Chapter 5: Korlus
"Commander, we're thirty minutes from Korlus."
Jokers voice roused Shepard from his slumber. Pushing aside his bedcovers, he quickly washed and shaved. Ashe looked at his reflection he noticed the largest of the cybernetic scars, the one that ran just above his jawline from his ear to his chin, has closed up, no longer glowing red but instead just simple scar tissue and according to Chakwas that too would fade. His daily tasks done he turned to his armor closet. Within moments he was outfitted in his personal armor, the Aegis Vest and the Sirta Foundation's Stimulator Conduits complementing the N7 armor he had picked up soon after his resurrection.
Once he was ready he headed down to the CIC. Kelly told him as soon as he exited the lift that he had no new messages and none of the crew had requested a chat so he headed unburdened to the Armory. Nodding at Jacob, who was examining one of the Mattock rifles The Illusive Man had shipped to the Normandy, he went over to Weapons Locker that contained most of the squad's weapons, save for the few spread out across the tables of the armory. Pressing in his private code, he caused a door in the locker to open, revealing his personal weapons. Reaching inside he first pulled out the M-8 Avenger Assault Rifle and clipped it to his back, next followed the M-92 Mantis Sniper Rifle and the M-22 Eviscerator Shotgun, his array of weapons was finally topped off by the M-6 Carnifex Pistol and the M-100 Grenade Launcher he had found on the Cerberus station during his awakening. Clipping each into its specific place on his body he turned to leave.
But Jacob's voice checked his step.
"Commander," He said, turning from his work on the new rifles. "Could we speak for a minute?"
"What's on your mind Jacob?" Shepard replied, turning to face the Cerberus Operative.
"It's about that new guy we picked up. Farrows."
"What about him?" Shepard asked, leaning against the wall of the armory, arms crossed. "I heard you and he didn't get along at the meeting."
"You could say that." Jacob sighed, looking down at the floor then back up at Shepard. "I don't trust him. After I met him I did some digging. Used both Cerberus and friends I have in the Alliance. He's been around: Pit Fighter in the Batarian Hegemony-"
"Sorry, he was a what?" Shepard cut in, eyebrows raised. He too had looked at Ethan's file but he hadn't noticed that. Then again, he had only gotten past the first page before falling asleep.
"A Pit Fighter. Think of a Roman gladiator and you've got the gist of it. Anyway, after that he was a bodyguard for a while. He foiled at least five different attempts on the Turian General Hararn. Then he drifted to Omega and took up residence as the Personal Assassin of none other than Aria T'Loak. All in the space of two years."
"So?" Shepard replied, not really getting what Jacob was getting at. "Nobody on this ship has had a peaceful life."
"Yeh, but can we trust a guy who spent two years flitting around the galaxy? Fighting for whoever paid him the highest?"
"Jacob, I'm not asking you to like the guy or approve of his business ethics." Jacob answered, his tone becoming slightly colder. "I'm asking you to work with him. Anything else is a bonus."
"Very well." Was Jacob's only reply to the mild rebuke.
"Do you need anything else Jacob?"
"No, that'll be all."
And with that he turned to leave.
A few minutes later he was in the Cargo Bay, waiting for Mordin to finish up in his Lab and join him. As he waited he went over his team choice. They were going to bring back Okeer, a Krogan Warlord and Geneticist, from a planet essentially run by the Blue Suns mercenary group. Zaeed, who was sat across from him in the shuttle, was an obvious choice. He knew everything there was to know about the Blue Suns, their tactics, and their command structure. If there were Blue Suns involved, their co-founder was the man to call. And as for the Salarian? His skills with flame techs would prove invaluable in the fight against the armor of the Blue Suns and he would be able to confirm Okeer's skills.
His train of thought was brought to a juddering halt by a tapping on the hull of the shuttle. Looking towards the open door he saw Ethan, fully dressed and drinking from a mug of coffee. Shepard saw his blue eyes surveying the old mercenary and himself and he couldn't be sure but he swore he saw the blonde fighter's eyes narrow momentarily as they alighted on the Carnifex pistol at his hip, before they turned back to their normal, inviting, shape.
"Hey." He said, taking a sip of the black liquid in the mug, feeling the warmth spreading down his throat. "You heading down to Korlus?"
"That's the plan." Zaeed supplied the answer. "Soon as the doc gets here anyway."
"Don't suppose I could come along Shepard?" Ethan asked, putting the now empty mug on the ground. "I've always wanted to see the garbage scow with an atmosphere."
"Sorry Ethan. Ground Team's chosen." Shepard replied, keeping his tone even.
"Just three?" Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Surely four would work better. If someone gets injured there's one to help them and the other two can provide cover fire."
The numbers began running through Shepard's head. Tactics updated, offensive and defensive plans updated and adapted to the proposal. Finally he reached a decision.
"You make a good point. Get in." Shepard agreed, gesturing at a spare seat.
"Just as well I packed." Ethan replied, pushing the folds of his greatcoat away from his body, showing the twin guns and sword that made up his weaponry.
This time it was Shepard's turn to raise an eyebrow. "A sword? Kinda old tech."
"You'd be surprised." Came the reply. "I've found that this blade" he continued, patting the scabbard. "Is more than good enough to carry into a fight. More lives have been taken by this than by the plague you stopped on Omega."
"Pretty impressive." Shepard replied.
"It better be. I didn't train with it everyday for twenty years just to be average."
"Twenty years?" Shepard asked, incredulous. "But that means you started training at-"
"Four years old." Shepard noticed that Ethan's eyes had grown cold. He knew it was unwise to keep pressing.
Luckily at that moment Doctor Solus appeared at the shuttle entrance.
"Greetings." Then his eyes alighted on Ethan. "Ah, Farrows. Seems you have convinced Shepard to allow you to accompany us. Good. Always personally felt four man squad superior to three."
"Why didn't you say so?" Shepard demanded, his voice rising in surprise.
"Didn't find it appropriate. Considering history of service found it highly probable that you had considered four man squad and dismissed it."
Shepard sat back in his chair, arms folded. It was at that point, as the hangar doors opened and the drop shuttle powered up its engines, that he noticed Zaeed was making a deliberate attempt not to look at him.
"Don't tell me you thought so to."
"Didn't think it was right, you holding my contract and all." The gruff mercenary replied.
"How many of the others feel this way as well?" He asked, pinching the bridge of his nose and almost dreading the answer.
It was a good job space was a vacuum. Or else their enemies on the rapidly approaching planet below them probably would've heard Ethan's peals of laughter.
As they touched down on Korlus Shepard drew the M-8 Avenger from his back. Feeling the familiar weight in his hands, he jumped down from the shuttle and ran to the nearest bit of cover. To his left was Mordin, a Carnifexheavy pistol in hand. To his right Ethan followed, hood up and gripping both Shuriken SMGs. And, forming the rearguard, Zaeed followed, Mantis Sniper Rifle scanning the horizon. What confronted them was an endless expanse of twisted, broken metal. The ground was littered with barely recognisable engine and hull pieces and to their right rose a great hulk of metal, the badly eroded hull of what had been a human cruiser, which was now listing dangerously to one side.
"Well for once a Council Official wasn't lying. This place is a dump." Shepard heard Ethan say to nobody in particular.
Repressing a smile, he set his mouth to a grim line and focussed his mind on the mission ahead. Confident that everyone was ready, he broke cover, rifle sweeping back and forth.
"THERE IS ONLY MEASURE OF SUCCESS: KILL OR BE KILLED!" A female voice blared over a nearby loudspeaker. Ignoring it, as he would a noisy insect, he moved forward, his squad fanning behind him.
"Canned orders over loudspeaker? Classy." Zaeed's words dripped with sarcasm.
"Stay focussed," Shepard told him as they ran. "We're looking for a Krogan Warlord."
As they ran through corridors formed by the broken remnants of once glittering ships Shepard knew each of member of the ground team felt the same familiar feelings of apprehension at the coming conflict. Mordin, as was normal for a Salarian, processed his feelings quickly, Zaeed dealt with his differently. He seemed to turn that apprehension into anticipation, gaining a modicum of pleasure from the knowledge that he was about to put another one of the Blue Suns' projects out of commission. Ever since he'd prevented Zaeed from taking his vengeance on Vido Santiago, the current head of the Blue Suns who had been Zaeed's partner, before he betrayed and shot him, Zaeed saw each attack on the Blue Suns as a personal attack against his nemesis. He turned to his training, putting aside all emotion; his mind's only concern the positioning of his squad, of what tactical manoeuvres to use. Why he didn't know. Looking over to his right he looked over at the black-garbed figure of Ethan. His hood hid his face, making his eyes unreadable, but his gait and the smirk that was the only part of his face visible showed that he was at ease.
"BEING HIRED IS ONLY THE BEGINNING! YOU MUST EARN YOUR PLACE IN THE MIGHTY ARMY WE ARE BUILDING!"
His gaze snapping forward his radio picked up the sound of nearby Merc transmissions. Throwing back a hand he called a halt. Striding over to a broken section of panelling Shepard placed his back to it and peered around the corner.
"Merc listening station." He supplied to the ground team. Roughly five mercs, no heavies or mechs." He turned then to look his men in the eyes. "Zaeed, when we break cover I want you send a concussive round at them. Mordin, when they get up I expect them to come face to face with your incineration tech. Ethan, I want suppressing fire from you."
"You got it Shepard." The blonde haired fighter replied.
The first the mercs knew of Shepard's attack was when Zaeed's Concussive round exploded in their midst, causing a blast of pressure that knocked them to the ground. Rushing behind cover Shepard began laying down fire, the Assault rifle bucking only slightly in his hands. As one mercenary struggled to get to his feet Mordin launched an incendiary at him. The superheated plasma burned through his hardsuit and within a few moments the mercenary was a writhing mass of charred flesh and flames. Sliding into cover Ethan flipped both Shurikens into Full-Auto. Then, with a deep breath, he leapt up and poured fire from the heavily modified weapons into the disorientated mercs. The mass-accelerated rounds, as well as those of Shepard, Mordin and Zaeed, punched into the mercenaries and within a few seconds after contact all hostiles had been dealt with.
As the ground team made their way up onto the Listening Station's main area, which was nothing more than a platform raised above the filth-covered ground, Shepard glanced down the ramp that lead further into the maze of scrap. His eyes alighted on the crumpled but breathing figure of a Blue Suns merc. The Concussive Round had probably thrown him clear of the conflict. As he began walking up to him he put away the Assault Rifle, a gesture of trust the others reciprocated.
"Shit, shit! It won't stop bleeding…I'm gonna…son of a bitch!" The merc gasped through gritted teeth.
"Doesn't look fatal." Ethan said as they walked towards the stricken mercenary.
"He doesn't need to know that." Shepard told the hooded man.
"Oh?" At this Ethan's voice lightening slightly. "So you intend to press him for information and use his injury as leverage? Clever. I like it."
Having reached the merc, Shepard stared down coldly at the young human, whose face was obscured by blood and dirt and who slowly got to his feet, tottering lightly and clearly favouring his uninjured leg.
"I knew it wasn't berserkers. Not at range." The injured merc said, taking a pained breath after each short sentence. "You're mercs, or Alliance. I'm not… I'm not telling you anything."
Powering up his Omni-tool, the orange hologram spreading down his left forearm, Shepard spoke to the merc, his tone even. "I've got a nice application of MediGel ready to go, but if you'd rather I keep walking…" to emphasise the point Ethan turned to move off.
"Sonuva-" The merc hissed. "I just, I don't know anything. I just shoot the overflow from the labs. The old Krogan up there's been clearing house lately. Jedore hired him to make her an army, but the Krogan he makes are insane so we use them for live ammo training. It's all crap, I don't get paid enough to goddamn bleed-out."
"Outpost Four? Outpost Four." A crackly, distorted voice came over the merc's radio. " Jedore wants us to move. We need coordinates on that krogan pack."
Moving his face close to that of the merc, Shepard spoke to him with a menacing tone. "I want your friends gone, understand?"
"Uh, patrol? The last group dispersed. Lost sight five minutes ago."
"Dispersed? Jedore'll be pissed, she wanted a show." Came the disappointed reply from the radio.
"You wanted a report, you got it. Dispersed." The injured merc replied, his voice gaining a slight edge. Signing off he turned back to look Shepard in the eyes. "See? I'm helping."
Shepard made to move off, but then he turned once again to the injured merc. "If you hurry you might find a shady spot before you bleed out."
As the merc limped off the group of specialists turned to one another. "Nice one, Shepard." Ethan said, a sly smile visible beneath the shadows of his hood. "The scare was a bonus."
"I thought so too." Shepard replied, an amicable tone to his voice. But then his soldier's mind reasserted itself and, like a door shutting, the friendliness vanished. "Come on." He said as he turned and moved off. "Our Warlord is somewhere in Jedore's lab."
The squad continued on, running into resistance but it was minimal and disorganised and there were none among these Blue Suns who could stand before them. Eventually they reached an entrance into the wreck of the cruiser that served as the Blue Suns' base. But as they drew near Shepard recognised the familiar sounds of fighting. Peering through the entrance he saw a Krogan, dressed in the same red and yellow armor that he'd seen on the other bodies he'd passed. The Krogan was fighting some mercs, but they were way beyond the effective range of the Krogan's shotgun, up on a catwalk as they were. This confrontation would only have one outcome if he didn't intervene.
Rushing into the dilapidated wreck the squad added their numbers to the Krogan. Rifles and Submachineguns blazing, they cut down the mercs on the catwalk with ease, but not before the mercs were able to raise the alarm. The battle over the Krogan turned to face Shepard. Slowly, like a Varren stalking its prey, it approached. Unsure of its intentions Ethan trained one of its guns at it. Unseen, his eyes widened when Shepard motioned for him to stand down. Reluctantly he did so.
The krogan began smelling Shepard's chestplate. "You… are different. New. You don't smell like this world." He stood up and took a few steps back to fully look at the human in black armor that stood before him. "Seven night cycles and I have felt only the need to kill. But you… something makes me speak."
"Night cycles?" Zaeed asked. Then he got it. "That thing's only a week old?"
"They must breed them full-size, ready to kill. Not much improvement over regular mercs if they need training," Shepard replied
"Bred… to kill?" The Krogan asked. "No. I kill because my blood and bone tell me to. But it's not why I was flushed from glass mother." The Tank-Grown Krogan continued his explanation. "Survival is what I hear in my head. Against the enemy that threatens all my kind. But I failed even before waking. That is what the voice in the water said. That is why I wait here."
"Okeer's voice? Did he speak to you while you were in your tank?" Shepard asked.
"I heard the voice. Not like now, with ears. Inside," the krogan tried to answer. "I called it 'father'. It liked that. But it was disappointed. I am not what it needs me to be."
"A breeding program. Trying to escape genophage effects?" Mordin asked the krogan.
"Or cure the genophage altogether?" Ethan added.
The krogan turned his head to look at the pair. "Escape? Cure? They were never whispered. Survive. Resist. Ignore."
"How did you disappoint the voice?" Shepard asked.
The krogan shook his head. "I don't know. It was decided before I was flushed from glass mother. I was not perfect."
Figuring he wasn't going to get much else out of the week-old Krogan Shepard looked for a way out, seeing naught but the way they'd come in he turned back to the Krogan.
"Can you show us the laboratory? I need to speak with Okeer."
The krogan pointed at a wall. "The… glass mother. She is up. Past the broken parts. Behind many of you fleshy things. I will show you."
Shepard and his group followed as the krogan walked toward a large metal plate, far larger than anything they could hope to lift unaided, which lay up against the wall. They watched as he gripped the plate tightly.
"Grrrah!" the krogan grunted as he lifted the plate off the wall, muscles straining with the effort, and threw it to the side.
"Yeh yeah, Krogan are strong. We get it." Zaeed stated as they moved towards the new opening.
"You fleshy things are slow when big things are in your way," the Tank-Grown Krogan observed as the group passed him.
Turning his head away from the path before him, Shepard asked, "You could have run or tried to fight your way back to the labs. Why stay here?"
"I am waiting. The voice told me. If they come, I fight. But I will not run and I will not follow," he answered before turning away to return to his lonely vigil. "I am not perfect, but I have purpose. I must wait until called. Released," he said as he left.
Letting the krogan go, Shepard and his team turned back to the tunnel.
"No room to manoeuvre." Zaeed observed, then he spotted a bloodstained mound of blue and white ceramic armor. "Better be careful."
"Surely you mean 'more' careful?" Ethan replied. The mercenary didn't respond.
Slowly, carefully, the team made its way down the hallway. Their eyes scanning the darkness for danger, their hands ready on their weapons. Tension filled the air, heart rates rose slightly before being forcibly calmed. Suddenly a sound of scuffling filled the empty air. Calling a halt Shepard moved carefully to the turn in the corridor. Back straight to the wall he peered slowly around the corner.
He barely heard the merc yelling, "They're loose! Run for your damn life! They're all free!" before he was pitched to the ground as one of two Blue Suns ran into him. He and the first merc went sprawling, both their weapons spinning across the ground. Delivering a violent kick to the merc's helmet he heard a satisfying cracking sound. However that was soon followed the sound of a rifle preparing to fire. Looking up he stared into the barrel of the other merc's Assault Rifle. At nearly point blank range he'd have no chance. In a desperate attempt to save himself Shepard's hand flew to the Carnifex pistol at his side. But before he could reach it there was a brief staccato of shots and the merc fell to the ground, his helmet's faceplate obliterated.
Clambering to his feet he took in the sight if Ethan, right arm straight out in front of him, holding his still smoking Shuriken in perfect stillness. Glancing down, he let the Shuriken fall and proffered his free hand. Grabbing Ethan by the wrist Shepard pulled himself to his feet. Nodding his thanks, he retrieved his rifle from the floor. Then, with his mind settling itself, Shepard led his squad further into mercenary base.
Meanwhile, aboard the Normandy…
Whilst Shepard and the ground team were busy down on Korlus Garrus was busy in the Normandy's forward batteries. The Normandy's Javelin Disruptor Torpedo suite had to be calibrated daily. If they weren't the Javelins could have a firing accuracy decrease of 0.01%. In a rifle that was acceptable but at the range that a frigate fired its weapons at that could mean a drift of several meters, which made all the difference between a miss and a hit. And if they did miss then they would fly off into space, gaining momentum constantly. Eventually they would impact and then somebody, somewhere would wind up with a very, very, bad day.
Punching in the last few commands to the ships automated calibrating systems; he turned from the console and walked out, into the Mess Hall. He'd come back later and check on the automated system's progress and make any fine adjustments. Nodding his greeting to Chakwas through the windows of the med-bay and at Sergeant Gardner, who was busy with a broiling stew pot, hopefully having washed his hands, he made his way to the elevator. Punching in the command he waited patiently as the elevator made its quick journey to the CIC.
When the doors opened he strode into the bustling CIC. As he made his way through the CIC, towards the cockpit, Garrus couldn't help but be intrigued that none of the crew seemed to have a problem working with non-humans. Cerberus had long professed a manifesto that called for the dominance of humanity by any means necessary. Since he'd came aboard he'd never been insulted, all of the crew had been nothing but polite. Considering he was non-human and a Turian to boot, a race with who humanity had not had a good history, this had been a surprise. So were the conceptions about Cerberus wrong? That he doubted highly. He'd been frontline with Shepard when they'd touched down on Chasca, Ontarom, Noveria, Altahe, Depot Sigma-23, Edolus, Binthu and Nepheron. He'd seen the Cerberus everyone thought of with his own eyes: Experimenting on Rachni and Alliance Marines; turning innocent colonists into Husks, luring Marines to their deaths and eliminating anyone who asked too many questions. And, of course, whatever Jack had with them must be of a similar, dark nature. So why was it that these men and women he was serving alongside seemed the complete opposite to the numerous Cerberus agents and researchers he'd gunned down?
He would've continued mentally going over this problem in his head, had he not arrived at his destination. Looking down at Joker, who was scanning an extranet page in front of him, he began talking.
"Any word from Shepard?" It was an innocent enough question but the pilot nearly jumped straight out of the leather chair he loved so much. In a flash he'd closed the extranet page "I wonder what was on there…" Garrus thought to himself and then shook his head. "Scratch that, I don't want to know."
"What? Sorry, no." The flustered pilot said, still trying to calm himself. "Not since they hit Korlus." The pilot, his composure restored, turned to face the Turian. "You're not worried about Shepard are you? Because I mean, I could call him and say you're getting worried. I'm sure he'd be touched."
"Very funny Joker." Garrus replied. He'd known the pilot too long to get riled up by his comments when onboard. "And anyway, me? Worried about Shepard? What's a bunch of mercs going to do? Scratch his armor?"
"True. Does seem pretty unfair." The pilot conceded, looking back at the readouts on the screen in front of him. "I'm surprised the Blue Suns didn't run off when they saw him coming."
"Or Zaeed."
"Huh?" Once again he turned to look at Garrus.
"Imagine if Anderson suddenly turned up." His mandibles twitched slightly, the Turian equivalent of a smile, as Joker shuddered in his seat slightly. "See you around Joker." And with that he turned and began walking back down the corridor that led to the main body of the CIC.
Behind him Joker called back at him "If Anderson does show up, I call dibs on the nearest escape pod!"
Chuckling slightly, Garrus kept walking. He had some guns to calibrate.
Back on Korlus…
"Alright," Shepard said to his squad "The lab should just be beyond this door. Get ready, we still don't know what to expect from Okeer. Ready?" Three nods answered his question.
Pistol in hand, Shepard pressed the holographic display on the door and it slid open, revealing the lab. It was relatively spartan compared to other labs he had seen in his time. It was bare save for a tank, within which lay a fully-grown, fully armoured Krogan, a few tables, possibly for dissection of rejects, a bank of data collators at the far end of the room and a personal terminal. In front of that terminal stood the object of their mission here: Okeer. He was big, even by Krogan standards. The size of his hump spoke both of his long life and the success he had found within it. Remembering the file The Illusive Man had forwarded to him Shepard recalled that Okeer had fought in the Krogan Rebellions, making him over a thousand years old.
"There you are," the Warlord announced, his tone vaguely irritated. "It's about time. The batteries on these tanks will not wait while you play with these idiotic mercs."
"Okeer?" Shepard asked, somewhat superfluously. "You don't seem particularly caged." His tone hardened slightly at the way the Krogan was talking to him. "Or grateful that I'm here."
"You may claim to be here to help." Okeer replied, still staring at his terminal. "But the formerly deceased Shepard is not a sign of gentle change." He turned to finally face the commander. "Surprised? All Krogan should know you. Or have you forgotten your actions on Virmire?"
Shepard's eyes narrowed as he remembered that day. How he'd had to leave Kaidan, who had been a good friend and comrade aboard the original Normandy, behind to die in nuclear fire. How he'd been unable to stop Saren. When he spoke he spoke with conviction. "I didn't have a lot of room for finesse. If there'd been any other option I would've considered it."
"But I approve." Okeer answered, hands raised in a placatory gesture. "Saren's pale hoards were not true Krogan. Numbers alone are nothing. The mistake of an outsider, one that these mercenaries have also made." Okeer turned then, facing the lab window through which many tanks, identical to the one he stood next too, could be seen. "I gave their leader my rejects for her army but she grows impatient. It's time for you to take me out of here."
"Personal issues irrelevant." Mordin interrupted, his tone slightly hostile. "Here for intel on Collectors."
"I see." The old Krogan turned to face the Salarian. "Collector attacks have increased. A human concern, my requests were focused elsewhere." At this he indicated the occupied tank. "I acquired the knowledge to create one, pure, soldier. With that, I will inflict upon the Genophage the greatest insult an enemy can suffer." He turned to face Shepard then, fervour burning in his eyes. "To be ignored."
"Your methods may be extreme but you know how to deconstruct a threat." Shepard acknowledged begrudgingly. "Will you help us?"
"Perhaps I can strike a deal to secure passage. But my prototype is not negotiable. It is the key to my legacy."
Shepard was about to reply when the door he and his squad had come through clanged shut. Then, over the base's intercom system came the voice that had accompanied their battles through the dilapidated hulk, getting more and more annoying each time it had sounded until a point when even her own men were yelling at her to shut up. Looking through the lab window he finally saw its owner: Jedore. She was a short, mouse faced woman with a hair colour to match. Visibly agitated she strode amongst the tanks, speaking into her headset. "I'm calling 'blank slate' on this project, gas these commandoes and start over from Okeer's data. Flush the tanks!"
Almost in reply a valve in the lab sprung open and with a hissing sound white gas began pumping into the room.
"Well that's not good." Ethan said, deadpanning.
"She's that weak-willed?" Okeer asked to nobody in particular, his voice tinged with anger. "She'll kill my legacy with a damned valve!" At that he turned to Shepard. "You must stop her!"
"Surely you can just start over, like she plans to? What's the big deal?" Shepard asked the Krogan.
"You don't understand. This tank is pure; it involved as much trial as data. Starting over will not duplicate it. It must survive. Jedore will be with the rejected tanks. Kill her. I will…stay and do what must be done."
Without even acknowledging the Krogan scientist with a response Shepard and his squad drew their weapons and headed towards the only unlocked door, at the far side of the lab. Taking the stairs two at a time they headed down to the lower level. Bursting through the door they entered the main tank storage area.
"I want them dead." Jedore screamed from the opposite side of the room. "This is my world, I'll poison them all!"
"Is it me or is she really starting to seem just the tiniest bit crazy?" Ethan asked the rest of the squad, who didn't answer. He was about to say something else but then he saw a missile streaking towards him. Throwing himself behind one of the tanks he head the deafening explosion just a few metres away to his right. Looking back he saw Jedore's missile had blown a whole in the wall. "That was naughty." He said to himself with a slight smile on his face.
To his left Zaeed looked out from his cover behind another one of the tanks just in time to see a YMIR mech activate on the opposite side of the room. Pulling out his own Mantis sniper rifle and programming it to add a small electrical field to the rounds he sighted on the heavy mech's 'head'. Squeezing off a round he cursed as the mech, shields barely affected, returned fire with its chain gun, advancing while it so. Ducking back into cover the grizzled mercenary called out to Shepard.
"Shepard! We got a heavy mech incoming!"
Mordin also called out a warning. "Krogan berserkers awakening!"
Glancing out of cover Shepard saw that the Salarian spoke true, Jedore had somehow activated the rejected tanks and one by one the Krogan inside them were waking up, forcing their way out in some cases. In testament to their lineage they immediately drew weapons, ready to fight.
"Ethan, Zaeed! Take out that mech! Mordin, your with me. We'll take out those Krogan."
"Got it!" Ethan answered, sprinting over to Zaeed's position.
"Acknowledged." Mordin replied, falling in behind the Commander.
Sprinting forward, Shepard and Mordin threw themselves behind cover in the center of the room. As they began taking shots at the emerging Krogan, whilst avoiding rocket fire from the crazed Blue Suns commander, the YMIR turned its mechanical head towards them. Slowly the dual mass accelerator cannons that formed its right arm began to warm up, pointing straight at the exposed back of the former STG Agent. That could well have been the end of Mordin had Zaeed not fired another shot at the Mech, bringing down its shields and drawing his attention back at him.
"Keep doing that." Ethan said to Zaeed. "I'll try to get close and make that oversized toaster hurt."
"Gutsy plan." The mercenary responded and then a gleam came to his one natural eye. "I like it."
"Thought you would." The young man replied, a fiendish smile showing beneath the shadow of his hood. "If you would be so kind?" he finished with a mock air of formality before darting out of cover, running straight for the mech.
Grunting, Zaeed brought his sniper rifle to his shoulder. Looking down the sight he aimed at the mass of cables at the Mech's left shoulder. With a squeeze of the trigger he fired off a disruptor round. His aim was true and with a stuttering sound that was probably the equivalent of a scream in machine speak the cables in the shoulder joint fried, cutting off any connection from the mechs CPU to its missile launcher. Popping a sizzling heat sink and inserting a new one he launched a concussive shot at the mech. The kinetic force of the round's explosion wasn't enough to topple the mech but it did send it staggering backwards. Which was all the time Ethan needed.
Running forward, the folds of his greatcoat spreading out behind him like the wings of some great bird that rests on the thermal currents of the air, until it sights its prey with its keen eyes and hurtles to the ground, granting grim death with its sharp talons and crooked beak, Ethan switched his guns into single-shot mode. Due to the modified nature of the weapons the rounds expelled from its barrel were powered by the same amount of energy used to fire ten shots in full auto. As Zaeed's concussive shot sent the mech reeling back Ethan jumped, using a dead krogan, whose armor had been perforated by Shepard's assault rifle and scorched by Mordin's incineration techs, as a springboard. Stretching out his legs he struck the mech square in the middle of its chest with both booted feet. The kinetic dampeners he'd had installed in the soles of his boots took care of a lot of the damage but as he and the mech fell he knew he'd be feeling that in the morning.
Falling atop the heavy mech he brought his guns to bear. Placing them straight against its faceplate he fired point-blank into its CPU. The mech shuddered once and was still. Leaping from its still form he was about to offer some witty remark when he heard a frenzied beeping coming from the mangled wreckage of the YMIR mech's CPU. Slowly light began to coarse across its form as its power source began to go into meltdown.
"Oh shiit!" He yelled, sprinting away as fast as he could. "Shepard! Mordin! Get to cover!"
Turning from the Krogan he was facing, which was turned into a smouldering mass thanks to the efforts of the Salarian professor, Shepard recognised the danger. Alerting Mordin to it, he too began running. As he ran as fast as he could from the glowing machine, across which bolts of yellow electricity were spreading, a rejected Krogan burst forth from one of the last occupied tanks. The Krogan had been imprinted with visions of battle after battle, the greatest strategies of the greatest Krogan Warlords, who had been the galaxy's saviours during The Rachni Wars and its scourge during The Rebellions, had been pumped into its head. But it had not EARNED that knowledge. Everything the human that hurtled towards knew, he had earned. He was Commander Shepard. He had been born on an Alliance Cruiser; he'd stood firm at Elysium during the Skyllian Blitz and held the line against vastly superior numbers. He was quite possibly the finest soldier of his generation. And a newborn Krogan would NOT stop him. Grasping the Shotgun and pulling it from the small of his back he cocked it and as the Krogan charged he sighted on the plate that formed its forehead. Just before it impacted with him he squeezed the trigger. The Krogan flew backwards, its head a pulpy mass of flesh that twitched as it tried to regen before falling still. Throwing himself behind cover, Mordin flying in beside him, Shepard awaited the coming explosion. Ethan leapt into an open pod and Zaeed took cover behind another just as the mech finally reached overload capacity and exploded.
First came noise. A sound that tore through their ears like the loudest thunder in a storm so powerful it awakens the primal fear within all living things. Then came a feeling of immense pressure as air was literally forced away from the exploding carcass. It slammed the squad against their meagre cover and finally there was the heat. The exploding mech caused an onrush of heat so powerful that it reminded Ethan of the forge back on Seheros, when the blade he carried at his side had been forged from the dull grey alloy, but multiplied so many times over. The heat spread throughout the room, not respecting cover or location. Then finally came the fragments, flying through the air like miniature comets with tails of flame, spelling grim death to any who was not in cover. A Krogan, who Mordin had thought dead, regenned enough only to be struck dead by a large jagged piece of blackened metal went straight through its neck.
Slowly, carefully, the team got out of, or in Ethan's case dropped out of, cover. Assembling in the center of the room they surveyed the damage. Closest to where the mech had fallen the breeding tanks were now small bits of blackened metal and plastic. Metal nearest the explosion had melted and deformed, altered by the intense heat of the explosion. Further out the devastation lessened but even at the furthest edge of the room that heat still remained, a dank mugginess that covered all.
"Are all enemies neutralised?" Mordin asked the rest of the group.
"Seems like it." Shepard replied, scanning the room. "I can't see-"
'THIS IS MY WORLD!"
Screaming, with hair bedraggled and her armor blackened and charred in places, Jedore rose up from behind a ruined breeding tank, clutching her rocket launcher in a vice-like grip. Screaming manically she fired, sending a rocket, with its deadly payload of high explosive, straight at the squad. Scattering, they dove into the nearest bit of cover they could find.
"I AM IN COMMAND HERE! YOU WILL DO AS I BID!" Jedore railed at the men who had brought 'her world' to ruin.
Knelt behind a dead Krogan, Zaeed had finally had enough. "Somebody shut that bitch up!" he called out to his comrades.
"Glad to!"
The reply came from Ethan, who, putting away his guns and drawing his blade from its scabbard, stood up from behind his bit of cover, his body aglow with the telltale light of biotic energy and his eyes glowing a burning white. Coating himself in the blue energy, he rose into the air and sped towards the merc commander at a breakneck speed. He smashed into Jedore, overloading her already kinetic barriers, cracking her chestplate and sending her flying against the wall. As the biotic fires died from his limbs and his eyes returned to their natural blue, Ethan stared down unompassionately at the downed merc leader. Her breathing ragged, Jedore raised her rocket launcher, pointing it straight at Ethan's chest.
"I don't think so." Ethan said coldly. With a flick of his wrist he cut through the barrel of the launcher, sending it skittering from the beaten woman's hands across the floor.
Defiantly the beaten mercenary stared at her killer. "This is my world…you are nothing!" Her words came as a raspy whisper, evidence of the impact driving the air from her lungs.
With a smirk, Ethan replied. "Not very classy for somebody's dying words." And with that he administered with a powerful thrust to her heart. Jedore's eyes widened as she stared at the length of shining metal jutting from her torso. Then her eyes rolled upwards and with one last juddering sigh Jedore's life ended.
As he walked over to where Shepard and the others were standing in the center of the room, Ethan received a curious look from the Commander.
"You're a biotic?" He asked the blonde fighter, who had pushed back his hood.
"Yeh." Came Ethan's reply, accompanied by a shrug of the shoulders.
"And you never thought to mention that?" Shepard's tone rose slightly, irritated at the fact he'd been kept in the dark about military matters.
"You never asked." Ethan replied.
Shepard was about to reply when a blaring alarm echoed from the lab above them.
"What the hell?" Zaeed exclaimed.
"Commander," It was EDI 'the lab alarms coincided with a systems failure. The remaining lab systems are unprotected and I have gained limited access,"
"What's happening?" Shepard asked, urgent in his tone.
"According lab scanners, the room is flooded with toxins and Okeer's personal life signs are failing rapidly. I recommend haste."
With no orders needed the four operatives raced from the room to the lab. As they got to the top of the stairs the automated voice of a VI silenced the alarms.
"Contamination detected. Emergency vent in progress. Contamination detected. Emergency vent in progress."
Practically bursting through the door, Shepard and his squad beheld the sight of Okeer dead on the floor, next to the tank he had worked so diligently to create. Moving towards the fallen Krogan, Shepard couldn't help but feel a bit conflicted about the Krogan's death.
"Sure he was an unfeeling, possibly insane, zealot. But is it right that a creature who survived for so long, through the most turbulent years of his race's history, should be brought down by poison gas, triggered by a deluded, narcissistic madwoman?"
Shaking away such thoughts he turned to the matter at hand. As he drew closer to the body of the once great warlord a recorded message on the terminal next to the tank started playing. Okeer's voiced was weakening and pained as he recorded his final words.
"You gave me time, Shepard. If I knew why the Collectors wanted humans, I would tell you. But everything is in my prototype. My legacy is pure. This… one soldier, this grunt. Perfect…"
With the last few words, Okeer's face on the image slipped away as his great strength had failed him. Slowly, the squad gathered around the tank Okeer had given his very life to preserve.
"Okeer died to save this thing?" Zaeed asked incredulously.
"Apparently," Ethan replied. "You wouldn't think that someone like him, you know the whole 'no price too great for my triumph' guy, would go down the self-sacrifice route."
"I can't say I'm surprised," Shepard said. "Given how fanatical he was about this one and how much he sacrificed for it, he was probably capable of anything."
Mordin shook his head. "Delusional. Unlikely one krogan, however strong, could have impact Okeer wanted," he said, but then he hesitated. "Am… almost certain." At that he turned to Shepard "Suggest leaving it."
Shepard tilted his head at the Salarian. "Afraid he'll make your genophage obsolete?" he asked.
"No," Mordin said in a neutral, yet final, tone. "But krogan genetically dangerous. Socially dangerous as well. Have enough enemies without adding this."
"I fought scores of Krogan in my time," Zaeed chimed in. "He could be useful."
"Unknown until awakened. Could be too late at that point." Mordin argued.
"I know the advantage of having a Krogan on the team" responded Shepard, thinking back to his hunt for Saren and his time spent with Wrex, the Krogan Battlemaster. He remembered his skill in battle and the camaraderie he showed off the field.
"Great. We're going to take the possibly fanatical, perfect Krogan with us." Ethan spoke, his words dripping with sarcasm. "And to think I used to wonder why I had such a hard time getting good medical insurance." Then he looked directly at Shepard. "You do realize we're all talking about this like it's a given he'll join us. Nobody's asked his opinion."
"Then we'll ask. Nicely or not-so-nicely depending on the situation," Shepard said, ending the discussion. Tapping his omni-tool, he contacted Joker on the Normandy.
"Normandy? Okeer is a no-go. But we have a package that needs retrieval." As he talked he looked back at the breeding tank. "And he's a big one."
Back on the Normandy...
Shepard walked out of the port side cargo hold, fresh from talking with the newly awakened, newly named, Grunt. It had been a rough first contact. Practically as soon as he'd got out of his pod Grunt had slammed into a wall, demanding to know what his own name was and for Shepard to assert his dominance and destroy him. As he walked, Shepard rubbed at his neck.
Convincing Grunt to join him had actually been quite simple. All the young Krogan, whose brow plate hadn't even fully developed, had needed to know was that their enemies were strong and plentiful and that the Normandy was a strong 'clan'. With that he had released his hold and began settling in to the relative shambles of the port side cargo hold.
As he headed towards the elevator, Ken Donnelly, one of the Normandy's chief engineers, stepped out of it, a small drink in hand. He had only really talked with the Scotsman, as well as the other chief engineer, Gabriella Daniels, once, during his inspection tour, but he liked the Scot. He was solid and dependable, good at his job and amicable to practically anyone, save for the Alliance Brass and the Collectors.
Raising a hand in a small, borderline informal, salute, Ken greeted Shepard, before glancing uneasily through two sets of windows into the port side cargo hold, where Grunt could be seen pacing, and walking through the entrance to Engineering proper.
Glancing down into the hangar bay, Shepard was just in the right position to see Ethan press the open button on his door, before rubbing his hands with glee and going inside the storage room he had taken as his own. Figuring he'd find out eventually, Shepard got into the elevator and pressed the button for the loft and his quarters, where his personal terminal lay, ready to be used to write the mission report.
"God, I hate bureaucracy." he thought to himself, as the elevator moved steadily upwards.
Author's note: Sorry for this update taking so long folks. Life got in the way. Hopefully updates will take less time in future. Just in case you were wondering, if dialogue written down doesn't perfectly match up to the game that's because I couldn't be bothered playing through every combination of characters to find out what they say. Anyway, hope you enjoy and remember: reviews mean motivation. Motivation means quicker updates.