Countless light-years away…
So far from the Milky Way that even with the most powerful telescopes, it might not be found.
In a star sector of an unknown galaxy, a defensive formation composed of several planets was engaged in an intense battle.
Billions of massive cannons roared as they unleashed a ceaseless barrage of firepower.
The thunderous explosions and blazing firelight illuminated the once-silent void of space.
Their enemy? An innumerable horde of grotesque monstrosities.
These creatures were fully encased in chitinous armor, with distinctly insectoid features—each more terrifying than the last.
Against the defensive barrage, they surged forward like fearless, suicidal army ants, attacking from every angle across the vastness of space, endlessly crashing down upon the planetary defenses.
Casualties meant nothing to them.
Their numbers were simply too overwhelming.
In this local region alone, their population exceeded hundreds of billions.
Even with relentless fire from the planetary batteries, the defenders couldn't possibly stem the tide.
Worse still, despite their savage appearances and brutish movements, these creatures wielded frighteningly advanced weapons—albeit biological in nature.
Take for example the organic guns, forged from a fusion of bone-like structures and blood vessel-like organs.
These grotesque weapons were connected to their users via fleshy, tubular appendages that latched onto organs embedded in their backs or sides, providing both power and ammunition.
As the barrels of these bio-weapons pulsed and squirmed—
Specialized rounds, formed from bone or other exotic materials, blasted forth in rapid succession!
Crude and primitive as they seemed, their destructive force was enough to tear through reinforced alloy plating.
Beyond these infantry weapons, the battlefield in orbit was dominated by countless living warships. These monstrous vessels ranged from several kilometers to hundreds of kilometers in length.
Their twisted surfaces writhed with tentacles and insectoid mandibles.
From the smaller limbs protruding from their outer hulls, one could deduce that these warships were the amalgamated forms of countless lesser insectoid organisms.
Their gaping maws served as main cannons, spewing plasma blasts, corrosive acid, and biological missiles at the planets below.
Each of these living warships also served a dual function—capable of storing and even producing troops within their grotesque interiors.
Swarms of mucus-covered creatures continuously poured out, hurling themselves fearlessly into the heart of battle!
As the brutal conflict dragged on, the insectoid forces—vast beyond comprehension—began to seize the upper hand.
With their suicidal aggression and crushing numerical superiority, they slowly ground down the defenders' firepower.
The defenders' weapon systems were growing silent—not by choice, but from depleted ammunition reserves and relentless bombardments that had rendered many turrets inoperable.
Defeat was all but inevitable.
At the center of the insectoid armada, a towering creature nearly seven meters tall stood in silent command. Its body was wrapped in thick chitin, and all four of its arms were weaponized.
This Hive Tyrant, sensing that the moment had come, transmitted a psychic command through its link with the swarm: full assault.
The order was clear—before the enemy's reinforcements could arrive, they would strip this system of every scrap of valuable material and energy.
As the insectoid horde surged forward, the planetary defense grid erupted in screams of despair. The end felt near for all who lived there.
And then—
At that exact moment, the Hive Tyrant, acting as the swarm's commander, sensed an immense surge of energy nearby.
So overwhelming was this energy that he feared the star system—planets and sun alike—might be torn apart entirely.
Moreover, the energy carried with it a chilling emotional signature.
Pure, unfiltered hostility—a deep and visceral malice toward all life.
Without hesitation, the Hive Tyrant abandoned its original objectives.
It immediately redirected all units under its command toward the source of this newfound threat.
Only then did the defenders notice a crimson radiance blooming beside their system's central star.
No one knew when it had begun, but a red halo now floated in the void, growing like a drop of blood spreading through clear water.
Within moments, its diameter expanded from a few kilometers to several thousand.
The blood-red light it emitted grew so intense that it eclipsed the nearby star—a star that was tens of thousands of times larger—drenching the entire system in ominous crimson hues.
And then, under the gaze of all sentient life present—
From the depths of that glowing halo stepped a colossal figure, thousands of kilometers tall, wrapped entirely in radiant light.
It was as if the halo were a gateway—and through it walked a god.
In that instant—
Every living being who laid eyes upon it instinctively formed a name in their minds:
AEON CRONOS.
Behind it, dozens of wings unfolded. It had four arms, its very presence evoking divine awe.
All who saw it were stunned.
Even the lower-tier insectoids, driven by the most basic biological instincts, felt the stirrings of fear.
Realizing something was terribly wrong, the Hive Tyrant reached out across hundreds of light-years, establishing a psychic link with their supreme authority:
The Will of the Hive.
Their species had evolved over billions of years.
Through endless cycles of conquest and consumption, they had devoured tens of thousands of star systems.
This evolution led to a unique biological structure.
Only two types of entities within their race possessed independent thought: the battlefield commanders known as Hive Tyrants, and their species' ultimate sovereign—
The Will of the Hive.
For the most part, Hive Tyrants functioned as biological signal relays, serving to transmit the Will's commands to the rest of the swarm.
In essence, the entire species functioned as a single organism with countless appendages.
One will.
One mind.
The Will of the Hive.
Now, having directly seized control of the Hive Tyrant's body across the vastness of space, the Will instantly assimilated its memories—gaining full awareness of the current situation.
And it, too, sensed the staggering presence lurking within that blood-red halo behind Aeon.
A being of such incomprehensible power that even the Will of the Hive had to approach with caution.
Even a cursory scan gave it the impression that it was adrift in a storm of collapsing realities.
Yet paradoxically, the space from which this entity emerged felt both intrinsically connected to, and utterly alien from, the current universe.
That gave the Will some comfort.
It concluded that—for now—the entity likely couldn't cross over.
Having discerned that, the Will of the Hive felt an unfamiliar emotion:
Curiosity.
Its attention shifted from the battlefield to the mysterious, blood-colored space—radiating with pure hatred and enigmatic energy.
And in that moment, the war entered a new and unknowable phase.
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T/N:
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