The Beginning

"Eh, a message from the Zerg?"

"What is it?"

"They're asking how many insiders we have at the XM756 Star Gate."

"XM756? Why are they suddenly asking about that?"

"I think you'll understand once you look at XM756's location."

Prompted by this person, everyone almost simultaneously pulled up the star map around XM756. As they kept zooming out and expanding the map, they soon spotted a familiar marker.

"About six hundred light-years from the XM768 Star Gate? You mean...?"

"That should be it. XM768 was merely a feint—the Zerg's real target is XM756."

"If that's the case, then everything makes sense. Still, I never expected Her Majesty the Queen to have traveled such a great distance."

"Actually, it adds up. More than a hundred years have passed, after all. If XM756 was their target from the start, then they've had plenty of time to develop."

"This really is unexpected. The Epoch Clan may have guarded against the Star Gates around XM768, but they most likely never imagined that XM756, six hundred light-years away, was the Zerg's true target."

"The Zerg's deception really is impressive. Not even we, their allies, saw through it, let alone the Epoch Clan."

"How should we respond to the Zerg, then?"

"I don't think there's any need to refuse. At the very least, the Zerg have been quite qualified allies over the past century."

"That's right. Our cooperation has been pleasant enough. There's no need to sour our relationship over this. Perhaps helping the Zerg Queen return will even earn us the Zerg's gratitude."

"The Zerg Queen returning to her throne won't affect us. I agree to cooperate with the Zerg."

"I agree as well, but they must share their plan with us. Only then will we cooperate while ensuring the safety of our personnel."

"That's