Intergalactic conquest with an AI

After several more days of preparation, the long-anticipated meeting with the Queen of the Khryssari was finally here. Despite Cleo's warnings and his own doubts, Rex had decided to go through with it. Discover hidden content at empire

Part of him was genuinely curious, curious to meet someone from one of the strongest factions in the galaxy, a faction that could rival even the megacorps in power.

But circumstances were far from ideal. The Revenant Ascendancy fleet was closing in and could arrive at any moment. Because of this, Cleo, the twins, and the majority of Cleopatra's forces had to remain behind to prepare for the potential battle.

Cleo had argued, in no uncertain terms, that taking anyone else along would only increase the danger to both Rex and themselves. Rex, as usual, brushed off her concern with his usual confidence, but now, standing at the edge of Ys's organic battleship, he couldn't help but feel a small knot of unease forming in his gut.

"Darling～, are you ready to go and meet Mother?" Ys asked sweetly, wrapping her arms around him from behind, her voice brimming with excitement.

Rex chuckled softly, adjusting the seals on his full power armor. "Well, I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

His armor gleamed under the dim lighting of the docking bay, its advanced plating and systems fully functional, including his helmet, which he would need to wear at all times once inside Ys's "ship."

The Khryssari vessel, as he'd learned, wasn't exactly a traditional starship. It was a living, breathing beast, a massive bio-organic battleship with no oxygen supply or artificial gravity. For all intents and purposes, stepping inside without life support was a death sentence.

The moment they boarded, Rex could already feel the unsettling squish beneath his boots. The "floor" was some kind of pulsating organic material, warm and slightly damp. Around them, in the dim bioluminescent glow, the massive shapes of Khryssari warriors loomed in every corner, most of them appearing to be asleep, or, at least, dormant.

The warriors were massive, towering over Rex even in his armor. Their exoskeletons were heavy and segmented, and their grotesque mandibles looked more than capable of snapping a tank in two.

Mounted on their backs were strange, organic energy cannons that looked both alien and terrifyingly powerful.

Rex froze for a moment, glancing around nervously before leaning back slightly to whisper to Ys, who had somehow climbed onto his back like a humanoid backpack.

"Erm... are you sure these dudes aren't going to wake up looking for a midnight snack and decide I'm a tasty chicken leg?"

Ys giggled while resting her chin on his shoulder as she hugged him from behind. "Mmm? Nope, don't worry, darling! You've got my mark on you. These guys are totally loyal to me; they'd never hurt you! In fact, they'll treat you almost the same as they treat me."

Rex raised an eyebrow under his helmet, still glancing warily at the massive warriors. "I feel like 'almost' is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence."

Ys giggled again, clearly enjoying his discomfort. "Oh, come on, don't be such a worrywart～," she said, playfully poking the side of his helmet.

"Well then," Rex sighed, deciding to move on, "anything I should know about your mother? Like, I don't know... things I definitely shouldn't say in front of her."

Ys tilted her head, her expression turning thoughtful for a brief moment. "Mmm, not really," she said finally while shrugging. "You just have to answer whatever she asks. But if you don't feel like answering, just ignore her～. That's what I always do."

"Erm," Rex muttered, his voice deadpan. "I don't think that would work for me, Ys. You're her daughter. I'm just some random guy. If I ignore her, I'll probably end up as soup."

He paused for a second, then added dramatically, "And if I DO end up in a soup, please tell her to make it something normal, like beef stew or something. Just don't make it chicken soup. I hate chicken. If I'm going to be eaten, at least let me die with dignity."

He gasped, pretending to be shocked. "Oh! Okay! I'll be sure to tell her no chicken soup～!"

"SEE?! I KNEW IT! THERE REALLY IS A POSSIBILITY I'LL END UP AS SOUP!" Rex shouted, and the two of them devolved into playful bickering that echoed through the dim corridors of the living ship.

Eventually, they arrived at what Ys called the "bridge" of the battleship. But when Rex stepped inside, he stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes widening in disbelief beneath his helmet.

"Erm, Ys?" he asked cautiously, his voice trailing off.

"Yes, darling～?" Ys responded cheerfully as she climbed off his back and stretched.

"Are you sure this is the bridge?" Rex asked, his voice filled with doubt.

"Of course it is!" Ys replied confidently, walking further into the room. "Why do you ask?"

Rex gestured vaguely at their surroundings, his tone growing more incredulous. "Where do I even start? Like, for example, WHY IS THERE A BED?!"

Indeed, in the center of what was supposed to be the "bridge" was a massive, luxurious-looking bed that seemed entirely out of place in the bio-organic ship.

The room itself looked more like an extravagant alien bedroom than any kind of command center. There was even a strange pool filled with some kind of glowing amber liquid bubbling gently in the corner.

"And what's with the pool!?" Rex exclaimed, pointing at it. "Is this… is this some kind of spa?!"

He laughed clearly, amused by his reaction. "Oh～, don't be silly, darling! This is the bridge! The bed is for us, and the amber pool is for... Well, let's just say it's for relaxation～."

Rex stared at her, utterly baffled. "Relaxation?!"

"Mhmm～!" You replied with a cheerful nod. "You'll understand it later～!"

Rex shook his head, muttering to himself. "Of course the bridge is a bedroom. Why wouldn't it be? That's totally normal."

"Darling～," Ys called out in her usual playful tone, patting the strange, organic-looking bed. "Come get into the bed. We're about to open the wormhole, and I doubt you want to be sent flying into the wall. As you know, we don't have energy shields, so you'll be feeling some of the wormhole pressure once we're inside it."

Rex raised an eyebrow, glancing at her skeptically. "You can't be serious."

"Completely serious～!" Ys said cheerfully, patting the bed again.

With a reluctant groan, Rex made a small jump onto the bed, landing with a soft "squish." His face twisted in discomfort as the bed sank slightly beneath his weight, the sensation oddly warm and... alive. "Don't tell me..." he muttered, trying to ignore the goosebumps running up his arms. "This bed is also part of the ship, isn't it?"

"Of course it is!" Ys said, puffing up her chest with pride. "Everything you see in here is part of me. Well, part of my ship, which is an extension of me. It's the result of hundreds of years of genetic modifications and fine-tuning! Amazing, isn't it?"

Rex grimaced, doing his best to shove the mental image of himself lying on a giant organ out of his mind. "Amazing isn't exactly the word I'd use…" he muttered under his breath.

Ys, clearly oblivious to his discomfort, climbed onto the bed beside him and wrapped her arms around him. "Don't be shy, darling~! The bed is nice and soft, isn't it?"

"Yeah, if I ignore the fact that it feels like I'm lying on a big intestine, sure," Rex replied dryly, shifting uncomfortably.

Before Ys could respond, a low hum began reverberating through the ship as it prepared to enter the wormhole. The organic walls pulsed faintly, and the lights dimmed as the massive bio-organic vessel aligned itself.

The sensation was strange and alien, like the ship itself was alive and bracing for impact.

When the destroyer entered the wormhole, Rex immediately felt the intense pressure against his body, like a gravitational force pulling him in multiple directions at once. But to his surprise, it wasn't unbearable.

"Huh," Rex muttered to himself, adjusting slightly on the squishy bed. "This isn't so bad. I thought it would feel worse."

Ys giggled from beside him, her chin resting on his shoulder. "That's because you're not a normal human anymore, silly. Your body's far stronger than it used to be. If a regular human were exposed to this level of pressure, they'd... well..."

She paused, her grin turning mischievous. "Let's just say they'd make a great plate of spaghetti～."

Rex blinked, his face hidden behind his helmet, but he let out an audible groan. "Yeah, thanks for that lovely mental image."

After several hours of traveling through the wormhole, the ship finally emerged on the other side, arriving at their destination: the Hanarix sector.

Rex sat up and climbed off the bed, eager to get away from its unsettlingly squishy surface. He made his way toward one of the massive "windows" of the destroyer, which wasn't made of glass but rather a strange translucent membrane that pulsed faintly with the ship's movements.

What he saw outside left him momentarily speechless.

The entire sector was alive with activity, a vast expanse filled with the swarming forces of the Khryssari. Thousands upon thousands of bio-organic ships filled the void, each one unique in size and form.

Some were small and dart-like, swarming like a school of predatory fish, while others were larger, hulking vessels that moved with a slow, deliberate grace. It was an overwhelming sight, like watching a hive of wasps, each one lethal in its own right.

But what truly caught Rex's attention were the Hive minds supercapital ships.