A new dawn.
Disclaimer
Starcraft is the property of Blizzard entertainment.
Mass effect is the property of Bioware.
Any elements used in this story are used only in order to create a story for no monetary gain nor do I claim any ownership over them, beyond the names and characters unique to this story.
Xiltar
Was this his punishment?
More than six months ago, Xiltar recovered his senses in a prairie not far from the place where he now was.
He originally thought that he had reached the paradise that was promised to all who did not ascend into godhood.
But there was no eternal procession.
No land of silver and black sand.
No sky that glowed with a light of tranquility.
And no ancestors welcomed his arrival as they handed him the flag of his accomplishments in life so he could join them in eternal pilgrimage.
He knew that he still lived as local animals tried to make a meal out of him.
Their deaths were swift and unceremonious as he made it so the silence was the only thing that would be heard in the forests near him.
Xiltar did not know how he had arrived here.
He only knew that he was alone.
He walked towards spires of metal on the horizon as they marked the spot where civilization could be found.
His trek took him to road made of compressed gravel that was adorned with white lines.
He followed this road towards the spires and as dusk arrived he found a strange sight.
As he approached what must have been some sort of settlement, Xiltar saw a fence made of metal and light that protected the whole city.
Fortunately for him, the road approached the only entrance he could see.
Unfortunately the guards of said entrance deemed it necessary to shoot at him with their primitive weapons.
He would have found this reaction nothing but annoying had his shields not failed him at that instant.
He escaped the scene and found refuge in the borrow of a beast he managed to kill later in the evening.
As the days passed and no rescue came for him, since he was sure that the beacon implanted in his armor still worked, he began to lose hope.
He felt so alone…
With decisiveness he approached the city once more and using the powers of the void he cloaked his being and entered the premises without any concern.
But as he passed the guards a minute detail got his attention.
He did not get a good chance to see what this creature looked when they first attacked him but something about how they looked felt… familiar.
…
Terrans.
The name of their race had finally come to mind.
His people emerged from their long slumber far after their worlds had been reduced to smolder by the hybrid.
Xiltar only recognized the aliens in front of him as he remembered the numerous statues that dotted their world once he had arrived at it to recover the keystone from a deep and abandoned vault.
But… they were dead.
He was sure of this.
The mountains of bones and the skulls that stood on the graveyards of their worlds told him this much.
How were they here?
He would need to learn of this.
Over the next couple of months he began to steal what technology couldn't be easily tracked as he used its components to fabricate a transponder to reach his people.
But an answer never came.
He was alone.
…
Xiltar focused on his task once more.
The terrans were moving at a slow pace.
Too slow for his comfort.
Xiltar looked over the horizon and watched as the titanic machine continued its rampage.
The screeching it left ever so often ruptured his mind in a way that could not be easily described by anyone who wasn't a psionic being.
It felt as if talons of steel clawed at his being and threatened to reap his minds into ribbons while it toyed with his will.
…
Whatever it was, he couldn't allow it to exist.
And he would make use of these terrans to destroy it for him.
Shepard
A shiver went down Shepards' spine.
Williams, Alenko and himself continued their walk towards the dig site without any resistance.
But he felt as if something was about to go horrifyingly wrong.
First there was the sudden attack that claimed private Jenkins' life then came the confirmation that any unit that could offer resistance to the attack was too spread out to mount any kind of successful defense and finally came the news that Nihlus was tracking a large group of Geth as they made their way with the beacon in their hands.
"Move it, ladies. Nihlus will need our help if we are to retake that beacon" ordered Shepard.
"What about the survivors, sir? We could make due with the additional firepow…" Williams suddenly stopped as they reached the dig site.
They saw nothing but the charred remains of the unit.
There were no survivors.
Williams quickly averted her gaze as she guilt threatened to overwhelm her.
"This… is horrifying" said Alenko as he looked at the remains with a saddened expresion.
Shepard on his part felt revolted at the sight of the carnage.
He then ordered his team to continue.
"We can't let them get away scot free from this. We have to intercept them before they continue slaughtering innocents" Shepard said as he checked his rifle and motioned for his team to follow him "On the double, people!" ordered Shepard, knowing that they would inflict as much punishment as they could.
He thought this, unaware of the presence combing through his mind with the intention to find what his mission here was.
Xiltar
There was much he did not understand.
Who were the Protheans?
Were these geth a threat to him?
What were the abominations of steel?
Too many variables.
After acquiring what information he could from the Terran known as Shepard, Xiltar abandoned the group and made his way towards the one called Nihlus knowing that following him would take him one step closer to his new point of interest.
The beacon.
The little information that was known about said device was the fact that it was some sort of ancient technology that held properties similar to a communication array.
This could be his way out of this world.
If this device was integrated with hyperluminal capabilities then he could use it to try and reach his people.
If not, he could take the dangerous device from the hands of whoever was willing to misuse it, like he had done countless times before.
As Xiltar traveled towards the last known location of the beacon he began to ponder on the events that had transpired that afternoon.
His hideout had been found as he had gotten careless and stole a piece of technology with a tracker inside it.
Should he survive this day then he would be forced to create another rescue buoy once again.
Then the attack against the terrans by an unknown assailant began.
Surprisingly, none of the memories he had accessed so far told him neither the origin or objective of this 'Geth' as these terrans proved to be quite lacking in their understanding of their enemy.
That or they were particularly incompetent.
Eventually, he managed to find the creature the commander intended to reach.
In his years of service as a judge he had met several primitive species who dared to interfere and profanate the relics of his… gods.
But none compared to the creature in front of him.
An alien whose most defining characteristic was its long, lean and metal-like head that was dotted with tattoos and raptorian features as his ancestors must have been some sort of predator of reptile or avian origin. It stalked through the rubble of a destroyed platform as he approached and destroyed whatever robots stood in his path.
Xiltar found himself mere steps behind the one called Nihlus as he continued his advance.
They both approached a tram station and to the alien's credit, Xiltar was impressed at the stealth he showed as Nihlus quietly took care of two machines that guarded the ramp in his path.
Once they reached the top of the ramp they found something or rather someone who surprised them both for completely different reasons.
To Nihlus it was a surprise to see fellow specter, Saren Arterius.
But to Xiltar a more nefarious being stood before him as he saw this Saren darkened by the same shadow that loomed over them all in the shape of the titanic machine.
Xiltar remained silent as he wished to know how this encounter would play out.
Nihlus
What was this?
"Saren?" the turian asked in surprise, for he did not expect to find the presence of his old friend in the same world as him. Nor did he expect him to find one such as him in a battle concerning the humans and the geth of all things.
What could he be doing here?
"Nihlus" Saren said as he began to approach him while giving him nothing but a cold, dead and empty stare.
Something was wrong with him.
As Nihlus examined the modifications he had done upon himself, he saw that there were too many cybernetics on his body for it to be working properly.
"This isn't your mission, Saren. What are you doing here?" he said plainly as he was clearly stating his suspicion.
Saren smirked.
"The council thought you could use some help on this one" he patted his shoulder as he walked past him and got away from his sight.
This was a lie.
Saren was here for something else and his cybernetics were too similar with the ones from monsters he had encountered earlier.
There were too many coincidences.
"I didn't expect to find the Geth here. The situation is bad" Nihlus said as he was trying to get a confession out of Saren as to what was his true reason for being here.
"Don't worry, I've got it under control" he said ominously.
…
Realization struck him as to what he intended but it was too late to do anything.
As he made peace with the spirits and mentally asked his mate to forgive him for failing to return to her… something unexpected happened.
He was pushed to the side and thanks to this Saren's shot missed him, making it so that he only grazed his neck.
At the same time he heard someone speak directly in his mind…
(Hide) it commanded.
He made a run for the platform's edge but more of Saren's shots followed his escape as he continued to fire at him.
One hit.
Upper leg, that wouldn't kill him.
Second hit.
Torso. Okay, that's worse.
A third…
And there goes his lung.
…
He did not have enough medigel for that.
Xiltar
…
Xiltar felt disgusted at what he witnessed.
The being known as Saren exuded nothing but malice and treachery in his warped and twisted mind as he aimed his betraying intent at another member of his own race.
He could see that the minds of both turians emitted a similar footprint as both individuals thought in an orderly and tactical way.
But Saren's thoughts were… strange.
Where there is always supposed to be an absolute grasp in the mind of any higher being as it used its mental faculties the same could not be said of the malformed creature in front of him.
His thoughts were… fleeting.
It was as if he only held his consciousness only by a thread and had allowed something else to come into his psyche and use him like nothing but a puppet.
He would soon find out what this unknown master was a malicious will reached inside of his echoing mind.
And it commanded him to eliminate his former compatriot.
This same thing had also made the one known as Saren think he was still in control.
He wasn't anymore.
Xiltar would not allow this dishonorable act to go unanswered.
He pushed the Nihlus alien out of the path of his potential death, commanded him to run and as Xiltar saw that the creature escaped the assault from the one called Saren he was satisfied.
Xiltar now wished to deal with this Saren.
He ignited his concealed blade and readied a strike as he wished to behead this being.
But before he could deliver the killing strike, the protoss felt a foreboding sensation as something got the attention of Saren and made the turian turn towards Xiltar's direction.
He wasn't looking directly at the protoss.
"What is it this time?" Saren spoke towards another individual as he had not even registered his concealed presence.
This did not bode well.
Xiltar turned to follow the cyborg's gaze and found what he was looking at.
The titan was looking directly towards them.
And a tearing sensation was felt by his mind…
"KNEEL!" an unbodied maw screeched this cold word into his mind and made the protoss recoil in unending pain as his whole being felt like millions of metallic claws teared at his mind.
This… this wasn't natural.
This had no reason to be.
How could such malice exist in one word?
The protoss kneeled onto the floor of the platform as the titan bellowed the same screech that had hurt him before. The void abandoned his control and revealed his recoiling body to a surprised and perplexed turian.
"SAREN" the master spoke to his unknowing slave "THE HUMANS APPROACH. DESTROY THE BEACON. ELIMINATE THE ANOMALY".
The titan lifted itself from the soil and moved its gigantic form towards the heavens.
As the machine left the world and his influence dimmed as he traveled farther and farther away, Xiltar felt as if he could begin to get a hold of his own mind once again.
If he was quick he could avoid…
*STAB*
Pain inundated his mind once again as he saw what the turian intended to be his demise.
A knife.
He thought he could end his existence with a knife.
What could…
The protoss teleported as he used the power of the void since he saw that the cyborg wished to evisarate him in the only place where his armor did not cover completely.
He cursed his lack of a shield as a stab wound remained in his abdomen while he began to clutch it in pain.
Xiltar saw that the knife remained in Saren's hand.
"Interesting…" the creature mused as he contemplated the dark blue blood that remained in his knife "What are you?".
Xiltar did not answer as he ignited his blade once more and stood in defiance of this being.
His master would not save him from his wrath.
"Even more interesting" Saren ignored the act of bravado and pointed a finger towards the protoss "Did the humans send you to stop me?".
Humans…
No.
(...) Xiltar made a grunt through his psionic powers as he did not wish to have an exchange with this abomination.
"Not the cooperative sorts, I see" Saren drew his gun and began to shoot at him.
He showed unnatural marksmanship as every shot would have landed on his head had he not covered his face with his arm as the material it was made off seemed to be resistant to the strange ammunition this alien used.
"So it won't be that easy" Saren stopped as he saw that the protoss remained unfazed by his assault "Unfortunately for both of us, time is running out for you, me and this galaxy" he waved a hand dismissively "Vanguard".
With this order a massive figure exited the burning building that was behind Saren as it strode through the flames without any sort of concern for its own integrity.
The machine that emerged was massive as it towered over Xiltar by a head. He could recognize that whatever this thing was it was most certainly related to the other androids that had stood in his way to get here.
Its gigantic form was adorned with a scripture in a language he did not understand as the markings must have had some sort of purpose beyond decoration.
It directed what must have been its face towards the protoss as he had not regained enough strength to use the void after the onslaught by the screeching voice to cloak his form at that moment.
-I answer your call, high prophet- the machine placed a hand on its chest while saying this.
"It is a shame I won't have the chance to examine your body once this machine is done with you" Saren said before he pointed a finger towards Xiltar "Eliminate that creature" Saren said as he abandoned the engagement and left the two giants alone.
-It will be done- The machine raised its arm and launched a rocket in his direction.
Foolish.
Xiltar had regained enough strength to blink to the side and completely dodge the relatively slow projectile.
He grew tired of how things had developed and he now wished to take out his frustration on this piece of worthless machinery.
-Objective engaged- it continued as the machine turned to his new location while trying to fire his rocket towards him once again.
Xiltar continued to dodge the rockets with ease and began to circle the machine.
He was a predator that wished to deliver the killing strike as his prey would cower before him.
With the swiftness of the striking lightning he ended the existence of the machine with one blow as his blade arched towards the head of the construct and turned it into molten slag under the heat and hatred of his strike.
-Task… failed…- the machine witnessed its last light as he plunged the deep dark blue of his weapon into it.
As the machine fell backwards the protoss began to clutch his wound once again as the effort had drained enough blood to make him feel somewhat nauseous.
He could not get to Saren in this state and knew that his armies could prove too much for him to handle alone.
…
Maybe he could use Nihlus and his warriors to his advantage.
Xiltar left the platform and searched for the turian as he could not get an exact reading on any mind as his own felt extremely tired by the assault of both machines.
He found the creature as he began to point a weapon at the protoss.
Nihlus
He had been worse.
But he still was in a state where things couldn't be left to chance.
Nihlus trailed his gun as best as he could on the tall creature as it approached him.
As it lumbered towards him, Nihlus recognized that he had never seen anything like it before.
Dark gray skin, black stone-like armor and two pupils that glowed like blue stars stared at him.
(I have not come to kill you, Nihlus Kryik) the same voice as before spoke. Nihlus did not know from where did it come but he was certain that it couldn't be from the same creature that was staring at him. Could it? (It is as you suspect, alien) it spoke with a tinge of arrogance.
Great, he was about to bleed out and the person who almost saved him was a douchebag.
The creature raised an eyebrow as he thought this. Was it reading his mind? (Yes) the answer came.
Silence lingered for a moment before Nihlus dropped his gun "Then what are you doing here?" it remained silent for a moment.
(I wished to see if you would live…) he simply answered.
"HA!, it will take more than that to kill me" he joked as he tried to hide the true state in which he felt his body was at the moment "But it will some time before anybody can reach me" he accepted the somber reality in which he found himself "I might not make it" he thanked the medi-gel he had applied for buying him some time as he knew that he would have most likely bleed if not for its use.
(Can't this substance save you?) the creature asked.
"Not unless you happen to have a hundred charges of the thing with you" he coughed a small trickle of blood as the remedy had not patched his pierced lung much to his dismay.
(No… I do not) the creature said this last part with slight pain as he removed his hand from what was clearly a wound.
"Heh. We both came out with a few scratches, didn't we?" Nihlus tried to make light of their situation.
The creature stood there looking at him as if he did not understand what humor was. He then narrowed his eyes as if… smiling? (I guess we did) then he offered Nihlus a hand.
The turian then took a moment to consider what to do, but he ultimately decided to accept the hand as some help was better than no help at all.
He grunted as the creature helped him to his feet.
They walked up the slope from which he had originally come from.
And after they managed to reach its crest the creature helped Nihlus rest next to a rock for some reason.
As he was about to ask what he was doing the creature spoke again (Wait here) and then it somehow managed to disappear in a wisp of smoke.
And since Nihlus could not do anything else, he complied and prayed to the spirits so that he would not die in this place.
Little by little he began to lose focus and as he was about to lose consciousness he managed to make out the shape of three figures approaching him.
"Nihlus" a voice he recognized called to him
It was Shepard, good.
He can pick it up from here.
Afterword.
Spooky stuff with that Saren and Sovereign, what nasty fellows.
I also owe you an apology, it took me a moment to edit this chapter as I did not like the end result.
As an apology expect another chapter later today
*mumble* *mumble* don't use that many swear words *mumble* *mumble*
Edit - Ended up changing my most controversial chapter as this was the one that ended the journey for most of the people who have voiced their concerns with how i was developing the story.
And to those people I say…
Why the hell would I kill the main antagonist (Sovereign is the main THREAT as he is basically a force of nature) in such a crude and wasteful manner?