Amon's Servants

"All I can say is that the Tal'darim, with their predatory nature, have become so indiscriminate that they'll even take in human ships they used to look down on and go inside them."

Augustus examined the shuttle, which had a streamlined hull and a beautiful silver tail fin within the atmosphere, and then turned to signal his subordinates to search its interior.

As an expensive and luxurious airship, this shuttle capable of rapid interstellar travel requires complex codes and the iris and genetic locks of its owner to unlock.

Just as Raynor was about to lead his men to use micro-explosives to blast open the shuttle's hatch, a High Templar had already used his Psionics blade to pierce the data panel in front of the hatch, and then, like tearing open a can, sliced open the bulkhead protected by a new alloy.

Tassadar and Zeratul led the way inside, while Augustus followed under the protection of Kerrigan and the others.

"Damn those Confederacy nobles, they really know how to enjoy themselves!" Raynor stepped into the shuttle before Augustus, and immediately cursed at the luxurious interior.

The ship's interior is as luxurious as a palace built centuries ago on Tarsonis, during the Old Earth era, but its design is completely different from all current human art styles.

Inside the spaceship was a completely different scene. A strange, silvery metal formed the cabin walls, resembling the surface of mercury. The aesthetically pleasing spiral patterns and star-like shimmers made it feel like being in another dimension. The elegant and harmonious curves perfectly followed the golden ratio, like water droplets sliding off green leaves.

Augustus surprised to discover that this spaceship was one of the few that, like the Protoss, was a work of art in itself. It was clearly a fantastical work of art rather than an ordinary spaceship merely used for traversing the universe.

Its interior layout was also completely different from any luxury yacht or ordinary spaceship that Augustus had ever seen; it didn't even have a single enclosed space or cabin. A ring of light and a curtain divided the entire spaceship into several interconnected spaces, and mysterious symbols were emanating a kind of pure void energy, thus presenting a vibrant green color.

If the buildings of Taldarim are covered with black spikes and sharp blades, resembling countless standing swords, then this place has no sharp edges at all. Everything looks so smooth and natural, as if it were the work of nature's artistry rather than a clumsy imitation by humankind.

If it were designed by a human engineer, his talent and artistic skill would certainly have made him far from being unknown.

"It looks like a Xel'Naga ship." Augustus stepped into the cockpit of the shuttle and saw the familiar control panel, confirming that it was still a human-made ship, though there were still no loose wires or cables to be seen.

The oil paintings hanging on the walls, the seashell-like handicrafts, and other luxurious items testify to the taste of the spaceship's former owner; even if he wasn't a person who enjoyed luxury, he must have been extremely wealthy and powerful.

"Perhaps the owner of this spaceship is a follower of a mysterious alien master." Kerrigan reached out and touched the control panel in the cockpit. A fluorescent blue Holographic Projection screen then unfolded in front of everyone, displaying several nebulae instead of the small Koprulu Sector.

"When I was at the Ghost Academy, I took courses on human-made vehicles, but I had never seen a spaceship like this before."

"Can you find out the model and origin of this spaceship?" Augustus asked.

"There are only so many brands that offer bespoke customization, but none of them can match this ship." Kerrigan shook her head.

"If this was made by a human, then he must be a master craftsman of unparalleled skill." Zeratul gazed at the spaceship with a peculiar feeling, his assessment of humanity rising once again. The Dark Templar were all seasoned scholars studying the Xel'Naga, as important as delving into their own traditional culture.

"This is by no means a poor imitation of Xel'Naga; the people who built it must have had a very deep understanding of Xel'Naga art and technology," he said.

"The Taldarim likely captured the ship by accident and stored it in the armory because of its unique characteristics."

"Let's see what we can get from this ship's database." Augustus looked at Kerrigan, who immediately walked toward the computer storing the data archives.

His master clearly hadn't anticipated that the ship would fall into the hands of others, and cracking the code was no difficult task for Kerrigan.

"Unauthorized access. Unauthorized access. Subject to Confederacy Security Agreement Section 114." Kerrigan inserted the hacked disk into the computer's interface, only to find to her surprise that the previously infallible hacking program no longer worked.

"The spaceship's database is encrypted with multiple layers of security, so complex that only the most experienced experts could possibly crack it," she said, looking at Augustus.

"Bring us our best decoding experts," Augustus said after a moment's thought. "Hopefully they can crack it. I'm worried that it's beyond human capabilities."

"Perhaps my scientists can try to crack this human terminal," Tassadar said at this moment. "Understanding the structure of this machine shouldn't take too long."

"I think even if we crack it, we will ultimately gain nothing." Augustus already had a guess about the mysterious identity of the ship's owner.

In the Koprulu Sector, a mysterious figure known as Duran (StarCraft 1)/ Narud (StarCraft 2) has been closely linked to Hybrid experiments.

Narud has lived much longer than Zeratul, so much so that he can arrogantly refer to the latter as a young man. He is a fallen one of the Xel'Naga, a faithful servant of Amon, the dark god who will one day destroy the entire universe.

For countless long years, Narud has changed identities and appeared before the world under different names, mocking all those who consider themselves clever. He has been plotting the rebirth of his great master Amon, and for this purpose, everyone in the world is merely a tool and a pawn to be manipulated.

Narud secretly orchestrated the power struggle among the three races in Koprulu, manipulating others at will. Only Narud could build such a spaceship, because he himself is a Xel'Naga.

"Anyway, we'll only know after we try." Raynor shrugged, considering this a rare instance of Augustus being passive.

Augustus nodded and focused his gaze on the Holographic Projection star map that he could freely touch. He walked over and retrieved the spaceship's flight log, finding the route of its last launch.

The starting point was a Confederacy frontier planet called Blesis, and it traveled across most of the Koprulu Sector to get here.

"Judging from the flight navigation settings," Kerrigan quickly noticed something amiss. "This ship was supposed to be heading to the Luria System —but how could it possibly have the detailed coordinates of this Taldarim outpost?"

"This is absurd, it's like this guy just flew here on purpose." Raynor rubbed his bald head. "So, the Tal'darim are still secretly making deals with Confederacy nobles and politicians? Oh—I wouldn't be surprised if they did something even more outrageous."

Before long, Tassadar's men brought several Aiur Protoss Khalai, including the highly respected Preservers Zamara.

Human computers are nothing more than primitive and crude products to the Protoss, while the Protoss Empire's personality intelligence technology has long reached a level that is unimaginable to humans. As early as ancient times, they were able to digitize the personalities of Protoss warriors and create terrifying artificial intelligence machines.

The Protoss are an ancient, technologically advanced race. Their dazzling, magical Psionics cannot overshadow their unparalleled technological achievements.

The Preservers are the most knowledgeable scholars in the Protoss Empire. Their research on the Xel'Naga surpasses that of the Dark Templar, because this special class can inherit the memories of all Protoss since the Aeon of Strife, including scholars, master craftsmen, and military strategists.

As the scientists, clad in gold and blue robes, began diligently deciphering the shuttle's main control computer, the Preservers Zamara offered his perspective on the spaceship's peculiar design. "This may not have been created by a human, or even by the Protoss."

"What? You mean, this was built by the Xel'Naga himself?" Raynor felt his long-held beliefs being severely challenged. "Don't be ridiculous, honey. If that were the case, why would he go to all that trouble to build a spaceship that looks like a human?"

"The secrets within are beyond our knowledge." The Preservers wore an immaculate white hood, his face always hidden in mysterious darkness, only his cobalt blue eyes still shining like the blue sun.

She stretched out her slender four fingers to touch the spiral pattern on the inner wall of the shuttle. "The main technology used in this spaceship is still human, but the Xel'Naga technology within it is something even the Protoss cannot imitate."

"There are so many secrets waiting to be revealed," Zeratul also said.

While waiting for the Protoss scientists to crack the code, Augustus's men, during a search of the entire ship, found a spherical storage space where they discovered some documents left behind by its former owner.

Augustus opened a file folder containing Terran Confederacy ID cards and found at least twenty ID cards with completely different appearances, birthplaces, and professions. Some of these cards even dated back to the early days of the Confederacy.

"Human trafficker?" Raynor stared at the ID cards. "Why else would this guy need these? If it's just for disguise or to conceal his identity, the people on these cards should at least look similar."

"..." Augustus flipped through these old information cards and found that they included images of white-haired old men, fierce-looking burly men, and beautiful blonde women.

This made Augustus begin to question Narud's taste when using his Xel'Naga in the real universe to shapeshift and disguise himself as various people.

Augustus then took other credentials from Kerrigan, ranging from an agent of the Tarsonis Confederacy Police Department to the chairman of a publicly traded biotechnology company, a dazzling array of identities, including even a squash player's certification.

Fortunately, Augustus did not find a single business card for a prostitute in this place, so at least Narud's image in his mind was preserved.

"Every sign is bizarre," Tassadar concluded. "Humans colluding with the Tal'darim, ships possessing Xel'Naga technology, a malevolent and monstrous hybrid of Protoss and Zerg—the darkness and eeriness on this asteroid are unprecedented."

"Executive, I think we have broken the seal on this human device." After some time, a Khalai scientist reported the latest progress of their work to Tassadar.

Augustus immediately looked in that direction, only to find that at the same time, a hooded figure suddenly appeared on the Holographic Projection screen on the spaceship, against a backdrop of ethereal darkness and eerie starlight.

A huge, one-horned Hybrid was lying at his feet, as docile as a cat napping in the afternoon sun.

When the hooded man spoke, Augustus noticed that the voice was completely different from the Sammy Duran or Dr. Narud he remembered; it was even an almost androgynous voice. "Very spectacular, isn't it?"

"Are you the master of the Taldarim here, the mastermind behind these Hybrid freaks?" Augustus said in his usual cold tone.

"That's right—" said the man in the black hood.

"Augustus Mengsk, perhaps you are surprised that I know the Dark Templar and your name? Don't be too alarmed, for I am omnipresent and omniscient." His voice sounded even noble and elegant, much like the high-pitched voice of Confederacy noble like Andrea Tagore.

"I noticed you back when you started the rebellion in Korhal IV."

"Who exactly are you?" Augustus was almost certain that this person was Dr. Narud, who would later control the Mobius Foundation, and the mastermind behind Jim Raynor's quest to search for the Xel'Naga Artifact Fragment.

"I am a humble servant of a great being, whose name is beyond the comprehension of mortals like yourself."

Narud was still basking in the glory of having toyed with the Protoss heroes and the human rebel leaders, completely unaware that Augustus had already seen through his identity and was fully aware of his triumphant plan to destroy the world.

"Amon?" Zeratul called out a name.

"."

The hooded man paused for a moment, seemingly annoyed by Taldarim's leak.

He has many such Hybrid manufacturing plants, the vast majority of which were built by humans under his control using his power and assets in the Terran Confederacy, while very few were built by the Tal'darim. The reason why the Tal'darim were involved in the early Hybrid experiments was simply because these fanatical fools could provide a large number of test subjects related to Protoss genes.

He had originally thought that the first thing to be discovered would be a Hybrid factory of humans, but what happened today was clearly beyond his expectations.

"What did you create these creatures for? To destroy?" Zeratul's question broke the hooded man's awkward silence.

He immediately said, "Of course, young people. They bring destruction, they bring the end of the world."

"His mission was already destined at the moment the stars were born."

"Witness the pinnacle of your history!"