And here it is. The inevitable explosion. The factor that would change everything. A promise of a long mission.
Blue. The cool metal tile of the port was painted blue. The blood drains from the fleshy crater made of what was left of the Turian's skull- bits of exoskeleton, fragments of brain and stretched tendons. It pools in between the crevices of metal plates that made up the floor, channeling into others. Spreading out in straight lines like water canals, slowly flowing into more canals; flowing right under Shepard's boot. Nihlus lay there on his front, his face- what was left of it, lays against the metal flooring. The back of his neck blown open; a giant crater of flesh. "Someone must have been close enough to bypass his shields", the Commander whispers to herself as she stares at the dead Spectre.
"Heavy pistol wound, Commander. A sniper rifle would have cleanly taken off his head. Shotguns would have mutilated the rest of his body", says Kaidan as he prods the wound.
"And an assault rifle would have done the same... just not as messily... but Commander, you said that there was someone else with the Turian, didn't you?" asks Ashley.
"Yes. I did." She stands. "Jenkins! You there?" she calls as she walks around the port. Shepard turns to her team. "Spread out, we need to find him."
"...I'm over here...sir", calls a ragged, sobbing voice from behind the crates. The Commander slowly and cautiously makes her way over. It was Jenkins's voice, no doubt about that... but there was something else buried in his tone. It was more than fear. Her boots lightly tap against the metal, squishing through the puddles of blood, "Who did this...?" she asks, enticing a sob from the boy behind the crate, "Was it you, Jenkins?"
The boy shoots up from behind the crates, his cherry red face contorted with rage and anger, his eyes bulge from their sockets as they soak themselves in their salty tears, "NOOOO!" He screams as his face burns an even brighter red. "I DIDN'T DO IT!"
Shepard raises her hands as a gesture of a non-accusatory sympathy, "You need to tell me who did then. Was it the Geth? Was it those synthetics?" she asks slowly.
Jenkins's face starts to pale out, his rage fading; his anger slowly shifts to fear. "It was the other Turian..." he whispers.
"I remember you mentioned him on the comm. Do you know who he is?" she asks.
"I think his name is Saren... I couldn't understand what they were saying but I heard Nihlus call him that..." he murmurs.
"Saren Arterius? The Spectre?" a baffled Kaidan asks.
"You know him, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, Commander, he's one of the Council's top agents if not the best."
"And now he's gone rogue", Ashley says as she turns and glances at what's left of Nihlus before turning back to the boy before them, "But I still don't understand how he avoided a bullet between the eyes."
"Good question, Chief. I trust you have an answer, Jenkins?" she quirks up her brow.
Richard looks down at his feet, "He shot him. He didn't shoot me..."
"We know that. Why didn't he sho-"
"I DON'T KNOW! LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!"
The Commander turns her head to Kaidan and whispers, "Neural shock." The Lieutenant hesitantly raises his omni-tool, it glows a faded blue as a red bolt of electricity springs forth and strikes the kid. He screams as his body painfully quakes and seizes before the dark pull of unconsciousness overtakes him.
The boy falls to the ground, his limp body spasms as the Commander turns to Kaidan again, "Call Chakwas. Tell her we have a PTSD waiting for her."
The Lieutenant complies, nodding and sticking his hand to his ear as he hails the Normandy.
"Commander... Was that necessary?" asks Ashley.
"Yes. He's obviously disturbed. You saw him screaming, Chief. It was only a matter of minutes before he did something that could have ruined the mission; I don't fail my missions."
"You don't fail missions?" she scoffs, "Shepard, we lost an entire colony, a Spectre ended up dead; I wouldn't call that a successful mission..." she said, immediately regretting her outburst, "Ma'am."
Shepard eyes slowly form a glare at the girl. She steps closer to Ashley, her face merely inches away from the girl's. Ashley inwardly trembles under the Commander's glare. Her voice forms into an intimidating whisper, "Care to repeat that, Gunnery Chief?" she chillingly asks.
"N-no ma'am."
Shepard's eyes remain stationary as she glares down at the wide-eyed girl before her. The Hazel orbs challenging the Onyx to continue but she knew if she did, Shepard would break her without difficulty. "It sounded like you questioned my perception. Am I correct?"
Better to tell the truth, "Yes ma'am, I questioned your authority. It will not happen again, ma'am."
"And why did you question my authority? Have I made a mistake?"
"You made no mistake, ma'am."
"That's right, Chief, I didn't. That's why the mission isn't a failure. The colony can rebuild itself, that's why it's not a failure. The fact that we're not dead is in itself a success. The fact that we were able to save the last marine from the 212 is a success! Am I right, Chief? Or was it a failure?"
Ashley shrinks in embarrassment, "It was a success, ma'am."
Shepard growls through her teeth, "That's right, Chief, I don't fail. So next time don't question my damn competence as a Commander! I will not hear a snide remark like that again, Chief! Have I made myself clear?"
"C-crystal, ma'am."
Shepard backs away, her normal facial expression returns, "Good, we had better keep it that way", she says as she turns to Kaidan, "Any luck?"
The Sentinel nods, "Yeah; they'll be here in about three minutes. We could probably leave Jenkins here, they should be bringing security. By the time they get here, we should be just leaving."
"Excellent, Lieutenant. Come on, we've got a colony to save."
"Yes, Commander."
The trio shuffles along down to the port. Shepard can't shake the disquieting sense of dread that grips her soul. She has the feeling that she is well acquainted with- a type of precognition that blatantly screams that what's coming next is going to radically change things. She pushes the thought from her mind as the tram springs to life.
The sky is soaked with a bloody crimson hue. Shepard cringes when the hot breeze that carries the smell of charred flesh and burnt technology violates her curved nose. It takes a lot for her to be disgusted.
She only wishes for a quick resolution to this mission; she'd rather be home when she feels her first kick than on the battlefield. Again and again she tells herself that this is only a one-time mission- that this will not escalate... but she remains unconvinced...
The tram slowly comes to a jerky halt at the sister port. The team levels their weapons as the transport moans in alleviation.
"No hostiles in vicinity, Commander."
The absence of any traces of attack was... unnerving... to say the least. This area was a perfect spot for an ambush, and yet no one was here. It was like the port was abandoned by hostiles for reasons unknown. The team jumps as a loud horn blares throughout the port. The metal plates vibrate and tremble as the piercing sound reverberates.
"What the hell was that?" asks Williams.
"I don't know but I'd rather not stand around and wait to find out", says Shepard as she walks up the metal stairs and to the catwalk, "Ready your weapons and watch our six. No one sneaks up on us, clear?"
"Clear." Speaks the Chief and Lieutenant.
As Shepard's boots clink against the metal plates, another deafening blare vibrates through her bones. Her eyes quickly scan the port, its crates, its sparse landings and platforms. It is when she struts across the catwalk that another blare explodes through the port as what appears to be a metallic golden mushroom standing in a nook between to metal supports, its red lights flicker on and off from the top. Oh shit...
A stunned silence is broken by the Chief's audible concern. "Is that-?"
"Bomb!" Screams Kaidan. "They're trying to wipe out the colony!"
There was something the Alliance taught repeatedly; a term that was installed into the recruits' mind as soon as they broke them into their armor- Fight or Flight. She could call this mission a failure, round up her team and hightail it back into space. From the size of the bomb, it would most likely wipe out the entire colony, but they'd survive. If she disabled the bomb, which there was no way she could actually accomplish the feat, the colony and its civilians would be saved. She didn't know how much time was left on the bomb. She didn't know if it was beyond the point of disablement; there were just too many unknowns. Fight or Flight. Stick with your gut, soldier.
Shepard breaks into a sprint. "I want you both to be within ten feet of me at all times. If there's any kind of resistance while I disarm the bomb, I want you guys to make sure they don't interrupt me. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am!"
"Alright, people!" She calls. "Let's move! Guns at the ready!"
The trio pace towards the bomb. Not something sapient creatures usually do... Shepard glides to a stop in front of the explosive device, her omni-tool flickers as she runs her hand over it.
"Do you think you can disable it, Commander?" Kaidan asks as he settles his back against a tall crate, his Judgement pistol trembles in his hands.
"I don't know, Lieutenant. I need to figure out what type of bomb it is and how much time we have." Her omni-tool pings, "Dammit. Well I guess a command shutdown would have been too easy. We've got about three minutes, I'm going to try to manually disable it."
Her hands graze along the hot metal as she searches for an opening.
Ashley stands beside her, her Diamond back assault rifle trained and readied, "Red wire blue wire?"
She kneels before the explosive, fingers still looking for that damned elusive nook that should hold the detonator. "Nope. I imagine it's gonna have some type of fuse box." The metallic sound of grinding gears and sputtering sparks pervade the air between each of the bomb's deafening blares.
Bullets embed themselves into the crate Kaidan is sheltered behind. "Geth!" he screams, as chips of plastic and metal eject from its side as more Geth round the corner, their stuttering continually growing louder.
The two marines steel themselves and defend their position. Their guns roar to life as it thunderously explodes bullets towards the synthetics. A hefty shot from Kaidan's Judgement pistol explodes the headlight of a Geth that has drawn too close while Ashley's Diamond Back assault rifle tears away the metal torso, reducing it to twisted scrap.
The Commander's hands run spastically over every inch of the bomb as the sound of gunfire, shields shattering, Geth stuttering, Overloads, Cryo blasts, Carnage explosions, Reaves and Warps interrupted by the occasional blare from the bomb seem to grind themselves into her head. "If your shields break, you stay in cover until they regenerate, alright?" The Lieutenant and Chief give their own variation of acknowledgment as they continue their quelling of the Geth onslaught.
Shepard's finger slips into a metal crevice. Got it. The sound of glass breaking catches her attention. She turns her head to see Ashley leaning against the wall impatiently as she waits for her shields to rejuvenate.
Kaidan motions for her attention as he drops another Geth. "Do you know how much time is left on that thing, Commander?"
She feels around the circuit board. "Haven't been counting but I imagine we're at less than a minute now." A high pitched ring replaced the bomb's original, deafening blares. Shepard's omni-tool lights up on her free arm.
00:10:37
"Scratch that, we have ten seconds."
Ashley whips her head around to Shepard. "TEN SECONDS?"
"Trust me, Chief. I don't fail my missions. Just keep the Geth off of me."
"...Yes ma'am..."
00:08:06
Shepard curses quietly to herself as the main circuit hides from her.
00:07:35
Kaidan's face turns beet red as he unleashes another Warp field.
00:06:50
The circuit board shocks Shepard's hand.
00:05:11
"You like that, you soulless bastards?" The Chief screams as the Diamond Back rips through the shields of the Geth before ripping apart their metal platforms.
00:03: 56
Her hand desperately gropes through the bundles of wires and electric outlets. "Come on!"
00:01:02
Her heart stops when she feels her finger flick against a hard piece of plastic attached to the wires. Her hand crushes around it. She pulls.
The timer on the omni-tool freezes as the bomb's lights flicker off.
00:00:23
Shepard lets her head rest against the hot metal surface; her body was coming down from its adrenal high. The two others seem to feel the same way. As the last Geth lay in ruin, the trio let out an audible sigh of relief. The Chief lets her shoulders slump as she massages her achy arms, while Kaidan holds his head in his hands. Probably experiencing another migraine. "All hostiles terminated", mumbles Kaidan through his palms.
Ashley notices. "You okay, Lt?"
"Yeah. Let's just move on. The beacon can't be far away now."
Shepard stands and sidles up to the marines. "Let's go. We may be out of time."
A shot rings out, the Geth's headlight explodes, white liquid and scrap metal fly in every direction. It buckles and falls to the ground, laying in its own mess. The synthetic gives one last twitch as the team walks past it, stopping at the beacon. Kaidan's eyes widen as he takes the whole thing in. "How the hell did they move that here? It's massive!"
"It wasn't like this when they dug it up." Says the Chief. "When I saw it this morning, it was just the base. Not a space needle."
Shepard creeps closer. The beacon seems to glow brighter. "Maybe it is the-" she's interrupted when a brilliant glow envelopes her and drags her closer. She tries to shake out of it, wrenching herself side to side in an attempt to break free. Kaidan screams something but she doesn't hear it as it lifts her off of the ground, pulling her closer.
All she hears is the sounds of war and death. Her sight is ripped from her; what was once a glowing beacon is now fields of fire. Unfamiliar creatures run spastically back and forth, screaming, crying, and bleeding. She is thrust forward on her hands and legs. Her eyes confusedly glance up at what she imagines is a Prothean. Its head is oddly shaped. Its jaw is triangular and grotesquely offset by its four sunset-like eyes which bore into her soul.
The Prothean speaks in some archaic language, chanting maybe. Shepard tries to move from the burnt grass but it holds her down, once again speaking in its strange tongue.
"What's ...happening?" She asks. The Prothean seems to not notice as it throws her back and screams. She watches as its flesh burns into a leathery brown, it's eyes start glowing brightly and its face sews its own mouth shut.
Once again she is thrown out of reality. She sees things. Nightmares that make her own dreams seem tame. Fires flared. Children screamed. People begging. Slaughter. Flesh melting against metal gears as many more people shift. And then there's the noise. It was like a thousand damned souls screaming as metal ground against metal. She looks up to see a ship of unknown origins. And just like that, the nightmare is over.
The world quakes around her; dizzy images of people she was with just moments ago. Their words are distorted and confusing. Her vision is cloudy and uneven. The faces of dark-haired people enter her view, bringing their faces closer to her own.
"C…der…..k..y?" The man sputters. The woman is next in her view. They both sound like they're underwater.
"….ll the….ndy. Sh…..ds…p…ow…."
Shepard wants to ask what's happening but her lips trip over themselves in a feeble attempt at enlightenment.
"…..t…her….groun…." She wasn't sure who was talking now, her thoughts pulled her attention away. She can't stop remembering the… thing! That dream thing! The flesh fusing with metal, the Protheans, the fire, all of it. She can't stop! Her mind swims in and out of reality as she is hoisted over a man's shoulder. His warm shoulder buries into her stomach. She can feel his pulse beating in her stomach. It stops and then continues and repeats the cycle a couple of times. There was no way a human heart could beat like that and survive. There was no way that was his pulse. Must've been something else… Her dreary eyes lazily glance up at the young female soldier following them. Her warped lips seem to move but she hears none of it through the screams of children. Her vision starts tunneling out as her face goes numb.
Flames. Screams. Cries. These are the things Shepard is all too familiar with. Every dream she relives it. Relives the pain. The horrific scene that unfolds around her like an oil painting as she lays on the blazed grass, staring up in fear at the apex of her nightmares; her tormentor. She begs him for mercy. She begs him to leave. He laughs and just like all of the other nightmares, he continues.
Shepard screams in pain as the alien shows off his jagged teeth. She is shamed and in every dream she is shamed all over again. It's not real and she knows it, but that doesn't keep the shadows away- even more so now. Something holds her in her personal hell. She can't wake. She tries but she can't. The screams of her dying family are still there. The screams of her dying friends are still there. The horrible reality still dangles in front of her eyes as she relives Mindoir over and over again. She opens her tear-stained eyes to see her torturer above her, his four eyes slowly blinking one at a time. He mouths those words, his face in a state of confusion. A stunned look that is quickly replaced with a smile that has ruined her. And just like every time she dreams, he ruins her all over again.
Post-notes: Sorry for taking long, you guys. I was studying fight scenes and excitement scenes. I'm definitely improving :)
I cannot wait to start getting the characters in! Especially when I introduce my original character. You guys are going to love this. I get chills when I think about my ideas. I've spent about a year planning this series out; I have 148 notes in my iPod for what I want to do. If you couldn't tell I am SUPER FREAKING EXCITED FOR IT! YOU'RE GOING TO LOVE IT! Okay. I'm done. No more crazy.
Review. Follow. Like my page on Facebook (Mass Effect by Celestiallight) so you can see my inspiration and concept art I leave around there.
Thank you for reading.
P.s. If you were wondering, Kaidan and Ashley's weapons were cut out of the game for some reason. I gave Ashley the Diamond Back because in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, the villain Diamond Back is played by a girl who sounds impossibly like Ashley... That is all.