Hello readers! I'm still alive and I brought cake!
I wholeheartedly apologize for my long absence as both an author and reader. I've been battling with a bout of brain fog for quite a while now. However, I believe I may soon be victorious! To commend my forthcoming triumph I present to you a celebratory chapter of United in Valor. Huzzah!
Ashley winced when a mouthful of blood spattered on the floor. Saren was a brutal interrogator and wasted no time in cutting to the dirty business. The boy, barely into adulthood, spat a second mouthful of blood into the crimson pool at his feet before gazing up at them with pink, swollen eyes. She'd heard Cerberus had been recruiting teens and young adults who were heavy on the trigger and eager to do their part to help humanity in this dire time. Who knows how many of them she'd killed since joining up with Shepard. It was something she cared not to think too much about lest she be haunted by the guilt; and guilt was not part of the job description.
"You know they'll kill me for this," the boy muttered through the metallic taste of his own blood.
Saren sneered, waving a set of plated claws before the kid's eyes. "If you don't tell me where they are, I assure you, I'll make your death much more painful than Cerberus would. So you'll just have to ask yourself… do you want a bullet in the head, or your body torn apart from bottom-up?"
Through all of his threats and arrogance, those electrifying blue eyes swam with a heartbreak Ashley had never before experienced in the eyes of such an alien. She couldn't understand how one so ruthless could feel any remorse or pain. Could it be that this callus turian had truly fell in love with his old nemesis?
The young man lowered his eyes and stared hard at the floor, seemingly pondering his very limited options. Finally he took a deep breath before conceding to the demands of his captor. "We were supposed to rendezvous back to Cerberus HQ after securing the commander. That's probably where they've taken her."
"You lie," Saren spat, poking one razor-sharp claw into a pre-existing wound in the human's torso. He twisted until he received an agonized response, and then continued. "We destroyed your headquarters."
"HQ was destroyed, yes, but surviving staff were transferred to a backup. A dreadnaught."
"Where is it?" Saren growled in warning.
"I uh—I don't know," the boy stuttered. When Saren ground his claw ever deeper into the seeping flesh he shouted from the pain. "Wait! Okay, okay! I don't know where it is right now, but its destination was the Peruses Veil, last time I knew."
"The Veil? Why there?" Ashley questioned him.
"Because it's an uninhabited system and the Reapers had avoided it so far," the young trooper explained.
Saren pondered for a moment as if trying to decide if the human was telling the truth. Finally he raised his voice to activate the Normandy's comm system. "Joker, set a course for the Peruses Veil. Immediately."
"Sure thing," Joker replied without question.
"I told you what you want to know," the human captive sputtered. "Will you let me go? I-I promise, I'm done with Cerberus."
Saren bared his teeth in what could have either been interpreted as a grin or a threat. Without taking his eyes off of the trembling boy, he wrapped his clawed fingers around the pistol strapped to his side. Despite all of the things he wanted to do to this scum to make him truly understand the grief he felt, he wasn't sure he had it in him anymore. He could only think about getting to Shepard now. As long as she was still alive he'd refuse to return to his old ways. If not… Dropping his hold from his weapon, he balled his hand into a tight fist, ignoring the pain his talons had caused as they pierced the leathery skin of his palm. "Deal with him as you see fit," he told Ashley without turning. "I am not in the right mind to decide his fate."
Ashley stared wide-eyed as the turian left. The Saren she remembered would have not batted an eye at tearing the human apart. Something had changed him, and right now, that something was in danger.
Voices; the same voices that had invaded her mind when the core had first been implanted into her brain were still there. However, they sounded further away now, but more desperate. They beckoned, pleaded… but why? It wasn't quite clear what they wanted, but she somehow felt drawn to them. Her guess was that the Reapers became aware when others are "born". In a sense, she had been reborn as a Reaper, the core coming alive within her. The thought that she was one of them, if even barely, was frightening and caused a knot to form in her stomach.
Suddenly a tight pressure on her arm tugged at her awareness and drove away the dreams and the voices that pursued her thoughts. With a snap of a rubber tourniquet, the pressure dissipated and she made a strong effort to part her eyelids just enough to glimpse a glaring light and a shadowy figure above her.
"Ah, Shepard. Good to see you're awake."
She knew the man's voice all too well. "Illusive Man," she muttered, forcing her eyes the rest of the way open to peer up at his image, which was blurred by her adjusting vision and the intense lighting above. She tried to sit up but the restraints held her secure against the cool surface, solid and metallic. An operating table? Yanking her hands in an upward motion, she tested the straps that bound her wrists. They were tight and securely bound. She groaned again, leaning back against the metal wearily. "What do you want?"
"You know what I want, Shepard," he told her in his usual pompous tone. "You took the Reaper neuro core from me, and I aim to get it back."
She grinned lowering her eyelids halfway in an attempt to stave off some of the offending light. "Hate to break it to you, but I don't have it."
"I have eyes everywhere, Shepard. You know this," he hummed knowingly. "Your reason for being on the Citadel was quite obvious. What I don't know, is what you intended to do with the core." The tips of his fingers tapped lightly against her skull, indicating he knew exactly where it was.
"You're not as dumb as you look. I'm sure you could figure it out."
"That's the problem. Your assumptions were incorrect. Did you really think you'd just be able to wire yourself into any Reaper and take over their network?"
The commander shrugged as best she could within the restraints. "Seemed like a good idea," she scoffed. "You have another idea?"
"The Reapers don't quite operate the way you may think. They are a collective, yes, but one cannot directly control the actions of another." He paused, a glimmer of anticipation appeared in his gaze before he continued to speak. "Do you know why the Citadel is such a significant fragment of our galaxy?"
"It was created by the Reapers. And…?" Javik once told her it was a Reaper artifact created to lure in the most advanced organic races of a cycle. It was a means to an end; the end of a cycle. As he was the last living Prothean, and one who had had the most involvement with Reaper destruction, she was inclined to agree with him. However, judging from the smug look on the man's face, there was likely more to it than what even the Protheans knew.
"The Reapers did not create the Citadel, Shepard. The Citadel created them!" he proclaimed, almost too enthusiastically for her comfort.
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't you see? The Citadel is alive!" A grin spread over his face and his hands expressively whirled in the air as he spoke. "After her own image the Reapers were created to maintain order in the galaxy by keeping her children from harming themselves and each other."
"Her children?" A chill ran up her spine as she said the words. It was clear there was only one answer for this question…
"Us, Shepard. Organics; those whom she nurtures within her womb, preparing us for our end."
It was indeed the answer she had been expecting, however it still left her feeling uneasy. She swallowed hard, quickly putting aside any disturbing thoughts, concerning organic origin, that may still be swimming around in her head. She needed more information. "But why would it encourage evolution if it only ends in our destruction?"
"To make room for new life to evolve; the youngest of her children. The stronger the prime species become, the less room there is for others to advance. We kill the weaker ones in order to become more powerful, just as the Protheans had, and those before them. It's an unending cycle that will continue until the end of time."
"But that's changed. We're not at war with the other races. It wasn't until the Reapers showed up-"
"That's where you're wrong, Shepard," The Illusive Man interrupted. "What do you think I've been fighting for all these years? Humanity deserves more! Just look at the other species. The Asari have natural biotics, those that we had to have dangerous implants to replicate. The Krogan and Turians have much more physical strength and military prowess. The Quarians have a technical advancement over any other species. And the Salarians have an incredible intelligence, with which our most brilliant minds could never hope to compete. But what advantage did we ever have to show? None. We've worked harder than the other races to get where we are now, and yet they still look at us as inferior."
"That's not true, and you know it. We have our place in The Council -" She then remembered Udina, the human councilor, was dead and corrected herself. "Had our place in the Council before you got involved."
"Udina paid the price for his failure. Besides, you of all people know how hard we had to work to get there. What had the other council races done to earn that right? It was ours for the taking and to use how we wanted!"
"So what exactly do you plan on doing? Use the core to plead your case to the Citadel? Hope she spares humanity because we've been underprivileged?"
"Not quite," he replied calmly. "I aim to control her. Once I have gained control of the Citadel the Reapers will be ours. They will become humanity's greatest weapons, our own personal advantage, and the galaxy will finally belong to us."
"You're psychotic."
He smirked. "Perhaps." Before leaving he turned to a man in a white lab coat, who had been standing within visual range of the commander. Somehow, it didn't seem like the man entirely trusted the Cerberus leader. "Dr. Oninger. No matter the cost, you keep that chip intact."
Shepard's stomach twisted. It was much too obvious what meaning his words held.
"Sir…" the doctor started hesitantly. "Do you really think this is a wise choice?"
"Your job is not to question my decision," The Illusive Man replied coarsely.
"Indeed, however, it is my job to see value in research." the doctor responded, lowering his voice to just above a whisper. Despite his carefully lowered volume, she could clearly make out every word. "The commander is living proof that we can truly meld our bodies with synthetics. You saw the scans. This knowledge of its recreation is not something we should pass up."
"We will recreate it, once that chip becomes mine. Now do as you are ordered and remove it."
"Dr. Oninger's eyes narrowed with obvious disapproval, but his voice provided reluctant acceptance. "Yes sir."
"Good. Inform me once extraction is a success."
"So you're just going to do as you're told, huh?" Shepard muttered bitingly once The Illusive Man had left. When he didn't respond, she lifted her head to glare at him with disdain. "Just like every other Cerberus dog. Obey no matter the cost."
Dr. Oninger frowned as he handled a vial filled with a clear liquid. "I'm ex-military. It's what we do," he stated plainly, jabbing a syringe into the vial's seal. "You should know that more than anyone."
"I do. However, I also know where my loyalties belong." she murmured, meeting his frown with a steady stare.
"My loyalties belong with the human race," he replied standing over her now.
"You mean Cerberus," she corrected bitingly.
"Cerberus fights for humanity."
She narrowed her eyes. "At what cost? How many more lives is it worth to let that psycho have what he wants?"
"We're at war, Commander." He quickly wiped the underside of her wrist with a disinfecting pad as he spoke. "Or did you forget? That psycho wants to save the human race while the rest of the galaxy continues to turn their backs."
She scoffed. "You're wrong. He wants to control it."
He jabbed the syringe into a visible vein in her wrist. She hadn't even felt the pinch. "You think you'd do any better, given the chance?"
Almost instantly she felt the warmth flood her veins. Smiling wearily she peered up at the man with fading vision. "Of course…" She sighed as the juice quickly did its job. "…I'm Commander Shepard."
"I say we blow them out of the system!" Zaal'Koris exclaimed, slamming his palms down on the table for emphasis.
Han'Garrel nodded determinately. "I'm inclined to agree. What if they reach Rannoch? We have worked too hard rebuilding to see it end in ruin."
"We don't know if their intentions are hostile," Tali'Zorah argued. Though she hated the thought of defending Cerberus, she didn't feel right about this.
"Why else would Cerberus be in the Veil?" Zaal'Koris pointed out.
Tali sipped a quick breath of filtered air through nervous lips. "The Reapers have spread to nearly every system in the galaxy. Perhaps they're only looking for solitude. As far as we know they could be transporting innocents to a safer place." Or perhaps they are the only other survivors in the galaxy. If so, could they really exterminate the last of the other galactic races? That part she couldn't bear to say aloud. The other Admirals wouldn't feel the same. The continuance of their race was first and foremost. Shortly after the Reapers invaded, the Quarians, with the help of Geth council, made the difficult decision to cut all communication with the other systems, deserting the other races as well as several of their own who had been on pilgrimages. She knew the Quarian people had to preserve their own existence, but the thought of abandoning her old friends weighed heavily on her mind. Now that Tali had time to think about it, she regretted not going off on her own to find Shepard.
"Why not ask the Geth?" Daro'Xen hummed pleasantly, eyeing up the synthetic being as she would her childhood toys.
Tali couldn't tell if the woman was genuinely interested in the opinion of the Geth, or if she was just getting her kicks. Either way, they had built an alliance with the Geth. It was only fair they had a voice, even if it was mostly for appearance purposes. "Legion? What is the Geth consensus?"
Legion's illuminated eye peered at her almost apologetically. "We perceive the human organization, Cerberus, as a threat to all organic and synthetic life forms. Threats must be eliminated."
"Admiral Tali'Zorah, I believe you are outnumbered," Daro'Xen stated with a smile in her voice.
All eyes were on Tali now, awaiting any further objections with scrutiny. The younger quarian sighed and lowered her shoulders in defeat. "Do it," she said flatly.