CHAPTER 12
Green treetops moved at a blur beneath the drone as it soared over the Everfree forest. Its camera swiveled from side to side, scanning the forest for its prey. Birds burst from their nests in the trees, disturbed by the foreign device flying in their airspace. The small engine beneath the drone sent unsecured leaves soaring into the air and falling onto the forest floor below. As it continued gliding along the treetops, the camera finally caught site of its target in the distance.
The ship was not large; as a frigate, it came in at one hundred and seventy meters long. However, the relatively small size did not mean it was harmless. The twin Thanix cannons on the bottom of the ship were immensely powerful, and the crew was known across the galaxy for its effectiveness. Despite all of this knowledge, the drone continued on. It felt no fear, and it had no self-preservation instincts. Everything it saw was immediately sent back to the Cerberus base in Gryphonia and stored for review. As long as it found something, destruction was inconsequential.
The drone closed in on the ship, its gimballed camera scanning the crash site. The ship had sustained damage, that much was clear. If the scorch marks were not evidence enough, then the removed paneling and crew crawling on the hull definitely were. A number of Normandy technicians moved around the top of the ship, each one equipped with several tools meant for repair. Sparks shot up from areas where panels had been removed as the crew worked on restoring the frigate. Taking several images, the drone opened a quick channel to the Cerberus base and transmitted all that it had seen so far.
Before the drone could see any more, invisible forces tore at the small device and began rapidly pulling it down to the ground. The camera feed cut out as it slammed into the dirt, and the drone went quiet…
Liara T’Soni watched as the small dot plummeted from the sky, the effects of her biotic attack yielding instant results. It disappeared a short ways past the tree line, landing with an audible thump as it hit the forest floor. Equipping a pistol, Liara jogged down from the Normandy airlock and headed in the direction she had seen the drone fall. It did not take her long to reach it, and when she did she holstered her pistol and cautiously approached the device. Sparks shot from cracks in the outer plating, and dirt coated the otherwise pristine white outer surface. No symbols on the outside gave any indication as to who owned the drone. That discovery would have to come later.
Carefully, Liara activated her omni-tool and waved it over the drone, scanning for traps. The results came back negative, and she hefted the small device, grunting as she got it into a comfortable position. It was heavier now that the mass effect field generator was offline, and it took Liara considerably longer to return to the airlock. When she did, she noticed Javik standing in the door, his prothean assault rifle held at the ready.
“What did you find?” he asked as the asari drew closer.
“A drone,” Liara answered, climbing up to the airlock. Javik stretched out his arms, offering to take the drone. She gratefully passed the device to him, pausing for a moment to catch her breath.
“Alright…” she said, sighing. “Let’s take it down to my office.” The airlock cycled, and Liara led Javik down the CIC to the elevator. They remained silent, which Liara was perfectly fine with. Conversation would only prevent her from thinking about the source of the device.
A short elevator ride later, Liara entered her office with Javik close at hand. He deposited the drone onto an empty table, then stepped back and looked to the asari.
“You found it!” remarked Glyph, activating in the corner of the room. He floated over to the incapacitated drone, his single eye scanning over it.
“Yes, thank you for the help, Glyph.” The VI had been quite helpful in locating the drone. With EDI offline and a shortage of staff to watch the scanners, it had almost gone unnoticed. Even if there were sufficient crew members watching the scanners, without Liara’s more advanced scanning suite they never would have picked it up.
“Now what?” Javik asked, the corners of his mouth turned down.
“Now I open it…” A quick visual scan of the drone showed four screws, two on either side of the outer shell. Opening a desk drawer, Liara produced a number of small cylindrical devices and placed them into the head of each screw. With the task done, she stepped back and looked to Glyph.
“Be ready,” she said.
“Of course, Doctor T’Soni.” Nodding, Liara summoned a small biotic barrier around the drone. The room was filled with the hum of the barrier, and the blue light it emitted danced over Liara’s face.
“Okay, now,” she commanded. Each of the devices she had placed pulled each screw out of their sockets, and the top of the outer shell popped up as it disconnected from the rest of the drone. After a moment passed and nothing happened, Liara dropped her barrier, satisfied that it was safe. Her omni-tool scan outside had confirmed there were no traps, but the asari was nothing if not cautious.
She approached the drone and pulled the top of the shell off, placing it on another part of the table. Immediately she began to scrutinize the interior of the drone, looking over every piece of visible hardware. Her face fell as her azure eyes passed over the charred remains of what appeared to be a storage drive. Next to it was a trigger for a small explosive. The drone was rigged to wipe its memory if anything happened to it, and clearly the manufacturer wanted to be sure that nothing could be recovered. She sighed and stepped away, her eyes closed.
“Did you find anything?” Javik asked, crossing over to the drone. Liara paused before shaking her head.
“No,” she said. “Not yet. Whatever data this drone held is permanently gone. However, it may hold some other secrets…” Liara turned to her assistant who remained next to the drone. “Glyph, make a 3D scan of the device. If I accidentally break anything, I want a template to go off of.”
“Yes, Doctor T’Soni.” As her holographic assistant began his scan, Liara opened her omni-tool and began to search the extranet for drones similar to the one sitting before her. It did not take her long to determine that no such drones existed. Whoever this belonged to, it was entirely custom. Looking back to the drone, it began to dawn on Liara just how difficult it would be to determine the drone’s point of origin. It was not something that could be done in a short span of time.
Shaking her head, Liara stepped away from the table and turned to the door. Javik looked at her quizzically, and she motioned for him to follow her. If she was going to find the owner of this drone, it was going to take coffee. A lot of it.
Luna watched as Kaidan paced back and forth, a hand set upon his troubled brow. On a nearby table lay a small tablet, and on it was a message that the princess could not read. Whatever it said, it had instantly changed Kaidan’s demeanor. The rest of the Normandy crew had reacted similarly, though they remained sitting around the room. Finally after several more moments of pacing, Kaidan sat down and let out a sigh.
“… Are you all right, major?” Celestia asked after a pause, a look of concern on her face. The human shook his head and stood back up to retrieve the tablet.
“No…” he answered. “I… Liara found a drone spying on the Normandy.”
“A drone?” Luna inquired.
“A small flying device with a camera on it,” Kaidan explained. “Beyond the technology level of any species on this planet. I think we can safely assume that this belongs to the individual indoctrinating the griffons.”
“Why does this concern you so much?” Celestia asked. “Surely whoever it is knows about you. The entire world knows about you by now.”
“It’s not that,” the major sighed. “I know that he, she, or they probably know about us. What worries me is that they found the Normandy. She’s a sitting duck right now with the engines still offline. If this enemy was to attack her, I don’t know if we could win.”
“We could station a few squads of guards outside, if you would like,” Luna suggested.
“Thank you for the offer, princess, but I think I would prefer Alliance soldiers defending the Normandy,” Kaidan said. “This enemy has the same technology as we do. I’d like to try matching it evenly, no offense.”
“Well then what can we do?” Tali asked from her position on a couch across from Kaidan.
“Nothing,” he answered. “Not until Liara finds the identity of the owner.”
“There is one thing that can be done,” Celestia began, drawing all eyes to her. The princess looked to Legion, who was standing beside one of the couches. “Twilight should be somewhere in the castle. I would guess that she is either in the library or in her quarters. Please find her and have her teach you our written language.”
“Acknowledged,” the geth said, nodding. He crossed to the door and exited, the sounds of his footsteps echoing down the hallway as he went to find the newest alicorn.
“As for the rest of you, I have a few questions.”
“Go ahead, princess,” Garrus said.
“A few days ago you mentioned that a temporary capital was being established on one of your worlds. Sur’kesh, I believe it was called,” she continued. “When will we be able to go?”
“Soon, we hope,” Kaidan answered. “Within a week. From what I’ve heard, new councilors have been elected. All that’s left is to make sure things are still functioning after the Reapers. Economies, manufacturing, et cetera. I’ll keep you in the loop.”
“Thank you, Major.”
“And how is Commander Shepard faring?” Luna asked, giving Tali a knowing look. “Has more information been gained regarding his condition?”
“He’s…” Tali began, apprehensive. “Not good… His wounds are severe. It’s… a miracle he has survived this long…” Luna frowned, feeling sorrow for the quarian.
“If anybody can survive, it is him,” the princess of the night said comfortingly. “From what we have heard, he is a strong human. He will endure, I am sure of it.” She could not see her face, but to Luna it looked as though her remark had slightly improved Tali’s mood.
“We should go, sister,” Celestia suggested. “There is work to be done.” Nodding, Luna turned and followed her sister out of the room, closing the door behind her.
“What do you think of this attack, Tia?” Luna asked, concerned.
“It would be lying if I said I was not alarmed,” Celestia answered. “But the crew of the Normandy is capable. Things will work out.” Nodding slowly, Luna began following Celestia down the stretch of castle hallway, away from the crew…
Foster sighed and shook his head as the feed from the drone cut out. The images of the battle-scarred Normandy were replaced by flickering lines of static, and two words dominated the screen before him: CONNECTION LOST.
“Were the images saved?” he asked to the room of technicians around him.
“Affirmative, sir,” one tech reported. “From these images, it appears as though their engines have sustained critical damage. They may be immobilized.”
A hint of a smile graced Foster’s lips. “Good. Has connection been established with Sentinel Station?”
“Nearly,” another tech answered. “We are not receiving a response from any Cerberus personnel. Only the station’s VI is answering.”
“Keep trying,” Foster ordered. “Contact me when a connection has been achieved.”
“Yes, sir.”
Foster took a few steps away from the large screen, then turned and stepped into the elevator at the back of the room. He entered his destination as the holding cells, and stood back as the door closed and the lift began its descent. The numbers of the floors ticked by as the elevator lowered itself further into the surface of Equis. As it reached the bottom floor, the door opened and Foster stepped out, immediately heading to the only occupied cell. The guard on duty opened the door, and the doctor entered the small cell, his eyes trained on its sole occupant. The griffon had relocated from the corner to the center of the room, his green eyes trained on a single spot on the floor.
“Sharptooth,” Foster said, drawing the griffon’s attention. The ex-prime minister slowly looked up at the human, his eyes never blinking. Foster smiled as he realized that indoctrination was complete. The griffon’s mind now belonged to Cerberus.
“Sharptooth…” the human repeated, kneeling down by the indoctrinated griffon. “Are you ready to fulfill your purpose?” The griffon nodded apprehensively, a hint of fear showing in his otherwise emotionless eyes.
“Good. Here is what I need you to do…”
Princess Luna took a seat on a clump of pillows in the corner of her sister’s room, letting out a sigh. Celestia was pacing back and forth, shaking her head. In her telekinetic grip was a rolled up piece of parchment, its wax seal broken. Celestia placed the message on her desk, unfurling it once more.
“This cannot be genuine,” she said. Luna glanced over at her sister.
“It has his signature and the seal of the griffon government,” the princess of the night said, standing from the pillows. “Even though the seal means nothing now, a signature is not easily faked. Besides, that is his penmanship.”
“Sharptooth would not send a letter like this!” Celestia cried, once again picking it up. She cleared her throat, preparing to reread the message. “To the most esteemed princesses, Celestia and Luna: I, Sharptooth, Prime Minister of the nation of Gryphonia, am requesting that you send all griffon refugees back to Gryphonia at once. Failure to comply with this request after one week of its arrival will be considered a hostile action. Signed, Sharptooth.”
“Yes, I agree, it does not make sense,” Luna sighed. “If I had to guess, I would say that he has been indoctrinated like the rest. But what choice do we have? If we do not allow the refugees to leave, and Sharptooth declares a state of war, we will be effectively holding them hostage.”
“And if we force them to return home, they will be indoctrinated,” Celestia argued. “That is a fate worse than anything else I can imagine… How many griffon refugees do we currently host?”
“Seven or eight thousand, by the latest estimates,” Luna replied. “Most immigrated here a few months after the insurgency started. In the past month, very few have made it. Celestia, I understand what you are thinking. We must help them, it is the right thing to do. But we cannot simply keep them here against their will...” Celestia sighed and shook her head.
“No…” she said. “You’re right. We cannot. But we can give them a choice.”
“What are you suggesting?”
“We send Sharptooth’s request to the local governments of the cities currently hosting griffons. Along with this, we attach our own statement, saying that we urge all griffons to stay, as Gryphonia is not currently safe. This will let the griffons know that they are welcome here, while still presenting them with the choice to leave. If they choose to say, can Sharptooth fault us?”
“He will find a way,” Luna sighed. “Or, whoever has indoctrinated him will. But… war would not be wise. This unknown enemy has to be aware of our alliance with the species of the galaxy. If war is declared against us, our new allies will provide aid. Gryphonia cannot win.”
“It is an empty threat,” Celestia began. “If we do not comply with Sharptooth’s wishes, he will let the world know, and it will reflect negatively on us. We would be branded backers of the insurrection, and would lose support. However, this plan does not count on us knowing that the griffons are indoctrinated. We finally find ourselves with an advantage over this enemy.”
“Are you forgetting the army of aliens we have at our back?” Luna said with a smirk. Celestia laughed and smiled.
“Other than that, of course.” The elder princess cantered back over to her desk and produced a piece of parchment and a quill from the drawer. “I will write our addition to Sharptooth’s request. You should let Proudwing know of this… He may be all that is left of the actual griffon government.”
“Send for me if you need help, sister,” Luna said as she crossed to the door.
“I will.”
Luna opened her sister’s chamber door and stepped out, softly closing it behind her. The two guards on duty saluted as she passed them, making for the stairwell back to the main section of the castle. Proudwing was quartered nearby, it would not take her long to reach him. Still, Luna felt a small amount of apprehension about delivering the news. Every piece of news from Gryphonia so far had been negative. Luna hoped that something positive would come soon…
The lights came on in the small chamber, illuminating the hexagonal table that dominated the center. As the group entered the room, the various electronics began to activate; screens on walls flickered to life, and the table in the center began to glow as it came online. Doctor Foster circled the table, coming to a stop at the end opposite the door. The two technicians who had accompanied him took positions on adjacent sides. Foster looked around the room, taking it all in. He had not been here since the base had been established. He did not think he would ever have to use it. But Cerberus was nothing if not careful; numerous contingencies had been planned, including the possibility of hostiles finding Equis.
The two technicians began typing on the table, and a moment later a holographic representation of Equis flickered into existence. The hologram shrunk as the display zoomed out, soon showing the entire system. Equis was in the center, with the sun and moon orbiting it. On the far end of the table sat an alien object: the Mass Relay.
“Fill me in,” Foster commanded after a pause.
“We successfully established a connection with Sentinel Station, sir,” one of the techs reported. “It was made possible by the comm buoy the Alliance established in this system. However, what we found is not promising.”
“Previously we were only able to get brief messages from the station’s VI,” the second tech began. “But now we have gained full control, and we know why no Cerberus personnel are responding: they have evacuated.”
“Evacuated?” Foster raised an eyebrow. “For what purpose?”
“A general evacuation was ordered. Cronos station was attacked by a large Alliance fleet. All personnel were ordered to leave their stations and go into hiding immediately.” Foster sighed and shook his head. This news was troubling. It also explained why nobody was responding via the QEC. It was entirely possible that he and his team were all that remained of Cerberus.
“… And, what of Sentinel?” he asked. “Is it still functional?”
“Yes, sir,” the first tech responded. “We are gaining access to its weapon systems, but it will be ready shortly.”
“Very good, keep me apprised,” Foster said, taking a step away from the table. He walked around it and exited the room, walking back down the short hallway to the elevator at the end. This had not been a part of the plan, but Foster was intent on doing whatever he needed in order to complete his mission. If Cerberus was compromised, the mission now held an even greater importance…
Beams of light from the setting sun filtered in through the large glass windows of the castle lounge, illuminating the room and filling it with warmth. Kaidan reclined in a chair facing the window, letting the sun warm his face. The troubles from the morning could be almost forgotten in this serene state. Kaidan knew he should not ignore potential threats to the Normandy, but for now he did not know what else he could do. Liara was their best chance and finding the owner of the drone, and Kaidan stressing about it would not help her. His state of relaxation was unfortunately interrupted when he heard the door opening, and footsteps entering the room.
“Miss Zorah?” a voice said. Curiously opening his eyes, Kaidan sat up and turned around in his chair, looking at the door. An Alliance marine stood in the threshold, his eyes set on the quarian admiral across the room.
“Yes?” Tali responded.
“Admiral Hackett would like to speak with you.” The marine’s eyes moved to Kaidan next. “And you too, Major.” Raising an eyebrow, Kaidan stood from his chair and followed Tali out of the room and into the hallway beyond. Hackett was nowhere in sight, but the marine raised his omni-tool and a moment later a hologram of the admiral flickered into existence.
“Major, Miss Zorah,” Hackett said. “I… have more news on Shepard.” Kaidan heard Tali let out a gasp, and he looked at the apparition of the admiral.
“What’s his status, sir?”
“Better than it was yesterday, worse than we had hoped he would be by now. Many of his burns have been treated, and the doctors have made progress on bone injuries. But… he suffered a lot of trauma up there. I don’t know what happened, but many of the cybernetics used by Cerberus to bring him back are offline. It is very likely that the energy from the Crucible had some part to play in that. Our scientists think they can bring them back online, but it may be too late.”
“… Understood, admiral,” Kaidan sighed. “Is there anything we can do?”
“Just maintain hope,” Hackett said. “And Tali… at the first sign of him regaining consciousness, I’ll have a transport sent down for you. You’ll be taken back through the Relay to see him.”
“Thank you, admiral,” Tali said, her voice quavering.
“I’ll be in touch. Hackett out.” The hologram flickered away as the communication channel was terminated. The marine saluted, then spun around and began walking down the expansive marble hall of the castle, leaving Tali and Kaidan alone outside the door.
“Tali, I… I can’t imagine how you must feel,” Kaidan said, turning to face the quarian.
“Shepard is strong. He’ll make it.”
“Yeah…”
There was silence between the two for a moment. It was suddenly broken by the sound of running from behind them. Kaidan curiously turned around to the sight of Liara running down the hall, a datapad in her hand and a concerned expression on her face.
“Major!” she cried urgently, coming to a stop a few feet away.
“What is it, Liara?” Kaidan asked, concerned. His mind instantly turned to the drone, and he filled with worry. “Is it about the drone?” Liara nodded, pausing to catch her breath.
“We… should speak inside…” she panted, pointing to the door. “And… the princesses should come, too…”
“Alright, go on in,” Kaidan said, opening the door for Liara and Tali. He looked around until his eyes fell on a guard patrolling down the hallway. “You! We need the princesses here immediately! And find Legion!” The guard nodded, and set off down the hallway towards the princesses. Satisfied, Kaidan turned and reentered the lounge. The peace and serenity had vanished entirely, and was replaced with an air of tension. Garrus, Tali, and Liara all stood in the center of the room. At his entrance, all eyes were on Kaidan, each pair expressing concern.
“I… I was examining the drone,” Liara began. “I think I know who our culprit is.”
David Foster reentered the small chamber from which Sentinel Station could be contacted, looking around at the various staff at work. He strode across the room to the hexagonal table in the center, regarding the hologram with his careful eyes. His examination was interrupted when a technician approached him from behind, datapad in hand.
“Sir,” he said. “Full connection has been established. Sentinel Station is yours to command.”
“Very good, what is its status?” Foster asked, scrutinizing the hologram once more.
“Its full stock of weapons is still present, and the station is ready to fire on-demand. Upon firing, we believe it will take less than three minutes to reach its targets. But sir… are you certain this is wise? By doing this, we will be revealing our presence to this world, we will—“
“I know the risks,” Foster interrupted. “And we are ready. Gryphonia is ours. But we cannot very well complete our mission with a hostile fleet in orbit. This will give us the opportunity we need.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do we have a firing solution?” Foster squinted at the hologram of the planet, knowing that his enemies were up there.
“Almost, sir. With our scanning systems, it will be only a few more minutes.”
“Very good. Notify me when it is ready.” The technician nodded, then turned and left Foster to continue examining the hologram. The doctor looked over every detail, going over the final phase of their plan in his mind. The presence of enemy ships was unexpected, but not unplanned. Cerberus was thorough, and a force to be reckoned with. And soon, the species of Equestria would come to know that…
Legion sat silently in the lounge, its photoreceptor passing over the various crew members of the Normandy. They were concerned, that much was clear. Even Legion’s own programs were experiencing a modicum of anxiety over what Doctor T’Soni had found. Twilight Sparkle sat next to it, a thick notebook held in her telekinetic grip. Written in it was the Equestrian alphabet and word samples, which Legion was using to translate the written language. Twilight stared down at the book, her brow furrowed in thought.
Its head snapped away from the young princess as the lounge door opened, and Princesses Celestia and Luna entered. They wore calm expressions, not knowing what news awaited them. They took a seat next to each other at one end of the lounge, both sets of eyes on Kaidan.
“You requested our presence, Major?” Celestia asked, smiling.
“Yes, we… Liara found something,” Kaidan answered, looking to the asari. Celestia and Luna did the same, giving her a quizzical look.
“What is it, Doctor?” Luna asked. “Does this relate to the “attack” on your ship from earlier today?”
“Yes, it does, princesses,” Liara said. “After I disabled the drone, I brought it to my office for examination. Unfortunately the data drive had been destroyed by a small explosive, so I could not get any information from it that way. However, the rest of the drone remained intact.
“I ran numerous extranet searches, looking for anything similar to the drone. Nothing came up. Whoever it belonged to, it was entirely custom built. I was at a loss for a while, so I decided to run searches for the individual components. A few were completely custom fabricated, not designed by any tech companies in the galaxy. But most were built by rather prominent hardware companies, both in Citadel Space and the Terminus. Now, at first I thought nothing of this, until I noticed one similar thing about every company…
“They are all human corporations. They are owned by humans, staffed by humans, and funded by humans. None of the companies have any alien backers or staff. What group do we know of that supports humanity this much?”
“Wait, Liara,” Kaidan said, alarm creeping into his voice. “Are you saying that…?”
“Yes,” Liara said, nodding. “Cerberus is on Equis.”
“Oh. Shit.”
“Firing solution has been acquired, sir,” a technician reported as several red dots appeared in orbit over the hologram of Equis. Two additional dots appeared by the Mass Relay, no doubt patrol frigates making sure nothing unauthorized stumbled through. Foster allowed a ghost of a grin to form on his lips, and he looked to the technician.
“Excellent…” he said. “Fire.”