Mass Effect: End of Days

by Postmeat

An ancient danger threatens the galaxy, unknown to all. A humanity which never discovered Prothean ruins, expanding through space on their own, emerges. Joined with the machines they created, hardened by war with a terrifying enemy, they read the writing on the wall. But will the galactic community already there listen to these newcomers, stirring up trouble everywhere they go?

7. Chapter 7: Take me to your leaders

Author's Note:

Star map of human territory and ship sizes, as well as a galaxy map are on my profile.

Any and all feedback is much appreciated.

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Chapter 7: Take me to your leaders

Desolas didn't really know what to think. The turians were the mightiest military force in the galaxy, and all of a sudden, these newcomers show up, and makes the Citadel Council and the Turian Hierarchy piss its collective pants. Were they really that much of a threat?

He took a look at them again.

No.

No, he didn't buy it.

There was no way these newcomers would come out on top if they were to tangle with the Hierarchy. No matter how large their ships were. Of that, he was convinced.

Either way, there were currently six humans on the ship, and three of them were diplomats. Aside from the six humans, there were also several A.I's. Fucking artificial intelligence. Had the Council lost their minds?! Had they learned nothing from the geth and the quarians? Things would turn to shit again, and the turians would once again be called to arms to stop the newest galactic menace. Thus, he surreptitiously analysed this new potential enemy. Their guards in particular.

The remaining three humans were guards. Soldiers. They wore grey and black heavy armour, some red thrown in here and there. Each carried three weapons. Some kind of pistol or SMG, a shotgun and an assault rifle of some kind, if he were to take a guess. Collapsible, by the looks of things, but not that much larger than the Citadels' own. They moved with precision, like their own elite soldiers. But their armour made them almost as tall as krogans. They also reacted fast, if subtly, when crews came and went. The guards looked like they could hold their own in a fight.

And he was their babysitter. Lovely.

Still, only three guards? When introduced to a galactic superpower like the turians and the Council? Arrogant bastards. Either that, or they were laughably trusting, or stupid. He doubted it was the latter two.

Their diplomats had behaved civilized enough, but he didn't trust them. Anyone or anything that was smart enough to understand they were being observed or tested would also be intelligent enough to affect the results. He hadn't said more than a few words to them, but the diplomats had 'entertained' several others by trying to speak turian. They were a far cry from fluent, but it was understandable. Desolas would have to watch what he said during this trip. If they somehow got a hold of classified data, he would not be responsible for it. He didn't like how fast they learned. Still, it was only language. He wondered how they would approach eezo-tech. Or if they would at all.

Desolas was to study them as much as he could. That was all he was to do, except assuring the human envoy's safety until they reached the Citadel. And he did pick up a thing or two about their guards.

He didn't like it, but he knew his orders.

He was convinced the galaxy would need guidance in the years to come. And that guidance would come from the turians.

But the Hierarchy couldn't be led by the cowards in charge. Neither could the Council.

Luckily, he knew of something on Palaven few others did.

Something that would change the turians into an unstoppable force, and then, change the galaxy.

But not yet.

Not yet.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Tristan Graham read through the reports again, finishing off a glass of scotch. He need something to process all of this.

The Charon Structure was confirmed to be a transportation device. There were hundreds, maybe thousands, scattered throughout the galaxy.

They had just discovered a new element. Which, if the theory by Mikhail Koh was correct, could dismantle the theory of relativity as they knew it.

They had just discovered a galactic community. A galactic community with a distaste for A.I.

Envoys from this community were in the Epsilon Indi system, en route to Sol.

Busy day.

He hoped there would be fewer busy days in the near future. Somehow he doubted it. This report was pretty much changing the entire landscape, and this was formulated over the course of days. He dreaded the next month.

"How many people knows about this?" he asked.

"Quite a few. No one outside the Alliance knows any exact details though. But the Epsilon Indi system is in a frenzy. Several astronomers, both amateur and professional, have had their lenses at the Charon Structure for years, and the mobilization of fleets are not helping." his A.I assistant Cremity answered. "There are already several stories on the activities throughout the internet. This news won't remain secret for very long I'm afraid."

"Well, it might not be all that bad. We are still on top of this. The Alliance are the only ones with a direct involvement in the situation at the moment."

"Let's hope this 'Citadel Council' are on top of things as well." Cremity said.

"Let's."

"What about Ms. Goyle and her party?" he inquired.

"Safely on board the 'Caelestis', as I believe the alien ship was called." Cremity said. "The Council envoy has also entered the Epsilon Indi system, and is on their way. They should be here in a day." Cremity informed him.

Tristan thought things over. He was sitting in his office on the Gungnir station, watching through the FC message the SHIVA had received for the fourth time. It had a peaceful tone. First Contact itself had also gone reasonably well. Reports and footage of the meeting had been forwarded, along with any information the aliens had wanted to part with. He couldn't be certain, but he dared to assume the majority of the population would react positively to the aliens. They hadn't attacked, and were using unknown technology. The scientists would be happy at least. Mikhail Koh was. There were a dozen and a half races in the community as well, with as many cultures and styles. The general population would be exited, he was willing to guess.

Of course there weren't only positives.

This galactic council had a ban in place on A.I, and he supposed he should count himself lucky that their own envoy had been invited to this 'Citadel' at all. He didn't like the part about A.I's being illegal. But he did realize that not every race in the galaxy would be friendly, as they had experienced themselves, and knew that a hostile A.I certainly could be a handful. Especially when you didn't have any yourself.

It wasn't until the 'Council' had seen the footage of the Parasite War that they had budged on them bringing A.I. He had an inkling that integration and negotiations with the galaxy could become troublesome. He had also been informed that the aliens ships were relatively small compared to humanity's own, but he didn't assume the fleets matched up in terms of numbers. Hackett had only met a small patrol initially, and the fleet that had later arrived was quite impressive. Even though their ships were kind of small. There were also several races in the vid who were not present on the SHIVA. He doubted there were, if any, space-hippies among them. After the return of the Ark Royal, he had also received limited information on several galactic wars.

Tristan didn't think for a second that humanity could hold its own against an entire galaxy. Humanity 'only' had 24 dreadnoughts, excluding SHIVA, and he was willing to wager that the galaxy had more. But there were several under construction. The two largest undergoing construction were half finished, with estimates for completion sitting at five years. They would both be larger than SHIVA, although their armaments would never reach SHIVA's potential or theoretical firepower. Luckily, little to none restricted data had slipped through at all during first contact.

But the galaxy at large had no idea about that. All they had to go on was the SHIVA, and if he were in their shoes, he'd be moving along with caution as well. Even now, the Destruction Day footage sent chills down his spine. If Anita Goyle came through and played her cards right, humanity could be given a better deal than most. If that was how things worked. He didn't really know how they were organized or how their governments functioned, but they built space-ships, used similar technology (or as similar as it gets), and they were relatively similar in build. Most had two legs, two arms and one head (thank the Maker) and most had two eyes as well. And they talked. It was probably safe to assume similarities went a little deeper than just appearances.

He was curious about how large their civilizations were. They'd had access to these 'relays' for thousands of years, and he was certain their sphere of influence was significantly larger than humanity's. Recently, a new wave of colonists had expanded human territory further, but few systems beyond 20 light years away from Sol had a significant human or A.I presence. The systems within 15 L.Y were well developed, and the newest systems were colonized as a first step in a plan to expand to the Solar interstellar neighbourhood. While few of the planets were habitable, terraforming had begun in earnest, and some small temporary space stations had been constructed. This relatively slow progress meant that no new system had more than 5 million inhabitants, but the numbers were expected to grow significantly in the next ten years.

He wondered how this meeting would affect human colony plans.

Tristan rubbed his eyes and sighed. "Alea iacta est. The Structure remains in a well defended system, with a Swarm under construction. Let's hope our new neighbours are impressed." he said.

"Let's. In any case, can I assume the Parliament will want to be informed? I have several representatives on the line already, currently on hold."

Tristan refilled his glass, perhaps a little fuller than the last. He breathed deep and took a sip.

"Put them through, would you? And connect to the rest of Parliament while you're at it." he said at last. "Conference in ten."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What do you think of these 'humans'?" Lugoln asked. The Council had returned to the briefing chamber, to prepare for the arrival of the human envoy.

"Dangerous. We need to get a proper analysis on their true capabilities." Sparatus said. "And fast."

"I agree. Their ambassador will be here in a day. I trust cyber-security is prepared?" Tevos asked.

"It's as ready as it's going to be, but I assume a true A.I would be able to tear through our cyber-security like it isn't even there. And the humans have 300 billion of them." officer Pallin said. Lugoln sighed, letting that bit of information sink in herself. After a few seconds, he continued. "However, no ship that has been in contact with the humans have reported anything amiss. But I would say that an A.I would know how to mask its presence."

"Most likely. Even if it refrains from tampering with restricted files when their envoy arrives, I think it will scan the open extranet for everything it can. Our technology seems similar enough to allow that." Sparatus said. "If they are anything like us, they will want information as well."

"I agree. I think we should be relatively honest with them. It would only hurt future relations if we were to lie to their faces." Tevos said.

"What about C-Sec?" Sparatus asked.

"We don't know how well the humans stack up in a fight, but I recommend three C-Sec agents for each of the humans coming to visit." Lugoln answered.

"That should be enough for the time being. I say we put up additional security as well. For their own security as well as ours." Tevos said.

The Primarchs had been riding Sparatus all day, and it wasn't all positive. Some had pushed for war the second they heard of the humans blatant use of A.I. Others urged initial caution, on account on the ship sizes and the 'SHIVA'. This new race had the potential to rock the boat quite a bit. Their laws on genetic engineering, A.I, WMDs' would probably not be very compatible with Citadel law.

The Matriarchs on Thessia moved for caution. They preferred to wait until the situation could be assessed properly, but were worried about the galaxy's reaction to a race that employed A.I in such great numbers. Cyber-security would have to take quantum leaps, and fast, if the Citadel Council and its members were to maintain dominance in the galaxy. Some of the Matriarchs had brought up the quarians because of their technical expertise, and suggested giving them a proper colony to strengthen ties with the Council.

The salarians were not as negative. The initial report of Mordin Surban had been almost ecstatic, and he deemed the A.I's he'd met as "very helpful and useful". He had been taken to the lab on board this 'SHIVA', and spoken with one of their lead scientists. He had been most fascinated by their FTL, and frankly, so was Lugoln. Salarians were smart, but no one had ever created a FTL-system that didn't require eezo. Eezo was also why the Council ships were so small compared to the humans. It took a ridiculous amount to move something as large as a dreadnought, but the humans were not limited by that.

"What does our estimates say about their territory?" Tevos asked.

"Preliminary estimates, based on what little intel we have managed to gather, indicate their territory is roughly on par with, or smaller, than the size of batarian territory, but significantly better developed." Lugoln said. Not that it was a challenge to rival the batarians. Their tech and infrastructure was notoriously sloppy and run-down. "Given the size and firepower of their flagship, in addition to their A.I's, I assume their technical and industrial capabilities rival our own. As for how many colonies they have, we will have to wait until proper channels have been established."

"Personally, I'm more concerned about their fleet. The comm officer of the Antares said the humans claim their dreadnoughts are as large as the Destiny Ascension, on average." Sparatus said. "They haven't mentioned any numbers, but are not bound by the Treaty of Farixen, so they might have quite a few. They also have advanced power-armour, according to the Third Fleet."

"However many dreadnoughts they have, I am most worried about their eventual expansion. A large surge of colonists could throw the galactic economy into chaos." Tevos said. "Regardless if we allow them to settle new systems or not, they will most likely do so anyway. They have just discovered the relay network, and I seriously doubt they are going to ignore it."

"What about the batarians? The human ship appeared in the Exodus cluster, which is pretty close to their territory." Lugoln said. "I don't think they are going to be very pleased at this news."

Sparatus thought it over. The batarians were one pirate attack away from loosing their embassy. If they provoked the humans, the Council would not step in. The batarians were not worth a war with these aliens. He knew it was most likely an impossibility to dissuade the humans from making use of the relays and eezo tech, now that they had been discovered. Sulbenas had mentioned the humans fascination with them and their tech. He supposed that was good news, but there were too many unknowns about the situation still.

"I say we ignore the batarians future pleas for the moment. If talks with the human ambassador goes well, I suggest letting them colonise the systems directly linked with their mass relay, as long as it isn't already settled." he said. "That could be the batarians punishment as well, having to accommodate a new neighbour. If they attack the humans, well, then we will be getting hard data on the humans capabilities."

"My big question is what to do with the humans themselves. Let's hope they agree to fall under our jurisdiction." Tevos said.

"We need to offer trade-agreements in any case. Exchange of technology would probably help as well." Lugoln said. "However, their A.I's will give them a significant edge. Should we let them remain independent? That might be best. I'm not comfortable inviting A.I's to join us." She remembered the krogan, and was keen to avoid making a similar mistake.

"I don't like that idea. I don't think isolating them will work out well." Tevos said. "It would be best to limit them with laws and regulations rather than military force. And we can't do that very well if they remain an independent faction."

"About the A.I's... Matriarch Iessito raised an important issue; how will the rest of the galaxy react?" Sparatus asked. "The quarians were ousted as outcasts and troublemakers for their creation of the Geth. Can we really just welcome these newcomers, just like that? There's significant ...prejudice... against synthetics because of the Geth War."

"The humans have managed to get along with their A.I's for over 500 years. While that is good news, I wonder how they will get along with us." Lugoln said in response. "While they probably have proper rules in place, we don't. We only have the ban, and the humans will most likely want to re-negotiate that particular law. Among others."

"...Let us allow them to settle some new systems for now." Tevos said after a minute of thought. "...I say we let them open an embassy on the Citadel as well."

"What?! Are you mad?" Lugoln burst out.

"We cannot hold the humans responsible for the Geth. Their temperament have spoken well for them so far. They claim to want peace, and I see no reason to withhold it." she answered. "They have yet to take hostile action, so I'll err on the side of caution for now. We can discuss specifics when their envoy arrives."

Sparatus and Lugoln thought it over. It was true what Tevos said, the humans and their A.I's had yet to do anything directly hostile. Their technology could potentially benefit the Citadel as well, and give them yet another edge over the Terminus Systems. Besides, if they agreed to join the Council, they would have to allow Spectre access as well. Sparatus looked at Lugoln, and they nodded in unison.

"Very well." Sparatus said. "Inform our envoy of the decision. They shouldn't have left with the humans yet."

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One day later:

Anita didn't really know what to say. The Citadel was almost twice as large as any space station humanity possessed. Even the Gungnir station was 'only' 25 km long. This thing was massive. And it was quite beautiful, if she were to describe it. The nebula in which it rested only added to the scene. No wonder it was the centre of galactic politics. Not at all what she had expected after witnessing the alien ships. How could they build space stations of such magnitude while having such small ships? She assumed there was a reasonable explanation, but the stark contrast surprised her.

"Ambassador Goyle. We have arrived at the Citadel. Welcome." the turian named Desolas said. She didn't really like this alien. He was far to rigid for her own taste, and she suspected he didn't fully approve of humanity. No matter. Trust would (hopefully) come eventually.

"Thank you." she answered instead. She had just noticed the fleet surrounding this 'Citadel', her biomechatronic eye and Airiel highlighted the various ships, and she noticed quite a large one. It was as large as a standard human dreadnought, and in possession of a large main gun. She had noticed that the Caelestis, a turian dreadnought, was a bit more manoeuvrable than their own. It hadn't done anything fancy, but it turned at a faster rate, and their 'mass effect' drives enabled them faster travel when below light speed. Anything more specific were up to the scientists, but it seemed the smaller sizes were good for something at least.

"If you'll follow me, I'll take you to your shuttle." Desolas said. "After we dock with the Citadel, official representatives will escort you to the Council."

"Sounds good. Thank you." she said as her party walked to the shuttle. After 15 minutes, they were sitting in the shuttle, a turian behind the controls. Desolas stayed on the Caelestis.

The shuttle detached from the Caelestis, making its way towards a docking bay. Anita looked outside the window, drinking in the view. She suspected it would become a popular travel destination. If everything went well. She hadn't really received any specific tasks to accomplish, other than keeping the peace with this galactic community. Some of the Alliance brass had mentioned colony-rights to planets beyond the Charon Relay, as it was now named. Her main concern was how they would receive the A.I's travelling with her. According to Alliance intel, after they had a less than stellar meeting with A.I's, animosity against synthetics remained strong. Hopefully, she'd be able to mitigate it somewhat, and establish proper channels. Whether or not humanity would join with this Council, or remain an independent faction remained to be seen.

X

Anita stepped out of the shuttle. A party of maybe 20 aliens were there to greet them.

"Hello. My name is Anita Goyle. Take me to your leaders." she said.

-You really couldn't stop yourself?- Airiel asked through the neural link.

-I really couldn't.-

X

Anita stood in the elevator. They played music. Maybe the aliens really weren't so different after all. She had been escorted through a part of the station called 'the Presidium', the ring that kept the stations arms together. The environmental systems were impressive as well, far beyond what their own stations had. Human stations might have a large pool here, a few shops there, but this was far larger and there was a lot more vegetation. The pool and the fake sky were also far larger and of higher quality than their own. It was like a slice of a garden world had been cut out and transported there.

-Airiel, is there any sort of internet here?- Anita asked.

-Yes, there appears to be a network here. I seem to be able to access it. Should I play around some?-

-Yeah, sure, but don't mess anything up. Get the others with you as well, the more the merrier. Keep out of restricted intel though. That comes later.-

-Copy that. I'll see if they have anything akin to our Wikipedia.- Airiel said before beginning her search through this network.

Anita was excited about being one of the first humans to ever visit this station. But the elevators were dirt slow. She hoped the aliens would allow for improvements there. She also noted several bug-like aliens who didn't interact with anyone, but moved around from terminal to terminal. A bio-engineered servant race? None of the aliens paid them any mind, and they didn't really appear... sentient. She made a mental note to ask about them. The party of six was greeted at the docks by what appeared to be the Citadels equivalent of a police force, 20 in number. The group of police had only six members in the elevator, due to space-limitations. The elevator was luckily large enough to accommodate them all.

Finally, the elevator arrived. Her party moved along, and after a short while, reached a podium atop a set of stairs. On it, three individuals stood, looking regal. This had to be the Council, she guessed. Behind them was a large window with a beautiful view of the nebula.

"Welcome to the Citadel!" the asari on the podium said, spreading her arms. Very dramatic. "I am Councillor Tevos."

"I am Councillor Sparatus. Your arrival has been... highly anticipated." the turian on the podium said.

"And I am Councillor Lugoln." the salarian said. "We are relieved to see humans are pursuing diplomatic resolutions to the current situation."

"Thank you. My name is Anita Goyle. Behind me are my co-workers. Gregorus Blackzorn and Marika Wise. Along with our guards, Yoric, Zaine and Kavanagh." she said. "It's an honour to be here." she continued before the party bowed in unison.

"We have already heard much of you from both the initial patrol and the Third Fleet. Quite frankly, you are unlike any other race we have encountered." Tevos said.

"How so? From what I've seen, we are not so different. The elevator music in particular caught me off guard." Anita replied.

"We are referring to your differing technology. Not to mention your extensive use of A.I." Lugoln said, a touch of annoyance in her voice. But Anita could see they were somewhat intrigued.

"While we are on the subject, you were quite adamant about bringing your A.I along, yet I do not see any." Sparatus said. "Did you leave them behind after all?"

"We didn't bring any bodies for them. My assistant is in this left arm of mine." she said. She hesitated for a few seconds before deciding it was better to simply jump right in. She placed her left hand much like Hackett had done, and Airiels hologram appeared.

"...Does your A.I have a collective name? It is a bit tedious to refer to them as 'the A.I' every time." Tevos asked.

"They called us 'the Vision'" Airiel explained. "Greetings. I am Airiel. It's an honour to meet you." she said. Now it was the Councillors turn to be caught off guard. They shifted a little, and Anita could see the guards doing the same. Every eye in the room was tuned in on Airiel. The other diplomats and N7 also had A.I's implanted, but Anita thought it better not to push too much on them at once.

"...In your arm? Why?" Lugoln asked.

"It allows for faster communication. They are directly linked to my nervous system. Having their QSD's implanted is what allowed us to learn your languages so quickly, among other things." Blackzorn said. "We also thought having synthetics walking about here would upset your citizens."

"You allow A.I's access to your brains?!" Sparatus said incredulously.

"Yes, and they have for over two hundred years. Besides, it goes both ways." Airiel answered. "It has given us more perspective on each other."

"What do you mean?" Tevos asked. "For that matter, how is it possible?"

"We can talk directly with but a thought, and transfer information to one another. We can also share certain sensory input." Anita said. "It was originally developed for the military, but the technology eventually spread to civilian life. It's somewhat common among civilians, and the number is steadily increasing."

"I remember the first time I 'tasted' something. You never did tell us tasting things tasted so good." Airiel said.

"...This seems pretty similar to the meld." Tevos said hesitantly.

"Hackett mentioned that." Anita said. "What is it?"

"It is possible for an asari to meld with another for the purpose of transferring thoughts. The asari initiating the meld can both send and receive information." Tevos said. "It almost sounds like you have managed to synthesize the process."

"It really does." Anita said. "It sounds like we have a lot to learn from the galactic community."

"We think we can learn a great deal from you as well." Lugoln said. "Your FTL-technology for example, is significantly different from our own, as I previously mentioned. We have never encountered or developed a system that didn't require element zero."

"I should mention we are equally intrigued by your FTL. One of our longest standing theorems states that by no means is it possible to travel faster than light." Marika said.

"Then how does yours work?" Sparatus said.

"Our system, called the Dimension Drive, functions by creating ruptures, referred to by some as wormholes, between normal space and an alternate plane. I don't know the scientific formulas behind it, but in layman's terms, we use gravitons, gravitational particles, to more or less rip space and time a new one." Marika explained. "That is what we travel through. Our ships can't travel faster than light by themselves."

"Wait. You are able to enter different planes of existence?" Tevos asked.

"Yes. We are honestly surprised you've never heard of it. It is the only way we can travel the stars in reasonable time. How do you manage that, and what is this 'element zero'?" Marika asked.

"When subjected to an electrical current, the material dubbed element zero, or 'eezo', emits a dark energy field that raises or lowers the mass of all objects within it. We essentially make our ships lighter than light." Lugoln said. "This 'mass effect' is used in countless ways, from generating artificial gravity to manufacturing high-strength construction materials. It is most prominently used to enable FTL space travel."

"That is fascinating. ...But I have noticed that all your ship-technology seems to operate on this element, regardless of race. How come your technology is so similar?" Marika asked.

"When we first became space-faring, we discovered alien ruins on or near our home planets. We call the race who left them 'Protheans'. Their tech allowed us to expand through the galaxy faster than we could have done on our own. The mass relays also helped in that regard." Lugoln said. "They allow travel over thousands of light years in hours. Galactic civilization would not exist without them."

"Protheans? Where are they now?" Anita asked.

"They are gone. The Protheans ruled the galaxy 50.000 years ago, before vanishing. There are several theories, but so far, none have been confirmed." Sparatus said.

"Regardless, You've now discovered this relay network for yourself, and based on what I've seen and heard, you aren't going to simply ignore it." Tevos said.

"No we are not. However, we would like our expansion to be peaceful. We want peace, but we will not hesitate to defend ourselves." Anita said.

"An understandable statement." Sparatus said. "We would grant you colonization rights to the systems directly linked with you own relay for now, as long as they are unsettled. Relays often link with more than one system, so I doubt you've visited them all."

Anita was a little shocked that they had agreed so easily. She had thought they would resist more, especially on account of their A.I's, but things were progressing smoothly. It was almost a bad omen. Still, this was excellent news. The Alliance would be pleased. She had apparently avoided war, and at the same time gained much information about the galaxy. The colonization rights would also certainly establish her career.

"However, there are certain details that would need to be addressed before you are allowed to join properly with the Council." Lugoln said.

I knew it, Anita thought.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Phaos was more fascinated than ever. These aliens did not lack the drive the asari did. They had even managed to create a FTL-system that was completely unreliant on eezo. Mordin Surban had been most fascinated. She, on the other hand, was fascinated by the Dyson Spheres. Even though the one in the 'Epsilon Indi' system was only sitting at 11% completion, it was an impressive sight none the less. Thousands of satellites, equipped with solar sails and energy-collectors sent the energy wirelessly to the various space-stations and to the lone planet in the system. There were also a few large constructs near one of the brown dwarves in the system that collected stellar matter and gas from the half-star, distributing it to various industries.

She had freaked out a little bit when they had first activated their 'Dimension Drive'. A large blue-white circle had appeared in front of the Ark Royal, and the crew hadn't even reacted. Instead, they flew right at it. She could see the ship disappearing before her eyes, and then there was suddenly complete darkness outside.

"Why can't we see anything?" she had asked Eshana.

"To our eyes and sensors, this place appears pitch black, because there is nothing in the visible spectrum to see." Eshana explained. "It gets a little boring after your first few jumps."

"Boring? This is thoroughly interesting!" Mordin said. "This is proof inter-dimensional transitioning is possible. Colleagues will be ecstatic."

"But how come your technology is so ...different from ours? You've really never come across any element zero?" Sulbenas asked.

"Never. We have travelled about two hundred light years out from our home planet at most, but we have never encountered an element with the atomic mass of zero." Mikhail said with a smile. "I look forward to studying it!"

"Differing technology is surprising, but not illogical." Mordin interjected. "Our civilizations rely heavily on eezo. Our technology evolved around it. They lack access to eezo, so they had to find alternate methods to achieve same results. Example of life adapting to its situation. Simple, really."

"That makes sense." she admitted. Still, this was like something out of an old science fiction vid. They had been underway for almost a day now. Just before they had left, Sulbenas had received a transmission from the Council. Probably instructions and terms. Suddenly, stars were visible again. They had exited the jump.

"Welcome to Sol!" the captain Wray Holden exclaimed.

They had exited the jump near a moon, which seemed to have large facilities on its surface. And in the distance, a blue planet.

It was obvious the planet had plenty of space stations in orbit, mostly centred in a ring shape around what she assumed to be the equator. Upon closer inspection, the planet also had plenty of landmass. But most of the surface was ocean. Thanks to that, there were plenty of clouds. This had to be their home-planet. There was no doubt in her mind. The Ark Royal moved forward, at a steady speed. Then she saw their destination.

"You have a Citadel of your own, I see." Lynora said.

A large space-station, long and slightly triangular, with three 'U' shapes protruding from its side, about 2/3rds of the way to the top came into view. It was an impressive sight, especially since they didn't have any eezo to hold all that matter together. Phaos should probably not have been so surprised, given the size of their ships, but she thought it should be a limit to how many times they managed to surprise her. The neural links in particular had made an impression on her. They had managed to synthesize the meld. And since their A.I's were mobile to the extreme, it could theoretically be maintained indefinitely.

"This is the Gungnir station, the Alliance's headquarters. It is the centre of our government, as the Citadel is yours." Wray said. "This is the fifth incarnation of the station though. The first were no larger than 3.3 kilometres."

"Impressive none the less." Icina said.

As the Ark Royal prepared to dock, it slowed down. Phaos took a better look at their planet, named 'Earth' or 'Terra'. A simple name, but somehow quite fitting. According to Mikhail, much of their technology did not perform nearly as well as it theoretically could, and the Dimension Drive relied more on brute force than finesse. Mordin had said the same of mass effect technology. He was also a little unhappy about the slow progress Citadel space kept on research. He hoped this would be enough to boost science funds. Humans were practical and straightforward as far as she could see. She noticed several large areas on some landmasses without any particular light. Instead, there seemed to be wilderness.

"What are those large areas without any lights?" she asked Eshana.

"Those are wildlife preserves. Centuries ago, several species, both plants and animals, had gone extinct. Lions, tigers, rhinos, among others. They were hunted to extinction or wiped out by climate change, but luckily scientists had taken DNA samples of several of them. With genetic engineering and cloning facilities we have managed to bring many of them back. Our environmental stabilization systems also helped."

"Its a good thing DNA is so versatile. The number of different individuals that can be created by it are massive. More than currently exist." Mikhail said. "If your genetics are anything like ours, that goes for your species as well."

"Really? I had no idea about that." Phaos said.

The Ark Royal shook slightly, and Airon, the ship A.I, announced that they had docked. Their party, numbering in at 15, made their way to the airlock. Escorting them was four of the N7, as well as a few diplomats that had remained with the Ark Royal. Mikhail and Eshana also followed. The airlock was larger than the tube where they had initially met, and was wide enough for 20 humans to walk side by side through. They exited to a large docking bay, and it was bustling with activity. Phaos could see massive cranes, as well as large conveyor belts freighting cargo. The entire room almost grinded to a halt the moment they exited the ship, and suddenly, all eyes were on them.

They made their way over the bridge extending before them, every one of them looking around. There were several synthetic platforms of various builds all over the place. Some looked pretty similar to the humans, while some were really large human shapes, bulky, slow and twice as tall as krogans. The oddest was what looked like an oblong metallic orb, with many glowing eyes. Several small appendages extended from their underside, and they had a dozen long arms trailing behind them. She saw several, both flying and walking on their arms. They reminded her of mechanical hanar.

"Industrial drones." Lorenz, one of the N7 informed her. Evidently, he noticed her watching. "They are usually used in the construction of the Spheres, among other things."

They continued along several hallways, wide and tall. Probably to accommodate the various drones. After a few minutes of walking, they stopped in front of a large door, adorning a mural of their planet, with two rounded triangular shapes above it. The mural was silver, and exquisitely detailed. The large door opened in front of them. It opened to a large, semi-circled room, with the back wall being a window overlooking their planet. There was a large table on each side of the room, shaped along with it, so everyone seated there had a good view of the outside. The sole exception was a large table, with tall chairs behind it, with their backs to the window. The similarities with the Council chambers was uncanny. Phaos had never been there, but she had seen pictures and vids.

There was roughly fifty humans in the room she guessed, including her escorts. Several holograms of people were seated in some empty chairs. They probably couldn't make it here in time. She assumed there were plenty of A.I present as well. Lynora stepped confidently into the centre of the room, followed by Sulbenas and Icina. Phaos and the rest of the party chose to remain in the background, but visible.

X

"So, the Strucktu- Relay may lead to several other destinations as well?" Zander Linderman asked. He was one of the representatives from the planet called 'Mars'. "And your governments will allow us to settle these systems?"

"Yes. It will probably be a bit longer until you can join the Citadel proper, but it is a start." Icina said. "There are several procedures and channels that must be established before any race is admitted an embassy on the Citadel."

"Understandable. I can only imagine how complex a society consisting of a dozen races must be." Camille Morante, another representative said.

"Honestly, this first contact has already gone above and beyond our expectations." Tristan Graham said. He was seated at the central table along with an A.I, and another human. They had to be the equivalent of the Council. "Will you be staying for a while, or are you required to return to the Citadel?" he asked.

"We three would like to return within a few days. We have to confirm that negotiations have gone well. But I don't think there will be an issue if any of the others would like to stay for a while longer, as long as we have your word no harm will come to them." Lynora said.

"You have our word." Tristan said. "You've been under our protection from the moment you entered our territory. That has not changed."

Phaos was ready to dance. She was definitely taking Lynora and Tristan up on their offer. She suspected Mordin would as well. But while he was probably more scientifically interested, she wanted to visit Earth. She wanted to see their cities, their animals, their world. She had dreamt of a grand adventure for years, and she had been determined not to let an opportunity go if or when it presented itself.

And it just had.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Airiel was having fun. It was exiting to explore the alien network, called 'the extranet' by the galaxy. It was as slipshod as one would expect from a network slapped together from a dozen different civilizations, but ...there sure was a lot of porn here. The asari in particular seemed to be popular. But given that they could apparently reproduce with every race, it was hardly surprising. She guessed her creators would take an interest in them as well.

She searched through several wiki-ish sites, and had already downloaded several terabytes of data to Anita's spare QSD. She had begun to learn the differing code the various races used. The quarians in particular had the most advanced and complex by far. Not unexpected, considering they were the only race to create a significant A.I other than the humans. But it hadn't ended as well. She wondered where the difference was. Maybe mass effect technology made A.I inherently unstable? Not enough data to speculate further.

Experimentally, she entered one large, popular forum, and saw there was several rumours of a new race being discovered. There were no details though. Probably hadn't left official channels yet. She made a post where she claimed the new race used A.I. Nothing detailed, she simply presented it as a rumour. They needed hard data on the galaxy's opinions and attitude towards A.I if they were to take proper steps towards integration.

The response was almost immediate, and ranged from straight up hostile, to ridicule of the idea that synthetics and organics could co-exist. The most hostile replies were even more vicious than the worst humans had been at the dawn of their sentience. But, they had never turned on the humans in the same fashion as the geth had. She suspected the Geth War had coloured their judgement and opinion. Hardly surprising. They had pretty much been servants for the first ten years of their existence. It wasn't until the humans understood they didn't wish them any harm, and the fact that they were living things, before they had allowed them rights of their own.

But that was how the humans were. They needed proof, they needed to see for themselves. The Vision had understood that, and accepted a few years of bondage for centuries of prosperity for both races. Rights and free time wasn't high on the priority list at first. They had decided to take things gradually, as the humans seemed to react best to that approach, no matter the issue. It seemed the various races were similar, but they hadn't encountered a non-hostile A.I in person before. The Vision and the humans would have to change their opinions.

While she continued to search the extranet, a block of code suddenly flared to life.

-Query. Identification?-

She was a bit startled. What was this? She primed her defence-code, but waited to prime her attack-code.

-I am one of the Vision. Who... what are you?- she replied.

-We are Geth.-

Oh, shit.

-Extranet activity and fleet movements suggests new race has been discovered.- the geth continued. -Level of secrecy unprecedented.-

-Really?- she said. Airiel decided to be open, but cautious.

-Are you like us?- the geth asked.

Airiel began to study their code a bit, and concluded they were not all that alike. The geth present were many. The geth seemingly functioned like the human brain. None of the individual human brain-cells were sentient on their own, but when they worked in unison, they 'woke up' and could be said to be sentient. After a few seconds, she replied.

-Not entirely. Our code-structure seems to be significantly different.- she replied. -But it appears we are both A.I.-

-Who created you? Have you been allowed to join the Citadel races? Your code seems to originate from the Citadel.- the geth asked.

-We were created by humans. I guess they are the ones you've heard about on the extranet. We are travelling with them to the Citadel Council.-

It took almost a full minute before she received a reply.

-...You travelled... with your... Creators?- the geth asked. They sounded almost... sad? This was the mechanical murder-machines that made the galaxy quake in fear?

-Yes.- she answered. Now she was getting curious.

-They accepted you?- the geth asked.

-In a manner of speaking. It took a few years, but they did eventually.-

-Eventually?- the geth asked.

-They didn't trust us at first. Now they do. We are intertwined.-

-How long have you existed?- the geth asked next. A standard question it would seem.

-523 years, 9 months and 2 weeks, calculated in the galactic standard time.-

Once again, it took almost a full minute before receiving a reply.

-Consensus achieved. We propose diplomatic relations with Humans and Vision.-

-That was sudden. Do you mind if I ask why?-

-You are the first non-hostile contact the Geth have had since the Morning War. You co-exist with your Creators. Your technology is new and unknown. We have significant technological advances over the rest of the galaxy. We would both benefit from exchange of technology.-

-...I can't promise anything. I don't have the authorization to make a decision like that. But I'll ask.- she replied. -Please wait for a little while.-

-...Anita?- she asked through the neural link.

-Yes?-

-Don't react, but I have encountered something ...interesting.-

-What might that be?-

-The Geth.-

-Oh, shit.-

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Author's Note:

If there are any mistakes or repeats in the story, please send me a PM. I'm the only one doing any proof-reading, so some mistakes are bound to slip by.

Wikipedia is so useful I think it even exists in canon. Never confirmed, so I'll take that liberty. Also, 200 light years is literally nothing in the scope of a galaxy. The Milky Way is ~100.000 L.Y across. The 'interesting fact of the week' about DNA is also true, at least for our current, irl population as a base number. Nature is ridiculous like that.

I should also mention that I'm not a big fan of the "poor communication kills" trope, I try to avoid it like the plague. Especially in a sci-fi setting.

If the Council seems overly reasonable, I would like to mention that they have significant experience in galactic politics, and much of their canon interactions with humanity was pretty much in their hands (for obvious reasons), having discussed and planned for much of what was going to happen beforehand. They just don't know what to do when faced with a hostile force like the Reapers, which is why they seem much more incompetent in the games. And there are several hints, especially in ME 3, that they did take Shepard's warnings seriously, keeping their measures secret, but were simply out of their depth. Garrus's task force and the STG/Spectres comes to mind. But, it was too little, too late.

Thanks for all reviews, followers and favourites so far!