At the end of the day, the Sovereign had won their first solid victory over the High Evolutionary. But the war was far from over. Not even six hours after the Harbinger's destruction, the remaining three fleets of OrgoCorp took action. But instead of the Harbinger's head-on assault from before, the three fleets spread their attacks across all four sister planets, dividing their forces to take advantage of their greater numbers. Not only that, the command motherships holding the commanders stayed in space, without any signs of them getting closer to the surface.
Ayesha hadn't even had the time to go back to her chambers and had to join the emergency meeting just as their reconnaissance measures detected the approaching fleets.
"We were expecting a swift retaliation, but not that all of their deployable fleets would be mobilized," Seraphina said. "As per our scans, they are taking precautionary measures against Apex after seeing its capabilities. The command ships are still in space, and their attack range is going to be far greater than before, encompassing all four planets. In this state, I don't think we can hold on for longer than a few days without a miracle supporting us." She turned to Ayesha with a somber expression. "It's all on you, High Priestess. Will the Apex Empire help us?"
"They will," she nodded. "It will be the same as before; they will eliminate the commanders of all three fleets alongside the other higher-ups. The remnants will be left to us to take care of."
"Will it be possible?" Seraphina asked. "That creature from before seemed limited to the planet. We are sure that they plan to leave the command motherships in space, far away from the planets."
"Since they said they can take care of it, let us trust them. There is little else we can do with our limited firepower against the highest command ships," Ayesha said. "Instead, taking this moment, let us discuss the battle plan to hold off the fleets while keeping our casualties to a minimum if the enemy tries something like orbital bombardment. If need be, we can recall everyone deployed on the four planets as a means of precaution."
Due to the time crunch, the discussion was concluded within a few more minutes as the room was quickly emptied, leaving only Seraphina and Ayesha.
"High Priestess," Seraphina spoke.
"What is it?"
"I don't know if I should say this, but I have concerns…"
"About the Apex Empire?"
"Yes. I don't think that they have our best interests at heart with this support."
"I'm aware of that, Seraphina. Their ultimate goal is likely to absorb the Sovereign into their regime and utilize our planet cluster as their operational hub to expand their influence into the wider galaxy. The annexation of the Sovereign is a foregone conclusion."
"Then why?"
"What choice do we have?" Ayesha asked. "It's either annexation or destruction. Adam is strong, I agree, but he lacks the might to protect us against the High Evolutionary. In the first place, his powers were given by the High Evolutionary, which means he has plenty of failsafes to take care of Adam. Nova has already become a shell of its former self since Irani Rael's disappearance, the Kree are still recovering, and the Skrull have no real power left to support us against the High Evolutionary. This is our only chance of survival, Seraphina."
After Ayesha's long, downright disheartening speech, Seraphina was left trembling, unable to refute a single word.
"Go, they need you out there. Once we get through this, we will try to come up with a way to maintain autonomy and keep our regime intact when the Apex Empire comes."
With a bow, Seraphina left the room, leaving Ayesha alone with her thoughts.
[He's getting desperate.]
And the true face of the Apex Empire.
"Can the larger ships be taken care of?"
[Something I'm curious about… Don't you guys know how to use nuclear bombs? Fission, fusion… Those ships are fortified, I agree, but a few well-placed nukes should easily be able to take care of them.]
"If only things were that simple," Ayesha sighed. "The High Evolutionary has always maintained strict control over our technological level. Any development of such weapons was completely banned and outlawed for our empire. If we had nuclear weapons, those ships wouldn't even be able to come down to the stratosphere before being destroyed."
[Well, that's a good thing for me, at least. Because now, I get to take advantage of your weakness and use this situation as an excuse to take over everything.]
"I meant what I said, master… I would like for the sovereign to maintain a level of autonomy."
[Are you trying to rebel against your master, Ayesha?] Alex's voice in her head turned deeper, intimidating. Ayesha felt her clothes tighten around her body, digging into her skin and making it harder for her to breathe. Not only that, the pill-shaped object between her legs directly slipped inside her, going deep enough to make her feel it pressing against her cervix.
"N-no…" She gasped, feeling an intensely painful sensation assault her core as the device started vibrating again. She bent over, letting out a pained moan as her hands pressed against her stomach. "P-please…"
[You would do well to keep in mind that whatever you are on the outside, in front of me, you are nothing more than a slave. I will not indulge you for no benefit to myself, understood?]
"I-I understand…" she nodded with a gasp as her clothes immediately loosened, letting her breathe as the vibrations died down, but the device stayed in place, glued to her cervix.
[That's not to say I will never agree to something you ask of me. But do not take my indulgence for granted.]
"Then… Then why did you agree to let me reduce the prisoners?" Ayesha asked, gasping.
[Because I felt like it. I thought the way you tried your best to maintain that stoic expression while being stimulated was cute. That's why I indulged you. Yes, your suggestions were also a factor, but it boils down to my whims, Ayesha. That's the kind of person I am. We are not in a transactional relationship. You are mine. I will pamper and cherish you if I feel like it, and I will torture and degrade you if I feel like it. I appreciate your insights and smarts, yes, but only when they come in the form of requests and suggestions, not declarations. That tone from just now, forget about it completely.]
"I understand, master…" Ayesha bit her lower lip and clenched her fists. "I will keep it in mind."
[Good Queenie. Since you so obediently accepted my words, I will give you a little reward.]
Ayesha stiffened, fully expecting a reward of a sexual nature, but instead, her outfit spread and quickly enveloped her entire body. Before she could even say anything, her vision turned dark. Just as she was about to panic, her vision returned, but she was in a completely different location. On the side, she could see Zephyros, with its planetary shield already active, while in front, two behemoths in the name of motherships were hovering menacingly, releasing hundreds of smaller units that spread out and aimed to move toward the two planets. Not seeing the third ship, she understood that they had jointly encircled the Sovereign's planets in a triangular formation.
"W-what are we doing?" She asked, too stunned to notice how she was even surviving in the vacuum of space, let alone hearing her own voice.
[We are watching a miracle, what else? Did you think I'd shove a tentacle inside you when something as basic as a vibrator hurts you worse than a period cramp?]
"…Will you be using the Infinity Stones, master?"
[Not yet. If he realizes that I can freely utilize them to destroy his ships, he will run away. The chance that he acts upon his greed to get the stones, no matter what, is lower. While arrogant with a god-complex, he is also cautious.]
"But—"
[Shh, the show is starting.]
With his words, Ayesha saw an arc of lightning appear on the surface of one of the ships. Considering the distance and scale of the ship, the single arc of lightning was thicker than even the most powerful lightning strike in the history of the Sovereign. Within seconds, more identical arcs appeared on the ship's surface as the shuttles and smaller ships ceased departing from the hangars. As the lightning intensified further, Ayesha was reminded of the scene of countless bolts of lightning escaping the Harbinger's ship.
Seconds passed, and the lightning only intensified further, visibly causing smoke to erupt from multiple parts of the ship. Soon, Ayesha felt even her hair stand on end, as if she was being charged by static electricity. At the same time, a blinding glow of blue erupted through the ship that she was looking at, forcing her to turn her eyes away as lightning exploded out of the ship, reaching tens of thousands of miles all around. Ultimately, all that remained was the debris of the ship, left for the Sovereign's people to take care of.
Ayesha's eyes instinctively moved to the other ship and saw the same crackles appear on its surface.
[Couldn't wait any longer, huh? Congratulations, Ayesha. This war is going to be over today itself.]
"What?" She wasn't confused for long as a massive blue portal appeared in front of her, from it emerged the High Evolutionary's mothership itself. The main fleet of OrgoCorp had suddenly appeared in the Sovereign's solar system, without them having the slightest idea.
[I finally get to wield all six Infinity Stones.]
***
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