The Council Chamber was truly deathly quiet as the people inside it waited. The three Councilors, a newly raised male salarian, Tevos of the asari, and Quentius of the turians. There were no guards this time, as only the three of them and one other stood in the chamber, and the turian Councilor very visibly stroked a rifle he'd brought with him, while the asari played with a small display in front of her, demonstrating her biotic power as the thing stretched several feet around her. The salarian, by contrast, looked much less threatening, but everyone present knew he was a former member of the STG, and thus probably the most dangerous person in the room at this, or any other, time.
The one standing before them was unarmed. He wore armor, of course, as almost no batarian went anywhere without some protection, and especially of late they'd needed it more and more. However, he carried no visible side arm, and was, as far as anyone knew, not a biotic or a special forces operative. He was a politician through and through, and one could almost visibly see him sweat as the four of them waited in the huge, empty chamber. The only sound that was audible was the low hum of the air cyclers and the ever present sound of skittering feet belonging to the keepers.
They'd been here for almost an hour now, ever since the news had been made public. The Chamber was cleared at that point, to prevent any incidents that might fuel the flames of public outrage, as had happened in previous dealing with the Terrans. It wasn't truly stopping said flames from igniting of course, as word of the batarian attack on Rannoch spread. Some of those flames were of righteous indignation at such a brazen attack on the homeworld of a race. Others were the flames of hate for the ones who inhabited the world, and felt the attack had been a long time coming. Either way, it wouldn't do for them to hear the words that were to be spoken here.
Finally there was a chirp from Tevos' omnitool, and she pressed a single button on it to display the incoming transmission. With a whining sound, an image bloomed in the air over the heads of the gathered four, an image of seven figures, seated at a table, and all looking down at them, making them feel small. The fact that, of the figures shown, four were really about ten times the height of the ones gathered didn't help matters, and seeing the suitless quarian, flanked by an AI on either side, only added to the sheer alien quality the Terrans had exuded since their arrival on the galactic stage.
"You speak now to the Conclave of the Federation, to hear our grievances. Is the transmission clear on your end?" asked the central figure, Amanda Hayes, and the Councilors nodded.
"You speak now to the Council of the Citadel. We are ready to address the concerns of your people to the best of our ability. As requested by your earlier transmission, the batarian ambassador is present," said Tevos, gesturing towards the man standing there, and suddenly he found ten sets of eyes(Or the holographic AI equivalent), turning to stare at him. To his credit, the ambassador didn't flinch away or otherwise back down. Instead he stood tall against the glares, before the two groups turned from him, and faced each other once more.
"Twenty-six hours ago, an attack was launched on the homeworld of the geth and quarian people, Rannoch. This unprovoked, unwarranted, and frankly untenable attack on a world that was only just starting to come into its own again by the batarian military is a breach of not only our own laws, but many of your Citadel Conventions," began Hayes, and the batarian in the room growled.
"You have no proof that that force was in any way connected to the batarian military. I have it on good author-" the ambassador began, but then stopped in mid word as one of the Terrans in the image above reached down. This man, with half his face replaced with a metal prosthetic, brought his arm up again, and held in his hand, a figure. The hologram zoomed in automatically on the figure, as he was rather roughly tossed onto the table between the seven giants, his body rolling along it, before stopping, and just laying there.
"Commander Ka'hairal Balak, first officer of a vessel equipped with a fold space jammer, and a high ranking member of the Batarian Cultural Committee," said the masked man, Breetai they thought his name was, the military leader of the Federation. As he spoke, the batarian seemed to stir at the mention of his name, rolling a bit so he could get a better angle, and then slowly raising to his feet. His stance was shaky, possibly from the tumble, possibly from whatever the Terrans had done to him. But still, he was standing, and seemed to be trying to stare defiantly at his captors, who ignored him as they faced the ambassador.
"In addition to the information he has provided, we were able to salvage many of the ship datacores from the battle, and analysis of their contents confirms the launch point of most of the ships to be a batarian military staging area. Unless the ambassador is saying his people have lost control of their homeworld's moon to pirates, then we will drop all pretense that this was some rogue element, and it will be acknowledged as an attack by the Hegemony on a foreign state. Agreed?" said Hayes, and the Councilors all nodded after a moment, the ambassador doing no such thing, but voicing no further objections.
"Good. As I was saying, this event has put a strain on the relationship between our peoples that was already stretched thin. The citizens of the Federation have to date, allowed the batarian attacks to go without answer due to the nature of the attacks, and the lack of casualties on the side of the Federation in the confrontations. That can no longer be the case," as she spoke, Hayes pressed a button on her omnitool, and the hologram above them branched again, a new secondary image popping up beside the image of Balak, showing the faces of quarians, geth, and Terrans in rapid succession.
"Eight-thousand-four-hundred-ninety-two quarians lost their lives in the attack, a blow to both their local population, and their people as a whole that is simply disasterous. The geth, counting all runtimes as potential thinking beings, lost many times that number, at over two-hundred-thousand dead or unrecoverable due to the destruction of multiple platforms. The death toll of Terrans was tallied as twenty-six-thousand-four-hundred-eighty-seven, all of these include not only military personnel, but also civilians ranging in ages from their twilight years, all the way to toddlers," said Hayes, in an accusatory tone.
"This is not counting those whose lives, homes, and families have been devastated by this event. These numbers do not truly reflect the horror of what has been wrought, and they are less than what was desired by the attack itself, which seemed focused on kidnapping as many Federation citizens as possible, likely for a life of slavery," continued the Terran woman, and the batarian remained silent, even as eyes fell on him again.
"Our response, despite the magnitude of these crimes, is a tempered one," she said this while the Terran man beside her, Grant, pressed a button on his omnitool, and the faces of the deceased were replaced with new faces. These were batarian ones, and though the Council did not recognize them, the ambassador's four eyes all went quite wide as he saw who was there.
"Scouring the logs of the ships, we have come to the conclusion that these sixty-four batarians make up the leadership or otherwise run the Cultural Committee. Their voices were what spurred on the attack, and as such, they are the ones to blame for the outcome of it. They are to be extradited to the custody of the Federation, and will face a public trial for their parts in this entire affair. Those found to be innocent, or at least, uninvolved, will be returned to their people unharmed. Those who orchestrated the attack itself, however, will face the harshest punishments we can devise," this was said with a death glare down at Balak in front of her, and Hayes idly reached down, and with a single finger, flicked him down onto his knees.
"Mrs. Hayes, I'm sure I speak for all the peoples of the Council, both our three races, and all those under our care, in expressing my deepest sympathy for what your peoples have gone through. However, surrender of leadership in the way you're proposing, no matter their actions, is a demand that simply cannot be condoned under our laws. Reparations do need to be made, and we will do everything in our power to make sure they are given," said Tevos, trying to put as much compassion and wisdom into her voice as she could manage. The Conclave remained impassive however, and this time it was Grant who spoke.
"Councilor, this is not simply a request. This is an ultimatum. The people of the Federation cannot allow an attack of this magnitude to go unanswered. We will not accept any other form of restitution for this attack, and should these sixty-four feel their own lives are more valuable than the lives of their citizens, then a state of war will exist between the Federation and the Hegemony," that declaration brought everyone in the Council Chamber up short. They had expected, as any normal government would, to argue and otherwise demand resources from the aggressors who had attacked them. It seemed the Terrans played by a different rulebook however.
"Now see here, if you're using the threat of war to get what you want, how does that make you any different than the batarians?" demanded Quentius, pointing an accusatory finger up that the Conclave, as if daring them to deny that the use of violence against another civilization was in some way different than the attack that had been perpetrated against them. For a moment, that seemed to silence the Conclave, but then, Exedore turned to face them, his eyes cold and hard as any warriors, despite being the smallest of the seven.
"The difference, Councilor, is that should it come down to war, when it's over, there will be no Hegemony left to object to our actions," this was said in a perfectly level tone by the shortest of the seven, his eyes glaring down at the three of them, making them quite nervous, before Hayes set her hand on Exedore's shoulder, causing his expression to soften just the slightest bit.
"Vai'Gerrel, surely this cannot be the will of the quarian people. War has never been the way of your race," said the salarian Councilor, trying a new angle to the negotiations. The words seemed to fall on deaf ears, however, as the quarian faced down at him.
"My people are now citizens of the Federation, and as such we will take our cues from our new brothers and sisters in arms. This attack has wounded us, deeply. Families are broken, and to us, family is the most sacred thing imaginable. You say war is not our way, and this is true, but we are realizing that sometimes, it is the only way to ensure our people's survival," she told them, obviously declaring that she stood with the Terrans on this. The salarian then took a moment to gaze into every eye, before he stood down, letting silence reign in the chamber for many moments. When it seemed no other words could be shared, Hayes rose from her chair, causing the others to do likewise.
"We are not without some concern for the batarian people, and realize that the loss of leadership will be quite the blow. As this is the case, you have one-hundred-sixty-eight hours to respond. If at the end of this week, you have either made no response, or have refused our ultimatum, we will be at war with the Hegemony. Should the Council decide to intervene, that state of war will be extended to them as well," said Hayes, and then the transmission abruptly cut off, leaving the four alone in the chamber, staring up into the sky at where the Conclave had been.
"Well, this is a problem," said the salarian at last, before turning his gaze down to the ambassador, who was still shocked by all that he'd heard.
"Ambassador, do you have anything to say to us?" asked the salarian, snapping the four eyes out of his trance.
"Of course I do, this demand is untenable in every respect. To ask that we surrender our leaders to be executed by those monsters is tantamount to surrendering our entire state. I formally request that this Council fulfill the obligations of our treaties with them and aid us in the defense of our territory," he said, in a tone that made it obvious he'd rehearsed the lines.
"Ambassador, before we can render aid, we must ask. Were they correct? Did your military itself launch an unprovoked, and illegal attack on Rannoch?" asked Tevos, and the batarian was silent. If he said no, and it was later discovered that he was lying, he would face a lot of trouble down the line for him personally. If he admitted it was the truth, however, that could lead to even worse problems in the here and now for his entire race.
"I cannot say, honestly. It is possible a rogue element of our military indeed took it upon themselves to defend us against the Terran's theft of territory that was traditionally considered our's, but I do not have all the data at this time," he answered, hedging his bets and making it so no one could hold him accountable for what might be true, and giving a good excuse for their actions in general.
"Well then, we can only say that the data you are missing needs to be found. If it is true, then this Council will honor our obligations, but an attack of this nature, against what was in fact, the capital of a sovereign state, would require many concessions on the part of the Hegemony involving both the materiel used in the attack, and the ones responsible for it being punished to the fullest extent of Council Law," retorted Tevos, and the two beside her nodded.
"As this is the case, I must ask that you find the answers to this question, before invoking the treaties between our peoples. We will, of course, be doing our best to in some way placate the Federation, but in the meantime, we must request that you take no further action that could be considered aggressive, and should it come down to it, your leaders may want to consider what is best for their people, rather than themselves," this was said in a dismissive tone, and it was clear that the batarian would get no more words in with the Council today. As this was the case, he bowed to them, and then walked over to the lift, to descend it.
An hour later, transmissions were flying from the Citadel to every government in the galaxy. Some were pleas from the Hegemony to long time...non-enemies for aid against an aggressor state that was threatening them. Others were from the Council itself, demanding that, until the Hegemony was brought to account for their attack, and attempted to make reparations to the Terrans, no aid should be given to them. Most who heard the two sides, leaned towards the later action, as they watched and waited. There was, after all, one week until the deadline, and perhaps the batarian leadership would understand they were being held to account for their actions, as many knew the ones whose surrender was being demanded were the heads of the slave trade.
OoOoO
The image on the table slowly faded, leaving the seven figures staring at nothing. Inside their minds, they all understood what they had just done. The Hegemony was still a large economic base for Citadel Space, and as such, might be able, whether they were willing or not, to drag the rest of the Council into the war. They all hoped that, if it came down to a straight shoot out, that the Council would see fit to stay out of that war, but they acknowledged the possibility that it could happen, and that they should be prepared for it.
A year ago, that prospect would not have been so daunting. Their tech was so different, and in many ways superior, that a war between the two powers would have ended in defeat for the Council, and the Federation ascendent. Now, with the recent attack on Rannoch demonstrating that there were defenses against their weapons, and offenses that could in some way pierce their guard, such a war was not without risk. Worse, for some Terrans, the idea of a war throughout the galaxy was appealing, as their Zentraedi blood, long denied a fight, yearned for a battle of such scope.
Luckily, they had their new allies, the quarians and geth, to give them grounding, and while they felt the sting of the attack, more acutely than even the Terrans, they had agreed on what was to be done. No grand gestures, no massive first strikes. No, a demand for the surrender of those behind the corruption of the batarian culture, and if that failed, then the destruction of that culture itself. It was ruthless in many ways, but it what had to be done, to avoid this sort of attack becoming a regular thing.
"Representative, they're here," said Hayes' omnitool, and she brought it to her face.
"Good, give us a moment, and we'll have you send them in," she said, turning to face a figure that had been just out of the projection that the Council had seen. Taking this as his cue, the figure stepped forward, revealing as he walked into the light that he was of the same race as Balak, but seemed far younger. What's more, he was the same size as the Terrans, though a flicker along his skin showed that said size was merely an illusion, the same as it was for the Conductor, and in all fairness, the Collective and Hub as well.
"Charn, I think it's time you returned to Ward with the prisoner," she said, and the batarian bowed his head while reaching for the still prone figure on the table. His fingers gently wrapped around that figure, lifting him up in his hand. The smaller batarian, looking into the projected face of the larger, spit at him, the few drops of saliva barely making it past his knuckle as Balak had not been able to get any momentum with the gesture.
"Traitor," he said derisively, and Charn just shrugged, rather than as he could have, crushed the small figure in his hand.
"I've simply accepted my defeat better," explained the larger, before departing out of the Conclave via a side passage. A few seconds later, after the leaders had shuffled themselves around a bit, Hayes pushed another button on her omnitool, and the chamber's main door opened, allowing into it a small group of forms. At the lead were two Terrans, a male and a female, with the male wearing garb typical of a politician, a suit and tie affair, while the woman beside him wore armor, unpowered for the protection of the Conclave, so she walked heavily, her feet coming down with audible clacks.
Behind them came two Terran children. Not babes, but not the sort of ages one would expect of those standing before the Conclave. The boy was nine, by his file, though he looked to be about twelve by his size, and his blue eyes shown with an intelligence that one might not have seen in an adult. His brown hair was cut short, almost to a stubble. Beside him was a girl, thirteen years of age by her own file. Her red hair, dull almost to being blood red, but with a sheen that one might not have expected, was also cut short, but only to shoulder length. Her green eyes were the same the boy beside her, shining with intelligence, and soon they stood before the Conclave, all four giving a proper salute to the seven before them.
"We have come, as requested," said the woman, and the Conclave, standing, returned their salute, their hands made into fists, and then sharply placed over their hearts for a moment, before the Conclave retook their seats, Grant making a motion with his hand that somehow caused seats for the four to sit in to rise from the floor.
"This body thanks you for your swift response to our summons, especially given the events you four have faced just yesterday," began Breetai, as the four took their place.
"It was our duty to protect the colony on Rannoch, no more, no less," said the young girl, showing a lot more responsibility than one might have guessed for someone her age.
"Regardless of such things, Ms. Shepard, you and your brother, as well as your parents, should be commended for your actions. These went far above and beyond the call of duty, and it is likely only through the actions of your family that Rannoch stands at all today, rather than being a hostage for the batarian government to bargain with," responded the blue skinned man with half a face.
"Adam Shepard, without your leadership, many of the citizens of New Raaya might have trampled each other in their panic to get into the shelters at the center of the city. However, your commanding presence, and your words kept them calm and orderly despite the situation," said Breetai, and Adam seemed to puff out his chest with pride.
"Hannah Shepard, you took command of the fleet in space, and helped coordinate the efforts of our soldiers. Efforts that broke the back of the enemy assault and turned the tide of the battle in our favor," explained the Supreme Commander of the Fleets, and Hannah did a smaller salute to him, in acknowledgement of the praise.
"Jane Shepard, your realization that the enemy's weapons were tracking the armor our soldiers wore not only saved the lives of those in those armors, but allowed them to fight off the invaders in their ships, helping to ensure that they would still be in our hands when the time came for a counterattack," this statement was met with a grin from the red headed girl.
"And young Mr. Jon Shepard, you not only devised a modified use of our technology to counter theirs, but then came up with the strategy that ultimately allowed your mother her victory in space," said Breetai.
"We still lost way too many people," added Jon, and Breetai nodded thoughtfully, stroking his chin with his finger.
"True, even one person lost is one too many, but every person saved is one more than would have been. Always think of it in those terms," said the zentraedi soldier who had seen far too many lives lost in his time.
"Your family has proven to be invaluable to this Federation, both in your actions at Shanxi, and at Rannoch, as such, this body has decided on several things," as Breetai spoke, he rose from his chair, walking towards where the Shepards sat, and pulling something out of his uniform as he did so.
"Effective immediately, Commander Hannah Shepard is to be promoted to Captain, and placed in command of the Rannoch Guard Flagship," so saying, he held out a captain's rank insignia to the woman, who looked down at it, than at her family, who nodded at her, encouraging her to take it. Reaching out, almost reverently, she took the insignia in hand, and placed it on her armor over her commander's insignia, before rising to her feet, and saluting.
"I will do everything in my power to prove worthy of this promotion," she declared, and Breetai smiled at her, while placing a hand on her shoulder.
"You already have, Captain Shepard," he told her, before walking on to her husband, and then holding out a sheet of paper to him.
"As you aren't within the chain of command, we had to think about how to reward you properly, Mr. Shepard. After thinking on it, however, we decided only one reward would fit. Once our business with the batarians is concluded, the Conclave has voted and decided to begin expanding our colonies within the Veil. We can think of now one more qualified to be the Sector Administrator than yourself, if you want the job," the sheet he handed listed the world currently under discussion for expansion into full colonies, mostly as they had been colonies of the quarians before the whole geth affair.
"It would be an honor to serve the Federation in that capacity," he said, taking the sheet, though not rising to his feet as he began to look over the document, and what it meant for his future.
"Indeed. Now then, Ms. Shepard," Breetai spoke as he stepped to the side, standing powerful and tall in front of the seemingly frail young girl, who nonetheless had, according to all reports, as many personal kills of the batarian mechs as any two other soldiers in the battle save her brother.
"You have been serving as an acting ensign aboard your mother's ship. I believe, however, that your recent victories in combat have shown you to be a proficient groundside fighter, perhaps even the next Miriya Sterling," he said told her, and her eyes lit up at that statement, as Miriya was known to be one of the best in the Federation, supposedly only ever having lost to her husband, though she claimed she threw that fight.
"As such, I've pulled rank and had you assigned as a Private, First Class, to the Rannoch Ground Guard. You'll still be protecting your family, and you'll help bolster the ranks due to the losses incurred," and with that, he held out a rank insignia to her that she gladly took, saluting Breetai, before pinning it to the collar of the suit she was wearing.
"Finally, young Jon Shepard," he said, and got on one knee so his face was level with the nine year old.
"You are still far too young for any rank that we could think of to give you, but this body has decided that when you come of age in four years, should you want it, a position will be open for you onboard the Factory. You would serve directly under Prime Thinker Exedore, with a Naval Rank equivalent of your sister's," and with that Breetai held out his hand, this time with another rank insignia in it. Unlike his forebears, it seemed like Jon was reluctant to take it.
"Um, would I be able to bring Tali with me?" he asked at last, and Breetai looked towards his parents, wondering if it was some toy or the like.
"Tali'Zorah, the daughter of Rael'Zorah, Rannoch's governor. We've been living with her and her father since the colony was founded," explained Adam.
"And why would you want her to come with you?" asked Breetai.
"Well, she helps me think. I would never have come up with the rings without her, and those things are what took down the mechs. Without them, we'd still all have been slaughtered, probably out of spite if nothing else," he explained, and Breetai seemed to think on this for a moment, before smiling down at the young boy, and tussling his fingers atop his head.
"We'll see. if I understand correctly, Rannoch's election terms are different than most places, but if her father and she consent, I don't see why the three of you can't," he explained, and the young boy's eyes lit up, as he finally took the rank insignia from Breetai's hand, and then pinned it to his collar.
"We wish this ceremony could have been more elaborate, but with the need to continue our push against the batarians, I'm afraid this will have to suffice," said Breetai as he took a step back, and the Shepards all shook their heads at him.
"No, this was fine, Supreme Commander. It still means something, for this body to show such faith in us. The Shepards will try not to let any of you down," explained Adam, rising to his feet, along with his family, and then saluting again, before they filed out of the chamber, the two children comparing their rank insignia as they left.
"Those two kids are going to be something to behold someday," said Grant as the door closed behind them.
"You say that like they aren't now? I know Jon is getting a small statue in New Raaya as the hero that saved them all, and I think Jane will be getting something similar from the space forces due to her kill count in the battle," commented Vai'Gerrel, chuckling for a moment, before the Conclave got down to business. There were plans to make, personnel to shuffle around, and most of all, a war to plan. They knew the batarians would never surrender their leaders, not without a fight, and they planned to have that fight won before the other side knew what hit them.
Over the next week, masses of ships were transferred around the galaxy. Terran fleets gathered at staging points, some resupplying with extra protoculture from the SDFs, others being refitted at the Factory for more modern combat. Every soldier and pilot knew what was coming, and citizens in every city waved goodbye to those same as they left. Soon, every world was striped of all but their basic defenders, and the fleets came together for orders one last time, as the clock counted down.
The Council races were just as active, of course. The three that made up the Council itself gathered their fleets at the borders of their space, ready to act should the batarians try to drag the fighting out of the Hegemony, while also shoring up their guard against the Terminus, should those systems decide now was a golden opportunity to take chunks of Council territory. Generals made war plans, Admirals sculpted battles, and the Council itself continued to preach the peace they had long believed would be eternal.
The batarians, in the meantime, churned out as many of the new weapons as they could. Workers pulled double, triple, and even quintuple shifts, as the new designs, which had worked at Rannoch, were pumped out on mass by the factories of the Hegemony. Still, it wasn't enough, only one in twenty ships could be outfitted, and none of the jammers could be constructed, as those had come from Leviathan Command alone, a base that had been silent since the attack on Rannoch.
Many of their leaders abandoned their worlds. On their homeworld, Khar'shan, it was rare to see a member of the Senate on the street after the first day of the ultimatum, by the end of the sixth, not a one could be found. Some had run to their own strongholds, their hidden fortresses, where they believed they would be safe. Others had taken refuge at bases of the military, and still others had fled to Leviathan Command itself, hoping to be guarded by the advanced weapons coming out of that secretive place.
Their fleets, ill equipped as they wore, flew out the day before the deadline, and took positions at the relays leading into their space, or around worlds of importance, meaning those that had paid for their protection. Each soldier knew what they would face, but most believed, that, as the fighting wore on, they would gain aid from the Council, who could not ignore the attack if it lasted more than a week. Some even believed they might be able to best the Federation, driving them back to their own space, and securing dominance of their people in the galaxy for generations to come.
Every eye was on the clock as the countdown finished. Some starred with anticipation, others with horror. On his hidden ship, far outside patrolled space, the eight eyed Shadow Broker smirked, his probes ready to record everything. On the Citadel, the Council held their breath, relief supplies and aid ready to move the moment the fighting lulled. On Gloval Station, the Senate and the Conclave watched the countdown reach its end, and with a single button press from Breetai, their fleets moved. The Titan War had begun.