What's going on, people of Fanfiction, BioshockerN7 here with the first chapter of the rewrite of Destiny Effect.
Now, I got to work on this around the time I announced the rewrite, but it took me a while cause I suffered some MAJOR Writer's Block for this story, unsure how I wanted to kick it off.
But then, I saw the reveal trailer for Destiny 2…AND I EXPLODED with writing! My drive for this story came back full swing and I managed to cook up this beginning chapter, which I hope you readers enjoy.
Now, I won't beat around the bush any further, so let's do this.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Destiny belongs to Bungie and Mass Effect belongs to BioWare. If I owned either, you can bet your ass there'd be a better story for the first Destiny (Though I still loved it) and a better ending for Mass Effect 3. (Again, still loved the game)
Whoever the Hell finds this, I'll say right now, you're looking at the writings of a dead man walking.
Now, you're probably wondering who I am. Well, my name is Adam Jameson.
I used to be normal. Just your average everyday guy with a normal life to live. I was a nerd, with a massive love for movies and video games. Any series, from Halo to Star Wars to Uncharted, you name it, I've seen it, and loved it.
But there was one series above all that I enjoyed.
Mass Effect, a series where you took on the role of Commander Shepard, a member of the Systems Alliance military and Council Spectres in a conflict against the Reapers, a race of sentient machines that wiped out all advanced life every 50,000 years.
The entire series was a blast, with memorable characters and moments.
But, you're now wondering why I'm talking about this. Well, for starters, through means I never found out to this day, I somehow wounded up in another world first.
The world of Destiny, a Bungie developed game about aliens going up against the Guardians, or the playable characters that could be chosen from three classes, Hunter, Titan, or Warlock.
The basic plot of that game was the never-ending conflict between the Light and the Darkness. And since I was in that world, and waking up to a Ghost talking to me, I was pretty certain I was a Guardian, more specifically, a Hunter.
So, I went through the game, and its DLC, from The Dark Below to The House of Wolves to The Taken King to Rise of Iron.
I basically became a legend among my fellow Guardians, having lead some of our most daring strikes and raids, from storming the Vault of Glass to going inside Oryx's Dreadnought, I've personally been there for almost everything, save for a couple stuff I hadn't done yet, like Wrath of the Machine.
Made some friends, made some enemies, but it seemed like it was my destiny to be there. And no, I wasn't making a pun on the game's name. How dare you think I'd stoop that low?
But of course, seeing as you're probably doubting every word I just said, I'll explain the entire story.
It all started when I got called by the Vanguard for a mission…
"You guys wanted to see me?" I asked, walking into the Vanguard Chamber, having just got back from a patrol on Mars, wondering what they needed me for.
"Good to see you, Adam." Cayde-6, the Hunter Vanguard, and my personal mentor and friend, said, holding out his hand, which I immediately shook.
"Good to see you too, Cayde." I said, my helmet disappearing from my face to show my pale skin tone and brown hair that had been shaved around the front to keep the bangs from covering my eyes. I also had some Nathan Drake-like facial hair going for myself.
Speaking of armor, I was currently wearing what had become my personal favorite ever since I laid eyes on it.
It was a gift from Lord Saladin after I helped him destroy SIVA once and for all. He called it the "Days of Iron", and it made me look like I was ready for Winter to come. Bring on the White Walkers!
Game of Thrones references aside, alongside my body being altered to fit my job as a Guardian, my voice had changed as well for some reason. I now sounded like Troy Baker when he voiced Samuel Drake in Uncharted 4.
It was weird finding that out at first, having the voice of one of my favorite voice actors. I had a freak out session about my voice for thirty minutes that day.
But nowadays, I'm used to it, especially since my Ghost is the Nolan North version that came with the update of The Taken King.
Don't get me wrong, I loved Peter Dinklage, but…freaking Nolan North! Plus, the banter Ghost and I have is ridiculously awesome!
Anyway, it's been a while since I came here, about 10 years to be precise.
Now, whereas the events of the game never had an exact timeline, they did in this universe. Most of the beginning stuff happened the first few years I was here. Crota came around at about my seventh year here. Skolas rebelled around my ninth year. Oryx came around during my ninth, and SIVA resurfaced on my tenth.
Overall, I went from a scared 18-year old kid to a battle-tested, 28-year old WMD.
"So, what'd you guys call me for? I'm pretty sure Zavala wouldn't call me just to prank me when I get here, or has he grown a sense of humor?" I asked with a grin.
Another thing I had developed over the years was a need to throw out the occasional bit of jokes and quips to hide my true feelings.
Cause, even though I've made many friends here, I still felt…lonely. Cause, these guys, they were born here, they've seen their world collapse firsthand, I only saw it through a TV screen, so I felt a bit…out of place.
Add to the fact that I've been the solution of most of the events happening, Crota's death, Skolas' rebellion, Oryx's war, the destruction of SIVA, I felt like I was being placed on a pedestal, slowly becoming detached from my fellow Guardians. So I occasionally throw jokes and quips, so I don't let that loneliness out.
Most of my fellow Guardians were annoyed by this, but I could be serious when the occasion called for it.
"We've intercepted Fallen communications that the House of Devils are planning to leave Earth." Commander Zavala, the Titan Vanguard said briefly, getting right to the point, a look of annoyance pointed at me for making a quip about him earlier. "They appear to have found something in Old Russia."
"Any idea what that something is?" I asked.
"They didn't say." Ikora Rey, the Warlock Vanguard said, as she placed a book she was reading on the table. "Whatever it is, if the Fallen are trying to use it, that warrants concern, especially if the Devils are trying to to leave Earth." She said, as I nodded my head. The Fallen, especially the Devils, have already shown that they're willing to use anything to achieve their goals. It's why they unleashed SIVA, after all.
"So what do you need me to do?" I asked.
"We need you to intercept their Ketch, and if whatever they've found is dangerous, destroy it." Zavala said, his no-nonsense attitude shining through clearly.
"Or bring it back to the Tower for study, it could be lost Golden Age technology." Ikora said.
"Since you're the one going out there, it's your call what to do with it, Adam. Study it or destroy it, either way, the Fallen lose whatever they got." Cayde said, getting a nod from me.
"I'll worry about that when I get there." I said, before my helmet reappeared on my head, and I turned around to leave.
"Good luck, Guardian." Zavala said as I walked out.
It took longer than usual, but I managed to make it to Old Russia. I dropped out of my ship, and took up a sniper position to get a good view of what was happening in the area, and I immediately picked out a Fallen Ketch ahead.
As I observed the ship ahead of us, Ghost appeared over my shoulder.
"Looks like we got another crisis on our hands, don't we?" He asked, still in the white shell he had when I first met him.
"Looks like it. It'll be another routine of me doing all the work while you stand around and look pretty." I said, as Ghost's eye seemed to narrow.
"Haha." He deadpanned. "I'll have you know that I'm very capable in the field."
"Yeah, capable of taking your sweet ass time opening doors while I'm getting shot at." I fired back, though I didn't deny his claim.
Turns out Ghost is capable of more than just opening doors and reviving Guardians. The game never explored it, but Ghosts can do a number of other things, from hacking things to even being a little taser. He was basically a talking Swiss Army Knife. Matter of fact, he and I had been working on some techniques we could use if we ever needed them.
Seeing how there was very little in terms of security, I decided to get this over with, and so, I slid down the mountain, equipping Red Death, and I ran forward, ready to run to the distant Ketch…only for several Fallen to appear, guns now aimed at me.
"Dammit!" I said, running toward cover, beams of energy flying past me. "Shit!" I said, before I popped out of cover to fire a few shots, sending two of the Fallen to the grave early.
I can't stay here for long, the Ketch could take off anytime. I ran from cover, summoning my Sparrow and speeding off toward the Ketch.
I thought I was in the clear, but evidently not as I heard gunfire, leading to me turning my head to see some Fallen had gotten on their bikes and started chasing me. I swerved and dodged their shots, but that in turn, made it hard for me to concentrate on where I was going, leading to some narrow near-misses with some rocks. Suddenly, I felt an explosion rock near me, sending my Sparrow and I flying toward a trench, the result causing my Sparrow to ignite, sending my flying toward the ground from another explosion, this time from my Sparrow. I quickly got up and looked around for any other hostiles.
As I dusted myself off from the explosion, I looked toward my objective only for me to see something that wasn't good.
The Ketch was starting to take off.
I immediately began running, full sprint as I desperately tried to catch up without the help of my destroyed Sparrow. But the Ketch was too far away as it began to move.
I could hear the Ketch's engines prime themselves, and I felt my failure begin to wash over me.
Suddenly, a familiar sound came, as a Sparrow sped into view, the rider being a familiar face.
"Logan?!" I asked, seeing one of my friends, a Titan, to be exact, in front of me.
"I got you, get on!" He said, as he slowed down long enough for me to hop onto the back. "You trying to get to that Ketch?" He asked.
"Yeah, the Devils have found something, and they're trying to leave Earth! Just get me up to the bottom of the Ketch, I'll do the rest!" I said, as he nodded his head. I then felt the Sparrow speed up as I began to get up, crouching on the Sparrow as we got closer to the Ketch.
"Careful!" Logan said, my movement slightly tipping the Sparrow, as we neared the Ketch.
"To the right!" I said, as we moved toward that direction, an opening in the Ketch clear in view.
"Jump, now!" Logan said, as I leaped off the Sparrow, grabbing onto the opening, then climbed inside right as it began to close.
"Oh God!" I said to myself as the last thing I saw before the door closed was Logan stopping his Sparrow to see me taking off in an enemy ship.
Seeing nowhere to go but forward, I began to crawl, hearing the sounds of Fallen chatter above me as Ghost appeared next to me, providing some light.
"You know where the objective is?" I asked Ghost, who simply looked at me and gave his version of a shrug.
"We don't exactly know what we're looking for, so it could anywhere on this Ketch." He said, as I nodded my head. I then continued crawling, chatter above me loud as I tried to be quiet with my crawling.
But then, I saw a Fallen Captain above me, looking around, before he looked down where I was, and if that grow coming from him means anything…he probably sees me.
"Shit." I said to myself, as the Captain ripped open the grate, and dragged me out, slamming me against a wall, as his lower right hand pressed a button, leading to the back door opening, showing the blue sky of Earth. This lead me to only one conclusion.
He was going to throw me out.
"No, no, no, let's talk about this!" I said, trying to escape the Captain's grip, as he threw me onto the opening door.
Immediately, he walked out to throw a punch at me, which I blocked, then retaliated with a kick to where the nuts would be, and while it affected the Captain, he shrugged it off enough to try and throw more punches, which I blocked, then knocked him down with a knee to the face.
I then immediately ran to a piece of cargo, strapped to the ground with some chains. I tried to pull them off to no avail.
"Come on, come on." I said to myself, before I saw that the Captain was getting back up.
With no other option, I picked up my Last Word, aimed it at the chain, and fired.
Good God, I wish I didn't.
The moment I shot the chain off, almost every piece of cargo was sent flying out of the Ketch, one of them hitting the Captain and knocking him out of the Ketch.
"Thanks for flying with us!" I said as the Captain screamed all the way to the ground. Then, I noticed the cargo was flying toward me.
"Oh no, nonono!" I said, trying to dodge the flying cargo, only to get smacked by one.
As my feet left the ground, I was immediately sucked out the back, tumbling over various pieces of cargo, until I was now in the air.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" I screamed, barely managing to grab onto a piece of debris that embedded itself into the door, only to duck as an large piece of cargo flew past me. Wind was practically slapping my helmet at the speed the Ketch was going.
Let me just take a moment to say.…THIS NEVER HAPPENED IN THE GAME!
Gunfire suddenly rang out as I saw a Dreg fly out of the hole, grabbing onto the same piece of debris as he kept firing at me. Slowly, but surely, I began to crawl my way over to him, the gunfire whizzing past me as I grabbed the Dreg's leg, yanked him, then grabbed his hand that was gripping the debris, then yanked that off, effectively throwing him off the ship to begin a deathly plummet.
"See ya!" I said, as the Dreg screamed, soon fading into the distance as he fell down to Old Russian grounds.
Continuing my climb, I eventually got back inside the ship, only to be attacked by several Vandals and Dregs, all of them intent on ending my existence.
I immediately fired my Last Word, nailing two Dregs with two shots, followed by a Vandal with the third.
Considering movement wasn't as restricted here as it was in the game, I immediately pulled some moves I had been practicing.
Running forward, I jumped toward a Vandal, wrapped my legs around his own, using my upper body weight to pull him to the ground, allowing me to put a bullet in his head, then I aimed at a Dreg to my right, killed him, then stood back up in time to fire a shot into a cloaked Vandal, ending his life immediately. I then entered another room, a smoke grenade prepped in my hands.
Suddenly, I heard the sounds of weapons priming, leading to me turning around to see several Fallen were pointing their weapons at me.
But it was what was behind them that caught my attention. It was definitely something I hadn't seen before.
It looked like a circular device, small enough to be carried by someone, but if the Fallen wanted it, it was certainly dangerous.
'Gotta be whatever they found.' I thought to myself. Taking this second to raise my hands in surrender, I immediately began planning what to do with the environment around me.
'Enclosed area, so running is pointless. Twenty Fallen, one of me. Not the best odds…for them.' I thought, before noticing what they were standing over.
'Drop platforms, meaning the button to open it is…' I glanced to the left, seeing the very button I was thinking of.
"Well, looks like you caught me, boys." I said, as they growled in response, aiming their weapons at me some more. "I see, you're still pissed at me about SIVA, huh?"
More growls.
"Well then, I guess you're gonna get even pissed today." I said, as I dropped the smoke grenade, immediately disappearing in a cloud of smoke as I fired my last two shots of my clip at the button, the result being all the Fallen in that room falling back into Earth's atmosphere.
But not before one of them pressed a button on the device.
"Oh, fuck." I said, before I holstered my Last Word, drawing Young Wolf's Howl in its place. I immediately stabbed it into the ground as the device seemed to explode, now a blue vortex that appeared to be sucking in everything nearby.
But my attempts to hold on seemed to be futile as I was sucked in, the last thing I saw being my ship speeding toward me.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHH!" I screamed as I went into the vortex, then saw nothing but white.
"Ow…" I said to myself, my eyes slowly adjusting to the bright lights around me. "Ghost, you there?"
"Yes, Adam. I'm still here." My AI companion said, appearing right in front of me, his eye holding concern. "Are you alright?" He asked. I nodded my head.
"I'm fine. What happened?" I asked, sitting up, only for my eyes to widen at the sight before me.
(Play Uncharted 3 OST - Rub' Al Khali)
The area around me was green. Grass everywhere, life flourishing as far as the eye could see.
A complete contrast to the worlds I had grown accustomed to.
"My God…" I said, as Ghost seemed to be sharing my shock, staring out at the vast sight of nature before us. "How…how did this happen?" I asked, as Ghost looked at me.
"Before we were sucked into that vortex, I managed to get a scan of the device. It was an old trans-dimensional teleportation device made during the Golden Age. Very top secret, but official records showed it never worked." He said, as my eyes widened.
"Trans-dimensional? You mean…" I asked.
"We're in another reality." He finished.
Holy shit. Another reality?
"Where are we?" I asked, certain I wouldn't get a legitimate answer from Ghost.
"I'm not sure, but I've intercepted several transmissions on this planet, all of them say they're coming from 'Eden Prime'." He said, but I didn't respond because my brain stopped working at that revelation.
Eden Prime?
…
…EDEN Prime?
…
…Eden PRIME?
…
…EDEN PRIME?
"Holy shit…" I said, to which Ghost immediately replied.
"You know this planet?" He asked, to which I nodded.
"Look, what I'm about to tell you is going to sound ABSOLUTELY INSANE. But I swear, it's the truth." I said, as Ghost stared at me.
"Considering what we've been through for the last 10 years, I doubt anything you say can surprise me." He said, but paid attention nonetheless.
(End Uncharted 3 OST - Rub' Al Khali)
I proved him wrong by telling him EVERYTHING.
Who I was before becoming a Guardian, how his world was a video game where I came from (That particularly had him lost for words), and how this world we were in was another game I enjoyed. I also told him the entire story of this game, from Shepard to the Collectors to the Reapers, I explained every nook and cranny.
When I finished, he simply stood where he was, not saying a word, contemplating the buttload of information I just dropped on him.
"…This is…a lot to take in." He said, almost like he was shaken by this. "…But I'm still with you, Adam, regardless of what circumstances we're in." He said, getting a smile from me.
"Thanks, Ghost." I said, as the two of us simply stood there in silence.
"So…what do we do now?" Ghost asked. I went to respond…but I didn't.
What should we do? We're in a completely new reality, one where every character I've seen through a TV screen is real and alive.
I have no reason to do anything, the Darkness doesn't exist here. Vex, Cabal, Fallen, Hive, they're not a threat for me to worry about anymore, since they're still back home.
But thinking of previous threats reminded me of the one that loomed over this universe.
The Reapers.
They'd be coming for this galaxy, and no one would be the wiser until the day they arrive. Many lives would be lost because politicians want to save face instead of prioritizing defense and safety.
Then I remembered my duty as a Guardian.
To protect the forces of Light, to destroy the forces of Darkness, which may as well be the Reapers.
That made my decision easy.
"We need to find a way onto the Normandy crew." I said, as Ghost looked up at me.
"I assume that means we're going to fight the Reapers?" He asked, getting a nod from me.
"We need to find Shepard, and convince him or her to let us help them. If they're a Paragon, I just need to offer my help, and we'll be in business. But since we're on Eden Prime, that means-"
My ears suddenly rang as a loud noise, that almost sounded like a bad case of a dubstep beat failing the drop was heard from every direction, leading to Ghost and I looking around to find it.
"Above us!" Ghost exclaimed, leading to me looking up.
And I saw it.
Sovereign. The Reaper that started it all.
Descending down to the surface, it sparked with red lightning as it touched the ground, a loud thud reaching its way to our position.
"Well then, we've got our ticket to Shepard." I said, as I made Young Wolf's Howl disappear, summoning Red Death in its place.
"Music?" Ghost asked. I immediately nodded my head.
"Let's go with something…classical." I said.
(Play Queen - Don't Stop Me Now)
As the music began, I started walking, waiting for any Geth to blast into oblivion. I could hear gunfire ringing in the distance, so I knew I was going in the right direction.
The gunfire got louder, as I finally exited the forest, seeing some Geth gun down some Alliance soldiers.
They looked exactly like they did in the game, though much more realistic, since this time, they were actual metal and wires, not pixels on a TV screen.
Regardless, these Heretics were still target practice.
"HERE WE GO!" I yelled, running into the fray, getting the attention of the Geth.
I immediately fired five shots into a Geth Soldier on my left, breaking its shields, allowing me to stab it in the optic with my knife. I then used my Shadestep to dodge a rocket fired by a Geth with a rocket launcher, before I threw a Void grenade, the explosive expanding into a small purple vortex, that completely eviscerated the Geth it hit.
Shadestepping once more, I spun around and fired three shots at a Geth Soldier, before I kicked it to the ground, resulting in me curb-stomping its optics out.
I then grabbed my knife, and threw it at a Juggernaut, which immediately broke through its shields, embedding itself into the optic, shutting the platform down permanently.
Running forward, I quickly pulled the knife out without breaking my stride, allowing me to react quickly to an approaching rocket, which I jumped and did a front flip over, the sound of an explosion and a mechanical screech telling me it hit another Geth. I then promptly reached the Rocket Trooper and stabbed it in the optic with Red Death's bayonet. Pulling it out, I quickly reloaded, inserting a new clip right as five Geth decided to show up and shoot at me. I immediately threw a Void grenade, the vortex once again destroying anything it came into contact with, taking out the Geth in its radius.
I quickly switched weaponry, switching my current Exotic for an Exotic shotgun, the Universal Remote, and fired two shots, eliminating the sole Geth that survived my grenade.
Seeing that there were more coming, I quickly aimed Universal Remote and fired, the shells eviscerating the metal platforms the Geth used to fight, taking down each one with a single shot before I eventually had to reload. I then threw down a Smoke Grenade, the explosion clouding me in an invisible cloak of energy that the Geth couldn't seem to see.
Running forward, I jumped forward, wrapped my legs around a Geth soldier, and brought it to the ground, allowing me to switch back to Red Death and put three bullets in its head, followed by me popping up and shooting a Geth on my left, then I rose up and fired two shots that ended its target immediately.
Quickly ducking, I threw my knife once more at another Geth, this time embedding into its gun, which promptly exploded when it tried to fire, killing said Geth.
I aimed Red Death once more, firing every bullet I had, spraying down any Geth that came into my path.
I then saw that there were only twenty left.
Piece of cake.
I reloaded as I ran forward, stabbing the nearest one with my knife, followed by a Shadestep to my right, ending up behind two platforms, which I promptly shut down with a knife in the back to one and six bullets to the face with the other. I then threw a Vortex grenade, eliminating six Geth units in one swoop.
I then spun around and stabbed an approaching unit with Red Death's bayonet.
When I pulled it out, I decided to finish this up quickly. And so, I decided to switch my Exotic weapon for what was probably the best weapon for finishing a fight quickly.
The Gjallarhorn, an Exotic rocket launcher I got from my raid on the Vault of Glass.
Aiming it at the remaining ten Geth, I pulled the trigger, a massive rocket flying out toward the intended targets, a loud explosion following, with absolutely everything in its blast radius destroyed.
There were no more Geth in sight. Switching back to Red Death, I gave a chuckle.
"Still got it." I said.
(End Queen - Don't Stop Me Now)
Hearing footsteps, I spun around, aiming my Red Death at three people. Upon seeing them, I immediately recognized them.
Wearing white and pink armor, with an assault rifle in her hands, I first noticed Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, an Alliance soldier with a history of her family being blacklisted since her grandfather surrendered Shanxi during the First Contact War/Relay 314 Incident, as the humans and Turians call it, respectively, earning the ire of humanity. She also had a tad of racism in her when it came to the other species, as she saw that humanity needed to rely on themselves to solve their own problems. She also loves poetry, particularly Tennyson and Ulysses.
Then I noticed the black armored form of the Elvis-haired Kaidan Alenko. A biotic with a troubled past, he typically has a cool head in most scenarios, but when angered, he will bring the fury down. Just ask Commander Vyrnnus, a Turian mercenary who pissed Kaidan off during his time at BAaT and wounded up dead.
Despite his past, he doesn't let it control him, and he's a pretty chill guy when you talk to him.
And finally, the last person, a woman with fiery red hair, pale skin, and green eyes that seemed to hold calm precision, decked out in N7 armor, with a shotgun in her hand, was Commander Shepard, the future savior of this galaxy.
I could see they each had their hands on their triggers, ready to fire if necessary.
Wanting to avoid hostility, I lowered my weapon, taking my hand off the trigger and raising it in a peaceful gesture.
They stood there for several seconds, contemplating their response until Shepard lowered her weapon, leading to Ashley and Kaidan lowering their own.
"…Hi." I said, before mentally face-palming myself.
What a great way to start off a conversation, Adam, you truly are a genius.
"…Hi?" Shepard responded with uncertainty, before she looked behind me, seeing the bodies of dead Geth. "I guess that's your handiwork?" She asked, getting a slow nod from me.
"Yeah…they were in my way." I said, as I pretended to not know them. "Who are you guys?" I asked.
"Commander Jane Shepard." Shepard said.
"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams." Ashley said, giving a brief nod.
"Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko." Kaidan said with a calm tone.
"And you are?" Shepard asked, holding out her hand. I took it and shook it, immediately responding with my codename from my Guardian missions.
"Prometheus." I said, as Ashley's eyes narrowed.
"You a merc?" She asked, as I laughed.
"Hahaha, oh, I'm no mercenary, Williams. I'm a Guardian." I responded, getting look of confusion from the three.
"Guardian?" Kaidan asked. "Never heard of them." He said, as I nodded my head.
"Of course you wouldn't, since I'm the only one that exists in this universe." I said, immediately throwing out my circumstances, not wanting to have any drama with this secret happen later.
"In this universe?" Shepard asked, her eyes now full of intrigue.
"Figured this wasn't my world, cause we don't have a planet called "Eden Prime". Plus, your weapons aren't anything like mine." I said, holding up Red Death for emphasis, getting a look of confusion from the three. "Plus, whatever those machines were, they don't exist where I'm from. Call me crazy if you want, but it's true." I said briefly, before pointing to where the beacon once was. "I'm assuming you're looking for whatever was here?" I asked, getting a nod from her. Well, here's hoping this gets me a spot on the Normandy. "I think I saw some of those things move something big down north. Might be what you're looking for." I said, as the three looked at each other. "Mind if I come with?" I asked, getting another look from the three. Shepard looked back at me, was silent for a solid minute, then responded.
"Okay." She said, as if she heard this kind of thing everyday.
…
…
…
…
…
…Wait, what?
Did she just say I could join? WITHOUT asking me why I want to join or question my mental state?
HOW DOES THAT WORK?!
"…You're taking this awfully well." I said, as she shrugged.
"I got interested in the Multiverse Theory during high school. Always found that kind of stuff fun to think about." She said. "If you are living proof of it, awesome. If not, then I'm working with a crazy who knows how to kill Geth. Either way, you clearly know how to kill Geth, so it's a win-win for me." She said, getting a nod from me.
Wow, I'm already starting to like this Shepard. She is VERY CHILL.
"Great!" I said, before walked toward them, then pointed toward the camp. "Lead the way, Shepard."
Taking point, she moved forward, Ashley, Kaidan, and I following her from behind. When we reached the camp, my eyes immediately went to the spiked Husks, my hand immediately touching the trigger, ready to open fire the moment they step off the spikes.
And correct I was to be ready, for the second we passed them, they started coming down, their eyes showing intent to kill us. Or convert us. Same results in the end.
"We've got company!" I said, getting the attention of the three in front of me, their eyes now on the Husks that approached them.
We all opened fire, our combined attack ending them immediately as they fell to the ground, right as Kaidan pointed out a locked shed. While he, Ashley, and Shepard went to unlock it and speak to the survivors within, I opted to climb some of the trees nearby, putting away my Red Death, and summoning the Black Spindle in it's place.
I eventually reached the top of a tree, the entire spaceport in my sights, as I looked down my scope, and I found who I was looking for.
Nihlus Kryik, the Turian Spectre responsible for Shepard's evaluation into the Spectres.
And standing next to him, looking like Death itself…was Saren Arterius, the Turian Spectre responsible for the events of the first game.
On instinct, my finger itched toward the trigger, my mind now weighing the pros and cons of my actions.
'I kill him here, it could stop the Reapers' arrival, but Sovereign would still be a problem, and he'd find someone else to do his dirty work. I let him kill Nihlus, events will proceed as they always have. Regardless of what I do, my presence alone might change the future, cause nothing ever took me into account.' I thought, seeing Nihlus and Saren talking, before the former turned around, still talking, allowing Saren to draw his gun.
BANG!
I didn't pull my trigger.
Nihlus fell to the ground, dead immediately as Saren's pistol was smoking from the shot he had fired.
'I can't risk change yet. If Nihlus lived, Shepard might never have recruited Garrus, Wrex, or Tali. Hell, Tali might have died to Saren's assassins if Nihlus lived.' I thought.
There could have been a number of changes that might've leaned toward good or bad. But I can't worry about that now.
Watching Saren walk off, I jumped from my sniper position, and landed near Nihlus' body.
Summoning Ghost, I had him scan Nihlus' body, adding his name to "The List". Basically, it was a list (Obviously) of those who have fallen in battle, ranging from Guardians who died in Strikes, Raids, and Darkness Zones. This is one of the rare occasions where I'm completely serious about the subject, cause even before I was a Guardian, I always thought the dead should be respected.
Cause even with my powers, my cocky attitude…I'm just a man who's scared of losing people, just like everyone in the world. So, I make this list so I never forget those who fell under my watch when they should have lived.
May as well continue that tradition with this universe.
"Peace to the fallen." I said out loud, placing my hands over Nihlus' eyes, and closing them.
"Peace to the fallen." Ghost said, floating right next to me, as I stood up, and just stood by Nihlus' body for a while, paying my respects to a fallen soldier, Ghost floating next to my shoulder, his head bowed as well.
"What is that?" I heard the voice of Shepard ask, leading to me turning around to see her, Kaidan, and Ashley staring at me, or rather, who was floating next to me.
"Him?" I asked, pointing to Ghost, who now found his way above my open palm. They nodded. "He's my Ghost, an artificial intelligence issued to all Guardians upon their first resurrection." I stated, making the three go stiff, as if they just heard the worst thing ever. "What? You don't have those here?" I 'asked', knowing full well this galaxy's stance on A.I.
"You've got an A.I.?" Kaidan asked, his eyes looking at Ghost with apprehension.
"Yeah. Why?" I asked, leading to Shepard shaking her head.
"If you are from another universe, I'm guessing you're more lenient about artificial intelligence?" She asked, getting a nod from me.
"A third of the Guardian ranks consist of Exos, highly advanced sentient machines." I said, as Shepard took a deep breath, then spoke.
"Well, in our world…A.I. experimentation is illegal, so here, your friend is a galactic crime." Shepard said, before Ashley brought up something they didn't.
"Wait, you said resurrection? As in.." She paused, uncertain if she wanted to finish the question, likely something to do with her faith.
"Bringing the dead back to life." I stated, before Shepard asked a simple question.
"…How the fuck is that possible?"
Straight to the point as well? I'm loving this Shepard!
"I can explain later. Right now, I saw someone murder this bird…man…thing. And he looked to be the same species." I said, motioning to Nihlus. Shepard looked at his body, before looking at me.
"You're saying another Turian killed him?" She asked. I nodded. "Where'd he go?" She asked. I pointed in the direction he went, seeing the gears turning in her head.
"Something's moving, behind those crates!" Ashley called out, aiming a pistol at said crates, as Powell rose up, his hands raised.
Sensing what was coming, I tuned out the conversation, deciding to speak to Ghost internally.
'So far, things are going according to plan.' I "said", as Ghost spoke.
'Seems so. You told me there were events in this…game that might need changing. Do we know what we want to change?' He asked, as I nodded my head.
'Well, for starters, we're gonna fuck Saren early, find Tali and the others while Shepard's at the first hearing. I want to see the look on that bastard's face when we revoke his Spectre status.' I said, grinning a little at the thought.
'Okay, that's a start.' He said, before he spoke again. 'Looks like they're done talking.'
This led to me raising my head to see Shepard about to wave her hand in front of my face, but stopped when I had looked at her.
"You done?" I asked, getting a nod from her. "Then what are we waiting for?" I asked, walking down the path that would lead us to the beacon. We found some Geth…they didn't last long. Nuff said there.
Eventually, we got onto the platform that would take us to the beacon, allowing me to switch the Black Spindle back to Red Death.
The five of us just stood (Or floated, in Ghost's case) in silence, nobody saying a word.
"So…what's your world like, Prometheus?" Kaidan asked, trying to make small talk.
"…Very shitty. We're kind of at war with four alien factions hellbent on destroying us last I checked. So yeah, wouldn't exactly recommend it for a vacation spot." I said, getting grim looks from the Normandy soldiers. "It wasn't always like that though, it used to be beautiful, a Golden Age, we called it. But, of course, those times have long since passed. No need to tell me about your universe, though, Ghost managed to access this…Extranet, and accessed a galactic codex, so I'm learning everything there is to know about this galaxy."
"About that, why do you…Guardians have A.I.?" Shepard asked, as Ghost floated in front of me.
"We were created from the Light of the Traveler, a celestial being the humans of Prometheus' universe found on Mars. It was responsible for the Golden Age, and responsible for the creation of the Guardians. We keep the Guardians alive, they keep us alive." He said.
"Basically, we're a package deal." I said, getting a nod from Shepard. Seeing the Geth ahead, I decided to point out the bombs.
"Are those…bombs?" I asked. This got the Normandy crew's attention as they looked to where I pointed.
"They must be setting them to destroy the colony!" Kaidan said, getting a nod from me.
"I count four." I said, as the platform stopped at the first bomb, which Kaidan got to work disarming. We all began to cover him, gunfire ringing all over the place as we were caught in a gunfight with the Geth.
I took one out right away with five shots from Red Death.
I heard the cracking sound of a sniper rifle as I saw Ashley sniping from the corner of my eye.
"Done!" Kaidan said, allowing me to pop out of cover and jump forward, and jump once again in midair to the other side, which led to me stabbing one Geth in the optic with Red Death's bayonet and stab the other with my knife. Summoning Ghost, I gestured him toward the bomb I landed near, allowing him to get to work on disarming it. I then threw a Void grenade toward the Geth Shepard and crew were heading toward, only for the three to stop as my grenade exploded, and eviscerated the Geth caught in the blast.
Looking towards me, I simply gave a wave of my hand, only to switch Red Death for the Last Word, a hand cannon I held Western-cowboy style, spun around, and fired two shots into a Geth that tried to be stealthy, sending it to the ground immediately.
"Bomb disabled!" Ghost called out, floating right back to me as I saw three Geth approaching with their weapons raised, which led to me gripping Ghost with my fist, like I was ready to throw a baseball.
Time to put it to the test.
"Take them out, Ghost!" I said, throwing him forward, allowing him to fly right into the center Geth, disappear inside, then right as the three Geth were about to pull the triggers, their guns clicked with the sound that they were overheating…and then a pulse of energy flew out of the center Geth, sending all three Geth into a spasm, which ended with them falling to the ground, as Ghost appeared above the center Geth.
"Looks like that test was a success." Ghost said, as I nodded my head.
"Was that an EMP?" I heard Ashley ask, making me turn around to see Kaidan walk past me, allowing her and Shepard to speak.
"Yeah, it's something Ghost and I had been working on, as a possible way to combat the Vex, a machine race we had been fighting back home. Looks like it works on these guys." I said, getting a nod from the two. "You guys take care of the rest of the bombs?" I asked. They nodded as Kaidan walked back into view, saying he disabled the last bomb. "Well, I guess we just turn around this corner ahead of us and we'll find what you're looking for." I said, as the four of us walked toward said corner, and turned to see the item that started everything, the Prothean Beacon.
It looked MUCH more advanced than it did in the game, it seemed more prominent, the lights were brighter and overall, everything about it looked sleek and futuristic.
"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that's what you're looking for." I said, looking at Shepard, who nodded in response to my sentence. "Well, if what I'm reading from this Codex of yours is correct, then that's a…Prothean Beacon." I said, getting another nod from Shepard.
"Alright, clear out any resistance in our way, we may have lost Nihlus, but we are not losing this beacon!" Shepard said, as the four of us went down the railing, eliminating the Husks and Geth that tried to stop us.
"We're clear." Shepard said, as the four of us stood among the aftermath of this little firefight. Seeing the area was clear, Shepard put her hand to her comm.
"Normandy, the beacon is secure…" I tuned out the rest of her sentence, taking a second to look at the beacon alongside Kaidan and Ashley.
"This is amazing! Actual working Prothean technology." Kaidan said, as Ghost appeared over my shoulder.
"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up." Ashley said.
I stayed silent, watching the two marvel at the beacon, before both stepped forward to get a closer look.
Wait, BOTH?
Suddenly, the beacon let out a pulse of energy, which now began to drag Kaidan and Ashley toward it.
OH, COME ON!
Without hesitation, I ran toward them, grabbing Ashley and throwing her away from the beacon, then I saw Shepard grab Kaidan and do the same thing.
Suddenly, I felt my feet leave the ground as my mind was bombarded with images too fast for me to get a clear look at. What I did feel, however, was immense pain, like someone took a jackhammer to my skull.
I don't think I've felt this kind of pain during my time as a Guardian. I heard Ghost screaming as well, the two of us being nailed by this transmission of information.
BOOM!
Suddenly, I was sent flying back, the beacon having exploded like it did in canon. Shepard and I hit the ground, the former unconscious upon impact, whereas I saw Ghost appear next to me, edging toward the ground, as if he himself was losing consciousness.
"Ghost…" I said, reaching my hand toward him, before my vision blacked out, leaving only one last thought before I went unconscious.
'Mission accomplished.'
And there we go! The first chapter of the official rewrite of Destiny Effect is now out! Things are already off to an explosive start, Adam and Ghost are in the Mass Effect universe, and they've already sealed themselves into the mission of the Normandy by helping Shepard, and even more certain with the fact that he and Ghost received the vision from the beacon along with Shepard. So, things are only gonna get crazier with Adam around, and you'll get a perfect example of that next chapter when they go to the Citadel. Until then, leave a review if you enjoyed the chapter, and stay tuned for more.
And have a Happy Fourth of July!
BioshockerN7 out!