[Empire Log: The decisive battle] [The M'tok Union has decided to stake everything on one last gamble, recalling all its fleets to fight our Second Fleet to the death. They have wagered everything. This battle will decide the fate of two empires, so we, too, must win!] [Xi Yan's annotation: The advantage is ours! (In an authentic Fenghua accent)]
This would undoubtedly be the M'tok Union's last battle. Humanity would destroy this nation without mercy and devour its territory alongside its allies.
The M'tok Union's fleets had begun withdrawing from the eastern front against the Nier Guardians. Under the terms of the Peace Treaty, they had relinquished a great many star systems and were to retreat all the way to their home system, Shazka, to reinforce their homeworld.
The Nier Guardians' surviving fleet still seemed uneasy. It followed close behind the M'tok main fleet, watching their withdrawal without letting them out of its sight.
Most of the systems along the route would be ceded to the Nier Guardians anyway. Humiliated though the M'tok felt, there was nothing they could do about the Nier fleet dogging their heels.
The two sides had formally ceased hostilities, and interstellar convention dictated that no further exchanges of fire would occur.
A nation that violated such interstellar agreements effectively forfeited its credibility. Apart from genocidal empires, few empires would dare break them at will.
Thus, the M'tok could only let those fleets follow behind them.
To the northwest, Zirick's five ships, accompanied by a large number of transports, had also withdrawn their fleet in accordance with the peace treaty after plundering colonies across the region.
They took vast quantities of stolen resources back with them.
For an alien empire with fanatic egalitarian ideals and the Shared Burdens civic, such pillaging should never have