In the back woods of Pennsylvania, the squirrels run away when they see me coming their way. I am average in height but probably intimidating to a squirrel with my long red hair tied back and blue eyes shining from the morning hike. I have always enjoyed these times when I could escape college pressures and just focus on nature. I'm no hippy but there is something infinitely calming about walking through an old English forest with only the birds for company.
These times are especially appreciated after a conversation with my dad. Normally, I would sit down and play my favorite game, Mass Effect, when I am stressed but when it comes to my dad...well it takes a little more than that. In order to avoid these thoughts, I turn right towards where I know is an outlook over the valley. The Poconos might not be huge but they certainly look big from the overlook where I stop for breakfast. I was so absorbed in looking at the view and eating I didn't even notice the whirring of my fate closing in.
Looking up from my peanut butter and banana sandwich I came face to face with a small floating orb. "That looks exactly like Glyph in Mass effect 3 or 343 guilty spark in halo hmmm," before I could wonder anymore a light shine from its center enveloping me in a stasis field. My last thought was, " definitely from Mass Effect," before i was knocked out. I faded in and out of consciousness but only distantly registering cold and then some pain but not enough to awaken.
The next time i tried to draw in a deep breath my lungs filled with water and that did get my full attention. Looking around desperately, i struggled not to breathe anymore while noticing that i was in some sort of tank filled with syrupy liquid. About to pass out from lack of oxygen, the tank lid opened and i try to take a step and steady myself but my legs give and i collapse on the floor. "I am definitely going to have bruises from that," i think distantly and then the visions hit. Protheans. Scientists. This was a lab. Something being made in the tank. Scientists celebrating. The VI leaving. The scientists leaving. The VI returning with me in stasis. The VI programming the body in the tank. The body becomes a beautiful woman with red hair. Me being put in a second tank hooked up to the first. The beautiful woman waking up.
The visions suddenly stop there and I am so dizzy from my near death experience I can't seem to make sense of what just happened. One minute I am eating breakfast in the forest and the next I end up in...a...tank. Realizing I had my eyes closed tight and that's no way to see anything I slowly opened them as I feel a dull headache coming on probably from the combination of my head hitting the floor and the visions. Which are most likely also related.
As my eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light in the room I noticed that I was in some lab either deep inside a building since it had no windows or which was underground. Since the horizontal angle was doing nothing for my persisting headache I slowly moved to sit criss-cross applesauce on the cool floor. When my vision cleared from the pain that minimal movement caused I saw the same evil floating VI floating in front of me. If a ball could look concerned it certainly did a good job of it, "Are you injured? It may take some time to adjust to this new form, this unit recommends walking to get used to this new form."
My subconscious had been clambering about this being true ever since those visions but my conscious self had been valiantly trying to warn those thoughts off until the VI spoke up in that irritating mechanical voice. Now I had no choice but to accept facts. Despite hitting my head I had no doubt those visions were real for they felt too ...alive for them not to be true. Deciding my headache had abated enough for me to attempt standing, I slowly rose to a standing position with help of a handy guardrail. From this higher vantage point I could see the whole room and it did nothing to disprove what the visions and the VI had implied.
There were two tanks at the back if the room separated by a guardrail and multiple tubes and wires connecting the two. On the left was a terminal with data streaming across it and next to it were multiple screens. On the right were tables full of lab equipment which I just didn't have the stomach to look at just yet. At the front of the room was what looked like a door straight from the ME universe but it wasn't lit up. I decided to take the VI up on its suggestion and tried walking. After getting half way across the room I decided it safe enough to let loose one of the many questions plaguing my mind, "Why does this room have power?" Not one of the most important question by far but for some reason I just didn't want to confront the elephant in the room just yet. Strange, because usually I am very outgoing and I have no problem with just going up to people or asking the questions that people are avoiding but this one seems a little too big and a little too close for that kind of approach.
The room lit up as I started to move around but I mostly just concentrated on walking to look at anything in particular. The VI, which did not seem to have a name so I called it Marcus or Marc for short, explained that there was reserve power on hold for this moment in time. I had a hard time mastering walking in…I hate to say…my new body. While I practiced, Marc informed me that the protheans who made this body had put a tracking chip in the data that contained the plans for a device that destroyed the Reapers and when the data has been accessed he, Marc that is, was supposed to put me in my new shiny body. I started to panic somewhat because I was wondering if the reapers were already here and Shepherd had gotten hold of the plans for the Crucible yet. I quickly interrupted Marc and asked for the date. "Its February 18th 2179," he replied in a slightly annoyed tone for being interrupted. I simply ignored him as he continued to ramble on about how hard it was to make me and how long he waited and blah blah blah.
I just continued moving my legs until I mastered the art of walking then jumping then jogging since the chamber was too small for any decent running. When I finished I only heard the last part of his monologue about how he will be uploaded to my memory and to help monitor me. That part finally ticked me off. Not only did I have to be ripped from my time my family my friends and even MY BODY but I also had to have a little VI monitoring my every move? I don't think so. Turning to the floating globe I shook my finger at it yelling, " You will do no such thing! I have had enough of you and the stupid protheans, you drag me all over time and space put me into a different body and then you want to put a strange technology into my head to 'monitor' me? Well fuck you that is just not happening and I am leaving before you sickos decide to do anything else to me." With that I stomped off to the far wall where I remember seeing a panel but was stopped before I could do anything by his next words.
" I already am uploaded I just appear in this form for ease of communication. Also, I see that your biotics are working perfectly, right on schedule," he finished with a very smug voice that made me want to shoot him but instead made my previously ignored green biotics flare up some more. I stared at my glowing aura in a mix of horror and fascination just not believing my eyes. Sitting down with a dull 'thump' on the smooth floor I put my head on top of my folded up knees thinking over everything that just happened.
Obviously, I am not in my own body. Considering the protheans scientists hadn't considered clothes a priority I am now naked and could easily see all the differences. I had no scars or blemishes and my legs are longer than they were before, I used to be around 5'4" but now I am around 5'9", thus my trouble walking. I have light tan skin and long curly red hair that reaches just below my shoulders. Since I have no mirror that is about all I can tell for now. Going over what happened since I woke up in the tank, it all seems so fuzzy but I then remember clearly what Marc had said about the date and the crucible. The date was way too early for Mass Effect 3, after doing some basic math I realised it was 4 years before ME 1. This didn't seem to make sense with what Marc had said about the crucible data being accessed...unless...I do remember that the last of the mars rovers had landed on the mars a few months before... had that been the discovery of the prothean facility on mars? That doesn't make sense because it wasn't until 2184 according to the game that we discovered the stuff on Mars. Did our government keep it secret or did the VI just get it wrong? What did make sense that if he had captured me in 2012 then it would take a few hundred years to get here, thereby explaining the current date. I remember reading about that in the sci-fi book Enders Game which I guess is not so sci-fi anymore.
Next on my list to confront is my biotic abilities I guess. While I was playing the game I always picked a Shepard with some biotic abilities because I secretly wished I could have them, I never thought it would come true. I am guessing my abilities aren't confined to what the game has but that doesn't mean I know the first thing about how to use them. Which brought my quickly panicking mind to the last thought: I was stuck in a video game...which I guess is the real future...naked...in a small chamber obviously underground ...in a brand new shiny body that not only has biotics but also a VI in its brain with probably some other scary stuff that I haven't found out yet...yeah I am definitely fucked.
I don't know how long I sat there sobbing into my knees with Marc making worried whirring noises and circling around my head but when I finally calmed down I felt much better. It has always been my policy that when I hit a wall I will only allow myself to cry once then I will force my sorry ass to get up and scale that wall because there will always be walls and its harder to climb back up when your down than it is to just stay up. ..or something like that. Anywho crying won't help me and it also makes me cranky and then no ones happy. So I get up looking hopefully around for any clothes bu give that up for a lost cause and head to the panel again. "Is there a way out of here Marc?" I ask the little VI and when it doesn't reply right away I turn to where it floating behind me, "something wrong little guy?"
It looks up at me saying, " this unit will now respond to the name of Marc but you have also responded unexpectedly quickly to this unusual situation and this unit wonders why?" I stare at what I had considered a VI up until this point but am now considering to be a partially formed AI and responded, " well I am adaptable and very realistic. At first it seems like I have been completely screwed with, which I have, and have absolutely no hope but looking closer this is not true. I know what is going to happen generally and I have four years to prepare for those events and set myself to intercept Shepard and join his/her team. I can learn to be a medic or maybe a combat medic so I can join the ground team. With my biotics and four years to prepare I should be ready to help because that why the protheans made me right? They wanted someone who knew what was going to happen to help Shepard?"
With that the VI/AI looked a little concerned and went over to a screen on the side of the room where a video began to play. On it 3 protheans stood looking at the camera and it was hard to tell who was male or female but the middle one spoke sounding distinctly masculine, "Hello we are the leaders in your creation and have made this recording to help explain your purpose. It is too late for our people to defeat the reapers but with the passing of the plans for the crucible and your creation we hope to give your cycle the best chance. We know that the crucible will be able to make organics and synthetic one but for that to happen a person would need to be sacrafised. Taken from your time you will have no connection to anyone and nothing holding you back. Your body is the best both organic and synthetic can offer. You will be the bridge and the future for the whole galaxy. The AI that was supplied will have downloaded the latest combat training to your synapses allowing you to be a military leader among your people and have the necessary command to prepare for the coming war. Everything you need has been handed to you don't fail or another cycle will fall to the reapers."
That bastard sounded like i should be kissing his feet as if he hadn't ripped me from everything. I lashed out punching the screen and to my surprise broke right through it instead if receiving a hurt hand. Okay so super strength is now added to my list. Marc took the hint and just quietly opened the elevator doors. On the looong elevator ride I learned that I had sub-dermal translator uploaded with all the alien languages but since I was made from protheans I inherently knew their language thanks to that touch thing Javik demonstrates in ME 3. Mine is much weaker with that sort of thing only happening when I am seriously concentrating or very tired. That would explain my visions and subsequent headache earlier.