Intergalactic conquest with an AI

For a second, there was silence on the comms. Then—

"The hell you just say?!" Red Leader's voice came back, indignant but laced with humor. "Listen, kid, I'm flattered, but I'm sorry to break it to you; I'm not into dudes! Better introduce me to your mom instead. Now she looked fine. Like a good-aged wine, you know?"

"What?!" Erik yelled back, nearly choking on his words as he swerved to avoid a stray plasma bolt. "I don't know who you think my mom is, but she's been dead for years! Who the hell are you talking about?!"

There was a brief pause before Red Leader's laughter exploded over the comms. "Mmm? What? Dead? Oh, shit, kid... I think I just said something I shouldn't have! HAHAHA! Don't tell your dad, alright?"

Erik groaned, half-exasperated, half-amused. "You're unbelievable! Focus on the fight, Red Leader!"

"Relax, rookie, I got this. Keep my six clear, and I'll introduce you to a bottle of wine when we get back. Deal?"

"Deal, just stay alive long enough for that, alright?" Erik said, finally letting a genuine laugh slip through, even as his nerves burned in the heat of battle.

The chatter between the two pilots barely masked the chaos around them. Revenant fighters darted in with their kamikaze tactics, slamming into shields or aiming for weak spots on the destroyers.

But Lilla's fighters, disciplined and well-coordinated, intercepted them, thinning their numbers one by one.

"Erik, on your right!" Red Leader's voice snapped Erik's focus to an incoming fighter. The jagged Revenant ship had locked onto Erik's fighter, its crystal nose glowing as it prepared to fire.

"I see it!" Erik shouted, yanking his controls hard to the left. His fighter spiraled just in time to avoid the shot, but the Revenant ship was still tailing him.

"Hold on, kid, I'm coming!" Red Leader said while his fighter swooped down like a hawk. With a quick burst of plasma fire, he obliterated the Revenant fighter in a shower of glowing shards. "That's one less for you to worry about! You owe me, rookie!"

Erik exhaled shakily, his grip on the controls relaxing slightly. "Thanks, Red Leader. I'll pay you back out here, I promise."

"Damn right you will! Now stay sharp! This isn't over yet!"

As the battle raged on, the fighters of Lilla's fleet held their ground, protecting the destroyers with everything they had. For them, it wasn't just a mission; it was a divine duty, a sacred cause in the name of their goddess.

Far above the chaos, aboard the carrier, the Saintess herself watched the battle unfold through a holoscreen, her expression serene yet focused. The Revenant forces had underestimated her zealots, and they were beginning to pay the price.

Lilla's voice echoed through the ship's comms, calm and resolute: "Hold the line. Protect the faithful. Bring divine judgment upon our enemies."

Her words reverberated through the hearts of her followers, reigniting their courage as the battle continued to escalate.

Thanks to Lilla's reinforcements, the battle outside the station shifted back to a precarious standstill, one that slightly favored the defenders.

The coordinated pincer maneuver Cleo had devised was now fully engaged against the Revenant fleet, and since the Revenant's pincer was primarily composed of heavy transport ships, they were no match for the focused firepower of the allied fleets.

It was only a matter of minutes before the remaining transport vessels were obliterated.

Inside the trading station, the invading forces continued to pour in, though their numbers had finally started to dwindle.

The Blood Legion, bolstered by their successful sally out, maintained relentless pressure against the Revenant golems. Meanwhile, the defensive choke points Nyra had set up were holding strong, forcing the invaders into bottlenecks where they were easier to neutralize.

In the middle of the chaos, Nyra stood at the most crucial choke point, a junction that covered three entrances. Her crimson-lit power armor gleamed under the flickering emergency lights as she parried a glowing crystal projectile with one of her twin blades, sending it ricocheting into the ceiling.
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The resounding clang echoed through the corridor, but Nyra barely flinched, already moving to intercept the next threat.

"Ma'am! We've just received confirmation that the guards protecting the main stairs were annihilated, but the Blood Legion has already secured the area! For now, the command room is safe!" One of the guards Nyra had rescued earlier reported, his voice shaking but filled with relief.

Nyra let out a small, proud grin as she thought to herself, "Nicely done, little sister. As expected of you!" She turned to the guard and nodded.

"That's good news. Send the coordinates of our choke points to all remaining guards. Have them fall back and reinforce these positions. The more organized we are, the faster we can counterattack against those ugly things," she said with her tone sharp and commanding.

Even as she spoke, another crystal projectile screamed toward her position. Without hesitation, Nyra spun and deflected it with a flick of her blade, the crystal hurtling harmlessly into the floor. The guard beside her flinched, staring at her in awe.

"Also!" Nyra shouted while her eyes narrowed as she turned to the communications officer she was protecting. "Where are the mounted machine guns I asked for almost an hour ago?! I don't think I'm asking for much, just the tools to not die horribly!"

The guard in charge of comms flinched under her glare, fumbling with his earpiece as he hurried to respond.

"Ma'am! They were supposed to have arrived already, but the rear team ran into trouble! They had to grab some light explosive shell cannons from another group, so it's taking them longer to deliver the parts since everything's disassembled!"

Nyra raised an eyebrow, momentarily distracted from the golem charging toward her. "Oh? Finally, some good news!" she said while grinning slightly as she ducked under the golem's swinging arm and drove her blade into its neck, severing its head in one fluid motion.

The golem's massive body collapsed at her feet, the crystal core in its head dimming to nothingness.

"Well then," she continued, shaking the bits of crystalline debris from her blade. "You wait here and hold the line. I'll go clear the west entrance."

"B-but ma'am!" the comms officer stammered. "That area's crawling with golems! If you leave, who'll defend this point?!"

Nyra turned toward him, her grin hidden beneath the visor of her power armor. The crimson lights on her suit flared to life as her helmet fully covered her head, the faint hum of energy coursing through the armor's systems.

She reached over her shoulder and drew her second blade from its sheath, the weapon glowing with an ominous crimson hue.

"Don't worry," she said, her voice now distorted slightly by her helmet's speaker. "This choke point isn't falling anytime soon. These ugly bastards can't even get past the guys behind me. Besides, I'll be back before you know it. Try not to die while I'm gone, alright?"

The comms officer stared at her in disbelief as she strode off toward the west entrance. Despite the chaos and danger surrounding her, Nyra's confidence was unshakable.

At the west entrance, the situation was dire. Revenant golems continued to pour in, their jagged crystalline forms glinting menacingly as they pushed through the narrow corridors.

The Blood Legion units stationed there were holding the line, but barely. The golems relentless assault was beginning to overwhelm even their disciplined ranks.

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor as Nyra approached, her glowing armor casting an eerie red light ahead of her. The Blood Legion soldiers turned briefly to look at her, their targeting systems acknowledging her presence with quick, curt flashes.

"Hold the line!" Nyra shouted as she sprinted into the fray, her twin blades a blur of motion. She leaped toward the nearest golem, slashing clean through its arm before spinning and driving her second blade into its core.

The creature shattered into a spray of glowing shards as its broken body crumpled to the ground.

Another golem lunged at her, swinging its massive crystalline arm like a hammer. Nyra dove under the blow and slashed upward with both blades, severing the arm at the elbow. She followed through with a quick, brutal thrust into its neck, taking its head clean off.

"Let's show these oversized pebbles what happens when they mess with my station!" she shouted, her voice ringing out over the sounds of battle.

The Blood Legion soldiers, inspired by her presence, redoubled their efforts. Plasma rifles flared as they focused fire on the golems heads, shattering their crystalline cores with ruthless efficiency. The tide of battle at the west entrance began to shift in favor of the defenders, and Nyra's presence was the catalyst.

As the last of the golems in the immediate area fell, Nyra stood amidst the glowing debris, her breathing steady despite the effort she'd exerted. She turned to the Blood Legion soldiers, her twin blades dripping with the glowing remnants of shattered cores.

"Reinforce this position and hold it until those mounted guns arrive," she commanded. "We're not losing this entrance, got it?"

[Affirmative. Holding position.]

Nyra nodded, already turning to head back to the main choke point. The battle was far from over, but as long as she and the Blood Legion continued to fight, the Revenant invaders wouldn't win this day.

"Wow... since when did Nyra become this amazing?" Lyra muttered to herself, her eyes glued to the monitors in the command room. The screens showed her twin sister slicing through Revenant golems like they were nothing more than fragile toys.

Nyra's precision, speed, and confidence seemed almost superhuman. For a brief moment, Lyra's heart swelled with pride as she watched her twin command the battlefield with such ferocity and grace.

But Lyra's admiration distracted her from something far more dangerous.