15
Chapter 5: Trials and Travels
Over the next month of relay travel Nick has been impressed with Miss. Lawson's skill in the training ring and her intelligence, but also annoyed at her arrogance and superiority complex. What he does not like is his mounting suspicions of what organization she belongs to. While he does not like the Alliance and their accommodationist policies he still views Cerberus as little more than a terrorist organization. Worried he vows to keep a close eye on Miss Lawson for the duration of the trip or until he can confront her about her employer.
Fed up her cockiness he seeks her out after most of the crew have fallen asleep. Walking into the mess he sees her getting a drink of water. "You, I have had it with your evasiveness and arrogance. Training room. I want answers." With a self-assured smile she gets and walks to the arena. Both of them wordlessly don the sparring armor. Stepping into the ring it hums as it disables biotic fields, "No Biotics, this will be contest of skill and strength."
"Very well," Miranda replies shifting her position into a fighting stance.
Nick lunges and his blow is blocked with a swift parry they enter a close dance as Miranda uses her flexibility and agility to Nick's powerful strikes from hitting. They go on for several minutes neither side telling. Miranda is slowly tiring, she is not use to this kind of combat. Nick on the other hand has yet to reach his peak. Years of combat all across the galaxy has honed his body into a weapon, which the N7 program tempered and the knightly orders has polished. Despite all of this he is amazed this women has defied his victory for so long. Setting his jaw he increases his speed throwing her off guard. The first pattern shatters her guard, the second disarms her, and the third lands her on her back his blade lightly resting at her throat. "You think you are the prefect form of humanity, not even close. I have seen perfection and you are a pale shadow of it. So," pressing the tip of his sword into her neck," "Who do work for?"
"Fine, you win. I am a representative of Cerberus."
"A terrorists then."
"No, we exists for the betterment of humanity. My employer believes that humanity should be at the forefront of the galaxy. That is why we are helping you and your planet. Now get off of me or you'll regret it," Nick feels a sharp poke in his groin. Shaking his head he gets up and offers Miranda a hand. She accepts it and adds, "When are done playing knight in shining armor I may have a job for you."
"No thanks. I have discovered my purpose and don't need to work for a "terrorist" organization."
On Matanuska Horus has completed all the trials and tests to become a knight. His final challenge was to raid a slaver base and come back with something valuable. He lead his squad to victory, he personally wiped out the garrison on the main compound and returned with hundreds of freed slaves. These people a mix of human, turian, asari, and salarian have all pledge their loyalty to Horus and in return for freeing them they want to live and work on Matanuska. This gives Horus a way to fulfill his desire of freeing the enslaved in the Abyss, bring them back to his planet and have them work, live, and if they choose to fight the slaver threat. It won't be an easy life but it will have be a purposeful one.
The Tempest returned without much fanfare. A shuttle was dispatched from the orbiting frigate as soon as their security codes were verified. Nick and Miranda were alone in the shuttle, his knights are going to come down later. Horus was discussing his idea of increasing the planets population with freed slaves by giving them paid work and freedom to choose how to live their lives. "The idea is sound in theory, but we don't have the ships do this," replies the Lord Castellan.
"That is true then it must be a priority as part of the agreement you make with Miss Lawson. Also we should try to get our own shipyard, if we expand in the Abyss then we will have to be self-sufficient. In addition we would need a small battlegroup to ensure initial security and strike capability."
"What should I offer then?"
"All of the resources except what we need for our own use and any information or items of interest we find on the slaver bases."
"Why don't you do this? You are the youngest Knight of Guard, Order of the Storm no less. This is your idea Horus, you fight for it."
The shuttle was detoured to the Keep of the Knights of the Guard. The castle is located on top of a plateau its sheer cliff sides are the only elevation for miles. The fortress is a mix of old and new. Stone walls several meters high, have ablative armor plate on the outside and kinetic barriers built in. The towers are rounded bastion with a quartet of heavy weapons on the roof and dozens of firing windows. Hanging from the keep are banners that have the heraldry of each order. "Impressive," remarks Miranda as the shuttle enters the hangar bay, hewn from rough living rock in the cliff face. An honor guard of each Order forms at the end of the shuttle ramp. As it opens the Knights present arms as one unit, impassively they watch the two people walk down the entry way to the Lord Castellan and Knight Horus. They start chanting in ancient Latin a chant of martial pride and honor as the party exchanges pleasantries.
"Miss Lawson," begins the Lord Castellan, "I welcome you to Matanuska and Keep of the Praesidium. Now I will leave in the more than capable hands of Knight Horus." Bowing he turns and leaves with his guardians. Nick also takes his leave citing the need to check on the Turian soldiers he rescued. That leaves just Horus towering over Miranda. His presence fills the room and is far more impressive than his imposing size.
His deep sonorous voice booms out, "Milady would you care to join me somewhere more comfortable and begin these negotiations?" Lost for words Miranda can't help but stare at his perfect visage. She nods slowly her legs feel like jelly and her mind mush. "Very well please follow me." With a flourish Horus turns his long cape flowing as he turns on his heel. Miranda simple follows in awe. They reach a warm inviting room. One side as a fireplace and above it a large computer display, one had the all in one communication and equipment management suite, the last two had dark wood paneling holding trophies, a few pictures, and books of all things. Miranda walks over to the bookshelf and scans the spines, Horus smiles, "See any you like milady?" A slight shift in posture and she turns like a shy teenage girl with a crush not at all like the confident and deadly women she is. "Join me," continues Horus. He is sitting near the fire on a chair build for his large size opposite him is a plainly beautiful table and another chair, normal sized.
Sitting down Horus offers anything to drink, she politely refuses. "To business then?" ask Horus. Miranda nods. Horus begins, "This planet holds a large amount of mineral wealth. We need help extracting this wealth and modernizing the planet." The terms are this your organization gets all of the resources except what we need for local use. In addition we require a small battlegroup for security and to grow this planets population. I want the ships to free the slaves of this region and bring them back to work and live and freedom and safety. I know that you won't be here forever, so the last request is to help build the infrastructure to build and maintain cruiser size ships. In return you get the mineral wealth of this planet and its system plus any information we find raiding the slavers." As he presents his case his argument is layered his with powerful stature and charisma. Miranda her senses already dulled by looking upon his form is further overwhelmed by his speech. The God-Emperor of Man created the primarchs to be powerful statesman, diplomats, and generals. His efforts were not wasted and Miranda was completely swayed. Finding her voice she agrees to his terms, this could be a good way to expand human power and influence in the region.
Nick was waiting in the outer part of the medical bay. He oversaw their transfer from the Tempest to the Keep. He wanted to ensure that the medbay has the necessary dextro-acid medicines. An unnecessary concern since Horus and his Storm Knights have been rescuing xeno populations from slavery. A young Hospitaller Knight sticks his head and tells him that the turian captain is awake and wants to see you. Nick gets up and wakes into the room and is greeted with a week smile. "The medics say I owe you my life and the lives of men. How many did you save?"
"Only you and four others. They are recovering slowly. What I came down here for is to ask you about your future. We can send you back to Citadel space or you can stay here become a Knight and fight the slavers in the Abyss to rescue those unfortunate souls and get revenge."
Sighing Ignis thinks about his failure, he lost over fifty highly-trained marines his career in the military is going to take a long time to recover. This offers him a chance of redemption and revenge. "I will have to talk to my men but count me in. Beside I want to figure out why in the Spirits name would you bring a sword to gunfight?" Nick just laughs as he shakes the Turians hand and leaves the room for the Training Halls.
With the deal made the next few years has seen a great deal of change on Matanuska. Its population as swelled due to the counter raiding and liberation strategy of Horus. Miranda was assigned to oversee this project and the small fleet Cerberus ships were sent to the planet. Hours has become the Lord Castellan and the planet has still kept its feudal nature but expended its industrial might. Several large factories where built underground and a large dockyard was built in orbit, there is currently one heavy cruiser under construction, there fleet numbers two dozen frigates five destroyers (a new unique class), and a pair of light cruisers. Cerberus has committed four dozen frigates, ten cruisers, and a single small dreadnaught to ensure its convoys pass through the Abyss and Terminus Systems unmolested.
"Miranda," Horus starts warmly, "Would you like to join my Knights and me on a raid. We have discovered a large convoy that has three freighters filled with humans taking from the Skyllian Blitz if our intelligence is not mistaken."
"I would be honored Lord Castellan."
They are in the ship No Higher Honor a few hours later streaking through the relay network. She is a destroyer, at three hundred and twenty five meters she combines the best aspects of a cruiser and frigate. Where the Alliance ships are smooth curvature and the Batarian ships' are blocky, she is neither. Her body is long and rounded, her sides straight covered in slab armor, guardian lasers, and shuttle bay doors. Her engine array is a thick circular cluster opposite its triangle prow. It is a dagger shaped killer armed with four frigate weight mass accelerator and a cruisers compliment of broadside guns. Her guardian system is just effect as a frigate's but benefits from the extra power the larger drive core provides.
"Milord," begins Capt. Maiel Ignis, "We are approaching mission area and are going dark." As the ship leaves the relay it cuts all of its primary systems and just floats on its inertia. Approaching the target from the direction of the sun as the destroyer to get through the slaver outer patrols with ease. Still awash in background radiation and interference the main power comes back on. Disruptor torpedoes are loaded and targets locked in, the rail guns are powered up and the capacitors are quickly charged. From the blackness of the void they open fire. Four incandescent white streaks hit a pair of slaver ships killing them instantly as the hull is cored and the superstructure melted. Firing a salvo of torpedoes the destroyer accelerates into the convoy. Its guardian laser stabbing out killing fighters, shuttles, torpedoes, and melting the FTL drives of their primary targets, three large bulk freighters filled with slaves.
The outer patrol vessels turned around and races back to the convoy. Ignis then fired a torpedo that had a large ezzo laced warhead, it exploded and wiped the sensors clean. There is so much backwash and interference that ships will have very limited detection ranges. The No Higher Honor was built with this in mind, her sensors are operating at seventy-five percent capacity. She detects the charging slavers and methodically wipes them out. With the escort killed the destroyer moves to each freighter in turn demanding their surrender. The first two did, its slaves liberated and told that they have the chance at a new free live on Matanuska. The slavers of each ship after giving the other captains and crews an all clear that they weren't killed on sight, were nominally arrested. Taken to the brig, the slavers were gunned down and left to be dealt with later. The last ship refused, Horus decreed that his knights were going to take the ship.
Ignis showing the same flair for void combat as he did for small squad tactics moves his ship alongside the freighter. Using the guardians set to low power output he burns a dozen entry points in the hull. The Knights however use their shuttles and hit the bow and stern, hacking into the maintenance access ports. The move in to their objects in close four man teams, each storm knight is clad in heavy dark blue armor with a reinforced shield capacitor as well as bonuses tailored to the individual warrior. Usually the Order of the Storm is armed with a mix of striker and valkyrie assault rifles but for a close bordering operation they have their signature eagle heavy machine pistols with high explosive armor piercing ammunition and enhanced magazine size. They carry those formidable handguns along with their monomolecular swords, unlike normal swords these blades contain a conducting element so it can sheathed in either an electric or a plasma field, allowing to slice through anything regardless of its protective barrier.
Moving through their breaches they find no enemy, clearly they are waiting for them to storm through the breaches along the centerline. Horus smiles and takes point with Miranda behind him. Slowly sounds of gunfire and war cries are heard throughout the ship. Horus is a whirlwind of death, his sense are superlative, and killing foes just as they open hatches or hide behind corners. His armor goes from a dark blue to a reddish black as they advance, leaving bodies either cut neatly with their blades or torn apart by the heavy pistols. Miranda though a highly trained and experienced operative can't compete with these living weapons, we should never anger them she thinks to herself as another body hits the deck missing their head.
The rest of the Knights have secured their objectives; engine room, armory, slave pens, and the hangar bay. That leaves just the bridge, Horus and his squad advances towards the door under a hail of well-aimed fire, two people shoot two charge into close combat has the heavy rounds whip inches past their heads. At the locked bulkhead Horus calls out, "Surrender and we will spare you a painful death." Seconds tick by and nothing happens, Horus rises his foot and snaps a kick so fast the only thing they see is the bulkhead crumple inward. Another blow and it is shot into the command space impaling an unfortunate soldier on the other side. The knights rush in pistols blazing, the bridge is quickly the center of a maelstrom of lethal shrapnel and powerful biotics another hallmark of the Knights of the Storm. Their captain calls out a challenge to Horus, the firing stops instantly. The warriors face each other waiting for an opening, Horus lunges he strikes the batarian slaver with enough force to pin him to the wall creating an impression in the metal. His Knights charge and kill the last remaining xenos. Each body is then beheaded and left as a message.
These raids became more and more common place as Horus builds up the naval might of his planet. Slowly they liberated entire worlds and established a small twelve planet empire with two dozen vassal worlds. They once suffered one major attack. Tens of thousands were killed on an idyllic garden world and left to rot, the slavers and scum sent their own message to Horus. His retribution however took months to form, its result was the annihilation of the every planet that supported attack and harbored the attackers. As a result ten planets are now radioactive wastelands after a combination of orbital bombardment and nuclear strikes. On each and every world Horus described the crime and sentenced the population to death to answer for their crimes of killing innocent humans (majority), turians, asari, batarians, and salarians.
Escaping the orbit of Scipio VI
The final plasma beams burn into its reactors releasing a localized supernova as we jump. As the energy waves expends my ships craves a path through realities. Though we did not die or explode the dying tyranids warp shadow causes us to be plunged far deeper into the hellish realm than any other Imperial vessel has ever been and seen again. The bleed through of energy has also weaken our Gellar fields. The Navigator starts screaming, "Death's wave approaches. We are dammed for our folly," before he passes out. Heeding his warning I order the ship to do an emergency revision. The ship starts to groan and buckle as the wave of dark chaotic energy lashes at its weaken shields. As a shadow starts to coalesce on the bridge I hear dark laughter in my head and my nose starts to bleed. Slowly losing consciousness, I see Brother-Librarian Septentrio charge unto the bridge his physic hood alight with power and then blackness. Space and time have no meaning in the warp as does reality the ship tore back to normal space filled with unfamiliar stars and a blacked out ghost ship.
I awake in my cabin, getting up slowly I stumble to my shower, the hot water helps clear my mind. Feeling slightly better I dress in my formal duty uniform and walk to the bridge. Upon entering the men salute. "Resume your duties and get me a status update," I bark in my clipped command voice.
Speer walks up, "Sir the ships main and secondary systems are inoperable. We are running on emergency power. The Senior Magos administered the last rites on the number three main generator. If we get the others fixed and incorporate the tertiary reactors we can make up the short fall. Crew loss, five thousand, and are mainly ratings, so no major problem. The Starboard Battery is out of action, all the guns are damaged and the battery's gunners have been spaced. All flights systems are down and we have minor breaches all over the ship, I would rate structural integrity as good. Overall we are drifting dead in the void once power is restored and the systems reset we will be combat effective. This leads to our other problem the navigation systems and logic engines don't recognize the stars also our Novas Nobilite is in a coma and the astropaths are all dead."
"Very well. Focus on getting the ship back to combat readiness. Then we will make small warp jumps till we find a ship and get a star map."
Yes Milord."
Leaving the bridge I seek out the Astrates, it does not take long to find them the command squad was just approaching the bridge. "Admiral," begins Notus, "I am Force Commander and Standard Bearer Brother Notus. While Zephyrus is recovering I am in command of the Sky Reavers. We have important matters to discuss."
"I agree. Let us go to the Strategium."
Walking through the damage parts of my ship I wince at the pain I put it through, gathering two Kasrkin we encounter on the way they accompany us. Entering the room I tell the Kasrkin that none may enter on pain of death. Saluting they begin to scan the hallway for threats. Septentrio steps forward and pulls out the Emperors Tarot, "These cards are used to divine events that can occur. They are linked to the Emperors will, and react to his powers of foresight. Most of these cards are unresponsive and that in addition to the state of the astropaths and navigator leads me to conclude we are no longer in our reality." Cries of heresy and shock are ignored as Septentrio continues, "Also the warp here is calm with no taint or demonic presence. The tarot has also revealed this to me, drawing a few cards Septentrio explains, "Son, Lost, reclaimed, Imperium, glory. I am inferring that the Emperors will has sent us to find something, a lost son or something else here to reclaim it for the glory of Imperium or to form one here. We must get a stellar map soon." "I," his eye fade into the darkness of his hood, "Detect a ship approaching we have two days at most before they get here and they are not human."
Hoeth stiffens this revelation is shocking heretical even but he knows Septentrio is right he feels it in his being. "Very well. We will take this ship and plunders its navigational banks and then we will plan to enact His Will in this universe, to protect humanity and ensure its dominance." Work on the ship increased past its already frantic pace, each crewman from Hoeth to the lowliest rating worked his fingers to the marrow. Yet the ship was combat ready.
Dropping out of FTL is the winged oval shape of an asari cruiser, its captain is both scared and happy to be the first to welcome this new ship and its crew into Citadel space. The part that scares her is that is huge, eighteen kilometers long battleship. Its hull is covered in baroque gothic features it is both an impressive and off putting sight. Its flanks and spine are covered in dozens if hundreds of gun ports, it has cavernous launch bays, and a massive amount of sensors sticking out of its thick armored prow. Its hull is covered in battle wounds some fresh others thousands of years old. The ship screams war and destruction is all we know and we have no mercy for our foes. If this is not causing the asari captain to question her sanity the fact that no ezzo is detected or that there sensors are being stopped by some kind of shielding. "Hail them," she orders as the communication signals connect and the comms officers clear up the signal the asari captain is greeted by an older human with several facial scares and cybernetic implants. He is dressed in the manner of a human from the early 1800s. She is close to wilting under his intense cold rage filled stare. Gathering her voice she begins, "Welcome this is the Asari cruiser Light of Illium, before she can continue the man with cold eyes interrupts her.
"Xenos by the might of the Imperium and by the will of the God-Emperor I order you to surrender your ship and crew for judgment. Failure to compile will result in death."
Confused at the language the asari captain tries again. As she repeats her opening message Hoeth interrupts again, "Suffer Not the Xeno to Live. Ave Imperator." He cuts the link and orders that a salvo of disruption shells are to be fired at the xenos ship. His crew response with all haste. As the asari captain is contemplating hailing them again or waiting for reinforcements the large ship opens fire, an instant later the ship goes dark. Ten minutes later, the asari have gathered to repel borders they hear a series of thumps along the hull.
A whoosh roar as the space marines use melta charges to cut to the hull. Dozens are melted instantly as the powerful microwaves wash over their bodies. The giants rush into the ship, their bolt guns barking. The asari try to defend themselves but their weapons only chip the paint of their ceramite and adamantium power armor. The marine's attack was too fast too vicious for the defenders to do anything but fire off hasty snaps shots at the fear inducing warriors. Olympias, Notus, and Skeiron attack the bridge, most of the command staff is cut down by the power sword of the champion or gutted by the Force Commander's chainsword. Those that survived their initial foray beg for mercy, plead for their lives as they surrender. All they received was the Emperor mercy delivered from the Astrates plasma pistol. Notus clicks the vox, "All teams report."
"Team Fear, Clear."
"Team Fury, Clear."
"Team Wrath, Clear."
"Team Eagle, Clear."
"Very well secure your positions and what for mission extraction orders. Brother Skeiron proceed to data mine the craft so we may leave and purge it." As Skeiron downloads the entire database into memory crystal the asari captain feverishly collects all of the data about the ship and the marines and sends it to the Citadel before Olympias sees that she is still alive and ends her suffering with a thrust to heart.
Skeiron looks up and tells Notus, "I am finished we may leave."
"All teams return to the transports." The Astrates fall back quickly and in good order. Once abroad the Asgardia, Hoeth orders and volley of plasma rounds to destroy the ship. Twelve guns in the prow open fire in a rolling barrage. The asari cruiser, which to men and women on the Asgardia see as small destroyer, is eviscerated by the kilo-tonne heavy shells. Its ezzo core is hit and the ship disintegrates in a blue-white flash.
Hoeth looks to Septentrio, "While the logic engines interpret the data could attempt to use your warp craft to wake our navigator brother-librarian?"
"I will try."
As the Astrates deal with that problem Hoeth has the ship execute a short warp jump, the warp drives tear a whole in reality and the bulk of the Asgardia slides into a placid lake versus the storm tossed sea that they are used to. In the Nemean Abyss, Horus feels a tingle move up and down his spine. A feeling that he associates with the other place. In the Citadel Tavos, the Asari Councilor, is reading the broken and vague report sent by their missing cruiser and wondering what happen. She has several more asari and turian vessels routed to the area to investigate. Finishing with she moves on to the after-action report of the new Spector John Shepard and his missions Feros and Noveria.
Hoeth despite being lost in some other Throne forsaken reality or universe is happy. Along with Zephyrus he has a chance to use his forces in the manner he deems proper. If the Astrates want to recreate the Great Crusade he will ensure it succeeds and his name will be recorded and honored like the Primarchs of old. Also Septentrio has managed to revive his navigator who is scanning the warp for the Astronomican. Several hours later he reports that it is missing and that the warp is fundamentally different here. That confirms the Librarian's theory in addition to the star charts not having the Eye of Terror or other planets of the Imperium listed by these strange constructs called Mass Relays. Brother Skeiron has taken a wealth of information from the xenos ship. It will takes weeks to properly codify and analysis the information though.