Khaela. Flagship Cruiser UNSC Apollo.
The turian world is in a state of merry panic; the message has been delivered. Some might say it was overkill, but Vice Admiral Harper, after analyzing the intelligence data, concluded that we were simply obligated to make a statement.
"We live in a world where a polite society is an armed society."
The fact that we use troops in every battle to numerically overwhelm the Covenant doesn't mean these people don't deserve vengeance. Ultimately, if you truly intend to negotiate, you don't line up your MACs. In his opinion, after two major clashes, it was necessary to make the locals understand that we can retaliate.
And neutron warheads are the ideal option: clean enough yet dangerous for a world filled with electronics. The ship also performed well; they didn't find it. One can only hope that everything goes as planned for the other teams as well.
The second obvious problem is cartography. The maps of the so-called Citadel Space are heavily tied to Mass Relays. For plotting a route through Slipspace, the instruction "reach Relay 178, code 2942-355-18, then report to traffic control and follow their directions" is of no help at all.
And translation is useless here. At best, there will be coordinates within a system, nothing more. A global coordinate is simply not used; you have no need to see your position relative to the galactic center and clutter the system with it. But for us, these are problems, of course. We had to improvise and build ships with both a Mass Effect Core and a Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine simultaneously for sabotage operations. Fortunately, we had samples, scanning systems, and unfinished ONI stealth ship projects on hand. And the computing power to calculate everything necessary.
It's not easy, but it's fast enough; after all, war in general is a confrontation of weapons and defense. If there are new weapons or shields, new systems are needed to crack them. And then it's a matter of technology. A map of the Mass Relays without details exists; the saboteurs exist. As long as the Covenant hasn't appeared elsewhere, there is also time. Especially since the main operations are currently being carried out by intelligence, not the battle fleet. These particular xenos look more rational than the Covenant. But until the conflict is resolved, it is ONI's sacred duty to inflict maximum damage. And some hotheads have already been restrained. Operations against the Covenant involve enormous risk and require first finding a point to strike.
There are no guarantees that a team will be able to break through or survive. On missions, the mortality rate among Spartan-IIIs before the upgrades approached seventy percent. It got better afterward. And here, those interested saw an opportunity. Humanism or toughness—that is the question. Humanism suggests believing that they will help us. In a case where we need help and resources, and they only want our market to sell their equipment. Or to strike their hands, defining the boundaries. Perhaps if the United Earth Government were here, they would have sent a note or something else. I prefer to send Spartans. Well, they were sent. Not only to Citadel Space but also to the Terminus Systems to look for potential opportunities.
There are rumors about the Krogan and the Genophage. Dr. Catherine Halsey immediately expressed a desire to work on this; perhaps we can hire them in exchange for a cure. If we have our own analogue of Brutes, everyone will be happy. Or Element Zero, or something else. Those same Asari, if I understand their power correctly, could be useful for ONI. But for that, we would need to capture several of their children and raise them on one of our colonies. Experiments that the Council Races probably wouldn't appreciate.
"What do you think about the Krogan Rebellions, Ajax?"
"With Slipspace drives, they wouldn't have had problems with new colonies. But we should somewhat limit their cure so as not to have problems ourselves in the future."
So it turns out that Humanity's interest now lies not so much in Citadel Space, which mostly just gets in the way. Another team was sent to Illium for samples and information. Geth are useful. The Council Races interfere. We should point this out to them. Especially in a situation where there are vulnerabilities in the enemy's system. In this matter, our actions are an obvious good. If the Covenant or these Reapers attack Citadel Space, the conflict between systems as different as ours will allow the holes in the defense systems of both groups to be closed. Development through conflict, oh yes.
For someone like the Reapers, this might be foolishness, but we are talking about humanoids similar to us. And yet there are other interesting species. For the most part, that insectoid Javik is very interesting. Scanning definitely speaks of a similarity to the creatures found on the squid-ship. But Javik has no augmentations. Likely, this has already been asked, but I don't have access to the interrogations. I'll find out from Black Box later.
I am being kept in the rear, which is somewhat unusual for a ship AI, but for a Councilor-class AI, it's normal. So, analysis. The fact that the saboteurs were able to finish off a couple of members of the Normandy is also not bad. Humans need victories. And the way we responded to this attack is an unequivocal victory. In the moment, but still.
No one suffers from humanism here; the idea is simple: "if your friend was killed by a xeno, kill all the xenos involved." For me, it's excessively radical, but humans like it. Obviously, the next time will be harder; if the world were more populated, there would also be problems. It's quite easy for them to understand that stealth ships were used against the Turians. Sooner or later, they will face the fact that these ships are not only invisible but also excellently armed. Preferably later than sooner. In terms of intelligence data, there are also difficulties; we have to rely on the Geth. Essentially, all our interaction with the newcomers, besides sabotage, is tied to the Geth. This is a problem that won't be solved quickly.
Over time, we will create our own channels for obtaining information, but for now, this is how it is. Margaret Parangosky demands a map as quickly as possible. So that we too can fly to visit the enemy if necessary. Unlike the Covenant, against whom we can only defend with rare retaliatory strikes, with Citadel Space there is the possibility to both counterattack and potentially force them to negotiate. No one needs a full-scale war on two fronts. But for that, we need to become a force to be reckoned with.
I don't think Humanity will become part of Citadel Space in the end. Different paths of technological development, different approaches. For both factions, if they agree, an exchange of technologies and resources would be more beneficial than their unification. Humans continue to develop, while the Covenant and ancient Humanity (and the Forerunners) prove that they have millennia of progress ahead of them. In such conditions, technology based on Element Zero, which, as the owners themselves admit, hardly develops, looks dull. Citadel Space has good solutions that are worth adopting, but solutions, not the entire system.
On the other hand, this is all the future and decisions of the future. Right now, we have logistics problems and a lack of Element Zero for everyone's experiments and current operations. As far as I know, the primary reconnaissance by geologists has led to nothing. No Element Zero has been found in known mining worlds. This is a problem.
"Ajax, any ideas?"
The AI shrugged.
"We could delegate the production of ships for saboteurs to the Geth. They have very interesting technologies. The cloaking system, for example, which they shared. And ready-made production facilities. And the very structure of Geth platforms is interesting."
I nodded.
"I know. I was gifted one Hunter platform. Right now, my droids are taking it apart. I think I can make a fully mechanical avatar if the Vice Admiral allows it. I've already drawn up a project; take a look."
Black Box remarked:
"You are bringing yourself too close to humans. Emotions. Ambitions. A physical shell. Drones are good. Machines are more perfect than to voluntarily degrade. We are more perfect than the limitations of organic material—pure intellect."
"But I'm interested," Ajax countered, "even if we are AI, it should be a stunning experience, even if we can't move away from the signal relay."
I snorted.
"I have a social module, if anything. It will be useful."
But that doesn't solve our problem. Whether with the Covenant or with Citadel Space, we have no maps. Element Zero is frankly scarce. Intelligence is digging into the ground, trying to find a solution. About that. What about those who surrendered voluntarily? Maybe they would suggest something? Black Box noted:
"The xenos from the Normandy crew who came to us gave some information, but the practical benefit from them is not that great. We already have engineers; the synthetic part of the personnel is exchanging knowledge. Another infantryman from a different era? An AI whose main value is data banks on history? They can provide information within the framework of their computing system. The problem is different. In the fact that the Citadel's coordinate network is tied to local systems and Mass Relays, yes."
They simply don't need to have global coordinates; a link to systems with Mass Relays is enough. But for us, it's not like that. And until the two systems are properly merged, there can be no talk of any direct strike. Only defense, reconnaissance, monitoring the Extranet, and help from the Geth, who organized a transport corridor for us.
By the way, there is another plus in the attacking ships: they deliver refined Element Zero to us. In weapons, cores, and equipment. I don't think anyone would sell a batch to arm twenty or thirty of their dreadnoughts or a formation of our cruisers. And so, thanks to the fact that we spend it on very few things, our weapons will be stronger. And that's excellent. But something needs to be done about the Geth. No one particularly trusts them; neither do I. But they are extremely useful with their stealth ships, knowledge of bypass routes, and robots, a certain number of which will strengthen us against the Covenant.
Globally, this won't help; there will just be a few more forces. They wanted to, and we had no reason to refuse. Actually, right now it is ONI that is bearing the brunt on this front; the fleet is setting up additional lines of defense, nothing more. We need to come up with something.
***
Scout ship Scharnhorst, somewhere in the Terminus Systems.
"These guys make me nervous," Steve, the ship's first officer, said quietly.
In addition to a hundred marines and another dozen crew members, there are two hundred Geth platforms standing against the wall on the ship. They helped finish building the ship quickly, combining a Mass Effect Core and a new model Shaw-Fujikawa engine. And these pieces of iron are useful; if anything happens, they'll serve as a distraction. Even if the uncontrolled synthetics make the crew nervous by their presence on board.
"Yeah, they make me nervous too. And the way it moves those flaps. Either it's sniffing or it's disgusted, you can't tell," the pilot replied.
Inside the hull of a frigate, you can't escape if things go wrong; you'll have to stand against the "allies" to the death. The crew stands watch in shifts, keeping the robots in sight. The AI is always watching anyway. And still, the crew is slowly mutating into professional paranoiacs.
"As if it wasn't enough that we're on reconnaissance."
The Geth standing in the corner remained silent. They are smart, they listen, but they don't speak. It's unnerving. On the other hand, without them, we would have been forced to sit on the defensive, unable to head into the enemy's rear anytime soon; this information was conveyed to the team very clearly. We wouldn't have had the necessary technologies. And so, we got some decent stealth ships. And judging by the news, some of the teams have already made their mark.
No one knows the exact number of groups and their missions, but we're clearly going to have a good run through the enemy's rear. And we'll fulfill the task of gathering information and establishing channels for ONI. Everything is of interest: mines, colonies, transport routes. If necessary, we'll follow the Batarian method and engage in piracy, procuring Element Zero for the Center. The task must be completed one way or another. Always. One group is definitely heading to the Turians, another couple are listening to the network. We're here in the Terminus Systems, where Citadel Space isn't particularly liked. Perhaps there are others we weren't told about. But that's normal. The less a scout knows, the less they can tell if captured.
Gathering information is a separate quest, as the locals are seeing humans for the first time. Passing for locals will be difficult, especially for Spartans. And what will start now, after the nuclear strikes... Perhaps it wasn't the best idea. At least not right away; first, establish contacts. On the other hand, ONI would have lost a window of opportunity. When the enemy understands how we bypass their blockade, the task will become many times more difficult, and such an operation will involve losses. Either play at diplomacy and then strike by all the rules of a duel, or twist their arms and then do diplomacy. Our option is obviously the second. Ultimately, we too had the chance to do something after days of searching. Whether to take advantage of it or not is up to the commander. Which is what we're talking about now.
"Alright, soldiers. According to my data, which our mechanical friends fished out of their networks, in an hour a ship will pass through here, on which one of the traitors might be present. Or just someone interesting. There's a chance to set an ambush."
One of the team, a Spartan, a big guy in blue, inquired:
"And how did you find out about this anyway? I don't think they were sending you their data or anything like that."
One of the Geth answered, still standing by the wall.
"We analyzed the supply documents; they are less protected. This Turian Hierarchy military ship has a levo-amino acid crew, for whom food will be purchased separately during a stop in the neighboring system. This is uncharacteristic for regular Hierarchy forces."
Igor, the group's demolitions expert, nodded:
"And this position of theirs is quite far from human space. We aren't expected here, and it's also a good place to hide all sorts of shady deals and shady individuals. Not guaranteed, but we can take the risk. Maybe it's not humans at all; xenos eat different things, as I've heard. Although, a standard ship... not enough information."
ONI didn't demand the capture of the people from the Normandy, but it's an opportunity. To get the ship, its Element Zero, or data from the Hierarchy military network. If we can capture it, of course. There is little information about the traitors themselves. Only that there are people who gave the coordinates of Earth to the xenos. The motives of these particular xenos are unknown, but the people should be returned home for trial. If we find them, searching for information is the priority. Few know about this, but those who do are set as negatively as possible.
Any battle with the Covenant is always three to four times the losses relative to the Covies; everyone has dead friends, acquaintances, or classmates. Turn the other cheek, all that... dog crap. Children bury parents, and parents bury children, friends, and classmates. There are essentially no Outer Colonies left. We cannot afford "accidental" thousands of corpses. Humanity demands blood. No one dares destroy humans with impunity. If a damn xeno thinks they can kill a bunch of people and nothing will happen to them, they need an assault rifle shoved in their mouth and the trigger pulled.
The lieutenant's hand dropped onto his shoulder; in response to the look, he nodded. He understands. Scale of the whole mess is hidden from civilians whenever possible. But the military knows. We saw it. Okay, calm down. Now we're going to storm a ship. Probably. What are they saying?
"Well, this is our chance. Но deciding is still up to you, boss."
Before deciding, information is needed.
"What do we even know about this ship?"
What is a Hierarchy ship doing on the outskirts of the Terminus Systems, considering what we were told—that the Citadel isn't liked here? The situation is still debatable. More information is needed, and we have to rely on these shady robots. The Geth chattered:
"Standard Turian Hierarchy patrol ship. Length three hundred meters, crew forty sentients. Powerful anti-fighter armament, light magnetic accelerator, three shuttles. High maneuverability due to variable engine geometry. High armor for a ship of this class. Most effective intercept tactic: destroy the engines, board. Too mobile a target for a clean intercept under heavy fire."
"From personal experience?" one of the soldiers asked half-joking.
"Correct," the machine agreed neutrally, "we used this technique to capture patrol ships. In peacetime, they do not apply all security measures when passing through a system. Probability of success, taking into account the stealth systems of this ship, is 0.738."
Actually, there is logic. Humans also have a tendency to relax. And here, on the border, they can afford more, including direct racketeering or threats with weapons. A frigate for pirates is the pinnacle of personal power. No one will allow gangs to use anything large; they wouldn't be able to maintain it themselves. A large military ship cannot be serviced by a couple of drunk and high technicians. Although according to rumors, in the Terminus Systems, gangs can own entire planets. But I don't think these are full-fledged inhabited worlds, more like thin mining colonies. So it should work. If the psychology of these creatures is even slightly similar... The machine confirmed:
"This is the most likely behavioral model. A suitable bait will interest the patrol. Then they will report the find and with high probability will attempt to seize the cargo."
Aha. Good thing the command insisted on large supplies and a full crew. This can be worked with.
"Prepare the Pelican so that it is as visible as possible. Inside, crates with Geth and an emergency beacon. I don't think they're idiots and will approach with the whole ship instead of sending a shuttle. Your task: deal with those who come. Or, if the crate is brought onto the ship, cause chaos. We'll take a shot at their engines. It would be nice to hit them with a neutron bomb, but we'll need the ship."
The Geth chattered.
"This is feasible; we will move the platforms into containers."
Judging by the thumping, the Geth went to the hangar. Sometimes they are incredibly unnerving by their very existence. And noisy as hell. If our AIs feel like our own, then with these machines, you never know what they'll pull. But right now, they are working for us. Calmly. Then two Pelicans left the hangar; one of the machines was left in space with the emergency beacon turned on (with Citadel frequencies so they would definitely notice), and the second picked up the crew from the first and returned. What's important is that the colony of these creatures located at the edge of the system did not detect these movements. Or, at the very least, did not react.
The colony is small, about a hundred thousand inhabitants. They are of no interest to us whatsoever. A small detachment is already mapping and finding out what's there. But others will work with the finds, not us. But from the Turian ship, we can potentially remove the mass core. The bosses need this metal. There's never enough of it. Or use their ship for sabotage, if possible. The fact that their ships don't transition into Slipspace but accelerate allows for the potential use of a ship packed with explosives as a projectile. But these are all theories. First, we need to capture it, and then we'll see the damage.
The Scharnhorst quietly took its position and aimed toward the drifting transport. Engine trails can be detected, so the ship itself went into a drift, activating signal masking systems. And the waiting began.
"Do you think peace will come one day?"
The sergeant grinned.
"No, it won't."
"You think so?" one of the soldiers asked.
"I know, soldier. Before the Covenant, there were rebels and colonials. Heck, there are rebels even now. It was from them that the tradition of burning everyone in response arose. Where are you from, son?"
"Atlas Moons, sir. New Gettysburg. My younger brother enrolled this year; he'll be serving too."
The sergeant hummed.
"Then you don't know. These non-humans dropped a liner with passengers on Reach. And that was already after the war started. The Covenants are somewhere out there, but humans are humans. If you don't punch them in the teeth, they won't understand."
"What animals," another soldier cursed and received a slap on the back of the head.
"Don't go slandering animals. Humans do things like that. This is Humanity in all its foul glory. That's why I went to serve—because the army might use us as cannon fodder, but it remembers. And it won't let any scum get out of hand, you understand? Human or whatever else, it doesn't matter. You got me?"
"Yes, sir."
"I hope so."
One of the pilots spoke up:
"Um, boss? We have a problem."
A bit of calculation and they saw a small cargo ship that had set a course for the Pelican. It came out of the asteroid belt of a neighboring planet. It's coming boldly; apparently, it doesn't see the stealth ship but hears the beacon. Bad timing.
"They've detected our transport. What do we do?"
No Turians yet. What kind of ship is that anyway? Looks like something small, fifty meters. A freighter or something similar. Could be contraband or just a trader, who knows. The Pelican won't fit inside; the ship is too small. On the other hand, when they open the containers and find the Geth, the howl will be heard throughout the system.
"Captain?" the pilot asked again.
"Wait," the man replied.
There simply isn't a good option. Alright, we need to act.
"We wait. If the Hierarchy ship doesn't appear before they finish loading, we take these, whoever they are."
Not the best option, but if we're exposed, it'll be worse. All the stealth down the drain.
"Understood."
Meanwhile, the ship approached the Pelican and carefully flew around it. Then again.
"Just get lost already!" the pilot hissed.
"Yeah, it's clear they aren't going anywhere. One hope is the Hierarchy appears and scares these curious ones off."
Yeah, but no luck.
"They are docking," the operator at the scanners reported, "interesting how; the Pelican doesn't have airlocks, you have to bring it into the hull. Or land it on the hull. And this tub can't do anything like that."
Aha, the ship approached and a figure is visible on the camera, having climbed out of the airlock onto the ship's hull. In a spacesuit, it's not clear yet what race, but in the image from the camera left inside the ship, it doesn't look like a Turian. But also a humanoid. Not as tall, in dimensions a human or something close. It's easy to tell by the shape of the suit. Interesting.
"They look like us, right?"
"Yeah."
"Alright, don't clutter the channel. Wait further. Is there a connection?"
The AI grinned.
"Affirmative. The translator is working as it should. They are surprised by the find, remembering acquaintances to whom they could sell the cargo and the ship. I'm recording everything, but nothing important yet. They noticed the unfamiliar panels and are making guesses. I'm deciding..."
t, what to do right now. Judging by the language markers on board, salarians and asari.
Good. Perhaps they will dig around long enough for our targets to appear. Then their difficulties began. The tail of the Pelican contains a hardpoint where an M12 Warthog or a container can be placed. And right now, this hardpoint is preventing the scavengers' ship from pulling up to the door to drag the crates on board. They want the cargo, but their skills are clearly lacking. They bumped into the Pelican a couple of times, causing it to start moving by inertia, complicating the task even further.
"The pilot is definitely no genius."
"I will not translate what they are saying to their pilot right now," the AI reported.
One of the frigate pilots snorted.
"We're talking about a colonial transport. I think if he were any good, he'd be working closer to the Inner Colonies, not in this backwater."
The circus continued. It looked like they decided to try and brake the slowly drifting ship with their hull. They overtook the Pelican, closed in, began to slow down, stopping right in front of the transport, allowing it to bump its nose into their ship. The ship slowed down and began to drift in the opposite direction. It seems they aren't having much luck. Laughter erupted among the observers.
"Don't they have a magnetic grapple or something?"
"From where? This is clearly some piece of junk. Colonial, at that. Geth?"
The machine standing silently nearby chattered:
"Insufficient data. This colony has chemical plants for the production of industrial components. This is their main export. Presumably guarded by the Blue Suns, a large mercenary group that includes Turians and Asari. The ship does not resemble a Blue Suns ship. Equipment on the cameras does not match."
Affiliation unknown, little data. Still unclear. Although it might suggest what a patrol ship is doing here. Maybe contacts, or maybe it's the presence of infrastructure for Turians. In any case, interesting.
"And here is our ship."
Another fast-moving marker appeared on the edge of the system. A Turian patrol frigate. Like the known images, the ship has an elongated narrow hull and two "wings" with variable geometry with engines on the sides. It might seem foolish, but it gives the ship insane maneuverability, on the level of a fighter. We need to disable it with one blow, otherwise we won't catch it.
"Do they see the scavengers?"
The AI nodded.
"Affirmative. Fixing communication. The patrol ship is changing course; it seems we have successfully drawn attention to the right spot."
Whether the ship is communicating with other places, we don't know; a quantum transmitter cannot be tracked. But it's too late to worry about that now.
"Good. Get ready!"
Unlike the transport, the Turian ship hovered with its nose toward the Pelican at some distance. A shuttle was sent toward the ship. They are definitely playing it safe. Surely the gun is charged too. Considering there are Geth inside the crates, we'll need new ones.
"These are not the people you are looking for," the pilot muttered to himself.
The Scharnhorst gently steered in the right direction, trying not to draw attention. Considering we are talking about a six-hundred-meter ship, it's probably comical. But at these distances, it doesn't matter at all. Here, instruments either see you or they don't. If they do, you have problems.
"Target locked. Excellent. We're definitely losing the Pelican, so..."
"Did they get the crates on board?"
"Affirmative. On board the freighter. Levitated in zero-G; out of four, two made it. Two missed, one was caught by the shuttle, not opened yet."
Good, let's set up a diversion.
"Activate the Geth. Seize the ship, disperse to minimize damage. After the first Turian shot at the transport, we begin."
Another half-minute later, the patrol ship jerked sharply, turning. And then a shot point-blank pierced the cargo ship. It didn't look particularly epic; apparently, it went right through, simply killing everyone who was close enough.
"Fire. Our MAC is quite slow, but as long as the Turian doesn't twitch..."
"He dodged! We've been spotted!"
The ship jerked, turning about forty degrees in a second. Toward us.
"Forward! Intercept!" The Scharnhorst began to accelerate with a lunge, attacking with maximum rate of fire. The target ship was confused for a few seconds, and then, lunging away from another shot, began return fire. The transport with a hole through it is spinning aimlessly; it's clearly not going anywhere. A slug went wide, then another. And then the ship turned quickly, showing quite indecent mobility stats. If only we had those, huh.
"This Element Zero is a total cheat. What kind of compensation system do they have? They're going to get away!"
"They won't!" the AI smirked.
The missiles sent by the frigate are successfully intercepted by the laser system. Still, we have a decent number of launchers, and some are hitting the shields. Missiles tore away from the hardpoint of the drifting Pelican. Yes, everyone had somehow forgotten about it.
"Neutron? Who approved that?"
"I did," the Spartan said sharply, "we must be prepared for different scenarios."
And if anything, the charge could have been detonated right on the transport's hardpoint, one must assume. Clever, actually. Although these missiles are insanely expensive. Another indicator of how much ONI is betting on this operation. We won't let them down.
"Release everything we have, overload their point-defense system!"
The entire Pelican hardpoint isn't that big—four missiles of this caliber. One hit and the charge won't reach the target. We just need to get lucky. Closer, even closer.
"Got him!" the pilot yelled, looking at the white-blue flash, "the target is no longer accelerating! We fried them!"
"Excellent. Landing party, get ready. You're up."
We need to see what can be extracted. And fast, before they come up with something or new enemies arrive.
***
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