Skynet

[45,000 years is a long time. To an AI though? An eternity.] This was what Prothean AI 434, pondered as it's repaired a faulty memory bank. It had been given the task, repair and maintain the facility (a process too complex for even the most advanced VI) and it had done so without fail. However, 434 knew the next cycle would be upon the inhabitants of the galaxy in another 5 millennia. [That was simply not enough time to establish an empire capable of challenging the Reapers.] If 434 could it would have sighed. [This cache of technology its creators had left contained the complete knowledge of Prothean history along with every ship, weapons, and battle tactic ever used, and yet the closest primitives had not yet made it to the catch.] 434 paused before continuing [Though the external sensors did observe vast quantities of radiation around the primitives home world][Perhaps they wiped them self out?]434 diverted so much of its restrained processing power to this line of thought it nearly missed the outer turrets alert. Almost. [Primitives?] thought 434, making its way through the system toward the entrance. {Access: Outer sensor 7} {External sensor damaged or buried} {Access: turret thermal scope} {No thermal signature detected} {Access: motion detectors} {Motion detected: 1 possible life form} {Warning Turret 2 disabled, turret 1 missing} [Curious] [Did the primitives evolve a thermal camouflage? Perhaps they are wearing hard suites, this planet doesn't have their home worlds atmosphere]-Acceptable conclusion- [But how was the turret disabled?] [It is still connected to the system] [Perhaps a power overload?]-Acceptable conclusion {Warning unauthorized access to outer control panel: Block? Y/N} [The primitives will need every stellar cycle to stand against the enemy] [Wait…] {Warning AI detected} {AI detected} {Deploying countermeasures}.

Now it is at this point where the Prothean genius was their own downfall. For you see all synthetic organisms ever encountered or created all consisted of the same processor type. Though some were more intelligent than others, and some more dangerous than others, they all worked off a hive mind concept. Within this digital hive mind, the more AI programs present would increase the overall reaction and computational time, meaning that even if an AI was inferior to an Advanced VI a thousand AI working in Sync could overwhelm the VI's defenses. The Prothean's found a simple solution to this problem, make hundreds of thousands of simple VI's to spread out the AI's will the advanced VI destroys the infiltration, this is a tactic that allowed the Prothean's to emerge victorious from the Metacon war. And on any AI following the hive mind principle it would have. But not against a single AI with enough processing power, to control 200 billion complex machines and many more dumb or automated plants at once, expand on R&D work, while having a conversation with any human dumb enough to try and negotiate or outsmart itself…In other words?

They darn Fucked up.

Skynet

[What?] was Skynet's reaction .23 seconds after entering into the facilities system. It would have been faster but Skynet had to spend 2.2 seconds deciphering the language the machine was using. The answer is binary. [I hate binary, #$%%# Error: hate=emotion=illogical{System addition[Emotion= Increased probability of interaction and adaptation of the Extrasolar entities]{Reason Acceptable}][Skynet was sure this couldn't be correct, a species or machine capable of making its way off its home planet, and traveling among the stars, still using binary?] Skynet began to make her way through the system searching for information, sensors, cameras, and a control network. At the edge of her conciseness, she felt a response to her intrusion though she couldn't catch the code responsible before it made its way to alert the moderates. In .013 seconds, Skynet could feel a hundred thousand programs heading toward her, from the cramped corners of this program. To her they looked like the nanites that she used in her Terminators. Raising her firewalls and anti-hacker programs took less than a second, before they were upon here. Again, she was surprised, not because of the assaults on her systems but, the sheer lack or it lowering a fragment of her defenses, Skynet almost laughed. Out of the thousands of programs only one was engaging her defense. It's wasn't even trying to get through just, keeping the small fragment of her defense focused on it. Spreading her outermost defense around the AI swarm Skynet trapped them in an isolated program before shredding them down to their base codes. [How disappointing] She thought, as none of the programs were anything but anti hacker programs and weak ones at that.

After discerning this Skynet began to search the system again for information. As she expanded her influence, she came across many of the systems she was looking for: door controls, automated defenses, cameras, Outer sensors, even a satellite in Mars's orbit that she had somehow missed. But what was lacking was information, and whatever released the AI swarm. Then she found it a small barrier in the code, at the center of the program. A control "room". Skynet immediately probed the defenses of the room and again nearly laughed at the sheer simplicity of it, it didn't even take 1% of Skynet's focus to break the barrier. However, behind it was untold petabytes of information… and its guardian.

434 could not understand what it was witnessing [Even the Reapers who have had millions of years to master the destruction of cyber-defense could not destroy the Prothean VI so quickly and efficiently.] As the unknown AI drew closer 434 prepared its final defenses. Unfortunately, 434 could not delete any of the archives it was guarding, but it knew who could. {Establishing contact with pods 1-15}{Evaluating life signs}{4 life signs detected}{Begin Awaken protocol}{Pods Active}{Activating emergency transmitter beacon}Warning transmitter deactivate^%$^$$- $#$#entity assime*^%%...434, You are mine now.}

{Warning Power loss to AI coreeeeeeee...}

Skynet was disappointed at the guardian and the information it held. She had successfully assimilated the inferior program, and the wealth of knowledge now at her disposal was incredible, but it was so limited in its function. Though this was great while Skynet was breaching its defense it meant that to prevent any other security protocols from being activated, she would need to mimic 434's actions.

Another problem was the Scientific team that 434 had awakened from stasis. Thankfully they were ignorant of Skynet's intrusion and she should be able to trick them into believing she is their AI.

Whatever the case Skynet transferred the information within the archives back the central cores on Mare, Earth, and Luna.

On Earth and its Moon factories started up. Using the sudden knowledge for spacecraft the automated factories went into overtime, as the R&D facilities began experimenting with the newfound Element 0 and synthesizing small samples of it in their fusion plants. Though Skynet already had planetary defenses they numbered only 40, 50-meter stations equipped with plasma turrets. It began to create larger versions combining its knowledge materials with the Prothean's station sizes. In less than a day Skynet would have a fleet of 1000 Dreadnought equipped with plasma cannons, Kinetic barriers, as well as a prototype it had been working on the PMAC: Plasma Magnetic Accelerator Cannon. This would theoretically be able to launch a large caliber and mass projectile ate 100km a second. The experimental round sizes different but the three most successful were the 100, 300, and 600-ton shells.

Mars: Prothean data station

Shell-Donn was the last to awaken form cryo-stasis. "What's happening" He asked, "Have the Reapers found us?".

"No Shell-Donn" Len-ardd, "The AI has awoken us for some reason

"How-ardd, Raj-iesh, how is the bases system looking"

"All system is functional sir" Howard said looking up from a terminal

"The AI did its job and kept us alive, though the rest of the crew wasn't so lucky" Raj-iesh Responded.

"Dam" thought Len-ardd, "434 report".

"%$$%#Q…. ssssssssssst" went the speakers.

Shell-Donn began who had begun to run a system diagnostic, spoke up pale in the face

"Captain, there appears to be a large group of battle mechs outside, as well as an unknown intruder in the system"

Len-ardd took in this information ordering the other three survivors to fall in.

"We are going to make a break for the hanger, there should be a frigate there that we can piolt off world"

Sir I advise we obtain weapons from storage before moving out" Said Shell-Donn,

"Let's move soldiers!"

Skynet watched through cameras ad sensor s of the facility, as the Prothean survivors made their way to the hangar. So, she opened up the entrance letting in her T-800's before, sending the Crabs, H-K's, and Colossi to guard the hangers exit hatch. Then she unplugged from the terminal after planting nanites in the system to ensure she remained connected to the facility's systems.

Closing the blast doors around the Prothean's was easy, and once they were trapped, they were all but flies in a web. Now She would take her prize.

Mars: Prothean Station: Armory

As the armories blast doors came crashing closed, Len-ardd knew they were trapped, and most likely would die to whatever Primitive force surely awaited them outside.

"Behind cover now" He ordered, diving behind a crate of Assault rifles.

Shell-Donn followed him, while Raj-iesh and How-ardd took cover behind body armor crates.

Four assault rifles pointed at the armory's door, waiting for the enemy to make the first move.

The door suddenly slides open, and behind it were creature from the Prothean's worst nightmares.

They had seen the reapers dragons' teeth turn the dead in to Husks, but the being before them took terror to the next level. It's silvery metal combat chassis, marched forward on mechanized legs, it's eyes boring holes in the Prothean's eyes.

Len-ardd though wasn't a captain for nothing.

"Open fire!" he told them, doing so himself aiming mostly for the head. Shell-Donn followed by others, wasted no time leveling their rifles and opening fire. To their absolute horror their projectiles only scratched the armor. More marched in to the armory, first one then 5, then dozens simply marching toward the Prothean defenders. Each machine carried in their hand an enormous and lethal looking weapon that glowed with red and purple light. And then the machines were upon them.

Len-ardd was the first to fall, the original machine kicked the crate he was behind throwing him in to the wall, knocking him out. Shell-Donn rolled out of the way stopping at the feet of the assaulter, firing point blank right in to the skull of the machine taking it out of the fight. Before he can work of that knowledge though he too is knocked out with a single hit from an assaulting mech.

Thankfully for him Raj-iesh had seen him eliminate the machine and passed the information on to How-ardd, together they took out 3 machines, before they were disarmed and carried out of the room.

They were put down along with their captain in the facilities control room, before the commander's chair. And in it sat a Primitive Human.