Time: 21:00 Galactic Standard

Date: March 31st, 2357

On board the STG-RV "Logical Approach", above the Batarian world Sydon

It had taken about a week for Councilor Valern to get us the clearance levels needed to land on the main STG dispatch bases on Sur'Kesh. Once we arrived, I saw why the Salarians didn't want a lot of outsiders there – From what I gathered, a massive amount of information passes through that base. Infiltrating it would grant an impressive advantage to the species behind the infiltration. In any case, we were joined by a STG team and their new lieutenant, Kirrahe. Good lad. Had a few conversations with him this past week – he'll make a fine leader. Anyways. We boarded a Salarian shuttle and flew in silence to a covert dock where we joined up with Commander Melissa. Apparently, in the event things went south, she was our backup – and better backup we couldn't ask for.
We then saw the ship supporting us – the "Logical Approach" STG recon vessel
The latest stealth cruiser fielded by the STG, built in conjunction with our own fledgling intelligence apparatus, the Frontier Intelligence Committee. A grand secret, known only to a select few in the Alliance Government. How long they had been working on it, I don't know. Probably not long after the first Hybrid drives were built. In any case... She is an impressive ship, capable of infiltrating an enemy system and lingering there for weeks at a time. If caught, her shields would hold long enough for us to warp out of the system, leaving empty space.
"Head up in the clouds, sir?"

"You could say that, Cameron. Just waiting for our chance to drop"

Cameron nods. "Same. Getting rather warm for my liking though"

I nod, wiping my forehead. "Yah. Only been about a week since we arrived, and I'm starting to bake too"

"So, any thoughts?"

I shake my head. "Not much to think about, beyond the inclusion of that Spectre agent"

Cameron nods. "What was the guy's name? Arterius, right?"

"That would be correct, human"

I spun around, surprised. "Damn, almost gave me a heart attack there"

Cameron was visibly sweating now. "Same here. How do you learn to sneak like that?"

"Years of advanced Spectre training. Perhaps one day I'll instruct a human in the same way"
Arterius extends a three-fingered hand. "You can call me Saren, human"

I sigh, relieved, and take the hand. "SGT. Anderson, leader of Bravo Squad. You can call me David"

Saren pauses for a moment. "Bravo Squad… that was the squad responsible for the activation of Relay 314, yes?"

I nod. "Hard to believe that it's been two and a half years since Shanxi, but yah. We were there. Commander Cooper was there too, if you haven't talked with her yet"

Saren nods. "I have"
Saren was Sparatus' contribution to the operation. While Kirrahe and our squad would be looking for data regarding the IMC's plans, Saren would be locating Titan foundries and sabotaging them.
A klaxen started going off. "Finally" Cameron says, putting on his helmet
I grab my helmet, laying on a nearby shelf, and put it on. "Bravo Squad, get ready to drop"

[-]

Ten drop pods. Four for our squad, five for Kirrahe and his team, and one for Saren. I catch Saren looking around.
"Where's Commander Cooper's pod?" he asks, turning to face me

I grin. "Pilots don't need a drop pod, Saren. If she drops, it'll be in her twenty-foot tall robot friend, CV-9126"

The Spectre's brows go up. "Ahh, I see. It does make sense. Maximize shock value and counter any troop preparations"

I nod as I grab my weapon, a suppressed R-203 carbine. "Got it in one"
My squad grab their assigned weapons. For Cameron, a suppressed EVA-9 semi-auto shotgun. For Lyon, an L-STAR. For Burke, a suppressed D-201 Longbow DMR.
I grab my backup, an old Hammond P216 semi-auto pistol, chambered in .45 ammo. Twisting the suppressor on, I tuck it into the holster on my hip, then step into my pod. "Troopers, we have our mission. Find out what the hell the IMC is doing and put an end to it"

The three troopers nod and step into their pods. The door on my pod closes, and we brace for launch. "Prepare for drop Bravo"
The pods launch, cloaking as soon as they clear the ship. For a moment, I can see Kirrahe's team drop, then they cloak too. To my right, Saren's pod, which is angled away from ours. He'll go ahead of us and start looking for Titan foundries
We enter the atmosphere of Sydon, the pods' bottoms heating up as we leave the cold vacuum of space. I see the forest where we'll be landing, and the facility on the edge of it. From up here, it doesn't look like much. But IMC doesn't do much ground presence – they build underground, making total destruction near-impossible.
We hit the ground, four pods impacting in different parts of the forest. The pod door opens, and I step out, rifle in hand.
"Bravo Squad, report in"

"Rifleman Cameron, checking in. No enemy presence noted on impact"

"Specialist Lyon, reporting in. One patrol sighted. Batarians. They haven't seen my pod"

"Rifleman Burke, reporting in. Two loners, possibly separated from their squad. IMC colors"

Shoot. I needed to let Lieutenant Kirrahe know. "STG Team, this is Bravo Actual, do you copy?"
Silence

.
"STG Team, this is Bravo Actual, do you copy?" I was starting to get stressed

.
"We read you, Bravo Actual"

Relief washes over me. "Good to hear you, STG. Confirmed IMC presence in facility, augmented by Batarian forces. Watch your six"

"Sergeant, permission to engage loners?"

I nod. "Burke, you are cleared to engage. Maintain noise discipline"

"Cameron, move towards Lyon's landing site. I'll meet you there"
We didn't know the capabilities of the Batarians here, so it makes sense to take precautions
"Loners dispatched, moving towards Lyon's pod"
As I approach Lyon's pod, I see Cameron approaching as well, his shotgun ready, as well as Burke, flashbang in his hand. I nod, and he tosses it. As the Batarians stumble, Cameron and I unload on them, killing them quickly, and most importantly, quietly.
"Good kill Bravo. Lyon, you're clear"

Lyon steps out of what appears to be thin air. "Specialist Lyon, ready for duty"

[-]

We encountered – and dealt with – a few more squads during our approach to the facility. Nothing so fancy to make a note of though. Saren arrived before we did and warned us that there are IMC pilots here. We can see guards stationed at the entrance to the facility. Batarians. A few squads, nothing we can't handle, but one wrong move and the entire facility goes on full alert.
"Saren, STG Team, this is Bravo Actual, come in"
Kirrahe responds first
"I read you, Bravo Actual. What's your situation?"

"We're at the secondary entrance to the facility. There's a number of Batarian squads here though, makes a quiet entry a little complicated"

"Saren here. I can trip the alarms, make entry a little easier. I've already sabotaged one titan foundry, but there are more here"
I sigh. Tripping the alarms would make entry easier, and Kirrahe wouldn't have as much problems locating the data he was sent for, but Saren wouldn't have any backup until Melissa arrives, and it would make sabotaging the rest of the titan foundries difficult. It would give us the opportunity to see what the troopers here are capable of though…
"Do it. I'll let Commander Cooper know what's about to happen"
I pop my neck. "Logical Approach Actual, do you copy?"

"We read you, Bravo Actual. What is your situation?"

"Inform Commander Cooper that things are about to get loud. Providing coordinates for possible Titanfall site"

"Receiving… SGT. Anderson, this is the Spectre's insertion site. Confirm"

"Confirmed. Spectre Saren will be drawing enemy fire to ease infiltration of the facility"

I can hear the Salarian captain sigh. "Commander Cooper has been informed. SGT. Anderson, will you need any additional support?"

"Negative, Logical Approach. Anderson out"
I swap back to ground radio. "Saren, you'll be getting some backup soon. Go ahead and trip the alarms"

"Confirmed. Waking up the base in three… two… one… "
Klaxons start going off. The Batarian squads vacate the entrance, eager to find who set foot in the facility.
"Bravo, move in"
The secondary entrance is almost empty – almost. One Batarian squad stayed behind, along with an anti-personnel turret.
"Lyon, turret!"

"On it sir!" Lyon deploys his L-STAR, raining bolts of energy on the automated turret's shields.
The Batarian squad moves into position. The chatter of their guns says they've been outfitted with IMC weapons. Five of them, plus the turret, against our four-man team.
The odds are not on our side here.
I raise my rifle and drop one Batarian. Burke drops another.
"Shields down sir!"

I nod. "Burke, switch targets! Lyon, drop some of those Batarians!"
Energy rounds aren't as good against flesh as kinetic rounds are, but they still pack a punch against the Batarian squad's shields. They shout something in a language I can't understand
One member's shields drop, and I fill his head with lead. "One down"
The turret whines as Burke shreds it's circuitry. So much for IMC fortifications. Heh
Burke turns his rifle on the Batarian squad. Another hostile goes down as Burke and I rain lead upon the squad. Three left. Our odds are improving.
I see Cameron sneaking around the back of the Batarian squad, shotgun at the ready. Choom. One down. Choom. Two down. Choom. Three down.
"Well done Cameron"

"I do my best, sir"

I nod. "Saren, Kirrahe, moving into the base now. How copy?"

"Good copy, SGT. Anderson. SGT team moving in at tertiary entrance"

"Copy loud and clear, Sergeant. Second foundry located, in process of sabotaging. Your pal Cooper is wreaking havoc on enemy forces down here"

I grin. "Good copy Spectre, keep me updated"

[-]

Time: 22:19, galactic standard

March 31st, 2357

Location: Sydon, Batarian Space

Lots of IMC soldiers here. CV and I are having a lot of fun wreaking havoc.
"Melissa, Titan detected ahead"

I grin. "CV, now would be a good time to show them our new toy"

"I agree Melissa. Deploying repeller shield"
Stowing the gun, CV grabs the Ronin sword attached to her back and activates a large shield on her left arm. It resembles the old Vortex shield that Vanguard and Ion class titans used during the Frontier Liberation War, but it is far more advanced. The newest in Hybrid titan technology, the Repeller shield is basically a much more advanced version of the old Vortex shield, with an arm mounted projector instead of having the projector inside the hand. Also new is the use of a single dedicated eezo battery, mounted on CV's shoulder.
I'm getting distracted.
Shaking my head, I look around, spotting the Titan that CV detected.
It's a Legion class Titan, and it's more advanced than CV is.
"CV, brace for impact! Shield up!"
I yank the shield up, just in time to deflect the Legion's power shot.
"Melissa, we can't engage him directly. The power of that shot drained a large amount of the Repeller's power supply. I shudder to think what that Predator cannon will do to my chassis"

She's right. "Okay, switch to Ronin mode. We'll defeat that Legion with superior mobility"

"Switching to Ronin loadout"
I grab the sword and throw an Arc wave in the Titan's direction. It's stunned for a moment, long enough to phase dash behind it. I slash-
The Legion spins around. IT SPINS AROUND. How is that possible?!
"Arc wave up?"

"No, the systems are still-"
I make a desperate attack and slash the Legion's gun. It gets caught in the gun, shearing some of the barrels off. The Legion yanks it away and tosses the gun aside, as it's now ruined
Advantage is now mine. "CV, time to unload"
Grabbing our gun, a forty-millimeter tracker cannon, we start unloading on the Legion… to no effect.
"We're doing no damage to it, Melissa. Its kinetic shields are recharging faster than we can fire"
I think for a moment. Massive titan with instantly recharging shields that we can't break…
"I'd kill for an L-STAR right about now"

"Locked onto Legion"
I fire a group of tracking missiles. Not much, but it does halt the Legion's advance.
An idea pops into my head. "CV, cover me!"

"Melissa, what are you- "
I jump out of CV, and grapple onto the Titan. If I can access the Legion's core, I can unlock the eezo batteries it's using for it's shielding systems and break this damn stalemate. CV does her best to cover me while I hack into the Legion's core with my omni-tool. It's coding is much more advanced than it's appearance belies. Multiple firewalls, self-sealing protocols… it's hard, but I have a mind for technology. After what seems like an eternity, I crack the core protocols. The eezo batteries shoot out like Athena out of Zeus' head. Damn!
"Pilot Melissa, I am reading a significant drop in the Legion's shields"

Good. "I'm on my way back, CV. We might just be able to beat this Legion after all"
Grappling onto CV, I shoot back towards her, disengaging just before her hatch opens. Landing inside, the hatch slams close, and we unload on the Legion. The shields drop, before finally dropping, and we cripple the behemoth before burst-firing 40mm rounds into the hatch, killing it and it's Pilot
I sigh. We won, but how many titans like this are there?
Hopping out of CV, I land on the defeated Legion. Opening the hatch, I pull the helmet off the Pilot, detach it's radio, and attach it to mine.
"Eavesdropping, are we?"

I nod, turning to the Spectre. "Yah. I wanna know how many more titans are in here"

The helmet's OS finishes cracking the radio's frequencies, and I start listening in. "… just defeated our Behemoth class Titan. We're deploying Samurai and Atom class Titans to avenge him"

"Alright. Keep me updated. Spyglass out"

"…Shoot"

"What?"

"We're about to be swarmed by CQB Titans. I hope you got your sabotages done, because we're done here!"

The Spectre nods. "While you were fighting that big ass Titan, I managed to deploy a number of explosives. This place will come down on top of them the moment I push the button"

I nod. "Okay. Get on to CV, and we'll get out quickly"
I embark, and CV registers our Spectre passenger.
We dash out of the cave, and the Spectre triggers the explosives. Shockwaves ripple through the exit, collapsing the cave and sealing the Titans inside.

[-]

Chapter nine finished. Apologies for the length, but I hope you enjoy it!
Updates will resume next week. Chapter 10 will focus on David and Kirrahe's actions inside the base during Melissa's fight with the Behemoth Titan