Chapter 10: Feros IV

Drip. Drip. As Shepard, Garrus, Tali, and Ratchet made their way down passageway that had been hidden by the colonists' freighter, the four could sense an eery sense of age around them. The very air around them felt heavy with age and time. It was unnerving. Ratchet's hairs stood on end as it felt like he was being watched. He didn't like it. As the group reached the bottom of the stairwell, they found themselves entering a huge, cavernous room, where a monstrous… thing hung in the center.

"What the? That's the Thorian?" Garrus asked incredulously when he first saw the creature.

"That does not look like any plant I've ever seen," Shepard commented wryly.

"This might be a problem…" Tali said, tightening her grip on her shotgun.

"It's very ugly," Ratchet commented, causing tense chuckles to ripple through the group.

"Ugh!" A very human groan echoed out in the space. The entire ground crew whirled towards the sound of the voice, weapons raised. Shepard held up a hand when he saw that it was Fai Dan. He could see that the man was stumbling around like a man not quite in control of himself.

"I tried to fight it," Fai Dan muttered through clenched teeth, "But you can't imagine the pain. I was supposed to be there leader. These people trusted me!" Fai Dan suddenly draw his pistol on the crew. Four weapons were instantly trained on the possessed man. "It wants me to stop you, but I won't!" Fai Dan then grabbed the arm holding his pistol, slowly forcing it into towards his head.

Ratchet's eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen. Shepard realized the same thing a split second later, as he yelled out, "No!"

As Fai Dan pointed the pistol directly at his head, Ratchet's wrench hurtled through the air and smashed into the pistol, throwing it from Fai Dan's grasp. An instant later, as Fai Dan looked at his hand in wonder, Ratchet's wrench came swinging back, striking Fai Dan in the back of the head. The man crumpled to the floor like a rag doll, knocked out cold.

Shepard, Garrus, and Tali all let out a sigh of relief that none of them realized that they had been holding. Shepard looked at Ratchet, who had caught his wrench on its return and was breathing heavily. When the Lombax met Shepard's gaze, the commander nodded. "Good reflexes there, Ratchet."

The Lombax could only nod, as he found relief that a life hadn't been taken needlessly. "I'm… Just going to bring Fai Dan back up to the med bay, ok?"

Shepard glanced briefly at the Thorian, and once at Fai Dan. Things could get dicey down here, and Ratchet needed something to distract him. "Yeah, go ahead."

Ratchet nodded as he slung Fai Dan over his shoulders in a fireman's carry. Shepard turned back to his crew. "You guys ready?"

Garrus nodded, and Tali glanced at Ratchet, who gave a quick nod of reassurance as he made his way back up the passageway, before nodding herself. As Ratchet made his way back up the stairwell, he struggled under the weight of Fai Dan, but he was just relieved that the situation had been diffused. It took several long minutes, but finally, Ratchet was able to deposit Fai Dan back in the medbay.

Suddenly, his radio flared to life, "To the right!" Shepard called out, weapons fire echoing in the background. The young Lombax immediately sprung into action, dashing back towards the stairwell leading the Thorian. As he ran down, he could hear the radio flare every now and then as Shepard directed the squad.

"They're all around!" Garrus yelled out, his voice cracking with frustration and fear.

"Don't let up!" Shepard yelled.

"I'm on my way!" Ratchet yelled into his radio just as he dashed into the large central chamber, he could already see the crew holding up in a small connecting hallway between two of the rooms. Suddenly, a creeper that was facing the crew turned, saw Ratchet, and dashed towards the Lombax.

Ratchet wasted no time as he flipped over the incoming creeper, drawing his wrench in a fluid motion and slamming down onto the creeper, which exploded in green slime.

"Ugh, that's gross," Ratchet complained, manifesting his Nitro Reaper and whirling about, shooting into the crowd of creepers, the weapon making quick work of the monsters. Shepard, immediately sensing the shift in the battle, quickly turned towards the other side.

"Focus fire in my twelve!" Shepard yelled, unloading round after round from his Assault Rifle into the crowd of creepers in front of him. Tali, who had been focusing on the rear, immediately turned and her shotgun began contributing to the wall of ammunition plowing into the mob of creepers.

Pretty soon, the last creeper became a puddle of green goo, and the ground team took a few seconds to take a breather. Ratchet kept his Nitro Reaper out, quickly checking how much ammo he had left in the gun. He was about halfway through. He'd have to be careful since there was no way he could restock on Trillium here.

"Is everybody alright?" Shepard asked as he kept his eyes moving across the battlefield.

"We're okay," Tali replied, checking to make sure she didn't have any suit ruptures that might have been missed.

"Ugh, it's on my armor!" Garrus complained as he shook some slime off of his gauntlet.

"What happened?" Ratchet asked, keeping a watch.

"The Thorian… spit out an asari, that it started speaking through," Shepard explained, slightly unsure how told describe the moment that the green asari came out of the Thorian's… mouth-like-tentacle thing. "From our conversation, it seems that the Thorian is really old. Probably as old as the Protheans, if not older." Ratchet nodded. According to the codex, that would place the Thorian about 50,000 years old. He looked up at the monstrosity hanging above the chasm. It was old, but he had been on older planets.

"More worrying, is that when Saren came through here, he got what he needed," Shepard continued. "I think he negotiated with the Thorian, and then he soured things up. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like it made it any more inclined to cooperate with us."

Ratchet nodded. "So–"

"Watch out!" Tali called out, causing Ratchet to turn just as a bone crushing force slammed into him, throwing him off of his feet. But the Lombax had taken hits harder than that. Orienting himself in mid air, Ratchet hit the wall feet first, lightly launching off of the wall, manifesting his Negotiator and firing in midair. A missile launched out and slammed into the enemy, throwing a shockwave of dirt and hot air.

"Whoa!" Garrus called out, turning and shielding his face from the resulting shockwave. He had brought his Assault Rifle up, but it seemed woefully unnecessary in light of Ratchet's destructive weapon. "What the heck was that?!"

Ratchet landed on the ground, sheepishly shrugging his shoulders. "Um… That was my Negotiator. You know, for aggressive negotiations. Hehe."

"We might need to some aggressive negotiating with the Thorian," Garrus commented dryly, looking at Ratchet's weapon with something close to awe. "So what's in that warhead? I've never seen an explosive that small carry such a large punch."

Shepard arced an eyebrow. He knew that Ratchet's weapons were powerful, but it seemed like there was no upper limit to what the Lombax could do. Again, he wondered if Ratchet could share even a little bit of his technology with the crew. It would be dangerous, especially since they were trying to keep Ratchet's existence a secret. He would have to think about this later.

As Tali and Garrus asked Ratchet more questions about the Negotiator, Shepard's instincts pricked up again. Turning, he saw an identical asari being spewed out by the Thorian again. Immediately, he aimed and opened fire with his Assault Rifle. "The Thorian's spawning clones! Retreat further up!" Shepard called out, as he retreated, still firing at the asari clone.

The crew was immediately alert with the sound of Shepard's gunfire, and immediately backed up their commander, retreating towards an entryway at the end of the hall. "Cover!" Shepard called out as he saw the asari readying her biotics.

The crew hastily ran through the entryway, Shepard hot on their heels just as another biotic field slammed into the entryway behind the commander, shattering the stone. The crew found themselves inside a room with a large ramp leading up to the second level. There was a large tentacle like thing that was attached to a wall, and there were more thorian creepers laying around, dormant for the moment.

Making a snap decision, Shepard called out, "Ratchet, Garrus, cover us! Tali, start shooting at that tentacle thing!" Just as Ratchet peeked out of cover, he immediately pulled his head back in as another warp field impacted the wall.

"Whoa! She's in the connecting tunnel, and there are more creepers coming our way!"

Suddenly, Tali called out, continuing to fire shotgun blast after shotgun blast into the tentacle, "Shepard, I think–"

A horrendous screech suddenly filled the air as the tentacle that was lodged to the fall snapped apart. "Well, that seemed to get its attention!" Tali said. "Maybe if we shoot down all of the appendages holding the Thorian above the chasm, it will fall!"

"Good idea," Shepard called out, turning his attention to the creepers that were waking up around them. "Keep moving upwards, and take out those tentacle-node things as you see them! The more mobile we stay, the less likely it is we'll be overwhelmed. Cover our rear, Garrus and Ratchet!"

"You got it!" Garrus called out, firing his Assault Rifle at the creepers starting to swarm through the doorway. The crew began to move up the ramp, firing in every direction at the enemies around them.

At the top of the ramp, Garrus bit back a curse as his Rifle overheated in protest. "I have to cooldown!"

"I've got you!" Ratchet called out, holstering his own Assault Rifle and manifesting his Plasma Stalkers. Throwing a few at the crowd below, he muttered beneath his breath. "Go get 'em, boys."

As more creepers poured through the opening, one of the plasma beasts awoke and tore through the creepers, causing them all to splash apart into green goo. As the crew reached the floor above, Ratchet caught a glimpse of the asari clone rounding the corner, only to be met with another plasma beast. The Lombax grimly smirked as Garrus only shook his head in wonder at Ratchet's amazing technology. It was like nothing he had ever seen.

"I see another one!" Tali called out, opening fire at the node that was blocking their progress through the connecting tunnel. Shepard joined in the fire, and between the two, they made quick work of the connecting node. Another screech filled the air, and Shepard wondered if maybe it sounded a little desperate.

"Keep moving!" Ratchet called out.

"They're right behind us!" Garrus commented, "And another asari clone is on its way!"

The crew kept moving up and up, firing at the Thorian creepers that seemed to be everywhere, crawling out of the walls. Occasionally, the asari clone would show up again, causing the group to focus fire on her for a few tense seconds before the clone splashed apart into a puddle of goo, unable to handle the sustained fire.

Finally, after taking another node, there was a final screech, and as the crew looked at the Thorian, they saw it shudder a few times, before finally, gravity overcame the Thorian's hold on the walls of the chasm, pulling the ancient plant into the unknown depths of Feros. The Thorian fell soundlessly, as if accepting that its end had come.

For a few seconds, creepers still moved towards them, but suddenly, they all collapsed, before melting into puddles of green goo. The crew stayed still in the silence for a bit, until finally, Tali holstered her shotgun and breathed a sigh of relief. "So it's dead, then?"

"Must be," Garrus answered. "I don't think the Thorian would survive a fall like that of several hundred meters."

Ratchet moved over to the edge of the chasm, and as he looked down, he couldn't make out the bottom. He had a good head for heights, but even the thought of falling down there made his head swim. It wasn't something he would look forward to.

A squelching noise suddenly drew the crew's attention behind them. With weapons raised, they saw an asari force her way out of what looked like an organic stasis pod. She was identical to the clone that the Thorian had spoken through, but with a purple skin pigmentation.

As the asari knelt on the ground, she shakily got up, as if trying to clear her head. At a subtle hand sign from Shepard, the crew lowered their weapons warily. Finally, the asari spoke, as if she had just woken up from a dream. "I'm.. free," She said hesitantly at first. Then again, stronger, "I'm free!" Then she turned to Shepard, quickly identifying him as the leader of the squad. "I – I suppose I should thank you for releasing me."

Shepard's gun was lowered, but Ratchet could see the commander's grip still on the weapon. He was cautious. That was good. "Are you alright?" Shepard asked, "How'd you get inside that thing?"

"My name is Shiala," The asari responded. "I serve–" She hesitated, "I served Matriarch Benezia. When she allied herself with Saren, so did I." Shiala looked down, as if she were ashamed of her actions, but Ratchet wasn't yet ready to trust her. She could be trying to deceive them.

Shiala continued. "Benezia foresaw the influence Saren would have, so she joined him to guide him down a gentler path. But… Saren is compelling, and Benezia lost her way."

"So are you saying that Saren can control minds?" Shepard asked with immediate worry.

Ratchet shared a look with Garrus and Tali. If he could, that would be really bad.

"Benezia underestimated Saren, as I did. We came to believe in his cause and goals. The strength of his influence is troubling."

"So Benezia tried to manipulate Saren," Tali commented dryly, "And in the end, her plan backfired on her."

"Clearly no love lost there," Garrus said about Tali's dry tone, and the continued, "But what I don't get, is how a matriarch fell under Saren's influence."

Shepard nodded. "Matriarchs are said to be some of the some of the smartest and most intelligent beings in the galaxy. How do you explain that, Shiala?"

Shiala shook her head, understanding Shepard's skepticism. "Saren has a vessel, an enormous warship unlike anything I've ever seen. He calls it Sovereign, and I can't explain it, but his ship can dominate the mind of his followers. They become indoctrinated to Saren's will. The process is subtle, and it can take days, sometimes weeks. But in the end, it is absolute."

Ratchet shook his head. "Nothing's absolute. You broke free of his control."

Shiala looked at Ratchet, ponderous. "I was a willing slave when Saren brought me to this world. He needed my biotics to communicate with the Thorian, to learn its secrets. Saren offered me in trade to the Thorian, in order to secure an alliance with it."

"Saren's pretty quick to betray his own people," Shepard said disgustedly.

"He was quick to betray the Thorian too. After he had what he wanted, he ordered the geth to destroy all evidence of its existence."

"But that still doesn't explain how you escaped Saren's control," Ratchet pointed out.

Shiala was at a loss. "I don't understand it myself, but while I was under the control of the Thorian, I could no longer hear Saren's voice in my head, and I could no longer feel the presence of his ship pressing against my mind. I had been cut off, and in that time, perhaps my mind was not yet so far gone that it was able to recover."

Ratchet's mind was speeding. If Saren had the ability to control people's minds, he tried to think to the specific word that Shiala had used, indoctrination, that's right. If Saren had the ability to indoctrinate people, without them knowing, then they would need a way to defend against that indoctrination. According to Shiala, it was subtle, and absolute, but she had broken free, so there must be a way of curing indoctrination, and even preventing it. But how?

Shiala, realizing that she had more to tell Shepard, continued. "Saren knows you are searching for the Conduit," She warned. "He knows you are following his steps. He attacked the Thorian so you could not gain the Cipher."

"So what's this Cipher? And what does Saren want with it?" Shepard asked.

"The beacon on Eden Prime gave you visions, but they were unclear and confusing. To truly comprehend them, you must think like a Prothean. You must understand their culture, their history, their very existence." Shiala continued her explanation. "The Thorian was here long before the Protheans built this city. It watched and studied them. When they died, it consumed them. They became a part of it."

"So this Cipher is knowledge about the Protheans' culture? How do I get it, now that the Thorian's dead?" Shepard asked.

"The Cipher is the very essence of being a Prothean. It cannot be described or explained. It would be like describing color to a creature without eyes." Shiala answered. "To understand, you must have endemic ancestral memory, a viewpoint spanning thousands of Prothean generations."

Shiala paused, looking ponderous. "I sensed this ancestral memory – the Cipher – when I melded with the Thorian. Our identities merged, and our minds intertwined. Such knowledge cannot be taught; it simply exists."

Garrus started shaking his head at the mysticism that Shiala seemed to be talking about. Ratchet himself was starting to wonder if Shiala hadn't lost it. He'd heard of some mystical stuff back in the day, but this… This was just weird.

Shepard nodded. "Ok, that's all good and well, but I need that knowledge to stop Saren."

"There is a way," Shiala offered tentatively. "I can transfer the knowledge from my mind to yours, as I did with Saren."

Shepard and Shiala engaged in a staring contest, as the commander tried to determine Shiala's motives and if he could trust her. Tali looked at the commander worriedly. "Shepard…"

"It's alright, Tali," Shepard said, turning back to her and giving her a smile. "It'll be alright." He then turned to Shiala. "Do it."

Shiala nodded. "Try to relax commander. Slow, deep breaths. Let go of your physical shell. Reach out to grasp the threads that bind us, one to another."

Shepard could almost imagine a slight tugging at his mind. Was this what indoctrination would feel like?

"Every action ripples across the galaxy. Every idea must touch another mind to live. Each emotion must mark another's spirit. We are all connected. Every living being united in a single, glorious existence. Open yourself to the universe, Commander."

Suddenly, Shepard could feel the tug. It was insistent, and it was certainly present. He wondered if he was making a mistake. Then his mind went back to the words his mother spoke to him when he first chose to enlist. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

"Embrace eternity!" Shiala called out.

And with that, Shepard let himself go. Suddenly, he felt his mind open, and he could feel Shiala's mind, her presence, right next to his. He could sense that she was giving him something, and suddenly, his mind replayed the vision he received from the beacon. What was once blurred images, and vague impressions, suddenly gained clarity. He saw death. He saw destruction. He saw it.

As the connection broke, and Shepard was slowly drawn back into the real world, he looked around, unsure if what he was seeing was real, the vision had been so vivid.

"I have given you the Cipher," Shiala told Shepard. "The ancestral memories of the Protheans are a part of you now."

"Are you alright, Shepard?" Tali asked worriedly, gripping her shotgun a little more tightly than necessary.

Shepard waved his hand. "I'm alright, but I saw my vision again. It was much clearer and stronger than before, but it was still confusing and jumbled. Like it was skipping or something. Other than that, I'm not sure what I saw."

"You have been given a great gift, the experience of an entire people. It will take time for your mind to process this information."

"Shepard? You look a little queasy," Garrus said worriedly. "We should head back to the ship."

"I am sorry if you have suffered," Shiala said, "But there was no other way. You needed the Cipher, and in time, it will help you understand the vision from the beacon."

Shepard nodded, his head still spinning a little. "Now that you're free of the Thorian, what are you planning to do next?"

"If you allow it, I would like to stay here with the colonists. They have suffered greatly, and I played a part in their suffering. I would like to make amends," Shiala responded quickly and eagerly.

Shepard nodded. "The colonists will need all the help they can get, but are you sure that they'll be able to trust you so easily? Like you said, you did play a part in their suffering."

Shiala nodded sadly. "Yes, it is true that they may not trust me. But I will leave my fate in their hands then."

The ground crew gave her a long hard look. Shiala had indeed played a part in the death and destruction that had visited Zhu's Hope today, but she was willing to make amends, and she was sincere about.

"Good luck," Shepard said.

"Thank you, Commander, and may fortune smile on you," Shiala responded.

"Alright crew… It's time… It's time to head…" Shepard began, until another wave of dizziness hit him. "Ugh, I don't feel so well." Suddenly, the Commander collapsed, unconscious.

Garrus, Tali, and Ratchet immediately raised their weapons towards Shiala. "What's wrong with him, you bosh'tet?!" Tali yelled furiously.

Shiala raised her hands in alarm. "It must have been the meld and the influx of new and foreign information within Shepard's mind. It may have overwhelmed him. I can assure you, that I have no ill intent towards you or the Commander, and that he will wake up soon, with nothing more than a slight headache."

Garrus, Tali, and Ratchet all shared looks, until finally they all lowered their weapons. "Fine," Ratchet said. "We believe you." Then he turned to Garrus and Tali. "But I'm not carrying Shepard," He said before sprinting away towards the exit.

"What? Ratchet! Get back here!" Garrus called out, taken by surprise at Ratchet's speed.

"Whoops," Tali said, "I think I left an Omni-Tool application running on the Normandy, and I should go check on it as soon as possible. Bye!" Tali called out as she quickly followed after Ratchet.

"Oh no you don't, Tali!" Garrus called out running after her. He glanced down the ramp, but she was already long gone. "Tali! Get back here!" Nothing. Man, quarians were fast.

Then Garrus turned back, and he Shiala standing there, an amused smile on her face. When she saw the look Garrus was giving her, she shook her head and backed towards the edge. "Don't look at me at like that!"

"You're the one that got him in this mess!" Garrus argued.

"Maybe so, but you're the last one here," Shiala countered, before dropping off the ledge, using her biotics to safely land three stories below, as she made her way out the exit. As she left, she turned and looked upwards, waving to Garrus and offering him a small smirk.

Garrus turned to Shepard and grunted. "You owe me for this Commander." The turian then knelt down and slung Shepard over his shoulder. "Hn!" He grunted, as he shouldered the Commander. "You've got to lay off the snacks, Shepard!"

IIIIIIII

Garrus grunted as he deposited Shepard onto the medical bay bed. "Is he going to be alright, doctor?"

"Yes, Garrus," Dr. Chakwas responded. "Shepard's vitals are stable, and the man is strong in mind and body. He'll be right as rain before you know it, bossing you around again," She said with a twinkle in her eye.

Garrus chuckled, his mandibles turning up in a grin characteristic of Turians. "That's good to hear Doc. Let us know when he's awake, so we can begin the debrief of the mission."

"Will do, Garrus. Glad you're back safe and in one piece."

"Thanks Doc!" With that, Garrus strolled out of the med bay and took the elevator down to the cargo hanger. When he got out, he began to head towards the Mako, but halfway there, he hesitated. He turned, and he saw Ashley working at her station, and Wrex, standing at his usual spot, looking sullen. As usual.

He turned and walked back, towards Engineering. He wanted to talk to Tali. When he found her, he pulled her aside, outside of earshot of the rest of the crew. "Hey Tali, what'd you think of that mission?"

Tali glanced at Garrus. "I thought it was alright. There were certain things that concerned me."

"Ratchet? And his weapons and technology?" Garrus asked, as if he were reading her mind.

Tali nodded. "Yes. Did you see the power of his weapons? And their uniqueness too! I've never seen anything like his weapons! And the way he just made them appear and disappear…"

"The possibilities, right?" Garrus asked.

Tali was silent. She wondered if Ratchet had such weapons grade technology, then what if he could hold the answer to the problem of the geth and a new home world. What if?

"I was thinking of the trouble that we could get into if they found out that we made first contact with a species like Ratchet. With technology like that, and we didn't tell the Council."

Tali whipped her head towards Garrus. Tell the Council? With a guilty start, she realized that the thought hadn't even crossed her mind. Then she wondered why she even felt guilty.

"And then, other times," Garrus continued, "I wonder what would happen to our galaxy if we had technology like his. I can imagine that we would tear ourselves apart with war. Maybe it's better that nobody knows about Ratchet."

Tali was silent as she thought about it. She enjoyed Ratchet's company. He was lighthearted, and he was kind. He didn't look at her as if she were second class. He treated her fairly. And in her eyes, that was infinitely more than most had done to her in her life. In fact, it reminded her of Shepard, and the easy way he had accepted her into his crew.

"I'm a little worried about Shepard, though," Tali said absentmindedly.

Garrus snorted. "You sure seemed worried when you lit out of there, and left me to carry Shepard back to the Normandy."

Tali had the grace to chuckle and blush beneath her mask, though Garrus wouldn't have been able to tell. Had she said that aloud? "Hehe, sorry about that. But I am worried for the Commander. What did Dr. Chakwas say?"

"She said Shepard'll be alright. She's seen the asari melding before, and she says that there should be no problem for Shepard."

Tali breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good."

Garrus smirked. "You're really concerned about the Commander, aren't you?"

"W-What?! What are you implying, Vakarian?" Tali said hastily, rather alarmed at Garrus' questions and subtle insinuation.

"Oh, nothing. Nothing… Nothing that you're not already making obvious."

Tali jumped again and seemed to shrink into herself. "Shepard? I don't like Shepard in that way! I mean, we're just friends!"

This time, Garrus' smirk grew even wider. "Who said anything about liking Shepard?"

Tali put a hand to her mask. "Oh, Keelah, I think I'm going to faint."

Garrus laughed out loud. "I won't tell anyone."

"Good–"

"Well, maybe Shepard if he asks…" Garrus said, a playful smile on his face.

"Vakarian," Tali threatened, her visage suddenly growing dark, cold, and angry. "If this gets out, I will hunt you down, and introduce you to my shotgun, face to face. Understand?"

Garrus, suddenly feeling a shiver down his spine, nodded hastily and backed away. "Yeah! Sure thing. I'll see you around, okay, Tali?"

As Garrus scurried away, glancing over his shoulder a few times, Tali couldn't help but smirk beneath her mask, glad she could get a reaction that wasn't sarcastic out of that insufferable Turian. That bosh'tet had better not tell Shepard anything!

A/N: Hey guys! Happy New Year! So I barely kept my promise to have his out before the end of the year, and if you're in Eastern Standard Time, like me, then yes, I did keep my promise. If you're ahead, then my sincerest apologies if I missed my deadline :( But again, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, which closed off Feros, and 2014 as well. I hoped to go into more about the relationships formed between crew members and what they thought about Ratchet, and the potential consequences that may come about later as a result of keeping Ratchet's existence hidden. Please leave a review and tell me what you think! Thanks ya'll and peace out!