Chapter 4: Chapter 4 - End of Conflict
Desolas watched the horror around him. He was visibly shaking. The creatures had begun using biotic attacks. Massive biotic singularities sprung up all over tearing ships apart. The creatures themselves began changing. Those same tendrils that he saw before danced across their skin as they grew longer, more streamlined. They each had the blue glow of a biotic aura, and worse yet, they were moving faster. A lot faster
"How?", Desolas spoke. "What changed? They weren't doing this before!"
The remaining ships began firing at them, only to watch as the bullets deflected off very powerful biotic barriers. One of the monsters turned to the Spearhead, and a biotic corona exploded from it. Throwing everyone within the Dreadnought to the ground as a singularity of great size was brought into being at the ships stern. The Spearhead's engines had torn in half, all but ripped apart by the largest biotic singularity Desolas had ever seen. What was once a mighty dreadnought was now little more than a damaged piece of junk.
Looking at the battlefield Desolas could tell his ship was not the only one affected. Every frigate left had its engines torn off by the massive biotic singularities. Some had exploded fully, leaving nothing but scrap. He could guess his ship was in a similar state, its engines torn from its hull.
"Sir, we have no engines. Weapons are working, but we can't aim the spinal cannon."
"How many ships are left?"
"All are currently in a similar situation. We have no cruisers left, and remaining frigates have had their engines torn apart"
"Have every weapon prepped to fire, the very moment one of these things gets in line of sight, fire."
Those below him worked diligently. They knew all they were doing was making it easier for the fleets to arrive. This day was lost for the 23rd Turian fleet. Desolas only hoped the others did better.
On the planet Shanxi there were three downed cruisers. Leading one of these cruisers was Commander Tyvus, in place of the general. From what he had found out so far, their were no cruisers left. Tyvus clenched his fist. The pilot turned to Tyvus.
"Commander..."
"I know. The 23rd Turian fleet has fallen to these monsters, and we're trapped on this planet. Has the acid been neutralized?", asked Tyvus.
"We can't Sir. We have preserved as much as we could, but the ships are still melting."
"And the planet?"
"We have avoided landing in the unknown terrain. Currently we are in a rocky environment about half a kilometer from the natural forests. The closest unknown terrain is twice that distance away."
"I see. Prep the men, I want a perimeter defense around this ships. We knew far too little about our enemy before we attacked and we paid for it. I do not plan on making that same mistake again. That unknown terrain could be anything. I want us defended. Do we have any Cabals left alive on board?"
"A few Sir."
"Good, Biotics can make the preparations go much faster."
The pilot saluted as Tyvus left the bridge. He couldn't think about what had happened today, not so long as he had men to protect.
We have cut off their legs. The aliens float aimlessly in the void. Many are dead, some are not. We have learned much from what few minds we have added to us. This council peaks our interest, and there is no doubt when they learn of us they will attack as well.
They know not of what we are, and will assume us dangerous.
We are dangerous.
Though we are not as dangerous as they will assume. We have consumed all life before, and since that day have been alone. We will not make the same judgement again and condemn us to the same fate.
More will come.
The minds of these Turians speak of more of their kind coming, in greater number. Three fleets, and these ships are different. They were built to deal with a somewhat similar biological species to us. Built to fight in the event of the re-emergence of a space-faring race called Rachni. These insects are similar to us, though they are also very different. Pity we could not meet them.
They were so like us.
Yet so different, they used machines and tools, they were trapped in their own forms, and yet they may have thought like we do.
And the machines.
Yes, these Geth interest us greatly. A race of machines is trivial and useless to us, but thinking machines. Not only that but thinking machines who may think as we do, that has promise. An ally perhaps, it would be most interesting. We hope they would not fight us, we would be at a disadvantage. We cannot consume the minds of machines.
So many avenues to go down, and so little time before the fleets arrive. They see us as an infection, as a parasite. They see us as they see animals.
We are so much more.
But they will see the truth. We will show them the truth. If they choose to fight back...
They will be made an example of.
Tyvus set down the case of ammo and rations before looking to the others. The perimeter was just about finished. Crates formed walls and Cabals stood at each point, armed and ready. He could see the forests in the distance, and a chill went up his spine. He had never heard of a forest being so quiet. Usually the sound of wildlife would permeate the air. Yet there was only the unnatural quiet, like that experienced before a hurricane or an earthquake.
He turned to the sky, watching the burning scrap as it fell from space. Remnants of what was left of the fleets. He had several Mechs around, all were primed and ready to fight. He nodded to himself. It was as secure as he could make it, though he wondered if it would be enough. These things, whatever they were, proved to be very powerful biotics, on top of their strange biological weaponry.
Then the silence was broken.
His eyes focused back at the forests where the noises had originated from. Animals, flying beasts mostly, had just taken to the skies squawking and cawing madly. Every single one of them flying in the same direction in massive swarms, towards the perimeter they had just built. Tyvus knew that wildlife only behaved like this for on reason. They were trying to get away from something.
"Men, prepare for combat."
Everyone aimed at forest. Watching as strange and unique never before seen animals of this planet scattered in every direction. Tyvus waited for something to come from that forests, only to look back to the flying animals. His eyes widened. They were flocking together, in ways that seemed off. Tyvus raised his rifle curiously and looked through the scope. He felt a shiver run up is back.
The flying creatures looked infected with some unknown contagion, flapping large wings, covered with feathers as black as the void, and small heads that looked to be made of exposed bone. What really shocked him however was the size and shape of these creatures. Each one was the size of a full grown Turian and the body was shaped in a way that it reminded Tyvus of a Batarian's torso, only one covered in both feathers and protective plates. The bleached birds skull for a head seemed to split open to reveal a circular maw of lamprey like teeth. Before Tyvus could do anything his eye caught the sight of falling trees. Quickly he moved his scope downwards to the forest proper, and saw them. Beasts leaped through the trees, displaying an incredible level of agility and speed. It was like these creatures turned the task of running into an masterpiece of movement. There was a level of primal grace and nimbleness to how they moved. However those thoughts quickly took a back seat to the horror that each beast looked to be just as infected by the unknown contagion as the monsters in the sky. Tyvus almost lowered his gun in shock, but he fired instead.
They charged. Infected Flyers flew above, as all manner of Hunters and brawlers ran like animals. They had evolved much since their inception, each one as fast as the fastest animals of Earth. They leapt from tree to tree with grace and agility. Swinging from branches or clawing into trees to jump from one to another. Juggernauts charged with single minded rage. They too had evolved in the years after the infection of earth. Trees ripped from their roots as they barreled through them like a locomotive, barely even slowing them down. Wood splintered and cracked as it was torn asunder by the bulk of their dense muscles.
Evolved charged alongside them, leaping and bounding through all in their way. They moved efficiently with the skills of the greatest acrobats who ever lived. And charging behind them were the massive Goliaths. Trees crumbled underneath their mighty charge. Together they were an unstoppable force. Through their conjoined minds, they moved as a singular entity with a level of unprecedented harmonious coordination. They did not tire and they did not slow.
Bullets the size of sand whistled after them. Tearing through flesh and bone, but never slowing the advancing stampede. Many of the hunters dexterously avoided being hit at all as their now feline like bodies began to change slightly. While running, their front paws dug into the ground. The Hunters body shed biomass as it's body became more streamlined. The feline like nostrils widened as they developed an enlarged heart. This happened so quickly that the moment the hunters back legs hit the ground, the changes were already complete, and they exploded in speed.
Long tails served as a rudder allowing the hunters to make sharp turns through the charging horde.
Tyvus continued firing, he focused on the large beasts that had just gained a burst of speed and was now heading the stampede. His shots rang out all across the fields as the charging army cut their way to the rocky plains. Already several Turians were getting the heavy weapons ready. The beasts moved fast. Already they were closing in. Tyvus shot one of the faster beasts in the head, and it did nothing but slow it for a negligible amount of time. Then the explosions started. The heavy weapons fired from the camp into the swarming beasts. Many of the creatures fell, though even ripped apart they still crawled, and worst of all seemed to be regenerating while doing so.
Still Tyvus knew that if they could be hurt, then they could be killed. The field between them was turned into an inferno as the boom of artillery fire cascaded throughout the plains. Explosive shells and rockets tore the earth apart and many of the beasts fell to the fire, though the ones who leapt and bound proved much too agile. Able to avoid the explosions at the last minute. They were getting close, very close.
"Biotic Barriers up!", screamed Tyvus.
He saw the familiar aura of Biotics flare from many of his troops. Just in time too. The army of beasts slammed into the single massive barrier that appeared over the perimeter. Difficult for an individual biotic, but the Cabals were trained for this.
Hunters, the first to make it to the barrier, ferociously clawed and scraped their long saber like fangs against it uselessly. The simian like Brawlers jumped, kicked, and pounded at it while howling. Hulking Juggernauts slammed large meaty fists hoping to destroy it with brute force and flyers would slam their whole bodies against it.
Tyvus watched as the beasts continued trying to slam into the barrier, but it held. Even as the flying ones peeled back their skull to spew napalm like streams of fire that flowed around the barrier, but never through it. While it was shocking to see the flying beasts exhale gouts of fire, Tyvus was much more concerned about the state of the barrier, but thankfully it held against the onslaught. After a moment however Tyvus noticed the bipedal creatures simply observed the barrier with what he could tell was great interest, and after only a moment, the creatures just stopped, and slowly backed off. Tyvus noticed that the bipedal ones looked the least infected. And these beings – who bore remarkable similarities to Asari physiology – stood still. There were about twelve of them, each one looking at the barrier. No words were spoke between them, or at least none that Tyvus could hear.
"Commander Tyvus."
Tyvus felt his mandibles twitch in surprise. One of these things spoke, in perfect Turian. It was stranger, an alien, and yet it spoke his language and knew his name. How? Tyvus did not know. he merely looked to the creature before him. It in turn observed him, much like a predator would watch a wounded prey as it was ready to go in for the kill. Tyvus found he could not speak and felt a creeping sensation well up inside of him. However he had faith that the barrier would hold for as long as it took for reinforcements to arrive in the system.
"You have trespassed on our territory. You have landed on our planet. You will surrender, or else you are already dead."
"So long as that barrier holds, we will stand. I don't know what you things are, but you will not be the first race to see a Turian's back. Now how do you know my name?"
"You misunderstand Commander", said the creature, ignoring Tyvus's question much to his ire. "When we say you are already dead, we were not speaking figuratively or metaphorically. We mean it quite literally. We knew you were coming to this planet. We knew where you would land. We adapted accordingly. You are infected."
"Infected? Infected with what?"
The creature stepped forward, placing a hand against the barrier, observing it as if it were some mere curiosity. The creature's face was blank of emotion, though Tyvus could see a glint of curiosity in its eyes when it looked into Tyvus' own.
"Infected with us."
Before Tyvus could say anything, several of his men fell, coughing up blood as their skin wriggled and writhed. Tyvus didn't have time to process this as he fell to his knees. He felt his arteries pop as he began to cough himself, and a torrent of blue blood came rushing out of his mouth. He felt his skin crawling across his bone like it was some separate entity rather. Even his plates moved unnaturally, bulging and twitching as the flesh beneath squirmed in sickening and impossible ways. He turned his head back up to the monster who continued to stare at Tyvus as he convulsed in new and terrifying ways.
"What have you done?! What is wrong with me?", Screamed Tyvus fearfully and angrily.
"We made us airborne."
Tyvus said nothing, not for lack of trying, no it was the thrashing tendons that once were his vocal chords that silenced him. A writhing nest of wriggling feelers and alien appendage that had been sculpted from his very flesh convulsed and shivered from his very being. Tendrils exploded from his body, lashing outwards like millions of hungry worms around him. Then countless voices screamed in his mind, voices he recognized as the men he had commanded. Yet, behind the screaming, there were whispers that spoke calming words in Tyvus skull. The barriers fell, and the creatures calmly stepped forward. Tyvus glared at the thing, he would spite it with his dying breath. The alien just stared blankly at him, before tendrils danced across its once smooth skin and absorbed Tyvus into itself.
Desolas watched the footage taken from his soldiers omni-tools, each one more horrible than the last. He closed his eyes and turned away.
"Stop, I don't need to see anymore."
The videos ended, and the bridge was silent. Desolas looked to the Ensign. He looked visibly sick. Desolas placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Ensign Marcius, have any of the creatures entered into the aim of any cannon?"
Marcius bowed his head. Desolas already knew the answer, but he hoped getting the ensign to talk would help him, somehow.
"No Sir. They stopped moving."
Desolas nodded.
"Are communications still up?"
"Yes.", said the ensign blankly.
"Put me on the comm."
"Yes Sir."
Desolas took a deep breath before he spoke.
"We fought bravely, and I am proud of each and every man and woman in this fleet, but this enemy is unlike any we have ever faced. Had it been any other we faced today, even if it had been the Rachni, or the Geth, or even the second coming of the Krogan rebellions, I know we would have won. Be proud of that. We may have fallen, but we still live. These creatures will have to move when the fleets come. We will help them in any way we can. I will not lie to you, many of us have fallen today, fallen in the worst of ways. Despite that, so long as a single one of us draw breath, we will fight. Our cannons are ready, and when the fleets come, even crippled as we are, we will be there to lend our aid. Spirits guide us."
The comm went offline and Desolas returned to his seat.
"It was a good speech, brother."
Desolas turned around.
"You should not abandon your post Saren, especially not now."
"Our weapons have been calibrated and armed, not that it will help much in our current state. I have done all I could, but I know right now my brother needs me more", said Saren.
Desolas took in a deep breath.
"You are much too sentimental Saren. It is unbecoming of a Turian."
Saren merely shrugged.
"Maybe I am not a very good Turian, but you are more than Turian enough for the both of us, and you are in charge of this fleet. I know you will pull us through this."
"Well that makes one of us" said Desolas. "I have done all I could, and we haven't killed even one of these things. Every plan and strategy I know of is for nothing. But I am a Turian general, I will not give up. Not now, not ever."
"Good."
Desolas nodded before looking back to the still creatures that floated aimlessly through space.
"What do you suppose they are Saren?"
"And you call me sentimental."
"No jokes. Please."
Saren nodded.
"I don't know. Demons, monsters, abominations... A lot of thoughts come to mind, none can accurately or adequately explain these things."
Desolas nodded as he just stared at the beasts. He would have sat like that until the fleets arrived, if it wasn't for the Ensign turning to him.
"Sir, we have an incoming call from one of the frigates."
"Put it on Ensign."
Marcius nodded, before turning back around.
"This is General Desolas Arterius, what have you to report?"
"General Arterius. We are Blacklight. We wish to end this."
Salarian Councilor Jobol Ulise watched the video calmly. He was unmoving, though there was a look of renewed almost youthful interest in his eye. Video file after video file showed new capabilities of these strange creatures. He went to his omni-tool calling his agents that had sent him the treasure trove of information.
"Have the Turians gotten to see any of this yet?"
"No Sir, we intercepted the files and prevented any from going to the fleets, as ordered."
"Good, keep it that way. New developments on these new beings would cause quite a stir. Need to act first before they are allowed to know. These are unique creatures, display powerful Biotic abilities not seen before. Do so after absorbing Turians into their mass, frightening implications. Not a natural life form, definitely artificial. The biped on the Turian ship was interesting. Bladed weaponry, shifted to an unusual whip, armor before that. Mass of tendrils used after going back to the mass it was spawned from, possibly gained mass to use it. Interesting look without armor, bipedal mammals, ten fingers. Could be default form, or the form of the aliens that made it. Ones on the planet were even better, spoke Turian language, may be able to take memories. Terms used by them answers much. Viral entity, can become airborne based on what the creature said, but is not so naturally. Would need to get a sample to know more, one given willingly would be the safest way. Seems these beings wish to speak to the General. Could mean anything. Best let them talk, should inform council now either way... Continue collecting information, I will delete what I have. Delay the Turian fleets as best you can. Send the fleets false intel, computer virus to alter navigation, and keep it covert. I have a meeting to get to."
Jobol stood up and looked to the wall. He smiled a bit at the picture of his graduating nephew. New to the STG, but very promising as well.
"Wonder if he would want to look into these beings."
His omni-tool blinked from existence before Jobol rose. He made his way out the room towards his security. A Salarian, ex STG. Smart enough not to pry where he wasn't needed.
"Tarlov, please inform the Council I request a meeting."
"Yes Sir."
Jobol nodded before heading towards the Presidium at a brisk pace. He enjoyed the walk.
A/N: If you are feeling that Blacklight is really an eldritch abomination in this story, then I'm doing something horribly right. Really I don't think the Turians could have prepared for something like this, especially on an infested planet. Blacklight works a LOT better on a planet than in space. Even without an airborne virus a lot of the planet is already infested. It would have been simple for a bunch of Hydras to pop out of the ground.
Thing is, I'm trying to write it where the Turians are doing everything right. Working as a disciplined military unit, using strategy and tactics that by all accounts should be working. Problem is Blacklight does not fight like soldiers do, and the Turians know nothing about their enemy. If they did they would do a lot better. They would probably have bio-hazard gear, acid rounds, more explosives, and a better idea of what to do. Also fire. Lots of fire. Kill all the things with fire. Really really really hot fire.
The 23rd fleet is equipped to deal with pirates and slavers, not an ever evolving hive minded bio-weapon. If they were then maybe so many wouldn't be dead right now. I honestly wanted to write it where the Turians had a chance of doing some damage, but of course I wrote a story where humanity has become... Well, this. So I couldn't really do that without making Blacklight something it isn't. Really, look at what Mercer did in Prototype, and this is an entire race of that. Hell, everyone Mercer ever ate ever is still floating in the hive mind somewhere as a Blacklight Individual. EVERYONE... And yes, that is me using foreshadowing. I'm not very good at it.
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