A/N - I come to you today with both the final part of the Leviathan DLC and some great news: Twist the Knife is now completely written (minus the epilogue)! I'm working as quickly as possible with my people to get the rest of the story proofed and re-proofed and to you ASAP. In the meantime, a few words to explain some choices I made with Despoina. First, as I have said before, I really like the Leviathan DLC and I've tried not to trash it too much. Second, this is my favorite mission of the DLC, and its generally quite exciting. That being said, this story is about Shenko, not just Shepard, and so there are a few changes. Also, I continue my efforts to make otherwise very smart people not say dumb things... "Can't we just call the Normandy for a pick up?" really? and to give Shepard and Kaidan a bit more agency. Hopefully you approve...
As always, all credit for this amazing world and everything in it belongs to Bioware.
When they reached the Citadel, Shepard had Cortez drop Ann off at her father's lab alone. She planned to join her later, but she decided to give the woman a little time out of respect. She busied herself in the meantime with the dozens of tasks that always seemed to need her attention. Though the busy work tried her patience at times, she consoled herself that, no matter how mundane the task, at least she wasn't solving the galaxy's daddy issues. After several hours had passed, she called EDI and Kaidan and they headed to meet Ann at Bryson's lab.
They disembarked and entered the lab, and Shepard noted that the space was still and quiet.
"Ann? Are you here?" she called into the empty space and heard a soft sob as a reply. She moved toward the sound and found Ann up in the loft, huddled on the floor beside her father's bed. Pictures and other mementos were strewn around her.
"Ann," Shepard said softly as she approached.
"Ah, Commander, yes I'm sorry," Ann replied, her voice clouded with tears. "Just.. this is hard."
"Of course," Shepard said gently. "Are you alright?"
"Yes... No," Ann sobbed, lowering her head. "I don't know. My father and I didn't leave things in a great state."
"An argument?" Shepard asked.
"Yeah," Ann confirmed. "It was... trivial. A disagreement on how to file some of the specimens. I was mad about something else. I don't remember what. And I took it out on him. S-so stupid."
"It's alright, I can come back," Shepard said. She wanted to solve this mystery, find Leviathan, bully it into helping her, and then get on with the war, but clearly Ann was in no condition to help. She turned to leave.
"No, please," Ann called, getting to her feet and making an effort to steady herself. "I'm ok," she said when Shepard stopped and looked back. "Seeing all this again... he was so obsessed. Crazy sometimes."
"I didn't get a chance to know him," Shepard replied.
"Ah, sometimes I felt the same way," Ann said sadly. "He was a great man – a pioneer – but he could be distant. I felt like an inconvenience growing up."
"You sound angry," Shepard said.
"I was angry," Ann confirmed. "Still am, I guess. But sometimes, he was so full of stories he nearly burst. I loved that about him. It's why I signed up for this work." She exhaled audibly, a long slow sigh filled with sadness. "I can't believe he's gone."
"We'll figure this out," Shepard said, approaching the other woman and putting her hand on Ann's arm gently.
"We have to," Ann replied, and her voice was stronger, filled with resolve. "I need to know what's on the other end of that artifact. What he died for."
"We need your help," Shepard agreed. "You're our last chance."
"You're right," Ann said with a nod. "Let me dig into my father's work to see what I can find." She began to move toward the stairs.
"Are you sure you're up for this?" Shepard asked as she followed her.
"Yes," Ann confirmed resolutely. "When Leviathan took control of me, I remember being somewhere cold and dark. But my father taught me to never be afraid of the dark."
#-#-#
They spent the next hour walking through the lab with Ann, learning more about Bryson's work and getting Ann's input on her own work. They eventually came to the conclusion that although they couldn't detect any energy signatures from the artifact itself, Leviathan used the it as a type of QEC that emitted pulses that could be traced. Shepard followed the science. Mostly. But she didn't feel anywhere near the level of fascination that her geek husband showed. Ann and EDI weren't much better.
"Is there anything more you can tell us?" she asked Ann.
"I don't think there's anything more I can tell you," Ann said. "But – maybe – I can show you."
Shepard saw Kaidan shake his head slowly, and realized she was missing something.
"What are you saying?" she asked.
"The artifact only sends out a signal when Leviathan's controlling someone," Ann explained. "So – let it control me. You could trace the signal."
"You mean let it take you over?" Shepard asked, her voice rising in alarm.
"That's exactly what she means," Kaidan confirmed. "And it's way too dangerous."
"It's my call, not yours!" Ann protested firmly. "You said I'm your last chance to find this thing."
"You have no idea what will happen," Kaidan continued to object.
"If we wait, the Reapers will get to Leviathan first. I'm the only one here who's spent enough time with it to do this," Ann argued back.
She turned to Shepard, who was listening to both sides of the argument with interest.
"You're looking for something to fight the Reapers, Commander," she said. "I'm looking for the monster that murdered my father."
Shepard sighed and took a moment to wonder if she had jinxed herself earlier when she thought that she was done with daddy issues. She weighed Kaidan's very real concerns against the potential value of the experiment and then sent her husband a small conciliatory glance.
"We don't even know what we're looking for," he said, one last ditch protest, though he knew he had lost.
"Then let's find out," Ann said firmly. She moved to sit near the artifact.
"This thing we're doing is dangerous as hell," Kaidan said softly so that only Shepard would hear.
"Noted," she replied with a sigh. She nodded towards Ann in a signal she knew he'd read, then turned to the other member of her squad, who had remained silent during the debate.
"EDI?" she questioned.
"I'll set up the trace," EDI replied. "Locked in, waiting for activation," she added a moment later.
Shepard moved to stand in front of Ann.
"You sure about this?" she asked one last time.
"Yes, I'm sure," Ann confirmed.
Kaidan moved to stand behind her chair and over her shoulder. That he was directly between Ann and the artifact wasn't coincidental. He wasn't sure what he could do, but he was sure he'd be in the right position to do it if the opportunity arose.
"I'll be right here with you," he said softly, placing a reassuring hand on Ann's shoulder. She craned her head, met his eyes, and smiled.
"Ok," she said softly, and he saw the gratitude in her eyes. She turned back to Shepard. "I'm ready."
Shepard signaled Kaidan with a nod and he reached behind him, slapping the button to lower the containment shield on the artifact and then went back to his position behind Ann with his hand on her shoulder. He found himself in the unenviable position of having to watch two amazing women bravely and selflessly put themselves in danger. It was something he'd never get used to, no matter how many battles he fought beside Shepard. His built-in protective instinct was stretched to the limit and screaming.
"Artifact online," EDI reported from where she was standing at her console.
"Anything?" Shepard asked Ann.
"Nothing yet," the other woman replied. She dropped her head and concentrated.
"Wait," she said a moment later. "There's something... I feel a chill."
"EDI?" Shepard turned her head to ask sharply.
"No trace yet," EDI replied.
Shepard turned back just as Ann began to spasm and thrash. Kaidan held her as still as he could, both hands on her shoulders in a gentle grip.
"Ann!" Shepard cried in alarm.
"Signal is tracking," EDI reported. "Maintain connection."
"Shepard," Kaidan said a low tone of warning in his voice.
"Turn back now," Leviathan chanted its now-familiar phrase in Ann's voice. "The darkness cannot be breached."
"Maintain connection," EDI said firmly, working furiously at the console.
"Listen to me!" Shepard growled, menace in her own voice. "I've found you, and the Reapers are right behind me."
"You have brought them," Leviathan accused. "You are a threat!" All traces of Ann's voice had vanished and the creature spoke through her in the deep malevolent tone that it had before.
"So are you," Shepard argued. "I've seen what you can do. The war needs you."
"There is no war," Leviathan countered. "There is only the harvest."
"EDI, do we have enough?" Shepard asked behind gritted teeth.
"Partial lock," EDI confirmed. "Maintain connection to narrow the search."
"How partial?" Shepard asked.
"Three systems," EDI answered.
"Close enough," Shepard said with a nod. "Kaidan," she called, though she saw he was already raising the containment shield.
He knelt in front of Ann, omni-tool engaged, checking her vitals.
"Is she ok?" Shepard asked.
"Seems like she will be," Kaidan replied with a sigh of relief.
"Ann?" Shepard said softly, The other woman had not raised her head since Leviathan had taken over. "Ann, you alright?"
"Yes," Ann replied, breathing heavily and holding her head. "I think so."
"Let's get her to Dr. Michel," Shepard said. She and Kaidan helped Ann up and supported her between them. "EDI, put the systems on the Normandy galaxy map. We'll meet you back on board."
"Yes, Shepard," EDI replied.
Shepard met Kaidan's eyes and smiled gratefully. She knew the afternoon would have gone a lot differently without him. They helped Ann out together and called a rapid transit to the hospital.
#-#-#
Almost a week later, Shepard boarded the shuttle with Kaidan and Garrus to investigate the Leviathan energy signature they had found on the oceanic planet 2181 Despoina. She was feeling the impatience at being kept away from the war so long rise again, and she hoped that this mission would finally yield the powerful ally that she hoped Leviathan could be.
Once everyone was settled and they were underway, Shepard turned to her pilot.
"Cortez, what's the status of the probe we launched?" she asked.
"Tracking it now, Commander. I've confirmed that Leviathan's signal originated from this planet. Heard how Ann helped us locate it. It's pretty spooky stuff," Cortez replied.
"Makes you wonder... what exactly is down there? We know its Reaper-killer, and it doesn't want to be found," Kaidan added.
"It doesn't have a choice," Shepard replied with grim determination. "We're here."
"But then what?" Kaidan pressed. "Say it is a Reaper. Do we really want its help?"
Shepard shoved aside impatience, anger, and frustration and took a deep breath and then blew it back out slowly. She knew Kaidan was simply both being cautious and playing devil's advocate, but the fact that he was asking questions that echoed some of her own doubts was getting to her. And she suspected he knew it, too.
"Look, Kaidan," she said firmly. "Nobody says we have to be friends with it, but if this thing has the rest of the Reapers worried, then we need its help."
Kaidan met her eyes, saw the determination in them, and sighed himself. He nodded and dropped his gaze.
"Do you two need some time alone?" Garrus asked breezily, trying to cut the tension with humor.
"I think we're good, now, thanks," Shepard replied with a grin.
"Commander, new readings from the probe. It's narrowed down Leviathan's location. You're not going to like it," Cortez called from the cockpit.
Shepard turned toward him.
"Let's hear it."
"There's nothing but ocean," he told her. "I show a concentration of structures floating on the surface, but the probe's giving us a signal below that. Way below."
"Under water?" she asked in clarification.
"Looks that way," he confirmed with a nod. "The shuttle should still be able to reach it."
"That's possible?" she asked in surprise.
"The Kodiak is spec'ed to nearly a thousand atmospheres... though I've never actually tested that," he added the last in wry humor.
"Guess we're going to find out-" she began to say and the shuttle rocked hard from one side to another. She checked to make sure both Kaidan and Garrus were unharmed, receiving nods from both.
"Status?" she asked.
"Some kind of pulse hit us!" Cortez exclaimed. "Systems are shutting down! Brace for impact!"
Shepard allowed Kaidan to pull her into the seat beside him and didn't protest when he kept his hand firmly on her arm. They came to a hard stop with a jolt seconds later.
"Everyone all right?" Shepard asked, to confirm what her eyes were already telling her.
"A little banged up, but fine," Kaidan said with a nod, doing his own assessment of her.
"How's the shuttle, Cortez?" she asked.
"Checking now. I'll see if I can get power restored," he replied.
"Copy that," she said as she stood and checked her gear. She nodded to Garrus who forced the shuttle door open with a bang, then she moved to the opening. "We'll look around," she told Cortez.
They stepped out onto the surface of a wrecked ship and took a minute to adjust to the rolling surface. A raging storm limited visibility and made the deck beneath their feet particularly treacherous. The seas around them were capped with white and strewn with the debris of many other wrecks. Though her hard suit was equipped with temperature controls, Shepard felt a chill go down her spine, and she had to shake it off.
"I guess that pulse must be Leviathan's last line of defense," she said.
"Amazing," Kaidan breathed, studying the wrecks around them. "I don't recognize those ships. How long have they been here?"
"Long enough," Garrus replied grimly. "Look, over here," he added, indicating a stack of datapads stacked haphazardly in a pile under a tent that formed one of the dozen or so shelters on the deck.
Shepard picked up the first one and began to read the grim fate of the crew of the MSV Monarch, the wreck that was their current landing pad. Apparently the Monarch had been Leviathan's victim as well, and had come to a barbaric and cannibalistic end. Shepard shivered against cold she shouldn't be feeling again. They spread out and began to search the rest of the tents. After a few moments, Kaidan called her over to the right.
"Shepard, one of those artifacts," he reported, pointing.
"Not a surprise," she replied. She raised her shotgun and destroyed it. It gave her only a small sense of satisfaction.
"There's more here," Garrus called from the next tent.
"Explains why no one gets out of here," she muttered. "Take them out," she ordered her team.
They destroyed the remainder of the artifacts they found, and then wandered to the far side of the wreck, where a piece of equipment caught her eye.
"Looks like a damaged Atlas," she said, studying the mech. "Different, though, and it's not flying Cerberus colors."
"Or Alliance ones," Kaidan added. "Regardless, it looks out of commission."
They wandered towards the front of the dead ship.
"Look! Up there! Reapers, Shepard!" Kaidan cried, pointing at the sky. "Must have been right behind us!"
Shepard ducked into cover behind the closest crate and motioned her team onto her flanks.
"Protect the shuttle!" she called, and raised her shotgun to engage the first husk.
#-#-#
The skirmish that followed was intense, made more so by rolling seas and uneven purchase. They dug in hard and kept the Reapers off Cortez until he was able to get the shuttle going again. He took the air and provided air support until Leviathan caught the shuttle with another pulse. He set it down on the other end of the Monarch wreck. Shepard moved the team out and they moved toward him inexorably, cutting a swath through husks, cannibals, marauders, and brutes as they went. Once they reached the downed shuttle, Shepard asked Cortez for a status report.
"Shuttle's a mess, Commander," he reported grimly. "That pulse knocked it right out of the air. We're not going anywhere."
"And we can't risk a pickup by the Normandy," Kaidan added.
"Nope," Cortez agreed. "Same thing would happen to her... and the landing wouldn't be as pretty."
Shepard shoved aside anger, frustration and impatience. It was useless to dwell on the situation, it wouldn't change no matter how much she railed at it, and she couldn't afford to waste energy on it. Instead, she found strength in resolve. There was no way back, so the only thing she could do is move forward and hope that a new path would open.
"Then we aren't getting out of here until we find it," she said grimly. "So how do we do that?"
"Well... you might be able to use that mech you spotted," Cortez suggested. "Looks like it's rigged for diving."
"A diving mech?" Shepard asked.
Cortez nodded.
"It's a Triton model. Military grade, repurposed for deep-sea exploration. As long as the seawater hasn't corroded it, you should be good to go."
"Ok, if that's what we have to do, let's get started," Shepard said, getting to her feet.
"Wait a minute, here," Kaidan interrupted. He had listened to their conversation carefully, and while he had reached the same conclusion as Shepard – that they had to find Leviathan to have any chance off the wreck – what Cortez was suggesting sounded incredibly risky at best. "Are we seriously considering..."
"First, we'll need to restore power to get that cargo door open," Cortez told them, as if Kaidan hadn't spoken.
"How?" Shepard asked.
"Looks like we are," Garrus replied to Kaidan. They shared a look that told Kaidan they were on the same page, but it was clear that their objections had reached deaf ears.
Cortez continued to instruct Shepard on the plan to open the cargo door, retrieve and power the mech. Kaidan sighed and checked his pistol. The storm continued to rage around them and the Reaper destroyer was still hovering. He couldn't think of a way the day could get any worse. As Shepard began to carry out Cortez's crazy plan to power the mech, another wave of ground troops hit the deck, attacked, and proved that Kaidan was wrong – it could, in fact, get much worse.
The next few minutes felt like hours as Kaidan and Garrus worked together to cover Shepard while she scampered around the deck charging power cells until she was able to retrieve the mech. Once she was ensconced in it, the heavy firepower helped to eliminate the rest of the enemies fairly quickly. Kaidan watched with trepidation as she walked the mech over to their pilot.
"All right, Commander. Let's get you out of there, and I'll do a systems check," Cortez said once she had reached his side.
Shepard extracted herself and watched dispassionately as Cortez began to work. She sensed rather than saw Kaidan approach her determinedly. She sighed. She knew what was coming, and what she had to do, but it was not going to be pleasant, and Kaidan was going to make it less so.
"Shepard, I've got to say..." he began, a concerned look on his face. "I'm not too crazy about this plan."
Shepard heard everything he wasn't saying – that he was scared as hell, and that, as much as he wanted – needed – to find a way off this wreck as much as she did, he didn't want to risk her life to make it happen. On one level, she fully appreciated his feelings. In his place, she'd feel the same, maybe more so. Their relationship was a complicated one, though, and this was a situation that drove that fact home. On the one hand, they were husband and wife and had a bond that had been tested against and forged by all that they had to endure. But on the other, they were soldiers fighting a desperate war against a nearly invincible opponent. So, while the woman in her wanted to reassure the man she loved, the soldier had to take precedent. Still, she took a moment to touch her facemask to his in a familiar and comforting gesture. Then she stepped back and let the resolve of command strengthen her.
"We've come too far to stop now," she told him, her voice firm. "The way home is through Leviathan."
They continued to lock gazes, lost in a silent tug-of-war that they both knew had only one possible outcome. They both heard Cortez update them that the mech was ready, but neither moved for a long second after. Finally, Shepard nodded and broke the standoff.
"Let's go," she said, climbing back into the mech.
Kaidan wasn't willing to let her go quietly, and he knew that he was approaching insubordination but the man in him couldn't stand quietly by and and let his woman, his wife, dive into unknown danger without at least a token protest.
"Shepard..." he started to say but she raised her hand to cut him off. The time for debate, protest, and concern was over.
"I'll be fine," she said softly to just him. Then she raised her voice and began to iterate the steps to the dive. "Closing hatch. Engaging systems... Ready."
"Testing comm link," Cortez's voice filled the small space inside the mech, loud and clear.
"I read you," Shepard confirmed. "Here goes," she added, walking the mech to the open side of the wreck. "Commencing dive in 3...2...1..."
Kaidan watched the tumultuous waves swallow the mech, his heart in his throat. He knew that his belief that Shepard was amazing, courageous, nearly invincible and incredibly lucky wasn't bias. Plenty of other people aboard the Normandy shared his opinion. And they all shared his devotion to her as a leader, and would follow her into any hell. He found himself hoping that this wasn't the day her luck ran out and they all had to figure out how to go on without her. He stared at the water until he could no longer see the lights of the mech below the choppy waves. He felt Garrus place a hand on his shoulder and turned to join him and Cortez near the shuttle.
#-#-#
In another life, Shepard may have found the dive more intriguing. Since humanity had discovered new territory off world to explore, the fascination with exploring Earth's own mysteries under the oceans that covered so much of it had tapered off. She knew that very few humans had experienced what she was now, and in a different situation, that might even be fun. Unfortunately, any enjoyment was canceled by the gravity of the situation and then further ruined when she lost communications with her crew on the surface. She couldn't allow herself to think about how Kaidan must be feeling, it would only distract her, so she shoved it aside and continued her descent. She continued to report her progress on the off-chance that the comm was only working one way and because the comfort of routine and the sound of her own voice helped to keep the chill from settling in again. She sincerely hoped she wasn't just talking to herself.
#-#-#
Right on the heels of losing communications with Shepard, Kaidan, Garrus and Cortez had to fight off another wave of Reapers. Kaidan was almost glad for the distraction and freely admitted to himself that he had taken his frustration out on the enemy. He wasn't about to start feeling sorry for them. Once the deck was clear again, he turned back to Cortez, shoving back panic.
"What's going on?" he asked. "Can we get the comm back up?"
"Negative," Cortez said with a shake of his head. "Best guess is another Leviathan pulse disrupted it, but the mech's old and I don't have any way to get it fixed on this end."
"Shit," Kaidan hissed.
"I guess it's time to do what we always do," Garrus said mildly.
"What's that?" Kaidan asked. He was grateful to have their turian friend with them. Not only did he know that Garrus loved Shepard as much as he did, albeit in a platonic way, but time – and the Reapers – had tempered the hot-headed rebel Garrus had once been. He was surprised to see how calm and wise his friend had become, though he knew Garrus understood and suffered from the harsh reality of the war as much – if not more – than anyone. Frankly, there was no one he'd rather have at his side in that moment (except, of course, Shepard).
"We stand back and watch Shepard do her thing, then pick up the pieces after," Garrus answered with the turian version of a grin. "And it looks like we'll have plenty to do in the meantime," he added as another wave of Reapers attacked. He raised his Widow and neatly sniped a marauder.
Kaidan took position and raised his barrier, giving in to muscle memory and shoving aside the thought that he hoped the only pieces left after this were Reaper ones. He didn't dwell on the fact that it was the first time he'd ever been glad to see Reapers.
#-#-#
Shepard felt the impact of the mech landing on the ocean floor in every bone of her body and gritted her teeth against the pain. She took a deep breath and reached for all her battle instincts. She knew the jolt hadn't been enough to damage her, and the fact that she had felt pain told her she was too tense. The crushing weight of the water surrounding her and the gravity of the situation – stranded alone, under the water – were getting in her head, and she couldn't afford that. Not now. The mech's powerful lights illuminated some of the inky darkness around her, and she fired a flare to mark her path ahead. She noted the depth and pressure meters on the mech's HUD were both spiking out of safety range, but she didn't allow herself to panic. She moved the mech forward ponderously, firing flares as she went in a high-tech version of a trail of breadcrumbs. As she went, she continued to narrate the experience though she was now sure it was just to hear the comforting sound of her own voice.
#-#-#
Kaidan growled as another wave of Reapers pinned them down near the shuttle again. They had already fought off several, and had pulled a crate of spare ammo out of storage to replenish depleted supplies. Even after stocking up, the crate wasn't empty and there was another on the shuttle still, so the situation wasn't desperate – yet – but the longer Shepard was gone, the closer to desperate they marched. Since it wasn't a crisis, and even if the ammo was depleted, he and Garrus were far from unarmed due to biotic and tech powers, Kaidan acknowledged that it wasn't the true source of his current frustration. He felt the mounting tension that wrapped itself around his heart and lungs like an insidious claw rise with every moment Shepard spent under the water. Although it had probably not been more than ten minutes so far, it felt like hours to Kaidan, and every new minute that passed was interminable. He felt blind, cut off, powerless. He growled again and went back to fighting the only enemy he could right now.
#-#-#
Shepard navigated to the edge of a shelf and over it, noting dispassionately the fine web of cracks that formed in the glass surrounding her. For now, they were just stress cracks, and she couldn't worry about it. She had already disabled the blaring alarm that had both warned her of the dangerous depth and pressure and made her head ache down to her teeth. There was nothing she could do about the flashing red display on the HUD, so she just ignored it. She continued to fire flares as she went, and shut down every noncritical system she could to preserve her remaining power. She desperately hoped this wasn't a one-way trip.
#-#-#
"She'll come back to us, Kaidan," Garrus said to him during one of their lulls between waves.
Kaidan turned his head and shot his friend a quick smile of thanks.
"Do you really believe that, or are you just trying to make me feel better?" he asked.
"In this case, I'm lucky enough to be able to say both are true," Garrus responded. "You know her better than anyone, Kaidan, and you've seen what she's accomplished, what she can do. But sometimes love is scary, and fear can cloud our judgment."
"Yeah," Kaidan agreed softly. "I thought watching her with that Reaper was bad. This is worse."
"But she came back then, and she will today, too," Garrus reminded him. "You'll see."
"I'm gonna hold you to that, Vakarian," Kaidan replied as another wave struck and eliminated any chance for further conversation.
#-#-#
Shepard continued to follow the navigational path the mech's HUD provided her, concentrating on only the readout that told her she was moving closer and closer to it, rather than any of the other (less pleasant) numbers the readout was tracking. She dropped down another (even steeper) cliff and saw another just ahead. She thought fancifully that the ocean had practically formed a natural set of stairs and pushed the mech over the second step, then forward a bit. She found the intact probe, and its steadily blinking light cheered her. Finally, she was near the end. She peered out into the impenetrable darkness, looking for any sign of life. The mech's lights worked against her, reflecting back off the rock formations that surrounded her and obscuring her vision beyond them. She pressed forward, finding herself at the edge of yet another cliff. The mech shook as a violent tremor struck it and she saw the water ahead of her begin to bubble in agitation. She sat in the mech, stunned and immobile, as Leviathan began to slowly ascend from the chasm below her.
#-#-#
Kaidan wasn't sure how many husks a Reaper destroyer could hold exactly, but he was sure they'd shot the majority of them already. He ducked back into cover as the last of the latest wave fell, dropped his barrier, and panted a bit. The seemingly endless waves were beginning to stretch his limits, and he'd likely have to start holding back on his biotics and stick to more conventional means if he meant to keep a little in reserve just in case. He took a moment to actually thank Miranda and Cerberus for not rebuilding him with his original flawed L2 amp... the amount of power it would have taken to control it during this protracted mission would have left him paralyzed with a migraine and weak as wet tissue by now. Luckily, the L5 was performing perfectly.
"Commander!" Cortez yelled to get Kaidan's attention and then he gestured him closer with a wave once he had it.
Kaidan hunkered down next to the pilot, nodding to Garrus to stay in cover and ready.
"What's up?" he asked Cortez.
"I've synced the shuttle's sensors to pick up the probe scan," Cortez reported. "The readout just spiked – twice. The first spike matched the signature of a Triton mech."
"Shepard," Kaidan breathed, relief coloring his tone.
"Yeah, looks like she made it," Cortez agreed. "The second spike was huge – something big and unknown."
"Guessing she found Leviathan," Kaidan concluded. He shook his head in wonder. No matter how many times she pulled off the impossible against overwhelming odds, it never ceased to amaze him.
"Let's hope she can get it to let us out of here," Cortez added.
"You've seen her yell," Kaidan replied with a laugh. "I'm not worried."
"Yeah," Cortez agreed with a laugh. "If anyone can get it done, she will."
Kaidan went back to his post, feeling lighter and re-energized.
#-#-#
Shepard studied the creature in front of her with a mixture of trepidation and wonder. Every bit as big as and shaped like every Reaper she had faced, the reveal of Leviathan didn't disappoint. She took a deep breath and composed herself as the rumble of its roar rang in her head. Clearly, it wasn't happy to see her. For just a moment, she felt an itching in her head and she was there, but also someplace other, but she shook it off.
"I had to find you," she told it.
"This is not your domain," it rumbled in the voice she had come to know. "You have breached the darkness."
She hadn't failed to make the conclusion that the 'darkness' it had been talking about the entire time she searched for it had been not metaphorical, but rather, the real inky depths of this ocean, but it was nice to have it confirmed.
"You killed a Reaper," she told it. "I need to know why."
"They are the enemy," Leviathan answered. "One that seeks our extermination."
"But, I thought you were a Reaper," she said.
"They are only echoes," Leviathan corrected. "We existed long before."
"Then what are you?" she pressed.
"Something more," it answered ominously.
Shepard felt the itch in her head again. It wasn't in her hair or scalp, but, rather, inside. She shook her head to try to clear it and shivered in the cold. Her vision blackened, and then cleared, and once again, she was not in the mech, but crouching on the wet floor of an endless open room surrounded by cold dark water on all sides. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew she wasn't physically there, that Leviathan was exerting its considerable mental powers over her, but she pushed aside both that fact and the inborn instinct to fight its control over her thoughts and gave in. She let the vision show her coming to her feet and facing Leviathan's avatar – in the form of Kaidan.
"Your mind belongs to me," Leviathan rumbled. Kaidan's mouth formed the words, but the sound was still the creature's.
"My mind is my own, but show me what you need to," Shepard countered in a growl. "And do it with another face." It was simply too horrific to see the man she loved speaking in Leviathan's malevolent voice.
"Very well," the creature rumbled and there was a tone of indulgence underneath the threat, as if it were speaking to a spoiled child. An instant later, Shepard's vision darkened and then cleared, and this time, Ann Bryson stood before her.
"Thank you," Shepard said with relief. She could play nice, but there were limits.
"Your memories give voice to our words," Leviathan told her. "Your nature will be revealed to us. Accept this."
"I've already said I would cooperate," Shepard said with impatience. "The galaxy's at war with the Reapers. You defeated one. Why aren't you fighting back?"
"There is no war," it rumbled. "There is only the harvest."
"Then help us stop it," she replied.
"None have possessed the strength in past cycles," it told her. "Your own species could be destroyed with a single thought. But you are different."
Shepard blinked her eyes rapidly as Leviathan morphed into the avatar of Bryson's assistant and the fake Garneau in rapid succession.
"Stop doing that," she said behind gritted teeth. The creature complied, morphing back into Ann Bryson.
"I have witnessed your actions in this cycle: the destruction of Sovereign; the fall of the Collectors. The Reapers perceive you as a threat," it continued. "And I must understand why."
Shepard felt the itch in her mind intensify to the point of pain. For just a moment she was back in the mech, disoriented and cold. The pain amplified and she felt a trickle of warm blood trail from her nose, and then she was back in the 'other' place.
"Before the cycles, our kind was the apex of life in the galaxy," Leviathan intoned, continuing its tale. "The lesser species were in our thrall, serving our needs. We grew more powerful, and they were cared for. But we could not protect them from themselves. Over time, the species built machines that then destroyed them. Tribute does not flow from a dead race. To solve this problem, we created an intelligence with the mandate to preserve life at any cost. As the intelligence evolved, it studied the development of civilizations. Its understanding grew until it found a solution. In that instant, it betrayed us. It chose our kind as the first harvest. From our essence, the first Reaper was created. You call it Harbinger."
Shepard took a moment to take in the scope and depth of the information she had just learned - and its implications. She knew now that she was facing the creature ultimately responsible for the Reapers' creation, but she couldn't allow herself to be intimidated or back down. She filed away the irony of what Leviathan's near-extinction at the hands of creatures it had made as something she could share with her team once she was safely back among them. Instead, she squared her avatar's shoulders and stood straight. She gave Leviathan - in the form of Ann Bryson - her best Commander Shepard stare and began to question it.
#-#-#
"Any change?" Kaidan asked Cortez between waves of enemies. He recognized that the pilot was probably tired of hearing the question, but he couldn't help asking.
"Still the same," Cortez replied, the same answer he'd repeated every time Kaidan had asked.
"No news is good news in this case," Garrus said to Kaidan, though he realized it was just one of those empty platitudes he hated.
"Good news will be the next thing I hear Shepard say," Kaidan corrected. He sighed. "Sorry," he muttered and headed back to his post.
"I'll let you know the instant something changes," Cortez promised.
"Hope there's more husks soon or I might wander off and start calibrating this old wreck's guns," Garrus muttered to Kaidan. When he heard his friend laugh, he nodded. Mission accomplished.
#-#-#
After a protracted question and answer session with the creature, Shepard knew all that she figured she could learn about Leviathan, harvests, and Reapers. It was fascinating information that she was sure scientists throughout the galaxy would be happy to have, but since Leviathan had no tangible information about the Crucible, Catalyst, or defeating the Reapers, it was fairly worthless to her in the moment.
"Okay," she said when she couldn't think of anything else to ask. "Will you help stop the cycle?"
"I have searched your mind," Leviathan replied. "You are an anomaly - yet that is not enough. The cycle will continue."
"Wait!" Shepard called as the avatar of Ann Bryson turned away from her. "You've been watching! You know this cycle is different."
"We will survive," Leviathan proclaimed. "You will remain here as a servant of our needs. The Reapers will harvest the rest."
Oh fuck no, Shepard thought, though she kept her demeanor calm. This would be tricky, and she didn't have much to work with.
"If you release me, no one has to be harvested," she said.
"Nothing will change," Leviathan countered.
"It already has," she said, her voice quiet but filled with steel. "The Reapers know where you are. You can't just watch anymore - you have to fight! Even if you survive the battle today, the Reapers won't stop - ever. Release me, and we have a chance to end this once and for all."
Shepard's vision blackened again, and then she was back in the mech, staring at perhaps the most powerful beings in the galaxy - there were now three Leviathan in front of her. She swiped a gloved hand at her bloody nose and took a deep breath. In the next moment, she was back in the 'other' place.
"Your confidence is singular," Leviathan stated.
"I've earned it: out there fighting, where you should be," she hissed.
"It is clear why the Reapers perceive you as a threat," the creature said. "Your victories are more than a product of chance. We will fight. But not for you, or any lesser race. We were first, the apex race. We will survive. And the Reapers who trespass on this world will understand our power. They will become our slaves. Today, they pay their tribute in blood."
Once again, blackness, and then reality changed for Shepard. She was back in the mech. Her nose was bleeding profusely now, and her head felt like it had been split open with a dull blade and then dozens of bugs had taken up residence inside, but she couldn't dwell on either. She felt her vision dimming, not from Leviathan this time, but an impending blackout, and she rushed to set the controls on the mech to take her to the surface. She hit engage and then let herself fall into a blackness that was a welcome rest.
#-#-#
As soon as Cortez advised him that both the mech and the other energy signatures had moved away from the probe, Kaidan began searching the choppy surface of the ocean around them for any sign of the Triton mech. The Reaper attack had intensified but he let muscle memory and years of experience serve him while he maintained his search. He saw the mech as soon as it surfaced, and began moving toward it, cutting a swath through the Reapers in his way. He watched, horrified, as the mech climbed up on the deck and disgorged her onto the surface, right in front of two brutes.
"Shepard!" he cried in alarm, a feeling that only increased when she lay inert beneath the Reapers. He pushed forward.
A moment later, the two brutes turned and began fighting one another. Kaidan took the opportunity to sprint ahead, reaching Shepard's side and picking up her limp form.
"Shepard's back!" he yelled to his squad. "Cortez, talk to me!"
"We're good to go! I don't know what the Commander did, but the pulse is offline!" Cortez replied. Kaidan began to carefully pick his way back to the shuttle, dodging chaotic Reapers as he went. As he reached it, and prepared to hand Shepard up to Garrus, Cortez spoke again.
"Damn it! We've got a Reaper inbound!" he reported.
Kaidan handed Shepard off and climbed into the shuttle behind her. Once the doors had closed behind them, he banged on the side of the shuttle and then went to his knees beside her, frantically assessing her condition and searching for vital signs. He did not notice the attacking Reaper fall dead into the ocean below them.
"Shepard! Can you hear me?" he called, shaking her shoulder.
She was still limp as a rag doll, and he shoved aside panic as she remained unconscious. His HUD displayed her vitals, giving him visual proof that she lived, but he stripped off his gauntlets and reached for her pulse anyway, as he once had on their very first mission together on Eden Prime. He found a pulse, it was slow, but steady. His fingers told him something else as well.
"She's freezing!" he said and then stripped off her gauntlets and rubbed her hands between his to help warm her.
He removed her helmet and staved off the panic he felt when he saw how badly she had bled. His omni-tool told him the bleeding had stopped, so he wiped away the worst of the blood with his bare fingers and moved on to more pressing issues. He found the environmental controls on her hard suit and cranked up the temperature modulator. After long agonizing seconds, color began to come back to her face and he saw her eyelashes flutter. He breathed his first normal breath since he had climbed aboard the shuttle.
"Shepard?" he said softly, stroking her hair.
She turned to her side and began to cough violently. He held her shoulders until the spasm passed, then drew her up to sit between his legs. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and just held her, his face against hers. Her skin was still cold, but not the clammy, frozen temperature it had been at first. He took a second to just breathe and let the feel of her in his arms comfort him. He felt Garrus's hand on his shoulder and looked up and smiled at their friend.
"You okay?" Garrus asked softly.
"Yeah..." she said. Her voice was hoarse and raspy and she coughed again. "Yeah, I'm fine. Hell of a headache," she added in a feeble attempt at a joke.
Kaidan flinched and tightened his arms around her.
"Never do that again," he growled in her ear.
"We're lucky we got you back, Commander," Cortez added from the cockpit.
"Thanks for all your hard work," Shepard said, sounding a bit more like her normal self. She pushed against Kaidan's arms to get him to release her, and then pushed again when he hesitated. When he relented, she moved to one of the seats in the shuttle and he stood to hover over her.
"So what happened down there?" Garrus asked curiously.
"We found it," she replied softly. "It's real and a lot more than we ever imagined."
"So was it worth almost dying for?" Kaidan said, his voice equally soft, but in his case, it was a warning of a storm to come.
"I don't know," Shepard replied with a shrug. "But we proved it can't hide anymore...that it's part of this war, just like us. And it's going to help fight."
"Let's hope that's enough," Kaidan said.
#-#-#
Once they had disembarked from the shuttle safely aboard the Normandy, Kaidan grabbed Shepard's arm and drew her (as gently as possible) to the armory locker. He reached for the last remnants of his tattered control to stave off the storm he could feel brewing inside him. Still, to be safe, he decided to to take precautions. He studied his surroundings. He noted that Garrus had already fled the deck - he knew them well and apparently had read the warning signs correctly - but Vega was at his post and Cortez was going through post-flight routines on the shuttle.
"Can you give us the room, Lieutenants?" he 'asked' James and Cortez in a voice that carried no inflection. He watched and waited as they both nodded and then headed to the elevator before he turned back to Shepard.
She stood still and impassive as he removed every piece of her armor one by one, carefully checking the limbs beneath it for any damage. While he worked, she studied his face for any clues, but he was expressionless except for the hard set of his mouth. He wouldn't meet her eyes, and she knew that he was holding himself in tight control. He reminded her of the Kaidan she once knew, three years ago - before Sovereign, the Reapers, Cerberus and the Collectors - before her. Before their son. The only clue she had to his mood was the slight tremor of his gentle hands as he worked. Once he had her down to just her skin suit and reached for the zipper beneath her chin to remove that, she finally moved.
She placed her hands over his and stopped him, holding both his hands in hers.
"What gives, Kaidan?" she asked gently.
He raised his gaze to hers and finally she saw the storm raging in his eyes.
"I can't do this - not now," he said carefully.
She knew all that he was saying - and not saying - but she also knew that as long as he stayed in control they couldn't resolve it. She decided to do something she tried to never do - deliberately provoke him.
"Can't do what? Fight this war?" she asked, letting her own emotions bleed into her voice. "Because I don't think the Reapers are giving us any choice."
"I can't watch you nearly die," he corrected, still softly. "Not again."
Shepard's heart ached for him, but she kept her resolve. She needed to push him, hard.
"It wasn't fun for me, either, you know," she said, meaning her trip to the bottom of the ocean, but she saw that he had interpreted it another way and hurt flared in his eyes.
"I didn't chose to die and leave you alone," Kaidan gritted out, the red haze of anger beginning to color his vision. "I didn't deliberately put myself in harm's way while you stood and watched. And couldn't do anything."
Shepard felt every word like a knife to her gut, but she absorbed it and didn't let her temper escalate the situation. She knew, and understood, everything Kaidan was saying. She also knew that he wasn't truly angry at her, but at the circumstances that forced them into life and death situations. She couldn't fix it, but she could do her best to help him let it out - even if she took the brunt of it.
"And I came back to you," she pointed out.
"This time," he hissed, his eyes slit with anger. "But you won't hesitate to do it again next time."
"No," she agreed quietly, sorrowfully. "I won't. No matter who it hurts."
They stared at each other for long moments, communicating silently as they often did. Finally, Kaidan sighed and relented.
"You scared the hell out of me, again," he growled. "But knowing that you're willing to do the hard work, and do it without hesitation or fear, I guess that's part of why I love you so much."
She moved closer to him and began to help him remove his armor. She didn't speak.
"Shepard?" he asked as she unbuckled his breastplate.
"Hmm?" she replied, concentrating on her task.
"You don't have anything to say?" he queried.
She stopped and met his eyes, heat of a different kind in hers.
"I love you very much, too, Kaidan, but shut up and help me get this damn armor off so we can go to our cabin and I can show you," Shepard said, mostly without taking a breath.
With an offer like that, Kaidan couldn't possibly refuse. They were on the elevator less than a minute later.
