Author's Notes:
I figure I might as well start putting some of these up. Welcome to chapter 2! Where things start heating up and we delve a tiny bit more into our future. While I have the general idea of where I'm headed with this, and some major plot points are set in stone, this is very much by the seat of my pants. So reviews, comments, concerns, and advice are all welcome. Hopefully this won't come across as some sort of crack-fic, nor as a "humans are awesome yeah!" type fic. The problem of course being that humanity has meta-knowledge it wouldn't ordinarily have in such a fic.
Look for one to two updates per week, depending on my work schedule and game releases (Can't wait for Enemy Within).
Anyways, thank you to everyone who reads this. I hope you enjoy it. Finally I don't own the Mass Effect universe, but thank Bioware profusely for creating it and allowing us to play in it.
February 10th, 2086
Haven System
Haven wasn't an especially old colony world, and while it was on the edge of human space, it was remarkably developed. There were two reasons for the level of development it had experienced. The first were the large amounts of natural resources valuable to all sorts of construction going on throughout human space. The second was the presence of a mass relay on the edge of the system leading to the edges of batarian territory.
While the first reason had brought the initial colonists and investment of corporations and the Alliance Colonization Department, the second had resulted in the rapid buildup of the system's defense forces. The first defense stations had been finished ten months after the relay's target was discovered, and now, ten years later, the colony served as regional headquarters for Sixth Fleet. All told, the colony now possessed roughly 30 million inhabitants, most having come to call the planet home since the defense stations had been put into place.
And now Admiral Kathryn Dreischer was tasked with welcoming what was hopefully a single batarian ship. But if Alliance Intelligence was correct in their assessment of the batarian government's probable reaction, then she was expecting at least a detachment of warships. Which she could more than handle with the ships on hand. But if the batarians realized that before they walked into the trap she had prepared, well, then a lot innocents might die and ten years of infrastructure might get damaged.
As she looked over at the holo-tank displaying the movement of all spacecraft in the Haven system she couldn't help but think about how big space truly was. Against a human opponent, she could not know where precisely enemy ships would be coming from. But the batarians were bound by the mass relay, and that gave her an advantage. One she would ruthlessly exploit.
"Admiral, it appears that our probes watching the Haven Relay's counterpart have detected batarian forces dropping out of FTL and maneuvering on an approach vector to the relay." Admiral Dreischer looked at her chief-of-staff, making a small movement indicating that he should continue. "It appears as though they have ignored our warnings and have assembled a small detachment as a means of striking at us. The fighting force assembled contains seven cruisers and twenty-two frigates. They appear to be escorting five troop transports and what appear to be three slave ships."
"How long until the pass through the Relay into Haven, Conrad?"
"We estimate roughly ten minutes ma'am. It also appears that they'll be coming in on approach vector C based on their positioning."
Kathryn sighed, "Very well then, have the fleet get into position. Be prepared to open a communication channel once they've entered Haven proper."
"Yes ma'am."
Admiral Dreischer took another look at the holo-tank, and more specifically at the forces which had made their way to the ambush points. Any moment now the batarians would be jumping into Haven, and hopefully she'd be able to get them to turn around without having to engage in combat.
But with the way their forces entered the system and began immediately coming into formation around the transports, that seemed unlikely.
"Conrad, open a channel to the lead vessel."
"Yes ma'am. You're cleared to speak." the young Commander then turned to face her as the command center went silent.
Admiral Dreischer cleared her throat before beginning, "Batarian fleet, I am Admiral Kathryn Dreischer of the Alliance Sixth Fleet. Your ships have entered sovereign Alliance space, and in force greater than which we are willing to allow for the purpose of peace talks. Withdraw immediately or we will be forced to engage you."
As the Admiral finished, a gravelly voice, presumably that of the batarian commander came through the channel, "Admiral Drescher, the Hegemony does not recognize your government, and we are not in the habit of acceding to the demands of lesser species so easily. We will claim this planet, and there is nothing you can do to stop us."
It took all the self-restraint she could muster to prevent herself from snarling at the sheer audacity of the opposing commander's words. But that wouldn't stop her from wiping whatever smug smile he had on his face off with a single command.
"Very well then. All ships, open fire."
And with those words, the trap was sprung. As one, the gunnery crews on board the human vessels in space near the relay opened fire. From seemingly everywhere various types of weapons fire flashed through the void.
Most distressing to the batarian commander were the three emerald-blue beams which burned through the transports requisitioned to carry the first of what would hopefully be a productive slave-species, followed swiftly by what was clearly dreadnaught grade batteries on his troop transports. However that distress was compounded by the pounding the rest of his detachment took in short-order.
Throughout his command deck the alarms flared and damage reports flooded in from every one of the ships in his command. Some ships reported systems simply failing from hits by the strange green pulses which struck. Others reported barriers failing under a barrage of kinetic strikes coming from all angles, and subsequent reports of damage to armor and weapons systems. All of his cruisers were reporting that their main guns were being rendered inoperable by what appeared to be the laser-weapons reported by the task force stationed at Curek.
But then it was over. Mere seconds had passed, but his command was in tatters. Aside from the transports, not a single one of his combat ships had been destroyed. And yet combat was out of the question, not a single one of his ships were capable of raising batteries, and most had their weapons disabled or destroyed. These humans, had devastated a force which would send a terminus warlord into a fit of fear.
And then the human Admiral made her presence known once again. "Now then. You will leave this system. Your government will then send a single ship carrying a diplomatic delegation through the relay. This will be done within the next three galactic standard days. If more than a single ship passes through the relay, or if three days pass without a ship arriving, a state of war shall be formally recognized by the Alliance Congress against the Batarian Hegemony. At which point, the full might of our fleets shall be deployed against your species. You have been warned."
And with that, the Alliance ships assembled watched as the remaining batarian vessels turned and fled through the relay moments later.
February 12th, 2086
Haven System
"System Command, this is Relay Control, we have an inbound batarian vessel. Requesting ships to provide escort to Haven."
"Copy that Relay Control, we're dispatching the cruisers Basks in the Light of Dawn and Bringer of Rain to serve as escorts to batarian vessel. Please inform them to hold position until they arrive in five minutes."
"Copy that, relaying orders now."
40 Minutes Later
Haven System Control Station
Admiral Dreischer watched with a grimace as the batarian shuttle made its way into the the hangar. Standing beside her was the ambassador in charge of what were sure to be interesting talks, and while his reputation was good, it was hard to imagine him getting the batarians to agree to any sort of deal.
Of course, Francois Nichols had managed to wrangle dozens of the nation-states remaining on Earth into peaceful settlements in the years since WWIII. And while the threat of the Alliance military coming down like a hammer on any aggressor had played no small part in that, it was hard to argue that he wasn't capable.
"Oh come now Admiral, surely you don't detest the batarians that much?" The ambassador asked with a well-practiced smile.
"Ambassador, we are dealing with an alien species which has attacked us twice. They practice slavery, and have generally been a thorn in the side of galactic society for centuries. If you manage to get them to agree to some sort of peace with us without them getting anything important I'll recommend you to the Vatican for Sainthood."
At that Francois gave a chuckle, "It's not as if we don't have experience with aliens Admiral. And come now, we've given them a drubbing twice now. They must know they're outclassed. And while they will surely make outrageous demands at first, reason will hopefully prevail."
At the look on the Admiral's face, the ambassador became serious once more. "Of course you're right. They're xenophobic, domineering, and aggressive. Half the Terminus systems are in their pocket, and the other half is terrified of them. Frankly, Congress has the declaration of war drawn up already, and will be in session in New York until these talks are done. Our goal here is to make that unnecessary, but as you've said that's a fools goal."
At the mention of Congress, Dreischer couldn't help but laugh. "How'd the Speaker manage to get them to draft a declaration and stay in session indefinitely? Yes this is important, but surely his opponents would just love to hold this against him somehow!"
The ambassador merely shrugged and waved his hand. "The Alteran delegations wanted to simply declare war immediately. They watched the Esan incident occur, and they've been gunning for a fight with the batarians since they founded their first colonies. Hell, the Speaker had to call in half his favors in the House and Senate just to make sure that we didn't go in half-cocked and without a delegation en route to the Citadel."
"I suppose you understand the political realities back home better than I would. Still surprises me that the pacifists in government aren't raising a fuss over all this."
They continued to watch as the batarian diplomat and his guard marched down the ramp. Kathryn had to admit that the guards were somewhat impressive, being roughly a head taller than their human counterparts. She also noted that their equipment was obviously well maintained, and their armor clearly was top-of-the-line.
The diplomat was also rather, rough would be the word, though he clearly carried himself like he was important. And his outfit reminded her of a painting of some wet-navy Captain from one of her history lessons at the academy.
As the diplomat approached his counterpart the human honor guard came to attention with the sort of precision one expected from marines. And while their batarian counterparts appeared agitated for a moment, the diplomat clearly expected something of the sort as he remained unfazed.
Finally reaching the Admiral and ambassador, the diplomat drew himself up to his full height and spoke, "I am Khar Var'esh. The Hierarch has personally tasked me with conducting these negotiations with your people. It is our... desire, that they prove fruitful for our people."
"On behalf of the Systems' Alliance I welcome you to the Haven system Khar Var'esh. I am ambassador Francois Nichols, this is Admiral Kathryn Dreischer, the officer in command of the Alliance's Sixth Fleet, and in charge of sector defense." Giving a curt nod to the batarian diplomat, ambassador Nichols pressed on. "If you will follow me, I'll lead you to the quarters we have made available for your use during your stay, if you so choose. Then we will proceed to the negotiating room where we can begin discussions."
"Very well ambassador. I must warn you, the Hegemony will not look kindly upon any attempts to deceive myself or the crew of Khas' Fist."
And with that the representatives of the two species left the hangar with their guards, leaving Admiral Dreischer alone briefly. While she knew these talks would be meaningless, she still hoped that the ambassador could pull off a miracle and avert war. She glanced once at the stars visible through the open hangar doors then turned and began the trek to her command center. Whatever the outcome of these talks, it was her duty to prepare for war as much as it was the ambassador's to avoid it.
"Well ambassador Var'esh, I feel that it is important that we begin right away. Our peoples are counting on us to avoid a war neither of us wants or needs." Ambassador Nichols stated simply as the two settled into their seats in the conference room appropriated for the talks.
"Hmph. Straight and to the point, very much unlike the asari or salarians. I agree ambassador, though somehow I doubt it will be a simple matter." the batarian ambassador finished, settling into what could be considered his equivalent to a scowl and focusing all four eyes on his counterpart.
If he thought that would unnerve the human though, he was wrong. "Excellent. Here are the basic terms which my government has tasked me to put forward. First, that there shall be no further hostilities from this point on between our peoples. Second, the system which contains the counterpart to the Haven Relay shall serve as a demilitarized buffer between our respective peoples. We renounce all claims to it, and ask you do the same." Francois paused to gauge his opponents reaction. Sensing no resistance to those terms he pressed on with what would likely be the major sticking point.
"Our third and final term is that any Hegemony affiliated slavers not enter our space. And that the Hegemony formally announce that slavers are not to trade in human traffic throughout the Terminus Systems or Hegemony space."
That, earned a reaction from the batarian ambassador. It could graciously be called a snarl, but in many ways it was more menacing than anything a terrestrial species could produce.
"Hrrrmph. We will... discuss that at a later point. Here are our demands. First, that a sum of five-hundred billion credits be paid for the repairs of the hegemony forces damaged or destroyed by yours. Second, schematics for the laser-weaponry your ships have demonstrated in combat with our own shall be granted to the Hegemony. Third that you provide schematics for the non-element zero based FTL systems your ships clearly use. Finally that the slaves taken from Curek be returned to the Hegemony."
Outwardly, ambassador Nichols betrayed no signs of emotion. Inwardly he was a mixture of angry and dismayed. Angry that the batarians had demanded that the slaves which had been liberated, and were currently being treated on Chiron be returned to servitude. And dismayed that even Alliance Intelligence's worst case scenario had been off by a mile. They had expected the monetary restitution, and even the return of the liberated slaves, but the demands for technologies were far beyond what was expected. This was going to be more difficult than expected.
"Clearly ambassador Var'esh we have our work cut out for us." Nichols said with a false smile. "However, that should not dissuade us from working towards peace..."
And with that Francois Nichols and Khar Var'esh began the delicate dance of give and take. And while both claimed to be willing to compromise, both knew that compromise was not truly possible.
February 24th, 2086
Alpha Centauri System
Areena Lorinis had experienced quite a bit in her 343 years of life. And when she had been taken as a slave 5 years ago on some backwater planet in the Traverse and forced into servitude for the Batarian Hegemony she had expected her life to slowly be ground away.
And then these humans had appeared barely a month ago on the colony she had expected to die on, freed her and brought her to one of their colonies for medical treatment. She had no idea where she was in relation to Citadel space, but it was clear that her rescuers knew all about the Citadel and the various species that called it home. She had received adequate treatment, for a species which clearly had not made official contact with the galaxy from the news reports she had watched.
And that bothered her. She wasn't what one would call a patriot, yes she loved the Republics, but she hadn't wanted to serve them in any official capacity. And yet she couldn't help but be unnerved by the fact that this species clearly had spied upon the Citadel and its associated governments for some time.
Even worse, the humans had clearly not developed element zero based technology, or at least had not integrated it into their society as much as the rest of the galaxy. She and the other freed slaves had simultaneously been marveled and terrified by the strange dimension which the human ships traveled through, hyperspace as they called it. And then on arriving at their destination, some binary system near the humans' homeworld, it became even more clear that these humans had taken a different path once they had landed and been taken to the medical complex they were being treated at.
Her doctor was an AI. Yes there were other medical professionals who were organic, but the primary doctor was not. Even more alarming from her perspective was the fact that this AI clearly had no shackles in place to prevent it from slaughtering everyone in its care. Areena could barely repress a shudder as she remembered when it had introduced itself and calmly tried to assuage her fears...
"Hello Miss Lorinis, my name is Aphrodite and I'll be the physician in charge of your recovery. I apologize for any discomfort you've experienced up to this point, your physiology and that of my creators' may be similar, however there are enough subtle differences that we could not be certain you would be comfortable."
"Your creators?" Areena had asked cautiously already concerned about the strange sense she got from the figure standing before her.
"Yes, though it would be more accurate to call them organic humans. I apologize if this causes you more discomfort, but I'm an artificial intelligence. Though I can assure you that I'm one of the best xeno-physicians in human space. Though given our relative lack in experience, that isn't that large a claim." The figure before Areena flashed what she could consider a smile, but it just sent a shiver down her spine.
"Could I get another doctor please? I realize you may be the best, but I would very much rather have someone... ah, more... well..." she trailed off, uncertain how to proceed with her request.
"Organic?" Again, the AI before her smiled, and yet Areena could tell that it was disappointed. "I'm sorry, but unfortunately you and the other freed slaves have stretched our capabilities significantly. We have asked for help from some of the other colonies, but we suspect that we will be engaged in full blown war with the batarians shortly. Therefore many of my colleagues are preparing for that situation. I can only assure you that I have your best interests as a patient at heart... ah, figuratively speaking."
Areena was dragged back to present as the door to her room opened and the object of her thoughts entered carrying one of those datapads she had seen the humans use exclusively rather than some mix of datapad and omnitool.
"Why do you carry that if you're a machine?" The question just popped out of her mouth, and she felt silly for asking it almost as quickly.
Aphrodite merely shrugged her shoulders while chuckling. "I find it helps organize my thoughts. Besides, while I could get by without it, it would look rather silly for me to simply stare out into space while I access the data I need or make notes."
Areena couldn't help but smile at the image. "Yes, that is true. But still... you're a machine. It's not like you are a human."
"My government respectfully disagrees. It is written into our constitution that all sentient beings have the same rights. Legally speaking myself and my kin are legally human, if corporeally challenged." Flashing a small grin with those last words the AI continued, "Humanity views synthetics differently than the rest of the galaxy. The Morning War was a terrible tragedy brought about by a terrible misunderstanding over a single question."
"The Morning War? I'm sorry but I'm afraid I don't understand that reference."
"Ah. That's right, you don't call it that." Again, Aphrodite smiled sadly, then continued. "Soon enough you'll understand what I was referring to. Anyways, are there any concerns other than my lack of squishy organic parts that leap to your mind at the moment?"
Areena squirmed for a second. She had discussed a certain matter with the other former slaves, they had watched the news coverage and were concerned by one of the demands the batarians had made. And while none of the news outlets they had watched had entertained the notion that the return of the former slaves would be accepted, Areena and the others couldn't be sure it wasn't just posturing for later.
But here was an opportunity to simply ask someone about the issue.
"Will we be returned to captivity? I understand humans are deeply opposed to slavery, but if it means avoiding a war, would it not be easier to just return us to slavery?"
The look Aphrodite gave at that moment was enough to assuage some of her fears. "You will not be returned to slavery. That option is non-negotiable. If war comes because we stand by our principles on this matter, then so be it. The Hegemony will be destroyed."
Areena couldn't help but wonder what made these humans so certain that they could defeat the batarians. And then she remembered all that she had seen on her way to this world. And if they were unconcerned about showing that technology to herself and others, what hadn't they shown them?
February 26th , 2086
Haven System
Francois Nichols hadn't entered the negotiations hopeful about the eventual outcome. War had always been the most probable outcome, but it was his job and duty to attempt to avoid it.
So while he had failed, he knew that his superiors didn't hold it against him that war had come. The Alliance would have willingly payed some sort of monetary sum for the damages incurred on the batarian fleet. Even some token technology trading would have been acceptable. But the batarians wanted humanity's energy weapons technology, even if it was weaker than the weapons they possessed. Yes it was impressive, but it required significant energy reserves and had several other important disadvantages to the mass driver technology the other races of the galaxy used.
And while he had managed to make the batarian ambassador see reason on at least the weapons technology, he refused to concede on either the hyperdrive technology or the slaves issue.
So here he was, standing in the same hangar he had been in two weeks ago waiting for Ambassador Var'esh to board his shuttle and depart. He had his formal duties, and he would discharge them, even if they weren't precisely necessary.
After what had seemed like an hour of waiting, the batarian and his honor guard finally entered the hangar. While Francois disliked his counterpart's superiority complex, he had to admit some amount of respect for the alien. He certainly knew the rules of the game, and exploited them ruthlessly.
"So Mr Nichols, have you come to convince me that you are willing to concede the final points? Or are you merely here to wish me well on my journey back to the Hierarchy?" The ambassador made some inscrutable facial expression, probably suggesting humor at his human counterpart's situation.
"Actually nothing of the sort Ambassador. While we have transmitted an electronic copy straight to Khar'shan, I hope you don't mind us using your communications systems for the purpose, I'm required by Alliance law to deliver this to the proper representative in person."
Smiling slightly as he produced the datapad, the ambassador continued even as the batarian took the offered device, "You will find that the Systems Alliance has declared war against the Batarian Hegemony. Furthermore, combat operations began roughly 20 minutes ago, I'm certain your forces are performing better now than they have in our previous two engagements."
Striding out of the hangar, Francois couldn't help but let go one final parting shot, "I would recommend you stay here Ambassador. Someone from your government will need to be on hand to negotiate surrender terms." And with that, the batarians were left alone to ponder what next to do.
Codex Entry:
Electro-Gravitics Technology
Electro-gravitics is described by its creator as "One half of the base code of the universe", and this seemingly hyperbolic statement is not far from the truth. Developed in early 2014, it is a unification of the fields of electromagnetism and general relativity. In the time since its development it has had a tremendous influence on the development of human technology, even with the advent of Element Zero based technology with the discovery of the prothean ruins on Mars in 2014.
The primary reason for humanity's preference for E-G technology over eezo based technology is the far greater versatility which it allows. While it is capable of generating the same effects as element zero, if at greater power costs, E-G technology has also allowed humanity to surpass the other Citadel races in several areas.
The ability to manipulate both electromagnetic and gravitational fields has resulted in more flexible energy shielding, capable of absorbing more than simple kinetic strikes. This ability to manipulate various energy fields has also allowed humanity to develop energy weaponry with greater success. Finally, hyperspace allows faster movement between star systems, resulting in greater strategic mobility without being tethered to the Mass Relays.
While all of these technologies are theoretically possible with the utilization of element zero, the costs to develop them are discouragingly high and fraught with various technical difficulties.