The pioneers of human establishment, that's what they called the builders of Arcturus Station. The men and women who forged the nerve centre of all Alliance tactical operations, and the home of the Fifth Fleet. Such a station was a testament to mankind's tenacity, and their drive towards the dark unknown. The location of the Normandy SR-1's test flight, and home of its respective pilot, Jeff Moreau.
It's my home too, of course.
Jack leaned forward, perched at the foot of his bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The station itself had been quiet lately, no pressing issues. He never looked forward to waking up to the wail of the station alarm, signifying a hull breach or a drill. Though, the former was far more serious. Glancing around the room, he was met with the familiar metallic sheen of the walls. Alliance regs meant he never got to decorate his room on the station. Too much of a fire hazard, which he couldn't disagree with. This was less of a home to him than his Citadel apartment anyway, the place where he could connect with people outside of the Alliance. He always found that speaking to aliens helped his understanding of galactic affairs, though being raised on an exclusively human space station bred a small amount of distrust in other species. Yep, room's in the same state that it's always been. What's the point in having our own rooms instead of bunks, and not being able to put stuff up? If a fire breaks out, just crack a fucking window. Then again, anything that's not bolted down… He smirked to himself. The room's dim lighting reflected the unnatural day and night cycle aboard the station, as the station didn't rotate on an axis. How society adapted to different planets having different time cycles, confused him. Jack swiped at his omni-tool, and noted that the time was 0800. Most of the station's recruits were probably running their drills, so the residential quarters were almost silent. Hopefully today's gonna be uneventful.
His thoughts were interrupted by a ping to his omni-tool. The orange holographic display corresponded to the notification sound on his personal terminal. Great, can't get a moment of peace and quiet. He stood up, walked over and proceeded to sit back down, this time at his desk. Logging on, he found the message, along with an attachment.
'2nd Lieutenant Davis,
Report to the bridge ASAP, We have a situation. Attached is a temporary access code to the bridge.
-Admiral Hackett'
From the Admiral himself? Must be serious. Rest of the squad's probably on their way. He hastily exited his room, heading down the spacious corridor towards one of the station's trams. Arcturus station was far too long to simply walk to the bridge, the numerous plant pots scattered down the hallway broke up the monotonous whites and grays. The quiet of hum of life support and ventilation systems was always apparent aboard the station, but it was the kind of white noise that Jack appreciated. Reaching the end of his residential corridor, the tram had just pulled up at its terminal. As soon as the doors opened, he stepped inside.
He was greeted with the sight of his fellow squadmate, Corporal Natalie Morozov. The dark haired woman was one of the earthborn station inhabitants, a quality which garnered her a lot of attention from the single men on the station. She turned to face him, saluted and smiled gently. "Lieutenant Davis, sir." She spoke softly, the woman rarely acted uptight. Her Russian accent probably helped. He pressed the button leading to a lobby area, entering his credentials when asked. You either had to be a senior officer or have permission from the Admiral himself to simply stroll onto the bridge, unless you were stationed up there.
Deciding to make small talk, Jack smiled back. "Morning, Corporal. You get the Admiral's message?"
She nodded, "Just received it. I'm guessing we'll be the first ones there, seeing as the Captain and Gunnery Chief are at docking bay 6."
"This early, huh? Any word on 'Jackal'?" He asked, but he had a feeling that he knew the answer. She was probably already on the bridge, rearing to go. She was an N7, after all.
Natalie shook her head. "I haven't heard from her, but I'm sure she'll have seen it." She leaned towards him, a worried edge in her voice. "I heard Fox team talking about the situation, they said that batarian ships bypassed the station's sensor range and managed to get to the Euler system. I think they're targeting Benning. I just hope they don't hurt anyone down there." The squad's medic was never one to wish pain on others, though she gladly took part in her fair share of combat. It perplexed the man.
"Fucking batarians. Why can't they just stick to the Terminus Systems?" Jack groaned, annoyed at the situation. He could've vid-called his parents, or messaged Phyllis… But no. It had to be pirates.
Natalie sighed sadly, her blue eyes glancing downwards. "It's times like this when I share your sentiment. But they aren't all bad. It's just those that turn to piracy that are the problem."
"Then I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree." He stepped away from her, and sat down on one of the tram's several seats. The doctor had a good heart, but she always tried to see the good, even when the bad was far more prevalent. It probably came with the medical training. "I wonder if Green's already pissing off the captain?" He idly wondered to himself aloud.
Natalie tried to hide a smirk. "I think we both know the answer to that, lieutenant."
At that, Jack laughed. "Pretty unprofessional, considering that he's a gunnery chief. I'm sure Ramsden will be down his throat before we're briefed."
She followed his lead, sitting herself down next to him, leaning back into the stiff seat. She closed her eyes, and took a long, deep breath.
He raised an eyebrow at her. "You alright doc? You look like you're about to have a panic attack."
She nodded. "Just an old technique for relieving anxiety. From the sounds of it, we'll be going into something bad. I just hope it doesn't end up like last time."
Jack sighed to himself, remembering their fallen squadmate. "That wasn't your fault, doc. Horizon was a shitshow. We were lucky to push the Geth back."
"I know. But Sarah didn't deserve to die like that." She leaned forward on her elbows for support, and cupped her head with her hands. Horizon held some painful memories, which the Geth were responsible for. They couldn't have just retreated back to the Perseus Veil after Saren was defeated, instead they chose to launch random attacks on different colonies. They were part of a platoon dispatched to deal with them.
Jack couldn't think of anything else to say, so he sat through the rest of the tram journey in silence. While the transport moved at a decent speed, it still took a few minutes to reach the heart of the station. The tram eventually came to a stop, the doors opening to reveal a large lobby area. While not as crowded as it would usually be, there were still Alliance troops and personnel moving between trams, corridors and elevators. Stepping out of the tram, Jack booted up his omni-tool for the access code while walking toward the elevator for the bridge. It was secured by both a voice recognition panel, and a retinal scanner. Alliance security tended to be tight whenever a Fleet Admiral was concerned. Arcturus was an important asset, and allowing an infiltrator to gain access to the bridge was a pertinent concern on the Alliance brass's minds. The temporary codes used were always one-time use, to prevent abuse of access. Approaching the console, Jack spoke the code aloud, and leaned forwards, allowing the analytic light to scan his retina. For all the security, it was efficient time-wise. The elevator doors opened, and Jack entered with Natalie in tow.
The bridge was stationed at the very top of the centre of the station, and acted as a rather large nerve centre for the station, with holographic readouts flashing up across the different consoles and terminals of the station's life support, fleet activity, cargo imports, population, communications from other stations scattered around the Milky Way, and reports from Benning; the station's primary supplier of food. Upon reaching the bridge, the two of them were met by a pair of armed guards, yet another layer of security. One wearing red standard issue armor, the other wearing blue armor.
"What's your business on the bridge?" The one wearing red alliance armor spoke first.
"2nd Lieutenant Davis, and Corporal Morozov. Part of Wolf Squad, we're here on the order of Admiral Hackett." Jack spoke curtly.
The soldier nodded, as if he expected their arrival. "I'll let the Admiral know you're here. Wait here a moment." He turned, and marched towards the centre of the bridge, down the small set of stairs.
The one in blue scratched his neck awkwardly. "I'm 1st Lieutenant Wedge, and that was Major Biggs. The Admiral mentioned that Wolf Squad would be showing up, Staff Lieutenant Brook is already here." Glancing past Wedge, Jack saw the tan skinned woman speaking with Hackett, alongside Major Biggs and a turian that he didn't know. She was always an early riser.
"Any idea what's going on, Wedge?" Jack asked, hoping to coax more information out of his fellow lieutenant.
The man adjusted his stance slightly, sighing. "I think Admiral Hackett's already briefed Fox and Bear Squad, so it must be important. They're already in the armoury." Glancing past Wedge's shoulder, he noticed the Admiral beckon him down. Wedge looked behind him, following Jack's eyes. He quickly stepped aside. "Well, good luck." Wedge offered his parting words.
Jack nodded to him curtly, and descended the steps towards the Admiral. Upon getting close, he immediately straightened up and offered a salute, which the Admiral reciprocated. "Lieutenant Davis, Corporal Morozov." Lowering his arm, he continued. "Since the rest of your team is yet to arrive, we'll get introductions out of the way first. This is Kasius Tandonis, the replacement for your former engineer." The turian in question stepped forward, and offered his hand.
Davis glanced towards him suspiciously. "With all due respect sir, why is a turian on Arcturus Station? Let alone replacing our engineer?" He spoke cautiously, not wanting to offend the Admiral.
"He's here as part of the HTIP, or the 'Human-Turian Integration Programme'. It was set up between the turian military and the Alliance to help facilitate cooperation and understanding after the recent hostilities between our species. And last I checked, Wolf Squad had an empty position to fill after Horizon. I trust that you won't have a problem with this?" The Admiral spoke sternly, like the question only had one correct answer.
"No, sir." Davis backed down under the Admiral's steely gaze, and shook Tandonis's hand. It was awkward finding a position to grip, due to turians having fewer digits than humans. "Pleasure to meet you, Tandonis."
His mandibles flared, resembling a smile. "Likewise, sir. I'll do my best to live up to expectations." The blue markings on his face resembled an upside down Y shape, running from under his eyes, to the top of his crest, in contrast to his light carapace. Jack wondered if the colour of the markings had a cultural significance, as the only other turian he'd been in close proximity with was his Citadel neighbour, Phyllis, who had a darker carapace, with green markings. Birth place, maybe? I should ask him about it sometime. The turian's voice was of particular note, the flanging effect quickly caught his attention. His other turian friend had a far less pronounced flanging effect, sounding almost human.
He stepped aside, leaving Morozov to get acquainted with their new squadmate. Captain's gonna be pissed when he sees this. Flanagan's gonna love it. He walked over to their sniper, Staff Lieutenant Alex Brook. More frequently referred to as 'Jackal' by the rest of the squad, due to her involvement in the Torfan raid. For such a small woman, she was one of the few that intimidated him, with her green eyes and sandy brown hair, tied up in a loose bun. He noticed the small N7 marking on her chestpiece, one of the ultimate badges of honor for an Alliance soldier. The only N7 that Jack knew of was the famous Commander Shepard.
"Davis." She nodded to him, a simple acknowledgement.
"Jackal. How long've you been up here?" He asked.
"Since 0700. Admiral wanted to see me personally, before our assignment." He never managed to quite place her accent. The silence regarding her own past didn't help his understanding either. None of the squad had any idea where she was born, or how she even got into the military.
"I hear you. Any idea what's going on?" He tried to probe her, like he did with Wedge.
"I'll let the Admiral explain it when the others get here." She dismissed him, walking back over to their newest addition, leaving Jack on his own. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long.
He heard the voice of Major Biggs near the entrance to the bridge, and instantly recognised the voice of the men he was confronting. Seeing them as well, Admiral Hackett waved them down.
"Admiral Hackett, sir." Captain Ramsden saluted as soon as he reached them, with Flanagan in tow. He quickly followed suit.
"Captain Ramsden, Gunnery Chief Flanagan. Good to see that you've finally arrived. Before we get to the issue at hand, introductions are necessary first." The Admiral breathed in, well aware of the Captain's… issues with turians. Hackett gestured to Tandonis. "Meet the newest addition to your squad, Kasius Tandonis. He's here as part of the HTIP, so play nicely."
"HTIP? Isn't that the initiative to foster human and turian relations?" Flanagan asked inquisitively, but was shot down by the Captain's glare.
Like Jack, the Captain shook Tandonis's hand, with a barely restrained look of annoyance on his face. Even Ramsden wouldn't want to piss off the Fleet Admiral. "Good to meet you, sir." The turian awkwardly offered. Ramsden mumbled something under his breath, and turned his attention back to Admiral Hackett.
"Now then, I'm sure you're all wondering why I called you here." Admiral Hackett stood straight, arms behind his back. "We picked up a group of batarian ships on our sensors as they jumped to FTL, headed for the Euler system. Based on a distress call we received from a small colony on Benning, 'Felonis', they're trying to raid it. Normally Benning's militia would handle this, But these pirates are using more advanced equipment than usual. They masked their ships' heat signatures, albeit for a very limited time, which is why we managed to detect them. I've already briefed Fox and Bear Squad, so you'll be going in with them. Head to the armoury at docking bay 2, you'll be heading in on the SSV New Vegas, Her crew's on standby. Good luck down there." The Admiral concluded his briefing, and dismissed the squad, delivering a final salute. Not wasting any time, they climbed the stairs, and headed straight into the elevator.
"So, where're you from Tandonis?" Flanagan spoke up with his faintly Irish accent, itching to get to know the new guy and wanting to fill the elevator's silence.
"I was born on Palaven, and stationed on Gellix for a few years to help clear out the explosive ordinance covering its surface. I'm pretty sure the Hierarchy gave up on it recently, though. That's when I got put forward for the HTIP. I would've given anything to get out of that shithole." He shifted his feet slightly, remembering that he was speaking to a superior officer. "How about you, sir?"
Flanagan laughed. "Just call me Flanagan when we aren't in the field. I grew up on Shanxi myself. Saw all the Alliance recruitment propaganda, and fell for it. Been stuck here ever since."
Seeing Tandonis's awkward expression, Jack stepped in. "He's just messing with you, he loves what he does. Don't you, Sam?"
Sam leaned against the wall next to the elevator panel. Chuckling to himself, he replied, in a sarcastic tone. "Aye aye, sir. Whatever you say."
He flashed him a grin. "Cocky shit." Before he knew it, the elevator doors flew open. The docking bay was only down the corridor from the bridge lobby.
"Cut the chatter, people. Time to suit up." Captain Ramsden said in his usual gruff, professional voice. He always tried to keep the squad focused on the task at hand. Though with Flanagan and Davis, it was usually a forlorn hope unless they were in the field.
Hanging a right at the end of the corridor, the squad entered the armoury. "About time you guys got here!" One soldier exclaimed, presumably a member of one of the other teams.
Jack headed right for his armour locker, and opened it. Inside was his suit of light hydra armour, with an in-built microframe computer that managed the power output of his L3 implant. Combined with the relative safety of using an L3, Davis rarely suffered side effects from his biotics, as long as he didn't exert himself too much. Should keep my loadout light, I'd rather have the computer prioritize my biotics, rather than having the VI put too much of its processor into weapon targeting. SMG and a sidearm should be enough. Ramsden and Flanagan have the rifles, while Jackal has the Widow. After putting on his armour, he headed to the weapons locker in the corner of the room, retrieved an M-9 Tempest, and one of the few M-9 Phalanxs.
Across the room, Flanagan had just grabbed his M-99 Saber, a marksman rifle which he took pride in. Ramsden was holding his usual M-8 Avenger. A rather basic rifle, all things considered. Glancing across his shoulder, Morozov had her Phoenix armour equipped, and M-9 Tempest. Tandonis was brandishing an M-6 Carnifex. Where the hell did he get one of those? Didn't think the turian military made those things widely available.
Putting on his combat helmet, he exited the armoury, and stood with the troops from the other squads. Hopefully this all goes according to plan.