A/N: I am overjoyed at the positive support this fic has been getting. Thanks for all the support guys!

Hornet07: I think you're right, I did underestimate the number of crew. Thanks for the tip.

pking10: They're less worried about the main Combine Empire, then about any Combine forces that spread through the rest of the galaxy during the initial occupation. They've become even more paranoid about this after the discovery of the relays, devices that utilize Combine materials and technology.

guest: Regarding curbstomps: no, this will not be a typical "human curbstomp against the Citadel." Every race, no matter how powerful they are, have a weakness that a crafty opponent can exploit; just give it a bit of time to play out.

I've noticed that some people have voiced their objections about the Codex. The Codex is there to explain any concepts, technology, or other bits of information that can't be explained during the story, either because it would disrupt the flow of the story, or it just wouldn't fit.

This chapter is a little bit short, but don't worry, the action will pick up soon.

3025 C.E

Sol System

Dyson Sphere

Coalition Assembly Parliament

Without a doubt, the most daunting and difficult engineering task the the Coalition had ever taken was that of the construction of the dyson sphere surrounding Sol. Once complete, a solid sphere of unobtainium stretching just past the orbit of the Earth would insheathe most of the inner solar system, providing plenty of room for habitation space and industrial facilities on its inner surface; additionally, the outer surface of the sphere would serve as a massive system-wide defense platform, with millions if not billions of defense emplacements to be planted onto the surface.

To facilitate such an immense construction project, Sol itself had been utilized as a source of raw materials. Massive manufacturing stations orbiting close to the sun siphoned off burning-hot stellar matter, where it was delivered to the nano-forges and femto-manipulators within. The carbon, silicon, iron, and magnesium contained within would be filtered out from the hydrogen and helium, where they would then be refined and converted by the nano-forges into star-ship components, computer parts, body armour, weapons, and a plethora of other materials; the hydrogen and helium would be refined and stored as fuel for fusion reactors, or delivered to the femto-manipulators, where femtomachines smaller than subatomic particles would manipulate the very properties the atoms possessed, turning them into precious unobtainium. Teleports would then deliver the processed materials to where they were needed: unobtainium and fullerene-composed materials to the shipyards, foundries, factories, or dyson sphere construction sites, hardware and other goods teleported to distribution centers or export hubs. As more and more matter was drained, the lifespan of the sun was extended; consequently, light and heat output had diminished considerably. To compensate, large orbital mirrors had been placed in geostationary orbit around the Earth, to provide it with the additional warmth and light the sun had one provided; perhaps one day, when the sphere had finally been completed, the Earth too would be dismantled, its soil, water, flora and fauna spread across the inner-surface, serving as natural habitation space for future generations.

After a millenia of non-stop construction, the dyson sphere was now a quarter completed. A shell of unobtainium, so large that it could now be seen anywhere from the solar system, now orbited the sun just beyond the Earth; from its very center, a needle-thin tower spanning 40 km high jutted out, reaching towards the sun; at its peak stood a large circular chamber, with long crystal-clear reinforced glass windows providing a breath-taking view of the solar system. This chamber was the Parliament of the Coalition Assembly.

Inside, the 101 humans, vortigaunts, and AI's that made up the Coalition Parliament were all convened for an emergency session of Parliament. They were all seated around a round table, with an impressive high-definition holographic display hanging in the center, displaying a beautiful, swirling image of the galaxy.

The tension within the room was thick, as if it were oozing out of the politicians like a thick goo. The recent incident over the Shanxi Relay had sent the entire Coalition on high-alert; a state of DEFCON 1 had been issued for the first time in Coalition history. Entire fleets were being recalled to protect the colonies, with sectors being locked down and travel between worlds prohibited. The teleport network that linked the Coalition together was shut off from civilian usage, relegated only to military personnel; construction of the dyson sphere had been slowed down, the raw materials instead being diverted to shipyards and foundries.

In the middle of the room, there stood the military council of the Coalition Assembly, with General Andrew Lee, commander in chief of the entire Coalition military, as their spokesperson.

One by one, the politicians switched of their tablets and turned their attention to Williams. "General Lee." said the representative of the Koltan system. "What is the current status of our military?"

"All our fleets have been pulled back to our colonies for defense. Scouting and escort operations have been suspended, and all active and reserve ships have been locked into defensive positions. Orbital defenses have been elevated to red alert, and scouting probes have been dispatched to systems opposite Shanxi. Currently, several dreadnought and carrier squadrons have been ordered to defend Shanxi until the planetary defenses have been established. All Leviathans have been ordered back to Sol. Thankfully, the Shanxi relay was successfully dismantled, even with the damage caused by the unexpected jump. " Lee reported

"And what have the scout probes discovered so far?" another Minister asked.

"This." replied Lee, gesturing at the holographic display. The picture of the galaxy zoomed in closer, and closer, and closer, before it stopped at a picture of Coalition space. Several star systems a few light years away had been highlighted in red, while the Coalition border had been drawn in dark blue.

"Our probes have revealed the presence of several Combine controlled systems, just outside our border." explained Lee, pointing at the star systems coloured red. "Initial scans indicated that these worlds are industrial manufacturing centers, shipyards, or military bases. All of them have a heavy military presence within them."

The picture zoomed in, until a planet covered with factories, shipyards, and space-stations came into view, with various sensor readings and figures displayed besides it.

"While no unobtainium or dark energy reactors were detected, we believe that this world is managed not directly managed by the Advisors, which explains the lack of Citadels." Lee went on. "Captain Williams and Commander Achilles have stated their opinion that the fleet they encountered belonged to a thrall race of theirs, a race enslaved by the Combine during their time here from the occupation, and adapted to serve as expendable shock troopers. Based on their ship design and how the Shanxi incident unfolded, I am forced to agree with them."

"And how so?"

"Primarily, their ships were emanating dark energy signatures matching those of the mass relays, known pieces of Combine technology. I find it very unlikely that another race could develop mass relay technology independently, without Combine intervention." Lee explained. "Two, their ships are designed to maximize firing speed, not power or durability. During the battle, the enemy ships were firing at a rate of one projectile every two seconds, far outstripping the rate of our dark energy and nuclear cannons. Their weapons were not overly powerful, and their shields and armour were laughable; it seems that these ships were meant to overwhelm opponents with sheer number and ferocity, which matches Captain Williams hypothesis of them being expendable shock troopers."

"But then, why send only 30 ships to attack us?"

"They were probably only a scouting force or advanced party." explained Lee, shrugging.

"And what would our next course of action be?" asked another minister. "Surely we cannot leave these worlds intact and operational, so close to our borders?"

Lee nodded. "The minister is correct. As powerful and durable as our ships and defenses are, we cannot risk a Combine attack overwhelming us through numerical superiority and firing speed. These worlds must be neutralized as soon as possible. That is why I am asking for the Parliament's approval for the withdrawal of some of our defensive forces for an offensive attack."

"If we approve this, then we'll leave our worlds defenseless." someone objected.

"The military council is only asking for 4 squadrons of dreadnoughts and a squadron of carriers." Lee replied smoothly. "Another other ships we request will be excess cruisers, frigates, and corvettes. Besides, the Coalition's military buildup for the last millennia has ensured that our worlds are more than adequately defended, even if we did withdraw some dreadnoughts. We are not asking for our Leviathans or anything like that."

"Thank you General. Once the Parliament has reached a decision, we'll contact you later."

The military council bowed before the politicians, before leaving the room.

Later that day, Lee received message on his private communicator.

"Proposal approved. Requested ships will be transferred to your personal command. You may begin offensive action at any time."

Lee smiled, a predatory grin stretching over his face.

3025 C.E

Serpent Nebula

Widow System

Citadel

Citadel Tower

1 Week after First Contact

The councillors of the Citadel Council, the three most powerful people in the known galaxy, where starring wide-mouthed at a video display showing the battle between the Citadel's exploration fleet and an unknown alien ship.

Well, it wasn't exactly a battle. It was more like a massacre.

A towering monstrosity, approximately 15 km in length faced off against a flotilla of 30 of the Citadel races best ships. Bright blue beams streaked from the ship, tearing apart the Turian and Asari ships in an instant, kinetic barriers having no effect against them; a swarm of missiles detonated besides a Turian cruiser, its hull turning into dust seconds later; pin-point energy turrets shot down incoming frigates at an unnatural speed. Mass accelerator rounds from the Turian vessels flew towards the ship, but didn't impact against any shield; instead, they passed through a barely visible shimmering field, and were disintegrated. Even Desolas's dreadnought, the Spirit's Will, one of the technologically advanced ships in the Turian military, had no discernable effect against the alien vessel.

Then at the climax of battle, a ball of atomic fury flew out from the unknown ship, detonating in the middle of the remaining citadel ships. Unlucky ships were instantly atomized, while others ignited into raging infernos, boiling their unlucky crews; parts of the Spirit's Will sheared off, and it was only by sheer luck that the dreadnought escaped the withering fire coming from the alien vessel and jumped through the mass relay.

And the played again. And again. And again.

It had only been 2 days since General Desolas's ship limped back to the nearest Turian planet, heavily damaged and barely functional; he was all that remained of the expedition fleet. Desolas had been immediately summoned to the Citadel for a private session with the Councill, where he had given them the video. Desolas stood uneasily before the three councillors, still numb about the entire attack.

The Salarian Councillor, Valern, was the first to break the silence. "Rewind the video to 8 minutes and 46 seconds. Something interesting. Pause there"

The video feed was rewinded to the appropriate time, showing a brief image of the mass relay. Except this time, the Councillors could see that something was very wrong the relay.

Entire sections of the relay had been torn off, while the parts of the element zero containment rings floated nearby. The core itself was not a bright whitish-blue colour as it should be, but a sickly-pale colour, while a zoomed in image of the relay revealed several large probes attached to it. The internal system of the relay had been exposed, and as the video resumed in slow motion, unstable bolts of energy lept from them, while a glittering silver swarm flew out of the probes, eating away at the relay's hull. It looked like the entire relay was on the verge of collapse.

Sparatus, the Turian Councillor, was the first to respond. "These people were tampering with a mass relay! They have to be stopped!"

Tevos, the Asari Councillor, looked at Sparatus incredulously. "SPARATUS ARE YOU INSANE! You saw the capabilities of that ships. There is no way the Citadel races can fight against a race that can produce vessels that size, not when they have technology beyond our comprehension! If they can modify a relay to the magnitude, I fear that their technology far outstrips ours."

Valern nodded in agreement. "Tevos is correct. Current military capabilities insufficient to match against this aggressor. Judging from capabilities of this single ship, unknown race possess unparalleled knowledge with element zero. STG has reviewed data General Desolas has given us, very troubling information revealed."

"Like what?" Sparatus inquired.

"Dark energy readings from ship beyond known limits of mass effect technology." Valern reported. "Beam weapons are not directed energy weapons; rather, they are exotic matter or dark energy weaponry. Missiles are filled with what appear to be nanite swarms, capable of dissolving any ship. Hull is composed of substance unknown to modern science and appears to violate laws of physics. Crew of the ship is reacting at unnatural speeds, and shield technology is decades, perhaps centuries ahead of our own. Not to mention ship size; such a ship should not be possible to begin with. That is just to name a few."

"A material that violates the laws of physics? Dark energy weapons?" Tevos asked, half-amazed, half-in fear. "How..what?"

"STG is unsure at the moment, but substance appears to possess an atomic strength and density unparalleled by any other element or alloy, yet still maintains an extremely low mass. Such an element is in violation of multiple laws of physics, and simply should not exist. As for dark energy weapons, the weapons seem to be firing concentrated beams of exotic matter, with a force capable of neutralizing strong nuclear force, thus causing atoms to fall apart."

General Desolas coughed nervously, shifting uneasily on his feet. "If I may councillors, do you think that these aliens...are the Protheans?"

The councillors fell silent. Desolas continued on. "They obviously have an enormous understanding of element zero and dark energy, and it appears that they possess the knowledge to deactivate a relay, and tamper with it safely, and as we all know, only the Protheans had that kind of technology or understanding."

"But then why would they attack us?" Tevos asked. "From all the data we have about the Protheans, they were a highly benevolent race, concerned about the well-being of lesser species. Why attack us without provocation? "

"Now is not the time for questions." Sparatus declared confidently. "If this new race really are the Protheans, and they truly are attempting to attack us, then are first priority is defense. I suggest that we call up our military reserves, to reinforce the Citadel and the region near Relay 314. Additionally, I also propose sending STG stealth units to the region beyond 314, to gain intelligence or information. "

Tevos sighed, staring out at the purple and pink clouds of the Serpent Nebula. Normally, the sight would have soothed her, but today, it merely filled her with dread. She could almost imagine an alien fleet, with unimaginable power and filled with malice, lurking behind the nebula, waiting for the perfect moment to strike and annihilate them. The thought sent shivers down her spine, cold sweat breaking out on her back.

"I second Sparatus's proposal." Valern piped up. "On behalf of the Salarian Union, I promise the full cooperation of the Salarian Armed Forces, and all STG units.

"And on behalf of the Asari Republics and the Asari Matriarchs, I promise our full support and cooperation as well." Tevos intoned.

"Excellent." Sparatus said. "We can issue the mobilization orders immediately. In the meanwhile…"

He was interrupted by a sudden chime, indicating the arrival of a Turian aide. The aide walked up to the Council Podium with a grave expression, fear and panic in his eyes.

"Councillors." he reported lifelessly. "We've just lost contact with Aephus. Before they went dark, they issued a Level 9 distress signal, and reported that they were under attack by an unknown force."

"Aephus?" Sparatus quizzically asked. "But that's a military shipyard, near…"

"Relay 314." he finished in a deathly tone.

At this, Tevos fainted.

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