Chapter.6
Consequences
Shepard looked down at his opponent who had just fallen to the ground in a pool of its own discolored blood. He looked around the field hoping to quench his thirst for violence once more.
Shepard spotted his next victim; a group of drones were advancing on a Marine position and were hammering them with their beam like weapons. Shepard grinned as threw down his Revenant, he wanted to feel the enemies flesh tear under his hands.
Shepard held his breath and then made his move. He charged forward into the group of drones unleashing a storm of biotic energy as he did. Still grinning to himself Shepard ripped apart each drone; he used his immense power with such accuracy and finesse that it rivaled that of a doctor using a scalpel.
Covered in the mysterious liquid that irrupted from the Collectors that he had just finished tearing to pieces, Shepard ripped off his helmet and threw it to the ground. He couldn't focus with it restricting his view, and he preferred looking into the enemies eyes as he massacred them.
Shepard heard a faint voice in his ear, it was EDI trying to tell Shepard that the repairs were done and they could leave. However to Shepard the voice was a shrill pain that dug into his ear, he removed the earpiece like it was a bug trying to devour its way into his skull.
Joker screamed into his mike."Were the Hell is Shepard! We need to leave NOW!" Joker had been trying to get a hold off Shepard for some time, but due to Shepard bloodlust and pure rage he was not responding to any form of civil communications.
Grunt rounded a corner and saw Shepard a few yards away, without thinking Grunt rushed to Shepard he hoped to get Shepard attention so they could escape this planet.
Grunt grabbed Shepard shoulder and spun him around yelling as he did."Shepard were leaving get your ass on the ship!"
Grunt realized something was wrong with Shepard, his face was cracked open and his cybernetics were pushing themselves out of his own flesh slowly growing with each pulse of Shepard blood. His eyes had become an inferno filled with hate slowly fueling the fires.
Shepard couldn't think, he couldn't stop and he couldn't seem to differentiate between friend and foe. Shepards body pulsed with a dark red light that emitted from his core, it gave him a aura of pure fear to those near him.
Shepard grabbed Grunt by his massive chest and heaved him into a pile of crates and fallen Collectors. Grunt slammed into the ground still conscious but confused as to what exactly just happened.
He stood up and yelled into his mike. "Something's wrong with Shepard! He doesn't want to leave!" Grunt had to shout loudly even for him just so the crew could hear him over the sporadic gunfire that had been going on for too long.
Tali was helping EDI calibrate the engines with her Omni-Tool kneeling on the ground beside the ramp that lead up to the Normandy. She stopped typing on her Omni-Tool when she heard Grunts startling report.
Tali yelled to Garrus and Jack who were laying down suppressing fire with the rest of the team in an attempt to keep the Collectors at bay.
"Garrus! Jack! We have to go get Shepard!" Tali's voice was covered in fear; she didn't know what was happening with Shepard. The last time she had seen him he was helping Garrus cover a group of Marines tending to a wounded comrade.
Garrus and Jack followed Tali weaving in and out of various obstacles that littered the LZ. They passed the remains of the Hammerhead which was now a chard ruin with the bodies of two Marines half way out of the top hatch as if they were still trying to escape the burning tank which had now become there tomb.
Tali was the first to see Shepard she started to run to him but was stopped by Grunt who had obviously been watching Shepards actions.
Grunt spoke loudly but clearly. "Hold on Tali!..His not going to recognize you! Wait here me and Jack will drag him back on the ship!"
Tali slapped Grunts hand of her shoulder and ran to Shepard. Grunt yelled after her to stop but his voice was masked by the sounds of battle coming from all around them. Garrus was trying to run after her in an attempt to stop her; however he was cut short when a round from a Collector disrupted his shields forcing him to take cover.
Shepard had a drone on the ground with its will to fight long gone. Shepard was pulverizing the know deformed drone into a pulpy mess of unidentifiable parts.
Tali ran to him and grabbed his arm. He spun around when she touched him and glowed again with biotic energy ready to destroy his next opponent.
However something deep in back of his mind told him he knew this figure standing before him, he couldn't focus enough to realize who she was.
He stared at her and appeared calm and relaxed despite the rounds flying around him from another wave of Collectors that was too far away to have any accuracy.
His body began to relax, and the tension in his muscles gave up their struggle and complied with his mind which was now regaining control. His dark red biotic aura transformed back into a light blue, his eyes dimmed from blood red to their original light blue color, and his skin began closing up around the glowing cybernetics covering them up only leaving small scares.
He spoke one word quietly and soft. "Tali?" he sounded as if he doubted his eyes, like they were playing tricks on him and were not showing him the truth.
Tali reached around him and hugged him relived that he had recognized her and known who she was. She ignored the raging battle around them, for just that second nothing moved, nothing happened that interrupted the two.
Shepard was startled when she had hugged him, but he immediately came to and remembered who she was. He embraced her closing her body within his, hiding her from the dangers of war around them.
There moment was quickly ended by Jack screaming from a nearby barricade that was covered in holes and burn marks.
"HEY! NOW IS NOT THE TIME! GO GET YOUR ASSES ON THE SHIP!" Jack was infuriated by the two that seemed oblivious to the combat.
Shepard grabbed Tali's shoulder and spoke softly to her barely able to be heard over the surrounding sounds.
"Tali go get on the ship I'm right behind you. I need to make sure all my men make it." Shepard leaned in towards her as he spoke.
Tali nodded her head showing she understood. She ran over to the Hammerhead and then turned around and saw that Shepard hadn't moved she meet his gaze for a few seconds then continued her sprint.
After Tali disappeared from Shepards view, he ran over to Revenant and picked it up along with his helmet. He checked them both quickly before equipping them and reading up.
Garrus yelled over to Shepard from some cover. "ARE YOU STILL CRAZY?! ARE CAN WE LEAVE!" Garrus's facial expression was hard to read since he was a tuarian but Shepard could tell he was ready to be far away from this planet.
Shepard turned around and unleashed a final barrage of shockwaves towards the incoming Collectors before running to Garrus's side.
"Let's get out ah here!" Shepard's voice was calm but had a since of urgency in it.
Garrus nodded in agreement of Shepard recent idea and jumped up firing his rifle as he did.
Shepard pushed Garrus towards the Normandy and motioned his head for him to go. Garrus complied and ran to the ship followed by Jack.
Grunt casually lumbered over to Shepard and yelled to him.
"When we get back on the ship we gota have a talk!...just you and me.." Grunt grinned slightly as he did.
Shepard smiled and yelled back. "Come on let's go!" They both sprinted towards the Normandy.
When Shepard reached the other side of the ship he saw the Marines had erected a second layer of defenses around the Normandy ramp leading up to the entrance. The Collectors were gradually gaining ground and had already acquired the first few barricades using them as cover for their own advancement.
Shepard ran up the ramp stopping half way and taking a knee firing his weapon as support for the Marines limping up to the ship.
Shepard helped the last Marine up putting one of his arms over his shoulder and carrying him up. Garrus was standing in the hatch firing off a few last rounds as Shepard entered the ship.
Shepard helped the Marine sit down and then ran over to Jokers cockpit.
"Is everyone on board?!" Shepard had given up trying to hide his concern and his voice was now very nervous.
Joker punched in a few numbers on the console and yelled back to the commander "everyone's accounted for."
"Then get us off this rock." Replied Shepard in stern excited voice.
The Normandy shifted and lifted up in the air turning towards the sky as it did. The Collectors were firing blindly at it trying to stop in but there attempts were in vain.
The ship paused once it was facing the sky then shot forward like a jet screeching down a runway. The Normandy quickly passed through the atmosphere and was back in space.
Shepard turned around slowly looking over the gruesome sight of bent armor, broken bones, and bloodied corpses lying thought CIC. The crews were taking them all down to the med bay, but progress was slow since most of the crew that wasn't needed to fly the ship was the ones that were injuried.
Shepard started to go help the wounded when Private First class Arenando stepped in front of him with a grim look on his face.
"Shepard." His voice was slow and he was obviously tired. "Shepard, me and the crew left a little present back at the LZ." Arenando handed him a small remote and smiled widely through a bloodied face.
Shepard grinned with the PFC and pushed the small black button. He handed him the remote back and put a hand on his shoulder and said.
"We'll see more of those bastards again and when we do we can leave um and hell of a lot more." Shepard took his hand of the PFC's shoulder and turned around.
Shepard started to go to the navigation desk to plot there next course when he saw Tali standing by herself near the door to the armory. He turned around to Joker and said.
"Plot the damn course yourself this time…I'm busy." Shepard walked over to Tali and took her hands in his and lead her into the armory were they could be alone.
Joker looked over at EDI and smirked.
"Figures one time I have a perfect opportunity to make fun of him and the only one here is a damn glowing head." Joker laughed to himself and then started punching in the coordinates.