Chapter 23 Chapter Twenty Two

There were still three or four days before Mal returned to the Edenna.Kali spends almost all of her time exploring the quarry ships, learning more and more about their inhabitants and culture.The more she learned, the more she realized that her previous beliefs about the quarians were either wildly wrong or far from the truth.She'd always thought of the quarians as a bunch of ragpickers, or beggars and thieves, a culture of untrustworthy hooligans.Now, she found the quarians resourceful and determined.They must struggle to survive with very limited space and resources, but they refuse to allow their society to degenerate into selfishness and chaos.In order to achieve this goal, they doggedly insist on a strong sense of community.

There's a lot of nobility in this unity, and it's reinforced by their environment, where every quarian genuinely believes they need to work together to survive.The crew is bound together by a family bond.Everyone is willing to sacrifice themselves for the good of the collective, and Kali feels that other races crave this value...if only they can learn to face their own prejudices and stereotypes about quarians in the past. While Carly was hanging out on the ship, Handel and Gillian were mostly practicing biotic powers in Grayson's ship.Even in the environmental suit, Gillian is uncomfortable around other strangers, preferring to be alone in more familiar surroundings.

Rhyme and Hito would visit occasionally, but when Carly or Handel tried to get some information about the Querry political situation from them, they kept their mouths shut.It was frustrating, and Carly felt like she was just a pawn in a game she didn't even understand, but she believed there would be an answer soon: Captain Mal finally came to talk to them. Carly, Handel, and Gillian all put on environmental isolation suits, waiting for the captain to drive to the spaceship.Rhyme suggested they did it yesterday, to show their respect for Qualian customs and traditions when the captain arrived.To make them understand more about the purpose of the meeting, Handel says, we'd better do our best to put ourselves in Querry's shoes.

Carly reluctantly agrees.When it is not absolutely necessary, she is not willing to wear this environmental isolation suit, but she can't say what she doesn't like about the environmental isolation suit.The isolation suit has full temperature control, so she never has to worry about getting too hot or sweating while wearing it, and the thin, soft material rarely restricts her movements.With video eyepieces on the face shield and sound intensifiers in the helmet, you can actually see and hear better with an environmental suit than without. Still, it was uncomfortable for her to wear.This dress completely isolates her normal body touch. For example, when she puts her hand on the armrest of the seat, she can't feel the warm leather under her palm; when her fingers tap lightly on the table, she also feels Without the cold metallic feeling, she couldn't even comb her hair with her fingers.

On the contrary, Jillian especially likes to wear the isolation suit.They took it off only once, after meeting the captain on the bridge.She'd even worn it during biotic training with Handel, and Carly knew Handel had found the behavior a bit odd, too, but for Gillian's sake, he hadn't said anything. However, Handel still insisted that she take off the helmet and mask between training sessions. Gillian complied, but she was not very satisfied with her mouth. The fact that she grumbled and complained was evidence that she had changed a lot, not the wordless compliance.Carly asked Handel how much progress Gillian had shown, and even shared with Handel her theory that the environmental suit could make Gillian feel safer and more confident.But Handel had a different theory of his own.

"I think she improved because Cerberus never had a chance to drug her again." The thought was disturbing, but Carly was surprised how it hadn't occurred to her before.It's not entirely plausible to blame Jiro's chemical concoctions for Jillian's condition, but it's possible that their medicines made Gillian's symptoms worse.Realizing this, though, the fact that Grayson allowed the bastards to do whatever they wanted to Gillian also made Grayson even more of a beast. The sound of the airlock opening startled Carly, pulling her back from her memory. "Knocking is all right, isn't it?" Handel grumbled in a low voice, rising from his chair to welcome the visitor, and Carly and Gillian stood up as well.

Carly originally thought that the captain would definitely bring a few guards of honor or security personnel with him, but if they really came, they would definitely stay outside the spaceship.Apart from Rhyme, there was only Mal. "Thank you for your invitation." The captain shook hands with them in turn. "It's a great honor for us to have you here," Carly replied. "Please take a seat and be casual." There were only four chairs in the passenger compartment, so Gillian had to sit on Handel's lap while the adults sat on them.Carly was once again stunned by the progress Gillian had made in just under two weeks.

Before they could speak, the meeting was interrupted by an urgent message from the radio built into Mal's mask.Mal held up a hand to signal the others to keep quiet while he listened.Carly couldn't hear what Mal heard, only saw him nodding. "Take them to Dock Seven," he instructed, "and tell them they're welcome back." "Forgive me," he said to Carly and the others a moment later, "all visiting ships must be approved by me before they can land." "Are you leaving now?" she asked. Mal shook his head. "Easley and his team will go to welcome them. Let's get on with our business."

"Then what exactly is this matter?" Handel asked directly, putting aside the politeness and etiquette.Carly couldn't blame him, because she was going to ask straight up, too.Luckily, Mal looked like he was ready to tell the truth. "The rogue fleet is dying," he said, without pretense. "The death is long and slow, almost invisible, but undeniable. We are nearing the limits of our species. For the next eighty or ninety years, The fleet will not be able to support the size of our population." "I thought your population growth was zero." Carly recalled that Hito described to her the generally strict birth control policy when she went to play below.

"Our population is stable, but the fleet is not." The captain explained, "Our spaceships are constantly aging and damaged, but our speed of updating and repairing cannot keep up. Our living space will become less and less, whether it is Neither the College of Cardinals nor the command is willing to act. I feel that over time, they will eventually realize that radical measures must be taken, but by then it will be too late to resist the tide.” "What does this have to do with us?" Kali wondered, "Why are they asking me about geth and gatherers?" "There is a coalition among the captains, a small but growing coalition. These captains believe that if the quarian civilization is to survive, action must be taken now," Mal explained. "We have proposed that the largest Several of the spacecraft are ready for long-distance travel. We hope that these spacecraft will conduct two- or five-year long-distance expeditions to uncharted airspace or unexplored Mass Effect relay stations."

"Sounds dangerous," Handel said. "It's dangerous," Marr admitted, "but it's our only chance of ensuring the long-term survival of the quarians. We need a planet that's habitable to life, unpopulated by other races, our own. Or, if that fails, We will find a way to return to the Perseus Nebula and take back the home that should belong to us from the geth." "You really believe you'll find a so-called Reaper ship at the edge of unexplored airspace?" Handel asked. "I believe this is better than doing nothing and watching the irreversible decline of our race." "It's logical," Carly admitted. "Then why is there so much resistance to sending these spaceships?" "Our society is extremely fragile," Mal explained. "The smallest changes can have huge repercussions. Sending away a few of our largest ships would result in weakening the fleet as a whole, at least until they return." Cardinal The vast majority of representatives of the regiment are unwilling to take that risk." "Their concerns are understandable. For nearly three hundred years, both the Command and the College of Cardinals have fought to protect our tiny self from disintegration. They have no choice but to adopt a more cautious and conservative policy." "These policies have only worked for us for a while," he went on, "but now we need to change. If we are to survive, we need to pursue new policies. Unfortunately, the traditional forces are heavy on the fleet. The fear of change is everywhere." "That's why your testimony before the representatives is so important, Carly," he added, "We have to enlist the support of other people in our cause to see that taking a risk is the best chance of survival. Even if we don't find the Reapers, if we don't find a way to drive the geth out of the Perseus Nebula, we might still find new worlds to inhabit." "But my testimony is meaningless," Kali objected. "It's all just speculation and possibility. I don't know any useful information about geth or Reapers, and I've never said that launching a ship into the unknown is useful." help you find what you want." "That's a different story," Mal explained. "We believe your knowledge can defeat the geth; it doesn't matter whether that's true or not. In our society, you have become a symbol of hope for the future. If The other captains see you allied with me, and it will win support for our cause. That's why those who oppose us want to see you leave Aidena." "Leave?" Handel said anxiously, "You mean they want to throw us away from the fleet?" "They won't do that," Mal assured him. "It turns you into a martyr for our cause, and those of us who advocate for change get more support." "But there are still many captains who are against us," he continued. "There are captains who have offered to offer you refuge on board their ships if you leave the Edenna. They believe that if you fly with them, you will Get more support for your side." "I don't want to be a political pawn." Carly whispered depressingly. "I understand." Mal said sympathetically, "And I put you in this position, I'm sorry. If you really don't want to get involved, you can leave the fleet at any time." Carly frowned.It is definitely not possible to leave the fleet, and the hellhounds are still chasing them everywhere. "Please, Carly," Rhyme said, "Sending explorers is my people's best hope for survival." As long as Rhyme mentioned a little bit that he saved their lives on the Omega space station, he could win Carly's consent.But based on what Carly knew about Qualian culture, she knew Rhyme would never try to force her consent.Still, she owed him a great debt.And Mal's point of view only made sense to her. However, before she had time to answer, she heard the siren from the Aidenah. Although it was far away, she could not be mistaken. "We'll find out if your information is reliable," Glo said.The navigation screen of the Sinai Ard showed several patrol frigates diverging from the flight path of the main body of the wandering fleet. Ten well-trained Cerberian commandos filled the quarry ship, along with Glo and Grayson, and a pilot who had been trained on a quarry-modified ship.Each wears a full suit of combat hard power-damped armor and carries a heavy assault rifle. "Turn on the welcome channel," Glo directed, and the Cerberus pilot complied.Technically, Grayson is directing the entire operation, but since that's the case, he'll defer to Glo because he knows the quarians better. A few seconds later, the communication channel crackled, and there was an inquiry from the Quali patrol: "You are entering the restricted area, please identify yourself." "This is the frigate Sinaiad of the Aidena Fleet," Glo replied. "Please allow me to rejoin the fleet." "Check permission." Grayson held his breath as Glo uttered the secret phrase. "My body is toward the distant stars, but my heart is always in the fleet." A few seconds later they received a response: "The Edenna has identified you and welcomes you back, the Sinaiard." Glo switched off the comm channel. "Let's fly over slowly, be nice," he instructed the pilot. "We don't want to alarm anyone." Locating the Aidena's location in the fleet was surprisingly simple.Every ship in the fleet transmits a short-range inbound signal on the same frequency.As a frigate, the Sinai Ard had been preprogrammed on the frequency of the Edenna, so the Edenna was shown as a green pixel on the navigation screen, while all other ships were shown as red dots. As they approached, Glo switched on the communication channel again, "This is the Sinaiad, please allow us to land on the Edenna." There was a delay of a few seconds before the radio rang, "This is the Aidena. Your request is granted. Please proceed to Dock Seven. The captain says you are welcome back." "It's a great feeling to be back," Glo replied. "It would be nice to send another security and quarantine team over," he added, before switching off the comm channel. "Security team?" Grayson asked suspiciously. "Standard procedure," Glo replied, "if I hadn't asked, they'd have been suspicious." "Do they have weapons?" "It's possible, but they don't expect it to happen. Your men can take them all out pretty easily." Grayson's stomach clenched as the ship floated toward the dock.For the first time in days he felt the urge to get another dose of red sand, but he suppressed the thought and focused on the task. The three in the cockpit didn't speak until they heard the dock's calipers secure the ship securely. "Lock on target," Grayson instructed, and the pilot nodded. "But don't fire until I give the order." The Cerberus installed some additional equipment on the Sinai Ard, including a small powerful short-range laser cannon. A round of pre-set shots can kill the cluster transmitter on the Edenna and cut off the communication between the spacecraft and the outside world. Prevent them from alerting other ships in the fleet. But the timing must be precise.The Edenna would still have internal communications, and the bridge would send an alarm to the entire ship should the external transmitter go down.Grayson wants to take out the meeting security team before any of this happens. "Alpha Squad," Grayson said through the transmitter in his combat helmet, "you will encounter enemies when the airlock opens. Report as soon as you kill them." Seconds later they heard intense firing from outside the ship. "All the enemies have been killed." The captain of the Alpha team reported, "There are no casualties on our side." "Destroy the transmitter," Grayson said.The pilot fired the laser, and the beam sliced ​​cleanly through the dish.Almost immediately, the ship's alarm system sounded. "Now the fun begins," Glo said.Grayson could picture him grinning grimly under the mask.