Chapter One: zombies!
Disclaimer: You guys know the drill.
Author's note: It's 12:30 in the morning and I can't sleep, so here goes. Mass Effect 2 and zombies.
"Hey Commander," Joker's voice stirred him from his work at his desk in the loft. "What is it Joker?"
"You'd better come have a look at this. I got a derelict coming in range." The hesitancy in Joker's voice gave the grizzled commander pause. He sighed. "Drop the other shoe Joker." The pilot's edginess was evident. "Looks like a deep space research vessel, but I don't like it commander. No structural damage that I can see, and no distress beacon. But the engines are cold, and the running lights are off. I got a bad vibe; maybe we should skip the hero bit on this one."
Shepard shook his head as he moved to the armor locker. "Get Tali and Grunt up here. Tell them we're going in sealed."
Joker's retort was expected and quick. "Yeah, because Tali just wanders around without a helmet on anyway." Suited in the Collector armor, he made his way down to the armory. Tali and Grunt were already there, sorting through weapons. Grunt was already cradling his massive shotgun, a monster of martial engineering that even Shepard didn't want to attempt firing. Tali was loading a Tempest, having already prepped a carnifex and holstered it on her hip. Efficiently loading a Phalanx pistol and a geth shotgun, shepard turned to the pair. "We probably won't find anything too crazy, so I figure we can go light on this one." Grunt smiled, but Tali scoffed. "That's light?" Shepard considered for a moment. "Should I bring the grenade launcher?"
The Normandy's airlock door cycled open and the three gave a start as a body fell on top of Shepard. "Shit!" Grunt nudged the body, now prone on the floor, with a foot. "Dead. No threat at all. Let's find something to hit." After checking the figure's neck for a pulse, Shepard nodded in agreement. "Grunt, take point. I'll bring up the rear. Tali, you've got door duty." The two gave affirmatives and they set off down the hallway.
Twenty minutes later, Shepard decided he concurred with joker. Bad vibes, indeed. It had become apparent that the ship, named Alice, had no life support running. With the reactor shut down, it didn't have anything running. A quick jaunt to engineering had gotten the ship's power back on, quickly followed by life support. The team had then headed up to the bridge to check the flight logs. Steering clear of the lab section(Shepard and Tali had learned their lesson on Noveria), they'd opted to go through crew quarters. It was here that they got their first clue that something had gone terribly wrong.
A makeshift barricade had been erected in the corridor, comprised of bunks, shelves, and whatever else was big, heavy, and durable. The barricade was in shambles, blood and gore of multiple colors splashed liberally on the walls, the floor, and even the ceiling. Several pistols and a dozen makeshift weapons lie strewn about the hall and several of the rooms beyond the failed barricade. "Makes no sense," Grunt's voice was the model of confusion. "This wasn't a fight." Tali looked at him uncertainly. "What do you mean?"
Grunt shrugged, unable to articulate his feeling. Shepard, though, could. "This was a rout. A slaughter. Whatever did this wasn't interested in dominance. Just in killing. One thing bothers me though." Tali nodded. "Where are the bodies?" He nodded. "Trophy takers would have taken the weapons as well. Husks wouldn't have been this…destructive. They need whole bodies to make more husks." Tali shuddered. "Let's get to the bridge. Maybe the flight logs will tell us something." Tali had noticed, though, that although there were weapons strewn everywhere, all of the rounds had come from behind the barricade, that meant all of the people with guns had lost.
They'd encountered an obstacle in the door to the bridge, which had been hacked to seal shut. The also discovered an override had been put in place to prevent even the loss of power, which had auto-opened every other door on the ship. With Tali's expertise, however, it had slowed them for only a minute. "There we are." She smiled for the first time since boarding Alice. They moved into the bridge, clearing every corner and alcove. "Clear." "Nothing to kill." "Looks like we're good. Grunt, cover the door. Tali, find a working terminal and start data mining." She nodded and turned to the center of the room before gasping. "Shepard! Look!"
Seated in the command chair was assumedly the frozen remains of the captain, still not thawed by the reactivated life support. An Old Earth revolver, engraved with what looked like gold, dangled from her fingers. One bullet had punched a hole through both cheeks. A second had gone through the top of her head from underneath. Her neck was a meaty mess. "Damn Shepard. What makes a person screw up shooting themselves, then try again?" Shepard jerked his head toward the open door. "Keep your eyes down that hall. As soon as we know what happened here, we're gone. I doubt there's anyone left to save."