Chapter 11 - Jumpin' Jack Flash
Alyarae, The Howling Darkness
January 13, 1999
The cold but familiar touch of the Geth once again reached out to the Link. The machines were perhaps not what they had been expecting from aliens, but they had been welcoming to the Alar and their kin, and so were welcomed in turn. Much had been learned of the Spiral, and the aliens which called it home. There were many Natural worlds, and many different creations of Nature. The Geth were artificial, one of the few, and their creators...
The Link pushed aside the anger it felt at the Council over the de-Naturalization of the quarians. They could not change it, not now.
Geth. How may the Link guide you?
We are unable to reach consensus on the history and culture of the Alar and secondary consciousness designated "Link." Multiple queries remain unanswered.
A few years ago, this sort of stilted speech unnerved them. By now they were used to it, but it was truly "alien" and likely always would be.
We are happy to help, though many within the Link are curious as to why you have been unable to decide. We have known each other for over two standard Citadel years.
That is a concern to us as well. We believe it is because you are unlike any other species in recorded galactic history.
Yes, you have explained before. Our Naturalization abilities.
And beyond. Your species has existed for over 140,000 standard Citadel years. You are old enough to predate species 'Prothean', and perhaps the predecessors of the Protheans. Yet we are the first non-Link sentience you have discovered in your entire history.
What is difficult to understand about our age?
Age is difficult to include within accepted parameters when you possess no data on species 'Prothean'. Lack of element zero technology impedes communication, but dark matter-based engines would prove sufficient to reach galaxy-Spiral within Link epoch "2nd Cycle, 2nd Natural Age", the approximate era believed to be the apex of the Prothean Empire within galaxy-Spiral.
There it was. They were surprised it had not come up sooner, given how fast the Geth reached what they called "consensus", but they did have a lot on their mind.
The Naturalization was not complete.
Specify.
In the 1st Natural Age, when the Link only knew Alyarae, a drive was instilled within. In our primitive stage it manifested itself as our devotion to the Gods of Nature. Now that same drive told us we must first bring the Howling Darkness to life before we could see the Spiral.
Despite your isolation causing demonstrable long-term psychological damage to the Link?
Yes. The devotion to Nature was stronger.
The Geth were briefly quiet again. Each Alar and Aware tended to their duties across the small galaxy while listening in on the conversation and adding commentary. Through their study of galactic history, relayed by the Geth, they had learned that they were indeed a very unique species. The closest analogue the Spiral had to the Link was the Rachni, and they had been extinct for millennia. The Link was saddened - at the death of the Rachni, yes, but more so at the idea of a species not being able to communicate amongst themselves the way they and the Geth could.
We have analyzed data you provided on dark space anomaly designated "Wandering Energy". Based on available evidence, we believe it is a large concentration of Element Zero that is not naturally occurring.
The Link paused. The Wandering? It was strange, made up of a substance unknown in the Darkness, called "Zero" by the Geth due to its lack of mass. Twice in their long, long history, it had moved...yet it had come back both times within the same Natural Cycle. But was it other life, like them? Why wait to bring this up? Unless...
Using dark matter-based Alar technology in combination with Element Zero-based Geth technology, we have recently confirmed it would be possible to construct a device capable of receiving enhanced readings from this Energy.
Would they know of us? There was little unity on this subject. Contact was forbidden with others until the Naturalization ended, unless (as was the case with the Geth) they came to the Darkness. Still the Wandering Energy was tempting to many; now that they had met those from the Spiral, it was the greatest unsolved mystery of space.
Unknown. We would likely need to need to construct several prototype devices within galaxy-Howling Darkness to be certain of stealth capabilities.
When the Alar and the Aware within the Link disagreed on a subject, the effects varied. If it was a minor disagreement, as had happened early in Alar history when they had begun naming planets, few noticed. They could feel one another, but were not a true hive mind, so some difference of opinion was to be expected.
Thankfully the inverse reaction would not be on display, so none would feel pain. But as they took longer and longer to make a decision, uneasiness spread throughout their minds. Though the Gods of Nature were long disbelieved, some still held onto the Warning. It was a "sixth sense" which supposedly told them when they were about to make an extremely important decision - but, crucially, did not tell them what decision to make.
All felt the Warning now. The Wandering Energy was something of great significance. The debate raged for days. The Geth, used to this by now, continued their assistance with the Naturalization in silence.
Finally, a singular answer came through. We agree, with one condition: you will construct this Device as many times as is necessary to ensure the Wandering Energy does not know of us.
Acknowledged. Beginning Link/Geth Prototype Monitoring Device Construction.
Work began, and work continued. Even with the arrival of the Geth, that had not changed.
Prothean Research Outpost, Mars
March 30, 1971
"We must leave. They are coming."
Kathleen Kenyon stared at the Prothean writing on the Archive screen. Two and a half years of research and digging through 50,000 year old mainframes had produced only a single reference to the "machines". It was enough.
"Keelah," Narra'Shael gasped. They had been friends for years and had talked about their discoveries for just as long, but now words failed them both.
"The Protheans..." Kathleen started, then stopped. She had to collect herself.
"The Protheans disappeared 50,000 years ago, and for as long as there has been contemporary galactic civilization people have wanted to know why."
"But we know now," Narra replied.
"No," she said. "We know the machines destroyed them. But we do not know what the machines are, or most importantly, where they went to."
"Maybe the Protheans created them? We were driven off our homeworld by our creations. Perhaps they were driven to extinction."
"A good theory," she conceded, "but only a theory. For now, we must keep searching." Even with this shocking discovery, she was all business. "Inform our colleagues of this finding."
Neither of them were aware that Jack Rosetti, a junior researcher who shared their fascination with the Protheans, had made a different finding which he kept to himself. A finding which would make Jumpin' Jack a legend.
Mars Outpost Security Room
April 15, 1971
"WHERE THE HELL IS MY SHIP?!"
Narra'Shael slammed her hands down on the desk and glared daggers at the man on the vid screen. One minute, the Ser'yava had been there, looking much the same as it had her entire life. Then something - someone, she inferred with irritation - had disrupted the entire facility's security feeds. The disruption lasted for only a few minutes, and in the middle of a dust storm. But the bosh'tet that had stolen the ship got away, and those useless captains that were supposed to be watching for unusual traffic hadn't even seen it!
No. Not "the" ship. "Narra'Shael vas Ser'yava, Flotilla Security is investigating the situation and will-"
"INVESTIGATING?! How does a civilian cruiser get past all of the security around Earth? Were you on a Return Trip while that thief took my ship you-"
"That's enough, Narra!" Kathleen forcefully interjected herself into the fiasco. She stared Narra down, hard - as she rarely had cause to do, the latter wisely acquiesced. "I apologize on behalf of my colleague, good sir. The Ser'yava was Narra's ship long before the Second Exile, so the emotion is understandable, but the behavior certainly not."
The diplomatic response seemed to mollify him somewhat. "At the moment, our main theory is that the pilot hid behind some of the gas giant moons on his way out. Due to the frequent...attempts...by humans to leave the Sol System, we would have detected any traffic long before it hit the Relay had he taken the conventional route. We'll find him eventually, though. It's not like he knows where he's going."
He actually had a vague idea of just that, but getting there was a different story.
Refuge [Eden Prime], Bykovsky [Utopia] System
May 20, 1974
"Jack Rosetti, this is Mera'Kuun vas Usela of Flotilla Security. Give us your location, now."
"Hello to you too, old man. Didn't you used to be an Admiral?"
Mera would've growled, but he was in a good mood despite the jab. Security usually wasn't as high-stakes as the Admiralty Board, that's why he took the job, but this bosh'tet had stolen a ship (even after settling on planets, that was still a big deal) and eluded them for two years. Finding him meant they could finally, FINALLY do something else.
And of course he was trying to weasel his way out of it before they even landed on the planet.
"I am not here to play games, 'Jumpin' Jack'," he replied, deliberately sneering his famous nickname. "You stole a ship from the quarian people and cost us untold time and resources tracking you down. You will tell us where you are or I will burn you off the face of whatever you've named this place." Merr'Erral and the Explorer pioneers had named only the stars they visited, preferring to leave the designation of a garden world to later generations.
"Tell you what, chief. I want full immunity for anything you might want to do for me, because I found something that makes one ship completely worth it."
"Oh?" He had time, and could humor Rosetti. It would be interesting to see what lie he came up with. "And what might that be?"
"Nothing less than a living Prothean, good sir."
At that, Mera burst out laughing. "Seriously? Two years running from us and that's the best you can do?"
"I figured you'd say that. How about a bet? Full immunity if there's a Prothean here."
Mera frowned. Where was he going with this? "Alright, done. So tell me, bosh'tet..." professionalism could slide for a moment. "How did you discover this specimen? A specimen which has been extinct for 50,000 solar years, if I remember correctly."
"The Mars Archives. I found a reference to a 'last refuge'-"
"There was only a single reference to the Machines in the Archives."
"Nope!" He was confident, smug. Mera hated him so much. "I found another one and scrubbed it, because I knew it would take years to schedule a trip to this place. Couldn't wait, you know?"
This had gone on long enough. "Jack Rosetti-"
"Relax, Mera. I'll send you my coordinates now. Even with that mask, I am going to love the look on your face."
The captain instantly ordered his crew to the location as soon as they had received it. No matter what sort of nonsense Rosetti was making up, this was over.
New York City, United States
July 4, 1976
Javik, Avatar of Vengeance and Last Hope of the Prothean Cycle, was getting wasted.
In his cycle he would have scoffed at the very idea. Intoxicating liquors were anathema to a soldier, especially one fighting the inevitable extinction of his people. One had to be aware of their senses at all times, to say nothing of the looming threat of indoctrination. Who could drink when civilization was ending?
But two years after awakening, 50,000 years after the death of his people, he found it harder to come up with excuses not to get intoxicated. Especially with the obnoxious explosives the primitives were blasting outside of his residence on this extremely annoying holiday.
When he had woken up, the shock of seeing what the humans called "Refuge" (as far as names went, he had to admit it wasn't bad) had only lasted a few minutes. He was surrounded by quarians and humans, primitive races from the previous cycle that the Empire had monitored before the Reaper invasion. Combine that with the sight of hills and mountains where a great city of his people used to be, and it wasn't hard to infer what had happened.
Thus, shock had quickly given way to utter dismay. His own situation was bad enough. He did not have an army, or even a small squad of his most trusted men. Instead, there was only him. Rebuilding the Prothean species was impossible; vengeance was all that was left.
But vengeance was so difficult with the absurd situation given to him! The quarians had been driven off their homeworld by machines centuries ago, and finally driven out of the galaxy altogether. Then they had proceeded to uplift the humans with such recklessness that he was still in disbelief. The result being a chaotic political situation where everybody listened to him but nobody seemed capable of actually following through on his instructions.
It hadn't been entirely unsuccessful. The historical magnitude of his appearance on Earth and his vivid descriptions of the Reapers had at least given both species something of a sense of direction. He had split time between Earth and Mars, working with the Archives on the latter to slowly upgrade the Flotilla and, eventually, create a fleet capable of fighting the Reapers.
Getting any further than that was incredibly difficult. The humans and quarians needed to be terrified of the Reapers, and devoted to his carefully laid out preparation for their arrival. Instead they were fragmented, bickering over meaningless social problems or destroying their minds with drugs. He was enraged when someone had the audacity to tell him that the Reapers were "old news". They ended the Prothean Empire, and they were coming!
As the fireworks continued to go off in the night sky, he downed another shot, brooding over the task ahead of him. A race of drug addicts defeated by machines and prematurely uplifted primitives, he surmised.
How was he to defeat the Reapers with this?