He pushed on blindly through the thicket.
Branches snapped at him, cutting his face. He could feel the blood start to drip from the scratches that had dug in deep. Leaves crunched underneath his feet as he plunged deeper into the woods. The wind whistled through the trees, giving an unearthly howl.
He didn't know why he was running, there was no logical reason, but it seemed like the right thing to do. The thrill of a chase, perhaps? But who would be chasing him? Or was he the chaser? He searched the sky for a trace of his whereabouts, a glimpse of the stars, a hint of light on the horizon through the dead foliage.
No luck, clouds completely covered the sky. The only source of light came from the brief flashes of lightning within the clouds, turning the sky a milky white for an instant.
One such flash illuminated a small, open patch of ground just up ahead. Dead grass marked the area where the trees had thinned but it offered a reprieve from the forest's assault on him. Continuing on, he picked up his pace and ran even quicker but skidded to a stop once he saw the body lying in the middle.
The form was draped in shadow, all colors were muted. Even with the lightning crackling overhead, he still couldn't determine who or what he was looking at. Breaking out into a brisk jog, he exited the woods, cool air swirling past his face, making the bloody trails on his skin feel damp. His mouth dry, he approached the shadowy form and cautiously knelt down by it. It was lying on its side, not moving, and he still couldn't penetrate the blackness that had covered it like a fine mist.
Gingerly, he reached out a hand and grasped a thin shoulder, and pulled it towards him so that he could see. It only took a second for him to jump up and gasp in horror, backing up a step.
Tali lay on the ground, glowing eyes wide and unmoving behind her visor. The blackness fled her, the purple of her suit lighting up his world as color seeped back into his vision. His gaze was drawn to her torso and he dropped to his knees again as all coherent thinking vanished.
There was a ragged hole where her stomach should have been. Splattered with red, the suit was stained so badly that it looked like she had held on for hours. Her hands had been pressed over the wound as she had tried to push her guts back in as she lay dying in the ash and mud. His hands automatically went to hers as he numbly tried to do the same, applying pressure in a futile attempt before he could accept what had been presented to him. Tears now stained his cheeks as the sob burst from his throat.
"No…no…"
"Yes," the voice came from below, but not in her voice. What was staring at him now was blinking as he had been uselessly trying to save her, but instead of the warm, white glimmer, a dull blue was staring through instead. Her hands, now animated, grasped at him, holding him in place as they went for his neck. He gagged as her grip constricted, unable to breathe as she sat up, eyes blank behind her cracked visor.
"One by one you will fall and from the ashes we will stand triumphant. You cannot save her," Tali's visor shattered and a blank face, riddled by blue wires stared back and snarled, "You cannot even save yourself...Shepard."
She lunged for his face and he screamed, "No, Tali! NO!"
Shepard's breath caught in his throat as he surged out of his bed, knocking over his nightstand in the process. Grasping for the Scorpion that he had set aside for later, he checked to see if there was a thermal clip in it before processing his appearance.
The forest was gone, he was back in his cabin. The fish tank near him gurgled and the sheets from the bed lay tangled on the ground after he had kicked them off. He was now standing in his underwear, brandishing a pistol as he breathed hard after waking up from his nightmare, breath coming in huge gasps as his skin felt hot.
They're getting worse.
Tossing the pistol on his bed with a sigh, Shepard bent to right his nightstand up again, rubbing the back of his neck afterward as he checked the time. He had only received five hours of sleep before that untimely interruption. They were still in FTL travel as denoted by the streaks of light coming from the skylight, but there was no way in hell that he would want to go back and reclaim a few more hours of sleep after that unpleasant experience.
Instead, he dropped everything and headed for the shower, taking several minutes to stand in the hot spray and contemplate the events of the past day.
Once Shepard and Garrus had arrived back on the Normandy after taking an hour to confirm with Wrex the support of the krogan, Victus immediately pledged the turian forces to ally with humanity's fleet. It was a big step in the right direction, although it had come at the cost of the salarians, but Shepard didn't care. He knew the right choice had been made.
It had also come at the cost of a close ally, the fact of which that he was still dumbstruck over the loss of Mordin. Shepard felt a pang at the memory of the energetic salarian, at how he had proven himself invaluable many times over, saved their lives through his machinations. He had been a fantastic soldier and a friend. Now he was gone, sacrificed so that the krogan could have a future. It had a rather poetic twist to it. Irony could be cruel sometimes.
What was done was done, in any case. The genophage had been completely cured, neutralized by the substance that Mordin had seen to disperse throughout Tuchanka's atmosphere. It seemed that every single krogan on the planet could not help rejoicing by roaring with glee into the sun as one large chorus.
The krogan's hope had been restored, which meant that they now had the ability to lose it. But their resolve was now steeled. No Reaper would ever get that take that away from them again, Wrex had seen fit to promise Shepard that.
He didn't doubt his friend's words, but he made a point not to tell him about the dalatrass attempting to cut a secret deal with him. Wrex, logical dispositions aside, would have most likely reacted badly to the news and probably would have created a large rift between the two races if they were to come into contact with one another in the future. Shepard didn't need that kind of dissention in the ranks, after all it had only been an attempt and not an act, and so he decided to shelve the conversation, deleting all traces of it from his omni-tool.
He didn't bother attempting to contact the dalatrass again when he arrived back on the ship, or anyone else for that matter. He was still too shell-shocked (having a Reaper shooting at you does have quite an effect) and too tired to even utter a solitary word. His crew, thankfully, understood his need for an actual rest as his cabin was the location he had made straight for after embarking without anyone coming to him.
Until that rest in particular had all been completely undone by that damnable dream.
Ten minutes later, he sat in his chair, dressed in Alliance casual, as he absentmindedly tapped at the console on his desk, noting sourly the still empty mailbox. He flipped through random news articles, each one detailing loss after loss at the hands of the Reapers. The words started to blur together on the screen and every page looked exactly the same. Cursing, he pushed away from his desk as he turned to watch the fish instead, lounging in his chair as he slumped where he sat.
He put a hand on his temple as he held his head up. Now would have been a good time for a drink. He didn't care if he couldn't get drunk, he just needed the harsh taste of a good bourbon in his mouth or a smooth gin. Just something to get the bitterness away from his life, a locus for his troubles.
The screen situated on the glass case blinked as a call was being put through. Shepard ignored it for a few seconds before the chattering noise irritated him to the point where he had to accept the call. Once he was done talking with whoever it was, he could go back to sitting in his relaxed position and fantasize some more about the times when he could actually drink until he passed out.
The face that appeared on the screen was rather unexpected to the commander. For a brief second, he had thought (with a small amount of horror) that the dalatrass had come calling to chastise him some more but a second later he realized that the color of the salarian's robes were different. It was only then did he stop tensing for a bit as the image of Councilor Valern filled the screen, coughing a bit before proceeding.
"Commander, it appears that you have been altering history quite extensively since returning to active duty."
What was this, a prelude to beratement? Even though he would rather explain himself to the councilor rather than the dalatrass, he still was rather skeptical of salarian politicians at the moment.
He decided to confront the issue head-on, "The genophage was the only way we could count on both krogan and turian support simultaneously, councilor. I'm afraid the dalatrass' terms were too steep for humanity to consider."
To his surprise, the councilor merely shrugged, "Yes, I read her report on the situation. She seemed to have described you in it as a 'reckless, renegade, uncivilized dullard that could not even conceive of the consequences of his actions.'" The salarian blinked before continuing, "Of course, I didn't have the heart to tell her that your instincts have been rather...accurate in the past. She would never accept such a statement from me, you understand."
Was this his vindication at hand if he was not going to be reproached right away? Shepard decided to play it off as him not comprehending fully the hidden apology the councilor was giving out, rather taking it at face value, "I know it's not what you wanted, councilor, but I wouldn't have done it if I had felt there was no other way possible."
"I can believe you on that. The krogan are still an unknown variable in our book but at least you have them pointed at the Reapers rather than at any of us, so that may prove beneficial in the long run. Despite that, Linron is still clamoring for all salarian forces to selfishly guard their own borders rather than risk them in the fight."
"I didn't think that she would take the news well."
"Nevertheless, I am in the process of rescinding her orders by calling all troops back to their original positions and to sending engineers your way to assist in the construction of the Crucible. Her initial decisions were made with the best intentions but it's that kind of backward thinking that got us in this position in the first place."
Shepard was floored. He threw out a hand to steady himself on the chair as he visibly reeled. This was quite a nice surprise that threw off the unpleasant edge from his nightmare. Very nice indeed. Could it be that he would be able to get everyone, even after yesterday, in the fight together?
"I'm...I'm...wow, councilor. I can't even begin to...I don't know how to thank you-"
"You don't need to, commander," Valern replied with a wave, giving a friendly smile, the first one Shepard had ever seen from the man. "You've already saved my life once and considering the situation that you were in, there was no other option than to cure the genophage. I just wanted to let you know that you can count on the full support of the salarian fleets when the time comes."
Shepard straightened, fighting the urge to break out in a wide smile, "I am grateful, councilor. We all are."
The salarian's face now turned grave, "This wasn't the only reason I came calling, commander."
Shepard furrowed his brow, elation decreasing, albeit slowly, "What is it?"
"Recently, it had been brought to my attention rather worrying information that concerns humanity's representative on the Council, Donnel Udina."
"Information? What about?"
"Financial records, mostly. Only that he's somehow been moving vast amounts of funds from multiple accounts, some of these containing upwards of half a million credits."
Shepard frowned, "That is worrying. I've never known Udina to be that well off. You think he's been bought?"
"That was the conclusion me and the other councilors came to as well. There was no other alternative that we could come up with. As to who was doing the buying, we haven't decided. It could have been Terra Firma, Cerberus, or any other group that has been disgruntled from the Council's choices in the past."
"So the other councilors have been briefed?"
"All of them. We also notified Udina but kept the true purpose of our gathering from him so that he will join us, as he is expecting a debreifing of sorts from your latest 'exploits.' After that was finished, we were hoping that you would come to the Citadel and meet with us in person so that we can examine this incriminating data more closely. Udina would be rather curious as to why three councilors would meet with you and not him, this is so that it would look like that we merely want to ask you some more, unimportant questions so that he goes unsuspecting."
Shepard never particularly cared for Udina ever since he met the man. Udina was a bit of a blowhard, always scoffing that he was the next best thing in politics. The man had aspired to be humanity's councilor one day, which didn't exactly endear Shepard to Udina when he picked Anderson over him in the end. Of course, his mentor had resigned the position less than two years later and Udina was the only logical option at the time. He wasn't Shepard's first choice, but then again, he hadn't heard that many bad rumblings all throughout Udina's tenure when he had been grounded back on Earth which meant that he was doing an admirable job at least.
Until now, it seemed.
He wanted to ask more but it seemed that the actual meeting would be a better and more secure place for that sort of talk. It would also be a good opportunity to peripherally draw more support, if his temper didn't suddenly flare up. "I'll set up a course right away, councilor. You'll see me in a few hours."
The salarian nodded, "Thank you, commander. We will be awaiting your shuttle. Valern out."
The ride down to the massive station was quiet within the shuttle. It was only going to be a five minute trip but that didn't stop Shepard from attempting to catch a small nap before they landed.
Across from him, Liara arched an eyebrow in amusement as she saw her commander's head loll from the miniscule motion of the craft. Next to him, the body of Dr. Core blinked animatedly as EDI swept her optics around the confines of the shuttle, exploring its contours.
The AI had expressed interest in going to see the Citadel when they had docked as a source of information for her databanks, and also a chance to test out the mobility of the gynoid that she had "repurposed" for her own needs.
Personally, Shepard had been looking for an excuse for EDI not to come for the slightest fear there was still some hidden Cerberus tech within that body, but the AI had assured him that all processes that were not controlled by her had been summarily deleted. She had even handed Liara the proper code to determine for themselves if she was safe to leave the ship or not. It was slightly begrudgingly that he finally did accept, to which she snappily brought herself to attention.
It was weird, having an AI as a squadmate. But then again, he had been in more interesting situations before. He really was not one to gripe at this point.
Shepard was going to ask Garrus if he wanted to tag along but he found the turian tuckered out in one of the sleeper pods when he came to procure him, his mouth half open as a trail of drool ran down the side of his face. He didn't have the heart to wake him and wasn't that petty as to disrupt someone else's sleep when he himself had had a terrible one. That just didn't seem right.
It might have been pure paranoia that had driven Shepard to order everyone to suit up as if one was approaching a combat zone. That meant full armor and weapons, no excuses. This may have seemed like overkill to the random bystander but it would serve a purpose in this regard. It would give off the impression to the Council that Shepard was very dedicated to winning this war by the very fact that he had chosen to arrive sporting a small arsenal. Perhaps the deep gouges in his chestplate would be convincing enough.
"Um, commander?" Cortez called from the front, snapping him out of his drowsiness. He stood up and groped for the overhead railing, instantly alert.
"What's up, Cortez?"
The man gestured in frustration, "Nothing's up. I haven't been contacted by our Citadel controller yet and we've been flying over the Presidium for a good minute now."
"Have you contacted any of the other controllers?"
"Yes, they're all working fine, but the one assigned to the upper Presidium hasn't been responding and I've hailed them about six times now."
"Alright," Shepard sighed, "Set the shuttle down anyway. If there's a setback about our lack of clearance, we can ca-"
There was a tremendous shriek followed by a cacophony of sound as the Kodiak abruptly jolted. Liara let out a yell and grasped at the handrests for support, Shepard lowered his stance and slid into the copilot seat as Cortez struggled to maintain control of the stricken vehicle. Controls were blinking and turning red all across the board, making it almost impossible for the human to keep up.
"Cortez, report!" Shepard shouted over the din.
"Missile strike," Cortez said through clenched teeth. "Wasn't locked on, had to have come from behind us, perhaps another shuttle."
A bump threw the both of them upward as the motion dampeners started to fail. An icon indicated that the left engine was completely destroyed. Their forward momentum was skewed but the shuttle eased itself down.
"Destination in sight, commander."
"Got it, Cortez. Just keep it steady."
Several harrowing seconds later, there was a terrible shock as the craft landed on the outstretched pad on the Presidium. Metal squealed on metal as the shuttle slid forward a few feet before friction finally stopped its travel. Cortez slumped in his seat and sighed, relieved.
"Nice flying, Cortez," Shepard said genuinely, patting the man's shoulder. "Since this shuttle is down, you should probably get clear with us and find another way back to the Normandy. We'll find out what's going on here."
"Roger that, Shepard."
Activating the door, Shepard, Liara, and EDI hustled out, keeping their heads low in case there was someone taking a bead on them. This didn't feel right, what the hell was going on in the Citadel? The embassies were just up a staircase ahead, but slumped against the far wall lay the uniformed body of a C-Sec officer.
EDI walked up to him and studied the body with a practiced eye. "Pistol, close range, weapons removed," she reported. "This officer had been executed."
"What the hell?" Shepard now knelt beside the AI, trying to come up with his own conclusion. Fallen C-Sec troopers in the middle of the Citadel, in broad daylight? (so to speak, the Presidium never got dark).
It's not the Reapers, the shooting is too clean. It isn't the geth, so it must be-
His omni-tool buzzed and he immediately picked up on it without looking at the caller's information, "This is Commander Shepard of the Alliance. To whom am I speaking?"
"Commander Bailey of Citadel Security," came a weathered voice. "We saw your shuttle go down just a few minutes ago."
"'We?'"
"Myself and the Council. We took one of the elevators in the corner and are currently en route to a shuttle that will take us to safety but we're being pursued at the moment."
"Wait, slow down," Shepard shook his head, Liara leaning in to listen better, "Who exactly is doing this?"
"Cerberus landed a small team that proceeded to storm the executor's office and cut off all station communications. Local is all we've got at the moment and you're the only one in range. We barely got out in time. They had that shuttle patrol the outer perimeter in case someone got wise to their actions."
Shepard and his squad were now headed up the stairs, keeping their voices and footsteps quiet. "Is it just the one shuttle?" he asked.
"Just the one that we picked up. I only saw four individuals from the window but I can guess that they're pretty serious judging by how thoroughly they busted up the place."
"Got it. I'll see if I can take care of them once we run into each other and we'll come and retrieve you guys when we're all finished. What can you tell me about the four Cerberus soldiers?"
"Two of them were wearing white armor, carrying swords, oddly enough. There was a black and white engineer, and a huge bastard in black armor that seemed to be the ringleader."
One hit.
They approached the third floor as they kept their weapons trained on the entrance. They peered out into the small courtyard and dining area before Shepard turned his attention back to Bailey, "Stay put, we're on our way."
Bringing his Avenger to bear they quickly walked through the open area, rolling their feet so as to make as less noise as possible. A few bodies lay on the tables, some dressed in uniform, others in the professional garb of a politician. Innocent bystanders.
The executor's office was just up ahead, just one more staircase to traverse. They followed the path with the barrels of their guns, halting when they stopped at the base of a level to see three forms, all decked out in an armor with white on it, by the door of the office above them. An engineer was crouched as he worked to override the door so that it would latch permanently, two, slim female forms standing behind watching him work, judgmental gaze from their helmets piercing into the back of his head.
Shepard gestured to Liara and EDI to take his sides as they slowly readied their weapons. They hadn't been noticed yet. The engineer was the problem at the moment, any second they delayed he came closer to cracking the door code, making their job of reaching the Council a little more difficult. Once everyone was in position, he whispered a command and the stairwell erupted in noise.
The engineer's body spurted blood from hundreds of holes in his back, rolling down the stairs as the two Phantoms whirled in shock. They unsheathed their swords and started walking down the stairs, preparing to cut into their enemies when everything started to go wrong for them.
With a crackling of static, EDI deactivated her tactical cloak, proving a successful test run, as she swung an arm that impacted behind the first Phantom. The woman cried out briefly until her head hit the stairs at an awkward angle, cutting off her cry with a grunt as she went limp, her neck broken.
The second Phantom lashed out their sword but it glanced off EDI's armor, giving Liara the distraction she needed to create a singularity within the Phantom. The woman started to scream as he body reaved and rendered within the dark energy, blood starting to orbit around the black sphere. As Liara let go, the remnants of the Phantom that had not been inside the singularity flopped to the ground, various limbs and half a head among them. Liara winced slightly but they stepped over the gore and moved into the office beyond.
There was no one in the small room, anyone alive at least. Two salarian bodyguards were dead on the floor, single holes in the head, but no executor. However, the console on the empty desk was blinking. Shepard moved over to it and brought up the messaging app, his interest piqued. Apparently the executor had been in the loop between the three councilors and the purpose of this meeting as well.
One such message the executor had highlighted was marked, "RE: Ud. Fnds - Fwd SB." Shepard clicked on the icon and a message appeared, timestamped four days ago.
Mr. Hislop, it started,
Your continued provoking of the Council is an unnecessary thorn in our side when you know that it will take more than your paltry forces to defeat the Reapers by themselves. I'm not so easily bullied as was Doyle when you were neck deep in your organization's misdeeds. I may turn a blind eye but when actual words reaches my ears then I have to take action, I have to make it seem like I am cooperating with that damnable Anderson.
As for the last point you made in our previous correspondence, I'm afraid that I have no ability to deter Shepard from his duty. The man is like an attack dog, he will only stop once the prey has been killed. It was your mistake bringing him back from the dead so I really don't think that any of the blame should be placed on my head, you have had plenty of chances to kill him from what I recall. The flotilla, Horizon, Mars, and possibly more in the coming weeks. That does not sound like my problem to me.
However, in a gesture of good faith, I can give you the Citadel Council and Shepard. Both will be present for a meeting on the Citadel in the coming days, the details of which I shall provide once if you are interested enough.
I've given you my loyalty, but I have yet to reap the rewards. The other councilors and Shepard do not trust me, I am not influential enough with the rest of them hogging the spotlight. With them out of the way, I will be the only original member left and can have the pull to stop the Council from interfering in your work. I only ask that after this, you stop contacting me and consider our arrangement concluded. You will have the Council in your pocket and I will go about my business as usual.
And with Shepard out of the way, then a slew of opportunities will pop up for you and all your work, if you get the picture.
-DH
Shepard intensely breathed in and out as he read the message twice. He made sure to copy it to his omni-tool before he lashed out and plunged his fist through the flatscreen in anger. Sparks and glass tumbled to the floor and Shepard swore quietly. The councilor was right, Udina was dirty.
Liara hovered anxiously nearby, unsure of what to say when voices piped up from the dining area down below that they had to crouch instinctively. They hadn't been noticed yet so they cautiously moved over to the window, staying low as to not be seen, and peeked their heads over the sill.
The executor was pinned on a table by a fearsome looking man, the exact one who had mocked him back on Sur'Kesh. Now that he had all the time he needed to examine him, Shepard's mouth dropped slightly in interest. The agent's shiny black armor completely covered him from all angles, the helmet over his head prevented his face from being seen, the lit optics not allowing anyone to perceive any part of his body. In one hand, he held a long, serrated combat knife that was now pressed at the executor's throat as he seemed to be in the middle of an interrogation.
Liara looked at Shepard, unsure of what to do. Shepard stared blankly at her, wary of the capabilities of the man down below. One misstep could cost them their lives, but they couldn't just leave the executor there to die, could they?
Unfortunately, before their minds were made up, it seemed that the operative had gotten what he needed or was too fed up from the pathetic whimpering of the man he held in his clutches. With a single flick of his wrist, the executor's neck opened up and a geyser of blood fountained in the air. The man stepped back, not wanting to get any on his armor. He studied the gurgling man for a moment before departing towards the elevators in the corner, taking the rightmost one and closing the doors.
An epiphany came to Shepard, "EDI, can you kill his elevator?"
"Of course, one moment." She blinked her eyes once and replied, "Done. His transport will stop two floors down. Is there anything else you need, Shepard?"
That ought to frustrate him. "Take the other elevator and get the Council out of here. I don't know what Cerberus wants with them specifically but it is not going to be good in any case. I'll confront our friend in the meantime and distract him."
"Shepard," Liara protested, "That's suicide, you don't know how powerful he might be!"
"I didn't say it was the smart thing to do," Shepard shrugged, "But it is the right thing to do. Go now and get them before the asshole manages to escape the elevator in the meantime."
Exhibiting a surge of energy and fresh anger, Shepard ran out the door and practically jumped down the flights of stairs as he desperately tried to reach the floor where the man was currently trapped. Skidding on the shiny tiles, his boots clomped on the floor as he rushed over to the elevator bay at the end of a long corridor. The exit to the Presidium was at his back, hot sunlight creeping to him. Shepard grabbed his rifle from his back as he approached the elevator on the right, switching to armor-piercing rounds in preparation. He heard the elevator on the left whir by his floor soon after. Liara and EDI were on their way, he noted with a small smirk.
Shepard kept his rifle trained on the door, hearing a clicking sound coming from within. His finger itched towards the trigger as a rattling sound came from the door but as soon as it inched the slightest crack open, a translucent streak shot out and impacted Shepard in his stomach hard. He was unable to stop himself from being propelled backwards and rolling a few times on the hard tiles as the click of another rifle reverberated through the corridor.
"That's twice I've hit you now, Shepard," a raspy voice came to his ears. "The Hero of the Citadel...thrown down to the floor like a bitch. Quite disappointing."
Shepard snarled as he jumped to his feet and had a brief second to perceive the black-suited man across from him before he brought up his rifle, pointed it at the agent, and held the trigger down on auto. If he wanted a fight, then here would be his fight.
With a simple flick of the wrist, the figure brought his left arm across his body as a blue shield erupted from his omni-tool, sparks shooting out from where the bullets disintegrated upon it. It was as tall as he was, it left no area uncovered from Shepard's point of view. But the commander still fired bullet after bullet at it, hoping for one to penetrate the neon cover.
It was a lost cause that Shepard soon realized. The shield was impenetrable to all projectiles and even disruptor rounds would be hard pressed to break through. The man behind the shield reached behind him with his right hand to produce a pistol, taking advantage of his mobile cover, and that's when Shepard saw his chance.
Throwing his rifle to the side, he started running straight at him with nothing but his fists. And that was the entire point. Kinetic barriers only block incoming objects if they reach above a certain speed. Even Shepard's raw power was still not enough for his blows to be deterred, and both of them knew it.
Shepard's hook passed through the shield and impacted with the man's right arm, knocking the pistol out of his grip. There was no cry of pain from the man as the punch should have resulted in a shattered wrist at least. Instead, he gave his right arm a flick and Shepard had to jump back as an omni-sword shot towards his face.
Taking a few steps backward, the man advancing, Shepard drew his own sword from his omni-tool and held it at the ready. He would now have to consider the shield in his plan of attack. They could block tech based attacks at any speed, which included omni-blades of any size. The man brandished his sword and shield in a sort of mocking salute.
"Whenever you're ready." Incredibly, he sounded amused.
Already there.
Shepard growled as he sprung to the left side of the corridor, the operative tracking every move. Shepard calculated the best distance before he should abruptly wheel and attack. A quarter of a second later, he shot right, straight at the man as he started a diagonal arc from the ground, hoping for his blade to connect with the man's chest.
Very quickly, it was blocked by the shield as it shot forward so that Shepard's blade bounced off the center, surprising him.
He's fast, about as fast as me.
Taking advantage of Shepard's incredulosity, the man lunged forward with his blade. Shepard barely noticed in time and jumped back but not before the hot bite was felt across his left arm, through the plates. He gritted his teeth and retreated out the corridor, stepping back into the warm light of the Presidium, being followed all the way.
The sound of water fountains and passing skycars gave a peaceful atmosphere to the encounter. The scent of ozone bit into Shepard's nostrils and he quickly glanced down to inspect the damage. There was a ragged cut just above his bicep, the shining metal now glinting through as the man simultaneously disengaged his shield with a laugh.
"Too difficult for you?" the man chuckled. "Perhaps if I make it a bit easier-"
Without finishing his sentence, he lunged at Shepard as another blade appeared around his left arm. Shepard met his right arm first, knocking it aside as the left arm came in to strike. He chopped downward, throwing it off course and emerging unscathed so far.
Testing Shepard's limits, the man spun in place, creating a whirlwind of red right in front of him. Shepard held his sword up, blocking the horizontal slash and hacking it down so that the second blade couldn't take advantage of his unprotected flank.
At this rate, there would be no chance for Shepard to go on the offensive based on the intensity and frequency of the man's attacks. Both were acting like they were energized, despite having gone into a quick routine that would have left most organic men breathless. The operative was still standing tall, brandishing his dual blades out as he crossed them together, sparking in front of his body.
After a few seconds, he started to stalk forward, blades still connected as he approached the commander, face expressionless behind the helmet. Shepard lowered his stance cautiously, this was not a battle he could win by brute force alone. Those omni-blades could cut him to pieces if he wasn't careful enough. And he had a lot to lose by this point.
The man suddenly roared and uncrossed his blades, sending sparks into Shepard's face. He frantically retreated as he tried to compensate from the irritating effects but the man was on him once again, devilishly slashing and cleaving at him. One blade brought him in for a lock and Shepard used the momentum to meet the other blade as it was approaching for a blow. All three blades criss-crossed, Shepard disengaged by ramming his foot up and planting it in the man's stomach, forcefully separating them.
"Ahhh, clever!" the operative hissed as he slid back. He did not even seem winded.
Shepard sidestepped over to the railing, confusion nearing its peak, and gave a cautious glance over. Two stories below, he could see Liara and EDI heading up the designated path, ushering the three councilors and Bailey over to a waiting shuttle situated on a landing pad. Thirty more seconds and they would be home free.
The soldier straightened for a moment, seeing Shepard distracted, and spread his arms wide as he leaped. The full weight of the armored monstrosity on him knocked the both of them over the edge and tumbling to the white ivory tiles below. The operative laughed in triumph, but Shepard's arms will still free. Before they hit the ground, he thumped the man solidly on the head, using his full strength to snap the man's head back violently. Shepard gave an exulting grin before he attempted to right himself midair. But it was too late for that.
The organs in his synthsac were pressed uncomfortably against his back when he finally hit the ground. His lungs were jolted in place and he started coughing helplessly on the ground. Far away, it seemed, he could hear Liara's startled shout as the two combatants just seemingly fell out of the sky between them and the shuttle. Acting quickly, Bailey ushered the Council into an adjacent corridor, out of the line of fire. He rolled onto his stomach, as the other man was also stirring, coughing as well.
Get up...get up…
Both their omni-tools were offline from the impact, but both of them still had their guns. Head tilted up, seeing the Council for the first time and all of their startled faces, the operative stared from behind his aquamarine optics as he immediately groped for a submachine gun at his back. He rose to a knee and prepared to fire when he jerked in place as Shepard fired his pistol from the ground, each impact landing on the operative's shields but causing his attention to be diverted away from his objective.
With a snap, his shields broke and the man's head cracked back as a round impacted squarely on it. He fell to the ground, all weapons sliding away as Shepard got to his feet, a little shaky but victorious. He kept the barrel pointed at the felled man as he walked up, never letting his gaze stray from behind the gun at all times.
He now stood over the man as his helmet feebly twitched in his direction. "Who are you?" he growled.
The man laughed from the ground, "Someone who has been waiting for this for a long time."
With blistering speed, the man produced a knife from a hidden sheath and swiped it across an unarmored portion of Shepard's leg. He roared as steel grated on steel but managed to lash his foot out in response. The kick connected but his enemy rolled and sprung to his feet so quickly that it would have made anyone dizzy.
Constrained by the shorter reach of the knife, the man was by no means less deadly as he advanced eagerly, taking a few anticipatory slashes before he got within range. Shepard lifted his pistol and fired at will but the bullets didn't even slow the operative down this time, pings coming from the armor as the bullets were deflected off.
As Shepard stood in place, the man rushed forward and took a generous swing at his neck. Shepard countered by throwing up his arm and letting the greave take the blow. Even so, the impact jolted his arm so forcefully he thought it would be rattled out of its socket. Compensating for his lack of attack, he swung his left arm forward but the man easily snatched it out of the air.
Confused, Shepard pushed on his limb as if it would somehow make him reach his target but he found himself pushing against the same amount of force. The man's fingers were unmovable, they were firmly clamped around his fist. Shepard could hear the hydraulics in the modified Cerberus armor whir and strain as they bent to compensate with the enormous pressure.
The man was just as strong as he was.
"Now we will find out who is truly better," came the rough voice, slowly bringing his knife underneath with the intent to plunge in between Shepard's armor and break the synthsac, spilling his intestines.
With a bellow, Shepard wrenched his arms to the side, diverting all of his force in a different direction, leaving the man's head and torso exposed. Unable to use his limbs, he threw his head forward in a ferocious headbutt, hearing the thump as the man impacted inside his helmet. The operative's limbs fell to his side, stunned, and Shepard called upon all of his strength to bring his arm up in the most powerful uppercut he had ever delivered.
With a crack, the fist connected with the chin and the man rose a good two inches in the air before toppling over. His helmet sailed off his head and over the railing but the man continued to lie on the ground, perhaps in shock. Shepard let out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding in relief until the man sat up, features contorted in a nasty grin as blood streamed from his mouth. Shepard could hear gasps from behind him and all sound disappeared with a noiseless roar. There was only a tiny ringing as the man got to his feet and appraised him with a cruel look, seething as they could only stare for that moment in time.
Tali, never in my life have I needed you more than now…
The face was more than familiar to him. It was uncanny to behold, to say the least. The chiseled chin was there, the hard mouth, the shorn hair, and even that little scar on the top of his head was in the exact same spot...just like the one on his head.
Before either one could speak, the shuttle to the right of them exploded in a brilliant fireball as the Cerberus Kodiak appeared over it. Shepard involuntarily glanced at it and was met by a fist in his face as he turned back to the man. He started to fall but was halted as a hand yanked the collar of his armor and was shunted into the face of his foe, his rival.
His doppelganger.
A clone.
"Y-Y-You did..." the dying trooper had said while bleeding to death on the ground.
"You had your chance," the other Shepard spat at him, "Now it's mine."
Before he could land a critical blow, Shepard found only azure in his vision and the hand on his collar released, causing him to fall flat on his back. He twisted around to see the other Shepard slide away from Liara's biotic attack towards the wrecked husk of the Alliance shuttle, snarling like a rabid dog. He also sprung to his feet quickly but the amount of weapons being trained on him by Liara, EDI, Bailey, and soon Shepard were more than enough to deter him from further conflict.
The white shuttle opened its door and a centurion brandishing a portable turret leaned out and started to hose the walkway. All ducked for cover as the clone ran up the downed shuttle to hop into the hovering one. Before the door closed, he locked eyes with Shepard, pure hate flowing from them.
"You took everything from me!" the clone screamed, "And I will get it all back!"
"God damn it!" Shepard roared as he picked up his pistol and fired a few rounds at the fleeing shuttle. Whether any of them impacted was a moot point, it soon was out of sight. Shepard had never felt more violated in his life. This was the ultimate indignity, the pinnacle of his shame.
The Illusive Man had gotten his Shepard after all. He apparently had tried again after his first failure. But was he the only one? How many more "Shepards" were out there to begin with?
For that matter, he couldn't be sure if he himself was the original.
"Go-Goddess," Liara wavered, eyes wide. "I- I...I had no idea…"
Shepard could only stare at the space the shuttle had previously occupied. He grimaced as the image of beholding his own self shouting at him came back in a torrent of anger. He rubbed his jaw as he clenched his teeth. His knuckles were white underneath his gloves as he clenched his hands into fists.
The Illusive Man. That lying son of a-
"Thank god, Shepard," a clipped voice jolted him into turning to face Udina as he stepped forward from the adjacent corridor, hand outstretched. He wiped his sweating forehead with a cloth, "If it weren't for you...Cerberus would have killed us all. Thank god for you, commander."
Shepard did muse to himself that the situation would have been a lot more awkward if the councilors had actually been watching the fight. He already had to explain the fact that he was a cyborg several times over and he did not want to entertain the idea of sitting in an interrogation room and being asked why someone with his exact likeness was trapezing all over the Citadel causing mayhem and destruction. This was a matter that he did not need the group in front of him to know.
Shepard scowled as he coldly regarded Udina's still-offered hand. He slowly looked up at him, "Despite your best efforts to betray me, everything did end up rather picturesque, wouldn't you say?"
"W-What?" the man attempted to feign shock, "Don't be ridiculous, Shepard. I would never try to betray you. After all, you are the Hero of the Citadel, humanity's symbol. What good would betraying you possibly do for-"
"Councilor," Shepard now turned to Valern, "The data, please."
The salarian obliged by activating his omni-tool and soon the data was shared between everyone in the group. Windows describing the illicit financial maneuvers and the damning texts were scrolling down everyone's display. The councilor's faces were set in stone, they had already decided the fate of their colleague. Bailey arched an eyebrow but took a noted step away from the human councilor.
"Oh, please," Udina groaned theatrically, "This is not proof. It's merely a plant, a move by my political rivals in an attempt to remove me from office. Do not be swayed by such easily modified documents that you would lose sight of the overall goal in mind: defeating the Reapers. Together, we can fight th-"
"'However, in a gesture of good faith, I can give you the Citadel Council and Shepard,'" Shepard read out loud, "'I will be the only original member left and can have the pull to stop the Council from interfering in your work.'" He let the incriminating words speak for themselves before addressing Bailey, "As a Council Spectre, I can take authority of the situation but it would be rather improprietous to perform an arrest on such a prolific public figure before I receive your approval. I want to tread on as few toes as possible."
"Be my guest," Bailey shrugged as he holstered his pistol. Shepard reached out a hand to pluck the councilor from where he stood but the tiny man took a few steps back before brandishing his own weapon, an M-3 Predator.
"Get back, Shepard," Udina said shakily, weapon twitching slightly. "I mean it. I will shoot you."
"That doesn't mean you will kill me," Shepard said quietly, holding out his hands in a submissive gesture. "I can't guarantee the same for you if you try to resist. Surrender now and I can at least promise that no harm will come to you."
"That is such bullshit. This isn't an arrest, you're going to kill me, aren't you?"
"Are you listening to yourself?" Shepard shouted. "We are not Cerberus, Udina. We are not going to kill you for what you did. You will have your day in court like a normal person with rights, just so you can see how different we are from the monsters you have been in camp with."
Udina had thrust out a hand while Shepard was talking and pulled Councilor Tevos toward him. A hand wrapped around her waist as the other pointed the gun to the side of her head. The asari let out a shrill shriek as Shepard's hand twitched toward his weapons.
"Don't," Udina shook his head, glaring at the commander. "Here's what we're going to do, Shepard. You're going to place all of your guns on the ground and slowly back away or I will kill Tevos right in front of you. You have three seconds, starting now."
Shepard scowled as he released the magnetic locks on his weapons. "Do what he says," he called to Liara, EDI, and Bailey, who all begrudgingly complied.
Once the last of the firearms fell to the ground, Udina smirked, "That's better. Now, here's what we're going to do next. You're going to call a shuttle that will be completely automated. No designation, no affiliation. Tevos and I will take a little ride and if I reach my destination unmolested, I will release her without harm."
Shepard muttered, "You really don't think it's going to be that easy, do you? That you can just up and walk out of here? We will find you in the end, Udina, and I can't promise your good health if it comes to that."
Udina cursed, "You know what? I'm sick of your pretentious drabble, Shepard. You really are way too trusting and it's high time that I remove the thorn that has been plaguing me for so long." Udina extended his arm away from the councilor and pointed it at Shepard's face. Shepard frowned, wary at the consequences, at the blunder Udina just made when there was a boom and he instinctively closed his eyes.
The sound of a splatter and a series of hysterical shrieks indicated that Shepard was not dead yet. In fact, it didn't even feel like he had been shot at all. He opened his eyes to see a shaking Tevos being pulled away by Sparatus and Valern as they comforted their colleague. His eyes were drawn to the spot where Udina had once stood, now lying on the ground with his head missing, bits of flesh dispersed around where it had exploded.
Bailey's eyes were wide, "Holy fucking shit, did you see-?"
"Um, yeah," came a sarcastic drawl over the comm, "Thanks a lot for not bothering to wake me up, Shepard. I would have loved to have tagged along as apparently you needed my help once again."
You have got to be kidding.
Tracking the trajectory of the bullet that had killed Udina, he glanced upward until he found a pair of figures standing along the railing of a storefront. Zooming in with his optics, he saw that one was dressed in a pilot's uniform, and the other in a blue-and-grey set of armor holding a smoking sniper rifle. Both waved upon being spotted and Shepard gave out a dry, disbelieving laugh.
"Garrus, you son of a bitch," Shepard chuckled, "Did I ever tell you before that you have the most perfect timing out of anyone I've ever met?"
"Most of the time you've treated it as a negative," the turian sounded so smug, even through the comm. "But I will make sure to remember this moment as the time that I handedly saved Commander Shepard's ass. Oh, and Cortez says hi, by the way."
"You roped my poor pilot into this as well?"
"You could say that he roped me," the turian said defensively as he shot a teasing glare to the human next to him.
"Smart-ass."
Two hours later, Shepard sat at his desk as the conference call with Hackett and Anderson continued on, both men also sitting down at their desks, the latter still dusty from a hectic day back on Earth.
The situation on the Citadel had quieted down enough for C-Sec to declare the Presidium safe again. The Normandy still remained docked at the wards in case Shepard had to make a statement in the near future. Diplomats are rather twitchy when it comes to firearms being utilized in the near vicinity.
Anderson shrugged, "I just don't get it. Udina was always desperate for more power, but calling an attack on his own councilors? What sort of madness would drive him to do such a thing?"
Shepard leaned forward, "It seemed like he was being blackmailed by Cerberus. It was only noticed by STG when Udina failed to properly encode the message we had recovered."
"Could be that the Cerberus assassins were sent to silence Udina for failing to take the proper precautions?"
"We don't know that now. I doubt we will ever learn the full extent of his misguided plan."
He also doubted that he would tell Anderson or Hackett the larger picture overall. It seemed like he only just now started to gain access to their full trust and now the knowledge that there was a clone of him on the loose would only put all of that in jeopardy. No, it was better to deal with this problem as it came up. Clone or not, it wouldn't dare show its face in public unless it was between him and Shepard. Shepard was the only one who knew the full truth and it would stay that way.
Hackett now interjected, "Well, at least all of the councilors are safe, and their gratefulness will play a big part in things to come in the future. We're already seeing an improvement in the construction rate on the Crucible once the turians and salarians had arrived on the scene. At the current rate, it should be ready in about two months."
"Any additional information on the Catalyst?"
"None, but we can afford to not worry about it in the meantime. With all the activity that's been going on, we've finally gotten another friendly hail. The quarians are willing to enter talks with the Alliance."
Shepard perked up at the words quarians, "They want to pledge their fleets to us or send their engineers to the Crucible?"
Hackett grimaced, "Not right away. Apparently in the past three weeks, they've gotten themselves involved in a little bit of a spat."
"A spat? With whom?"
"For some ungodly reason, they've chosen to start an assault at the geth forces operating on Rannoch, their homeworld, in an attempt to reclaim it."
Did you know about this, Tali? Is this why you couldn't talk to me?
Shepard was flabbergasted, "They attacked the geth...with the Reapers invading the galaxy? What kind of boneheaded move was that?"
Hackett gave a weary sigh, "My best guess is that they wanted a more permanent base and decided that they were pressed for time when the Reapers arrived. They've been having a tougher time than they thought, based on the reports crossing my feed. I think they want you to sort things out so they can enter into a decision to embark on a tactical retreat or continue their current path."
"Which route would be preferable in our case?"
"The one with the least deaths."
Shepard waved a hand dejectedly, "Then send me the coordinates and I'll get the story straight. Another war on top of this one is the last thing anyone needs."
But I'll be able to see you again, won't I?
A/N: These chapters have been ballooning up bigger than I had previously anticipated, have they not?
I might make 200,000 words yet.