The Shadow of Old Transgressions (Homeworld/Mass Effect Crossover Quest)

Lacuna System

Taiidan Hub Station "Typhoon"

Iuno negotiates with Warlord Trosk. They go back and forth over different possibilities of recompense and strategic necessities. What the Kushan want, what the Taiidan are likely to offer, what a pause for negotiations would cost the Kushan's war effort. They spend an immense amount of time running simulations and considering different possibilities. Occasionally you or Ulysses will offer your own insights on the potential issues and the capabilities of the Taiidan. But eventually Iuno is able to get Warlord Trosk to agree to a ceasefire. At least a tentative one. For the next few months he won't conduct any offensive operations while you try to negotiate with the Taiidan.

The entire debate took about two hours of time in real space. It is very handy to be able to negotiate with someone who is Unbound like you are. Unfortunately you feel that the Taiidan will be more stubborn and much much slower.

Fortunately your maps of Taiidan space are well defined. So you quickly make a jump to the nearest Taiidan world and simply to their message traffic. By analyzing that and their courier ships jumping in and out you are able to determine where their current fleet hub for this section of space is.

Then it's simply a matter of jumping through hyperspace yet again. What you find is an impressive military build up. What appears to be several Taiidan fleets have assembled at a mammoth military station with three enormous arms bristling with docks and turrets. You count dozens of battleships, hundreds of frigates, and huge numbers of fighters. A very formidable force.

Iuno reaches out and makes contact with the station. "This is the Bentusi. We wish to discuss the current strategic station with you."

"Welcome Bentusi, this is Typhoon Command. We are somewhat busy, but we are willing to listen."

And so negotiations commence. As expected they are significantly slower than with the Kushan. But to your surprise the Taiidan proved very amenable. The commander of this force is Admiral Feltumus Macdus. You get the impression they are related somehow to the admiral in charge of the Irunese fleet and as such have a good impression of the Bentusi.

And more importantly they realize that fighting with the Kushan is a distraction from the main threat. You show them data on the Wraiths and the T-Mat, and it only solidifies their opinion. The Kushan are an aggressive expansionist people, but they are still people. They can be negotiated with unlike these implacable terrors. And so Admiral Feltumus listens intently to your proposal.

She does not have the official authority to hand over territory, but she does have the authority to evacuate colonists that are in a conflict zone. And to negotiate a temporary ceasefire while the matter makes its way further up the Republic's hierarchy.

So that is what happens. Trosk and Feltumus meet in neutral space. The Kushan mothership hanging in foreboding silence in front of a line of Taiidan battlecruisers. They conduct a verbal spar full of cautious doublespeak and innuendo. No worlds are exchanged. No peace treaty is signed. But a ceasefire is agreed to "until the galactic crisis is resolved" And quietly the Taiidan remove colonists from worlds just before Kushan "invasion" fleets arrive to claim them. While the Bentusi happily allow the refugees to settle on a few of their own worlds.

It is a peace built on tenuous understanding and a fragile foundation, but it is a peace. If you want to, you could return to the Grand Conclave and solidify that foundation, but you think that might not be the best use of your time. There are other things in the galaxy that require your attention.

Meanwhile while the rest of you have spent your time simulating various possibilities and researching historical precedents Laverna has been working on designing a new drone core. Unlike the previous cores this one is optimized for targeting as it is intended to be installed in a Brawler Frigate with its multiple ion turrets. This should hopefully provide your fleet with additional anti fighter coverage without needing to devote quite so many squadrons of acolytes to close defense.

[ ] Help with the Refugees
You personally don't have any resources to spare, and frankly you don't think the rest of the Bentusi do either given the sheer scale of the T-Mat attack. But you could see about contacting nearby civilized planets that might have supplies to spare, and if necessary escort some convoys to help alleviate the crisis at the Grand Conclave.

[ ] Go Searching for Void Wraith Activity
You haven't heard anything about the Void Wraiths recently, but you're sure they're still out there. Even with everything else going on you feel it would be a good idea to search for their fleets and megaliths so you don't get blind sided by a major Void Wraith assault later.

[ ] Find Bentusi Sentinels and Help against the T-Mat
Now that you don't have any non combatants in your care you can more confidently help with the ongoing war of your own people. You're sure you and your friends can deal with Barnacle groups easily enough and even add a decisive punch against a Starfish.

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[ ] Work on the Fleet
-[ ] Pick a Research Project.
One of the Bentusi characters can perform research on something for the fleet. Except Laverna and Aurora.

[ ] Design Drone Core (Sociology): ([X] [ ])
You have a number of potential designs that the Bentusi have never felt the need to build drone cores for. You can perform the design and analysis of a virtual intelligence capable of piloting these ships.
-[ ] Brawler Frigate

Pick a Codex/Interlude
[ ] Write In
Pick something you'd like to know more about.

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The galaxy is not a safe place. It has never been a safe place. Natural dangers abound from solar storms to black holes, to hyperspace phenomena. And they at least can be avoided. The galaxy is filled with those who would rather attack others than build up themselves. As such most races naturally develop navies to protect themselves. First from their own bad actors and then from others as they expand outward across the galaxy.

The Bentusi were no exception to this though there military forces did have a slightly different focus. In the times before Bentus united the families the unbound traveled in great convoys across the stars. Their long travels had lead the Unbound to craft vessels that were greater than any planet bound species, but not so great as to be unassailable. If anything their technology made them a target for thieves and pirates. Every entry into an inhabited system was wrought with danger for in the time it took the unbound to cross the void entire nations could rise and fall. What was once a prosperous trading partner could now be a bandit kingdom. A peaceful nation transformed into a militaristic one. And of course that was before taking into account regular pirates.

As such the some of the Unbound devoted themselves to being Bulwarks. The Unbound could never win against an entire star system. Not scattered as they were. So the Bulwarks forged great armored hulls for themselves. Massive defensive platforms with powerful weapons. In the even that a host should turn against the Unbound the Bulwarks would interpose themselves between the rest of the family and their attackers. Whether it was pirates or an entire system navy the Bulwarks would fight to stop them while their family escaped into the void. Only after every other Unbound had fled would the Bulwarks attempt to disengage. And if that wasn't possible they would attempt to burn an indelible mark into the memories of their attackers. That attacking the Unbound was a foolish endeavor indeed.

For thousand of years this balance continued. The Bulwarks were not called upon often, but more sacrificed themselves than any Unbound truly wished. Things changed however when Bentus arrived. In a flash of golden light Bentus gathered the scattered Unbound and taught them the secrets of hyperspace. Suddenly the Bulwarks were unneeded. No longer did the Unbound, the Bentusi, need to make perilous dashes for the void. Now if danger threatened they could simply leave. Some protection was still warranted, but the no longer would the Bulwarks need to buy time for their kin. Of course traditions are hard to change, but over the following centuries the Bulwarks shifted. Instead of protecting their charges they became explorers. The ventured into systems with the long dead ruins of the progenitors and battled the Keepers for secrets. They launched campaigns against T-Mat infested systems and cleared known pirate holds.

And increasingly as the Bentusi brought more and more races into their trading empire the Bulwarks intervened in the local affairs of the Bound. Instead of the bulwarks of their families they became the Wardens of the galaxy. And they did not hesitate in their task. Thousands of Wardens turned their minds to the science of war. They studied the progenitors, the T-Mat, the Keepers, and any other technology they happened to stumble upon. They refined their forms into sleek vessels of war. It was the Wardens who first developed the radially bound armor that became the signature of the Bentusi. It was they who refined the ion cannon into the epitome of weapons technology. And there were many of them. Tens of thousands of Wardens from young apprentice frigates to the eldest fleet carriers.

For nearly two thousand years they enforced the Pax Bentusi. They intervened in local wars and patrolled the galactic trade lanes to. And when the Reef ship Haddad stirred from its resting place it was the Wardens that responded. They mustered in a great armada and with Bentus itself leading them they jumped to confront the Reef ship. The battle was cataclysmic. More Bentusi died that day than had ever been lost before. The leaders of the Wardens, the eldest and those who coordinated their patrols were slaughtered in dozens of desperate last stands. All that was left were the youngest and the crippled. And before they had a chance to recover from such a devastating blow the races of the galaxy and threw off what they perceived as Bentusi tyranny.

And so the Bentusi withdrew. They no longer enforced the Pax Bentusi and what few remained of the Wardens no longer had a purpose. Or at least not a modern one. They returned to their most ancient roots to protect not the galaxy but their own families and the Bentusi as a whole. The Wardens kept their patrols to the Bentusi's own territories. They watched over the grave of lost Bentusi heroes and the creche nebulae of the young. And as the Bentusi gradually presented a softer more benevolent face to the galaxy the Wardens shed their warforms. They were stored in scattered locations around the galaxy and the wardens became the Sentinels. They stood watch over the galaxy, but did not intervene except in the direst instances. Their vessels were honed for stealth and precision. But they never stopped refining themselves. The sentinels refined the acolyte design into its current form. A deadly fighter capable of being carried by any Bentusi and protecting them against nearly any conceivable threat. And if the inconceivable happened, then the Sentinels would be ready.

Polar Void

Bentusi Bastion Halcyon

One of the last things you did before you left the Taiidan/Kushan summit was recruit a good number of Kushan warriors. These rambunctious fighters were somewhat irked that the war had ceased and they were expected to help colonize a world now, or at best stay on guard duty. So it was easy to persuade them to come and help you fight against the dangers of the galaxy.

In fact you didn't just get a handful of them but an entire battle group. A fleet carrier, several battle cruisers and about a dozen frigates all led by war master Vurdan Crigora. He seems like a fairly typical example of a Kushan, all aggressive posturing and stubbornness. Hopefully you'll be albe to work well together when it comes to a fight.

Unfortunately however despite recruiting them you have to immediately send them away. There are some things that are absolutely forbidden for Bentusi to show to outsiders. One such is Halcyon, a massive bastion located outside of the galaxy. You know that if the Sentinels are rallying anywhere it will be there. So you've asked all your allies to return to Irune. You'll rendezvous with them once you've figured out what you need to do. Iuno goes with them since she's currently housing many of the flicker personnel, and probably won't be particularly helpful in an active battle against the T-Mat.

After they leave the fleet feels uncomfortably small. It's just you, Ulysses, and Laverna now. The smallest your fleet has ever been. None of you talk much as you make the trip to the nearest hyperspace gate. You are all lost in your thoughts. You don't know what the others are pondering, but you are worried about the current situation, and what it means for the Bentusi as a whole. You would not doubt the elders, but you feel there was a certain complacency to all this. That things could have been avoided if the Bentusi hadn't withdrawn quite so completely.

You don't know what you could do about it though. You don't have much sway. Normally you wouldn't even be out from under the supervision of an elder yet. And the current situation needs to be dealt with before you can really think about what might be done to change. Still it's always been a Bentusi trait to consider the long view.

At last your trio arrives at the hyperspace gate. It's a natural tear in reality reinforced with salvaged progenitor technology. You pass through it and are hurled deep into the void "above" the galactic plane. Here the Sentinels have built their final refuge. A massive station with hundreds of mothballed warforms. And for the first time in quite a while you are presented with the sight of many other Bentusi.

There are Bentusi of all kinds here. Sentinels, tenders, and elders in Exchanges. You don't see any harborships, but they're probably fighting the T-Mat. Everyone you see seems to be busy checking over the warforms and transferring into them. Already several dozen cruisers are transmitting the identities of various Sentinel members. No one you know personally unfortunately.

Your own presence is noticed immediately. You're sure it would have been even if you hadn't shown up in a cruiser. You respond to a dozen handshake requests almost immediately and soon have linked into the local Bentusi fleet net.

It's nearly overwhelming. You haven't been connected to this many other Bentusi in so long. Ever since Talus was destroyed you've constantly been on the move. The only chance you had was when you returned to Bentus the first time, and even that seems so distant now.

For several long minutes you bask in the feeling. You greet other Bentusi, listen to various bits of gossip, and catch up on a hundred small things. Signs that even in all this the Bentusi still live. That your society can endure even this. It is fortifying.

And then you turn from the buzz of Bentusi society to more practical matters. You don't personally have Sentinel codes, but you are in possession of two fully fledged war forms and the Bentusi present aren't going to turn away that kind of help. They transmit a tactical update and you enter the gestalt.

The situation is not ideal, but not as grim as you had feared with your limited information. The T-Mat have launched a full fledged assault on the galaxy, and especially on the Bentusi, but it has not gone all one way. The Bentusi have not been idle in the millennia since they fought Haddad. The Sentinels massed and struck back. Three reef ships have been destroyed along with dozens of Starfish. And while the flicker races as a whole have not been much help the Keepers have been sighted fighting the T-Mat fiercely. There are even unconfirmed reports that they managed to destroy at least one, perhaps two, reef ships as well.

Such victories did not come without cost however. Nearly thirty percent of the Sentinels have died in battle along with an unknown number of noncombatant Bentusi. Numerous Bastions have also been lost before they could be reactivated. If this continues the Bentusi and T-Mat will grind each other to dust. In addition neither Bentus nor the reef ship it was fighting, Ninhursag, have been sighted since the battle.

That attack was the first, and Ninhursag itself seemed to be of a larger more advanced design than the others fought since. So the Sentinel Gestalt believes that finding it will lead to answers of why exactly the T-Mat are attacking and possibly, hopefully, Bentus.

Of course, where to start is the question. Or even if they should start. A substantial portion of the gestalt believes that the T-Mat should simply be fought in a more conventional war. They are however outweighed by the addition of another portion that wishes to find Bentus.

There is broad consensus that most sentinels will be needed to fight the T-Mat directly, but some could be spared to search for Ninhursag or Bentus. You surface momentarily from the gestalt to consider which group you would rather be in.

[ ] Take the fight to the T-Mat
Instead of relying on a theoretical advantage that might not even exist you'll reinforce the sentinels pushing back against the T-Mat directly. In your case that would probably mean guarding Tender convoys as they evacuate flicker worlds that are in the path of the remaining Reef ships in case they aren't able to be stopped in time.

[ ] Look for Ninhursag/Bentus
Whichever one you look for the obvious first place to look is the Cradle Nebula. You aren't sure what you might find there, but the latest reports are that T-Mat activity there is minimal. There is the question of whether you are looking for Ninhursag or Bentus. Perhaps it's a trivial difference, but motivation is always important.

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While you have been considering things with the gestalt other things have been happening. Ulysses has been in discussion with the best progenitor experts and weapon designers present. They have carefully examined the siege cannon and begun reverse engineering it. It won't be ready by the time you leave, but soon more Sentinels will be deployed with the devastating weapon.

For her part Laverna shared your drone blueprints with other Bentusi interested in drone technology. Including some of those responsible for the latest acolyte refinements. They have helped her finish developing the drone core, and given her advice on how she might be able to further refine your entire drone arsenal.

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[ ] Work on the Fleet
-[ ] Pick a Research Project.
One of the Bentusi characters can perform research on something for the fleet. Except Laverna, Iuno, and Aurora.

Pick a Codex/Interlude
[ ] Write In
Pick something you'd like to know more about.

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