Author's Note : Firstly, I'm sorry for the long delay. And then... I don't think I want to speak too much, 'cuz it might spoil the fun. So let's just get on with the story and pretend that nothing ever happened. Enjoy.

xxxx

Chapter 1 : A Prologue to Chaos

The two shuttles cruised through the void lined with ominous-looking gas tendrils. Just a few moments ago, those tendrils, whatever they are, severely damaged the lone ark simply by being too close to it. Some witnesses even swore that the disturbing thing tried to snake its way into the human ark's main hull, as if wanting to breach it.

Look at them, the things were swirling, bending, and shoving itself across the dark nothingness like they were alive, as if they were the hands of a dark entity threatening to swallow everything in its way.

Natalie Homer, the 'sniper lady', solemnly watched the tendrils through the windows of shuttle number 1. She reflected on the chaotic ordeal that befell the Hyperion not long ago.

She was awakened from her cryo pod by the ark's technicians a little bit early than scheduled. From there, time seemed to smoothly fly by, just like Natalie seamlessly continued with her schedule; one moment she was carefully dressing in her uniform, the next moment she already went out and took the tram without anybody noticing, and then she stood before the AI Node in what felt like a minute of walking from point A to B.

SAM was there, online and ready to provide service, so were Natalie's children. What everybody back home passively hand-waved as 'Geth', what the great Commander Shepard persistently designated as 'Reapers'.

She didn't waste her time with small talk or excessive greetings; they were the norms of organic communication. SAM was fitted with its programming shackles to prevent it from ratting out her existence. The Reapers' minds were focused on preparing whatever intel and processing power that their master would need once her first mission started. Natalie then returned to the medical bay in anticipation of Scott and Sara Ryder's awakening. Normally, she would take things into her own hands, but since she had no data on Scott's behavior and social routine, she must found a relationship with him, to see if he really was the perfect candidate for her use. Kithara, her favorite 'child', was given limited authority over the AI network, and secured access to her platform's thought processor.

That's when a series of unfortunate events took place. The Hyperion underwent multiple power failures caused by the tendrils' proximity. The pod which contained Sara was disrupted, putting a slight change of schedule for Natalie, And for unknown reasons, she was assigned to the same shuttle with Alec Ryder and Cora Harper in charge.

Natalie hated him with a passion. She loathed how Alec gave the impression of enjoying a lethal happenstance with the unknown. The Hyperion's captain insisted on steering clear of the tendrils and seeks out the Nexus, their hub in Andromeda, wherever it might be. But the 'awesome' and 'dauntless' Alec Ryder had to overrule the captain's orders, claiming that soon or later, they'll have to find safe harbor, and that the Pathfinder's job is to dispel the dangers that might lurk in the planet's surface. It was this kind of organic martyrdom which very frequently resulted in disasters. And Natalie despised it so much.

And look at what their safe harbor was now. Habitat 7, a planet churned with storm clouds, filled with electromagnetic interferences, and virtually no oxygen.

Natalie's body required no oxygen; she simply simulated breathing gestures for the sake of blending in with people. But Scott... he probably won't make it if something ever happened to him.

Natalie snapped out of her thoughts at the voice of the young man next to her.

Scott Ryder, the wayward son of Alec and a bright young soldier who spent the entirety of his Alliance career as keeper of Arcturus Relay in the Sol Cluster. Scott, according to the database Natalie discreetly hacked, was to receive some sort of promotion when his father was caught experimenting with an AI, what will one day evolve into SAM. Alec was dishonorably discharged, so did Scott.

And now, here he was, serving under his errant father's wings, descending to a ruined planet that could practically kill anyone.

Next to him was Liam Kosta, some guy from Earth. All that Natalie could find about the man suggested that he was a policeman working at a crisis-response team. No history of family or social abuse, but nothing special about him aside from intimate knowledge on vintage transportation modes.

The shuttles slowly cleared out of the tendril field and began their descend into the planet's atmosphere. Quick analysis from both SAM and Kithara (discreetly) revealed that the tendrils were interfering with something on Habitat 7. Whatever that interference was, it caused any lingering oxygen from the atmosphere to dissolute. As Natalie moved closer to the window, the storm clouds slowly dissipated from view, revealing a spectacle that even she couldn't get her eyes away from.

Giant structures, a series of artificial constructs spanning miles away on the planet's surface, their towers and pillars could be seen extending into the chasms below as if growing from them. The passengers onboard were very excited, but the pathfinder steadied his attention. Alec briefly reminded everyone of the Initiative's First-Contact Protocol; do not shoot the aliens or employ hostile acts unless the natives attacked first. Natalie was pretty much fine with it because she knew there would be at least 8 ways to peacefully communicate with new aliens. Her concern was laid on the teammates; none of them were diplomats, they were soldiers to say the least, not the best kind of people to initiate first contact with aliens. Even Alec was not the type to greet strangers graciously. No, he would rather shoot his way to get things done.

Once again Natalie had to shook her head to keep her focus, because right at that second, chaotic events came back very viciously. Huge lightning strikes blinded them. Their shuttle flew into another storm cloud, effectively cutting out comms with shuttle two, and then violent turbulence rattled the shuttle.

Grabbing the wall behind her, Natalie turned around in as she watched their transportation being ripped pieces by pieces in horror. Liam was being sucked outside the shuttle with only a hand still desperately holding to the broken metal plating. Scott tried to save him, but he too was blown out of the vehicle.

More people were propelled out, including the pilot. Natalie realized in 2 seconds that, if she stayed behind, the shuttle could explode with her inside it. Frustrated, she made a agitated choice; leap out and hope that her suit's jet pack carried her platform safely to the ground below.

And then she jumped.