The Cosmic Age

by Familiar47

Long after the days of the Courier and the Lone Wanderer, humanity uses the technology of alien visitors to build themselves back up. When they reach out into the cosmos however, they discover that the galaxy is not always receptive to the adventurous. Rated for violence and language. Bashing kept at a minimum.

11. Chapter 10: Shanxi Insurgency Part 2

The Cosmic Age

Long after the defeat of Caesar's Legion and the liberation of New Vegas, the Courier and Lone Wanderer make use of the Theta Technology to bring humanity back from the edge of extinction and take to the stars. When they reach too far they discover that the galaxy is not always receptive to the adventurous.

I do not own Fallout or Mass Effect

Also, for anybody who is sick to death of stories where the Council is incompetent/evil/out of character/childish/any sort of combination of those things...this is for you.

Also, I will be taking SOME liberties with material from both Mass Effect and Fallout.

Xxx

Chapter Ten: Shanxi Insurgency, Part 2, Counter Attack

Shanxi

Vault Bunker Nine, Command Centre

March 14th, 2535, 1205 hours

The twelve highest ranking personnel in the bunker had been gathered around the central platform in the command center. Most of them were NCOs, a rare few were actual marines and only one of them wore Brotherhood armour. They were conversing while waiting for Captain Mason while Victoria, Parker, Rice and Campbell gathered on top of the platform itself.

"What's taking him so long?" Rice asked, glancing between the group and the others waiting below. "He's late."

"We know, Ed." Campbell said in a calm yet firm tone as he eased himself down into the central control chair and crossed his arms behind his head in a relaxed pose, "Just be patient. He said he was going to look at that android body in the cell blocks."

Parker grumbled, "Still wish he just let me melt the stupid thing down, or shove it into one of the fabricator units." She still held a grudge against the android even after witnessing its programming being erased following its defeat.

"Melt down or disassemble a super advanced synthetic life form that wields on board energy weaponry, enhanced physical prowess and personal shielding more powerful than even the stuff the Brotherhood fields?" Campbell spun the chair around and propped one leg up on the other while lacing his fingers over his lap. "I'm loving your long term foresight, Janie."

"Don't call me that, Legionaire." Parker growled.

"Now where does that sort of language become necessary?"

"Captain on the deck!"

Every person in the room snapped to attention as Owen stepped into view.

"At ease." He said without meeting anyone's gaze and stepped up onto the command platform, "Campbell, away from the seat."

Owen sat down after Nathan had moved aside and faced the assembled soldiers and officers.

"Alright, first a brief recap: Shanxi is screwed." He began bluntly, "The aliens have orbital superiority with a fleet twenty percent the size of the total Alliance and Brotherhood navies put together. They have almost forty thousand soldiers groundside by our last estimate and have already pushed several miles into New Taiyuan. They now possess air superiority and a foothold allowing them to land troops in the city at will while moving along the walls to neutralize other perimeter defences so they can widen their available entry points along the wall. The city is mainly defended by any marines who weren't in orbit, a few hundred Brotherhood soldiers and a lot of militiamen who have never seen, much less used a laser rifle in their lives. We have maybe a hundred combat effective personnel and twice as many wounded or support personnel here, leaving our ability to intervene severely limited."

Owen looked over each individual before him, observing their reactions to the increasingly depressing news. Some had grim expressions that masked their fear, others were shifting uneasily and one had even sat down and set his head in his hands by the time Owen had finished.

"...but we do have one advantage." Owen added, and saw a renewed surge of hope among the group, "Manifest's intel on the aliens. They were operating on Shanxi prior to the invasion, likely planning their raid on this very base; and all of their intel was accessed by our newest asset." He pointed to the open doors, "Come in."

When all eyes turned towards the door Parker reached for her side arm only for Victoria to grip her wrist. Rice took a step back while Campbell and the rest of those gathered stared in shocked silence.

Standing in the doorway, now clad in the fatigues of an Alliance marine, was the very same android who bore the appearance of Alice Shepard. Her face was set in a neutral expression, staring ahead as she walked past the assembled men and women to stop at the base of the platform where she saluted Owen.

"Combat Model Manifest-Zero reporting for duty Captain," She said in a monotone.

"At ease," Owen nodded and stood up. "With some help from several of the Brotherhood Scribes who have joined us, I have managed to both salvage this android's memory core and reactivate her while removing all memory and personality files. She is now as she was on the first day of her birth: a blank slate waiting to fill itself in."

"Why the hell would you want that thing active, much less helping us?" Parker demanded. "If you forget it almost killed us!"

"I am aware that I did engage you in combat previously, Inquisitor Parker." The android admitted, "However, I had at the time developed a personality matrix heavily influenced by Manifest throughout the duration of my existence. That personality matrix has been erased, I no longer hold any loyalty towards them."

"She wasn't just some android they dressed up to look like Shepard; she was built from the ground up and raised by Manifest to use that appearance to her advantage." Owen explained, "In essence, she was a product of her environment as much as any other person, human or otherwise. And now she will be assisting us for what I have in mind." He saw the suspicious stares and wariness radiating from the group. "...of course I have taken certain measures in the event of Manifest hiding any surprises in her that might present a danger to us."

"That is an understandable precaution, Captain." The android agreed. "And I do admit that it may have influenced my first decision being to cooperate."

Campbell shrugged and slid his hands into his pockets. "Hell, long as you're sure you have a kill switch ready to fry this thing if it gives us any trouble then I'm satisfied." He looked back at Parker, "And so are you, Janie."

"The hell I am!"

"You are." Campbell insisted a little more firmly than before, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth and don't shoot the super useful android right when we need something like that."

Rice looked uncertain, but nodded. "Agreed...we need everything we can get to fight back this invasion."

"If we're all done here," Owen sat back down and tapped a command into the central console to bring up three dimensional imagery of New Taiyuan. "This was collected by our remaining stealth satellites in orbit. The enemy is concentrated in the southern outskirts of the city, and are slowly pushing in every hour or being pushed back in different sectors while several of the Shell's emitters have been destroyed in the process, constricting the shield's reach across that area of the city. They're air lifting troops in on armed air craft which at first came from their main camp, but recently they've set up an air field much closer to the city but still out of range of the defences."

The image moved to show the air field almost ten miles from the city walls. Alien air craft were parked there, ranging from the larger drop ships to smaller fighter craft.

"That air field is our target for two important reasons." Owen explained. "Firstly and most obviously, because it is likely supplying fuel and maintenance to the enemy air craft while acting as a deployment point for their troops. Its loss won't cripple them, but it will slow down their ability to deploy and evacuate their troops at will. The second reason was found in the android's memory files."

The image zoomed in on a frigate sized vessel nestled among the air field.

"Manifest managed to hack into the enemy's tactical network and found their plans for the siege of New Taiyuan. This ship is meant to act as a mobile command center to direct the invasion and coordinate with their fleet in orbit...and it also has been receiving data bursts from the enemy flagship. Luckily we received a tip from someone on the Chairman station that's told us what the enemy has been transmitting down to this ship: a translation matrix by interrogating prisoners who survived the battle in orbit. This means that in addition to at least a rudimentary understanding of regular English the aliens have had three days to acquire information on the Alliance and the Brotherhood."

Owen dismissed the image and stood back up. "And I don't need to tell you that in war, information is more powerful than any warship or bomb. That's why we will be boarding that frigate and plugging our new android friend into its computers so that we can gain access to enemy intelligence."

Now instead of despair and fear the assembled officers looked more...considerate of the idea. Some still appeared uncertain, but now that Owen had explained his plan.

"Sir, if I might ask," Rice spoke up, "Who is our source on the Chairman?"

Owen cracked a smile. "Glad you asked," He opened his Pip-Boy, "Say hello to Grump, everyone."

The blue tinted image of a Ghoul clad in the uniform of an old United States Air Force pilot appeared, standing at almost a foot in height on top of the command console.

"About damn time you let me out." The AI growled, "I was stuck in that ship for three fucking days!"

"Grump here remained hidden on my ship, the Fawkes, in the Chairman's repair bays. He managed to transmit data to New Taiyuan and recently managed to transfer himself down to this facility." Owen informed the group. "He's the one who found out about all the new intel these aliens have on us along with a few things about them, and he managed to figure out that this frigate is being used to dispense information to every last alien soldier on the planet in addition to its other duties. That's why it is imperative that we board it, hack it and then blow it."

"So we take this frigate down after pillaging it for everything of value and that makes their jobs a hell of a lot harder," Campbell summed up, "Sounds good to me!" He looked around at the others, "Everybody else cool with it?"

"Won't be a cake walk, if that's what you're hoping for." Grump crossed his arms. "These aliens...every last one of them acts like a real professional. They're always watching their corners, and trying to sneak a whole team by them will be next to impossible...without some state of the art stealth gear."

Victoria stepped forward, hands on her hips. "I think I can help you out there. Just tell me who you need on this op and I can get them outfitted with some stealth suits."

"You just have those laying around?" Nathan asked.

"No, but the Fabricators have plenty of material to work with." Victoria replied, "All I do is tap in one command and it produces what I ask for."

"...why don't we have that?" Nathan whispered to Owen.

Victoria smirked and stepped down from the platform. "Because the Brotherhood still doesn't trust the Alliance with the more advanced tech."

Owen shook his head and addressed the whole group again. "I'm going to have the infiltration team itself remain small, four or five people at the most, plus the android. The rest of you will have different responsibilities in my absence such as securing this base and arranging for our pick up after we're done-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Victoria spun around. "You're going on this op?"

"I prefer to lead at the front," Owen shrugged and stepped down from the platform, "Rice, Parker and Campbell: you're on this mission with us. Inquisitor Grey, get them outfitted." He nodded to the android. "Zero, I recall from looking at your model that you have a built in Stealth Generator."

"Correct."

"Make sure it's working." Owen continued on to the doors. "Grey, have a suit set aside for me. The rest of you are dismissed. If you have any questions regarding this op I'll be in the armoury."

Xxx

New Taiyuan

Brotherhood of Steel Citadel, Command Centre

Approximately 1300 hours

"Air assets are already down to sixty percent." Sentinel Noland announced as he approached Colonel Williams and the ring of officers surrounding the tactical display. "Artillery has taken light casualties, but they are finding it difficult to affect any significant damage to the enemy without endangering our own platoons. The marine contingents placed at the front lines are beginning to buckle but our militia reserves have moved up to supplement them."

"So we have a few leaks, but a measurable chance of plugging them." Williams said, stepping away from the table. "How are the Ranger and his team doing?"

"They're fully recovered from their last assignment and are ready to be deployed again, given the proper incentive." Noland rolled his eyes, "The man may be an old friend but he is too focused on money sometimes."

Williams wouldn't have minded the Ranger taking the chance to escape from Shanxi, and he wouldn't have shed any tears if the man's ship as swatted from the sky by the Raptor fleet. However if the Ranger could make himself useful here and there then Williams would gladly forgive him for his narrow minded greed. He'd known that mercenaries required payment, and few accepted I. , so this didn't come as a surprise to the Colonel.

"Well then I'll need him and his team to start clearing out some of the southern districts." Williams decided, facing the table again, "If he can disrupt the enemy's advance, maybe shoot down a few of their VTOLs then that would make my day just a little less stressful."

Before Noland could respond one of the Scribes nearby spoke up. "Colonel! Sentinel! I've just received a transmission. It's on a secure channel sir, and he says that he's Captain Owen Mason."

So Mason had survived! Williams counted his blessings and signalled to the Scribe to forward the call to the tactical display, which quickly became replaced by a life sized replica of Mason himself.

"Captain, it's good to hear from you." Williams said.

"I apologize for not making contact sooner Colonel, I was...not in the best condition and had to arrange for the safety of my new temporary base." Owen explained himself. "I've got a few hundred survivors from the battle in orbit and access to a sizable arsenal, compliments of our friends from the Brotherhood of Steel. I have also managed to find a way to help you kind folk out all the way from out here."

Williams removed his cigar from his mouth and nodded. "Fire away then Captain."

"I intend to launch a covert strike into the enemy air field with two objectives: to neutralize the enemy's ability to quickly deploy and retrieve their air craft from that location, and to board their mobile command base both to further disrupt their siege and to obtain critical information on the enemy."

Williams raised one brow and exchanged a look with Noland. "That sounds risky, Captain," He said, "Are you certain that it is a good idea to commit resources to such an endeavour?"

"I have a reliable source that says it is." Mason affirmed, "My ship's AI, Fawkes, can verify the strategic value of our target."

Williams thought over this proposal while setting his cigar back between his teeth. He took several moments before addressing Noland. "Sentinel, your thoughts?"

"The Captain is well within his rights to authorize such a mission, given then he may be one of the highest ranking Alliance officers left besides us." Noland answered, "The risk is his as much as the glory."

"I'll take survival over glory if you wouldn't mind, Sentinel." Owen chuckled. "My team will be in position soon, in fact the moment this conversation is concluded we may very well be making our move."

Williams nodded and removed his cigar again. "Then I suppose that there is no further use in debating this, though I would have preferred to be informed earlier than the last second. Regardless...I wish your men luck, Captain."

"My thanks, Colonel," Owen nodded, "I've instructed Grump to keep you updated on our progress, but I have a feeling that all you'll need to measure our success is how loud of an explosion there will be this afternoon. But there is one more thing you need to be made aware of, Colonel Williams; the enemy has acquired enough knowledge on our language to produce a rough translation matrix, which Grump should be forwarding a copy of to you now. Hopefully this mission will be enough to tip the scales back in our favour, but even if we fail you might at least be able to make use of this."

"Data package received, Colonel," The Scribe from before confirmed Owen's statement. "AIs are decoding...he's right sir."

"You have our thanks, Mason." Williams said, glad for the unexpected boon, "If I can I'll try to redirect some units to your position, assuming that it can be done without alerting the enemy to your location. It would be preferable if we could get you back into the city to help out."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible," Owen admitted, "I intend to take part in this mission, and I have found myself more capable by leading my troops at the front rather than commanding from a distance. I would be more useful out here."

"That is most...irregular," Noland stated, "You are supposed to command a ship if I recall...how much experience have you recently gained in ground based combat?"

"Too much, let's just leave it at that." Owen insisted, "Captain Mason, out." His image shattered into countless fragments which dissolved into nothing.

Noland looked to Colonel Williams. "Are we really going to rely on that?" He asked.

"If it comes from a Mason then...historically speaking we have no reason not to." Ashe sighed, removing his cigar again, "But just to be safe I want you to gather a group of your best Paladins and acquire some wings, preferably something with its own stealth drive."

"Perhaps I should see if the Ranger and his team would be willing to act as you response team." Noland proposed.

Ashe groaned. "Oh great, even more money that he can squeeze out of us, that's just what we needed."

Xxx

Mk.2 Vertibird (Code named: Owl-1)

On route to hostile air field

"I don't like having that thing here," Parker repeated, sitting near the back of the troop compartment and looking down at the SMG resting in her hands.

Victoria sighed as she donned her helmet. "Yes Parker, we know." She replied, "But you heard the Captain, if it somehow regains its memories he can-"

"To hell with his precautions!" Jane growled and shot to her feet. "He just walked in there, flipped it back on after putting a bomb in it and expects it to suddenly be our new best friend? That thing is a Synth, a Manifest Synth, and it should have been melted down or scrapped the moment we got everything useful out of it! Mason is gambling with our lives here and for some reason none of you seem at all concerned about it!"

The trip had been blessedly silent before now. While Mason and Zero (the new name for the android) were in the cockpit observing their approach Nathan, Victoria, Jane and Edward had been checking their newly provided silence weapons and Night Hawk stealth armour with minimal dialogue until Jane decided to voice her thoughts on the presence of Zero...again.

Nathan groaned and tilted his head back. "Lord, give me strength not to tape her mouth shut." He whispered before looking at the object of his irritation, "Look Janie, Mason hasn't led us wrong yet. If he says that he's made sure that suped up tin can won't be able to try anything funny then I think we owe him the benefit of the doubt."

"He didn't lead us wrong because the last time he wasn't the one leading us when everything went wrong," Parker countered, "We know what happened to THAT team."

That caused Victoria to rise to her feet and give the Ghoul a smoldering glare. "Say that one more time, Parker... just one more time," She warned the older Inquisitor, "Those are my men you're talking about, and your allies. There are always casualties in war and the fact that your whole team wasn't wiped out is a testament to Mason's ability to lead."

Parker didn't back down, instead rising to meet Victoria's glare with her own. "And there we go again, praising him like he's some kind of messiah." She shook her head in disgust, "He's an arm chair captain! And the stuff he faced couldn't hold a candle to the shit I've seen for the past two centuries. Don't act like he's suddenly a miracle worker."

"You're really losing the high ground here Janie," Nathan cautioned, hands folded over the top of the helmet resting in his lap, "Take my advice and sit back down before this gets any more heated than it already is."

"Don't start with me, Legionnaire." Parker hissed, baring her teeth before the door to the cockpit opened.

"We're approaching the drop point," Owen announced, stepping into view in a set of Night Hawk armour of his own and extinguishing the situation with his presence alone.

Nathan and Edward slid their helmets on and rose in unison as the former asked, "How's it looking out there, skipper?"

"So far it seems that we've managed to remain undetected, but I won't risk landing us too close to the enemy camp," Owen responded while picking up a weapon from its rack, a bull-pup style assault rifle with its own silencer attached, "We're setting down in a forested area close by and making our way in on foot."

The Captain glanced between the squad members. "Did I miss something?" He asked, noting their stances and body language which spoke volumes of what he assumed was a...vocal confrontation.

"Negative, sir." Edward replied, shaking his head.

Owen raised one brow and closely examined them each once more before shrugging. He then slid his helmet on and secured it before tapping a button which caused the visor to tint until it fully hid his face, which the rest of the team mimicked a moment later. "Based on what Grump has acquired our Stealth Fields should be able to slip by the enemy, but the information from the initial hostile raid that compromised New Taiyuan's perimeter indicates that they have something similar and just as effective, so I don't want anybody to take their chances out there. They could have some countermeasure for personalized stealth technology."

"Gotcha, keep our distance." Nathan nodded.

"How busy are we expecting the enemy camp to be, sir?" Edward asked next, checking his submachine gun. "And I apologize if this sounds insubordinate but...why can't we bring something more effective than slug throwers?"

"Both valid questions, Rice." Owen hung his rifle on his back where a pair of magnetic strips held it in place and crossed his arms. "We're trying to time this op so that when we make our move the enemy will have launched their next raid into the city. It's a long shot since they seem to know better than to wait a consistent amount of time between raids but the shortest amount of time that they've gone has been thirty minutes without launching another wave...so we might be due for one just as we reach the perimeter. In that sort of confusion it should be a lot easier to slip in and decrease the odds of being spotted by some alien on break."

"As for the other question...I know that as a member of the Brotherhood you're accustomed to using energy technology, but take my word for it when I say it is the absolute worst for a stealth operation." Owen added as he approached the aft hatch controls.

The squad could feel the Vertibird begin its descent at that point.

"Okay here's one last recap: we get to the camp, we set our charges, we get to the enemy command ship, we let Zero get her grimy paws on its computers, we plant more charges, we get out and then blow the whole place." Owen said as Zero stepped out of the cockpit where he saw the pilot give him a thumbs up. "I don't want to see any heroics on this, or detours for that matter. I don't care if you think you've found a new target, you stick to this mission and we can make this quick and clean...if you don't then I will personally break my own foot off in your ass after this."

Zero tilted her head. "That is a most...peculiar deterrent, sir." She commented.

"Whatever works, Zero." Owen said and pulled on a lever which caused the aft hatch to open, revealing the lake country where the alien air field had been set up in close proximity to. "Go! Go! Go!" He waved one arm and watched as Nathan and Edward rushed past him and leapt from the Vertibird, which hovered almost twenty feet off of the ground. Victoria and Jane went next, followed by Zero before Owen followed after them.

For most the distance ran the risk of a broken or sprained ankle unless the landing was executed perfectly. Luckily the Night Hawk armour, which was designed and primarily used by the Brotherhood, was as good at absorbing the impact from a long fall as much as a full sized heavy power armour was. They were essentially slimmed down, comparable in size to the experimental armour that had been found in the Vault Bunker's labs, fully black from head to toe and designed in a way to not reflect light. They could be called mankind's Each member of the team was able to land without losing their balance and move out of the way in time to clear the path for the next pair to jump.

Owen looked back up and held up one hand with a thumb before the Vertibird pulled away, vanishing from plain view as its own stealth systems engaged. The sound of its engines went with it moments later, and soon any aliens who may have hear the approach would have found nothing upon scanning the skies.

"Comm. Check," Owen ordered as his helmet's HUD lit up, highlighting each member of his team.

"Campbell, online."

"Rice, online."

"Zero, online."

"Grey, online."

"The thing works." Parker grumbled and hefted her rifle, "Let's do this already."

They had been set down in a wide clearing close to one of several small lakes-many of which had grown thanks to the recent storm. The area appeared to be deserted for the moment, but they could hear the distant echo of many engines.

"Alright, the moment you even think we've got hostiles close by you hit your stealth field and keep it on as long as you can or until you know it's clear. And keep silent unless you've got something important to say." Owen instructed as he moved forward, "Campbell and Rice, you're on point. Parker on the right, Grey on the left and Zero has our flank."

The squad moved out, finding it much easier to traverse this region than Shangri La Valley. This region was not as densely forested and seemed more like the average countryside often desired by farmers and colonists for when they wanted a nice countryside getaway. The ground was more flat and open, allowing them to see where they were stepping-and what's more it wasn't unsteady mud but firm and solid soil they were treading on. These facts made the trip more bearable even for the eternally irritated Parker.

For a while the six trudged in silence, and then Edward raised one arm with his fist clenched to signal for them to halt. They all knelt down in unison and moved into cover while Campbell moved further ahead and peered between the rows of trees. He spotted some movement, a colour which stood out against the background. He turned and signed one signal to the rest of the team with his hand: Enemy.

Each member of the team activated their armours' built in Stealth Generators and vanished, leaving only a faintly discernible shimmer in the air like that of water in the sunlight. When they remained still or moved as slowly as humanly possible even this vanished entirely, concealing them from view as a group of alien soldiers appeared from the trees.

This was the first up close look that any of them had had with the invaders, and Owen could safely say that he almost wished he'd stayed behind. Each alien was just as tall as or taller than the humans, slender in build yet broad in the shoulders, angular heads covered by rounded helmets and handling weapons which seemed to resemble classic military grade assault rifles. Their armour was painted to resemble the terrain, a mix of greens and browns that would help them to blend in if they laid perfectly still. It had been the orange glow of one of the aliens' holographic gauntlet which had given them away almost thirty yards off from where Campbell had been.

The aliens passed within close proximity, chattering in their language.

"Lemme see if I can fix that for you...downloading translation matrix now." Grump's voiced rumbled in Owen's ear as the AI uploaded the program to his Pip-Boy along with the rest of the team's.

At first all they heard was static and some distorted words before the translation began to come in loud and clear.

"...even seen any of these primitives yet." One of the alien soldiers said, seemingly finishing a complaint.

"I wouldn't be casting these off...mere primitives," The alien next to him replied while gazing off to the side and right through Owen, making eye contact without knowing it. His speech kept cutting out to be replaced by more distorted noise and static for varying spans of time. "You have seen their...have you not?"

"I've seen them... like Vorcha... an Omni-Tool," The first countered, more of his speech cutting out. "And in the end...changed... of...mission."

"Sorry for the rough translation, these guys put it together ridiculously fast and made it so you at least get the gist of what the other guy is saying but it still has holes in it." Grump apologized, which in itself was rare. "I'll see if I can't work on it myself; maybe this little raid will give me everything I need."

Even if it didn't Owen had little doubt that Grump would be able to fully develop a working translation program in a fraction of the time that it would take any alien or human mind. AIs were simply able to work much faster, develop newer technologies at speeds that left scientists envious and had advanced starship designs with each passing month ever since mankind and its associate races had taken to the cosmo.

Once the aliens had moved on Owen sent a signal that appeared on the inside of each squad mate's visor. It told them to continue forward but remain cloaked, a reasonable precaution in the face of more possible patrols close by. The squad now had to be careful not to stumble into one another, relying on their HUDs to keep track of each other while also keeping an eye on the forest floor to avoid tripping. It was surprising how much harder it became to move at a brisk pace when you couldn't see where your own feet were stepping, and it would be a nightmare for crossing a mine field.

Another twenty minutes passed before Grump spoke again. "Okay I found another stealth satellite passing by and it looks like you're close to the outer perimeter now." He said, highlighting the general area with a blue arrow that appeared in their HUDs, "And even better news: your timing is perfect. The aliens are gearing up for another assault and their air craft are just being filled up now."

"Then we hold position until they launch." Owen decided, kneeling down and pressing himself back against a tree. "What's the terrain like and what kind of resistance can we expect?"

"Well the outer perimeter is just a few prefabricated guard posts that they set up near the edge of the forest, more of an early warning system than an active deterrent. Past that the trees thin out more so you'll need to let your Stealth Generators recharge so you can move in the open. If you can get to the secondary perimeter you just need to tip toe past a few sentries and avoid the sensors they have up." Grump answered, "Your suits should protect you from the more wide spread passive sensors, but the more concentrated ones will likely pick you up at close range. I'll try to mark them as you get close, but I'm really stretching myself thin here."

Grump was a ship based tactical AI, so it was no surprise that he was being put through his paces with this. He was meant to operate from a ship, perhaps expanding himself to some peripherals such as drones or shuttle craft when needed. A mission like this would usually require a fully developed Ops Support AI who could juggle a half dozen things as easily as Owen breathed.

Unfortunately for them such AIs were rare, expensive and on flagships or grounded on Earth, deep in bunkers containing vast super computers that could reach out across all of Alliance Space...or at least to the worlds developed enough-and Shanxi didn't fit that criteria.

But so far he had been making a habit out of pulling off the impossible with too few resources, so Owen chose not to complain.

"I've got absolute faith in you Grump," Owen said encouragingly as his team continued on towards the outer perimeter, "I'm willing to bet these so called Raptors have never seen a decent AI before, you've got this in the bag."

"Save the flattery, meat bag." Grump muttered, "Alright, marking time and synchronizing your clocks-just another thing I'm juggling by the way. You want to keep this op fast and short, so if I manage to find the time I'll shriek at you whenever you take too long."

The time flashed in the top right corner of Owen's visor: twenty minutes to two. They'd been trudging through the forest for the better part of an hour already. He'd been hoping to reach the air field faster but caution had slowed their progress, and it was preferable to be behind schedule rather than shot down before you could complete your objective at all.

"Let's try to pick up the pace," Owen waved his team forward, "Nothing too fast or reckless, but let's see if we can't make up for some of that lost time."

Xxx

Turian Airbase Iaecalas, Frigate Wraith's Wing

Approximately 1430 hours

Saren had kept one eye open for the mysterious group of humans who had escaped him ever since his encounter in the forests surrounding the main camp. He had dispersed information on their appearance, their weapons and their capabilities to the other special forces units attached to his brother's command but had not luck in even finding a glimpse of them as of yet. That left him to assume that they were in the human city, perhaps being held in reserve...

The young Cabal stood in the CIC of the frigate which served as the base's command post, arms crossed and watching through a now exposed view port as the latest wave of airships departed with their fresh troops. He was envious of them for being able to go ahead, but he knew that his place would be behind the enemy lines once they had dug in too tightly for the regular infantry to push further. Already his unit was preparing for deployment within the next day at the furthest, but Saren occupied himself by assisting Colonel Victus and General Oraka in overseeing the siege.

Turning away from the view, Saren returned to where the two officers were overseeing a holographic view of the battle field within the city. Saren watched as units of the Turian Hierarchy's 57th Frontier Legion did battle with the human and Death Claw forces-the latter being much less numerous much to the benefit of the Turians.

"3rd Battalion confirming presence of Death Claws on west flank." An operator called out, "Platoon strength, inflicting heavy casualties and supported by what seems to be more Synthetics!"

The map zoomed in on the area, showing dozens of Turian soldiers falling back in an orderly fashion. Several squadrons provided covering fire for the rest while several armored transports moved into position with their guns. The Turians were being pursued by forms larger than Krogan but faster than even an Asari commando, leaping over debris and shrugging off small arms fire to run down and tear apart Hierarchy soldiers. Behind these Death Claws were ranks of lumbering synthetics firing rapid fire projectile weapons and even further back were several human units covering the rear of the attack force.

"Assume Formation 3, order all units to switch to incendiary ammunition and deploy a squad to lay mines as they retreat towards the armored column." Oraka commanded.

"I have contact with Ptaerias Flight," Colonel Victus announced, his Omni-Tool glowing as he accessed the Turian Battle Net, "They can reroute to assist."

Oraka shook his head, "Negative, tell them to press the attack on the central flank or the humans will overwhelm 5th Battalion's position. We can't lose that foothold or we won't have any safe room for our artillery units." He redirected the map to where a larger fight were occurring throughout several parallel streets between soldiers of the Hierarchy who were repelling another attempt by the humans to dislodge them, but they were taking heavy casualties even as they pushed the humans back.

Saren cleared his throat. "If I may General, you could supplement 5th Battalion with several of the support companies that are arriving in the next wave. That would allow them to hold out while Ptaeris Flight takes the pressure off of 3rd Battalion, who appear to be in greater danger of collapsing." He offered his input.

Oraka frowned, but appeared to consider this advice. "That's risky. If the humans make another push before Ptaerias Flight finishes assisting the left flank we could lose the center entirely."

"You don't need to hold the center flank without those fighters forever, General." Saren insisted, "Just a few minutes so that we don't entirely lose the left one, which is in danger of collapsing. The support companies can be granted heavy weapons from the munitions depots you have set up within the city if you authorize it, and with that they could shore up the center and buy time. "He directed the map to where the humans were regrouping. "Look, they're gathering their armoured vehicles to make their push. A few heavy emplacements could make short work of them and block the streets."

"Fine, fine! You've convinced me, Lieutenant." Oraka grumbled, "Reassign Ptaerias Flight to the 3rd Battalion's position. Support Companies One through Four are to reinforce the center and disperse themselves in squad strength detachments along that line. Heavy weapon deployment authorized for all four companies. They are to dig in and hold that position until Ptaerias can return to assist."

Orders were transferred and received by company commanders. As Turian drop ships offloaded hundreds of fresh soldiers several commanders redirected their troops to the nearest munition depot to receive portable heavy weapons, which were considered as valuable a resource in a ground engagement as a Dreadnaught was in a space engagement. Meanwhile a flight of Turian fighters strafed the Death Claw platoon, bombing the street they were on and leaving them disorganized while 3rd Battalion was given a temporary respite to fortify their position alongside their own armoured support. Several of the fighters were struck by anti air emplacements, but only two were taken down before most of the Death Claws were wiped out, forcing the rest to retreat.

"3rd Battalion is holding! Enemy Death Claw unit in full retreat, Synthetic infantry are digging in."

Oraka looked at Saren. "Not a bad decision, Lieutenant." He admitted, watching as the support companies moved up and helped 5th Battalion to hold the center, firing off rockets that tore into the human vehicles as they tried to push forward. "Reckless, but I won't argue with results."

He then looked to Victus. "Have Ptaerias return to base after they take some of the pressure off of the center, and then redirect our next armoured column to reinforce that position. Keep me updated on the western flank, and have those heavy weapons redistributed as far as you can between units so that nobody is left unprepared in the event of another Death Claw Charge."

That was what the Turians had come to call it whenever the Death Claws appeared. Death on two or four legs depending on how they ran, some of them wielding bulky weapons or just relying on their brute strength and speed. One could usually tear through several squads if it took them by surprise, several dozen would have been able to turn the tide on the western flank and possibly massacre 3rd Battalion to the last man with only moderate to heavy losses if not for the intervention of Ptaerias Flight.

"Lieutenant Arterius, Colonel Victus, walk with me." Oraka said, gesturing with one hand as he stepped away from the table. "Commander Oramius, you have tactical command in my absence. Keep me informed if the enemy is reinforced."

"Yes sir!" The Wraith's regular CO saluted and took his post by the display, easily directing troops as Oraka had done moments ago. Some would find this unorthodox, but in the Hierarchy commanding officers were provided training in coordinating on any field of battle, be they a ship commander like Oramius or a General like Oraka; this way anyone of suitable rank and experience could step in for a fallen CO and maintain organization.

The three Turians stepped out onto the grassy plain where the air field had been set up. The setting was one that would usually be favourable for those seeking a relaxing and wide open area for vacation. Between the clear blue skies overhead and the view of the distant mountains Oraka was certain that if he had not been sent to wage war he would have gladly travelled to those mountains to simply get away from the Galaxy and all of its bothersome politics...hopefully with a certain Asari by his side.

Oraka stopped near the air field, which now lay mostly empty until the drop ships returned. "Just a few more days of this and the city should be ours." He mused, "It's something that I'm not used to...enemies who have the courage and strength to truly fight back. After facing pirates and slavers for so long this is quite the challenge."

He looked at the two behind him. "I'm almost hoping that we don't win." He confessed and fought down an amused grin at the shock prevalent in the two younger officers. "Can you blame me? The Hierarchy is a bit too used to being the big gun in the Galaxy, the self appointed police force of the cosmos...could do us some good to have a little healthy competition."

"I can't say the same for having a war!" Victus blurted out but quickly corrected his behaviour, "Uh, sir."

Oraka nodded. "Yes, true...but if we go on to win at this world and then pacify this race what would come of it?" He looked between them both. "I asked you a question."

Saren chose to answer. "If we were to win, General, we would be safeguarding the way of life across Citadel space and ensuring this new faction obeys Council Law."

"Ah, there we have it!" Oraka chuckled, "Safeguarding, preserving, protecting, maintaining and enforcing..." He shook his head. "Tell me, when have the most significant changes come to galactic civilization? I mean periods where the Council species and their associates have had to adapt and evolve or die."

When neither was able to answer him Oraka continued, "When we found ourselves confronted with something that is not under our explicit control. The Rachnii Wars, the Krogan Rebellions, the Unification War, the Geth Uprising...each had its tragedies and losses but through it all people who once seemed incapable of surviving in hostile and dangerous places rose to the challenge and managed to endure in their own way. When the Rachnii came the Krogan rose in a blaze of glory, when the Krogan turned the Turians rose in their place, when the colonies were in chaos the Hierarchy enforced order and even when the Quarians were driven from their home they found a way to endure where others might have faded away. Conflict, even a bloodless one born of tension can open up new doors within us that we might have never found ourselves."

"Are you trying to say that our defeat here would be a good thing, sir?" Saren demanded.

Oraka shrugged, "Maybe, maybe not. Conflict encourages growth, through it the Council became stronger but during the so called 'peace time' between these conflicts what has come of it? Terminus and Hegemony funded raids hit border worlds, a Council that refuses to acknowledge these as serious threats except when they are forced to confront them and all the while entire species who have been around longer than the Hierarchy continue to remain subordinate."

"But that is because we have proven our worth to the Council!" Saren objected, "Surely you would not wish for the Volus to have a seat, and Spirits forbid the Hanar? They're bankers and priests who have no foresight beyond their own borders and haven't contributed to society as a whole on the scale that the Hierarchy has!"

"Once again a classic and predictable answer...but not wrong, Lieutenant, not wrong at all." The General turned to look at the air field again. "Maybe I'm just having too much time to think on it...maybe I have a bit of a bad influence," Septimus felt one hand travel to the area of his armour covering where an Asari pendant was resting against his chest beneath a layer of armour, "But to be quite frank gentlemen...if it gets the Council to do anything, if it causes any kind of change that might lead to some more forward thinking then by all means I'd say let these humans give them a kick in the ass to get them moving."

And no sooner than he had finished speaking did Septimus hear an explosion coming from the fuel depot near the far side of the air field. Throughout it all Septimus did not appear to react, his head still facing the wide open fields and his hand resting over where the hidden pendant hung while both Saren and Victus had spun around in shock and gaped at the sudden display of carnage that had erupted in the middle of the base.

After several moments of silence between the trio General Oraka turned and glanced between his two subordinates.

"...well?" He looked expectantly at Victus and Saren. "Get going! Secure the perimeter and find out what happened!" He barked, pointing in the general direction of the explosion and causing both the Colonel and Cabal to dash off, joining the security teams rushing towards the site of the explosion.

"Honestly, spirits help me if these children are my replacements." The old General muttered with a shake of his head, wishing that he were just back on the Citadel as he walked back towards the Wraith's Wing.

Xxx

Approximately 1400 hours (30 minutes ago)

It had been a tedious task to sneak through the outer perimeter. Grump had done his best to mark the sensor posts, allowing the humans to move around the more concentrated scanners that were capable of piercing their Stealth Fields while remaining hidden from the few patrols. The area past the outer perimeter was where the forest began to thin out and open up into the fields that surrounded New Taiyuan. There were also fewer patrols, allowing the humans to pause to give their Stealth Generators time to recharge as they crept through the countryside.

"Sir, the foliage will no longer provide adequate cover for us." Zero informed Owen, who nodded and looked around as the group stopped once again, the inner perimeter now in sight almost a hundred feet out past the tree line and the sound of engines could be heard all the way from where the group was currently squatting.

"Alright," Owen nodded and looked back to his team, "Stealth Field status, now."

"That last walk got me back up to a full charge." Campbell answered while sweeping the area with his rifle sights.

The same could be said for pretty much the entire team. If they time it right they could rush across the field under cover of their Generators and breach the perimeter without being seen, find another place to lay low within the base and then take their time identifying their targets.

Owen stood up, "Okay, this is it. Keep close and try to identify either of our targets: fuel depots and a frigate sized ship."

He vanished once again, and the team moved out of the cover of the tree line and across the field to where prefabricated structures and hastily dug trenches acted as the base perimeter. Several aliens could be found patrolling these narrow passages and it became a chore to remain undetected when the slightest movement could dislodge some dirt and give them away, but the humans managed to make it through the trenches without incident and carefully navigated their way around the sensor devices.

Owen stopped as he moved between two of the prefabs and felt someone bump into him, but luckily everyone had the good sense not to curse or complain even as the team suffered a brief pileup. A pair of patrolling aliens passed in front of them, wandering between the rows of structures that seemed to serve as either housing or storage for the invading army.

"Okay, go." He stepped out into the open and moved across the to the next row, the team following behind him while taking caution to not bump into him again.

"Hey, I think I see the frigate." Edward whispered, "Off to the right, the big white and red one with the wings on it."

The others followed his directions and saw the ship standing out among the other single story buildings. It looked like some bird of prey, designed to look more aesthetically pleasing to the ye than Alliance ships, but after witnessing a whole fleet of similar ships wipe out the defence fleet and take control of the Chairman Owen was not willing to right if off as anything short of dangerous.

"Good work Rice," Owen said in approval, "Mark that frigate Grump, we'll keep looking for the fuel depot."

"Sir, my Stealth Generator's about to run dry, about two minutes left on it." Campbell reported, "We need a place to lay low."

Owen knew that if Campbell's Generator was about to go then that meant everyone else wasn't far behind. The only problem was that they couldn't just open up any of the nearby structures to peek inside and see if they were empty.

"Grump, is that stealth satellite still in position to point us to any clear zones?"

"Got one just fifty meters ahead and with only one group of hostiles between you and it, so I'd suggest you get your asses moving."

Heeding the AI's advice, they began to pick up the pace until they reached another wider open area that looked like some sort of outdoor mess hall. A slanted roof for blocking out rain, no walls, rows of tables with benches and almost twenty aliens dining at them. They had no helmets, some weren't even in combat armour. This would be the first time that any of them had seen what the aliens really looked like under their armour, and to be honest...they could now understand why the aliens were being called 'Raptors'.

Angular, scaled appearances with metallic carapaces, talon tipped hands, lower jaws with divided mandibles, forward facing eyes and an overall mix of avian and reptilian features. It was like looking at the step between dinosaurs and birds.

Some of them differed from the rest beyond simply having a differently shaped fringed or colour of scale. Their forms were more curved, their heads more rounded and smoother with larger eyes. These were possibly the females of the species.

"Damn it Grump, I thought you said 'one group'." Owen whispered as the team began to move around the mess area.

"I did...it was just a big group."

Luckily they managed to get beyond the mess area and found their way into a section of the camp stacked with crates which served to conceal them from sight as their Stealth Generators ran dry.

"That was cutting it too close." Parker breathed as she settled in against one stack of crates and set her SMG next to her.

Owen ignored her and examined the area for any signs of security devices. "You'd think they'd have some form of electronic security in here."

"Maybe they just didn't think that they'd need it." Victoria proposed from where she was keeping watch on the different entry points. "We only got in because Grump was able to spot their sensor relays and because our Stealth Generators fooled their passive scans, anyone else would have been picked off before they got past the outer perimeter."

"After they've shown themselves to be incredibly organized and efficient you think they'd make a mistake like that?" Owen chuckled, shaking his head. "No, these guys aren't amateurs."

"As entertaining as it is to listen to this, I'm obliged to inform you that we passed several dozen layers of visual sensors on our way in." Zero informed them.

"...come again?" Parker growled, glaring at the android.

Zero shrugged. "Since our Stealth Generators apparently allowed us to get past them without triggering them I didn't see any point in bringing it up." She explained, "And as for why this particular area lacks any security...I'm jamming it as we speak."

"And you decided not to mention that second part...why?" Owen asked, glowering at Zero and picturing the amused smile beneath her helmet.

"Because I've noted on my chemical scanners that the aggression of every person on this team tends to spike whenever I involve myself in conversations," Zero shrugged and leaned back in a relaxed pose. "Manifest possessed a lot of information on the technology these aliens use. I can't say for certain if they were somehow already aware of them or if the aliens' technology is simply compatible with the Prothean technology found on Mars but my electronic warfare suite has been easily setting the weaker sensors within twenty meters on a loop to make it look like we simply don't exist."

Parker stormed over and leaned down so that she was glaring right into the android's visor through her own. "Keep it up Synth, you're just adding up the reasons for me to trash you after we don't need you anymore."

"I'm not a replaceable piece of hardware, Inquisitor." Zero replied, more forcefully than before. "I can't say the same for a Ghoul with temper problems and a lingering xenophobia typical of the Pre-War Era who prefers to take her anger out on me just because it's convenient for you to vent your frustrations that way." She tilted her head. "And yes, I did just get that from your psych profile. Want to know more?"

Parker was shaking now, and it didn't take a psychiatrist to know that she was just about ready to lunge at Zero.

"Enough!" Owen snapped. "Parker, go sit down. Zero, shut up."

Zero shrugged again but obeyed. Parker stormed back over to where her SMG was and plopped down, picking up the weapon and fingering the safety on and off while glaring at Zero.

"Uh..." Nathan looked between the two. "My Stealth Generator is almost back up to full now. Sir, maybe we should split the team up? One hits the frigate with Zero while the other keeps looking for the fuel depot...preferably with Janie?"

Owen nodded. "My thoughts exactly Sergeant," He agreed, "Zero and Rice, you're with me on the frigate. Grey, take Campbell and Parker and keep looking for the fuel. These aliens fuel their ships with something and it has to be flammable so keep looking and make sure it makes a big boom when you set it off."

"No need to tell me twice, uncle." Victoria sighed as she got up. "Come on Parker, we're heading out."

Parker silently climbed to her feet and followed Victoria and Nathan to the edge of the rows of crates. The trio activated their Stealth Generators and kept close as they resumed their search. In the meantime the other half of the squad set a course for the frigate.

Xxx

Approximately 1425 hours

"Janie, we need to have a long talk after we get back to base." Nathan said as the trio slipped between a set of alien tanks in what seemed to be a motor pool. "I get that you have a bone to pick, but doing it in the middle of a mission is-"

"Don't even," Jane growled, "Campbell, shut your jaw or I'll pry it off."

Nathan shook his head despite how the gesture would go unseen. "Fine, be a stone cold bitch like you usually are." He muttered.

"If you two are done, I think I have our target." Victoria's irritated voice said through their channel. "Up ahead, fifteen degrees on the left and right behind the landing pads."

Both of them saw the larger shapes sticking out among the maze of structures. They were more rounded and did not look like prefab buildings, but metallic fuel tanks which stuck about twenty feet into the air and were surrounded by several turrets and patrolling Raptors.

"Well...that should be easy to get through." Nathan commented after a moment's silence.

Victoria turned and glared at the shimmer that she believed to be Nathan. "Why the hell would you say that right before we head over there?" She demanded. "God damn it Campbell! And people keep saying that both my families are magnets for trouble."

"Yeah...about that topic," Nathan awkwardly stated, "Did you and the Captain, you know...talk that out?"

"He got this mission together in a couple hours' time, didn't he?"

"Yeah, it got him off his ass and into the fight again but...I didn't hear much besides the shouting." Nathan responded while watching their six and moving backwards to keep up with them, "Were there any emotional revelations, some personal heart to heart talk or something?"

"We got pissed at each other and he stormed out while basically saying that he had bigger issues to deal with than me, primarily living long enough to get pissed at my dad for keeping me a secret." Victoria mumbled bitterly and felt Jane's hand on her shoulder, stopping her from walking right into the path of a vehicle which lumbered by on a set of six wheels. "Damn. Thanks Parker."

"Ghouls: keeping you smooth skins alive since 2077." Parker drawled.

"So...seriously, there was no drama whatsoever? You managed to get him out of his whole 'survivor's guilt' funk just by getting him pissed?" Nathan asked in astonishment.

Victoria shrugged as they crossed to the security fence surrounding the fuel depot. "You'd be surprised how easily that gets people on both sides of my family moving. Just bury your feelings and sprinkle the ground with the blood of a few dozen of your enemies...makes for some good therapy."

"...Just for the record: I'm starting to believe all those rumours about your grandparents being psychotic," Nathan informed her.

"Just for the record: I don't care." Victoria looked at Jane, or at least at the vague shimmering outline that she believed to be Jane. "Arm and hand me one of your explosives."

Parker handed one charge off after priming it, being careful since they were all still borderline invisible to the naked eye along with everything attached to them. "Here. What's the plan?"

"The plan," Victoria stood up and moved away from the fence, keeping one eye on the guards milling about near the gate and also making sure she didn't wander out into the path of some oncoming vehicle, "Is for me to put my family's baseball skills to use."

"I thought Masons preferred soccer," Nathan commented.

"Talking about the Shepard side, moron," Victoria sighed and then reared back her arm, flinging the charge over the fence as it became visible.

One of the guards spotted it in the corner of his vision and looked around, walking through the open gates and in between the fuel tanks where the charge had landed.

"Oh...fuck." Parker stood up. "Campbell...get your ass up and move!"

They both got up and rushed away from the fence, kicking up some dirt in their haste and gaining the guard's attention. He looked through the fence and stood up quickly, holding the charge in one hand.

Victoria was now on the far side of the road from the depot. She dropped her stealth field and held up one hand, palm up. "Parker. Detonator. Now!"

Parker slapped the device into Victoria's waiting palm as she and Nathan reached her position. The guard holding the charge spotted Victoria in her jet black armour as she stood up, but before he could even say or do anything she pressed down on the detonator. The charge went off in his hand and killed the unfortunate alien instantly, and what little was left of his body was incinerated in the explosion that followed as the two tanks on either side of him exploded into flames and showered the surrounding area with shrapnel. The rest of the ranks wet up next, reducing the surrounding guards and turrets to burnt husks of their former selves while generating enough force to knock all three of the infiltrators off their feet even after they'd distanced themselves from the source.

As the explosion faded Nathan sat up and shook his head, feeling his ears ringing even with his helmet protecting them from the ear splitting roar of the detonation. "Ugh...I hate physics." He muttered and looked to his companions, both of whom were already beginning to get up. "So...you think that was a big enough boom for Mason?"

Xxx

"Well," Mason commented from where he and his half of the squad were in hiding about halfway across the camp, "I did tell them to make it big."

"The frigate's open, but if we don't move now they might lock it down." Zero warned him while pointing to the still open ramp leading into the frigate.

"Right, let's move!"

It was a short run, barely a hundred feet from their hiding spot. They had stopped to let their Stealth Generators recharge again and were now easily able to step up onto the ramp without being noticed by the guards, however they had to move slower now that they were on a metal surface since their stealth fields could not muffle the sound of their footsteps. Almost as soon as they were on the ramp began to rise up, forcing them to quickly make their way to the regular floor of what appeared to be a cargo bay before the room was sealed.

The first thing that Owen noted was how...dark the interior was compared to an Alliance, Brotherhood or even a Manifest ship. Usually there would be plenty of lights to illuminate a room this size, but instead there were whole sections that were plunged into darkness.

"We have a problem." Zero announced.

"Oh you know I hate bad news." Owen sighed as he looked over to her.

"The on board sensors are much stronger than the ones we passed before," Zero revealed, "The enemy has detected us."

...

"Fuck."

Suddenly a noise began to wail through the room much similar to the siren of an alarm. The few aliens present dropped whatever they were doing, drew their weapons and began to scan the room.

Xxx

On the bridge of the Wraith's Wing Commander Oramius was looking at a screen displaying the signatures of three intruders in the cargo bay.

"How the blazes did these primitives get on board?" He demanded, "Dispatch security teams and sync up interior sensors to Omni-Tools!"

A team of six Turian soldiers were already in the elevator leading down to the cargo bay and had data being fed to them directly from the sensors. Now they would be able to find the general location of the trio, and even without being able to see them clearly they would be able to follow a piece of wisdom widely known throughout the galaxy: most fire fights are won by the side that can put the most shots downrange the fastest.

"Should we open the hatch back up and let reinforcements on sir?"

Oramius shook his head. "Negative, there could be even more humans out there. We keep the ship sealed and let security deal with these three." He looked to the communications array. "And someone inform General Oraka of our situation!"

Xxx

CODEX OPENED

Accessing Files...

File opened: Synthetics

In Citadel Space this term was applied primarily to the enigmatic race known as the Geth, formerly servants of the Quarian race who rose up and annihilated the majority of their creators. This term was also applied to Artificial Intelligence and even Virtual Intelligence. However the Systems Alliance has used this term for a section of their population called 'Synths' or Androids.

Synths have existed for well over two hundred years and were initially developed by the mysterious organization known as the Institute. The first generation were crude mechanical constructs who could be described as skeletal, the second generation was more refined and capable of passing as a human through an artificial skin layer, but the third and latest generation of Synths have completely broken the mold. They are bio-mechanical beings capable or mimicking a human in every way from possessing individuality and absorbing nutrients through food consumption to even reproducing. It is this generation that leaves even the people of the Alliance, who are well accustomed to artificial intelligence afraid of the possibility of a Synth uprising or people being replaced by Synths.

The Institute is presumed destroyed as of 2287, meaning that the primary manufacturer of these Third Generation Synths is no longer in operation, but other groups and even governments have been attempting to replicate this work and have managed to construct First and Second Generation Synths to serve as workers or even soldiers. Second Generation Synths are most common in Alliance Space as they possess free will but can be easily identified when compared to a real human, although they still meet their fair share of suspicion.

It is also believed that Manifest makes use of Second Generation Synthetics, promising them upgrades or even new bodies in return for their services. On one occasion an android by the name of 'Zero' was involved in a Manifest operation before being reprogrammed, resulting in whatever persona Manifest made use of being erased. Zero displayed the use of advanced weapons technology never before seen by the Alliance at the time, leading some to believe that the Institute still endures and is even working in cooperation with Manifest.

File closed

Aaaand there we have it! Man this chapter was a long one...so much for writing shorter chapters. Sorry about that folks but I just squeeze too much in to each chapter.

Also...guess who has two thumbs and is now a slave to Fallout 4! ME! Speaking of which, the game calls to me again! SO LONG SUCKERS! (The reader then cackles as he runs out of the recording booth and is then heard driving away in his car)

But seriously, I am in love with the latest installment of the Fallout franchise, and it is making me reconsider so many things about this story. I'm not going to go back and rewrite it but I am going to try and apply some parts of Fallout 4 to this story's timeline.

There will be a Lone Survivor, he or she will have become famous throughout the Commonwealth and the Institute WILL make an appearance in this.

But aw man, the things I now need to keep track of...let me count them off.

1) The Adventures of Owen Mason & Friends as they face off with Saren & Company

2) Captain Death Claw and his fight against the Turian Fleet

3) Rear Admiral Pridius' first day on the job

4) Admiral Trisun's head to head clash with General Desolas

5) The Citadel Council doing something (hold your gasps of shock)

6) The Alliance trying to do something and the ongoing fight for New Taiyuan.

7) The sub plot about Victoria Mason/Shepard/Grey and her connection to Owen.

Wow...did I pack too much stuff into this part of the story?

In other news, my time is partially taken up by school work and the rest by an original story that I'm working on, a science fiction/fantasy story that I feel has a lot of potential. If it goes anywhere I'll consider posting it somewhere or publishing it on a website-and I'll be sure to let you all know if anybody is interested.

Now for responses to reviews!

SITHIS ARCANIS – Ah, my mistake. That just makes me all the more relieved since that means the chances of a camouflaged Death Claw are now slim to none...which I am certain everyone can agree is a good thing.

Buonadonna – Perhaps, but suits in Mass Effect still seem capable of absorbing large amounts of heat. In Mass Effect 2 you can withstand a direct hit from a particle beam for a few seconds and survive the intense heat of Maelstrom's sun. The Geth managed to survive the latter without any issues at all, so maybe plasma weapons wouldn't even be as effective against them as they would be against organics.

Tylermech66 – Chameleo Mutata...hm...interesting. Must consider that in event of rewrite. Ah yes, and the chameleon part again. Now I'm just picturing a Death Claw that's bright pink...still frightening, but funny. As far as I care they're still a slaughter house on two legs regardless of the colour.

Pacer287 – Thanks for the input!

OMAC001 – Oh he's definitely in for one hell of a ride before this is all over, I'll tell you that much.

Ngrey651 – Ah well, can't win it all. And yeah, I was really trying to make the point stick that humans with psychic powers are not a very significant thing compared to a whole race that can live to be a thousand years AND use Biotics AND meld minds with others to the point of killing them (See Ardat Yakshi).

Guest – Wish granted my friend!