"Was that really necessary?" drawled Shepard
"*Shrug* Probably not, doesn't mean it didn't save us a bit of trouble" replied Echo
"Maybe, but you can bet it will bring us trouble anyway" muttered Garrus
"When has he done something that didn't?" mused Liara
"Wouldn't have half the fun if he didn't!" barked Wrex with a laugh
"What is this? Poke fun at Echo day?" grumbled Echo
"No, but good idea. I think I'll introduce it during the next meeting" said Shepard with a smile
Echo threw his hands in the air while mumbling some obscenities that the others couldn't hear through the sound filter in his helmet. Though the fun wouldn't mask the truth of the fact that Echo's little stunt would without a doubt land them in some sort of trouble with the locals.
"Why am I looking at three of Mr. Anoleis security guards transformed into popsicles?" asked a female voice
Everyone turned to stare at the woman dressed in red, from her stance alone it was easily visible how she carried herself with dignity. In another display of humor (and betrayal if one asks Echo) everyone simultaneously lifted their hands and pointed towards him making the entire scene look like the grade school playground.
"I have you to thank for my three latest ice sculptures?" asked the woman with a raised eyebrow
"Indeed it is. What brings Mr. Anoleis secretary all the way here?" asked Echo in return
"I deal with all new arrivals on Noveria, I was sent here to walk you through. Your spectre status came back positive so you are allowed to carry weapons, Commander" replied the woman
"And who might you be?" asked Shepard
"My name is Gianna Parasini, I am Mr. Anoleis personal assistant as your companion pointed out. May I ask what business has brought you to Noveria?" inquired Parasini
"Spectre business, has anyone suspicious come through here in the past few days?" asked Shepard
"Everyone who passes through here is suspicious, Commander" drawled Parasini "Though if you mean unique then yes, an asari matriarch, Benezia, passed through here a couple of days ago" replied Parasini
"Wait, Benezia is here?" interrupted Liara
"I should believe so, she left for peak 15 a couple of days ago and hasn't returned to my knowledge" said Parasini
"How do we get to peak 15?" asked Shepard
"You will have to ask Mr. Anoleis for a garage pass then take a Mako there, though with the current blizzard going on I wouldn't recommend any form of travel" replied Parasini
"Be that as it may we need to get to peak 15. How do we get to the Anoleis office?" interrupted Echo
"His office is at the top of the elevator and to the left. If you have any questions then please come find me there" said Parasini
"Thank you" replied Shepard
"Before you leave" interrupted Parasini "Could I trouble you to defrost our head of security?"
Echo snapped his fingers and everyone watched as the ice surrounding the three security guards slowly began melting.
"I highly suggest getting them medical assistance, I haven't seen anyone survive more than ten minutes after coming out of that before dying of Hypothermia" said Echo as the team walked away
The team took the elevator up and stepped out into the port. It was easy to see that this place was a corporate mine field as everyone was rushing back and forth while yelling all sorts of things regarding their respective businesses.
"Any idea where to start?" asked Shepard towards Echo
"I would suggest going through the market first, better we sort out our gear before heading into potential trouble" he replied
"You mean the trouble you most likely caused?" taunted Shepard
"Yeah, yeah…" was Echo's muttered reply
The group moved towards the market and started looking around; besides the outrages prices and insane items they found, nothing else really caught their interest. Though Shepard was quite sure that if this planet still fell under Citadel law she would have had to arrest just about anyone that they had met so far… had these people never heard about subtly?
"Mr. Echo…" came a voice
Everyone turned to stare at the owner of said voice whom turned out to be a Drell.
"I cannot say I know who you are, but you clearly know me" said Echo
"My employer has forwarded your picture to us all so that we would know whom to show our special stock to. Do you wish to browse?" asked the Drell
"So you work for the Shadow Broker?" asked Echo
"I never said such a thing, though my employer has showed a certain fondness for such a name" replied the Drell
"Whatever, show me your stock" said Echo
The Drell guided them into his shop where he brought out a few cases and presented them to the group. With each one getting opened Garrus more and more felt like he was in heaven, these were weapons you couldn't get in any legal way.
"And for my most interesting item" began the Drell as he opened the final case which almost made Garrus squeal "The M-56 Widow, latest in the Widow Sniper Rifle Series and by far their most dangerous creation to date"
Echo took the sniper and inspected it for a few short moments before his gaze fell back on the Drell
"I will not ask how the Shadow Broker suddenly came into possession of M-56es but I'm sure that it was somehow related to the favor I did him four months ago" said Echo
The Drell nodded "Indeed Mr. Echo, which is why my employer asked me to provide you with one, free of charge. Call it a show of good faith"
"Tell your employer that he has my thanks. Now do you have anything else interesting to show me?" inquired Echo
"Well… I recently came into possession of some unique armor" replied the Drell a little unsure
"Your shaking, Drell. What is it about this armor that worries you?" asked Echo
"The manufacturer is not well known for handing them out so it could potentially see you get targeted by some undesirables whom are after it themselves" replied the Drell
"This manufacturer wouldn't happen to be a supplier to the Alliance Special Forces would they?" asked Echo in a bored tone
The Drell nodded "Indeed they do, but you see their armor is very sought after among the other races as well"
"Of that I have no doubt. Show me" ordered Echo
The Drell went into the back and soon came back with a cart which held quite a number of crates, the Drell offloaded the first one and placed it in front of the team before opening it to reveal the armor inside. Shepard recognized it almost instantly
"Hahne-Kedar Shadow Works armor… how the hell did you get this?" asked Shepard in an angry tone
"My employer sent this, and the remaining six armor's, to me a few weeks ago with a message stating that someone would be passing by that might show interest in it" replied the Drell
"Drell… please tell me that the remaining six armors doesn't fit a Krogan, Turian, Quarian, Asari and two humans?" asked Echo in an almost pleading tone
"My apologies Mr. Echo but that is exactly what they do" replied the Drell
"Just… just add it to my tab will you? And send message to your employer for me" said Echo tiredly
"Of course Mr. Echo, anything you wish" replied the Drell with a nod
"Tell him that the next time he feels like one-upping me and doing me a favor before I even asked for one, I will find him and skin his ass alive" said Echo darkly
"*Gulp* of course Mr. Echo I will relay the message once our business is complete, now is there anything else besides the M-56 and the seven armors?" asked the Drell in a shaky tone
"No… no this is all, you have my thanks Drell" said Echo
The Drell nodded before he placed the now closed armor container back on the cart along with the M-56. The cart was then handed over to Echo who rolled it out of the shop before stopping near a bench and sitting down with a heavy sigh.
"Okay… someone explain to me what the hell just happened?" asked Garrus
"I do believe Echo just secured us all new Armor and a replacement sniper for you, Garrus" replied Liara in an amused tone
"AND I just added about who the fuck knows how much to my tab with the Shadow Broker" added Echo in a defeated tone
"How does one even get a tab with the Shadow Broker?" asked Garrus now also amused at Echo's plight
"Keep swapping favors back and forth and then lose track. He and I eventually decided to simply open up a credit tab for me. Now each time I buy something from one of his merchants or he gives me information we add to the tab, if I do him a favor he takes an amount of credits off the tab according to the importance of the information. Lucky me that I was somewhere between two million and three million credits in the positive before this entire thing… probably somewhere in the red now" the last bit was muttered in annoyance
"Any reasons this hasn't come up in any of our conversations?" asked Sarah
"Yes, it is not a thing I like to advocate. You are a spectre and are legally required to pursue all evidence towards the Shadow Broker for his illegal activities. Had I told you, you would have had to follow the lead and so on" replied Marc
"But I know now" she countered
"We are not in Citadel space right now" Marc responded
A sly grin spread across Sarah's face "What happens outside of Citadel space?" she began
"Stays out of Citadel Space" finished Marc with a grin
"You two are insane" mumbled Garrus
"Does that mean you don't want the M-56 that I just got you?" asked Marc in a sing song voice
"I never said that!" yelled Garrus as he grabbed the case and held it tight which started the team on a round of laughter
"For now I think you guys should go get changed, the shields and armor on those things are ways above what you are currently using" said Echo as he pointed towards a changing area
"Why does a place like this have a changing area?" wondered Liara out loud
"Please… a place where nothing but two faced corporate business people runs around? They swap suits more times in a day then we blink" replied Shepard
"A disturbing truth… off you go, I will return to the Normandy with the spares" said Echo as he dumped four boxes on the ground and began walking back towards the elevator that lead to the dock
The team watched him as he walked and each had their own thoughts that they kept to themselves as they began walking towards the changing area. Once inside all four quickly got into their new armor and began moving around to get a feel for them… they fitted waaaay to well.
"Fits a little to perfectly don't they, Shepard?" asked Liara once both were outside
"Yes they do, just what kind of information does the Shadow Broker have on us?" asked Shepard to no one
"All the information he needs" grumbled Wrex as he stepped outside
"This is going to take a while to get used to, new armor and new gun… why is this a bad place again?" asked Garrus
The sound of a large group of footsteps rumbling down the area alerted the group as they watched a full platoon of guards heading towards the elevator area.
"You don't think?" began Garrus
"He has only been gone for five minutes" continued Liara
"That's more than enough for him" finished Shepard as the team began running after the guards
They followed them to the elevator where the entire platoon was waiting with weapons drawn and aimed towards the elevator entrance. Once the doors opened a completely calm Echo walked out while whistling, at least until he noticed the amount of guns pointed in his direction which interrupted his little whistling session.
"What did I do?" he asked
"Put any weapon you have on the ground and step forward slowly!" called one the guards
Shepard moved forward and grabbed one the first guards by his neck and lifted him up so he was standing and facing her.
"Spectre Shepard" she introduced herself "the hulking piece of armor there is with me"
"Sorry ma'am but even if he is with you then that doesn't excuse blasting apart our weapon's scanner" replied the Guard
Shepard turned her gaze towards Echo "You did what?" she asked
"That wasn't my fault you know" he defended
"We have you on tape shooting both scanners!" yelled the guard
"Then perhaps your security guard down there shouldn't have asked me to relinquish my weapons when it hasn't even been ten minutes since he saw me entering with weapons permitted" replied Echo
"How does that justify blowing up our weapons scanner?!" yelled the guard in annoyance
"Figured it would give him something else to do besides bothering me" said Echo with a shrug
"I…I…" the guard was completely speechless… that made no sense…
"Hey if it bothers you that much I'll pay for it" said Echo as he began walking forward
"Lieutenant, you and your men are dismissed" came the voice of Parasini
"But ma'am…" tried the guard
"Dismissed. As for you, we will be sending a bill to the Normandy" said Parasini as she turned and left again
Once they were alone again Shepard turned a question glance towards Echo, her usually wouldn't go about destroying shit just because it was annoying.
"So what is the real reason for blasting those scanners?" asked Shepard
"Eva found signs of Geth programming in them. Whoever passed through that port infected their systems with the code, this code allowed them to view just who came into the port with what weapons" replied Echo
"Which means Benezia knows we are here and what we are carrying weapons wise" grumbled Shepard
"Yes, though the Armor and M-56 was bought after entering so with a little luck we can still catch her off guard with our improved equipment" said Echo
"Anyway… let's get going to Anoleis office, we need to see about that garage pass" ordered Shepard
The team followed closely behind as the now fully armored group walked towards the administrator's office. Of course seeing four individuals walking around in Hayne-Kadar Shadow Works armor with a sixth one wearing a high tech armor in the same color scheme walk around did turn a few heads which made Echo grumble to himself about painting large targets on their backs.
As they stepped into the office of Anoleis they all noticed just how flat the entire building actually was visually speaking. The walls were flat and a dull grey color, what little actual color could be found came from the various plants that no one could really tell were real or fake.
"Commander Shepard" greeted Parasini
"We would like to speak to Anoleis please" replied Shepard
"One moment" Parasini reached down and pressed a button on her desk "Mr. Anoleis, Commander Shepard is here and wishes to speak with you"
"Send her in" replied Anoleis voice over the com
"Go right ahead, Commander"
Shepard gave a court nod and walked towards Anoleis office with the team right at her heels. When they entered the office the entire team noticed how this place was somehow even more boring looking than the corridors outside.
"You'll excuse me if I don't stand up. I don't have time to entertain the refugees from that urban plight called earth" said Anoleis without looking up from his terminal
"I'm here as a council Spectre, not a human do keep that in mind" Shepard retorted angrily
"Believe me, it's foremost on my mind. This greeting is but a courtesy I will only cooperate as required by the executive board. Businesses come here to avoid the second-guessing of galactic law" drawled Anoleis
"Be that as it may I am conducting an investigation in regards to galactic security. I think your Executive Board has a small stake in that as well" replied Shepard
"Everything is a matter of galactic security. But I will not allow you to harass our clients, this world is private property" continued Anoleis
"If you will excuse me I will go calm down before I do something I regret…" muttered Shepard angrily as she turned and walked away
Most of the team followed her out and in the end only Echo and Anoleis was left in the room… good thing Anoleis couldn't see the smirk beneath his helmet…
Outside with Parasini the team was watching with a bit of amusement as Shepard was slowly pacing back and forth while muttering to herself about business politics and bullshit excuses and a few other choice subjects that had nothing to do with the current situation but hey, one might as well get if off their chest while they can.
"She seems… displeased…" said Parasini
"I do believe the good commander has a minor issue with politics" replied Liara with a smile
"I see… but if this is about a garage pass, then I might have an alternative way for you to acquire one" Parasini muttered
"Please don't say it involves dealing with more corporate assholes?" begged Shepard in a whiny tone
"Well… Lorik Qui'in isn't an "asshole" per say… he can be a mighty ass once in a while yes but most of the time he is a rather nice gentleman who understands subtly…" replied Parasini with a slightly shaky voice
"*Grooooan* fuck me seven ways to Sunday, why is this world so bloody annoying?" asked Shepard with a slight bit of insanity in her eyes… she really didn't like politicians or corporate people.
"…try working here…" muttered Parasini "You can find Mr. Qui'in at the bar where he is most likely getting awfully drunk"
Before anyone had a chance to give their confirmation to Miss Parasini the doors to Mr. Anoleis office opened and Echo stepped out very slowly. When Shepard realized that they had left Echo alone with Anoleis she began swearing profusely in her head.
Echo walked up calmly and turned his head towards Parasini before nodding his head slightly in greeting.
"Is there somewhere I could get outside? A viewing platform perhaps?" asked Echo in an ice cold tone
"Yes there is. Take a left once you exit and keep going and you should come to one of our balconies. Though with the blizzard going on I wouldn't suggest going outside" replied Parasini in confusion
"The cold matters not to me, I simply need to get away before I do something that I will most sorely regret" stated Echo as he walked out the door and out of sight from everyone.
"Soo… is Anoleis still alive?" asked Garrus after a while
"I think so… Mr. Anoleis is so paranoid that he has an alarm system rigged to his personal health. Should he die I wouldn't be getting any silence out here for at least a month" replied Parasini
"Yes well… thank you for the help Miss Parasini. We better go after him to ensure earlier events doesn't repeat themselves" said Shepard
Parasini nodded and watched as the team left through the door. The team then followed the same path as Echo and quite quickly found him… or at least they found a large group of people all staring in the same direction, same thing.
As they approached they looked beyond the crowd and out through the sealed doors and saw Echo standing leaning against the railing. That in itself was not that strange, no what was strange was the fact that the winds were howling around him in an almost angry fashion and he was simply standing at the core of it resembling a man who was sleeping.
Shepard pushed through the crowed until she finally arrived at the door. Snapping on her helmet she opened the first set of doors and waited until it sealed again before the other door opened allowing the icy winds to slam into the small room and almost knock Shepard back.
She put up a small fight as she walked through the wind but once she was standing behind Echo everything was calm and her Omni-tool was actually telling her that it was a rather normal temperature at her current location. She removed her helmet and sure enough it wasn't hot in any way but not cold enough to be uncomfortable either…
"So what got you riled up?" she asked
Echo didn't answer at first as he kept his gaze firmly planted at something off in the distance. A loud creaking sound rang out through the balcony and Shepard looked down to see the railing beginning to freeze under Echo's grip and soon enough they shattered from the sheer force that Echo was gripping them with.
Shaking his hands lightly Echo sighed as he disengaged his helmet and turned towards Shepard.
"I really didn't think anyone was in existence that could push so many of my buttons in such a short amount of time, but that little piece of shit Anoleis certainly managed it…" he growled in response to her earlier question
"Hey he pissed me off as well, though I am curious as to why you stayed behind"
"I hoped that I could convince him with a few well-placed threats or deals, but the man is so firmly in the belief that the sun shines out of his ass that I couldn't get anything past his thick head"
"Sounds familiar…" she grumbled "So you just needed to come out here and play snow-god for a few moments?"
"Snow-god?" Shepard made a gesture around her in an unspoken answer "Ah… yeah the Frost was always temperamental. Connecting a Warframe to you're the primary emotion sector of your brain really wasn't all that genius now that I think about it"
"*Shrug* if you are ready to go back inside we need to go see a fellow named Lorik Qui'in supposedly he can provide us with a garage pass"
"Right… let's just get this mission over with so I can go back and beat the stuffing out of something in the gym…"
"I thought you would be giving me lessons on how to use my new sword when we got back?"
"Right… forgot that… trying to slash you to pieces might work as a good stress relief as well"
"Or we could go a few rounds and then we could both get rid of some stress?"
"… also acceptable"
The couple walked back inside with their passive faces back in place but both feeling a lot better than after they had a taste of Noveria politics… though they were headed straight for another portion… urgh…
The rest of the team had been looking on passively as the two were talking. Garrus was focusing half on the two and the rest on the crowd around them. Wrex was ignoring everyone and was simply waiting for them to move on. Liara was curious about the two simply because of her own relationship with Ashley, a thing that Garrus picked up on.
"So Liara… you and the Gunnery Chief?" asked Garrus
Liara stiffened slightly as she felt her cheeks heat up slightly, a small nod was all the answer she could muster.
"Huh… oh well, nice to see everyone getting along. What about you Wrex? You found some sweet little human on the Normandy?" Garrus joked
"Hah! I think they would break at the sight Turian. No I have no intention of finding anyone but a fertile female Krogan to have a few healthy warriors with" replied Wrex
"Fair is fair I guess" said Garrus
"When are you and the little Quarian going to stop dancing around each other?" asked Wrex while staring out towards the frozen tundra
"Ehh… what?" asked Garrus now slightly confused
"I have seen the way you two look at each other when she comes down into the armory. I don't understand why you are being so careful around each other, simply ask the girl out and be done with it" commented Wrex with a shrug
Garrus stood speechless and was doing everything in his might to look everywhere but at Wrex or his general surroundings, though this caused him to miss the small nod and smile that Wrex sent in Liara's direction and the gentle smile and mouthed "Thank you" that Liara sent back in return.
At that moment Echo and Shepard decided to rejoin them. Of course Echo looked on in amusement as Garrus looked utterly confused with himself and Liara was blushing and yet Wrex looked completely calm.
"Having fun Wrex?" asked Echo
"Just keeping busy while waiting" replied Wrex
"Stow the humor and let's go deal with Qui'in" ordered Shepard
The team fell into step behind her and followed her through the small port area. They got odd glances from just about anyone and it quickly began grating on everyone's nerves, even Liara adapted a rather annoyed expression at the constant stares.
Inside the elevator everyone let out a sigh of relief now that they were finally away from the stares even if it was only for a short moment.
The bar they found was certainly a step above the kind that the crew would usually visit, at least in the sense that no one was being thrown around or threatened with violence here. No here the threats were more subtle and the violence was on business scale.
"How far up their asses do you think these guys keep their poles?" asked Wrex in amusement
"Far enough for it to have pushed the shit out of their mouth" replied Echo in equal amusement
"Anyone see this Lorik Qui'in fellow?" asked Shepard
"Drunk off his ass turian?" inquired Garrus
"Yep" replied Shepard
"Right over there" he said while pointing to a slumped over Turian sitting by himself
Shepard led them over to the table and tried to get the turians attention, only to fail miserably as he was seemingly passed out.
"This is just too much" mumbled Shepard
"Wha… who's there?" mumbled Lorik in response as he seemed to come out of his self-imposed black out
"I'm Commander Shepard, I heard you might be able to help me" replied Shepard
"Shepard? You're that Spectre that arrived earlier, what could an old turian like me possibly help you with?" slurred Lorik
"I've been told you are the turian to see about a garage pass" replied Shepard in a stern tone
"How fortuitous!" exclaimed Lorik "It just so happens that I am the local manager of Synthetic Insights office, at least until Anoleis gets his ass in gear and gets me fired"
"How would he get you fired?" inquired Shepard
"His goons are ransacking my office for the dirt I have on him, he is claiming to "investigate" me for corruption while it is him that is corrupt! HAH!" finished Lorik
"I suspect we just found the price for your pass?" asked Garrus
"Smart boy you have there… indeed that is my price. You get back the evidence before Anoleis goons get it and hand it over to me and I will give you my pass" replied Lorik
"We have a deal it seems" said Shepard
"Ah… one more detail Commander. Violence against Mr. Anoleis thugs might be needed, said thugs just so happens to be members of the Hanshan security team. Thought as it happens, Ms. Matsuo is not aware of their outside contract… she disapproves of outside contracting…" Lorik said in an apologetic tone
"I don't think that will be a problem" replied Shepard as she turned to leave
The entire team except Echo began heading out, Shepard did throw a glance towards him but he just waved her off. Once they were finally alone Echo disabled his helmet and sat down.
"Mr. Qui'in… I do believe you have some information I want…" began Echo
Getting to the offices was no difficult task; in fact Shepard thought that the security was perhaps just a bit too loose around here.
"On your guard people, something feels off" ordered Shepard
Everyone pulled out their weapons and advanced slowly through the halls. The silence was almost deafening, after all wasn't there supposed to be guards up here ransacking this place?
The team turned a corner only for Shepard to almost fall flat on her ass when she ended up kicking something on the ground. That something turned out to be a certain blonde haired security officer.
"What happened to her?" asked Shepard while looking her over
Liara knelt down and pulled out at the neck of the blonde's armor to see below it, what she saw made a chill run up her spine, long blue marks ran all across the woman's chest and seemingly continued down towards her lower body… only one thing looked like this.
"Biotic burns…" Liara said in a low breath "the amount of power needed to leave a wound this drastic is incredibly high Commander; I have only seen Asari Commando's create burns this strong"
The sound of gentle clapping could be heard and the entire team swiveled to face down three Asari Commando's whom were standing with a smirk on their faces, the middle one was the one clapping and Liara recognized her quickly…
"Lienth…" Liara breathed
"Hallo my dear, been a while" replied the Asari apparently named Lienth
"33 years, 65 days and 4 hours but who's counting?" replied Liara in an uncharacteristic cocky fashion
"You're still not mad about that are you?" asked Lienth in a case of genuine surprise
"Of course not, you only ripped out my heart and danced on it for a while before leaving…" growled Liara
'Did Liara just… growl?' thought everyone there who knew Liara
"Come on Star, you can't keep that against me forever!" yelled Lienth in anger
"I sure as hell can!" yelled Liara using a sentence she learned from Ashley
Following her angry declaration Liara threw a warp towards her former friend.
Lienth barely managed to get a barrier up to absorb that warp and only had a few moments to throw her own before gunfire began running down the hall accompanied by Biotics from both Wrex and Liara.
Of course Lienth two fellow Commandos were firing both bullets and Biotics in a hope to match their opposition but it quickly became apparent that in this case numbers really weren't in their favor.
"Orders?!" Yelled one of the Commando's to Lienth while dodging another biotic ability
"Damnit… retreat! We can't afford to be caught here!" yelled Lienth
The three Commandos just barely managed to depart their current position before a Singularity roared to life right behind them threatening to pull them in. In a desperate last hope Lienth threw a warp into the Singularity causing it to explode in a biotic fury sending herself and her two companions flying out of a nearby window and into the cold harsh mountains of Noveria.
The three quickly hid deep in the snow and called a shuttle to get them out of there. Thankfully Liara and her team didn't follow them through the window so they were left in peace until they finally saw the shuttle come for them.
Once aboard they set off towards Peak 15 once again to rejoin their Matriarch and give their report.
"Benezia is going to flay you alive, Lienth" said one of the Commandos
"Flay? Lienth is lucky if there is even a trace of her left once Benezia finds out" said the other Commando
"Very funny you two. It's not like we actually tried to kill her" said Lienth
"That's true but that is not how Benezia is going to see it and you know it" replied the first one
"Fuck you Pelida" Lienth growled in return
"Can't you at least wait until we are back at base?" replied Pelida with a wink and smirk
"Good grief Pelida, don't you ever get enough?" asked the second Commando
"Jeiss, Jeiss, Jeiss… one can never get enough of a good thing, especially not a luxuary product like myself" boasted Pelida
"You know what I am starting to believe the rumor that you only became a Commando by screwing every one of the judges!" the now named Jeiss retorted angrily
"Now listen here you little…" began Pelida
"ENOUGH!" Roared Lienth "You two will keep your traps shut for the rest of the flight or I shall personally show you how you can get biotic burns on the inside!" finished Lienth in a snarl
The two Commandos shut up and thankfully remained that way for the rest of the flight back to peak 15.
Lienth had spent the entire time looking out the window and thinking about her past with Liara, to this day it still haunted her how good a thing she had let go back then… just because of something so incredibly stupid…
"That stupid daughter of a…"
Liara continued her rant from when she had seen the shuttle fly off in the distance. Most of the team had given her the space she wanted as they had searched the rest of the offices only to find more corpses and a few computers.
With a little luck it seemed that none of the computers had been touched though some of the earlier ones showed signs of being broken in to. Lorik Qui'in's computer was thankfully in a secluded office at the very back of the building so the Commando's had apparently now made it all the way there yet.
The team had grabbed the evidence and was now on their way back towards the bar to hand it to Qui'in and hopefully get their pass so they could get on their way towards Peak 15.
The team however never got much further than out of the elevator before they were one more face to face with Ms. Parasini.
"Commander, reports have come in about a lot of noise from Synthetic Insights offices… you wouldn't happen to know anything about that?" she asked with a raised eyebrow
"Must be the three Asari Commando's that just tried to kill us" replied Shepard in mock seriousness
Had they been listening they would have heard Liara muttering "No… not kill… she doesn't have the courage to kill me" though as it were it was left unheard and Liara kept up her very angry mood.
"Smartass, huh? That's fine I can work with that. Meet me at the bar before you talk to Qui'in"
And with that Parasini turned and left. The team followed shortly after and quickly found themselves back in the elevator leading up to the bar. As they stepped off and entered the bar three things caught Shepard's eye.
One was Qui'in sitting with a very thoughtful expression on his face
Another was Parasini standing by a table while tapping her foot impatiently
The last thing was Echo sitting at one of the first tables with his helmet disabled and what she suspected was a beer in his hand.
"Having fun there, Echo?" she asked
"Immensely. What kept you?" he countered
"A few Asari Commandos were at the offices before us" she replied
Shepard of course didn't miss the way Echo's eyes shot open and stared at her in bewildered confusion, she had to file that under question she would ask once they were back on the ship.
"I… see… that was unexpected. I trust you dealt with it?" he asked in a careful tone
Shepard shook her head "They escaped by blasting one of the windows and jumping out"
"I guess that means Benezia will have even more warning now…" he growled to himself
"Did you learn anything from Qui'in?" she inquired
"We can talk it over during the Mako ride to peak 15. That is if you have what we need for the pass?" he asked in return
"Parasini seems to have something else in mind, and I am interested in hearing what it is" she replied
Echo stood up and gestured towards Parasini which started Shepard on walking alongside him
"She most likely wants him to testify against Anoleis before the board" he informed Shepard
"Why would she want that?" Shepard inquired
"Because she is in fact an internal affairs agent… One of the things Lorik informed me off" Echo half lied, Lorik had indeed told him despite him already knowing.
Shepard nodded but didn't respond since they were within hearing distance of Parasini now.
"Commander. Let me reintroduce myself, Parasini, Internal Affairs agent" Parasini said
"What does an internal affairs agent want with me?" Shepard asked though she now knew the answer
"The board has known about Anoleis corruption for quite some time and they would like him taken down. That can be done easily if you could convince Qui'in to testify against Anoleis in front of the board" replied Parasini
"You do know I need his garage pass for my mission, right? Something tells me that he won't give it if I try and convince him to testify" accused Shepard
A slight nudge from Echo let her know that she was wrong on that account.
"If you convince Qui'in to testify then I will give you a pass, a favor for a favor" replied Parasini
"I'll give it a shot then" said Shepard before turning around and heading straight for Lorik Qui'in
Echo was right at her heels as they approached and sat down at the table alongside Qui'in
"So I assume by now Ms. Parasini has proposed her deal?" Lorik asked
"That she has. I take it our earlier conversation leaves no room for us to discuss it?" Echo countered
"Quite. I will testify against Anoleis in return for the information you have given me Mr. Echo and of course the data I asked you to receive, Commander" replied Lorik
Shepard handed over the data and Lorik gave a nod and a smile
"Much appreciated Commander. Here is my garage pass and I wish you a safe journey" Lorik stood up and made to leave but stopped and turned to look at Echo "If you ever find yourself on Noveria again Mr. Echo come find me and we might share more stories"
"We will see" was Echo's reply.
The two then returned to Parasini and informed her of Lorik's willingness to testify. Parasini thanked them and made an off-hand remark the she owed them a beer in the future before leaving to arrest Anoleis.
"Guess we are done with Port Hanshan for now" said Garrus once Shepard and Echo approached the team
"Yes finally!" said Shepard
"So we are headed down to the garage?" asked Wrex
"Yep. Let's get going and get out of this port as quickly as possible" replied Shepard
No one had any complaints to that so they dutifully fell into line and followed Shepard as she led them down to the garage.
When they approached the last door before they would enter the garage a small ping sounded through Echo's helmet, alerting him to malicious data trying to infiltrate his system.
"Shepard, something is attempting to hack into my suit. The signature belongs to Geth which means there are probably a few on the other side of the door" he said
"Noted. Weapons at the ready everyone" ordered Shepard
Echo fell down into the back alongside Garrus since they were now both carrying snipers for this mission. Though Echo still had his Vasto at his side for emergencies.
The doors opened and gunfire rang out not a second later. Inside at least two destroyers and four Stalkers were present a few regular Geth were there as well.
Liara started everything off by throwing a singularity that nailed both destroyers together which allowed Echo and Garrus to each to one shot at them. Garrus nailed his destroyer right in the flashlight sending it crumbling to the floor while Echo was a little more practical and shot it through its core processor equally so destroying it.
Shepard was having her own fun by shooting down the Stalkers as they were mid-jump, a little something that she found extremely funny to do.
Wrex was making full use of his new and improved shields and were actually fighting the Geth up close and personal and he seemed to be having equally great fun throwing them around and into each other.
All in all Garrus and Echo didn't do anything else after they had taken the two destroyers other than simply watch as the other three completely destroyed the remaining Geth.
"Never get tired of looking at that" commented Garrus
"There is a subtle beauty to watching them destroy things huh?" offered Echo
"Indeed my friend, indeed" replied Garrus
The two bumped fists without looking and then let a few chuckles escape them as they noticed Shepard beginning to argue with Wrex over him "stealing" her kills when he destroyed to Stalkers by throwing a geth at them.
"Enough, enough" chided Echo "We have a mission to get to"
Shepard gave a grunt but none the less climbed into the Mako that was already in the garage and planted herself in the driver's seat, Echo of course took the navigator's seat and Garrus took the gun as per usual.
They had barely made it out of the garage before Shepard gave a hand sign to the three in the back and the sealed off the driver's compartment from the rest of the Mako.
"So what did you get out of Qui'in?" Shepard asked
Echo disabled his mask before speaking "A few things. One is that Peak 15 is on official lock down meaning that no one should have arrived or left since the lockdown took effect which it did some weeks ago meaning that Benezia most likely is still there"
"And she is without a doubt waiting for us"
"Of that I have no doubt. All there is left is to guess just how big a welcoming committee we are going to be getting"
"We could always hope that they are busy elsewhere and won't have time for us"
"One can always hope. Though I must admit to being curious about what Saren has been using Peak 15 for"
'I just hope it's only Rachni and not some other surprise…' Echo added as an afterthought to himself
"I've got a feeling that I won't like it whatever it is"
"Who knows, maybe he is breeding Rachni"
Of course Echo was joking when he said it but he figured that by saying it he might just keep Sarah on her toes enough so that when the Rachni did come bursting forward they wouldn't have so much trouble.
"*Snort* Yeah that would be the day, Wrex would probably blow a quad"
Echo flinched at the image, no matter what race and what age getting the image of one of your private parts getting destroyed is never pleasant.
"Serious talk for a moment Sarah"
Every bit of humor vanished from Sarah's features when he used her first name and she gave a nod in understanding.
"For now I just want you to trust me and listen closely okay?"
Another nod
"Intelligence I have gathered shows that a lot of special equipment and scientist were shipped and brought to Noveria and subsequently brought to Peak 15. All of these things together show signs of cloning or breeding experiments…"
"Marc… you better not be telling me that Benezia is breeding Rachni up there…"
"Could be anything but for such a facility like Peak 15 to suddenly be put on complete lockdown something major must have happened, the outbreak of their test subjects might just be what happened"
It was a stretch and a bad one at that but Marc needed some way to inform Shepard about what they would be facing so she could prepare.
"Fuck… any plan on how to deal with this should it prove true?"
"First off I must warn you that if Wrex cannot keep himself under control… I will kill him"
Sarah raised an eyebrow in confusion "Would you really go that far?"
"If we are really dealing with Rachni " 'which we are' "then we have no room for Wrex to run off on some blood rage to "Battle my kinds ancient enemy" or some such bullshit"
"I guess I see your point. Any idea how to stop him?"
"I do. Beat it into his thick skull if it happens"
"Think he'll get it?"
"He bloody well better or I will have Krogan blood on my hands before the day is done"
The ride continued in silence and Marc began growing frustrated about not seeing any geth at all. Usually you would encounter quite a few of them once you were here but yet nothing had happened so far and it was beginning to make him quite paranoid.
"Can I ask you a question?"
Marc turned and stared with a confused expression before nodding
"What was life like back on earth in 2013?"
Marc stared for a few moments before shaking his head and staring straight forward for a while to collect his thoughts.
"I'm not sure really… I lived a slow life back then. Woke up, went to school, went home, went out with friends, got home again, went to sleep, rinse repeat"
"Really? Nothing exiting happen back then?"
"I was a gamer most of my life back then. Spent most of my time in front of a computer exploring worlds not my own"
"You? A gamer?"
"You seem surprised"
"I have a hard time seeing you playing any game"
"Stuck to RPG games mostly in my youth, never felt a taste for modern things like shooters or the like"
A dry chuckle escaped Marc as memories of all those old games flowed back into his mind and a few bright moments kept a smile on his face.
"You must have been a heavy World of Warcraft player"
Marc almost broke his neck from turning his head towards Sarah so fast.
"What did you say?"
"World of Warcraft, you know super popular MMO back from the 21st century"
"I know what it is. Just surprised you know about it, it is from the 21st century as you just pointed out"
"What would you do if I told you that it was still around until 2122"
"I would say you are full of shit"
With a grin Sarah raised her omni tool and sent a link to Marc which he opened only to suddenly have a violent coughing fit from the silent scream/laugh that tried to come out at the same time. The title of the article he had been sent read
"World of Warcraft reaches 112th expansion before closure"
The article went on to describe the unheard of longevity of the virtual MMO and its various states and owners that it had gone through. Blizzard had apparently sold the IP somewhere around 2056 and then reclaimed it somewhere in 2099 and followed through with it until 2122 when they announced the final patch and closure of the game.
"This must be the stupidest thing I have ever seen"
"Didn't think it would last that long back then?"
"Back then I thought it was on its way to die"
"Clearly not"
"Since when did you become such a video game fanatic anyway?"
"Well… dad taught me to shoot and military tactics… he also had a bad habit of spending his days off sitting in the living room playing video games, you guess what happened"
"Anything dad does seem interesting when you are a kid"
"Yep"
Any other conversation was interrupted when Peak 15 came into view. Marc put his helmet back on to hide his now rather annoyed scowl.
'This is going way to easy… something is way fucking off…'
He summarized to himself as they departed the Mako and took a few careful steps towards Peak 15. A raised sign from Shepard made everyone ready their weapons, they weren't going to be caught in a situation like with the Commandos earlier.
"Communication restricted to internal channels, no one removes their helmets" ordered Shepard through their shared helmet links
"Roger" was the collective reply
The garage door was frozen shut so the team had to use the side door to enter, didn't do them any good as they were just led to the second garage door which thankfully wasn't locked. Everyone expected to have gunfire raining over them once the large door opened up but there was a deathly silence hanging inside the deserted garage.
"I don't like this" grumbled Wrex
"Something is definently wrong, no way there wouldn't be Geth here to guard the entrance" agreed Garrus
"Perhaps my mother withdrew them to protect another area?" suggested Liara
"Possible but not likely, no something went horribly wrong here and I am starting to think I know what" replied Shepard
"Care to enlighten the rest of us?" inquired Garrus
"Not until I am hundred percent sure Garrus" was the reply
The team kept advancing until they came to a small corridor with turrets pointing towards the exit of the facility.
"Why are these turrets facing the wrong way?" asked Liara
"They aren't" replied Echo
"Oh…" muttered Liara
The further into the facility they went the more disturbing it became to not find anything. Most of the rooms they came through had the windows blown out and the entire floor was covered in a thick layer of snow.
"Echo I detect metal below the snow, the material is of Geth make" came Eva's voice
Echo nodded before replying to his entire team "Eva just informed me that there are dead Geth below the snow, so it's not that we didn't face the opposition we simply weren't the first to find them"
"Then who did?" grumbled Wrex
A piercing screech rang out across the hallways of the complex. Moments later the team was back to back to cover every direction.
"The hell was that?" asked Garrus
"Rachni" growled Echo
"Rachni?! Impossible" roared Wrex
As if the universe simply wanted to prove Wrex wrong about half a dozen Rachni workers burst from the snow and slowly approached their newly discovered enemies. Echo however noticed something off about these Rachni; they weren't fighting like mindless beasts, rather they fought like a coordinated unit which suggested the presence of a Queen's voice in their minds.
"Time to shed the blood of the ancient enemy!" roared Wrex before charging mindlessly towards the closest Rachni
"Wrex wait!" roared Echo too late
The team watched as Wrex collided with the big beast and unleashed two shotgun shells into its brain sending the poor creature to the ground. The remaining workers began circling the group in an attempt to flank them or perhaps separate the group even further.
"Damnit!" 'Ice wave: Activate!' roared Echo in his mind as he slammed his fist into the ground.
Using the snow covered ground to his advantage Echo pumped a great deal of energy into the ability and applied a targeting formula which allowed him to release multiple waves of ice towards the remaining Rachni. Four of the Rachni were caught and impaled by the energy while the last one managed to dodge out of the way.
Seeing that it was heavily outnumbered the last remaining worker bolted for the nearest vent and disappeared from the fight.
"Hahaha!" laughed Wrex
Though his laugh didn't last long as Echo was on him and in another display of his Warframe enhanced strength lifted Wrex of the floor by the throat, his helmet disabled to reveal his furious face.
"If you ever endanger everyone like that again Wrex, I will kill you!" roared Echo
Wrex wanted to answer but Echo's hands were firmly closing his windpipe and ensuring that no rebuttal was forthcoming.
"Furthermore I do not give a shit how much you wish to fight your race's ancient enemy, you will stow your bloodlust and ensure that we all get through this mission alive" finished Echo
Wrex was dropped to the ground and Echo went off to cool his head for the second time that day. It had been a good few hundred years since Wrex had been truly scared, but something about that strange being had him shaking in every part of his body.
"You really are stupid sometimes Wrex" commented Shepard
"I… will not refute that. But a chance to battle my kind's ancient enemy which I only heard of growing up, it was too glorious a chance" replied Wrex
"That's all well and good Wrex but you are part of a team now and teams stick together and have each other's back" Garrus put in
"He's right. Can I trust that you will keep yourself in check for the rest of the mission?" asked Shepard
"By my honor as a battlemaster" replied Wrex in a stern tone
"Good" said Shepard with a smile
A few minutes later Echo returned though he didn't speak or show any sign of being angry or passive or anything else for that matter.
The team continued their trip through the facility and on the way it became quite clear that the Rachni and Geth were using this facility as a war zone. The halls were littering with corpses on both sides and every so often an Asari or human would prop up among the corpses, either an unlucky scientist or Commando that got caught between the two or on one of the sides.
"Just what in the hell did they try up here?" grumbled Garrus
"They tried to bring the Rachni back and I will say they succeeded but something must have gone wrong somewhere in the process and the Rachni broke out" replied Echo
They crossed around another corner and opened yet another door only to freeze inside the new corridor when the sound of more skittering feet could be heard
"At the ready people" ordered Shepard
'If they still are under the effects of a queen that means that they are semi-sentient…'
Echo's train of thought was leading him towards a conclusion that he wasn't sure he liked, mostly because it could potentially mean that there were two queens at large in this facility.
One of the vents blew open and a Rachni stuck its head out and looked at the team before going back inside and more skittering could be heard circulating them, they were trapped.
"I'm going to try something" mumbled Echo
"Am I going to like it?" asked Shepard in a worried tone
"Nope, and Wrex you just keep your finger off the trigger" ordered Echo
Wrex gave a grunt in acceptance but adapted quite the sour look.
Echo took a few careful steps forward before placing the Vectis on his back and disabling his helmet.
"I know you can understand me! I wish an audience with the Queen from whom you take your commands, we have a way to help you recover the one still captive!" yelled Echo to seemingly no one
The entire team was looking at him like he was out of his mind (which he most certainly was) but none the less waited for any form of response.
One lone drone crawled out of the vent and approached Echo in a careful manner as seemingly sniffed him before making some screeching noises and pointing one of its tentacles at the ground in a "stay here" manner and then crawled back into the vent.
"I hope you know what you're doing Echo" commented Shepard
"So do I" he responded
A minute later the drone returned with roughly a dozen more Rachni that encircled the group and began leading them forward. They were led through various doors and passed through several broken walls and windows before they came to an area that felt oddly warm despite their currently location.
"I have a bad feeling about this…" mumbled Wrex
"You keep your mouth closed the entire time Wrex, we don't need to give them any further reason to kill us" growled Echo
"May I remind you that you put us in this rather compromising situation?" quipped Shepard
"Yeah, yeah" drawled Echo
The doors opened to reveal quite the strange sight. In the center of the room stood what resembled a smaller version of the Rachni Queen that they would meet later on in the mission though this little one didn't seem to command any less respect.
Everyone on the team suddenly felt a small touch at the back of their minds, it was not an unpleasant feeling and had they not been so on guard they might have missed it entirely.
"You claim to wish to help us yet you kill us?" spoke a small almost scared sound female voice
"I know that Saren and Benezia is keeping your Queen somewhere and that she will soon die if not rescued" replied Echo
"Yet you do not answer our question, why do you wish to help us" questioned the Rachni leader
"I have seen what condemning an entire race based on their past can cause" replied Echo in a dark voice "I will never have that happen in front of me again. The Rachni from the past were violent but you are different, you will at least have the choice to live peaceful lives" finished Echo
"Your song carries the truth in its tones…" the Rachni Princess turned its head towards Shepard "Your song is… unusual… it sings with colors that we have never seen before"
Echo turned a questioning look towards Shepard and figured that it might have something to do why she also carries such a strong presence when he tries to use his ability near her.
"I don't know what to tell you" replied Shepard calmly
"Does the songless one speak for you all? Will you help us reclaim our mother?" asked the Princess
"He does and we will" replied Shepard
"What?!" Roared Wrex
Before the Rachni was allowed to act Echo swirled and pushed Wrex against a wall
"Wrex think this through! Your entire race was condemned after your usefulness was used up. Now you are on the brink of extinction and you will seriously tell me that you are ready to inflict that fate on another race?" asked Echo in a calm voice
Wrex got a thoughtful look on his face as he pondered his friends words. They were true and he hated it, his kind had been doomed to extinction because of someone else's choices…
"No… you are right my friend, that is not my decision to make" replied Wrex in an equally calm tone
"Glad that you see reason… I am not asking you to like it Wrex but I still hope that you can accept that this is the right thing to do…" commented Echo
"Shut up and let's get on with this before I change my mind" he grunted in reply
With a nod Echo turned back towards the Rachni Princess and gave a court nod in apology.
"Now that we have that out of the way. Can you tell us where your Queen is imprisoned so we can get a plan together?" asked Shepard
"Our mother is held captive somewhere in this facility, we cannot tell you where precisely but one of our drones can lead you as close as those machine abominations that have slaughtered countless of us" replied the Princess
"Understood, if at all possible stay out of the fight as long as possible so you can avoid losing any more" said Shepard
"Your consideration for us is remarkable and we thank you, may mother guide you safely on your way" said the Princess in parting
A drone stepped forward and began leading the team back through the facility, soon they were back where they first departed from and the drone began leading them through a few small passages that left them standing in front of a large set of double doors. The drone made a few noises before turning and heading back towards its princess.
"I guess we are at the edge of Geth territory then" said Garrus
"Guns at the ready, there is no telling what numbers we will be facing" ordered Shepard
The doors opened to a hail of gunfire than blasted the entire team's shields apart in seconds forcing everyone into cover. Liara's barriers came up the fastest and she quickly gave them some breathing room by planting a singularity in the center of the room which disturbed the footing of quite a few geth which allowed Shepard and Wrex to drop a few while advancing to a more favorable cover location.
Garrus was popping out and taking shots where he could while Echo was busy nursing a bullet wound in his shoulder. A geth sniper had gotten a shot in when his shields dropped and it was quite easy to feel that the shot had broken a few bones on its way through.
"You alight?!" yelled Garrus
"Give me a minute and I should be stable!" yelled Echo back
Garrus nodded and continued his assault.
Liara managed to drop two more geth when she got a lucky biotic push in that sent both of the geth flying into the wall and then through said wall. Wrex and Shepard were dancing around each other with psychotic grins on their faces as they moved down anything that came to close to them with their shotguns.
It cost a bit of time and some fresh wounds for everyone but eventually the geth were taken care of.
"Damage report!" yelled Shepard
"Bullet wound in the shoulder, a few broken bones but nothing major that won't have fixed itself in a few hours" said Echo
"A few dents on my armor, nothing else" said Wrex
"A bullet grazed my cheek aside from that only a few bruises from a geth getting too close" said Liara
"Just a few bumps Shepard, nothing inhibiting" Garrus finished the report
"Good. I would suspect we are close to Benezia by now so we need to be ready. Any last moment things to say before we head out?" asked Shepard
"When we face down my mother I must caution against trying to take down one of the Commando's in close quarters combat. Most of them are trained in Biotic Melee combat which utilizes strikes infused with biotic power which can cause more than a little bit of damage if you get hit" replied Liara
"If at all possible I suggest taking Benezia alive" added Echo
"I assume you have a reason to capture, arguably, one of the most dangerous Asari currently in our universe?" asked Shepard
"Don't I always?" asked Echo with a smile
"Usually you don't share said reason before it is too late" countered Shepard
"True enough but for now let my reasons remain my own and simply attempt to capture her alive" replied Echo
"If it's possible" acknowledged Shepard
They fought through a few more rooms and encountered diminishing numbers of geth with each room, it would seem they were retreating backwards to reinforce their position. As they approached another door Echo used his ability to see how many organics were past the next door. the feedback he received suggested somewhere around 20 organics and who knows how many geth.
"20 organics in the next room Shepard, can't tell exactly since most of them are standing in clusters" said Echo
"I would only assume around 10 of those are commandos, my mother always kept a relatively low number of elites with her as her bodyguards" commented Liara
"Everyone ready?" asked Shepard
Four nods were all the confirmation that she needed to open the door and move in gun first.
Though they were ready to face down a horde of opponents they were faced with a calm Benezia standing and staring at the Rachni Queen.
"You underestimate my resolve if you think I would be moved by sympathy because of who you chose to bring with you Commander" said Benezia calmly
"You think I asked Liara to be here?" replied Shepard with a questioning look
"I suspect not" Benezia turned her head towards her daughter and a small flash of emotion passed her eyes "what have you told them about me Liara?"
"What could I say? There was nothing I could say to them that I didn't wish myself not to believe" replied Liara sadly
"Then perhaps child, I should have been stricter with you"
Along with her statement a stasis field erupted around the entire squad locking them in place.
"Have you ever faced down an Asari Commando unit before? Few humans have" said Benezia with a bit of pride as two Commandos appeared at her side
One of the Commandos looked at Liara with an apologetic look before aiming her gun at her. Of course trying to look sorry when about to kill someone does tend to have a very angering effect on the target and in the case of our dear Liara it just resulted in a pained scream that broke her mother's stasis field which she quickly followed up by attempting to catch her Asari sisters in a Singularity
Benezia and her Commandos of course avoided it easily enough and as if that had acted as a signal more Commandos began pouring out of the doors and began raining fire down on the small team.
"Everyone stay close!" roared Echo
'Snow Globe; Activate' Echo ordered in his mind and a chill passed through the area as snow began swirling around the team and hardened on the outside while the inside was covered in a thin layer of energy that would allow bullets to break the ice from the inside and then close the hole again in an instant.
"Fire at will!" Shepard ordered and then all hell broke loose
Not one weapon was spared in use as it simply came down to tearing apart as many Commandos as they possibly could before Echo's inevitable loss of control over his snow globe.
One down, two down, three down… the number kept climbing until ten Asari were dead. As Liara had predicted only three of those had been Commandos while the remaining seven seemed nothing more than regular military.
The snow globe gave in as Echo's energy reserves dropped too low for him to maintain it at a useful strength.
Everyone dived to cover and began taking shots at whatever moved in the hope of stopping the barrage of Biotic attacks constantly flying over their heads.
"What the hell are we going to do?!" yelled Garrus over the noise
"Liara try and plant a singularity somewhere it can cover us while we advance!" yelled Shepard
Liara nodded and planted a Singularity in front of as many of their enemies as possible which thankfully was enough for Shepard and Wrex to advance to a more favorable firing position.
The fight began turning into more of an endurance test as neither side could get the advantage. On occasion the team would manage to drop another Asari but it usually came at the cost of a new wound somewhere. As it stood Echo had four new holes in his armor that would need fixing, Wrex had whipped himself into a blood craze after getting shot in the stomach, Garrus had remained lucky and had gotten off with a few armor scratches, Liara had suffered some Biotics burns but no bullet wounds thankfully and Shepard was nursing a few wounds in her shoulder.
"This has to end soon Shepard. I'm almost out of ammo and I am not keen on getting close to a Commando with my Nikana" said Echo in a tired voice
"We need a distraction so we can take down the last few Commandos" offered Garrus
"*Groan* promise to keep me away from Chakwas long enough for me to heal before she kills me" said Echo as he stood up and rushed out of cover while firing his Vasto at any target he could see
"Dumbass!" roared Shepard as she popped up and began laying down covering fire.
Echo managed an impressive fifteen steps before he hit something that felt like a brick wall. Then it felt like another slammed into his back leaving him with new knowledge of how a sandwich felt right before a third and final wall slammed into his side cracking seven of his ribs and breaking his right arm and leg causing him to black out from shock.
"He must be tired of living" commented Wrex dryly
"No… no not tired just very, very stupid" replied Shepard in an equally dry voice as she broke the barrier of another Commando allowing Garrus to put a hole in her skull.
"How did he live to be 350 again?" joked Garrus
"Sheer dumb fucking luck" replied Wrex
The fighting died down when Benezia was finally the only one standing, though that didn't exactly make anyone feel any better simply because she hadn't participated in the fighting at all.
"I suppose if you want something done it is better to do it yourself" scoffed Benezia before firing a Warp towards the Commander that was intercepted by Liara with a strong barrier
"Your opponent will be me, mother" growled Liara
"So be it" replied Benezia
Shepard wanted to help but she was stopped by Wrex who shook his head "This is her fight, she needs it. If she seems to be losing we will back her up" it was with an angry nod that Shepard lowered her weapon again and watched.
The two biotic powerhouses was going at it harder and faster than either had fought in a long time. Whenever Liara dodged one biotic attack she would fire one back only to have to block yet another one.
This dance continued backwards and forwards until the younger of the two women began tiring, she didn't have the training of stamina of her seasoned mother.
"It would seem this is the end, I had hoped you would prove a bigger challenge but I digress" taunted Benezia
Liara wanted to respond but the strain on her body forced every inch of her mind towards ensuring she survived and responded to her mother's attacks.
Benezia on the other hand was deliberately drawing out the fight, the small part of her mind that had survived the indoctrination had planted the idea that if perhaps Liara proved a big enough challenge she could convince Saren to let her live and then bring her along.
That was at least what the indoctrinated part of her mind was hoping for now; the real Benezia had quite another hope in mind. After all there was something quite unique about her little wing that she hoped she had inherited from her father.
Her hopes were rewarded as she slowly saw her daughters bright blue eyes begin emitting a soft golden glow that pulsed ever so slightly, all that was needed now was the final push.
"In the end I suppose Lienth was right in leaving you all those years ago… you are simply too weak" gloated Benezia
That did the trick.
In a roar of fury Liara's eyes flared golden and her biotics soon followed suit. These new golden biotics easily overpowered Benezia's own powers and she smiled warmly at her daughter as she truly had inherited her father's unique biotics… now if only she could have lived to see her develop these new powers.
Down from his position on the floor Echo had observed the end of the fighting and was getting reacquainted with an old feeling once more. "Fear" was an emotion that he usually only felt when Karick was around but somehow staring at those golden biotics made him quiver in fear and anticipation… he wanted to fight against it and see just how powerful they truly were…
In a final push Liara managed to overwhelm her mother completely and struck her with a biotic throw that sent Benezia flying into the railing with her head hitting first. The result was perhaps the best the team could have hoped for, Benezia was out cold but still alive.
"Well… that went better than I expected" commented Garrus
"Depends on how you look at it. Liara are you okay?" asked Shepard
After a few steady breaths Liara turned towards the team revealing her once more blue eyes "I am fine Shepard… a little shaken but aside from that I feel better than I have in many years"
"That's great and all but could someone help me up?" came Echo's voice
With a chuckle Wrex walked over and pulled their armored friend up to a standing position but it was quite evident that he was in great pain.
"How bad is it?" asked Shepard
"Seven broken ribs and my right arm and leg equally so" he replied casually
"How are you still standing?" asked Garrus
"My armor works great as a support crutch but I am definently not feeling okay" replied Echo with a pained shrug
"Think you can handle it until we are back at the ship?" inquired Shepard
"That much I can do" he replied
"Good. Let's secure Benezia and check on the other bodies, some of them might still be alive and the more of Saren's supporters we can contain the better" ordered Shepard
After a quick sweep three more bodies were placed next to Benezia's still form. Lienth and two other Commandos were still breathing but they would certainly need medical care when they returned to the ship.
Biotic suppressing cuffs were placed on all four as insurance though Liara commented that they wouldn't do much if any of them really got to cut loose.
The focus finally fell on the Rachni Queen who was peering at the group, though her attention was diverted when the sound of hundreds of legs sounded through the complex and one of the doors opened to allow the flood of Rachni drones to pour through alongside the Rachni Princess.
"It would seem they are here for their Queen" commented Liara
"Are you really sure about this Echo?" grunted Wrex
"I am. Thank you for understanding" replied Echo
"Doesn't mean I like it" growled Wrex in response
"We are eternally grateful for you saving, mother" the voice of Princess rang in their minds
"Anything to help" replied Shepard with a grin as she looked over the controls to find the release procedure
"Will you truly free us?" came another more regal sounding voice in everyone's minds
"The Rachni Queen I presume?" inquired Shepard
"I am the mother to those you spared… thank you… are we free to compose again?" asked the Queen
"Find a world… a solitary world somewhere far away where you can hide from everyone" came Echo's raspy voice
"We shall remain hidden from view once more… should you ever pass us by then listen for our song, for we shall sing of you for many generations to come" replied the Queen
With a nod Shepard pressed the final controls and the pod the Queen was in rose up and freed her, the many Rachni in the room soon followed as they raced for the surface to escape this infernal planet as quickly as they possibly could.
"Joker come in" called Shepard
"Joker responding, what's up Commander?" replied Joker
"Bring the Normandy around for pickup, I don't care what grief you get from the port I just want us gone" ordered Shepard
"Roger that Shepard, eta 10 minutes" replied Joker as he shut off the com
Everyone breathed a breath of relief as they began their trip back through the facility, something that took a little longer than last time simply because they had to allow Echo to walk at a considerably slower pace due to his injuries.
The Normandy came flying almost as soon as they exited the complex and a shuttle quickly picked them up and flew them back into the safety of the Normandy hull.
"Joker get us out of here and back to the Citadel, I think we need some time to deal with a few things" ordered Shepard over the com
"Roger that Commander" replied Joker
A few moments later everyone stepped off the shuttle and began unloading their equipment.
Out of the corner of her eye Shepard caught Echo gently sneaking off towards his ship.
"Ohh no you don't buddy" she ordered as she caught him and turned him towards the elevator "You are going straight to Chakwas to get checked up, nanites or not"
Echo grumbled a few weak excuses but allowed himself to be lead away and towards his doom. The elevator doors opened to reveal Ashley standing with an impatient look on her face, she gave a salute to Shepard and a wave to Echo as she passed them and headed straight towards Liara.
Garrus had heard Ashley approach and watched in amusement as she pulled Liara away and towards the elevator, presumably towards Liara's personal quarters behind the med-bay.
"Never a dull moment on this ship" he quipped loudly
"Would be boring otherwise" commented Wrex in return.
In the Med-Bay
"Good lord, Marc what the hell happened to you?" asked Chakwas
"Ohh you know me, got caught in a three way biotic blast" replied Marc
"*Sigh* damage?" she inquired
"Right leg and arm plus seven ribs are broken" he replied
"I assume you also know how long before your nanites have healed you?"
"Give it 24 hours and I should be right as rain, though anything against the pain would be highly appreciated"
"I'll give you an injection that should last the 24 hours" Chakwas then turned towards Shepard "What about you?"
"A few nicks here and there" responded Shepard evasively
"Sit down over there and remove your top" ordered Chakwas "And you may leave Marc"
"Thank you Karin" he turned his gaze on Shepard "I'll meet you down in the brig"
"What are you going to do?" she asked
"I'm going to cure Benezia"
A/N: Well fuck me left, right and just about everywhere else. Finally I am fucking done with this chapter, you people have no idea how much shit I have had to work through over the last few weeks it is insane how little time I have had to sit down and write but thankfully this previous weekend I managed to churn out enough of this chapter so I could finish it today (Hurray!)
I have to make 2 quick shout outs. One is for the idea of Biotic Burns, I have stolen that idea from someone else and I cannot for the life of me remember the Fanfiction I got it from but it was a brilliant idea and all the credit goes to the original creator.
Secondly I also nicked the whole "Intelligent Rachni" thing from both the Dark Energy Series (Go read that shit people, its fucking amazing) and parts of it also came from another fanfic I can't remember the name of either (I'm not good with names) but the credit goes to those 2 stories for that little plot point as well.
I couldn't resist doing at least one WoW joke so it came in this chapter and then never again. I just figured since we were in the future I just kind of had to.
Otherwise I hoped you enjoyed the chapter and as it was blatantly obvious I changed around the Noveria mission a lot but I hope it turned out more interesting than simply another resume of the in game mission.
Next time we are dealing with a still living Benezia and the captured Commandos.
I'll catch you all later
-BundleJumper
PS: Golden Biotics… it will be explained I promise…