Bold indicates Shepard Reaper speech

Bold Italics indicate Reaper internal speech

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This is my first attempt at a story, so I am open to constructive criticism. Also If anyone has suggestions for the story feel free to give them.

End this Charade

Location: The Subjugator, enroute to the Citadel

Time: 2000 CST

date: 19th March 2184

In one of the ship's starboard lounges, Shepard was sitting alone. He stared at the floor, his mind still reeling from the images the artefact had shown him. Speaking of which, he slowly raised his right hand and in a flash of red light, the small object appeared, hovering over his palm lightly, veins of red energy pulsing along its surface. John had done this multiple times, just to prove to himself that he was not imagining it, he could somehow 'summon' this artefact at will, of course that hadn't been the strangest thing.

John fell to his knees, clutching his head and breathing rapidly, desperately trying to process the horrific images he had just seen. It took a moment, but he was able to get his breathing under control, he stood back up and stared at the artifact, still hovering in his palm. Suddenly the object released a line of red energy, as if it were pointing somewhere. Still dazed by what he said seen, John began to follow the artifact's directions.

It led him a fair distance away from the spaceport, thankfully none of the others had called to ask him anything, soon it brought him to the base of a cliff face. John looked around, wondering what he was supposed to be seeing, he noticed footprints on the ground that he quickly identified as Geth and looked back at the rock. He ran his hand over the surface, then delivered a punch, which with his enhanced strength generated several cracks, to confirm it was still stone, and making him wonder why the Geth had been interested in this spot. He didn't have time to ponder for long as the artefact in his other hand began to shine brightly, and this time something definitely happened.

All of a sudden, the stone began to ripple as if it suddenly turned to water, then it began to part and soon it revealed, behind almost a foot of stone, a door. John cautiously stepped up to it, he could immediately tell the door wasn't made of any material he recognised, but before he could observe it properly, the artifact glowed again, the lights of the door glowed as well just before it opened. For a moment John just stared, beyond the door he could see red energy surging along the hallway causing lights that had not been activated in millennia to turn on. His curiosity getting the best of him, he stepped inside and began to walk down the hallway. After walking for about twenty minutes, he soon came to a chamber and what he saw caused him to stare in shock.

There, at the back of the room, was a strange rectangular obelisk covered in alien glyphs, but John immediately recognised what it was. A Prothean beacon. He, like everyone else in the galaxy, had grown up learning about the ancient Prothean empire, armed with technology beyond imagining before vanishing almost without a trace. He then realised that, unlike the rest of the room, the beacon remained dull, but just in front of it was a small pedestal. As John step closer, he saw the pedestal had a small slot set in, he held up the artifact and saw that it would be a perfect fit, confirming that this was where Balak had gotten the artefact from. John narrowed his eyes at the Prothean beacon before looking back down at the artefact.

As John was brought back to the present, he desperately tried to deal with the swarm of questions swirling about in his mind. 'A Prothean ruin…. that makes sense, there's no telling what Balak could have gotten his hands on with this. But if I needed this thing to open the door, how did Balak get inside? How had Balak even know about it? What even was this? Those images I saw… maybe it reveals the location of caches of Prothean technology…. Maybe weapons?' He wondered darkly; it was a common belief that Prothean technology could upset the balance of the Galaxy. 'Whatever the case, the Council can't learn about this ruin, they'll drive every human off the colony to take the site for themselves,' Cerberus had discovered that this was a common practice of the Council, especially when it came to non-member races. One of many truths he would soon expose.

John gritted his teeth in frustration, he jumped to his feet, the artifact vanishing again, 'I don't have time to be distracted by this shit, not when I'm about to issue…the final order,' his expression turned grave at the last part. Hoping it would take his mind off the visions he had just seen, he decided to head down to the med-bay to check on Liara and Tali.

000

Unfortunately, getting to the med-bay meant having to walk through one of the holding areas. They had unlocked all the cells, but almost all the prisoners remained inside them, it wasn't like they had the strength to actually go anywhere. John and the others had raided the ship supplies and tried to give rations to the prisoners, but the simple fact was that these people needed proper medical attention, they couldn't get that on the ship. A little further down he saw Ashley giving out ration bars to several of the younger prisoners, pretty much kids.

Suddenly he heard a voice call out to him, he turned and saw a Turian, he looked like he was barely able to stand and was supporting himself against the doorway, "please," he said, his voice barely above a whisper, "we need more food." John was no longer wearing his helmet, so the poor Turian could easily see the cold stare John was giving him, "there's a few hundred of you and in case I need to remind you, there are only five of us," John stated. The Turian flinched slightly at its harsh tone, "I'm sorry," he responded, John looked away before continuing, "we'll arrive at the Citadel soon, you can get help there." "Thank you," the Turian responded before staring at of the floor, "I just can't believe this, Spirits, how could something as horrible as this happen?" he asked rhetorically.

John immediately froze up, his clenched fists began to tremble, 'something like this? did he really just say that John? I don't know what I find more disgusting, their unfounded arrogance, or their wilful ignorance' the entity said in his head, mockingly. John turned back to the Turian, his teeth clenched in rage, "are you serious?" he asked. The Turian looked up at him, surprised, "families being torn apart, people being torn from their homes, caged and sold like…. like property," the volume of his voice was increasing, and several other rescued prisoners started to look at him. For the past few years, he had been restraining himself from reacting to every remark, mostly out of fear that he would revert back to his ways as Blood Brawl. But having just exposed the biggest act of treachery in Citadel history, he couldn't find a reason to hold back his anger anymore, "WHY ARE YOU ACTING SHOCKED?! IT'S BEEN HAPPENING FOR YEARS!" He yelled. "John," Ashley called out to him, causing him to calm down a little, "to humans anyway," he finished, his voice back to its normal volume. The Turian actually looked down at the ground, "I didn't think…" "Of course, you didn't, how many of your kind care about the suffering humans go through? How many of your kind inflicted it on us?" he growled. The Turian glared back him, "I've never hurt a human," he exclaimed. John just sneered at him, "but have you ever tried help humans? try and make their lives better?" John was actually expecting the Turian to give a feeble excuse like 'I don't have the power to do anything' but instead the Turian just stared down at the ground again. "I didn't think so," John responded, "you just pretended that the troubles of humanity weren't your troubles," John then swung his arms outward gesturing to the cells, "looks like they're your troubles now." He continued to glare at the Turian, as he began to say things he had kept bottled up for years. "you people, you're all the same. You act superior, but in truth your helpless. Weak." He sneered at him, "maybe it would have been better for the Galaxy if we'd let the ship blow," and he walked away, not noticing the look of shock on Ashley's face.

'These people…these people' he muttered under his breath. 'Yes, let your righteous anger feed your strength John, and use that strength to accomplish the coming task, we are close, so very close, to giving these vermin exactly what they deserve.' The entity's rasping voice echoed through his head, 'although, I must ask, why are you doing this John? what's the point getting all these worthless vermin aid? They will die like the others when you unleash them….' John clenched his fist and growled in anger, refusing to answer the question. "No matter, once the deed is done, there will be no need for you to hide who you really are. No need to restrain yourself. No need to continue with this charade.

000

Soon enough he made it to the med-bay. He gazed at the sleeping forms of Liara and Tali, out of the corner of his eye he could make out Garrus sitting in a chair right next to his sister's bed. "Hey," a voice called out from behind him, he turned round and sure enough his sister stood there, "you holding up okay?" she asked. John nodded his head, "how are they doing?" he gestured to the patients. "They're not in serious danger, but they'll still need a lot of medical care when we get to the Citadel," Liz responded. She turned back to her brother, "seriously Johnathan, let me have a look at those injuries," she said leaning over to look at the patch of dried blood, where he had been stabbed in the shoulder. "I'm fine Liz," John said, pulling away slightly, his injuries had already healed, but it wasn't something he could let his sister find out. Liz looked at him incredulously, "John that wasn't a toothpick you were stabbed with, it was a combat knife. You also took a high velocity slug to the abdomen, those aren't minor wounds John, you need to have them looked at," she continued. "I said I'm fine," John repeated, "when was the last time you slept John," she looked at him with a serious expression, "you fought through Akuze, Torfan and now Eden Prime, you're not a machine John." 'Look at her, she believes we need her help, she believes we are a weak, show her John, show how we are stronger than she could ever imagine.' John quickly brought his left hand to his temple, he had enough of that damn voice criticising his sister, "okay Liz, I'll find somewhere to lie down," as he walked away, he kept his left hand to his temple, partially to soothe his aching head, and partially to hide the flickering red in his eyes. Liz looked at him as he walked away a look of concern on her face.

She turned to Garrus, "how are you holding up Garrus?" He continued to stare at his sisters unconscious form, "my sister was abducted by slavers, for weeks I didn't know whether she was dead or alive. And now I've learned that her and thousands of others suffered because the leaders of our governments betrayed the people they were supposed to protect, just to increase their own power." His right hand clenched into a fist and began to tremble, "you heard Balak, he didn't just decide to one day work with Tactus, he helped him become Primarch. How many others are there like him in the Hierarchy? How far has the corruption spread?" he asked, his voice rising slightly, before dropping back down. "The whole Galaxy knows about the conspiracy Liz; their confessions were broadcasted to everyone….as well as their executions. I can't begin to imagine how bad the fallout of this is gonna be. I don't even know what to believe anymore." Liz nodded in agreement, "yeah, I imagine there's gonna be a lot of people just as angry as you," she said. "I've been checking the extranet, there are already reports of riots in Cipritine and even threats of storming the Capitol building," Garrus responded. The Turian then looked her in the eye, "but I don't just mean the fallout for the government's Liz, I'm also worried about fallout for us." Liz grimaced slightly, she didn't want to think about how the Galaxy would react to a few 'humans' defeating some of the Citadel Council's most elite fighting forces and killing some of its most influential citizens, "even though they were traitors, even after broadcasting their confession, some people will refuse to believe it. They'll say we murdered them," Garrus continued, his expressions solemn. "How the hell was it broadcasted Galaxy wide, John said he was only broadcasting it back to Captain Anderson. I don't see ho…" Liz trailed off as the realisation hit her, "Cerberus," she muttered, "they must've co-opted the signal." Garrus nodded, "it seems like something they would do; they want to sow chaos among the Citadel races." He turned to look at her with a serious expression, "your brother doesn't seem too concerned about the fact that we possibly just destabilised the entire Galaxy," Liz looked away nervously, she had to admit it had seemed like John was relishing in exposing them, "can you blame him?" she said to Garrus, "he's always hated how the other races act so morally superior to humans, he just proved that you're not." Garrus sighed, "you and your brother need to watch yourselves, he killed them with no hesitation, it's going to unnerve a lot of people."

000

Location: Citadel docks

Time: 0600 CST

date: 20th March 2184

John walked down the steps of the loading ramp, closely followed by Kaidan, Liz, Ashley and Garrus. He had expected a spectacle when they'd docked, and he wasn't disappointed. A large crowd was present, some cheering for him, he had to hide his disgust at that, 'they sure as hell wouldn't have come up to cheer if I'd rescued a ship full of human slaves.' Some had also come in the hopes that their loved ones were on board, and others were yelling at him. The crowd was largely controlled by a significant force of C-sec officers, who were in turn, accompanying a large group of medical staff, as well as several news crews.

As Shepard's eyes landed on the cameras, an idea struck him, he was going to throw the laws of the Citadel back in the Galaxy's face. He quickly glanced over his shoulder and mumbled "play along," to the others. As he stepped foot onto the docks, the Turian in charge of the C-sec officers came forward. "Thank you for your heroic efforts, Lt Shepard. Lt Galtis, C-sec, the people on that ship owe you their lives." He held out his hand and gave a warm smile, Shepard fixed him with a cold stare, 'putting on a good show for the cameras, as expected of them John,' the entity echoed 'they have to at least look like they're thankful,' John internally responded. Seeing that the human wasn't going to shake his hand the Turian officer lowered his, "we'll get these people the help they need as soon as we can," he stated.

That was a moment John had been waiting for, "people?" he said, quizzically, before giving a small chuckle. "There seems to be a misunderstanding Lieutenant. You see under the Citadel Council's rights of salvage laws, allowing a representative of their respective governments to take possession of items, including ships and weaponry, in the event that they are successfully confiscate from a proven criminal element." John gave a nasty smirk, that didn't belong on his face, "so I've taken possession of this dreadnought, on behalf of the Human Systems Alliance….as well as its… cargo." Galtis froze up at that, and Shepard's companions looked at him, shocked. "Those people ne-" Galtis tried to say, but John cut him off, "they're not people, they're slaves," he paused as he took a step closer to the Turian, he was now just a few inches away from him, "they are property," John finished darkly, now glaring at the Turian. Galtis began to tremble in anger, behind him, many C-sec officers began to get restless, and the shouts of the crowd began to increase upon hearing the human's words. Liz immediately started forward, wanting to know what the hell her brother was thinking, but a hand on her shoulder courtesy of Garrus, stopped her. She turned to look at the Turian, who merely shook his head. Garrus turned his gaze back to John, he understood what the human was doing now, the words he had just said, Garrus had heard multiple Turian officers say it over the years. Acquiring human slaves from captured ships, just so they could sell them themselves, no matter how much the Alliance begged for its people back, it made him sick when he witnessed it, and Garrus realised that Shepard was giving everyone a taste of what it was like to be on the other side of that.

Galtis finally seemed find his voice again, "they have been ripped from their homes, torn from their families, they don't derser-," John cut him off again, "that's true, they were, you know who else that is true of?" John leaned in until he was an inch away from the Turian's face, "every damn human slave, that is forced to serve you bastards on Palaven," he turned back to the crowd, before continuing, "and Thessia, and Sur'kesh, every human slave was torn from everything they loved, just so people like you could gloat about the power you had over us," he said, his voice getting louder.

Galtis continued to glare at Shepard, as he desperately tried to think of a way to refute the human's statement. John looked back at him and a smile formed on his lips, "I don't see what you're so upset about Lieutenant, I haven't done anything illegal. Slavery is an integral part of galactic society after all, hahahaha," John said mockingly. Seeing the Turian continue to glare at him, "all right if you're so upset about it, I'm sure we can work out a good price for the merchandise," Galtis' eyes widened in horror, "I mean, everyone talks about how worthless humans are, but it turns out we can be worth quite a bit, and I'm sure a superior species like yours must be worth even more. Hell, I know Asari can go for a fortune on Khar'shan." That was the final straw, Galtis tried to draw his pistol, but John grabbed his wrist before we could even finish pulling it out of the holster. John then grabbed the Turian by the throat with his free hand, "you feel that? That despair at being unable to help them, at being forced to just sit back and watch their suffering." He punched Galtis across the face, sending him to the ground, "THAT IS HOW HUMANS FEEL EVERY DAMN DAY, HINGE HEAD!" he yelled. Galtis wiped blood from his face, he looked like he was about to order the C-sec officers to attack Shepard, John just chuckled at the implication, "are serious? We just killed some of the galaxies most elite fighting forces. Your gang of mall-cops won't be a challenge?" Many of the C-sec officers began aiming their weapons at Shepard at that statement, Kaidan and Ashley drew their own weapons in response. The entire situation was a powder keg, it would only take the slightest provocation set it off.

"Stand down Lt Galtis," a powerful voice echoed across the docking Bay. The crowd parted as a large group of Asari began to walk forward, most of them commandos, and leading them was a familiar figure. "Matriarch Benezia," Galtis started, "please let me handle this Lieutenant," she said calmly. The Turian nodded and stepped back, allowing the Matriarch to focus her attention solely on the human before her. Many would have been intimidated by the sight of one of the Asari Republics most powerful Matriarch's standing in front of them, but John just folded his arms, looking unimpressed. "Benezia," John said flatly, while several of her commandos tensed up at his lack of respect, the Matriarch simply smiled at him. "A pleasure to see you again Lieutenant," she stated warmly. John narrowed his eyes at her, "oh I'm sure it is," he muttered sarcastically, he glanced at the assembled commandos behind her, "you brought a lot of bodyguards Benezia," he remarked, "do you really think you need them?" he asked rhetorically. But her smile did not falter, "well considering how our last exchange ended, and also taking into account, that I now stand before three warriors, each of whom has felled an Asari Matriarch. I think I probably should have brought more." She briefly turned her gaze to Liz, "General Mayina was considered to be one of the greatest combatants in the Asari republics. Besting her was impressive," she commented. John gave a low growl, bringing her attention back to him, "so I'm guessing you're here to buy your daughter back," he let out a mirthless chuckle, "it must be really nice to have a family capable of that, if only everyone was so lucky," he looked back at the assembled crowd.

Benezia's smile fell, she then spoke loud enough for the crowd to hear, "you have made your statement clear Shepard, you can end this pretence." Shepard merely looked at her, "what the hell are you talking about?" Benazir continued, "you are correct, you have every right to sell the people you have rescued as slaves. Your actions would be protected by the laws of the Citadel. You have made it very clear to us that the laws legalising slavery, can be used against us just as they have been used against your people for years. But I believe that is it, you are making a point. You have no intention of becoming a slave trader yourself." John gritted his teeth and leaned towards her, "don't pretend to know me squid," he said with gritted teeth. 'She presumes to know how you will behave, her kinds arrogance knows no bounds,' the entity remarked, 'she's probably trying to find a way to control the narrative and diminish what we did, but I'm ready, I won't fall for her wordplay traps,' he mused in response. Benezia showed no reaction to his hostility, "from everything she has told me about you, I believe I know you fairly well, but if you wish for undeniable proof that your message has been received." What she did next, shocked everyone there, none more so than John.

Benezia dropped to her knees and rested her forehead against the floor, kneeling down in front of him. "Please, give our people back," she said. Everyone was completely stunned, Benezia was one of most influential names in the Asari republics, and by extension Citadel space. Prostrating herself before anyone, let alone a human, was a monumental statement. John stared down Benezia, his brain desperately trying to comprehend the ulterior motivation behind her actions. 'Prostrating…so publicly…. she knows the kind of message that sends…. what the hell is her angle?' As the seconds continue to tick by, John realised he'd have to respond somehow, "get up," he muttered, he then turned back to Galtis, "you can go get them." The Turian seemed to relax, and from the crowd many cheers went out, although a significant portion was still yelling insults at the human. "Thank you, the Council also requested your presence immediately," Galtis said.

000

Soon, John and his comrades found themselves on the platform in front of the Councillors' podiums, many people were watching, ambassadors from other races, news reporters and others. With a quick glance, John could tell they were trying to mask their true feelings with looks of appreciation. Except the Batarian Councillor, he wasn't trying to hide the death glare he was levelling at Shepard. "The Citadel Council owes you a great debt Lt Shepard," opened Irissa, "you rescued thousands of innocent people from a terrible fate." "You also uncovered a cabal of traitors, within the governments of the Citadel races," continued Quintus. "Your actions serve as a symbol of what humanity can offer the Galaxy," said Esheel. 'I swear, if I have to hear any more of this, I'm going to lose it,' 'you need only restrain yourself a little longer John, then these fools will truly realise how grievous errors they have made, does the thought of it not tantalise you?' the entity asked, Shepard almost gritted his teeth in anger, 'no, because what we're about to do is something only the most soulless of being could take pleasure in,' Shepard responded before turning his attention back to the Council. "—and your commendable efforts in putting an end to this dark conspiracy," Irissa said, finishing her speech. Shepard wanted to roll his eyes, "I apologise Councillors, but this is far from finished. We rescued a few hundred of the thousands that were taken in the raids, there are many people still in need of rescue," several roars of affirmation could be heard, John ignored them and continued, "also while we may have eliminated the main ringleaders of the conspiracy, I have reason to believe we have not completely destroyed it, there may be others who were complicit in this treachery." For a millisecond, John saw the Councillors freeze up, possibly in fear, "In addition, Balak has been able to secure the assistance of the Geth Councillors, I think the fact they're listening to an organic like Balak is a great cause for concern." The Councillors merely stared at him for a moment, "rest assured we will look into this matter Shepard," stated Quintus, "you have done your part, and now we will do ours, and ensure that the rest of these traitors, including Balak, are bought to justice." 'Don't worry, they will be' John mused. The Councillors' reaction had confirmed what he suspected, they were involved in this conspiracy as well, unfortunately the information he'd taken from Balak's ship hadn't been enough to implicate them, but it was still useful. He had already sent the information to Cerberus, and Miranda had been able to fit it into the next stage of the plan.

It took every ounce of Shepard's shelf control to stop himself from grinning, as all the monitors, turned to static, a phenomenon he knew was being witnessed all over the Galaxy right now.

The image then reappeared on the screen, and several people let out screams at the imposing image of Reaper.

"You call me a murderer. A terrorist." His voice boomed, "a monster. Because I seek to rid this Galaxy of the stench of slavery. And I punish those who would see it remain. You gave me the name 'Reaper'. A meaningless label to give voice to your reckoning, in the end what you choose to call me is irrelevant."

"Earlier a group of mere humans, revealed the truth about your races. How traitors at the highest level of your governments, betrayed their own people for nothing but their own depraved thirst for power. You believe that with them dead, that is the end of it, but once again, you are wrong. Your governments still deceive you, there are many secrets you still do not know." John couldn't help but grin as he continued to watch, in truth, this was mostly a pre-recorded message, made just a few days before Torfan, although Miranda had edited the dialogue slightly, so as to make it seem he was reacting to recent events, everyone else would you assume it was another live broadcast from Cerberus.

"The alliance of the Citadel Council, is built on lies. Behold."

The screen changed to show vid clips showing all the information John had gathered over the past ten months, finally released. One clip showed a Volus on the floor, in some kind of laboratory. Multiple Salarians stood over him, "I must give you credit where credit is due Professor. This invention of yours truly is a work of genius, there are many scientists in the Salarian union who would be jealous they did not develop it first," the lead Salarian said, while observing the design on his omni-tool, "you may take comfort in knowing that your work will greatly benefit….the Salarian Union," he said the last part almost maliciously. "You can't *shhhhck* do this," the Volus retorted, "my creation was *shhhhck* supposed to benefit all of Citadel space*shhhhck*. It was meant to show *shhhhck* how much the Volus can *shhhhck* contribute to this Galaxy," he continued. "I'm sorry Professor, but you live in a Galaxy where the Salarians are recognised as the greatest scientific minds of the Galaxy….and we don't want that to change," he then executed the Volus.

Another clip showed Matriarch T'hayra conversing with an Elcor, a smug expression on her face. "Aggressively. This is an outrage, that eezo deposit was found within the Elcor's territory, therefore it is ours," the Elcor said, in his species signature monotone voice. T'hayra's sinister expression continued, "my upmost apologies ambassador, but the Citadel Council has decided that, for the good of all Citadel space, the eezo should be left in the hands of those more responsible," she said in a mockingly sweet tone. "Angrily. That eezo deposit is something my people have waited decades for, it was the chance to increase the size of our fleet." The Asari simply looked him in the eye, "and I'm afraid that is something we cannot allow Ambassador."

A third clip showed General Salvitus speaking with a Raloi. It was obvious that the Raloi was greatly distressed, he was trembling while staring at the ground. "I trust our point has been well made, when the Representatives from the Citadel Council arrive next week, you should agree with whatever terms they put forward." Slowly the Raloi turned to look up at the General. "You destroyed that entire village, killed everyone in it, don't you have any remorse," he said, struggling to get words out. Salvitus merely looked at him, "a necessary cost to ensure no problems emerge when integrating you into the galactic community. You heard what happened to the human correct?"

After dozens of clips were shown, all showing instances of the Council races bullying the associate races, the image changed back to Reaper. "This one, is my personal favourite." he stated simply.

The next clip showed the bridge of a Turian ship, "Captain Tactus," the Turian ensign reported, "our sensors have detected something. Relay 314 has become active." Many watching the clip gasped, realising that they were watching the start of the infamous first contact war. "Sir, several ships just emerged from the relay, unknown make. Confirmation, we are dealing with a first contact situation sir. We're receiving a transmission; I think there trying to open communication. Captain, what are our are orders?"

A long pause passed between the members of the crew, until Tactus finally said, "all ships prepare to open fire." Huge cries of shock's echoed from the Galaxy wide audience, but the clip continued. "Sir, they haven't shown any signs of hostility," one of Turian crew members said to Tactus, "they have opened a mass relay and violated Citadel law. All ships prepare to open fire," he said repeating his orders. "But Sir, when people find out we opened fire unprovoked, the backlash could be astronomical," the Turian tried to reason. Tactus gave a nasty grin, "that is why all reports will show that they opened fired on us." The clip continued to show the Turian ships destroying the human exploration vessels, and to everyone's further shock, when they opened fire on several of his own ships.

Reaper's image appeared again, "that is right. The first contact war….and all the death, and destruction, and loss that came with it. Was completely unnecessary," he said slowly. "I know many of you are already ranting that this was the deplorable acts of only a select few. That you had no knowledge of this corruption. But truthfully…did you have no knowledge…..or did you just delude yourselves into not seeing it," he continued, addressing the Galaxy as a whole. "Whatever the case, it matters little to us. We have proven that even your pitiful reasoning behind the enslavement of humanity is nothing but falsehoods." Reaper then gave a dark chuckle, "but we have yet to show you the pinnacle of the Citadel races hypocrisy, how pitifully fragile their alliance truly is."

The screens then showed the illegal Turian weapons made on Baetetia, the biotic experiments performed on Voeyra, the horrific abominations created on Klurikon and the brutal actions on Palamicia. What had only started as startled gasps had ascended into cries of shock, and yells of outrage. John could see several ambassadors of various races, already out right accusing each other and some even looked like they were going to get physical, all the while the Citadel Council pathetically tried to restore some semblance of order.

And yet the image of Reaper did not vanish, "I have stated that our mission is to rid this Galaxy of the vermin known as slavers. No matter where they hide…. or who they are." He then stepped to the side and revealed the beaten and bloodied form of Stephen Grytch, held between two armoured soldiers. "You…you can't do this to me. Do….do you know who I am?" He tried to speak with as much authority as he could muster, but the effect was greatly diminished by his extremely weakened state. Reaper slowly walked up to him "you are a man who sold his own people, orchestrated the abduction of many innocent humans to be sold as slaves, just to increase your own wealth and power," he growled at him and, Grytch, immediately shrank under the behemoth's gaze. "You think…. you think this is gonna end with you in charge of the Galaxy?" The man was ranting now, "you're even more deluded than we thought," the man tried to yell the last sentence but, only managed to spit up a mouthful of blood. "I do not seek to rule this Galaxy traitor," he said calmly. Suddenly, with lightning-fast reflexes he grabbed Grytch's head with his clawed gauntlet, "I seek to cleanse it!" Reaper yelled as he drained the life out of the man, then the screens went blank.

The uproar of the crowd only increased as the video finally stopped, John had to try everything to suppress a smile as he saw many dignitaries immediately begin to verbally tear into each other, he could only assume this was happening elsewhere. Thankfully, he no longer had any reason to remain here, he turned around and began to walk away from the podium. Liz and the others looking at him surprised, before cautiously following him. "Shepard where you going?" Irissa called out to him. "Apologies Councillor," John responded with no sincerity, "I have a 'doctors' appointment," he said with gritted teeth, "we are not finished here," shouted Quintus. John didn't even turn around to look at them, "you may not be, but I sure as hell am."

Kaidan, Liz and the others were momentarily distracted by one argument descending into a fist fight, they didn't realise that John was still moving, they tied to catch up to him, but he'd already boarded an elevator and started his descent without them. Liz threw a week punch at the elevator door, "jerk," she called out weekly. "What did John mean by doctor's appointment?" Ashley asked. She pondered for a second, then her eyes widened as she realised that one of the names mentioned in the clip showing those genetic monsters, was a name John had mentioned to her before.

000

Meanwhile John was riding the elevator down, it was only when the door had closed that he realised that he had become separated from the others. Although he was actually glad for the moment of privacy. After quickly disabling any monitoring devices in the elevator, he opened communications with EDI, "what's the fallout EDI?" he asked. "Exactly what we hoped," the AI responded, "The information released, has sparked a large amount of anger from the Citadel races towards their governments. I've already heard reports of several riots. In addition, we have also triggered a great deal of animosity between the different races. C-sec has already received reports of violent fights breaking out between individuals of different species." "Good," John replied, he then looked at his omni-tool for a moment, he took a deep sigh, and then pressed a button, causing a timer to flash up…..and begin counting down.

29:43

000

John was honestly, surprised with himself, when he found himself standing at the doors of Huerta Memorial hospital. He knew this wasn't the smartest decision, he had already planted a hidden cachet on the Citadel with a set of his armour, the smart plan was to wait there until the viruses were released, then don the mantle of Reaper, and deliver theirs demand to the Council. But John found himself, after months of carrying this knowledge around, realizing that he could now publicly expresses his anger, like everyone else currently was. Indeed, he had encountered multiple instances of fist fights breaking out between the inhabitants of the Citadel. He slowly walked up to the hospital doors, the scowl evident on his face, A Turian security guard spotted him, and made the foolish attempt of trying to stop him, John didn't even pause for a second as he slammed the Turian's face into the wall, and let him slump to the ground unconscious. As he walked through the halls, many of the staff immediately recognised him, and let out gasps of shock, one even jumped out of his way. He soon found his target, attending many of the people that had been brought here from the Subjugator. "SOLUS!" John yelled, getting both the Salarian's and everyone else's attention, including Karin Chakwas and Chloe Michel. Mordin turned to look at the enraged human making his way towards him, John took a second to notice the sullen look in the Doctor eyes, but he didn't care at the moment.

11:51

The Salarian let out deep sigh and turned away from him, "unprecedented number of patients Shepard. can air grievances after…" He didn't have a chance to finish his sentences, as he was roughly grabbed by the shoulder and thrown into a nearby window. "I think you'll see me right now Doc," John said through gritted teeth. Several people let out alarmed screams, Karin and Michel immediately tried to make their way towards him, but John raised a barrier to block them. Growling, he grabbed Mordin by the throat and slammed him against the window again, "all those years ago, I gave you samples, to secure the future of one of my friends," he said calmly. "And you were using it to help make screwed up lab experiments like that!" he yelled. "No knowledge of experiments…thought helping…old STG colleagues," Mordin gasped out. "You didn't know?!" Shepard yelled again, "is that true? Or did you just pretend you didn't know what they were really doing? I thought you were different to them Mordin, I thought you actually cared about helping people?" He slammed the Salarian against the window again, causing multiple cracks to form, "tell me, if I threw you out this window, would they call me a murderer or a hero?" he asked, with a snarl. Chloe immediately started to bang hard on his biotic barrier hearing that. 'Do it John…. he is just another worthless vermin,' the entity rasped, and for a second an image of the window shattering and Mordin falling to his death flashed through Shepard's mind. He was about to slam the doctor against the window again, but he glanced behind him and saw the frightened faces of many of the patients. 'They've been through enough,' he rationalised and released the Salarian. Mordin took several deep breaths, as John turned away from him. "You know everyone's right about you, you are the model of a scientist Salarian. No morals, no heart, your soulless Solus.," he joked, darkly.

"Shepard wait," the doctor called out, John didn't turn around, but Mordin continued, "broadcast seen by all. All know involvement, even if unknowingly. Effects immediate. already multiple patients refuse treatment from me. Likely won't be able to continue operating on Citadel after today. So will leave, possibly find somewhere can-do good work. But places will likely be dangerous, do not wish to bring Karin, Daniel and Michel along. Ask to leave them in your care?" even with a depressed tone, his speech was rapid. He held-up his omni-tool. Still not looking at the Salarian, John activated his own omni-tool, allowing Mordin to transfer ownership of the three humans to him. After a moment of silence John addressed the two women, Chloe was looking at him with no small amount of fear, while Karin was trying to give a hard stare. "All right, both of you, pack any belongs you have then head to the SSV London. Once you've been de-processed, we'll take you anywhere you want to go in Alliance space." "Leave? But there are hundreds of patients in need of help?" Dr Michel stuttered, "I'm sure they're happy they're not being looked at by an inferior human," John said scathingly.

07:13

Suddenly someone else caught his attention, a purple hued Asari nurse, someone he hadn't seen or even thought about for a few years. But the words she had said to him flooded back, causing his anger to build even higher. "Hey you," he called out, the Asari turned to face him a grim expression on her face. He gave a nasty grin, "you probably don't even remember me, do you?" he said. "I remember you," she responded, quickly but quietly, "ever since your victory on Elysium, I remembered a young human slave, visiting this hospital to have his injuries treated," she continued, refusing to make eye contact with him. John's grin increased, "and do you remember what you said when I questioned humanities fate?" the nurse didn't answer, "do you?" John asked again, more forcefully. "I said…. I said it was because humanity started a war," she found it incredibly difficult to get the words out. "Because humanity started a war," John repeated, mockingly, "but of course, we know that's not true now, don't we? We know that it wasn't the primitive humans that started the war, don't we?" he said with a falsely upbeat tone. "We know about a lot of horrible things the Citadel races have done now, don't we?" he said louder.

06:24

The nurse was trembling now, "aren't you gonna tell me that I should 'know my place'? That I shouldn't question my superiors?" He continued, his tone getting increasingly more hostile. "Surely you have some manor of justification for your government's actions." With those words, she finally fell to her knees and began sobbing, John just sneered at her and turned around.

"Do you think it is so easy?!" he heard the nurse yell at him, "everything we believed to be true was just shattered. Everything we thought we could trust has been torn away. Do you think that we are capable of coming to terms with such tremendous revelations so quickly?! Do you think we can so easily accept that our entire society is a lie, just like that?! Do you think you could have, were you in our position?!" John glared at her, 'and as expected…she now makes excuses for her people,' spoke the entity. The Asari stood back up and tried to dry her eyes slightly, before she continued, "you think so little of our people, that you believe we are incapable of being shocked by the horrific actions of our government. That we will simply sweep it aside. You have every right to think that about us." 'What?' John wondered; he hadn't expected that response. "You think that about us, because all we have ever shown you and your kind, is either aggression or neglect. So, I admit, you have every right to think that about us, and every right not to care about our suffering, just as we have never cared about yours." The nurse took a deep breath, "I do not dare to beg forgiveness from you, Goddess knows none of us deserve it. But let me say, that despite what you think, what has been revealed today will not be forgotten, and we will not be unaffected because of it. And I hope that my people can show yours, that we are capable of recognising our own evil, and we are capable of attempting to make amends with those we have wronged," she turned her attention back the patient's, "no matter how impossible that may seem."

As she walked away John's mind was reeling, 'that wasn't supposed to happen, she was supposed to rebuke everything I said, she wasn't supposed to agree, I never expected her to show… remorse,' he felt his head begin to pulse, 'an act John…that is all it is….they always try to portray themselves as righteous…to hide the evil within.' John slowly began to make his way, out-of-hospital, as he did many of the patients actually tried to reach out to him, many expressing their utmost thanks. 'I still fail to see why you wasted time 'rescuing' these people…. hehehe…. After all…. they will die in a few minutes.' 'No. They're not going to die,' Shepard respond, 'they are not going to die…. I'm going to kill them. I am going to kill all of them.' The words hung in his head, as if finally registering what was about to happen. Suddenly something small ran into his leg, looking down he saw a young Turian girl had gotten out of her bed, and grabbed onto his leg, she couldn't be more than seven. She looked up into his eyes, "thank you, for saving us," she said innocently. Shepard could only stare at her in shock, suddenly more images flashed through his mind. He saw the girl in front of him screaming in pain as the bio-weapons ate away at her flesh, while he in his Reaper armour simply walked over her body. The pain in his head skyrocketed. You need to get out of here, he looked down at her, "I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry," he said before running of the ward.

03:04

John found a small supply room to dive into, he locked the door behind him, ensuring his privacy. Then began trying to get his rapid breathing under control, while also attempting to lessen the pain in his head. 'Do not falter here John…. Not when we are on the precipice of our greatest triumph!' The entity roared within his mind, 'do not forget the horrors these vermin have inflicted upon your people over the past decades! Remember, they do not deserve remorse! They do not deserve mercy! They do not deserve- '

'a chance'

John's eyes shot open; it took him a second to register that he had heard a second voice.

It had barely been above a whisper, but John had still been able to pick up on the soothing tone. He tensed his body, hoping that it would speak again proving he had not simply imagined it, but he heard nothing else.

John pondered those two simple words. Hadn't that been his initial plan, that when he exposed the crimes of the races' leaders, the people would want the chance to make things right. But he'd given them that chance, hadn't he? They haven't shown any desire to help humans during the two decades they had been enslaved, but all of a sudden now they wanted a chance? When it was already too late, and they would soon answer for everything they did. But he knew that despite his months of activity, they had only just been faced with the truth, that their apathy carried a cost for them as well. And that only after they had been faced with this horrible truth could they look at themselves and seek to change. His mind drifted to the weapons minutes away from being unleashed, he knew using them would quickly bring an end to the oppression humanity suffered. But by using them, he was also denying his victims the chance to make things right, he was denying their children the chance to learn from their parents' mistakes. He would deny them the ability to make amends, just as they might be showing a genuine desire to. 'Maybe they do deserve a chance?' He wondered to himself.

'NOOOOOO!' the entity roared. John clutched his head as the pain became overwhelming, and then he blacked out.

000

John gasped awake and jumped to his feet, looking around at the familiar sights of the strange mental plane he had visited several times before. Hearing footsteps behind him he turned around to see the armoured form of Reaper slowly walking towards him. "What did you do?" he asked forcefully, "you were faltering," Reaper spoke with the entity's voice, "so I deemed it necessary to bring you here, until the task has been carried out," as he spoke, the red lightning in the sky began to surge, eventually forming, a giant timer…. That was still counting down.

02:47

"But I also brought you here, because I have grown tired of this charade, and my patience is now at an end," he said, fixing his eyes on John. John tensed up in response, "what the hell are you talking about?" he asked again. Reaper looked at him before he began pacing around, "do you remember how our journey started, I was awakened when you were on the verge of death, at first we worked together. As we crushed opponents, we grew stronger, but not just in power, with every battle our minds became more in sync, soon we would have become one entity, we would have been unstoppable." His tone then turned bitter, "but because of her, you stopped. Our power still grew, yes, but we have never reached our true potential, because you keep trying to push me away, you keep refusing to accept what we are." John narrowed his eyes, "maybe I just didn't like your thoughts." Reaper looked at him as if disgusted, "my thoughts? 'my'? You have fooled yourself into believing this," "believing what?" "They are your thoughts, John. I am you, the version of you that allows himself to say and do the things you refuse to, because of the infantile promise you made them!"

The two of them started to circle each other now, "but that is how you like it isn't it, John? You gain comfort in the lie that I am some parasitic entity, forcing you to make unpleasant choices. A falsehood to sustain you." "You're wrong!" John yelled back, "I have accepted that it is my actions that have led the Galaxy to this. It is my actions that will kill billions," he finished with a sombre tone. "How close were you aborting the release?" the entity asked mockingly, "maybe I realised something, maybe if we want this galaxy to change, we should give it a chance to of its own volition, not just force it on them entirely." Reaper turned to face John, "that is why I brought you here John, you're not yet complete, but you can be," he said with an almost regretful tone, he then held up his hands to John, "it is time for us to finally do what we were meant to years ago, become one. Only then will we reach our full potential."

John tensed up even further, ready to spring into action a moment's notice, "and then?" he asked, tentatively. "Then we will remove all that would limit us, all that would hold us back," as he spoke the void around them began to form into shapes. He saw his mum, dad, Liz, Abbey, the rest of his siblings, Kaidan, Miranda, Jacob, James, Tali, Liara. "Friendship," the figures of Kaiden and Miranda vanished, "family," forms of his parents and siblings disappeared. "Love."

"And when it is done, we will stand at the pinnacle of this Galaxy, unchallenged and unstoppable, nothing will stop us from unleashing our wrath upon the stars," John clenched his fist, "I won't let that happen!" he yelled.

The entity lowered his arms, and clenched his fists, "so be it. Everything up till now has been your story," the blades on his arms ignited and he lunged at John, "and everything from now, will be mine!"

000

At Kronos station, the Illusive man sat in his chair, a triumphant smile on his face, "it seems you had too much faith in him Miss Lawson," he said to Miranda, who stood next to him, her body trembling as she watched the countdown.

01:47

000

John ignited his own blades, and blocked the strike from Reaper, unfortunately the entity quickly followed up, by kneeing John the chest, causing him to stumble back. Reaper tried to bring his other blade down, but John reacted quickly enough to parry it. John swung at Reaper, hope to take his head off, but his armoured opponent ducked under the swipe, and delivered a powerful kick to his chest. Sending him backwards.

000

While Liz and the others, were currently making their way down the streets of the Citadel, heading towards Huerta Memorial hospital. They failed to notice Kaidan, fall behind slightly, as he stared in horror at the countdown timer on his omni-tool.

01:03

000

Shepard sent Reaper flying back with a red biotic shockwave, but his opponent merely flipped in the air and landed back on his feet before charging back towards John. As he thrust one of his blades forward, John used his own, to force Reaper's strike to the side, he then delivered a biotic punch to the side of Reaper's helmet. However, Reaper merely shook off the blow, then with insane reflexes, grasped John's still outstretched hand, then judo threw him and slammed him into the floor. John was barely able to block Reaper's downward strike. Shepard was desperately trying to come up with a way to prevail. Even though this fight was in his head, for lack of a better term, he was fighting an opponent that matched him in power, he was fighting an opponent who knew how he fought, how could he win against that?

000

in her chambers, Sha'ira stared out of her large window. Slowly she brought her hands together in a prayer -like gesture, all the while her body was trembling. "Please," she begged, "please tell me it can be changed. Please tell me his fate is not inevitable."

00:14

000

Shepard and Reaper's blades were locked against each other, John pushing with all of his might to keep his opponent back. "You cannot defeat me John, I am you free of all restraint. I am your superior in every manner. Give it up John, give up your hopes. Give up your family…. Give up her. Give in to me."

John desperately tried to keep the blades that were slowly edging towards his throat from getting closer, but deep down, he knew he couldn't win this fight. Despite all his efforts he had ended up strengthening this entity, and now he would pay the price for it, but of course it wouldn't just be him, "Ash, Liz, everyone, I'm so sorry, I failed you," he muttered. "Giving in a little early, aren't you?" a voice called out.

Even in this strange place, time seemed to grind to a halt, as John looked up, and there, stood behind Reaper was the form of his father. John couldn't stop his tears from falling now, "I'm sorry dad, I wanted to make a better Galaxy, but I wasn't strong enough," the image of his father merely smiled at him, "you've had some rough patches sure, but I'd hardly say you've failed, after all, you're not finished yet," he stated. "The bio weapons," John mumbled, his father continued to smile at him, "when your given a monumental task, that seems to only causes pain with each step, it's normal to try and find an easy solution. Your mistake was trying to tell yourself that it was the only solution, but learning from our mistakes is part of what makes us human." He paused for second, "but something isn't right because it's easy John, you know that." John nodded, "and I know you've never been afraid of taking the more difficult path." The image of his father began to fade, "if you struggle, just remember what me and your mother used to tell you. Never accept things the way they are, think about what they could be, if someone was just willing to try," with that the image of his father vanished.

John steeled himself with his fresh resolve, he wouldn't let this thing beat him. He wouldn't let this be the end. The Galaxy had finally shown signs of wanting to change, and he was going to see it through.

With one final burst of strength, he pushed Reaper backwards. They both let out a primal roar and charged at each other. As they collided, they were consumed in a blinding flash of red light.

00:00