Black hole energy, and clones that were on par with Granian soldiers, or maybe even higher. That was not what the Granians in the Council Room expected to hear. They thought that the Red Scaled, intellectually gifted Granian was going to announce an invention of his that would bring about a quick victory for the Granian Race. To their dismay, they were told that all their hard work, well-spent resources and investments, and already deployed soldiers were going to have to retreat to the Granian half of Akrina. Many grew furious with Gravax and called his behaviour cowardly. After all the hard work and toil they put into getting themselves into the Ethisian half of Akrina, they weren’t going to let one Granian’s words deter them from advancing. Unfortunately, they didn’t have the power to defy Gravax’s words because they were enforced by the Granian Ruler and Lord, Grania. Whatever command he gave was to be followed to the dot, and at that moment, his command was for his people to listen to Gravax’s advice. Thankfully, the announcement about the black hole energy and improved Granian clones cushioned the blow caused by Gravax’s advice. Eventually, they began to understand where Gravax was coming from and eventually agreed with him. With such technology in the Ethisians’ hands, there was no way the Granians could advance any further. How could they beat an enemy that could move to any given location in Akrina at any given time they wanted? So instead of advancing forward and spreading their numbers thin to protect measly colonies that were not of great importance yet, it was best to retreat to their side of the galaxy and defend what belonged to them while waiting to acquire said Ethisian technology in their own hands. "Then it is settled. The Council Members have agreed to adhere to Lord Gravax’s advice. You have our full support. We, as the Council Members, have decided to assist the Granian Lord anyway we can, whether it’s with financial or resource aid." The first course of action was to get every Granian in the Ethisian half of Akrina back to the Granian half. That meant every planet the Granians conquered from the Ethisians was no longer theirs to stay on. More Gates were mounted, and others were attached to Behemoth Ships, which were sent to each colony to retrieve their soldiers, equipment, and whatever resources they had managed to gather while on said planets. The second course of action was getting One Horn’s fleet back. His was the only one still deployed. Because of that, Behemoths equipped with Gates were transported to his location, where evacuation began. Thankfully, the Granian was already informed, so not much time was wasted transporting the entire fleet back. The third course of action, and the most crucial, was transporting everyone and everything the Granians owned from the Bastion Planet back to Planet Grania. The first to return to the home planet was Lord Gravax, along with his assistants, the Blood Mutant siblings, and his equipment. While One Horn’s fleet and the remaining Granians were being retrieved, the Red Scaled Granian went back to the Granian home planet and began his work immediately. The first thing he did was extract some of Ace and Cherry’s blood and use it to begin mass production of Granian clones. For that to happen, a large piece of untouched wilderness was turned into a clone manufacturing plant. Hundreds of thousands of cylindrical containers were placed side-by-side, and in them were cells steadily growing into fully developed Granian clones. Gravax oversaw the entire project and, at the same time, began drawing the schematics for building the machines needed to harvest black holes and dying stars. He already possessed the knowledge of how they worked, so all he needed to do was materialize them. With all of this happening, Gravax created six clones in his own likeness and intellectual prowess, making sure to make them ten percent less intelligent than he was. With them aiding in his studies, he now had more time to create the dying star harvesting mechanisms while they oversaw the manufacturing of the clones. [Granian Half of Akrina] The last of the Granians were extracted from the Ethisian half of Akrina, bringing a successful end to the evacuation process. But there was more to still be done. The soldiers who were brought from the other side of the Galaxy were deployed all over multiple Granian planets and colonies, specifically the ones that were of great use to the Granian race. Planets rich in precious materials and natural resources, powerful beasts, and rich in fertile soils were now flocked with Granian soldiers and the first batch of clones. Along with the soldiers were a new type of Mechas that were designed, engineered, and contributed to the war by the Red Scaled Granians, the tribe Lord Gravax led. The new Mechs, unlike the others, were neurally linked to their pilots. Meaning, the pilot wouldn’t have to be in the machine to pilot it but could instead take cover in a secure location while the machine did all the dirty, heavy, dangerous work. Google seaʀᴄh 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵·𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖·𝙣𝙚𝙩 In addition to the Mechs, military vehicles, weaponry, and ships were placed on each planet, further reinforcing them extensively. All the Granian resources were poured into guarding their crucial planets and colonies until Lord Gravax harnessed the power of dying stars. But until then, the Granians prepared to defend themselves from their enemies, the Ethisians, who had taken note of the Granians’ sudden retreat. [Ethisian Half of Akrina] A few days before Lord Gravax met with the Granian Council Members, a major event took place on the Ethisian home planet. Ships carrying Granian and Cyclitharan prisoners landed at Enor’s castle of sorts. Under his command, the Cyclitharans willing to fight alongside the Ethisians were given their freedom, while the stubbornly loyal Granians were taken somewhere else to serve an undisclosed purpose. At the same time, one of the many Ethisian fleets returned with three precious prisoners on board: Grim’s mate Helda, and the two lesser Blood Mutants who were captured by the High Grade Ethisian, Commander. Upon arrival, the three prisoners were dragged by Commander and presented before High Ruler Enor, who took more interest in the Blood Acolytes than he did the female Granian. "My Lord," Commander bowed before Enor while holding a large set of chains that bound Helda, Jim, and Anya, who were barely conscious at that time, "I retrieved the Blood Mutants and one extra trophy. Just as you predicted, I found and managed to capture them alive, all except for Grim." "No need," High Ruler Enor smiled warmly, his purple eyes fixated on the two badly beaten humans, "I suspect that Grim will come for his mate and his...unborn child." The Ethisian ruler stood up from his throne and took the chains from Commander. He went ahead to do the unthinkable and released Jim and Anya. "Get these two some blood. They’re famished. Hurry now, I know people who’ll be pleased to meet these humans."