The Spider Queen

(Earth Federation- Artificial Planet X-837)

(Temporary Military Outpost - Command Center)

In ordinary times, the current state of the ongoing war with the Unova Syndicate would be cause for celebration.

Steady progress had been made on all fronts and the bulk of the Unovan forces were on the brink of collapse.

Now was the perfect time to press the advantage and secure several new territories for resource mining.

And yet… there was a somber mood in the command room as the higher ups had been summoned for a surprise meeting.

This temporary military outpost had been built on top of an artificial planet equipped with state-of-the-art orbital cannons and was surrounded by a fleet of starships.

The command room was similar to an open auditorium with a large table in the center for the senior military officers.

"Hurry up and display the latest report on the situation with the Unovan military," a cold voice echoed through the room.

The speaker was a Mendolesa male with brown fur who wore a black uniform. A heavy longsword was attached to his hip and his eyes gleamed with killing intent.

The military personnel at the back of the room froze as an immense pressure fell on their bodies.

In fact, several of the weaker officers in the command center almost collapsed.

"Captain Mason… put away your spiritual pressure before I sent you to military court for insubordination," an elderly voice broke the tense atmosphere.

An unhappy look flashed across Captain Mason's face but the Mendolesa warrior obediently withdrew his spiritual pressure.

"Do you have to be so hotheaded? No wonder your squad suffered so many casualties last time," Lt. Hazelwood sneered nastily.

"But should we be surprised? Everyone knows that you dogs can only charge into battle like lunatics…"

The mischievous Servie stuck out her tongue and made a funny face towards the fuming captain.

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Her thin transparent wings flapped up and down lazily and her attitude was full of disdain and ridicule.

There was bad blood between the pair ever since the events of a certain mission in the Gamma sector so no one was surprised at the sharp exchange.

Captain Mason's reddish eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to retort but a cool glance from the elderly human made him shut up.

"Both of you need to relax. This is neither the time nor the place for such foolishness," Commander Stewart snarled.

Despite his frail physique and wrinkled features, there was none present in the room that did not take him seriously.

Commander Stewart had a strong background and the forces behind him were not the kind that ordinary officers could hope to offend.

The old commander waited until the room had calmed down and then gestured towards the nervous logistical officer who was still holding a tablet.

"Yes.. yes sir!" Officer Harrison saluted and then tapped a button on the side of the metalloid device.

An enormous blue holographic projection filled the room. It was an identical replica of the galaxies currently involved in the conflict with the Unova Syndicate.

Tiny details such as which planets were suitable for mining, the location of some hidden forces and high value targets were all clearly displayed.

Still.. there were some areas of the map that were dark or incomplete since the intelligence officers and scouting teams had not managed to gather enough information.

Officer Harrison cleared his throat nervously as he could feel the eyes of every military leader in the room stare at his location.

The Mendolesa warriors in particular sent shivers down his spine as their wolf-like faces seemed to contain an endless sea of bloodlust.

Officer Harrison connected his tablet to the main AI unit of the military outpost and soon additional data began to fill the screen.

"At our current rate, we should be able to swallow at least one third of the Unova Syndicate's controlled territories within twenty years," Officer Harrison explained.

"In the short term, it will be possible to take some gains in the frontier regions but the underworld forces and local overlords will not stand by idly once we arrive closer to their areas."

"The AI unit has calculated that the likelihood of a temporary alliance between those organizations hostile to our invasion is around ninety-nine percent."

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"Twenty years?" Commander Stewart groaned in disbelief.

That prediction was identical to what he had also assumed privately but it was not the news that he wanted to hear.

Twenty years was too late. Far too late…

Right now, the political climate in the Earth Federation had been completely upheaved.

The death of Emperor Sisrelis and the disappearance of several heirs to the most powerful noble families had thrown several regions into chaos.

It had taken the Ascension cultivators of the Federation to personally perform both diplomatic negotiations as well as deliver stern warnings before the violence was quelled.

In addition, the high noble families also had to play an important role to keep the citizens in their territories from panicking.

Apparently there was now talk of a new emperor or empress being elected from the many royal heirs.

Chaos… was a double-edged sword.

Stability was necessary in order to keep the societal order in check but chaos was the perfect time for men to seize new opportunities to rise.

Commander Stewart had great ambitions.

It was only through personal connections and barely enough qualifications that he had managed to secure such an important leadership role but he still hungered for more.

Years ago, he would not have dared to act on these ambitions when Duke Peterlor was in charge of the Imperial Army.

But that man was gone.

And his replacements were mere shadows of the great leader who inspired both fear and respect in his subordinates.

In order to impress the new head of the royal family, Commander Stewart was not content to only collect a few planets along the border region.

No… he needed more.

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Commander Stewart leaned back against his chair and rubbed his temples with a tired expression.

"Adjust the plan," he whispered in a low tone.

The elderly man got up from his chair and placed his finger on several key planets with steady movements.

"Send out a message to the military council and request for as many reinforcements as they can spare from the other sectors," Commander Stewart ordered.

"I want strike teams to target these locations and capture these planets by next week. We will construct a warp gate on this exoplanet and begin an official invasion of the inner regions."

"Within six months… the Imperial Army will massacre those local warlords before they even have the chance to join forces together."

There was a brief moment of silence as the commander finished speaking.

Officer Harrison nervously ran a series of calculations using the AI unit and the results made his face instantly whiten.

Officer Harrison mustered up his courage and pleaded with a quiver in his voice, "No Sir! Please reconsider!"

"Our.. our current military actions will have significantly less casualties and we can gradually win this war without taking any risks."

"Splitting up our forces at this time without completely defeating the official Unovan army at the border regions is complete madness!"

The anxious logistic officer was not the only person in the room concerned with the change of plans.

Several other military leaders exchanged looks of disbelief and confusion.

The outcome of the war was already leaning heavily in their favour.

A significant portion of the Unovan forces consisted of mercenaries who were no match against trained soldiers.

Plus, the general population seemed rather apathetic towards the actions of the Imperial Army as long as their home planets and livelihoods were not affected.

There was no need to rush to launch an offense against the inner regions of the Unova Syndicate and possibility risk a counterattack by the army.

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"Are you going to disobey the orders of your superior?" Commander Steward questioned.

There was a bone-chilling glint in his eyes that made the other officers in the room swallow their complaints.