When the chief realized he had said more than he should have, he forced his mouth closed. It didn't matter though. He might have said it fast but Shepard and his squad were able to catch the name of the person leading the intruders. It was a name that they all knew well.

Back when they were hunting Saren, Shepard's search took him to the planet Noveria. While he was there, he stumbled onto a log listing a transmission that was intercepted by Noveria security. The message was from someone who was trying to reach a scientist on the planet Ontarom in the Newton System of the Kepler Verge. The sender believed the scientist was in danger but the message never got through. When Shepard's mission on Noveria was over, he decided to investigate the location and see if there was something he could do to help the scientist.

Before he reached Ontarom, Shepard received a transmission from Admiral Hackett. He had been receiving troubling intel saying that someone had been murdering former Alliance scientists. The one thing the scientists all had in common was they were involved with a classified project on the planet Akuze six years prior. The sole remaining living scientist that was involved with the project was currently at the base on Ontarom and Hackett believed they were in danger as well. Shepard realized Hackett was talking about the same scientist he was already on his way to assist and told Hackett that he would look into it.

Upon arriving at the base, Shepard and his squad discovered it was already under attack by a mercenary group. It was a brutal fight but eventually Shepard and his squad found the scientist they were looking for but a mercenary was there as well pointing a gun right at the scientist's head. The mercenary was revealed to be Corporal Toombs, an Alliance soldier long thought to have been killed with the rest of his squad in a thresher maw attack on Akuze. Toombs explained that he had survived the maws but was abducted by the scientists and used as a test subject for horrific experiments. When Toombs eventually escaped, he discovered the scientists had deliberately lured his unit into the thresher nest and were conducting the experiments for Cerberus. He then made it his mission to get revenge by hunting down the scientists and killing each and every one.

Shepard realized after Toombs had finished speaking that the scientist being held at gunpoint could expose what really happened on Akuze to an Alliance court. In order to do that though he would need to still be alive to testify. It took a lot of careful talking from Shepard but he finally convinced Toombs that killing the scientist was not the way to get justice for what happened to him and his unit. He promised Toombs that he would see to it that the scientist was brought to trial and that he would get Toombs help for the PTSD he developed as a result of the trauma he endured from losing his unit and while Cerberus experimented on him. As a result of the mission, an independent inquiry was launched to investigate Cerberus thanks to Toombs and the scientist's testimonies. Unfortunately, as Shepard would later find out, Toombs had never fully recovered from his ordeal.

During his mission against the Collectors, Shepard had received an email from Toombs saying that he had heard rumors that Shepard was working for Cerberus. Toombs reiterated how brutal the tests were that Cerberus had conducted him and said that he couldn't understand how Shepard could team up with them like they were just another mercenary band with that knowledge. He warned Shepard that he had a new mercenary band of his own and they were killing any Cerberus teams they came across and that Shepard shouldn't expect different if the two of them ran into each other. Shortly after Shepard had defeated the Collectors, he replied to the email explaining that he never worked "for" Cerberus and was only working "with" them because he needed their resources to investigate the colony abductions. He further stated that his temporary alliance with them was done now that the Collectors had been defeated. Toombs replied back saying that he didn't care. To him, the fact that Shepard willingly helped the group that killed his unit and performed brutal experiments on him was a betrayal and he said that he still intended to kill Shepard if they ever met again. Fortunately Shepard never heard from or saw Toombs again…until now.

Now Shepard had found out that Toombs was in the facility and holding a good friend of his with a past connection to Cerberus. Thinking of what Toombs was possibly doing to Miranda was causing him to sweat nervously along with the chief who was still wondering what Shepard was going to do with the gun that was still pressed against his head. Finally Shepard's horrified face was beginning to cross with anger. Liara who was still standing next to him was the first to realize it and tried to reach out to calm Shepard down. Unfortunately her hand didn't reach his shoulder in time.

"You idiot!" Shepard growled as he used the butt of his pistol to strike the chief across the face. The force of the blow knocked the chief down to the ground. The sound of the blow caused Ashley and Garrus to turn from their lookout positions. They both were surprised to see the chief on the ground with a bloody nose and Shepard sitting on top of him and pressing his gun against the side of the chief's head.

"If Toombs is your friend then you should know that he was the victim of brutal experiments conducted on him by Cerberus," Shepard continued, "Lieutenant Lawson, before joining the Alliance, used to work for Cerberus. If Toombs has her then she doesn't have much time left to live. The only way we can stop him is if you tell us where he is….now."

The chief was still in pain from the blow to his face but he managed to reply, "no you're wrong. I've known Toombs for a long time and he's no killer. I heard about what happened to him but the last time I saw him he was getting help. He told me he needed to get into the facility to get something for his employer and that if I did as he said no one will be killed."

Shepard took his gun and used it to deal a sharp blow to the chief's ribs. The chief let out a loud painful groan and made an attempt to reach for his chest but his handcuffed wrists made it impossible. Ashley, Garrus and Liara all winced when they watched Shepard deal the blow. Not so much because of how much it probably hurt the chief but because they didn't expect Shepard to deal the blow at all. Shepard was always someone who usually kept his cool when he interrogated someone and would never use physical force. What Shepard was doing was not usual for him.

While Garrus and Liara had never seen Shepard act like this before, Ashley had and she began to think back to when it had happened. During the mission at Buckingham Palace, Shepard tried to get the backer's identity from their salarian operative Avot Yuless. Instead of giving up the name, Yuless just told Shepard that his employer was more powerful than he knew and said that he and Ashley had better enjoy the time they had left. Between the threat and having recently lost Vega, Shepard snapped and grabbed Yuless by the throat and Ashley was worried he was going to choke Yuless if he didn't get the name. Before Shepard could continue the questioning, Yuless killed himself by taking cyanide. Still there was a part of Ashley that worried what Shepard might have done if Yuless hadn't committed suicide. Now those worries were starting to return as they were now in an eerily similar situation.

"Shepard," she quietly said as she stepped towards Shepard.

"Don't Ash!" Shepard shouted.

Ashley froze where she stood. Shepard never called her by her first name in the field as part of their agreement to be professional when on missions. While a part of her felt that the slip was just because of the stress caused by one of his friends being in danger, she couldn't help but wonder if it was more than that. But she knew that this was not the best time to ask so she reluctantly took a step back and let Shepard continue while she shared a nervous glance with Liara and Garrus.

"The chief obviously has not talked to Toombs recently or else he would know that he's been leading a mercenary group that kills any Cerberus operatives they find. So he is not here to get something for an employer, he is here to kill Miranda. Now I'm going to ask you one more time Chief. Where is Toombs?"

The chief shook his head as he was trying to process what Shepard had told him. Shepard was beginning to worry that the conversation was taking too long. Either Miranda was going to be killed soon or a hostile would find them hiding in the stairwell and interrupt the interrogation. Seeing no other option and becoming increasingly impatient, he took his pistol and fired a shot inches above the chief's head. Ashley and Liara jumped back in surprise. Garrus shouted at Shepard asking what he was doing. Shepard even thought he could hear some muffled chatter coming from the hallway. He proceeded to tune everything out and instead focused on the pale face of the chief who looked like he was on the verge of crying. He then leaned forward so that his face was inches from the chief's. Despite the close proximity, he shouted the question again.

"WHERE IS HE?!"

"THE MED BAY!" the chief screamed. "HE'S IN THE MED BAY. STAY ON THIS FLOOR AND GET TO THE MAIN LAB PAST THE MESS HALL! THE MED BAY IS JUST THROUGH THERE!"

Now that he had the answer he needed and convinced the chief was telling the truth, Shepard used his free hand to knock him unconscious. As he stood up, he listened for the muffled chatter he heard earlier. It was no longer muffled and seemed to be getting louder. There was also the sound of footsteps approaching. He quickly recapped everything he saw in the hallway during the brief time he looked inside while they killed the krogan and subdued the chief. His memory didn't recall seeing any bodies on the floor in the hallway. That was all needed to know to decide his next course of action.

Shepard opened the door to the hallway while he was arming one of his grenades. When the door had opened, Shepard saw four mercenaries running towards the stairwell. Before either of them could raise their weapons, Shepard tossed the grenade into the hallway. The mercenaries instinctively ducked into some of the rooms in an attempt to find cover from the blast. Unfortunately for one of them, the grenade went off before they could escape. The remaining three were quickly gunned down when they tried to peek out from their hiding places by Ashley, Garrus and Liara. Once the dust had settled for the time being, Liara bent down to check the chief's neck for a pulse but was stopped by Shepard.

"Relax," he said, "I didn't kill him nor did I have any intention to."

"You could've fooled me Shepard," said Garrus, "I've always trusted your judgment but was beating the chief and firing your pistol really necessary?"

"I wish I could've been more subtle Garrus. I really do but the time for subtlety passed the minute I found out that Toombs was involved in this and is looking for Miranda. Now we heard the krogan tell the chief that a 'package' was on the way to Toombs. He had to have been talking about Miranda. We need to get to the med bay before Toombs gets his hands on her."

Before Shepard could enter the hallway, Liara grabbed his arm.

"Shepard, are you sure you're all right?" she asked.

Shepard let out a sigh of frustration, "Liara I appreciate your concern but now is not the time for us to be worrying about MY welfare. We need to worry about Miranda. You and Ashley were both with me when we stopped Toombs from murdering the Cerberus scientist. Garrus, I showed you that email I got from him during the Collector mission. We all know what Toombs is capable of and he will kill Miranda if we don't stop him."

Liara was about to protest when Ashley spoke up, "Shepard's right. Miranda is the one who needs help the most right now. So what do you want us to do skipper?"

Shepard gave Ashley an approving nod and continued, "thanks Williams. I'll take point with Liara and lead the way to the med bay. Garrus and Williams, I want you two to watch our six and make sure we don't have any enemies coming from the lower levels. Most importantly, keep your fire under control. There are still friendlies lying unconscious throughout the facility. I don't want any of them accidently killed by a stray shot or grenade. We all have our assignments. Be ready to move on my go."

Shepard turned to take one last peek into the hall to ensure they were still clear. Garrus and Liara looked at each other and shared uneasy looks. They quickly vanished when they saw Ashley look at them sternly and gestured for them to get into position. Shepard had at that point turned to face them and nodded to indicate they were clear. Ashley, Garrus and Liara all nodded in response. Once everyone was ready, Shepard led them into the hallway.

They squad didn't encounter any resistance until they reached the mess hall the chief mentioned. Shepard figured based on the number of bodies lying around that the attack must have taken place while the majority of the staff was on a meal break. After making it halfway through the room, the doors that led to the kitchen burst open and several mercenaries charged in and started firing.

Thanks to Liara's quick reaction, she was able to generate a biotic barrier to stop the bullets. She proceeded to hold up the barrier long enough for Shepard and the others to flip over some tables to use as cover. Shepard then fired a few rounds of suppressing fire to give Liara enough time to drop the barrier and join them behind the tables. Pinned down by gun fire, all Shepard and the others could do for the moment was hunker down and try to avoid the shrapnel caused by the bullet impacts.

A break came when the mercenaries that were coming from the left flank needed to reload. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Shepard peeked out from behind the table and was able to take out two of them with his assault rifle before he had to duck back behind cover. As the mercenaries continued firing, Shepard gave a series of signals to the others explaining there were at least 7 more hostiles still standing and they were spread out all along the area in front of them. All of them were also behind heavy cover that allowed to them to fire without risk of exposing themselves to attack. It was then he noticed that Garrus was starting to reach for one of his grenades. Shepard shook his head to warn against it. He knew that even if the grenade forced the mercs out from their cover, the blast would kill any of the unconscious friendlies nearby. He carefully peeked around the table one more time to assess the enemy's position.

"Liara throw out a singularity toward the right flank," he said.

Liara nodded and began to glow blue as her biotics warmed up again. She then peeked out from the right side of their cover and made a gesture with her arm like a bowler tossing a ball. Suddenly a small black hole appeared above where three of the mercs were hiding. The mercs began to panic as the black hole lifted them off the ground. Liara quickly raised her submachine gun and took out each one of them. Once they were dead, Liara moved forward to get into a position that would allow her to get a better shot on the remaining mercs.

While she moved, Shepard stepped out from cover and moved forward as well while providing Liara with suppressing fire to keep the remaining mercs pinned down. He even managed to get one in the head bringing the count down to three hostiles left. Provided no other mercs joined in the fight, the odds were now firmly in their favor.

"SIX O'CLOCK!"

Garrus' voice forced Shepard to duck behind the nearest table and turn to face the direction he called out from. His hope for no other mercs joining the fight vanished. Coming from the hallway behind them was another squad that probably came from the lower levels. Garrus and Ashley were already firing into the hallway to keep them from entering the mess hall. Shepard figured that as long as they continued doing that, there was no need for him to help so he turned his attention back to the three mercs still in front of them.

He then noticed Liara hiding behind a table a few feet ahead of him and to the right. She gave him a thumbs up to indicate that she had reached her new position without the other mercs seeing her. Shepard smiled and nodded that he understood. From where Liara was, she had the perfect angle to hit the remaining mercs the minute they stepped out from cover. All she needed was for someone to draw them out. Shepard held up his hand and three fingers to begin a countdown.

3….2…..1…..GO!

Shepard quickly stepped out from his cover and pretended to raise his rifle like he was about to fire towards the mercs. The mercs reacted by stepping out from their cover and began firing towards Shepard who was now quickly ducking back behind cover. Now fully exposed, the mercs were quickly gunned down by Liara's submachine gun. With no more enemies in front, Shepard and Liara headed for the exit. Shepard then called out to Garrus and Ashley saying they were moving on.

Upon hearing Shepard's orders, Ashley tapped Garrus on the shoulder to let him know she was going to move. Garrus nodded and continued to keep the mercs at bay in the hallway. When Ashley made it close to the exit where Shepard and Liara were waiting, she resumed firing into the hallway giving Garrus cover so he could join them. Before moving, Garrus placed something just outside the doors to the mess hall. He then practically bolted to join the others while shouting for them to get down. The others barely had a chance to do what he said when an explosion blew the doors to the hallway open and screams were heard. When the smoke had cleared, there were no more mercenaries in the hallway. Shepard turned to Garrus and gave him look that said "what was that?" Garrus just held his hand to give him a "it's okay" gesture.

"Don't worry Shepard," he said, "the explosion was small and controlled. I made sure there were no friendlies within the blast radius before I planted it."

Shepard sighed and then grinned, "I don't know why I doubted you. All right we're almost to the med bay. We just have to get through the main laboratory."

"There will undoubtedly be more mercenaries waiting for us there," Liara commented.

"Yeah and we'll have to watch our fire even more. The type of experiments this lab has been conducting will have required items that might be explosive in nature. A stray shot could set something off. Normally that would be good for us but if the scientists are in there they could get caught in the blast as well."

"I doubt the mercs will be as cautious with their shots," said Ashley.

"Then we have to make sure they never get a chance to fire any. It's time to do a little sniping."

Garrus smiled as he holstered his assault rifle and pulled out his M-97 Viper sniper rifle, "you just said my favorite word."

Shepard and Ashley pulled out their own sniper rifles while Liara went on ahead. Being the only one who wasn't a sniper, it was up to her to peek inside and then open the doors. From what she could see through the crack, there were indeed some mercenaries lying in wait for them to enter. She even saw that some of the unconscious scientists had been strung up from the ceiling and lined up in the center of the room. It was a cleaver plan for the most part by the mercs. If Shepard had decided to burst into the lab guns blazing, they would have hesitated upon seeing the bodies and would have been vulnerable to attack. Liara smiled as she thought about how it would be the mercs who were going to be getting a surprise instead. She turned to Shepard and warned him about the friendlies on the other side and waited for him to give her the signal to open the doors. Shepard nodded to indicate that he understood and that he and the others were ready.

Liara opened the door and stepped to the side before it opened completely. The mercs on the other side stepped out from cover and prepared to fire on Shepard and the squad but froze in confusion when they didn't see them when the door opened. Suddenly one of the mercs' head exploded when struck by Shepard's sniper round. Then two more heads exploded after Garrus and Ashley took their shots. After a few more mercs were picked off, the remaining ones ducked back behind cover and tried to move forward to close the gap between them in hopes that it would be harder for them to be sniped. Their plan backfired when they realized too late that Liara was waiting right on the other side of the door frame and were quickly dropped by her pistol.

When the last merc fell, Shepard led the squad through the laboratory and into the adjacent med bay. They froze when they saw what was waiting form them on the other side of the door. Strapped to one of the beds was their friend Miranda Lawson. Worse still, she had tubes hooked up to her limbs. Aside from the tubes there wasn't any indication that she had been harmed and they figured she was just unconscious.

Shepard scanned the room quickly looking for any hostiles or traps. At first glance it appeared that Miranda was the only one in the room. He began to get a bad feeling in his gut. If Miranda was what Toombs was after he should have been here waiting for her. Something wasn't right.

Suddenly Miranda stirred as she started to wake up. Her head then turned towards Shepard and the squad just as her eyes began to open.

"Shepard?" she said softly.

There was nothing Shepard wanted to do more than to run to Miranda and get her out of the restraints but the feeling in his gut that something was wrong kept him from taking another step towards her. Unfortunately Ashley, Garrus and Liara didn't have the same feeling and ran to help Miranda. Shepard shouted for them to wait and even took a few steps to try to grab them. Suddenly an alarm sounded and a barrier appeared to separate them from Miranda.

"Quick," Shepard ordered, "maybe we can find another way to her."

But when they turned to leave the med bay, the found that a barrier had appeared behind them as well. With a barrier in front and behind him, they were trapped. They looked around for the source of the barrier or any other means to shut them down but quickly found that there was nothing they could use to help them escape.

It was then they heard the sound of slow clapping. They turned toward the source and saw an asari and a human male wearing a helmet with tinted glass step out from behind a cabinet of medical supplies. The male was the one who was clapping. After he had finished, he took off his helmet revealing himself to be the man Shepard and the others knew as Corporal Toombs.

"Hello Shepard," he said, "long time, no see."