Intergalactic conquest with an AI-Chapter 374: Xylos struggle. {6} Learn to fear the swarm III

The war for the Planet of Xylos raged on with a brutal clash between a dying world's desperate defenders and the cold, calculated advance of the Kaelzar war machine. Defenses crumbled. Skies burned. And somewhere in the cold void beyond the chaos, one man smiled.

The infamous musician general lounged in his lavish private suite aboard the Eclipse, his personal flagship.

The room glowed with soft, decadent light. Aromas of rare alien incense mixed with the metallic tang of space. Two exotic women lay draped across silk sheets behind him, their bodies bathed in the low amber glow.

The musician general swirled his golden drink in a crystal glass, watching the liquid glimmer like a captured sun.

"Is the fleet assembled?" he asked with his voice being smooth as velvet and thick with boredom and power.

His officer stood at rigid attention while trying but failing to not look at the women on the bed. He swallowed audibly.

"Affirmative, General. The fleet stands ready: one hundred destroyers, twenty heavy carriers, and thousands of bombers and fighter wings. Awaiting your orders."

The general smirked while slowly sipping the golden liquid from his glass.

"Excellent…" He set the glass down with a soft clink. "Prepare a synchronized wormhole jump. Destination... Xylos."

He rose from his seat while brushing strands of silken hair from his shoulder.

"Time to reintroduce myself."

Meanwhile, from her throne of alloy and code, Cleo watched the carnage unfold. She sat within a towering command spire atop her flagship, the fortress-sized flagship armed with thousands of autonomous defense systems.

Her throne pulsed with electric life, tubes and conduits connecting to her spine, limbs, and skull. Every second, energy surged into her body, keeping her battle body in a recharging state.

"Report," she commanded. Her voice was emotionless and precise. "All fronts."

A blue-hued hologram shimmered beside her, her young AI assistant, born from her own code.

[Yes, Creator.]

[The enemy's southern command has been eliminated. The bridge is under Kaelzar control. My legions await your command to advance on the city's final barrier.]

Cleo watched silent feeds of fire and ash accompanied by the march of Kaelzar's soldiers through the destroyed ruins of the fortress city slums.

"The southern barrier pillar?" she asked with her eyes still locked on the chaos.

[Located.]

[It lies beneath the collapsed fortress. Excavation is ongoing. Estimated destruction within two imperial hours.]

"Stay on target. No changes unless authorized."

[Understood.]

Then the AI's expression shifted, her digital face turning sharply upward while her voice rose.

[Creator—! Multiple wormhole signatures detected. Outer orbit. Fast approach vectors.]

Cleo's eyes glowed brighter. "I've already seen them."

With a flick of her fingers, dozens of holograms bloomed around her, each showing orbital trajectories and fleet configurations. Red markers began appearing that signaled the enemy vessels pouring from wormholes.

She analyzed the situation in a blink.

{"Shields up. Ground legions advancing. Fortress Weapon systems offline for recalibration. Fortress retreat... unacceptable.... then we use the external plan."}

Suddenly the Sky turns Red from scarlet lances of energy erupt from the heavens. Dozens of beams slammed into the Cleopatra's shields, carving molten scars across its armored skin. The entire carrier trembled with the force.

Inside her throne, Cleo didn't even flinch.

"Report," she ordered.

[Shields holding at 98%... dropping—97.6%. And falling.]

"Reroute all power from non-combat systems. Engines. Lighting. Life support."

A moment passed.... then she added, "…Maintain life support only in the green zones."

The Young AI blinked.

[Acknowledged.]

Outside, chaos reigned with hundreds of warships clashing above a planet already drowning in fire. But inside the command core of the Cleopatra, Cleo's gaze narrowed and her expression became unreadable.

She raised a single hand.

"Activate the orbital countermeasure. Begin phase two."

Even as the musician general's fleet scorched the sky, Cleo was already preparing her reply.

The thing about spaceship battles was simple, the one with the lower ground was at a huge advantage.

Always position yourself below the enemy. That way, your ship's cannons and turrets could target their underbelly, where armor was thin and engines were exposed. In a clash of destroyers and dreadnoughts, having a clean shot at the engines usually meant the difference between victory and floating debris.

So when did you appear above the enemy fleet? You were practically begging for a beating. And that was exactly what Cleo was about to deliver to the musician general's forces.

"All allied vessels," Cleo ordered, voice sharp and unwavering, "concentrate all firepower on these coordinates. Do not exit the Cleopatra's barrier; friendly fire will not be tolerated."

"Human fleet preparing to fire!" came the reply from the general priest Lilla had entrusted with command of her fleet. The human destroyers realigned in disciplined formation, targeting systems locking onto the coordinates Cleo transmitted.

Kaelzar destroyer AIs followed suit, cold and efficient. Targeting data streamed across every display.

Meanwhile, Lilla's voice rang through Cleo's channel.

"Well, I'd love to help, little Cleo~," she said with a theatrical sigh, shrugging exaggeratedly. "But you know my girls aren't built for long-range fights. They're brawlers. Guess I'll just cheer you on from here!"

Cleo's eye twitched. She knew that it was total bullshit. But gods above, she still felt like slapping the side of Y's head every time she spoke like that.

Still, no time for distractions.

"All vessels! open fire!"

A chorus of thunder answered her command. Explosive shells, focused energy beams, and lances of plasma tore upward into the sky, ripping into the Nexum fleet.

Cleo kept the Cleopatra rising slowly, just enough to keep the enemy fleet in range, but always staying below them. They'd made the mistake of warping in on top of her.

Now they would learn why that was suicide.....

"Tsk, tsk, tsk…" The Musician General clicked his tongue while stepping forward as the view of the planet bloomed before him.

"To leave me… for another dance partner?" he sighed dramatically. "There really are no manners left on the battlefield."

His eyes flickered with delight as his fleet emerged from all four directions, encircling the fortress city.

While Cleo had been baited into engaging a portion of his fleet in orbit, the true maneuver was unfolding planetside. freewebnøvel.coɱ

With the allied fleet lured upward, the musician general had sent his second wave directly to reinforce Xylos City. Within minutes, Nexum soldiers, fast, brutal, and well-armed, began pouring into the rear of the battlefield.

They struck like ghosts, launching a coordinated surprise assault on the invading forces from behind.

"Saintess! A new enemy force has appeared from the rear!" shouted out one of the priestesses, her voice trembling. "Our command post! it's already been overrun!"

Lilla turned slowly while her eyes opened as her expression changed. Around her, the battlefield crackled with renewed violence.

She lifted her head toward the sky, calm as ever.

"There's no need to panic," she said softly. "Someone will take care of them."

As if on cue, a massive white hand shimmered into existence... towering, radiant, and divine. It struck down from the heavens, shielding Lilla and her priestesses from a sudden barrage of concentrated laser fire.

The defenders beams splashed harmlessly against its glowing surface.

Lilla didn't even flinch.

"Heheheh～ And here I thought it was only that annoying Kaelzar who figured out my little secret～," Ys purred as she slid off her bed, stretching lazily like a cat preparing for bloodshed. "But it seems… my cute little Lilla noticed too…"

Her lips curled into a dangerous smile as she pressed her hands to her flushed cheeks, a giddy madness glittering in her eyes.

"Well, since there's no point hiding it anymore… I may as well enjoy myself!!!" she said while her voice rose with manic delight.

"I'll show you all… what it really means to be a princess of the Khryssari!! HAHAHAH!"

And at the crescendo of her laugh, a strange sound echoed across the battle-scarred planet, a cheer from the Khryssari forces below.

Though monstrous in appearance, looking like horrific beings of flesh, teeth, and writhing tentacles... they expressed their joy in eerie synchronization. It was grotesque… and oddly cute.

Their princess was pleased. And so, they were too.

As if answering Ys's will, the sky above Xylos twisted and tore open.

From the void, a massive fleet surged into realspace, not in orderly formation like human vessels or Kaelzar dreadnoughts, but as a writhing swarm of organic horrors. Living ships of impossible design, from carapaced cruisers, pulsating frigates, and leviathan warbeasts, rushed toward the battlefield.

It was not a fleet.... It was a hive.

"G-General!" a radar officer cried out with his voice cracking with panic. "We've detected a massive number of unknown vessels approaching at full speed from orbit!"

The musician general didn't look up immediately. He poured himself another glass of his shimmering golden drink, twirling it with practiced elegance.

"Mmm? A guest at my masquerade, arriving uninvited?" he muttered while his lips curled in disdain. "How shameless! Do we have any information on this… new arrival?"

"S-Sir… there's a match in the archives," the officer stammered while trembling as he handed over a datapad. "But the file is under maximum security clearance. Only a fleet general can unlock it…"

The musician general raised an eyebrow. "Oooh, now I am intrigued."

He accepted the datapad with a flourish and input his personal override code that was reserved for emergencies and galactic-level threats.

The screen flickered for a second and then single classification appeared:

[HIVE MIND – Galactic Threat Level]

The musician general smile faltered, just slightly.

"…Well," he said, sipping his drink, "this ball just became so much more dangerous."