Hello again, everyone, and welcome to my Halo - MechWarrior/BattleTech - Mass Effect multicrossover. Thank you for the support that you have shown both of my crossovers. I deeply appreciate all the feedback that I get, and I am very happy for the people that have read both of my stories. Thank you for your support, and I hope to see you in later chapters. As always, leave a review and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Halo, MechWarrior/BattleTech or Mass Effect franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of Microsoft Game Studios, 343 Industries, Bungie, Electronic Arts, BioWare, FASA Corporation, FASA Interactive, Catalyst Game Labs and Piranha Games Inc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers and publishers. Any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original composers and/or artists.
SLS/HDF Normandy
Approaching Feros
January 20th, 3081
The 'Mech/Cargo bay of the Normandy was filled with activity as the personnel aboard the ship worked to make sure everything was ready to go for their next mission, with personnel working at various workstations throughout the bay. Up in the Armory on the Crew Deck, Shepard was busy making sure his weapons and gear were ready for their current mission, his Omni-Tool online as he checked for any malfunctioning equipment. When he found none, he closed the Omni-Tool before making sure he was fully suited up and ready to fight. Looking around, he could tell that the others were getting ready to go as well, with Wrex making sure his armor was good to go; given that his M50 Colossus IAK also doubled as his Cooling Vest, that was a necessary step.
As for why they were here, it was something that Shepard remembered from yesterday's briefing with Anderson and Saren. Once the briefing was done, and they had collected the rest of the team, Anderson had made the decision to leave for Feros as soon as possible. Joker, having received his orders, immediately made the K-F Jump to Feros, with the WarShip entering the star system in a matter of seconds. Once they had arrived, Anderson had ordered him to get ready and to take a team with him down to the planet in order to investigate the COM blackout. Given that they were dealing with clones and hostile Geth, whom Legion called the 'Heretic Geth', Shepard decided that he would bring the Geth Platform along on this mission, as well as Wrex and Tali on this mission, as Wrex was also a strong biotic who'd recently gotten his Amps upgraded by the Star League. Looking up at the Krogan 'MechWarrior, he asked, "You ready for this?"
"I've been ready for a while now," Wrex replied. "I've heard a lot about you, Shepard. Mostly of how excellent of a warrior you are. I guess we'll see how you do on this mission today."
"I guess," Shepard shrugged. It was proving to be a little interesting pegging Wrex; whenever he thought he had figured out the Krogan BattleMaster, another interesting part of his personality would pop up and surprise him. Honestly, Shepard found it to be interesting, as it showed that Wrex was as complex and surprising as a Terran. Looking at Legion, he said, "You ready for this?"
"This Combat Chassis is operating at optimal levels," the Geth Platform replied.
"I guess that's as close to yes as I'll get," Shepard nodded. "Alright, listen up, because I'll only go over this once." Using his Omni-Tool, he pulled up a schematic of the colony that the SLIC had managed to acquire, courtesy of Saren and another SLIC Agent. "At 0530 hours today, the colony of Feros, located just inside of the Capellan Confederation, entered a COM blackout, with no traffic from their ground and orbital HyperPuse Generators. We don't know what caused this blackout, but intelligence data suggests that Tarak Bhelmont was sighted in this region of the Inner Sphere. Our orders are to investigate the COM blackout; should we discovery any of Tarak's forces on the planet, we are to neutralize them as quickly as possible. A separate team will head to the HPG on the planet and attempt to restore communications to the rest of the Inner Sphere. Once that's done, a repair team from CapNet, the local HPG services provider, will repair the rest of the HPG's in orbit and on the ground."
Pulling up a map of the colony, he said, "According to the schematics the SLIC found, most of the surviving colonists have likely retreated to designated safe zones across the planet. Zhu's Hope is the closest one to our designated LZ, so we'll be landing there. Once we've landed, we'll begin our investigation, and we'll assist any personnel that are on the ground if we can. Remember, our mission's to investigate the COM blackout and to assist any civilians if possible. Should we find any hint of terrorist activity, we are to investigate and neutralize it if necessary. Any questions?" When none presented themselves, he said, "Alright, we'll be entering the Docking Bay for Zhu's Hope in fifteen minutes. Once we dock, we're Oscar Mike. Understood?"
"Understood," both Wrex and Legion replied.
"Good," Shepard nodded. "Prepare to disembark from the ship when we arrive." With that, the others left for the air lock; Tali was about to follow, but Shepard gently took her by the wrist, prompting her to stop. "Do you have any combat experience," he asked Tali.
"No," Tali replied, "but my father made sure I received at least two years of training, using the training course that the SLDF provides for it's personnel. The Geth were particularly helpful when it came to that part as well. One of my instructors was a Geth; it and I would spar with each other so that I could improve my CQC skills."
"Alright," Shepard remarked. He didn't like the fact that she was inexperienced, but he did feel some reassurance that she was well trained. "It's not optimal, but I can work with that. Just remember, Tali, this is no longer a simulation or an exercise. This is the real thing; people will die on this mission. Just remember to focus on one thing at a time and to listen to my voice and your squadmates. As long as you do that, you'll be fine. OK?"
"OK," Tali nodded. There was uncertainty in her eyes, but a fair amount of determination as well.
"Good," Shepard nodded. "I'm not trying to dissuade you or frighten you, I'm just letting you know what you're getting into. If you want to stay here, you can do that. You have that choice, but I won't stop you either if you still wish to go."
"I'll go," Tali replied adamantly. "I won't let my fear conquer me."
"That's good to hear," Shepard beamed. "Let's go. The others are waiting." Nodding in agreement, Tali followed Shepard to the airlock, where they would leave the ship once they arrived.
Around fifteen minutes later, the Normandy smoothly flew into the atmosphere, banking to the right as it turned to enter the Docking Bay. Feros, according to the SLE (Star League Encyclopedia), was a fairly cold planet, with temperatures dropping to a frigid -8° Celsius during winter time, while climbing up to a tepid 15° during summer time. Most of the planet was mountainous terrain, though there were large flat sections on the planet as well. Feros was also unique in that it was one of the few planets located in the Inner Sphere that had intact Prothean structures. A number of towering structures dotted the landscape, with some of them being in surprisingly intact condition and most were structurally safe to use. Zhu's Hope was built in one of these structures, which was connected to a nearby one via bridges that the Protheans had built to connect the two structures together. Flying into the Docking Bay, Joker slowly came to a stop, allowing the ship to dock moments later.
As they docked, Shepard was about to enter the airlock when an alert came up on his HUD. Looking at it, he noticed that it was coming directly from a sensor located in the airlock, which was designed to detect NCB (Nuclear/Chemical/Biological) signatures in the air. Looking at his HUD, he read the words, Warning: Biological Contaminants Detected. Beginning Decontamination Sequence. Moments later, the airlock began decontaminating itself, with nanites designed to destroy any contaminants being released into the air, along with a sterilization field that was activated. After around 20 seconds, the ship computer said, Decontamination Complete. Foreign Contaminants Located Outside of Ship.
Joker, who had presumably seen the same thing, said, "Commander, I wouldn't recommend going out there with your body armor unsealed. From what I can tell, the ship scanners are detecting some kind of biological material in the air. You'd probably be best to keep your suit sealed up at all times."
"Roger that," Shepard nodded. "Everyone, helmets on and sealed. We don't want that shit in our lungs." Putting his helmet on, he sealed up his suit, with life support activating so that no biological contaminants could get inside. Behind him, Wrex and Tali did the same; Legion, by his very mechanical nature, didn't need a helmet. Once everyone had helmets on, they entered the airlock, which cycled through it's normal procedures once again. Once said cycling was done, they exited the ship and entered the Docking Bay.
The Docking Bay, from what Shepard could tell, was built into part of the Prothean structure that Zhu's Hope was built inside of, with strong foundation points built into key structural locations, allowing the Docking Bay to be safely operated in this structure. Looking around, Shepard spotted the pink-brown-gray skyline that belonged to Feros, the unusual coloring due to both the sun's position in the sky, as well as atmospheric particulate that was high up in Feros' atmosphere. While most scientists thought this was due to some cataclysmic event, Shepard knew that, thanks to the Prothean Artifact and Saren's briefing, that this was due to the war the Protheans fought against the Reapers. The weapons they used must've forced all that shit up into the atmosphere, he thought, creating the kind of winter that nuclear weapons would typically cause due to fallout in the atmosphere.
As he walked along, he saw someone waving him over. Turning in that direction, he walked along the catwalk that he was on and towards the person, who he realized was one of the colonists. "We saw you coming in," the man said to him. "Fai Dan want's to speak with you."
That was when Shepard felt on edge. The man's speech was broken up somewhat, with unusually long pauses between words. Normally, one might attribute this to a speech impediment, but Shepard knew that even working class Terrans got genetic treatments for even minor things like speech impediments. To hear these unusual pauses between words was an immediate red flag. Deciding to investigate later, he asked, "Who's Fai Dan?"
"He's the leader of the surviving members of the colony," the colonist replied. "He's kept us alive since the Geth came along." Spotting Legion, the man said, "Is he an enemy?"
"No," Shepard replied. "I assume that you've encountered the Heretic Geth?"
"If that's what they are, then yes," the colonist replied. "Head on through the structure behind me. Fai Dan's in there."
As soon as he said this, Shepard spotted a flash of movement, with his armor's sensors flagging a hostile target behind the colonist. He was about to act when Legion did, with the draconic Geth Platform moving so quickly that it was just a blur; in one smooth motion, the Geth platform grabbed the colonist and threw him behind cover, just as a bolus of energy shot through where the man used to be. Pulling out it's weapons, Legion took aim and fired a single shot, with a loud, electronic warble marking the death of a Geth Trooper. Running over, Shepard noticed that this Geth Trooper was using the older, Quarian-like chassis, which was only used for civilian platforms now. "Is this one of the Heretic Geth," he asked.
"Yes," Legion replied, the draconic Combat Platform kicking the broken combat chassis over onto it's back. "The Heretic Geth left the Consensus before we encountered the Star League. As a result, they still use the older chassis. Efficient, but obsolete."
"I see," Shepard remarked. "We'll need to be careful, though. Obsolete or not, they can still do some damage. Legion, take point. Tali and I will provide fire support if necessary. Wrex, you're our rearguard. Make sure no one sneaks up on us." Nodding in agreement, the others moved into the formation requested, before moving up. As they did so, Shepard noticed something was attempting to interfere with his suit's sensors. "Sensor interference," he reported. "Something's trying to jam us."
"Hang on," Tali replied. "I know a solution to this." Using her Omni-Tool, she uploaded a program into their suits. Moments later, the slight rippling effect in their HUD's, a characteristic of jamming systems, immediately vanished. "There. We should be fine now."
"Thanks," Shepard nodded.
"Alert," Legion shouted. "Heretic Geth detected." As soon as the Geth Platform said this, the team moved in, with Wrex keeping an eye on where they had come from. Shepard was about to ask where when he saw a flash of movement; suddenly, a Heretic Geth Platform shot through the air, before adhering itself to the wall. He noticed that this Heretic Geth was unlike the first one, in that it seemed to be making heavy use of Storm Covenant technology, as it was using more advanced Myomers, as well as modified nanolaminate armor. Raising his rifle, he opened fire, sending HEAP rounds through it's chassis. While it's armor was tough, it wasn't tough enough to withstand Star League weaponry for long. In an effort to dodge, the Platform threw itself towards the other wall, only for Legion to shoot it out of the air with a well aimed shotgun blast. A loud, stuttering screech came from the machine as it fell towards the ground below.
"Well, that confirms it," Tali remarked. "Looks like Tarak's forces were here."
"Agreed," Shepard replied. "Looks like they're responsible for the COM blackout." Keying his COM, he said, "Alpha-1 to Alpha Actual, Tarak's forces are on Feros. Inform the secondary team to head to the HPG armed and armored up. They won't let COM's be restored without a fight."
"Copy that," Anderson replied. "I was hoping it wouldn't be that. We saw the firefight from the cockpit. Continue towards the colony and neutralize any terrorist forces that get in the way. Be advised, we have an SLIC Agent just outside of the colony, so if you see her, do not shoot. Code phrase is Rubicon, and counter reply is Everest. Alpha Actual out."
"Solid copy," Shepard replied. "Alpha-1 out." Turning to the rest of his team, he said, "Keep moving towards the colony. Once we arrive, we'll assess the colony's condition and go from there."
"Roger that," Tali replied, with the others replying in the affirmative. With that, Shepard and the others proceeded forwards, weapons at the ready in case more terrorist forces came around the corner. As they moved through, Shepard noticed that the concentration of the contaminants was increasing, indicating they were approaching the source. Making a note to himself to investigate later, he continued to move forwards, with he and Tali checking any rooms they passed for hostiles. So far, they found none.
Moving around a corner, Shepard checked a doorway for hostiles, only to find rifles pointed into his face, with frightened colonists on the other end. One fired a HEAP shell, only for the round to bounce off of Shepard's shields. "Check fire," he shouted as he got into cover. "Blue, blue!"
"Oh, shit! Sorry," the colonist responsible shouted. "Thought those fucking pirates were coming to get at us." Coming through the doorway again, Shepard found that the men had lowered their weapons, though it was clear that the men were on edge.
"That's alright," he told them. "Just remember to ID your targets before you open fire."
"We'll remember that," one of the men agreed. "Come on, we'll get you to the colony. Fai Dan's been wanting to speak with you." Motioning to his team, Shepard followed the man, with Tali, Legion and Wrex following behind him. Looking around, Shepard found that Zhu's Hope was a small outpost, though it was clear that it had seen better days. Small fires were present in areas, though they were contained, and wires were dangling out of maintenance hatches and parts of each prefabricated shelter. People were scattered around the colony, with most taking shelter in the buildings.
As he moved through the colony, Shepard noticed something that was odd. Each of the colonists were tired and frightened, but there was none of the panic that was normally associated with this kind of terrorist attack. It was as though something was comforting the colonists, while allowing the tired soldiers to remain on their feet. At the same time, he noticed that the biological contaminants were peaking inside of the colony, near one of the buildings according to sensor sweeps. Something's going on here, he thought to himself. I don't know what, but something is going on, and it isn't good as far as I can tell. Moving through one of the buildings, he could tell that everyone was on edge, though they were in that same, strangely relaxed state. The others had picked up on this as well, as Tali was sticking closer to him than he knew would be normal.
Exiting the structure, he spotted a tall man of Asian descent with brown hair, bright hazel green eyes and weathered skin that was normal for some colonists. He was currently talking with a dark skinned woman that had brown eyes and black colored hair, and she was the only one wearing body armor, though it wasn't SLDF issue. "I assume you're Fai Dan," Shepard began.
"You assume correctly," the man nodded. "I'm Fai Dan, the leader of the refugees at this outpost. You've come to us during a very, very bad time. We were assaulted by those terrorists over twelve hours ago, and since then, we've been fighting for our lives."
"You're a bit late, aren't you," the woman remarked.
"Arcelia," Fai Dan barked out angrily. After a moment, he looked at Shepard, sighing before saying, "Sorry about that. Arcelia's been on edge since the attacks."
"I can tell," Shepard remarked. "You're in a bad way. Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Yes," Fai Dan nodded. "According to Reynolds, one of our cooks, our rations are starting to run low, which means we'll need to go on a hunting party soon. According to him, Varren meat should help out in that regard, but we've got problems with the Alpha of the pack that's in the tower. According to Reynolds, it's gone rabid and it's a danger to the colony. If you could eliminate it, that would be deeply appreciated."
"Understood," Shepard nodded. "What about your water situation, as well as electrical supplies?"
"Mayford says that our colony's fusion reactor is offline, mostly because of damage to it's systems. We're currently using power cells to keep everything going until it's repaired, but those are running low as well. Adriana says that our water supply's been cut off as well, which means we're as dry as a bone." Leaning in more closely, he said, "I also have a sneaking suspicion that the terrorists set up a beacon inside the maintenance tunnels near the colony, one that they're using to coordinate their attacks. If you can destroy it, and quickly at that, then we can prevent more attacks from coming. Can you help with all that?"
"Yes," Shepard nodded. Looking at Legion, he said, "Legion, you'll deal with the Varren, since you've got the strongest chassis. Tali and I will handle the water supply, while you deal with the enemy transmitter. Understood?"
"Affirmative."
"Good. We'll rendezvous at the colony once those objectives are complete." With that, the squad left the colony, heading through a nearby doorway and into the rest of the area.
. . .
The programs inside of the Geth Platform designated as Legion could tell why Shepard had given them the job he had. For one, since the platform was robotic in nature, it had more strength and durability than a normal SLDF Marine in standard issue body armor. Secondly, since it had no scent, the Varren were less likely to attack it; at most, the creatures were probably going to sniff it before deciding it wasn't worth attacking, or they would only attack if they were attacked. Either way, Shepard had made his choice, and the Geth inside were going to follow that order.
Walking down the hallway, the Platform turned to the left and entered one of the short entryways leading to a room it had detected. Walking inside, the Platform heard some growling, prompting the Geth inside to turn it around to the rear. Up on the concrete slope above it were two Varren, each one with black upper bodies and white underbodies and legs. Two opaque orange-red eyes looked at the platform, while one was in a pouncing stance. Deciding to be more cautious, the Geth Platform began to move forwards slowly, with hands open to indicate it wasn't a threat. Curious, the Varren moved closer and sniffed at the platform, which noted the information coming from the haptic feedback sensors spread throughout it's chassis.
Apparently, the Varren decided that the Geth Platform either wasn't a threat, not a meal to eat, or not worth fighting, as they backed off a moment later. Noting this odd behavior, the Geth Platform moved forwards, with more Varren noting what was going on before returning to their normal behaviors. That was when it spotted the Alpha Varren, which had a blood red underside and a brown upper body. A scan detected what appeared to be parasitic organisms that were inside of the Varren and on it's skin, which were likely causing the Alpha Varren a considerable amount of pain. When it approached the Alpha, the Varren turned to look at him, pain clearly evident in it's eyes. Nearby, it's mate continued to lick it's head, attempting to provide whatever comfort it could, while the Alpha whined quietly in pain. Looking at the Geth Platform, it got up a moment later, and dragged itself over to the Platform, before lying down, a pained whine coming from it's throat as it did so.
At first, the programs inside were confused, as this wasn't typical behavior for a Varren. Checking through their internal database, the programs quickly realized that the Alpha Varren was probably looking for a way to end it's suffering, which would explain it's unusual behavior. Bending down, the programs inside decided that since it was clear that the Alpha Varren, despite not being sapient, wanted an end to it's suffering, they decided that they would grant the Alpha Varren it's much desired release. In one smooth motion, the Geth Platform plunged it's talons into the Alpha Varren's head, tearing through it's brain before removing them. The Alpha Varren slumped to the ground, but not before releasing a quiet, happy whine that was it's way of saying 'thank you.' Looking up and around, the Geth Platform watched as the other Varren approached the Alpha's mate, before rolling over submissively. Nearby, two very small Varren, most likely the Alpha Female's pups, came over, before nuzzling the corpse of their former Alpha.
Noting this odd behavior, the Geth Platform determined that the Pack, despite not being fully sapient, probably knew what was causing their Alpha's suffering, but were powerless to do so. Apparently, the Alpha was suffering so much now that all it could do was endure the pain, with it's aggressive behaviors most likely being an attempt for the Alpha to end it's suffering. Either way, it had gotten it's wish, and the Platform's mission was complete.
Noticing a wrecked rover, the Geth Platform scanned the wreck, it's powerful scanners cutting through the natural ECM built into the vehicle itself. While the vehicle was wrecked according to the scan, it's Compact Fusion Engine wasn't damaged in any way, and it could generate enough power to satisfy the colony's power needs for a long time. Walking over to the vehicle, the Platform clambered onto it and, pulling off a crumpled maintenance hatch, began the process of safely removing the Compact Fusion Engine, an easy task given that all Star League Fusion Engines were built in a sturdy, but easily removable Omni-Pod, which allowed for easy maintenance and removal. While too heavy for a human being to lift, it was well within the Platform's capabilities to lift the heavy power supply. As it got to work, a few programs wondered how Shepard and the others were doing
. . .
I hope Legion's having a much better time than we are, Shepard thought as he fired off more HEAP rounds at a Geth Juggernaut, tearing apart the enemy machine. Because this is the most challenging water restoration mission that I've been on… in, fact, it's the only one that I've done thus far. Popping back into cover, he heard Tali unleash an Overload attack on a Batarian clone, prompting him to lob a grenade over cover. The sound of an explosion, as well as the screams of said clone and some Geth, told him he'd nailed the enemy cleanly. As he popped out of cover and fired some more, Tali began to move up, firing her M96 PDW, which was the new standard issue SLDF SMG/PDW.
As she moved forwards, a Geth Trooper charged at her, knocking her down before she had a chance to get into cover. A loud, roaring scream erupted from Tali's throat, as she fought as hard as possible to get the machine off of her. Pulling back both of her legs, she thrust outwards as hard as she could, with the Myomers in her suit amplifying her strength enough that the Platform was tossed off it's feet and onto the ground, where it rolled to get back up. Tali didn't even let it have a chance, as she fired a few rounds into the chassis, 'killing' the Geth Trooper instantly. Rolling into cover, she made sure her PDW's thermal systems were still working before firing more rounds down range. Clambering over to her, Shepard said, "You OK?"
"I'm fine," Tali shouted over the sound of gunfire. "Let's kill these bosh'tet first before we worry too much." Nodding in agreement, Shepard fired off more rounds, terminating the last of the enemy forces in the area. Spotting the last of the four water valves they had to activate, he activated it, allowing the system to finally pump the water needed for the outpost to survive.
"There," he remarked. "That's the last of the pumps."
"Good," Tali breathed. "The colony should be getting water now. I think-" she stopped when her armor's systems flagged movement near their position. "Contact," she reported. "Twenty meters away!" Raising her SMG, she said, "Whoever is there, come out! Now!"
"I'm coming," a Human voice shouted. "I'm coming out! Don't shoot!" Moments later, a colonist, Ian according to his nametag, stepped out into the view. His clothes were torn up in some places, and he was covered in dirt and dust. "Oh, finally! SLDF forces! I was hoping you'd be able to come down here."
"Why," Shepard asked.
"Because you're not like the others," Ian remarked. "They might be trying to hide something, but I'm not." Suddenly, Ian roared, "NOOOOOOOOO", nearly collapsing to the ground before getting up.
"Uh… Is something wrong," Shepard asked.
"Just invoking the master's whip," Ian replied. "Reminds me that I'm still alive. Sorry about that." Clearing his throat, he said, "Since you're SLDF, there's something you need to know. Don't trust the colonists, whatever you do."
"Why," Shepard asked. "Are they terrorists?"
"No! No, nothing like that," Ian remarked. "It's just that- AAAAAAGGGHHHHH!" The man promptly clutched at his head as he shouted, before laughing hysterically.
"He's lost his mind," Tali remarked.
"No," Shepard told her over a private COM channel. "My suit's sensors are picking up what appear to be anomalies in his brain wave activity. It's an upgrade that I got while we were at Olympus Station. Something's influencing him, but it's not indoctrination." Looking at Ian, he said, "Stay with me pal. Focus."
"I-I'll do my best," Ian groaned. "Just-AGH! Under… the… colony! AAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!" Moments later, he collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.
"Woah," Shepard remarked. "Whatever's influencing him knocked him out cold. He's alive, but we need to get to the bottom of this." Keying his COM, he said, "Alpha-2, do you copy?"
. . .
"Not now," Wrex shouted as he blindfired his shotgun over cover, nailing a Batarian clone in the process. "I'm in the middle of a fight, and I can't concentrate if everyone's shouting at me!"
"Noted," Shepard replied. "What's the status of your mission?"
Peering over cover, Wrex looked around at the area that he was in. Once the team had gotten their objectives, they had moved out to the areas that Fai Dan had sent them via his Omni-Tool. Legion, using it's anti-gravity emitters, had flown over to where the Varren nest was located at, while Shepard and Tali had gone to tackle the water supply. That meant that he needed to destroy the enemy transmitter that was allowing the terrorists to target the colony itself. Unfortunately, however, it seemed as though the Storm Covenant was taking a more involved approach, as a few Batarian Clones were present, and leading them were a pair of Sangheilians in gold colored armor.
So far, the clones were easy to deal with, but the Sangheilians were going to be a problem. Popping back into cover, he said, "I'm at the transmitter, but there are Sangheilians guarding it. Apparently the Storm Covenant really wants to keep this thing safe."
"Should we provide backup?!"
"Neg," Wrex replied. "I've got this." Standing up, he roared, "Come at me you worthless Elites! I'll show you how a real Krogan BattleMaster fights in battle!" The Elites, perceiving this as a challenge, drew their energy swords and roared as well, before charging forwards at Wrex. It was the worst decision they could've made.
As soon as Wrex charged, his adrenal glands, enhanced by his modified genes and nanoaugmentations, began to release a series of hormones and biochemicals that were designed to dramatically enhance his ability to fight. Since he was already a very strong Krogan, the biochemicals and hormones were designed to enhance Wrex's reflex times, regenerative abilities and stamina to extremely high levels. A beneficial side effect was that time would seem to slow down to Wrex, similar to how UNSC Spartans were able to achieve Spartan Time when pushed to their maximum capabilities. In other words, Wrex had entered the Krogan equivalent of Spartan Time, and therefore was at his maximum physical capability, a fact that the Elites were about to find out the hard way.
As soon as he charged, Wrex watched as the world around him seemed to slow down, with the Elite's movements becoming slow and sluggish, while his brain seemed to engage it's overdrive mode, allowing him to think and act faster than before. Ducking beneath a swipe, Wrex used his legs like a hydraulic piston, allowing him to smash his hump into the Sangheilian's jaw. A loud SNAP sluggishly reached his ears, with the Elite's unusually low roar of pain registering a few seconds later. Flying over the Elite, he rolled when he impacted, before coming up and firing his shotgun one handedly at the other Elite. Moments later, said Elite stumbled backwards as a storm of sand grain sized HEAP pellets impacted it's shields and shattered them, allowing Wrex's second blast to punch through it's armor and into it's body, killing the Elite instantly. As soon as that happened, Wrex watched as the world went back to normal speed.
The Elite he knocked down roared as it got up onto it's feet. It was about charge forwards when something happened; looking down, Wrex noticed that some kind of gelatinous material had enveloped the Elite's legs and feet, trapping it in the process. Moments later, the material began to flow up the Elite's legs, before a vague sizzling sound could be heard. Said Elite began to roar and scream in panic, as Wrex realized it was being consumed by a powerful, acidic substance. Before long, the gelatinous material had enveloped the Elite's chest, with the alien screaming even more so as it's body began to be consumed by the powerful substance. Moments later, the substance enveloped the Elite from head to toe, with the alien's screams of pain muffled by the gelatinous material. While Wrex couldn't see what was happening, he could imagine all too well what was going on, as the Elite inside was melted down into an puddle of liquefied, Sangheilian flesh. Even it's armor had been melted down into a gold colored liquid that surrounded the purple colored remnants of the Elite. As the gelatinous material flowed off, Wrex pointed his weapon at it, ready to fight for his life.
He didn't have to worry at all. Moments later, the gelatinous material began to grow and bulge upwards, taking on familiar characteristics. As it regrew, Wrex watched as mandibles bulged out of where it's head was forming, along with gelatinous horns on it's back. A pair of breasts bulged out of it's chest, while it's torso, hips and legs reformed from the puddle on the ground. Moments later, it was fully reformed, with the gelatinous material becoming pigmented and opaque, revealing a female Sangheilian that was wearing the same gold colored armor as the one that had been melted down. "Rubicon," Wrex stated, remembering the conversation that Shepard had allowed him to listen in on.
"Everest," the female Sangheilian replied.
When he heard that, Wrex knew that it was the SLIC's Agent that was at Feros. "Who are you," Wrex asked, lowering his shotgun in the process.
"Riala 'Kusovai," the female replied. "I'm certain that you've heard of me, yes?"
For a moment, Wrex was confused, then he said, "You're Bero's… mate?"
"Correct," Riala nodded.
"What are you doing here," Wrex asked. "Aren't you supposed to be on the other side of the wormhole?" He began to anticipate either a lecture or a chiding response at that.
Instead of a chiding response, Wrex was surprised when Riala began to laugh in an amused manner, her mandibles spreading in an amused grin as she laughed. Settling down, she said, "Wrex, you are very easy for me to read with my mind. You need not worry that I will chide you, even though the thought was rather amusing." Becoming serious again, she said, "Still, you have a good question. I came here to your version of my galaxy because I was curious. Given that there's a lot to learn, I decided it would be a nice hobby to study the Protheans, and examining their architecture was a good start. I was about to do so when the SLIC asked me if I could do them a favor and investigate ExoGeni's practices on Feros. Given that the SLIC has always been kind to me and my mate, I decided to say yes, since rooting out corruption is one of my favorite hobbies. I was about to begin when Tarak's men attacked. I was able to help some colonists get to safety, but I was ultimately forced to disguise myself as one of his men to avoid detection."
"Is that why you killed that Elite," Wrex asked.
"Yes," Riala replied. "I was disguised as one of the clones. You did shoot me, though."
"Sorry," Wrex said apologetically.
"No need to," Riala said reassuringly. "I wasn't hurt, since I can regenerate. As the Terrans put it, 'no harm, no foul.' As for that Elite, one of my abilities as a shape-shifter, and a Precursor blessed Sangheilian, is that I can melt down any organism I encounter when I envelop them. I can modify the process so that it's painful, but I can also make it to where it's painless. I can also use it to nonlethally melt down a living organism, allowing me to physically fuse with it, allowing memories and genes to be passed between myself and the affected organism, after which, I can revert them back to their normal form. Humans are strictly off limits, but when it comes to other species such as Turians, they're fair game."
"Have you done this before," Wrex asked.
"I have," Riala nodded. "When I was undercover on Omega, I did something similar with a female Turian that was suffering from a very virulent disease. We melded and I was able to destroy the disease sapping her strength. As a reward for her cooperation, I gave her genes that would increase her lifespan and fertility, that way she can learn what it's like to be a great grandmother. Anyways, we can't stay here and talk forever. We have a mission to complete."
"That transmitter." Wrex nodded, turning around to face the object. It looked like a tall pedestal, with a rotating object that looked like a flattened sphere with dishes attached to it. "I think I can…" Before he finished, Riala walked up and split her arms into multiple tentacles, before wrapping them around the transmitter. Using her enhanced strength, she crushed the transmitter like a soda can, crumpling it down until it was a fourth of the size it used to be. "Never mind," Wrex remarked. Keying his COM, he said, "Alpha-2 to Alpha-1, do you read me?"
"Solid copy," Shepard replied. "Is the transmitter disabled?"
"Yes," Wrex replied. "I also managed to find our SLIC Agent. She's… a bit strange. You'll have to see her when we get back. She's… a unique case."
"I see," Shepard remarked. "We're finished up on our end here. Return to the rendezvous point ASAP."
"Affirmative," Wrex replied. Looking at Riala, he said, "Ladies first."
"Thank you," Riala remarked.
As they walked along, Wrex knew one thing: he'd just gotten into some really strange shit. What have I gotten myself into, he thought, just as Riala laughed upon hearing that mental question. This is going to be one really weird ass mission.
