Intergalactic conquest with an AI

"M-My... l-lady..." Anais choked out, her voice trembling as she crawled across the metallic floor of the wrecked ship. She had been right next to Sharon when they were shot down... when their escape route became a death trap.

Now, with her right arm shattered and her body barely holding together after the impact, she still forced herself forward. Her legs wobbled like those of a newborn fawn as she approached the woman she had sworn to protect.

"No... no, no, no—My Lady! This can't be happening...!" Her cry was raw, desperate.

A jagged metal bar had impaled Sharon's body, pinning her lifelessly against the ruined couch. Blood dripped steadily onto the cold floor, pooling beneath her. Continue reading on My Virtual Library Empire

Anais's trembling hand reached for her laser knife. With only her left arm still usable, she tried to cut through the bar, but the trembling in her fingers made it impossible to get a proper grip. Her vision blurred, and her mind spun. She barely registered the faint echoes of voices in the distance until they were too close.

{Voices...? Other survivors!?}

For a fleeting moment, hope flickered. But then her instincts screamed at her.

{No... something's wrong. I don't recognize the language. And the only man on board was the pilot. That means...}

A realization struck her like ice down her spine.

{They're the ones who shot us down....}

With her heart pounding, she stumbled toward the nearest metal door and pressed herself against the wall. Her breathing was erratic, her body heavy with pain, but she had no choice; she had to fight.

Clutching her laser knife with her only functioning hand, she stole a quick glance at her arm device. Normally, its automatic translation system would decipher any unknown language instantly.

But the screen only flickered with garbled symbols.

{EMP attack.... That's why our ship went down so easily... Our shields never even had a chance.}

The voices grew louder while boots stomped against the wreckage, then the door hissed open. Anais didn't hesitate. With every ounce of remaining strength, she lunged, aiming to plunge her laser knife into the first soldier's skull.

But her attack never landed.

A personal energy shield flared to life, stopping her blade just inches from his face. The soldier snarled in surprise before slamming a gauntleted hand across her cheek. The impact sent her sprawling onto the cold floor, her vision flashing white.

More soldiers rushed in, their weapons pointed at her while one of them shouted something incomprehensible.

"&$£&$% $",$£%£" The others laughed after hearing what he said.

The first soldier knelt beside her and grabbed her by the legs, dragging her toward him. Anais weakly reached for her knife, but her fingers barely moved. Her body refused to obey. The pain, the exhaustion, the sheer hopelessness... it crushed her.

Her blurred vision caught glimpses of the soldiers' smirking faces and their mocking gazes.

She had lost...

It was at that moment that a thunderous impact rattled the ship, a deep, metallic boom reverberating through the wreckage.

The soldiers froze in place, and for a moment, there was only silence. Then came another sound. A slow, agonizing tear of metal.

It screeched through the ship like nails on a chalkboard. The hull groaned under an unseen force. Something or someone was on top of the ship.

The soldiers exchanged uneasy glances.

"Hey! What the hell was that!?" The squad leader snapped. "Go check it out!"

One of the soldiers stiffened. "What?! Why me!? That sounded like something huge!"

"Because I'm the damn squad leader, and you do what I say! Now move before I put a bullet in your skull for insubordination!"

The soldier muttered a curse under his breath. {Tsk. One of these days, a stray bullet's gonna go right through that bastard's head...}

With visible reluctance, he stepped toward the door.

As the soldier turned and vanished into the suffocating darkness, a tense silence gripped the air. Then, just a few seconds later...

"AHHHH, LET ME GOOO!!" A blood-curdling scream tore through the night, followed by the loud sound of gunfire. The other soldiers froze, their hearts pounding as the cries of their comrade were abruptly cut off, leaving only an eerie stillness in their wake.

"What the hell was that!?" The squad leader shouted while his voice trembled with a mix of rage and fear.

"Wasn't this ship supposed to be full of women and some high-value target? What the fuck is happening out there!?" He tightened his grip on his rifle, his finger hovering over the trigger as he and the remaining soldier aimed their weapons at the door, their eyes wide with dread.

Suddenly, more screams erupted outside, mingling with the deafening roar of tank fire and the earth-shaking explosions that rocked the ship's wreckage. The ground beneath them trembled violently as shells rained down, sending shockwaves through the air.

"Enough of this! Let's move now!" The squad leader shouted with his voice cutting through the chaos. He gestured sharply toward the door, his face a mask of grim determination.

"But sir, what about her?" one of the soldiers asked while glancing nervously at Anais, who lay battered and broken on the floor, her body trembling with pain and fear.

"Who gives a damn about her? She's not going anywhere," the leader snapped, his voice dripping with contempt.

"If you want her that badly, put a bullet in her legs so she can't run. Now move!" Without another word, he bolted toward the door, his boots pounding against the metal floor as he disappeared into the chaos outside.

The remaining soldier hesitated for a moment, then turned his weapon toward Anais. Her tear-streaked face met his cold, unfeeling gaze. Without a word, he fired two shots into her legs.

"AHHHHH!" Anais's scream echoed through the room, a raw, gut-wrenching sound that seemed to pierce the very air. She writhed in agony, her body convulsing as blood pooled beneath her. The soldier watched dispassionately for a moment before turning and sprinting after his leader, leaving her to suffer in silence.

Minutes dragged by, each one an eternity of pain. The gunfire outside continued unabated, the relentless cacophony of battle growing louder and more intense. Anais clenched her teeth, her mind racing.

{They must be fighting our troops...}

She thought while her heart swelled with a faint glimmer of hope. She turned her head weakly, her eyes falling on Sharon, who lay motionless beside her. Her chest rose and fell faintly, but her breaths were shallow, almost imperceptible.

{My lady...}

Anais's heart ached as she forced herself to focus. Gritting her teeth against the searing pain in her legs and arm, she pushed herself up, her body trembling with the effort... while using the wall for support, she dragged herself toward the gaping hole in the ship's hull where the soldiers had entered.

Every step was agony, every movement a battle against her own broken body. But she refused to give up. With a final, desperate effort, she stumbled through the hole and collapsed onto the ground outside.

Before she could even catch her breath, a deafening crash shook the earth. Anais flinched as something heavy slammed into the ground beside her, sending a spray of dirt and debris into the air. She turned her head slowly while her eyes widened in shock.

It was one of the soldiers, the same man who had shot her just moments ago. His body was twisted and broken, his lifeless eyes staring blankly at the sky. Anais's breath caught in her throat as she looked up, her gaze drawn to the scene unfolding before her.

A towering figure stood amidst the chaos, glowing with radiant golden light. His massive form moved with impossible speed and precision, cutting through the Nexum soldiers like a force of nature.

Bullets ricocheted harmlessly off his gray armor, deflected by some unseen power. Tanks fired shells at him, but he caught one mid-air, his massive hand enveloping the explosive projectile in a shimmering white shield.

[The enemies of the Kaelzars shall be exterminated.]

His voice boomed like thunder, resonating with an otherworldly power. With a single, fluid motion, he hurled the shell back at the tank. It pierced through the armored vehicle like paper, detonating inside with a blinding explosion that lit up the battlefield.

The scene outside the ship was one of chaos and destruction. The gray giant, glowing with an otherworldly golden light, moved with a terrifying grace, his massive form cutting through the Nexum soldiers like a scythe through wheat.

Bullets ricocheted off his glowing armor, and his every step seemed to shake the ground. The soldiers, once so confident and brutal, were now scrambling in panic, their weapons useless against this unstoppable force.

While lying on the ground near the ship's wreckage, Anais could barely comprehend what she was seeing. The pain from her wounds was overwhelming, but the sight before her was so surreal that it momentarily eclipsed her agony.

The giant's voice, deep and resonant, echoed across the battlefield, declaring the annihilation of the Kaelzar's enemies. It was a voice that carried both authority and an ancient, almost primal power.

The giant raised his hand, and a shimmering white shield formed around him, deflecting another barrage of gunfire. He then turned his attention to a group of soldiers who were attempting to flank him.

With a single, sweeping motion, he sent them flying, their bodies crumpling like ragdolls. The remaining soldiers, realizing the futility of their efforts, began to retreat, but the giant was relentless. He moved with a purpose, his glowing eyes scanning the battlefield for any remaining threats.