Angel
Chapter 21
Bioware owns rights to all characters.
"Joker!" Shepard yelled, taking hold of the console and Joker's chair. They passed through the Omega 4 relay to find a wall of wreckage. Former ships that attempted the trip, and failed. There had to be thousands of ships smashed into chunks of space debris, all clustered in one location.
"Hold on!" Joker yelled back. He pulled the Normandy into a steep bank to avoid a huge piece of fuselage. After a couple more sharp turns and a barrel roll of all things, they made their way out of the wreckage.
"Incoming hostiles." EDI announced.
"What? Where?" Shepard asked.
"Behind us, they followed us out of the ship graveyard." Joker told her. "Take them out, EDI." Shepard got a look at one of the hostile ships when they destroyed one. It looked like several fins sticking out of a huge camera lens. When the lens opened its aperture, a powerful beam was released. The ships were having a field day blasting the Normandy's kinetic barriers, leaving heavy damage on all sides of the ship.
After several tense moments they weren't having luck destroying the rest of the attackers, so Joker headed back into the wreckage zone.
"Returning into the debris field is unwise, Jeff." EDI told them.
"We're not going to last much longer out here in the open." Joker told her as he flew through the gauntlet of ship pieces, trying to force the enemy ships into the wreckage.
"They have broken into the cargo bay." EDI announced.
"I'll take care of it." Shepard said, putting her helmet on. "Garrus and Grunt, meet me in the cargo bay. We have an uninvited guest."
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The ship/lens was very hard to damage, and its beam was painful to experience. Since they couldn't lay into it with sustained fire, Shepard decided to take it down with single fire snipers and pistols.
"Grunt, try to distract it. Garrus, pull out the Mantis and keep moving." Shepard pulled out her pistol and started circling the bay. Luckily there were ample crates and equipment to hide behind. She circled constantly, hopping out if cover briefly to catch the ships attention, but not staying still for long. After several minutes of sniper rifle damage the ship/lens exploded, burying them in a pile of crates.
"Commander! Get back up here!" Joker called them back. After a few minutes of forcing their way back through the mess in the cargo bay, Shepard emerged on the bridge. The other ships were scrap in the ship graveyard, thanks to Joker's flying. They were approaching the collector base.
"An old friend." Joker told her. The collector ship was pulling out of the base. The same ship they infiltrated a month ago, the same ship they saw on Horizon, the same ship that sent Shepard to her death more than two years earlier.
"Let's show off the new gun." Shepard said. EDI pulled up a wireframe of the collector ship as it angled to attack the new Normandy. "Hit it right about here." Shepard pointed at a section of the wireframe model.
"You got it, boss." Joker's fingers flew as he arced the Normandy to the side of the collector ship. They main guns fired as the collector ship started powering up its beam weapon. The resulting blast was very satisfying.
"Roll over it to hit the opposite side, right about here." Shepard pointed to another location on the wireframe, then quickly grabbed hold as the collector ship fired its main weapon. Jeff pulled into a steep bank to stay away from the blast.
"Kinetic barriers holding." EDI announced.
"Good thing we upgraded." Joker said, then yelled; "Take this, bitch!" Firing the Normandy main weapon once again.
The resulting blast took the collector ship to pieces, causing the main weapon to release a massive amount of energy. The Normandy jerked with the blow, and started to drift. Joker fought to keep control.
"Controls are unresponsive. EDI?" He said.
"Mass effect core is offline. I'm attempting to bring it back up." EDI told them.
"Everyone hold on! We're going down!" Shepard called through the intercom.
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The Normandy crash landed on the collector base, somehow managing to avoid smashing to pieces. Though it was still powered down, EDI was sure she could get it back online. Shepard had her doubts. Everyone knew this was likely a one way trip.
After detailed study of a scan of the collector base, they decided to split into three teams for their assault. The two main passages could only be opened from the inside, only accessible by a ventilation shaft. They needed a tech expert for that run, so Shepard naturally chose Tali.
"I won't let you down." Tali told her.
"I know, Tali." Shepard gave her a quick smile.
Shepard and two others would run through the passage nearest the shaft. She chose Grunt and Thane to go with her. Grunt clapped Thane on the back so hard Thane was forced to catch himself against the table. Thane turned to give him a quick smile.
A distraction team would traverse the main passage with the rest of her motley crew. "Garrus, you will lead that team."
"You got it." Garrus nodded.
There was no way to tell where any surviving member of the crew might be, so the odds were against stumbling into them. With those grim prospects no one mentioned their lost shipmates, especially Miranda.
Shepard could tell the group needed some kind of pep talk, but she absolutely hated this kind of thing. Short and sweet, Samantha. "You are the best the universe has to offer. You know what needs to be done. Think fast and watch each other's back." She paused to look around the room, settling on each face in turn. Shepard wanted to hug each of her friends, but the ensuing tear-fest would unbearable.
She looked out over her team of experts. They pooled their efforts to assist her with the collectors. At the same time she helped each of them with a personal problem requiring her particular talents, except Massani. His glare was palpable. She was sorry, but she didn't have time.
Time to go. "Let's blow this station to hell." She told them with conviction.
"Yeah!" Grunt answered, throwing his fist in the air. He strode out of the briefing room dragging Thane with him. Jacob, Massani, Mordin, Legion, Samara, and Jack followed. Tali, Kasumi, and Garrus were delaying.
"My dearest friends. Thank you for this." She paused. "I can't express..." Fighting back even more tears became too much. Tali beat Kasumi to give her a hug.
"We'll get her back, Shepard." Tali told her.
"I can't even think about it..." Shepard said.
"I know." Tali told her, pulling away to allow Kasumi access.
"Time to save the universe again, eh Shep?" Kasumi said after a quick hug.
"Looks that way Kasumi." Shepard said, a smile breaking through the tears.
Garrus grabbed her hand with a firm grip. "Suicide mission number two, Shepard?"
"We seem to be making a habit of it, Garrus." She shook his hand with enthusiasm. Then, surrounded by her best friends, she left to suit up.
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Miranda woke with the worst headache she'd ever experienced, then she made it worse trying to get up. She smacked her head against something. She opened her eyes, which was not only painful, but she couldn't see clearly at all. She blinked in an attempt to clear her vision. Things swam closer to focus, but quickly reverted to a complete fog. While blinking she lifted her hands to feel what was in front of her. There was a sharp pain in the crook of her elbow. She used her other hand to prod the spot. There was dried blood and a tear in her skin. It wasn't large. Possibly caused by a syringe pulled out incorrectly, maybe an IV.
A sharp pain lanced through her skull. She winced and closed her eyes for a minute. She felt what was in front of her. There was a smooth curved surface over her. She explored the limits of the surface with her eyes closed. It covered her completely. She opened her eyes again to see that the cover was transparent, but she could only see a few feet, so she still didn't know where she was.
She tried to recall anything. The last thing she remembered was her, Samantha, and Mordin in the Reaper derelict. She remembered Sam attacking the core, and some flashes of husks, but nothing more. She felt herself. She was not in her suit. It was a simple, loose-fitting outfit. No pockets, went down to about her knees. Hospital gown. She had a tear in the skin on her arm. She was in a hospital...no, they don't put you in an enclosed container in the hospital. She took another glance out the cover. She could see... "No. It can't be." She said out loud. There were more containers across the passage, and she could tell what they were. They were collector pods like they had seen in the collector vessel. "No." Another stab of pain hit above her eyes. She closed her eyes again.
Alright Miranda. Concentrate. You were in a hospital or medical bay, then you were taken by the collectors. Now you're on their ship.
She looked back across the passage. There were people in the pods. She recognized a few of them. Daniels and Donnelly from engineering. Couple more crew members. They didn't look hurt, but they weren't awake either. The furthest to one side she saw a woman without a Normandy uniform. From one of the colonies perhaps?
Samantha will be coming. There's no telling when, but she will come for me.
Just then the woman's pod filled with a cloud of something. She woke up and instantly started screaming. The sound was muffled through the pod, but it was still chilling. The woman's skin formed chemical burns, then started sloughing off. In a matter of moments all that was left was a skeleton, which fell to a heap at the bottom of the pod.
Time to get out of this pod. Miranda hit the cover with as much force as she could. It didn't budge, but she got another sharp pain in her head for her trouble. After a minute she opened her eyes again. There wasn't enough room in the pod for leverage against the lid.
She pulled at her biotics, and though it hurt a little, the familiar glow made her smile. Let's see what we can do. She slammed her biotics against the cover near her hand. The blinding pain made her slump inside the pod, tears pouring out of her clenched eyes.
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"Shepard! It's getting really hot in here!" Tali pleaded with her.
"Damnit!" Shepard cursed.
The ventilation shaft Tali was crawling through had several valves that needed to be opened or Tali would be cooked alive from the contained heat. Shepard had to fight through collectors to reach each valve before it was too late. She warped another collector and moved up to the next cover. There were only a few collectors between her and the switch.
"Assuming direct control."
"Shit!" The damn Harbinger was between her and the switch. "Grunt!"
"Got it!" Grunt ran past her and plowed straight into Harbinger. Thane neutralized the other collectors as Shepard sprinted to the switch, releasing Tali as another group of collectors flew in. Shepard looked for the next switch, but couldn't see it.
She threw a warp around a collector barrier and ran up to club the collector with her pistol.
"Assuming direct control." The Harbinger appeared nearby. Shepard hopped over a barrier and ducked down, reloading her pistol.
"I've reached the next gate, Shepard." Tali announced. Shepard cursed under her breath. She ran to the next barrier, putting herself well ahead of Thane and Grunt, and in the middle of the collectors. She shifted to the end of the barrier for cover, since she had collectors to the front and back. She still couldn't see the next switch.
The collector behind her moved for a clear shot and took out her shield. Shepard warped it and ran straight at it shooting her pistol, jumping into its cover as it fell backward. One of the Harbinger's blasts flew over her head as she reloaded her pistol.
"It's getting hot again, Shepard." Tali told her.
"Face your annihilation." Harbinger approached.
"Thane, the next switch is around the corner." She paused to allow her shield to regenerate. Another Harbinger blast went over her head.
"We'll try to keep these occupied."
Shepard took off around the next corner. Finding the switch, and a pair of collectors. She kept running and plowed through them to hit the switch, turning to finish them off.
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Miranda found the door to her pod loose once the pain eased. Her biotic blast apparently broke the seal, but not the door. She looked at the other pods to see Daniels and Donnelly looking at her expectantly. Apparently her blast woke them up.
She closed her eyes and braced herself for the pain. After a few seconds she let loose another blast at the door. The pain bent her over again. She leaned her head against the door, waiting for the tears to stop.
She had to do this, for these people, for the crew, for Samantha. Sam might not even know where she was, might not even reach her, but she had to be ready, just in case.
After a few minutes she braced herself to try again. Daniels and Donnelly were giving her encouraging looks. Everyone in the pods she could see was looking at her. She put her hand against the door again and closed her eyes. This time the blast blew the door off the pod and flung it across the passage. She fell out of the pod and curled into a ball on the floor, her eyes clenched shut.
After a few minutes the pain leveled off to a dull throb, and she got up to look around. She couldn't use biotics to open up the rest of the pods, she'd smash the door into the occupant. And she couldn't force her way in physically, the pods were very strong. She would find it impossible even if she wasn't physically crippled. She glanced at the door blown off her pod. It was still in one piece. She picked it up. The bottom of the door had a sharp edge.
Miranda walked over to Donnelly's pod and stuck the edge of her door between the pod and his door. She chose Donnelly because she wanted someone strong enough to help open pods in case she collapsed from exhaustion. As she pried the door her headache intensified, but she kept at it. Eventually the door bowed a little bit from the force. A kick from Donnelly and the door flew off.
"Thank you, XO! I thought I was done for." He told her. "Are you all right?" She was hunched over from the pain.
"Don't worry about me. Free the others." She told him before hobbling to Dr. Chakwas' pod.
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Shepard hit the last of the valve switches, releasing Tali to open the door.
"Assuming direct control." One of the collectors she ran past to hit the switch transformed into Harbinger. She shifted behind a nearby barrier and reloaded her pistol. Thane and Grunt were out of sight around a corner.
She felt the heat as Harbinger blasted the other side of her barrier. She peeked over the top and leveled her pistol at him.
"You prolong the inevitable." Harbinger told her as she emptied her clip at him. He exploded into wisps of ash and flame.
"Assuming direct control." Another nearby collector rose with a glow and changed into Harbinger. Shepard shifted to another barrier, and reloaded her clip.
"Thane, Harbinger is being a pain. How long?"
"A few more seconds." Thane replied.
"You will know pain, Shepard." Harbinger said with his haunting voice. It freaked her out when he used her name.
"I can see the door. I'll wait till you get here." Shepard told Thane before another Harbinger blast slammed into her barrier. She hopped up and emptied another clip into him.
"Be there soon." Thane said.
"Assuming direct control." Harbinger was coming much more often now.
Shepard crouched behind another barrier and pulled out her submachine gun. Her pistol was out of ammo. Three more collectors were advancing on her position.
"I know you feel this." Harbinger said before another blast hit the barrier. Shepard rose just enough to pepper him with SMG fire, finishing him off with a warp. The other collectors shot away her shield. She ducked back down and reloaded.
"Assuming direct control." Shepard growled. Fearless is easy when it's not your body. She waited for her shield to regenerate.She knew the collectors were right over the barrier from her.
"You are no longer relevant." Harbinger said from very close.
She pulled the particle beam off her back. Her shield came back up and she hopped up. Thane was standing over a dead collector and a cloud of ash was wafting around Grunt as he picked himself off the floor. Shepard gave them a smile, which quickly faded. A large group of collectors were landing behind them.
"The door! Run!" Shepard yelled before turning to go.
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Tali hacked open the door for Garrus' team.
"Back up, Tali!" Garrus yelled. The collectors were close on their heels. Mordin took over to shut the door. Tali ran to the other door.
"The door! Run!" Tali heard Shepard yell. She hacked the door, but nothing happened.
"Something's wrong! It's stuck." She called out. She checked the power source to make sure it was supplied.
"Get this door open now!" Shepard yelled. Tali could hear shots hitting the door. She concluded the issue was mechanical and increased the power to the door to force it open. It slid open a meter. Shepard, Thane, and Grunt ran in. Tali changed the signal to close the door, but it seized again.
"Suppressive fire! Everyone!" Shepard yelled. Tali increased the power again and the door started to move. The Harbinger appeared and held the door open.
"We will end you." He said.
Jack and Shepard warped at the same instant. Harbinger exploded into ash and the door slammed shut.
"Thanks, Tali. I knew you could do it." Shepard told her while catching her breath.
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"Shepard!" Jacob called out. Shepard looked up to see members of the crew coming around a corner. They started shaking everyone's hand. Then she saw her, followed closely by Dr. Chakwas.
"Miranda!" She rushed over and hugged her tightly.
"Miranda saved us all, Commander." Chakwas told her. "She used her biotics to free herself, then freed everyone."
"You came..." Miranda said. Shepard pulled back. Miranda had red eyes and tear streaks covering her dirty face. Her med bay frock was covered in smudges and ripped in several spots. Someone had kindly given her a jacket. Shepard covered her face in kisses.
"She has a minor wound from the IV in her arm, and a bad migraine from her previous injuries. She might have fried her implants breaking out. She needs rest and fluids. I'll check her implants once we're back on the ship." Chakwas told her.
"I thought I'd never see you again, Angel." She gave Miranda another fierce embrace.
"I need a shower." Miranda said into her hair.
Shepard laughed. "After this, Angel, we're all going to need a shower."
Miranda kissed her neck and pulled away. "Time to go back to work, Sam."
"A platform to the central chamber is not far, Shepard." EDI told her. "But the passage is filled with seeker swarms, too many for Mordin's countermeasure. The alternate passage is locked at the far end."
"Biotic field perhaps?" Shepard asked. "Samara?"
"No problem, Shepard, though I can only cover a small team. The rest will need to go through the other passage."
"They can serve as a distraction. Feel up to running the distraction squad, Garrus?"
"It's what I live for, Shepard." He gave her a grin.
"Commander, we're not in any shape to fight, and I doubt this location will stay safe for long." Chakwas added.
Before Shepard could respond Joker cut in. "Commander, we have enough systems on-line to do a pick-up, but we'll need to land back from your position."
"Ok, we need someone to go back with the rest of the crew." Shepard pulled off her submachine gun and handed it to Miranda. She kissed Miranda on the forehead, then looked the crew over. "Kasumi will go back with Miranda and the rest of the crew." Kasumi nodded and motioned Miranda to her.
"Send me the landing coordinates, Joker." Kasumi said.
"Tali and Grunt, you're with me and Samara. Everyone else is with Garrus. Let's do this!" Shepard took one final glance at Miranda then headed to the door.
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Shepard was thankful Samara was so powerful. She didn't think she'd be able hold a barrier this long. Shepard shot a shockwave through a batch of husks, ducking to avoid a scion's similar attack. Tali sent her combat drone to the far side of the scion, giving Shepard a free shot. She sent another shockwave to get rid of the husks, then laid into the scion with her heavy pistol. It went down with some help from Grunt.
"Can't hold much longer, Shepard." Samara told her. Her barrier formed a sphere around them, but it flickered as she talked.
"Ahhh...alright, let's move people!" Shepard said, pulling Tali from behind a barrier. Grunt followed closely behind. A few husks climbed up to meet them, but Shepard's shockwave sent them flying. She kept the group close together, spraying pistol fire in their wake to keep the collectors away. When they reached the door Samara pulled the barrier in quickly, then released it in a huge wave that knocked the swarm and collectors away. They shut the door.
."..epard! We need the door open now!" The radio signal was weak.
"Got it, Garrus!" Shepard told him. Tali rushed to the door and started the hack.
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Shepard approached the main control console of the collector base. Harbinger ashes were still swirling from their most recent attack. Other dead collectors were collapsed around them. The huge human reaper they found with the massive power signature dropped when they destroyed its support structure. Tali and Garrus approached from either side. She started to set up a system overload.
"Back up squad, head back to the Normandy. I'm about to blow this place to hell." She spoke to everyone.
"We have an incoming message from the Illusive Man, Shepard." EDI told her.
Tali patched the projection through her omni-tool. The image of the Illusive Man appeared before them.
"Shepard, you've done the impossible." He told her. Shepard continued to work on the console.
"I didn't do it alone." She said, still not looking at him.
"You did what you had to do, and you acquired the collector base. I'm looking at the schematics EDI uploaded. A timed radiation pulse could kill the remaining collectors, but leave the machinery and technology intact." Shepard stood to face the bastard.
"Even if I trusted you to share the knowledge, which I do not, they were liquefying humans. This place is an abomination. It has to be destroyed." She turned and crouched at the console.
"Don't be short sighted. Our best chance against the reapers is to turn their own weapons against..." Tali cut the signal.
"Shepard said no, bosh'tet!" Tali crouched to help Shepard with the overload. They finished quickly.
"Let's move. We have ten minutes before this place goes supernova." Shepard told them before turning away from the console.
Just then the platform started shaking, throwing the three of them against the barriers.
"What the..." Shepard started, grabbing hold of a barrier. Then the huge head of the human reaper appeared over the edge of the platform. "Oh, hell." It had woken up and pulled itself back to the platforms. "Get to cover!" Shepard pulled her particle beam off her back. The human reaper looked like a metal skeleton with bio mechanical muscles and ports. The eyes were sickly orange orbs of malice. The reaper was missing the lower half of his body, but still towered over them.
Several more collectors appeared, including Harbinger. "Keep them off me!" Shepard yelled, pointing at the collectors. "I've got this bastard!" The reaper seemed to concentrate on Shepard, giving her a close look. Shepard aimed at one eye and let it have it. The processing seemed slow, because the thing didn't react for several seconds. When it did they dove for cover. The Reaper flung its arms up and brought it down on one of the platforms, which dropped and crashed far below them. The Reaper ducked under the platform and Shepard jumped back to a platform further away.
Tali and Garrus were struggling so Shepard helped them out with a few warps until the reaper pulled itself back up. Shepard turned to it and blasted the eyes again. A high pitched whine started increasing in volume and the reaper opened its mouth. That's ominous. Shepard jumped back over a barrier. "Get down!" She yelled to her team.
The blast was the loudest Shepard had heard since the attack on the Normandy. She jumped up after the blast and continued shooting the eye. After just a few seconds it swung its arms up and smashed another platform, ducking down again afterward. Shepard looked over to see Garrus on his side a short distance away. Apparently he hadn't gotten out of the way of the blast. Shepard ran over and applied a medi-gel.
"Thanks, Shepard." Garrus pulled himself up. Shepard clapped him on the back before jumping up to another platform.
The reaper pulled itself back up. Shepard aimed and let loose. Once again there was a few second delay, then it screamed and smashed down on the platforms. We're going to run out of platforms if this goes on much longer. Luckily the beast looked pretty bad. One of its eyes were gone, and sparks were bleeding out of the eyes and mouth.
The particle beam weapon was empty. "Alright you fucker, die already." Shepard pulled out her pistol and started pounding away at the other eye. The whine started increasing in volume again. "Get down!" She yelled to the others, though she didn't follow suit. She reloaded her pistol and continued shooting, bracing herself for the blast.
The blast knocked her back a bit, but she continued shooting. Her shield was gone. Another shot and she was done for. Suddenly the sound changed. The last eye exploded and the reaper raised its head and screamed. Tali and Garrus jumped onto Shepard's platform and watched the beast thrash. While falling out of sight it whipped out an arm, smashing the remaining platforms away, including theirs. Shepard, Tali, and Garrus grabbed hold. Shepard could do nothing but watch as the ground sped towards them.
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All three of them were sprinting towards the Normandy. Shepard didn't know how long they had before the station annihilated itself. There were hundreds of collectors chasing them out of the base. Tali and Garrus were thankfully fine after their platform crashed. She was holding the rear guard while they ran in front.
Shots fired over her shoulder. She threw a blind shockwave behind her to slow the collectors down. She saw the Normandy drift to a stop ahead of them. Joker couldn't dock the Normandy right up against the base, so there was a gap to jump. Tali looked up and tripped, sprawling to the ground. Shepard picked her up and helped her forward, looking back to provide cover. She shot a collector in the face with her shotgun, then threw it into the air with a shockwave. She switched to her pistol and started shooting heads. Once she had a moment to spare she checked the Normandy. Garrus was pulling Tali into the door.
"Shepard!" Garrus yelled, providing cover fire with his machine gun. Sprinting full out she prepared to jump. One massive leap and she was in the air. She was hit by a collector shot, throwing her angle off. She reached as far as she could, trying to grab the bottom edge of the door, but she was too low. She couldn't reach. I'm not going to make it.
Just as she resigned herself to a second martyrdom, a hand reached down and grabbed her. Shepard looked up into the tear-streaked face of Miranda.
"Reach!" Miranda told her. Shepard stretched her other arm up and grabbed the door frame. Miranda pulled her up and the door closed behind them. "I just couldn't imagine resurrecting you a second time." Miranda gave her a loving smile. Garrus clapped her on the back.
The Normandy managed to get far enough away before the base exploded.
"Welcome back, Commander." Dr. Chakwas told her before turning a stern eye to Miranda. "Get back in that medical center right now! Don't make me use a sedative!" Miranda and Shepard walked back to the med bay hand in hand.