Hey guys, TheDoctor1998 here with another chapter! Last time, the Second Fleet managed to arrive at Shanxi, and kicked Turian ass, even managing to capture their leader. Now, on with the show!
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01-07-2657
Citadel Tower
Citadel
Widow System
"What do you mean you were forced to retreat?!" Councilor Sparatus screamed at the holographic image of Taratus, the acting admiral of the patrol fleet that Desolas previously commanded. "I thought this was a pre-FTL civilization with just five, now destroyed, ships!"
"We were also under that assumption, sir." Taratus said, her voice slightly shaky, as if she still couldn't believe what she saw. "That assumption was proven to be false, though, as an entire fleet of Human ships just… appeared out of nowhere around the planet."
"You mean they jumped out of FTL into orbit?" Tevos asked, her eyebrow raised.
"No, they used some type of portal technology." The acting admiral said, showing the footage of her ship.
"Fascinating." Milnori said, her eyes sparkling. "Are those wormholes?"
"We did not stick around to find out, ma'am." Taratus sighed. "Unfortunately, we were simply outgunned against the enemy fleet, and there was no way that we would've been able to fight back effectively."
"So Desolas ordered you to retreat." Sparatus finished, understanding drawing on him. While the act of retreat is considered dishonorable by Turian standards, it is also considered understandable if it became clear that victory would be impossible or unlikely either way. "And Desolas?"
"Unfortunately, the Bird of Prey was too badly damaged to retreat, so he opted to use it and any other ship in similar conditions to cover the rest of us." The soldier looked down in respect. "It's likely that he was killed in action."
"Is there anything else to report?"
"Yes." Taratus said, her voice heavy with concern. "Before the enemy fleet arrived, Admiral Desolas ordered a planetary bombardment on all Human settlements."
"What?!" Tevos asked in shock. "Why the hell would he do that?! Did he forget about the Conventions?!"
"The Bird of Prey was infiltrated by a Human AI, ma'am." Taratus cut in, shocking the Council with her statement. "From what I've been able to gather, the AI was housed in a chip we got from the captain of P-Alpha, and attempts to interface with it led to the infection of the Bird of Prey's systems. The bombardment had two primary reasons, the first being to eliminate any potential AI on the planet, and the second to try and force the Human forces to surrender."
A moment of silence passed within the chamber. "Is that all?" Sparatus asked, breaking some of the tension.
"I have nothing more to report, sir." Taratus replied, saluting the man who represented her people.
"Maintain position within System 314. The moment one of those Human ships exits the Relay or one of their portals, you are to report it to us and Palaven Command." Sparatus ordered.
"Yes sir." Taratus nodded, cutting off communications.
"Spirits." Sparatus sighed. "Desolas really messed things up here, didn't he?"
Tevos was contemplating for a moment, already imagining a worst case scenario. She was imagining the Humans becoming victims to an AI rebellion like the Quarians before them, she imagined these AI taking control of their extremely advanced warships, she imagined the AI using their esoteric FTL to appear wherever they pleased in the galaxy.
She imagined the Citadel being turned into a debris field, the Human AI going on a rampage across the galaxy. She imagined Thessia burning, reduced from the crown jewel of the galaxy into a pile of rubble like Tuchanka. It may not happen now, or even within the next century, but with AI and military technology that advanced, it would be inevitable.
"We have to destroy them." Tevos said, going back to the here and now.
"Tevos?" Milnori said in shock, amazed that an Asari, especially this particular Asari, would be so ready to go to war.
"The Humans have proven themselves to be far too dangerous to be left unchecked." The Asari continued. "The fact that they've got AI is enough of a reason to step in and save them from themselves, but their military technology and unique FTL make things even worse. We can't leave them to their own devices like the Geth."
"Agreed." Sparatus nodded, fiddling with his omni-tool. "Any word on the STG forces within the Shanxi System?"
The Salarian raised an eyebrow for a moment, both her and her colleagues knowing how the STG always made sure to keep tabs on the forces of their allies. "Unfortunately, it seems as if they were compromised. There were several explosives planted on both STG Frigate #682 and several Turian ships by an enemy stealth ship, and the last message we managed to receive was that several boarding craft were headed towards both #682 and the Bird of Prey before the com buoy we put in the Shanxi System was destroyed."
"Oh great, they've got stealth capabilities." Tevos groaned. "And they can detect Salarian stealth frigates." The Asari glanced at her colleagues. "Do you now understand what I meant by how dangerous these Humans can become?"
"Indeed. All these developments are… troubling, to say the least." Milnori raised her omni-tool. "I suggest we stamp out this threat as soon as possible. Perhaps we can even acquire one of these "wormhole drives" for study."
"I say we send in everything our people can spare towards this threat." Sparatus growled. "Turian war fleets, Asari dreadnoughts, everything."
"It would showcase our unity against them." Tevos muttered. "Very well, I'll make sure the Matriarchs will allow the use of our fleets, including the authorization to use the Destiny Ascension."
"And I've got the perfect man to lead the unified fleet." Sparatus said, showcasing the image of a Turian. "Admiral Septimus Okara. A well known figure within the Hierarchy, one with many successful campaigns against Batarian "pirates" and Krogan warlords on the borders of the Terminus Systems. He'd be the ideal candidate to lead the fleet."
"Matriarch Lidanya isn't going to like that." Tevos said, knowing that the captain of the Destiny Ascension and admiral of the Citadel Defense Fleet was the type of person to like being the one in charge. If she had to follow orders from someone else, it could really tick her off.
"None of us are going to like what happens next." Sparatus sighed, his voice heavy with the burden he had suddenly been given. "But we've got to do it. For the good of the galaxy."
"For the good of the galaxy, yes." Milnori agreed.
"And to save Humanity from itself." Tevos added, clinking her glass of Thessian Wine with Milnori's glass of Salarian Brine and Sparatus's glass of Turian Brandy. They needed the alcohol for what was about to happen.
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01-07-2657
Shanxi City
Shanxi Prime
Shanxi System
"Goddamn, that was one helluva ride." Jack said, wiping away some of his blood and what was left of his organic eyes, looking around with his new synthetic eyes.
"Well, I did say it was going to hurt." Alastor grinned. "Anyhoo, I do have some good news for the both of you. It looks like the liberation of Shanxi is at hand."
Seelac perked up at that. "The Second Fleet is here?"
"Indeed." The psychotic AI confirmed. "The invading fleet has been forced to retreat with such speed that they were incapable of evacuating their ground forces."
"So we still have to deal with the Turians on the ground." Jack grunted, already reaching for his guns.
"True, but this time it's not just some lightly defended planet they have to fight." Seelac said, reassuring her comrade. "The Second Fleet is bound to have enough ODST's to fight back."
"Correct, madame." Alastor nodded. "Even as we speak, the ODST drop pods are already falling through Shanxi's atmosphere." The hologram then glanced at Jack. "Now, for my payment." He gestured towards one of the data chips next to the operating table, empty of any AI.
"Yeah yeah, just hop in already." Jack said, grabbing one of the chips as Alastor jumped into it, the Human, Silurian and AI walking out of the warehouse.
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01-07-2657
Shanxi City
Shanxi Prime
Shanxi System
"Move move move!" Saren yelled at what remained of his squad, dragging their hostage along with them as he and the other Cabals fired at and used their biotics against the Human reinforcements.
To say that this situation had escalated was the understatement of the millennium. Here they were, thinking that they'd managed to overcome the Humans, when suddenly an entire Human fleet appeared out of portals of all things, with enough firepower to overcome the Turian patrol fleet with almost laughable ease.
He and the other ground forces on Shanxi had been given this update by their brothers and sisters in the void above as the Human ships were slaughtering them, forcing those that were able to to retreat. Desolas himself had managed to inform the troops of the situation as his ship was being boarded, warning them of the incoming attack.
Saren may not have been a religious man, but he prayed to any spirit, god, or other supernatural force that was willing to listen that his brother would live to see another day. Even if it's just so Saren could give his elder a slap on the back of his head for his stupidity.
Unfortunately, the Cabals thought that they'd have more time than they actually did, thinking that it would take the same amount of time needed for their own forces to go planetside. But no, these Humans had to have the craziness of a Krogan combined with the engineering capabilities of a Salarian and Quarian, as they launched their troops from fucking orbit in metal pods! Buildings, Turian tanks, even one of Saren's men all got crushed by those things!
And to make things worse, these troops were far more capable than what Saren now recognized to be a lightly armed and armored planetary defense force, possessing more capable weapons, better armor, and being generally more skilled than the Humans that he fought so far. Not to mention the fact that their technology seems to be simply better than his own, as much as he hated to admit.
Honestly speaking, the only thing he seems to clearly outclass the Human soldiers in were his biotic abilities, as he didn't see any biotic capabilities among the Humans, nor any crazy tech with similar abilities. And Saren was using that to his fullest potential.
"On the left!" One of the Cabals shouted, with Saren instantly throwing a singularity at the incoming soldiers. While most managed to dodge him, as the Humans have adapted their behavior to compensate from the initial shock of the existence of biotic abilities, one unlucky soldier was caught in the gravitational maelstrom, before quickly being gunned down by Turian fire.
Pretty soon, the Cabals managed to find shelter, though they were still under siege by the Human forces. "Any ideas on what to do, sir?" One of his men asked, giving suppressive fire to make sure the enemy soldiers couldn't come closer.
Saren thought long and hard, and there was only one solution that came to mind. It was crazy, reckless, and could easily result in the deaths of him and his men, but outside of surrender there wasn't anything he could think of to make sure his group survived this encounter. "A gravity wave."
The rest of the Cabals looked at Saren as if he was insane, which he didn't blame them for. A gravity wave was an extremely dangerous biotic technique, typically only used by biotics that were as crazy as a bunch of Krogan when pushed into a corner. Two or more biotics would basically throw multiple singularities into a singular point, causing a near uncontrollable and extremely powerful shockwave of gravitational energy to be sent into all directions, similar to when two black holes collide.
The danger, however, lay in the fact that the biotics that used it needed to be well within range of the shockwave to make the technique work, as the singularities would just fizzle out otherwise. Something that could very well risk the life of whoever caused it when outside of a controlled environment.
It was, however, the only thing Saren could think of that would work. Their weapons were nearly ineffective on these soldiers, and most other biotic tricks seem to only work for a while before they adapted. Something like a gravity wave, while dangerous, would also be incredibly hard to counter, even for biotics themselves.
"Alright, Vyrnnus, you and I on three. Aim for the second pile of rubble between us and them. The rest of you, try to make sure we stay in one piece. One." Saren started counting, glowing with biotic power. "Two." Vyrnnus, slightly nervous about the plan but obedient, also started glowing. "Three!" Both Cabals threw their singularities, aiming for the rubble Saren pointed out.
Saren's plan was to make it appear as if they were attempting to hit the Humans with something they knew, while striking just outside what would be an effective area for a singularity to hit. For a gravity wave, however, it was a perfect spot.
Saren and Vyrnnus were struggling to keep their singularities in check as the two balls of biotic energy were dancing around one another, getting closer and closer while moving faster and faster. The Humans had already figured something was going on, and were initiating a tactical retreat.
It was too late, however, as rapid shockwaves were coming from the two singularities, acting in a manner similar to someone causing grenades to explode in the same spot over and over again. Eventually, the two singularities collided, creating one final and powerful shockwave with enough kinetic energy to kill the soldiers that were pursuing the Cabals before.
As Saren and Vyrnnus were working on creating the gravity waves, the other Cabals did what they could to make sure their commander didn't get them all killed. They combined their powers to create a bubble of dark energy around themselves, protecting its occupants from the destructive forces of the gravity waves until it finally collapsed under the strain of the final shockwave.
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06-07-2657
UNSC Texas Maverick
Shanxi Prime's orbit
Shanxi System
It has been a few days since the Second Fleet entered the Shanxi System, and aside from the initial battle and the occasional update from the ODST's about the Turian stragglers on the planet, it has been very quiet. Which was exactly how Shipmaster Steven Hackett liked it.
'Heh, Shipmaster.' Hackett thought in amusement. A century or so ago he'd have been called a captain instead. After the destruction of the Covenant and the formation of the Systems Alliance, the war games between the various nations that made up the organization caused some cultural cross contamination alongside the general civilian cross contamination, which resulted in most civilizations taking on some traits of their allies.
Take the Sangheili for example. Before they contacted Humanity, they had no such thing as a shotgun or a shotgun equivalent, but now they had their Demon Pattern Needlers, named in honor of the Spartans, which fired the same explosive needles that the older Needlers did in the same way as a Human shotgun, much to the enjoyment of the Sangheili soldiers.
For the Humans, it was the general terms of Shipmaster and Fleetmaster that were adopted. There was some level of frustration with some of the newly christened Shipmasters when the change was made, but ultimately it went down smoother than expected.
Speaking of the cultural cross contamination, Hackett was watching as the various fleets of the System Alliance entered into the system, each ship adding another layer of protection for Humanity and its allies.
The first fleet to arrive was, of course, the Sangheili fleet. Specifically, the Fleet of Retribution, headed by a supercarrier, the Shadow of Intent, the personal flagship of the legendary Rtas 'Vadum. Design wise, the Sangheili ships hadn't changed all that much compared to those used by the Covenant, which made sense as the Sangheili already used the same style prior to the formation of the Covenant. Technologically, however, there were a few upgrades that would give them a leg up against any potential resurgence of the Storm Covenant.
Another fleet that passed by his vision was the Fleet of Redemption, the San'Shyuum fleet. Aesthetically, it appeared like a copy of Forerunner ship designs, albeit a lot less skeletal. While they were relatively few in number, they were well armed with extremely precise weapons of all kinds.
Next was a singular Huragok supercarrier, which was not technically a military vessel. It was large, and highly defended with all sorts of defensive weapons, and designed without any regard for aesthetic designs, but it had no weapons capable of standing up to a ship of a similar class. Instead, it was filled to the brim with Huragok, raw materials, and mechanical drones controlled by the Huragok. It had one purpose and one purpose only, repair and retrofit any friendly ship nearby. Which was just how the Huragok liked it.
Then there were the next ships, oddly shaped but gargantuan vessels that appeared to be made entirely out of blocky shapes. In reality, these ships were massive swarms of Lekgolo fighters, united in a single form via mechanical attachments and neurological connections between all the Lekgolo worms piloting each fighter, allowing the fighters to move and act as if it's one huge ship piloted by a single individual. It was strange, but this is just how the Lekgolo work.
The next ships that appeared were essentially big spaceborn wasp nests, coated in some of the toughest materials. These were Yanme'e hive ships, hives who's upper castes had dedicated themselves to the concept of warfare. They were filled to the brim with warrior caste Yanme'e, each eager and capable of fighting both on the ground and in space, and supported by more than enough worker caste Yanme'e to maintain the ship. And in the center of the ships were the queens, constantly replenishing workers and warriors as they commanded their legions.
Then there were the Kig-Yar raiding fleets. Each ship seemed to be made from scrap metal, though they were surprisingly well designed. They were small, the biggest ships being destroyers, but they were numerous. Not to mention that the smaller ships were capable of moving nearly as fast as any fighter, making them a pain in the ass to deal with.
Next was the Unggoy fleet, which was made entirely of highly armed carriers and a supercarrier. This made sense with the Unggoy mindset, as they were surprisingly brave when they had greater numbers and a big guy at their side.
Then there were the Jiralhanae fleets, which were of a fittingly brutal design. Large, covered in massive spikes, engines to generate massive amounts of speed, and a giant axe on the bow of each ship. These behemoths were made to ram into enemy ships and tear them apart with their own mass, giving a new meaning to the term "knife fighting range" while leaving behind some nasty mines in their wake. Not to mention their sheer number being only surpassed by the Human and Sangheili fleets in the system.
Next was a detachment of the Yonhet fleet, which, like much of the former Covenant Fringe races, was rather small compared to those of their allies. They were well armed, fast, and designed in a similar manner to Human ships, though they weren't as numerous or durable.
Then there were the Dazreme ships, which were quite advanced ships that appeared similar in design to the various aquatic lifeforms of Reme, fearsome and sleek. They were also much more capable of withstanding immense pressures than most ships, both to hold in the water that the aquatic Dazreme needed, and to allow their ships to go both through space and through the oceans.
The Glacius ships were also there, drifting next to those of the Dazreme. They were asteroids, hollowed out and armed with a variety of weapons and shield generators. It was a standard practice of the Glacius, as their system was absolutely littered with various asteroid belts.
There were also the rusty looking ships of the Locusts, which were surprisingly small in size and number for a warrior species. Though, to be fair, the Locusts very much preferred to fight on the ground and let their allies do the fighting in space.
The last ships were not actual ships, but rather Cybertronian Titans that took the shapes of ships. The Cybertronians were an odd species, not only had they evolved to resemble technology, but they also had an ironically fluid form, capable of chameleonic feats by transforming their shape into pieces of technology such as vehicles or weapons. The Titans were a subspecies that, as the name implied, were truly gigantic, capable of turning into buildings or spaceships well armed with Energon based weapons. This one, Omega Supreme, also had hangars filled with Autobots capable of transforming into fightercraft.
"Kestral, anything from down below?" Hackett asked one of his subordinates, purely in an attempt to alleviate the boredom felt across his ship.
The Sea Devil, whose people were a genetically engineered aquatic subspecies of the Silurians, turned towards his shipmaster. "Ground troops are still rounding up the remaining Turians on Shanxi, sir. Most of them seem to be starving."
Hackett winced. The Turians, like the Lekgolo and Dazreme, were from a dextro-amino biosphere, meaning that any food found on Shanxi that wasn't there specifically for tourists and potential immigrants would be poison for the bastards. And seeing as the Turians were seemingly running out of rations, they were becoming more and more lethargic.
"Well, at least Shanxi will be free of them soon enough. One way or another." Hackett muttered.
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06-07-2657
Shanxi City
Shanxi Prime
Shanxi System
It had been days, days since the Cabals were left stranded on this levo dirtball, and they were running out of food. After the gravity wave, Saren and his men had managed to shake the human forces off, killing the enemy soldiers and hiding themselves from any more platoons. But this war of attrition was starting to take its toll on the Turians, especially for the biotics.
While the remnants of his squad had managed to protect them from the worst of the gravity wave, there were still enough injuries to take about a quarter of them out of combat effectiveness. Nothing life threatening, but still severe enough to need a trip to a hospital.
They were forced to roam the ruins of the city that Desolas ordered to be flattened, occasionally fighting against some of the Humans, but mostly hiding from the hairless mammals. Occasionally, they'd gotten lucky, finding a Turian corpse with enough rations to last the squad an extra half day or so, especially when those rations came from a Cabal corpse. Those were always packed with extra nutrients, as biotics simply needed far more calories each day.
Currently, the plan was to wait until the Hierarchy inevitably returns to this planet, but each day it was getting harder and harder to go on, and the men were definitely starting to have doubts.
"Saren." Vyrnnus said, grabbing his commander's attention. "I've been speaking with the rest of the crew, and we're starting to think that surrender might be the best option here."
"Why?" Saren growled, obviously displeased.
"Well, we're starting to run out of food, for a start." Vyrnnus started off. "And considering how easily the patrol fleet was chased away by the Humans, most of us are starting to think any sort of rescue attempt simply won't be possible."
"It will be." Saren snarled. "Those Humans fought against a patrol fleet, not a fleet dedicated to war." He then pushed one of Vyrnnus's guns into his claws. "Now shut up, and stand by in case-" Saren stopped himself from speaking further, seeing one of the women suddenly jump and aim in another direction. "What is it?" The Cabal leader asked quietly, grabbing a pistol in each hand.
"I'm not sure." She said, looking around in a seemingly empty area. "I thought I saw some type of movement." The woman swallowed uneasily. "I think they may have some sort of stealth."
Saren's eyes widened. "Everyone, grab your weapons! We may have some infiltrators!" Before anything else could be done, Saren felt a burning pain around his left shoulder. In a panic, he looked at it and saw a cauterized stump, with the entirety of his left arm on the floor. Looking around, he saw something similar for each of his Cabals as they were suddenly and violently forced to the ground or crippled by something slicing through their limbs, something that made slight distortions in the air.
The biotic was then forced to the ground, and as he looked up, he saw the distortions turn into beings of flesh and blood. The last thing he saw on this dirtball of a planet was a large, angry reptile with four mandibles for a lower jaw and a fucking sword made of energy. Or, more specifically, he saw its fist rushing towards his face as it roared in anger.
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And that's a wrap. The Council is plotting the next attack against Humanity as Humanity and its allies are preparing for their own counterattack.
Also, just as Mordin lost his horn in the bombing of his stealth ship, so did Saren lose his arm against a Sangheili's energy blade.
TheDoctor1998 here, signing out!