With no other choice, all the faction leaders agreed, to Tanira's demand.
They were still two to three hours out, from the Alpha Pictoris system, but Runir had already taken command of their warships, ordering them to form a rear guard in case the enemy got too close, and she also ordered everyone to look out for portals.
She was worried that the enemy could use them to cut off the retreating factions from the wormhole.
When asked, why she thought this would happen, she simply answered that she would do the same if it was her commanding the enemy fleet.
As it turned out, the enemy had the same idea, and as the faction's fleets approached the Alpha Pictoris system a portal opened up in the same spot as before.
Fortunately, there was still a debris field in front of it, however, the enemy seemed to learn from their previous mistakes, and the first ships to go through the portal were two dozen destroyers.
The first five of them got destroyed almost immediately, but the rest managed to activate their shields, and punched a hole through the debris field, right before they opened fire on the defense satellites, taking a few of them out.
However, before they even cleared the debris field, the satellites opened up on them with everything they had.
The result was devastating, as the combined attack of railgun rounds and the unguided missiles, tore through the enemy fleet, taking down their shields and ripping their ships to shreds.
Unfortunately, this depleted the satellite's missiles and gave the enemy forces time to bring in more ships, that joined the fray as soon as they got out of the portal.
-You guys need to hurry up, we won't be able to hold the system for long.
Runir contacted the faction's fleets.
-We are doing our best, we will be in the system in about ten minutes.
The Lady answered.
-The moment you jump in, send the civilian vessels through the wormhole, the military ships are to help the satellites hold the system until the others arrive.
Runir commanded.
The other fleets were also not far out, so they would have reinforcements in a matter of minutes.
-Giarna, Arien, take all the heavy frigates and try to hold the system for as long as possible.
She ordered.
The two of them immediately moved through the wormhole and arrived just in time to stop the enemy from spreading out.
The enemy forces were surprised at the appearance of their fleet, but they soon targeted their ships as their primary targets.
The battle that erupted was brutal but with the help of the satellites and the station's armaments, they managed to hold the enemy at bay.
This however came at a price of four heavy frigates being destroyed and eleven more sustaining damage.
Fortunately, all the heavy frigates they took with them were droid-operated, so there were no casualties.
In addition to their losses, the enemy didn't stop sending more ships through the portal, which didn't bode well for them as they were losing more and more satellites, and their ships started taking more hits as time went by.
Luckily, the first faction's fleet arrived a few moments later, and just as Runir ordered, they sent their transport and cargo ships into the direction of the wormhole, while all of their warships joined the battle, pushing the enemy back.
Then the second, third, and fourth, soon all the faction fleets arrived and they all did the same thing, sending their civilian vessels away and joining the battle.
Before the last fleet even arrived, the enemy was again being eliminated as soon as they exited the portal.
-We can't stay here for long, the fleets chasing us are not that far behind us.
Captain Ziena said as her corvette fired at the next ship that came through the portal.
-I know, and that's why we are getting out of here.
Arien replied.
-Runir, I'm sending the corvettes first.
She then contacted her friend.
-Go ahead, the resupply ships are standing by.
Came the answer.
A moment later all the corvettes were ordered to retreat through the wormhole, which they did, in the order they arrived in to avoid making a mess.
Then it was the frigate's turn to leave, which they did, while still firing at any ship that showed up.
As soon as the last one left, the rest of the combined fleet rushed to the wormhole, while firing everything they had, at the enemy ships, that were again spreading out of the portal and even trying to chase them down.
Giarna and Arien were the last ones to leave the Milky Way galaxy, leaving the satellites that were still online and the station to slow down the enemy.
The evacuation took a bit over two hours, and in the end, the enemy took over the system.
However, the price for this victory was steep for the enemy as they lost over a thousand ships before the last ships retreated.
Additionally, it took them a while to take out all the satellites and the station, which exploded in their faces when they tried to board it, destroying an additional six vessels.
The same happened when they came too close to the relay, but this time only one ship was damaged.
Back in the Andromeda galaxy, all the ships that were damaged, were sent to any available shipyard for repairs, while the ones that were still in fighting shape were resupplied and took their assigned positions.
At the same time the civilian ships along with the faction leaders, were on their way to the main system, where they asked to meet Aelita in person.
Of course, after the last incident, there were new rules for such a meeting and all the leaders understood why it was like that, so even though it was a bit humiliating, they agreed to do as they were told.
The main rule was a full body scan, and they could not wear anything other than what Aelita's subordinates delivered.
This was to prevent anyone from sneaking any kind of weapon or explosives into the meeting.
Also, their ships were not allowed to dock at the shipyard, instead, they were picked up by gunships.
These security measures were a bit troublesome, but they all understood why it was necessary, especially since most of their envoys died, during the last diplomatic meeting.
What surprised everyone, was the fact that the enemy never followed them through the wormhole.
The faction leaders were able to reach the main system, and there still was no sign of the enemy coming after them.
Not that anyone complained, as this gave them time to rearm their ships and prepare to greet any guests that might arrive uninvited.
Aelita greeted the leaders in the hangar as they disembarked and led them to the already-repaired conference room.
This time the room was built a bit differently.
To make sure that there would never be another situation like the last one, Aelita designed a safety feature, in the form of safety boxes.
In case of any emergency, the boxes would activate, surrounding each individual in a force field, while their chair would be lowered under the floor and moved to separate safe rooms where they could be safely retrieved.
She left the operation of the safety boxes to Vulcan since his reaction time was much faster than any organic.
-So what are your plans now, that you reached the Andromeda galaxy?
She asked once they were all seated.
-The truth is, that we have no idea about this galaxy or even this part of it, so we would appreciate it if you shared some information with us.
The lady spoke.
It was the first time any of them saw her appearance as she usually was hiding it with a hood and with a good reason.
She was very similar to the little girl who was her envoy, and Aelita suspected that the two of them were from the same species.
Of course, the Lady was an adult with a body that even Aelita was a bit jealous of.
-I can give you a full star map of the surrounding 500 lightyears, but that is as far as our sensors reach at the moment.
Other than that there are still some remnants of the first wave present in the vicinity, and most of the system lords that survived the first wave are quite powerful, so I dont advise picking any fights if you don't want to regret your actions..
-Noted, are there any systems suitable for settling nearby?
Another alien asked.
-There are, but if you want to reestablish your factions here I would not recommend it.
Aelita answered.
-Why is that?
The Lady asked.
For one, our territory is still growing, so sooner or later, we will annex these systems, we are also not the only ones around with this idea, so settling here might not be as easy as you think.
-So what's the alternative?
Another faction leader asked.
-The way I see it you have two options.
Aelita said with a slight pause.
-Number one, you can stay here and join the territory.
I know that it's not an easy option since you would not be in charge anymore, but there are also advantages to this choice.
The second option is to leave this part of the galaxy and try to find a better place to settle, this will allow you all to remain in command of your factions.
However there are significant risks involved, and you all should know what they are.
-Or we could take over this territory whether you like it or not.
One of the leaders said seriously, as soon as she finished speaking.
-You might try, but the only result would be a slaughter of your people.
Aelita responded coldly.
-If you haven't realized yet, we have AI on our side, not to mention that our fleet has destroyers while the heaviest ships you have are frigates.
Not that it matters, since the moment you try to attack our forces, your ships will be taken over and their atmosphere vented into space.