32: Chapter 32 Before departing, the Necromancer Overlord handed over command of the fleet to the Zerg Swarm.

Nephilak's quantum link suddenly cut out for four seconds at midnight, Metallis time.

The moment the link was restored, the Brood Queen's Hive Mind node detected an anomaly—the Eternal Echo's communication array was not malfunctioning, and the signal strength of the Necron quantum network showed no fluctuations.

The reason for the interruption was explained in the very first message received after the link was restored, and the content of this message prompted the Brood Queen to immediately forward it to the Overmind.

"The Solemmnace Dynasty core matrix has issued a global recall order."

Nephilak's voice remained calm, but his choice of words was more precise than usual, and the interval between each word was shortened by a fraction of a second—in Necron communication habits, this was equivalent to a human panting in haste, "The recall order covers all active Overlord nodes.

All of them.

This is not the request-to-reconnect signal I sent previously—this is a mandatory core directive of the Dynasty that takes effect simultaneously for all surviving nodes.

My kin are still alive, and they are already gathering."

The Overmind replayed Nephilak's entire communication within the Hive Mind.

He did not ask, "Where exactly is your Dynasty core matrix located?" nor did he ask, "What size fleet are your kin gathering?"

His first question was: "Does the recall order require you to terminate the alliance agreement with The Swarm?"

Nephilak fell silent.

The silence of a Necron Overlord, even if only for a second, was an extremely rare signal.

The edges of his cloak ionized slightly in the bridge air, emitting a faint crackle of static electricity.

"The recall order does not directly demand the termination of the agreement," he said, "but it does require all Overlord nodes to immediately cease current missions and prioritize returning to their designated locations.

According to the Dynasty Code, the recall order takes precedence over secondary military alliance obligations.

I can apply to have our agreement upgraded and registered as a high-level treaty that takes precedence over general recall rights—but this requires me to bring the original agreement back to the Dynasty core matrix and submit it in person to the Overlord Council."

He paused for a moment, then added a sentence that had never been heard in all the time The Swarm had spent with him: "I need your consent."

The Overmind analyzed Nephilak's situation within the Hive Mind.

The Necron Overlord had not concealed the mandatory nature of the recall order, nor had he attempted to use diplomatic jargon to circumvent the terms of the agreement.

He chose to inform The Swarm immediately after receiving the recall order, proactively applied to upgrade the agreement, and waited for The Swarm's consent rather than unilaterally breaking off cooperation.

The logical consistency of this behavioral pattern was quite high.

"Consent granted. But your fleet must remain. The Eternal Echo, the Hammer of Silence, and the three Harvester warships. The time of return will be decided by The Swarm. You may not unilaterally withdraw the fleet during the execution of the agreement.

We need these ships to continue executing the agreement, and also as a guarantee to ensure you defend the agreement in the Council. If you can accept this, the agreement registration will take effect immediately."

The light in Nephilak's eye sockets brightened.

"Your logic is highly compatible with the Necron quantum consensus protocol. Accepted. Tactical command of the Eternal Echo and all Solemmnace Dynasty ships will be completely transferred to The Swarm during the execution of the agreement, with all weapon systems and living metal smelting capabilities retained on board, until I return to Metallis with the official approval letter from the Overlord Council.

At the same time—I have a better way to ensure the execution of the agreement."

He packaged a complete set of technical documents and sent them to the Brood Queen's Hive Mind node.

The document's title translated directly to Necron Weapon Platform Blueprint—Anti-Phase Warp Suppression Amplifier (Complete Version), specifically designed to counter high-level Imperial psychic units and Chaos Greater Daemon-level targets, complete with manufacturing processes and a list of required materials.

Unlike the simplified version previously delivered to The Swarm, this complete version contained the core resonance parameters of the blackstone engine and the combat data link for the anti-phase weapons.

As long as The Swarm had sufficient time and materials, the main gun compartments of the leviathan mothership could be equipped with weapons capable of suppressing the Empire's strongest psychic units.

"These blueprints for the complete anti-psychic weapon platform were a reciprocal guarantee measure I initiated after the agreement was signed," Nephilak said. "According to the original plan, it was supposed to be delivered along with the blackstone engine on Metallis after more combat testing was completed.

Now I am advancing the delivery time. If my diplomatic defense at the core matrix fails, you will still possess all the technical means to independently counter Chaos and Imperial psychic units.

If the Overlord Council decides to betray the covenant between me and you—I authorize The Swarm to independently produce, deploy, and use these weapons at will against the betrayers, including my own kin."

The Overmind reviewed the entire document, confirming that the data was unencrypted, had no segmented blocks, and contained no timed self-destruct protocols.

Nephilak had truly packaged all the data for The Swarm without setting any backdoors.

This was a risk-laden decision that even the Overmind could not immediately evaluate—handing over one's trump cards entirely to an alien ally of less than a month, all just to ensure one would not be treated as a disposable pawn during negotiations.

"Your risk."

"I have evaluated it. You have no incentive to break the agreement; all of The Swarm's behavioral patterns revolve around evolutionary efficiency and strategic resources, and breaking the agreement would create more uncontrollable variables. My kin, on the other hand, have a history of breaking agreements several times over the past hundreds of millions of years. Therefore, my trump cards are safer in your hands than in the Dynasty core. This is not blind trust; this is calculation."

The Overmind did not press further.

The word "calculation" was the most frequently occurring term in his Hive Mind analysis sequences.

He archived Nephilak's judgment and then responded with a detailed list: The Eternal Echo and all other Solemmnace Dynasty ships were to remain in Metallis orbit, incorporated into The Swarm's defense sequence under the agreement's standby clauses; the Brood Queen would be fully responsible for ship maintenance and the testing progress of the anti-psychic platform.

Pick the fastest shuttle yourself, and don't get used as target practice by Imperial patrols on the way back to the Dynasty.

Nephilak's response was to provide a detailed return route map via the link.

He would depart and return on the only small shuttle not incorporated into the agreement fleet, with a route that would completely avoid Imperial patrol zones, with an estimated return time window of two standard months.

If he did not return beyond the time limit, the agreement would automatically enter a continued maintenance state.

The identification codes for the Eternal Echo and the three Harvester warships were incorporated into The Swarm's defense sequence one by one within the next half standard hour, with command entirely taken over by the Brood Queen.

Under the synchronized scheduling of the anti-psychic weapon platform production line, The Swarm's technical Drones began large-scale retrofitting of the leviathan mothership's adamantine chitin skeleton and blackstone resonance chambers, while Necron technicians remained on the ships to calibrate the resonance phases together with the Brood Queen.

The captain of the Hammer of Silence left a brief confirmation of the handover in the Hive Mind: "This ship's engineering sequence is ready. Overlord Nephilak has handed over the entire ship to you. He said before departing—if he fails at the core matrix, please continue to complete his work."