"Tali, is that you? Gosh, it's good to hear your voice." Shepard was more than relieved to hear that Tali was alive and well. Clearly, this Spartan on his team was already paying dividends…
"I'm glad you're here Shepard; you can tell me later how you found out about Haestrom. Your friend already helped us out a great deal, Shepard. He killed a Destroyer by himself! I don't know where you found him, but you don't have to ask me if I'm glad he's here." She looked at the Spartan while speaking to Shepard, causing Six to simply shrug at Tali playfully. "Shepard, Noble Six and I are going to the science wing to recover the data cache and rescue the other researchers from the Geth. Whatever you can do to help would be appreciated. Once we have the data, we're going to get the other survivors onto our ship and they can leave safely. I'll be joining you we're done."
"It doesn't sound like you plan on going with the rest of your team." Shepard was clearly surprised at what Tali had just told him. "So let me get this straight Noble Six. Not only did you beat us to rescuing Tali, you also recruited her already? Sounds like you might be doing my job for me lieutenant." He laughed a little over the radio, clearly amused at Six.
"Just doing what I can, commander. We have wounded at our location; I would suggest letting the Quarians dock with the Normandy before leaving the system. Doctor Chakwas should be able to help a lot with them."
"Good idea, Six. It's fine with me, as long as Tali doesn't mind dealing with a Cerberus outfit?"
"You and Doctor Chakwas aren't Cerberus, Shepard. I don't have any problems with you. And we don't have the medical equipment to help everyone here. The med bay on the Normandy should be able to stabilize the wounded long enough to get back to the Fleet for a full medical exam. I would work with Cerberus if it meant keeping my team alive, if only for a little while. We'll get moving into the science area before more Geth reach us. The marine leader, Kal'Reegar, is going to stay behind and cover us. So don't shoot a wounded marine with a rocket launcher. Get him out alive if you come across him on your way to us Shepard."
"I'll make sure we do Tali. We're just about to land. Make sure to keep in radio contact. And Six: make sure you keep her safe. She's in your hands now, lieutenant."
.
"Shepard, I have scanned the ruins, but I am unable to give an accurate number on the Geth in the area. However, I have detected only one dropship. It is unlikely that you will encounter more than a full platoon. That being said, it is a Geth planet, and they may be numerous. I suggest moving carefully to engage them in small numbers." EDI may not be loved by the entire crew, but she had proven her value already.
"Thanks EDI. We'll try to do that. Could you get a layout of the area for us?"
"Only partially, but I was able to determine the best course for you to move towards Noble Six and Tali's location. There is also an atmospheric anomaly that you will need to take into consideration. The instability of Dholen has deteriorated the magnetosphere of Haestrom, and this will cause direct sunlight to damage your shields. I suggest moving through cover to minimize damage."
As EDI finished speaking, the Kodiak took off and left Shepard, Garrus, and Grunt in a corner, with a view of the canyon in front of them and a clear path, now marked by EDI to lead them to Noble Six and Tali. Shepard waved them forward, and they began to move down a large ramp overlooking the area.
"The sun is really messing with my shields Shepard. EDI wasn't joking. At least we get to fight in the shade…" Garrus' sarcasm was clear, and Shepard laughed a little while Grunt simply huffed. "Look up ahead, looks like a control house for that gate. Let's check it out."
The three made their way off the ramp and went through the stone doorway, finding a destroyed Geth destroyer and a dead Quarian on the floor. Both looked like they had taken some heavy damage… dark red blood and white synthetic fluid laid in pools all over the floor. Next to the gate controls, a holo-journal was sputtering to activate, finally coming in over a large amount of static and other unpleasant noises.
"The Geth are on Haestrom! They've landed on the platform behind us. I'm staying to buy the others time to escape… If anyone finds this message, find Tali'Zorah; she and her data are all that matters here! Find her and get her off…." The audio file was cut short, the sound of phasic rounds impacting the stone and then metal.
"We need to keep moving; Garrus, get the gate open and let's go. We know Tali is safe, but we need to save as many of the Quarians as we can. Grunt, I want you on point."
The Korgan pounded his fists together quickly and loudly, forming a toothy smile in response to Shepard's order. "Gladly, Shepard. Let's show these mechanical beasts what happens when you mess with the galaxy's best." He huffed when looking at Garrus. Clearly, only he and Shepard counted as the best.
Garrus fiddled for a few moments at the controls, and was pleasantly rewarded with the rust-colored gate dropping into the ground. The three moved out of the gatehouse and turned the corner to see the next area now accessible to them. Scanning the area for hostiles, they were suddenly disheartened to see an object flying towards them very fast.
"Dropship, every get to cover!" Shepard was yelling as all three were already diving behind some stone pillars that had been left behind by the Quarians 300 hundred years ago. Just as they reached the stone pillars, half a dozen Geth platforms slammed into the ground with clouds of dust and debris as the dropship whizzed by overhead. Through the clouds, they could see the ominous lights of the Geths' heads come to life and look straight at them.
Pulse rounds flew around their cover, creating their distinct laser-like sound. The first Geth was foolish enough to come charging at them, only to be greeted by a Claymore shotgun blast from a few feet away.
"Hah! These machines will know the meaning of fear before this day is done!" Grunt leapt up and charged another platform that had foolishly separated itself from the others, pinning it to the ground and smashing it to pieces with his massive body. Before he could charge the others, his armor pinged with metallic rounds ricocheting off.
"Dammit Grunt, get back to cover!" Shepard screamed at him as he emptied an entire thermal clip into the closest Geth, shattering its' shields and severing an arm. Before it had a chance to regain its composure, Garrus put a sniper round through its head, dropping it to the ground. "Thanks Garrus. "
Garrus smirked as Shepard spoke, taking aim at the next platform and dropping it in similar fashion. Before his ego could form a string of cocky words, he was brought back to his level with the rough feeling of a shotgun blast hitting his barriers. "Damn, that hurts. Shepard, I could use some help over here." He looked over to his right and saw a Geth moving to their position, shotgun at the ready. Shepard took aim with his assault rifle, and fired several bursts into its chest, dropping its shields and peppering it with several holes. As it dropped to the ground, it managed to fire one more round at Garrus, dropping his own shields and puncturing his armor.
"Garrus, you okay?" Shepard looked down, the danger over for now. He saw the blood trickle from the Turian's armor, but only in a very small amount.
"Ugh… I'll be fine, it just hurts like hell. It only was my shoulder. I can make it through the mission without a problem. A little medi-gel and a few drinks later should be just fine Shep, heh." Garrus was clinching his teeth as he spoke, but to his credit he stood up and readied his sniper rifle without hesitation… and only a minor grunt and curse.
The three looked around and saw that the Geth were beaten… momentarily. Before they had a chance to regain their breaths, Garrus noticed with the zoom of his visor that more platforms were moving on the far end of the opening they were in. "Oh crap… more Geth, coming in from the other side! We should try and get above them, pick them apart and make them move through sunlight to reach us."
"Then we shall fight in the shade… but no hiding Turian! I want to see the sparks from when we shoot them!" Grunt piped in as he already started jogging to the stairs to the second level balcony.
"We better catch Grunt before he gets himself killed…" Shepard spoke as he and Garrus jogged to keep up with the antsy Krogan, shooting at the Geth to help draw some attention from him. Shepard pelted platforms with his assault rifle, downing their shields for Garrus to pick off with his sniper rifle. It worked with several platforms, but they seemed to be making little progress on their enemies' numbers.
Moving up the balcony, the trio took cover behind some stacked crates, providing protection from both the star and the Geth. It was none too soon, as a rocket blew past them and impacted the end of the balcony, destroying the guard wall and pelting them with chunks of metal and rock.
"Dammit, keep your heads down. We don't need any heroes this early in the day!" Shepard was barking orders as he unloaded a full clip blind-firing from his cover, to keep the Geth from storming their position. "As soon as it fires another rocket, Grunt and I will provide cover fire; Garrus, I want you to put a bullet through its damned flashlight head. Remember, the red ones have the rockets."
Garrus simply laughed at Shepard, despite the inappropriate timing. "Shepard, you don't need to remind me what kind of Geth I need to look for. I spent just as much time as you killing these things. And don't worry; it'll be dead before it hits the ground… Ready when you are."
Shepard nodded at Garrus, and then turned to Grunt and raised his hand with three fingers extended. Silently counting down, the two leapt from their cover and held the triggers on their rifles, aiming at the red Geth that was getting too close for comfort. They were less-than thrilled to see that its shields didn't collapse with the rewarding sound of circuits overloading, and ducked behind their cover once more.
"Garrus, take that thing out now!" Shepard was scrambling to load a new thermal clip, trying to at least stall the Geth before it got so close a rocket blast would turn them all to paste.
Garrus knew what to do. He didn't hesitate for a moment, spinning around his cover, sniper rifle at the ready. He stood strong as the cold, emotionless eye of death stared back at him. He pulled the trigger, sending a bullet into the Geth, shattering its shields as it continued into the head of the platform. A rocket fired from the Geth's hands at the same moment, speeding by Garrus' head only a few feet away, impacting far behind him.
If he had even been a split second slower, all three of them would be dead.
He didn't even have time to savor his victory, as multiple troopers came up the opposing ramp and began to pepper him with pulse rounds, carving through his shields as though they didn't have full power.
Diving back into cover, Shepard and Grunt managed to keep them from advancing by firing wildly into their group. While the others were firing at the Geth with their assault rifles, Garrus took the opportunity and used them as a distraction. Peeking around his wall, he fired off two quick shots from his rifle, severing the head of one Geth and punching a hole through another's chest. Both platforms dropped to the ground, cutting their numbers.
"Shepard, give me another distraction like that and I can drop a few more!" Garrus yelled over the noise of multiple rifles, snapping his head back as a few rounds impacting the stone near his face.
"Negative Garrus, we're going through thermal clips too fast. Hold on a moment." He tapped Grunt on the shoulder then to grab his attention, making sure he was ready to listen to his plan. "Grunt, I want you to run right at them with your shotgun ready. Be careful and use cover as much as possible, but draw their fire without burning through ammunition. Garrus and I will both use our rifles to drop them while they focus on you. Clear?"
Grunt only smiled in response, not even looking at the commander or Garrus. He locked his assault rifle on his back, drawing his Claymore Heavy Shotgun to replace it. He pumped it, and raised it in readiness.
Shepard turned to Garrus next, checking to see the Turian was ready. "Ready when you are, Shepard. Let's remind these Geth what happened last time they pissed us off." Garrus smirked at the thought, remembering all those Geth he had sent straight to Hell during the hunt for Saren.
Shepard raised a hand, three fingers extended as he counted down. "On my go… three… two… one… go!" Grunt sprinted forward, drawing fire from multiple Geth platforms in a perfectly executed maneuver, not even groaning from the impact of multiple phasic rounds.
With the Geth foolishly focusing on the lone Krogan, Shepard and Garrus both snapped from around cover and aimed their sniper rifles at the preoccupied targets. They each fired in quick succession, Shepard dropping three as Garrus eclipsed him with five kills. The final two platforms managed to evade them, turning to run back down the ramp they came from.
Sadly for them, they had failed to drop the oversized Krogan still charging them, and were both quickly decorated with holes in their bodies as the Claymore fired off two rounds, shaking the ground around it.
"Hah! Run away you cowards! Is there no one worthy of fighting us on this rock?" Grunt was laughing, even with several bullet wounds in his arms and scratches all over his armor. "These vermin run from us because they know they cannot win!"
Shepard and Garrus simply laughed at the Krogan, happy that they had won the battle… for now. "Shepard to team two, do you copy?"
A calm and distant voice answered him over the radio. "Commander, Miranda. We've landed at the secondary LZ and have secured it from a small squad of Geth troopers. It's been quiet ever since we landed; I don't think they are paying any attention to us. Is everything all clear at your location?"
"It is, Miranda. We've neutralized a few squads of Geth troopers and a heavy rocket trooper. Things are quiet now; we're going to keep making our way into the complex and link up with Noble Six and Tali. You keep your team alert and ready if we need reinforcements."
"Copy that commander. We'll stay here until you need us."
"You know, she doesn't sound so unpleasant when she just talks on the radio." Garrus chimed in a snappy remark, something he was almost expected to do by now.
"Very funny Garrus. She may be a pain, but she knows how to get the job done right." Shepard turned back towards his two companions, happy with the progress they had already made. "Alright, we've made it this far without much trouble. Let's keep moving, and locate some of the Quarians that Six and Tali mentioned. Keep your eyes open for wounded. But our main objective is still to link up with Tali and Six. Let's go."
.
"I'll make sure we do Tali. We're just about to land. Make sure to keep in radio contact. And Six: make sure you keep her safe. She's in your hands now, lieutenant."
Shepard's voice cut from the radio, and Six was once again left alone with his new Quarian companion. "Alright Tali, you're the one that knows more about these things. Give me a plan." Six peeked over the ledge the two were standing on, scanning the courtyard below. He saw several Geth troopers, a red platform that appeared to be armed with some kind of rocket launcher, another red Geth, but taller and armed with something he couldn't make out. And then the big one; the Prime. Six had fought Hunters before, but this thing didn't have a big orange weak spot on its back. It could be trouble.
Tali seemed a little surprised that he was so quick to ask for her advice, but was not hesitant to give it. "The Geth Prime is the most dangerous one by far. We need to keep away from its line of fire, or we'll be in trouble. The troopers shouldn't be much trouble, they are standard platforms with no special weapons. The small red one has a rocket launcher, so don't stand in front of any walls. And the tall red one is a Destroyer like the one you killed earlier. But this one doesn't seem to have a flamethrower, just a heavy machine gun. If you can brings its shields down, I can hack its systems and turn its IFF off for a short time. Hopefully enough for it to scrap a few of those troopers."
Six looked back at the group of Geth, scanning the area around them and their cover. At the far end of the courtyard, he saw a lone platform that looked like it was hacking into the door it was standing by. "Tali, that Geth at the far end; what's it doing?"
She peeked over the ledge, taking only a moment to realize what it was doing. "It must be trying to hack into the science wing. Six, none of the marines were in this area when the attack hit. If the Geth get in before we can help…"
"You don't need to tell me Tali. We'll get them all out safely. I promise you that."
Six couldn't see much of Tali's face behind her purple visor, but he was positive that he saw the outline of a smile on her barely-visible cheeks. "Thank you, Six. It means a lot to have someone that doesn't even know me risk his life. And for some Quarians… Not many people would give a Quarian a second look. But you're going to risk everything for me and my friends. Thank you." She nodded at him while she paused for a moment. "I'm going to check my shotgun and pistol, then I'll wait for your signal."
Six grabbed his own Eviscerator in response, popping a new thermal clip into the heat sink in preparation for the coming fight. As he was checking the grenades he had from the Normandy's armory, he began to think about what he was doing.
"I really am going out of my way to help this girl. But I've just met her. What could make me do something so…?"
"I believe you're looking for redemption, lieutenant."
Six turned around at the sound of a familiar voice, sure of its origin, but not willing to believe it. Right in front of Six was someone that he hadn't seen in five years. And with good reason.
"Kat! But how….?"
"You just got transported into another galaxy, lieutenant; do you really need to question how I'm here?"
The Spartan tried to shake it off, but he opened his eyes again, still looking right at the other Spartan, fully clad in her cyan armor, minus the helmet she held at her side. Six noticed the needle-round hole in the visor, but Kat's perfect face said otherwise.
Six was baffled; worried he might be losing it. "But… What are you doing? Why now? It's been five years, Kat…"
"Time doesn't matter much for me, lieutenant. And I'm here for you. I know why you're doing this, and I'm glad you have something to fight for again. But you don't need to redeem yourself from something that you didn't do. And don't act like you don't know what I mean."
He bit his tongue for a moment as he thought of a response. "It's not that easy for me, Kat. I can't just…"
"You can and you need to, Six. Stop thinking about what's happened, and worry about yourself for once. But right now, you've got a girl you need to help." Kat turned slightly, looking over her shoulder to say one last thing. "And get to know her, Spartan…"
"Get to know her? What are you talking about…?" Before he got a response, Kat smiled at him and faded from his vision.
.
"Six, are you ready to go? We can't wait forever." Tali's voice shook the Spartan back into reality, causing him to shake his head quickly, as if he could shake himself back to normal.
"Yea, I'm ready. Stay close and behind me; let me take the damage."
Tali wasn't happy about his command, but she realized he was right. He was clad in armor that was more advanced than anything she had ever seen, and she already knew some of combat abilities. They were… better than hers, to say the least. "Ok, lieutenant. I'm right behind you. Remember, I can hack any Geth whose shields you take down."
"Thanks, Tali. Let's move."
Six and Tali moved slowly down from the ledge, being careful to remain hidden behind cover while they closed in on the unaware Geth. They both readied their shotguns, Six with his Eviscerator and Tali with her Scimitar, Six quickly peeking around from the cover they were behind. Two Geth troppers, and the rocket trooper, were standing close by while the other Geth had moved up by the door the researchers were behind. The Spartan switched his external audio off, giving him a chance to speak to Tali quickly before they attacked.
"Ok, I'm going to hit the rocket trooper. You hack it immediately after; hopefully it will attack the other two and the rocket will destroy them all, heh. Wait for my go."
Tali acknowledged him with a sharp nod, raising the Scimitar in her hands. Six raised his hand and counted off to three. As soon as he clenched his fist, the Spartan spun around the wall with superhuman speed, diving and rolling towards the rocket trooper in a blur. He was already on his feet and pulling the trigger before any of the Geth even had noticed him.
The serrated metal ammunition of the shotgun blasted the red platform, causing it to stagger back, and its shields to crack out with an electronic hiss. The other two troopers, now aware of the Spartan, turned towards him and immediately raised their rifles and fired. It took him long enough to get to cover that they actually managed to drop his shields, mass effect rounds pinging off his armor.
'Damn, those rifles really tear through shields. I need to be careful around these Geth…' He thought to himself as he saw Tali extending her arm, the now-familiar orange glow of an omni-tool wrap her forearm. To his amazement, he heard the Geth behind the wall scream a terrible, mechanical sound before a large explosion rocked the area and sent debris and rubble flying over his head.
Noble Six peered around the corner and saw the remains of three Geth, one completely blown to pieces, the other two severely damaged and sparking on the ground.
"Nicely done, Miss vas Normandy. Is that the right way to say it?"
"Well it's actually… get down!" Tali dove into the cover the Spartan was just using as a flurry of machine gun fire buzzed over her head, peppering the stone walls and pillars behind her. Six didn't even look behind him to analyze the new threat before he ducked his head back down, too.
"Thanks for the heads up. What was behind me?"
"The other Geth by the door heard us; the other troopers and the Destroyer are making their way towards us. The Prime looked like it was staying, though. It probably wants to keep the hacker protected from us. The destroyer can't get close, Six. The heavy machine gun will tear us apart."
"Alright, Tali. You deal with those troopers, and I'll take care of the Destroyer."
Before even had a chance to answer him, the lieutenant sprinted from their cover, drawing the fire of all the Geth that were moving towards them. Tali capitalized on the opportunity and sent a familiar combat drone out from her omni-tool.
"Go get 'em Chiktikka, good girl!" Tali watched as the purple drone sped towards the mechanical foes, waiting for it to strike before she fired.
As soon as the drone reached the first trooper, it attacked with a quick electrical charge that managed to stun the Geth, and more importantly, to drop its shields. Tali took the chance and fired straight at the Geth, her shotgun carving a small hole through its side and dropping it to the ground.
Sadly for the Quarian, the two remaining troopers were more prepared for the done, and they quickly dispatched it. Chiktikka quickly flickered out, and they now focused solely on the lone Quarian after the grey-armored soldier had already sprinted past them. Both raised their rifles and began to fire relentlessly at her, several rounds impacting her shields and causing her suit's warning alarms to set off. Tali cursed them in her native language, ducking back behind her cover as she tossed a grenade around the wall to stall the Geth. While she knew it wouldn't destroy them, she was happy to hear the troopers scream in surprise and annoyance.
'Hah! That'll teach those bastards to pick a fight with a Quarian.'
Her shields still low, Tali decided that science should be given a chance to triumph over might this time. She activated her omni-tool, and she spun her wrist around the wall of her cover. Her blind aim was flawless, and she was happy to see her shield meter recharge, and even go over the normal limit.
'Let's see how tough you are without your shields, Bosh'Tet!'
With her added shield boost, the Quarian leaned around the cover she was behind and pumped out three shots from her gun in quick succession, dropping the Geth whose shields she had just repurposed, and damaging the second. The damaged Geth realized it was now alone, and immediately charged Tali, rifle blazing away. She ducked her head back behind the stone, large chunks being whittled off by the rifle's constant fire. Tali dropped her shotgun and readied her pistol, charging around the corner and quickly fired off as many rounds as she could.
The first few shots pinged off the Geth's shields, then at next several impacted the platform, causing metal to warp and sparks to fly. She pulled the trigger once more and sent a mass effect round right into the synthetic's head, the optical light flickering off in an instant. She watched, with a bit of sadistic pleasure and also relief, as it dropped to the ground, destroyed.
The Quarian was not without her own scars, however. The rapid-fire pulse rifle had stripped her of her shields, with a round managing to puncture her arm. She looked towards the area of pain and saw a small amount of red blood running down her arm, dripping on the dusty stone beneath her feet. She barely caused a spill on the ground before her suit sealed the wound and administered a liberal dose of antibiotics. She felt a slight dizziness as they made their way through her system, though she was happy to have any feeing after a suit puncture.
Her momentary bliss was rudely interrupted by the synthetic screams of one Geth Destroyer; one that she had carelessly forgotten about. She turned around and saw the large platform trying desperately to keep up with the inhumane speed of Noble Six's movements, firing wildly as he moved from cover-to-cover to close the gap between the two.
"Come on, you big ugly bitch! Show me what you can do!" The confident soldier let out an insult very un-Spartan like. But the lieutenant was not ordinary Spartan. The Spartan drew his shotgun, pumped a new clip into the chamber, and spun around the final piece of cover between him and the red Destroyer. He charged the Geth, catching it slightly surprised as he fired off the three-round shot capacity of his Eviscerator as quickly as the gun allowed. The final shot was enough to drop the Geth's shields, but it did nothing to puncture the armor of it. Reacting on instinct, Six dove at the Destroyer and brought his right arm back, ready to strike it. Colliding with the large enemy was less than comfortable, as they were both violently shaken and dropped to the ground. The crash reminded the Spartan of his time fighting Hunters on Reach.
While the Destroyer foolishly clawed for its weapon, Noble Six activated his energy dagger with a pulse of white light, hot plasma flakes dripping from the blade's generator. He dove the dagger deep into the Geth's chest, melting metal and circuitry with ease. He tugged his arm to the side, creating a satisfying hole across the middle of it. The Geth, however, wasn't finished, and it finally decided reaching for its rifle wasn't the logical response to an enemy currently pinning it on the ground. The mechanical menace struck back at the Spartan with its arms, hitting him square in the chest with all its synthetic might. Even a fully-armored Spartan has his limits, and the force was enough to knock him off the Geth and momentarily stagger him.
Six watched as the Geth stood up before him, and charged right at him, without even reaching for its rifle. Luckily for the Spartan, the Geth had overlooked the still-shimmering energy dagger on his arm, and Six used his chance to swipe at the charging enemy. He threw his arm through the air with precision, cleanly severing a leg from the platform. Six now watched with glee as the monstrous Destroyer collapsed at his feet, grunting in its annoying, synthetic voice. He raised his arm one last time, driving it through the Geth's head and into the stone ground, boiling the sand and stone into glass with the intense heat of the blade. He stared down at the Geth, happy to see the light on its head die out, and the body stopped struggling. Six saw from his side that Tali was walking towards him, and he was pretty sure that, under her mask, she had a look of amazement on her face.
"That was incredible, Six! How can you do something like that?" She wasn't even looking at him as she spoke, but stared awestruck at the large Geth that had been cut to pieces before her eyes, by a single human. "Actually, you can tell me about it on the Normandy. We still have that Prime to deal with; we're lucky it hasn't decided to attack us yet. But we have to get to the researchers Six, before those two remaining Geth get into the complex."
"You're right, Tali. If those Geth get access to the science wing, your friends will be in big trouble. I'm not going to watch as some machines massacre unarmed civilians. But stay down this time, Shepard would have my head if you got hurt while attacking that Prime… wait… what happened to your arm?"
Tali had almost forgotten about the wound, the suit's built in pain killers had almost dulled the pain completely. "Oh this…? It's nothing too serious, just a small wound; it's on my arm. My suit already sealed the wound to keep contamination to a minimum. I'll have to look at it on the Normandy, but I'll be fine now. Don't worry about me; I'm not the one that just got thrown by a Destroyer. Are you ok?"
Six was about to dismiss Tali's question when he coughed from the Geth's recent attack, splattering a small amount of blood across the inside of his visor.
'Well it was strong enough to send me flying for a moment…'
Not feeling comfortable removing his armor, he decided to simply deal with the problem for now, and left his helmet on. "I'm ok, but thanks for asking. I've gone through a lot worse before and made it out in one piece. But for you sake, stay behind cover for this one. I have a plan to deal with the Prime and remaining trooper, but I need to do it alone. Shepard sent me here to get you out safely, and that Prime isn't going to help us out."
Tali made a slight movement with her hand to object, before catching herself and stopping the words forming in her mouth. She wanted to argue with Six; to say he needed her help. But even though she had just met him, Tali could already tell that he knew how to take care of himself. And a Geth Prime was something even she was cautious around. She didn't like the idea of sitting out a fight, but Tali could tell it was important to Noble Six. "Alright, Noble Six. I'll stay behind cover while you deal with the Prime. But if I see you in any trouble, I'm coming to help."
"Fine Tali. But I'm not going to let it come to that. Keep any eye out for any Geth reinforcements, and I'll take care of the Prime before you can even get anxious."
Before Tali could begin to respond, the Spartan took off in a blur, barely giving her time to peek around her cover to see what he was doing.
The Prime was standing vigilant at the doorway, protecting the lone trooper that was attempting to hack the panel. It was standing in the open, both a weakness and problem for Noble Six. If he attacked from cover, he could easily pick the two platforms apart. That would be time-consuming. But if he decided to attack head-on, it could turn into a bloody mess. Tali hoped that Noble Six understood the situation…
While Tali was still looking the area over, her thoughts were interrupted by the mechanical screams of the Geth Prime. Snapping her attention to it, she saw a faint blur climbing atop the back of the Geth, and a short dagger instantly appearing in the air above its neck. Tali had never seen anything like it; the blade was a blue and white shimmer, with small droplets falling from it. As she was still admiring it, the blade suddenly drove deep into the Geth, instantly protruding from the front of the its neck. With a few more screams the Geth suddenly was without a head, the body falling to the ground with a loud crash.
The trooper hacking the doorway barely had time to turn around in response before a shotgun blast threw it into the stone wall behind it, severing its body in half. The faint shimmer Tali had seen then stopped moving, rippling with distorted light for a moment before her new found ally appeared seemingly from thin air.
"How do you have active camouflage? The Geth developed that alone, after the war!" Tali was almost speechless at the sight before her. Not only had Noble Six destroyed a Prime in an instant, he did it without a gun.
Six chuckled a little at her continued interest in him. "Tali, you keep asking these questions, but like I said, we can talk about it later. Don't you want to check on your team stuck behind this door?"
Breaking herself from her momentary bliss, Tali sprinted towards the doorway and entered the necessary codes to open the science wing. She held her breath as the door slowly opened.
It was unnecessary.
Before her stood the entire science team; all unharmed by the Geth. Except for a few that appeared to need a change of suits. While more trembled and expected a storm of Geth gunfire, one was calm enough to notice the beautiful Quarian in the doorway and leapt forward with happiness.
"Tali? Is that really you? Oh Keelah, we thought we were going to be killed by those Geth. It's amazing you came here in time. How did you get past them? When I locked the door, there was a Geth Prime chasing us. A Prime! How did you kill it?" Del's excited voice had quickly turned to doubt, as he couldn't understand how Tali had seemingly dealt with the mechanical monster alone.
"I didn't do it alone, Del. I had some help from a new friend."
With that, Noble Six walked forward, the synthetic fluids of multiple Geth covering his armor. To Del, the sight was both relieving and terrifying; a friendly soldier helping him, yet covered in the 'blood' of numerous enemies. It frightened him just as much as it calmed him.
Despite the momentary lapse, Del was aware enough to walk forward and thank the Spartan. "Thank you, whoever you are. If Tali says you helped, that's enough for me to know you helped save our lives. The Migrant Fleet is forever in your debt, human." He noticed the hands with five fingers, quickly revealing to him the soldier's race. Del courteously nodded his head, the Spartan before him returning the gesture.
"The path to our shuttle should be clear now, Del. You can take everyone there and get off Haestrom. Reegar and a few wounded marines made it too; they'll be going with you." Tali politely stepped into the conversation, eager to keep them moving.
"You won't be coming with us?" The Quarian sounded more upset than surprised.
Tali made a slight move back on one leg, and turned her face slightly away from him. "No, Del…. I am going to join Six and Shepard. They have an important mission for me to join. And now that you are all safe and we have the data, I have the Admirals' permission for an extended leave of absence. They just thought I'd report back to the fleet first…" She trailed off, thinking of how her father would react. Unhappily, most likely.
"Shepard? You mean the one you spent your pilgrimage with? He's on Haestrom?"
"Yea, Del. That's who I came here with. Shepard and the other members of the ground team are still in the complex, clearing out the remaining Geth. Shepard and his squad should be linking up with us shortly."
Before Six had a chance to radio the other squads, Shepard, Garrus, and Grunt were standing at the doorway into the room they occupied. Garrus and Shepard each had a slight look of amazement, neither able to form any words. Grunt was simply excited by the carnage that lay behind them, and was able to speak for all of them. "Nicely done, human. It looks like I won't have to kill you for being weak. Even a Krogan battlemaster would be impressed with the carnage you created! Hah, if only we could have been there with you!" The Krogan warrior affectionately smashed his fists together with a toothy grin. Apparently, if you were a worth warrior, as Noble Six was, you are quickly accepted by Grunt.
Shepard, now able to compose himself, stepped forward to speak to Tali rather than congratulate Six on his controlled slaughter. He simply nodded in approval when he passed the Spartan who stood stoically.
"Tali, are you alright? We saw some of the fight from the far side of the courtyard."
"Then you know that Noble Six did all the work. I'm fine though, Shepard. Thanks for asking." Tali put her arm on Shepard, the most she could do to convey a smile through her visor. "This whole mission was a mess Shepard. " She motioned for Shepard and Garrus to walk to the side with her, away from the other Quarians and Shepard's other squad mates. Grunt simply huffed, while Six nodded and walked back to the doorway as a guardian. "The Admiralty Board sent us here to gather data on the star, Dholen. Then we got attacked by the Geth. Most of the marines got killed protecting me…" Tali paused for a moment, the 'faces' of all her friends flashing through her mind. At least Reegar had made it. "The only reason the science team made it was him." Tali simply looked towards Six; there was no need for her to point to him.
"Yea, we caught a little of the action ourselves. And we found what was left after him…" Garrus decided it had been long enough since he had spoken, but even he found it impossible to form a sarcastic remark. He was in awe of the new human as much as everyone else.
Six was simply standing over to their side, looking at them with his arms crossed. Well, he appeared to be looking at them. The Spartan seemed to understand what they were talking about... It was easy for them to be given away, as they all were looking at the armored-clad human, towering over the Quarians occupying the space around him.
"He's certainly proved himself capable of handling himself, even against a strong force of Geth troopers and heavy platforms. I was almost certain we could trust him, and now I have no doubt that Noble Six is going to be an ally for the war against the Collectors and Reapers. What do you think Tali?" Shepard was cool and composed now, his awe of the Spartan now subsided. He turned to Tali and crossed his arms, smirking just a little, knowing exactly what she was going to say.
"He's already saved my life, and the lives of my team. I wasn't going to get off Haestrom without him, and even you may have been too late Shepard… You'll have to tell me more about him when we get on the Normandy. It should be safe to move the wounded, and after they are stabilized in the medbay, they can leave for the Migrant Fleet without me. "Tali turned from Shepard with that, waving to Del. "Get the wounded ready, Del. We're getting off Haestrom for good."
Shepard smiled again, this time with a nod and raised his hand to his ear. "Miranda, it's Shepard. Ready the Kodiaks for take-off. We're taking the wounded Quarians with us; then we can continue the mission on Illium."
.
Author's Note:
Well the biggest question first is Kat. Comment with what you think; it's too late to remove her, and I personally really want her in the story as a ghost. But if most of my reviews turn out negative, I'll work on improving it if you mention how you think I should do that. Thanks!
Yes, I am very sorry for the extended delay. Between football season starting, school, and work I have had trouble keeping motivated. I also haven't been playing Mass Effect since around the last update, and that's the biggest thing keeping me on track. Realistically, it will probably be another month before I get the Mass Effect 2 itch, but I'll try to keep working ahead. Don't worry; as I've said before, I will finish, but won't rush it. Sorry if it takes a while but I want the story exactly how I feel it should be told.
As always, comments and reviews are very helpful and appreciated. Having a review or two every week in my email keeps a fire under me, so that's always useful to motivate me!
WOLF, tigerwar, RunRincewindRun, S4pphi, Rydan fall…. Thanks for all the help over the past couple months while I have been writing this. And everyone else that simply reads and keeps to themselves, I'm happy knowing some people out there actually enjoy my writing.
THANKS!