AUTHOR'S NOTE: So apparently last chapter, when I replaced the no chapter alert one didn't send out a nofication email or anything. But! Last chapter is indeed up, so, go ahead and read that! Also bit of news for you, I am now officially done with High School! Hell yeah! I'll be out for this weekend but I already have monday's chapter ready, and I'll also have plenty more time for writing!
Commander John Shepard
"Stupid machine!" A Krogan growled. Somewhere above us. "Access encrypted files!" The voice was coming from what should be the next level. And fortunately, we have a still intact staircase. Slowly, carefully, we did our damndest to not make a sound as we climbed up the stairs. "No, I don't want to review protocol!" Seems he's having some technical issues. His back was to us, and he was facing a VI display at the end of a hallway.
"I am unable to comply. Please contact your supervisor," the VI requested.
"Damn it!" The Krogan roared. "Tell me what I want, or I'll blast your virtual ass into actual dust!" We continued creeping closer. Wrex took the lead. Slowly taking out his large knife.
"Please contact your supervisor for a level Four security exemption or make an appointment with-" the VI calmly continued. You can't threaten programming.
"Stupid machine!" The Krogan slammed his fist through the hologram, his fist just impacting the wall on the other side. There were cracks left in the ancient stone.
"If there is nothing else, please step aside. There is a queue forming behind you for the use of this console." Ah shit, gave us away. The Krogan stood straighter and turned only for Wrex's knife to bury itself deep within his eye. The Krogan cried out in pain and Wrex withdrew the knife only to shove it, and his fist, into his mouth at an angle which sent the blade into the Krogan's brain. Wrex removed the knife again, and the body slumped to the floor. Orange blood leaking out of his mouth and his missing eye. Wrex kicked the body to the side, and I stepped up to the VI.
"Welcome back Research Assistant Elizabeth Baynham. What can I do for you?" The VI questioned. For a split second, I raised a brow, wondering why the VI had identified me as her, but then I remembered the ID she gave me. So, I played along.
"What information was the last user attempting to access?" I spoke plainly and clearly, choosing my words to be perfect for a VI.
"Fetching data… The previous user was attempting to access details on the study of Subject Species Thirty-Seven. The Thorian." So, that is what they're after.
"What information was given to the previous user?"
"None. I was unable to provide the previous user with any relevant data. Aside from lacking proper security clearance, there has been no new data available on Species Thirty-Seven. All sensors monitoring the observation post at Zhu's Hope have been inactive for several cycles."
"At Zhu's hope? Shit," Kaidan murmured.
"Where is the Thorian located?" I continued. We need information fast.
"Species Thirty-Seven is located within the substructure of the Zhu's Hope outpost."
"I want to know everything I can about the Thorian. Start with a verbal overview, then transfer all relevant files to my Omni-tool."
"User alert: The transfer of requested files will be slowed due to a primary request. Providing verbal answer to primary request. The Thorian is a simple plant life-form that exhibits a sentient behavior uncommon with other flora. Through dispersion and the eventual inhalation of spores, it can infect and control other organisms, including humans. The Zhu's Hope group has yielded interesting results. Before sensors went offline, almost eighty-five-percent of all test subjects were infected."
"Goddamnit!" I exclaimed. Fucking bastards. I got onto the comms. "Chakwas, get back to the ship immediately! There's a mind controlling bio-hazard present. It takes time to set in, but you should be fine. Quarantine yourself and check for spore like contaminates. I promise we'll help the Colonists, but I want you in the clear, understood?"
"Understood, Commander." she responded. I took a breath, at least she should be safe now. Shit, I know I took my helmet off earlier, but…
"How long must one be exposed to be infected?" I questioned.
"Prolonged exposure of approximately three and a half days is the minimum recorded time required for infection. Less time prohibits the Thorian from exerting control and allows the body to still eliminate the foreign spores." Ok, that's good at least. I got back onto the comms.
"Joker, Chakwas is returning to the ship. Once she's on board, get out of dock, circle the general area. Hunt dropships if you're bored."
"Uh, sure, but is something wrong, sir?" Joker asked, confused.
"Explain later. Just do it."
"Aye, aye."
"Ready to get a move on, Skipper?" Ashley questioned.
"Not just yet. All of this was in Lizbeth's clearance. She didn't tell us everything but seemed like she wanted to. VI, please access 'my' personal files."
"Elizabeth Baynham. Research assistant, biomedical division. Security level four exemption. You are currently under probation due to disagreements with management over established company policy. These sanctions may be lifted if your next evaluation is more agreeable." Hm, not direct enough.
"What triggered the probation?"
"You were marked as 'combative' about the operations of the Zhu's Hope project. Specifically, regarding the handling of the infected colonists. As a result, you were marked with monitoring the safety of the colonists for the duration of the observation." I relaxed slightly. By the sounds of the report she didn't like what was going on and her bosses didn't care. Put her in control of their safety to keep her quiet. Still, she's clearly troubled. I don't fully approve, I would like to think that if I was in her position, I'd have spread this shit like a wildfire, but there might be more details to her silence I don't know.
"Log off." I ordered the VI. "So, Lizbeth's clear in my eyes, as it stands. Leave later questions to me, alright? Alright. Let's move." I led the others through the surprisingly intact hallway, avoiding less intact hallways that it branched off to. We found ourselves above a pair of Geth standing guard by cables and a claw dug into the wall. Together, Wrex and I jumped down first. Wrex onto a Geth, crushing the robot under his massive weight, while I brought the butt of my rifle down onto the other's head, the force staggering the bot down, almost knocking it to the floor, but a burst from my rifle put it down. The others joined us.
"Shepard, these must be the claws holding the ship to the building. A moment…" Tali requested. She opened her Omni-tool and scanned the hunk of metal and wire. "Comparing the schematics, we have on Geth cruisers, a scan I took of this one before we entered the building, and the scan of this claw, and taking into account the amount of power being drawn into this building, meaning the drive core isn't producing a mass effect field… yes," she finished typing into her Omni-tool as results popped up. "Just as I hoped. The sudden removal of just one anchor, will cause the whole ship to fall."
"Our guns aren't going to do the trick," Wrex grumbled. "That metal is thick. Could do it with a plasma cutter, but that would take hours. Even if we took a rocket launcher from a Geth we wouldn't do it. Few shots with the Mako, maybe. But I don't see us getting that down here."
"Hm…" I murmured, thinking. "Suppose we could rig a makeshift bomb with explosive shells from the Mako, but first we need to take down that barrier. Get Lizbeth out of here. Maybe we'll find something along the way." I signaled Lizbeth to move up, and we continued.
After stumbling upon, and clearing out, a squad of Geth in a larger room, we realized they were defending the very barrier we needed offline. But there was nothing on this side to open it for us. And no hint as to which way we needed to go. We tried right first, being led up a staircase, and, by some stroke of luck for Hossle, found his crumbling office, and intact terminal, at a dead end. I filled up the OSD, and we tried the other route. Left of the barrier. This stairwell went both up and down, but the staircase down had collapsed, and there was nothing but more rubble down there. So, we went up. Through a narrow hallway, we found ourselves in a large, open, almost hangar like room. Filled with Geth. One large claw was clinging to the building through opened metal bay doors closer to the ceiling than the floor. And the Geth had set up shop well. Wires and machinery and even metal cover.
Unfortunately, we were pinned down. Only one of us could take cover and shoot at any Geth waiting, as we were, after all, in the room's entrance. There was more cover we could use, but that would leave us open to Geth fire. And if I tried to lean out and provide covering fire, well, I'd be shot up like melted swiss fucking cheese immediately.
"Kaidan, Liara, make a barrier. Protect the others while they get into cover!" I ordered. The two didn't respond verbally, just instead, glowing blue. "Wrex!" The Krogan charged out, using a blast from his shotgun to take down one Geth while he got down. "Garrus!" the Turian ran, but tossed a grenade as he did so. The explosion took out a trio of Geth, and blew a chunk out of another's cover. And that allowed me to get a cheeky little shot off taking it down. "Williams!" She ran, firing as she did so. "Tali, you hack. Kaidan, Liara, just keep us protected a little longer." Tali then began rapidly typing at her Omni-tool as I could finally lean out of cover, and really open fire with the others. Their hold was weakening, and as our full focus shifted from our protection, to Geth destruction, it weakened exponentially. Geth were shot up, blown up, shredded, or even shot at by a hacked Geth. The Geth fell.
"Careful, Shepard. There's still a few units on the other side of the wall," Tali warned, indicating the wall separating this half of the room from the other.
"Then we move carefully." There was a staircase that led up and around. And as I approached, I noticed that under the staircase were terminals, servers, and other hardware. Mostly intact.
"Kaidan, pull what you can from that terminal. Wonder if there was a reason it was left intact," I ordered.
"Wilco, Commander."
"Rest of you, with me." Only a handful of Geth remained. Including one destroyer. Given we had an elevated position, they fell easily.
"Commander!" Kaidan called out. Not out of alarm, telling us there was no danger. But he had something.
"Report."
"You're going to want to read this yourself…" Shit… I joined him back at the terminal. "I pulled this file. Draft for a message. Confidential. Don't know who it was intended for." I glanced back, seeing that the crew, aside from Wrex, had gathered to read it as well.
The test samples were due to arrive three days ago, but we haven't heard anything from the colony or the cargo vessel. We suspect the samples became volatile and recommend cutting off all further contact with the Nodacrux colony. Even if the colony is discovered, no one should be able to trace the events there back to us.
"What the fuck have they done…" I murmured. "The Council is going to hear of this. So will the Alliance. We're going to fucking rain hell down on these bastards. Look around! If you see intact computer systems, get in! I want to know what the fuck they sent to Nodacrux. I want to know who the fuck they're working with." I ordered quietly, but with rising anger. I led the others to investigate what the last few Geth in here were defending.
"A server node. I'll get in," Tali called out, walking to a terminal on the left.
"There's a note on that one. Looks like door controls," Ashley pointed out. Curiously, I went to read it. A repair ticket.
"So, if I fiddle with the controls a bit, get its PSI just right, it should be able to cut through the claw. Just a moment…" I tested the buttons first to get them right, make sure they worked as expected, let alone work at all. I turned to look at the door and claw and pressed the button. I saw an open space quickly be filled with a piece of metal launched with such force that it simply cut right through the Geth metal. Loudly, metal screeched and groaned as the ship struggled to retain its grip. I could hear what was probably more of the tower collapsing, but the building wasn't quite shaking, so we should be alright. And then it stopped.
"Joker, that ship still on the side of the building?" I asked our pilot.
"Hold on… nope. That thing is now plummeting to the surface. And there it is. In a few thousand different pieces now. Good work, sir," Joker chuckled.
"Tali, get through that node?"
"I did. And you won't like this one any more than the last…" I clenched my fist, calming myself, and moved to read what she had found.
Private log of Dr. Gamorle: I don't trust this Cerberus group. They may pay us well, but if this gets out before we've developed an antidote… it's just not smart. They won't tell us what they want the samples for or why they wanted them delivered to the Matano system. My records show nothing of interest out there.
My restraint was cracking.
"Fucking. Cerberus. So, they're involved in this too. Add that to the fucking list. Once we're done here, not a second after. Nodacrux, and the Matano system. Back to back. We're putting an end to this shit." I stormed away. The others following. We returned to the barrier, which was now offline, and Lizbeth was waiting.
"There you are!" she gave a sigh of relief.
"Cerberus. That name mean anything to you?" I demanded.
"Cerberus? As in the Greek Myth?"
"I hope you're not feigning ignorance here, Baynham. The VI told me about the Thorian. How you knew more than you told me. I know you disagreed with your superiors about it. Did you neglect to tell me about Cerberus as well?"
"Wha-Oh…" She sighed. "I honestly have no idea what this Cerberus is. As for the Thorian, I was afraid. They told me I'd be next if I continued to protest. That my mother would be next." I stopped, closed my eyes, and breathed. All because I felt a three fingered hand gently rest itself upon my shoulder. Silently, wordlessly, that hand requested that I calm down. And so, I did. I quickly nodded thanks to Tali. "When I stayed behind it was to send a message to Colonial Affairs. But the power went out before it was sent."
"I believe you, Lizbeth. And it all ends today. Now, how do I find the Thorian? I know it's under Zhu's Hope, but there's a lot of skyscraper beneath to search."
"The entrance is blocked, but it's quick access from the colony itself. Before the attack began, there was cargo blocking a staircase down a few levels."
"Commander, reading Geth dropships making their way towards you. I'll take out what I can, but don't be surprised if a few slip by," Joker warned.
"Read you loud and clear. We're moving out now," I responded. "Come on, Lizbeth. You'll be safe in the Mako."
"Maybe if we put someone else behind the wheel," Ashley joked.
"Hey, don't blame that shit on me," I chuckled. "Or on the Mako for that matter. Half the time we're driving that thing up or down an eighty-degree incline! The Mako handles that better than just about any other vehicle would."
"I've still never been in a vehicle where I've gotten the urge to vomit, until the Mako," Garrus remarked.
"Yeah? Tell ya what, sometime, we'll find a planet with the kind of shit terrain we normally deal with, and you can give it a go. You'll find out it's not so fucking easy," I offered. Lizbeth just remained quiet, a bit confused perhaps, as we moved towards the Mako, and began climbing in. Should be able to just drop her back off with her mother along the way. And I can beat the shit out of Jeong. The resistance along the bridge back was light, thanks to the Normandy taking out most of the dropships. An armature or a Juggernaut here and there. Nothing to slow us down. Just as we entered the middle tower, the one that the ExoGeni employees were hiding in, we picked up radio chatter.
"Is there anyone picking this up?" Juliana questioned.
"That's my mother!" Lizbeth explained. Just as I was about to respond, I heard Jeong.
"Get away from that radio!"
"This is Juliana Baynham of Feros colony. Please help us!" We got to the end of the ramp down, and I stopped, beside the entrance.
"She's in trouble! Stop! Stop the tank!" Lizbeth demanded.
"Relax, we were dropping you off anyway," I reassured. "Seems that Jeong's being a bastard again. And I have words for him. Just take a deep breath, and follow behind us. Kaidan, Liara, if he's doing anything aggressive, I want you to use biotics and keep him from being a threat. Got it?"
"Got it," they both responded.
"Good." We left the Mako, Lizbeth clearly struggling to not just run right in. Slowly, as we were coming to the corner at the bottom of the ramp, we slowed, and lowered ourselves. The guards were distracted, their backs to the entrance like idiots, while Jeong was having a fit.
"You can't do this, Jeong!" Juliana exclaimed. He put his hands to both sides of his head, covering his ears as he shook.
"Everyone shut up! Let me think!"
"You won't get away with this," Juliana glared. No, he won't. But what does she know now?
"Get her out of here!" Jeong demanded. And cautiously, one of the ExoGeni security moved to grab her from behind. I gave the nod to my biotics, and they stepped out first, glowing blue as an aura formed around Jeong. Before anyone realized what was going out, I revealed myself.
"Everyone, stop right fucking now!" I bellowed. Jeong's head turned, but then he was plucked into the air, unable to move. The security officer raised his hands and cautiously stepped back. "You!" I shouted at the entrance guards. "Get your goddamn eyes and rifles back on that entrance you idiots! If we could sneak up on you with a fucking Krogan, Geth would sure as hell be able to do the same!" I think the two of them just about pissed themselves as they struggled to get their rifles out and glued their eyes on the entrance. I had to go for the scare factor here.
"Mom!" Lizbeth cried out, and ran towards her mother.
"Lizbeth!" Juliana practically beamed, and the two embraced. I tossed the OSD towards Hossle, who was standing quite shocked in front of his make-shift desk. He just barely got his senses back in time to catch it. And I approached Jeong.
"Shepard. Knew it was too much to hope the Geth would kill you. I found some interesting facts about you in the ExoGeni database," he chuckled nervously, feigning confidence, despite being entirely at our mercy. "Your heroics aren't needed here." I raised my left hand and gestured for the Biotics to lower him slightly. Now he and I were face-to-face. And I closed the gap further.
"I would choose your words very fucking carefully, Jeong. I know all about the Thorian. I also know that something was sent to a Colony on Nodacrux, and that the Colony has gone dark. I also know that you've had dealings with a little group known as Cerberus. And, well," I faked a laugh, faked a smile. "It just so happens, that Cerberus is responsible for a lot of deaths. In fact, most of the deaths we know about, are rather personal to me. So I've got just a liiiiitle grudge against them. And anyone who works with them. Oh, and word of advice…" I immediately dropped the smile and let the fire ignite in my eyes again. "Don't you fucking dare say a goddamn thing about company secrets." He began to sweat. And he gulped.
"L-L-Look," he stuttered. "Comms are back online. ExoGeni wants this place purged."
"Purged? This is a colony, not a warehouse or an office building!" Lizbeth exclaimed.
"It's not just you," he strained to turn his head back to Lizbeth. "There's something far more valuable than a few colonists." I slugged him right in the jaw. He cried out in pain.
"A few Colonists? These are human lives here you son of a bitch. Not to mention all the lives that have already been lost for it," I growled. "I'm going to tell you exactly what's going to happen. You are going to be cuffed, and probably gagged so you can finally shut your goddamn mouth. I am going back to Zhu's Hope, and then find out just what it is the Geth wanted with the Thorian. And if it forces my hand, kill it to free the Colonists. The Alliance Fleet is going to arrive, wipe out the Geth fleet, and then pick you up and take you away to spend the rest of your life behind bars. And the evidence I've found here today will reach the ears of the Council, and your corporation will collapse." he opened his mouth to speak, but I simply covered it with my hand. "Just keep it shut for fucks sake." I looked back at the others. "Now, we have a job to do."
"Wait, Commander, I have an idea," Lizbeth stopped us. "The Colonists won't let you near the Thorian. Not without dying. But I think I know of a work around. We have an insecticide with trace amounts of what's essentially a neurotoxin. If their nervous systems are already weakened, which they are because of the Thorian, then it should act like a temporary paralyzing agent. Safely, non-lethal. Like a gas grenade."
"Then I need every last piece of what you have."
Commander John Shepard
We had taken the time to essentially modify the concussion grenades we had into an impromptu gas grenade. When it goes off, instead of an explosion of light and noise, it'll be of the gas, and it'll spread quickly. Now, we had reached the garage of Zhu's Hope. But the door wasn't opening. And to the side of the door, a strange, green/brown growth. Not moving. I took Williams and Wrex out of the Mako with me to investigate. And to open the door. With a shotgun out, I slowly approached the growth. And then it uncurled itself. It had a head, arms, legs, and claws. It was the same kind of thing we found in one of the Cerberus bases. I immediately pulled the trigger, and it popped like a zit into a mass of green goo. These weren't colonists. This was some other… growth. And even if it was a Colonist once, anyone with a basic understanding of biology would know that there was absolutely no way back. Because there shouldn't even have been a way there to start with. I opened the door. There were more of those things inside. All along the main level. One explosive round from Garrus made them all pop. But then gunfire rang.
"Kaidan! Drive the Mako ahead, let us use it as cover!" I ordered. Seconds later, the Mako moved, with Wrex, Ashley and I moving with it. There were the same two colonists guarding it before, as well as another two. Emotionless, numb. I threw a gas grenade, and it detonated. And they all collapsed. I ran a scan, and confirmed they were still alive. Just unconscious. We all took the elevator up.
"Remember, keep the Colonists alive at all costs! Only kill the weird zombie things," I ordered. We pushed through the stairwell towards the colony itself. Safely putting down Colonists and killing the plant things. The Teenagers fired at us, children fired at us, the pregnant woman fired at us. The medic fired at us. All of them, emotionless. Numb. The people we spent hours helping and talking with. Shooting at us. It was damn creepy. But it wasn't their fault. Damn am I glad we got Chakwas out of this. The biggest concentration was by the controls to the crane keeping the crates over the entrance to the lower levels. Arcelia was there, as well as half a dozen other colonists. The only ones I didn't see anywhere were the wounded. We put down the zombie things, and knocked out the Colonists. Not a single human, or non-human, casualty. The gun fire stopped.
"I didn't see Fai Dan anywhere. Keep grenades ready. Biotics, get ready to pacify anyone the very moment you see them. No one dies today. Not on my watch. I'll get the crane." The crew formed a circle and watched for anything. While I used the crane to move the crate, revealing the stairwell down.
"I… tried to-" Fai Dan limped around a corner. Only for a gas grenade to be thrown, and for him to safely collapse to the ground. Knocked out. He had a pistol in his hand. Well, good thing he won't get to use it today. Hm, seemed like he was managing to fight it. Though, his words implied that his effort was coming to a close. With no other immediate threats, we began our descent. Surprisingly, it didn't take nearly as long as one would expect. Just down a few flights, eight, and we heard a weird gurgling noise. Coming from down an adjacent hallway. At the end, some sort of… biomass. Moving. We got closer, and we saw… whatever the hell it is.
"What the actual fuck…" Kaidan murmured.
"By the Goddess…" Liara stared. It was like a massive… blob holding itself in the center of the room, which was just a circular pit with rooms surrounding towards the top, and likely, the bottom. It even nearly seemed to have a face. The mass had large tendrils sticking out that stuck to the walls and ceiling, then spread further through small cracks.
"I… I am at an actual loss for words here," I muttered. It began making noise. Like breathing, almost. The part that looked like a face, that had tentacles drooping from its bottom like some sort of Cthulhu monster was squeezing. And some kind of liquid was dripping out. Damn am I glad helmets filter out smell. The tentacles began to spread, revealing some monstrosity of a hole resembling a combination of a mouth and a vagina, and it leaked even more fluid. I swear it sounded like this… thing was huffing. The tentacles then closed, and out came… a naked Green Asari?
"Ok, I have words again. This is some really fucked up Japanese like shit that I really don't fucking need in my life," I gagged. Genuinely about to vomit.
"Keelah," Tali put a fist by her vocalizer and turned away, bending over slightly. "Ancestors that's disgusting."
"Well… I know what my nightmares are going to be about for the next… rest of my life," Garrus muttered.
"You know I've seen a lot of shit in my time. But this… well this is a fucking first," Wrex added.
"Commander, do I have permission to put a bullet in my own head?" Kaidan struggled to string any words together.
"If you say no, I think Alenko and I will mutiny and do it anyways," Ashley retched. The Asari approached. Still… glistening with that fluid. And just as emotionless as the colonists.
"Invaders! Your every step is a transgression. A thousand feelers appraise you as meat, good only to dig or decompose," the Asari spoke.
"So, naked Green lady speaks for the Thorian. Go figure," I muttered. No idea how this crime against nature of an Asari was created, and frankly, I don't want to know.
"I speak for the old growth, as I did for Saren. You are within and before the Thorian. It commands that you be in awe!"
"Ok, look, we probably would be in awe, but we just witnessed the singular most disgusting thing in our lives. So, pardon us for that," I coughed, trying to keep my lunch down. "Look, we're an enemy of Saren. And the Geth. You say you spoke to Saren. Seems he doesn't want anyone to hear what you told him. Well… us 'meat' have a saying. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. What did Saren want?"
"Saren wanted the knowledge of those who are gone. The Old Growth listened for flesh for the first time in the long cycle. Trades were made. Then cold ones began killing the flesh that would tend the next cycle. Flesh fairly given. The Old Growth sees the air you push as lies! It will listen no more!"
"Let the Colonists go, tell me what you told Saren. I'm sure it can be negotiated that the Colonists aid you of their own free will. I don't want to kill something so old and… historic, if I don't have to."
"No more will the Thorian listen to those that scurry. Your lives are short, but you have gone on too long. Your blood will feed the ground and the new growth." The Asari ended emotionlessly, before attempting to move close to… strangle? Either way, she was shot, and she fell, and green blood pooled around her. There was a kind of raspy screeching from the zombie things, and a door to the right opened. Shotguns out, we stood our ground and tore them to shreds.
"So how are we going to kill this thing?" Kaidan asked.
"The tendrils! Perhaps if we destroy the Thorian's supports, it will simply fall down the shaft!" Liara suggested.
"Works for me. Tendrils in the same room those things came from. Push forward," I ordered. Together, we moved. The next room housed a bulbous mass along the wall, connected to the Thorian's… core? Either way, we shot the mass, green fluid spurting out and painting the walls, shreds of matter tearing off until the mass deflated like a balloon and the tendril connecting it snapped. The Thorian seemed to gurgle in pain. We made our way up a staircase, killing more of the creatures. Not sure I want to know what happens if they get too close. At least they aren't intelligent in their aggression. Their loud, they don't wait to charge en mass. It makes our job easier. The Thorian began making noises again, and at a glance, I saw yet another Asari pop out of its vagina mouth. I gagged again.
"Wrex, watch our backs. Another one's down there," I took a deep breath to keep my lunch down. Another room of those things was cleared, and Wrex took care of the Asari who acted much like the creatures, just in a more "developed" body. She didn't have any weapons, and it didn't seem like any biotics either. Suppose the Thorian can't just make brains with Eezo in them.
Eventually, we found ourselves on the upper level, removing one more tendril. There were others higher up, but the Thorian was straining. We shot at it just like the others. Like a chain reaction, tendrils began snapping. The Thorian dropping as other tendrils got thinner and thinner. The Thorian let out some sort of roar. And then it was gone. Falling down the shaft, likely all the way to the planet's surface. There was the wet noise of some kind of fleshy sac opening. I turned on a dime, shotgun in hand, to see that one of the bulbous sacs on the wall had opened. Dripping fluid, and another naked Asari. But this one, was a natural color for the Asari. A light purple and blue mix. She had the same markings on her face as the other Asari, but instead of attacking, she gazed at her hands. And us.
"I'm free. I'm free!" She must then have felt a bit of a breeze, as she looked down, and noticed her own state. A bit embarrassed, she moved her hands to cover herself. Embarrassed, but, seemingly not panicked. Like that of a woman who had no memory as to why she was naked and in public. "I… suppose I should thank you for releasing me." Cautiously, I lowered my gun, and the others started to do the same.
"Are you alright?" I asked.
"I'm… fine. Yes. At least, I will be, in time."
"Who are you?"
"My name is Shiala. I serve-" she cut herself off. Glancing down. "Served, Matriarch Benezia. When she allied herself with Saren, so did I." the guns came back up. She was not surprised, or fazed.
"I'd hold up a hand to gesture for patience, but…" she forced a smirk. "Benezia foresaw the influence Saren would have. She joined him to guide him down a better path, but Saren is compelling. Benezia lost her way."
"We know. She told us about the indoctrination on Noveria," I revealed. If this Asari is still an agent of Saren, and convinces us to let her go, fooling us, it just means that Saren will know he has one more tool we're onto.
"Did she tell you the true power of his influence, of his indoctrination, comes from his warship?" Shiala asked.
"She did…" I trailed off.
"Then you will understand how 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. He offered me in trade. I was sacrificed to secure an alliance between the two. That, is why I was inside that… thing. Being under the Thorian's power seems to have… freed me." Seems we just missed the bastard.
"Guess he doesn't value the lives of his people any more than others," Kaidan remarked.
"And that extends to the Thorian as well. After Saren had what he wanted, he ordered the Geth to destroy all evidence of its existence. He did not want you to gain the Cipher."
"The Cipher?" I raised a brow under my helmet.
"Yes. The beacon on Eden Prime gave you visions, no? But they would have been unclear, confusing. They were meant for a Prothean mind. To truly understand the visions, you must think like a Prothean. You must understand their history, their culture, their very existence. The Thorian was here long before them. It watched them, studied them, and when they died, consumed them. They became a part of it."
"So… the Thorian taught Saren to think like a Prothean? How'd it manage that?" I questioned.
"The Cipher is the essence of being a Prothean. I can't explain or describe it, not truly. It would be like creating a new color. All that I can tell you, is that the Cipher doesn't change one like you might think. If you gain it, your morals will not change. Your personality will not change. And oddly, you also will not gain the full knowledge of the Protheans. Instead, it will be like an… other, which transcribes for you."
"Well… that's odd," I murmured.
"I sensed all of this, the Cipher, when I melded my mind to the Thorian. Our identities intertwined. Such knowledge can't be taught, it simply exists."
"So… I need you to meld with me so I can get the Cipher then?" I asked after pausing a moment.
"Yes."
"I'm not so sure that's a good idea, skipper," Ashley warned.
"Yeah, well, we don't have much choice, it seems," I muttered. "Get on with it." Shiala nodded, and removed her hands from her body, walking closer.
"Try to relax. Slow, deep breaths. Let go of your physical shell," she spoke quietly. "Reach out to the binds that bring life together." I tried to comply. I was still nervous, off put, but I needed the cipher. "Every action sends ripples across the Galaxy," she stared into my eyes. I felt… a presence, reaching to my mind. Gently seeking entry. It was unsettling. "Every idea must touch another mind to live. Each emotion must mark another's spirit." she stood right in front of me. Still naked, still glistening with whatever kind of fluid was in that sac. "Your helmet…" she trailed off. Cautiously, I removed it, and held it to my side. "We are all connected. Every living being united in a single, glorious existence. Open yourself to the universe. She placed her hands on the side of my head, gently, raised her head, closed her eyes. She brought her head back down to mine and her eyes opened to reveal… black. "Embrace eternity!"
Images. Still broken, but consistent. Stone buildings, vines creeping along them. Strange, alien bodies still. Frozen, or just an image? It was decayed. Flashes of machine and metal and wire. Graved into the flesh. A body, part metal, part flesh, image is close to a closed mouth. A dead mouth. It opens, decayed flesh still sticking. It screeches. More machines. More bodies. Dead? Alive? Pained and terrified expressions. A sight of bodies fleeing a light. A light from a structure floating in the sky. The bodies vanish as the light envelopes them and fades. The sky is burning. Debris falling. A new image, a sun? Rapidly the image pulls back. A planet, dark and shadowed. Another. The image zooms in on the planet. Four yellow eyes glow out of the shadow. A red glow reveals the shape. A ship like Sovereign. The glow gets brighter, the image zooms back. Hundreds. Thousands. Tens of thousands of similar shapes. I hear a whisper.
They are coming.
My eyes open and I'm staring Shiala in the face. My breathing quickens. I feel a cold sweat. I see empathy in her eyes. She saw what I saw.
"Shepard? Shepard!" Tali repeats, seeing me stagger back, hands going to my head.
"It's true. It's all true. It's all fucking real…" I murmured. Repeatedly.
"What did you do?" Ashley exclaimed, pointing her rifle at Shiala. She held her hands up.
"Put it-Put it down, Williams," I ordered, coming back to my senses. "Put it down. I think it worked." I gulped. And continued to breath. "The visions have never been that clear."
"What did you see, Commander?" Liara asked.
"A fucking nightmare…"