Luna wasn't surprised by Ayla's masterful execution.

They had a clear technological advantage, and with Ayla's unparalleled intelligence directing operations, victory was almost assured.

The relatively small cost of four Landing Ships to eliminate hundreds of enemy warships was acceptable.

Observing the unfolding battle, she asked, "Can we try to force their surrender?"

Ayla replied,

"I'm afraid not. We've killed over two hundred million of their kind in the past thousand years. Even now, they still retain a significant fighting force. Only their complete annihilation can secure stability."

Luna nodded, a hint of ruthlessness in her eyes.

"Then do it."

"Eliminate all their orbital warships and their ground-based anti-aircraft lasers."

Having already killed so many, killing a few more wouldn't make a difference.

Luna's goal wasn't to destroy this civilization but to acquire its inhabitants for research.

Ayla, following her orders, directed the fleet's assault.

With the Frigates in place, the battle became easier. The enemy's laser weapons were largely ineffective.

Once all ships were in position, Ayla implemented a new attack strategy.

The electromagnetic fields on every warship were pushed to their limits.

Magnetic fields can attract any charged matter.

"What's happening? Our own ships are moving on their own!"

"Observe! Analyze quickly!"

"The enemy warships are generating a magnetic field. Our ships lack anti-magnetic defenses; we're being pulled in!"

"Activate the thrusters! We must escape the enemy's magnetic field..."

Ayla controlled the enemy's communication.

Their methods were primitive: they used flashes of light from the warships' surfaces to communicate instead of radio waves.

This was a clever tactic.

Radio waves are easily intercepted, while these optical signals are easily overlooked.

But Ayla was too comprehensive; she wouldn't miss anything.

She had simulated every possible scenario of this war, and this situation was simply another event to be processed and responded to.

The enemy warships attempted to accelerate in the opposite direction.

But the magnetic field, like a black hole, pulled them in.

This magnetic field's power was drawn from the fusion reactors of 33 warships, operating at maximum capacity.

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The power generated in the first second alone would have been enough to power Earth for several decades.

With such a colossal concentration of energy, a speed exceeding 840 km/s was needed to escape.

But the enemy's thruster technology was underdeveloped; their maximum speed was only 620 km/s.

...

Underground access points opened, and the subterranean aliens emerged, their expressions filled with horror as they stepped onto the surface.

The planet's still air was assaulted by a relentless barrage of debris and dust, a storm of destruction.

Cities were reduced to rubble. Everywhere was littered with debris and the remains of countless creatures. There was no sign of life.

In the distance, volcanoes erupted, spewing forth massive amounts of material, creating towering ash clouds—mushroom clouds tens of thousands of meters high, blotting out the sun.

Now, the only light on the planet came from the glowing lava.

Darkness, destruction, silence—a lifeless wasteland.

This was a painful apocalypse, mirroring the one of centuries past.

The aliens had no time to mourn; they raced towards the anti-aircraft laser emplacements, heavily fortified structures that might have survived the explosions.

The planet had 580,000 such laser installations.

Soon, some of the survivors found one of the facilities and, using the remaining power, activated its defenses.

It still functioned!

Their relief was immense as they entered the structure.

Suddenly, they felt a tremor beneath their feet.

Looking upwards, they saw the ash cloud above them being pierced by strange machines, descending like enormous birds of prey.

A barrage of projectiles rained down; no structure could withstand these colossal rounds.

Simultaneously.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Explosions rocked the ground, the tremors reverberating upwards.

The creatures inside the anti-aircraft laser installations, their hundreds of eyes darting, watched as strange, grey-black machines flew overhead. Then, something fell from above.

"Crash—"

Another sound echoed.

The entire structure was flattened.

Within a few hours, all ground-based laser weapons were destroyed.

The subterranean creatures could only watch helplessly as their defenses were obliterated.

They frantically contacted the fleet in orbit.

There was no response.

Despair.

A crushing darkness enveloped them.

But then.

A massive hole, over a hundred kilometers wide, tore through the ash cloud, revealing the stars beyond.

One by one, colossal warships descended from the sky.

There were no cheers.

These weren't their ships.

The warships landed in a cleared area, and a beam of light shot out from each one.

The light contained a message in the planet's native language.

The message transmitted was...

"Surrender, or die!!"

"Those who surrender will bring all weapons to the warships on the surface. Failure to comply will result in a renewed planetary bombardment and the complete annihilation of your civilization."

This harsh ultimatum chilled the aliens to the core.

Back on the Hope, Luna asked, "Ayla, do you think they will fight to the death or surrender?"

Ayla's holographic avatar changed into a more casual outfit.

"That depends on their level of intelligence."

"Hiding on a planet from a Type 1 civilization is futile."

"The antimatter annihilation cannon, fully charged in ten hours, can destroy over half a planet's surface structures. A fully charged shot contains over a ton of antimatter, something a Type 1.1 civilization wouldn't be able to withstand."

Luna nodded.

"Then I hope they'll be sensible."

And, as it turned out, a civilization that had reached this level wasn't stupid.

Millions of creatures emerged from underground.

Luna observed their gelatinous forms, likely to cause physiological discomfort in humans.

"Definitely not a species to be trifled with."

She donned her spacesuit, equipped with a belt providing a localized magnetic shield powered wirelessly by the warship. This offered sufficient protection against most of this civilization's laser weaponry.

The hatch opened.

Luna stepped outside.

Approaching these massive, multi-eyed slime creatures.

A giant holographic projection of Luna appeared above the ship.

Ayla used light manipulation to translate her words.

"From now on, I am your sovereign."

"You are all my servants."

Ayla's voice, laced with amusement, came through Luna's headset.

"A bit edgy."