Disclaimer: I do not own the Mass Effect games. This story is written with no profit in mind. I make no money from it. It isn't for sale or rent.
=DC=
Interlude: Historical Notes 1
=DC=
The arrival of the Systems' Alliance on the galactic stage upset the political, military and economic balance. Humanity was young, controlled a small portion of space, the bulk of its population and industry was still contained in the Sol system. Humans have been space faring for less than a century by that point, veritable children making their first steps on the galactic stage. By all means that should have meant that the SA would have been no more than a curiosity and a footnote in galactic history in the following centuries.
The reality of the situation was different. While the Humanity was indeed young and inexperienced, it found itself in a most curious and dangerous position. True, it had smaller population than any Council aligned species with the exception of the Drell, yet their numbers weren't so small that to drown compared to most Council Associated species. The Hanar, Volus and Elcor, who had been part of the galactic community for centuries by that point, had roughly comparative numbers and in two cases, economies in the same ball-pack.
The Hanar had one of the most advanced economies in Citadel space, that much was true. It was also one of the smallest, with the bulk of their population concentrated on their home-world. Their military was anemic at best, with the Illuminated Ascendancy relying on an extensive automated defense network, which made their home system one of the best defended in the galaxy. On paper, that put them in a similar position to the SA during first contact, however while Humanity went on a break-neck colonization spree, which soon led to an unprecedented economic boom, the Hanar kept to their ways.
The Elcor… While their economy was very well developed by the Systems' Alliance arrived on the galactic stage, it was also small, something almost universally shared between the various Council Associated species. By the time of the Eden Prime attack, the Elcor's economy was only slightly larger than Humanity's and that was with the setbacks that the Skyllian Blitz and constant pirate attacks caused to by raiding and ravaging Human colonies. Experts were sure that the SA's economy would be equal to if not outpace the Elcor by late 2184.
That left the Volus, who had the fourth largest economy at the time, and for all intents and purposes had only one thing holding them back from a Council seat in their own right – the fact that due to their physiology and psychology they found it very hard to impossible to meet the military obligations required for a species to be considered for a Council seat.
In comparison, Humanity had only a fraction of its population serving in the military, an economy enjoying tremendous growth, a fast expanding navy, and a colonization spree the likes of which no one had seen since the aftermath of the Rachni Wars. Is it no surprise that the SA was often called a sleeping giant in the decades post First Contact?
In a few short decades, the Systems' Alliance found itself on a fast track towards a Council Seat, a fact acknowledged by the Council itself in the months preceding the Eden Prime attack, which led to the inclusion of Lieutenant Commander Shepard into the ranks of the Council Spectres. A surface read of the situation would have seen a Humanity on the rise with the future looking brighter than ever. Unfortunately, the rapid economic growth fuel by an uncontrolled colonization spree exacerbated certain problems that were plaguing the Systems' Alliance since the day of its inception and created new ones. The rapid growth and recognition by the Council won as many friends and allies as enemies within Citadel space itself. It also placed the Systems' Alliance on a direct collision course with the Batarian Hegemony, which never ceased its attempt to undermine and weaken Humanity by any and all means possible.
Most perilous of all, it wasn't only external dangers that plagued Humanity...
From Forward into the Fire: The Rise and Fall of the Systems' Alliance
=DC=
In the later decades of the twenty first century CE, the Turian Hierarchy had been struggling to meet all its commitments, a fact that had been causing a growing resentment among multiple successive Primarchs on Palaven. While the Turian Navy had the largest war-fleet bar none in the galaxy, its commitments were great as well. The Navy had to protect Turian Space as a matter of course, keep a large and powerful detachment as a part of the CDF stationed at the Citadel, it was responsible for the bulk of the forces patrolling the borders with Terminus Space and the Batarian Hegemony and to top it all, it had task forces and flotillas keeping eyes on all all border regions of Citadel Space, especially those containing known dormant relays.
For the Turian Hierarchy, the Relay 314 incident turned out to be a blessing in disguise, a mixed blessing really. While there was some bad blood between certain members of the Turian military and the SA, the truth was that only a small fraction of it took part in said incident and when General Desolas Arterus managed to disgrace himself, those who survived the Human retaliation gained little to no sympathy back home. Indeed, if General Arterus had survived his ill conceived scheme to bring in a new client species under the Hierarchy's protection, he was liable to face a Court Martial on his return in disgrace.
To the average Turian, the conduct of the Patrol Flotilla which invaded Human space and consequently faced the brunt of the SA's counter-attack was reprehensible. It flew in the face of the core tenets respected by the Turian society, in fact, Desolas Arterus acted like a caricature of a stereotype instead like a proper Turian. The stain upon Turian honour caused by Arterus more than anything else was responsible for the Hierarchy's push to normalize relation with the young Systems' Alliance, efforts which were largely successful. To make up for the debacle of the Relay 314 accident, the Hierarchy offered to pay for the rebuilding of the human colony of Shanxi, eventually pushed for joint patrols and training in order to erase any existing bad blood between the two species, something that later evolved into technical assistance meant to bring the SA's military fully in line with the technical capabilities expected of a candidate for a Council seat. This initiative was directly responsible for the joint project that created the Normandy Class of Stealth Frigates and led to closer cooperation between the Systems Alliance and the Hierarchy in creating new classes of capital ships better suited to face against new and returning threats…
Die for the Cause: Prelude to War
=DC=
Chapter 6
=DC=
Part 1
=DC=
22.04.2183GS
New Vandenberg
Elysium
Nested in a small valley, on the opposite side of the planet from the capital of Iluria, New Vandenberg was a small town build to resemble various villages and townships on Earth still existing in the Alps. The town's primary purpose was as tourist hub catering to those enjoying mountain climbing and skiing, which were among the primary tourist attractions Elysium had to offer.
One of the largest corporations backing Terra Firma, Cord-Hislop Aerospace, owned New Vandenberg, which made it a logical location for the party affiliates from around the cluster to gather in relative obscurity and meet a few new friends. An unpleasant cold front and associated snowstorm brewing over the region helped ensure that no one would be venturing forth without an excellent reason, offering a further layer of security for the various meetings and discussions taking place in the resort. Among the last to arrive before the storm struck were couple of shuttles proudly displaying the golden chevron that was CHA's logo. They carried a member of the corporation's board of directors, his security detail and a pair of Cerberus agents.
The mayor, slash manager of New Vandenberg was at the landing pad ready to meet them surrounded by a squad of kitted out security, all wearing hardsuits with the distinctive CHA's logo as well. Miranda Lawson got out of the shuttle with the grace of a cat and with a nod of acknowledgment to the director headed for the five star hotel the landing pad belonged to. A moment alter, a tall, slim figure clad in black armour followed suit and fell a step behind his principal.
Miranda pursed her lips and firmly strangled the sense of unease that this place caused to surface within her chest. She could easily imagine her father being here, now. He did love his damn skiing after all. Well, the bastard was back on Earth probably designing himself a new heir, or worse. And even if he was here, the only thing she had in common with the woman Henry Lawson knew was her build. The wonders of modern cosmetics and a few detachable implants meant that for this visit, Miranda was a tall busty blonde who no one would recognize as the daughter of that man without a deep scan… and she had counter-measures installed along with the shield harness built into her dress.
She entered the hotel and slowed down for a few moments, enjoying the warmth after the bracing cold that hit her the moment she stepped out of the shuttle, before she confidently marched on, deliberately adding a swing to her hips.
Today she was Sara Lombardi, an entrepreneur of Italian origin who was sympathetic to Terra Firma's cause and was a known critic to the System Alliance's policies. The alias itself was as real as it got, with a Sara Lombardi existing. She was a Cerberus agent from their financial wing. While the real Lombardi had a good head for business, the less said about her clandestine experience the better, thus the need for Miranda or another double to take over in the rare cases when it was required.
The operative glided into one of the three small and cozy conference rooms the hotel had and smiled when everyone's eyes fell upon her figure. She made her way to the front row of seats and sat in one of the few empty ones, while her bodyguard melted into the shadows nearby.
The aging, balding man on the small podium cleared his throat and after giving a long, evaluating look to Miranda, loudly cleared his throat to get back the attention of the gathered Terra Firma sympathizers.
"Eden Prime is a proof that the System Alliance is bought and paid for! Humanity's so called leadership is on the beck and call of aliens, putting their interests before our own!" The man spoke with conviction, making sharp gestures to reinforce his point. "What's worse, that atrocity showed us once again that the Alliance has no capability, neither intention to protect Earth's colonies! Every single one of us is thus left to the non existent mercy of the alien!"
Grumbles of approval echoed throughout the room and Miranda nodded eagerly, looking at the man as if she was captivated by his every word.
"They even dare to use one of our best, The Lion of Elysium himself, as a smoke screen! Where are the fleets going after Saren? Where are the fleets striking against the murderous machines that laid waste to Eden Prime?! I'll telly you where they are! They continue to protect alien interests, uncaring that a Human garden world still burns!"
Miranda had to give him that much, appearance notwithstanding, the speaker had charisma to spare. It was less exactly what he said it, but how he did it, that demanded your attention and called you to listen. Ever since first contact there were thousands, perhaps tens of thousands loudly selling similar hatred and blaming everything on the alien. Some of them put forth much better arguments, however the great majority of those people lacked both the oratory skills and charisma to pull it off. While Jerome Cameron wasn't the sharpest, he had charisma to spare and answers people wanted to hear. All he lacked was a good makeover, professional staff and access to resources, something that Cerberus was eager to provide through the CHA and private citizens like Lombardi, and her associates.
"Today we have some special, like minded guests." Cameron beamed at the crowd. "Let me introduce Ms Sara Lombardi!" He waved at Miranda who beamed at him and stood up to eagerly smile at the various colonial Terra Firma representatives.
"I'm glad for the opportunity to be here and pledge that while the Alliance as a whole might have failed every single one of you and the people you care about, you aren't forgotten. The people of Earth haven't forgotten you neither did we turn our backs on you and your problems!" Miranda declared in a voice ringing with as much conviction as Cameron's own. "We're aware of the danger you live in on the colonies, we know that you and the worlds you settled represent the future of Humanity and we're doing our best to help! Unfortunately, no matter what we do, the Alliance as a whole doesn't listen." Miranda looked down, allowing an expression of extreme distaste to flash over her face. "That is why, myself and various concerned citizens are ready to finance your defense so you're better prepared to face against alien predations! And we aren't alone. Not all corporations are made equal, not all of them were eager to sell themselves and humanity as a whole to the aliens for credits and luxuries!"
She smiled, blushing when the gathered men and women surged to their feet in applause. The blush itself was real, and was caused in no small part by disbelief that it was so easy to play them all like fiddles. Then again, most of them weren't among the brightest of were simply desperate, grasping for any way for their concerns to be heard and their problems, especially defense ones, addressed.