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Disclaimer: I do not own the Warhammer or Mass Effect franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of BioWare, Electronic Arts, Games Workshop, etc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers and publishers. Any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original composers and/or artists. I do not own any art listed in each chapter. Any art listed belongs to it's original artists and/or designers.

Korlus

Imir System

65.185.M3

With the walkways behind them having collapsed, Shepard knew that the only way out of the place was to keep moving forwards. Rifle in hand, he continued to advance, moving up a pair of steps as the others followed behind him. Up above was what he figured was a door that led to the next area.

As he walked upwards, he thought back to Ivan and Vladim's performance. So far, they're doing quite well, he noted analytically. Their xenophobia is something that will have to be taken care of eventually, but beyond that, they're doing quite good. Might have to brush up on a few things that they're struggling on, but that's easy to do. Their weapons, though, are quite powerful. I'll definitely have to find a way to make sure the Alliance gets them, though I'll have to ask Tyrellus if that's possible.

As he advanced up the steps, he heard more mercenaries talking on the comm. "Krogan took down the grid! We're blind and getting hit on all sides! Where are those heavies?!"

"Mercenaries disorganized. Our assault is distracting them," Mordin noted.

"As much as I don't like xenos, I have to agree," Ivan nodded. "The God-Emperor is smiling on us, it seems."

"So it would seem," Vladim added.

As he said this, they came to a door that was on another floor above them. The door, though, was a orange color, rather than red or green. Door bypass time, Shepard thought. Good thing Tali taught me a thing or two about technology.

He was about to get to work when Vladim approached him. "Shepard, with your permission, I would like to get to work on this door. Perhaps by communing with the Machine-Spirit inside, I can get it to open."

"As long as it opens, that's fine by me," Shepard nodded. "Go ahead. If you need help, I can step in."

"Thank you, sir." With that, Vladim walked towards the door and reached into his armored backpack. He pulled out what looked like a datapad, but there were a number of connectors and wires that came from it. "Modified data-slate," he explained. "A Tech-Priest on my homeworld gave me this as a token of her appreciation. She made it for me in case I needed to get past a malfunctioning cogitator."

"That was nice of her."

"She was, though she was being practical in that case too." Taking the leads into his hands, Vladim, with Shepard's help, opened a cover to the circuitry underneath. Connecting the leads, he began to input commands, while whispering something in a language that Shepard didn't understand.

Apparently, whatever he was doing did the trick, as moments later, the door's holographic display turned green. "There," he smiled. "The machine-spirit was willing to allow us to pass through."

"What was that you were whispering?" Shepard asked.

"A Litany of Appeasement. Machine-Spirits can be quite fickle, especially if the machinery they inhabit isn't well maintained. Saying comforting words is good, but you have to combine it with proper maintenance, otherwise the machine-spirit will be quite displeased. Either way, we're through. Remind me to teach you a little High Gothic when we have time."

"You're willing to do that for me?"

"Of course. The God-Emperor has decreed that we are to follow you. If teaching you some High Gothic helps out, then I will be carrying out His decree."

"I see. Let's go."

The door led to another stair well, which they quickly began to move upwards. As they did so, another merc came onto the comm channel they were listening in on. "Krogan on our six! Copy, damnit! Where's Jedore and her personal guard?!"

"They're falling apart," Jack noted.

"Quite fitting, for soldiers devoted only to money," Ivan frowned. "I spit on them, and their irreverence for the God-Emperor. Heretics, the lot of 'em." He spat on the ground moments later, a visible indicator of his contempt for mercenaries. While Vladim didn't say anything, he gave Ivan a look that told him it was time to back off, something the latter agreed to by nodding.

Moving up the steps, they soon found themselves in a larger room that had crates, some kind of fuel storage, some computers, a table, as well as a medi-gel dispenser. From the looks of it, the place had been abandoned in a hurry, with food and drink scattered all over the ground. A door on the other side was present, and it's panel was a nice forest green color.

"Get ready," Shepard told the others. "50 creds say that mercenaries are lined up back there, waiting to shoot us." Once the others had stacked on the door, Shepard sent a command to the door, prompting it to open.

When the door opened, they found a mercenary on their side, but he was so blithely unaware that he was facing away from them. Jack, seeing an opportunity, used a biotic throw and sent the man flying. A rather loud scream came from him as he hurled ass over teakettle into the wall on the other side.

Just then, more mercenaries, hearing that shout, popped out of cover and began firing their weapons at Shepard and the others. Spotting a heavy weapons merc, Vladim fired his rifle at the merc, destroying her weapon, while Mordin set her ablaze with his omni-tool. Nearby, Shepard shot an unshielded merc in the head, while Ivan blasted a merc in half with his Lasgun.

"Move up!" Shepard shouted.

Moving up, the team began moving along a narrow walkway that had a half-wall to their right, which barely concealed a long fall to the ground. Ivan and Vladim, at Shepard's order, were the point men, while Shepard was in the middle, leaving Jack and Mordin to cover the rear. Reaching another room with cover, they spread out and got ready to fight.

Right on cue, several more mercenaries came out of a door up ahead. As they did so, Jedore came in over the comm. "Jedore does not pay for failure. Do your jobs! I want them dead!"

"She'll have to do far better than that," Vladim growled. Spotting a merc, he popped out of cover and sent a pair of rounds at her. Said merc fell over, her blood splattering the ground before her body tumbled over the edge of a walkway and out of sight.

Just as he was about to get back into cover, he felt a zing of pain in his arm. Hissing as he took cover, he looked at his arm to assess the damage. On his exposed right forearm, he saw a long, but thin, streak of blood that was coming from a small hole in his skin. Emperor damnit! He thought. Turning to Shepard, he said, "I'm hit!"

"How bad?" Shepard asked as he gunned down another merc.

"Not bad," Vladim replied. "Small hole in my arm, courtesy of a gunshot. I'll be fine."

"Might be, but I don't want to take chances. Mordin, you're the medical expert in our squad. Make sure Vladim's alright."

Nodding, Mordin fired a suppressive burst before sliding into cover next to Vladim. "May I see?" he asked. A moment later, Vladim showed him the wound.

After examining it for a few seconds, Mordin applied a small amount of medi-gel and said, "Wound not major. Will not affect ability to fight. Your assessment was correct."

"Good to hear," Vladim nodded, smirking as he heard Ivan fire his Lasgun, much to a merc's displeasure if the scream was anything to judge by. Popping out of cover, he fired his Krasnikov, with the round splitting a merc's head in half.

With the mercs being thinned out, the team advanced forwards. More merc chatter came in on the comm. "Concentrate on the krogan charge or we're all dead! Who was the genius that gave them guns?!"

As he moved up, Shepard heard gunfire pepper his kinetic barriers, which popped moments later. Feeling bullets hitting his armor, he ducked back into cover. He was about to call for back-up when Ivan, seeing him under suppressing fire, leaned out and fired his Lasgun four times in a row. Each shot killed a mercenary, with one being blown in half by the steam explosion, courtesy of the water in his own body.

"Thanks!" Shepard shouted.

"You're welcome!" Ivan nodded.

With all of the mercenaries cut down to ribbons, the team moved up towards the door. Spotting a data-pad on the ground, Vladim became quite curious. "Hhmmm," he hummed as he pulled out his data-slate and, after opening up the device, placed the connector leads onto the relevant circuits. "I wonder…"

"What is it?" Shepard asked.

"Just curious is all," Vladim replied. There were a few seconds, then he smiled. "Ah, it has your currency inside. Very interesting."

"We'll take the credits with us," Shepard replied, using his omni-tool to snag the digital currency inside. "Also, I've noticed you've been collecting weapons as we go along; it's a good idea. A scan of those back at the Normandy can help us make better weapons."

"I thought as much," Vladim shrugged. "That is something of a passion of mine. I collect unique weapons, just to keep myself busy."

"It's a good one, though."

"Thank you. I think the God-Emperor has something to do with that."

"Probably. Let's keep moving."

"Agreed. No time to waste."

With that, the team moved towards the door, which led to yet another stairwell that went upwards. "Who designed this wreck of a ship?" Shepard wondered. "A fitness instructor?"

"Nothing wrong with exercise," Mordin added. "Physical fitness improves reflexes, immunological response…"

"Mordin…"

"Apologies, Shepard. Will endeavor to do better."

More comm chatter was audible seconds later. "I paid for competence! Kill the trespassers! I'll deal with the traitorous Okeer!"

"She would die almost instantly in the field of battle where we are from," Ivan frowned. "Her remarks alone would be enough for a Commissar to silence her, or put her into a penal unit. She'd do some good there, if only as a corpse."

"Tell me about it," Shepard nodded. "She pays for competence, but proves to be just as inept as the the mercenaries she hires. I guess Wrex was right: anyone that attacks us is either desperate, or stupid, with us killing the latter doing the Universe a favor."

"Who's Wrex?" Vladim asked.

"An old friend of mine," Shepard. "We'll meet him someday, if necessary."

Reaching the top of the steps, they soon found themselves looking at another room, with cover as well as a partly blocked door. Mercenaries were present in here as well, with a couple sporting tech armor. "Mordin, Ivan, you two are up," Shepard ordered.

"With pleasure," Ivan nodded. Weapon out, he advanced forwards and, taking cover, fired on the merc with tech armor. The tech armor, while good against kinetic weapons, did nothing to protect the merc from the concentrated beam of light, as the man practically exploded.

"OH, SHIT!" one of the mercs shouted. "That guy's got a laser gun! We're fucked!"

"Shut up and shoot 'im!" another shouted. "He can't kill us a -" Moments later, that merc was killed by Ivan, while the other was set ablaze.

More mercs piled in, and Ivan spotted an opportunity. Pulling out a grenade with a long handle, he shouted in Low Gothic, "Frag out!" before pulling the pin and tossing the grenade at the mercs. As he ducked down, he could hear panicked shouting as the mercs scrambled.

Their efforts, though, were too little, too late. There was a loud KA-BOOM as the grenade detonated, sending metal shrapnel flying everywhere. The blast was so powerful that Shepard felt the blast wave even when he was in cover, while he heard pinging sounds as metal shrapnel bounced off of his cover.

The mercs, though, had the worst of it. Four of the six mercenaries were instantly killed by the blast, their bodies and armor shredded by shrapnel designed to pierce through Flak Armour from the 41st millennium. The fifth mercenary was lying on the ground, alive but heavily wounded, while the last one had taken cover in the nick of time, with his only injury being ruptured eardrums.

"Damn!" Jack shouted when she saw the results of the grenade. "I so want one of those now!

"You might get your chance later," Ivan replied. "Hush now! We must continue to do work in the name of the God-Emperor of Mankind! Onward!"

Proceeding forwards, the team moved through the room, which now had a crater in the floor, courtesy of the Frag Grenade. As they advanced, they heard more mercenaries coming in. "Vladim?"

"I've got it," Vladim told Shepard, flicking the fire selector for his rifle. At the same time, he braced himself on his right leg. "They will die." Just as he said this while taking aim, the mercs rounded the corner.

There was a moment of surprise, before Vladim pulled the trigger. The Krasnikov roared as it fired on fully automatic mode. Bullets tore through the air and smashed through the armor the mercenaries wore, cutting each one down. By the time the magazine was empty, all of the mercenaries were sporting holes in their bodies and body armor as they tumbled to the ground. Seconds later, Vladim smoothly reloaded the rifle, before putting it on semi-auto mode once more.

"Nicely done," Shepard remarked.

"Damn!" Jack beamed. "You cut those pussies down! Great job!"

"Many thanks," Vladim nodded. "I was getting tired of those mercenaries. Hopefully, we can find someone that is willing to surrender up ahead. If not, well… it's no skin off my back."

"Agreed," Shepard nodded. "Let's keep moving forwards. Okeer's not gonna come to us by himself." With that, they exited the room, moving along the walkway as they did so.

Nearing the end of said walkway, they came to a bridge that had cover on it, with the bridge leading to a larger room that was on the other side of the bridge. It was clear, though, that the Blue Suns had been fortifying that position, as each of the mercs was in good cover, and had fire support in the form of missile launching mercs.

"I need everyone out of the labs to fight this incursion!" a merc shouted over the comms. "Every floor, every outpost! MOVE!"

"More trouble incoming," Ivan told Shepard. "I think we made them very angry."

"Let them come!" Jack shouted. "I'll kill all of 'em!"

"Stay focused," Shepard chided Jack. "Everyone into cover." Getting into cover, they quickly prepared for a fight.

They were just in time. Moments later, Centurions, the turian members of the mercs, began to come over the bridge, shotguns primed as each one cautiously, but quickly, advanced towards them. Pulling his Laspistol out, Ivan leaned out and, with a good deal of skill, and a slight dose of luck, managed to score a direct hit onto a Centurion's chest.

The turian's chest armor melted, being barely thick enough to protect the wearer. The heat, though, caused the alien to scream loudly, ducking into cover before tearing the armor plating off his body suit. "It burns!" he screamed, writhing in agony as the pain threatened to overwhelm him. "IT BURNS!"

"Just hang in there!" another shouted. "I'll -" Shepard interrupted that Centurion's reply moments later when he fired his rifle. The alien's kinetic barriers failed, before a gunshot from Mordin blasted the alien's head apart.

"No more!" Jedore shouted over the loudspeaker. "I demand that they be killed! What is so hard to understand about that?!"

"Incoming!" Jack shouted. "Legionnaires!" Right on cue, Batarians wearing tech armor came into view, rifles blazing as they fired.

In response, Shepard and the others opened fire. "Ivan!" Vladim shouted, pulling the man into cover just before a missile could hit him. Ivan, seeing that, snarled, before popping out of cover and firing his Lasgun at the merc responsible, cutting her in half with the powerful laser weapon.

Jack, working with Shepard, used a biotic warp to damage the tech armor the Legionnaires wore, forcing them into cover. One went down, though another fired on Jack, scoring a hit on her arm. "Ow! Damnit!" she shouted as she applied medi-gel to the wound.

Vladim, while his shots were controlled, was quite angry with the mercs. Firing his rifle, he gunned down two more before being forced to take cover. Ivan, firing in his stead, blasted two more mercs apart, before gunfire forced him into cover. Still, he whistled calmly before pulling out a Frag Grenade, blindly tossing it towards the mercs as he checked his Lasgun Power Pack's charge. Seeing that it was almost empty, he replaced it with a fresh one, the explosion from the Frag Grenade not even fazing him.

More merc chatter came over the comms again. "What do you mean Jedore's holding the mechs!" a merc shouted. "She'll lose all of her toys if we don't get some backup!" Ignoring it, the others kept on firing.

Eventually, the tide of mercs began to die down, allowing Shepard and the others to move forwards. Moving past some cover, he looked to the left of a small crate, spotting the turian that Ivan had fired on earlier. The turian was in obvious pain, with the carapace on his chest flaking and the flesh there swollen, with the carapace there being a dark blue color. The alien couldn't hold still as well, as he writhed while moaning in pain.

Seeing the team, the turian's eyes went wide. "M-mercy," he pleaded, raising a hand as if to shield himself from a blow. "P-please!"

"Why should I show mercy?" Ivan growled. "Your a damn, filthy xenos, unworthy of any mercy!" He began reaching for his Laspistol to finish the job.

Shepard, though, stepped in. "Let 'im go," he ordered. "He's a defeated enemy. He's not worth killing at this point."

"But I -"

"That's an order, Ivan. You might kill aliens without mercy where you come from, but you're under my command, which means you follow my orders. If you can't follow orders, then you're a liability to the team, and I will not bring you on any missions. Am I understood?"

It was clear that Ivan was struggling with that. On one hand, the part of him that was xenophobic, and had been taught to remain that way, was arguing that he should kill the Xeno, and Shepard's orders be damned. Another part, however, reminded him that he was under Shepard's command by the decree of the God-Emperor of Mankind Himself and that, as such, if he was to spare a Xeno, then he would follow Shepard's orders as though he was the unit's Commissar. As such, the two sides were arguing with each other.

After a few seconds, the latter of the two sides that won out, as Ivan took his hand off of the Laspistol. "If that is what you wish," he strained out, before backing off. "If he tries anything, however…"

"Then you have full permission to kill him," Shepard replied. "Until then, you do not fire on him. We don't execute unarmed prisoners. Not only is there no honor in doing so, doing so would make you no better than them." Leaning in to the turian, he applied some medi-gel and said, "Here, this'll ease the pain and prevent an infection."

The turian, feeling the pain fade away, gasped slightly before a relieved moan came from him. "Thank you," he groaned. "I… I'll never work as a mercenary again. I'll go back to the Hierarchy and re-enlist in the military. Money isn't worth dying over."

"I'm glad you see it that way," Shepard nodded. "You think you can leave on your own?"

"Yes," the turian nodded. "Before you go, what's your name?"

"Shepard."

"Vorenus. And, Shepard? Thank you once again." Getting up, he began to head to where the team had come from, his back hunched over slightly as he walked.

As they turned to leave, Ivan said, "I still think letting him go was a mistake."

"If it was, then we'll deal with it," Shepard replied. As Ivan moved up, he was about to make a note in his omni-tool when Vladim came over. "What is it?" he asked.

"I'll talk with Ivan later," Vladim told him. "His zeal is starting to… get a little out of hand. I think you did right by showing mercy to a defeated foe. That turian didn't want to fight anymore; I could see it in his eyes."

"You support my decision?"

"I do. I still remember the God-Emperor's commands, and they still echo in my mind. The problem, though, is that Ivan is still obeying his training when it comes to xenos, something that, I must admit, I've been struggling with as well."

"I see. Perhaps when this mission is over, we can have a sit-down and talk to each other about it. Talking about something uncomfortable helps when you're trying to overcome it."

"That I can agree on from personal experience. I didn't talk for a while about my cybernetics because it was uncomfortable. It was my father that helped me overcome that."

"Very true. Now let's go, we have a mission to do."

With that, they proceeded forwards. "Getting another burst of merc chatter," Vladim reported.

A moment later, they all heard it. "Concentrate fire on my position!" a merc shouted. "Concentrate fire on – AAAGGGHHHHH!" A moment later, the comm fell silent.

"Well, he did say fire on his position," Shepard shrugged.

"That he did," Vladim agreed.

Moving up, the team passed through a door, where they found themselves in an open space. A large deck moved along for quite some distance, with a path to the left up ahead indicating another means to continue that way. In addition, the sun was visible, though the sky was a white-yellow color, like milk that had curdled.

As they advanced forwards, Jedore came over the loudspeaker yet again. "There are only three of them!" she raged. "Three! Anything can be killed if you do your damned jobs!"

"Jedore!" another merc shouted. "Damnit! Someone get her off the speakers and get her over here!"

"HAH!" Jack laughed. "The pussies are finally tired of their bitch-ass leader! That's comedy gold!"

"I think your definition of comedy gold is different from mine," Shepard frowned. Looking at Ivan and Vladim, he asked, "What about you two?"

"I wouldn't know," Vladim shrugged.

"Really? That's a shame. Say, how's your ammo doing?"

"I've got four more magazines left. I'll have to use my pistol before long."

"OK."

"More scum incoming!" Ivan shouted, firing his Lasgun at some mercs, killing one while forcing the rest into cover.

Pulling out his Makarov III Combi-Pistol, Vladim took cover before using the secondary trigger on the weapon. Another powerful laser beam cut through the air, killing a merc via a headshot while the others ducked into cover. When they came out of cover to fire, he fired the ballistic portion, killing one with a few gunshots to the chest before he ducked down to take cover.

Taking this moment to act, Shepard and the others fired, gunning down the remaining mercs before they pushed up. Continuing forwards, they neutralized any hostiles that came their way, before proceeding to the other side. Thankfully, it appeared as though the merc's earlier push had depleted their forces, as the area up ahead was, mercifully, empty of foes. Reaching another door, they stacked up before moving inside.

The room ahead was some kind of makeshift medical ward, as there was a desk on the far corner, some medical implements, as well as some cots and medical supplies. The body of a krogan was lying on one of the cots, though it was clear that he was already dead, while charred skeleton of another humanoid was on another cot.

The corpse wasn't the only thing in the room though. As soon as they entered, Shepard spotted a woman in the back that had blue colored skin, and a tentacle crest on the back of her head. Her uniform identified her as a doctor, but it was her voice that indicated who this was. "Don't shoot, Shepard! The woman pleaded. "You know me!"

"Who's this?" Vladim asked.

"Rana Thanoptis," Shepard replied. "She was an Asari I found at Saren's base back at Virmire. I let her go, but why's she here?"

Rana, not hearing Shepard, said, "I shut down the security cams as soon as I saw that it was you. Never thought I'd say it, but I'm glad it's you shooting up the place." Realizing she was rambling, she said, "I'm sorry. Rana Thanoptis. You let me go when you destroyed Saren's lab on Virmire. Had to outrun a nuke in a utility pod, but it's still a second chance."

"I don't remember that," Shepard replied, though he knew full well that he remembered. "Probably best if you were in Saren's lab."

"Yeah, I'm not proud of what went on there either," Rana shrugged, "but I'm using what I learned for the greater good. Not for the mercs. Jedore's on a standard power trip, but Okeer's trying to do good. I can tell, even if his methods are a little… extreme." She glanced at the charred corpse as she said this. "Everyone deserves a second chance, right? And sometimes giving one pays off. I take care of my debts."

"What's Okeer trying to do here?"

"It's… complicated. Jedore wants a private army, but Okeer mostly ignores her. He's running the project for his own personal reasons. I created a mental imprint routine to educate his tank bred, but most don't get through it. He dumps them for some reason. He wants to help his people, but he's not looking for a Genophage cure, and he's not doing it for numbers. That's all I know."

"I see," Shepard nodded. Frowning at her, he said, "Finding you in a place like this makes me think I made a mistake letting you go. You don't want that."

"We agree on that," Rana nodded. "Don't worry. I plan on staying as far away from anything to do with you as possible. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to run like hell before you blow the place or something. I know how you work." With that, she left.

Mordin, though, didn't like that decision on Shepard's part. "Should have killed her," he argued. "Too much knowledge without ethical boundaries."

"I could always shoot her with my Laspistol," Ivan suggested. "Looking at her made me feel… uneasy. Like she was a psyker or something."

"Ivan…" Shepard frowned.

"Alright, Shepard. You made your case clear with last time." Still, he looked at Rana with a dirty glare as she left his line of sight. Damn xeno's going to try something traitorous someday, he thought. I can feel it.

After checking the room for anything useful, they proceeded through the door. This time, they found themselves in another large room, with medical equipment everywhere. What had Shepard's attention, though, was the large tank to his right, and the krogan that was tending to it. That krogan's head plate was dark brown, almost black, while his olive scaled skin had scars from battles long since fought. His eyes, though, shone with a vitality and experience few of his kind had.

"Here you are," he stated, his voice deep and commanding. "I've been watching your progress, and it's about time you came. The batteries on these tanks will not wait while you play with those idiotic mercs."

"I take it you're Okeer?" Shepard asked. "You don't seem particularly caged… or grateful that I'm here."

"You may claim to be here to help, but the formerly deceased Shepard is not a sign of gentle change," Okeer replied. Noting Shepard's stance, he asked, "Surprised? All krogan should know you. I am sure that Rana has already revisited your actions on Virmire."

"I'll bet your eager to retell the tale," Shepard dryly remarked.

Okeer, nodding, spread his arms while approaching Shepard and said, "Such a tale! Saren, the Spectre traitor, threatens the return of the krogan horde by curing the Genophage, undoing the gentle genocide of the Turians and Salarians. But before Saren can deliver his endless troops, in rides Shepard, securing victory through nuclear fire! I like that part. It carries weight."

"You destroyed a facility with a nuclear weapon?" Ivan asked. "By the God-Emperor. That is quite the tale, Shepard."

"I didn't have a lot of room for finesse," Shepard replied. "If there'd been any other solution, I'd have considered it."

"Ah, but I approve," Okeer added. "Saren's pale horde were not true krogan. Numbers alone are nothing. The mistake of an outsider, one that these mercenaries have also made." Walking towards the window set into the wall, which showed a large room filled with cloning tanks, he said, "I gave their leader my rejects for her army, but she grows impatient. It is time for you to take me out of here."

"Personal issues irrelevant," Mordin remarked. "Here for the Collectors."

Okeer, hearing that, turned around and said, "I see. Yes, Collector attacks have increased. A Human concern. My requests were focused elsewhere." Walking towards the tank, through which the silhouette of a krogan was visible, he said, "I acquired the knowledge to create one perfect soldier. With that, I will inflict upon the Genophage the greatest insult an enemy can be offered: to be ignored."

"Your search for the perfect soldier created a lot of failures," Shepard noted. "You don't care about them?"

"I failed no one. My rejects are exactly what Jedore asked for. She simply lacks the ability to command. They are strong, healthy, and useless to me. I need perfection. If a few thousand are rejected, then so be it. My work will purify the krogan. We will not be restored – we will be renewed."

"I thought the Krogan ideal was the return to numbers that threatened the galaxy."

"We will not need numbers. My soldier is a template. It is a greater threat than all of the phantom siblings that would've stood by it's side. The galaxy still bears scars of the horde, but it will learn to fear the lance."

"By the God-Emperor," Ivan whispered to Vladim. "He's trying to emulate the God-Emperor in what He did to create the Primarchs!"

"I know," Vladim replied. "I don't know if I should be amused by an old fool's attempts at doing so, or worried that he's actually succeeding."

Shepard, who was getting the same vibe, said, "You're just as cruel and manipulative as those who unleashed the Genophage on your people."

Okeer, hearing this, started to have the side of him that was still good come out some more. "Perhaps, but I will restore the krogan, and my soldier will not provoke a nuclear response as a 'cure' or 'horde' would. My legacy is perfection, with each pure krogan reaching higher by standing on our dead. They will exceed, but not forget."

"I see. What did you get from the Collectors. I need to know everything you know about them."

"They are strange. Isolated, yet readily available when your sacrifice is big enough. I gave them many krogan. I may have information for you, but the tech was consumed in my prototype, after I determined how to use it without killing the subjects. The deaths were… unfortunate, but I only needed one success to start the process."

"So you don't want to cure the Genophage?"

"Contrary to what survivors claim, the Genophage does not produce strong krogan – the only quality it filters is the ability to survive the Genophage. For every thousand stillborn, too many weaklings live. Every survivor is branded as 'precious.' That has produced more coddling than your collective human teats. I say, let us carry the Genophage! Let a thousand die in a clutch. We will defeat it by climbing atop our dead. That is the krogan way."

I see, Shepard thought. There's someone in there, but he's used some extreme methods. Still, he can deconstruct a threat. "Your methods are extreme, but you know how to deconstruct a threat. Can you help us?"

"Perhaps I can strike a deal to secure passage," Okeer agreed. "But my prototype is not negotiable. It is the key to my legacy."

He was about to continue when the PA clicked on. "Attention!" Jedore shouted. "I have traced the krogan release. Okeer, of course. I'm calling blank slate on this project. Gas these commandos and start over from Okeer's data. Flush the tanks!"

As she said this, valves began to open, with gas hissing from them. Despite his calm body language, Okeer's expression was nothing short of livid. "She's that weak willed?!" he snarled. "She'll kill my legacy with a damned valve!" Turning to Shepard, he said, "Shepard! You want information on the Collectors? Stop her! She'll try to access contaminants in the storage bay!"

"You could just start over, like she plans to," Shepard suggested sarcastically. "What's the big deal?"

"This tank is pure," Okeer explained, though a note of desperation could be heard in his voice. "It involved as much trial as data; starting over will not duplicate it. It must survive. Jedore will be with the rejected tanks. Kill her. I will… stay, and do what must be done."

"I can appreciate loyalty and devotion," Vladim nodded, "even if it is misplaced."

"Let's go," Shepard remarked. "Time to kill that bitch." With that, they proceeded out of the door and, moving down some steps, entered the chamber with the tanks.

"I don't care who they are!" Jedore shouted when they entered. "I want them dead! This is my world! I'll poison them all!"

"Can we shut that bitch up now?" Jack asked.

"Yes," Shepard nodded. "Ivan, Vladim, she's all yours. We'll handle any big guns she has."

"Thank the God-Emperor for small mercies," Ivan beamed. "I really wanted to shut that bitch up!"

"We get to do it, as Kray Mirans and Guardsmen," Vladim nodded in agreement. Before he left, he pulled out a smaller, round grenade and handed it to Shepard. "Here, take this."

"What is it?"

"Krak Grenade, Shepard. If any mechs come along, pull the pin and throw this at them. You have to be precise, though; the blast radius is only half that of a Frag Grenade."

"Got it," Shepard nodded.

With that, the team split up, with Ivan and Vladim moving towards Jedore, while Shepard and the others fired on any krogan that came out of the tanks. "I rule here!" Jedore shouted. "You will not -"

"Shut up, traitor!" Ivan shouted, firing his Lasgun at Jedore. While the beam didn't kill her, it compromised her armor plating, with the woman grunting as the beam melted her armor off. Vladim, taking the opportunity, fired his Krasnikov.

This time, his rifle had an effect, with the bullets punching through Jedore's armor and into her body. Blood came out of her mouth as she choked on the stuff, with her own blood leaking into her lungs. Ivan fired again, this time, blowing her in half when the blood inside her torso flash-vaporized, though her armor kept her relatively intact on the outside.

Nearby, Shepard and the others were firing on a krogan when they heard mechanical footsteps approaching them. "Shit!" Jack shouted. "YMIR!"

At that moment, Shepard remembered that he had the Krak Grenades that Vladim gave him. Pulling one out, he shouted, "Grenade!" before pulling the pin and hurling it at the YMIR. A moment later, he took cover.

There was a loud WOMP-BANG as the Krak Grenade detonated. While the blast radius wasn't wide, the anti-tank grenade had the desired effect. The armor plating on the YMIR was shattered by the focused blast, sending shrapnel flying everywhere. A moment later, the blast, despite not being very wide, destroyed the power supply for the YMIR, causing it to explode seconds later.

"Well," Jack remarked. "That was easy."

"Portable anti-tank grenades," Mordin noted. "Very useful."

Just as he said this, alarms began to blare. "EDI?" Shepard asked.

"Shepard, the lab alarms coincided with a systems failure," EDI informed him. "The remaining lab systems are unprotected, and I have gained access. According to lab scanners, the room is flooded with toxins, and Okeer's personal life signs are fading. I recommend haste."

"Got it," Shepard replied. "Double time it, people!"

With that, they raced back to the lab, while an automated system warned of contamination in the lab, while activating purging protocols. By the time they reached the lab, though, it was too late. Okeer was lying on the ground, his face a mask of agony, but also that of triumph.

Looking at the monitor in the lab, Shepard saw a message that Okeer had recorded, even as he slumped to the floor in agony. "You gave me time, Shepard. If I knew why the Collectors were attacking Humans, I would have told you. But everything is in my prototype." A hacking cough interrupted him as blood began to come out of his mouth. "My legacy is pure – HHRRKK! This… one soldier. This – AAAAGGGHHHH! Grunt… Perfect. I – HAAAAAAAAGGGRRRHHHHHH!" A moment later, he collapsed to the ground, his final moments spent in both triumph, and agony.

Despite the fact that he knew Okeer was a bad person, Shepard couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He died ensuring that his legacy could live on, he thought. That has to be something worthy of admiration. Walking to the tank, he looked inside.

Jack, who was walking closer, was also curious. "He killed how many… but vented all the tanks into the room to save this one?"

"Devotion and faith can motivate a man into dying for his cause," Vladim explained to her. "In the Imperium, thousands die fighting so that the Imperium can live for just one more day. I don't approve of his methods, but I understand his devotion to saving his people."

"So can I," Shepard nodded.

"Delusional," Mordin remarked. "Unlikely one krogan, however strong, could have impact Okeer wanted. Am… almost certain."

"Afraid he'll make your Genophage obsolete?" Shepard asked.

"No," Mordin replied, "but krogan genetically dangerous. Socially dangerous as well. Have enough enemies without adding this."

"I think we can handle a rowdy xenos," Ivan countered. "Besides, we have a Space Marine with us. One Space Marine is worth thousands of these krogan."

"Maybe," Shepard shrugged. Keying his comm, he said, "Normandy, Okeer is a no-go, but we have a package that needs retrieval." Looking at the tank one more time, he said, "And it's a big one."