Intergalactic conquest with an AI

The Liberator's turrets rotated with mechanical precision, locking onto the exposed target. Plasma rounds streaked through space, slamming into the enemy ship's hull with devastating accuracy.

Under the relentless barrage, the enemy's shields faltered, collapsing entirely as the massive vessel was torn apart.

Explosions rippled across its structure as pieces of the ship broke away, scattering into the void. The larger fragments drifted lifelessly, glowing faintly with the heat of the plasma impacts.

Carlos allowed himself a small grin of satisfaction.

"That's what you get for ramming my ship,"

he muttered. But his satisfaction was short-lived.

"Sir,"

one of the Aegis units said, its voice cutting through the bridge's tense silence,

"sensors are detecting additional energy readings. Another ship has decloaked. It is significantly larger than the first."

Carlos's grin faded instantly.

"On screen,"

he ordered.

The holo-display updated, and Carlos's eyes widened as the second ship appeared. It wasn't like anything he had expected. The massive vessel floated ominously in the void, its design angular and alien.

It was covered in dark, jagged plating that seemed to shift and shimmer, giving it an otherworldly presence. Energy pulsated through glowing veins along its hull, and its weapon systems glowed with a menacing red hue.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"What the fuck is that?"

Carlos muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

The librarian's systems

scrambled to analyze the vessel, and a stream of data began appearing on the holo-screen. Carlos quickly turned to one of the Aegis units.

"Quickly! Scan that ship. I need to know who it belongs to!"

The Aegis unit worked silently for a moment, its systems processing the information. Finally, it spoke:

"

Sir, the ship belongs to..."

It hesitated, as if the words themselves carried a weight too heavy for even its robotic voice.

"...the Revenant Ascendancy."

Carlos's blood ran cold. He had heard stories of the Revenant Ascendancy, nightmarish tales whispered in hushed tones by veteran captains and survivors of deep-space battles. The Revenant weren't pirates, nor were they a typical faction.

They were something far worse, an enigmatic force known for their advanced, almost alien technology, their terrifyingly efficient warships, and their ruthless tactics. Entire fleets had disappeared without a trace after encountering them, and their motives remained shrouded in mystery.

"Of all the damn days..."

Carlos muttered, gripping the armrests of his chair tightly.

"Sir,

" the Aegis unit continued

, "the Revenant vessel is charging weapons. Incoming energy surge detected."

"Shit,"

Carlos growled. He knew the Liberator was powerful, but even a dreadnought like this wasn't guaranteed to survive an encounter with a Revenant warship.

"All hands, brace for impact! Activate the EMP disruptors and launch the drones! We're not going down without a fight!"

The Liberator's systems roared to life as it prepared for what could only be described as a battle for survival. Swarms of drones launched from the ship's bays, their golden hulls glinting as they raced toward the enemy.

The Liberator's plasma turrets began firing again, their streaks of energy illuminating the darkness of space.

But deep down, Carlos knew this wasn't a battle they could win. The Revenant Ascendancy wasn't an enemy that could be fought head-on, not without suffering devastating losses. He needed a plan, and he needed it fast.

"Comms,"

Carlos yelled, his voice cutting through the chaos.

"Get me a secure line to Rex. He needs to know what we're dealing with!"

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As the bridge erupted into activity, the Liberator plunged headfirst into the fight of its life.

Just before Carlos's encounter with the Revenant Ascendancy, Rex's ship, Cleopatra, had completed its wormhole jump into the heart of the mysterious signal's origin.

The trip had been uneventful, silent even, but that silence carried an unsettling weight. For the past several minutes, Rex had been trying to reestablish contact with the scouts Cleo had sent to this location. There had been no response.

Standing on the bridge, Rex's golden eyes narrowed as he peered out of the massive reinforced window, scanning the dark expanse of space. Despite the vast capabilities of the ship's advanced detection systems, something about seeing the stars with his own eyes always felt more reliable, more real.

"Do the systems detect anything, Cleo?"

Rex asked, his voice calm but tinged with unease. His instincts were on high alert, the quietness of the area gnawing at him.

Cleo's holographic form materialized near the main console, standing with her usual poise. Her golden eyes reflected the streams of data she was analyzing; her tone was clinical.

"Negative. The long- and short-range scanners detect nothing unusual, other than the faint energy signal that brought us here. It could be a cloaked satellite emitting some kind of residual energy. Other than that, there's not much to work with."

Just as Cleo began voicing her hypothesis, the Cleopatra was rocked violently. Sparks flew from several consoles as the energy shields flared to life, absorbing sudden, concentrated impacts.

"Multiple impacts detected,"

Cleo announced quickly, her voice remaining steady despite the chaos.

"Locating the source. Targets identified."

Without hesitation, Cleo made her decision.

"Deploying EMP missiles to the targets' coordinates."

The Cleopatra's sleek missile bays opened, releasing a barrage of EMP missiles toward the coordinates of the unknown attackers. While EMP attacks were generally ineffective against larger vessels with advanced defenses, they had a secondary use, exposing cloaked ships.

As the missiles exploded in bursts of electromagnetic pulses, the invisible became visible. Two massive ships materialized on the bridge's holo-display, their dark, angular hulls reflecting faint streaks of light from the distant stars.

One was positioned to Rex's left, and the other to his right. They were enormous, larger than the Cleopatra, and their designs were nothing like the typical pirate vessels Rex had encountered before.

"Return fire!"

Rex shouted, his voice cutting through the rising tension.

The Cleopatra's turrets immediately turned, their targeting systems locking onto the newly revealed ships. Bolts of concentrated plasma surged through the void, slamming into the enemy vessels energy shields.

The shields shimmered under the impact, holding steady as the two hostile ships began their counterattack, unleashing a storm of energy blasts toward the Cleopatra.

"Sending out fighter squads,"

Cleo announced, her holographic form vanishing from the bridge and reappearing outside the ship, standing on top of the main cannon as though observing the battle firsthand.

"Objective: target enemy vessel engines."

As Cleo relayed orders, dozens of fighters launched from the Cleopatra's bays, swarming toward the enemy ships. Their goal was clear: disable the engines and leave the ships vulnerable.

But before the fighters could fully engage, Cleo's voice rang out with another warning.

"Warning: multiple warp signatures detected. Analyzing... the signatures match known pirate vessels."

Rex's jaw tightened as he turned his gaze to the direction Cleo was staring. Space itself seemed to ripple and distort, like a pond disturbed by stones. One by one, smaller wormholes began to tear open, and from them emerged hundreds of pirate fighters, their engines glowing red as they swarmed into the battlefield.

"Shit,"

Rex muttered under his breath. "

They got us."

He turned toward Cleo, his expression resolved. "

Cleo, I'm giving you command of the forces. I'll be going out with the 201st flying wing."

Cleo's holographic form turned to face him, her golden eyes locking onto his. She gave a curt nod.

"Understood. Enemy weapon systems have been categorized as highly dangerous. Permission to use the main guns has been granted. Locking onto targets... Objective locked. Firing."

As Rex made his way to the elevator, the ship's main cannons roared to life. The Cleopatra's primary weapons systems were a spectacle of destructive power.

The first two main cannons, mounted along the ship's spine, fired enormous kinetic rounds. These shells were designed for pure explosive force, capable of obliterating even heavily armored ships with direct hits.

The massive projectiles streaked through space, slamming into the enemy ship to the right. The explosion was deafening, sending shockwaves ripping through the void and forcing the enemy shields to flicker under the strain.

The third main cannon, the largest and most advanced of them all, was positioned near the bow. Unlike its counterparts, it was a laser-based weapon, designed to unleash a devastating beam of concentrated energy.

Cleo stood on the cannon in her holographic form, monitoring its charging process. It would take time to fully power up, but when it fired, it would be capable of slicing through even the strongest defenses.

Meanwhile, the bridge crew worked furiously under Cleo's command, relaying orders to the fighter squadrons. The smaller ships swarmed around the pirate fighters, engaging them in chaotic dogfights. Explosions lit up the darkness as ships on both sides were destroyed.

While Cleo managed the chaos, Rex had already arrived at the massive hangar, where the 201st Flying Wing awaited him in perfect formation. The Aegis pilots, clad in their sleek, gold-trimmed combat suits, stood at attention the moment they saw him enter.

Their metallic frames shimmered faintly under the hangar's lights, and their visors reflected the determined glow of Rex's golden eyes.

"Listen up!"

Rex yelled, his voice cutting through the low hum of the hangar's systems. He strode toward the shield door that separated the hangar from the endless void of space, his footsteps echoing with purpose.

"It's our turn to head out there and take the fight to those bastards. Let's show them what my 201st Legion can really do!"

The Aegis pilots responded in unison, their voices synthesized but filled with a soldier's determination.

"Yes, Commander Rex!"

As Rex continued walking toward the shield door, a faint golden glow began to emanate from his back. It started as a soft shimmer, but within seconds, a radiant golden halo appeared, floating on his back and pulsing with energy.

Streams of golden light coursed down from the halo, flowing into Rex's body and causing his armor to hum with life.

[Overdrive mode activated.]

The calm, feminine voice of Cleo's AI interface echoed in his ears.

[Space combat weaponry selected.] [Preparing deployment... please stand by.]

Rex smirked, his confidence growing as the systems fully engaged. He and Cleo had spent years perfecting this upgrade. Ever since their fusion five years ago, he'd been able to draw on Cleo's advanced technology and production systems.

Cleo had installed a portion of her consciousness directly into his internal systems, allowing her to monitor his combat status and control the deployment of his newly designed weaponry. This freed Rex to focus entirely on the fight.

As the golden light from his halo continued to flood into him, Rex's body began to change. His height, already imposing, grew even taller as the nanomaterials stored within his halo began to integrate into his frame.

His natural build was reinforced, layer by layer, with white and golden mecha-like armor that gleamed under the hangar's lights.