The Core: The Dark Enemy

28. For whom the bell tolls

"This is it. People are counting on you," I reminded myself as I pushed forward, my senses sharpening with each passing millisecond. I had begun my journey to the heart of the conflict well beyond the range of the assembled fleets, and it was only as I dove closer to the distant artifact that I realized how distorted my perspective had been. This conflict was massive, and each galactic step closer to the artifact was like a layer of an onion. The enemy fleet ships were truly gargantuan compared to my concept of spacefaring vessels. The chaos of battle unfolded around me like a violent tapestry—ships exploding into fiery blossoms, energy beams slicing through the void, and debris scattering in all directions. Amidst this pandemonium, my goal remained clear: rescue the three kidnapped Blidda children before they became casualties of this relentless war.

Nurse's calming presence sat at the back of my mind, her analytical processes already working overtime to monitor my heightened state. It felt like I had just downed a case of Redbulls and the caffeine was just starting to hit my bloodstream. "Your vitals, if you can call them that, are spiking, but everything is within operational parameters. Just stay focused and we'll get through this."

I nodded inwardly, weaving my swarm through the battlefield with unparalleled agility, having to gradually slow down as I moved deeper into the conflict. The black streak of my passage caused waves of confusion among some of the warring armadas, some attempting to track my movements but unable to keep up with the sheer speed and unpredictability of my trajectory.

Ahead loomed the massive silhouette of a U'lennea dreadnought, its hull bristling with weapons spewing destruction in all directions. The Blidda transport that had originally carried the children was caught in its hooked snare, struggling in vain to break free as smaller enemy U'lennea fighters circled like vultures, waiting for their meal once the larger ship managed to rip the smaller ship apart.

"I've isolated and gone through the Blidda's latest com chatter," Nurse announced, superimposing a detailed schematic in my vision. "Bulkhead stability is failing along the entanglement points, and hull integrity is at 43%. We need to act fast."

"On it," I replied, pushing for more speed while trying to keep an eye out for innocent lives. I would hate to run into a Blidda that just happened to get blown out into space. I felt a surge of power coursing through my drone body, the recent changes amplifying my abilities beyond previous limits. The distance between me and the embattled transport vanished in an instant as I closed in, assessing the best course of action to cut the lines attached to the ships and engage the enemies still harassing the ship.

I flicked the tail end of my swarm around, shaping it into a whip blade that easily sliced through the tethers that held the two ships together. A squadron of U'lennea interceptors broke formation and headed straight for me as their weapon systems locked on. Their reaction time was impressive, but not enough to match my newfound speed. I didn't bother twisting through their barrage of plasma fire, the bolts glancing harmlessly off my morphing swarm as I closed the gap and dispatched them with precise, calculated blows. Each enemy ship erupted in silent explosions, adding more debris to the chaotic battlefield.

I sent an attack force of my swarm into the Blidda ship to cleanse it of any U'lennea on board. Though my swarm was able to move at insane speeds, sweeping the corridors and tearing through the invaders who were still working their way through the ship's halls and fighting the crew, it still felt like it was taking forever, as my concern only grew. I noticed something strange, each death changed the U'lennea slightly, it was as if they were getting faster... almost to the point where they started to raise their weapons to attack my swarm the moment it came into view.

"Enemy reinforcements coming in from sectors three and seven," Nurse warned, highlighting the rapidly converging signatures on the tactical map. "They're trying to box us in."