The silence was shattered.

The adamantium door, which had stood resolute against a week of relentless battering, erupted in a deafening explosion. The shockwave hurled debris across the chamber, a searing heat wave sweeping through the room and sending the Salamanders reeling. Daedren instinctively raised his shields, crouching low as molten fragments of metal rained down around him. When the dust began to settle, a gaping, smoldering hole stood where the door had once been, a yawning void of smoke and shadow.

Through that void, a nightmare emerged.

It defied comprehension, its form shifting and twisting with every heartbeat. Limbs sprouted and disappeared, mouths opened and closed, eyes blinked and melted away, all in a ceaseless, maddening flux. Its surface was a kaleidoscope of color and texture, impossible patterns weaving into and out of existence. Looking at it was like peering into a broken mirror, each fragment distorting reality in a different way. Daedren’s vision blurred, and for a moment, he felt as though the ground beneath him was tilting.

“What in Vulkan’s name…?” Caldon’s voice trailed off, the usual fire in his tone dimmed by shock.

The creature emitted a low, resonant hum, a sound that seemed to vibrate in the marrow of their bones. It stepped—or slithered, or hovered, into the room, its movements as chaotic as its form. The air around it warped and shimmered, distorting the chamber’s dimensions in ways that defied logic.

“Stand firm!” Thran’s voice cut through the oppressive noise, his chainsword roaring to life. “We are Salamanders! Sons of Vulkan! If we are to die, we die with honor!”

The squad roared their agreement, the sound bolstering their spirits as they prepared to face the abomination. Daedren’s heart pounded in his chest, his grip tightening on his shields. He had faced horrors over the past weeks, but this was something else entirely. Yet, there was no time for fear.

Thran charged first, his chainsword raised high, the blade’s teeth sparking against the oppressive air. Caldon followed, his flamer spitting gouts of searing promethium, the flames licking hungrily at the monster’s shifting form. Daedren was close behind, planting his shields into the ground and leveling his bolt rifle over the top, firing precise bursts at what he hoped were vital points.

The creature reacted with a fluid, otherworldly speed, its form rippling like water as it surged forward. Thran’s chainsword struck, but instead of tearing into flesh, it passed through empty air as the beast’s form bent and twisted away from the blow. Caldon’s flames enveloped it, but the fire seemed to dance across its surface without effect, the colors of its body shifting to mimic the flames.

Daedren’s bolts struck true, but instead of punching through, they vanished into the creature’s mass, as though swallowed by a void. The beast retaliated, a limb, no, a dozen limbs, lashing out in every direction. One struck Thran, sending him crashing into the wall with a sickening crunch. Another swiped at Caldon, knocking his flamer from his grasp and forcing him to draw his combat knife.

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Daedren raised his shields just in time to block a blow aimed at his head. The impact reverberated through his arms, the force unlike anything he had felt before. He pushed back, using the momentum to slam one shield into the ground and fire another burst from his rifle.

“Focus fire!” Thran barked, his voice strained as he pulled himself to his feet. “It must have a weakness!”

The squad regrouped, forming a tight circle around Daedren’s shields. They fired in unison, bolter rounds and plasma bolts filling the air with a deafening roar. The creature recoiled, its form flickering and distorting, but it did not fall. Instead, it emitted a piercing wail, a sound that clawed at their minds and sent shivers down their spines.

The beast surged forward, breaking through their formation with terrifying speed. It lashed out with amorphous tendrils, striking Thran’s chainsword arm and wrenching the weapon from his grasp. Daedren swung one of his shields in a wide arc, the edge slamming into the creature’s side with enough force to shatter stone. The beast reeled, its form momentarily destabilized, but it quickly reformed, its mass shifting to envelop the shield.

“Fall back!” Thran ordered, grabbing his combat blade and driving it into the nearest tendril. “Regroup near the barricade!”

The squad retreated in measured steps, firing as they moved. Daedren planted his second shield, using it as a temporary barrier to slow the creature’s advance. He glanced at his brothers, their armor scorched and battered, their faces grim but determined. They were holding, but only barely.

Caldon retrieved his flamer and unleashed another torrent of fire, this time directed at the creature’s base. The flames seemed to have an effect, the beast’s form flickering and shrinking, but it retaliated with a blast of raw warp energy, sending Caldon sprawling.

Daedren charged forward, his shields raised. He slammed one into the creature’s center, the impact creating a shockwave that echoed through the chamber. For a brief moment, the beast faltered, its form rippling in chaos. He swung the second shield in a brutal arc, aiming to crush whatever core the creature might have, but the shield passed through empty air as the beast reformed behind him.

One by one, the squad fell. Caldon was the first, his flamer reduced to slag as the beast’s tendrils wrapped around him and crushed him into the ground. Thran fought valiantly, his combat blade a blur as he struck at the creature’s limbs, but he was overwhelmed, his body flung across the chamber like a broken doll.

Daedren stood alone, his shields battered and his bolt rifle empty. The creature loomed before him, its form more stable now, almost humanoid in shape. It seemed to mock him, its ever-shifting face forming grotesque parodies of his fallen brothers.

With a roar of defiance, Daedren charged. He slammed one shield into the creature’s midsection, the force driving it back a step. He followed with the second shield, swinging it like a hammer, but the creature caught it, its tendrils wrapping around the metal and wrenching it from his grasp.

Daedren fell to one knee, his body trembling with exhaustion. The creature loomed over him, its form pulsing with malevolent energy. He gritted his teeth, refusing to give in, but he knew the end had come.

As the beast descended, the room filled with a blinding light. For a brief moment, the shadows receded, and Daedren thought he saw...