Hello everyone! Did ya'll miss me!? Probably not... jerks. Nah, just playing. Well, after a long break (which I apologize for) I'm back with the long awaited Chapter 8.
I would like to apologize for being gone with this chapter. However, I would never abandon Spade nor YOU, the readers. You guys keep this alive by reading and reviewing, and honestly, I felt ashamed that I didn't deliever this sooner. As to make it up to you, I would work harder when possible. I am a college student, so I will be busy and sometimes drained, but I will prevail!
Anyway, without further delay, I give you Chapter 8 of Mass Effect: Spade
Chapter 8: The Colony, and the Ex.
Adrian POV
The next day I woke sore. The burns were taking its toll. Aside from the nightmares, I slept alright though. When I woke I put on my usual outfit. The combat boots, the army combat pants, and the sleeveless black underarmor. Putting the shirt on hurt like hell. Like someone repeatedly prodding me with a burning metal rod. I looked at the bathroom mirror and sure enough my burns were glowing. The Doc told me that it was a normal, plus that I would be in constant pain without a serum. Without it, the burning would worsen, and I would developed stage three Biotic Burning, which would be like the end of a cancer patient that isn't going to make. Stage three is the end of the line for me, and I don't want that.
I walked across the mess towards the med bay. Breakfast was just finishing. Garrus, Ashley, Wrex, Tiffany, and Joker were there. Joker must be off duty. As I was walking I could feel them looking my way. I just kept walking forward, until I noticed Tiffany get up. Ever since Therum she has been helping Doc with my condition. It was reliving. I couldn't remember the last time I had help like this. Of course I didn't have scarring caused from biotic powers.
"Hey Adrian. How are you feeling?" I could catch the bit of concern. I also caught a few snickers from some of the marines. I shot them a look and they shut their mouths.
"I'm doing great." I tried to give her the most genuine smile I can give, even though I was lying. She gave me a look.
"Adrian. I am a psychology major. You are lying to me." I sighed.
"Alright fine. The burning is back. As you can tell by the glow." I motioned at my arms. She had a look. As we walked into the med bay, Chakwas greeted us with a small smile and nod. Looks like she is giving the reins to Tiffany. Tiffany led me to a cot, and I sat down. She went to the medicine cabinet to get the things she needed. She pulled out a package of the serum. The name was something out of a cheap SyFy film, I swear it. The serum was a creamy blue liquid. She placed it the vial into one of those gun doctors use to give a shot. She went up to me, and started that whole procedure nurses do with shots. I never really pay attention to it.
Tiffany tried to be as gentle as she could be. It was really nice actually. Her major concern was the reaction of her biotics. Every time someone with a biotic ability touches me, they will start glowing blue. Honestly, I was worried the burns would increase due to contact, but they actually felt, soothing. When Shepard, or Eden, placed her hand on my shoulder, her hand glowed, and I felt fine. Relaxed even.
"That was a very courageous things you did on Therum. Saving the Commander like that." She smiled.
"Surprised that an assassin would do that."
"No, an assassin wouldn't do that." I raised an eyebrow. She chuckled.
"What I mean is that you don't even act like one. When I first met you I thought you were a mercenary, or maybe Black Ops. Not an assassin." That was surprising. Come to think of it, people treated me differently than I thought they would. "Anyway, it was very brave of you to do. Second time you watched her back, right?" I smiled and nodded.
After she was finished, I could feel the instant relief. The burns dulled away, and I was back to normal. Chakwas told me that should last all week, so I was cleared for missions. Tiffany and I walked back to the mess. I got some food, and she invited me to sit with her. She was sitting with some of the ground team, plus Joker. As I sat I could see them looking at the scars.
"Damn Spade. I heard what happened but I didn't think it looked that bad. Of course they could be a killer story," Joker said. I didn't pay him any mind. Tiffany sat next to me on my right and on my left was Ashley. I started eating, not caring about the stares. I could see from my peripheral vision Ashley glancing. I was about to say something till I noticed her and another marine, a man, eating some strawberries.
"Did you know that strawberries are an aphrodisiac?" I said not looking away from my food. I just couldn't help my self. Ashley chocked on a strawberry, the other marine pushed the bowl away looking guilty, Joker started laughing, Garrus and Wrex looked at me confused, and Tiffany started blushing.
"What does that mean?" asked Garrus.
"Well you see. It means-"
"Stow it Joker, or I'll break your legs!" Yelled Ashley. That got me to laugh. Garrus and Wrex still looked confused. I gave them a look that I will tell them later. Eventually the marine got up and left. "Damn you Spade. We were just enjoying breakfast!"
"Uh huh. Let me guess, he was the one that brought the strawberries?" She thought about it at first and her looked changed from anger to shock. "See. I'm just looking out for you."
"Well that's surprising coming from you Spade. But, I guess I should get use to it, after what happened on Therum." I shrugged. So far that's two that mentioned the mission. Is it really that surprising for me to save someone.
"You know Spade, those scars could earn the right to mate with the females on my planet," said Wrex. I started choking on my food. Tiffany, instinctivly grabbed my shoulder, causing her hand to lightly flare. Some of the crew members were surprised by it. After I cleared my throat I looked at Wrex.
"Sorry Wrex. I'm not really into Krogan women."
"Well what kind of species are you in too?" asked Joker. Really? Can I guy with a terrible injury eat in peace? Is that too much to ask?
"Really Joker?" I asked. Apparently, everyone was interested in my answer. Some marines gathered around the table, mostly woman. I glared at Joker and he had a cheeky smile. Bastard. "Jesus, really guys?" I sighed. "Fine. Mostly human, but there was a time I dated a Turian, a Drell, and yes, an Asari." Some of the marines either giggled, lightly cheered, or were surprised. I wasn't a xenophobe, and I was really curious, especially with the Turian.
"You dated a Turian?" asked one of the marines. He spat when he said Turian. I leered.
"I'm not xenophobic, meaning I'm not pathetic. You have a problem with that you can kiss my ass," I spat at the marine. Some of his colleagues laughed at him. He just looked down and walked away. Garrus looked at me.
"Seriously, you dated a Turian?"
"Yeah. It was for a short while. It was a really good time but eventually I had to end things. Hell, I ended all my short relationships." Wrex nodded, probably understanding why. The others looked at me confused.
"Why did you end them?" asked Ashley and Tiffany in unison.
"My career doesn't really have room for that sort of thing. I was paid to hunt people, and people were paid to hunt me. An enemy would use anything to get to you, even those you care about. I couldn't live with myself knowing that I doomed a girlfriend. They were all innocent, and hell, they deserved something better."
Some people nodded. After that a lot of awkward questions were sent my way. Like 'What does a Turian female look like?' or 'What was IT like?' or 'What was their favorite position?'. I was about to shoot myself until Kaiden came in.
"Alright everyone, leave the assassin alone, back to your posts." I sighed in relief. Kaiden looked at me, and I sent a nod. He just leered and then walked off. Wrex and Ashley left, and then Tiffany went back to the med bay. It was just Garrus and I. So far, things with him have been alright. Were not buds, but he hasn't tried to kill me, yet.
"So Spade, Tali tells me that your real name is Adrian?" I nodded. "Which do you prefer? The nickname, or the name you were born with?"
"Adrian is fine." He nodded, and looked away for a bit.
"So a Turian female." Oh god. He put his hands up. "Don't worry, I'm not going to ask any of those ridiculous questions the humans asked. I'm just curious is all. What was her name?"
"Ieris. Met her in Illium, we dated for a while, then I had to end things. Simple as that." Garrus nodded in understanding.
"All ground team members report to the briefing room. All ground team members report to the briefing room."
Garrus and I stood up and headed for the briefing room.
"Time to go to work then," I said.
Everyone was there, including Liara. Figured. A Prothean expert would be huge help if we find any artifacts that would be Prothean. Once everyone was seated, Eden went to the screen behind her and turned it on, revealing a planet.
"This is the planet Feros. A human colony known for the Prothean metropolis that covers the city. And it also is home to an ExoGeni scientific research building."
I mentally scoffed. Research my ass.
"Two days ago the Alliance lost contact with the colony. We are being sent to investigate. If it is a Geth attack, then we must be ready for anything. There is a colony, Zhu's Hope. We will land there and try to make contact with the colony. Any questions?"
"What should we expect when we get there?" asked Liara. Oh you know, Geth, crazed researchers, wild Varren, oh and I hear the local flora is FUCKING KILLER. Sometimes, I wish I could just say what I know and spoil it, but there is no fun in that.
"Well if the colony hasn't been checking in, assume hostilities. My guess may be either pirates or, and I hate to say it, Geth," said Kaiden. After that there weren't any more questions and we all went to gear up. I didn't have armor this time, so I wore my "work" attire. Which was mainly putting on my jacket. I strapped my weapons, making sure each was loaded, and that I had full clips, and then strapped my knife to my belt and headed for the air lock.
As the team waiting Liara looked at me curiously. "Why aren't you wearing armor Spade?" she asked. I had my helmet on so she could see my face, but I smirked. I activated my omnitool, and then my Tech Armor. My body was wrapped with golden holographic armor. Her eyes widened a little, probably from never seeing something like that before. I, and surprisingly Wrex, chuckled.
Once the airlock opened, we all cautiously stepped outside. I saw a colonist come up to Eden, telling her about the colony. Oh shit I remember-
"AHHHHH-" The colonist screamed, getting hit by a fierce Carnage slug.
"Geth!" yelled someone, probably Tali. I took cover, taking out Sicarius. Everyone did the same, taking out their own weapons and returning fire. Timing my shots, and picking off any troopers that came to my line of site. One, down a trooper. Two, sniper down. Three, four, five.
"Move!" Yelled Eden. The cost was clear for now. I switched to my Hurricane and we carefully headed towards the buildings. We all had each other's back. We would run into a small patrol, only to be taking out by our guns.
It took a good hour till we cleared a path to the colony, but we were all relived to get there. The only thing that still kept us on edge? The colonists themselves. The Thorian was controlling, or trying to, but it would of unnerved me even if I didn't know what was going on. Everyone looked spaced out, almost like worker ants. Being cautious, I took off my helmet and hid it in my jacket. Can't have colonists going insane cause of the helmet.
Shepard gave us the order to spread out and secure a perimeter, and that everyone should at least be in a group. Liara and Wrex went with Kaiden. Garrus and Tali went with Ashley, meaning that I would go with Shepard, under her orders of course. I followed behind, not really paying attention.
I kept watch on the colonists. They would send glances, but either than that, they would just idly walk by in their own little world. Or, I guess the Thorian's world. I wished I could say something about the Thorian but then again, explaining myself didn't really sound like a good idea.
I heard Shepard and Fai Dan talking about the problems the colony was facing. Power, food, medical supplies, everything they needed. Geth attacking the colony at random times. Looking around, these people have it rough.
"And then there are the mercenaries." Mercenaries? That wasn't in the game. This time, I made sure to pay attention.
"What kind of mercenaries are we talking about?" asked Shepard.
"Not sure, but they have been causing trouble for us ever since the Geth showed up." This is interesting. Shepard had a look, like she suspected the mercs to be allied with the Geth. Probably right. Fai Dan excused himself and left Shepard and I to ourselves.
"You got all that Adrian?"
"Yeah. No power, not enough supplies, and Geth patrols. I got all of that, but what interests me is a group of mercenaries being here." She nodded.
"Your an expert with mercenaries. You think they are allied with the Geth?" That caused me to chuckle.
"I don't know about expert, but if I had to guess. With the right pay, they could be working with the Geth, or they could just be freelancers. There is only one way I can possibly find out though."
One of her eyebrows raised and she gave me a questionable look. I was suggesting on going by myself, and it may be easier. Plus if the Geth attack the colony she may need everyone here.
"Look, I know it may sound crazy but I've worked with mercenaries before. Plus, if the Geth attack the colony again you may need almost everyone here."
"Yeah, everyone. Meaning I may need you and your tech abilities."
"Come on Eden. You and I both know the only real tech ability you need is Overload, and you have three members of the squad that know how to do it."
Arms crossed, she gave me a disagreeing look. However, she eventually sighed and nodded.
"Fine, but the second you are in trouble you better call for back up." I started walking backward, chuckling.
"Didn't think you worried Commander. Don't worry, it should be easy. I'll be back before dinner."
Fai Dan pointed in the direction of where the mercenaries have been coming from. I took off in that direction, putting my helmet back on. I was about twenty minutes out when I started finding tale-tell signs of battle. Scorch marks, dried blood, and spent clips on the floors. This was probably the after math of the initial Geth attack. Looking for any sign of mercenaries was difficult, however I eventually found something interesting. Dried blue blood; Turian blood. Judging by the small amount, this Turian was wounded. Could be one of the mercenaries that got lucky.
I got up, about to go further into the tower, until I heard a pistol unfold behind me. Oh shit.
"Hello Spade." That voice. Turian. Female. No... It can't be. I slowly turned, and my eyes met piercing green eyes.
" Ieris." She was wearing Turian armor fitted for females. The coloration was white with a red pattern. She had green face paint on, matching her eyes. She held a Predator pistol towards my face.
"Never thought I would see you again Spade, or is it Adrian?"
"Come on Ieris. You and I both know things wouldn't work out." She chuckled, and shook her head. When I met her, she was pretty much an innocent young woman, not some mercenary. "What are you doing here Ieris?"
"Working of course. After you dumped me, I joined up with my brothers gang. They're here if you want to met them." Sure enough, four more figures wearing the same coloration on their armor appeared behind me. There was a Turian, a Batarian, a Drell, and a Human. The Turian had the same face paint pattern and color Ieris had. "Adrian. This is my brother Zace. He was very eager to meet you." Her tone was sadistic. This wasn't the girl I dated those few years ago.
Zace, the male Turian walked up to me, with a Turian smirk on his face. At least it looked like a smirk. "So you are the infamous Spade. I heard many great things about you. I would invite you to join our little family, but a certain employer is disappointed." What employer? "Saren wasn't too happy when he found out you killed the assassins he hired. He put a large hit on your head." Oh, that employer. Zace started to circle me as if he was a vulture and I was a dying animal. "I would love to kill you right now where you stand, but that would be too easy. So, how about a little challenge?"
I raised a brow. "What kind of challenge?"
He chuckled. I hardly knew a thing about Turian vocals, but it was pretty easy that his tone was sinister. "It's simple. Saren was kind enough to allow me a battalion of Geth troopers under my command. I will order them and my family to kill you. All you have to do is survive."
He started to back away from me, and his little pose followed. Ieris was smiling the entire time. What happened to her? Could she be Indoctrinated? No... This felt more personal than what a Reaper would want.
"One more thing. If you call for help, I'll make sure to kill everyone after I'm finished with you. And maybe I'll have my way with that Human Commander of yours."
Oh hell no! I activated my omnitool and launched a Incineration Tech towards Zace. Unfortunately he dodged. His group took off, and I perused only to run into a group of Geth.
"Shit!" They started firing and I barely had time to dodge the flurry of bullets. Activating my Tech armor, I took out my Hurricane and loaded a fresh clip. I charged an Overload, peeked from my cover to see a Geth heading towards me, and quickly launched the surge of electricity into the Synthetic. It quickly dropped, however, his friends weren't too happy about it. They advanced, shooting at my direction.
"Don't worry I said. It should be easy I said. Damn me and my big mouth!"
I could hear the clicks of a Geth getting closer. Aiming the Hurricane I took a few steps back. Time seemed to slow as a small group of Geth troopers rounded the corner. I could feel my body tense as I pulled the trigger. A barrage of bullets flew and made their mark on the three Geth troopers. The one in front was immediately dropped, and another soon after. The final one was close to being dropped but it still staggered. I quickly tried to reload, however, the Geth managed to get some shots at me. Luckily my Tech Armor took the brunt, but a bullet managed to clip my shooting arm, causing me to drop my SMG. Out of adrenaline and rage, I quickly shot a Overload, finishing the Geth.
My arm was numb from the shot, and I cursed myself for not having any medigel. With my good arm I picked up my SMG. I was about to load a fresh clip until I heard footsteps running behind me. I quickly turned with my omnitool ready, only to see both Garrus and Eden run up to me.
"Adrian! The colony is under attack and-" She saw the three Geth corpses and then noticed my wounded arm. "My god... What happened?" She turned on her omnitool and readied a dose of medigel.
"Nothing I couldn't handle. I think..." She applied the medigel and a hot stinging sensation coursed through my arm.
"Fuck! That stings!"
"Stop being a cry baby and be a man." That got a chuckled from Garrus.
"Laugh it up Garrus," I said. After a few seconds, the stinging numbed away, and my arm was back in fighting condition. Of course I will still need to see the Doctor, but at least I can fight.
"Alright, know that is finished, we need to get to the colony."
"No can do Shepard." She turned on her heel to face me. She looked angry.
"What?"
"Listen. These mercenaries aren't freelancers. They are working for Saren, and have a battalion of Geth at their disposal. If we let them go, they will come back and with more Geth. I won't let that happen." Her face was disapproving, yet her eyes were contemplative. She didn't know what to say. I was about to further the argument until I heard an explosion coming from behind me. Strange. That was in the direction Ieris and her group took off to. "If I have to do this on my own then fine." I turned, about to take off, until Eden grabbed my hand. Now that caused me to stop. Both our hands were enveloped in a light blue flame. I was use to Tiffany and other Biotics accidently grazing my skin and causing a flare, but this. This was different. I couldn't explain it but it was soothing.
"Alenko. We ran into some Geth while heading towards Spade. Garrus and I will assist him. You are in charge. Copy?"
I couldn't hear what Kaidan was saying, but by the looks of it he acknowledged. Eden finished her transmission and looked at me. She couldn't see my face, but I was blushing.
"Come on, let's go get those mercenaries." She said. She let go of my hand, and started moving out. I could feel the Biotics dissipating from my hand. I looked at my hand for a moment, but then went back to work mode. Garrus and I caught up to Eden, who was crouched behind a fallen pillar. She was looking at something, perplexed. Checking to see what she was looking at, I noticed the Geth were acting strange. For a second they looked like they were searching for something. That was strange. A second ago they were hunting me. Now it was like they were hunting something else.
"What do you think they are doing?" asked Garrus. Eden shrugged and looked at me as if I knew the answer. I'm an assassin, not a scientist. I was about to answer until I noticed the Geth pointing their rifles upward, and started shooting at something. I looked up and could see the Drell freerunning and dodging bullets.
"The hell?" I said without even thinking. Eden and Garrus looked up and saw the Drell. The Drell was frantically trying to survive, but he started making mistakes. And by the looks of it he was getting tired. It was only a moment of time until he will get shot, and probably fall to his death. Sure enough he was clipped. He screamed as he fell to the ground. I turned away when he hit the ground. Being a freerunner myself, seeing someone fall to their deaths was still something I couldn't get my head around. Hell, that could be me.
The few Geth troopers that were their went to go check on the body. This was the right moment to strike. Eden and I took out our Hurricane's and Garrus readied his Phaston. Eden signaled that on three we will attack. I readied an Overload, waiting for the signal. Once Eden gave the signal we burst into action. Garrus and I fired an Overload taking down two Geth troopers. Eden sent out a Throw field, tossing a Geth like a ragdoll. A second after we fired a barrage of bullets at the remaining three Geth, instantly dropping them. We reloaded our weapons, and were about to head out further into the tower, until I heard coughing coming from behind some rubble.
"The Drell. He is alive," said Garrus. I jogged to the Drell. With a quick scan from my HUD and I could tell that he didn't have much time. I knelt beside him. His armor had the similar red and white design Zace and Ieris had. He had a recon hood over his head.
"Why are the Geth after you?" I asked. He coughed. It was only a matter of time. He coughed and weezed.
"Ieris and Zace... Made a deal with Saren... Something about making them Generals in his army..." He coughed again. "They turned the... Geth on us. They are going to kill everyone..."
After that, they Drell's vitals faded, and he was dead. I stood up and walked back to Eden and Garrus. Garrus that look on his face. Well I assumed a look. I can't really tell with Turians.
"That name sounds familiar Adrian," he said. Eden raised a brow.
"What do you mean Garrus?" asked Eden. I knew exactly what he was talking about.
"He is talking about the name the Drell mentioned. Ieris." I paused for a moment. "She is my ex."
Eden's jaw dropped. "What?!" Here we go.
"She's a Turian I dated back when I was working in Illium. She is a Tech expert, and pretty damn good at hand to hand combat. Designed the Omnitool I'm using right know. She is dangerous, and if she is working with Saren, then she has to be stopped."
Eden and Garrus looked at me for a moment. Eden took a step towards me. "Hold on. You dated a Turian?"
Okay, so there are moments in my life where I truly face palm. This is one of those moments.
"Out of all that, you just get the fact that I dated a Turian?! I-" I paused, and took a breath. "Yes. I dated a Turian for a short while, but I ended it. Full stop. Anything else?"
Now it was Garrus's turn. "What was it like when you two... Uhh... Well you know?"
"Seriously!? We are not having this conversation while god knows how many Geth are around trying to kill us, and with two crazed mercenaries leading them. Can we PLEASE just finish this?"
Eden started to laugh.
"Oh, you and I are going to talk after this is finished." I sighed heavily and palmed my helmet.
"Great... Let's just go."
The next ten minutes were hell. As soon as we took off, we ran into Geth forces and have been fighting since then. There would be a moment where we would have a small rest, but then we would be attacked. The one thing that really got me though was how frequently we were running into Geth. Back on Therum, if I remembered correctly, they were more organized. Here their movements were more random. I guess it could be that they are also hunting the mercenaries. Speaking of which, we haven't seen any of them. The Drell is dead, however there was still a Batarian and a Human. They could be dead, but since the Geth's movements say otherwise, I'm keeping a look out.
"Adrian! Geth sniper on the platform!" yelled Eden. I reacted quickly and instinctively. I had my Sicarius rifle out, and quickly aimed and fired. A red Geth fell to the ground. Well, that's one less to worry about.
"I think that is all of them, so far," said Garrus. I sighed in relief. Even if this would be for a few moments, and time of rest would be great for all of us. Especially Eden. She has been using her biotic's as soon as the fighting broke out. I know she is strong and all, but even she has her limits. Looking at her, I could tell she was tired. She sat behind a large piece of rubble, leaned back, and breathing hard. Reaching into one of my pockets, I took out a ration bar made for biotic soldiers when they need a boost.
"Eat this. It will give you an extra boost." She looked at me for a moment, and small smile playing her lips. She took the bar.
"Didn't think you would carry energy bars specifically made for biotics." She chuckled, and started nibbling. That caused me to chuckled, which sounds weird when I'm wearing my helmet.
"Yeah, well. I've worked with Biotic's before, and I know how ya'll burn energy quickly. That, and never hurts to be prepared." She smiled and continued to nibble on the energy bar. As for myself, my HUD blipped. Checking, I was picking up and odd sound coming from the direction where the Geth were.
"Strange..." I mumbled. Garrus heard me.
"What is it? Do you see something?" I shook my head.
"No... I'm picking up a strange noise. It's coming from that direction, where the mercenaries camp could be. However, this is close by..." I paused to listen to the noise. I know I heard it before somewhere, but what is it? It was a clicking sound, almost as if something was winding. The sound slowly started to slow down, as if coming to a stop? Wait a second. Shit, I know what it is!
"Get down!" As soon as I yelled, we all heard a shot fired. I and Garrus quickly ducked behind cover, and Eden brought her SMG out. A loud whistle flew by, and we could hear something hit the wall behind us. We all looked and saw a large metal rod sticking out of the wall.
"Kishock Harpoon Gun... I think one of the mercenaries found us."
"One of the mercenaries is a Batarian?" asked Eden. For a second, I could hear the hatred in her tone. That's right... She was a survivor from Mindior.
"Yeah... However, I didn't get a good look at his weapons. If I had known he had a Kishock, I wouldn't have lead us into an open area."
"I don't think I've seen a Kishock rifle before," said Garrus.
"They are powerful sniper rifles that fire a harpoon. I've never had a sniper battle with one before, but I have seen the damage this weapon can cause. Let's just say it isn't pretty."
"You would think whoever is shooting at us would want to team up." I scoffed.
"I know how these mercenaries work. The minute they hear a chance at some credits they will take it. And with the bounty on my head, they wouldn't hesitate."
I noticed a look from Eden, but I didn't bother to look. Right now, my main concern is killing the Batarian and clearing this tower out. As hard as that sounds, I have to do it. Just one step at a time. Another shot was fired and a second rod stuck to the wall. I heard Garrus curse and take out his Mantis. Damn this Batarian, I know exactly what he is doing.
"He is trying to lure us..." Garrus and Eden looked at me with a cautious and confused look. I sighed. "It is a hunting technique, mostly bird hunters use it but big game hunters can use it as well. Basically, you fire a random shot and wait to see if your target will react. Most of the time it works, and you have a window to take a shot."
"Sounds like you are familiar with this," said Eden.
"I use to hunt before I became an Assassin. That, and I used it with work." After that I tuned out anything else said. Sure, you can classify me as a bad guy back then, hell I still think I am. However, I am willing to change. It just takes time.
I peeked out of cover, trying to spot where the Batarian may be posted. The layout looked like a long hallway, with crumbling walls. At the end of the hallway, I could see a platform where he could possibly be at. The only thing was getting a shot to see if actually was there. There was one trick I could use.
"Okay. At the end of this hallway, there is a platform. He may be posted there, but I can't tell unless I see him move. However, I may have an idea, but it's risky." Eden nodded for me to continue. She looked pissed. Either it's because she is tired, or something else entirely. "World War II, Stalingrad, Russia. Vassili Zaitsev, probably one of Earth's most famous snipers, next to Carlos Hathcock. One trick Zaitsev would use against German snipers would be posting a helmet a few feet in front of him as a decoy. The other sniper would fire at the helmet, giving away his position, and allowing Zaitsev a shot. It was pretty clever. Not only that but-"
My HUD blipped. "Hold up. I'm picking something up. Electrical signatures..." Next thing I knew, rapid fire gunshots were being fired. I looked out and saw the signature blue plasma bullets flying by. And then, the Batarian sniper. So he was hiding at the same level as we were... Clever bastard. "Geth troopers. We got to move." I saw a Geth trooper come into view. I quickly aimed with my Sicarius and fired, taking out the trooper.
The three of us moved from cover. Garrus and I switched weapons. He to his Phaeston, and I back to my Hurricane. Eden switched to her Crusader. We carefully moved forward. So far so good, until we saw a Geth fly back with a harpoon stuck to its chest. Guess the Batarian is still-
"Help!" Never mind...
We rushed over to see the Batarian pinned by two Geth troopers and a Geth hunter. Easy. Garrus and I both shot of an Overload tech, taking out the Geth troopers. Eden fired her Crusader, which depleted the Hunters shield tremendously. Garrus and I followed suit and peppered the Geth. Within seconds the Hunter was down. We all reloaded our clips, and I walked towards the Batarian. He was wounded, and it looked bad. He was riddled with bullet holes and burns. This would be the second mercenary that died before me, that I didn't kill.
His breathing was raspy. His four eyes looked at me with hate.
"You got lucky... If not for Zace and his damn Geth... I would've... would-" He gargled on blood and his body went limp.
"Come on. That's two down. Aside from Zace and Ieris, there should be one more."
After we left the Batarian, we ran into more Geth. However, there wasn't as many as before, so it was easy. Eventually we ended up finding two separate paths.
"Well, which way?" asked Garrus.
"I hate to say it, but we should split up. Scans read that they both lead to the same area. You both can go in that direction and I will go this way," I said. Eden jumped on that.
"No way. We are not splitting up."
"Don't worry Eden, I'll be fine-"
"Fine?! You were almost killed the last time you said that!"
"I was caught off guard!
"That's hardly an excuse Adrian! I could've lost a friend at that moment, and I don't want to face that chance again!"
Now that stopped me. Stopped both of us really. This was the first time anyone in the team actually acknowledged me as a friend. And the fact that it was Eden who said it felt even better. She herself looked surprised by her outburst. I walked up to her and placed my hand on her shoulder. That cool feeling came back, and my hand glowed. Then I thought of something that may help reassure her. I took off my father's dog tags, and gave them to her.
"Here, take this as a promise. A promise that I'll be back." She looked at the tags then back at me. I could tell she was conflicted. She took a breath, and then took the tags. She wrapped them around her wrist and hand. She pinned the tags between the chain and her armor so they wouldn't be in her way.
"You better come back alive. Or... or I'll kick your ass!" I chuckled.
"Noted Commander."
I walked towards the entrance, checking my weapons. Load a clip there, weapons check here. Check my shields, and activated my Tech Armor. I was good to go. I looked at Eden and Garrus. Eden nodded, and I sent one back. Then took off.
So far things were quiet. My HUD so far was clear. I had my Hurricane out, and checked every corner.
"How are things going Adrian?" Shepard's voice popped in my helmet. I couldn't help but smile and shake my head.
"Everything is fine Eden. No need to wor-" My shields started to flicker, and the next thing I knew they were gone. I quickly moved to cover, my adrenaline pumping. I checked out of cover, and saw the last mercenary. He had an Avenger rifle, and was aiming right towards my position. Well so much for trying to recruit him. I was in a bad position.
"Adrian?! What's going!?" Eden yelled in my HUD. Before I could answer another barrage of bullets ran past my position. I readied my Hurricane, just in case the mercenary grew a pair and tried to make this a face to face fight.
"Oh. You know Eden. Business as usual."
"Don't joke around Adrian! We may have run into your friend Zace, and we could use some back up!". I could hear the sound of guns being fired. Damnit, this isn't good. Eden, and I'm pretty sure Garrus as well, were fatigued. Hell, I was too. This fight needs to finish, and fast. I peaked from cover, and I could see the mercenary waiting for me to make a mistake. A mistake I would have to do intentionally.
I checked my shields and my Tech armor. Everything was green, however, my shield was malfunctioning. Shit. Looks like even Nalik's devices have an experation date. I took a couple of breathes. This, could have been one of the most stupidest things I've would of done. Well, there was that one time at Illium that involved a bet and a Krogan, but that is a totally different subject.
After a few seconds, I took off in a sprint. The mercenary started shooting, and I responded by shooting a Cryo Blast. The blast missed, hitting the wall, but it caused an nice little ice explosion making the merc duck. I quickened my pace, closing the distance between us. He come out of cover, and I started spraying bullets to make him duck. The only way I could kill this guy is if I can get close enough for my SMG to actually have a killing effect.
Once I was close enough I fired the rest of my clip, depleting his shields. He staggered, and I quickly switched weapons to my Phalanx. However, he recovered a lot more quickly than I thought he would. He aimed, and I aimed, and we both fired. My shot hit him square on the head, killing him. And his shot punched through my shoulder. I was sure it hurt like hell, but my adrenaline was pumping.
Checking the schematics of the area, I took off to where Eden and Garrus were. As I got closer I could hear the sounds of a gun fight. I tried to quicken my pace, but my shoulder was starting to be a burden. Still, I wouldn't let it stop me.
As I got closer, I could see Garrus and Eden firing shots towards Geth. And standing behind his "troops", Zace was leading his attack. The next few moments were a blur. I ran towards Zace, omnitool activating. I ran up a small ramp and jumped.
"Zace!" I yelled. The Turian turned, and his face was in shock. At least, I think it was. I fired a large Incineration Tech towards him, my shoulder burning. The Tech made its mark, igniting Zace on fire. He screamed and started flanging his arms around, trying to put the fires out.
"Garrus! Fire a Concussive shot at Zace! Now!" I ordered. Garrus quickly reacted, and fired a Concussive shot towards Zace. Time seemed to slow for me at the moment. The shot flew through the air, and when the shot hit Zace, the chain reaction followed. There was a large fire explosion, that took out some Geth that were around Zace. When the smoke cleared, I could see the lifeless charred body of Zace. That was one less bounty hunter I had to worry about.
"Adrian!" I turned to see a Ieris aiming at me with her omnitool. I reacted by activating mine. However, she was one step ahead of me. She fired a fierce Overload at me. My wrist started to singe as my omnitool was overloaded. My helmet also started to malfunction, and I couldn't see or hear anything except white noise. Luckily, my helmet run's on its own power, and eventually the V.I system finally rebooted itself.
Once I could see, I looked up, only to see Ieris tackling me. I tried to fight her, but due to lose of blood and fatigue, I was no match for her. She fired another Overload, causing me to drop to the ground. My body twitched due to the electric shock. My wrist burned due to my omnitool. Ieris walked up to me, a Predator pistol in her hand.
"Well well. Look who is on his back again. Except, this time you are going to die." Her voice was sickening, almost sadistic. This wasn't the girl I was with back on Illium. No, that girl died and was replace by this monster.
Ieris aimed her pistol at my head. So that's it? No words to be said to take to my grave? Well that-
"You know Spade. After I'm done with you, I'm going to take your friend Shepard. But I'm not going to kill her. No, that would be too easy. Torture would be much more fun. And then when I'm done with her, I'm going to give her to Saren. I'm sure he has plenty in store for her." She started to chuckle. Bitch.
"You want to know why I really left you Ieris?" I said. She glared at me.
"What makes you think I care." I smirked under my helmet.
"You talk too much." While she was doing her lame excuse of a villainous monologue, I readied my Phalanx pistol. Like with the human merc, Ieris and I aimed our pistols at each other and fired.
Eden POV
I was trying my hardest to get to Adrian. There were a few Geth left, but just enough to keep myself and Garrus busy. When I saw the female Turian fire an Overload at Adrian, my adrenaline and heart were racing. Adrian was hit again, and he fell to the ground. I cursed as I took down another Geth with my shotgun. The Turian, Ieris I believe, was now standing over him. She was talking to him, but what she was saying, I couldn't tell.
I wanted so hard to use my biotics, but I was spent. My energy was drained and I was running on empty. Another Geth came at me, and I quickly took it down. Garrus was doing well with covering, and picking off the rest as I made my way to Adrian.
Ieris pointed her gun at him, only making my steps go faster. At least I believed. I felt like I was in a nightmare. The ones were you try to run to someone or something, only to have your legs not work. That was happening to me. I wanted to scream, but my throat burned.
Bang!
I stopped at the sound of a gunshot. Looking at Ieris and Adrian, and prayed that Adrian was the one who fired the shot. Both their pistols aimed at each other. And then I saw it. Ieris brought her hand to her neck. She dropped her pistol and took a few steps back, before she fell to the ground. She stopped moving, and I could tell she was dead. I smiled and looked at Adrian, imagining him standing up, taking off his helmet and a smile on his face.
But he didn't. His pistol was still aimed where Ieris was. He still laid on the ground.
"Adrian?" I asked. He didn't move. His pistol fell from his hand, and his arm dropped.
"Adrian!" I ran, not caring if there were anymore Geth around. I slid to him, and I finally realized that he was injured. He had one injury on his arm, and another on his chest. I felt for a pulse, and he barely had a beat. Garrus ran towards us, answering my concern that there weren't any Geth left.
"Garrus! Contact Kaiden and tell them we need a med evac! Hurry!" Garrus nodded, and proceeded with contact the others. I went back to helping as much as I can without causing further injury. I took off his helmet so he can breathe. When the helmet was off he started coughing up blood and trying to get air at the same time. Either he had internal bleeding, or the shot punctured his lung. I clenched my eyes shut.
Damn you Adrian. Damn you for being so reckless. And for what? I'm the commander, I should be sacrificing myself for my troops, not the other way around. And yet, Adrian is the one who came in running, risking everything. Why? Why would he do that? Was it because of me? No. He would risk his life for anyone, right?
I shook my head. These thoughts weren't going to keep him alive. I looked at my hand, and I could see his father's dog tags. He made me carry them as a promise that he will be okay and come back. The tags had blood on them. I couldn't tell if it was mine or his. His coughing stopped, but his breathing was labored. He tried to move, but he was too weak to do to much. He was only able to pick up his hand for a moment, until it dropped on mine. Even though I was practically drained, my biotic's flared. It was strange how his burning would cause something like that. It felt cool, almost soothing. I couldn't explain it, but it felt calming somehow.
I wrapped my hand around his, hoping he would feel my strength and try to live a little longer.
"Kaiden and the others are on their way with a medical team," said Garrus. I nodded, not keeping my gaze away from Adrian.
"Hang in there Adrian," I whispered. I remembered what he said after Therum. About us talking whenever we had the chance. "You better survive this. We have to talk."
That was all I could say the remainder of the day. Kaiden would try to comfort me, Laira as well. But I ignored it. I just didn't feel like talking.
Holy FanFiction Batman! Adrian got shot! :O
Don't worry, Adrian will not die. I'll tell you that right now. Spade is the beginning of the Adrian Dawn arc you know. *hint hint*. Anyway, no he will not die. This is just a door opening that will further character progression and some relationship stuff (if you are a true fan of Spade you would know who I mean).
Also, If you followed this story and waited calmly and patiently, then I would love to thank you personally. Honestly, the only reason I came back was because I found out that people still cared about Adrian, Eden, and Spade, and wanted to find out more. I care, but it works both ways. So to those loyal Spade fans I thank you, and to those new fans, welcome! Keep on reviewing, loving, and reading. And not just my story, but everyones. I'm sure there are other authors such as my self who love it when they know that readers like you love our hard work. And it keeps us to keep on writing and further develop our skills in writing and literature. So, I'll say it again
Thank You!
KD