Just Built Different
Chapter 4: Max's guide to better health
Sora'Teemin vas Godor has heard many things about this human, both years before and quite recently. Some rich, genius, corporate bigshot from a previous human era. Being a supposed master of all things science and technology, the humans loved to preach that he was almost singlehandedly responsible for humanity making it as far as it did. Apparently, if it wasn't for him then their species to this day wouldn't have grown past their own solar system. Scientific discoveries and technological advancements made by him are being used and applied even in today's world hundreds of years later when his people have made it well into the galaxy.
An impressive feat, to them, since so few other human inventors and scientists can boast the same.
Sora is a cautious woman. So you will forgive her if she was understandably suspicious of this "Representative of Max Barrett" when they decided her services were required "for the betterment of her and her species". Her worries were slightly lessened, however, when she was told where she will be meeting her new temporary employer. A public ship docking area. Out in the open and not at all out of the way. They'll be in front of hundreds of witnesses, especially since the meeting time was at the busiest part of the day. If any plans were made against her then they chose the absolute worst place and time.
That was the only reason she went.
When Sora eventually arrived she was shocked to find nineteen others that also received a contract from this supposed 'representative', with her the group consisted of ten Quarians and just as many Krogans.
This job just might be legit.
She may be an engineer like any self respecting Quarian but she understood biology enough to know about the fundamentals of genetic diversity, a concept that was almost beaten into the heads of any of her kind that was born in the Flotilla, with so few of her kind left the reason as to why is rather quite obvious.
If they're planning on keeping their promise then this is the way to do it. That is, if they even can.
But the representative assured her that there was no one in the galaxy better at biology than him. If he really can solve her people's problem, she and her entire species would be eternally in his debt.
"Hey." A Krogan spoke, elbowing another and nodding his head towards someone behind her.
There he is.
Huh.
He looks shorter than he did in those extranet pictures, but no less muscular. The shirt he wore was nearly skin tight against his torso and arms, showing off his impressive set of...oh. Wow. He really is as built as he seemed. And as tempting as it was to try to imagine how undoubtedly hypnotizing his naked chest was, she instead began to take in his face.
Even in today's society, he could still be considered quite handsome. The charming smile he wore as he approached did things to her.
"Drem yol lok fahdon! Zu'u los Max Barrett ahrk Zu'u los het wah vokras hi do hin ailments!"
The only word out of his mouth her translator picked up was 'ailments'. His name, on the other hand, required no translation. But beyond those two things she and the others have no clue what he said.
Sora, bravely in her opinion, looked into his eyes. "What?" Quickly, too quickly for some of the others to catch, his eyes roamed over her body. She was glad she had the foresight to buckle her enviro-suit's straps just a little tighter this morning. Just tight enough to better show off her womanly figure without being too constrictive. And judging by the brief flash of appreciation in his eyes she could tell her efforts were definitely working. It wasn't everyday a middle aged woman like her caught the attention of such an attractive young man after all.
He's hundreds of years old.
Shut up and let me enjoy this!
He's an old man.
He's been in cryo-sleep since he was twenty!
"Dreh hi ni mindoraan dovahzul?" His face contorted in confusion, eyes staring off into the distance as a humm emitted from his throat. After a moment he looked back down at her. "Do you understand me now?"
Sora's head perked up, her translator finally picking up a language it can work with.
The human once more gave her that charming smile of his. "Allow me to formally apologize for my transgression. My long and unexpected cryo-sleep must have addled my brain as I seemed to have developed an unfortunate tendency to forget that your translators are not equipped with all of humanity's many languages." He stuck out his right hand for a handshake, his smile getting even wider. "Let us start over shall we? My name is Max Barrett, and it's quite the pleasure to meet such esteemed members of the modern community."
Sora stared down at his hand, not exactly sure how to react to his...flamboyant personality. Slowly, and with no small amount of hesitation, she reached her own hand out and took his. Admittedly her handshake possessed less strength and stiffness than what it usually possessed, possibly giving the man the impression that she was weak.
She is not weak. She is a mercenary who lone wolf's most of her jobs. Sora is a strong and independent individual who doesn't need the help she is usually offered.
But this was no small job.
The help he offered was too valuable to turn down now that she knew this whole thing might actually be the real deal.
Also the paycheck was pretty convincing too.
Max shook her hand back with as much enthusiasm as was on his face.
"It-it's fine. You don't..need to apologize." How is it that she can feel both attracted and weirded out by him?
--
The next few days with the human was...interesting.
Max Barrett.
How would she describe him? Nothing specific comes to mind beyond a number of descriptions. Bold, dramatic, and eccentric.
As most of the more unusual rich people are.
But he is also forthcoming, and surprisingly friendly for a human. It would seem that the people of his time were far more positive about the prospect of aliens than the humans of now.
She had asked him if such a thing was true. His response was merely a chuckle followed by "You have no idea."
Then there were the times where he was charming, gentlemanly, suave, sexy.
Damn it!
All in all, Max Barrett was shockingly easy to get along with. Even when it became known that he was sleeping with his Krogan roommate, something she hadn't realized until it was pointed out by one of the other brutish reptiles during their end of the day meal, he made it impossible not to be around him despite her attempts to evade him.
He was sleeping with a male Krogan. Obviously whatever tastes he has in partners didn't extend to the things she was. Whatever chance she thought she had at any intimacy with him simply wasn't there.
And yet, he was there. Always just there. For some reason no matter how much time he spent in the engineering bay or in bed with that damn Krogan he always somehow seems to make time for his other hirees.
It was nice.
They were nearing Earth. Sora was walking back to her room to pack her things when her mind went off elsewhere. A few minutes ago, during a conversation in the mess hall, she, Max, and several others were having a drunk discussion.
Or to be technical, she and the other Quarians were somewhat tipsy while Max and the Krogans seemed to be unaffected by the alcohol no matter how much they drank.
Max revealed that he once had something called a 'tapeworm', the description of which disgusted her, and explained his rather unconventional method of getting rid of it.
"As it turns out, tapeworms don't like it when their hosts consume nothing but straight alcohol for three days. Now, normally humans can't go this long without water, especially me considering how much faster my body works, but I spent that entire time laying down and doing nothing to ensure that I used as little bodily resources as possible."
Sometime later, he dropped a gun he got from the hospital onto the table and explained what he'd done to it.
"It's basic physics. You see, the lower velocity means that the bullet will have more time to interact with it's environment. Like flesh for example. Meanwhile the increase in bullet size means that it will have a greater effect on said environment. If I shot a human in the chest with this, the entry wound won't be any bigger than the bullet but the exit wound will be the size of a grapefruit."
The conversation continued with everyone present asking the human questions about his past life. But at some point in the discussion Max got this look in his eyes before referring to Sora as a "tall glass of water". Whatever that means. Humans and their idioms are weird. She doesn't understand them. Was he complimenting her? Was it an insult? One of his references maybe? Was he saying that she was a beverage that he was...thirsty...for...
She stopped. At the end of the hall she could see the edge of her room's door. Her head fell back as a frustrated groan emitted from the mask's voice modulator.
Several minutes later Sora turned up in the engineering bay, requesting repairs for the dents and scratches on her helmet and a replacement for her cracked visor. She refused to elaborate how the damage had occurred but if one were to look at the security footage, before it was mysteriously erased, they would see her banging her head against the wall of a hallway near her assigned room.
--
Here they were again. All stuffed once more in the air lock. Max curled the fingers on his free hand in anticipation. He can barely keep the grin off his face. He can't wait to see how Earth has changed!
The doors let out a hiss as they unsealed, locks and latches unhooking with a mechanical clanking noise. They began to open, inch by painful inch they moved...before stopping.
Something in the walls released a metallic 'PING' before the doors settled heavily onto the floor with a soft creak, whatever was keeping them stiff supposedly broken. Slowly, the smile trying to twitch onto Max's face went away. Instead it was replace by a small frown. He turned his eyes up towards the intercom in the corner of the ceiling. "I think your door's broken."
"No thanks to you. You broke it, you open it. And you're paying for the damages."
Max hummed at the bitterness in the captain's voice. "You know I could just buy you a new ship right? Wouldn't you prefer that instead of just a fixed door?"
"I don't need your help. Just pay for the door and get the hell off my ship."
"Jesus." Max cursed as he placed his fingers in the five inch gap between the doors, his skin once more gaining their red tint as his clothes became near skin tight. "Someone woke up on the wrong side of the futon this morning."
A growl of anger left the intercom speaker but whatever the captain was going to say next was drowned out by the screeching of the airlock doors scraping it's ground rail.
Without the assistance of the hydraulics the doors were much more difficult to move, even with his great strength he felt his muscles straining against the weight of the heavy airlock doors.
Damn this ancient ship! Everything about it was bulky and heavy and made of outdated materials that have long since been replaced with improved variants. The doors got stuck for a moment. Something in the walls was fighting him. Again the noise of something breaking was heard as he shoved the doors the last bit of distance his arms could reach.
The captain was yelling again. Insults being thrown left and right. Not really listening, Max let out a heavy exhale. "Thank you, Captain Mcconaughey. Your words are a treasure."
The captain's yells became screams as Max walked off the ship, not even bothering to open his omnitool. After all, BT was already on it, having scanned the walls and sending the bare minimum required to fix whatever Max had broken.
Sunlight hit his face. He stopped and breathed that fresh, oxygen rich air.
God it feels he hasn't been here in a long time.
Max inhaled deeply through his nose and noted that the air is far cleaner than it was back in his time.
My fuel worked.
Of course the alternate him had created the same super fuel he had. They are both geniuses in every sense of the word.
"Mcconaughey?" A Krogan asked behind him.
Max stopped reminiscing and began his treck forward again, out into the city. "I swear to God that guy has almost the same voice as Matthew Mcconaughey." A pause. "He's a famous actor from my time."
The Krogan let out a humm of acknowledgement.
He looked around and the first thing he noticed was that he was no longer the only one getting stares. Apparently such a large grouping of non-humans was quite a strange sight down here on Earth.
The smile from before finally found it's way onto his face as he gazed up at the towering buildings seemingly stretching towards the Heavens themselves. The Sun's light hit a particular window high up above and reflected down into his eyes.
"Ow."
Max could say that there were quite a few things that took him by surprise when learning about this new universe. A few bits and pieces of the no small amount of info BT fed into his ear over the course of the three day travel to Earth catching his attention.
"Mr. Barrett?"
The Quarian who spoke as well as the others of his kind found themselves become slightly unsettled when Max, who was up front and leading the way, turned his head around farther than a human should be able to. It wasn't a complete one hundred and eighty degree turn but it was close enough to warrant worry that he might have just snapped his own neck.
"Yes?" His voice was slightly strained, most likely caused by the constriction on his throat by the over-turning of his head.
"W-where are we going?" The male Quarian asked with slight hesitancy, almost visibly unnerved even through his visor.
Max pivoted the rest of his body around to properly talk to his hirees, now walking backwards but at the same pace as before. "We're going to my laboratory! It's located bellow the headquarters of my company." He pointed over his shoulder, off into the distance behind him. "Which is at the edge of the city, near the border of the forest." He turned back around and resumed a more normal walking manner. Something he found advantageous about there being a space port in the same city as his company's main location of operation is the fact that he didn't have to go far whenever he needed to travel to and from space. It was also the only space port within nearly a hundred mile radius of here. But these lucky turnarounds were only temporary if one of his more ambitious projects managed to take off.
Hah, puns.
"Hey, Barrett! How much farther?"
"Not much. Just on the other side of the city."
The Citadel, private Council meeting chamber...
"What do you mean he's not on the Citadel?"
Tevos typed away at the computer, pulling up video files and playing them on the large screen on the wall opposite of the door. "Exactly as I said, Sparatus. This security footage shows Max Barrett boarding an old Quarian transport vessel along with twenty others. Specifically ten Quarians and ten Krogan."
Sparatus' stare was harsh as he watched, tapping a talon on the table. The action caused a rhythmic clicking noise that had Valern glaring over at him. "What are they for? Are they bodyguards?"
Tevos rewound the footage back to when Max had just arrived. "I'm not entirely sure, but I don't believe so." She turned her attention to the Salarian councilor. "Valern, any ideas?"
Valern watched the video while absentmindedly stroking his chin, slightly moist fingers rubbing an equally moist facial structure. "Genetic diversity."
"What?" Sparatus' brow ridge was raised, having no clue as to what his fellow councilor was talking about. "What do you mean?"
"Genetic diversity." Valern repeated. "Ten Quarians and ten Krogans. Five males and five females each." He turned to face the others. "They are not bodyguards, they are test subjects."
Tevos and Sparatus stiffened so tightly their spines almost straightened out. They shared a weary glance before returning their sights back at him.
"You don't mean..he's going to try to..." The Asari councilor couldn't get the words out, almost too fearful of the implications behind Valern's words.
"He wouldn't dare." The Turian councilor growled, his mandibles flaring.
"Impossible." Valern assured them. "The Genophage cannot be cured. Many have tried and all have failed. And he will follow them."
"Yes. But..." Tevos gulped, her nerves on edge. "What if he does? Cure it I mean." She began pacing. "This wouldn't be the first time he's cured the incurable. I've read the reports. Cancer? It was too diverse and too advanced to cure. And yet he did it. He cured it in an afternoon." She ran a hand down her face. "Who does that? Who decides to take a worldwide disease that's mostly unaffected by modern medicine and get rid of it in less than a day?"
"You're giving him too much credit." Sparatus was glaring at her now. "You're overestimating him and putting too much trust into the documents and reports. They were written by humans after all. And we all know how prone they are to exaggeration." It was no secret to anyone that his opinion of humans was impressively loathful. He did not believe for one second that Max Barrett, supposedly the most physically and mentally impressive human his species has to offer, was as great as they say he is. He read the reports too. He knows what they like to think he's capable of. But there is no way he is that physically powerful and that intelligent at the same time. For Spirits' sake he sounds like a character from one of their childish 'comic books'. Once more humanity is "blowing smoke out of it's ass" if he was using the expression correctly.
"How old is this footage?" Valern asked, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the meeting table.
Tavos sighed, sitting back down heavily in her chair. "Almost four days ago."
"Why are we only finding this out now? What was the delay?"
The Asari shook her head. "I don't know. C-sec should have alerted us if he tried to leave."
"And stop him." Valern hummed, his quick Salarian mind flying through theories. "So C-sec was unaware as well. They were blinded."
Sparatus turned to him. "How can that be? C-sec's cyber-security is second only to the Council's. Who can possibly get past?"
Valerm shook his head. "Not who, what."
Silence fell upon the table as the three glanced between eachother.
"The level of hacking required, multiple sections around the inner ring of the Citadel, is a task that cannot be performed by an organic mind. I suggest we start considering the possibility that Max Barrett has a smart AI working for him. Specifically one that he has made himself."
"Ludicrous!" Sparatus shot back at him. "Back then humans did not have the technology to develope or even house smart AI's."
"Yes, but Max Barrett has been described as 'decades ahead of his time'. So it stands to reason that-"
"It stands to reason that nothing! I refuse to believe that he is-"
Tevos interrupted him. "But Sparatus, the reports say that-"
Sparatus glared at her. "Do you know what those reports say? He supposedly has a journal that explains how to push humanity from his time into a golden age where the Dyson Sphere is not only possible but is actually in use. In the span of eighty years. That's not possible even today. Not to mention the fact that said journal was in the custody of humanity's government only to conveniently disappear the day before his frozen corpse was found. Without it we cannot prove or disprove their claims, we can only take their word for it." Sparatus stood, mandibles wide and brow ridges low. Another growl released from his throat. "The humans cannot be trusted. And I'll be damned if I accept that they hold the key to a galaxy wide golden age!"
Back on Earth...
"And we're here!"
At the farthest edge, bordering the forest, was one of the largest buildings in the city. The logo 'Barrett Industries' was branded on the front of the building with letter shaped lights. Max himself had designed the entire building using Avengers Tower as inspiration, but for copyright reasons it wasn't an exact duplicate. Still it was just vaguely close enough that Max got a big grin on his face every time he saw it in all it's magnificence, happy that he had his own 'superhero headquarters' full of it's own super cool secrets.
"Ain't she a beauty? I designed her myself you know." Max spoke as they all passed by a statue modeled after himself. It's pose baring a resemblance to 'The Thinker' but with some noticeable differences. It's back posture was straighter and legs more spread to give it a more 'intimate' energy.
"You have a whole ass building to yourself?"
"No. It's full of company employees. It wouldn't make sense to have such a huge fucking building all to myself." Max approached the front entrance. Standing between the dual sets of double doors was a polished stainless steel pillar that acted as a full body scanner. This, of course, was required as the only people allowed into the building had to already be an employee, let in by someone who worked there by the intercom, or had an appointment.
He approached the device and waited. A flash of blue light waved over his body before the screen mounted on the side of the scanner flashed green with 'ACCESS GRANTED'.
Before it switched to a red 'ACCESS DENIED'.
Without rhyme or rythm the screen flickered between the two, glitching out as static fizzed randomly. Max watched with a hard look and a raised eyebrow, figuring in his head that the scanner had become confused at the prospect that he is in fact Max Barrett but also not quite the one that was in it's registry.
Eventually, thank God, the screen settled on green before a voice sounded from hidden speakers. " Hello, Mr. Barrett, and welcome back."
Max's body became visibly less tense. "Huh, that was weird."
"Does it usually do that?"
Max turned to see Sora standing next to him, the glow of her rather beautiful eyes hypnotizing him for a moment. "No. It's never done that before. Must be from age."
"Aren't there engineers to maintain the building's equipment?"
"Let's go!" Max hurried inside, leaving behind a confused Quarian.
The ground floor of the building proved to be well decorated. A large golden chandelier hung from the center point of the ceiling high above. Famous and iconic statues and other works of art lined the enormous reception area, and a huge red carpet covered the marble flooring, providing a regal like elegance. But most importantly, at the center of the room was a slowly spinning pedestal with a gray and black '69 Mustang Mach 1 sitting on top. It was John Wick's car from the first movie. Max bought it from the studio himself and towed it here on a trailer. The only reason it was here instead of down in Max's personal collection was because it was an automatic instead of a manual. (1)
He even got to meet Keanu Reeves while he was filming John Wick 2.
He and this alternate version of him shared a lot of the same experiences, it would seem.
The receptionist, a pretty thirty year old human woman, sat behind a gorgeous redwood mahogany desk that was carved into a beautifully intricate shape. The woman, Elyn according to her nametag, typed at her holographic computer, eyes never leaving it as Max and co drew near.
"Do you have an appointment?" Her voice was near monotone, almost completely uninterested.
Max smiled. "No."
One of Elyn's brows rose, eyes still focused on the computer. "Name?"
"Max Barrett."
This time she did look up. Her eyes went wide and brows shot halfway up to her hair line. Her face was also looking slightly pale. "Mr. Barrett!"
Max's smile never left his face. "Greetings, Miss Elyn! I'd like you to make the proper calls and set up an meeting between I and the board of directors in two hours time, please."
Elyn shakily brought up her omnitool, casting a weary glance between him and the group of aliens behind him. "O-of course sir!"
"While your at it I'd also like you to open 'The Super Secret Entrance'."
The woman paused for a moment. "Sir?"
"There should be a file on it in your computer there. Just search for it under 'files'."
She deactivated her omnitool and began typing at the computer once more. And true to his word there is a file section labeled "The Super Secret Entrance". She clicked on it
In all the years she has worked as a receptionist at this company she has never seen or even knew there was a door at the end of the room. Especially since it lead to such a big elevator.
"There we are." Max walked in and was quickly followed by his compatriots. The elevator was so large that they all fit inside comfortably with plenty of elbow room. It was well decorated too. The bright red carpet and redwood walls looked nice together. The oil painting of Max in a tailored three piece suit went quite well with it also.
One of the Krogans scoffed at it.
Sigh. Oh well, guess not everyone can appreciate such beautiful art.
He clicked a button on the golden panel. Next to it were the words 'The Collection'.
Somewhere else on Earth...
"What do you mean he's here?"
"Max Barrett, sir. He's here. On Earth."
Lord Terrence Hood, Cheif of Naval Operations and Chairman of the UNSC Security Council, released a sigh before leaning back in his chair. "No wonder the Citadel Council is throwing a tantrum, their new toy is not only out of their reach but also out of their jurisdiction." He knew he made a mistake agreeing to let them take Barrett off Earth the moment he made it. But his hands were tied, the Security Council demanded this course of action "for the sake of peace".
Yeah. Peace. That's why the Citadel Council wanted him so badly. Definitely had nothing to do with his insane level of intelligence.
In hindsight, telling them about the journal was also a bad move.
He had seen and read the damned thing himself, he and only a handful of other people knew of Max Barrett's true intellectual level.
Where ever it is, whoever stole it, he just hopes that it's gone for good. That journal in the wrong hands could spell disaster for the galaxy.
There was a reason it was locked away to never be used in the first place.
Still, how was it stolen? It was the most top secret and heavily guarded object on Earth. Locked away in a vaccuum sealed lockbox, in a preservation room, watched by thousands of trusted guards, in a top secret facility built specifically for it, hundreds of feet underground, and located somewhere in Western America. The only reason he had a chance to see it was because the president of the UEG at the time, Ruth Charet, wanted to see it herself and he just happened to be there at the time for a meeting between the head chairmen of the UEG branches.
But still, who could've stolen the journal? There are a lot of groups out there that have the tactical ability and resources to steal it, but only a few have the connections to not only perform the heist but also to know the journal even exists.
There are only two options.
ONI and Cerberus.
Unfortunately they can't investigate ONI over a hunch born from loosely connected dots. Cerberus on the other hand...
Well, they're a massive interconnected terrorist organization. The possability of them having the journal would just be one of many reasons to look into them.
But besides that, they have absolutely nothing to go on.
God he hates dead ends.
I am far too old for this.
The Collection floor...
"Behold! My collection!" The massive room the doors opened to was filled with...things. Everything between vehicles and various forms of art littered the gigantic room. Nearest to the elevator doors was an old yet near pristine 1991 Harley Davidson Fat Boy, the very one used in Terminator 2, ridden by the T-800 puppet used in the first movie.
It is understandably two of his most prized possessions.
He could hear the Quarians shuffling nervously behind him. "It's not a real robot." Max walked over and lifted an arm, waving it mockingly at them. "See? Completely harmless." He placed the hand gingerly back on the handle bar and manually curled it's fingers around the grip. "It's just a puppet from a movie that was made hundreds of years ago, a decade and a half before I was even born."
Max began walking across the room. Behind him he could hear some of the Krogans making fun of the Quarians for getting antsy over a puppet. As he walked he would point at some of the pieces of his collection and explain what they were. "That's the original Darth Vader suit worn by David Prowse in the original Star Wars trilogy. That's the Allspark prop from the first live action Transformers movie held by Shia LaBeouf. That's the Ark of the Covenant from Indiana Jones. That's the axe from the shining."
He gestured over to a large grouping of black painted vehicles of various shapes and sizes. "That is the entire line of Batmobiles from various Batman movies, TV shows, video games, and comic books. That is the original Kermit the Frog puppet and that next to him is the puppet from the Saw movies. That's the Black Beauty from the Green Hornet. That's the Book of Ra from The Mummy. That's Captain America's shield from the MCU movies, signed by Chris Evans himself. The car from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. The DeLorean from Back to the Future."
Max kept going, and going, and going to the point that it was becoming obnoxious. "That's one of the General Lee's used in Dukes of Hazard." At this point most of his hirees were tuning him out, leaving Sora and a few of her Quarian colleagues to be the only ones who were still listening. "I have a lot of cars. Although their prices range radically, they all hold a special place in my heart." Max explained as he walked past a pristine 1997 Ford F-250 that sat comfortably next to a 2017 Bugatti Veyron. "They all hold equal weight to me, even if they wouldn't to others."
He had to give props where they were do. The maintenance-bots did a fantastic job keeping everything looking nice and shiny and new. Even the things that would degrade easily over time, like the Kermit puppet, looked like it just sewn together today. Eventually, they finally made it to the other end of the collection room.
"So what now, Barrett?"
"Patience." Max lifted a hand causing a panel on the wall to shift open. He placed his palm and fingers flat on the screen before a green light zipped up and down.
"Hand print recognized."
Another panel opened up as a mechanical apparatus extended out. He looked into the end and was momentarily blinded by another green light.
"Iris pattern recognized."
This time a microphone extended. He got close. "Edna Mode." A panel opened up on the ceiling and a mounted turret snapped out, it's barrel pointed at the group behind him. "And guests." The turret retracted back into the ceiling, the hole closing behind it.
"Voice pattern recognized."
One last panel opened revealing a strange circular rubber pad. Max turned to his hirees. "This is to truly authenticate my identity." His skin took it's now familiar red tint as his clothes became near skin tight. He brought up a fist, turned, and launched a haymaker at the pad.
"Fist print recognized. Two thousand seven hundred and fifty one pounds per square inch. G'day, Saxton Hale."
Max's eyes widened. Saxton Hale? Back in his universe it just called him by his real name. Why didn't he think of that?! Damn it! A missed opportunity!
The wall split open, revealing another elevator inside. It was smaller than the other one but they'll all still fit with unfortunately no elbow room. On the top of the rear wall was letters shaped from gold.
'THE REAL SUPER SECRET ENTRANCE'
"Saxton Hale?"
Max turned to give a strange look at the Krogan that spoke. Tadrax Kharak If he remembers correctly. "It's a reference." He gestured over to the panel. "I just put out thirty three thousand and twelve pounds of force in a low-mid-tier punch and that's what you question?"
Tadrax shrugged. "Already heard you were really fuckin' strong. I don't see why I should be surprised."
Max rolled his eyes before stepping onto the elevator. The others followed in before he pressed a button on the golden panel labeled 'The Workplace'. Max smiled as the doors closed and they started moving down. The music you would usually hear on an elevator was, instead, replaced by the Wii theme.
Somehwere else in the galaxy...
Jack Harper flipped through the ancient yet well kept journal. Roughly half of the information it contained was virtually unusable. Most of the reason being that the things inside it were levels of science and technology that, even today, were either still only theoretical or were possible but Cerberus itself wasn't advanced enough to do anything with the information.
Harper sighed before taking a drag from his cigarette. It's long since been noted that there were entire sections of the journal that explained things that theoretically rivaled or even surpassed the Forerunner.
He went to turn a page...
Wait.
There were two pages stuck together.
How had he not noticed that before?
He placed his cigarette on the ash tray sitting near the edge of the table next to his seat. As gently as he could he hooked a nail on the seem between the pages and pulled them apart.
His cybernetic eyes widened as they flew over the page.
Well. This certainly just got interesting.
On the two new full pages were small and various sketches of aliens. Familiar aliens.
Sangheili, Turians, Kig-yar, Krogan, Huragok, Salarian, San'Shyuum, Rachni, Jiralhanae, Hanar, and so many others. There was even a Forerunner construct!
Harper's eyes widened as he realized what this entails.
"He knew."
Max Barrett knew about..all of this back then? He knew about other galactic civilizations and he kept it to himself?
"You continue to impress, Max Barrett."
He noticed something on the bottom of the right page.
' Aliens continued on journal #2593'
There are more journals.
There are more journals. And not just a few but over two thousand .
Harper's jaw tensed as he gulped. He raised a hand and pressed one of the buttons on the holographic screen hovering in front of him. "Miranda, it's time."
Back on Earth...
"Welcome to my laboratory!" Max's arms were spread wide as he made his announcement. "This is where all the magic happens! Everything between the most advanced quantum science the galaxy has ever seen and basic engineering is conducted down here. See that device over there? That's a soon to be fully functioning teleporter that utilizes quantum physics in a way that I could not possibly explain to you in a manner that you'll understand."
He faced his hirees with a big smile. "Down here I am constantly and casually bitch slapping Einstein and a wide range of other scientists in their currently dead faces with my science."
The room they were in was not as big as The Collection room, only about half the size. But judging by those large doors on either wall opposite of eachother this place as a whole was probably far larger. It was also made entirely of a form of a white and non-reflective metal and filled with...well, science things as some of the Krogans would probably describe. The Quarians on the other hand could recognize the uses of several machines at a glance.
"Now," Max turned his gaze to the Krogans of the group as his hands propped themselves on his hips. "I'm sure at least most of you have figured out why you're really here."
One of the Krogans sneered. "The Genophage cannot be cured. It's-"
"It can be cured. I've already devised a way to do it the moment I read about it. But I needed test subjects. Genetic readings. That's where you guys came in."
"I'm not gonna be your fucking guinea pig. I'm not gonna let you stick a fucking needle in me."
Max's smile widened. "I don't need to. That's the beauty of it! Your presence alone was all I needed. Nothing that makes you uncomfortable had to happen because I already have your genetic samples."
The entire group looked between themselves, some of them shrugging to others. This time Sora spoke up. "What do you mean?"
"My technology is superior to anyone's except the Forerunners. Including my scanner tech. I've had all of you scanned the moment you all entered the building. I have the genetic readings of every single one of you down to the most minute detail." He turned and approached a computer terminal. "I have them all right here." His fingers flew over the keyboard, causing a large screen mounted on the wall to flash on. A tab came up, revealing an entree of every member of the assemble behind him. "See?"
Max typed some more. The screen changed and showed off...charts? A wide variety of pages and systems went by before finally settling on a strange looking graph. Lines, waves, numbers, letters, and many other things came and went as Max typed away so rapidly that his fingers seemed to blur from view.
"What is that?"
"That-" Max pointed at the screen full of...things that none of them understood. "-is the Genophage."
"I told you." The same Krogan from before growled as he glared at Max. "It can't be-"
"I'm already partway done." Other screens flashed up for moments at a time before blinking away. "You see, I needed so many of you because of genetic diversity. If I make the cure with the bio scans of just one of you then the cure will be tailored to that specific person. That's how genetics work. Everyone's different even if they're the same species."
The screens were flashing by faster now. " But with the bio scans of ten of you, with an equal number of gender, I can effectively make a cure that is tailored to your entire species." Another computer emerged from the floor along side the first, followed immediately by a second screen. Max was now working both of them at the same time. "If I was a normal biologist I would have needed a hundred or more Krogans to make a maybe cure, more of a vaccine really. Luckily, I am by no means normal. I am the greatest biologist the galaxy has ever seen. It's actually my strongest forte." He gestured down at his body. "For obvious reasons."
"And I'm about to prove it in three."
His typing became more rapid.
"Two."
The screens flew by even faster.
"One.
The screens went green as the words "Cure Made" took over the entirety of their space, accompanied by coloreful confetti.
Max turned around, his face blank. "I just designed a cure for the Genophage," He held up two fingers. ",in less than two minutes." His smile returned. "Now all that has to be done is to make it. Which should take about an hour so...let's check out the firing range!" He joyfully walked through one of the large doors.
The Krogans gawked between eachother as the Quarians shifted awkwardly.
"What the fuck?"
The Firing Range...
Immediately after arriving he could see a wide number of differences between the lab he knew and this one. For example, this version of his lab didn't have anything inspired by Halo or Mass Effect in it. The life sized and fully functioning Gen 1 Mark IV Mjolnir armor, as well as several others, that stood proudly among his set of armors was no where to be seen when he walked by the armory.
"This-" Max began as he hefted a gun that was quite large even in his hands. "-is an M2 Browning. A fifty caliber BEAST of an infantry heavy machine gun." He pulled the slide back and released it. The satisfying mechanical noises it made was orgasmic to his ears. He aimed and pushed the firing lever.
Ten rounds left the barrel in quick succession. As it turns out, modern gunpowder, or at least the version he made, does not degrade over the course of five and a half centuries. This was proven true when every armor-piercing round punched a hole in the three quarter inch, heat treated, armored steel plate at the half way point of the range. Max smiled as he turned to face the others. "It was designed by John Browning in nineteen eighteen for use near the end of World War One and was still in service for the American military for decades to come. As a matter of fact, it's still used today! Although not nearly as much as before, unfortunately. Any questions?"
Kurdon, his roommate from the ship, stepped forward. "Mind if I try it out?"
Max smiled at him, flashing his pearly white teeth as he did. "Take a crack at it!" He held out the gun for the larger reptile.
Kurdon took the Browning and positioned himself next to the ammunition crate that the ammo belt was feeding from. He widened his stance and adjusted his grip before pressing the firing lever.
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG
The Krogan's laughter was completely drowned out by the massive booms of the gun. Max could see that his aim was all over the place. Only the fist two shots actually hit the human shaped target down range, the rest flying in other directions.
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG
Kurdon didn't let up until the crate was empty and his feet was buried under a small mountain of spent shells and unlatched belt links. Thick wisps of smoke released from the over heating barrel like steam from an old western train.
Max took off his auto-noise-dampening earmuffs. "You like it?"
Kurdon bellowed another laugh. "This thing is fucking awesome! Why wasn't I ever told you humans had such fun guns?"
Max smiled before turning to the others. "Would anyone else like to try anything?" He gestured over to the wall covered with gun filled racks. A sign saying 'The Personal Favorites' in gold was bolted to the wall just above the racks.
All the Krogans immediately stepped forward with wide grins. Most apparently already had an eye on some of the guns as they beelined straight for them.
The Quarians on the other hand stayed in place, seemingly aware that his invitation was for the reptiles.
And it was.
Max approached them with a slight bounce in his step. "How about I show the rest of you to the engineering bay?" His giddiness was only just noticeable as he walked over to the entrance. "Come on!" He can leave the Krogans alone, if they need anything then BT will tend to them. Er, the BT of this universe. Damn, he needed to talk to him eventually.
The Engineering Bay...
"Please, take a look around!"
The Quarians wasted no time in spreading through the room, checking out the various gadgets and machines scattered around here and there. Sora and one of the male Quarians, Kaenn'Veen nar Vedin, were the only ones to stay by his side.
"Max?"
"Yes, Sora?"
She paused as she considered her choice of words. "You helped the Krogans the moment we got here."
Max had turned his sight down at her. His eyes portraying that he already knew where the conversation was going. "Yeah?"
"You promised us something of arguably equal value."
"Indeed I did."
Sora shifted in place. Normally she was never this timid but this human, this man, just caused things inside her that she never felt before. Not feelings per se, but definitely something that rode the border. "You promised to fix my species' immune system. I was just wondering exactly when we were going to get to that."
The smile Max gave her made the things inside her squirm even more.
"We'll be getting to that shortly. But first, please-" He put a hand on the small of her back. "-let me show you around! I have no doubt you will love the things I get up to down here!"
Later, The Bioengineering Room...
Max faced his hirees. "This room is quite special." He held up a hand. If someone were to look close enough they would see the tiny hairs on the back shifting. "If you weren't wearing your enviro-suits then you'd feel the downward draft. The air in this room is filtered, bleached, and pasteurized. The air in this room is so sterile and devoid of life at even a microscopic level that Quarians, such as yourselves, can breath in this room without masks."
He pointed up at the various vents at the ceiling. "The air comes in through there," He then pointed at the grated flooring. ", and pulled down through the floor. This creates a constant downward draft that helps keep the sterilization. It also means that unless someone breathes directly into your face then you have nothing to worry about."
He stared at them expectantly. His gaze unfailingly neutral.
Eventually, Sora reached up towards her helmet.
"Sora! What are you doing?!"
Sora didn't take her eyes off the human as she answered. "Taking my mask off."
"You trust him that much?!"
Her eyes bored unflinchingly into his as his ever present smile grew.
"Yes."
The click and hiss of her mask sounded through the room as she removed it. Despite becoming immune to the sent of antibiotics at a young age she could still smell the sterilization in the air. Sora took a deep breath, letting it all fill her lungs. The air wasn't fresh, but it was safe. And that's the important part.
And hopefully soon, it won't matter anymore.
She opened her glowing blue eyes to the sight of Max, her vision unfiltered without the hindrance of her mask.
Soon enough, the others followed her example of trust.
"I'd like to point out-" Max began, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. "-you can only do this in this room. Outside of it you are just as vulnerable as you were before. Fixing your immune system will take more time than curing the Genophage. I will need a few days at the very least."
Later, in the main room...
Max typed away at a computer, his focus entirely occupied by the task at hand. Developing a fix-it for the fucked up Quarian immune system was just as easy as making a cure for the Genophage. The problem was time. Unlike the Krogans, who's quick-acting bodies will fight against and dispel their blight soon after taking the cure, the Quarians need to have their immune system almost completely rewired. And that takes time. As much time, as a matter of fact, as a human. His plan was simple. Create a drug that acted as a permenant enhancement to their failing immunities.
Literally just a vitamin.
A super vitamin yes but that's pretty much all it is.
And of course there's a simple matter of it performing a slight rewrite of some of their genetics but who's he to dispel his genius.
"Why are you helping us?"
Max didn't turn around. Not even at the sound of the Krogan's voice.
"Back in my era," He began. "Cancer truly was a horrible thing. It wasn't like your Genophage where everyone had it, but everyone certainly had a chance to get it. It impacts our loved ones. Makes them sad, some even become suicidal. You see, one day John, my friend and most trusted advisor, came to me. He had tears in his eyes as he told me his mother had cancer. Apparently she had it for some time now and it already progressed to it's terminal stage. She only had a month to live."
Putting the finishing touchs on the Quarian Super Vitamin, he finally turned towards them, looking Sora and Kurdon in the eyes.
"Understand this my friends. I did not cure cancer out of charity. I cured cancer because my one human friend asked me to. Begged me to on his hands and knees as he groveled at my feet."
He could practically feel their realization as their eyes widened.
Kurdon's eyes narrowed. "You're not helping us because you want to."
Max's face remained carefully neutral. "No."
"Then why?"
He could hear the slight negative infliction in Sora's voice. "Now where would the fun be if I just told you, huh? You'll find out when I'm asked during the interview."
"What interview?"
"I'm curing the genophage and solving the Quarian's piss poor immune system. Undoubtedly I will be asked to do a live interview."
His grin could not be possibly wider.
"And the galaxy better be ready, cause I'm about to make my debut."
Subject: Max Barrett (New updated info)
Species: Meta-Human (Previously 'Human')
Age: Physically: 22, Actually: 584
Height: 7' 2" (218.44 cm)
Health: 86/100
Intelligence: Unknown/10 (Max's intelligence allowed him to design a cure for the Genophage and a fix-it for the Quarian immune system in a matter of minutes. A feat of intellectual capability that no other being, save for BT and a few other AI's, have neither the smarts nor the speed to do. The only reasons Max did it himself is because he prefers a more "hands on" approach and he wanted to impress his hirees.)
Strength: Unknown/10
Durability: 20/10
Speed: 15/10
Weaknesses: Bodies of liquid deep enough to drown in. Inner bodily functions are almost as easily prone to damage as a normal human's (i.e. wrong blood type transfusion). Attraction to Sangheili and a fear for Mgalekgolo.
Notes: Die Young is still his guilty pleasure song.
End 4th entry.
(1) In the movie, John Wick, it's said that his 69' Mustang is a Boss 429 but if you look closely it's actually a Mach 1. A Boss 429 is a manual but the Mach 1 used in the movie is an automatic.
