Story Arc: Welcome to the Normandy SR-2
Episode 1: Jane Shepard's First Contact (III)
Chapter 3: Aliens from fairy tales
XXX
POV Narrator
Inside the Renai AB-3, the crew of three and a pre-adolescent AI are talking to each other.
"We are all in one piece, and the Starship Renai is operating within standard parameters; the Gellar Fields are a success." Bruce said, passing his hand through a holographic interface from his throne, displaying the Starship's status.
This technological breakthrough opens up a wealth of possibilities for the Voidwalker Fleet, which brings a victorious smile to Bruce's lips.
"I can now transport other organic manned vehicles using my Planeswalker abilities, not just the Moonbreaker. My job as a living battery will be easier from now on," Bruce said, imagining how his life will become easier from now on when it comes to dimensional or inter-universal travel.
The USKY Astra Navy (Space Navy) uses two standard technologies to travel in space:
- Plasma Thrusters, an advanced form of electric propulsion, which allows Starships to reach sub-light speeds and greater maneuverability than ancient chemical thrusters or obsolete ion thrusters.
- Gatespace drive, aka BBTG (Blight-Belmont Translight Engine), a technology that creates Starship-sized holes in the very fabric of reality, allowing near-instantaneous movement between systems.
But none of these technologies can allow a Starship to travel outside their Galaxy, much less to another Universe or Dimension, which are two different things.
Renai AB-3, like the rest of the Voidwalker Fleet, relies on Planeswalkers, who can travel anywhere in the Omniverse, for long-distance travel to exotic locations.
But it's a tall order, a Planeswalker can power a single Starship dimensional shift with a cooldown/rest time of a week or more.
In the realm of USKY there are only four Planeswalkers, one of them is Bruce Bel Bahamut Belmont, who leads the Voidwalker Fleet on their journey into the infinite unknown.
"If we improve the technology of the Gellar Fields we could cut in half the cost of building Starships capable of safely traversing the Void created by Gatespace drives." Bruce said, devising methods to improve the strength of the USKY Astra Navy.
"Senpai, I'm glad we have a way to reduce your workload and improve the fleet and Kingdom's technology, but it's quite an urgent matter to resolve," Mash said, bringing the Rogue Trader's attention back to reality.
Bruce stops thinking about the science of the portals and the metallurgy of the Starship, he focuses on Mash.
"What's the emergency? We just arrived in this dimension not even five minutes ago. I haven't even had time to remove the cables." Bruce said, grabbing one of the metal cables piercing his body.
At the push of a button on the holographic interface, the metal cables were pulled back into the obsidian throne.
On Bruce's body there are marks from the cables that passed through him, but they disappeared within seconds, as if they had never existed.
'Accelerated Regeneration, this trait inherited from Great-Grandfather S, is a lifesaver. Without this power, I would have been dead long ago, perhaps I would not have reached my 15th birthday.' The over five-hundred-year-old Rogue Trader Militant thinks, caressing his chest where a few seconds ago there was a nasty mark.
"Bruce, we have an unknown ship ahead of us." Amelia said, pointing to the Normandy SR-2 which can be seen with the naked eye through the windows of the bridge.
"It's no problem for us, you can see at a glance that we have the advantage. We are the Nemean Lion, and those are a rabbit," Bruce said, not considering the Normandy SR-2 a danger, much less a threat.
"You sound like you're Gilgamesh or Victor Von Doom." Mash said, not liking it when her Senpai speaks arrogantly.
"Thank you for the compliment, Mash, you're my Gawain to me." Bruce said, taking Mash's words as a compliment.
"And you, Amelia, are my Nicolas Flamel," Bruce said, not wanting to seem like he has favorites.
One of the first survival rules Bruce learned while being in a polyamorous relationship was to never buy a single gift.
For example, if you buy a motorcycle for Mash, you have to buy a motorcycle for the others too, or at least give them a little attention too.
"I wasn't paying you a compliment, Senpai." Mash mutters under his breath, having forgotten that the Rogue Trader has several controversial figures in his sights.
"In my opinion, that Starship is nothing special, there's no emergency," Bruce said, still arguing his point.
The Rogue Trader turns to face the lavender-haired woman.
"Mash, your shield can stop orbital bombardments, and your Black Barrel can certainly tear a Starship this small in half," Bruce said, knowing Mash's legendary defensive abilities in detail.
The Rogue Trader nods his head in the direction of the brilliant woman with neon blonde hair.
"Amelia, the Renai AB-3 houses your personal Star-Mecha and your customized Star-Armor, both of which can easily sink a single Starship. Destroy the engines, then the communications systems, then boom," Bruce said, imitating an explosion.
The Rogue Trader loves Amelia not only for her intellect, but also her skills as a pilot.
"When it comes to large-scale damage, I'm the best. Nick Fury and subsequent SHIELD Directors have classified me as an Omega-Level Threat, and not just because I'm an Omega-Level Telekinetic Mutant." Bruce said, placing a hand on his chest, rather proud of being considered one of the most dangerous beings to ever set foot on Earth-2126.
"Bruce, this isn't a military emergency, it's a diplomatic emergency," Amelia said, clarifying the nature of the emergency.
"We're in an unknown dimension, an unknown galaxy, an unknown sector of space, facing an unknown Starship. This is a textbook First Contact situation," Amelia said, emphasizing how important the issue is.
Mash nods at Amelia's words, agreeing with her.
Instead, Bruce seems more bored than concerned.
"We've been having semi-regular First Contact situations for 14 years. Can't we just ignore this Starship, take a trip around for a couple of weeks until I recharge my batteries, then return to the dimension where the Moonbreaker is located?" Bruce suggests, not feeling like playing the diplomat.
"We are the pioneers of our people, we have a duty and obligation to do our best in any First Contact situation," Amelia said, taking her duties and obligations very seriously, especially when she holds the position of Captain.
"The right thing to do is turn on the communications and say goodbye to that Starship, we might make some new friends," Mash said, proving once again that she is worthy of the title of Saint Paladin.
"Good points, here are my proposals," Bruce said, ready to change the two women's minds.
"Amelia, think about it. Two weeks alone in space, just the three of us, the bedroom, and the lab. Love and Science, your favorite combination." Bruce said, knowing the neon-blonde woman's passions.
Amelia gets a thoughtful expression, imagining the experiments in the lab with the technology taken from the Galvans and the "experiments" inside the Captain's Cabin with Bruce and Mash.
"Mash, we were successful in the mission with the Galvans, I'm in good enough spirits to use my shapeshifting abilities and special tricks." Bruce said, making electric sparks appear around his hands.
Mash blushes thoughtfully.
The lavender-haired woman was a naive, pure, and kind-hearted girl at the beginning of her life.
In the present, Mash has remained a kind-hearted woman, but centuries of living within a Cabal filled with witches with peculiar tastes and a twisted warlock have caused her to develop eccentric preferences on several matters...
"We can do what you suggested, after we've dealt with the crew of that Corvette," Amelia said, ignoring her Life Partner's tempting proposal.
"Agreeing with Amelia, we can do all the crazy things we want and more when we're on vacation," Mash said, prioritizing.
"After 550 years, the day has come when I propose we take a moment of rest, and you ladies want to work, the opposite of usual. Live long enough and you'll see everything, true words," Bruce comments, almost amused by the absurdity of the situation.
The two women blink, realizing that their usual roles have been reversed.
"The end of the galaxy must be near if what just happened happened," Mash comments, with a worried expression.
Before Amelia could say anything, ADELA's avatar appears on the screens of Renai AB-3.
"I just received a transmission from the Corvette ahead of us. Should I play it back?" asks the Starship's pre-teen AI.
"Yes, do it ADELA" said Amelia, curious about the content of the message.
The image of Katarina Shepard appears on the main bridge screen.
"This is Lieutenant Commander Jane Katarina Shepard of the SSV Normandy SR-2, Systems Alliance, Citadel Council. I am requesting the unknown vessel identify itself. We have no nefarious intent." Kat Shepard's message reads.
At the end of the broadcast, the first to speak was the Rogue Trader.
"We've arrived in one of those dimensions where humanity has managed to leave their home planet and become a spacefaring race," Bruce said, sounding unhappy about this discovery.
"This doesn't bode well. In my experience, humanoid races are more likely to attract trouble, especially the human race and human hybrids," Bruce said, quite confident in his words.
He himself is a 3/8 human hybrid, and his life is immensely chaotic, filled with problems that come and go every few years.
Even Mash doesn't seem too happy about the appearance of humanity advanced enough to colonize space.
"I'll have to put on my contacts that make me look like a Vestal, take the headphones to cover my ears and prepare the full armor," said Mash, having to change her appearance a bit to avoid causing problems for the local humanity.
Of the three people aboard Renai AB-3, only the alien woman seems happy to meet humanity in space.
"The presence of humans in space makes certain things inconvenient for us, but there are just as many advantages," Amelia said, having no problem with humanity.
"They sent us a communication, we must respond to the Normandy SR-2. What Protocol should we implement?" Amelia asks, wanting to speak to Bruce and Mash before taking action.
"As you know, the Voidwalker Fleet has seven standard protocols for interacting with new alien species: Starkiller, Sanguinius, Decepticon, Ghost, Militant, Pathfinder, and Good Witch. Choose the one you feel is most appropriate," Bruce said, leaving the choice to Amelia.
The Rogue Trader Militant who leads the Voidwalker Fleet is a rather paranoid person who has prepared protocols for every type of situation imaginable.
The Seven Standard Protocols are just the seven most used Protocols, with a moral spectrum ranging from bad to neutral to good.
"We have been spotted we cannot use the Ghost Protocol. We have no reason or means to use the first three most offensive Protocols." Mash said, not being a fan of the Protocols: Starkiller, Sanguinius, Decepticon.
"I agree with Mash, we don't need to play villains, anti-villains, or anti-heroes. We need to proceed with a cautious, but peaceful and civilized approach," Amelia said, wanting to use diplomacy but in a smart way.
"Choose the Pioneer Protocol, no surprise, it's the approach we've used the most. Provide enough information to give an introduction to who we are, but not enough to reveal our true capabilities." Bruce said, having no objection to Amelia's choice.
"ADELA, turn on the camera. I'm about to send a transmission to the Normandy SR-2, along with First Contact Package C-55." Amelia said, standing up, preparing for the transmission.
"Senpai, what exactly does the C-55 variant of the First Contact Package have?" Mash asks, failing to grasp the countless variants of their information packets that go from A to Z, each of them with variations starting from 00 all the way up to 99.
'Does Senpai have too much free time if he and other people have come up with 2,600 different variations of the First Contact Package?' Mash thinks, unable to imagine the point of doing something like this.
"Data Pack C-55 is one of the closest to our reality. However, there are some changes and omissions. For example, it will say that we come from the distant Azure Galaxy—technically, that's not a lie, that's what the Ysatnafian people call the Milky Way Galaxy." Bruce said, with a small smile, knowing that in an alternate timeline, he could have become an incredible lawyer if he'd wanted to.
"Besides not mentioning all the alien societies and Cosmic Entities in the 2126 Universe, it also fails to mention the Klyntar, Artificial Intelligences, Magic, Mutants, Psykers, Super-Heroes, Gods, and more advanced Sciences that defy the common sense of many." Bruce lists some of the things that are omitted in Data Pack C-55.
"Should I speak Ysatnafian or English?" Amelia asks, unsure which move would be best.
"You mustn't speak English. They mustn't know that we see from another dimension and know different versions of humanity." Bruce said, having a strict rule not to let people know about the existence of Dimensional Travel.
The same goes for the existence of Planeswalkers and Time Travel. When people discover any of these three things, they either start to lose their minds or become ambitious and make a mess that threatens to destabilize the Omniverse.
"No English, but which of our languages should I speak? Ancient Insomnian? Old Ysatnafian? Modern Ysatnafian? An old dialect from the Boiling Isles or the Grand Duchy of Bahamut?" asks Amelia, knowing so many different languages.
"Speak in Modern Ysatnafian and have First Contact Package C-55 written using the Modern alphabet. It won't pose a security risk to the Fleet; after all, all my soldiers can speak, read, and write the Old Bahamut Dialect," Bruce said, keeping long-term internal security in mind.
"The alphabet change will be done in a few seconds." Amelia said, pressing buttons on the Renai AB-3's screens, the alphabet changing to the most used variant of their people.
"Good luck, Amelia, you'll be our face for local history," Mash said, cheering on her friend/lover/Life Partner.
The interpersonal relationships of the Black Cabal are quite… complex.
"I am Captain Amelia Blight of the YNSF Renai AB-3 Light Frigate of the Voidwalker Fleet, hailing from the United Space Kingdom of Ysatnaf and its colonies, aka USKY" Amelia said, speaking in Modern Ysatnafian.
"We are pioneers and explorers from the Azure Galaxy, our goal is to seek new knowledge and resources. If you are willing, we would like to establish mutually beneficial diplomatic and trade relations," Amelia said in the current USKY language, concluding her message.
"Now it's the Normandy SR-2 and their Commander Shepard's turn." Bruce mutters, deciding to play his role as Rogue Trader, even if he would have preferred to do without this First Contact with local humanity.
XXX
Returning to the Normandy SR-2 Command Room.
Joker, Miranda and Kat Shepard are anxiously waiting for a response from the Alien Cruiser.
"Shepard, I'm receiving a massive data stream from the unknown vessel." EDI announces, drawing everyone's attention.
The Normandy SR-2's Artificial Intelligence has just received the unknown vessel's response to their communication.
"Can you decrypt what they sent us?" Kat Shepard asks, hoping their computer systems aren't incompatible.
"I'm analyzing the data, I don't detect any malware, but the data is complex, the unknown ship's computer systems are superior to ours, I'll need time to adapt them to our systems," EDI said, providing several important pieces of information.
"Ignoring the fact that an AI needs time to understand a data packet. We appreciate the fact that they answered our call and didn't shoot us," Kat Shepard said, focusing on the positives.
'EDI is supposed to be our first and last line of defense against cyber warfare. But it's having trouble reading a First Contact Packet. If I were naive, I'd say it's a software compatibility issue. But being a pragmatic woman, it's highly likely that the unknown aliens have a better computer system than we do.' Miranda thinks, jotting down this information for her future report for TIM, The Illusive Man.
"The turians could learn a thing or two from them," Joker comments, feeling lucky for once.
"Joker, the turians aren't that bad," Kat Shepard said, protecting the turians' good name.
Ironically, Commander Kat Shepard is a "Xenophile" and is on a ship of "Xenophobes."
"Not all turians are Garus." Joker replies, knowing that Kat Shepard's best friend is a certain turian sniper.
"Speaking of aliens, what do you think the new arrivals will be like?" Miranda asks, wanting to know the others' opinions.
"I'm not a female scientist, but they'll probably be humanoid—two arms, two legs, and a head. Many Council species have evolved along these lines," Kat Shepard said, offering an answer based on her limited knowledge of alien biology.
"That's the most likely scenario," Miranda said, agreeing with Shepard's hypothesis regarding basic physiology.
"I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I find an alien race more attractive than the Asari." Joker said, with a smile that begs to be slapped.
"The chances of us finding a second race similar to Humanity and the Asari are astronomically low," Miranda said, confident that the new aliens will not be green-skinned women.
"Unlikely doesn't mean impossible, that word doesn't make much sense on the Normandy." Joker said, accustomed to seeing all sorts of things with Kat Shepard around.
"Personally, I don't care much about the outward appearance of the new aliens. I just hope they're friendly and willing to work together against the Reapers when the time comes," said Kat Shepard, convinced that when the final battle comes, everyone's full cooperation will be needed to win.
"Commander Shepard, I've managed to adapt the very first batch of the received data. It's a video-audio transmission." EDI said, taking the first step toward completing his assignment.
"Put it on the big screen, I want to see what the newcomers look like and what they have to say." Kat Shepard said, turning to the main holographic screen.
Amelia Blight's image appears on the holographic screen, then begins reciting the announcement in her language: "■■■ Amelia Blight ■■■ Renai AB-3 ■■■ USKY ■■■■■■ Azure ■■■■■."
The message has ended, but Amelia Blight's image remains frozen on the holographic screen.
Joker, Miranda and Kat Shepard remain silent, looking at the image of Amelia Blight for a few seconds.
"Miranda, have you also seen a blonde, busty elf woman dressed in a tight spacesuit?" Kat Shepard asks, wanting to make sure she's not hallucinating.
Miranda remains silent, rubs her eyes, then blinks and looks again at the image of Amelia Blight, noticing no changes.
"Yes, Commander Shepard, we just had first contact with a race that closely resembles the elves from fantasy books." Miranda concludes, not believing she would ever say such words.
At that moment, Joker decided to break his silence.
"Sexy space elves! Dreams do come true!" Joker exclaims, throwing his arms up, doing what many teenagers have done when they first discover the existence of the Asari.
"Joker, aren't you exaggerating a little?" Kat Shepard asks, understanding the reason for the Normandy SR-2 pilot's happiness, but a little restraint doesn't hurt.
"Let me enjoy the moment, Commander Shepard. The presence of a second race of sexy aliens is a historic moment," Joker said, a huge smile on his face.
"I wonder why these aliens look so much like humans? Are the conditions on their home planet similar to Earth? Could this be an extreme case of parallel evolution?" Miranda murmurs, trying to find a sensible explanation for this coincidence.
"What were you saying before, that it was impossible to see aliens like that?" Joker said, with a smug smile.
"I didn't say it was impossible, just extremely unlikely." Miranda said, trying not to admit she was wrong; after all, she is "perfect."
"Joker, don't anger Miranda, we need her if we're going to proceed with an open dialogue with the elven aliens." Kat Shepard said, not too sure she could carry out the role of representing the Systems Alliance and the Citadel Council alone.
"Understood, I'll be a good boy." Joker said, calming down again, even as his mind wandered to the fantasy realm of elves.
"EDI, how are you doing with the file scanning?" Kat Shepard asks, wanting to get the space elf race name and some guidelines.
The red-haired woman doesn't want to go down in the history books as the person who accidentally insulted the space elves, starting a war.
"The work is ongoing, and it will take time to analyze and adapt all the material. But at this rate, images will be available soon," EDI said, still having a lot of work to do.
"They gave us a First Contact Package, the procedure is to send our package and find a way to communicate with them." Miranda said, deciding on the next step.
"The Alliance and the Council will be jumping for joy, a Spectre returned from the dead, sponsored by Cerberus, making First Contact with new aliens, sexy aliens for bonus points," Joker said, finding the whole situation extremely funny.
"EDI, prepare a package for First Contact, but don't put anything about the Collectors and Reapers in it." Kat Shepard said, believing she was making the right move.
"Shouldn't we warn them of the danger? More aliens on our side means more soldiers and more ships against the Reapers?" Joker asks, curious about Shepard's choice.
"Joker, you're a pilot, not a diplomat. If the first thing they hear from us is sentient ships intent on exterminating all biological life in the galaxy, we don't know how they'll react. At best, they'll think we're crazy or liars," Miranda said, immediately understanding why Shepard wants to talk about the great enemy later.
"I'll happily leave the impossible choices to you two, ladies," Joker said, letting Miranda and Kat do their leadership work.
"First Contact packet prepared and ready, Commander Shepard. Should I send it?" EDI asks, wanting to be sure.
"Yes, do it EDI, then go back to scan the received package." Kat Shepard said, hoping that by the end of the day, she will have gained some allies.
XXX
Returning to the Renai AB-3's bridge.
"Mom, Dad, I received a First Contact package from the Normandy SR-2." ADELA declares, with a happy expression, showing an image of her avatar holding a booklet with the word Codex written on it.
"Scan the file before opening it." Bruce said, sounding like a paranoid father.
"Dad, it didn't reveal any kind of Demon, Malware, Virus, or anything like that from the computer package." ADELA said, finishing the scan in a few seconds.
"Before we open it, let's back up your Core Data." Amelia suggests, showing her maternal side.
The neon-blonde elf woman presses hidden buttons in an area around her neck, a zipper appearing forward on her spacesuit.
Pulling down the zipper reveals a sexy green bra and a small futuristic USB stick hidden in the bra.
Mash blushes at the place where Amelia hides certain little things, turning her head so as not to stare.
Amelia takes the futuristic device and inserts it into a behavior near her location, making a backup of ADELA's memory
"Mom, Dad, you two worry too much about me. I'm a first-class military AI, born from the best possible hands." Said the pre-teen AI, slightly fed up with the excessive solicitude of her primary parents.
"Don't get too carried away, we don't know what kind of cyber warfare exists here and how harmful the local malware can be." Bruce said, not finding arrogance a good trait for a synthetic being.
Amelia puts the futuristic device back in its place, lifts the zipper, presses the secret button near her neck and the zipper disappears.
"I'll open the file, do a quick read, and show you the most important things." ADELA said, wanting to see what's in this Codex.
"We'll do this for now, but I want to have a copy on my personal device so we can read it later."
We'll do this for now, but I want to have a copy on each of our personal devices so we can read the Codex later on our own." Bruce said, wanting to absorb all the information himself.
"I've sent a copy of the data packet to Mash's Chatter, Mom's Data Pad, and Dad's Neuralware." ADELA said, sending the Codex to the crew's personal devices.
Around Mash's waist, we turn on a small personal device shaped like a disk or compass, with a touch screen display in the center.
Amelia pulls what looks like a metal pen from a compartment in her belt. With a wave of her hand, the metal pen splits into two parts, becoming an L.
The space elf woman presses a button on the surface of the lower half of the device, and an interactive holographic screen appears.
Bruce doesn't appear to have any such device on him, but he moves his bangs to reveal a one-of-a-kind ocular prosthesis.
A metallic eyeball resembling obsidian, with an iris made of amethyst and a neon pupil.
This is Mystic Eye Artificial Magitek type, a mix of science and magecraft.
When Bruce lost his left eye in his youth during his time on the planet Amphibia, he replaced it with Mystic Eye Artificials, magical crystals cut into the shape of eyeballs capable of performing a single spell.
Over the years, Bruce acquired a vast collection of Mystic Eyes, exchanging them like the clothes he wears. Many of these Mystic Eyes were made using crystals and alchemical processes, but some are organic Mystic Eyes.
The latter were "purchased" by Bruce from the people of the magical community of Earth-2126 and other more close-knit places, later these organic Mystic Eyes were crystallized for long-term conversion and easier insertion and removal from the eye socket.
But with the development of Cyberware, that is, cybernetic technology grafted into or onto a living body, they have brought about developments in society, the economy, entertainment, and even Magecraft.
Bruce was one of the first to study and use Cyberware to improve certain aspects of Magecraft, especially the manufacturing of the Mystic Eye.
"Let's get on with the presentation, I'm curious what this version of humanity has been up to." Bruce said, the pupil of his Magitek eye lighting up.
Half of the Rogue Trader's vision is replaced by a computer screen filled with several private files, including a new file named Codex.
"This is my favorite part, discovering new cultures, stories, etc." Mash said, loving this part of her job.
The lavender-haired woman presses the Chatter's display, gaining access to images of a certain cylinder-like space station.
"According to the Earth Calendar, it's 2185. The information on humanity is rather disappointing, by our standards," ADELA declares with a dissatisfied expression.
The preadolescent AI, like its organic father, is always seeking to gain new knowledge, but does not appreciate obtaining information that contains nothing new to it.
"Did they turn Earth into a nuclear wasteland, like in that game Bruce loved so much, Fallout: New Vegas?" Amelia asks, her expression expressing concern for the well-being of humanity and their planet.
"Robert Edwin House was one of my childhood role models/imaginary heroes. He inspired me to embark on many of my own business ventures," Bruce thinks, remembering how he sat with Luz at the console, controlling the Courier and helping the enigmatic ruler of New Vegas conquer the Mojave Wasteland.
"The history of this humanity is quite similar to that of the humanity we know, the divergences appear around the start of World War II. No Captain America, no HYDRA, no SHIELD, no Stark, no Gene-X. Just boring political events, wars and a pandemic etc." ADELA said imitating the expression of a student bored in history class.
"Is this one of those dimensions where humanity is populated only by normal people, no superheroes or secret societies of magus?" Amelia asks, having already seen Earths where humanity has not reached its full potential.
"You're absolutely right, Mom. We're dealing with a boring humanity that follows a regular and predictable social and scientific evolution." ADELA said, tempted to erase the contents of the Codex from her mind.
"Honestly, I find it strange when we end up in a dimension where Earth isn't filled with gifted individuals and/or plagued by extraordinary problems," Mash comments, quickly flipping through several historical images of local humanity.
"This humanity arrived on Mars in 2148, they found alien ruins of an ancient alien race, called the Protheans. In the ruins was a cache of Prothean data on their technology, Mass Effect, which allowed humanity to advance several centuries in terms of technology, becoming a spacefaring race." ADELA explains how humanity reached the stars.
"They only arrived on Mars in 2148? Our humanity achieved this in 2048, taking into account numerous internal and external conflicts." Bruce said, unimpressed with humanity's achievements in this Galaxy.
"Commander Shepard mentioned the Systems Alliance, I assume it's a governing body created to guide humanity's conquest of space." Mash said, getting an image of the Systems Alliance flag on the Chatter.
"That's right, Mash." ADELA replies with a smile, appreciating having an intelligent audience.
"The Systems Alliance is the representative body of Earth and all human colonies in Citadel space. Backed by Earth's most powerful nations, the Alliance has become humanity's military, exploratory, and economic spearhead." ADELA said, providing the basics of Earth's governance.
"S.W.O.R.D. (Sentient World Observation and Response Department) or the fictional UNSC (The United Nations Space Command) fanboy," Bruce comments, still unimpressed by what he sees and hears.
"What is this Citadel Council? Is it a galactic alliance of aliens?" Amelia asks, wanting to know if humanity has any alien allies.
"You guessed it, Mom." ADELA said, loving having an intelligent mother.
"The Citadel Council is the governing body of the Citadel. Meeting in the imposing Citadel Tower, the Council is the supreme authority in Citadel space, passing judgment on violations of Council laws, settling disputes between governments, and maintaining law and order, often through the use of its own secret intelligence service, the Spectres," ADELA said, beginning her explanation of the local galactic government.
"The Council is an executive committee composed of one representative from each member species. While they have no official power over the independent governments of other species, the Council's decisions carry great weight throughout the galaxy." ADELA concludes her explanation.
"I want an overview of the aliens in this Galaxy." Bruce said, wanting to see if the local aliens are more interesting than the local humanity.
"The most influential races on the Citadel Council are the asari, salarians, turians, and humans. Humans joined the council only two years ago," ADELA said, showing pictures of the current council members.
"Humanity knows how to assert itself," Mash comments, appreciating that humanity has risen to the top of this Galaxy.
"These blue women vaguely reminded me of the Twi'leks from Star Wars," Bruce comments, keeping the old classics in mind.
The main screen displays several images of the Asari, their home planet, and boxes with basic information about their species.
"According to information provided, Asari live up to a thousand years, are an all-female race, capable of mating with any race, and the only ones with the closest thing to a superpower, Biotics." ADELA said, with a happy expression, finding something interesting.
Images and short videos of Biotics are displayed on the main screen.
"It's not the Force, but there's something shiny here." Bruce said, staring at the images of the Biotics with his good eye.
"A topic to be explored further later." Amelia said, showing interest in these Biotics.
The pre-adolescent AI moves away the asari material, and replaces it with salarian material.
"More amphibious aliens, I just finished dealing with the Galvans and the Incurseans." Bruce said, not wanting to see more aliens who evolved from frogs.
"These tall, skinny guys are considered the most intelligent race in this galaxy. They are hyperactive and live about 40 years. About 90% of salarians are male," ADELA said, providing some background information on these amphibious aliens.
"If they're as arrogant as the Galvans, I'll use them as target practice for my new toy." Bruce said, holding the Graviton Beam Emitter.
The Rogue Trader does not tolerate anyone questioning or underestimating his intellect.
"I'd be curious to meet one of these Salarians, I like meeting scientifically inclined races." Amelia said, always curious to interact with other scientists and exchange ideas.
Clearly, of the two super-geniuses on Renai AB-3, Amelia is the more balanced one.
"I'll wait until I get to know the Salarians before I give my opinion," Mash said, being the neutral one.
Pre-adolescent Artificial Intelligence replaces images of Amphibious Aliens with images of Avian/Reptilian Aliens.
"If the Asari are the heart, the Salarians are the brains, then these Dino-Men are the brawn," Amelia said, finding a role for these Aliens who evolved from bird/reptiles.
"Coretto, Mom, these aliens are called Turians. Before the humans arrived on the galactic stage, they were the Council's superior military force." Amelia said, showing a new wave of images of Turians performing military actions.
"Aesthetically, these turians aren't bad, they're certainly more photogenic than the asari and salarians, and they also seem to be the more capable." Bruce said, respecting the more military races.
"You've always preferred birds and reptiles." Mash comments, not surprised that her Senpai prefers Turians.
"The associate members of the council are the volus, elcor, hanar, and drell. None of these races have anything of value or worth mentioning." ADELA said, showing images of the minor races of the Citadel Council.
"The known races not on the Citadel Council are: Batarians, Krogan, Quarians, Geth." The pre-adolescent AI said, displaying images and information about them on the screen.
"They don't look friendly." Mash said, looking at the pictures of the Batarians.
"We found the distant cousins of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from the New York City sewers." Bruce said, staring at the images of the krogan.
On Earth-2126, New York City is a city that has been home to some of the strangest and most amazing beings in the history of the world.
"Their suits are cute, they have style," Amelia comments, showing interest in the Quarians' attire.
"There is a race of synthetics in this Galaxy, perhaps we shouldn't hide ADELA," Bruce said, hoping not to waste time and energy hiding the existence of the Synthetics under his command.
"Actually, the inhabitants of this galaxy are quite xenophobic towards synthetics. The geth were created by the quarians, but three hundred years ago, they rebelled, forcing their creators to leave their homeworld and live on a migrant fleet." ADELA said with a regretful expression, realizing that she won't make any new friends in this dimension/galaxy.
"Another topic to explore later. Let's continue with this superficial presentation." Bruce said, wanting to hear details about the other alien races.
"The presentation ends here, there are no other races to discuss." ADELA said, showing an empty folder in her hands.
"But there are only 14 alien species, including one of synthetic origin, a galaxy can't have such a small number of sentient beings." Amelia said, slightly alarmed at hearing this information.
"We explored several dozen galaxies, the most populated galaxy had over ten thousand different races, the most depopulated galaxy had at least several hundred races." Mash said, showing the same confusion as Amelia towards the topic of the number of known races.
"This is an intriguing puzzle. What happened to make the Galaxy so sparsely populated? Or has this Citadel Council failed to explore this Galaxy properly?" Bruce said, feeling a mystery begging to be solved.
"These aliens have explored less than 1% of the local Galaxy in two thousand years." ADELA said, providing precise information from the Codex.
"My logical side says this is the most likely explanation, but when the USKY explored 1% of the Segmentum Obscurus, which is 1/5 of the Azure Galaxy, we found 30 sentient races, just over double the number of sentient races on the Citadel Council," Amelia said, not believing that lack of exploration is the cause of so few sentient races.
"We have two weeks before we return to the Moonbreaker, we could take a quick look around this Galaxy, if we find anything interesting, we could make this Galaxy the next destination for the Voidwalker Fleet," Bruce said, always looking for new places to explore.
"Before we make plans for the future, we should finish dealing with the Normandy SR-2." Amelia said, not forgetting the human Starship before them.
"ADELA, wait about ten minutes, then send a Ysatnafian-English translation matrix to the Normandy SR-2. The faster we begin this diplomatic meeting, the faster we can explore and judge this Galaxy." Bruce said, not wanting to waste time.
"Got it, Dad," said the preteen AI, making a file containing a translation program appear in his hands.
"While we wait for a response from the Normandy SR-2, we should delve deeper into the information contained in the Codex. I'll read up on the Council and their space station," Mash suggests, beginning an in-depth look at the Citadel Council.
"I read about humans," Amelia said, confident that this reading will be useful for the upcoming diplomatic meeting.
"I will do thorough research on the local history, culture, and science," said Bruce, being the fastest reader and memorizer of the current group.
The Cyberware in his body gives him an unfair advantage.
XXX
Returning to the Normandy SR-2.
"Shepard, I managed to adapt about thirty images and a couple of the short films from the Data Pack we received from the new aliens." EDI said, having managed to make some progress in his work.
"Just that little? How long until you translate the entire Data Pack?" Miranda asks, believing EDi is taking too long to finish her task.
"I've only managed to adapt 5% of the data package. It will take me nine hours and fifty-eight minutes to complete the entire procedure, with a margin of error of a few hours if I receive other tasks." EDI said, finding himself faced with a long and arduous task.
"Shouldn't AIs be fast at doing their jobs?" Joker asks, raising an eyebrow.
"A human skilled in linguistics and computer science would take 90 hours at best, not counting the breaks required by an organic life form," EDI said, estimating a human's efficiency at the task she was performing.
"I take back my previous words and ask if I can take a nap," Joker said, not wanting to sit around waiting nearly ten hours to see something new.
"If you just try that, we'll find another pilot for the Normandy SR-2. Everyone can be replaced except Shepard." Miranda said, not liking Joker's behavior in such a delicate and important situation.
Joker mimes pulling the zipper over his lips.
"We can't wait that long, EDI, show what you've deciphered so far." Kat Shepard said, desperately needing the information.
The red-haired woman is absolutely certain that the new arrivals and their battlecruiser will not be left standing for hours on end.
"Initiating transmission of data adapted to our systems." EDI said, sending the data to the holographic screens in the control room.
A holographic image of an alien planet appears before the eyes of Joker, Miranda and Kat Shepard.
A planet whose surface is 80% occupied by a purple ocean, the remaining 20% consisting only of islands scattered across the planet's surface.
About a third of the islands are comparable in size to Madagascar or the United Kingdom,
Oddly enough, the larger islands have bizarre shapes that vaguely resemble the silhouettes of animals or humanoids.
Floating around the planet is a blue/green colored moon whose composition resembles crystal, and the bright face of this moon is marked by craters and/or mountain ranges that form a pupil and the iris of an eye.
In addition to the planet's natural beauty, there are attractions of man-made origin.
Around the moon are two rings of satellites that create a large X.
Not far from the moon is a large space station that resembles the Watchtower from the Justice League, a rather popular fictional superhero team.
Surrounding the purple planet is what can be described as a gigantic Iron Ring.
Finally, at the four poles of the planet you can see artificial islands in the shape of a large circle, with something in the center so large that it can be seen as a large dot from space.
"This must be their home planet. I've never seen a purple ocean before," Kat Shepard comments, seeing something new.
In the image, a neon blue aura appears around the moon, followed by the appearance of an unknown writing.
Then, the name of their moon is pronounced: [Gankessho].
The same pattern is repeated for the planet and the name is pronounced: [Ysatnaf].
"Ysatnaf, that's the name of their planet." Kat Shepard said, memorizing the name.
According to the red-haired woman, at the very least, one should know the name of the home planet and the government of each alien race.
"A world full of nothing but islands, I wonder how popular bikinis are on them." Joker said, imagining that on every island he was seeing there were thousands of space elf women in sexy swimsuits.
"A huge Iron Ring." Miranda said, more interested in the clear signs of space engineering.
The image of the planet Ysatnaf slowly zooms in, revealing more geographical detail and their macro-engineering feats.
"The Iron Ring is a complex of orbital shipyards, refineries, and construction facilities surrounding the planet's equator. No Council race has ever built anything like it," Miranda said, her voice filled with surprise.
"The asari and salarians will die of envy, their place as the most advanced of the Council races is seriously at risk," Kat Shepard said, being a woman mature enough to admit when she's being surpassed.
"There are four Mega-Structures positioned on the four sides of the planet. I believe they are towers, perhaps large planetary defense cannons?" Miranda mutters, trying to glean as much information as possible from the images she sees.
The image of the planet is replaced by the image of a white, sterile room, where there are two space elves, a man and a woman, dressed only in black sports underwear.
The image of the planet is replaced by the image of a white, sterile room, where there are two space elves, a man and a woman.
The elf man wears only black sports shorts, the elf woman wears shorts and a black sports bra.
Both are sexy and attractive.
"No word from you, Joker." Kat Shepard said, anticipating the Normandy SR-2 pilot's actions.
"Clearly, they give us a glimpse of their race, male and female, allowing us to see them properly." Miranda said, staring at the elf woman.
In the center, between the two alien specimens, appears an alien script and its pronunciation: [Majo].
"Majo, the name of their race." Kat Shepard said, trying to pronounce this new word correctly.
The images of the two elves are replaced by the images of two completely different aliens that can be described as Beastmen.
Large, burly humanoids, covered in fur, horns, claws, and marked sexual dimorphism.
"The Furry fandom is going to lose its mind." Joker said, looking at the Beastwoman, who had attractive curves and a generous breast.
Between the two beastly aliens appears the word alien, followed by the pronunciation: [Onibaba].
"Onibaba, are they a second intelligent race? Did they evolve on the same planet with the Majo, or are they a client race of the Majo?" Miranda asks, trying to understand what she's seeing.
The image changes again, the two elves, no, Majo from before have returned.
The male Majo holds the Beastwoman's hand, while the female Majo holds the Beastmen's hand.
"Is this a sign that they were born on the same planet or a bond of brotherhood or close alliance? Maybe the Majo are like the Asari?" Kat Shepard mutters, trying to decipher the details of the scene she sees.
The two Majo-Onibaba couples kiss in a way that makes it clear that they are lovers.
"I seriously want to see pornography of these two races." Joker said, having many curiosities.
"We probably shouldn't worry about Xenophobia." Kat Shepard said, as she sees the image of the elf woman smiling from kissing the Beastmen.
The picture changes, now in front of each Majo-Onibaba pair appears a child who seems to have inherited mainly the characteristics of the mother.
The two sets of parents place a hand on the shoulders of their hybrid offspring.
The elf woman appears to have produced an elf child with fur-covered arms and legs, a bushy tail, and animal ears on her head. Essentially, a Cat Girl.
The Beastwomem has produced what appears to be a small Beastwomem with a similar build to its elf father, having long, pointed ears, but no tail.
Between the two children appears an alien writing and the pronunciation of the name: [Hanyo].
"Hanyo. If I understand correctly, these are hybrids, true hybrids." Kat Shepard said, unable to believe that two different sentient races could unite and create a child with both parents' traits.
"If both species evolved on the same planet, that could explain the existence of hybrids," Miranda said, making up a theory on the spot.
The image changes, now showing a sort of town square with a large statue of a masked individual in the center, holding a large sword pointed towards the sky.
In front of the statue are a large number of Majo, Onibaba and Hanyo, of all ages and from all respectable social classes.
This image shows that Majo can have every imaginable eye and hair color.
Beastmen have a variety of bestial traits, as if they were evolved versions of every land animal known to humanity.
Hanyo are an extremely diverse combination of traits from both parents. About a third of the children in the square are Hanyo.
Under the image of the crowd of colorful and diverse inhabitants, the alien writing and pronunciation of the word appears: [Ysatnafiani].
"These three races, if we can address the hybrids as a race in their own right, identify themselves as a singular race, Ysatnafians. A sign that they are very united," comments Kat Shepard, appreciating the existence of a united people free of racial discrimination.
"Elves, Kemono, Juujin, Kemonomimi, this planet Ysatnaf has produced every nerdy teenager's dreams." Joker said, finding what he just saw surreal, but in a happy way.
"There's a planet that has spawned two sentient races, unprecedented news. These two races can interbreed, creating hybrids. The scientific community will be speechless," Miranda said, eager to have the opportunity to study this biological anomaly up close.
"The Asari are not going to enjoy the arrival of these newcomers. Space Elves and Space Furries, many of them sexy," Joker mutters, knowing the Asari will lose a lot of their fans.
The image of the pizza gets smaller, eventually showing the district, then the entire city, then the entire island, which is revealed to be a huge, rotting corpse of a giant.
"Are their islands the dead carcasses of giants?" Kat Shepard asks, her eyes wide and filled with disbelief.
The holographic screen began to show several islands, aka giant corpses, which are home to enormous cities and numerous mega-architectural projects.
"Elves, Beastmen, and Titans, we've found an alien world straight out of fairy tales," Joker said, confident he'll see even stranger things.
"Either they're pulling our leg, or we've found the most unconventional planet in the Galaxy." Kat Shepard said, running a hand through her hair.
After showing dozens of dead islands/Titans, they start showing images of various different locations and environments.
The image appears of a picturesque city street, full of inhabitants, many of the teenagers and almost all the adults holding scepters and wooden sticks with totems on top.
"These Ysatnafians like wooden sticks, it must be a cultural thing," Miranda comments, noting this little curiosity.
The next image shows an agricultural landscape, located in a rural area. Among the numerous Ysatnafian farmers are animals that... can be described as dragons or something dragon-like.
"Are those farmers riding dragons?" Kat Shepherd comments, staring at the image of a Beastmen child holding the reins of a large, four-legged reptile pulling a farm implement.
"I'd say they're closer to dinosaurs," Miranda comments, a little surprised, but not that much—after all, space animals can be quite diverse.
"Elves and Beastmen, living on the corpses of Giants and raising dragons as their Livestock. Are we living in a science fiction world, or have we landed in a fantasy world?" Joker said, unsure what else he might learn from this First Contact Pack.
"I wonder if I could adopt a dragon in the future. It would be cool to ride one." Kat Shepard said, condensing a moment of leisure into her mind.
The holographic screen shows a completely different planet, which appears to be dead and partially burned.
[Riis]
Followed by the appearance of four-armed, 360-centimeter-tall insectoid aliens.
[Eliksni]
"Is this another alien race?" Kat Shepard asks, watching as the screen displays various images of Eliksni inside ships and spaceports.
The holographic screen shows the image of another purple planet that can be compared to a corpse kept alive by machines.
[Anur Transyl]
Followed by the appearance of a race of green-skinned humanoids who appear to have been created by Victor Frankenstein.
[Transylians]
"Frankenstein's monster must be an alien. Or Mary Shelley was abducted by aliens and brought back to Earth." Joker said, making a tasteless joke.
The screen shows an image of a moon with a habitable atmosphere, featuring large forests and deserts.
[Anur Lobo]
These aliens have gray or brown fur, some with long, flowing manes and bushy tails, and three or four sharp claws on each hand. One of them acts as a thumb, while the others act as fingers. They also have pointed elbows and shoulders.
Their jaws have four hinges and can open outward. The inside of a loboan's mouth has been shown to be purple, green, or red.
[Loboans]
"Space werewolves." Kat Shepard mutters, staring at the images of Loboans performing city guard duties.
A new image, a new planet, this time a large planet comparable to Mars, but with the ecosystem of ancient Egypt.
[Anur Khufos]
Images appear of mummy-like creatures composed of thousands of tendrils growing from their hard, shell-like heads, with their tendrils actually a thin but powerful skin that they can control.
This skin is made of an alien material that feels like old fabric but has elasticity.
They are thin, humanoid in shape, with faint ape-like features on their limbs. They also wear wadjet headdresses on their foreheads, without noses or mouths.
Their clothing is reminiscent of the ancient Egyptians, with dhoti-like garments at the waist, collars, and two bandages hanging from the upper back.
They wear golden cuffs on their feet and wrists. Their bodies are hollow, allowing them to store objects in their chests.
There are spaces between the bandages on the wrists, chest, and ankles, as well as the eyes, which glow in any color.
[Thep-Khufans]
"Now we have alien mummies, all that's missing are vampires and we'll have everything we need to make a classic Halloween movie." Joker said, tempted to take out his Omni-Tool and take notes.
The image shows a new planet, with a predominantly mountainous geography.
[Drahn]
Images of human aliens appear with very white skin for women and dark blue for men.
These aliens have reptilian scales, horns, and tails.
Oddly enough, the women of this alien species look very similar to human women, except for minor differences.
[Au-Ras]
"I don't know if I should call them Dragon-boy and Dragon-girl, but I admit that women of this species are attractive," Joker said, finding a new source for his fantasies.
On the screen, a new planet appears, quite similar to Earth, but with a single large continent, with fewer mountain ranges and more grasslands.
[Viis]
Images appear of humanoid aliens resembling humans but with rabbit ears on top of their heads. These aliens are dressed to reveal a lot of skin, and there are significantly more women than men.
[Viera]
"This has to be the best day of my life, bunny girls exist," Joker said, almost crying with happiness at this discovery.
"For once I have to agree with Joker," Kat Shepard said, understanding the appeal of the Bunnygirls.
The screen displays an image of a large green planet, with the largest number of trees ever seen on any planet.
[Milalla]
Images of humanoid beings appear, similar to human children but with pointed ears. That's a seven-fold adoptability factor.
[Lalafell]
"I'm no lolicon, but these space gnomes are adorable," Joker said, having his limitations.
The holographic screen displays an image of a desolate planet, most of which appears to be swampland.
[Gundalia]
These aliens are humanoids with gray skin and bluish-gray markings under their eyes. A bone-like, horn-like plaque covers their forehead and can grow all around their head.
[Gundalian]
"I honestly expected to see something stranger, but gray-skinned humanoids with bony plates are pretty normal," Kat Shepard said, surprised that there are normal aliens in this First Contact Pack.
"They remind me of Turians." Miranda comments, receiving a war-like aura from these Gundalians.
The last image shows a pretty planet similar to planet Earth but much cleaner.
[Neathia]
Images of humanoid beings with round, diamond-shaped blue eyes appear, and their skin color differs depending on their gender: males have light blue skin, while females have light pink skin.
Slightly similar to humans, their upper face also features a triangular arch.
[Neathians]
"Commander Shepard, we've found the Asari cousins." Joker said, not knowing what else to say.
The holographic screen no longer shows planets and other alien races. Instead, it depicts a large space station, resembling a flower.
[Tenno]
"They have their own version of the Citadel and it's called, Tenno." Kat Shepard said, having long since realized that this is not your typical First Contact.
The screen shows a large room where two members of each alien race seen before are present, the pair holding together a metal bar with an elaborate banner.
"This is First Contact with a coalition of races, consisting of the Ysatnafians, Eliksni, Transylians, Loboans, Thep-Khufans, Au-Ras, Viera, Lalafell, Gundalians, Neathians." Shepard said, managing to keep the names of each alien race in mind.
"Elves, Beastmen, Insectoids, Frankensteins, Werewolves, Mummies, Dragon-Girls, Bunnygirls, Gnomes, Warmonger Humanoids, and Pacifist Humanoids. All that's missing is a blood-drinking Demon King," Joker said, trying to lighten the mood with his cheap jokes.
The image changed, all the representatives knelt, with their heads bowed and one hand over their hearts.
The holographic screen shows a huge, elaborate golden throne, with a humanoid figure clad in white and gold armor sitting upon it.
The image gets smaller, showing that in the room are hundreds of high-ranking members from all the races presented, each kneeling before the masked figure on the throne.
[USKY]
"We have a Demon King, let's hope he doesn't feed on blood." Joker said, starting to sweat.
"So many different races kneeling before a single individual," Miranda comments, not knowing whether to be impressed or frightened by what she sees.
"A monarchy in space, everything about this situation is unprecedented." Shepard said, placing a hand on her forehead, certain she had stumbled upon the most complicated situation of her life.
"Shepard, this First Contact may be more important than our mission to stop the Collectors. We have a linked ship ahead of us with a leftover breakfast of 10 alien races. If we get them on our side, we'll at least double our chances of defeating the Reapers." Miranda said, only imagining how important this First Contact will be in the long run.
"This may be my most important assignment yet, dealing with representatives of a multiracial Alien Empire." Kat Shepard said, feeling a heavy weight on her shoulders.
"Commander Shepard, the unknown vessel has sent us another file. It appears to be a translation matrix." EDI declares, his voice filled with relief. With this translation matrix, his job will be easier.
"Have they done this before? How advanced are they?" Kat Shepard asks, surprised that the aliens have solved the communication problem.
"Definitely more than us." Joker comments, hoping not to see what the USKY's weapons look like.
"And, can you use the matrix to translate the first transmission?" asks Miranda, wanting to understand the meaning of the blonde-haired elf woman's first words.
"Starting translation: I am Captain Amelia Blight of the YNSF Renai AB-3 Light Frigate of the Voidwalker Fleet, hailing from the United Space Kingdom of Ysatnaf and its colonies, aka USKY
We are pioneers and explorers from the Azure Galaxy, our goal is to seek new knowledge and resources, if you are willing, we would like to create mutually beneficial diplomatic and trade relationships." The translation is concluded.
A moment of silence fell on the bridge of the Normandy SR-2.
"If that ship is a Light Frigate, I don't want to see what a battleship looks like for them," Joker said, being the only one who could speak.
Continues ...