Standard Disclaimer: I own nothing in regards to Harry Potter, Mass Effect, or Star Wars. All properties therein are those of their creators. I am only a writer working on my skills with worlds and characters that I love.

Chapter Seven - Introductions

"Are you going to sulk the entire way to Earth, Sirius?" Satine teased as their vessel finished its last authorization checks before entering into the Mass Effect Relay. Ahead of her, their pilot was still visibly steaming as he nursed an absolutely enormous mug of Caf.

"I have been living in a non-stop orgy for the last month, boss, so what do you think?"

In the chair beside Satine, Obi-Wan offered, "Why is it that Earthlings seem to be so engrossed in fulfilling every possible carnal desire?"

Sirius spun his chair around and glared at the Jedi. "Not all Earthlings, Kenobi. Harry and I are just that awesome!"

Obi-Wan, keeping his face expressionless by sheer force of will, continued, "Well, out of a pool of two that we've ever met, you and Harry both seem to be utterly ruled by your dicks. Look at Satine and I. We were in the middle of making sweet passionate love when we were called to service and you don't see either of us complaining too much."

Sirius eyed the other man for several seconds before finally realizing he was being teased, and threw back his head with laughter, the bad mood finally broken. "Harry has been a terrible influence on you, old boy. You never used to have a sense of humor."

Satine clicked a button on her armrest and her chair hovered over the floor to her husband's side so she could rest her head on his shoulder. "Darth Rache taught him several other things too. What was that tongue trick you used last night, dear?"

"The Basilisk Slip? Oh yes, who would have thought one could use the force to make their tongues start vibrating? I'll tell you who. The Emperor!"

"Okay, too much information. I already get enough of this kind of talk with Harry and Fett at poker night." Sirius laughed again and turned back to his control panel as the green light began flashing, signaling that flight control had given him permission to proceed. A neighboring blue light signified that their detachment of Clone escorts was already armed and ready in their transport hold. Everything was ready for the next step. "This is gonna be my first time using this travel lane so strap in for a bumpy ride."

The passengers did so and seconds later their viewport filled with a circular column of off kilter light and a hull vibrating crescendo that settled down after about a minute as the vessel adjusted to the new medium of transportation. Turned out it wasn't as volatile a trip as had been expected.

Once the ship reached the new galaxy the wizard typed in the travel vectors that the Rancor had established for Earth and he was honestly surprised by how swift the trip was. The distance between inhabited worlds must be shorter in this place.

Though once the green planet came into sight, the passengers had to support their pilot from falling out of his chair as raw emotion fell like a curtain over his face. "I never thought I'd see Earth again." He whispered as he dragged himself back to the control panel. "I didn't think it would hit me this hard."

Satine smiled in commiseration and placed her hand on his shoulder. "I feel the same way every time I head home to Mandalore. It's like my soul feels a physical blessing every time it is assured that its home is still there. It's only right that this is a similar experience for you. Are you going to be alright?"

Sirius rubbed the heels of his hands into his temples for a few moments and nodded as he leaned back toward his instruments. "Yeah, I'll be good in a few seconds. Plenty of time to get us planetside with time to spare. By my count we'll still be about five minutes early for our scheduled arrival."

Five minutes later their ship made its final approach to London Inter-Galactic Starport, and they found an interesting sight waiting for them. Twin rows, three men deep, of soldiers in full service dress were waiting in procession leading the way to a group of five men and women in fine clothing representing various nationalities.

"Well," Satine drawled, "they certainly pulled out all the stops." She turned her head to address the white and yellow armored clone waiting at a position of attention behind her. The man had been the head of her palace guard from the moment the Clone Wars had ended, as he had insisted on staying on to 'watch over his chaos-magnet General'. "Commander Cody, please ready the way."

The Clone saluted with a fist to the chest before barking orders to his cadre, and moments later all fifty of them descended the ramp in perfect synchronicity before turning heels as one to form a hallway of armor for the duo to walk down, now safely separated from the earthling soldiers that had been waiting for them. A fine show of military discipline, as well as a greater defense should this meeting turn out to be a trap in disguise.

"Be nice, dear." Obi-Wan took his wife's arm and started leading the way, sharing a conspiratorial wink with Sirius as the black haired man returned to the ship's depths. The three of them had already discussed it and while the man was going to be 'watching the ship' he was really going to be apparating over to England to see if there was any trace to be found of wizarding society. "We are here to put on an agreeable face for the empire, remember?"

"I remember who the diplomat is in this marriage, Obi." Satine teased right back as the foreigners finally came within the last few feet of them. They exchanged bows and curtsies, and the Mandalorian couple snickered a bit at the wide-eyed stares their foreign garb was inciting in the faces of the onlookers. Then, before they could get the first word in, the Duchess gave her opening remarks.

Flaring the ornately sewn sleeves of her dress wide to her sides for dramatic effect, she proclaimed, "Greetings to you all in the name of Emperor Potter, the Great Darth Rache, first of his name, and Dark Lord of the Sith. I am Grand Duchess Satine Kryze-Kenobi, and I speak with his voice. Today I welcome you all to a brave new universe, and declare my hopes that we might learn to live and grow together in peace, as neighbors should."

Bringing her arms back before her and folding her hands into those same sleeves, she added, "As an aside, I do hope after seeing a fourth of our navy you've learned the potential penalties for dealing with us in false faith."

Elsewhere

Lily Potter was both frustrated and existing in absolute heaven. She was frustrated to have been left behind on the ship while her father had all the fun with his new gal pals. On the other hand, she was equally in heaven, as after three hours of nonstop sparring she was soaked in sweat… and so was Shepard. They were each wearing light sweats and by the gods… the redhead's clothing was clinging to her body better than any woman the Togruta had ever seen before.

Her mother, clearly sensing the mood, had already left them behind to 'attend to other duties'. And now, with her energy spent, anger diminished, and her lust at an all time high, Lily was all set to make her biggest move on her new friend, yet.

So of course that was when the alarms started going off. Giving Shepard a sultry wink, the princess ran over to a wall mounted console and hailed the bridge. The news she received in clarification had her laughing out loud and rushing out the door enroute to the hanger.

Jane, already exhausted, had to struggle to keep up, pushing her natural biotics to the limits just to stay level with her and maintain her breath enough to ask, "What is it? Are we under attack?" The redhead was getting progressively more worried about her crew that was currently still staying in her ship within the bulk of the larger craft.

"Nope!" Lily giggled as she continued speeding down the halls. "Our sensors started reacting to a new ship entering our airspace and, oh, I can't wait!" She actually squeed with delight. Her pace increased as a result and no further words were possible until they finally reached the light-field barrier leading to the massive hanger bay. Inside, still humming in cooldown as its thruster flaps slid closed, was a vessel that hadn't been there before. It was an odd design of green and red artistry, and Lily force-leapt over the railing and soared down to the floor to continue running right for it; not even taking a moment to appreciate the sight, something that informed Shepard that this was a craft the Princess knew well.

By the time the Commander finally found some stairs to take her down a level so she could reach the impatiently foot-tapping Togruta's side, the lower hatch was already hissing open. The moment the long ramp touched down and a group of people appeared in the gloom of the backlight, Lily was racing up the aisle, scooping a short being into her arms and spinning in a happy circle.

"Grandpa Yoda!" The red-skinned girl squeed as the onlookers behind them groaned.

Seeing that things seemed alright, Jane started up after her friend, taking note as she did of the twin lines of men in white armor marching down past her in perfect synchronization. That level of discipline was… more than a bit scary. Though strangely enough, these soldiers didn't carry the symbol of the empire on their shoulder pauldrons. Instead they had an image that appeared to be a lightsaber mounted between a set of red wings.

When she reached the top she found the Princess cuddling an old, green-skinned, alien with big pointy ears as a group of brown-robed humanoids of varying other races palmed their faces in clear discomfort.

"Master Yoda," one of them noted warily, a female with blue skin and twin tentacles falling back from her head like hair, "please, this is quite unseemly. We of the Council should maintain our dignity in all cases-"

"Oh, quiet please." The green midget chuckled lightly and shifted in Lily's grip until he was instead sitting easily on her shoulders. "Nothing wrong, there is, with affection between friends. Known this youngling since in diapers she was. Right, it is, for delight and kindness when returned to her presence."

Clearly so wound up that even the mention of her infancy wasn't enough to set her off, Lily tried to work her neck enough to look up at the Jedi and practically yelled, "Did you bring presents!?"

Yoda chuckled deeply and patted the woman's head softly as he answered, "Of course I did. Brought sweets from eight worlds, have I, to share."

"Yay!" Lily practically began hopping in place for a few seconds before finally remembering that Shepard was there, at once settling down and trying to regain her former composure. "Eh, um, sorry about that, everyone. But what brings you out here, Grandpa?"

"Princess," A beleaguered looking, bald, dark skinned man spoke up, "for the thousandth time, would you please address the Grandmaster with his title? If for no other reason than to offer proper respect for his past achievements."

"Sorry, Master Windu." Lily actually looked a bit remorseful before piping up with a rather smug, "You know, your son is currently in the mess hall if you'd like to give him one of your famous lectures…." Before anyone else could comment on that they were met with a buffet wind of displaced air and the bald man was gone. "Works every time." Lily laughed before addressing the alien on her shoulders once more.

"The question still stands 'Master' Yoda. What brings you out into the bounds of a new galaxy?"

The green being gestured to the air around him. "Called us here, the Force did, little one. Our way it is, to follow. Glad I am, that we did so hastily. Full of chaos this galaxy is, and the information we have found is… troubling. Lacking in balance, these stars are. Too much rage, fear, and mistrust, and not enough logic, love, or understanding to tip the scale back. Trust us, your father does, to bridge gaps he cannot see to, so come have we."

Lily grinned wide enough to unconsciously display her larger than normal canines and added, "And you coming to this particular ship first had 'nothing' to do with wanting a crack at my father's private whiskey collection, did it?"

"Princess, affronted am I at such an insinuation." Yoda chuckled with ease, gesturing for her to lead the way back into the ship proper. "Just because, ran out have I, of the last bottle I liberated from him, no reason is there to suspect such miscreant behavior. Above such things am I."

"Sure. Sure. Sure." Lily reached the bottom of the ramp and offered, "So you 'don't' want his latest code to his secure lockup?"

"Say that, did I?"

Tuchanka

Urdnot Rot, second in command to Urdnot Wrex, current leader of their clan in the big guy's absence, could hardly believe his eyes. Moments earlier alarms for an intruder action began to sound, but instead of indicating another raid from the tunnels below, as was customary, the sensors were telling them that a ship of unknown origin was descending through the extremely irradiated atmosphere on a direct course to land just outside their facility's front entrance. No one in Citadel Space had the balls for something like that! Certainly not any of the other clans on Tuchanka that Rot could name either.

He of course had rallied the troops, ensured they were armored up with anti-radiation gear and shotguns and led them out en masse to face down whatever punk had decided to pick a fight with the toughest warriors in the universe. Which was of course when he realized that nothing was going to go as planned.

The moment he got outside he saw the reflective hull of the ship hovering above… and at least two hundred humanoids in battered and painted armor spread out in a half circle facing him and his men, all with long rifles and heavy blaster-pistols aimed and primed right at them. In the time it had taken their number to get ready, their invaders had turned what amounted to their front porch into a killing field.

Just as he was considering ordering his warriors to charge, regardless, to allow for a proper death in battle, a lone figure strode forth from the rest with all the confidence of a thresher maw until they were standing still right in front of him.

There was a brief burst of static, and then a distinctly female voice came piping out of the speakers within the rather gaudily painted helmet. "You are the leader of this clan?"

Rot's rage and confusion gave way to curiosity at that point. He'd never in his life seen a human female wear such armor with such clear comfort and ease. This was a human that actually knew what is was to live in battle steel. A rarity beyond rarities. "... Yes, I am Urdnot Rot, standing for Clan Leader Wrex."

"Excellent." A moment later the thrusters of her jetpack ignited in a short burst that raised her height three feet and the woman slammed her helm into the bone ridging Rot's head. Obviously the blow wasn't enough to even stagger him, but it was a better sign of respect than he'd received in years.

Once the human's feet touched the ground again she proclaimed, "I am Envoy Sabine Wren, of Clan Wren, and I bring tidings from the Mandalore. We are here to save your race from obscurity."

Rot rubbed the crown of bone that ridged his head and figured if nothing else, hearing this Sabine person out would give him some time to gain a better position than he currently found himself in. "I'm listening."

Elsewhere

Sirius let loose with a depressed groan as he continued walking through the desolate and deserted streets of Hogsmead. Everywhere he looked was nothing but rundown structures and broken windows. He'd figured it would be like this, but seeing it for himself was something different entirely. Even back in his own time he'd witnessed the sheer stubborn obstinacy of his kind in the face of the advancement of the times. Mobile phones were starting to become a thing and yet witches and wizards were still doggedly kept on living as if it were the Victorian age, while openly scoffing at any opinions of moving forward from anyone that provided it.

Wizardkind wouldn't change, it wouldn't evolve, it wouldn't even attempt to move forward, because, in the end, they genuinely just did not want to. And the Wizengamot would have blown a gasket (and likely a blasting hex) at anyone that would have tried to warn them what their stubbornness would no doubt lead to. His first stop at the Ministry had already revealed to him that much. His old flame Amilia Bones had been as dogged in her need to journal the events of her life to the end as she had been in the prime of their youth.

As always, when things began to get tough, magicals had decided to run and hide. Voldemort's sudden and unexpected return had caused his war to spiral ever and ever more out of control until the civilians had decided to say 'fuck it' and run for the hills. Unfortunately, thousands of everyday wizards and witches had entered the muggle population at once, and so used to living in isolated conditions were they that they'd been utterly irresponsible in showing off their magical ability… including public use of mind-altering spells…

The Statute of Secrecy was shattered, the muggle governments had responded by isolating the magicals in military compounds, and the public were 'informed' of the 'sudden' presence of Bionic Humans occurring in their midst. A 'natural mutation' they called it, and one that they took a firm hand in regulating from that day forward. Things got better for them after the First Contact War, where they served an integral role in saving human lives on battlefields normal humans could not realistically have hoped to survive in, but it had no doubt been a hard paved road to get there. Nowadays people tended to see Bionics as one of their most important resources, instead of a race of people to be feared.

It was almost ironic. In the end, Voldemort had succeeded in bridging the gap between the worlds, but he'd failed in his dream of dominating it. Instead, he'd seen the utter end of all liberty and freedom for the Magical race. Amilia had written that last before signing off for the last time and sending a drilling curse through her head as the muggle military continued trying to break through her office door.

Sirius' feet carried him out of the town proper, up the winding brick path, and finally to the hanging open great doors to Hogwarts Castle. To say that the former grandeur of the facility was no longer present would be the understatement of the century. In fact, everything in sight was downright trashed. As he made his way through the great hall the wizard couldn't even see a single bench that hadn't been cleaved in two or smashed. Either a great battle had been fought here or a Wookie wrestling match had somehow gotten started on the premises and then spiraled out of control.

Every room, every floor, it was all the same. The last great bastion for magic was nothing but a rotting husk of what it had once been. A sad example of his species in the end. After over an hour of searching he couldn't even find any spellbooks in the library that had survived the passage of time, and he was all set to call it a day and return to his ship when a final idea popped into his head. Dumbledore. If anyone had been paranoid enough to squirrel away some reading material in a manner that would last through the ages it would be him.

In seconds Sirius was altering course to make his way to the upper levels and up the hidden staircase to the old man's office; a location that both he and James had become 'very' familiar with over years, what with how often they'd been reprimanded there for their pranking antics.

Though all that familiarity could do nothing to prepare him for what he saw when he finally gave the password (after guessing different candy names for five minutes) and entered the inner sanctum of one of the greatest wizards to have ever lived.

"Black…." A harsh, sibilant, voice screeched from within a cluttered mess of rotten robes and bones on the floor. "Come…. To… die… at last…"

"Oh hell no! Stupefy!" He sent a red light crashing into the rotting form and promptly transfigured it into a feather before slamming it into the nearest box and conjuring over a dozen chains as thick as his wrists to cinch it tight. "What the fuck! What the fuck! What the fuck!" He kept whisper-screaming to himself as stress began to take root in his mind at what he'd just discovered. "This can't be real. It can't be real. It just can't…." He forced himself to take in several deep, centering, breaths, and concentrated on some of the meditative exercises that Ayla Secura had managed to beat into him between bouts of sparring and… admittedly… staring lustfully at her cleavage. Something that had inevitably led to even more sparring. Painful, but totally worth it, sparring.

In the end he figured that this was far beyond his ability to deal with. Did he want to destroy the abomination he'd discovered? Abso-fucking-lutely. But it wasn't his place. Harry had more right to that life than any other in existence, so he'd let him make the final decision on it.

So it was, that decision made, he apparated both himself and the chest back to the transport vessel to await the return of the Dutchess.

Meanwhile

"I am sorry, Grand Duchess," The representative for England, one of over a hundred gathered dignitaries at the long table, sputtered, "but surely we must have misheard you."

"No, I am sure that you heard me perfectly." Satine smiled thinly at the rotund man and slowly turned her gaze out to pan over the others. She'd been ambushed with a sudden meeting that her schedule had listed as not supposed to have been occurring for several hours yet, a clear ploy to put her off her game, so she was feeling absolutely no guilt about giving them the direct approach for the affront. "My Emperor's wishes were very clear, and I present them to you now. "We will accept no embassies from you or the other Council races. Their treatment of Princess Lily ensured that outcome surely enough. We will not have open immigration to your people or any of theirs either. As far as intergalactic travel is concerned, our borders are completely closed. Individuals may be allowed in on a case-by-case-basis, but that is up to the purview of the royal family and the Jedi Order."

"However, we will allow for the trade of foodstuffs… from our farmers to your people of course. We have no need of any of your products."

"Are you saying there will be no conversation or negotiations either on the topic of the trade of weapons?" The representative for America inquired.

"No weapons." Satine confirmed. "Your civilization is simply not ready, as it stands, for the destructive power our military arms could bring to it."

Not one to be put off, the Englishman huffed and declared, "Clearly your empire has no idea what diplomacy truly means if this is how you come to a diplomatic meeting and present yourself. You cannot just hop into our space quadrant and dictate unilateral terms for how things are going to be going forward. Is this how one human empire treats another where you come from!?"

Satine raised a brow. "What makes you think we are a human empire? The realm of the Sith encompasses thousands of worlds and trillions of lives. Amongst those numbers are hundreds of alien races, many of which are highly placed within our government. And as for skills in diplomacy, I have been working towards galactic peace and pacifistic tendencies since before you were in diapers." Seeing the man about to start blustering again she explained, "I am older than I look. A good twenty years more."

Seeing an opportunity, the representative for India inquired, "How can sheer statements with no room for negotiation or 'active' trade and travel be considered pacifistic tendencies?"

The blonde diplomat began drumming her fingers on the wood of the table as she answered, "Do you know what I learned after becoming Emperor Rache's Chief Diplomat? I learned that diplomacy and pacifism are a hell of a lot easier to embody when everyone that could potentially bring violence and harm to those you love understands that you hold the biggest stick in existence, and that those you protect stand head and shoulders above anything they are capable of bringing to bear against them. The Empire is bigger than you can possibly imagine. It is more advanced than you can possibly imagine. It is closer to perfection than you can possibly imagine. I can be a pacifist because I know that even attempting a single violent action against us will end with the aggressor's assured destruction. The empire is the sheer definition of annihilation."

Continuing on amidst the horrified stares of her audience, she added, "However, with that power and understanding comes certain truths that are sometimes, admittedly, hard for others to swallow. Truths such as the fact that letting large amounts of an unknown element simply travel through our borders so soon after meeting them is a massive risk for terrorism and sabotage that does not need to be endured when we can supply all of our own needs. Furthermore, we simply do not trust you. Emperor Rache is familiar with your world, and the history it represents for him is one of true distrust. He sent me to make a decision on whether or not you were trustworthy enough for greater diplomatic talks, but so far my impression has not been a good one. Your Spectre is an additional example he is using as his litmus test for whether your kind have changed their ways enough to seriously be considered for greater dealings going forward, but once I tell him how I have been treated here today I imagine that all of her efforts will be… reduced, going forward."

With her piece said, the blonde pushed her chair back and stood firmly back on her feet, resting the knuckles of her fists on the hardtop of the table before her. "I believe in peace. I believe in the pursuit of pacifism. So it is with a heart of steel that I beg you not to push us. Do not try my Emperor's patience or resolve. He speaks with the lives of trillions on his conscience at all times, and if he has to make a choice weighing their safety and prosperity against perceived aggression on your part… he will not hesitate to wipe your world from the void of the galaxy. I can assure you that he has already made great strides in military research and development that would not even require a planetary bombardment."

At last she pulled her fists away and smoothed the wrinkles of her dress as her husband settled her fur cloak over her shoulders. "Gentlemen, there was clearly a miscommunication about my presence on this world. I did not come to open clear channels of trade between us, as many of you seem to have assumed. No, I came to see a world for myself that my lord and master is fascinated by, and to deliver to you the warning and hope of my people. Do not invite a war that you 'will' lose. Good day to you all."

And with that, the Mandalorian swept her cloak dramatically behind her and took her leave of the building, with all of her captive audience still too shocked to even consider running after her or trying to stop her. Satine let loose with the first smile of the evening as her clone honor guard met her with firm salutes of respect and honor for fulfilling her duty, and she returned the gesture in kind as they marched up the ramp of the ship after her. She'd have quite the report to deliver to Harry when they got back to Empire Space, and from the look on her pilot's face it was pretty clear that he had his own story to tell as well. Interesting….