Intergalactic conquest with an AI

"Leave him to me, sis," Lyra said, her voice groggy but tinged with quiet determination. With a weak, shaky motion, she raised her arm and slowly pulled one of her handguns from Nyra's holster. "At least I can move this hand."

"Are you sure? You don't exactly look combat-ready," Nyra replied, doubt evident in her tone as she eyed her sister's trembling hand.

"Just... trust me, okay? I've got this," Lyra said, offering a small, tired smirk.

Nyra shrugged. "Fine, little sis. I'll leave it to you." Without another word, she broke into a full sprint, charging straight at the golem. The massive figure lurched into motion, its heavy footsteps echoing through the corridor as it barreled toward them.

The tension thickened as the distance between them closed rapidly. Lyra steadied her aim, her finger hovering over the trigger despite her weakened state.

"Come on... just a little closer..." Lyra whispered to herself. When the golem was mere meters away, she pulled the trigger.

The sound of the gunshot echoed through the corridor, followed by the metallic clang of the golem's head being blown clean off. Its massive body froze mid-stride before collapsing onto the floor in a heap of motionless metal.

"HA! Nice shot, Lyra!" Nyra cheered as she leapt over the fallen golem without breaking her stride.

But Lyra didn't share her enthusiasm. "Ah..." she muttered, looking back at the weapon in her hand... or rather, what should have been in her hand.

"What happened? Are you okay? Does it hurt?" Nyra asked while glancing back at her sister while still running full tilt down the corridor.

"No, I'm okay," Lyra replied sheepishly. "It's just... the gun flew out of my hand when I shot. I guess my strength hasn't returned yet. Hehe..."

Nyra let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. "Unbelievable. You kill the golem like a badass, and then that happens. I don't know if I should laugh or cry."

Lyra gave a weak chuckle while resting her head against Nyra's shoulder. "Well, at least we're still alive, right? That counts for something."

Nyra snorted. "Yeah, for now. Let's see how long that lasts."

[Attention all residents on the station: The structural integrity has fallen to 15%. Total collapse estimated in 10 minutes. I repeat…]

The station AI's voice echoed through the corridors like the tolling of a death knell. Its cold, clinical tone made the grim reality even harder to stomach, as if it were calmly counting down the remaining minutes of life for everyone trapped aboard.

"This is really nerve-wracking!" Nyra growled, her voice tinged with panic and frustration as she sprinted down the corridor. Lyra was still clinging to her back, her silver hair occasionally slapping Nyra's face as they raced through the collapsing station.

"Whoever programmed this AI is a psychopath! Who in their right mind thinks it's a good idea to tell people exactly how much time they have left before they die?! I don't need to hear a countdown to my funeral!"

From her place on Nyra's back, Lyra let out a weak chuckle. "Sis... the one who programmed that AI was Master Cleo," she said, still wincing as the residual pain from her earlier electrocution made it difficult to even lift her arms.

Nyra froze mid-step for a split second, nearly stumbling over her own feet before recovering. "Ahem. I said nothing. And since you're the only one who heard me, I'll know who snitched if it gets back to her!" she said, reaching up to tug playfully on Lyra's nose, earning a small squeak from her sister.

Before Lyra could respond, the voice of the AI abruptly cut off, leaving an eerie silence in its place. But the relief didn't last.

A deep, rumbling vibration shook the station violently, sending debris tumbling from the ceiling. The sudden jolt sent Nyra flying a few feet forward, her body hitting the ground with a resounding THUD.

Her face slammed into the cold metal floor with unceremonious force, and she skidded to a stop a few meters away, groaning as she lay sprawled out on the ground.

A second later, a deafening, thunderous explosion rocked the station, louder than anything they had heard before. The emergency lights overhead began flashing wildly, bathing the corridor in an unsettling red glow.

"Sis! Are you okay?!" Lyra called from where she had landed, still unable to stand on her own. Her voice carried a mix of worry and exasperation.

Nyra groaned and pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, her face flushed red, partly from embarrassment and partly from the impact. "Ouch. Yes. I'm okay. Only my face and my pride hurt," she muttered while wiping her nose as a small trickle of blood dripped down.

She stood up shakily, brushing off the dust and debris clinging to her armor. "By the way... what was that god-awful noise?" She asked with her voice tinged with irritation as she rubbed her sore nose.

Lyra, still sitting on the ground, raised an eyebrow. "How would I know? I can barely move right now. But if I had to guess..." She gestured weakly to the blinking emergency lights. "Since the AI finally shut up and the station is shaking like crazy… I'd say the station's done for. We're probably about to die.... Just saying."

Lyra's casual delivery made Nyra glare at her. "Well, aren't you just a ray of sunshine right now?"

Lyra shrugged, wincing as she tried to wiggle her legs. "Hey, look! I'm finally starting to feel my legs again! Isn't that great?"

Before Nyra could reply, another explosion rocked the station, this one far closer than before. The floor beneath them shuddered violently, and the sound of metal groaning and twisting under immense pressure filled the air.

"Sis…" Lyra's voice trailed off as she noticed something alarming. The corridor they were standing in was beginning to tilt.

The section of the station they were in was slowly becoming more vertical, the damaged structure shifting as it teetered closer and closer to total collapse. Debris slid down the slanted floors, and sparks flew from damaged power lines overhead.

"Oh, come on!" Nyra shouted, her crimson eyes darting around as she realized the gravity of the situation. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

Her feet scrambled for traction as the incline became steeper, forcing her to lean forward to maintain her balance. "Lyra, hold on! Things are about to get really bumpy!"

"I already can't move, so I don't think I have a choice!" Lyra snapped while clinging to Nyra's back as best as her weakened body would allow.

Nyra gritted her teeth and started moving again, her boots clanging loudly against the metal floor as she ran uphill, trying to keep ahead of the collapsing structure. "Damn it, master!, where's that updated GPS?! I can't die here! I'm too good-looking for this!"

Lyra let out a breathless laugh. "Well, at least you'll die beautiful, right?"

Nyra shot her an annoyed glare. "Not helping, Lyra!"

As the explosions grew louder and the corridor tilted further, Nyra knew they didn't have much time left. The station was tearing itself apart around them, and the only way out was to find the hangar.

But with the GPS offline and the constant chaos of falling debris and rogue golems, it was starting to feel like a losing battle.

Still, Nyra wasn't about to give up. Not while her sister was counting on her.

"Hold on tight," she muttered under her breath, determination burning in her crimson eyes. "We're getting out of here. No way am I letting some stupid rocks be the end of us."

With that, she pushed forward, running as fast as she could through the collapsing station, dodging falling debris and narrowly avoiding disaster at every turn. The clock was ticking, but Nyra refused to let it run out.

But, as the universe so often seems to mock those in desperate situations, Nyra's resolve was immediately tested by a new nightmare. The trading station's hull, which had already endured far more than it was ever designed for, finally gave up the fight.

The shield that once protected the station was gone, and now both sides of the structure were being pulled apart by the relentless force of the vacuum of space.

The massive change in pressure between the inside and the void was wreaking havoc, tearing through the station's weakened frame like paper. Sections of the hull began crumpling and collapsing, the station groaning in agony as it succumbed to the inevitable.

For Nyra and Lyra, who were in the middle of climbing a towering metal staircase to what they hoped was safety, disaster struck at the worst possible moment.

The metal staircase shuddered violently beneath them, its bolts screeching as they were ripped from their sockets. Without warning, the entire structure gave way with a deafening crashing sound, plummeting downward into the gaping void below.

"Oh no..." Nyra's heart dropped as she felt the staircase collapse beneath her feet. "LYRA! GRAB ME TIGHT! NOW!"

Lyra, barely conscious and still weak, didn't even hesitate. Her arms, shaky but determined, wrapped tightly around Nyra's neck as the two of them plunged downward.

Nyra acted on instinct, her body moving faster than her thoughts. With a sharp grunt, she extended her tentacles, sending two of them shooting out toward the walls on either side of the collapsing shaft.

The metallic tendrils pierced through the damaged walls with a loud CLANG, anchoring themselves firmly in place.

The force of their fall yanked them hard as the tentacles caught, and Nyra winced as her body jerked from the sudden stop. She gritted her teeth, bracing against the pressure while using another tentacle to coil securely around Lyra, holding her sister close to her chest.