"Well this is quite the... uh... well I guess I shouldn't expect much from a mining planet." Commander Shepard said as she exited the MAKO.
"Got that right. Why would a Prothean expert come to this barren rock?" Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams questioned as she came to stand beside the commander.
"Apparently the miners discovered some ruins somewhere around here." Shepard answered while she made sure her sniper rifle was functioning properly.
They were on Therum. A nonentity of a planet with mildly abundant resources, no cities, and only a small population of miners. Its surface was rocky and barren with volcanic activity here and there. Not quite the planet you'd expect to find the daughter of a Matriarch.
"What could the Protheans possib-" Ash was cut off before she could finish.
"I bet it was a prison colony." interjected Wrex, with is low rumbling voice.
Both women looked at him in disbelief. That was a strange hypothesis to begin with but seeing as it came from a krogan, it was border line bizarre. Why would there be a prison here? I guess any escape attempts by the prisoners would lead to their death in this harsh environment, and as far as we know there are no other ruins on this planet so it would be isolated from any cities, and the only way off the planet would be through prison. They could also use the prisoners as a labor force if there were any resources of value. It would be costly to maintain such a colony but worth the expense to keep high risk personnel under lock down and away from civilians. The more Shepard though about it, the more it made sense.
"Um... Wrex?" now she was curious.
"In fact I'm sure of it." Wrex announced victoriously.
"Tell you what, if you're right about the ruins, I'll buy the drinks next shore leave." Ash grinned.
Shepard shook her head "Well whatever the Protheans did here doesn't matter now. Joker said he was getting strange readings which might mean Dr. T'soni is in danger."
"Either that, or she's causing those readings." Ashley added.
"Regardless, just standing around and speculating won't get us any closer to the asari. And besides, my trigger finger is getting antsy" Wrex boomed.
"Damn Wrex are you on some mental stims or something?" Shepard teased. She examined the doors to her left and right. They didn't appear to be functioning. Where are all the miners? This doesn't feel right. We should advance towards that anomaly with caution.
"Alright everyone back in the MAKO. Wrex take the turret and Ash you take the passenger seat."
"Now you're talking!" Wrex growled excitedly, where as Ash simply nodded.
Shepard took the driver's seat and floored it.
----------
After a while of navigating the rough terrain, the trio heard the roar of engines overhead and Shepard brought the MAKO to a full stop.
"What the hell was that?" Ash tensed up.
"A Geth drop ship just passed over us. Looks like it deployed three Armatures roughly 200 meters ahead of us. Finally something fun to play with." Wrex chuckled.
A smile came to Shepard's lips. She had quite a few tricks up her sleeve as far a vehicular combat was concerned. She was feeling lucky today and the urge to show off and try something unorthodox overtook her.
"Ash, watch the shields and make sure they don't fail! Wrex, Lay down suppressing fire to keep 'em busy. This is gonna be fun!" the commander exclaimed and put the MAKO's pedal to the floor accelerating to top speed. Weapons fire from the Geth Armatures peppered the shields of the MAKO but nothing was getting through. Shepard noticed an electrical blast headed right for the reinforced windshield. Now THAT would put shields offline. Thinking quickly, the spectre initiated the MAKO's thrusters, vaulted over the ball of energy, and landed in such a way that had the team heading straight for the closest Armature. Shepard continued to accelerate towards it and slammed right into the synthetic utterly destroying it with a head on collision. Ok two more and it looks like they're close together. I guess it is my lucky day after all. She then brought the slightly battered vehicle towards the base of a nearby mountain and finagled it so that the MAKO was perpendicular to the ground. Initiating the thrusters again sent the top of the MAKO flying into the second Armature. The impact wasn't enough to cause significant damage but sent the Geth flying into the nearby pool of molten lava. The vehicle was now inches from the third and final Geth. Shit! I only hit one of 'em! The remaining Armature fired and electrical blast at point blank.
"Shields are down!" Ash notified.
"Wrex!" Shepard called out the Krogan's name.
"Already on it Shepard!" he said with a grin.
Wrex brought the turret around and aimed right for the Geth's 'head' and fired a heavy ordinance, essentially decapitating the last enemy.
There was silence for a few seconds as the squad let the realization of what they just did sink in. They all just looked at each other stupidly until Wrex broke the silence with a burst of hardy laughter.
"That's what I'm talkin' bout!" Shepard yelled as she joined Wrex in his laughter.
Ashley was stunned. "With all do respect Commander, You are insane! That was too close!" an enormous grin finding its way to Ash's face.
"Yeah I get that a lot." Shepard said when she finally stopped laughing.
"You're right Shepard, that was fun! I want more. Come on let's go run over some more Geth!" Wrex was jubilant.
"I don't think the MAKO can do THAT again. How's are we holding up Ash?" Shepard said with a chuckle.
"Uh... Shields are down and armor plating is moderately fatigued." Ash reported.
"Hmm... let me see. I can't do anything about the armor, but I can probably bring shields back online." The Spectre leaned over to work on the terminal in font of Ashley. "Ok I managed to bring shields to 30% but that's as good as we're gonna get. No more crazy stunts. Sorry Wrex"
Wrex grunted "We'll call it even if I get to blow stuff up with the cannon."
Shepard smiled as she returned her hands to the wheel and continued navigating this small part of Therum. Not much time passed when Shepard realized rockets were whizzing passed them. She made a hard right turn into a small pathway that shielded the team from any damage.
"Seems we ran into a Geth outpost. Suggestions?" Shepard looked from Ashley to Wrex.
Ash Spoke up first. "Well a full frontal assault would be stupid considering the condition of the MAKO."
"I guess we'll have to see where this path takes us then." the Commander sighed.
They had only made it maybe 50 meters when a rocket slammed into the side of the MAKO. Wrex turned the cannon to see a Geth rocket turret. He unloaded quite a few high caliber rounds into his target which quickly rendered the turret's shields in-operable. Just one ordinance later and the turret was little more than shrapnel.
"Looks like we found a back door. Ash how are we doing?" Shepard turned to face the chief.
"Shields are at twenty percent. No new damage to armor plating. Radar indicates multiple ground units approaching." Ash informed.
"Okay Wrex, I want you to lay down more suppressing fire. I'll go top side and take 'em out with sniper fire. Ash, I need you to try and get more power to shields." The Commander ordered.
Shepard opened the hatch on top of the MAKO and expanded her rifle. Looking through her scope, she counted three Geth soldiers, two Geth rocket troppers, and one Geth prime.
"I count six enemy units. Ash check the radar and confirm."
"Negative Commander. Radar indicates seven hostile forces." Ashely reported.
Deciding that the rocket troopers posed the greatest threat, she aimed for the nearest one. She held her breath to steady her aim and gently squeezed the trigger. The slug ripped through the synthetic's shields and exploded out the back leaving a gaping hole. Shepard had reloaded and took down the second rocket trooper before the first one even git the ground. Using her omnitool, Shepard initiated a tech-mine explosion causing the Geth's weapons to overheat. One Geth soldier's assult riffle had even exploded, ripping its arms from its body. That's a pleasant surprise. She scoped and dropped the two remaining Geth soldiers. All that's left is the Prime. Shepard quickly looked around for the last Geth and saw it run behind a large boulder.
"Hey Wrex, the Prime is taking cover behind that rock and I can't get a clear shot. Could you do me a favor and make that boulder dissapear?"
"It would be my pleasure Shepard." Wrex replied.
A second later, the boulder and the Geth exploded sending debris in every direction.
"Well damn Wrex! If you could have taken them all out at once, why let me handle it?" Shapard asked.
"You looked like you were having fun and who am I to spoil it for you?" Wrex laughed.
The Commander grinned. "Ok fine, you got me there. I'll scout ahead and take out the remaining hostile. You two stay here until I radio the 'all clear'."
Shepard hopped out of the MAKO and started to advance. She moved quickly and quietly into the area noting that it was more of a checkpoint than an outpost and moved to the large building near the gate to the North-East. The Commander slowly and silently entered the facility and noticed a Geth soldier managing the gate controls. She snuck up behind it and pinned it to the wall. Before it could react, Shepard delivered a couple rounds from her pistol to the Geth's neck, a thick white liquid painted the wall as each shot splattered coolant everywhere.
"Alright Ash, our path is clear. Bring the MAKO around and pick me up." the Commander spoke into her radio while bringing the gate down.
"Aye, aye mam. Closing in on your position. Commander, I managed to bring our shields back up to thirty percent but it seems we damaged a capacitor with our little stunt back there so that's all we can manage."
"Understood." Shepard replied as she climbed back into the driver's seat. "Let's see what else the Geth have in store for us shall we?"
Shepard floored it, again, and reached top speed.
"Uh Commander, there's four more Geth Armatures ahead." Ashley informed.
"Shit! We really don't have time for this!" Shepard exclaimed in frustration. "The MAKO is in no condition to make a stand. We're just gonna ignore 'em best we can and keep going. Y'all know the drill, suppressing fire and keep the shields up."
They rushed passed the armatures, swerving and dodging those damned electrical blasts only to come face to face with a Geth Colossus.
"Comman-" Ashley started.
"I know, I see it!" Shepard replied.
She swerved to the left ,narrowly missing it, and quickly regained top speed. They sped off into the tunnel ahead of them as fast as the MAKO would allow.
"Ok, a Colossus?! Really? Don't you think that's overkill for an asari archaeologist?" Shepard vented while navigating the tunnel.
"Maybe she has a team of personal guards." Wrex suggested.
"They must be some seriously badass soldiers if a platoon of Geth soldiers, seven Armatures, and a damn Collosus is needed to secure her. And that's all we encountered so far! We haven't even made it to the ruins yet!" The Commander pointed out.
"Commader, four more hostiles at the end of the tunnel." Ashley reported.
Shepard groaned. "They better get out of the way or I'm going to run 'em over."
The sound of something hitting the MAKO and rolling under the wheels could be heard.
"Commander we're nearing the source of the anomaly but rubble is blocking the road. We'll have to proceed on foot." Ashley informed.
"Alright we're going in quick and silent. No chatter. Understood?" Shepard ordered and both nodded as they exited the MAKO.
They came to what appeared to be a ravine that was crawling with Geth. Shepard gave her team a signal meaning 'do not engage' and indicated where they were headed. The squad silently snuck passed the Geth platoon below and took cover behind large slabs of rock. Well I guess we know what happened to all the bastards. Shepard felt sorry for them. Checking the area ahead of her team, she spotted another platoon of Geth along with two Armatures and another Colossus. Shepard gathered her squad close to her.
"Ok, we are going to let Joker take care of these guys with the Normandy. We are going to scale the plataeu to my right and get to the mining tunnel without being detected." Shepard whispered.
Calling it a plataeu was an overstatement but for lack of a better word, it fit. Both Ashley and Shepard made it up with no time and with little effort. Wrex however took quite a bit longer due to his bulk. Krogan are not built for climbing Shepard noted slightly amused. Eventually all three of them made it to the top without alerting the nearby Geth. Shepard gave the signal to advance and the slowly made their way to the mining tunnel. Miraculously they made it inside without a hitch.
"Oh my god! Do they have the entire battalion here!?" Shepard exclaimed as soon as the entrance closed. "Three platoons of Geth, nine Armatures, and two Geth Colossus?! Just how important is this Dr. T'soni?"
"Uh... Commander, Geth patrol. 12 o'clock." Ashley interrupted her ranting.
With an incredibly irritated expression, Shepard took her sniper rifle and aimed toward the approaching patrol. Fire. Reload. Fire. Reload. Fire. Reload. Within a few seconds, she had dropped the entire patrol.
"Damn! And I thought I was a good shot! I bet you turned some heads during basic Commander." Ashley said in awe.
Shepard merely smiled sheepishly. "Come on let's go."
The trio rushed to the end of the shaft which opened up into a large cavern. One Geth soldier lay in wait for the team with an intent to ambush but failed miserably as Shepared shoved the barrel of her sniper rifle into the Geth's 'eye' and fired. She looked around for a second but saw no immediate threat and relaxed.
"Well I'll be damned!" Shepard exclaimed with a smile as she looked towards the far end of the room.
"What?" Ashley inquired. Noticing the Commander's gaze, she followed it until her eyes rested upon what looked to be some sort of holding cell. "Oh you can't be serious!" both she and the Commander looked at Wrex with perplexed looks.
Wrex gave out a laugh. "I told you. I hope you have a tab Williams, cause Krogan drink a lot."
Ashley groaned. "You've got to be kidding me!"
"Anyway seeing as there are Geth in here, we can only assume that Dr. T'soni is either dead or in danger." Shepard commented.
"Or she brought the Geth here herself" Ashley interjected.
"Regardless, we should advance with haste." Shepard ordered.
They boarded an elevator near the prison cell and took it down to the 'second floor'.
"So how did these ruins end up under the planet's surface?" Ashley asked as they picked off another Geth patrol.
"Probably thousands of years of volcanic activity." Shepard answered tersely.
They took another elevator down and exited to a broken catwalk.
"Hello? Is anybody there? Can you hear me? I need help!" came a distorted voice from below the cat walk.
The trio dropped down in front of an active prison cell with a young asari suspended in some sort of bubble and behind a barrier curtain on top of that.
"Figures" Shepard muttered. Well at least she isn't controlling the Geth and she doesn't seem hostile. But how the hell did she get stuck like that? "Are you per chance a Dr. Liara T'soni?"
"Ah yes that is me. Who might you be? I don't recognize you as one of the archaeologists on this dig."
"Relax. I am Commander Saiori Shepard of the SSV Normandy you can call me Sai. We're here to rescue you. Could you tell me how exactly you got yourself into that position" asked the commander slightly amused at this poor asari's predicament.
"Of course. I was in here translating Prothean symbols when the Geth attacked the camp. I quickly activated the barrier curtain knowing it would keep them out but in my haste I must have pressed something I shouldn't have and I found myself suspended and unable to move."
The Commander laughed. "Ok don't move. We'll find a way to get you out of there."
"But Shepard, I just informed you of the fact that I am unable to move at the moment. Telling me not to is merely redundant." Liara stated confused.
"Don't worry, it was a joke." Sai said over her shoulder as she left.
Liara was alone again. How was that a joke? I fail to see how stating the obvious is still, I feel slightly at ease knowing that she is the one rescuing me.
The team went towards the center of the cavern.
"Geeze Skipper, was it love at first sight or something?. I mean just a moment ago, you looked ready to put a slug through the skull of the next person to say something, but as soon as you see little Miss Prothean expert, you ease up and start making lame jokes." Ashley teased.
"Oh you're just jealous that I'm such a smooth operator." Shepard retorted. It was true her spirits had lifted when she saw Dr. T'soni. Mostly due to the fact that she appeared to have no connection to the Geth presence on Therum. Still... It might be a good idea to ask some questions before we let her free and shit hits the fan.
They approached a large mining laser pointed directly below Liara's cell. All three of them looked at it until Shepard said with a smile "Wrex I'll let you do the honors. Ash help him get it up and running. I'm going to go ask Dr. T'soni some questions."
The krogan chuckled. "You're a true friend Shepard!"
"Commander, I request permision to think that you're only 'going to ask questions' is bull shit." Ashley called out to Shepard.
"Permission granted Chief. Now get that laser up and running." She replied with a smile as she returned to the holding cell. "So Dr. T'soni, mind if I ask you a few questions?"
"Shepard! N- no, not at all. I will answer to the best of my ability." Liara replied nervously. Oh Goddess help me! Why am I so nervous?
"Calm down, you don't need to be so formal and like I said, call me Sai. She smiled reassuringly. "You're Lady Benezia's daughter aren't you?"
"Yes she is my mother, though I haven't spoken to her for a very long time. Why? Has something happened to her?" Liara asked.
"Why haven't you spoken lately? Uh... if you don't mind my asking that is." Shepard added quickly.
"No I do not mind. She had hoped I would follow in her footsteps and lead a life of philosophy and politics. I chose archaeology." Liara answered with a hint of remorse. "But what has happened to her?"
"A Citadel Spectre, Saren, has gone rogue and plans a large scale attack. Your mother has allied herself with him and has been deemed a traitor. I'm sorry." Shepard frowned.
"But Mother would ne-" A loud explosion interrupted Liara.
Sai nearly jumped out of her hardsuit. "Uh... I'll be right back" she mumbled as she turned around and walked away. "What the hell Wrex!?
Liara was left with her thoughts. She is indeed a strange woman but I can sense her kindness. Though the matter with mother is quite disconcerting. Mother always preached about trying to solve problems peacefully but now she has allied herself with a rogue Spectre who is planning Goddess knows what? I can't believe it. They must have made some sort of mistake. But what do they want with me? They cannot possibly believe I am a traitor as well!
The sound of movement and voices behind her brought her back from her thoughts.
"I'm telling you, some kind of heads up like 'Hey Commander if you hear a loud explosion, it's not a Geth ambush, we're just activating a giant mining laser that could melt you' would have been appreciated! That scared the hell out of me!" Shepard berated Ash and Wrex who where laughing so hard they couldn't walk straight.
"I must admit Shepard, your expression was quite humorous." Liara said over her shoulder. There was silence for a moment before the two burst into even more hysterical laughter.
"Hey! Don't encourage them!" Shepard replied with a wide grin. "Anyway Let's get you down from there and off this Geth infested planet. I bet you're tired. How long have you been up there anyway?"
"I believe it has been two days." Liara answered realizing how fatigued she was.
"Damn! We need to get you to a doctor." Separd said as she walked over to the console in the cell.
"Be careful! If you press the wrong button all of us coul-" Liara felt the familiar tug of gravity before she could finish. She closed her eyes and braced for her reunion with the ground but it never came. She opened her eyes to find her self in the arms of the Commander. "You move very quickly... Oh! Um... thank you for catching me." Liara Trailed off in embarrassment.
"No problem. Are you hurt? Do you think you can stand?" Sai smiled.
"Damn! I could have sworn you had a crush on Councilor Tevos... You had a rather quick change of heart didn't you! Of course such an impossible love interest may have made you come to your senses earlier" Ashley teased.
"You're funny Chief. Why don't y-" Sai was interrupted by fierce vibrations and low rumbling noises.
"It seems whatever you did to get here severely destabilized the ruins. I suggest we leave...quickly." Liara answered their unspoken questions.
"Good idea." Shepard put Liara back on her feet, slightly to the young asari's displeasure. "Everyone back on the lift. We're getting out of here. Joker lock on my position! I want you hear ten seconds ago, understood? Be warned though. There might be a platoon of Geth waiting for you."
"Aye, aye Commander!" came the pilots voice through her radio.
"Also, inform Dr. Chakwas to prepare for a dehydrated and sleep deprived asari." Sai ordered.
Large metal girders and gigantic boulders were falling all around them adding an extreme sense of urgency to the situation. The lift took them up slowly and eventually reached the top level but a squad of Geth headed by a krogan battlemaster were waiting for them. A huge Boulder fell from the 'ceiling' and landed a little too close to the team for comfort, destroying the console. The intense vibrations were getting worse.
"Shit! We don't have time for this! Ash, Wrex, Get Liara out of here now! I'll play with this idiot! And Ash, if you dare argue I'll have you spit shine the Normandy's hull with a toothbrush!"
"Understood, Sai." Ashley said hesitantly.
Sai turned around and smiled. The use of her first name showed Shepard how worried the young marine was. She then drew the dagger she kept sheathed on her back where an assault rifle should be. Surrounding herself with the dark energy of her biotics, she flung herself towards the Krogan, shoved the dagger through his face, turned the blade horizontal, and slashed outwards effectively rendering the warrior lifeless then vaulted from his body before it even hit the ground onto the nearest geth, knocking it to the ground. Sai brought her leg up and slammed her heel into the side of its synthetic head in a magnificent axe kick.
Liara stood in shock, watching her saviour turn into this awesome terrifying killing machine. There is no way they can be the same person. One minute she is kind and makes jokes to ease my tension and in another she is ferociously tearing a Geth's arm out!
Ashley and Wrex were dumbstruck as well. Their friend and Commander possessed such strength and skill that both of them saw themselves as un-needed and quite possibly in the way. If she could wreak such havoc by herself, why did she even bother to bring them along. Regardless, they had been given an order and obviously an important one.
"Come on let's get you out of here. Wrex take point." Ashley ordered.
"Understood" Wrex growled.
"But Shepard-" Liara began.
"Can obviously handle herself. Come" Ashley finished for her.
The marine, the scientist, and the warrior sprinted for the exit leaving their friend behind to give them a chance to escape. Shepard finally relaxed a little knowing her friends had a good chance of surviving. Now I just need to finish off these small fry and sprint like hell! Using her biotics she sent a Geth rocket trooper flying straight for her head. Kneeling down and bringing the blade above her head, she split the synthetic in half. Two left. Alarm coming from her hardsuit alerted that her shields were offline. Shit! Think fast! She threw her dagger towards one of the Geth and drew her pistol. Her dagger hit its mark and she fired her pistol at the remaining enemy unit until the barrel melted. Her final adversary dropped down in a pool of coolant and oil. Sai jogged over to retrieve her dagger. This thing has saved my life too many times to be left behind. Sai bent over to pull it out when all of a sudden the body it was sticking out of came to life in a final struggle to survive. The Geth soldier aimed it's rifle at Shepard's abdomen. Sai noticed too late as she felt the slugs penetrate her armor and rip through her stomach. Searing pain almost rendered her unconscious but she fought to remain in the world of the living. She kicked the dagger protruding from the synthetic's chest which quickly ended its fight for existence. Sai could feel morphine auto-injected by her hardsuit flooding her bloodstream and she didn't notice the pain as much. It was still there to remind her that she was dying but not enough to seriously inhibit her attempt at escape from the quickly deteriorating ruins. She grabbed her dagger and ran as fast as her body could manage towards the exit. Shepard could feel the blood gushing from her as she clutched her abdomen. The entire cavern was filled with dust and falling rubble. All the dust collecting in her wounds was like adding salt to them which reduced the effect of the morphine effectively slowing her down. If I somehow make it out of here alive only to die of an infection from all this god damn dust, I swear I'm going to take someone with me! The sight of the mining shaft filled her with a renewed energy giving her the strength to push on towards the surface. Shit! I bet there's still Geth waiting outside! Damn it Joker you better have taken care of them! As Sai approached the end of the shaft her vision progressively got more and more blurry. She could barely make out her surroundings. Loosing... much blood. Gonna bleed out... She noticed a searing heat from behind her and could faintly make out the glow of lava. ARE YOU SERIOUS!? LAVA!? She sprinted for the exit with the remainder of her energy and burst out into the open tumbling down the catwalk that lead up to the door. She barely heard Ash's voice but couldn't do anything about it. She was spent. The darkness was closing in fast and she only managed the words "I'm sorry" before consciousness left her completely.