"Boss, all done!" Meng Jiang reported, sprinting over as our warship docked at Pandora Star's spaceport.
"Not bad. Caught any big fish?" I asked.
"Was gonna tell you even if you didn't ask. We nabbed some guy named Anla'e—guess who?" He dangled the bait, grinning.
"You little punk, wanna die? Spill it!" I aimed a kick at his rear, but he dodged.
"Boss, you're the Majesty—mind your image. You represent Sky Dragon Empire," he teased. Time to teach this kid a lesson. Smirking, I watched him panic. "Fine, fine! It's Pandora Empire's marshal, the one who invaded us last time. He slipped away then, but we got him now!" Meng Jiang boasted, fishing for praise.
"Just him? What else?" I asked, ignoring his "heroics." Deflated, he mumbled, "Some minor officials and non-Pandoran bureaucrats. We followed your policy—spared civilians, kept the women. Look, over there."
I glanced where he pointed. My god. Hideous—four arms, three eyes, gaping mouths with jagged teeth. Before he could react, I grabbed him and beat the tar out of him. Soldiers gawked as their commander got thrashed by the emperor. "Know your mistake?" I paused, glaring.
"What'd I do?" Meng Jiang asked, swollen like a pig's head.
"You forgot our policy! We started as a syndicate. In this chaotic cosmos, might is the syndicate. We must elevate our syndicate ethos to new heights, grasping its deeper meaning. Our four core tenets—know 'em?"
"Of course! Love the motherland, love the people, love women, love gold bars!" he rattled off.
"You think you nailed them?"
"Yeah!" he said, clueless.
"You flunked 'love women.' Our women are Yanhuang sisters and aunties. With our grand prospects, we extend that to other races' beauties. Look at the 'beauties' you kept! Deserve a beating or not?" I fumed.
"Boss, my revered, wise, mighty founding Majesty—I'm wronged! I wasn't done pointing! Those were the uglies. The beauties are over there!" Meng Jiang wailed.
I looked again. Damn, actual beauties! Two thousand Pandoran women, near-identical to Yanhuang women, with an exotic charm—extra arms, third eye, non-black hair aside. On old Earth, some might've called them Thousand-Armed Guanyin. Not bad—noses, eyes, ears all in place.
"Majesty!" Meng Jiang whined, wiping my drool off his face. I noticed his battered state and patted his shoulder. "Good work. You wouldn't have been beaten, but you kept pausing."
"That's my fault?" he groaned, lamenting his ruined chances with pretty girls.
"Your fault. Pausing alone's fine, but not with me. For your efforts, I'll reward you four beauties. You know, after a year, if they don't like you, they're free to go—no forcing," I said.
Hearing "beauties," he sprang up, scanning the Pandoran women. They recoiled, thinking, What an ugly man in this cosmos.
"Elder Wu, Elder Liu, how's it going? We've taken Pandora System and are mopping up," I said, connecting with the elders.
"Congrats, Majesty! The empire's already celebrating," Elder Liu said, thrilled.
"Hah, not just reporting that. We nabbed a batch of untouched Pandoran beauties from the palace. Thinking of sending a few to each elder's home for chores. During their year of non-freedom, chase them fair and square—no violence," I teased.
"You rascal, up to no good! Like I'd want those hideous creatures?" Elder Liu played coy. Old fox. Time to show him.
"Take a look." I aimed the camera at the beauties. "Well?"
The elders froze, then cursed, "You're trying to ruin our reputations!" Tough spot—tiger wives at home, all heart, no guts.
"Guess I'll distribute them to junior officials then. Bye," I said, moving to cut the call.
"Wait! We don't want them at home, but our offices need cleaners. Four hands for sweeping? Perfect!" Elder Liu quipped. Old ginger's spicy. Offices are ideal, and their hands suit crafts too. Genius.
"Elder Liu, for that gem, you get an extra one," I grinned, closing the call.
Emerging from tangled limbs, I exhaled. To study Pandoran women's anatomy versus our sisters', I resolved to be the first to "taste the crab." After six hours with ten Pandoran beauties, I concluded:
Only a man of supreme stamina can handle them. Their four arms alone could strangle you. Plus, they're strong, enduring, and drought-resistant.
Waist aching, legs cramping, I wondered if future takers would thank my sacrifice. Beyond the palace's hundred, the rest went to generals' estates for chores. Later, I heard Meng Jiang and A-Lang got caught flirting with Pandoran beauties while their wives were home—punished with night-pot duty.
Such incidents piled up. Within a month, all Pandoran beauties were returned to me. What can I do? I'm the emperor. If I don't brave hell, who will? So, I took them all into the palace for "sanitation." My burden's heavy—sweat.
"Sky Dragon Empire has warned us, claiming Pandora System as theirs. Let's vote and discuss—should we aid our old neighbor, Majesty Dodoka, to reclaim his home?" Kamet Alliance Chair Kesa waved passionately at the parliament. "Let's hear Majesty Dodoka describe how the evil Sky Dragon Empire invaded."
Dodoka shuffled up, eyes swollen. "Kamet citizens, I stand here at an unfortunate dawn. The wicked Sky Dragon Empire, with superior weapons, attacked Pandora Empire, using bandit-like ambushes, causing grave harm.
"Over a year ago, our probe ship strayed into their territory. They brutally executed its crew. Our hope, General Pompomla, rushed to investigate, only to be lured into an ambush and slaughtered. Following courtesy-before-force, we sent Marshal Anla'e and Pompomla to resolve it peacefully. Yet, with utmost sincerity, Pompomla was treacherously killed, and Anla'e's rear forces were attacked.
"Now they invade, slaughtering our warriors, seizing our women, looting our wealth. Our weapons lag, but Pandora's 40 billion will never bow to the evil Sky Dragon Empire. Though we were once foes, I ask Kamet to stand with us against them." Dodoka's theatrics riled many naive parliamentarians.
"Crush Sky Dragon! Show them Kamet's might! Damn their savagery!" Shouts echoed. Panku, unmoved, thought, Childish. These hotheaded youths forgot his prior analysis.
If it were easy, Pandora's army wouldn't have collapsed in a day. Kamet's stronger, but not by much. A full-scale war risks pyrrhic victory or total loss, gifting Sky Dragon a system. No gain for Kamet.
These fools, swayed by Dodoka, forgot everything. Pandora's defeat, even with a million warships, changes nothing. Panku had hoped they'd hold out, justifying Kamet's aid. Now? It's Kamet fighting alone. The priority isn't defeating Sky Dragon but coexisting peacefully.
"Speaker Panku, your view?" Kesa asked, eyeing him centrally seated.
"I oppose war with Sky Dragon," Panku declared, sparking outrage.
"Speaker, explain!" Kesa pressed.
"For Kamet's citizens, I won't send our warriors into a baseless war against a strong foe, creating a powerful enemy," Panku said.
"Per Dodoka, Sky Dragon's evil and cruel. Once entrenched, they'll invade us," Kesa countered, seizing the political moment.
"Chair Kesa, we trust interests and facts, not words. In my 80 years, no one calls their enemy kind. Dodoka's speech confirms Sky Dragon's might—crushing millions swiftly proves it. He calls them evil, but to Pandorans, we're evil too. A race as 'evil' as us is an ally, not an enemy," Panku said wisely, though few listened.
"As you say, for our interests, we can't keep a fierce wolf nearby. Only driving them out restores peace," Kesa argued.
"Chair, that held weight days ago, but not now. Pandora's defeat voids it. We must negotiate with Sky Dragon while readying forces. If talks fail, we prove Kamet's might here," Panku said bluntly.
Furious but helpless against Panku, Kesa cursed inwardly, then said, "Your advice was good six hours ago, but not now. Your way means handing over Dodoka—unacceptable. As a strong nation, we won't tolerate trespass or threats. Talks require force to show we're not Pandora."
Stirring, Panku thought, but he wasn't outplayed. "So, Chair, you'd wage a full-scale war for dignity?"
"No, just a small-scale probe to test their strength and intimidate," Kesa said.
Reluctantly, per alliance law, a vote was held. Six-tenths favored probing. Panku eyed the excited faces, feeling old. The alliance, bloated with arrogance, ignored its precarious survival among Second Cosmos' giants.
Kamet's forces in Pandora System attacked Sky Dragon's legions, crossing the border. Per my orders, our legions retaliated, giving Kamet a perfect excuse. But their warships, leagues ahead of Pandora's, were no match for ours.
"Majesty, we've clashed with Kamet. As ordered, we're chasing them," Along reported, pumped.
Defeated so fast? Even with surprise, it's too quick. Peace dulled their edge. "Their combat strength?" I asked, forming a plan.
"Several times Pandora's. But against our armaments? Pathetic," Along said, hyped. I turned to Trank and Yuri, also engaged. "From your clashes, how's their strength?"
"Majesty, we haven't fought Pandorans, so we lack a baseline. Compared to us? Like kids versus adults. Their 300,000 warships are routed—we're pursuing," Trank said.
"Stay sharp—it could be a trap. Trap or not, crush them. They're serving us a dish; rude not to eat. Commander Li, keep the Space Fortress tight with Gold Dragon's three army groups. Chase, but don't scatter. I'm sending more legions," I ordered.
"Girl, tell Purple and Red Army Groups to prep for battle," I said to my new confidential secretary. She's the old Yellow Dragon Group's Shanghai HQ secretary, transferred to Flying Dragon Star, now my "life secretary" after some… mutual affection. With Xiaohe governing, she's promoted.
"Oula, Oumei, my darlings, assemble—we're moving out," I told the Palace Guard Legion's two lovely commanders via screen.
"Got it, hubby. Prepping now," they saluted, bustling off. Leaving Green and Blue Army Groups to hold, I led Purple, Red, and Palace Guard toward Kamet.
"Urgent report: Sky Dragon Empire breached our Pandora defense line, advancing at two light-years per second toward our capital, Kamet Star. No legion can stop them," an officer rushed into parliament, handing Kesa the news.
Shock—pure shock—gripped the parliamentarians. The Second Cosmos' mightiest nation fell in two hours, pushed to its capital. Kesa, snapping back, glanced at Panku, filled with regret.
Panku stood, grave. "We evacuate the capital now. Government officials, go. All fleets, except defense, withdraw to Kese Star. I'll stay to negotiate, buying time." Sighing, he walked out.
Members stared at his not-so-old figure, then scrambled out. Kamet Star buzzed—warships and shuttles launched from spaceports, leaving penniless civilians behind.
Panku stood at a building's window, gazing out, eyes heavy. Sky Dragon Empire—what kind of empire is this?
Reader's Corner: Feitian's steamrolling Kamet, and Panku's left to negotiate! Will Dodoka's pleas sway the alliance, or will Feitian's beauties and battles seal the cosmos? Drop your interstellar predictions in the comments—ignite this dragon epic!