Chapter 5: Clash of the Titans
Ben stepped into his room with his towel and other toiletries in hand before letting out a contented sigh. After a long, brutal mission on a hot volcanic planet, a nice cool shower was a welcome relief for the young hero. After he placed his things back in his closet, Ben sat down on his bed and opened up his Omni-tool to look up some more galactic history, this time choosing to look at a point in human history called the "First Contact War". As he read, Ben learned that the whole conflict started out of a misunderstanding between the Turians and humanity, who were still relatively new to space travel and colonization. A Turian patrol detected a human scouting fleet activating a Mass Relay and literally shot them down, believing they were breaking a Council law. In retaliation, humanity declared war on the Turians and held their own before the Turians were able to take over one of their colonies, Shanxi. Eventually, after six days of fighting a losing battle and of dwindling rations, General Williams was forced to surrender to the Turian occupation. Upon seeing that name, Ben paused and thought for a moment. Why did that name seem familiar?
Ben just shrugged his shoulders and decided to talk with Shepard, Kaidan or Ashley about it later. Just then, Ben felt a gurgling sensation in his stomach and remembered his plan of getting a quick meal before meeting with his new crewmate Liara. After deactivating his Omni-tool, Ben got up and exited his room, heading for the elevator and setting it to take him to the crew deck. One short ride later, Ben stepped out and headed to the kitchen area… and saw that Liara was also headed in that direction.
Well, looks like I can get two things done at once, Ben thought, ignoring the tingling in his stomach as he walked over to the Asari scientist. Liara looked over at him and smiled.
"I have a feeling you're here to check on me?" She asked as Ben entered the kitchen.
"That, and also to get some chow," Ben sheepishly answered, "All that transforming can sometimes work up an appetite." Liara chuckled a bit at Ben's answer.
"Yes, that was certainly quite a surprise back on Therum," Liara said as she took a boxed lunch out of the fridge, "Even though that creature you used against the Krogan was rather… disturbing."
"Yeah, I didn't really want to use Toepick against him, but we were short on escape time and I wanted to get the fight over with quickly," Ben said as he looked inside the pantry and took out a can of soup, which he opened, poured into a bowl and put inside the microwave.
"I actually wouldn't mind learning about how you changed like that," Liara said as she and Ben walked over to the table. After they sat down, Ben held up his left arm and showed Liara the Omnitrix.
"This device on my arm is called the Omnitrix," Ben explained, "It allows me to scan the DNA of any sapient alien life-form in my universe, as well as transform into them. I can also use it as a communicator, and as a way to cure diseases and genetic deformities." Liara looked at the little device with a look of keen interest on her face. Before she could ask a question, though, the timer on the microwave went off, indicating that Ben's lunch was done.
"Just give me a second," Ben said as he stood up. After getting his lunch out of the microwave and getting a spoon, Ben went back to the table and sat across from Liara.
"So, how many aliens are stored on that device?" Liara inquired.
"Potentially ten thousand," Ben replied, "But right now, I've only unlocked around fifty." Liara raised her eyebrows, or rather her eyebrow markings, in surprise at this revelation.
"So those three I saw you turn into were all part of them," she said.
"Yep, and I even used a few more before we got into the ruins," Ben said before eating a spoonful of his soup, "In fact, I took down a Geth armature unit by myself right outside the entrance."
"Which one did you use?" Liara asked before eating a bite of her own food.
"I used this one," Ben replied as he showed her the hologram of Rath, "I call this form 'Rath.' As an Appoplexian, he naturally possesses enhanced strength, agility and endurance. The claws on his wrists can tear through most materials with ease, and can even cause shockwaves by slamming them into the ground."
"Sounds like a powerful asset," Liara complimented.
"Yeah, he's powerful, but his weakness is that he's not very bright," Ben admitted, "Appoplexians aren't really much on terms of brain power, preferring to charge in recklessly instead of using strategies. But when they get into a fight, you can be sure that their enemies are going to feel some hurt. Anyway, how are you holding up? I can't imagine being trapped inside those ruins would've been easy on you."
"I am doing well," Liara answered after eating some more of her food, "Your physician said that I was lucky to not suffer from dehydration in those ruins, but had me drink this orange liquid to help prevent it regardless. She also said that I should get some sleep, and my body would recover itself." Ben smiled at this news.
"Good to hear," He said, "We could always use another biotic on the team." With that, the two of them finished their lunch in silence before getting up and walking over to the kitchen, where Ben put his dishes in the dishwasher and Liara disposed of her trash. As Ben turned and prepared to leave, Liara looked over at him.
"You know, I do not recall learning your name," She said.
"It's Ben," He said as he extended his right hand, "Ben Tennyson." Liara reached out and shook Ben's hand before he left the kitchen while she went back into her room behind the medical wing. As Liara sat back down at her desk and rubbed her eyes, she couldn't help but wonder something.
What was that strange feeling in my stomach when I shook his hand? She thought before removing her shoes, dropping onto her bed, and falling asleep.
…
Ben walked over to the elevator and stepped inside, pressing the button that led to his room. As the elevator descended, Ben ran the entire conversation he had with Liara in his head a few times. The way the young Asari responded to his explanations, the way she held no fear of him after seeing what he did on Therum as Toepick, and the way she blushed slightly as she shook his hand, it almost once again reminded him exactly of Julie. Shaking the thoughts out of his head once again, Ben entered his room, took his shoes off, crashed down on the bed and fell fast asleep.
…
After getting some well-deserved rest, Ben got out of bed, put his shoes on, and exited the room before heading back to the elevator. One short ride later, Ben exited and walked up the stairs to the CIC, where he saw Shepard standing over at the galaxy map, looking through the terminal next to it.
"Looking for anything in particular, Commander?" Ben asked as Shepard looked down at him.
"Just looking at the coordinates that Admiral Kahoku gave us back on the Citadel," Shepard replied, "They lead to a planet called Edolus in the Sparta system." Ben raised his eyebrows at the answer. He had completely forgotten that he and Shepard had made a promise to the admiral on the Citadel that they'd find his missing soldiers.
"And I take it we're going to find them?" Ben asked. Shepard nodded.
"I was just about to tell the team and have Joker punch in the coordinates," Shepard replied, "Since you're already here, that's one less person to notify." With that, Ben left the room and went back to the elevator, this time punching the button that went to the shuttle bay. Once the elevator stopped, Ben stepped out and saw Ashley tuning up her sniper rifle at her usual place by the lockers. The teenager had to take a deep breath before walking over, as his little spat with her the other day still left a negative impression of her on his mind. Ignoring the icy glance she gave him, Ben reached into his locker and pulled out his combat gear.
"Did Shepard already tell you about our next stop?" Ben asked as he removed his shoes and slipped on his under-armor. Ashley looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.
"No, why?" she asked before putting the finishing touches on her sniper rifle.
"Remember the promise we made to Admiral Kahoku back on the Citadel?" Ben asked, to which Ashley nodded, "Shepard's punching in the planetary coordinates he gave us. Once we get there, we'll either try to find the missing soldiers and bring them back, or we can at least try to find out what happened to them when they got there." Suddenly a voice rang out.
"I couldn't have said it better myself." Ben and Ashley looked over and saw Shepard, Kaidan and Liara walking over to them, the former already wearing his armor. Ben blushed slightly as he rubbed his head.
"Didn't realize I just did your job for you, boss," Ben said as Shepard chuckled.
"Not a problem," Shepard replied reassuringly, "Besides, I already informed Kaidan and Liara, so now we just need to inform the others." With that, Ben, Shepard and Kaidan went to fetch Tali, Garrus and Wrex respectively. Once the crew was gathered around Shepard, the commander spoke up.
"Alright everyone, we're about to make a jump to the Sparta system and make a quick stop on the planet Edolus," Shepard said, "The other day, we received information from Alliance brass about some soldiers that went missing on this planet. Our mission is to either find the soldiers and take them home, or at the very least, find a lead on why they disappeared." Shepard then looked up at the intercoms.
"Joker; how long until we make the jump?" He asked.
"ETA to jump distance is 10 minutes, Commander," Joker replied.
"Good work, Joker," Shepard replied before looking at the rest of the team, "Everyone get your armor ready, prep your weapons, and then get inside the Mako. Liara, since you don't have your own suit of armor yet; I'll let you borrow one of my spare ones." With that, everyone went to their respective lockers and got ready for deployment. Ben, Kaidan and Ashley put on their armor; Wrex and Garrus checked their weapons, Tali opened her Omni-tool to make sure everything was primed, and Shepard led Liara to the elevator. Five minutes later, the latter two came back down and rejoined them. Ben looked over and saw Liara wearing a suit of black armor that looked similar to the suits that he and Kaidan were wearing. Before he could say anything, though, everyone heard Joker's voice on the intercom.
"Hang tight, everyone. Preparing to make the jump," The pilot said. A few seconds later, everyone felt the ship lurch forward as it made the FTL jump. Ben had never actually been on a ship when it was travelling at FTL before, so this was a new experience for him. A few minutes later, Joker's voice spoke over the intercom again.
"We've arrived in the Sparta system, Commander," He said, "Preparing arrival at Edolus."
"Glad to hear it, Joker," Shepard replied before looking at the rest of the team, "Everyone get into the Mako and prepare for drop-off." Ben's stomach lurched at the thought of being dropped from the ship inside that metal deathtrap again, but he complied nonetheless. Shepard once again climbed in the cockpit, with Kaidan riding shotgun, while everyone else climbed into the passenger seats in the back. A few more minutes later, the Normandy entered the lower atmosphere of Edolus, and the door to the shuttle bay opened. Ben looked to his left and saw that Liara was growing nervous.
"He's waiting until we're getting low enough, right?" The Asari asked.
"This baby was meant for air drops," Ashley answered, "100 meters is about as low as it gets." Ben saw that Liara's eyes widened at this. Without even thinking about it, Ben placed his hand on top of hers, something that instantly caught her attention.
"Don't worry about it," Ben reassured, taking notice that Liara's cheeks were turning slightly purple, "It only lasts for a few seconds, and then we're on the ground like it never happened." Liara nodded, then everyone felt the Mako driving forward. Liara turned her hand upward and intertwined her fingers with Ben's, tightening her grip on his hand as the Mako drove off the ramp and flew into the air. After a short fall, the cabin rocked back and forth as the Mako made a solid landing on the surface. Ben looked over at Liara, who was now breathing heavily and still holding onto his hand. Kaidan saw her terrified expression and chuckled a bit.
"I remember my first time," The lieutenant said, "You'll get used to it."
"I hope you're right," Liara replied before she looked down and saw that she was still holding Ben's hand. Her cheeks blushed even darker as she quickly let go of his hand, both of them looking in opposite directions awkwardly as the Mako began driving forward.
"Alright, according to the coordinates provided by Admiral Kahoku, the signal's point of origin should be just over those hills," Shepard informed as he drove. Ben looked out the cockpit's windshield and saw a large rocky hill in front of them.
"Are we actually going over that thing?" He asked.
"The fastest way to those coordinates is over the hill, so yes," Shepard replied. Ben gulped nervously. If the bumpy ground back on Therum drove him nuts, then he doubted the craggy structure of the hill would be any better. Sure enough, he was right. The Mako jerked left and right as Shepard tried to carefully drive over the rocky hill. Ben looked to his right and saw that Tali was once again terrified of the ride.
"Keelah, please let me out of this thing," She whispered. Sympathy once again took hold of Ben as he smiled slightly.
"Just relax," Ben said as Tali looked over at him, "Try to imagine something else right now, like you're back in the engine room on the ship." Tali nodded before turning her head back around and closing her eyes. Ben looked down and saw that she was no longer rubbing her hands together. Her jerky movements also died down, indicating that she was starting to calm down. Soon enough, Shepard drove the Mako over the hill and took a moment of pause.
"There, I can see something down in the valley below," Kaidan said as he pointed over to a faint glimmer in the distance. Shepard looked over and saw what the lieutenant was pointing at.
"Good eyes, Kaidan," Shepard complimented.
"Any time, sir," Kaidan replied as the commander pressed down on the gas and proceeded to drive down the other side of the hill, which, to the relief of everyone in the back seat, had smoother terrain. As they descended the hill and started driving across the plain, Ben couldn't help but get a feeling that they weren't the only life forms in the area. A short ride later, the team made it over to the exact coordinates that Admiral Kahoku had provided, and what Ben saw made him feel sick. Several dead soldiers were lying dead next to a burning tank, and some kind of device was running in front of the tank. Shepard stopped the vehicle a good distance away from the site and turned to face the team alongside Kaidan.
"Alright, everyone put your helmets on and proceed with caution," Shepard instructed, "This is the perfect setting for an ambush." With that, everyone else, minus Tali, put on their helmets and prepared to disembark the Mako. Once Shepard and Kaidan donned their helmets, the former opened the hatch. Once everyone was outside the vehicle, Shepard, with Kaidan and Ben covering his flanks, led the team over to the site. However, when they got close, everyone felt a sharp tremor coming from underground. At first, it almost felt like an earthquake, but Ben got a nagging feeling that it was much worse. And once again, he was right.
The ground to their right almost seemed to explode as a huge dust cloud was kicked up and a thundering roar shook the air. The team looked over and saw a gigantic creature poking up out of the ground. It looked like a giant worm, with a set of tentacles surrounding the mouth, four large blue eyes on the front of the head, and a pair of arms sporting scythe-like claws on each side of its body. Ben couldn't help but feel both awed and terrified at the same time. He had seen creatures like this one before, but yet he felt intimidated just by being in its presence. The others, however, weren't sharing those same feelings, Shepard especially.
"Thresher Maw! Everyone scatter!" Shepard called out as the beast turned to face its new prey. The team split up in different directions as the Thresher Maw spat a gob of green liquid at them. Ben, who was running with Shepard and Garrus, saw the liquid splash on the ground before seeing green steam coming out of the puddle.
"Oh great, so that thing can spit acid," Ben muttered before looking back at Shepard, who was now shooting at the creature with his assault rifle. The teen also saw that the commander was tensing up in what looked like fear. Deciding to worry about that later, Ben activated his helmet's communicator.
"Shepard, have yourself and the rest of the team retreat to the Mako," Ben said, "I'll try and draw that thing's attention."
"Are you crazy?!" Shepard responded, "I know you're strong, Ben, but that thing will eat you alive before you can even change!"
"There's no time to argue, Commander," Ben retorted, "I don't know about you, but I don't want to end up like those dead soldiers over there. Call the team, fall back to the Mako, and get away from here!" Shepard was surprised at how insistent Ben was being about the matter, but he complied with his request nevertheless.
"Attention everyone, fall back to the Mako," Shepard instructed, "I repeat, get back to the Mako, now!" Garrus, who had listened to the whole exchange, looked at Ben with a concerned expression behind his helmet before regrouping with the others.
…
Shepard and the rest of the crew managed to fall back to the Mako, where Kaidan looked everyone over before he suddenly realized that someone was missing.
"Where's Ben?" The lieutenant asked.
"He stayed behind to face the Thresher Maw," Shepard replied.
"Alone?!" Ashley snapped, "Why did you let him face that thing alone?!"
"Because he's the only one who can," Garrus replied, "You all saw how easily he defeated a Geth armature unit on Therum. A Thresher Maw might be a little more challenging for him." As the seven fighters looked out at the battlefield, Liara put her hands together and closed her eyes, sweat now beading on her forehead.
Please return from this safely, She silently prayed as she looked on.
…
Ben ran to the left to avoid another gob of acid that the Maw spat at him. He knew that if he wanted to take the fight to the beast, then it was now or never to change. Bringing up the Omnitrix as the Thresher Maw roared at him, Ben turned the dial to the alien he needed and pressed it down. A blinding flash of light later, everyone, including the Thresher Maw, saw a new creature standing before him or her. It looked like a humanoid brontosaurus that stood 12 feet tall, with a broad central body, muscular arms and legs, a strongly built tail, and a long neck thickened with muscle and sinew.
"HUMUNGOUSAUR!" The alien bellowed in a deep voice before he glared at the Thresher Maw, "Hey, fish bait! Why don't you try picking on someone with more meat on his bones?" With that, the Vaxasaurian charged at the Thresher Maw and delivered a powerful haymaker to its body.
The blow toppled the beast, but it got back up and spat more acid at him. Humungousaur avoided the attack and tried to punch the Thresher Maw again, only for it to swing one of its claws at him. The attack sent Humungousaur flying back. Humungousaur climbed back to his feet with a groan. His thick skin might have stopped the claw from doing any serious damage to him, but the landing left him with a nasty headache. Humungousaur glared at the Thresher Maw as the monster roared at him. Deciding to throw caution to the wind, he charged back over the Thresher Maw and delivered another punch to its torso.
As the Maw fell over, Humungousaur ran around and grabbed onto the creature's head as it was getting up. Irritated by the struggle its prey was putting up, the Thresher Maw thrashed its head back and forth in an attempt to shake off the attacker, but Humungousaur held on with an iron grip. He then landed a few powerful punches to the left temple of the Thresher Maw's head before the beast finally managed to shake him off. Humungousaur hit the ground like a cannonball and bounced back a couple times. The Thresher Maw then swung its claw at him again, knocking Humungousaur to the side and roaring loudly.
…
The rest of the team watched the battle with pounding hearts and widened eyes, seeing their friend getting thrown around by the Thresher Maw.
"Dammit, this is bad," Kaidan said as he reached down for his pistol.
"We need to help him somehow!" Liara said worriedly.
"We can't help him," Shepard said, "The Thresher Maw is Ben's fight, and I have a feeling that it's only just starting."
…
Humungousaur got back to his feet as he rubbed the spot where the Thresher Maw swiped its claw at him. The Thresher Maw growled lowly before it spat another gob of acid, which the Vaxasaurian managed to dodge. As he tried to catch his breath, Humungousaur tried to think of a way to take that thing down for good.
How am I going to beat this thing? He thought, I've hit it with everything I've had, but it just keeps coming back for more. Guess I need to take things up a notch. With that, Humungousaur began to concentrate, and soon his body began to change. He started getting larger, a crest grew out of his head, his shoulders gained padding like some kind of armor, hardened plates grew from his back, and spikes appeared on his tail. By the time he was finished changing, Humungousaur had grown five times his normal size, and became more powerful as a result.
"Let's see how you handle me now!" The Vaxasaurian shouted as he slammed his fists down onto the ground, sending a tremor that shook the Thresher Maw violently. As the beast tried to hold its body upright, Humungousaur barreled over and shoulder-rammed it; knocking them both to the ground. As they struggled, the Thresher Maw wrapped its tentacles over Humungousaur's head and lifted him upwards in a surprising show of strength before throwing him back. Humungousaur recovered and got back on his feet, but then the Maw went underground. At first, Humungousaur began to panic, but then took a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Alright Ben, just relax," He said to himself, "You won't be able to feel him coming if you're overanxious." With that, Humungousaur looked around for any sign of the Thresher Maw's reemergence. As he looked, Humungousaur began to recollect the strategies the creature used in battle. Its main method of attack was that spit of acid, and its claws could do some nasty damage when used up close. Its roar was clearly used as an intimidation factor and not as a weapon, and Humungousaur could even see several rows of sharp teeth lining the inside of its mouth. Before he could think any further, however, he felt the ground beneath him begin to vibrate.
This telltale sign meant that there was something massive, and it was on the move. It didn't take long for the Vaxasaurian to figure out the source of the vibrations, as he immediately leapt to the side. A moment later, the Thresher Maw burst out of the ground, roaring and ready for the next round. The beast turned and faced its prey with a deep, rumbling growl, a gesture that Humungousaur returned. After a few seconds of glaring at each other, the two of them charged, or lunged in the Thresher Maw's case, and tried to attack each other head on. The Thresher Maw swung its claws at Humungousaur, only for the Vaxasaurian to catch them and try to push the beast back, causing the two of them to lock in a power struggle. As they pushed, Humungousaur looked up at the creature's head and got a good look at the inside of its mouth. Upon closer inspection, he saw two bulging pouches inside its mouth. Then realization hit him: those must be where the creature's acid was made and stored. Humungousaur smirked as he found his new target.
"Bingo," He said as he heaved at the creature and managed to push it back before striking its body with his spiked tail. While the Thresher Maw's thick hide prevented the spikes from doing any serious damage, the force of the impact staggered it just long enough for Humungousaur to weave behind it, and with surprising agility for his size, and climb up onto its back. Before the Maw could figure out what had just happened, it suddenly had a 60-foot Vaxasaurian riding on its back like a mechanical bull.
…
Back at the Mako, Shepard and the rest of the crew couldn't believe their eyes. Here was a Thresher Maw, a beast that struck fear into people from every species, even Krogan, and it was fighting on even terms with a creature almost as big as its head and upper torso!
"Oh my God, he's actually winning!" Kaidan said as he saw Humungousaur climb up on its back.
"Let's hope he can last long enough to take it down," Wrex added, "It looks like he just figured out the Thresher Maw's weak spot. If he can damage or remove at least one of the acid sacs, then the fight's practically over."
"Come on, Ben, kick its ass!" Ashley cried out as she clenched her fists in excitement. Liara, meanwhile, continued to watch silently, sweating out of suspense.
"He certainly has courage," She whispered as she continued to watch the fight, "Let us hope it allows him to survive."
…
Humungousaur held on tightly as the Thresher Maw thrashed about trying to shake him off. His grip was strong, but he could feel himself starting to slip. If he didn't do something soon, then the Thresher Maw would be able to throw him off and inflict some serious harm on him. Deciding to throw caution to the wind, Humungousaur pulled himself up the Thresher Maw's neck until he was right behind the head. Wrapping his arms, legs and tail around the base of the Maw's neck, the Vaxasaurian enveloped the beast in a bear hug and used his own body weight to bring it down to the ground.
Once there, Humungousaur used his left hand to keep the Thresher Maw pinned down while he moved in front of it and reached his right hand right into its mouth. He felt a slight stinging sensation from the beast's acidic saliva as well as a painful cutting sensation due to rubbing against the Thresher's sharp teeth. After a second of groping around inside the creature's mouth, and gritting his teeth to resist the slight pain, Humungousaur finally found what he was looking for. As he reached down and grabbed onto the acid sac of the left side of its mouth, the Thresher Maw figured out what its adversary was trying to do. Reeling itself back up off the ground with a surprising show of force, the Thresher Maw lifted its head up high, with Humungousaur hanging on for dear life, and roared loudly as it bit down hard on Humungousaur's arm.
Humungousaur gritted his teeth and growled loudly as he swallowed down a scream before he tightened his grip on the acid pouch. As the Thresher Maw opened its mouth to take another bite, Humungousaur took the opportunity to act. Using all the power he could muster, the Vaxasaurian ripped his arm out of the Thresher Maw's mouth, and took the acid pouch with it in the process. A mix of blood and acid covered Humungousaur's arm as he let go and fell to the ground while the Maw roared in agony. Without the safety measure inside its mouth to keep its acid weapon contained, the Thresher Maw's very own acid began burning away at the inside of its mouth and body. Eventually the beast fell over dead, the acid ceasing its flow. Humungousaur looked at its fallen adversary before he dropped the acid pouch and turned back to the team, who were now approaching him.
"You doing okay, Ben?" Shepard asked when he heard Humungousaur groan in pain as he held his arm. When he let it down, everyone saw how gnarled his arm had gotten during the fight.
"I'll be alright, just need to cue up another old friend," Humungousaur grunted, "Give me a second." With that, the Vaxasaurian shrank down to his normal size before reaching up and pressing the Omnitrix symbol on his chest. One flash of light later, they saw a completely new alien standing in Humungousaur's place. It looked like it was made of some kind of plant material, with a dark green and black body, bright red petals surrounding its head with a yellow petal in the middle that made it resemble a flame, feet that looked like roots, and more red petals coming out of the shoulders. Its face was black with two green oval-shaped eyes.
"SWAMPFIRE!" The alien called out before looking at his right arm, which now looked like a decaying plant. Swampfire didn't even have to think about it before he reached up with his left hand and shot a stream of fire out of it. Everyone, including Wrex, was shocked that Ben would do that to himself.
"What the hell did you just do?" Ashley nervously asked.
"Wait for it," Swampfire said with a smile. A second later, his right arm had completely grown back as good as new. The team also heard some strange sucking noises coming from the Methanosian's body, indicating that he was regenerating from any other injuries that he may have sustained during the battle. After a minute of looking his body over, Swampfire reached up to the Omnitrix symbol and pressed it, reverting back to his human form.
"Nothing better than an alien that can patch himself up," Ben said as he stretched his new arm. Shepard walked up to him and put a hand on the teen's shoulder.
"That was easily the bravest thing I've ever seen," The commander complimented, "But as amazing as that was, I really don't recommend you make it a habit."
"Can't make any promises there, boss," Ben replied as he looked behind him at the dead soldiers, "Let's finish what we came here for." Shepard nodded.
"Let's move out, everybody," Shepard ordered as the team put up his or her weapons and marched forward. When the eight of them approached the tank, Tali saw familiar symbols on the soldiers' chests.
"Alliance soldiers," The Quarian analyzed, "Looks like they were lured here by the distress beacon."
"These must be Admiral Kahoku's men," Ashley said, "He'll want to know what happened here."
"Agreed," Shepard said, "Everyone get back to the Mako. I'll radio Joker and tell him where to pick us up." With that, everyone piled back into the vehicle while Shepard told Joker where they currently were. After that, Shepard climbed into the cockpit of the Mako, with Kaidan once again riding shotgun. After a ten-minute wait, the Normandy had arrived, flying low enough for the Mako to be driven into the shuttle bay. Once everyone was out of the vehicle, most of them went back to their usual places. Ashley went back to the weapons rack, Wrex went back over to his usual area, Tali went back to the engine room, and Garrus stayed behind to tend to and repair the Mako. As Shepard, Kaidan, Ben and Liara entered the elevator, Ben looked over at the commander.
"Hey Shepard, can I talk to you about something in private?" Ben asked. Shepard looked over at him.
"Sure," He answered, "Just wait outside my office while I punch in the coordinates to the Citadel, then I'll join up with you." With that, the elevator came to a stop at the crew deck. Shepard, Ben and Liara stepped off, while Kaidan remained on the elevator, pressing the button to take him to the barracks. When Shepard went up the stairs to the CIC, Liara went over to Ben.
"Why did you do that?" She asked.
"Do what?" Ben replied, looking at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Why did you risk your life to defeat that Thresher Maw by yourself? That thing could've killed you back there," Liara explained. Ben saw that her eyes were holding back tears, so Ben decided to come clean.
"When we scattered to keep the Thresher Maw from attacking us all at once, I saw that the commander was getting scared of it, like he had met it before or something. That's why I told him to take you guys and fall back. If he stayed, then chances are he'd have slipped up and gotten killed. If he died, then there'd be no one to stop Saren." Liara nodded at Ben's explanation.
"I suppose that would work," She said, "Well, I have to go. I am sure your physician will want to check on me. I hope we can talk some more later."
"Sure thing," Ben replied. With that, Liara disappeared behind the door of the medical bay, leaving Ben with another one of those tingling feelings in the pit of his stomach.
Stop doing that! Ben snapped internally as he went over to the door to Shepard's office/cabin. A few minutes later, Shepard himself came back down the staircase and walked over to him.
"Come on in," He said as he led Ben inside the office. Sitting down behind the desk, Shepard gestured to the chair in front of it, which Ben sat down on. "What did you want to ask me?"
"What happened back on that planet?" Ben inquired, "Back on Therum, you faced those Geth and even that Krogan without the slightest sign of fear or hesitation, but when that worm appeared, it looked like you saw the devil himself." Shepard saw that Ben's emerald eyes were demanding a truthful answer, so the commander decided not to beat around the bush.
"A few years ago, I was on patrol duty with my squad on the planet Akuze trying to find a missing pioneering team," Shepard explained, "But when we got to the main colony, we only found the intact settlement with no survivors. When we set up camp for the night, several Thresher Maws suddenly attacked us. We tried to run back to the landing zone to get the hell of that planet, but we kept losing more and more men along the way. We had no idea what we were up against then, and our numbers kept dwindling as the Threshers kept up their attack. Ultimately, I was the only one to make it out alive."
"I made it to the LZ and got to the ship before those monsters could finish the job, and then we hightailed it away from that planet as quickly as we could. I received therapy for it, but for a long time my dreams were haunted by images of those Thresher Maws attacking us. When you volunteered to fight that Thresher Maw back on Edolus by yourself, I absolutely wanted to drag you out of there myself, but something told me that you could handle it." Ben listened to Shepard's story with utmost intention. It suddenly became clear to him why the commander froze up when he saw the Thresher Maw.
"I actually understand what that's like," Ben said, "After I survived my first battle with Vilgax, I thought I had it made, but for a while, I could still see him every night in my dreams, constantly declaring he'd kill me and take the Omnitrix if it was the last thing he'd ever do. Eventually I managed to get over it, but it still left a mark on me."
"Looks like we both had problems with PTSD," Shepard said with a grin, "Now I have something I want to ask you."
"Go ahead," Ben responded.
"What was up with you and Ashley back on Therum?" he asked. Ben groaned internally as he remembered driving his elbow into her ribs for being a smartass toward Liara.
"It was the fact that she was being harsh and rude toward someone that she had never even met," Ben explained, "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's people who judge someone before meeting them. Her antisocial and xenophobic attitude is her fatal flaw."
"That still doesn't excuse the fact that you physically assaulted her," Shepard reminded.
"It was the only way I could shut her up," Ben defended, "If I tried to tell her to stop with the attitude, she wouldn't listen to me, so I had to resort to intimidation to shut her up. I can also read her like a book. Ashley's not mean, she's just confused and unsure of both herself and the people around her, us included."
"Any ideas, then?" Shepard asked.
"Just try and talk with her about it," Ben suggested, "She won't listen to me because of her trust issues, but she'll definitely listen to you, especially since she's got a little thing for you." Ben smirked and winked with that last one. Shepard just chuckled and shook his head.
"You can be a real jerk sometimes, you know that?" He teased.
"Only if I want to be," Ben answered. The two men shared a laugh before Ben got up and departed from Shepard's office, the door sliding shut behind him. After getting a snack from the mess hall, Ben went to the elevator and headed back to his room to get some rest after that titanic battle with that Thresher Maw.
…
Another chapter is now in the projects. Commence celebrations! Before I go on, I want to bring something up. A lot of people have been suggesting that I give Ben transformations from the Mass Effect universe, but while it would be interesting to see what Ben would look like as a Salarian or a Drell, I regretfully inform you all that I will not be giving Ben any alien forms from the Mass Effect universe. Reason being: they don't have a lot to offer him. For example: the Krogan and the Yahg. Their unique abilities are superhuman strength and endurance. While those are impressive, those abilities are all but standard issue for Ben's aliens. I'd say that 80% of his aliens have those two abilities. Even XLR8 and Fasttrack have them. Another example is the Asari. While the Asari are indeed powerful, I don't think Ben would be able to live with himself if he had to turn into a female just to access biotics. That being said, I do have plans for Ben's adventures post-ME1, but that's not for a long time.
Now, with that out of the way, here's a little something to get your attention for the next chapter: Ben and Liara's first time together on the Citadel. More BenXLiara bonding time.
As always, read, enjoy, and review!