Mass Effect: Event Horizon
A Mass Effect Fanfiction
By Drussius
Chapter Thirty-Seven: Risk
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South Ravine, Just outside Scott…
"Illitha?"
The young engineer closed her eyes more firmly when the voice addressed her, pressing her face into the layers of blankets beneath her. She didn't immediately place the voice, and she waved a hand dismissively without looking in the direction of the speaker.
"Jus' five more minutes," she mumbled.
Muffled laugher answered her request, and a hand gently shook her. She groaned in protest, pulling the blankets up over her head, but someone yanked them away from her. She turned over, opening her eyes and glaring sleepily at her visitor. Rachel grinned down at her, shaking her head in amusement. She could barely see the girl in the gloom of the cavern. She sighed.
"Your mother must have loved waking you for school," the blonde joked.
Illitha rubbed her eyes, yawning as she tried to shake off her residual sleepiness. She'd had disturbing dreams throughout the night… she couldn't remember many of the details now, but a lingering sense of disquiet filled her. If it weren't for the fact that they were outside the city and well away from the Reaper devices, she might have been afraid that she was being indoctrinated. She silently cursed the Reapers for that. She'd never be able to have nightmares again without imagining that she was being brainwashed.
"How long was I sleeping?" she finally asked, struggling to rise from the pile of blankets that served as her bed.
"About twelve hours."
"What?" Illitha's eyes widened. "Why did you let me sleep for so long?"
"You were exhausted," Rachel smiled at her. "You said it had been days since you slept. You needed the rest."
Illitha frowned. Obviously, if she'd been asleep for that long, she had needed the rest. But she didn't like the idea that their mission had been delayed for half a day while she was asleep. She couldn't deny the fact, however, that after the meal she'd had before lying down and then a decent amount of sleep, she felt significantly better. She got up and stared around at the gloomy cavern she'd chosen as her room. It seemed darker than she would have expected given the time she'd been sleeping. With the length of the Terra Nova days, it should have been the planet's version of mid-afternoon. The air was humid, and she guessed that it was either raining or was about to start.
"D-Did any of our new companions give you any trouble?" she asked as she started dressing in her armor.
"No," Rachel shook her head. "I was skeptical at first, but I think we can trust them. They've been really curious about you though. I had to get inventive about your Spectre training and activities."
Illitha's shoulders slumped. What sort of lies has she been telling them? I really hoped to drop this charade. Me? A Spectre? That is just ridiculous.
"Don't worry," Rachel grinned at her. "I tried not to make you sound too godlike."
"Gee, thanks," Illitha muttered. "W-Would you mind turning around?" she asked. She had slept in the Alliance uniform she'd been wearing, but she still felt self-conscious with the human watching her put on her armor.
"Uh… Sure, I guess," the girl seemed a little baffled, but did as she was told. "I think some of the boys will be useful. That guy Jay is a hell of a shot with a rifle. I gave him the sniper rifle we took from Parker and had him do a little target shooting. He never misses. It's amazing."
Illitha listened as she secured the clasps on the armor and straightened it a bit. She felt immeasurably better in the protective gear, even if it was a little loose around the chest. She found herself wishing she could get a set made to fit her rather petite frame. But she would take what she could get and was glad Harper left the set behind for her.
"The teenagers are a little more questionable," Rachel continued. "They're eager, but I suggest we leave them in supporting roles. Have them watch our backs."
"Agreed," Illitha said as she slipped her helmet on. "I did not want to put them in harm's way anyway. I d-do not like the idea of placing children in danger…"
"They're not kids," Rachel pointed out. "They're teenagers. Elliot is fifteen, and Danny is fourteen. In three or four years, they'd be old enough to join the Alliance."
Illitha didn't want to argue, but the numbers alone sounded staggeringly young. Asari were a long-lived species, and matured somewhat more slowly than most races. At fifteen, she had been a child. Most asari didn't begin puberty until at least twenty. She sighed and headed for the exit, and Rachel fell into step behind her when she walked by.
The subtle hiss of raindrops striking the ground reached her ears before they were within sight of the entrance, and sure enough, when she glanced outside, it was raining heavily. The other four humans were gathered in the area just inside the cavern's confines, huddled around a portable cooking unit, upon which they were frying some kind of meat in a pan. She shook her head. After days with little to no food, it was odd to be in a situation where there was fresh meat and other supplies in ample enough quantities for multiple meals in a day.
She had been shocked that morning when she took stock of the supplies the little group of bandits had stockpiled. There had been blankets, clothing, a couple of rifles and pistols, data pads, portable burners for food preparation, and a surprising assortment of foodstuffs. It made her angry to think of all the people that had been robbed of the food upon which they had expected to survive. But there was enough to feed this group for weeks, easily. Even if they ate twice a day. If they rationed it, it would last a month or more.
As she glanced at the large pile of containers that held their food, her thoughts turned to her companions, and especially Neela. The poor quarian had only enough food for another couple of days, and here she was in possession of enough food to last for weeks. She sighed. She still felt guilty for remaining in the city while her friends were in danger, but she couldn't turn away from this. If she ran off to find and warn her friends, she might save the three of them, but it was unlikely. Her work here, on the other hand, could save dozens… maybe more.
Besides, she thought sullenly, by now they could very well be dead. Their job must have been finished by now. I doubt he would leave them alive once they were done… I hope they listened to my warning.
"Hey Spectre," Elliot interrupted her thoughts, smiling at her cheerfully. "Miss Sanders says you single-handedly fought and killed two Krogan Battlemasters at the same time, and that you ripped off a Reaper hanar's tentacles and used them to beat it to death…"
Illitha turned to glare at Rachel, who at least had the grace to look a little uncomfortable. Fortunately, with her helmet on, it was unlikely that the other four could see the upset look in her eyes. The asari resisted the urge to sigh… Apparently, she had huge expectations to meet. She only hoped when these poor humans actually saw her in action, they wouldn't be too disappointed.
"Rachel… exaggerates," was all she said.
"Still, I'm sure glad you're on our side!" Elliot added with a smile.
"Have a seat, Spectre," Jay gestured to the spot next to him. "We have plenty of meat for dinner, and once this pan is clear, we'll heat up some beans. Maybe you could fill us in on the plan while we eat? You didn't really say anything about your mission this morning. But Sanders says you'd been awake for a couple days, so we understand."
"We really do appreciate a Spectre fighting to defend us," the other adult, Jack, added. "I know you'd probably rather be with your own people, getting ready to defend Thessia."
"I… I am here," Illitha said softly. "S-So I am doing what I must."
"We appreciate it," Jay reiterated. "But I'd really like to know what we're going to be doing."
"The R-Reapers have devices spread throughout the city," Illitha told them. "They are range-boosters for the Reaper ability to brainwash living beings. We… We cannot leave them functional. Anyone hiding in the city would be slowly turned into a t-traitor."
"Seriously? The Reapers can do that?" Elliot seemed shocked.
Illitha sighed, exchanging glances with Rachel. Judging from the blonde's expression, she was thinking the same thing that Illitha was. Why hadn't their various governments acknowledged the dangers the Reapers posed and educated the public about them? Maybe the civilian population would have been more prepared to keep themselves safe…
"So you're disabling the devices," Jay guessed, bringing her thoughts back to the matter at hand.
"Yes we are," Rachel answered for her.
"Well, it sounds important to me," Jack nodded. "So I'm in. Will we spread out in teams and destroy them? Or do you want-"
"We cannot destroy them," Illitha cut him off.
"What? Why not?" Elliot asked.
"T-The devices have a… a failsafe. If they are damaged, they send a signal to alert the Reapers. The Reapers would just replace them."
"Then if we can't destroy them…" Jay prompted.
"I have studied the devices and learned how to… to disengage the transmitters without destroying them. Doing so neutralizes the danger they pose… but… It… They cannot alert the Reapers to the malfunction if they are properly overridden," Illitha explained.
"Right," Rachel nodded. "So the first and only rule of this mission is: Keep the Spectre safe. We don't want anyone doing anything stupid, but Illitha has to be kept alive at all costs so that she can disable the devices."
"I know a little about electronics," Jack announced. "Could you teach me what to do?"
"I… I would like to," Illitha began hesitantly. "But once the emitters are disengaged, there is only a ten-second window in which to hack the main processor and disable the emergency protocol. It is… not something we can leave to chance. C-Could you hack a processor in that time?"
"No," the human shook his head. "I thought it was a matter of dismantling part of a device. I'm not much good with data security and hacking. I'm more of a tinkerer."
"Well, I appreciate the offer," Illitha smiled at him.
"Okay, then we're security," Jay nodded. "We fight to keep the Reapers at bay while you deal with the devices."
"W-We want to avoid fighting if we can," Illitha corrected. "I… I know you probably think a Spectre does a lot of fighting," she felt a little nauseous at even hinting that she might be such an important person, but continued anyway, "but believe me, if you fire shots in the city, the commotion will draw more and more Reapers u-until there are too many to escape."
"Believe me, she would know," Rachel told them. "But we have a plan that's been working so far. It's important to be discreet. No shooting unless there is no other option."
"No shooting," Danny, the younger teen, nodded.
"Right," Illitha smiled at the teen. "I have a p-program that predicts where the devices will be located. We quietly move f-from place to place, ambush and kill the guards, and then I deal with the devices. W-With more people, we have a better chance of keeping any lingering Reapers from alerting others."
"But if we can't shoot…" Elliot frowned.
"Any of you have omni-tools with an omni-blade function installed?" Rachel asked.
"I do," Jack raised a hand.
"I didn't have time to grab my omni when the Reapers busted into our home," Jay sighed. "And El is too young to have tech that expensive."
"I don't have one either," Danny sighed.
"Then we'll have to improvise some weapons," Rachel suggested. "Pieces of pipe, sharp bits of metal… whatever we can find. Of course, everyone will have a rifle for emergencies, but we can't stress enough how important it is that we don't start shooting."
"Understood," Jay nodded. "Right guys?"
There was a chorus of mumbled agreements from the others. Illitha could tell none of them was happy about the idea of going into the city and having to fight Reapers hand-to-hand, but there really wasn't another option. She hoped that she wasn't going to be responsible for their deaths by bringing them alone. None of them had armor or kinetic shielding. If her own armor wasn't sized for a female, she might have offered it to one of them. At the thought, an idea occurred to her.
"If we find any impact-resistant polymers in the city, tell me at once."
"Why? What are you thinking?" Rachel asked.
"I m-may be able to create a… a vest," she explained. "You know… l-like the one I made for myself. Something to provide a little protection…"
"You made a vest? What kind of vest?" Elliot asked.
"Her first set of armor was ruined by a harvester she killed," Rachel answered, drawing an irritated glare from Illitha. "She cut apart pieces of it and turned it into an armored vest to protect herself. She made the helmet too."
"You made that?" Elliot turned his gaze upon Illitha, who had to suppress the urge to shrink away from the combined attention of the five humans. "That thing looks awesome!"
"Uh… Th-Thank you," Illitha stammered. "It… It was important to p-protect myself. It will be important to acquire some protection for all of you too."
"Until we do, we'll only ask you guys to put yourselves in danger if it's absolutely necessary," Rachel promised. "If there are only one or two Reapers in any given place, we can deal with them ourselves. But you will all be backup and support."
"N-No one will try to be a hero, okay?" Illitha looked around at the humans. "We w-work as a team. You might not be asked to fight, but if w-we ask you to guard an entrance or… or whatever, it will still be important work."
"We understand, Spectre," Jay answered on behalf of the group. "We won't get in the way, and we won't let you down."
"Good," Illitha nodded. "Then… let us eat s-so we can get moving."
Rachel grinned at Illitha. The asari frowned, reminding herself to talk to Rachel later about the lies and stories she had told. She fought two krogan Battlemasters? Preposterous. She'd been too frightened of her own father to even stand up to him. She was pretty sure if an angry krogan ever attacked her, she would have passed out from sheer terror. And apparently she'd also torn off a hanar's limbs and beat it to death with them. She wondered what other stories the blonde had told these poor people about her.
Worse, they'd apparently believed them. Somehow, she had the feeling they were going to be sorely disappointed in the days to come…
Mivian Heights…
Zaeed reclined on the bench he'd chosen as his spot, gazing down into the gorge at the foliage below. The lack of activity was beginning to wear upon him, and he had spent most of the day wishing that the Reapers would come and invade the town or something, just to give him something to do. The Alliance forces in the town, as near as he could tell, had no intention whatsoever of fighting the Reapers. And he was starting to get suspicions as to why.
It had been almost a full Terra Nova day since he had advised the engineers to blow up the Reaper devices. The destruction of the Reaper tech had thrown the entire town into chaos for a time. The Alliance captain had insisted that everyone in the town be questioned, and several of the soldiers were detained briefly over the course of that first night. But all were eventually released. Zaeed had been questioned as well, but since a dozen soldiers had seen him field stripping his rifle at the time of the explosions, he was quickly given leave to go on about his business.
Still, Zaeed was beginning to wonder if it wasn't too late already for some of the soldiers in the town. Perhaps some were already indoctrinated… including the captain. Either that or the man was naturally paranoid. The former seemed the more likely option. It would explain a great deal… including the fact that the Alliance hadn't made any attempt to organize an offensive in the past couple days.
"Hey Massani," a voice called to him.
He turned at the sound of the voice. Turian voices tended to have distinct qualities that were impossible to mistake, so he already knew it would be Prathus before he actually spotted the turian shambling toward him. It was surprising to see him up and around so quickly, though he still wasn't walking very well. As the former soldier drew closer, Zaeed could tell from the look in his eyes and the way his mandibles were twitching that he wasn't happy.
"You're a resilient bastard, I'll give you that," Zaeed muttered when the turian was within earshot. "They let you get up and walk around already?"
"I didn't give them a choice," the turian commented. "You've been up here for the last day or so, right?"
"Yeah," Zaeed nodded, wondering what had prompted this line of questioning.
"Did you happen to see a group of Alliance soldiers come into town last night?"
"Yeah," the mercenary nodded again. "Brought a truck full of supplies in with them. Seems like their mission in the city was a success."
"Could you point them out to me? I heard they brought a message from a member of my crew with them. I'd like to find out more, if I can."
Zaeed turned his gaze upon the foliage in the gorge below once again, giving it a moment of thought. He didn't really feel like playing the part of tour guide, but at least it was something to do. Finally he slipped from his seat and gestured for the turian to follow him.
"What's so urgent about talking to them?" Zaeed asked.
"Well, I'd like to know that my engineer is safe," Prathus muttered. "But I'd also like to find out from someone in the Alliance what happened with these bombings. I figure these new people had been working with T'Zari, so they might be more inclined to help out her friends."
"What about the bombings?"
"I need to know what the hell happened," the turian seemed a little upset. "My friend Dalinas has been confined to a cell because she was apparently the only person in the entire town without an alibi for the time of the bombings…"
"Ah," was all Zaeed said.
The two of them checked a few different buildings that had been set aside for various Alliance uses, before they finally headed for a building on the west end of town designated for the Engineering Corps. Zaeed supposed it probably should have been their first stop, but he'd thought to find the two men either in the library, which had become the unofficial off-duty hangout for the men, or in an old restaurant, which had naturally been converted to the mess hall.
It was McSween that he spotted first. The red-haired man stood out from the rest of his comrades as the only one with that particular hair color. He led the way to where the young engineer was seated. When McSween looked up, Zaeed inclined his head in a subtle greeting.
"Zaeed," the engineer greeted him. "What brings ye 'ere?"
"This is Prathus," Zaeed introduced the turian. "He is friends with that engineer you mentioned from the city. He had some questions."
"If you have a minute," Prathus nodded. "I can see you're busy."
"No, not at all," McSween shook his head. "For a friend o' Illitha's, I've got time. She's a good lass."
"I heard you brought a message from her to the Alliance," the turian got straight to the point. "What was it about?"
"Reaper devices," McSween explained. "She got copies o' these analysis files, an' found out that the bloody things were range boosters for indoctrination. We got back 'ere as quickly as we could to warn our superiors."
"Someone blew up the devices," Prathus nodded. "But it obviously wasn't your superiors, since they confined my friend to a cell for it. So I take it they didn't believe the reports?"
"No," the engineer frowned. "The captain does'na like Illitha much. He immediately dismissed the files as some kind o' conspiracy to undermine 'is authority."
"Who else did you tell about the devices? Someone must have decided that they were dangerous…"
"I overheard the conversation," Zaeed admitted. "I was ready to leave town, but someone else took initiative and did the right thing." He wasn't going to implicate the engineers. In his opinion, they'd done the only thing that made sense… destroyed the devices. And of course, it had been his idea.
"Aye," McSween nodded. "It was the right thing to do. But the captain apparently had some Reaper expert examine the bloody things and tell 'im it was safer to leave them intact. Now he's got men wasting time tryin' to find out who destroyed the devices when we should be concentrating on more important things… Like Reapers."
"Well, I think your captain has lost his mind," Prathus muttered. "But I need to figure out how to clear Dalinas so she can return to the hospital. She didn't do this."
"No, she did'na do it," McSween sighed. "I did. She should'na be punished for my actions."
"You blew them up?" the turian lowered his voice, looking around warily.
"Aye."
"Then give me something. Some way I can prove Dalinas wasn't involved without implicating you," the turian glanced at Zaeed. "Zaeed is right. It was the right thing to do. But Dalinas can't be sitting in a cell because of it. She's a medic, and we need her."
"I dinnae know what to tell ye," McSween was obviously torn. Zaeed could tell that he felt guilty, not only because someone else was being blamed for what he did, but for some personal reason as well. "We used recon mines from our salvage to coordinate the blasts. That way we could be surrounded by people when the explosions occurred."
"Recon mines," the turian nodded thoughtfully. "Well, there wouldn't be much evidence of them left. But perhaps… if there was a list of the inventory you recovered somewhere?"
"Sorry," the engineer shook his head. "We did'na take stock o' the supplies until after we'd removed the mines. Part o' our team unloaded while we slipped off to deal wi' the threats."
"How would you even bring this evidence to the Alliance?" Zaeed asked. "They'd be more likely to accuse you of creating the evidence than they would to believe it."
"I don't know," the turian was clearly frustrated. "I just can't let my companion sit in a cell while they try to prove her guilty of sabotage."
"If you ask me, those Reaper devices already indoctrinated half of the soldiers here," Zaeed muttered. "I've seen a fair bit of paranoia, focus on all the wrong things, and a lot of inaction over the last day or so. I'm not sure the captain or half of his buddies are even still on the right side."
"Would indoctrination occur that fast?" Prathus wondered.
"No idea," Zaeed admitted. "I wasn't with Shepard at the beginning. But I always got the impression it was dangerous to spend any amount of time near Reaper tech. And most of these soldiers have been here for a solid three Terra Nova days," he regarded the turian steadily. "You were here when they arrived, just like I was. You know."
"Yeah," Prathus nodded. "That's what… a hundred and twelve hours? If indoctrination can happen inside of a week, there's a good chance you may be right."
"If that's true, what do we do?" McSween asked. "How could we even tell who's still playin' wi' a full deck?"
"You've got me," Zaeed snorted.
"First thing first," Prathus frowned. "I need to figure out how to get Dalinas out of her cell."
"I hesitate to suggest it, but… What about another explosion?" McSween suggested. "If something blows up now, they cannae blame the lass for it, can they?"
A ghost of a smile touched Zaeed's lips. He rather liked the way the engineer thought. It seemed that to clear the asari of sabotage, they needed to sabotage something else. He wasn't sure it would help to stem the tide of paranoia that seemed to have gripped the commanding officer of the Alliance forces here, but perhaps that wasn't such a bad thing. If the man started acting irrationally enough, they might have the excuse to remove him from command and put someone a bit more stable in charge. He still had one recon mine left. So there was only one question remaining.
"What do we blow up?" he asked.
"How about a bloody hideous transport truck?" McSween suggested. "We got the old girl runnin', but she should be put out o' her misery."
"Just make sure you and everyone you know has an alibi for hours prior to detonation," Prathus suggested. "Apparently, if you don't have witnesses to everything you do leading up to the explosion, that makes you guilty."
"Aye," McSween nodded.
"Then maybe it's time to get a goddamn card game going," Zaeed suggested. "I sincerely doubt when the people evacuated, they bothered to take their cards with them. There's gotta be a deck around somewhere."
"I'm sure we could hunt one down," Prathus nodded. "Plant the device, and then we'll play. But I think our game will be interrupted an hour or two in," the turian chuckled.
Zaeed snorted. This was just the sort of thing he needed to make his day a bit more interesting. And he hoped it might get the ball rolling on putting the Alliance back into the fight. If this group of soldiers didn't start hitting the Reapers soon, he was going to have to go searching for another pocket of resistance somewhere that was a bit more active. He was tired of sitting around with nothing to do.
Resort Hospital, Mivian Heights…
When awareness returned to Selura, at first she couldn't figure out where she was. It took her eyes a little time to focus, and once they did, she found herself in a cozy little room that looked remarkably like it was intended to be a bedroom. The fact that she was lying in a comfortable bed was therefore not all that surprising. But she had no idea how she'd come to be there. The last thing she remembered was getting shot… and then Neela had been with her. She told her about the Prothean stasis pods, and then… she didn't remember anything after that. She could only assume Neela had rescued her.
What was puzzling and slightly disappointing was that she saw no sign of the quarian. She knew it was selfish and unreasonable, but she'd expected Neela to be hovering near her bedside. Neela had obviously saved her, so she had to be okay, but… where was she?
The young scientist knew better than to try to sit up. She could feel the sharp, throbbing pain that permeated her abdomen, and she was very aware that she must have been recently out of surgery. She was just glad that the Prothean stasis pods had kept her alive long enough to be taken to safety… or at least so she assumed.
"Hello?" she called out, but her voice cracked. Her throat was terribly dry and scratchy. "Someone?"
A young man in armor appeared in the doorway, and he regarded her for a moment before raising a hand as if to warn her to stay where she was. She checked the urge to sigh. She certainly wasn't going anywhere.
"Wait here," he said. "I'll get the doc."
"I'll try not to run any marathons," she muttered sarcastically, and watched as he stepped out of her field of view. With nothing to do but wait, she allowed herself the indulgence of a smile. She wasn't happy about having been betrayed by the salarian, but she was alive, and she assumed that meant the captain had been saved from stasis as well. She hoped the others were all okay. Given her location, it seemed likely that they were.
"Hello," the human doctor smiled at her when she entered the room. "You're awake. How are you feeling?"
"Sore… and confused," Selura whispered. "And my throat is dry."
"I'll get you some water," the doctor promised. "But first, do you know where you are?"
"Not a clue," Selura grinned ruefully. "In a bed somewhere," she added.
The doctor laughed softly, shaking her head. "I guess that was a bad question," she admitted. "You were in stasis when you arrived. Let's try a different one. What's your name?"
"Selura Leneur. How long was I out?"
"We took you out of stasis and performed the surgery to repair the damage about a day ago," the woman informed her. "You've been unconscious since. Do you know what planet you're on?"
"I assume I am still on Terra Nova," the corner of Selura's lips curled upward. "Unless my friends somehow got us off world. How bad was I hurt?"
"Sorry, you're still here," the doctor smiled. "As for your injuries, I know it sounds odd to say it when you've been shot, but you were lucky."
"How so?" Selura was confused. She certainly didn't feel lucky, except perhaps to be alive.
"According to your companions, you were shot with armor-piercing ammo. It punched through the armor you were wearing. But the upside is that the mods that generate that sort of ammo are made to pierce objects. The rounds went right through you instead of transmitting their force across a wider area the way unmodded rounds would have. So the damage was less extensive."
"I do not understand why he left me alive," Selura admitted. "I remember seeing him crouching over me. He could certainly have fired one last bullet into my head. But he passed up on the opportunity."
"I'm afraid I can't answer that one. Maybe he thought he'd done enough to kill you. But never mind him now. I need you to answer a few more questions for me. How many fingers am I holding up?" she raised her hand with two fingers extended.
"Two," Selura answered. "Where is Neela? I thought she would be here when I woke."
The doctor looked suddenly uncomfortable, but stepped closer to the bed, holding up a finger. "Follow my finger with your eyes."
"Where is she?" Selura repeated, concerned over the human's unwillingness to answer. "Is she okay?" she asked, feeling panic well up inside of her.
"She is alive," the doctor assured her. "Please, let me finish my exam."
"No," Selura shook her head, growing increasingly concerned over the doctor's evasiveness. "I have to see her. Where is she?"
"She is quarantined in an isolation chamber," the woman finally admitted. "Her suit was severely damaged and disabled. She is suffering from reactions to multiple types of exposure…"
"Goddess," Selura breathed. She'd spoken with Neela about her suit and the reasons her people wore them. If her suit had been disabled... she felt her panic increase. She tried to get up, but the doctor seemed to anticipate the reaction and firmly held her down. "Where is she? I have to talk to her. How did this happen?"
"I don't know the details," the doctor sighed. "But you can't see her right now. She is isolated in a sterile room. And she is delirious. I've managed to reduce her fever somewhat, but… the prognosis is… uncertain."
"She is dying?" Selura was horrified. She could read between the lines. The doctor didn't think Neela would live.
"I don't know."
"I have to see her. Please," Selura begged. "Just through a window… if I could talk to her…"
"She asked for you," the doctor seemed hesitant to say it, but pressed on. "She was rambling senselessly, and she started begging her mother if she could see you and hold your hand…"
Selura felt tears slide down her cheeks. The girl was dying and delirious, and still wanted to see her? Neela's mother was a physician, so perhaps she had thought in her fevered state that she was in a med bay on her birth ship. The asari covered her face with her hands and started sobbing. Every sob sent a little wave of pain through her, but she barely noticed because a much more agonizing pain was assaulting her: She felt like her heart was breaking. She couldn't believe this was happening. If Neela died… her heart almost stopped at the thought.
"I gathered that the two of you are… close. So I… I guess the decision is yours," the doctor finally murmured. "There is no intercom to the isolation room, and we have no protective gear that would fit you. If we put you in the room with her, her system's reaction to your presence on top of everything else… it might be too much. But… she may not survive even if she remains isolated. So if you want to be with her…"
Selura sobbed, torn with indecision. She wanted nothing more than to be with Neela… to hold her hand and stay with her until either she recovered, or… or… She couldn't give voice to the other outcome even in her mind. But it was a selfish thought. She wanted to be with Neela to comfort her, of course, but part of her was terrified that the girl might die, and she would never have had the chance to hold her hand again. If she joined her in the isolation room, however, she would be adding yet another source of contamination to what apparently had been too many exposures already. If she went in there and then Neela died… it could well be her fault.
"I cannot," she finally whispered. "I cannot risk exposing her to anything else." It broke her heart to say it, but she couldn't risk that her presence would be the thing that was finally the breaking point for Neela's ability to recover. She would just have to pray that Neela would survive. It was all she could do.
The doctor sat on the edge of her bed, placing a hand on her shoulder while she sobbed. She barely even noticed the sympathetic attempt to comfort her. She never even asked about Prathus or Aida or Captain Nisaria. Her thoughts were centered solely upon the woman she loved… and might soon lose.
Library, Mivian heights…
Prathus did his best to hide his frustration as he stared at the cards in his hand. He hadn't been familiar with the human game of poker prior to the quick tutorial the red-haired human had given him, but he was doing quite well at it. He suspected the sole reason he was holding his own was because the humans didn't know how to read his expression. And for the few humans that could, his frustration might have been throwing them, because his thoughts were not on the game, but on his companion, who was stuck in a cell somewhere.
He had expected their card game to be interrupted after an hour… perhaps two. The recon mine was presumably set and waiting the trigger for detonation, and McSween was supposed to blow it up once they'd had adequate time to claim as an alibi. And yet they had been playing cards for almost five hours. Off-duty soldiers and a few civilians had quickly joined in; most were eager for something to take their mind off of the invasion. Prathus, as he stared at the grinning red-haired engineer on the opposite side of the table, was beginning to wonder if the man had forgotten the plan.
Zaeed was likewise seemingly engrossed in the game, the turian noted. Although with Zaeed, it was difficult to say for sure. The man's stone-faced expression was serving him well in terms of outplaying the others at the table, but for all Prathus knew, the mercenary might have been as impatient as he was himself. The only good that could possibly come of the protracted length of the game, in his view, was that they would have plenty of witnesses to account for their whereabouts during a period of multiple uninterrupted hours.
Still, the turian was seriously beginning to consider pulling McSween aside to demand an explanation for the delay when a sound from outside caught his attention. It was not, however, the explosive sound he had been expecting. Instead, the harsh, reptilian cry of a harvester echoed through the town. Everyone at the table froze, and many of the men exchanged glances when the cry was repeated. And then again… in ever-increasing numbers.
All at once, the echoing sound of assault rifles and the resounding discharge of harvester fire filled the silence of the afternoon. The men all scrambled for the exits, and Prathus quickly reached out and grabbed McSween's arm as the engineer was passing. He pulled the human to a stop.
"Where is your armory?" he demanded. He had no idea where the weapons he'd been carrying prior to his hospitalization would be found now. And he didn't have time to look.
"I'll show ye the way," the engineer nodded toward the door.
Prathus limped along behind the human, trying to ignore the pain in his legs. The injuries had been mere flesh wounds, and so the medigel alone had been speeding the healing process tremendously, but they were not yet fully healed, and when he walked, the movement of the muscles sent minor but irritating jolts of pain through both legs.
When they got out into the street, Prathus's eyes widened in shock. Apparently, the destruction of the Reaper devices had indeed drawn attention. The sky was filled with harvesters, endlessly circling and strafing the streets of the small town. He couldn't get an accurate count with the creatures swooping in and out of sight over the buildings, but he guessed there was a dozen at least. And if there were harvesters over the town, they were undoubtedly dropping off troops. All around him, Alliance soldiers were firing at the creatures whenever they flew into view, but the Reaper creatures were large and heavily armored; they could withstand a lot of punishment.
He followed McSween along through the streets, the two of them sticking close to the buildings to keep out of the line of harvester fire as they moved. As they traveled, he noted that the engineer had activated his omni-tool and was looking at the holographic display of the recon mine's laser scanning system.
"Why didn't you detonate that thing hours ago?" Prathus demanded.
The human paused in his stride, turning around and holding up his omni-tool to show off the holographic display. "Because it was a bloody stupid plan," McSween growled. "How was I supposed to activate this bloody thing without everyone at the damned table seein' it?"
Prathus suddenly understood. The human had been trying to figure out how to detonate the mine without giving himself away. Even if he had activated his omni under the table, the glow would have been obvious, and a detonation at that same moment might have been a bit too much to pass off as coincidence.
"How'd you pull it off the first time?" Prathus asked as they ducked around a corner onto a new street.
"The first time, me an' Harper were talkin' wi' some o' the marines. I told Harper I would transfer a file to 'im, and we both activated our 'tools to cover it. But… In a poker game, I had no reason to use an omni. Unless I was cheatin'… or activatin' a bomb. Wait a sec…" he paused in his stride, crouching in the shadows of a building and looking at the display.
Prathus could see the holographic image clearly, and understood what the engineer was waiting for. The recon mine's mapping system was outlining the figures of several reapers, using the truck as cover. A few more were visible as faint images on the edge of the display's range. As he watched, the few stragglers moved closer.
"Goodbye, ye bastards…" the engineer growled, triggering the mine.
The sound of the explosion drowned out even the sounds of gunfire in the area. Prathus could see the flash of the detonation from over the buildings to the east. And the recon mine's scanner had confirmed his other suspicion… that if there were harvesters, there would be ground forces too.
"C'mon," McSween gestured. "The armory is right at the end o' the street."
Prathus nodded, following as quickly as he could toward the building. Even as they approached, he could see cannibals fanning out in front of the structure, and spotted Alliance troops in the windows, firing back. He staggered to a stop next to one of the buildings flanking the street and sighed in frustration. They were going to have a hard time reaching the building without getting shot. Why couldn't his weapons have been stored in his recovery room with his armor?
"We need to make a run for it," Prathus muttered to the human. "I have an electromagnetic pulse generator with a neural shock element installed on my omni. You have a pistol," he nodded toward the engineer's sidearm. "If we strike them from behind and run for the armory doors, we should be able to get through before they drop our shields."
"Aye," McSween nodded. "If ye think ye can make that run… I was'na sure ye were up to it."
"Don't have much choice, do I?" Prathus shook his head, readying his omni-tool.
The two of them made a break for the building as soon as Prathus was ready. The human covered the distance with incredible speed… he was quite a sprinter. Prathus, on the other hand, did his best, but his legs just weren't up to a true run. The human fired at the Reapers as he ran through, and as soon as Prathus was in range, he stunned one of the Reapers with his omni-tool, but the cannibals were quick to adapt and return fire. If it wasn't for the men in the armory providing covering fire, the two might not have made it. As it was, Prathus's shields were on the verge of collapse by the time he stumbled to the door and ducked out of the line of fire.
"I need a rifle," he announced, sagging against one of the walls and rubbing his bad leg. The pain was much worse in the one he'd injured during the Relay 314 incident. The other one just stung a bit from the healing bullet wounds.
McSween passed him an Alliance-issue Avenger rifle and a handful of thermal clips, and appropriated one for himself. Then he tossed the turian a number of grenades in succession, a few proximity mines and a mine launcher for his rifle, and then a pistol as well. Prathus caught each item thrown to him, quite happily accepting all the firepower he could get.
"We're dug in pretty solid," one of the marines at the window assured them. "Mod those weapons while you have the chance. We have to get this shit loaded into a skycab or something… we can't abandon the supplies."
Prathus nodded and set to work. Fortunately, for a trained soldier, it was a simple matter to quickly install a few mods into a rifle and stow some extra gear. In less than a minute, he had two mods and the proximity mine launcher properly incorporated into his rifle. He quickly armed the weapon and slid the proximity mines into the loader on the underside of the barrel. With that accomplished, he immediately turned and fired a proximity mine at the floor in the doorway. The mine locked to the plating and armed with an audible beep.
"Door's trapped," he announced.
"What's the plan? How do we get the gear out o' 'ere?" McSween asked.
"Attention all Alliance per-" a radio transmission began, but faded into indistinct static after a moment.
Prathus was surprised when he received the signal. He'd forgotten that radio communications weren't entirely cut. Short range communications were still possible, if a little unreliable.
"Hold your fire," one of the marines called out.
"-peat, do not fall back to the gorge… all forces-" the signal faded momentarily, "-out into the grasslands. Draw them away from-" the signal cut out once more.
"That was Captain Tarrislav's voice," a marine pointed out.
"Fall back into the grasslands?" Another man repeated. "Did I hear that right? We'll be out in the open. Why not fall back to the gorge, where there's cover?"
"Think about it," Prathus snapped. "If you fall back to the gorge, you'd be leading the Reapers to the hospital down there. Injured soldiers, doctors, medical supplies… they'd all be trapped in a big hole in the ground with no way out but to fly through the harvesters."
"Aye," McSween nodded. "Tarrislav is making sense for once. We draw the Reapers away from the hospital, so that they might not find the bloody place."
"Still leaves us with the problem of getting these weapons out," one of the marines pointed out.
An explosion from the doorway interrupted any further conversation between them, and the smoldering remains of a husk tumbled across the floor to land against the far wall of the room. Several of the marines resumed their positions at the windows, firing on the Reapers outside while McSween, Prathus, and a dark-skinned marine with a sparse beard huddled together to discuss the situation.
"There's a shuttle somewhere in town," Prathus told them. "But I have no idea where Massani would have landed the damned thing."
"The transport truck is gone," McSween frowned.
"Wait… what about the civilian cargo truck I came in on? What happened to that thing? It used to be parked near the library."
"It was moved over to the buildings near the tram rail where the civilians were housed," the marine answered. "But I've seen it. It's definitely big enough to carry all of this stuff," he gestured to the crates of armor and explosives, and the weapons arrayed on the tables.
"Then we need it," McSween nodded. "I'm a fast runner. I can get it and bring it 'ere."
"The second it starts moving, the harvesters will be all over it," Prathus warned. "It's a civilian transport. I doubt it can absorb much punishment."
"Take that and go with him," the marine suggested, pointing to a missile launcher leaning in a corner. "There are three missiles left."
"Aye," McSween grinned. "I've seen firsthand the damage those buggers do to the harvesters. And when we start rollin', I'll radio for air support. There are two Trident fighters out there somewhere."
"You hope," Prathus added.
"Aye. I hope."
Security Office, Mivian Heights…
Aida hurled another biotic throw at the makeshift gate that served as the door of her cell, watching the bars jerk violently outward. The entire door was bending from the force of the repeated biotic strikes, but she was having no luck breaking out of the cell. The Alliance had cobbled together makeshift cell doors since the security office in the town was without power for the regular doors that would have sealed the cells. Unfortunately, they had done their work quite well. The sounds of gunfire and explosions were drawing closer and closer, and Aida was afraid that when the Reapers reached the building, they would find her still caged. She would be an easy kill.
She summoned another biotic orb, and was just about to hurl it at the door when an armored figure dashed into the room, the air around him shimmering faintly as bullets ricocheted off of his barrier. He stumbled and fell to the ground, but even as he rolled over, he was already reaching into a pouch at his hip and activating a grenade, which he promptly tossed through the door and out into the street. There was a flash and a thunderous explosion that shook the building, and the stranger rolled to a crouched position, his rifle aimed through the door, scanning the street outside.
Apparently he was satisfied that the area was clear for the moment, because he soon rose to his feet and turned toward the cell, activating his omni-tool's welding function to cut through the lock that kept her door closed. Aida couldn't see his face because he was wearing a helmet with a dark visor, but she was grateful to the stranger just the same. The moment the cell door swung open, Aida eagerly stepped outside, immensely relieved to be out of confinement.
"Thank you," she murmured. "I thought I would be left in there to die."
"I would never leave anyone to the Reapers," a vaguely familiar voice answered her.
"Lieutenant Mullins?" she asked. "Is that you?"
"Of course," the Lieutenant nodded. "I was the one that opted to detain you. Your safety is my responsibility. Now I have to get you out of town."
"I have to get back to the hospital," Aida insisted. "My friends-"
"Will have to survive without you," Mullins interrupted. "We are under orders to flee into the grasslands, not toward the gorge."
"What?" Aida was confused. "You are being ordered to flee into the open? Instead of toward shelter?"
"If we flee to the gorge, we draw the Reapers right to the hospital," the Lieutenant pointed out. "Captain Tarrislav ordered all personnel to flee in the opposite direction, and to draw the Reapers after us and away from the town and gorge."
Aida was surprised. Her first thought had been that Tarrislav was once again foolishly ordering his men into the open to be slaughtered, like he had at the F.O.B.. But now she could see the wisdom of the plan. The hospital was at the bottom of the gorge, hidden by surrounding foliage and steam from geothermal vents. If no one ran that way, the Reapers might have no reason to investigate the area. She hoped the plan would work. Captain Nisaria was in no condition to be moved, Neela would definitely die if removed from isolation, and Selura, as far as she knew, was still unconscious. Her friends needed more time to recover.
"Then let us draw the Reapers away," Aida decided, filled with resolve.
"Can you fire a weapon?" Mullins demanded, holding a pistol out to her.
"I am no marksman, but I can use a pistol," she nodded, taking the proffered weapon. She also concentrated and formed a barrier to protect herself.
"Okay," the human moved to the door, quickly scanning the street outside. He fired a few shots, and then turned back to Aida. "Stay on my ass. Where I go, you go. I'll do my best to keep you out of the line of fire."
"I have a barrier," Aida assured him.
"I saw the shimmer when you created it," he nodded. "Must be nice to be a biotic. But still, you're not armored, so keep low and let them concentrate on shooting me."
Aida smiled faintly and nodded her head. She hadn't been sure what to make of the human at first, but she was beginning to see him as a fair-minded and honorable individual. He'd come back to release her, after all, and even though he'd never cleared her of the suspicions about her involvement in the bombings, he was trying to keep her safe and trusting her with a weapon. She was glad that they'd placed a man like him in charge of the investigation. She had a feeling if Tarrislav had been overseeing it, she would have been left in her cell to rot.
"Ready?" the human took a place next to the door, peering outside.
"Yes," Aida nodded.
"We're clear for the moment. Let's go," he prompted, and darted outside without waiting for her response.
Aida followed him into the streets, staring up in awe at the veritable swarm of harvesters crisscrossing overhead. She did spot an Alliance fighter streaking by, but it seemed to her that the Reapers had come in force. Apparently, like the F.O.B. before it, Mivian Heights was lost…
.
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Author's Note: I hope everyone had a happy holiday. And as always, thank you to everyone who has read, commented, favorited/followed, or otherwise given any attention to my story. You're all fantastic, and your continued interest is the driving force behind my continued dedication to this story. I'd finish it one way or the other, don't get me wrong, but you all are a huge factor in my remaining motivated. :)
Just a little note about this Chapter. Nothing was ever said specifically in the game regarding how quickly asari mature, so the reference to asari maturity in the first section is just my guesswork based on Liara's history and comments. She was just over 100 in the first game and had been studying the Protheans for 50 years. She doesn't strike me as the type to spend a few years after graduation from college just hanging out, so I figured graduation was around age 50. Since a doctorate can be attained around 25 for us (give or take a few years), I just doubled all the numbers for humans and used that as a reference. Puberty around 18-26, graduation from high school around 36, college graduation at 50, etc. Seems to work. But this is just my take it. I'm sure others may have other ideas. But hopefully I'm not too far off the mark from anyone's headcannon.
Barring any mishaps, the next installment of the story won't be until next year... On Thursday, specifically. I hope everyone has a fantastic New Year's Eve, and I wish you all the very best in 2013!