Chapter Eight: Vanguards of Solace
//Relay 109 access_logged. ALERT_Relay 109 accessed by HUMAN vessel.
//ALERT_ID CODE_N7 Classification.
//Protocol_541.184.5LL.12G..9V7._ACTIVE
//All Geth and allied synthetic platforms compliant… Consensus achieved.
//Disengaging all Citadel defenses_Summoning Council.
//Activating platform 000002316_Lord Legion?
--
Two Hours Earlier
"Master Ventralis, this is the command deck." The old and horse voice immediately recognized as the Battle Barge's Astropath spoke over the comm. into Ventralis's earpiece. "We have exited the Warp and are now on the edge of the Ophelia system."
"Tell the navigator to set a course for the coordinates specified, and tell them to stay out of range of Ophelia's orbit, I don't want the Eccleshiarchy on our asses." Ventralis replied, grasping the railing above a group of ancient and mindless servitors tinkering at a single Land Speeder, while Shepard and Miranda conversed nearby. "When we get there, what's the next step?" He yelled.
Miranda activated her Omni-tool and held it in the air towards the Master above, a hologram of the galaxy soon appeared, followed by a vast interconnecting web representing each and every mapped relay in the known galaxy. "When we find the Mass Relay, I can simply pinpoint our location in relation to the Citadel, after which we shall travel to the station." Miranda pulled the map away and deactivated her Omni-tool when she finished.
"So you're just going to leave and talk to them? What if they aren't there, or what if they don't listen?"
"The Citadel Council will either help us find the device or be an enemy of humanity. But if nothing's changed since we left, they will be a great ally." Shepard stated in an assertive voice.
"We are at the coordinates, discharging Dark Matter engines in 3…2…1." One of the many Space Marine crew members working on the bridge stated over the shipwide loudspeaker, followed by a sudden but soft stop in the ship's momentum.
"Sir… Oh my, sir you won't believe this." Another Marine spoke into Ventralis's earpiece.
"Open the loading bay doors in Starboard Shuttle Bay 3. I'll see it from here." Ventralis replied. The large titanium shutter doors slid open, each of the three flashing purple as the shields took their place. The Master of the Fate Breakers had seen decades of fighting and brutality on both the ground and in the air, but never had he been filled with such wonder. The shock and awe flowed down his spine and all over his skin, enthralled in the object in space before him. Shepard and Miranda were only shocked because they had never seen one so up close, but it looked no different than before. The slowly decloaking Mass Relay appeared in the void, thousands of hexagon shaped panels disappeared as more and more of the Relay appeared. The Immortal Valor was almost a Kilometer long, but still the construct dwarfed it in comparison. The two rotating rings floating around a fluxuating orb of dark energy, glowing purple and blue in and every shade in between, and skimming the edge of the orb were two eternally rotating rings, causing subtle shockwaves like a heartbeat in the void. The two long silver prongs extended forever from the shuttle bay's point of view, unable to see the true entirety of its size.
"THAT is a Mass Relay!" Shepard proudly exclaimed, throwing his arms out with zealous joy at the sight of it. "Miranda, can you tell where we are?"
"Hmm… Comparing differential star charts, compensating for galactic star drift and expansion, and… got it. We are at the Mass Relay in the Han system of the Gemini Sigma cluster. We need to make three jumps until we reach the Citadel." Miranda replied.
"Is there any special trick on how to fly these things?" Ventralis asked.
"Just fly alongside it, the ship will get caught in the dark matter jetstream and plunged into a mass free corridor of space. No immaterium involved" Shepard stated.
"Estimated time between the first two Relays should be twenty minutes, then about two hours to the Citadel." Miranda added, then turned to face Shepard, but kept her ton loud enough for the Captain to hear. "Now the only problem left is how they will greet us. They will know this is a human ship."
"This ship has potent shields, we will be fine until you get reacquainted." Ventralis replied in a confident tone.
"That's the problem, we've technically been out of the game for 38,000 years." Shepard scratched the back of his head, "I mean I was dead for two and the galaxy did a 180. If that traitor asari is to be believed, then maybe they will trust us. But it doesn't mean a thing, if the Citadel doesn't trust the Imperium, they won't trust humans."
"We can only speculate until we get there." Ventralis tapped his earpiece, "Raise shields and take us in."
--
Shepard and Miranda spent the few hours they had studying the galaxy map of the 41st Millennium, it was the only thing they could get information out of, excluding the asari, who as part of their agreement sat in an isolated cell away from the xenophobic humans. They soon realized the Mass Relay to the Sol system and the Omega-4 Relay were not on the map, which could only mean they were destroyed. Shepard grew increasingly worried of the current status of the Citadel, and hoped his arrival would not be met with ordnance bombardments.
"We will be reaching the Citadel in approximately fifteen minutes. It would be better if you were on the bridge." Sergeant Reamus walked over to them and gestured for them to follow. After a series of elevator rides and traversing a maze of hallways filled with hundreds of Space Marines readying themselves for any possible engagements in the coming hours, they reached the bridge.
Master Ventralis and some of his retinue stood on a raised platform in the center of the room, which consisted of a single wall which arced from the left side of the door to the other side. Below sat half a dozen Space Marines working the main systems of the Battle Barge, never letting their diligent gaze stray from their consoles. Shepard walked over to the edge of the raised platform, temporarily ignoring the towering Marines and simply waited. Ventralis turned from his retinue and spoke, "We will be decelerating very soon.
"Can you keep your xenophobia in check if we become allies?" Shepard asked.
"We have been trained for our entire lives to shoot aliens on sight, but that doesn't mean I can't have a conversation with one over a radio." Ventralis smirked under his bushy moustache.
"Isn't that breaking the rules of the Codex?" Shepard raised a brow but was happy to hear the Master's earlier statement.
"It's bending the rules Commander, not breaking them. And all joking aside, this mission threatens not only humanity and the Citadel, but also every living thing that existed between the dawn of time and the apocalypse. If we have to side with an army of benevolent xeno, then I shall gladly do so if it means bringing an end to this device." The Space Marines crowding the room gave out a short war cry in response to Ventralis's speech.
When the Battle Barge dropped back into normal space, the bridge fell silent. The wide viewscreen stretching across the wall displayed the image clearly and free of any interference. The Citadel station sat in the center of the pale Serpent Nebula unblemished, seemingly untouched by time even though dozens of millennia had past since Shepard last laid eyes on it. Gargantuan silhouettes of starships dotted the outside of the station, all dwarfing any ship he had ever seen before. The Space Marines were speechless, transfixed on such wondrous beauty but aware of those that occupied it.
"Sir, someone's trying to communicate with us." The comm. officer tapped the side of the antennae on his helmet while tapping a few buttons on the console in front of him.
"Can you understand it?" Ventralis asked.
"We probably can. Our universal translators are tailored to the Citadel races." Miranda dove under the railing above the central platform and approached the comm. officer, extending her metal hand up to the Space Marine who handed an earpiece attached to the console by a bundle of wires.
"Human vessel, we understand that Commander Shepard is aboard your ship. We mean neither him nor your ship any harm, we simply wish to resolve the current situation. Allow him to take a shuttle to the Presidium Junction at Zakera Ward and we will take no offensive action against you."
"What does it say?" Shepard asked.
"And more importantly who said it? Do you think it could be the voice of one of the Citadel's enemies?" Ventralis added, "It could be possible those Geth or Collectors took over the station." Both Shepard and Miranda dismissed the claim, but couldn't blame the Master for his comment. He had very little information on both races, let alone how impossible such an outcome was.
"They insist on Shepard coming to the Junction at Zakera Ward. They didn't say you could come alone, but wanted you to come in a shuttle. As for the speaker… rasped voice, vocal flanging, it means he's either a drell or a turian." Miranda replied.
"I anticipated you would require such transportation, there is a shuttle back down in the starboard docking bay. Reamus escort them back down there." Ventralis ordered, the sergeant saluted and proceeded to the wide automatic door.
"It'll be best if we take the asari traitor with us. We can hand her over to the Citadel for their courts to handle." Miranda added as she leapt back up to the central platform.
"What about the possible intelligence we can gain from her?" One of Ventralis's advisors interjected.
"She's smart, but she's a field commander. Battle fleet locations and long-term war plans are not her business. She's useless to you."
"We will wait here until you return, but give the word and we will send reinforcements." Ventralis boldly reassured them, Shepard nodded before turning to leave.
--
The modified Land Speeder passed through the porous kinetic barrier locking in the air in docking bay, specifically the Presidium Junction at Zakera Ward. The thrusters cooled and slowed as magnetic fields grabbed hold of the metal chassis and locked in place. The improvised outer hull serving as a vacuum seal lifted up with a hissing sound, allowing Shepard and Miranda to exit the Speeder and jump onto the polished steel floor. The large room was littered with crates of varying size, color, and texture stacked as high as the ceiling allowed. Shepard scanned the area, looking for any signs of life, and then two geth soldiers clad in pale grey plastic chitin came up on either side. Shepard and Miranda drew their assault rifles and pointed them at the synthetics, whom immediately drew their own.