Chapter 43c: Virmire pt3

Shepherd and team jump down behind a wall and surveyed the area. There were no enemies, for now. For the Shadow team assault, he brought Tali due the geth being entrenched with the base, and Wrex for krogan and bigger targets, plus he had promised the krogan the cure when they had gotten to the lab. Shepherd opened his comm. "Shadow team in position" Shepherd said.

"Understood, we'll start our push. We'll try to make it to the AA gun, but it might be up to you to finish the job" Kirrahe said. "Also there are some satellite uplinks up ahead, if you can take out that would be appreciated."

"Got it" Shepherd said. They head forward and in the distance, they could see a watchtower of sorts. Kirrahe was not kidding when he said this was big.

"Keelah, how did Saren manage this for so long without anyone knowing?" Tali asked in awe.

"Deceit, money, and lots of guns" Wrex said. They head towards the tower and went into cover, as Geth Troopers, Geth Rocket Troopers, and Geth Shock Troopers will greet them with a hail of gunfire. Tali hacked the rocket trooper in the front, and rocket trooper turned its attention to the troopers and shock troopers and the three geth turned on each other. Shepherd blasted the shock troopers head off with his pistol. Wrex went out of cover and rammed the rocket trooper just before its program came back to normal and ripped its head off with his bare hands. The trooper fired at the krogan, causing Wrex to create a barrier to protect himself. Shepherd overloaded the troopers shields and Tali sabotaged the geth's weapon causing him to be destroyed.

When the geth were no more the team moved up the ramp, and saw console protected by geth snipers and destroyers. Wrex played decoy and charge the nearest geth, the snipers targeted the krogan, but was shot by the now hacked destroyer, and more geth came in as reinforcements, but was thrown by Wrex's throw field. Tali sabotaged the troopers wiping out their numbers. "Rookie, you're up" The quarian nodded and disable the geth's communications and triangulation frequencies.

"Something's scrambled their targeting systems, we got a shot! Chief Williams, take the heat off Mannovai!"

The team went straight northwards at the next junction. Forming a single file, they advanced closely along a cliff, until they meet with a swarm of rocket drones firing at the team. Shepherd used his singularity to disrupt the drones flying, making them smash into each other and the rocky walls. They moved out of the canyon, and into the next watchtower, they encounter more rocket drones and a Geth Destroyer that just loved to get in their face mostly Shepherd's. To make matters worse they were reinforced by krogan, who couldn't resist attacking Wrex. The team was separated by their enemies, the krogans made a swipe at Wrex who dodged and blew them back with a throw field.

Wrex scoffed. "Whelps" Meanwhile the destroyer was taking down all the cover he could find, and when the spectre was out of cover the geth would charge and Shepherd would dodger, but he couldn't do it forever.

"Rookie, anytime you're ready…you know, no hurry" Shepherd said. Tali looked back him, and hacked one of the rocket drones to ram into the destroyer, stunning it while Shepherd gunned it down. Shepherd then smashed the rest of the drones with a throw field.

"They're calling sat-strikes! Jaeto, watch for comm stations!"

"That sounded bad. Really bad." Shepherd said.

"Combined air and satellite strikes," Tali said. "For the geth to get this aggressive... They must be getting worried." Tali looked around the compound and saw a structure on the roof.

"Rookie?" Tali raised her weapon and shot the structure, she walked back to Shepherd and Wrex.

"There, Kirrahe and Ash shouldn't have any problems with the satellite strikes" Tali said. "Well come on" They headed up the ramp and headed south. Once on the platform two krogans popped out and wasted no time attacking the team. Joining them were geth troopers and a destroyer. Because there was little cover, they had to get them off-balance and gun them down. Shepherd used his throw field to stop a charging krogan. Wrex had the other krogan in a charging match, while Tali dealt with geth, she hacked the destroyer who then charged at the geth closest to it. Wrex tired of the young krogan, lifted him off the ground.

"Shepherd!" Wrex said. Shepherd nodded and rolled out the way when Wrex through the krogan, knocking them both on the ground. Before they could react, Shepherd and Wrex mowed them down. The team crossed the bridge and entered the small door leading through the wall, and crossed a metal plank leading to the entrance of the central facility building.

"Finally" Shepherd said exhausted. "We've finally reached this damn building." Tali went to the terminal and called for Shepherd. "What's up, rookie?"

"I've got access to base security. I can cut the alarms from here, and maybe even trigger alarms on the far side of the base" Tali explained. "It'll clear the guards, but they may be too much for the salarians and Ash"

"Just silence the alarms, we'll handle any guards inside" Shepherd said.

Wrex smashed his fists together. "Nice, a fight to the cure" Wrex said. "Wouldn't have any other way"

Tali scoffed. "Glad to see you're so happy about difficult odds" Tali said annoyed. She typed into the terminal and the door opened.

Shepherd nodded. "Good, let's clean this place out." The door opened, and the team rushed in, entering a cargo bay. Huge crates were positioned inside it and the team advanced from cover to cover, flanking any enemy they encounter. Since most of the enemies in the base were geth tech support by Tali was a godsend.

"That's all of them Shepherd" Wrex said. As they walked through the base they saw many disturbing things, it was more of a prison camp than a base. They heard the screams of torture, and the team went downstairs and found the source of those scream. Salarians, Kirrahe's lost men.

"Y…You, you're not geth, and you're not wearing a lab coat either, who are you?"

"Shepherd, council spectre, I'm here with Captain Kirrahe to shut this place down" he said. The salarian's eyes lit up when he said that, the commando must have been through terrible things in this lab, because he offered to help.

"My name is Lt. Ganto Imness, I was captured during recon, I would be happy to help take down this damn nightmare"

"What do they do here?" Tali asked.

"My team was altered, indoctrinated" Imness said. "Captain knew about the breed facility, but this place holds much darker secrets, indoctrination tests" The salarian shuttered. "I saw good people reduced to mindless husks, the people who died during the test, I envy them" Shepherd looked at the other salarian prisoners; they looked like they were in a daze, just lost.

Shepherd frowned. "Why should we free you? If they were altered, you could be too"

Imness shook his head. "I was left as a control subject, so I was left with my senses, even though I almost wish I didn't" he said. "Saren uses the test to control his people…I…I just saw how it turned the others…I…I can't end up like this please let me out" Shepherd was getting creepy vibes from the salarian, his once calm breathing was becoming more and more irregular. Wrex and Tali must have the same vibe too, as they were shaking their heads at letting the salarian go.

"If I let you out, how will I know you won't attack me?" Shepherd asked. "Because something tells me you wouldn't know"

"Please it's obvious I'm not crazed or drooling like the others, let me out and I'll stay out of your way promise" he said franticly. "I need to get out, this room is too small, it keeps talking, I really want get out and get some work done, I need to get out!"

"I…I'm sorry, but it's too risky, I can't take that chance" Shepherd said. He faced his team. "Come on, we have a base to destroy…" Wrex and Tali nodded and the team walked away.

"Can't take that chance, no chance…I need to do what it says, I have to..." Imness said franticly. "Let me out. Let me out! LET ME OUT!" The salarian ran to the cell door and banged on the door screaming incoherently.

"LETMEOUT!LETMEOUT!LETMEOUT!LETMEOUT!" he screamed still banging on the door. Tali covered her ears trying to block out the sound of the salarian, although Shepherd was right to leave the salarian in his prison, it didn't make it any easier. She looked at Shepherd, he looked disturbed at his decision, and even the old battlemaster looked concerned. She looked back at the cell.

"Keelah…"

"Don't look back, Rookie, don't look back…." Shepherd said sadly. The team went deeper into the base.

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