Honor's Boundary
By: Kellieqd
Game: Mass Effect
A Garrus Vakarian Tale eventually pairing with Shepard
Disclaimer: The Mass Effect universe and it's characters are the sole intellectual property of Bioware and EA. This is simply my interpretation of their story.
Chapter 9: Sacrifice
It was early, 0400. He had awakened in fear, his palms had been sweaty and he couldn't seem to shake the images that had infiltrated his sleep. They were images of death, calamity and hopelessness... a Reaper invasion. He now sat in the Observation Deck staring out into the seemingly infinite heavens before him. He listened to the ambient hum of the ship's engine, felt the breeze of the climate control against his skin, it soothed him. Looking upon the stars everything seemed so peaceful, there was an underlying order that was often taken for granted. Planets orbited at the perfect distance to sustain life, dying stars sent out the energy and elemental building blocks necessary to form their successors. It was hard to believe that their crew, that Shepard, could be the only thing keeping it all from falling into chaos.
"Couldn't sleep either?"
Ashley! "What are you doing up?" he asked.
"I had a bad dream, this is where I come to clear my head. How could anyone look out at this galaxy and not be made to believe in something..."
"It is spectacular."
"Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth, and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings. And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod the high untresspassed sanctity of space, put out my hand and touched the face of God."
Garrus sat, taken aback. "Never took you for the poet Ash."
"That was John Gillespie, American aviator, died age 19. 200 years ago we thought World War II was as bad as it could get," she mused. "Dad used to read me that quote all of the time, told me 'kid, humanity has to fight for its share of the splendors of the universe, no one out there is going to want to share," she recalled with a thoughtful chuckle. "He was a brilliant man... I miss him every single day."
"He sounds very insightful." Garrus shifted uneasily in his seat, " If you would like some time to yourself I can find somewhere else..." he offered.
"No, it's ok. I spend enough of my time alone. Please stay..."
"Look Ash, this may be none of my business, but I must admit I'm confused. I heard your concerns the other day when you pulled Shepard aside. I can't really figure out why you want to talk to me now. I know I'm quite the ladies man, but even I have my limits."
She paused for a minute before responding. "I don't hate you Garrus..." she walked over, raising her arm above her head and propping herself against the window in front of them. "I've spent my whole life trying to bring respect to my family's name. I always ranked at the top of my class. I had to be better than the best. I applied for a shipboard transfer more times than there are days in a year. Every time denied for some vague, half-assed reason. I was grounded, confined to some podunk garrison running drills and praying for my chance to see any real combat. It had been the same way for my father before me, and he was a damn fine officer... the best! It didn't matter that my technical scores were through the roof or that I consistently received outstanding reviews from my squad. I was General Williams granddaughter ...blacklisted."
"General Williams... General Williams from Shanxi?" He had never made the connection before, but he knew that name...everyone did.
She nodded. "When I was a little girl he used to come visit for the holidays. He would sit me on his knee, we would sit by the fire and he would tell me his stories. My grandfather was a brave man. He was so gentle, but when you looked into his eyes... you could see that he was haunted. He had watched as women and children starved to death in the streets, crying out for mercy because turian ships would rain down debris from orbit just to take down one individual squad trying to procure emergency supplies. Every time they took a step forward, they were forced two more back," tears began to form in her eyes and her voice continued on unsteady, "After weeks of watching innocent civilians die and sending his troops to the slaughter my grandfather made the call to surrender... to this day, Shanxi is the only human colony to ever be surrendered to an alien race."
Her words shot like needles through Garrus' chest. He could feel the air being sucked out of his lungs. He had been raised to believe that the Relay 314 Incident was the fault of ignorant humans arrogantly taking liberties with technology they couldn't understand, breaking long-standing galactic law without a second thought. The turians, he had been taught, were simply doing their duty to ensure peace was maintained for the Council races. He had never put a face on the human cost of life from the three month skirmish between their people...until now.
"I... I had no idea. You think you know something from reading the history books. It pains me that this has molded your view of my people. We are bound by "honor" and "discipline," sometimes blinding us to the ethical cost. I guess that's why I've never been a very good turian, at least that's what my father always tells me. I have a hard time abiding by the rules."
"I know I have become the token bitch aboard and I am sorry that it took Shepard and Kaidan to make me reevaluate how my attitude affects our mission. I'm not going to lie and say that serving with you has changed my outlook on turians... but you're alright Vakarian," she said, taking a seat beside him.
"You're not always so bad yourself."
They stayed there side by side, silent, staring out upon the same sky, a newfound respect between them.
Garrus suited up for their next mission, they were pulling in to dock on Noveria. He waited for Shepard, but the call never came.
-Commanding Officer ashore, XO Pressly has the deck – informed the intercom.
"Somebody's grounded," said Wrex.
"What does one do when grounded Wrex? After all you're the expert," he fired back.
"Wise guy," Wrex frowned.
He had been on every away mission since he came aboard. Was Shepard upset about the Saleon mission? Did she feel she couldn't trust him to control himself? He knew she would have to take Liara in case they ran into her mother, that is why there were there in the first place. But who else had she brought a long? Why did he care?No one can go every mission, right?
Oh well.. there was plenty he'd been wanting to do around the Normandy but hadn't had the time, now was a golden opportunity. I did promise Tali I would help her run some calibrations on the battery.
"Garrus!" Tali exclaimed. "I was beginning to think you were too holy to grace us with your presence. Too busy showing off on some exciting away mission. Wait a minute... she didn't take you? She didn't take you! What did you do?"
"Relax Tali, I decided to be generous and give myself a day to recoup. Gotta stay on top of my game ya know, for the good of the mission."
"Oh brother!" He saw her eyes roll beneath her mask. "If you're done, Adams and I just finished going over the latest quantum alignment charts. She is performing above projected efficiency, but I told him we can do even better. You think you're up for it C-Sec?"
"Bring it on! But when I blow your mind I want it recorded in your pilgrimage for your whole Flotilla to see."
"Ow!" he cried rubbing the now tender spot on his arm. For a little thing she packed one of hell of a jab!
They spent the next few hours fine tuning the ships core systems, preparing it for the dangers to come. It was easy to pass the time bashing on the terrible dextro meals they had been forced to eat and discussing how easy it was for things to get lost in translation between themselves and their human counterparts.
…
"So then when the man finishes you know, the resulting discharge- - "
Garrus had never felt his eyes strain so wide before, he was sure he had felt his mandibles hit the floor.
"I get it, I get it! You don't have to finish... I can't believe I said that to Shepard! How do you know all of this any way?" he said mortified, never having imagined he had insinuated something so lewd the day before.
By this point Tali was practically in stitches, gripping the railing to keep herself upright. "Oh... oh man Garrus, that is hilarious, I can just picture the look on her face."
"I'm pretty sure it looked just like mine right now. But hey... you still haven't answered my question! How did you find this out?"
The young quarian fell silent and her skin became flush... "So... how about these calibrations...?"
-Commander Shepard has the deck, all Senior Officers report to the debriefing room in 20:00 minutes -
"Oh well, what do you know. Better go prepare!" she said and made her way toward the door.
"You got lucky!" Garrus said. "I won't forget this little conversation," he shouted as she walked away.
Liara was visibly shaken during the debrief. From what he knew she and her mother had not been close for decades... but losing a parent is never easy regardless of circumstance.
"Benezia confirmed our fears, our real threat is Sovereign, the Reaper controlling Saren. She was a remarkably strong women, she tried to veer Saren off his course but even she wasn't strong enough to fight indoctrination forever," Shepard started.
Garrus could hear Liara whimper softly next to him.
"That is what we're up against people. This thing is ancient, older than time, it is wise and it has the power to get into your head. We cannot afford to let it's corruption spread. That is why I chose to spare the resurrected Rachni queen we found at Binary Helix. You've heard it said that the enemy of my enemy is my friend, well we can use all of the help we can get. These are desperate times."
A wave of stifled gasps filled the room. Rachni Queen? She can't be serious. The Rachni have been extinct for 2,000 years, wiped from existence by the Krogan. And the galaxy was better for it, they had killed millions.
"Rachni Shepard? That's a dangerous bet!" Garrus said.
"The hell it is! Do you have any idea how many Krogan sacrificed their lives so we would never have to speak of those monsters again?" Wrex shouted.
"I know some of you may have reservations about this one."
"Reservations?" Wrex stood up out of his seat. "This is madness Shepard!" he said before he stormed out of the room.
Garrus moved forward in his seat, tempted to go after his angry friend.
"Let him go. I knew this would be difficult for him, he has a right to be concerned. Let's give him some time," their Commander said.
Garrus sat back, rubbing his palms together anxiously.
"Genocide is not an option on this mission! Is that clear? The Queen was cooperative, without her our investigation would be at a stand still. We now know where Saren is headed, and we'll be there to follow. She lost those she loved in this battle too, and she vowed to help us against Sovereign should we ever call."
"Commander?"
"Go ahead Joker."
"The Council just received your mission report, they were very adamant about talking to you... talking to you now Commander."
"Let's get this over with. Dismissed!" said Shepard.
Garrus heard shouting coming from the Crew Deck, he quickly made his way downstairs.
"Back down human! You're in over your head," warned the angry Krogan.
Kaidan's arm began to cast a blue glow as his biotic amp activated. "Wrex, be reasonable! Why would Shepard sentence the Rachni to the same fate your people are fighting to avoid? There are a lot of long-standing grudges in the universe that humanity isn't a part of, it wasn't our place to choose to wipe out an entire race!"
"Exactly kid, it wasn't your place to choose! You don't know the consequences of what you've done here!"
"Please, stop this! This mission is too important to turn on one another now," Liara pleaded taking her stand between them.
"Liara's right! This Queen wasn't even hatched during the Rachni wars... and Saren is responsible for the death of her children, if she wants to help us in the fight she would make a powerful ally. Maybe letting her live is dangerous, but not as dangerous as not taking advantage of all the resources we can get behind us in this war!"
"Aaaaraaaawwwarrrr!" Wrex growled knocking over the mess table. "Fine! But don't come asking the Krogan for help again when this bites you all in the ass!"
"Thank you Garrus," Liara said grabbing his arm. "I already lost my mother today, I don't know that I could handle losing a member of our team as well."
"I hope you're right Garrus," Wrex said knocking shoulders with him as he left the room.
Ashley was talking Kaidan down by his normal terminal. Seeing that the conflict had dissolved for now Garrus decided it would be safe to walk Liara back to her quarters.
"Liara, I can't imagine what you are going through right now. I am sorry for your loss," he said sympathetically.
"I remember when I was little, I thought my mother was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. People always expected me to follow in her footsteps, to be a leader of our people. Matriarch's seek the truth in what is to come, I suppose that is why I became so interested in the past. It sounds so silly when I say it now," she shook her head.
"Show me a kid who never rebelled against his parents and I'll show you a liar! That's just a part of growing up," he reassured her.
"That's just what she said you know," she smiled, "...you don't need to pity me Garrus, Benezia brought this on herself."
"But she was still your mother."
"She was... but she was not. I prefer to remember her how she used to be before she was corrupted by Sovereign's power. Benezia chose her path, and I have chosen mine. I will stand behind Shepard, I am proud to fight alongside all of you."
"I'm glad I was overruled when I first joined up, picking you up first was the best decision."
"You wanted to leave me there?"
"What? No... not exactly. I just thought Benezia should take precedent since she was working directly with Saren."
"I see... I suppose I would have felt the same in your position."
-"Listen up everybody!" Shepard's voice appeared from the speaker. "I just got an urgent report from the Council that there is geth activity on the planet Virmire. The Salarian recon team there is requesting immediate assistance. The distress signal is partially jammed but it sounds like Saren may still be there. If it is delaying him from heading to the Mu Relay it must be important. The Council is sending us there to assess the situation and offer ground support. Prepare for arrival by 0600. In the mean time try and get some rest. We all deserve it!" -
"You heard the lady, I guess we better rest up. I don't even think I have heard of Virmire."
"I don't know much, just that it is located near the Terminus Systems, which has left it relatively uninhabited," Liara replied. "As usual I appreciate your looking out for me Garrus, you're a good friend."
"Any time."
The crew lined up on the Command Deck for visual inspection.
"It's too hot down there to land the Normandy, we're going to have to drop the Mako and take out the defense towers before we can bring her in. Garrus, Tali, I'm going to need your tech on this one. I'll see the rest of you at the Salarian base. You have your orders, let's get out there."
She was met with a row of salutes as Garrus and Tali followed her down to the Mako.
As usual, Joker's drop was flawless. Showoff.
"I don't remember impact being so smooth before, you wouldn't know anything about that would you Garrus?" Shepard inquired as the Mako touched down.
"I couldn't resist Commander, I'm all about a smooth entry."
She smiled back at him.
He turned to look at Tali who had begun giggling uncontrollably. Dammit! I did it again.
"You really can't help it can you?" she teased.
"You know what I meant Shepard."
Under different circumstances Virmire looked like the perfect choice for shore leave. It was lush with tropical trees, crystal clear lagoons and massive rockscapes.
"It's beautiful!" Tali said.
"Let's try and keep it that way, shall we?" replied Shepard.
They began winding their way through the landscape, plowing down any Geth in their way. Garrus popped off what stragglers he could get. Still a kill stealer he thought. Just wait til Kam gets her chance, not even the famous Commander Shepard can compete with her.
"There's our target," he said.
They came to the first tower and exited the vehicle. The air was laced with hints of tropical blooms and exotic fruit. Garrus took a deep breath, savoring the beauty of the moment he knew would pass too soon.
"Garrus I need you to provide cover fire from down here . Tali and I will make our way up to the tower controls."
"You got it!"
He knelt beside the Mako and watched as they made their way up the stairwell. He watched through his scope, dropping any Geth ahead of them before they could so much as lift their guns.
Shepard stopped and shouted down from the ledge, he could see the exasperation on her face, "And I'm the one who gets all the fun? Riiiigght!"
He chuckled. That's my girl, he thought, giving his rifle a loving pat.
He watched as the door blocking their way retreated and the massive gun above them powered down.
They re-entered the vehicle and made their way the next tower. The second gate had been even easier than the first.
"I'm reading that the grid is down, Commander. On approach to the Salarian Base now. Over and out," Joker radioed.
A few minutes later Joker's familiar voice radioed again. Already?
"The Normandy has touched down but it looks like we're grounded. The Salarian Captain can explain when you get here."
"I get the feeling this is going to be fun," Garrus said sarcastically.
Within seconds of arriving at the base they could hear a debate starting.
"So what the hell are we supposed to do now?" Williams asked.
"We need to stay put until we come up with a plan," responded the Salarian Captain.
"Are you the one in charge here?" Commander Shepard asked as they approached the group.
"I'm Captain Kirrahe, Third Infiltration Regiment. You and your crew just landed in the middle of a hot zone."
"We noticed," Garrus interrupted.
The Salarian scowled. "Every AA gun within ten miles has been alerted to your presence."
"Great, so what do you suggest now?" Shepard asked.
"We stay put until the Council sends in the reinforcements we requested."
"We are the reinforcements," Kaidan said matter-of-factly.
"What? You're all they sent? I told them to send a fleet!"
"Your transmission wasn't clear. They sent me to investigate," explained Shepard.
"Investigating... ha! Investigating, she says. I've already lost half of my men investigating this place!"
"So, what have you found out?" asked Kaidan.
"Saren's base of operations. He's setup a research facility here, but it's crawling with geth and very well fortified."
"What kind of research?" Garrus asked.
"He's using the facility to breed an army of Krogan."
"Impossible!" shouted Wrex pushing his way to the front of the crowd.
"Apparently, Saren has discovered a cure for the genophage."
If the genophage was really involved then this mission just got a lot more complicated, especially with Turians, Krogans and Salarians attempting to work together, Garrus thought.
"The geth are bad enough, but a krogan army... he'd be almost unstoppable," Shepard said.
"Exactly my thoughts. We must ensure hat the facility and its secrets are destroyed," replied Kirrahe.
Uh oh, Wrex wasn't going to like this. Yep, here it comes...
"Destroyed? I don't think so," the krogan said making a gesture that could only be intended as 'over my dead body.' "My people are dying, this cure can save them!"
"If that cure leaves this planet the krogan will become unstoppable. We can't make that mistake again," Kirrahe said.
Wrex marched in close, only inches away Kirrahe's face, "We are not a mistake!" he said and took off down the beach.
Kirrahe, not amused turned back to Shepard, "Is he going to be a problem? We have enough krogan to deal with as it is."
"He'll be fine, I'll talk to him," Shepard replied.
"I'd appreciate that Commander. My men and I need to rethink our plan of attack. Can you give us a few minutes?"
"Go ahead, we'll regroup soon," she turned back to face her crew. "Hang tight guys, I am going to go get a handle on Wrex, do what you need to prepare."
Shepard made her way down toward their conflicted squad mate. Kaidan followed a step behind her, fingers curled around his pistol, ready for whatever could happen.
"I have a bad feeling about this one," said Ashley turning to Garrus.
"So do I. It was bad enough having to deal with the Rachni, at least they were universally regarded as dangerous. But now this? The genophage is the most widely debated controversy in the galaxy."
He wondered what Shepard would do? She had always leaned toward the side or mercy, but if Saren really developed a krogan army... there was no good decision.
He watched as Shepard and Wrex danced back and forth, asserting their positions. It was hard to tell who was leading and who was following step. Even with his superior hearing he couldn't make out what they were saying. In an instant Wrex raised his shotgun but Shepard matched his draw. The next few seconds seemed to pass in slow motion before Wrex carefully lowered his weapon.
Spirits, thank you!
Garrus made his way down the beach to see if he could offer any support.
"Wrex! You're a good man. Stronger than most!"
"You don't need to get all emotional on me Gar Bear. Shepard was right, the only reason I am going ahead with this is because those things are Saren's puppets nothing more, and he is going to pay for that!"
"Yes he will," he said patting him on the back, "Yes he will!"
"...before the network, there was the fleet. Before diplomacy, there were soldiers! Our influence stopped the rachni, but before that we held the line! Our influence stopped the krogan, but before that, we held the line! Our influence will stop Saren; in the battle today, we will hold the line!"
He had to give it to the captain, he sure knew how to rally the troops.
Kirrahe had asked for one of the Normandy's squad to assist them. Shepard gave them Ashley, reasoning she was the tactical equivalent of 3 of their soldiers.
This was going to be their most difficult mission. There was a general feeling of uneasiness among the squad. Garrus just hoped they would find Saren still on the planet. They had come up with a crude yet effective plan. The Salarians were converting their ship's drive core into a giant bomb. Unfortunately, they would not be able to drop it from orbit, the base was too well fortified. They would have to infiltrate the far side of the base disabling all of the AA guns and ground opposition in the way and manually detonate it. The numbers were not on their side so they made the difficult decision to split off into smaller units, the Salarians would act as decoy while Shepard took their shadow team in through the back. Everyone knew most of the people in the camp would not be coming back.
"Is everyone ready?" Shepard asked.
There was a unanimous shout of agreement.
"Just know whatever happens, you honor us by allowing me and my squad to fight side by side with you," she said to Kirrahe and his troops.
"I second that," Garrus said.
"Absolutely!" said Kaidan.
The salarian squad began to head toward the gate. Ashley lingered behind.
"I guess that's my cue."
"You've got this Ashely! You're the best damned female soldier I know," said Shepard.
"I don't like this," Kaidan said, giving her a hug goodbye.
Garrus saw the pain in her face when he released hold of her.
"See you on the other side Ash," Garrus said their eyes locked for a second.
"Take care of them for me Garrus!" she replied.
He got the sickening feeling that those may be the last words he would get to share with her.
Garrus, Wrex and Shepard were working their way through the base. So far they had mostly been fighting off indoctrinated salarians. The decoy teams were working, drawing a lot of the fire away from the Normandy's squad. But if they didn't relieve some of the heat off of them then there would be no decoy left. They helped where they could, interfering with geth triangulation signals and destroying satellites they came across. Eventually they came to an alarm system panel.
"We have two options," Garrus said. "We can disable the alarms and leave more of the fight here with us... or we could trigger the alarm in the far side of the base and draw attention to Kirrahe's men. It's your call Commander." He already knew what she would choose.
"Bring it on!" she said.
"With pleasure," he said, successfully disabling the alarm.
They were soon flooded by geth and weaponized krogan thralls, but it was nothing they couldn't handle. Adrenaline from the thought of coming face to face with their adversary fueled their progression. They managed to free a few salarian soldiers who had been imprisoned and experimented on. Some had been too far gone... one had cracked his own skull open trying to smash his way through the glass, blaming it on the voices in his head. Sovereign's hold on this place was disturbing.
Upon exiting an elevator in the base's interior they came across an asari employee.
"Don't shoot! Please... I just want to get out of here before it's too late," she begged.
"Alright, lets hear it. Who are you and what do you want?" asked Shepard, folding her arms across her chest.
"My name is Rana Thanoptis, I'm a neuro-specialist but this job isn't worth dying over... or worse. You think the indoctrination only affects prisoners? Sooner or later Saren will want to dissect my brain too."
"I thought this was a breeding facility?" Garrus said.
"My thoughts exactly," echoed Shepard.
"Not at this level, we're studying Sovereign's affect on organic minds. At least... that's what I had assumed. Saren kept us in the dark as much as possible."
"You helped him and you don't even know why?" Wrex asked accusingly.
"I didn't have the option of negotiating," she said, clearly shaken up. "This position is a little more permanent than I had expected. But I can help you, this elevator behind me goes to Saren's private lab, I can get you in," she began operating the door controls. "See! All of Saren's private files. Are we good, can I go?"
"Soon. What were you studying here?" asked Shepard.
"That ship, Sovereign. It emits some sort of signal, undetectable but it's there. I have seen the effects, Saren uses it to influence his followers, control them. Exposure to this signal turns people into mindless slaves, like the salarians you no doubt saw. But it also does collateral damage."
"Explain."
"Sovereign's signal is too strong. Spend too much time near the ship and you feel it, like a tingle down the back of your neck, a whisper you can't quite hear. You're compelled to do things you, just don't know why. Eventually you just stop thinking for yourself. It happens to everyone at the facility. My first test subject was the scientist I replaced. Now I just want to get out of here!"
"Why is Saren researching this? Isn't he the one controlling it?"
"The signal comes from the ship, it makes us obey Saren, but I don't think he controls it. I think he is scared it is starting to affect him. Indoctrination is subtle, by the time the effects become noticeable it's usually too late."
"Tell me about this signal."
"Signal isn't the right word exactly... it's like some kind of energy field emanating from the ship that changes thought patterns. Over time, days, maybe a week, it weakens your will, you become easier to manipulate and control. It's a degenerative condition, there's a balance between control and usefulness. The less freedom a subject maintains the less capable it becomes."
"We should kill this bitch, think of all the innocent people she experimented on," suggested Wrex, raising his gun.
Garrus reached over and lowered it, elicting a growl from the krogan.
Shepard stepped toward her, "I'm going to blow this place to hell and back... if you want to make it out alive you had better start running."
"What? You can't... But I'll never...! Aaaahhh!" she screamed, running out of the room.
After she left Garrus turned to Shepard, " You enjoyed that Commander."
She let out a malevolent chuckle, "If she makes it out, good for her. If she doesn't then I'm going to call it cosmic retribution."
They never imagined what they would find in Saren's lab.
"Is that just like the beacon you saw on Eden Prime?" Garrus asked.
"...Yes, it is, " she said stepping toward it.
"Quinn, no!"
It was too late, they had to watch as she was lifted into the air, joined with ancient device. Her head was thrown backward as visions flooded her mind. A minute later she plummeted to the ground.
"Quinn, are you alright? What did you see?" Garrus said, kneeling by her side.
"There's no time now... we need to keep moving," she said regaining her balance.
They traced their way back up the catwalk they had just traveled and were met by a large red holographic image.
"I get the feeling something bad is about to happen," said Wrex.
Garrus agreed.
"You are not Saren," thundered the image menacingly.
"Is that some kind of VI interface?" Garrus asked.
"Rudimentary creatures of blood and flesh. You touch my mind, fumbling in ignorance, incapable of understanding," it replied.
Lovely, whatever it is, it has a great attitude.
"Im no expert, but I don't think that's a VI," said Wrex.
"There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you cannot even imagine it. I am beyond your comprehension. I am Sovereign!"
"Sovereign's not just some Reaper ship Saren found. It's an actual Reaper!" Shepard exclaimed.
"Reaper, a label created by the Protheans to give voice to their destruction. In the end, what they choose to call us is irrelevant. We simply are," it continued.
"The Protheans vanished 50,000 years ago! You could not have been there, it's impossible!" Garrus shouted.
"Organic life is nothing but a genetic mutation, an accident. Your lives are measured in years and decades. You wither and die. We are eternal, the pinnacle of evolution and existence. Before us you are nothing. Your extinction is inevitable. We are then end of everything."
"Whatever your plan is, it's going to fail! I'll make sure of that," Shepard said defiantly.
"Confidence born of ignorance. The cycle cannot be broken. It has repeated more times than you can fathom. Organic civilizations rise, evolve, advance. And at the apex of their glory, they are extinguished. The Protheans were not the first. They did not create the Citadel. They did not forge the Mass Relays. They merely found them, the legacy of my kind."
Garrus shuddered, his normally warm blood ran cold. This can't really be happening. Liara was right. These things had been around wiping out countless civilizations for tens of thousands of years. He had never tasted fear like this before or felt so completely obsolete.
"Why would you construct the mass relays, then leave them for someone else to find?" Shepard shot back, trying to find the truth in what it was saying.
"Your civilization is based on the technology of the mass relays, our technology. By using it your society develops along the paths we desire. We impose order on the chaos of organic evolution. You exist because we allow it and you will end because we demand it!"
"They're... they're harvesting us! Letting us advance to the level they need then wiping us out!" Garrus said. Who are these things that they can play God?
"What do you want from us? Slaves, resources?" Shepard asked.
"My kind transcends your very understanding. We are each a nation, independent, free of all weakness. You cannot even grasp the nature of our existence."
"Where are the rest of you?" the Commander demanded.
"We are legion. The time of our return is coming. Our numbers will darken they sky of every world. You cannot escape your doom."
Garrus' mind shot to thoughts of Palaven, of his family, his sister. Of how he had never known what it felt like to truly love a woman, of the children he may never have.
"You're not even alive, not really. You're just a machine... machines can be broken."
Garrus was amazed at how she could hold her ground while confronted by such a formidable threat. He was ashamed of his fear. She was incredible.
"Your words are as empty as your future. I am the vanguard of your destruction. This exchange is over," Sovereign said and vanishsed.
"Look who got touchy. Shepard, I think you have him shaking in his boots," said Wrex.
Suddenly, the entire wall of windows behind them shattered simultaneously, hurling glass and metal scrap in their direction. They had no time to recover from what they had just seen before Joker came over their Comms.
"Uh Commander, we have a problem."
"Lay it one me Joker. I love bad news," she replied.
She even kept her sense of humor. Unbelievable.
"That ship, Sovereign? It's moving! I don't know what you did down there, but that thing just pulled a turn that would shear any of our ships in half. It's coming your way fast, and it's coming hard. You better wrap things up- pronto!."
"About time we had a real fight," said Wrex.
Was he the only one scared as hell?
"We need to head over to the breeding facility. Time to blow this place to hell!" shouted Shepard.
"We'll meet you there, Joker out!"
- "The geth are turning! Shepard must be getting close. Keep them here! Circle around and..." - the comm signal died out.
Ash! It was good to hear her voice, but it sounded like she was in trouble.
"You heard her, we need to move!" Shepard cried, sprinting toward their target.
"That turret could punch some nasty holes in the Normandy," Wrex sad as they came up on their last AA gun.
"Garrus shut it down! Wrex, you and me, we'll guard the perimeter."
Garrus ran to the turret controls, working as fast as he could. He listened as his comrades launched into the geth and krogan onslaught.
"All clear!" he said as the gun powered down.
"Go, go, go!" Shepard yelled.
-"Good work on that gun Commander. We're beginning our assault on the other one," - their comm chirped.
Spirits, she made it! That a girl! But they weren't home free yet.
-"The charges are set and ready. Everybody get low and keep your heads down!" -
"Nice! One less thing to worry about," Joker joined the conversation. "I'm bringing us in. I'll get as close to the site as I can."
They watched as the Normandy descended into the makeshift docking bay. Soon Kaidan appeared with some of the support crew carrying the bomb they were about to detonate. They carried it down to the center of the base.
Kaidan jumped on his Comm, "Ash, bomb is in position, we're all set he-"
-"Commander, do you read me?" - Ashley cut in.
"The nuke is almost ready Chief. Get to the rendezvous point!" said Shepard.
-"Negative, Commander. The geth have us pinned down on the AA tower. We have taken heavy casualties! We'll never make the rendezvous point in time." -
"Get them out of there Joker, now!" ordered Shepard.
- "Negative, it's too hot! You can't risk it. We'll hold them off as long as we-" -
"Dammit, Williams! We're so close, hang in there!" Garrus said.
"It's okay Commander. I need a couple of minutes here to finish arming the bomb. Go get them and meet me back here," Kaidan said.
"Right, up to that tower. Move!" Shepard said.
"We won't let them down Shepard!" Garrus said as they moved out.
They were fighting through what enemies they had to as they headed toward the tower, when they saw a geth ship inbound.
-"I'm reading a geth ship headed toward the Lieutenant." -
-"It's already here and its bleeding geth all over the bomb site" -
"Can you hold them off?"
- "There's too many, I don't think we can survive until you get here. I'm activating the
bomb!" -
"What are you doing Lieutenant?"
-"I'm making sure this bomb goes off. No matter what!... It's done Commander, go get the Chief and get the hell out of
here!" -
The Commander paced back and forth. There was a thick layer of sweat forming on her furrowed brow. She punched the wall in front of her. She had to make a choice. Would she save Kaidan, or would she save Ashley?
"Dammit! Ashley, radio Joker and tell him to meet us at the AA tower."
What? His ears must be playing tricks on him... he knew she was close with Kaidan. She would really let him die? Maybe that's why she made her choice, couldn't risk getting too attached?
There was a long pause...
-"I... I'm sorry, I can't do that"-
- "Ash, don't be crazy! It's the right choice. Shepard go get her"-
Another agonizing pause...
-"Shepard, please... tell my sisters I love them and that I am so proud of them. Me and dad... we'll be looking down on them...
together, I'm going home Commander."-
Her voice was calm... almost serene. Ashley... what are you doing?
"Williams, that was a direct order, we're coming for you!" Shepard shouted, slightly panicked.
-"Negative Commander... Kaidan, you have so much life to live... don't blame yourself for this... goodbye..." -
- "Ash no... no, no, no! Don't do thi-" -
The sound of a single shot rang through their comms like a knife entering the heart. She had eliminated the choice.
"What... what the hell just happened?" Shepard gasped, burying her face in her hands.
Garrus knew... maybe he was the only one who had truly known the extent of Ashley's feelings toward Kaidan. She gave her life to save the one she loved. Could there be anything more tragic... or more beautiful...
He took a minute to collect himself, then broke the silence, "She did what she had to. Her name will be recorded in this history books for her hand in stopping the biggest threat the galaxy has ever know. We need to go. Kaidan needs us, we can't lose him too."
Bitter resentment boiled up inside him. He resented Kaidan for dragging Ashley to that point, when he knew that he was only interested in Shepard.
"She will be remembered... thank you Garrus... let's go," she replied, slightly defeated.
He swore for a second that he saw the Krogan next to him force back a tear.
"She died for the good of her men, there is no greater honor in death," Wrex said.
And they made their way back to the bomb site.
Not seconds after they arrived back, at a very distraught Kaidan's side, that biotic missiles were being rained down on them from above. One of them knocking Kaidan out.
Saren!
He was powerful, perhaps he had only been rivaled by his old protege Nihlus. Nihlus, Garrus thought! He would take down Saren for Nihlus, for Liara's mother, for Ashley!
He raised his scope only to have the gun forced from his hands. "I don't think so friend, Saren is mine!" Wrex shouted.
"Both of you! This is my mission, if either of you so much as raise your weapon again without a direct order I will make sure you both rot in the Terminus Systems for the rest of your lives."
Wrex and Garrus looked at each other. They had never been spoken to like that by Shepard... they'd never heard her speak like that to anyone. They knew she meant it.
"Bravo! I applaud you Shepard. My geth were utterly convinced the salarians were the real threat. An impressive diversion. Of course it was all for nothing. I can't let you disrupt what I have accomplished here. You can't possibly understand what's at stake," Saren said as he jumped off his platform and began walking toward them.
As he came into focus Garrus could begin to see how Saren had changed. His skin was an unnatural silver, his eyes were a soulless blue. Benezia had been right... he was no puppeteer, he was just a much a slave as the army he had been working to control.
"Sovereign and the rest of his kind destroyed the Protheans! What else is there to understand?" replied Shepard, gun raised.
"You've seen the visions from the beacons. You of all people, should understand what the Reapers are capable of. They cannot be stopped. Do not mire yourself in pointless revolt. Do not sacrifice everything for the sake of petty freedoms. The Protheans tried to fight, and they were utterly destroyed. Trillions dead. But what if they had bowed to their invaders? Would they still be here, today? Is submission preferable to extinction?"
Coward! He would rather ally himself with the Devil than stand and fight! He was a traitor, not worth the dirt under his talons. Garrus let out an audible hiss.
"Do you really believe the Reapers would let us live?" Shepard said condescendingly.
"Now, you see why I never came forward to the Council with this. We organics are driven by emotion instead of logic. We will fight even when we cannot win. If we work with the Reapers - - make ourselves useful - - think how many lives could be spared! That is why I joined Sovereign, though aware of the dangers. That is why I built this facility, I hoped it could protect me."
"You bastard! Have you no shame, I should rip the fringe right from your skull. You are a disgrace to everything Turian. We will wipe you from existence!" Garrus roared.
"Easy Garrus," she said softly. She turned back to Saren, "You're afraid Sovereign is influencing you. You're afraid he's already controlling your thoughts!"
Completely ignoring Garrus' threat he replied "My studies have shown the more a subject falls under control, the less capable he becomes. Sovereign needs me to find the Conduit. My mind is still my own... for now. But the transformation from ally to servant can be subtle. I will not let it happen to me!"
"He's already manipulating you and don't even know it! You're already under its power!"
"No! Sovereign needs me!" he spoke as if reassuring himself with his own words. "If I find the Conduit, I have been promised a reprieve from the inevitable. This is my only hope!"
He only cares about himself. If Shepard hadn't asked him to stand down Saren would be a dead man!
"Together we can stop Sovereign. We don't have to submit to the Reapers. We can beat them!"
Was she actually so naïve... or did she just truly see the good in everyone? Either way, he would never stand for Saren joining them. And he was fairly sure Wrex felt the same. He could not figure out if Shepard's mercy was a strength or a weakness.
"I no longer believe that... the visions from the beacons cannot be denied. Sovereign is a machine... if I prove my worth I become a resource worth maintaing. There is no other logical conclusion!"
"You were a Spectre! Sworn to defend the galaxy, you broke that vow to save yourself!"
Yes Shepard, yes! Get angry.
"I'm not doing this for myself! Can't you see? Sovereign will succeed, it is inevitable. My way is the only way any of us will survive. An alliance between organics and machines, in so doing I will save more lives than have ever existed! But you...you would doom our entire civilization to extinction and for that you must die!"
With that he ordered his geth forward.
"Don't let him get away!"
Saren returned to his moving platform, making him difficult to target. But even with all of his power he was no match for the rage of a betrayed Turian, a Krogan fighting to avenge the genocide of his people and a Commander who just lost one of her most valued crew members.
He retreated to his ship as soon as his backup was eliminated and his shields began to drop.
"Nnnooooooo!" Garrus said running after the platform.
"It's no use! We know where he's going, he won't get away from us again! Right now we need to get off this rock before the whole thing blows!" Shepard said, slinging the injured Lieutenant over her shoulder.
The Normandy hovered just low enough for them to climb aboard.
"Hold on!" Joker shouted. "We're cutting it close!"
They felt the nuclear blast propel them forward through the atmosphere.
While waiting for the decontamination process to run it's course, everyone's nerves erupted to the surface.
"Kaidan! Do you mind telling me what the hell happened back there? Why Williams defied a direct order!" Shepard demanded.
"Quinn... Dammit! You know I am just as surprised as you are! It should have been me, if I could go back... you know that I would always chosoe to save Ash over myself. I wish I had some insight in to what just happened... but I don't!" His voice was desperate, creeping toward collapse.
"Well, we can't go back Kaidan, can we? Saren slipped through our fingers, Ashley is dead. This mission was fucked!"
He had to say something.
"Please...this isn't what she would want," Garrus said.
"Like you would know!" Kaidan shouted.
"She made her choice, it's what she wanted. We should honor that. And Saren... he's not getting away, I swear on my life! I heard Joker was able to evac some of the salarian recon team while we fought Saren. This mission was not a failure! We now have a face for what we are up against. We will take Sovereign down and Saren with him!"
Shepard let out a deep breath and nodded. The decon chamber doors opened.
"Would one of you please take Kaidan to see Chakwas, I need to speak with the Council..." she said.
"Can we please talk about this later Commander?" Kaidan pleaded.
"Meet me in my quarters when you're feeling better, I'll be going over our next move until then," she said without looking back and walked away.
"Wrex... I am going to drop Kaidan by the Med Bay. Would you be up for a little hand to hand combat when I am done."
He knew it probably sounded weird to the human in the room. But the only way he knew how to work through grief was with violence. And that's what he intended to do.
"It's your funeral," Wrex replied. His face shifted, "Sorry, too soon, I didn't mean to reference death right now... You're on Garrus! I'll meet you on the lower deck when you're ready.
He was ready... more ready than he'd ever been!