-------

  Seraphiel watched as her crew boarded the ship after the celebration. She could sense something had changed. She couldn't tell what, but she'd find out eventually. Interestingly, both Edirah and Yrel were among those who boarded the ship. As they did, she simply lifted a questioning eyebrow at Edirah, who in turn looked at her challengingly. She just grinned in response and nodded in welcome.

  Interestingly, those two were not the only ones. Without her knowledge, the remaining openings on her crew had been filled with new Draenei crew members. A pair of priests dedicated to all sorts of healing took over her med bay, several artificers took over the engineering jobs, and there were even cleaners and a dedicated bartender. The bridge also now had a dedicated crew, apparently in three shifts. She looked on in slight surprise as the new sensors officer, new communications officer, a new navigator, and several others took their places. Chachamaru confidently took the first officer’s chair next to her.

  “Someone’s been busy.” She commented.

  “I can’t take credit. There were thousands of volunteers after the celebration. Edirah and Yrel did most of the selection. There were Angel volunteers as well, but they apparently chose to stick with a mostly Draenei crew.” Chachamaru explained, just as Edirah sat down on a seat that just appeared on Seraphiel’s other side.

  “Uh-huh. I can see how that would make things simpler.” Seraphiel allowed, turning to look at Edirah. “So, if Chachamaru is the first officer, what rank do you hold?”

  “You’ll find out eventually. Incidentally, everyone that holds the rank in question wears this.” Edirah displayed a small pin on her collar. The pin had what she assumed to be a halo, and a ring entwined.

  A quick glance around the bridge allowed Seraphiel to spot two other similar pins, one on Yoruichi's belt and one hanging from a piercing on Yrel's horn. Another one entered the bridge moments later as Shepard walked in, and she noted the pin as an earring. Shepard didn't wear earrings, as they could be risky in combat, which made Seraphiel frown. There was a theme between those with the pin.

  “Maraad is organizing the Vindicators aboard. Once he’s done, we can go.” Shepard reported.

  “Maraad is also on the ship?” Seraphiel asked, somewhat surprised.

  "Along with Akama," Edirah confirmed with a nod. "The two brought along the best of the Vindicators, and a few of the veteran Rangari as well."

  “Huh. Is it ok for us to steal the best of the Draenei on our ship?” Seraphiel asked, still a bit shocked by the news.

  "Anyone that wants to complain is welcome to go pound sand," Yrel responded with a wide grin. "Besides, we did just win three wars, and likely won't be attacked again very soon, considering who we beat and how badly."

  “And you think say Nurgle or the Legion won’t hold a grudge?” Seraphiel asked again.

  "Seriously?" Yrel asked with a complicated expression. "The Legion has hated us for tens of thousands of years. They took their shot and failed. They'll come back eventually, but they need a better plan before that. As for Nurgle, you're the one he'd have a grudge against. We were just there."

  "Also, even if you're not all that eager for a rematch, you're one heck of a deterrent," Edirah added. "Our planet might well be the safest Core World at the moment."

  "Captain? Ma'am? Commander? I'm not sure which rank is the correct one." The communications officer, a younger Draenei woman with nice purple skin called out. "Anyway, the Angels are trying to contact you. Personally."

  “Let’s go with Captain for now.” Seraphiel decided. “And I’m ignoring them on purpose. Let them try, but if they get too annoying, you’re free to let them know I’m busy.”

  “Doing nothing.” Yoruichi finished for her.

  "It's hard work, but someone has to do it," Seraphiel stated shamelessly.

  “Incidentally,” Chachamaru suddenly interjected. “We went from a skeleton crew to a full complement and then some. Most of our previous people are now free to focus on ground operations. Or, you know, space pew-pew.”

  “Space pew-pew? Really?” Shepard asked with clear amusement.

  "Well, that felt like the fairest description. We also now have several ground teams. As mentioned before, Vindicators Akama and Maraad brought along a complement. And with the addition of Edirah and Yrel to our former personnel, we already had two full teams. Even three if we want to go smaller teams. I'd say we're quite ready to take on most missions now." Chachamaru reported.

  “Which brings up the question. What will we be doing?” Shepard asked.

  Seraphiel tapped the chair in thought. "I'm open to longer-term ideas, but I'm not sure I like how we left things on Coruscant. Maybe they've finally settled on who holds that world. We can then finish the sweep of the Monstrum. I feel like we left a job half-done last time."

  Stolen novel; please report.

  “Fair enough.” Chachamaru nodded. “Even if they’re still fighting for the planet, we now have enough power to not care.”

  "Setting course for Coruscant," Ashredar announced. "Estimated time until arrival, four days."

  “Are we really gonna just travel for four days when Sephy could just…” Rangiku made a vague gesture with her hand.

  “Yes, you lazy dolt. It’s all about the journey and not the destination.” Yoruichi declared with a grin.

  “That’s not how the saying is used!” Rangiku complained.

  --------

  “Well…” Yoruichi said with a hesitant voice, looking out at the view outside the ship.

  "I don't think we need to worry about the Monstrum at least," Wrex said somberly.

  "When I was guessing who owned the world today, this was not on my bingo card," Shepard added darkly.

  Not just the planet but the entire system was absolutely crawling with Tyranid. There were some wrecked ships in orbit, but the battle had happened days ago. The planet’s surface was covered in different Tyranid bioforms and it was likely the vast majority of the inhabitants were already dead and being processed, as the planet’s atmosphere was also being consumed by enormous capillary towers as they watched.

  “There must be an entire hive fleet in the system. I wonder if they managed any kind of evacuation.” Shepard wondered.

  “I think the real question is, are we going to do something about it?” Wrex asked.

  "I'm not sure what we can do," Seraphiel stated. "Anything we did to attack the Tyranid would seal the fate of those still on the planet. Not that they aren't doomed anyway. Evacuation is frankly impossible, as only those on the deeper levels still have any chance of being alive and the entire orbit is suffused with Tyranids. I have a lot of power, but even I can't bring back all those who've died. The only thing would be to fight the Tyranids as a form of revenge, but…"

  “But we’re not even familiar with the inhabitants. We didn’t even like them.” Yoruichi finished for her. “These are just about the last people I’d feel the need to avenge.”

  “There would be one benefit. It would help save the other worlds of this galaxy from a similar fate.” Shepard pointed out. “The Tyranids are a threat to my home as well, even if not an immediate one.”

  "Yes, but this hive fleet is not going to get to your home for thousands of years if ever." Chachamaru clarified. She wasn't arguing against fighting, just pointing out the facts.

  "Not to rush you, but dodging these attacks from their space assets is getting tedious," Ashredar interjected. "I don't mind either way, but I'd ask for a prompt decision."

  “Take us away for now. If we want to fight them, I’ll need to prepare a ritual. That’s going to take a while.” Seraphiel decided. “In the meantime, we can try and figure out how this happened.”

  ------

  The journey to the next world along the hyperlane connecting to what used to be Coruscant didn’t take long. There they found a grand armada gathering. The ships didn't only belong to a single faction either. It seemed the destruction of Coruscant had managed to unify the Separatists, the Republic, and the Eternal Empire into a single force.

  “We’re being hailed.” The communications officer announced.

  "Unsurprising," Seraphiel muttered before speaking louder. "Put them through."

  "I repeat, this is Qui-Gon Jinn of the Grand Unified Fleet to the unknown ship. Identify yourself or be fired upon." The long-haired and bearded man repeated the stock phrase before the connection was formed. Apparently, he'd been broadcasting on an open channel before. It also seemed the ominous looks of their ship worked against them in this case.

  “Keep your britches on Jedi. Just because we have a different ship now, doesn’t mean you have to get aggressive.” Seraphiel responded half-jokingly.

  “Ah. Seraphiel. You’ve upgraded vessels. Or at least changed to a bigger one. I suppose it makes sense that you’re coming from Coruscant. Though I do have to wonder why you were there.” Qui-Gon asked. They’d met before, after the Separatists took over Coruscant.

  “I felt that I left a job half done with the Monstrum. I wanted to check if you’d settled the ownership of Coruscant and if I could finish the job, but I see the Tyranids happened.” She explained.

  "You actually entered the system and left alive then?" Qui-Gon nodded. "We'd appreciate any scans you took, just to have more up-to-date tactical data."

  "It's yours. How did the Tyranids get in the heart of this galaxy by the way?" Seraphiel questioned. "It's not like them to skip populous worlds. It makes a cruel kind of sense for them to target Coruscant seeing as biomass is their main concern, but they shouldn't start there."

  “We can’t be certain either, but we strongly suspect divine involvement. Only a deity of some sort would have the sort of power to do it. There are alternate theories. The Emperor of the Eternals suggested that the Tyranid hive mind might have developed a Skill of some sort that would facilitate such travel, but it would need to be a really odd Skill to move an entire hive fleet.” Qui-Gon speculated.

  “Did you manage to save any of the people?” Seraphiel asked grimly.

  Qui-Gon gave a deep sigh. “Many ships sacrificed themselves to hold the first arriving Tyranids back as long as possible. However, as you can guess, there’s no sort of evacuation that can move trillions of people. We got maybe a tenth of the people out, and I’m ashamed to admit that those were mostly the affluent and the influential ones, as they often had their own ships. Not our proudest moment, but hundreds of billions of people is still better than nothing. Settling them has been another ordeal.”

  “I can imagine the logistical nightmare. I’m assuming this fleet of yours is going to attack the Tyranids, but what exactly are you hoping to accomplish? There’s not much to save or take back.” She hated to burst that bubble but it needed to be done.

  "We know. This is mostly a containment effort. We're trying to prevent the Tyranids from attacking other worlds. Better to defeat them above what remains of Coruscant than to let them spread out and attack a hundred other worlds." Qui-Gon seemed rather realistic about the whole thing. "Even if we only manage to take down a portion of them, that's better than nothing. We have…some ideas on how to beat them, but they're experimental."

  "I might be able to help." She offered. She didn't want the Tyranids to go on a rampage through this whole galaxy. Even if she disliked the Jedi, and hated being a crutch, she wasn't quite callous enough to leave everyone here to their deaths.

  “That would be appreciated. Anything that can help.” Qui-Gon accepted gratefully. “We’re striking a balance here, giving enough time to let as many ships arrive as possible, while also risking the Tyranid hive fleet splitting and spreading apart. So, I can’t tell you exactly when we’ll go in. In the next few days.”

  "We'll stick around for now then," Seraphiel promised, and gave a sign for the comms officer, who cut the signal.

  “Would it not be beneficial for them to allow the hive fleet to spread?” Wrex asked an interesting question. “Yes, they might lose some worlds, but their ships move faster than the bugs. If the hive fleet spreads, then they can defeat it in parts instead of taking it on in a single battle.”

  Chachamaru shook her head. “You’re forgetting something. If this was on the fringe of the galaxy, then that’s what they would do. However, this is the galactic core, and this is where all the important and wealthy core worlds are. They can’t afford to lose any of those.” Her analysis was a bit blunt but insightful.

  "Politics," Wrex grumbled. "Always gets in the way of a good scrum."

  “The bane of all civilizations.” Seraphiel agreed, and most people on the bridge nodded. "Since we're doing this, I'll have to make some preparations. On that note, the big room next to the cargo hold is now off-limits to everyone."

  “Ooh, I wondered what that place was for. It felt different to everything else on the ship.” Yoruichi asked, clearly curious.

  “It’s a ritual room. Most of our ship is shielded from magic, and that room is as well as long as the armor is in place, but the armor around it can be retracted. At that point, the place is great for magic.” Seraphiel revealed.

  “I want to see this.” Edirah declared, getting up from her seat.

  “I imagined you would. I also told Teclis to meet us there. He’d likely want to see it too.” Seraphiel responded. The interest of the two mages was rather predictable.

  Teclis was already waiting for them at the cargo bay and nodded to them as the large sliding doors of the chamber opened. The room beyond looked simple, but the feeling inside was not. This room, unlike all the others, was made to enhance magic, not survive magical attacks. The materials used in its construction were quite different. For some reason, it was also filled with a mix of haphazardly placed boxes.

  "I see. Someone decided to use it as a storage room." Seraphiel pursed her lips in distaste. There was enough space on the ship, so why use this room for storage?

  "I suppose people didn't think it had any other use." Edirah pointed out. With all the new crew, the amount of stuff aboard had increased to a ludicrous degree.

  “I suppose, but I could’ve extended any room inside the ship if people had just asked.” She shook her head. With a single gesture, all the various items gently floated outside the room.

  “So, what are we doing here?” Edirah asked, brimming with barely suppressed curiosity.

  “What do you know of blood magic?” Seraphiel asked with a wicked grin.