A/N: Hello everyone, another update to MD! Many thanks to Aperture Zero for being my beta, and thanks to Maglad for a specific segment at the end of this chapter. As always, reviews are more than welcome.
The skies of Erszbat, normally a verdant blue-green, had turned a sickly gray-green.
A grunt and a curse was audible over the din of the warzone only a kilometer away, nearly causing an observer to jump from inside their makeshift observation post that had previously been a watchtower. Now it lay on its side, its base melted and the guards posted atop it missing.
"Watch it!" A disgruntled older Batarian muttered as another shape settled in next to him.
"Then don't leave things in the way, Klay. Wouldn't be an issue in that case." Answered the smaller form of an Asari child.
The Batarian shook his head in annoyance.
"It's a safety thing. Even with the Masters' attention being occupied by the invaders, I wouldn't put it past them to send someone after us."
"Masters? You've only been a slave for a week! You're awfully quick to start calling them that."
"Only because I've been on the other end of the leash, Briala. It's better to submit than to fight them. Especially when I have to look after you."
The young asari huffed for a few moments, until something struck her as odd. Silence in the distance, followed by a rhythmic thud from… somewhere.
"Hey… doesn't it sound a bit too quiet? The fighting sounds like it's mostly stopped already…"
Klay frowned as he realized that the girl was right. He had seen his fair share of urban combat, as well as warfare. She was correct; the abnormally sharp hiss-crack of whatever weapons the invaders were using had nearly ceased, with the exception of one here or there. Cleaning up the survivors, Klay supposed. But he was more concerned about the thud that was growing louder.
His only warning that they had been found was when the thuds stopped. He cocked his head slightly in an attempt to figure out which direction it came from. He was not prepared for a massive fist to punch through the top of their temporary shelter, the hand opening wide to grab him by his stained and tattered fatigues. Briala's scream kept him focused instead of panicking, taking in the situation.
One of those large bipedal soldiers with the jump packs he had observed entering the warzone only an hour earlier held him. It had brought his head up to its own, the pressure on his torso steadily increasing. Behind the bipedal soldier stood two others, both carrying some form of electric rifle-cannon. Something he had certainly never seen before this invasion.
But no matter how much Briala screamed in terror, Klay couldn't help but feel the shiver that ran down his spine as the thing carrying him spoke in a monotonous tone that made it seem like it simply didn't care if he lived or died.
"Target acquired. Be still, child. Your tormentors shall be purged, starting with this one."
Klay choked as the pressure increased sharply. He almost wasn't aware of the Asari child rushing out from the demolished shelter, nor her hands pounding on the invader's left leg as she sobbed. But he was able to hear her voice.
"Wait! He's not one of them! He's a slave too! Let him go, he's the only reason I'm alive!"
The pressure stopped increasing, but it didn't release him. At least not immediately, and not without one of the others behind it speaking. The new one sounded like it could have been female, if such things existed between the invaders. Still unnervingly monotonous though; Klay was confident they didn't particularly care one way or another except for their orders.
"Batarians have enslaved their own kind as well. This one possesses the collar, the child speaks the truth. Release him, they shall both be evacuated."
Klay began inhaling the air around him as soon as he was released, at least until he realized that the one that held him was speaking again, apparently in response to something Briala had asked.
"We shall be moving on. A shuttle will arrive with a tech-priest and their guard shortly. Do not worry child, Adept Charlus is much more patient with freed slaves then the other Adepts, from my experience. He shall answer most questions, should they prove worth answering in his eyes."
And then the invaders were gone, moving far faster than Klay believed they had any right to, with their size. He rolled onto his back, focusing his gaze upon the sickly green sky.
Both he, and more importantly Briala, were still alive. He would take what he could get. His mind idly wandered to what that strange voice had said, just before everything began to turn into a hellscape here.
Seven cycles. On Erszbat, a single cycle was slightly over double that of most other colonized planets. Fifty-nine hours, going by the human clock. And seeing as these invaders were speaking some form of human… it made sense to use their scale of time. What was their definition of a cycle?
Ix-036 halted her cohort's advance as soon as she was confident they were far enough away that the two slaves they had found could no longer see nor hear them. While three were visible to them, there were another six that were patrolling their perimeter until they moved on; Assault Cohort IV. She didn't have to turn to Daniel-989 to admonish him as she looked over their intended pathway sent to them by an Adept aboard a vessel above them.
"Unnecessary inaction, Daniel-989. One less Batarian wouldn't have mattered. You shouldn't have hesitated in killing it."
A huff sounded from the addressed Ursarax.
"Pardon me, but I wasn't sure about his status. They enslave each other as much as they enslave other species. Just because you want to kill every alien out there doesn't mean the rest of us do."
It was common knowledge among their own that Ix-036 was among the original cohort that helped found the Forge World. It was also common knowledge that all of that original cohort were extremely xenophobic, and slightly insane when they weren't… pacified, by the tech-priests.
But, she was Daniel-989's commanding officer, and his experience in the Alliance Marines had instilled in him the respect any commanding officer was due. Even if he had been captured during his N6 active duty tour.
Now, he marveled at what he was currently capable of. Sure, he gave up his physical body in exchange for what he had now… but he could bring the slaughter to the Batarians for what they did to him and his squad, not to mention the civilians they had been protecting. But that didn't mean he wanted all of them to die. There were good ones too, and he was still alive because of those good ones that didn't want anything to do with their cultural practices.
He engaged his Jump Pack when he noticed that they had been given an updated path to follow. Deep in his mind, he felt the ecstatic glee of being able to wield the Power Fist he had begun to treasure.
One benefit of anyone that wasn't from the original Thallaxii, he had noticed, was that any generation of them that came after were much more expressive. Rumors implied it had something to do with biotic implants helping the emotional spectrum, though he wasn't entirely sure how that connected exactly since most of them were not biotics. Which branched into a whole different topic in his mind, as his cohort met up with a specialist Thallax Cohort within the confines of a Batarian city's outskirts. Their directives changed the moment that Assault Cohort IV met up with seven other Thallaxii.
Specialist Cohort. No numeral designation, and their armor was painted gold with a dark purple raptor holding a lightning bolt emblazoned upon their pauldrons and the right side of their torsos. Daniel-989 was reminded immediately of Lord-General Arcturus Magnus, and if rumors were to be believed then it was rightly so. Each of the seven were powerful biotics, even by Assri standards. He had heard that one of them was actually an Asari Matriarch for that matter, though he had no proof and would certainly never ask them.
The important part was that they combined the pure lethality of the Lorica Thallax with the utility and devastating capabilities of biotics. Assault Cohort IV had deployed with the Specialist Cohort on Logasiri, acting as the spearhead of the Forge World's forces that shattered the thickest defenses that the Batarians could muster. It would be no different here as he read the updated directive that appeared on the upper right of his HUD.
PRIMARY: ELIMINATE RAD-BOMBARDMENT SURVIVORS
It wasn't new to him, but it still tugged at his moral compass as he thought of the procedure. The Thallax were immune to radiation, unless their carapace protecting their brain was breached. In which case, the unit had a bigger problem than radiation. Thus, they were the choice of the Forge World to follow the wake of Rad-Bombardment. He would forever be haunted by the results, but he couldn't deny the effectiveness of the tactic. The Citadel Council would be abhorred, though they would likely already be having conniptions from the fact that the Forge World would dare ignore their laws in regards to orbital bombardment as a whole. Thankfully, he didn't answer to them.
The two cohorts didn't have to wait long. Less than a minute later, he heard the radioactive shelling breach the sound barrier before making impact on the city. They didn't wait for it to finish before Jump Packs were engaged; they needed to move before it ended, capitalize on the Hegemony soldiers' disarray long before they thought to begin to reorganize. The benefit of having a tech-priest inside all of their heads, he supposed, was that they could reliably do so safely without worry of friendly fire.
What he wasn't expecting was two more cohorts joining them on either side, each roughly a kilometer away. Like the Specialist Cohort, they too sported gold-painted armor. His HUD labeled one as Asset Recovery Cohort, with their raptors painted green. The other was labeled Interrogation Cohort, which sported red raptors. Both were followed by several Triaros Conveyor Transports and a Castellax guard, which indicated that they were filled with Skitarii.
It was then that he noticed the sky darken behind the haze of irradiated clouds, until the Awakened Cruiser breached them. If he still had eyes, he would have blinked as he noticed the area around it buzz to life with countless swarms of… things.
Something was afoot. The amount of resources being dedicated to this one city was astonishing, as the entire planet needed to be cleansed before the end of their deadline. Ix-036's voice sounded over their comms.
"Primary directive has been modified. Updated task list incoming, as well as map data."
PRIMARY: ESCORT ASSET RETRIEVAL COHORT
SECONDARY: ELIMINATE HOSTILE ELEMENTS
On the lower left of his HUD, a map was generated. His allies were all marked in real-time with blue, and his own Cohort in green. A mass of red dominated the upper portion, showing the location of all scanned hostiles. Again, Daniel-989 thanked the tech-priest that watched over them. Now, he could get to work with the deadly efficiency that had earned him his place as the only Ursarax within his esteemed Assault Cohort IV.
Inside the Orion's cockpit, Arcturus hummed to himself as he processed Justice's words. They were swiftly following the Awakened voidship's descent to Erszbat's surface.
"You're positive about this artifact?" He asked.
The Awakened had its arms crossed as it nodded.
"Positive. Our scanners detect a fragment of Reaper technology within this city, located below the capitol building. It is not properly shielded."
The Custodian reached for the Orion's comms.
"Orion to Talon of Nemata. Task asset recovery to the assault team heading towards Orvakha City, sending asset coordinates now. I shall ensure the Batarian Hegemony cannot deny the recovery of the asset before I have made my own conclusions with it."
Lexus's response came immediately. The Magos-Commander knew far better than to question the Thirteenth when it came to warfare.
"Cohort reassignment confirmed, Lord Arcturus. Awakened Swarms tasked to aid in recovery. For the Omnissiah, and Forge World Nemata."
"For the Emperor, and Forge World Nemata." Arcturus closed the comms and turned back to the Awakened. "Inform Sister of her upcoming trial. We will hold the Capitol building until asset recovery arrives."
Justice turned, then halted as it seemed to think of something.
"Reapers indoctrinate through proximity to their devices in many instances. Distance would be prefered."
That prompted Arcturus to frown.
"If the process is the same as what had control over your people, then I'm convinced that we shall be rendered immune to the effects by Sister's presence. I shall keep a careful eye on all of us."
"And if it indoctrinates you?"
Arcturus sniffed pridefully.
"Never has a member of the Legio Custodes fallen to the temptations of outside influences. Our devotion to the Emperor is absolute. He may not be here, but my devotion remains as strong as His design intended. It shall not gain purchase within my mind."
Justice merely nodded as it left the cockpit.
The Custodian brought up the scans that the Awakened voidship had taken of the city, then enhanced the image in order to get an outline of the capitol building and its surroundings… which included the expansive lab dug nearly half a kilometer underground. Multiple plans came to mind immediately, only to be swiftly broken down and discarded. He finally settled on a plan of action and hailed the Assault Cohort spearheading the assault on Orvakha City.
Daniel-989 nearly cursed as he sidestepped an anti-tank rocket that came from a half-dead Batarian soldier roughly two meters in front of him inside a devastated two-story building. It had been a lucky shot to have even made it in the same area where the Ursarax was, he admitted to himself as he crushed the Batarian's skull using his Power Fist. The creature was missing both of its legs and a significant chunk of its lower torso, after all.
His sensor suite didn't detect any more living creatures within the building. It was time to move onto the next as the Cohort made its way to the capitol building.
The Ursarax nearly stumbled as red text surrounded by gold flashed across his HUD.
PRIORITY ONE TRANSMISSION: CONNECTION SUCCESSFUL
The text blinked twice, then disappeared to reveal the armored head of Lord-General Arcturus.
"Assault Cohort IV, ignore hostiles between the capitol building and your current location. Seeker Swarms will take care of them. Make all haste to the asset location in preparation for asset denial. For the Forge World."
The message repeated one more time, then blinked out.
"For the Omnissiah, and Forge World Nemata." Daniel-989 heard Ix-036 state through their comms. "Priority has changed, engage Jump Packs when swarms make contact. We shall ensure the location is purged of hostiles."
Daniel-989 wasted no time in jumping out of the building he was in, noting that his map kept up with both his actions and his entire cohort's. Ingenious, those tech-priests and their Noosphere.
It was only a moment later that the Seeker Swarms descended upon the city in a flock of terror. It unnerved him to see the insects that were as big as his former sidearm buzz between the Batarians, impaling and injecting them with some form of paralytic concoction that was nearly instantaneous.
Even more unnerving were the teal-swathed Awakened, former Collectors, that descended from the skies with the swarms. What the swarms were unable to deal with - primarily automated defenses such as Loki and Ymir droids, and the occasional weaponized loader mech - the Awakened forces made short work of through a combination of devastatingly powerful biotics and technology that Daniel-989 didn't want to think about.
Four minutes later found the cohort stopping just short of the capitol building's perimeter, observing the destruction that had been wrought with a strange sense of approval.
In the center of the grounds leading to the building itself was a small crater, inside which a strange antenna could be seen. Large footprints could be seen leading towards the building itself from the crater, following a path of pure violence that almost left him awed if not for the grisly spectacle that was the remnants of the building's defenders. At once, the cohort began to move. As they did so, he felt an unnerving presence within the building.
As they drew closer, Daniel looked over a half-trampled corpse that was missing the right half of its body. A glance at the shoulder revealed the insignia of the Hegemony's Special Intervention Unit, the special forces branch of the Batarians that was nearly as feared and respected as the Alliance's N7 program. He shuddered to think of what could have ripped through an entire troop detachment composed of these elites with such efficiency, though he had his suspicions.
He took point without waiting for Ix-036's orders. While most of the others had bayonets on their weapons, he was the only Ursarax among them. It made the most sense for him to be in front, where he could easiest reach any remaining opposition.
There was no need. The only thing inside the building itself that was still moving was the still-pooling blood of the fallen SIUs. At least until they reached an elevator.
Ix-036 wasted no time.
"My Lord Arcturus!" The Thallax stated as she kneeled. The cohort followed, Daniel-989 included. He still looked upon the golden giant's form, awe filling his mind as he beheld its stature. He glanced away at its companions, finding himself surprised to find another Awakened as well as a human woman that had donned a strange hue of golden armor. And as he gazed upon her, he realized something.
Lord Arcturus was a figure to be awed by, inspired to perform to great heights. But the woman… he feared her. Drove thoughts into his mind that he dare not speak aloud, especially not in the present company. It seemed he wasn't the only one, if the cohort's vital monitors were anything to judge by. Strangely enough, Ix-036's seemed the least affected. Her vitals looked nearly how they usually were, though he could still see that they were slightly above her norm.
Daniel-989's Lord glanced upon them, nodding as he reached a bloodied hand towards the elevator panel. And then he spoke. It was… strangely appealing to the Ursarax, though he could practically feel the confident arrogance in his Lord's words.
"Well met, Cohort. As of this moment, you report directly to this agent of the Departmento Investigates. Sister, introduce yourself."
The woman's gaze, hidden though it was behind the armored helmet of her hardsuit, scanned each of the Thallaxii until it finally rested upon Daniel-989 himself. He shuddered as he noticed that her visor wasn't polarized, revealing the bright green eyes surrounded by a few stray locks of red hair through the visor. Her hand rose, deftly going through motions of Thoughtmark. While Daniel-989 didn't know it himself, his HUD automatically translated it. Even if he didn't have direct line of sight, he didn't fail to notice that her own vitals were added next to the the rest of his cohort's on his HUD. Her signs would have shown up regardless while she remained there. The tech-priest worked fast.
"You may call me Sister, Null Maiden in service to the Lord-General. He shall penetrate the deeper defenses of this location. Come with me. We shall establish a defensive perimeter."
Jack Harper gazed at the numerous holodisplays in front of him, head cocked as he looked over the information that covered each of the screens. Anadius cast its light through his office, bathing him and the room in a soft orange glow.
He heard Miranda's footsteps echo through the room, approaching him and the screens he stared in an effort to understand what exactly he was seeing. As irritating as it was, he at least took solace in the fact that even Miranda was stumped at the information that they had been pondering over for nearly a week.
No matter. The Lazarus Project was beginning work in earnest; her talents were needed there more than here. Wilson would need her intelligence to ensure that Shepard's revival came about.
"It has been a long time since I've come across something that I don't understand, Miranda. It seems that record has been shattered. Everything I've seen leads me to believe that whatever this energy is, it does not exist anywhere else. Only whatever this new galactic contender is, can harness it. We cannot even begin to grasp at what it could be, beyond it registering across multiple different kinds of sensors. However, we are not left with nothing. We can be reasonably sure that they do not use Element Zero."
"Which means they are not beholden to the same cycle that every species now follows." Miranda stated. She crossed her arms and sighed. "They have done that which we cannot."
"Correct. But this also poses a threat to us. If they keep destroying Mass Relays, keep expanding… we cannot fight them. It isn't a sustainable conflict with the threat of the Reapers on the horizon. We need Shepard now more than ever. He may be the only one that can turn this new menace against the Reapers."
"Shepard… he's a legend, an icon. But he's just one man. Is Project Lazarus truly wise? The amount of resources being devoted to him…"
The Illusive Man flicked his hand, dispersing the displays as he turned his eyes upon his subordinate.
"He must be brought back. A system in Batarian territory has gone quiet, similar to the Terminus Systems raids. The closest unit the Alliance has is led by Anderson. He will be tasked with entering the unknown, discovering what has happened. How long until these attacks reach Kar'shan? Will the paper tiger that makes up the Batarian's fleet be enough to repel them? And if it cannot, how long until the territory of the next closest species, Humanity, becomes the next target? I need results, Miranda. A vat-grown clone of Shepard will not be enough. It won't be what we need."
"You speak as if you've already done something."
A wave of his hand brought the displays back, this time covered in new information.
"I have. A body for Shepard has been grown aboard Minuteman Station. A backup in case Project Lazarus fails, but I trust that you will not let it. Should something be completely unrecoverable, then this clone shall provide the needed parts."
"Minuteman Station? Can its crew be trusted with its well-being and secrecy?" Miranda asked. Not an invalid question; a good number of the crew aboard that station were former Alliance. Most had been dishonorably discharged, but some were quite quick to take advantage of a situation. Her soon-to-be assistant Wilson was one of those people.
"Leave the people surrounding the clone to me. I shall ensure its safety."
Silence reigned for several minutes as they looked over data, until something else came to Miranda's mind.
"What about Grayson? Shepard's biotic potential is already astounding, but perhaps we could push that even further."
The Illusive Man removed his cigarette from his mouth.
"We are not seeking to improve upon Shepard's already formidable capabilities. He is already a biotic match for an Asari Matriarch, and even Subject Zero. No, once Grayson is in hand, then we shall breed a new generation of biotics. If Shepard grows any more powerful, we may not be able to control him nearly as effectively. You've said it yourself in the past. He's a loose cannon that miraculously was never discharged for his actions. Give him more power, and we'd see a warlord rise, at odds with everyone and everything, with the charisma to attract many people to his banner. Not what we need with the Reapers on our doorstep."
The Illusive Man slid away all of the screens, leaving him to look upon Anadius.
"The time to collect Grayson is coming. I'll set the appropriate agents into motion, but that operation is no longer yours. See to Shepard."
The woman withheld a sigh and nodded.
"As you wish."
David Anderson rubbed his face as he sat back in his seat aboard the SSV Mariana. Its pilot, a smaller man who went by House, glanced in his direction.
"You don't have to stay up here, Captain. I am more than capable of letting you know if something unusual shows up."
The man in question shook his head.
"No thanks, House. I prefer to see these things for myself."
"Er… alright then. But we probably have another few hours until we stop. You've been up here for almost sixteen hours, sir. That's not healthy."
Anderson shrugged aside the man's concern. There were times when he enjoyed House's worrying over his crew, knowing the man ultimately meant well with his hovering like a mother hen. But he hated it when it happened to him. Shepard knew Anderson to the core. He wouldn't have done that.
The Captain blinked as he realized where his mind had gone. Then he frowned.
Shepard was dead. The kid was like a son to him, considering he had practically raised him since he was rescued from Mindoir. And Anderson had no children of his own… It was like losing the legacy he hadn't realized he had until it was gone. And a best friend, a closest family member, all at once. It had perhaps struck him harder than he had known until this voyage into the unknown.
It had been nearly five Earth days ago that they had received orders from Hackett to investigate a Batarian world that had gone dark. They were already deep in Batarian space, searching for clues to the unknown threat that was effectively eliminating the biggest Batarian colonies in the Terminus Systems, when the message had come through.
The Vular System had gone dark only an hour before the orders had come. His team was the closest, and so he would investigate. Toni understood immediately when Anderson relayed the reason for their change of pace and direction.
"Just… keep us on track."
House sighed, knowing that he couldn't change Anderson's mind.
"Fine, fine. We just… hold up, that's strange." House leaned forward and flipped the intercom switch. "We're arriving slightly ahead of schedule, Captain Toni. Falling out of FTL in three minutes!"
It only took one for Toni to arrive at the cockpit. Lieutenant Vega was with him, both earning a nod from Anderson.
"What's going on? Why are we falling out early?" Toni asked.
"I'm not sure, but something along the way must have boosted us. Maybe an unforeseen black hole? Anyways, we're out in a minute."
When they fell out of FTL, none of them were expecting themselves to arrive only several meters shy from another vessel. Apparently of Salarian make, if Anderson was a good judge of shipwrights. And he was; Toni was damn certain of that.
The Salarian vessel gave a small thrust away from them, but otherwise remained stationary with no power able to be detected. Almost as if it was trying to remain hidden.
"STG, I think. Follow their example, power down everything but life support, scanners, and cameras. And get me a hardsuit. I'm going to go see what they know and have them so spooked."
House cleared his throat, drawing Anderson's attention.
"Uh, sir? I think they're spooked by… whatever they are." The pilot stated, pointing in the opposite direction of the STG ship. Anderson stepped forward further into the cockpit, trying to get a glance at what House had pointed at.
"... It seems we found whatever it is that's silencing Batarians in the Terminus Systems."
Five standard cycles. That's how long Commander Tesh had been observing the purge of Erszbat. And it was certainly harrowing.
The Batarian fleet protecting the system had lasted no longer than the second cycle, having been hunted down by wolf pack tactics utilized by the Custodian's faction. Forge World Nemata. After they had broken through the main line - what little of it remained after the detonation at the Mass Relay - the remnants of the Slavers' fleet had fallen back towards Azimir, leaving the Forge World's drop ships, fighters, and flagships to freely control Erszbat's airspace. A terrifying prospect to Tesh when he realized that this faction most certainly did not follow the Citadel's thoughts on orbital bombardment.
What few scans they dared take revealed massive amounts of radiation in the impact zones, which had covered most of the planet within the next two standard cycles. Even this was overshadowed by the sheer activity and mechanical precision this faction had displayed however.
Once the threat of the opposing fleet was gone, there had been a near-constant line of dropships going to and from various ships of the Forge World's fleet and Erszbat, bringing up presumably slaves and civilians. Some had left the theater of war entirely for a cycle or two and then returned, resuming their place to receive more ships and passengers.
"Sir, proximity sensors have been activated! A ship is dropping out of FTL right next to us!" Renloa stated quickly.
"Move us away from their drop point, corrective thrusters only."
A short thrust and a moment later revealed the silhouette of a Systems Alliance vessel. Tesh hummed to himself as he recognized part of its shape to be quite similar to the late SSV Normandy, though slightly bulkier in the fashion of most Human ships and painted nearly pitch black, much like Tesh's own stealth vessel. Perhaps a prototype to the famed Turian/Human stealth vessel, or a Human successor?
No matter what it was, Tesh desperately hoped that it would understand that it would need to power down if any of them had any hope of leaving here alive. His hopes were answered a moment later as all signs of the ship except for their visual disappeared from their limited scanners. It wasn't long until they could see someone leave through it's airlock. Definitely Human.
"Orders, sir?" Renloa asked.
Several thoughts floated through Tesh's mind, but ultimately he settled on the peaceful course of action.
"Let them board. But keep your firearms ready."
When the Human came through the airlock, Tesh immediately noted the N7 markings across the armor. It pointed to its helmet, earning a nod from Tesh to the gestured question.
The Commander was not expecting Captain Anderson's familiar face to be beneath it. While Tesh didn't know the man personally, he was more than familiar with the Captain's involvement with Saren's downfall.
"Captain Anderson, a surprise to be sure. I am Commander Tesh, with the STG. May I inquire as to your arrival here, of all places?"
The Captain glanced around before answering.
"I imagine we're both here for the same thing, Commander. Figuring out what caused the Relay to go dark. And, it seems, my prediction to the cause being this…. New faction, is correct."
"Certainly." Tesh stated, thinking quickly. "Tell me Captain, what do you know of these newcomers to our galactic stage?"
"Beyond that they seem to hate Batarians? Nothing much."
"Hmm. Follow me to my observation post, Captain." Tesh stated, motioning down the hallway. As they walked, Tesh continued. "I don't believe it to be completely accurate to say they hate Batarians. Rather, they hate slavery. Every planet raided, there were very few slaves found, either living or dead. There have been signs of Batarian slaves being liberated as well, so I do not believe it's a genocide of species."
They arrived at the ship's cockpit, where several Salarians were seated running low-risk scans.
"They were previously only attacking Terminus Systems slave hubs though, right?" Anderson asked. "What could have changed to make them attack a planet near the heart of the Batarian's territory?"
"Observe these readings, Captain. It is no longer about the slaves, at least not completely. This is a statement. Or soon will be, once all sentient life on Erszbat is dead and the planet rendered uninhabitable."
The Captain spent several minutes going over the data Tesh had shared, eyes widening more and more with each new observation.
"Radioactive bombardment? From orbit? That alone would send Councilor Sparatus over the edge. It violates a number of established treaties that even people outside of the Citadel follow for the most part."
Tesh smiled at the thought of the Turian Councilor, nodding in agreement.
"Yes, it certainly would. But it is most certainly effective; from what little data we can gather from here without giving ourselves away, there is virtually no threat left to resist the Forge World. Any gathering of Batarian forces is instantly fired upon from orbit. Any time that slaves are used as collateral, something silences the masters within the hour. That all ended in the last cycle. By now, the radiation from the bombardment has likely taken care of anyone still alive and capable of defending themselves. It would take specialized suits to even land safely now, at the levels we're seeing. Even the ships coming to and from the surface have slowed to a crawl."
"And yet… the capitol is untouched?" Anderson asked, surprised.
"Untouched? No. Unobliterated and unsaturated in inconceivable amounts of radiation? Yes. It seems that whatever is happening, they do not want to completely destroy the capitol yet for some unseen reason."
Anderson glanced up from the data to look at the planet.
"They probably have the bulk of their forces that are still planetside there. Despite their seemingly uncaring approach to life, they do care about their own if they haven't leveled the place. If they still have boots on the ground…"
Tesh glanced at the Human briefly, debating on saying what he was thinking.
"It's more than just, er, boots, Captain. The golden ship that we have come to conclude to be a personal escort frigate for a Custodian went there as well. One of their leaders. We found no evidence to suggest personal intervention by such an esteemed figure on the previous planets that have been raided, which suggests that there is something important to them here that we do not yet understand. I do not-"
"Commander, we have a problem!" Inuka exclaimed. "Unknown presence in our systems, attempting to remove-"
Whatever the Salarian was saying was cut off as another, much more mechanical and oscillating male voice was heard over the ship's comms. It was rather hard to understand, as it seemed to have bits of binary overlaying its words.
"Ah, there's the bolt that's been rolling where it shouldn't. The Magos-Commander insisted on giving you exactly one chance to leave, before you are exterminated. Flee, little bolts, before the Forge comes for you."
The interference on the comms ended. Anderson looked to the Salarian Commander, who wasted no time barking orders.
"All systems up, we leave now! Captain, I'm afraid that your vessel must follow us if they wish to retrieve you. We are not endangering ourselves any further. Renloa, we need jump coordinates. And share them with the Captain's ship; we have things to discuss."
Sister glanced at her helmet's HUD, frowning as she read the line text that was the translation of the tech-priest overseeing her unit. It was nice to know everything that her 'overseer' was doing.
Before the invasion, she had approached Arcturus with her unease about there being someone watching her at all times that wasn't him. The Custodian had nodded, as if expecting her to come to him with her unease. Apparently he had.
He had provided her with a program that decoded her overseer's words. All of them, not just the ones pertaining to her own unit. He had informed her that it was a failsafe that the Legio Custodes and her fellow Sisters used when partnered with particularly untrustworthy members of the Mechanicum. At least, those knew of it. He had admitted that even among their limited numbers, there were only a handful that possessed the failsafe. He could count on both hands the number of people who knew between both the Brotherhood and the Sisterhood.
He also mentioned that she shouldn't ever share it, or even her knowledge of it, with anyone else. She wouldn't.
Arcturus had earned her loyalty and trust. She would be a fool to betray it.
Regardless, it was still a test of her own skills to remain vigilant whilst also reading the never-ending text that came. Tech-priest Charlus was quite proficient at multitasking aboard the Dutiful Claimant.
Her suit's helmet made a small whirring noise, swapping the radiation filter out and ejecting the old with a soft click. Nifty tech, admittedly. She hadn't fully believed in its ability to block out radiation, even with the memories she had lived within the pod. Some part of her would always be skeptical of things she had learned, lived, and experienced within that pod, but they were slowly integrating into her own being.
"Hostiles approaching, northeast courtyard." Ix-036 stated on internal comms. "Eighteen life forms accounted for. Directive?"
Sister glanced towards the Tech-priest's own orders to other units. Best she could tell, they had roughly seven hours until they needed to get off-world before the radiation became too much for even the Forge World's troops besides the Thallaxii. Given that it was highly unlikely the Batarians possessed radiation-resistant equipment on par with Skitarii and tech-thralls, it was safe to say that the incoming hostiles were not in the best of shape. That, combined with the size of the courtyard that was designed as a small farm…
"Daniel-989, come with me. Keep formation here, Ix-036." Thoughtmark was translated instantly. With the arrival and departure of the Asset Recovery Cohort, it was still their task to safeguard Lord Arcturus.
The Thallax and Ursarax both muttered their affirmations as Sister drew her Power Sword and readied her plasma pistol. She felt her muscles react to it gracefully despite their weight, felt her mind calm as her vision seemed to blur. Her Power Sword was an Executioner Blade, her plasma pistol a bolt pistol.
"Knight-Centura Seraste, I require your blade."
The voice of Lord Arcturus always sent a pleasurable shiver down her spine, ever since Sister had begun training and re-education within the pod.
"It is eternally yours, Lord Arcturus. How might I serve?" Came the signed response.
Perhaps too much. And the memories of the Oblivion Knight she viewed most, experienced and lived the most, made it understandable. Seraste was… quite loyal to Arcturus as well. Disturbingly so, yet also quite understandably so.
Her blurred vision cleared up. Her Power Sword was drawn, her plasma pistol readied. A mere moment of thought, to process that which she had lived. She moved.
Even with the biological and chemical enhancements that were commonplace among warriors and soldiers of the Imperium, there was no competition between herself and the Ursarax that followed. Put simply, he was a machine of war meant to compete with the Emperor's own Angels of Death. She would instead make an impact with her intelligence, and the ability she possessed to instill fear among her enemies. They wouldn't know she was there until her blade drew across their throats.
She stalked the outskirts of the massive courtyard quickly, while the Ursarax took the other side. A glance at her map revealed that fourteen of the SIU soldiers were already within the courtyard's expanse. Fields of sickly grain and berry bushes hid them from direct vision, but that would only aid her.
The fields would get a bounty of blood, before they died from the radiation.
She began to hum to herself as she stalked her first victim. She wasn't aware that Tech-priest Charlus had broadcasted her humming across the courtyard's comms until she drew her blade across the throat of the fifth Batarian.
Arcturus allowed an internal sigh as his fist reduced the newest monstrosity to cross his path to little more than a bloody mist and pieces of ruined technology.
He had expected resistance from whatever was still alive down here. He wasn't expecting the hidden facility to house bloated and malformed husks that clearly used to be Batarians. It reminded him too much of the mutations caused by Nurgle, except his autosenses had informed him that these changes were wrought through technology rather than Warp trickery.
Regardless, it would all be purged.
The Custodian had quickly tapped into the internal servers of the facility when he came down, deducing that what little sanity the Batarians down here still possessed was being controlled by something. It didn't take a genius to connect the Awakened's warning about Reaper tech to this.
When the invasion started, there was a flurry of activity down here. Video feeds showed the afflicted Batarians impaling themselves upon strange spikes that he recalled being the reports he had liberated from several different 'secure' databases throughout the galaxy. Supposed Geth technology that turned its victims into mindless zombies, though a report Lexus had liberated from Palaven's networks revealed this to be false, and a hunt for someone named Jack Harper had begun, though it had so far gone nowhere.
But that was deliberation for another time. For now, he would settle with ensuring the destruction of this facility. And he was close to the vault where he would set the nuclear device that had been delivered a short while ago by the Asset Recovery task force.
The only rooms left between him and the vault was a laboratory that cameras had revealed to contain more of the Batarian husks, and an empty hallway. The laboratory took little effort to cleanse as he entered it, but something stopped him before he continued through the hallway to the vault.
A probing of his mind. Not unlike those created by psykers, if one knew what to feel for when they peered into one's mind.
Unlike those he had felt from the sorcerers of the Traitor Legions, there wasn't an inherent maliciousness behind it that he could decipher. Then again, he never tried to feel for one; if he felt the energies of the Warp turned towards him, he generally acted to forcefully free its controller from their mortal coil.
But this time, it felt… different. Cold. Dark. But more than anything… curious. It was only when he felt it attempt to exert control over him that Arcturus raised his Bolt Caliver and pulled the trigger, shattering an orb of some kind that had, until that moment, been dormant. The motion hadn't been a conscious thought; merely an instinctive reaction. A lesser man would have stood no chance against the influence. Arcturus doubted even one of the Emperor's vaunted Astartes would have reacted fast enough to avoid the enthrallment.
He made sure to log the occurrence as he turned towards the hallway. No more hindrances; he was decidedly finished with this planet.
(This following segment was written by Maglad, who wished to contribute towards the display of craftsmanship and artistry that Custodes are known for when they aren't protecting the Emperor or otherwise occupied. Many thanks Maglad, it's a great segment!)
A month later, a new STG detachment had been dispatched to Erszbat's ruined capital. While the capitol building was nothing more than a crarer, they spotted a 15ft tall sculpture dominating the center of the plaza, surrounded by a sea of carefully placed and polished, empty batarian skulls, the only remains of the high-ranking batarian senators and well-off merchants who actually owned slaves within their rigidly-structured and stratified society, a dire statement, as batarians believe that they would be denied entrance into the afterlife if anything happened to their eyes.
As they approached, the STG agents realized it was actually to scale, yet the enormous size of the golden warrior atop the short pedestal tricked the eye until they approached and spotted the diminutive figures of the asari, human, salarian and turian children being held protectively against the warrior's chest with a single arm. The life-like detail of the sculpture made their relief pain, as well as the broken chains still dangling from the collars around their tiny necks.
The warrior's other hand held a massive halberd, the underside of its head showing a blocky, brutally efficient ranged weapon of some kind, its muzzle so wide it could probably fire orange-sized projectiles.
Despite the figure protectiveness of the children, its feet were callously, almost contemptuously trampling over batarian soldiers and highborn, the expressions on their faces frozen in deep, unending fear as they scrambled to crawl away, pushing each other under the warrior's feet in their desperation. The STG agents were frozen admiring the statue, beholden to the detail and quality of the work, when it began to 'whistle.'
"W-what...!?" - the captain was the first to snap out of her daze after the sound, noticing a single, sickly, free-floating leaf pass by, and then drop to the ground when the music stopped.
A moment later, the wind picked back up, and the music resumed, astounding the agents when they realized the seemingly smooth batarian skulls surrounding the figure's pedestal had been carven and positioned to create a wind chime that whistled the batarian national hymn whenever the wind blowed across them.
There were numerous symbols all over the pedestal, and a plaque in an unknown, geometrically pleasing language carved on its surface. It took the agents a moment to realize that the symbols around the pedestal were arranged next to dots and lines, providing a guide that could be studied and followed to the ultimate conclussion of understanding the hauntingly beautiful message engraved in the plaque of the brutally beautiful sculpture. With its help, it would take less than a week for linguists and researchers to come up with a basic understanding of the language, finally deciphering the message on the plaque.
Freedom is the right of all sentient beings.