Chapter 25 - Archangel and Confirmation
Hackett stared at his screen, his hands shaking. That one word pierced through every wall he had.
Dad?
He so wanted to believe that it was her.
Terra? Where are you? What happened to you?
He sent it, hoping to get an answer despite the late hour, and tried to concentrate on his work while he waited.
It came less than an hour later.
Dad,
Cerberus brought me back. I don't know how. I'm not sure I want to know. I only became conscious this morning. I should warn you that Cerberus have copied the Normandy's design too. I know this is a lot to take in. I'm having trouble with it myself.
They want me to stop the colonist abductions. The collectors are taking them, and there could be a connection to the reapers. I refuse to work for Cerberus, though. I'm heading back to the Alliance just as soon as I've recruited a scientist on Omega. I've looked at his dossier and he's impressive. I believe he can help us with a countermeasure against the miniature probes that the collectors use to disable the colonists. Without it we'll be defenceless when we find them. The sooner I can get him working on that, the better.
I wish I could talk to you face to face, but this whole ship is monitored. At least I'm not totally alone here. I have Joker, and Dr Chakwas is here, too. For me, not Cerberus.
I'll be back as soon as I can.
I love you,
Terra
Hackett ran his hands over his face. She'd confirmed what the quarian had said, but Anderson's words of caution reverberated. He had to know; to see for himself. It sounded like her, but surely he'd know if he had her in front of him. He needed to see her, to test her, because he would know, as her father... He would know if it was his little girl.
-x-
-x-
Shepard had planned to come back to check out Archangel after she was under Alliance colours, but given the new information, she felt she had little choice. His dossier had placed him on Omega, trying to take out gang leaders, and that interested her. Unlike the rest of the dubious potential recruits detailed in the dossiers, he had stood out alongside Dr Solus as someone who wasn't acting for himself. His file had reminded her of Garrus: expert sniper and adept with tech, showing exceptional strategic skills.
She'd enquired with Aria T'Loak, who seemed to run Omega, about Archangel's whereabouts at the same time as she had the scientist, Mordin Solus. Solus was currently in his clinic in the middle of a quarantine zone, and Archangel was about to be ascended upon by three merc bands who'd actually agreed to work together in order to bring him down. That was an impressive accomplishment, and it meant that his time was running out. She reasoned that the doctor would refuse to leave his patients unless he'd dealt with whatever was causing the quarantine, so she decided to go for Archangel first.
They were now heading towards the bridge behind the freelancers who were trying to get to Archangel. Shepard and her team had gone in alongside the mercs under the guise of being freelancers themselves, meandering through the mercs makeshift base like they had every right to be there. Shepard had covertly sabotaged what she could before heading out with the others.
Once over the bridge, they took out the few remaining mercs who hadn't already been downed by Archangel's sniper rifle from his hideout over-looking the bridge, and carefully entered the sealed room. As the door opened she wondered what had made Archangel hold off from shooting them. She'd already ascertained that Archangel was turian, from her questions to the merc band leaders, but what she wasn't prepared for was the moment he removed his helmet.
"Garrus!"
"Spirits, Shepard! Is that really you!? I thought I was seeing things!"
She gave him an amused look. "And yet you let us through anyway?"
"Well, no matter how illogical it was that you were here, I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger. Good thing, too."
"Agreed," she smiled at him. She studied him as he wearily propped himself against the arm of a chair. "You okay?"
"Never been so tired in my life, Shepard. Three days without sleep is about my limit it seems."
"Holy crap, Garrus, what the hell are you even doing here!?"
"That's a long story that will have to wait."
"Understood." Terra re-focused her thoughts. "We know the Eclipse are moving in first with their mechs, the Blood Pack are infiltrating from somewhere underneath the building, and the Blue Suns are holding back until last with a gunship and a roof entry."
"Damn. Well, they had to get smart at some point."
"I wouldn't give them too much credit. We walked right in with them, hacked their heavy mech and that gunship isn't going to be fully functional."
Garrus gave a weary laugh. "It's good to have you back, Shepard. And that's going to be a tale I'll be interested in when this is over."
"Then let's get you out of here, so we can trade."
Movement below at the far end of the bridge signalled the mechs were moving in.
"Positions, people." Shepard took a point adjacent to Garrus, using a pillar for cover. Miranda, Jacob, and their newest recruit Zaeed Massani, went down to bridge level to pick off any that made it over.
It didn't take long to decimate the mechs. The hacked heavy mech dealt with most of the Eclipse mercs before it was destroyed and those left weren't standing for long, either. As Shepard and Garrus reloaded their sniper rifles, he looked over at her.
"Those others you're with... Cerberus?"
She sighed. "Two are, yeah. The other's a bounty hunter they hired. They're the reason I'm standing here. Cerberus that is, and the woman, Miranda Lawson."
"Have to admit, I didn't see that one coming."
"Me neither. I wake up, two years have disappeared and I'm on a Cerberus station. Nope, never in my wildest dreams could I have thought that one up. I hope to remedy that soon though. Get back under the Alliance. I'll explain more later, but Cerberus' goal is important."
"Of course it is, Shepard. This is you we're talking about. You wouldn't be with them if lives weren't at stake."
Shepard exhaled in relief that he understood. As if to emphasise his faith in her, he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Thank you, Garrus. You have no idea, how much that means to me."
"You're a pyjak in a den of varren. I can guess."
Shepard arched a brow at him. "A pyjak?"
"Yeah, it's like your Earth's monkeys, I think-"
"I know what it is, Garrus. I think I'm a little more dangerous than a pyjak!" she said, pretending to be affronted.
Garrus laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to offend you with my metaphor!" In an instant it was just like old times. He hadn't felt so light inside for a very long time. Garrus was still laughing when the sound of a blast underground interrupted him, and it was back to business. "Sounds like the Blood Pack are through. There's only three ways they can get into this facility from down there, and each entrance has a shutter."
Shepard was already getting up. "We're on it. Hold the bridge." She keyed her comm. "Jacob, I want you with Garrus."
"On my way."
"Jacob's the only one I have any modicum of trust in," she quietly imparted to him. "I sure as hell aren't leaving you with the ruthless bounty hunter or the cold Cerberus queen."
"You don't have to do that, Shepard," Garrus protested. "You're going to need all the help you can get down there."
"Garrus, it's not up for debate. You're exhausted, and I'm not losing you now." This time she placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Thanks." He was more relieved than she could know. It was still surreal to have her here. Just when he'd been about to give up and accept the hail of bullets aimed at him.
"Anytime," she nodded at him.
Garrus knew she meant it.
Shepard passed Jacob at the door. "Keep him alive, Mr Taylor," she ordered, her face conveying the hell that would rain down on him if he failed.
"Aye, aye, Commander."
She quickly ran down the steps to the other two. She couldn't understand Jacob Taylor. He was the perfect Alliance soldier. Respectful, capable, but he'd turned his back on them in order to follow Cerberus, an organisation he clearly felt uneasy with. Because they got the job done, he'd told her, but she didn't buy it. He wasn't a results at all costs kind of guy - unlike the merc at her back.
Zaeed Massani. She didn't like him the moment she laid eyes on his dossier. She'd hoped to avoid picking him up altogether, but he was waiting when they docked. She'd tried to keep an open mind, but he'd instantly reinforced her impression with his treatment of his latest 'acquisition' on Omega. It was clear from the stories he'd delighted in telling them on their way here, that the man only looked after himself, that he wasn't a team player. If he didn't change that philosophy fast, then as soon as she was back on stable ground, she'd cut him loose.
They were on the basement level. They took a shutter each, defending them from the mass of vorcha and varren that their krogan masters were sending through, whilst the shutters locked down. It was rather intense and they were all a little worse for wear by the end.
Heading back up, a large group had obviously found another way in, and were ascending the stairs towards Garrus. The Blood Pack leader and his remaining men didn't make it through the door, caught in gun-fire from in front and behind. Shepard checked Garrus over. No new wounds. She nodded gratefully at Jacob, who returned it in understanding. They used the lull in activity to reload.
Garrus sidled over to her, feeling renewed at their success. "You're as good as ever, Shepard. You're demolishing them."
"I'm well rested," she said, wryly.
"Two years is one heck of a nap," he agreed.
"Yeah, wouldn't recommend it. Screws with your head."
He bowed his head to look her directly in the eye, immediately concerned. "You okay with all that?"
"Not sure yet. Haven't really had a chance to get my bearings. Or anyone else's."
"Kaidan?"
She looked down and shrugged.
Garrus sighed, wishing he could help her, but they'd all gone their separate ways without her holding them together, and he had no idea where any of their old team was now. "Well, you can count on me."
She looked back up, not quite managing to pull off the smile she was attempting. "That's good to hear, Garrus. Thank you."
"Anytime," he threw her word back at her with a grin, and he meant it.
Then the Blue Suns hit the building, gunship at the lead. It careened from side to side, unable to stabilise, but it didn't stop some of the bullets from hitting Garrus, who'd had his back to the large window. Ignoring the pain, he acted as a shield for Shepard, shoving her aside, and turning just as the gunship released a rocket.
Terra was mortified as she watched Garrus take a direct hit. He fell to the ground, blue blood instantly pooling under him. She reached out and dragged Garrus behind her cover, then went to work, her worry about his condition fuelling her to get this over with swiftly. She had the others focusing on the ground troops while she aimed for the gunship.
It felt like too long, but in less than five minutes, the gunship was nothing but flaming debris, and no more mercs stood.
Shepard gently turned the still form of Garrus onto his back, fearing what she'd find. The right side of his face was a mess, but his sudden gasp of pain, the gurgle of blood gathering in his throat, had her shouting his name.
"He won't survive that," came Massani's nonchalant gravelly voice from behind her.
Terra gritted her teeth in order to refrain from shouting back at him. There wasn't time. She had to get Garrus back to the Normandy - fast.
-x-
-x-
Garrus sat up gingerly on the bed, surveying his surroundings. The right side of his face was killing him.
"Ah, Garrus, good to see you're up. I have a very concerned Commander who won't take my word you're okay until she sees you conscious."
Garrus zeroed in on Dr Chakwas. "What the-? What are you-? What's going on?" Talking really hurt, but he had to know.
Chakwas chuckled. "You're on board the Normandy SR2, Garrus. You took a rocket to the face. There'll be some heavy scarring but other than that you'll be fine. Luckily, you're made of harder stuff than humans, or it would have been a very different story. Still, I'd suggest ducking next time."
Garrus turned carefully and peered out through the windows. Beyond was the Mess. Larger, but very similar to the one he remembered. Everything felt very strange at this moment, and he looked back at the doctor. "Shepard. I didn't imagine her, right?"
"No, she's very real, Garrus."
"But she did die, right?"
"Yes. Cerberus brought her back."
"How!?"
Chakwas sighed, heavily. "I don't know. They offered to show me the files of her reconstruction but… it just seemed like an intrusion. When she's ready, if she asks it of me, I'll look then. But I don't need to see it to know it's her. You can't fake someone like Shepard."
Garrus could only agree. "She's one of a kind, that's for sure. I'd be dead by now if not for her."
"It's remarkable that despite the size of the galaxy, we're all finding each other again."
"It's like she's the centre of gravity," added Garrus with a pained smile. "Where is she, anyway?"
"Back on Omega, picking up a scientist."
He frowned. "What's happening? I'm guessing Cerberus didn't bring her back without a reason."
"I'll let Shepard fill you in on the details, but entire human colonies are disappearing."
"Something tells me this is bigger than slavers."
"It may just be connected to the reapers."
"Spirits! Cerberus couldn't even allow her to rest in peace," he sneered in disgust. "Shepard never gets it easy, does she?"
Chakwas' face showed her concern. "No. It's why I'm here. It's why she needs us more than ever."
Garrus nodded. "It's why I'm staying."
-x-
-x-
From: Admiral Hackett
Commander Shepard,
Our scans in the Amada system have turned up something we thought you should see: the final location of the wreckage of the SSV Normandy.
We thought this news might be important to you, but we also have an ulterior motive. There are still 20 crew members unaccounted for from the attack. If you find any signs of these lost crewmen, we ask that you report to the Alliance so that those heroes' families might find some closure.
Godspeed to you, Commander.
-x-
Shepard stepped into the shuttle.
"Asides from the fact that you're not under Alliance orders anymore, it's not proper protocol for you to go planet-side alone, Commander," moaned Miranda, standing just outside it.
"I'll be fine."
"At least take Garrus with you."
"Don't you get it?" interrupted Garrus, as he leant against a pillar. "This is personal."
Shepard gave him an appreciative look. "Quit worrying, Lawson. You won't lose your investment today." She shut the shuttle door in Miranda's unamused face, and piloted the vessel out. She needed to put a lid on a past that was still fresh only for her. She needed to say goodbye to her lost family. No one was going to intrude on this.
Flying down to the coordinates, she could finally get a visual. Her heart started hammering the moment she saw the first piece of wreckage. She landed amongst the scattered remains of the Normandy-SR1, and exited.
The area was cold and lifeless. An immense sadness descended as she wandered through the various parts, recognising every single piece she came across.
So many memories surfaced.
There was the main carriage of the ship, 'Normandy' emblazoned proudly on the side, just as she'd first seen it from the viewing gallery on the Citadel, with her new crew - the first time she'd laid eyes on Kaidan.
The replacement Mako, after the first had been wrecked by their landing through the Conduit.
The cargo section where Ashley always worked so diligently.
The CIC, with the so-serious Pressly, who had finally warmed up to their alien recruits. He tried to hide it, but she knew.
The cockpit…. The last place she'd been before being expelled into space's freezing embrace. She shivered with the memory that, to her, was just a couple of days ago.
As she wandered, she found the dog tags of her missing crew. They were all personal losses. As their commander, she'd failed to protect them. Not that she could possibly have done anything against that attack.
Something caught her eye. Black, rounded. It was wedged in the crevice of two rocks, and she bent to yank it free. Her helmet. She ran her gloved hand over the surface. Not black, but gunmetal grey. It was intact. Without it she imagined that she wouldn't be here now - at least, not as herself. Her brain would have had to be whole for her to remember, she was sure. And she did remember. Every moment, every feeling: pain at her life's end, sorrow at losing Ashley and Jenkins, relief at defeating Sovereign and Saren, ecstasy the night before Ilos in the arms of Kaidan... Love.
A sound behind her had her reaching for her gun as she spun.
"It's just me, Terra."
Shepard stared at the armoured figure and had to blink before she accepted he was really there. "Dad?"
Behind the helmet he was just a pair of piercing blue eyes, but she would know them anywhere. Without further hesitation she walked into his arms. The hug was awkward in armour but no less cathartic.
"I hoped it was you. I hoped, but I had to be sure." He drew back to look at her through the visor. "Your scar is gone."
She went to touch her face before she remembered her helmet. "It is? I- I guess I haven't looked in a mirror since I woke up…" She knew she'd been deliberately avoiding it.
Hackett could see his daughter's uneasiness over his observation, but to him it made her more real. To have been reconstructed it made more sense that her scar would no longer be there. If it had been, he'd have wondered if someone had just tried to copy her.
She lifted the dogtags he'd planted, and handed them to him.
"They're just replicas," Hackett explained. "I knew if it was really you, you'd search for every single one. I just had to be sure. Only you would care so much." He stuffed the tags into his outer pocket and took hold of her hands. "I scoured this place looking for you. All I found were your tags. I should have brought them, they belong with you. I'll get them to you, somehow." He realised he was babbling.
"I'm coming back, dad. I'm Alliance. No matter what Cerberus did for me, my allegiance hasn't changed. I have the scientist I told you about, and he's fully committed to finding that countermeasure. I'll fight these collectors, but with the right people."
Hackett took a deep breath. "Alliance Command refuses to entertain the notion that you're anything but dead. Despite the sightings of you on Omega, they're stating it as a Cerberus hoax to boost recruitment. We've lost a lot of good people to Cerberus since you died and the Alliance stood by while the Council ripped apart everything you'd told them. The best of us know that we have to be on the inside to keep up the fight, but it's been slow going, and we missed the ball on these colonies. Terra, we're only now beginning to give our colonies basic defences, and we have nothing on these collectors."
It was hard for Hackett to watch as she processed his words.
"What are you saying?" she almost whispered.
Hackett felt like shit. "I'm saying that Command still thinks Cerberus is behind the attacks. It's their vessels that have been spotted leaving the sites by Alliance personnel."
"They'll have been investigating, just like the Alliance. I'll have our evidence sent to you. Footage from Freedom's Progress. It's irrefutable."
"If it originates from Cerberus, they won't even look at it."
Shepard exhaled in frustration. "And me?"
She was looking at him, beseeching him to throw her a lifeline, and it broke his heart that he had little to offer her. "If you hand yourself in to the Alliance, you'll just end up being detained for months while they interrogate you over your whereabouts for the last two years, and your association with Cerberus. I hate to say it, but you staying under Cerberus is the best hope for these colonies right now."
Shepard began to pace in front of her father, her mind racing. Her father made sense. Of course he did. He knew the way it worked. He was right. She'd been naïve to think she could just waltz back after so long and be accepted with open arms. It didn't matter how much she'd accomplished, with a Cerberus association she was a pariah, and she knew that was exactly how the Illusive Man had wanted it. She stopped in front of her father and cleared her throat. "I was going to try getting the Council's support."
"It's worth a shot. If you can convince them, then the Alliance will have to look again at what you're saying."
"If." Somehow it felt like a harder task than defeating collectors and reapers.
"I'm sorry, Terra. It shouldn't be like this, but there's little I can do about the politics. Cerberus is like a stain that won't wash out. The Alliance won't risk touching this with them involved. It wouldn't look good to the other Council races."
"So I'm on my own. Huh. Sounds familiar," she murmured.
Her forlorn words were heartrending for Hackett to hear. "Not on your own, Terra. Not completely. Anderson and I will do whatever we can. You know that."
"I know. But in the meantime I have to deal with the devil."
"They brought you back. They need you. You're important to them. It means they'll protect you… It means it's the best place for you right now."
She nodded grudgingly. "Dad, can you tell me about Kaidan?"
"Oh, Terra…" His heart sank for her. "I didn't think. He's not Navy anymore, so I don't have any info on him. Anderson will know, he deals with the elite Marine personnel. He'll be in touch soon. I'll make sure he fills you in." He didn't say what he knew she was already thinking - that after two years he may well have moved on. Hackett could see the thought on her pained face as clear as day.
"I'd appreciate that. I need to talk to him."
"Of course."
She took a deep breath in, then exhaled slowly. "I should probably go. Operative Lawson was already against me being down here by myself. If I don't check in she'll send a search party."
Hackett grasped hold of her arms. "Take care, Terra. I love you, sweetheart." He held her to him. His little girl. Back in his life again. The impossible standing right in front of him. He owed Cerberus one. A priceless one.
"I love you too, dad. Does mom know?"
"Nothing more than rumours. I'll let her know the truth as soon as I get back. Keep up those messages. I need to know you're okay, Terra."
"I will. Goodbye, Dad." She reluctantly stepped away from her father, and walked back to the shuttle.
Her whole body felt so very heavy. She was stuck in a state of oblivion - she didn't want to be where she was, and she couldn't be where she wanted to be, not without stranding those colonists. More than that, she'd be letting down Joker, Dr Chakwas, and Garrus. So she'd keep going, for all of them.
Pretending to be a commander, though she was no longer that. Pretending to be what they wanted to see.
Inside, she was just lost.
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