AUTHOR'S NOTE: Tried something new this chapter, along side as a reimagining of parts of the mission about this chapter. Won't say anything more for the moment. Hope you enjoy!
Commander John Shepard
The recall had been sounded immediately, and I was wasting no time in returning to the ship. The Geth had infiltrated the Armstrong Nebula. They had four outposts in four different systems. They could be going for Intel, it could be a staging ground for our Colonies, or it could be the first wave of an Invasion. Our job is to go in, take out the outposts. Find out what they're after if we can. One would question the idea of just sending one ship and its crew to counter an invasion, but like Hackett's intel said. They were outposts. On uninhabited worlds, fortunately. Outposts are small, relatively lightly manned. We can get in and take em out before they know we're there. Not to mention we know how to fight Geth.
I had run over a navigation plan with Joker while waiting for the rest of the crew finish reporting back. Hong was the relay system, as well as one with an Outpost. After that we'd go to Vamshi, then Tereshkova, and Gagarin. It wasn't long before the last member of the crew, returned a bit tipsy, and manned their position at navigation. Good thing there's others who can pull the slack. Unfortunately, the Armstrong Nebula was essentially on the opposite end of the Galaxy, and the journey was going to take about a day and a half. Might as well get the briefing over with now.
"All members of the ground team, report to the comm room for briefing," I ordered on the intercom. As expected, as I was still in CIC, I was the first one there, and got a transferred a display of the cluster from the Galaxy map onto the view screen. Liara was first, followed by everyone else arriving together. It's likely they had all been in the cargo bay. They were silent as they got seated and began.
"I've received word from Admiral Hackett that the Geth have infiltrated these four systems of the Armstrong Nebula," I pointed at the display and the four highlighted systems. "Gagarin, Tereshkova, Hong, and Vamshi. While Hackett could likely organize a strike force to arrive before us, none of them have experience fighting Geth. And none of them will have the element of surprise either. They have outposts on one planet in each system. Our job will be to neutralize the outposts. Along the way, we are going to be trailed by a small detachment from the Fifth Fleet. Their task will be to eliminate any Geth Naval presence after we've eliminated the outposts if it's within their power. If not, then word will be sent back to the Fleet to arrange a stronger response. If any of the systems lack a Naval presence, then they will deploy to fully dismantle the outposts. Whether that's via bombardment, or manual dismantling, I cannot yet say." I explained. "Questions?"
"Do we know why the Geth are invading?" Tali questioned first. Not surprising.
"Not as of yet. One of our objectives will be to find out if possible. Though we have our suspicions. This could be so that they can better listen in on us or otherwise gain intel. This could be a staging ground for raids against Human colonies, or it could even be the first wave of an Invasion."
"What ships do we have for support?" Garrus asked.
"The Dreadnaught Kilimanjaro is leading the detachment. And I doubt it's a coincidence that my mother serves on that ship. That detachment includes two Cruisers, and three frigates. The Dreadnaught and Cruisers also have their standard number of fighters, interceptors, and bombers. While not as much as one of our carriers, it'll be a boon if required. Tali, we will need your help identifying any and all Geth ships."
"I'll request an up-to-date list of known Geth Ship classifications after the briefing, Shepard," Tali nodded.
"Good. Our plan is to rendezvous with the detachment in the Attican Beta cluster, beside the relay that'll take us to the Nebula," I explained as the display changed to zoom out to Attican Beta, and into the Hercules system, a flashing ring showing around the relay. And it displayed the Normandy linking up with the detachment, then the Normandy going through the relay to Hong. "We begin here," I pointed at the planet Casbin as Normandy flew there. "Casbin. It's a pre-garden world, and so we're going to have to have some measure of subtlety, disrupt the environment as little as possible. After, Vamshi." The display showed a Geth head with an X across it beside Casbin, the fleet detachment following us along, going into orbit around Casbin, while the Normandy left the system to Vamshi. A binary star system. "Maji. Radiation is lethal over time, but we won't be there long enough for that to matter."
The same display of a crossed out Geth head appeared beside the planet as the Fleet entered the system, heading towards the planet as the Normandy left, making its way to Tereshkova. This system had more worlds, but few of them were terrestrial. And another binary star system.
"Antibaar. Frozen world." The same pattern of display followed. To Gagarin system. "Finally, Rayingri. An issue with this world is that it's trapped in a decaying orbit with a rogue planet. Earthquakes and cyclonic wind storms are common, but the Mako should be able to handle it. Any final questions?"
"A suggestion. There is a planet in Gagarin, Junthor," Liara stood, and I allowed her to change the display to zoom in on the world. "There are ruins of an ancient space-faring race, older than Prothean ruins. Along the equator are many superstructures and massive arcologies. In the center of one of these colonies is a column with transcriptions. 'Walk among these works, and know our greatness.' And a crude set of scratches on the base of its reverse side say something grim. 'Monsters from the id.' This was a planet I journeyed to when I developed my theory of a galactic extinction cycle. While it's not Prothean, it seems possible that Saren could have found something on this world which is why he sent Geth to this cluster. Perhaps there is something there," Liara mused. I rubbed my chin thoughtfully.
"It's too much to be ignored. I'll alert Hackett to this and request additional forces to blockade the Relay, as well as a science team to be on standby. Even if Saren isn't interested in that world, it's possible that they could have known something further that could help us, if this is, indeed, a cause of those Reapers." On one hand I knew the evidence of a Reaper threat was mounting. On the other… it just sounds so unbelievable. It's not something I want to believe. It's something that simply can't be true, right? But as much as I don't want to admit it, the pattern fits. The logic is sound. And this puzzle is running out of gaps. I gave everyone a moment to ask anything further if required. No one spoke.
"Dismissed."
Tali' Zorah
We would be exiting FTL at the rendezvous point in minutes, and Shepard had wanted the ground team ready for insertion before we even hit the relay. He had reported Liara's suggestion to Hackett, and had secured an additional three Cruisers and two Frigates to blockade the Relay out and watch the system. Just in case anyone, like Saren, or anything tries to escape, potentially from Junthor, as we're clearing out the other outposts. And it was also fortunate that the Migrant Fleet did not take nearly as long to respond to this request as they did the other. I suppose that would be because of several factors. They have already come to a decision on helping Shepard before, that this is information about combatting Geth, to repel a potential expansive move by the Geth, and perhaps even to make up for being of such little help previously.
I had passed the information along to Shepard, who passed the information along to the Alliance. They could now classify everything we could classify, as well as an overview of the ship's abilities, at least, from what we could ever determine. This included Geth Corvettes all the way to Cruisers. The only reports of Geth Dreadnaughts we could provide were from their rebellion, and that information would likely be virtually useless now.
We came out of FTL. We couldn't feel a change, no, but I could tell. There was a change in the noise of the drive core. When in FTL, the three arms around the Eezo core speed up rapidly, and in combination with the Eezo pulses, a constant whirring noise. But as we were back in normal speeds, it instead made a kind of… shuuuuum noise, that could be heard through the lower level.
"Damn I hate the waiting. I just want to kill some flashlight head bastards already," Ashley grumbled.
"Then I'll try to leave a few intact for you, Williams," I remarked.
"Is that so?" she smirked. But I didn't see any hostility in her body language as she shuffled. "I think you mean I'll try to save some for you." I felt a smirk come across my own face, and as my eyes narrowed, I leaned forward, and I wondered if they could tell. Or… perhaps they mistake this for offence. Before I could say anything, Garrus clicked his tongue.
"Well, this sounds like an excellent time for a friendly wager," he suggested. To see which of us can kill the most, as our Gunnery Chief put it, the most 'flashlight head bastards.'"
"I want in!" Kaidan called out.
"But I don't have any credits," I pointed out.
"That's fine," Garrus shrugged. "The rest of us can put down, say… twenty credits. You can barter… hm, ideas?"
"A favor, or question. No sexual favors, nothing too dangerous, and the question can't be anything relating to the fleet," Ashley suggested.
"And I have to have the right to refuse a question if it's too personal."
"Sounds fair," she answered. "Oh, and whatever Garrus kills with the Mako's gun doesn't count."
"No fun," Garrus pouted.
"I suppose I will take part in this bet," Liara shyly stated.
"No way in hell I'm sitting this out," Wrex grumbled.
"Uh, wait, we all saw what he did at Tonn Actus' place. I already know I'll lose to him," Kaidan remarked.
"All those in favor of making Wrex sit out our little bet, raise their hands," Garrus announced. Everyone except the Krogan raised a hand. Everyone except him grinned and/or chuckled. "Those against?" Wrex raised his hand, alone. It earned some laughs. "Sorry old man, there might not be a way in hell you'd sit this out, but there is a way in life you'll sit this one out," Garrus teased.
"I hate you all," Wrex grumbled, but not without the ghost of a smirk.
"How shall we keep track?" Liara asked.
"I have a program in my visor. It keeps track of the squad's kills," Garrus suggested.
"Nuh uh. I want to see that count on my HUD," Ashley countered.
"Simple fix," Garrus shrugged. "Link your hard suits to it and the display can be shared. Here," Garrus pressed some keys on his Omni-tool then the rest of us opened ours to link. I got a prompt asking for a name, and I gave it. Once complete, in the top left corner of my mask's holo display was a small chart. Our names, with a zero beside them. We started moving again. The drive core sped up slightly, before I felt a tingling sensation, hearing the drive core speeding up rapidly now, the pulsing almost constant, and then, for less than a second it seemed to be that the sound was constant, unending, before it slowed back to normal speeds. I recognize that as a sign that we had just gone through a relay. Kaidan's and Ashley's hair was briefly starting to stand on its ends, but as the static from the relay dissipated, their hair fell back to normal. A minute later, Shepard arrived down on the elevator, and made his way towards his locker, getting suited up.
"We're just a few minutes out from our first drop. We're going to remain in normal space and stealthed for a moment to scan the system before we go back to FTL," he explained. Soon after, Joker made his report on the intercom.
"I'm detecting three corvettes in orbit around Casbin. Want the fleet to deal with them now?"
"I want us on the ground first. No need to make our entry a mess. They can start their approach after we've made landfall and you've fallen back," Shepard ordered.
"Understood. Relaying to the other ships. Want me to tell your mom you say hi?" Shepard simply chuckled in response. We all got into our places inside the Mako, and soon, Joker began his countdown. The bay doors opened, revealing a sky blackened by ash and a smoking volcano in the distance. On his signal, we began plummeting to the planet's surface. Rocky, mountainous terrain, but anything not too steep was covered in a dark green. Lichen and moss. Early plant life. Life that can breathe this otherwise inhospitable atmosphere.
"Alenko, Williams, get a nice look at this place. This is Earth a few billion years ago," Shepard remarked as he waited to activate the thrusters. Which, he soon did. We landed just as we always do. "Regroup with the others, Joker. We'll hold off from the outpost until you arrive." The battle above should be easy for the Alliance ships. Corvettes are small, lightly armored, and lightly armed. They may be fast, but the Alliance ships will have both surprise, and be returning to normal space close to them. The fighter craft and the frigates will likely be the most instrumental in their destruction.
Shepard drove the Mako through a valley in the landscape, taking a longer route around rather than just driving it up a mountain to fall onto the outpost. We came around the mountainside, and slowly made our way up until we saw a glint of light. Upon a closer look, the top of a Geth sniper tower. The Mako immediately came to a stop. We waited a few minutes longer than it took for the Normandy to arrive, as a Dreadnaught would, of course, be slower.
"Coming out of FTL now, Commander. Have fun," Joker informed.
"Lock and load, Vakarian," Shepard ordered as he accelerated the Mako immediately up to the outpost. An explosive shell went right into the sniper tower, destroying it utterly. The outpost was a small fortification. A circular encampment with sniper towers surrounding it, and Geth troops both in the towers, and along the ground in the center, it looked like they were still constructing. Energy cells, it appeared to be. But they had barely begun. Rounds began impacting off our shields immediately, but Garrus used the machine gun to mow down the snipers to start. As for the Geth along the ground, Shepard ran over some, crushing them under the wheels, while Garrus mowed down the others.
"Commander! Corvette disengaging, heading to the surface, and four frigates just arrived in system to reinforce," Joker informed.
"Damn it, we need air support!" Shepard demanded.
"Already on it, Commander. Got a payload locked and loaded," Joker reassured.
"Got it. Tali, I want all power to shields and engines. We have to keep moving but keep its interest long enough so it doesn't disengage."
"Understood, Commander. The air in the Mako will be breathable for another thirty minutes before the reserves in our armor will be required," I warned as I diverted power.
"That'll be more than enough," he murmured. Shepard waited for the first sign of the Corvette to break through the clouds, and the moment he saw the glint of metal, he began driving wildly. Occasionally breaking and using the thrusters to avoid fire. Rounds were fired from the bug-like ship that impacted the ground, but we were intact. Strangely, the ship remained solely over the outpost.
"Get clear!" Joker shouted as the Normandy soared down through the clouds, a pair of mass accelerator rounds slamming right into the Corvette, as the Normandy broke back off towards the battle overhead. Explosions rippled along the small ship's hull and it crashed down to the ground in the center of its outpost. There were sparks and fires all over it's rear. Right where the drive core was. Shepard knew, and immediately began driving the Mako away just to make absolutely sure we'd be safe. The core detonated, destroying both what's left of the ship, and the outpost.
We had no choice but to wait a while longer as the battle overhead played out. While I believe we all knew who would win, the length could still be nerve racking.
"Commander, this is Captain Stanford of the Kilimanjaro. The skies are clear. We lost some fighters, frigates took some damage, but we lost no ships," a gruff, old voice stated over comms.
"Understood, sir. We'll make our way to the next outpost."
Tali' Zorah
We were en route to the last of the outposts, on Rayingri, and had already landed. There had been no other Geth ships, so it's likely that most have regrouped somewhere, while the frigates that joined the attack over Casbin could have been a delay or probing attack.
Maji had been a relatively simple endeavor. Though we had to climb a mountain path defended by anti-vehicle turrets, and upon arrival to the outpost itself, which was in a similar state as the previous, we were surprised to find a Colossus defending it. Garrus made short work of the Geth in sniper towers, but at first, it was keeping us otherwise pinned. Then, Shepard had an idea. The outpost was on the edge of the cliff, and there was absolutely nothing blocking the cliff face. So, Shepard had me divert all power to engines and shields, and then launched ourselves at the Colossus. The force of the impact sent the Colossus tumbling down the cliff. We shot it along the way several times for good measure.
On Antibaar we had detected some Prothean ruins as we landed, just to the west. Shepard had this bad feeling about it that he couldn't shake, but we also just couldn't ignore a Prothean ruin when Geth had invaded. Shepard's feelings were confirmed as we peered across the snow covered plain near the ruins. A Geth land vehicle and some Geth units. Heavily corroded. Smashed. Snow thrown around. A thresher nest. Shepard got tense, and I put a hand on his armored shoulder, and gave it a squeeze. In response, he took a deep breath, made sure Garrus was ready, and drove the Mako out. When the Maw emerged, we were ready, and an explosive shell found its way inside of its mouth. Killing it. At the ruins, we found a set of Data disks sitting right in the open. Liara grabbed them right up to decrypt and study later. The outpost was like the others, but reinforced by two Geth primes and additional ground forces. Didn't stand a chance against the Mako.
We had done a passing scan by Junthor, but there wasn't any sign of Geth activity. Nothing at all. Still, it would likely benefit to have the research team there. As for Rayingri itself, the rogue planet dominated the sky, while the red sun poked through the clouds, giving the planet a hazy color between orange and red. The Geth outpost here, oddly enough, was an overrun research station of a small independent mining company likely looking for a good planet to claim. The path up to their facility was still marked. And outside, were about a dozen Dragon's Teeth, as the alliance call them. All of them were empty, implying that they had already turned their victims into those Husk monstrosities. And the facility was another of the underground bunkers. Close quarters for Husks. My shotgun might help me win this.
"Stick close, techs be ready," Shepard ordered. The first room was eerily lacking bodies. We opened the door to the main room and heard a light moaning or groaning. "Form a line." Shepard got onto a knee, I stood behind him, Garrus and Ashley beside him. Kaidan and Wrex beside me, Liara at the back. Shepard took his pistol and shot it into the ceiling. The Husks roared, and swarmed. I aimed for the head as soon as I saw one. I even saw one shot blast through two Husk skulls. When they all fell, a pile of bodies to the side of the door, blue and black splotches along the wall, Ashley and I were tied.
"Move in, watch for another entrance. Geth definitely know we're here now," Shepard warned. We made it about halfway through when the other door opened and a squad of Geth stormed out. I already had my Omni-tool ready, and while we were forced to dive for cover, I completed my hack, and the Geth at the rear was able to shoot the rest of its squad in the back with one long pull of the trigger.
"That all counts as mine," I stated proudly.
"I forgot she could do that," Ashley muttered.
"Was I left out of some bets?" Shepard asked with humor in his voice.
"If we let you into our little competition, well, we'd just have no chance," Garrus remarked.
"Damn. What's the pot I'm missing out on?"
"Twenty credits each. Except for Wrex, as we kicked him out of it, and Tali, who doesn't have money. Instead, a question or favor," Kaidan added.
"Damn, would have made good use of all that," Shepard chuckled. I felt myself blush. What was he thinking for a question? Or a favor? Maybe one of the rules about the favors wouldn't apply if he- damn it Tali! Stop! What are you thinking, girl?! I shook those thoughts out of my head and remained with the others as we searched the rest of the facility. We found nothing. Where-
"Behind us," Wrex whispered on the comms. We turned on our heels and readied a line again. I could hear it now, the sound of metal feet running along metal. Geth. But where did they come from? Two destroyers burst right out of the corner, charging. I had an overload ready and fried their shields. A shotgun blast from me tore through the center of the first, while a burst from Shepard's rifle tore through the head of the other, both leaked hydraulic fuel, and collapsed.
"Wait, allow me to hack one," I requested. Shepard nodded, and I quickly got to work. "Counting seven more signatures within range." I picked one, and the moment I broke through, got to work on another, significantly closer than the first. Don't want one I'm hacking to be shot after all. I was halfway through by the time gunfire went off, and they started to run ahead to take advantage of the situation. I finished the hack, and ran to join them, just seeing the back of Liara's foot around the corner.
"Damn it, Tali! We should have let Wrex into the bet, not you!" Ashley exclaimed, keeping some humor.
"Geth are machines, Williams. And I'm very good with machines," I chuckled as I helped them wipe out the last few of the robotic Bosh'tets. Still… something isn't right. There should have been a Geth base. Not just outposts. And this most certainly can't be. We continued making our way back to the Mako, the others starting to believe that our work here was done. I kept watching my omni-tool. We were just reaching the airlock when I received new signals. And lots. "Stop! Wait! Detecting more signals just outside the bunker. If we go up, we'll be shot one by one!" I called out.
"Damn," Shepard murmured. "Kaidan, you and I will hack into Geth with Tali. We need a distraction."
"What about a bombing run?" Ashley suggested.
"Not with the Mako next to the bunker, I'd rather not lose that if possible," Shepard remarked. Kaidan and Shepard worked on their Omni-tools as I worked on mine. Taking it just slightly slower so that we could start this together. Soon, we finished our hacks, and Wrex was the first up the ladder. Followed by Shepard, Williams, Garrus, myself, Kaidan, and Liara. By the time I had gotten up and out, while my kill counter had been rising, only two Geth were left. Shepard and Garrus got them both with their rifles at nearly the same time. And my name was at the top of the list.
"Well, congratulations, Tali. When it comes to Geth, you are the deadliest of us all. Barring Wrex and Shepard, it seems," Garrus whistled.
"I expected to keep those twenty creds, but hey, fair's fair," Ashley shrugged. I raised a hand in victory, but, I didn't feel a desire to celebrate.
"Something's not right, Commander," I stated. Shepard cocked his head to the side as he looked at me. "There should have been a base on one of these worlds. And this couldn't have been it. No Geth servers, no means for them to create more Geth units, just a defended position. Hold on," I activated my Omni-tool and scanned for… anything. Then I picked up a signal. From a receiver. I went to a Geth body and removed the unit. I linked it with my Omni-tool, and… yes. That's it. "There's a transmission. In the cluster, by the looks of the strength. Give me an hour back on the Normandy, and I'll have coordinates," I stated firmly.
"You got it. I'll alert Captain Stanford."
Flight Lieutenant Jeff "Joker" Moreau
Tali had narrowed down the Geth signal to the Grissom system, a moon called Solcrum. My girl was in FTL and would be entering the edge of the system soon. We'd disengage from FTL, fire up the stealth drive, and see just what is waiting for us. They know we're coming, and Shepard doesn't think it's a good idea to come at the Geth with anything less than a distinct number advantage. And I'd agree with him. Find out what the Geth have in store, bug out back to Hong, make a plan.
"Disengaging FTL in five…" I began the countdown. Navigation had confirmed it was time, now my finger was hovering over the button. Shepard was standing just behind me, watching the viewports, even though there'd be nothing for us to see. Engineering confirmed that the drive core was ready. I finished the countdown, and the pitch-black void of FTL was replaced by the faint light of the star, Grissom, as well as the other faint stars of space. "Stealth drive active, all emissions successfully trapped," I spoke aloud, confirming for the Commander. "Running system scan now." Shepard began pacing for the few minutes it took to complete the scan. "Scan complete. What kind of weird space bug ships are waiting for us?"
"Aw crap," I muttered. "Two Geth cruisers, four frigates, and eight corvettes."
"Damn," Shepard murmured. "Fall back to Hong, we'll need reinforcements."
"Uh, yeah, like, maybe few more Dreadnaughts? Just to be safe?" I suggested, only half-joking.
"Not sure the fleets can spare that much," he chuckled. "But I'm thinking… a carrier, four more cruisers, and that's keeping three we already have as a blockade, and… six more frigates."
"Still a lot of ships," I mused.
"True, but you saw the Geth ships. Even frigates caused problems. They're fast, have a lot of guns, as they don't need crew spaces, and they're big for their classes. Not to mention their GARDIAN lasers might just be better than even the Salarian's. That's why I want a carrier. We need all the fighters it has to overwhelm the system and get disruptor torpedoes to their shields. And then to counter any fighters those cruisers have." The logic was sound. I had already gotten the ship turned towards Hong and back into FTL as he explained. "Let me know when we've regrouped with Stanford. I'll want to brief him and get him in the call with Hackett."
"Aye, aye."
Another day had passed. Hackett had sent the requested ships, and we had frigates in the other systems keeping an eye out for Geth escape. They found nothing, and the reinforcements had just grouped up. Shepard was on the bridge again, looking out at the battlegroup we had assembled. Resupply ships had arrived alongside the reinforcements and were in the process of re-stocking all our ammo.
"Commander Shepard, this is Rear Admiral Bradford of the Carrier SSV Hawking. Admiral Hackett saw fit to send me to take Command of our naval forces here," a woman with a thick British accent greeted over comms. Hm, well the British have plenty of experience with the navy.
"Yes Ma'am." Shepard returned.
"Before we begin planning I need to assess the damage sustained during the previous encounter. Captain Stanford?"
"Ma'am," the gruff voice of the Captain appeared. "My Dreadnaught sustained no damage worth nothing. Just minor burns along our hull. My engineers assure me we're still at one-hundred percent. The Cruiser Budapest sustained some heavier damage to its port side. They report that another hit will result in a hull breach. It was the action of the Perugia which prevented that, drawing fire from and destroying a Geth frigate. It suffered minor damage, similar to our own. The other three cruisers suffered minimal damage, and as you know, will be remaining as a blockade. Our frigates have more variety in damage. Several suffered hull breaches that have been contained and are no longer keeping the crew from performing. Some have light scoring along the armor, and some are untouched, including Normandy. As for fighters, we have lost the equivalent of an entire fighter wing, and another dozen are finalizing repairs."
"Commander, I understand you will be on the ground prior to the attack?" The Admiral questioned after taking a moment to think.
"Yes Ma'am."
"Then bring your executive officer to the bridge. And Flight Lieutenant Moreau, I recommend you listen closely. The Normandy will have a unique role in this battle." Shepard went to grab Presley from CIC as the others waited for his return.
"Before I begin, I remind you that while I have leadership of this battle group, I did not make it to Rear Admiral by ignoring the thoughts and suggestions of those under my Command. Stanford is the first Human to combat the Geth Navy, while the Commander has the most experience of fighting Geth in general and procured details on Geth ships from the Migrant Fleet. I'm sure the Quarian on board can answer any questions that may arise in the meantime. Now, while I will listen to suggestions, allow me to paint the full picture of my plan first." She explained. She then paused and cleared her throat.
"Stanford, I want you to take the remaining wings from the fighter groups that suffered the most losses and merge them together. The Kilimanjaro and the Budapest will be the escort of the Hawking. Budapest will be at a closer range than Kilimanjaro, but further away than the rest of our ships. Its starboard broadside shall face the enemy ships and fire. Their main goal will be to suppression, not damage. We want as many rounds from the Kilimanjaro's main gun to impact Geth ships, in addition to rounds from our other cruisers and frigates. I want you to replace the most vulnerable frigates with those originally tasked with the blockade. I wouldn't normally do this, but we need them. Ignoring the Normandy, our fastest and most intact frigates will form a Wolfpack squadron. They will skirt the edges of the battle until a hostile's shields are about to collapse. Either from torpedo or sustained fire. They will then swoop in and unleash a payload. Aim for the drive core if possible, those will be our only reliable kill-shot against synthetics."
"Now, for the Normandy. I've been toying with ideas on how to utilize a ship with a stealth drive since I was ordered to come here. After you drop off the Commander, you are going to return to the battlegroup, so we can place two trident fighters in your hanger. You will return to Grissom ahead of us, and position yourselves below the Geth ships. Specifically, beneath the cruisers. Your stealth drive will remain active, and once positioned, your cargo bay will be open. The fighters will keep their drive cores offline, and instead propel themselves with their backup propellant thrusters. They will position themselves, and on our signal, launch their disruptor torpedoes. Their GARDIAN systems will be offline and their shields will collapse just as we exit FTL. The Normandy and the fighters will fall back and regroup with us. The fighters with their original squadrons, and the Normandy will make hit and run strikes against the enemy. Largely at your own discretion, but targets we mark for you will need to be a priority."
"An interesting plan, Ma'am, but frigates aren't built to house fighters. Will the Normandy even be able to hold them?" Stanford asked.
"I am. I have the Normandy's schematics and compared the measurements of the cargo bay with measurements on our fighters. It'll be tight, and some items may need to be moved, but they'll fit and be able to exit," Bradford reassured. "Once the battle begins, we will otherwise fall into standard procedures, keeping our ships at medium-to-long range. The Corvettes will likely try to move into knife-fight range, but I'll set aside a large portion of our fighters to deal with them, and our frigates that won't be a part of the wolfpack will be tasked with defending our cruisers from their own Corvettes and Frigates."
"One question. The coordinates of the Geth base put it right below their defense ships. I'm not eager to have any of our misses start dropping on the Commander's head. If he haunts my ass, a slight ghostly nudge could break my legs," I remarked. Shepard and Pressly chuckled. I think a smirk spread across Bradford's, but I couldn't tell. No vid-com.
"I've already taken that into account. While we won't be able to do much to stop any debris from the battle, we won't approach the planet head on. We will instead approach from the side. From our angle, the only thing behind the Geth will be space," Bradford answered.
"One final thing that comes to mind, Rear-Admiral. During our engagement against the first Geth outpost, a Corvette broke off and attempted to neutralize my team and I. Air support from Normandy saved us. If that happens again, or Geth ground forces are simply too much for us, could we expect air support again?" Shepard asked.
"I'll task a fighter squadron to listen for support. They'll keep clear of the thick of battle but be on standby should either of us require it."
"Thank you, Ma'am."
"Don't thank me, Commander. I don't think the brass would take too kindly to the First Human Spectre dying because I was stingy," she joked. "Now, repairs and resupply should be finished shortly. Normandy, discharge your drive core, vent your heat sinks, and get moving. I want you at full capacity before we begin. And make sure your cargo bay is ready."
"We'll begin immediately. Normandy out," Shepard ended the call. He gave me a nod and proceeded to prepare for the ground mission. And likely to help out with making room. Pressly returned to his station. I stretched my arms, clasped my hands, reversed them, and pushed them out wards to crack my joints.
Let's see what my baby can do.
Flight Lieutenant Jeff 'Joker' Moreau
I took a deep breath. This was it. The Commander and crew had been dropped on Solcrum, and we were had already disengaged from FTL at the edge of the system. With the stealth drive active, I was piloting the Normandy below the Geth ships. And they were just coming into view. If they get a visual on us we're screwed. Ok, well, the plan is screwed. They wouldn't be able to lock onto us and we could bug out to join the others. But as we continued to get closer and closer, nothing changed. Not the position of the ships, not their emissions, nothing. We had come out of FTL in a direction different to where the attack would come. And had done so on purpose. Given when we drop from FTL some emissions break through. The ships were facing where we had dropped, their broadsides wide open for when the battle group arrives. And, lucky us, the cruisers were close together. Soon, I had 'parked' the Normandy with its bow facing the underside of the Geth ships. I double checked to make sure the cargo bay was clear. The pilots were in their fighters, and some of the Marines that defend the ship were suited up in the cargo bay to help push the fighters out, give em a bit extra momentum.
With everything clear, I began venting the cargo bay. Once done, I opened the bay doors, and watched the underside cameras as the two fighters slowly started to make their way out, one after the other. If they scratch the paint job I'm gonna be pissed. Fortunately, they didn't. One fighter gently propelled itself in the direction of one cruiser, and the other, to the other. I checked the mission clock.
"Right on schedule. Atta girl," I whispered to the ship. Now, to wait here till those torpedoes detonate, launch some rounds at the underbelly. I hated looking at these ships. Looking like bugs and having those creepy little legs on their ships. Ugh. The ship was eerily quiet as we waited. At least the shots were already lined up. Just waiting for me to hit the button to send them off.
It was time. The mission clock just came down to zero. The fighters both fired off their disruptor missiles and flared to life. There was nothing the Geth could do. Their defense systems were offline, conserving power. The disruptor torpedoes both hit their mark as I got blips from Alliance ships dropping out of FTL. I slammed down on the button to fire weapons and the two Mass Accelerator rounds on the underside of the ship fired straight up into the Cruiser, piercing the hull easily at this range and causing some explosions.
"Cruiser shields are down! Kilimanjaro, take them out! All fighter wings, engage! Wolfpack, get hunting! All ships, fire at will!" Bradford ordered. The fighters we brought got the hell out of dodge, and I turned the Normandy right around, out of the line of fire. I watched in the rear camera as the cruiser we hit was struck by a volley from our Cruisers, and it began to collapse. While the dreadnaught fired one massive round that simply sheared through the other, detonating the drive core. I doubt either got to launch fighters. The remaining Geth ships were scrambling. Turning to deal with the threat on their flank, which proved to be a perfect opportunity for us. As frigates and Corvettes turned, they left their rears vulnerable. And they're likely focusing power to their forward kinetic barriers. And that means…
We fired another volley at a frigate, before it could really get moving, and as expected, it tore the ass of the bug ship apart, the drive core detonating in a blue explosion of element zero. Another frigate began to turn to engage us, but a round struck its broadside, and the ship was cut in two pieces. And then the swarm of fighters arrived.
"This is Commander Shepard. The base is defended by two Geth Colossi and several Armatures. Requesting air support," the comms lit up.
"This is Rogue Leader. Rogue squadron inbound for a bombing run, stay clear," a man's voice responded. Heh, Rogue Squadron, of course that exists.
"Yeah just try not to end this like Scariff," the Commander joked. As I readied the Normandy for another pass, I noticed just how enveloped by the fighters the Geth ships were getting. Overwhelming their GARDIAN systems and without any fighters of their own, it was like a swarm of insects covering up a… bigger insect, and devouring it in what seemed like seconds. And this had seemingly become cleanup duty. The wolfpack had already made several passes at ships whose shields were brought down, and a few had been brought down by our hit and run tactics from behind. The fighters just dropping bombs all over, the Dreadnaught and several cruisers providing a near endless barrage of fire onto the Geth? I call that a win.
Commander John Shepard
The Mako landed with a thud as the Normandy soared away to regroup with Bradford. In the sky we could see the Geth cruisers relatively well, and the frigates as specks, barely visible. The gas giant Solcrum orbited was much closer to a small sun than a gas giant and dominated most of the sky in a blue light. Another of the moons took up more, and the rest, stars. We took it slow, as we didn't want to begin until the battle begun. And so, the Mako was parked at the bottom of a ridge surrounding the crater the Geth base had been built into. Waiting.
"I think I see the Normandy," Garrus called out some time later. Must have used quite a high zoom with the cannon's optics.
"Then stay frosty. Won't be long now." A few minutes later, we saw a flash in the sky, a further ways away then the Geth ships. Followed by more and more flashes, and the explosion on the underside of a Geth cruiser.
"Cruiser shields are down! Kilimanjaro, take them out! All fighter wings, engage! Wolfpack, get hunting! All ships, fire at will!" Bradford ordered. That confirms it, they're here, and the plan worked. I got the Mako out of park and started the drive up the hill. Only a moment later, we came over the end.
"Oh, fuck that!" I exclaimed upon seeing not just one, but two Geth Colossi guarding the base's entrance, in addition to several armatures. I reversed us back down the hill right away. "This is Commander Shepard. The base is defended by two Geth Colossi and several Armatures. Requesting air support."
"This is Rogue Leader. Rogue Squadron inbound for a bombing run, stay clear," a man's voice warned. I barked a short laugh. Not surprise there's a fighter squad out there under that name.
"Yeah just try not to end this like Scariff," I joked. Tali looked at me from the side with her head cocked to the side. "Old movie reference." We watched overhead for the fighter wing and saw them come over our heads after their run, feeling the ground shake. Seconds later, the leader spoke up.
"Commander this is Rogue Leader. We can confirm that the target area has been cleared. Happy hunting."
"Much appreciated Rogue leader. Have fun with-" I glanced back to the battle above. The Geth were suffering heavy losses. "Scraps left up there." I brought the Mako back towards the Geth base, happy to find smoldering and shattered remains of the Geth war machines among the new craters. And the entrance was still intact. A smooth, black matte metal like bunker shell in the center of the crater. I wasn't comfortable with the idea of us waiting outside in the heat of the small sun to get that open. So, Tali and I worked together to hack into its programs and opened a small entrance to its side. We got out and rushed inside. No airlock. Temperature is likely controlled, but air? Why would the Geth need air? The design of the interior remained much the same. Smooth, regular, simplistic, and practical. Alien.
"I feel like even an animal could tell this place was made by machines," Garrus murmured.
"So do I. The Geth aren't much for unused space," Tali added. "Wait, reading signals, on the other side of the door."
"Techs, let's give ourselves an advantage then," I ordered. Garrus, Kaidan, Tali and I got to work. Garrus was the slowest of us for this, but he succeeded. Couldn't even hear gunfire in the other room, so we chanced it, and it played out. Along the wall were what appeared to be charging stations for Geth units, and there was currently one of those Hopper Geth jumping around, occasionally firing at some other Geth inside. And the sound of a machine on a rampage hinted that a Destroyer had been hacked. Using the distraction, we pushed further in. Taking out a few more Geth troops as we got ourselves a foot hold. And some were already on the ground from the hacks.
"Juggernaut above," Tali warned.
"Wrex! With me! Everyone else, cover us!" Wrex and I ran for a staircase to an upper level, happy to have the night vision in our helmets as there was hardly any light at all in here. Just the Geth heads and the lights from their tech. Some troops that tried to open fire on us were cut down as we ran, and the way up the stairs was enclosed, protecting us. The Juggernaut had its back turned to us, which gave me the perfect opportunity to pull out a grenade, activate it, run forward and shove it into a mass of wires and cords on its back side, then run the hell away before it could turn. It didn't even react. As if it didn't feel me jamming a grenade into what was basically it's guts. The grenade detonated and took the Geth's torso with it. With the elevated position, we made short work of those who remained.
"Alright, regroup, find the control room to this place. Geth run on servers, right? Let's shut those servers down before they make more-" I paused as I heard a faint sound in the comms. "You hear that?" It got a bit louder.
"No, it can't be…" Tali murmured. It sounded like a feminine voice, but I couldn't make out the words. If it was even English. "Over here." We quickly rejoined her as she led us to a back room. There was a console against what looked like the front of a server farm, and there was a monitor over the console. The sound became clearer. On the monitor was a Quarian woman singing a song to a silent crowd. Given the background, no doubt on the Migrant Fleet. For some reason, it wasn't being translated, but, her tone sounded… mournful. Sad.
"Tali, what's she saying?" I asked quietly.
"I suppose it's not surprising it's not translating. It's an older dialect. It was used less and less the longer we remained on the fleet…" she murmured. "It's a song about our loss. Our home world, billions of our people, the innocence of ourselves and our children. I've seen this recording before."
"Shepard, got a transmitter here," Kaidan called out. Tali's attention was immediately grabbed and she made her way to investigate herself, before I got there, she had it figured out.
"It's… transmitting into the Perseus Veil? Why would the Geth want a recording of us mourning the loss of our planet?! Our people?!" Tali exclaimed, getting upset, clearly. "Is it not enough for them to know they beat us?! But they have to know our sufferings as well? Our sorrow? Is it just so they can laugh at us and mock us from our own Ancestor's damned home world?! I'm shutting those servers down! Ending each of the Geth Bosh'tets inside," she proclaimed, and by the sound of it, she was crying through her anger. I put a hand on her shoulder
"Tali, wait," I gently stopped her. She turned her head right back, I saw it in her eyes, somehow. She was a mess. "We'll destroy the servers. Destroy the Geth. But first, why don't we find out precisely what they were doing here? Pull all their files from the terminal? We might just learn something," I reminded. She paused, and took a deep breath, calming herself.
"You're right. I'm sorry. I'll pull what data I can."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: And boom! Space battle! Hell yeah! Everything about the space battles was me elaborating off of details in the wiki, as well as how space battles should work, mostly. (like Normandy going below or above Geth ships during the battle) The classes of ships were also from the Wiki and the names of the ship's are pre-existing names. The reason I had those ships return, Hawking and Perugia for example? Well… you'll see I make it a nice little tie in later on. I request that if you know you keep quiet in reviews for now. But the names of Captain Stanford and Rear-Admiral Bradford? That was a mix of pulling a name out of my ass and the ME name generator. Oh! And the details Liara gave about the planet Junthor are also accurate, I checked all the planets of all the systems before doing anything. Hope you enjoyed, and see you in the next one!