I Am The Swarm

The commander of the front forces understood very well that if this breakout failed, the ships trapped here would be in grave danger.

At this moment, he made a desperate decision: abandon defense against attacks from the other three directions and focus all efforts on breaking through to the rear, regardless of losses. Every ship that could escape was a victory.

The current formation of the front forces had the Troi fleet, originally the vanguard, now covering the rear. The fleets of the other two civilizations were positioned on either flank, while the center was filled with damaged but still operational ships.

This decision meant that the Troi fleet covering the rear would suffer heavy losses. But in this situation, leading by example and working together was their only hope for survival.

Seeing the Troi take on the most difficult task, the other two civilizations had no complaints. The three races quickly unified their efforts and began a fierce assault toward their original direction.

At the same time, the ships on the outer layer of the fleet switched to remote control mode, and their crews transferred to smaller ships heading toward the inner fleet.

The outer-layer ships had been abandoned. They would serve as defensive barriers, fighting to the last moment. Meanwhile, the damaged ships that had been hiding in the center of the formation also began to move outward after their crews were evacuated.

With these abandoned ships acting as shields, the coalition’s defensive capabilities improved. However, every advantage comes with a drawback. These ships were originally meant to block the Swarm’s attacks with their hulls.

But as these ships were gradually destroyed, losing their ability to adjust their angles, their wreckage began to obstruct the coalition’s line of sight and firepower.

The Swarm’s assault never stopped. Their biological combat units not only had formidable long-range firepower but also powerful close-combat capabilities.

Thus, the Swarm wanted to close the distance.

The coalition, on the other hand, hoped to maintain a certain distance and engage in a long-range artillery duel.

Space was vast, offering plenty of room for maneuver. If the forces numbered only in the tens of thousands, their high mobility would allow for flexible tactics, making it easy to maintain distance.

But now, both sides had nearly a hundred million troops on the battlefield. In such a massive engagement, with allies and enemies on all sides, there was no room for maneuver. Flexible tactics were extremely difficult to execute, especially since the coalition’s main force was surrounded by the Swarm, leaving no room for retreat.

The coalition’s front forces were being squeezed from all sides by the Swarm. To maintain distance from the Swarm, they could only move inward. This caused their formation to become increasingly compact. Initially, the ships were spaced more than ten thousand kilometers apart, but now the distance had been reduced to less than three thousand kilometers.

The tight formation affected their firing angles, and with the wreckage of their own ships blocking their view, it was only a matter of time before the Swarm closed in.

Both the coalition commander, far outside the battle zone, and the central commander, trapped within, were frantic but had no good solutions. They could only watch as the Swarm continued to compress their formation.

Millions of ships gradually shrank into a tight cluster, and the momentum of the breakout was halted. The situation grew increasingly dire for the coalition.

In the vastness of space, time seemed to stand still. In reality, the two sides had been locked in battle for nearly a month. During this time, the Swarm’s reinforcements poured into the battlefield, while the Locke Mutual Aid Society also sent some fresh troops, but their numbers were limited and couldn’t turn the tide.

Seeing that the rear forces were struggling to hold their ground and that large-scale reinforcements were nowhere in sight, the commander, watching the Space Octopuses closing in to within tens of thousands of kilometers, ordered the launch of strategic nuclear missiles.

On some specialized ships, hidden launch silos opened, and massive cylindrical objects rose into the void, trailing white smoke as they flew toward the Swarm.

These high-yield strategic nuclear missiles were something every civilization’s fleet had in some capacity. They were cheap yet devastating explosives, useful in many situations, such as clearing obstacles or securing passageways.

But now was not the ideal time for their use.

Because they were physical projectiles, they were large targets and relatively slow. In the midst of a battlefield filled with red energy beams, reaching their designated detonation points was nearly impossible.

Thus, attempting to attack the Swarm with strategic nuclear missiles was nothing short of wishful thinking.

But the coalition commander had no better options. Conventional methods couldn’t break the deadlock, so he had to resort to unconventional means.

Nuclear explosions, if not direct hits, didn’t cause significant damage to ships. However, the simultaneous detonation of large-scale, high-yield strategic nuclear missiles could create massive electromagnetic pulses (EMP), disrupting instruments, radar, and fire control systems.

The coalition hoped to use this massive EMP field to disrupt the Swarm’s forces and buy themselves some breathing room.

In his view, while the nuclear explosions themselves might not harm the Swarm, the intense radiation and EMP generated by the blasts would likely affect biological units more than mechanical ones.

Additionally, their ships were equipped with defenses against such effects. After considering all factors, he made this decision.

The void, previously dominated by blue and red energy beams, suddenly erupted with a series of miniature suns. One after another, the explosions lit up the battlefield, their combined brilliance isolating the two sides and rendering all optical observations useless.

The explosions were closer to the coalition’s side because the nuclear missiles couldn’t penetrate the Swarm’s firepower. To avoid wasting them, the coalition had to detonate them prematurely.

——

The results were somewhat positive. The explosions did temporarily halt the Swarm’s advance. The intense heat and radiation generated by the blasts made it impossible for even the Space Octopuses, which could convert radiation into energy, to approach.

Moreover, the powerful electromagnetic fields disrupted some of their internal organs, forcing them to pause and recalibrate.

However, the explosions also had a significant impact on the coalition. After such a prolonged and intense battle, almost no ships remained undamaged. This left them vulnerable to the pervasive electromagnetic interference, and their defenses were greatly reduced.

Many ships’ circuitry and electronic systems were fried. Those with backup systems could still function, but those without were left dead in the water.

But the coalition had no time to worry about that now. They chose to abandon the damaged ships and organize the remaining ones for a full-scale breakout toward the rear.

As for the crews on those ships, the intense electromagnetic storms made it impossible for them to transfer to smaller vessels. They could only watch silently as their comrades drifted away, leaving them behind to face an uncertain fate.

Although the nuclear explosions had halted the Swarm’s pursuit, the coalition had lost nearly half of its forces, a devastating blow.

[T/N: 500 chapters!!!!! Still can’t believe it lol.

It’s only been two months, and I Am the Swarm has already hit 500 chapters. Feels kind of unreal. When I first started, I wasn’t sure how far I’d get, but now? I can’t imagine stopping. This story has been a wild ride, and honestly, I’m just as hooked as you all are.

I just want to say a huge thank you. Whether you’ve been here from the start or just jumped in, knowing there are people reading and enjoying the translations makes all the late nights and brain-meltingly long paragraphs worth it.

If you’ve ever thought, “How does the author keep track of all these military formations?” trust me, same. Central forces, rear forces, front forces… the last few chapters had me rereading just to make sure I wasn’t losing my mind. But that’s part of what makes this novel so fun—just when you think you’ve got it figured out, it throws something new at you lol.

And this is just the beginning. I want to see I Am the Swarm through to the end, and after that? Why stop here? I’d love to hit 500, 1000, maybe even 1500 chapters in other novels. But not 6000 chapters, i’m not that crazy xD.

Just wanted to share the excitement and let you know how much I appreciate you all. Here’s to more chapters and as always thanks for being here!]

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