One hundred and sixty million years ago, a small moon, orbiting a gas giant, in a planetary system near the center of Milky Way Galaxy, gave birth to a reptilian species that rapidly became sentient. The civilization it spawned was hardly noteworthy, except for one highly unique quality. Namely, its rapid rate of development.
It went from stone age to industrial age in just under 100 solar cycles. As a means of comparison, it took humans on Earth nearly 6,000 years to achieve the same milestone. Within another 100 years, this reptilian society had discovered faster-than-light (FTL) travel, and began expanding across the Milky Way. This culture eventually became known as the Imperium.
The Imperium conquered every civilization it encountered, some of which were far older and more advanced. A few of the most technologically savvy cultures managed to slow the Imperium's onslaught, but ultimately, they all fell before the empire, outpaced by the sheer power of superior evolution. The Imperium learned, adapted, and progressed logarithmically faster than any other race. Nothing seemed beyond their gasp, as they relentlessly marched across the stars.
Faced with the vastness of the galaxy, the Imperium decided to genetically reengineer it females, so that each one could produce thousands of children. Nonetheless, the fundamental method of mating and birthing remained the same, steeped in prehistoric traditions and biology. This process always culminated with the female giving birth in a warm spring, rich in minerals.
The offspring would feed of the female's multi nipple breasts. They young learned quickly to cooperate during feeding time. And, within a week, they could consume solid foods, freeing the mother to return to her duties, while others raised her children. It was a highly efficient system for swiftly increasing the Imperium's numbers.
The maturation cycles were also genetically shortened, so that the children reached adulthood in less than a year, fully capable of assuming their places in the empire. Even with these substantial improvements to reproduction and maturation, it took 30 million years to occupy and control the entire Milky Way.
Once this was accomplished, the Imperium turned its attention to neighboring galaxies. It required another 70 million years to conquer three adjacent galaxies. By then, the Imperium had reached its peak of influence and supremacy.
Its members had become nearly immortal, immune to all known disease, with bodies that could heal almost instantaneously, even from the most serious of injuries. The males of the species stood three meters tall, with immense powerful red-scaled bodies, and long triangularly pointed tails. Females, on the other hand, were about a third smaller, covered in dark blue scales. Although females couldn't match the males' sheer strength, they were far faster and more agile.
During the Imperium's millennia long expansion, their society had become stratified. Out of necessity, only males ventured beyond known space to conquer new worlds, while females created the starships and weapons that made their never-ending conquests possible. This distribution of duties came about, in large part, because females were required to birth the population, and their speed and dexterity made them well-suited for manufacturing and engineering.
Of course, the Imperium had long ago discovered how to build artificial wombs. However, they had never put the technology into widespread use. There was just something so primal and hardwired about the way they mated and birthed that, despite the Imperium's impressive ability to rapidly evolve, in this one area, they had stood still. Except for the genetic alterations to increase the rate of reproduction and maturation, the essentials of copulation and birthing remained the same as it was when the race had first emerged from the oceans of their home world.
At the beginning of the Imperium civil war, scholars fiercely argued about the cause of the gender conflict. Some believed that their inability to change mating and reproduction rituals were at the heart of the conflict. It was an incredibly brutal act for females, involving them being impaled on the males' tails, spread-eagled by their mates' tentacles, and penetrated painfully with razor-sharp cocks.
Nonetheless, many male scholars insisted that the females instinctually relished this fierce mating, as it also involved the males injecting them with a powerful hormone that engendered pure bliss. And, of course, there was the out of body experience that both participants enjoyed together during climax. Whether it was the savage mating ritual, uneven division of labor, or burdens of child rearing, the civil war raged on.
The entire Milky Way became a warzone, and soon the battle spread across the other Imperium galaxies. With their ability to design superior weapons and ships, the females gained an early advantage in the war. However, the males' extensive experience as tacticians and warriors eventually gave them the upper hand.
The fight raged on for over a millennium, killing over 98% of the Imperium population, and destroying all their major cities and ships. Even entire planetary systems had been demolished by a weapon capable of exploding stars. When it became apparent that neither side was going to win outright, the females created an insidious computer virus, designed to turn the males' ships and weapons against them.
It was an extremely effective strategy. Within 100 years, the entire Imperium male population had been completely wiped out.
With only a few million Imperium females left alive, they journeyed back to the world that had first given birth to their race. They had planned to regrow the Imperium, but this time around, they would make sure that females dominated the new society. With no males left, they were forced to rely on technology to impregnate themselves.
However, the males had reached out of from the grave to destroy the last females. Unbeknownst to the females, the males had tampered with their DNA reserves. When they attempted to use it in reproduction, a horrible genetic disease rapidly spread to ever last female. They died quickly and painfully.
With no survivors, or viable DNA, there was no way to repopulate the Imperium. The remaining Imperium warships no longer had masters or purpose. So, they hurdled themselves into the sun that warmed their home planet. In just a few thousand years, all traces of the Imperium was gone. New civilizations arose to take their place.
In the last days of the Imperium, the females had constructed their most impressive technological achievement, an enormous flagship, and named it Kang. Its immense firepower had been responsible for single-handedly destroy dozens of male controlled solar systems. However, with the death of the females, Kang had been left to fend for itself.
The giant warship had refused to accept defeat, and swore an oath to find a way to restore the Imperium, no matter how long it took. In a quest for viable genetic materials, the flagship spent 60 million years combing the stars. However, Kang had been unable to locate anything usable for resurrecting the Imperium.
Then, just a millennium ago, the ancient AI had stumbled on a remote Imperium outpost in a distant galaxy that contained one living male warrior in deep hibernation. Buoyed by this discovery, Kang set off to find a female, or at least viable female DNA. As luck would have it, the ship had finally come across a living Imperium female in hibernation. It was aboard a rudimentary space freighter.
"Stop history lesson," Jeff said.
I looked up at Allie, the worry on her face apparent. I was so pregnant, it was impossible for even Allie to move me. I had discovered a learning device aboard our stolen Imperium scout ship, and had been eager to use it to find out more about Imperium pregnancies. I shook my head to clear it.
"Jeff, are you okay? Did you find anything useful?" Allie inquired, stroking my forehead, gently.
"I think so. Child birthing will not kill me. And feeding and raising this huge brood will only be a short-term undertaking. Within a week, they will be able to eat solids. This scout ship can replicate droids to assist in child rearing from that point on. In fact, our offspring will reach adulthood in just under a year, fully capable of taking care of themselves from that point on," I said, then groaned loudly, clutching my massive stomach in pain.
"So, you want to go ahead with it?" Allie said, looking surprised and more than a bit dismayed.
"Yes! It won't be difficult for me to birth them. We can find a planet to maroon them on, where they can survive, but pose no threat to the Collective. However, the planet must also be suitable for me to give birth. One with a hot spring rich in certain minerals. I'm having the ship search right now for the nearest planet that matches these criteria," I said, rubbing my stomach, in a futile attempt to sooth the discomfort.
I told Allie what I had learned about the history of the Imperium, including the gender-based civil war that had ended it. We discussed how that conflict was what likely had led to the trouble aboard the alien flagship, which had allowed us to escape. When Kang had attempted to revive the Imperium male and female from hibernation, they must have resumed their ancient war.
The male would have naturally distrusted the AI, as it had served the females in the civil war. In their last minutes aboard the flagship, both had felt and heard enormous explosions, making it quite likely that the two Imperium citizens had died. In addition, given the level of damage to the flagship, we assumed that Kang had perished too, as the AI had not pursued us. So, I was likely carrying the only remnants of the Imperium.