Hello, [[ENTRY MISSING]]], and welcome to the Apeture Science Computer-Aided Fan Fiction Enrichment Center. This fanfic features elements from three separate canons (four if you want to get technical). This takes place in a Halo/ Mass effect universe. Just for convenience-sake, lets say that the Human/Covenant war occurred in the 2180's, and the Mass Effect canon begins in the 2300's, as to make the time gap large enough for things to have smoothed over between the covenant species and the humans, but no too long so that it seems like their technology isn't advanced enough. The "Red vs. Blue" organization Project Freelancer will also be present, including characters associated with it. There will also be a certain location from a certain game that may-or-may-not-start-with-P-and-end-with-ortal, and this location may-or-may-not-house-many-interesting-bits-of-technology-and-a-homicidal-AI-construct-that's-name-may-or-may-not-start-with-G-and-end-with-LaDOS… just so we are clear.
I am also introducing a new type of class specialty in this fic. It is, basically, a form of the Brute's gravity manipulation, used in a similar manner as biotics. They're called "Shamans", and I will have a full Codex Entry written at the end to explain.
As you probably read in the little intro thingy for this fic, there will be a slight M/M romance subplot going on. Don't worry, it won't be the main focus of the story, just a little something that I felt like throwing in, and before you ask, no, it will not include any alien races, I have no intention of writing a Volus/Brute gay fapfic.
Now, I will refrain from using main-canon characters from Halo and ME in this fic. Meaning, no Shepard, no Tali, no Garrus, no Jack, no Miranda, no Master Chief, no Ashley, no Kaidan, no Arbiter, ect… However, known figures of power that you may or may not be familiar with may, in fact, make an appearance, which may include The Illusive Man, Aria T'Loak, The Shadow Broker, The Council, Wrex, Liara, Nassana Dantius, the Rachni Queen and possible others.
The portal will open in three… two… one.
"C'mon, kid, the ship isn't too far from here." A female turian called out to a young human walking a few paces behind her. Her plates colored a stark white, several purple markings painted on in definite distinguishing patterns. Her armor a sleek contrasting jet black, sporting several yellow stripes. Attached to her armor were a Mattock Heavy Rifle, an Eviscerator Assault Shotgun, and a case of plasma grenades. She had just picked up the male from her employers. He had evidently been sent to them by one H'rauk Xardenai, a Sangheili agent of the Shadow Broker, who had him take out some small Eclipse operations outside of the city, however he wasn't there when she picked him up.
"But Commander Geddil, I have only been here in Nos Astra for an afternoon, can't we stay any longer?" The human complained. He wore a suit of old MJOLNIR armor, outfitted for use for a regular solider that he acquired from H'rauk. It was comprised of a Security Variant helmet with a red-amber colored visor, which he held at his side, MKVI pauldrons, and a Collar/breacher chest piece. The armor's primary coloration was a dark mouse green, with it's secondary color being a gold-yellow. He had a Locust SMG on his hip, and a Firestorm flamethrower and a Needle Rifle on his back.
"Sorry, Rookie, but we have to be past the Charon relay and on Earth before day's end. Once we have some shore leave, you can see the city all you want. Oh, and you can just call me Jaltex, I'm not much for formalities." Jaltex glanced behind her shoulder as she spoke, not breaking her pace. "And plus, you still need to meet the team they are dying to see just how well you'll do." They neared the docking station as she spoke. The door opened to reveal a massive ship. It was very blocky in nature, sporting several silver ridges along it's hull, and some teal florescent lights running between said ridges. Jaltex stepped forward and spread her arms out as she spoke. "I give you the Fall of Prometheus! One of the first human-created ships made to mimic Forerunner Thanix Cannons, a turian made version of the guns the geth warship Sovereign used. It is also equipped with a MAC cannon, as per the standard of all UNSC ships. I could go on for hours about the weapons on this ship, but you don't seem like the 'ship tech' kind of guy, so lets just head in." Jaltex pressed the COM button on the side of her helmet. "Rez, we're back, open the airlock."
"Say please" Came the voice on the other side of the line.
"Rez, I'm not dealing with your bullshit today. Open. The. Airlock."
"Now you have to say pretty please."
"Ugh… god damn it, pretty please…" Jaltex hissed with displeasure.
"…With a cherry on top."
"I fucking hate you."
"Love you too." As he finished, the seal of the airlock hissed open.
"Open sesame." Rez chimed over Jaltex's radio.
"C'mon, lets get you acquainted with the crew." Jaltex took him up to the airlock, and stepped into the ship.
As the airlock doors closed behind them, several Forerunner sentinels gathered around the two, scanning them. After a few seconds, their lights blinked green.
"Welcome back, Commander." The foremost sentinel chimed. It then fired a blue beam at the door leading to the inside of the ship. The door's access interface turned from red to green, and it opened up, allowing them to step inside. A human in a suit, top hat, bow tie, and walking cane greeted them at the door. He looked surprisingly young, perhaps only 18 or 19. He had medium-length messy brown hair and blue eyes. He was leaning against the wall with a grin plastered on his face.
"Ah, this must be the new guy!" He spun his cane behind his neck, and extended his gloved hand. "The name's Rez! Head infiltrator and temporary helmsman of the Prometheus. What's your name?"
The rookie shook his hand as he answered. "My name is Isaac Cielo. I'm a Shaman, and I have weapons training in covenant weaponry and basic sub-machine guns."
"Another Shaman? Well, finally Merlok has someone to compete with. Damn guy is a Shamanistic monster."
"Who's Merlok? Should I know him?"
"Ah, yes, my apologies. Merlok is a krogan. He used to be in the Blood Pack, a merc gang out in the Terminus, but he was forced out after he tried to stage a coup and killed an entire planet-side platoon of high ranking officers. He fled in a lone, badly damaged Phantom off of the other side of the planet once they sent in reinforcements, and his small group of supporters turned tail and surrendered. Merlok's shaman powers are a damned force to be reckoned with. He has a extremely high-end gravity amp, and the krogan's redundant nervous systems allow him to pump in even more electricity to that amp, making him a killing machine. I've seen him crush ships into singularities, or suck a small fleet into a gas giant by increasing it's gravitational pull. Almost puts my skills to shame… almost, of course." Rez shot Isaac a sly grin as he spoke, taking in his own narcissism.
"Damn it, Rez, you're so full of it." Jaltex sneered as she walked by the two of them, grabbing Isaac by the shoulder. "Lets meet the rest of the crew. Rez, set course for the relay and set in the jump coordinates to the Charon Relay… and try not to crash us into the sun while you are at it."
"I get us uncomfortably close to the sun ONE TIME AND- hey, where are you going?"
Jaltex lead Isaac up a gravity lift and to the conference room. It was an oval-shaped room, several seats arranged at a table in the center. Seated were a Salarian in dark combat armor, a krogan with a silver crest, a white-skinned drell, a very large character in modified MJOLNIR armor vaguely resembling a quarian, a Kig-Yar polishing a focus rifle, a Sangheili in sleek gold armor, and a forerunner monitor. Jaltex took a seat at the head of the table, and Isaac took one of the empty seats, next to the salarian. The salarian turned towards Isaac, and extended his hand.
"Hi there, Serlio Btesh, infiltration. You must be the new guy."
"Yeah, Issac Cielo, assassin." Issac shook the salarian's hand.
"Assassin?"
"I worked some contract killings on Illium, nothing major though."
"Really, who have you-" Serlio was cut off by Jaltex clearing her throat.
"Ahem. You will have time to talk after the meeting. Now, here is our current mission." Jaltex pressed a button on her console and a holographic map of Earth appeared. "This is our destination-"
"What is? I can't see through this damn thing." Rez's voice came through the forerunner monitor. "This thing only gets audio."
"Rez! You are driving, you already know where we're going." Jaltex snapped.
"Oh right… driving… I hate being the new driver."
"We hate you being the new driver too, Rez."
"I hope this damned cargo does what it's supposed to, I would rather not be the one driving back."
"Speaking of cargo. We are heading here." The image magnified, showing an open field with a small shack sitting in the middle of it. "I know it doesn't look like much, but underneath this shack is a large scientific complex. The humans have just recently uncovered the remains of the Borealis, a sea-faring ship. Documents from this ship divulge the name of a certain Apeture Science Laboratories, containing several bits of interesting technology that we could use. The human governments have yet to locate this facility, meaning we need to get in, grab what we can, and leave without a trace. There is one specific piece of cargo that we are interested in." The screen changed to a picture of a large, hanging mechanical device. "There is a very powerful AI inside of the facility, referred to as GLaDOS in the documents aboard the Borealis. This AI could be quite helpful along our mission, and it's assistance is necessary for us to understand the technology in the facility. Any questions so far?" The quarian's hand raised slightly, as he posed his question.
"You are proposing that we install an AI aboard this ship? Aren't they technically illegal in Council Space?"
"Not just technically, Fal, completely. Good thing we aren't affiliated with them." Jaltex replied casually. "No more questions? Good. Now, there is a very good chance that rouge organizations will try to or already have infiltrated the facility. All persons contacted inside of the base are to be treated as hostiles, and captured."
"Wouldn't it just be easier to kill them?" Merlok asked.
"Why yes it would, but that's not important right now. Command wants any hostiles encountered on this mission recovered., no exceptions. Clear?"
"Crystal" said Merlok.
"Understood commander" said Serlio.
"Yes Ma'am." said Isaac.
"Loud and clear." said the Sangheili.
"Sure." said Fal.
"Still can't see a thing!" said Rez.
"REZ! FOCUS. ON. SPACE. You know what, I'll brief you later. Jarol!" The drell flinched as Jaltex shouted his name. "EMP that thing."
"Y-yes, ma'am…" Jarol stuttered. He drew his plasma pistol and fired an overcharged burst at the monitor, deactivating it, and causing it to crash into the ground.
"Good work, Jar-" Jaltex was cut off.
"Guys, what happened, I can't hear anything anymore." Rez blared over the ship's PA system.
"UUUUGGH… Who gave him the access codes of the PA sys-"
"Yeah, one of the Sentinels unlocked the PA for me, how convenient!"
"Grr… I'm going to need to kill him one of these days… anyway, back to the topic at hand, we are going to send in a small to infiltrate the facility. Isaac, Merlok, you two are on that team, along with Rez. Jarol, Vimar and I will stay aboard the Prometheus to monitor your progress and make sure that the ship isn't compromised. Serlio, Fal, Kur, you three will secure a perimeter around the facility, along with a dozen Huragok, A handful of Yanme'e, and a moderate force of Sentinels. We will be at our destination within the next day. Make sure you are thoroughly prepared, command needs this tech ASAP. Dismissed."
The squad was now present in the mess hall, talking amongst each other while eating.
"So, you said something about some assassinations on Illium?" Serlio asked, sitting across from Isaac at one of the long tables present at the mess hall.
"Oh, right, that. Well, I used to work for a guy, H'rauk, a Sangheili. He was an agent for The Shadow Broker. I say 'was' because, on my most recent mission, he was gunned down by some Eclipse mercs. Anyways. He would supply me with missions and ordinance, notably my armor and flamethrower, that he would obtain from The Broker. I've killed a few politicians, some businessmen, some slave brokers, but mostly I work at destroying merc holdouts. Eclipse holdouts were the most common, but every now and again we would see the Blue Suns or even the Blood Pack setting up shop. The mission where H'rauk was killed was a strike against Nassana Dantius. She had been selling The Broker false intel in exchange for details on her sisters and weapon stockpiles. He sent us in and we were overwhelmed. She had hired in a damned platoon of Eclipse from off world and filled the surrounding towns to the brim with them. We never stood a chance."
"I'm sorry to hear about your teammate" Serlio stated sympathetically.
"Don't be. He always told me that he had been prepared to die since he signed on as The Broker's personal grim reaper. He said that every successful mission was nothing more than a step forward to his death. He treated life as a game, and death is a sore loser."
"Cryptic, man."
"I like to think of myself as just a ray of positivity." Isaac chuckled. He then spotted Rez walking by, munching on a piece of toast. "Rez? What are you doing here?"
"What does it look like? I'm eating…" Rez paused for dramatic effect "TOAST!"
"Shouldn't you be driving, Rez?" Serlio added "Jaltex is going to be pissed."
"Don't worry, I got the coordinates punched in, and the sentinels are manning the autopilot. I'll still need to take control when we reach the relay, but that isn't for another hour or so. The sentinels will tell me when I need to make the jump. May I sit?"
"Sure." Isaac shifted over to the side to allow Rez to sit down. "So, I know you two and the commander. Who are the rest of these guys?"
"Well…" Serlio and Rez both chimed simultaneously.
"That big burly fellow right there," Rez pointed to the quarian "that's Fal'Mor. He's our heavy weapons expert. He carries around a torn off Geth Armature Cannon, with two Revenant Light Machineguns welded to the sides. He's a bit of a lone wolf… and a bit of a dick."
"That guy," Serlio pointed to the Kig-Yar, now brandishing a Beam Rifle "that's Kur. He's our sniping specialist. He could put a round between the eyes of an ant if the ant wouldn't explode on impact. He carries around three different types of long range guns, each for different purposes. He is always ready for a bet, and will take anyone's challenges when it comes to his marksmanship."
"The Sangheili is Vimar." Rez pointed him out. "He's our stealth specialist. He usually accompanies Serlio and I while infiltrating enemy bases. Being a stealth buff, he cam easily tell if someone is sneaking around, knowing the drawbacks to most every mainstream infiltration method. He's usually pretty quiet, but he can be a fun dude when he tries." He then gestured over to the krogan. "I take it that you recognized Merlok."
"And finally, there's Jarol." Serlio gestured over to the pale Drell. "He's our main engineer. A bit of a frightened fellow, but he's good at what he does. He doesn't usually leave the ship."
"What about those guys?" Isaac pointed to a group of two insectoid aliens and a floating eel-like creature fixing a broken vending machine on the far side of the room.
"Oh, those guys are the Yanme'e and the Huragok." Serlio explained. "They make up most of the maintenance crew of the Prometheus. They keep the sentinels and other machinery in order around here. They make up a good majority of the crew here. Aside from some liaisons sent here by sponsor organizations, the cooks, the doctors, and, of course, us, they work the entire ship. Their sheer numbers and combat specialties have also given us a great deal of support on the ground. The Yamne'e swarming above the enemies' heads, raining down plasma, and the Huragok giving us layer upon layer of overshielding. Damn things have saved our lives a few times."
"Yeah, man. Those guys are great." Rez started. "Remember that one time on Omega? When we were held up in that building with Eclipse on our tail?"
"Yeah, man. But I'm surprised you remember. You were on the phone for hours on end arguing with your bo-" Serlio was cut off by a sentinel soaring through the air towards Rez with a blinking red optic and a tone blaring. "Rez, is that the sign that you need to make the relay jump?"
"Nope! It's just," Rez pressed a button on the sentinel, and a piece of toast sprung out of the sentinel's back. "more toast!" As Rez munched, another sentinel moved up to Rez just as the first had, blinking optic and everything.
"Even more toast?" Serlio asked.
"Hmm… I didn't set up any more toast-sentinels… how strange…" as he spoke, the ship began to shake violently. "How *rumbling* very *rumbling* strange… *rumbling*"
"REZ. COCKPIT. NOW!" Jaltex blared through the ship's PA.
"Ohhh… THAT'S the relay-jump sentinel… maybe I should make them play different alarm-sounds later o-"
"REZ!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming, damn. Come, Toasty, we have things to do." Rez hung onto the sentinel that brought him toast and sped off to the cockpit.
"Well… I guess we'll be at our destination soon. C'mon, lets get suited up and do a little practice at the firing range." Serlio got up, and gestured Isaac toward him. They both left the mess hall, and headed down to the next floor down to prepare for their mission.
CODEX:
Shamans- As the Human/Covenant war ended, and humanity began to rebuild it's once great empire, several species belonging previously to the Covenant began to assist humanity to try and make up for the atrocities of the war. The Unggoy contributed enviro-suits, as for humans to survive, live, and trade on the methane-filled world of Bahalo. The Sangheili contributed plasma-weapons tech, and allowed the UNSC to put colonies on their worlds. The Kig-Yar offered their services to the UNSC in another time of war if they were needed, and gave weapons-modding secrets they used during their times as a pirate race. The Jiralhanae contributed their gravity-distortion technology for full use by the UNSC. The gravity manipulation originally served exclusively as a weapons upgrade, but scientists eventually developed the tech into a neural implant, allowing the user to manipulate the gravitational powers using impulses from the brain. Special troops sporting this tech were dubbed as "Shamans" for their near mystical powers. They can increase the gravitational force in an area, decrease the gravitational force, or use it as a repellant force as in the Gravity Hammers. As the humans spread into the galaxy, other species experimented with the technology. Shamanistic powers can now be seen in several species in the galactic community.
Whew, finished. Well, there is the first chapter. Next time, we go to Apeture Science. We shall do what we must, because we can. This does happen to be my first story involving Halo or Mass Effect, so please, critisism is appriciated... just be nice about it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect, Halo, or Portal. They are owned by Bioware, Bungie, and Valve respectively. If I owned them, then this would currently be in production, not sitting here as a fanfic.