4-3-2184 0288 hours (Citadel standard time)
Omega
Auxera District
Maelon's Clinic
On an operating table, Ramirez laid on unconscious. The room's lights were turned off. Several diagrams of xenoscience anatomy hung on the walls of the gray room. On several medications lined the opened cabinet, which were rapidly depleting.
Suddenly he awoke, surprised and shocked. He looked around and took a moment to let his surroundings sink in. Immediately he felt an immense pain in his head. He grunted as he rubbed his head with his hand.
"You're up. That's good." He heard a voice call out.
Ramirez looked to his right to see Shepard approaching with his weapons and helmet in Shepard's hands. He handed them over to Ramirez, who took them graciously.
"What happened? And why does my head hurt?" He questioned as he put on his helmet.
"A piece of debris fell on your head and knocked you out cold." Shepard explained.
"Again?" He asked incredulously.
Shepard chuckled. "Yeah it seems you have bad luck with falling objects. If it wasn't for me a bigger piece would have landed on you."
"How big?"
"Big enough to squish you."
"Well I guess I owe you one."
"Buy me a beer and we'll call it even. Anyway get up we've got work to do." Shepard said.
"Barely up and already you're putting me to work?" He asked sarcastically.
"During your beauty sleep, Mordin and Maelon managed to finalize the cure. They've vaccinate everyone here so you don't have to worry about getting the virus. Now the real problem is, we have many wounded and many more dead." Shepard explained as he led Ramirez out of the room and through a long hallway towards a door at the far end. As they walked by, several rooms housed various soldiers and civilians, many of whom assisted Shepard in defense of the clinic.
"How many people do we have defending the clinic?"
Shepard sighed. "After the siege we have about thirteen able bodied personal who have suffered no injuries. Another seven who'll be up after a few stitches…and the rest well we're doing everything we can to minimize the pain."
As Shepard and Ramirez reached the door, Shepard opened the door to reveal a waiting room with Nyreen, Samara, and Zaeed waiting for their arrival.
"Well looks who's finally awake." Zaeed said, looking up from a magazine with crossed legs.
"Where's Mordin?" Ramirez asked looking around the room.
"Here."A voice said behind him. Ramirez looked behind to see Mordin gleefully holding a vial, behind him stood Maelon staring daggers into the back of his professor's head.
"Well now that you got the cure, I'm going need you to retake the environmental facility. It's the only way to cure the entire district." Maelon explained.
"And why would we do that?" Zaeed voiced his opinion only to be met with a punch from Nyreen and glares from everyone else.
"I was just asking, sheesh."
"Alright so we know what our destination is. Anyone wants to rest?" Shepard asked the group.
"We're all ready, Shepard." Nyreen said.
"Most of the district is still trapped. We're the last functioning hospital left. The Blue Suns and Eclipse suffered heavy losses in the last attack. With the losses in manpower and equipment it'll be days before they try something like that, maybe even weeks. That is more than enough time for you to get to recapture the environmental facility." Maelon explained.
"That's good news. It'll give us some breathing room." Shepard said.
"Be warned; whatever Blue Suns or Eclipse mercs remain they'll most likely converge on the facility to prevent your team from recapturing it."
"Wonderful." Ramirez muttered.
"Well we're burning daylight, so I'd say we get to it." Zaeed argued.
"Maelon, what can you tell us about the virus?"Shepard asked.
"It's advanced in design. Very few governments have the technology possible to manufacture such a complicated biological weapon. Only the Republics, Alliance, or the Union can create such a virus." Maelon explained.
"Or the Collectors." Shepard reasoned. "Can you tell us what the purpose of the virus is?"
"Purpose seems experimental in nature. Destroys respiratory systems with harmful genetic mutations," Maelon explained while rubbing his chin. "It seems to test viable mutation level in various species. Horrific for even the Union, but feasible for the Collectors. Prime target seems to be turians. Humans known to have diverse genetic background and krogans have impressive redundant system." He said. "Humans and Krogans can serve as a control group, find various results after exposure."
"But, why would the Collectors target my race specifically?" Nyreen asked.
Maelon shrugged his shoulders. "Turians possess the largest military in the galaxy. Collectors may seek to reduce the strength of any Citadel response." He reasoned.
Shepard nodded his head in thanks. Turning to his team, he said, "Let's head to the environmental plant."
When Shepard saw Mordin coming, he stopped. "Mordin, you're coming with us? "
Mordin nodded his head.
"Are you sure? I mean don't you want to stay here and help with the patients?"
The salarian professor shook his head. "Has to be, someone else might get it wrong."
"Well alright. Maelon, are you going to be okay without extra guns?" Shepard asked him.
"Yes of course. Garm is still standing and will make sure this clinic won't fall, however like I said before whatever personal the other mercs have it'll be concentrated to protect the environmental facility. I'll stay in contact over the comms. Now if you'll excuse me I have patients to attend to." Giving one last glare to Mordin, Maelon moved past his guests to tend to his patients.
"Let's move team." Shepard ordered.
A human merc working for Maelon led the team out of the clinic's other exit. "There aren't many civilians in this sector, but if you find any make sure they know how to get to the clinic."
"I'll make sure if we see any that they'll know to reach the clinic for safety." Shepard comforted the merc.
"Thank you."
Activating his personal channel, Shepard called out to his team. "Be on your guard. Eclipse and Blue Suns may have fortified their positions. We're on our own from now on."
Receiving answers in the affirmative, Shepard equipped his weapon, idly noting Ramirez was installing a suppressor on his MP12s. Slowly, the two teams stalked the district, Shepard and Ramirez in the lead. Several buildings lined the streets.
Eclipse and the Blue Suns had indeed taken this area of the slums. There were no signs of the Red Hand anywhere. It was long before they heard sounds of shouting coming from a hallway.
"Shepard, I see a three mercs and a civilian. Orders?" Nyreen asked in a hushed whisper. Due to the close proximity, the use of private channels was unnecessary An unfortunate civilian was held at gunpoint by three Blue Suns mercs. The sergeant appeared to be a few feet behind one of his subordinates, who was closest to the hostage. Another was stationed off to the left, merely observing the situation. His back to the team as they approached.
Shepard tagged the targets using his helmet and relayed his orders. "Nyreen, keep your crosshairs trained on the leader. Samara, I want you to lift the mercs if you can. Ramirez, as soon as I take the merc to the left I want you to neutralize the one aiming his weapon on the hostage. Are we clear?" He whispered to his team. A series of nods told Shepard they knew their part.
Silently, Shepard approached the merc. Once he was within reach, Shepard grabbed her in a human shield. Immediately Samara lifted the two remaining mercs and a burst from Nyreen's and Ramirez's weapons neutralized the helpless mercs. Shepard snapped the neck of the merc in his hands and approached the civilian, who had his hands raised in fear.
It was a human male in his late twenties by the look of him. He appeared to be of Asian descent. "Please, I have no money!" He cried out in fear.
"Relax, we're not here to hurt you. There's a clinic not too far from here that's taking refugees. I suggest you make your way over there now."
"Thank you." The civilian immediately ran in the direction Shepard had indicated.
"Three down, several more to go." Zaeed said to the group. The gray architecture of the buildings lined the streets. Out of an alley way, a Blue Suns merc appeared dragging a civilian by the shirt. The poor salarian was dressed in a dark orange shirt with blue pants. A shot from Samara's Saber saw the merc go down.
"Thank you." Was all he said, before he entered a building. Presumably, his apartment .
"Mercs acting as death squads now?" Ramirez said, surprised the mercs had gone that low. "I expect this from Hegemony soldiers, but not these guys."
"And what makes you say that?" Zaeed asked him.
"Well its bad press." He answered.
"Shepard, I've tapped into the mercenaries comms and it appears something has them nervous." Maelon told him over the comms.
"Any idea what it might be?"
"No, but it seems a company sized force is near you position. I'd be careful it seems they know you're coming."
"Wonderful," Zaeed grunted, only to take cover once he saw three mercs approach. One of them had a shield and the other two took cover behind whatever they could. The team dived into cover that was available in the street. Mostly abandoned cars, vending machines, and a few disregarded mailing posts.
"I'm going to have to call you back, Maelon." Shepard said before hanging up. Even before he could get orders out, Samara lifted and then slammed the merc with the shield onto the side wall. Nyreen and Zaeed sniped his two remaining companions and a second later all three mercs laid dead on the street.
"Well that was excellent." Shepard said, shortly before a Blue Suns centurion arrived on the scene with a whole another squad.
Shepard threw a frag into the middle of the street, while the rest of the team fired on the mercs. Mordin neural shocked one of the troopers and then fired on him, depleting the merc's shields. Ramirez took advantage and firing his MX carbine managed to kill him. The frag grenade detonated killing two more mercs, leaving only two remaining. The Centurion and his subordinate tried to close in on Shepard. The Centurion's tough armor and shields allowed the turian to soak up more damage. However, a bullet from Zaeed's M100A managed to drop the shields halfway. A few more shots from Nyreen's Krysae and the Centurion was forced to back into cover. His compatriot wasn't as lucky as Samara delivered a precise shot into the eye-socket effectively killing him. Ramirez reloaded his rifle, the Centurion popped up and fired an accurate burst. The rounds impacted Ramirez's shields, before falling on the floor. It wasn't long before even more Blue Sun's mercs arrived.
"I thought Maelon said the Blue Suns and Eclipse didn't have any more troops to mount an attack." Zaeed complained, ducking behind fire to avoid suppressing fire.
"Mostly likely a delay to keep us from reaching the facility." Mordin reasoned. "Could be possible that the enemy is still fortifying the facility."
"Shepard, I have an idea." Ramirez called out.
"What is it?" He asked.
"I can get us some mobile cover." Ramirez said, eyeing the dropped shield the merc was carrying earlier.
"That's a bold move."
"We'll if you guys cover me. It might not be." Ramirez countered.
"Fine. Everyone reload, we're going to give Ramirez some cover." Nyreen and Zaeed switched from their snipers to their assault rifles. Samara and Mordin reloaded their weapons and waited for Shepard's command.
"Now!" The team sprang up from behind their cover and fired on the enemy. Ramirez sprinted out of cover and made a mad run for the shield. The suppressive fire only lasted for a few seconds before the mercs started firing on Ramirez. Luckily his shields held enough for him to reach the riot shield. He picked it up and immediately most of the damage was being absorbed by the shield. Ramirez fired his M5 Beta onto the enemy.
"Nyreen, Zaeed cover us." Shepard ordered, before he ran out of cover to join his teammate.
The team didn't argue as they fired on the enemy. Shepard equipped his shotgun and with Ramirez advanced on the enemy. They managed to kill three until the rounds started to make a noticeable dent to the shield.
"Ramirez, I don't think this shield is going to hold for much longer." Shepard argued.
"Me neither, any ideas?"
As if to answer his question, Samara lifted an old mailing post box and threw it towards the enemy. Seeing the projectile coming at them, several mercs ran out from cover. They didn't get far before the mailing post squished some of the mercs and the others were gunned downed.
After the team mopped up the rest of the mercenaries, there no signs of any Blue Suns or Eclipse anywhere. It seemed Mordin was right in his assumption, whatever mercenaries remained were concentrated on the facility plant. As they walked through the streets, Shepard heard a noise within one of the buildings.
"You guys hear that?" Shepard asked. Everyone stopped moving and tensed up, straining their senses to perceive any threats.
"Civilian. Sounds like he's in trouble." Ramirez announced after a minute.
"Follow my lead." Shepard whispered.
All six of them approached the door to the apartment to hear a man's voice, quivering in fear, pleading and reasoning with his captors. "Please…I'm telling you the truth. I was only trying to hide here."
"Combat radar says there are three inside," Shepard whispered. "Ramirez, you and me enter the room first. We'll try to talk them down. Samara, Nyreen. Stay at the door. If they try anything, bang and clear the room. Check your fire. We don't want to hit the hostage."
"We know you've been trying to steal from us. What, do you think we're stupid?" a human voice growled. Taking flanking positions at the door, Shepard stood ready on the left side of the door and gave a nod to Ramirez who readied himself on the other side. Nyreen stood behind Ramirez while Samara stood behind Shepard. Everyone equipped their pistols.
"No! I swear I'm telling the truth!" Please you have to believe me!" the batarian begged.
"Maybe we should cut off your hands and make sure you can never steal from us again." the human threaten before Shepard and Ramirez opened the door and sprung into action.
"Hands in the air! Don't move!" Shepard ordered.
The human on the right reached for his shotgun still collapsed on his back, but Shepard's warning shot placed between his feet stilled his hand. Ramirez was forced to place a similar shot on the human on the left as he tried to ready his pistol. The leader still held his pistol on the batarian.
"Don't even try," Ramirez growled.
"Drop the weapons!" Shepard ordered. "Do it now!"
The other two reached for the weapons slowly. The leader raised his pistol against the hostage's head. "Don't…"
"Shut up," Shepard ordered to the armed man. "You two. Just detach them and let them fall. If they start to open up, we'll take you down," he said keeping his pistol pointed at one while Ramirez held up the other.
The humans on the left and right side of the room glanced at each other nervously before pushing the guns off their harnesses, letting them fall to the floor, still in their compact state. The apparent leader was more desperate however and continued to hold his gun up. "Don't move! One more step and we kill your friend!"
Shepard and Ramirez immediately trained their weapons at the only armed human. "Pull that trigger and we'll put a pair of new holes in your head," Shepard threatened menacingly, his gun unwavering and his stance steady. "Let him go and you'll walk away."
The batarian prayed as he closed his eyes to the confrontation of his captors and saviors.
"You must think I'm stupid," the leader said with an edge of fear in his voice as his hands started to shake. "What's to stop you from killing us if we let him go?"
"Nothing," Shepard said bluntly. "Let him go and there's a chance you'll live. Kill him, I can guarantee you will die."
The human looked shocked and completely unsure of what to do. "I'll…I'll kill him!"
Shepard merely shrugged slightly, his masked face betraying nothing. "Then we start shooting and kill you and your friends. Seems standard on Omega. Think his life is worth yours or your two buddies? Either let him go and take chance or try and shoot him and my friend and I kill you. Do you even find anything that missing here?"
The batarian startd hyperventilating as the human leader considered his limited options. Eventually, he lowered the gun. "Okay…I'm letting him go."
"Drop the gun and step away from him," Ramirez ordered.
The human complied. "You go what you've wanted. Are we free to go?"
"We have a deal," Shepard calmly said as he lowered his weapon. Ramirez followed suit as Nyreen and Samara entered, their weapons in hand, but down.
The human looked shocked at the added numbers. Trying to play it down, he said "He's only a batarian. Don't see why you care about so much," he snorted as he walked by Shepard's team. His two friends following him, though not brave enough to show any emotion other than nervousness.
Zaeed and Ramirez kept their eyes on the batarians as they left, ensuring that the situation was still under control. Shepard approached the batarian as he tried to calm himself down.
"T-Thank you. I-I thought t-they were going to…to k-kill me," he said as he was looking at the floor and wringing his hands. Taking several deep breaths, he looked back up at his rescuers, slightly calmer. "I owe you my life, thank you I won't forget it human."
Shepard nodded. "There's a clinic not too far from here. The way there should be safe."
The batarian gave a rapid nod in return. "Yeah, okay. I'll go right away. Thanks again. I owe you…well everything."
"Is the environmental control plant near here?" Nyreen asked before the batarian had a chance to leave.
"Not too far. This is the last residential area before you get to the control plant. Just take the hallway over there," he directed, pointing in the indicated direction. "It'll lead to a lift that will take you right over there. Be careful though. There are a lot of mercenaries down that way."
After the batarian said thanks again, Shepard stepped up toward Ramirez for a sit-rep.
"All clear, Shepard," he reported.
"The elevator to the control center is ahead. Expect resistance," Shepard said to everyone. Readying his MX carbine over his M5-Beta pistol, Shepard walked slowly down the hall.
It didn't take long before the team reached the lifts. Shepard and his squad took one, while Ramirez and his team took another.
The squad slowly descended to the lower levels of the district via the elevator.
"So anyone else thinking this is a trap?" Ramirez asked over the radio.
"Hopefully." Was all Zaeed said.
"Samara, Nyreen. You two try to set up a biotic field. That will lower the risk of them easily neutralizing in these small elevators." Shepard ordered.
He received affirmatives from the two biotics and they got ready to as the elevator reached its destination.
The elevator opened up to reveal a hallway that wasn't too heavily guarded. A few shots from Nyreen's sniper rifle eliminated the two sentries at the end of the hallway who were responsible for guarding it.
Shepard took point and held his assault rifle ready as everyone followed him down the hall. "Hold it," he said. "Mercenaries up ahead."
"How many?" Ramirez asked from behind him.
"A lot," Shepard answered grimly.
Ramirez pulled up to Shepard to look around. There were at least a dozen Blue Suns and Eclipse mercenaries and from their vantage point, he couldn't tell if there were any Centurions or Commandos around. Worse yet, everyone were spread around the room. A glowing yellow sign at the far end of the room denoted the objective: District Environmental Control.
"Damn there too spread out. We're going to have to do this the old fashion way." He whispered to Shepard.
"We have no idea how many there are. We might end up fighting an army from here to the controls." Nyreen argued.
"I agree. We need to do some recon. Maybe arrange a distraction," Shepard said from the back.
"You sure about this?" Ramirez asked turning his back to look at Shepard.
"The plague is their best weapon. Once we get the cure in the air, they'll lose their footing. We'll get this district and take care of Omega after that. For now, we need to get these guys out of the way," Shepard responded.
"Alright. Nyreen, can you use your hunter drone to get us a birds eye view?" Ramirez asked her.
She nodded her head. "Drone, deployed," she said. The whizzing noise emitting from the drone was too low for the mercenaries to hear. From her omni-tool, Nyreen guided the drone to a high altitude high enough to prevent the drone from being heard or seen.
Nyreen sent the feed to everyone on the team. Inside of Shepard's helmet, a screen appeared on the upper right corner. He, along with the rest of the team, saw what the drone saw. About thirty mercs were busy either patrolling or setting up fortifications.
"Mordin, hand me a sensor." Shepard ordered. A second later he had a grenade in his hands. He stealthily peered over the corner and threw the grenade. On Shepard's radar, several more mercs were tagged that the drone had missed.
"Biotics are the biggest threats. Take them out first. Second are any snipers around and the rest we take them down like we always do." He said.
"That's it? That's your plan?" Ramirez criticized.
"You have a better plan?" Shepard countered.
Peering over the edge, Ramirez tried looking for anything that could give him an idea. He looked around, but couldn't find anything until he looked at the fans. Looking back at Shepard he explained.
"What about smoke grenades? We have a good number of them. Maybe we can obscure the area and using the thermal vision on our helmets we can get the surprise on them." He said.
Shepard thought it over and nodded his head. "Not bad, Ramirez. But what about Samara and Mordin? They don't have helmets."
From the inside of his helmet, Ramirez bit his lip, trying to figure something out. "What if they stayed back? Mordin has the cure and the only medic we have so we can't risk him getting shot. And Samara can create a biotic barrier around them to protect them from incoming fire or just cover Mordin until we clear the area."
Once again Shepard agreed with Ramirez's assessment. "Perfect. Everyone get ready," he said. Shepard threw a few smoke grenades, given to him by Mordin and a few frag grenades as well.
Less than a second later, several explosions echoed across the mercenaries' fortifications. Confused yells of surprise and outrage crossed the room back to Shepard's positions as he made his move. Sounds of gunfire followed the explosions as Shepard and his team rained bullets on the disoriented mercenaries.
Several Centurions and Commandos yelled in challenge and called for their troops to kill Shepard and his team. However, the cloud of smoke had risen so bad, one couldn't see past a few meters. Seizing the opportunity, Zaeed sniped several exposed mercs while Ramirez and Shepard took the lead. Nyreen covered the team's two flanks, preventing any chance from being suppressed.
The square became a battleground, bright streaks of light flashing between the two forces. With such heavy smoke clouding the area, numbers didn't mean a thing which was a good thing for Shepard.
He let out a short burst from his rifle, killing a Blue Suns trooper. Ramirez and Nyreen quickly opened fire on four enemy biotics, taking care not to hit any of the machinery. The smarter mercs took cover and waited for the smoke to clear, instead of firing blindly.
"Shepard, enemy on both sides!" Nyreen declared as she took cover.
"Ramirez! Frag the right! I'll hit the left!" Shepard called out as he threw a grenade down the left side of the square, scattering several troopers. Turning, he saw Nyreen pinned down by enemy fire. Turning his rifle, he immediately started to suppress her attackers to give her a chance to break cover and fire back.
Nyreen leapt at the chance and used her Wrap on a Centurion. The armor was broken through and the unfortunate victim screamed as his body was destroyed by the biotic attack.
"Night, night!" Nyreen taunted as she focused her rifle on the opponents firing on a catwalk above them. She took cover and guided her drone, until it was just above the mercenaries firing on them. The noise emitted from the drone was drowned out from the gunfire. She detonated the drone and killed several enemy soldiers and caused the catwalk to come loose and collapse.
Shepard ran toward the center console, catching an Eclipse vanguard with a headshot. "I'm moving up! Watch my back!"
Zaeed focused on Shepard and immediately targeted anyone who decided on firing upon Shepard. Luckily his helmet protected his ears from the constant loud boom of the sniper rifle firing repeatedly.
A group of mercenaries stood in the middle, firing effectively on the team. Summoning on her biotics, Nyreen deployed another Warp and curved it down behind the cover and into the hidden mercenaries. An Eclipse tech operative screamed as the attack struck him and fell from cover. The armor held though and the merc started to shake his head, trying to clear the pain. He immediately got back up and fired on Nyreen. The merc failed to realize Shepard, who fired and drained the shields on the merc.
The merc's allies sprang from cover and suppressed Shepard and delivered an Overlord attack on Ramirez.
"Shields are down! I'm argh…"
Shepard turned to see Ramirez collapse onto the ground, blood flowing from his body and staining the floor. "RAMIREZ!" he yelled. He looked around to see the one responsible for the shot. He kept scanning until he saw them.
Behind the lines of battle, three distinctly different figures stepped into view. There was no mistaking the flattened heads, angular joints, and the spined rifles. No mistaking the glowing yellow eyes.
The sight hit Shepard like a battering ram and understanding flashed through his neurons. The Collectors were here…and in center was a creature that looked like a human-turian hybrid.
The creature had the crest and head figure of a turian with glowing red and yellow eyes. The creature had two rows of jagging sharp teeth. The body looked like that of a human with five fingers on each hand, but with two large razor-sharp blades sticking out from the creature's forearms.
The sight was terrifying, but Shepard didn't let it faze him and if it wasn't for his fast reflexes he would've been a goner. The remaining mercenaries regrouped around the Collectors, who joined in on the battle.
Nyreen and Zaeed, who were dragging a wounded Ramirez, slowly rejoined Shepard at the front firing on the last remaining mercenaries. Zaeed fired his M100A at two Eclipse vanguards, killing them and eliminating any remaining biotics the mercenaries had.
Shepard ducked behind one of the pillars lining the room. "Zaeed give him medi-gel!" He ordered, referring to Ramirez whose blood left a trail.
"Shepard, I'm alright…it's just…a flesh wound," Ramirez said sounding groggy. Shepard was worried, his friend had lost a good amount of blood, but he didn't seem as bad as Shepard expected him to be. In fact he sounded as if he had just gotten up from sleeping.
"Samara, Mordin. We need your help now!" Shepard yelled into the radio.
The Collectors, lead by the hybrid creature, advanced on Shepard's position. Three Eclipse and two Blue Suns mercenaries were all that were left. Fortunately for him, three mercenaries were lifted into the air and two were incinerated. Zaeed fired a controlled bursts from his assault rifle and killed them.
Samara threw Reave attacks, which were powerful enough to force the Collectors into taking cover. The hybrid creature leaped into cover, as if suggesting it knew how to fight. Surprisingly it gave orders to the Collectors in hisses, and seemed to direct the field of battle. It shocked Shepard that it could not only fight, but lead.
Two Collector Assassins, however made the mistake of staying clustered. Seeing this Samara and Nyreen both channeled a dual Shockwave. They let it build inside of them before they let unleashed it. The immensely strong biotic attack caused the area they were in to shake and even a few pillars fell by the immense force. The Collectors were thrown back, one being impaled by a steel rod, the other was severely injured.
"Mordin, take care of Ramirez and hand me the cure!" Shepard ordered. Mordin stiffened for a moment, before realizing Shepard was better armored than him and right now he needed to insure Ramirez was stable. He handed Shepard the vial, which contained the cure for the virus.
"Shepard, wait," Ramirez said through gritted teeth as he tried to stand up, Shepard caught sight of the wound. The round entered through his rib cage, presumably hitting a bone. He laid a hand on Ramirez's shoulders pushing him down and kneeled beside him.
Ramirez handed his MP12s to Shepard. "You're going to…need this…fuck this stings!" Ramirez said holding his rib cage. Shepard exchanged his M-35 shotgun for the submachine gun.
Before Shepard could dash out from cover, Ramirez said "I guess it's your turn to make a suicide run huh?"
Shepard shook his head in amazement. 'Even wounded he's still sarcastic. I need to have him stop spending so much time with Joker.'
"Cover me! I'm going to inject the cure!" Shepard said as he raced for the console. The two remaining Collectors attempted to fire on the exposed human, but suppressive fire and biotics exploding near their cover prompted them to hide again.
He managed to reach the console pretty much unscathed, the terminal was still surprisingly intact from the firefight. Inserting the vial into a slot at the control panel, Shepard began typing furiously, studiously ignoring bullets raining down around him.
'Come on, come on…'
Various symbols, words, and lights began appearing around Shepard as he worked quickly as he could. After a few intense minutes filled with explosions and gunfire, all the systems stated that they were on standby as Shepard finished re-initializing the environmental controls. "Done!"
Behind him, Shepard heard footsteps. He ducked and leaped to the side and not a moment too soon. Almost immediately the space he had occupied had been stabbed as the hybrid creature de-cloaked, his claws embedded into the console. Shepard opened fired on the hybrid with his assault rifle, however the creature's shield's were strong and it merely turned around and swung its claws in an arc at Shepard. He ducked, the claws missing him by a thread as he continued firing.
The creature slashed the weapon from Shepard's hand, who then tackled it hard and knocked it onto the floor. Shepard delivered a punch to the creature's face and fired several rounds from his pistol right into the creature's hand. The creature attempted to stab Shepard with its free hand, however Shepard grabbed it and elbowed the creature in the face. The creature retaliated by kneeing Shepard in the gut, knocking him back. The creature recovered quickly and stomped on Shepard, making him cry out in pain. As the creature stood ready to end Shepard's life, a large boom hit the creature in the face draining its shields. The hybrid was momentarily stunned and Shepard took advantage by reaching for the submachine gun on his back and fired the entire clip straight into the creature's face. It screeched in pain and another loud shot from Zaeed's sniper rifle erupted in the air, killing it.
Shepard looked up and saw the two remaining Collectors firing on his team. Shepard got up, grabbed his assault rifle near-by and fired on the nearest Collector. Mordin Neural shocked the wounded Collector and Shepard and Nyreen targeted it, effectively killing it.
The sole remaining Collector trained its eyes on Shepard and began convulsing like it was having a seizure. Suddenly the Collector became inflamed and it spoke to Shepard.
"Enjoy your victory, human. Short-lived as it will be." The flaming Collector said as it used its wings to elevate into the air. "Your time will come," It warned before throwing a powerful unknown biotic attack directly at Shepard. Shepard dove into cover as the attack detonated on the floor, leaving a massive crater behind. When Shepard looked up, he was the Collector had vanished.
Shepard immediately ran to his team and saw Mordin giving medical attention to Ramirez.
"So what was all that about and what the hell was that thing?" Zaeed asked, pointing his finger to the dead hybrid.
Shepard sighed as he sat next to Ramirez, his back leaning against the wall. "I don't know and right now I don't care. Once we're done here, we'll take the body back to the labs and see what we can figure out," he said.
Omega
Auxera District
Maelon's Clinic
The band of heroes stepped tiredly back into the clinic. After a frantic run back through the Blue Suns and Eclipse controlled district, they all looked a little worse for wear. Various burn marks and dent lined their armor when shields failed or were breached.
Zaeed and Ramirez had taken off their helmets when they arrived, the rest opted to keep his armor sealed until they left Omega and were decontaminated.
The people inside the clinic that were healthy or strong enough started clapping and cheering for the small group as they entered. Taking their praise in stride, Shepard headed for the rooms in the back to speak with Maelon. Ramirez was left inside a room where Mordin and several other doctors performed surgical operations, much to his dismay. However, he had little choice in the matter. Samara decided to mediate and was left alone, while Nyreen and Zaeed decided to have a drink with Garm in celebration.
Shepard past several civilians he had rescued, who thanked him before entering a room Maelon was in.
"Environmental systems engaged. Airborne viral levels dropping. Patients improving. Blue Suns and Eclipse retreating." Maelon listed off as he checked his terminal. He turned away from it and spared a quick glance at Shepard as he calmly walked by. "I'll have it admit, you did a job well done. I thank you," he praised before running his omni-tool on a patient.
"So what will happen to the district?" Shepard asked.
"Likely to be repopulated, now that the virus has been cured and the mercenaries have been pushed back," Maelon replied.
"What about the Red Hand and Blood pack?" Shepard questioned.
"Red Hand is well-tolerated in this district. Have a role as a policemen in the area. As for the Blood pack it is most likely they'll either try to take territory from Eclipse or the Blue Suns, since they have lost countless personal and equipment taking this station. Red Hand will also be looking for retribution. After a while new allegiances will be made and new battle lines drawn."
"Wow, well good luck with that," Shepard said as he reached out and shook hands with the salarian scientist. "I hope our paths cross again, Professor."
"I hope not," Maelon said, shaking Shepard's hand.