"QUERY: Maternal-unit, explain what is happening," a child-unit requested.
"Uncertain. Further data is needed for extrapolation."
Across Phiads, Grox of every nominal age gathered together in city shelters. Although this planet, their homeworld and place of origin, was near the very heart of the galaxy, paranoia and pragmatism dictated the construction of deep bunkers. If the alarms were any indication, this had been a good decision by their ancient ancestors.
"It is likely that these units will survive. Grox are superior lifeforms," the maternal-unit comforted its offspring. "As Core-unit-00 wills, Grox will have victory this day."
Core-unit-00 was unfathomably ancient. Its age was measured in eons, as its own technorganic implants had been obtained at the end of its species' tribal era, so terribly long ago. Since then, it had behaved as the nexus for the partial hive-mind the Grox were all part of. In its lifetime, an incalculably large number of space-faring civilizations had risen and fallen, of which a large fraction of which were destroyed by the Grox themselves. Uncountable planets were scorched barren of life, and 2400 worlds were chosen, reinforced, and made a part of an unyielding wall around the center of the galaxy.
Some said the Grox were jealous of the strength and resilience of other species.
Some said the Grox were afraid of any others reaching the Galactic Core.
Some said the Grox were antithetical to life itself.
What a load of nonsense, Core-unit-00 mused. Semi-religious pseudoscience perpetrated by non-Grox because the Grox kept their understandings to themselves.
So many others species were nothing but children. Jealousy was childish, as was fear, as was the need to categorize others. The Grox had grown out of this far before those children had even been a speck in their oceans.
"Am I boring you, Zero?"
Core-unit-00 sighed and looked up at the screen in front of him. "Negative, Omnith Leader. This unit is reorganizing old data."
"You don't need to speak like that," its counterpart said, eyes swaying. "Given what is happening, I would think you'd want to use more… carefree words."
"…You are not wrong." Core-unit-00 adjusted its settings, pushing as many other Grox out of its mental circuitry as possible. "Although this one… I don't know if any words could properly fit."
"I would say that this day is a day of victory, of beauty, of chaos unchallenged. However, I understand if you feel differently. The other sapiens did as well."
"I'm certain they did."
"…You seem almost relaxed," Omnith Leader said. "Given the soon-to-be extinction of Groxkind, I would predict fear from you."
"Fear is the emotion of children who do not understand, who face unknowns and monsters. There are no unknowns to us anymore, and we are the monsters."
"Hardly. You are powerful, but easily deceived. You were content with the false signals we sent, believing yourselves still twenty-four-hundred worlds strong… until we were on your doorstep."
Core-unit-00 laughed. It was the first time any Grox unit had laughed since… there were no units for such a long length of time.
It was a horrible sound. Omnith Leader's expression grew more and more disturbed as the laughter continued, lapsed, and died out.
"I don't believe you are that stupid," Core-unit-00 said in its best paternal voice, "so I believe you were simply that greedy. You chose not to see that we let you in."
"…Why?"
"Inevitability. Old as we are, strong as we are, wise as we are, you had found a way to make none of it matter. We could not even retaliate likewise. So we decided that our time was done."
"You would let your species die out?"
"Grox have fought, and fought, and fought until most of us don't care to even know why anymore. Those of us who do are… content."
For some reason, the Omnith Leader felt nothing but anger. They turned several switches, ready to bring the Grox to an end…
"Bittersweet."
"Hm?"
"That is how it feels for me, at the end of all things," Grox-unit-00 said, eyes closed. "Bittersweet."
A/N: Using the Zealot superweapon on the Grox doesn't upset them, so long as it's not inside a city itself. This makes for a slow, strange, yet methodical way to conquer the Grox. If you're allied to them, they basically just let you destroy them. Obviously a bug, from a game perspective, but from an in-universe perspective?