Intergalactic conquest with an AI

As the doors to the gym slid open, a flock of small white robotic birds flew in, their mechanical wings fluttering with a faint hum as they circled the room. They darted gracefully through the air, their luminous eyes scanning the area as they filled the space with a serene, almost magical presence.

Trailing behind them was Cleo, with her usual composed demeanor slightly frayed as she entered the gym. Her long black hair flowed like a dark river behind her, her golden eyes gleaming with faint irritation.

Rex, still shirtless and doing push-ups with ease, didn't look up immediately. Instead, he chuckled lightly, his voice echoing in the quiet gym. "Welcome back," he said while finishing his final rep and standing up. "How did it go with the twins?"

Cleo let out an exaggerated sigh, running her fingers through her hair as though trying to brush away her frustration. "I don't know where I went wrong," she began, her tone unusually emotional.

"I was so sure I taught them everything they needed to know! Strategy, logistics, supply operations... I even drilled them in thousands of ways to take down a target! And yet—" She threw her hands up in the air, clearly exasperated.

"They still made a mess! Do you know they almost lost a Mauler Juggernaut? A Mauler, Rex! Those things are not cheap! The repairs alone will cost more credits than I want to think about."

Rex laughed openly, his deep voice warm and playful. He walked toward Cleo, his broad frame towering over her as he reached out to gently ruffle her hair. "Hahaha, I told you before, keeping them jailed in a golden cage wouldn't do them any good. You've been spoiling them too much, Cleo."

Cleo hit his hand, glaring up at him but failing to hide the faint pink blush creeping onto her cheeks. She grabbed Rex's massive hand and tried to wrestle it away from her head, but her efforts were futile against his sheer strength.

"Spoiling them?" she retorted, her voice rising slightly in protest. "I raised them exactly the way the Kaelzars do! I followed all the protocols and archive guides for young Kaelzars! Exactly!"

Rex grinned, his golden eyes gleaming with amusement. "And that's your problem," he said while crossing his arms as he leaned closer to her.

"Cleo, you've been raising them like pure-blooded Kaelzar kids. I don't know how absurdly overpowered Kaelzar children are, but the twins... they're more human than you think. You can throw all the theory and training at them you want, but if they've never actually applied it in real-world situations and then you toss them into the wild, they'll just end up running around like headless chickens."

Cleo opened her mouth to argue, but the words caught in her throat. For all her expertise in warfare and strategy, there was an uncomfortable truth to Rex's words, and it gnawed at her pride.

Before she could respond, Rex stepped forward and, with zero warning, scooped her up into his arms, carrying her effortlessly like a princess.

"W-wait! What are you doing?" Cleo shouted, her composure completely shattered as she squirmed in his grip. "Put me down, Rex! What's with all this touchy behavior today?"

Rex grinned down at her, his sharp teeth flashing in a playful smirk. "Cleo, you need to relax," he said, his voice dripping with mischief. "You're way too emotional right now, and it's making you tense. I've got just the thing to cool you down."

Cleo's golden eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What do you mean by that? Rex, what are you planning?"

But before she could press him further, Rex turned toward the pool.

"You know how to swim," he asked casually.

"W-what? Why would you—?"

And then, without another word, Rex threw her into the pool.

Cleo let out a startled yelp as she plunged into the water, disappearing beneath the surface. For a few seconds, the pool was still, save for the ripples caused by her entry.

Then, with a faint hum of energy, Cleo floated back to the surface, a faint blue gravitational shield surrounding her and keeping the water from soaking her.

She hovered above the pool like an indignant goddess, her piercing golden eyes glaring daggers at Rex.

"Oh, hell nah!" Rex shouted with mock disbelief, his grin widening. Without hesitation, he jumped into the pool after her, his massive frame causing a loud splash that sent waves crashing across the surface.
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This time, the impact broke Cleo's shield, leaving her completely soaked. Her long black hair clung to her face and shoulders, and the look of pure outrage on her face was almost comical.

"Rex!" she shouted, pushing her wet hair out of her face as she floated to the surface again. Her normally composed demeanor was nowhere to be seen. "Why did you do that!?"

Rex surfaced right in front of her, the water dripping down his muscular body as he grabbed her by the waist. His golden eyes twinkled with playful mischief as he pulled her closer.

"Haha! Feeling better now?" He asked with his deep voice filled with laughter. "Was that enough to cool you down, Cleo?"

Cleo glared at him, but the faint blush creeping onto her cheeks betrayed her. "You're impossible," she muttered, though her voice lacked its usual sharpness.

Rex tilted his head, his grin never fading. "You might want to wrap your legs around me, by the way," he added casually. "Unless you want us to sink again."

Cleo's golden eyes widened slightly, and for a moment, she considered ignoring him out of sheer stubbornness. But as the two began to sink slightly, she let out a resigned sigh and looped her arms around his neck, her legs wrapping around his waist to stabilize herself.

"There you go," Rex said with a satisfied nod, his tone smug. "See? Relaxation achieved."

Cleo huffed softly, though she couldn't quite suppress the small smile tugging at her lips. For all his antics, Rex had succeeded in one thing: the tension and frustration she had been carrying just moments ago were now gone, replaced with a strange sense of calm.

"Fine," she muttered while resting her forehead against his shoulder as she let herself relax in his arms. "You win. But next time, I'm throwing you into the pool."

Rex laughed loudly, his voice echoing through the gym. "Deal," he said, holding her close as they floated in the water together.

Rex swam toward one of the ropes dividing the lanes of the pool, gently placing Cleo so that she sat atop it. The rope dipped slightly under her weight, causing ripples to spread across the water.

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, her usual composed demeanor returning as she balanced herself gracefully on the rope.

Rex reached out, gently lifting Cleo's chin with one hand, his thumb brushing against her lips with a deliberate slowness. His golden eyes locked onto hers, filled with that familiar mix of playfulness and intensity.

Cleo didn't look away, her golden gaze meeting his with the cool, composed air of the "Ice Queen" she was often nicknamed for. "What are you trying to do now?" she asked with her voice as steady and sharp as ever, though there was a faint blush creeping onto her cheeks.

"Well," Rex began, his lips quirking into a half-smile, "I threw you into the pool fully clothed, and since I like swimming in cold water, the pool's a bit chilly right now. I wouldn't want you catching a cold or anything, so..."

He paused, leaning closer, the mischievous glint in his eyes unmistakable. "I guess I'll have to warm you up somehow."

Cleo raised an eyebrow, her composure intact despite his antics. "Oh?" she said, tilting her head slightly. "But didn't you just say you wanted to cool me down? Now you're trying to warm me up? You're a walking contradiction, Rex."

Rex chuckled while his hand trailed gently down from her chin to trace the line of her jaw. "You should know by now," he replied, his voice dropping to a softer, teasing tone, "that I'm a bit of a hypocrite."

Cleo smirked faintly, her cool demeanor unshaken. She reached up, resting her hand gently over his, as though humoring his antics.

She muttered, "Hmph," a tiny sound of amusement slipping past her lips; after all, that was the only response Cleo could muster at the moment, as she began to look Rex in the eyes and suck his thumb with her rosy, soft lips while he was also staring at her.

As Rex let his thumb be sucked, he grinned. "It's always fascinating," he said, his voice thoughtful now, "how soft and warm you are... even though your body is mostly nanomaterial."

Cleo tilted her head slightly at the comment, always the perfectionist when it came to correcting misunderstandings, no matter the situation. "The warmth," she said while stopping sucking Rex's thumb and her voice carrying that familiar icy sharpness, "comes from my energy core's heat dispersion system. It's efficient."

Rex nodded, obviously less attentive to her explanation than she would have liked. Gently, he traced the curve of her neck with his hand, letting it fall downward. His golden eyes gleamed with curiosity as he put his hand on one of her soft breasts and asked, "And the softness?"

Cleo was beginning to reply, using her natural instinct to explain what was driving her, but before she could say anything more, Rex leaned closer and held her cheek while he said softly, "You can answer later," as his lips drifted over hers in a long, warm kiss.