The Martial Unity

The laminar integument processed that question in the blink of an eye as flashes of light passed through its body.

“No. Merit. Staving. Monsters. Off. Only. Burn. Resources. Energy. Capital. No. Gains. Low. Probability. Success. Most. Efficient. Decision. Destruction. Of. Your. World.”

The laminar integument earnestly conveyed the reason why his proposal was unsuitable for it, and it was one that Rui had already anticipated. What was the point of helping the natives of Gaia fight off an unending war of information? Even if it were possible, it would exhaust a vast amount of resources for very little strategic gain.

The laminar integuments would be able to eliminate the possibility of Gaia rupturing simply by annihilating the planet in its entirety before it reached that point. It would get rid of the problem, and they would dip before they were confronted by the apparent tide of monsters that was making its way towards them even as they communicated.

“We are strong,” the blood-red suns within the depths of his eyes flickered. “We can help.”

“Not. Strong. Enough. Cannot. Stop. Us. From. Destroying. World.”

“And what if we are?” Rui demanded with a powerful gaze that bore deep into the jellyfish-like alien. “What if we withstand your assault upon our world? While we fight each other, the tide of incoming aliens might very well reseed Gaia. Then our fighting each other will have been in vain.”

Rui was trying to leverage game theory to compel the laminar integument into siding with them. It was possible that the laminar integument and its admittedly impressive world ship were powerful enough to destroy Gaia in time.

But if they weren’t?

Then the natives of Gaia and the laminar integuments would fight a whole war with each other, weakening each other enough to prevent the tide of alien space monsters from destroying Gaia.

Then, the whole goal of why the laminar integument came to the solar system would be defeated. Thus, its interests were better served by working with the natives of Gaia to defend against the incoming tide of interstellar alien space monsters.

However, the laminar integument had not missed or forgotten the key to this argument.

“Logic. Only. Sound. If. Able. Protect. World. From. Us.”

The light comprising its photonic consciousness took on a more dangerous glint.

“Survive if you can.”

It was the first message from the laminar integument that Rui was able to cleanly understand.

And it was the last message of the conversation.

Rui took a stance in the depths of space as the two sides had come to a grim, severe understanding.

If the natives of Gaia, led by Rui, could prove that the laminar integument’s interests were best served by working with them than against them, then they would be able to earn the cooperation of the jellyfish-like alien entity. And that meant they and their world needed to survive long enough and well enough to protect their world from the threat that was converging in their direction even as they spoke.

RUMBLE!!!!!

The world shook as the laminar integument began tapping into the very fabric of space and time, drawing energy from the expansion of the universe itself. The limitless dark energy that caused the universe’s expansion to accelerate itself was the source of its power.

The blood-red suns within the depths of Rui’s eyes flared with a blinding brightness as he embraced the surge of materia prima flowing through his body, while simultaneously creating several black holes to absorb matter and energy and radiate them out as Hawking radiation that he could absorb and use against the laminar integument.

When it came to energy source, the laminar integument was definitely on a whole other level. Which meant that he needed to compensate to whatever extent he could, and leverage his own capacity to fight back.

The laminar integument beheld his power as several flashes of light emerged from within its depths.

“You. Strong. But…” The flashes of light grew more intense. “How. Strong. Your. Civilization?”

RUMBLE!!!!!

The very fabric of space and time shook as the world ship in the distance behind the laminar integument quivered. Its surface began changing, as countless bumps emerged from it.

They grew bigger and sharper before eventually permeating through the osmotic outer laminar layer of the bubble-like world ship.

They were laminar integuments, just like the one he faced. They were generally smaller, around the size of a human child, certainly smaller than the laminar integument before him. It was unlikely that they were young laminar integuments, unless the alien species had a habit of throwing their young ones into the front lines of a war of extermination.

It meant that the laminar integument that he was facing was likely special.

And he was grateful for that.

If all laminar integuments were as strong as the one he faced, then they were utterly doomed.

RUMBLE…

The fabric of space quivered even more as a large number of what looked like laminar vessels and ships emerged from the depths of the world ship. It was an army.

An army of laminar integuments, each of which was hell-bent on destroying Gaia.

RUMBLE!!!

The very fabric of space and time quivered as the vessels and the laminar integuments propelled through the very fabric of space and time, propelling towards the world of Gaia at an alarming speed.

And yet, he couldn’t afford to take his eyes off the laminar integument before him.

He could only pray that the armies of Gaia were powerful enough to withstand the destructive assault of the various laminar integuments that threatened to annihilate their home world.

He was to face off against the extraordinarily powerful being before him. He hadn’t forgotten that this very creature had destroyed entire planets and wiped clean a section of the solar system.

It appeared, of course, that it was unable to mobilize such power unconditionally or instantaneously in the heat of battle, but it still spoke to the caliber of the being before him.

It was not something that he could afford to take lightly.