After a nearly month-long hiatus, I'm back. Sorry, but writer's block and finals both suck, especially when added together. I'll try to update regularly again from now on.

Enjoy!

Chapter 5: Honor and Loyalty

It wasn't long before I realized that we'd been caught in a very bad spot. The Tal'darim had ambushed us in the open. That defied all logic...we should have seen them coming. I had no illusions about the current situation: no terran force, no matter how well-trained in CQC, could stand up to a head-on zealot rush. Marines were falling, gashed by the zealots' rampaging neon-blue psionic blades.

I sprayed bolts at multiple zealots to distract them from the marines and then yelled at the top of my lungs, "All terran units, run for your lives! DISPERSE!" Following my own advice, I waved a hand and ran as fast as my hardskin allowed me to.

I spared a glance backwards. Most of the enemy were ignoring us, but six zealots were chasing us, obviously thinking that I'd lost my wits and that we were beaten. Not the case.

It felt like ages, but in reality, I'd probably only been running for five minutes when I turned around. "Take them out!" Another move I took from the Mongol playbook: the false retreat. My men about-faced, switched to full-automatic, and peppered the zealots with spikes. Their energy shields flared, collapsed, and then they fell unceremoniously.

"Status report," I requested.

"Sir, A company has twenty men down. The rest are all here." Rob reported. "We have fifty Omegas here with us too, but I have no clue where the others are. I contacted Stennis. It looks like battalion-strength protoss are staving off the rest of the 151st, Reikson's men, and the Nova Squadron detachments. The regiment Edmunds posted here spotted zerg coming in."

"Any good news?"

"The Tal'darim seem to be ignoring us. On the flip side, that means they're probably more interested in getting to the core and holding off Reikson. It gives us a perfect opportunity to ambush the Tal'darim nearer to the Temple. Smash and Grab."

I considered that for a moment. "I guess that's all we can do. A company, let's go. This way!" I raised my plasma rifle and dashed up in the direction of the Xel'naga Temple's coordinates. We had to get there before the aliens slaughtered everybody here. "Men, get to the core at any cost! It doesn't matter if both Rob and I go down, you need to keep going until you get there! Once you get to the core, make sure it get's into Valerian's hands, not the Emperor's. Understood?"

"Sir, yes sir!" My men chimed as I led the way.

"More terran raiders! Defend the gods' gifts!" Oh boy...Twenty zealots.

"Full-automatic! Mow them down!" I fired my own rifle as C-14's clattered, hammering the zealots with hundreds of gauss spikes in only a few seconds. Standard anti-protoss tactics: massed fire. "Keep moving!" I shouted.

We scampered over the fallen protoss, their platinum armor riddled with holes. Even in death, there was something...off...about them. I stored that away for processing later.

"Ambush!" A marine screamed. I spun to my left in time to see the marine who'd given the warning scythed by a psionic blade. More zealots had successfully flanked us, threatening to overwhelm us in this tight space.

I poured bolts at a zealot who speared a marine with one of his blades and threw the CMC-clad man aside. The zealot's energy shields collapsed as it swiveled to face me, and then a few shots brought it down before it could do more than stagger in my direction.

A second zealot swung his blades straight at me, forcing me to duck underneath the swipes. Throwing myself at him right-shoulder first, I knocked the fanatic to the ground. I snapped my fist into his face repeatedly, until the warrior finally stopped moving. Back on my feet, I drew my power sword. Within a few heartbeats, I found myself in a duel with a far more-skilled opponent.

This Tal'darim zealot's armor was more exquisite than the rest. A captain, I recognized. Fantastic. The veteran zealot's blades flashed in a blur of motion, and only the crackle of energy on energy told me that I was managing to block the lightning-quick blows. I was tiring, while the zealot was so calm and composed he could have been in a training session. I guess centuries of experience does give you that advantage...Yet, I'd been instructed by Aiur's finest. My heart was racing, but my mind was at peace. This zealot wasn't going to bring me down without one hell of a fight.

As I continued to parry lunges and slashes, I lashed out with my right leg, catching the zealot unprepared. The centuries-old warrior was thrown off, stunned by the 'dishonor' and unconventionality of my rather desperate ploy.

That moment of hesitation was enough. Thousands of hours of practice kicked in, and I slid my blade into a lunge. The humming power sword cut through the zealot's ornamental silver power suit and nicked his throat. Astonished, the protoss backed away from me, holding a hand to the wound. Looking down at it, the zealot blanched in disbelief when he saw blue blood on it. His blood. The burning intensity of the captain's blue eyes seemed to dim as the life flowed out of him. He took one last furious step and then fell in a heap.

"Damn! Now that was awesome!" An Omega Squadron marine exclaimed. "Oo-rah!"

I scanned my surroundings. A dozen zealots laid lifeless on the floor of ruins millions of years old, joined by a score of marines, nine of them from A company. A high price to pay. We'd make the Tal'darim pay for every last one.

Rob huffed. "Zone's clear. We're not too far out from the Temple. Expect more of the 'toss. As you've seen, the bastards play hardball. Watch your sixes."

I nodded. "What he said. Enough people have died today. Let's get to the artifact and end it." I placed my sword back into the sheath, grabbing my rifle. Time to roll.

"Shit." Rob spat. "The Tal'darim have a damned FOB set up. Pylons, photon cannons...no way we can take 'em head-on. But their base only prevents attacks from the front. If we sneak behind them, we can get to the core relatively unscathed."

"Then let's make it happen. Keep your noise level down and your senses sharp." I ordered. Together, we crept by the Tal'darim base, keeping our eyes fixed on the left in dread. If a single probe or sentry saw us, we were all dead men.

We were almost out of range of the base when I heard a chirp. "Oh god…" An observer decloaked in front of us, beeping repeatedly as if it were mocking us. I angrily blasted the observer with a string of plasma bolts, but the damage had been done. Cries of alarm and religious fervor carried from the base over to us as the ground seemed to shake with the impacts of hundreds of protoss men and machines.

The Omegas halted. "You boys go on. We'll cover you, buy you some time...Get outta here!" I was too tired and discouraged to argue. We would be swallowed whole by so many protoss.

"Thanks," was all I could say. "Good luck." Lamest line ever...but what choice did I have? My men followed me dutifully onward. Minutes later, we could hear weapons fire. The sound began to dwindle, until we could pick out the individual rifles. Then silence. The protoss must have thought that was all of us, because they withdrew back to their base. Good men all.

We finally arrived at a low ridge overlooking the nearby Temple, where a huge battle was raging.

"Whoa…" Rob muttered. "Would you look at that...the umojans have teeth."

I followed his gaze to see a large contingent of protoss surrounding the Temple. Four Immortals shelled positions inside the temple as a wave of zealots and sentries charged into a veritable flood of defensive fire, supported by stalkers that blinked and fired, blinked and fired, over and over again. A sniper rifle barked, and a senior zealot's legs fell out from under him. The others roared in fury, redoubling their efforts.

I shook my head. "I'm not throwing less than a company of men at them. That'd be suicide. We'd be butchered by the protoss. The Temple won't stand long after that. Wait for now; don't engage until I give the command myself. Over."

Whoever was directing the defense was smart. They were focusing firepower on the stalkers. The zealots and sentries were less mobile, and the immortals, though they packed more firepower and were more resilient than siege tanks, were too far away. As I watched, a pair of stalkers fell to marauder-fire. There were eight of them left, and I could see a dozen other stalker wreckages littering the battlefield.

The temple was a natural fortress. A cliff face covered it on both sides, which meant the only way in was through the front door. Defenders could just post all their men at the front and wait for the enemy to come to them, although artillery-fire like that of the Immortals would certainly cause damage. The Tal'darim didn't want to destroy the temple, so the effectiveness of the Immortals was limited. Overall, the umojans had the clear advantage, but the protoss' superior technology and possibly numbers meant that they'd force their way inside eventually.

Safely next to the three Immortals, an ornately-armored Tal'darim, possibly a praetor, was bellowing something about 'the exalted one' to his squad of guards, who repeated his words. From the side, a glowing green archon emerged. Since when were archons green?

Spikes and grenades smashed into the ground and air all around it, but the archon ponderously advanced, until it mounted the long staircase and stood upon the threshold of the temple. It unleashed a powerful psionic shockwave. Dozens of sniper rifles were cracking, but the archon barely slowed, the .50 caliber slugs deflected by the archon's shields and body. Archons were pure energy, so it was inconceivably hard to kill them unless you had energy weapons.

The zealots took the chance to advance, calling out to the xel'naga for victory as they swept deeper into the temple. The umojans' fire slackened. More psionic shockwaves emanated from the archon. The immortals adjusted their twin phase disruptors to fire over the main entrance. A massacre was about to begin in earnest.

"Okay men, now's the time. Once we get out there, our first priority is to disable those goddamn Immortals. Sure, they can shrug off Crucio shells, but they're vulnerable to attacks from lighter weapons. Their shields don't activate if you shoot gauss rifles at the thing; they're engineered to deflect only moderate to heavy fire. So in five...four….GO!"

My men chuckled as we swarmed over the ridge in two rows, all of us shooting for all we were worth. Hundreds of rounds sparkled on the Immortals' armor. Smoke vented from tiny breaches all over the three artillery walkers, more appearing by the second. Concussion grenades from our remaining marauders rocked the Immortals, and then they began to teeter over and collapse.

The Tal'darim praetor and his guards snarled in defiance at us, activating their psionic blades in an 'honorable' show of strength and courage, but we didn't even pause in our assault. The dozen or so guard zealots died quickly, cut down by rifle fire from nearly a hundred different Impalers, and the praetor took a trio of grenades to the face.

Up the steps I went, nearly tripping more than once over bodies and ancient stairs. The Tal'darim, in their mad rush, hadn't posted any reserves to guard the entrance. In all likelihood, they didn't even know that their CO and artillery support were out of the equation.

A few yards from the entrance, we could see a solidly-constructed barricade. A few platoons' worth of umojan marines and marauders had fallen there. Not too far away, I could see a makeshift medical station. Eight medics were sprawled out inside of it with the score or so wounded, all dead. Six goliaths had provided fire support, all reduced to scrap metal. A few snipers' nests loomed above us, built into the temple walls...Shadowguards...more than a dozen of their lifeless forms were slumped over the edges of the 'nests.'

It had been a well-organized defense while it lasted. Fallen marines covered the ground behind the goliaths, sliced down or shot as they fled. By a command station some thirty-odd yards away, I found the late Colonel Sage and a few aides. Were we too late? Did no survivors exist in the whole temple? Had the Tal'darim already reached the core?

I unsheathed my sword, which since I'd forgotten to clean it after our last few run-ins with the Tal'darim, had blue blood on it. My men sensed my dark mood, sliding out bayonets and clicking their C-14's to full-automatic. The marauders positioned themselves in the rear.

I raised my sword and then lowered my arm slightly, breaking into a sprint. I didn't know any umojans, but they were humans. These Tal'darim? They were religious extremists, equivalent to the many terrorist organizations back on Earth. Equivalent, in a way, to the batarian slavers and all the mercenaries who'd struck Elysium.

Up ahead, we could hear the zealots and sentries engaging unseen terrans. The last few ranks of the zealot force came into view. "Kill them all!" I roared.

We crashed into them like an avalanche of neosteel, knocking down their entire first rank. Bayonet thrusts efficiently finished them off. Many of the men hurled themselves at the next zealots they encountered, driving them to the floor so that they could render the zealots defenseless. Others began emptying their magazines onto the tall aliens, the armor-piercing 8mm depleted uranium spikes carving through plasma shields, platinum armor, and gray flesh alike. Marauders focused on the sentries, frying them with concussion grenades.

I swung my sword over and over at everything silver-colored I could see, the weapon tearing through power suits and crackling on zealots' psionic blades. I didn't count how many zealots I killed, but it must have been at least five.

The Tal'darim were rolled back by the ferocity of our offensive. Dozens of them had fallen before they could even react, and the distraction had opened them up to umojan fire, which doubtless took down even more of the fanatics.

In the heat of the moment, I'd completely forgot about the archon. The next thing I knew, a surge of green energy stopped us cold in our tracks. The zealots regrouped despite their losses.

I swore. "Marauders, shatter them!" The lumbering armored infantry complied, firing a barrage of dozens of concussion grenades that sent zealots flying and sentries spinning out of control. I waved the marines up for another charge. We scrambled past the marauders and into the devastated zealot formation.

This time we hit them like a sledgehammer, but the zealots were more prepared and fought back ferociously. The archon used slow but potent smashes to pulverize the marines that tried to confront it. I tackled it from the side, only to bounce off uselessly.

The archon was surprised, but he thumped a glowing green fist into my chest, sending me flying over the Tal'darim lines and onto the ground hard. Winded, I was catching my breath when a zealot came at me. Rolling out of the way, I drew my rifle, firing blindly. The zealot knocked away the rifle, raising an arm to stab downwards, but a sniper rifle round smacked into him. He recoiled as if he'd been slapped in the face, slumping to the ground.

-Stay down- I blinked in confusion. Who….Oh. Psionics can communicate telepathically. Right… Three more zealots detached themselves from the melee to storm toward me. A hail of C-14 fire dispatched the Tal'darim warriors.

"Marauders, there aren't many tangos left. Fuck them up!" The heavy infantry followed my command and fired so many grenades that the area was covered in smoke and fire for a couple of microticks. When the area cleared, none of the zealots were still standing. "Status?"

"We have 68 men, sir." Robert reported. "Four are wounded-Lewis is tending to them. Scanners aren't reading any more enemies in zone. We're alone with the umojans for now. Over." Oh yeah...the umojans.

I got to my feet and pointed my rifle in the direction of the sniper rifle fire. "Umojans, show yourselves. I know you're there. Thanks for the assist. Can we secure the artifact before more of the angry protoss show up? Please?"

A squad of eight white-armored marines slowly walked out of their hiding spots, keeping their Impalers carefully aimed at the floor to show that they meant us no harm. Off to the side, three white and neon-blue clad shadowguards materialized, disengaging their cloaking devices.

"Who's in charge here?" I asked. I had an idea about that, but I waited for them to answer me.

"That'd be me." One of the shadowguards stepped forward, resting her sniper rifle lazily against a pillar. "Agent Tesla, at your service." I glanced at the brown-haired, green-eyed psionic agent.

"Nice to meet you, agent Tesla. Thanks again for the covering fire. Where's the core?"

"If only you knew…" Okay seriously, don't sass me. You're outnumbered about four to one, and there is an army of Tal'darim and a brood of zerg looking for the thing. Would you rather have me take it, or Omega squadron? Maybe Dominion ghosts? 'Cuz that's what you'll get.

Tesla gazed at me, as if she were looking for something. It made me distinctly uncomfortable. As she opened her mouth to answer, I saw the archon sweeping at us from behind her. "Get down!" I barked. Tesla lifted her sniper rifle in confusion, but I batted it aside and shoved the shadowguard out of the way. Turning, I pulled out my sword. The archon grinned fiercely. "Die, puny human!"

"Not today." I retorted. "Marauders!"

"What? Sir! You're in the blast radius!" Rob shouted.

"This mission is worth more than just one man, more than all of us! Kill this archon, and get to the damn core. That's an order!"

"...You heard the man! Open up!" The marauders reluctantly aimed at us. The archon reared back in disbelief and terror. I set my jaw into a firm line to suppress my own nervousness. There were worse ways for a marine to go down in this messed up Koprulu Sector.

A split second before the grenades hit, I noticed a wavering forcefield of psionic energy ripple into existence like a bubble, shielding me. Dozens of grenades exploded all around, but the barrier held. Finally, the archon teetered over, fried by the copious grenade detonations.

Looking every which way to locate whoever was responsible for saving me just now, I glimpsed Tesla falling to her knees. Rushing over, I dragged her back upright. She was out of breath, sweating profusely. "We're...even…" she managed to cough out. She collapsed into my arms. A shadowguard with a sense of honor. I leaned her against the wall gently.

"Anna, front and center. See if you can help her out." The young medic complied, crouching over the barely conscious covert operative. Okay, agent. As I was saying, where is the core?

The shadowguard's eyelids fluttered open weakly. Take my fone. It's all there. Tesla reached into a pocket in her suit and removed the electronic device. Lewis waved me over, handing me the fone. I accepted it. Observing that it was off, I put my finger on the power button, but to my amazement, it did so on its own. Soon enough, the map of the temple was displayed, with a mark on the position of the core.

Nifty trick, huh? It's called technopathy. I'm not the best at it, but I picked up a thing or two.

I stared at the umojan. Why am I not surprised? You, miss, are frakking crazy. "Rob, muster the men. We're rolling. The core's not too far from here. Lewis, take a fireteam and hold this room. Everyone else? With me. Umojans, lead the way. Switch your comms to channel three-five-one bravo. Marauders, cover the flanks and rear. Marines, stay vigilant. Move!"

Together, we traversed through the dimly-lit xel'naga structure, approaching the temple's central chamber. Sitting on top of the table inside was a black chip that glowed neon blue. The core?

You're looking at it...Sorry. Couldn't help it.

I smirked. Thanks for that, Captain obvious.

It's Lieutenant, actually.

Smartass. "Mission success, ladies and gents. Let's regroup with Lewis and agent Tesla and find our way back to the others. Good work people." I pumped my right fist into the air, my marines jubilantly following suit. The marauders straightened in pride.

"Edmunds, this is Lee. We have the core. Over."

His response was not what I was expecting. "Get your shit together, Lee! You have zerg coming your way! Reikson and Stennis missed a few of them. They're heading over to relieve you, but you have to survive 'till then, Richard! Edmunds out!"

"You all heard that?" My men nodded grimly. "Form a defensive square around the central chamber. We've got zerg coming out way!" I clenched my plasma rifle tightly.

The ancient building reverberated with the chittering of countless zerg. Shadows danced across the walls. More than a few of the men took a nervous step backward. Rob was there to clap them on the back and restore their confidence.

I forced a steady tone. "Fire on my command only." The zerg closed in, scrabbling on the ancient stone with their claws. "Wait for it…" I could make out the outlines of zerglings and hydralisks. "Wait for it…" One of the hydralisks unleashed a volley of spines that tore a line of holes into the ground in front of us.

"FIRE!" Alpha company kept their training in mind, bringing down the hydralisks first. The zerg bloodthirsty chattering turned into high-pitched shrieks as 8mm depleted uranium gauss spikes launched with enough momentum to punch through concrete walls punctured their carapaces and sent chunks of zerg biomatter and limbs flying.

The zerglings didn't stand a chance. With the first wave of zerg defeated, some of the men cheered prematurely. They weren't able to react in time to fend off the banelings. "Banelings! Don't let them get close!" I hollered in vain. Green balls rolled into our midst, covering unlucky marines in corrosive acid. "Re-form! Re-form! Roaches!" I fired desperately, blue bolts streaking into the particularly tough zerg breed.

The roaches opened their mouths, unleashing floods of acid. Marines choked and sat down heavily onto the floor, their whole front halves covered in bubbling green fluid. A blast of psionic energy toasted as they opened their mouths a second time. "One of the shadowguards is down; over-extended himself. Killed the roaches, but he fried his own brain too." Rob reported, hushed.

"Affirmative. Stay frosty, men. There's bound to be more zerg." I tensed at that thought.

"Aw hell...'lings!" Robert warned. "Shoot 'em!" I was all too happy to obey the senior sergeant's panicked cry. "Hold them off!" He called.

The next ten minutes were hell. Dozens upon dozens of zerglings flung themselves at our lines, indifferent of how many of their fellows fell to our C-14 fire. One-by-one, marines were pounced on, driven helplessly to the floor and ripped apart by the furious arthropodic insectoids. My ears were ringing with the clattering of gauss rifles. It this kept up, I'd emerge from the battle a deaf man...it's odd what the human mind conjures up in times of great stress.

Someone tapped my shoulder. I felt the touch, but I continued firing blindly. My mind jolted. "Ow!"

"Thanks, miss Tesla." Rob said to the Shadowguard. "Sir, as I was trying to tell you, all the zerglings are dead. There's nobody left to shoot...you okay sir?"

"Yeah...just peachy." I slapped myself to rouse my dulling senses. "Sitrep?"

"Forty-two men standing." Robert replied solemnly.

I pounded the wall in frustration. "Damn it!" I calmed myself. "Let's go...Edmunds, Richard here. We're still kicking."

"Thank God. Reikson and Stennis are not too far from the Temple. We've fought off the zerg for now. Get to their coordinates."

"Sure thing, Edmunds. I'll get on that. Over and out."

I blanched when Vaughn's voice came over the general comm without warning. "This is Captain Vaughn. Khalai Protoss naval forces have arrived. They are focusing on the zerg. Be advised: they may interfere with our ground operations." I hoped not-I didn't know what I'd do if I came face-to-face with them; I'd lived among them for a long time.

I spotted Dominion marines standing at attention, letting out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. It had been a chaotic interval (day), but it was over. Soon enough, we'd be safe and sound back in Korhal, and I could turn over the core to Valerian's Moebius contacts.

Colonel. I need to have a conversation with Tesla about getting into peoples' heads. I was used to it, but most people hated being 'violated' mentally intensely. Sir, stop being childish. This is important. Whoa...she called me sir! Listen: there's something fishy about those marines.

I guffawed. Those are Omega Squadron marines. Nobody likes them, and they're very brutal toward umojan POW's, but you don't have to make your bias that obvious, lieutenant.

No, I'm serious. This isn't a jab at their reputation. I swear, there's suspicion written all over them.

Duly noted…you sure you're not being adversely affected by that stunt you pulled off with the psionic forcefield?

Ugh...What do I need to say for you to believe me?

"Welcome back, Colonel Lee." Reikson said. "Hand over the core, please." Balls…

"I don't have it, Reikson." I lied.

"Oh really? Because I heard that you entered in a secret deal with crown prince Valerian to dupe the Emperor. You were planning on delivering it to the Moebius Foundation…" For fuck's sake…

"Fork it over. You're outnumbered two-to-one."

"Stennis, listen to me...Reikson's betrayed us. Once you hear gunfire, engage them!" I focused back on Reikson before I could find out if the Captain heard me or not. "I don't think so, Lieutenant Commander. I think you're slandering my name."

"Heh, why don't we find out? Men, execute these traitors!" Reikson screeched. Agnarsson yanked me into cove. Lewis and two more marines ducked in with us, Tesla in tow. "...What? The rest of the 151st betrayed us? Obliterate them!" Seriously? That has to be one of the cheesiest lines I've heard in my life.

"Crimson Dragon, this is Stennis. We're holding our own, but we're pinned down."

"Stennis, don't count on me for help. Alpha's been reduced to six men and women. Try to send out a company or two to flank them. As long as you can bring more guns to bear, we can still win this. Don't let Reikson drag you into a sustained firefight."

"He's flanking us!...Push them back!" Crap...this is bad.

"Surrender, Lee! We'll spare your troops!"

"He's lying," Tesla growled. "He'll just have all of your men resocialized."

"Stennis! Retreat! Take the 151st to Edmunds. He'll vouch for you!" I promised.

"But-"

"No buts! Leave me behind. I'm entrusting the battalion to you. Don't let me down!"

"...Yes sir."

"Tesla...if you cloak, you can make it out. One of the 57th Mechanized Infantry Division's three regiments is quartered to the south of here. Tell the CO there I sent you, and you'll get a free trip to wherever you want. I'm not getting out of this one alive...My luck was bound to run out someday. I guess this is the day. You're a competent operative. You'll go far. I can tell."

"I'm flattered, but I can't. The core was my personal responsibility, as per Colonel Sage's orders. Since you have it now, and the unit my team was posted to has been virtually wiped out, I'm afraid you're stuck with me, lieutenant colonel."

"What the psychic said," Rob echoed. "Ain't leavin' you to face the bastards alone, sir."

"I'd be a terrible marine if I left my commanding officer to die." Lewis input mildly.

"You're fools, then." I muttered gruffly, touched at their loyalty. "All of you."

"Aww...how moving." Reikson clapped mockingly. "I think I'm going to cry."

"Son of a bitch." Rob glowered at him. "Your time's coming."

"Sooner than you'd believe," A new voice added in the signature 'speech' of the protoss. Wait...Protoss? What in the name of Aiur…A golden-armored figure halted next to me, looking imperiously down at the Officer in-charge of Omega squadron.

"Protoss…" Reikson snarled. "You can't stop the Dominion's finest. Surrender and I won't turn you over to Project Blackstone."

"You are a fool, Reikson. You truly believe that I arrived alone to Cavernus?" I heard the familiar sound of protoss troops warping in. Grinning, I remembered who this newcomer was. Praetor Naoros, my brother-in-arms himself.

Reikson's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Uh...err...MEN?! OPEN FIRE!" The resocialized marines did so, but the normal marines did the smart thing-they ran for their lives.

"Khassar de Templari!" From order comes justice; the motto of the zealot order. A torrent of ten-foot warriors surged past me, blades flashing. Sentries cast guardian shields and stalkers tore the Omegas apart piecemeal-a few of them would surround a squad, gun them down, and then blink away to another unassuming squad's position. Reikson's men were quickly being overwhelmed, unaccustomed to fighting a numerically-superior force of protoss.

"I owe you one, Naoros." I said.

"We are brothers, Richard. I am merely ensuring the safety of family. I claim no debts."

"What took you so long, anyway? Cavernus is a lot closer to Shakuras then Dominion space is."

"That is true, but this time your Dominion was far more successful at keeping their operation a secret. Luckily, my spymaster is one of the most vigilant of all."

"I see...you realize I can't give you the core, right?"

"Core?" Naoros's expression was one of amusement and mock-confusion. "I have heard not of any 'core.' How can I take away an object that does not exist?"

I grinned. "You're the best, bro."

"Of course...terrans," he glanced at my companions. "You are all fortunate you have my brother as your...CO. Take my word for it: no terran is quite like him, for more reasons than one. Richard, we shall meet again soon. War is brewing…" Naroros's voice became distant. "After nearly four years, the stage is set once more for a Great War. Stay safe, brother."

"Likewise, Naoros. I daresay Tassadar will be pissed if you join him before I do."

"Haha…you are a comedian...worry not, I will ensure he is graced with your company first." We shook hands firmly. "Farewell."

"See ya." I waved. He nodded, going off to join his men in mopping up the remnants of the Omegas. "Don't accidentally kill my men, please!" I reminded him.

My dumbfounded subordinates were shocked into speechlessness. Finally, Rob broke the silence. "You never said you were that close with the Toss."

"You never asked. I lived with the protoss for nearly six years before being given a lieutenant colonel's commission by Crown prince Valerian. Aiur, before it fell, was my second home."

"What do we do with the agent?" He inquired.

"Cavernus III's pretty much a Dominion colony now. If we were to just let her go, I'm 100% positive Nova Squadron would nab her. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Tesla, stick with us for now. Once we get back to Korhal, I can have Prince Valerian arrange a ride to Umoja for you, or...you can join the 151st. After all, I did just lose an entire company in this operation."

"Sir?" Robert questioned.

"We could use your expertise. I don't have any psionics in the one-five-one. Sure, you could feed umojan intelligence with any info that you pick up from me, but all life's a gamble, and you don't look like that type of underhanded individual. In the end, it's your choice. What do you think?"

"...I'd be happy to. It's…not like I have anywhere else to go."

"Cool. Welcome aboard then. Agnarsson, let's get to Stennis and the rest of the boys. This is enough fighting for one day, I think."

The memories stopped playing. "That's the story. Or at least, part of it."

Shepard and his squad were both confused and impressed. "I'll bet that battle wasn't even the craziest you've been through?" Shepard hypothesized.

"You'd be right. The Braxis, Aiur, Tarsonis, Char, and Ulnar Campaigns were the worst. This battle was a tiny skirmish compared to those five. But it's a good sampling of how wars are fought back in Koprulu. They're chaotic and brutal."

I'd originally decided to show these memories to cheer everyone up and make them at least temporarily forget about Mordin's death. It was working. Conversations were springing up as I answered Shepard. I inwardly grinned at the change in the room's atmosphere.

"So what's the plan now, Commander?" Shaun asked.

"Now we wait until the Normandy docks at the Citadel. Councilor Valern wanted to talk to me about Udina, remember? I hope Udina's not a genuine traitor. The Alliance Parliament and Prime Minister Shastri are already dead. Humanity can't lose its councilor too."

"Even if it does," I corrected. "The Terran Dominion and Protoss Protectorate carry considerable weight. We'd be happy to keep Earth's interests in mind. We may not have a council seat, but the zerg, terrans, and protoss united are far more powerful than the citadel can ever hope to be."

"Plenty of folks back home would appreciate that, I'm sure." Shepard agreed.

"To Earth, the Milky Way, and the defeat of the Reapers." Shaun toasted the two of us jokingly, even though he only had a cup of water. We humorously joined in on the toast, forgetting about the apocalyptic war that raged across the galaxy for a time, lost in old memories, nostalgia for the good old days, and fantasies of a glorious victory.

This chapter's shorter than usual, but we'll be returning to the main Reaper War storyline after this.

Next chapter: The Citadel coup.

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