After-Action Report: Re. Artemis Tau, Macedon System, Sharjila

Attn. Admiral Hackett

Lieutenant Commander Revan Shepard (Spectre)

1/29/2183, 2045 hours (Earth Standard Time/Greenwich Mean)

At 0347 hours, the SSV Normandy entered the Macedon System. Objective was to ensure the absence of any geth presence in the system and to scan the system for any valuable artifacts and resources. During Navigator Pressley's scan of the system, he discovered a titanium deposit on an asteroid in the belt and a large concentration of xenon on Fargeluse. While scanning the planet Poloran, Navigator Pressley discovered a faint signal emanating from an ancient beacon. Chief Engineer Adams and his salvage team recovered the beacon, which was time-stamped 240 years ago. There was nothing aboard of note except some of the writings of Matriarch Dilinaga. Combined with the other writings found so far, we have accumulated enough ancient asari scripts that Dr. Liara T'soni has offered to catalogue and preserve them, with the ultimate goal of sending them to the University of Thessia for analysis. The writings were in an ancient asari dialect, which Dr. T'soni is currently translating. Initial findings indicate that the writings are part of a series of mathematical treatises, with an emphasis on the interactions of dark energy with quantum foam and subsequent implications regarding string theory.

While scanning the planet Sharjila, Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau discovered a small pre-fab base that was not on any official records of the planet. Consequently, I assembled a ground team consisting of Combat Specialist Garrus Vakarian and Combat Specialist Urdnot Wrex to investigate the base and eliminate any geth presence. We achieved ground infiltration at 0914 hours. Upon arriving at the base with the Mako, we came under fire from the base's sentries. Combat Specialist Vakarian returned fire with the Mako's main gun, eliminating all enemy resistance in less than 60 seconds. Upon securing the perimeter, the ground team disembarked from the Mako and entered the base, where we encountered further resistance from what was subsequently identified as members of the Red Nova pirate gang, a moderately-sized syndicate that began operating in the Skyllian Verge shortly after the Skyllian Blitz. After a brief firefight, the leader of the Red Nova crew, an asari, was killed and the remaining crew (two humans and a salarian) surrendered. Leaving the prisoners under the guard of Combat Specialist Urdnot Wrex, Combat Specialist Vakarian and I searched the base for evidence. In the upstairs office, I found evidence that the afore-mentioned asari leader of the gang, one Dahlia Dantius, was the sister of Ambassador Nassana Dantius, and had been blackmailing her sister by threatening to reveal her existence to the ambassador's superiors, which would have led to the suspension of Ambassador Dantius's security clearance. As I had received a message from the ambassador after finishing the Therum mission requesting a meeting with me on the Citadel, this leads to some obvious questions as to the purpose of said meeting. I will meet with Dantius, and tell her of her sister's death, and report the content of the follow-up conversation in an addendum to this report.

Also found at the base were cargo manifests linking the Red Nova crew to several pirate attacks in the Artemis Tau cluster, as well as trading links to batarian slavers in the Attican Traverse. We also found coordinates of several mineral deposits on the planet, mainly thorium and magnesium. (Coordinates contained in attachment). We also found some salvage at the base – namely, a crashed exploration probe and a container with the writings of Matriarch Dilinaga. The data module from the probe was subsequently stripped, and is currently being analyzed by Intelligence Analyst Marcus Greico. The writings of Matriarch Dilinaga were preserved, and were added to the Normandy's existing collection of writings.

With nothing further to discover, we called for the Normandy to pick us up, and left the planet at 1400 hours. The prisoners were placed in the Normandy's brig, and will be released at the next human colony with a suitable prison.

Summary: Red Nova pirate base destroyed. Titanium, Xenon, Thorium, and Magnesium deposits discovered and recorded. Two writings of Matriarch Dilinaga found. Exploration probe found, data module recovered. Three criminals arrested.

END REPORT

Follow-up: I spoke with Nassana Dantius, who told me that she had planned on manipulating me into killing her sister for her. As I had already done so, she offered access to prototype asari biotic implant mods as recompense. I accepted her offer, and the conversation ended.

***TOP SECRET***

Admiral Hackett: The leader of the pirate gang was the sister of an ambassador?

Commander Shepard: Yes, sir.

Admiral Hackett: Those must be some awkward family meetings… Keep a lid on this for now until you have your meeting with Ambassador Dantius – I'd rather not have to deal with a diplomatic incident with the asari on top of everything else we have going on right now.

Commander Shepard: It's not as if I was going to post this as my Facespace status, sir. I'll talk to the ambassador, see what I can do.

Admiral Hackett: Anyway, good work taking down the Red Nova crew. Every criminal gang you bring down is one fewer group that can attack our colonies.

Commander Shepard: Just doing my job, sir.

Admiral Hackett: I wish every soldier had your definition of "doing your job". Hackett out.