Exordium
15th of Okudi
Sceptre Nebula
The ambient blue tunnel of the mass effect field faded abruptly as the shuttle resurfaced into normal space. Glancing out of the port observation window, Nisuro couldn't help but admire the view. The ship was currently flying past a large garnet coloured gas giant. White motes flecked the surface, sure signs of massive and violent storm cells that many gas giants displayed. To his right Jothej leaned back in his seat, languidly perusing reports. "Admiral, we have entered the system." the pilot announced, a formality but one that was always observed on Prothean military vessels. Jothej set down his datapad and answered "Understood pilot. Set course for the dwarf planet."
"Yes Admiral." the pilot replied, acknowledging his orders.
As they sped past the gas giant Jothej gave Nisuro a sideways look and said "Nervous are we?" Nisuro sighed and shrugged his shoulders "I know I shouldn't be. Technically it's just another command that I've been assigned to, so there's nothing remarkable about that fact. On the other hand . . . it is the unknowns that are making me anxious." Jothej nodded his head saying "As soldiers of the empire, we deal with unknown variables during every moment of our service. It helps to remind yourself of that from time to time." Nisuro merely looked out of the window again. He knew that the admiral was correct, but this current assignment felt truly foreign to him.
The trip from the Citadel was a relatively short journey, lasting only four hours. Nisuro spent most of it in silence, still thinking about the Beryl Sunset and her crew. The green recruit that he was so many cycles ago would have had cold feet by now. But he was no recruit. He was a soldier of the empire, and the empire had seen fit to charge him with tasks that fell outside the regular purview of the military hierarchy. The sorrow he felt at saying farewell to his ship and crew was slowly receding as he was finding his resolve again, more determined than ever to serve his people. Still . . . I miss them all he thought to himself.
Within minutes they performed a flyby of the garden world referred to as Haven. Modest traffic cluttered the orbit of the planet, an industrial hub whose primary market was the nearby Citadel. It was a pleasant place to visit despite the heavy presence of industry, and at times in the past Nisuro had gone there to swim or fish in the planet's expansive seas. Unfortunately, that would have to wait for another day. Haven was not their destination today as the shuttle ignored the planet and sped on towards the direction of the system's large asteroid belt. The ship began to decelerate before long as a gloomy grey planetoid hovered into view.
Jothej sat up and said "Looks like our welcoming party is here."
A small vessel appeared on the far side of the planetoid, moving silently to intercept the shuttle. The ship had a similar configuration to the Sunset, although it was only 100 metres in length and lacked a bridge tower. In it's place was an elongated and convex shaped dome, the dull glow of light emanating from windows encircling the perimeter. Nisuro was surprised, and exclaimed, "A picket ship Admiral?"
Jothej seemed amused at Nisuro's incredulousness "You were expecting a dreadnought perhaps? Don't let appearances fool you Nisuro. This is no mere picket ship."
"Admiral, we are being hailed. Audio only." the pilot announced as the ship stopped dead ahead. A transmission crackled over the comm link as the pilot and passengers listened "Unmarked shuttle, identify yourself." Jothej left his seat and stood next to the pilot and answered, irritation tinging his voice "This is Admiral Jothej Tylkij of the 23rd fleet. I assume you were notified of our rendevous?"
The voice on the other end remained neutral "Please transmit verification code so that we may confirm your identity."
Within moments of the pilot transmitting the code the voice responded in a more relaxed tone "Verification code accepted Admiral Jothej. We apologize for the inconvenience . . . the Quickening's presence in this system is meant to be covert."
"I understand . . . due diligence is to be commended. Please prepare for our boarding." Jothej answered diplomatically. The shuttle began an approach vector to the ship as its hangar bay began to open and the shuttle slipped past the bay's forcefield. Nisuro rose to flank the admiral beside the pilot, taking in the sights of the ship. Jothej smiled as they touched down, and patted Nisuro on the back "Welcome to your new home Nisuro. Let's go meet your crew." Nisuro took a deep breath and disembarked as the shuttle door slid open.
A troop of forty Prothean soldiers stood silently in formation as Nisuro and Jothej took their first steps aboard the ship. A tall Prothean with slightly crimson eyes stood in front of the formation and thundered "ADMIRAL ON DECK!" and as one the assembled soldiers saluted. "As you were." Jothej replied and the men and women assumed their previous stance. The tall Prothean approached both men and bowed deeply before speaking. "Honoured Admiral. On behalf of my company I would like to welcome you aboard the Quickening. I am tra'lek Xehtors"
Jothej inclined his head and replied "I am honoured to be aboard tra'lek. But the one you should be paying your respects to is standing beside me. I would like to introduce you to your new commanding officer . . . Nisuro." Xehtors considered Nisuro momentarily, almost as if he was sizing him up. Xehtors bowed before Nisuro, showing him the same deference that he had shown Jothej. "It will be an honour to serve under you Commander Nisuro. Know that I and every soldier aboard this vessel will fight for you to the death." Nisuro returned the bow and replied "I have no doubt you and the rest of your company will serve with valour. Lead us to the bridge if you'd please."
Xehtors turned and dismissed the company and led the two into a hallway adjoining the hangar. As he led the way a sudden realization occurred to Nisuro. Leaning closer to Jothej he whispered "Admiral, Xehtors referred to himself as tra'lek. Is he to be my First?" Jothej shook his head. "No Nisuro. Xehtors will be leading missions planetside in most situations, although that is entirely up to your discretion. As far as a First goes . . . well it depends on how you define a First."
Nisuro looked at the admiral quizzically "How can a ship not have a First?" The left side of Jothej's mouth lifted up slightly, creasing the ugly scar as he did. "The command structure on this ship is slightly different than what you'd find in conventional military vessels. There is an individual, who we refer to as the chief operations officer. He will act as your right hand, but will not have the same duties as a First. Of course, if you decide to refer to him as your First then that will be your prerogative." Nisuro could only resign himself to yet another set of differences that he needed to adapt to.
Before long they had reached the elevator and had emerged onto the bridge. For the most part the layout resembled that of the bridge of the Sunset, although it seemed much more austere to Nisuro. Banks of terminals with crew manning them lined the length of the bridge, flanking the commanding officer's chair near the middle. "ATTENTION ON DECK!" came a voice farther down the bridge as crew scrambled out of their seats and stood at attention.
Nisuro craned his head to see who it was that made the announcement and was shocked to see it was a Cniusian. The lithe and nimble figure made his way to the three newcomers and bowed before the admiral and Nisuro in the manner of Protheans. Nisuro recognized the voice hailing the shuttle earlier as belong to Cniusian before them, and the feline looking creature scrutinized the three before continuing. "Welcome to the bridge of the Quickening Admiral. I am chief operations officer Niamus."
Nisuro did his best to hide his shock at having Niamus as his operations officer, expecting another Prothean to fill the role. He had served with many non-Protheans in the past, some becoming fine officers and commanders in their own right. The empire was a meritocracy in practice after all. However, Nisuro had never served with a Cniusian before, and that gave him pause. Xenophobia against their former foes was frowned upon and denounced, but nonetheless there always seemed to be an underlying tension between the two species. The Cniusian felt humiliated and defeated when they accepted Prothean stewardship For their part, some Protheans still blamed the Cniusians for creating the Metacon. Nisuro didn't believe in holding grudges, but did Niamus? And would that be a source of friction between the two. Nisuro put those thoughts from his mind as he listened to Jothej.
"Good to be on board Niamus. I have to admit it's a much friendlier welcome than when we first made contact." If Niamus was feeling abashed he did not show it. "My sincerest apologies for earlier Honoured Admiral. We only received word you were en route shortly before you arrived." Jothej smiled and said "Not to worry. In fact, I would have done the same thing myself. But enough of that, let's get down to business. This," he turned to Nisuro "is your new commanding officer . . . Nisuro Ishanrar." Niamus and the rest of the bridge crew saluted Nisuro as he stepped forward. He looked over the faces of the bridge, gauging the men and women who would serve under him. Most were Prothean, although he did see the odd Tulamorian or Krylc. There was even a Vanksher among their ranks.
After a moment Nisuro broke the silence "I look forward to serving with all you. Carry on with your duties."
Jothej grinned at Nisuro "Not much for grand and inspired speeches today either are we?" and Nisuro couldn't help but smile in turn. He focused his attention back to Niamus and asked politely "How long have you served the imperium Niamus?" Niamus seemed to stiffen slightly but answered cordially enough. "I have served for over fifty cycles, Honoured Commander. I have specialized in tactical analysis, logistics and electronic warfare…" Nisuro smiled and held up his hand "No need to recite your service record Niamus. I am confident in your ability to fulfill your role." The Cniusian bowed his head and remained silent. Nisuro wondered if he had given offence rather than an honest attempt at small talk. At times Cniusians could be unreadable.
"Niamus, would you care to explain the special ability this ship has?" Jothej interjected himself into the awkward silence that followed.
Niamus smiled genuinely and replied "Of course Honoured Admiral. This is one of several ships allocated to the Echelon that has a prototype cloaking device ." Nisuro perked his head listening intently as the Cniusian explained how it worked. "Upon activation of the cloak, an invisible field envelopes the Quickening trapping energy emissions, including photons, within the bubble. The ship will remain undetectable to both scans and visual confirmation for the duration of the cloak. Unfortunately the cloak cannot be active for more than an hour at a time. First the energy requirements for the cloak are extremely prohibitive . . . you would need another mass effect core to feed it enough energy to remain active for an extended period. Secondly, the trapped radiation will eventually need to be dissipated before it begins to irradiate us within the ship."
"Protheans would theoretically be able withstand irradiation for approximately half an hour longer than non-Prothean crew members." a voice from beside the commander's chair intoned emotionlessly.
Nisuro and Jothej spun around to see a Prothean figure composed of nothing but light. It was an avatar of a VI. "What's this?" Jothej eyes narrowed as he examined the construct. Niamus seemed amused as he answered "This is Venture. It might be better if I let him explain himself." On cue, the VI responded methodically. "I am Venture, a virtual intelligence based aboard the Prothean picket ship the Quickening. My knowledge base includes extensive cognizance of a multitude of subjects that includes the mass relay network, galactic topography, xenobiology, linguistics, cultural norms as well as mating habits of…"
Nisuro snickered and Jothej held up his hands to silence the VI "All right . . . we understand. You're a veritable repository of knowledge." The Admiral looked at Niamus who shrugged helplessly and said "Venture is a bit...quirky. However, as hard as it may be to believe it does possess useful information . . . most of the time. Think of it as an adjunct advisor if you will." Jothej merely glared at the VI while Niamus dismissed it "Thank you Venture, that will be all for now" and without a word it winked out of existence.
"Well, it seems my job here is finished." Jothej said as he turned to Nisuro. Nisuro nodded, "I'll accompany you down to the shuttle." Turning to both Niamus and Xehtors and dismissed them both before escorting the Admiral to the elevator. "So what's next for you admiral? Are you deploying the 23rd soon?"
Jothej sighed. "Not right away at least. I'd like to climb the ice canals of Judor IV before going back out on the field. Haven't been there in decades and who knows . . . I might not ever get another chance to do it again." Judor IV hosted some of the deepest and steepest glacial crevasses ever discovered. Many Protheans journeyed there to test themselves, both physically and mentally as they traversed them. Nisuro himself had gone there twice, and both times he had wondered how he made it back in one piece.
The two entered the hangar as the pilot waited outside the shuttle with Nisuro's belongings. Handing the two large sacks to Nisuro, he bowed silently to the two and made his way back into the ship. Jothej looked deeply into Nisuro's eyes. "You're doing important work here Nisuro. Never forget that. While you might not be out there blasting Metacon into oblivion on the field, what you undertake here for the Echelon maintains the stability of the empire. I'm proud of you . . . as you should be of yourself."
Nisuro bowed and replied "I never would have made it this far without your guidance admiral. Thank you for believing in me." Jothej gave him one last smile and entered the shuttle and Nisuro made his way to the observation deck above. The hangar doors boomed open and the shuttle reversed itself, blasting off into the void beyond as Nisuro looked on.
A beeping on his omni-tool roused Nisuro from his thoughts. It was Niamus. Still believing that they had started out on the wrong foot he answered immediately. "Yes Firs . . . I'm sorry Niamus. What is it?" Niamus answered in a slightly clipped tone "Commander, the admiral's shuttle has cleared the asteroid belt. Do you have a course or destination plotted for us?" Nisuro wasn't even sure he had a course plotted for himself, let alone the ship. "For now keep a holding pattern behind the far side of the planetoid. I have some settling in to do first."
"Acknowledged Honoured Commander. We will hold orbit until further instructions." Niamus replied.
Nisuro made his way to his quarters, a large suite that was located in the hall leading to the bridge. The room was empty save for the bed and furniture that were waiting for him. "Blank slate," Nisuro muttered to himself as he began the task of unpacking his personal items. Half an hour passed until he was unpacked, but still wasn't ready to go back to the bridge. Instead, he flopped down on his bed and closed his eyes momentarily. And in spite of himself, he welcomed the sweet sleep that inevitably came.
Author's note: In case you may have missed it, Haven during the Prothean era is later renamed Bekenstein during the events of Mass Effect. :)