A/N: So, this story recently hit 11,000 views, now coming up on 12,000, and with chapter 16 we hit 50 reviews. To show my appreciation I'm uploading this chapter early. This story is coming to a close within a couple chapters, and its been awsome ride writing this for you people. There will be more of this Universe, but also a new one as well. "Hint hint"
~ I don't own mass effect, Bioware and EA does ~
21.03.0005
The Citadel
Private Hotel Room
The Report came over the comm, and Ashley Williams unconsciously straightened slightly.
Zaire Shepard had been spotted exiting the Docks.
There was a pause, followed by a scramble to get her team notified, as apparently Shepard couldn't have been bothered to let them know she was arriving in advance. Which meant that the Council had to cut short one of their meetings and the Board had to move from their respective posts and head for the Tower.
More accurate information came up, and Ashley pulled up her Omni-Tool. From where Zaire had managed to secure an escort of Asari Commandos and Justicars the second Human Spectre didn't know, but the Council ordered C-Sec to slow them down while they discussed the implications and The Board rushed to QECs or shuttles.
Personally, Ashley was agitated. Shepard had brought Asari Special Forces to the Citadel, one of the safest places in the Galaxy, to speak with the top Galactic Government. What the hell was she thinking?
As the Spectre monitored the situation on her Omni-Tool, the rest of her team showed up. They were all armed and armoured to some degree, though lighter than normal, as they had been staying off the Normandy, and instead had been staying in a hotel owned by the Council and was used for Spectres who were staying on the Citadel for long periods.
It was then that the Council sent their orders, telling Ash to head for the private Council Chambers, and that the rest of her team was to wait outside the Presidium Tower entrance. Reinforcing the Guards posted there while Williams would help guard the Council themselves.
The group barely spoke to each other, moving around their floor of rooms, collecting thermal clips and securing their armour and weapons as quickly and efficiently as any species special forces team. Privately, Ashley was extremely proud of the team she had created, but outwardly she kept her focus on her own problems.
All of them were ready to go within minutes, and as one group they exited the hotel and entered a large SkyVan, setting course for the Presidium Tower.
It took them 10 minutes to get to the main entrance for the Presidium, and Ashley parked the Van in a spot reserved for Spectres. Her team quickly spread out, with Merbon and Genenis heading for the doors while the rest spread into the crowd, disappearing into the general public. Ashley herself headed for a side door that would lead her to the private elevators that would take her to the Council.
The Second Human Spectre kept an eye on her Omni-Tool, and noticed that Shepard had gotten through security quicker that expected. She also realized that Liara was with the First Human Spectre, hidden within the Asari Commandos and Justicars.
Entering the elevator and hitting the button for the private conference rooms, Ashley didn't bother to watch the doors close. Instead she pulled up the Docks security camera network and watched as Zaire, Liara and two Justicars get in one armoured Skycar, while the Commandos and remaining Justicars get in another, with C-Sec providing an escort through traffic.
Flicking though her options, Ashley selected the C-Secs comms and listened to the constant updates they supplied while the elevator took its time. While she listened, the Spectre pulled up facial recognition software on her Omni-Tool and ran both the Commandos and the Justicars.
One of the Justicars was identified first. Justicar Samara, at 800 years old, she was almost a Matriarch, and had an excellent record. She was also identified as one of the people who was seen working with Shepard while she was with Cerberus, and was apparently with the Spectre when she claimed to go though the Omega-4 relay.
Another hit just as Williams finished reading the Justicars summary. This time one of the Commandos, a Yano L'voke. She was a former Republic Commando, who was also noted for her high leadership skills and had apparently abandoned the Republic to fight in the War. She was apparently a friend and contact of Shepards, though Ashley hadn't ever heard of her.
The rest were skilled Asari combatants, all with special forces training and had all fought at significant battles in the Reaper War. The Asari Commandos were a Known Mercenary Force that was famed for their skill against the IR. It appeared that Shepard had called in some favours.
"Sniper fire, Sniper fire! Priority Skycar is hit and losing altitude!"
Ashley immediately snapped her attention back to the C-Sec comms, a paled slightly at what she started to hear filter down.
"Second priority is following, we are trailing damaged priority. Biotics appear to be in use."
"Damaged Priority is attempting a crash landing. All local armed units converge on Bachjret sub-park number 223."
"Status of second Priority?"
"Second priority is landing outside the entrance to the park."
"Gunfire, gunfire! Figures in armour are attacking crash site, Priority 1 and escort are returning fire!"
A new voice on the comms spoke up, Asari, sounding authoritative as she spoke.
"All units remove civilians from the hotzone and form a perimeter, a proper armed response will deal with the hostiles. Do not engage. I repeat do not engage!"
The elevator doors opened and the second Human Spectre wasted no time in storming out, still listening to the reports via a earpiece. Walking down the hallway as fast as she could, Ashley reached the correct room quickly and swiped her Omni-Tool to unlock the door.
"Dispatch we have wounded civilians, children of multiple species, requesting immediate ambulances and medical teams."
Pausing just as her hand hovered on the button to open the door, Ashley stopped. She had thought that this was the intervention of the Asari Republic, as Councillor Irissa had warned her about, but government sanctioned operations on the Citadel would never allow civilians to be harmed, never mind children.
Ashley grimaced, she had hoped to stay out of it, but this wasn't what she had been expecting. It took a few seconds of her own mind waring between Duty to her respective bosses and Duty to the people she was meant to protect. A slightly disturbing amount of time in retrospect, but she eventually came to the inevitable answer.
Turning on her heels, Ashley re-entered the elevator and hit the button to return to the ground floor. Her team would be invaluable to cover any stranded civilians and the park was barely 5 minutes in a Skycar. While silently cursing whoever invented slow elevators, she contacted her team and informed them of her decision.
Finding no complaints, they started to head for the SkyVan they had previously used, and Ashley continued to monitor the situation though C-Sec.
Eventually exiting the elevator, the Human Spectre moved at a fast pace, and managed to catch her team just as they were getting into the SkyVan. Which took off a few seconds later, the group wasting no time in rushing to what was now being described as a war zone.
From her Omni-Tool, Ashley heard the report of the action taking place, and she picked up the pace when reports of Zaire engaging in close combat came through. Williams had seen Zaire's katanas strapped on her back when she had watched the security footage, and she was unsurprised when reports of heavy casualties were being dealt to the attackers.
They were barely two minutes away when thing went bad to worse. Reports of skycars breaching the perimeter, one set of unknown blacked out SkyVans. The others where registered to the Krogan Embassy, not good.
The entire comm channel practically exploded with chatter as a previously small group of special forces clashing with one another suddenly turned into an all out war. Ashley was close enough to see the smoke rising from between two residential blocks, and the hundreds of flashes of gunfire and biotics seemed to only hint at the full extent of the badly out of control situation.
Landing just outside the perimeter, Ashley wasted no time and grabbed her rifle, hauled herself out of the van, and rushed towards the line of C-Sec personal. A Turian Officer moved to intercept, but a wave of her credentials and her was giving her directions.
C-Sec apparently had enough SWAT on site to contain the situation, but the addition of Krogan made intervention impossible. Instead they were keeping the war as contained as possible, with snipers setting up in nearby buildings.
Reaching the gate to the park, Ashley's team spread out and took positions to overlap firing lines, and Ashley finally got a look at the devastation Shepard had created. Most of the artificial forest was burnt to the ground, with dead Asari in black armour strewn around the area, either on fire, were on fire or missing a head.
Out by what appeared to used to be a children's playground was a group of armour clad Asari, Zaire's Commandos, and were using the position to prevent flanking.
In the thick of the fight were the Krogan, practically a wall of armour and shotguns, they were steadily advancing forward. The Asari Justicars providing a biotic shield to protect them from enemy biotics.
And in the middle of it all were four figures. A quick look was enough to identify Zaire, who was locked in a sword fight with another Asari with a Warp sword. Another two Asari were fighting each other close by, and on closer inspection Ashley realised they were both dressed as Justicars.
Deciding that the chances of getting shot by Zaire's Commandos were less than the Black clad ones, Ashley gestured for her team to circle the war zone. If she could make contact with Zaire or Liara, she could get a better understanding of what was going on, and how to stop the fight from escalating further.
Zaire Shepard
Dodging a horizontal swipe, Zaire's knees hit the ground and thrusted her hand up, her biotics striking out and hitting The Huntresses armoured chest, giving Zaire the time to get back to her feet and prep for the next attack.
They were evenly matched, mostly. T'roaza had hundreds of years of experience, and she was in armour. Zaire had greater speed and reaction time, with the knowledge of multiple sword techniques, she was, however, in a leather jacket and pants.
Bringing both blades up, Zaire blocked a overhead downward strike, and locked her blades with T'roazas. Bringing her foot up, Zaire kicked the Asari backwards, again aiming for the chestplate. The strike hit, and Zaire used the gained momentum to go on the offensive.
Zaire's biotics had always been unique, with a eerie intelligence that Zaire had always used to her advantage. However, her new upgrades took it to a whole new level. They felt like an extension of her body, like a third arm, and with OS in the background subtly directing them for her, they were truly unique.
Even as Zaire moved forward to strike, they actively moved around her body, increasing and decreasing her mass to help her strike faster, hit harder, and with less energy wasted. Most of it was done with OS's help, who was actively boosting certain parts of her cyberware to give her every advantage she could get.
Speeding forward, she flipped her swords into reverse grips, pivoted on her balls of her feet, and jumped. Bringing her katana down as she descended on the Huntress.
The Asari blocked her first strike, but failed to track her second blade, and Zaire continued her spin and sliced through her left legs armour plating, neatly slicing the Asari's leg muscles.
Said Asari grunted in pain, hopping back on her good foot as she gingerly tested her leg. Though her eyes never left Zaire and her sword remained in a defensive position. Though she kept her focus on Zaire, she didn't see what was happening behind her, and Zaire watched as Samara dealt a serious biotic blow against Sa'sya and sent the disgraced Justicar hurtling into the unsuspecting Huntress.
Both Asari went down in a tangle of limbs, and Zaire used the time to take a breathe while both Asari attempted to disentangle themselves from each other, Zaire took a moment to take stock of her surroundings.
Grunt had apparently taken the order to 'leave nothing standing' to heart and had razed what was left of the forest to the ground. He had then formed a line of Krogan, who were shoulder to shoulder, and the Justicars had moved behind the wall of Krogan, providing biotic support, while the line was advancing on the Republic Commandos, who were starting to see the futility of their actions.
She was so distracted by the Krogan that she didn't see the two Asari getting up, the Huntress spitting blue blood from her mouth and wiping her face with the back of her hand.
The disgraced Justicar sent Samara flying with a Shockwave - Push combo, and they both charged towards Shepard, the Huntress slowing due to her leg wound.
Though just as Sa'sya got within a few feet, her biotics swirling round her fist as she prepared to strike, an incredibly loud boom sounded, and the disgraced Justicar ... Sa'sya's head disappeared in a blue mist of Asari blood. The body still in motion, and with no brain to command the body, it fell to the ground, sliding forwards and landing at Zaire's feet.
Standing next to both Yano L'Voke and Liara T'Soni was Ashley Williams, her team assisting in moving civilians who had gotten trapped in the cross fire out of the way. But none of them had fired the shot, it was Aethyta Visir, holding a anti-material sniper rifle. Probably the same one that shot her skycar down in the first place.
T'roaza had frozen in place, clearly surprised to see the Matriarch. She also noticed that she was out numbered, out gunned, and with a debilitating injury. Clearly she knew she was beaten, as she placed the Warp Sword on the ground and placed her hands in the air in surrender.
While Aethyta roughly restrained T'roaza with the help of L'Voke and Williams, Liara went straight to Zaire, a worried look on her face.
"The Republic Commandos are surrounded, if you call off Grunt they'll most likely surrender to us."
Zaire didn't respond, but she still watched as another of the Republic's Commandos fall to a shotgun blast, the Krogan were looking eager to finish them off. The Justicars looking no different, if less emotional about it.
Liara frowned with worry when her bondmate didn't respond, and that feeling grew in size when Zaire didn't seem to care, and she decided to gently initiated a meld, probing for permission to enter.
Though there were walls, more that there had been, Zaire let them down the instant Liara touched them, and she saw that Zaire wasn't really seeing the present battle in front of them.
Instead there were flashes of the deaths of her Parents, Kaiden, her Adoptive Parents, Anderson, Mordin and Thane, and then lists of those who hadn't survived the Reapers invasion. Her mind was struggling and acting out instinctively, and she being forced to relive seriously painful memories. Liara's heart broke at the feeling of despair and sheer tiredness, as her bondmate had clearly not been psychologically prepared for another battlefield.
The Asari gently used her connection with her love to replace the terrible memories with loving ones of her own, memories of them in bed, on the presidium, on the SR one and two.
Slowly Zaire pulled herself out of her own mind, and embraced her soul with Liara's, seeking a Pease she hadn't felt since Eden Prime. The Reapers were gone, but they still hunted her mind. To Zaire, she had woken 5 years after fighting non-stop for so long, she was simply unable to cope with it all.
"Just make it all go away. Please, make it stop."
Turning to Yano she gave the order Zaire couldn't. The Asari Commander nodded and Williams went with the Asari to send the order for sese fire. The two acknowledging the need for privacy, even if it was temporary.
They stayed in the meld even as they were transported to the Krogan Embassy. Wrex and Grunt personally telling both the Council and the Board to piss off.
Thank you for your continual support everyone, and thank you to those who Review, Please do read and review, criticism is welcome, flames not as much. Of course, reviews are my life blood as a writer on this site, and every time my email goes off it motivates me to write more. Guests can leave one as well, and it only takes a minute, even if it's just a 'Good chapter, keep it up' as it really does help.
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