Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect, save the OCs you will encounter in this particular story. It will not merely be a re-telling of the ME story as we know it, so expect changes and (hopefully) surprising and enjoyable twists! This story is rated M for a reason and will contain future scenes of violence, gore, sex, and various other mature situations. There will also be copious amounts of wonderful, wonderful angst. Please consider yourself warned.
***Note: My Shepard has the default facial settings the game provides you with because, hell, why mess with perfection? This story picks up in the world of ME2 and is expected to continue in to ME3 and beyond.
I'm terribly sorry for the delay in updating, folks. I've been working a lot and dealing with a loss in the family, so I haven't been writing as much. I hope this makes up for my tardiness. Any and all reviews are appreciated! – Fallon.
Chapter Two
Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik System, 2185
Shepard awoke in the midst of a nightmare of the worst sort; that being a memory which replayed itself in his mind again and again.
In it he was trying to reach what remained of his squad on Akuze. He could hear them screaming, hear them fighting back with a hail of gunfire, but the dream always ended as it had in reality – with him standing over the dead bodies of a dozen marines, a dozen friends.
He'd thought he had dealt with the memories and the guilt Akuze left him with but his resurrection seemed to have reopened old wounds and left him with new uncertainties.
Shepard sat up in bed and muttered a curse under his breath as he wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
Fifty marines had died on Akuze and they'd all hailed him as the only survivor, the one who triumphed against a field of raging thresher maws. There he was - an upstanding example of the tenacity and strength of humanity.
Shepard wasn't sure if he'd heard bullshit of a greater magnitude.
"Commander," an elegant, electronic voice sounded in his cabin, "There is an incoming transmission from the Illusive Man."
Shepard sighed, forced energy to his tired body and set about retrieving the scattered pieces of his Cerberus uniform.
He didn't bother trying to conceal the frustration in his voice, "What does he want, EDI?"
He had just received the dossiers from the Illusive Man not long ago. Mordin Solus was already aboard and filing requisition requests faster than EDI could fill them and Shepard had planned on setting out to find "Archangel" next while in the system. There were others he had to find as well, a convict, a warlord, a supposedly expert hacker on the Citadel - many more before he'd expected to hear from the head of Cerberus again.
"Unknown," EDI responded, "But it does seem urgent, Commander, it is being sent through a heavily encrypted channel reserved for mission-critical correspondence."
Shepard hated feeling like he was at the beck-and-call of the Illusive Man. He didn't want to work with them, didn't want anything to do with them. But they were the only one's doing anything to stop the Collectors and the Reapers and working with them was better than sitting around and doing nothing.
Sitting idle had never been programed into him, even prior to his reconstruction.
"Have Joker patch him though," Shepard said with a heavy sigh as he left his cabin, "I'll take it in the comm room."
The Illusive Man took a long drag of his cigarette as the emergency transmission from Nafna Station replayed from his console.
"Project Valkyrie is secure for the time being but we need backup. Repeat, the project needs extraction!"
The newly arisen complication frustrated him. The Collectors and Lazarus demanded his full attention but he couldn't deny the unique opportunity this new development presented. 'Valkyrie' was important, she was unique and worth the resources he had allocated for the project over the past twenty years – never once had he doubted that. But although she had received tactical training she had never experienced real combat. It was time that was rectified, time to see if his investment had paid off.
After all, Shepard needed the best of the best if he was to succeed and 'Valkyrie's' addition to the crew held the possibility of untold benefits.
If Shepard could get there in time to secure her.
The familiar ringing tone of the comm link sounded, interrupting the recording of Knowles. The Illusive Man turned in his chair to face the hologram of Shepard, tapping off the ashes of his cigarette before taking another long, savouring drag.
"Shepard," He started, the Commander's name hanging in the air for one tense moment, "I've been informed that Mordin Solus has taken residence in the Normandy's tech lab."
Shepard crossed his arms, "Let's cut to the chase, Illusive Man. Keep this as short as we can."
The Illusive Man gave a curt nod, "As 'to the point' as ever, Shepard. It's good to see more proof of Operative Lawson's success in resorting you to the man you were."
"Get to the point, Illusive Man."
"I've received an emergency transmission from one of our top secret research labs in the Pylos Nebula. Nafna Station, orbiting Raisaris, has been overrun by an unknown enemy, a group of mercenaries unidentified at present. We've not heard from the head of the facility, Doctor Corrine Knowles, since she sent her initial emergency transmission."
He punched in the command on his console, and the recording replayed for Shepard to hear.
"Illusive Man, this is Doctor Corinne Knowles, director of Project Valkyrie on Nafna Station. We've been boarded by an unknown enemy and are suffering heavy losses. Project Valkyrie is secure for the time being but we need backup. Repeat, the project needs extraction!"
The panic in the woman's voice was obvious enough and the faint sound of gunfire in the background was likely the cause of it. Shepard had never heard of this 'Project Valkyrie' before, but he wasn't surprised that Cerberus had other, secret projects going on other than Lazarus, the project in which he was brought back.
"What is 'Valkyrie'?" He asked, hoping for more information about what or who these mercenaries wanted so desperately that they would raid a likely well-fortified Cerberus station.
"You have to understand, Shepard, this project is top secret. Not even Miss Lawson knows of its existence."
"If I'm going to retrieve 'Valkyrie' I need to know a bit about it." Shepard rationalized.
The Illusive Man hesitated. He wanted to keep his cards close to his chest, but he also knew Shepard was right. Still, that didn't mean Shepard needed to know everything, just enough to execute the mission successfully.
"'Valkyrie' isn't a 'what' or 'it' but a 'who'. She was born in May of 2163, making her twenty-two years old at present. Her mother was exposed to levels of eezo and radiation in a lab accident when she was five months pregnant. She survived long enough to give birth to 'Valkyrie'."
Shepard was skeptical. He knew what the Illusive Man was getting to and was curious what made someone so young a potential recruit for the mission. "What makes this girl worth the investment?"
"The element and radiation gave her biotic abilities like nothing humanity has ever seen, Shepard. She's unique, one of a kind. Definitely someone worth picking up to take on the Collectors, don't you think?"
"Has she had combat training? I can't have a weak link on this mission."
The Illusive Man butted his cigarette, flicking remnants aside. "I wouldn't send you after her if I didn't think she'd be worth it, Shepard. Recent reports coming out of Nafna have 'Valkyrie's' combat simulation scores as being impressive. It's time she was put to the test in the field and I'll be damned if I let common thugs steal such a valuable resource away from us."
Us? Or you? Shepard thought to himself.
"You've convinced me," He relented, "How will I know who 'Valkyrie' is once I'm there?"
"As a consequence of her exposure to such high levels of radioactive materials in the womb, the girl has albinism. Her hair, skin and eyes lack pigment. Believe me, she'll stick out."
Shepard nodded, "Understood. Does she have a name?"
"Of course. Her guardians named her Eira."
Satent System, Pylos Nebula, on approach to Nafna Station
The shuttle hummed with a rhythmic pulse that was all too familiar to him. It had always had the power to banish even the most intense feelings of unease and was something Shepard relied on regularly to center himself before hitting the ground.
"EDI, what else can you tell us about 'Valkyrie'?" Shepard asked as his heart rate evened out, the hum of the shuttle's engine doing its job.
EDI's hologram image appeared in the shuttle.
"'Project Valkyrie', also named 'Eira', was born on Nafna Station in 2163. Name is derived from human Norse mythology. 'Eir' – goddess of medicine and a Valkyrie – an angel like being said to have the power to choose who lives and dies in battle." She paused, contemplating what she'd say next, "Ironically, according to my findings the name 'Eira' means 'snow' in Welsh."
Miranda gave a sarcastic chuckle as she popped a thermal clip into her pistol, "Most definitely a reference to her albinism. Whoever named her must have had a sense of humor."
"Anything else?" Shepard asked as he went over his own weapons.
"Going over submitted reports from Dr. Knowles, it seems Eira's biotic abilities are remarkable. They manifested young, when she was only two years old."
"How is that possible?" Jacob asked, "The abilities of biotics appear in adolescence."
"I am merely going off of Cerberus reports I've been provided with, Operative Taylor," EDI explained, "there is little explanation of why they appeared so young in her or what implant she has to harness such power. The levels of element zero and radiation she and her mother were exposed to are astronomically high however, perhaps that is why."
"It was enough to kill her mother," Shepard pointed out, "don't most women exposed to eezo while pregnant survive themselves?"
His thoughts drifted back to Kaidan and he swallowed hard as he looked away from Jacob and Miranda, trying to hide how unsettled that memory made him.
"They do," Jacob said, "my mother's still alive and kickin'. If her mother died, she was likely at the center of the leak, not downwind like most. Containment procedures in the event of lab accidents are advanced though. Beats me why her mother was so heavily exposed."
Miranda scowled, "None of this matters right now. If she's strong, great, we need all the help we can get to take down the Collectors. Knowing why isn't going to help us get her out of the station. We can ask questions later."
"Of course," Jacob nodded to her and turned to Shepard, "What's our plan of attack, Commander?"
EDI pulled up the station's schematics. Inside, the station was a maze of winding corridors and side passages. In its center there appeared to be a large single room from which all hallways sprouted out from – a core of sorts.
"I suggest entering here, Shepard," she highlighted an entrance on the far side of the base, "the living quarters are nearby and it is likely you will find the girl thereabouts."
"Not in this main chamber?" Miranda pointed to the large room, seemingly the core of the station.
"Unlikely, station scans indicate it is uninhabitable – full of radioactive gases that are likely bleed off from the station's true core. The dark energy inside appears highly imbalanced with static energy. I recommend avoiding this area."
"That complicates things." Shepard said in a grumble, "If it is a bleed the station's a ticking time bomb. Funny the Illusive Man didn't mention it…"
"Maybe he didn't know." Jacob offered.
"The Illusive Man doesn't strike me as the type to be left in the dark on any aspect of a project." Shepard said with a frown, unsettled by the development, "Especially one he claims to place high importance on."
"Again these are questions for another time," Miranda stood and approached the hatch, "We're nearly there," she said with a glance at the monitors, "Let's get this done."
"Agreed." Jacob stood to join her, "Maybe this 'Valkyrie' will have some answers for us."
A muted hiss echoed through the shuttle as the engine died down to make a controlled approach to the station's docking port. It jerked slightly as it made contact, and then it was silent.
Shepard knew that while their approach may have been cloaked, their docking was undoubtedly noted by the mercenaries within and that trouble would be approaching them quickly.
"There's only one way to find out," Shepard cocked his shotgun, "Let's lock and load."
The hatch opened and the sounds of gunfire and screams filled the shuttle.
Shepard raised his gun, "Move out!"
Eira scurried under the desk, pulling her knees to her chest and hugging them tightly so she was as small as possible. She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed for the nightmare to end. Outside the room, gunfire continued and was punctuated by pained, sudden screams as lab personnel fell to the mercenaries that flooded into the facility.
She had been separated from Corrine in the chaos and the gun the doctor had pressed into her hands had long since run out of ammo.
What do these people want from me!
Another scream ripped through the air and she covered her ears with her hands.
Tears fell unbidden down her cheeks as her mind raced to find a way out, a way to find Corrine and get somewhere safe.
What do I do? What do I do!
She bit her lip as her biotics flared, her panic drawing the energy out of her, urging it out of her every pore. It flowed over her skin until she was covered in a strong barrier. It did nothing to mute the sounds of battle, but it made her feel more secure, safe.
Eira poked her head out around the corner of the desk and saw the mercenaries flooding into the docking bay through the large window in the office that looked down on the massive open space. The hatch opened and three seemingly well-armed soldiers entered the bay, drawing the fire of the mercs who had gunned down the majority of the station's staff. She saw them take cover behind the crates and begin picking off those who stood against them. She was too far away however to see if their armour bore the Cerberus logo.
Who are they?
They were taking down the mercs, but were they a new enemy? Another group who wanted to steal her away?
Corrine…I need to find Corrine. She'll know if I can trust them.
Eira swallowed hard, gathering up her courage, and slipped out of the office.