Darrow and Sevro smash through the Vanguard’s bridge, causing catastrophic decompression before emergency bulkheads seal. Amid the chaos, lowColors without masks die, and Darrow confronts the horror and ease of killing as he and Sevro eliminate Obsidians, Grays, and two razor-wielding Golds to secure the bridge.

With the bridge locked down, Darrow spares the Blues, strips the timid Blue captain of rank, and has a sharp, capable Blue officer bring up shipwide visuals. He orders the hangar opened for the battered stork carrying Mustang’s group, while noting Gold-led teams converging on life support, engines, and the bridge. A heat drill begins to cut through the bridge door.

Darrow addresses the entire ship, renaming the Vanguard the Pax. Citing naval law and the ArchGovernor’s warrant, he threatens venting yet refuses to kill twenty thousand to stop sixty-one Golds. He opens armories and commands Blues, Oranges, and sympathetic Grays to capture or kill their Gold commanders and secure the ship before Sovereign-loyal reinforcements arrive.

As the uprising surges through halls and staterooms, the assault on the bridge continues. A thunderous voice hails Darrow, calling him “godchild.” On the hall cameras, an immense Obsidian Stained charges the boarding party, annihilating Grays, Obsidians, and Golds with ionBlades and brutal precision, then waits outside the melting door.

Introducing himself as Ragnar Volarus, once marked to the Ash Lord and destined as a gift to the Julii, he offers Darrow his “stains.” Darrow accepts the blood oath, smearing Ragnar’s blood on his brow, binding the Stained to him. He immediately orders Ragnar to save the allies aboard the stork in hangar bay three, and Ragnar departs with a fearsome war chant.