The war between the Empire and the Coalition is about to enter its bloodiest phase as 2227 will go down as the 'year of battles'. Meanwhile the Jedi Order keeps fighting a parallel war against the Sith and the Imperial Federation is entangled with a...
The scanning of Tuìnia was complete. Thanks to Davsha, the joint fleet was aware that most of the Prothean population had been herded inside the largest city: Melshum. There were other minor villages that served as concentration camps for the enslaved aliens who were forced to work in the mines and in the crop fields that fed Balak's army. And it was clear that most of it was made of Batarian nationalists, many of which had a long experience as slavers.
It was a good thing that Councilor Vaz had insisted that an entire battalion of the Batarian Protectorate participated in the liberation of the planet, in order to remove the stain on their image that Balak was burning in the minds of the Prothean.
However, the scanning also revealed that the slavers had placed a large AA defense grid around the capital, meaning that a direct assault would have been too costly. Before attempting anything, the Normandy needed to make contact with the Resistance.
To that end, Jane found herself aboard a Kodiak with Wilhelm, their kids, Javik, Davsha, Garrus and Chief, heading toward a more isolated landing zone outside the capital.
"Davsha, are you sure we can get inside the city without being detected?" Jane asked.
"The slums where my people is forced to stay are a maze, and hardly patrolled by the slavers." she replied confidently. "You will be safe until we manage to meet the Resistance."
"Assuming there is still a Resistance." Wilhelm warned. "You've been away for more than a year. Many things might have happened."
"We Prothean are more resilient than we seem." Javik reassured. "The very existence of this place confirms it."
"Point taken." Garrus conceded. "Though I hope this Resistance is something more than a ragtag group."
"If it's not, we will raise hell on those motherfuckers anyway." Sara said vehemently.
"Language, miss." Wilhelm quipped.
"Approaching the landing zone." the pilot announced.
The Kodiak touched ground, the team disembarked and spread out. After making sure nobody saw them, Jane signaled the shuttle to head back for the Normandy, leaving the squad alone on the planet. They had been dropped on a short hill that still gave them a decent view over Melshum.
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Immediately, it was clear how the slavers had redesigned the settlement: what was probably the historical center, which was quite pleasant to the eye, given the unique design of a rural prothean architecture, had now been seized by the occupiers. Some of the nice houses had been burned down and nobody even bothered to remove the ruins. The slavers had likely taken the bigger ones for themselves, while a large slum had spurred on the eastern side of the city, delimited by electric fences and towers with armed guards.
"No matter how many times we destroy places like this, they never cease to be disgusting." Scott commented.
"Turn that rage against the ones responsible." Javik invited.
