Chapter 8-
Neo walked into the medical bay as Glynda was finishing up, two dinners on two separate trays alongside several drinks. "How is she doc?" Neo asked.
"She's fine, though please tell Ruby not to do that again." Glynda replied.
"Of course. Liara, come with me." Neo said as she led the Asari to the storage room behind the medical bay. "I know it's a little odd but we thought it best to offer you somewhere private to stay and rest." Neo explained.
"Thank you, Commander." Liara said as she looked over at the desk and the cot.
"There's a terminal set up for you as well, anything else you need just speak to either Ruby or me." Neo said.
"Thank you again Commander, this is more than I could hope for." Liara said honestly.
"It's fine. I brought you some food as well, though I have a couple questions." Neo admitted.
Liara accepted the food though said, "I expected you to have some questions." Liara said.
"Well we've decided that we'd like you to join our ground team, go on missions with us in our hunt for Saren." Neo asked.
"You want me to join your team? Why?" Liara asked in surprise.
"You're a skilled biotic, your knowledge on the Protheans is amongst the best and you've already got some basic combat training which we can refine. You'll be extremely handy to have in a fight. Of course, you don't have to, and it has no effect on whether you stay here or not." Neo was quick to reassure Liara.
"I'll do it. You're helping me so much and I want to help, I want to see what my mother is actually doing." Liara said.
"Right, well if you see Williams she'll get your equipment squared away." Neo informed her.
"I will do so once I've eaten and rested. Was there anything else?" Liara asked.
Leaning against one of the crates inside the room Neo asked, "You called Ruby something while you were on the floor, Nazara." Neo said, a little unsure how to continue.
"You wish to know what I meant." Liara stated. "It's an old legend in my culture, I'm not sure of its origins but it's been passed down since the start of our race, at least that's how the legend goes. But it tells of a type of great warriors, the Nazara who will be the strongest and smartest the galaxy has to offer. They will have the strongest biotics, the strongest mental barriers that nothing can penetrate through and will be the best the galaxy has." Liara explained the story, remembering back to fonder times when her mother would tell her that story. "They will have silver eyes, the only being to have natural silver eyes. The strongest of which will be the Messorem." Liara finished.
"Why though? Why would there be someone like that?" Neo asked as she was confused about this supposed legend.
"I don't know. Apparently, some great threat that threatens the galaxy, I've come across something like it in my studies of the Protheans." Liara started to explain.
"The Reapers, at least that's what Ruby says they're called. She says they wiped out the Protheans and countless races before them." Neo said as she remembered what Ruby had told her so far.
"It would make sense; I've found evidence of such things happening but finding anything on those that came before the Protheans is even harder." Liara commented.
"Well I'm sure Ruby would love to talk to you." Neo said but was annoyingly interrupted by Joker.
"Commander Gelato, Tali and Chief Williams. Report to the cargo bay for drop." Joker announced.
"Well that's me, it was nice to talk to you. I'll be back after the mission." Neo said as she left the room and Liara alone.
"Neo, you're driving. Williams keep an ear out for the marine signal and Tali keep an eye for anything out there." Ruby ordered as she climbed into the Mako and moved to the gunner's position. "We have a marine distress beacon down there; we're being dropped one click away so prepare for drop and for enemy contact." Ruby briefed them all as Joker spoke up.
"Drop in five seconds." Joker announced and a few seconds later they felt the planets gravity pulling them down.
"Brace for landing." Neo announced as she fired the thrusters and brought them to a bumpy landing on the planet.
"All speed for the beacon." Ruby said.
"Doesn't this feel familiar?" Neo asked as she started driving, looking at the planet around them as she got a cold feeling.
"I know what you mean." Ruby said quietly, the planet and situation reminded her too much of Akuze.
The rest of the journey was made in quiet as no one dared to ask what the two women were talking about.
"I can see the Grizzly and the beacon but something doesn't look right, the Grizzly looks seriously damaged and I can see bodies." Williams said.
"Neo, link your HUD with the gun optics, do you see what I see?" Ruby requested.
A few minutes later Neo spoke up, "I do. Plan?" Neo asked softly, losing her voice a little.
"Stay here with the Mako, I'll check out the site on foot. If it's what we think, the Mako will make too much noise. If shit hits the fan, come in guns blazing." Ruby said as she unhooked herself and grabbed her weapon.
Once she left the Mako Neo turned to the other two inside and said, "Williams, get on the gun and keep an eye around Ruby. Tali, prepare for emergency repairs. We need to keep mobile and the gun working." Neo ordered.
"What do you think it is?" Williams finally asked, voicing the question both Tali and herself wanted to ask.
"It reminds us of Akuze, we think that there might be a Thresher Maw there." Neo stated bluntly.
"A Thresher Maw? And she's going out there on foot? Is she crazy?" Tali exclaimed loudly, not believing what happened.
"She's dealt with one on foot before, we both have. She'll be fine just keep an eye out." Neo said without any sort of explanation.
It was a tense ten minutes as they all watched Ruby slowly heading up to the Grizzly and checking the marines.
"Marines are all dead, acid burns. Melted through their armour, I've got dog tags but the beacons still running, I want to check it out." Ruby radioed in.
"Copy that, want us to move in?" Neo asked.
"Yeah, it seems to have clear…Fuck! CONTACT!" Ruby screamed through the radio as they all felt the ground vibrating as a Thresher Maw burst out of the ground not far from Ruby.
"Williams, open fire!" Neo screamed out as she charged forward to try and help Ruby.
"Come on you fucker." Ruby said, having left her radio on as she started diving away and firing up at the Thresher Maw.
Williams was only able to get a couple hits in before it dove back underground as it moved around, though they were all searching for where it went.
"Ruby! Get in!" Neo cried out.
"Kill that fucker. Find it and kill it first!" Ruby ordered instead.
It still wasn't dead as it dove back underground once more but this time, Ruby got tired of it and said, "Stand by for a target." Ruby said and they all watched as she moved into the open as she stood there.
The ground started vibrating again though it wasn't the same as when the Thresher Maw would jump up but instead this time, the Thresher Maw was wrapped in a red field and was raised into the air. "Fire! Unload everything into it!" Ruby screamed out as her body was wrapped in the same field that had picked up the Thresher Maw.
Williams didn't hesitate as she fired the cannon and machine gun together as she used everything she could to destroy the Thresher Maw which struggled in the biotic field.
It took almost a full minute of fire before the Thresher Maw was killed and no longer struggling as Ruby let the field drop and as it hit the ground, so did Ruby as she collapsed underneath the strain.
"Ruby!" Neo cried out as she rushed out of the tank to check on her.
"Williams, Tali, disable the beacon and get anything you can off it." Ruby ordered though her voice was weak.
"Normandy, we need an immediate extract at our location. Prepare the medical bay to receive the Spectre." Neo radioed in.
"Copy that ground team, two minutes out." Joker replied.
One hour later.
Neo had been kicked out of the medical bay to get some rest herself as she sat down next to Ruby as she slept.
But after the events of today she couldn't sleep but instead was pulled back into the worse mission that Neo had ever been a part of to date and now she couldn't get it out of her head.
"Lieutenant, I've got eyes on the beacon. Nothing around there." A private said.
"Neo, bring us in about five hundred metres away. We'll get out and search the area. Copy?" Ruby asked and she got a series of confirmations.
"Do you think it's wise? Wouldn't the heavy weapons be handy?" Neo asked.
"There's nothings around here that should warrant those weapons. Intel reports the planet as barren." Ruby replied calmly.
"Alright." Neo said and as she brought them five hundred metres out and they all disembarked.
"Corporal Mac, take point. Private Miles take the rear." Ruby ordered as they all started heading towards the beacon.
It took several minutes to actually reach the beacon at which point the Corporal disabled the beacon and turned to the others, "There's nothing here Lieu, wait. Do you feel that?" He asked as the ground started rumbling away, almost like an earthquake.
"What the hell?" Another said as they looked around.
Suddenly a large Thresher Maw shot up out of the ground, spitting acid directly at one of the marines who died screaming.
"SCATTER!" Neo screamed out as she got everyone to start moving.
Everyone scrambled away but the Thresher Maw just went back underground and a few seconds later it popped up on a marine, killing him instantly.
"Engage! Take it down." Ruby ordered as she brought her gun up, firing. A couple others did the same but others were just running away.
The Maw focused on those running away first, either popping up or spitting acid at them all before it focused on those firing at them.
None of them knew how long it was since they first got attacked but in however long that was, the Grizzly was destroyed and now the only two left were Ruby and Neo, who kept firing at the Thresher Maw whenever it popped back up but their bullets barely had any effect on it.
"What do we do?" Ruby asked as she was back to back with Neo.
"We need to take it down somehow, or it needs to run off." Neo replied, hopefulness still in her voice.
"We need to take it down. Any heavy weapons anywhere?" Ruby asked.
"No. Only the grenade launcher I have." Neo replied as she carried on searching.
"One of us tries to distract it and the other shoots?" Ruby suggested.
"You're the better shot, you take the grenade launcher, I'll distract it." Neo said as she took her grenade launcher off her back and handed it over to Ruby.
"On three." Ruby stated, counting down to zero where Neo darted forward and charged forward to bring the Thresher Maw out, which it did.
The Maw burst up out of the ground a few metres in front of Neo, causing her to fly back through the air as Ruby lined up the shot.
"Jam. It's fucking Jammed!" Ruby cried out as she threw the gun down and brought her pistol up, firing to gain the attention of the Maw.
"Shit, shit, shit." Neo screamed as she tried to crawl backwards away from Maw but it was to no avail, so she turned to look at Ruby. Not sure why her eyes searched for Ruby's.
Ruby watched in slow motion as the Maw reared back to spit its acid at Neo. Unknown to Ruby she had raised her hands up, as her red biotic field enveloped her body and the acid that came out of its mouth.
But Ruby wasn't finished as she threw the acid back at the Maw but then she threw a warp field at the Maw's mouth but once more she still wasn't finished as those actions only stunned the Maw and slightly injured it.
Seconds later the Maw was wrapped in a red field like Ruby's body but with Ruby's movements of her hands she squeezed them together causing the Maw to get crushed in her grip. But then Ruby brought her hands out which tore the Maw apart and it exploded in a burst of gore.
As the Maw exploded Ruby fell to the ground. Still unsteady with standing, Neo crawled over to Ruby who she saw was crying underneath her helmet. Gently removing Ruby's helmet, Neo took hers off as well and placed it next to her as she comforted Ruby.
As she held Ruby, Neo reached into Ruby's armour and took out the IR flare gun which would signal the ship in orbit of a problem and immediately go to the location for pick up. Raising the gun into the air, Neo pulled the trigger sending the flare up as a door opened, interrupting her memory.