Mass Effect: Andromeda Wars

by Big Boss Pugh

After the death of the Archon, the kett leadership went to Primus. She has taken the kett and many species from the Milky Way for study. After three hundred years of waiting, the kett have returned and new heroes must face them. The new Mass Effect story begins in Andromeda with a hero that must unite two super powers to save them from the coming threat. Trust is the problem.

1. Chapter 1

Mass Effect: Andromeda Wars

"It began in the year 2185. It was a new journey for a new beginning at a new life. Human, turian, asari, salarian, and krogan life would begin in a new galaxy called Andromeda. This all took place in the year 2819. It was a time of discovery and technology. Though life in Andromeda would flourish, a new mantle would be taken up. This is the story."

Introduction

The footsteps echo softly as she walks down the hall. They all stand at attention and keep their weapon ready should she ask any of them to follow her. She is both annoyed and angry at his downfall. He had one simple mission; he didn't follow through with the plan. Now, she must pick up where he left off. Before she can do that, she must inform her lords of what has transpired. It would be a great task for her to achieve, but she believes that anything can be done. She steps into the main room of her ship. From there, she steps into the center of the room. Several holos manifest images before her. She bows her head and express her rage and disappointment.

"Lords of the Kett, I come to you with unfortunate news of the Archon's failure. He was a fool and allowed his obsession with the Remnant to be his down fall. A single human brought him down by using his own ambition against him. I, Primus, stand before you all with a promise of what is to come. I only ask that you give me the power, resources, and support I need to complete what should has been done in the first place."

The holo Kett leader looks down on Primus and replies, "The Archon failed us. You will receive all the help you need to finish what he started. But if you fail us, then your death will stretch across the stars."

Primus bows her head once more and adds, "My plans will begin in the next three hundred years. For now, the species from the Milky Way and the Angara will finish fighting what remains of our forces. In three hundred years, we will return and continue with exaltation. I will finish our great plan; they will all be apart of our great empire or they all shall die."

With the holo conversation over, Primus brings up the screen and views the number of species they have collected. Fiends are locked up in cages and various other animals are placed in other containers. In the center of the main ship, there are various species for them to experiment on. There are thirty humans, turians, asaris, and salarians. Only ten krogans are present for the time. With three hundred years of time and patience to prepare, Primus would get her revenge on humanity and their allies. The gene splicing is beginning, the DNA combining is underway, and nothing would stop the Kett from exalting more species for their empire. Primus watches with great wonder and feels her time to shine will come. The ships that remain of the Kett fly into the dark region of space away from the Andromeda galaxy. The enemy would return.

Chapter 1: The Syndicate & The Nexus

(Note: The story will be told with the MC (Main Character) as a male performing any and all paragon acts. And yes, names and ideas are included from the readers to add to the story. And yes, no this has nothing to do with anything from the recent Mass Effect trailers on Youtube, but key names will be mentioned. Enjoy the story.)

A ship comes out of hyper space and it slowly drifts to a planet. The ship is named Harmony, but the name did very little to keep the crew from wanting to tear each other apart. It is almost time to get ready for the final training op. Everyone is eager and anxious to show off their skill. Half of the people are from the Syndicate and the other half is of the Nexus. Many people are military or mercenary groups; a handful of others are tech teams and biotic users. Only a few groups are low level security and non-combative. The only objective here is to make sure they can usher in a new age of peace. Due to changes in leadership and old wounds being revived, it is going to take a group to make changes for the future. He comes to his locker to see his name on it (_ Jackson) and opens the door. He pulls out his stand pistol; this would be his final test for training. The Nexus and Syndicate spent hundreds of credits on this project. It is time to harvest the crops. With his gear on, he is ready to go until a new face comes to him.

He says, "Hey, I hope you are ready for this. It is time for the Syndicate to show the Nexus that they don't run things in this galaxy. Once this training is over, we are the ones that will be on top. You better be ready to prove that, new blood. And before you ask, the name is Chris. I'm Chris Hartway and I'm all for the Syndicate."

A second person walks over and interrupts, "I hope you are not trying to scare the new comer into joining your club, syndicate dog. You can believe what you want, but the Nexus will be the one to come out on top. So, why don't you tone it down and be more respectful?"

Chris turns to her and replies, "Ah yes. Here comes the Nexus dog. You are missing your animal collar to go around your neck. Where is your collar, Laura?"

Laura proudly replies, "Unlike you, I answer to a cause greater than getting paid. This is why the Syndicate won't be successful. You are all a bunch of greedy, self-serving varren. Once the Syndicate fails, you will have to take up a new job working as a clerk. And that is agent Laura Lockwood to you."

Chris smirks at Laura. He turns to the new recruit and asks, "So, which one do you believe will be on top?"

Laura scoffs and adds, "Why involve the new comer? He already knows which one will come out on top."

A. Paragon Option: An Alliance of the two.

B. Neutral Option: The Nexus.

C. Renegade Option: The Syndicate.

Jackson says, "An alliance will benefit us all in the long run. The Nexus and the Syndicate need to work together."

Before another word can be said, two more individuals walk over to calm the storm. One is a male turian for the Nexus and one asari female for the Syndicate.

The turian says, "And that is the kind of answer I expect to hear from now on. You both better remember it."

Chris harshly replies, "I don't take any orders from you, Nexus. I only answer to my superior."

The asari adds, "Yes, you do. And you will obey his orders or you will find yourself on clean up duty."

Chris is shocked and Laura smirks, "Are you sure about the Syndicate? I think you choose the wrong side."

The turian answers, "Mind your words, Laura. You will be taking orders from her for today's training session. If you fail me, then you will be on more than clean up duty. Now, all of you report to your station. Don't be late."

Laura and Chris follow their superiors to their station. Jackson closes his locker and hears a new voice from behind his back. It is Peter.

Peter says, "Wow, the hate and cooperation between them is intense. Do you really think this operation will bring us closer?"

A. Paragon Option: Trusting helps.

B. Neutral Option: This is a mistake.

C. Renegade Option: We can't be allies.

Jackson says, "If we are going to end any more trouble between the Syndicate and Nexus, then we have to trust each other."

Peter says, "You may have a point, but it is hard to see. We better finish up and get the our station. This is the last part of our training."

Jackson and Peter hurry to their station. Upon entering the next area, they see members of the Syndicate and Nexus standing on opposite sides. Many are itching for a fight and some want to end this session. With no time to waste, the same turian and asari call for everyone to pay attention.

The turian says, "I am Atoris of the Nexus team APEX. We are here today to oversee the final steps of your training session. This is no time for mistakes and this will determine if you are a perfect addition to the APEX teams or the Enforcer teams. I will be watching how well you shoot and judge your combat. I expect you all to be at your best. APEX doesn't tolerate any slacker and neither will I. If you fail now, there won't be another chance. Do your best."

The asari adds, "And I will be paying attention to all biotic users and capabilities you show during your session. I am Visalia of the Syndicate Enforcer squads. I will be paying attention during your training to see how well you will be handling the situation you have. To any biotic users, this will be your chance to show off your talents too. The Syndicate is looking for people that are capable and able to handle anything that comes at them. Show me your best and don't over strain yourself. If you don't qualify for the Enforcers, then you are unworthy. Good luck to you all."

With their speech given, their second-in-commands issue out the teams by three. Laura picks her Nexus allies; Chris pairs up with the Syndicate buddies. Jackson is left with Peter and Claire. None of them are members of the organization; they are low level security teams. The only gun they ever fired was the handgun. The ship pass through the orbit of the planet they arrive at. As Peter and Claire become very comfortable with each other, Jackson looks at his gun. He thinks hard about how well he will impress Atoris and Visalia. Jackson has no strong reputation nor any good allies at his back. With so much riding on this, he has to be successful. As they walk down the hall to report to their drop ship, an explosion happens.

The ship gets hit in the side by a powerful force. Peter, Claire, and Jackson stumble to the floor. They get up and rush to the shuttle zone. It is a mess to see. Many shuttles are going out the hanger into the sky. A second-in-command comes to them and shows them their shuttle. They climb aboard just in time before another explosion occurs. Peter and Claire go to the pilots and try to issue out an order to them.

Claire says, "We need to fly away from what is attacking the Harmony. We should fly straight ahead to avoid any blasts."

Peter objects and says, "No, we should fly down and attack the source of the enemy. Once we stop them, the Harmony will be safe."

The pilot replies, "Neither one of you are in charge. I only take orders from your squad leader."

He looks at Jackson and asks, "What do you think we should do?"

A. Paragon Option: Fly to safety and land on the ground.

B. Neutral Option: Land nearby and gear up for battle.

C. Renegade Option: Dive into combat and attack the enemy.

Jackson says, "We need to secure ourselves first. Get us off the ship and find a safe zone for us to land at."

The pilot acknowledges his order. The shuttle starts up as more explosion go off around them. They fly out of the Harmony just in time before getting blown up. The shuttle continues to dodge any shots coming at them. As they all look back, they witness the Harmony ship getting hit hard as it falls to the ground. The shuttle lands the ship on the ground at a safe zone. After they touch down on the surface, they take a moment to understand what has happen. The pilot is shaken; Claire and Peter are flabbergasted. Jackson looks at the shuttle.

Peter says, "I can't believe the Nexus would do this to us. Why did they believe that live fire exercise is a great test?"

Claire disagrees, "They didn't do this. I can tell you that this was a Syndicate attack on us to make sure this wouldn't work."

A. Paragon Interrupt Option: This doesn't prove anything.

B. Neutral Interrupt Option: The Nexus hates us.

C. Renegade Interrupt Option: The Syndicate wants us dead.

Jackson says, "Enough! We don't know who did this to us. But, we are alive. We need to find the others and see if they are ok. Grab your guns and let's move out."

The pilot says, "You guys are heading out there? I'll just keep my ass here where it is safe."

A. Paragon Choice: Keep yourself safe and establish any radio signal.

B. Neutral Choice: I need to work on the radio.

C. Renegade Choice: You will just slow me down.

Jackson answers, "We will find any survivor and send them back to you. Keep the radio on and alert them your location."

Jackson, Peter and Claire double check their guns and move out into the land. It is a good thing they didn't require any suits for the planet they went to. The air is breathable and perfect for a new colony. As they move through the land, they find some burnt corpses.

Claire asks, "What could have done this? This place was safe and perfect for a colony to thrive on."

Peter agrees, "There should be no signs of a threat here. Or, maybe the Syndicate and Nexus missed something. Let's press on."

As the three move through the land, they find more people burnt to a crisp. They come to a small set up of three cottages. Everyone here is dead; they all have bullet holes in them. Claire looks at them and calls them over. They all look at the holes.

She says, "These were not done by the Next or the Syndicate. This looks unusual."

Peter agrees, "We do know of the hostilities between the Syndicate and Nexus. So, either of them could've done this."

Jacksons asks, "What does the Syndicate and Nexus have to do with this dead person?"

Claire answers, "The Syndicate was formed twenty years ago after the battle of Meridian took place. People got tired of those in power making all the decisions. Then, the cost of living in Meridian got so high that regular folks had to leave. It lead to open war with high ranking leaders among the unfortunate taking up the title as Warlords."

Peter adds, "Though humanity did land its ship on Meridian three hundred years ago, none of that matter when the wealthy and powerful took over. Since that happen, the Warlords of the Syndicate have been waging war against Nexus and its APEX teams for the last ten years. Everyone got tired of being divided."

Jackson orders his team to move out, but they didn't get far. The sound of gun fire alerts them; they all get into cover by the rocks and keep their head down. Jackson looks over the rock and sees a person. He begs for his life to be spared only to get shot in the head by a Kett. Jackson couldn't believe what he sees. The Kett were gone for over three hundred years. So, how are they here? Claire open fires at the Kett. Two more join their ally. They easily kill the Kett, but they are all can't believe they are here.

Peter says, "This can't be real. They Kett are here. I thought they were all dead when the Ryder family stopped the Archon."

Claire adds, "This would explain why the bodies are burnt and shot up. This isn't good."

A. Paragon Choice: There may be more.

B. Neutral Choice: I hope this is it.

C. Renegade Choice: I'll kill anymore I find out here.

Jackson says, "The Kett are here so, we need to be careful. Watch yourself and keep an eye out. There may be more."

As they advance again, they encounter more Kett. They easily eliminate them and move on. They come to a cottage alone and find some survivors from the Harmony. It turns into an ambush. Peter shouts to his allies only to be shot to death. Claire and Jackson take down the Kett. Claire is sad by Peter's death. Jackson closes his eyes.

Claire cries, "Those Kett bastards killed Peter. They are gonna pay for this."

A. Paragon Choice: We will return for his body.

B. Neutral Choice: We will get revenge for him.

C. Renegade Choice: We don't need him slowing us down.

Jackson says, "We will give his a proper burial when this is over."

The survivors inside the cottage come out. One of them says, "It was the Kett. The Kett are back. They shot us out of the sky. We have to get out of here."

Claire replies, "Hold on, which way did you guys come from?"

The survivor says, "Does it matter? We need to get out of here."

Jackson says, "We need to know which you came from so we don't get caught in a cross fire. You can retreat back to our shuttle and stay with the pilot once you tell us where you came from."

A second survivor answers, "We came through the back road. It is hard to get through, but we got here quicker. We got by some allies, but they will need more help."

The first survivor replies, "Going through the back road is a bad idea. They will do better if they take the main road to catch up the others. It may be longer, but they will make it."

Claire looks to Jackson, "Which path should we take?"

A. Paragon Choice: Take the back road. (Save some more allies)

B. Neutral Choice: Let Clair decide.

C. Renegade Choice: Take the main road. (Lose some more allies)

Jackson says, "We will take the back road. We need to hurry and get there to help."

The survivors agree to go back to their shuttle to join the pilot. Jackson and Claire push on. Within minutes, they arrive to find Laura and Chris still holding back more Kett with some allies at their side. Jackson and Claire join them to add their fire power to the others. With the Kett now dead, Chris and Laura join Jackson.

Chris laughs and says, "I thought you were dead. Ha ha, you're ready to join the Enforcer squad."

Laura scoffs and replies, "Don't kid yourself. Jackson is ready to be a member of APEX."

Claire steps forward and interrupts, "He will decide which one is best for him. Now, how many people need help?"

Laura answers, "We have enough to make a push, but that means everyone fights through the pain. That's the APEX way when there is nothing else to lose."

Chris says, "Are you stupid in the head? We need to let the wounded get to safety and send only a few ahead to attack what is left."

Claire looks to Jackson, "What should we do?"

A. Paragon Choice: Send the wounded to the shuttle and take two.

B. Neutral Choice: Take those that can fight and leave the wounded behind.

C. Renegade Choice: Throw everything at the enemy.

Jackson says, "Let's get the wounded back to the shuttle. Laura, Chris and I will go after what's left of the Kett. Claire, you guide them all back."

Claire agrees to do so. Chris and Laura go with Jackson to handle any Kett left behind. From battles in the cottage areas to fighting in the open field, the trio make it through by supporting each other. They see the Harmony ship in sight. It looks bad and the ship is on fire. They rush towards to wreckage; they find dead bodies everywhere like before. Chris, Laura, and Jackson find Atoris and Visalia dead before them.

Chris says, "Oh damn. Damn it, this can't be happening. We lost everything. This is your fault, Laura. If your Nexus leaders were as strong as the Syndicate, we wouldn't be in this shit."

Laura harshly replies, "Oh bullshit, Chris. Your people are the ones who don't know how to handle situations like this."

A. Paragon Interrupt Choice: Stop it, both of you!

B. Neutral Interrupt Choice: Enough!

C. Renegade Interrupt Choice: Shut the hell up!

Jackson shouts, "We don't have time for the blame game here. We just lost our ship, our crew and our leaders. Now, both of you get your shit together before we end up like them too."

Before another word is spoken, a beeping sound is made. It didn't take them long to start running away from the Harmony ship. They run as fast as they can and make it to a ditch to fall in. A Kett bomb goes off and eradicates the ship and area. The trio keep their head down as the debris flies everywhere. The remaining survivors at the shuttle look on to see the blast. They all pile into the shuttle and fly over to the area. They arrive to find the trio laying out on the ground. Laura and Chris are seen helping Jackson to his feet; He is unconscious due to a rock hitting him in the head. With nothing else left to do, They all return to a nearby cottage to await for the reinforcements to arrive in a day or two. After hours go by, Jackson wakes up to the sound of people shouting their heads off about who is to blame for lack of training. On one side, Laura complains about how ineffective the Syndicate Enforcers are. On the other side, Chris insults the Nexus APEX on how they should have handled the fight. Jackson joins them to hear their useless chat.

Chris says, "This is what happens when you reply on the Nexus to do anything. It is a shame to see the APEX in action when they can't hold their own."

Laura replies, "And this is what happens when you leave anything to the Enforcers to do. The Syndicate will be the down fall of us all."

A. Paragon Choice: We need to work together.

B. Neutral Choice: The Nexus will help us.

C. The Syndicate will support us.

Jackson says, "We don't have time to blame this on any training. We didn't expect this to happen, but we have survived. So, we will wait until the reinforcements get here and get back to safety. Once the leaders hear what happen, they will put aside their difference to help us stop the Kett once and for all."

High above their heads in a Kett ship, Primus looks on to see they have accomplished with their tasks. With nothing else left to do, they fly their ship back into the void of space to avoid being found out. Within two days, a new ship arrives at the planet to pick up the emergency signal on the surface. They recover the remaining people of the Harmony ship. Everyone speaks of the same story. With everything being on hold for now, they leave the planet and return to back to their leaders of the Nexus and Syndicate. The Kett are back and now the future for everyone looks grim.

As the ship hyper jumps back to safety, Jackson, Chris, and Laura are completely left unsure as to what will happen now. They didn't expect their training to end so horribly. Atrois and Visalia are dead; the Harmony ship is destroyed and the Kett are back after being gone for over three hundred years. As Jackson continues to go through his thoughts on what to say, he hears the chat of Chris and Laura as they bicker about which side will support their story.

Chris says, "We need to go to the Syndicate. They will be more than willing to give us some additional guards to help us find the Kett and stomp them out of existence."

Laura says, "No, we need to get the Nexus on board with us. They have better ways for us to help ourselves. The Kett won't know what hit them."

Jackson walks over and Chris asks, "Who do you think should support us? The Enforcers of the Syndicate, or the Nexus APEX?"

A. Paragon Choice: Get both parties inovled.

B. Neutral Choice: Nexus support.

C. Renegade Choice: Syndicate support.

Jackson says, "This is an issue that both parties should be notified of. The kett attacked both sides, so it is better to get them to help out in any way possible."

Laura replies, "Wow, I didn't think someone like you would want both groups to help us. Then again, you did join the program to get both sides on board. I just hope they will listen to us once they hear how it happen."

After thirty minutes of waiting, they hear the broadcast of their arrival at planet Ditivios. At the end of the Archon's fall when the Ryder family activated Meridian, this planet went from being unstable to a full functional water world. Despite the occasional storms that make it difficult to fly through, the Nexus and Syndicate managed to setup a decent city here to where all matters are brought to the table. The city on Ditivios is massive in size and has various boats floating around the planet to try and discover anything useful. After the ship lands at the dock, the team and surviving members of the training op are escorted to medical for any injuries and check ups. Once they are done, many are let go while the others are asked questions about what happen.

Jackson, Chris, and Laura stand in a room with two leaders from both sides. One human named Jacob Reins represents the Syndicate. On the Nexus side, an asari named Bynisa stands firm. Though the story they are told is unbelieve, they try their best to understand what is happen.

Jacob says, "The kett are dead. This is just a provocation that the Nexus wants to go to war with the Syndicate. I am willing to accept some of the story, but why don't you just admit that you don't want this alliance to work at all."

Bynisa answers, "The Nexus leadership did not order a sudden attack on anyone. I wouldn't be surprised if this was done from your Syndicate Warlords that want to destroy all that we built over these years."

A. Paragon Choice: This was the kett.

B. Neutral Choice: Let's work together.

C. Renegade Choice: You are all morons.

Jackson says, "This was done by the kett. They blew up the Harmony ship and killed most of the people involved. We were lucky to get out of there."

Jacob asks, "If this was done by the kett, they would have attacked our seat of power and not waste time with the likes of you."

Bynisa agrees, "I understand you saw something, but we can assure you that the kett would be more bold to attack us at Meridian and Kadara to cause further damage. We will discuss the rest at the meeting when the others get here. They just landed at the docks."

After the two leaders left, the others are not surprised that they believe the kett don't exist.

Laura says, "Typical Nexus leadership, they don't believe us at all."

Chris adds, "Heh, what did you expect from foolish people in charge?"

Jackson calls to them, "We still got time before we present our story to the leaders. Let's take a few minutes to walk around and get our facts right before we go to them."

On Ditivios, the city itself was mostly surrounded by water. With the thunderstorms in the sky, it was hard to land a shuttle at times. Several structures of the city manage to be built on the landscape they discovered under the water; however, most were connect to them and floating on the water. Once they were done looking at the sites, the team was called before the leaders of the Nexus and Syndicate. Before they even told their story, the gathering was not looking good. On the Syndicate side, Krogan Warlod Tradox is itching for a fight. At his left, Jacob stands firm. On his right, Angara supporter Angrus is calm and curious. For the Nexus, Bynisa is still convinced that the Syndicate is the bad guys. To her right, Salarian leader Datri is calculating backup plans. On the left, turian leader Mayon is anxious to put the turian might to the test.

Bynisa says, "All the evidence that was found and recovered from the battle points to misfire on both sides. Agent Atoris and Visalia didn't keep order and this is why we are here."

Jacob adds, "And due to their own incompetence, we are now back to facing the issue with the Syndicate and Nexus."

Tradox roars, "This is more than just reason for the Nexus to keep us down. Why do we even bother to hear their side of the story? We all know it was them."

Mayon interrupts, "And you just keep looking for a war to start. Maybe you sent some of your own teams there to cause this calamity."

Before the two can speak again, Datri says, "Based on the reports of what was found, nothing points that the Nexus caused anything to happen there."

Angrus agrees and says, "And nothing shows the Syndicate involvement in any deaths. I would like to hear from the team that encountered the cause of this problem."

Jackson steps forward and says, "All of this was done by the kett. They are back after three hundred years has gone by. I don't know why they are here, but they attacked us."

Jacob says, "Need I remind you that the kett are all dead. I don't see how bringing that up helps the issue."

Bynisa adds, "I agree. There is nothing at TOS-51 that shows proof the kett did anything to be apart of the chaos."

A. Paragon Option: There must be something.

B. Neutral Option: What do you believe?

C. Renegade Option: I am wasting my time with you all.

Jackson replies, "We didn't lose an entire ship of people on old grudges you have against each other. The kett left something behind to prove they came to TOS-51."

Mayon asks, "If the kett are back, then where are the bodies? Why didn't our teams find anything left behind?"

Tradox laughs, "For all we know, the turian and his friends are using the kett story to cover up their own lies."

Datri says, "And for all we know, you spent some krogan to TOS-51 to murder everyone there."

Jackson, Chris, and Laura see that nothing is going to be gained from this. The conversation ends with both sides either anxious for a fight or wanting to do nothing with each other. If the leaders of the Nexus and Syndicate can't be made to see, then others plans will be set in motion.

(Hint: The story did include more small details in it, but I left them out for now. I'll add more to the story when possible. For now, stay alert for any more chapters.)