65. Suppression 2

Admiral Marco’s Arze Fleet, having concluded its observational phase of the Zeno eradication operation—initiated by our planetary destruction within the Mitokana system—has departed the system’s outer rim via a small hyperlane gate recently constructed there. According to data from probes deployed at the capital planet, Arzeen, the Arze Fleet appears to have returned to the Arze central system, Hamirapilatra.

During the five days it took Agirakana to execute its hyperspace jump to the Mitokana system, the Zeno’s current position in interstellar space had already been detected by our probes launched prior to the jump. Immediately after emerging from hyperspace, intelligence from the probes reached Agirakana, confirming that approximately 900,000 Zeno were currently in transit across interstellar space.

The military operations of the Arze Fleet, now liberated, have already been formally communicated to the Arze Empire. No response has yet been received from the Arze government—though, as long as they refrain from concrete hostile actions, we intend to proceed with the operation with quiet diligence.

After eliminating the Zeno forces at Planet Shinō, there would be no need to pause. We decided to immediately pursue the remaining Zeno. Agirakana would be relocated behind the Zeno collective, and the fleet would then annihilate them.

It began, of course, with the Arze Empire’s survey vessel appearing in the Sol system. A chain of Zeno discoveries followed.

Or perhaps it wasn’t a coincidence. The Arze Empire, having grown alarmed by the Zeno attacks, likely dispatched survey vessels across numerous star systems—skipping over colonies and settlements, searching for suitable planets—before finally arriving at the Sol system. Odd, isn’t it?

"Jump drive initiated, target: interstellar space, coordinates……"

"Target: interstellar space, coordinates……. Jump drive initiation in twenty seconds, nineteen, eighteen,……, two, one, initiate!"

"Target confirmed. Distance from Agirakana: 0.5 AU. Moving at fifteen percent light speed. Total number: nine hundred thousand."

"Shaft two through five, open!"

"First and second fleets, launch!"

"Shafts sealed!"

One after another, vessels emerged from the assigned shafts. Whether Zeno itself possessed sentience remained unclear, but given it showed no apparent countermeasures against our attacks, we could safely watch the fleet deployment unfold.

"Total Zeno destruction confirmed. Number: nine hundred thousand, two hundred thirty-two."

"All attack craft returning to base."

The Zeno had been completely eradicated without casualties in interstellar space. With the fleet safely stowed away and a moment to breathe, we were now holding the usual post-op review with our usual crew.

“Sir, I must say, this time I was able to watch with far more peace of mind.” Major Amanda was visibly relaxed.

“Indeed. The first time was nerve-wracking, but now that we’ve established attack patterns, it’s much more reassuring. Though we were a bit overzealous, it’s better than taking damage—so no real issue there.”

“Sir, the recent series of operations has brought Agirakana’s antimatter reserves up to sixty percent of personnel capacity. Full replenishment will take approximately one month. No concerns with other strategic supplies,” reported Lieutenant General Floris of the Logistics Division.

"Main gun fire consumed a significant amount of antimatter, but we received from the Arze Fleet a remote recording of a main shell detonation—quite the spectacle. They captured the moment the planet was blown apart in exquisite detail. Quite impressive, really."

It's hard to see destroying a planet as a positive outcome, yet Major Amanda seemed genuinely pleased.

"Sir, a piece of information has come in from the reconnaissance probes we've stationed on the Arzeen, the capital planet of the Arze Empire."

"Hm? Major Dora, what is it?"

"The Arze Fleet we liberated—apparently, Admiral Marko and everyone under him have been detained. The official reason given is cowardice in the face of the enemy, but it's likely intended to maintain secrecy regarding Planet Shino and our own operations within Agirakana."

“While it’s understandable for a ruler to want to withhold unnecessary information from the public, labeling the arrest as cowardice in the face of the enemy—well, that could easily carry a death sentence. Quite a pity, really. We’re not strangers to one another, so if there’s any way to work something out…”

“Frankly, I expected some protest from the Alze side regarding our recent operations. But the Alze Empire seems surprisingly docile. If they’d chosen a military option, it would’ve made intervention much easier. Still, the justification of freeing Admiral Marco and his subordinates is a bit thin.”

Major Eris seems eager to deploy ground forces against the Alze Empire. Or perhaps, more accurately, she seems eager to deploy ground forces anywhere at all.

"Considering future developments, direct military action against the Alze Empire is not advisable. Let us broadcast the recorded footage of these recent operations into Alze territory. That should unsettle their government considerably, and we won’t even need to detain Admiral Marco and his crew."

"Your Excellency, you mention 'future developments'...?"

"In the long term, I intend to establish trade relations with Alze. If we provoke them now, public sentiment on both sides will sour—making normal diplomatic relations nearly impossible."

“The threat posed by Zeno itself will persist, so wouldn’t scattering probes across the entire Alze domain and establishing an early-warning network earn us at least a nod of gratitude from the Alze government? The surveillance net around the Sol system is already in place—Zeno won’t threaten us for another century. Allocating resources to Alze is straightforward. You’re planning to do it anyway, aren’t you?”

“Even the Alze Empire can’t afford to stand by and watch Zeno ravage them. That said, I’m not suggesting we overextend ourselves. We’ll respond within the bounds of avoiding human casualties. First, shall I send a greeting to the Alze people? A recorded message broadcast live would carry weight. Incidentally, does Alze even have something akin to television?”

"Broadcasts with visuals appear to be circulating through the national network, though they seem accessible only via visual receivers installed in public spaces like street corners. It looks like most households are listening to radio-like transmissions instead."

"Strange, isn’t it? A rather disjointed world."

"Major Maria, broadcast on both television and radio full-bandwidth. Prepare it."

"Understood."

"To all residents of the Alze Empire, I am Yamada Keiichi, representing the Spacecraft Nation Agirakana. This broadcast is being sent from the Sol System, approximately 300 light-years away from your home star system, Hamilapilatra, to inform you of our presence."

My Japanese, translated in real time by the simultaneous interpretation device, should now be flowing across the full bandwidth to the major star systems and planets within Alze, through the probe network we’ve deployed.

The footage now being shown depicts events that actually occurred on the planet Syno—known within Alze as Syno—within Alze. It is estimated that approximately two hundred thousand Alzean citizens once lived on this planet.

The video plays out the destruction of the planet Syno by Zeno. It is impossible to know how many Alzean citizens are watching this broadcast, but the impact is likely substantial. Alzean authorities appear to be in disarray; the broadcast continues uninterrupted, flowing through every video receiver installed across the system—no shutdowns, no interruptions.

“This is a cosmic lifeform we call Zeno. Zeno’s mass reaches up to four million tons. Moving at fifteen percent the speed of light, it collides with planets. If a planet withstands even one such impact, its surface ecosystem is utterly destroyed. The planet we showed you earlier has already endured approximately fifty thousand such Zeno impacts. Zeno is encased in an extremely hard outer shell, rendering it likely impervious to any weapon currently in the Alze Empire’s arsenal.”

“We, the Agirakana, requested permission from the Alze government to conduct operations within Alze Empire territory to expel these Zeno entities—but have yet to receive a reply…”

Subsequently, footage of Zeno eradication in interstellar space continued to play.

“The footage currently streaming is from our efforts yesterday to eliminate Zeno. The total number destroyed now stands at nine hundred thousand.”

At this very moment, Zeno may be lurking near your Arze system, moving to destroy planets. Agirakana proposes to the Arze government that we enter negotiations to address Zeno. We will perform a hyperspace jump to transfer to your primary star system, Hamilapiratra. Twelve hours from now, we will jump out at the outer edge of the system, ten AU along the extension line connecting Hamilapiratra to Arzeen—please refrain from approaching the vicinity.

Name verification

Space Force: General Yamada + Aerospace Force: Major Amanda

+Ground Force: Major Eris

+Exploration Division: Major Dora

+Logistics Division: Major General Floris

+ Others

General: Core, Major Maria