Bathory

In the wake of the Galactic Republic's fall, Magnus and the Gladio Umbra learn of a new superpower that hopes to unite all orphaned star systems in peace. But Magnus's suspicions grow as the Luma Alliance of Worlds uses anything but peaceful methods to co-opt allegiance in the post-Republic landscape. Meanwhile, on the fringe of the galaxy, a dark shadow looms. Moldark, the sworn enemy of a growing number of species, amasses power through a new partnership with the Obscura. With their combined forces, there is no telling what evil may rain down upon the galaxy's sentient worlds.

Off the coast of New Zealand, there's an underwater mining facility 8,000 feet under the ocean. The crew stationed there knows that drowning is the least of their worries at such depths. That's why they panic when a maintenance member goes missing while out on a repair mission. There's something far worse down there than the crushing pressure, the ticking timers on their oxygen tanks, and the everlasting darkness that inhabits such depths. And it's hunting them one by one.

In a shocking betrayal, Captain Rolo has vaporized the supercarrier Immortal with a nuclear warhead, all but wiping out the Vanguard army. Little does he know that King Xavier and the surviving Hell Diver and Cazador teams from Brisbane were not aboard. In Panama, Outpost Gateway has suffered a very different disaster: attack by carnivorous vines. Director Rodger Mintel sent out a desperate SOS as the voracious coils ripped into the bunker.

Rocked by the death of a critical team member and haunted by the sudden disappearance of another, Magnus and Awen fight to rally the remaining Gladio Umbra in the wake of their raid on Worru. They’re forced to solicit support from some of the galaxy’s most unlikely sources. But when Moldark’s forces show up unexpectedly, Magnus and Awen are torn between rescuing a missing gladia and protecting the larger mission. New revelations about the Paragon surface, forcing the fledgling rebel resistance to find a way onto Moldark’s command ship, the notorious Black Labyrinth.