A glimmer came from the hyperlane exit. Within seconds, the faint azure light became a blinding white glare, radiating from the exit like a void cloud.
An enormous shape took form at the exit. At first, it was one-dimensional, a line breaking free of the hyperlane. Then it became a plane before unfolding into three dimensions. The Body Battleship burst out of the hyperlane and assumed its proper form at the exit.
The Body Battleship's six slender lateral wings evenly sprayed a gray mist like a crop-dusting plane. Every droplet represented a nanite warship.
An entire fleet soon gathered in the empty expanse of space, forming up directly ahead of the Body Battleship.
The Starfish's last fleet stood guard outside their homeworld's stellar base, arrayed in front of the Colossus Battleship.
Deathly silence filled the star system, as though all sound had ceased to exist.
The Body Battleship hung there in silence, then began jumping. Its Short-Range Jump Drive tore at spacetime, moving the enormous vessel forward one stretch at a time.
The Starfish fleet watched in terror as this superwarship, the most powerful single vessel, closed the distance through repeated short-range jumps. Only when the Body Battleship's secondary energy arc guns opened fire did they remember to fight back.
But the range of the Body Battleship's T Slot energy arcs already far exceeded that of the Starfish Republic's Colossus Battleship. With that range advantage, none of the Starfish's attacks could inflict any damage on the Body Battleship.
The Starfish fleet had no choice but to advance.
Then they ran headlong into the nanite fleet formations ahead of the Body Battleship.
The fearless Nanite Fleet began its charge. Brilliant light flared from the Nanite Engines as the fleet surged forward. The nanite warships at the rear assumed the form of