2025-08-10 04:18:45
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948 - Aftermath
The holographic display in Dreznor’s command center was a stark, brutal ledger of loss. The Little Protagonist’s voice, usually a cheerful, melodic counterpoint to the grim realities of war, was now a flat, dispassionate recitation of facts.{Casualty count: thirty million. Ten million confirmed dead. The remaining twenty million are suffering from varying degrees of injury. We are currently prioritizing those near death, mobilizing hospital ships and medical personnel from other cities and from the military to treat as many as possible and reduce further loss of life.}{The radioactive fallout is being contained to reduce its long-term effects, but we cannot begin the process of recovering the city. All of our forces are currently engaged in either rescue operations or maintaining a high-security alert in case of a follow-up attack.}{We have halted the reinforcement operation, but the fleets remain in a mobilized state, ready to be dispatched to any star system that comes under atta
947 - The Shadari
Twenty Minutes Before the Explosion on Planet KumpoDeep within the cavernous hangar of the Erythian mothership, amidst the cacophony of a million bio-engineered monstrosities being unleashed, a small, silent group of three figures stood apart. They were clad in the distinctive, form-fitting overalls of the Shadari, their features completely obscured, their bodies a mere silhouette against the harsh hangar lights. They held their equipment with a practiced, steady grip, their final preparations complete.“Let’s get to work,” one of them said, their voice a filtered, androgynous whisper.Their surroundings shimmered, distorting for a fraction of a second. Then, they vanished.They were still standing in the same spot, but now they were invisible, intangible, ghosts in the machine. Their bodies began to vibrate, a low, almost imperceptible hum, and they slowly sank through the deck of the ship, phasing through the hull as if it were made of smoke. They bypassed the ship’s active shieldi
946 - City for City
A silent, blinding flash tore through the void of space. A large number of the mountain of biological monstrosities, which had been swarming towards Planet Kumpo, simply ceased to exist. They were vaporized in an instant. Those that survived were propelled outwards by the shockwave, were immediately targeted by a swarm of tracer projectiles, their fiery trails a promise that nothing would reach the planet’s surface.But the Conclave’s assault was a multi-pronged hydra. While a portion of Dreznor’s forces were locked in a desperate struggle against the bio-engineered horrors who were created to survive much of the attacks as possible, whilst still leaving them as a threat despite being damaged, the main Conclave fleet, having already mapped the planet’s defenses, unleashed a devastating barrage of missiles. Some of them, their engines glowing with an unnatural intensity, entered sublight speed, their trajectories designed to bypass any conventional interception. They were aimed at the
945 - A Queen on the Board
The command center on Planet Kumpo hummed with disciplined efficiency. Orders, rapid-fire and precise, flowed from the tactical consoles. “Reinforce sector seventeen point five! Place three more stealth mines in that area, set to alternating energy output for optimal stealth. Increase patrol fleet density by two, and ensure constant comms, all data transmitted the instant it’s generated!” The strategic directives, forged by the supercomputers in conjunction with Dreznor’s human "think tanks," were being implemented with practiced ease. This brief respite from the Conclave’s initial probing attacks was being used to solidify their defenses.Kumpo was a jewel in Dreznor’s nascent domain, one of the earliest liberated star systems from the Bilakis civilization. It had quickly integrated into the fully post-liberation “Dreznor ecosystem,” becoming a core system due to its abundant metallic mineral deposits in the asteroid belt. Its strategic value was immense.Horak, an analyst monitoring
944 - Calling His Bluff
A chilling silence descended upon the Conclave’s war chamber. Both the physically present individuals and their holographic counterparts remained motionless, their minds racing, sifting through the layers of information that had just been presented. Kumakar, however, was an anomaly. His face, invisible to all, held a faint, almost imperceptible relaxation. His plan was taking shape.He turned to the hologram of Osmo, the leader of Dreznor’s former civilization. His gaze was a subtle nod of appreciation, so fleeting that a casual observer might have thought he was merely adjusting his neck. Kumakar was a master manipulator. He knew that if *he* had delivered this information, it would be met with skepticism. He was already branded as the architect of the anti-Empire hate train, his motives suspect. His plan, intricate as it was, risked derailment if he appeared too invested. So, he had used Osmo.Osmo, the leader of a people now indelibly linked to the "Dreznor threat," was desperate t
943 - Aaaaaaah So Close
The holographic projection of the intelligence officer flickered before Kumakar, displaying a dry, concise report. “Through the data provided by the Empire, Your Excellency, we have managed to verify the identity of the poster. He was on a ship heading towards an unknown destination before the video was uploaded, and immediately after, he entered lightspeed travel. His current whereabouts are unknown.” The hologram showed the brief, untraceable trajectory. “However, the Virrelan intelligence apparatus, through their own investigations sparked by the post’s virality, managed to connect him to a family that had the majority of its members enslaved following the war. This strongly suggests Dreznor has operatives embedded within many civilizations.”“So, this is their ‘proof’ of non-involvement?” Kumakar sneered, dismissing the Empire’s transparency as a pathetic attempt at deception. “Do they truly take us for fools?”“Yes, Your Excellency,” the officer confirmed, impervious to Kumakar’s
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