I Am The Swarm

Over 200 million unmanned fighter drones, armed with various high-powered tactical and strategic dark energy bombs, surged toward the Swarm forces.

Advanced technology made these bombs far more powerful than the early versions of dark energy mines. The terrifying energy tides disrupted the void of space, successfully halting the Swarm’s pursuit.

At this moment, the Ketou Race demonstrated exceptional discipline and coordination. Each squadron consisted of only a hundred ships, and with a fleet of over 50 million, there were nearly 600,000 squadrons. Each squadron had its own route, and with so many paths intersecting, the situation was complex. Although these routes had been repeatedly simulated by supercomputers and were theoretically safe, in reality, even a single squadron failing to follow orders could trigger a severe chain reaction.

The collective detonation of over 100 million super bombs created destruction and effects rarely seen in the universe, and the power was immense. Even though the Swarm had undergone a major upgrade, they could not safely traverse this area. Thus, they could only watch helplessly as the Ketou Race ships turned and scattered in all directions like a shower of stars.

The energy tides were indiscriminate, not only stopping the Swarm’s pursuit but also affecting the Ketou Race. The terrifying energy tides severely disrupted the stability of space, making it impossible for the Ketou Race to enter warp speed.

The Ketou Race’s overall commander had ordered the fleet to disperse precisely to make it easier for each squadron to enter warp travel. After all, the energy tides couldn’t block the Swarm indefinitely, and the Swarm would undoubtedly pursue them soon. Given the Swarm’s earlier excellent performance in main cannon range, the Ketou Race commander couldn’t guarantee that the Swarm’s propulsion systems would be inferior to theirs.

Therefore, they had to escape their trailing position. However, they were now far behind their allies, and even with their technological superiority, they couldn’t catch up to their long-departed allies in a short time using conventional propulsion.

Thus, to escape their predicament, the Ketou Race had to employ some special measures. The commander reasoned that while warp travel had limitations and the fleet couldn’t enter it en masse, the more dispersed the fleet, the more squadrons could enter warp speed simultaneously.

This way, even though the squadrons’ routes and destinations varied widely, making it difficult to maintain the fleet’s integrity and coordination, the primary task now was escape, so such concerns were unnecessary. No matter how scattered the fleet became or how far apart the destinations were, as long as the ships survived, they could regroup eventually, even if it took some time.

The interference caused by strategic dark energy weapons, with their unimaginable power and numbers, was beyond comprehension. Several ship squadrons had already traveled far beyond their intended locations, but the computers still indicated that the conditions for warp travel hadn’t been met.

“Is this damn machine broken?”

“Possibly. It might have been damaged during the energy surge earlier.”

“Then what do we do? We’re already far beyond the intended location.”

“According to previous calculations, we should be able to enter warp speed now.”

“We can’t confirm if the instruments are damaged. If they’re functioning correctly, forcing warp travel would be extremely dangerous.”

“That’s true. I don’t agree with taking such a risk.”

“Let’s ask the higher-ups. See if the flagship’s supercomputer has provided a new plan.”

“No good. The signal interference is too severe. We’ve been out of contact with the main fleet for a long time. Even if we try to bypass the usual channels and contact the commander directly, there’s no response.”

“The area is flooded with electronic pulses. Our ships have some protection, but it doesn’t extend to the signals we send out.”

“Enough! Get me out of here! I don’t want to stay a second longer!” one Ketou Race member shouted in frustration.

“Calm down. Until we can ensure our safety, we can only rely on conventional propulsion.”

“If we do that, the Swarm will catch up and kill us. I’d rather take the risk and assume the instruments are broken!”

“It’s impossible for all the instruments to be broken. We have a hundred ships here; it’s not possible for all their instruments to fail simultaneously.” Although the communication systems were disrupted, as a seasoned mid-ring civilization, they had some methods to handle such situations, such as a complete set of light-based communication systems.

However, this method of communication required close proximity, which fortunately wasn’t an issue for the squadron. Through communication, they confirmed that all ships’ instruments indicated insufficient conditions for warp travel.

The probability of a hundred instruments failing simultaneously and producing the same erroneous result was almost negligible. Therefore, it was clear that the squadron’s current location was indeed unsuitable for warp travel.

“Perhaps…”

“No perhaps. But don’t worry, the Swarm can’t use warp travel either. They might not catch up to us.”

After some discussion, the squadron decided to play it safe, trust the instrument data, and continue using conventional propulsion to distance themselves from the battlefield.

However, some squadrons, under the pressure of life and death, made irrational choices.

Several ships forcibly activated warp travel, but their actions were akin to attempting warp travel in close stellar orbit. The powerful gravitational interference caused the ships, which hadn’t fully entered warp space, to be forcibly ejected.

This process wasn’t without cost. Some ships vanished entirely, while others had their bows explode, with shattered metal components piercing through the entire ship from the inside.

Their fate terrified the Ketou Race who witnessed it. They had, at the cost of their own lives, helped their allies eliminate a wrong option. However, due to instrument interference and poor communication, few ships could see this tragedy, so similar incidents continued to occur.

Fortunately, the strategic weapons based on dark energy created a dead zone that lasted far longer than expected. This allowed the Ketou Race to travel much farther. Several hours later, some squadrons finally found their instruments returning to normal, with all conditions for warp travel met. After a brief discussion, they began entering warp space one after another, and this time, no accidents occurred. Within a dozen minutes, all hundred ships had successfully jumped away.

More and more squadrons emerged from the affected area. The dispersed fleet provided a favorable navigation environment, reducing waiting times. Without interference, more squadrons safely departed.

By this time, the Swarm had just begun their pursuit.