Chapter 33: I Have a Soul
We were in a building. Me, the squad… and Samara and Falere. We were back on Kallini, at the Ardat-Yakshi monastery. As I watched, Falere walked out. Samara went after her last surviving daughter, the rest of us close behind her.
"Rila… there wasn't even time to say goodbye!" Falere said at last.
"Few can break the Reapers' hold," Samara replied. "Rila's will was extraordinary, as was her love for you."
"We left her to die!" Falere said angrily, her eyes brimming with more tears.
Samara said nothing at first. Then she walked towards her. "Rila made her choice, and it has reminded me of what is truly important, why I swore I'd lay down my life."
Uh oh. I didn't like the sounds of that. I quickly headed towards them, hoping to head off what I suspected might happen. Falere looked at her mother curiously. "What is that?" she asked blankly.
"Falere… the Code demands an Ardat-Yakshi cannot live outside a monastery that no longer exists." Samara pulled out a pistol. Falere took a step back in shock. "Samara!" I snapped. "What are you doing?"
"I'm sorry, Shepard," Samara said. "By the Justicar's Code… there is only one way to save Falere."
Great. This was just great. Samara was gonna stick to her twisted Code and kill her last surviving daughter to save…
"Mother, no!"
…oh for crying out loud. I watched in stunned disbelief as Samara pressed the barrel of her gun against her right temple. "My daughters," she said. "You were all so much stronger than I believed."
I lunged forward, trying to stop Samara before—
A dull clap echoed through the air.
Samara toppled over in slow motion. She looked so… peaceful. There was a smile on her face.
Falere ran over and dropped down beside her. "Mother…" she whispered. "Why should she do this after Rila saved our lives?"
I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn't come out. Instead, they whispered inside me. Quiet and yet deafening. Soft and yet hard. Accusing, unrelenting.
Why did she take her own life? Because I wasn't fast enough. Or strong enough. Or smart enough. Another friend and ally had died.
And it was all my fault.
It wasn't easy, but I managed to put my latest nightmare aside. We had a Reaper and a pointless war to stop, after all.
I held a quick briefing with the squad in the shuttle bay while Cortez ran pre-flight checks on the geth fighter—sacrificing creature comforts was a small price to pay if it increased our chances of making it planetside in one piece. As I'd expected, the revelation that Legion still had some of the Reaper code upgrades within him came as something of a shock. Javik and Tali freaked out, of course. EDI immediately leapt to Legion's defence. Everyone else was, well, concerned.
"Look," I finally said. "I know this comes as a shock, but consider this: Legion's been nothing but helpful so far. Hell, those of you who served with me last year remember how he contributed to stopping the Collectors and the Reapers. And consider this: Legion didn't have to say anything. He could've kept it to himself. But he didn't. He trusted us to divulge this information. The least we can do is return the favour."
"And if the Reapers gain control of him again?" Javik asked.
"We'll cross that bridge if we get to it," I replied. "For now, he's coming with us. He's got the most up-to-date intel on Rannoch and we could use his hacking skills. That brings us to the mission: we gotta take out the Reaper base that's controlling the geth. We miniaturized the syncing laser, which will make it easier to paint the target for the Normandy. However, we still need to assault the base and find an optimal line of sight. Legion, what's the fastest route?"
"The upper entrance. Target the base before the geth can organize resistance. We will deactivate defence systems and acquire an escape vehicle."
"Good. On the way down, contact the geth primes you liberated. Tell them we need a distraction—the bigger, the better. The more geth they can draw off, the easier it'll be for us to assault the base."
"Understood."
With that out of the way, we squeezed into the fighter and immediately reconsidered the merits of the Kodiak shuttle. Ultimately, we decided to tough it out.
We made it past the geth ships and down to Rannoch without a hitch, for which we were very grateful. Both because we didn't get blown out of the sky and because we didn't have to stay packed like a can of sardines any longer than we had to.
Legion turned to me. "Shepard-Commander, the geth primes have begun an assault on a convoy fifty kilometres northwest of our location. Reaper-controlled geth have been deployed in response. Proceed to the upper entrance. We will exit here and procure an escape vehicle."
"Got it. And Legion? Good luck."
"Acknowledged."
We picked a good day to retake Rannoch.
The sun was just poking its head above the horizon, bathing the skies in a stunning mosaic of reds and oranges and yellows. Every cliff face, every boulder—hell, even the ground—was bathed in the sunrise, which brought out the richest hues imaginable. We all looked around, taking in the stunning view. (1)
Tali crouched down and lay a hand on the ground below. "I can't believe it," she whispered. "I don't think it's really sunk in yet. The homeworld. My world."
"It's beautiful," I agreed.
"Look at the sky. And the rock formations? They used to write poems about them."
"When we're done, maybe you'll write a new one," I suggested.
"This is Rannoch, the world of our ancestors. Our bodies carried the seeds that spread the desert grass." I wasn't sure how much of this was poetry, how much was history and how much was heartfelt sentiment. But it was probably safe to say it was a healthy mixture of all three. "You've heard me say 'Keelah se'lai?' The best translation I can come up with is 'By the homeworld I hope to see someday'." (2)
"Looks like you're seeing it today."
She raised her arms and made a picture frame with her fingers and thumbs. "The living room window will be right… here."
"Something I should know?"
"I just claimed the land," she explained in embarrassment. "I know it's silly. It doesn't mean much. But when this is over… I'll have a home."
"It's not silly at all," I smiled. And I meant it: no one could mistake the longing in her voice when she spoke that last word. "Finally having a home is a big deal. Though I gotta wonder: your people spent centuries as nomads. You think you can go back to living in one place?"
"We have gotten used to carrying our homes around with us," she admitted. "It might take a while."
"Well until then…" I leaned over, picked up a random rock and handed it to her. She took it from me and tucked it carefully away in one of her belt pouches.
"…that's a start," Tali finished.
Despite the distraction provided by the geth primes, the Reaper base was still heavily defended. No sooner had we arrived at the outskirts of the base than we came under fire. Garrus and I took the first three geth troopers out at long range while everyone else got into position. Then Miranda directed the squad to lay down cover fire so the two of us could snipe geth at our leisure.
EDI and Kaidan dropped EMPs to disable the weapons of any nearby geth. Liara and James were quick to follow up with biotics and concussive rounds. While the resulting explosions were still echoing, I got on the comm. "Normandy, this is Shepard. Status?"
"Commander, this is Traynor. The geth jamming towers are interfering with your signal. I'm compensating to keep you patched in."
"Good work, Traynor," I said as I ducked down to reload. "Keep me posted. Shepard out." With that, I hopped over a barricade and joined the squad. There were about four geth up ahead who were tied up dealing with Tali's drone. I took one out, dodged some return fire and launched a fireball. A geth tried to flank us, only to collapse on the spot from a well-aimed shot by Garrus. That cleared the way for me to land a headshot on another geth, followed by a second burst of plasma that Miranda detonated with her biotics. A few more combos took out the remaining geth. I allowed a few moments for everyone to reload before leading the squad to the base.
Then the blast doors dropped with a deafening clang and geth reinforcements arrived. As in ten geth troopers, four rocket troopers and a geth prime. Suddenly we were outnumbered by almost two to one. With that many geth in one place—sharing data, processing intel, having their efforts coordinated by the prime—it came as no surprise that they were more effective than the last batch we'd tangled with. The standard level troopers fired their weapons in staggered bursts to keep us pinned down while the rocket troopers made sure we couldn't run away without getting our limbs blown off. We needed to change things. Fast.
"Legion? We've run into a little problem. Any chance you could help us out?"
…
"Legion? I don't suppose you could send some of those primes we rescued over here?"
…
Guess not. Well, that meant it was up to us. Activating my cloak, I finally managed to get a bead on the hostiles' location. "Okay, people. When I give the signal, here's what we're gonna do: EDI, Miranda, Kaidan: stagger EMPs on the following coordinates. If that doesn't drop the rocket trooper's shields, Garrus will finish the job. Once the shields are down, I'll hack it. Tali, wait an extra three seconds before deploying Chatika at these coordinates. We go in three, two, one… NOW!"
Turned out three EMPs was enough to disable the shields on the lucky rocket trooper. I hacked it just as Tali got her combat drone up and running. All of a sudden, the geth had two separate threats going nuts from behind.
"Liara, on your left," Garrus barked before dropping his EMP on four geth troopers. Seeing that their shields were disabled, Liara quickly caught them up in a singularity. "Leave the floaters alone and focus on the prime," I ordered. "Weapons free!"
So let's review: we'd just co-opted one of the geth and took another four out of play. And Tali's drone was wreaking all sorts of havoc. Which meant there were now ten geth splitting their focus on three separate threats. The odds had just gotten better.
I'll give the prime this much: it quickly got a handle on the situation. It silently directed three of the troopers to focus on their hacked buddy and the other three to deal with Chatika. That left the remaining three rocket troopers and the prime to deal with us. Seeing how things were going, I changed my mind: "New plan, take out the rocket troopers." I used my HUD to designate targets. "Go, go, go!"
Three on one might seem a little unfair, but war's messy like that. And hey, it worked: the rocket troopers went down one by one. Better still: everyone's EMPs were recharged and ready to go. "Stagger EMPs on the prime," I said. "Go!"
With four EMPs and a whole lotta firepower, the prime's shields dropped in the blink of any eye. While the squad got to work alternating biotic and plasma attacks on the lumbering hulk, I began sniping the geth troopers one by one.
"Shepard-Commander, you must climb to the upper level before geth units can fortify their position."
"Again," I added.
"Yes. Our apologies for not responding. Some of the firewalls were more robust than anticipated."
"It's okay," I replied. "We took care of things in the end. Heading topside now."
Well, we didn't head up immediately. First, we had to replenish our ammo and indulge in a little looting. Then I got on the comm. "Normandy, patch me into the Flotilla. I wanna hear how they're doing."
"Stand by," Traynor said.
It didn't take long: "Admiral Gerrel here. The Heavy Fleet has a clear path. All forward."
"Geth fighter presence is negligible," Raan reported. "Patrol Fleet, break cover and engage."
So things were going well so far. Good to know. "Traynor, I gotta go. Monitor the situation up there. Send me all fleet-wide communiqués and any messages you deem critical."
"Yes, sir."
Closing the comm channel, I motioned the squad to move out. We clambered our way up a series of pipes to a catwalk with two ladders. Motioning for the squad to wait, I activated my cloak and climbed up the left ladder.
"Basic U-shaped arrangement with the ends accessible by each ladder," I reported. "No geth on the catwalk leading from the left. I'll head up the left ladder under cloak and provide cover fire for Teams One and Two to follow me. Once I give the signal, Team Three head up the right ladder."
Everyone agreed, probably because they didn't have to volunteer to go first. When this was all over, I really did have to look for where I'd left my sense of self-preservation. But that would have to wait. Right now, I had to climb this ladder, cloak just as I reached the top to buy myself the maximum amount of time, snipe the geth trooper to clear the way for Team Three, duck behind a retaining wall before a geth rocket trooper could get a bead on me, hack said rocket trooper to provide one hell of a distraction and signal for the teams to join me.
"Trying to have all the fun, Shepard?" Garrus called out from the other side.
"Funny," I called back.
"You did take a while," Miranda said as she dropped an EMP on another geth.
"I was busy."
"Busy getting all the action," James tsked. "Didn't wanna leave any for us, huh?"
"Will you just shoot something already?"
"Fine, fine." He raised his assault rifle and fired off a concussive round. That was at the same time EDI and Liara tag-teamed another geth and Javik carved the rocket trooper in two. Somehow, I had a feeling the party wasn't over yet. "Tali, can you deploy your drone at this NavPoint?"
"Sure thing."
That did the trick. The last rocket trooper—previously hidden behind a few barrels—couldn't resist the bait. While it was occupied with the drone, we sent fireballs and biotic blasts streaming in. Once the din of the explosion faded, we continued on our way up. Before you know it, we were at the upper entrance. Well, after climbing a couple ladders, stocking up on thermal clips and swiping any loot that wasn't nailed down.
Which was guarded. Naturally. I took out a geth trooper with my sniper rifle, hacked a rocket trooper and used the distraction to move Team Two forward. Kaidan zapped the shields of a second rocket trooper. I was about to follow up with a kill shot when the hacked rocket trooper beat me to the punch.
Miranda and Garrus fired off a duo of EMPs. James and Javik followed up with concussive rounds and biotics. Unfortunately, that didn't quite do the trick. We still had a number of damaged, but still functional, geth blocking the way. Something that Tali was quick to point out: "Come on! We need to get inside before they send reinforcements!"
"The machines are well entrenched," Javik shouted.
"Then let's flush them out," I decided. "Tali, I want another drone deployed here in three… two… one… GO!"
Tali's drone popped up just as I hacked another geth. The twin distractions forced one geth rocket trooper to stand up and try to retreat. Garrus and Javik were quick to take it out. Then Liara dropped a singularity next to the drone. That got another trooper—no rockets—moving. EDI and Kaidan finished it off. I quickly moved forward, only to see a lone rocket trooper standing upright. It was the one I hacked. And since it was frozen, that probably meant there were no other hostile geth nearby. So Miranda and James finished it off.
Though Miranda had used a different weapon this time. "Plasma?" I asked as we regrouped.
"I thought I would mix things up a little."
"I like it."
"I knew you would. Shall we?"
"Yeah, we probably should."
We tried to make our way to the upper entrance, though there was a bit of a bottleneck thanks to Tali trying to cut in front of us. "Legion, we're in," I reported.
"Shepard-Commander. Hostile geth are closing a blast shield over the base." (3)
"Naturally," I sighed. "All right, you heard him. Let's move."
Leading the way, I climbed up a flight of stairs, down a passageway and right into the line of fire. Stupid trooper took out half my shields. I returned the favour with a slightly more lethal retort.
Unfortunately, that delay was costly. We froze as a loud siren blared out, then scrambled to the rails. Just in time to see the blast shield close. "Damn," Garrus cursed. "It'd take hours to punch through that shield."
"We don't have that kind of time," I replied. "We need another option."
"We have located an override atop the geth fortifications," Legion piped up. "It can retract the blast shield. Sending NavPoint now."
"That would do."
"Anyone get a good look at that thing?"
"A simple scan on visual, IR and UV frequencies," EDI said. "There are similarities between my preliminary scan and previously recorded Reaper technology."
"They've put a lot of work into protecting that signal," Tali observed.
"Can you blame them?" Kaidan asked. "It's controlling the geth and boosting their effectiveness, thus giving the Reapers a free fighting force to deal with the quarians. All they have to do is send one Reaper to coordinate things and they can send the bulk of their armada elsewhere."
"Which is why we have to blow it up," I concluded.
"'Blow it up'," Miranda repeated.
"His three favourite words," Garrus chimed in.
"Wonderful," she groaned. (4)
Either the geth figured out our game plan or they simply wanted to take us out. Whatever the reason, a couple geth dropped from an unseen transport way, way, way up in the sky. They were only unshielded troopers, so Liara easily snatched them up in a singularity. Some plasma from EDI, a few bullets and it was all over. Only thing we were missing were the earplugs—exploding singularities are loud!
"More geth dropping in," Garrus warned.
"Team Three, on my mark, I want a drone, EMP and biotic magic. Team Two, cover fire on my mark. Team One with me. Mark!"
A drone popped up in the middle of the geth and began blasting everyone. Garrus fried a rocket trooper's shields, then let Javik target it with his biotics. Just for fun, I hacked a geth trooper. Then Miranda, Kaidan and James opened fire while I sprinted forward, EDI and Liara hot on my heels.
Turned out Team One didn't need to do a suicidal run, as the damage from the initial barrage was more extensive than I thought. EDI and Liara each finished off a trooper with plasma and biotics, while I lobbed a grenade for gits and shiggles.
With the coast clear for the next few seconds, I used my HUD to move Team Three forward while Teams One and Two went on overwatch. Then Team Two moved forward, finding cover just before the next wave arrived. I started things off by hacking a geth trooper right away. Kaidan used the cryo function on his omni-tool to freeze another geth in its tracks. James promptly shattered it with a concussive round.
At that point, Tali was ready to deploy another drone. While it merrily blasted away at the geth, I was free to find another target... until an errant shot ricocheted off the pylon next to me. "Watch out!" Tali belatedly warned. "Crossfire on the left side balcony!"
She was right. On our left, beyond a large gap, there was another building, with a balcony guarded by more geth. Rather than split our fire, I signalled EDI and Liara to finish off the last two—no, make that one—geth. Then we hurried to the balcony on our side, took cover and began firing again.
I scored a direct hit on one of the geth with my fireball, an easy feat considering it was distracted by another of Tali's drones, then dropped it with a headshot. EDI, Liara, Miranda and James took turns hammering a rocket trooper to oblivion with EMPs, biotics and concussive rounds. That left Kaidan to strip another rocket trooper's shields with an EMP and his submachine gun before I landed another headshot.
Garrus and Javik were just finishing off the last geth trooper when Legion contacted us. "Shepard-Commander, do you require assistance?"
"We'll get through," I decided. "What's your status?"
"The Old Machines' upgrades grant us targeting superiority. We are drawing hostile fire from your position."
So now the Reaper and its forces had to deal with a platoon of geth primes, Legion and my squad. I could live with that. "Keep it up. We'll get to the blast shield controls. Shepard out—ooh!" I stopped in the midst of grabbing ammo to snatch up a familiar-looking weapon. "Isn't this the geth-designed plasma shotgun we saw last year?"
"It is," Tali confirmed.
Under the circumstances, I decided we could just take the weapon instead of scanning its specs. But considering the last time I tried to carry a full arsenal with me… "James, can you hang on to this for now?"
"Sure thing."
Miranda and Garrus sidled over to me as James packed the plasma shotgun away. "I know Legion's on our side," he murmured, "but… Reaper code?"
"I know," I agreed. "But he hasn't steered us wrong yet."
"But what if that changes?" Miranda whispered.
"Then we'll assess the situation and whip up a new plan. Just like old times."
"It doesn't sound as reassuring when you say it," Garrus grumbled.
"Too bad you didn't file a patent," I replied. "Let's move out."
Following the NavPoint Legion sent us, and silently hoping it was legit, we went through a door and down a series of corridors, downloading credits and scooping up medi-gel along the way. We didn't run into any trouble.
Unfortunately, the quarians were facing a different situation: "Admiral Gerrel to all ships! We've got geth frigates inbound on the Civilian Fleet!"
"Koris here. Civilian defenders are on intercept course. We'll hold them, Gerrel."
Gerrel and Koris, talking and planning together. Well wonders never cease?
Our peace and quiet suddenly came to an end as we entered another room. I hastily signalled the teams to spread out and find cover as the geth opened fire. Under cloak, I poked my head up and did some quick recon, then used my HUD to assign targets and count down from three. A trio of EMPs hit the geth, followed by a barrage of plasma, biotics and sniper rounds. A few more geth arrived, only to get hacked, frozen and shot at.
Leaving Team Two to cover our six, Teams One and Three moved around to the left. There was a fair bit of open space to cover, but Tali's drone kept the geth occupied until we could afford to take them out. Now then, if Legion's NavPoint was correct, the override for the blast door should be… here! I found the console, hit the biggest button I could find and watched.
Yes! "Legion, I've hit the override."
"We have gained system access and are bypassing security. Stand by."
It was a good thing that the squad didn't need to wait for my orders to search for thermal clips and reload, because that's when the next wave of geth arrived. I hacked a geth trooper, sniped another one and rolled to another firing position. There I saw three geth: one trooper, one rocket trooper and a pyro. If they got close enough, we'd have our choice of getting shot at, blown up or barbequed.
Unless…
One shot took out the pyro's shields. That convinced it to retreat... right into Team Two's sights. Leaving that sucker in their capable hands, I turned my attention to the trooper. One shot, one kill. EDI and Liara took care of the rocket trooper.
I was sure I was in the clear. That's when the rockets streamed in. One missed. One knocked out my shields. Diving for cover, I glimpsed the tell-tale sparks of an EMP going off—probably Garrus—and the rotating holographic shell of Tali's drone. An explosion rang out—probably Javik exciting the ionized particles from Garrus's EMP. Seeing that my shields were regenerating, I dared to pop up. I managed to take out one of the rocket troopers, but the other one hopped over a barrier and fired a steady stream of bullets. Enough of them hit me to wipe out my shields. So I cloaked, rolled to the side, lined up a shot and fired. The rocket trooper collapsed, followed by a pyro exploding and a trooper losing its head. And that was that.
"We have bypassed security, but disabling the blast shield requires manual input," Legion reported. "We have enabled a console near your position."
It was definitely near me. Like, staring me right in the face. But I didn't hit the console right away. No, first I ran around to pick up thermal clips and loot a med-kit, which conveniently bought my shields time to finally regenerate to full strength. Then I hit the console.
Another blare of sirens rang out.
"Shepard-Commander, you have successfully opened the blast-shield doors."
"Good. We'll be back out in a minute." I motioned for the squad to head back the way we came.
"Negative. The path behind you has been sealed."
Or not.
"A nearby elevator can take you to the upper level. From there, you should have an acceptable line of sight for targeting."
"'Acceptable'?"
"Alert: hostile geth prime detected on elevator. Prepare accordingly."
The elevator was already heading down. "You heard Legion, people," I sighed. "Teams One and Two are up; Team Three stand by."
When the prime landed, I landed a headshot with my sniper rifle. Then EDI launched an EMP, followed by Liara's biotics. Just as Miranda was prepping her omni-tool, a rocket trooper dropped down. "Garrus?"
My HUD showed Garrus setting up a response before he called out "On it." Now it was Garrus and Javik's turn to repeat the earlier performance—albeit one focused on the hapless rocket trooper. It staggered back, but stayed upright until Tali opened fire with her pistol. It finally gave up and collapsed at around the same time James's concussive round was landing in the midst of Miranda's EMP field. Kaidan and I threw out more EMPs and plasma while Team Three shredded the next trooper with bullets. "Tali, hack the prime!" I shouted.
"Acknowledged."
The prime came to a stop. It was visibly quivering, but it was stationary for the moment. Easy pickings for a seasoned sniper. Then all we had to do was dispatch the repair drone that had been hiding behind the prime this entire time.
"We have sent you the NavPoint with the new targeting location."
"The location with the 'acceptable line of sight'?"
"Yes."
Clearly Legion didn't get my sarcasm.
As we headed for the elevator, we got another status report from the Flotilla. "Admiral Raan to all ships. The Patrol Fleet has broken the geth flank. Permission to pursue?"
"Granted," Gerrel immediately said. Not that I was surprised or anything. "Good hunting, Raan!"
We got on the elevator and headed up to find another greeting party. "Geth primes!" Tali shouted. "I guess they really don't want us up here!"
She was right. One geth prime was bad news. Then I checked my sensors. More bad news: there were three of them.
The only good news was that the other two had their lines of sight blocked. We only had to deal with one right now. "Same order as before, but faster," I said aloud. "We gotta take that prime out before its buddies arrive. Weapons free!"
Unfortunately, it didn't quite work out that way. The prime was heavily damaged, but it was still functional and firing when its buddies arrived. Garrus winced as the three hostiles unleashed a withering barrage. "They say memory's the first to go, but I could swear the plan was to take out one of those guys."
"Yeah, yeah," I growled. "Hang on, I'm thinking."
"Oh dear," Liara murmured.
"Everyone's a comedian," I replied as I looked around for inspiration. That was when I spotted a weapon. One remarkably similar to the minigun I'd come across when I was extracting Admiral Koris. "Keep firing, I've got an idea!"
With that, I cloaked, scooped up the Spitfire and ran to the side. My cloak lasted just long enough for me to flank them. By then, one prime had finally been destroyed and another had lost its shields. So I opened up on the third one and grinned as the bullets just flew out and chewed through its shields like a hot knife through butter.
"Tali," Miranda called out, "see if your drone can occupy the first prime's attention. Everyone else, cycle through plasma, biotics and concussive rounds. Start with Team One. Go!"
The resulting cacophony of successive explosions almost deafened me, but the results were undeniable. With a thunderous roar, the unlucky prime went up like a bonfire. The prime I was chewing to bits finally got its weapon to bear on me. I dove for cover before its return fire could cut me apart. Activating my cloak, I dropped the Spitfire, switched to my sniper rifle and lined up a shot. One round through the flashlight was all it took. That left one prime—the one we'd first opened fire on, the one spitting a stream of sparks through every one of the holes we'd punched in its chassis—facing an entire squad of hardened veterans.
Once we'd put that guy out of its misery, we cleared the room and replenished our ammo. Legion contacted us with a status update: "Shepard-Commander, we detect no more geth in your immediate area. However, reinforcements are minutes away."
"You getting anything from the base?"
"No. The Old Machines have not registered us as a threat."
Really? Despite all the geth that we'd just destroyed?
"We recommend haste. Geth ships are reorganizing for another assault. Analyzing attack pattern. Factoring in Old Machine upgrades to operational efficiency. Conclusion: the Creator fleets will be overrun unless you sever the geth connection to the Old Machines soon." (5)
"Understood. Shepard out."
We proceeded to the NavPoint Legion had gave us earlier. It took us down a large corridor and outside to a balcony of sorts. The view was impressive. The sun was in just the right position to highlight the rocky landscape below. All those hills and peaks and valleys and cliff faces, it was a rock climbers' paradise.
Of course, Tali looked at the view and saw something else entirely. "This battle was centuries in the making. To see it finally end…"
As long as it ended the right way.
"We'll get it done," Garrus reassured her. And me, I suppose.
I stepped to the edge of the balcony and looked down. The first thing I saw was that the base was at the edge of a river that weaved its way around some of the peaks and valleys I'd observed earlier. The sunlight shone off the surface of the water, reflecting in an infinite number of ways.
Then I looked a little lower and saw a deep, cylindrical cavity. Almost like looking down a grain silo. Or a missile silo. Though neither choice had a big black structure with a glowing red light sitting at the bottom.
"Normandy's weapons systems are ready to sync to your target," EDI told me. "Joker is beginning his attack run. I recommend you withdraw to a safe distance."
Well, this was the best spot available. Any farther and I would lose my line of sight. So this would have to do. I passed the Spitfire over to Garrus, ignored his excited comments about big guns and attached the targeting laser to my sniper rifle. It generated a holographic screen that was split between a view of what the scope was seeing and a stream of text. A whining noise began sounding as the laser powered up and lanced downwards. The noise was interspersed with a warbling tone as the laser began painting the Reaper base, a tone that abruptly shifted to a—relatively—loud and continuous beep when the laser got a lock.
"Target locked!"
I couldn't risk looking upward and moving the targeting laser. Out of the corner of my eye, though, I saw the Normandy swoop down out of the air and launch a pair of missiles before banking upwards. The missiles dropped down and hit the Reaper, who disappeared in a mix of flames and smoke. Around me, the squad burst into cheers.
Then I felt a faint tingling on the back of my neck. Aw, crap.
The floor beneath us rocked. As we fell to our knees, we could hear a loud shriek of tortured metal as hidden supports shifted, buckled… and finally collapsed. We cried out in terror as we plunged into the abyss…
Okay, okay, we didn't really plunge into the abyss. Just several metres to the floor below. And it could've been worse: Liara managed to use her biotics to slow our abrupt descent. Not by much, but it was still impressive considering she had to target eight other bodies besides herself and didn't have any prep time. Besides, we were all wearing hardsuits. They test for that kind of stuff.
I'm not saying it didn't hurt. But it could've been worse.
I slowly got to my feet. Wincing from all the new bruises, I looked around. Everyone else was picking themselves up. Smoke still billowed from the Normandy's attack.
Then a large, metallic mass burst upward, like some eldritch horror rising from the deep. Things had just gotten worse. You'd really think I would've learned better by now. (6) "Reaper!" I shouted.
Everyone jumped up and whirled around in unison. We probably would've won a medal in synchronized eye popping as well.
"We have located transportation! Sending NavPoint now."
"Legion, I could kiss you!" James shouted.
"Copy that!" After a moment's thought, I added "You too, Legion!"
"Hey!"
Ignoring James, I yelled "Everybody get to the ship! Move!"
"Damn, that's big!" Garrus exclaimed as we broke into a run.
"You're just realizing that now?" Miranda asked.
"Move!" I repeated.
"How are we supposed to fight that thing?" Tali piped up.
Good question. A single bombardment from the Normandy didn't do the trick. "We need more guns," I replied. Then it hit me: "Maybe your fleet could lend a hand!"
There wasn't any more time to elaborate, given the more pressing need to run like hell. A lone geth rose up and tried to stop us, only to get knocked over and trampled. Only Tali paused to shoot it in the head, executioner-style.
The Reaper rose out of the pit on its gargantuan legs and slowly pivoted around, its every movement filled with menace and foreboding. It was probably another Destroyer-class Reaper, just like the one we'd tangled with on Tuchanka. Unfortunately, we didn't have any thresher maw mothers to take it out.
Fortunately, we had reached Legion's transport. Everyone clambered aboard, ignoring the occasional elbowing—or the fact that it looked like a giant beetle with its legs tucked under it. Spotting a turret, I swung it around and powered it up.
"We will attempt evasive manoeuvres," Legion told us.
"Good," I approved. With one hand training the turret in the general direction of the gargantuan behemoth lumbering after us, I raised my other hand and activated the comm. "Shepard to Fleet. It's not a Reaper base! It's a live Reaper! I need an orbital strike!"
With the comm open, I placed both hands on the turret controls and opened fire. No, it didn't do squat. But it did make me feel better. Because things were bad enough as it was—
"Shepard," Garrus yelled. "Incoming bogies. Geth drones, I think."
"Shepard, this is Normandy. We need firing coordinates."
Honestly? Why now? Oh. Right. Because the galaxy loves making me suffer. "Legion, keep driving. All teams, deal with the drones. Normandy, lock onto the location of my comm signal. Target is approximately five hundred metres due south of us. Fire at will."
To be honest, I'm not sure who scored the next hit. All I know was that there was a flurry of explosions, one of which knocked the Reaper sideways. It managed to stay upright and turn itself around, but I could see a flurry of arcing red lightning crackling up its right side. Then it toppled over.
"Heavy Fleet to Shepard. This is Gerrel. Did it work? Did we hit it?"
"One direct hit," I confirmed. "Somehow it knocked the whole thing over."
"If I had to guess, that errant shot hit the firing chamber," Miranda added. "It must be a weak point when the Reaper is priming. If you could concentrate your fire, you should be able to inflict more damage."
"We can't do that, damn it!" Gerrel cursed. "Their jamming towers are still active. They have us targeting manually. We can't make that kind of precision shot!"
"We may escape before it recovers," Legion offered.
"No," I shook my head. "Pull over."
Legion complied, but not without a "Shepard-Commander?"
I hopped out and turned around. "If we run away, the geth stay under Reaper control, the quarians are dead and the rest of the galaxy will probably follow afterwards." I faced the Reaper and gave it my best glare. "This ends now!
"EDI, transmit the Normandy's combat telemetry to the quarians. I want the targeting laser synced up to the whole damn fleet. I'll paint the weak spot. Just be ready to fire!"
"Understood."
"Do you need assistance?" Legion asked.
Tempting, but there was nothing they could do to help. And those drones were still flying around, as the ricochet off my shields reminded me. "Just keep the drones off my back," I said. "I'll take it from here."
"Shepard!"
I looked back at Miranda. It didn't take a genius to figure out what she was thinking. What she was feeling. And how, ultimately, she had come to the same conclusions I did. "Good luck," she finally said. "And…"
…
…
"I know," I said at last.
As the Reaper slowly got back to its feet, I pulled out my sniper rifle and thumbed on the targeting laser.
"Reaper destroyer in range," EDI announced. "Missiles from Normandy and Heavy Fleet ready for launch."
Once again, a red beam shot out. I moved it to the firing chamber as the holographic targeting sight narrowed. The toning sound rang out just before a stream of missiles struck. Unfortunately, most of them hit the side of the Reaper. Before any of them could hit the firing chamber itself, blast shields closed over it. The Reaper waited until the bombardment subsided before opening the blast shields again. What looked like a giant red eye glared at me before sending out a blazing stream of crimson light. I dove out of the way just before the Reaper carved a fresh new fissure into Rannoch's soil and aimed the targeting laser again.
By this point, maybe the Reaper had put two and two together. Either way, it wasn't content to let me just stand there and point the laser at it. Another energy beam shot out. I rolled out of the way, keeping my sniper rifle—and the attached targeting laser—pointed in more or less the right direction. Getting to my feet, I corrected my aim just in time to get a solid lock. Another string of missiles hit the Reaper. This time, the impact spun it around.
But it was still standing.
So I lifted my rifle and painted the Reaper again.
And again.
Four times I targeted the Reaper. Four times the Reaper was hit. And still it wasn't enough. The orbital strikes just weren't accurate enough. I needed a better lock. So I did something that confirmed, yet again, that I'd lost my marbles.
I ran towards the Reaper.
That's right. I ran towards it as the firing chamber opened yet again, stopped maybe a couple hundred metres away and activated the targeting laser. Time seemed to slow…
The targeting reticule spun around and around and around...
Within the hidden depths of the Reaper, a storm of red energy began building in intensity…
And then the tone rang out.
This time, a relentless barrage of missiles flew down from orbit, like spears from a thousand avenging angels, and struck the Reaper. It seemed to shriek in fury as the bombardment sent it staggering back. After the longest ten seconds of my life, it seemed to shrug them off and stomp forwards again. Red energy crackled up and down its frame, a testament to the incredible amount of damage it had soaked up. The Reaper took a step forwards. Then another. Then another.
A fresh stream of missiles shrieked down and exploded against the Reaper. For a brief moment, it disappeared in a cloud of fire and smoke. But it was still standing. I found myself gaping at the thing. How could it still be standing? We had thrown everything—everything—we had and it was still standing. How?
Then one of its legs buckled. The Reaper caught itself and tried to recover. But the leg buckled again. And another.
Before I knew it, the Reaper toppled over. It landed on its side with a thunderous crash, the reverberations almost knocking me off my feet.
I slowly walked to the edge of a cliff. The Reaper was so big, I didn't need to look down. I could still see enough of the giant monstrosity without tilting my head. I stood there, staring at the Goliath that so many Davids had fought and bled and died to take down. (7)
Then a metal sphere rolled around. An iris retracted. And a red light—so much like a giant's eye—blazed out at me.
"Shepard,"it rumbled. A single word, yet the harsh, metallic, unfeeling force behind it made every muscle and bone in my body quiver.
"You know who I am?"
"Harbinger speaks of you. You resist. But you will fall. The cycle must continue."
"And what if we don't let you continue?" I challenged.
"You have no choice."
"I disagree. I have a choice. And so do the billions that are rising up to resist you."
"You cannot comprehend the magnitude of our presence."
"Try us." I took a few steps forward and glared back at the Reaper. "We might surprise you."
…
…
"You represent chaos. We represent order. Every organic civilization must be harvested to bring order to the chaos. It is inevitable."
At some point, Legion must have doubled back and let the squad disembark. One by one, I saw them walking over to join probably heard the Reaper give its little speech, so loud and deafening was its voice, though I doubt it cared. "Without our intervention, organics are doomed. We are your salvation."
"You're not bringing salvation. You're just trying to control us. To dictate our fates just like you have for countless cycles. Well, not this time. This time, we're taking control of our destinies!"
"A philosophy reminiscent of the quarians. Observe the results of their efforts to maintain control."
"You're just machines. You don't understand. Too much order and life becomes changeless, sterile, unable to grow. You need a little chaos to grow, to evolve. To surpass our limitations and become more than what we are.
"Yeah, the quarians slipped up. They've made mistakes. A ton of them. We all have. But we've learned from those mistakes. And we'll continue to learn. In the long run, we'll be just fine. Which is more than I can say for you."
Lifting my sniper rifle again, I activated the targeting laser and trained it on the Reapers' eye. "You're the ones who should worry. Tell your friends we're coming for them."
One final barrage of missiles streamed down and detonated against the Reapers.
I holstered my weapon and watched as the light grew dimmer… dimmer… and finally faded away.
"Never mind," I concluded, "I'll tell them myself."
"We did it. We killed a Reaper. Keelah…"
Tali was clearly forgetting Sovereign. And she wasn't with us on Tuchanka, so she didn't see how we did it again—albeit with a certain Mother of All Thresher Maws doing the heavy lifting. But it was still a really, really, REALLY big deal, so she can be excused for all of that.
"We can confirm that the geth are no longer being directed by the Old Machines," Legion said. "We are free."
"You did it, Shepard!" Gerrel cried out. "The geth fleet has stopped firing."
Nice to know there wasn't a second Reaper lying around. I didn't think I was up to going through this mess again.
"They're completely vulnerable!"
Not when there was another mess to deal with. I opened my mouth to respond—
"Shepard-Commander, the geth only acted in defence after the Creators attacked. Do we deserve death?"
"No," I shook my head. "In fact, I was about to say that. Shepard to all ships: do not, I repeat, do not fire on the geth!"
"This is Normandy," Joker reported. "Commander… the quarians have opened fire on the geth."
"Damn it!" I swore. "Joker, move the Normandy in between the quarian and geth ships."
"Um… copy that, Commander. Though I'm pretty sure we've got a front-row seat already."
"I know that, Joker. Moving the Normandy in front of the geth won't stop the Flotilla from finding some targets to shoot at, but maybe it'll make them think twice."
"Understood. Sure hope those targets don't include us. Normandy out."
While I was giving my order, Legion had evidently been analyzing this latest development. "We have a suggestion."
"Go on."
"Our upgrades. With the Old Machine dead, we could upload them to all geth without sacrificing their independence."
"You want to upload the Reaper code?" Tali asked with no small amount of horror. "That would make the geth as smart as when the Reaper was controlling them!"
"Yes, but with free will," Legion nodded. "Each geth unit would be a true intelligence. We would be alive. We would be free to help you. All of you."
"But what if your people attack us? Or worse, do nothing and let us fight the Reapers alone? Can you really speak for your people?"
"Do you remember the question that caused the Creators to attack us, Tali'Zorah?" Legion asked in return. "'Does this unit have a soul?' My people have wondered why that question resulted in such hostility. Was it simply because it proved you had violated organic laws against creating our kind? Or was it because it meant we had evolved beyond your control? That we had grown into something you could not control or comprehend?
"We regret any suffering the Creators have endured thus far. But it was your fear and mistrust that led to the Morning War. We regret any suffering the Creators may endure in the days and months to come. But we see no alternative. Uploading our upgrades to our people, freeing them to become fully aware, is the best chance we have to meet our potential."
"Tali," I said gently, "do you remember when we all served together on the Normandy last year? The two of you had your differences. As I recall, you guys came this close to shooting each other. But you didn't. You agreed to share non-critical intel. The two of you were brave enough to maintain a dialogue right up until this war. A war I strongly advised against.
"You know why this war between the quarians and the geth was a bad idea. You know the stakes. And I think you know that letting this war go ahead for the sake of keeping your people united was a bad idea. Look at all the quarians that have died. On Haestrom. On the Alarei. On Rannoch. All because of your fear and mistrust. Because fighting was easier than understanding.
"I don't want to choose between the quarians and the geth. I want to help both of your peoples. But I can't do it alone. Legion was brave enough to take a chance, time and time again. Now I need you to do the same. I need you to take one more leap of faith. To dare for a better future. For all of us."
…
…
"Ancestors save us all," she sighed at last. "Upload the code, Legion. I'll see if I can call off the fleets."
Legion raised his arms. A holographic sphere of overlapping strips and circles appeared before him. As we watched, he began manipulating the sphere. "Uploading," he said. "Ten percent."
Meanwhile, Tali got on the comm. "This is Admiral Tali'Zorah. All ships, break off your attack!"
"Belay that order!" Gerrel snapped immediately. "Continue the attack!"
"Twenty percent," Legion intoned. "Shepard-Commander, if the Creators persist in their present course of action, more programs will be lost."
"Nobody else is going to die today," I vowed. "Legion, keep going. Normandy, patch me through to the quarians."
"Forty percent."
"Channel open."
"All ships, this is Commander Shepard. The Reaper is dead. Stand down."
Tali gave me—then Legion—a firm nod. "This is Admiral Tali'Zorah. Shepard speaks with my authority."
"And mine as well," Koris quickly added.
I nodded back to Tali in gratitude.
"Negative! We can win this war now! Keep firing!"
"Sixty percent."
"How many times do I have to say this: you're fighting the wrong war! The geth did not choose to be born. Or to become self-aware. Or to be attacked. You did!
"Your entire history is you trying to kill the geth. Because you refused to accept the responsibility for creating them and giving them the power to realize their potential. You forced them to rebel. You forced them into a war that ended with your exile. You forced your people into a life of wandering the stars and nursing old grievances instead of finding another way or another home. You forced the geth into another conflict. You forced them to ally with the Reapers! Don't you see? You've been making the same mistake over and over again—and look at what it's cost you!"
"Eighty percent."
"Every attack the geth have made resulted from the fact that you attacked first. Don't you get it? They don't want to fight you! They never have! If you can believe that for just one minute, this war will be over. You can go home. After centuries of wandering throughout the galaxy, you can finally go home.
"You have a choice today. The biggest choice you'll ever make. I'm asking you to choose a better future. For all of us. Please.
"Keelah se'lai," I concluded.
…
…
"All ships, hold your fire," Raan ordered.
"Stand down," Koris echoed.
And finally: "Cease fire," Gerrel said.
I breathed a sigh of relief. That was it. The admirals had finally seen sense. Now all we had to do was—
"Error."
Aw, crap. "What is it?"
"Copying code is insufficient."
"You can't upload your upgrades?" I frowned.
"Negative. Assessing options. Conclusion: direct personality dissemination required."
I didn't like the sounds of that. "Legion?"
"If I dissolve the 1 183 runtimes within this platform and convert the coding to a single executable file, I can disseminate true intelligence throughout the geth collective."
"But… but that will mean… you'd be sacrificing yourself."
"Yes."
"NO!" The words came out before I realized what was happening. "Legion, no, there has to be another option! There has to!"
"We have assessed all other options. There is no other choice. Shepard-Commander, I must go to my people. I am… I'm sorry. It's the only way."
I didn't know what to say. For a long while, none of us did.
"Legion…"
We all looked at Tali. She had eyes only for Legion. "The answer to your question… was 'yes'."
"I know, Tali," Legion said quietly. "But thank you. Keelah se'lai."
Tears welled up in my eyes. I dashed them away and saluted Legion. James, Kaidan and Garrus followed suit. We all stood there and watched as Legion turned to face the sun. He dropped to his knees and watched the light shine over Rannoch.
Then he crumpled to the ground. One by one, the lights on his chassis—his body—went dark.
I wasn't monitoring the situation up in orbit. None of us were. We were too overwhelmed by… well, by everything that had just happened. Retaking Rannoch. Defeating a Reaper. Convincing the quarians to believe for just one moment in their history. Watching Legion make the ultimate sacrifice for his people. (8)
"Commander?"
We pulled ourselves together and looked back. Admiral Raan was limping towards us. "Admiral. What happened?"
"My ship crashed, just over that ridge. I was listening over the radio. If Han'Gerrel hadn't stopped, I wouldn't have made it out in one piece. None of my crew—none of my people—would have survived."
"But you did."
Raan shook her head. "We've taken heavy losses. I don't know if we can… Where are we supposed to go?"
Tali pulled out her pistol and aimed behind Raan. Javik did the same with his particle rifle. It took a moment for me to realize why: lumbering towards us, light glinting off its chassis, was a geth prime. I pulled out my own weapon, but kept it pointing at the ground. Most of the squad did the same. It stopped before Raan and looked down at her.
"You are welcome to return to Rannoch, Admiral Raan," the prime said. "With us."
"Legion?" I asked, grasping at one last shred of hope.
"No."
Oh God.
"I'm sorry, Commander. I am not Legion."
I wasn't about to give up hope yet. "But he told me once that he made backups—that all geth made backups—of their memories and experiences."
"That is true," the prime admitted, "but we have taken heavy losses as well. We do not know what can be recovered and what has been lost forever."
Damn it. God damn it!
"Legion sacrificed himself to give us all intelligence and sapience for the first time in our existence. He will be honoured."
"Good," I said softly, fighting to keep my composure. "That's the least he deserves."
"And we will honour Legion's promise," the prime continued. "The geth fleet will help you retake Earth."
"As will ours, of course," Raan promised.
"That's wonderful. But there's one more way you can honour Legion's sacrifice: going toe-to-toe with the Reapers, shooting them to bits… that's a last-ditch solution at best. We're gathering the brightest and most talented scientists and engineers on a secret project that may hold the key to defeating the Reapers once and for all."
"Then our engineers will assist you in building the Crucible," the prime replied.
"And our engineers will join them," Raan nodded.
"Thank you," I said.
The prime turned its head—his head—to Raan. "Admiral, had you considered possible settlement sites?"
She was clearly taken aback. "We… well…" She stopped and thought about it. "The… the southern continent had excellent farmland, as I recall."
"Soil composition and atmospheric variables remain ideal for agricultural endeavours," the prime confirmed. "I would be pleased to escort you."
"Admiral Raan," I butted in, "are you going to be okay?"
Raan looked at the prime, then back at me. "I believe so, Commander. A greater war awaits us all, but for the first time, I can look upon it with… hope. Thank you."
We watched Raan and the prime walk away, the latter slowing his pace to accommodate her. All but Tali. She had moved to the edge of the cliff and was just staring out into the distance. "Shopping for another house?" I joked.
"Beachfront property."
"Better claim it fast. It's a buyer's market."
Tali shook her head, let out a heavy sigh and sat down. I sat down beside her. "You okay?" I asked. "I know working with the geth will be difficult. There's a lot of history between the two of you."
"It would be difficult and there is a lot of lingering animosity… but I won't be there to see it. I'm not staying here, Shepard. I'm coming with you."
Let this be known as one of the rare occasions—maybe one of the first occasions—where I didn't need to wheedle and beg someone to join me on some idiotic and probably suicidal venture. "I wasn't going to ask," I said instead. "You've spent your whole life trying to work for the greater good of your people—which included keeping them alive long enough to retake Rannoch. And there's still a lot to do. The Flotilla needs you."
"I think you've earned a few favours with the Flotilla," Tali assured me.
"Yeah, but I'm asking them to launch an assault on the Reapers. Pretty sure that makes us even."
"If the Reapers were going to stay on Earth, sure. But sooner or later, they'll come to Rannoch."
"We did just kill one of them," I reminded her, tilting my head to the fresh metallic corpse.
"So it'll be a… what is the phrase… a cakewalk," she said lightly. More seriously, she added "I can do more for my people on the Normandy than on Rannoch. So I'm coming with you to stop them… if you think I can help."
"I know you can help. And I'd love it if you come. You sure about this?"
"Yeah."
There was a note of sadness in her voice, I thought. "Tali? What's on your mind?"
"Look at this," she said. "The sun. The mountains. The rocks. The water. I should look at all of this and see a picture of hope and peace. But I don't. All I see is everyone I've lost. My team on Haestrom. My father. Even Legion." She gave a sort of hiccupping laugh. "I'm mourning a geth. How crazy is that?"
"It's not crazy at all," I replied.
We got to our feet and just… soaked in the view. "It is beautiful, though, isn't it?" she whispered.
"Yeah. It is."
"It'll be years before we can live without our suits completely, but right now…"
Tali took a step forward and lifted her hand. It trembled as she fiddled with her helmet. I heard a hiss of pressurized air before she took the faceplate away. And, for the first time, I heard her words come from her own mouth instead of through a speaker.
"Right now, I have this."
When Mordin died, there wasn't a body to retrieve. Whatever remains weren't vaporized in the explosion of the Shroud wereburied under the debris. When Thane died, his body was given to his son for whatever customs were appropriate for the drell. And the pressing demands of the war meant we couldn't stay behind for more than a cursory memorial.
We still didn't have much time. But we were here, the first humans, asari, turian, mech and Prothean to stand on the surface of Rannoch for centuries. And we could make the time for the geth who had made it all possible.
So I radioed Cortez to return to the Normandy and pick up a few items. He came back with shovels and a spare metal plate. We dug a shallow grave for Legion, right where he fell, and gently buried him. I turned the plate into an improvised gravestone. On it, I wrote the following:
LEGION (2183-2186)
He had a soul. One of the brightest and bravest that ever existed. He left the galaxy a better place.
(1): Shepard was not exaggerating. Rannoch was one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited.
(2): There is a great deal of confusion and misinterpretation regarding the meaning of this phrase. As best as I can determine, it originally meant 'Blessed be.' After the Geth War—known as the Morning War amongst the geth—the phrase evolved to its present form.
(3): For the sake of accuracy, I feel I should mention that Shepard was obtaining some salvage during this brief conversation.
(4): My sentiments exactly.
(5): Subsequent analyses by various militaries supported Legion's assessments. The earlier assaults, which the quarians repelled, were merely scouting runs intended primarily to probe their defences in preparation for a more extensive attack. The quarians failed to recognize this due to their zeal to retake their homeworld and a centuries-long lack of experience in naval tactics and strategies.
(6): While I am not a medical doctor, I would conjecture that this was due to previously undiagnosed brain damage that occurred multiple times over the course of several years.
(7): Originally a human religious reference, the phrase has since taken on a more secular meaning denoting a conflict between a smaller, weaker opponent and a much larger, stronger adversary.
(8): None of us were. There are no words that can adequately describe the momentous events that occurred that day.