Illusive Man: Before we could safely trust you to be the real Jane F. Shepard, we have an assignment for you. Tali Zorah var Rayya, the Quarian that was one of your first allies in the first Mass Effect Game against Saren Arterius. She was currently on an assignment by the Migrant Fleet to investigate the sudden disappearance of the Alliance Colony of Freedom's Progress. One of the first Systems Alliance's colonies that extends to the Terminus Systems. So this is your next mission and a test that confirms that ZEUS did not reemerge. Find out the reason behind the disappearance before the traces are destroyed. And prove yourself to be the real Shepard by bringing Tali back alive.
The shuttle have landed on Freedom's Progress.Shepard, Miranda and Jacob jumped out of the shuttle and landed on the colony. The shuttle quickly left.
"It's... Strange."
Miranda: "Coarse examination suggest no structural damage or signs of violence anywhere within the Colony. No blood. No bullet-holes. No evidence of DNA or Eezo readings that could suggest what happened to the colonists. It looks like that they. Just. Disappeared."
The lamp-posts above their head was turned own, as if everything were proceeding as usual.
Jacob: "Power and control systems seemed to be intact... Whatever caused the Colonists to disappear must either intentionally spared the Colony's systems, had great Stealth capabilities, or simply had no interest at causing damage to the Colony's infrastructure at all."
The squad of three approached a building. The door seems to have been locked. Though the lock was not complicated- just a unprotected latch that was meant to stop animals from entering. A latch that could be opened with any omni-tool.
Jane F. Shepard quickly interfaced with the lock and the door opened. Inside the room, however, was two MARS mechs and a FENRIS mech. Which quickly responded by shooting at the three. Shepard and Miranda each caught and tore apart one of the MARS mechs using their Tendril attack, and the FENRIS mech was lifted up from it's four feet and smashed against the ceiling into bits by Jacob's K-module.
Shepard: "Why the security mechs were hostile? Why anyone would program them to shoot at anything that moves?"
Jacob turned to the head of the now-smashed FENRIS mech, and pulled it's processor module out of the broken machinery. Accessing the V.I. stored within the module using his Omni Tool, Jacob Taylor told the other two members of the squad.
"It looked like that the mechs were reprogrammed during, or at most immediately after the time where the Colonists disappeared."
"The tampering looked Quarian. It must be the Quarians that were mentioned in the briefing. There is a log left within the V.I.'s files- the Quarian that did the tampering must be either a very bad hacker that didn't remember to wipe the logs after an attack, or was in a rush when he/she did this. The serial number of the Omni Tool that was used for the reprogramming was found in the logs. We could trace the beacon signal of the Omni Tool and find the Quarian."
After a few operations on Jacob's Omni Tool, the general direction of the Quarians they are trying to find was displayed on the Omni Tool interface of all three members of the squad.
Following the beacon signal of the Quarian's Omni Tool, Shepard, Miranda and Jacob set course to find Tali Zorah and the Quarians that was "Investigating" the disappearance of the colony.
CODEX: Powers to the People: G module, K module and S module
Unlike the discipline-and-training based type I Biotics of the citadel which perform their Biotic skills the same way Mages in fantasy settings cast their spells and needs a cybernetic Biotic Amplifier to produce anything that was even remotely useful; The Engineering-and-Programming based Human/Terminus Type II Biotics largely use the following three genetically-encoded "modules" when it comes to using their Biotic skills both as a tool and as a weapon, without a need for an expensive, lethal-if-damaged Biotic Amplifier, or "Amp".
G-module, or Gravity Manipulation:
The G-module, or Gravity/Force module, as suggested by it's name, controls and manipulates Gravity at one or more locations within a certain range. The G-Module passively points the local gravity experienced by the User in the general direction of their feet- which allows a type II biotic to stand , walk and run on any surface regardless of surface orientation or local gravity, negating the need for magnetic boots in microgravity environments. When used actively on oneself, the G-Module also allow the type II Biotic to jump hundreds of meters into the air, "glide" with their bare body and "dash" in midair by simply altering the direction of gravity experienced by the user. When used on a location other than oneself, The G-Module can also be used to create a localized force-field where everything within it is pulled/pushed toward a specific direction- Singularity, Lift, Nova and Shockwave attacks are all based on the G-module.
K-module, or Telekinesis:
The K-Module, or Kinesis module, creates a focused beam of dark energy between the user and the target- it allows the user to be temporarily linked, in the conservation-of-momentum-sense, with any objects of his/her choosing. The K-module can then be used to remotely manipulate the object, pushing/pulling/swinging/reorienting the object while dumping the excess momentum to the user. Just like the Physics Gun from Garry's Mod. When used on oneself, the K-module can be instead used greatly enhance one's physical strength in a way that was similar to Muscle Mass in [PROTOTYPE] or Tendril in [PROTOTYPE 2], or propel oneself at extreme speeds toward a certain direction- Recreating the Biotic melee attack of Type I Biotics and the Biotic Charge ability of Citadel Vanguards. However, since the K-module transfers the excess momentum to the user, if the user have not properly seated/secured himself/herself to a fixed location/object, the K-module can wind up moving the user instead of the target. The K-module can also be used as a grappling device, similar to the Web-Slingers in the game Speder-Man.
S-module, or Stasis:
The S-module, or Stasis/Shield module, is used for protection- the S-module works by creating a local reference frame in it's range of effect, where all external forces and acceleration are applied uniformly to everything inside the spacio-temporal continuum within said reference frame. When used near the User himself/herself, the S-module passively creates an impenetrable barrier against all manner of force and projectile attacks that is not mentally approved by the user, deflecting projectile/slicing attacks and negating fall/blunt force damage in the same way the passive Biotic Barriers of Citadel Biotics works. The S-module can also be used on other objects- and depending upon the nature of the object and the precise shape of the local reference frame created, could be either used to create a defensive barrier/force field around a location, or be used offensively to trap a target in stasis. Unlike Kinetic Barriers, the Biotic Barriers created using the S-module are two-ways, and can not be configured to only let through attacks from one direction while blocking attacks from the other direction. The S-module can be used to recreate the Stasis and Barrier ability of Citadel Sentinels.
Command Center, Freedom's ProgressThe Beacon Signal of the Quarian's Omni Tool is close-and Shepard's squad was met with closed doors and a bunch of rocket-launcher drones landing on top of the structure. The drones pelted the squad with rockets- which means that the members of the squad have to be in constant motion in order to not get hit by one. Shepard attempted to use the same Tendril attack on the drones- before "She" realized that she still had the M-505 "Predator" pistol on "her"(him)self. A few precision shots took out the shields of the drones, and the drones themselves fell to the ground as the anti-gravity fields failed. Miranda Lawson, however, simply used Overload on the other drones- the burst of electrical discharges broke down their internal circuits, and the drones exploded into a series of fireballs and shrapnels.
The squad arrived at the door- which have been locked by whatever kind of security software the Quarians have put down.
Jacob: "The door have been locked with more than just a latch- and the encryption was nearly perfect. We would have to bypass the security processor and mechanisms to actuate the locking mechanism directly. This is a schematic of the internal circuitry of the door's locking mechanism- Shepard, use your Omni Tool to connect the power rails to the actuators, bypass the security mechanism."
5 minutes later, after a few failed attempts, Shepard succeeded in using the localized mass effect fields of "her" Omni Tool to push one of the power rail wires onto the Actuator's power supply. And the door opened, revealing three Quarians and what appeared to be two YMIR mechs.
The two male Quarians quickly assumed battle position, saying "No Mercy to Cerberus agents!", before Shepard, still wearing Alex "ZEUS" Mercer's appearance, called out "Tali".
And the squad of three was pelted at with even more bullets...
However, as the squad desperate to dodge fire, announcing non-hostility using the loudspeaker function on Jacob's Omni Tool, Jane F. Shepard put together a file containing "Her" SPECTRE codes, as well as a few secret photos about her romance with Garrus Vakarian during their quest against Sarens and other private information that only Tali and Shepard know with each other, and sent said file to Tali Zorah var Rayya.
Tali's fire became even faster and more powerful... Before she ran out of Thermal Clips and heard that hooded male Human speaking to her in Khleesh: "I'm Shepard!"
Tali: "Talo and Ferrule, Stop. I have to confirm that 'Shepard' was in deed real."
Seeing that the Quarians have stopped fire, Jane F. Shepard leaped off "Her" current position, and landed in front of Tali.
Tali: "Alex?"
Shepard: "No, I am Shepard! Your second best friend and the one who actually saved you during our first encounter at Chora's Den when I first learned about you possibly having evidence against Saren with Garrus."
Tali: "Shepard is dead. I know about it the soon as the Normandy SR1 was attacked and crashed on Alchera in the Amada system."
Shepard: "And I am the only one who didn't have the chance to escape after getting everyone, including Joker, into the Escape Pods. I was the only one who failed to leave before the Normandy was shot again and blows up."
Tali: "I still won't trust you- In fact even if you just turned into the dead Commander I would still not trust you. You are Human and I met you in a location in the Terminus Systems- And every human in Terminus I have ever met is either a Biotic like the black male Cerberus Agent behind you or an Evolved like yourself and the white Cerberus woman in front of you. You are not Biotic- which means that you must be the Evolved that have consumed Shepard's body and got her memories from the Commander. I Know You, ZEUS."
Shepard: "No- Evolved can only get the most recent memories from anyone they consume- less than a single day of memories as well as basic skills like language. You know very well about it. My original body was found by Cerberus and the time I woke up from death I was stuck inside this body."
Tali: "Maybe... I didn't know of any Evolved who can remember something so early in their Victims' life before consumption. But there is still the last test for you. Your d**k is as short as my little toe."
Shepard: "?"
Tali: "Welcome Back, Commander."
However, just as the three Quarians confirmed that the male Evolved in front of them was in deed Jane F. Shepard, the two YMIR mechs activated unexpectedly- and Ferrule was shot with a rocket in the waist. Brown excrement flowed out of the ruptured suit, and the male Quarian slumped to the ground- Ferrule's inside have been pulverized by the force of the explosion even before the body hits the ground.
Tali: "Take Cover!"
Shepard: "Aren't we settled? Why the mechs were still attacking?"
Talo: "The mechs were programmed to follow it's last orders- and that order wasn't issued by any one of us!"
The five "people": two Quarians, two Evolved and one type II Biotic, all scattered and hid behind the various crates and boxes on the small square in front of the Command Complex.
However, to the horror of the two Quarians- as the mechs fired onto the crates, the crates turned out to be Fragile: the mass accelerator rounds effortlessly tore through the crates, leaving the party little time to dodge. Pistol and assault rifle fire hit the two YMIR mechs- but it was not enough.
However, as other MARS mechs and FENRIS mechs entered the battlefield, Jacob Taylor raised an evil grin on his face.
Using his S-module, Jacob Taylor formed a spherical barrier around himself, of which Tali and Talo quickly hid behind to dodge fire from the YMIR mechs; and advanced, slowly and steadily, toward the MARS and FENRIS mechs that have came out from behind the two YMIR mechs. Shepard and Miranda have already ran up the walls surrounding the small square, and some parts of the YMIR mechs' armor was evidently dent or ripped off as the two Evolved struck them repeatedly with their Tendril attack, pulling off a piece of the armor plating each time Shepard or Miranda have scored a hit. Approaching one of the incoming FENRIS mechs, Jacob Taylor used his K-module to lift the FENRIS mech off the ground-and smashed it onto the ground repeatedly until the small dog-shaped robot was completely disassembled. Jacob approached the still-active power core of the now-disintegrated FENRIS mech, putting the power core within range of the spherical S-barrier around him, and picked up the core. With a K-enhanced clench, the power core is ripped apart by Jacob Taylor using his bare hand, the Element Zero within it spilled out from the remains, and was seemingly absorbed into Jacob's body.
"One."
Using the same process, Jacob Taylor approached, torn apart and absorbed the other three FENRIS mechs and two MARS mechs, blue energy seemingly crackled around his being. The barrier disappeared, before a concentrated beam of unimaginably bright, cyan-blue energy bursts out from the front side of Jacob's body. "Critical Radiation", the type II Biotics' answer to the "Critical Pain" attack of the Evolved, works by destabilizing the excess amount of Element Zero within one's body once the Biotic individual is sufficiently well 'fed' and channeling the resulting flux of beta radiation and neutrinos toward a general direction with a mutated process using the K-module, bathed the two YMIR mechs in front of Jacob Taylor in a shower of ionizing radiation that was equivalent of being right next to a Mass Relay when it was destroyed and explodes. After expending the super-critical amount of Element Zero he accumulated from ripping apart and "consuming" the FENRIS and MARS mechs, the powerful beam of energy subsides, and Jacob Taylor have seemingly returned to his normal state- except that where the two YMIR mechs used to stand, now only the legs of the mechs have remained- and a hole have been punched straight through the buildings in front of the line of attack. The matter that comprised the bodies of the YMIR mechs and the part of the walls that were caught in the beam have been completely ionized and turned into a cloud of plasma that quickly dissipated.
Tali: "What-"
Shepard: "Nice Move!"
Miranda: "I have detected the beacon signal from the unknown Quarian that have reprogrammed the security mechs from somewhere inside the hole Jacob have made."
Talo: "Hope that it wasn't coming from a severed hand that survived the blast with the rest of him getting vaporized..."
Jacob: "I'm not sure."
Cargo Docks, Crane Control Building with a hole through it.Veetor: "Monsters outside... must hide. Must hide. Programming mechs to defend myself... must defend myself with all cost..."
Tali: "Veetor!"
Veetor: "Monsters have find me... Monsters have find me... Not a monster?"
Shepard: "Who's that?"
Talo: "It's Veetor. He was on his pilgrimage at Freedom's Progress when the attack came. Veetor, tell us what happened."
Veetor: "The monsters came from the sky- And there were the swarms... they stuns anyone who were caught in their vicinity. And then... they took out pods... just like this... and they took everyone."
Veetor brings up a footage of the attack on one of the screens in front of him. Swarms of what looked like small robots were seen on the screen. The Human colonists- which were Baseline as Freedom's Progress was an Alliance colony, ran from the swarms, but were quickly frozen in place as the swarms hit them and seemingly suspended them in some sort of Stasis field. Then the Collectors came. Each with pods that floated behind them, each took one of the frozen-in-place colonists, and shoved them into the pods. Then there was nothing as the Collectors left with their pods.
Jacob: "Swarms likely of a kind of microscopic drone. Stuns Baseline Humans with what appeared to be either a Neurotoxin or a kind of Stasis field. Dark energy readings suggest the second being most likely. The Collectors were behind this... and no wonder why there were no Evolved survivors, or why Veetor managed to escape."
Miranda: "Biomass can not be used to counter the effect of a Stasis field- they are fundamentally two different things. Quarian suit appears to block Swarm methods of targeting and detection- Or the Collectors were simply not interested in taking the lone Quarian."
Jacob: "Running simulations... It appeared that Biotic Barriers should be able to counter the effects of the Stasis field. If we meet these swarm afterwards, Stay INSIDE my barrier at all time."
Normandy SR2 Construction SiteJoker: "Welcome back, Shepard. The Illusive Man debriefed me about Freedom's Progress and your state of being, and saying that the Normandy SR2 is ready to go!"
Shepard: "Why are you working for Cerberus? And why are you standing instead of being on a wheelchair?"
Joker: "A year and a half is enough for a lot of things to happen- I went to Cerberus after someone disclosing to me about that they are trying to bring you back. Plus, they cured my Vrolik Syndrome. It may hurt a lot initially, but I could walk and even run on my feet now."
Shepard: "And also removed your Humanity. A side effect of the DFEV 'Cure' they gave you and possibly me."
Miranda: "Maybe we should introduce yourself to the new Normandy SR-2, Commander."
Normandy SR2, Dock 2CJeff "Joker" Moreau: "Here she is. Isn't her a beauty? Let me introduce you to the new Normandy we spent the entire year constructing and waiting for you to arrive."
Shepard walked into the CIC of Normandy SR2 from the docking tube connecting the spaceship to the drydock, and was immediately greeted with a blue, holographic projection that popped up on the holodeck on the right side of "her".
S.A.M. : "Hello, my name is SAM. Short for Simulated Adaptive Network. I am in charge of controlling the Normandy's basic function, sensor and electronic warfare capabilities."
Shepard: "Is this a V.I. or an A.I. ?"
S.A.M. : "I am a prototype general artificial intelligence based on the consensus-establishing mechanisms on the Bioships formed when Terminus Humans needed to travel together- My presence allow the Normandy SR2 to operate with the same number of crew as the original Normandy, which would otherwise need more than three times as many crew without my help."
Shepard: "And it looks like that the Terminus Systems really IS a lawless place. As if rampant Genetic Engineering wasn't enough. Cerberus nearly replacing me with a clone (And STILL ended up sticking me inside the body of a long deceased, Male monster). And now what, a functional A.I. which was outlawed everywhere else in the Galaxy. Based on a fricki'n Hive Mind that the Cerberus admit didn't develop themselves. Miranda, Is S.A.M. dangerous?"
S.A.M. : "My main function is to coordinate the mental processes and aid in information transfer between the crew themselves and between the crew and the hardware- In a sense, I am the Collective consensus of the Crew of the Normandy SR-2 when the ship is fully operational. I can not exist without the Organics being present on this ship, and all my thoughts fundamentally came from the Normandy SR-2's inhabitants and Crew members themselves- I can't think of mutiny or pose danger to the ship unless all current Organic inhabitants of the Normandy agree to do so. As long as the Crew was not insane, I am perfectly safe for you and for everyone."
Miranda: "The S.A.M. was based on the coding we found in the genetic code of certain independently-evolving Terminus Evolved and Biotics which apparently developed on their own- It was a repurposed Connection interface of a Terminus Bio-ship that was fitted with it's own quantum computer for better efficiency in the operation of mechanical hardware. A hybrid between a Hive Mind and a Machine Intelligence. As we know that such limited form of Consensus-establishing mechanism did not cause the Terminus Evolved to lose individuality as it's only used for spaceship control. If any, it only ensures that no oppressive authority would develop within the crew of a ship- which increases decision efficiency and allow the otherwise highly Chaotic and Individualistic faction to collaborate when it's absolutely needed. Don't Worry- the S.A.M. is accessed with the ship's standard computer interfaces just like any other computer system. So don't worry about mind-rape when you are actually using it."
CODEX: Bioships: Consensus/Hive Mind
When the plans for collective travel of the Evolved and the type II biotics using temporary structures known as "Bioships" surfaced in the Terminus Systems, a particularly severe issue emerged within the naturally individualistic Evolved and Biotic factions- How could a bunch of individuals, nearly every one having a different directive and will, come along and cooperate in a setting where Cooperation was absolutely necessary which was the crew and command structure of any spaceships, Bioships included? The answer was a primitive, but highly effective system that was partially based on the Geth, which had the same issue of being highly Individualistic by themselves yet needs to collaborate between hundreds to even thousands of individuals just to animate a SINGLE body. By allowing connected Biomass to communicate as fast as they could think, a consensus/compromise could be reached between even the most disagreeing individuals within timescales that are relevant for spaceship operation- within 100s of milliseconds. The tens to hundreds of Individuals that are needed to comprise a Bioship effectively think and work as one, even though each of them still disagreed toward each other on issues other than controlling the Bio-ship right now.
The Consensus system only works when the Biomass of the individuals are joined as in a Bioship or other sort of vehicle/construct the Terminus factions could think of, and only on the issue where collaboration is absolutely needed for the operation of such constructs- once the Bioship/vehicle disassociates and the Biomass disconnects upon arrival, all the Individuals that comprised it soon returns to being Individuals as the Consensus Space disassociates, and whatever disagreements between them would likely remain, even on the issue they have collaborated on just moments ago.