Hey! Sorry for the hiatus again :( Sh*t went down with work, I had to travel, then got sick, then ended up moving on top of everything... haven't had even 5 mins to sit down and finish this chapter :( :( Sorry about that. Hopefully all the busy stuff is gone now so I can return to my normal schedule. So stay tuned, this fanfic is going! :) Let me know how you like the chapter, next one coming really soon (this week)!
And of course, I wish everyone a happy festive season! :)
As soon as the shuttle landed in the Docking area of the Normandy, its door was kicked open, and the ground party practically flew through the ship to the war room. Almost all the crew was there, even Joker was present, leaning on the interface. When they arrived they were greeted with sharp silence.
"The Mu Relay?" Joker looked at them, looking skeptical, but all he really felt inside was the impending doom. Jane stepped closer, bringing up the target coordinates on the holo screen, looking at the relay like it was a colossal obstacle.
"This is where the Illusive Man went" she said with a deep exhale "Prepare to see Ilos again."
"The relay leads to many worlds, how can you be sure he went to Ilos?" asked Kaidan. Even considering their situation and the previous events, anything could happen, and it was a valid question. But there was no alternative.
"Where else could he have gone?" asked Saren, slamming his palms onto the interface, looking at the projection. "I should have known. It was all in front of my eyes and I failed to notice..."
"What do you mean?" Liara asked, genuinely intrigued, as always.
"The reapers of course." he explained "You all know, I made extensive research to try and figure out what might be the Catalyst. When searching for the Conduit three years ago, it… " he stopped for a second, remembering back to those days, disgust filling his eyes "It was a clear picture. Everything happened for a reason, and all the small clues led to a bigger picture. Indoctrination connected the data, as both the species that led Sovereign to the Mu Relay had mind control abilities - the thorian and the rachni queen - and the Mu Relay led to the Conduit which was the backdoor to the Citadel that held the key to resume the invasion again. I knew that these patterns meant something, and that they have to mean something now too."
He looked around, and found everyone just drinking his words. He continued, looking at the projection:
"You found the plans for the Crucible, and learned of the Catalyst. We found Leviathan, who informed us that they created the reapers. It was apparent, that they were part of the pattern. And then Cerberus took Vendetta that had the info about the Catalyst, but we also learned from the reaper of Haestrom that dark matter destroys reaper eezo cores. The Crucible, Leviathan, Cerberus and the dark matter were connected. I just didn't know how… There was a piece of information missing." he sighed in frustration "It wasn't enough that one reaper was destroyed by dark matter, I needed further proof. One example is just not enough…. And the Crucible plans mentioned nothing about dark matter either that could tell us dark matter was the weapon. That is because the information about that is probably not in the Crucible... but in the Catalyst. But now, the Illusive Man who has the info on the Catalyst, is on his way to the Mu Relay… which couldn't be more suspicious. When I saw the coordinates, I knew what info was missing from the picture. It was hiding in plain site all along. It was what Leviathan said."
"That the leviathans created the reapers?" Liara asked, following logic.
"Yes." Jane interrupted. She realized where Saren was going with this. She looked at him, his giant stature, now stooped over the interface. "And that the Citadel was not created by the reapers, but by the Leviathans."
Silence. Only Saren's baritone penetrated the tension as he looked at Jane.
"The Catalyst is the Citadel."
"What?" Javik exhaled, the crew members looking at each other. Saren started pacing in the room, putting the picture together.
"It's just too obvious. Leviathans created the Citadel and the reapers, for the harvest. The Citadel is a hub, a station and a mass relay. Is it so hard to believe that it is also a superweapon? It would explain why the Crucible is basically an empty shell - because it requires the Citadel's intelligence to work. Leviathan did not lie " he turned around, looking at Jane "It said…."
She quoted it for him.
"The Crucible is not of our design. It has never been completed. Those who tried fell victim to the harvest. None have found the core. But you are different..."
He smiled at her. He loved her brain.
"Exactly. No one found the core. The core of all galactic civilization, the Citadel. None of the crucibles were ever completed, because no one could reach the Citadel to actually get to the Catalyst. Javik, you know this the best" he pointed at the prothean "You said it yourself, that the Citadel was the first thing the reapers always attacked. The protheans were the first ever to access the station after a reaper invasion. That was thanks to the Conduit they created."
"So this cycle" Liara stepped forward "Is the first one that can actually stop the reapers."
"Correct." Saren replied.
Javik looked into his eyes. The silence was so thick in the room, it could be cut with a knife. Javik was proud. The memory of his people laid heavy on his shoulder, but it almost felt like a small part of him was suddenly at peace. His people gave something to the galaxy, that could not be traded for anything. A chance against the reapers.
"I have completed some calculations" started EDI, visibly looking busy in her mind, computing scenarios as they spoke "There is a high chance the Citadel being a mass relay could distribute concentrated dark matter via mass acceleration. Also counting the undiscovered parts of the Citadel, it is even possible that the Citadel is capable of harnessing dark matter from the Universe."
"Thank you, EDI." Tali nodded.
Jane stepped back from the console, her face paler than usual.
"Great work, Saren" Jane said, smiling at him. "And you as well Tali, without your data, this wouldn't be possible." she said and received a smile back from Tali in return. She turned to everyone else, stopping for a second. A sudden, deep pain appeared in her chest, squeezing the air out of her. She swallowed her nerves. "And the same goes for everybody here. You have been imperative to this war, and now the eyes of the galaxy are on us."
Why was she thanking everyone suddenly? Garrus thought as he looked at his commander, and saw the look in her eyes. She looked like it was the end of the world, and she couldn't find the words to express her goodbye. She caught him looking at her, and her expression suddenly tensed.
"Joker, set the coordinates" she commanded in a cold voice "This is the end, people."
The crew looked at her as one man, and Saren was no different. This crew was so important to her, it showed in these moments, as he heard her swallowing a tear. He saw her pain, he heard her heart throb. It was time.
"The best years of my life were spent on this ship" she started "But now I will be honest. This is our last journey."
The crew members looked at each other.
"None of you will be coming to this mission with me, only Saren." he looked at the turian, who himself looked surprised. The air froze in the room. "Garrus, Tali, Liara, Kaidan, I need you to go back to your own species, report to your leaders, and advise them. Your leaders already know about this. The protheans were defeated because they had one army, one unified tactic. I need you to take away everything you learned here, and lead individual, unique war efforts."
She looked around, now completely confident in herself. It had to be done.
"We have an advantage none had before us. We must not waste it" she continued, slamming her hand on the panels "It needs to be perfect, and that includes divided, singular tactics hitting the reapers back in their faces, so that when we activate the Catalyst, they will group around the homeworlds, close to the relays. Because if Saren is right about this, the dark energy will be transported through the relay system."
"That is what logic says, yes." Saren added, his voice lower than usual.
"Shepard, this is.." Garrus started, his eyes filled with panic, but Tali grabbed his arm:
"She's right" she exhaled, looking at him through her helmet, and the turian already knew she was crying under there.
"But..." Joker said, readjusting his hat "What will happen to us? Someone has to take you there!"
"You will take us to the Mu relay, and use it to get to the Citadel with us. I want you at the head of the Citadel fleet, when the time comes." She finished. This was it, all of them heard their orders, and they all knew what to do. Everyone understood. They all trusted her, and Saren could see it. He saw how Garrus seemed like someone mourning, his mandibles loose, a sad expression on his face. Even Kaidan understood, who was looking at the floor, speechless.
Jane and him followed a road that no one else was doomed to go down on. They all understood it. And her face amazed him: she stood there, so confident, her expression cold as ice, but her eyes were telling of everything. But it wasn't sadness. It was pure determination.
The crew gathered around her, and a second later they were saying their goodbyes. They hugged her, embraced her, and as they did, Saren just stood there, looking at her, seeing how not even a tear left her eye.
"Hey" he heard from very close, so he looked in the direction of the voice. It was the little quarian, Tali, standing in front of him, looking at him through her helmet.
"Hm?" he reacted, looking at the girl. He had no idea what she wanted, but it became apparent is a split second. The quarian reached her hand out, waiting for him. He looked at her, but there was only one explanation for this. She was saying goodbye.
He reached his hand out, and they shaked hands.
"You take care of her." she murmured, her voice warm, but deep from sorrow at the same time. He just stood there for a second, not used to the fact that someone would say such a peaceful goodbye to him. Those days were gone.
"I will" he eventually said, and the girl nodded, then left him. As soon as she left, Saren saw another entering her place:
Garrus.
Turian looked at turian, and they slammed their hands together hard in a handshake.
"Don't fuck this up" Garrus hissed "Or I'll destroy you."
"Shut up, asshole." Saren replied.
They shared a small, sly smile and Garrus passed him.
As Saren stepped out of his bunk, his mind started to wander.
The tension was so tight on the ship, he could almost feel it oozing through the walls as the aliens apart from Javik and him were now gone from the ship. They gathered all of the resources that could be acquired in the galaxy, and now it was time to let them to their thing. Jane was wise to not use one giant army against the reapers, but many smaller, unique ones: he agreed with her decision.
And now they were going to the Citadel once again. It seemed every road led there, and the memories just came over him. It was there, where he first saw her, during their meeting with the Council. So young, strong, absolutely crazy for war. It was there where he shot himself in the head, and he couldn't help but think back. The life he had before, always filled with adventure and danger, missions after missions, only war and espionage. He loved that life, but that was taken from him, by his own hands, as he knew he fell prey to the reapers.
But then he got another chance and was back again, and all he did was trying to win a war with the woman he fought against, and marked her as her mate.
All of this was suddenly a mess of things in his head, like a rollercoaster ride into death. But he didn't regret a second of it.
He did regret it ending.
As much as he hated the reapers, and what they had done, he loved beating them to death, always just fighting, never stopping for a second, and he didn't even have to fear indoctrination now. It will be very strange when this all ends… he was even a bit sad because of that.
The golden colour of the whiskey reflected from the glass as Jane held it in her hand, idly moving it around in a small circle. She stood in front of the observation window on the crew deck, looking at the great emptiness of space in front of her. She thought of her ground team, leaving the ship. They left in an hour and now the rest of them were on their way to the Mu Relay with Joker, EDI, Javik and the rest of the ship's crew. She didn't remove her armor, as this was a short flight, she knew: another hour and they'll reach the relay. She was now just getting ready in his mind, the whiskey helping to ease her thoughts.
She never actually thought this moment would come.
It still seemed so unreal, like she was in a movie or something. The time has come, and the eye of the galaxy was now on her. And still, she was calm. In all honesty she's never been calmer her entire life. Finality took over her entirely.
The door swooshed open, and she heard those familiar, heavy steps. A tiny smile crossed her face for a second before turning around, looking Saren right in the eye. He came around the sofa in the room, eventually reaching her and stopping next to her. He looked out at the empty void, then at her. He looked calm, determined, just like always. The usual air of cold surrounded him now too:
"This was the best course of action." he commented, turning back towards the window "We would have had no use for them within the station."
"I couldn't take them with me. This is not their fight." she replied.
"Then who's is it?"
She looked at him. This couldn't have been a serious question. He was testing her. "Ours" she whispered "Their job on the Normandy is done. They want to protect their homes, but I don't care for that. Only we can win this war."
Her look was cold, almost as cold as his, and for a second he almost didn't recognize her. But he realized that her usual fire was still there, but only deep within, sleeping, waiting for the battle.
"Are you afraid?" he asked, stepping closer to the window.
"No" she replied, so lightly, not a shred of doubt in her voice. She stepped to him by the window. "I always wanted adventure. I dreamt of and lived war. And now here it is. I'm not going to run away from what I was born to do."
Damn right, he thought.
This was the moment to be strong, and she passed with flying colours.
"But you were not born to die for a society you never truly respected." he replied, teasing her, curious about her reply.
"I never said I'm going to die." she smiled as she looked at him, her voice almost playful.
"That's my girl." he purred, and they turned, facing each other now. He moved a hand to put a rogue lock of hair behind her ear, just like he did many times now. He looked in her eyes and saw the same wildness, the same craziness he saw on the first day, on Virmire. She's a step away from death and destruction, and she's not afraid of it.
But she was looking at him too.
She was standing in front of the most dangerous turian in the galaxy, and his eyes only saw her. She was still amazed by his features, those eyes, so cold, so perfect. She wished they'd met under different circumstances, maybe have a different life. But they were here now, and she realized again, how hard she fell for him.
She laughed a bit, how silly that was. Because no man could ever entertain her, and she fell for the worst possible vigilante in the whole universe. But she couldn't help her feelings.
He leaned in, and as he dig into her hair, he kissed her, hard, instantly grabbing her waist and pulling her into him. His hand ran down her neck, lightly clawing at her skin, making her hiss.
"You're mine, Jane.." he whispered, his voice seductive, but somehow warm at the same time. It sent a shiver down her spine "Don't you dare dying out there."
She laughed into his embrace. "You won't get rid of me that easily… If you couldn't kill me, then no one can." They looked into each other's eyes again, a small smile on both their faces. This dark impulse, lingering between them said more than any words.
She wrapped her hands around his neck, and they kissed again, her bodies in complete synch. They did not prepare for the war of their time, they prepared for an amazing victory, and the death of the reapers. They couldn't take anything less than that.