Area 51, Nevada
"Well, while your pie plate theory worked, we didn't have enough to topple the Johannesburg Destroyer. Loathe as I am to admit it, it was a good idea, just one not fitting the resources available," said Nimzicki after Shepard once again sat before the small cabinet. "I'd still rather see you killed or incarcerated for the lies that you've lived, I'll admit you were right about this."
"Thank you Secretary Nimzicki," said Shepard.
"Mr. Shepard has some important information that he needs to share with us," said Grey, sitting down on the President's right, with Nimzicki to Whitmore's left.
"What sort of information?" asked the President.
"About the aliens, the acrids as people down here are calling them," said Shepard. He went for his wand, but then paused, "I'd like to cast three illusions, if I may?"
"Go ahead," said the President.
Nimzicki glared, but let it go.
Shepard grabbed his wand, although with the Elder Wand as a ring he didn't need it, it kept his cover intact. With a few flicks three illusions were cast, each half a meter tall and in full fidelity. The center was the acrid biosuit, and was animated, the tentacles waving and the feet moving forward, a strange weapon held in the suit's arms. To it's right, and before Nimzicki, was the insectoid form, roughly analogous to a four-armed arthropod centaur. To the far left, before Grey, was the dark blue furred feline, armored in a suit similar to, but obviously different from, the one the acrid wore.
"Instead of the monolithic aliens we thought we were fighting, instead we're fighting a species of alien slavers and their two slave species," explained Shepard. "The arthropod aliens, or insect-taurs if you will, are the older of the two slave species, having been dominated thousands of years ago, about twice as long as the feline aliens. At first the insect-taurs merely replaced enslaved acrids, the losers to a civil war that ended tens of thousands of years ago. They left their home planet in a fleet of battleships, what we call the City Destroyers, sixty-four in all. Over time some got damaged as they sought out a new planet to live on. Once they enslaved the insect-taurs, they built their Mothership, some sort of hollowed out moon or asteroid, as the insect-taurs are masters at burrowing through rock and metal."
"After leaving the home planet of the insect-taurs, they went in search of more resources, more slaves, and somewhere between two and three thousand years later, came across the planet of the feline aliens. While the insect-taurs were able to fight back with a single nuke, the felines weren't even into a proper age of steam, let alone flight. The acrids came on, killed most of the felines, and enslaved the rest, bringing them with them here. They are shock troops, the first soldiers out of the ship for us to kill before running out of bullets and then having the acrid troops walk in and kill most of us. The felines are good fighters, but they're actually best at stealth, having the ability to turn invisible for short periods of time, some even while moving. I suspect, as I did the acrids, that this might be a magical ability of some sort. Not sure if they have more extensive magic, but it's an option."
"So, they're slavers, and they lost a civil war thousands of years ago, why are they just now showing up?" asked the President. "I mean, tens of thousands of years to find one planet, then a few thousand more to find another, and a few thousand more to find us, right?"
"As I understand it, but realize, they don't have any sort of faster-than-light propulsion. The Mothership, it's so large because it's got all their people in it, a billion acrids at least, and at least as many of the slaves," explained Shepard.
"A billion?" asked the President, shocked.
"We don't know this for sure, Mr. President," said Nimzicki.
"Why would I lie to you?" asked Shepard.
"It's not that I suspect you, I suspect your source," said Nimzicki, covering his ass.
"I didn't interrogate him, Mr. Secretary, I know everything he, or rather they, since it's neither male nor female, knew. I know how long they live, all three species. I know that the acrids and insect-taurs can't eat the same food as the felines, though not why. I know that they have an emperor of some sort, a supreme acrid, though they are more of a figurehead to the military council that have truly been in charge for tens of thousands of year, since evacuating their home planet. I know that they kept twelve of the City Destroyers in reserve. I know that each City Destroyer has nearly a quarter of a million Attackers, as well as over a million acrid, insect-taur, and feline crew."
"I also know that, if we were to destroy, or even attempt to destroy, the Mothership, we'll be dooming life on Earth to either a fast or slow death, at least on the level of the extinction that killed most of the dinosaurs."
"Don't you mean all the dinosaurs?" asked Nimzicki.
"Some now, if that were the case, we'd not have a national bird, now would we?" asked Shepard. "No matter, we need to defeat them quickly, and then move the Mothership somewhere safe."
"So, now we don't just need to defeat them, now we need to save them too?" asked Nimzicki.
"Kill the leaders, save the civilians, just like in any war," said Shepard.
"And how exactly are we going to do that? I'm still waiting for your miracle," said the President.
"My sister brought some assets from Cerberus, hopefully one'll be able to work with David and get him working," said Shepard.
"Good luck with that one," said Nimzicki. "He's getting himself plastered after he head about the Johannesburg Destroyer surviving."
"I'll get working on it," said Shepard. He then waved his hand, and the illusions dispersed. "May I go?"
"Good luck, your plan, such as it is, is out only chance," said Grey with a nod.