The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

2789. The Raid on Lago (Part 1)

The journey from the Jobri system to the Lago system is not directly connected by a hyperspace route, and in order to avoid the planets where the Kilik swarm breeds, Severance Tannen and Thranduil must plan a detour.

The nodes of this journey need to be constantly changed because the hyperspace routes in unknown star systems are inherently complex and unpredictable.

Within the fleet, each of the Dawn Kingdom's warships is staffed with a Holy Adventist navigator—in order to align with the missionary activities in the Kingdom of Qis, the Holy Adventist navigators are also known as Skywalkers.

In reality, the Qis people are inclined towards rationalism and are not particularly interested in religion. This is why, despite the existence of the Kingdom of Light, Kilgi, near the Qis territory for so many years, they have not expanded their religion of Light into the Qis territory.

But the Holy Advent Church is different. The reason they were able to spread and flourish in the Kingdom of Qis is precisely because of the Skywalkers.

The original number of Skywalkers in the Qis Territory was small, and their lifespan was very short. Most of them died young, before the age of thirteen, due to the excessive strain on their bodies. This was the fundamental bottleneck restricting the Qis people's exploration and expansion in unknown star systems.

Therefore, when the Qis discovered that the Holy Advent Church could mass-produce Skywalkers and solve their physical and lifespan problems, the rational defenses within them began to crack. The Qis' attitude towards the Holy Advent Church shifted from rejection and wariness to acceptance and even dependence.

Currently, almost 90% of the spaceships in the Qis territory rely on the Skywalkers of the Holy Advent Church!
Furthermore, the Holy Advent Church was preparing to conduct a census of the Chis territory together with Governor Shin Morapitto. Shin Morapitto was naturally very willing to carry out this, but the key issue lay in whether the people of Chis themselves were willing.

This is an even more significant operation!

The reason why the Jedi Order held such a superior position in the Galactic Republic was primarily because they could rely on the Galactic Republic government to conduct a census of the entire galaxy—this was the only way to find Force-sensitive infants to the greatest extent possible.

Once a population census led by the Holy Advent Church is implemented in the territory of Chis, it will be a landmark achievement!

Currently, aboard the Dawn Kingdom's warships led by Severance Tann, the Skywalkers of the Holy Advent Order are constantly using their psionic energy to sense the subtle fluctuations in the hyperspace channel and precisely correct their course.

Each Skywalker's consciousness is connected to Thranduil's flagship, the Judgment. In another compartment on the Judgment, there is a Protoss Phase Engineer specializing in hyperspace navigation. He constantly corrects the hyperspace jump data and shares this data with every ship in the fleet.

This is only one aspect; Thranduil also maintained contact with Archbishop Ronis.

Archbishop Ronis sat in meditation within the Apocalypse, surrounded by his choir of holy prayers, activating the psionic amplifiers within the Apocalypse to continuously monitor the psionic links that commanded the Kilik swarm. If a psionic link was detected potentially appearing on the expeditionary fleet's route, the Protoss phase engineers would immediately change course and detour to the other side.

That's not all. Cardinal Adela also needs to continue launching offensives against Fitz to ensure that the mastermind behind the Kilik swarm is convinced that the Kingdom of Dawn still wants to break through their defenses head-on.

Only through close coordination at every stage could this surprise attack be guaranteed to be a complete success.

Severance Tann stood in the command module, gazing at the winding path on the holographic star map. Her fleet had already performed more than ten hyperspace jumps. This was why only large warships could participate in this operation—small and medium-sized warships simply could not support such continuous hyperspace jump maneuvers.

Even now, due to the overloaded operation of the hyperspace engines, the cooling systems of some warships are nearing their limits. If hyperspace jumps continue, it could damage the hyperspace engines.

Meanwhile, on the planet Fitz, Cardinal Adela was already launching her third wave of attacks.

The swarms of insect corpses in outer space blotted out the sun, almost completely covering the starry sky. The two sides were now extremely close in combat distance, and the Dawn Kingdom's warships had begun launching 3D bombs.

Under the all-encompassing attack of the 3D bombs, countless Kilik bugs were blasted into countless fragments. But swarms of bugs continued to launch attacks, using those fragments as cover.

Just then, a bolt of lightning suddenly tore through the starry sky, completely annihilating a large area of ​​the insect swarm!
All that could be seen was a specially designed Protoss shuttle, with High Templar Rasdian standing at the top, his hands still crackling with electricity. He rested briefly, then raised his hands again, and terrifying lightning struck once more, killing countless more insects.

"Many warships have run out of energy, and their firing rate has dropped drastically. If this continues, our defenses will be breached, and once the swarm gets close, our warships will inevitably suffer losses. At that time... we will likely face heavy casualties," a Dawn Kingdom staff officer said to Adela.

This staff officer was also a Chiss, an officer who enlisted and rose through the ranks in the Chiss territory.

However, Adela remained unmoved. She said calmly, "We must continue to put pressure on the Kilik swarm. Otherwise, once the raiding fleet's whereabouts are discovered, our battle plan will be completely ruined. If the mastermind escapes, we will not be able to find this opportunity again, even if we pay ten times the price."

She slowly turned her head, looking at the staff officer with indifferent eyes, but her tone was extremely firm: "Before the raiding fleet arrives in the Lago system, we will fight to the last man."

Adela then began directing the fleet to begin rotations, giving the depleted warships more time to recirculate and cool down, and to keep the reactors charging.

But as time went on, even all the reserve warships were sent to the front lines. Yet, the swarms of insects still seemed impossible to eradicate!
Archbishop Ronis had previously discovered that at least four or five star systems in the vicinity were continuously transporting swarms of insects to the Fitz system.

The swarm's reinforcements mostly consisted of attaching themselves to assimilated ships and using hyperspace routes for transport. And there's no doubt that the Kilik swarm also possessed skills similar to the Skywalker, enabling them to navigate directly in unknown star systems.

A small number of enormous insects are capable of hyperspace jumps. These insects also bring large numbers of other insects with them, repeatedly transporting them back and forth.

Finally, on Fitz, even more swarms of insects are continuously hatching.

Such a massive number overwhelmed the Adela fleet, which consisted only of small and medium-sized warships. Losses had already begun to occur within the fleet. A cobalt alloy-class frigate with its shields destroyed was instantly swarmed and surrounded by countless insects. These insects used their alloy-like claws to tear at the frigate's hull, eventually dismantling it piece by piece into parts!
The soldiers and damage control engineers inside the frigate were almost instantly dragged out by a large number of insects, and immediately dismembered and eaten, a scene that was extremely cruel and horrific.

Once it happens, it happens again; more and more warships begin to be destroyed by the swarm.

Cardinal Adela remained expressionless, continuing to command the fleet in battle. At this point, even Archbishop Ronis's flagship, the Apocalypse, joined the fight. Equipped with dozens of laser and ion cannons, the Apocalypse fired incessantly, creating an illusion of countless rays of light around the warship, adding to its sacred aura.

However, the damage caused by Apocalypse was also devastating. When the laser swept across, large swathes of Kilik swarms were burned or even exploded, and no swarm could get close to Apocalypse.

However, this cannot determine the outcome of the battle unless dozens more Apocalypse ships arrive.

It was only a matter of time before the Adela fleet was devoured by the Kilik swarm.

In reality, if Fitz cannot be conquered in one fell swoop and its Zerg hive destroyed, then once the Dawn Kingdom's fleet retreats, the remaining Zerg will immediately devour the remaining Zerg and the wreckage of the warships. In this way, the consumed biomass, metal, and energy will replenish the hive, causing it to generate even more Zerg.

This strategy of sustaining war through war is precisely why Fitz Planet has been unable to be conquered for so long.

At this moment, even the Qiss staff officer could see that Adela's forehead was covered in cold sweat as she prayed incessantly, her lips trembling slightly as she still softly recited the hymn of the Way of Unity. Clearly, she was also suffering from immense pressure.

However, the persistent efforts and sacrifices eventually paid off.

A communication from the Protoss Watchers, originating from the Severance-Tann fleet, has arrived—the Lago system has been locked onto, and the final hyperspace jump is underway!
Adela abruptly stood up from the ground, her previous holy and serene demeanor completely gone. She almost roared as she gave the order, "Holy Elephant Guardians, advance immediately! All warships, continue to recover, prepare for retreat!"

Under her command, all the warships began to retreat in an orderly manner, forming a huge defensive circle with Apocalypse as the core. Then, 10 Holy Elephant Guardian Cruisers advanced to the outer edge of the formation.

As the hyperspace engines of each ship completed their calculations, Adela gave the order, and the Holy Elephant Guardian Cruiser instantly activated its pre-charged repulsive force system. A repulsive wave with an extremely wide range suddenly appeared on the front of the warship!
This repulsive wave wasn't particularly lethal, but it carried a powerful thrust, blowing away any approaching insects. The wave's range was over a hundred kilometers, and the insects, unable to adjust their positions immediately, were propelled even further away.

The ten Holy Elephant Guardian Cruisers instantly created a brief vacuum for the fleet.

Seizing this last opportunity, Adela immediately commanded the fleet to activate the hyperspace engine, quickly disengaging from the battle and leaving Fitz.

Even so, hundreds of warships were completely overwhelmed by the swarms of insects that followed them because they failed to activate their hyperspace engines in time.

……

At that moment, Severance Tann was staring blankly at the planet that had appeared before her.

The situation on this planet was projected directly into the central hall of the Destiny Judgment, where she was currently located, making her feel as if she were in outer space, directly observing this planet—Lago.

As she saw it, what she was looking at could not even be called a planet anymore; it was just a constantly writhing lump of flesh!

Without a doubt, the entire planet has been completely assimilated by the Kilik swarm into a massive biological entity, its surface covered with disgusting, vascular structures that constantly absorb the planet's minerals and water, converting them into nutrients to sustain the mother nest's operation.

“These things are constantly drilling into the planet’s interior, and have probably already penetrated the mantle, continuously absorbing geothermal energy,” Thranduth said.

Her tone was also very solemn, filled with apprehension at such a terrifying scene.

“I’d heard before that the Kylik swarm once dominated the entire galaxy and even became messengers of the gods. Now, I believe it might be true,” Thranduil continued, but her tone grew increasingly firm. “Such beings would be a catastrophe for all intelligent civilizations in the galaxy, and even the entire universe. They must be eradicated!”

Meanwhile, Severance Tann was focused on something else. Through the psionic intelligence network established by Thranduil's flagship, the Judgment of Destiny, she had also discovered something hidden in the shadows of the planet—

A fleet!
A fleet of the Galactic Empire!

To be precise, this is an Imperial fleet that has been assimilated by the Kilik swarm!
This fleet consisted of 24 Imperial-class Star Destroyers, over 50 light cruisers, and hundreds of escort ships. These warships had undoubtedly been corrupted and assimilated by the swarm; countless disgusting biological tissues were growing rhythmically from their damaged hulls.

“I finally understand… the truth behind the sudden rise of the Kilik swarm!” Severance Tann said slowly.

Thranduil felt a sense of inquiry in her mind.

“This Imperial fleet should be the same one that was sent out to harass the Qis territory before! However, after being defeated, this fleet fled in all directions and may have accidentally entered a planet controlled by the Kilik swarm, whereupon they were assimilated by the swarm,” Sefrans-Tann said solemnly.

“This fleet alone shouldn’t be enough to cause the Zerg swarm to proliferate to this extent,” Thranduil said.

“No, that’s enough,” Severance Tann said. “These assimilated warships have solved one of the most critical problems for the Kilik swarm—transportation.”

"transportation?"

“That’s right. Although these swarms were growing stronger, they didn’t have the ability to travel between star systems. But this fleet solved that problem for them… The dozens, even hundreds or thousands of swarms around them began to communicate and connect with each other…” Severance Tann’s expression was also extremely solemn. “Then, something terrifying will happen—their genes will begin to assimilate and merge.”

"Therefore, an even more powerful swarm of insects was born." Thranduil understood.

“This is one of several judgments Abathur made previously.” Severance Tann glanced at the Protoss Executor. (End of Chapter)