PART 12
Thinking that the reapers wouldn't follow them into the mass transit network of tunnels under the city had been a mistake.
Without comms they were virtually flying blind and the lack of information frustrated Shepard beyond belief. Unlike her fearless and often cocky twin, she was more measured in her approach and after the disaster that was Akuze, she was especially leery of charging in anywhere without a plan. She felt responsible for Kaidan and Ashley now, particularly because they had both insisted on accompanying her in her attempt to get to Alliance HQ rather than try and find a way out of the city. It wasn't a feeling that she was entirely comfortable with. Their lives depended on the decisions she made.
A few hours earlier, they had separated from the Alliance squad. Lieutenant Harbor had provided them with all the information he had up to that point, including the route they had travelled from the space port and Alliance HQ. A route that theoretically should have been cleared of hostiles. While Luke had taken his team and ventured further into the crumbling city in search of survivors, Ash, Kaidan and Shepard and taken to the tunnels intent on getting to what was left of Alliance HQ. They knew that it was still acting as a command post as early as eight hours earlier and Shepard was keen to get to Admiral Anderson.
As they made their way through the tunnels on foot, Shepard heard the warning snarls of husks first. Her stomach dropped and she cursed silently. Not now, she thought. Only a few meters more and they would come across an emergency maintenance shaft that lead to the surface, or at least that's what the schematics they had been provided with stated. Shepard prayed the schematics weren't out of date. There weren't a lot of places to hide in this tunnel and their ammunition would only last so long.
The snarls grew louder and Shepard shouted at her companions to hurry. A few more meters and they found the door to the emergency tunnel. Shepard retched it open and gestured at Ash to take point. She sent Ash scurrying up the ladder inside and Kaidan followed as Shepard climbed up behind them. They scaled the ladder quickly knowing they were outnumbered. Shepard had slammed the door shut before she climbed the ladder but one of the husks had pulled it open. That was a new development. From what she knew so far, the husks were fairly stupid, just mindless drones under the control of the reapers. She swallowed a fission of unease.
She fired down as she clambered higher, dispatching the husks that pursued them with easy shots to the head. Their skulls exploded and they dropped instantly.
"Move it, Ash!" she yelled.
A mumbled curse echoed down to her from above but it was drowned out by the blast of her pistol. Bam! She dropped another husk as she dangled from the ladder one handed. Seeing a lull in the wave of husks coming at them, she hauled herself up, moving over the rungs as quickly as she could.
At the stop of the shaft, Kaidan was waiting to help her out. With his strong hands, he grasped her around the waist and dragged her quickly to the side as Ashley slammed down the heavy seal, blocking off the path from their pursuers. Without waiting for further instruction, Ashley rose nimbly and flared her omni-tool, checking the route that Lieutenant Harbor had provided them with and pointed off into the distance.
"That way!" Ash cried as she launched into a sprint.
The seal to the shaft shuddered under their feet and Shepard stomped one foot, her brows furrowed in annoyance and her patience at its limit.
"Those husks are really starting to irritate me, " She snarled as she changed the thermal clip on her pistol.
"Come on, we should move," Kaidan said urgently. His eyes were wide and his voice was low as he glanced nervously at the seal. He turned on his heel to sprint off after Ash but Shepard grabbed at his wrist, stopping him from going too far.
"Wait! I have an idea. Help me with this."
He didn't argue, just lifted an eyebrow as she raised the seal just high enough to shoot the husk that launched its arm through the gap, grey flesh grasping. She hit it square between the eyes, sending it falling backwards and taking some of its cohorts with it. In a flash of movement, Shepard pulled a warp grenade out of her jacket pocket and shoved through the gap. She dropped the seal and grabbed Kaidan's wrist, dragging him after her as she backed away from the cover quickly. They ran, feeling the ground shudder under their feet as the grenade dropped to the bottom of the shaft and detonated.
She heard Kaidan give a grunt of approval as she flashed him a grin of triumph. "That should buy us some time."
Sloping upwards, the tunnel wound itself to the surface and was lit by only small emergency lights spaced apart every eight meters or so. The darkness was heavy and this section of the tunnel was eerily quiet. She could hear her own heart beat thumping heavily in her ears. She fought down a sudden and irrational surge panic of being pursued in the dark. It was a struggle to keep the flashbacks at bay. She didn't know how he knew, but his hand stole into hers in the darkness as they ran, offering her a silent support. Or maybe he was just trying to make sure they didn't lose each other in the dark. She focused on his warmth, his smooth skin and wide palm wrapped around her own, his calm, steady presence and the faint tingle of dark energy as he shimmered weakly to light their way. She wasn't alone, she could do this. Finally, in the distance, they saw daylight and Ashley's silhouette as she waited for them at the exit.
Shepard and Kaidan sprinted for the tunnel exit, their chests heaving with exertion. They burst out of the tunnel and into the dull grey light of the dawn. They squinted as they looked out, letting their eyes adjust to the brightness and trying to gauge their location. They had emerged near the harbour and the elevated position overlooked a large portion of the city. Shepard's heart lurched as she stared out at the desolation in front of them.
"Dear god," she breathed, eyes wide with astonishment. The scene was heartbreaking. Vancouver was burning.
The previously picturesque city with its tall sweeping sky scrapers and curved architecture of the modern age was now virtually unrecognisable. Its skyline was invested with reapers, and the once majestic towers, symbols of humanities technological achievements were nothing by burning shells, collapsing in on themselves under the onslaught of the reaper attack. Columns of dark, arid smoke stretched long fingers into the heavy sky and balls of brilliant red flame rained down onto the city below.
Shepard turned at Kaidan's choked sound of distress and abruptly the realisation hit her of how hard this must be for him. Kaidan was a local. This was his city, his home. As a spacer who moved around constantly, she didn't form many emotional attachments to locations, let alone cities on Earth. To love a city and then to see it burn like this… she couldn't hope to imagine what this must feel like. A swell of sympathy rose inside her and she stepped close to him, laying a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Kaidan, I'm so sorry."
They had seen the destruction from the ground first hand before their dash into the underground transit tunnels but from this vantage point, there was no denying the scale of the attack or the scale of the losses. She felt him tremble under her hand and her heart ached for him. "This is what it's like all over the planet, isn't it?" He asked quietly. His voice was low and rough.
"Possibly the whole galaxy," she said sadly. He murmured something beside her and she sighed.
Somehow, it felt natural to slip an arm around his waist and pull him close. Their hips bumped together and he accepted her embrace by turning and wrapping his arms around her in return. His head sank to her shoulder and he shuddered.
"So many lives lost," he said against her shoulder.
Shepard trailed a hand through his dark curls absently. A heartbeat later, she pulled back from him slightly and smoothed a hand down his stubbled cheek. He raised his caramel eyes to hers.
"What about your family?" she asked softly. "Any chance they could have made it out?"
His eyes ghosted shut. "My parents," he rasped. "They live here, but my father's family owns an orchid in the BC interior." His voice trembled. "They were headed out that way out on a shuttle on the morning of the attack. I hope they made it. I hope Dad's Alliance training keeps them safe. It must be killing them not knowing where I am."
"When we find Admiral Anderson, we'll try to find a way to get a message to them."
At the mention of the resistance, he seemed to rally. He straightened and stepped back. Shepard watched as he wiped a hand over his face, schooling his expression into a calm determination. She was sorry when they broke apart. The hug had been as much for her as it was for him.
"Come on," he said shakily. "Let's find Ash before she gets too far ahead."