I own neither Mass effect nor AvP.
Sorry for the late update. Real-life got very busy, I had a case of writer's block, and the Covid situation didn't help.
Anyway, I jut got back to playing ME1, now that I have the legendary Edition. I have to say, I'm quite pleased with it. No more endless elevator rides, for one thing. And to me, the new graphics are a definite improvement. Sure, the old dark, rather gloomy look of a lot of scenes added to the atmosphere, but there were also moments that I was peering at my screen, trying to figure out, exactly what I was seeing in the background and it's nice to be able to see what's going on.
The gameplay, well, for me it's a bit hit-and-miss. The cooldown mechanic on the weapons in ME1 has definitely improved from the original. I can now use an automatic weapon to, you know, actually firing bursts, without it overheating on me again and again. the improved accuracy is also a real benefit. between these two aspects, I think the soldier-class has become a lot more enjoyable. The cover system. Well, it's better than it used to be, but for me, it I'm still not a fan. Your character still "sticks" to cover and you need to step back from it to "unstick" which can be awkward if an enemy appears behind you. Similarly, the MAKO is definitely easier to handle, but still far from perfect.
Still, I'm glad I spent the money. If nothing else, this has definitely given me motivation, to push myself to update this story again on a regular basis.
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Feros, former Exogeni HQ
"Dr Baynham, so good to see you again." Shepard smiled as she pulled the scientist up into the parking lot. "Tell me, is there something that you would like to discuss before we go back and talk to the rest of your colleagues about Exogeni's little freak-show?"
"You know then?" Lizbeth Baynham said. "About the Thorian, what it really is."
"Hardly. From what I could tell, you don't even know what it is yourself. But that didn't stop Exogeni from turning a human colony into an involuntary group of lab rats." Shepard's smile had disappeared. "So start talking, doctor. Quickly. Because I'm about to lose my temper, and you don't want to have that directed at you."
"Alright. Where do I..." Baynham thought for a moment. "It started shortly after we had landed. The colonists were behaving strangely. Not too much out of it, but they were becoming vague. Work was delayed, projects that were started were never finished. We double-checked and realized whatever was happening was not affecting us, so we investigated. We managed to get a couple of blood samples."
"I suppose I shouldn't ask how," Shepard said.
"That would probably be better, yes. In any case, when we ran tests on the blood samples, we found traces of some sort of plant spores. That's when we started investigating and found out about the Thorian. It lives underneath the colony. Or, at least, part of it does. We still don't know just how big it actually is."
"And it uses those spores to control people?"
"In a way. At first, we thought it was a defense mechanism, that the spores just made people harmless. And that is partially true. They contain biochemical compounds that make a person less mentally resistant, even to the point of hallucinating, like injecting them with Hyoscine or Amobarbital or something like that. It was one of the first things Exogeni wanted to study. There are real pharmaceutical possibilities here. Then we realized that there was more going on. The colonists were not just staggering about in a drugged haze. They were actively controlled, at least to the point that they were taking measures to keep the Thorian hidden. That indicates that the Thorian itself is intelligent in a way. The spores act as receivers for whatever signal the Thorian is transmitting and translate it into a chemical impulse that controls the brain of the host."
"And Exogeni thought it was a good idea to just sit back and watch this horror show play out."
"Yes." Lizbeth Baynham looked away. "We had strict orders not to intervene. It was for our own safety, they said, to avoid contamination. "But-" She shook her head. "I talked to administrator Jeong, told him that we had to stop, get these people medical help. The thorian seems to be keeping them alive and reasonably healthy, but this has to stop."
Shepard snorted. "Let me guess; he wasn't too pleased."
"That's an understatement. I was placed on probation, my own work suspended, while I had to do make-work and file endless reports. When the geth came, I stayed behind to secure the data. I thought I'd have a chance to get the word out, contact the USM authorities. But the geth jammed all signals. And I ended up trapped here."
"Right. No wonder Jeong was so eager to write you off. Having you killed by the geth would have solved a lot of problems for him. How much do the rest of Exogeni's team know? Are they all aware of what's going on?"
"I don't know. They must know that something is wrong, but they may not know the full details. Jeong locked down the files the moment we realized what was going on."
"And I suppose nobody asked further questions. An organization like Exogeni probably does not encourage curiosity in its employees."
"Not really, no. At least, not curiosity of the non-scientific kind."
"Right. Well, it's time to show that ignorance isn't bliss. We're going to drive back, and then we're going to have a little discussion with Jeong."
-0-0-0-
USM Normandy, Zhu's Hope dock
"Lieutenant Alenko?" 'Joker' Moreaux's voice came over the speaker. "I thought you'd want to know that we have re-established communications with United Systems HQ."
"Good!" Kaiden breathed a little easier. "I have a sit-rep uploaded in the queue and ready for transmission. Send it and include a xenomorph alert, then stand by for the response."
"Right away."
"We will wait for either new orders from fleet command or the commander's return, whichever happens first. Maintain a close watch on the colony. If the colonists move as much as a millimeter toward us, I want to know."
"You got it, LT."
The intercom fell silent and Kaiden looked around the briefing room. "One problem solved. Doctor, how is your patient doing?"
Dr Chakwas shrugged. "I can tell you that if you can tell met the expected recovery rate for a young-adult female quarian, Lieutenant. Her vital signs are stable, the fever is down, and the wound is healing pretty much as I would expect for any individual, irrespective of species, other than a Krogan. The question is whether having her suit breach will have long-term repercussions. So far there is no sign of sepsis, but we don't have enough data about quarians that I can give you any guarantees. All I can do is monitor her condition and be ready to interfere if there is a change for the worst."
"I understand. Just let me know if there is any change." Kaiden stood up. "I think that's it, everyone. Right now, all we can do is stay vigilant and wait."
-0-0-0-
Feros, Exogeni hide-out
"You cannot do this Jeong!"
"Everybody..., everybody shut up! I need to think."
The Exogeni people were shouting again, and Shepard could hear Jeong's whining voice. Kneeling on the ramp, just outside the light from the room, she could get a clear view. It was not looking good.
Administrator Jeong and Dr Baynham Sr had clearly reached the end of their tether and were laying into each other. Normally, Shepard would have found it entertaining, but there was a troubling detail. She looked over her shoulder.
"Dr Baynham, before you go down there, please note. What is administrator Jeong holding?"
"A gun, but why-"
"And how is he holding it? Is it at his side, pointed at the ground?"
"No, but-" Lizbeth Baynham fell silent, realisation dawning in her eyes. "He is... he is waving it around," she said slowly. "And he seems to be... agitated, out of control."
"Indeed, he does." Shepard nodded. "Thank you, doctor. I'm so glad we agree — terrible firearms discipline. Mr Jeong is a danger to himself and others. That cannot be allowed to continue."
"You won't get away with this." Juliana Baynham was still trying to convince Jeong of something, but it was a lost cause.
"Get her out of here!" One of Exogeni's security people grabbed the scientist and dragged her back.
"Get away from her you son-of-a-bitch!" Without warning, Lizbeth stormed into the room. Shepard rolled her eyes. This was going to be even messier than she had thought.
The reaction to Dr Baynham Jr's sudden appearance was mixed. Mostly astonishment, elation (from her mother) and a mix between horror and rage from Jeong.
"Dammit! I- You- Come out! Come out where I can see you! All of you!"
Shepard sighed. This was not going to end well. She stood up and walked into the room.
"Shepard!" The disgust in Jeong's voice was clear. "I knew it was too much to hope the geth would finish you off. I know all about you, Shepard. About Torfan and everything. It's all in the Exogeni database. But this doesn't have to end like that. There is no need for this to get bloody."
"But I liked it when things get bloody." Shepard smiled. This was one of the few benefits of her reputation. No matter how insane she sounded, people always believed she meant it. "So, tell me, what exactly do you think you're doing?"
"Communications are back up. I talked to my bosses. They want this place purged."
"Purged?!" Lizbeth Baynham gasped in outrage. "This is a human colony! You cannot just re-purpose us."
"A human colony?" Jeong laughed. "It's so much more than that. You cannot even grasp what- There are things here that are far more valuable than a few colonists."
"Let me guess," Shepard said. "The thorian."
"The what?" Dr Baynham Sr was clearly not fully up to date on the situation.
"It's..." her daughter hesitated. "It's a telepathic life-form underneath Zhu's Hope. It has taken over the minds of the colonists." Her outrage levels seem to rise as she talked. "Exogeni knew. They were studying the colonists-"
"What?" The elder Dr Baynham looked at Jeong in rising horror. "You cannot.. You're not going to get away with this, Jeong."
"You keep saying that," Jeong shrugged, he seemed to have regained his composure. "But the truth is-
"See, this is where things tend to get bloody." Shepard took a step forward, her eyes fixed on Jeong's face. "I'm a Marine, Jeong. And you know something about Marines? We don't like corporations all that much. Especially corporations that create a mess that we have to clean up. That hasn't worked out so well for us in the past. This end's here and now.
"If that- If that's how it has to be-" Jeong was veering back toward hysteria. As he turned around, he raised his pistol. Whether the gesture was a conscious one was unclear, but Shepard responded instantly. The shot rang out, and Jeong's body tumbled to the floor.
"I really hate having guns thrust in my face. Anybody else want to give it a try?" Shepard looked around, keeping a careful eye on the security guards, but there were no volunteers.
"Good. That makes it easy." She looked down at Jeong's body. "You wouldn't believe the amount of paperwork this is going to generate. But that can wait. Now, about Zhu's Hope, I'm not going to let a bunch of plant-controlled half-wits walk around, getting up to God-knows-what. Plus, I need to get a good look at this Thorian thing. I don't believe for a minute that it's a coincidence that the geth just happen to land on top of a mind-controlling plant. So, tell me, Dr Baynham, what's the solution? Do I need to go in guns blazing and wipe out the colony?"
Both Dr's Baynham seemed equally horrified.
"You can't just... You can't just kill everybody!"
Shepard looked at her. "Take a good look at Jeong over there and say that again, Doctor."
"Wait!" Lizbeth Baynham interjected. "The Thorian is using active control to keep the colonists in line. If you kill it... It may be enough to get them back to normal."
"Except the colonists are between me and the Thorian," Shepard said. "And from what I hear, they are ready to fight it out. I'm not going to tell my people not to shoot back."
"There may be another way." Dr Baynham sr. looked thoughtful. "If you give us a a few moments to check some data."
"Go ahead, but don;t waste too much time. We need to put an end to this, now."
In the end, it only took a few minutes, though the solution came as something as a surprise.
"Gas grenades?" Shepard's voice sounded incredulous. "You want me to deploy chemical weapons against the colonists? Doctor I'm not sure whether I should offer you a job, or put you under arrest."
Dr Baynham shrugged. "It's not as though it's weapons-grade. We use an insecticide in the research labs. It's quite powerful, but not lethal to humans in normal dosages. But it contains a small amount of Tetrachlopine. It's a neuro-muscular degenerator. Normally it wouldn't do anything, but if their nervous system is already weakened by these Thorian spores, it may be enough to knock them out.
"I see." Shepard thought for a moment. "Alright, I'm willing to give it a try. I have full load of conussion grenades in the Mako. If you can adapt them for the purpose I'll see if it works. But, eh, no guarantees. If they look like they're getting up, it's time for bullets."
-0-0-0-
HNV Relentless Fury, Virmire system
"Lieutenant, we've entered orbit around the planet."
"So, I see." Lieutenant Tarquin Victus stared out of the bridge window at the planet below. Virmire appeared to be a mixture of blue and green, open oceans and small island-continents covered in dense jungle. Not a pleasant world for turians, but both asari and salarians would have felt at home. As so often, Victus felt frustration at the political realities of the galaxy. Here there was a world that was ideal for colonization, but it remained uninhabited simply because it was too close to the Terminus. The military force necessary to safeguard the planet from pirates and slavers was too expensive. And so, the planet had been left alone. At least, that was the official story, but it seemed that the STG had had other ideas. Now that his ship was in close orbit, scanners were picking up signals from a large base. That had to be the STG research centre that had been established here.
"Any sign of the investigating team?"
"No, sir. Either they're out of action, or they're keeping a very low profile."
"And with the STG, you never know which until it's too late." Lieutenant Victus turned away from the window. "Is the landing team ready?"
"Yes, sir. As ready as they can be, given how little we know."
"Good." he ignored the small pang of guilt that he felt at that statement. He might not know much about the situation, but he knew more than his men, and it was quite possible that that lack of knowledge would get some of his people killed. But the Councilor had been adamant. The fact that Saren Arterius was a traitor was to be kept on a strictly need-to-know basis. And nobody needed to know.
Saren. Of all people... The perfect Spectre, the perfect turian. The perfect turian Spectre. Initially, it had been hard to believe, but Victus had seen and heard the evidence, and the case was compelling. What was worse, when he dug up Saren's service record, it started to make sense in a horrible way. Saren's older brother, General Desolas Arterius, executed after capture. Saren's own mutilation during the initial invasion in an incident that had never been fully explained. Saren had reason to hate humans. And he had reason to hate the Citadel Council, or, at least, two of its members, given that Councillor Valern had been no more than a child when those events had occurred. No, Saren's motives made sense. What was far more difficult to understand was the way he had gone about his revenge and the sheer scale of it. Even with Benezia T'Soni's backing, financing could not have been easy. Then again, as a Spectre, he had been in the perfect position to influence STG and have them pick up the tab.
Of course, the biggest question was what he wanted with this research lab, but Lieutenant Victus had a horrible feeling that he understood that too. It was too much of a coincidence that Saren had pushed the salarians into doing biological research for him while at the same time using what was effectively a biological weapon against a human colony. And that also explained why the STG had gone along with it. If even half of what the humans said about this species were true, any salarian researcher would sell their own liver to a krogan cook just to get a piece of the action.
And, if that were true, Victus and his team were about to head straight into a nightmare. If those things are down there... The simple fact that the humans had nuked their own planet to ensure containment of these creatures said a lot. Humans might be prone to overreacting, but they were not cowardly, and even they would not have gone to such extremes unless they thought they had good reason.
"Sir!" A new voice broke through his musings.
"Yes?"
"I'm getting a signal from the planet. It's from a Captain Kirrahe, 3rd infiltration regiment of the STG. Lieutenant, it's a distress call. They're in need of immediate assistance."
-0-0-0-
Skyline, Zhu's Hope garage entrance
"Ma'am, there is something in front of the door."
"I see them, Jin. I see them." Shepard peered through the Mako's gun sight. She could see the sliding doors where the skyway disappeared into the garage beneath Zhu's Hope. In front of the door, she could see at least half a dozen humanoid looking figures.
"They're not geth; they're not xenomorphs, and they're definitely not human. Alright people, we'll drive up and see what is going on."
Slowly, the Mako moved forward, but the unknown creatures seemed oblivious to its approach and simply stood there as it came to a stop.
"Everyone, stay alert. No risks." Shepard exited the Mako, assault rifle at the ready. Still the creatures ignored her.
"Enough of this." She fired a single shot. Her target crumbled, falling apart as it collapsed. At that exact moments, the others straightened, turned toward her and charged.
"What the-, Take them down!" Shepard fired again, as did the others who were still in cover behind the Mako. Two more of the creatures fell, a third, a fourth. But they kept coming. Then, just as Shepard started to pull the trigger again, it stopped and... vomited. A cloud of brown-green matter belched forward from its mouth. Shepard jumped back, firing as she moved and it went down, but not before at least some of the matter landed on her. A few more shots, rang out, then the short fight was over.
"What the FUCK!?" Shepard looked in disbelieve at the collapsed heaps of organic material. "This was never a human being."
"I agree." Liara T'Soni was kneeling next to what was left of one of the creatures. "It's- It's not even animal in nature. This was a plant. A plant shaped like a person. Like- like a cheap copy."
"Right, so this has to be this thorian's work. Interesting. Okay, change of plans." Shepard looked at her companions. "My helmet filters nearly got clogged, trying to keep out whatever the hell these things are spreading around. That's a risk we're not going to take. Not from a plant that has some form of mind-control. From here on, all combat against those things is to happen strictly at a distance. No close encounters. These plant-zombie things, whatever they are, we gun them down the moment we see them. The colonists...," Shepard hesitated. "We'll give those gas grenades a try, but no risks. Don't let them get close under their own power. If the gas doesn't work, we'll use lethal force on them too."
-0-0-0-
"Next!"
The team advanced along the stairs, while Shepard watched, grenade in hand. She smiled. So far the battle was going pretty well. The thorian's creepy constructions were no particular threat except at point-blank-range and quickly succumbed to automatic fire. The infected colonists were more dangerous, having firearms, but whatever the thorian had done to them, it seemed to have reduced their ability to function effectively and most of their shots went wide. Meanwhile, the improvised gas grenades were more effective than expected. Even if they did not knock the colonists out completely, it made them collapse on the ground, allowing the team to close the distance. As for knocking them out completely, that's why she had brought aliens along. Just as she thought it, two more colonists cam around the corner. She lofted the grenade, but there was no need. Wrex simply slapped one down with one hand, the second was tossed back by a biotic outburst.
Two more down. Now for the colony itself.
Shepard hurried to catch up with the others. the colony itself posed a bigger challenge. Unfortunately, there was plenty of open ground, giving the defenders long lines of fire that Shepard and her team had to cross before coming to melee range. Then again, that was what the grenade launcher was for. It took two of the improvised gad grenades to clear the first barrier, but it was worth the ammunition expense as it brought the team close enough to the buildings that they had some cover for the next attack.
-0-0-0-
And that's that. Job well done
Shepard looked down at the motionless form of Arcelia Martinez who had tried to make a stand with the last few colonists. It had not worked. All in all, the mission had been more successful than Shepard had hoped. In the end, they'd only had to kill three of the colonists, who, for whatever reason had proven to be more resistant to the gas than the others. Not bad under the circumstances.
Now, the entrance to the thorian's level is supposed to be under this bloody ship. She looked around. The small salarian trading vessel had been moved into the center of the colony with the use of a heavy lift-crane. The controls should not be too difficult to work out.
There was a small noise behind her. Shepard whirled around, raising her rifle as she spoke. Fai Dan, the colonists' leader, had appeared from one of the prefabs. He walked toward them, slowly, gun in hand.
"Hold it right there, Fai Dan."
The man ignored her and took another step and another. Shepard's finger tightened on the trigger.
"I tried to fight it," Faid Dan said softly. "But it gets in your head. You cannot... you cannot imagine the pain." He grimaced, though whether from current discomfort, or just the memory of it she could not tell. He looked around at the colony. "I was supposed to be their leader. To keep them safe. These people," he grimaced again. "they trusted me. And now-" He closed his eyes. "Now it wants me to stop you. But-" He raised the gun higher. "But I- I won't. I won't!" Shepard took a step forward, but it was too late. Fai Dan had placed the gun against his temple. The gun went off, and Fai Dan's body fell to the ground.
"Okay, so that just happened." Shepard shrugged. "I guess the lesson here is that we should not try to wake the colonists up before we've dealt with this Thorian thing. That's good to know." She activated her comm channel.
"Alenko? this is Shepard. I have the colony secured. Bring your team back out here."
-0-0-0-
USM Mount Everest, Flagship 5th Fleet, Skyllian Traverse
"I suppose there is no room for doubt," Admiral Hackett asked.
"No, sir. The message was clear. We have a new xenomorph outbreak."
"On Feros; in the Traverse." Hackett shook his head. "We cannot act on it. Not without starting a war. the Council already reacted badly when we bombarded Eden Prime. We cannot do it to a planet outside our territory. Especially while tensions are this high." He sighed. "Very well. Pass it on to Arcturus HQ and ask them to inform our ambassador on the Citadel. Maybe he can arrange something."
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AKA Hyoscine (aka Scopolamine) and Amobarbital (aka Sodium Amytal) are drugs that can be used for interrogations. Tetrachlopine doesn't actually exist.
Even without Shepard having Spectre authorization, there was no way I was going to let Jeong live. The guy is just so incredibly annoying. Besides, he aimed a gun at her. Clear case of self-defense and no Spectre authorization needed.
The 'try not to kill the colonists' mission on Feros always annoyed me, because they limit your options so much. For a non-lethal kill, it's always either gas them, or punch them, or a combination. There should have been more options. Between Wrex's bulk and at least two biotics on the team (three if Shepard is a biotic), there should have been plenty of options to knock people out.
