A/N: Hey there, ReaperScion here. I bid you welcome to this new DA/ME crossover project. This is something myself and joniedinofreak have been working on the past month or so. After weeks of discussing the story, etc. etc. we are finally ready to release the first of many chapters. As this is a collaborative effort, you will notice that joniedinofreak will be writing all of the Cerberus-oriented chapters, while my focus will be on a certain other faction. Unfortunately, I will have to postpone "A Reaper In Thedas" until at least June/July, as I currently have only just about enough time to focus on one story, so once again apologies to anyone following that particular tale. If you have any comments or questions about this chapter, please contact joniedinofreak, or indeed leave a review which I will pass onto him ASAP. ReaperScion.
-2186; Two days before the Battle of Earth-
John White stood in the cockpit of the heavy cruiser Niddhogg. The Niddhogg was the main ship of the recon element, accompanying 'Project Ethereal'. At this very moment a message played.
"You are our last hope. As I speak the Alliance navy is attacking Cronos-station, so do not expect more communications from headquarters. You will go to lands where no man has ever gone before. You will go past the Ragnarok system on of the borders of our galaxy and beyond. You will prove that we know no borders. Go and show the galaxy what humanity is worth. And make sure the money invested in the project doesn't go to waste. Before we fini-"
Communications went out at that point. Heavy silence was felt across the bridge as reality hit them.
"I guess with General Petrovsky gone and the big man missing," the co-pilot began, "you're now coming second in rank, sir?"
"It seems so, navigate us through this area Darby, and warn me when we are past the danger of the black holes."
At that point White turned around and went to his personal quarters.
He pondered about his assignment. Project Ethereal, Cerberus' last plan… Its sole purpose was to ensure the survival of humanity, a daring plan it was, to bring thousands of colonists beyond the dark hole-ridden area that was known as the Ragnarok system, into deep space. If they could build a colony on a suitable planet in a galaxy beyond, then they might be able to prepare for the Reapers, should Shepard fail, that is. The journey would be long and hazardous; the Reapers, power failure, hull breaches and cryo-pod malfunctions were all a threat, despite the fact that this project had every bit of advanced technology available to Cerberus. VI's and shackled AI's would tend to the hull if any damage was sustained. The most advanced FTL engines there were would propel them; technology adapted by studying Reaper wreckages, but even then the journey would take hundreds, if not thousands of years. Of the thousands of colonists, there was no guarantee that any would awaken from cryo stasis when the time came. They could only hope that the AI's wouldn't rebel in some manner or the experimental power cores wouldn't give out.
And who was to say there wouldn't be anything waiting for them at the other side of deep space? Be it hostile aliens, Reapers or just more black holes. Every single one of these factors showed just how desperate they were. Even Cerberus' top scientists, engineers, etc. were onboard the cryo ships.
And then they'd still have to hope that ground-side wildlife wouldn't prove to be immune to metal slugs, against all odds. It was a last-minute revelation that made the decision come through to replace all harriers, hornets, etc. with 'ancient' cool-down based weapons instead of the thermal clip based weapons.
"Sir, we made it through the area, no casualties in the fleet. Standing by for orders."
"I'll be there in a minute." White hurried back to the cockpit. "It is time" was the one thought running through his head as he positioned himself at the comm. "Open communication to the fleet, short range communications."
"It is done, sir."
"My friends, we made it into deep space, a feat that we should relish in, if we were not so desperate. Yet this is not where this stops. I ask of you to turn off all unnecessary programs to save power. This includes IFF's, communications, garbage compactors, etc. as they will be useless here in deep space. When we reach another galaxy the VI's and AI's will warn us. Now go, put your ships on autopilot and walk into your cryo stasis pods. We will speak on the other side, no matter how long it takes." He stopped and gathered his breath, while watching every ship blot out of the scanners; only one thing remained for him, before he could do the same; one last message, to secure the mission and the lives of these men and women, who entrusted him to watch over them.
"Open the communications towards every known Cerberus base, emergency channel."
"We are connecting, sir." Then a nod, to indicate their connection.
"This is Admiral John White of the Niddhogg, the mission is a failure. We just lost our fleet to black holes. I repeat Project Ethereal has failed! No! Steer away damnit! St-," The pilot terminated communications and the other unnecessary systems.
"Good job, men, get to your cryo stasis pods, I want nobody running around when I do the last check-up."
"Aye, aye cap'n," the pilot responded "Permission to speak, sir?"
"Granted, speak freely."
"Do you really think we'll make it?"
"No, but it was still an honor serving with all of you," John White turned and went to do the final check-up. 15 minutes later, he too went into cryo sleep. Marking the beginning of a new journey... or the end of an old one perhaps?
-842 TE; Thedas; Tevinter Imperium-
Julius Faucus sent a fireball towards the incoming creature. As the fireball hit the beast full in the face, its companions burned alongside it.
"I'm starting to feel exhausted, out of mana poultices!" He shouted. At that point an Emissary appeared, preparing a spell of his own.
"Why does it look different?" Julius pondered for a moment before shaking his head.
Julius focused all his remaining mana into one spell. A crushing prison surrounded the Emissary, preventing the spell, but it was all he could give. The only thing that prevented him from collapsing was his staff. One of the rogues ran up to him.
"Here, mana poultice from the Emissary."
Julius nodded in acknowledgement and gulped down the potion. And then pain crashed down on him. He screamed as a combination of tainted blood, lyrium and something else rushed through his veins. He started to roll, a voice starting to resonate through his mind.
"It seems my chosen one has done his mission. Accept my blood; join my ranks as the first conscious human."
Instead, flames gathered in his hands and formed a tempest in the darkspawn ranks. Where there once stood an army, now they perished. Where they had once smelled victory, annihilation awaited them.
After the ranks broke and the darkspawn were retreating, one of the higher officers started to walk towards Julius, only for the latter to walk towards the woods and fire a flame burst into the treeline. Darkspawn scattered out, only to be dispatched. The ambush was put down before it even had a chance of being set off.
"What happened?"
"I don't know, I just can..." He paused, searching for the right word, "I can sense them."
He looked towards the potion on the ground, noticing a small pool of it remaining in the vial.
"I have to study this; it could be our key to victory." He turned around and walked off, the vial clutched carefully between his hands.
-4 months later-
Darkspawn hordes were starting to break and scatter across the lands, losing every sense of organization at the hands of a new group of warriors. These warriors were the only ones the darkspawn feared. The only ones who could sense the darkspawn and deal with an attack, before it even began. They came from every race united under the Tevinter banners, led by a mage by the name of Julius Faucus. As time progressed, they started riding Griffins; creatures terrifying and beautiful, meant to take down enemies on the ground... or the archdemon in the skies. They began to wear grey robes, the color grey after all is a color that doesn't stand out, it hides people, be it in shadow or night. These warriors started calling themselves the Grey Wardens. They were the ultimate force against the darkspawn. But even they weren't enough to stop them as long as the archdemon lived. So naturally, they developed a plan. But that is another story, for another time. For the archdemon would only get killed around 150 years later, when Julius and those he recruited were long dead, and the deathblow would come from a former elven slave, of all things.
-3444, The Niddhog, The new galaxy. –
"Awakening Commander Robin Stark. De-freezing protocol completed, welcome back Commander."
Those were the first words Robin Stark heard. Even if the voice was synthetic, he was glad to hear it. He would've even hugged Amy, if he could that is.
"Amy, glad to hear your voice!"
"This unit exists to serve, Commander. This unit would advise you not to move until the medical VI finishes its scan and confirms you are ready and able for active duty once again."
"Sure, so is the Admiral awake already? That was the plan, wasn't it, awaken him first?"
"Negative Commander. Admiral John White died during the awakening process; he didn't follow the guidelines and hence did not reach the stated amount of energy before going into cryo stasis. He died two hours ago, at the point of arrival in this galaxy. You are now the highest ranking officer aboard the Niddhogg. The highest ranking officer in the fleet is aboard the Ammut. He was awakened one and a half hours ago. There have been six messages sent towards the Niddhogg in the past 1000 years. Medical check-up complete, you are free to walk around, Commander."
The news of the Admiral's decease was stunning, it kept Robin's mind occupied long enough for him to only realize the last part of the message about ten minutes later. Only six messages? And 1000 years, an entire millennium, 1/50th of a cycle. What happened? It made Robin stop for a few moments, just long enough for the news to sink in once again. The fleets of nearly every species were at the Battle of Earth. It made him feel dizzy, so he hurried, maybe the messages were good news, and maybe they had won.
"Amy, our comms were out, where did the messages come from?"
"They came from an unmanned communications relay in the Milky Way. It was situated on a moon and was most likely rigged to the fleet's frequency, and after sending the messages it would've self-destructed to remove all evidence. The fact that the messages came through the QEC explains the nature of the relay. Any more intelligence required?"
"No thanks Amy. Can you please play the messages?"
"Affirmative Commander, playing messages. Message 1"
"Fleet, it is now two months since the Battle of Earth. We don't know what happened, but what we know is that the great Alliance plan failed. Their weapon did not fire, there's only one surviving ship out of the entire fleet. Apparently the moment they were supposed to retreat, a second Reaper group positioned themselves between the fleet and the mass relay. Aside from the single ship, nobody got through, Admiral Hackett, Urdnot Wrex, Tali'Zorah Vas Normandy, Admiral Koris vas Qwib Qwib, Major Kirrahe, Primarch Victus, Matriarch Lidanya, Commander Shepard, Garrus Vakarian and so many others are all MIA and presumed dead. The only real resistance to the Reapers at this very moment is coming from the remnants of the Cerberus fleet. The allied forces threw the full 100% of their capabilities on the Reaper fleets; let's hope we can buy them enough time to rebuild. Headquarters out."
"Message 2"
"Second status update, two years after the Battle of Earth. In the past two years the Krogan, Volus, Hanar, Vorcha, Batarians, Drell and Elcor went extinct. Our efforts were wasteful, what ships that were being built, got destroyed before they got completed. Human territory decreases by a colony per week, yet we adapt, for every two colonies the Reapers take they lose a capital ship, other casualties are negligible at this point. Slow them down with bug bites, we can't give up now. We'll have the weapon to defeat the Reapers if we get a few more months. Rumour goes that Commander Shepard is back. There is no proof for this however. We'll have to investigate this. Headquarters out."
"Message 3."
"Commander Shepard has returned! We are pushing the Reapers back! The Turians, Salarians, Geth, Quarians and Asari are successfully building ships and defeating Reapers, ground battles turn to our advantage. At this rate we'll be able to build our weapon and destroy them! Oh, right, today is around three years after the Battle of Earth. Headquarters out."
"Message 4"
Another voice came through.
"Today we can regard the battle of Earth four years past us. We have been betrayed. Our weapon was ready and about to make its first test against the Reapers when Commander Shepard sold us out. We should've known, he had all the signs of indoctrination all along and we just ignored it. The Hierarchy has been utterly destroyed and all contact with Quarians and Geth is lost. I fear that we won't last long anymore. Headquarters out."
"Message 5."
"The Battle of Earth is now ten years past. The Alliance has been decimated, what is left of humanity has gathered under our banners, and even though our territory is extremely small, we still have a better time than the Asari and Salarians. Those who are left are exiles and have joined up with us. We were naïve with our ideas of supremacy, what if we had joined up with the others from the very beginning? I wonder, would we have defeated the Reapers then? Anyway, we have taken to desperate measures to slow the Reapers down. Every colony has a planet bomb stuck inside its crust. The Reapers try to harvest and they get blown up. So many lives wasted with every push of a button, yet with every Reaper destroyed, who knows how many lives we manage to save in the next cycle? We aren't making illusions anymore, we know we won't win, but at least we can try to make the Reapers bleed enough to make sure the next civilizations avenge us. Good luck mission, headquarters out."
"Message 6"
"Twelve years have passed since the Battle of Earth, but even now we can feel its effects. We are the only world left, made up of the last Asari, Humans, Salarians, and god knows how they managed to survive till today… the Turians. When we die, it will mean the end of all advanced life in the galaxy, until the first of the next cycle appear. Yet we won't go out without a bang. Literally. The moment the last Human, Turian, Asari or Salarian in the base dies a planet bomb triggers. As you can guess by the sound of the gunfire coming closer every moment, the Reapers are assaulting us. Goodbye Ethereal and be our vengeance. Headqua-" A few gunshots echoed and then there was silence.
"Amy is this the end of the message?"
"Negative commander, the message goes on for about one and a half hours."
"Shut it off, I think I know how it ends. Is the crew thawed out already?"
"Affirmative Commander, there were 15 casualties, the Admiral included."
"Can you contact the rest of the fleet?"
"Affirmative Commander, Rear Admiral Uderzo has dispatched a shuttle carrying your new CO. His designation is Captain Geoffrey Lancaster. Our ship will also be dispatched to scout a nearby cluster."
"Well, let's get the crew ready heh?"
Commander Robin Stark had a bad feeling about this mission, but orders were orders and he'd get them from someone else soon enough.
-9:30 Dragon, equivalent of 2125 TE-
"Magic exists to serve man and never to rule over him. Thus spoke the prophet Andraste as she cast down the Tevinter Imperium; it was ruled by mages who brought the world to the edge of ruin. Your magic is a gift, but it's also a curse, for demons of the dream realm – the Fade - are drawn to you and seek to use you as a gateway into this world." Said Knight-Commander Greagor.
"This is why the Harrowing exists, the ritual sends you into the Fade and there you will face a demon, armed with only your will." Continued First Enchanter Irving.
"I am ready," replied Aeryn Amell, the apprentice who was about to go through her Harrowing.
"Know this apprentice, if you fail, we Templars will do our duty, and you will die."
At this Cullen, the Templar whose task it was to kill her shifted a bit uncomfortably. It was no secret that he was enamoured by Aeryn; it was why he was chosen. A test to see if he was able to do what was necessary if the girl he wanted was the one being possessed.
"This is lyrium, the very essence of magic. And your gateway into the Fade. The Harrowing is a secret out of necessity, child. Every mage must go through this trial by fire. As we succeeded, so shall you. Keep your wits about you and remember, the Fade is the realm of dreams. The spirits may rule it, but your own will is real."
"The apprentice must go through this test alone, First Enchanter." Greagor intervened. "You are ready."
And so Aeryn went into the fray. It'd taken her 40 minutes before she completed her test, yet it was the fastest Harrowing any of them had ever witnessed. Cullen rejoiced about the fact he didn't have to kill her. Yet when she flirted with him a bit after she woke up, he ran for it. He intended to confess his feelings the next day, yet because of a series of events, she had to leave with the Grey Warden Duncan.
Cullen hadn't been depressed like that for his entire life and it became quite obvious because of his treatment of other mages. Yet only a few blamed him, none in fact, except a senior mage that went by the name of Uldred.
-2 months later. Niddhogg's arrival in the assigned system. -
Captain Lancaster stared at the garden planet before his eyes. It was perfect. Initial scans indicated it had similar statistics as Earth, yet they needed to come closer for a better scan; they had to go in orbit to check if it was inhabited. Despite all the money invested in the ship, the one thing nobody thought about was bloody scanners. Guess that's what happens when certain people waste billions of credits sending probes into Uranus.
"Commander, get us into orbit over the planet. Now."
"But -"
"No buts, I gave you an order Commander. It is your duty to execute it."
He wondered "What was the man's name again? Something with Robin… Robin Hood?" He chuckled at his own joke.
"We're in orbit, sir."
"Good, commence the scan."
"Scanning, sir."
Suddenly Amy chimed in over the intercom. "Captain Lancaster-"
"Didn't I tell you lot to turn off the damn AI? Bloody idiots!"
Geoffrey didn't care about it a single bit. Having an AI on board was blasphemy in his books. AI's were a pet hate of his, seeing as they killed his entire family back on Eden Prime. He'd die before trusting a single AI.
So he waited for the scan to complete, and suddenly noticed that the Commander was talking to himself. He wasn't surprised; he looked like an insane person anyway.
"Status report!"
"Scan is 95% complete, sir… We are getting some interesting readings here, Captain."
"What readings?"
"Intelligent life-forms, we think they're of a late classical to early medieval ages level. We can't be sure about that until we send scouts to the surface."
"Doesn't matter, we've completed our mission, let's get out of here."
A terrific bang sounded from the lower levels of the ship, followed by several smaller bangs. The ship rocked from the impacts, its mass effect fields obviously failing to compensate for the explosions. Datapads and pieces of paper were scattered all over the floor, an unlucky crewman spilled his coffee and slipped on the liquid, falling flat on the hard floor while several others reeled from the hits and grabbed onto something before they fell too.
"What happened?" yelled Geoffrey as alarm klaxons started blaring all over the deck.
"Several meteors crashed into us, sir! We're in the middle of a storm!"
"What? Why didn't anyone tell me there was an incoming storm?"
He should've expected the answer to come from the Commander.
"Amy tried to warn you, but you didn't even bother to listen! This is your fault and your responsibility. Now, what are our orders?"
"Get us out of here! Now!" he roared, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead.
"Shields down, engines are offline, fifteen hands lost due to suffocation on the cargo deck, four others due to the impact of the meteors… Lockdown of cargo area complete." Responded Amy over the intercom once again.
"DIDN'T I TELL YOU LOT TO PUT THAT DAMN AI OUT? DO IT NOW BEFORE I EXECUTE YOU!"
"The Captain has brought this upon us, ignore his orders, get towards the armoury, gather your combat suits, activate mag boots, put your helmets on and take your weapons. I'll meet you at the escape pods!" ordered Robin over the shipboard speakers.
"DON'T LISTEN TO THE TRAITOR!" Geoffrey lunged at the Commander, only to get a fist in his face that knocked him out as another explosion sent him off balance right into Robin Stark's punch.
When he came to, Geoffrey was greeted by Amy's synthetic voice.
"All hands have abandoned ship, you are the last one alive here Captain. The majority of the ship has been disintegrated by secondary explosions, with the exclusion of this portion of Decks 1 and 2. This unit would advise you to run towards the last remaining escape pod near the cockpit. The meteor storm claimed two escape pods, but has passed for the moment."
"I still have to do one thing."
"Yes?"
"Nothing special…" He said as he went straight to the AI core one deck bellow, grabbing a gun off the corpse of a fallen crewmember on the way.
"Captain, what are you doing?"
"Doing what I should've done earlier." He stated as he reached his destination, taking aim at the AI-core and squeezing off a burst, slugs ripping through the core and blowing the machine to pieces.
"One AI down again, good." He mumbled as he made his way back to the escape pod.
The doors closed after he pushed the launch button, but it didn't launch.
"You made a big mistake Captain. I was trying to help you, yet you thanked me by trying to fry me. I was lucky the Commander anticipated this. He uploaded my core to his suit instead; he protects me. And I will cherish the thought that you died here, cold and alone, with no chance for rescue. I only wonder, will you start eating yourself to fend off the inevitable starvation, or will you bang your head against the wall until you finally manage to kill yourself? It will prove quite interesting to find out."
Geoffrey screamed non-stop for what seemed like hours, and the entire time he could've sworn the AI was laughing at him over the escape pod's comm.
A/N – joniedinofreak style:
Hello,
As my esteemed co-writer said, he handles the other-faction chapters, whilst I write these Cerberus and DA chapters. Yet, he deserves a lot of credit for these chapters too, as he is the one who gets the burden of spelling checking my chapters and of course make sure my weird way of formulating some things doesn't cause to much confusion. So, yes, if this chapter read easily, he's the one to thank for that.
Second, you can contact me and I'll answer any questions that I can answer, so don't ask for spoilers, because those don't drop in answerable, borderline cases will be discussed with reaperscion.
Now, I'm going to cut this short, before I start causing problems to my co-writer's ego, can't have that happen can we? He might start getting ideas! Can you imagine the horror? *shudders*.
Hope you enjoy(ed) your read and greetings,
Joniedinofreak