Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 310: Pirates Gone

Chapter 310: Pirates Gone

Lyra called Koros into her office. "How’s the preparation going for what I asked you to do?" she asked.

Before Koros could answer, Assisbot No. 1 puffed up proudly, putting its hands on its hips. "I’ve been monitoring his work every single day. Only the finishing touches are left!"

The bot scurried over to Lyra, its mechanical eyes sparkling with star patterns. "Boss, look at how hard I’ve been working. Don’t you think I deserve an upgrade?"

Koros slapped the bot aside with a dry chuckle. "You’re ’clever’ enough already. No upgrade needed."

Assisbot No. 1 glared at him indignantly. "What do you mean no upgrade? My central processing unit could be replaced with Schedar—it’s way more reliable!"

Koros rolled his eyes. "Wow, a robot with big dreams. I’ve barely finished half of the prototype work, and you’re already making demands."

The bot wasn’t giving up. "So what if I’m a robot? Can’t robots have ambition too?"

Sean twitched at the corner of his mouth, suppressing a grin. As expected from something crafted by Koros—this bot was sharp enough to out-argue its own creator.

Even Lyra was surprised by the bot’s quick wit. She turned to Koros. "Upgrade it."

"Yes!" Assisbot No. 1 immediately hugged Lyra and acted coy. "I knew you were the best, Boss!"

Its mechanical eyes displayed a goofy expression, pointedly aimed at Koros, who looked like he wanted to dismantle the bot on the spot.

Lyra gently pushed the bot aside and addressed Koros again. "Pick up the pace. The Empire’s skirmishes are only the beginning. A full-scale war is coming."

At the mention of serious matters, both Lyra and Koros grew somber.

"Don’t worry, Boss. I’ll deliver a super-advanced weapon!" Koros rubbed his hands together eagerly and marched off, brimming with confidence.

...

Outside, the construction crew was busy working on another project, one visible to everyone on patrol.

Even members of the Everglow were curious. Aurelius, delivering a report, couldn’t help asking, "Rear Admiral Shedd, what exactly are we building?"

"We need a warship with unmatched speed," Lyra replied, setting her pen down and meeting his gaze. "You don’t think we can stop the Empire’s advance with just one orbital base, do you?"

"Why not request funds from the military authorities?" asked Aurelius.

"They’d need to actually have money to spare," Lyra said with a faint smile.

Aurelius frowned deeply, frustration etched on his face. "Those parasites at the top are drowning in wealth, but they still expect us to fund everything ourselves."

Lyra didn’t respond, but her silence was telling. Though she had to finance it out of pocket, the completed ship would be hers—unlike assets tied to Voidstar No. 1, which could be taken away at any time.

...

When word spread that Lyra had returned to Voidstar No. 1, the space pirates, who had been planning a comeback, fled in a panic.

During this time, Snakehead often complained to Lyra. "Most of those bastards have retreated to Voidstar No. 2. If it weren’t for Ian helping us behind the scenes, we’d all be doomed!"

Voidstar No. 2 had a thinner atmosphere, making survival nearly impossible without an Aegis Shield or radiation-proof suits.

The pirates had previously avoided it, but now it seemed they were settling for second best.

"Ugh, it feels like we won’t last here much longer," Snakehead muttered. The pirates had no sense of rules or fairness, and his growing business made him a tempting target for raids.

Throughout his complaints, Snakehead kept casting nervous glances at Lyra. Surely, someone as sharp as her understood what he was hinting at.

Lyra didn’t bother with pretense. "The base is still under construction. You’ll have to wait until it’s finished."

"Hurray!" Snakehead rubbed his hands together, visibly relieved. "I knew you’d look out for us."

Eager to expand his profits, Snakehead began planning his next moves.

But no one could have predicted how soon Snakehead and his people would be forced to leave Voidstar No. 2.

...

When Lyra’s base was halfway complete, sightings of Empire forces appeared near Voidstar No. 2.

The Alliance’s satellite network was the first to detect an Imperial fleet, prompting Frederick to deploy Legion Glory, stationed aboard the nearby Snowfall, to respond immediately.

As Alliance warships flew past Voidstar No. 2, chaos broke out among the space pirates below.

"Damn it! We already fled here, and they’re still coming after us? What’s the Alliance’s problem?" they cursed, panic spreading rapidly.

Many began rallying to resist, but Snakehead and his group, already tipped off, had no intention of staying. They packed their belongings and prepared to flee once more.

Before leaving, Snakehead followed Lyra’s instructions and released news of the Empire’s impending attack. The warning sent the remaining pirates scrambling to escape. None wanted to be caught in the crossfire of war.

Within two days, Voidstar No. 2 was nearly deserted, leaving behind only a handful of civilians with no means of leaving.

...

Once the situation stabilized, Lyra contacted Zinnia’s grandfather, the regiment leader of Legion Glory.

"The settlement at Voidstar No. 2 has been vacated. Sir, perhaps you could use it as a forward base," she suggested.

Everyone in the military’s upper ranks knew of Lyra’s ties to Voidstar No. 2, but few expected her to give it up so easily.

The old man studied her for a long moment before responding, "Ma’am, your selflessness is admirable."

"Not at all," Lyra replied modestly.

Behind him, Zinnia peeked out and waved enthusiastically at Lyra. Once the formal discussion ended, Zinnia squeezed past her grandfather.

"I want to talk to Lyra!"

"Lyra! Is running an outer space base fun?"

"It’s about the same as life aboard a warship," Lyra replied, resting her chin on her hand.

Zinnia chattered away excitedly while Lyra mostly listened, offering brief responses here and there.

Partway through, Rajan, now head of Legion Glory’s technical division, joined the call. He greeted Lyra warmly before leaning slightly toward Zinnia, the two looking like a couple posing for a picture.

"When the war is over, we’ll visit your base," Zinnia said, her enthusiasm as unrestrained as a child’s.

Rajan chuckled, ruffling her hair affectionately.

Lyra’s lips curled into a faint smile. "Alright."

...

The Empire was intent on conquering the Alliance, and reports of attacks along its borders began flooding in.

It became clear that despite its previous passivity, the Empire had secretly orchestrated a near-impenetrable encirclement of the Alliance.

Their Fleet Admiral personally led the offensive, squaring off against Frederick.

Abandoning traditional tactics, the Empire leaned on overwhelming firepower and superior weaponry. Distress calls came pouring in from all fronts.

Even the Legion of Everglow, out on patrol, encountered Imperial warships and immediately reported the sighting.

"Switch to wartime operations," Lyra commanded. She summoned her trusted subordinates to the technical department.

...

When Helion and the others arrived, they were met with an awe-inspiring sight: rows of towering, gleaming mecha.

Lyra was not known for generosity, but when it came to equipping her team, she spared no expense.

Even Morrison, stationed far away on Wyrmtrace, had received a custom-built unit that Shane couldn’t stop drooling over.

"Let’s start the calibration," Lyra said curtly. "One at a time."

Helion’s eyes gleamed with excitement. "These are for us?"

"Ha! Boss, you’re the best!" He stepped forward eagerly.

Mandy and Phelixes, having been informed earlier, already had mecha tailored to their specifications—one gold, the other black.

Each entered their respective units, beginning the psychokinetic synchronization process.

Moments later, they were fully linked with their mecha’s advanced AI cores.

These machines were Koros’s masterpieces, boasting unparalleled responsiveness and combat capabilities.

They could even operate entirely through psychokinesis, eliminating the need for traditional controls.

"Damn, this is amazing!" Helion exclaimed as he rotated his mecha’s mechanical arm.

"Seriously, who else has mecha as advanced as ours?"

"With these, I’m gonna blow those Empire scumbags to bits!"

The room buzzed with excitement.

After a brief adjustment period, the team, brimming with confidence, piloted their mecha onto the battlefield, ready to face the Empire’s forces head-on.