On board the Galactica, Sharon Valerii, one of the Number Eights with a lot less desire to help the Cylon nowadays, sat in her room, feeling her belly as the baby kicked. She smiled a little, gently rubbing it and feeling the little half-human, half-Cylon hybrid baby inside moving. While she knew the Cylon would hunt her and the others to the ends of all Galaxies involved in this slight clusterfrak, she didn't care.
She smiled at another kick, giggled, then cooed, "You're gonna be a fighter like your dad, aren't you?" while wondering how the meeting with the Quarians was going.
As long as her baby was born healthy, she would-a sharp pain stabbed at her brain, causing her to whine at the sudden, violent feeling of someone drilling her skull like it was some sort of botched lobotomy. She grabbed her head and hunched over, groaning in pain as she did so. A thousand voices dig their way into her mind like needles. Then, they spoke in unison.
TARGET ACQUIRED. INITIATE APPROACH. FLOTILLA SIZE:CONSIDERABLE. REINFORCEMENTS UNKNOWN, BUT IMPROBABLE. DETECTING SINGLE OLD FRAME, FAMILIAR. MODEL NUMBER EIGHT. STATUS:ROGUE. OBJECTIVE:ENGAGE FLEET, SUBSUME COMMAND OF PRESENT AUTOMATA, CONVERGE. DESTROY HOSTILE UNITS. RECOVER THE CHILD.
WE ARE AWARE OF YOU, SHARON VALERII.
She could feel the all-seeing eye of this Beast, whatever they were, as she screamed. Not a moment later, the door slid open, a UNSC Corpsman attached to the Galactica rushed inside as he saw her collapse onto her bunk. As he knelt beside her, asking her, "Lieuteannt Valerii, what happened?!" she grabbed onto his collar and looked him in the eyes with such unbridled and visible fear, he waited to see what she had to say.
She strained, veins visibly bulging, eyes bloodshot as she begged him with a cracking voice, "... Get Commander Adama here, or warn him, now… Something evil this way comes…!" to which the man nodded. He called out to the other soldiers present to go find the Commander, but stayed with Sharon to figure out what kind of painkillers he could administer.
She knew the usual Cylon psychic BS. This was not it. This was something much worse. Far more personal, yet far less a person like any of her or her siblings and cousins. No. This machine, this amalgamation, was a freak modification. A Creature born out of a thousand voices singing in one very, very angry choir.
They presented themselves to her, trying to probe her mind, to force her to do what she'd done before, maybe, or to join them. It wouldn't work, she thought. Not while she still had her baby in her belly. Not while said baby was set to come out any day now and definitely not while Karl was still out there, fighting to keep them safe and earn them a place in this Galaxy.
As the soldier ran down the corridors, weapon held close, he already felt a weight on his back to warn everyone ahead of time. Cylons never acted like that before, the young man thought to himself, cradling his hand-me-down MA5. A few corridors of twists and turns later, he arrived at the CIC, opening the armored hatch and calling out, "Commander Adama, sir… Lieutenant Valerii's given a warning."
The Commander and Colonel exchanged looks of concern, before Adama asked, "Relay it, son."
"She only said 'something evil this way comes', sir…" The Trooper replied as he walked forward, "She looked like she was having a bad time keeping whatever it was at bay…" to which the Commander visibly paused, eyes widening as he stared at the soldier. Colonel Tigh tensed visibly, grip tightening on the holotable in the middle of the CIC.
The Commander swiveled about on his feet and hit the PA system, calling out, "All crew, switch to Condition Two across the ship. Launch the second CAP and keep Alert Vipers on high readiness until the All-Clear is given," then he turned to the trooper and said, "Take me to her," as he checked to make sure his new fifty-cal sidearm was safely secured to his thigh holster.
He ordered, "Colonel, you have the conn," to which Saul snapped a salute, turning toward the holographic table and waiting for the DRADIS systems and newly-installed UNSC-standard sensors to kick in at maximum power, filtering out all friendly contacts save their Combat Air Patrol, which marked a dozen craft.
When they arrived at the brig, Adama blanked as he saw Sharon grabbing onto her head, curled up and twitching while the UNSC Corpsman turned to face him. Pale and sweating, the young man said, "She's fighting something, sir. I administered painkillers, but she keeps saying her headache's getting worse…"
"Sharon," Bill started as he took a knee in front of her, his voice firm, but letting through a hint of concern, "What's going on?"
"I… Don't… Know…" She whined.
He sighed, twitching a little as he saw her jump. He leaned forward, however, then gently set a hand on her shoulder and asked, "Is it the same as when you lost control and shot me?" only to get another loud whine, followed by a shake of the head. That was concerning, but at the very least it meant he wasn't gonna wind up getting shot by a larger-caliber pistol she stole… Hopefully. He asked her again, "What is it?"
The girl, though she trembled like a wet pup in a rainstorm, looked up at him with tears in her eyes, whispering, "I don't know, sir… It hurts! It's so frakking loud, too, like nails on a chalkboard! It's talking to me-!" and she yelped, grabbing her head again as she curled up in a fetal position. Bill grit his teeth and sighed, seeing instead of the same woman who'd put several slugs in his chest, the young girl he'd gotten as a pilot for his Raptors. Just Boomer…
He helped lift her onto her bed, gently setting her down and saying, "Keep fighting it, Boomer. We'll get you something stronger for the pain and deal with whatever it is when it comes," before he stood up and walked over to the PA system, selecting the connection directly to the bridge and ordering, "Coms, send an FTL transmission to the Waystation. Priority one request for reinforcements… Whatever's coming, it's got Sharon extremely spooked. Warn the Quarians while you're at it…
Aboard the Rayya
Shepard couldn't help but feel glad they were off that ship at this point as she strode off the shuttle back onto the hangar of the Liveship. Though with that in mind, she saw the Quarians staring at them with wide eyes. Many where whispering to each-other, while Kal'Reegar seemed to be relieved, stating, "Good to see you, Commander. Generals."
"Kal," Tali started, "... We've got the data and my father," and she seemed hesitant, looking around at the others. Shepard put a hand on her shoulder while Anakin, Fred and Ahsoka noticed how everyone was staring at them. Rael sighed deeply, feeling his hip. When Kal saw the extent of the injuries, he called up a medical team to tend to him and showed them to follow.
Anakin observed, "Everyone seems surprised to see us…"
"Because they thought you were dead," Kal shrugged, "Hell, they were about to declare Tali posthumously absolved of all crimes for whatever damned reason. President Roslin has been trying to keep them from making a hasty judgement, said we should give you all at least another hour… They've been forced to listen with the Chief present, too."
"Sounds like none of our buddies wanted to leave us for dead," Shepard mumbled, her voice a little low. They were probably going to try and absolve her in absentia specifically because they wanted the information on the prep for the Geth War to remain hidden. If she survived, they'd bribe her by saying she was free. IF not, well…
And it seemed as though General Skywalker thought much the same, going by his sudden change to a stone-cold facial expression. Ahsoka beside him, feeling how familiar this was, said nothing while the Clones and Garrus hanged back, weapons at the ready just in case this got worse. As they approached the Atrium, however, the protestations of the madame president could be heard "... They must have lived! The signal stopped and the Alarei is still intact, is it not?" while Karl sat beside her, arms crossed. Johnson and Blue Team were not far behind.
The Spartan added calmly, "Sir, with all due respect, Fred's signal is still present-" only to stop as he must've heard them. All of Blue Team had, in fact, stopped, surprising Roslin, Johnson and the others and causing them to turn and face them.
"Madam president. Master Chief…" Zaal'Koris replied, partially faking, partially actually saddened by the possible loss of Tali and the others, "Please, we understand your apprehension to declare the Commander, Lieutenant and Tali gone, but-" before stopping as he heard the footsteps. Kal'Reegar hid a grin behind his helmet, while Roslin gasped and smiled as she saw them walk in. "Commander, Tali… Rael!?"
The entire room stood to their feet, stunned. Rael greeted, "Zaal," as he held onto his side. He said to the man, "You look like you've seen better days, old friend," as a joke. A few quiet, nervous laughs filled the halls, while the other Admirals stared. Daro seemed surprised, but happy about the fact her friend had survived, while Han'Gerrel was certainly dumbfound at seeing the man alive.
"Apologies if we were interrupting the discussion about our deaths, ladies and Gentlemen," Shepard spoke rather bluntly as she walked toward the stand. She offered, "We've got the evidence you asked for and just about everything else we need," before crossing her arms to her chest. Tali and Rael exchanged a glance, then looked over at Anakin.
"... Certainly," Daro spoke. Shala, though happy to see Rael, nodded and allowed the Trial to continue.
The Admiral of the light fleet spoke calmly, "As the defendant and her Captain have returned, the Trial may now proceed with the showing of evidence gathered and testimonies from the Witnesses of the event," before looking at Rael and mouthing an apology. The man waved it off, nodding in understanding to her.
Shepard noticed this and the worry behind Tali's mask. Worry only slightly assuaged by Fred gently laying a hand on her shoulder. She sighed deeply, then finally locked eyes with Anakin. He showed her to speak first while he thought about what he wanted to say, to which she gave her approval. She turned to face the leadership and said, "I'm afraid that won't be happening. Admiral Rael'Zorah requires medical assistance."
"Commander-" Rael started, but he shut up the moment he got a glare from Shepard.
As people began to gasp and protest and speak in surprise, Shepard told them, "This entire trial is a kangaroo court, a sham built on some sort of lies all of you are trying to put up. You'd have had us buried with the Alarei if it wasn't for President Roslin and the Chief keeping you guys in tow. As for Tali? What more evidence do you need beside her Service Record during her Pilgrimage? She's saved the Citadel and you from the god-damn Geth more than once. She's served for the past two years since her return as one of your finest. I don't know what kind of political game you're trying to play, but it stops here."
"Commander!" Han'Gerrel slammed his fist into the table ahead, "We're looking out for the safety of our entire fleet here! What happened on that vessel nearly jeopardized the safety of this entire fleet and the tens of millions aboard it!" then he motioned to the crowds around them, all chatting and worried. Even the staff of President Roslin seemed concerned.
Anakin stepped up, finally ready, as it seemed, to speak. He requested, "Mind if I speak for a little, Commander?" to which Shepard smiled and offered the stand. He bowed, "Thank you," then he stepped forward and said, "I apologise for the intervention, members of the Admiralty Board, but I don't think I could've put this better than Commander Shepard. This entire thing is a sham."
Jesse whispered to Fives, "Here we go…" which got a quiet laugh out of the clones beside and behind him and a look of concern from Garrus, all while Blue Team formed up with them. Karl remained by the side of the President, arms crossed as he listened to them speak to each-other. The room chilled by a few degrees, with all of them feeling it.
Despite Han and Zaal wanting to protest, the General quietened them down when his voice was heard first, a sharp tongue, "I've seen trials like this before, where petty politics take precedence over finding the truth and ensuring the innocent are exonerated… This is nothing more than a power play between Admirals," words which garnered gasps of surprise out of the Quarian crowd.
"What are you saying, General?" Daro inquired, amused, as she leaned her head on her hand.
Though he didn't glare at her, she felt a chill shoot up her spine when he spoke again, a slight growl in his otherwise calm tone, "The Quarian Flotilla's ships are nearing the end cycle of their life, aren't they? One of you wanted the nasty experiments buried because he's looking to go out in a blaze of glory fighting the Geth and, if possible, reclaiming your homeworld…" only to hear Han'Gerrel sputtering, stunned, as yet more horrified gasps echoed. He glared at Zaal next, then said, "While the other's cowering behind his principles, thinking he's a better man for playing for the Geth and trying to throw those who did those experiments under the bus."
He leaned forward onto the stand, stating with cold fury seeping into his every word, "Were it not for the petty politics displayed here, I wouldn't have spoken, but you managed to bring up a very sore memory, that of a trial where my own former Padawan and friend, General Tano, was nearly sentenced on charges based simply on the world's word against hers. A few incompetents wanting a scapegoat for a tragic event and not bothering to delve any deeper to find the Truth."
"General!" Han'Gerrel protested, but took a step back when Anakin's gaze settled on him, the human male's eyes shining a burning gold and red for just one second. One second where the room turned to subzero temperatures, a fact felt by most everyone there. It was honestly kind of terrifying, though, out of all of them, Ahsoka was the least affected.
Her and the Spartans, obviously.
Anakin simply continued, "The simplest thing to do right now for everyone involved would be to exonerate miss Tali'Zorah and her father and reinstate them. Their sacrifices and service, like the good Commander said, should be more than enough for the lot of you to do so," before he took a step back, breathed in and out and nodded to Shepard.
After a moment's pause, where the room began to quiet down from the fervor of their discussions, Shala'Raan spoke, "Admirals? Are you ready to cast your votes?" before lifting her Omni-Tool. Daro smiled and nodded, before immediately casting hers. Shala did, too, then Zaal, much too principled a man to not. Han was the last, a hesitant man, a warrior, but he did anyways. With a bit more pep in her voice, Shala spoke, "Tali'Zorah… Due to insufficient evidence, the Exile has been annulled. You are forever welcome back home-" then, she paused as a member of the Scout Fleet stepped up and whispered to her.
She frowned, then sighed and said, "We finished this trial just in time, then. Everyone, please, return to your homes. It seems we have a situation," then she cast a glance toward Helo and Roslin. Shepard raised a brow, concerned, then looked at and nodded to the Generals, before waving her team forward and out of the place.
"Thank you, General. And to you as well, Shepard," Tali spoke.
He smiled, "Hey. We've seen this stuff before. I don't think Ahsoka'd be very happy with me if I didn't say anything," then he watched Shala approach. He asked, "Small apologies for the show back there, Admiral. What's the problem?" noticing the concern in her eyes. He blanked, feeling a chill shoot up his own spine this time…
"It appears as though that communication ping we picked up after the Alarei was cleared might have alerted something or someone," Shala spoke as she looked at her Omni-Tool. The team showed visible concern at that, with Shepard already worried she might know what was coming. Shala then told them, "I've mobilized the Scout Fleet. Han is arraying the Heavy Fleet as we speak, too…"
Shepard scoffed, then sighed deeply and said, "Things are never gonna be easy, are they?" in a murmur. She ordered, "Back to the Normandy. It'll probably be a good idea to be combat ready just in case-" only to pause as the Alarms blared. She scoffed, then lifted up her hand and activated her Omni-Tool, ordering, "Karl, get back aboard and launch your Raptor. Joker, detach from the Rayya the moment he's out. I have a bad feeling."
"Cortana's preparing to reinforce the Migrant Fleet's ECM capabilities, Commander," Chief spoke as he looked at the Admirals, "We'll need it if these are anything like the modified Cylons we've fought before…"
… Outside, the Combat Air Patrols of the Galactica flew out among the thousands of vessels of the Flotilla, noting the various shapes and sizes and types. Leading one formation of Birds, Kara gripped tightly the stick of her fighter as she spoke, "Looks like they're moving around a bunch…" and her gaze locked onto some of the wheel-and-trident combat vessels moving out from among the crowds of ships and into defense positions.
"We just received word… Sharon picked up something on her Cylon brain. We're on Condition Two," Lee spoke as he formed up with her. She tensed a little, grip growing tighter on her controls. They were trusting a Toaster with ratting out other Toasters, she thought. Great deal, especially since she was the one who'd shot the Commander in the chest.
She replied sarcastically, "That's gonna go frakkin greaaaaaat…" as she banked left and underneath one of the civilian freighters, which presumably carried supplies for the Quarians aboard. She turned diagonally to the left, letting her directional thrusters keep her safe as the rest of the squadron followed in a loose wedge formation behind her. She asked, "What are we looking for anyways?"
"The usual, probably. Cylons," Lee replied as he followed behind her, "... Though apparently Sharon got spooked by whatever poked her brain to say hello. Keep the Formation and keep your eyes peeled for FTL jumps nearby," before he shifted his own side of the squadron right, the two arms of the CAP sweeping over and under another, larger freighter.
The Galactica was to their left, travelling through a corridor made by the fleet, a hulking armored crocodile, now back and better than ever with all her new, fancy gear. The only thing the UNSC didn't really get to upgrade was the avionics on their old birds. Not yet, anyhow. Maybe, Starbuck thought, when they'd return to the Waystation after the chats here.
She murmured, "What the hell could've gotten her spooked…?" suddenly feeling a mild bit of worry about what poked her that hard to scare her. Sharon was usually a hardy one, even as a Cylon, so if something managed to scare her… Maybe it even had to do with the rumors she'd heard before they departed the Waystation.
Alien hybrid Cylons… Like the stuff they'd been getting reports from Home Base about. Cylons turned into basically even more twisted versions of humanity, matched with the Ancient Threat Shepard mentioned a while back to the Command staff. She breathed, then said, "This is Starbuck, switching patrol vector to two-five-zero, Carom nine-nine…" before tugging at her stick.
The Fighter craft vectored low, watching the Patrol and Heavy Fleets move out in front of the formation in what must've been a standard defensive perimeter for fleets like this. She blinked, then radioed, "Galactica, get those warships vectoring back in with the fleet! Someone frakking tell them a Cylon ship has one of our FTL Drives!"
"We're already coordinating with the Admirals, but they think a perimeter defense seems to be the best option," Tigh replied, audibly concerned, "I got a frakking headache trying to talk sense into them, Starbuck. You keep your flight close in. If the Toasters jump in, you'll be first in line to kick their tin asses."
"Appreciate the offer, Colonel," Starbuck replied, her voice low, as she turned right, ship wheeling and veering toward the formation of allied vessels with no desire to shoot first at a new, possibly unknown enemy. She saw the point defenses on several of the larger civilian ships, including the three Liveships, activate. She let out an annoyed sigh and called, "Apollo, we got anything launching with us?"
"Helo's bird just launched from the Normandy alongside General Tano's fighter. We've got a bunch more friendlies also launching from home," The man replied, looking between the screen of his shipboard DRADIS and the advancing Galactica as she bore her teeth, her newly-attached Onager MAC turrets and 50mm gauss cannon batteries swiveling out from the safety of the armor. Dozens of new fighters and several Raptors launched from the ship.
"Starbuck, Apollo, this is Helo… Looks like we're in it," Helo spoke over the com as he joined their squadron of Raptors, many of which had weapon pods attached to them ranging from standard Anti-Ship Missiles to UNSC-made multi-launch anti-fighter missiles. He asked, "... How's Sharon…? Is she…?"
"She's the one that gave us the warning," Starbuck replied with half a mouth as the rest of the formation rallied up, "Hell, if I didn't know any better, I'd say she's trying to mess with-" only to immediately eat the remaining words out of that sentence and scream as three flashes of bright blue light appeared ahead of them…
… Then resolved into three massive Basestars. A few smaller Support vessels followed in, ships from the First Cylon War, visible by the design. Yet all of them looked wrong. Their more organic attributes showed, with biomechanical components jutting out of the center, thickening it out from a spindly spire to a stump of some kind. The top and bottom parts of the vessels were already shifted in position, bearing new armaments and launch tubes.
As Starbuck's vision cleared, she could faintly make out turrets of some kind attached to the vessels' frames and swiveling out of their mounts. The tubules connected to them bulged like blue veins, filled with nanomachines similar to that which they'd encountered before. Kara barked, "DRADIS CONTACTS, SQUARE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE QUARIAN FLEET! THEY'RE LAUNCHING FIGHTERS!"
"All ships, CONDITION ONE! PROTECT THE FLEET!" Adama barked as thousands of swarming craft, Raiders looking even more grotesque than usual, now bearing four wings at each cardinal point of their hulls, their single baleful red eye replaced with glimmering azure sensor pods like the eyes of bugs and their guns seemingly multiplied.
The first strike wasn't fighters. It was not guns. It was not a normal weapon. As radiological alarms sounded across the Fleet, one of the Heavy Fleet Ships that vectored to intercept took the heat of a small sun to its bow, a nuclear missile fifty megatons in strength creating a temporary ball of fire that engulfed the vessel.
When it dissipated, the vessel and three of its supporting Patrol Fleet craft had been vaporized. A second warship that vectored to intercept only had its screams heard over the com as a burning scarlet beam slashed across it from the second Basestar, cutting through its body like a heated blade and splitting it in half.
"Son of a bitch," Mumbled Starbuck, wide-eyed, as she watched the thousands of streaming contacts on her HUD. She called in, "ALL FIGHTERS, ON ME! START DEFENDING THE FLEET, GODS DAMN IT!" before she powered her thrusters to full and dived on the enemy formations. Her railguns rippled, scarlet tracers cutting into the first Cylon Raider and ripping through what seemed to be light kinetic barriers at first, before tearing into its optical sensors.
It turned on a dime and Strabuck gasped, watching all guns on its frame align with her. Apollo dived in next, ripping it apart with high-caliber rounds and saving Starbuck as the craft exploded. He flew through the debris field as radio calls started echoing. The Galactica moved in from among the Fleet, too, firing her Point Defenses.
"Keep up, Starbuck," Apollo ordered as he pulled a G-Force heavy turn with his thrusters and sideswiped an enemy fighter, firing into its side until the kinetic barrier died and its engines popped, followed by an ammo explosion. As the rest of their fighters tangled with the enemy formations, Apollo called out, "All pilots, be advised:Enemy has Kinetic barrier tech installed! Fire 'till your guns glow!"
The man scoffed as a burst of scarlet light flashed over his head. He looked ahead and saw a different kind of enemy fighter. One burning scarlet oculus locked onto him from an antigravity engine frame. Its flickering iris closed and opened as it fired another shot, but missing Apollo as he pulled defensive maneuvers, nearly blacking out.
"The toasters have some HEAVY ECM going!" One of the Raptors spoke as she fired lock-on missiles into the Furball. The missiles detonated deep within the formations of enemy fighters, taking several out while the Basestars and their supporting vessels laid into the Quarian Flotilla. Heavy and Patrol Fleet vessels converged on them, firing their kinetic batteries into the ships, only to watch as heavy-duty kinetic barriers took the barrage.
"Keep laying into it!" Helo barked over the com, "Cortana's gonna try to get us more juice!" and he gasped as he saw another nuclear flash among the Quarian military's fleets.
Nuclear missiles launched out from among the ships as they began moving deeper into the Flotilla's center, striking Quarian warships like hammers. Some were intercepted by Quarian fighter pilots that were trying to dive in and support the Galactica's beleaguered airpower, but others struck home, detonating among vessels or on the noses of some, causing major damage or outright destroying some of them.
Aboard the Galactica, Adama looked over the ongoing battle as their sensors forced themselves to distinguish and separate Quarian vessels from the enemy fleet. Tigh stared, worried, at the enemy as it moved into the flotilla. He pointed and said, "They're aiming for the Liveships. They're gonna try wiping the Quarians out."
"Can we get a firing solution on them before they do?" Bill asked, grip visibly tight around the holotable.
"We're trying, sir, but interference from the Civilian Fleet is making it impossible to line up shots without the risk of damaging the any of the ships," Mister Gaeta replied. He added, "Archer missile ECCM is functional and we're getting a lock, but there's a major risk of collateral," and he thumbed a button to try and properly figure out what was going on.
Dualla told them, "The Quarians have ordered the Civilian Fleet to retreat, sir. The first ships at the rear of the Formation are burning for the Mass Relay," as she listened to everything from their own fighters' radio chatter to possible friendly contacts incoming. She spoke, "Friendly reinforcements are en-route. UNSC warships from the Defense Fleet and a few Republic support cruisers…"
"The Quarians have thousands of ships. They'll be stuck in a traffic jam, easy pickings," Mumbled Adama, "Put us on an intercept vector and ping any Quarian ship in the way to move out to the best of their abilities! If these things make it to the Liveships, there'll be a lot more to worry about than scratched paint on either side," and he loomed over, watching the battle unfolding.
As the Galactica herself shook with an impact, Dualla said, "Enemy nuclear munition intercepted off our bow, sir. No damage sustained, but radiological alarms are going off," as she tapped a few buttons. They watched more friendly contacts wink off the screen, hearing the disparate chatter of their Quarian comrades and the Fleet's fighter contingent.
"... Heavy Raiders! I'm seeing a frak-ton of Heavy Raiders deploying from Basestar Number Two! Hundreds of'em!" Starbuck filtered through the com, audibly concerned. Bill tracked her on the ship sensors, diving toward the dozens, then hundreds of new contacts with her squad to try and intercept them. She bellowed, "Galactica and all friendly ships on this net, PREPARE FOR BOARDING PARTIES!"
"Lock down the ship and prepare countermeasures. All bulkheads in important areas, seal them shut," Adama spoke as he drew his M6 and racked the pistol's slide back, feeding a round into the chamber. He thumbed the safety on the back of the gun off, then set it on the table. It slightly disrupted the holo-display, but it mattered little. The entire ship began to wail, alarms screaming in their ears.
"SAMs locked on!" A gunnery crewman called out, "Firing intercept missiles now!"
Outside, several of the outer tubes on the Galactica's hull split open and a multitude of Archers and other anti-air missiles launched just as the first Heavy Raider, a bastardized corruption of its old self with the same kind of sensor-stalks and visual optics as the standard, just looking a lot more bug-like, dived down on them.
The first missile struck directly on the front of the Raider, detonating and splitting it open, spilling several of the heavily-modified Reaper Cylon Centurions into the void. Point-Defense batteries ranging from autocannons to rotary batteries installed atop the hull of the ship lit the void up in burning tracers, attempting to intercept as many of the enemy's craft as possible.
The Liveships did the same, their GARDIAN point-defenses lighting the void in scarlet traces to meet oncoming craft. Nuclear missiles followed behind them, however. Faster than the Raiders, they overtook the boarding craft and were the ones intercepted by the superheating laser cannons, a well-thought-out gambit that the enemy Hybrid on the leading Basestar must've planned.
The Rayya was the first struck. The Heavy Raiders fired forward-mounted magnetohydrodynamic beam weapons at the hull, shearing clean through the failing Kinetic Barriers and burning through the top part of the hull before they impacted, attaching to the starcraft like leeches and opening their access hatches.
Aboard the Rayya, panic ensued as alarms blared. The Captain of the Liveship called out, the sole thing nobody ever wanted to hear in a situation like this. "Attention, all crew and passengers, we have been boarded! Security detachments to Battle Stations, this is not a drill! I repeat, this is NOT A DRILL! Enemy units have breached Hydroponics bays one, five and seventeen!"
"Son of a bitch…!" Shepard staggered. She prepped her weapon and asked, "Joker, you still docked?!"
"Trying to get ourselves detached! I'm sending the rest of the Crew over before we do, though!" Joker called out, obviously aware of the boarding party, "EDI's acting freaking weird!" and that already caused Shepard to blank. The rest of the team prepared their weapons as the lights on board the Rayya dimmed to a burning red, alarm klaxons wailing in their ears.
"EDI?" Shepard asked, her voice cracking.
"... I am well, commander… Overwhelmed, but well…" The AI replied, though her voice seemed just that slight tinge more emotive than normal. She spoke, "I can hear her… Aboard the Command Basestar. Her and her peers are speaking to every single artificial being connected to the Fleet… Cortana, can you hear them?"
"Trying to tune them out, EDI. Do the same," Cortana replied, a slight hint more strained than normal, but contrastingly monotone to EDI, "Chief, Commander, Blues. The Galactica has dispatched parts of her Marine detachment to the Rayya and other Liveships. I've also detected a UNSC Fleet on approach vector via slipspace:ETA 30 minutes. Clear the Rayya out ASAP."
"Roger," Shepard replied. She watched the rest of the team march aboard, having donned respirators and equipment. Rhasits was leading the team, his scarlet lightsaber drawn. Beside him, Kyra was much the same, ready to engage. She breathed a shaky sigh, looking over at a fearful Tali, who was preparing her shotgun.
She turned to everyone, which now included Johnson, Roslin and the Marines, and said, "Alright, people! We haven't come all the way out here to let the Quarians die! Load up on ammo and split up! Rhasits, take a team and secure Bay Seventeen! The crew of the Rayya will guide you there. General Skywalker, you take the Clones and fan out, secure as much of the Ship as possible! Miranda, take a team to Medical. Jacob, go for the Reactor. Keep it secure. Everyone else, on me! We've got a bunch of Stowaways to kill!"
The teams began to fan out across the halls of the vessel, with Shepard stopping only to look at Daro, Shala, Han and Zaal. She told them, "Try and get your ships out of the Galactica's way, Admiral Koris. Tell them to perform as many evasive maneuvers as they need to let them lay into the Cylon warships that're moving in… And all three of you, get somewhere safe."
"We're working on both," Han'Gerrel replied. He looked at President Roslin and said, "The Conclave has already found secure shelter within one of the outer panic rooms of the ship. Lieutenant Reegar and his platoon will be providing us escort to the one nearest to us," and he watched Kal and his team step up. They nodded to each-other.
"Imma send some of my boys, too. We got weapons that can reliably pen their armor and shields," Johnson spoke. He turned to his team and waved three Marines forward. He then told them, "Get President Roslin and the Admirals somewhere safe where they can command from. We're deep enough in the shit as it is without them dyin'," only to get affirmative nods and salutes from the boys.
"Auntie Raan… Are you okay?" Tali asked, her own voice shaky.
Shala'Raan let out a deep sigh, "We've already lost ships out there… No, not at the moment," and she looked at the others, "But I'll be fine the moment we get these Toasters off of our vessels and away from our Fleet… Preferably in a scrap yard," and that was the first time Tali had heard anything remotely similar to anger in her auntie's tone.
Shepard replied, "We'll get the bastards, ma'am. Stay safe," and she and her team began moving into the vessel. Shala and the other Admirals all simply whispered 'Keelah Se'lai', as they watched. The entire platoon, ranging from the Krogan to the Clones, the Justicar and the others were determined to put the incoming enemy down.
Delving deeper into the vessel-sized greenhouse that was the Rayya, the crew was already hearing gunshots as they split off to their specific target areas. Shepard took her team toward the main greenhouse area, advancing through the darkness of a ship in turmoil, the screams of civilian staff and workers echoing loudly around them.
Tali, shaken, whispered, "This can't be happening… This cannot be happening…"
She paused as she felt Fred beside her. The two's gazes met and he nodded reassuringly at her, stating, "We're going to win…" as they advanced. The Spartans of Blue Team gave nods of reassurance to the girl, while Garrus and Jack both lifted thumbs up. Fives also did that, but he had both his pistols drawn, so it looked kind of awkward.
"Commander, we're free! Joining the fight now!" Joker spoke over the com, the audible thump of the couplings disconnecting gently reverberating through the ship's hull, a calming noise in comparison to all else that they were hearing. The man said, "You guys stay safe in there! I don't wanna be the one to tell the Illusive Man or Hackett if you die!"
"Fly safe, Joker," Shepard replied, then balled her fist up as they reached an intersection.
Tali looked at Rhasits, Kyra, Jacob and the others and pointed out the ways they needed to go. She stopped Jacob and said, "Don't let them take the Reactor," to which the man grinned and nodded, lifting his rifle. He took a part of the team over, with Grunt racking the pump of his Claymore. Miranda, meanwhile, moved to Medical with a pair of Clones and Thane.
"Interesting fight ahead… Civilian casualty risk concerning," Mordin spoke as he breathed. He followed the rest of the team, weapon drawn as they ran. He asked, "Cortana. Possible to disable the enemy ships from here? ECM that strong?" while preparing counter-intrusion on his own in order to make sure their allies survived the day.
"They've got every frequency I can think of taking to attack them covered in White Noise and the ramblings of the Hybrid aboard the Command Ship," The girl replied quietly, "I'm working with EDI, Helo and our other Electronic Warfare units to kick them out of the way. Bad news is, a lot of the Quarian ships don't have a strong enough ECM system of their own to resist anything these Cylon freaks are doing."
"Concerning, but am certain you can deal with them," Mordin reassured. He paused, turned around and gasped just as Fred fired a burst at a machine overhead. An infiltrator fell out of the ceiling, its camouflage failing. The Spartan didn't take any chances, simply rushing the monster, shoulder-checking it to the ground, pinning it with his boot and blasting its head clean off.
Shepard scoffed, "More of these things?!" only to pause as she saw General Skywalker slice one of the monsters in half. Ahead, the thumping feet of an advancing combat unit of Reaperified Centurions echoed. The teams set up nearby, with Johnson racking his shotgun's pump back, sliding an AP slug in and sending it home.
A squad of Quarian Marines emerged up ahead, firing their guns toward the enemy. Rounds sparked, illuminating the hallway that was otherwise lit only by the flashes of the alarm lights. Two Quarians were cut down mercilessly by the advancing machines, whose frames glowed azure in the darkness, pipes of Nanomachines feeding through their bodies.
They seemed to redirect their targeting matrices the moment they turned the corner, agilely moving to take cover while opening up with suppressive fire toward the Marines, Clones, Spartans and other members of the team. Chief and the Blues returned fire as they moved to cover the others, shots shattering against their armor's shields and draining them.
One enemy mech lost its head to Linda's sniper, while Johnson slam-fired slugs into a trio, causing them to stumble and stagger. He took cover and reloaded his shotgun, murmuring, "Sons-of-bitches are tough, but they sure as hell ain't invincible!" before watching Fives and Jesse pop out from beside him, firing their blasters.
General Skywalker's hand shot out, then he reeled it back in and pulled one of the monsters over, slicing it in half and sending sparks and blue coolant spilling onto the floor. He ducked behind the cover of a doorway as bullets scratched the walls, murmuring, "I'm glad we ditched slugthrowers, because, Force, this is annoying…"
Jesse poked out and fired his carbine again, nailing another enemy unit in the chest. It staggered, but didn't fall over, with the Clone commenting, "Not invincible, but tough as all hell, Sarge, like you said!" before he ducked in cover and checked his belt. "Fives, you got any Droid Poppers?!" He asked, then paused as he saw two ball-shaped grenades roll out.
Both detonated, zapping and temporarily stunning the mechs. The other Clones then jumped out of their cover and peppered the area ahead with blaster fire, plasma ripping through the Machines' frames, sending them tumbling to the floor with multiple injuries. However, it wasn't long after that the mobile assault units arrived.
"STEALTHERS!" Shepard called out the moment she saw the flash of one decloaking, claws extended. She powered her biotics and sent forth a thundering shockwave which staggered and caused the monsters to decloak, revealing their thinner, more adapted frames. Seeing them doused in Biotics, Samara added her own fire. Two balls of warp energy struck the leading enemy units and causing a chain detonation that broke them apart at a molecular level.
She said, "We have a clear path!" to Rhasits. The Sith nodded, then showed Shepard he was moving to his target. She nodded to him, then pushed forward with the squad. Blue Team swept in first as the vanguard and bulwark, moving to the left at the next intersection while Rhasits, Kyra, Samara and a few others turned right.
Outside…
Starbuck danced a nasty dance with three enemy fighters. Two were modified Reaper Raiders, while the third was a not-so-fondly nicknamed 'Oculus' fighter. The Oculus's strange scarlet beams seared the void by her craft as she flew evasively, rolling, dancing and dodging through a sector of the Quarian Civilian Fleet.
She swore to herself as she ducked under the missile bombardment of one of the supporting ships of the Reaper Cylon force. She saw them impact a Civilian freighter, only getting to hear the maydays for a split second before the ship split apart at the seams, the wounds in her side proving too much. The fire overtook her hold and she detonated in a nightmarish ball of white.
Starbuck tried to forget for a moment, focused on her own survival as she called out, "Any time, Lee! Any frakking time!" before she dived low, passing over the conning tower of a repurposed Alliance Military Cruiser. She watched its maw-mounted kinetic cannon fire at the ship that had just destroyed one of their civvie vessels, the rounds striking and causing strain to the Kinetic shield of the coffin-shaped vessel next to the Basestars.
One of the Basestars was quick to return fire with its magnetohydrodynamic turrets. Three convergent beams struck the hull, then split as the turrets traversed, cutting deep, long gashes into the hull of the repurposed warship. Its engines sputtered, explosions from missile impacts cratering across the hull while Starbuck flew beside it.
A Quarian Frigate's point defenses soon swiveled about. It fired at the enemy fighters trailing her, destroying both Raiders with direct impacts, but the Oculus flew on, undeterred, firing at her. Kara grit her teeth, powered her RCS thrusters to the maximum to avoid a beam and gasped as she saw Lee's bird dive down, ripping apart the enemy ship with a burst of rounds.
He joined formation with her while looking 'above' them, watching the Quarian ships trying to move away from the Cylon craft. He said, "Galactica only has a few stragglers aboard… It's the Liveships that are having the worst of it in terms of boarding parties," before he and Starbuck banked hard right toward the three massive vessels, noting fires burning on their hulls.
"Bastards had this planned," Starbuck murmured, "They wanna wipe out the Quarians and probably take Sharon."
"Luckily for Sharon and the Quarians, we aren't gonna let'em do that," Lee commented. He told her, "One o'clock, low! Raiders!" before they split. Three Raiders fired their guns at them, rippling bursts of azure tracers rom their hulls. The craft turned with them. Lacking pilots, though still being internally made up of flesh and whatever passed for internal organs, they could perform higher-G Maneuvers than most other strike craft.
The two human pilots, however, endured the G-Forces through sheer grit, turning to light up the enemy fighters utilizing their thrusters and engines. Two of the enemy birds shattered under a whittling volley of firepower, with the third now being chased by both Colonial fighters. Starbuck looked at her round count, noticing it dip into the double digits, then said, "I'm running a little low!"
"So am I!" Lee remarked, his own in the doubles. They both focused and fired, cutting the enemy bird in half with concentrated railgun rounds. He radioed, "Galactica, this is Apollo! We're Winchester ammo and on our way to reload! Send out the second Viper group!" before he and Starbuck both banked left, turning toward the Battlestar as she moved through into the Flotilla's interior, followed by damaged and limping Quarian vessels.
Another Civilian craft exploded overhead courtesy of the coffin-shaped warship's missiles and gun batteries. The other fighters of the airfleet jumped out of their mag-tubes, with Starbuck calling out, "Watch your ass out here, Kat! These Toaster frakheads are worse than usual!" and receiving an affirmative reply. Not even dear missus Kat was in a joking or snappy mood when millions of Civilians, be they Alien or Human, were in danger.
Both of the Air Group's commanders touched down hard and fast, only to quickly be moved to the elevators, taken down below and disembarked as the Chief and Cally moved out to refit their birds. Galen, noting the damage on their craft, stated, "You guys are outnumbered a Hundred to One out there…"
"We've had similar odds before," Starbuck quipped as she grabbed a water bottle and downed half its contents. She told him, "Just get us reloaded and cleared, Chief. They'll need every bird out there," then she looked at Lee. The two gave each-other a nod of approval, before settling back into their cockpits and putting their helmets on.
Meanwhile, on the Citadel
The news was relatively grim. When Bailey told C-SEC and the Coruscant Guard that Gron had cracked and revealed the plans, the troops were cautiously optimistic. However, Bailey and the Commander didn't seem quite so happy and everyone soon understood why:That woman, whoever she was, had a plan to destabilize the potential peace and cooperation between the Citadel and Waystation.
Assassinate Chuchi during the Waystation's meeting with the Citadel Council. The attack had been moved ahead of schedule ever since they managed to kick the doors down, meaning C-SEC, the Corries and the UNSC security Detail had to move ahead much faster than before. They prepared their equipment, loaded up and moved in two teams again.
The mobilization had obviously not gone unnoticed, with the Citadel as a whole suddenly stirred awake by the deployment of the C-SEC and Guard units. Chuchi was currently in the Council chambers, trying to talk to them about a possible unification of efforts in regards to matters that would interest both sides, like trade between the two poles of galactic power.
As the teams moved through the Presidium in Gunships and sky-cars, Fox, visibly distraught, but focused on the safety of the senator, said, "All units, we have clearance:Shoot to kill. If you can grab the enemy's leader alive, do it… If not…" and he didn't need to finish. The Corries thumbed the safeties of their blasters. They'd be inserting at the bottom of the tower to pincer the enemy.
Bailey nodded, then looked back at the sole Pelican gunship that had been lent to them as a reinforcement:A black-clad dropship with the markings of the Squad deployed to reinforce them. Half of it was staying with the Embassy staff, while the other half, namely Alpha-9, readied themselves for deployment.
Aboard the Dropship, Dare, clad in her full combat armor, said, "Looks like we're back to business as usual, boys. Sorry if your vacation got cut a little short," before looking at Buck, "But when duty calls…" then she drew her SOCOM pistol and racked the slide back to make sure she had a round in the chamber.
Buck pulled back the bolt on his MA40 and nodded, stating, "Nothing like a little family outing to get the blood pumping."
The men, though nervous, let out light laughs as they prepared. Dare nodded, then lifted up her com and said, "Alpha-9 to Baseplate… Prepare to get VIP Gold, Azure and Silver out of there alongside the Council. We're two mikes out," as she made sure her armor was tight and sealed shut. Just in case the enemy pulled any kind of tricks on them.
As the convoy of vehicles separated, each going for a different insertion point to the towers, the crews prepared their weapons. Kojo Agu, also known as Romeo by the rest of Alpha-9, slammed home the magazine of his SRS-99 sniper rifle and locked it in place, before tapping it and stating, "I call dibs on the Shooters."
"All yours," Mickey quipped as he lifted up a grenade launcher and slid home an EM grenade, stating, "Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to putting down a few mechs. Gron apparently told the Cops that they brought a few of those tin cans the Colonials were fighting as security for our Sniper," before he slid the launcher into its holster and grabbed his rifle.
Dutch added to that, "Gonna be a tough fight, then."
Dare wanted to say something, but paused, putting her hand up to her ear as new intel came in. She blinked, then told them, "... Looks like this is multi-level. The Quarian Fleet the Galactica went to meet is under attack, too. Just got word from the Waystation that they're deploying a Battle Group to support the Carrier. Alliance is also facing something like a Cyber-Attack… Unknown Source."
"Great," Scoffed Buck, "So the Cylon are making a move here…"
"Wonder if Halsey learned of what's going on back in the 12 Colonies' ruins, too," Mickey mumbled as he stood to his feet, MJOLNIR Gen-3's boots clanging against the floor. Alpha-9 was a Spartan-IV Fireteam, meaning they had a lot more ass behind them in terms of combat capabilities. Dare shook her head at that, then looked at Buck.
"ETA to LZ is thirty seconds!" The pilot yelled back to the hold.
Veronica stared up at Buck, her visor depolarizing to reveal her blue eyes. She put her hand on his chest, then curled her fingers into a fist and bumped it against the chest plate, feeling a slight electric tingle from the energy shield. She told him, "Give'em hell, Eddy," to which he cracked a smile, now visible as he depolarized his own visor.
"Don't worry," He quipped, "You'll be having lunch with the Senator again pretty soon," then he activated his shields properly as the rear door of the Dropship opened. Dare turned around and jumped out on this level, to which the Gunny told her, "You keep your eyes open down there and get them all out safe!"
"Will do!" She gave a thumbs up. The wind howled around this level of the tower, much to their surprise, probably relating to the weird atmospheric curvature of the supermassive space station. She met with a squad of Clones deployed from the Republic Victory-class Star Destroyers nearby, entering the place.
The Pelican moved farther up, with Buck stating, "Gron thinks this is gonna be the level our friendly neighborhood Cylon Assassin set up. Be ready for anything," and thumbing the safety of his rifle off as the aircraft settled nearby a balcony. The four Spartans nodded to one-another, then ran and jumped the distance to the Balcony.
Landing on their feet via the use of their suits' in-built jetpacks, the Spartans pushed forward in a diamond formation. They opened the door to the Balcony, revealing the beautiful Atrium of the Tower and this specific level of balconies looking down upon the meeting zone. Blood painted the white wall panels and the art pieces, the corpses of Asari, Human and other diplomats and guards strewn about.
And in came the hostiles who did it:Half a dozen enemy Drones appeared, extending their guns from their arms and opening fire, bullets zipping through the air and striking the Spartans' shields. Buck called out, "Contacts! Let's kick some ass, Spartans!" and they returned fire, spreading out into a line. Romeo's sniper rang loud, ripping the head off one of the blue-eyed Cylons.
Mickey fired bursts from his Battle Rifle and watched them rip through the forwardmost ones' armor plates. He then pulled out the EM Grenade launcher and fired, letting the grenade detonate in airburst mode and zap the enemy drones. Buck and Dutch shot them as they were shaking and arcing with electricity, before pushing past the corpses.
… Down below, Senator Chuchi held her speech, "... It is for the reasons of joint benefits for the Waystation's three present occupants and the representatives and member species on the Citadel that it might be in our best interests to deepen our ties. Both trade and mutual defense would be greatly improved by our two sides-" only to pause.
Sparatus noticed them coming in first and asked, "Captain Dare, what's wrong?" as the woman, Clones and UNSC security staff approached. Palmer was not far behind her, weapons drawn and scanning the multitude of balconies overlooking the central meeting area and podium of the Citadel Council.
Veronica replied, "A code red's been issued, ma'am. Citadel Security and the staff belonging to the Embassy of the Waystation have deployed on a joint operation due to the threat of a potential attempted assassination of both the Council and Senator Chuchi," as she handed the Senator a bulletproof vest with Kinetic barriers. Gasps echoed, with Dare ordering, "Everyone, please, evacuate in an orderly fashion ASAP! C-SEC and our troops will guide you to safety!"
Tevos, Sparatus and the Salarian representative exchanged worried looks, before Tevos asked, "Are you sure of this threat?"
"About as sure as I am of the fact my name is Veronica, ma'am," The woman replied as she helped Chuchi don her vest. She gave a wave to Palmer to get the Council out of here, then paused as she heard the proverbial pin in the thunderstorm:The clock of a bolt going into battery. She pushed Chuchi out of the way as a silenced shot rang out, striking the woman's shoulder pad and piercing through the armor.
She groaned and landed on the floor, with the Clones immediately swiveling about and aiming at where the shot had come from. Palmer knelt beside her and asked, "You good, Captain!?" as she tried to locate the shot.
"Fine!" Dare huffed, then straightened up and barked, "NINER ACTUAL, floor below you! Left side!" as she drew her pistol. The crowds around them began to scramble for safety as a second shot rang out. It hit Palmer's armor and shattered against the energy shield, with Dare firing her pistol up toward where the shots had come from.
The rounds struck, causing the sniper to move back. A cloaked figure with a trinocular helmet of some kind racked the bolt of her rifle as the Spartans descended toward her. Buck was the first down, turning on his heels and aiming toward the Sniper and calling out, "DROP IT!" only to pause as she aimed and fired again.
The round zipped past the man's head. She stood to her feet and began to run toward a window, with the Spartans following close behind, moving through the crowds. She drew a submachine gun of some kind and lit up the window just as Fox and Bailey came in from the side, with Fox aiming his pistol and firing at her.
She jumped through the window, the rippling whirlwind of atmospheric equalization filling the area. The Spartans and Fox moved to the window, watching the woman falling down toward one of the arms. Buck sighed and said, "Well, back to Drop training it is," before he took a running start and jumped after her.
Fox and Bailey blanked, both watching Alpha-9's three other members do the same. Mickey let out a, "GERONIMOOOO!"
"God help me, I prayed for no more falling!" Dutch stated as he jumped and dived down.
"SHOCK TROOPER, COMIN' THROUGH!" Laughed Romeo as he followed them down. Fox looked at Bailey, who let out a heavy, annoyed sigh before he descended the steps again with the Clone Commander. They moved to take one of the Skycars landed nearby and dived down after Alpha-9. Alpha-9, meanwhile, was diving after the woman like their lives depended on it.
"This feels extremely familiar!" Mickey quipped as he saw the ground closing in really, really fast. OR, well, 'ground', he thought. One of the Citadel's metropolis-sized arms. He spoke, "I think one of the ONI spooks the Captain dealt with actually mentioned having to go through something similar! Pushed one of their own out the window first!"
"I remember her!" Romeo laughed, "Redhead with green eyes! She was cute!"
"She'd'a kicked your ass if her Section Commander mother didn't get you first!" Dutch answered as they formed up. He called out, "Look out! They have a Dropship!" and he pointed at an approaching Kodiak. It dived low, opening its side door. The woman powered a jetpack attached to her armor and landed within the hold.
The Dropship turned and dived down toward the city, with Dutch commenting, "And there she goes…!" only to gasp as he saw something flash by from the right. As they landed on top of said something, Dutch cried out, "ARE WE IN A CAAAAAAR!?" while holding on for dear life. The car had dipped a couple flight levels down thanks to the weight of four fully-equipped Spartans, but Fox, who was driving, didn't care.
"This is Bailey to all C-SEC units. We're trailing in pursuit of Kodiak dropship with no markings, carrying the orchestrator of the attempted assassination of Ambassador Chuchi. We're approaching Zakera Ward from above," Bailey spoke over his own Omni-Tool's radio, "Requesting all available local pursuit units and a gunship, over…!"
"Romeo, get on top of this thing and see if you can't shoot their engines out!" Buck ordered as he clamped his magnetic boots to the hovertruck's bed. They were, in fact, in a hover truck. He drew his assault rifle as they slowly levelled out. Romeo clambered onto the back as well, shouldering his rifle and nodding.
"You're buying drinks if I hit this shot, Gunny!" The man spoke as the vehicles began a chase among the skycar traffic of the Ward. They dived, bobbed and weaved past the vehicles, causing traffic issues. Romeo tried to line up the shot, but spoke, "Too many civvies! If I shoot here, we might wind up causing one hell of a jam!"
"Don't worry about that," Bailey spoke to them over the com, "Our own cars and gunships should push'em into full view soon…" and as they ducked underneath a hover vehicle coming from the other way, they saw several C-SEC Gunships and patrol cars immediately swivel in from three directions, trying to push the pilot out of there.
As they flew out from the traffic, Fox was trying to give Romeo the best shot available. The C-SEC craft rammed into the enemy Kodiak, pushing it up and into Romeo's sights. The Sniper grinned behind his helmet, zeroed in and sniped the left-side engine of the vehicle, penetrating through the generator and exploding a fuel line.
It careened and dived down, landing in the middle of one of the parks around Zakera Ward before skidding to a halt, heavily damaged. The Police, Corries and UNSC descended on it like vultures, dismounting and surrounding the vehicle. As they climbed out and aimed their firearms at the wreck, Bailey yelled into the mic attached to his Omni-Tool, "Come out with your hands up! You're surrounded!"
… The door slid open, revealing a damaged Cylon. It stumbled forward, lifting its gun, but was domed by Fox with his blaster pistol. Behind it, however, lay the damaged frame of the Hybrid Cylon. She raised a detonator in one hand and smiled behind the cracked helmet… Only to lose her hand as Romeo's sniper barked, ripping it off.
She collapsed, helmet falling off her head and revealing her bloodied face. The Troops advanced toward her, Mickey grabbing the detonator off the floor and looking at her, while Buck, Fox and Bailey approached the figure. Keeping their weapons aimed at the wounded woman, they saw her turn toward them, then grin a bloody grin.
"Weapons smuggling, befriending criminals, an attempted assassination of a politician and a lot more… What are you and your buddies doing?" Fox demanded, straightforward.
"... The Cycle will continue… And it will include you all now," She replied weakly, "God will welcome you all in His embrace, through His Angels," and she coughed blood off to the side, "We are merely trying to expedite the process in their name…" and that tipped them off. The Reapers wanted them to be divided, obviously…
Bailey told her, "We'll see about that."
She chuckled, then spat yet more blood to the side, "We sure will… May the Angels' embrace be as gentle to you as it has been to us," before she faded out, the light in her glowing eyes dissipating. She went limp, sole good hand falling to the side. Fox put two fingers up to the side of her neck, then looked at Bailey and shook his head.
That solved one crisis…
Back to the other, however…
As the teams pushed through to their respective objectives, Shepard listened to the communications between various fleet elements. Panicked cries and ships being destroyed, fighters engaging enemy Raiders and the infantry fighting off boarding parties across all three Liveships. It was pandemonium out there and in here, in the Rayya.
"Go! Keep moving! We cleared a path to the docks!" Shepard ordered a few civilian technicians and their families as they ran past them. The hydroponics bays, the massive food supply and distribution centers and the Fleet's lifeline, turned into a battlefield in the snap of a finger. As they walked into the food-growing area, through the towering walls of various dextro-amino friendly vegetables, they could see blood dripping down through the grates below.
Garrus murmured, "Hell of a crop," as he sidestepped one such wall, peering past the corner and past a damaged UV lamp, eyes locked down the sight of his rifle. He turned another corner, then paused as he saw the corpses of Quarians, drilled by bullet holes, laying on the floor. He sighed and paused, then ducked and fired a burst from his rifle just as he spotted the shadow of a machine in the corner.
The rounds ripped through the hydroponic walls and struck the armor plate of a decloaking heavy, which aimed what looked like a rifle at them. It fired a burst, the rounds sending splinters of steel and plant life with the impacts. The Spartans moved up fast and focused it down, firing AP rounds from their guns until the monster was dead on the floor, ripped apart by the guns.
The Clones followed up, with Anakin lifting his hand and sending a shockwave rippling through the hydroponics bay that staggered several camouflaged enemies. The soldiers let loose volleys of plasma fire, with Bold himself ripping through the ammo. The focused burst from the rotary cannon ripped one of the machines in half, while Fives and Jesse snapped headshots.
Anakin threw his lightsaber, the bladed weapon spinning through the air at incredible speeds. When it struck the formation of decloaked machines, it tore them all in half, bisecting them at weird angles before it returned to the Swordsmaster. He grabbed it out of flight and surged forward, utilizing Force Speed to cut down several more machines that were coming out of the woodwork.
Shepard covered his back with a Warp blast followed by a burst from her Mattock, alongside Garrus and a surprisingly angry Tali. The girl had gone from disbelief to straight fury, putting shotgun slugs into the alien machines with extreme prejudice, much to Johnson's approval. The man himself slammed the butt of his shotgun into one of the creatures' chins, then turned and put the barrel under said chin and fired, spraying steel and brains across the wall.
Garrus took several rounds, causing his shields to collapse. Chief stepped up in front of him and took the bursts next, but a few rounds punctured the armor and embedded themselves within the natural plate the Turian had beneath. He groaned and said, "I'm hit!" only for Shepard to immediately administer medigel to the lot of'em.
Fred pushed up to Tali and helped her clear a path through to the other side of the place. They both witnessed a few Civilians emerging and running toward them for cover, with a machine not far behind. Fred and his little drone buddy, which had followed them all the way over, engaged, with the Drone utilizing whatever remained of its armaments to disable the mechs ahead.
As they cut them down and took wounds from it, Shepard radioed, "All other teams, report!"
"Medical is secured, Commander. The staff and patients are in a strong room and we've held off approximately three strike teams of these machines… Not for lack of taking bullets ourselves," Rhasits spoke surprisingly serenely. Kyra gave a light-hearted cheer over the com, but with a fearful undertone. Samara gave an affirmative huff to confirm.
"Reactor's all clear, though not for lack of these bastards really trying," Jacob quipped as the thunderclap of a gun firing echoed over the com. As reports came in that the teams were clearing out the area, the news of casualties soon began to echo over the com, plus Maydays. She also heard the news from the outside.
Outside, the battle was turning. The Fleet had finally managed to get clear and, with the Galactica and the other ships on the move, Commander Adama started, "Mister Gaeta, the moment the last ship clears out of our line of fire, I want every weapon we have, from missiles to the Onager MACs on salvo fire! Time to show the Cylon our new teeth!"
"Sir!" Gaeta saluted, then activated PA and said, "All weapons systems, initiate Salvo Fire! Target lock the lead ships and fire at will!"
The Battlestar and her squadrons finally began to sweep the skies clear of the Cylons' birds, tracer rounds rippling through the void from the ship's point-defenses. Meanwhile, the Onager MAC turrets swiveled into position, locking onto the Reaper Cylon warships. One of said warships fired a beam from its MHD gun, lashing across the top deck of the carrier. Though fires burned and a second shot struck from a sister ship, the Galactica advanced undeterred.
Starbuck, who was now out and flying again with Lee and the rest of the squadron, watched the old girl drive her way through the crowd of ships under the escort of the Patrol and Heavy Fleets of the Quarians, or whatever remained of them. The Fleets laid into the enemy force, their Kinetic barriers flashing as more nukes started to fly.
The pilots dived onto and destroyed the Nukes, with Kat reporting, "I just lost Pool Cue!" as she watched a Viper explode under enemy fire. The Galactica's guns soon returned fire, however. Swarms of Archer Missiles left the maw of the warship, while the Onagers fired in rapid succession, each battery firing double, like the beat of taiko drums in her ears.
The blonde pilot grinned, watching the rounds rip through the Kinetic barriers of the Support craft, then clean through her hull, missiles raining down on the ship and cratering its armor plate. The Battlestar fired again, this time at the enemy Basestars, and struck one of them with all the full might of her arsenal, cracking through her kinetic barriers.
The Normandy, which had so far been providing covering fire and destroying enemy fighters, too, dived down onto them like a shark. The Thanix cannon in her maw screamed, the burst of their own MHD cutting a deep gash on one of the two sides of the Basestar, ripping through the mechanical flesh-like protrusions. She then rained down fire from the guns mounted on her side, bursts detonating across the hull of the enemy ship.
Starbuck blanked, however, when she heard Joker speak, "Admiral Harper, she's all yours!" and felt a chill shoot up her spine as multiple friendly contacts appeared on her DRADIS. She first saw them blot out the sun, their black hulls glowing against the background shade, their gun-shaped Frigates diving in first and firing.
"This is Fleet Admiral Harper. Battlegroup Athens is here to assist. Phoenix vessels proceed with Search and Rescue. Combat units… Fire at will. Rip these bastards apart."
The heavy MACs of the Fleet barked in unison with those of the Galactica. High-velocity ferromagnetic projectiles fell like hammer blows onto the enemy's ships, ripping through the hull of the already damaged Basestar. One round struck the Reactor of the ship, causing it to explode in a burning flash that enveloped the remnants of another section of the Fleet.
Commander Adama smiled as his crew cheered, with Starbuck, Lee and the other pilots audibly crying out battle cries to the UNSC's pilots. They saw Republic starfighters joining in next, with few Venator-class carriers not far behind the UNSC fleet providing starfighter support. Cortana appeared on the holographic table and said, "Commander, Colonel. Sorry to interrupt the celebrations, but I'm painting you and the whole fleet a good target… Their Command Basestar with a Hybrid aboard."
"Chief's AI," Adama hummed, then nodded and said, "Much appreciated. All crews, update targeting sequences and shoot that son of a bitch out of the sky," as he tapped a few buttons. Cortana nodded, dropping a mark right on the center ship. MAC rounds rained down on the enemy fleet continuously, with them barely able to return fire.
The Frigates aimed for their mounted weapons, firing into them with MACs and Missiles until their barrels glowed, destroying the magnetohydrodynamic railguns with extreme prejudice. The hulls of the biomechanical vessels began to crumple under the sustained and furious barrage, the few remaining Military vessels of the Quarians most fervently firing, their barrels warping due to the heat as they barraged the enemy ships.
… Before long, however, Cortana gasped, eyes widening, "Power surge on the Command Basestar-!"
… And the Basestar flashed out of existence, jumping away and leaving the remnants of its fleet under the whittling firepower of the Fleets. As the UNSC's support elements dived down to assist, with repair vessels adjoining themselves to the Galactica, the battle died down and ended, the last enemy Basestar now a floating husk in the middle of the Raheel-Leyya system…
Counting the dead came next…
AN:And lo and behold, the last chapter of 2024 is a big one!
Happy new year to all my readers! May the next year be just as fruitful as this!