"Imperator on deck!" shouted a voice, and all personnel turned their heads. Imperators functioned as elite agents within the Empire, operating under supralegal authority without rank. Few held the title, and to be in one's presence was exceedingly rare.
A hulking, mechanized, combat-suited form walked into the craft from the planet's surface a moment later. It was blackened with heat, covered head to toe with gore, and riddled with holes made by kinetic weapons fire. Behind trailed ashy, boot-shaped prints. Two attendants, having been previously briefed before the Imperator's arrival, stood waiting. A large, misshapen-looking sword was thrust into the outstretched hands of the first, who wore thick insulative gloves to protect their nervous system. The dark surface of the blade still smouldered and glowed with intense heat from its recent use, sizzling the bloody remains still stuck to its uneven surface. The smell was unpleasant, and the attendant winced in reaction to it.
"Clean it up, but do not touch it unshielded for your protection. Am I understood?"
The attendant nervously nodded back.
The second attendant took the Imperator's remaining, more modern weaponry and helped strip the advanced armour from the frame. Piece by piece, the sections were removed, revealing the Imperator's true visage. There were stares in the hangar though none spoke; the stories were true: The Peregrinator was not truly Prothean, not even close. In fact, none assembled had seen anything like him.
"Computer?"
The ship's VI flickered to life, rendering a Prothean-like hologram. "Imperator. I am Triumph. How may I be of assistance?"
"Triumph, let the superior officer know I am aboard."
"Of course." There came a pause where the VI reached out to the person in question in real-time at the other end of the craft and then responded, "I've notified Admiral Esrad of your arrival."
Once free from the confines of the armour, the Imperator completed his mission report and sent it over the battlenet to Central command. Attached to the report, the Imperator submitted a requisition request; The request was bolder than he had ever made, but the cost was paltry to the glory his plans would achieve.
While waiting for the admiral's arrival, none of the many attendants or crew in the bay approached him or moved to converse, and the surrounding conversation remained hushed and only caught in whispers. The Imperator was well aware of his repute: he appeared to them as an outsider with no kin, possessing no equal within the organic world in longevity. His unnatural nature's enmity was further compounded by his all-encompassing fervour for the Empire; The Imperator had worked tirelessly for so long that generations of Protheans knew him only as the Peregrinator of the Empire. There was even a long-held rumour that the Peregrinator was the original Prothean - and that the Empire had only come to fruition through his work and influence. The new cadres thought him a primordial god, while the old guard often treated him with suspicion and envy. He was untouchable in the eyes of Central, and his methods, though frequently brought into question, never failed to get results.
"Officer on deck!"
The old-guard Prothean Admiral wore a stern countenance as he entered, and the present personnel stepped to and formally acknowledged the entering senior officer. When the Admiral spotted the Imperator, he squinted his four eyes to scrutinize the two-eyed alien-looking features of the newcomer in unmasked contempt.
"I was surprised to hear that an Imperator had called for me, but to find the Peregrinator himself on my ship? How queer. Well, why are you here? Your report," ordered the admiral, skipping all pleasantries.
The Imperator, ignoring the ignoble treatment, stated his update. "All Oravore ground forces on Thessia have been destroyed."
"All forces? Already? I highly doubt the accuracy of that claim. Triumph, report on Oravore ground forces."
"All Oravore ground forces have been eliminated, Admiral Esrad," the VI repeated. "The report was verified by Central."
"Hmm," the admiral hummed, unimpressed. "And what of the asari?" he asked the Imperator. "Were you imprudent enough to let yourself be seen?"
"Partial evacuations were completed when we arrived to minimize collateral. Regrettably and as a result, our presence has been noted by the locals."
"So you were seen."
"Asari casualties in the invaded regions were high," stressed the Imperator. "Triumph, pull up the pending damage report of Thessia."
The report materialized in the air. It had not yet been finalized, but it projected massive losses of life in the invaded regions and large-scale environmental damage. Aside from the death dealt by the invading forces, mass deportation of the locals into Oravore crafts had been sighted. A monogendered race, it had not been the first time the young asari had been abducted for the pleasures their flesh provided.
"As you can note, Admiral, the Oravore plan was the slaughter, enslavement, and wholesale exploitation of Thessia's natural resources. The Oravore invasion aspired to undo all of the Empire's work here. Such a transgression must be dealt with swiftly, which we have attended to. Being observed was an unavoidable outcome, given the circumstances."
"The consequences of which will be undoubtedly far-reaching," the admiral insisted. "Subjecting an undeveloped race to underserved advancements can prove devastating. The damage you have hastily caused will scar the collective asari culture forever. Yours was a bad call; the invasion could have stemmed in quieter, more subtle ways. Thessia is perhaps one of the most abundant garden worlds in the Empire's possession, and the asari can multiply with any mate - both would have recovered in due time. You have failed your directive. I will be reporting your carelessness to Central."
A tongue of fire sprung to life within the Imperator's chest in anger, but then a beep on his personal battlenet device notified him of a message: His requisition order had been approved. His frustration vanished. "Thessia and the asari are secure for now, but I have no doubts the Oravore will return if the history of the Densorin indicates. I design to prevent future infringements, with your support or not."
"And how do you plan to do so?" the admiral sneered. "I'm afraid that task will warrant a little more than simply swinging your vacuous weapon."
"By striking at the heart of every Oravore. I've requisitioned your fleet to assist me in this matter. I leave at once."
"My fleet?" the admiral repeated, suddenly confused, "You must be mad; you have absolutely no authority to do so, and I will never give such an order."
"My requisition has already been approved by Central," the Imperator stated, accepting the requisition's charge on his personal terminal and officially gaining control. "You will regain command of your forces after completion of the operation. That will be all, Admiral. You may go."
"Excuse me? I may go? I will not allow this farce to continue. Officers," the admiral ordered, "detain the Peregrinator at once."
The officers heard the order but did not obey; He was no longer their superior officer. Not only had the admiral's fleet been removed from him, but now that they were under Imperator control, they exclusively reported to the Imperator regardless of rank.
"Officers, please detain Admiral Esrad until his command is returned," the Imperator ordered.
The officers moved to the admiral's side, placed their hands on his shoulders and began pushing him away.
"What?! You can't be serious! This is my ship! I will not have–"
"Your sacrifice honours the Empire. Goodbye, Admiral."
.
The Oravores, despite being space-faring and a candidate for assimilation, had been a misfit in all categories and strategically a poor fit for inclusion - they were a little too far from Prothean-controlled space, a little too slippery to catch, and downright disreputable. Having long squandered their world's natural resources, they took from others - irregardless of whether it was previously occupied. Before their absorption into the Empire, the Densorin had also lost their fair share to the Oravores: they had been helpless to defend themselves from the militarily-superior invaders, which at its conclusion, succeeded in delivering once-plentiful garden worlds and its peaceful populaces into utter desolation. With each successful raid on the Empire's borders, the Oravores grew more daring, and now, they had invaded Thessia and sought to exploit the vulnerable stone-age asari - the budding blue jewels in the center of the Prothean crown. Strategically, the Empire had no use for the Oravores, but they needed to be taught that it was not to be crossed.
The Peregrinator of the Empire stood on the busy command deck of the fleet's flagship, two years from the start date of the requisition, silent, looking out into the rendered form of the Oravore home system, the ship itself parked far away. Due to the runaway exploitation of their home planet, the world was little more than a shadow of its former self. It appeared on the sensors as a burnt-out husk - oceans nearly dry, landmasses mostly scorched and polluted. Still, about two billion of their kind called it home. Orbiting the planet circled many stations, artificial satellites, and various docking ports for the armada they had to maintain in lieu of a settled world.
"Scans indicate lower levels of pollution, higher sea levels, and greater concentrations of atmospheric gasses than recorded previously," the Prothean VI notified him, flickering to life. "Data from the nearest relay suggests on-world population has been steadily increasing."
"They're pumping their dying planet with the spoils of invasions, hoping to revitalize it. Their efforts appear to be working," Captain Pashek Caed noted, joining the Imperator on the command deck.
The Captain was the progeny of an honourable Admiral whom the Peregrinator had once worked with many years ago. Though the two could not be considered friends, the Peregrinator had sought the honest Captain's opinions on more than one occasion.
"It appears so, Captain. Though, their neoteric graces befall them unearned and undeserved."
"Perhaps, yet ours seem a zero-sum game. You intend to weigh their hearts and pass judgment?"
"I do. And shortly."
The image of the VI pulsed with a notification. "Imperator, the representatives from Central have arrived. As have Admiral Esrad."
"Send them in."
The doors to the command deck opened, and a line of representatives filed in. These comprised the most potent dignitaries in the Empire, representing Central command, eager to see what had become of his unorthodox requisition order and prolonged operation. Behind them trailed Admiral Esrad. If the Admiral had treated him with veiled hostility before, the enmity in the Admiral's eyes at having his forces stolen out from under him for two years now appeared downright murderous, but he did not dare protest while in the presence of the Central representatives.
The Peregrinator looked up at the time. The operation was nearly over.
"Admiral Esrad," he began, walking up the Prothean admiral and giving a short bow. "You have honoured me by allowing me command of your fleet these past two years. I return it to you immediately in the same condition It was entrusted to me - not a craft or soul missing from its ranks." Then, with no animosity in his voice, he added, "Triumph, send the Admiral your inventory and personnel report to quell any doubts."
The Admiral shot him a grating look but did not speak.
"Central representatives, Admiral, Captain, you honour me with your presence," he said, placing his right hand over the left side of his chest. "As we are all aware, the Oravores have long been a threat on the fringes of the Empire's border. They were never considered more than a nuisance until two years ago when they grossly overstepped our allowances and sought to take Thessia right from under us. The Empire called on me to defend Thessia then, and today, I secure that such infringements will not occur again." The Imperator swung his hand out. "I have measured their hearts and found them impure. I pass my judgment."
The Imperator motioned to the captain, "Captain, broadcast our admonition to the Oravore home system."
The captain nodded to a specialist seated at a console, and a moment later, the specialist confirmed the broadcast. "It has been sent," the captain confirmed.
The broadcast contained a message from the Prothean Empire condemning the Oravores for their offences and promising retribution. Little did they all know that their punishment had already been sent to them nearly two years ago.
The Imperator turned to the rendered scan of the Oravore homeworld, and all present followed his lead, watching the last remaining seconds of the operation tick down. There was some agitation from those gathered, all wondering what was to transpire. There were single-digit seconds left on the mission clock, with no ships waiting to be commanded, no forces to be ordered, nothing offensive, not even a gun, in sight. Yet, there we no doubt that something was coming. No matter his faults, those assembled could never swear that the Peregrinator lacked punctuality.
The clock struck zero. Out of nothing, as if it had suddenly appeared into existence with a slight of hand, arrived a massive artificial meteorite in the planet's upper atmosphere. It had simply been empty space, and then it was not. It appeared so quickly and unexpectedly that no planetary defenses could be deployed to deal with the cosmic threat, and it impacted the planet's surface in scarce seconds.
What followed was a quick series of successive annihilations. A section of the minor world lit up, momentarily the brightest thing in the system, an impact that reduced solid landmasses to dust and its shallow oceans to steam. The immense heat of the celestial impact broiled the surface and ignited fires in a wave covering nearly the entire world. All present watched as the impact slowly cratered the planet with so much force that trillions of tons of material were ejected into the atmosphere, some being lifted so high they escaped into orbit. The ejected material soon triggered an ablation cascade in orbit, reducing its satellites and stations into shattered debris that only sought to destroy more through yet more collisions until a spherical graveyard of scattered, high-speed broken metal was all that remained.
The planet and its inhabitants: its plants, animals, people, fields, factories, cities and those in its low orbit had all been destroyed in a single stroke. The entire homeworld had been sacked from right under the Oravore armada. The command deck was quiet.
"How?" asked an astonished Central representative, echoing the single thought everyone in the room held.
The Peregrinator smiled a toothy grin wide in satisfaction. His eyes were dark to the point of empty holes, lacking any visible essence.
"Two years ago," he explained, "Using the Empire's new quantum computing array and Admiral Esrad's fleet, we began launched a great number of small kinetic rounds at different times and trajectories that would eventually cause them to coalesce above the Oravore homeworld. The point of convergence was just low enough that the planet's defence systems could not detect the individual incoming projectiles or destroy the combined large object in time."
The operation had been carried out without any Prothean losses, and its effects had been devastating. The fact that any planet could suddenly succumb to an extinction-level event at any time without warning would prove to be such a deterrent that never again would the Oravore, and most others, ever seek to infringe on the Empire's borders again.
"Well done, Imperator. We will inform Central of your success. The Empire thanks you for your continued dedication."
They bowed to him. He bowed back. The delegation filed out.
He sighed deeply, and with the command deck cleared, the Peregrinator's unremitting eyes darted past the screens and holograms into the faces of the Protheans still stationed. A few were laughing, and a few cried. Most were silent. All present knew the galaxy would not be the same. His eyes moved to the face of Captain Pashek Caed, who stood rooted to the spot, ill at ease.
"Captain, speak freely," the Imperator implored. "I've always held your council. Do you disagree with my judgement?"
"I do," the captain affirmed. "You passed sole judgment upon two billion souls for the offences of the few. The resting place of their kin is now a lake of fire. You have wholly destroyed them; This operation was genocide."
"Your disapproval is noted. I do not disagree with your sentiments, Captain. However, we cannot easily stop the Oravore from committing future offences, nor can the Empire find a use for them within. I have saved many Prothean lives on this day and ensured our continued protection of the asari. Their sacrifice is honoured in the Empire."
The Peregrinator of the Empire stood on the command deck, reflecting. The Prothean Empire dominated the galaxy by assimilating or conquering neighbouring groups as they rose to space-faring status. The Protheans believed their dominance was for the greater good of all, dictated by necessity; The Prothean collective had been nearly wiped out in its relative infancy by a synthetic race, and that singular experience had scarred the collective so deeply that their entire ideology centred around bolstering all organic races together for the sake of survival. The being known to the Protheans as the Peregrinator had once witnessed the extinction of his own species by another, far more sinister synthetic race - one that had disappeared as quickly as they had come, leaving him as the sole inheritor of a galaxy once full of his brethren.
He believed in the Prothean Empire wholeheartedly. If they were to survive against the black machines, the Empire needed to grow. When he joined their fold, he abandoned all emotion, tenderness, and fragility in pursuit of its perfection. The Peregrinator knew that somewhere out there lay a fleet of sentient ships, and should they ever return, their only hope to beat them lay in the Empire's complete, galaxy-spanning strength. All else was secondary to this.
The Peregrinator walked out of the command deck. His work here was done.