AN: Sorry about slow updates everyone. Writer's block plus an unrelenting amount of insomnia has made it hard to do anything recently. I'm working on pushing through it though.
The Final Olympian
Chapter 4
-Anderson-
"Anderson, come with me." Udina didn't even bother saying hello as the ever-irritable Ambassador entered the office, gesturing for the retired Captain to follow.
"What happened? Is it something to do with the hunt for Saren?" he demanded as he followed, noting Udina was heading towards the Council tower.
"I don't know." Udina scowled, "The Council have yet to inform me of the reason behind the summons, just that I was to bring you to them. Admiral Hackett is supposed to be joining through hologram." Frowning, and getting a feeling as to what this was about, Anderson followed in silence, noting the heightened Turian security around the tower.
"Strange." Udina muttered as they finally got into the elevator going up, "Not used to seeing such a Turian heavy presence around the tower security."
"I…have a feeling as to what this is about." Anderson sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "I was trying to keep it quiet to avoid leaks but an old of friend of mine joined Sheppard's crew to help with the mission."
"An old friend?" Udina looked at him incredulous "What sort of friend could warrant a response like this?"
"Jackson." He deadpanned as Udina's eye twitched.
"And you didn't consider this a possibility?" the Ambassador grit his teeth, his irritation at least understandable for once.
"I'd rather hoped that the Turians would have gotten over it by now." Anderson sighed as they got to the council chamber and continued onward, noting four figures, rather than three, on the Council dais as well as Hackett on the holo projector.
"Ooooh, here we go." Udina muttered under his breath as they approached the dais, noting the fourth figure is a Turian in high-ranking regalia.
"Ah, Captain Anderson, thank you for joining us." The Asari Councilor Tevos nodded, as if his presence had been a request and not an order "My colleagues wished to speak to you and Admiral Hackett about something."
"Yes," the extra Turian spoke up, eyes narrowed at Anderson "about an…associate of yours. What was Perseus Jackson doing back in Council Space? And having apparently gone through genetic modification to slow his aging?"
"Good to know things such as people's right to privacy aren't a concern." Anderson rolled his eyes, "That was a private conversation and you've yet to even say who the hell you are."
"Fedorian, Primarch of Palaven." The fourth Turian stated, clearly expecting Anderson to be cowed.
"And where does that give you the right to a conversation that was spoken on an Alliance docking bay? You aren't part of the Council; you aren't part of Citadel security. The way I see it, that right there is a violation of privacy."
"As…blunt as my colleague is, he is right." Udina stepped forward, the politician ever looking for an opening to take advantage of. "The Council does admittedly have the right to the Citadel Security feeds but listening in on matters such as that are only meant to be used in case of concern over a legitimate threat. And they're especially not meant to be shared with any politician who happens to have a friend in a council seat."
"I believe we all need to take a moment to calm down here." Tevos stepped in, Anderson having noted she seemed to be the one used to playing compromiser and mediator.
"Especially as the Captain is attempting to dodge the issue." The Turian Councilor Sparatus scoffed.
"I'm pointing out that Primarch or not, he has no legal right to the details of that conversation." Anderson shot back. He'd already been forced into early retirement, forced to relinquish his ship. He wasn't about to let these xenophobic pricks run roughshod over his old friend.
"Yes, I understand that the Turian Meritocracy has several issues with Perseus Jackson from his period in the Alliance Military in the First Contact War." Udina shook his head, "But I fail to see how that is relevant to him being part of a questioning about an Alliance Citizen being present on an Alliance vessel."
"First Contact War." Fedorian scoffed, "Quite the gall to refer to Relay 314 Incident as a full-scale War ambassador. But I shouldn't be surprised at humans looking to label anything as militaristic."
"Primarch." Tevos warned softly only for Hackett to finally speak up.
"I'd watch your words Fedorian." The reigning Admiral of the Alliance Fleet gave a hard stare to the Turian Politician "As much as you enjoy painting Humanity as war hungry aggressors, it was the Turians who fired first that day. Humanity may have our flaws, but we look after our own. And I won't stand here and let you bend and twist a conversation you had no right to even hear to try and punish someone for defending his people. But if you must know, the procedure that froze Perseus Jackson back in the Twenty First century slowed his aging, a fact he did not discover until after the war. That said, I do hope there will be a proper investigation on this apparent leak of confidential matters if just anyone can access restricted information they shouldn't have."
"We will handle the matter." Tevos gave a promise that was perfectly vague enough to be non-committal. Taking the dismissal for what it was, Hackett vanished off the holo while Anderson and Udina went back down the elevator. Anderson couldn't stop smirking all the while.
-Wrex-
"Clear!" Wrex called out as the aperture outside the dig site finally fell, it and all the damned cloaking Geth having been a royal pain in his ass.
"How the hell did a machine bend like that?" Jackson questioned as he picked up the remains of one of the Geth that had been bouncing from wall to wall, sticking to each surface for a good sniping Angle. It was mostly intact, apart from the hole through it's 'face' from Jackson's biotic lance.
"No idea." Sheppard grunted as he checked his sniper rifle, "But the Geth have had centuries to self-modify and evolve. Who knows what they were able to whip up with that much time to kill and the processing power of an AI to do it."
"There's a pleasant thought." Wrex grunted, rolling his neck as he observed the two humans he'd come here with. Jackson was dangerous, he'd known that since he heard of him during that Rachni Relay incident. A single soldier having a kill count that almost equaled the rest of his military combined was something that got attention. The guy vanishing afterwards had been quite the surprise too, although if he was being honest he'd just assumed the Turians had sent an assassin after him.
Then there was Sheppard. The man had held of an entire pirate army Singlehandedly using nothing but raw grit, some tech, and a few guns. The Soldier was one of the better Snipers Wrex had worked with in his years as a Mercenary.
Either of them could easily earn the rank of Battle Master if they were Krogan which was a sobering thought in and of itself.
"Alright, let's get in, find Dr. T'soni, and get out." Sheppard ordered as they made their way into the subterranean ruins.
"I hate fighting underground." Jackson grumbled as they descended the metal entranceway "I have to hold back too much. At least Backlash won't be an issue. I'll take point. Sheppard, think you can handle sniping without hitting me in the head?"
"I think I'll manage." Sheppard rolled his eyes as they entered, the sound of metal footsteps carrying up to them.
"Not surprised they already know we're here." Wrex grunted, "Damned AI's sharing a network."
"I'm guessing an EMP wouldn't work?" Jackson cracked his neck, sighing at Wrex's silent headshake, the two of them staying put so Sheppard could get a clean shot at the Geth coming their way. "Of course not." Jackson grumbled, "When is life ever easy?"
"When you're dead, and only if you're lucky." Wrex chuckled amused as the humans rolled their eyes, Sheppard pulling the trigger to blow the head off the first Geth to round the corner.
"If you two are quite done, we have work to do." Sheppard rolled his eyes, getting off two more shots before his rifle overheated and he had to switch to an assault riffle, the three of them letting loose a hail of bullets as the Geth tried to swarm towards them in the cramped tunnel.
"Like fish in a barrel." Sheppard nodded, Jackson rolling his eyes at the expression for some reason.
"That should hopefully be all of them in the immediate area." Jackson grunted, readying a biotic Backlash shield just in case as they pressed onward, taking an elevator down to where Wrex could see the glow of some sort of active energy field.
"Hello!" the frantic high-pitched voice calling out as the elevator lowered down was probably the Asari they were coming to collect, "Is anyone out there?! I need help!"
"Quiet!" Sheppard hissed as they got close "We don't need to draw the Geth even closer here."
"Right, you're right I'm sorry." The Asari was taking deep shaky breaths as Sheppard spoke to her, Jackson turning to make sure nobody snuck up from behind, "Listen, this thing I'm inside is a Prothean Security device. I can't move to turn it off, so you'll need to find another way around to get me out of it."
"Her mother is working with Saren." Wrex grunted as he eyed the girl suspiciously "How do we know what side she's on?"
"Side?!" the Asari looked incredulous "I'm not on anyone's 'side'. I don't know what she has done but Benezia and I are nothing alike, we haven't even spoken in years! Please, just get me out of here I beg of you!"
"How did you even end up in there to begin with?" Sheppard frowned as he inspected the barrier, looking for any signs of weakness he could use to gain entry.
"I was exploring the ruins when the Geth showed up." Dr. T'soni sounded embarrassed as she admitted what happened "And so I hid in here. I thought it would keep me safe, not keep me trapped. I still can't even believe they're here. Geth! Outside the Veil!" The doctor shook her head "Never mind, listen, the only way to shut this energy field off is through the control panel behind me. The barrier itself is impenetrable though."
"I see an old mining laser down there." Jackson nodded to the lower level "We could blast our way through the rock and then go up."
"Yes…yes that could work." The Doctor seemed to get some spark back in her eyes at the potential to get out of the bubble she was in "But be careful. There's a Krogan with the Geth, he seems to be leading them."
"Got it." Sheppard nodded, "Alright, I'll get the Mining Laser going. You two, cover me."
"On it." Wrex grinned, eager for the chance to do the universe a favor and kill any Krogan stupid enough to work for Saren. Seeing more Geth popping up to try and stop the activation of the laser, Wrex grinned wider. If nothing else, Sheppard made sure things never got boring!
