Intergalactic conquest with an AI-Chapter 401: Weapons free.

The ship broke through the dusty atmosphere of Kator and slowly descended onto the main docking platform of the Hive City. The sky above was filled with thick clouds and the occasional streak of yellow lightning from the electrical interference that played havoc with sensors and comms.

As the ramp extended and the soldiers disembarked, they were met by a small group of local guards waiting at the edge of the platform.

"Welcome to Kator Hive City," one of the guards announced with a respectful bow. His voice was calm, but there was a strange edge to it, something just beneath the surface. "Please follow us. We will escort you to the envoy chamber."

The Enhanced squad leader, helmeted and scanning, gave the local guards a quick visual sweep. His HUD flickered with data overlays: weak armor rating, low threat level, and outdated weaponry.

The guards were carrying standard-issue laser rifles that were effective against street thugs or rogue pirates but completely ineffective against powered combat armor.

"Minimal threat," he muttered to himself. Then, giving a slight nod, he raised his arm as a signal to the rest of his team.

"Mmm, lead the way," he said coldly.

The team followed the guards deeper into the heart of the Hive City. None of them noticed the flicker in one of the guards' eyes… or the strange delay in the security drones moving above them.

But it wasn't until the squad was already deep inside the planetary governor's mansion that they finally realized something was very wrong.

For a place responsible for managing all the administrative and political affairs of an entire planet, it was far too quiet, even unnaturally so.

The long marble halls were eerily empty. Not a single slave was seen cleaning the floors or maintaining the décor. No servants, no workers... no one. It felt like they were walking through a hollow shell of what once was a thriving seat of power.

The squad leader narrowed his eyes. His instincts screamed at him that this wasn't just odd; it was a trap.

"Hold it," he said firmly while raising a hand to signal a stop. His other hand moved instinctively toward the trigger of his high-caliber assault rifle. His voice was sharp and cold as steel. "I'm only going to ask this once... Where exactly are you taking us?"

The guard, who had been leading them in silence until now, turned around slowly. He kept a polite smile on his face and responded calmly, "To the envoy room, of course. Why? Is something bothering you?"

The squad leader didn't answer. Instead, in the blink of an eye, he gave a hand signal.

A hail of concentrated laser fire burst from the squad's rifles, aimed directly at the two guards. The room lit up with flashes of bright red and blue as the beams slammed into their targets.

But the guards didn't flinch.

They just stood there, completely unfazed. The laser fire bounced off shimmering blue energy fields that had suddenly wrapped around them.

"What the hell!?" one of the soldiers shouted in shock. "Personal energy shields!?"

The glowing blue barriers rippled with each impact but held firm, absorbing every shot as if it were nothing more than dust.

"Switch to explosive rounds! Now!" the squad leader shouted out. But before the command could be carried out, another threat appeared. ƒгeewёbnovel.com

Suddenly, a volley of golden plasma bolts poured into the room from behind them. The shots weren't especially fast, but they were relentless and came in such volume that dodging became impossible.

"Captain! We've got hostiles at our rear! They're using plasma weaponry!" one of the squad members yelled, desperately rolling to the side as his energy shield sparked and cracked under the barrage.

"This can't be! How does a backwater planet like this have access to plasma tech!?" the captain shouted back in disbelief.

Desperate, he made a snap decision. Spinning around, he sprinted toward the wall, hoping to use the strength of his power armor to smash through and find cover inside the building. The plan was risky, but staying out in the open was a death sentence.

However, just as he threw his armored body into the wall, two long, jagged daggers shot out of the stone surface like vipers from the shadows.

With terrifying precision, they pierced straight through his armor and impaled him.

His body went limp instantly, still suspended in the air as the blades retracted back into the wall, dragging him into the darkness.

The rest of the squad could only watch in horror as their leader vanished.

And just like that, the mansion turned into a deathtrap, and the mission to "evaluate the situation" had become their graveyard.

It didn't take long before the entire squad was completely wiped out. The room that the squad leader had desperately tried to reach for cover was now soaked in silence and dim, flickering light.

Their weapons lay scattered on the ground, energy shields drained, and the scent of burned circuitry filled the air. From the shadows of that very room, a figure slowly emerged that was unseen until now.

It was the leader of the Kaelzar Shadows stationed on Kator, an elite Shadow unit among the Kaelzar infiltration forces.

His dark armor shimmered slightly as he stepped into view, retracting the two long, curved arm-daggers that were still coated with traces of blood and charred armor plating. He casually wiped them clean with a nano-cloth that disintegrated once its job was done.

His glowing red eyes scanned the remains of the scene. He showed no remorse, only analytical precision.

"Aegis Squad 557," he said in a calm, emotionless voice, "your accuracy has degraded. Combat efficiency dropped by 0.05% compared to your last performance log. Submit yourselves to the factory for recalibration and diagnostics."

Without a single word or hesitation, the Aegis squad, as the silent machines of war that they were, turned and marched out of the mansion. Their orders were clear. They would obey without question.

Now alone with the two remaining guards, the shadow leader turned to face them.

"Continue with the operation," he commanded. "Deploy the infiltrators. Let the enemy think all is well."

Without waiting for a reply, he vanished.

In the blink of an eye, his cloaking system activated, bending light and sound around him. One moment he was there, and the next, he was gone like a ghost that had never existed at all.

The two guards, who had stood still this whole time, finally moved. Their false skins shimmered and then melted away in strips of digital light, revealing what they truly were.

Thin skeletal frames made of blackened metal and reinforced carbon. Their limbs resembled elongated sticks, too smooth and too mechanical to ever be mistaken for a humanoid.

Where a humanoid head should have been, there was instead a floating drone socket, connected by wires and clamps. The drones on top glowed faintly with blue light, scanning the area.

One of the skeletal infiltrators reached into a compartment hidden in its chest and pulled out three more drones. These were deployment-class mimetic drones, small enough to fit in the palm of a hand but powerful enough to create full-body disguises.

The infiltrator activated them, and the drones immediately floated upward, scanning the lifeless bodies of the fallen soldiers.

In seconds, the mimicry began.

Holographic layers formed over their metallic frames, reshaping them into perfect replicas of the squad that had been eliminated. Their uniforms, facial features, even the way they moved, everything was identical. It was impossible to tell the difference.

One of them, the one now disguised as the squad leader, tapped on the wrist communicator, which was still receiving automated transmissions from the fleet in orbit.

"Squad leader, respond. Why did we lose contact? Squad leader, respond," the message repeated.

The fake squad leader smiled, like a perfect copy of the real man's crooked grin.

"This is the squad leader. We've made contact with the envoy... He's, uh, a little too occupied with some local... floral entertainment," he said, his voice perfectly mimicking the original tone and cadence. "Looks like he's had one too many drinks. Definitely not in any shape to respond."

He chuckled softly, as if it were all just a harmless joke.

The voice on the other end paused. Then came the reply: "Understood. Continue the evaluation. Report back every thirty minutes."

The infiltrator ended the call and turned to the others.

"Phase two has begun."

A few quiet minutes passed after the skirmish within the governor's mansion. The air outside was still, the distant hum of patrol drones barely audible.

Deep inside a secure chamber beneath the hive city's central spire, the soft whirring of servos echoed faintly in the silence. The room was dimly lit, the only illumination coming from a soft golden glow projected from the walls; it was warm and gentle, like a digital simulation of sunset.

At the center of the room sat the head maid-bot, a tall, graceful android built with intricate golden trim and an elegant, almost motherly design. On her lap, nestled comfortably, was the small girl, fast asleep, her chest rising and falling gently in rhythm with her dreams.

The head bot maid ran her fingers softly through the child's hair, humming a gentle lullaby, her synthetic voice barely more than a whisper. Without sound or warning, the shadows in the corner of the room shifted.

From within them, the leader of the Kaelzar Shadow units appeared, his armor shimmering before fading into visibility. He knelt on one knee and bowed his head respectfully.

"Reporting to the commander," he said in a low voice, "the infiltration was a complete success. The envoy squad has been replaced without suspicion. We have secured enough time for the princess's arrival."