Hello Everyone and Welcome to Incursion: Alliance Effect! This is a side story to Xcom: Incursion so be sure to read that before reading this side story. This side story will detail the effects of Species Alliance contact with the rest of the known Galaxy, mainly the Council in the form of several short stories taking place within the time span of ten years. For the time being, me and my Beta Reader will be focusing on this sidestory. But without further ado, enjoy.
'I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.'
Mass Effect: Incursion is an eight-page mini-comic that follows Aria T'Loak's encounter with the Collectors one week prior to the opening events of Mass Effect 2. Spectre Aviza Norea +.
-Douglas Adams
2110 January 7th 7:00 PM Earth Time
Citadel Docking Ring
Threielle S'iin looked out the window of the Alliance frigate, the SAV Enlightened as it docked with the Citadel, watching as it carefully connected with the air lock. Threielle's mind wandered to the Citadel, searching until it found the psionic traces left by the last psionic user that visited the Citadel, years ago. Threielle knew he would be representing both the Species Alliance and the Ethereal species, not only becoming the first officially permanent Alliance ambassador on the Citadel, but the first Ethereal ambassador. One mess up could spark a major diplomatic incident-or worse. The ship jolted for a moment, signifying a successful dock with the massive station.
'Successful dock with the Citadel Ambassador, please wait for airlock pressurization.' The ship's AI spoke through the speakers in a blandly polite tone.
Threielle nodded, moving to exit the ship and ushering his two sectoid assistants who carried his personal items and luggage. 'Pressurization complete, you may exit the ship, Ambassador. A greeting party will be awaiting you.' The AI spoke again.
'Thank you.' Threielle said, having already heard of the greeting party at the briefing. With A pair of Ambassadorial guards at his side, the door slid open, floating down the ramp from the ship and onto the Citadel. The changing of brightness momentarily blinded Threielle, as the brightness inside the ship was significantly lower compared to the bright lighting inside the Citadel. Threielle spotted on the outskirts of the docking ring a large group of reporters and journalists being held at bay by several C-Sec. In front of him lay a dozen or so individuals. The greeting party composed of the three council members, Salarian, Asari, Turian. Of course the picture wouldn't be complete without the dozen or so C-sec guards present protecting the greeting party. They were only armed in light armor and with pistols, but their presence didn't go unnoticed.
'Welcome to the Citadel, Ambassador S'iin.' The Asari, Tevos, said, bowing slightly towards the Ethereal. The Turian Councilor, Quentius, said nothing, instead glancing coldly at the Alliance Ambassador and nodding stiffly. The Salarian, Valern, merely looked out from his shadowed hood. Of course with but a mere look S'iin could detect their surface thoughts.
'Thank you; it is an honor to meet you all finally.' S'iin said, bowing slightly and folding his four hands in front of himself, a classic Ethereal style greeting.
'If you would follow us ambassador, we have much to talk about. Sedeve and Mailyt will show your sectoids where your office and ambassadorial outpost will be.' The Asari councilor said, motioning towards two Asari C-Sec guards.
'Very well.' S'iin replied neutrally, psionically directing his sectoids to go with the two guards. The sectoids made the psionic equivalent of a 'yes sir', and hobbled towards the two C-Sec guards. On the outside, the two Asari stood very stiffly, not letting any emotion show, but on the inside, were growing nervous at the prospect of escorting the two sectoids, not sure of their capabilities.
'Do not worry, they are physically unfit for combat, and will not pose a threat to anyone. They are in fact harmless.' S'iin said to the two Asari guards, being able to psionically sense their uncertainty. The two said Asari nervously nodded and motioned for the sectoids to follow them, their minds somewhat put to ease. The Salarian Councilor noticed this exchange and took note of it for later. As S'iin floated amongst the other Councilors, hands folded behind his back, the Salarian Councilor came up to him.
'I take it that that was psionics you just used, Ambassador S'iin?' The Salarian Councilor asked, referring to the two Asari guards. S'iin nodded.
'Yes, all of my species are very well trained in the use and applications of our psionic ability, me included. I could sense the two Asari guard's uncertainty about the sectoids. Of course, you don't need to be psionic to read faces like those.' The Salarian Councilor nodded thoughtfully.
'As far as the Alliance has told us, only Humans, sectoids and Ethereals have these… psionic abilities?' S'iin made the Ethereal affirmative gesture absentmindedly.
'Yes, it is rare that a species can wield the power of psionics, much less be able to master them. The Uber Ethereal and Volunteer are to this date the only known psionic users able to truly 'master' it. Evidence of being able to control all of the Ethereal species at once, many radicals call the Uber Ethereal 'The pinnacle of evolution'.' Tevos shook her head.
'No species should ever have to go through something like that, to imagine…' Tevos left off meaningfully.
'Thankfully the Uber Ethereal is now dead, in no small part due to the Humans and Zudjari. For our freedom unfortunately, we can almost never be able to repay in kind.'
'Yes, this all very interesting ambassador. But if you can read our minds, how do we know whether or not you are reading ours at the moment?' Quentius inquired, still distrustful of the ambassador.
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S'iin chuckled, 'Simple: you do not, well it's not that simple actually. It is considered a serious offense in the Alliance to read other's minds without their consent unless in an emergency. You have nothing to fear. What I did was not reading their minds; it was more closely to examining their surface emotions, no different than say observing the body language of another. If I truly read their minds, everyone would have noticed as I exerted my will made manifest.' The Ethereal's reassurances helped little as the Councilors looked at each other, worried.
The rest of the walk was uneventful save for the occasional reporter trying to get an interview with S'iin. Fortunately they were held back by C-sec who obviously had dealt with this kind of thing before in the past. As the group began to near the Council Chambers, the reporters thickened and became more apparent, following the group. Finally, S'iin held up a hand to stop the group.
'I will answer some of these reporters' questions as they are so intent on getting the answers. It would be best for the general public to get to know me better.' S'iin told Tevos. Tevos nodded hesitantly and motioned for the guards to let some of the reporters through to the group. An Asari reporter holding a microphone came forward followed by a camera drone.
'Ambassador S'iin, what do you wish to accomplish here on the Citadel as the first Alliance Ambassador?' The Asari reporter said, moving the microphone to S'iin.
'Right now, the Alliance and Citadel view each other xenophobically. I wish to change that, ensuring that we can both live in peace forever without another conflict.' The Asari reporter moved the microphone back to herself.
'That's a noble goal Ambassador. And I believe I speak for everyone here saying that we wish you the best of luck.' S'iin nodded, and then turned his gaze back towards the rest of the reporters. Next, a Turian reporter came forward, butting his way through the crowd of reporters and holding a microphone to S'iin while another cameraman stayed behind.
'Ambassador, what are your thoughts on the Alliance's recent expansions into the Terminus Systems?' S'iin turned to the reporter, looking straight at the camera
'It is necessary to neutralize any possible threat that may arise from the Terminus area along our borders and secure it area for future colonization. That is all I have to say on the matter.' The Turian reporter nodded stiffly at S'iin's short response but said nothing more.
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'I believe it is time for us to move on, we only have some much time on our schedule Ambassador.' Tevos said, coming up next to S'iin.
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'Very well,' S'iin said, turning to the reporters.
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'I will answer your questions at a later date, for now I must take my leave.' S'iin said to the mass of reporters, turning to depart, the flow of reporters once more blocked by C-sec. It was only another five minutes before the group reached the Council chambers and another two as everyone settled down and the negotiations actually began.
'This Council is now in session over the finalization of peace between the Turians and Alliance.' Tevos stated, looking straight at S'iin who stood on the platform below, looking up at the councilors, Quentius in particular. The Turian in question locked eyes with S'iin defiantly and challenged the Ethereal to begin.
'First of all, I believe we should get the finalization of reparations underway.' S'iin said, turning to Tevos and ignoring the Turian Councilor. Tevos nodded in agreement.
'Yes, that seems to be the most pressing matter. State the Species Alliance's demands, Ambassador S'iin.'
'Very well, Councilors,' S'iin said, pulling up his Omni tool located on his lowest left arm. The Omni tool soon flashed to life and quickly loaded the Alliance's demands.
'I am now sending the data to your own Omni tools, Councilors.' S'iin started, waving the Omni tool in the general direction of all three councilors. The Omni tool made a quick chirp as it finished sending the data to the three councilors. The Salarian Councilor was the first to scan the message for any potential viruses and attempted hacks, which there were none present. Quentius inhaled sharply as he looked over the demanded amount of resources.
'Twenty five trillion credits over the course of ten years was the stated amount of credits it would take to possible repair all the physical damages before, while it is a little harsh, it is agreeable.' S'iin nodded sadly.
'As I'm sure you remember my colleague Anita emphasized that the price may rise or fall. The damages were extensive to the infrastructure and personal property. More so than we initially believed, hundreds of miles of maintenance tunnels were collapsed destroying vital equipment necessary to running a young colony, combined with systematic bombardment of equipment depots for backups, and the future of Shanxi itself is put into serious doubt. This is not even entering the legal ramifications you are facing for an illegal invasion and attempted seizure of one of our worlds, and the legal battles will last for decades and the charges are in the trillions as well.' Quentius glared at S'iin, clearly wanting nothing more but to strangle the Ethereal. Fortunately, Tevos stepped in before anything happened.
'Ambassador, I do have to agree with Quentius, this amount could send the Hierarchy into an economic depression.' S'iin shook his head.
'Your Government has already formally agreed to pay for the rebuilding of our colony and war reparations Councilor. From the Alliance's point of view, you have no choice but to pay.' Quentius' mandibles flexed rapidly, and then subsided.
Nodding his head, Quentius dismissed it, 'I must speak with the Hierarchy Ambassador on this matter, and I can make no binding promises, agreements, or assurances on the matter. But I know when we've been… let off lightly.' S'iin seemed to stare into the soul of the Councilor before speaking.
'I must relay to you, to back out of your promise to pay reparations Councilor… It could bring about some dire consequences.' S'iin said flatly, watching the Turian's reaction closely.
'Is that a threat, ambassador?' Quentius nearly growled out, assuming a dominant stance with his hands on the podium, making him look larger than normal. 'Do not test the Hierarchy's patience or resolve.'
'You may perceive it however you like Councilor.' S'iin stated not at all intimidated.
Quentius looked on angrily before calming down and assuming his normal position, still glaring at the ambassador.
'The last matter we have to discuss is the return of POWs, and returning the bodies of the dead.' Tevos said to change the subject, as if nothing had happened.
'After the war ended, we returned both captured POWs and civilians.' S'iin explained, the old Ethereals would constantly experiment with Humans and Zudjari alike. It was against the Ethereals ethical code to do such things anymore, but the Alliance did them anyway knowing full well the Ethereals did the same things decades ago. 'However, some personnel were kept for testing purposes before diplomatic contact was established. I assure you most are fine, and we will return the remains of those who died in custody with a full report on them.
'You should know Ambassador that such a violation of sentient rights has dire consequences, and could void you any rights to reparations.' Valern explained patiently.
S'iin nodded, 'We mainly conducted noninvasive medical examinations, and through debriefings. I assure you, none were inhumanely treated, and we are grateful for that. X-Com's previous techniques are dangerous and were born of necessity; thankfully Turian soldiers are considerably less…. Single-minded. Most of our interrogations were aimed at understanding why you attacked in the first place and unlocking the Turian language. The revelations of the matter are classified, and I am currently waiting for the physical document to be transferred over so that I may show you what we found. Something most disturbing.' S'iin looked to each council individually, 'And I assure you, if our leading theories are correct, we may have a serious problem on all of our hands.'
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As soon as S'iin entered the Alliance embassy on the wards, he could already tell it wasn't going to up to par with what he had seen on the Presidium. It was in a rundown part of Tayseri ward, and the building it was housed in was very… small.
It looked rushed by any means, quickly converted to an ambassadorial quarters out of necessity. S'iin hadn't expected five star service, he would be an idiot to assume he would be given a lavish treatment after the thorough beating the Turian military and interstellar trading had suffered, combined with an almost dogmatic focus on political retaliation by the Alliance and honestly. He was amazed it had all held together for so long. The humans needed to learn some humility…
S'iin did an eerily Human like sigh and floated inside, quickly spotting his two sectoids sitting in the corner of the room. As soon as they spotted S'iin, they quickly hobbled over, standing at the end of his robes in anticipation of their next command.
S'iin felt bad for the poor sectoids, genetically modified and cloned endlessly until they became what they were now. An empty husk and mindless drone doomed to die out sooner than later. S'iin shook out of his own thoughts and closed the door behind him, instructing the sectoids psionically to bring his luggage to him so he could unpack his few belongings.
Jeez, sorry for not getting this out earlier guys! Me and my Beta Reader have been busy, working on three variations of the same chapter. And my Beta Reader was busy with all kinds of stuff so yeah…. So anyway, we'll be focusing on this story for around… four chapters not counting this chapter before moving onto the main story. This isn't needed to read but it would really help I believe in giving some background. Add onto the fact that schools' now in for me, I don't have much time to do anything. As a side note, sorry this chapter isn't very long but I feel I really need to get this out. On another note, don't forget to review and let me hear your thoughts!