Chapter 66: Nobility
We are often remembered for things we said
For lives we touched
For dreams we shared
But what often proves who we truly are
Is our final act
Terra hadn't been up ten minutes the next morning before she heard their plan was already falling through. A Reaper was parked at the Shroud, blocking access and attempting to poison Tuchanka's atmosphere.
That was a step too far. She was going to make sure this thing regretted it.
"I think I know how to clear the way," Terra said when she took command in the war room, "But it's gonna need us to work together. We'll need to borrow some of your men, primarch."
Victus hesitated. "That may be difficult. Our losses on Palaven have been tremendous."
Terra answered with a sympathetic glance. "I saw. But if we want to save Palaven before it's lost entirely, we need to take the risk."
He took a moment to consider her words before nodding. "What do you need?"
"Send in a wing of fliers. At the same time, Wrex's troops can attack from the ground. The combined assault should be enough to at least draw its focus so we can disperse the cure."
With the plan in place, they all started preparing for a grand assault. Mordin went off to make his final preparations on the cure and ensure Eve was ready to come with them, Victus and Wrex went to make contact with their troops and establish a battle plan, and Terra called Garrus and EDI down to the armory to gear up. Garrus, naturally, noticed when Terra was delayed in meeting them down there and had a troubled look in her eyes, but he elected not to ask her what was wrong when Wrex, Mordin, and Eve quick to follow them down. He would just have to hope shooting a few things would help her vent until they were free to talk again.
The Reapers were already closing in on the Hollows, the krogan meeting grounds, when they landed. Wrex responded by firing his shotgun the second the shuttle doors opened and taking down the Husks barring their path. While Mordin guarded Eve and Wrex moved in to organize the krogan response, Terra led Garrus and EDI straight through to clear the Hollows. What with the swarm being entirely composed Husks, it was simple enough to deal with as long as EDI was able to keep them at distance so Garrus and Terra could snipe them down.
No sooner had Terra let off a pistol shot to drop the last Husk than Wrex entered, his armor covered in blood as he raised his weapon proudly. "They'll sing battle-songs about this someday! Reaper blood has finally soaked our soil!"
Smiling at the krogan's triumphant battle-cries, Mordin came up to Terra. "Patient stable for now, Shepard. Ready to—"
"What's a salarian doing here?!" a krogan on the other side of the Hollows growled as he approached, "No one said anything about this!"
Mordin flinched back. "Multiple krogan. Problematic."
Terra quickly interceded to block the krogan's path to the doctor. "He's here to help. We're going to cure the genophage."
The krogan sneered at them. "His kind gave us the genophage. Why should we trust him?"
Wrex answered the question for her, storming over to head-butt the offending krogan as harshly as a clan chief could. "Because I do. And so will you, Wreav."
As the rest of the krogan began to snarl, Wreav furiously reached for his shotgun.
"ENOUGH!" All eyes turned to the entrance. Eve stood there, facing them all down as only a krogan queen could (Mordin may or may not have reworked an opera song in her honor, much to Eve and Violet's amusement). "You can stay here and let old wounds fester as krogan have always done, or you can go out there and face the enemy you were born to destroy and win a new future for our children. I choose to fight. Who will join me?"
Terra smiled, gaining a new admiration for the krogan female, and stepped up. "I will."
"And so will I," Wrex agreed with a smile, "Now let's move! There's a Reaper out there that needs killing!"
That was what the krogan needed to hear. They all joined in with one last battle-cry and headed for the tomkahs. Garrus, EDI, Terra, Wrex, Eve, and Mordin managed to squeeze into one and spend the ride over taking account of everything. The turian fliers, Artimec Wing, were on approach. The krogan ground assault team was moving apace. Mordin had everything in place for the cure except for some last minute preparations that could only be completed at the Shroud. Everything was going as planned. Except for one thing that still seemed to be plaguing Terra's thoughts.
Ironically, it was Eve, not Garrus or EDI, who finally spoke up about it. "Commander? You seem troubled. Is there something on your mind?"
Terra sighed. She refused to hold this back. She quickly faced them all and announced it: "The salarian dalatrass contacted me while we were mobilizing. I think you should hear this." She turned to her omni-tool, playing a recording she had managed to secretly make of the entire conversation.
"Years ago, our operatives sabotaged the Shroud to ensure what you're planning couldn't be done."
Wrex immediately scowled. "And she thought we wouldn't know any better?!"
"Correctly," Mordin pointed out, "Would likely have fooled tests. But can adjust."
Eve gave Terra a look that went beyond gratitude. "You've just spared our race another genocide, commander."
"I told you we could count on her," Wrex concurred with a smirk.
Terra smiled only a little, but she was filling with joy and relief inside. She had done the right thing, whether or not the salarians now helped at all (and she was perfectly content having only the support of Major Kirrahe and Mordin until the salarians realized grudges weren't worth standing alone). If she could help the krogan recover their culture under the guidance of Eve and Wrex, the ideal leaders for such an endeavor at such a time as this, it would all be worth it.
Garrus smiled to himself. This was the Terra Shepard he knew and loved, sacrificing everything for the sake of a people she admired and cared for (and, by extension, for the turians). Seeing how much this decision must have weighed on her, though, considering the eventual consequences, he prepared to take her side again.
Before anyone moved, the tomkah slowed to a crawl.
Wrex stood up. "Why are we stopping?!"
Terra was wondering the same thing. When the rover finally pulled over, she brought Garrus and EDI outside with her to see what was going on. It didn't take long to find the problem. The road ahead of them had been smashed to pieces at some point. They were going to have to find a new route. Growling briefly to herself at the inconvenience, she turned to her COMM. "Artimec Wing, this is Commander Shepard. We're delayed on a ground approach, you have to postpone your attack."
"Negative, commander, our approach vector is locked. The Reaper already knows we're here." As if to confirm the message, a wing of turian fliers passed by and raced in to engage the Destroyer.
Garrus joined Terra in dreading the outcome. "An airstrike alone won't do it. We have to get in that fight."
"No kidding," Terra snapped, turning to the krogan, "I don't care if we have to build a new road! We are going!"
But it was at that moment that one of the Reaper's counterattacks hit its target, taking out the controls on one of the fliers…and sending it crashing into the road.
Terra just managed to dive out of the way, Garrus right beside her. When she heard Wrex in her ear asking what just happened, she quickly responded: "Wrex! Get Mordin and Eve out of here NOW!"
The tomkahs quickly mobilized, driving around the broken road and the remains of the turian flier to get clear.
After recovering from the crash, Terra was forced to find a new way across the fields to the Shroud with Garrus and EDI. As luck would have it, there was a tunnel entrance on the side of the road. The catacombs they lead into were dark and impossible to navigate, but Garrus assured her, along with Wrex over the COMMs, that she was a trailblazer and would find a way through. The real issue was when they felt the whole place shaking.
"Earthquake?" EDI suggested.
"Didn't feel like one to me," Garrus said.
"Wrex?" Terra asked her COMM even as she searched the room with her flashlight for another door, "Are you guys feeling these tremors?"
"Not from here," Wrex answered, "Maybe the ruins are unstable."
"Or something else," Eve spoke up, "It is said that Kalros, the Mother of All Thresher Maws, lives in this region."
"Which is another reason to get out of there, Shepard! Step on it!"
Terra didn't need to be told twice. In fact, it was less than a minute later that she found krogan art on the wall. Ordinarily, she'd be ecstatic and amazed to see it, but since it was a representation of a thresher maw unlike any she'd ever seen, it only made things worse. "…I'm guessing this is Kalros."
"Likely not to scale either," EDI added, "We should vacate the area. 'The Mother of All Thresher Maws' does not sound promising."
"No kidding," Garrus said, "When the krogan name a tresher maw, you know you're in trouble. …they don't think anyone's ever going to kill it."
Terra, seeing his point, moved a bit faster. Then more than a bit faster. It was only when they reached a stairwell leading up that she started breathing easier, leading Garrus and EDI up and out. "Wrex, I think we're out of the tunnels."
"Well, if you can see daylight, that's progress."
EDI looked around in wonder. "And the color green. Plant life was assumed eradicated in this area."
Terra followed the AI's gaze, looking at an array of foliage clinging to life on the other side of the structure.
"You're looking at hope," Eve said, "All that's left of it on Tuchanka. This was once a fertile land. It can be again."
Terra smiled hopefully. "It will be again. We just have to get to the Shroud."
As if she had summoned them, the next corner they turned filled with Reaper troops. Two Ravagers joined the fray, forcing Terra, Garrus, and EDI to take cover until EDI could incinerate them while Garrus and Terra sniped down the Cannibals. They kept moving as soon as they could only to find two Brutes arriving with reinforcements on the other side. This time, Terra simply laid into them with incendiary ammo. She wasn't letting anything get in her way. The next Ravager met the same fate, clearing their path down the bridge to the next structure.
"Wait!" Wrex called, "Kalros!"
Just as the tomkahs were rolling under the bridge, a massive thresher maw began to follow them, rising out of the sand just enough for the ridges of its spine to tear through the bridge. Thankfully, it didn't destabilize the bridge enough to collapse it. On the other hand, seeing Kalros and coming so close did nothing for their morale.
"Thresher maw getting closer!" Mordin cried into the COMMs.
"Tell me something I don't know!" Wrex snapped back.
"Metal in truck an excellent iron supplement for maw's diet!"
Terra almost started laughing. That definitely did help her morale.
Garrus agreed, smirking with her. "And I'll bet Wrex is actually enjoying this…"
They fought their way through what seemed to have once been an arena of some kind. Terra might consider that ironic if she wasn't also wondering how much of Tuchanka must have been peppered with arenas before their uplifting. The Reapers were all over this area, but seeing Marauders among the number just served to stimulate Terra's rage and end the battle even sooner. Within minutes, Terra, Garrus, and EDI were able to jump down and meet Wrex's truck. They then had to speed away while Kalros was distracted eating Wreav's truck (which Wrex was remarkably flippant about), not stopping or even slowing until they were within reach of the Shroud.
"We no longer possess the firepower to disable a Reaper Destroyer," EDI observed bluntly as they piled out of the tomkah.
"We've beaten the odds before," Garrus countered. Then he actually looked in the direction of the Reaper in question. "Getting to that tower, though…I don't know."
"We can make it," Terra assured them, "We just need a plan."
"She might have one," Wrex announced, gesturing to Eve.
"Kalros," Eve said, "We summon her to the Reaper."
Terra had done a lot of crazy things, but this actually threw her. "That's…we…how would we even do that?!"
"The Shroud was build behind an arena dedicated to Kalros' glory." Eve nodded to the fractured structure between them and the Reaper. "The salarians thought she would scare away intruders."
"Appears to have worked," Mordin commented.
"There are two maw hammers within. Striking both of them will call Kalros forth, and she will defend her territory."
Terra shook her head. "This is insane…but also genius." She smirked. "I'm starting to like you."
Eve released a small laugh. "We'll see if you still feel that way when this is over."
"We're about to find out. Mordin, go around the long way, see if you can sneak into the Shroud and get the cure started. Garrus, EDI, and I will head down the front and strike those hammers."
"Wait," Wrex stepped up, "I want you to know. No matter what happens here, you've been a champion to the krogan people, a friend of Clan Urdnot…" He smiled. "…and a sister to me. From this day forth, the name 'Shepard' will mean 'hero'!"
Terra smiled back, taking his hand in a warrior's salute.
"Now let's show them why!" Wrex readied his shotgun, storming out to begin shooting down approaching Ravagers in a way Grunt would surely appreciate. "I AM URDNOT WREX! AND THIS! IS MY! PLANET!"
They moved quickly, for once hoping that their assault on the front lines would draw reinforcements so Mordin wouldn't have to contend with any. As they were clearing the first set of Cannibals and progressing forward, Wrex came over the line to inform them that his defense of the perimeter had managed to completely eradicate any Reaper forces attempting to besiege it and he was also going around the side so that he could raise the hammers for them. All they had to do was get through the structure all the way to the arena grounds.
That matter was complicated when the Reaper spotted them. And opened fire.
All three of them tumbled off of the ledge that took the shot. Considering they weren't even injured after narrowly dodging a shot that would've vaporized them all, Terra figure it was best not to press their luck and started running down the line.
"Did we just get shot at by a Reaper?!" Garrus asked.
"Consider that practice!" Terra retorted, "Keep moving, stick to cover when it fires!"
"Cover is not likely to be effective!" EDI said.
"You got any better ideas?!" Terra raced over to duck down behind a collapsed pillar. From the way the Reaper was taking aim, they might be about to test EDI's theory, a prospect Terra was not looking forward to.
Until something else opened fire first. "Commander, this is Artimec Wing. We'll give the Reaper something else to shoot at." The surviving fliers of the turian wing flew past, circling around the Destroyer and drawing its attention away from Terra, Garrus, and EDI entirely.
"Yes!" Garrus rejoiced along with his girlfriend, "I knew they wouldn't give up!"
"Let's make sure they don't have to," Terra nodded in agreement before vaulting over the fallen pillar and racing for the arena grounds.
Naturally, this was the hardest thing she'd ever done (or at least in the top 10), what with the Reaper literally stomping on the grounds and dropping Brutes every five seconds.
"THIS REDEFINES INSANITY!" EDI shouted over the chaotic noise of battle as they all attempted to keep the Brutes at bay.
Terra was ready with a witty remark until she actually looked around. The maw hammers were on either side of the grounds. The Brutes wouldn't stop coming until this was over.
She was going to have to run for it.
She groaned to herself as she realized this and turned to Garrus and EDI. "Cover me!"
"What?!" Garrus asked, "While you do w—?!"
Terra didn't bother letting him start worrying before she had already darted to the right hammer. She just barely managed to avoid a Brute charge and a Reaper stomp to hit the hammer and drop it. If it made a satisfying thud, she didn't get to hear it amid all the Reaper howls and Brute growls. She did see the flaw in the plan when she turned to race across to the left hammer and saw that two Brutes had followed her up the ramp. Simple solution, though. The Reaper took only one moment before having to reposition and stomping down on the Brutes, killing them both for her. Then she only had to run, circling around the Brutes that Garrus and EDI were now successfully distracting.
"Shepard!" Wrex snapped in her ear, "Get those hammers down already!"
"THERE'S A REAPER IN MY WAY, WREX!" she snapped back as she dove out of the way of the Reaper's claw.
"Yeah, I know, you have all the fun!"
She elected to roll her eyes, be amused and/or annoyed at the comment later, and then ran for it, jumping to slam the second hammer down. She knew they had succeeded when the Brutes immediately dispersed and the tremors returned. "GET BACK TO THE TRUCK!" she shouted across the arena to Garrus and EDI, "I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE CURE!" It was pretty clear Garrus didn't want to leave her, but EDI managed to pry him away.
Then Kalros arrived. The Reaper seemed to pick up on what was happening quickly, but it couldn't possibly figure out where to shoot to stop the maw before it erupted from the soil and bit down on the sentient ship's chassis. Just looking at Kalros, never mind seeing her strike, was enough to show anyone why she was considered the mother of all the other maws, formidable and indomitable and so much else. The two titans clashed with force unmatchable, slamming into each other so heavily that the Reaper finally stopped attempting to fire. Even as Terra raced for the Shroud, she couldn't help but watch some of the astonishing battle, like something out of an old kaiju vid but far more awe-inspiring and perilous. She started to regret inciting it, though, when the Destroyer threw Kalros off of it by smashing her into the Shroud, destabilizing the whole structure. She moved faster while Kalros descended back below the ground. When she reached the entrance, she looked back to see Kalros leaping up from underneath to wrap around the Reaper like a boa constrictor and drag it down into the depths.
When Terra came inside, she found Mordin rushing through terminals to prepare his work for release. "Are we ready?"
"Yes," Mordin answered, "Cure ready, inserting now. Procedure traumatic for Eve but not lethal. Maelon's research invaluable."
"She's OK," Terra sighed, relieved they had chosen not to erase that precious data.
"Returning to truck now. Fortunate she survived. Should stabilize Wrex should he get any ideas. Good match. Promising future for krogan."
She knew Wrex would honor his word regardless, but she agreed wholeheartedly, hoping she would see the day the two became the leaders that restored Tuchanka and saved the krogan for good.
A support beam collapsed in a ball of flame, causing a burst of shrapnel to bounce off the other side of the room.
Terra flinched back. Maybe now wasn't the time for this.
"Running out of time," Mordin said, "Should take elevator up to finish initiation."
Terra looked at him in shock. "You're going up there!"
"Have to. Need to counteract STG sabotage, ensure viable dispersal."
"Mordin, this whole place is coming down! There's gotta be another way!"
"All controls at top of tower. No time to adjust cure for temperature variance." He gave a solemn look. Almost saddened. "No. No other option. Suggest you get clear. Explosion likely to be…problematic." He started to move for the elevator.
Terra jumped to grab his arm and stop him. "Mordin, no!"
When he faced her, though, she could see the determination and conviction behind the regret in his eyes. "Terra, please. Need to do this. My genophage, my cure, my work…my responsibility."
It was his use of her first name that made her freeze and eventually withdraw. She still wanted to stop him, even if it was the only way, but if he was taking a step like that, he was sure. There was no dissuading him. "…but you're my friend."
He gave her a supportive smile. "Still am. Still will be." He sighed. "Would've liked to collect those seashells."
Her responding smile was dry, humorless. She already missed him for that. "I'm sorry."
"I'm not. Had to be me." Stepping away from her, he entered the elevator and pressed the button. "Someone else might've gotten it wrong." Then he ascended to the control room.
Terra watched him go sadly before finally turning and hurrying out of the collapsing tower. She only just made it outside of the radius of the eventual collapse before she heard a final explosion go off. She turned back to see it had originated on the highest floor. Just as the Shroud released the cure into the atmosphere.
The tomkah pulled up behind her, Wrex, Eve, Garrus, and EDI all piling out to witness the dispersal. For a wondrous moment, there was only the relieved elation at the knowledge they had actually done it.
Then Garrus took Terra's side and realized who wasn't there. "Where's Mordin?"
Terra hung her head sadly, the tears behind her eyes all the answer she needed.
Garrus quickly wrapped a sympathetic arm around her, finally leading her off to collect herself until she could mourn in peace.
He tried desperately not to wonder if this would prove to be only the first of their losses in this war.
An hour later, Wrex took Eve and the squad back to the Hollows, now empty of Husks and blood-raging krogan. "When I was young, my father turned against me in this place. His own son. He tried to kill me! So I had to kill him." He gestured to the far corner. "Right over there."
"That's what the genophage reduced us to," Eve shook her head, "Savages." She turned to Terra gratefully. "But you've changed that today, commander. Now we'll fight for our children, not against them." She then hung her head sadly. "It's just a shame Mordin had to die."
Terra nodded in agreement, leaning against a railing to look sadly into the distance. "He wouldn't have it any other way. I'm sure he's getting the hero treatment in the afterlife right now…and putting in a good word for the rest of us."
"We'll have to name one of the kids after him," Wrex smirked, "…maybe a girl."
Terra would've laughed if she wasn't still upset.
"Oh, you can tell your turian friends I'll be sending troops to Palaven ASAP. And when you're ready to kick the Reapers off of Earth, just let me know. The krogan are back in business."
Terra smiled. "Thank you." She turned to Eve. "What are you going to do?"
"Spread the hope you've given us," Eve answered, "You should do the same. And know that Urdnot Bakara calls you a friend."
Bakara. A good name for a krogan queen. Terra hoped that, wherever he was now, Mordin heard this and knew that he was one as well.
By the time they made it back to the war room, Primarch Victus was already watching the krogan mobilizing. "It looks like Palaven's people will be safe after all soon enough. Thank you, commander. You've kept your word and I'll keep mine—the turian hierarchy will stand with humanity."
This was something Terra had been hoping to accomplish for 15 years. It meant a lot to hear it was finally happening, but any joy she might've drawn from it was a bit dampened at the circumstances through which she'd had to achieve it.
"I'll start dispatching our ships to aid your forces and the Crucible construction immediately. I trust you two can coordinate them?"
Garrus smirked. "Yes, sir."
"Signal us when you're ready to retake Earth and we'll be there. …may the spirits watch over us all." With that, Victus turned to depart the ship and take command of the remaining hierarchy forces.
One second after he'd left the room, Terra turned to lean wearily on the holo-table.
Garrus quickly took her side. "We did it. We're going to save Palaven."
"We'd better. I can't take losing another family."
Much as he sympathized with the sentiment, unable to imagine how he would respond to losing his father and sister now, it was the subtext in her statement that drew him to act. Her crew was her family, too, and she'd just lost one of them. "I can start managing the turian troops right away. You should get some rest."
"I slept last night just fine. I still have things to do."
"I can take care of the crew, too."
She hesitated to disclose her true intention, hesitated to even have it, but she finally looked him in the eye and said it: "…I have to talk to Violet."
Ah. Of course. Someone had to tell Violet that the krogan female she had been sharing a room with was staying on Tuchanka and Mordin was gone. He could see why Terra was both needing and fearing to give her sister that news, but the fact was that Terra didn't have to be the one to do so. "I can tell her for you."
"Garrus, no, she's my sister—"
"And you're my mate. That makes her my family, too. I'll take care of this. You get some sleep. You can spend some actual time with her in the morning when you're not both grieving." He gave her a gentle nudge. "Besides, I know where you sleep. We'll wake you if anything comes up."
Knowing him, she highly doubted he meant that. Unless "anything" turned out to be the ship on fire. Then again, even then, he might carry her out without rousing her. Still, he was unshakable on the matter and she knew better than to argue with him at times like this. So she sighed and relented. "If you insist." And headed up to her cabin without another word.
Garrus was as good as his word. The first thing he did was rip the bandage off and deliver the bad news. Violet didn't take it well, but she, like her sister, seemed to take it in stride in the long run. She must've gotten used to losing people after the raid. Or she hadn't had anyone to lose after the raid and simply hadn't had time to get attached to Mordin. Either way, Garrus felt sorry for her. He wound up deciding to take some time out of his busy schedule of covering for Terra to be there for Violet instead. Amazingly, she didn't seem to mind him sitting down with her. Perhaps she was coming to see him as family in a way. He could hope, at least.
Terra wasn't quite as true to her word, at least not at first. She couldn't rest with so much on her mind. She managed to ease her warring thoughts with some work in her sketchbook, but even then she only fell asleep when the exhaustion of the mission finally caught up with her like a sudden tidal wave. To make matters worse, it wasn't a restful sleep. She was used to nightmares, but this one, the dead forest through which she chased the boy she couldn't save, filled her with cold dread. It was even worse tonight, seeming like every shadow was whispering in the voices of everyone else she had failed—her parents, her brother, Kaidan, and now Mordin. When she woke up alone, the cold and dread woke with her. But at least she was awake.
She would at least be able to console herself in the knowledge that they had been successful so far, that Palaven was being evacuated right now and Garrus and Violet were with her, if she could only shake the feeling that it was only going to get worse before it was truly over.
