AN: Second CHAPTER! I hope you enjoy it!
You may have noticed really REALLY weird transitions in the last chapter. I didn't realize that when uploading the document to the Doc manager that the horizontal lines in Word didn't transfer over. So I went in and edited them so you should see for now on the lines.
One major change from the original is that Shepard unlike the original is not retired; he is still in charge of the Normandy and is still a Spectre. However to put down some questions and such, Jastis will not be joining the crew. Although he will meet with them and work with them at times but without a doubt Jastis will have his own crew. Which will be a mix of old crew members pre-reboot and some that were going to appear in the original but never got far enough in.
Once again he will be Paragon, Romanced Tali, and the rest you will just have to see. But needless to say, most of them are based on paragon.
To answer some questions:
TheTrueReds - Don't worry, Delta will indeed be part of the story. However it won't be for a while.
Ultimate idiot – Unless the Spartan was too old or no longer able to take part in combat they would probably continue to train future Spartans or work at a desk job. Although the Spartan Maria-062 did intend to retire and start a family.
themythick – I did? Oh dear, I didn't mean to do that. I will go in and edit the last chapter to make corrections.
Halo is owned by Microsoft and 343i, Mass Effect is owned by Electronic Arts and Bioware.
Unknown Date – Unknown Location – Unknown Time
Robert had no idea what was going to happen, he had just been walking around checking up on the sewers as per instructions he was given. Suddenly he put against the wall, feet no longer touching the ground. He had closed his eyes just as it happened and then reopened them to see a being hold him up.
Donned in dark heavy armor like nothing he had seen before, was it a robot? He couldn't tell. "What are you doing here?" the being asked, his voice not synthetic. Human, it was speaking English or at least was being translated into it.
"I'm just checking up on the systems to make sure they're all fine!" Robert responded back.
The being grasp got stronger and it felt like his bones were going to break, "Who hired you?"
"I was hired by a Quarian contractor! His name… uh..! It was Ransi! If this is because of some black market dealings, I have no… no idea about it. "
The being looked around, "What is a Quarian? Are you part of the UNSC? The Insurrection?"
He ignored the black market part but what is the UNSC? Insurrection? What was this person speaking about? How could he not know what a Quarian was, he is on their Home planet! "I am just a civilian! I have no idea what those are! The Quarian's are the species that rule this world- Just got it back five years ago! Please let me go, I don't want to die."
The armored man looked back at Robert, "I didn't say I was going to kill you. But-" suddenly the being let go of him and he fell to the floor. Robert tried to make a getaway but then suddenly a blue light illuminated the area and he turned to see the armored man holding some sort of sword. "I will kill you if you're my enemy. Now help me get into contact with the UNSC or UEG or I will not hesitate to cut you."
"But I have no idea what those are! I- I can help you get in contact with the Systems Alliance?"
Now the blade was close to his face and he could feel the heat it was emitting, "What is the Systems Alliance?"
He didn't even know what the Systems Alliance is? Just who is this?
"It's the government for us Humans! They are the ones in control of Earth- Part of the Citadel Council."
"You're deluded; the UEG is in control of Earth, not some Systems Alliance. Seems the Insurrectionist scum are teaching their own civies lies now."
"I am going to die," Robert thought, "aren't I?"
Robert slowly stood up but the being kept the sword close to him, "Like I said- I have no idea what those even are! I am not raised by some insurrection, I was raised on Earth! I got a degree! I came here on a job and that is it! I just got here less than a day ago."
The human in front of Jastis was about to cry and beg for his life. Maybe he had been a bit too hard on the guy, he looked like he was barely out of his twenties and not used to force like this. But what was going on? This couldn't be an insurrectionist scheme, sure they apparently were getting friendly with of the former covenant species but this was on a whole other level.
"Sorry," Jastis spoke and receded the energy sword but he wasn't going to let him go, "Get me in contact with the Systems Alliance or with someone who can."
Theories raced through his mind at what had happened and while it was still unclear, there was one part that wasn't. When he came out of slipspace, something happened. "Could have just asked nicely… Then again looking at you, I probably would have ran."
"It wouldn't have been far."
The man looked at him, realizing just now just how tall the being was compared to him, "I don't doubt that… Robert's the name. Robert Edger."
Jastis placed the sword on his waist, "Just call me Sierra-015."
"Alright, Sierra-015, let's go find someone to talk to."
Commander John Shepard stood looking down at the city as his squad mates talk behind him while they stand there waiting for the Quarian delegate to update them on the current situation. They had just arrived on Rannoch just an hour ago and suddenly the entire city was in an uproar. Originally they had come to talk with the Quarian delegate about some matters they were having but another situation came up.
Behind him his best friend and wingman Garrus, a Turian former C-sec and formerly known as Archangel and next to him is former Tali vas Normandy or now as she is called Tali Shepard. Tali and John got married shortly after the conclusion of the Reaper War. They decided that she would take up the Human system of naming to make things a little easier. (AN: This was never addressed ever in the games and couldn't find it on Google.)
Although Garrus and Tali chatted he couldn't help but just look out at the city. It was amazing how much had been built after the war. The Quarian's and the Geth have worked together and not much prejudice. He had been one of the reasons the alliance had been built and continue to work.
The doors across the room slid opened, John turned around and saw the Quarian delegate walk in by herself, "Commander Shepard, welcome to Ragna var Halla. I am Vansa. Shall we get down to business?"
"Yes," Shepard began, "What do we know about this being?"
They walked towards the table in the center of the room and sat down and the Quarian delegate began, "At 2230 hours, we detected a strange rip in space just above the City. We didn't have enough time to really analyze it before it vanished. However we then detected an object that came out of it and crashed into this city. We didn't know what it was until we found it standing in a garden just south of here. It appears to be organic, or synthetic. Although it does appear to be human in shape although much larger than any human we have ever seen before, it was the size of a Krogan."
"A Krogan?" Garrus questioned, "Are we dealing with possible augmentations?"
"That is illegal, but we can't rule out the idea," Shepard responded, "although like she said. It could be synthetic." And he would know about augmentations, ergo what Cerberus had put in him when they rebuilt him.
Tali then spoke, "Where is it now?"
"We lost track of it," and then suddenly in the middle of the table a holographic image of the plaza nearby showed, "It had jumped from the garden, landed on a car, from there it was thrown off and then it landed in the middle of the plaza. When we were about to surround and apprehend, it ran. Faster than I had ever seen anything run before and then it moved into the lower parts of the City. It could be anywhere by now."
"And now we need to track them down and apprehend it. Just like the good old days, eh Shepard?" Garrus said in a reminiscent way.
"You mean the days where we lived under constant threat of a possible Reaper Invasion and then it actually happened?" Shepard retorted.
"The very same, although when you put it like that. Maybe they weren't so "good"."
Tali laughed behind her helmet, "So how can we proceed with this? How can we trace him?"
"About that-," Vansa was interrupted by a beeping noise indicating there was a call coming in and she answered, "What is it?"
"We found it at the Systems Alliance Embassy, but- you better send someone down quickly! We're in trouble it- they threw an X3M."
There was no response for a minute or so, "please repeat that, did you say they threw an X3M."
"As I said he threw an X3M- oh no! He is coming this way!" and then the transmission was cut off.
Shepard, Tali, and Garrus stood up immediately, "Shepard, get down there and help!"
"On it."
20 Minutes ago
Slowly Jastis followed Robert using his active camouflage to stay hidden. Sometimes he would find a spot to quickly let his energy go back up and continue using it without being spot. Truth be told it was hard as he had to make sure Robert wouldn't run off. However for the most part they were silent on the move.
It was strange, this city. He was used to being deep in enemy territory but this was a whole other level. These weren't Insurrection or Covenant, something different. He had no idea what to consider enemy or friendly, even Robert was an unknown.
Robert told him they would be heading to the Systems Alliance Embassy on this planet and that soon enough they would be there. He was still confused on everything but there wasn't much else he could do. Theories were training through his head but he had to stay focused on the current situation and not sit to ponder.
Eventually it was in sight, the Embassy wasn't very large and wasn't anything fancy, despite the change in architecture it was about of what he expected. As they got closer he noticed his energy was getting low and there weren't any spots to hide and recharge.
Suddenly it happened, Robert ran. Normally he would have caught him but his cover would be blown. However it soon wouldn't matter. Robert ran up to some security guards and began to yell that he was in need of aid. At first they were confused but then the energy ran down and his camouflage ran out and the Spartan was exposed.
Immediately the security guards aimed at him and began yelling out, since they were human and spoke English he understood them this time, "Stand down!"
This wasn't good, and he couldn't let himself be captured. It was time for him to act, but also to hold restraint. He needed answers and killing those who had no idea what was going on would lead to nothing being achieved.
The security forces pulled out what looked to be pistols, but even more interesting in that the gun folded out. He had never seen such a thing before, just who are these Humans? Jastis kept his energy sword on his hilt and then moved. In insane speed he rushed up to the first officer and grabbed him, like a small rock he lifted the human and threw him at another officer knocking them down.
There was uproar in the area, Robert looked stunned at the strength of the Spartan despite the small act, he however didn't stay around and just ran off. The Spartan however didn't bother to chase him, he had outlived his usefulness.
The two security officers began to get up, "We need back up at the Alliance Embassy."
"That can't be good," Jastis thought to himself before immediately hearing the noise of the hover cars coming in.
Some stopped and officers, some not even human got out. However one didn't stop, and continued going, Jastis turned and ran towards the vehicle and slammed his hands on the car and grabbed tight. He was surprised how light it was, lifting it the top opened up and the two officers got out, one even began to shoot and the bullets flared against his shield.
In the air and the officers out of the car, Jastis twisted and then tossed the car into the air which slammed into a nearby pillar. Once that happened, the officers went on the offensive and began to circle around and shoot.
His shields were staying up but with enough shot it would die and he rather not test how well the MJOLNIR does against these guns. Moving swiftly he began to dodge his way and make his way to the first group of officers. Jastis rolled and then stood as he got to the left side of the first officer and then ripped the gun from his hand and then threw it. With the officer disarmed they began to run off.
The others were seemingly yelling to him, no doubt to tell him to get back but that gave Jastis the chance he needed. Lowering his body he sliced his leg at their knees knocking them over. With them down he took their guns and similar to the first he tossed them far enough that they couldn't get them.
Suddenly he began to feel a bit lighter; looking at his body he noticed a blue-purplish glow around his body. He quickly turned to see a man who was glowing like him but had his hand out as if it was coming from him. It was a Human who appeared to be controlling it.
"What is this?" he thought but had no time to think. Instead he began to move which proved to be a bit harder than normal but eventually the man who was using this "magic" was seemingly getting tired from his losing of posture.
Eventually the aura vanished and he could once more move swiftly. Running at the magic man, he grabbed him and threw him to the floor and then moved to another officer which was on some sort of orange holographic device on his arm. Having no time to study he simply ran over to the officer and threw him on top of the magic man which kept the man from getting back up.
This was overall a strange experience. He was having a really hard time not just killing them, and now found himself picking the people up and throwing them all while avoiding the shots fired which were surprisingly hard to do since they appeared to be shooting faster than any UNSC or Covenant gun he had encountered.
Slowly but surely, the Insurrectionist assumption was starting to fade and more confusion was setting in. If not Insurrectionist, then who? They were clearly humans but the other aliens were clearly not Covenant and if they had tech like this, then they would have taken part in the Human-Covenant war if they had been. However since there was Humans alongside the aliens, that voided out that idea.
There seemed to have been a stop, he turned around and noticed the seemingly lack of any more security come at him. Something was wrong…
"Put your hands up and don't move!" He heard a voice from behind him, so the Spartan turned and noticed three individuals. One clearly Human, the other one a Quarian if he recalled correctly from Robert and the third was… Another alien.
On instincts Jastis wanted to rush in and put them down, but for once the Spartan stood his ground and decided to slow things down. This person didn't appear to be part of the security force and he hadn't seen the third alien within the forces.
What was he to say? Ask who they're? Honestly after what he did would they do anything but put him under arrest? If they have the same laws as the UNSC then assaulting an officer would lead to very serious consequences. However his current situation is a bit different from the standard situations in which that typically occurs.
Well the next best thing he could do was to explain his actions right now; he looked around his surroundings as if for an exit, but then was prompted again to look at the trio when the human spoke again, "Are you synthetic or some sort of terrorist soldier?"
Terrorist soldier? Now that was a laugh, but this was no laughing matter, if that is what they think then it was time to put down the flames, "I am Sierra-015 of the UNSCDF Spartan Branch, I have arrived here on- strange circumstances. I defended myself against security as I knew there was no way they would have taken me in without disarming me. All I wish to be to get into contact with the UNSC and leave."
"His voice doesn't sound synthetic at all but we can't discount it," Tali spoke first, they made sure not to speak loud enough that the thing could hear them.
Garrus agreed, "Yeah it sounded human, but what if this is some sort of advanced synthetic the Outcasts have developed?"
"Sierra-015 does sound like something non-organic."
Shepard then spoke, "But what about this UNSC? We have never heard anything from the Outcasts about something like that."
"Maybe they decided to rebrand themselves? You know, try and get a better public image?"
Tali looked at Garrus, "Yeah, because the Outcasts are totally going to try and get a good public perception."
"Hey, you never know."
He hadn't been able to hear them speak but he could tell they were. The Human looked at his companions once more and they nodded, "I am Commander Shepard and we have never heard of the UNSC, what race and planet does it represent?" He spoke aloud.
The same answer as Robert. "The UNSC or United Nations Space Command is the military branch of the UEG, the United Earth Government, we represent Earth and Humanity. My ship was under attack and I fell out of the ship during slip space and I appeared over this city of yours."
"This has to be bullshit; the Systems Alliance is the sole military and government branch for Humanity, unless it got a name change recently," Garrus sprouted.
"No it hasn't, but the United Nations? This is confusing."
Tali responded, "Maybe he is just as confused, think about it. He apparently fell out of his ship in slip space, which is crazy to think about, and then appeared over this city through some sort of rift and then crashed into the city at insane speeds… In fact just thinking about that is confusing, even to someone like myself. First of all, slip space? Does he mean FTL? And the fact that he survived a fall that would mean death to anyone else… Confused, but also intrigued."
"I think it's best to take him in, try to pry some answers from him," Garrus said.
"We're going to have to proceed carefully, remember this guy is tough. He threw a car- I mean who does that?" Shepard spoke.
Garrus shrugged, "He does apparently."
"You said this was just like old times, right?"
"Yeah and I stand by that."
"Well if this is like old times, then I would assume there is probably a story behind this mess and a solution to said mess. Let's get him in."
They continued to speak again, leaving the Spartan hanging waiting for a response. But once again the three seemed to agree and spoke up, "We have decided, Sierra-015, you're coming with us. I want to get this whole thing solved, and so I want you to explain to me in detail. Then we can both get out of this in one piece."
Jastis still wasn't so sure but decided there wasn't much point in trying to run off again, "Fair enough."
Shepard then contacted the delegate, "I have contacted the being who calls himself Sierra-015, he doesn't appear to be part of the Outcasts and nor is he an enemy. I am bringing him in for questioning on his own free will."
"Alright, we will have a room prepared for you to interrogate him, Delegate out."
That ended the conversation, and then Shepard turned to the Spartan, "Follow us."
By this time the area had been cleared of any security forces, although he wasn't so sure about their reaction if this man turns out to be good. Considering he almost injured them and seemed to have been holding back, they may want to try and press charges or something along those lines.
No doubt news of this was spreading like wild fire across the world and over the extranet. Probably many assuming it were an attack. Sierra-015 began to follow them from a bit behind but surely so, "We better we careful about this one, I feel he could probably break us in half," Garrus commented.
"As long as we play this cool, everything should be just fine," Shepard replied.
Tali spoke, "He seems to be of military, so I doubt he will just fly off the handle, I think the only reason he reacted the way he did to the Security forces was because he thought they would try and capture him."
"Exactly," Shepard agreed.
"Let's just hope he doesn't turn out to be another Jack," Garrus said.
"To be fair, she got better."
"Yeah better, I think you mean she got better at suppressing it. It's there, just not being let out."
Jastis kept quiet as he followed the three people, Commander Shepard and the two aliens. He was still uneasy about that part but he needed to play it cool until he could get in contact with the UNSC. These people couldn't be insurrectionist, sure they were a bit more alien friendly then the UNSC, but they didn't have technology like this at all.
So that was out of the window, but then what are these people part of? They couldn't be UNSC and now he was starting to retread his thoughts. New train, these people were part of some unknown third-party faction that lost contact with the UNSC long ago and made contact with friendly aliens. That makes sense; at least he hopes it does.
They arrived at one of the hover cars the security people were using and the three got in but Jastis still stood outside, "Come in."
Jastis got into the car and was sitting next to the unknown alien, "Ugly there is Garrus, and purple over here is Tali."
"Thanks for the introduction," Garrus sarcastically spoke.
Jastis stayed silent for the rest of the ride, he had to admit it was weird. He had never been in a vehicle such as this, the only real comparison being that to a pelican. Although this one was clearly not for military operations and only for civilian usage.
Eventually they arrived at a tall building and landed on a landing pad that was off the side of the building. Shepard and Jastis got out first and Garrus and Tali followed suite. The building security didn't bother to ask since they had saw Shepard and Co leave but they did seem weary when they saw the large being from behind them.
Once Shepard began to move Jastis followed, they entered into the building and Shepard stopped in front of a Quarian who looked at Jastis and then back at the Commander, "You really did get him. Did you have to fight?"
It just hit him that they now were speaking English… Did they have some sort of translator? It didn't matter right now as it was better than hearing gibberish. "Not at all, we actually talked and he agreed to come in with us."
"You really are one of a kind," the Quarian spoke, "well then follow me to the room."
Now he is following Shepard who is following the Quarian. A lot of following today it seems. Soon enough however they reached a small room, it was like he expected. Dull Grey with a table in the center of it, with one chair on each side. The Quarian didn't follow but Tali and Garrus followed Shepard and Jastis into the room. Shepard sat down and gestured for Jastis to take the other seat.
The other two stood and paced around.
"Let's begin, so you stated that you belong to the UNSC right?" Shepard first asked.
Jastis nodded, "Correct, I am part of their Spartan branch specifically."
"What is this Spartan branch you speak of?"
"The Spartan branch is a Navy branch dedicated to the Spartan super-soldiers such as myself. I am of the second generation of Spartan, but most of the branch is full of fourth generations."
Shepard wanted to inquire further but he needed to move onto more important matters, "You also stated that the UNSC is the military branch of the UEG which is the government of Earth and Humanity."
"Yes."
"Well that is strange because the Systems Alliance is the military and government of Earth and I should know, I grew up on Earth," he finished with folding his arms in and just staring at the Spartan.
Jastis put his elbows on the table, "That is the same thing another person said to be earlier… But it doesn't make any sense," he continued to think and then decided to ask for curiosity sake, "What year is it if I may inquire?"
"2191." Shepard simply stated.
That shocked Jastis and he brought his arms to his sides, "T-That can't be. It is 2555."
Now the Commander was also confused but before he could ask Tali did it for him, "2555? Are you from the future?"
"No- I can't be. The Systems Alliance, your race, none of this is in our history. The UNSC was formed in 2163 just a year before the interplanetary war… We didn't come into first contact until 2525…"
Garrus stood at the side of the table, "So you're from the year 2555, and your history is vastly different then our own. Man oh man..."
"I think I have a theory, although it's a bit extreme," Tali stated cautiously.
Shepard turned to Tali, "I think we're on the same page so go straight ahead."
"Sierra-015, you stated you fell out of your ship when it was under attack just as it went into slip space, correct?"
"Yes."
Tali looked back at Garrus and Shepard but then turned back to the Spartan, "Well to put it bluntly, I think when you fell out of the ship during that time. You didn't land in the same time, but more so not even the same dimension. Nothing about what you stated adds up and considering yourself and how you suddenly appeared, there is merit to this theory."
There room went silent and the look in Shepard's eyes; it appeared Tali is right on the money.
Jastis looked at the three of them and then looked down and sighed, "That is- a lot to take in. It does explain things."
"This must be pretty scary considering you have no contact with your chain of command."
"I will survive."
Shepard smirked, "It wasn't about survival. But- what do you think you will do?"
There was another break, a silence echoed in the room but Jastis broke it, "I don't know. I am not used to having no access to command. I am no civilian."
"Should we get him in contact with the Systems Alliance? It's the closest thing he has to the UNSC in this dimension." Tali suggested.
"We could get him in contact with Hackett. We can bring him to him- but… we still need to finish our mission here. Sierra-015, you're a soldier? No? Why not help us with this and then we will fly you to the Alliance."
Working with non-Spartans? He had done so in the past but it still wasn't the same; even S-IV's were different. However what choice did he have? These people seem good despite having aliens and the UNSC wasn't here to tell him what to do. Not even an AI.
The Spartan stood up, "If it can help our overall objective, I shall comply."
Shepard followed suite and stood up, "Good to hear. I trust neither of you have a problem?" the end part referring to Tali and Garrus.
"Do I need to say it again? It's just like the old days."
AN: Here it is! A little shorter then I wanted to, considering how long it took to get it out but I don't want to take too much longer. But I hope you enjoyed it despite not much happening. Next chapter will hopefully be longer with more meat but I can't make any promises.
But I can say the next chapter will show the Halo side of things and will also have more action in it.
Review, critique and let's roll!