"While I was gone, the Lux escalated things to a whole new level. Their general enacted a scorched earth contingency. When Federation forces withdrew their main S tier assets to continue advancing further into Androda, only a single S tier remained behind."
Althea's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
She was the one who ordered the Federation forces to continue moving, and she was the one who personally appointed that S tier to stay in the New Dawn system.
Never did she expect that the Lux would do sothing like this…
"The Lux returned in full force," Alex continued. "Once they realised that they couldn't reclaim the system. They annihilated it."
He paused for a mont, letting Althea's emotions settle.
"The Lux general used his final monts to cause the star to go supernova."
Silence followed. It lasted so long that Alex started to think that he might've been disconnected.
"A supernova…" Then Althea's shaky voice ca back over the transmission.
"Yes." Alex responded.
"The entire system was destroyed. Planets, stations, ships. Everything."
The Federation officers behind her were in turmoil.
"Our last reports showed that things had stabilised…"
Althea stared straight through the cara at Alex with an unreadable expression.
"When?" she asked.
"A little over a week ago."
A week…
Althea turned sharply to her side, addressing one of her officers.
"Pull all archived teletry data from New Dawn imdiately," she ordered. "And cross reference it with the known Lux movent logs. NOW!"
The officers in the back scrambled, trying their hardest to et her demands.
When an S tier wanted sothing, you had to give it to them…
She turned back to Alex.
"You're telling an entire Federation held system was erased, and we didn't even know?"
"The Lux hunted down every surviving ship after the supernova." Alex responded calmly.
"Most long range communications were wiped out in the initial blast. I was only able to get back into contact with you after managing to find my own ship barely intact."
Alex wasn't able to see it, but Althea's hands were clenching behind her back, so hard that the occasional 'thud' could be heard echoing through the command deck on her side.
"A captain nad Darius Venn made contact with shortly after I returned from the Primordial Expanse. He confird that his ship was the last survivor of all the evacuees. His ship was destroyed during the transmission."
Althea frowned at that. She didn't know of a Captain Venn personally, but going through the personnel records would prove that Alex's report so far was the truth.
It was only through this process that she let out a sigh of lancholy.
"...Why did you have to leave…"
She muttered in a quieter tone, letting her emotions leak out into her voice. Her distrust in him started from the mont she learned he was dating her daughter.
Yet it had only continued to grow after he tad Brontes, a Divine class beast. Why did a re B tier like him get to control such a universal powerhouse? Only an S tier like herself should be able to do so.
That was simply the law of the land. The strong ruled and had a right to stronger resources, while the weak had to fight for what's left or climb the ranks if they wanted a better voice for themselves.
"Huh? Co again?"
Alex couldn't quite hear her last transmission properly, as his connection was still quite flaky.
"You disappeared to the Primordial Expanse before anyone could even get a hold of you. Even Mira… you didn't even let her know of your departure."
Alex frowned at first, then let out a smirk as Althea continued speaking.
'What a vain attempt at trying to guilt trip .'
If anything, Mira was the one who could understand his departure the most. She knew him more than anyone else in the universe. The only exception maybe being Mikhail, though that wasn't really his choice.
In fact, other than Mira, who knew that he'd go on a solo tangent like this at so point, the only other person who knew of or suspected his imminent departure to the Primordial Expanse was Principal Farnes, as he's the one who inspired him to take a trip there in the first place during the last conversation the two of them had.
The fact that he hadn't inford Althea of this fact only pushed further to reaffirm his trust in the old man.
"I'm not a god," he replied.
"You should know that best. I can't be in multiple places at once. As an S tier and general of the Federation's fleet in the Androda galaxy, I'd expect soone of your calibre to understand a simple fact like that."
"What? Were you expecting to stick behind here as your loyal lapdog? Slow my progress to a stall just for a chance that there might be a revenge attack from the Lux? Don't forget that while the entire human race branded as a traitor, I stood silently in the background and said nothing. I let them treat that way, and I offered my strength at a ti it was most needed despite how I was treated. I did my part and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. But not at your whims; how can I trust a leader who doesn't put their trust in ?"
Althea was shocked by his rebuttal. Very rarely did she ever receive such harsh words from anyone, even other S tiers, let alone soone like Alex, who she still believed to be at the B tier.
But her anger dimd just as quickly as it flared up. Alex wasn't just a simple B tier like the masses of others she'd encountered in her life. He was much more special, and not just because he controlled a Divine class beast.
He continued before she could respond.
"As the mother of the person I hold dearest, you will always have my respect for bringing her into this world. But as a general and leader for the entire human race to look up to, you disappoint ."
He cut the transmission there, not wishing to see her frown any longer.
She and he were of different generations, wielding differing mindsets.
Alex had a much broader horizon than she did after eting Mikhail and learning the ultimate truth.
She only cared about power, about those who were weaker than herself listening obediently and doing what she ordered without debate.
Yet Alex knew that regardless of strength, they were all lambs to the slaughter for the System.
And he was the only one who could do anything about it.
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