Ok dear readers. This is my first ever attempt at writing something actually post'able, EVER. So please be kind, I do love feedback, positive and challenging. I have about 8 chapters done so far and I believe this story will be about 16 chapters long, more or less. And yes, this is a Shakarian / Shenko drama too. :)
Have fun!
Chapter 1: All that remains
Night.
All is dark.
I can't remember.
Breathe. Inhale. Exhale.
I hear dogs in the distance. It's so quiet, where am I?
Where is my weapon?
I believe they are looking for something.
More barking. They're close.
I'm so tired. But something tells me I cannot sleep, I should not sleep. Deep inside me I feel like if I sleep I will never wake up again. My eyes are heavy but still open, all is dark.
I don't want to go.
The void is coming. And it is swallowing me whole.
oO0~0Oo
The war was over. Every Reaper had been disabled. Not even an EM wave could be sensed from them. A rock was now more exciting than those bastards.
On a makeshift command central the leaders and soldiers who survived it all were now organizing the next steps to clean the planet of the invaders.
Dr. Liara T'Soni was helping to coordinate with the remaining leaders of the human resistance, Primarch Victus, Urdnot Wrex and Major Kirrahe key actions to be taken. The leaders would stay here for a while until the fleets came back from the rendezvous point in ten days
Mixed groups were now tasked with pest control and search and rescue. There were still a few civilians holed up in the area. Downtown London would never be the same again. She heard that they have never seen devastation this desperate since the human's last planet war more than 230 years ago.
Small pockets of Cannibals and Marauders were slowly being extinguished. A small silver lining was that there weren't too many Banshees left as the Assari's supply of Ardat-Yakshis was limited. Thank the Goddess for small miracles.
But there was only one thing in Liara's mind. Was Shepard alive?
She personally gathered a small group comprising of Dr. Oyshi, a human medic; two Krogan, supplied by Wrex as he wouldn't have it any other way; a couple of Turian soldiers; and two human privates who were, as all luck could help, locals. She counted on them to find the party sent for the last push. Anderson, Shepard, Major Coats, Garrus and Kaidan were among them, and four days later, she hadn't gotten any news. There was still no news from the Normandy.
oO0~0Oo
Thirst.
Light.
Breathe.
Warm. Is it day? There is no warmth in space.
This feels wrong. It should be cold. Dark.
oO0~0Oo
Day five, and Irumy Oyshi still couldn't believe his eyes. The whole area was empty. They walked for what seemed like years, and no sign of life, only the victims of this mindless war. Months trying to simply survive the relentless assault had taken its toll on the city. Its population either managed to run away to rural areas, had been turned into husks or killed and beamed up to serve as a genetic foundation for whatever those perverse creatures had in mind.
The chance of any survivor being found alive diminished as the hours ticked by. With the injuries which normally occurred during combat, there is only so much time you can stand when you have a bullet in you.
Dr. T'Soni managed to give Dr. Oyshi a good team. One Krogan, Ixor, was battle weathered and had a quilt of scars adorning his face and full carapace, which was green, high and regal looking. He was a Krogan of little words and his keen amber eyes scanned every centimetre of the area.
Xahx, the less moody of the two Krogan, looked young but still a hulking beast. His cranial carapace was still a sprinkle of thick grey and yellow plates, not yet fully connected. His skin was in shades of light orange and tan framing deep blue eyes. As opposed to his "friend" Xehx seemed to be interested in our culture and architecture. Striking Dr. Oyshi that, if the setting was different, this Krogan would have been an architect and builder, not a soldier.
The Turians were slight and elegant. Clad in heavy armour and carrying an assault rifle each. Aelius had bright orange colonial markings on his pale gray plating and the other sported no markings.
They had found pets though. A couple of sandy cream labradors which appeared to have been brothers and a shaggy white toy poodle who were now part of the search party. The brothers, as the team now called them were lively but perhaps too skinny. Looked like they had a rough time finding food. Their fur was matted with dust and bits of dried blood. The poodle was a once white and now tangle mess of matted fur. He still managed to keep a smiling face though. Welcomed with water and some rations, the dogs joined the band and were instinctively scouting and sniffing the area for survivors. Cats were more common, but they never came too close. Survival at any cost, those little buggers.
Oyshi could see Xahx a few hundred meters ahead from the rest of the team. Shaggy, the poodle, follow loyally after him, as if the goofy fur ball was Xahx's own personal bodyguard.
Suddenly, he heard Xahx, calling everyone, he had found something.
As they approached, they found a car crushed under a wall, looking like it had veered and hit nose first the side of the brownstone before its walls collapsed on top of it. Looking closer, while surrounded by a cacophony of barking dogs, he could see as the Krogan lifted the bricks a navy blue mini-van revealed. Its roof was considerably low and whoever was sitting in the front was long gone.
In a joint effort, removing brick by brick to reveal as much as possible of the severely battered car. They found inside it a little girl completely quiet, no older than 5. Her big brown eyes were like saucers, and as she watched a group of strangers open up her tomb, she remained completely still not making a sound. Surrounded by packs of crackers and juice boxes, she was holding her dead mother's hand, as if questioning what was going on. The woman's upper torso seemed well preserved and it appeared that she had been looking at the back seat while her life seeped away.
The only word Oyshi had for that scene was War. War was the only thing which could encompass the desperate hollow generated by what was presented in front of him. The mother had a serene look on her face, eye closed, mouth slightly open. Her pale skin and black straight hair was covered with a layer of dust making it seem like she was frozen in time. The father was completely compacted and thankfully was completely out of the girl's line of sight.
She was alive dutifully sitting on her little car seat, dehydrated and traumatized. Shaggy managed to worm himself inside and the kid reacted only when the dog licked her face. Her eyes moved, and she extended her other hand to the dog as if to say hello. Xahx hulking form ripped open the door and the dog jumped out, giving way for Oyshi to unhook the little seat form the car's safety system.
The kid had no expression on her face. Only eyes, opening and closing, breathing, dirty from all the dust and what appeared to be days without leaving the little seat. There was a small pink backpack next to her. On it a name tag - Alessa Wigan, daughter of one Harrold D. Wigan and Louise S Wigan. Score one for good car-seats.
Still completely unfazed, Oyshi set the kid on the ground, looking for wounds or breaks and finding none. None on the body at least, but her mind, that was a whole other issue. She stood up and walked towards Aelius extending her hand as if to introduce herself. Aelius knelt down and greeted the little girl. She was all smiles, Turian harmonic sounds are so very different from any other species'.
Oyshi allowed a single tear escape, one brief moment to take a deep breath and relax. There was hope still.
Radio'ing in the find of the little Alessa for some personnel to pick her up and take her to the nearest shelter he sees her sitting on the Turian's lap now. Aelius looked completely puzzled and awkward but the kid found a safe nest on the Turian and even across species, one can see that some things are universal.
After the kid had been picked up, Oyshi and his group, now minus Aelius and plus an Assari, Kira - the kid wouldn't let go of the Turian and he had to go back with her- they resumed their search, dogs still in tow, sniffing and scouting.
Finding only one enemy here or there, lost and disoriented without their overlord's orders. Just like T'Soni liked to call it, pest control.
oO0~0Oo