Xypher1: I get your feelings regarding the flood...:) Well, your prediction about the chief is quite true to an extent. But he doesn't carry any other forerunner imprints but just one and another one apart from forerunners. Seperatists may reach tier one, but humanity will reign supreme and will overwhelmingly outclass the forerunners themselves with their own innovation after certain revelations just as their creators wanted them to be. You will see the hints by the end of the story and in a possible sequel.

Fer82: First, thanks for your review. Second, please don't get me wrong, but I do know what a key mind is. It's the final form of flood evolution before the transgalactic stage. But one key mind is not enough to achieve that and I know that too. A keymind is like a thousand graveminds in a single body. There are reasons for the key mind's strategy in the previous chapter.

Guest and 63: Thank you.

A/N: Spirit of fire will appear but not in mass effect universe.

And I just watched the ME Andromeda game play. While the character and environment modelling and textures, Anti-aliasing are good and even great at higher resolutions, the animation looks robotic and expressionless or blunt. Hope they fix it. Apart from that, game play and combat mechanics are awesome.

Disclaimer: I don't own Halo or Mass effect franchise.

Chapter 18: Prelude to the End game
June 15, 2185
03:15 AM GST

Commander Shepard and his crew after getting locked and loaded embark on the endgame of hunting down the collectors. He had done it all, gathered an impressive multi species team, earned their trust, gathered every possible resources and they passed through the omega-4 relay.

Now they had reached the region of the collector home wold with no knowledge of what lies ahead.

"What the hell is that?" asked Joker looking at something far in the space. Shepard and Joker got to see the black hole with lots of photonic matter forming the accretion disk. Nearby, they saw this big artificial structure that was standing intact.

"THAT is the collector home world. So this is were they reside and now they are all gonna die with it" said Shepard in an ambitious tone.

"Shepard, The home world is present 10,000kms away from the accretion disk well beyond it's gravitational influence" said EDI. By the time Miranda lawson reached the cockpit.

"Good. Joker, Get us a way in. Nice and slow" ordered Shepard. Joker acknowledged and rode the vessel towards the collector base. But things weren't silent for a long time.

The collector seeker drones sensed their presence and engaged the Normandy. The alarm beeped the cockpit in red alert.

"What is it?" asked Joker.

"The collector drones have spotted us" replied EDI.

"Damn! Evading the drones and looking for possible engagement" said Joker who ran his hands over the console. The Normandy suddenly flew upwards and did a back flip. The drones shot particle beams at the Normandy. Joker was having a hard time evading it.

"EDI, I need something to hit them with" yelled Joker.

"Locking on to the targets" EDI responded. Then Normandy's secondary guns fired and destroyed 2 drones. But suddenly, three more drones entered the picture and chased the Normandy and this time they got a clear shot at the vessel. The crew lost their balance for the time being.

"Shit! They are hitting us" said Joker irately.

"We can do it as long as the new armor holds off" replied Miranda. For the next five minutes, Joker evaded their attacks. But then one drone came from the opposite direction. It then charged at full speed and hit the Normandy.

"Warning, hull breach detected at the hanger. The drones have found a way in" said EDI. Shepard nodded dismissively.

"Joker, try to bring the drones down. I'll get a team down at the hanger to take care of the invader" said Shepard.

"Aye aye commander" acknowledged Joker.

"Garrus, Grunt, meet me at the hanger. We got company" said Shepard over the comm.

"Yes Shepard"..."In a second" replied both Garrus and Grunt.

Shepard then took the elevator to reach the hanger. Grunt and Garrus rendezvous with Shepard at the hanger.

"Shepard, we got two drone inside. We can engage them from 2 sides behind the blowers" said Garrus to which he nodded and then entered the hanger to hold their positions.

They saw two drones slowly moving towards them scanning for their presence. Shepard gave hand signatures for three count. On the count of three, Shepard and Garrus unloaded their assault rifle on the drone which was charging the beam to attack them. In the mean time, Grunt used his concussive shot to hit the drone. This caused a distraction and drone focused fire on the Grunt. Shepard then used his biotic flare to hit one drone targeted at Grunt which depleted it's kinetic barrier and did quite a damage to it's body. Garrus once again loaded the concussive shot and hit it to make more damage. Then the 2 drones suddenly retreated out of the vessel.

Meanwhile Joker rounded in circles to evade the drone attacks.

"Joker, the drones just retreated. How are things there?" asked Shepard over the comm.

"EDI got a perfect lock. Engaging them now" said Joker and once again flipped the Normandy behind the drones and shot the secondary guns that destroyed the drones.

"Hah! Finally did it" exclaimed Joker. Shepard by the time reached the cockpit to see things personally.

"Good job Joker. Now I want you to get Normandy in with out the collectors spotting us" said Shepard.

"Sorry Commander, looks like they are already sending in a welcome party" replied Joker not too enthusiastic. Then they got to see the base releasing a collector ship from the hull.

"Shepard, the ship's mass effect core signature has similar readings to the one you faced 2 years ago" said EDI. That's when Shepard realized something he never thought to learn it.

"So, you say that this collector ship was the one that destroyed the original Normandy and it's crew?" asked Shepard bewildered. He couldn't believe it was the same ghost that was haunting him for 2 years.

"Warning, detecting energy build up in the ship's front cannon" said EDI. The collector ship charged the main particle beam cannon and was about to fire.

"Joker, time to show our trick" said Shepard. The collector vessel shot the particle beam at the Normandy. Joker maneuvered the vessel around the beam at danger close.

"Launching the main cannon" said Joker powering up the Thannix cannon. Then a second later, a powerful bluish white beam fired at the collector. The beam sheared the ship's surface and scorched it to a great depth. The beam ate everything away from the surface it touched.

"YEAH! EAT THAT, SONS OF BITCHES!" yelled Joker in excitement. Shepard patted him on his shoulder gently for the good job.

"One final shot" said Joker again firing the canon, but this time risking a proximity attack. The Thannix beam pierced the collector ship and killed it both from in and out. The ship sequentially exploded from bow to stern to a greater radius and came the next trouble.

"Oh oh! Watch out for the debris" warned Miranda. But before they could escape the explosive radius, the explosion knocked off the Normandy and it stumbled to get under control.

"Damn! The mass effect core is offline. Controls and backup systems are not responding. EDI, get me something!" yelled Joker who along with Shepard and Miranda were stumbling as the vessel got out of control.

"Emergency power system failure detected in the fuel cell chamber. Supply reroute has been disrupted" replied EDI. Joker wasn't amused at it. Shepard saw the ship hastily approaching the collector base. The left side rear wing got hit by one of the hull parts which threw the Normandy in to the base incalcitrantly.

"Brace for impact!" shouted Shepard. Miranda, Commander, Joker and the other CIC crew all held on to something. There was a great tension in the air. After closing the distance, the Normandy crash landed over it's surface in a large horizontal platform space.

Then after 10 seconds of continuous inertia beyond its friction coefficient, The vessel came to a stop.

Everyone inside the Normandy after this roller coaster, felt relieved and tended to each other in getting to their feet.

"Alright, that went well" said Joker feeling relaxed for sometime.

"Now the real job gets started. Miranda, call everyone to the briefing room" ordered Shepard.

"Yes Commander" Miranda saluted and then left the pilot's cockpit to gather everyone.

"EDI, Joker, keep an eye on the scanners. Do you think, we would be safe here?" asked Shepard.

"For now, Yes. Besides, we are in the place where access is impossible for ground troops from inside" replied Joker. Shepard nodded and then left the place to meet with his crew in the comm room after equipping himself.

After an hour...

Shepard entered the briefing room, to see his entire crew inside waiting for their leader. To the left side of the comm table were Miranda, Jacob, Zaeed, Kasumi, Samara and Tali. To the right side of the table were Jack, Garrus, Grunt, Thane, Mordin. Shepard removed his Blood dragon armor helmet and took a look at his team who were reciprocating the same towards him.

"Commander, We are all here as you requested" said Jacob. Shepard nodded in acknowledgement. He then entered the room and rested his arms in the comm table and prepared to speak.

"Team, after all that we've been through for months, we are here, at the collector base. You all should know what we are fighting for" said Shepard.

"Thanks to you Shepard. Our team is the best" said Grunt punching his fist over his palm. Shepard gave a faint smile.

"EDI, bring the image" ordered Shepard. Then a big orange hologram of the collector base appeared floating above the table. Everyone stared at the image in amazement.

"So this is their hive, isn't it?" asked Garrus.

"Yes. Now we are here" said Shepard pointing to a particular spot which was highlighted in the hologram.

"Sure that the collectors won't find the ship here?" asked Zaeed in doubt.

"This place is inaccessible from the inside. So we are safe but still at our own risk" replied Shepard.

"So how do we get in?" asked Tali. This EDI spoke.

"There is large chamber behind this wall which can be accessed with sufficient fire power. By doing that, we can get in and at the same time drag the enemy's attention" said EDI pointing to a wall present just a 100 meters from the Normandy.

"So, first step is blow through. We don't have to worry about the fire power. But our target is the base's core power chamber. I can say that over loading their reactors with timed detonation can destroy the whole base" said Shepard highlighting the core chamber.

"Shepard's right. But it's not gonna be easy. If the collectors smell our plan, then we must be ready for the maximum resistance" replied Miranda.

"The door way to get to the core room is through that door. But it's controls are directed from the main control center. So someone should hack through the doors while a team distracts the alerted collector forces" said Jacob.

"Shepard I can lead the team from the other side" volunteered Miranda who was immediately cut off by Jack.

"Not so fast cheer leader. No one takes orders from you" criticized Jack which exasperated Miranda.

"Listen, this is not a popularity contest. We fail here, we fail everyone. Shepard, you need someone experienced to command a team" said Miranda in slightly raised tone. Shepard was calculating. He needed someone who can see through great distance to keep away the enemy. And he needed someone to hack through the door so that his own team can make it inside. He made his pick after a few seconds.

"Garrus, you will lead the team on the other side" said Shepard to Garrus.

"Yes commander" acknowledged Garrus.

"Tali, you are the best at hacking. You will hack through the door to get us inside" said Shepard.

"Good, but how do we do it?" asked Tali.

"There is a ventilation shaft that passes above in the same chamber that leads to the other side. Tali, you will use that and we will guide you from below", turning to Garrus, "Garrus, your team will use another passage to reach the other side. We gotta stay sharp at the same time we make greater kill counts" said Shepard. Garrus and Tali nodded.

"Well, at least somebody know what they are doing" said Miranda mockingly at Jack for which she didn't react. Shepard then got serious and gave a speech in general for all.

"This is just the beginning. Honestly, I don't even know what we would find in there. I am counting on every single one of you. We've come this far not to lose" Shepard narrated the final speech before the fight. They were looking at him with honor and pride and acknowledge him.

"Fine, let's move out and say Hello!" said Shepard and he picked Zaeed and Grunt to go with him for the initial assault.

...

10,000kms from the Cronos station
June 15, 2185

Kai Leng or whatever he's now was traveling in the Cerberus cruiser approaching the Cronos station at FTL speed.

"Lieutenant Leng, we are in position towards the station in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1..." said the helm over the comm.

"Roger that" replied Leng.

The cruiser exited the FTL and entered the normal space facing the big Cerberus station. The Key mind for an instant took control of Leng and stared at the station and let a grim smile.

"Finally, we'll get what we sought" said the Keymind in Leng's body.

"Approach the station and contact the security chief and notify him of our arrival" ordered Leng.

"Acknowledged lieutenant. Over and out" the helm broke the connection and the cruiser accelerated towards the Cronos station.

Kai leng was not only a high ranking officer but also a personal assassin to the Illusive man. He directly takes orders from him, so no one questions Leng except the boss. The Key mind learned this from his personality and decided to infiltrate using this privilege without raising suspicion.

As the cruiser neared the station, the helmsmen contacted the station's security chief Langdon from the control center.

"Chief Langdon, this is Cerberus cruiser helmsman Zachary, requesting permission to send a party" said the helm.

"Anyone special Zach? asked the security chief.

"We got Lieutenant Leng on board. He wants to meet with the boss" replied the helm. There was silence for 4 seconds and then the officer's voice came to life.

"Acknowledged. Proceed to bring a drop shuttle at hanger 05-C6" said the officer.

"Roger that, Zach out" the helm cut the comm and showed the thumbs up to Leng at the back who was listening to the conversation.

"I'll get to the shuttle bay and board a drop ship" replied Leng who then walked out of the CIC and entered the elevator to get to the shuttle bay. At the bay, he approached a pilot who was standing besides a drop ship checking for it's maintenance.

"Captain, you are gonna fly me to the station's hanger05-C6, Now" ordered Leng.

"Yes sir!" the pilot saluted him and proceeded to start the engines.

Leng boarded a drop ship and the cruiser's bay doors opened after depressurizing the place. Then the pilot flew it out of the cruiser.

The drop ship was flying a 2500 miles distance to the station. Leng was staring at the bright star that illuminated everything. Being close to the star for it's efficient power harness, people can't see the light with naked eyes. They need 3 layers of photon energy filters to reduce the luminosity. But Leng could see it with out strain, because it wasn't Leng who's staring at the star.

After 10 minutes, the drop ship approached the hanger 05-C6 and touched the ground. The door opened and out came the Illusive man's personal dog with many of them turning their attention towards him. Leng's face was covered with Cerberus helmet and there were patches of blood in his body which the others didn't mind.

Leng watched Langdon, the chief of security in Cronos approaching him. As he walked near him, he stood in attention and saluted him. Leng returned the salute and spoke.

"I need to speak with the Illusive man, top priority, only his ears" said Leng in commanding tone.

"Of course sir, we'll notify him of your arrival" replied Langdon.

"Thank you officer" said Leng and walked past was when the officer noticed blood patches in his armor.

"Sir, I think you had a great field trip. I suggest getting to the decontamination facility" said Langdon. Leng stopped and stood silent for a couple of seconds. Then he turned to face the officer.

"No need, just body punctures and I can take care of this myself" replied Leng.

"I am sorry sir, but protocol suggests-..."

"Protocol suggests that I only take orders from the boss, not from anyone around here. You get me?" asked Leng interrupting the officer. Langdon looked at him confused at his recalcitrant attitude. Leng used to talk nice with Langdon and this was weird for him. He hesitantly nodded.

"Ye-..Yes sir" acknowledged the officer. Leng let a smile inside the helmet.

"Good" replied Leng and walked near the elevator at the end of the bay. The proximity lights turned on and the elevator door opened and he entered. Leng pushed the button to reach his personal quarters. He's(He's) got a lot of things to do.

...

Collector base,
05:45 AM GST

Shepard, Zaeed and Grunt met with heavy resistance at the first sight of the collectors. It seemed that the collectors were more focused with Shepard's presence.

"Damn it! Zaeed, throw an incinerator at them" yelled Shepard who took cover behind a reflective solid barrier. Grunt was beside him hiding and Zaeed over the adjacent barrier. Zaeed threw an incinerator grenade over the collector soldiers on the opposite side. It burned and killed them. Shepard and Collector's forces had to play hide and seek.

"Shepard, the shaft is getting hot! Open the door using the controls" said Tali in a tensed voice over the comm. Tali was supposed to hack the door safely by passing through the ventilation shaft. But the shaft started to radiate waste heat for processing. She had to pass through 10 doors to exit. So far, she had crossed seven. Now is the eighth.

"Shit! Lot's of resistance! Hold on for few seconds Tali!" yelled Shepard shooting at the collector soldiers.

"Shep, the temperature is rising steadily, please hurry!" replied Tali and cut the comm.

Shepard managed to look at the control panel, a 100 mts from their position.

"Garrus, how are things from your side?" asked Shepard.

"*GUN SHOTS*...*GUN SHOTS*...Shit! Lots of soldiers and these bulb heads with their heavy firing. We are almost near the door Shepard" replied Garrus.

"Good" said Shepard and cut the comm and turned to his team.

"Zaeed, give us sniper cover"..."Grunt, you are with me" said Shepard and on the count of 3, Shepard and Grunt got out of cover and Shepard used biotic shield and Grunt used heavy fortification.

They both stormed their way through the hordes of collector soldiers burning and stomping them with their bullets. Shepard used biotic flare to kill four collector units and turn them to dust. Grunt yelled "I AM A KROGAN" and charged at the collector forces in berserker rage without getting hurt. Zaeed was providing them with long range covering fire.

Finally they all reached the console. Shepard used it to open the 8th door.

"Door open, thanks Shepard. Now two more" said Tali who then proceeded to run through the next passage way until she hit upon the 9th door.

Shepard, Zaeed and Grunt followed the same procedure for the 9th and 10th door as the situation was repetitive, nothing new except fighting different collector soldiers each and every time.

After getting through the 9th and 10th door for next 15 minutes, Tali finally rendezvous with Garrus's team on the other side of the door while Shepard and his team were near the door fighting the collector forces.

"Tali, open the door quick!" yelled Shepard.

"A few seconds-..." replied Tali as she was working with the hologram as fast as her fingers could do it. Then the door finally opened.

"Door's open, get inside, everyone!" yelled the commander as the collector soldiers were already engaged by Garrus's team. After getting through the door, everyone shot at the collectors while Tali was busy trying to close the door. After 3 seconds, the hologram blinked and the door closed finally sealing the door between the collector forces and them.

"Everyone alright?" asked Shepard looking at every single member of his team.

"Alive and ready for round two" replied Jack excitedly. Shepard nodded and then walked a few steps away from them to focus all at the same time.

"Now that the plan's 1st phase is over, Let's move on to the second" said Shepard. But before he could say another word, Miranda interrupted.

"Commander, Take a look at this place" said Miranda where everyone turned to face the biggest hall with lots of holding pods. Everyone carefully made their steps to turn their heads all around them and at the top.

"Holy shit! Do they keep people in there?" asked Jacob shocked at the sight.

"Shepard, Over here!" called out Thane loud who went exploring the pods that were racked up everywhere. He managed to see something inside the pod and urged others to check it up.

Shepard and the others went near Thane only to be stupefied at the sight of what's in front of them. There were humans inside those pods.

"My goodness! These are the missing colonists" said Miranda stunned.

"They appear alive to me. Is there a way to release them from the cell?" asked Shepard.

"If there's no button, then we can always break it" said Grunt with a grin.

While everyone checked at the pods and tried to figure a way to release them, EDI came alive over Shepard's comm with an important message.

"Shepard, don't do that!" rushed EDI, warning them. Others were confused as to why she denied helping them.

"EDI? Why did you say that?" asked Shepard.

"These pods not only contain humans, shepard. Also some from other races, turians, salarians, vorcha, krogans, hanar..." EDI kept on the list.

"WAIT A MINUTE! That's impossible!" said Garrus out loud. There was this new kind of confusion in the air.

"EDI, are you sure? All these times we were told that the collectors were interested only on humans" said Shepard bug-eyed. Miranda was the most sullen among the team.

"Did the Illusive man knew this already? or is that something we all missed?!" asked Miranda out loud. Everyone looked at her wondering the same.

"Uhhh...Commander? EDI and myself managed to dig into some of the collector files from their memory banks hidden deep in the base" said Joker in sullen tone.

"And?" asked Shepard.

"And...I don't think you all would like it" finished Joker.

"That depends on the information Joker"..."EDI, what's that you found?" asked Shepard.

"Shepard, the collectors had been to both human and other colonies most of which are located at the terminus and borders. It is still unknown how they slip passed other races colonies. But now I realized why the collectors had been doing this?" said EDI.

"What are you talking about?" asked Shepard.

"Remember the strange things you saw inside a derelict reaper ship over Lethe? Ugly creatures and their left over shits?" asked Joker. This immediately brought the attention of Shepard, Miranda, Mordin, Garrus and Jacob as they were the ones who had been to that mission to recover the IFF. There they faced sage colored creatures that were horrendous.

"That was a nightmare. Still feel lucky to be alive" replied Jacob.

"Yes, I remember. What of that?" asked Shepard.

"Mordin and myself analyzed the sample readings he took on that dead reaper. From that, we realized that everything related to that sage colored biomass and its associates contains self mutating or adapting parasitic molecules. These molecules can mutate any life form to it's image"

"That's true Shepard, Very tricky, changes the DNA base proteins of a life form to incalculable levels, adapt to any kind of immune system, like a virus with intelligence" Mordin ran his mouth to Shepard in acknowledgement.

"EDI, That doesn't explain why you objected in helping the trapped colonists" said Miranda.

"It's simple. I am reading the same substance in this holding chamber. People trapped in the pods are being exposed to the same sage mist that you encountered in the dead reaper through those pipes" replied EDI threw fits to Shepard. He couldn't believe that this was happening.

"You...mean to say that...This collector base is filled with those same creatures?!" asked Garrus wide eyed.

"EDI, we need to help them!" yelled Shepard.

"Sorry Commander, But we are too late. If we open the pods now, you all will be exposed to the parasite" said EDI. Then suddenly all the pods started to fill with the sage colored mist.

"Damn it! The mist!" yelled Jacob pointing to a pod where a human occupant after being exposed started to violently mutate into an ugly creature of same color. The body, the face, everything changed invidiously with spikes and other tentacles protruding out. But then they turned to a simple bio mass and got sucked away from the bottom tube. Soon, the other pods followed suit. All the people in the pods disappeared as the biomass, leaving nothing.

"SHIT!" yelled Shepard punching the pod twice. Apart from Miranda, Garrus, Jacob and Mordin who understood Shepard's frustration, others were not so cool with what happened. They were terrified at the sight of what happened to everyone in the pods.

"Shepard, what the fuck was that?" asked Jack.

"What happened to those people?" asked Samara who was horrified at the sight.

Shepard relaxed himself with deep breath and then turned to face the crew.

"Team, from now on, be careful and watch your 360. The mist EDI told about? It turns everyone into monsters those who are exposed to and the mutated creatures are equally deadly and stronger. We barely escaped from them the first time" warned Shepard.

"Commander, something tells me that we will face those ugly things in this base too" said Garrus to which Shepard nodded in approval.

"Are biotics effective against these creatures?" asked Samara.

"It is, but still they pack a powerful punch. So don't rely too much-..."

"*BAM*...*BAM*...**BANG**" came a loud explosive noise which got everyone's attention. Then suddenly they saw the distant door totally ripped off by a swarm of small sage colored bulbous creatures that had bundled tentacle legs and two tentacles with red tip protruding from the upper body.

'SHIT! Those are the things. Don't let it touch you! Use biotic shields for protection and incendiaries to kill them!" yelled Shepard.

The creatures stormed towards their position. Shepard and everyone started to shoot at those things. Each bullet made a single creature to die by exploding.

"Yuck! What are these things Shepard? Are these things a new collector weapon?" asked Tali.

"I have no idea. But don't let them touch you and they can be killed with sufficient fire power" replied Shepard shooting at the incoming creatures.

Samara and Jack used their biotics to raise a big shield while others stayed inside and used their incendiary ammo through phasic jackets. The bulbous creatures jumped over the shield and fell down as they couldn't penetrate. But their numbers are putting a stress, but not something two most powerful biotics couldn't handle.

"Woah, even for being weak, they put a lot of effort" grunted Jack. Others used their guns and swarmed the bullets at those creatures. As they die more fill it's place and then the situation got even more worse.

Suddenly biped creatures looking like collector soldiers but resembling the sage colored creatures jumped out of nowhere and started shooting at the shields.

"What the hell! Do they belong to them?" asked Thane stunned at the sight of these sage colored soldiers but looking like collectors.

"Must be. But I don't remember these things using guns" said Shepard turning to Garrus, "Garrus, prepare a concussive shot to repel them" ordered Shepard and then talked to samara and Jack who are struggling to maintain the shield as the pressure started to increase.

"Shit! Shepard, how long!? The pressure's becoming intolerant!" gritted Jack.

"I have a plan. Soon as Garrus gives his best shot, use the biotics to repel them completely. You both can do that" said Shepard.

"We all just gonna suck up, if we lose our strength in holding this shield!" yelled Jack.

"Shepard, if that's the plan, then let's do it fast!" Samara said louder. Shepard nodded and turned to Garrus to be on his mark.

"On my mark, Garrus. 3...2...1..DO IT!" barked Shepard. Garrus took aim and shot the concussive rounds that exploded amidst those creatures which flew and died. The pressure in the shields dropped which made Jack and Samara to feel relaxed. Shepard found this to be the best moment.

"DO IT!...NOW!" yelled Shepard. Jack and Samara together charged their biotic energy to full level.

"Hold on everyone!" warned Samara. Everyone ducked to the ground to prevent themselves from being harmed by it's effects.

Then Jack and Samara unleashed a powerful biotic sweep that repelled and annihilated all the creatures in the hall. Thus got freed from that10 minute prison and gladiator fight. Then everyone slowly rose to their feet and knocked the dust out of themselves.

"Hooh! That was close! Hope nobody's hurt?" asked Zaeed reloading his weapon. Jack walked ahead and made her presence known to others.

"Yeah...FUCK THIS! I didn't sign up for this Shit, Shepard!" yelled Jack putting her index finger over his chest plate.

"We never lied anything to you. Right from the beginning I was calling this a suicide mission. Now you object after all you took into that thick skull and went through hell with us!?" asked Shepard raising his voice.

"*Ahem*...Shepard, what you said is true if it had been the collectors. So far, they were a great match but we were alright with that. But these strange things are way above the pay grade" said Kasumi, folding her hands.

Shepard was frustrated as even he didn't expect to see the creatures in this place. Now his fear started to take hold of him as his team members begin to exhibit negative reaction towards the new problem. Shepard had to fix this right or else, this mission will be a suicide with no matter of success or failure.

He walked and climbed a short platform to get to see everyone and talk to them. He began to speak.

"Team, these things may be strong, but they are vulnerable. Besides I am confused how they are in this place" said Shepard trying to bring the situation under control.

"Shepard, There is one thing to be noticed. Those collector soldiers were affected by the same mist. They had all that physical attributes like the ones we faced before" said Miranda changing the subject, but to the right one.

"Yes, I was wondering the same. Do these collector forces already knew of this strange parasite? Is this new parasitic life form, a biological weapon created by the Reapers?" asked Shepard in dilemma.

"In that case we are in for real trouble. So what do we do now, Commander?" asked Garrus.

"EDI, is there anything new we should know? Any signs of this parasite?" asked Shepard.

"Shepard, I managed to enter the collector encrypted channels. A large data stream about this parasite had been on the flow for the past one hour. It seems, the collectors had been experimenting on the parasite. They were trying to build something out of it. The remaining details are vague" replied EDI.

"Let me guess, The people they captured in these pods are their live test subjects" asked Tali feeling disgusted.

"It has to be. This mission has gained a new insight. This parasite is more dangerous than the collectors. If they are experimenting with that, then it means the Reapers are behind them" said Shepard with confidence.

"Shouldn't we notify this to the Illusive man?" asked Jacob which got everyone's attention.

"We will, but not now. I want to know what the collectors were planning with the parasite" replied Shepard, then calling EDI over the comm.

"EDI, What are the available strategic options?"

"The Collector bio-scan signatures show that the whole place is being swarmed by the creatures affected by the parasite. The tubes that took the biomass all converge in to the upper chamber. You need to get there, but someone should guard the hall you're in" said EDI.

"Then this is my decision. I have given the basic combat tactics against these creatures. Use it to defend yourself" said Shepard, then turning to Miranda, "Lawson, you will keep everyone under your command except Tali and Thane. You guys will be defending this zone no matter what" ordered Shepard.

"Don't worry Commander, We'll take care of this" replied Miranda reloading her SMG thermal clip. Tali and Thane walked towards Shepard and stood besides him.

"Under any circumstances, keep the radio in. I want status report every ten minutes" ordered Shepard. Miranda nodded followed by the others.

"EDI, now how to get to the central chamber above?" asked Shepard.

"Walk through the door those creatures came in and then use the platform to your right. It will take you to the central chamber" replied EDI.

"Good, thank you" acknowledged Shepard and cut the channel.

"Alright team, this is it. This is our last stand against the collectors. No matter what the collectors or the Reapers plan are, we'll take the fight to them and kill those ugly bastards for good" said Shepard giving an inspirational speech which made his team to feel the positive aggression. After looking at his team for last two seconds,

"Let's do this" said Shepard who along with Thane and Tali proceeded to walk towards the door whereas his team prepared themselves to fight the inbound enemy.

"Alright, get to cover behind those barriers. Collectors or whatever other creatures are here, they will be here in just few minutes" said Miranda loud to which others acknowledged. Then everybody went to their cover just as told.

Meanwhile Shepard, Thane and Tali reached the next chamber and from there, they saw the floating platform to their right.

"Alright, this is it. This platform will take us to the central chamber above" said Shepard and then glanced at two.

"You guys ready?" asked Shepard.

"We do. No matter what happens her, we are with you in this to the end" replied Thane.

"We will make it Shepard, just like we did with Saren and Sovereign" said Tali. Shepard nodded at them both.

Then the three stepped into the platform and used the console to activate it. The platform separated from the main ground and flew upwards and forward slowly in to the unknown.

...

SPARTAN'S BASE
June 15, 2185
06:15 AM, GST

Master chief and his team now including Jorge were already awake and were having a 50 mile jogging within their base which they were about to finish. For the blue team, its always their names when training for their fitness and combat. But when it comes to missions, they maintain their professionalism and Chief is strict when it comes to being professional and that was one of the reason he's well respected by both the higher and lower officers. As of now, they are just training so they can use this time for some brotherly and sisterly talks.

By this time in the morning, the base had already seen quite an activity. All personnel carrying out their work. All the military men and women doing their drill. Other occupants like Sanghelli and Mgalekgolo were doing their thing like checking their weapons and supplies. Former Sanghelli honor guards training with meditation and sword fighting. It may not be a picnic, but definitely worth seeing in early morning...quite a sight for sore eyes.

"John, it's been a long time since our contact with Shepard and his team as well this Alliance and Citadel council. Do you think Shepard might have completed his collector mission?" asked Linda.

"They must have, but we won't know unless we talk to them" replied Fred.

"Besides, we can't spend too much time here. We got a lot of work. We need to help this galaxy fight the reapers and solve the mystery about this traveling to another universe thing" said Kelly.

"Well in that case, I got some thing to tell you all" replied Jorge, the new member of the blue team. After Chief inducted him, he asked Cortana to make him an advanced suit of armor to match the team's current tech strength. Cortana is doing her best to deliver the best.

Jorge got their attention and turned to him while jogging. They were almost near base's fitness facility.

"What is it, Jorge?" asked John. Jorge looked at Chief inscrutably and then answered.

"Just a few more seconds to the gym and I will tell" said Jorge and sprinted fast. Jorge being taller than everyone leapt more than the others. But still this couldn't stop Kelly from beating them all.

"Ha, still you lose brother!" said Kelly excitedly to Jorge. Others came to a halt, a couple second a later. They were looking at Kelly who was enjoying the moment.

"I will personally challenge you sometime, but now I gotta tell you what I meant to" replied Jorge getting to the subject.

"Yes, we're listening" said Fred.

"Lord Hood...He was the one who gave the 'go ahead' signal for this mission" said Jorge.

"I think Capt. Lasky had already told that" replied Linda.

"I wasn't finished. Lord hood trusts us, Lasky, Hasley...Spartans in general. But not ONI" said Jorge which confused the others.

"ONI!?...What does ONI got to do with this?" asked Kelly.

"When Cortana first sent the message to the HIGHCOM bravo, ONI predicted that lord Hood might pull a mission like this" said Jorge.

"So what?" asked Chief.

"The problem is...Hood approved this mission on his own volition, his own risk" said Jorge.

"I don't see how that's a problem. He's the CNO, humanity's most powerful authority figure" said Fred.

"He is, but ONI can dethrone him and worse, even condemn him if they wanted to" said Jorge which stunned the four. They can't believe what Jorge said. Hood's authority was unparalleled and unquestionable. He doesn't have to answer anyone, even the CIC of the ONI. Now they are confused how Hood's career could be in danger.

"Jorge, what you say is nigh impossible" said John without a break.

"Actually they can, John. Hood just sent humanity's most powerful warship equipped with top of the line technology, Infinity, into the unknown. This makes us weak again and unprepared for another brutal fight with any new enemies. If ONI submits this to the senate, then Hood's life is in great danger" said Jorge sounding more serious than ever.

"How can the senate interfere in this matter?" asked Linda. Jorge drew a breath and let a unsymmetrical smile of hopelessness.

"Infinity is one of a kind and the only one of a kind. Currently, no human warships carry the power that infinity does. What lord Hood did would be fabricated as an act of irresponsibility by ONI, a very big one, so that they can remove Hood out of the equation and-..."

"And ONI takes complete control over the HIGHCOM, be it military, recon or intel...Shit!" frowned Kelly. At this moment, John understood everything.

"Now I see why Lasky hesitated to help. He didn't want to put Hood in a bad situation for helping him out. Actually, we all do. Hood trusted us even when he didn't a knew a thing about the situation" said John.

"Actually, Hood trust you four. I wouldn't call it trust, It was faith" said Jorge. This was when the four realized how much Hood had risked his career to help them.

John have always had a special place in his heart for Hood. He trusts Hood like he does with his fellow spartans, Lasky and others before in his life. It had always given him the real reason to fight for, apart from the simple code of a typical soldier. When people keeps faith in the Master chief, they do it because he served as the humanity's beacon of hope when all was lost. Where others gave up, he takes it as a new lead and go on. This mission was no different, Lord Hood was no different, so does Lasky. Not just belief, those people keeps their faith over the blue team and trusts their judgement. John and his team didn't give a second thought about taking this mission on their own, but realized how much they had put Hood in a terrible spot. It is their duty to return the favor.

"Don't worry Jorge, he helped us and we'll return the favor. This is much pressure, but nothing we can't handle" replied Chief.

"Well, I too agree with that. But in order to do that, we need to get this mission done as soon as possible" said Fred. Others nodded in approval.

"But Jorge, How do you know all this? These are something like strict-to-know information" asked Kelly. Jorge chuckled at that and then spoke.

"Well, you of all people should know that myself and Commander Carter got some friends within ONI who can blow the whistle to us" said Jorge which intrigued the four.

"Friends in ONI!? How did you even manage something like that? And who did you two managed to hang out with?" asked Linda.

"Captain Veronica Dare" replied Jorge which stunned the four. Blue team didn't expect this as many of the ODSTs and the Spartan IIs during the war knew more about Dare on contrary to the discretion and isolation she maintains working with section 1.

"Dare? You gotta be kidding me!" exclaimed Fred.

"She is Fred. She is our eyes and ears inside. She tells us what the reptiles are crawling over" said Jorge.

"Jorge, that's simply bull shit. As far as anyone remembers, she is cold and ruthless. Better break the contact for your good" said John expressing his concern.

Even others had the same worry. Veronica Dare serves the ONI section 1 for a long time and he took part in missions set by them. She never revealed complete information about the objectives to the squad she leads on any mission. This makes her quite not trust worthy in nature. But her secret contact with the former noble team members is not exactly intolerant, but unfathomable.

"Since when Jorge?" asked Linda.

"Since 2555. She started to learn what ONI was planning through out after the war that even she didn't like it. She contacted us first who were the only active spartan fire team members to save a sanghelli delegate from a planned assassinations" said Jorge.

"By whom?" asked John curiously.

"By their own. The brutes and elites arranged for a meeting to have a truce between them on the elite world Duraan. ONI saw this as tipping the balance of the scale. So they bribed some of the elite guards and persuaded them to kill their own delegate to stop the meeting" said Jorge which quite made the others feel repulsive.

"Did you succeed in saving him?" asked Kelly.

"No, we were too late. The delegate was killed and ONI succeeded. By 2557, they had been planning something even more big. But Dare couldn't give us clear information" said Jorge.

The four were staggered with this information. They couldn't believe ONI had been operating incognito and plotting against the events that can bring some good.

"Did the Arbiter and his Swords of Sanghelios knew about this?" asked John.

"Yes, but they didn't know it was ONI. It may feel wrong, but we cannot let the elites to take vengeance while this can be corrected by ourselves" replied Jorge. John understood his statements though he didn't like it. Diplomacy may be not his strongest suit, but still he knew that could prevent headaches.

"We need to complete this mission as fast as we can. Then...we got some work to do in our place" said John in an ambitious tone. Others nodded in approval.

Then suddenly Cortana's hologram popped up besides them.

"Hello guyz, take it that you are having a great time. But sorry to disturb the time of your lives" said Cortana.

"All cliche's aside, what is it?" asked John. Cortana's face wasn't in the enjoying mood. She was dead serious about something.

"Actually, we just received a galaxy wide extranet broadcast from the citadel" said Cortana.

"And?" asked Kelly.

"And things don't look good from our standing" replied Cortana. John and the others didn't like the sound of it. Chief was soaked in a lot of thoughts but cast aside all of that and prepared to see this broadcast.

"Right, we'll be there in 20 minutes" said John then turning to face his friends.

"Lets see what this is about"

...

Cronos station
June 15, 2185
07:45 AM, GST

Kai leng or the key mind that took his personality decided to go and meet the Illusive man after spending some time inside his quarters. He removed all the suits and just wore the cerberus phantom armor with delumcore visor. There were no odd features in his face that could blow his cover immediately.

"If this Illusive man has everything we need, then the cycle of fate that runs this galaxy had begun" thought the key mind within Leng's personality. He was ready to face the Illusive man. He left his quarters and reached for the main hall where there's an elevator that takes him to the Illusive man's place by passing all the maintenance access ways.

He then used the main elevator and pressed the console to reach the top floor. He didn't feel a thing about himself or anyone. This entity called the keymind uses his memories to mimic his personalities. But no one knows what this entity is or why is it doing what it's doing.

Leng reached the top floor and the door opened. He stepped out of the elevator and faced the Illusive man's back as he was standing in front of his big holographic screen. He was staring him for a couple of seconds and then slowly walked in.

Illusive man turned his head halfway casually and managed to notice Leng's presence and then took a sip of his wine.

"Leng, its good to see you back, though not pleased with your manners towards Langdon" said the Illusive man.

"I answer to you, sir" replied Leng in a low voice.

"Lets get ahead of all the criticisms, How was the mission. Was it successful? Did you deliver the samples to Horizon facility?" asked Illusive man still looking at the holo screen.

Leng didn't answer, instead kept a stoic face and slowly walked towards him. Illusive man became suspicious. He turned to face Leng approaching him.

"Leng, I asked you a question" said Illusive man pressing his tone. But his words seemed to fall on deaf ears. Leng was just less than half a meter away from him and stopped.

"Leng? What happened to you?" asked TIM now even more suspicious.

"I am sorry sir" said Leng which confused him a lot.

"Sorry!? For what?" asked TIM.

"For this...**STAB**" Leng suddenly lifted his right arm and a long and sharp sage colored tentacle claws protruded out and in split second, stabbed the IM in his gut deep such that it came out of his back.

Illusive man instantly spewed out lot of blood from his mouth struggling and crippling in pain. He couldn't even yell in pain. It was as if the life was sucked out of him instantly, mind blurring, visions distorting. He tightly held Leng's right arm for grip trying to release his arm out of his body.

There was nothing for TIM but to simply kneel slowly and fall down, drop dead. That was the end of the cerberus's accomplished leader. Leng was staring at his body and then his body suddenly turned sage colored and the features started to briefly showoff. Then Leng took a knife and then cut his arm deep such that the sage colored blood started to flow out. He then extended his arms above the IM's body and the blood oozed onto him and his stab wound.

Then after pouring out the blood for 5 seconds over the IM's body. He dropped his arms down and stood simply with his body mildly shaking. Then he simply just fell down besides the IM's body, laying lifeless.

"*STATIC*...*STATIC*...Illusive man...come in...This is Shepard...Things are nasty...in the base...We are in serious trouble. I am gonna blow this place up for good, do you get me?...Illusive man, Do you get me?...Shit!" the comm suddenly went alive and came commander Shepard's voice. But unfortunately, there was no one here alive to respond. The comm just went off on it's own.

...

Collector base, 1 Hour ago...

Shepard, Thane and Tali were traveling in a floating platform that was taking them to the upper main chamber where they were about to face the unknown.

"Friends, be careful. We know next to nothing about what's there" said Shepard loading his revenant rifle.

"Don't worry Shepard, We survived this far. We will do it again" replied Tali.

The platform finally reached the upper chamber where there was a large platform and then a huge empty space from top to bottom of the base in front of that. The three looked at the size of the central chamber with a jaw dropped feeling.

"Holy shit! This is the most huge space I've ever seen" said Shepard. The platform came to halt attaching itself to the big platform. Then the three stepped into the platform and walked slowly to take a brief look. Shepard saw a control panel to his far right, apart from that, nothing. They also saw the tubes coming from all direction and went all the way down to the bottom of the base.

"EDI, I see a control panel here on a platform and lots of tubes that carry the biomass and it goes all the way down" said Shepard over the comm.

"Shepard...I...ee...ot of..terference..n't iso..te..he...oise...*STATIC*" the jarred voice came out.

"Shit, something's interfering with the comm. We need to-..."

"Hm hm hm huh hah hah hah hah hah!..." came a sinistrical laugh in a deep growl voice that echoed throughout the chamber.

"What-The-Hell-Was-That!?" asked Thane. All the three felt pale and goosebumps in fear as if their ghosts had left their shell.

"I can't see where it's coming from" said Tali tensed.

Suddenly the whole place vibrated. The three felt the shake in the platform and it caused physical discomfort to them. Then a huge creature whose body resembles the loch-ness monster and with lot of tentacles protruding out of it like tree branches, suddenly rose above and flexibly moved it's body to turn and face the three. It's body was the same sage colored as the strange creatures.

Shepard, Tali and Thane were looking at the giant creature that had a 4 mandible like things which was assumed as it's mouth.

"Holy shit! Now what!?" said Shepard in fear and dilemma.

For the first few seconds the creatures and the three were staring at each other. Then it spoke by moving it's mandibles

"Awaken from the grave and now time to greet the visitors" the creature said. This threw fits to the three. For Shepard and his team, this creature talking was out of the realm of possibility. This creature's ability to talk in English almost perfectly, though struggling to speak fast was stunning but Shepard was relieved that this thing could be conversed with.

"Who or what are you?" asked Shepard wide eyed. The creature grunted and responded

"I am nothing but an empty shell with million minds to think. I see 3 different species in front of me standing in unison. I longed for your coexistence. Now our job is made easy" replied the creature.

"What are you talking about? That's not the answer to my question. What are you doing here?" asked Shepard frustrated. But this time, it gave him the needed response.

"We are the Gravemind. We exist in this galaxy for millions of years" replied the creature.

"What exactly is your role?" asked Tali.

"We had been monitoring this galaxy for the last 10 million years after we arrived here from our place. We watched over you grow, advance and fall to your worst nightmares that was plaguing the milky way for almost a billion years" replied the creature.

"So you don't belong to our place. But you said 10 million years and this...nightmare" said Shepard to which the creature let out a mocking laughter sound.

"Reapers...Isn't that what you all fear?" asked the creature which stunned the three and they share a hasty glance towards each other in confusion and shock.

"What the hell!? How did it know about the reapers?" thought Shepard.

"How do you know about the reapers?" asked Shepard in fear as this thing seems to know a lot of things.

"We watched them harvesting the previous races the day we came here...And wondered who created such powerful instruments. They came to this galaxy every 50,000 years to harvest the advanced races that stagnate in evolution leaving the primitives to grow. We began to study the reapers for the next century and learned what kind they are" replied the creature.

"Do you know who they are?" asked Shepard.

"Only that they harvest life as a means to preserve them in their image so that the primitive behavior of destroying yourself with the tools you create can be prevented. But...their actions were more useful for us. Through them, we found our salvation, a way to exist in this universe after a brutal war we had in our place"

"I don't quite understand that statement" said Shepard to which the creature gave grim chuckle and spoke.

"We found the reapers in their hiding place, the dark space and engaged them. We persuaded them and it wasn't a day work. It took 100 years of conversation to make them understand our purpose, our goal. We and the reapers have one thing in common, to create life in a image we wished" replied the creature. Shepard took few steps front and talked.

"That means-..."

"That means, the reapers serve us for the past 10 million years. They are our tools, our instruments to the salvation of all sentient lives. The harvestation will continue forever" replied the creature which stunned the three.

"Blasphemy! Shepard, these things control the reapers. THEY are our real enemy" said Tali, bug eyed.

"You had the power to make the reapers submit to you. You could have stopped this atrocity!" yelled Shepard. The gravemind laughed so hard at the foolish statement.

"What gave you this foolish sentimentality? Perhaps, we are indeed helping you. No matter the place, all the lives are capable of destroying themselves and I've seen it a lot. But this harvestation will stop that and turn you all in our image and gets absorbed into us. The reapers are coming to this galaxy and there's nothing you can do to stop them. Our master will see to it" replied the creature which confounded the three. They instantly felt that something worse about to happen to them.

"So these green creatures we are seeing for the past few days, Are they part of you?" asked Shepard, the last question he wanted the answer to.

"Yes, that is where we came from in the beginning. Now nothing will stop our evolution" replied the creature.

"We will stop you from killing everyone! We will destroy every single one of you!" yelled Shepard angrily which got it's attention.

"You can do nothing. Prepare for your demise, Hm hm hm huh hah hah hah!" finished the creature amused at the primitive emotion and went back to the bottom of the base.

Suddenly lots of sage colored monsters, bipeds, quadpeds, arthropods and bulbous creatures all swarmed and converged to their position over the platform.

"Shepard, those things are closing on us" said Tali tensed.

"Damn! Stay close with me!" barked Shepard and then opened a big biotic dome shield covering the three. The creatures jumped over the shield, putting pressure on it. The creatures screamed obnoxiously that was irritating. Shepard grunted in the stress he was subjected to but he charged to full level and released a powerful biotic explosion that killed many creatures around them. But Shepard felt tired because of the large amount of energy he used.

The creatures were again gathering in numbers and running towards them.

"Team, get to the higher ground and use barricades for cover. We have keep them 10 metres away from us. Use incinerators and explosives" said Shepard. Then the team went to the higher platform where there were barricade to take covering positions.

The three took different covering positions and started firing at the incoming creatures with incinerator rounds. Tali used omni-tool drones over the creatures to make greater kill count. Shepard unloaded his revenant rifle continuously until the heat sink overloaded. Thane used sniper shots to kill them.

"Shepard to Miranda, How are things on your side?" asked Shepard over the comm. meanwhile a quadped leapt towards him. Shepard immediately grabbed his shotgun with his left hand and put a round on it that repelled it back. Then he maneuvered to his assault h=gun and unleashed the rounds on them. The incinerator rounds pierced and burned them.

"Shepard, these things have surrounded us...*GUN SHOTS*... We'll manage but not for long time...Joker, get the shuttle for immediate extraction to our position" said Miranda, cutting the channel.

"We will be there in 15 minutes, then we gotta pick up Shepard and his team" replied Joker.

"Team, listen to this carefully, I'm gonna rig the central chamber with explosives to blow this base...Joker get us fast" said Shepard and cut the channel.

Shepard now having recharged quite a bit, used shock wave ability which made series of ground pounding towards the creatures that threw them to greater heights. Then the three continuously fired at the creatures that tried hard to get near them. So far they had managed , but this luck won't hold them for longer time. They had to do something and do it fast.

"Tali, I've got a fission pellet for the M-920 Cain. I'm gonna use it blow the base's power core from here. That will destroy this whole both maintain your positions here" ordered Shepard.

"Fine, be careful and good luck" replied Tali.

Then Shepard crossed Tali to his right and to the right side of the platform. He hid behind a rocky wall and shot at the creatures which burned and died. Suddenly, 3 bipeds and some bulbous creatures found Shepard and hit him in a surprise attack and threw him to his left out of the cover.

They all jumped over him to attack, but Shepard reflexively used the shield to repel them. Then he dodged and shot the assault rifle to kill the bulbous creatures. But the biped stormed over him and knocked the rifle out of his hand and punched him. Shepard fell back with force and already saw them ready to kill him. He reflexively took out his geth shotgun and shot 3 times that killed the 3 bipeds.

He then gathered himself and carried the rifle and sprinted towards the control panel to charge the fission detonator inside it.

"*STATIC*...*STATIC* Illusive man, come in. This is Shepard. Things are nasty in the base. We are in serious trouble. I am gonna blow this place up for good, do you get me? Illusive man, Do you get me?...Shit!" Shepard used the comm to contact the Illusive man on the way but he didn't get the response.

"Damn, Looks like we are on our own" said Shepard to himself and proceeded to run towards the panel. Tali managed to kill some creatures that were about to kill Shepard.

He then open the panel. A cylindrical shaped power conduit carrier projected out of the floor. Shepard used the fission detonator and primed it. The pellet blinked in red light. He then used the console to close the conduit and sprinted towards Tali and Thane's position.

"The explosive is primed for detonation, we need to get the hell outta here" said Shepard and then called joker over the comm.

"Joker, you there? We need you for extraction on the double. Hurry!" yelled Shepard.

"Aye aye commander, be there in 45 seconds. others are safe and secured" replied Joker and cut the comm.

"You heard the man. Now let's get to that position to our left. That's the only place, Normandy can come down" said Shepard to which they nodded and then the three sprinted towards the left side over the lower platform near the empty space. The creatures followed them to their positions. The three stopped and started shooting the creatures while waiting for Normandy.

"Shepard...*GUNSHOTS*...Did you record these events, I think there are...**GUNSHOTS**...people out there who might be interested in this" said Tali while shooting at the creatures.

"I have already done that-...*GUNSHOTS*...I have a plan" said Shepard shooting at the creatures. He also used biotic shock wave and flare to make greater kill count. The monsters were already closing on them. It was the easy fire power that was barely keeping them at bay.

45 seconds later, suddenly they heard an engine roaring sound. Shepard turned to see the Normandy approaching their position and aligning the entrance towards them and neared the platform.

"Tali, Thane! Get inside" barked Shepard. The Normandy doors opened with Garrus and Jack standing there providing fire support. Tali was helped by Garrus in climbing the door, followed by Thane helped by Jack. After assuring their safety, Shepard decided to leave the place and started running towards the door.

But suddenly a big sage colored pod came crashing in front of him with a big explosion that collapsed the platform and it broke and buckled in half. Shepard lost his balance.

"Shit! Whooaa...AAAHHHH!" Shepard slipped out of the broken platform and fell down.

"Damn! Shepard!...Joker, Shepard has fallen down from the collapsed floor. Get us another way!" yelled Garrus.

"On it! EDI, find Shepard and a way to bring him back out of the debris" said Joker running his hands on the console.

"Scanning...Found him. He's on the lower platform getting recovered from that position" replied EDI.

...

Shepard slowly opened his eyes and the vision slowly cleared and found himself trapped under a peice of the platform.

"*COUGH*...*COUGH*...*GRUNT*..." Shepard slowly, painfully lifted the piece and threw it to his side. Then he slowly got to his feet looking everywhere at the mess. The place was already shaking and there were things burning everywhere.

"Shit, now to find a way" thought Shepard. But his luck, the comm came alive.

"Shepard, It's Joker. EDI's got a lock on you. Get to the other side of the platform using the ladder near by you" said Joker. Shepard slowly turned to face the ladder a meter away.

"Right, soon as I get to the top side, I'll call you back" replied Shepard and cut the channel. Then he used the ladder to climb the platform and after a minute, he reached the top platform.

He stepped on the floor and was directly looking at the creatures that were roaring at him and started running towards him. Shepard started sprinting in response to escape.

"Joker! Come in"

Then the Normandy once again reached the platform and opened the front door. Shepard saw that and sprinted at high speed to reach the vessel before these things catch up to him.

"Commander, quick. The base got just a minute to turn to ash!" said Joker tensed. Shepard focused more on getting to the Normandy without minding those creatures. Suddenly he found himself near the edge and found no option but to leap over the vessel.

Shepard jumped and flew towards the vessel. He finally managed to grab the floor and was hanging outside. Garrus lent his hand in getting him inside and the door was closed.

Shepard hurried to the cockpit and spoke.

"Joker, get us the hell outta here on the double!"

Joker didn't respond, instead used the Normandy's weapons to punch a hole in the inner hull that blew a hole directly to the space. Joker immediately accelerated the ship at top speed through that hole and got out of the Collector base.

After getting a few miles away from it, they managed to see a lot of minor explosions on the hull and finally the base blew itself from the center like a star and the explosion expanded at great speed.

"Engaging the mass effect core" said Joker after which the Normandy entered the mass free space into FTL travel.

Everyone drew a long breath to relax themselves. Shepard gently patted Joker's shoulder.

"Great job Joker! Great job" congratulated Shepard. Then he slowly turned to Garrus who was standing besides him.

"Nice of you to take down the collectors. So what's next?" asked Garrus. Shepard removed his blood dragon armor helmet and his face was serious.

"Garrus, this is just the beginning. We got reapers and this new creatures that control them. We gotta stop them. See you later all at the hanger bay" replied Shepard and he left the cockpit. But again stopped and turned.

"EDI, Did you manage to establish contact with the Illusive man?" asked Shepard.

"I had been trying that for an hour. But my efforts are futile. His comm is intact but he's not responding" replied EDI. Shepard's face turned confused and suspicious. He felt something was not right and that the Illusive man would never let this go out of his hand. he invested a lot in this, but now he appears to be carefree.

"I'll see to this later" thought Shepard and left the place.

...

After 1 hour, Shepard now in his commander uniform, reached the hanger bay where his team including Joker watched him approaching them. They all cheered for him for successfully completing the mission with zero casualties.

"That was one hell of an ass kickin, Shepard" said Zaeed.

"It was an honor fighting alongside you" said Samara.

"Now it's time for a vacation" said Grunt.

"No" replied Shepard which drew silence among his team.

"The collectors are defeated, but in their place, we got not only the reapers, but also a new problem. These new creatures we faced are parasites, but they seem to evolve themselves by turning people into one of them. Now they control the reapers. We need act now. It is time we prepared ourselves for the greater cause" said Shepard.

"So what do we do now?" asked Miranda. Shepard took a moment to respond.

"You all were obligated to be in my team to fight the collectors. Now that the mission is over, You all can go your separate ways. The alliance people in this vessel had to go to earth" said Shepard.

By that time, the Normandy exited the FTL into the omega nebula itself.

"Thanks Shepard. Besides I got some important work that needs to be taken care off" replied Miranda. Shepard nodded in acknowledgement. There was only murmuring sounds of his team members conversing with one another. Then EDI came to life.

"Commander Shepard, You have received a top priority call from the Alliance brass" said EDI. Shepard was stunned to hear that. he never expected to receive a call from the alliance.

"Who's that?" asked Shepard.

"It's Admiral Steven Hackett. It's urgent" replied EDI. Shepard then understood everything as to why he received this call. He knew it was time to face the music.

He gave a concerned look towards Joker who did the same and shrugged his shoulder.

"Alright Joker, I think it's time"

...

Cronos Station
June 15, 2185
09:00 AM, GST

Illusive man was killed by his personal assassin Kai Leng was laying dead on the floor along side the rotten Leng's body.

Suddenly the Illusive man opened his eyes wide and he slowly turned his body and got to his feet struggling to move. He slowly got to see his arms like they were new and the first time he saw them. His bare hands slightly turned translucent with sage colored features slightly visible beneath the skin. He then downed his head to look at his abdomen wound to see that the wound wasn't there. He then lifted his head up and relaxed his neck muscles by stretching them.

He then stared at the empty space and then let a grim smirk.

"Too much of knowledge, Too much for a primitive. Now I'll take that" spoke the IM in a deep growling grim tone. It was clear that the IM wasn't human anymore. He then slowly walked towards the window where the star was visible.

"At last, I have everything I need to know of this galaxy. It is time I watched the cycle of fate continued to spin once more. I will grow as long as I can to depart this galaxy. It is time I released the instruments of salvation into the stars from the abyss. Soon...I SHALL FEAST!...Hm hm hm..." said the IM, his eyes turning sage colored.

The key mind had transferred it's control form Leng's body to the IM's body to gain lot of knowledge through his memories as Illusive knew almost many things about this galaxy and what and where things are happening. The key mind gained a lot from him.

"This primitive host will serve me till the harvest and I shall use this human as a conduit to control my actions safely. Through him I can achieve a lot" said the key mind in the IM's body who continued to stare at the star.

...

Spartan's base
June 15, 2185
06:45 AM, GST

Chief and the blue team after their workout, took bath and had their breakfast. Then they prepared to wear their armor using the assembly drones. Chief wore his Mark VI / Class 12 hybrid armor with his helmet on. The others wore their respective armor. Jorge was in due to get a new suit.

Then they all gathered in the hall.

"So let's see what Cortana had been to" said Chief and then five walked out to Lasky's quarters where Cortana asked them to assemble.

Chief and his team entered Lasky's quarters only to find Palmer, Carter, Marcus and the Arbiter. They all turned to see the blue team approaching them. The room was big with lots of stuff, a captain would enjoy.

"Ah, glad you are here, blue team" greeted Lasky. The blue team immediately stood in attention and delivered a crisp salute to their commanding officer. Lasky returned the salute and asked them to at ease.

"Still no need for the formalities, Chief. Especially not now" said Lasky with a smile.

"Greetings Spartans" greeted Arbiter.

"Good to see you Arbiter" replied Fred.

"I assume we are called here for a reason, Sir" said John. Lasky still felt uncomfortable when the Chief called him 'Sir' as he considered him more as a friend than his subordinate. But he knew that he was strict to his protocols which he always respected. But lately Lasky had been advising Chief to be more human than a machine.

"You know? You don't have to be a soldier all the time. But let's get to that point" said Lasky turning serious.

"Cortana, why did you call us?" asked Lasky in a commanding tone. Cortana's hologram popped up in front of them. Cortana didn't waste time and talked.

"At 06:00 hours, I managed to intercept an extranet broadcast from the citadel news network" said Cortana.

"A broadcast? What makes it important for us to watch?" asked Carter.

"Some politician crap, maybe?" asked Palmer with a jest, folding her hands.

"In a way. You are right, Commander. Watch this" said Cortana who then brought a big holo screen in front of them. Everyone were eager to listen to this.

Then video broadcasting played.

"Good morning to every citizen of this Citadel and the colonies of this galaxy, This is chief extranet news reporter Emily Wong of the Citadel news network, at your daily service"

"At 06:00 hours, this morning, the Turian councilor Sparatus of the council chambers presented a recording of his own for all the citizens of this galaxy. It is now played for your reference"

"Greetings citizens of the Milky way, this is high councilor Sparatus of the citadel council. This message is directed towards the strange new comers of this galaxy who appeared a month ago and another group that appeared a few weeks back"

Everyone's face in the hall turned confused and slightly terrified as they knew the councilor referred to them.

"Ever since you people stepped into this galaxy, peace had been degrading. You carry strange technologies and fire power never seen before and give us the crap that you are from another universe. But I refuse to believe that"

"What the hell?! Is he crazy?" stunned Lasky including the others.

"We the councilors, suspect that you are lying to hide the fact that systems alliance is developing illegal technologies at our blind spot to seize control or intimidate the council"

"This is is bullshit! Have they lost their nuts?" asked Linda.

"With all due respect, I am very much happy to say that your plans are nothing but fools errand. An entire Turian military is enough to upset the balance in the galactic power. We can hunt you down to the last if we manage to find you"

"This is getting worse!" said Marcus.

"But I'm a man of mercy. So I have made a decision. I am officially ordering you to appear before the council in 30 days time. In case of failure to appear?...Hm...The Turian hierarchy will officially declare war upon you and the systems alliance for this treachery...The clock's ticking!" the Turian councilor finished his message and the video cut back to the news anchor.

"Well, we all heard the councilor Sparatus's message. There had been quite a stir among the people as to whether they would appear or not as systems alliance's safety is at stake. Stay tuned for more as this is Emily Wong from the Citadel news Network, will be right back in a couple of minutes"

With that, the holo screen went off and there were a tension in the hall as nobody liked what just happened.

"Shit! Now we are in for real trouble. Are these bird heads always this dumb? asked Marcus irately.

"The council thinks we are splinter group of this universe's human race. Never seen such a foolishness. After all the evidences the spartans provided them, still they accuse us for heresy?! This madness must be stopped" said Arbiter angrily.

"Arbiter's right. I don't like this one bit. They charge us and unnecessarily drag this systems alliance government who had nothing to do with this. This is an unnecessary headache" said Lasky who tensed and angry with this announcement.

"Then I think it's time we paid them a visit. Blue team can lead us to that place" said Palmer. Lasky kept his finger over his chin thinking deep to decide their next step. He was wild eyed in this issue as one wrong step could cost everyone a lot. So diplomacy is a must in this situation.

He then stood up and turned to face the Chief. Then he sighed with mild sadness and spoke,

"Chief, let's say we go and meet them and explain ourselves. What then? What if they didn't listen?" asked Lasky. He asked this question to the blue team because they had already acquainted with the council before their arrival and knew them quite to some extent. Every one looked at them for a reply. Chief took his time to think and respond. He then made a decision and talked.

"Sir, if they don't listen to us, then we'll make them to" said Chief, his voice slightly deeper. Palmer was excited as she too had the same idea. Lasky without a choice nodded in approval.

...

A/N: That's it. With this, the ME2 story line gets over and the prelude to ME3 starts.