Chapter 16: Harbinger

Briefing room:

Shepard, and crew watched the hologram of Caleston rotate in the center of the room. On one side of the planet a reaper artifact at the new project base and on the other is a Prothean site, run by corporations from Noveria and has recently become unresponsive. "Tell me what we've got, E.D.I." Shepard ordered.

Scans indicate a large geth presence at the reaper artifact. An active distress signal is being transmitted from there.

"What about the prothean site?" Miranda asked, rotating the the hologram. The site of the prothean ruin flashing on the image.

Something is blocking my signal to the base.

"We'll have to send a team to each base individually then." Garrus added.

"Not necessarily." Shepard quickly replied. "A large team might bring too much attention. I'll go to the reaper artifact alone."

Jack scoffed. "They say, I'm nuts. Shepard that's crazy."

"I'll have to agree." Miranda added. "You don't know what's down there."

"Miranda you're leading a team, to investigate the prothean site." Shepard ordered, ignoring her warning. "If there's nothing left to discuss, then crew dismissed."

En route to prothean site:

Miranda's team consisted of Garrus and Jack. The flew in with the hammerhead, Garrus is at the controls; Jack sat in the back next to Miranda, shooting her the occasional glare. The trip to the site so far was a quiet one. They didn't trust her, but that didn't matter to her. Stopping the Reapers is all that mattered to her.

"Garrus, how far out are we?"

"Hard to tell. Something is is interfering with the hammerhead's navigation systems." Garrus answered.

"Isn't that great." Jack said with mock cheer. "We have no idea where we're going and we're stuck with the cheer leader."

"Do you have something to say, Jack?" Miranda snapped.

"Other than me feeling a certain way about almost dying on Sur'Kesh, because of a Cerberus operation you ordered. Not at all."

"Well you're alive, so you've got nothing to complain about. And if I'm not mistaken that wont be for too much longer."

Jack's biotics flared, lighting up the inside of the tank. "What did you say?" The biotic growled.

"I've seen the med reports, Chakwas sent them to me. Your condition is accelerating and she thought I could help."

The hammer head stopped, Garrus turned around and faced the two women. "We're here."

New Project base:

Shepard took the shuttle. To his surprise if there was an attack he had just missed. The landing pad was littered with destroyed ships, bodies of those who tried to escape grew more frequent as he continued on. The scene reminded him of the derelict reaper, the Illusive man sent him on. The wounds on the bodies showed signs of geth weaponry, but if they were here there was no sign of them now. "Damn synthetics!" It was because of Shepard, the geth were wondering the galaxy, working for the reapers. Reprogramming them was a trap and as far as Shepard was concerned, he was responsible for every death here.

There was one entrance to the bases interior. It led to a long hallway, windows stretching along the walls. "What the hell went on here?" Shepard, said to himself. Looking out the windows he saw what looked like research stations and holding cells.

He stepped into the elevator. He reached for the control panel, his hand began to tremble as he pressed the button taking him to the lower level. There was something about this place, he compelled to go to the lower level. It was like an insistent whisper in the back of his mind. The elevator door slammed shut, descending through the lower levels of this base.

"Joker get me a scan of the inside of this place." He ordered over the comm. He got nothing but silence. "Joker? E.D.I ?" Still nothing. He wasn't getting a signal, he was alone.

The elevator stopped, he readied his battle rifle. The doors squealed open, revealing a large group of husks on the other side of the chamber seemingly waiting for him. He fired a burst at the group, they charged at once. They fell one at a time, but they kept coming. Shepard's body rattled with each burst, the charging husks closing in and ready to swarm the elevator. Shepard charged his biotics, throwing a shock wave that dispersed the group. Shepard popped a heat sink and bolted across the chamber, more husks in pursuit.

The Normandy

cockpit:

"Joker I'm getting an emergency transmission from a frigate, with an unknown registry. But is using a comm channel reserved for council spectres."

"All right we'll put'em through." Joker said, pressing a button to open the channel. "This is SSV Normandy, to unknown frigate." Joker spoke into the comm.

"We've received you're transmission. State your business."

"Joker? Thank god it's you!"

Joker immediately recognized the voice. "Lieutenant Williams? What are you doing out here?"

"That's a long story. We need to get out of this system, right now!" Panic was in her voice, Joker had never heard her this way. Something must have happened down there on Caleston to make make Williams this frightened.

"I'm docking with your ship right now." Joker responded. "What happened?"

Prothean bunker:

"Does anyone else think it was a good idea to go into the creepy underground bunker?" Jack asked. Garrus drove the hammerhead into a bunker that opened up on arrival. Without getting any signal from, the Normandy they were going in blind. Something was strange about this place. The group had seen no sign of geth.

"I don't know, I just have a feeling about this place." Garrus said, maneuvering through the debris in the tunnel. The bunker was similar to the one on Illos, but instead of being overgrown with plant life it was littered with debris and additions made by an excavation team that now seem to be absent.

"What is that?" Miranda questioned pointing in front of them.

Garrus stopped the tank. A force field had erected in front of them. "I think we get out now." Garrus opened the hatch and the team made their way out. "I remember, Shepard mentioning something like this happening on Illos."

"Did he say what happened next, by any chance?" Miranda asked, feeling this was a waste of time.

Garrus pointed towards an open door and proceeded to go to it. "Fine, take point." Miranda ordered. They followed the turian in, the elevator door slamming shut behind them. The elevator door crawled down the shaft, creaking as the descent continued.

"So what do you think we'll find down here?" Jack asked curiously as her grip on her pistol tightened.

"Probably nothing." Garrus answered.

Miranda scoffed. "Probably a trap." The elevator stopped, the doors sliding open. On the far end of the room a woman was talking with a damaged hologram. The conversation wasn't clear from where they were, but it had an intense look to it.

Ms. Parasini, our guests have arrived.

The group walked up slowly. "I'm, Miranda Lawson and this is my team. We were asked to come here to investigate this site and another on the other side of the planet."

"Gianna Parasini. I'm in charge of the research team sent here by Noveria." Gianna walked to the group. "We've been waiting for someone to show up since, vigil came online."

"Vigil?"

"The prothean V.I. When the geth attacked the project base it activated and generated some kind of jamming device."

"I guess that's why it was so difficult to find this place." Garrus said aloud.

"Where is the rest of your team?" Jack questioned.

"Deeper in the bunker. But that is hardly any guarantee that it's safe."

Soon nowhere will be safe. The Reapers are on their way to the Citadel as we speak.

"I thought the data file you gave, Shepard last time was supposed to make sure they couldn't use the Citadel?" Garrus said to the V.I. "What changed?"

We did not anticipate that a large number of mass relays in a single system could be used to open a passage into the galaxy. Like the relays used in the Arcturus system.

"How do you even know about that?" Miranda questioned, skeptical of the V.I. "And I thought you shut yourself down after you spoke with, Shepard on Illos. How are you on Caleston as well?"

The base on Illos and this one shared a similar purpose. The platform on Illos laid in wait to be found, while I lay dormant. When we were activated, we received signals from your communication hubs. We learned of the relay nexus, and for the last year the Reapers that have entered the galaxy have been destroying colonies on the edges of known space.

"Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?"

It is a distraction, while they plot to take back the Citadel. Only a small number of Reapers entered, not nearly enough to destroy organic life. We've come to realize that, we only slowed them down. They will attack the citadel; they will bring the entire force of the Reaper fleet into the galaxy.

New project base:

"Argh!" Shepard grunted, as a husk's wild swing went through his rifle and connected with his head. Shepard fell to the floor as the husks continued to give chase. He armed his shot gun and fired at the husks, ripping them in half with each shot.

He scrambled to his feet and ran into a nearby room. The door slammed shut, husks pounding on the door from the other side. "Almost bought the farm with that one." He exhaled as he wiped blood from a cut that had formed below his eye.

We've been waiting for you, Shepard. A loud menacing voice spoke to Shepard. He felt it when he entered the base, it started as a dull whisper, now he could hear it plan as day.

"Figured I'd find you here." Shepard turned around, a large object stood in the middle of the room. It was a reaper artifact, it's energy pulsating. It seemed to beckon, Shepard to it. Unable to resist, he went to it.

You escaped us before, but this time you will not interfere. We will not be stopped.

"I scare you that much, Harbinger?"

Your confidence is born of ignorance. I will show you true fear.

"Don't count on it! I will stop you!"

Shepard whipped around as the door behind him opened. "That is a tall order is it not, Shepard?" Two shots rang out, hitting Shepard in the stomach. A turian walked in, holding a pistol to Shepard.

"What are you doing?" Shepard gasped as he fell back, leaning on the object. He recognized the turian. He was the spectre from the meeting with the council. Velentrian Tenais.

He fired again, hitting Shepard in the shoulder. "Saving the galaxy... from you. Harbinger told me of the human plot to manipulate his technology. The Reapers are coming to usher a new age of prosperity. I will not allow you or Cerberus to deny us this!"

Shepard sunk to the floor, losing his footing. "You've got no idea what you're doing. Harbinger is manipulating you and you don't even know it!"

"Now you sound like, Lieutenant Williams. She said the same thing, she will meet her fate another day."

Velentrian walked closer to Shepard, holding his pistol to the first human spectre's head. "You meet yours today. "

AN/ Good place to end I'd say, cliff hanger and alll. Sorry for not being to good about updating, I've been busy with my original stuff. (ask about it and maybe I tell you) That and school starts next week. So we're finally etching toward the end of this story, does Shep live? Does he die at the hands of my OC? Since when does a Shep ever die at the hands of an OC? In this story... it could happen and he won't be back. That would make for a nice turn I'd say. We'll see in later chapters.