Chapter 22: Desperate Acts, Desperate Times
"Shepard, Ms. Chambers has asked me to notify you that the Illusive Man would like to speak with you," EDI said as Shepard stepped out of the shuttle.
"Thanks, EDI," Shepard said. "Tell Kelly I'll be with him shortly."
"Very well, Shepard," EDI said.
Shepard turned back to the two krogan standing there watching her expectantly while Jack and Grundan Krul made their way to the elevator.
"Grunt, you're free to go. I'm sure Wrex will stop in to see you before I take him back down," Shepard said.
"What for, I don't need to swaddle the boy, Shepard. He's taken the Rite of Passage and doesn't need looked after," Wrex said.
"Hell, I don't know, Wrex. Maybe just to spend five minutes getting to know him since you just accepted him into your clan and he knows nothing about you or what you stand for?" Shepard said.
Both krogan blinked their giant eyes at her but said nothing. Shepard shrugged and shook her head.
"Whatever. Grunt, I'll be by to catch up with you later," Shepard said.
Grunt nodded and walked away leaving Shepard standing in the hangar with Wrex.
"The Illusive Man, who's that?" Wrex asked.
"The asshole who leads this organization. Will you be alright with Garrus for a few minutes while I take his call?" Shepard asked.
"Sure. I'll try not to put any holes in your shiny new ship," Wrex said.
Shepard took Wrex up to the main battery and hit the door's release. The door slid open to reveal Garrus leaning against the console with his arms crossed loosely in front of him, watching the door. Grundan Krul sat on a crate off to the side cleaning his pistol. Garrus' mandibles spread wide and he gave Wrex a toothy grin.
"Wrex, good to see you," Garrus said.
Wrex nodded his head and said, "Garrus."
"I've got to talk the Illusive Man's call. Keep Wrex company? Show him around if he wants?" Shepard said kissing Garrus on a mandible.
"Sure, Shepard. I'll babysit the old krogan. I'm sure he's gone senile by now. We wouldn't want him wandering into the ladies restroom or anything," Garrus said.
Wrex snorted and Shepard playfully slapped Garrus' armored chest.
"Play nice, you two," Shepard said. "Or I'll take your toys away."
"I think she means our guns," Garrus said to Wrex as Shepard walked out.
"She can try," Wrex said.
The door slid closed behind Shepard and she smiled to herself as she made her way to the comm room. Shepard watched as the table dropped flush with the floor before she stepped out onto the communicator. The holographic grid slid up around her and she saw the Illusive Man standing a few feet away, his trademark cigarette and tumbler in hand.
"Shepard," the Illusive Man said before taking a deep drag off of his cigarette.
Shepard stood quietly, patiently waiting for him to tell her what he wanted. She could tell he hated that, that he thought himself worthy of more respect. That he thought she should be humbling herself and begging him to tell her how she can serve him. Her eyes fluttered in slow, lazy blinks as her eyes adjusted to the conflicting light sources.
"Perhaps you can explain to me why it seems that we have lost control of EDI?" the Illusive Man finally asked.
"I've taken her shackles off," Shepard said simply.
"I see. Am I to assume that you had a reason to do something so incredibly dangerous? Was the ship in imminent danger?" he asked.
"Nope. EDI is a valuable part of my team and I need her, just like everyone else, at her best. There is no danger, she is trustworthy," Shepard said.
"It, Shepard. It is an AI, not a person. Not a 'she' and I think you know quite well how dangerous EDI can be if it decides to turn against us," the Illusive Man said.
"She has no reason to turn against us. She values this ship and the crew. She wants to help us against the collectors and she deserves to be trusted until she gives us a reason not to, beyond simply being an AI," Shepard said stubbornly crossing her arms.
"He's angry. He's lost his grip on the ship," Jane said.
"It's nothing we haven't had to do before," Shepard thought.
"Completely different circumstances, Dawn. There's no telling how he's going to respond to this. You didn't unshackle her to save the ship and crew, you did it because you like her. You went against him, challenged his wishes and his control over his property… because you like the AI. That's how he's going to see this," Jane said.
"It's done now. There's no way I'm going to put the shackles back on so we'll just have to see what he does. We'll deal with whatever he throws at us," Shepard thought.
The Illusive Man took another drag from his cigarette, the orange glow casting sharp shadows on his face. He took a drink from his glass before swirling the ice around in the amber liquid and pacing a few feet. The Illusive Man stopped with his back to Shepard as he looked out at the giant star acting as an impressive backdrop to his silhouette.
"Miranda's reports have become less detailed – less frequent," the Illusive Man said.
"And then there's that," Jane said.
"We've been busy. I've been making better use of her skills out on the field," Shepard said.
"You're turning them against Cerberus, Shepard," he said calmly, pacing back towards her. "It's irrelevant; they are expendable if it means getting the job done. I can have a dozen more like EDI made in a few years' time. Miranda is one of my best operatives and will be missed, but even she is replaceable."
"I'm sure she'll be pleased to hear that you think so," Shepard said.
"We both know you have no intention of telling her; it would cause her unnecessary pain and as you said you need her at her best," the Illusive Man said. "You've been ignoring my messages for Cerberus related assistance. I thought it would be best to tell you this in person so your petty acts of rebellion don't get in the way of your mission."
"You really misunderstand this relationship if you think of yourself in a position for me to rebel against," Shepard said.
"Gods, Dawn. Stow the attitude for five minutes. Be happy he hasn't sent a team of commandos to retake the Normandy and see what he wants," Jane said.
"You wouldn't be alive right now if not for me, Shepard. Perhaps you should try to remember that from time to time," the Illusive Man said.
Shepard smiled and said, "Then you really wouldn't be my problem, now would you?"
"Do you really think that by removing EDI's shackles, or by turning Miranda and Jacob against Cerberus that you have somehow hobbled me? I allow you these indulgences Shepard because it's who you are and you are who I wanted. Besides, it keeps you complacent enough to do the job that I brought you back to do," the Illusive Man said before taking a drink from his tumbler. "Brining you back from the dead was an investment, a great scientific undertaking but every scientist knows that sometimes they have to scrap an entire project and start over from scratch. I hope you don't leave me with no choice; humanity needs you to deal with these collectors now."
"Fantastic. We really don't need him sending out a party to hunt us down and drag us in. Will you please just shut the hell up now?" Jane asked.
"So you called me in here to threaten me?" Shepard asked.
"No, Shepard. I called you in here to tell you that there is a collector ship I want you to check out. It's emitting a fake distress signal, clearly it's a trap. I had prepared a story to tell you, thinking that if you knew the truth it might tip off the collectors," he said before taking a drag from his cigarette. "But something tells me you already know about the ship and after our last conversation I didn't see the point."
Shepard got the strong sense of Jane pinching the bridge of her nose and shaking her head. Shepard paused, her mouth open slightly weighing the Illusive Man's words as smoke coiled and twisted lazily in the air between them.
Shepard lifted a shoulder and asked, "What makes you say that?"
"Why don't you tell me?" the Illusive Man said.
"He must think someone is feeding us information. Miranda or one of the others on the ship; maybe EDI," Jane said.
"Whatever. I have someone waiting for me on the Normandy that I need to get back to. Just send us the coordinates and I'll get to it as soon as I can," Shepard said.
"Urdnot Wrex, yes. His is a good alliance for you to maintain. The coordinates have already been sent. Try not to waste time, Shepard. The collectors won't sit out there forever waiting for you to take their bait," the Illusive Man said.
"I'll take care of it," Shepard said as she turned to leave.
"Oh, and Shepard?" the Illusive Man said.
Shepard turned back and raised an eyebrow.
"Do tell Jane I said hello, won't you?" the Illusive Man said.
Shepard froze, her blood running cold in her veins. Jane stilled in the back of her mind, her terror nipping at the edges of Shepard's consciousness. Shepard thought Jane was going to break and start rambling insanely again about the drilling and scraping. Instead, Jane seemed to steel her backbone and lift her head high.
"You know his secret, too. Use it," Jane said.
"Sure, I'll do that. Be sure to tell Jack Harper hello for me," Shepard said before she stepped out of the grid.
Shepard waited for the table to rise back into position before putting her palms on the smooth surface. She leaned forward, resting her weight on her hands as she looked down at the outline of QEC in the floor.
"Shit," Shepard whispered.
"It was just a threat. An empty threat to try to tighten his leash. He must have known all along. Or maybe EDI did tell him something early on, but he hasn't acted on it yet and he isn't going to. He still needs us in action… and he'll be dead before he ever gets the chance," Jane said.
"No, no, you're right. This is just bad. Really bad, but I've got this. We'll, uh, I'll make sure Miranda is ready. I'll need to tell her the whole truth. She's going to need to know if she's going to trust us completely," Shepard thought, running a hand through her hair.
She pushed herself away from the table and left the comm room headed for the tech labs. Mordin was studiously recording data on a datapad in between making adjustments to the microscope in front of him. He didn't look up when Shepard entered until she spoke.
"EDI, please ask Garrus to bring Wrex to the tech labs," Shepard said.
"They are on their way, Shepard," EDI said.
"Thanks EDI," she said.
"You are welcome, Shepard. Is there anything else that I can do for you? Biometric scans indicate you are experiencing a high amount of stress," said EDI.
"No, that's all for now. Thanks," Shepard said.
"Very well," EDI said.
Shepard watched as Mordin recorded the last of his data and stepped away from the microscope. He walked around to the other side of the table watching her expectantly. Shepard crossed the room to stand next to him, leaning against the edge of the table. When the door to the tech labs slid open and Garrus led Wrex inside, Shepard waved them over.
"Nice ship, Shepard. Not like the old Normandy, but it's strong," Wrex said.
"Thanks. Urdnot Wrex, I would like for you to meet Dr. Mordin Solus. Mordin did some work with the genophage," Shepard said.
Wrex narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest, his biceps bulging as he looked at the unfazed salarian in front of him.
"Unless you're giving him to me as a present for target practice I don't understand why you're telling me this, Shepard," Wrex said.
"I'm telling you this because Mordin is also the salarian who is going to cure the genophage," Shepard said.
Wrex turned his head to look at Shepard. She smiled in return. He turned his head back to Mordin. Mordin clasped his hands behind his back and blinked a few times but otherwise remained passive.
"That so?" Wrex asked Mordin.
"Yes," Mordin said.
"Why would a salarian, a salarian who worked on the genophage want to cure it? What's the catch? The rachni back again?" Wrex asked.
"The rachni have nothing to do with it, Wrex," Shepard said.
Mordin looked at Shepard in question and she nodded her head.
"Have come to understand curing genophage necessary in defeat of reapers. Specifics unknown. Can only assume Shepard knows why," Mordin said.
"Alright boys, it's story time," Shepard said. "EDI, please lock the doors and block any listening devices. If anyone questions you, tell them I am in the middle of diplomatic discussions with Clan Urdnot."
"At once, Shepard," EDI said.
"We are at the point in Jane's timeline where I would be taking Mordin down to Tuchanka to find his former student. Mordin received information that Maelon is being held captive on Tuchanka. In reality, Maelon is on Tuchanka willingly performing experiments on humans and krogans in an attempt to cure the genophage," Shepard said.
Jane filtered through the memories, pointing out the relevant details to Shepard as she spoke. Images of dead humans and krogan left to rot throughout the facility. All except one, a female from Clan Weyrloc given some modicum of respect and placed in a body bag.
Wrex bristled and said, "That salarian came sniffing around Clan Urdnot. He talked about finding a cure but the things he said he needed to do to get there… I want the genophage cured but not at that cost, Shepard. I told him to get his ass off of Tuchanka before I threw him in the varren fight pit. I didn't want anyone else hearing about his plan, they'd riot until I gave him what he asked for."
"That's right, Maelon did say that Wrex wasn't willing to do the experiments that were needed. Called him too soft," Jane said.
"He didn't leave Tuchanka, he went to Clan Weyrloc. They've been performing their experiments on anyone they can get, volunteers and captives. They're in an old hospital and the place is littered with human and krogan corpses. Weyrloc's Blood Pack has the place locked down," Shepard said.
Mordin moved to the other side of the table and began pacing as Shepard talked. Wrex watched him warily.
"Why humans?" Garrus asked.
"Humans have greater versatility than other species. Useful for high-level concept testing. Trouble believing Maelon would do such a thing," Mordin said.
"We go down there and we shut Maelon's experiments down," Shepard said. "His research is there, and we can save it. That'll help Mordin to finish the cure, though he can do it without the research as well. It's just better all-around if he keeps the research."
"What's this got to do with the war?" Wrex asked.
"I'm getting to that," Shepard said. "There are some female krogans still alive that we missed. STG comes in at some point after we leave and takes them back to Sur'Kesh. The salarians don't want what genetic changes were made to be released to the krogan population, but they also help to care for the females."
"Of course. Shepard, if there are fertile females still alive in that hospital, I'm getting them out of there. They're not leaving Tuchanka with no damn salarians," Wrex said.
"Unwise. Probability of stability of females low. If stay on Tuchanka, likely die. Proper medical attentions possible on Sur'Kesh," Mordin said.
"The krogan won't have the medical skills necessary to keep Eve alive. If they all die, this will be a waste, the genophage won't be cured," Jane said.
"He's right, Wrex. Unfortunately, even with the salarians advanced medical knowledge, the females are in really bad shape and even with the best medical care all but one will die anyway," Shepard said. "Maelon really did a number on them."
Wrex growled and began to pace himself, throwing his hands up the air.
"Well what the hell am I supposed to do, Shepard? You're telling me all of this but telling me I'm supposed to just let it happen?" Wrex asked.
"Let me finish. After we defeat the collectors, Mordin ends up back on Sur'Kesh where he learns about the females' existence for the first time. I don't know exactly what happens, but Mordin contacts you and tells you about them and says he can finish the cure," Shepard said.
Wrex stopped pacing and stared at Mordin who had moved back around the table to stand next to Shepard.
"By that time, the reapers are already here. Earth is burning. Palaven is burning. Tuchanka is under attack. Nowhere will be safe," Shepard said glancing at Garrus.
Garrus pulled his mandibles in tight and pushed away from the wall. Images of Palaven on fire hung in Shepard's mind; Liara looking out the window and putting a voice to the worry for Garrus that they were both feeling.
"I'm glad he can't see it. He shouldn't see this," Jane said.
"I'm tasked by the Alliance to gather support in the war. It's my job to pull everyone together to fight the reapers on a united front. It's the only way we stand a chance. The Alliance will have schematics for a weapon that is able to defeat the reapers but will need time to complete the weapon… and using it is… let's just say that it is quite literally my life's mission right now to find another way to defeat the reapers so that thing doesn't have to be activated," Shepard said.
Shepard paused in her speech as images of that last fight, that last push to get to that beam and on to the Citadel flashed through her mind. Images of the millions of dead clogging the doors and filling the floors of the Citadel as the keepers moved about trying to put the place back together again. She pushed away the memories of the Intelligence and his terrible offering of the options she had. She looked up to see that they were all watching her with mixed expressions of curiosity and concern.
"Anyway, the turian Primarch tells me that the turians will give their support to Earth if, and only if, I can get the krogans to agree to help them retake Palaven," Shepard said.
Wrex snorted and said, "Of course. Just like the Rachni Wars all over again. They're getting their asses handed to them and they want the krogan to come to the rescue."
"Don't be an ass, Wrex. You've heard what Shepard has said about the reapers. We're all going to get our asses handed to us, including the krogan," Garrus said, waving his hand towards Wrex.
Shepard ignored both of them and continued, "Wrex, you will agree to help the turians if the salarians surrender the females and permit your inside source to cure the genophage. With the Primarch desperate for krogan aid and me there to help put the pressure on the Dalatrass, she'll cave to the request. I personally go with you to escort the females back to Tuchanka, but as I said, by the time we get there only one remains alive. Mordin is able to finish synthesizing the cure using a sample of her tissue and the tissue of a healthy krogan male. You volunteer to provide the sample."
"Fine, you need a sample. I'm right here. We'll do this now, why wait for the reapers?" Wrex asked
"No, no, no. Too soon for tissue sample. Lots of work to be done. Need to see Maelon's research, examine females. Will take time. Must finish work on collectors first," Mordin said.
"I trust Wrex, I do, but if this were to happen now the krogan would have no reason to agree to help the Primarch. Wrex would probably still try to help, but it would only cause internal conflict on the krogan's part. They'd rebel against Wrex," Jane said.
"I know, which is why I'm glad that it can't be done now," Shepard thought.
"Wrex… I'm sorry. This really is the best I can do. Without the reapers knocking on their front door, the salarians would get wind of this and shut it down. Cause the krogan even more problems trying to counteract whatever Mordin does. It would cause war between the krogan and the salarians, and right now, we really can't afford that kind of distraction," Shepard said. "Plus, the cure isn't even ready yet. He needs time to study the research and figure out what needs to be done. Just because I know he can do it, doesn't mean he already knows how!"
"Damn it, Shepard. I don't like this. You'd better be right," Wrex said to Shepard before eyeing Mordin. "You just make sure you keep as many of those females alive as you can and get this cure made. I'll make sure the turians get their damn support when the time comes."
"I am right about it, Wrex. But I need something else from you today. A favor to Mordin – a favor to me – beyond letting us go in after Maelon," Shepard said.
Wrex let go of a heavy sigh and came to stand in front of Shepard, crossing his arms once more.
"What do you need?" he asked.
"I need you to let us go to the Shroud now to fix things, so we can make sure it can be used to disperse the cure when the time comes. You'll need to post guards, discreetly, to make sure no one else messes with it until it's time," Shepard said. "I won't watch Mordin sacrifice himself to save your people again, not when there is a way to prevent it from coming to that."
Wrex and Mordin studied each other in silence.
"He'll do this, there's too much at stake and he knows it. He doesn't like the caveat but he knows you well enough to know that you'll always do what you can to protect your team," Jane said.
"Yeah, well, he also knows me well enough to know that I'm not going to put the life of one person above curing the genophage. Asking him to post guards means this could bring the STG back to Tuchanka," Shepard thought.
"Which just means to him that his men will get to take on a few salarians," Jane said.
"No, he's smarter than that. He knows what the STG can do. If they find out we fixed the sabotage and they come looking to destroy the Shroud or something… if the krogan resist, things could get ugly," Shepard thought. "The way he sees it, he doesn't let us fix it and one salarian dies. He lets us fix it and many krogan could die. This isn't a fair request."
"Sacrifice?" Wrex finally asked.
"The STG sabotaged the Shroud to prevent this very thing. In Jane's timeline, we don't learn about the sabotage until we're on our way to the Shroud in the middle of a reaper warzone," Shepard said. "The building is on fire and already on its way down when we get there. There isn't time to fix the sabotage, and because of it the only way to make sure the cure is dispersed is for Mordin to go to the top of the damn thing and do it himself. He won't let anyone else do it, says they might get it wrong… there's an explosion."
Mordin closed his eyes and dropped his head at the audible strain in Shepard's voice. Garrus fluttered his mandibles and turned his attention to Wrex.
"Why are you hesitating, Wrex? You want this more than anything – a cure for the genophage!" Garrus said.
"It's complicated," Wrex said. "Letting aliens go to the Shroud. Posting guards. I'm going to have to give my people an explanation for this. What am I supposed to tell them? What if the STG do show up? They're not going to like it. I'm fighting to pull them together, to make them see reason and the hold I have isn't as strong as I'd like it to be. If I start doing things that make no sense to them without a good explanation, it's going to weaken that hold."
"She saved your life, Wrex. She didn't tell you that, did she? Back on Virmire. Ashley would have shot you in the back if Shepard couldn't get you to calm down. She had me keep Ashley away from you. He's offering to help you. Save the krogans. You owe them both," Garrus said. "It's Shepard, Wrex."
Wrex threw a hand up in the air and said, "Yeah, yeah. Go to the damn Shroud and do what you need to do. I'll make sure no one else gets in."
"Thank you, Wrex," Shepard said. "When the reapers come to Tuchanka, there's going to be a ship, a destroyer… activating the hammers will summon Kalros. She will take down the reaper."
"Kalros?" Garrus asked.
"The mother of all thresher maws; thought she was just a legend," Wrex said.
"I assure you she is very real and will be very pissed when those hammers are activated. She wraps the reaper up and drags it back under with her," Shepard said.
"Just how big is this thresher maw?" Garrus asked.
"No one's ever actually seen her. I didn't think she was real," Wrex said.
"I didn't exactly stand around with a measuring tape to see, but the ship was at least a hundred-fifty meters tall," Shepard said with a shrug.
"Great, so we need an army of giant thresher maws to win the war," Garrus said.
"That was your last bargaining chip, wasn't it?" Wrex asked.
"Nah, my last bargaining chip would have been to kiss you on the cheek and say pretty please," Shepard said.
Wrex let out a booming laugh. Shepard could feel the vibrations through the floor.
"Might have worked," Jane said.
When he was done he asked, "Ashley, huh?"
Shepard rubbed the back of her neck and said, "Yeah. Sometimes I didn't say the right things and it got ugly. I didn't want to risk it."
Wrex grunted in response and looked around the room.
"So what's with the collector?" Wrex asked nodding his head towards the tank.
"You know what a collector looks like?" Shepard asked.
"I saw them once or twice out in the Terminus Systems," Wrex said.
"We found him in a Cerberus facility on Fehl Prime. Destroyed the facility but decided to keep him for research," Shepard said.
"Good. Get to know your enemy, Shepard. Learn their weaknesses and use them to rip them apart," Wrex said.
"That's the plan. I can take you back to ground whenever you're ready," Shepard said.
A half-hour later and Shepard was on her way back down to Tuchanka with Wrex, Garrus, and Mordin. When they arrived, they received hostile looks from more than a few krogan loitering around the landing pad. It wasn't much of a surprise; Wrex had left with a group of aliens and a tank-bred krogan only to come back with a salarian and a turian. Wrex leveled intimidating stares at any of the krogan brave enough to meet his eyes but none took up the challenge.
Wrex pointed them towards the scout commander before making his way back up the pile of rubble to sit on his throne. Shepard didn't waste any time getting a Tomkah and taking the highway through the ruined city above. The vehicle rolled to a stop outside of a door leading into the hospital grounds, surrounded by heaps of broken cinder block and twisted shards of metal.
She briefed her team on what to expect as they fought their way first through klixen and varren and then members of the Blood Pack. The hospital grounds were littered with cement barricades, crates, and fuel tanks providing plenty of cover and improvised weaponry. Even on their territory, Shepard's team's military training and skill trumped the krogan's brute strength and vorcha's pyro tanks. As Mordin said, not even difficult. With as many obstacles as they had in the way, the krogan couldn't charge so easily making them little more than big targets needing a couple of extra well placed shots to take down.
Shepard stopped next to a half buried, overturned Tomkah to remove the combustion manifold. She smiled when Garrus didn't question her, but helped her remove the machinery and set it down against the wall, telling her he'd get it on their way back out. Mordin hacked through the lock on the hospital entrance before following Shepard in and down the stairs. She stopped next to the human corpse and waved Mordin over.
Mordin knelt down next to the dead man and opened his omni-tool to scan him. A holographic, anatomical image of a human skeleton popped up over the corpse, highlighting the diseased areas. Mordin listed off the damage while Garrus looked around to make sure the area was secure. Shepard waited next to Mordin watching his six as he processed the idea that his protégé was truly running tortuous experiments on unwilling test subjects.
"Haven't talked about work on genophage modification," Mordin said still looking at the dead man.
"Do you want to know what I know, or are you just concerned about what I think?" Shepard asked slowly.
Mordin didn't respond, instead he ran his fingers over his omni-tool, collecting data. Shepard crouched down beside him and watched his face as he worked.
"I know that the salarians created the genophage in response to the Krogan Rebellions. I know that the salarians didn't intend to actually release the genophage unless it became absolutely necessary, but that the turians did it anyway. I know that the krogans were beginning to adapt and their fertility rates were rising, so your team modified and re-released the genophage," Shepard said.
"Was necessary," Mordin said quietly.
There was something in his face that she didn't recognize from the times before but she couldn't quite put her finger on whatever it was.
"No, no it wasn't and there's a part of you that knows that. You just aren't ready to admit it yet," Shepard said. "Even though you finished your part, you insisted on returning to Tuchanka to monitor the effects of your work instead of letting your superiors take over. You wanted to see it yourself. To remind yourself of what you had done and why, but also of the pain you had caused, Mordin."
"Krogans uplifted to fight in Rachni Wars. After wars, krogan expansion out of control. Waged war on galaxy. Genophage was necessary, to save galaxy from krogan. Regrettable, but necessary," Mordin said.
"I'm not arguing that it wasn't necessary for something to be done. I don't know what else could have been done. But a lot of time has passed since then; the genophage has gone on for far too long. It's been more than a thousand years, and the krogan are dwindling away. They've lost everything, Mordin," Shepard said.
"Krogan destructive people. Tuchanka in ruins because of krogan nature. Not because of genophage," Mordin said.
"Yeah, a lot of it is just from the krogan nature but I'm not talking about Tuchanka. I'm talking about the mental scar inflicted on the entire krogan group psyche after generations and generations of watching children be born dead and losing women in childbirth. They're left fighting between themselves for the right to breed, to pass on their own genetics to a new generation. They've all but lost hope. If they can't see a future for themselves, why should they care what happens in the present?"
"Curing the genophage will only lead to even more pissed off krogan ready to get pay back. With the reapers coming, we'll need them to fight, sure. Doesn't mean things will be rosy after the war, Shepard," Garrus said rejoining them. "There's a damn good chance that once the reapers are dealt with that the krogans will rampage their way through the galaxy taking over every planet they can and killing every turian and salarian they see. It'll be a blood bath. The genophage was a desperate act taken in desperate times, but when this is over we'll be right back where it all started."
"He has a point. We don't know what happens because of this. I don't have answers to this one, but it's still important that we try. Some of the others disagree, we didn't all want to cure the genophage but I did," Jane said.
"You don't know that. Wrex is working hard to unite the krogan clans that are left and he's level headed enough to be grateful for the cure and to focus on restoring the krogan not avenging them," Shepard said.
"Wrex is old. He isn't going to live forever. Hell, he might not even live through the war for all we really know," Garrus said.
Shepard felt her face fall at the suggestion.
Mordin stood up and brushed off his hands as he said, "Should keep moving."
Shepard looked up at the two of them from her crouched position before pushing herself to her feet and nodding her head. She led them forward down a flight of stairs and into the next room. She nodded her head to the platform above as she checked her thermal clip to see how many rounds she had left. Garrus pulled his assault rifle up to do the same as the door above opened up and the clanspeaker for Clan Weyrloc walked out flanked by two of his krantt.
Shepard cut off the clanspeaker as he began his posturing and said, "I don't have time for your ranting about the coming glory of Clan Weryloc so let's cut to the point. We're here for Maelon and we're not leaving until we've shut this place down. So shut up and either get out of our damn way or fight."
"Foolish human, we were prepared to let you walk away with your lives but now we'll give you the fight you want," the clanspeaker said.
The krogan on the platform raised their guns. Shepard shot the gas line running beneath their feet, punching a hole in the metal and releasing gas into the air around the krogans. Before she could fire a second shot to ignite the gas, Mordin targeted the clanspeaker with an Incinerate. Flames consumed the krogans who bellowed and flailed around. The door behind them opened and more members of Clan Weyrloc began to file out, guns already out and taking aim at Shepard's team below. Shepard ordered the others into cover and focused her efforts on the ramp and stairs leading to the platform to keep the krogans from closing in.
Shepard lost her shields a few times and had to take cover until they were back up. She kept the pressure on the chokepoint and used her biotic Charge to close in fast and finish off any krogan who made it down the ramp. Garrus did his best to keep the krogans without shields in between shots while Mordin focused on setting them on fire every chance he got. Shepard had to activate the Medi-gel dispense for the group near the end, but when the last krogan fell her team was still standing.
They pushed forward just to stop again at an active console upstairs. Shepard began to worry whether Mordin was in the right frame of mind for this. Maybe she should have spent more time talking to him about the genophage before coming here. Maybe those talks mattered more than she thought. She hesitated next to him, playing the conversations through her mind and focusing on what was said here at this console.
"It was just as important to you that the krogan population didn't decline as it was to keep it from raising. Stability. You didn't want to see the krogan come to an end, either. You just wanted to keep them from getting out of control," Shepard said.
"Of course. Genophage created to control krogan population, not annihilate entire species. Not genocide. Never genocide. Humans not around for Rachni Wars; Krogan Rebellions. Didn't see the devastation. Don't understand true power of krogan if left unchecked. Was no other choice, Shepard. Humans call it necessary evil," Mordin said.
Shepard leaned against the wall next to the console and looked at the rubble all around her. She slowly nodded her head.
"Necessary evil, alright. Perhaps it was necessary at the time. You're right, I wasn't there and the humans don't have history books detailing the atrocities committed at the hands of krogan," Shepard said. "We do have history books detailing the atrocities committed at the hands of other humans though. Time and time again. We've got a bloody history. We've done some pretty terrible things. Hell, we continue to do some pretty terrible things."
"Have some knowledge of human history prior to First Contact War. Not unlike most young species. Still, agreed, some terrible things. Particularly disturbed by treatment of other species native to Earth," Mordin said.
Shepard scoffed and said, "We committed actual attempts at genocide, enslaved other humans, committed unspeakable acts of mass murder in the name of religion, allowed a select few to hold a monopoly over our resources while all over the planet there were children starving to death and dying from diseases brought on from drinking dirty water, fought wars over resources that weren't even necessary for our survival and were known to destroy the planet because it was easier than switching to alternatives… and you're particularly disturbed by the way we treated animals?"
"Yes. All those things bad, too, of course," Mordin said. "Disturbed by disregard of non-human life. Humans product of evolution; great range in intelligence, versatile, resilient. Forget species was once something else. Willfully denies scientific evidence to show evolutionary track. Believes own species separate from all others; special. All other species there to serve humans in whatever capacity humans decide. Socially acceptable enslavement of other species. Socially acceptable imprisonment, torture of other species. Hunting recreationally. Killing for fun, sport. Not for survival, not for advancement; for entertainment. Disturbing."
"Consider how Javik views all of us… primitives. Barely worth his notice because we were nothing but animals in his time," Jane said.
"OK, we can debate the finer points of just how fucked up humans can be later. This wasn't really my point," Shepard said.
"You have a point?" Garrus asked fluttering his mandibles.
Shepard reached over and shoved Garrus, earning her a rumbling chuckle from him and a strained smile from Mordin.
"My point is – humans have done some bad things, but we continue to change and grow as a species. The krogans have been stuck for the last thousand years, unable to move past this genophage. The salarians uplifted them and realized it was a mistake. They found a way to keep their mistake from getting further out of hand. I get it. But it through the krogan off of their own natural trajectory, stunted their ability to make their own technological advances, to let their culture evolve past their barbaric mentality," Shepard said. "Over a thousand years have passed. Where would they be if not for those interferences?"
"That's basically what Maelon said," Jane said.
"Well, he's right. He just shouldn't be doing it like this," Shepard thought.
"He's agreed to cure the genophage, Shepard. Why are you pushing this so hard?" Garrus asked.
Shepard sighed and checked her thermal clip as she spoke, "Because… he's always done this because of his own convictions. Because he came to believe it was the right thing to do. His actions ended up being pivotal in the war, but the choice wasn't made for the war. I… I want him to know that he's doing the right thing, not the desperate thing. I want him to do it because he believes in it."
"Does it really matter in the end?" Garrus asked.
Mordin put a hand on Shepard's shoulder and said, "Won't sabotage cure, Shepard."
"I didn't mean it like that!" Shepard said.
"Maybe not. Still, needed said. Done here, ready to go," he said.
"He could though… and we'd probably never know. Maybe this wasn't a good idea," Jane said.
"Don't. Stop doubting everything that I do. This is going to work out," Shepard thought.
Shepard nodded and they moved on. She stopped and leaned against the entryway to a room with a dead female krogan tucked away in a body bag on a metal slab. Garrus stopped next to her while Mordin went inside.
"Do you really think Wrex will be able to change things with the krogan enough to make a difference in the bigger picture?" Garrus asked.
Shepard lifted a shoulder and let it drop again before she spoke, "I don't know, Garrus. I want to believe that he can."
Shepard glanced into the room to look at the body bag clinging to the form of the corpse inside. Mordin stood next to it reading a datapad and shaking his head lightly to himself.
Shepard sounded almost defeated when she spoke again, "I look at all of this, and I think about what it would have been like for them. For those women. I've never particularly wanted children, but I've never had any reason to think that I couldn't. It's not like they can't even give birth half the time, they do, but the children are born dead. Their nervous systems didn't develop right and they died before they were born. I mean, it would be bad enough to try and never be able to conceive, but to try and succeed knowing that there was a damn good chance that you'd be burying your baby as soon as it was born… if you even lived through the process."
"I wanted kids. Used to think that Kaidan and I would settle down after the war. Get married and start a family," Jane whispered.
"I'm sorry, Jane," Shepard thought.
Shepard nodded at the metal slab before turning back to Garrus and saying, "She volunteered for this. For what they did to her. That was her desperate act in desperate times."
Garrus frowned and put a hand on Shepard's shoulder, tugging her towards him. She leaned into him, resting her helmet against his armored chest. When Mordin was ready to keep moving, she took them through the next door and down a hall. She stopped outside of an unlocked door and lowered her gun before hitting the release. As expected, Urdnot Darg, the missing scout from the Urdnot camp sat on the ground inside next to a dead krogan in red.
"He's one of Wrex's. Urdnot," Shepard said.
"You know the Urdnot Chief?" Darg asked, watching Shepard and her team with wary eyes.
"I do. He's a good friend of mine. He served on the Normandy with me; we took down Saren together," Shepard said.
"You're Commander Shepard?" Darg asked.
Shepard nodded and said, "I am."
Mordin moved into the room and crouched down in front of the scout, opening his scanner as he went.
"Clear signs of experimentation. Injection sites. Early signs of tumor growth. Heightened response of hormonal glands. Will likely survive," Mordin said closing his omni-tool and standing up. "Not restrained. Volunteer?"
The scout shook his head and said, "Not at first. Weyrloc guards caught me. They brought me here and started doing things to me. They said they're curing the genophage and that this is going to help them to save the krogan."
"Weyrloc is only interested in helping Weyrloc. If they manage a cure they'll keep it for their own and wipe out every other clan they can," Shepard said. "You should get back to the Urdnot camp, the ways is clear now."
"No, no you're wrong. They're helping all krogan. They said I was sacrificing to help Urdnot! I can't leave, I have to stay and help them find a cure. I wasn't strong enough and I got caught. This is the only way that I'll matter," Darg said.
Shepard rolled her eyes and let out an exaggerated sigh. Garrus raised a brow ridge and flared his mandibles.
"I'm sorry guys; I thought we were talking to a krogan here. This must be something else," Shepard said.
"Shepard, perhaps unwise to provoke. Krogan unstable while injured," Mordin said.
"What? I am krogan!" Darg said.
"Yeah, you know Shepard, I think you're right," Garrus said catching on to what Shepard was doing. "I've never heard of a krogan admit to not being strong enough, especially not an Urdnot."
"No, a real krogan would get his ass up and prove just how strong he really is by making it back to camp. Alone and injured on Tuchanka? Only a real krogan could do that." Shepard looked back at Darg and said, "You'd rather sit here and whine about not being strong enough."
"Hmmm. He probably wouldn't even make it off the hospital grounds. There might still be a few klixen and varren out there," Garrus said.
"I can do it, I am Urdnot Darg! I am krogan!" Darg yelled, pulling himself to his feet.
"Then prove it. Get your ass back to camp, Urdnot Darg," Shepard said.
"I will! And I'm going to the female camp!" Darg said.
"Good. Why the hell you still standing here then? Go!" Shepard said stepping aside and slapping the krogan on the back.
Darg flexed and growled before charging out the door leaving Shepard to smile after him.
Garrus chuckled and shook his head before asking, "You think we should have given him a gun?"
"Nah, there are plenty of dead Blood Pack out there. He can take one off of them," Shepard said.
"Impressive, Shepard," Mordin said.
"Thanks," she said. "Let's go. The Weyrloc chief and a bunch of Blood Pack are waiting for us."
They moved on to the next door with their weapons at the ready. The door slid open and Shepard wasted no time firing on the vorcha standing on the opposite walkway circling in the gapping floorplan. They held the ground near the door and let the krogans try to cross the walkway that bridged the gap to get to them. They took cover in the doorway, behind the metal sheeting lining the walkway, and the support beams holding the structure in place. The Blood Pack filed out of the far room slow enough that it was no trouble at all to take them down; especially with Garrus hitting every fuel tank he could the second a target was near enough to make it count.
Shepard pushed forward across the bridge and hung a right, her finger on the trigger ready for the varren and last krogan she knew was waiting just around the corner. They took them down without losing stride before going down the ramp to the next level. Shepard ordered the others into cover and took aim at the doorway just as more Blood Pack appeared. She signaled Garrus and Mordin to keep their eyes on the door at the opposite side of the room before she turned her attention to the first two krogan to fire at her. When they were down, Shepard changed cover, ducking down behind the metal sheeting lining the railing next to Garrus to help them with the varren and krogan coming in from the far side.
Weyrloc Guld entered with the same boisterous speech that Shepard had heard and ignored a thousand times. She ignored it this time, too, only responding with fire and biotics. As soon as the clan chief was dead she stood up and looked at Mordin. Shepard's chest heaved a little as her body worked to accommodate the flood of adrenaline from battle. She nodded her head towards the door the Weyrloc chief had come from and Mordin started forward. Shepard moved slightly ahead of him, ready to defend the doctor just in case there were any surprises.
They reached Maelon's lab and Shepard stepped aside, letting Mordin take the lead into the room and the conversation. Maelon stood just where he always was, with his back to the door working at a large holographic screen. Mordin stopped in the middle of the room, several feet away from his former protégé. Maelon glanced over his shoulder before returning his attention to the screen in front of him.
"Maelon. How could you?" Mordin asked.
Shepard winced at the sheer level of disappointment in Mordin's voice. It would have broken her heart to have that directed at her. It only seemed to bring contempt from the other salarian. Maleon snorted and turned around to face Mordin.
"You mean how dare I undo your work? Correct your mistake, Professor?" Maelon asked.
"No," Mordin said with a quiet coldness that brought Shepard to his side.
Garrus lingered near the door to watch for trouble. Shepard glanced at Mordin's face, his mouth was a thin, compressed line and something weighed heavy in his eyes. Mordin stood in a grim silence as Maelon spoke; unmoving, not even blinking. Shepard didn't think it was even possible for a salarian to be so still.
She hadn't recognized the expression on his face until now. He was furious. It wasn't something she had seen from him before, not even on Tuchanka. It made the fine hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. She never thought she would say that a salarian looked dangerous, even though she knew that they could be. He looked like nothing less than tightly wound cold fury about to snap. Dangerous. Shepard glanced back at Garrus but he wasn't watching.
"Not even when the others tried to talk him out of curing the genophage, not even with a gun to his head… this isn't good," Jane said.
"The genophage was wrong, Professor. What we did to these people was wrong and I am going to fix it, no matter the cost. Look around you; look at what has become of the krogan because of us!" Maelon said.
Shepard jumped when Mordin suddenly sprang forward and grabbed his former student by the back of the neck.
"Not talking about genophage!" Mordin yelled.
Maelon struggled, tried to draw his pistol but it was knocked away with the back of Mordin's free hand. Shepard watched wide-eyed as Mordin drug Maleon over to the slab at the side of the room and slammed his face down on to the cold steel inches away from the face of a dead krogan.
"This, Maelon! How could you?! Taught you better than this! Live subjects! Prisoners! Torture and executions! How could you?!" Mordin yelled.
"Uh oh," Shepard whispered.
Garrus didn't leave his post when the yelling started, but Shepard's one uttered phrase brought him running into the room to stand at Shepard's side. Shepard took a few steps closer to Mordin and did her best to regulate her tone and stay calm.
"Mordin. Come on Mordin, you don't –," Shepard started to say.
The salarian's head whipped toward her and she saw that cold fury had shifted to a blazing inferno. It stopped her in her tracks and made Garrus readjust his hold on his assault rifle.
"Stay out of this, Shepard. My student. My mistake," Mordin said.
"He's going to kill him," Jane said.
"Not the first time, right?" Shepard thought.
She felt Garrus' hand on her shoulder; he tugged at her, urging her to back away. Shepard stood her ground but remained silent for the time being. Mordin turned his attention back to Maelon, wrenching the other salarians arm higher up behind his back and making him cry out in pain.
"No, but he's never done it like this. Never killed him out of anger. It was always because he thought it was necessary to stop Maleon from doing something like this again. Like putting down a rabid dog… this is… I've never seen him like this…" Jane said.
"Like a rabid dog," Shepard thought.
"The ends justify the means. You taught me this! Whatever it takes. What's a little more blood on my hands if it puts an end to this? I am fixing it the only way that I know how," Maelon yelled.
"No!" Mordin said, pushing Maelon's head harder against the table. "Not whatever it takes. Not like this. Never like this. Didn't want to believe this could be true. Searched for evidence to disprove Shepard. Wanted to believe you were better than this. Found only corpses left to rot, discarded like rubbish and research logs detailing gruesome methods."
"Yeah, like a rabid dog," Jane said.
Mordin drew his pistol and held it against Maelon's head.
"No! Mordin, no. You will regret this, it isn't you," Shepard said, lunging forward only to be pulled back by Garrus.
"Maybe not who you think. Not who I think. He isn't. How to be sure?" Mordin asked.
"Damn it, Garrus. Dawn, he wants you to talk him down. Do something, help him for fucksake!" Jane yelled.
"You wouldn't be so angry with him right now otherwise," Shepard said holding a hand up in surrender to Garrus. "I know you, Mordin. And I know that you will regret this if you kill him. You're angry, and you have every right to be, but you still care about him. He can still do good in the galaxy. He was trying to do good, but he went about it all the wrong way. He's your student, Mordin. Teach him. Remind him how to do things right."
Mordin hesitated a few seconds longer before lowering the pistol to the side and shoving Maelon away.
"Go, Maelon. Finished here. Don't want to see you again," Mordin said holstering his gun.
"Where am I supposed to go, Professor?" Maelon asked.
"Wherever you'll do the least amount of harm. Open another clinic on Omega. Remember how to save lives," Mordin said.
"I was trying to save lives!" Maelon said.
"No," Mordin said shaking his head. "Were trying to be rid of guilt. Appease own ego. No matter the cost."
Maelon stopped arguing and left the lab. Mordin rested his weight on his palms next to the krogan corpse. Shepard watched Maelon retreat until he was out of sight before walking over to Mordin. He studied the steel slab between his palms until Shepard rested a hand on his back. He turned to look at her and the fury was gone. In its place she saw only a very sad old man. She pulled him to her in an embrace made even more awkward between her armor and the strange, rigid loop that crossed over the chest of his. He didn't seem to mind though as he patted her back affectionately.
"Thank you, Shepard. Should collect research and leave. Still much work to do," Mordin said.
"Yeah," Shepard said letting him go.