeting in three days.
• Leon S. Kennedy and his team monitored the nobles through an undercover agent, and Chirrut sensed traces of Chaos around the scheme.
• Leon contacted Athena and received approval to arrest the nobles immediately, but the gemstone on the knight’s sword began glowing before they could act.
• Chaos transformed the old noble into a monstrous creature, sealed the chamber, and attacked the other nobles as the surveillance feed failed.
• Chirrut warned that Chaos’s devouring had come sooner than expected, while a Blood Moon appeared over Augustgrad and an inhuman howl rose from the noble district.

A demonic ritual transformed the manor into a portal that unleashed a horde of Chaos Demons, and the Carcharodons and Flame Salamanders fought to hold them back. Athena and the Greek Demigods destroyed the invasion, captured the possessed old man, and purified the portal.

• A young noble escaped the possessed old man's chamber and fled the manor in a hovercraft as a blue Light Cocoon engulfed the estate.
• The Carcharodons and Flame Salamanders attacked the Demons pouring from a huge portal after evacuating civilians from the area.
• Athena arrived and led the Greek Demigods in destroying the giant Demons and capturing the old man's possessed body in a Stone Casket.
• Nova, Stone, and the others arrived and witnessed Athena's forces overwhelm the Demons.
• Athena fired a sphere of light that consumed the portal and remaining Demons, leaving the manor restored.