Chapter 8: Therum
John and Kaiden stepped into the Normandy's elevator as the ship approached the planet Therum. Both were fully suited for battle.
"You, Ashley, and Wrex will form the secondary team," John said as the elevator descended towards the cargo hold. "I'm taking Garrus and Tali."
"It's going to be a tight fit in the Mako," Kaiden commented.
"Wrex might have to sit on someone's lap."
"Yeah. We'll have to use all the medigel before we even get onto the planet's surface."
Both men laughed as they stepped out of the elevator. Despite the joking, they both were equally nervous about the mission ahead. If Liara was working for Saren like her mother, there would likely be a large battle ahead.
As John approached the Mako, Garrus said, "The gun should be fully operational now."
"Good," John replied. "Let's hope we don't have to use it."
"Then what did I do all this work for?" Garrus asked, feigning indignation.
"Look at it this way, Garrus," said Kaiden. "If you don't want to fix the gun next time, I hope you can take out a thresher maw with your rifle."
Suddenly, Joker's voice came over everyone's radio. "We're five minutes out from Therum."
"That's our cue," said John. "Let's get everything loaded up into the Mako."
Kaiden activated his radio and said, "Joker, how many hours of sunlight do we have left?"
"Six or so, but there's a nasty storm brewing that's due in four," Joker replied. "You probably want to finish up before then."
"Let's hope resistance is light," said Garrus, as he tossed a duffel bag full of medigel into the Mako.
"Everybody get aboard," said John. "Garrus, you're on the gun."
As Ashley approached the Mako and boarded, John looked around for Tali, who was nowhere to be seen. Just as he was about to go look for her, she exited engineering and hurried towards the Mako.
"Ready, Tali?" John asked.
Tali hesitated and then nodded. She was nervous, but knew that she had to learn to trust John and his crew if she were to stay aboard the Normandy. This mission was the perfect opportunity for her to get to know her captain better. Climbing aboard the Mako, she sat next to Garrus and strapped herself in.
"And we've arrived," came Joker's voice. "Entering the atmosphere now."
Making the final checks, John climbed into the Mako and pulled the hatch shut. He moved to the front and sat in the driver's seat.
"Engines are running smoothly," said Kaiden, who was sitting in the passenger seat. "Everything's ready to go."
Radioing Joker, John said, "We're ready down here, Joker."
"Copy," Joker replied. "Opening the bay doors."
An alarm was activated, and the Normandy's VI said, "Warning! Cargo bay doors opening. All personnel vacate the cargo hold."
The cargo bay doors slowly opened to reveal a rocky planet surface with large rivers of bubbling magma. John disengaged the Mako's parking break and slowly approached the bay doors.
"Everyone hang on," said John, as he strapped himself into his seat. "This is going to get a little bumpy."
Hitting the accelerator, John drove the Mako out of the Normandy. It soared through the air and began approaching the ground at an unsurvivable speed.
"Give me thrusters," John instructed Kaiden.
Thrusters on the bottom of the Mako suddenly fired and began slowing the Mako's descent ever so slightly. As the Mako got closer to the ground, Kaiden increased the power output to the thrusters in an attempt to slow it down to a speed that wouldn't break anyone's bones on impact.
The Mako slammed against the ground hard, and Wrex nearly landed on Ashley's lap, despite the many straps connecting him to his seat. Bouncing twice, the Mako came to rest in a cloud of dust. As the dust began to settle, John and Kaiden checked the Mako's systems for any signs of damage.
"The right rear wheel might have taken a bit more of the impact than it should have," Kaiden reported. "Other than that, perfect landing, Commander."
Tali slowly undid the straps that tied her to the Mako. She had been wondering how they would get the Mako onto the ground without landing the Normandy, and now she had her answer.
John glanced into the back of the Mako and asked, "Everyone all right?"
"Yeah, we're good," Garrus replied. "Wrex almost landed on Ashley's lap, though."
John grinned. "I don't think I've ever done that with this many people inside."
As the Mako pulled away from the drop zone, John contacted the Normandy. "We're all good down here, Joker. See you in a few hours."
Powell supervised as ten Cerberus operatives hauled small crates used for shipping into the apartment. They were all dressed in the uniform of a dummy shipping corporation which was owned by Cerberus; Powell was making the final preparations for a test run. Despite the sophisticated security employed by Citadel Security, Powell was confident that he could beat it.
Once all the crates had been stacked around the edges of the small room, Powell called everyone over.
"Listen up!" Powell shouted. "If you all listen to my instructions, we shouldn't have any problems."
Powell grabbed three differently marked crates and pulled them over. "The crates marked with red contain the weapons we're smuggling. The ones marked blue and yellow are full of legitimate stuff that we'll be sneaking the weapons in with."
"What about the scanners?" asked one of the men. "They'll see the weapons packed in beside the other stuff right away."
"No they won't, because the weapons aren't going to be in one piece. Each weapon needs to be disassembled and the parts will be packed in with the other stuff. We've got medigel dispensers, tool kits, and other crap to hide the parts with. Each weapon part needs to be colour coded so the weapons can be quickly assembled once we're on the Citadel. Make an assembly line and get twenty rifles ready to go. We leave for the Citadel in two hours."
As the men got to work, Powell made a phone call. When Miranda picked up, he said, "Everything should be ready to go in a couple hours, as you asked."
"Good," Miranda replied. "I'll have a transport sent to your apartment to take the crates to a private docking bay."
"Once we arrive on the Citadel, where do you want me to bring the weapons?"
"Contact me when you arrive. I'll have further instructions."
Powell terminated the connection and sat on the couch. Watching the other men work, he smirked at how good his life had become.
Another geth armature fell as a round from the Mako's cannon impacted it. Garrus, who was manning the gun, was attempting to clear the area of geth so that Kaiden's team could exit the Mako safely.
"To your left, Garrus," John announced, as another geth destroyer began firing.
Garrus swivelled the cannon around a blew the destroyer apart before it could even try to get out of the way.
Kaiden checked the radar and said, "That looks like the last of them."
"Good, let's go," said Wrex, who was eager to get out of the cramped space. "I can hardly feel my legs."
Everyone pulled on their helmets to shield themselves from the planet's heat, and Kaiden pushed open the Mako's door. Tali exited first to provide cover for Kaiden's team as they exited the vehicle.
"It looks good out here, Commander," Kaiden radioed. "No sign of anything moving."
"Find some cover from the sun and be ready," John replied. "If we need support, I'll contact you."
Tali climbed back inside the Mako and pulled the door shut as Kaiden's team disappeared over a hill. Holstering her shotgun, she sat back down in her seat.
Once the Mako reported that the internal environment was safe again, John removed his breather helmet and put the Mako into gear. As he pulled away, he said, "Tali, could you come up here please? I need someone riding shotgun."
Tali approached the front of the vehicle and sat in the passenger's seat. The instrument panels in front of her were a somewhat familiar sight, except that she could not read them.
"I can't read these," said Tali.
"Just watch the radar for me," said John. "If you see anything, call it out so Garrus can shoot it."
Tali nodded and said, "Looks like a lot of movement up ahead."
Garrus, who was controlling the Mako's gun from the back, cracked his neck. "I'm ready."
John cursed and slammed on the brakes. Just ahead, a boulder blocked the Mako's path. "We're not going anywhere."
Undoing the safety restraints, John climbed out of the driver's seat and into the back of the Mako. Pulling his breather helmet back over his head, he opened the door. As he stepped out onto the planet's surface, he could feel the sun's scorching heat even through his armour.
Following John, Tali and Garrus slowly made their way up the path that had been too small for the Mako. Steep cliffs bordered the path; there was no way for them to bring the Mako around.
"Movement," warned Garrus.
"What is it?" asked John, dropping into cover.
"More geth," Garrus muttered, as he looked through the scope on his rifle.
"Take 'em out."
Garrus pulled the trigger. The lone unit fell, but was quickly replaced by many more geth that had been hiding behind boulders that littered the small clearing. John and Tali rushed forward in an attempt to catch some of the geth off guard, diving from boulder to boulder, while Garrus provided support from afar.
Twice Tali's shields dropped, but John and Garrus were there to cover her. The team was in sync, working together in perfect harmony. Although the geth were efficient soldiers, they didn't stand a chance.
"I think that's the last of them," said Tali, as she fired a shot into the last visible geth unit.
"I can see some structures in the distance," Garrus said over the radio. "If I'm reading this map right, that should be the entrance to the dig site."
"See any more geth?"
"No, but that doesn't mean anything. They're good at hiding."
"All right," said John. "Regroup."
Garrus holstered his sniper rifle and walked towards the middle of the small clearing. As he approached John and Tali, he said, "We have to hurry if we want to beat the storm."
"If we don't run into much more resistance, we should make it," said Tali. "We have a few hours of daylight left."
"Let's get going then," said John. Stretching, he unholstered his rifle and started walking to the other side of the clearing.
After a tiring climb up a steep incline, the team finally arrived at the entrance to the underground dig site. The buildings were eerily devoid of life, causing John to feel uneasy.
"Something is wrong here," said Garrus.
As Tali rounded a corner, the sight in front of her caused her to feel sick. A pile of bodies occupied the alleyway, haphazardly stacked higher than she was tall.
Stumbling backwards, Tali said,"Keelah…"
John heard the tone in Tali's voice and rushed over. "Tali, what is it? What's wrong?"
Following Tali's gaze, John entered the alleyway. His first reaction was one of revulsion, and then immense sadness. Someone, presumably the geth, had slaughtered these people for no other reason than to get them out of the way. Aside from the occasional soldier, the people were doctors, scientists, and archaeologists… civilians.
"Garrus, come take a look at this," John said over the mic.
"What is it, Shepard?" Garrus asked as he strode into the alleyway. Looking at the bodies, he said, "Damn him. Saren's going to pay for this."
"If Saren succeeds, this is going to look like nothing," John said sadly.
"Do you really believe that Reaper story?"
John nodded. "I do. But even if the Reapers are a myth, Saren and the geth will kill hundreds more on their own."
"We'll stop him, Shepard."
Suddenly, a thunderous crash reverberated across the dig site. Tali's eyes widened in horror, and activating her mic she shouted, "Drop ship!"
The geth drop ship unloaded two armature class units and a squad of foot soldiers. As the armatures began to activate and stand, Tali rushed back into the cover of the alley.
"How many?" John asked.
"Two armature class units, and a squad of standard units," Tali replied quickly. "I think they might also have something else that's jamming my radar."
John activated his radio and shouted, "Kaiden! We need you down here, now!"
"We saw the drop ship," came Kaiden's reply. His voice was muffled; the storm was ahead of schedule and was beginning to interfere with communications. "We'll be there in thirty seconds."
"If you can find another path, bring the Mako. There are two armatures here."
Kaiden was silent for a moment as the seriousness of the situation set in. "Will do, Commander. How are you holding up over there?"
"Not too bad," John replied, as he peered around the corner and fired at one of the geth soldiers. "I have a bad feeling about this, though."
"Why? Did something happen?"
"They don't seem too worried about killing us. It seems like they are perfectly content with keeping us pinned down. I think they just want us away from the underground entrance. It's not like the geth."
"Shepard's right," said Tali. "It's not like the geth to be inefficient. Someone is giving them orders, and whoever that is, they want us to stay out of the dig site."
"Whatever is going on, we better hurry," said Kaiden. "Keep your heads down, we're coming in."
Suddenly the Mako sped up the hill, getting a small amount of air as the cannon repeatedly fired at the armature units.
"Keep the soldiers off them!" John ordered, as he began firing at a geth hopper that was slinking along the ground towards the Mako.
Tali and Garrus joined in, doing their best to keep the Mako from receiving too much damage as it dealt with the armatures.
The first armature fell, and the geth became frantic as they sensed that their defensive was failing. The Mako was pushing forward slowly but steadily, causing heavy damage to the last standing armature. Just as the Mako's shields were about to falter, the cannon fired a shot into the last standing armature, blowing it apart.
"That's all of them," came Kaiden's voice.
John lowered his rifle and exited the alley. As Ashley stepped out of the Mako's hatch, he asked, "How did you manage to get the Mako up here?"
"Wrex pushed it up and over," Ashley replied. "Good thing we decided to bring him along."
John nodded. "If this was any indication, we'll probably be running into a lot more geth down below. I need you to stay here with Kaiden and Wrex, and hold this location. If we can get out before the storm hits, this is going to be Joker's LZ."
"No problem Shepard," said Wrex as he unholstered his shotgun. "I'm just getting warmed up."
Powell supervised as the crates were loaded onto the small freighter ship; everything had to be just right. This operation was his chance to work his way further into the smuggling business. He didn't even know which company was paying him to smuggle the weapons onto the Citadel, but he didn't care. They were paying him, and that's all that mattered.
"Okay!" Powell shouted as he boarded the ship. "Everybody aboard."
The Cerberus operatives climbed onto the freighter, and one of them took the pilot's seat. Powell sat in the back with the rest of the men, and tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for the ship to depart.
"Here we go," said the pilot, as the magnetic clamps imprisoning the ship were released.
As the ship departed from Omega, Powell settled into his seat and prepared for the long trip.
John warily walked down the mineshaft, followed closely by Tali and Garrus. The cramped space could easily become a deathtrap if the geth attacked, and John was eager to exit into somewhere with more room to maneuver. Stepping out of the entrance tunnel, John exited onto a platform that overlooked a large cavern below.
"Over ten of them," John whispered to Garrus and Tali as they approached.
Suddenly, a round impacted John's shields near his helmet. If his shields would have been disabled, it would have been a perfect kill shot.
"Back!" Garrus shouted, pushing Tali and John back away from the platform's railing."Geth sniper."
Tali cursed quietly to herself. "The snipers are deadly accurate. I don't know if we'll be able to take him out."
"All I need is a distraction, I saw its location," said Garrus. "Any volunteers?"
Approaching the guard rail, John withdrew a grenade and activated it. Throwing it down into the cavern below, John watched it bounce twice and then explode. The explosion shook the cavern and instantly got the geth's attention.
Seeing his chance, Garrus brought the scope of his rifle to his eye and squeezed the trigger in one fluid motion. The geth sniper fell from its perch and landed on its comrades below, causing even more confusion.
"Now's our chance," said Garrus, quickly leading the way down along the access ramp.
Shooting as they ran, the squad took out another two geth as they hurried along the metal walkways that traversed the cavern. Reaching the elevator, John's assault rifle brought down another unit that was trying to rip out the cabling that powered the elevator car.
The sounds of battle stopped as the unit fell and John stepped over it into the elevator. Pushing the button, he said, "Think the rest are hiding?"
Tali nodded as she stepped aboard the elevator car. "Probably preparing an ambush."
As the elevator reached the lower level of walkways, John suddenly lunged forward through the now open doors. Tali looked up in surprise and saw a geth carrying a rocket launcher. Wrestling the unit to the ground, John managed to pry the weapon from its hands. After John had rolled out of the way, Tali destroyed the geth soldier with two shots from her shotgun.
Garrus offered his hand and pulled John to his feet. "Nice save, Shepard."
Continuing across the network of walkways, they quickly reached another elevator which would take them the rest of the way down. Sparks flew from cables that had been torn loose from the elevator car.
"Looks like the geth don't want us anywhere near the bottom," said John.
Tali activated her omni-tool and scanned the elevator's control panel. "These disconnected cables power the elevator, but if we override the emergency brake we should be able to get down."
"But coming back up would be a different story?"
"Yes, we will have to find another way out."
"Well, we don't have much of a choice, do we?"
"We need to get down there," Garrus agreed. "Once we clear out the geth, though, we could get Alenko to come pull us back up the elevator shaft."
John considered his options. Dr. T'Soni could be down below, and regardless of whether or not she was working for Saren, she could likely provide them with useful information. There didn't seem to be any other way of accessing the bottom of the cavern, and it would take too much time to return to the Mako to get the necessary gear to rappel down. Finally, John said, "Okay, let's do it."
John, Garrus, and Tali apprehensively stepped onto the elevator car. After receiving confirmation, Tali hacked into the elevator's control systems and released the emergency brake. The car shuddered and then suddenly dropped, plummeting towards the bottom of the elevator shaft. Typing frantically, Tali managed to reengage the brake and slow the car to a halt just as they reached the bottom.
Letting out a sigh of relief, John stepped off the elevator and climbed down a pile of rubble. "Good work, Tali."
As John waited for Tali and Garrus to get off the elevator, he noticed a field of some kind that was barring access to a large doorway that was built into the cave's wall. Looking through it, he was surprised to see an asari women who appeared to be imprisoned. She was levitating, supported by some kind of security field.
"Tali, Garrus, get down here," John said, never taking his eyes off of the woman.
Hearing John's voice, Garrus slid down the rubble pile and hurried over. "An asari?"
"Dr. T'Soni, perhaps?"
"Uhh, hello?" said the asari. "Can someone help me? Please?"
John holstered his weapon as he approached. The woman was young, and wearing some kind of uniform. Although John had put away his weapons as to not alarm her, he did not yet know who she was or whose side she was on, and was counting on Garrus and Tali to keep their weapons trained.
"Can you hear me out there?" the asari asked. "I am trapped. I need help!"
"Are you Doctor T'Soni?"
"Yes, my name is Liara T'Soni. Listen, this thing is a Prothean security device. I cannot move, so you need to get me out of it, all right?"
John crossed his arms. "Are you working for Saren?"
"Saren? Who's that?"
"He's the turian who is trying to destroy all of humanity. So let me ask you again: are you working with Saren and your mother?"
A look of genuine surprise flitted across Liara's features. "My mother? What does Benezia have to do with any of this?"
Garrus glanced at John and said, "I think she's telling the truth."
"Okay," said John. "We'll get you out. How did you get in there, anyway?"
"Thank you," Liara replied. "I was exploring the ruins when the geth showed up. Can you believe that? Geth beyond the Veil! I activated the tower's defences to keep them out, but I must have pressed something I shouldn't have, and this security field activated."
"Saren is using the geth as his personal army to attack human colonies," said Tali, who had approached the doorway when the topic of conversation changed to the geth. "That is why they have ventured beyond the Veil."
"Why would they follow him?"
Glancing at John, Tali said, "It's a long story."
"We'll get you out of there," said John. "Just hold on."
"There is a control panel in here that will disable the barrier curtain, but I can't reach it," said Liara. "You will have to find some way to get around."
"Is there no way to disable the tower's defences from the outside?"
Liara shook her head. "It was designed for security. There is no way to disable the barrier curtains or the security fields from the outside. I don't know how you'll get in here."
"We'll find a way."
"Be careful. There is a krogan with the geth. They have been trying different ways to get in."
Stepping away from the barrier, John glanced across the cavern. As he looked, he noticed geth hiding themselves amongst the mining equipment that littered the cavern floor.
Activating his radio, John said, "Kaiden, do you copy? What is the status on the storm?"
Hearing no response, John repeated his message. "Kaiden, do you copy?"
"The storm may have already hit," said Garrus. "It was coming in fast."
John shook his head. "Not that fast. They may be in trouble."
"They can handle themselves. They have to. If we don't stay here and get Dr. T'Soni out, the geth will get to her."
"I know. Move out."
Wrex laughed loudly as he fired his shotgun again and again out the hatch of the Mako. Ashley manned the cannon while Kaiden drove, attempting to keep the Mako behind cover to minimize the damage inflicted by the geth drop ship. Kaiden knew that if they could just hold out a while longer, the storm would hit and the drop ship would be forced to leave or would crash into the dig site.
Suddenly, John's voice came over the Mako's radio. "Kaiden, do you copy? What is the status on the storm?"
Kaiden glanced at the sky. It wouldn't be long now; the colossal thunderheads loomed not far away. Activating the mic in his helmet, Kaiden said, "Storm's almost here, Commander. I'd give it an hour tops."
John repeated his previous statement. "Kaiden, do you copy?"
Cursing, Kaiden swerved to avoid an incoming missile. Either the Mako's transmitter was broken, or the geth were interfering with outgoing communications. Either way, John could not hear him. Glancing at the sky once more, Kaiden willed John to hurry.
"Duck!" shouted Garrus, as a geth unit grabbed John's rifle and ripped it from his hands.
John obeyed, and quickly dropped into a crouch as Garrus' shot passed over his head. The round flew straight into the unit's head, the force ripping it off the body. As the light on the geth's head dimmed, John quickly retrieved his rifle.
"Two more," Tali said over her radio, as she fired a shot and ducked behind a boulder.
"Got one," said Garrus, as he fired another shot from the platform above.
The remaining geth unit detected its fallen comrade and changed its strategy. Moving through the shadows, the unit circled around in an attempt to get behind Tali.
As the geth came up behind her, John shouted, "Tali, watch out!"
Spinning around, Tali ducked the geth's first shot and allowed her shields to absorb the rest. The first shot from her shotgun knocked the geth off its feet, and the second shot passed through the unit's armour and destroyed vital components contained behind the armoured chest plate.
Scanning the cavern, John said, "I think that's the last of them."
Tali stood slowly and followed John and Garrus across the cavern. As she walked, she pondered the events of the mission so far. She had nearly been killed multiple times in the past few hours, but her… squadmates had saved her. What was the word she was looking for? Friends?
Stopping in the middle of the cave, Tali tilted her head to the side as she looked at John and Garrus. A human and a turian, her first friends outside of the flotilla? She was afraid to label them as such. They were soldiers, and of races other than her own. She would not trust them with her life, yet she realized that she enjoyed their company. Both men treated her with respect, and although Garrus pretended otherwise, she could tell that he didn't mind her company, either. With time, Tali hoped that she would feel comfortable calling both her friends.
Continuing across the cavern, Tali approached the two men, who were discussing how to gain access to the tower that imprisoned Liara.
"The mining laser might just do it," Garrus was saying, "But I'm worried that it might hurt the doctor if it's too powerful."
Looking at Tali, John said, "Tali, do you think you could turn down the power on that thing?"
Tali activated her omni-tool and scanned the mining laser's control panel. "I think so. It's got some sort of basic security code on it… there. Yes, I can turn it down."
"Set it to thirty percent. Can you target it?"
"No, but it's already set up to target the base of the tower. Looks like the geth might have been preparing to do this."
John was glad they had arrived when they did. The geth would surely have killed Liara if they had gained access to the chamber she was imprisoned in, and although they had learned that Liara didn't have any information about Saren to provide them, he was glad that they would be able to save an innocent life.
"Okay," John said finally. "Do it."
Tali typed quickly and activated the laser. The intense beam fired at the base of the tower and blasted away at the rock, carving a hole through it. As the rock was cleared away by the laser, the entire cavern rumbled.
"That should do it!" Garrus shouted.
The rumbling ceased as Tali deactivated the laser. As the dust cleared, a hole bored through the rock became visible.
"They know we're through now, if they had any doubts before," said John.
Garrus glanced around warily. "I wonder where that krogan is lurking."
"Good question. We had better get her out of there."
Hurrying through the hole, they boarded an elevator and rode it up a level. As John entered the room where Liara was imprisoned, she said, "Oh! How did you get in here? I didn't think there was any way past the barrier."
"We blasted through the bottom level with the mining laser," John replied. "How do I get you down from there?"
"That button over there on the console should deactivate the containment field."
On John's signal, Tali pressed the button and Liara fell to the floor. As she stood, Liara said, "Thank you."
John checked his omni-tool and frowned. "We have to go now. The storm should be hitting any minute."
"Storm?"
"There was a huge storm not too far off when we landed," said Garrus. "If we don't get back aboard the Normandy before it hits, we'll be stuck down here until it passes. With the amount of geth we've seen so far, I don't think that's a very good idea."
"There is an elevator back in the centre of the tower that should take us out of here."
As John, Garrus, and Tali followed Liara towards the elevator, she said, "I still can't believe this. Why would the geth come after me? Do you think Benezia's involved?"
"The geth are looking for the Conduit," said John. "And you're an expert on the Protheans."
"The conduit? But I-"
Liara was cut off by a deep rumbling that came from somewhere overhead.
"What the hell was that?" asked Garrus.
"These ruins aren't stable. The mining laser could have triggered a seismic event. If we don't hurry, the whole place could cave in!"
As the elevator started its ascent, John activated his comm-link to the Mako. "Kaiden, do you copy?"
"Commander, can you hear me?" came the distorted reply.
"I hear you."
"That's a relief! I tried to answer you last time you called, but my response wasn't getting through."
"It's okay, we got everything sorted out down here. What's your status?"
"We just finished shaking a geth drop ship. They really don't want us getting off this rock."
"Is it gone? How did you shake it?"
"The storm is very close. They must have decided we weren't worth the loss of a ship."
"How long do we have?"
"Five, ten minutes tops."
"Contact the Normandy, and get Joker to come to the LZ. We're on our way up."
"Yes, sir!"
John terminated the connection just as the elevator slowed to a stop. It had raised them into a large room, with only one visible exit. Just as John started heading towards the doorway, a krogan entered the room, followed by a squad of geth.
"Surrender!" shouted the krogan. "Or don't. That would be more fun."
"In case you didn't notice, this whole place is falling apart," said John.
"Exhilarating, isn't it?"
"Commander, we need to get out of here right now!" Tali whispered quietly.
"Thanks for getting rid of those energy shields for us," the krogan continued. "Hand the doctor over."
"Not a chance," said John, as he and Tali took up defensive stances in front of Liara.
"Saren wants her, and he always gets what he wants. Last chance. Hand her over, and I'll make your deaths painless."
Glancing at Garrus, John said quietly, "Any ideas?"
"Not really," Garrus replied grimly. "This doesn't look good."
"I'll hold the krogan with my biotics while you take care of the geth," said Liara. "I will try my best, but I don't know how long I can hold him."
"Okay, do it," said John. "We'll take out the geth as fast as we can."
Addressing the krogan, John said, "Thanks, but she'll stay with us."
The krogan grunted in annoyance and addressed the geth following him. "Kill them. Spare the asari if you-"
Before the krogan could finish his sentence, Liara had grabbed him with her biotics and thrown him to the floor. John jumped into action, diving sideways out of the line of fire. Moving around the edge of the room, John flanked the geth while Tali and Garrus defended Liara.
John took out many of the geth on his own, but would have been overwhelmed if not for Tali's skill at hacking. Her cyber attacks disrupted the geth's coordination, and provided John the opportunities he needed to kill the remaining units.
Suddenly the krogan broke free from the hold of Liara's biotics. He snarled at Liara, infuriated. John, Tali, and Garrus all opened fire at once, quickly cutting through the krogan's armour and bringing him down. As he lay on the ground panting, John walked towards him and finished him off with three shots to the head.
Garrus and Tali pulled Liara to her feet as John rushed towards the exit. He covered his head with his hands as rocks and other debris fell from the cavern's ceiling above. Leading the way, John ran down the walkway towards the mineshaft that would take them to the surface.
As the cavern began collapsing more rapidly around them, John shouted, "Move!" and pushed the others ahead of him. As he ran up the mineshaft, he heard the cavern collapse behind him. Just ahead, he saw Garrus, Liara, and Tali reach the exit. Whatever happened next, he was happy that they were safe.
Just as John was losing hope that he would make it, he passed through the doors to the mineshaft. Panting, John followed Garrus towards the Mako, which was parked at the bottom of the ramp that lead to the mineshaft's entrance. Looking towards the sky, John realized that the storm was right on top of them.
"Kaiden!" John shouted as he climbed into the Mako. "Where's the Normandy?"
"We have to drive out to her," Kaiden replied as John pulled the Mako's hatch shut. "The winds were too strong."
Putting the Mako into gear, Kaiden drove as fast as he dared towards the Normandy.
A/N: If you haven't already noticed, I updated the previous chapter to fix some issues. Go take a look. :)
Sorry I took so long to get this one up. I've been dealing with some stuff, and its taken up most of my time recently. Hopefully now I will be able to get back on track. See you in a few days (I hope)!