Orpheus Descending

There was a familiar pulling sensation as the ship came into range of the mass relay. Garrus imagined the transport shuttle engulfed in blue energy before being slung across the galaxy at FTL speeds, then plopped down in a completely foreign system light-years away. But he didn't remain seated for long. He got to his feet. I better check on Grunt and the pilot.

Liara followed him out, anxious to see where they were being flown. Garrus couldn't blame her – she'd spent two years of her life dedicated to searching for the very place they were headed. Though he did give her a sideways glance. Now that Liara knew they were heading to the Broker's headquarters and that there was a chance the one responsible for her friend's death lurked within, Garrus wondered if her head was still in the same place. Was there still some part of her that wanted revenge?

There probably was. The hatred for the Shadow Broker and his minions emanated from her in waves. Garrus just hoped that she was smart enough to put the commander first. "Don't worry," Liara said, reading his mind. "I won't compromise the mission. Getting Shepard back is the top priority."

Garrus didn't like the implication that there could be a secondary objective, but he didn't waver. "Good. Now let's find out where the Broker has been hiding all these years."

Hagalaz. The name of the planet that the Broker's ship was on felt like a curse on their tongues. Garrus leaned over the pilot's shoulder to survey their approach. Liara had her omni-tool raised. "Incredible," she breathed. "The Broker is... virtually undetectable. It's no wonder I couldn't find it."

"What do you mean?" Garrus inquired.

"The ship is caught in sort of twilight band. On Hagalaz, the temperatures are so extreme that the oceans boil during the day and snap-freeze at night. And it travels under the cover of a constant lightning storm, completely hidden from any external sensors. I can't imagine the power needed to sustain such an engine," she explained.

Bored, Grunt sought to entertain himself by poking the salarian with his gun, receiving a discouraging nod from the turian. The salarian seemed to shrink away from his krogan captor.

That was all fascinating, but Garrus needed to know how it affected the mission. "Is it going to cause a problem?"

"No." Liara hesitated. "Well, it shouldn't."

"It won't," the salarian said, sounding almost irritated. "Like I said, I've flown the route a dozen times this week. What would be the point of trapping the base like this if our own ships couldn't get through?"

That's settled, then. "Alright. Take us in," Garrus instructed the pilot. The Steel Cog began to shudder and groan violently. Liara lost her balance and barely managed to catch herself on the wall. Garrus seized the pilot's chair and Grunt dropped into a wider stance, shifting his center of mass lower to the ground. As they approached the Broker's base, the storm worsened, tossing about the small craft heedlessly. But before long, they passed into the pocket of calm the base was nestled in, an envelope of still air and motionlessness.

"This is the Steel Cog, requesting a docking berth for prisoner transfer," the salarian said, activating a comm link to the main ship. Garrus and Liara shared a glance. If their pilot was going to tip off the Broker's forces that something was up, now was his time to do so. Neither of them wanted to consider the possibility that the salarian had already given them away and condemned their mission to failure.

"Receiving, Steel Cog. Dock at Port 12 and prepare for transfer inspection."

"Acknowledged."

Transfer inspection? Looks like our disguises are about to be put to the test. The comm link disconnected and they drew closer to the ship. It was completely unlike any vessel either Garrus or Liara had seen before. Lightning capacitors lined the outer hull to convert the energy of the storm into whatever the Broker needed it for – most likely keeping the base in the air. It was such a tenuous balance that it seemed as if only a minor malfunction could bring the whole thing down.

Garrus was just glad that they already had a way in.

As the docking couplings latched onto the exterior of the shuttle's airfoils, the pilot said, "They'll be waiting for you as soon as those doors open. They'll ask a lot of questions." They were locked in. A green light flashed on the dashboard, signaling that the pressure releases in the hold had equalized. They were good to go.

Silently, Garrus drew his pistol. "Yeah. I imagine they will." He clicked the safety off. The sound made the salarian panic and jump to his feet, and for the first time he appeared to fear for his life. A heat sink in the back of the skull stopped him. His body fell onto the dashboard and painted the cockpit with warm, sticky blood, heart still pumping fear-induced adrenaline through his veins. As the lifeless body slid to the floor of the cockpit, Garrus re-holstered his pistol. "Get down to the hold. The Broker agents are waiting on us."

Grunt slid his shotgun onto his back and followed Garrus out. Liara lingered a moment longer, her eyes drawn to the body like a magnet. She tore herself away, hurrying after Garrus and Grunt. She couldn't compromise the mission. Shepard was the top priority.

The team assembled at the door, taking their positions according to plan. Jack, Mordin, Thane, Kaidan, Zaeed, and Liara were posted in front, single file, with their hands tied in front of them. Garrus wondered if roughing them up a bit might make their disguises more believable, but they didn't have enough time to put together something convincing that wouldn't potentially injure them for the mission. Here's hoping that this transfer inspection is more of a cursory glance than a thorough investigation. Behind the prisoners, Garrus ordered Grunt, Jacob, Samara, Miranda, and Kasumi into formation. "Helmets on," he added, securing his own before looking back to check on the others. They were readying their weapons, pointed at the prisoners for additional authenticity. Everything was in place. "Let's make these bastards pay for what they've done. One way or another, we are leaving here with Shepard." That was all the pep-talk Garrus had time for before the holding bay door opened.

Four Shadow Broker agents were waiting for them. Garrus noticed that their guns weren't drawn. He took it as a good sign – it meant that the agents weren't suspicious of their own. After all, each agent was trained to be completely loyal. There were no infiltrators within the organization. Garrus guessed that no one who opposed the Shadow Broker lived long enough to discover his secret base on Hagalaz. As soon as the door clunked to the ground, one of agents, a batarian, stepped forward and said, "We don't have any incoming prisoners scheduled. We'll need to confirm their regs before you can proceed. Identification?"

For us or the prisoners? As smoothly as he could, Garrus said, "We caught these six after outnumbering them in downtown Nos Astra. They were trying to get to the docks. Figured someone here might want 'em alive." The expressions on the prisoners' faces were drawn tightly, trying not to betray any emotion. The others held their breath behind their helmets, watching.

The two Broker agents glanced at each other. Unscheduled transfers were highly irregular. Neither of them were quite sure what to make of the group. Garrus wondered if their minds had yet been planted with the seed of doubt.

"Where did you say they were headed?"

Here we go. "The Normandy, their ship on the docks."

"They're part of Shepard's team?"

Garrus nodded, silent. The Illusive Man confirmed that the Shadow Broker had set bounties on at least five of their heads, probably more. Surely that would be enough to get them in the front door.

"Well, then. They've caused a lot of trouble for our operations today. Good work. Dunno how the hell you managed to bring them back here," the agent said while one of his partners turned towards a console, entering a few commands. The other three were looking at Garrus expectantly.

He cleared his throat. "Took them by surprise. You know how it is."

The leader of them chuckled darkly. "Indeed I do."

Garrus didn't want to consider the implications of that last statement. He was just relieved that they seemed to have passed inspection. But that was before the agent at the console turned around and said, "Okay. Let's get them scanned and entered in the data logs."

Scanned? "Right. Protocol first," Garrus said. Once they were scanned in, Garrus and the others would proceed to lead their team of decoy prisoners to wherever the cell block was. All they had to do was make it past the handful of guards they were currently faced with. Whoever else they ran into would see that they were on official business and leave them be. This is good. It's going to work.

The leader of the group of agents picked up a small, square omni-tool attachment and clipped it into the palm of his hand. A bright blue beam of light shot out. He approached Zaeed, the first in the line of prisoners. Garrus raised his gun, indicating the others to do the same. Just in case he tries anything. The beam of light shone in Zaeed's eyes, scanning his retinas.

"Watch it, asshole," Zaeed said gruffly, raising his arms, still bound together, to shield his face. One of the others gave him a rough shove from behind. Garrus thought it might have been Samara.

"Massani, Zaeed. Bet you're wishing you stayed with the Suns, huh?"

"I don't associate with goddamn batarian terrorists," the scarred mercenary said, lifting his chin and shifting his weight back. He sounded almost haughty.

"But you're with Cerberus."

"I said batarian terrorists, you moron."

The Broker agent moved down the line after Zaeed's information had been entered in the data base. Next up was Thane, a model of serenity as always. His ebony eyes seemed to absorb the light of the omni-tool. "Krios, Thane. I'm sure a lot of people will be happy that you're off the streets," the batarian noted.

"One never accomplishes anything of meaning without making a few enemies along the way."

"True enough, I suppose," the agent said, eyeing the drell as if he wasn't quite sure what to make of him. But he didn't hesitate to move on to the next prisoner. Garrus glanced back at the rest of the team. They still had their scopes trained on their fellow infiltrators. "Ahh, Dr. Mordin Solus. You know, the Broker isn't the only one who has it out for you. There are also quite a few krogan buyers who have expressed interest."

"Interest in torture, revenge, potential cure or reversal of actions. Understandable. Perhaps similar reasons behind Shepard's abduction?" Mordin was tapping his long fingers on his chin despite the restraints on his wrists. "Just thinking aloud. Would not expect you to know." The batarian kept his mouth shut, throwing the doctor a heated look before continuing.

"Get that fucking light out of my face before I shove it up your ass!" Jack said. Both her arms wound back in a punch – far enough to pose a threat, but without biotics, didn't warrant the use of lethal force. Before the batarian could step in to do some damage, Garrus shot forward and grabbed her by the wrist cuffs. He feigned twisting them back and throwing her to the ground. Jack made a good show of it, exclaiming loudly and cursing violently as she slammed into the floor. Garrus addressed the batarian. "Subject Zero. Cerberus' pet project."

"Oh yeah. Who else?" he said, giving Garrus a knowing look, who shrugged in return.

Liara jerked her face out of the light, casting her sapphire gaze down in order to evade the scanner. Without warning, the batarian waved his omni-tool and sent a burst of electricity shooting through Liara, jolting her. She cried out in pain, then fell to her knees. The team jumped. "We know who you are, Dr. T'Soni," the batarian spat. Kaidan fought the urge to help her up, though he was unable to keep himself from taking a step towards her.

"Stay back," one of the Broker agents, a krogan by the looks of it, boomed at Kaidan while brandishing his shotgun. Kaidan froze, then put his hands in the air in submission. Garrus could've sworn he saw the telltale flicker of dark energy at his fingertips. Dammit. Don't do anything stupid, Alenko. The flash of blue was gone as quickly as it had come. The omni-tool was now in his face. It skimmed over his chocolate brown irises before beeping twice disapprovingly. The batarian gave a concerned grunt, then scanned him again.

"We're not coming up with anything in the data base," the agent posted at the console said. Garrus shifted his weight onto his toes. He thought five prisoners would've been good enough to get them in.

The batarian addressed Garrus. "He one of Shepard's?"

Garrus glanced at Kaidan, then swallowed. "We found him with the rest of them. Decided to bring him back, just in case."

"Huh." The batarian entered a command into his omni-tool, then shrugged. "Well, we're almost at capacity. He's not on the list so... we'll just space him." The team looked to Garrus, praying his next move wouldn't get them all killed. Everyone except Kaidan was watching him. The human didn't turn around. Garrus saw his arms tense as he lowered his hands. There was no way he'd be able to attack with his hands bound. It was up to Garrus to get him out of this one. Space him? Spirits help us. Come on Vakarian, think, think...

"We can take him down with the rest, no problem. Save you the trouble of opening the hatch," he replied, mouth dry.

"It's no trouble at all. We'll just leave him in the airlock when your shuttle uncouples. Rodan, radio to whoever's on escort duty and tell them to -"

"Actually," Garrus interrupted. "Hold that call." There was only a split-second of silence before they realized that Garrus had pulled his gun, and was proceeding to pull the trigger.

The prisoners threw themselves into the ground to avoid gunfire, Jack, Liara, and Thane doing their best shield their prone forms. Jacob lept over them to get to the console. He obliterated the chest plate and torso of the closest Shadow Broker agent with a close-range shotgun blast, preventing him from calling for help. Grunt followed immediately after him, charging into the black-clad krogan with a blood-curling roar. The two of them clashed, but Grunt had better position; he got low enough to take out his opponent's knees and drive him into the ground.

Kaidan unleashed the storm of biotics he'd been amassing, tearing his restraints apart and throwing the batarian leader into the ceiling before plunging him back down. A strangled yell escaped his thin lips, four eyes rolling in their sockets, terrified. The last thing he saw was Kaidan's boot, a biotic curb-stomp crushing his skull instantly. The rest of the team finished the remaining Broker agents with a relentless barrage of incendiary rounds. As soon as the charred corpse hit the ground, Garrus caught Mordin's attention. The two of them examined the console.

"Hmm... most recent entries list incoming prisoners." His fingers flew at the controls. "Also, appears to be connected to ship's mainframe. Limited access."

Liara allowed herself to be helped to her feet by Miranda, waving off the Cerberus agent's concerned look. "I'm fine. It was just a little shock." But from the way she winced when she moved her neck, it seemed to be more than that. Miranda decided that she'd keep an eye on her. She and Grunt, Jacob, Samara, and Kasumi got to work freeing the prisoners' hands. Now if they came across any agents, there would be no fooling them. Violence was their only option.

"Incoming prisoners?" Garrus asked. Would they find Shepard's name among the others?

Mordin gained access to the log, a list of maybe four hundred names, but no Shepard. Garrus hadn't expected it to be so easy. He thought for a moment, his avian eyes quickly skimming over the orange-lit screen. "The ship mainframe. Can you get to their security systems?"

Mordin was already on it. He brought up the control panel for the base's alarm system. "Can't be deactivated. Might be able to trigger alarm on other end of ship, divert attention while we proceed with infiltration unnoticed..."

"Make it happen, Dr. Solus." Garrus turned back to the rest of the team, glancing over them briefly to ensure there were no casualties.

"Ready when you are," Miranda said, only distinguishable from the others by her voice. Right on cue, the ship-wide alarm blared angrily. "Warning: security breach, all on-duty personnel report to sector eight. Warning..."

"Alright. Let's move." They crossed the mouth of the airlock and entered the hall. Mordin brought up the rear, locking it behind them. Garrus made sure they covered up their tracks by hitting the pressure release, jettisoning the corpses of Broker's agents and letting them hit atmo. It was a long way down. Kaidan gulped. If Garrus hadn't acted quickly, his body could have been falling with the others.

Mordin transferred a copy of the base's layout, scanned from the security console, to Garrus's omni-tool. They had made it past the guards at the front door; all they had to do was find Shepard and get out. Garrus braced his assault rifle, motioning for the others to do the same. They were heading right into the heart of the Shadow Broker's lair, the deep, dark underworld of secrets and power. And they weren't leaving until they got what they came for.