"Have a strong stomach, Garrus?" Kaidan asked as the turian climbed aboard the Mako, the Normandy skimming through the atmosphere of the planet Edolus.
"I think so. Why?" He asked, mandibles twitching.
"Lieutenant." Shepard said, eyeing the man sitting beside her coolly. He smiled at her as she said:
"Gets a bit rough in here sometimes. Just thought I'd let you know."
Garrus looked from the biotic to the soldier, whose look had morphed into a glare.
"I see." The ex-C-Sec agent said diplomatically, reaching for the restraints.
"You're always welcome to drive, Lieutenant." Shepard said in a sweet tone which was dripping with threat. Much like how Kaidan would imagine Ash would look like if she was strong-armed into a frilly dress for a political engagement.
"Thirty seconds 'til drop." Joker's brisk voice conveniently interrupted them, focusing their minds to the task at hand.
Kaidan would never get used to Mako drops. They were probably exhilarating, but he couldn't help but remember he was in a tin can of a tank, and was liable to be splattered across the walls if they hit too hard. Despite his teasing, Shepard was excellent at this part, and though the landing was always bumpy, he was slowly realizing she was well practiced and would get them down in one piece.
Edolus was not a pretty planet. With howling, unbreathable winds laden with sand, and everything looking the colour of vomit, the biotic was almost happier to experience Shepard's exuberant driving.
Almost.
"Spirits, Shepard!" Garrus exclaimed after the Mako thundered down another steep incline. "Can't you take the path around once or twice?"
Shepard shot a glare at the turian, Kaidan schooling his expression o a careful neutral.
"It's quicker this way." She retorted.
"I'm pretty sure you spent more time struggling up that mountain than you would have done just driving around it." Garrus replied.
"But that's boring." Shepard said. "And the Mako doesn't do boring."
"You can say that again." He muttered.
"The Mako likes a little thrill in her life. It's what she does best." The Commander said. Garrus and Kaidan looked at each other, the biotic arching an eyebrow and unable to disguise a little smirk.
"You can walk, you know." Shepard said dangerously.
"I think we're fine, ma'am." Kaidan replied pleasantly.
"Next time, you're driving, Lieutenant," she said. "Remember to wake me up when we get to the mission site."
"Rude." Kaidan said, smiling to show he wasn't ruffled as he seemed to be. He looked down at the radar. "The distress signal should just be on the other side of this rock formation."
He wasn't surprised when the tank revved and began to climb the formation. He just took being tilted back into his seat into his stride.
"Picked up anything on comms?" Shepard asked as she navigated the Mako up the tower of rocks.
"Nothing, Commander. Just silence." Garrus said. "You got anything, Kaidan?"
"No. Other than the distress signal, nothing." The sentinel shook his head. "And no geth jamming either."
Shepard frowned.
"Something's wrong here." She murmured, just as the Mako reached the top of the rocks.
Beyond the rock formation was a round, flat, shallow basin in a large clearing. A Grizzly tank was parked within the basin, next to what looked like the distress beacon, with specks of something scattered around both objects, if you squinted.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," she said. "I don't like this. At all."
"Yeah. Does this feel like a trap to anyone else?" Kaidan asked. Shepard didn't reply.
"We still need to check it out." Garrus said. "At least to see what happened."
The soldier nodded, and began to guide the Mako carefully down the slope towards the basin and the beacon without a word. Kaidan glanced at the Commander, whose gaze was fixed forward. It was almost as if a mask had fallen over her face.
They approached the site cautiously, where the specks turned out to be bodies.
"What happened here?" Kaidan asked as Shepard stopped the Mako near the Grizzly.
"Ambush? We won't know until we get out there." Garrus said as they put their helmets on, activating their oxygen lines once they were sure they were stable. Shepard's silence was getting deafening, and neither the biotic nor the turian knew whether they should broach the subject.
They stepped out of the Mako, moving over to the strewn bodies of the soldiers. They seemed to have been scattered, taken by surprise and killed quickly. One men had a hand touching the Grizzly, inches away from apparent safety. Garrus brought up the list of the names of Admiral Kahoku's missing men, checking their IDs.
"These are the Admiral's men." The turian said. "They must have lured here by the beacon before they were ambushed. Quick job."
Kaidan waved his omnitool over an unfortunate marine.
"These aren't normal skirmish wounds. No gunshot wounds. They've been hit hard, literally. Some are...melted." He looked to Shepard, who had been stood staring into the distance until he spoke.
"We need to leave. Now," she said, in a tone that brokered no argument, but it was also...fearful?
"Commander?" Garrus asked.
"I've seen this before. Only one thing leaves that damage."
Suddenly the ground beneath them began to shudder and heave, and they spun around just in time to see a monstrous creature burst from the earth with an alien shriek. Its luminous blue head scales glowed menacingly, its scythe arms ready to crash down upon them and its four-pronged mouth opened wide.
"Thresher maw!" Garrus yelled. "Get to the Mako!"
Kaidan turned to bolt, but he noticed from the corner of his eyes that Shepard was as still as a statue, staring at the maw in front of her as it readied to strike.
"Shepard!" He cried, reaching out with a Pull mnemonic, hauling Shepard off her feet and away from the maw's scythe as it slammed down where she'd been standing mere moments before.
If he was worried that he might have had to drag the Commander to safety, he was proved wrong when she snapped out of her trance, scrambling to her feet and towards the Mako.
The hiss of the thresher maw's acidic spit sounded out behind him, snapping at his heels, which kept Kaidan running towards the Mako's open door, with Garrus frantically beckoning them to hurry up. Shepard scrambled in faster than he'd ever seen her move, and he'd only just got himself past the door before the tank was moving, almost causing him to fall out again before they got the door closed.
"Shepard!" Kaidan yelled again, but she was too focused on driving at breakneck speeds towards the nearest outcropping of rock. He stumbled his way through the shaking tank, holding tightly onto the front passenger seat as the Mako began its frantic ascent. "Shepard, please, slow down!" He managed to pull himself up into the seat as the Mako climbed the tip of the rock, and he clasped her arm. The soldier startled, whirling around to push him away, her green eyes wide and looking almost feral in the utter fear he saw there.
There was a heartbeat between them before Shepard began to clam down, breathing heavily and shaking, tears welling up in her eyes. Kaidan immediately knew then what the problem was, and his heart broke for her.
"Akuze. Oh Shepard, I'm so sorry." He murmured, relaxing his grip on her arm and taking his hand away. He should have known, with how quiet she'd become. It'd almost been a perfect echo of that terrible night too; it made Kaidan's blood boil that she would have go through such an experience again. They had to find the people responsible for this, and make them pay.
"What happened there, Shepard?" Garrus asked. There was frustration in his two-toned voice, but he was obviously holding it back, seeing Shepard in her current state.
"She's been through this before." Kaidan answered for her, hoping that the Commander would forgive him later. "It brought back some memories."
The turian looked between them thoughtfully.
"I see. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we can't just leave here."
Kaidan frowned.
"Garrus, you can't expect Shepard to go back in there."
The turian sighed.
"I know, but the distress beacon is still active. Even if we report it, it only takes one ship checking in for another disaster like this." Garrus said.
Kaidan sighed. The ex-C-Sec officer was right, of course. Plus the families of the soldiers would probably like to know about their loved ones, and there is no way a clean up crew could even get near the bodies with the maw so close by.
"There's no way we can get close enough to beacon to deactivate it," he said. "The thresher maw will be on us in seconds."
They glanced at Shepard, sitting silently in the driver's seat, watching them. The lieutenant didn't know whether they should be including her in the conversation; it felt strange and downright rude not to, but she didn't seem to be offering anything.
"Maybe we should call Joker," Kaidan began, "get him to pick us up. Then Shepard can stay on board whilst we make a plan."
"No." The Commander's voice was thick from her long silence.
"With all due respect Shepard, you've been traumatised." Garrus said. "We can't let you do this."
"I know. And usually I'd let you." Shepard replied. "But I need to overcome this. I'm not losing any more of my team to those creatures. I'll fight this battle with you or not at all."
"But what if you freeze up like before?" Kaidan asked. "Any hesitation could cost us."
"I know. Which is why you'll be in charge for now." The soldier said, looking to Kaidan. "In combat, I mean. I can help you plan and order."
The sentinel swallowed hard. The thought of taking the mantle of command, even for a few moments, sent a shock of fear through him. Was he ready for this?
"Alright." He took a deep breath. "Anyone got any ideas?"
"Don't let the maw burrow, at all." Shepard said. "We're okay on rocks, because they can't dig through them, but it'll come right out under us if we're not careful."
Kaidan looked at the radar. It was completely clear, with no hint of any aggressor on its screen. Great.
"How do we get it to unburrow without driving back over it?" He asked. Shepard frowned.
"I don't know. We could drive around the rim of that bowl shaped thing, see if it appears behind us," she said.
"That's not helpful, Shepard." The biotic replied, going to rub at his temples, before he realized he was still wearing his helmet.
"Well, whatever you do, don't let it get close. Those claws aren't for show. We have a better chance avoiding its acid spit." The soldier spoke.
"I've got an idea." Garrus said. "This sounds farfetched, but hear me out. There was a vid not so long ago about this turian crew trying to defeat a thresher maw with a tank. They got the maw at a safe distance, and used jump jets to leap over the acid as it came at them. That was how they managed to beat it."
"Garrus, it's from a vid. That's not going to help us." Kaidan said with exasperation, hoping he couldn't feel a migraine beginning to gnaw at his skull.
"It's the only idea we've got." Shepard said softly. "And it at least sounds doable."
The lieutenant sighed.
"Okay. It's worth a try." He looked between his squadmates. "All right. Shepard, where do you think you'd be best?"
"Not assigned to the jets." She replied. "I think I can take cannon, no problem though."
"Alright." Kaidan nodded. "I'll take over driving. Garrus, I need you here to tell me when to jump."
"Sounds good." The turian nodded. "We've got at least two hits to make mistakes."
"That's not comforting." The sentinel muttered, Shepard climbing up into the gunner's nest. "I hope this works."
"Me too." Garrus said, taking Kaidan's seat as the lieutenant shifted into the driver's seat. "If things get grim, though, we can head for the nearest pile of rocks."
"If the maw doesn't get us first." Kaidan said, guiding the Mako off its perch and back around to the thresher maw's basin. He opened his comm link to both Garrus and Shepard. "Are you feeling alright, Commander?"
"Been better." She admitted softly. "But I won't let you down."
"Well, I hope my driving doesn't send you to sleep," he said. To his relief, he heard a soft, slightly forced chuckle from her.
"I'm sure your driving isn't that bad." She replied. "I trust you."
"Spirits be with us." Garrus murmured as they approached, Kaidan slowing the tank down to cautious crawl.
He took a steeling breath and ventured slowly down into the basin, hoping against hope that the maw wasn't just about to pop out from under them and kill them instantly. Through his comm link he heard Shepard's breathing become erratic. He wanted to calm her, but what could he say? He just had to hope that the wait for action wouldn't be too long...
The ground rumbled underneath them and Kaidan slammed on the accelerator, the Mako lurching forward. He spun the tank around to face the beast that had just emerged, just far enough away from its giant claws to be safe. It was marginally less terrifying now they were in a tank, but the biotic still had to hold his nerve. Just treat it like a geth. A large, acid spitting, scythe wielding geth. He thought.
The thresher maw did nothing for a few moment, merely assessing them before the Mako's cannon boomed, the creature shrieking as it took a direct hit to its face.
"Nice shot!" Garrus cried, Kaidan moving his hand to the thruster lever.
"Well, we pissed it off." He muttered. "Let's hope it doesn't decide to dive."
The thresher maw's luminous blue scales seemed bright with fury, green fluid oozing from the wound above its face. It pulled its head back, like a cobra readying itself to strike.
"Get ready." Garrus said, trained on the creature's every movement. The maw opened its jaws wide and lunged forwards at the exact time the turian yelled: "Now!"
Kaidan pulled hard, hearing the jets roar and the Mako lift off the ground as the green burning liquid hurtled towards them. The acid hissed harmlessly below them, the Mako falling onto the clear ground with a thump.
"That worked!" Kaidan exclaimed. He looked to Garrus, who was equally surprised.
"Maybe it was based on a real life story." The turian commented.
Before the sentinel could reply, the cannon boomed again, hitting the upper head plates of the maw. It flinched, but aside from a rounded impact mark, there was little to no damage.
"Aim for the face again, Shepard!" Kaidan cried. "You're doing well."
She made a noise that sounded like 'thank you', before the ex-C-Sec agent cried out:
"Jump!"
The lieutenant hurriedly got the Mako to lift, just missing the glob of acid by mere centimetres. Shit, that was close. Need to pay attention.
The thresher maw seemed to hesitate, as if weighing its options, long blue tongue twitching and scythe arms pulled in close to its head. The cannon fired above them, and the maw recoiled with another hit to the face, more green fluid spraying from the wound, but it still stayed up.
"How many hits can this thing take?" Garrus cursed. Before Kaidan had time to ponder it, the maw gave a furious shriek and dived into the ground. "It's burrowing! Move! MOVE!"
You didn't need to tell the biotic twice as he floored it, heading for the nearest rocky formation as fast as the tank would move, the suspension juddering suspiciously as it ran over bumpy ground.
"Turn!" Shepard suddenly yelled into the comm and Kaidan swerved sharply just as the maw erupted underneath them. The Mako was flung by the impact, rolling over and sending a cavalcade of warning klaxxons blaring in the cockpit. When it came to a stop (somehow upright), Kaidan looked up to see the creature looming over them, ready to strike the final blow.
"Shepard?" He said, unable to take his eyes off the source of his maybe imminent demise. "Shepard?"
The maw began to pull back, raising its claws up and opening its mouth wide as it could go. It was then the cannon boomed loudly, and the shell bulls-eyed the maw's face, sending viscera flying and splattering over the Mako as it shrieked in pain. The creature shuddered violently and slowly toppled into a heap, making a small, almost piteous whine as it did so, before it finally laid still.
It took a couple of long moments before any of them dared even to breathe, but when the maw didn't move after a minute, they blew a sigh of relief.
"Spirits..." Garrus simply said, leaning against his chair and nursing a headache. "Let's not do that again."
Kaidan managed a wobbly chuckle, lifting shaking hands off the steering wheel.
"No. No, I think I've had my fill of thresher maws." He rubbed his hands together, trying to discharge his nerves.
The soft 'blip' of a private comm disconnection made him look up to see Shepard climbing out of the gunner's nest, her face a mask.
"Hey," he said, "are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah." She nodded, sitting in the back passenger seats. "How are we?"
Kaidan turned to the dashboard to do a systems check.
"We've got environmental sealing and power, but that's about it. That hit took our shields down, and hull integrity is about ninety two percent," he said. "Guess we'll have to call Joker and tell him what happened here."
Shepard nodded.
"We should do what repairs we can, and see what the techs on the Normandy can do about the rest," she said. "I'm definitely going to need a stiff drink." The two men in agreement.
Shepard raised a hand to her ear.
"Normandy? This is Mako, are you reading us, Normandy?"
"Loud and clear, Mako." Joker replied. "Go ahead."
"We need a pick-up at these coordinates," she said, bringing her omnitool up and typing on it.
"You alright?" Joker asked. "Sounds like you fought a war. Something I should know about?"
"We fought a thresher maw and won." Shepard replied flatly.
There was a pause.
"You're shitting me, aren't you?"
"No. We have a corpse out here, and pieces of it on the roof." Shepard said. "Didn't know they bled green."
"You're not going to track that into my ship, are you?" The pilot exclaimed.
"Well, we don't have a bucket of water to hand, so I'm afraid there's gonna be a bit of a mess. Sorry." The Commander spoke, and Kaidan could sense she was slowly emerging from her shell. Joker huffed on the other end of the line.
"Urgh, fine. ETA seven minutes. You still have jets, right?" He asked.
The soldier looked to Kaidan, who nodded.
"Yes, we do. Might not have much gas though, so if you can come low, that would be great."
"Anything else, your Majesty?" Joker said, and she chuckled.
"No, not right now. See you later, Joker. Mako out." As she dropped her hand, Garrus stood up.
"I'll go and see if I can't fix the Mako up a little. Never know if we'll get jumped again."
"Urgh, I hope not." Shepard nodded. "Normandy's gonna be here in seven minutes." Garrus nodded, and she let turian exit the vehicle, sitting in the seat beside Kaidan.
"Shepard," he began, but she cut him off with a wave of her hand.
"I'm fine, Lieutenant. Thank you for the concern." She sat for a moment, staring at the corpse of her worst enemy.
"I'm sorry this happened to you," he said softly.
"Don't be. You weren't to know." She sighed. "Shit, I forgot about that distress beacon."
"We'll come back for it." The biotic spoke. "Like Garrus said, we're in no position to defend ourselves if we're attacked."
"Guess so." There was a brief, comfortable pause. "Hey, Alenko?"
"Hmm?"
"That was some fantastic driving back there."
Kaidan turned to look at her, surprise clear in his eyes.
"You really think so?"
"Yeah." She nodded. "I do."
He grinned behind his helmet, one that reflected in his eyes.
"Glad you think so."