Sherry knew full well that she didn't need to cross the vast distance of half a galaxy and dive into the gravity well at the other end to escape. She only had to take the broodmother across this planetary orbit and reach the distant ocher desert planet.
That was where she'd be safest.
That was also why she'd willingly lured the Imperial fleet here, preparing to face them in a desperate, all-or-nothing battle.
Besides, if things really came to the worst, her individual self should be able to escape fairly easily. At that point, she could always hide in the shelter for a while longer.
In short, every gamble that risked death in pursuit of life needed a fallback plan. That was the most important lesson Sherry had learned during her long interstellar travels.
The planet was terrestrial, its surface covered in rocks and deserts. It also happened to be at the point in its orbit closest to the gas giant.
If she wanted to run—no, relocate—this was the best opportunity. Perhaps her only one.
Of course, Sherry had chosen this moment to confront the Empire because she'd calculated the movements of the celestial bodies.
See? I can be a schemer too.
All in all, Overlord Sherry was quite satisfied with her response. If not for that unexpected intruder, this would have been a perfect swarm ambush.
Probably...
Now, she could only hope that the intruder was so absorbed in his victory that he'd let her go.
She prayed to the spirit of the universe...
The broodmother's atmospheric tentacles began to quiver. The disturbances in the cosmic radiation alerted it to the approaching danger, like an octopus roaming the deep sea sensing a threat. In an instant, it could even analyze the approaching craft's silhouette—completing its outline, shape, and mass