Chapter 9

The halls of the Dreisstrager periodically echoed with the rumblings of the Brave police moving about while conversing with each other. Former students turned military personnel wore grim expressions outside. The worry about being able to return home was thick in the air.

Suzaku Kururugi looked at the familiar helmet in his hand. It was the Zero Mask. He recalled Lelouch's words before he departed with The Normandy. He Idly ran a thumb over the Sallet of the mask. He had once shot a similar mask in anger. It was a miracle that he had missed Lelouch's head back then.
"I would like you to play the part of Zero while we are apart. Zero will be needed in more than one location at any given time. As such, you are needed just as much as I am." Lelouche's voice rang in his head as he slipped on the mask, wearing Zero's iconic cloak to cover his athletic body. Just as he did so, the locker room door slid open and the familiar figure of Kallen Kouzuki greeted him.

"Suzak- Ahem. Zero, it's our turn on patrol…Do you think he's doing well?" The knightmare pilot asked with a worried look. The half britannian was clad in her pilot suit. To better withstand the radiation weapon that she utilized she had a specialized suit.

"Knowing him, he's probably already laying the groundwork for that crazy scheme." Suzaku hummed before sliding his helmet on and activating the voice modulator after checking its battery life. "Kallen, I want you guarding the Gunblasters during their fracking operations. Kamille, Uso, Edge and Az are already deployed. The two pilots walked side by side, a rarity for sure as they passed by Ernesti and the magic knights.

"Ernie, could you and the girls stay on standby, help Van and Guy with ship side security." Suzaku ordered. The Knight saluted him with sparkles in his eyes.

"Right away Zero. I wonder if they have cyborg ninjas and samurai here." The youth, Ernesti, wondered aloud before closing his eyes and thinking back on the prior engagements with those Batarian pirates. "Thinking about the ships…it's clear this universe follows the Big gun rule rather than giant robots." Ernestie lamented with an exasperated shrug. "Ugh I didn't want to return to that kind of earth…Maybe I could ask around on that extranet about some individuals here skilled in robotics to spitball some ideas…"

"Cyborg ninjas? You mean like from metal gear?" Hikaru questioned with a tilt of her head. "Besides, doesn't Sanger fill out the Samurai slot?"

"Mmm, that works… it's a series that had mecha's. I was too busy with my gunpla's to play them too much." Ernie shrugged. "Speaking of which I much prefer designing robots myself now."

2185
Omega station

Seprak sighed to himself as he ran over the checklist that one of his engineers had handed to him. Those mechs had done a number on the dreadnought, they used some sort of plasma technology for their projectiles. The Batarian pirate sighed as he looked over the drydock manifest.

"Commander Shepard was seen on the citadel earlier this week. This raised questions about her supposed death."

"I'll have to take some odd jobs to get enough credits to cover the repairs and staff…" Seprak muttered while he picked up his cup of recaf and took a sip.

"In other news, a young human chess prodigy drew a tie against a salarian on the presidium. The interesting factor of this tie was the king on king, center board draw. We got a moment of the young man's time after the match." The image of a rather striking human glanced sideways to the camera before facing it and looking into the lens directly.

"How was I able to bring about that draw? Quite simple really, on my Earth, I often led with the King. How can the king expect others to follow if he does not lead the way?" Seprak took a deep draught of his drink.

"Hahaha…You're earth? Is there another planet called Earth that we are not aware of?" The correspondent giggled lightly before looking at the camera. "What's the name of the system and planet you're from?" The young man grinned before he took a sweeping, apologetic bow.

"That brat some kind of noble?" Seprak asked himself before taking another sip of coffee.

"Ah, allow me to explain. Yes I do mean Earth, from the Sol system. The date of 0089 UC. I am a representative of the autonomous task force, Dreikreuz. Our flagship and supporting cruisers are currently stranded out near this universe's Perseus veil. I am currently visiting the Citadel to meet with the council about getting access to the Mass relay system. But it appears I'm running a bit late."

"Hrk-" Seprak coughed violently as he choked on his coffee. As he turned his full attention to the news feed. The Batarian now focused on the young man. "Wait…is he from that small strike force that wiped out my attack?" He glanced at the repair bill. "How did they already get to the citadel? Was there a human vessel in contact with them? How did they learn-" A ship passed in front of the viewing bay. A Cerberus cruiser pulled up to one of the docks as the collar extended. Feeling paranoid, he pulled up the camera for that docking collar. It had no audio but all he needed was footage. And what puzzled him more was Shepard walking through in cerberus battle armor. "…no one can be in two places at once…" He had a bad feeling that something was about to go down.

So he set down his coffee and quickly made his way over to one of his 'eavesdropper' ships.

"Captain?" One of the engineers asked briefly before Seprak sighed.

"The exo has command until I return, dead or alive. I'm following a hunch so I may be gone for some time. Keep me up to date via extranet about the repairs." He rubbed his prosthetic wrist. "I'll stay safe. I've tangled with Shepard before, a little recon isn't going to kill me."

"I wasn't going to question. We're with you, but if I may speak freely." The engineer asked, a haunted look hovered in his eyes.

"I'll allow it. Speak freely. And don't hold back." Seprak nodded.

"Are we going to fight them again? Because we barely got out of there, and whatever munitions they are using, I don't think we can take a direct hit. They weren't expecting us, but they were ready for us...What kind of group maintains that level of alertness?"

"I know what kind of group does that." He reached for his pack of smokes before he sighed, realizing it was empty. "Damn it. It's a group that has their back up against a wall. And has been for some time. I was at the Skylian blitz. Fought Commander Shepard in person. That's when humans are the most dangerous."

The engineer looked at Seprak in stunned awe.

"They say she held off a single pirate platoon."

"Feh. You think it was just one? Bureaucrats must have downplayed her holding action. Elanos was ruined because of her decision to hold her ground. It was a lot more than one Platoon that tried to break through her section of Elysium." Seprak paused as the recon shuttle's door opened. "I guess I have no respect for someone trying to steal her honor by wearing her face."

"I'm coming with you." The Engineer said as he set down his spanner.

"What? No. It's too risky. You still have plenty of life in you." Seprak looked at the young engineer. "You have a lot of honor, kid, too good for this life. Being a pirate isn't a glamorous job. Do you still want to do this? You could very well die."

"You're taking an even greater risk by trying to operate a two man ship by yourself. I'm coming with you." The Engineer said before he glanced at the shuttle. "I can fly a small shuttle and calculate jumps. But the super spy stuff will fall on you. Plus these things have no guns." Seprak gave him a small chuckle.

"I know. It's why I grabbed one of these and not an armed reconnaissance shuttle. Got to appear like the upstanding citizens we are in case things hit the fan." Seprak laughed. "Alright Fine. Just let the Exo know our plan and if we're not heard from in a week, to check at the perseus veil where we fought that dreadnought under a parley."

The engineer sighed as he shook his head.
"Alright, I'll do it. Just…don't fly off without me." The Batarian sighed before walking off to find the Executive officer, grumbling all the while. He passed by a group of dock workers helping transport welding materials to the ship. Having lost one of the redundant mass effect cores was going to have an effect on the ships combat capability. He did not like having his job increased any more than it already was. He soon found the Executive officer running over a list of crew and managing the repair efforts. The Batarian pirate glanced up towards the approaching engineer before he shifted his gaze back to his current job.

"Engineer Farank, what can I do for you?" The officer asked in a preoccupied and slightly dismissive tone.

"Seprak wants you to look over everyone, apparently Shepard is in two places at once and he wants to look into it. She just docked in a completely different ship. He says something doesn't feel right." Farank stated. "I'll be accompanying him on an observation shuttle." The executive officer paused in his work to watch the Engineer.

"I see…Well try to get back alive, but if you don't that's one less person we have to pay. Seprak's been on a revenge trip since news of his brother. Maybe this will help change his mind. Heard Commander Shepard did some good here earlier. Cured a plague affecting non-humans. Anyways, hurry along. I've got enough work to do as it is. I'll keep the captain's chair warm till I actually need it. If things go wrong how long should we wait?"

"A week. If things go wrong we were going to flee to that dreadnought we faced down. That's a part of why the ship is without weapons. He figures that they won't shoot an unarmed vessel broadcasting an sos." The Engineer took a predator and holstered it.

"We'll hold the fort then. Just don't get turned into space dust. Then again, I hope he changes his mind about this suicide mission. Those ships have some serious firepower. Another engagement like that and we won't have a spare mass effect core." The Executive officer growled. Farank nodded and gave him a wave before he trotted off to join up with Seprak.

It didn't take long for the pair to depart the airlock with Seprak. The pair of batarians monitored their surveillance equipment while the engineer piloted the shuttle into range to begin their operation. It wasn't hard to find the Cerberus cruiser and almost immediately both Farank and Seprak noticed that the cruiser was giving off a turian identification.

2185

Admiral Hackett picked up his cup of Decaf as he watched that GNN broadcast while he looked over the currently ongoing combat report coming from one of the human colonies in the terminus system. The aging admiral sighed as he could only shake his head. He had been at the battle of the Citadel two years ago. Sovereign was a threat to every sentient organism in the galaxy. He still felt the loss to the Fifth fleet as they rescued the Destiny ascension.

And now there were reports of Giant robots appearing planetside. He also had watched the young man, Lelouch openly admit that there was a second earth and he was from it! Hackett shook his head before his comm rang. It was David Anderson. He picked up without hesitation and took a steady breath.

"Anderson. To what do I owe the pleasure, Councillor?" Hackett asked with a smile on his face.

"Admiral Hackett, I was calling to see if you'd be willing to be a part of a diplomatic mission out near the perseus veil. I just spoke with Shepard and learned of some new acquaintances." Anderson said upfront, his business tone creeped in.

"It's not out of the question. That young man, Lelouch, just rocked my world, let alone the galactic community as a whole. A parallel earth? I can hear the quantum physicists already." Hacket allowed himself to smile at the thought. "But a diplomatic mission? I've received a combat report of strange ships above one of our colonies in the Terminus systems, helping fend off the blood pack. Apparently there have been some casualties."

"Ours or?" Anderson asked analytically.

"Theirs. Rocket propelled grenade impacted the cockpit. The pilot shielded our own marines with their mech." Hacket explained. While he looked over the report one more time. "Staff Lieutenant Vega is debriefing with the unit's leader as we speak. Blood pack mercs attacked a colony in the terminus systems." Hacketts voice held an edge as he continued. "The pilot didn't hesitate to shield our own marines with his machine. Not something I would expect with a force that's been marooned in this world."

"I know. I've met with some of these parallel Earth humans. And Aliens. Their terms are rather strict, essentially just a non aggression pact and a ban on their own technology." The human councilor said with a sigh over the line.
"I'll have Lieutenant Vega serve as a Liaison, and try to get on friendly terms with these Parallel Earth Forces. They could prove vital in preparing for the Reapers." Hackett said with a serious undertone while he looked at the five model ships he had sitting on his desk.

"Speaking of Liaisons." Councilor Anderson paused on his end. "Admiral hackett, the council wishes to request that you Liason with Captain Mitsuba Greyvalley and escort the Specter, Jondum Bau and a diplomatic corps to the Dreikruz out in the Perseus Veil. We can't ask Shepard to do it, on account of her 'Situation'. Come to the Citadel as soon as you can, you'll be picking up the diplomatic corps plus one other, A PEF that elected to stay behind and validate the action. Although he's currently undergoing surgery."
"Understood. The Alliance is happy to take on this task, I'll take my flagship and see to it personally. What's Shepards take on their leader?" Hackett asked while he looked over reports.

"Officially? Commander Mitsuba seems to be playing things very close to her chest. If We're going to have any chance at defeating the Reapers. The Dreikruz aren't going to follow council law, their 'ambassadors' have made that clear." Anderson sighed, Hackett chuckled at his friend shaking his head.

"What's this young man undergoing surgery for?" The admiral of the fifth fleet asked as he stared at the bottom of his coffee mug.

"I'm not sure. I'll see if the docs and potentially the PEFs are willing to share." The rustling of a tablet could be heard on the other end. "I'll get back to you though by the time you arrive."

2185
Orga gazed out at the Presidium from the hospital window, his mind restless as he waited. Doctor Chakwas and Mordin had explained Mikazuki's condition to the local doctors, providing scans and data. He knew this was the right choice—they couldn't leave Mika untreated—but doubts still gnawed at him. He'd ordered the Barbatos brought off the Normandy to avoid burdening Shepard's crew, yet now it sat vulnerable, its pilot incapacitated. How long before someone tried to hijack it?

He stood tall, hands clasped behind his back, the Tekkadan jacket draped loosely over his shoulders. His grim expression softened as he glanced over his shoulder. Kudelia sat quietly, awake and alert, while Atra had nodded off against her. The sight was a small comfort amid the chaos, though the weight on his chest remained.

'Odd how I feel at ease in a hospital here,' Orga thought, frowning as he looked back at the alien skyline. 'No, it's not the hospital—it's this place...'

He shook his head and exhaled slowly. Biscuit would've told him to stop overthinking it, to focus on what mattered. That compass was gone now, and all they had left was each other and when they would have to claw their way back home to their galaxy.

Orga's musings were interrupted by the sound of someone approaching him from the elevator as he half turned to see what looked to be a tall, black human. He extended a hand to Orga with a smile on his face.

"Greetings, sorry for the surprise visit while one of your own is undergoing treatment. I'm Councilor David Anderson." The Counselor introduced himself.

"Call me Orga. I'm a Martian." Orga nodded as he observed Anderson closely before he turned crisply and reached out his hand for a firm shake. "The doc on the Commander's ship insisted that we do this. And Doc Chakwas doesn't brooch an argument." He smirked lightly before he let out a chuckle.

Kudelia perked her head up as she gently moved Atra out of the way, letting the girl rest on the chair she occupied.
"And I'm Kudelia Aina Bernstein. I am…well it's a bit complicated." She giggled softly as she scratched at the back of her elbow before she took a relaxing breath. "In our world…you could call me the Ambassador of Mars. Mister Orga here, I employed him and his unit as bodyguards."

"And you're ok with discussing this out in the open?" Anderson asked seriously before Orga chuckled.

"It's not like you can pick which dimension you want to hop over to and try to steal our technology." Orga smirked as his left eye closed in thought. "Besides…what's going on with Mika, is something that we can't fix on our own."

"And what would that be?" Anderson asked seriously.

"A cost that came about with our line of work. Space debris like us don't exactly get the finest health care in the galaxy. Suffice it to say that a mining job went south and Mikazuki paid a heavy price to stop something monstrous. Or that's how it would have gone I bet…if we hadn't been yanked out of our own dimension."

"But that's not how it happened?" Anderson guessed from that tone and the dark look. "How many were lost?"

"A full company of mobile suits was lost buying time for us to arrive." Orga nodded. "It was some kind of mobile armor with accompanying drones. We managed to defeat it without putting nearby villages in harm's way, but…the cost on Mika was…" Orga grew silent as he averted his gaze to look away, just over Anderson's shoulder at something far away. "That's what the Docs are trying to figure out. I'm staying here in case they need someone to have as a reference for the AV implants."

"Is it something you can't talk about?" The Counselor asked while he rubbed at his chin.

"It's more of something that is painful to talk about." The young woman, Kudelia spoke up as she dusted herself off. "Mika lost control over a part of his body outside of the Barbatos. Both Doctor Chakwas and Mordin Solus believe that it's possible to reverse the effects. To a degree, however, Normandy didn't have the tools necessary."

"A burden no one should carry alone." Anderson frowned, his chin dipping.

Kudelia spoke up, her voice soft yet resolute. "Mika connects directly to the Barbatos. All of the pilots in Tekkadan do, but Mika's machine has a limiter on it. He removed that limiter…which is what did the damage." She closed her eyes as she recalled that scene. It wasn't the first time she'd seen how Tekkadan's mechs moved, however, it was the first time being so close to the fighting.

"Speaking of, would you allow us to examine this Barbatos of yours? And–" Anderson tapped his left arm with two fingers. " would you vouch for a diplomatic corps that we will be sending to your group as soon as the escort ship arrives?"

"That's quite bold to ask for something that sensitive off the bat." Orga scoffed. "However if we say no to letting your people examine our mech, are you going to try and steal it?" He fixed Anderson with his left eye as he half turned to look at the older male. "What use could you have for such dangerous technology when you've already got paradise?" The young man jerked a thumb out the window to the serene Presidium outside.

"You've got every right to be suspicious, son. I won't deny it. But let me put this in perspective for you." Anderson smirked as he walked up next to Orga and folded his hands behind his back neatly, standing at ease. "I believed Shepard when she told us about the Reapers two years ago. I was here during the reaper Sovereign's attack on the citadel. Saw that robot bastard up close and personal. It's nightmare stuff. We're still clearing the wreckage out. The whole galaxy is scared, so it branded Commander Shepard as disgraced. Nothing more than a conspiracy theorist who snapped under the weight of her task to hunt down a rogue Specter. The council doesn't believe that privately, but if we're walking a fine line. If we go public, we risk galactic panic– and chaos. If we remain silent, we risk being caught off guard again. It's a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't situation." he shook his head. "The rest of the Council may not want to acknowledge it. But we had our asses saved two years ago and we can't be caught with our pants down again. And if that means establishing a military alliance with a collective of loose cannons playing hardball, so be it. I've seen that combat footage. I know damn well that trying to demand you all fall in line is going to result in massive casualties. Our own understanding of mechanized walkers isn't half as sophisticated as that machine you guys have. And sure we could try to steal what we could from your machine. But I'd rather avoid a diplomatic incident."

Orga crossed his arms, his brow furrowed as he processed Anderson's words. "You talk a good game, old man. I'll give you that. But I've heard speeches like this before–People talking about the 'greater good' while stepping on those at the bottom. You say you don't want to pick a fight, but you're asking us to essentially hand over one of our biggest advantages. That's not something we do lightly."

He glanced out the window, his voice lowering as if talking to himself. "Still…if what you're saying about these Reapers is true…" His gaze snapped back to Anderson, sharper now. "Then you'll need more than just Alliances. You'll need people willing to fight the kind of war no one else will. I can only speak for myself and Tekkadan, but that's what we do best."

Orga unfolded his arms and nodded. "I'll vouch for your diplomatic corps, and request Commander Mitsuba to temporarily release my crew to join your escort ship. We're tied to the Dreikruz out of necessity, but my people will answer to me first and foremost." His eyes narrowed. "Besides, It'd be better to have someone who knows how to operate and maintain our machines. A normal pilot and engineers wouldn't be able to handle them."

"I'll make the call to Admiral Hackett myself." Anderson said with a resolute nod. "But I am curious, why would a normal pilot not be able to handle your machines?"

2185

The hangar bay containing the Barbatos was silent apart from the faint sounds of dockworkers going about their duties overhead. A pair of mechanics were sitting at an impromptu table, cards lay strewn about its surface in matched pairs.

"Excuse me, gentlemen." A voice spoke up while he glanced up at the giant machine, even dormant it's wolfish face seemed like it could come alive and it was just slumbering for the time being. The burly of the two workers glanced over to the pair as he gave them a quick once over.

"What do you want, Salarian?" he asked as he slung an arm over the back of his chair, half turning to face the Salarian and looking down to the Volus that was also examining.

"My friend and I were intrigued by the striking silhouette of this machine and were wanting to take a closer look. As well as perhaps take some scans. Is it alliance tech?" The lead Salarian asked curiously while he looked up at the towering machine.

"Not a clue. I've never seen a machine like it before. Seems too large and unwieldy." The taller of the pair sighed as he popped his back before he looked at the Salarians. "That aside…who in their right mind would pilot something that looks like a demon?" He gestured to the lupus rex's clawed hands. "That thing is meant for one thing, and one thing only, mark my words."

"Could we get some scans on it? My compatriot and I are writing our dissertation on robotics engineering and how a piloted, mechanized suit would be…more efficient in ship manufacturing and construction labor for colonization efforts."

"And my people…schhhk…could use a suit like that…to find and create colonies in harsher climates…" The Volus chimed in as he calmly held up his left hand while talking.

"We could…but what's our compensation? I mean you're not workers here…" The man asked while pantomiming money as he half turned to face the pair more directly.

"Of course. And we'll keep you listed as an anonymous beneficiary to our studies once the paper is published. But such a machine will shoot forward our robotics understanding by decades…perhaps even more. I can wire the money to your account right away. Jahleed, could you start getting our scans while I deal with this?" Chorban asked as he started tapping away on his omni tool.

The Volus nodded as he started making his way over to the VRC as he linked it to his omnitool for controls. The lift started its slow pursuit half way up the machine's body as Jahleed switched his omnitool over to scanning mode to begin taking readings.

"Hmmm…The paint on this mech is unlike anything I've ever seen…" Jahleed breathed sharply as his tool's scanning wasn't going exactly according to plan. "Switching to broad spectrum." The Volus declared as his omnitool lit up while it analyzed the basic structure.

"Don't forget the joints." Chorban called up while he moved over with an exasperated sigh. "This is like the keepers all over again…" He grumbled to himself as he activated his own broad spectrum analysis of the leg structure. "This doesn't make sense…how can we not be getting a full read on broad spectrum?" Chorban asked out loud while he tapped at his omnitool. That paint had some form of crystallized lattice structure that was to the nanite level. While he wasn't a ship engineer, a codex search would be enough to confirm that wasn't normal given most ships used compressed carbon plating for ship hulls.

"Readings are worse up here…chorban. Something is interfering with the scans. Perhaps the reactor, if it even has one?" Jahleed asked slowly as he scratched at his helmet. "We need more time to get anything in depth. How does this thing open-" He reached out to stabilize himself before he locked his eyes onto a strange metal flower emblem. "Ok…not touching that… Careful about the flowers Chorban. They look fragile." Jahleed pulled back as he verified his findings. "The metal underneath the paint is some advanced form of titanium…That's my best guess." The Volus announced before he swapped his omni tool back over to man the lift, bringing himself back down slowly.

"Flowers? What flow- oh. That one. Thank you Jahleed." Chorban laughed nervously as he stepped back. "This thing feels wrong…like it's watching us right now even though it's powered down." Chorban shivered as he gazed up at the sharp, wolfish silhouette of the machine. It spooked him to his very core as he turned and nodded to the humans. "Thank you. My companion and myself are most gracious to your sudden bout of blindness. And wish you a swift recovery." The Salarian smiled as he wiped at his brow. "Now we must dissimulate our findings." He nodded as both he and Jahleed walked out of the hangar bay, while a shuttle passed by overhead to the Normandy SR-2.

A pair of Salarians in plain clothes approached them from the shadows.
"Well…did you get the data?" The lead Salarian asked calmly.

"R-Right here. We can go now right?" Chorban asked as his omnitool lit up, transferring the contents of their scans over to the pair of Salarians.

"Yes you can. This will project our research into robotics several decades at least." The lead of the STG Salarians nodded before they walked away with a friendly wave.

2185

Teminus system, Omega
Toombs always seemed to be one step behind. Whenever he found traces or evidence of Shepard being around, her ship, The Normandy was long gone. The soldier turned mercenary slammed his drinking glass down on the bar at Afterlife as he looked over to see his mercenary buddies still celebrating their latest Cerberus bust. Contracts were plentiful for the lower rungs like him ever since the major three suffered catastrophic losses.

The former soldier pushed his stool away before he swiped his credit chip to pay for his drink. He walked out of the booming night club to clear his head. He still owed Shepard for enabling him to testify against cerberus. But then that 'hero' joined that very same organization. It made no sense, so he made it his personal mission to take her out personally.

With a heavy sigh he walked over to the docking bay to watch the ships coming and going. That was when he spotted a familiar figure, dressed in the classic white-yellow-black of Cerberus. There was no mistaking that face.

It was her.

"Shepard!" Toombs roared as his hand flew to his carnifex hand cannon, aiming at that battle armored figure. "I finally found you." He glanced at the tanned woman next to the former specter who seemed to be giving orders. A lone shuttle hovered outside, observing the situation unfolding.
Shepard stared coldly at him as if she didn't recognize him.

"And who are you?" She asked coldly as she pulled out her own shotgun in response.

"Is that some sort of sick joke? That's low for the Hero of the blitz." He spat venomously. The former soldier kept each member of the small squad in front of him. The soldier quickly flipped the safety off on his thermal heat sink causing the weapon to beep incessantly.

"I've never met you before in my life. Then again…you're an insignificant stepping stone in the legend of Shepard." 'Shepard' Sneered.

"Over my dead body." Toombs glared before he let off a quick snapshot, nailing Shepard's shotgun right down the barrel. His hand cannon sparked as electricity raced along its length, melting the rails completely, frying its battery and welding the ammo scraper to the block. 'Shepard's shotgun exploded in her hands as her shield activated just in time to defend her from the volatile blast. Shrapnel scattered out, forcing the clone to shake her head as her ears rang. Hope had to dive backwards when that projectile was fired for cover.

The Cerberus operative behind Shepard wasn't nearly as luck as a large piece of shrapnel from the now exploded shotgun popped his kinetic barrier and smashed through his helmet's visor, blissfully ending the man's life as the body crumpled to the ground, dropping his mattock assault rifle.

Toombs then chucked his inert hand cannon at clone shepard before he rushed in, tapping his omni tool and causing his hardsuit's gauntlets to lock up for increased striking power as he threw a wild haymaker at the reeling 'hero'. The blow struck the clone as she was shaking off the effects of the blast, her shield popped as she stumbled back, but the Cerberus battle armor held firm although the visor cracked ever so slightly.
Hope pushed herself up as she heard and then saw Toombs deliver a second follow up punch to Shepard's chest plate. The clone countered by bull rushing into the ex soldier, sending him toppling to the ground while she attempted to mount him, delivering a series of quick, powerful strikes, one to his throat and nose. The third to his right temple as she got into position to start raining hammer-blows onto the soldier's face. At first he attempted to put up his hands and buck the commando off but the cybernetic soldier held firm while letting out a giggle as the fight continued. A second strike to the opposite side of his head caused him to lose consciousness. The third, fourth and fifth blows continued to rain in.

"Shepard. That's enough. He's dead." Hope called out but that didn't reign the clone in as she picked Toomb's body up by his hardsuit to sledge hammer her right fist into his jaw, causing the body to limply thud against the ground while armed guards quickly rushed at the disturbance. "Stand down. That's an order!" Hope commanded, forcing the clone's pupils to dilate and come back to reality.

Grizz took aim with his vindicator as he glared at the Cerberus operatives.

"Alright. Hands where I can see them. And get the hell off this station before I have Omega use your ship for target practice." The turian bodyguard barked. When the clone didn't move, Grizz quickly primed his assault rifle. "Don't make me repeat myself, because next time, it'll be with every gun on this station at muzzle velocity." He added coldly.

"I was bored of this station anyways…Let's go complete our mission Hope." 'Shepard' giggled as she looked at her bloodied gauntlets before not even shaking the blood off them. "Why did we ever stop using our firsts to solve problems? They're much more effective." The look alike asked aloud before turning around and stepping on the deceased operative's body and heading back to the cruiser before she paused and looked right out the window to a shuttle.

Hope followed that gaze and also noted the Shuttle. And she noticed its equipment.

"On the ship. Now." Hope ordered as she quickened her step.

"Grizz here…I need a clean up at docking port 34A. Two bodies. Alert Toombs' next of kin. And his group." The turian reported as he glared at the retreating figures. That was nothing like the real Shepard. The turian knelt next to tombs and gently brushed his taloned hand over the soldiers eyes. "Toombs, you damn fool. You should have let go of that grudge. At the very least it won't be for nothing." He stood and keyed Omega's traffic control frequency.

"This is Grizz, double station security at all docks…"

2815

Seprak and Farank stared at what just happened. The pirate leader was the first to react as his eyes locked with that look alike.

"We're leaving." Seprak said as he pulled on the yoke of the shuttle and slowly increased the craft's speed. "Keep the camera aimed at that cruiser."

"But we didn't even get audio-" Frank protested as he did as he was ordered.

Seprak didn't even bother scoffing, he simply glanced at the rookie.

"We got video evidence that a human extremist group is up to something. Coupled with what I overheard before we left to do this little mission. Plus we have video proof of someone who looked like Commander Shepard. A vaunted war hero. In cerberus armor. Commiting murder. You really think that group is going to let a lone shuttle tell anyone about what happened?" Seprak paused. "Besides I think I understand who their target is… those strange ships out near the perseus veil."

"Well…no…but would Cerberus really risk that? Wait. Stupid question." Farank asked incredulously. Seprak pushed the throttle to its absolute limit as he dialed in the mass relay to begin plotting their jump to the next system. "We're going rather fast…"

"Exactly." Seprak smiled. "It'll take that cruiser time to get up to speed. By that time we'll at least have a few minutes head start and be through the relay beginning our jumps to that flotilla. It's only two jumps there, and we'll be safer amongst those odd ships than our own crew right now." Seprak smirked. The shuttle weaved through the asteroid field with practiced ease, the shuttle's hull groaning as it skimmed dangerously close to massive rocks. Farank clung to his seat, his knuckles white as he glanced nervously at the jagged shapes flashing past the viewport.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" he muttered, but Seprak's focus never wavered. Farank glued his eyes to the vid feed from the camera, monitoring that cruiser as it had to take a much safer route out of the asteroid field. As the mass effect relay came into view, the engineer glanced at his captain.

"And how exactly do you expect to even give us the time of day? We attacked them." The engineer asked seriously.

Seprak thought for a moment as he lined up the shuttle with the mass effect relay in a longer shot. Warnings about speed popped up forcing him to throttle down and hit the retrograde thrusters periodically at max thrust to reduce speed. The energy from the relay station arced along the shuttle before catapulting it to the next destination.

Once they came to a halt Seprak set the vehicle in its cool down state. The pirate captain exhaled deeply as he started doing a once over of the vehicles systems. The pirate stood up and unhooked his predator pistol from his waist, setting it into the weapons locker near the shuttle door.

"We broadcast a morse code SOS signal on all frequencies as we're arriving. If my guess about the commander is right. They won't ignore it." Seprak explained. "If I'm wrong. Well, it'll be the shortest trip of our lives."

2185

Unknown space near the perseus veil, Flagship Godinion, UC0090 2148 hrs

A blip showed up on the long distance radar. One of the Godinions crew members blinked before she looked back.

"Radar contact, one system out." The radar operator called out. "Based on the energy readings it's a shuttle. The Shuttle is broadcasting an SOS signal on all frequencies."

Rin Suzukaze keyed up Mitsuba on the commsystem.

"Monitor that signal." She ordered. After a brief moment, Mitsuba's face appeared on the monitor in front of the Godinions captain.

"Mitsuba here. What's the situation, Captain Suzukaze?" Mitsuba asked seriously.

"A shuttle is outside the relay station leading to this system broadcasting an SOS on all frequencies." The majestic prince team's captain explained, forwarding that reading to Mitsuba. The blonde commander's eyes glanced to the side, reading that data as she focused for a moment.

"Captain Suzukaze. The godinion is to send a return transmission to go through the gate to the Perseus veil, we'll grant them Amnesty in return for information on their situation. They are to comply with our procedures. This could be a trap. If it is…it could be Cerberus. Those satellites we've found on multiple occasions now have all shared the same markings which align with the Markings on The Normandy."

2185Unknown Location, Cerberus Command Center

Jack Harper frowned as another message scrolled across his screen. Hope's team was requesting reinforcements. Another complication.

He sighed, lighting a cigarette with a practiced motion before exhaling sharply. The smoke curled around him as he reviewed the latest setbacks.

Shepard was getting results, that was undeniable. But leaks had begun—classified Cerberus operations had reached Alliance ears, and the Normandy SR-2 had been spotted in the same system. As if that wasn't enough, he had already been forced to discreetly reorganize his biological research division after Admiral Kohaku's 'accident.' Now this.

He keyed up the 'turian' cruiser assigned to recon the otherworlders. "Talk to me."

The response was immediate. "There's been a complication. We came across Corporal Toombs on Omega. He recognized Shepard and opened fire. The clone killed him—with her bare hands." A pause. "A third party, a shuttle, caught it on camera. They bugged out too fast to just be passing by. If they take that information to Alliance Intelligence, it could jeopardize the operation."

The Illusive Man took a slow drag from his cigarette, eyes narrowing. He crushed the ember into the ashtray, leaning forward.

"Did they see?" His voice was sharp, cutting through the transmission.

"Without a doubt."

The irritation in his exhale was barely perceptible. Then, Hope added, "One other thing. We caught the shuttle just as it jumped to the Perseus Veil. It was broadcasting an SOS signal on all frequencies."

That changed things.

Hope's team was compromised. He needed someone reliable. Someone who could handle this without creating more problems.

"I'll contact another team." TIM's voice turned cold. "Hold position outside the Perseus Veil. When they arrive—find them. Kill them. No loose ends."

Without waiting for confirmation, he cut the call and pulled up another operations fleet in the region. A few keystrokes later, a new connection was made.

The line picked up.

"Oleg. I have need of your fleet." TIM's tone carried no room for argument. "Head to the Perseus Veil and assist an operation gone south. Tread carefully—I can't stress enough how dangerous that sector is right now. You'll receive additional funding to cover all losses."

He cut the call. There was nothing else to discuss.

He had set the pieces in motion. Now, they just had to play their part.

2185

Cornelia exhaled as she looked over the ruined nightmare frames of the pilots that she lost in that last engagement. The general thumped an index finger against her left arm while she took in her situation. She was currently waiting on Mister Vega to show up from checking on the civilian population of the colony.

"Looks like a scrap heap now. Damn shame, those machines were damn impressive before those RPGs hit them." Came that baritone of James Vega sounded behind her.

"I served with some of those pilots for years. These 'scrap heaps' were Fifth generation Knightmare frames. Not the best, but reliable enough." The former princess said as she heel turned towards the alliance marine. "So. About that check in you had to do with your command?"

"Right to the chase huh? Woulda thought a princess would dance around a bit, enjoy the tea." Vega joked.

"I'll take coffee when on a campaign." Cornelia retorted.

"I can respect that. Anyways. Command tells me that i'm to Liason with you, and all forces associated with you. You're stuck with me for the time being, General." Vega said with a crisp salute. "Provided you can give us jarheads a ride, we can help you access mass effect relays so that way you aren't a garrison outside of Alliance command. That and I have the unfortunate task of updating a colony's defense system. Pirate attacks have been increasing in the Terminus system. So Alliance brass has us Marines out here making sure the colonies are safe."

"I can work with giving your troops a ride, but is there anything you can tell me about this galaxy? Has anyone else from my earth been spotted here?" Cornelia asked seriously.

"Scuttlebutt says a young man with brass cajones drew a chess match with a Salarian on the Citadel. That ain't normal. Introduced himself as Lelouch, and he had the press eating out of his hand." Vega shrugged. "Apparently a fleet of theirs is off in the terminus systems, stranded."

"So the Dreikruz is here?" Cornelia asked with a smile. It was good hearing they were still alive.

"Yea, though not sure if the council is going to be too happy with 'Parallel Earth Forces' cropping up everywhere around the galaxy. It pokes too many holes in their peaceful galaxy." The Alliance marine shrugged. "Honestly they did the same with Shepard. Saved their asses a couple of years ago and it all gets covered up for being bad PR. Oh. Don't tell my boss I said all that. Strictly just shooting the shit."

"Its completely normal to feel frustrated when things that are inconvenient get covered up. My brother, Lelouch would have agreed with you wholeheartedly." Cornelia smiled as she thought about it. However it was a complex smile.

"Wait a second. Your brother…can match or beat Salarians in chess?" Vega blinked. "Did this kid study at MIT or something?"

"Nothing of the sort. He was always intelligent. A bit too intelligent for his own good." She fell quiet as she thought about how he played the Federation, Zeon, Britannia and other super powers all against one another.

"You make him sound like he's an extremist." Vega frowned.

"He is what he is. Though he already paid his price. Nothing is simple around him." She looked at the wrecked frames and made sure to pull the black box from each machine. "How far is the system you need to go to?"

"Just a couple of systems away. Sooner we get there the sooner we can get to work on installing our planetary defense systems." Vega nodded with a shrug. "Why?"

"Because we can head out as soon as your team is ready." Cornelia said simply. "So pack what you need."

AN: Nobody look up that review by arisu freedomstrikes he/she they I don't care. Known scammer. I do not condone nor will I ever condone such methods.