'To be heroic does not have to mean possessing the ability to stand against the evils of the world, either well or successfully, but just that one is willing to stand.'

― Mike Alsford

"RARRGHH!"

"What the fuck are those?"

"Stay focused! Bahtia, I need you perched. Alenko, give me some barrier support. Spectre-"

"Shields down!"

Shepard grinned, her helmet gleaming in the dim light of fire and sun. She aimed her shotgun at one of the glowing zombies running towards the group, then squeezed the trigger. It staggered at the impact, looking down to find its arm missing. It howled, continuing its onslaught. She growled under her breath. One tracked to Kaidan who was warping one after the other. Her lips twitched as the limbless creature staggered one step too close to her.

Her biotics flared, encasing in an ultra-violet, crimson swirl. Bringing her hands together in fists, Shepard picked up the moaning zombie, lifted it in the air and pulled her wrists apart in one forceful strike. Its body tore in half. Blood, metal, and Goddess knows what else littered the ground it once stood on. Nihlus' mouth went slack at the sight. He'd never seen anyone do that.

And dear spirits, even though he's sure he just pissed himself, he wanted to see it again.

You know, because she just tore a thing in half.

Using biotics.

Meanwhile, the commander switched out her shotgun for the standard pistol. Her biotics flared as more things tried to surround her. Their eyes were sunken; just an empty void staring back. No soul to remain. Their mouths were kept agape, opened wide as they hissed, moaned, even gurgled. Bahtia managed to take down two while Nihlus aimed his omni-tool at her.

The computer inside her suit sounded that told her that her shields were down.

'What the fuck just happened,' she growled internally, shifting her stance to encase her body in solidified barriers. Before she could attempt to do so, her suit warned her of an overdrive in the main compost on her back. It broke. 'It fucking broke?!' Nihlus tapped drastically over his omni-tool as it spewed several different options in his face.

This trick of his had been gained years back from a close encounter with an old friend, but he knew it proved useful. Lower her shields and outsource them to the suit's main battery. Manually reestablish the security drive and...

Shepard cursed loudly as her shields came back in full force- in fact, too much force as her armor shook uncontrollably to release an outburst. The discharge effectively burnt her opponents to unrecognizable crisps. She straightened her posture once Nihlus went into an involuntary fit of chortles. Frowning, the Commander snapped her glare towards the turian as the others regrouped to their position. Apparently the force of the blast knocked down the shields of the monsters long enough to let them push back.

Nihlus stood up, making his way over to Bahtia- much to her dissatisfaction. "That went smoothly."

Shepard growled at her squad mate. "What the hell was that, Spectre?" She didn't even pause to wait for an answer before turning on her heel and marching further ahead. Kaidan and Bahtia trotting to keep up with her brisk pace. Spectre Kyrik trailed behind appearing as smug as ever.

"A neural blast."

"Mind speaking plain?"

His exaggerated sigh irked her in ways that made Kaidan's skin crawl with utter fear. "Works a bit like neural shock, but you can arrange to quick trigger shields to extend in a reactive blast. Not as...explosive as yours, of course. But that was impressive."

Caen grumbled under her breath to release the boiling anger crawling within the caverns of her mind. 'Breathe. Focus on objective. Kill Spectre later.' "Bahtia. That housing over there?" 'Okay...better.'

Bahtia lifted her head in curiosity, "Ah yes, some of the scientists-"

"Show me," Shepard growled as she marched towards the one on the right. Her eye twitched upon finding the red panel. Bahtia leaned forward to put in the pin, but the Commander took her own action. She surged fist full of dark energy and effectively drove it through the pin panel. All three of her teammates stepped back in the opposite direction of her person.

Clearly, she's pissed.

The doors slid open at once before she decided to kick them down. Coughing, the dark skinned female shuffled in to find two people cuddled together in absolute panic. The female of the huddle stood, appearing relieved and yet somewhat horrified.

"Oh thank God. I thought those Geth synthetics... I-I'm so glad you're here." Her emeralds irises shifted to Bahtia's form entering the cabin, lighting at once. "Bahtia! You're okay?"

"Thanks to the Commander and her squad," she replied, gesturing to the three taking up most of what little space was provided. Manuel slinked forward, his eyes narrowed as he peered at Nihlus.

"No hope, no salvation. Because of... of your ignorance to realize the truth!" Manuel muttered urgently.

Shepard hummed at Manuel's outburst. Dr. Warren released an exhausted sigh, soothingly placing a palm upon Manuel's shoulders. She whispered reassurances to him for a moment then met eyes with the commander.

"Genius and madness are two sides of the same coin. I made sure he took his medication- especially after the mess that transpired. It will take some time for it to work."

Shrugging, Shepard questioned her on what happened. Dr. Warren recalled as much as she could from what had happened that morning; extending the monorail to further build the colony, digging through wreckage to find the top of the Prothean artifact, and then hailing the Alliance. The Commander looked about the housing, taking in its cramped, closed-in walls. She eyed Manuel for a moment. He mumbled to himself as his wry, scratched hands rubbed in painful movements.

Scents of gunpowder and anesthetic passed between each group.

Then, "So they just came out of nowhere?"

Dr. Warren's head snapped up in surprise. "I...I'm sorry?"

Shepard turned her head to Kaidan, whom had chosen to speak at that moment. His eyes showed a clear question to which she just shrugged again. The Sentinel cleared his throat, taking a step towards Dr. Warren. "The Geth. You said that everything seemed pretty routine and then they just showed up. Nothing on the planetary raidars, no warnings. They just appeared?"

"Why...yes. I can't give you any specifics regarding what may or may not have been displayed on our sensors, but...when the Geth arrived, most of the people who died here died because they didn't have time to react to their arrival."

"Sounds advanced as fuck if they didn't show on your sensors. But I'm no Geth expert," Shepard drawled. "Alenko, keep that in mind for later. Dr. Warren, Manuel; you guys gotta' stay here until we can stabilize the situation." By her last words, her team was already clearing out of the room.

She exited the unit, paused, and stuck her head back in the door.

"Oh, and you probably want to head over to the other unit. I kind of killed the long on this one. Take care!"

Warren's face became about as pale as a quarian's as she ushered Manuel outside to do just that.

Ugh.

The nerve of some people.

. . .

A dock worker, someone who tended to get his hands into the thick of things, shuddered as an over towering turian stalked about the port. Sweat slid from Powell's brow to dribble along his face and pool at the top of his shirt. Shit, when did it get so damn hot on Eden Prime?

His breathing became erratic.

Heavier.

Shallower.

Louder.

Saren, who had been absent-mindedly gazing at one of the Geth troopers, tilted his head backwards to view the boxes behind him. Through the gaps, Powell watched as Saren took a step closer to his position. And God help him, he couldn't take it. He launched himself backwards out of fear, knocking over several crates and heavy cylinder that landed on his leg with a sickening crunch.

Powell cried out in pain, hands automatically reaching to cradle his shin, but the warm barrel of a sleek heavy pistol halted him from doing so. Quivering, his darkened eyes flickered upwards to view glowing cerulean. Saren growled under his breath.

"A waste. And if you had kept quieter, perhaps you could have lived." Powell began to cry now, begging for his life. Saren could only sneer. "Live? You want to live? I am doing your species- this galaxy- a favor by ending your life now. Only those willing to sacrifice can coexist with them."

Now, Powell might have asked who exactly 'them' happened to be, but his words were caught on a bullet. The shot rang out through the near-empty valley, heard by all who still remained. Shepard and Nihlus shared glances.

"Double time it! We are getting that fucking beacon, even if I gotta' lose an arm for it!"

They sprinted full speed, halting as they watched a monstrous construction rise to leave the very planet it rendered useless. Shepard could count the times she fucked herself over during a mission. She added another tally mark.

'What the fuck is going on here.'