"Where are we? How did we get here?" Liara asked, hugging the clinging Del back as she looked around in confusion. Memory started to return and she gripped Del's shoulders, pulling back and staring at her.
"What are you doing here? Are we on the ship?"
"N-no, some kind of complex," Shepard told her, wiping her eyes with self-conscious sweeps of her hands.
"Are you all right?"
"Jesus Christ," Shepard said as she choked back another sob, and shook her head. "You're asking me if I'm all right…"
"I do not under-"
"Liara, you were dead," Shepard told her, eyes swimming. "I followed the others through the archway and got disoriented in this godforsaken place. I found you lying on the ground in a corridor. You were…"
The asari stared at her, before a hand lifted and touched her neck. Everything came back in a rush- Wyatt and Osco; shooting the madwoman in the head. The strange appendages growing from the walls, the suffocating pain crushing through her throat.
The bullet wound in Osco's head that had healed right in front of her.
Slipping off the slab she was sitting on, she got to her feet. Other than being confused, she felt perfectly fine. There was no tenderness in her throat, no lingering pain or dizziness. Even so, she felt Shepard's light touch on her arm, as if she were prepared to catch her should her legs falter.
"How?" she asked at last, looking back at Del. "How was I healed?"
Bashfully, almost shame-faced, Del peeled back one of her gloves, the leather ragged and torn. On the flesh of her hand there was a black, metallic starburst, spreading into the same hair-thin lines that she saw emerge from Osco's wound. The starburst itself was almost identical to the odd circuitry that had been on the scientist's face.
Feeling cold, she gripped Shepard's forearm and looked more closely at it as the doctor tried to explain. "I was on the black ship. When the aliens started to pour through the archway I had just started the PMD vaccine process. I-I only thought to hide it before it could be stopped or destroyed. The next thing I knew, I was being swallowed down into the ship. There was…it's kind of a blur, but for a little while I was so interfaced with the black ship that I…I became it. Like the computer network and vessel systems became extensions of my own neurologic synapses. It was incredibly overwhelming and it took me several minutes just to figure out how to disengage from it and return to the control room. When I did, I had this."
"Osco had something similar, but far more extensive," Liara told her, grim-faced. "Wyatt accused her of 'going deeper into the systems'. She was manipulating the very atomic structure of this complex with thought alone-"
"Yes, that's how it's meant to be done," Shepard said. "I don't remember everything but I got glimpses- the computer interface at the pedestal on the black ship is meant to be only an initial connection. The ship is designed to merge totally with the mind of its pilot. The two integrate so completely they literally become one creature- an organic brain controlling a massive synthetic body. These places- this complex, that ship- they're completely tuned to the whim of whatever mind gives them direction, 'building' itself and morphing itself to meet any immediate need. If you need a door, you just touch and think 'door' and one opens. You need a medibay, you just visualize one and it forms, and then dissolves again when you're done. When…when I found you, I j-just…I had to try. If there was some way to save you I had to try. There's tech here to build PMD, to build biosynthetic people. I just had to hope that it was advanced enough to fix your injuries and restore you to life if I just pictured it clearly enough, made it happen quickly enough."
Reaching up, Liara took hold of her shoulders again, looking intently in her eyes. "You saved my life, Merah."
Del's dark brown gaze was still shining with tears, her lower lip trembling a little before she visibly steeled it. "I had to," she said meekly. "I c-couldn't…"
Liara's hands shifted to her cheeks, and she leaned forward, resting her forehead against the human woman's. "Thank you," she said gently. She allowed herself only a moment, before she took a deep breath and straightened, once more a Spectre Captain.
"In light of circumstances, however, it means we have more than one large problem on our hands."
Shepard blinked at her, dumbfounded. "I don't-"
"Osco bore the same implants as that one you have upon your wrist. Hers were far more extensive, and given that evidence and the conversation I overheard, she has clearly become integrated with this complex. The process may not be complete, but she most certainly can manipulate the substance and technology of this place at will. If she is the mind and this structure is the body-"
Del shook her head, eyes wide. Liara's words were incredibly alarming, but she saw that they had a chance. "If she were one hundred percent integrated we'd already be dead," she said. "She'd be able to see us, hear us- hell, even feel us- no matter where in here we were. She'd have complete control. I-I think she's not fully finished the process."
"How long do you think we have?"
"I-I don't know. Minutes, maybe…an hour. Could be seconds or a week, there's just no way to tell unless I-"
"No," Liara said sternly. "You are not integrating again. This-" she grabbed Del's forearm again, baring the implant. "This is troubling enough. There is no telling what this is doing to you, or how extensive it might become. Right now, we need to get our people out of here before Osco becomes fully integrated. If we are lucky we can evacuate and find a way to destroy this complex with Osco inside."
"I don't know where everyone else is," Shepard said, cradling her wrist against her chest as Liara released her. "When I came out of the archway I was in a large room but it was empty, they'd already cleared it and moved through. I got lost trying to find them, that's how I found you. I can do what I did with you in creating this room, will the complex into creating a passageway straight from us to them-"
"Will it work if I do it?" Liara asked.
"I-it should work with nearly anyone's will, until Osco takes full control."
"Good, then I shall do it. I do not want you manipulating or interfacing with this complex or the black ship again, not even slightly. Not until we can determine what that implant is and what risk it entails."
As if on cue, some kind of rumble sounded deep beneath their feet…the slow, languid turn of a powerful beast beneath the sea- still slumbering but coming to wakefulness. Catching Del's hand, Liara strode toward the wall.
"It sounds as if our time is uncomfortably short. How do I do this?"
"Just put your hand on the wall and concentrate, picture exactly what you want," Shepard told her. Liara nodded, halting a foot or two away from the wall and taking a deep breath. Before releasing Del's hand, however, she bent and kissed her cheek, lingering a moment.
"We will get this done," she said softly. Shepard nodded, gripping her hand tightly before the asari slipped it away, placing it on the smooth, velvet black.
Closing her sky blue eyes, the Spectre began to concentrate.
Ashley and the group that had come through from the black ship were hard pressed. They had emerged from the archway into a vaulting room that was ringed with alcoves…most of which were empty. The ones that were not bore the clearly dead and decaying remains of the same brightly colored aliens that had attacked them before. She had no doubt the live ones that had poured through to slaughter the turians had previously been in the empty alcoves.
There was no telling how many of these alcoves were left with viable hostiles, and they could not afford to linger in one spot for too long. They had to find Osco's head and remove it before she could unleash some fresh, unexpected hell upon them.
So they headed en masse deeper into the complex, and much as Williams had feared, they were soon swarmed by both Orthrus mercs and yet more of those strange, stretched, alien creatures.
Spent thermal clips were raining to the ground, hissing and white hot underfoot as they moved forward, battling for every inch, and yet the hostiles kept coming, some appearing directly out of the damned walls as if materializing from nowhere.
Two turians fell at her flanks and reluctantly Ash ordered to give ground, the group moving back slightly. The endlessly smooth walls and lack of cover was taking a toll on them, and as their barriers started to drop…so did they.
Williams was afraid for a moment they'd have to retreat back through the archway and onto the black ship, when her radio suddenly crackled to life.
{Williams! Are you reading me?}
She hit her reply. "Sam? We got you loud and clear, and it's damn good to hear your voice! We're getting pummeled!"
{We have a lock on your location. We've just entered the complex, we should be to you soon, just hold tight. Is the Captain with you?}
"No, haven't seen her!"
{All right, we're on our way!}
"Dig in!" She shouted to the others, joining her fire to the fray once again. "We have reinforcements incoming!"
Heartened by the news, they pushed forward again. Tali and Delphine were the only two that were even close to as fast as the alien creatures, but it remained that both were still civilians, with no real training. Ashley noticed Deefa was doing her best to stick close to Tali as much as possible, and she herself kept as near to Delphine as she could manage, to help cover her back. Even behind her helmet, the girl was wild-eyed and visibly stressed, but she didn't back down.
Then, something crashed into Ashley, knocking her off her feet. She hit the ground hard enough to bark her air out of her lungs, almost immediately rolling and whipping her rifle around. She focused just in time to see the alien- colored a sickening shade of green that almost looked radioactive- tackle the sixteen year old girl, bearing her to the floor.
Instantly, there was a wild and frantic melee as the alien tried to slaughter its prey, and Delphine fought desperately to survive. Unable to fire without risking hitting the girl, Ashley instead leapt up and charged, tackling the beast around its impossibly thin waist. She hit the ground with her shoulder, tearing the alien along with her, landing on her back with the thing bucking and writhing madly in her arms. Delphine stumbled up, wound her arms around its head, and frantically twisted. There was a snap, and the bucking died into shuddering spasms. Ashley shoved it off, grabbing Delphine's arm as she got to her feet.
"You ok?"
"F-fine, I just-"
The sound of gunfire increased dramatically, and some of the pressing group of hostiles paused and turned as they were suddenly hit from their flank. Williams spotted a good number of new krogan and then got a glimpse of N7 armor.
"Sam's here, we just caught a break! Fall back behind us, Delphine, stay close to the wall! We'll get it from here, ok?"
The girl looked reluctant, but Ashley could see the relief in her eyes. She nodded encouragingly. "Go on! We'll mop up."
As the young civvie retreated back Ashley gestured at the others to press forward. Caught now between two companies, the hostiles were flanked and had nowhere to regroup. Sihra waded in to the fray with three krogan on her flanks. Even from a distance, Ash could see stains of scarlet and maroon darkening the short white fur on her arms and splattered over her face-mask.
Very glad she's on our side, she thought as the rakir lit in to the fight, before she charged in again herself, rifle lighting up.
Shepard watched as the wall shifted away, a corridor parting before them in the black substance of the complex like the Red Sea had supposedly parted for Moses. The hallway was at least a hundred yards long and swallowed in shadow, but there was a faint light at the end, and the echoing sounds of gunfire could be heard.
Liara opened her eyes, already drawing her weapon as she ran into the new corridor, Shepard at her heels. Very quickly the asari started to out speed her, Del lagging a bit.
At first, Shepard thought she was just exhausted, pulling deep to draw on any energy reserves to keep up. Then, she realized her hand and arm were throbbing, the pain slowly ramping up and leeching tendrils of cold deep into her bone.
The feeling abruptly grew sharp and white hot, and she gasped, stumbling. For a moment, in her mind, she could perfectly see the dark ship still high in orbit around Tuchanka. Then, she could not only see it, but feel it…as if she were the one floating there in the cool vacuum of space.
Then the sensation was gone, and she was dropping to her knees, feeling dizzy. Whirling around as she fell, Liara started back toward her. "Merah!"
"No, go," Del said, waving her hand as she forced herself up again. "I'm all right, just tired. Go, I'll catch up."
She could see the worry and reluctance on the asari's face, but the battle raging a short distance away required her attention. Honestly, she probably felt some relief that Del would be out of it for at least a few minutes longer…perhaps even long enough for it to be settled.
Still, it was clear she was torn, and it was with no delight that she finally nodded and turned, continuing on her way as her body lit up with biotics.
The pain and the throbbing pressure seemed to be dying down. Shepard caught her breath as the asari ran on, centering herself and then starting forward.
"C'mon, Shepard. You can do this," she whispered softly to herself, and finally managed a trot, weakly drawing her pistol.
The battle was still raging as Liara ran into the larger room, but it was clear it was in its death throes. Only a few moments after she joined it the last of the hostiles fell. Sihra, holding a Orthrus corpse by the wrist, was panting as she looked around and spotted the asari. Dragging the hard-suited body along with her, she walked over.
"I like the way these krogan fight," she said simply, letting the corpse drop with a heavy thump of armor. "Where is Osco?"
"She is elsewhere in this complex," Liara told her. "Along with Ruth Wyatt. I had a rather unpleasant encounter with them both a short while ago."
"Sounds like it's her turn to have an unpleasant encounter then," Ashley said as she, Feris, Grunt, Garrus, and Wrex walked up. All were covered in blood, and more than one bore at least a moderate wound. "It's past time to take this bitch down if you ask me, Captain."
"I agree with you, however that may be easier said than done. Osco seems to be-"
She broke off as Sam looked over her shoulder, then suddenly slapped her shoulder pad and pointed. Liara turned to see Shepard at the exit of the corridor she'd formed. She looked sick and gray, walking as if she were drunk. As Liara turned, Del dropped her pistol, then collapsed to her knees.
Immediately, she and the cousins ran forward, Liara catching hold of her. "Merah!"
"How did she even get here?" Ashley asked. "She was on the black ship, she's got to be wounded-"
"We have to get out of here," Shepard said weakly, gripping hold of Liara. "Something's happening."
"We can't go yet," Sam said. "We have to find Osco…"
"She'll find us, she's nearly completely integrated. Liara, we need to go!"
"Captain! Captain, Tali is gone!"
Deefa's alarmed voice reached them as the quarian hurried up. Ashley straightened as she looked at her. "What do you mean, gone? I thought she was right with you!"
"She was, but we got separated at the end of the fight. I lost sight of her, and now she's gone!"
"All right, we need to quickly regroup," Liara said, pulling Del to her feet and keeping an arm around her. "Get these wounded treated and carried, if we must. We need to get out of here."
"We can't just leave Tali!" Deefa said angrily.
"She may be among the wounded, we will find her if we can, but Shepard is right. We are in a growing amount of danger in this complex. Osco is integrating with the entire structure- the instant that is complete she will know precisely where we are and the very walls will be able to kill us. Everyone that can walk needs to move now, and carry those that can't. We have to evacuate."
Ashley, who'd been looking around as Liara had been speaking, suddenly cursed. "Shit! Jesus fuck…Delphine is gone too."
"What?" Sam asked, straightening as she also looked around.
"I told her to fall back when you showed up with reinforcements. She went to the far end of the room, there. I saw her, and now she's gone."
Shepard, who looked more and more like she was about to pass out, shook her head weakly. "Osco's taking them," she said. "We have to find…"
Her head tipped forward and Liara renewed her grip, preventing her from falling before she finally just lifted her, the human doctor's head dropping against her shoulder.
"We have to go, now," she said firmly.
"We can't leave them! Delphine is just a girl-"
"If we wait any longer Osco will kill us all and we will be no help to them anyway. We must go. That is an order, Commander."
Ashley grit her teeth, then nodded. "As you say, ma'am."
As they dispersed to help gather up the wounded, Liara carried Shepard over to a far wall, holding her close and whispering to her. "I am here, Merah. Do not worry. I am getting you out of here."
As she opened a new corridor, a straight line from their position to the outer cavern, she felt another deep shift beneath her boots. Turning around, her eyes went wide as tentacles suddenly started sprouting from the far walls. Instantly they grabbed a hold of a pair of turians, lifting them in the air and binding them so tightly that she could hear the crack of reinforced armor and bone even this far away.
"EVAC IMMEDIATELY!" She yelled. Setting Shepard down as fast and as gentle as she was able to, she sent a biotic wall up to block the appendages before they could grab anyone else. Though she had recharged somewhat, it wouldn't take very long before her dark energy failed once again. "Move it people! Go, go!"
The biotics seemed to be halting the tendrils at first, and as they groped along the barrier the krogan, turians, and those of her crew began to head for the way out that she'd formed. Several of the more hale, including the cousins, turned their weapons toward the things as they writhed from the smooth metal around them, bypassing the biotics.
The bullets sparked off the metal tentacles the same as they would were they simply shooting at the walls. As they writhed closer, yet more appearing, they fell back toward their escape route.
"Go!" Liara shouted at them. "Go, now!"
They turned and ran for the hall, Feris nearly getting roped around the ankle and just managing to avoid it. The tendrils were now penetrating the biotic wall as well, oozing through it like fungus growing into flesh, and Liara let it drop. She turned to grab Shepard just as Sihra did, the rakir scooping up and slinging the doctor over her shoulder as easily as lifting a child.
Liara could see down the exit she'd made. Most of the others were already out in the cavern, but the tunnel was starting to writhe, ebony snakes emerging from the walls. A breath later a hand grabbed the back of her belt and she was lifted just off her feet as Sihra hefted her and started to run.
The rakir was able to bound much faster than the asari could have gone, even carrying two passengers. She leapt down the corridor, three strides driven by her powerful legs all it took before they were on rock and not metal. She nearly bowled Garrus over as she burst out of the complex and set Liara on her feet.
More than one face was gaping back behind them at the sailing black building.
"Keep going!" Liara ordered. "Move it!"
The ground shook horribly, rock cracking as they started to flee toward the cavern Feris and the krogan had used to descend. Boulders and stalactites were starting to break off the ceiling, slabs of granite the size of shuttles pelting down toward them. Only a few feet in front of Liara, a young krogan was unfortunate enough to be underneath one as it fell, crushing him into paste.
As they entered the tunnel Liara risked a glance back. The complex looked bigger somehow, taller…and it took her a second to realize that it seemed that way because it was actually rising up through the ground, shattering the stalagmites holding it prisoner as its crest now cracked into the roof of the cavern overhead. A horrible sound, like the eager bellow of a hunting beast, tore through the air as it lifted.
It is not a complex at all, but another ship…at least a dreadnought in size, if not larger. Osco is attempting to launch it!
They had to go faster. Whether or not Osco succeeded in tearing that ship free of its millennia-old bed, punching it through three miles of bedrock, and out into the open atmosphere, one thing was certain. Whether or not the launch failed or succeeded, Osco was going to bring both the cavern and the tunnel down in her attempt. If they did not reach the surface in time, they would all be crushed beneath Tuchanka's skin.
