Hi everyone,
Well, Chapter three is up. I've already begun writing Chapter four.
Guest2: I'll take that suggestion into account, but I can't make any promises at this point.
SpecH82: The reapers will definitely have a hard time with the zerg later.
Chapter 3: Duty and Sacrifice
Time seemed to slow. The claws started to come down. I scrabbled for my plasma rifle, but I knew there was no way I'd be able to shoot it in time. My life flashed before my eyes. I raised my right arm to shield my face, fully aware of how futile that gesture was against the behemoth standing above me. Nothing could save me now.
All of a sudden, a boulder smacked into the brute's larger arm, shattering into multiple pieces upon impact. In my dizzy state, I didn't get a clear view of it, but it was surely too large for anyone not in CMC armor to have thrown that far. A krogan could have thrown it easily, but we didn't have any krogan with us. The brute looked up, roaring a challenge at someone.
A golden blur leaped into the brute, making it stagger unsteadily back a few steps. Flipping backwards, the newcomer evaded the brute's wide return stroke. "Khassar de templari!"
I recognized the saying. From order comes justice. Khalani, the language of the protoss. To date, I'm probably the only non-protoss person who knows how to speak it and read it. Templar in Khalani meant justice, and only members of the Templar Caste of the Khalai protoss would go around shouting about justice. But there hadn't been any khalai protoss with us on Vornar II...
While my mind was still trying to process that, the zealot lunged with one of his two crackling neon-blue psionic blades, deftly spinning to the right. The well-aimed stab bypassed the brute's oversized claw arm and speared the brute through the neck. The zealot skillfully disentangled itself from the hulking organic-synthetic creature, not even bothering to check to make sure the collapsing husk was truly dead.
Then, a large four-fingered hand appeared in front me. "Greetings, brother. It seems I arrived...what is the terran saying? Ah yes... in the 'nick of time.' It is fortunate I did, is it not?" Good to see you too, old buddy.
"Naoros." I realized. "What are you doing out here?" He pulled me to my feet, nodding slightly. "That is a tale for later. I believe there are more pressing concerns we must address. Securance of krogan entry into your friend Shepard's little alliance, to begin with."
I picked up my power sword from the ground and sheathed it. "Guess you're right." I took in the squad's stunned expressions. "Everyone, meet my brother-in-arms, praetor Naoros of Aiur. Last surviving relative to High Executor Tassadar. You don't know who that is, but I guarantee you will by the time the Reapers are defeated."
"Met the praetor before already." Rob deadpanned. "Is there anything special about him I was supposed to take note of? Because he's just one normal dumbass to me."
Naoros stiffened, and I saw Shaun and Nathan shuffle uncomfortably to the side. "How kind of you," Naoros responded in a similar tone, instead of executing Rob as it was thought he would. "I am flattered by your assessment of me." He caught Rob's armored hand in a strong grip. "The months have treated you well, sergeant major Agnarsson." Releasing Rob's hand, he turned to Tesla. "Always a pleasure, agent. I see Brigadier General Lee is still behaving as...unintelligent as he has in the past."
"You have no idea, sir. He decided it was a good idea to turn his back on the enemy in the middle of a firefight, resulting in him being...pounded by that brute over there." Her tone was light but purposefully formal. "After having accumulated so much experience fighting zerg, tal'darim, and several terran factions, it would've been kind of embarrassing to see him go down to that thing. On behalf of the 151st, I thank you for your assistance, praetor. You saved our reputation."
"No need to thank me for doing my duty." Naoros's blazing blue eyes glinted brightly. "You must be Shaun Kalantari." Shaun stared at him in astonishment. "Richard has spoken often of you. Nathan Zhang, Minsu Kim...interesting to see the two of you in person. There are many of Richard's acquaintances who are not here currently, I would surmise."
He paused, peering over at team Shepard. "I do not know any of you on a personal basis, nor did my brother. Although it seems you have grown in both rank and maturity since he last met you a decade ago, N7 Lieutenant Commander John Alan Shepard."
"...I would hope so." John answered, covering his awed expression. "Ten years is a long time, after all. I have to ask, though. You know all of our names, but we never told you them. Did you read dossiers about us or something?" Oh boy, this will be fun…
"Afraid not." Naoros boomed. "Your answer is telepathy, friend Shepard. All protoss are psionically-gifted at birth, to varying degrees. A...perhaps appropriate comparison would be the asari, who are all born with biotic abilities. Psionic abilities can be more subtle, yet they can be far more destructive at the same time. The defining characteristic of psionics is mind-reading. Thus, despite this being only our first meeting, I am familiar with your basic information."
"Wait...so you're like...a psychic?"
"Indeed. Lieutenant James Vega. I would advise you to accept the nomination into the N7 program, as pointless as it may seem under the circumstances."
"Holy hell...you really are a psychic." Vega muttered in shock. "I don't know if I should be amazed or just plain creeped out…"
"A logical reaction would be both, friend Vega. I would not expect any being to adapt to these circumstances so quickly."
Javik snorted. "No matter who you are, you cannot measure up to a prothean. If the reapers had attacked you, 50,000 years ago, you would have been casually annihilated by them."
"Fifty-thousand years ago, we were nomadic tribesmen who hunted Bengalaas and other animals for shelter with stone spears. First of all, I do not think the Reapers would have been interested in us, and secondly, I would hope that they are able to best cavemen. Otherwise, that would reflect rather badly on your Empire, would it not Prothean?"
Before Javik could give one of his scathing rebukes, another quake shook the ground. Naoros cocked his head to one side quizzically. "Is tectonic activity truly this common here on Tuchanka? I recall no mention of it in the Templar Archives…"
"What? Templar archives? Protoss have been to citadel space before?" I demanded. "Why didn't anybody ever tell me about this?"
"You have learned about the tenets of the Dae'Uhl. The reasoning is clear and well-thought. It is not the duty of the firstborn to meddle in the affairs of aliens. As friend Raynor once said, 'we are who we choose to be.' All species deserve such a chance, no matter how primitive they seem. Evidently, that opinion is not shared by the salarians of Sur'kesh. Our forefathers would be disgusted if they witnessed how they uplifted and subsequently betrayed the krogan."
"To answer your question," John said. "We don't think it's an earthquake. We think it's a thresher maw. Kalros, to be exact. The biggest and baddest of them all." He contacted the convoy. "Wrex, you're right about Kalros. She's on the move!"
"Yeah, we've got some ideas on that-" Wrex stopped for a fraction of a second, as if someone had interrupted him in mid-sentence. "-What?"
"Not now, Wrex. The commander has enough to worry about." Eve admonished the overlord of Tuchanka sternly.
"What's happening?" John inquired, curious.
"It's just some crazy idea we can talk about later. Just worry about getting out of there right now." Wrex amended.
"Well, you heard the man." John prompted us. "Naoros, was it? Welcome to the team. Nice handling of that brute. Richard, you outrank me, I know, but just a suggestion: don't be so stupid next time around, all right? We don't want to lose anyone."
"Bad decision, commander. Now, he will be determined to do all he can to prove you wrong. If anything, you may have just made his impatience even worse." Naoros told him. "In any case, if you are all as formidable as your reputations suggest, then I think I shall enjoy this."
"Let's just hope that brute knocked some sense into him," Shaun dismissed Naoros's remark. "Now come on, we have a krogan convoy to catch up with, and a millennia-long genophage to get rid of. The galaxy isn't going to save itself!" That said, John and Shaun ran, the rest of our 12-man squad sticking closely behind.
We turned around a corner, and more cannibals intercepted us, firing. Naoros waved a hand, sending a pile of rocks flying at them. A few of the others opened fire, making short work of the distracted batarian husks. "Another shooting gallery," Garrus wisecracked. A horde of husks flooded past the fallen squad of cannibals. "Damn it…"
Wrex's voice crackled again. "Shepard, looks like we've got a bridge up ahead. Try to find it, and we'll pick you up there." Thanks, but I don't think saying 'We're at a bridge. Get over here.' helps us very much.
Naoros and Tesla exchanged amused glances. "Sir, did anyone ever tell you that you're just about the most cynical guy in the entire universe?" The shadowguard asked. "Because you are."
I ignored that comment. "Wrex!" Shepard shouted. "We're a little preoccupied here!" Oh right, the husks...Hey Naoros, you up for some stupidity?
"I didn't say it would be easy!" Wrex protested, deliberately using the same tone that John had with primarch Victus during our little War Room meeting. The reference was lost on everyone else there, of course.
I suppose. What do you have in mind? I drew my power sword. Naoros immediately understood. As one, we hurtled forward, advancing into the mass of husks. I hammered them with my left arm or slashed them as they came at me. Naoros? He simply spinned and lunged with all the alacrity of a ninja. It's kind of weird, actually. Zealots are as well-armed and armored as heavy infantry, like knights, but their speed is still crazily fast. I honestly still don't know how they do it, even after serving with them on so many campaigns and learning to fight like them for years.
It is called, talent, brother. A foreign term to you, I am sure. Oh yeah, don't forget the dry humor protoss just love throwing out there. Or maybe it was just Naoros. Compared to most protoss, he was a lot more forthcoming and laid-back. The others...Selendis, especially? They were so hard-core that they made marine drill instructors at boot camp seem like shy kindergartners.
"Ravagers!" Minsu warned. Naoros and I threw ourselves to the ground as artillery shots flew past us, detonating on the ancient krogan architecture all about us. "Don't just stand there and shout! Take them out!" I roared. Whoa...that rhymed. I rolled to cover, discharging plasma bolts at the armored rachni husks. I could hear gunfire. Someone, Nathan I think, dispelled a plasma round from their omni-tool, and I think Vega unleashed a concussive shot. Liara and Javik expertly choreographed a biotic explosion that sent two of the ravagers flying.
Noticing that there was only one ravager left, Naoros charged, turning his body into pure energy and appearing a microsecond later in front of the final ravager. Forming an x-shape with his psionic blades, he swept them outwards, and the two crackling blades decimated the enemy. He then swiftly performed a flying leap into a cannibal, kicking it down before swiveling to gash another one. A volley of mass accelerator, C-14, C-20A, and plasma fire later, the remaining husks and cannibals were gunned down mercilessly.
"I'm really starting to hate this place!" Garrus called out.
"You and me both, bro." Robert agreed. "You and me both."
"Hey, mark those statues over there." Nathan pointed out. "They kind of resemble the ones the Greeks or Romans used to make. They've got round shields and everything."
"For Sparta!" Shaun bellowed. Minsu laughed out loud and joined in his mad dash to the statues. "Hey, heads up, I think this is the bridge!" Shaun notified us. "Come on, I think I just saw the convoy!" We warily joined them, minding both directions to ensure there wasn't any reaper or harvester or something waiting patiently to ambush us.
"Shepard, we're coming under the bridge! Get down here and we can get to the shroud. Wait...Kalros!" A slithering movement rippled through the ground, and a massive… body emerged out of nowhere. The APC's and tomkahs screeched into reverse to avoid being crushed by the gigantic thresher maw. Holy crap...
"Wrex!" Shepard yelled. A growl. Kalros plunged through the bridge, carving a hole through the middle in its angry rush towards the convoy. One of the APC's lingered behind, firing futilely at the maw. I grimaced as the full momentum of Kalros slammed into the vehicle. The APC, with twelve brave marines inside of it, flipped over more than a dozen times, finally coming to a shuddering stop. Fumes arose from the battered personnel carrier, and when I used my HUD to check on squad 5-C's bio-signs, I was greeted by twelve flatlining charts. Damn it.
"Kalros' territorial instinct confirmed!" Mordin stated the obvious. I barely heard the salarian scientist in my spasm of rage. The 151st Regiment's infantry contingent consisted of a battalion- 10 companies of 10 ten-man squads. There were two more similar 1200-man infantry battalions in the 151st now, but they were far less experienced. In one go, Kalros had just killed a full one percent of my best marines, some of the Dominion's finest soldiers. Friends. I fired blindly at the thresher maw, not caring that it was a complete waste of effort. My rifle didn't need to rely on ammunition anyways, right? So what the hell did I care?
"It's not going to get us!" Wrex announced. It already did, I felt like retorting, but I kept my mouth shut. As much as I hated his blase attitude, I knew that it wasn't his fault. To an extent, it wasn't even Kalros' fault. It was the goddamn Reapers' fault. Another reason to add to the list. I could hope that this wouldn't happen again, but I knew the truth. Five-Charlie's twelve men and women would only be the first among many to fall in this apocalyptic war.
Naoros put a hand on my shoulder. "They were good men. Avenge them rather than blame yourself." He encouraged me. Kalros half-submerged again, intent on outrunning the convoy.
"You go on ahead, Shepard! We'll try to shake this thing and find you." Wrex ordered us.
We obliged, heading into a building that resembled a temple, more of the greco-krogan statues standing silently around us. If we weren't lost before, we were certainly clueless now.
"Thresher maw getting closer!" Mordin yelped.
"Tell me something I don't know!" Wrex snarled. I could see the massive figure of the maw's back trailing only a few yards behind the group of ground vehicles.
"Metal in truck excellent iron supplement for maw's diet!" At that, despite myself, I had to grin. I'd only spoken to Dr. Solus a few times, but I liked the scientist. I could see why John, Liara, and Garrus trusted him. He was one unique STG operative. Even Shaun had to admit that, and that was an achievement, considering CIA people generally detested the special tasks group.
"I wonder where we are now?" Liara unintentionally echoed my thoughts, and probably the thoughts of all twelve of us. "This entire planet is one big deathtrap!"
"Well duh…" Minsu snapped. "When you think of krogan, what comes to mind?"
"Getting stomped on by giant space monsters that shouldn't realistically exist," Robert breathed. "I mean, come on, giant dinosaur-worms? Gimme a break!"
"Actually, Minsu." Shaun corrected. "Whenever I hear the sound of glorious gunfire, the rhythm of drum beats on the wind, and the struggling of armies, all I think of is the smell of freedom."
"Good for you!" Nathan nearly screamed. "Now shut up and RUN!"
"Thing is: I bet Wrex is enjoying this." Garrus said knowingly.
"Nobody cares! Let's just focus on getting away from the giant worm!" Nathan evidently wasn't enjoying this. Heh...see what I did there? Naoros put his head in his hand, shaking his head at the hopelessness of my attempt at humor. Ha...ha...Tesla started half-heartedly.
"The technician shows his cowardice," Javik mused. "His true self." HA…
"You know, it would suck if the reaper decided to leave the shroud, land here, and kill us." Minsu conjectured. "All it'd have to do is shoot the pillars. Then, the roof would fall on us. Insta-kill. There'd be no more commander shepard to ruin all of their schemes and stratagems."
"Hey operative Kim, don't freaking jinx us, please. The day's already going bad enough." Vega begged him completely seriously. We exited the temple, entering what seemed to be an old fountain. As we did, Garrus's sharp avian eyes proved their keenness.
"Watch it, more ahead!"
"More? Jesus frakking christ! What is this, 'it's raining reapers' day?! Mama Mia!" Shaun complained irritably. He's not even Italian…
Cannibals were sniping at us from the right and the front. Shaun aimed his N7 Valiant-sniper rifle and pegged two of them in quick succession. Tesla picked off a few more with well-placed bursts. Agnarsson just sprayed, since the cannibals most of the time were too dumb to duck into cover. Or just too slow-reacting. Nathan fired another plasma round, Minsu and Vega fired their assault rifles. Garrus sniped, Liara and Javik were launching biotics again. Naoros distracted the enemy with his 10-foot tall bulk. I was content to just sit back and let the squad handle it, scanning the area for any heavier Reaper units, ravagers or brutes. There didn't appear to be any, so I relaxed for the moment.
"Shepard-" It was Mordin. "Wrex busy driving truck! Are you still alive?" Nope, we're dead. Your goal of curing the genophage is doomed. What do you think? Common sense, Doctor!
"Doing what we can!" Shepard yelled as a fresh mob of husks pelted towards our position. "What about you?" Yep, that was John for you. Always unnecessarily compassionate. Even when we were in a much worse situation.
"Alarmed yet entertained. Kalros quite persistent!" Ya think? I never would have known, doc! I fired my plasma rifle at a couple howling husks who got too close to our cover for comfort. This was getting pretty repetitive and boring, as queer as that may sound.
"Wreav! Stick close!" Aww...Wrex playing the part of a caring brother to a sibling that he doesn't give a damn about? And who tried to kill him not long ago? Galaxy's full of surprises, I guess.
"Drive faster! I can smell the damn thing's breath!" Wreav barked. That cracked me up, much to the team's chagrin. The unflappable traditionalist...panicking just like everyone else. Talk about karma. Then, a marauder-husk materialized. Mutated turians, I remembered. Armed with the mainstay assault rifle of the turian military, the Phaeston. They were squad leaders for husk units. I was surprised that we were only running into them now...it was confirmation that we were getting closer to the shroud structure.
They weren't that intimidating, but it just hit home the point that even the turians, the Galaxy's military powerhouse, were outmatched and being overwhelmed by the Reapers.
Rob stood out of cover and poured gauss spikes at the marauder. He swore when he found out the hard way that marauders had kinetic barriers. The marauder's return fire mostly grazed him, but a stray round punctured his suit, drawing a pained grunt from the marine. His armor was already automatically administering medi-gel, so he'd be fine. Garrus overloaded the marauder's shields and Tesla sniped it in the forehead. Woohoo, teamwork! We're getting the hang of this!
We continued along the temple...facility, I guess you could call it...a maze of staircases and ramps…"Shepard, we've almost lost Kalros! Get down from there and we'll find you!" Yay! More good news! But you 'lost' Kalros? Cool story, bro.
"Hey, we can get down to ground level over there!" Rob hollered. "Just get ready to jump!" Time was of the essence, so we all leaped down without delay. Liara was audibly relieved as the convoy, now reduced to two tomkahs and a single APC, coughed to a halt. Four more APC's arrived on the sides of the three aforementioned vehicles. Phew, the four other squads and our extra APC had all survived. A lot of the krogan hadn't, though...or they'd been separated. I hoped it was the latter, but it was probably the former.
"Shepard, get over here! Wreav, keep an eye out for that maw! I don't want it sneaking up on us!" Finally, no more running to and fro on foot like a pack of fools…
"Make it quick, Wrex!" Wreav requested curtly. "We're exposed!" Without further ado, Shepard's team headed for Wrex's tomkah. The rest of us piled into the extra APC. As much as I disliked Wreav, he was right in this case. Before the last of us were inside, the ground rumbled. Dust shot up in a straight line, getting ever closer. Kalros!
"It's Kalros!" Wreav bellowed. I KNOW! Kalros thundered past us, obscuring Wreav's tomkah from view. The APCs' gauss cannons were all spitting spikes, to no avail.
"Move, shepard!" Wrex said. I saw Shepard jump in, and then I boarded my APC.
"We're in!" Shepard reported. "Go, go!" All six of our vehicles sped off. It was at that moment that I noticed Wreav's tomkah had disappeared. Good riddance.
"What about Wreav?" Eve asked.
"No way he survived that! And he was a pain in the ass, anyway." A chorus of affirmations arose over the general com-link. Clearly Wrex and I weren't the only ones who were pleased with Wreav's demise. My four remaining squads of marines down here couldn't care less either! "Now let's finish this! There's a Reaper waiting for us!" Our diminished mechanized column went off the road onto the dusty tan, cracked, parched ground, approaching the shroud and the Reaper Destroyer guarding it directly.
The vehicles parked near a crumbling krogan building that was in front of the Reaper and the Shroud. Shaun, Minsu, Nathan, Tesla, Rob, and I filed out. So did Shepard, Vega, Liara, Garrus, and Javik. And so did my 48 remaining marines, who were itching to avenge squad 5-charlie. Valerian, Doug, and Anna were there too, much to my relief.
"We don't have a plan for this," Liara muttered.
"I know we've beaten the odds before…" Garrus began. "But getting to that tower...I don't know…" Doubt isn't going to help us solve the problem, Garrus...
Vega nodded in agreement. "I hope you got an ace up your sleeve, loco, cuz' this ain't lookin' too good for any of us!" My men actually laughed. With the Reaper in plain sight. Even I was thrown off by that. Had they finally lost their nerve?
"Well, birdie, bluey. Kid. Hide behind the real troopers then! We brought down Amon! A real-life god! No way in the bowels of hell a little 160-meter tall robot is gonna scare us! You said the reapers are AI's? That means someone created 'em! And if they can be created, you bet your sorry little lives it can be taken down too! That's what the good ol' General and we boys specialize in! Bringing bastards down, no matter the odds!" A marine quipped epically.
I felt a surge of pride in my men. Standing on an alien homeworld, fighting a war that didn't even concern them or their homes in any way...and having a damned good time while they were doing it...it was good to have loyal soldiers at your command.
Wrex was more blunt. "We're curing the genophage no matter what it takes! Everything my people will ever be depends on it!" That still doesn't tell us how we're going to deal with that Reaper, Wrex!
"Then I hope this idea you were talking about was a good one," Shepard prompted. Oh yeah...the idea Eve told Wrex to hold off on telling us about...that could be useful. Gold star, John!
You. Are. So. Annoying.Tesla sullenly whined telepathically. I glared back at her.
"It was hers, actually." Wrex gestured to Eve. I don't care who's idea it is! Just make sure it's better than...avoid the legs, or some crap like that!
"Kalros," Eve said plainly. "We summon her to the Reaper." Some answers, finally.
"What, and just hope we don't get toasted in the process?" one of my marines demanded.
Shepard was sympathetic to the marine's worries. "Would that even work?"
Mordin put in, "Already discussed strategy. Just need to distract Reaper, draw it from tower while cure synthesized, released."
"Great...and how does that answer the question?" Minsu was pissed, not seeing how we could possibly get to the shroud with the Reaper standing guard.
"What makes you so sure she'll come?" Shepard repeated. That's what I'm wondering…
"Legends say she is the mother from which all other thresher maws spawn. This is as much her home as ours." Hmm...seems slightly anthropomorphic, but it makes sense…
"If Tuchanka has a temper. Kalros is it. Nobody's ever faced her and survived." Umm...I'm pretty sure if we wanted to do that we could just shoot her with a yamato cannon? I mean, of course if you try to bring her down with a couple APC's it's not going to work!
"I've taken some risks in my time," Shaun allowed. "But this seems crazy, loco, as James so elegantly says…"
"And going head-to-head with Sovereign didn't?" Wrex asked rhetorically. "This is the only way to get to that tower and release the cure. There's no other choice."
"But…" Tesla was bemused. "How would we summon her? She won't just..show up, will she?"
"The tower was built in an arena devoted to Kalros' glory. The salarians thought she would scare away intruders." Eve educated us, nodding to Tesla.
"Appears to have worked," Mordin piped up..
"There are two maw hammers there, the largest in existence. If you can activate them, Kalros will come. That should distract the Reaper." Or kill it...I mean, Kalros is huge!
Mordin pointed to the side. "Meanwhile, laboratory nearby. Will finish synthesizing cure…" I swear...if I hear the word 'synthesize' again…
Shepard nodded. "Let's make sure we all get out of here alive. We're going to have one hell of a story to tell." Shepard, Valerian, and Shaun began turning towards the shroud and the reaper. Easier said than done.
"Wait!" Wrex interjected. "I want you to know that no matter what happens...you've been a champion to the krogan people, a friend of clan Urdnot," He shook Shepard's hand. "And a brother to me! To every krogan born after this day, the name "Shepard" will mean "hero!" Okay...I'm really seeing parallels with Jim, now… "Now, let's show them why!" Wrex roared.
Chittering, a lot of it, got our attention. The source of all that noise was a dozen ravagers. Squad Five-Alpha opened fire, strafing them. Wrex ambled towards them, Claymore-shotgun in hand. "Go! I've got this!" My men stopped firing in confusion, leaving three rachni husks dead.
"I AM URDNOT WREX. AND THIS IS MY PLANET!" He shot some of them, kicked one, and threw the last of them. He lived up to the title, 'walking tank.'
"See you on the other side," John said to Mordin as he brought Eve toward the lab.
I gave a few last-second orders. "Five-Alpha! Stay with Urdnot Wrex! Five-Bravo, keep Mordin and Eve safe! Delta and Echo, with me, Kalantari, and Shepard!"
"Stay safe Shepard." Mordin told him. "Will have cure ready." He peered at Valerian. The two men came to some private understanding as Mordin strode off.
I glowered up at the Reaper, and then back to my men. "Well, here it is. The endgame. After this, our part to play on Tuchanka will be over. Ready to walk with me one more time?"
The twenty-four marines of five-delta and echo squads saluted sharply. "Sir, yes sir!"
Team Shepard vaulted over a low wall, but my men simply smashed a bunch of holes in it so that they wouldn't have to actually climb. The reaper destroyer was in plain sight, the shroud looming above it. The crumbled entrance of the arena bracketed our path down the middle.
"Let's get in there!" Shepard bawled, waving his arm forward.
I unsheathed my sword, the power field humming to life along the blade. Naoros' psionic blades crackled into existence magnificently. The marines, Rob, Valerian, and Doug extended their bayonets. Anna raised her C-7. Tesla gripped her C-20A tightly. Shaun put away his N7 Valiant, drawing out a batarian-made Kishok Harpoon rifle. Minsu took out a geth plasma shotgun. Nathan duel-wielded N7 Hurricane SMGs. Vega took out his N7 Crusader shotgun. Shepard held his Vindicator battle rifle. Liara glowed blue with biotics as she grasped a Tempest SMG; Javik glowed green, still holding his particle rifle. Garrus pulled out his Phaeston, slipping his Mantis over his back.
Up ahead, dozens of cannibals led by a dozen marauders attacked, nearly twenty husks scurrying at us from the flanks. In the rear, half-a-dozen ravagers angled their targeting lasers in our direction.
Shepard fired a three-round burst, and then all Hell broke loose.
Explosions, mass accelerator rounds, and arm-cannon shots whooshed past me or fizzled on my energy shields. Three marines fell almost instantly before the survivors put up a hail of armor-piercing 8mm spikes. I reinforced our left flank, cutting down husks effortlessly. I knew Naoros was doing the same thing on the right; with all the close-range enemies out of the equation, everyone else could focus on the much more numerous and dangerous cannibals and marauders, who wielded projectile weapons.
Unconsciously, my men began to form a faint U-shape around the Reaper infantry, flanking them in a maneuver reminiscent of the horns of a bull. It was a tactic that'd I'd taken from books I read about Genghis Khan by British author Conn Iggulden. Of course, since they were historical fiction novels, the strategies were condensed in the books, but the basic idea could still be applied. Don't worry, I did do my own research after I read the books. Against all kinds of enemies, it was surprisingly effective in cordoning them in or pushing them steadily back.
In a lot of ways, I had trained the 151st kind of like Mongols, too. Granted, we weren't exactly light cavalry-on the contrary, we were the very definition of heavy infantry, but I made sure all of my men were proficient in long-ranged warfare and gave them comprehensive close-quarters combat training. Generally, standard terran marines were lacking in both skills, though they were accurate enough shooting their C-14's in medium and short ranges.
I'd initially decided to do all that so that'd we'd be able to better fight the zerg. On open ground, maximizing accuracy was imeprative. The more zerg that went down before they got to you, the better. Furthermore, terran units seemed to panic or be overwhelmed whenever the zerg got up close and personal. How could we hope to win against a primarily ground-based, non-ranged enemies if our men didn't even know how to defend themselves effectively in hand-to-hand?
Granted, CMC armor didn't exactly allow for optimal mobility, but still. That seemed to be a basic skill that everyone should have learned in basic. Luckily, with funding and research and development personnel supplied by Valerian, we were able to field a modified version of CMC armor. It would soon become famous as CMC-550 series armor, and it wouldn't be mass-produced until after Valerian took the throne after his father's demise. The CMC-550's provided better protection and much better mobility, but included a much higher price-tag.
In the meantime, my allies were doing their best to hit the enemy troops head-on, launching a flurry of tech-attacks, biotics, and of course, mass accelerator fire. Under this concentrated pressure, and the heavy flanking fire from my marines, the husk troops were whittled down to nothing. After all, mass accelerators were great, versatile weapons, but C-14's and other terran gauss weaponry packed more of a punch; they could shoot chunks off of zerglings, hydralisks, and even walls. Steel walls.
If you took into account the fact that mass accelerators had to use thermal clips now, then terran weapons carried more ammunition as well. They were pretty heavy, true, but that's why marines wore hardskins, right? In terms of firepower, C-14's were up there with mass accelerator mounted machine gun turrets.
After a sustained firefight, the last of the company-strength enemies were finally down. Five-Delta and Five-Echo had taken five dead and three wounded, compared to nearly eighty KIA for the Reaper Destroyer's little henchmen. Not too bad at all…
"Shepard!" Wrex. "I took care of those Rachni! But someone has to raise those maw hammers before you can use them!" As he spoke, a fresh squad of cannibals fired upon us. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Vega knocked to the floor by the sudden onslaught.
"We're kind of busy, Wrex!" John returned as he pumped a few vindicator bursts back at them. Naoros and I attracted their attention to take the pressure from our teammates. It wasn't so hard. All we had to do was stand there. We were the biggest combatants in the area...Naoros was 10-feet tall and I was 8.5-feet tall, so the husk-creatures automatically targeted us anyways. My marines were eight-feet tall, but they were on the sides, while teams Shepard and Kalantari, my own team, and Valerian were directly in the center.
"Lucky for you, I'm here. I'll handle it!" Wrex assured us cheerfully. Anna incapacitated the last cannibal with a headshot from her C-7. John indicated the staircase to our left, mounting it. The rest of us acted quickly, the marines bringing up the rear and finishing stragglers.
"Shepard, some luck! Original strain in storage! Preparing the cure now!" Finally, some good news...I thought of the reaper just ahead. If the plan worked, than it would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We'd be the only people to ever witness a thresher maw duel a Reaper.
"Make it quick, Mordin!" Shepard ordered as Five-delta fought a squad's worth of unseen foes. "They're all over us out here!" Not exactly, but sooner was better than later. We emerged onto an upper level of the arena.
"By the Goddess! To our left!" Liara gasped. What's on our left? ...Oh. Gazing straight back at us was the Reaper itself. A bridge connected our part of the arena to the other side, but it had fallen out in the middle, just like so many of the other krogan buildings and bridges. John led the way, leaping across the gap. The rest of us followed him.
Shaun, Valerian, Naoros, Rob, John, and I were across when the Reaper fired its beam with a vrong! The red energy weapon sliced through the bridge as we attempted to turn back. We didn't make it. The stone surface beneath us fell away, and all of us, including the ones still on the other side, fell through, hitting the ground hard.
I righted myself efficiently. John pulled himself up. "Everybody all right?"
"I'm fine here...mostly." Garrus checked in.
"I think so," Liara stated.
"You bet, loco!" Vega shouted.
"Just as always!" Minsu reassured the commander.
"The rest of us are all green." I reported helpfully, bending over to support a breathless Tesla as she weakly forced herself to get back on her feet.
"Did we just get shot by a Reaper?" Nathan questioned in dawning realization.
"Consider that practice." Shaun and John said at the same time.
A staircase was just in front of us. It was also completely exposed to the Reaper.
"Okay Shepard, I raised the hammers." Wrex notified us. It occurred to me that they were probably in the open area beyond the stairs. "You have to activate both of them! My advice is avoid the giant laser!" Yeah thanks…
"Oh boy...how are we going to do this?" Rob glanced up in apprehension.
"Once we get out onto that platform, we split up. Keep moving-don't let the Reaper draw a bead on you! Shepard will go for the hammer on the right...Shaun, you'll go to the one on the left!" I made the decision for them. "Now, go, go, go!" I sprinted up the stairs with all the speed I could muster. As I did, the Reaper fired, blasting a pillar into smithereens.
"Are we sure about this?" That was Liara.
"Just keep moving!" Shepard commanded. "Stick to cover!" A few of my marines ignored that last order, instead staying where they were to spray their C-14's. It was futile, but it bought the rest of us some time. I looked away in shame as the Reaper's beam vaporized two of them.
Without warning, the Reaper's big red eye upturned. comparatively miniscule mass accelerator shots and Lanzer torpedoes struck the Reaper. Engines whined as dozens of fighters swooped in, turian basras and terran vikings.
"Commander, this is Arimec Wing! We'll try to give that Reaper something else to shoot at!" The turian pilot in charge of them announced bravely.
"I knew they wouldn't give up," Garrus was obviously proud of his fellow turians' sense of duty, honor, and self-sacrifice. "Your pilots are good, Richard." He commended the viking flyboys.
"Goddess be with them." Liara hoped.
Go! Push ahead!" Shepard urged. Don't need to tell me twice, man. We passed through another staircase...down again…
"Over on our left! One of the hammers!" Liara noticed.
"The other one's on the right!" Garrus let us know. Totally called it.
"Getting to them is another matter entirely!" That was Liara again.
"Be warned!" Naoros bellowed. "Three of the Brutes approach!" Three? Oh man…
Naoros severed one of the brute's claw-arms, barely slowing as he nonchalantly continued with a swing at neck-level. Smooth takedown indeed. I blasted my plasma rifle at the second one, but it raised its claw arm in front of it to block my bolts and charged forward, bowling two marines over like ninepins. Nathan fired a plasma shot, diving to the side to evade a crushing slam from the third brute. Tesla got in a few bursts at the second as it brutally bashed a third marine.
By now, the other marines were focusing all of their Impalers on it. After a full three seconds of continuous fire, it finally died, but not before smacking Doug with a powerful post-mortem swipe. The marine fell flat onto the ground, out like a light bulb.
At least he wasn't dead, I reflected seriously. He'd just have one hell of a headache.
That left the third brute, who had sent Javik flying into a wall. The prothean had misjudged the brute's speed and paid the price for his vanity and underestimation. Liara sent a warp into it, but the Reaper shock trooper barely felt it, slamming both arms into the ground. Liara wasn't hit directly, but the shockwave sent her sprawling. The brute's oversized arm swept forward.
Valerian blocked the swing with his own body. Pummeled visor-first into the ground, the Emperor rolled onto his back, firing his C-14 steadily. Garrus must have drawn his Mantis at some point, because a full thermal clip's worth of rounds sparkled on the creature. It swung an arm at Tesla, but the shadowguard was lithe enough to roll under the blow and behind the brute. Shaun spontaneously produced a homing grenade. The high-tech explosive chirped, beelining to the brute's turian skull and exploding in its face. The massive creature finally collapsed.
Valerian smoothly got to his feet, reaching a hand out to Liara. The winded asai took his hand gratefully. "Thank you, your majesty."
Valerian snorted in disdain. "Just Valerian will suffice. Unless you'd like me to call you Doctor T'soni whenever I see you…" He smirked. Taking a step, he winced. "I feel like I broke a rib…"
"Nah," I assured him. "The brute earlier hit me a lot harder than that. You'll be fine, Valerian. Just don't be surprised if you find a lot of bruises on you when you take that suit off later."
We recovered and advanced, a few of us stopping to drag Javik and Doug along. A massive metal leg stepped on a marine, flattening him like an insect. DAMN!
"Spread out!" Shaun demanded. "To the hammers! The faster we get to them, the sooner we can get out of here without being loaded into big wooden boxes first!"
One of my marines tapped me on the shoulder. "General, there's no way you'll be able to get past that big squid. We'll be the bait! The flyboys are all bugging out! Tell your buddies to take the chance and activate those damn hammers. Semper fi, sir!"
My mind went blank for a second. I didn't want to doom them to die here, so far away from their homes. I didn't want to add two full squads to the list of KIA. But what other choice did I have? It was the exceedingly unpleasant truth that the marines were the most expendable out of all of us. By volunteering, they'd saved me the pain of having to give the order myself. I nodded curtly, unable to express my gratitude in words. "Put in a good word for the rest of us down there."
"Sure thing. It was an honor, General...Come ON, boys! Oo-rah!" Eleven red- and black-clad fully armored marines formed a staggered line, screaming defiance as their C-14's barked. The red beam burned furiously towards them. The marine who'd spoken to me saluted smartly an instant before he was turned into a pile of charred scrap metal and ashes. I closed my eyes.
In a daze, I heard John exclaim, "Mordin, we hit the first hammer! How's it coming?"
"Almost have cure! Eve's vital signs dropping! Trying to compensate!" The Reaper's signature blare echoed across the ancient arena dedicated to Kalros. I fired a few plasma bolts in anger.
"God. Fekking. Damn it!" Rob spat. "Hurry the shit up!" He'd seen the marines' sacrifice too, and he was feeling helpless and useless. Sounds familiar. I ducked as the Reaper's beam blew apart a section of a wall less than ten feet behind me.
"Second hammer's on the other side!" Garrus reminded us.
"Already there!" Shaun's voice carried far. "What the-" He was cut off.
"Shaun!" Minsu raged. "Fuck this shit!"
"Shepard, get that second hammer moving!" Wrex almost roared. As always, he was delegating all of his dirty work to us. How many men had I lost today? Thirty-six? Possibly more, depending on how the squad I'd sent with him and the one I'd assigned to Mordin had fared? And all he'd been doing this entire time was killing a few ravagers and providing crappy moral support. A slow, burning anger washed over me, even though I did my best to stamp it out.
"There's a Reaper in my way, Wrex!" Shepard snapped, starting to lose his cool.
"I know! You get all the fun!" Fun? He called this fun?All of us were all so focused on not dying that no one took the time to respond to that.
"Second hammer activated!" Shaun's voice interjected. "Almost got mashed by that Destroyer's leg, but his timing was a little off, so I'm okay!"
"Go! All of you! Back to the convoy! I'll take care of this cure!" John cut the air with his arm. The group complied, but I ran toward him instead, determined to make sure no one else perished out here in the middle of nowhere today. I merely raised an eyebrow when I saw Shaun join us, battered but still sharp. Tesla glanced at me concernedly. I waved her off, forcing a confident pose. She bit her lip but nodded, following after the others.
The hammers chimed over and over. I could feel a distant rumble, and pretty soon it felt like a thunderstorm was veering our way. The Reaper blared again, an unmistakable challenge. Kalros' made her eery, shrieking cry as she submerged. The Reaper fired its beam. Missed. Kalros emerged and spiraled into the Reaper above its eye, the Reaper firing wildly. It attempted to shake Kalros off, knocking her into the Shroud with a clang. John, Shaun, and I scrambled out of the area. To stay there was to invite death.
The Reaper fired again as Kalros withdrew into the ground. The Destroyer turned warily, scanning the area for any sign of the big thresher maw. It wasn't vigilant enough. Kalros came up behind the Reaper, arcing to full height and throwing her full weight into the Reaper at close-to-eye-level. The sheer force of Kalros drove the Reaper downwards, and then the thresher maw wrapped her body tightly around the Reaper. Red energy crackled all along the sentient starship as it was simply smothered and pulled underneath Tuchanka's tan soil.
Silence reigned. It was as if that clash of titans had never even happened. The three of us gaped at the magnificent sight. The peaceful atmosphere was slightly unnerving. "Come on!" John was already scampering toward the Shroud. "We have to get to Mordin!"
As we ran into the courtyard in front of the entrance to the shroud, we ducked as an explosion rocked part of the facility. Above us, more explosions were sending chips of the walls raining down on us. The entire place had been destabilized by the duel between Kalros and the Reaper.
"Mordin, is the cure ready?" Shepard asked, striding up to the salarian scientist.
"Yes. Loaded for dispersal in two minutes. Procedure traumatic for Eve, but not lethal. Maelon's research invaluable." For all I knew, Mordin could have been a biology teacher informing his students about the appropriate procedures to follow in the lab. He was so calm and collected...
"She's okay?" John made sure.
"Headed to safety now." Mordin confirmed, not even pausing in his work. "Her survival fortunate. Will stabilize new government should Wrex get any ideas. Good match, promising future for krogan." That's actually a really astute observation...no wonder they say salarians are perceptive. Mordin certainly is.
"Watch it!" Shaun shouted in alarm. A particularly large piece of debris crashed into a panel next to us. Glass shattered from the impact of the fall.
"Damn!" Shepard yelped involuntarily.
"Control room at top of Shroud tower. Must take elevator up." Wait...He was going up there? What...that didn't make any sense!
"You're going up there?" Shepard was just as incredulous.
"Yes. Manual access required. Have to counteract STG sabotage. Ensure cure dispersed properly."
"Mordin, this whole thing's coming apart. There's got to be another way!" Shepard's voice was hoarse from the strain of our endeavors, but he wanted to save his friend.
"Remote bypass impossible. STG countermeasures in place. No time to adjust cure for temperature variance." Mordin turned his back to us. "No. No other option. Not coming back. Suggest you get clear. Explosions likely to be problematic."
I opened my mouth...and closed it. I'd seen enough desperate situations in my time to know that this was inevitable. Like Tassadar had counseled me six years ago, the only thing we could do was march on, fight on, and remember. Another name to add to the list.
John had no such reservations. "Wait, Mordin, No!"
Mordin turned as he entered the elevator. "Shepard, please. Need to do this. My project. My work. My responsibility." I sighed, though no one could hear me.
He nodded, his head drooping slightly. "Would have liked to run tests on the seashells."
I saluted, raising my visor in respect. Shaun stared at me and copied my salute. Shepard stepped forward heavily, weighed down by guilt.
"I'm sorry." His tone was muted in grief.
"I'm not." The former STG operative's tone was strangely light. "Had to be me." I hope I face my death with such calm and dignity when the time comes.
The elevator's door slid down. He gazed at us sadly, blinking once. Salarian eyes close upwards. I observed dumbly, at a loss. "Someone else might have gotten it wrong." He added.
Those were his last words.
The elevator started to ascend. Shaun and I clapped John on the back, and together, we pondered out of the Shroud facility, leaving a friend and comrade behind.
John was lost in thought, Shaun was clearly depressed. I radioed Wrex for pick-up. We heard an especially large explosion, and turned to see the top level of the Shroud blazing orange. A swirling, green cloud had formed around the Shroud, small particles falling down like translucent snowflakes. The genophage cure. It was a beautiful sight.
John put a hand out, and a particle fell onto his hand, erupting in a small light orange stain as it was absorbed by the material. The cloud grew larger and larger, until it almost stretched out onto ground level. I could hear tomkahs and APC's arriving behind us. Tears streamed down John's cheeks. He didn't wipe them away.
John and Shaun continued to stare intently in amazement at the Shroud. I glanced back to see squads Five-Alpha, Five-Bravo, our teammates, Wrex, and Eve join us outside. Even Wrex had a look of childish wonder on his face as he put a hand above his eyes to get a better look. John swiveled away stiffly, and the rest of us followed suit.
As the last of us boarded our respective vehicles, the convoy sped off once again. I spared a glance out the window in time to see the entire structure implode, weakened by a series of internal explosions. The stately structure collapsed before our eyes.
I didn't know you for too long, Dr. Mordin Solus, but wherever you are now, rest in peace.
That's the end of this chapter! Mordin's sacrifice always struck me as pretty epic, and I definitely haven't done it justice;
Next chapter will be a little different; you'll all see why soon enough.
As always, follow and favorite this story if you like it, and don't hesitate to drop a review or PM me with any questions or concerns you may have!
That's all for now. See you all next time!
-The General