Chapter 10: Secrets Revealed

AN: Sorry for the wait, guys. My new job and new classes are forming up to become quite the pain in the ass.


Citadel, Alliance Meeting Room, 2176 A.D

1 Week, 3 Days After The Skyllian Blitz

Hannah looked over the room, seeing the men and women who had followed her into battle over twenty-one years ago. She didn't want to do this again, but with Balak's return, Jane's mutilation, and her increasing nightmares on what Balak could possibly do to her son, Hannah was left with no choice.

I should've just killed him, too.

Hannah shook her head. She'd made a mistake, but now wasn't the time to dwell on it. Now was the time to fix it.

She cleared her throat, bringing the room's attention to her.

"Good evening, everyone. I've bought you all here because of some information I've discovered. It's come to my attention lately that the Alliance's investigation into the slavers that attacked Elysium have run into a rather severe amount of red tape. I don't know why the politicians are tying our hands on this, and I don't care. These bastards attacked my daughter and killed hundreds of innocent people. Besides, I hate having unfinished business, and this one's been due for over twenty-one years."

Admiral Kahoku shook his head. "Hannah, wait. Are you saying-"

"That these slavers are the same ones that attacked Mindoir? Yes. A few of my own people were able to uncover this little tidbit of information before suddenly vanishing."

Anderson interrupted her. "Vanishing? Within Citadel Space? That's a big cause for concern, Hannah. Have you tried bringing this to the Council's attention?"

Hannah snarled. "You know as well as I do that they won't do shit, David! It's clear that we're gonna have to handle this ourselves!"

"I understand your anger, Hannah, I do, but running into this half-cocked is exactly why we're in this mess a second time. If we gathered a few more allies, maybe Balak wouldn't have returned from whatever hole he crawled out of."

Hannah growled in frustration. She knew Anderson was right, but that still didn't quell her irritation at her best friend's suggestion. The Council had never helped them before when it had come to the Batarians. Why would they help now?

As she tried to calm herself down, she heard her omni-tool going off. Opening it, she was greeted by the sight of a phone call. Walking to a corner of the room, Hannah answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Is this Hannah Shepard?" a woman on the line asked.

"Yes. What's going on?"

"Mrs. Shepard, this is Inedra D'ajah. I am a teacher at the Auxua Academy of Arts. I'm calling you to inform you that your son didn't show up to his classes all day yesterday, and he hasn't appeared today either. Is everything alright?"

Hannah's heart skipped a beat. "W-what?" she croaked.

"We tried calling you to notify you of your son's absence yesterday, but you never picked up. I was wondering if you and your son were taking time off because of what happened on Elysium."

Hannah's hands shook. "I-I have to call you back." she whispered.

Not again. Please, God, not again.

She didn't know what she'd do if the Batarians got their hands on her son. She had already lost one child to them. She couldn't bear the thought of losing another.

As Hannah leaned against the wall for support, she could hear a beeping noise. Freezing in shock, Hannah began to quickly look around her surroundings. After looking to her left and right, she looked underneath the desk she had placed her hands on earlier.

Greeting her vision was a small metallic rectangle with a red light blinking on it.

"IED, GET DOWN!" she shouted, diving down behind cover. A horrific explosion tore through the room.

Hours Earlier

Citadel, Lower Wards

In the action movies he, Hannah, and Jane watched, a car chase was always shown as something exciting. Something that broke up the fight sequences and was used to get the blood pumping. It usually looked like a fun time for the whole family.

Unfortunately, reality is a bit different from the vids Whitley and his family watched together.

THIS IS NOT FUN!

Whitley couldn't help but think that as his back hit the seat of the skycar, bouncing the teenager into the air for a few seconds.

"This is Citadel Security! Pull over and stop your car now! This is your last warning!"

"SLOW DOWN, HUMAN!" Wrex shouted, lying against the skycar's windows. "YOU ARE GOING TO KILL US ALL!"

"You can either take your chances with me, or with the C-Sec officers pursuing us! Now shut up and let me concentrate!" Michelle shouted, just as the police cars behind them began to shoot at them. Michelle growled, before pushing down on the controls and forcing the skycar to dive down.

As Whitley was trying to keep his breathing steady, he looked to Wrex, whose face was beginning to turn a bit green. Whitley, noticing this, quickly took out a bag from his pocket.

"What's this?" Wrex asked.

"Air sickness bag. Never know when you might need one."

Wrex scoffed. "I'm a Krogan Battlemaster, kid! I don't get air si-"

The car lurched again, and Wrex put a fist underneath his mouth.

Whitley narrowed his eyes, offering the bag again. This time, Wrex hastily took it, holding it underneath his mouth.

In the distance, a set of cargo doors stood in front of them, one that was rapidly closing. "Hold onto your seatbelts, gentlemen!" Michelle exclaimed. Whitley froze, quickly connecting the dots.

Oh no.

With that warning out of the way, Michelle pushed the controls again. The skycar lurched forwards, somehow going even faster than before. As they rapidly approached the doors, Michelle turned the skycar sideways at the last possible second, shaving off a layer of the skycar and possibly a few years off of Whitley's lifespan.

As the skycar parked itself underneath an overpass, Michelle turned to the rest of her team.

"Well, looks like we're safe for now. How's everyone holding up?"

Whitley settled for a glare at the woman, while Wrex was busy occupying himself with the air sickness bag.

Meanwhile

"Dammit!" a C-Sec officer exclaimed, seeing the skycar they were chasing maneuver away past the doors.

The Turian next to him remained unfazed. "It's not over yet, Thornton. They might get away now, but we'll catch up. It's just a matter of time."

Thornton scoffed. "Keep telling yourself that, Garrus."

Later, at Michelle's Hideout

"We're here." Michelle stated to her passengers. The black paint job of the skycar had been replaced by a simple blue, hiding the fact that it's passengers had broken into a C-Sec facility

"Next time, I'm driving." Whitley muttered, getting out of the skycar,

"Thanks for the bag earlier, kid." Wrex stated, getting out of the skycar.

"No problem, old man. Just try not to vomit in the middle of a skycar chase anytime soon." Whitley replied.

Wrex frowned. "Who're you calling old?" he asked.

Whitley smirked, his trademarked sarcasm beginning to return. "Look, it's just a simple statement of fact. I'm only seventeen years old. You, on the other hand, are between 1,000 to 1,500 years old. You're pretty much a dinosaur compared to me."

Wrex chuckled. "This dinosaur can still kick your ass, kid, so best watch that mouth of yours, or else I might start taking a page outta that Turian's book."

"No you won't. You hate them too much." Whitley replied glibly.

Wrex huffed. "Outsmarted by a kid. Best way to end this humiliating evening."

Whitley took out the omni-tools he had looted from the Batarians earlier. "I'm heading to my room to decrypt these omni-tools." he stated.

Michelle frowned. "I don't think that's a good idea, Shepard. Everyone needs their sleep, and it has been a long day."

Whitley shook his head. "There's no time. They've already gained a concerningly large foothold on the Citadel. We have to stop them."

"And we will. After you have rested." Michelle insisted.

Whitley huffed. "I'll sleep." he muttered

When I'm dead.

Turning on his omni-tool, Whitley began to decrypt the files. However, after an hour has passed, his eyes began to droop.

Just...five minutes. Five minutes and I'll get back to this.

Hours Later

Whitley woke up, as sunlight hit his eyes. Groaning, Whitley cursed himself.

That is the last time I ever tell myself that lie. I will order a whole pot of coffee if I have to stay awake. I'll even mix it with Paragade, if I have to.

Turning to his omni tool, Whitley was greeted by the sight of the decrypted files.

Well, this should certainly help.

However, as Whitley began to read the files, his blood began to chill.


From: Romak

To: Crark, Grathan, etc.

Subject; My Brother's Memoir

Crark, Grathan, you guys tend to be the most literate out of all us. Do you think you guys can review this excerpt in private and send some suggestions? Normally, Balak would do this, but he's been far too busy as of late.

Also, please don't ask him about any of these personal details. The last idiot who did was thrown out of the airlock. This will be strictly between us.


Chapter 15: Vengeance

Today was the 21st anniversary of my father's death. He was a good man, a good Batarian. He served the Hegemony with pride and he raised me and Romak to serve just as well as he did.

My father was taken from me and my brother before his time. After our attack on the colony planet of Mindoir, a human by the name of Hannah Shepard inexplicably rallied a few of her human allies and began to hunt us down. No matter what planet we took refuge on, Shepard and her ilk would descend on us like Varren on fresh meat. One fateful day, Shepard had managed to forcibly board our ship. My father quickly hid us in escape pods, before turning to face Shepard. My father fought bravely, but in the end, it was for naught. As he lay bleeding, he asked Shepard why she had hunted him down so mercilessly.

She revealed to us that she had done it because of her son. In the attack, my brother, Romak, was responsible for rounding up the children for enslavement. One child resisted, trying to fruitlessly defend the others. Normally, a child wouldn't be much of a bother to take down, but this one was apparently a biotic. He took down three of our men before Romak was able to get close enough to slit his throat. By the time Shepard had arrived at Mindoir with reinforcements, her son was long dead.

Shepard had gone mad in her grief. She had sworn that she would make our father and all those under his command would suffer as she had suffered. Me and Romak were forced to watch as our father and our comrades were rounded up, before being burnt to death by a substance the humans called "White Phosphorus"

It was not quick. It was far from painless, and as the escape pod launched and dragged us away from that horrific sight, I swore that I would have my revenge, no matter the cost.

For over eighteen years, me and Romak struggled to rebuild our former numbers. I was forced to hide in the shadows, as Shepard was hailed as a hero and promoted to captain by the Alliance. I saw on the extranet the territories and resources that should have belonged to us as they expanded. It made me furious, but it also made me realize how important my work was.

This was more than revenge now. This was about bringing the Batarians back it's rightful place, a time before the humans came into this galaxy. In time, I began to forget about the tragic loss Shepard had inflicted on us. It was not until our attack on Elysium that I remembered why I had started all this.

After twenty-one years, we were finally ready. With our new allies within the humans' ranks, Elysium was ours. It should have been ours. There was only one obstacle in our path.

Hannah Shepard's daughter, Jane Shepard.

She rallied many of the colony's inhabitants to fight against us. She murdered dozens of good men under my command. When we finally caught her, and I set my eyes upon her, I felt that old rage come back a hundredfold.

She was the SPITTING IMAGE of the woman that murdered my father, down to the exact facial features! Oh, the galaxy is cruel, indeed. If there was any justice in it, I would have been able to take her as my slave aboard my ship, where I would have exacted every single one of the revenge fantasies I had held for the past twenty one years. Instead, I had to settle for maiming her instead, as the Alliance was about to enter the system.

I was furious, my rage refusing to relent, until I heard that our human allies have secured us a foothold on the Citadel. Finally, I will have the opportunity to truly carry out my revenge. Even now, as I type this tale, I have heard that Hannah Shepard has claimed a replacement to the son she lost on Mindoir. He calls himself 'Whitley Shepard', and as of this moment, he is hiding out in the Lower Wards.

Perhaps it is time for a reenactment. Should fate smile upon me, I will be able to kill both of Shepard's children before her eyes. If not, I will at least take satisfaction in killing my father's murderer.


Whitley stumbled backwards, his mind having trouble absorbing all the information Balak's memoir just revealed to him.

Mom had a son? And he was killed on Mindoir by Balak's brother?

She killed them that brutally?

Why didn't she tell me about this?

And who would ally themselves with people that enslave them?!

As Whitley was busy trying to calm the mess of emotions swirling in his mind, his eyes caught another file that had been decrypted. Whitley quickly began to read it.


From: Romak

To: Crark, Grathan

Subject; Revenge

Crark, Grathan, we have her. We have Hannah Shepard's location.

I'm getting every able bodied man I can to help me with this mission. I'll need your infiltration expertise if we're going to pull this off. Finish your mission quickly, I'll be waiting outside, near the C-Sec radio tower.

However, if I am unable to make it for any reason, here are the coordinates.


Whitley found himself tearing out of his room.

"Ah, Shepard. Good morn-"

"We have to go! NOW!" Whitley shouted, interrupting her.
Michelle, to her credit, took it in stride. She made a following motion to Wrex, who grumbled a small bit before getting up from the couch.

As the skycar lifted into the air, Michelle turned to Whitley.

"What's going on, Shepard?"

"It's my mother! They're going to kill her!"

P.O.V Switch - Hannah Shepard

As Hannah began to regain consciousness, she looked around the room. In the distance, she saw a small group of Batarians rushing into the nearly destroyed conference room.

Hannah spat out a glob of blood, before grabbing ahold of a railing and pulling herself up. Picking up a small pistol, she prepared herself for the incoming fight.

"For John." she growled under her breath.


AN: How many of you guys had a heart attack at the explosion scene? XD

So, now we have a reason as to why Balak hates Hannah so much, and vice versa. Next chapter will feature Whitley trying to save his mom, while simultaneously trying to keep his…"extra-curricular" activities a secret.