Chapter 1: Eden Prime
Zach had walked with Anderson to the elevator after using the intercom to bring up Jenkins and Alenko to the elevator. After the two of them stepped inside, two other men in normal alliance clothing stepped in. One was the kid with the beret talking to the doctor, and the other was the co-pilot from the cockpit.
"Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko reporting for duty, commander." the co-pilot spoke as he extended his hand to shake. Zach welcomed it with a firm handshake.
"Nice to meet you, Lieutenant. I'm sure it'll be an honor to work alongside you for the days to come." He released his grip on the man's hand, and turned to face the younger man. "And you are?"
"Corporal Richard L. Jenkins, sir. And I must say it is a great honor to be working with you. Though I hope Eden Prime isn't burning down by the time we reach the drop point."
"I heard you mention you grew up there as I was walking to the comm room. Did you know a lot of people on the colony?"
"Just about everybody. We were a small colony developing slowly to avoid pollution like on Earth. Right now, Eden Prime is just a farming colony. My parents lived on the outskirts, so we had a beautiful view at night. Such a gorgeous colony..." The kid looked down for a bit.
"We're going to do everything we can, Corporal." Zach said reassuringly. Jenkins raised his head with a small smile.
"Thanks, Commander." The elevator descended down to the armory. Behind the elevator was the engineering deck, which Zach could hear slightly from his spot on the elevator. Once the door opened, Kaidan and Jenkins stepped out and grabbed their armor and weapons; when everything was situated, they all slipped on their helmets. Zach quickly pulled out his pistol, a Striker VIII, and examined it to ensure the modifications were installed correctly. He had installed into the ammunition systems a cryogenic cylinder, which enabled the bullets that came out to freeze an enemy on target. He had the same system installed to his Banshee VIII as well. Despite the fact his pistol fired slowly now, he did increase the amount of times it could be fired, and reduced the kickback of the gun with a stability dampener.
"Hey, Commander." Jenkins interrupted his train of thought. "I was wondering what was it like down on Akuze with all those thresher maws jumping out and attacking your squad? I mean, was it like you ran through with no fear, surviving because you were the strongest? Or were you afraid-" The kid never finished his sentence as Zach banged his fist on the armory table, shutting Jenkins up almost immediately.
"Let's get two things straight, Corporal. First, don't interrupt me while I'm admiring my handiwork." He showed off his pistol before clipping it to his hip-clip. "Second, I don't like talking about Akuze to anybody; especially a young marine with a bright future ahead of him, who should pray he never experiences the loss of their whole team to the unknown. I lost a lot of friends that day," he paused for a second. "Some more important than others. And now I have an irrational fear and hatred towards thresher maws. So I suggest you stop talking about a past that never leaves my head."
"Sorry, Commander." The kid apologized sincerely.
"Apology accepted." Zach dropped his serious facade for a more investigative one. "Why don't you and Alenko tell me about your qualifications."
"Well, I've got the basic weapons training qualifications, and I've got some average medical training." Jenkins replied. "What about you, Lieutenant?"
"I've got biotics training, and I know my way around some technological subjects, like electronics and decrypting."
"You're a biotic?" Zach asked.
"One of the earlier generations. My biotics are quite powerful for a human."
"I've met a few biotics through my career. Some I sparred with in hand-to-hand drills. Others, well..." Zach tapped his fingers on his Hurricane VIII he had clipped to the back of his armor. "I showed them what I thought of their biotics."
"You have something against biotics?"
"It's just not the kind of power I want. I trust my life on only my guns, and this omni-tool." He pulled out his omni-tool, a Titan X model. It was very rare, and very expensive when he received it. That was when he turned seventeen. "This thing has been through my life for twelve years. It's survived every scar, every broken bone, and every travel through bad weather. I've never had to repair it once."
"Weren't you still on the streets twelve years ago? How'd you get something as expensive as that?"
"I got it from a friend." Zach never got to continue his ramble as the pilot called over the intercom, stating that they were approaching the first drop point. So he led the two men to the hanger bay doors. Anderson was ready to give them the briefing.
"Your team's the muscle in this operation, Commander. Go in quiet and head straight for the dig site."
"What about survivors, Captain?" Kaidan asked.
"Helping survivors is your secondary objective. The beacon's your top priority!" Anderson had to shout as the hanger bay doors opened near the first drop point.
"Approaching drop point one." The pilot notified over the intercom.
Jenkins turned his head to face Nihlus, who had grabbed a spectre-grade shotgun and assault rifle before joining them. "Nihlus, you're coming with us?"
Nihlus cocked his shotgun. "I move faster on my own!" He then jumped out at the right time, landing on a ridge Joker was passing by.
"Nihlus will scout out ahead. He'll feed you status reports throughout the mission. Otherwise, I want radio silence."
"We've got his back, Captain." Zach assured, knowing a spectre was a good ally for this fight.
"The mission's yours now, Shepard. Good luck!" Anderson yelled as they approached the second drop point. When Joker lowered the ship far enough, the three men jumped off the platform to soft ground. The hangar doors closed, and the ship flew away.
"All right. I want your shields up at all times. There's no telling who or what attacked the colony." Zach commanded the two men, who followed the order instantly. Zach then fired up his own shield generator, which was at 352% thanks to an increased shield interface on his armor. "Jenkins, this is your home, so you're taking the front ranks. Keep your eyes peeled, and stay together. I don't need soldiers dying because they ran off like idiots."
"Aye, aye, sir." Jenkins then pulled the rifle off his back, and took the lead. As they neared a small pond, Alenko spotted something peculiar.
"What the hell are those?!" He pointed at a giant floating creature at the pond.
"Gas bags." Jenkins answered. "Don't worry. They're harmless."
Harmless. Zach pulled his pistol off his belt, smiling a bit as he brought it up to his sights. He took aim at the closest one, and pulled the trigger. The gas bag popped upon impact.
"Damn!" Kaidan yelled at the sound of the pop.
"Harmless indeed. Let's keep moving." Putting his pistol away, he led the men onward, with Jenkins in the lead. They stopped at a small clearing, with only a few rocks as cover if the attackers had planned an ambush in front of them. He signaled for Jenkins to take point, who then walked to the corner of the opening.
As soon as he was in the clear, a hail of slugs from a patrol unit of drones hit him, ripping through his shields and armor.
"Jenkins! Damn it!" Zach yelled as he pulled off his assault rifle and fired at the drones. The bullets bounced off the shields, barely affecting their power.
"Overloading their shields!" Kaidan launched out his overload program at the three drones, disabling their shields with a single spark. Zach shot the first one down, but not without taking damage to his shields before taking cover. However, his shields were still holding around 200%; a good sign for the resilient soldier. Kaidan lashed out his biotics at another drone, destroying it as it collided with a rock wall adjacent to it. They took the last drone down with their weapons, as the cryo rounds froze the drone before Kaidan shattered it with his pistol.
Jenkins lay still on the ground where they had left them. Kaidan checked for a pulse, shaking his head when he found none. He closed the young man's eyes with two fingers. "Ripped right through his shields. Never had a chance."
Zach blinked his eyes, holding his sadness in over the loss of yet another soldier he served with. "We'll see he receives a proper service when the mission's over. But I need you to stay focused."
"Aye, aye, sir." With that, the two men set out to continue their mission.
Meanwhile, Ashley Williams ran as fast as she could away from another patrol of geth drones hot on her trail. They sprayed a group of bullets at her, knocking against her shields as she tripped and fell. Removing her pistol in one swift motion, she shot at the drones, which fell apart as scrap almost instantly. As she got up, she noticed two geth platforms holding onto a colonist, placing him up on some strange device. She ran as soon as she saw the man get stabbed by a spike that jettisoned from the device. Hiding behind a rock as soon as the geth turned to face her location. Panting hard from all of the running, she pulled her assault rifle off her back, waiting for the inevitable moment the machines would be right on top of her position.
Damn it, Owen. Where the hell are you? She quickly thought to herself. If Owen, the only biotic in their squad had been present during the attack, then at least half the unit would've still been alive. Now, she's the only known survivor.
Just when she thought she would've been caught, she heard the sound of gunfire and an explosion from a frozen target. She got out of her hiding spot and walked towards her rescuers, two men with rifles in their hands. One was wearing heavy explorer armor that had definitely seen some action over the years. The other was in the lighter version of the Alliance's standard Onyx armor. She clipped her gun back on the right shoulder clip.
"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212th. Are you the one in charge here, sir?" She spoke to the man in heavy armor.
In Zach's mind, the woman who walked out of cover gave Zach a moment of pause. But it wasn't from her looks. He took Alliance protocol very seriously now, so he wasn't planning on getting emotionally attached to any Alliance marine that caught his eye. What gave him a moment of pause was her armor type.
Phoenix armor. Just like-
Focus, Shepard. You're in the middle of a mission. Crying in front of a lady is not an option. "Were you hurt in the fight?"
"A few scrapes and burns. Nothing serious." Ashley replied. "The others weren't so lucky. Oh, man. We were out on patrol when the attack hit. We tried to get to the beacon, but they boxed us in. I've been fighting for my life ever since!"
"Any idea just what kind of enemy we're facing?"
"I think they're geth."
"The geth haven't been seen outside the veil in nearly three-hundred years." Kaidan stated. "Why are they here now?"
Ashley shrugged her shoulders. "They must've come for the beacon. The dig site's close, just over that rise. It might still be there."
Zach looked in the direction Ashley had pointed. "We could use your help, Williams." And he was right. With Jenkins gone and Nihlus far ahead of them, a squad of two wouldn't stand much of a chance against the geth.
"Aye, aye, sir. It's time for payback." The look of determination in her eyes yet again made Zach return to those memories for only a second, but he focused back on the mission. There was no time to think about her.
"Move out!" The three of them held their rifles at the ready and headed towards the dig site, killing a few geth that stood in their way. However, when they got to the dig site, there was nothing there. Zach put his Banshee VIII back in its clip, and shook his head in confusion.
"The beacon was right here! It must have been moved." Ashley inferred.
"By who?" Kaidan asked. "Our side or the geth?"
"Hard to say. Maybe we'll know more if we can get to the research camp up ahead."
"You think anyone got out of here alive?" Zach asked with disbelief, certain that there were no other survivors around.
"If they're lucky. Maybe we'll find out more when we get to the research camp. It's just atop this ridge."
Following Ashley, who now possessed the only knowledge on the surrounding area, Shepard and the gang headed up the path, receiving a quick update from Nihlus to meet up at a nearby spaceport. Up at the camp, however, things were looking grim. There was one structure on fire, and more of those spikes they passed by in the center of the camp. However, the humans on them were different. Changed.
"This place got hit hard." Ashley commented.
"It's a good place for an ambush," Kaidan observed. "Keep your guard up." As soon as he said that, the spikes started descending, and the humans started fidgeting. "Oh, God! They're still alive!"
"What did the geth do to them?!" Ashley screamed as the strange mutants started running at them. The three of them threw a barrage of bullets, grenades, and biotics at the husks, killing them one by one. Zach examined whatever bodies he didn't freeze, and noticed the technology that seemed to be integrated into the corpses. Tubes and wires were spread out throughout its body, and there were places where it glowed a fluorescent blue. So strange.
"Look. That door." Ashley pointed at one of the structures. "Security lock's engaged."
"Not a problem." Zach stepped up to the door and fiddled with his omni-tool, unlocking the door. Behind it, two civilians in what appeared to be the uniforms of scientists poked their heads out as Zach stepped in.
"Humans. Thank the maker." A woman stepped towards him with brown hair and nervous hands.
"Hurry. Close the door. Before they come back." A man whispered, walking slowly out of the shadows.
"Don't worry. We'll protect you." Zach reassured the two lucky survivors.
"Thank you. I think we'll be okay now. It looks like everyone's gone."
"You're Doctor Warren." Ashley noticed. "The one in charge of the excavation. Do you know what happened to the beacon?"
"It was moved to the spaceport this morning. Manuel and I stayed behind to help pack up the camp. When the attack came, the marines held them off long enough for us to hide. They gave their lives to save us."
"No one is saved!" Manuel freaked out. "The age of humanity has ended! Soon only ruin and corpses will remain!"
"What else can you tell me about the attack?" Zach asked.
"It all happened so fast. One minute we were gathering our equipment; the next we were hiding in the shed."
"Agents of the destroyers! Bringers of darkness! Heralds of our extinction!"
"We could hear the battle outside: gunfire, screaming. I thought it would never end. Then it went quiet. We just sat here, too afraid to move. Then you showed up."
"Did you notice a turian in the area?"
"I saw him. The prophet. Leader of the enemy! He was here! Before the attack!"
"That's impossible." Kaidan stated. "Nihlus was with us before the attack. He couldn't have been here!"
"I'm sorry. Manuel's still a bit shaken up from the attack. We haven't seen your turian. We've been hiding in here since the attack."
"What can you tell me about the beacon?"
"It's some kind of beacon from a communications module. Very well preserved. It could be the greatest scientific discovery of our time. Miraculous new technologies. Groundbreaking medical advances. Who knows what's inside!"
"We have unearthed the heart of evil. Awakened the beast! Unleashed the darkness!" Manuel seemed to be getting more unstable by the second.
"Manuel, please! This isn't the time!" Dr. Warren spoke. Now Zach was feeling annoyed as well. And yet the face of one cheery Scotsman was returning to his mind.
"What's wrong with your assistant?" Zach asked, quickly getting back on track.
"Manuel has a brilliant mind, but he's always been a bit... unstable. Genius and madness are two sides of the same coin."
"Is it madness to see the future? To see the destruction rushing towards us?" Dr. Warren shook her head at his rambling. "To understand there is no escape; no hope?! No! I am not mad! I am the only sane one left!"
"I gave him an extra dose of his meds after the attack."
Well they're obviously not working since he's still standing here. Zach though to himself before making a decision. "Say good night, Manuel."
"You cannot silence the truth! My voice must be heard-" The impact of Zach's fist knocked the man out cold.
"Oh, my God!" Dr. Warren squealed. "What did you do?!"
"That might've been a little extreme, Commander." Kaidan agreed. But Zach didn't care. Manuel finally shut up. And somewhere in the back of his mind, a Scotsman's laugh could be heard.
"You can't just go around whacking people in the head!"
"It was only a matter of time before he did something crazy... and dangerous."
"I suppose you're right. By the time he wakes up, the meds would've already kicked in."
"Williams, take us to the spaceport." Zach ordered, intent on reaching the beacon before the geth.
Nihlus made it to the spaceport, ducking behind a crate as he saw a figure moving around. Bringing his assault rifle up to target the figure, he quickly lowered it at the sight of his friend.
"Saren?"
The other turian turned around to face his friend. Pieces of metal held his mandibles close to his face. "Nihlus." He started walking towards his friend.
"This isn't your mission, Saren. What are you doing here?"
"The council thought you could some help on this one." He placed his hand on Nihlus's shoulder as he walked past him.
"I wasn't expecting to find the geth here. The situation's bad."
"Don't worry. I've got it under control."
Nihlus never realized the gun Saren had pulled out, and the bullet that came along with it.
Shepard heard the gunshot before he saw anything. running to the corner, he looked up to see a giant marvel leaving Eden Prime.
"What is that? Off in the distance!" Kaidan yelled.
"It's a ship!" Ashley answered. "Look at the size of it!"
Pulling his rifle off his back, Zach aimed down his sights, and hit an explosive tank next to two geth units. As more of the 'husks' and geth units came, the three fought through it all like an unstoppable team. No enemy survived the onslaught.
Running to the port, Kaidan noticed where the gunshot came from. "Commander. It's Nihlus." Zach examined the corpse of the spectre in front of him, and saw the wound on the back of the head. A bullet had definitely entered his skull.
A noise was made from somewhere, causing Ashley to point it out as Zach pulled out his Striker. A human in civilian gear came out with his hands raised, begging not to be shot.
"Sneaking up on us nearly got you killed."
"I'm sorry. I was hiding from those creatures." The man said as Zach lowered his gun. "My name's Powell. I saw what happened to that turian. The other one shot him."
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"The other one was already here when your friend showed up. He called him Saren. I think they knew each other. Your friend seemed to relax. He let his guard down. Then Saren killed him. Shot him right in the back. I'm nust lucky he didn't see me behind the crates."
"Where'd Saren go after he killed Nihlus?"
"He jumped on the cargo train and headed for the other platform. Probably going after the beacon. I knew that beacon was trouble. Everything's gone to hell since we found it. First that damn mothership shows up. Then the attack. They killed everyone. Everyone! If I hadn't been behind the crates I'd be dead, too."
"How come nobody else tried to hide behind the crates?"
"They never had a chance. I... I was already behind the crates before the attack."
"Wait a minute,you were behind the crates before the attack?" Kaidan asked.
"Sometimes, I need some rest in order to get through my shift. I sneak behind the crates fir fourty winks where the supervisors can't find me."
"You survived because you were lazy?!" Ashley snarled.
"If you hadn't snuck for that nap, you probably wouldn't be alive."
"Yeah. I don't even want to think about it."
Deciding he had enough talking to this person, he ended the conversation. "We need to find that beacon before it's too late!"
"Take the cargo train, that's where the other turian went! I can't stay here. I need to get away from all this."
Saren walked to the one geth unit in front of him guarding the beacon. Set the charges. Destroy the entire colony. Leave no evidence that we were here." The geth walked away to carry out its orders. Saren then approached the beacon, activating it. Seconds later, he was lifted in the air, recieving the secrets buried inside.
As the train pulled to a stop, the three of them noticed the bomb on the platform next to them. It was set to detonate in five minutes.
"Demolition charges! The geth must've planted them!" Kaidan ran to deactivate it, but Shepard beat him to it, starting the deactivation process as Ashley yelled that they needed to find them all. When it was deactivated, Zach ran up the stairs, across the bridge, through geth weapons fire, and to the second bomb. Realizing the two of them were on clean-up duty, Kaidan and Ashley started shooting and sabatoging the geth units shooting at Zach. Once the second bomb was deactivated, he ran at the enemy, spraying his bullets at the closest one. A shock trooper fired a carnage straight at him, taking out his shields.
"Damn it!" Zach yelled as he slipped into cover next to the third bomb. Ashley provided cover to Zach, terminating the shock trooper that took out his shields, and then focusing fire on the geth sniper aiming at Kaidan. When the field was clear, it took Zach five seconds to deactivate the last bomb.
"That's gotta be all of them." Ashley guessed.
"Agreed. Secure the area. Let's make sure there's no more geth."
Aboard the dreadnought again, Saren looked to the geth units surrounding him, intent on listening to the prophet of their new master, Nazzara. "Eden Prime was a major victory." he spoke, raising both his arm of flesh and his geth arm replacement. "The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the conduit."
"And one step closer to the return of the reapers." A woman came walking up to Saren Arterius, a powerful Matriarch on his side that followed his command. The geth unit closet stared until Saren grabbed its attention.
"Set up outposts in the Armstrong Cluster. When the Reapers return, we must be able to push the Alliance into their hands. Do not fail me." The geth unit bowed, and communicated to its brethren to prepare for shuttle departure to the Armstrong Cluster, unaware of what was to happen to it in a matter of hours.
"Looks like we actually got them all." Kaidan said as he stared at the body of the husk he just killed. Zach walked towards the beacon, and Kaidan followed suite. As Zach called extraction, Kaidan studied the payload. "This is amazing! Actual working protbean technology! Unbelievable!"
"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it it up." Ashley commented. "Something must have activated it." Kaidan walked away to speak with Shepard, and Ashley approached it curiously.
The beacon started pulling Ashley close, and despite how much she struggled, she couldn't move. Zach noticed this, and moved to help her, pushing Kaidan out of the way, and diving for her when she was lifted up in the air. Having no other option, he chucked her aside. But before he could leave the beacon's influence, he was pulled up, hovering feet above the ground, catching horrifying images in his mind.
"Shepard!"
"No, don't touch him! It's to dangerous!"
The images continuously poured into his head. There was no way to stop the onslaught, the pain, the madness.
Until finally, he blacked out...
Thanks for reading this long chapter on Eden Prime. When I bring up the next chapter, I plan on diving away from canon for a bit to come up with some interesting events that you never see but hear about in the games. I also plan on bringing in some new characters during the next chapter, and some you may already know if you read my short story Mass Effect 3: Remembrance.
Anyway, reviews would be appreciated as they do help people become better writers. Thanks, until next time.