W.i.t.G

What's up everybody! :D

I Hope this reaches you well. I just wanted to say, that I hope you all have a happy Holiday season! :)

In the last chapter, Shepard had been mentally attacked by a scantily-clad Asari assassin, nearly killing him. To which, Dextro Force came to the rescue, just in time! ;)

Once again, if you have any questions, queries, or general thoughts, don't hesitate in messaging me.

That's what I'm here for.

That, as well as producing an epic amount of fluff! ;)

Just to mention: A massive shout-out to kill-phil for his assistance with this chapter. I hope you like it mate! Consider it an early Christmas present! ;)

Let's get to it! ;D

"Tali."

No response.

"Tali."

Again, there was no response.

"Tali!"

At this, the Quarian twisted her head slightly, just enough to regard Doctor Chakwas, without her eyes leaving Chris' form.

"Are you listening, Tali?"

Tali nodded her head slightly; to show her acknowledgement.

"He's stable, Tali. It was close, but he's going to make it. I need you to leave though." Chakwas said, as she began to walk towards the door, as if to show Tali out.

Tali got out of the chair she had been sitting in, the chair that had been next to Shepard's bed pretty much since he had been brought aboard the Normandy. Turning to face the elderly human woman, Tali hissed a single word.

"No."

"Tali... You have to go and get some rest. You've been in here since Shepard was brought aboard. You've had nothing to eat, or drink; you haven't slept properly, either. Sitting in that chair, watching him, isn't helping anybody. You have to rest, dear."

"I'm not going, anywhere."

Chakwas deeply sighed, as her annoyance and anger began to surface, "Listen to me! I am the Chief Medical Officer aboard this vessel Miss Zorah; It's my duty and responsibility to care for everybody serving on this ship. Including you. When it comes down to medical matters, I have the final say on this ship! I need you to leave Tali!"

Tali simply snorted at the woman, as she folded her arms across her suited chest.

"You need to leave Tali. For Shepard's sake..." As Chakwas finished saying this, Tali stiffened, and paid rapt attention to the Doctor as she continued.

"He needs his rest. He'll be fine. I just need you to go and rest as well. When he wakes up, he'll be fairly weak. He doesn't need the added worry about whether or not everybody is fine. So please, go and rest. Relax in Engineering if you wish. Do whatever you want. The best way of helping him, is to take care of yourself.

Tali stared at the woman behind her mask for a few moments, before she quietly spoke, her voice full of raw emotion, "I-I can't leave him on his own. He's vulnerable."

Chakwas, strangely, smiled at the distraught Quarian woman, her voice becoming softer as she replied, "He's safe now, Tali. He's going to be just fine, I promise."

Tali stood for a moment, before turning around to face the man in question.

He looked at peace as he lay unconscious on the bed, a soft smile on his face. To the young Quarian, he did in fact, appear safe.

'Can I leave him here? Without me?'

Another thought crossed her mind, answering the argument that resided in her heart:

'If he's better because of it, then I need to leave.'

Tali turned around, and with a ghost of a smile on her lips, she quietly spoke, "You promise he'll be fine?"

Chakwas nodded her head, "I promise. He'll make a full recovery, because of you and Garrus. I'll have him on his feet in no time at all."

"G-Good." Tali said, as she began to walk towards the med-bay door.

As she got closer to Chakwas, she spoke up again, "I'll let the others know... I'll let them know he's going to be fine."

Chakwas smiled at the young Quarian, replying in a tone that sounded like a mother speaking to their own child, "That's fine Tali, but I need you to get some well deserved rest. Shepard, needs you to get some well deserved rest."

"I will. But, please... Let me know when he's awake."

Chakwas smiled knowingly, "I will." And with that, Tali continued to keep walking towards the med-bay door.

As she got to the boundary, she stopped, and turned around to view her sleeping saviour once more, "Get better soon, nehya..."

With that, Tali left the med-bay, leaving her saviour under the watchful protection of the motherly Doctor Chakwas.

When she had left, Chakwas could only chuckle softly, as she got closer to the commander, her omni-tool aglow, as she started another full body medical scan.

"Looks like I was right then. You do have an admirer, Shepard..."

Tali walked towards the table in the mess hall, intent on sitting and resting for just a moment, to allow her thoughts to recollect themselves.

As she sat down, Tali pulled out a sterilised, bland tube of nourishment paste from one of her numerous pockets in her suit, before inserting it into the vocaliser slot in her helmet. As the tasteless mush that constituted Tali's diet slid down her throat, she thought back on the events that had recently occurred:

After the assassins had been dealt with, Tali and Garrus had waited with Shepard; making sure that he was alive before the other squad-mates had arrived. The distress beacon that Tali had activated had alerted all ground team members to the situation. Once everybody was at Shepard's position, Kaidan had taken charge, due to his position as ground team XO. The Lieutenant had ordered for Wrex to carry the Commander back to the Normandy, with everybody else close by, ready and waiting for another attack. Once on the Normandy, the Lieutenant had met with Navigator Pressly and Helmsmen Moreau to discuss their next move, based off of the mission essential information on the commander's omni-tool. Once the data had been scrutinised, and a navigation plot had been drawn up by the Navigator and Joker, the Normandy had set off towards the planet Edolus.

The Commander had been placed in the med-bay, under the supervision of Doctor Chakwas, as the Normandy travelled. He was placed into sedation in an effort to amplify the healing process.

Navigator Pressly, who had taken temporary command of the Normandy, had ordered for everything to carry on as normal.

But for the ground team, it wasn't that simple:

Kaidan had been on edge for a large amount of time, before he had decided to visit the Gunnery Chief.

Ashley had been furious to find that the commander had been attacked, and was livid with everyone.

She was sent to the armoury by the LT, to cool down.

Wrex had been more dumbfounded if anything else. He wasn't acting completely differently as to what he usually did, but Wrex did seem a bit more on edge now.

Garrus...

Garrus tried to keep himself as occupied as possible, with random jobs such as the calibration of the Mako's guns or internal systems. He was as dumbfounded as Wrex was.

Liara had gone straight to her room, at the back of the med-bay, after she had spoken with Doctor Chakwas about the commander's health.

Tali...

Tali had simply walked straight into Engineering, her mind completely elsewhere. Adams had noticed this, and had quickly worked out why. Due to the quality of Tali's previous work and improvements to the Normandy's systems, there wasn't a lot for her to actually do, and so, Adams had allowed Tali to go and 'clear her mind'.

With that objective in mind, Tali had simply walked straight into the med-bay, and had taken a place next to Chris' bedside, saying nothing to anybody as she lost herself in her thoughts.

And now... Now she was sat at a canteen table, on the galaxy's most advanced frigate; her saviour's ship, as he lay unconscious in the med-bay.

A severe sense of anxiety began to creep into the forefront of the Quarian's exhausted mind.

He was unconscious, due to Tali's inability to protect him.

Tali simply felt like kazuat.

'I-I've failed him. He nearly died, because of me... I-I wasn't fast enough...'

Her hands reflexively tensed into fists as she glared at a piece of bulkhead just across from her.

After a few moments, Tali began to collect herself, as she withdrew her 'meal' from her 'induction port'. She placed the now empty tube into her pocket, to be recycled.

The urge to rest, to sleep, began to creep up on the young woman, as she simply placed her helmeted head on top of her arms on the canteen table.

As Tali began to verge on the edge of mental oblivion, in the bottomless black depths below, a glimmer of light pierced the inner darkness.

'H-He's not dead. He's still a-alive...'

An inextinguishable passion burned through Tali's veins as a single thought seared itself into her chemical make-up, just before she succumbed to the overwhelming need for rest..

'He's not dead... And while I still draw breath, he'll continue to live.'

Only then, did the young Quarian woman succumb to her body's need for rest.

Only when she had made a solemn promise:

She would watch over him. Like the ancestors watch over her. She would protect her nehya. Her saviour.

Always.

"Tali."

There was no immediate response.

"Come on Tali."

Again, the young woman didn't stir.

"Tali!"

'Wha-What's going on?'

Tali gently lifted her head from her position on the table, and turned towards the invasive sound that had disturbed her sleep.

Standing there was Lieutenant Alenko, a grin on his face as he looked down upon the sleeping Quarian.

"You do know you have a pod to sleep in, right?"

"L-Lieutenant!" The young woman's startled reply was punctuated by a loud thump as her helmet impacted the bulkhead behind her.

Kaidan continued to smirk at the woman, until a sudden outburst from Tali caused the lieutenant to pay rapt attention:

"Is he awake yet?!"

Kaidan shook his head, before he motioned for Tali to take her seat again.

When they had both sat down again, Kaidan spoke quietly, "He hasn't woken up yet. It doesn't look like he's going to before we get to Edolus..."

Tali's tone was inquisitive, yet serious as she regarded the human man, "W-What does that mean for the ground team then?"

"It looks like I'm going to be leading the mission to Edolus. I'm the ground team XO after all. It's what Shepard would want. I think..." Kaidan said, with no real enthusiasm or pride in his voice.

Tali could only nod her head as she gazed towards the med-bay, on the opposite side of the room.

"How long was I asleep?"

Kaidan softly chuckled before he replied, his voice seemingly returning to its jovial self, "I'd say about an hour. That's all. I suppose you're lucky it's third shift..."

Tali snorted at this, "An hour?! That's more than I've had in a long time! The Normandy doesn't help."

Curious to the Quarian's statement, Kaidan continued the conversation, "Why? What's wrong with the Normandy? Have you told the Commander about this?"

Chuckling softly to herself, Tali stared back towards the inquisitive lieutenant, "No. No, I haven't spoken to Shepard. He has better things to worry about. The safety and wellbeing of the ship and its crew takes precedence over an individual member. Besides, it's not that important anyway."

Kaidan barked out a short laugh, before he looked towards the self-depreciating Quarian. "Come on Tali! Do you really believe that crap?"

"Yes. It's true! He's a human captain, looking after his own people; and I'm just a Quarian." Tali said somewhat depressingly.

Kaidan could only shake his head, as he stood up from the table, "Trust me. He cares. I've already told you this before. You've just got to believe it. You should let him know when you get the chance."

As Kaidan began to walk away, his hands in his pockets, Tali outstretched her hand, "Wait!"

At this, the lieutenant stopped in his tracks, before turning around to regard the now standing woman once more, "It's just... I-I'm trying to believe what you're saying. Throughout my entire Pilgrimage, I've been used to everybody treating me poorly, or looking down on me with disdain. I'm still trying to get used to the concept of a high ranking member of another species actually caring for my wellbeing. That's all. I didn't mean to cause any offence." Tali finished, as her hands began to dance at her waist.

The marine smiled softly in Tali's direction, before he began to move closer to her. "I'm not offended Tali. I'm just trying to help."

Tali smiled softly at the end of this statement, before Kaidan spoke, a serious undertone lacing his words, "Shepard isn't going to be up for awhile, and Joker reckons we're getting close to the drop point on Edolus. I'm going to need you on the mission Tali."

Tali straightened at this, as if in preparation to argue heavily against her involvement in the mission, and being away from the Commander's bedside, but Kaidan simply continued:

"I need someone who has experience with the diagnostics and basic functions of the Mako. If the details from the mission briefing are true, we could be up against heavy resistance. A powerful enemy presence. Do you think you can handle that?"

Tali took her time in weighing up the different implications of her decisions.

'If I go in the Mako, with the Lieutenant, then I'm leaving Shepard on his own.'

'But, if I go, and the mission is finished quickly... Then, I can get back to him quicker.'

Hesitantly, Tali simply nodded her head, showing her acknowledgement to the plan.

Kaidan smiled broadly, before he motioned for Tali to walk in front of him, towards the cargo bay elevator.

As Tali began to walk forward, past the marine lieutenant, she couldn't help but feel a furious blush break out on her face, as another wide grin was plastered on her lips.

'Humans are so strange. The captain's motions are much better though; he just seems a lot more natural than the Lieutenant when he does it.'

Kaidan spoke up once more, dragging Tali out of the beginnings of another daydream:

"So... Are you and Liara on speaking terms again?"

A short, curt laugh emanated from Tali's vocaliser before she abruptly replied, "No."

"Huh. Well, do you and Liara plan on speaking to each other again at all?"

"No."

Kaidan could only softly chuckle, as he spoke to himself quietly, stepping into the elevator with Tali:

"Well... Shepard's going to be just thrilled about that."

"Nearing the drop site now." The comm blared, as Tali waited for the elevator doors to open.

Stepping out of the elevator, Tali walked away from Kaidan, and over towards her locker.

Once she had equipped her favourite weapons, her shotgun and her pistol, she walked over towards the Mako.

At that moment, she had only just noticed Garrus and Wrex stood next to the Mako conversing with the ground team's XO.

Getting nearer, she could just hear the end of the conversation that was occurring:

"-I'm telling you Wrex: Tali, Ashley and I will be fine going down to Edolus. We're only going to go and check out a distress signal from a marine encampment. It's probably nothing. That's all. If it makes you feel any better, I'm taking private Green and corporal Petrovsky down as well."

"No, no... This doesn't feel right. I can feel it in my plates... Something isn't right with this situation. You have to bring me along. If not me, at least take the Turian with you!" Wrex replied, with what seemed like desperation in his voice.

Garrus spoke just after Wrex, hoping to persuade the lieutenant, "Lieutenant, I agree with Wrex. This just doesn't feel right! We should just wait for the Commander to be ready for a combat scenario; he'll know what to do. I don't mean to cause any offence, but the Commander's plans, although unorthodox, seemed to have worked everytime thus far."

Kaidan replied in a calm, soft tone, "I understand your concern guys. But the Commander isn't getting up anytime soon. You said it yourself in your report Garrus: he was practically dead. I don't want the added pressure of a combat mission being placed on his shoulders. He has enough to deal with, don't you think?"

Muted sounds of acknowledgement came from the Turian, where as Wrex simply continued to stare at Kaidan.

Tali meekly spoke up at the end of the conversation, "Lieutenant?"

Kaidan, Wrex and Garrus spun around at this noise, all observing the sight of the smaller Quarian, armed and ready for action. Kaidan and Wrex did nothing except watch the younger woman, where as Garrus simply gave a respectful nod.

"You feeling any better, Tali?"

The young woman tilted her head to the side slightly, as a small smile was placed on her lips, "Yes, I-I suppose I'm feeling better. Thank you, Officer Vakarian."

Garrus chuckled with mirth, his sub-harmonics emphasising his amusement, "If the Commander wants me to drop the formalities, then I'm sure that applies to you as well. Please, just call me Garrus."

"Okay. Garrus."

Wrex shook his head slowly, before he spun around to face Kaidan once more, "You won't take me or the Turian, but you'll take the Quarian?!"

The smile, and surge of happiness that Tali had recently gained, suddenly disappeared. The young woman's deep rooted anger; the anger that she had felt surface when she was on the Citadel, rose once more. Stepping forward with a finger jabbed towards Wrex, Tali snarled, "My name is Tali, you Krogan, bosh'tet!"

Wrex merely laughed at the Quarian, before he moved closer to her, "Hah! You've got a quad little one. Not many would try and shout down a Krogan warrior."

Tali stiffened as Wrex had got closer; just close enough so that the others couldn't hear; Wrex quietly spoke:

"I heard about what happened on the Citadel. The Turian told me about how you had acted. Sounds about right for your kind..."

"What are you implying?! What do you mean my kind?!" Tali angrily hissed, her voice low enough so only Wrex could hear.

Wrex softly chuckled as he looked down on the furious Quarian, "Don't get worked up, little one. I meant no offence. I was just saying that what happened on the Presidium is about right for someone going through what you are."

'Wait... What?! What did he just say?'

Wrex noticed the subtle shift in Tali's body stance; a shift that displayed confusion, but most important of all...

Fear.

Wrex placed a large meaty hand on Tali's shoulder, to which she suddenly tensed, as if her body was rejecting the contact. Wrex leant down, so as to address Tali properly:

"Don't act dumb little one. I can see it clearly now. I remember a time when your people didn't have to wear those suits. I know more about your people than you would think. Nobody would have gone to the degree that you did, when you noticed Shepard injured. Tell me: did you feel like you had lost control of your body? As if you weren't fully there?"

'H-How the fre'eg does he know that?!'

The memories of recent events came crashing to the forefront of her mind; the confusion that had clouded her thoughts about the situation, began to clear, as she stuttered out her reply.

"I-I... Yeah. T-That's the best way to describe it. I-I just lost control..."

Wrex's face split into a toothy grin, as he slowly nodded his head at the woman, "I thought so."

Wrex suddenly turned solemn; an air of severity surrounded the conversation when he spoke next, "When you're down there; If anything happens... I want you to remember the image of Shepard injured on the Citadel. Use that anger you have deep inside of you. You may need it."

Tali nodded her head, before she began speaking nervously, "I will, Wrex. It's just... I feel like I need stay on the ship. I feel terrible for leaving him on his own. I know he's safe, but I just can't shake this feeling I've got..."

Wrex suddenly cut Tali off, "Don't worry little one. I'll watch over him."

"Thank you." Tali said, her voice meek, as her body erupted into a nervous blush.

'M-Maybe I was wrong about the others. They seem nice enough...' Tali's mood brightened at this thought: understanding having been shown by the Krogan warrior; the interest shown by the marine lieutenant; and the Turian C-Sec Officer's kind words.

Wrex stood up and walked away from Tali, towards Kaidan.

The grizzled mercenary nodded his head at Kaidan, before moving across the cargo bay, towards the elevator. Garrus gave a puzzled glance, before falling in at Wrex's side.

Kaidan simply nodded his head in silent acknowledgement, as a low sigh escaped his lips.

At that moment, two other humans arrived at the Mako. One was female, where as the other was male. The male was taller, and stockier than the female, with an assault rifle in his hands. The smaller human woman carried a sniper rifle however, and didn't seem perturbed in the slightest at the size of her weapon compared to her body size.

They both spoke to the lieutenant, asking for permission to fall in. Once given by Kaidan, they entered the Mako, saying nothing to the aliens present.

Once the other marines had entered the Mako, Tali stood with Kaidan as they waited for Ashley to arrive.

A few moments later Ashley came bolting out of the elevator to the cargo bay, and ran straight towards the Mako. No words were passed between them as Kaidan and Tali simply loaded up, into the APC.

Wrex and Garrus stood to the side, and watched as the cargo bay doors lowered, and the Mako shot out.

It was Garrus that spoke up first, "What was that all about with Tali, Wrex?"

Wrex simply smirked, as he turned around to regard the Turian, "None of your business Turian. I just wanted to let her know about something is all."

Garrus smirked as well, as he began to walk towards the elevator, "I'm guessing it had something to with what happened on the Citadel. Believe me, you would have thought she'd been raised by Krogans with how she killed those assassins."

The duo loaded themselves into the elevator, before the large Krogan replied, humour lacing his words, "What's the matter Turian? Did you get scared of the Quarian? Did you soil your armour?"

Garrus's mouth split into a small grin, as the conversation continued, "Something like that. You would have been shocked with how she'd acted."

"No. I wouldn't have."

Garrus tilted his head, showing his bewilderment, as the elevator began to ascend. "What? Why wouldn't you be shocked? It was like she was a totally different person!"

Wrex continued to stare at the elevator wall, as he cryptically replied, "I know what happened to her. I've seen it before..."

As the elevator doors opened, Wrex exited first, and started off for the med-bay. Garrus quickly caught up, and began speaking hurriedly, confusion lacing his tone, "W-What are you doing Wrex? The Commander's unconscious. We can't go in there."

Wrex suddenly stopped, and turned to face Garrus, before he detached his 'shotgun'. With a toothy smile, Wrex simply sat down, and leaned against the bulkhead, opposite the med-bay.

Garrus was simply perplexed.

"Wrex, why in Titus' name are you up here? You never come up here!"

Wrex simply closed his eyes, as he leant backwards, his shotgun resting in his lap.

"I made a promise to a Quarian once. A long time ago... I mean to fulfil that promise. And the little one's giving me an opportunity I won't ignore."

"What in the name of the spirits are you talking about?! What do you mean, 'a long time ago'? What promise?!"

With a grunt of annoyance, the Krogan mercenary grumbled his response, "You talk too much Turian. Anybody ever tell you that?"

Silence reigned between the pair as a memory that Wrex had nearly forgotten, came flooding back at full force.

Time passed within the blink of an eye, as the Krogan warrior remembered a sight of slaughter and death.

He remembered the sight of an ally; a relatively small, and squishy Quarian male.

A fellow warrior.

He remembered the Quarian sitting on the haunches of his knees as he simply wept in the blood stained corridor of the ship they were aboard.

A firefight raged around him, and yet he did not seem fazed in the slightest.

The Quarian's saera, was dead.

Wrex could remember clutching onto his assault rifle, stood in front of his HVT's; their solemn protector; his primary objective.

The Krogan mercenary could remember watching the corridor, as the broken man ran towards him, his left arm completely shredded, and in his right hand, his three fingers were wrapped around a small object:

A dead-man switch.

Wrex involuntarily shivered as he remembered what the man had said to him; what the man had explained in his final moments. Wrex couldn't help but stir in his memory, as he remembered climbing into an escape pod, watching as fires raged within the ship, bodies littering the floor...

And the sound... The agonising howl that rang throughout the ship...

The sound of a lonely man.

A broken man...

A man that had lost his one and only love.

His saera...

As Wrex sat in the pod, floating in space, watching as the ship exploded into nothing but debris, he couldn't help but remember the words the distraught Quarian had uttered:

"I have nothing left; nothing to live for. My saera... I-I must go to her. You must remember what happened here Krogan; remember my pain. Remember my anguish. I'm losing control over my body as we speak. My senses have broken through for now, but soon I shall be lost forever. My mind is clouded. I feel like I'm suffocating in an inky black darkness; like the void that surrounds the stars. I feel no pain... I-I must go to her. You must promise me Krogan: if you ever have the misfortune of meeting another Quarian who's suffering the pain I currently feel; if they require your assistance; you must help them. If they are lost to the void, then show them mercy, and send them as quickly as you can on their way to their ancestors. I-I-I can hear her calling me Krogan... I must go. Keelah Se'lai."

That was why the aged mercenary was currently sat on the floor of a human warship, leaning against a bulkhead, watching a medbay.

He had made a warriors oath; a sacred Krogan tradition.

When a warrior, a fellow ally, requires aid; when they call for help... Then a noble, Krogan warrior will answer that call.

Tali had nearly lost herself to the mental void, like Xant had on the shipping freighter four hundred years ago...

Wrex would honour the promise he had made to the fallen Quarian.

If Tali needed to make sure Shepard was safe, then Wrex would stand ready.

As a true Krogan should.

"Anything on the scanners, Tali?" Kaidan said, as he continued to navigate across Edolus' sandy and barren terrain.

"Negative, Lieutenant. The only thing in range is the marine encampment." Tali chirped, as she continued to watch the interface.

Kaidan simply said nothing, as he continued to drive the Mako.

They had made it down to the planet, and had immediately set off for their objective, with nothing being said within the armoured personnel carrier. That didn't stop Tali's internal worrying however:

'I hope he's okay... I feel terrible for leaving him on his own up there. I shouldn't even be on this barren rock. I should be up there, on the Normandy!'

After a while, the lieutenant stopped the Mako, to the surprise of everybody else.

All that could be heard, was a quiet mumble from Kaidan:

"Oh, fuck..."

It was Ashley that spoke up first, for the rest of the squad:

"What's the matter LT? What do you see?"

Kaidan didn't turn around to regard any of the Mako's inhabitants, as he simply continued to stare at his forward monitor, his face becoming a deathly pale colour.

Ashley got out of the gunner's position, and moved across to the lieutenant, her voice betraying her worry and concern as she spoke to Kaidan:

"LT, what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

Kaidan continued to watch the screen, before he spoke, a hallowed whisper escaping his lips:

"I should have listened to them..."

Tali became extremely worried at this, as she regarded the seemingly terrified human man:

"What do you mean, Lieutenant? You 'should have listened to them' about what?"

Kaidan turned, and looked straight into Tali's faceplate, his eyes full of sorrow and an unnerving terror that caused Tali to shiver involuntarily:

"Wrex and Garrus. They both said that something wasn't right..."

Petrovsky, the female human, spoke next, her tone Slavic, similar in a sense to Tali's:

"Just spit it out, Lieutenant! What the ебать is going on?!"

Ashley didn't wait for the answer, as she simply tapped her helmet, a sign for the others to equip their own.

Once everybody had complied, Ashley moved towards the door, and opened it, allowing for the harsh sandstorms of Edolus to be viewed by the squad members.

Ashley jumped out first, with the corporal and the private moving out next. Kaidan moved out as well, hesitating at the door, before he forced himself out.

Tali followed last, confusion evident in her posture.

'What's going on?! Why's the Lieutenant suddenly afraid?!'

The sight that met Tali's eyes gave evidence to the growing feeling of dread that had burrowed into her gut, in one grotesque morbid scene of death and destruction.

"My God!"

"The fuck?!"

"Вот дерьмо..."

"Keelah!"

Before the squad, was a scene of pure carnage.

What was once the marine encampment, under the command of Rear Admiral Kahoku, was now a ghoulish landscape of mangled and mutilated corpses; limbs strewn about everywhere; overturned and completely destroyed pieces of Alliance equipment... An M-29 Grizzly tank lay on its side, a giant hole having been melted into its side. The stench of burnt flesh stung the nostrils of those present, as well as the smell of raw waste and excrement.

Puddles of blood, skin and what looked like golden acid, lay about in the once bronzed sand of Edolus.

It was a scene straight from the depths of Hell itself.

As the squad stood, and viewed the spectacle, a bestial roar filled the area, causing the beating hearts within their chests to suddenly freeze as if captured by an icy-cold grip. As panic began to surge through every member present, the ground began to shake underneath their feet.

The tremors began to increase, as if something was heading their way... Whatever it was, Tali would bet any amount of credits that it was responsible for the ghastly sight before her very eyes...

As the tremors reached their climax, the sound of cracking earth could be heard in the distance...

It was Kaidan's voice that dragged Tali and everybody else, out of their trances:

"Get in the fucking Mako! Now!

Nobody had to be told twice, as they all scrambled into the gleaming white APC.

As soon as everybody was in, the door was shut and Kaidan spoke only one statement, whilst he slammed the Mako into a sudden reverse. The words that were uttered from the man's mouth, summed up everybody's opinions at that moment in time:

"Tali, radio the Normandy. Tell them we're in deep shit... Real deep shit..."

Wrex continued to watch the medbay, his shotgun in his hands. Garrus had sat down with the Krogan as well, having nothing else to do with the Mako gone.

The other crew members had woken by now, due to third shift ending.

As both sat waiting, a blaring sound from the internal comm systems aboard the Normandy, pierced the silence that had set in between the two.

A hurried, metallic-tinged voice caused Wrex to stand up immediately; Garrus joining him quickly thereafter.

"This is Tali'Zorah to Normandy. We've encountered extremely heavy resistance! We don't know if we can handle the situation. We need help! Please!" At this, a bestial roar filled the comm, causing a growl to emanate from deep within Wrex's gut.

Every experienced Krogan knew that sound.

Any Krogan knew to experience some amount of terror at the sound...

The sound of the galaxy's Apex Predator.

A Thresher Maw.

'How are we supposed to put down a Thresher Maw?! Not many Krogan survive a Thresher attack, and no alien can surv- Wait...'

It was then, that a miraculous thought struck Wrex like a bolt of lightning striking a tree.

'Shepard! Shepard survived Akuze!'

Without caring about the consequences, Wrex started to walk straight for the doors of the medbay, not noticing the panicking scrabble of servicemen as they rushed for their stations.

That is, until Garrus moved in front of Wrex, and spoke up, "What are you doing Wrex?! We need to get down to the planet and try and help!"

Wrex stared at the Turian in front of him, as he spoke with venom, fuelled by his primal instincts triggered by the sound of the Thresher Maw's cry:

"They won't survive against a Thresher Maw! We won't survive if we go down there, alone!" At this, Garrus physically recoiled, as if hurt by the mentioning of the Apex Predator.

Wrex didn't let up however:

"What?! Do you think you can take it down, all by yourself?! With that puny rifle?! I knew Turians were stupid, but that's just ridiculous!" Wrex finished, as he shoved Garrus in the chest, moving him out of the way.

Garrus didn't back down either:

"What?! And you think you can do a better job?! What are you doing?! We need to get down and try and help!"

Wrex turned around, and smiling viciously, he replied, "Do you want to help, Turian?"

Garrus simply nodded his head.

"Then you'll let me get the only other person in this entire galaxy who has fought not just one Thresher, but a pack of them, and lived. Shepard is their best chance at survival."

Garrus stood, his head tilted downwards, as he began to understand what Wrex was doing.

Wrex simply continued, "Get Shepard's armor and weapons out of his locker; he's going to need them."

Garrus began to protest, "How am I supposed to do that?! You're not suggesting I break into my commanding officer's locker, a locker that stores his personal possessions, are you?!"

Wrex grinned, as he nodded his head, "That's exactly what I'm saying. Get to it, Turian."

Garrus stood for a moment, before he sighed heavily, and nodded his head. "Fine... Just for the record, this is a stupid idea."

At this, Garrus walked away from Wrex, and towards the Commander's locker, his omni-tool and hacking commands active.

Wrex smirked, as he turned around to face the medbay door, and with no hesitation in his step, Wrex smacked the holographic panel for entry.

As the door opened, Doctor Chakwas immediately stood up, and rounded on the large Krogan:

"What are you doing in here, Wrex?"

Wrex simply ignored the elderly Human woman, as he moved towards the commander's bed.

Getting a little bit closer, Wrex didn't turn around as he replied to Doctor Chakwas, "Shepard needs to wake up. Now."

Chakwas snorted, as she folded her arms across her chest, "He needs his rest."

Wrex turned around at this, and snarled, "I said, Shepard needs to wake up. Now!"

"Don't snarl at me Krogan! Give me one good reason why I should disturb the man's rest, and take him out of sedation!"

Wrex grinned viciously as he continued, pointing towards Shepard with an outstretched stubby finger, "I don't know if you heard the announcement on the comm just now, but they're under attack from a Thresher Maw down there! They can't fight it off! They don't have the experience. I've killed one before, alongside my krantt when I was initiated into my clan. It was one of the toughest fights of my life. But the only person I know who has fought against not just one, but a pack of Thresher Maws, and lived, is Shepard! He needs to wake up, now!"

Chakwas stood for a moment, contemplating the scarred aliens words, before she nodded her head in acceptance.

Without another word being said, Chakwas moved to a draw in her desk, before withdrawing what looked like a large novelty sized pen and a sachet of medi-gel. Chakwas sighed heavily; the elderly human knew that the sudden injection of epinephrine would be enough to wake the commander, and provide him with enough energy to salvage the situation; and a measured volume of benzodiazepines would counteract the sudden spike in activity in the nervous system, making sure his body didn't shut down immediately. The only thing was, the injection would be incredibly painful for Shepard. The best case scenario was the man would only suffer from an excruciatingly painful migraine for a period of time.

The worst case scenario? They'd need to inform the Council that they would need a new human spectre.

The doctor, as professional as she was, hesitated for a moment as she held the pen above the commander's chest, sparing a glance in Wrex's direction. She'd seen the commander's medical records; it wouldn't be the first time he would have been dragged out of sedation early, but Shepard had reacted adversely the last time it had happened; flying into a fit of rage.

The large Krogan nodded his head, an indication to proceed, as he looked on in a mixture of anticipation and morbid curiosity.

Karen steeled herself, as she muttered a small prayer, before plunging the pen into the commander's chest, just above his heart. Once she'd finished injecting the pen's contents, the doctor applied the sachet of medi-gel to stem the bleeding from the new wound.

Nothing happened for a few moments, until suddenly, Shepard bolted up from his bed, wide awake now, but heavily breathing.

The large marine clutched his head in agony, as his eyes blinked rapidly to adjust to the blinding white light in the medbay. Sensors next to the commander's bed began to beep rapidly as warnings indicated a sudden spike in the man's heart rate.

Wrex nodded his head towards the elderly female, before he turned towards Shepard, speaking hurriedly:

"Shepard! We need to go! Now!"

Shepard looked towards the Krogan, his voice a mere whisper as he croaked out his response, "W-What the hell are you talking about Wrex?!"

Wrex sighed as he turned to face the med-bay door, "The Mako's in trouble on Edolus! They've run into trouble."

A thousand thoughts darted through Shepard's mind at this statement, but it was the most logical one that won out. Clutching his head, due to another sharp spike of pain, Shepard replied slowly:

"W-What kind of trouble?"

Wrex looked towards the human commander once more, before he sighed, his eyes downcast.

"The Mako's come across a Thresher Maw."

At the words, 'Thresher Maw', the painful and gruesome images that lay dormant and lingering in the back of Shepard's mind, came rushing forth, clouding his senses.

The sounds of people dying, of sizzling acid... The smell of blood, and scorched skin... The sounds and smells of death and destruction:

Akuze.

As Shepard's memories threatened to mentally overwhelm him... Something prevailed.

Something took control of Shepard. Instead of his memories controlling him, they began to fuel his movements.

All of a sudden, the commander slowly stumbled from his position in his bed; a changed man for the moment.

Wrex merely watched the human man begin to stand, before he spoke to Wrex once more:

"Let's move Wrex. Fill me in on the details on the way."

Wrex could only grin, as he nodded his head, following the stumbling man out of the medbay.

"Doctor?"

At this, Chakwas gave her full attention to the commander, "Make sure Liara stays on the ship, in her quarters. Make sure she stays safe."

"Understood, Shepard." Chakwas said, her hands shaking ever so slightly as she placed the epinephrine pen on her desk.

"Oh, and Karen?"

The doctor's eyes shot up at Shepard's question, her gaze quickly finding his, "Yes, Commander?"

"That really... Really fucking hurt. I appreciate what you've done, but next time, just hit me over the head with something instead. I hate those bastard pens..."

Chakwas nodded her head slowly, a small smile on her lips, "Aye sir."

Shepard leaned heavily on the doorframe, a weak smile on his face, "Carry on, Doc." With a lazy salute, Shepard began to hobble towards the elevator, with Wrex in tow.

Once outside, Shepard, passed a running servicemen, before he spoke into the air, addressing Joker.

"Joker?"

"Commander?! What the hell are you doing up?! They told me you had to be sedated?!"

"Don't worry, I was. I've just woke up."

"That sounds rough..."

"Do me a favour Joker; prep the Devils. We're gonna make an aerial insertion, and get our people home."

The comm was silent for a moment, before a weary sigh could be heard, followed by the reluctant voice of Joker, "Aye aye Commander... Informing them now."

As Shepard and Wrex slowly moved towards the elevator, Joker spoke up again, "For the record? This is a pretty dumb idea. Jumping straight towards a massive, man-slaying, space-worm and all, when you've only just been dragged out sedation; I know Chakwas is a medical genius an all, but this is insane."

All that could be heard in the elevator, was the commander's solemn reply.

"Noted, Joker."

Once the elevator was underway, Chris spoke to Wrex, without looking towards him.

"Have you ever jumped out of a ship before?"

Wrex smiled viciously as he slammed his fists together, "Big fights Shepard! I signed on for big fights, and you don't disappoint."

"Good to hear."

That was all that was said between the two warriors, as Wrex grinned with glee, and Shepard clutched his head, hoping the pain would abate at some point.

Stepping out of the elevator, Chris could make out his 'Devil Jumpers'.

Stood at attention, the group of five all wore sleek black armoured jump-suits; their weapons were attached to specialised cases on their persons, and each were equipped with fully enclosed helmets, for atmospheric entry.

The human spectre limped out of the elevator, as Wrex moved towards his own locker to retrieve his helmet. Before the commander had even left the threshold of the lift, the lead Devil Jumper stepped forwards, saluting his superior:

"Master Sergeant Rohan, sir. Devil Jumpers ready, and willing for a fight."

Chris nodded his head carefully, before he spoke, "Where's my armour, Sergeant?"

Rohan stood to the side and pointed towards a seated, blue armored Turian:

Garrus.

Chris simply nodded his head once again, before he quietly asked an important question, "Which one of you has the heavy explosives?"

The Devil Jumpers all turned around at this, to regard one another, before Rohan spoke:

"Sir, I don't mean any offence, but nobody told us you would need HE's. We're used for insertions, not demolitions."

The commander's head pounded, as he viciously grinned; sarcasm laced his words as his tone became as cold as ice, "Well that's alright then Sergeant. It doesn't matter. We'll just throw rocks at the Thresher Maw. That'll fucking work. Hey! You know what? It might get bored eventually, and fuck off before anybody gets seriously hurt!"

Rohan's eyes steeled as he regarded his superior. No words were spoken for a time, before Shepard continued, "We need those explosives Sergeant. We're not going to be able to put it down otherwise. Believe me."

Rohan nodded his head, happy with the answer he'd received as he turned around to face one of the suited soldiers:

"Ramirez! Go fetch the launcher out of the armory! Grab the HE and incendiary rounds with it as well!"

At this, the suited soldier at the end of the row saluted towards the Master Sergeant and the commander, before they rushed off towards the armoury.

The commander stumbled for a moment, as he watched the Sergeant present a respectful salute. Chris returned the salute, before he began to walk towards the now standing Garrus.

As Shepard got closer, Garrus started to speak, "I-I'm sorry Commander. I didn't have a choice but to hack into your locker..."

Chris smirked at the Turian, the apology humorous to the struggling human, as he was shown his armour.

"Is it fit for purpose?"

Garrus nodded his head, before he pointed to a neat pile of weapons on the crate behind him.

"The Sergeant said he had made the necessary modifications... He did my armour as well. They should hold up for what we're doing."

"Have you ever done something like this before?" Chris said, as he regarded the Turian.

"Yeah. Once, with the Turian Military. I hated it."

Garrus' voice became nervous, as he spoke next, "W-What's the plan Commander? H-How are we going to deal with the Thresher Maw? What if there's more than one?"

Shepard softly smiled as he slid his under-suit on, "We're gonna go in; we're gonna kill the Thresher, and we're gonna get out. That's the plan."

Garrus was simply baffled as he replied, "That's it? That's your plan?"

Chris smirked as he unsteadily slid the individual pieces of his armour on, before finally slipping his charcoal black helmet onto his head, "Yeah... That's my plan."

With that, the commander walked towards his weapons, before placing them in their containers. Once done, he slapped Garrus on the back, before he moved off, towards the cargo bay doors, a slight limp in his step.

Garrus could notice that the other humans had followed the commander, and were stood behind him, in what appeared to be an arrow shaped formation, but with two of the back ranks missing and with two spots open, just behind the commander.

The Turian C-Sec officer sighed heavily, before his feet began to move on their own, "We're jumping out of a starship towards an acid spitting worm, and my commanding officer's only just been pulled out of sedation. What's the worst that could happen?"

Garrus got up from his position and secured his own helmet to his body, before he checked over his own equipment. Once done, the Turian moved towards the commander's right-hand side, preparing himself for what was about to come.

Wrex came up to the commander's left-hand side, before he spoke on the internal comm system to Garrus:

"You feeling queasy yet, Turian?"

Garrus smirked behind his helmet, his nerves causing his hands to shake slightly, before he responded, "I'm good. Have you made sure your armour's ready? It'd be a shame if it wasn't..."

A bark of laughter could be heard from the Krogan, as he replied, humour in his voice, "I'm fine Turian... One of the humans checked my equipment. They seem to know what they're doing at least."

Garrus could only silently agree, as he viewed the silent human warriors. He could only ponder on how many of them thought that this was the end for them, that this would be their final jump...

Garrus banished those depressing and morbid thoughts, as he paid attention to the commander.

Chris stood, the one closest to the cargo bay doors, as he viewed his 'troops'.

The cargo bay had been emptied, except for the Flight Chief, who was stood at the side of the cargo bay doors, his hands hovering over the controls.

Once everybody had seemingly loaded up, Chris spoke into the squad-wide comm:

"Check in!"

The different responses met Chris' ears, to which, he could only smile at the efficiency of the small squad:

"Devil One, ready!"

"Devil Two, good to go!"

"Devil Three, ready to kick ass!"

"Devil Four, itching for a fight!"

"Devil Five, locked and loaded!"

"Garrus, on your mark, Commander!"

"Wrex, let's just get on with it."

Chris smirked, as he spoke once more, "Equipment, sound off!"

Again, the responses came thick and fast:

"Devil One, equipment is sound!"

"Devil Two, gear's good to go!"

"Devil Three, everything checks out!"

"Devil Four, gear's good!"

"Devil Five, all green!"

"Garrus, everything is operational Commander!"

"Wrex, damn grav-belt's a bit tight..."

Chris nodded his head, as he turned to face the Flight Chief.

The elder human's voice, a Texan accent, filtered into everybody's helmets:

"Now... Y'all gonna be flying in fast 'nd low. We're 'bout fifteen thousand feet up in the air. Keep your thrusters ready, and your grav-belt's tight. Watch out for flying spit; Maw's like to spit a little. Keep the formation tight; keep together, and follow the Commander. He'll show you where to go. If you aliens don't know what you're doing, just keep your arms and legs in like a bullet. Just pretend you're flying like a bird. Or whatever the hell you fuckers have..."

The Flight Chief nodded one more time, before he regarded the commander, "God-speed you crazy motherfuckers!"

With that, the Chief slammed his fist into the controls of the cargo bay door controls. Once the doors had opened, the old man began hollering again:

"Move! Move! Get moving you lazy sacks of shit!"

Chris smirked, as he charged out of the cargo bay doors, his team right behind him.

Always first out.

He couldn't help what came out of his mouth next:

"Bat-shit crazy commanders, lead the way!"

Laughter could be heard on the comm, as the Devils began their descent, towards the Thresher Maw and the Mako.

"Keep firing Ashley! Don't let the Maw rest!" Kaidan barked, as he dodged another flying projectile of acid.

Ashley couldn't help the frustration that filtered into her reply, "Well, if you could drive the Mako properly then I wouldn't be missing my shots so much! Hell, Shepard's driving's better than this! And I felt ill after Therum!"

Kaidan barked out a laugh, as sweat dripped down his face.

Tali simply remained quiet, as she continued to monitor the shields of the Mako, distributing the auxiliary power when needed, as well as keeping an eye on the scanning system.

The other two soldiers were simply sat in the back of the Mako, terrified, and saying nothing.

Tali began to lose the last shreds of hope she had remaining, as the acid projectiles began to whittle the Mako's dwindling shields even further:

"Shields at twenty-two percent! We can't take much more of this!" Tali stated, her voice hurried due to the fear gripping her stomach.

Kaidan simply said nothing, as another projectile impacted the Mako.

"Shields at fourteen percent!" Tali stated once more.

All that could be heard in the ensuing silence, was the lieutenant's silent cursing; Ashley's not so silent cursing, and now the panicked voices from the two soldiers in the back of the Mako.

Another projectile hit the Mako, proving too much for the struggling machine.

"Our shields are gone! We won't survive another hit. This is it... We're done for." Tali said, as her fear reached its apex.

The young Quarian's fingers began to dance rapidly in her lap as she closed her eyes shut.

She was going to die on this planet. Of that she was certain.

They had discovered from garbled transmissions that the marines had been drawn to the planet, due to a hoax emergency broadcast on Alliance channels.

The ground team had no idea who had sent the transmission, but none of it mattered now. The apex predator's had made sure of that.

'I-I'm going to die here... S-Shepard isn't here to help. He's on the Normandy...' Tali thought, as she lifted her head to regard the blaring terminal.

But... It was that same thought that refreshed Tali's sense of hope and happiness.

'Safe. He's safe on the Normandy...'

A fire began to be stoked in Tali's heart at these thoughts, as she continued to cycle the same thought in her mind.

He was safe.

Tali realised, 'That's all that matters... I made a promise... My life, in exchange for his.'

'I stand by that promise.'

As time slowed down, and the sounds within the APC began to blur, Tali began to make peace with her Ancestors.

That was, until the fire within her provoked a sense of defiance.

'No... I'm not dying here! I'm getting back to my nehya... I'll be damned if I leave him on his own! Especially with that blue bosh'tet!'

Tali viciously grinned as she activated her interface, time still seemingly slowed down, before she selected the Mako's turret energy supply. She pressed a combination of buttons, her three slim fingers working at tremendous speed as she provided herself and her crewmates an opportunity.

An opportunity to live, and fight again.

Rerouting the power from the turret, Tali placed the extra energy in the shielding systems, as well as the basic functions of the Mako.

The Mako roared to life, as power surged within it.

Kaidan could only shout in celebrated exclamation, before he rammed the Mako into reverse, away from the Thresher Maw.

A few projectiles impacted the shields, but due to the extra power boost, they did little to no damage.

Once the Mako had driven far enough away, Kaidan parked it behind a sand dune, before he turned the Mako's engine off, giving everyone a chance to catch their breaths after the tense ordeal.

Kaidan rounded on Tali, speaking in disbelief, "Tali... What just happened?"

Tali quietly replied, "I-I used the power supply from the main gun, and I rerouted it to the Mako's shields and basic functions."

Ashley was the first one to speak, her voice elated, "Tali! You're a fucking genius! That was amazing!"

Kaidan could only nod his head, as similar compliments could be heard from the back of the Mako.

Tali blushed, as she simply replied, "It was nothing... Anybody could have done it."

Kaidan smirked, as he spoke jovially, "I seriously doubt that..."

At this, Kaidan got out of the driver's seat, before moving over towards the door of the Mako. He tapped his head once he had equipped his helmet, making sure everybody was protected.

Once done, Kaidan opened the door, before he spoke on the internal comm, "Now... I think our best course of action is to get the Mako fixed before we take the Thresher Maw on again. Anyone got any omni-gel?"

Ashley wordlessly opened up her omni-tool, to which she sent across the sufficient amount of omni-gel to the lieutenant.

Kaidan nodded his head, before he stepped outside. Everybody followed after this, wanting to get outside for a few minutes.

It was only when Kaidan had begun to apply the gel to the damaged areas of the Mako that the miracle they'd all been hoping for, loomed in the sky.

Ashley spoke, disbelievingly, as she zoomed her helmet's view on the approaching targets:

"My God. I can't believe it..."

"What is it, Chief?" Kaidan said, not bothering to look up from his work.

"You'll need to see for yourself LT."

Kaidan stood up, and looked towards the area Ashley was pointing to.

As the others zoomed in on the targets, Tali included, Kaidan could only mumble out a joyful sentence:

"The crazy bastard... He nearly dies on the Citadel, gets put under for a couple of days, and now he's jumping out of the Normandy. He just has to take all the spotlight, doesn't he?"

Tali spoke up at this, not fully understanding what was going on, "What is it? What's going on?"

Ashley answered Tali's question, happiness flooding her words, "That Tali, is one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen... The Normandy's very own Devil Jumpers. Lead by our very own hero of the Alliance... The Commander."

Tali's jaw dropped behind her mask, as a thousand emotions rushed through her body, before finally resting on two: relief, and anger.

'I'm going to kill him. I'm going to kill that bosh'tet! I asked him to watch over him, not wake him up to fight!'

Kaidan smirked, as he jovially spoke up, as he noticed two Devils were heading for the Mako.

"I think you're going to want to watch this one ladies and gentlemen. From the scuttlebutt I've heard, Shepard isn't a fan of Thresher's. I almost feel sorry for the Maw now. Almost. "

"This is Flight Leader, how are we doing back there?" Chris said, as he continued to soar through the skies.

The collective responses were positive, and everybody continued on their current course.

Once close enough, the commander began to relay his orders, "I want two soldiers down on the ground, with the Mako. Get them escorted to a safe distance where the Normandy can rendezvous for pickup."

"Devil Three, on it."

"Devil Five, acknowledged."

Shepard continued, as the two Devils broke off from the formation, and journeyed towards the Mako.

"I want the rest of you to land on the cliff ridge, overlooking the Thresher. I want you to give it everything you've got. Understood?"

"Devil One, copy that."

"Devil Two, ready to unleash hell!"

"Devil Five, I've got a rocket with that puta's name on it!"

Shepard smiled softly, as he gave his last order, "Wrex, Garrus, with me."

The formation broke up, as the spectre, Wrex and Garrus split off from the other three Devils.

Once the trio were close enough to the ground, their grav-belts engaged along with their thruster packs, sharply decreasing their speeds and correcting their trajectories. Once on course and slow enough, as well as only being ten feet from the ground, the trio simply dropped to the planet, tucking and rolling as they impacted the sandy terrain of Edolus.

Once everybody had recovered from their own individual impacts, the commander continued to move forwards, towards the Thresher's position.

Once close enough, Shepard stopped the group, as the traditional tremors that pre-cursed a Thresher attack became apparent to each of them.

Although the tremors brought back horrible memories, the commander suppressed them, focusing on the mission at hand.

Shepard scanned a nearby ridge before speaking, "Devils, are you in position?"

"We're in position, sir. Waiting on your order." Rohan replied professionally, as he prepared the launcher that Ramirez had been carrying.

"Good. Shepard out."

Chris turned to face his two compatriots, a wicked grin on his lips as he detached 'Lucy', an explosive round mod engaged; his head pounded with pain, and he felt like he would vomit at any minute. But Shepard was ready.

"Are you two ready to kill a Thresher Maw?"

"I was born ready Shepard!" Wrex gleefully replied, as he slammed his fists together, before pulling out his shotgun.

Garrus simply nodded as he raised his sniper rifle.

The tremors reached their apex, before a bestial roar echoed in the area, as the planet's crust began to splinter and crack, when suddenly the form of a large, ravenous predator appeared before the trio.

The Maw looked like an ordinary brown earth-worm, just a thousand times larger, with fangs that could rip through a tank, and scales as hard as starship armour, as well as having the ability to spit volatile and extremely corrosive acid.

Thresher Maws were not to be taken lightly.

Luckily, Shepard never underestimated his opponents.

"Devils... Light the fucker up!" Chris roared, as he aimed his rifle towards the head of the humongous creature.

All at once, a cacophony of gunfire and explosions rang out in the area, as the explosive mods in everybody's chosen weapon transformed the usually ordinary projectiles into mini artillery rounds.

The Thresher Maw began to spit acid towards the trio on the ground, in its own form of attack, trying to deflect the impacting explosive rounds upon its scaly hide.

The projectiles were not doing a massive amount of damage towards the Maw, as the trio on the ground continued to attract the giant space-worms attention, dodging the hazardous piles of corrosive goo being fired at them.

Once Ramirez's rocket joined the melody, however, that's when the fight had gotten interesting.

With an almighty thud, the rocket impacted the Thresher Maw's back, blowing a large chunk out of the Maw, exposing the yellow tissue underneath, as well as showering the ground in a flood of yellow blood, acid being intermingled in the puddles that were now forming.

Seeing that the Thresher was severely injured, Chris barked out a final order.

"Finish it off! Give it everything you've got! Kill it before it has a chance to escape!"

With that order given the rate of fire seemed to increase tenfold as rounds from two different directions, up high and down low, poured straight into the Thresher Maw's damaged hide.

Seeing that there was no chance for victory, the Maw began to burrow underground, in an effort to escape.

Once burrowed, the Maw had left a massive hole in Edolus' surface, as it crawled away from its attackers...

Chris sighed, dejected as he watched the Maw escape from the battlefield.

That is, until Ramirez piped up on the comm:

"Sir! Get clear of the area! I've got a little present for the cabrón!"

Chris motioned for the others to move away, before he signalled for Ramirez to commence the attack.

What came next would help to combat the nightmares of Akuze that would later occur in Chris' life:

A tiny device. A device that couldn't be considered lethal in the slightest was fired straight into the Maw's hole.

Moments later, a baptism of fire swept the immediate area, as the device exploded... Flames burst out of the hole, and the shrieks of the dying Maw could be heard as the flames engulfed the wounded predator. The area was scorched black, and a terrible smell emanated from the Maw's hole, a smell that repulsed most...

Except for Wrex and for Shepard.

The two warriors breathed in the smell of scorched Thresher Maw, enjoying the feeling of conquering the demonic beast.

'Napalm's a bitch. But fuck it, I'm the Devil incarnate.' Chris smirked as he opened up his comm channel, whilst motioning for Garrus and Wrex to move ahead of him.

"This is Shepard. Rendezvous at the Mako's position. I'm requesting for evac... Let's get off this rock before I pass out."

Well... There we go then!

Bet you've not seen the Edolus mission done like that, have you? ;)

Just so nobody goes crazy here; Shepard was put under for a couple of days after the attack on the Citadel to try and speed the healing process up. He's not a super solider; he doesn't just wake up from critical injuries like nothing ever happened. He's just fortunate in the sense of he has the willpower to keep fighting, as well as having a supportive team behind him.

Like Chakwas and her pen. For the pen is mightier than the sword... Kinda.

Let me know what you think of the chapter! I always love to read the reviews!

Don't want to review? Well send me a message if you want to! Ask anybody who messages me, I always answer! :)

Just reiterating again: a massive shout-out to kill-phil for his assistance, as well as Tali Zorah Fan... These guys have been extremely supportive of me, and I'd just like to show how much I appreciate it :)

Happy Holidays! :D

Cheers!

Fre'eg: Curse word. Similar to that of Humanities, "Fuck". Literal translation: Clinging waste.

Bosh'tet: Animal. Native to Rannoch. Basically, is the Human equivalent of an extremely stupid dung beetle. The term is primarily derogatory, meant as an insult such as, 'Son of a bitch' or 'Bastard'.

Nehya: Term of endearment. Similar to 'Sweetheart'. In Quarian, it translates as, 'Interesting one'. It is usually used at the start of a relationship, and is used to express deep interest within a person.

Saera: Term used when speaking to one's lifemate. Literal translation: "My souls soul".

Cabrón: Spanish for "Bastard".

Puta: Spanish for "Bitch".

Вот дерьмо: Russian for "Oh shit".

ебать: Russian for "Fuck".

Translations courtesy of Google translate ;)