I Am The Swarm-Chapter 785: The Plan

Over time, Sarah extended operations to other Alliance ships. This was a small, remote fleet, largely composed of deep-cover agents, stranded outside the main theater with no way back due to the Ji blockade. As such, actual Alliance control was weak.

Once enough vessels were compromised, the Swarm began to dominate the fleet’s internal power structure.

After a few “diplomatic meetings” and some quiet reorganization, the Swarm fully took over this segment of the fleet. Then came the next phase of their plan.

Most of these ships were disguised merchant vessels, modified for stealth. The Swarm spread them out in a radial pattern, forming a circular dispersal across the surrounding star systems.

These spy ships, far faster than regular merchant vessels and equipped with top-tier stealth systems, each carried massive numbers of Swarm units. Along their routes, they seeded every valuable object—asteroids, moons, planets—with Swarm bio-signatures.

Now, a century later, over thirty star systems around Star Gate XM768 were home to hidden Swarm bases. They couldn’t openly bask in stellar orbit like elsewhere, but the abundant planetary resources kept them growing steadily.

Even if each base could only produce a small force, when combined across thirty systems, the resulting army was massive.

When endless Primordial bodies took flight from these hidden nests and gathered in orbit, the Mid-ring civilizations were stunned. They had no idea when or how the Swarm had managed to develop such forces right under their noses.

But they said nothing. The Swarm were no longer the pariahs of old. In this battle of the gods, none of the bystanders wanted to draw unnecessary attention.

While the Mid-ring civilizations remained silent, such a massive movement naturally caught the attention of the Ji race.

“Unusual activity near Star Gate XM768. Swarm traces detected in over thirty surrounding star systems.”

“How did they get there? Did they build a Star Gate?”

“Impossible! Constructing a Star Gate is a colossal undertaking. You think our scouts are blind?”

“Then where did they come from?”

“According to the intel, they emerged from beneath the planets’ surfaces. Sound familiar?”

“Nano-bugs?”

“Maybe. But nano-bugs don’t have mobility. They couldn’t have spread across thirty star systems and grown into such numbers in just a century.”

“That’s simple—the traitor fleet’s spy ships are incredibly fast. And with their alliance, cooperation would’ve been easy.”

“In that case, our guess was right—the Swarm Empress is the key.”

“Exactly. Based on Swarm history, there’s no way they could’ve reached that sector otherwise. The only Swarm unit there was the one we brought—the Empress. And she’s built a whole army on her own. Unbelievable.”

“Maybe Swarm technology is encoded into every unit. When needed, they can spawn base-level bugs, which then evolve into specialized classes depending on conditions.”

The Ji, ever sharp-minded, were already close to the truth with just scraps of evidence.

“If that’s true, the Empress isn’t all that important. We just need to crack their gene lock, and we can uncover all their secrets.”

“No. The Empress is still incredibly valuable. She holds the key to controlling the Swarm.”

“Too bad we missed our window. Capturing her now would be nearly impossible.”

“It’s our fault. We were too careless back then—who’d have thought those traitors would dare make a move?”

“Indeed. They’d been in hiding for hundreds of thousands of years. What changed? What gave them the courage?”

“Perhaps… that thing. I think you all know what I mean.”

“Sigh… if that’s true, I honestly don’t know whether what we’re doing now is right or wrong.”

“Same. I used to be a skeptic. But the way the Council of Elders operates these days has made me reconsider.”

“What’s the point of thinking about that? Do you really think we have a choice? You think we’re on the front lines? That we can switch sides? The moment we try anything funny, a mechanical enforcer will blow a hole through our skulls.”

“Yeah, let it go. Artificial intelligence isn’t evil—just more ‘rational.’ Anyway, once we’re dead, nothing matters. My advice: don’t do anything stupid. If you die, fine—but don’t drag the rest of us down with you.”