A/N: Not much to say, other than hoping for your continued support!
Anyway, enjoy reading!
And may the Empire carve the way to the future!
Chapter eight: Lending crucial aid
No one was expecting this in the slightest. For the others, it was something new to them, the Emperor leaving the comforts of his own territory to accompany Shepard on what may well be a suicidal mission that would put his life at risk. For the Emperor's family and those of the Empire, it was no surprise to them.
Before Amarthathor took up the reigns of government, his uncle and regent, Daniel Cousland, always took him outside of the Imperial Palace to enjoy the sights and smells of the outside universe whenever he was not studying under his tutelage or training in the arts of warfare.
From the expansive fields of agricultural worlds of the farmers who tirelessly work to feed the Empire's citizens, to the great forges of the blacksmiths that constantly churned out new weapons for the soldiers to wield, he never tired of exploring the other core worlds and fringe worlds under the Empire's control, exploring the lives of the common people.
Even after becoming Emperor, and being hopelessly chained to his desk in order to finish mountains upon mountains of paperwork – which caused many a migrane for the part-Dragonkin – and having to sit on his throne to oversee many meetings with the Council of Mornarchs, he still took time to sneak out of the palace and explore the world outside the confines of the palace, even if only for brief, fleeting moments.
His current being in New Halamshiral's command centre and sudden decleration of accompanying the famed Human Spectre was no different to those times.
"W-Wait, what about all of the political backlash and other stuff you have to deal with? Wouldn't you need to represent the Empire at such crucial times?" Shepard asked in disbelief, not believing her ears.
Sighing heavily, as if expecting such a reaction from her and the others, he then stated, "My cousin-in-law, Erlan Hequinal, will be looking after the Empire in my place, so there is no cause for worry."
Venia only snorted at that, while Kiritsugu chuckled mainly to himself.
Harrumphing loudly, then filling a cup with freshly brewed tea, he then said, "Like I just said, I will be commanding a new ship to aid Commander Shepard, and it will be the first major coalition force between all UAP races and factions, including the Zerg."
Tapping a few commands into his omni-tool after setting down his tea cup on the table, he brought up the image of a ship that was slightly longer than five kilometres, the prow 's armor designed like a dragon's head with its mouth closed. Along the broadsides of the ship were several turrets fitted with crystal pylons floating in place and long-barreled cannons, the back of the ship bearing four large thrusters.
"It is called the Vengeful Sword, one of the newest Fathership-class battlecruisers made with a mixture of Protoss, Thedosian and Azerothian technology," The Emperor explained, taking his cup and sipping his tea, "Outfitted with the latest stealth cloaks and heat sinks, it shall serve as a silent fortress that will cut off the heads of our enemies where they least expect it."
Stealth cloaks were something the Council and ex-Council races still struggled to understand, as most stealth ships were made using only heat sinks to mask heat emissions from ships since they were only detected by thermal scanners at that time.
Once again, the arrival of the UAP changed all of that.
Utilising ships that literally made themselves invisible by cloaking fields, they were never detected by thermal scanners as they delivered their payloads of troops and armored vehicles on fortified colonies and outposts, whilst detecting any STG stealth ship that tried to carry out reconnaissance on them with visual scanners.
This reminded Gabriel Angelos of the times when he fought the Eldar in space battles. As their ships were more fragile and relied on agility and speed to tackle their stronger enemies, they also used stealth cloaks to ambush their enemies where they least expected, their plasma turrets taking care of the rest.
Not only were their ships fragile, but they were also few in numbers, so they stood no chance in an all-out space battle where stealth was no option.
The ships these 'Elves' made alongside the other races was no doubt elegant in design, but were also large, floating citadels that could withstand much damage sustained from enemy ships.
The Blood Elves of the Azerothian Coalition were an exception, as their ships were also fragile and delicate, albeit larger than their Eldar counterparts.
"So where will you suggest we strike first, brother?" Venia asked, raising a hand.
"It will be at the former Quarian colony of Haestrom," A synthetic voice informed them, pixels of blue light materialising in front of them on the table's holographic projector to form a Dark Elven avatar in front of them, who turned out to be Taenith in his customary thin armor.
Gabriel had to reign in his anger; abominable intellegences were hated by all sides, Imperium and Eldar included, as they were machines that turned on their masters without a second thought.
Yet these maddened United Allied Powers actually used them without worry, and the Turians who originally hated them were following in their former enemies' footsteps and doing the same thing.
The image being displayed changed once again to that of a barren planet, patches of stone grey barely visible under the beige colour of the planet's surface.
"The Quarian Republic has recently dispatched a reclaimation team to try and amend the dying star's radiation with the help of a few of our magi, but all contact was lost with them a few days ago, the last report mentioning a Geth attack force approaching their position," The AI continued, waving his hand to show images of a few Geth ships appearing near the planet.
"It might be the Heretic geth," Tali suggested, remembering the details about the Geth schism, "Their ship design hasn't changed in the slightest compared to those of the Geth Consensus."
She was right, the angular and curved design of the Geth ships looked exactly the same as Geth ships from before the Ethereal assault on the Quarian Migrant Fleet, while the Geth Consensus' ships were slightly bulkier and had their thrusters arranged in a cross shape at the back.
"The Heretics have never made such a daring attack before, as they were still biding their time beyond the Perseus Veil," Taenith mentioned, his strings of code flashing as he went into deep thought, "They must have something on Haestrom that they do not want anyone to find out about."
"So the Heretics are making their move now..." Welearis mused, his glowing emerald eyes narrowing, "It seems that we cannot lie in wait any longer."
{My blade thirsts for the blood of my enemies,} Telrisis eagerly said, his scythe glowing a baleful red, {What are we waiting for?}
"Consider this Dragonkin equally invested," Venia added, a sadistic smirk adorning her face.
Shepard looked at each and every one of them present, and could see the determination in their eyes with a hint of pride and admiration swelling within her. Even in her time as an Alliance N7 Marine before becoming a Spectre, not many in the Systems Alliance shared the same conviction and devotion to their duty as soldiers.
Looking all of them in the eye, she then said with equal conviction, "I'm no expert on any of your fighting capabilities, Tali, Grunt and the Turians being the exception, but I will say this much."
Her face became deathly serious, but at the same time brimming with anticipation underneath as she then said, "We aren't bound by tradition or anger to fight the Collectors and Heretic geth, nor are we doing so simply because our superiors order us to; we are doing this to protect our right to live, fighting for our families, for our homes, most importantly we're fighting for our children to see another day, a day where their parents can proudly boast that they shed blood to protect their future."
"From here onwards, we are not Thedosians, Protoss, Terrans, or even Quarians and Turians. Today, we are soldiers called upon to fight our enemies, defenders of our lands, our species, our friends and families, protectors of the multitude of worlds we call our home galaxy."
The steely resolve and fiery determination in her words brought smiles to all those present, their hearts swelling with pride and conviction.
Infectious laughter erupted from Amarthathor himself, his eyes almost tearing up in the process. Soon, Grunt joined the Emperor and laughed as well, prompting all the others present to do the same, except the Turians, Gabriel Angelos, Tali and Shepard who just stared at them in confusion.
Even the normally aloof Nova Terra laughed alongside her Azerothian and Thedosian counterparts, surprising many of them, Kiritsugu included, though that simply made him laugh harder and louder than the others.
Gabriel had to respect this Shepard; she had a passion few in the Imperium ever possessed, compared to the Space Marines that hardly caused insurrection among their own ranks, though he was genuinely confused at the reaction of the others who were laughing.
Most of the Imperial Guardsmen would cave under the tremendous pressure one would suffer when fighting the horrors of the galaxy. The vile abominations of the Chaos forces that threatened to contaminate the light of the astronomican with their warpstone, hordes of murderous Orks that slaughtered anything in their sight without a second thought, the swarms of Tyranids that caused many a stronghold to capitulate, most would break after their first or second battle.
Yet, it was as if she would never fear of any unexpected horrors that came her way; either she had fought such abominations before, or she had yet to see just what the galaxy could throw at her.
Amarthathor was the first to speak after calming himself, a wide smile visible on his face, "Excellent! Excellent! Few of the Humans in the Systems Alliance carry your steely will, Shepard, and for that I commend you!"
Following him was Urdnot Grunt, who unslung his hammer in anticipation, "Ha! I must agree with the Emperor wholeheartedly!"
Arkail then added, "When shall we march against our enemies, Shepard?"
Remembering Amarthathor's words, she had an innate urge to correct him; it was not she that possessed a unique resolve and determination, but rather the Thedosians, Azerothians and other allies the Empire currently had, a stark difference in comparison to the Citadel Council of old.
"Then shall we march, Commander Shepard?" Gabriel said, grim anticipation brimming within him, a thirst to smite the enemies of Humanity building up within.
Shepard then had a smile of her own, and then proudly said, "Right now."
IIOII
If the holographic image of the Vengeful Sword was an accurate diagram of the actual thing, it did not do the architecture of the ship itself any justice.
Shepard and Gabriel could only stare at the ship in awe, the grand design of the ship making it look incredibly imposing and sturdy, yet possessing incredible asthetic appeal that made artists stare at it in jealousy.
Real golden turrets sat unmoving, the golden metal shining as if they were prized jewels, while the crystal pylons in the centre of the extending golden claws glowed with bright, iridiscent light, illuminating the environment around it like a rainbow. The prow's armor was coloured a natural obsidian black, turquoise glowing runes of an archaic language dotting it like the rest of the ship, the cross-shaped thrusters pulsating with waves of orange magnetism.
Not to mention it's sheer size made the Normandy look like a mere ant beneath the foot of a giant, an insect meant to be crushed and forgotten by the passing sands of time.
The engineer in Shepard was far more aroused by the ship itself, far more than thought possible by the Human Spectre by the sheer design of the Vengeful Sword, a culmination of years of technological research.
Tali was speechless; she had seen dozens of expertly designed ships made by the several different factions of the UAP, but they never ceased to amaze her, to appeal to her innate engineering sense.
Achamus gulped in nervousness just being near the ship; even though he would hardly get to be in an actual Thedosian ship, that did not mean he could not marvel at the sheer majesty of the ship itself.
The Vengeful Sword; a name beffiting of a majestic citadel of a ship.
At the ramp of the battlecruiser, hundreds of soldiers in different types of armor – all painted a dazzling silver, save the Protoss and Zerg that gathered – and of different races all gathered in neat ranks of formation at two sides outside of the ship, all holding a white banner bearing a black sigil of a flying eagle with three stars beneath.
Shepard could also see a few Turians and Human marines from the Systems Alliance – as indicated by their insignia of three stars under a pseudo-arrowhead – gathered to serve as the crew of the ship, though the two sides were visibly uncomfortable working with each other.
Amarthathor nodded with satisfaction, happy that the troops that were selected were only the finest in all of UAP territory and chosen for this mission.
Shepard, however, pitied them for participating in what may be a suicide mission that required them to strictly conceal their force's identity, remembering some of Amarthathor's words said to her and the others back at the meeting room.
"Another thing all of you will have to note," Amarthathor spoke with all seriousness, "When you partake in this mission, you will all be considered either dead or missing with your real locations unknown."
Most looked rather taken aback and surprised, though they half-expected it as they did not take it as hardly as Shepard would have expected.
"And mind if I ask why is this necessary?" Shepard inquired, questioning the feasibility of such a thing.
Looking at the inquisitive looks given to him by Gabriel Angelos and the Human Spectre, he then explained, "This is to protect the privacy of the operating force, because it will essentially be a sizeable UAP force trespassing deep into Council territory, especially that of Master Angelos here, given that he is a complete unknown to the rest of the Council."
Both nodded, seeing the sensibility of faking their deaths through false information.
Angelos then pointed out, "You seem extremely reluctant to let the Council know about any of this, Amarthathor."
The Dragonkin Emperor only sighed in irritation as he took yet another long sip of his tea, who then stated, "Only from the Asari Councilor and most of Council media; they have been endlessly hounding both the UAP and the Systems Alliance and Turian Hierarchy over every single damn thing we do, and I am getting incredibly fed up with their persistence."
"Especially given that this Councilor Tevos is most untrusting of any of you?" Gabriel suggested, to which the Emperor nodded.
From the beginning of her career as Councilor, Tevos had always made sure the Asari Republics had stayed the most politically powerful species of the entire Council, even when the Salarians and Turians also had council seats.
From blackmailing to bribing and even hiring mercenaries, she had always ensured the Republic's continued success in monopolising the galaxy's Eezo supplies through secret dealings with the late Aria T'loak and her mercenary kingdom, which unfortunately for her, ceased to exist upon being destroyed by the Blademasters of Andarath.
She also adamantly refused to allow the other Council races – namely the Turians and Humans – from gaining any additional political clout, the former by granting the Volus, their client race, a Council seat, and the latter by not granting them the same thing.
Relentless in her pursuit for power, nothing could quench her thirst or sate her hunger for empowering the already decadent Asari race, creating a dangerous sense of complacency among the Citadel Council that was quickly weakening the Council from the inside out.
Amarthathor only scoffed at that, hardly caring about the greedy wants of Councilor Tevos, "The true threat lies not in the Asari Republics or these Collectors, but in the Burning Legion."
Shepard had totally no idea what was the Burning Legion exactly, only that it was a conglomerate of demons under the leadership of a fallen 'Titan' by the name of Sargeras bent on galactical domination from the few tales told to her by the Coalition; the Empire also had no information on the Legion, but they were more than willing to believe it existed.
Approaching from behind her was Gabriel Angelos, loud footsteps as heavy as an elephant's informing her of his presense.
Turning around, she whistled in surprise at the size of the burly man clad in power armor before her.
"Wow, you are really large for a Human," She commented, causing the Chapter Master to tilt his head in confusion at her reaction.
"No one in the Imperium comments on such a trivial thing," Gabriel stated.
Seeing the confused expression on Shepard's face, Amarthathor answered for her, "The Humans of this galaxy tend to state the obvious."
Initially, his brows furrowed in concentration, trying to digest the meaning of his words; as Gabriel said, few in the Imperium ever cared about the sheer size of the Space Marines who fought to tackle whatever horrors the Imperium could not handle, and the Eldar usually kept whatever comments – other than their supposed race's superiority – to themselves if it was irrelevant.
Now though, he straightened his body in pride, proudly saying in a booming voice, "Indeed I am, Commander Shepard; every Space Marine is as majestic as I am."
Satisfied at Gabriel's answer, Shepard then moved towards the Normandy, Joker waiting expectantly with a beaming smile at the entrance ramp.
"Shall we set off, Commander?" Joker asked, his smile just shy of being jubiliant.
Shepard happily replied, much to Joker's expectations, "We're moving out! For the Systems Alliance!"
IIOII
Kal'Reegar ducked beneath the ruins of a fallen concrete column just as a pulse of plasma barely missed his helmeted head by inches, just shy of completely incinerating his head into a mixture of ash and fleshy gore.
Hefting his enchanted Exso rifle in hand – one of the few thousand made in cooperation with UAP weaponsmiths – he unleashed a slew of Exso slugs wreathed in fadefire that instantly burned through the metal plating of Heretic Geth troopers that were laying siege to his team's position, capitalising on the reprive in the rate of fire from his enemies.
Alongside him, Legion relentlessly pelted the Heretics' cover with focused sapphire lances launched from his long-barreled gun that glowed the same sapphire, his expressionless face never betraying the cold, bitter hatred it and the other loyalist Geth held for the traitorous Heretics.
Forming a rough line covering the entrance to the bunker they were hunkering in, Reegar and several other loyalist Geth and Quarian marines fought tooth and nail to keep their only safepoint secure from enemy occupation.
Kal'Reegar cursed his luck; it was supposed to be a simple observation mission on the abandoned colony to find out ways to alter the star's radiation, and in the process salvage any outdated technology to either scrap for resources or adapt into their ever-advancing technology.
Even with the help of at least three magi raining down hell on the Heretics, unleashing great arcs of lightning and meteor showers that decimated their ranks, many more still advanced, and the magi were not invincible; their mana reserves were running dry, and were becoming more vulnerable with fewer Quarians to cover them while they casted their magic.
With Legion as a guide to show them the layout of the abandoned colony, it was supposed to be, as most Humans would call it, a walk in the park.
No one had wanted, or even expected the Heretic Geth to even make their move at such a moment, when the Quarian team was away from the safety of the UAP.
Two Quarians hurridely ferried a heavy machine gun loaded with a rectangular box protruding slightly outwards towards an entrenched position with metallic supports, their task incredibly difficult with the hundreds of Eezo slugs pelting their cover continuously.
One of them was unlucky enough to be killed by a stray shot to the neck, where armor was completely absent, spraying blue blood on his commrade's helmet and coating it like crude war paint.
The same thing happened to one of the magi, who ended up being killed by a stray slug that struck his neck where his armor was the weakest, whatever final words he wanted to say being inaudible by the blood chocking his voice.
Another Quarian quickly rushed to aid the remaining Quarian in setting up the heavy weapon, prompting the others to cover their charge by peppering their encroaching enemies with relentless cover fire, forcing the Heretics to halt their advance momentarily.
A brief spark of hope welled within the hearts of the Quarians, hails of slugs pouring forth from the heavy weapon emplacement as they continued to massacre any Heretic Geth that came far too close to the machine gun for comfort.
Not wasting the reprive, Kal'Reegar commanded on his communicator in his ear, "All marines, keep the machine gun protected! Make sure our position is not overwhelmed!"
The Quarian marines had no time to waste on words, knowing full well the consequences of failing here and now; they continued to fight with increased fervor, hoping to display the same bravery the UAP did against their enemies in countless battles.
Bright streaks of azure blue clashed with slugs burning an unnatural emerald green and sapphire lances, the battle progressing nowhere as the two sides fought each other to a stalemate, the signal jammer they possessed preventing the Heretics from finding their location up in space.
Their blossoming hope soon turned to despair as a Heretic Geth Prime loosed a rocket on the machine gun emplacement, obliterating the weapon into smithereens as the Quarians manning it turned into piles of blue coloured gore scattered around on the cold, concrete floor.
Without fear of the heavy weapon firing on them, the Heretics advanced onwards, sealing the fate of the Quarian marines and the Geth who accompanied them.
As his helmet concealed his entire face, Legion could only know the heavy hearted emotions Kal'Reegar felt within his heart when he spoke in a solemn voice, "Legion... it was nice to have you as a commrade."
Though Legion could not display emotion, Reegar could still detect some sembalance of sorrow in the Geth's voice as it croaked, "As I..."
Legion never managed to finish what he wanted to say, before a bright emerald lance impacted a clustered group of Heretics right before the Quarians' and Legion's eyes, obliterating every trace of their existence as nothing of them remained.
The suddeness of the attack had left the defenders momemtarily stunned, wondering how did the lance appear out of nowhere.
Once they managed to discern the cause though, their hearts began to free themselves from the depths of despair, as they began to look to the skies, bright emerald orbs and white streaks overshadowed by the star's blinding illumination.
Help had come; no one had forsaken them.
IIOII
"Unleash the Nalika cannon!" Amarthathor bellowed, "Spare no mercy to the Heretics!"
On his command, the metallic plates of the Vengeful Sword's frontal armor began to shift apart to reveal a pulsating emerald orb, it's glow intensifying by the second as power began to build up in the ship's spinal cannon.
The emerald lance shot forth, tearing a Heretic ship in half as it bisected the ship in the middle, a tiny explosion following it's Eezo core imploding as the lance impacted it directly.
"Deploy Eagle transports to the Quarians' defensive positions!" The Emperor ordered, grabbing his obsidian axe and resting the haft on his shoulder, "I want the location reinforced to the point it can withstand a substantial assault!"
With the efficiency of a well-oiled machine, soldiers and crew members rushed to their stations without pushing each other or clumsily bumping into objects around them, a cluster of drop pods carrying soldiers burning up as they entered the planet's atmosphere.
Onboard the Normandy, Shepard began to don her armor made in Cerberus colours, her chosen teammates being Thrakos and Tali as each began to arm themselves with their respective weapons of choice.
Thrakos eagerly hefted his plasma axe with the psionic axe blades glowing a crystaline indigo blue, satisfied that his psionic powers had not waned in the slightest since the severing of his nerve tendrils.
Tali, on the other hand, loaded her omni-tool with all sorts of hacking programs that she would need to temporarily disable Geth units on the battlefield, and began inspecting her pistol to ensure it was in prime operating condition.
Once they had checked and equipped their weapons, the team of three were ready to depart, heading to the docking bay to board a kodiak shuttle that would take them to the planet's surface to rendevous with the surviving Quarian garrison and reinforcements, so that the ground forces would move in to clear the remaining Heretic forces from the barren planet.
Thrakos hated bending down to fit in the shuttle, given his large size, so he had to settle for sitting on the shuttle's cold, metallic floor, the seats far too small to handle his size and weight.
The Heretic Geth frantically tried to maneuvere to counter the reinforcements approaching the planet's surface, but it was impossible; they had no orbital defenses to take out the drop pods, and the few ships they stationed in space were being obliteratred by the UAP ship combating them.
Landing with a loud thundering sound, the doors of the drop pods burst open to allow three squads of soldiers garbed in silver armor to charge forth and brandish their swords and axes, some of them – recognisably Turians and Rachni, the latter wearing no armor of sorts – staying behind at the fortifications to enclose any gaps that were made in the encircling defense line.
The loyalist Geth were the first to charge, their hatred for the Heretics cold and bitter which was only made worse at the sight of several creators that lay dead before their eyes.
The survivors regained their bearings and joined the counterattack, their hate for the Heretics fueled by anger at the sight of their dead commrades.
A few of the reinforcing soldiers morphed in shape and size, their beings enshrouded in black mist as they emerged forth as large reptilian beasts, roaring loudly into the air as they flew to wreak havoc among the Heretics, breathing fire upon the mechanised troopers as their electronics were roasted beyond repair.
Yet they did not venture far, acting under strict orders from the Emperor to avoid letting the Heretic Geth take advantage of their isolation from their allies.
With the arrival of reinforcements, the Heretics had no choice but to abandon their assault, the UAP soldiers giving a ragged cheer as they fled the battle, though they did not see any Geth ships attempting to leave the planet, which many had not expected despite the Heretics' predictament in plain sight for all to see.
As Shepard's transport landed, much to the pleasure of Thrakos as the Khalai Protoss embraced the open surroundings, Tali fought to keep her tears from falling at the sight of her dead kinsmen, muttering a short prayer for their souls.
As some of the Thedosians began cremating the Quarian bodies – or at least, what remained of them – in pyre oils sanctified by priests, she could recognise Legion talking to what appeared to be the leader of the Quarian garrison, who sported several bandages covering his chest and left arm.
Shepard had to admit, even with the Geth's arm no longer able to meet today's standards of high-quality armor, it never even tried to replace it at all, though it just made the one-time Geth ambassador so much easire to identify.
"Hey Legion," Shepard greeted as she approached them, "Been a while since I last saw you."
The Geth in question curtly nodded at her, its gaze somehow distant and forlorn; at least, that's what Shepard thought it looked like.
"And who might you be?" Shepard asked the bandaged Quarian, who winced at the pain of his injury.
"Kal'Reegar, ma'am," The Quarian introduced himself, "Have to say, I never expected you to arrive with Thedosian reinforcements."
Shepard had to agree; this was her first time going into battle with an actual Thedosian force as allies, though it was actually a united force consisting of squadrons of soldiers from all factions allies with the Empire, the Turian Hierarchy included.
"And I have also never seen their livery before," Legion commented, finally breaking his silence, "Exactly who are they, for that matter? Where did they come from?"
Shepard was caught off-guard; back at the command centre on New Halamshiral, they had not even bothered to try and come up with a name for the strike force assembled to do their task, and given the fact that most of them were considered dead or missing, it would create many inquiries about their actual origins and true intentions, though the presense of numerous vigilante organisations and guilds originating from the Empire and Coalition was no absolute secret.
She then engaged in a speed-of-thought conversation with Thrakos, sharing an alarmed look with him.
Shit, we never got an official desigation for such a situation! She thought out loud in a panicky tone.
{It was only an oversight,} Thrakos said, albeit in an irritated mood, {We had assumed that we would only operate in Council space.}
Well, for times such as this, we definitely neglected to prepare precautionary measures! Shepard retorted, emphasizing the point.
Frantically racking her brains for a suitable answer, she blurted out, "We're... the Knights."
"The Silver Knights of Ethrandir!" A nearby Dwarven soldier piped up.
The Human Spectre groaned inwardly, which was noticed by Praetor Thrakos thanks to his psionic powers.
{The Silver Knights of Ethrandir...} The Protoss mused with a hint of amusement, {It is a rather fitting name for the strike force accompanying us, don't you think?}
Just remind me to hit whoever suggested the name,Thrakos, Shepard said, rolling her eyes in sarcastic annoyance, But who is this Ethrandir guy, anyway?
Thrakos directed her a rather funny expression, which was visible only through his eyes, lacking a mouth to convey a proper expression. {You do not know? And to correct you there, it is the name of a place, not a person.}
Well, sorry for not knowing, but I don't really study that much history, even the Systems Alliance's, for that matter, Shepard said without an ounce of guilt in her voice.
Sighing heavily, as if he had encountered a stubborn child unwilling to learn, he then explained, {Ethrandir is the name of an isolated colony within the Empire's borders, dedicated to training and fielding only the best of specialist and regular soldiers onto the battlefield, mostly as quick-response forces or to serve in the main army.}
What Thrakos said was from his own memory of visiting the actual place and from what he gleamed from the historical textbooks that described the colony's history in every detail.
Ethrandir was home to the most prestegious war academy renowned throughout the Empire, hundreds of students and trainees graduating every year with flying colours in the arts of war.
It was also home to a huge momument dedicated to every single soul that perished during the Eternal war, along with a courtyard of stone statues dedicated to several prominent figures that distinguished themselves during the war and sacrificed themselves for the greater good, Amarthathor's father and grandfather, Delmalrith and Sebastian respectively.
It was also the place where many vigilante bands originated from, the Blademasters of Andarath included.
Now that you mention it, Shepard said after hearing the whole history, why did that random guy mention Ethrandir of all places?
{That might be something you will have to ask the Emperor yourself,} The Praetor stated, unsure about the suggestion as well.
"The Silver Knights of Ethrandir?" Kal'Reegar repeated the name as if it was foreign to him, "Why haven't I heard of those people before?"
"No records of such an order exists, Shepard-Commander," Legion reaffirmed, somewhat suspicious about the whole string of events, "If they really do, why has no one heard of them?"
Gathering her wits about herself, she quickly answered, "They're a temporary military force that has just been established recently; all you need to know is that they're all UAP soldiers, with the odd mix of Turians and SA soldiers."
Surely enough, both the Quarian marine and Geth could see a few Turians and some Human marines in white armor, their design making them stand out the most compared to the others in the same livery and colours.
Satisfied with her answer, they both decided to let the matter slide, much to Shepard's relief.
"So what happened just now?" Shepard asked, even though she could already guess.
Clenching its fists tightly despite the earlier victory they managed to score, Legion spat in fury, "The Heretics ambushed our entire surveying team just as we were preparing the equipment to help the mages with us decrease the star's radiation output."
"It's as Legion says," Kal'Reegar reaffirmed, "We were working to get some of the Thedosian magi to help revive the dying star in order to reduce the radiation levels, make the planet more inhabitable by doing so before they attacked us out of nowhere."
Seeing Kal'Reegar's rather despodent mood – most likely for having so many casualties under his command, she thumped him on the back with an encouraging smile, the Quarian appreciating the gesture.
"You're not to blame for their deaths, Reegar," Shepard comforted, "Whenever you're leading a team, there's always a chance some of them will die, whether you like it or not."
This was from her experience, back when she was still a regular SA marine who was deployed with an entire scouting team on an isolated colony called Akuze.
There, she and her team encountered a rampaging Thresher maw, which massacred all of the marines under her command, making her the sole survivor.
Despite such a black mark on her record, two Admirals, one of them being Admiral Anderson – before he became Councilor – and another by the name of Hackett, recommended her for the role of an N7 Marine, the finest soldiers the Systems Alliance had to offer.
Even at night, she could still hear their dying screams haunting her in her dreams, reminding her of her failure in trying to save her teammates. The blood-curdling screams that sent shivers down her spine, the spine-chilling sights of her former commrades' corpses lying mutilated in pools of blood, staining the snow-covered ground red.
She shook her head; she had to focus, now was not the time to let bad memories distract her from her objective.
"So what have you come here for?" Kal'Reegar inquired, "I don't think you just came here to help us, did you?"
"Of course I came to help you, we're allies after all," Shepard countered, "Though I did come here to investigate something as well."
Blinking several times, Kal'Reegar harrumphed awkwardly before saying, "Well, I guess some of the Systems Alliance Humans can keep their word, so what were you investigating?"
Shepard's expression narrowed in seriousness, her look brookering absolutely no nonsense, "Intel suggests that the Heretics are hiding something on this colony, and they don't want anyone finding out at any cost."
The Quarian nodded, acknowledging the sound reasoning behind the Heretics' attack; if they had something of immesurable value to whatever infernal plans they were coming up with, it was only sensible to conceal any trace of it's existense, even lethally if no other option was avaliable.
"My Lady!" Shepard heard someone approach her, who turned out to be one of the surviving magi accompanying the Quarian reclaimation team.
"First off, I'm no noble, so Commander Shepard is fine," The Spectre corrected, much to the mage's embarassment.
"Then, Commander, I have managed to find the location of the Heretic Stronghold on this colony."
That caught Shepard's attention. "Details. Now."
Clearing his throat, the mage explained, "Using a scrying spell, I have determined that the Heretics are trying to protect something underground, in a facility about two leagues north of here; said something in question is actually a Human in a stasis pod."
Looking at the Commander with equal seriousness, he solemnly stated, "I do not know what they are planning to do to him, but I do not want to wait and see; we must act now."
Smiling wryly, Shepard simply said, "Isn't that what we're here for?"
IIOII
Two Heretic sentries stood on eternal vigil outside the entrance to the facility, the passage of time becoming an eternity for the synthetics as seconds became eternities for them, insignificant in the lifespan of an AI.
Without warning the first one fell, an large, blue-skinned bipedal being in golden armor decapitating it with swift precision.
Before the second one could react it was shot down by two plasma arrows piercing its torso, failing its mission to send a distress signal to the rest hiding within.
Slinging his axe on his shoulder, Thrakos looked at the doors leading into the underground facility with a disdainful expression, ready to cut them down without hesitation.
Before he could do that though, Amarthathor stood in front of them, then moved to grab one side, motioning for Thrakos to do the same with the other.
In a display of overwhelming strength, the doors were forcefully pulled apart, creaking and rumbling like a ghost's unnatural wails piercing the air and making it scream in agony. Without much effort, the fifty soldiers – both Terran marines and Azerothian priests – who accompanied them went ahead, scouting the area for any signs of potential danger.
The place itself was rather dark, the flashlights from the Terran marines' rifles the only thing illuminating the otherwise pitch-black atmosphere.
"Man, it's so damn dark in here," A Terran commented, his polarised, domed visor lifted up to show his slight trepidation, "Almost makes me wish for a good drink back on Tarsonis."
"At least you have us to heal your wounds in battle," An Azerothian priest – a Blood Elf – stated, tapping his staff on the ground with every step he made.
Chuckling to himself despite the earlier mood, he said in return, "Guess you're never gonna give up your ancient vocab, eh?"
"Be quiet," Amarthathor ordered, holding up a fist, "I hear footsteps."
Immediately, all soldiers ceased their needless chatter and gripped their weapons in grim anticipation, the place becoming deathly quiet save the rythmic beating of their hearts reverberating in their ears.
The agonising silence that followed felt incredibly long, seconds stretching into long minutes and hours, the slightest sound amplified severalfold in their hearing.
A patrol of three Heretics began to near their position, all of the operating party quickly hiding themselves behind whatever cover could shield their bodies from sight; using magic was unadvisable as the Geth had sensors meant to detect biotics – or other energies, and they did not want to risk the Heretics scuttling whatever package they had in order to deny the UAP a valuble asset.
Four seconds had passed, and they all held their breaths to avoid the Heretics detecting their heartbeats, the heat sinks in their suits absorbing their body heat being radiated and detected by thermal sensors.
Eight seconds had passed, and the Heretic patrol had completely bypassed them, not taking notice at all.
One of them suddenly stopped in his tracks, turning around in the direction of the hiding party and narrowing its flashlight in suspicion.
When it neared the place where Amarthathor was hiding, the Emperor already knew, just like everyone else, that their stealth mission was compromised, and they would have to clear out the facility the old fashioned way.
He directed a look at Shepard, and they both nodded, knowing the new plans they needed to follow.
Quickly carve a path to the place where the package was being held, and extract him to safety before any harm can befall him.
Drawing his axe, the Heretic Geth had no time to react before it was bisected cleanly in half at its midsection, the enchanted metal cutting through the weaker Geth exoskeleton with ease.
The other two were taken down in quick fashion by sprays of bullets powered by powerful chemical explosions within the casings, the projectiles overloading the kinetic barriers and piercing their bodies in short order.
"Move! Quickly! We must secure the hostage before the damned Heretics change their mind and kill him!" Amarthathor bellowed, dashing in the direction where the hostage was supposedly kept, following the Human's lingering scent in the air.
"You heard him, boys! We got someone to rescue!" Shepard reaffirmed his command, readying her omni-blade just in case her gun was no use.
The Terrans roared out a warcry, their Azerothian counterparts doing the same as they brandished their weapons, grim excitement coursing through their minds and hearts.
With reckless abandon, the invading party charged the Heretic patrols scattered throughout the complex, the Terrans' superior rifles making short work of the thin plating of the Heretics' exoskeletons. Any Terran that sustained injuries were quickly sent back fighting in better condition, the priests' healing powers making short work of their wounds.
"Wow, never been happier to have some Azerothian priests on our side!" A Terran marine commented, firing a spray of bullets that dismantled a Geth Prime's head.
"It is a pity not many Terrans wish to learn magic in our magi colleges," An Azerothian priest said, "I am sure the Dominion would benefit greatly from such a boon among their forces."
"Less talk, more combat!" Shepard reprimanded, slicing the head of another Heretic before it could return fire.
Nodding in response, the Terran marines continued their assault, supported by the priests who cast their light magic on their foes as well as healing any injured Terran marines who were rendered out of action due to battle injuries being sustained.
Thrakos charged headlong into a sizeable Heretic patrol, cleaving them in half as he swung his axe in wide arcs, hot plasma burning easily through solid metal and electric wiring.
After the Great War with Amon, Hierarch Artanis of the Khalai Protoss saw fit to initiate a new project to birth a new generation of Khalai Zealots in accordance with the changing times, as the Nerazim and Tal'darim had also made several improvements to their overrall ground forces.
In contrast with the Zealots of old, the new Zealots donned much heavier armor than their older counterparts, and instead of wielding individual psi-blades on each arm, they wielded enormous battleaxes that proved to be able to deal far more damage to enemies, whilst still maintaining the same speed as using psi-blades, thanks to advanced Protoss technology.
Thrakos was one of the very first to volunteer for the project, his current skills the fruits borne of the efforts of the project's success.
With the element of surprise on their side, and the boon of superior technology, the team was able to mercilessly eliminate every Geth patrol they came across with speed equal to that of silent ghosts, leaving a trail of Geth bodies in the wake of their sudden invasion.
Yet even with the huge disparities in fighting experience and technology, the Heretic Geth never backed down from the fight, and instead began to heavily contest their control of the facility, ambushing the party at every possible location with grenades and slugs.
Also, just because the party had superior technology did not mean they were invincible. Already, two marines were instantly killed by lucky shots to their heads, the broken polarised visors the only indication of their sudden deaths at the hands of the Heretics.
Punching the head of a Geth trooper and smashing it into a mess of wires, Amarthathor sliced the head of another Hunter that tried to stab him from behind with its omni-blade, using his very own from his custom-made omni-tool.
In the corner of his eye, he then saw a Heretic Geth aiming a rocket launcher directly at Shepard herself, who had just managed to survive a rocket blast thanks to her kinetic barriers, which were unfortunately overloaded and temporarily unable to function.
Shifting positions in a cloud of black mist, he reappeared behind Shepard just as the Heretic had aimed its launcher at the Spectre, a pitch-black glow taking the shape of a perfect circle on his left arm just as the rocket impacted on it.
When it did, however, both the High Emperor and Shepard were completely unharmed, the circular omni-shield having prevented the two from sustaining any mortal injuries, though the former had instant magical regeneration as long as his body had the mana to sustain it.
Thedosian omni-tools were starkly different to those made by any in the Citadel Council, as they were far more customisable and had many more uses in both the battlefield and at home, though the Empire prefered using blade and magic to resolve most of them.
Coming in different designs and colours according to the user's preferences, it had more improved versions of the omni-blade as well; this time, they could block other melee weapons with the omni-blade if they were fast to react and skilled in fighting, and in the case for need of additional protection, the omni-tool could morph into an omni-shield to protect the user from additional harm, though the drawback was that only one of them could be activated at a time.
As most only used either as a last resort or to alter the tide of the battle slightly, neither saw much use in the hands of Thedosians or Azerothians, though they were quickly gaining popularity with other races.
Seeing the cloud of smoke in front of Amarthathor's face and the black glow on his arm, Shepard then mutually said, "Thanks for the save!"
"You may thank me by slaying more of these Heretic Geth to avenge their attempt on your life!" Amarthathor countered, just as he cast spears of ice at two other Geth troopers that pierced them through.
Without the constant withering glare he directed at the Heretics every time he cleaved one after another, Shepard nerver thought he was actually enjoying himself, bathing in the blood and souls of his enemies.
Tali, unwilling to let the skills of Thrakos and Amarthathor outshine hers, she deployed two drones she created herself and let them spread chaos among the Geth ranks as they unleashed electrical shockwaves, causing the Heretics' systems to malfunction wildly and distract their attention from the real threats.
Slotting a new magazine into her custom-made handcannon, she fired off three shots that burned through the bodies and heads of four Geth troopers, quickly distinguishing herself as a decent marksman through her capabilities in battle.
Cutting through a few dozen Geth patrols that kept blocking their way, the party eventually began descending down a set of corridors and staircases leading to the lower levels, the race against time beginning to reach its climax.
"Taenith, how much further to the hostage's room?" Amarthathor asked, pressing two fingers to his helmet.
"Not much futher now, my Emperor, just a few more turns and you will reach there, but be wary of a heavy Geth presense at the front doors," The AI explained.
"I see..." Amarthathor murmered as they continued running towards their designated location, "And how many men have we lost in this mission?"
"So far, our casualties have been light, given the small regiment we took instead of our main force; only less than a score dead so far."
So they still had over two-thirds of the original fighting force they set out with; they had to compromise with the number of soldiers needed and took an incredibly small group of about thirty marines or more with a few priests to take care of battle injuries, due to the crammed nature of the complex itself, which ruled out the option of bringing an entire regiment.
As they continued running along the corridors and taking out more Heretic patrols in the process, they soon neared the room where the hostage was held, though they also ran into a heavy Geth blockade that had more than three scores of Geth infantry and at least two heavy machine guns aimed at them.
Though the Dragonkin Emperor, Thrakos and Shepard had the skills to avoid sustaining many injuries, the Terran marines did not have the same capabilities as they did, and so were more vulnerable to being slaughtered by the weapon emplacements.
In the span of a milisecond, one of the priests erected a magical barrier that prevented such a massacre from happening, the Eezo slugs being deflected off the golden wall of light that shone brightly in the darkness.
Without fear of the hail of slugs killing them too soon, the marines returned fire from within the barrier and unleashed sprays of chemically-propelled bullets that began peppering the Heretics' positions like a constant hailstorm.
The exchange of fire became increasingly heated, the Heretics fighting tooth and nail to protect the package as if their lives depended on it. Slug after slug pelted the invading party's position, yet more Heretics than marines were dying by the minute, aided by magic and psionics that softened the odds even more.
At the pace they were going, Shepard felt that they would quickly win the fight with light casualties at most in no time.
Amarthathor thought better of it.
Closing his eyes in concentration, he gathered his mana into his right arm, which quickly became wreathed in lightnng as it increased in intensity.
Once he gathered enough power, he directed his arm at the remaining Heretics, unleashing a great arc of lightning that struck one after another, moving from Geth to Geth.
The huge amount of electrical power short-circuited their systems in short order, and then overloaded their cybernetic cores which ended their lives quickly, none of them surviving the lightning blast.
The Terrans who accompanied them could not help but be astounded by the feat the Emperor had performed, for it was the first time seeing such magic come into real play.
One of them whistled loudly as he slung his rifle over the pauldron of his power armor. "Wow, I know the priests ain't no pushovers, but that was certainly something!"
"This is only a fraction of my power at the very best," Amarthathor said as he hacked the door's controls to open it with his omni-tool, "If we were in an all-out war, you would certainly see much more than this."
When they entered the room, Taenith having confirmed that the place was free of Heretic presense, they all saw a Human being preserved in a glass pod of sorts, cold air emmiting from the device itself that condensed on the glass surface.
"So our Human is here, preserved in cyrostasis," One of the priests commented, "He certainly does not look that impressive, when you look at it."
"Yet the Heretics fought hard to keep him out of our hands," Legion murmered, countering the priest.
The Human in question was certainly nothing more than an ordinary Human, wearing early 20th century Earth clothing that had long fallen out of fashion in the history of both the Systems and Korprulu Alliances', the most perculiar part being the forest green shirt bearing a ridiculous-looking name called 'Tobuscus'.
His features were rather chiseled, short, curly hair cut into a short crop, his eyes not visible underneath his closed eyes. By countenance of years, he looked to be in his early thirties, a fairly young adult.
"So what do we do now, Amarthathor?" Shepard asked, wondering about the state of the Human in the pod.
"Bring him aboard the Vengeful Sword," The Dragonkin ordered, "I will question him later when he recovers from cyrostasis."
A/N: Forgive me for the long time it took to churn out this chapter; I had entered a writer's block that lasted more than two weeks.
So anyway, my second semester's been rather hectic, but I will still try my best to update as best as I can.
Until then, this is Ebanu8.