The entirety of Grad three's moon settlement was burning. Incendiary explosions racked its outermost buildings, including the perimeter barracks and landing field, while residual chaotic fires blazed out of control. Through the midst of it all, the monsters that were causing it tore their way towards the colonies heart… Vorcha. Rabid, rase clawed Vorcha, well over eight hundred in number… and all hungry for blood. A fact as clear as day for the dozen or so human marines franticly holding the midway point of the settlement's main rode.
"They're still coming!" shouted one of the non-terrified marines… "what even are they?"
"More importantly!" shouted another Marine pointing wildly up the road towards central square. "What is that!?"
"I am KROGAN!" Urdnot Grunt bellowed at the top of his Krogan lungs, even as he barrelled past the marines… and smashed his way through the cars they had been using as an impromptu barricade and hammered into the midst of the oncoming Vorcha tide.
"What the…" the first marine gasped, right before a Vorcha Grunt had missed sprang at him, right before it could get the marine though a hand a firm left-handed shove dropped him sideways out of the way, as the Marine Ashly Williams fired three-point blank shots from the rifle held tight in her right hand. The Vorcha flew backwards, landing on the side of a barricading car.
Looking up at Ashley from the pavement, the Marine gasped "an angel."
"Not quite marine…" Ashly corrected, offering him a helping hand up. "But you can consider this a miracle."
And indeed, it was all across the Moon Town, the elements of another force began engaging the Vorcha tied in deadly furious conflict, driving them back with the sudden simultaneousness of their assault. In the heart of a supply warehouse, the mercenary Zaeed Massani, the rogue Biotic Jack, and the Geth Unit Legion, ambushed, halted and annihilate a full hundred of the monsters. while across the settlement at the coms tower, the Asari Justiciar Samara, and the Marine James's Vega held back fifty more of the beasts, even as the Quarian engineer Tali'Zorah tried repairing the damaged tower's transmitter.
"Never really had a Justiciar as a dance partner." James observed, almost to himself, slamming in a fresh ammo clip into his assault rifle, as beside him, Samara biotically threw aside three Vorcha charging towards her 'dance partner.' Next second James reeled around, lushing a storm of fire at four more of the monsters coming at the Justiciar from left.
"As I have never had the honour of a UNSC marine fighting at my side." Samara admitted in turn, Biotically throwing a yet another Vorcha into one coming at James's from behind.
"Honours all mine Samara." James conceded, before throwing a grenade into the midst of a fresh swarm of Vorcha. Yet even as the blast smoke cleared, another swarm surged forward threw it.
Thinking fast, James snatched two more grenades from his belt, simultaneously calling to Samara, "pull me back."
Seeing what her comrade intended, Samara reached out her right hand, and Biotically yanked the muscular marine back four full meters, right as he tossed the twin grenades forward into the midst of the fresh monster swarm. An instant later the explosives detonated, engulfing the space where James had been a moment ago. "Thanks!" he called, then froze, his face turning white. "Six o'clock!" Samara reeled around, just in time to see the claws of yet another Vorcha slashing down at her. caught off guard for the first time in decades, Samara backstepped away from the monster's attack… tripped over the body of another, and fell backwards. Right before she hit cold metal flooring however, James Vega darted forwards, catching her with his left arm, even as he opened up on the vorcha with his rifle, held in his right.
"You good Sam?" James asked without thinking, glancing at the Justiciar, who as ever simply nodded and steadied herself on her feet again.
"Specialist trainer is in a healthy and safe condition abord the Normandy." stated the Normandy's AI, EDI over the coms. "Though I will note your concern for her."
James's cheeks went red with embarrassment, yet he resisted the urge to correct EDI… they still had a settlement to save.
"How does the battle go?" Samara asked, still as calm as ever.
EDI's response was immediate, "Garrus, Kaidan, and Liara are securing any and all ulterior routes leading to Moon town's central precinct. Zaeed, Jack and Legion are establishing a suppression zone in the warehouse district…."
"And what about Thane and Jane?" both Liara and Garrus asked simultaneously, concern detectable even over the coms.
EDI actually hesitated for a second… then relied "a family farming truck crashed just beyond the settlement perimeter… Jane…."
"Understood." Said almost to the entire team over the coms.
And sure enough, right then, less than a mile out from Moon town, Jane Shepard threw herself forward, at an extra rabid Vorcha, grabbing a hold of the monster by the neck, and throwing it clean over her shoulder… away from the young boy it had been about to slash at. "Get back." Jane called to the kid, even as she turned to face the by then landed Vorcha, even as it and three more of its kind came at her quick as lightning, Jane Shepard raised the pistol in her left hand and fired, dropping two of the monsters, before slashing out with the omni-blade on her right hand, cutting the other two down.
Taking a sharp calming breath, Jane turned back to the kid, who was on the verge of terrified tears. Without hesitation, she stepped up to the boy and knelt down before him. "Hey… its ok…" she said in little more than a whisper, placing a hand on his shoulder "the monsters aren't going to hurt you." The boy forced back his tears, a glimmer of thankful hope visible behind them.
"Thank you…."
Jane nodded, a spark of appreciation in her own eye at the boy's self-control. Then she turned again, her right hand gently guiding the lad as she led him towards his family, whom were all clustered five feet away near the Normandy's dropship. Thane had already dealt with the remaining rabid Vorcha threatening them and was now helping the family into the dropship. "Siha…" he said as she approached, "neither of you are harmed?"
"Not a scratch on us Thane." Jane said reassuringly, patting the boy on the back, "time for a flight.…" the boy gave her one last look, and hugged her legs as tightly as he could, "thank you!" he said again, eyes suddenly briming with tears… and ran for his family.
Jane watched him go, she didn't know what it was, but she felt a twinge of something in her heart, besides the usual sense of relief she always felt upon seeing a child safe. As Jane watched him, the boy stopped by the lip of the dropship's door… and helped his little sister up into the craft. Jane smiled… suddenly understanding the feeling… the boy was just how she had been at his age.
"Jane, we got a problem."
She winced, registering the worry in her dropship piolet's voice. "What is it Cortes?"
"This families a bit bigger than we thought it was going to be, and this bird has a weight limit."
Jane glanced at Thane, whom nodded, clearly knowing what she was about to say… "can you still get them out of here?"
"Yeah…" Cortes confirmed a little uncertain… "why…" then it hit him. "Oh NO… I'm not."
Thane was the one to cut him off… his voice forceful but calm "just get them to town then come back for us…"
Cortes hesitated, "ok…" he said at last, with extreme reluctance "but only if you two start hauling tail towards town now."
Jane nodded "got it… and Cortes…"
"Yeah…"
"don't worry about the family, they've got someone helping them keeping it together…"
A low chuckle came back over the coms, "he's already buckled them all in."
"Good to hear it." Jane replied, the feeling in her heart sparking again, even as the dropship lifted off.
"You admire the boy Siha?" Thane's voice was as soft as ever, even when asking a question.
"We'll talk about it later…" she said, glancing over her shoulder towards the horizon, where over five dozen shapes where steadily closing in from. "Come on let's start running"
Where once Thane would have struggled with any major amount of running due to his Kepral's syndrome, he was now, thanks to the artificial lung created by Mordin, Tali, and EDI, chewing up the distance towards town, with Jane keeping pace right by his side.
By the time they were close to the settlement's defence wall, the Vorcha tide behind them were growing even closer. As ever though, Jane's mind was focused on what was before her, not what was behind her, "how is everyone holding?!" she called over the coms, her voice tight with exhaustion, "we still got incoming!"
"Good!" Grunt exclaimed in excitement. "I want more!"
"Better get over to where the incoming is coming in…" Garrus noted from his position a-top of the perimeter wall. "coz I do believe Tali should be done by now with the signal weapon."
The Quarian's low chuckle hissed over the coms, "is that actual faith I detect, Garrus?"
"Not now Tali" Garrus stated quickly, swiftly changing the subject. "Can we focus on stopping the Vorcha monsters?"
A sigh came from the Quarian this time "the transmission just needs two minutes to start…." Then with half sarcasm she added, "and thanks Garrus."
"Get a room!" Jack called with sarcastic hummer, triggering a round of laughter from most of the team. Jane just smiled, her team may have some of the most diverces, dysfunctional and… difficult people to be working with, let alone get to work with each other together… (some harder so then others.) but she managed it… a bit.
"You have done so much for each of us Siha…" Thane panted beside her as though reading her thoughts. "You should be proud of yourself."
Jane wanted to agree, oh god how she wanted to agree, but, like every other time her boyfriend said such kind things. But as she glanced back at him, she… "THANE!"
Before her boyfriend could even register what was happening, Jane had shoved him slideways to the right… not a millisecond too soon! As the claw of a rabbit Vorcha, running ahead of the tide slashed down at Thane's back with two clawed hands… utterly missing the Drell Assassin, and catching Jane clean across her armoured back. Thane spun and fired his pistol on instinct, dropping the monster on the spot.
Even as the Vorcha fell so did Jane. Before she could hit the dirt though, Thane's arms were grabbing a hold of her, steadying her as he lowered her to the ground. "Do not try and run again Siha." He said his voice tight with concern "the pain will make you stagger too much." Jane nodded in understanding.
Somewhere behind them, the sound of far more Vorcha monsters was growing louder. "Tali?" Thane's voice was suddenly firm, "the signal!"
"GOT IT! brace yourselves!"
There was the briefest moment of near silence around Jane. the horrible pain was still there, as was the tight not of anxiety in her chest… but then she felt a familiar hand on her chest, and she looked up… right into the eyes of the Drell she loved. "Thane…" then he started to hum… and the pain faded.
And just like that, Moon Town was saved, the weaponised signal, conserved and made by the Selerian Morden Solus and Tali together, transmitted out from the coms tower on a single and powerful wavelength that hammered the senses of every last Vorcha across almost the entire surface of the moon. Struck by the transmission like a sonic lighting bolt, the monsters cried… and fled away from the settlement and the heart of the transmission. By the time Grunt, followed closely by Ashly, final came upon Thane and Jane, the latter was unconscious. Without hesitation Grunt had picked up his recumbent battle master (I.e., Jane) and, with Thane supporting her head as they went, returned to the now chaosless settlement.
About two hours later, Jane Sheppard reopened her eyes, squinting sharply through the ever-familiar aching feeling she always had after a serious injury…. And there he was, sitting beside where she lay in the Normandie's medical bay… "Thane…." She whispered, feeling his ever-soft hand relax in hers.
"The fight is finished Siha…" He stated calmly, the faintest trace of relief in his voice. "Everyone is safe… now rest."
Jane wanted to, heck she'd wanted It for weeks, months… maybe even longer. And yet…
"Do you trust me Siha?"
She took a breath, tried to think of something to counter his obvious point… and found nothing. She leaned back on the medical bed… resting.