Chapter 61: Return, Relive, Rewrite

I long journeyed home
In the darkness alone
To see the lights that I longed to reclaim
But once I recovered
I too soon discovered
The lights that I knew were a flame

Meeting with the Council went about as well as it usually did. Even with the plans for the device in hand, they were more concerned about guarding their own borders than restoring Earth's. Terra could understand their fear, but it wasn't fair. None of it. She knew just how bad it was when she realized that she was actually agreeing with Udina. Or maybe it was that he was agreeing with her (which was also alarming) that they needed to stand together at times like this and she was subsequently following his frustration that the plea was being ignored.

"They're too scared to look out for anyone but themselves," Udina scoffed.

"Our people are scared," the turian councilor corrected as he stepped into Udina's office, "And we're looking out for them the best we know how."

Terra turned her attention to him. If he was coming to see them in person, it meant he was about to help them.

He stepped closer. "I don't know if you've heard yet, Shepard. The Reapers assaulted Taetrus a few days ago. They're encroaching on Palaven space right now."

She felt her blood run cold, like those words had drained all the fire from her veins. She had hoped Palaven would have time while Earth was the primary target. If the Reapers were already hitting it… "Do…do you know if the evacuation procedures worked?"

"Unfortunately, no. So far, all we've heard is that the primarch has called a war summit and our army is attempting to hold on Menae. Hopefully, it'll buy some time for our civilians to be extracted, but with the numbers the Reapers are using…it's unlikely most of them will be able to reach the relay unless action is taken."

She couldn't forget that Earth needed her, but she refused to stand down if Palaven was in danger. "I'll take it. What do you need me to do?"

He almost smirked. "I should have known you would not hesitate. I came to tell you there might be a way to get both of us what we want. If Primarch Fedorian is extracted and the war summit takes place, it could aid your efforts to unite us and protect the hierarchy long enough to establish efforts to in turn protect Palaven."

Bypass the Council entirely and have a grateful primarch on her side. She liked it. "I'll take the Normandy now."

"Of course. Good luck."

So Terra immediately recalled everyone to the Normandy and set the course for Menae. While they were preparing to set off, she went around checking on the crew. It was good to see Joker, Chakwas, Adams, Daniels, and Donnelly back in their proper places. It was good to be back in her own. It was also nice to see Liara setting up shop in the XO office, restoring her Shadow Broker operations complete with info drone (which was now named Glyph, something Terra found oddly adorable). Everything was how she would want it to be for what was coming.

Until she tried to sleep. She figured since they had a few hours before they would arrive and Palaven would be better served if she was well-rested that she should try to get some rest while she could. She didn't sleep well. Nightmares plagued her. The horror that was leaving Earth while her people screamed in the streets below. What she hoped wouldn't await her adopted people now that the Reapers were hitting the Apien Crest. And through it all, the boy she failed to save. She could only shake it off by telling herself that she was about to avenge all of it.

When they finally started to deploy to Menae, Liara and James behind her, she felt like she was back in her nightmares. One look out at Palaven through the view-screen nearly sent her to her knees with devastation. The strongest military in the galaxy and the Reapers were obliterating it. Even from here, she could see Cipritine aflame. It was worse than the raid on Mindoir, maybe even worse than Earth to her. James apparently hadn't known the specifics of her relationship with the turians, prompting Liara to quietly explain how Terra had been adopted by the Vakarians 16 years ago between sympathetic looks at the commander in question. Terra managed to hold herself together outwardly, but she was falling apart inside as her eyes stayed glue to the screen.

"Commander!" Cortez the shuttle pilot finally called, snapping her out of it, "LZ's getting swarmed!"

That did it. In an instant, her sorrow turned to outrage. "Open the hatch." Nobody tried to argue, James silently opening the hatch in question as they approached the landing zone to give Terra a clear view of their opposition. Husks everywhere. Not for long. She started by sniping them down, taking three of them in as many seconds, then lobbing a grenade into the middle of the swarm. The few that survived scattered. It didn't save them. Before the shuttle even stopped moving, Terra leaped through the hatch and dropped on one of the husks, striking with such force that the remains of its spine snapped beneath her feet as she turned to take down the last few with pistol headshots. "Clear!"

Liara and James eyed her cautiously as they followed her off, as if they were afraid one wrong step would set her off again.

That was pretty much true. Terra wanted to rip every molecule from every last abomination that had dared to set foot on her beloved world. Both her peoples were suffering. The things responsible for that were going to pay.

They didn't have far to go to get to the turian encampment. Once they were inside, it was easy to find the man in charge. "Commander Shepard, General Corinthus," the turian introduced himself, "We heard you were on your way."

"I've come to get Primarch Fedorian," she affirmed.

He froze. After a second of silence, he regained his composure and said the last thing she wanted to hear: "Primarch Fedorian is dead. His shuttle was shot down an hour ago when it tried to leave the moon."

Under any other circumstances, Terra would've taken the news in stride and been upset about it later. Right now, she wanted to throw something and only by the grace of Liara's silent intervention managed to contain herself. "I'm sorry. I hear he was a good man."

"And a friend. He would've made an outstanding diplomat."

"Now what?" James sighed.

"We'll have to change the plan," Terra said, wondering how many times she'd said that by now, "The hierarchy has a very clear line of succession. We just have to find the new primarch."

"That may prove difficult," Corinthus responded, "We have too many casualties to keep track of. Palaven Command would know, but our COMM tower is down. We can't reach them."

Terra didn't bother asking permission before mobilizing. "Keep your hand on the dial. We'll be back when COMMs are fixed."

She led Liara and James through the side barricade and around to the COMM tower to find it surrounded by husks. They went down all too easily. Terra tried to fix the main panel, but the problem was hardware rather than software, meaning James had to climb up and patch it physically while she and Liara held the perimeter. Liara basically kept up crowd control while Terra returned to ripping through the husks in such a way that the mightiest krogan would bow in respect. It was only when the husks stopped coming and she received contact from Corinthus that COMMs were restored that she calmed down and led her squad back into the garrison.

"As you said," Corinthus informed them when they arrived, "succession is usually simple. But right now, the hierarchy's in chaos. So many dead or MIA…"

"I don't care how far we have to dig," Terra retorted, "Palaven needs a leader and Earth needs help."

"Sounds like you could use a hand yourself."

Just the sound of that voice made her freeze. She finally brought herself to face it. The second she saw him standing there, she ran to throw her arms around him.

Garrus smiled as he returned the embrace. "I missed you, too."

She hadn't realized until now how worried she was for him specifically, how she had been suppressing the fear that he was somewhere down in that chaos and she might not even find him. Now that he was here…

"Ahem!"

Oh. Right. Mission. She quickly stepped back and noticed James looking at them curiously. "Sorry. This is Garrus Vakarian."

To his credit, James recognized the name. "Oh. I see."

She smirked as she turned to Garrus. "This is James Vega."

Garrus nodded with a polite "Lieutenant." Though Terra was able to tell he was eying James with a very small measure of resentment for his unfortunate position and a much less small measure of gratitude for buying them time in Vancouver when he had come by to deliver the news of his mother's passing. Rather than dealing with that complex reaction, Garrus shelved it for later and turned to greet Liara much more amicably. "Good to see you, too."

Liara smiled as she stepped up. "Good to see you in one piece, Garrus."

"What are you doing up here?" Terra asked him, "I thought you were organizing the defenses on Palaven."

"That's why I'm here," Garrus answered, "If we lose this moon, we lose Palaven." He smirked. "Apparently, I'm an expert advisor now."

Terra smirked back. "Sounds about right to me."

He clearly disagreed, but he knew better than to argue with her when she was complimenting him, so he focused on the issue at hand. "Corinthus filled me in. We know who we're after."

"The new primarch," Corinthus stepped back in, "is General Adrien Victus."

"Victus?" Liara asked curiously, "His name's crossed my desk."

Terra thought the name sounded familiar, but it wasn't one she was familiar with. Instead, she turned to Garrus. "You know him?"

"I was with him this morning," Garrus nodded, "He's a good general, really popular with his troops. Not so popular with military command, though. Has a reputation for playing loose with accepted strategy."

Terra couldn't help but be curious. "What do you mean?"

"On Taetrus, during the uprisings," Liara explained, "his team discovered a salarian spy ring about the same time the turian separatists did. Rather than neutralize the ring, he fell back. He even gave up valuable fortifications, which the rebels took."

"Then," Garrus continued for her, "when both groups had worn each other down, he moved back in and took them out. Didn't lose a man."

Terra smirked. "Bold, clever, and loyal. Sounds like just what we need."

"Commander!" her COMM suddenly flared to life, "Come in! We've got a situation back here!"

She quickly stepped aside. "Can this wait, Joker? We're in the middle of a warzone!"

"The Normandy's going haywire—shutting down systems, charging up weapons. I can't find the source."

Bad news. She didn't like the thought of anything being wrong with her precious ship. "We need the Normandy at the ready in case we need to bug out."

"Should I go back and take a look?" Liara offered.

Terra was hesitant to send Liara back if they might need biotic support, but the asari had gained a lot of technical knowledge recently that could prove invaluable and the ship needed all the help it could get. "Do it." Once Liara was racing off, Terra turned her attention to Garrus. "You said you were Victus this morning?"

"Yeah, but we got separated," Garrus nodded, "He went to bolster a flank that was breaking, could be anywhere by now."

"We're trying to raise him, commander," Corinthus said.

That was when a roar resounded through the air. Not the ominous, intense trill of the Reapers, though it did seem like a smaller version of such, a ringing screech like 1000 birds of prey.

"Incoming Harvester!" James shouted, "Headed for the airfield!"

Terra looked up. Harvesters were the Reapers' equivalent of a drop-ship—terrifying, hulking beasts that flew in to throw down foot soldiers and shoot down artillery—formed from corruptions of the actual harvesters that dropped klixen on hostile worlds. The entire garrison shot at this one and barely winged it before it could drop its payload in the airfield. She wasn't letting that stand. "General, tell Victus we'll rendezvous here. We're going to take care of whatever that thing dropped off." So she turned to her turian with a smile. "You coming, Garrus?"

He merely readied his rifle. "Are you kidding? I'm right behind you."

Just like that, she felt like herself again. The sorrow and rage was still boiling inside her, but it was buried beneath the joy at having her mate back with her and the calm assurance that all of her feelings were known and shared by someone who loved her despite it all. Whatever the Reapers were about to throw their way, she could face it with him beside her. So she went straight to the airfield to face it.

The general Husks formed from her own people were nothing to her now, though she couldn't help but notice Garrus' rising hostility towards them. It was what came next that threatened to overwhelm her.

"Is it just me," James asked, "or do those Reaper troops look like turians?"

…they did. The harvest had started. The Reapers were putting her adopted people through it, desecrating their remains and turning them against the very people most of them had fought for…

Marauders. She was going to tear them all apart.

The Marauders (what else could they call them?) were clearly the tactical brains in the Reapers' units. They had shields, maneuverability, and firepower. If they turned their back on the things for five seconds, one of them would start giving the Husks armor just to strengthen their offensive. Terra didn't give most of them a chance to try. She shot down half of them with astonishing ferocity and then pounced on the last one standing, turning its own weapon on it to deal the final blow. If Corinthus hadn't called to tell them the main barricade was under fire, she didn't know if she could've calmed down. Instead, she raced back, James and Garrus right behind her, and climbed straight up to the barricade.

There was a turret on this one. Like she wasn't using that.

The Husks came in a swarm, but since Terra, James, and Garrus had the high ground, it was a killing field. In no time, they were using the Reapers' shock troopers as target practice.

"Alright, who's next?!" Garrus smirked.

"I'm just warming up!" James followed suit, "Maybe I can do three at a time!"

"Look out!" Terra called, "Here comes another wave!"

"Yeah, like fish in a barrel!"

"What?!" Garrus asked.

"Old human saying! Like fish! In! A barrel!"

"I'll explain later!" Terra promised with a weary sigh.

With every shot, they started to feel victorious. Deep down, each of them could feel the bond of battle companions growing. Not so deep down, Terra and Garrus took split seconds to cast meaningful looks to each other, already longing for when the fight was over and they could probably have their reunion.

Then, just as the Husks started to clear, the true threat appeared. Jumping in from nowhere and landing with such force that the barricade shook, throwing all three of them down into the field below and right into its sights, stood a massive creature with a claw-like hand and what was clearly a turian head. The mere sight of the thing was unnatural and disturbing. The prospect of fighting it seemed intimidating but manageable.

Then it charged.

Terra thought fast, pushing Garrus out of the way of the charge and prodding James to dive the other way. Once they were clear for a moment, she drew her rifle, incendiary ammo at the ready and opened fire. Its armor was tough, but between her fire rounds, Garrus' armor-piercing headshots, and James' carnage-inducing volleys, they were able to subdue it. It didn't go down easy, but it went down the same as all the others. The downside being that Terra just barely managed being gored by its claw as it collapsed right in front of her. The bigger they are, after all.

Once it was clear, they only had enough time to check that no one was injured before their COMMs sounded again. "Commander," General Corinthus came through, "we can't raise Primarch Victus."

Terra sighed. She should've expected it wouldn't be that simple. "Understood. Hold your positions, keep your men safe. We'll find him." She disconnected and turned to Garrus. "Where was he when you last saw him?"

"This way," Garrus nodded, turning to lead them down the path, "Shouldn't be too far unless we find trouble."

She scoffed. "We always do."

They did, in fact, encounter a few Husks along the way, but Terra could see they weren't responsible for the tension Garrus was expertly hiding. She figured he was probably dealing with the same woes she was facing, but she still finally asked if he was OK.

He might've tried asserting that he was, but he couldn't hide it from her. "Of course I'm not. Look at Palaven! I can see where I was born blazing from here!"

"You still have family down there?" James asked.

Garrus nodded. "My dad. A sister."

Terra immediately reacted. "They didn't make it to the evac shuttles?!"

"I don't know. Maybe they got through in time. But the Reapers got here so quickly…and they hit Cipritine first and hardest."

Right by where Castis and Solana lived. "Right where the evacuation procedures were centered."

Garrus sighed solemnly, shaking his head at the horrible thought he was trying to avoid. "It was like they knew."

Terra felt responsible for that. She and Garrus had pushed for the most populated areas to be the first responders for the evacuations, trying to get as many out as possible. They knew that was where the Reapers would likely target first, so they should've known time would be too limited. They should've…but they couldn't, could they? How do you predict something so unlike anything else you know? Something utterly unknowable? Whatever they had done, the Reapers would've found a way around it. Maybe all their attempts to prepare had been for nothing.

No. She wouldn't let that happen. It was too late to save the fallen, but they could all be avenged. She had lost too much already. She wasn't losing now.

It wasn't far before they stumbled across a contingent of soldiers. Some of them were wounded, but they all seemed to be holding up. Garrus asked if they'd seen Victus, and the soldiers pointed them south. So they headed on. And soon came within a meter of a crashing flier that had been taken down by a Harvester. The squad was fine, but the crash had no survivors. Terra was feeling even more helpless and angry with every step. She hated it, all of it, and she just wanted to shoot something.

She got her wish when they reached the garrison and found it under siege. "Move it! No Reaper's taking this primarch!"

They raced into the garrison as one, ready for anything. It was a simple fight at first, mostly Cannibals with a few Marauders. Slowly, it got worse, as if every body they dropped summoned three more, which culminated in two of the large ones that could best be described as Brutes. The turian soldiers were laying down covering fire for them, but the sheer numbers being thrown against them, not to mention the armored monstrosities charging at them from two different directions, was too much. Terra was about ready to charge in and shotgun a Cannibal when it struck back so hard that it knocked her over. On the ground, though, her eyes caught sight of something that might help.

"Everybody get down!" Terra quickly called into her COMM. After James and Garrus responded by ducking down behind cover, the turians around them already behind barricades, Terra picked up the heavy weapon she'd located and fired it. The explosion took out both of the Brutes and most of the Marauders, returning the rest of the fight to a simple shootout that they easily won. When they had a chance to catch their breath, Terra looked down at the gun she'd used and found it was an actual Reaper Blackstar. "…these guys really shouldn't just leave their weapons lying around like that." With a scoff, she tossed the empty weapon aside and went straight for the command post. "General Victus?"

A turian general stepped down, giving her a curious look as he holstered his gun. "Yes?"

"Commander Terra Shepard."

"Ah, commander. I've heard of you. It's a pleasure to meet the human who claims Palaven as her home." Before Terra could respond, he caught sight of Garrus. "Vakarian! Where'd you go?"

Garrus gave him a look. "Heavy Reaper unit on the right flank? I believe your exact words were 'Get that thing off of my men!'"

"…appreciate it."

Terra suppressed the urge to smirk, focusing on why she had come. "I'm sorry, general, but we need you to come with us."

Victus looked at her sharply. "It's going to take something beyond important for me to leave our turian brothers and sisters in their fight."

"Fedorian killed," Garrus said, "…you're the new primarch."

"We need you immediately," Terra added, "to chair a summit to unite the Council races against the Reapers."

Victus seemed shocked. He finally stepped past them, looking up at his home-world contemplatively. "…I'm primarch of Palaven? Negotiating for the turian hierarchy?"

Terra could sympathize with his position. Still, the only answer she had was a simple "Yes."

Victus shook his head as he turned to face her again. "I've spent my life in the military. I'm no diplomat. I hate diplomats."

"We don't need a politician," Terra retorted, "We need someone who can stand for Palaven, someone who has his people's best interest at heart, someone who can give the rest of the galaxy hope for victory."

Victus slowly began to smile. "I like that. You're right."

"But we also need someone who realizes we need to work together. Earth is twice as far gone as Palaven, and I doubt the difference will last. When the Reapers start spreading to asari space, to salarian space, to our peoples' colonies… We can't let this be our end. We need an alliance. And any alliance we make needs the turians."

Victus took a moment to process her words. Then he seemed to realize there was no choice and nodded. "Give me a moment to say goodbye to my men."

Terra stood aside and left him to it.

Garrus followed her, shaking his head. "Without him down here, there's a good chance we lose this moon."

She sighed sadly. "I know. But without him up there, there's a good chance we lose everything."

"…I can't do this, Terra. Look at that!" He gestured pointedly to the Reaper perched on the other side of the moon, the fires igniting in a chain reaction across the Palaven surface, the battle raging in the space between as turian ships were obliterating in droves. "Failed C-Sec officer, failed vigilante, and everyone's looking to me for how to stop it?!"

"Don't talk like that!" Terra immediately turned on him, "You're not a failure. You try. When no one else does, you take the risk. If it doesn't work, it's not because of you. None of us is doing this alone." She reached over to take his hand. "Not even me."

Garrus sighed. "Do you really think we can win this thing, Terra?"

"…I don't know. But I'm never gonna stop trying either."

In a strange way, that was the answer he needed to hear. Or maybe he just needed to hear her answer it at all. She gave him hope when nothing else could. And not just because he loved her. Because of who she was and what she stood for. "If anyone can do it…you can." He smiled as he looked at her. "And I'm gonna be there when you do."

She smiled back. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

They stood there, holding hands and each other's gaze, until Victus came back. If he noticed the way they were acting around each other, he didn't say anything. Given he already knew of her past, though, it was likely he already knew.

"You ready to go?" Terra asked.

"Yes," Victus answered, "but I have a condition. I appreciate your need for our fleets, commander, but I can't spare them. Not while our world is burning. But if the pressure could be taken off of Palaven…"

"I have every intention of helping Palaven in any way I can, sir, but how are we supposed to draw the Reapers off of it in time?"

"We need the krogan. I can't see us winning this thing without them."

Terra couldn't either. Yet the suggestion felt like the biggest obstacle she'd hit so far. The krogan hated the turians and were too proud to admit they would ever need allies in a battle. If anyone but Wrex was in charge, she would think the prospect was impossible. Even with Wrex in command, she knew it would be difficult. Good thing she didn't shy away from difficulty. And she would face anything to stop this.

Garrus smirked as if he could see all of these thoughts rising within her. "Looks like this summit just got a lot more interesting."