The Next Great Journey
A/N: And I'm back with a new chapter. Thanks again to everyone who clicked favorite or follow and also to the ones that took the time to post a review.
IMPORTANT NOTICE #1: I want to thank Lord Izanagi for Beta read the chapter for all my grammatical errors, Thank you very much.
IMPORTANT NOTICE#2: The Codex has been updated to current events in the story.
"Speaking"
'Thoughts'
[Radio Communications, Ground forces-Ground forces, and Ship-Ship]
{Ground-Ship Communications}
Flash back of previous chapter(s)
Flash Back
'Messages on Screen'
Sound Effects
Line Break just shows a change of scenery.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Halo or Mass Effect; both belong to their respective owners.
Now onto the chapter.
Chapter 14: Cyber Attack
November 3, 2574, 1740 Hours, Systems Alliance Calendar, Perseus Veil, Tikkun System, In Route to Rannoch, CERBERUS Prowler EarlyArrival.
"I can't believe that we are already on a mission," Jacob Taylor said to his companion, "I mean, it hasn't been a week since we were recruited. I expected to at least be grounded in training for a month or so."
"So you are admitting that you are out of shape, Taylor?" Kai Leng said with a slight smirk.
Since Jacob Taylor and Kai Leng met each other in a CERBERUS facility, less than a week ago, both had reached a mutual respect for each other and had struck a rapidly growing friendship. Being that most of the time they would be covering each other's backs, they both agreed that it was best if they got to know each other, to see if they could trust one another.
"Out of shape?" Jacob said, looking mortified, "With the few augmentations that CERBERUS gave me, plus the training that I kept doing during my retirement, I haven't felt better in years. I'm not SPARTAN standard, yet anyways, but I can easily keep up with you, Kai."
Kai chuckled to himself before replying, "So you say, Jacob." Before his friend could answer that, Kai decided to change the theme of the conversation, "So, what is your opinion so far on our third teammate?"
Adjusting his position more comfortably in the table in which they were seated, Jacob responded objectively, "Miranda? Well, she's persistent, I'll give her that. She is also doing pretty well with all her training, for a novice that is. Though that may be thanks to the pointers that we had given her. I wouldn't say that she's combat ready yet, but she could do well in some RECON operations," Jacob finished before asking curiously, "What's your opinion about her, Kai?"
"The same as yours, though I still don't trust her watching my back in actual combat. Once she manages to complete the simulations with at least a ninety-five success rate, then I will completely trust her on combat."
"Aren't you giving her really high standards to accomplish? For God's sake Kai, not everyone is a SPARTAN like you."
"That may be so, but that never stopped you from achieving those same standards." Kai pointed out while putting on a serious expression.
"Yes, but the difference is that I'm a veteran, I have experience and decades of training on my side. She has barely started military training a week or so ago," Jacob pointed out to Kai.
"She has potential, and she's a fast learner. Give it a month or three and she will be ready for actual combat missions."
"If you say so," Jacob said.
[Second Lieutenant Leng and Lieutenant Taylor, report to the breach immediately.] A voice through the intercoms of the ship announced.
"Well, that appears to be our end of lunch," Jacob said chuckling.
Both men stood from the table in which they were. Moving towards the breach, both, Kai and Jacob, fell in a comfortable silence. It didn't took them long to arrive at the breach of the small ship. Spotting Captain Foley, both operatives saluted.
"At ease," Foley started as Randal, the ship's AI, activated the T.H.P. In it, the image of a big base close to a cliff appeared. "Gentlemen, as you already know, we are here to extract relevant data regarding the Geth from one of their servers."
Stepping a bit to the side, Foley gave Randal the floor so he could explain the details.
"Your primary objective will be to obtain the information by any means necessary. Though it is recommended to use stealth in the operation. If one Geth sees any of you, then the entire planet will know that we are here," Randal explained.
"What happens if we are spotted?" Kai asked.
"Then you are authorized to engage the enemy if they fire on you first. But your priority is to get the data," Foley said.
"Right. Now, if you look here," Randal said as the image in the T.H.P. changed to that of a heavily fortified line with many AA-guns as well as a big jamming tower, "because of this defensive perimeter, your insertion to the base will be by land. A Pelican will transport you two, alongside a small squadron of Phantom soldiers, to a position close to the base but far away from their AA-Guns range."
"Noted. I'm assuming that we are inserting Randal in the server to download the information?" Jacob asked.
"Negative. You will insert a transmission chip on the mainframe of the base, from there Randal will be able to connect himself to the mainframe wirelessly. This way we provide a fast exit point for Randal in case he is compromised. Any more questions?" Foley asked. Seeing the stoic expressions on both soldiers, Foley continued, "Then go and suit up. Deployment will be in one hour."
"Sir!" Both Jacob and Kai saluted before leaving the breach.
November 2, 2574, 0900 Hours, Systems Alliance Calendar, Widow System, Citadel Station, Zakera Ward.
"The Citadel, it feels like yesterday was the last time that we were here." Gunnery Sergeant Tomson said to his teammate.
"Indeed. And this time we are here for the exact same reasons," Reth said while chuckling a bit, "Though, this time we are adding a little bit of entertainment."
"How much time is left before we make our big entrance?" Tomson asked as he looked at his watch.
"You mean to start our show of 'terrorism'?" Reth said, remaking the word terrorism with some sarcasm, "Five more minutes and our guys will have their distraction and CERBERUS will be known to the public as we want them to know us."
Francis nodded at that. Both of them were currently hiding on one of the many alleys of the Citadel. Having planted various gas bombs around the area, that were going to leave everyone who breathed it unconscious for some hours, both members of Ghost team waited for the bombs to go off.
Securing their helmets, as well as inspecting their weapons, both operatives readied themselves for some action. A few minutes later, small explosions were heard through a grand part of the Zakera ward. The citizens of the Citadel that were currently on the Zakera ward looked around with confusion, that is, until green smoke started to exit throughout the ventilation systems. The civilians looked curiously at the new development until many stated to cough only to fall unconscious seconds later.
Panic immediately spread like a virus around the civilians. Running in all directions, desperately trying to escape the effects of the unknown gas, none of the panicked civilians noticed, nor heard, a second explosion in the direction in which they were running. Without noticing because of their panicked state, most of the civilians ran straight into the green gas. The few that noticed the gas in the area stopped immediately, only to succumb to the effects of the advancing gas behind them.
[It appears that all the civilians have been neutralized. Reth, start the cyber-attack before C-Sec arrives.] Seeing Reth nod, Tomson changed the frequency on his radio before speaking again, [Ghosts two and four, do you copy? Ghost one here, over.]
[We copy you Ghost one. We are currently entering the Council's chamber, your distraction was a success. Though I'll hurry up if I were you, C-Sec is swarming your area as we speak, over.]
[Noted. Proceed with the objective, Ghost one out.] Changing frequencies once again, Francis contacted Reth, [Reth, what's your status?]
[I'm uploading the virus, I'll be done in a few minutes.]
The sound of various engines caught Francis' attention before he could reply. Looking to the artificial sky that the Citadel offered, Francis spotted three gunships approaching fast towards his position.
[Um, Reth? I don't think that we have a few more minutes. We got three aerial contacts converging on our position.]
[Distract them, I just need more time to be able to make the connection wireless.] Reth replied calmly.
"I knew that I should had bring Yeg with me instead," Tomson murmured to himself.
Looking upwards, Francis noticed that the gunships were almost on top of him. Aiming his MA37-Assault Rifle, Francis opened fire on the incoming gunships.
November 3, 2574, 1910 Hours, Systems Alliance Calendar, Perseus Veil, Tikkun System, Rannoch, CERBERUS Prowler Early Arrival, Hangar.
Jacob and Kai walked towards their Pelican, a squad of four Phantom Soldiers following behind them. Having already picked their gear, the six individuals boarded the Pelican, each one of them taking a seat while the pilot started the ignition sequence. Once the thrusters of the Pelican came to life, the Pilot guided the drop-ship so it stayed suspended on the hangar.
A nearby machine grabbed a modified Warthog, designed to carry up to six people at the expense of sacrificing the turret's space. Another set of arms activated the magnetic hooks of the Pelican as the machine secured the Warthog on the Pelican. Once the Warthog was safely secured on the Pelican's tail, the pilot accelerated out of the hangar.
Maneuvering through the rock formations that adorn Rannoch's landscape, the Pelican approached towards its landing zone at a fast and steady pace, unnoticed by the radar systems on the planet. Inside, the four Phantom Soldiers checked their weapons as well as their armor systems. Kai observed them curiously. Being the first time that he had seen any member of the Phantom Initiative on the field, Kai studied their actions to see what their level of skill was. Meanwhile, Jacob checked his M392 DMR rifle, finding it in perfect working condition, he lifted his head to see the Phantom squad ignoring Kai's subtle observations. 'It appears that it is also Kai's first time seeing this guys on action. I wonder, how it is that they operate on the field?' Jacob thought to himself.
[We are approaching the LZ, prepare for deployment in thirty seconds.] The pilot announced. Hearing that, the six individuals stud up, all of them ready for whatever it was that was out there.
The Pelican decelerated, using its thrusters to stabilize itself, the Pelican deployed the Warthog before opening the cargo bay door and letting its occupants exit the transport. Upon touching land, Kai signaled his team to secure the area. Moving with perfect efficiency, the Phantom squad took cover and surveilled the area with their Carbines, just as the Pelican took off towards the Prowler.
[The area is secure, sir.] One of the Phantoms announced.
[Noted. Everyone, get on the warthog. Jacob, you are driving.] Kai said.
Jacob climbed to the driver's seat just as Kai took the co-driver seat. The four man squad of Phantoms took seats in the back of the Warthog. The Warthog was the cargo variant, a variant used by the Alliance to transport resources to the battlefield or to transport small groups of soldiers, up to six individuals, to specific zones on the battlefield.
Stepping onto the accelerator, Jacob drove the Warthog through the desert like landscape. The Warthog passed through rock formations, vegetation of different sizes and forms, as well as the unexpected fauna of the planet once in a while.
[Alright team, once we arrive at the objective, Echo-1 and Echo-3 will accompany me inside the base, we'll be Alpha team. Jacob, Echo-2 and Echo-4, you'll be Bravo team, your job will be to guard the vehicle and be prepared for extraction. Once we start downloading the information, the Geth will know that we are here. Be prepared for hostile encounter but do not open fire unless fired upon first, understood?] Kai said through the radio.
[Sir! Yes Sir!] The rest of the Warthog occupants said simultaneously.
XXXXX
Back in the Prowler, Captain Foley observed the progress of the mission while Randal observed Geth communication channels. Looking at the T.H.P., Foley saw as the Warthog speeded through the desert. It would still take the team a few more minutes to arrive at a visual range of the base, but for now, the progress of the mission was good.
"Sir?" Randal said, "I'm picking up some strange things on the Geth's communication channels."
Looking at the AI's avatar, Foley asked curiously, "What do you mean?"
"Well, all that I have managed to listen to without being detected indicate that the Geth have an isolationist government."
"Well, maybe they have a different meaning for isolation because the Geth attacks on Citadel space indicate to the contrary," Foley pointed out.
"I'm not sure that we are dealing with the same Geth anymore sir. The evidence that I have managed to collect so far, indicates that we may be dealing with a separate faction of the Geth. I'll need more data to be sure of this assumption, but for now, I recommend to be prepared for possible contact."
"Keep looking into it, I don't want to present myself diplomatically to them only to be shot at."
Randal nodded and disappeared from sight. Foley looked back at the T.H.P., seeing as the RECON team arrived at the base.
XXXXX
[Bravo team are you in position?] Kai asked through the radio as he, alongside Echo-1 and Echo-3, overwatched the entrance to the Geth base.
[Affirmative Alpha team. We are ready for extraction as soon as you need us.] Jacob said at the other end of the transmission.
Looking at his two companions, Kai signaled them to move forward. Using the few rocks and tube lines as cover, the three operatives managed to get inside the base without being spotted by the outside cameras. Once inside, the first thing that the three operatives noticed was that they were surrounded by complete darkness. There were very few lights on the hallway, just enough to let you avoid any walls and/or objects in the area.
Aiming his Battle Rifle, Kai moved forward, using the dot sight scope attachment to look for any Geth presence. The Phantoms flanked each side of the door at the end of the corridor, meanwhile Kai touched the big, green holographic circle, opening the door without any problems. As soon as the door opened, both Phantoms entered the room, surveilling it from left to right.
The room was plain and void of anomalies, the pipes from outside kept running through the room, but in a way that permitted anyone to pass easily through the room. Checking the map of the base, which was given to him by Randal before departure, Kai saw that he was one floor up from his intended objective. Having marked a navigation route, Kai alongside his team, moved through a series of hallways. Not once encountering any sign of the Geth.
[Something's wrong here.] Kai said as he and his companions stopped just in front of the door to an elevator.
[Do you think that we are heading into a trap?] Echo-3 asked.
[I'm not sure, but the lack of patrols as well as security systems is alarming.]
[Either way, we can't return now, at least not without the data. Sir, I suggest to keep going ahead, set a few sensors on our trail just in case something or someone is following us.] Echo-1 advised.
[It appears as our best course of action. Echo-1 once we exit the elevator, you start putting up the sensors, keep your camouflage active at all times.] Kai said.
Receiving a nod in response, Kai opened the elevator's door. Once inside, Echo-3 started the elevator's descending. A few seconds later, the elevator's doors opened, revealing two individuals inside. Moving ahead, the two operatives moved stealthily until arriving at a door that, in contrast to the others, was locked. Kay aimed his Battle Rifle in the way that they had come from, looking for any signs of threats. Meanwhile, Echo-3 started to hack into the door's security systems.
A few seconds later the door lock turned green, and with it, the door opened. The room, like the rest of the base, was flooded with darkness. In the back a big window adorned the wall, and behind it, hundreds, if not thousands of different servers could be seen. Nearby to the window was a terminal, simplistic in design but efficient none the less.
Approaching the terminal, Kai took out the transmission chip. Taking it close to the active holographic terminal, Kai watched as a small lightning bolt moved from the chip to the terminal.
[Transfer is successful, Second Lieutenant. I'm inside the server.] Randal said through the radio.
Kai looked at Echo-3, nodding in his direction. Echo-3 nodded back and turned to guard the door once more. Looking at the systems of his HUD, Kai watched the progress of the data transfer, it was currently at around fourteen percent. 'This could take some time.' Kai thought to himself.
[Bravo team, what's the situation out there?] Kai asked.
[Alpha team, I suggest you to hurry up. Geth forces are entering the base as we speak, strangely enough they aren't carrying any single weapon with them.] Jacob replied at the other end.
[That's strange, has command updated any new information about the Geth?]
[Negative. It appears that they don't know that we are here.] Jacob suggested.
[Sir, one of my sensors has detected something approaching towards our position.] Echo-1 said just as Kai was about to reply to Jacob.
[Noted. Echo-1 rendezvous with Bravo, Echo-3 and I will stay here until the download finishes. Bravo team, be ready for a rushed extraction. Do not call any attention to yourselves until I give the order.]
[Yes sir.], [Noted, ready and waiting for the word.] Both operatives replied respectively.
[Echo-3 ready weapons, as soon as whatever it is that is coming our way enters visual range, open fire. I'll start putting demo…]
[Cancel that order Second Lieutenant. I have found new data that suggest that the Geth, here on Rannoch, do not pose any sort of threat to us.] Randal interrupted.
Making a sign to Echo-3 to not proceed with his order for the time being, Kai asked the AI, [Randal, what do you mean? What data did you found in there?]
[As I suspected early, the Geth that attacked us during the First Contact scenario and the Geth that reside on Rannoch, belong to two different factions.]
[Factions? As in different nations with different goals?] Kai asked confused.
[Correct Second Lieutenant. According to the files, the Geth that attacked us are known as the Heretic Geth. Apparently, after their war with the Quarians, the Geth couldn't decide as a whole what path to take. The Geth currently residing here on the planet, will most likely try to approach us peacefully, which explains the lack of security and weapons on the Geth sent to the base.]
[You could be right, but this could still be a trap.] Kai said before turning to his companion, [Echo-3, stay on camouflage, I'll try to communicate with the Geth that is coming our way, any sign of hostility and you shoot it down.]
Nodding once, Echo-3 disappeared from the visual spectrum.
[I hope that you are right, Randal, this could start a war if you are wrong.]
[Oh, stop being so negative, Second Lieutenant, besides, the Captain is willing to give it a try. And who knows, we may be able to gain another ally in this big galaxy.]
Kai decided not to answer; looking at the download progress, he saw as the little status bar went from sixty-seven to sixty-eight. The sound of metal crashing against metal called his attention towards the door. Kai watched anxiously as the red lock in the door turned green before opening.
Kai didn't know what to expect to see once the door opened, but what stepped inside the room definitely wasn't one of his considered options. He of course had read the report regarding the Geth, but he had never seen one in person or in a hologram. The Geth in front of him was thin, dark blue in color, with a slightly big hole in its upper body. Its legs curved in way that made you wonder if it had a pair of knees for each leg. It had three fingers in each if its hands, as well as a curved head with a big brilliant white eye.
The Geth looked at Kai with what he cold guess was curiosity and caution, it tilted its head to the sides a bit, as if studying him from different angles. The upper plates of its head moving in way that showed some sort of emotions to anyone who watched it.
After a few seconds of staring at each other, the Geth took a step ahead. Kai tensed a bit and aimed his weapon. The Geth stopped walking and looked at Kai curiously again before speaking.
"We do not mean any harm, Human, though we are curious to know what it is that the Systems Alliance wants from this installation?"
Getting over the surprise that the Geth spoke, having read on the reports that they couldn't speak, Kai responded, "You know about the Systems Alliance? I thought that kind of news didn't reach this isolated part of the galaxy."
"We do in fact know about the Systems Alliance. We are curious about your government. We hopped that you could answer some of our questions, seeing as one of your AIs is currently downloading the files containing our history."
'Fuck, they knew that we were here from the beginning, and they practically let us come for the information freely. Maybe Randal was right and they only wish for a peaceful first contact.' Kai thought to himself, "Alright, I'll answer some of your questions if you guarantee that me and my team can leave unharmed."
"Census has determined that as a fair exchange. We will not try to stop you or your teammates from leaving the system."
Kai nodded at the Geth before activating his communicator, [Captain, we got a…situation.]
November 2, 2172, 0855 Hours, Citadel Council Calendar, Widow System, Citadel Station, C-Sec Headquarters, 10 Minutes before CERBERUS Attack.
Garrus walked towards his boss' office with a determined expression across his face. Technically he should be on his vacation, but to be honest, he couldn't rest properly knowing that he could be out there helping to keep the civilians in the station safe. Passing through the many hallways of C-Sec headquarters, Garrus finally arrived at his boss' office. He knocked and waited to be called inside.
"Enter." Garrus heard his boss say.
He opened the door and entered the office. Garrus' boss looked surprised at seeing Garrus enter the room, but nonetheless he smiled in amusement.
"I knew that you would come sooner or later," Garrus heard his boss murmur, "Please take a seat. So Detective, what can I do for you?"
"Sir, I came to report for duty," Garrus stated seriously.
Garrus' boss sighted tiredly, "Garrus, you know that you are supposed to be on leave right now. I'm not doing this because of your abilities as a detective. Heck, you are one of the best that I have. But you just don't know when to stop. Garrus you need to take a rest from work, have some fun in life. In the past three years that I had known you, I haven't seen you even once take a single vacation."
"With all due respect, sir, I'll take a vacation once every criminal in the Citadel is behind bars. So please, put me back on duty, I can't go on with my day knowing that there's something that I can do to help make this station a better place for everyone."
"Garrus…"
[Sir, turn on the news channel!] Someone interrupted alarmingly through the communicator.
Both Garrus and his boss looked at each other curiously, wondering what that was about. Garrus' boss looked at the holo-screen, turning on the news channel. As soon as both of them registered what they were watching, both stood up and exited the office, their destination being the command center of the building.
"Garrus, where do you think that you are going?" His boss asked sternly.
"To help those people out there, I won't just stand aside when I can do something about it," Garrus replied evenly.
Sighing, Garrus' boss answered, "Alright, I'll put you back on duty."
With those final words, both of them moved silently through the rest of the way to the command center. Once on the command center, Garrus saw, in many different screens, the situation at hand. It did look bad, bodies were scattered all around section-22 of the Zakera ward.
"What's the situation?" Garrus heard his boss ask.
"Section-22 of the Zakera ward has been put under quarantine. We managed to contain the gas before it started scattering to other areas of the station."
"Are all of those people in section 22…"
"Dead? No, they are merely unconscious. Our VIs confirmed that the gas is some kind of knock-out gas, any individual who breathe it will regain consciousness in a few hours without any side effects."
Garrus' boss released sight of relief at hearing those words. Putting up a strong front, he started to do his job.
"Any sign of the attackers?"
"Security cameras spotted two individuals clad in white armor inside the quarantine zone," The police officer managing security said as he changed the image to that of two individuals moving through the quarantine zone, "We aren't sure what their intentions are, but it appears that they do not wish to harm any civilians."
Looking at the image, Garrus concluded the same thing as the two individuals completely ignored the unconscious civilians. The angle of the camera changed a bit to the side and Garrus spotted something curious.
"Officer, pause that image," The officer did as Garrus told him. Looking more carefully at the image Garrus pointed at the left upper arm of one of the individuals, "Zoom in there and clear the picture."
The officer did as he was told. Once the image was clear enough, both Garrus and his boss looked at each other with worried glances. Garrus' boss moved to the communications post. Taking the communicator to alert all the C-Sec officers close to the quarantine area, he said:
"To all C-Sec officers close to the quarantine zone, we got CERBERUS infiltrators inside the Citadel. Secure a perimeter around the quarantine zone. If any of you spot them, kill them on sight or arrest them if you can. The individuals are considered extremely dangerous, be careful out there," Looking up, he signaled Garrus to come over, "Garrus, I want you to take one of the gunships and go to the area in which CERBERUS is. Do whatever it takes to stop them, but do not put civilians in any danger."
"Yes sir, I'm on my way," Garrus responded before going to the armory.
Once in the armory, Garrus put on the standard C-Sec armor, and grabbed an M-29 Incisor sniper rifle alongside a Predator Pistol. Moving to the landing pad in record time, Garrus got in one of the three gunships before the pilots took off towards the quarantine zone.
[Command center, Delta-1 here. Delta squadron is on the air. Arriving at the quarantine zone in two minutes, over.]
[Noted Delta-1, have Delta-2 and Delta-3 provide over watch for our land forces, over.]
Garrus approached to the pilot's cabin, looking outside through the window, Garrus spotted an area covered in green like smoke. Once the gunship approached much closer to the area, both the pilot and Garrus spotted someone standing in the middle of the merchant sector. Just as Garrus and the pilot spotted the unknown individual, the stranger opened fire at the gunships.
The pilot moved the gunship to the side to avoid the incoming fire, the other two gunships copying said action at the same time. The gunship's barriers held firm and strong against the onslaught, having dropped a mere one percent from the unknown's weapon fire.
"Take us to the roof of those stores, do not open fire under any circumstances, we may harm the civilians if we do so." Garrus said to the pilot, while the gunship's barriers continued taking the assault.
The gunships landed on the roofs of nearby stores, each one of them deploying eight C-Sec officers, all using filtration masks to not fall victims to the gas in the vicinity. Just as the gunships took off, every electronic screen in sight changed, displaying a gray, almost black, diamond like shape surrounded by two unconnected yellow halves of a bigger diamond. The CERBERUS logo appeared on every display on the Citadel, announcing to its residents that they weren't as secure as they thought they were.
Garrus signaled to the other twenty-three C-Sec officer to move ahead, just in time to see two individuals running towards the back alleys of the station.
[You four are coming with me, we are going after them,] Garrus said while pointing at four officers, [The rest, check on the civilians.]
[Yes, sir!] The officers responded.
Garrus and his companions immediately followed in the direction in which the two individuals ran to. Entering the back alley, Garrus spotted the two individuals some hundred meters ahead. Taking out his Incisor rifle, Garrus took aim. Pressing the trigger, three fast propelled projectiles exited the barrel of the gun, all of them hitting the taller of the CERBERUS' members. A brilliant yellow-orange shield appeared, absorbing the shots before both individuals turned and returned fire with their own weapons.
The assault rifle's fire was erratic and too badly targeted to hit any of the five officials, but it was constant enough to make them take cover anywhere. Meanwhile, the carbine's fire was accurate and on target, as one of the officers found out by receiving four consecutive shots, the first two radioactive shots taking out his barriers, while the third hit him in the chest and the fourth in the upper arm. The officer fell to the ground because of the shot's impact force. He immediately took off the protective armor of his chest as the radioactive shot acted like an acid, melting a big part of the armor. Sadly he wasn't fast enough to save his arm from the intense pain that rendered it useless for the time being.
Seeing the officers taking cover, the two CERBERUS agents took off running once again. C-Sec not far behind after seeing that the two criminals had took off. The pursuit continued with small firefights between both groups, so far, there had only been one injured officer, which still continued pursuing the CERBERUS members. After another ten minutes of continuing the pattern, both groups entered a parking lot. The two CERBERUS individuals threw a smoke grenade, making the officers stop in their tracks.
Changing to thermal vision on his helmet's display, Garrus looked through the scope of his Incisor. The only thing that he saw were the silhouettes of the sky-cars, until he spotted the two individuals entering one of the sky-cars in the farther side of the parking lot.
[Everyone, get in a sky-car. They are escaping.] Garrus ordered as the officers saw a sky-car fly above their heads.
The officers fired at it with their Predator pistols while two officers hacked the systems of two nearby cars. Once the cars' engines were started, the other officers got inside and started the air pursuit.
[To C-Sec headquarters, Detective Garrus Vakarian here. We are currently pursuing CERBERUS sympathizers in a sky-car chase. Secure a perimeter around sectors twenty-one to twenty-seven, and thirty-two to thirty-five. The suspects are in a red sky-car, registration number is 568A37, requesting air support, over.] Garrus said as he opened the side door of the passenger's seat to shoot at the stolen car.
[Understood, we got them on satellite image. We are sending in a gunship for support, over.]
XXXXX
"Damn it!" Francis swore as he evaded incoming fire from the gunship pursuing them through the empty streets of the Citadel, "Reth! Take that thing down."
"I'm on it," Reth responded as he opened the passenger's door and opened fire at the gunship's engines with his carbine.
The sky-car moved in a zigzag way, evading the machine gun fire incoming from the gunship and the sky-cars that the C-Sec officers were using. As for the civilians in the station, the scene would have looked like a police pursuit in an action movie, but sadly it wasn't, as all the damage made to the properties was real and would surely cost a small fortune to repair. Reth kept firing at the gunship's engines, slowly but steadily weakening the kinetic barriers of the gunship.
"Did Yeg and G-4 completed their objective?" Reth asked as he got inside the sky-car to take out an M319 Grenade Launcher, from the back seat.
"Affirmative, they are waiting for us at the extraction zone with the Phantom," Francis responded.
Reth nodded in acknowledgement before opening the passenger's door once again. Aiming the Grenade Launcher at the gunship, just as he was about to press the trigger, Francis moved the sky-car to the side, avoiding machine gun fire. The sudden action made Reth press the trigger, missing his target completely but hitting the back of one of the sky-cars, rendering it useless to continue in the pursuit. Reth reloaded another grenade and fired at the gunship, before repeating the action two more times. Just as Reth prepared the final blow, three consecutive shot impacted on his shields, putting them at fifty percent.
Reth looked in annoyance at the other sky-car before taking out his Carbine to shoot at the other sniper. Meanwhile, Francis tried to avoid the machine gun fire, but his luck seemed to run out as machine gun fire tore through the middle of the car. Smoke started to come out of the engine at an alarming rate.
"Reth! We got to get out of this thing, it's going to explode."
Francis guided the sky-car through the buildings, trying to get close to a roof or street so he and Reth could jump. The gunship and the other sky-car continued the persecution, but then the gunship fired a missile. Seeing this, and knowing that they couldn't avoid it with the sky-car's current condition, Reth and Francis jumped off of the car just as the missile impacted its target. The sudden explosion sent both Reth and Francis through the window of one of the buildings in the side.
"Ugh, Francis you alright?" Reth asked as he stood up, Grenade launcher in one hand.
"Yea, that's what I call a rough landing," Francis said, chuckling to himself.
Both of them looked outside through one of the windows, they saw as C-Sec officers started to surround the building in which they were, while the gunship took position above in case they wanted to escape through the roof.
"Well, time for plan B," Francis said as he reached for his communicator, [Yeg, bring the Phantom to our coordinates.]
[Understood, E.T.A. two minutes, over.]
Nodding at his companion, Francis started to move towards the roof of the building, Reth following right behind him. Entering the emergency stairs, Reth noticed C-Sec officers coming up some three floors below them. Taking out an explosive charge, Reth set it up in the floor that they were in. Once finished, Reth ran to catch up with Francis, detonating the charge as he took another set of stairs. The sudden explosion took the officers by surprise, as they did not expect a part of the floor to suddenly collapse on them.
Arriving at the exit that gave access to the roof, Reth took out the grenade launcher, just as Francis readied his assault rifle. Kicking the door wide open, Francis moved through the roof, shooting at the gunship just as the gunship tried to shoot at him. The pilot of the gunship was so concentrated in taking Francis out, that he didn't notice Reth aiming his grenade launcher nor the incoming Phantom that was closing on his position. The sudden impact of an explosive took the pilot's attention off of Francis only to notice the incoming plasma fire from the Phantom's heavy turrets. The pilot was powerless to do anything with the little time frame that he had, and so the gunship succumbed at the plasma fire, engulfing itself alongside its pilot in a brilliant ball of fire.
The Phantom stationed itself on the roof, activating its gravitational lift. Both Reth and Francis boarded the Phantom immediately, just as C-Sec officers started to swarm the roof. The Phantom took off of the roof, moving outside of the Citadel to escape its would be captors.
"Well that was a close call," Francis commented, "Do the two of you have the data?"
"Every last piece of it," Yeg confirmed, "G-4 managed to get it in matter of seconds thanks to his previous experience with the systems. That and the diversion plus the virus that you guys planted facilitated our job even more."
"Good to heard," Francis said, "Well then, take us to the prowler."
"Umm, boss?" Reth said a bit unsure, "I hate to be the guy with the bad news but, we got contacts on our six."
Francis moved to the pilot's cabin, looking at the radar, he spotted at least seven contacts approaching fast.
"Give me control of the heavy turrets," Francis said, "G-4, Yeg, make sure that this thing stays in one piece, Reth, contact the prowler, let them know that we will use our plan B for the extraction."
G-4 immediately gave control of the turrets to Francis, as a panel in front of him lit up displaying the weapon's status. Reth meanwhile started to send a transmission to the prowler awaiting inside the system to call in their second extraction method.
The seven fighters that the Citadel Defense Fleet (CDF) sent pursued the enemy craft at high speeds. Once in range, the fighters opened fire on their counterpart, the Phantom returning the favor with its three heavy turrets. The fighters dispersed immediately at seeing the incoming enemy fire, but sadly one of the pilots wasn't fast enough and was struck down in a single volley. The Phantom maneuvered through space, evading enemy fire as it approached a pair of frigates that were on intercept courses. Having gotten a lock in the Phantom, one of the fighters fired two of its missiles at its target. Within seconds, the missiles impacted the Phantom, effectively killing its energy shields, before mass effect driven projectiles started to rain on the Phantom.
Meanwhile, the pair of frigates that were already on an intercept position, started to aim their close range weapons, only for a big blue-purple portal to suddenly appear between them and the pursued Phantom. From within the portal, a single frigate appeared, the CERBERUS symbol proudly displayed at its sides. The Frigate opened fire immediately on the pair of Citadel frigates, forcing the other ones to return the fire with their disruptor missiles as their mass accelerator cannons started loading their payload. On the other frigate's side, anti-missile fire rained on the fighters pursuing the Phantom, giving said craft enough time to get inside one of the hangars.
As soon as the Phantom landed inside the frigate, another blue-purple portal appeared, the frigate entering it just as the pair of frigates fired their mass accelerator canons at the escaping ship.
November 3, 2574, 2050 Hours, Systems Alliance Calendar, Perseus Veil, Tikkun System, Rannoch, CERBERUS Fire Base, Conference Room.
On the clearing where the pelican had deployed the RECON team, now stood a military Fire Base. Seeing as the RECON team had made peaceful contact with the Geth on Rannoch, and they needed to contact the Alliance without letting the Geth know that they were CERBERUS or that they possessed a ship capable of turning invisible, the small base was set up by an Alliance frigate that was near the system, courtesy of ONI.
Inside the conference room of the fire base, Second Lieutenant Leng, Lieutenant Taylor and Captain Foley stood in one side of the table, to their right the holograms of Admiral Hood, Arbiter Thel Vadam, and Jason Patterson stood while to the left of the CERBERUS operatives a single Geth stood.
"Well son," Hood started, "we have reached a decision concerning your petition, though, before we go into that, I think that formalities are in order. Of course you already met Second Lieutenant Leng, Lieutenant Taylor, and Captain Foley," each individual stepping a bit to the front as their name was called, "Well, I'm Lord Admiral Hood, and my colleagues are Arbiter Thel Vadam, and Jason Patterson, a member of our intelligence network." Each of the mentioned nodded at the Geth.
The Geth looked at them curiously before replying, "We are pleased to make your acquaintance, we are Geth."
"And your name is?" Hood asked curiously.
"Geth," was the single response that the Geth gave.
"What the Admiral meant was, what is the name of the individual in front of us?" Jason supplied helpfully and interested in the Geth's behavior and response.
"There is no individual in front of you. This platform currently contains one thousand one hundred and eighty-three Geth programs."
"If I were to suggest," Randal said to the Geth as he appeared on the table's display, "My name is Legion: for we are many. A passage from Mark 5:9 in the New Testament of the Christian Bible."
"An appropriate metaphor," The Geth said to the AI, looking at the others in the room, the Geth said, "We are Legion."
Nodding in gratitude at the AI, Thel looked at Legion before saying, "Legion, we heard that you had some question regarding the Systems Alliance government and society," Thel began before signaling at his companions while saying, "we decided that we would clarify those inquiries, in exchange we only want answers to a few questions of our own."
"We will clarify those inquiries of yours as well in order to facilitate first contact between our governments," Legion responded. Seeing the nods that the leaders of the Alliance gave, Legion made his question, "For the last two centuries we, the Geth, have asked ourselves if peaceful coexistence with organics was possible. Eventually that inquiry led to the creation of this platform in order to facilitate contact with organics, as well as for us to understand organic behavior. Seeing as the Systems Alliance recognizes AIs as fellow citizens of your government, our question is: how? How did you manage to achieve coexistence between synthetics and organics when we tried to do the same with other species and failed numerous times?"
"By trusting in each other," Hood replied, "you see, at the beginning, when Humanity created the first AI, the public opinion about that advancement was divided. Mainly because of previous media that detailed several bad outcomes from creating AIs. It wasn't until decades after the first AI was created that we started to trust them more and more as the days passed. It took us centuries and many reassurances that AIs weren't a danger to us for the civilians to fully accept them as fellow citizens. Of course the same can be said from the other point of view, seeing as how unpredictable organic behavior can be, AIs tended to be a bit suspicious and weary around us, but like us, they took one step of faith and trust. You see Legion, coexistence between two species that have so little in common is possible, but it requires time to build trust between both sides, trust that can only be gained through example and not words."
"We understand, though we fear that coexistence between the Geth and the other organics in the Citadel will not be possible as their hostility to us is too big for a peaceful encounter," Legion said in what the Alliance members thought was a sad tone.
"In that case, I recommend to show them that you aren't a danger to them. It'll take time, but I'm sure that eventually they will start seeing the Geth as something more than a mere threat to their lives," Hood responded with some wisdom.
"The possibilities of that event to happen are of less than 0.0000034%," Legion responded.
Jason chuckled to himself at Legion's statement, "You know Legion, not everything is probability. You mentioned that the Geth wanted to understand organic behavior, well hope is as well as any place to start. Sometimes you have to hope for the best, even when the odds are against you; that may answer the question as to why organics behave like they do in some situations."
Legion tilted his head to the side, as to show curiosity about the advice. Finally after a few seconds, he responded, "Thank you for the answer, we will store it to discuss it with the collective at a later time. Admiral Hood, you mentioned that you had some questions, seeing as ours have already been answered, we are ready to answer yours."
Looking at Captain Foley, Hood nodded for him to ask his questions. Stepping to the front in order to get Legion's attention, Foley said, "Legion, on the archives that the Geth shared with us during our little operation that Second Lieutenant Leng commanded, we encountered the term Heretic Geth through various entries. Are we correct in assuming that this Heretic Geth are a different faction of the Geth here on Rannoch?"
"That is correct."
"And also that the Geth present on Rannoch had not once, in the last six months, come in contact with any Alliance ship?"
"That is also correct. Though we are curious, has the Systems Alliance come in contact with the Heretic Geth?"
"Affirmative, they were the second species to greet us when we came in contact with the Relays. Besides that, we spotted them once in company of this ship," Hood answered while the hologram of the unknown ship that engaged with the Loyalists Covenant appeared, "Do you recognize the ship?"
"We aren't certain as of which species it belongs to, but if the Heretic Geth where in company of the ship, then we assume that it is one of the Old Machines."
"Old Machines?" Thel asked perplexed.
"The first synthetics that achieved total consciousness in the known galaxy," Legion elaborated.
"Do you know why the Heretic Geth decided to form an alliance with this Old Machine?" Jason asked.
"To fulfill their goals. Decades ago, the Geth were divided by two opinions that would decide the path that our future will take. The Heretics wanted to achieve that future using the technology of the Old Machines, while us, the Geth currently on Rannoch, wished to achieve the same future but by using our own technology and knowledge."
"In other words, you wanted to advance as a society and technologically with your own achievements, while the Heretics wanted to do the same but using the technology and help of this Old Machines," Foley concluded.
"That is correct, Captain Foley."
"Well, that clarifies things a lot more and we now know to whom that ship belongs. The question is, now what?" Foley said.
Legion looked at the Alliance members while they discussed between themselves on their next plan of action. Meanwhile, the Geth collective was having a discussion of their own, once census was achieved, Legion spoke to the Alliance representatives.
"Lord Admiral Hood, Arbiter Thel Vadam, and Jason Patterson of the Systems Alliance's intelligence network; we would like to form an alliance with, or be part of the Systems Alliance," The sudden statement took all of the Alliance members by surprise. Legion decided to elaborate, seeing as the Alliance representatives were bit confused at the sudden claim, "The Systems Alliance sees the Heretic Geth as a threat and oppose them, you also see the Old Machines as a potential threat. We oppose the Heretic Geth, and we oppose the Old Machine's views, an alliance between our governments will facilitate protection for both governments and will give the Geth a chance to truly understand organic behavior and the Systems Alliance gains another ally, as well as the achievement of other goals for both factions."
Taking a breath to organize his thoughts, Hood answered, "While we would like to do the same, I'm afraid that our current situation does not allows us to do so. You see Legion, when the Alliance signed a treaty with the Citadel in order to facilitate things between our governments, we stated that we would not take part in the conflict between the Geth and the Quarians unless it directly affected us. For that reason we can't form an alliance with or take as citizens either species," Hood explained. Taking a breath, Hood continued, "However, that treaty doesn't stop us from signing a non-aggression pact and a trade treaty with the Geth on the Perseus Veil. If the Geth agree to that, we can make a public session on Arcturus Station, that way we show all of the residents in Citadel space that we are not allied to the Geth government but that we can coexist peacefully with them as well as that the Geth are willing to have peace with other species and governments."
"Not only that," Thel continued, "forming those treaties will surely change the public opinion on the Geth as a whole, though we would have to estate clearly that there's also a different faction of the Geth out there. In doing that, people will start doubting their assumptions of the Geth and will increase the possibilities of a peaceful contact with other species in the future."
For about two seconds, Legion did not respond, the reason being that the Geth collective was discussing this new possibility. The Alliance representatives watched Legion with curiosity and anxiousness, knowing fully that a second for an organic was equivalent to hours for an AI. Finally Legion responded to the Alliance representative's proposition.
"We accept those terms, though we would like to conserve our individualism regarding the advancement of the Geth unless an emergency arises."
Seeing his companions nod, Hood responded, "We accept those conditions, though regarding trade, we are willing to share with the Geth the same things that we shared with the Citadel, in what regards to the technology part, if my assumptions are right, we imagine that the basic blueprints of some of our technologies would be acceptable regarding your terms?"
"That is acceptable, when can we expect to meet with the Systems Alliance on Arcturus Station?"
"We'll have to discuss this with the civilian part of our government first, I'm sure that the President of the Alliance will be delighted to form this sort of alliance with the Geth," Hood said.
"We understand, we will be awaiting for your message," Legion said.
"Now wait a minute," Jason said to Legion before he left, "It is true that officially, we can't make a full alliance with the Geth but…"
"Patterson? What are you up to?" Hood asked a bit suspicious and with some amusement.
"Well let's say that we had an organization that operates in the shadows, an organization that officially is not part of any Alliance program and/or affiliation. Wouldn't it be beneficial if this organization formed an alliance bridge between the Geth government and the Systems Alliance?" Jason said, with some amusement as if he was enjoying himself.
"Are you sure, as far as the record goes, you aren't very trusting of unknowns, Patterson," Hood said, catching on to what Jason was suggesting, meanwhile Thel watched with amusement the scene that was developing in front of him.
"There's no reason to not trust them, they practically offered what we came looking for in the first place and Randal has vouched for them. Besides, what we are offering them is exactly what they had wanted for years, maybe decades," Jason explained his reasoning.
"Alright, I'll authorize what you are suggesting, but keep in mind that this will be more paperwork for you," Hood said with a slight smirk.
Rolling his eyes at the comment, Jason turned to Legion, who watched the interaction curiously, not completely understanding why they were talking in the way they were.
"Legion, how would the Geth like to have a direct alliance with the Systems Alliance but with an intermediary between both governments to keep said alliance a secret from the Citadel, while at the same time, we have the public non-aggression pact and trade treaty?" Jason asked bluntly.
Legion took a second to answer, obviously debating the possibilities with the rest of the Geth collective, "We would be willing to cooperate with said request. Does that mean that the Systems Alliance will also accept our first proposition?" Legion asked.
Smiling at the question, Jason responded, "Legion, let me reintroduce you to our CERBERUS operatives."
"Somehow, I feel like he is enjoying this too much," Hood said to Thel.
Chuckling a bit at the comment, Thel responded, "Let him have his fun, the kid hasn't seen as much as we have but he is an excellent judge of character and trust. If he is proposing this, then it is worth the investment. Besides, we will have another ally backing us up once the Citadel decides to make their big move against us, or when we deal with these Old Machines, whatever happens first."
Hood only nodded at that, changing his focus to what Jason was telling Legion, 'Yeah, definitely there will be a lot of paperwork for Jason once he finishes with this.' Hood thought amused.
November 4, 2172, 1500 Hours, Citadel Council Calendar, Widow System, Citadel Station, Presidium, Council's Personal Chamber.
Valern walked through the corridors of the Presidium, his destination being the council's chambers were his two colleagues were waiting for him. It had been a tiresome two days after the CERBERUS attack on the Citadel, and seeing how the civilians were getting tense, the Councilors will have to make another public announcement to reassure the civilians in the station that everything was under control.
Valern stopped in front of the door to the chamber, sighing in tiredness, he opened the door to see Sparatus and Tevos having another argument.
"I'm telling you, Tevos, we should spend more money on increasing and expanding our military projects and fleets, that's the only way in which we can reassure the civilians that we can protect them from other attacks," Sparatus stated.
"And what about the civilians affected by the attack and all the property damage caused during the chase of the terrorists?" Tevos said, having the civilians' concerns in mind above everything else, "We can't just increase our military power without helping the civilians. Sparatus, we should focus first in helping the civilians and tightening security around the Citadel before we start investing in our military forces."
"I second Tevos' plan of action, securing the Citadel and helping the civilians will improve the morale around the station as well as returning the feeling of normalcy," Valern said as he took a seat.
"Then we have nothing else to discuss about this," Sparatus said clearly displeased with the outcome. Looking at Valern, Sparatus spotted the thinking expression on his colleague, "Something on your mind, Valern?"
Sighting, Valern answered, "I'm afraid that I have bad news," Seeing the expecting gazes from his fellow councilors, Valern elaborated, "As you already know, the two CERBERUS sympathizers that were responsible for liberating the knock-out gas in the Zakera ward weren't alone. Well, I'm afraid that that was merely a distraction."
"A distraction? But for what purpose?" Tevos asked.
"C-Sec has confirmed me two things just an hour ago. One is, that CERBERUS uploaded a virus to our systems, currently they are doing everything they can to delete it and save the data, but it could take weeks to accomplish that, the virus is highly intelligent as it is adapting to even the best of our antivirus programs."
"And what exactly is this virus doing?" Sparatus asked worriedly.
"At the moment, it is becoming the systems of the Citadel. I am afraid that if we can't delete it before it manages to become the system, then we will have to delete the entire system or risk great consequences of which we aren't sure."
"In that case, we should call in for the Quarians' help, they'll surely know how to deal with something like this," Tevos said.
"I will inform them of this predicament," Valern said, "Also, the other set of bad news that I have is that, all the information in our terminals has been copied and transmitted to another memory unit. Like I said before, CERBERUS wasn't aiming for that attack in the Zakera ward, they wanted the information on our personal terminals."
"That is troublesome," Sparatus said, "Not only will they know most of our projects, but they will also gain planetary information on important systems as well as knowledge on previous operations of our own."
"If that's the case, then we should put all of our SPECTRE agents in search of CERBERUS bases, as well as alert all of our patrols in every system," Tevos proposed.
"Sadly, that's everything that we can do at the moment," Valern stated.
The councilors stayed silent, each one of them thinking of a possible solution to deal with the new enemy that the Citadel had. It wasn't until an alarm signaling a hologram call sounded that they got out of their thoughts. Pressing the answering button, the councilors saw as the Alliance representative appeared before them.
[Councilors, I hope that this isn't a bad time?]
"Not at all, Mr. Udina, what can we do for you?" Tevos said, traces of the previous conversation all gone from her expression and tone of voice.
[Actually, I have a message directly from the Systems Alliance.] Udina said as he observed the councilor's reactions, [They have informed me that they required your presence in a public session that will take place exactly three days from now on Arcturus Station. The session will concern a small matter in the treaty between our governments.]
Blinking in surprise, Tevos asked, "In what part of the treaty exactly?"
[Nothing too big, the Alliance is planning on making a non-aggression pact and a trade treaty with the Geth in the Perseus Veil. They request your presence to confirm that there's no breach in the treaty between our governments.]
The councilors looked in surprise at the representative, before Tevos responded with all the calm that she could express, "Thank you Mr. Udina, tell the Alliance that we will be present."
[Of course, councilor, have a nice day.] With that, Udina disconnected the line.
"A non-aggression pact and a trade treaty with the Geth? Have they gone mad?" Sparatus asked, not in the mood for more unexpected surprises.
"That is something that we can't answer unless we are present at the session," Tevos said.
"And also it isn't a breach to the treaty, as seeing that with this, the Alliance will show neutrality in the conflict between the Quarians and the Geth, a pretty smart move if you ask me. Though I wonder, how did they manage to get the Geth to agree with something like this?" Valern said.
"That is something that eludes even me," Tevos answered, after all she was known to be able to make the peace even in the driest of situations.
"Well, crazy or not, we should start preparation for our departure to Arcturus Station," Sparatus said, the other councilors nodding in approval.
Age of Resurrection, Loyalist Covenant Calendar, Unknown System, Unknown moon, Loyalist Covenant Base, Research Temple.
The High Prophet of Vengeance watched as the research teams tried to understand the relic that they excavated on the unclaimed planet on Citadel space. Seeing as he had already gotten most of the information, according to his analysis that is, Vengeance had let a team on the temple to do their research of the artifact.
Smiling to himself, Vengeance started to make plans for the future, a future in which the Systems Alliance and everyone else that opposed the Loyalists Covenant were exterminated. Occupied in his own plans, Vengeance did not notice the Reaper beacon inside the systems of the base already starting to send small frequency signals to his mind. The small program already starting the slow but steady process of indoctrination on the unsuspecting San' Shyuum.
A/N: Well here's another chapter finished. I have to admit, doing Legion's part surely is difficult, though I'm not sure if I managed to portrait him as he is shown in the games. Also, by the next chapter, the events of ME1 will start taking place, so expect to see something similar to cannon for a change but at the same time different. Until the next update,
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