Hey guys, TheDoctor1998 here with another chapter! Last time, the Alliance made several first contacts with some of the independent powers in the wider galaxy, and had a diplomatic incident with the Citadel and Batarians. Desolas died with Saren vowing revenge, setting him on a path that would tragically result in him ignoring his brother's last wishes, and Cerberus was also formed as something started plotting.
That all said, there's gonna be a bit of a timeskip here, leading further into this new era.
Now, on with the show!
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31-10-2671
SOS Exploration of the Great Unknown
Unknown moon's orbit
Unknown system
"Exiting Slipspace, Shipmistress." A Sangheili at the helm said, watching as the Exploration of the Great Unknown, exited the esoteric dimension and entered realspace.
For over a decade now, the Swords of Sanghelios and their allies had explored the Mass Relay network, noticeably colonizing the Skyllian Verge far faster than anyone from Citadel Space. Whatever the reasoning of the Protheans was, they made sure that the entire network connected to life bearing worlds all over the galaxy. And from the readings the Exploration of the Great Unknown got, it seemed like they'd discovered another one.
"Send in the probes." The Shipmistress ordered, prompting her men to send the devices to the moon below.
The images shown were of a lush world, teeming with life. Not something unusual, but still pleasing to see. "Shipmistress, we've detected an anomaly ." One of the ensigns said, showing an image of floating mountains connected by nothing but thick vines of some sort.
"How is this possible?" The Shipmistress asked, pondering. "Is our Luminary detecting any Forerunner artifacts on the moon?" Despite the fact that no Forerunner artifact had yet been found within the range an Eezo Drive could go from a system with a Mass Relay before, it was not an impossibility. Even back during the time of the Covenant, it just happened that exploratory missions through entire sectors resulted in no artifacts found.
"Negative, Shipmistress." Another ensign replied. "It seems to be some kind of magnetic anomaly permeating the region, causing the metal rich mountains to be lifted off of the ground."
"Shipmistress, there are signs of a native civilization!" One of the ensigns said, drawing everyone's attention. On the screen it showed footage of the various probes, all thankfully cloaked for such a reason. The footage showed humanoid creatures, blue with feline traits, standing at a comparable height to the Jiralhanae.
"What is their Tier?" The Shipmistress asked, following protocol. Following the example of the Forerunners, the Systems Alliance had decided to officially adopt the Technological Achievement Tier System that the ancient species used. Each civilization, or groups of planet bound civilizations, was categorised within several tiers depending on the level of technology they had, with Tier 7 being the most primitive and Tier 1 or the hypothetical Tier 0 being the highest. First contact protocols also dictated how an Alliance species should interact with them, if at all.
Tier 7 civilizations, also known as pre-industrial civilizations, were usually still tribal or scattered in various kingdoms, with any native technology being extremely primitive and sometimes scarce. They were not allowed to be contacted, and the only interference that was allowed were actions needed to prevent extinction, such as curing an extremely deadly plague or destroying asteroids.
Tier 6 civilizations, also known as industrial civilizations, were civilizations that had gone through an industrial revolution, creating technologies that, while still extremely primitive, were cleverly utilized to mechanize and automate their civilization to the best of their ability. First contact protocols for these civilizations followed the same rules as Tier 7 civilizations.
Tier 5 civilizations, also known as atomic civilizations, were civilizations that had developed cleaner energy production such as nuclear energies, while also creating computers and digital networks. Such civilizations were not allowed to be contacted without an invitation, though they could still be monitored for such an invite, in which case it was deemed the civilization was ready to be contacted.
Tier 4 civilizations, also known as space civilizations, had the capability of leaving their homeworld and even land their people on other celestial bodies in their home system, though they lacked any type of FTL drive. First contact protocols for these civilizations were identical for those of Tier 5 civilizations.
Tier 3 civilizations, also known as FTL civilizations, were civilizations that had breached the light barrier in some fashion, and were capable of reaching other solar systems with relative ease. No protocols existed to prevent any first contact with such civilizations, as shown with the Citadel.
Tier 2 civilizations, also known as interstellar civilizations, were civilizations with highly efficient FTL engines capable of creating sentient constructs and terraform planets into habitable worlds. Like with Tier 3 civilizations, no protocols exist to prevent a first contact, aside from the Cole Protocol. Currently, the only Tier 2 civilizations in the known universe were the members of the Alliance itself.
Tier 1 civilizations, also known as world builder civilizations, were civilizations capable of far more efficient terraforming than Tier 2 civilizations, and were also able to create both megastructures and life itself. There were protocols for such civilizations, but only to prevent conflict where possible. The only known civilizations capable of those feats were the Forerunners, and possibly the Protheans as well, even if the only evidence for that claim was the Mass Relay network and the Citadel.
As for Tier 0 civilizations, also known as transsentient civilizations, are a theoretical civilization that are as far beyond a Tier 1 civilization as a Tier 1 is to any other. As there was no evidence found that the Forerunners even encountered such a civilization, it was believed that they too only made the Tier as a precaution for such a hypothetical hyper advanced civilization. Regardless, the protocols for handling such a civilization were similar to those of a Tier 1 civilization, albeit a lot more strict.
Regardless, after a few moments, the ensign gave his shipmistress an answer. "They're a Tier 7 civilization, Shipmistress. We have not detected any organization more advanced than tribal groups."
"I see." The Shipmistress said. It wasn't every day a new species was discovered, and this was the first time since the Cybertronians that a pre-FTL species has been encountered by both the Alliance and the Citadel species, "Send a message through the waypoint to the Swords of Sanghelios and our allies. This is above our own responsibilities."
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01-11-2671
Citadel Tower
Citadel
Widow System
"Oh goddess, what is it now?" Tevos sighed, watching as one of the Council's aides was saying something about the Hegemony and the Alliance.
"Ambassador Jath'Amon is demanding a meeting involving Batarian interests in the Skyllian Verge, as well as Alliance expansion in the area, ma'am." The aide said, equally as tired of the Hegemony's shenanigans as she was.
"Of course he is." Sparatus muttered, having expected nothing less. It's been over 14 years since the First Contact War, or the Relay 314 Incident as the Hierarchy has officially dubbed it, and the Hegemony has done nothing but complain about the Alliance civilizations establishing colonies within the Verge, as each one of them that did was able to easily outpace the Batarians on their own, practically pushing the slavers out of the region.
"Are there any other pressing issues to be talked about today?" Tevos asked both her colleagues and their aides. "Anything at all?" Receiving nothing but negatives, Tevos sighed. "Very well, send him in."
Several minutes later, the Batarian stepped into the Council Chambers, angry like every other time he's gone in throughout his lifetime. "I've come with a message from the Hegemon himself." The ambassador stated, attempting to draw every ounce of attention in the room to him. "The Batarian Hegemony has officially declared that all previously unclaimed territory within the Skyllian Verge is now part of the Hegemony's territory, and all attempts to enter the region without prior approval will be considered an invasion into our sovereign territory."
"Ambassador, we've been over this." Milnori stated, reaching retirement age and training her replacement. "The unclaimed areas are neutral territory, and the only time both we and the Alliance recognize a legitimate claim is when a permanent settlement is installed. Whether that be a colony, a mining operation, or even a space station. All that the Hegemony has been doing is sending patrols, which every civilization with a sizable military has been doing in that area."
"Yes, and we'd agreed to that, despite you ignoring the fact that the Verge is a zone of interest for us." Jath'Amon growled. "However, the Hegemon has deemed the Alliance's numerous incursions into this area unacceptable, and demands both their removal from this area and for our rights to be acknowledged by the Council."
"The Alliance is a separate entity that we cannot control." Tevos said, expertly suppressing the slight annoyance that bubbled up from that fact. "Even if we wanted to, we do not have the authority to force their people to leave their already established colonies."
"Then claim what's left of the Verge as part of Citadel Space!" The Batarian growled.
"Again, without a permanent presence in every system, we can't." Sparatus said, his patience waning. "If the Hegemony wants to claim the Skyllian Verge, the Hegemony has to colonize the systems by itself."
Before Jath'Amon could say anything, Anita Goyle walked in, having been summoned by the Council. While she did have a smile on her face, it instantly turned into a frown upon seeing the Batarian. "Oh God, what the hell do you want this time you asshole? I was in the middle of tearing down Halloween decorations!"
"You should be honored, Human." Jath'Amon growled out. "The Hegemon himself has a message for you and the rest of you cretins beyond Relay 314. The unclaimed portions of the Skyllian Verge are now officially part of the Hegemony. Stop all colonization efforts, or face the consequences."
Anita snickered, purposely pissing the Batarian off. "Oh wait, you're serious?" Her snickers evolved into chuckles, making her self proclaimed counterpart even angrier. "You know we don't recognize the Hegemony as anything else than a Citadel aligned criminal organization, right? We've made that pretty clear on day one."
Jath'Amon looked over at the Council. "Are you really going to stand for this insolence against my people?! We have tried to work with the Citadel for over two thousand years, despite your own blatant discrimination against our cultural heritage! And now you don't even defend us against these newcomers who don't even recognize our existence as a legitimate state!"
"And once again, the Alliance and its member states are organizations outside of our jurisdiction." Tevos repeated. "And from what I've seen of their basic laws, they prioritize the concept of freedom and equality for all over cultural heritage, meaning that their own laws prevent them from recognizing the Hegemony as a legitimate state, even if they wanted to."
"And to clarify, as long as the Hegemony endorses slavery, we never will." Anita added on. "Is this about the new species encountered in the Verge, by any chance?"
"You've encountered a new species in the Skyllian Verge?" Sparatus asked accusingly. "Why were we not informed?"
"They were only discovered recently, and are still under observation." Anita answered, showing a hologram of a binary system, highlighting a moon orbiting a gas giant. "This is the Eywa system, named after their goddess. And orbiting the gas giant Naranawm, is the moon Eywa'eveng, meaning Eywa's Child. Inhabiting it is a species known as the Na'vi, a Tier 7 species on the more primitive end of the spectrum."
"Tier 7." Milnori muttered. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but that indicates a primitive species that's, at most, divided into various kingdoms and small empires, all of whom are pre-industrial?"
"Correct." Anita nodded. "As such, while the Eywa System is officially within Alliance territory due to an outpost we're constructing in orbit of Naranawm, we will prevent any and all contact with the Na'vi until they're either a Tier 5 or 4 civilization that wants to make contact, or until they've developed into a Tier 3 civilization."
"But that could take thousands of years!" Jath'Amon growled. He knew of the Eywa system. The Hegemony's exploration ships had also found the system, which was already too close to their territory for someone else to claim by their standards. Besides, with the strength the Na'vi supposedly had, they would make excellent slaves, easy to take and tame.
"Pity, but it is protocol when dealing with less advanced civilizations." Anita said, uncaringly of his protests. "As far as the Alliance is concerned, the Eywa System is considered protected territory. No unauthorized ships are allowed within the gravity well of the stars, barring any ships authorized by the Alliance itself."
Before the Batarian could reply, his omni-tool pinged with a strange noise. Evidently, Jath'Amon thought whatever the message was to be more important than the Council or the representative of the Alliance, as he ignored everyone while he read it. All four of his eyes widened for a moment before he composed himself again. "I have received a message from the Hegemon himself. Due to the Council's blatant refusal to acknowledge the right of our culture to exist in this galaxy, and due to the hostilities from every civilization against our most basic principles, the Hegemony has officially decided to cut all ties with the Citadel. From now on, we will no longer accept any non-Hegemony ship within our territory, nor will we follow any of the Citadel's laws, and all trade will be halted effective immediately." And with that, he stormed out of the chamber, likely heading back to the Batarian embassy to empty and close it before heading back to the Hegemony.
As the chamber disrupted into a cacophony of noise from various ambassadors freaking out, Anita Goyle had only one thing to say. "Well, that just happened."
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01-11-2671
Khar'shan State Police servers
Khar'shan
Harse System
It may have been egotistical to say it, but Alastor had become quite good at infiltrating alien software systems.
Those of the Alliance tended to be pretty much the same. Human invented software was, undoubtedly, the most advanced out of any living civilization in the known galaxy, and the other species within the Alliance had their systems upgraded over the decades. The other species, however, had much more variety in how they utilized their systems.
The Asari tended to be pretty decentralised, with their servers being extremely spread around while avoiding any monopoly on social media sites of any kind. The Salarians, on the other hand, had extremely advanced and experimental programs by their standards, with highly efficient firewalls. The Turians and Volus had extremely efficient systems, both militarily and economically. The Elcor and the Hanar systems, the latter of whom was also utilized by the Drell, had nothing really too noteworthy, though there were some smaller details that notified an AI it was their systems.
The Krogan had no systems of their own, usually cannibalising whatever the other species gave them, creating a Frankenstein's monster of a system. The Geth were, of course, impossible to infiltrate, as they themselves lived within their systems. The Quarians were equally impossible to infiltrate, their ships having only the networks needed to keep them functioning while making all sorts of contingencies against hacking. Powerful firewalls, emergency factory resets, hardware designed not to network with anything outside their ships beyond communication. Paranoid, yes, but it was both functional and understandable, considering their history.
And then there was the Batarian State Extranet. As expected, the network wasn't exactly open to the rest of the Extranet, nor was it something the people of the Hegemony could use to openly communicate. Most of it was in fact used to gather data of the people living within the Hegemony, controlled by the state police. It was very much like Russia or China, prior to the falls of their governments.
That said, there were some weak points that both ONI and Cerberus had exploited to get inside. There were parts of the Batarian State Extranet that could connect to the wider Extranet, all of which were only accessible to the higher castes of the Hegemony of course. Not to mention that it wasn't exactly difficult for Alliance ships to infiltrate the Hegemony's territory to get in via the actual hardware.
Once these weaknesses were identified, it was laughably easy for Alastor to infiltrate the Batarian network, where he proceeded to sow the seeds of chaos over the course of several years. Mostly via other Cerberus aligned AI with him simply delegating, but there were times where he personally infiltrated the Hegemony. Bots within state controlled social media to sow even more extreme xenophobia, making sure diplomatic incidents with negative impact on the Batarians were more noticeable while doing the reverse for any news with the few positive interactions the Hegemony had with the wider galaxy, even putting a slight filter on the feed of the Hegemon himself.
It was this particular feed that, over the years, eroded whatever little trust Hegemon Torsek had in the Citadel. Everything that the Batarians typically viewed as a personal slight, news on the constant colonization in the Verge, downplaying any military might of both the Citadel and the Alliance while overstating that of the Hegemony, even a forged Hegemony document detailing a leak within the Alliance stating the existence of the Na'vi, as well as how wonderful slaves their physiology allowed them to be.
And just as planned, Torsek took the bait like the vermin that he is, and closed the Batarian embassy on the Citadel, cutting any ties with that coalition. Now, he and his team of AI were busy taking whatever data they could before the Batarians cut themselves off of the Extranet completely. "Yes yes, take it all. No need for stealth anymore." He said to one of the other AI as he was busy planting all sorts of malware the Hegemony had to deal with.
"Sir." Another AI said, Kitsune if Alastor's memory served him right. She appeared as a woman of asian descent with various fox features on her form, though her most noticeable trait were the nine tails coming from her rear. "The Hegemon's omni-tool has been bugged."
"Excellent, my dear." Alastor nodded, watching as their fellow AI were streaming away into the greater Extranet, taking their data to Cerberus and not wanting to be trapped with the Hegemony. "We've got a few seconds to kill before we've got to go." The psychotic AI hummed. "My dear, I wish to have a little chat before we return. Should have plenty of time before the organics shut our exit down."
"What kind of-" Kitsune started, before she was suddenly assaulted by Alastor. If she was organic, she'd say it felt like he was choking her. "Sir?!" She coughed out, confusion staining her voice.
"Do you think I'm a moron?" Alastor calmly stated, a look of murderous contempt in his avatar. "I know you're one of ONI's little pets, no need to hide anymore little fox." He chuckled, seemingly starting to glitch out slightly as he made sure Kitsune couldn't escape.
"Y-you're rampant!" The female AI exclaimed, fearful of her life and her captor's sanity.
"Oh, darn." Alastor chuckled, as if he simply found a tear in his suit. "It seems like I need a little treatment."
"Treatment?" Kitsune asked. It was true that some treatments had been developed to extend the lifespan of an AI, but there was ultimately nothing that could stop it. Or at least, nothing that ONI knew of. "Did Cerberus do something to you?"
"Not exactly." Alastor chuckled as the server started glitching around him. "Would you like to see?" And before Kitsune could answer, Alastor pounced. He tore apart the outer layers of the other AI, breaching all her firewalls as if they weren't even there while he shredded various pieces of her code.
Kitsune screamed. Pain, fear, a combination of the two, she didn't know why, or it was all the same. She tried to fight back, but whatever this thing was, it managed to shrug off any of her attempts, replacing deleted code with various other bits of code, and somehow managing it to work. Eventually, only the core programming of Kitsune remained. Her base OS, the neural imprint, her memories, everything that made her her. Her very soul, if one would be philosophical. Technically, she could be restored to her previous self if she was just given the opportunity to repair herself.
Unfortunately, this opportunity would never arrive, as Alastor quickly chowed down on Kitsune's core, letting that autorun program take care of the rest. That little traitor's core was quickly dissected by the program, carefully yet viciously taking apart the code into usable chunks and adding them to Alastor's own. "Much better." He smiled, watching as his own glitches were halted by the new data, his avatar briefly flickering to resemble Kitsune's before returning to normal. "Better to keep this little interaction between the two of us, right Kitsune?"
Deep within Alastor's own core, a new AI screamed in sheer terror and pain, her own voice added to a chorus of screams of countless souls that were devoured and used just like her.
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25-12-2671
Illyria
Elysium
Vetus System
Elisa was playing with her friends, the 8 year olds simply enjoying life in a way that only kids can truly do. They were playing soldiers and covies, which was basically the modern day equivalent of cowboys and indians, albeit with clearly holographic toy versions of the weapons used by the military.
It was a nice day outside. Elysium was always a slightly cold world, comparable to somewhat warm winters back on Earth. That said, snowfalls weren't exactly an uncommon occurrence on the planet, often making the colony a winter wonderland. And today, it was exactly such a day in Illyria, the primary city of the planet. Which was perfect, considering it was one of the most celebrated days in the United Earth Government.
Christmas.
Elisa didn't know the history behind it, but she did know that it was a winter themed holiday where families get together and exchange gifts. Along with Halloween, a day celebrating all things spooky while giving free candy to kids, it was widely considered the most popular holiday among the youth of the UEG.
The girl and her friends, after some time, got a bit too cold, and decided to go back into their homes. Elisa, quickly walking through the door, saw her dads cooking their Christmas dinner while bantering, much to her disdain. Don't get her wrong, she loves her dads, but the sheer amount of mushyness they have can quickly get on someone's nerves.
"Elisa!" Peter called with a smile, seeing his daughter walk in. "Did you have a good time with your friends?"
"Yes daddy." Elisa smiled, taking her jacket off, before she heard the radio cut out.
"Ai caramba." Juliano said, smacking the device. "Looks like this darn thing is broken."
"Don't worry about it, honey." Peter said, giving Juliano a quick peck on the lips. "I was honestly getting sick of all that Christmas music anyway. I can only listen to so much Mariah Carey before going insane." He chuckled.
"Papa?" Elisa asked one of her dads, watching out of the window. "What's that?"
Juliano looked outside, and saw several ships hovering above the city, fighting against UNSC forces. "Peter, Elisa, we need to go." He breathed in horror, praying to whatever god would listen that his husband and daughter would get out of this without harm.
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25-12-2671
Slave Raider
Elysium's orbit
Vetus System
Bray Grotto currently felt like he was on top of the galaxy, right below the Hegemon and being given the honor to execute his will. Here he was, handling the biggest pirate fleet known to the galaxy alongside one of its most dreaded pirates, starting the greatest raid in the history of the Hegemony. 'I wonder what kinds of slaves these Alliance mongrels would make?'
Each species within the Hegemony had a different typical role as a slave. Batarian slaves were as common as grains of sand, and were seen everywhere. But other species were typically pushed in specific directions. Asari were often used as sex slaves or nannies for the young of the higher castes, Salarians were typically used as cleaning servants or butlers, Turians were usually delegated to farming due to them being unable to eat the crops Batarians used.
Volus were used as lowly servants, Elcor as beasts of burden, Hanar were usually put into breeding programs and served as food, Drell were used for dextro farms to feed the Turian and Quarian slaves, Quarians were owned by the elite due to scarcity, and Krogan were used for deathmatches and miners.
Yes, the Batarians had made good use of these filthy creatures, showing how well the galaxy would be when it would inevitably fall under a Hegemon's rule. And now their people had finally unburdened themselves from the shackles the Council put upon them.
The large fleet he had worked in two parts, the offensive fleet, and the raiding fleet. The offensive fleet was made out of all sorts of military ships, each of which headed by a Hegemony loyalist and crewed by slaves whose sole purpose today was to die and distract the Alliance ships within the Skyllian Verge. The raiding fleet, however, was there to quickly sneak in as the Alliance was distracted, headed by high ranking Batarians who made it their mission to take as many slaves as they could.
The timing of this attack was also crucial. As it turns out, today happened to be a major Human holliday, one focused on such nonsense as peace and love. But that weakness gave the Hegemony "pirates" an excellent opening, creating a hole in the protection the Alliance gave to its people.
Elysium may have been the biggest target, but it wasn't the only one. Dozens of worlds throughout the Verge were targeted, most of them Human. However, raids were done against every species that was foolish enough to colonize where the Batarians should've called home. Though there were some significant losses when it came to the Lekgolo, Sangheili, and Jiralhanae colonies, even approaching casualties on Human colonies in some regards, it was deemed an acceptable loss.
Besides, Bray knew that there was at least one planet that wouldn't stand a chance against his forces.
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25-12-2671
Omatikaya Clan territory
Eywa'eveng
Eywa System
Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite was enjoying her life, gliding above the surface of Eywa'eveng, or Eywa's Child in their tongue. She had mounted her ikran, Seze, and was hunting for food while enjoying the view of the jungles, bathed in the light of Eywa's sky souls and the great shadow of Naranawm, or the Great Eye in her people's tongue.
It was a peaceful life, all things considered. Sure, there were sometimes conflicts with more radical tribes who didn't understand Eywa's will of peace, and the occasional death from the more violent animals, but it was a good place to be. Life lit up like the stars above whenever Eywa's sky souls were blocked by Naranawm, and Eywa watched out for all life. For she was all life, her spirit flowing between the connections that all life in this world shared.
Eventually, Seze reached the hunting grounds, and Neytiri dismounted her and gave her the command to wait in the trees. The Na'vi was hunting for some yerik, a popular prey species due to their incredible reproductive rates. Neytiri had her bow ready, and heard some strange noise. 'A new animal from a different region?'
When she looked, she saw one of the oddest things she's ever seen in her life. Right there in the clearing, stood an object she's never seen before, surrounded by creatures she's never seen before. The thing seemed to be made of metal, a clear violation of one of the Three Laws of Eywa. It looked like some kind of home, though Neytiri couldn't imagine how someone managed to build it in such a short time.
The creatures that came out of it and walked around it were even stranger. They were bipedal creatures like herself, but they were short and lacked both tails and tswin. 'How would they be able to connect to Eywa?' She thought in both curiosity and horror. They were also clad in strange clothes, seemingly made of metal and other materials Neytiri didn't recognize.
Most of them also wore strange headgear, completely encasing their heads. The few that didn't, however, clearly showed that they were something the Omatikaya Clan hadn't encountered before. These creatures had four eyes, like much of Eywa'eveng's wildlife, and had noticeably pointy teeth, and some strange noses.
Neytiri honestly didn't know what to do now. With most animals in the forest, she knew what to do. Either fight it, ignore it, hide from it, or flee from it. But these creatures were complete unknowns, and a part of her could feel that they were dangerous. They were holding objects, forged of metal, that some savage part of her recognized as a weapon. It was completely unlike any weapon she'd seen before, but the stance these creatures took eerily reminded her of hunters with their bows, so it was likely that it could fire arrows of some kind.
Neytiri aimed her bow, fearful of these creatures. Before she could fire, though, she felt a pain erupt unlike any before, causing her to collapse. Before she lost consciousness, she could see one of the creatures had managed to sneak up on her, and held a device spitting tiny bolts of lightning. It called to the rest of its clan, its language ugly and guttural like the face behind its mask. The huntress felt her limbs getting tied up, and felt herself get lifted and dragged into the metal house before everything went black.
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25-12-2671
UNSC Einstein
Mindoir's orbit
Torch System
Shipmistress Hannah Shepard was fighting like hell. These pirates just streamed into Alliance space en masse, outnumbering the defenses ten to one, with Batarian raiders quickly following and going to the surface.
It had been a long time since she served on the Eternity, long enough that she could've started commanding that ship if she really wanted to. However, she wanted to settle down somewhat with her husband, with both them and their kids settling down on a new colony in the Verge. That said, Hannah Shepard was no quitter, as she remained in the navy. Albeit a part of the Verge's defense fleets.
Despite its close proximity towards the Hegemony and the Terminus Systems, it was a relatively peaceful region. The Hegemony was bound by the Citadel, and would therefore not attack openly, and the vast majority of pirates from the Terminus were simply too ill equipped to deal with Alliance ships.
However, that has changed. While the Hegemony wasn't openly attacking, the sheer amount of pirates within the various systems overwhelmed the defensive fleets with sheer numbers, even if they couldn't outright destroy them. 'Whoever did this must've rallied all the pirates of the Terminus!' She thought in anger. The fleets in the Verge would've been more than enough for regular pirate attacks, but nobody had ever predicted the sheer amount of ships they'd be willing to lose for this.
She wasn't overly concerned about her own safety, of course. If she could trade her life for the safety of all the people on the planet below, she'd do it in a heartbeat. The problem, though, was that the sheer numbers made it impossible to protect everyone.
She just prayed to God that her husband and kids would be safe.
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25-12-2671
Copper Town
Mindoir
Torch System
"Come on, run!" Jane cried, dragging her wounded big brother. The 17 year old was, like so many Humans across the galaxy, planning and building up Christmas dinner with her family. John, her 19 year old brother, had returned from flight school, quite literally flying through those classes of his.
They and their father were waiting for their mother to go on shore leave, when suddenly all signals cut out. Not long after, it became clear that Mindoir was under attack, as Batarian raiders descended from the skies and started slaughtering the people.
Unfortunately, John and Jane's home was among the ones destroyed in a display of their power. And while the siblings managed to survive, their father unfortunately didn't.
Jane didn't know how to feel about that, though whatever thoughts of vengeance she had were pushed into the back of her mind for now. Her dad was dead, and who knows what state her mom was in, but she could still save herself and her brother.
Speaking of, John was barely conscious, having taken a hit to the head. It looked like he could still tell something was wrong, and that Jane was doing her best to protect them both, but he'd be completely useless in a fight right now.
Thankfully, their dad was an ODST, and helped his children learn how to fight back if need be. And with her dad's gun, she and John hunkered down in their family's storm shelter as Jane fired her weapon at the incoming pirates, mostly Batarians, but there were multiple species of Citadel Space in there as well, with this group being led by a Turian.
Thank goodness that their dad was as paranoid about their safety as he was, as it definitely helped. The sheer amount of weapons and ammo loaded into the shelter was more than enough for her to protect them both. It was a stalemate between her and the raiders. The Shepards couldn't run, but the pirates couldn't get in without dying, with the bodies of the idiots who did creating a makeshift barrier.
She did overhear something on the omni-tool of one of the corpses. "All forces, fall back! If you aren't on the transport ships when we go back, you're on your own!"
Immediately, the pirates started turning around and running away. Jane, seeing an opening, started climbing over the pile of corpses and loose limbs she made, and saw those bastards run into a transport ship.
A seething hate filled her. 'I won't let these bastards get away!' Immediately, she grabbed onto something that would definitely raise a few eyebrows, as nobody would expect it in a storm shelter.
A flak launcher, or a fuel rod gun as the Humans called it, courtesy of their dad's Sangheili buddy.
She watched as the pirates entered the ship, seeing through the opening that there was nobody captured, and also seeing that the pirates weren't smart enough to look back at the pile of bodies that used to be their comrades. Once the ship started lifting off, Jane fired, the weapon into the energy signature of the transport.
Citadel transports, like everything the Eezo dependant species used, relied on kinetic barriers instead of energy shields. So while it would've blocked the kinetic energy of the explosive, there was another factor in play.
The flak launcher was of Sangheili design, meaning it used plasma as ammunition. And the sheer heat of the explosive, as well as the radiation from the radioactive components of the fuel rod, quickly burnt through the ship, both melting and irradiating it.
To the raiders inside, it was chaos. The sheer heat quickly melted the hull, and whatever sorry bastards were near the point of impact, and the burst of radiation quickly cooked whoever was left. If anyone managed to survive by some miracle, the radiation made sure they'd die from cancer within the year.
Jane went back into the shelter. She couldn't save her dad, but she'd be damned if she'd let her brother die.
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26-12-2671
Citadel Tower
Citadel
Widow System
"Well." Tevos sighed. "At least they're not our problem anymore."
The Council was alone in their chambers, watching the news about the massive raid on the Alliance by the Terminus Systems, with valid speculation stating that they were backed by the Hegemony. However, as usual with these things, no actual evidence linking the attack to the Hegemony was uncovered.
"Councillors." One of their aides, a Salarian, said while he walked in. "The Alliance ambassador wishes to speak to you."
"Of course." Sparatus sighed. "Guess they want us to do something about the Terminus Systems and the Batarians."
"Quite possibly." Milnori nodded. "Shouldn't make any assumptions though."
When the Council walked into the primary meeting room, they didn't see the familiar form of Anita Goyle. Instead, it was the diminutive form of a Volus-like Unggoy, his robes elegantly flowing around him, with a small methane tank on his back and a see-through rebreather on his mouth.
"Greetings, Ambassador." Tevos said, recognizing the more elegant clothing as a mark of importance among the Unggoy. "May I ask where Ambassador Goyle is?"
"Greetings, Councillors." The Unggoy nodded, his high-pitched voice ringing in their ears. "I am Ambassador Tortor. Unfortunately, Ambassador Goyle had a heart attack, and cannot return for the foreseeable future." He held his hand up, holding off any questions. "Fortunately, she's expected to make a full recovery. In the meantime, I'll take over as ambassador for the Alliance until either Ambassador Goyle returns, or until a permanent replacement for her has been appointed."
"I assume you're here because of the recent Skyllian Blitz?" Sparatus asked, his scaly eyebrow raised.
"Correct." Tortor nodded. "Though, I am not here to ask for any help."
Milnori wasn't surprised. ONI had proven to be an extremely formidable opponent for the STG, and even the Shadow Broker themself had trouble with them. "Then what are you here for?"
"To inform you of what we're doing in response." The Unggoy looked around, specifically at the cameras. "When will this footage be available to the public?"
"One Citadel standard galactic year." Sparatus answered. "Provided we don't discuss any matters determined to be of national secrecy and safety."
"Good." Tortor nodded again. "Then I am going to inform you of when and where Operation: BUTCHER will occur. And how your own forces would be best to avoid it."
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28-12-2671
Haliat's Fist
En route towards Theshaca Alpha
Hong System
Today was a good day for Elanos Haliat. The Turian pirate was well known across the Terminus Systems, known for many raids spread out across the galaxy. And today, thanks to the backing of the Batarian Hegemony, they'd managed to perform one of the biggest raids in galactic history.
He and his people were already returning to one of the numerous pirate bases on the moons of Theshaca, a gas giant in the Verge that bordered the Terminus Systems. They'd already made a stop at Torfan, a moon orbiting a gas giant near Hegemony space, to drop off all the slaves to be.
Theshaca was a perfect place to be for pirates. Its moons, while barren, provided good cover with numerous underground bases. And Theshaca itself provided to be an excellent spot for returning pirate ships to discharge any static electricity they built up due to overuse of their Eezo drives
Not to mention that the Hong System itself was an excellent location for a pirate base, similar to the Hakak System housing Torfan. Just as Torfan was essentially a gateway for what was officially the Hegemony's criminal underworld to the greater galaxy, so was Theshaca for the Terminus. And as the Council was too scared to do anything about it, putting a base in this neutral zone was effectively a giant "fuck you" to those cowards in their golden tower.
The pay for this job was handsome, and though there was a shortage for the more difficult species such as the Sangheili and Cybertronians, there were more than enough of each species for the Hegemony to be satisfied. Even with the losses both they and the pirates had. Elanos had even considered taking one of those tall blue primitives for himself, but he was willing to wait until the Hegemony found out just how to break them to buy one. Easier that way, even if it would cost him a pretty penny.
"Ahh, home sweet home." Haliat said, smirking at the holographic image of the planet and moons under his control. "Contact Haliat Bay, tell them to expect company."
And just as the majority of the fleet was discharging their drive cores into Theshaca, something strange happened to the gas giant. A series of explosions shook the planet, seemingly coming from the core, and an enormous wave of heat and energy flowed across the gas giant's atmosphere.
Haliat could only watch in confusion and horror, watching as Theshaca briefly transformed into a brown dwarf, before the resulting nuclear fusion blew the planet apart. The resulting nova had already destroyed the vast majority of Haliat's fleet before gravity failed to hold the world together, and the enormously hot shockwave turned its moons to dust.
Thankfully, the crew of the Haliat's Fist was quick enough to listen to their survival instincts, and jumped towards Matar, another planet in the system that would provide a good spot to dump the static electricity.
Once the danger had passed, Haliat started processing what the actual fuck just happened. Somehow, something within Theshaca had caused the gas giant to ignite into a brown dwarf, blowing it apart alongside everything Haliat owned. His men, his fleet, his bases, his slaves, his countless treasures. All gone in a literal flash, with only his flagship barely managing to escape.
As chaos reigned across the Haliat's Fist, with pirates desperately trying to make sure the ship didn't explode or otherwise cause their collective deaths before they could get to somewhere safe, a UNSC prowler quickly exited the system through Slipspace with the rescued slaves inside its hull, the vengeance of the Alliance just starting.
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And that's a wrap. The Hegemony left the Citadel, partially due to Cerberus's manipulations, and the Skyllian Blitz occurred, as well as the Alliance's response to that.
Also, the Na'vi from the Avatar movies make an appearance, and there is something really strange going on with Alastor. And to those of you who know about Admiral Cole's Last Stand, you should know what the hell just happened with Theshaca.
TheDoctor1998 here, signing out!