Hotel St Ives, Planet Curacao
Cortez system

After what felt like forever, Aela was to finally ready to hand in her report. Weeks of traveling around the Sirius system and meeting a great deal of interesting people had led to all sorts of insights into the weird and wonderful humans. She definitely felt that the humans would change things in the galaxy. She knew that they were going to set all sorts of… precedents in the future.

Just thinking about how to explain the veritable powder keg that was Human distrust of the other Houses was going to be a nightmare. There was just no way that they'd let any one person represent all of the Houses. None of the Houses could trust any representative other than their own to represent their interests.

The fact that, collectively, the humans had more than enough firepower to take on any individual Citadel fleet easily did not help at all. There were no peace agreements between the Houses like the Citadel's Treaty of Farixen. They were free to build whatever and however many ships they pleased. Their only real restriction, and the closest thing she found to the Humans definitively agreeing to something was this Boorman treaty she found. It could be summarized into a non-aggression pact between the four Houses. Open full scale warfare was banned between the Houses, and no one was allowed to position military ships larger than a gunboat within the Border systems. In theory, this brought the Humans under one collective group, at least by Citadel standards.

A group comprised of members that, to her understanding, actively try to sabotage the other members through any and all means available to them other than open warfare. Goddess, it was a mess she wouldn't have wished on anyone.

Still, the report had been sent the moment the fleet arrived in orbit of Curacao, and she had simply been waiting to deliver the details in person to Matriarch Benezia herself in her room, pacing about like there was no tomorrow.

Of course that didn't stop Perkins from smirking like he knew something was up. He had just been sitting on a chair by the corner of the room watching as she paced about the room.

"I understand you're worried," Perkins said, his voice light with mischief. " But I don't see the point in wearing down the carpet with your pacing."

"I'm meeting Matriarch Benezia," Aela replied exasperatedly. "One of the most influential and powerful Asari in the galaxy. She's certainly one of the wisest and likely the absolute best choice the Council could have picked to represent Citadel interests. Therefore, I'm worried that I'll have to break to her that you humans are so… difficult." she finished, waving her hands around to try and grasp the situation.

"I don't think you're in as bad a situation as you make it out to be, you know…" Perkins replied. "I mean, it's not like we're setting up a lot of incredible precedents, right?"

Aela could only sigh in response to that. "Actually, yes! The thing is, you humans are very different from every other first contact we've ever made. Only the Rachni were anything close, and that was more due to the millennia long war that resulted from that contact."

"You humans, for one thing, don't even share the same technological base we have, and at least the Rachni with all their weirdness, still had that. You don't make use of one the most important elements Citadel society knows of, and you have a grasp of energy generation and projection that is much greater than ours. You even have genuine artificial wormhole generators, and the means to travel what sounds like natural wormholes."

"Then there is the fact that I'm absolutely sure that there is no way that any of the Houses will let any single representative represent all of Sirius humanity. They'd all want their own embassies, with their own ambassadors, which will definitely rankle some heads back home, particularly the Batarians."

"All of that, I'm supposed to convey to one of the most powerful individuals in both the Asari Republics, and Citadel space. I don't know why I wouldn't be pressured!" she finished.

"Well, no one's going to die if you tell her all that," Perkins replied with a shrug. "We humans are flexible in that. Change is coming, and I for one look forward to it."

"I don't know if my own people will be as welcoming. This will change far too much…" Aela replied with a helpless shrug.

"Cheer up, that just means you have to take your future with both your hands and grasp it firmly!" Perkins replied cheerily. "Though, I feel like I must bring up my future…employment issues."

"I'm not sure how I can help you there, Perkins. I'm only an archaeologist, and while my University does allow for a security budget, I'm not sure if it will fit your price range."

"I'm not worried about money. I'm loaded in Sirius creds, and I'm sure that when a favorable exchange rate is introduced or some such, my money will at least help me survive comfortably wherever I go. What I'm asking for is an opportunity to explore."

"You see, from the sounds of it, Sirius space isn't that big compared to what you have under your control. Citadel Space sounds positively huge. I want to see that. If I can't serve Bretonnia, then I want to live out the tales of my people, going boldly into virgin territory and, while not necessarily claiming it in the name of Bretonnia, certainly interacting with the people, and maybe discovering new and valuable trade routes. I'm sure that while escorting you to your various dig sites and doing the occasional supply run, I'm going to see a lot more of the galaxy at large. What do you say to that then, Aela?"

It was certainly not a bad idea. Perkins was definitely a capable pilot, and he had a decent ship too. He even had the money to go and purchase what would amount to a freighter if need be. It seemed a reasonable enough request. "That sounds good to me. We'll discuss the details as we go, but I like to think that we're going to have some interesting adventures together, Perkins."

"Sir Stanley didn't discover the source of the greatest river on our homeworld without some adventures of his own. I'd like to think I'm merely living up to the reputation and legacy of my forefathers, Aela. Besides, I'm sure it'll be safer than fighting Corsairs." Perkins replied confidently.

Aela was about to explain the Blood Pack, when she received a message from her Omnitool. "She's here." she said, after reading the alert. "I am to meet her in her suite a floor up, without you, Perkins."

"State secrets and all. I understand. I'll meet you later for dinner, then. I'm still able to charge His Majesty for a lot of the amenities here, and I best be taking advantage of that."

Aela could only smile at that. Perkins, if he were a model of the average Bretonnian, seemed to take nearly everything in stride. The only thing that seemed to really faze him was the Blood Dragons and the Corsairs. It would be good to have someone like that in her next dig, wherever that may be.

Still, as she made her way to Matriarch Benezia's room, she couldn't help but feel some of her nervousness return. This was likely to be the most momentous event in a generation. This would be the point in history where generations will look back and say "I wish I could've been there." Interesting times were ahead, and she was spearheading its arrival.

Upon arriving at the room, she greeted the guard, doubtlessly a commando, with a smile and bow. "Greetings, I'm Dr. Aela D'Avo, here to meet Matriarch Benezia as requested."

The commando simply nodded, and after a brief security check, was ushered into the suite.

It was certainly rather classy. Whoever designed this particular room must have taken a page from the Bretonnians, with it's heavy use of dark cherry red wood walls and furniture, and lots of scarlet furniture. Benezia was sitting down on one rather plush scarlet chair, reading a book until she noticed Aela come in.

"Dr. D'Avo. Please come in, take a seat," she said in a very welcoming voice.

"Thank you Matriarch," Aela replied as she took the seat opposite her.

"From what I've managed to read in your reports, and what I've witnessed myself among the Bretonnians, these humans are certainly… different." Benezia started.

"Yes Matriarch, I honestly don't expect them to… react in the same manner as the other races have. They will demand something… unprecedented, I believe." Aela replied.

"Oh?" Benezia said, her voice remaining calm and almost motherly. "Please elaborate."

Aela gulped slightly. "From what I understand, one of the few things preventing the humans from descending into open warfare is the Boorman treaty, a sort of non-aggression pact between all of them. Other than that though, as I'm sure you've read in my report, there seems to be a lot of underlying tension between all the Houses for territory, resources, and influence here in the Sirius sector. Now that they've been opened up to the rest of the galaxy, they will be competing for any territory to be definitively assigned to them, and this isn't counting the possibility of some simply wishing to form colonies independent from the Houses. I am positively sure that the humans will demand that each House will have their own embassy, and equal non-preferential treatment as well. If we favor one House over another openly, I'm afraid we'll drive the other Houses away."

"So you are advocating a very gentle hand when dealing with them, then? Especially in regard to colonization rights?" Benezia inquired.

"Well… yes. My understanding of them leads me to believe that, well, they're starting to run out of living space. While many of them do not mind living in stations light years away from the nearest planet, I think it's a matter of real living space. Bretonnia has openly revealed that they are on the path to total famine if they don't get any new colonizable planets soon, hence their massive investment into Planetform Inc." Aela relied a little more comfortably.

"And what is their position on slavery? I've not seen any mention of it in your reports." Benezia suddenly asked.

"I'm honestly not sure," Aela responded. That was a little off tangent from their previous topic. "But from what I picked up when describing the other races to Perkins, all of the Houses disapproved of what the Batarians do, though I am unsure if it's due to the actual slavery or the state-sponsored piracy."

"I see," Benezia replied, suddenly standing up.

"And what of your thoughts on each of the individual Houses? I'm sure that beyond what their government told you, you've had a chance to observe their people. What would you say about them?"

That was certainly a difficult question. People were complicated after all, but…

"Well… they're like us in a way. It's hard to really put a stereotype to them. They've got both good and bad people like us, but I think I've managed to find a few traits common to each House."

"The Bretonnians," Aela started. "Seem to be able to take just about any situation short of certain death with a kind of… cheekiness that I've never seen before. In fact, if their enemies demanded surrender, and offered certain death for defiance, I wouldn't be surprised if they gave some sort of witty retort that would end with the Bretonnians having a devilish grin on their faces. They are intelligent, hardworking stoics, though they do have their own problems. I'm sure you've heard of the Mollies, seeing as they were our first hostile encounter with Humans, but there is a another relatively new group starting to form. Perkins has mentioned that there are a bunch of eco-terrorist attacks, primarily on Planetform and BMM executives, all being claimed by the "Gaians", supposed protectors of Planet Gaia in the Edinburgh system, a rare biological marvel that I think we should try to visit."

"And these new terrorists are all relatively young, yes?" Benezia asked.

"By Sirius standards, yes. These two groups are very young, and I don't think they have gathered full steam yet, though they themselves have a cause beyond money or power, which many Sirius criminals have." Aela replied."A common theme in crime in the Sirius is that many of the groups turned to crime because they felt it was their only available option. Lack of jobs, safety, freedom, all of them fight for some reason or another, and very few do it for sheer profit or powertrip. At least to my knowledge."

"Then that is something I think we can help to address." Benezia replied happily. "Though I'd like to hear more about the other Houses, so please, continue."

Aela simply nodded and continued. "Rhinelanders on the other hand seem to have two personas: one for work and one for everything else. In work they are from what I hear hard workers, and some of the finest engineers in the Sirius sector. While at work they may put up a rather cold persona, but once they are having fun… well they are like a Maiden in Omega. Other than that though, they seem to be rather deflated. A lot of the change that was promised to them in the revolution hasn't come to pass yet, and I suspect some of the old revolutionaries are starting to make trouble again. Their Chancellor has revealed that a couple of the older revolutionary groups have begun gathering again. Meanwhile, a lot of their pirates are really revolutionaries who are unsatisfied with the way things are going in Rhineland. A… representative of theirs contacted me and told me of the many problems they have had since the revolution. Broken promises by the government, continued abuses by companies, a steadily worsening economy. Things are just getting worse and worse for them. They feel that our presence, could change things for the better, though. We might provide enough pressure to help resurrect the economy, and maybe even get the rebel groups to settle with the government."

"I think I have a plan for that, but I will wait for more of your comments on the other Houses first. I want to see if it could work for more than one House." Benezia replied.

"The Kusari are a complicated people. They place great emphasis on a concept called face, something akin to shame, but deeply more complicated. I myself don't quite get all of it, and even the other Humans don't necessarily understand it either. Suffice to say though is that it can drive them to do incredible acts in order to remove the shame from their honor, up to and including ritual suicide. Other than that though… The older generation wishes for a more isolated policy. The less interaction with the others, the better. If Kusari could be completely cut off and they could maintain their lifestyle, then that would be perfect for them. The younger ones, though, love the other Houses. They constantly visit the expat bases to indulge in everything foreign, and are very receptive to new ideas." Aela finished before taking a deep breath. The next bit would be… difficult.

"I have also… come into contact with their most prominent and dangerous revolutionary group, the Blood Dragons." Aela started cautiously. "They apparently followed me and Perkins to the very edge of the Hokkaido system, and I suspect they cleared out bandit. From what I've managed to gather, they seem to be some sort of good pirate of the Sirius sector, and are among the very finest pilots. Perkins claims that a single flight of them could take on a Battleship and win. Anyway, they fight to change the current regime, seeing as the current Shogun is a descendant of one placed by the Samura Corporation. I was also under the protection of two… individuals, I guess, while I was in New Tokyo: Ainu and Kyoto, though I never met them in person. I suspect they are related to the Blood Dragons in some way, possibly high level agents."

"They will be… difficult." Benezia replied after a moment. "I cannot rely on your observations alone for this, I'm afraid. I fear that there is a lot more subtext to each of their actions that would take decades to fully understand. And the generational clash… fascinating. I'm sure Aethya would love this. As to the Blood Dragons, we cannot pick a side in their war. The fact that they support us though… I think is a sign that we can operate in Kusari without much criminal interference."

"Finally, there is Liberty. Very friendly, and certainly the most outspoken of the Houses. They aren't afraid to show outward emotion in and out of work from what I hear. Certainly the most prosperous of the Houses, they own the most habitable planets and the most influential companies. Interestingly enough though, they are very dependent on raw resource imports, having mined out most of the easily accessible deposits. This has led to a decline in their manufacturing, and a dearth of unemployed workers, which has in turn led to the Liberty Rogues, a collection of criminals that turn to crime for, well… survival. No political motives, just survival, and maybe occasionally getting rich."

"Just skilled pilots and workers who need a job and a living?" Benezia asked.

"As far as I understand it yes, though President Wallace claims that they will not be a problem for long."

"Then we merely need to provide opportunities for these workers, and they'll leave their criminal backgrounds for some very well paid jobs, then." Benezia replied confidently. "Unlike the more political criminals, I think that if we can offer them a chance to a decent living without any risk on their part, we will have ourselves a decent inroad to advancing our technological base."

Aela let her mind process that for a bit. It sounded good on paper, but… humans were still a wildcard. She wasn't sure if enough would take the offer. "It might work, but I cannot guarantee it, Matriarch." she replied. "There are just two more factions that I would like to point out, though."

"Please go on. I'm sure you'd only mention them if you thought it important." Benezia replied.

"The two largest and most powerful criminal factions in the Sirius sector are the Outcasts and Corsairs." Aela continued. "Here things get vague. No one knows where they come from at all. All anyone knows is that they are to be feared, as they are the most ruthless and cunning of the criminal factions in the Sirius, and that they are Human. The Outcasts are the primary source of the mystery drug Cardamine, which has an absurd addiction rate. It provides an incredibly powerful and near instantaneous high with absolutely no chance for the body to build up a tolerance for it. Long term use leads to permanent genetic damage, though no one knows how it can do that. Humans can build up a huge dependency on the drug and I'm told that extreme long term users die if they don't get their fix. I'm unsure how it would react to Asari biology, but it is not something I would like to find out. They have managed to feed every House this drug through the use of intermediaries, and no one knows how they make it, or even where it comes from. They are very rich, have some of the most skilled pilots, and some decently developed homebrewed weapons."

"I'm interested in this Cardamine," Benezia started. "It sounds too good to be a natural drug. I'm thinking that they are somehow producing it chemically, though I admit I am not familiar enough with medicine to reach reliable conclusions. How much of a problem is Cardamine in the Sirius sector, though?"

"To my knowledge," Aela replied. "It's most problematic in Liberty, especially in Manhattan. Many young men and women are attracted to its high and from what I understand some are willing to kill for their next fix. Rhineland would be next I guess, but only in New Berlin. It has a lot of traction in its numerous nightclubs, and as usual the youth are particularly attracted to it. Bretonnia's usage of the drug is much more limited, instead being available only to the very richest as far as I know. It just doesn't seem to be as popular there. Kusari on the other hand, is pretty limited in its exposure to Cardamine. Its helped that as far as I know, none of the local criminals want to even associate themselves with the drug. Its sale and use seems to be restricted to the expat stations in the nation, and even then only with the youth. The older ones practically abhor it."

"I think it's a drug that deserves observation." Benezia continued. "If the humans have treated it this illegally, then I think we should give it at least some amount caution. The people who sell this drug are dangerous, and we don't even know where they come from."

"In that I agree." Aela replied. "Now, on to the last group."

"The Corsairs are ruthless pilots, with some very impressive ships and weaponry that compliments their reputation as excellent pilots. They strike at nearly everyone for any kind of supplies, from food to complicated machine parts. This suggests that wherever they come from it's a harsh world or, more likely, they don't even have one and survive in some space station in some unknown system. Either way, they must lack in raw resources and probably even arable land, hence the need to resort to piracy. It would also likely instill a very survival first culture, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were raised to be pirates"

"How do they get to the House systems, though? I assume that the Houses lock their gates to these pirates to prevent them from accessing their systems." Benezia inquired.

"Perkins has recently informed me of a natural phenomenon called Jump Holes, natural Jump Gates of sorts. Criminals of all sorts make use of them to travel between systems, but they are difficult to find. Often, they are located within particularly difficult terrain like nebulae or asteroid fields."

"So they have means of finding traversable wormholes?" Benezia asked.

"I assume yes, though Ageira highly discourages their use. They say that they are quite dangerous and do not guarantee safety when travelling through them." Aela replied.

"It just means that there is hope yet for us. We can quite possibly recreate the human Jump Gates without Aegira. "Benezia replied, radiating that wave of sureness that only a Matriarch of her standing could achieve. "Though if Perkins knows about these Jump Holes, then Bretonnia must know of them. And if Bretonnia knows of them, then I'm sure the other Houses do as well. I wonder why they haven't figured out how to make their own Jump Gates yet?"

"I don't know, Matriarch." Aela replied. " But I do hope that where the other Houses failed, we will succeed. I do think that is everything you need to know. Do you have any other questions?"

"None for now, Dr. D'Avo." Benezia replied. "I will contact you if I need anything."

"Thank you, Matriarch." said Aela as she bowed and made her way back to her room. This wasn't as bad as she thought. Matriarch Benezia looked like she would know how to handle the situation in the talks later, as if she was merely going to visit Tevos on the Citadel. That surely had to be a good sign, right?