Evolution

A Section 8 & Mass Effect Crossover Challenge/One-shot

A/N: So I know that I said I would be working on researching and preparing my other fics (The Unsung Hero saga and Stargate: A New Era), but when you get an idea in your head, you sometimes can't shake it until you work on it for a bit. That brings me to this one shot/challenge.

First off let me be clear, I consider myself a stickler for canon and I stick with the source material as much as possible. However, in Section 8 the governing body of Earth and her colonies is the United States Empire. This is NOT my own creation or thinking, rather it is what TimeGate Studios, the guys behind Section 8, came up with. If you are going to complain about how 'typical American's think they'll rule over everybody', kindly don't go any further. Rather, contact TimeGate and complain to them about their choice in how to portray humanity in the fictional future they created.

Continuing on from there, since Section 8 has a wealth of incredibly advanced technology (they use anti-matter reactions to power their armor, for starters), the Citadel races get a major firepower upgrade to try and keep the balance, otherwise this would be a stomp fic.

I feel it important to mention that this one shot may or may not turn into a series of one shots that could progress through ME events. I already have a lot of projects on my plate as is, and this is mostly an exercise to get this idea out of my head. If you would like to continue this fic, all I ask is that you let me know ahead of time so I can get you my own ideas for consideration.

I'm done for now. Enjoy!

EDIT (2/8/2013):

I've fixed the date that this occurs in to be in line with a specified date that is on some Section 8 wallpapers. I also have added some additional dialog and descriptors, only a few lines.

-/Historical Database Access Granted/-

/Authorization Level Alpha: Level 1 Classified Materials Only/

In the early 21st century, amidst global turmoil, the United States of America managed to bring the nations of Earth under one government. The newly formed United States Empire sought to relieve the heavily overpopulated and resource poor planet Earth by sending the populations of whole regions out into the stars in a colonization effort. These early colonies however were unsuccessful, often facing extreme environments.

/Level 1 Classified Material Access Granted/

To that end a small group of the Senate sponsored a project to use highly experimental genetic enhancements to turn a group of volunteers into an army of super-soldiers whose sole purpose was to pave the way for human expansion. Codenamed: Spear, their orders included the extermination of any and all threats to humanities colonies and the protection of all settlers as the worlds they occupied were terraformed.

The Spear accomplished their goal in brutally efficient fashion, and paved the way for billions to live beyond Earth.

/End Level 1 Classified Materials/

Even with billions spread out across the stars, Earth still held billions more. After centuries of abuse, in the middle of the 23rd century the Earth went through a cataclysmic period of rebirth. Decades worth of natural disasters, famine, and plagues purged the Earth of billions of lives. The exact number has never been found. It was through the United States Empire's administrative and military work that kept the remaining human's on Earth alive.

This 'Rebirth' the Earth went through had the unintended side effect of evolve humanity to its next level. The human races continued existence is largely credited to the implementation of radical new technologies in every field of science, which had in turn evolved humanity on every level: physically, mentally, and genetically. The Post-Rebirth humans of Earth were significantly superior in every way to their cousins in the colonies, and used their ability and new technology to restore Earth from a barren wasteland to a lush utopia.

With Earth re-stabilized, the United States Empire reestablished authority over it's colonies. All of which saw that Earth was in fact the best place for the center of their government to be placed. Rather than the Empire be in direct control, each colony would form administrative regions that Earth would then overall manage.

With a new breed of humanity and greater technology available, expansion efforts proved to be much easier. The Spear were no longer needed in the face of the United States Imperial Forces, with the newly formed Armored Infantry at its core, and Spear was effectively disbanded.

Over one hundred years later the Empire is still expanding, and the USIF is humanities protector from all threats.

–/End Historical Database Access/-

/Earth Date/ -01.03.2538 – Two Weeks Post Spear Crisis-

/Ship/ –- Battlecruiser USIS Texas, 8th Armored Infantry Division Flagship, Taskforce 33-

/Destination/ -New Shanxi-

/Galactic Location/ -Star HD149415, 4th planet-1000 light years from Solar System-

/Affiliate/ -United States Empire-

/Terraform Status/ -Earth Standard Atmosphere Achieved-

/Colonization Status/ -Selection Process Underway-Autofabs and Defense Points Complete-

/Communication Blackout Duration/ –- 48 Hours, 37 Minutes, 3 Seconds and Counting-

/ETA/ –- 3 Hours, 38 Minutes-

Sitting in his prep room, Captain Corde reviewed the data MOTHER, the all purpose AI network of the USIF, provided. As automated arms attached the tritium armor plating of his Patton class Powered Assault Armor to the nanomuscle under-suit he wore, he couldn't help but sigh in exasperation. It was only a few weeks ago that he had killed General Salvador, the misguided genetically enhanced leader of Orion's Spear, and had saved the colony of New Madrid in the process.

With the Spear's main leader dead, Section 8 was now relegated to clean up of the remaining Spear forces. Unfortunately, their manipulation of the separatist faction Arm of Orion, ran deep and were proving to be hard to wholly eliminate. New Madrid it seemed was only a few of the many places they had set up bases in the Outer Rim of the United States Empire.

An hour ago, USIS Texas CIC

Being a military ship, the USIS Texas held a very spartan feel to it. Most of its hallways were dimly lit, as after the 'Rebirth' human eye sight acuity had increased by several factors, and nearly every room held numerous data terminals from which the ships crew could perform their duties from. The CIC was different in that it held something very important to the entire task force.

It was the CIC that held the primary servers for the ships portion of the MOTHER AI network, which was vital in combat as it allowed for priority processing requests to be handled directly rather than have to be routed through the ship at which any point the cabling could become damaged. The CIC, unlike the bridge, was situated in the dead center of the ship to protect it as much as possible from weapons fire and also had the highest security protocols in place to even get to it.

For Corde to have been called there by General Stone proved how important the upcoming briefing was.

"Corde..." General Stone greeted with out looking up from his central data terminal, having heard the armored soldiers footsteps.

Corde snapped off a salute, "General. You wished to see me?"

Stone looked up finally. His infamous white beard looking slightly unkempt from the numerous duties he held as being the commanding officer of an entire division. His armor, though having its own light and superficial battle damage, was polished enough to shine in the low lighting of the CIC's holographic displays. Before speaking, he nodded to a nearby officer who then silently lead the CIC staff out of the room. MOTHER then announced that the CIC was secure from all bugs as the CIC's inner door shut.

"Son..." Stone began sullenly, his deep voice almost echoing, "As you know we have been working on eradicating any remaining Spear forces at the request of Senate Command. Unfortunately with the recent election, Senate Command has changed priority of Spear's eradication to Class Delta until that data package you and your team recently recovered can be fully decrypted."

Corde was shocked to say the least. The last Spear base they had located and emptied of occupants held a highly encrypted data package that MOTHER wasn't able to decipher immediately. That immediately rose 1st Recon's and Stone's concern. Spear essentially used USIF technology, and as such MOTHER should have had no problem with the package. Coupled with the fact that Class Delta is the second lowest priority possible, leaving the separatist group that had nearly destroyed an entire colony to it's own devices for an unspecified amount of time was not a wise decision in his mind.

Stone held up his hand to stop Corde before he began, "I know how it feels Corde, but those are our orders. The reason Senate Command is so concerned about this is that the initial analysis of the data package suggested that it held information on one of the civilizations that the Spear eradicated in it's mission to secure the initial human colonies nearly one hundred years ago.

It seemed the aliens in question used an element with significant properties in nearly all aspects of their lives. From slower than light intra-system exploration to weapons to their own bodily functions. It was their galvenium to put it into perspective Until that information is fully decrypted, Senate Command doesn't want to tip off what remaining leadership of Spear there is that we know about it."

Corde nodded in acknowledgement. Galvenium, having first been discovered on the planet Boreas by Tobias Rehnquist, is a highly sought after metal that could be purposed into an efficient superconductor that shielded perfectly against all known radiation. Due to this unique property, galvenium is used primarily in ship building efforts, with some it starting to make it's way into other applications.

Something of that magnitude hadn't been discovered since humanities Age of Rebirth, which was when their mastery of anti-matter and high energy quantum physics came and opened up the stars to them. Even the Powered Assualt Armor he wore was built using that groundbreaking understanding of how to effectively contain individual anti-matter particles. Using them in an annihilation event to produce plasma for shields and power for the armors artificial muscles, jet packs, overdrive, the onboard AI/TacNet, and a whole suite of equipment.

"What are our orders until then General?"

Stone gave one of his rare smiles. Corde was more like his grandfather, Stone's old friend and one of the originators of the Armored Infantry's 'Burn-in' manevuer, than he realized.

"One of the newest colonies here in the Rim has gone silent. Since we are the closest, Senate Command is ordering us to check it out and provide assistance getting the colonies orbital defenses installed."

"Understood General."

"To that effect, with the Spear threat level reduced, Senate command has given us the cream of the crop from the graduating classes at the Academies on Earth. 1st Recon will once again be at full platoon strength, with you as it's CO." Stone beamed at Corde, " Congratulations Major Corde."

With the automated arms finishing tying in the micro-antimatter reactor into his armor, Corde received confirmation signals from the rest of 1st Recon that they were good to to go and waiting for him in the armory. It was only five minutes earlier they received word from short range comms that Shanxi was sending out a signal using their secondary, non-FTL beacon. That beacon had one of three message options.

Green, situation normal.

Yellow, non-military assistance required.

Red, immediate military assistance required.

It had been broadcasting a Code Red.

MOTHER Network File Access: Granted

File: Patton-class USIF Powered Assault Armor

Summary: Developed for the Armored Infantry of the US Imperial Forces, this armor is one of the most powerful and technologically advanced battle-suits in the USIF armory. Having been designed to dramatically increase every physical properties of the soldier wearing it, it guarantees that the soldier has every edge possible in a fire fight.

Details:

Protection: The suit uses a multiple layer protection system to ensure its occupant is protected against nearly every threat.

Using a rechargeable plasma shielding system allows the Armored Infantry to execute their infamous 'Burn-In' orbital drop maneuver as well as give them unsurpassed protection from incoming enemy fire.

Tritium alloy plating provides lightweight armor against any incoming projectiles that make it past the plasma shielding.

The suits under layer consists of a titanium reinforced nanomuscle weave that acts as a final ballistic defense, g-force impact absorption, and strength enhancement.

Below the nanomuscle is a classified Nuclear Biological Chemical (NUBIOCHEM) system in the form of a tight-fitting, flexible nanocomposite body glove that seals the wearer completely from external substances.

Other Features

Jet pack/Overdrive: To further enhance the wearer's abilities, the suit comes with a rechargeable jet pack that is able to propel the soldier over 100 feet into the air. Overcharge mode increased the speed and strength of the nanomuscle's, allowing the soldier to run continuously at 75 mph for a few minutes. Like the Jet pack this is also a rechargeable ability. These two in conjunction with each other allow the Armored Infantry to get nearly anywhere.

AI: The MOTHER network extends even into the Armored Infantry's suits (called the Tactical Network, aka TacNet), allowing for battlefield commanders to maintain up to date on how battles progress, relay information, or to hack available enemy computers. The suits network helps the wearer keep track of his suit's and weapon's status and links him into any available TacNet.

Lock-On: Using the MOTHER network in the suit, the soldier can command it to follow a certain target for an amount of time by giving it direct control of the suits muscles. Like many of the suits other abilities, this is also a rechargeable ability.

Micro-Antimatter Power source: Perhaps the most critical piece of technology in the Power Assault Armor, the micro-antimatter reactor provides plasma for the shielding as well as power for the suit and it's many abilities. Using stored antimatter and tritium or deuterium the suit uses the resulting plasma from the annihilation event to use in the shield while the energy from the event is stored in a main capacitor for use by the suit. Due to the extreme amount of power this provides, the Powered Assault Armor does not need refueling for many years, and even in the event of no fuel, the waste form the wearer can be recycled until it can be refueled (even if its weeks later).

A/N: So there you have it, the first part of this string of one shots, which may or may not end up in a full story. I honestly can't say where this will go, as I won't force myself to write this fic out. If this did inspire you to write your own story, please PM me so I can get you some of my ideas for your own consideration.

~DN7

PS – Follow me on Twitter for weekly-ish updates! Mitchell_DN7 is my handle!

EDIT(2/8/2013): The star system I mention for the location of New Shanxi is an actual star. I use an awesome program called Space Engine to plot and figure out where various things could possibly be. If your computer is good enough, it's worth the download just to be able to see how big/small we are compared to the rest of galaxy and known universe.