Chapter 14
Turian Stealth Frigate Palvern's Night
Star system of receiving Relay 314
On loan to Salarian STG
"Picking up on the echo again professor." Reported the Turian sensor officer as he manually redirect the sensor grid to home in on the persistent echo using the Salarian upgraded sensor system.
Prefessor Mordin Solus, leader of this STG, lean over the Turian's shoulder before activating his own Omni-tool. The holographic surface of the Omni tool sprung into life collecting the new data from the terminal. "Should be enough," muttered the Salarian before moving back to the Galaxy Map where the ship's captain was waiting.
Saren Arterius was not happy. Ever since the arrival of the large number of ship after the battle, his ship has been shadowed by an echo which the Salarian has believed to be another ship. The ship he commanded, Palvern's Night, was the frigate outfitted with the best the hierarchy could offer including the newly develop IES system currently integrated into the ship's hull. It was not even detected by the other ships of the Citadel but with the new fact that this new fraction can follow them wherever it pleases is even more nerve racking for the Turian Specter who had believed the Hierarchy had the best space force the galaxy had seen.
"Sufficient data gathered, should have a visual momentary." Reported Mordin Solus as he inputted the painstakingly gathered data to reveal their unknown stalker. The Galaxy map shifted and turned as it try to shape the inputted data, minutes later though a bizarre looking object was formed and was in no way a ship.
Cursing profoundly in the Salarian native language, Professor Mordin Solus move back to the sensor grid control interface.
Saren was not amused however and ordered visual check of the space nearby. The cameras integrated on the ship's outer hull took pictures of the surrounding space while sensor grid once more scan in the infrared and radar in an futile attempt to detect the stalker. The holograms showing the surrounding space was filled with wrecks of the ships destroyed in battle but nothing unusual was detected. Finally growing tired of this phantom echo Saren snapped out orders: "Enough with this, Professor Mordin Solus we are wasting valuable time, get your STG team into the Airlock and prepare to board one of the wrecks. See if you can find anything useful other than a few computer components" Before the Salarian could argue back, "I'm sure there is nothing here, if there was a ship we would have found it by now. No known ship have the ability to disappear from plain sight." Said Saren, his tone brokering no arguments from the Salarian STG commander.
"Fine.." muttered Solus as he went down to the Hanger to marshal his team into the airlock.
UNSC Prowler, Endless Night
Sarum Star system, 2563, September, 19th
Shadowing the Turian stealth frigate.
Captain Veronica Dare was bored, there was nothing else to describe her current assignment. "Status on the Turian vessel?" she muttered as she took another glance at the view screen to confirm what she already guessed.
"It's chasing its tail ma'am" Reported the Tim, the ship's AI. "At this rate they will probably run into us in 600 and 82 years." Added the AI with a mischievous grin plastered on its face.
Struggling not to laugh out, the Captain check the updated flight pattern of the so call stealth vessel. The vessel had been running around chasing the echo of the prowler for about an hour already, radar waves put out by the vessel absorbed by the specially treated hull plates of the prowler. She tapped at the screen and replaces the plight pattern data with the schematics of the vessel based from the deep scan data the AI obtain. While normally such a scan will reveal their position, for theses aliens it was merely dismissed as an echo as far as Tim could tell from the hacked com of the ship.
"Seem like they have lost interest of their tail." Reported the AI as he noted the change in flight path of the Turian vessel, angling it towards one of the inactive wreck of a Covenant loyalist destroyer. "Shall I change heading ma'am?"
"Alright enough of this game. Bring up to safe speed of the dark limit. And plot a course that put us in front of them. Stand by to drop stealth protocol and send premade message." Ordered The ONI operative as she shook her head at the design of the Turian Stealth ship. The Turian ship itself consisted of what are basically large heat sinks lining its inner hull, containing the heat for the duration of its stealth operation. It was effective … if pitted against UNSC 23rd century thermal sensors…. But no way in hells will the electromagnetic field emitted from the ship was in anyway subtle. The ONI prowler and all the other UNSC ship picked up on its EMF signature the moment it had enter the star system, hell even the decades old Phoenix class refitted colony ship picked up on it.
The UNSC prowler which was essentially a converted corvette ranged a laughable 163 meters in length accelerated it's fusion ion drive to 25% of its full power, pushing it ahead of the Turian vessel, the texture buffer that line the hull of the human vessel taking in its surrounding and projecting a similar image on the hull of the stealth ship.
"ETA 30 seconds before we arrive at our destination. Shall I charge up our shield array just in case?" asked Tim as he calculated and plotted the course for the ship with a tilt of his head.
"Not yet, just prepare them for a cold start, no need to let them have a chance to find us before we are in position." Replied Captain Veronica with a smirk on her face. "Let's give them a scare and see if they back off from these Covenant wrecks."
Turian Stealth Frigate Palvern's Night
Star system of receiving Relay 314
Approaching a disabled wreckage of a Disabled Covenant destroyer.
"ETA to the disabled ship?" Enquired Saren as he paced around the CIC intending to join the boarding party on the enemy vessel. Already the special weapons unique to the Specters are strapped to his back ready to unfold from their compact state into deadly weapons.
"Should be about 2 more minutes at current heading." Reported the pilot currently in the cockpit of the frigate, manipulating the holographic interface that controls the ship. "By the way Sir, the engineering team wish to inform you that the heat buildup in the hulls are approaching dangerous level, we need to discharge them after dropping you and the STG team off."
"Fine, discharge the heat in orbit of this gas planet." Growled Saren as he pulled out his assault rifle to recheck the weapon. "Anything on sensors?" he directed the question at the sensor officer as he pulled out the metal block used as the ammo of the rifle. Mass effect weapons fire rounds that are as small as a grain of sand which is cut off from a block of metal and usually needs replacement after 6 thousand shots give or take a hundred.
"Negative, nothing worth noting yet but I can't confirm much since we have to keep our power signature to the bare minimum." Replied the sensor officer as he once more set the system to do another short range scan. Just seconds into the seconds however, a red alert popped up, sending alerts blaring throughout the CIC of the Turian Stealth frigate. "CONTACT! Unidentified vessel estimated 10 thousand meters directly in front of us!"
"On screen!" snarled Saren as he quickly compacted his weapon for storage. The Galaxy map disappeared and was replaced with a hologram of the unknown ship. Its surface was angular, and the surface of the ship appears to be shifting as if adapting to the space surrounding it. Saren's blood chilled as Mordin Solus step beside him and tapped a nearby control. The ship's VI then compared the echoes taken with the unknown ship where the data fits perfectly into parts of the unknown vessel.
"I do believe we have found our stalker." Whispered Mordin quietly to Saren as if aware that something was monitoring their communications. "And they appear to not take too kindly to us trespassing into the unknown ships' graveyard."
Saren was silent for a few moment before his arrogant self reinstated itself."Do not state the obvious to me professor." Growled Saren as he tapped his personal communication to shipboard channel "All hands Battlestation, I want every weapons armed and aimed at that ship. Divert more power to the kinetic barriers and get me a communication line to that ship!"
The Turian crewmen worked frantically with an efficiency that was brought forth by the Turians' harsh training regime to soldiers that all citizen aged 15 to 30 had to go through. But all was rendered moat when the power supply throughout the ship shut off with the only exception of life support and communication.
"Status! What in Palaven name just happen?" roared Saren as he furiously punched his fist at a nearby dimmed console. But beneath all that rage, a sinking feeling of fear emerged, for whoever was responsible could disable their ship without firing a single shot. There were cries of dismal as each Turian crewmen try to activate their Omni tools only to find them locked out.
"It appears that our systems have been compromised, Omnitools included." Replied Mordin as he activated his own omni tool which glows bright yellow in the darken CIC. "All STG members can still use their omni tools but I recommend limited use, the unknown may attempt to….." his Omni tool then sputtered and went out "shut them down " completed the annoyed Salarian as he attempted to reactivate his omni tool.
There was silence as the Turian crew began to comprehend their current situation before one of the youngest began to curled into a ball whimpering. Before an amused voice speaking in perfectly translated Turian language filled the darkened ship. "What giving up already? I though the Salarians were more capable than this."
Even as the taunts continue, power was restored to the galaxy map which flared into life, showing the asari looking creature. Saren said nothing but growled at the hologram dimly aware that the AI held their lives in its hand and if there's one thing Saren hates the most is was a usurping race.
"Now now… I left the life support system alone for a reason." Said the AI as it grinned evilly at the Growling specter. "My captain would like to have a word with the commanding officer of this ship. Saren Articus." The hologram shifted and now display two beings, one is most definitely an AI the other looks almost like an Asari with the exception of long fur running down from the top of its head.
"Saren Articus I presumed," asked Captain Veronica Dare as she studied the Turian. Saren merely gave a grudging nod. "Good. Let me make one thing clear, these wrecks are off limits any attempt to board one will be met with severe repercussions. Do I make myself clear, Specter or should I say Special, Tactic, reconnaissance?" Saren visibly flinched as he struggled to control his temper when the turian common language spoken suddenly switched to Saren's native colony language before giving another grudging nod. "Good, now Professor Mordin Solus of the Salarian Special Task Force, we are well aware of your groups intention for theses wrecks." This statement was punctured with a video that shows the image of the STG group scrambling into the Airlock as the Turian stealth frigate beat a hasty retreat to the mass relay when they were detected by the Spirit of Fire. "Back off unless your government wish for some unpleasant info to come out."
"Information is always welcomed, but some may be more … Delicate than others…." Replied Mordin as he show quickly understood the thinly veiled threat. "We will asked our commander to stop this pursue" lied the Salarian quickly to assure the opposing captain.
Though disbelieve was still evident on her face, ONI operative Captain Veronica Dare nodded to Tim and said "Cut them loose Tim. We're done here." The AI merely nodded before giving another mischievous smile at the Salarian and Turian commanders. The CIC suddenly brighten as power was restored throughout the ship.
"Sir, power are restored to all systems!" reported a turian crewmen as he flick through the reports on his now active console. But suddenly the alarms blared throughout the ship.
"What now?" growled Saren as he try to marshal the profound new fear of this new race. The turian who just reported the ship status paled as the new data scrolled through his console.
"We are venting the accumulated heat sir…. With the vents closed." He stammered before Saren sink his fist into his command chair punching through the metal with pure strength. With this the hull of the Frigate will be irreparably radiated, fatally compromising the frigate's stealth systems.
"Set course for the Warbringer, we're just a target without those stealth system" ordered Saren as he raged in the CIC. The defeated Turian frigate fired its engines bringing it on a direct course to the Turian Flagship.
UNSC Prowler, Endless Night
Sarum Star system, 2563, September, 19th
Setting course towards the Gas giant.
"Well that was fun" remarked Tim as he gleefully watched the beaten Turian frigate head back to the Citadel fleet.
The Captain only raised an eyebrow at the AI before turning her attention to the more important task. "Tim, enough with that, get me a scan on that Forerunner ship. See if the new X-ELF system can penetrate those electromagnetic shields. The Vice Admiral wants a thorough scan of the ship to determine if it's safe to haul back to populated system."
"Scanning… Nothing, not even a beep form the system. Whatever those Forerunner used to shield their ships it's blocking out our scans." But the good news is it seems the vessel is safe to take back if the received interior scans are to go by." Reported Tim as he read the incoming data.
"Fine let's get out of here our work's done." Ordered the Captain as she settle into what she knew was a long journey. The Prowler disappeared once more from the scanners of every ship in the system before a blue white portal of a slipspace rupture signifies its departure.
Authors note: well done. How it lives up to your expectations. Cause I've already unable to continue this chapter without laughing out. Will put up the chapter 15 preview and full version when I've finished them respectively.