HOLOCAUST
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX:
COUP D'ETAT PART THREE
June 22, 2186
1332 hours.
Main Reception, Citadel Security Headquarters, Presidium, The Citadel.
The Reaper War, The Citadel Siege.
Captain Marcus Lee Shepard, Military Advisor Garrus Vakarian, Shadow Broker Liara T'Soni, Second Lieutenant James Vega, Second Lieutenant Imogen Keeling, EDI, Soldier Javik, Master Thief Kasumi Goto.
The room was large. It was arranged in a T-shape; a stairwell led to a large set of doors at the bottom on the right, with the rest of the area having multiple offices all over, a reception desk on the immediate right of the door. Glass frames, bright lighting and vidscreens littered the area, with the occassional Citadel Security insignia painted on the wall.
Now it was a war zone. The set of doors at the bottom of the stairwell was now non-existent, the wall around it also blown away and leaving it open to the outside. Bullets littered the wall, scorch marks potmarked the ground and walls, windows were shattered and screens were shattered, a particularly large scorch mark blackening out one of the logos on the wall. Overall, the area was devastated.
Marcus snarled as he rolled from his cover, his cover exploding a moment later as a rocket slammed into it, reducing it to rubble and twisted metal. The Atlas responsible followed up with a trail of machine gun fire, all of which pinged harmlessly off his new cover; another steel bulkhead. He took the time to slide a new rocket into his missile launcher, cursing at himself for missing the first shot. Make every shot count! And what do you do? You fucking miss! Goddamn it! Motherfucker! Cunt! Piece of fucking sh-
An assault trooper spun around his cover, raising his SMG in preparation to take him down. Instead, he got a hook across the face for his trouble, followed by Marcus grabbing the back and slamming it into the wall, the helmet warping and cracking as it split. Dropping his launcher, he activated his omni-blade and slit the soldier's throat before deactivating it and picking up his launcher again, listening to the thud, thud, thud of the approaching mech. He would have to evacuate his position again, and soon.
"James, get that damn Atlas off my back! Javik, distract that gunship!" he yelled, fighting to get heard over the heavy report of the former's heavy machine gun, raking a large area with the weapon and likely pinning his squad from further movement.
"Suppressed! Go!" James shouted, the sound of his typhoon filling the room as it hammered the Atlas' barriers, drawing its attention to the marine. With it distracted, this allowed Marcus to charge from his cover and move closer to the two-legged death dealer.
He heard the rumble of engines behind him, papers flying everywhere as the Cerberus gunship outside like saw him, spinning up its chin-mounted gun in preparation to rip him to shreds. However, its attention was diverted when a green bolt hit its shields, fazing them temporarily before a long beam of energy raked across its hull, also deflected by its shields. But it was enough to divert its attention, machine gun instead firing at Javik.
The flanking combat engineer whorled to see Marcus rushing towards the Atlas, and immediately reached for its phalanx, drawing it and managing to get off a single shot before his omni-blade lit up and swiped down, sending two fragments of pistols flying through the air to clatter to the ground.
The engineer panicked, this time reaching for his stun batton, only to have Marcus bring up his claymore. In a flash and an ear-splitting boom, the Atlas' left leg was painted a dark red, some of it collecting in lumps, the telltale shape of shredded intestines visible underneath the blood. The combat engineer, its entire chest and torso now scattered across the mech it was defended, slammed to the ground, lifeless from the moment the claymore hit his frail body.
The Atlas finally noticed him, but instead of raising its gun to meet Marcus' attempts to climb it, it simply swatted him aside with its other arm, sending him ramming into the wall five meters away, body crumbling to the ground as he suddenly became dizzy, coming to realize just how much his entire side hurt right now.
"Damn, Typhoon's out!" James roared, "Switching to LMG! Loco needs covering fire!"
"He needs more than that!" shouted Liara, the asari appearing in a bright aurora as she sent the biggest shockwave the spectre had seen careening into the Atlas, the towering mech barely wincing from the assault, but its kinetic barriers fizzed and popped from the force exerted on it, overwhelming their ability to continue functioning.
Liara landed rapidly, moving into a roll and arriving at his side, arms wrapping under his as she began to drag him away, "Take it down!"
He grumbled, trying to stand up, but to no avail; Liara had no choice but to drag him herself, which was no tiny feat; he packed almost as much as a krogan with all his armor and weapons strapped to his body.
He only watched as a monsoon of gunfire assaulted the mech, its glass cockpit shattering from the sudden onslaught. Bullets pinged off heavy armor plating while Garrus' Reaper sniper rifle dealt the finishing blow to the cockpit glass. EDI, with the precision only she could manage, fired the crushing blow, pinning the pilot between the eyes, blood spraying across the cockpit as the Atlas stopped stumbling.
With the momentum carrying it backwards, it crashed on its back, the impact enough to quake the building, sending bits of floor crumbling and cracking into the air, a cloud of dust building up around the fallen combat suit.
He nodded his thanks to his asari friend, taking Garrus' offer of a handup and quickly dusting himself off, ignoring the pain in his side. It was easier now because it had time to dull into nothing and adrenaline took over, so all he did was holster his claymore and move over to the mech to retrieve his dropped missile launcher, holstering it on his back.
A few stragglers were left, and that gunship was still present, but his squad could easily deal with them. They had to get to the Executor's office and find out where the Council was befo-
A garguantuan flash filled his peripheral eyesight, and he looked up to the right to see the ruined and flaming carcass of the Cerberus gunship that had been bombarding them crash into the Presidium lake below, debris flying in all directions. He even watched a few Cerberus shuttles, which had been transporting fresh reinforcements to the headquarters, suffer missile impacts and simply explode into fiery amalgamations of light and flaming metal, their momentum carrying them into the ground and crashing with thunderous booms, grinding into the building's frame.
Just as he was wondering who was responsible for the sudden destruction of the enemy aircraft, he watched three more gunships fly through the air in the background, escorting shuttles. But they weren't the gold and white of Cerberus; they were the black and blue of the Alliance. Excellent job, Joker.
He watched explosions flash in the background, battle ensuing as the Alliance gunships joined forces with C-Sec and began bombarding the Cerberus positions. More shuttles arrived, dispatching more troops, likely marines or special forces, clashing with the enemy troops and driving them from their entrenched positions.
He watched one particular gunship come to hover in the courtyard outside the headquarters, but it wasn't black and blue; it was vibrant green. A Salarian Union gunship. He frowned at that, wondering why Linron would help him after what transpired on Tuchanka. Still, he wasn't going to look a heavily-armed horse in the mouth.
As he arrived outside, his team not far behind, he watched salarian STG pile out, all wearing an assortment of different types of body armor, but the general consensus was obvious: the usual salarian style; light body armor, tactical cloaks and highly-advanced, but not heavy, weaponry. The entire squad piled out and as the salarian turned around, he felt a grin grow across his face, unable to stop himself from yelling out, "Major Kirrahe!"
The salarian grinned, his men moving into formation with their weapons still holstered, all snapping salutes at the approaching captain. He saluted them back before reaching his hand out to his comrade, the salarian eagerly taking shaking it, "Captain Shepard, believed I promised you aid despite the Union's wishes. I heard the Citadel was under attack so I brought my entire division. We'll kick Cerberus from their foxholes; they're well entrenched, but that's we salarians do; we kick them from those trenches, the asari negoitate, and the turians terminate."
He nodded, the roar of the salarian gunship still prominent as it took off again, beginning a patrol around the building, joined by two compatriots; these two being painted in the black and orange of the Eclipse mercenary corporation. More explosions in the background followed as more and more the UGC forces deployed all over the Presidium.
"Damn right we are," came another voice, this one feminine and distinctly human, "Cerberus has alot of balls attacking this place. I say its time we squeeze, kick and cut them to show them just how much it hurts to do that."
He turned, watching a thickly armoured human approach them, a squad of Alliance marines following behind her in standard issue cobalt blue medium combat armor; some of them wore helmets, some wore caps and one wore nothing on his head at all, a bandage wrapped around her right eye from a battle scar. Obviously these marines were battle-hardened.
He turned to her, the human herself wearing a full head helmet and wearing armor about the same size as James, N6 plastered on her chest. She snapped a crisp salute, her posture straightening almost immediately upon seeing him, "Captain Lee Riley sir, 7th Engineers, Systems Alliance Army."
"And N6 special forces it would seem. A pleasure to meet you, captain," he snapped his own salute, "But there is no need to salute me. We're of equal rank, and you don't answer to me. Besides, we're not even on the same level. I'm navy, you're army."
Riley snorted, her voice of a higher pitch because of the 'Death Mask' helmet she wore, "I don't care if you're a bloody corporal, sir. You're the man who's going to fix this mess, and the man who we didn't listen to. I'll admit, I was one of the majority who thought you were a raving lunatic," she sighed, "But, for however much it matters, I'm here now and I'm going to make up for that. My company and I are at your disposal, spectre."
"As is my division," Kirrahe spoke up, gaining both of their attention, "Cerberus needs to be stopped right here and now."
"Very well. Kirrahe, you do what salarians do best. Infiltrate, disable, eliminate," Kirrahe grinned, nodding, turning away to shout orders to his men, who still awaited his command. He turned to Riley, nodding, "As for you and your men, you'll all come with us. We need to reach the Executor's office and then locate the Council. None of this will matter if our government falls. We can't afford anarchy."
"Yes sir," she barked, not questioning his orders even once as she pulled free her heavy looking Saber battle rifle, turning to her men, "You heard the man, men! Fall in behind and get ready to hit Cerberus hard! Who are we!?"
"Army!" the soldiers replied in tandem, beating each others' chests.
"Cerberus CAN'T HEAR YOU! SAY IT AGAIN! WHO ARE WE!?"
"ARMY!" they roared, their voices thundering across the Presidium.
"Damn right! HOO-RAH!" she turned back to Marcus, the man grinning from ear to ear at her display, "You can consider my men ready, sir."
He nodded, chuckling lightly as he motioned to the headquarters building, "Then move out, captain."
As they moved back inside, they watched more shuttles arrive and to his immense relief, he watched rachni-designed shuttles slash through the area to deploy near the embassies, swarms of the insects flooding from their hulls to rip and gut Cerberus troops en masse, their forces instantly overrun as hundreds of rachni swarmed over their defenses, taking down Atlases, their sheer force even crushing troops at points. He even watched the occassional blue flash as brood warriors unleashed their biotics. Rachni; the perfect cleaners. C-Sec would be pissing themselves, but they could explain that situation much later.
They moved back inside the ruined building, the sounds of the attacking UGC forces muffled by the thick walls. An explosion shook the building as another gunship flew by, accompanied by a trio of shuttles.
He scanned the devastation, glancing over the fresh corpses of the dead Cerberus battalion and the Atlas wreck, noting that no further resistance had showed itself, and that must have meant the battalion was defeated. And no reinforcements would be coming to reinforce the place; not with UGC troops and air support keeping them accompanied.
He found the doorway marked 'Citadel Security Executor Martin Reed' and began moving towards it, folding out his mattock as he moved forward, motioning his squad to move up ahead and take point, making sure Cerberus had no surprises waiting for them. He fell behind just so he could speak to Riley, the woman moving in a steady pace, her own rifle shouldered firmly.
"I'm presuming the Cerberus fleet has been taken care of?" he asked, knowing full well that reinforcements of this magnitude couldn't possibly have gotten past the fleet without some major help. That meant alot of naval firepower.
"Being taken care of," she responded plainly, "Hackett brought quite the sizable force, but the enemy were giving him one hell of a fight by the time they deployed our shuttles. I can only assume their still engaging them. Don't worry though; it won't be much longer. Combined with the Citadel Fleet, we completely outgun and outnumber them; they're making short work of their ships."
He nodded, satisfied with the answer as he moved up to catch up with his squad. So we won't have to worry about Cerberus providing naval cover which means no orbital bombardment or a blockade. That leaves us with just the ground forces, and with the numbers we have, it'll be a simple matter of just clearing the bastards out from every nook and cranny.
In retrospect, he didn't how the Illusive Man had planned to pull this off. Taking the Citadel? It was a fool's errand, surely. The station was far too substantial in size, and even with the force Cerberus had mustered they had only managed to spread out along the Presidium and Shalta Ward. The Illusive Man was smarter than that; he had to know military conquest of the Citadel wouldn't end like Omega did; not only were they bigger, but they had more organization and a much more superior force, as well as military forces that actually depended on it. There was an ulterior motive, and he wasn't seeing it.
But as he reached the stairs leading up to the executor's office, finding no sign of a Cerberus ambush, he hit a sudden epiphany. Taking the Citadel was only a secondary objective...assassinating the Council was always the primary goal of this attack. We can have the Citadel, but without a government? Anarchy would spread and it would make the Reapers' job alot more easier.
It all fit, yet it made no sense at the same time. Cerberus, the Illusive Man...they have to be indoctrinated. All the evidence is there, yet there is always contradiction! The Reapers attacked Cerberus troops! But why else would the Illusive Man believe he can control them? What about Javik's story about the indoctrinated separatists who tried to do the same thing? Why else would he try to stop our efforts to stop the Reapers other than the Reapers are using him as their puppet?
They moved up the steps, turning the corner to find another set of stairs, leading up to a lone door. The Executor's Office.
They steadily approached, Riley's men covering the flanks. Its all for show. The Reapers are making Cerberus keep up appearances; to the average person or soldier, they'd just see Cerberus as terrorists, and therefore nothing had changed. But in reality, they're all indoctrinated, and working with the Reapers. But something tells me the Reapers aren't indoctrinationg them just to convince us. We'll fight Cerberus either way; terrorists or indoctrinated.
He came into a crouch just outside the door, motioning for Liara, James and Javik to take the left, Keeling with him, and EDI, Kasumi and Garrus on the right. Riley and her men took up positions behind them, one of them hefting a Revenant and the other a Revenant, providing to provide heavy support if what they found behind that door wasn't friendly.
It was here that he reached an epiphany. The show isn't for us...its for the Illusive Man. He doesn't know he's indoctrinated and the Reapers have made it that way, just like with Saren; he didn't know Sovereign was indoctrinating him until it was too late, and by then, his loyalty was absolute. But TIM's indoctrination must be a state where he isn't fully loyal yet or devoted, and is still able to fight back. So, the Reapers trick the host into thinking they aren't. Saren thought he'd be saved from it because the Reapers needed his mind intact, and that was his downfall. The Reapers attack Cerberus to make it look like they are enemies of the Reapers, where they are actually their servants. It makes sense now. Noveria...Its all to keep up appearances.
There was no doubting it now. Cerberus were the intended replacement of the Collectors. The Illusive Man was a tool of the Reapers, even if he didn't accept it yet. Kai Leng, all of them...every single one. But that meant...
They're going to harvest humanity, turn us into husks and leave us as the next cycle's collectors...
But if the Crucible worked, there wouldn't be a another cycle. As far as he was concerned, it ended with this one. The war to end all wars.
He watched as Keeling grabbed a satchel charge from her hip and gently placed it against the door, priming it with a flick of her fingers upon in its miniture holo interface. With it primed, they all backed up until Keeling gave the all clear. Giving everyone a glance to check that they were secure, he nodded, "Breaching!"
The door was torn asunder in a growing cloud of momentary fire, billows of smoke and the smell of explosive residue. Without even a moment's hesitation, he got up and charged inside, rifle doing a sweep of the entire room in the moment it took for him to enter.
No Cerberus soldiers rushed to meet them; no gunfire poured into his shields, not even any bodies...at least not on their side.
The room was spartan; a basic 5-by-5 meter box with a desk in the middle, two inactive terminals and paperwork dumped everywhere. On the desk, a holographic nametag dubbed 'Martin Reed' hovered over the desk, emitted from a small holo pedestal built into the desk's metal frame. A glass of what looked to be old style Coca-Cola lay untouched on the smooth surface, undisturbed, but now with a tinge of crimson murking in its depths.
Lying face down on the table, his crimson blood soaking the papers beneath him and dripping down his coke glass, was Executor Reed, a bullet hole through the back of his head a testament to the executionary style that was used to murder him. His cold, clamy hands were now stained red, dried into his skin like a permanent tattoo. His hair was sticky, ruffled and glued together by the crusted substance, most of his upper hose now non-existent. Whatever had been used to kill him definitely high penetration; likely a carnifex.
He lowered his rifle and sighed, bracing against the desk in irritation. He noted the two dead C-Sec guards lying in the corner, bodies unceremoniously dumped across each other, one a turian and the other an asari, both wearing what looked to be heavy combat armor and carrying equally powerful weapons, none of which got to see any use; the twin bullet holes through their foreheads a common theme with the person who killed them, purple and blue dripping down and soaking their face. The asari was draped across the turian's chest, like a piece of trash that the owner couldn't be bothered tossing out. The sight disgusted him.
He sighed again, hitting his emergency comm, "Bailey, this is Shepard. We've found the Executor. Cerberus got to him first. And our trail on the Council is pretty much cold."
"Shit," he heard the man curse, gritting his teeth, "That's just going to make coordinating security that much harder. Although from the explosions I just heard and the STG agents I had just walk into my office, that won't be much of an issue anymore."
He looked to Keeling, hoping that she had managed to find something. She shook her head grimly, and he growled lowly under his breath, turning back to Reed's limp corpse. Back to square one. Fuck!
"Is there any other way to locate the Council?" he interrogated, not willing to give up. He couldn't let Cerberus win, "Any other way to acertain their position other than going straight to the bunker?"
"Contacting them directly would be too risky. Cerberus could track the transmission straight to them," Bailey gulped, "Or...they could already be dead and we don't know it yet. Look Shepard, I-"
"Captain," Javik rasped.
"Not now, Javik," he snapped.
"It is important," the prothean insisted.
He ignored his protests. "Look Bailey, we're going to have to risk it, because I don't see an alternative. We are short on time. Leng co-"
"You wanted to locate the Council," Javik almost barked, finally drawing Marcus' attention, although it came with a slightly irritated frown, "I believe I have found a quarter of it." He then motioned to something beyond the shattered observation window of the office, the prothean ignoring the needle sharp shards collected on the ground.
"Wait one sec, Bailey," he stated, grabbing his rifle as he made his way over to the prothean. He turned to Riley as he did, motioning to the doorway with his head, "Captain, take your men and secure the building. Nothing gets in or out, not unless I explicitly order it."
Riley nodded, running outside in a hurry, "Rawley, Deborah! You two stay here, the rest of you, with me!" And with that, the company began to rush outside, one by one, weapons drawn, soldier to the bone.
He finished his approach towards Javik, coming to stand beside the prothean as he looked downwards, towards where he pointed.
Down below was another section of the headquarters building; a conference room, by the looks of it. A long table sat in the middle with rows upon rows of chairs lined up against it, one carelessly rolled aside, like someone had rolled it away in a haste to-
And there he was, poking his head out to scan the skyline before moving back inside, clearly nervous. He wore his usual ceremonial hood, his skin the old and fraying outlook that came with being very advanced in their age. The salarian took one more look before moving back inside, clearly paranoid. Councilor Valern.
He grinned, slapping his prothean friend on the back. That's at least Valern safe. Maybe he knows where the rest of the Council is!
He was about to shout down at the salarian councilor when he noticed a distortion in the edge of his vision. He turned towards it, expecting to find Kasumi, and his eyes landed on the form of a cloaked figure moving across a steel beam towards Valern, movement moving the air around them and giving them away. But unlike Kasumi who preferred being sneaky, this one was both that and crouched in a battle stance; the subtleties only he could pick up on. But that meant only one other person...
His eyes widened as a feral rage reclaimed his mind, memories forming in the pockets as he growled, low but loud enough to cause even Javik to do a double-take, the prothean looking curious as to his sudden reaction.
"Garrus, get everyone over to that side of the building. Now. If there's anyone outside, take them with you."
"Me?" the turian asked, confused, "Why me? Can't you-"
He didn't give Garrus time to even further object to his orders, instead grabbing the ledge and heaving himself over, dropping at least seven full meters to the ground below.
He flexed the cybernetics in his leg muscle, coming to stand with a grunt, but surviving a fall that would have sprained the legs of anyone else. He dove into a roll, letting his momentum carry him into a standing position as he whipped out his SMG, mattock clattering to the ground all in the moment it took for him to take aim with his weapon.
But this assailant was just as fast, rolling behind Valern, who had turned to face Marcus with a wide eyed expression, only to almost gasp as the assassin behind him decloaked, katana wrapping around his throat and another arm holding him as the figure decloaked, a smug smile building across the face that hovered over his shoulder.
"You enjoy being very late to the party, Shepard," Leng hissed, smile turning into a sneer, "And being late always has consequences."
Marcus didn't answer, keeping his SMG dead set on the assassin's face. But the man had kinetic barriers, so even if he did get off a perfect headshot, Leng would survive and be able to decapitate Valern in an instant with that blade of his. So for now, he would entertain him. As much as he wanted to watch a bullet fly down his throat.
Seeing as no answer was forthcoming, the assassin shrugged beginning to circle the room, taking Valern with him at blade length, "Still, I guess there's a sort of fun aspect to you being here in time to see me kill this salarian filth. Once I'm done with him, you can then watch that asari bitch and the turian pig die as well! A lovely little party, don't you think?"
Marcus frowned. He didn't mention Udina...probably because he's human. Leng's always one to go right for the throat when aliens are involved. Maybe there's nothing meant by it...maybe he's just trying to get me riled up...
He spoke with ice, tone confident and promising horrors beyond imagining. Oh yes, he would torture Leng until he begged for mercy. "It would be lovely indeed, Leng, if I didn't have to spill your blood over the carpet."
"So sure of yourself," Leng spat, laughing bitterly, "You're nothing but a puppet. The Council pulls the strings, and you sing their little tune. How about I taint that tune with a bit of...well, choking on blood lyrics? The gurgles, the screams...but the best bit is the drinks that are served. I've heard they're pure green, but there are also blue and purple flavours. Which one would you like?" then he grinned, "Suit-rat flavour, maybe? What does their blood look like anyway?"
Marcus grinned, "Its a deep red, actually. You could say its...very human. Doesn't that just rile you up? Doesn't that just anger you?"
Leng snarled, tightening his grip on the blade. Marcus gulped, tensing up upon seeing it, but trying not to let Leng see it. Nice one, dumbass. You're trying to keep him from killing Valern, not anger him into doing it quicker. He noted how close the blade was to his throat. Any closer and I'll know what a green river looks like...
"Your quarian whore's time will come soon enough. As will yours," he taunted, smile returning to his face as his anger evaporated, a change that the man loved to make, as if anger was a weakness he couldn't afford, "I'll enjoy showing her your head, before I take hers. Or maybe vice versa. It'll depend on my mood."
Despite himself, that pissed him right off. Noone hurt Tali. Noone. "Perhaps I'll show her yours," he snapped back, edging subtlely closer, grip remaining firm as he heard footsteps descending up above, "I'll fucking kill you before you hurt her. You're a scumbag, Leng. An old relic. You're an odd man out in a world that doesn't want you. Perhaps me killing you will be a...mercy. A rabid dog needs to be put down, does it not?"
Luckily for him, Leng went unfazed by this, simply shaking his head in disappointment, "I'd love to debate my moral hygiene all day long Shepard, but unlike you, I do not love aliens as much as you do. I have alot to kill. Especially the important ones," he turned to Valern, grinning as he stopped circling the room, back to where he was before, "I think its time to finish this."
The door behind them slid open, Garrus jogging out and landing in a crouch, rifle raised. Keeling, Liara, Javik, EDI, Kasumi and James weren't far behind, each taking aim at Leng's back. Upon hearing it, the man oriented himself so he was facing both of them, keeping Valern infront of him like a meatshield. Marcus could only smile, noting the sudden change of events, "I couldn't agree more, you sack of shit."
Leng merely chuckled, chest heaving with his rackus, "You are a fool, Shepard. Numbers mean nothing unless the hostage's safety is guaranteed. As much as I've enjoyed this, I think it is time I-"
Suddenly, a figure dropped behind Leng and stood up silently, phalanx pistol raising until it tapped the back of the assassin's head, causing him to widen his eyes suddenly. Marcus opened fire, the shot pinging off Leng's head and startling him enough that he let go of Valern, allowing Marcus to tackle the salarian to the ground and protect him from further harm. All he heard was a loud gunshot, followed by what sounded like a grunt, and then the sound of a fist impacting flesh.
He got up, turning the salarian over to make sure his neck wasn't sliced open. To his extreme relief, the salarian blinked up at him, still quite alive and throat unopened. He nodded his thanks to the spectre, Marcus doing the same before spinning to Garrus, "Get him to safety!" he keyed his comm, "Bailey, we need a skycar at my coordinates now! We've got Councilor Valern and we need to extract him! Get him back to UGC-held territory!"
He didn't hear Bailey's reply as he got off Valern, snapping up into a rigid stance as he brought up his SMG, taking aim once more. But he didn't fire; doing so was impossible, giving the intense fight making two bodies indistinguishable from each other.
He smiled slightly as he recognized the figure, the drell lashing out a punch into Leng's midsection before spinning and sending a kick reeling into his head. Leng ducked, blocking it fluidly as he step dragged backwards, swiping down with his sword. The drell assassin, seeing the attack coming, rolled out of the way and then came back up, his pistol raising and coughing two shots right into Leng's legs.
Kinetic barriers coughed and spat in resistance, and then Leng raised his palm cannon, charging and firing at Thane. The drell casually rose up a biotic barrier to deflect the shot, following up with a warp right into the Cerberus assassin's head.
He was unable to duck in time, Leng grunting as he was thrown back into a desk, but keeping his grip on his katana firm. He lunged back, growling as he moved, hoping to slam his blade deep into the drell's gut.
Thane dove his hands down in a x-block, shoving the blade down. In a flash, with the fluidity of a professional dancer, Thane wrapped around the blade's top and wrenched with all his might. Having overextended himself, Leng was uanble to react appropriately and was forced to let go of the blade to stop his momentum bringing him into the drell's range. He ducked back, Thane tossing the blade away, over some desk to land cluttered somewhere.
The drell assumed a battle posture, fists clenched and raised before him. Leng assumed the same, his N7 training coming into effect like honed-in instinct.
"Your attacks are sloppy, not that of a professional assassin," Thane assessed, eyes glazing over him, "You have room for improvement."
"I don't want your advice, drell," Leng snapped, gritting his teeth as he cracked his knuckles and flexed his cybernetics, "When I'm done with you, I'll throw your broken body into a lake like the pitiful trash you are."
"Threats are for those who are uncertain of victory," Thane calmly replied, totally unfazed by Leng's pathetic attempts to intimidate him, "They are meaningless unless you plan to follow through."
"Oh, I do," Leng grinned.
"I do not deem that likely," Thane replied, cracking his neck, "I have managed to counter each one of your attacks and I-" he coughed, a wet sound that didn't sound at all healthy, "...am extremely ill; my abilities are not at their peak, and yet I am able to stop you from reaching your target. You should be ashamed."
This seemed to spark a blaze of fury in Leng, because suddenly he charged forward, sending a flurry of punches whorling towards Thane.
One punch connected with Thane's gut, followed by another in the shoulder, winding him slightly. He coughed, a glob of mucus flying from his mouth to hit the floor before Thane ducked the rest and blocked the last one, holding it as he sent his other hand backhanding across Leng's face, causing his face to snap back from the impact, growling.
Letting go of his hand, Thane closed the distance and unleashed his own flurry of punches, most of which the assassin managed to block against a jab at his throat, which caused him to launch backwards in agony, grasping his throat as he tried to breathe. Taking advantage of his vulnerable position, the drell rolled forward and sent a kick ramming into his kneecap.
But Leng had been faking the motion; with his cybernetics, he recovered alot faster than a normal human, and when he saw Thane's kick coming, he pivoted, causing the drell to miss entirely and answered with a kick of his own; a roundhouse kick across the face.
He winced, head yanking to the side as the drell's vision blurred momentarily, losing focus as a combination of his illness and the kick messed with his eyes. He gained it back in time for Leng to clasp his hands around the assassin's throat, smiling all the way, "I said I'd fucking kill, you, Krios."
"And I said that wasn't likely." His knee shot up, slamming right into where Leng's groin would be. Being a eunuch, he didn't feel the pain he would have, but it was enough to stun him while Thane brought his other knee up, grabbed Leng's hair and yanked his head down while sending his knee up; the two connecting with a sickening crunch.
Not finished, he slammed an elbow into the back of his head and then crashed to the ground, spinning his body and extending his legs in a footsweep, taking Leng's legs out from under him. He cried out, nose slamming into the ground and adding more agony ontop of his already broken nose, red blood spilling out onto the ground. Thane grabbed his pistol, preparing to empty a shot into the back of his head, fighting back his urge to cough.
But he hadn't accounted for Leng's ability to recover extremely quickly. In an instant, he found himself on the ground as the assassin initiated his own footsweep, coming to stand with a grunt as he forced himself to stand, hair ruffled as he faced Thane, pure hate fueling his movement.
He stopped his approach towards Thane, who was now coughing his lungs out onto the floor, unable to properly defend himself. His barriers flared again and again, burst after burst slamming into them. With a frown, he turned to face Marcus, who rapidly approached, gritting his teeth as he fired continously.
Having recovered from his coughing fit, Thane got to his feet, grabbing the sniper rifle from his back and grabbing the barrel, spinning it before ramming it into the distracted Leng's back.
The assassin doubled over, and then fell backwards again, the rifle cracking across the back of his head. Dropping the weapon, he approached, using his biotics to pick up Leng, turning him to face him with a flick of his wrists.
He coughed, a glob of flem dribbling down his lips, "Pa-" he coughed again, "-the-" again, "-tic."
He threw him across the room, his body coming to slam into a desk on the other side of the room, collapsing forward in a heap. Thane, satisfied, retrieved his pistol, slapping in a fresh thermal clip as he let his biotics die down. He sighed and Marcus sighed with him, moving over to Leng's body. This ends now. This piece of shit...he dies now. I will avenge Shala's husband. I shall avenge Jacob.
"No," Thane spoke, and he came to a stop, whorling on the drell in a surprise, who slowly limped over to Leng's side, "I will finish this." He said this as he came to stand above Leng's frozen body, obviously knocked unconscious. He raised his phalanx, prepared to deliver the final blow.
"On the contrary," rasped that hated voice, "Now its my turn."
In a flash of silver steel and green blood, Leng's katana sliced through Thane's chest and erupted out the other side, green blood flying from the exit wound and dripping down the blade. Leng simply smirked, meeting Marcus' look of horror with sadisitic glee, "I told you, Shepard. Showing up late has consequences." With that, he yanked the blade free and Thane, all his energy drained from him, collapsed into a desk before sliding to the ground, coughing from a mixture of his blood moving up his oesophagus and his illness. His pistol fell from his grip to clatter to the floor, and Marcus could only watch for a couple of seconds as Leng's reserve energy kicked in, grabbing his blade as he made for the exit, completely forgetting about the salarian councilor.
Then rage took over. Two words echoed in his mind, joining the chorus.
Avenge Shala's husband. Avenge Jacob.
Avenge Thane.
"LENG!" he roared, his SMG firing in a non-stop beat, "LLLEEEENNNGGGGGG!"
Leng was already gone from sight, but still Marcus chased after him, ignoring the protests from his team. No, he didn't get to escape. Not again. Not after another friend was lost. Not this time. He would avenge them. He had to. That scumbag can't escape! Not again! Not this time!
He sprinted down the stairs out to the main landing pad in the general direction the Cerberus assassin was running in, finding the black clad figure running towards the edge, blood trailing behind him in little rivulets, sword now hung on his back. Marcus wasted no time questioning the man's motives, only raising his SMG and firing off a non-stop chorus of bursts towards the man he hated with a passion; hated even more than he hated Saren. Shot after shot slammed into kinetic barriers, and just as the man reached the edge and jumped, his barriers snapped out of existence, their ability to defend wasted. One more shot coughed from the barrel of the SMG, shooting towards Leng's now unprotected form at high speed.
The shot fell just short, zooming right over Leng's head. He roared, holstering the weapon on his hip and pulling out the missile launcher, ready to give Leng a piece of his mind.
He stopped near the edge, a roar of engines easily heard. His eyes widened as he watched the gold and white of a Cerberus kodiak rise before him, engines kicking up a wind that slammed into him with the force of a freight train. He kept his stance firm however, only able to see Leng's smug expression before the hatch closed, and the shuttle zoomed off to the other side of the Presidium.
No! He wasn't really thinking when he did it, he simply levelled the missile launcher and fired, two missiles erupting from the barrel in quick succession. He knew they'd all fall short; his aim wasn't perfect, and that shuttle was rapidly becoming a small dot. Moments later, the missiles ran out of fuel and their timers ended, and twin explosions sounded in the distance, the kodiak already gone.
He collapsed to his knees, launcher slipping from his fingers. He didn't even hear the clang, all sound drowning out as he simply knelt there, looking blankly at the ground. They had come so close to avenging the lost...only for Leng to take yet another life. It seemed the tally was just getting larger. Byp. Jacob. Thane. But Thane wasn't dead yet, he knew that. Maybe his drell could still be saved.
Acting quickly, he commed Bailey, not waiting for the man's voice to speak before doing so himself, "Bailey, Valern's safe, but Leng got away. A friend of mine is injured and needs immediate medical attention. Is Huerta Memorial secure?"
It took a second for him to verify the information, "UGC lifted the siege on it a few minutes ago."
"Get him over there as quickly as possible!"
"I've already alerted the salarians here. They've sent a shuttle for pickup. Should be arriving any minute."
Right on time, a similiar roar of engines, this coming from a green kodiak, appeared, the vehicle lifting itself up and over to the landing pad, slamming down on its surface with a clang. He growled, rounding the shuttle just as he saw the hatch slide open, salarians rushing out to escort Valern inside. He saw the two flanking the councilor were equipped with scorpion pistols, while one sighted down range and scanned the area with a Raptor marksman rifle. They were moving inside when Marcus grabbed one by the shoulder, turning him to face the spectre.
"My friend needs help. A drell named Thane Krios," he stated, motioning to the injured drell, who's arms were currently flung over Garrus and James' shoulders, "You need to get him to Huerta Memorial immediately."
The salarian shook his head, "Drell suffer from Kepral's Syndrome. From the looks of it, he's in the advanced stages. Even if we did save him from the injury, the illness will kill him anyway. He's a los-"
"Do it, Corporal," Valern ordered with steel in his voice.
The agent looked surprised, turning to the councilor, "But councilor, he-"
"That man saved my life," the salarian insisted, narrowing his eyes, "Will you refuse the order of a councilor?"
"No...of course not!" the corporal hurriedly responded, tapping the shoulders of two of his beleagured colleagues, "Get him inside the shuttle! First stop, Huerta Memorial! Then we'll head for the precinct."
Marcus turned to Valern, but the salarian beat him to it, nodding with mutual understanding. The two of them hadn't worked well in the past and he still hadn't forgiven the salarian for being one of the people who downplayed his warnings and the cause of all his troubles in the past, but Thane had saved his life from certain death. Even Valern understood the meaning of that and respected it. It just earned more brownie points with the captain.
He turned from the councilor, who was now moving into the shuttle, and towards his team, "We need to get to the rest of the Council before Leng does. This isn't over yet."
They all nodded, but neither of them knew what to do. He sighed, rubbing his temples as he cursed their luck. No skycars around, and the salarians couldn't give them a lift, not when they were already taking off anyway, taking Thane with them. I hope he's alright. As daunting as the prospect of losing another friend was, he still couldn't help but see the hopelessness of their situation. They were, for all intents and purposes, stuck here, without any hope of-
The singer of light does not need sing hopeless songs no more. Those of the Forgiven Song will provide assistance.
He frowned, turning as he began to hear an unfamiliar rumble. This one was sickly, a sound like that of a broken boombox, mixed with the sound of a geth pulse rifle firing. It was odd, insectoid sound, and Marcus and his squad could only watch in awe as a large shadow fell over them.
The rachni shuttle's hatch opened, and the last person he expected to see inside grinned down at him.
"Well are you just going to stand there, boy scout?" she asked, body glowing blue with the rest of her students, "Or are you going to join us in kicking some fuc-kicking some as-butts?"
He grinned despite the rage channelling through him, the sight of Jack and her students a welcome reprieve from the massive siege going on around him. Besides, it took his mind off Leng and Thane's predicament. He nodded, motioning his squad to get inside the rachni vessel as it prepared to lift off again, the chin-mounted weapon on the front making it a hybrid of a shuttle and a gunship.
Once inside, he noticed just how insectoid it was; it reminded him of Collector architecture. A bee-like hive structure, but with a metal frame. Inside were four brood warriors, all of them standing and looking blankly at him, their emotions flooding through him.
Singer of Light, you have come. The Forgiven Song does not forget.
The Tainted Songs sing in harmony with the sour notes. We will destroy them!
He nodded to them, replying verbally, "I have not forgotten the Forgiven Song's promise. I do not regret my decision." The Forgiven Song must be the queen. Still, Singer of Light? Is that how they see me?
"Singer of Light?" Jack asked, snorting as the hatch closed and their shuttle began to move at an increasing speed, "They call me 'Singer of Dark Notes.' Whatever the fuc-the hell that means."
"I can't possibly imagine," he grinned, turning to his squad who seemed as on edge as he was. He noted a few students trying to talk with Liara, who simply smiled and answered their non-stop invasion of questions. James attempted to make conversation with Keeling, something Marcus noted, with some surprise, was actually working. Garrus seemed to be apologizing to Kasumi for what happened earlier, and, he noted with a smile, she seemed to thank with a tight hug. There was something different about those two.
He turned to Jack, smiling, "I didn't think I'd find you here. What are you doing on the Citadel?"
She chuckled, crossing her arms over her tattoed frame, "I heard the king of the boy scouts squealing for help. I, being the chivalrous person that I am, pledged myself to help. My kids decided to...tag along."
He smiled, shaking his head, "Its good to have you here, Jack. Still...I hope Thane is alright."
The biotic powerhouse actually frowned, worry creasing her face. That was a new emotion for Jack, "What happened to him?"
"Kai Leng," he growled, his moment of clarity and relief fading away to let his fury fester once more, "Got him right through the chest and then ran off. That's why getting to the Council is so urgent right now; he's going straight for them. He's injured though, so I guess that'll make finishing him off much easier; Thane beat the living shit out of him."
She whistled, nodding to her kids, "I expected nothing less from that zealot," she turned to her kids, "And with us around and our...insect friends," she waved a hand at the brood warriors accompanying them, "Well...I'm thinking of taking Leng's head as a hood ornament back at UGC headquarters. What do you think? Do you want the rest of him?"
That was the Jack he knew and remembered; not necessarily fondly, but at least she wasn't all rainbows and love. If she turned to that, then something would have been seriously wrong...or she was indoctrinated. She smiled, but it held a sadistic quality to it, images of what he wanted to do to the bastard flashing through his mind, "I think I like your thinking, Jack."
She sighed, leaning back against the bulkhead, "Sounds like a plan. Head is mine, you can have the rest. And maybe I'll cut off an ear for Rodriguez."
"Screw you, ma'am," the young woman replied deadpan, used to saying it now in response to her teacher's teasing.
"Now we just have to catch the pus-guy," Jack declared, cracking her knucles in glee, "Been too many weeks since I kicked some major ass. Now I can-"
The shuttle shook slightly from an impact, as if something had landed ontop of it. Marcus frowned, and then it turned into him unholstering his pistol when he heard the shuttle's guns spin to life, firing at something outside. We're being boarded.
The hatch suddenly blew open, the explosive residue of a satchel charge blowing away as the winds whipped at their own vulnerable forms. Down popped a phantom, its slim form dropping beside Javik and lashing out with its blade...
...only for one of the brood warriors to effortlessly pick her up and throw her out, body flailing through the air towards the hard concrete below. Another appeared, only for her to head to be instantly vaporized as superheated particles from Javik's rifle blew it right off. A third and final one appeared, this time raising its palm cannon in a readiness position, but Jack had enough and grabbed her with her biotics, flicking her wrists effortlessly.
"Get over here, bitch!" she roared, bringing the phantom close enough that they could touch, the phantom struggling in the teacher's biotic grip, "I've about had it with Cerberus! Fuck you and die!" With that, she suddenly slammed her down against the deck, the twin cracks of legs breaking not easily heard over the wind outside, but it didn't matter much. Next, she was launched back, her head crushed as she hit the wall with enough force for her head to become wedged inside. Her brain reduced to liquid inside a shattered skull, the phantom was unceremoniously tossed outside to join her friend, knocking into the decapitated one Javik had killed, sending both falling outside, winds blowing them away like leaves.
Suddenly, machine gun fire raked their side, a Cerberus gunship appearing at their side, gun aimed right at them. Jack maniacally, sending a flurry of warps at the enemy vessel, all of them pinging harmlessly on its barrier. But soon she was joined by the brood warriors, and then Liara, and then Javik. Eventually, Marcus shrugged and summoned his own biotics, sending multiple warps in quick secession.
It was unable to stand up to the immense assault, and the first warp to break through vaporized bullets as it impacted the chin gun, disintegrating it at the atomic level. Soon, the gun was nothing but dust, and the gunship attempted to break off.
Only for the rachni shuttle to turn and fire, a lucky shot piercing the cockpit. Blood blew out from the hole, blowing away with the wind before the gunship hurled through the air, eventually coming to smash into the Delinaga Concert Hall, one wing shorn off while its fuel ignited, causing a great big pillar of flame to extend into the sky. And the rachni shuttle just continued.
Jack laughed, turning back to Marcus, her biotics dimming to nothing, "That was not-"
He had to grab onto Jack to stop her from falling from the shuttle as it suddenly jolted, something in the shuttle exploding...
...and ceasing all forward movement, beginning a fast, and rapid, descent.
"What the fuck just happened!?" he ordered, confused at the sudden turn of events. Why are we crashing!?
That gunship managed to score a hit on our port-side thruster, Singer of Light.
We recommend that bracing songs be sung. This vehicle does not contain escape pods.
"Just fucking wonderful!" he cursed, grabbing a hold of the one of the bulkheads, "Everybody, brace for impact! We're coming in hard!"
The Singer of Hatred has landed near the area you call the Consort Chambers. We will crash land nearby. We will need to move quickly to catch up. Songs of Unity are on the way.
He nodded, watching the rest of his squad grab hold of the nearest crevice for protection, not getting too close so as to avoid injury, and staying close enough to avoid being yanked away by the impact, "Hold on every-"
The shuttle hit the ground with the force of a bomb, likely sending tremors throughout the area around them. It was strong enough that Marcus had to use his biotics to shield himself from a flying piece of debris, the metal sheered off and twisted, but the brood warrior beside him was not so lucky, sliced in half by the projectile, green blood spraying everywhere.
Jack erected a biotic barrier around herself and her students, protecting them even as they were thrown to the ground. The rest of his team was thrown about, but managed to hold steady, even as the shuddering vehicle ceased all movement.
He felt groggy and weak, but those feelings were beginning to evaporate as his cybernetics fueled his blood with adrenaline. He forced himself up, releasing his death grip on the bulkhead which had strained his finger muscles, forcing him to flex them to get feeling back into them. He shook his head, turning to his squad, "Everyone alright?"
Our song continues, Singer of Light, replied one of the brood warriors, with only one having died during the crash.
"I think I broke a rib," James groaned, "But I should be fine, loco."
"Fit for duty, sir," Keeling reported.
One by one, his squad declared their safety and even Jack and her students seemed fine. The pilots were more likely dead, and he didn't even know what they had crashed into. Just where were they?
Retrieving his rifle, he hurried rushed outside through the open hatch, scanning the area. Luckily, no Cerberus rushed to meet them on this side of the area. From what he could see, they were within the Financial District of the Presidium, remembering from his early travels of the Citadel during the Eden Prime War. As he turned, from what he could discern, their shuttle had smashed through what had been Barla Von's office, stopping just sort of completely trashing it, having gone through the wall and crumbled it. Smoke poured from its ruined engines, and from what Marcus could tell, the other side would take them towards the Consort's Chambers.
As he motioned for his squad to fall out, he observed the battle taking place around them. He was just in time to watch a UGC shuttle's flaming wreck slam into the lake, sending up a tremendous burst of water flying into the air, only for the offending Cerberus shuttle to be obliterated by a rocket, Marcus finding the source to be an Alliance marine carrying a ML-79 Missile Launcher; a superior version to the 78, and better still to the more common 77. Their mission complete, the marines continued on, backed up by at least half a dozen rachni and a few hanar foot soldiers (foot, for lack of a better term).
Turning to the battle ahead of them; between them and the Consort Chambers, he jumped behind the shuttle, avoiding a stray bullet. He poked his head out, Jack and her students along with his team observing the battle ahead.
It was a battlefield, alright. Whatever Citadel militia and C-Sec forces had teamed up with the UGC relief forces to tackle the Cerberus invaders. He watched two assault troopers collapse from bullet holes to their chest, and the shields of a centurion explode in brilliant light as an asari Eclipse merc fired her weapon before charging forward in a biotic charge, sending said centurion flying into a wall, the crack of bones signalling his untimely death.
He watched four Blood Pack vorcha surround and devour another assault trooper, the soldier managing to summon their enhanced strength and snap the neck of one, only for that to be replaced as they tore his armor off of his body, tossed it away and began peeling away strips of flesh, the soldier screaming as he was consumed.
He watched, with some amusement, as two elcor with cannons strapped to their backs lit up, immense flashes permeating their skin as they sent shell after shell pounding into an Atlas. They were joined by five Blood Pack krogan who made short work of the heavy mech's shields, and eventually penetrated his cockpit. Another shot from one elcor blew off one of its legs, before another impacted and detonated the rockets inside the Atlas' arm, a raging inferno consuming the pilot and the mech as both were totally destroyed, reducing the mech to smoldering wreckage.
An Eclipse and Cerberus gunship danced a deadly dance, tearing into each other with machine guns and rockets. But due to the skill of the Cerberus pilot, the eclipse gunship found itself annihilated in seconds, collapsing into the lake below it. The Cerberus gunship savoured its victory, only for said ship to soon be ambushed by two more gunships, these ones salarian, who made short work of it, rockets impacting its hull and scattering its ruined remains across the Emporium. Overall, victory seemed assured for the UGC.
Cerberus picked a fight with a much bigger dog. And this one isn't limited to three heads. He motioned to his team, formulating a plan in his head as he turned to the brood warriors. A grin crossed his face.
A minute later, Marcus emerged from behind the shuttle, surprising the Cerberus reinforcements from behind. Flanked by brood warriors, the three of them lit up simultaneously, sending triple bolts of blinding light towards the enemy rear, their biotic shockwaves tearing bloody ribbons into their ranks as assault troopers were tossed, centurions were evicerated, a combat engineer was slammed against a wall, and a phantom was sent skidding, only for her head to be caved in as an elcor stepped on her skull, crushing it completely and spreading red gore all over.
Upon the arrival of Marcus' squad, it turned from battlefield to bloodbath.
For Cerberus, anyway. Whatever hopes the Illusive Man had of victory had long since fallen out of the window, and Marcus only had one objective yet to foil; assassinating the Council.
Then he could kill Leng.
{Loading...}
June 22, 2186
1401 hours.
Area outside Consort's Chambers, Financial District, Presidium, The Citadel.
The Reaper War, The Citadel Siege.
Captain Marcus Lee Shepard, Military Advisor Garrus Vakarian, Shadow Broker Liara T'Soni, Second Lieutenant James Vega, Second Lieutenant Imogen Keeling, EDI, Soldier Javik, Master Thief Kasumi Goto.
As soon as he reeled the corner, his weapon was already downrange and ready to fire.
Thankfully for him, and also oddly, Leng had not gotten there yet. He should have gotten their first, but from what Marcus could see, there was no sign of him.
A C-Sec painted kodiak shuttle lay hanging on its side, ready to fall into the lake but still holding desperately onto dry land. Its hull was aflame; its hatch ajar and a body, a salarian officer, leaning over the edge, body singed and burnt and blackened. Bullet holes, large ones, littered its hull, largely high penetration rounds; a testament to what had taken down the vehicle.
Standing beside it were the bewildered Council themselves, surrounded by the bodies of dead civilians, including even, to his disgust, a few children, their bodies coated in blood; whether it was theirs or not, he did not know.
Tevos looked panicky and jittery, unable to comprehend her situation. Sparatus looked calm and collected, although Marcus suspected the absence of their salarian colleague and the situation they were in did not help matters.
Beside them, and working tenaciously at his console, was Udina. The man had a clear sheen of sweat dripping down his forehead, hair likely coated in the foul liquid and his eyes looked twitchy, obviously from his terror. He didn't know what he was typing on the terminal, as it was a rapid transit terminal and those were shut down per the station emergency, but it had to be a product of the human councilor's fear.
On their right was a salarian, one Marcus remembered with some difficulty; a spectre named Jondam Bau. And beside Udina, back turned to him and rifle scanning the area around them, was a face he would never forget. His heart swelled with pride at the spectre insignia stamped on the back of his armor, and he almost grinned, if it wasn't for the imminent danger. Kaidan...he actually made spectre...
Ordering his team to lower his weapons, while leaving Javik to keep a watch of the area to make sure Leng, when or if he turned up, didn't get the jump on them, and most certainly didn't get near the Council.
He moved towards them, rushing towards the oblivious group with intense urgency, "Kaidan!"
The man turned around, instincts kicking in as he took aim with his rifle at the possible threat. Instead, he lowered it when he saw his mentor's face, the man wearing an eye piece lack of Garrus' over one eye. He smiled, bringing his weapon into lower parry as Bau did the same, the rest of the Council looking immensely relieved at the captain's arrival, "Shepard! Nice of you to turn up; thought we'd have to deal with this ourselves!"
He chuckled, coming close to slap the man on the back, "You know me; I like to be right where the action is. I wasn't exactly a full Cerberus siege of the Citadel, but hey, I'm not complaining," he sobered, remembering the likely sacrifice Thane made, and the many civilians who died due to Cerberus' ambitions. I will dismantle Cerberus for what was done here...I should have done so months ago. He shook that thought away, knowing the past would not help him, and they could only count on themselves now, "Never mind that though. We need to get the Council out of here; Kai Leng is here, and he's coming for them," he pointed straight at Tevos, Sparatus and Udina, as if the intended target required clarification.
Kaidan nodded, bringing his rifle to lean against his shoulder, "Then we need to get out of here," he turned to Udina, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing, "Councilor, we need to leave now. Evacuation by shuttle is no longer a viable option."
He swore he saw Udina curse under his breath, biting his lower lip before pulling away, as if his anxiety had disappeared in an instant, turning to Kaidan with a glint in his eyes, "Yes, of course you are correct, Major. However, there is one final problem we must acknowledge and address, as it would seem we have a traitor within our ranks."
Kaidan frowned, just as deeply as Marcus did, "Who?"
Udina nodded to Marcus, turning back to Kaidan, "Spectre, I request that you detain or execute Marcus Shepard immediately on boundaries for treason."
The man looked flabbergasted, and Marcus' hand moved to his weapon on reflex, before pulling away as Kaidan incredulously asked, "Udina, you better have a damn good reason for this...accusation. Some basic evidence."
"There is none needed. The facts are there," Udina insisted, glaring at Marcus with a look of disgust, "The man worked with Cerberus! And now that Cerberus attacks the Citadel, he just happens to turn up to help us? A fairly sizable coincidence, Major. If you ask me, that would seem very well-timed. As a consequence, I believe that Captain Shepard is still in league with Cerberus, and therefore, by sanction of the Council, order him to detained. Effective immediately. I'm sure the Council can agree on this."
"No, I don't," came the voice of one of the people Marcus never thought would back him up.
Udina spun to face Sparatus, eyes incredulously as he practically snarled in anger, spittle flying from his mouth, "The man is a traitor! He has betrayed the Council and left the Citadel in ruin! He would aid and abet a terrorist organization, while bringing an assassin right to us! For all we know, he could be the assassin! He needs to be dealt with immediately!"
"I'd be quiet if I were you, Councilor," came Kasumi's voice, crossing her arms and glaring dangerously at the man, "Noone believes you, and you're digging a pretty big grave for yourself."
Udina growled, turning to Kaidan, "Major, I made you a spectre. You owe me. Don't be a fool and see this for the threat that it is! If we don't deal with Shepard now, he could endanger all of us! You are the right arm of the Council; an instrument of our will! Your job is to defend us also, but should I tell the Council I made a mistake by choosing you? Surely I must have; if you're not willing to do what's right."
As Udina pleaded his case, Marcus could only examine the man; his unique mannerisms. During the short three years he had known the man, he had risen from a human ambassador to human councilor, and along the way he had developed his own little mannerisms; the odd movement, the flick of a wrist, the way they presented themselves. It all opened a gateway to one's personality; to unhatch secrets they thought contained but were being broadcated to the world; it just took a well-trained eye to spot it.
Udina was a well-dressed man, and with a passion for politics and a cosmopolitan attitude, Udina developed an affinity for a rigid posture, nervous twitching and arrogant swagger that really pissed Marcus off over the years. However, all these little signs were absent as he observed Udina in that instant; he was more twitchy than usual, and under all the passion in his voice, there was a shaky uncertainty; a fear, a trepidation that what he was saying might not work. Like he himself didn't believe that Marcus was guilty of the crimes he accused him of.
The sweat on his forehead drew beads down his skin, and seemed to perputuate; to increase in quantity. He seemed to gulp an awful lot, his adam's apple shifting up and down in tune to his swallowing. These were all the characteristics of someone who was nervous, unsure of himself and with something hide.
The characteristics of a liar.
But why would Udina lie? Sure, the both of them hadn't been on very good terms; they rarely were, especially when it came to the Reaper threat. It had only been during the initial stages of the war that they had become hand-in-hand in protecting humanity, Udina's stature to show the saddened human behind the political figure; that he genuinely cared about his species and the Fall of Earth had hit him hard. The fact that he had known every member of the Alliance Parliament on a personal basis had only hit that point home...hard.
But they still, even then, just couldn't agree on many things, and it hadn't helped that Udina was a Council kissass; always sucking up to them. But even then, after all that, Udina had no reason to hate Marcus on such a level as to fabricate lies about him. So why else would he liar? Characteristics of a liar were a need to hide something, or to rid themselves of someone before they dug too deep into the equation to discover the truth...
In the end, the pieces fell together like a well-ordained puzzle. His desperate need to protect humanity. His calm serenity when it came to Cerberus. The sweat on his forehead. The need to delay the Council's leave. It all made sense. And it enraged him.
All along, they had been played for fools. The face of the enemy had always been there; for three years or for however long, they had been there. And now all their cards were on the table.
He did not hesitate. He drew his pistol in an instant, taking aim dead center on Udina's face. The human councilor's eyes widened in shock and, despite their surprise, his squad raised their weapons as well, not quite sure why their captain was aiming at the human councilor but trusting him enough to follow his lead, if it offered an explanation.
Kaidan, however, based on instinct, raised his weapon at Marcus, and this time, he did not lower so quickly, "Shepard, what the hell are you doing?"
He ignored him, all his anger fuelling his movements as his glare, capable of melting steel, bore into Udina's skull, "You snivelling little rat. You fucking snitch. How long, Udina? How long ago was it? How long have you been in the Illusive Man's pocket?"
Despite the situation, he tried to play the oblivious one, "I have no idea what you are-
"Enough with the fucking lies!" he spat, coming closer, conscious to the fact that Kaidan was still aiming at him, but his grip seemed to lessen at his accusation, "How long!? Since I first met you on the Citadel when we were chasing Saren? When the Council grounded me? When I died over Alchera? During the Battle of the Citadel? Was it during my campaign against the Collectors? Or is this recent? Did the Illusive Man use your desperation to protect our people to forward his own goals? What did he offer you, Udina? Hmmm? What the fuck did he offer you!"
It was clear his cover was blown and in a flash, before Marcus could act, distracted his own fury, Udina had stepped up and tore the predator pistol from Kaidan's hip, pulling out and letting it extend as he dashed forward, grabbing Tevos from around the collar and holding her against him, pinning his commandeered pistol against the side of her head.
He glared at Marcus, nothing resembling pity in his eyes, "You want to know what he offered me, Shepard? He offered me Earth. The Illusive Man said he had a way to defeat the Reapers, to save Earth! While you were out fighting this hopeless war, the Illusive Man was already finding ways to defeat them! Cerberus was at the head, and he promised he could save our species, Shepard! Tell me, what would you have done in my position? Hmm? What would you have done?"
Marcus fingered the trigger, replying calmly as understanding dawned in his eyes, "You made a pact with the devil to save our people. Udina, I understand that. I don't respect your choice, but you did it out of desperation. But that doesn't justify what was done here! People have died; innocent people! Cerberus has played you for a fool! And you're in bed with the real enemy!"
Udina shook his head, arm wrapping around Tevos' neck in a headlock to stop her struggling, Sparatus now standing behnd Bau who pointed his weapon at Udina, but did not fire. Kaidan was doing the same, with Marcus and his squad, more or less, in the exact same position. But none of them could fire without possibly getting the asari councilor killed, "The Illusive Man said there was a price for victory! He needed the Citadel if saving Earth was to work? What are a few thousand dead aliens compared to our people, he said! So I was to be his main operative! To secure the future for our species! And he would break the cycle! End it all!"
"Are you even listening to yourself? You're delusional! The Illusive Man doesn't intend to destroy the Reapers! He doesn't even realize the fact that he never intends to defeat them," he snapped, lowering his weapon slightly, "Don't you see it? He's indoctrinated. Cerberus is indoctrinated. They are as much in the Reapers' pocket as you are in theirs! They've played you for a tool, Udina! Nothing but their tool. They used you to gain access to the Citadel, used your weakened state to get into the Citadel using your help. Innocent people are dying because of you!"
Udina sighed, snorting as he shook his head, pistol shifting, "I am not the one is indoctrinated, Shepard. Neither is the Illusive Man. You are the one who is compromised; the Illusive Man wants to control the Reapers, and I say he is right! We can't destroy them, so we must control them! All of you are fools; Valern with his squabbling, Tevos with her arbitrary nonsense and Sparatus with his damn military tactics! All of you are wrong! Cerberus has it right and will save us," he turned to Marcus, a gleam of venom in his eyes, "You would doom us all, Shepard."
"But you would undo my work. You would doom our entire civilization to complete annihilation."
Those had been Saren's words. And in that very moment, he saw the comparison between that and Udina. The councilor wasn't just in Cerberus' pocket.
He was indoctrinated.
"How long you ask?" Udina ask, tsking as he reshifted his position to fully face Marcus, "Since after your little charade on Menae, when you rescued the turian primarch. That's when they came to me...a man named Geoff Dielheart...he told me of the Illusive Man's offer. He offered to save the entire human race; all he needed was my cooperation. Out of necessity, I gave myself to Cerberus. To the human race," he growled, "And nothing you say will sway me; I did the right thing. I know for a certainty I did. You're just too blind to see it."
He shook his head, taking careful, "If you won't listen to reason, Udina, then you're leaving me no choice."
The councilor could only give a bitter chuckle, Tevos' cheek creasing inwards as the barrel of his weapon pressed further into it, "No, it is you who will not see reason. When backed against a wall, humanity must either fold, or do what as a feral dog would; claw its way out. I may be in bed with the enemy, but if that secures our survival? That is a price I will pay gladly. Reason has passed by you Shepard; I have simply accepted the brutal reality of it."
He gave no response, his face forming a cold line as he gripped his pistol harder. With Udina beyond reasoning, he knew he had to take the man out before he hurt and killed Tevos. Still, there wasn't a viable solution; simply attempting to shoot him wasn't a good idea, as he could possibly miss, no matter how accurate he is, and kill the asari councilor. He couldn't take that chance. There had to be another way.
Then his eyes met Tevos', and he saw something in them. She met his eyes, a glimmer of hope in them. She...believed in him? No, that couldn't be it; that was too corny and predictable. No...her eyes hinted at a plan. What kind of plan unless she was a biotic, there wasn't much she could-
You dull-witted idiot! She's an asari, of course she's a biotic!
He gave a nod, not one Udina would understand, not that he was paying attention anyway, slowly moving towards the rapid transit terminal, as if waiting for something to arrive to pick him up...
In an instant, Tevos let out a cry as her body rippled, channelling blue energy in an explosion that released Udina's hold on her, his arm coming to his side as he was launched against the fence, holding firm on his stolen pistol. The man was wide-eyed, surprised, and even winced at the pain that lanced up his back from the impact of being thrown back, but he would recover in seconds. Marcus had to act. To end the threat.
Tevos ran towards Bau, the salarian motioning her over to Sparatus, where the turian willingly grabbed her by the shoulder and stood behind their salarian protector, who took aim at Udina, steadily and calmly.
Realizing his vulnerable position, Udina made one last ditch attempt to take care of his pariah. He raised his pistol, moving to take aim at Mar-
One shot echoed through the Presidium, drowned out by the battle behind them, but loud enough for the others to hear quite easily.
A pistol clattered to the ground, blood dripping down a clean, crisp business suit, staining its black and gold finish. His eyes twitched for a moment before the life left them, crimson gore travelling down the back of his ruined head from where Marcus' bullet had exited out the back of his head.
After a moment, Udina's body froze for a final time and slumped to the ground with a thud, blood seeping from his head and soaking into the polished floor, now tarnished by the horrors of war.
Marcus heard the shuttle above. Udina's getaway vehicle, he assumed. As he looked up however, his eyes met that of Leng's, who glared back with icy indifference, body once again battered and bruised from his battle with Thane. He snarled from where he was. Despite himself, Marcus raised his hand, and let his middle finger stand out amongst all the rest.
Leng showed no sign of retaliation for the gesture and the hatch simply closed, the Cerberus shuttle shooting off down the Presidium, the son of a bitch having escaped once more. The man seems to be more of a coward than an actual opponent. Sure, Saren escaped, but at least he kicked my ass before doing it. Now its the other way 'round. But Marcus hadn't forgotten Thane's sacrifice. Jacob and Byp's murders. His life seems to be shortening very quickly.
He turned, the silence among the group almost desperate. Tevos and Sparatus simply stared at the body of their former colleague turned sleeping agent, Bau calmly and coldly kicking his dead corpse and rolling it over, patting him down to make sure he wasn't wired with an explosive device. Kaidan simply sighed, shaking his head.
"I can't believe it..." the man lamented, still incredulous as to all that had happened, "I figured there was a traitor in his ranks, but never could I have believed that Udina was behind it all. How...just how could he..."
Then, his comm buzzed, "Shepard, this is Bailey. Come in, Shepard. You read?"
He keyed the comm to respond, "This is Shepard. We've got the Council, although we're one down. Udina..." he gulped, watching as Bau, satisfied Udina wasn't booby-trapped, commed his omni-tool to contact any UGC forces in the area, "...he turned out to be a traitor. Cerberus had him in their bag. Promised him the liberation of Earth if he gave them the Citadel. He's...he's dead. He was holding Tevos hostage...I had to remove the threat."
"This day just gets better and better. I knew Udina was a bit suspicious from the moment he promoted me to Commander, but I didn't think he was capable of treason," Bailey elaborated, exhaling heavily at the revelation, "Still, I'm more concerned as to who's going to fill his role; usually Parliament would elect another human representative as councilor, but since they aren't all there anymore..."
"We'll figure out who takes over who later," Marcus replied, conflicted by the same thing, but not willing to linger on it, "What's the situation with the Citadel?"
Bailey scoffed, a good sign apparently, "It's all gone downhill...for Cerberus at least. UGC liberated Huerta Memorial, or rather 'lifted the siege,' as the buggers were still holding out when they got there. The Refugee Camp's been liberated, although I heard Cerberus had turned that place into a short-lived concentration camp; there's alot of bodies. The Commons have been retaken, as well as the Citadel Tower, the Emporium and C-Sec Headquarters, and from I read that they're being driven from the Financial District. I don't know the situation with the Wards, but they can't be much worse than down here; Cerberus hit the Presidium the hardest. I'm just glad the Council survived, even if Udina did turn out to be a dud. I've got rachni cleaning out the halls now; its just clean up now."
"Heard anything about the Cerberus fleet in orbit?" he asked, curious.
"Not a peep. Although I doubt they're fairing better than they are down here," he declared, probably rolling his eyes, "Not much they can do against a three fleet liberation force. I'm more inclined to begin counting their corpses."
He nodded, "Get me Fleet Admiral Hackett if you can. The Council...I'll get them over to C-Sec HQ as quickly as possible. They aren't safe until the Presidium is fully secured. Shepard out," with that, he cut the comm, sighing as he cracked his neck, and the fatigue began to set in. Many had lost their lives today, and all because of Cerberus.
Sometimes, he wondered just who the enemy was.
Was he really fighting Cerberus?
Or was he just fighting the Reapers? Different people, same face.
For Marcus Shepard, the differences were beginning to blur.
{Loading...}
June 22, 2186
1416 hours.
Conference Room, Normandy-Class Stealth Frigate CAW Deliverance, In FTL inbound for unspecified cluster, unspecified system.
The Reaper War.
Operative Kai Leng.
"I seem to have lost contact with Fleet Admiral Terrence," TIM replied as he studied Leng's holographic form, regarding him with a potentially less than happy expression, "Yet you are the only one to actually initiate contact with me. Operative Leng, I would hope this is not bad news you are bringing me. I would like to think that the Citadel is almost mine, you succeeded in killing the Council and Udina is in control. That our little coup d'etat didn't entirely blow up in our faces. Am I right to be this optimistic?"
Leng growled, gritting his teeth as his head throbbed, his cybernetics still hard at work at healing the bruise that drell filth had put on him. His throat was dry, and he tried to ignore the feeling of the blood crusted on his upper lip and chin, the feeling of his broken nose healing painful, but bearable. He had a long list of injuries, but for the most part he was happy. He had probably put another one of Shepard's disgusting alien group into the grave. Granted, the first one hadn't been alien, but it seemed that accidentally killing that suit-rat's...husband...as much as he loathed to relate the word to xenos, had angered Shepard, filling him with glee.
Despite that however, he had to acknowledge, grudgingly, that the drell had been an impressive warrior. He had very nearly defeated Leng.
He sighed, bringing himself to answer, "The siege...did not go as planned," instead of batting the bush, he decided to just give it all to the man. He wasn't one for being blunt, "Operation: Deathstroke was a failure. The Council remains in control, the UGC has liberated the Citadel and Udina is dead."
The Illusive Man sighed, a puff of smoke erupting from between his lips in a column, rubbing his temples in what Leng imagined was growing irritation, "Udina was expendable. What disappoints me is your sheer lack of competence in the missions I give you. You keep assuring me that you will get the job done, yet you bring me nothing but failure. I asked Terrence to give me the Citadel; I asked you to give me the Council's heads."
Leng, despite the futility of it, went on the defensive, "It couldn't be helped. I-"
"Do not even begin. I read Commander Banes' report. I know Shepard and the Normandy was there," he snapped, his calm demeanour breaking for but a moment, "I was pleased to hear that the Deliverance's field testing was a success. She actually managed to disable the Normandy. Alass, she is not destroyed as I would have wished, but it is a step in the right direction. Proof that Shepard can no longer continue to hamper our operations unabated," he met Leng's gaze in an instant, "But Shepard's arrival does not excuse your inability to get the mission done. I gave you the Deliverance, yet here I read that the thanix cannon, your greatest asset, was not just disabled by the Normandy, it was destroyed. You had the Normandy matched for firepower, but even when disabled, it managed to beat you."
"I did not give the order to engage the Normandy!" he spat back, hissing as his breathing intensified, "Banes acted against orders!"
"As I am aware," he replied, "And he shall be dealt with in a seperate manner. But I cannot ignore what has been shown here, Leng. Thanks to your incompetence, I have now lost yet another fleet, another fleet admiral, and more precious resources have been spent on a fruitless operation. Not only are we back to square one on stopping the Crucible, but now I've lost a tremendous amount of military manpower. Something that is not that easy to replace. Do you realize how much Henry Lawson has done for us? Project February isn't as easy as it seems, Leng; people must be procured. And refugees are not unlimited. Not with the Reapers invading. You've cost me time, patience and resources, Leng, and what do you give me? Nothing."
"Sir, I-" he cut himself off, out of energy to argue, "I can kill Shepard. I swear it. I just need the right opportunity. I will personally bring his head to your-"
"You make it sound like I have resigned you to your fate," he replied, cold, synthetic blue eyes regarding him almost casually, "That is not the case. While your constant failures do grate on my nerves, you are still my most useful asset. You're the only assassin I have with a high enough kill record and, with some reluctance to say it, you are the only operative I have currently capable of matching Shepard in combat. You will continue to serve me, as you have always done, but I expect better effort next time."
Leng was relieved, although he wouldn't show it. He would never show weakness. He was strong, stronger than that suit-rat lover, and stronger than that drell worm; he had proven that. He had sent that blade right through his chest, practically able to smell the sweet aroma of his blood dripping down his blade. The kill had been sweet, being able to see the look of horror on Shepard's face even more delectable. He would savour the man's agony. Agony made men angry, and angry men made mistakes. Stupid mistakes. Mistakes that got people killed. And when Shepard was agonized, when he got angry enough to make that stupid mistake, Leng would be there, ready to slice his throat wide open.
But only after he had captured his precious quarian and made him watch as he disemboweled her, ripped her tongue out, and then-
"However, I am hereby relieving you of command of the Deliverance," TIM stated cooly, unaware of Leng's dark, hateful thoughts, "You've shown complete inability to command a warship, and given the Deliverance's firepower and technology, I believe it would be better suited in the hands of Commander Banes; despite losing his thanix cannon, something we shall fix once you have returned to base, he did manage to cripple the Normandy in combat, and that's the edge we need. I am hereby instating Armistan Banes as captain of the Deliverance, and demoted you to the ship's assassin. You will go where I order you to, but the Deliverance will follow. She will be a constant in your life, but you will not command it."
This was not that heavy of a blow to Leng; in the end, he had seen that coming. As much as he was loath to admit it, Shepard was a far better tactician than he was. The man was the Lion of Elysium, having coordinated an evacuation of the city by himself while facing off against an army of 10,000 singe-handedly. He was the Butcher of Torfan, the man who had stormed a batarian stronghold after his squad was slaughtered and had butchered everyone inside. He was the damn Survivor of Akuze; responsible for surviving a thresher maw attack that took the lives of fifty of his fellow marines. He wasn't just the best damn tactician out there; luck was the constant in his life. And something Leng couldn't hope to match.
But on the ground, he had a better chance. Granted, Shepard was still a capable warrior and well-rehearsed in combat; he was an N7, just like Leng had been. But on the ground, they were evenly matched. They both had cybernetics, they both were N7s, and both of them were combatants. The only advantage Shepard had was biotics, and the only one Leng had was agility and speed.
Losing the Deliverance would not hurt him; it revitalized him. He no longer had command of a ship to worry about, and could focus solely on killing Shepard. On the slow destruction of everything he loved so very dearly. It would be a long, slow process, but Leng would break Marcus Shepard, and once he had killed that suit-rat that he was so damn devoted too, he would kill the man himself. And only then...would Leng's purpose be complete.
"Do you understand me, Leng?" The Illusive Man demanded, "Inform Banes he is now in command. I will expect you to see me personally when you arrive back at headquarters. For now, go to the doctor. Get healed. I'm going to need to debrief you. Deathstroke was one of our most vital operations, but with it a failure, we're going to need to think more carefully. Rely on espionage more than brute force. Illusive Man out."
Leng stepped out of the conference room when he was done, moving through the Tech Lab and stepping out onto the CIC. He groaned, deciding he would tell Banes after he had gotten his medical checkup. He moved towards the elevator, ignoring the yeoman's sloppy salute and the salutes of the two assault troopers protecting it. He simply glared. Glowed. Reenergized himself.
A reckoning was coming.
And Shepard would die screaming.
"A bitter conclusion, knowing Udina was a traitor. But it worked out in the end, I guess. And it did help the war effort."
- Tali'Shepard pav Rannoch.
"It did indeed. It raised awareness about the war. People can looking at the bigger picture instead of their own little picture. Cerberus' attack, despite its brutality, might have actually made all the difference."
- Marcus Shepard.
A/N:
About damn time, huh?
Look, school's an asshole and I was out of juice. I needed to play some Halo and watch some Better Call Saul to get me back into action. Besides, in two weeks my term one ends and I get two weeks worth of holidays (Yay! Yay?), so maybe I'll get more progress then?
So close to Tali now! Can you hear that? That sounds like Talimancing. Just three more chapters...just three more...and the geth/quarian arc begins, and our beloved quarian returns...
I hope I've made Leng sufficiently sinister. He, Banes and the Deliverance are going to be a much bigger part of this story than I originally intended.
Some of you are probably also wondering 'apart from From Ashes, are you going to do ANY of the DLC?' My answer to that is yes, but I wanted to wait until Tali was back before doing so. I will cover all the DLCs, Omega DLC being obvious due to my build-up to that in Requiem. I will also do Leviathan and, the one I'm looking forward to the most, the Citadel DLC, where I plan to add a few...things. Let's just say I plan to really expand upon Shepard's Clone more and really develop him. If he were a byproduct of Shepard's resurrection, wouldn't he have Shepard's memories before the Normandy's destruction? If so, maybe a part of him that loves Tali still remains...BUT THAT'S SPOILERS!
Let's just say that Holocaust as far too many subplots, but they are all so fantastic that I can't help but add them. Curse me all you want. :P
Next chapter's going to be a downer. Its practically devoted to Thane, and will include the funeral scene from the Citadel DLC that I think would have been more fitting to have now instead of later.
Keelah Se'lai, troopers!
