Brothers in Steel 34: Monastery Part 1
John took a look through the "window" of the Kodiak to get a good view of the Planet Lessus as the shuttle sped by. There wasn't much to see other than snow-capped mountains, the wind whipping around them, making dust-devils , only made out of snow. John reckoned it would be very peaceful around here. He asked, "What's the situation down there, Liara?"
"I dug up some information. I now understand why Asari high command wanted to hide it so much. We're headed to an Ardat-Yakshi monastery."
"A what?"
"Ardat-Yakshi," added Shepard, "Asari with a rare genetic disorder. If I understand correctly, what seperates them from other Asari is that when they mate with you, you die."
"Ouch," said John.
"Actually, research indicated that the bonding is quite...pleasurable," said Liara vaguely, "But anyways..."
"Are these Ardat-Yakshi like Morinth?" asked Shepard.
"No, she chose to become a killer. These Ardat-Yakshi chose isolation to avoid that."
"Who's Morinth?" asked John.
"She was the...daughter of one my crew back when I was helping track down the Collectors," explained Shepard, "Samara, was her name. Samara had been tracking down her daughter all over the galaxy, and I helped her finally kill Morinth. Morinth had an aura around her, she almost seduced me, but thankfully, I was strong enough."
"That doesn't mean these ones are harmless though," Liara commented, "The urge to kill and feed can be very powerful."
"So we're going to a place filled with Asari sexual vampires?" said John somewhat dryly, "Whatever's going down there can't be good."
"No, if there was ever a chance that the Ardat-Yakshi could break loose, the Commandos were to purge the facility."
"Purge? You mean destroy?" said Shepard.
"They would have brought explosives with them, yes."
"Don't assume anything," ordered Shepard, "Maybe the Ardat-Yakshi sent out the distress call. If the Asari want us to destroy this place, I need to know what happened."
John thought to himself that it would be better if they just razed the place anyway, to be sure, but he agreed that they need to find out what really happened first.
The shuttle softly touched down on the glossy black landing pad, and they all got out. A red speeder was parked nearby. John went to go take a look, and ran his hand over the top of the hood, feeling some heat. "This car only came here recently," he noted."
"Interesting," said Shepard, "Stay sharp, team."
They did a quick scan of the area, then opened up the door, to find an empty elevator shaft in front of them. The inside was dark and somewhat foreboding. "Elevator disabled," said Liara, "To prevent entry or escape, I wonder."
John had to jump across the chasm and landed on a platform. Liara's jump came short and she started to fall backwards, but John's reflexes kicked in and he quickly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in gently.
"You alright?"
"I think so," she said, "Thanks."
"No problem."
They slid down the ladders and landed on the bottom floor.
Then John heard a noise, a sharp, eerie noise that sounded like a scream, but very faint.
"Listen," he said, stopping the group.
They all stood still and listened for a few seconds, then another noise came out a little bit louder.
"There's definitely more than one," said Liara, timidly.
"Be on your guard," said Shepard, and they moved into the darkness.
The darkness inside the next room was all enveloping. From what John could tell, it was part of some kind of lunch room, as there were tables and chairs set up for large groups of people. There were also troughs filled with decorative ferns between them. However, John's attention was focused on the dark purple splotches of blood on the floor, and the uprooted floor tiles. Another scream noise sounded off in the distance, and goosebumps formed on John's back. The whole thing was creepy.
As he walked, his huge Spartan feet bumped into a bottle that made a clamor. Liara said in surprise, "What was that?"
"Sorry Commander, that was me."
They continued to search the room until eventually John stumbled upon the dead body of an Asari in a combat suit.
Liara came up and did some scans with her omni-tool then said, "This appears to be the Commando's captain. It seems they gave their lives, fighting the Reapers."
"This Monastery is out of the way," said Shepard, "What would the Reapers want with Ardat-Yakshi?"
"Maybe they are doing to the Ardat-Yakshi what they do to all the other races, turn them into Husks, I mean," suggested John.
"Maybe, Liara did you find anything useful?"
"A Nav point location for the bomb the Commandos planted. Its in the Great Hall."
"Looks like the purge's begun," said Shepard, "If there's no survivors, we'll set off that bomb when we get to the Great Hall."
They left the dark room and exited out onto an outside Veranda. They followed its length and entered another room. They were then surprised by noise of battle, the sound of several Cannibals engaged on the ground.
One of them was tossed about and thrown towards the window, dying upon impact. "Very good," a soft, regal voice said, "I almost didn't hear you."
John looked down to see an Asari, dressed in a red jumpsuit and a gold colored tiara of some sort, strode over to them, hooking her Phalanx sidearm to her belt.
"Samara?" asked Shepard, obviously recognizing the Asari. John put his gun down, and asked, "Is she an Ardat-Yakshi, Commander?"
The being known as Samara laughed, "No, I'm afraid I'm not. It has been some time Shepard. You are a most welcome sight. The corruption here runs deep, I'm afraid."
"I assume you're hear on your own, Justicar," said Liara, leaving John further off the loop, "Perhaps for something special."
"You are correct, two of my daughters are here. I have come for them. Unfortunately," Samara explained, "The Reapers had already infested this place by the time I got here."
"I assume your daughters are more docile than Morinth," said Shepard, "If they are here."
"Correct. Rila and Falere have followed the Monastery's rules ever since they came here. They've shown no inclination towards violence."
"And you're here to save them."
"They are my responsibility, and one that can not be abandoned, even as our galaxy crumbles."
"Lets go together," suggeted Shepard, "Maybe your daughters can tell us why the Reapers hit this place."
"I suspect they will have much to tell us. It has been centuries since I last saw them."
Another scream, like the one they heard in the elevator shaft, sounded from behind them, this time even louder than before. Samara said somewhat kindly than John would have expected, "We're out of time," Samara lit up as a barrier of Biotic energy rippled across her entire body, "I'll go kill these creatures."
John and Liara pulled out their weapons. Shepard said, "Lets go," and they sped down the hallway to meet up with Samara.
Author's Note: There was a line that Shepard said in the game, when you meet up with Samara, where he asks Samara if Falere and Rila are as dangerous as Morinth even though TEN MINUTES AGO Liara tells you that everybody at the Ardat-Yakshi monastery is docile. Shepard can be a real idiot sometimes, so I changed it.