Hades Nexus, Hoplos Cluster: 2186, 0300 hours citadel time
The Darkness of space surrounded the planet of Talaria; a quiet, sparsely populated dwarf planet. A systems alliance patrol vessel like the USV Portland would normally ignore such an insignificant and uninteresting planet. Especially when its sister planet, Trident, had so much more to offer in the way of resources. And the Alliance needed every last damn resource it could get its hands on, what with the reapers harvesting and killing everything in sight. But Talaria was hiding something of great importance to Admiral Hackett and the alliance: A never before uncovered mass relay, buried in the planet's surface. A discovery of a new relay hadn't happened in almost 30 years, since the discovery of the Charon relay on Pluto, effectively launching the human race into the galactic community. Captain Riley Tyson of the USV Portland watched the monitors carefully for any signs of activity as they surveyed the planet for any signs of the relay. Finding it would be one thing. Getting it out without alerting the reapers of their presence was an entirely different, and deadly matter. Tyson was just happy they had "borrowed" experimental cloaking tech from a Cerberus light cruiser. Otherwise, the Portland would have been blasted to dust the second they came out of the Hades Nexus relay by the two destroyer class reapers watching over it.
The scans had been the same for the past two hours, with nothing of interest coming back to the ship. A palladium deposit here, a bit of eezo there, but nothing truly remarkable about this barren, backwater little planet. In fact, Tyson was ready to just about give up the search for this supposed relay when the scanners detected a spike in dark matter and mass-effect field readings. One of Tyson's subordinates typed some numbers in to his scanner as it beeped incessantly.
"Captain! I think we've got something! The probes have picked up a massive spike in dark matter near the south pole," the ensign said, handing Tyson his data pad.
Captain Tyson looked over the report for a moment before giving his orders.
"Well done ensign. Assemble a ground team and have them head to the surface immediately. No long range communications once they're on the ground. Essential technology only. We don't want the reapers knowing we're here," he said, handing the data pad back to the ensign.
"Aye aye sir. Right away," the ensign said, giving the standard Systems Alliance salute.
"Attention ground team; we have a potential confirmed report of the mass relay. Please report to Kodiak Shuttle L630 for immediate ground departure. Essential technology only is to be used when planet side. Once on the ground, await further orders. Confirmation is needed to determine if the scan is indeed a mass relay," the ensign spoke through the ships loudspeaker. The order echoed through the halls of the 500 meter patrol vessel while the ground team, consisting of 4 N7 soldiers, were already geared up and double timed it to the hangar bay. They carried 3 mass-effect powered industrial drills on their backs, as bringing heavier and bulkier mining vehicles would've taken too much time, and attracted way too much attention. The ground team leader was Lieutenant Carter Lyons; a tall, burly man of 35 who looked like he'd get black out drunk with you after a successful mission, as much as he would be able to snap a marauder's neck with one hand. Which, in fact, he's done. The other 2 N7 soldiers were the typical System's Alliance spec ops troops you'd expect to find on a sensitive mission like this one. Next in the chain of command was Corporal Mackenzie Jameson; an N7 soldier who specialized in sniping, with deadly accuracy. She was no stranger to shooting the heads clean off of reaper foot soldiers on missions like this one, though this time, she was kind of hoping they wouldn't run into any reapers to begin with. The last member of the ground team was a recruit fresh off the proverbial boat; Private Hayden Reacher was the technician of the ground team, and this was his first real mission in the field. Private Reacher grabbed his MK III Predator pistol and Katana Shotgun and holstered both weapon blocks as he ran out of his bunk and made a beeline for the hangar bay, almost running into the Portland's maintenance personnel as he rounded the corner.
"Few more seconds, and we might've left without you, Reacher," The lieutenant said.
"Sorry sir, I had to double back for my drill in the equipment room. It won't happen again sir, I promise," Hayden said, putting his equipment on the shuttle in a flustered manner. Corporal Jameson punched him lightly in the shoulder.
"Ah, relax kid. The Lieutenant's just giving you crap. It takes a bit to get used to the layout of these ships. Every one of them is different, so don't sweat it,"
"Right. Sorry ma'am," Hayden said, wiping the sweat from his brow. Jameson rolled her eyes with a smile.
"And knock off that 'sorry' crap will ya? You're doing fine. You made it to N7, and that alone is an accomplishment in itself. Besides, these sweep and retrieve missions are some of the easiest in the Alliance. With any luck, we'll be back before they start serving what ever it is they call dinner on this ship," Jameson laughed. The lieutenant shot her a concerned but "knock it off" look.
"I wouldn't be so sure, corporal. If this is really a mass relay, it's gonna be more than a simple sweep and retrieve. And kid? She's right. You're doin' fine. Just try to be a little more prepared. Now let's head planet side and see if we can dig this thing up. Without alerting the enemy."
All three of the N7 soldiers boarded the shuttle, keeping a close eye on the scanners for any reaper activity as they got closer to the dusty surface of Talaria. The pilot got a ping on his scanner and corrected the shuttle's trajectory to match the direction of the ping.
"Lieutenant," he called to the back of the shuttle. "I got something. Bringin' her down for a closer look." As the shuttle neared the location marked on the scanners, they saw it. An actual, previously unknown mass relay. Sticking out of the ground, completely exposed!
"Holy hell," Reacher said as he looked out the viewport. "It looks almost like the Omega 4 relay. It's massive! How does it even fit on this planet?"
"Looks like we won't have to dig too much of it up after all. But it's your call LT. What do we do?" Jameson asked, loading a preemptive thermal clip into her sniper rifle. Lieutenant Lyons scratched his beard, calculating the best course of action.
"I don't know yet. We need to get a closer look. Take us down," he said to the pilot, who gave an affirmative nod. The Kodiak landed a few hundred meters away from the exposed relay as the ground team drew their weapons in case of an ambush. An occurrence becoming much more frequent, what with it being the reaper's preferred method of ground assault.
"Corporal; set up on that ridge there and be our eyes while the Private and I survey the site," The LT said, gesturing to an incline a few hundred meters away from the shuttle. Corporal Jameson gave an affirmative salute and headed for her assigned post.
"Sir, shouldn't we wait for confirmation from Captain Tyson?" Hayden chimed in.
"If they haven't said anything yet, we cannot wait any longer. I don't wanna be down here longer than we need to be. Besides, if the reapers win, they can't really court martial us anyway, can they?" The LT joked.
"Copy that sir," Hayden said, nodding.
Hayden was right about the relay. It was much larger than the usual relays across the Milky Way, and this one even looked a bit different.
"Sir, do you see that? On the top of the relay; there's two prongs on the top, as well as the usual towards the front. I've never seen anything like it," the private said, scanning the relay with his Omni-tool. The lieutenant lowered his Avenger Rifle and carefully looked over the site. The relay looked as if someone had already finished digging it out.
"Something's not right here. For a new Relay, this shouldn't be exposed," The lieutenant said, clicking the safety off on his Avenger.
"Sir?" Hayden said, unholstering his predator pistol.
"Eyes open Private. I don't think we're alone," As if on cue, Corporal Jameson radioed the Lieutenant.
"Safeties off boys! Reapers inbound at 10 o'clock! I repeat! Ambush, sir!" Jameson said through the radio, all the while firing off a few shots at husks from her mantis sniper rifle. The three N7 soldiers fired off round after round at the husks, marauders, and occasional harvester. The lieutenant radioed the shuttle while simultaneously gunning down dozens of husks.
"This is lieutenant Carter Lyons! Ground team needs immediate extraction! Mass relay is confirmed, but it was a reaper ambush! I repeat, extraction needed!" There was garbled static speech as the pilot came through on the other side.
"Copy, Lieutenant! Proceed to extraction site. I'll try to give you some cover fire," The ground team sprinted and fired off shots as they made their way to the extraction site passed the ridge Jameson was posted on. The shuttle hovered barely above the ground as all three of N7 soldiers jumped inside.
"Go! Go! Go! Get us out of here!" Jameson yelled to the pilot. The shuttle shot forward as the three soldiers were knocked to the cold hard steel of the floor.
"We need to get back to the Portland! Radio the captain and tell him enemy presence is confirmed on the surface," Lyons commanded. The pilot gave a concerned look.
"That's the thing sir. I can't reach them. I've been trying for ten minutes," he said, as the shuttle neared the upper atmosphere.
"What do you mean you can't reach them? Even short range communications should work from this distance," Hayden said, booting up his Omni-tool.
"I mean I can't reach them on any channel," the pilot said.
"LT. You don't think- -?" Jameson asked with a grim look. As if she already knew the answer.
"Let's not assume anything. There's likely some interfere- -" Lyons didn't finish his sentence. As they exited the atmosphere of Talaria, they entered a debris field, of what Lyons could only assume was what remained of the Portland.
"Oh my god. They're gone!" The pilot said in a panic. "What- what are your, orders. Sir?" He said, his voice breaking.
"I-I. We report this directly to Admiral Hackett. The reapers are no doubt planning to use this Mass relay, but to where, I have no idea. We need to get to the site of the crucible right away," The LT said, collecting himself. Private Reacher's eyes widened as he looked at his omni-tool.
"Uh, sir? Speaking of the relay, it's- It's powering up!" He said, panic in his voice. Several Reaper ships were heading in their direction, towards the relay
"Double time it! We can't get caught in that relay! Get us to the Hades Nexus Relay!" The LT commanded. The pilot nodded and pushed the throttle all the way forward in the direction of the original relay.
"We're outside the 'buried' relay's range sir. We'll be at the Hades Nexus relay in a few minutes. It doesn't look like the reapers were too interested in us. They're headed straight for Talaria," the pilot said, catching his breath. The last 4 survivors of the Portland watched helplessly as the reapers activated the new mass relay. But curiously enough, when they entered the relay, the reaper ships shot upwards instead of forwards, as with all other mass relays. The force of the shockwave from the relay activating, effectively split Talaria in two. Sending moon-sized asteroids hurdling in all directions.
"God help us. Commander Shepard is going to have his hands full with this one. Get us to admiral Hackett, now," The lieutenant commanded, without looking away from the view port. The pilot nodded, and they entered the mass relay, and headed for the crucible.
Outer Rim Territories: Savareen Sector, above the Planet Yerbana. 1500 hours Coruscant Time, 19 BBY
The Alarm rang out on the Venator cruiser as Anakin's gift to Ahsoka was interrupted by the low hum of the alarm. Troops of the 501st hurried to their pre-hyperspace posts as General Kenobi ran into the hangar bay filled with LAATs.
"Anakin, Rex! Prepare all forces, we're jumping to hyperspace immediately!" He said as several dozen clones scurried around behind him.
"Yes Sir. Men! With me!" Rex said, giving a salute. Several more clones barked orders across the hangar while the the generals and Ahsoka discussed the plan of attack.
"So the attack on Mandalore was approved?" Anakin asked. Obi-Wan shook his head.
"No, it's Naboo. The separatists have launched an invasion. Reports coming in are saying they're using some new kind of ship and it's tearing the planet apart,"
"What about the chancellor? The council sent him there to prevent exactly what's happening!" Anakin said.
"Master Bishopp has been sent to protect him and the natives, but the council has lost contact with him," Obi-Wan said. Ahsoka's eyes lit up at the mention of Master Bishopp. Anakin gave a concerned look, but Obi-Wan reassured him.
"Not to worry, our fleet can be there within the hour," he said, putting his hand on Anakin's shoulder. Ahsoka looked displeased and crossed her arms.
"So that's it. You're going to abandon Bo-Katan and her people?"
"Ahsoka, surely you understand that this is a pivotal moment in the clone wars. One of the Republic's key planets is under attack. Not to mention the chancellor himself," Obi-wan said, Ahsoka still not looking particularly happy.
"I understand that as usual you're playing politics. This is why the people have lost faith in the Jedi. I had too; until I was reminded what the order means to people who truly need us,"
"Right now the people on Naboo need us," Obi-Wan said.
"No. The chancellor needs you," Ahsoka Retorted smugly.
"That's not fair," Obi-Wan said, lowering his head.
"I'm not trying to be," Ahsoka said, lowering her arms, as if she somewhat regretted saying this to an old friend. Anakin chimed in before things got any more heated.
"I'll divide the 501st. Make a new division under Ahsoka's command," he said, the alarms still echoing in the background.
"Unfortunately, Ahsoka is no longer a part of the grand army of the republic," Obi-Wan said, as both he and Ahsoka looked to Anakin. Anakin pondered this for a moment before speaking.
"We'll promote Rex to commander and have him lead the new division. Ahsoka can go with him as an adviser. Besides, we'll have more than enough support with Jacob and the 199th. What do you say?" He said, giving a warm smile to Ahsoka.
"I accept," she said. "That is, if Obi-Wan agrees,"
"Very well. May the force be with you," he said, with Ahsoka giving him a nod and a smile. As he was walking out the door, he turned to Ahsoka one last time
"Oh—One other thing: I killed Maul once. Best to capture him. He doesn't seem to stay dead," and with that Obi-Wan headed for the command deck. Anakin and Ahsoka gave each other a smile.
"Thank's for the support. As always," she said.
"That's what friends are for," Anakin said, turning to face her with the gift box he had earlier.
"If you're gonna face Maul, you'll need these," he said, gesturing for her to open the box. Ahsoka enthusiastically opened the box and saw her old lightsabers; grabbing them with little hesitation.
"I took care of them. They're good as new," Anakin said, with a proud smile on his face. Ahsoka activated both her sabers and to her surprise, the blades were blue, instead of her usual Green and Yellow-Green.
"Maybe a little better," Anakin said with a smirk. Ahsoka gave him a smirk back.
"You capture Maul, I'll take care of these 'new weapons' the separatists have, and with any luck, this'll all be over soon. Who knows? Maybe we'll even catch Grievous there," Anakin said, folding his arms as Ahsoka retracted her lightsabers.
"Master Kenobi always said there's no such thing as luck," she said, clipping the lightsabers to her belt.
"Good thing I taught you otherwise," Anakin said with another smirk, and headed for the door to the command center. Ahsoka stopped him before he left.
"Anakin," she called "Good luck." Anakin gave her a smile back as if to say "You too." And with that, Ahsoka and Rex with half of the 501st departed for Mandalore, while Anakin and Obi-Wan made for Naboo, to deal with whatever these "new weapons" happened to be….
End of Chapter 1...