A/N: Alright guys, a new chapter out already. I know, "how the heck does he do it?"
Well, truth is, Roku is doing all the work. The guy has litterally taken up residence in my head, and he is controlling my movements. Only bitch in this is, that a ghsot from a cartoon... doesn't know math from the 21'th century. So, yeah...
This chapter is mainly a continuation from the last chapter, where we ended with the classic "Embrace Eternity!" words. Funny, do you think Asari have to say that, or if they are just so selfcentered that they have to make sure people know what's going on.
Now, a lot of people, or 'a lot' and 'a lot' told me that I should have placed the 'Olafur' chapter another place, but it just seemed right to place it while T and K, along with C were watching the pinnacle of humor. Besides, imagine me, trying to retell a fraction of an M.P movie? That would be sacrilege!
Alright... there was one other thing I had to mention... Bohemia, what was it? Eh... I'll remember it later. Anyway, a shout out to my loyal readers and reviewers, as long as my helping hands; Exar Kun IV, Kaiya Smith, 1138, .Bolin (yeah, I killed him in 'boot camp'), gilmaxter and Thor-Axe141. I would have fucked up multible times without your support. And no, all my readers, I have not forgotten about you people. It's you, all of you, who keeps me going. Every review, every PM and comment that tells me to continue makes it all worth it. I can honestly say, thalt I'm always a tad nervous when I see a new review in my story. Some part of me always expect you guys to bring down the hammer and smite me for the errors and other stuff I may do wrong... Damnit, now I got all emotional...
But, anyways... here is part 2/3 of Feros.
Enjoy.
When plants are a problem...
The only thing I can see… is darkness. This feels a little too much like being dead, though I can still feel my body. As I look at my surroundings, I notice several things, quite unusual in their own rights. First of all, the place I am in seems to be artificial. The ground is certainly not made from any natural material I know of, and for some reason, there is a light that follows my feet wherever I move. That's also when I notice that my feet are bare.
Along with the rest of me. Oh f**king shit! I'm naked! Crapcrapcrapcrap!
Of course Liara would turn out to be some kind of Asari pervert, taking every chance to look at naked men. And I wouldn't really mind if it wasn't because of two things:
First, I'm already in a relationship.
Two, I am standing naked in some kind of void. Well, at least Liara is nowhere to be seen… and it's not too cold. Suddenly, I notice a small slip of light along what I guess you could call the horizon. It's brief, but it's there. And suddenly, I feel a presence, just barely, and turn around.
Big mistake.
Liara is standing behind me… or, she was standing behind me, now she is actually standing in front of me, looking… embarrassed would be an understatement. Well, at least she is still wearing her clothes. Upon noticing my… well, my bareness, she immediately looks away, mumbling something I can't quite hear, but I could have sworn I heard the words "so small…" okay, this is now squarely in the top three of the most embarrassing shit that's ever happened to me!
"Liara! Would you mind telling me just why I am naked here!? I swear if this is some kind of perverted joke…"
"N-no! I'm sorry Thomas, but… well, this is the… first time I've done this... with a human that is…"
"Wait! Hold on a second here! are you telling me that you are… just how old?"
"One hundred and eight years…"
"That old… and this is the first time you… God, this is the most awkward conversation I've ever been in…"
"I think that goes for us both…" She says. I have turned my back to her, trying to… cover up, but I'm still tomato colored in the face.
"Well, can I at least have some clothes? This already feels wrong enough when I am dressed."
"I… of course… let me just…" and without I even notice it, I'm dressed again. But for some reason, it's my casual clothes, meaning my old twenty-first century clothes.
"Well, that's something…" I grumble. Kind of funny really, having intercourse with a young Asari. Most people would jump at the chance, but I just want it over with.
"Ahh, Miss T'soni. I was wondering when you would show up." A familiar voice suddenly echoes across the void. It's Roku, prepared for his "date" with Liara. Jesus, why does he have to mirror my pervy brain in so many ways?
"Who was that?" Liara asks, now being on guard. Figures… for all she knows, this voice may be the thing causing the nightmares and hallucinations…
"Just Roku… he, in opposition to me… really looked forward to having you in my head… for whatever messed up reason…"
"There is nothing wrong in being a little friendly Thomas... Well miss T'soni, allow me to properly introduce myself." At these words, a blue fog suddenly springs into existence and concentrates to form the shape of a man. A very old man, albeit, but still a man with considerable strength and power. He is dressed in fire nation-style robes with that small crown on his head. You really had to go all out, didn't you?
"Why, I do not see what is wrong with greeting my only real guest for nearly a hundred years in person. I am the voice of the void, though Thomas suggested I took a name. I chose from his memory, a name rather fitting. The name of a spiritual guide: Roku."
"So… this is the voice inside your head, the one Garrus told me about?"
"Yep… and he has a terrible sense of humor…"
"I heard that…"
Okay, so just… I have to wrap my mind around this first, before even considering what I do with Liara and Roku, now materialized in front of us in the shape of… yes, Avatar Roku… geez man… and some people actually accused me of being too focused on details at some points… well, at least I didn't materialize as the ghost of a dead Avatar! Alright, so just to sum up; for some reason, I let myself talk into having a meld with Liara, which even I know is the same as… having intercourse with an Asari… Ash is sooooo gonna kill me! And now, to top it all off, Liara is having a chat with a divine being inside my head. Just. Fucking. Perfect...And I really don't see any reason for this to continue for longer than absolutely necessary… which is as short as we can make it.
"Alright, sorry to disturb your little chat, but could we please get a move on?"
"Thomas… give me some time to collect my thoughts… this is a very… sensitive moment for me…" Liara says. And although I'm still pretty pissed at her, I can't help but feel a bit guilty. She is going out of her way to help me, and I just give her the harsh treatment… Man, is this what Ash felt when she had just shouted at me?
"Sorry… I would just like this to be solved as fast as humanly… or Asarily… possible… if that's okay with you."
"Sure… I think I know where to start looking…"
"Sounds great, let's get this over with."
"So, you were able to find in seconds what I couldn't in hours? T'soni, you wouldn't happen to be attracted to eternal beings, would you?"
"I…-"She start out, obviously both confused and a bit embarrassed by his question.
"Ignore that. Remember, "terrible sense of humor"…"
"Right… but let me just…" And without I even notice the change, we are suddenly in a long hallway, windows on both sides, like rolling films. Man, this is strange… I then notice that each window is actually some scene seen from my viewpoint or what I would have to guess is Roku's viewpoint. Meaning I get both a first-person view, and an "over-the-shoulder" view. Alright, this is actually really, really strange!
I suddenly catch a glimpse of a very particular window, and without me noticing it, Liara and Roku has gotten beside me and are following the film. A film I know will have a harsh ending;
I can see myself, lying in the bed in my 'old' apartment. The timer is silent, and I slowly open my eyes as I look at it;
Man, what a crazy dream. I don't think I'll ever be able to view the combination of octopuses, astronauts and music from the 70' the same way again. I mean seriously, what kind of messed up brain can do something like that?
Sigh, what time is it? My younger, by two or so weeks, version is starting to crawl out of bed, groggily grabbing the small alarm-clock on his desk.
07:28!? I can actually hear his… my own thoughts.
Oh snap! The time is already far too late for breakfast. Fuck, fuck, fuck! I'm supposed to be there at 07:30!
I rush out of bed, and brush my teeth while… performing the rituals of the bathroom. And yes, we leave it at that. I wonder why I thought that… almost like I was prepared for myself to watch this… nahh… sometimes I am dumber than I look. Or something like that.
Oh fuck, my boss is gonna be sooooo pissed at me!
"Yeah, he never really got the chance bro!" I say, a faint chuckle on my lips. I notice Liara and Roku are now looking at me. The me outside the window, that is.
"What?"
"This kind of flashback… is it normal to humans, or do you just have some difficulty grasping the seriousness of this?" Liara asks me. I scratch my neck and chuckle nervously;
"He… eh… well, I've always been kind of touch and go kind of guy… if it doesn't kill or injure me, I can cope with it… and as long as it doesn't do the same to my friends."
"Well… then… are you still mad because of the meld?"
"Mad?... Liara, I was never really mad at you… well, a bid at Kaidan, because he teased me with this, but you just try to help me. And I am not mad, just… scared."
"Of loosing Ashley?" She says. Sympathy is evident in her voice.
"Yeah… she is the single best thing that's ever happened to me… and if I lost her, simply to get rid of some nightmares…"
"Thomas, I am not really following why you should lose her?"
"Could the fact that I'm having a mind-meld with Liara be a reason?"
"Ah… but Asari do this all the time. This is not simply their way of reproducing, they also use it for exchanging ideas and such. Being able to fuse two minds is easier than explaining the idea of a mass relay in words. Am I in-correct doctor?"
"Why… I had not even thought about that, but… yes! It is not just our way of… reproducing. This could… just look at this as exchanging ideas, and not as an act of sexual character, Thomas."
"Wait a- whoa, hold it!" I turn to stare Roku down; "You knew!? You f**king knew that there was no reason for me to worry, and you didn't say anything?"
"I only learned of the reason for your fear now. Remember, locking myself out of Ash-related thoughts covers quite some ground. This must have been among the Ash-thoughts."
"Wha-… fine… so, I am not cheating on Ash?"
"I think only if you view it as such." Liara says.
"Man, that's a relief."
I all but jump in my clothes, getting the T-shirt on wrong, swearing and cursing as I pull the damn thing right, then speed down the stairs. Halfway down, I remember that I forgot to lock the door.
Up again.
I lock the door.
"Man, I was tired there!" I chuckle.
Down again.
I practically jump on my bicycle, and then I remember that I forgot the helmet…. Fuck it! I can go there without it.
"Yeah, didn't do that much anyway. Certainly wouldn't have helped in that situation."
Down the street, where the shopping centers and Malls are located, making this one of the busiest and most crowded streets in the city. Not really what I need right now. I get a lot of angry shouts and raised fists when I almost race down a street that's actually meant primarily for walkers, not cars and bicycles. I don't give a shit. If I am late by more than five minutes, the most raised fist I'm gonna see, is my boss' when he tells me to get a new job.
"I don't remember having thought that…"
He's kind of a prick in the way.
"On that, we can agree mate." It is starting to be entertaining. Now that I know I'm not side-stepping Ash, I can relax a bit more. Well, relax as much as one can when he is preparing to watch his own death… again.
I get lucky, though, as when I approach the crossroads, the light is green. Only problem is, that the car racing towards me, halfway over, doesn't seem to have noticed that, in opposition to me, his light is red. So yeah, I'm this close to being rammed by some idiot who found his driver's license, in a Happy Meal.
"Fucking Idio-"I start to yell at him.
Then I notice that the railroad, cutting across the road, has its light on red. Did I mention the railroad? No? Oh well, there is a railroad following the harbor, bringing goods from one end to the other. And oh, there comes the train, heading directly for me, and with no chance to stop.
"Oh for Fucks sa-"
"Oh boy. Here it comes!"
Then all is black.
"Goddess… that was… "
"Brutal?"
"Yes…"
"Well, that could have gone better" a voice sounds from… everywhere.
"That is where I come in!"
"Would you please calm the heck down Roku? You just watched my death again, and you sound like some kid reviewing his performance in the kindergartener-theater."
"Right… but this is kind of special for me Thomas. I am not used to have a fellow audience when I watch these things."
"What, you watch these things? What the hell for?!"
"What else am I supposed to do when you are with Ash?"
"Fair point…"
"What the- where am I? Who is this?!
Okay, now I am starting to get a little scared. A little? I died there!
"Yes, you did. But this isn't necessarily the end"
Dafuq?!
I don't really need to watch anymore, as this is basically just me talking to a voice in a void.
Well… that was not something I felt the need to relive… I can't help but notice the suddenly very pitying stare I get from Liara. Great, just what I need. Not only will someone actually have seen my last moments, they will also try to comfort me now… just great…
"Meh, I've seen that one before…" I say and shrug.
"Aren't you the least bit of touched by watching your own death?" She asks. I turn around from walking towards another window;
"Honestly? I try to forget it. I know the old saying, "Remember your past to have a future"… but I doubt the guy who said that had tried being reincarnated." She looks at me in a way that makes me realize that she doesn't know that word;
"Re-incarnated… what does that mean?"
"Oh… Asari doesn't have that in your religion?"
"I don't think so… no."
"Well, what most humans believe, or believed… I really can't speak for faith in this time… but back in my time, most religions had the same aspect of reincarnation… to be born again…"
"Oh… well, I don't think Asari have that… I am not really the person to ask about religious stuff."
"Fair enough…" I say, and move to the window across the long hallway. Something about it seems familiar, so I concentrate and- oh… now I remember what this is. It's the scene after Ash had gone to the gym to take out her aggressions from Jane on the punching bag. Only this is not the bag. This is us kissing. I don't really need Liara or Roku to see this.
"I think we should-"
"What are you looking at Thom- oh…" Liara says before stopping dead in her tracks upon seeing what's happening on the screen.
"This I have been eager to see."
"Would you stop that Roku? It's really creepy when you gape over Ash... Especially when I'm here…"
"You two really look happy together." Liara says. Probably to take my mind of off the pervy ghost-man floating next to me.
"Yeah… you get now why I don't want to lose her?" I say after having looked at the scene for some moments, collecting my thoughts.
Liara doesn't answer, she just stares at the scene.
I can just watch as the screen shows me and Ash slowly releasing each other, still holding on to her shoulders. The looks we give each other. And now I can actually see what my face lo- Oh God, I'm smiling like an idiot! I look like someone with Downs!
"Wow…. I certainly wasn't expecting that… though it was nowhere near unpleasant Ash…" my screen version says. This is almost like dreaming. Watching yourself, remembering it all, yet seeing it from the eyes of an outsider.
"Well, you weren't that bad yourself Mister Fisher… although it didn't feel like you've had much practice." Damn, she really did feel it, didn't she? I am probably a terrible kisser…
"Well, it did look like she enjoyed it. So I wouldn't know about that…"
"About what?" Liara asks.
"Oh, just Thomas thinking he must be a terrible kisser… not that I would know. I locked myself out of his systems when thát happened…" Roku says, pointing at the happy couple in it. I had actually thought he couldn't hear my thoughts in here… guess I was wrong…
"Yes, quite so… but I will try to avoid listening, if that will make you feel any better."
"Yes. Thank you very much."
"Shh… they are still talking… well, you are still talking." Liara says. I have no idea why she finds my love-life so interesting… hey, wait a second!
"Can we please move on? I'm not much for sharing the few memories I actually still have in a private sense."
"But… fine… I just think you two look so cute together." Hmpf… yeah, guess we do… I can't help but chuckle a bit at her innocent tone.
"Thanks doc… I guess… this is just a kind of awkward situation for me…"
"Thomas… you are not a "what", you are a someone… and to me, that's a very special someone." Ash's words bring my attention back to the screen. Damn, she looks beautiful when she smiles!
When Ash and myself move towards the elevator, the screen freezes, and I can see our intertwined hands as she reaches for the call-button. I just stand there for some time, focusing on the hands, as the faces are hidden from view.
"I wonder from who's eyes we are seeing this…" I say. It can't be Roku's, as he locked himself out, and I would be the POV-view… so just who?
"You do not know?"
"'Fraid not doc… by the way, can I even call you doc?"
"Well, I was educated on Thessia's finest scientific institutions… so yes."
"all right, glad we settled that. Now, this scene is obviously not what caused my nightmares and the hallucinations… shall we move on?"
"Thomas, you are partially incorrect. Your nightmare was not in any way supernatural or foreign. It was simply your mind finally coming to terms with the new situation."
"Hmpf… 'think that's because I finally told someone?"
"Could be. There is, I think, no way to be sure. But it does sound logical…"
We move on, and for some reason, Liara suddenly stops in front of a screen. It's mostly dark, though there are several sources of light in the picture. When I move in closer, I can hear voices;
"I hope we don't run into more bugs down here…" The me-person says. Oddly enough, in this picture, I see myself from the same angle you would normally see Commander Shepard from.
"Shut up, Thomas." Tequila , she did have some emotional scars from Therum. Hell, so have I… that dream wasn't exactly free of Xenomorphs…
"Ah… this is Feros… or, it's here… I think this is about… twenty-five or so hours ago…" I say. Liara nods and looks at the screen. Then, I look to my left. Or, the memory does.
"Man, I remember I was close to wetting myself when I saw the growth. For some seconds I was sure as hell it was the xeno-goo."
"That is… what is "xeno-goo"? I do not think I have heard of it before…" Liara asks. I just look at the screen as the me-guy leans against the moss. Hmm…. I didn't think I actually touched the creepy… what the?
For a moment, it looked like the moss crawled along the wall, moving to touch me. But that can't be right. I bet it's the shock of all this making me see stuff.
"Thomas?"
"Hmm?"
"You zoned out there…"
"I'm sorry, you were asking?"
"What is "xeno-goo"? is it something of importance to this place… Feros that is."
"Doubt it Liara. Back where we found you, Jane and Tequila, among the monsters. Well, we call them Xenomorphs. And they have this nasty habit of covering everything in some kind of black substance. Mind you, this place on Feros was dark, and I could just see some kind of substance covering the walls."
"And you thought that the Xenomorphs… had followed us? Or spread?"
"Well, crazier things have happened."
"That is… true, I guess. But does this kind of plant usually… what plant did you say this was?"
"Well, I'd call it moss. Though it did have some weird colors in the light…"
"I see. And does this "moss" usually move?" her question almost finishes what almost started on Feros. But I doubt one can piss himself in this place… at least, I'm not trying to. But wait, did Liara say she saw it move?
"Eh… doc… did you… just say that… the moss… moved?" I ask in short and fast breaths. She looks a bit weird at me. Like I said something that she didn't expect;
"Does moss not normally move around?"
"Hell no Liara. Moss can't even grow in heights… but say again; Did. You. See. The. Moss. Move?"
"Well… yes. it moved towards you the second your back touched the wall… but are you saying this isn't normal?"
"Well fuck no! What the hell kind of plant is this then? It's not moss!"
"Wait! Did you see that?" She suddenly exclaims. I squeeze my eyes together and look at the picture, but I don't see anything.
"Ehm… what did you see?" I say, looking back at- Oh fuck no!
Where Liara's blue Asari face was before, now some kind of… fleshy pudding with teeth appears. It's… Oh crap! Not again! Her eyes have fallen out their sockets, and every last bit of skin on her face has cracked of, leaving her bone and flesh. The blood and saliva is seeping from her mouth, and her mouth is stretching open to unnatural heights.
Mother of Talos, no!
"Roku! What the… Roku?" the blue ghost is gone. The bastard left me… HE LEFT ME!
"Fuck! Liara! Listen! Come back to yourself! This…" I can't really say anymore, as the… thing… just stands there, looking at me with empty sockets. Her hands then start erupting from her gloves, causing them to rip through the otherwise hard material. Upon exiting their gloves, her fingers start… growing! They grow into fucking claws! OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK!
For some reason, she just stands there, her head tilted as her throat starts… Oh mother of God!
Her throat… her entire neck from the shoulders to the chin… breaks open. it fucking breaks open! But… this… this can't be happening!
As her body stops twitching, I can see something… moving inside her throat… like… Oh GOD!
Long tendrils erupt from her eyes and her throat, causing me to throw up on the floor.
Normandy mess hall: 14:22 (ship time)
Just what can they be doing? Kaidan thinks, as he keeps an eye on the pair in front of him. Liara, the Asari the team had rescued from Therum, and Thomas, his fellow human from another time and dimension, haven't moved an inch since the… Guess you could call it therapy He thinks, began. Scorch, the clone with the funny attitude was down earlier, informing him that he was taking the guard along with Garrus. The pair had actually, once they had gotten past the natural barriers, taken a liking to each other, and Kaidan could only smile as he thought about how the commando and the Turian must be up there, swapping war-stories. Both of them had been in some thick situations, he was sure of that.
And here I am, playing nurse for two people thinking they are having it out… should I have told Thomas about this not actually being sex? Nah, let him have his fun figuring it out. I'll just fake ignorance and say "Oh… so they can do that as well?"
There is some movement from Thomas. A faint but still visible sneer is visible on his face, then followed by what Kaidan would have sworn was a look of total fear.
Well, at least he has Liara with him… and that ghost guy. There shouldn't be any trouble… wonder If you can shoot something that occupies your mind?
"Li- Liara! What… oh shit!" I say, crawling backwards as some kind of… green liquid suddenly flies from her throat, strike the ground where I was just before. I can hear the sound of whatever it is, etching into the ground. Holy fuck! She is spitting acid at me!
"Liara! None of this is real! Snap out of it!" I yell to the walking corpse. Where the FUCK is Roku when I need him?!
Oh shit!
Liara, the now… I don't even know what to describe her as, just threw up at me again. This time, she got too close. I can actually smell the shit she is throwing at me now. It burns my nostrils, and I just continue crawling backwards. None of this is real! None of this is real! NONE OF THIS IS RE-ARRGGHHH!
For some reason, Liara is not of a similar opinion. That could be because she just hit my left foot with whatever acid she is throwing at me. The green liquid is already through my shoes, and the pain is excruciating. The flesh on my foot is steaming, boiling away, and no matter how vigorously I hit it and wipe it with my sleeve, I can't get the acid of. Fucking Shit! Argh hahahaha! It hurts!
When I can open my eyes again, finally able to look at her despite the all-blinding pain. The walking corpse of my former crewmate has stopped walking, and is now just… standing there, a hungry grin on her face. Or, what's left of it.
"ROKU!"
Normandy mess hall: 14:29 (ship time)
Kaidan looks at Thomas, the young man's features now strained with what looks like pain, and his left foot has started kicking against the table's underside. For some reason, Liara's facial expression hasn't changed, so Kaidan simply assumes that Thomas must be dealing with some bad memories. Chakwas has left the med-bay, and has joined him at the table, overseeing the pair as the therapy drags on.
Kaidan finishes his meal, and upon placing the plate in the dishwasher, he hears some shuffling in the main area where the entire thing is taking place. Upon looking, he nearly drops his plate on the floor in shock: Thomas, until now pretty calm, has jolted out of his chair and is dragging himself backwards on the floor, closed eyes turned in Kaidan's direction.
"Whoa! Chakwas, what the heck just happened?!" He shouts, tossing his stuff in the sink, before he rushes to the table. Liara is still sitting firm, though Kaidan now notices a strained expression on her face.
"Lord if I know! He just jumped his chair and started crawling backwards! Look at his face, he is in a state of shock!"
"Did the therapy go wrong?" he asks as he helps the older doctor restrain the now kicking marine.
"He is experiencing another hallucination! Only this time, being already inside his head, it is much more powerful! You have to try and wake him up before his mind kills him!"
"Lord and Maker! What was that!?" Chakwas nearly screams, though to her credit, she only shouts it.
"Thomas's "angel on the shoulder"! We have to wake him up now! Get Scorch down here!" Chakwas doesn't acknowledge his words by other means than activating her Omni-tool;
"Scorch! Get down to the mess hall now! Emergency!"
"Roger that! On my way!" the clone shouts back through the comm. The doctor and the lieutenant then proceeds to try waking the young man up. This was definitely not something Chakwas had been educated to handle.
Still on my ass, I continue dragging myself backwards while the burning and searing pain continues to eat at my foot.
"Liara! STOP! PLEASE, YOU CAN STOP THIS!" the walking corpse doesn't even stop at my words this time. It simply keeps walking forward with outstretched hands with long claws. Mother of! THIS IS NOT REAL! COME ON BRAIN, THIS IS NOT REAL! Apparently, my brain decides to side with the walking nightmare in front of me, showing no signs of waking up as it did with the scenario with John and Tali.
FUUUUCK!
Liara's body is now almost upon me, and I realize I won't get away crawling on my back. I try to get up, only to feel the insane pain that comes from trying to use a now eaten and dissolved foot to support my weight on. the long hallway passes by me as I hump down the corridor, pictures and films rolling by me. This is like some kind of bizarre nightmare! All I need now is a fucking clown with fa- no, scratch that! I can hear Liara's steps closing in, each step sounding higher and higher.
Normandy mess hall: 14:35 (ship time)
"Reporting for- what the hell?" Scorch states as he enters the mess hall. He immediately spots the lieutenant and the ship's doctor trying to restrain and wake up the young man with the very strange behavior, knowing about them and taking it all so calmly. The young woman, the one they call Tequila, did not behave as nice towards him and his squad mates as the young man.
"Scorch! Get over here! We have to wake him up, but we can't get through."
"Did you try kicking him in the groin?" the commando asks. It may to him seem a normal way to wake people up, but Kaidan isn't so sure it's a good idea…
"Why is that the first thing that comes to mind for you?!" The Biotic asks. Beneath him, Thomas has begun squirming. This is bad. Kaidan thinks.
"Because no one can stay asleep when you do that!"
"Fine! Just do something!" Chakwas shouts, much to the surprise of Kaidan. Did Chakwas just tell Scorch to kick Thomas in the nuts? The clone follows her words up with a solid boot planted between Thomas legs. It earns him a grunt of pain, but no further reaction.
"Dammit!" he shouts. How the hell can someone stay asleep after being kicked in the onions?
"Fuck!... Fuck…. Fuck…" with each step, the pain in my left foot is even worse, like someone is drilling my leg with a red-hot bar of iron.
Suddenly, I can feel her breath behind me, the feet are now giving away her presence through the sheer vibrations her feet causes in the ground. She is right behind me…
"Roku! Where the Fu- u-uurrkkk!"
Suddenly, a pair of hands with long sharp claws is fastened around my neck, cutting of the air supply. I can't even get enough air through for a scream, as the long and rotting fingers close around my throat. I can suddenly feel something that resembles a jellyfish on my neck, and I realize she is sliding her tendrils against my neck. Whether it is her eyes, or her… throat, it is the most disgusting feeling I've ever experienced.
My brain is starting to hurt, and for some reason, my crotch is almost causing me to double over, but Liara's deadly and strong grip prevents that. I… need air! I jab my elbow backwards, hitting Liara where any normal human would normally double over and throw up. Liara… doesn't flinch. What the hell?!
"C- com… onnnn! L-rrheeet me ghhooo!" I choke out with my remaining air, while tears are coming to my eyes. Is.. is this how it ends? Killed by my own mentally retarded brain?
The silence that follows, only broken by my struggling and my foot's shuffling on the floor, seems to answer for me.
Great… never… figure it would… end… like this… I chuckle inside my own head. So, is this what they call "laugh of the noose"? figures… of course I end up killed by my own brain… I mean, what more… fitting way… is there… to… go? I was always of the thought that I would be shot… geth, or perhaps even the collectors… would… have been… interesting… to see those… in… real… Everything turns black.
Normandy med-bay: 14:40 (ship time)
"His heart has stopped!" Chakwas yells, looking and listening to the high-pitched tone of the machine. Thomas has been placed in the med-bay, in order to revive him should just this kind of thing happen. Liara is still frozen at her spot in the mess hall, and Kaidan had to drag her into the med-bay, in order to position her in front of Thomas and hopefully let her regain control. Unless she's the one who's… no… but what the hell is going on?
"Clear!" Chakwas shouts, slapping the two defibrillators onto Thomas's chest. the electrical shock causes his entire body to vault into the air, then landing on the bed again.
"No reaction!" Scorch shouts. He is wiping sweat of off his face with the backside of his gauntlet. Chakwas prepares the defibrillators again.
"Clear!" She shouts, repeating her previous action. Again, to no avail.
"Come on Kid! Don't die on us now! Who the hell will tell Ash!?" Kaidan shouts into the still face of Thomas. The younger man's face is distorted with fear and pain, and has kept the same expression since his heart stopped. FUCK! This is everything but good! Come on kid, pull through!
"Clear!"
How… strange… I feel… not scared… just… sad. My mind suddenly came back to the light, though it's starting to shut off again, saving as much oxygen as it can. I'm getting a little dizzy, and my body is starting to grow numb.
Ash… I'm sorry… I'm… so, so sorry… tears are now streaming down my cheeks, continuing down the chin and running over the hands of the corpse currently trying to kill me.
I wanted… nothing more… than… to hold….
"Clear!"
Hmmm… what was that? I could have sworn I just heard someone shout "Clear"…. But that… I wonder what it looks like in the mess hall now… am I just frozen in place? Have I collapsed on the floor with Kaidan kneeling over me, providing first aid?
Hmmm… funny… I can…never remember…what the heart… massage thing… is called…
"Clear!" odd… this time I know I heard… something… and my mind was just… a bit clearer right now…
A bright light, at first faint, but quickly growing, is approaching me from the front. What is… is that singing? Why is there singing here?
The light is now enveloping both Liara and me, stopping just inches before us, drawing a very clear line right in front of us. Almost like a picture inside another picture.
Hmm… singing and a white light… wonder if that is heaven… so… if I go there… I die? I turn my eyes at the large clawed hands around my neck, almost smiling. Though it does seem like I don't have a choice in that matter anyway. Hmpf… they never make it easy…do they?
"Clear!" The voice sounds again, and I notice, that each time the voice says that, the light redraws a bit.
Funny… almost looks like someone is telling the light… to go away… but… what is… thát?
Normandy med-bay: 14:45 (ship time)
"Clear!" Chakwas shouts, shocking Thomas for the seventh time. Liara is still in her state of coma, but her breathing and heartbeat is normal. Thomas's body does another arch before landing on the bed again. Chakwas wipes the sweat of her forehead, preparing the defibrillators once again, while she keeps a concentrated stare at the machine measuring Thomas's heart rate.
"Clear!" And once again, she electrocutes his body, causing the hairs on his head to stand.
The heart rate suddenly starts again, the beeping causing the rooms residents to jump back. Starring at the screen, Chakwas can once again see the spikes that symbolize the heart beating again.
"Thank God… we did it."
"No Doctor. Do not thank he who does not care. Thank your education instead." The voice of Roku once again causes Chakwas to jolt back from the bed, almost knocking over some equipment in her hurry and shock.
"Now! What in the Maker's name is that voice!?"
Wow… this is… I'm floating… Liara suddenly disappeared, just… puff… I wonder what happened to her… and Roku… where did that bastard go?
"Right here Thomas. I never left your side, only… you left mine."
"What happened?"
"When we focused on the moss in the pictures, something came over you and seized control. We tried getting through to you, but it was like you just became a shadow. Liara now suspects that the moss has something to do with your visions and hallucinations. How, I do not know. However, your heart stopped some minutes ago, and Chakwas, Kaidan and Scorch have been fighting to restart it."
"Wait, Scorch helped?"
"Well… yeah. He tried some… unusual methods we were sure should have woken any sleeping person… it didn't work. Then, they used the defibrillators on you, shocking you several times. I think you were on… eight or nine tries before we restarted your heart."
"How is Ash taking it?"
"She… doesn't know. Not yet."
"Good. She has enough on her mind."
"Agreed. Shall I take you back to consciousness?"
"Can you?"
"Sure thing. Just… relax…"
A new white light blinds me, causing me to shut my eyes tight and look away under my eyelids.
"He is coming back to us. Com on Kid, that's right. Open your eyes." I think that's Kaidan's voice, but I can't be sure. Wouldn't it be freaky as hell to wake up after the train accident now?
"Probably, but the med-bay is your destination."
Normandy med-bay: 14:47 (ship time)
"He is waking up. Thank Goddess!" Liara exclaims. Looking at Thomas since she herself woke up, she has been constantly fidgeting with her fingers, rubbing her wrists and above all just been overly-concerned for Thomas. After all, she tells herself, it would be her own fault if he died.
"About time Kid, gave us quite a scare there." Kaidan says, crossing his arms and leaning against a support beam. Man, that was just too close. He thinks. They could have lost their friend there… and of course the guy who knew about the future, but still their friend and crewmate.
"I'd say. Though I am still not comfortable with this "Roku", as you call him Liara… How long have you people known about his… condition?" she says, gesturing to the young man on the bed, now in the process of waking up.
"Hell, Doc, I just found out now." Scorch says, sighing and sinking to the floor. He has grabbed his helmet, holding it in one hand. He just looks at the doc, his gaze wandering from Thomas to Chakwas, back to Thomas and then around the room.
Man… I really hope that was the last mind-meld I ever have to do… ever! My head is killing me, and my eyes are burning. I can hear voices, though they still sound muffled and faint.
I try opening my eyes, focusing on some of the lines on the ceiling that run the length of the room. The voices are becoming clearer now, and I can make out the voice of a clone. The problem with them sounding almost alike means that I have no idea who it is… Though… Sev and Boss are with John, and Fixer was unconscious… so I'm guessing it must be Scorch… I open my eyes completely, and look around. In the room are Chakwas, Kaidan and Scorch, resting against the wall. Ash isn't here… good. Would have hated for her to see this… to see me like this…
"How are you feeling Thomas?" Chakwas asks. I give her my best smile;
"Hey Doc, this is kinda becoming a habit, waking up in the med-bay…"
"At least you did wake up. Your heart stopped for some minutes. What happened?"
"Well… I… don't really want to talk about it…"
"But it was another hallucination?" Liara asks. I nod.
"Then that settles my suspicion."
"Which is?" I ask her, happy to see her face one and whole again. I think I might have scars for some time after that dream. I feel my neck, almost unconsciously scratching where Liara's hands were before. There doesn't appear to be any marks or scratches, and then I notice that my left foot is in one piece, and not destroyed by acid. Phew… well, that's a relief…
"I noticed the moss that crept towards you when you leant against the wall in the tunnels. I had not noticed that you had frozen up next to us, so I kept looking. Then, the plant released some kind of small cloud of spores, practically directed towards your face. if you had worn a helmet with a breather, and not your current without… you probably wouldn't have been infected, but the spores seemed to enter your body then and there. My suspicions rose when I noticed you stopping in the middle of a sentence, and then beginning to fade away… like you were no longer your own mind…
"Weird… but what does that mean? I was possessed by a plant?"
"Well, actually, you still are… we have yet to-"suddenly, the comm. system activates, and I can hear the distressed voice of Ash;
"All available ground crew come in! This is Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, calling for support! The colonists have gone crazy! Fai Dan tried shooting Tequila, but Tengberg knocked the pistol away before he could take the shot. Then every single person in the colony went to town on us. We have barricaded ourselves in one of the pre-fab buildings near the skyway, but Jane and Fixer are unconscious, and Tengberg and Tequila are holding the door. They dragged Nihlus away, and I have no idea as to where! We need-"the comm. cuts off.
"What the- I'll take Garrus and go up the-"Kaidan starts, but I'm already out of bed and past him. I sprint out the med-bay doors, while Chakwas is shouting something about me not being ready for duty yet. Fuck that, Ash is in trouble, And Devil rape me if I let her come to harm if I can help it otherwise!
I jump into the elevator and smash the button for the hangar- and engine deck. The elevator is insanely slow, almost making me kick the walls for being so slow, when the doors open, and I jump out of the moving platform. The guy in charge of repairing my equipment and armor shoots me a look when I storm to where he is standing. He gives me a smile though;
"Hey there. You must be Fisher. I'm-"
"Listen mate, I am sorry this sounds rude, but I really need my armor right fucking now." His brows furrow, followed by a brisk nod. He runs off to a room and returns shortly with a set of armor. My armor has been patched with several different metals and looks almost as good as new. Fine, now to get it one… I still have a broken arm…
"Can you give me a hand?" I say, gesturing to my arm, still wrapped in gauze. He shoots me a puzzled look, then gains a small smile.
"Ahh… so it's true. Well, anything for love, and sod it if Chakwas berates me for letting you out. at least it won't be without protection." As he hands me the first legging, he helps me put it on. although it feels a tad awkward in the start, I appreciate his help. When I clasp the last part of my shell on, I only need the helmet. I give him a nod of thanks, grab a pistol and move back towards the elevator. Locked and loaded you bastards. Just you try take Ash from me. Just you try!
The elevator scrambles at inhumanly sow speeds, and the buzzing in my ears returns, signaling that Roku for once "knocks" before he speaks.
"Thomas?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you sure about this?"
"Not you too man… I need to save her. I'm gonna… I'm never gonna forgive myself for it if… if she…"
"I'm not gonna argue with you. Both your love and your best friend are out there. Keeping you here would be stupid."
"Thanks." I think as I step out of the elevator and run up the stairs to the CIC. Presley, one of the few persons I haven't spoken to yet, is standing over a console near the galaxy map. 'Only recognize him because he died in ME2. That old face and the bald head is kind of a giveaway. He gives me a quick nod before he returns to his duties. I rush past him, hurrying through the long corridor leading to the cockpit. Mara! Don't let me be too late!
As I rush back out onto the walkway where the first guy got smeared and Garrus received a shower. The dark area is still there, as well as the turian-shaped clean space on the floor. Scorch and Garrus are just up ahead, trying to… it looks like they are fighting someone, hand to hand. Must be the colonists… where is Wrex when we need him? He could just barge through them…
"Careful! Get back!" Garrus suddenly shouts, stepping to the side as a shower of fluid hits the spot he inhibited before. Wait… acid? Don't tell me I'm in another hallucination!
"What the hell is that thing?!" Scorch shouts, smashing something with the butt of his rifle. I can make out some human figure, trying to get to Garrus before he shoots it full of holes. Damn Garrus! Try not killing unarmed people! Even if they are insane!
"What is going on!? I thought the two of you would be way ahead by now?" I shout as I join them, taking down a creature that, if I had not seen worse in my hallucinations, would make me throw up; it is… the only way to describe it is a human, remade like a husk, but without any of the tubes and wires and the creepy blue eyes.
"Talos! What the fuck was that?!" I say, as we join rifles in taking down a creature that apparently doesn't know the word "pain".
"Don't know! They just suddenly appeared all over!" Garrus shouts, then he looks at me; "Wait, Thomas, don't you have a broken arm or something?" I just send him a glare.
"Yeah… so?" then I remember something the doctors said; "By the way, better get some sort of filter on Garrus. Scorch may have his helmet, but whatever gets over me infects people with spores. So get something over your mouth."
"But… okay, but if you die, I'll tell Ash that you came here on your own initiative."
"Sure thing Garrus. Now, why the fuck are we standing here?!" I say, and lead us through the hallways and stairs that lead to the colony. I can hear scattered gunshots ahead, from small-arms mainly. Fuck! Crazy was bad enough… now it's crazy and armed! Now, I've no trouble killing geth or Varren or Krogan… but… other humans… I don't know if I can take a human's life. To know that I have ended a- whoa!
One of the husk-things suddenly emerges from the staircase, blocking our entrance. Fuck this! He is not coming between me and Ash!
I start running up the stairs towards the thing, emptying my gun at it until I get too close to comfort. The bastard then suddenly grabs for me, but I get a leg under it, topple it, and when it's down, stomp its head into mash. But these things… I can easily kill… well, morally easy that is…
When the thing is without head, or, that is if you count mashed potatoes as a head, we advance up the stairs, meeting no further resistance. It's when we enter the colony, that I get my real jump-scare;
"By the Force…" Scorch mutters, and I could pretty much say the same: it looks like the entire colony is gathered around one of the prefab-buildings, trying t break in. the really odd thing though, is that the colonists seem to be working with the zombie-things. Actually, zombie is a much better word for those things than husks… and more of the things are scattered all over the colony. Funny… I give myself a wry smile. I could have sworn they weren't there before…
When they spot us, most of the crowd turns their weapons at us, opening fire. Oh Crap! Garrus, Scorch and I take cover in the entrance to the colony, only leaning out to shoot down the zombies or colonists that come to close for comfort. We do try to minimize the casualties by aiming for the knees and legs with the colonists, not killing them if we can avoid it. But Jesus! There are so many zombies, they just run into our line of fire, throwing themselves away like meat shields. They just keep coming! We must have shot at least twenty or so of these zombie-things now, and there is just no sign of them letting up, or their numbers dwindling. It's just "bang!" and there is a hole in one zombie, where after the next juts pushes it aside, not really weighed down by human morals and respect of the dead. Figures… at least these things are easier to kill with a pistol than the husks were… the drawback here, though, is that these fuckers pop with acid when they did. Garrus has already gotten his future look on his armor when he had a close call with one of them, ending up with me stuffing my gun in the mouth of the zombie, blowing out its head in the best "Aliens II" style. The bitch here just is, that the same thing happened here, that happened in "Aliens": the acid splashes from the destroyed skull, soaking Garrus's armor and making it look like he just stood up in a crossfire. The turian himself is relatively unharmed though, nodding a thanks before he returns fire at the fuckers. I wonder… Jane said this didn't happen when she was here… is this some kind of canon-fuckup as well? would explain the commandoes at least… having fired my gun to the point of it overheating.
"Next time Garrus, leave the mantis behind and get a shotgun!" I shout at him. The sniper really doesn't work here, and the turian is forced to use his Lancer-II, which is a fine rifle, sure… but he isn't exactly… let me put it this way; 'I am a better shot with the Lancer-II than he is.' But I can't use my rifle, because it takes two hands to fire, and my left is still in gauze. Hell, I couldn't even get my gauntlet on.
"Why didn't you bring it?" He shouts as he snipes one of the zombies still crouched on the ground. It almost explodes from the overkill.
"Showoff… because Garrus," I say and wave the broken arm at him; "I kinda need two hands for that one!"
"How the hell did that hap- oh right, Tali broke your arm, didn't she?" two more zombies fall before our bullets, and I bash the head in on a third one. All the while we are being fired upon by insane colonists.
"Yeah… why the hell are these people even attacking us?! We have been helping them haven't we? Or is there something I don't know about?!"
"Beats me!"
"Wonder if that big guy on your team ate one of them?" Scorch remarks, blasting superheated holes in the zombies as they come within range. I have to find out just what he is shooting with, because he pretty much burns a hole every time he hits something, and I know enough about physics that I can tell he isn't shooting what I know as 'laser'. Even though people always called it "laser fire" and "laser-cannons". Laser doesn't fire in visible bursts like tracking projectiles from the Vietnam. They are easy to follow at least, as he sprays the area in front of the entrance with blue plasma-shots. The colonists seemingly are smart enough to stay in cover, only popping out to fire, then back again.
"Why the fuck are you attacking us!?" I shout at the colonists. No one answers, but a few bullets graze the concrete I'm leaning against for cover.
"Stand the FUCK down, or we will fire upon you!" I say, then remembering that we have already nailed a few of them in the legs. The "NLT's", as they call the non-lethal takedowns. "And it will be lethal takedowns!" I finish. I don't really have the guts to back it up though. Killing another human? I still can't take the thought. It just screams "wrong"… of course I could kill him if he had a gun on Ash or me, but otherwise… I couldn't kill a man… at least, I don't think I can… And quite frankly, I don't see any reason to test it out. while Scorch and Garrus are keeping the zombies and the colonists in check, I tap the radio that I've finally figured out how to use. Having to turn on the Omni-tool every time I wanted to contact people, kinda got a bit of annoying.
"This is Private Thomas Fisher checking in. someone give me a status update! I'm just at the entrance to the colony along with Garrus and Scorch. What's going on?!" I shout into the ear-comm. as a new volley of bullets impacts on the column I'm leaning against. At first, there is only silence, which causes a lump of ice to gather in my guts. Am I… too late? No! No no n-
"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams responding!" Thank Mara! She's okay! "We have been sealed off in here, the storage department closest to the (static) Jane is out, as well as Fixer. Tengberg is holding the doors, and the corporal is helping me tend to the wounded. I don't yet (static) we can't hold out much longer!" Fuck! I'm not letting those assholes hurt her! Wonder if I have to make good on my promise to lose a leg after all…
"Commander John'Shepard speaking." John? Fuck, am I glad to hear his voice! "We have just exited the ExoGeni-headquarters. It appears they were studying some kind of indigenous life-form called the Thorian. It's some really big plant, the way the girl described it. Covers most of Feros's landscape beneath the clouds… anyway, it appears there is some kind of center for it… just underneath the colony. We have to do something about it. If you encounter hostile colonists, do not, I repeat; do NOT kill them! They are under the control of the Thorian via some kind of spores. We still need to figure out the- Dammit Sev! Drive straight, I can't have a conversation when you drive like you're drunk!" I can hear some kind of response in the background, but due to the angry response from Tali… I think its best I don't know what it was.
"Shepard! Ashley and her Squad is locked down and under siege from mad colonists and some kind of zombies. Nihlus was dragged away, and Kaidan is still in the med-bay. We are six man standing over here, and we would like you to come join the party!"
"Bosh'tet! They got Nihlus? Well, the Thorian isn't carnivorous, as far as we know, so he should still be alive."
"Orders sir?"
"Assist Jane's squad, evac the wounded and then we team up and go gardening!"
"Sir, Jane is one of the wounded. Ashley is in command of team one for now."
"Hmm… alright, same plan. Go in there and help them."
"Yes Sir." I say, then cutting the transmission. I turn towards the two guys next to me;
"Alright, we have some new orders boys. Go in and help them. Don't kill the colonists, they are infected with, what I would guess is, the same thing that's inside me. So, spare the crazies, help the ladies and then we evac the wounded and go hunting for something called a Thorian. Sounds good?"
"Sure. But how come you are in charge?"
"I am? Since when did I get to be in charge Garrus? I thought that was you."
"Well, then you sure as hell show some initiative for someone who doesn't have orders."
"That a compli- shit!" a round just hit my shoulder, pinging of on my shield. The noise was still loud enough for me to almost jump. For crazies, they sure are crackshots.
"What?" Garrus says.
"I said, was that a compliment, or a reprimand?"
"A compliment."
"Oh. Thanks."
"Now let's go save your damsel in distress!" Garrus says, storing away his sniper rifle and pulling out his Lancer. Cheeky bastard…
"Not to mention the rest of the team." Scorch says. Yeah, them too.
As we move out of the cover of the entrance, fire immediately resumes on us, causing our shields to get below 50 % before we can get more than ten meters. We return fire as we run from cover to cover, thanking whatever power is watching over us that none of us have been hit hard, and that we haven't killed a colonist yet.
"Zombies, up front! Let's bring it to them!" I shout, bringing my pistols iron sight down on the firsts head. A series of gunshots follows my own when Garrus and Scorch open fire as well. we overhear our guns and empty the clip on Scorch's rifle, and there are still more of them left. I spot what looks like a pickaxe on the ground, and pick it up. I weigh it in my hands, and I can really feel the smile coming to my face. zombie apocalypse smashed with pickaxe… one of my oldest and most ridiculous dreams. But hell! I place my pistol in my holster and wield the tool in my right hand. Garrus gives me a strange looks, like as to see if there is some speck of insanity in my eyes.
"This is gonna be fun…" I hear Scorch mutter as he put another clip in his rifle. Garrus just shakes on his head, aiming up the nearest zombie in his sights. Here goes nothing… I start jogging towards the… well, you can't really call them a group, since they are not humans, but more like a cluster or a herd.
"You do realize this is a really stupid idea, right?"
"Of course it is. But so far, what haven't been?"
"Good point, just don't complain to me when they chew you to bits."
"Yeah, yeah… and don't be so sad when I'm standing amidst twenty corpses of zombies."
Sigh… just get it over with…"
I can't help a smug smile at his response, giving the pickaxe a few swings to test its… abilities. I then briskly walk towards the nearest walking corpse, and while the fucker is gurgling, I send the pickaxe through its head. A loud crack, and a sudden numbness in the creature follows, and the weight of it suddenly pulls the pickaxe downwards as it collapses on the ground. It gives a few twitches, before it stops moving completely.
Well, that actually worked…
In the time I have taken out one zombie, Garrus and Scorch have downed at least four. Damn, gotta speed this up a bit… I hurry on to the next zombie, only just giving it a kick before it can shower me with vomit, and then proceeding to embed the pickaxe in its skull as it stumbles. I run on, and continue this killing spree, all the while Garrus and Scorch are taking out the guys to my left, and the prefab buildings are blocking access from my right. For some reason, the colonists are remaining behind their covers, not following us. I wonder if they can't move while the Thorian is controlling them… no, scratch that. They moved to the prefab building where Ash is… so then why aren't they attacking us and moving in? Hell, not that I complain…
"Come at me you ugly fuckers!" I shout as I smack one of them on the side of the head with the flat side of the pickaxe, before stumping on its head when it hits the ground. Apparently, their heads aren't that well fastened on its shoulders. Well, that just upped my chances. Now I just have to use the flat side, and I can knock them off like melons on sticks.
And as thought, I continue on to the next zombie, and just smack his head into oblivion. It continues to roll until it is lost among the legs of a new group of zombies, this one much, much bigger. It actually make me stop, just looking at them. I simply toss my pickaxe at them, with a stroke of luck, I hit one of them, and the falling corpse disappears in the herd. I yank out my pistol again, taking aim and firing into the crowd, trying to aim for the heads. I am partly successful, as five or so of them drop down, and I look to see Garrus and Scorch emptying and overheating their guns into the masses. Scorch is by far doing the most damage, his shots almost causing their targets to melt when he hits them, while our shots simply destroys matter by impact. Man, I've got to get me one of those. Just wish they were more accurate on long range scales. Ah, the Salarians can probably fix tha- whoa! Scorch, loving of explosives as he is, just threw a small red orb into the crowd. What was it they were called… those grenades?
BOOM!
And the crowd of zombies is scattered like the contents of a water balloon. At first, I have a hard time believing my eyes, what with them having just observed an entire army of zombies being reduced to bad weather. And speaking of… bad weather, they have started falling down again, and we take shelter by sticking to the side of one of the buildings… or, Garrus and I do, Scorch is… standing out in the rain, yelling some sort of battle cry. I swear, that guy… How messed up do you have to be to be yelling with vigor and happiness after you just blew up thirty or so zombies, and now they are raining down around you? What the hell did he throw anyway? Grenades can't possibly do that… can they?
"Scorch! What the heck did you just throw at them?" I shout. Have to, to overpower his shouting.
"Just my own little thing. Thermal detonator never did have quite enough 'bang' to them."
"Jesus… next time, warn us. Okay?"
"Alright, but what do we do about the- Shlavit!" a volley just past his head, one of the slugs hitting him but pinging of off his helmet, leaving a slight bulge, but nothing else. He rubs his helmet, as was it his head, and he had a headache.
"The what?"
"The crazies? We can't kill them, according to… what were they called? Cvarian?"
"Quarian. And he is called John'Shepard. And by the way… he does not like being called Quarian."
"Noted. But how do we handle the colonists then?"
"Don't know… knock them out?"
"Could work… just not with your tool from earlier. That would do a bit more than just "knocking" them out."
"Fair point."
"They are not letting up Chief!" Private Nicolai Tengberg shouts over the constant banging on the door to the building. They had been forced to flee into one of the buildings in the colony when everyone suddenly decided on killing them. Just fucking great…
"Well hold that door! I'm not looking forward to if they get in here!" Ashley shouts back, trying to concentrate on getting her, although not exactly desired, commander on her feet again. Nicolai nods, and continues pressing his back against the door. Outside, the colonists and some kind of husk are trying to get in, and even though the door is locked, they could probably still smash it in. He sends a look at Tequila, currently hauling the clone… 'Fixer', on his back towards Ashley. She is still wearing her UNCM armor, though Garrus got her talked into taking a shield generator to add to her armor. And by God, Tengberg is glad the turian did. Tequila has already been shot at five times now, all shots being deflected by her shields. If her armor can block the bullets, he doesn't know. Nor does he need to perform any tests as long as she is wearing it. Especially as long as we are being attacked by crazy people… that guy I smacked… he just got right back up. I'm sure I could have knocked Garrus out cold with that.
Shaking his head, he places his metal boots against the floor, positioning them in a small track in it. This might just- son of a- what feels like an elephant suddenly smashes against the door, almost knocking him forwards;
"Tequila! Need a little help here! Feels like they've got either an Elcor, or a battering ram out there!" He says, the anxiousness in his voice betraying the calm tone. Having dropped the commando, the corporal rushes over to him, placing her back against the door as well;
"You know Tengberg, when you said you were taking me out on some fun… I thought you had something else in mind!" Somehow, she has retained her weird sense of humor, being able to joke in that kind of situation. He shrugs, keeping his feet planted solid;
"Yeah well, I'm having fun!" He remarks wryly.
"Will you two shut up and focus on- did you hear that?" The Chief asks from her place above the two wounded soldiers. Nicolai and Tequila immediately stops talking, and as Ashley is saying, the sound of gunfire suddenly can be heard from somewhere out there.
"Wonder if Nihlus fought his way back here…" He says, still not even looking at the door-controls. Wouldn't really help him anyway. First thing he did when they had dragged Jane and Fixer in here, was to fry the panel so that the colonists, if they still had the brains, wouldn't be able to just open the door. Sigh… why did Thomas just have to mention a zombie apocalypse? He just had to, didn't he? Tengberg thinks to himself, remembering the conversation aboard the Normandy.
"Corporal, I need you to get Fixer back on his feet! 'Can't do this alone!"
"But I don't think Nicolai can hold the door on his own… ma'am."
"Sure he can, he beat you in weights. Now get over here!" Tequila looks at Nicolai who is a little amused at her protectiveness around him. He nods at her;
"Just go Teresa. I can hold this on my own… have to…" for a moment, using her actual first name seems to confuse her, being used to be called by the drink her name so easily makes up. Then she gets it back together and runs over to the Gunnery Chief.
"You know Ashley. If-" He starts speaking, only to be cut off when his comm. suddenly opens up again. I thought it was being jammed?
"This is Private Thomas Fisher checking in. someone give me a status update! I'm just at the entrance to the colony along with Garrus and Scorch. What's going on?!" Great. Now he can come say 'sorry for mentioning zombies'. And he only brought those two? What about Kaidan? Or Liara? We could bloody well use a biotic right now…
"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams responding. We have been sealed off in here; the storage department closest to the Skyway. Jane is out cold, as well as Fixer. Tengberg is holding the doors, and the corporal is helping me tend to the wounded. I don't yet know where Nihlus is. We can't hold out much longer!" gee Ash, way to inspire confidence… he thinks as he is ripped from his thoughts by another powerful bash against the door. But she does have a point…
"Now we just need the commander back here, and we'll be one big happy family!" He shouts towards the next room where Tequila is doing something to Fixer. It looks like she is pounding his chest with both hands, like in some of those movies… but… doesn't that mean that the heart has stopped, or that he isn't breathing?
"Commander John'Shepard speaking."We have just exited the ExoGeni-headquarters. It appears they were studying some kind of indigenous life-form called the Thorian. It's some really big plant, the way the girl described it. Covers most of Feros's landscape beneath the clouds… anyway, it appears there is some kind of center for it… just underneath the colony. We have to do something about it. If you encounter hostile colonists, do not, I repeat; do NOT kill them! They are under the control of the Thorian via some kind of spores. We still need to figure out the- Dammit Sev! Drive straight; I can't have a conversation when you drive like you're drunk!" Well… we've learned one thing at least… Sev can't drive. He thinks, chuckling to himself.
"Okay, since thát worked… can I have a cheeseburger as well?" He shouts at the ceiling. To his disappointment, no divine voice is heard saying; "Sure, here you go". Figures… well, at least Wrex is on his way back. He is a biotic, if memory serves.
The gunshots are becoming more frequent, and there is some screaming outside. Nic thinks to himself, wondering if Thomas's team simply mowed down the colonists, or if they were going for the knees. He… arrow to the knee… well, more like bullet to the knee… God, I'm joking right now? We could all die in the next couple of minutes!
Looking over to Tequila and Ashley, he can see that the commander, Jane Shepard, was moving again, sitting up. The initial sigh of relief is, however, quickly replaced by a disturbing thought;
From what I saw in the med-bay… having those two in the same room… could be a bad thing…
"Fuck, these things don't feel any pain at all!" I shout, continuing to toss big rocks at one of the zombies while my gun is cooling. Going for the head does seem like the only option, as one can pretty much overheat a rifle into their bodies, and not see any sign of pain or damage. Mother of shit… I just had to play 'mister wise guy' back on the ship; "Oh Nicolai, there will be a zombie apocalypse down there!" Yeah… fuck me, right? Wonder if I brought this on myself, or if it really is a part of canon.
"Scorch, would you happen to have any more of those thermal detonators?" Garrus asks him, kneeling behind a large concrete barricade as he pops up and nails a colonist through a foot. The woman fall to the ground, emitting a heartbreaking scream of agony. I can feel my own chest hurt, and my eyes hurt, as I recognize the woman.
The daughter is nowhere to be seen, but it's her. The woman who became a widow only a few days ago when Ash and I failed in saving her husband. She is still wearing her work clothes, the robust yet hardy brown clothes that identifies colonists and lower pay-grade citizens. She is getting back up, now standing on her other foot and leaning against the building as she takes aim at me again. I line her other leg up in my sights. I… I have to shoot her. NLT… NLT… but I can't shoot a human! Especially not one I saw crying over her husband's body! Okay, shut up brain!
I just have to disarm her! Just a shot in the other foot or… or through her hands… but she's got… her daughter will think I'm a monster! Dear Mara, where is the little girl!? What if she is watching?! What if she sees me shoot her mamma, right after she's lost her daddy?!
I open my eyes again, finding the woman staring at me. She is still aiming at me, but for some reason, she has yet to pull the trigger. Can she be remembering me? Is she snapping out of-
Bang!
The woman crumbles, having received a hole in her lower left shin. I am still holding the gun at her, but I didn't pull the trigger. I look to my right, where the sound came from, and find Garrus standing next to me, gun leveled and aimed at the woman. He had to, she would have fired! He had to she would have fired! He… had to. She would have… would she?
"Garrus! Why the hell did you shoot?"
"What do you mean? We have to take them down with NLT's. Besides, she was aiming her gun at you."
"Yes, aiming, not firing. Something made her hold back, but now you may just have severed her artery, and she could bleed to death in front of her daughter!"
"What do-ugh" He says, stopping to take cover when a volley of slugs impact on his shields. "What do you mean 'her daughter'? You know her?" he says, popping up to return fire and suppress a group of colonists.
"I can recognize her. It's the woman whose husband Ash and I couldn't save before… after you were showered, the geth attacked the colony again, and a wounded a man. Turned out, he had a wife and daughter. Ash and I tried saving him, but somehow his lunges where penetrated as well, and we couldn't. Then they started crying, and almost smashed my heart. Now, she must have recognized me, started fighting the control somehow, and-"
"And I just shot her down… Sorry Fisher, but I was just acting on instinct. I only saw a colonist aiming her gun at you, and took her down non-lethal."
"You are supposed to be a crack shot Vakarian. How is a severed artery a non-lethal takedown?"
"I don't think I hit the artery. But it will take her at least fifteen minutes to bleed out if I did. Just have to end this before that time's up" Popping up again, I help him suppress the group from before, while Scorch moves up the rear, attempting a flanking maneuver, for all I can see.
"If she dies, you explain the girl why she suddenly became an orphan!"
"Fine! Fine, I get it! We save the colonist, prevent her from bleeding out!"
"Good. Now let's get this shit-"I start, but I'm interrupted by a new sound of gunfire, this time it comes from the tower, where we found the Delta's. It's also where we went down to the lower levels, where I was somehow infected by this 'Thorian'… whatever the hell that actually is. I get as much as it is a plant, but this… how can a plant control people? My comm. beeps t o life;
"Ground crew, this is commander Shepard. We are entering the colony from the eastern corner. Keep an eye on friendlies from the tower. Do not fire upon the colonists, we have a gas that will neutralize the infection in them. Lave them to us!" man, I'm glad to hear John is ba- wait, he has an antidote? Yes! That means no more nightmares and hallucinations! Yes! that was about goddamn time, if you ask me.
"Well, that would mean I could get a chance to relax and not have to worry about the monsters in your head anymore. Can't say I'll miss it."
"Me neither."
"Alright Thomas, Scorch. You heard the commander. Focus fire on the husk-things, and leave the colonists to the commander."
"Yes sir." Scorch replies. I consent, but do not take my eyes of the woman on the ground. I activate my comm.
"Ash? Ash this is Thomas. Over."
"Thought you guys were busy? Glad to hear the commander is back. Now we can deal with the colonists without killing them. Over."
"About that. Remember the family from before, the husband and father we couldn't save?"
"Why do you bring that up? I would rather not think about it right now."
"Well, Garrus just shot the mother in the leg, and I'm afraid she'll bleed out before the colony can be restored. Do you have any more bandages? Over."
"A few. Where were she hit? Over"
"The leg. Over."
"Alright. I'll see what I can do. Is it clear to open the door now? We can't have them get violent in here with Fixer still down."
"Not yet. But I take it Jane is back up then?"
"… Yeah. She is barking orders at Tengberg right now. But… she is also helping Tequila with Fixer. Apparently, she isn't above grunt work. Over"
"Alright. See you soon. Over"
I "hang up" on her, returning to the field to see John and Sev hurl hand grenades at the colonists.
"Holy Shit! They are gonna blow them-" I of course believe that what they are tossing are normal hand grenades. I only stop shouting when I see the balls detonate in some kind of green gas. Instantly, the colonists around the grenades drop down. In a matter of seconds, our fire at the zombies, and John's grenades against the colonists, has pacified the colony. As we regroup in the center, the door to one of the buildings open, and Jane and Tequila walks out, followed by Nic and Ash carrying Fixer between them. The clone is making weak grunts, so he is at least awake. When Sev spots him, dangling between the two soldiers, he laughs his harsh laughter;
"God damn Fixer. What happened to you? You look like someone kicked your ass!" He says, walking over to and relieving our teammates of their wounded clone. As soon as Ash is no longer carrying him, she walks over to John, says something to him, then she approaches me and drags me along, pulling my armors neck;
"Hey, hey, hey! Ash, I get that you are the dominating type, but…" okay, that sentence was goin the wrong way…
"Come on Rookie, we need to get to that woman. Unless you want to find her daughter." She says. I shrug and she lets go of me.
"Well, that's what I wanted as well, so why the pulling?"
"Meh, 'was more fun than just asking you to come along."
"I swear Ash, sometimes…"
"I know, you would go nuts without me." Her response triggers a smile and a chuckle from me.
"Probably that too." She then grows more serious. she looks behind me, and following her eyes, I can see the mother of the little girl propped against the wall, being restrained by two other colonists who have already regained their senses. We move towards them, Ash some strange canister in hand. As the colonists spot us, the sane ones move a bit to give us room, while the woman starts struggling again. Apparently, seeing me and Ash doesn't trigger her memory enough to snap her out of it. The black in her eyes have widened, taking the space the iris took up before. A pool of blood has started to gather under her legs.
"Hold her for a few more seconds." Ash says, her 'Chief' voice takes over, barking commands at the colonists like at me and the boys the first day in boot camp. While the colonists nod and obey her orders, she kneels down before the struggling woman, releasing the canister in her face. a green gas starts seeping out, being inhaled by the woman. Almost instantly, the frantic movements stop, and she goes limp.
"What was that?" The guy holding her left side asks.
"Is she…"
"Nah, just asleep. The gas should purge any remains of Thorian influence in her systems, so she will be asleep for at least some hours. Speaking of which; how are the two of you already up and running?" She says, giving the two men a stare of disbelief.
"Not everyone was infected by the Thorian. We only found out who when the rest of them started going nuts. Including my sister here." The man on her left says, gesturing at the now sleeping woman.
"So, you're the girl's uncle?"
"Yeah. I locked her up when she and the other people started going nuts. I wanted to keep her from harming herself or others. She kept screaming about monsters, looking at me like I was one of those 'things'. She is still inside the building, locked inside my office. I'll have to use some of that gas you just did on Holly, while you get her patched up." Ash nods and hands him another capsule. He then walks off for a building located some distance away. We look after her, and back to the woman. Holly, as he said her name was. Ash opens a pocket in her armor, unpacking the med-kit from earlier. We get to work on the woman, with a substantially better chance than with her husband.
Half an hour later, we have managed to patch her up, leaving Holly with some nice scars that will probably be with her for all time. Where did that 'nice' come from?
When the man returned, he introduced himself as Ben, and the girl's name is Liana. Kind of a cute name, now that I think about it. She has some minor rifts on her arms, probably from the way she has tried clawing herself out of the office, and her blond hair is completely messed up. She looks like that daughter everybody wants, the normally curious eyes, and the perky little nose. Now, though, she has lost the glint in her eyes. Besides that, she doesn't really look like she just went through a period of mind control. When mother and daughter is re-united, we can finally turn back to our team, knowing that they will be relatively safe and okay. Ash sighs when she looks at them, probably still contemplating how she lost the husband;
"You alright Ash?"
"Yeah… yeah, I'm fine. Just glad we didn't turn the girl an orphan. It's tough enough to lose one dad at that age, but to lose the mother as well? If it wasn't because she has an uncle, I would have made sure she was adopted or taken care of myself."
"You would have adopted her?"
"Well… no, I have no idea how to handle kids… well, I can bandage them, but I don't know shit about the mother-stuff. That was always Sarah who wanted to ply house. I was playing with dads unloaded guns." Her statement about the guns cause me to crack a smile;
"Somehow, imagining a toddler you, playing with guns… isn't all that hard." I get a punch on the arm for that one, as well as a smile.
"Careful now you. I could sentence you to 'down and take twenty' if I wanted." I shrug and smile at her. I am always amazed at how this woman can one moment be the most ferocious warrior in the galaxy, and the next she is this humorous, kind, loving and caring person. To have all that in one person… it sometimes makes me wonder if I really am dreaming. Of course, I now know that I am not, as no dream I've ever had spanned for weeks.
"Nah, you would never. By the way, thanks for kicking my ass."
"Wait, what?"
"The sessions where we sparred. I may have sucked against you, but it probably saved my ass at least one time during the last hours."
"Oh… well, I could do it again, if you would like."
"Ha, nah I think I've had enough of a beating for today, thank you very much."
"You're welcome." She says with a smile. It's the warm smile that always makes me melt inside. I don't even realize what I'm doing, till I suddenly find myself in a tight hug with Ash, lifting her several inches above the ground. At first, we look a bit startled at each other. But, when I see her face grow soft, I can feel a grin spreading on my face, pretty much covering all of it. 'must look like the 'Joker' right now… I muse, starring into her hazel eyes. They stare right back at me, with warmth in them that makes my legs go weak. I gently put her down, releasing some of the breath I didn't realize I was holding in. I place a hand on her chin, caressing it gently, and she places her palm upon mine. The others are guaranteed to be eyeing us, but hell, let them. I'm pretty much united with the woman of my dreams, and I wouldn't trade her, or any of this, for anything in existence. I look into her eyes, almost falling into them;
"You know… you've got some beautiful eyes Ash."
"Sweet talker… "She says, before moving her head closer to mine.
Oddly enough, this time I'm nowhere near as nervous as I was in the gym. I lean in, shifting my foot to get a better stance, and move my face towards hers, now with her eyes closed.
And we have a romance scene! Or, a romantic cliffhanger... Oh, you know what I mean. Point is, Feros, when done my way, is way to long for one or even two chapters to cover it. How the Heck other people do it... is beyond me.
Alright, hope you enjoyed it, and in the words of... well, pretty much every single author out there;
"Remember to review and share your thoughts about the chapter"
Now that the hollydays are comming... who knows how soon I'll have the next chapter out.