In which the very sad and unfortunate truth is revealed to our favorite Geth...
One Year, Three Weeks Previously...
The Mobile Platform had made it to Noveria.
This planet, like Therum, like Feros, had been attacked by the heretics. Unlike Therum and Feros, however, this planet had viable, working, extranet access, though it had been reinforced since the attack. The scraps of information the platform had managed to obtain were nothing compared to the 'gold mine' access it was about to achieve.
With the ship set down, hidden in the cover of a snowy ravine, the platform made it's way up the mountains to the main facility, and eventually clambered onto the roof. System warnings notified it that the exposed hardware from the Eden Prime incident was experiencing function difficulty due to the cold. It reached up one hand to cover the area and try to block the wind. while it looked around fro something that might be able to replace the missing chassis; even a partial cover would benefit the platform greatly. It had not experienced this kind of problem before, but then again, it hadn't experienced too much extreme weather since the incident.
Finding nothing it could make repairs with without warranting suspicion from the organics, it simply kept gripping the heavily affected area and walked ahead. There was a transmitter nearby that it could hack into, and after bypassing multiple firewalls, it managed to break into the extranet service. It could detect lif signs down below, and there was a myriad of large, long windows looking into the complex. Scans showed that even inside, the temperature was at an uncomfortable zone for most organics.
As it tapped into the extranet, consensus was achieved to break the over-cautious demeanor the runtimes had been operating on since Eden Prime, and observe the organics. The platform leaned over the edge and looked through the window. Visual sensors adjusted appropriately on account of the upside-down position.
There were multiple organics of multiple species communing in the are within. Salarians, Humans, Turians, Asari, Volus... even one or two Hanar, with their respective Drell escorts by their sides. As it scanned the extranet on information on Commander Shepard, the platform saw something that made it pause, another organic display that confused it. Shepard-Commander present on planet Virmire... one associate(Ashley Williams) terminated in nuclear blast...
Two Turians, a male and a female. They were standing close together, the male holding both the female's hands in his own. A brief passive scan revealed chemical neural reactions associated with happiness, and that the female was in the very early stages of pregnancy.
One hand still covering the exposed components near it's shoulder, the platform leaned out a little more for a better look. The two Turians leaned their heads towards each other, nuzzling their foreheads together, before the male tapped her forehead with his chin. He then looked down at her abdominal region, resting one hand over it, the Turian equivalent to a broad smile on his face as he said something that the platform could not hear. Shepard-Commander led chase on planet Illos to Conduit. Associates Garrus Vakarian and Creator Tali'Zorah nar Rayya accompanied her.
The two organics were no doubt coupled, and seemed to be happy, maybe celebrating the continuation of their genetic line. The platform's eye plates flickered. That didn't sound... right. No. They were happy... because they were about to add another member to their familial collective. There. Consensus agreed, that conclusion sounded right. In an involuntary action, it nodded to itself.
It's hand slipped. It tried to reassert it's grip, but ended up trying to grab a patch of ice, and ended up tumbling over the edge. It's other hand lashed out as it tried to halt it's sliding down the window, and one flailing foot found purchase on one of many clumps of ice stuck to the surface. On full alert, it made a visual scan of the room beyond the glass; none of the organics seemed to have noticed the platform. It moved to pull itself back up, but then froze.
Shepard-Commander killed over planet Alchera approximately eleven months previously.
That couldn't be right. If she was dead... surely it would have found that information sooner...
Reports conflict, Shepard-Commander killed by unknown ship, Shepard-Commander... killed by Geth. Normandy terminated. Total twenty-one crew members terminated. Official reports confirmed; Shepard-Commander terminated by Geth attack on SSV Normandy. Memorial speeches by associates; confirmed. Certificate of death; confirmed. Dog tags retrieved; unconfirmed. Note; Garrus Vakarian disappearance shortly after speech on the Citadel presidium. Conclusion; Shepard-Commander terminated by heretic Geth.
Geth.
It would spend days trying to figure out what kind of processing glitch made the platform do it. What exactly passed through it's runtimes at that moment was something it didn't understand. All it knew, was that the moment it received that information, it cocked back it's right arm, balling it's hand up into a fist, and punched the glass with all the force a synthetic was capable of creating.
Now that, the organics noticed. The glass splintered where the platform's fist made contact, and large, long cracks spread along the glass. It looked at it's fist with what might have seemed to be amazement to any watching, as it's runtimes tried to figure out what had caused the involuntary action. but new movement quickly caught it's attention. Organics where moving. Their mouths opened in screams that it couldn't hear, pointing, or running. It looked at the two Turians, who had finally noticed it.
The female had pulled her hands close to the abdominal region, as if to protect the child growing within her, and the male, a snarl on his face, placed himself between her and the platform, despite the fact he was unarmed. He would protect both the beings behind him with his own life as the cost if necessary.
Self-sacrifice. Another organic behavior to ponder later.
It's attention was drawn to the weapons being pointed at it by the guards gathering within. A large dog(species tag; German Shepard), was barking, on the leash of one of the Humans. The guards took aim and fired. The glass cracked and shattered, and as it fell into the room, it heard the Turian pair both scream as sharp glass came down on top of them, the male trying to shield his partner from the falling shards.
After it hit the ground, it did a visual scan, and saw them both laying on the floor, the male panting heavily on top of the female, blood spreading in points along his clothes from where glass shards stuck out of his body. Several runtimes considered this. The pair had been in full view of the guards... yet they had disregarded the endangerment of noncombatants. Unarmed citizens. Why?
It took the rifle off it's back; it had to defend itself, no point in trying to run this time, though the loss of organic life would be regrettable. It jumped behind a desk, and leaned outwards to fire, catching one Human in the shoulder and downing a Turian. The female Turian on the floor screamed as bullets whizzed by her head, trying to drag her partner behind one of the fountains. This battle had to end soon. Further harm would come to the civilian elements if the firefight continued. But the only way to end this quickly would be swift termination of either side...
Consensus was achieve; retreating would result in no further harm to non-combatants, and would likely satisfy the hostile elements as well. It looked at where the window used to be. Standing and spraying bullets in the direction of the guards, it ran in at an angle, away from the Turians with the intent of vaulting over the window sill and into the snow.
Unfortunately, none of the runtimes had factored the dog into this plan.
It didn't register the danger until the creature was upon it. With a mighty snarl, it sank it's fangs into the platform's right upper arm with what was admittedly an impressive bite force. The sudden weight crashing into it's side caused the platform to stumble, falling to the floor. The dog, growling, thrashed it's head from side to side, bite force and effectiveness increasing with each thrash. The act would have severely damaged the animal's teeth, and as it shoved at the dog vainly, it began to look like termination of the animal or relent in the attack was the only way the platform could be freed.
It gave the creature an almighty kick, but the action resulted in a devastating twisting motion in the dog's grip. It's teeth bleeding at the gums from biting the synthetic, he had at least, somehow, countering all possible simulations, managed to rip off a rather large chunk of the platform's arm. Wasting no time now that it was free, it abandoned it's rifle and dashed to the window, before jumping over the concrete wall...
And falling over the edge of the mountain.
The many runtimes would have long to ponder the fact that they had never taken notice of the precipice before. And then there was new ceasing of functionality to it's right arm to be taken into account. Rather violently, the platform was thrown in the wind as it hit several outcroppings along the cliff face. Primary system alerts flooded across all runtimes, much like on Eden Prime, and visual sensors were on the verge of critical failure by the time it managed to reach out with it's left arm and grab a rocky edge.
It only just managed to pull itself up one-handed, and when it reached the flat ground, it lay there for several long moments, despite the urgency of the current situation and against all logic. It reached up to cover the exposed components of it's shoulder, and then did a visual and internal scans of the new damage.
Right arm mobile functions; urgent repairs required.
Visual sensors; minor repairs required.
External passive sensors; major repairs required on left shoulder, lower left leg, abdominal region, upper right back.
Linguistic interface; diagnostic and minor repairs recommended.
It did a visual scan of the cliff face. It would take a while to climb back up and return to the ship. It would have to do jury-rigged repairs to it's arm if it even wanted a chance of reaching the top. It removed it's hand from the exposed components, eye plates flickering as it's runtimes processed the new information in the snow. It's mission... find Commander Shepard. It had failed... failed so completely. She was already dead. Killed by... Geth.
Heretics, that followed the Old Machines. Geth, true Geth, made their own future. The Commander... had a future, once. To make contact with this platform... it's mission... failed. Because of the heretics. The chances for true Geth survival had dwindled significantly because of this action, if the simulations were in any way accurate. The Old Machines were coming... they had to be.
And the knowledge of Commander Shepard had been lost to it's own kind. Still laying on it's side, it did the linguistic diagnostic, it's voice crackling, corrupted by the fall, the words it chose involuntary and unknown in every aspect.
"We are sorry."
It repaired itself in the snow, and climbed the cliff in the blizzard, and, the most half-frozen to death a synthetic could get, left Noveria without looking back, making way to Virmire.
Okay, WOW, poor Legion, am I right? I feel like I just kicked a puppy. I always imagined that discovering his goal was killed by his own species had to stink for Legion, even though it wasn't really the Geth that did it. All the official reports said 'Geth', though, and that's what it learned.
Garrus is back in action next chapter, though, so look forwards to that! Also, don't ask me why this chapter came so fast; I don't know why, I just chose not to question it. Maybe it's the fact that I love writing this character, or maybe it's because I feel bad about throwing him off another cliff.
Anyway, here comes Grunt!
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