Chapter 20: Sanctuary

London, Earth

New Scotland Yard

9:30 AM Galactic Standard Time

"Damn, this place got hit hard." Mike said, observing the New Scotland Yard building, which was half destroyed and producing a large billow of smoke from it's east side. What was once the fleet of police vehicles lining the front of the building was now nothing more than a pile of scrap metal, some even torn in half as if by something's bare hands. Several burned corpses were left laying on the stairs leading to the front doors, the charred remains of firearms scattered around them. The group slowly approached the building, weapons drawn and ready to fire at a moment's notice.

Alaia looked at the bodies on the stairs, shaking her head. "They must have been hit just as the attack started."

"Yeah," Nepturus added, "they would have been caught completely off guard. These guys were trained to deal with gangs and drug dealers, not full-scale war. Poor bastards."

"Can't do anything about it now. Let's just get inside." Tarok said, covering their flank.

They ascended the stairs, being careful not to step on the remains of the dead policemen. Mike was the first to reach the doors as he hoped that they would open by simply pressing the button on the console. To his surprise, the door slid open with relative ease. "Huh, that's a nice change of pace: something that actually works."

"Maybe that means there are still some people inside." Alaia said, optimistically.

"Still, stay sharp in there." Tarok cautioned.

Mike nodded as he pulled out his pistol and slowly stepped into the building, checking all around the entrance hall for threats. The inside of the police building was even worse than the outside. The bodies of policemen who fought to the end to defend the area from the invading monsters were either gunned down or beaten to death where they stood, though it was obvious from the many guns that didn't have a body next to them that many of them were taken to be turned into husks. It seemed, however, that they had not gone down without a fight, as several reaper corpses were strewn across the floor along with the policemen. The front desk was riddled with bullet holes from where several officers had used it for cover from the barrage of reaper gunfire. One of the doors leading to the detective desks seemed to have been forced open, as it was stuck at an odd angle in the door frame. Overall, the first room was an ominous hint as to the state of the rest of the building.

"First room's clear." Mike said, still saddened by the number of bodies lying around the room. "Watch your step, though."

Upon entering the room, Alaia caught a glimpse of the slaughter. "Keelah...and I thought the hotel was bad."

"At least they put up a good fight." Nepturus added, checking the room behind the forced door, only to see several more corpses.

"Yeah, but the reapers put up a better fight, by the looks of things." Tarok stepped over a dead husk and went over to the front desk, looking over it to see trails of blood leading out from behind the counter.

"It looks like the reapers have moved on, at least. As long as we keep our heads down and don't draw attention to ourselves, this should be a safe enough place to bunker down for a day or two." Nepturus observed.

"Let's check the entire building first. I want to make sure there aren't any more of those things left in here." Mike added out of precaution.

"Yeah, I'd prefer not to be woken up with a husk standing over me. They're creepy enough as it is." Alaia half-joked.

"Okay, let's search each floor starting with this one." Mike suggested.

"I'd feel better if we started planning our next move. All of this running around at random is getting old." Tarok commented.

"Alright, we'll do that as soon as we know the building's secure." Nepturus responded. "Let's start with that room over there." They each pulled out their guns as they moved to the door, beginning their long search across the building.

They finished the first floor easily enough before moving on to the second, which seemed to have fewer bodies than the first, though there were still signs of a struggle. The rest of the seven floors went about as uneventfully, with each floor looking more evacuated than fought in. When they reached the last floor, they found that it had a small kitchen and an entertainment area, which meant it was probably used as a break area for off-duty officers. It had been a good hour since they started, so they were eager to finally call the all clear.

"Phew, those stairs were pretty steep." Nepturus huffed.

"Yeah, but I am not getting in those elevators." Alaia said, leaning herself against a wall to relax.

"I hear you. We already have enough things trying to kill us." Mike said as he checked the kitchen for supplies. Not surprisingly, the power had gone out in the building, so the refrigerator was no longer working. However, the food inside was still decently chilled and the refrigerator itself was still holding its chill. "There's not a lot of food in here, but it should keep us for a few days and let us save the stuff we found at the Palace for later."

"At least for you and Tarok." Alaia corrected.

"Fine by me." Tarok said, putting his shotgun away. "We'll need an escape plan if those things storm the building."

"I saw an emergency fire escape running up the side of the building when we first got here. It looked like it led to the alley behind the building itself, which should make a pretty good escape route if we need it." As Nepturus explained, he went to the janitor's closet on the far side of the floor on a hunch. Luckily, the pistons on the door were not as heavy duty as at the hotel or the palace, so he could force them open himself, revealing a window marked "Emergency Fire Exit". "There, a quick way out."

"Good. Any idea how we can block out the windows?" Mike asked, noticing how, even though the building was not as tall as many of the others in the city, there was still a decent view of some of the city skyline; meaning if one of the larger reapers looked at the building, it could easily see them.

"Without power, we can't. We'll have to stick to the back rooms where we can't be seen."

"Why can't we just board them up?" Alaia asked.

"Too conspicuous. If they see that the windows on the top floor are boarded up, they'll now someone's in here."

"Alright," Mike said, "let's get in there before we're noticed."

The group spent the next few minutes setting up the back rooms as a makeshift shelter for whatever amount of time they would be there. Tarok and Mike moved the furniture around to give them room to sleep while Nepturus and Alaia set up some simple alarm systems in the stair case to alert them if anything was heading their way. They then raided all of the floors for any medical supplies, finding a modest supply of medi-gel in the building's first aid station. Finally, after scrounging for any weapons and clips they could find, they made their way back to the top floor, sealed the door to the staircase behind them and did the same to the doors to the back rooms.

Having adequately supplied themselves, they used the cushions from the furniture in the room to set up some makeshift beds on the floor. Mike laid back on his improvised bed and sighed. "Man, it feels good to have something soft to relax on."

Alaia put her hands behind her head and did the same. "No kidding. All of this makes me miss my bed back on the Ictomy."

"I actually preferred the floor of that restaurant compared to the beds I had back in my military days." Nepturus joked, checking the sensors that he and Alaia had improvised and put around the stairs.

"Do you realize how old you sound when you talk like that?" Mike quipped. "'Back in my day, we slept on rocks and ate dirt and we were thankful!'" Mike's old man impression made Alaia laugh while Nepturus smiled and rolled his eyes.

Tarok just sat there and groaned. "You're one to talk, Reynolds."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You sounded like an obnoxious suckling when you said that."

"Just trying to lighten the mood, Big Guy."

Tarok groaned and sat down against a wall, preparing to check in guns once again. Once Nepturus was sure that the sensors they'd set up were working, he stretched his arms out and arched his back. "I don't know about you guys, but I need some rest." He then laid down on his bed and closed his eyes.

"Same here. I think we're going to need all the energy we can muster pretty soon." As Mike readied himself to take a quick nap, he looked over to Alaia to see her looking at her omni-tool, which was open to the comm channel they'd set up at the palace. "You alright, Alaia?" He asked.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, just...checking." Alaia's voice dropped as she again found no signal outside of the building.

"You sure you're okay?"

"...It's just...I feel like we abandoned her. Like we could have done more..."

"I know how you feel, but if we had stayed we would have been killed too. She knew that, so she decided to tell us to leave. Remember her for that."

Alaia brought her knees up to her chest and laid her chin on top of them. "I know...I'll be fine. I just didn't really expect any of this when I started my pilgrimage. I'm surprised I haven't gone crazy yet."

"You're stronger than most, girlie." Tarok said from across the room. "You stood your ground against those freaks out there and survived where trained soldiers had died. That's impressive...for a quarian."

"Thanks, guys. So...what are we going to do while we're cooped up in here? We don't exactly have a deck of cards on us."

"I'm going to follow Nep's example and catch a few Zs, you could do the same." Mike yawned.

"I'm not tired, though."

"Well, you and Tarok could have a staring contest." Mike could hear Tarok bemoan that idea as his eyes closed, a mischievous smile forming on his face.

"I'll think of something. Good night."

Mike yawned again. "Good night." With that, Mike fell asleep in seconds.

Alaia sat in the room, mostly looking down at her feet as an awkward silence fell over the room. Hoping to find something to do, Alaia looked over to Tarok, "Hey, Tarok, I-" She was met by the sight of Tarok sound asleep, his head tilted down as his mouth hung open. Awwww, like a baby! Alaia smiled to herself as she looked over her friends getting some much deserved rest. Though at first she was at a loss for something to do, an idea soon popped into her head as she opened her omni-tool and activated its art program.

SSV Patillo

Shanxi-Theta Relay

3 hours later...

"...and that's all he told you?" Admiral Hackett asked Captain Welch concerning his call from the Illusive Man.

"Yes, I've already alerted Makasani and Juarez. Their ships are on high alert, as is mine." Welch answered.

"I know I don't have to tell you this, but you cannot allow them to reach Earth. The Illusive Man may claim to work for the benefit of humanity, but his methods are too extreme and there's no telling what he wants from Earth. Keep his people away from the relay, but do not underestimate them. Shepard sent us a report on Cerberus troops that had overtaken the martian ruins, we believe there's a strong chance the entire organization's been indoctrinated, the Illusive Man included."

"What can we expect?"

"Their people are well trained, well equipped, and highly augmented. More than likely, they'll send some fighters to distract you while their transport ship pushes past the blockade."

"We'll have Makasani's ship focus on keeping the fighters under control. Juarez's ship has the more powerful guns, so we'll have him focus fire on any transport vessels while my crew covers him."

"A good strategy, but don't decide on anything until you've got them in your sights. If Cerberus is one thing, it's crafty. They may try anything to get to the relay, so keep on your toes."

"Yes, sir."

"Good...and before I forget, I have some news about Helen."

Welch's eyes shot up to the Admiral's image upon mention of his daughter's name. Fearing the worst, he cleared his throat. "...Go ahead."

"We finally managed to get a report from Earth. It mentioned your daughter was last seen defending civilians in London earlier this morning, though where they are now is unknown."

Somewhat breathing a sigh of relief, Welch replied. "Thanks, Steve. It's something to go on, at least."

"We need all the hope we can get in times like this. Keep you and your crew safe, Bill. Hackett out."

As the Admiral's image faded from the comm screen, Welch took a moment to contemplate the threat that was coming. He had never seen Cerberus troops before, so he would essentially be flying blind when they arrived. He looked out the window of his cabin, taking in the billions of stars outside as he usually did before a battle. He then proceeded to the elevator to head to the bridge, knowing that's where he needed to be before the battle started.

Crew Deck 3

Haal and Palana sat alone in the crew quarters, discussing the past, present, and future in an attempt to take their minds off of their fears. Haal kept his hands behind his back as he stared out of the viewport while Palana put a hand on his shoulder. "You're not still angry with her, are you?" She asked.

"...Why shouldn't I be? She defied my wishes, embarrassed her home ship, put herself in danger...She'll be lucky if I ever allow her out of my sight again if we get her back." Haal showed little emotion, as was his custom, while he conveyed his feelings, though it was clear he was far more stressed than he appeared.

"She would have been in danger on her pilgrimage, anyway. If anything, you should be proud of her."

"Proud? I should be proud of my daughter for disrespecting me?"

"No, you should be proud of her for pursuing her dreams despite the danger."

"Her "dreams" would have gained her nothing but a life of seclusion and wasted time. I've already made this quite clear."

"Painfully clear, if Alaia were here to express her opinion." Palana began showing signs of anger as her husband remained monotone.

"She is a child, she doesn't know what her opinions are."

"She's not a child, Haal. She's as old as you were when you asked me to marry you. Does that mean I was just a passing fancy of yours?"

Palana's attempts to twist his words against him began to test his patience. "Of course not! That is an entirely different matter!"

"I don't see how! If you knew what you wanted at that age, then why can't our daughter?"

"I simply want what's best for her!"

"Are you sure? Or do you simply want a daughter you can brag about to the other captains!"

"Are you calling me selfish? I passed up chances to become an Admiral so I could be with you two! I could have been one of the most powerful members of the Migrant Fleet, but I gave up those chances because I knew it would isolate me from you both! So don't you dare call me selfish!"

"If you care about her so much, why do you work so hard to crush her dreams?"

Haal tried his best to compose himself again, though it was becoming a much harder battle. "It was never my intention to crush her dreams. I just want her to have a secure place in the Flotilla."

"Why is that so important to you?"

"...I refuse to discuss this any further."

"Don't think I'm another one of your crewmen that you can just dismiss when you see fit!"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Why do you not trust your own daughter?"

"Palana..."

"Tell me!"

"BECAUSE I'M AFRAID! THERE, I SAID IT! ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?!" Silence fell through the deck at Haal's outburst, the last two days of fear of and stress having been forced from him. Haal turned from his wife and leaned his head against his arm on the viewport.

Palana was genuinely shocked, not expecting him to react so strongly. "Afraid? Afraid of what?"

Haal took several deep breaths, trying to regain control of himself. "...I told you about how I once wanted to be a marine? How I dreamed of fighting the geth off of our homeworld some day?"

"Yes. You said you couldn't because you couldn't pass the physical."

"...Forgive me, but that's not the whole truth."

"But why would you lie to me about this?"

"...When I was eighteen...I tried to enlist, but my respiratory disorder kept me from getting in. I was so frustrated that I wanted to prove to everyone that it wouldn't hinder me." As Haal conveyed his story, his voice became filled with what could only be described as bottled up emotion. "I was so excited at the prospect of finally becoming a marine that I snuck aboard a marine vessel about to go on a mission inside the Veil to recover a young man on pilgrimage. When we arrived at the signal's origin on a planet named Kaddi ...they found what was left of him, shot to pieces. I revealed myself at that point, but before the commander could do anything about me, we were attacked by geth."

Haal clenched his fists against the viewport as Palana listened to his every word.

"Half of the squad was gunned down in seconds as the rest of us made our way behind a large boulder. I'd managed to grab an assault rifle from a fallen marine, but everything was happening so fast that I couldn't help them. Before long, it was only me and the commander left...he'd been injured by a geth sniper and we were forced to retreat back to the ship. He collapsed to the ground halfway there and died in my arms...I was alone. I could hear them coming after me and I was sure that I'd doomed myself. I thought I had what it took to be a soldier, but had no idea what the risks were. To this day, I don't really know how I managed to get back to the ship, but I managed to get off planet before they reached me."

"How could you have possibly managed all of this without anyone knowing about it?"

"...My father...convinced the captain of our ship to keep me out of the incident report. It was the only time in his life that he'd had to pull strings with anyone...he prided himself on being honest...and I forced him to lie. He never forgave me for that. I thought I knew what I wanted, but my passion nearly killed me. I didn't want Alaia doing the same."

"Being an artist if far different than being a soldier, Haal."

"I know how most artists expect to become famous and wealthy, but end up broken and disappointed. They devote themselves completely to what they do and fail to develop any other skills, dooming them to die feeling as though they wasted their lives for nothing. That thought...thinking that Alaia would make the same mistake I made and end up hurt...it terrified me."

Haal sat down on their bed, putting his head in his hands. Palana sat next to him, putting her hand on his leg. "I understand your fears, but Alaia didn't need you to tell her what she should do. She needed your support, no matter what she wanted to do with her life. Instead, she thinks she's nothing more than a trophy daughter to you."

Haal's thoughts fell back to the last time he'd talked to his daughter, where he dismissed her painting with such cold indifference and made her more upset than he'd ever seen her. For the first time, Haal was forced to deal the thought that he'd made his daughter hate him. Before he could think about it further, his omni-tool beeped, indicating he was receiving a message. Activating his omni-tool hesitantly, he saw that the call was from Taio back on the Ictomy. Answering the call, he said, "Haal here."

"Captain. It's good to hear your voice, sir. Do you have Alaia?"

"Not yet. It's...complicated."

"I'm sorry to hear that, sir...but there's something you need to know."

Noticing the tone of his voice, Haal became concerned. "Well? Out with it."

"Earlier this morning...the Admiralty convened to make a decision about our war with the geth. They decided it's time to retake Rannoch."

Both Haal and Palana knew what this meant and their hearts dropped at the prospect. "What? Are they insane?!" Haal yelled, standing up and pacing as he tried to make sense of what he'd just been told. "We're nowhere near ready for a war with the geth, especially given the reaper invasion!"

"Some are arguing that the reapers are exactly why we need to retake the homeworld. We may not get another chance."

"So they'll just throw our people against the geth with the half assed artillery they've forced us to attach to our ship! I won't have it! Take the Ictomy out of the Flotilla! I will not have my crew killed just so Gerrel can play hero!"

"I'm sorry, sir. I can't do that."

Haal, at first, couldn't believe what he'd just been told. "What did you say?"

"I can't stand idly by while my fellow quarians fight and die to retake our homeworld...and neither can our crew. I've made my decision."

Haal's anger turned to rage as he realized how powerless he had become. "You...arrogant, backstabbing, brainless...BOSH'TET! I trusted you, and you choose to throw our people at the geth to be slaughtered!"

Palana would normally interject, but she knew she would only end up saying the same thing Haal had.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, but my father died trying to give us an edge over the geth...he deserves to have his death not be in vain. If we're successful, I will submit to any punishment you see fit when you get back. Goodbye, sir...and good luck." Taio ended the call there, knowing Haal would not be willing to hear any more.

Haal stood in the middle of the room, his breathing becoming labored as he tried to contain the anger that was building in his stomach. Palana carefully stood up and approached him. "Haal...are you alright?"

He didn't answer at first, his omni-tool still buzzing after the call had ended. "...First, I lose my daughter...now, I've lost my ship! My crew is about to be destroyed by those infernal machines and my daughter may be dying on an alien world...and there's nothing I can do about it!" He was at a loss for anything else to say as Palana walked in front of him, lifting his head by his helmet so his eyes would meet hers, and embraced him. Haal returned the hug immediately, relishing in the comfort as everything he'd ever cared about hung in the balance.

Mess Hall

Narala continued to sip what must have been her tenth cup of coffee as she watched Nick and Telius play a card game with Samantha. It was obvious they were playing to relieve stress, but they still seemed to be having fun regardless. Nick was his usual cocky self as he laid down two pairs of cards and pulled the pile of credits toward him as Telius and Samantha groaned. She smiled as her thoughts turned back to only a few weeks prior when she, Mike, and several other people who worked with them were playing Skyllian Five as they usually did every Saturday. The memory of Mike's smile as he won a few hands brought butterflies to her stomach. Her eyes watered slightly as she quickly worked to wipe them away before the others noticed.

Then, Samantha called back to her, "Hey, Narala?"

Looking up, Narala answered, "Yeah?"

"Why don't you join us?"

Narala waved her hand and smiled. "No, thank you. I wouldn't be very good right now."

"That's not stopping these two!" Nick called out, lauging at the large pile of credits in front of him.

"C'mon, 'Rala." Telius urged. "We're all worried, but if you don't do something to take your mind off of it, you'll go crazy. Just one game?"

Narala was tempted to dismiss the idea again, but after looking at all of their faces staring at her with their encouraging smiles, she sighed, "Okay, one game. You hear me? One game."

"Fine by me," Nick said, "just more credits for me."

Narala moved over to their table and grabbed the deck of cards on the table. With amazing dexterity, she shuffled the cards first upwards, then downwards, behind her head, from one hand to the other at arms width, and finally with one hand before putting the deck back on the table. Samantha chuckled at Nick as he remembered how many times he'd lost to her on all of those Saturday nights. "Deal the cards, Telius." Narala said with a smile.

Smiling at Nick's imminent downfall, Telius said, "Yes, ma'am."

Crew Deck 6

"How's Rachel been doing?" One marine asked another as they patrolled the halls.

"I got a call from her yesterday after Earth got hit. She wanted to know if I was alright." The other replied, checking his assault rifle.

"If they keep us next to this relay like this, I don't think we'll be alright for long."

"I hear ya, that footage from Earth...I'm not sure I'm up for something this big."

"It doesn't seem like we have much-" Suddenly, a slight thud echoed through the hall, catching their attention. "You hear that?"

"Yeah..." They turned around to face the source of the noise, but saw nothing. They each looked at one another, their rifles trained down the hall. They slowly moved toward the corner to the next hallway, hugging the wall next to them. When they reached the corner, the marine in front put out three fingers, then two, and finally one as they bolted from behind the corner, their rifles ready to fire. What they saw confused them somewhat. There was a circular cut in the wall next to a viewport, which would normally result in a hull breach and a powerful vacuum, yet there seemed to be another structure on the other side.

"What the..." Before he could say any more, he gasped as he felt an incredible pain go through his back and into his chest. Looking down, he was greeted by the sight of a bloodied sword blade sticking out of his chest. He then heard a loud crack next to him before his world turned black.

As the two marines fell dead on the floor, two female figures de-cloaked behind them, one flicking the blood from her monomolecular blade as the other pressed a finger to her ear. "Hall secured."

As the all clear was called, several other soldiers in white and orange armor exited the circular hole in the hull, each with an almost diamond shaped insignia emblazoned on their chests and shoulders.