'Shepard!'
Peace...
Faith felt strangely relaxed, considering that her ears were full of screams, her head was pounding and her body felt like she'd gone hand-to-hand with a krogan.
'Get the hell up, Shepard!'
I think I will just... stay here a little...
She did not want to open her eyes. A familiar scent filled her senses: that wonderful, comforting scent of Liara that never failed to tell her things would be alright. With a quiet sound of contentment, she nuzzled against the slightly pebbled skin of a familiar asari neck.
Liara...
'Fuck... she's not moving... dammit, get over here! Yeah, you in the funny armour!'
Liara...
She remembered... Benezia was going to be cleared of charges... she'd done it, she'd won, for Liara, for the war, but then... then there was an explosion and Liara-
Liara!
Faith's eyes snapped open, and she lurched to her feet, groaning at a pounding pain at the side of her head as she pushed herself off of the still form of the asari maiden. At her side, Aethyta heaved aside a huge piece of debris, helped by one of the commandos dressed in that strange red armour. Shepard's head swam with weakness, and she sank back to her knees - fear racing through her as she rested her fingertips against Liara's throat.
Come on... come on...
'Is she ok?' Aethyta dropped down to Shepard's side, face creased in worry. Her voice was muffled, and Faith noticed she couldn't hear properly out of her left ear.
Later, Liara first!
She felt a pulse, and let out a sigh of relief, inspecting the rest of the asari's body.
The human nodded. 'Her pulse is strong, and I can't see any injuries. What...'
She looked around, trying unsuccessfully to blink away a ravaging headache. The whole room was a complete wreck. The marvellously decorated ceiling was gone, reduced to the massive pieces of rubble scattered around the hall. Four of the commandos were holding a huge biotic bubble across the majority of the matriarchs... though with a grimace Faith saw the space Artus had been occupying was completely buried. The commando who had helped Aethyta had a face locked in shock; she recognised her as one of Artus' guard.
Dammit!
She had no way of seeing if Artus was alive under the rubble... and suddenly her campaign to humiliate her in front of her people seemed such a waste, a load of petty political nonsense. The whole trial seemed such a waste in the face of what had happened.
God, what did happen?
Shepard blinked, and looked back down at Liara. The maiden was stirring, weak groans dragged from her throat. She needed to get Liara out of here.
Suddenly Liara's eyes flickered open, and she sat up, clutching her head. 'Oh... Goddess... what is going on?'
Faith helped the shaky maiden to her feet, her own body aching and pounding all over, though nothing felt too badly damaged, other than the particularly sharp pain dulling her hearing at the left side. 'No idea, there was an explosion, and...' She gestured to the ruined room. The commandos had dropped their barrier, and were helping the matriarchs still alive from the room. 'We need to find out what happened.'
Shepard looked to Aethyta. 'Is Shiala ok?'
The matriarch nodded, jerking a thumb over her shoulder. 'Yeah. She's over there being a damned hero and helping people trapped in the rubble. Gimped leg and shitty biotics, but she's helping.'
Before Faith could say anything, her omni-tool lit up.
+Shepard? Can you hear me? Dammit EDI, is there any way you can boost the-+
'Garrus, what the hell's happening?' Shepard demanded, moving even as she spoke to help Liara from the pile of rubble they were buried in.
The turian's reply was instant, the hint of worry in his initial address instantly gone, replaced by a cool, calm voice relaying facts as quickly as possible.
+Damned good to hear your voice, Shepard. About an hour and a half ago a series of explosions destroyed several major communication hubs across the planet. The comm buoy network's still intact but everything from Thessia itself is a mess. We've been trying to contact you but between that room you're in and all the chaos we've not been able to get through.+
Shepard scowled, and seeing Liara was ok, moved to the pile of rubble where Artus had been standing just moments ago. She spoke the whole time as she pulled off her torn jacket, leaving her chest clad in just a white tank stained with sweat and spots of blood from somewhere on her body. 'We're still in the room. An explosion just blew the roof in.'
+Wha- Spirits... it can't be...+
'What?' she demanded, heaving a massive piece of ceiling away from the blue form she could see beneath, Liara's biotics lightening the weight.
+A cruiser left its holding area after the attacks, Shepard. It looked harmless, trying to pick up its crew with all the chaos or something... before it powered up and managed to fire one shot before the asari fleet blew it away. Aimed it right at Thessia.+
She stopped her efforts, mind racing in incredulity. 'You're telling me a ship blew the hell out of this place? From orbit?'
+Beyond orbit, it was travelling towards Thessia when the asari nailed it. Must have been one hell of a shot at that range, no wonder it took so long to- never mind, look, there's nothing else going on here but I've got us in stealth orbiting Thessia. The asari fleet's on high alert, what are your orders?
'Good job Garrus. Hold position until I say, and let me know if anything else happens. There's still people trapped here.'
+Aye aye, Normandy out.+
Shaking herself, Faith pulled away another piece of rubble... and her breath caught as she saw Artus, silently blinking in shock, mouth wordlessly gaping... her legs crushed from the knees down. Faith ducked to her side, tearing her jacket into strips, and Liara squatted by Artus' head, urging her to stay awake.
Shit...
Her legs were a mess. An all-too experienced eye told Shepard the matriarch would definitely lose her left, and unless real help came soon, the right would be a loss as well. Tenderly lifting the remains of her left leg, grimacing as violet blood pumped over her hands, Shepard slipped a strip of her jacket beneath it and began tying.
'Faith!'
As she finished off the second tourniquet, Shepard glanced up at Liara's cry to see the matriarch's eyes slip shut.
'No no no...' she growled, and roughly shook Artus by her shoulders.
Nothing happened. Liara shot her a worried glance, and without hesitation Faith brought her hand down, slapping Artus across the face with a crack that made Liara wince.
The matriarch's eyes snapped open, and she seemed to come to her senses, trying to sit up... blanching as she saw the damage to her legs.
'Hold still, there'll be medics here any second,' Faith urged, catching the matriarch's eyes which were slipping in and out of focus.
'What... do you... care...' Artus gasped out, and Faith felt a flush of guilt. She knew it was stupid to feel responsible for Artus' current situation, but still...
'I never-'
+Shepard! Major activity up here, there are military ships coming through the relay, two cruisers... five... Spirits, EDI, is that a dreadnought? It's a damned invasion fleet Shepard!+
'Invasion?' The matriarch gasped in surprise, 'It... can't be...'
Faith opened up the comms channels, adrenaline rushing through her. 'Garrus, I want a supply drop on my location asap. Armour and arms for me, Liara and two other asari. I'm guessing everybody else is ready to go?'
+Since we detected something suspicious. Dammit Shepard, they're jumping to FTL already! They must be coming for Thessia!+
Faith nodded. 'Garrus, I need to get us out of this place, the whole building's about to collapse. Let the asari fleet deal with the invaders, but help out if you think you can. Keep me updated, and let me know when the drop's ready.'
+Will do Shepard. Normandy out.+
The comm fizzled into silence, and Faith looked around, drawing in a deep breath that sent her aching head spinning. Medics were finally flooding into the hall, and Shepard waved one of them over. Aethyta was helping another trapped asari with Shiala, and screams echoed through the air. Through the ruined roof Shepard could see the nearby buildings were all wrecked: most of them had been at least partially destroyed; all of the windows were smashed, and the walls cracked. More shouts filled the air outside, and the afternoon sky above was thick with dust.
Firing a starship's main gun into a planet was a war crime comparable to deploying nuclear weapons, leaving the offenders liable to full Council retaliation. And to do it to Thessia? The asari had few powerful enemies: they strived for peace and understanding with all of the galaxy's species, and between the economic benefits of a peaceful relationship, and the threat of the terrifyingly powerful asari military, most species were more than happy to accept the asari's benevolence.
Who was attacking them? What could they hope to achieve by bombarding Thessia? And invading... Shepard could not help but believe the Reapers were involved somehow, but Garrus would surely have indicated if that was the case.
There's no way they can win!
But first, she needed to help get everybody evacuated from the building. Her body hurt all over, and it was a minor miracle the hall was still standing: the asari clearly built things to last. She stood-
For Artus to grab her hand in a surprisingly strong grip. 'Please...'
Faith kneeled down again. The matriarch had been given a painkiller, and her voice was quiet... but still held strength. 'Help... my people...'
As the medics began working Artus' ruined legs, Faith caught her eyes and nodded firmly. The matriarch held her gaze for a second, and even in that moment Faith felt the absolute weight of the asari's life through her eyes... and saw that she believed Shepard would do what she could. Satisfied, the matriarch let go, and laid her head back as the medics worked on her.
Finally jogging over to her friends, Shepard briefed them as they helped lift more rubble away... to see only a dead asari beneath it.
'Damn...' Aethyta shook her head, then looked at Shepard, eyes flickering to her blood-stained hands. 'You ok? You looked in pretty bad shape earlier.'
Her mind had cleared, but Faith's body still ached, and she felt a particularly sharp pain on the side of her head. She raised a hand... grimacing as she brought it away, fingers coated in fresh red blood on top of Artus' drying purple.
'Goddess, Faith!'
Shepard looked up to see Liara, caked in dust and dirt and a little of her own blood, staring at her with wide eyes. 'I'm-' she began, before Aethyta pushed over to her and softly began probing the wound.
'Can't see shit with all this hair... oh... ugh.'
'What?' Shepard demanded, feeling a pang of nausea as Aethyta probed the wound.
'Shit load of blood, and your ear's a bit... mashed.'
Dammit...
'Hold still, need to...'
Faith stood still as Aethyta continued her examination, wincing as the matriarch tenderly touched the mess of pain that was her ear and the surrounding areas of skull. She was usually willing to push through pain and minor injuries, but did not want to take any risks with a head wound. Liara stood close by, clenching her fingers, nervous eyes locked to her own.
'Hey, you got a knife?' Aethyta called out across the room, and the same commando from earlier jogged over.
'I... I do... I will...' The commando's hands were trembling, and despite herself Faith felt a pang of contempt. She was supposed to be one of the guardians of this place, and she was panicking! The commando fumbled at her side, eventually pulling out a long, thin bladed dagger that looked like it was carved from bone. Wordlessly, she handed it to Aethyta, who shot Shepard a sympathetic look.
'Sorry Shepard, gonna need to cut some of your hair away to clean this up.'
Faith gestured quickly, not wanting to move her head. 'Just do it, I don't want to stay in this death trap any longer than we have to.'
'Alright...' the matriarch brought the blade up, and Faith grimaced as she felt a sticky tugging, then a rough drag across her skull.
'Oh, Faith, your ear!' Liara clasped her hands over her mouth, her cry piercing Shepard like a blade. Must be bad...
She forced a smile through the pain even as Aethyta waved over one of the medics rushing around the room. 'You seem to do pretty well without them... and better me injured than you.'
'Do not say that!' Liara insisted, taking her hand, ignoring the sticky blood. 'Do not think of yourself that way...'
Shepard squeezed Liara's hand. 'No promises. But I'm still happier it hit me than you.'
Faith stood still for several minutes as the medic cleaned the wound, then winced as a cool medigel was rubbed into her skin, finally sighing as the pain began to fade.
Aethyta stood back, and the medic began scanning Faith's head with a small handheld device. 'How bad is it?' Shepard asked.
The medic shook her head. 'You're the first human I've ever even met so I'm no expert, but your... ear?'
Faith nodded.
'Your ear took the worst of the blow. I have no idea if it can be repaired, but I cleaned up and stopped the worst of the bleeding.'
The tool beeped, and the asari studied the readout.
'Huh. Humans have even thicker skulls than I thought. No sign of internal bleeding, or your skull being damaged. But I'd recommend getting to a hospital where somebody who knows more about humans can decide what to do with what's left of your ear... I'm afraid to me it looks like a loss. You also can't be too careful with a head wound, these scanners aren't perfect.'
Faith grimaced. She was pleased her head was ok - the skeletal lattice running through her frame clearly doing its job - but... Liara liked my ears.
But she could not delay. 'I've got somewhere to be, just bandage it up for now.'
The medic raised a skeptical brow, and looked ready to argue when Aethyta clapped a hand to her shoulder. 'Just do it girl, she's a Spectre, she knows what she's doing.'
The doctor's eyes widened briefly, before she shrugged and pulled out some bandages. 'If you insist, Spectre. But get yourself to a proper hospital soon.'
Shepard nodded. 'As soon as I can.'
Specialist Traynor dashed to another terminal in the war room, trembling legs feeling like they would give in at any moment, but feeling alive like she never had before.
There was an invasion!
The ships had jumped to FTL almost as soon as arriving through the Relay - leaving the asari fleet there floundering, and had just reappeared a short way away from Thessia, soon to be engaged by the fleet guarding the planet.
Of course it was terrible, with any lives lost - especially beautiful asari lives - but she was doing something, she was helping, by processing the ludicrous number of comms feeds they were picking up into something useful for her teammates.
Her hands danced across the terminal before her, and she filtered out all of the non-essential communications coming from the asari First Fleet; the one guarding the planet itself. The Third Fleet was apparently staying by the Relay in high alert, ready to destroy anything else that came through, while the system's Patrol Fleet was on its way to back up the First.
Happy that the few communications she left were useful, she dashed a hand up the screen, dragging the tiny icon onto the holographic projection in the centre of the room, and dropping it onto the glowing representation of the asari ships, three feminine voices tagged by importance added to the cacophony of the rest. The duplicate projection in the CIC would be updated with her work.
'EDI, how are we doing with hacking the invaders' transmissions?'
'They are using standard batarian military encryption. Voice pattern recognition confirms the crews' species as the same.'
'Batarian?' What were the batarians doing attacking Thessia? As far as she knew the batarians did not have anything in particular against the asari: if anybody, humanity was the primary target of their hatred.
But there was time for pondering later. She had work to do.
'Yes. I have broken in, the communications are displayed on terminals five through eight.'
'Brill, thanks EDI,' Sam shouted as she ran across the room, seeing the massive amount of incoming data feed across the screens, and hearing their horrible, raspy voices ring from the terminals. She had initially been a little nervous about her ability to handle all of the work Shepard wanted of her alone, but the AI was more help than she could possibly have imagined.
As she set to work picking out the transmissions that would be of use, tongue gripped between her teeth and poking out from her lips, she set herself to wondering what was going to happen. The batarians were attacking Thessia.
Thessia.
It was practically unthinkable; the asari fleet would of course destroy the invaders, and if they somehow didn't the inevitable Citadel reinforcements would. The batarian fleet numbered six cruisers, twenty four frigates and an enormous dreadnought... but the asari outnumbered them close to five to one. It was suicide attacking like this!
Not to mention the backlash... there would be war. Full scale war. There was no way the asari, no way the whole bloody Council could ignore something like this.
She checked one of the more important looking audio feeds coming from the batarian dreadnought, being broadcast to the rest of the fleet.
+Is she still alive?+
+We think so, but its impossible to be sure. It's chaos down there.+
+Good! Even if she's dead we need her body. Prepare the dropships and get the Leviathan in position.+
+We've already lost one cruiser to the defenders, do we engage?+
+No! Keep going, they won't be able to fire on us soon. And remember, we want the Butcher intact, whatever the cost!+
Sam's blood ran cold. She froze, letting the angry voices wash over her.
They weren't attacking Thessia. They were attacking Shepard. The Normandy had been hidden for months now, of course it would be publicised if humanity's Spectre appeared on Thessia, with all the furore about Matriarch Benezia, and the Reaper data release...
Were they so desperate? Traynor knew Shepard was rather... hated by the batarians, but would they sacrifice an entire invasion fleet, not to mention risking war with the deadly Asari Republics, just to capture her? Or her body... what sick thing did they have in mind?
They're mad!
At the thought, Sam snapped back to work, forwarding the snippet of conversation to the CIC, and quickly filtering through the remaining garbled batarian transmissions.
Somebody needed to do something about them. Fast.
Dammit...
Garrus tightened his grip, sharp talons digging into the polished rail with an unpleasant squeal of torn metal. Voices assaulted him from all sides.
Angry, barked orders in heavy batarian growls, demanding the fleet simply power through the asari resistance to get into shuttle range of Thessia, and position themselves so the asari would be hesitant to shoot for fear of missing and bombarding their own planet.
Clipped asari, voices professional but ringing with an undertone of pure terror that the batarians weren't interested in their ships that were assaulting them from all sides, and were thrusting through their barricade towards their homeworld.
The turian glared at the holographic map of the Parnitha system before him, lit up with representations of the fleets currently vying for control. The batarians were a mass of red approaching Thessia all too quickly, the smaller ships circling the dreadnought and engaging with the blue asari that approached, but never drifting away too far or getting locked into combat.
'How're the asari doing against that dreadnought, EDI?' he growled, racking his mind for what to do. There was no way one frigate - as heavily upgraded as the Normandy was - could stop the whole fleet, especially when the batarians clearly had no intention to engage in combat and the asari were hesitant to force them into it.
'The ship the batarians are referring to as Leviathan appears to have incredibly powerful shields and armour. Asari efforts to destroy it, despite two of their own dreadnoughts engaging, have been as yet unsuccessful. The rest of the batarian fleet is being whittled down but not at a rate expedient enough to stop them from reaching Thessia.'
The asari were trying to harass the batarians into retreat or surrender, but Garrus was getting more and more frustrated that their "hit and run" tactics were simply not going to work, and that those in command of the fleet somehow refused to see that. If they brought their superior numbers to bear they could no doubt wipe the batarians out with little difficulty using overwhelming force: a turian tactic, though it usually came with a cost.
A cost that, unless the asari did something, would instead be inflicted upon the population of Thessia.
'Supply drop away!' Joker called out from the bridge, letting Garrus breathe a sigh of relief that that was done at least. Currently hurtling towards Thessia was a specially designed drop-pod Vega had packed with the weapons and armour Shepard requested. The asari would probably pick it up on their sensors, but it was too small and fast to blow out of the sky, and by the time anybody reached it, Shepard would have already stripped it clean.
Just wish I knew what to do up here...
Matriarch Sal Kurin leaned forward in her comfortable, leather-bound seat, clutching the arms as she gazed down on the asari swarming across the CIC of the Cybaen beneath her.
Swarming was an action she had never imagined to associate with the people under her command, but then she had never thought to see her homeworld under attack.
'New orders coming in from the Eternal Fate, ma'am!' Her XO's voice rang throughout the room, and Kurin nodded a prompt.
'The Patrol Fleet is to form a defensive position ahead of the invaders and engage when they reach us. The First will drive them towards us then we'll strike.'
Kurin nodded again, allowing a smile pull across her face. Time to show these bastards why nobody attacks the asari! 'Move us into position.'
'Acknowledged!'
On the visual display before her, the fleets slowly manoeuvred into position. What looked ponderous on the hologram represented thousands of kilometres of space, immeasurably powerful engines and machines of war powerful enough to ravage a planet: she knew the simple layout was deceptive.
'Batarian fleet is keeping course ma'am... they will enter dreadnought range in just over thirty seconds.'
'Good,' she snarled, ready to finally engage the batarians in real battle. 'Prioritise shields to the bow, and prepare the main cannon.'
'Here they come...'
The batarian fleet soared silently towards the asari formation, the smaller cruisers and frigates circling their enormous dreadnought like pilotfish around a great predator. Flashes sparked across the outlying ships; the asari attacking the formation, but they were unable to stop the invaders who were apparently unwilling to engage in battle, and did not care about losses.
Kurin's grip tightened.
'Enemy fire towards us detected ma'am... they're still too far to get an accurate lock.'
She thumbed the comm system that would open channels to the entire ship. 'All hands brace for potential impact. Hold fire until I give the order.'
The fleet orbiting the Eternal Fate had positioned itself so all missed shots would sail harmlessly into empty space: Thessia could not afford another bombardment. But still, Kurin found her teeth clenching as the batarian fleet opened up, launching a huge salvo of deadly munitions towards the waiting defenders. The bastards were violating asari space with their very presence, and now they dared to fire weapons upon its defenders? Most sailed past as the ships made tiny adjustments to their course, though more than one impact was registered across the fleet: none that caused anything other than superficial damage.
Kurin eyed the holographic representation of the approaching fleet, and the distance counter painted onto each ship. With a practised eye, she picked out her target; a cruiser keeping tight to the monstrous dreadnought. If she could knock it off course, it might crash into the dreadnought itself, causing far more damage than her ship's main gun could to such a giant. She pulled the hologram closer to her and expanded it, then highlighted a section on one side. 'Aim here. Fire on my command.'
The orders were quickly acknowledged, and she sat back, watching the countdown until the enemies were in range.
'Ma'am, enemy dreadnought is powering up its main gun. Targeting... the Eternal Fate.'
Kurin shook her head. That was Matriarch Ita's problem to deal with. 'Just keep us out of their way, target-'
She paused, frowning, as the cruiser she had lit up suddenly broke formation, accelerating towards them. 'What's it... extrapolate its path!'
It was still not close enough to fire at accurately, and with the asari First fleet still attempting to envelope the defenders she didn't want to fire needlessly in case her shots caused collateral.
'It's still speeding up... Goddess, it's heading straight for the Eternal Fate!'
Kurin's breath caught in her throat. It was going to ram their dreadnought? That was madness, absolute suicide! She thumbed comm to life. 'This is Kurin of the Cybaen, Eternal Fate, that cruiser is on a ramming trajectory!'
There was silence, before the familiar voice of Matriarch Ita sounded in return. +Acknowledged, Cybaen. Can you bring it down before it reaches us?+
Kurin paused, calculating. For the Eternal Fate to have to move to dodge the inbound cruiser would be highly detrimental to its combat efficiency. Well aware of the impending timer until the enemy fleet was in range, she finally nodded to herself. 'Yes.'
+Good. Goddess guide you.+
As the communications fell silent again, the batarian cruiser finally entered her range. 'Have we recalculated for its new trajectory?'
'Yes ma'am!'
'Then fire!'
The Cybaen opened up with its main gun, munitions streaking across space... for the batarian cruiser to suddenly put on an unexpected burst of speed. 'It's accelerated ma'am, shot's going wide!'
'Recalculate and fire again!'
Kurin stood up, and gripped the barrier before her. Another shot launched... again missing. 'What's going on?' She demanded.
Calls rang out across the CIC. 'It's going faster than we expected!'
'Incoming scans on that ship, we couldn't pick it out when it was so close to that dreadnought!'
'Keep firing!' Kurin snapped to the gunnery team, then looked over to the communication team. 'What do the scans say?'
'It's heavily modified... no external weapons, Goddess, not even life support... it's only got a skeleton crew! All the extra space taken up by engines and... and munitions!'
Kurin's blood froze. The thing was designed for ramming... a whole cruiser, just for one single, suicidal use? She reached over to the comms. 'Eternal Fate, get clear of that cruiser! It's a suicide bomb!'
+Repeat, Cybaen. Did you say suicide bomb?+
'Goddess yes just move! It's going too fast, we can't track it and it's packed with explosives!'
+... This is the Eternal Fate, we are performing evasive manoeuvres, all ships lock onto the incoming cruiser!+
The whole fleet lit up, launching a massive salvo towards the batarian ship, but most shots - fired before proper calculations could be made - soared straight past it. Still, several explosions ruptured across its surface as it raced towards the asari fleet, setting off more explosions as the munitions began to detonate. With a satisfied grin, Kurin saw her own ship's shot finally connect, tearing into one of the cruiser's engines. There was no way it could escape the rest of the fleet's bombardment now. The Eternal Fate, pulling itself away in a manoeuvre that would no doubt see the very bulkheads creaking, could not fire, but-
'Enemy dreadnought firing!'
Kurin's heart stopped as some corner of her mind appreciated the batarian ploy. The cruiser was a distraction, while the enemy dreadnought lined up its weapons.
A thin, impossibly bright red line burst from the dreadnought, lancing across the space between the fleets and tearing into the exposed belly of the Eternal Fate, blossoming bright yellow explosions across its path and belching the contents of the lower decks; including the crew - into the expanse of space. A particularly bright explosion flashed as one of the ship's engines detonated.
The shot had completely ignored the ship's shields, and torn through the solaris plating as if it was little more than an inconvenience.
There was stunned chaos for a moment, before an unfamiliar voice filled the room.
+This is Eternal Fate! Matriarch Ita is dead, reporting fires on multiple decks! One of our engines is gone, another damaged. We can't take many more hits like that, we need to break and regroup with the rest of the fleet!'
'Goddess...' the curse escaped Kurin's lips as the rest of the fleet began reporting in. What power! The batarian ship was using Thanix technology, but like nothing they'd seen: it was more reminiscent of the weapon that the... Reaper... had used attacking the Citadel three years ago than the copies fitted to the few ships the asari had upgraded with it.
'It's warming up again!'
Kurin made a snap decision. The fleet could not afford to lose the Eternal Fate: it was damaged but not destroyed, and once the crew got themselves back in shape it could still contribute more to the fight than she could.
'Place us between that dreadnought and the Eternal Fate.'
Several heads turned to her at the words. Technically, she did not need to explain herself to her crew, but with an order like that...
'We give our lives for the homeworld, sisters. The Eternal Fate will use the time to rally with the rest of the fleet and blow these evil creatures to whatever hell they believe in.'
Fear ran through their eyes... and Kurin felt it in her own veins. She would be dead in just a few short moments. But still they obeyed, and she felt a rush of pride as she relayed her intentions to the rest of the asari fleet.
+Goddess be with you, Cybaen.+
The words rang from a dozen different speakers in a dozen different voices, along with objections, cries of dismay and even a direct order from a matriarch on one of the other dreadnoughts. But Kurin ignored them, and watched with a strange serenity as the batarian ship's gun began to glow a horrible red. The rest of the fleet had opened fire on the dreadnought, but most shots were deflected by its shields, or immense armour plating. It would take a dreadnought of their own to crack the beast's shell.
'It has been an honour, sisters.' She said, breathing calmly, watching as even in their moment of desperation, her gunnery crew opened a salvo of fire that finished off the crippled cruiser nearby. A small part of her mind wished she could say goodbye to her daughter, a commando who had just reached the rank of lieutenant.
Brighter, the light grew, but she knew that this was right, that-
+Yee-haw!+
A stunning blue beam shot from seemingly nowhere, impacting the batarian dreadnought's own red orb... and miraculously, the red light flickered... then disappeared. Explosions rippled throughout the behemoth, and all around Kurin, her sisters watched in stunned silence... before bursting into cheers.
What...?
An officer at her side began reeling off a scan that the batarian's main weapon seemed to have backfired, crippling it and causing catastrophic damage throughout the ship.
A miracle...
Only it wasn't. Some ship, invisible to their scans, had just crippled a dreadnought's offensive capability. A ship that, if that strange transmission was anything to go by, was manned by a male of some species...
Who was it?
She snapped her gaze back around the cheering asari around her, then called out, voice like a whipcrack. 'Enough! There's still a whole enemy fleet out there that needs our attention!'
'Holy crap! EDI, did you see that? No way I just pulled that off!'
'Yes Jeff, I saw. Even for you that manoeuvre was astounding in its complete disregard for conventional tactics and operational protocols, not to mention our own life expectancy.'
Joker barely listened to the sarcastic exasperation in the machine's voice.
He had, one crippled little human piloting a frigate, just put a dreadnought's main gun out of action. Suddenly the Collector cruiser he had taken out when assaulting their base seemed like pretty small game.
He turned back in his chair, yelling down to the CIC. There was a perfectly good communicator right in front of him, but he imagined he would just end up shouting anyway at how god damned awesome that was.
'It worked Garrus! Batarian dreadnought's main gun is offline!'
The turian, boring stick-in-the-ass he was, responded on the comm like a normal person. 'Spirits, I never thought... good job, Joker. Pull us back, I don't want to get caught in any crossfire after that!'
'Yeah, yeah,' he muttered, pulling the Normandy well away from the warring fleets, excitement still pulsing through him. He'd just pulled off a move he'd only joked about in theory with EDI: wait until a dreadnought's just about to shoot, then use their Thanix cannon to blast the hell out of the enemy's exposed firing mechanisms... neither of them had even known if it would work.
Not to mention the insane danger that was positioning themselves right in front of a dreadnought's main cannon just before it was about to fire... but the results were so much better than he could have imagined. It was highly unlikely that the Normandy, even with their new upgrades, could properly take down a dreadnought, but he'd just done the next best thing. As a bonus - like the move needed a bonus to be anything other than totally awesome - it seemed like the batarian's own Thanix had backfired, blowing the shit out of the dreadnought's insides.
Some vague part of him was terrified that the thing had used what was most likely Reaper technology, but that was Shepard's problem... he was just the pilot.
The kick ass pilot who had just saved an entire ship full of beautiful blue aliens from certain death, who would with any luck be very appreciative...
Life was, he considered, pretty damned good right now.
Shepard's eyes glowed as she strode ahead of her asari companions, leading them through the snowy streets to the park where Joker had indicated his supply drop would land.
She thought that after her destruction of the Bahak system, things would be different.
She thought that after talking with Liara, allowing the reality of what she had done touch her, would have diminished some of that primal, burning rage.
But it had not. The second Garrus had said the word batarian, her fingers had dug into her palms, her teeth had clenched and she knew her damned scars would be back before the day was out.
Not that it mattered.
She had never truly lost herself to that anger; always managing to ball it up into something useful, her professional manner forcing her to either ignore or use it. But this time, the batarians weren't just foes in the way of her objective, they were attacking Liara's home. They were a military force deploying starships against civilian targets. Against Liara's home.
A growl escaped her lips, and she heard worried muttering behind her. She ignored it. The batarians had, long ago, invaded her home planet and destroyed everything she had ever loved. She thought she could eventually move past it... but this situation was all too familiar, digging up old memories, old pain and provoking a deep, old, hatred. Not for the first time she bit back the rage, refusing to allow it to dominate her... no matter how tempting the concept was.
As she angrily kicked open the gate to a deserted public park, the force knocking the flimsy metal from its hinges, she realised there were to be no moral dilemmas here. There were no innocents other than the asari she was fighting for. There was no objective other than to destroy the monsters who had not just attacked her, but had attacked Liara.
They would burn.
Shepard smiled an anticipatory grin as she found the small, smoking crater in the centre of an otherwise deserted park, pleased as she saw the pod at its centre split open like a flower.
At her side, Aethyta, Liara and Shiala all gazed on the supply drop with amazement. The latter's limp seemed much less pronounced since she'd been in action - if Shepard had the time or inclination to consider it she would have guessed it was at least partly a psychosomatic injury. Aethyta snorted. 'You're insane. Who the hell designs something like this for getting supplies to soldiers?'
Faith shook her head as she cautiously approached the pod, careful not to touch the sides which were still faintly glowing with the heat of atmospheric entry. 'It's not always possible to get resources to people on the ground the traditional way. If you've got a decent pilot these can be dropped from orbit to within fifty metres accuracy. Joker said he could do ten but I didn't want anybody to get hit by the damned thing.'
She reached into the pod and pulled out a large metal suitcase; asari commando leathers. She tossed one to Shiala, then grabbed another for Aethyta. 'I got some armour for you, if we're hunting batarians we'll need it.'
After unpacking the rest of their gear, the four stripped down, shivering in the cold winter air, then started to armour up; Liara helping Shepard, and Shiala helping Aethyta. The matriarch let out a self-deprecating grunt. 'You know, a few hours ago I'd have said us all stripping off would be pretty hot. But...'
Aethyta looked around, face speaking volumes her words did not. The cruiser's shot had devastated a rough circle of Thessia about half a kilometer all sides of the Palace; most of the buildings were still standing but damaged, save the Palace itself which had taken the brunt of the attack... and was now completely ruined. The four had stayed, assisting with the evacuation until the place was clear: there were six casualties in total, another fifteen wounded or maimed. Relatively few, considering the damage, but still...
Faith clenched her teeth in anger. Was there no depths the batarians would not sink to? The monsters were attacking her lover's homeworld, using a warship's main gun on a planet, just to capture her? She would tear them apart.
And yet, the damage... was her fault. The batarians were after her, and were killing innocent people to get to her. They were attacking a place that had never been attacked, relying on the shock value of their tactics to get their job done... and it was working. The asari never suspected their defence grid would be so easily sabotaged by a couple of mere explosions, and their defenders were unwilling to change their tactics and force the batarians into battle.
And it was clearly affecting her companions. Aethyta's words were muted, lacking their usual crudity. Shiala's face was a mask of fury. And Liara was silent, pale as she saw the damage to the city. They never expected their homeworld, the jewel of the galaxy, to be attacked.
Angrily, she snapped the last lock into place on Liara's underarmour, then helped her into the armoured jacket. 'This won't go unpunished, Liara,' she said as the asari began helping Faith into her own armour.
'I... I know,' the maiden replied quietly, voice troubled. 'Are... you ok?'
Faith lifted her arms as Liara heaved the heavy breastplate into place. 'What do you mean?'
'The batarians, after last time-'
'Last time was a damned moral quagmire, Liara,' Shepard growled. 'This time the bastards are attacking civilians for some insanity, and we need to stop them.'
'That does not mean you can... can simply let your hate control you.'
'My anger has never controlled me.' She looked at the maiden, eyes flashing with rage. 'It is mine to direct at those who deserve it. You know these batarians need fighting, here and now. They're attacking your world. My own feelings are irrelevant compared to that.'
The maiden looked ready to argue... before she again looked around at the carnage, and resumed fitting Shepard's armour. 'Yes... you are correct. Now is not the time.'
An uncomfortable silence dragged out for several minutes as the four armoured up, Faith wrestling back her feelings, considering what had happened logically. Eventually, she scowled. 'When the Reapers attack, it'll be like this... on a much bigger scale. There's too much reliance on the assumption that nobody would actually attack Thessia.' She shook her head as Liara clasped on one of her gauntlets. 'God, I bet every species has weaknesses like this. We're too used to fighting the same wars, expecting everybody else to play by the rules. We're going to need to hold a proper war summit to get everybody's tactics on the same page.'
Liara nodded mutely, no doubt thinking the same thing Shepard was: they were running out of time. Joker had said the batarians were using what looked like Reaper technology on their dreadnought, the Leviathan, which was still somewhere high above, powering towards Thessia. How did they get it? Did they steal the Thanix plans from the Council races? Or was it more insidious? Were the Reapers already with the batarians, indoctrinating them?
She was ready to fight them whatever the answer... but she needed to know, for the war. Making a decision, she fired up her comm as Liara continued to snap the heavy armour plates in place. 'Garrus?'
+Shepard. The batarian fleet's just entering orbit of Thessia. They're... spirits... they're launching drop ships and fighters, Shepard. They're launching a ground assault on Thessia... most are heading to your location. The asari have deployed interceptors but there's not enough, and the attack earlier means only local military forces have the data to fight back. Not to mention the fleet won't risk shooting down the bigger ships any more in case they crash into the planet.+
The human shook her head. Everything about this was insanity... what was a little more? 'Get the ground crew ready to go on the shuttle, you included. Arm for close engagement, and tell Vega to pack explosives. Joker has command while you're gone. I want a pickup, then we're going to board the Leviathan.'
'What?!' Identical, incredulous voices sounded both from around her and on the comm, and Faith, armour now completely in place, stepped back from Liara and began flexing, testing the fit.
'You heard me. These bastards are here for me, and it looks like there's no rule of war they won't break to get me. So I'm going to go to them. With any luck, it'll take the pressure off the asari, especially the civilians.'
+Not that attacking a foe much bigger than us isn't something you specialise in, but there could be over a thousand batarians on that ship, Shepard, not to mention the asari still want to destroy it. What's your plan?+
'I've got a few ideas, I'll brief everybody in the shuttle.'
Liara spoke up nervously. 'Would it not be better for us to simply... leave, and publicise the fact to the batarians?'
Shepard shook her head. 'Maybe. But we need to know about the Reaper tech they're using.'
The asari looked around, taking in the ruined buildings, the distant screams, the echo of sirens... even the small crater their supply drop had blown into the otherwise unspoiled park. 'Thessia...' she whispered.
Faith glanced at Liara, focusing on the logical reasons for her plan.
There are good reasons for doing this...
'I'm sorry Liara, but the war takes priority. This might look bad... but if they have something that can help us, we need to know.'
The asari's eyes flickered to the ground, sending a rush of guilt through Shepard. Liara wanted them to leave, so Thessia would be safe... but they could not. Not yet. Eventually, she looked back up. 'I understand. I am with you.'
She always understands...
'Us too.' Aethyta stood close by, tightly clad in dark commando leathers and resting a Disciple shotgun over one shoulder. To her side, Shiala was still digging around the weapons crate packed with asari guns, eventually pulling out an Acolyte pistol to join the assault rifle Shepard recognised as an Apostle already strapped to her back, and standing alongside the matriarch.
Faith nodded to the team, then finally pulled on her own helmet, wincing as it rubbed against the wound on the side of her head. 'Good. The batarians are about to land in a damned ground assault; we need to hold them off before our pickup gets here, and keep them away from the civilians. We'll go back to the Palace; it's already been evacuated.'
'And then?' Liara asked. 'There might be a lot of them, and we do not know when the military will arrive.'
Shepard ratcheted her Eviscerator shotgun, feeling a sweet lust that came at the prospect of engaging the batarians flow through her. 'Then we give them the welcome they deserve.'
A/N: Eternal gratitude, as always, to Jay8008 and Vector 71 for their help in bringing this chapter up to scratch. And thank you, my readers, for staying with me on this journey!
So, following a few comments from readers I've changed this chapter around a little bit. Nothing major: what happened is still the same but hopefully the progression of events is slightly easier to accept as likely. For a little expansion on the ideas...
Yes, it does appear that the asari are quite easily invaded at this point - they are not being defeated, but for all their superior soldiers and technology, the idea that somebody would simply explode key parts of their communications network on the planet, plough straight through their relay, ignore the defence fleet and go directly to their planet is an eventuality they simply did not comprehend. They, quite reasonably, assumed that their position as a dominant species, the threat of both military and economic retaliation (either of which from the asari would devastate the attackers) and the looming Citadel backup would be sufficient deterrent against any force powerful enough to even try such a thing.
As such their tactics are insufficient to stop the invading fleet - if they brought their superior forces to bear they could do so easily, but war is not always so easy. The Codex suggests the asari are ill-equipped for a defensive war, and this is an attempt to show that.
I am aware some aspects of this might stretch the suspension of disbelief a little, but I hope it's not too much, and you enjoy the dramatic possibilities this all brings up!
