Galaxy At War - Menae Ascendant

"My name is Captain Ansina Falix. Under any other circumstances, I'm sure you would all be asking why I've called you here."

The words hung in the sweet, cool air of the Presidium for a few moments. The quiet rush of hovercar traffic above and below the bridge gave a pleasant, distant hum to the sounds of birds and flowing water from the parks and oxygenation gardens far below, sounding much the same as the low, droning hum that underlay the voice that had just spoken. Its owner placed her hands on the white metal railing of the bridge, looking out over the Presidium and the people walking there, and took a deep breath before turning around.

Captain Ansina Falix, Special Tactics and Reconnaissance Officer of the Citadel Council, was of middling height for a female turian, which put her at about eye level for the two human women in the small party assembled before her. The others - a strapping young turian lad and an older man with a bit more silver in his faceplates - stood at least a head above her, as did the drell on the end of the line. The quarian near the middle was somewhere between the two. With the exception of the drell and the older turian, all wore the dress uniforms of their respective militaries, as had been requested in the same briefing email that had requested their presences on a small, uncrowded footbridge in the Turian Embassy section of the Presidium at lunchtime on this pleasant day.

"I shouldn't have to tell you why," she continued, "if you have been following the news reports coming out of the Sol System for nearly two weeks now. If you have heard of what is happening on Palaven even now." She nodded respectfully to the human women, and shared a longer glance with the two turians, saying much more. "The Reapers have come to inhabited space, and we are not prepared." The words sounded flat to her ears, and the peaceful air of the Presidium seemed strained for just a moment, as if the environment itself refused to accept the reality of the situation outside the pure white walls. "I'll get right to the point. The Council has approved my request for an irregular special ops squad to serve alongside me, to make targeted strikes against the Reapers, and to seek out and grasp any advantage that we can find over them. You have all been recommended to me by your superiors, your comrades, those who have seen you in action. Should you choose to accept my commission - and I must stress that this is a volunteer unit - you will have a chance to put your talents to use in service of the galaxy itself. To strike back. Maybe even to turn the tide of this war." She looked to each of them, meeting their eyes; her gaze glittered black in the fresh green-and-white paint that covered her faceplates.

"What do you say?"

edited 23rd Jul '14 9:54:08 AM by RedSavant

Starizea always enjoyed the view of the Presidium. It was peaceful, really. From this height, it seemed like you could see everyone on the Citadel all at once. Even with the galaxy burning, there were so many souls who went about their days like always. They looked like ants from up here.

It was nowhere near the size of any self-respecting city on an actual planet, but still, it reminded her slightly of standing on the buildings of Illium. And if the Reapers weren't stopped, no one would be around to see either sight.

"I say show me to my bunk," the man in quarian armor said.

"If you got a course and a place where a good show of bullets and force of arms can push back those metallic monsters, then you more than have me coming along, Madam" says a certain Katherine Brooks as she leans against the handrail of the bridge, her posture not entirely comfortable being so relaxed, but she still put the effort to look casual at it "Corporal Katherine Brooks, Systems Alliance Army"

It was exciting to be summoned to the turian embassy for any reason, but this? This was more than Karen could have imagined. She had been picked for a volunteer squad serving directly under the Council? Twenty years ago she would never have believed that something like this was possible.... but there had been no Reapers twenty years ago, either. This was hardly the same galaxy she grew up in.

Karen stood up as straight as possible and clasped her hands behind her back.

"It would be an honor."

Ansina nodded as T'Vala, Brooks and Carpenter spoke up, snapping them a salute. "Then welcome aboard, soldiers," she said. "You'll find your new ship, the Menae, in docking bay E14. You'll be expected." So saying, she turned back to the other three candidates - the drell, Ingran Nira, and the two turians.

She studied the younger man first, looking up slightly to meet his gaze. The Thraxis family was well-known on Palaven, upright citizens and formidable soldiers; this young man, Hierax, had a list of official reprimands for insubordination as long as her leg. That said, his combat skills were often lauded in the same breath, and at much the same length.

Sanguis Scrutor, on the other hand, had had a smooth path through his military service in the Cabals and had landed a job in Special Response on the Citadel at the end of it, a position he had held for nearly twenty standard years. Not a cushy desk job for a man tired of action, no; he had volunteered to become a frontline medic, and his squad had been stationed in one of the worst-hit areas of Drusilo Ward during the Sovereign Invasion nearly three years ago. "Private Thraxis, Sergeant Scrutor," she began quietly. "I understand that this may be a difficult call to make. I have family on Palaven myself, and if there were any chance I could make as much of a difference on the ground in Cipritine as I can on the Menae, I would be there in a heartbeat. But I cannot." She straightened up. "It may not sit right, not to be part of the front lines. But I believe that this is where your talents will be best used."

edited 23rd Jul '14 10:08:29 AM by RedSavant

Although the other soldiers seemed to take a much more formal approach to meeting the Spectre, Hierax Thraxis lounged casually against the railing on the bridge - which in his dress uniform made for an almost-comical sight, but it also shortened him enough that he was eye-level with Ansina. Normally, Hierax would have passed someone as prestigious as a Spectre off at the first opportunity, but he knew at least a little about Spectres and something made them... different. Pulled out of their militaries for exceptional skill in all areas - the woman in front of him was technically nothing to do with the Hierarchy any more - and upon meeting her, she seemed to be more like a down-to-earth soldier than the fast-tracked idiots he knew from his old service in the Armigers.

As he'd been first spoken to, he guessed he'd best answer the Spectre first too - he wasn't going to hold back his real thoughts about being taken from Palaven, but he could at least speak respectfully until Ansina proved she didn't deserve it. "Ma'am, we've all been given a job to do here, whether we want to do it or not. So if this is where I'm being put, then that's how it's going to be. I'm sure Palaven'll find something from whatever we're doing here." It seemed like a small comfort to the turian. He'd never chosen the military, the Hierarchy had set that path out to him, but he had a father and a brother in the same situation as him - each one part of the 26th. He knew his father would be crazy enough to pick up his old Mattock and get shooting, even in his advanced age and his brother would be readily deployed on the front lines at Palaven any day - Hierax didn't like it, but he had the skill to be defending his home with them, and here he was. Reassigned to god-damn Menae.

edited 23rd Jul '14 12:56:03 PM by Plumbum

Star returned a nod to Ansina, then turned to face the pair of humans who had already accepted their assignment. "Corporal Starizea T'Vala, Republics Intelligence," she said through the male quarian mask.

She had studied humans extensively for her work, ever since they had shown up and given the turians a bloody nose, and knew with a high degree of confidence what the next required action was.

She held out her right hand to either woman, offering a handshake.

Sanguis was used to the view of the Presidium, it's where he was off-duty, with his wife and kids. It was a beautiful sight, but he was not here to gander at the calm, he was here to stop the storm before it destroys it. He stood in his formal wear, as any soldier would stand before his commander. For a while now he had thoughts, and he had hesitations about joining this special ops. Which made him rather uncomfortable here, he didn't honor SPECTR Es much because of their "Above the law" status. He was unsure whether at a time like this, laws should be ignored. Maybe at a time like this, special ops and SPECTR Es are needed. Although he wasn't only here to help people, he was here to get revenge as well. Though whether it's okay to go above the law for petty reasons like revenge is okay was debatable as well. He had too many questions with no answers.

However he had to stay professional and not show most signs of his indecision. Very few of them got through, he was good by this point at putting on a face for superiors.

"You don't have to worry about me, while it is unfortunate that we can't go there,I understand we must think of the good of the whole galaxy at these troubled times, not of our own."

Ingran had been listening to the conversation quietly, glancing between each person as the accepted the post. Wouldn't do anything else. Don't turn down a Spectre when they ask. One of two reasons. You were not quite the best of the best or had something that no one else did. Everyone here, the first. He pushed himself off the balcony he'd been slightly leaning against. Concession to age, time standing.

Two humans. Two turians. A quarian. Five fingers? Quarian suit, at least. More variety that usual. Variety of perspectives. No asari, no salarians, strange. Usually quite skilled. Then again, slight isolationists and fragile respectively. Front-line combat unsuited for salarians. Republics hording their commandos? An interesting topic. For later. He gave a slight bow toward Ansina Falix.

hidden letters inside messages in his spam folder smoke emerging from a device held in his hand wavering voices speaking over the extranet shadowy figures bright figures standing before him

"I accept the offer."

edited 23rd Jul '14 5:27:57 PM by Krika

Karen smiled and accepted the quarian's friendly gesture, doing a small double take as her hand grasped not three fingers, but five. Five fingers adorning a decidedly human-shaped hand. Corporal Starizea T'vala, was it? How strange.... oops! Karen realized she'd been shaking the non-quarian's hand for several seconds now, having spaced out while thinking about this person's strange choice of clothing.

"Why the enviro-suit, if I might ask? You're not.... sick, are you?" she asked, pulling her hand back.

"Huh? Oh right, this thing, I've worn it so much over the years, it just feels like my own skin," Star said, drawing her hand back from Karen. She popped the faceplate open to reveal an asari face, and turned off the voice modulator on her translator. " I guess I forget I have it on sometimes. But no, I'm not sick. Nobody ever looks twice at a quarian, and even less look long enough or close enough to look at the knees and fingers. I wouldn't recommend it when you're trying to go through the front door of a club, but anywhere else it's like being invisible."

"Uhm, I see," Karen said, trying to figure out why this asari would choose a male enviro-suit, but not sure if it was appropriate to ask. Sure asari were mono-gendered but most outfits she'd seen on them still tended to accentuate their, ahem, features. Cpl. T'Vala was definitely an exception to that trend.

"Is this an undercover operation of some kind, then? I don't think so... I've never worn a disguise before. Maybe I'm here to hack through doors? But there are better people for that.... oh, sorry, I'm rambling."

Karen looked over at their leader, who had begun to converse with the turians. There was no indication that she had further orders for the three women who'd spoken up first. That made sense, Ansina and the two turians would certainly want to discuss the latest developments from Palaven. It wouldn't be appropriate to intrude in such a solemn discussion.

"Well, we know where we're supposed to go. Erm, maybe we should move ahead to the ship?" she asked T'Vala and Brooks. In the Alliance military soldiers would never separate from their commanding officer before being formally dismissed, but Ansina had said this was an irregular unit. Maybe they would have some autonomy.

"Unlikely," Starizea replied to Karen. "Most special response teams have specialists in various fields. Which I take from your words means that you're our engineering specialist. For that sort of work, a disguise would hamper you unnecessarily. Hell, half of the reason I wear this is because the circuity in the microbial regulation unit used by your average adult quarian just so happens to be the same size of the components used in a cloak field generator, and looks exactly the same when swapped out. Be good to have a gearhead calibrate it, in any case, if you've got time. For now, we have a ship to familiarize ourselves with."

She started to walk towards the docking bay that Ansina had indicated the Menae was docked at.

Ansina nodded to Ingran and the two turians, then widened her stance a little to address the six specialists. "Good," she said, sounding pleased. "Thank you all, truly. I'm on my way back to the Menae now; you're free to come with me if you have no other business. If you have personal effects you want to bring along, you can put in a request on board and they will be brought to your new quarters." She started to walk down the footbridge, toward the Embassy proper and the elevators out to the docking bays. Even with the Reapers coming, even with Palaven burning... it felt good to have a squad at her back again.

The Menae proved to be a mid-sized Interceptor of turian make◊, painted in Council colors; the rest of the E dock was taken up by small personal craft and transport ships, leaving the naval vessel looking a bit out of place. Still, upon boarding the crew would find it a comfortable ship. The running lights along the floor of the main deck had a faint bluish tinge to them, and it was a spacious main deck even for the male turians, the tallest of the crew. "The Menae has three main decks," Ansina explained briskly as they stepped into the main corridor. "We're currently on the main deck. The cockpit is to your right, the helm to your left." The main deck followed the same general wedge design as the ship itself did, widening near the back to allow a large holoprojector in the center of the chamber. Banks of computers lined the room; only a few were manned, and the soldiers sitting there saluted the group as they walked by. "Above us is the crew deck," Ansina continued. "All crew quarters are on that deck, as are the medbay and the galley. Below is the armory; we have several workbenches for maintenance and customization." She looked back at the group of six soldiers. "Any questions?"

"Yes ma'am," Star said. "When do we take off?"

Hierax intrrupted with a raised hand. "Actually, I got another one. Did you get to name the ship? I mean, you named it after a damn moon. I don't see the humans fleeting SSV Luna."

"We'll be departing as soon as our supplies are restocked, which should be within the hour," Ansina answered Starizea. "Mission briefing will wait until we're en route, but suffice to say that we'll be out of close contact for a while."

As for the other question... well, his record had clearly stated that Thraxis had a problem with authority. "The humans tend to name their ships after great soldiers, statespersons, and battles," she said, looking to Brooks and Carpenter for confirmation. "To answer your question, no, I did not name the ship. I was promoted to Captain and granted command of it at the same time I received my Spectre authorization."

"Yep, err, yes ma'am! We're prideful that way," Karen said, nodding in agreement with the comment about human ship-naming conventions.

Karen had never formally served with aliens, but her impression was that turians were all rigid and disciplined.... was he supposed to speak to a commanding officer like that? Maybe their species just had different concepts of discipline.

There were already dozens of questions burning in Karen's mind. What size was this ship's drive core? Had the armor plating been updated in the past six months? Did the forward battery use a first-generation layout or a more recent one? How good were the toys they had waiting down on the armory deck? She resisted the urge to blurt all of these out, though, because there was one question which superseded them all.

"We are packing a coffee machine for this voyage, right ma'am?"

"Then in that case, permission to be dismissed to aquaint ourselves with the ship?" Starizea asked.

Ansina nodded to Starizea. "Dismissed, soldier. Take some time to get used to the layout; I'll contact you when it's time for the briefing."

"Levo- and dextro-amino-compliant, Corporal," she replied, smiling.

"The Menea is beautiful, Captain. Always liked Turian engineering and designs" says Katherine with a light whistle as she looks upon the inside of the frigate and remembers the gorgeous sight from outside. All while inputing some commands into her personal Omni-Tool, now linked to the ship's computer in order to input her request for personal items to be delivered. She already had a good idea that she may deploy quickly, so her things were nicely packed into a chest like case at her quarters in the Citadel. She also had a couple other things be sent along... but she would talk of that with the Captain later. Though thinking of that...

"Captain, may I go check the armory? Want to see how many toys there are to play with"

Ansina nodded. "All of you are dismissed," she said. "Feel free to look around or get to know each other; you'll be working closely with each other once we get underway. You should get to know each other." A human with officer's pips on his collar approached and saluted the Captain, a gesture she returned. Before walking with him to the helm, she gave a salute to the six specialists. "I look forward to working with you all, soldiers."

Ingran nodded as the Spectre dismissed them. Several options. Talk to team members? Set up workstation? Double-check combat equipment? Second two very necessary. First one highly useful. Order of importance, then. Necessary before the unnecessary. As the team started to break up, he approached the Spectre.

"Where should I set up my computer equipment?"

Ansina thought for a moment. "There's a disused lounge space on the crew deck," she said. "If that will do with your power needs, feel free to take it."

"Thank you, Captain" Says Katherine with a grin and a light salute before she goes walking towards the elevator "If anyone else wants to inspect the hardware, we can talk favorite death dealing machines on the way down" She says, letting the invitation hang on the air for a moment before she moves down.