He was late. He said 4pm Universal Galactic Time. It now ticked closer to 4:30pm. But nothing would move me from the chair. The last message had been short but brutal. They needed me to pick up a data drop ASAP. We reached the site just as the taillights vanished into the darkness of FTL. The data drop only held a location, a coordinate and a name. My mandibles fluttered, remembering the tiny data disc floating in space before Saria dragged it through the cargo hold. Now, 2 days later, he said he would explain himself. If he ever showed his damn face. The computer rang, jolting me awake. A talon tapped 'answer'. After connecting, Mat'al's face filled the screen, sipping from a cup of coffee with fresh wounds healing along his right hand and arm.
"Enjoying yourself?" I asked, keeping my tone light. Mat'al snorted.
"Enjoying watching gun after gun explode for no reason other than a new heat sink," he grumbled. Gideon's sharp laugh rang in the background. Mat'al loaded the pistol and fired. My chest eased, tension leaking away.
"Have you tried altering the-" I suggested, grin rising to my lips.
"If I need advice on weapon balancing from you, Valérien, I will ask," Mat'al said, gritting his teeth as his eyes followed something to his left. "But we have news for you,"
"I hope so after that little debacle a few days ago," I said, leaning back in the chair. Gideon walked behind Sassy, frowning at a datapad in his hand, Kala nudging him around obstacles like a guide dog.
"Well, we have a way to track Nyryntha," Mat'al said. My brow plates rose, heart picking up the pace. "We have… friends in the Shadow Broker organisation now. They are sending us information whenever Nyryntha travels through a Mass Relay and where she goes to. Listening buoys can track her in explored systems, relaying some information between the relays, not everything however,"
"That's a relief. We need to make sure she doesn't do anything too damaging," I said. Mat'al hmmed.
"Now, you got the data drive?" he asked. I nodded. "Good. I need you to go to that location,"
"Why?"
"Gideon has… discovered something interesting in the Shadow Broker's base. The Shadow Broker developed a new ammo, ammo that Saboteurs don't take kindly to. Or any machinery, guns included," My breath hitched in my throat. "The bullets propel nanobots into a Saboteur, latching onto anything electronic. They seem drawn to organic/electronic mixtures such as wires or spines filled with fluid and genetic material but anything that generates electricity draws them. Once latched on, they clump together and vibrate like bees, melting their way into the electronics. Then they detonate, small EMP shots that short out the electrical signals going to the generators. No power, no functioning Saboteur. It's the only reason Gideon killed two of them,"
"He killed… two of them?" I breathed. Dell… would've been proud. And screaming. And shaking him until he passed out. Then freaking out. Then proud again.
"All by myself," Gideon grinned in the background. "I didn't even have Kala with me or anything,"
"So that's why you have what looks like shrapnel wounds scabbing on your right side," I said, clicking my mandibles. Gideon sulked, sticking out of tongue.
"Every gun that fires this new ammo explodes the second you pull the trigger. The heat sinks can barely hold them back as it is. At least I found the Daemon!" he grumbled, carrying a Saboteur spine across the room. My heart fluttered. What was he doing with that?
"Daemon? You were calling it Hades the other day," Mat'al said, following Gideon's form in a reflection before him. Gideon sighed.
"Hades sounds too… evil. That gun will help us take evil out of this damn universe. Daemons aren't all evil so..." he shrugged, teasing apart a vertebrae. He yelped and shook his fingers out. Blue sparks jumped across his skin.
"Don't fuck with the generators, boy," Mat'al warned.
"I didn't mean to! Every spine has their generators in a different spot!" Gideon rumbled.
"Anyway, from the records we got from the Shadow Broker, he had these nanobots manufactured there. We need this ammo and we don't know how they made them. Trying to pull them apart to see how they're made just puts you on your ass and your experiment in flames. They are so twitchy. If we make it ourselves, we can make it fire from any gun other than the Phantom… Daemon," he shook his head. "Is that your final name for it?" Mat'al looked over his shoulder as Gideon pulled a vertebrae out, revealing a sea of wires and biological cords.
"Yeah, I think so," Gideon said, distracted.
"At least you are keeping yourself busy. We'll look into it. Anything against the Reapers is a tick for us," I said.
"That was my thinking. But how is captain life treating you?" Mat'al asked, folding a leg over his thigh. My mandibles pinned, a sigh heaving free.
"Well, I suppose. The ship and crew are running well and the Council seem happy with our updates. Gid, when can we expect an update for the new filtering Vis? These ones are still struggling and poor Talrn isn't able to understand the language fast enough to update it," I said, changing the subject. Gid blinked, pausing as he considered my question. A flush stained his cheeks. "You forgot, didn't you?"
"…maybe?" he offered a sheepish grin. "Kala, can you work on it please? I need to get this damn thing working," he grumbled. Kala beeped beside him.
"Thank you, Kala," I said, shaking my head. "We'll head off and see what we can find. Take care of yourselves. And Gideon, watch out for indoctrination," I warned.
"I know," Gideon sighed. "Sassy and Kala are watching me,"
"Good. We'll see each other soon," I said, eyes fluttering towards the far corner of the room, a pod filled with green liquid bubbling on the other side of a curtain to Dell's cryo-pod. A cold stone filled my chest. The video vanished in a blink, freeing me.
My feet pushed me up, escaping the room in hurried steps. Dell's door closed behind me. Her room was the only private room with a secure connection everywhere. The war room was too open. I returned to the bridge, seeking the cockpit. A quiet hum hung in the air, a soothing sound of people working and mulling around their duties. Dell's chair passed by, a fresh imprint on the fabric. Despite my wishes, standing in the bridge killed my lower back. Dell wouldn't mind if I borrowed her chair for a little while. Even if she complained in the past.
The crew made no comments, although with the shift in captain, they didn't complain so much. With Raisha out of the way, the crew relaxed now surrounded by the stars and not patrolling or protecting the Council. The week had been pointless; no more Saboteurs or indoctrinated servants. The Council insisted and we couldn't say no. The Intel team were back in action, although without Kala's help, we were back to where we were before. Gideon sent working prototype VIs to help should Kala be elsewhere to make up for Kala's absence. The science and Intel teams were using those and refining them. But Gideon didn't write them in an easy language. We only had one other onboard who could program in such a root language. Even poor Talrn couldn't write like Gideon.
We kept a lid on Dell's passing. All of Dell's contacts, now mine, believed she was still in a coma. As her boyfriend… 'widowed' boyfriend, they relayed what information they could. Spirits, she had over 100 people to keep on top of from all fields. Hell, she had someone high up the Batarian Hegemony. And they seemed close. My jaw swung. No, Dell knew better, she was loyal to the bone. She just got affectionate to those she considered close. Although one contact didn't give me news I liked. Satrino Wilcerous. He sent an update about Raisha. No change, she still wanted to throttle everything that stood between her and the Saboteurs. Nothing seemed to help her. She was too unstable to return to Tuchanka either. She'd just go on a murder spree to kill Innot. My head shook, entering the cockpit. Lanster peeked over his shoulder.
"Val, afternoon," he greeted, flicking the ship on autopilot, leaning back in the chair.
"Afternoon. How is everything?" I asked.
"Quiet. Nothing on the radars out here," Lanster said.
"Good, it's mission time," I said, punching the coordinates into the flight computer. Lanster scowled. He didn't like people touching the controls while he sat in the chair. He scrunched his plates at the result.
"Garvug? The Vallhallan Threshold?" he said. "What's the mission?"
"Recon. Mat'al says they found something Saboteurs hate and it's made there," I said. Lanster's brows fluttered up.
"I'll chart a course," he said, fingers flying over the controls. "ETA, 2 days,"
"Thanks buddy. I'll talk to you tonight," I grinned. Lanster raised a hand as I left. The ship banked for the new course.
The afternoon dragged. At least I didn't have to check the weapons for the upcoming mission now. Phentos had that job. He was a good sport though, he didn't complain too much. The time gave me an opportunity to plan. The facility gave few secrets away. Most work on the planet related to agri-engineering or biological studies. Nothing about nanobots able to ruin a Saboteur's day. While unusual, I pulled a member from Science and Engineering in to help. Eden and Veshin would give us any help the Combat team couldn't provide. That should be more than enough. My head nodded. Now to get Indira to give Veshin time off to come with us, and Shayan to free up Eden. I marched through the door, going down the hall towards Indira's room. It was 10pm, but the woman would be awake. My fist rattled against her door, the metal parting ways. My eyes looked up. Every muscle froze. Indira gawked up at me, back pressed into the bed. Lanster lay on top of her, plates splayed wide. Both stark naked. A slow grin rose, my shoulder leaning into the doorframe, arms folding. Indira held a hand up with finger pointed, cheeks stained red.
"Don't. Say. A word," she threatened. Lanster's dark plates glowed. My brow plates rose, the grin pinned in place.
"Is this the part I get to run out and scream 'Indira and Lanster are sleeping together'?" I asked. Indira flushed, Lanster quivering. My shoulder pushed me off the doorframe, turning to leave. "I'll speak to you tomorrow, Indira. I need to see if you can free someone up for a mission," I said. The door closed. So that was how she spent her evenings. My head shook, chuckling.
My hand rattled on Shayan's door, waiting this time. No answer. A poke inside showed he wasn't here. Down the elevator to Engineering, the deserted deck made my skin crawl. A frown flittered across my face. Too much to hope that Shayan would still be down here still. I could send a message, but it was better for his confidence to do it face to face. Wandering around the engineering tunnels didn't fill me with joy and he didn't seem to be anywhere where many people gathered. The kitchens were barren aside from one or two people, the lounges were full but no Shayan. A sigh ripped free, moving down towards the cargo hold. No Shayan here either, but there was someone else here. Iona lifted her gaze from checking over her armour.
"Iona, have you seen Shayan?" I asked. Iona blinked, securing the breast plate back in the locker.
"Have you tried deck 2? He's usually there in the evening since most people are on deck 3," she said. Deck 2, dammit.
"Thanks, I'll check it out," I said, nodding my head. I turned to the elevator.
"Oh uh," Iona said, stepping up beside me. "I finished the armour report," she sent a file through the datapad. "How are you? I know you didn't want the captain role,"
"I'm fine. Adapting, I suppose. The crew are supportive which helps," I said, reaching the elevator.
"Val-" Iona said.
"Sorry, I still got a lot of things to do before-" I sighed. My words died. Iona shoved me, my back smashing into the elevator door. My heart stopped, muscles locked. Iona's lips pressed against mine, stealing my breath. Iona pulled back, slow. My lungs refused to work, eyes bugged. My jaw locked.
"You're working too hard," she murmured. My heart trembled. My arm twitched, hitting the elevator call button.
"I…" I stammered. Iona, noting my hesitation, stepped back. "Iona, she's barely dead," I wheezed. Her mandibles froze to stop them clicking against her cheeks.
"Val, the Reapers are coming. There won't be much time before they come," she said. My heart thundered. "Just sleep on it, see how you feel," The door opened behind me.
Without another word, my feet shambled back, hailing the elevator to the top floor. The elevator spun, compressed, warped. It didn't… this didn't… Spirits have mercy on my soul. My face fell into my hand, shambling up the hall. Iona's lips were sweeter than Dell's, but rough, hard. They didn't hug you, caress you. How did people go back to their own species after meeting something so soft and inviting? My eyes fluttered open, head lifting. A two tiered room greeted me, a familiar scent smothering my heart in guilt. No, no, this didn't feel right. But… but what would Dell want for me? To move on, to cling on? No, no, she would want… I couldn't say it. My feet trudged up to the second floor, further than anyone dared tread for 2 months. The cleaning bots did a good job keeping the dust away. My knees collapsed by the sofa, landing on it with a thud. Red strands of hair dotted the fabric, trapped between the weaves. My talons teased one free, letting it glint in the light. A pain cramped my heart, but it was manageable. My eyes trailed over the photos on the coffee table. So many beautiful moments, trapped forever under glass.
One frame fell into my hands, one of Julian and Dell, garbed in their uniforms, stripes gleaming in the brilliant light. Looking at it now, the pair shared similarities. They shared the same nose, concaved with a slight flick at the tip. Julian was still a head taller than Dell, but siblings they were. Julian looked relaxed, relieved. Dell forced a smile, but maybe there was a hint of something else. Long lost emotions still lingering. A photo of Dell and Gideon threatened to burst my chest, the pair mid fall from the sofa below me. Dell's face tore between surprise and desperation to keep Gideon from banging his head on the table. Gideon didn't care, a beam on his face. The next wasn't of Dell. Rather her parents. Julian didn't match his father aside from the same narrow eyes. Adrian Shaik had softer features, a rounder jaw and smooth features. The angular features of Julian's jaw and cheeks came from their mother, Viona. A boxy jaw and high cheekbones, Dell described her as an attractive woman if you squinted. Dell escaped the square jaw, but not the cheeks, especially when she got her weight under control with exercise.
Something caught the light. My eyes fluttered, disturbed. In the phone, the light highlighted a raised section of the photo, so square to be a crease. The photo flipped, the wooden back staring up. With care, the old clips slid, freeing the back. The photo was old, delicate. Talons didn't help in preventing damage, but dammit, I'd try. A card back protected the back of the photo. My eyes found a pair of tweezers Dell used to keep her eyebrows under control. They slipped under the card to peer beneath it. A small envelope sat in the bottom left of the frame. My plates scrunched up, teasing it free with the tweezers before setting the frame aside. The envelope wasn't sealed and the flap fluttered free. Inside, a small piece of yellowed paper. It was written in Human English, nothing a scan with an omni-tool couldn't deal with. But what glared up was just a series of numbers. My brows furrowed. What was this all about? A phone number, coordinates? The numbers saved to my omni-tool. Something to look into or ask Julian, maybe he knew. If we could ever speak to him again. The paper slipped into the envelope and back into the frame for safe keeping. My head shook, my mind wasn't in the mood for mysteries, Shaik mysteries at that. The photo returned to the table and I fled the room, unable to get rid of the emotions riding me. Sleep. Sleep and worry about this later. There's a mission and ship to worry about.
Morning came and went, my duties kept me away from Iona, but the emotions fluttered. What did one do when their hearts ached and longed to escape, but a glimmer of hope hung on the horizon? Gideon had been serious, he was trying to bring Dell back. If he succeeded… My head shook. No, worry about that later! The Starquake drifted through FTL until we landed in the Vallhallan Threshold. The stars winked in the distance, the sun glowing in the distance. Garvug glinted, the planet growing larger by the second. My armour clicked. Drutus completed the details beside me. We shared a look. After dragging a deep breath in, my feet turned towards the elevator. In the cargo hold, Iona cast me a long look. My eyes locked onto the weapons lockers until the Tempest and Carnifex slipped into place. Iona clicked her mandibles as I stepped inside the shuttle.
Maybe the others felt the tense atmosphere, but no one said anything. We sat, quiet as the shuttle hummed around us, Una steering us towards the planet. The cameras beamed the surface as the clouds parted. Even at the equator, snow lay thick below us, the thermometer hitting no higher than 5°C. Clouds choked the sky as the flat plains clung to low between the basins of towering peaks. Steam rose from hot springs, the area cracking apart through tectonic rifting. A small sea poked between the cracking crust, but ice clung to the edges. The old krogan world couldn't sustain life, but that was why corporations worked here, hoping to revive such a devastated world. The shuttle swooped down, banking towards a sail-shaped building clinging from a cliff. Snow blew around us as the shuttle hovered, the doors cracking open. The snow rose to my ankles. No environment hazard, thank the spirits.
The security gate gave us pause. There was power, but no one answered the comm. And even checking the security booths, they were empty of people. My stomach turned cold. If someone had attacked already… we needed the information here. If no one was here, either through death or abandonment, then we needed to get in and find their servers. Shual, Savanor and Utren barged down the door with brute force. The metal gate crumpled with a bit of coaxing. We filed inside the compound, eyes scanning the snow. No sirens blared, no automated security systems. Nothing. My shoulders rolled back, creeping towards the front door. The interior was still heated, concern bubbling that people were still here. We could have called out, asked if anyone was here but that didn't feel right. Nothing about this place felt right. Dammit, had something happened here? My teeth grit. The glass wall behind us filled the silvery room with light, tiers of floors towering high above me, sinking in the cliff behind. It seemed like a normal office, nothing important here. We had to find the lab. The reception desk, a crisp, curved wooden desk in the middle of the foyer, sat empty.
"Fan out, search for anything odd. If you see anyone, bring them here," I said. The team muttered 'aye, aye', before spreading through the bright room. Iona took steps to follow me towards the reception, but Shaul ordered her to examine the right of the room. Thank the spirits Shual ranked higher than Iona. I didn't… I didn't want to delve down that avenue right now. At the reception the computers sprang to life. Nothing seemed off, just a series of to-do lists and expected guests. But no clues as to the apparent abandonment. CCTV footage looked normal, but they all died at the same point. A power cut? Then why was the power back? My jaw swung, finding nothing else odd. The CCTV gave me the locations of the labs, once compared to a map. No idea what all the labs were for. We'd have to explore them. But two things stuck out. An elevator plunged down into the planet, at least 100m down. The server room was a floor up and took half the floor. We'd head there first.
"Nothing Captain," Shaul rumbled, thumping towards the desk. "Not even a pyjak hair,"
"Nothing here either," I sighed. "Let's head to the server room and draw what we can. Maybe we'll have better luck there,"
The crew gathered around me, taking the stairs to the next the level. The shining halls showed no sign of battle or disturbance. Nothing was out of place. It was midday, the place should be bustling. The offices and labs were empty, not a sound bounced off the walls aside from our footsteps. The server room doors parted. A cold air smashed my face. The towering servers filled the room in neat rows. White fog clung to the floor, shifting as we walked through. The crew fanned out, looking for terminals. When they found them, they pulled what they could, looking for answers. Everything we found didn't relate to nanobots or anything. Frustration burned. If we had Kala, she would've gone through these damn things within seconds… Spirits, we were that reliant on an AI now? Vis delved into the databases, looking for anything. Veshin looked after the systems, but so far, nothing that seemed useful to us. We drew what information we could. Nothing obvious for now but if we send this to Gideon, he and Kala would tear through it. We had to examine the labs, find samples if possible. But in a building this size, it could take hours. We may not have hours before whatever happened here came for us. Back down the hall, the radio crackled, but only white noise filtered through. Shual and I shared a look, a frown growing. Our pace quickened until the towering glass wall greeted us. But that wasn't all. A dark shadow loomed in the near distance. My shoulders sagged.
"Oh fuck me… looks like the Saboteurs know and sent word ahead," I breathed. Shual snarled. The earth trembled as Nyryntha stepped forward, a hoard of husks powering towards the building. So the key to destroying or hindering the Saboteurs are here. They wouldn't send Nyryntha down unless it was serious. My teeth grit, turning to the team as they gawked up at the monsters rushing towards us.
"Captain?" Cathleen asked.
"There's an underground facility. We'll head down there. We are not going out in that in a shuttle without the Starquake," I said.
"And if we get trapped down there?" Alder asked.
"We don't have much choice," I grunted, tearing down the hall to the elevator.
The only way down to the underground portion was down an elevator. There was no staircase. The massive, industrial elevator could've carried cranes down. We piled in, yanking the massive door shut. The whole elevator shuddered, sliding down, diagonal, towards the core of the planet. Who knew how deep it went. Everything quaked with the shuddering from Nyryntha, her robotic roar quietening the deeper we went. If the power went out, it left us stranded. The elevator slipped with another quake, this one lasting longer. A beam? We flattened ourselves on the floor, guns pointing up should they get through the door. After 30 minutes of agonising waiting, the elevator thudded to a stop. We cambered out of the elevator and into the caverns. Zeedra sealed the door behind us.
The quakes from Nyryntha still shuddered the walls from down here, but not as bad as it was before. The caves expanded out, lights burning the darkness away. Cables pinned to the walls in neat bundles. Then a metal door in a solid, rock wall poked out from around a corner. They door parted, smooth as flowing water. We returned to the silvery, clean walls of a laboratory. A second later, though, gunfire froze us in place. A small gathering of asari, volus and salarians quivered before us, guns drawn and eyes wide. My crew turned for answers. After a heartbeat, the Carnifex slipped back at my hip, hands raising to beside my head.
"Whoa, there, we're not your enemies," I called.
"The Shadow Broker sent you! Sent you to silence us once and for all!" an asari cried.
"I am not with the Shadow Broker, I'm with the RRTF, a Council run group," I said. "Are you the scientists who made the anti-Saboteur ammunition?" confusion fluttered over their faces.
"Anti… Saboteur?" a volus asked.
"Tiny EMP nanobots in a heat sink," I said. Their shoulders tensed again.
"You are with the Shadow Broker! He's the only one who knows-" a salarian squealed.
"He used the ammo against us!" I lied. They froze, quivering. "We killed them, found the ammo and used it. We know what it does but not how it does it or how you made it. Please, we need your help, we need to know how you made them," The group, nothing more than scientists, shared looks, mumbled amongst themselves. As the tense seconds ticked, the guns lowered. A long breath eased free.
"You… You'll keep us safe?" a volus asked, the round suit wobbling.
"We'll do our damnest," I said. The crew clicked their weapons in place, but kept an ear out for someone coming up behind us. A pale asari burst into tears, falling to her knees in relief. "Have you been down here long?"
"You have no idea," a salarian sighed. "We got a contract to design a device that could route out any dangerous cables or devices underground or coated in organic matter to help make areas safe for farming. Simple enough, then they asked us to make it into ammunition so they could take out minefields at a distance. Ok, more challenging but not difficult. We even designed a long range sniper that could handle it. The nanobots caused any gun that didn't have the shield coating in the barrel and loader to explode,"
"The Daemon…" I muttered, remembering Gideon's mention.
"We included safety precautions to stop it being abused. The trigger has a biometric recognition system. Without resetting, it only allows the registered user to shoot it," a dark asari added. Did… that mean Gideon was the only person who could use this Daemon?
"But then we get a message from our security that they were receiving threats if they didn't abandon the building. We realised the Shadow Broker must be trying to silence us so we grabbed our equipment and hid down here. We've had so many people storm in here to kill us we… we've not slept in weeks," a volus groaned.
"Can't be easy… we'll help where we can. But we need to get you and any of the equipment you need out of here," I said, remembering Nyryntha up on the surface. "Alright team, we need to barricade that entrance from the husks. We need to come up with a plan to get out of here," I ordered.
The combat crew rushed to grab tables and spirits knows what else to act as cover against the coming horde. Veshin and Eden followed the scientists to the equipment to organise everything. It left me hovering between, torn between hauling the barricade in place and organising the equipment for moving. What did Dell do? Just… observe? My mandibles waved. I guess she did… she helped where she felt she could. The combat team had everything well in hand, Phentos calling out the commands as he pulled over a heavy metal table. My head shook hard, waking me before pushing forward to help the barricade. We made 4 lines, just in case we had to fall back. But we hoped it wouldn't come to that. After the lines formed, the crew positioned themselves, the krogan near the front where they could get their fists bloody. They growled, ready and waiting, eager. Who knows how long it would take before the hordes arrived. It took an hour for Veshin and Eden to help get all the equipment onto pallets and ready for transit. More scientists hiding further in trembled, waiting for the all clear to move out.
An hour passed. 2 hours passed. The quaking earth stopped trembling after 3 hours. We never heard the screeching or chattering from husks, we heard none of that. It only made us more anxious. We tried to radio the Starquake, but the underground facility was too well shielded, our radios couldn't punch through. We had only once choice left; wait. The underground facility had communication facilities with the surface, but after the Shadow Broker attempts to flush them out, we would have to drain power from here to signal the surface. That would kill the air flow and power down here. No one wanted to fight husks in the dark. As time passed, I wondered if someone should head up and see what was going on. But that thought didn't get very far.
The door exploded, smoke and fallen rock blasting through the door. My heart crashed against my ribs, Pistol straight in my hands. Husks didn't pour in though. People did. The one at the head, a male human, took 4 running steps in with modified Talon pistol in hand. He paused, his helmet masking him as a variety of aliens rushed out behind him. A small army of krogan pressed forward. Shual and Utren growled, but Savanor straightened, the gun lowering. My eyes narrowed, wondering why the krogan was standing down. The human straightened, taking each movement slow, gun lowering. The dark blue, grey and white Serrice armour gleamed, every cut and scrape highlighting. On his shoulders, 5 stripes and 5 stars, a dark blue base behind the stars. My heart fluttered, skipping beats. The man put the gun up, removing his helmet. Julian Shaik stared me down with hard eyes. Hard eyes locked to my shoulders, to my stripes. My knees trembled. He marched across the distance, a hint of Reaper Blue glinting in his eyes. He grabbed my armour by the carapace.
"Where is she?" he asked between his teeth. My jaw locked. One wrong word. One wrong word and we would have to fight a Saboteur.
"Shaik-" I tried.
"WHERE IS SHE?" he thundered, eyes bursting into a full, Reaper blue glow. Fear punched me like a sledge hammer.
The Timeline and Galaxy Map have been updated for this chapter. Please see profile for link to Archive.