Legacy of the Void Fleet

Two heavily armored Marines stepped forward and seized Vael. They locked his arms and legs into specialized restraint devices before placing a similar suppression collar around his throat, lifting him up off the deck.

As soon as they hauled him to his feet, the suppression equipment activated. Beams of hard-light energy quickly manifested into chains styled after ancient Earth bonds, completely locking down his physical strength and cultivation. The Marines dragged the broken admiral away through the secured, cleared-out corridor toward the hangar bay.

Meanwhile, Ritika retrieved a cylindrical, flash-drive-like device from her gear and inserted it into a interface port on the bridge’s central console.

The console instantly drew the device fully inside its chassis. Endless lines of high-level code began flashing rapidly across the holographic screen projected by the central terminal. A few moments later, the interface stabilized, and the holographic display began to shift...

A few minutes later, a prompt flashed on the central display, followed by a voice reading the text aloud.

"EVE reporting, High Admiral. The fortress has been successfully captured. Everything is now under our complete control."

The voice sounded cheerful—not at all like some cold, unfeeling Earth AI that couldn’t comprehend basic emotion. It was strikingly human.

Seeing that, Ritika smiled faintly, shaking her head in amusement before speaking clearly. "EVE, are there any functional internal weapon systems inside this fortress?"

EVE replied almost instantly, her voice echoing through the bridge speakers. "Yes, High Admiral, though they are limited in number."

"Hmm..." Ritika frowned slightly, pondering for a second before asking, "Can we use them to eliminate the remaining alien Illyrian personnel inside?"

EVE’s response came back even faster. "That is achievable. Although the automated defense mounts are sparse, they are strategically placed near entry and exit nodes throughout the facility. They can be used to purge all biological lifeforms inside, though it will take a short amount of time."

Ritika thought it over briefly, then set her jaw. "Do it. Activate all internal automated turrets and clean this filth up thoroughly."

"Understood, Commander," EVE replied, her tone sharpening to a serious edge.

Within a second, hidden anti-personnel weapon systems came online across the entire moon fortress, locking onto Illyrian crew members of every rank and division.

Pew! Pew! Pew! Pew! Pew!

Retractable plasma turrets dropped from the ceilings in hangars, common areas, and living quarters, firing like heavy gatling cannons. Streams of high-energy plasma tore through the daze-filled crowds. Before the aliens could even process the sudden activation, bodies fell in heaps—some collapsing instantly, others bursting like over-pressurized vessels under the intense heat.

"Ahhh! AHHHHHH!"

Screams of utter terror erupted among the surviving Illyrian soldiers and crew. Chaos broke out as they scrambled madly for cover, but most were cut down before taking more than a couple of steps.

Those who managed to burst out of the living quarters were instantly ambushed by defense turrets mounted in the corridors. Others tried to navigate the hallways only to be shredded into pieces by invisible laser grids firing across the access tubes.

A few were granted a fleeting minute of breathing room, but it was hardly enough time to think or plan an escape before they, too, met the exact same gruesome end.

Those who managed to burst out of the living quarters were instantly ambushed by defense turrets mounted in the corridors. Others tried to navigate the hallways only to be shredded into pieces by invisible laser grids firing across the access tubes.

A few were granted a fleeting minute of breathing room, but it was hardly enough time to think or plan an escape before they, too, met the exact same gruesome end.

Meanwhile, back on the bridge, Ritika turned her attention to the overarching battle damage. "EVE, give me a status report on the fortress. Outline the damage to both the outer and inner hull structures, as well as the weapon systems.

How long will it take to get this installation combat-ready using our current supply reserves?"

"Analyzing now..." EVE replied. "Based on structural telemetry and sensor logs, the damage is extensive, yet remarkably straightforward to repair.

Approximately 32% of the outer hull is compromised, primarily concentrated in a single sector—the frontal arc spanning designations HAA-201 through HAB-897.

That section accounts for 25% of the total outer damage, with the rest distributed lightly across other sectors."

She paused briefly as schematics flashed across the holographic display. "As for the inner hull, structural integrity is down by 16%. Most of that internal stress is localized near the impact zone on the frontal arc; the rest of the superstructure merely exhibits minor hairline fractures.

Weapon-wise, 75% of the fortress’s secondary weapon systems are destroyed, and both main capital weapons are completely neutralized. They will require total replacement, alongside structural reinforcement of their mounting cradles."

EVE paused for a second, looking at Ritika, who was nodding slowly. Seeing the AI stop, Ritika glanced back. "What is it? Continue."

EVE nodded her avatar. "The good news is that our supply ships are carrying exact modular replacement parts for those specific mountings, which will save us a massive amount of time."

"Hmm, excellent," Ritika said, gesturing for EVE to keep going.

"Lastly, all eight primary shield generators were destroyed instantly during our opening salvo. They will need full replacement. Fortunately, we have spare units in stock. With our synchronized field technology, we won’t even need to wait for full outer-hull repairs before establishing a battle-ready energy barrier. We should have no issue repelling any counter-attack that comes our way."

For the next ten minutes, EVE and Ritika remained in deep discussion—majorly with EVE delivering detailed technical breakdowns, while Ritika listened intently, nodding her head, and occasionally issuing precise tactical directives.

"That about covers it," EVE said finally.

"Then—" Just as Ritika was about to speak, EVE suddenly popped up on screen and interrupted.

"The cleanup is almost complete! All Illyrian forces have been dealt with—leaving none alive! Now starting the actual cleanup of the biological trash," she reported cheerfully.

Ritika was stunned for a moment. Didn’t she say this was supposed to take a lot of time? Why is it finished so early?

Unable to hold the thought back, she asked suspiciously, "EVE, tell me one thing..."

"Yes, High Admiral?" EVE asked, her holographic avatar shifting into a chibi form with puppy-dog eyes sparkling brightly.

Ritika’s heart melted a bit, and ninety percent of the suspicion in her chest instantly vanished.

"Didn’t you say the cleanup would take time?" Ritika asked, pressing her temples. "Why is it already done in ten minutes?"

EVE, completely unaware that she had just narrowly avoided a harsh scolding, answered innocently, "That is what I was talking about! Isn’t ten minutes a lot of time, High Admiral?"

Hearing this, Ritika almost facepalmed, feeling completely speechless. Deciding to just ignore it, she pivoted back to what she had been trying to say before being interrupted.

"Alright then... have the supply ships deploy the specialized repair vessels and engineering drones immediately. Get them to work on everything you outlined in your report. Tell them to be meticulous—this fortress is crucial for the defense of this entire star system."

"Yes, ma’am!" EVE reported excitedly. Since this fortress would serve as her primary host body for the foreseeable future, getting it fully repaired was very much to her liking. If not for the tight schedule, I definitely would have asked for a full system upgrade... but that can wait until after all this drama is over, EVE thought to herself.

EVE puffed out her chest and patted it confidently. "Don’t worry, High Admiral! I’ll have them fix this fortress right away. Within three—no, two hours and fifty minutes—everything will be fully completed!"

"Good," Ritika said, her mouth twitching slightly at the AI’s enthusiasm.

Turning around to leave the bridge, she tossed a final set of orders over her shoulder. "Have the fabrication bays upgrade a few of those unnecessary hangars and repair stations into fully functional factories for producing all classes of combat bots immediately. Once we depart, you can begin excavating and laying out defense grids across this system and its surrounding satellite systems."

"Yes, High Admiral!" EVE reported dutifully as she watched Ritika’s figure vanish from the command bridge. Following close behind, the Marines stationed across the bridge slowly vanished from their positions as well, teleporting back to their respective ships and stations.

Meanwhile, Ritika’s figure materialized inside the command center of the Lance of the Void, where Mav was currently listening to a situational report from another officer. The moment Ritika stepped into the room, both men paused their conversation and looked toward her, nodding in acknowledgment.

Mav spoke up first. "Have things been handled at the fortress?"

"Yes," Ritika replied smoothly. "EVE has taken full control of the installation, and I’ve already instructed her to begin immediate repairs with the support of the supply ships and technical crew. In three hours at most, we can begin moving our main fleet again."