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“What do you make of the situation Champion Shepard?” Tevos, the Asari member of the council ruling Shepard’s galaxy, asked. It was the following day after the headmasters of the academies had held their meeting.
“It’s a real mess. These Tyranids are obviously a threat. The academies are right in their inability to handle the problem, although I think their plan to just pull away is a shortsighted one.” Shepard explained. On some level, she still functioned as an agent of the council, just like when she’d been a Spectre, though now she didn’t really work under their command.
“Yet you, or to be more precise the source you quoted, were the ones to recommend the plan.” Esheel, the Salarian councillor pointed out. Due to their short lives, the Salarian member of the council was the only one to have been replaced over the years after the universes had merged.
“To be clear, I only said that was the easiest way to avoid them. And it does keep the academies out of the line of fire. It’s a shit plan for dealing with the bigger issue though, for the simple reason that it doesn’t deal with the issue at all. Just avoids it.” Shepard clarified. “In fact, there’s a potential glaring issue the headmasters didn’t address, because they don’t have to, but we do.”
"Which is?" Sparatus, the Turian councilor asked. He’d always been on bad terms with Shepard, or at least it seemed that way as he was always the one arguing against her points, playing the devil’s advocate.
“The Tyranids have chosen to travel between worlds by not utilizing the gateways. That doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t.” Shepard said simply. “Given their quick adaptation speed, it’s a dangerous assumption to make. And unlike most of the academies, we don’t have the luxury of just moving away from the threat when the Citadel is only a dozen connections away.”
Even if they’d take the most direct route and suddenly started using gateways, the Tyranids wouldn’t arrive in their galaxy anytime soon, but if they truly did have the capacity to use the gateways, the threat remained. Something the council was quick to pick up on. “And what do you recommend?”
Shepard seemed to be listening to something before she spoke again. “Taking over and fortifying the other end of the gateway that connects our galaxy and the affected area. My source tells me that we would not fare well in a sustained war with the Tyranids, but defending a single world and the gateway that connects near Citadel is something that we could do.”
Sparatus was clearly not pleased. As the Turians were very military-oriented, and for the large part were in charge of the military forces of the council, the idea that they couldn’t win was not pleasant. “What makes you say we couldn’t win a sustained war?”
Another voice came over the same holo-link Shepard was using. The speaker was not shown, but the voice was heard nonetheless. “The universe where the Tyranids come from is on a whole other level of extreme when it comes to warfare. On a certain level, they lack some of the finer tactics and technologies you possess, but they make up for it in sheer numbers and a level of warfare you are entirely unfamiliar with. The Imperium of Man has over a million worlds and a Trillion soldiers at arms, tens of thousands of genetically engineered super soldiers that would put the best the Krogan have to offer to shame, and even they can barely halt the advance of the Tyranids. And theirs is a war economy taken to the extremes. That entire universe is made for war. They haven't seen a day of peace for tens of thousands of years. No matter how disciplined and hardened your soldiers are Councillor, there's always a difference between soldiers that have seen thousands of battles and have warred for their entire lives, and those who are simply well-trained but haven't seen total war before. Even the war against the Reapers, as brutal as it was, was too brief in comparison."
The mandibles on Sparatus’ face flared a bit, but he couldn’t deny the words he’d heard.
“Am I right to assume this is the source Champion Shepard has been referring to?” Esheel asked.
“Yes.” The voice replied simply.
“And am I right to assume that we might have a rather sizeable statue of the owner of this voice in the middle of the Presidium?” Tevos asked with a small smile. She’d recognized the voice, even after all these years.
“Whose silly idea was that anyway?” The voice asked, clearly a little miffed.
“The Quarians actually.” Esheel pointed out.
“The Quarians?” The voice asked, clearly not having expected that. “I suppose getting them their homeworld back helped.”
“I’m curious. How do you know so much about the Tyranids?” Anderson, the fourth and last, member of the council finally spoke. The Human man looked positively old by now. The dark-skinned man had nothing but grey in his slight beard and hair, but his tone remained warm as always. And he still wasn’t a very good politician.
“For the same reason I know so much about you.” The voice retorted simply.
“You visited them as well?” Tevos asked, curiously. Seraphiel had not hidden her background while visiting, which would’ve been hard anyway, as she was of a species never seen in the galaxy in question.
“I can’t help but notice that from everything I’ve heard, the home universe of these Tyranids doesn’t seem to be in a great place.” Sparatus pointed out, though not maliciously. “The Tyranids sound just the kind of threat that you might fight against, just like the Reapers.”
“Just like with you, I wasn’t sent there to save them from all threats. With you, I was sent to help deal with the Reapers. Anything beyond that was for you to deal with. With that universe, I was specifically sent to save the species named Aeldari from the dark god that preyed upon the souls of their dead. Anything beyond that was their problem to deal with just like you, and they had a lot of problems.” The voice, obviously belonging to Seraphiel explained. “Besides, that universe is not something that can be saved. You can only buy a brief respite. They also have their own…well, I hesitate to call them heroes, but...”
"I've heard something similar," Esheel interjected. "My sources tell me that of the high-ranking Champions, at least two or three hail from that universe, and they’d have more potential ones if they weren’t so insane. The origins of some of the high-ranking Champions are murky, thus the lack of exact number.” He felt the need to specify.
“Yeah, I strongly recommend against picking a fight against that universe, if you can avoid it.” The voice advised. “On that note, I would guess that you don’t need to be alone with the defense against the Tyranids. If the hive fleet does begin moving this way, at least two of the academies would be willing to pitch in, just to gain more levels for the students. Mahora and your own Thessia. Eva was clearly not happy with the plan to just keep away. Running away like that doesn’t suit her nature.”
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“You have another plan, don’t you? Something to deal with the Tyranids more effectively.” Shepard asked the voice. “This defensive posture doesn’t sound like a plan you’d be happy with either. It’s against your nature.” She echoed Seraphiel’s previous words.
The voice was quiet for a moment. “The real issue when it comes to dealing with the likes of the Tyranids is their numbers. What you need is a way to eradicate a large portion of the Hive Fleet at once. Preferably in a way that doesn’t allow them to recover the biomass.”
“You saw the recordings.” Sparatus pointed out. “And you were present in the battle. Even the headmasters didn’t have the power to deliver such a blow.”
Shepard nodded. Even as a Champion, she didn’t have that sort of power either despite her level. Her strength was directed against fighting singular opponents or small groups, not against swarms of enemies on the scale of a solar system. “Most of the methods I can think of, for example biological weapons like the Genophage, you already said the Tyranids are almost immune to. And they are quick to adapt to most threats.”
It was a fact that while certain Champions and beings aside from them could deal devastation on a planetary scale, doing so on a solar system scale was extremely rare. Certain beings could do it, but they were few and far between.
“This is true, which is why you have three options. First, find someone who does have the power, either technological or magical, and pay for their services. As implied, this is extremely difficult because such beings are rare and don’t come cheap. The second option is to do something extreme, like forcing a star to go supernova with the hive fleet in the system.” The voice explained.
“That would not be taken well. Especially if done somewhere not in our galaxy.” Tevos pointed out. “The gods are particularly displeased with any destroyed worlds or systems. That’s partially why there are so few people with the sort of powers we need.”
“You mentioned a third option.” Shepard pointed out.
"Well, I have the necessary knowledge to do it. I just don't have the power at the moment. The System limits some of what I can do, but it can't erase my knowledge. If we found a way to feed the requisite power to me, I could at least take a huge chunk out of a hive fleet, even if destroying it completely isn't feasible." She'd traveled through quite a large number of universes after all. She'd run into several methods of wiping out vast swathes of enemies, even if she'd rarely used any of them.
The Asari councillor leaned forward. “What would you need, exactly?”
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"This is bold," Eva said for the third time, watching over Seraphiel as the latter drew patterns to the cargo bay floor of the Normandy. "Bold and extremely risky. Which is why I like it." The vampire grinned enough to show her fangs.
“I’m glad you approve.” Seraphiel countered, not bothering to look up from her work. She really didn’t want to mess this one up.
“I do wish you could use something else to make the magical circle though. Makes my fangs itch.” Eva complained.
“Any time my blood is involved, your fangs get itchy.” Seraphiel countered. She was drawing all the patterns in her own blood. Ritual magic was difficult work, and this type especially. She was hoping that the use of an XXX-ranked being’s blood would help cover for some of the inefficiencies in converting the magic over to this universe. She wasn’t sure if the System had ever encountered the universe where it came from after all.
“Where is this ritual from? I’ve never seen anything quite like it.” Eva questioned.
"It's one of those I don't like to talk about," Seraphiel said sharply.
She really wasn’t proud of that particular visit to another universe. It was during her rebellious phase, which probably explained some of why she’d been sent there in the first place. The whole universe was about rebelling against powers far greater than you after all. She’d fit right in. It was also one of those rare universes where she did not have access to her own body. Mainly because being a Vampire didn’t really mix well with the blood of Celestials. She’d done many things in that life she wasn’t very happy with. She didn’t regret her actions, so much as she felt that she could’ve handled things better. Second thoughts.
She wasn’t a Vampire now, but ritual magic like this didn’t require her to be. It only required her to know the ritual and how it worked. Ritual magic, at its heart, was all about exchange. Exchanging materials, power, lives, blood, and countless other things for the desired effect.
"We're arriving at the system where we last encountered the Tyranid fleet," EDI reported over the comms. "Confirming the presence of the enemy. They're still here."
“Makes sense. It takes a long time even for the ‘Nids to scour a world completely.” Seraphiel nodded.
“Stealth systems are engaged. What do you need me to do?” EDI, who was controlling the ship from the cockpit asked.
"I need you to get as close to the largest concentration of the fleet as you can," Seraphiel told the AI turned android.
“I can try, but this would be much easier with Jeff flying the ship with me.” EDI pointed out. The two still worked the best together, and Joker really was the best pilot around.
“I know. But I couldn’t exclude him from the ritual without compromising the whole thing, and I think we can both agree that we’d rather have him alive.” Seraphiel replied with a slightly distracted voice, checking over her work for the last time.
"That we can," EDI stated firmly. "The vast majority of the enemy forces are gathered around the planet, with the exception of the scouts we avoided. Judging by the numbers you mentioned earlier, this should be a small-ish splinter fleet and not a proper hive fleet."
Using the gateway would’ve obviously alerted the Tyranids, so they took a page out of the ‘Nids book and flew in from a nearby system, which was luckily close. It only took them three days, which gave Seraphiel the necessary time to adjust the ritual. She wasn’t going to use it as it was originally intended after all.
“Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Take your spots!” She called out to the people they’d gathered.
Aside from the central spot in the formation, which was for her, there were twenty-four nodes for other people to stand in. The four closest spots were filled with Evangeline, the Thessian headmaster, Shepard, and Negi. Two Champions and two headmasters. The twenty other spots on the outer edge of the circle were filled with the most powerful people they could find on such short notice. Most were faculty from the two academies, including Kaede and Tatsumiya, while the rest were the most powerful Classers the Citadel council could find, including councilor Tevos herself.
“Now, I need everyone to allow a drop of blood to fall into the circle to connect with it properly.” She called out again, and the various people either used their nails, teeth, or weapons to draw a drop of blood.
“Everyone has already been briefed, but I’ll reiterate. Do not step outside the circle, as you’ll be caught in the effect as well. The spell will draw from your power reserves for as long as possible. As soon as everyone is tapped out, I’ll release the magic. This will leave you weak, exhausted, and vulnerable. But I need you to resist your instincts of fighting against the magic drawing on your powers. The more you fight against it, the more of the power is wasted.” Her words got nods of approval. For most, this wasn’t the first time they’d participated in ritual magic, even if they hadn’t cast it themselves.
‘I could use a bit of watching over Mother. This whole thing can blow in our faces, and I’d rather it didn’t.’ She sent a silent prayer and could see the smiling form of Charlotte Richards standing outside the circle. No one else was paying attention to the presence of the Goddess, which signified she wasn’t fully there.
As soon as she activated the ritual, she got an announcement.
[I was wondering how long it would take until you remembered this possibility. Didn’t take you as long as I assumed. Still, I was prepared for it. As the designer and the controller of the ritual, you’ll also reap the most rewards. However, there is a slight price to be paid.]
[The Skill [Haggling] is removed and replaced with the permanent and non-removable Skill [Ritualistic Blood Magic].]
She could feel all the gathering power, and even by her old standards, it was a rather sizeable amount. Most of the time the type of power was very important. However, sometimes power was just power. And one of those times was when used as a source of fuel for the type of ritual she was casting. She didn't have the Stats for this kind of ritual, but the System only enhanced what was there, and she'd spent a long time as a Vampire casting various ritual spells. She'd been famous for her skill in them. That skill and experience didn't go away just because the System existed, and she was no longer a Vampire. The power she'd wielded in the past might have been gone temporarily, but this ritual, as did most ritual blood magic, relied on knowledge and intelligence, not power. Power was just fuel. And fuel could be obtained from other people. And drawing the ritual in the blood of an XXX-ranked being made it even stronger.
One by one, the powerful individuals around her knelt down to signal they were tapped out. The four closest to her held on the longest, but finally, they had to give up as well. As soon as they did, she released the spell, catching the nearby Tyranids in the spell's effect.
In certain ways, the spell was very simple. It extracted the vitae of every being outside the circle from their bodies. Vitae meant both blood and the lifeforce of the victim. There was a second part to the ritual The extracted power was gathered, and if cast normally, devoured by the caster. But in this case, Seraphiel had modified the ritual so that the extracted Vitae was used as added fuel to target everyone outside the ritual circle. Everyone. All the large and small beings belonging to the Tyranid fleet suddenly became fuel for the spell ravaging them. The most powerful of the creatures could’ve normally resisted the effects, but this time their numbers were turned against them, as the countless small critters amplified the magic with their deaths, forcing the resistance of the powerful creatures to crumble as well. The power supplied by those in the ritual circle wouldn’t have been able to cover a large enough area to affect the entire fleet. But the lives and blood of an entire fleet's worth of Tyranids? That was more than enough.
All the people in the circle could feel the deaths around them, as the self-sustaining ritual magic fed on its victims, making the destruction grow even larger, and catching even more creatures in the area of effect, feeding the ritual further. All the creatures caught first dried up, before imitating the fate of destroyed Vampires in the universe the ritual hailed from, causing the bodies to slowly turn into ash, and even that ash to disappear in a few moments.
The only one outside the circle spared was EDI, who didn’t have any blood or lifeforce as a fully artificial being.
“Fuck me, that’s beautiful and dreadful at the same time.” One of the people in the circle muttered.
Seraphiel barely heard though, as her sight suddenly grew hazy, moments before a huge number of announcements swamped her, and she lost consciousness.