Chapter 17- Tuchanka
October 10th, 2164
Tuchanka
Urdnot Wrex fired his grenade launcher at the incoming abomination. The thing that used to be a Krogan roared, and charged. Wrex hit it again, straight in the chest, and it exploded in a shower of blue-black flesh. Wrex roared in victory, before firing on a squad of those salarian things. They went down without much trouble. A loud roar split the air, and a bright crimson bolt bit into the Urdnot lines, atomizing anything it touched. Wrex cursed. That damn machine was wiping their force out!
When the machine first landed, it took up position near the shroud, a massive salarian structure, and Krogan forces began pushing against it. Clans Gatatog and Maralok were already gone, and Nakmor was on its last legs. Clan Weyrloc, however, had betrayed the Krogan people, siding with the damn machine! It was their krogan-turned-abominations that the remaining clans were facing! The Krogan advance had stalled, the machine destroying anything that moved with ease. To make matters worse, the Krogan were encamped on the Plains of Kalros, the preferred hunting grounds of the great thresher maw. Thankfully, the maw had not yet made its move. Suddenly, the sound of engines split the air, as strange ships descended from the sky, firing crimson lasers into the machine horde. Some touched down, and soldiers streamed out, weapons blazing. Wrex wondered just who they were, before he realized it. These were the humans that the council was so impressed by. A loud BOOM split the air, as a human fired a strange weapon, which, judging by the mushroom cloud it produced, it was a mini-nuke. Wrex liked these new arrivals already. A human walked up to him.
"Who's in charge here?" He asked.
"I am. This is the Urdnot offensive line. Can I have some of those nuke launchers?" Wrex said.
"If you want a Cain, you'll need to request one from an armory officer. What's the situation?" The human asked.
"Our push has been halted by that damn machine. We have a plan to take it out, but we'll need to get to that arena," Wrex pointed, "In order to execute it."
"What is said plan?"
"This area is home to Kalros, the mother of all Thresher Maws. That arena up there has some massive maw hammers, which we'll use to sic her on that thing."
"I like the way you thing. We'll be able to break through, although our ground based weapons aren't strong enough to take down that reaper. We can't call down an orbital strike, because it will take too long to calibrate it, plus we risk hitting the Shroud, which could destabilize Tuchanka's atmosphere."
"Then LET'S GO!" Wrex shouted, before he ran to a human armory to pick up a pair of Cains. The owner was surprised, to say the least.
The offensive was short but bloody. By the end, only Kaidan, Shepard, and Blasto were standing. The Hanar was currently blazing away at a pair of Gargoyles, the Krogan hybrids. Urdnot Wrex fired off another pair of Cain shots, tearing into the Reaper forces. Judging by the facial expression, the Krogan was having a blast. Shepard laughed a little, before realizing that he was, once again, experiencing a defect. The squad had just breached the Maw hammer area, and were fighting their way underneath the Reaper. A red beam slammed into the ground next to Shepard, the human barely diving away in time. A leg from the reaper slammed down near Blasto, the Hanar being propelled away from the blast.
"COVER ME!" Shepard screamed, before making a dash to the first maw hammer. It activated, smashing into the ground repeatedly, creating thresher maw attracting tremors. A Reaper shot slammed into the ground where Shepard was, seconds before. The hammer kept on hammering, a testament to Krogan engineering. Shepard ran across the bridge between the two hammers, only for a Reaper foot to slam down, shattering the bridge. Shepard tumbled down, only for a biotic throw to hit him in the chest. He was sent flying into the air, barely landing on the far side of the ruined bridge. Shepard got up and started running, as another Reaper shit nearly killed him. He pressed the big red button on the last hammer, and it started hammering. A loud roar split the air, and a massive Thresher Maw flew out of the ground, slamming into the reaper. The reaper attempted to fire, but missed, allowing for Kalros to drag it under the sand, and begin its feast.
The soldiers cheered at their victory, mowing down the remaining husks.
The next day was a celebration of victory. Massive barrels of Ryncol were rolled out, and the Krogan and humans sat down and had a nice party. However, under the guise of festivities, a serious discussion was taking place.
"As you know, the Krogan are currently under the effects of a terrible disease known as the Genophage. We demand a cure, or we won't help you with your battles outside of Tuchanka." Urdnot Wrex said to the human ambassador.
"My superiors predicted this. A cure is on the way, with several salarian doctors working on it." The ambassador replied.
"Remember. We are not just chained varren to be released at any foe, before being neutered as a reward. We want this cure to be permanent." Wrex said.
"Of course. Why would we do anything else?"
"I'll believe it when I've got kids." Wrex said, before turning away.
Five hours into the party, it all went to hell. A strange rumble was heard, before the massive head of Kalros burst out of the ground in the middle of the Urdnot camp. Its head was covered in reaper tech, and below its mouth lay a reaper heavy cannon. It was covered in dark armor plating, and had huge troop compartments built into its sides.
"SONOFABITCH!" Shepard screamed, as the damn thing opened fire. The red beam swept across the human forces, catching them unaware. Hundreds of reaper husks poured from Kalros' troop compartments. The Krogan returned fire, with some manning the defense turrets, firing on the abomination. This only served to get the Maw's attention, causing it to fire its cannon, atomizing the cannons.
"We need immediate support! Get a frigate down here, NOW!" Shepard heard some officer scream. Laser beams began to flay the creature, although they did no damage. An explosion on the creature's head signified an M920 Cain scoring a direct hit. Kalros turned towards the shooter, and fired. Several Krogan Tomkahs opened fire, their massive cannons slamming into the creature's armored hide. Roaring, the thresher maw leapt forward, soaring over Shepard, before plunging down on top of one of the Krogan tanks. The rest scattered as the maw burrowed underground, firing as they did so. The maw came out from under a Tomkah, utterly destroying it. It fired its beam, vaporizing a Tomkah as it did so.
Then, a human frigate came down, and fired its mass accelerators. A volley hit the Maw, which caused it to take notice. As Shepard watched in horror, the maw leaped into the air, and slammed into the frigate. Locking its jaws, it ripped into its hull, overloading Null Barriers.
"GET TO COVER!" Shepard screamed, mere moments before the ship's antimatter core detonated. The explosion tore apart everything. Kalros, the Husks, Krogan, Humans, buildings. Shepard went flying, his hearing gone, his eyesight gone. He activate his biotics, attempting to float to the ground. He failed, and slammed into the ground. Had any other human been there, he would have died. As it was, Shepard would need a month in a hospital to recover. A scream told him that Kaidan was flying overhead. The biotic slammed into a stream, before floating up, and thankfully out of it. Blasto had managed to stabilize himself, and was floating down, a picture of Serenity, before a flying Wrex crashed into him, sending both of them into the ground.
"This one believes that the Krogan has broken all of This one's tentacles." Blasto said, weakly, before collapsing.
"Shut... up... Jellyfish..." Wrex said, before passing out. Shepard did the same moments later.
A/N- The Battle of Tuchanka has now revealed a new type of husk that the Reapers will be deploying: Threshers! Because why should Harvesters get all the fun?