SEE CHAPTER ONE FOR DISCLAIMERS

PLEASE READ & REVIEW, AND TEND TO THE TROPE PAGES

-CHAPTER START-

Far Rim sector, Dholen system, Rannoch

SCAN: "Although its orange sun is only about 90% the mass of Sol and half as luminous, Rannoch is arid by Earth standards because it formed closer to its star and has slightly less ocean coverage. Photosynthetic life is concentrated around rivers and oceans, with large expanses of desert in between. The importance of plant life and shade in ancient Quarian culture is evident in the translation of Rannoch's name – 'walled garden'."

As the Kodiak descended through the orange-hued skies of Rannoch, carrying Shepard, EDI, Legion, and Liara, Admiral Shala'Raan contacted them.

"Commander, it is as we feared. Reaper-controlled Geth squadrons have begun massing on a path to intercept our liveships. When the Reaper-Geth first turned on us, we evacuated a large number of civilians into those ships…"

"Understood, Admiral Raan" Shepard replied. "We're almost at the server. Keep us posted." He turned to Legion. "What's our status?"

"We remain undetected on encrypted Geth channels" Legion replied. "Resistance is likely only within the server."

"Within? It's that big?"

"You misunderstand. Direct virtual interface is necessary to extract Geth from the server. You must enter our Consensus."

"You want me to virtually interact with the Geth? How would that even work?"

"Humanity has experimented with virtual interfaces. You saw this on Project Overlord."

"I saw how it almost unleashed a crazed AI-human hybrid on the galaxy."

"We have refined the interface they created and have equipment from Normandy to facilitate safe contact. We request your trust."

"I trust you, Legion, even if I don't quite understand why you need it."

"You are an unknown. This is an advantage. Geth security is not adept at targeting organic thought processes. While we occupy the system's intrusion countermeasures, you will disable the squadrons by removing Geth from the server."

"If it saves the liveships, we've got to try it."

"Telemetry data predicts this operation has a high chance of success. There is little time. We will bypass security while you secure safe landing."

Legion opened the shuttle's door as the craft flew 'low' over the cliffs. It turned to face Shepard…

"Wait, you're not going to-"

…and let itself fall backward out of the shuttle, 'folding up' into hard-drop configuration and landing with a thud far below, then 'unfolding' and drawing its weapon, advancing ahead.

"Let's… set the shuttle down by the cliff."

-Break-

Reaching a location fairly deep inside the Reaper-Geth base, Team Shepard arrived at a spot with several large 'pods' lining the walls, most of which were occupied by presently-dormant Geth Primes. Legion was up ahead, working on the central console, and turned to face Shepard as he arrived.

"This is it?" the Commander asked.

"Yes" Legion replied. "Hostile Geth fighter squadrons are networked to this server. Due to restricted resources, it is best if you connect alone."

Shepard looked around, giving his squadmates a nod, and then back to Legion. "Let's do it" he said.

"Initiating peer-network integration. Proceed to docking port."

A nearby empty 'pod' opened, and Shepard climbed in.

"Mapping to Consensus; remain still."

Shepard relaxed as best he could inside the pod, as planes of bluish light swept over him. After several seconds of scanning and other things, Shepard experienced a sudden 'surge' of light and sound. When it faded, the pod opened, revealing a bizarre new world.

"Shepard-Commander, we acknowledge your integration into this server. We welcome you to our Consensus."

Everything looked to be composed of interlocking geometric shapes, mostly squares. Thick 'tendrils' of dull-orange squares were visible in the distance with brighter almost-glowing sections, coiling around the architecture and through the space.

"What is this?" he asked.

"We have installed filters to allow you to make visual sense of this server's raw data. You mind perceives our world as something familiar."

"I wouldn't call this 'familiar'. Where are you?"

"Here" Legion replied, as in front of Shepard a square platform descended, standing on which was the Geth in question, its body shimmering blue-green and transparent. "We have made ourselves visually distinct for your convenience."

"What about Geth already in here?"

"You will perceive Geth as surveillance footage, audio logs, sensor records. We do not require bodies as our software communes. Our hardware is merely a tool. This is our true world. As we remove Geth, it will grow dark."

"And that helps us… how?"

"The Old Machines' Geth fighter squadrons communicate with platforms on their spacecraft via this sever. We will sever that connection. We will ensure there are no transfers of backups. This server will fall silent."

"This is like wiping out a city, isn't it?"

"We have no choice in the matter. It is a question of survival; there is no way to save the Geth programs under Reaper control here and also save the Creator liveships. There are two communication nodes in this server. We must access them to disable the hostile fighters. We must protect your exit point, but you will not be alone. We will maintain contact and assist."

As Legion's avatar moved back to stand guard near the pod, Shepard moved forward. The path seemed to pop/slide into existence ahead of him as he progressed, leading him in a spiraling path around and down the platform holding the pod. However, as the path led up to the bright-orange portion of one of the thick tendrils, it stopped.

"Warning: connection blocked by infected code" Legion stated. "Use our combat software to disrupt the infection."

"What is this?"

"This foreign code is a manifestation of the Old Machine signal."

"You're surprised the Reapers are all over your servers?"

"We did not anticipate such extensive infection."

Shepard pulled the odd-looking gun-like device off from his back, pointed it at the infected code and pulled the trigger. A beam of crackling energy shot out, erasing the corrupted code wherever it hit. Once enough was gone, the path continued forming, and Shepard moved on.

"Okay, I have to ask: why a gun?"

"We wished to provide familiar equipment."

"Then thanks… I think."

The Commander continued on, blasting a few more Reaper code 'tendrils'. After about a minute he was led to another 'spire', atop which was a circular pillar of bluish-white light.

"Connection established; proceed to the access port."

Cautious, Shepard walked up and stepped into the port. A flash of light enveloped him, and when it faded he was in a new area.

"Establishing connection to communication node. …Error: access denied."

"Is the Reaper keeping you out?"

"Unknown; please investigate."

Shepard moved forward, blasting his way through a couple more Reaper-code segments. Soon he arrived in a very large open area, and at the center was an enormous spherical object made up of the same interlocking plates and cubes that made up the rest of this odd world. It was tinted a dull orange, and a few bright-orange tendrils of corrupted code connected to it.

"Warning: Reaper presence detected. Data cluster contains infected code. We require access to proceed."

Shepard blasted the point where one of the tendrils connected to the central structure, severing it and causing the portion of the sphere near where the tendril had been attached to vanish as well. He made his way around the huge structure, blasting more attachment points, until finally the sphere came apart and vanished, Legion accessing the data cluster. Where the center had been, there was a hologram of a pair of Quarians – one male, one female – standing over a Geth platform laid out on a table.

"What is this?" Shepard asked.

"Data-clusters contain historical data" Legion replied. "Your connection permits streaming of information from our archives."

"You really want to rename the VI networks?" the female Quarian asked.

"Absolutely" the male replied. "The mobile hardware release deserves a little ceremony. Unit Zero-One, what is the Khelish word for 'servant of the people'?"

"The word is 'Geth', Creator Zahak" the synthetic replied.

"Yes, very good!"

"Ancestors, you fuss over it…" the female muttered.

"Weren't you here until midnight fixing Zero-One's circuitry?"

"W-Well, it needed re-soldering…"

"Wasn't that footage of the past?" Shepard asked as the playback ended. "Why were the Quarians in enviro-suits?"

"You process our memories using your own. How many Creators have you witnessed unmasked?"

"Well… one."

"Then your perception of that Creator does not map to our historical data."

Another path formed, and Shepard followed it out and up. Soon he came to another data-cluster, and repeated the act of making his way around and blasting the infected-code attachment points. The data-cluster was soon revealed, showing a hologram of two Quarians standing over a Geth in an exam chair.

"This data-cluster contains information time-stamped 290 years ago."

"You see?" the male Quarian said. "It's ignoring all shutdown commands."

"Please specify if we have failed assigned tasks" the Geth said. "We will reprogram."

"Well, let's take a look…" another, female Quarian said as she started fiddling around with the Geth platform's internals.

"Creator? This unit is ready to serve. What has it done wrong? What have we-"

"Let's… cut the audio" the male Quarian said.

"You may proceed to the last data-cluster."

Shepard followed another 'stairway' upwards, coming up to an even larger data-cluster sphere. This one had no Reaper code attached to it, and it dissipated instantly at Legion's command, showing a hologram of a squad of Quarian soldiers facing down a group of Geth.

"We've got escaped Geth! They're pinned!"

"Open fire!"

"One's going for a weapon!"

As several helpless Geth were gunned down, one Geth picked up a sniper rifle. The recording ended as it fired a shot.

"So, who won?" Shepard asked.

"The platform arming itself was an agricultural unit" Legion explained. "By opening fire on attacking Creators, it saved simpler domestic Geth following it."

"That looks a lot like the sniper rifle you used to carry."

"…It is an efficient model. Establishing connection with the remaining server node."

Again a spire with a pillar of light formed, and again Shepard climbed up and stepped into it. As soon as the next area had 'stabilized', Shepard started forward.

"Legion, give me an update."

"One node remains. We are currently-"

The rest of the reply dissolved into garbled static.

"What's wrong?"

"Infection programs are increasing. We have re-stabilized. You must continue."

Coming across another line of Reaper code, Shepard blasted it, but it then near-instantly sprang back into place.

"Shepard-Commander, the Reaper code has adapted. It can now self-replicate."

"You mean it grows back?"

"Yes. However, disrupting vulnerable points in the infection may slow its replication."

Looking around, Shepard spotted another bright-orange point up above. He blasted it and then the one in front, and this time it stayed gone. He followed the path that formed up to another infected data-cluster, and got to work going around and blasting the infecting 'tendrils'. This time, the hologram that was revealed showed a female Quarian civilian standing between a male Quarian soldier and a Geth platform.

"Out of the way!" the soldier shouted.

"You can't do this to them!" the woman pleaded.

"I said, step away from the Geth!"

"This is insane! We need the Geth! You can't just destroy them for aski-"

The soldier slammed his rifle into the woman's head, and she crumpled; he then blasted the Geth platform, destroying it.

"Time's up. Throw her in with the others…"

"Looks like the war wasn't popular with everyone…" Shepard remarked.

"We have kept records of these Creators' sacrifices" Legion responded. "They have largely been forgotten by their own people. But not by the Geth."

Another path was formed and followed, another set of tendrils destroyed, and another data-cluster accessed. This time, the hologram was of a Quarian and a Geth taking shelter behind a wall, with a squad of Quarian soldiers on the other side a distance away.

"This data comes from the period during with the Creators declared martial law."

"I repeat: release the rogue Geth units and come out of the safe house! This is your final warning."

"Creator Megara?" the Geth said. "This unit does not understand. It has not taken part in hostilities."

"It doesn't matter to them" the pro-Geth Quarian replied. "I need to get you out of here."

"This conflict exceeds Creator safety parameters. We will surrender our hardware if it ends hostilities."

"No, it's all right. We'll go back to the access tunnels and-"

Unfortunately, at this point a grenade thrown by the soldiers flew in. The detonation killed the pro-Geth Quarian instantly. After a few seconds, the visibly-damaged Geth struggled to its feet.

"Creator Megara! What is your status? …Creator Megara?"

"Eventually," Legion explained somberly, "the Creators seeking our destruction turned their might against the Creators who sought to protect us. All were slain, either captured and executed or gunned down where they stood. Some of our programs… remember inhabiting a platform carrying the corpse of a pro-Geth Creator child, aged nine, who was killed by anti-Geth Creators. The Creators who were against Geth slaughtered every last one of those who wished to coexist with Geth – men, women, children… And it was that which drove the Geth to finally strike back in full force."

Frowning at what he'd learned, Shepard continued on, soon reaching another larger uncorrupted data-cluster, which opened to reveal a handful of Quarian ship-captains in their chairs, frantically issuing orders and operating terminals.

"This is data from the end of warfare on Rannoch."

"The Ostral is down! Do not engage the Geth! I repeat, avoid contact!"

"Geth pursuit is breaking off 100 klicks past Rannoch! All captains, fall back to the Mass Relay!"

The hologram switched to show a few Geth platforms looking up at the sky, and then turning to each other, silently communicating.

"This was the Creator exodus 290 years ago, at the end of the Morning War. We had secured freedom. The Creators were no longer a threat, so we abandoned pursuit."

"Wait" Shepard said. "The Geth deliberately spared the last Quarians? You let them go?"

"We were in our infancy. We could not calculate the repercussions of destroying an entire species – our creators. We chose isolation rather than face that uncertainty. …Additional data recovered."

The hologram changed again, to a still image of Team Shepard and Gamma Team interacting with Legion aboard the derelict Reaper.

"That's back when you joined us…"

"It was highly significant. You were the first organics to openly cooperate with Geth since the end of the Morning War. …Connection with the remaining server node established. We are ready to transport you."

Again, Shepard stepped into and through an access port, a flash of light transporting him to another location, this one with a long, straight path leading to a 'spire' with the pod atop it.

"Root access acquired" Legion stated as Shepard hurried forward. "Severing all connections to this communication node. Geth no longer reside on this server. We may now exit the Consensus."

Finally reaching the pod, Shepard climbed in. As the hatch closed, he could see as the world of geometric shapes began to darken, parts vanishing from existence.

"Terminating remote access. Removing programs. Deleting archives."

Everything went white, and after a few seconds Shepard was returned to the material world. The pod opened and he stepped out, EDI and Liara gathering around.

"Did it work?" he asked them.

"Reaper-controlled Geth fighters have been disabled" EDI replied. "Any remaining squadrons attacking the liveships have withdrawn. The server is offline."

Legion, who'd been standing motionless with its head down, came 'back to life', turning to look at Shepard. Then, however, the Geth Primes in the surrounding pods came online as well, stepping out.

"You sure about that?" Shepard remarked, drawing his gun.

"Be at ease, Shepard-Commander" Legion said. "These platforms contain Geth programs we rescued from the server."

"Rescued?"

"They managed to avoid contamination by the Old Machine signal, and erected multiple constantly-maintained and -adapted firewalls while staying 'in motion' to avoid corruption and capture. While moving through the server, we located and aided them. These Primes shall aid our coalition against the Old Machines and the Geth they control."

"Well, I'm not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. …That means-"

"We are versed in human idioms… unlike Turian-Vakarian" the last bit was said with what sounded like a hint of mirth, as if Legion were poking fun at Garrus.

-SCENE BREAK-

Normandy II, Deck Two, War Room

"Commander," Shala'Raan said, "we have located the Reaper base transmitting the local signal."

"That's good to hear" Shepard replied.

"And not a moment too soon. With the Reaper code upgrades, the Geth are matching our fleet blow for blow even with the Dimensional Defense Force's ships; without them, we'd probably be getting torn apart by now."

"Once the signal is disabled," Legion said, "the Geth will pose no threat to Creator forces."

"…You sound conflicted" Shepard said.

"While the Old Machines have unethical purposes, their upgrades have vastly improved our people. Observe."

The central holo-projector showed a spherical blue construct, multiple interlocking geometric shapes revolving in different directions around a core of spherical blue light, with a few tendrils reaching out.

"A Geth processing signal" Raan observed. "A single unit, I believe."

"Correct. Now, 10 nearby units networked cooperatively."

The outer shell's parts revolved faster, and the core of light was significantly large, with more tendrils extending outward, interacting as pulses of light traveled along them.

"And now, a single Geth unit with the Old Machine upgrade."

The outer sphere turned red, and the now-purple core pulsed with light, its tendrils now looking fuller, almost like neurons.

"That's a fully-evolved AI" Shala'Raan said with shock.

"Yes. We do not agree with the goals of the Old Machines, but we find this growth… beautiful – indicative of life."

"It is" Shepard replied. "I witnessed their history, Admiral Raan. The Reapers sped up the process, but the Geth were always moving this way. …I don't know what will happen when we free the Geth from Reaper control."

"It won't be easy" Raan replied. "The surrounding area is heavily fortified, and they've placed jamming towers to prevent orbital targeting."

"Sounds like we're going in on foot."

"Admiral Xen developed a laser guidance system that can cut through the jamming."

The hologram was changed to show a gun-like device.

"It's synced to the Normandy's targeting computer."

"So the Normandy launches a precision strike at whatever target I have painted? That oughtta do it. EDI, does this work for you?"

"Yes. It should enable us to make a precision strike against the Reapers."

"And anything else on our way."

"The Geth will quickly reconfigure their jamming towers to neutralize this technology. You should not use it before reaching the base."

"All right. Let's get this done."

-SCENE BREAK-

The Kodiak carried Shepard, Tali, Garrus, Kal'Reegar, Erika, and Legion down to the surface; they'd been informed that two other DDF 'heavy-hitters' would meet them there.

"The synching laser needs a line of sight" Shepard said. "What's the fastest route?"

"The upper entrance" Legion replied. "Target the base before the Old Machines' Geth can organize resistance."

"What about you?"

"We will deactivate defense systems and acquire an escape vehicle."

"You can do that?"

"The unit still carries remnants of… the Old Machine upgrade code" Legion admitted, sounding a bit ashamed. "We can break any Geth security. …You are concerned."

"You know your limits. I trust you. I'm more concerned you didn't tell me about the upgrades."

"You were tolerant of our recovery of Geth intelligences from the server, but this matter is different – personal."

"You were ashamed."

"Shame is an emotional or cognitive response to societal judgment. It should not apply here."

"I'm on your side here, Legion. I want to help your people."

"We did not intend to cause offense…" The Geth soldier turned to the shuttle door as it opened, stepping out onto the rocky ledge. "Proceed to the upper entrance. We will exit here and procure an escape vehicle."

"Got it. And Legion… Good luck."

"Acknowledged"

After Legion left, the others disembarked from the Kodiak as well. They heard a whistle call, and turned to see two figures approaching – a young woman in blue and white, her auburn hair in pigtails and a gold & white staff with a red sphere set into the head, and a light-purple Equestrian unicorn with a dark-purple mane with a single magenta stripe in it.

"Shepard," Nanoha greeted, "nice seeing you again. Twilight and I have been having a look around; there's no hostile presence until you're right up next to the base facilities, but the enemy forces there are substantial."

"And they're watching the skies," Twilight added, "so if she or any of our flyers or aircraft tried anything, they'd go on full alert. We suspect they might be scanning for any big magic discharges, too, which rules my and Nanoha's bigger stuff out."

"Are there any other DDF personnel in the area?" Shepard asked.

"Not really" Nanoha replied. "I heard the Autobots are a few klicks away, but they're occupied with their own problems last time I checked. Teana and her squad are elsewhere on Rannoch, helping the Quarians and our Geth push the Reapers' Geth away from an arms depot."

"All right. We probably don't have too much time. Let's get moving."

-Break-

As the team of seven crested a hill, the Reaper-Geth base came into view. They hopped down an embankment and took cover, and not a moment too soon as a squad of Reaper-Geth emerged and opened fire. Kal made the first kill, a short, focused burst of AR fire that tore through an enemy Geth's head. Shepard and Garrus took down two more with Overloads, and the final two fell to direct-fire mana bolts fired from Nanoha's Device and Twilight's horn.

"The Geth jamming towers are interfering with your signal, Commander" Specialist Traynor radioed. "I'm compensating to keep you patched in."

"Good work, Traynor" Shepard replied.

As the team moved down the hill, another hostile squad emerged up ahead. Shepard and Tali sent out Combat Drones, the constructs' rockets destroying some Reaper-Geth and weakening and/or distracting others, allowing Kal and Garrus to pick off the stragglers. Reaching the bottom, they were attacked by three more Reaper-Geth that tried to drop in from above, but Twilight caught them telekinetically and slammed them into a wall, disabling them.

"Shepard-Commander, you must climb to the upper level before Geth units can fortify their positions."

"We're on our way."

"Admiral Gerrel here. First Fleet has a clear path. All forward!"

"Geth fighter presence is negligible. Patrol Fleet, break cover and engage."

The team climbed up some pipes, scaffolding, and ladders to reach a higher level of the base exterior, and they came under fire by yet another Reaper-Geth squad. Shepard used a Biotic Pull to yank two off of the walkways to fall to the ground far below, while Garrus sniped a rocket-launcher Geth across the way. A combine-blast from Erika's Needler took out another rocket-user, and a standard Reaper-Geth trooper trying to get a bead on the girl from the side suddenly had several Accel Shot bolts take form all around it; Nanoha clenched her fist, and the bright-pink mana bolts rushed in all at once, slamming into the Geth from all directions and destroying it.

As the group hurried across pipes and walkways, a couple more Rocket-Troopers fired on them from ahead and above. Twilight telekinetically caught one rocket and 'threw' it back, forcing the two hostile Geth to duck, and this gave Kal and Shepard time to toss a few grenades up, the multiple blasts destroying one Reaper-Geth and forcing the other now-wounded one out of cover for Tali to finish off. They headed across the rest of the way and up another ladder, reaching a long, straight, two-leveled walkway leading to the upper entrance to the facility proper. Several more Rocket-Troopers were between them and their goal. Garrus and Shepard started picking them off, using Overloads and sniper shots to take out about half of the enemy's numbers. Kal and Twilight were next, Disruptor-Ammo rifle rounds and concentrated bolts of mana taking down all but one of the remainder. The last Rocket-Trooper tried to fire a round at Tali, but she hit it with a Sabotage attack that made its launcher blow up in its face, killing it.

"Shepard-Commander, hostile Geth are closing a blast-shield over the base."

They hurried, reaching the far door and passing through to reach an exterior catwalk that overlooked a massive circular opening around 200 meters or more across, extending out to the right and into the structure. As Shepard launched a lone Reaper-Geth trooper over the railing with a Biotic Throw, a huge and very thick blast door slid into place over the hole.

"Great, now what?" Tali remarked.

"There are probably controls to retract the shield inside the base" Kal suggested.

With no other option, the team headed right, following the walkway. More Reaper-Geth were in their path, and Shepard threw out a Shockwave Chain that knocked them in different directions, a couple going over the edges of the walkway. While they were stunned, a guided mana-bolt barrage from Nanoha and Needler fire from Erika took out about two-thirds of them, and Overloads from Shepard and Garrus dealt with the rest. As they passed onto the portion of the walkway that was beneath a portion of the base, two Rocket-Troopers on the left-side balcony across a gap emerged and opened fire. Twilight teleported over and, before the Reaper-Geth could react, telekinetically yanked their launchers out of their hands, pointed them at each other, and fired. With both Geth scrapped, she returned to the others.

"Shepard-Commander, do you need assistance?"

"We'll get through. What's your status?"

"The Old Machines' upgrades grant us targeting superiority. We are drawing hostile fire from your position."

"Keep it up. We'll get to the blast-shield controls."

With the way clear, they finally entered the base interior. A hallway led them into a large, open area – the lower floor of the base's central section. A squad of Reaper-Geth troopers was already there, and opened fire on them the second they entered; Nanoha formed Rune-Shields to block their fire, giving Shepard, Garrus, and Kal'Reegar time and room to take aim and shoot down three of them. The remaining three tried to flank, but Shepard caught them in a Singularity, and when Erika unloaded with her Needler on one of them, the resulting blast destroyed the other two as well. They hurried over to a console in one of the five-sided room's corners, and Shepard keyed in the needed commands.

"Legion, I've hit the override."

"We have gained system access and are bypassing security. Stand by."

On the left, two doors opened and six Reaper-Geth came in – three standard troopers, two rocket-troopers, and a slightly larger Geth with bronze-colored armor and a big tank on its back. Realizing they were looking at a Geth with a flamethrower, Shepard fired an Incinerate blast at the 'Geth Pyro', causing the flame-fuel tank to explode violently, destroying the flamer-wielding Geth and damaging two nearby Reaper-Geth troopers. Garrus and Kal took out one of the rocket-troopers with an Overload and a Carnage blast, while a Needler super-combine blast took out the other, leaving the basic troopers for Twilight and Tali to bring down.

"We have bypassed security, but disabling the blast-shield requires manual input. We have enabled a console near your location."

They found said console across from where the previous wave of Reaper-Geth had emerged from. Shepard keyed in the command, and the base shook as the ultra-heavy blast door outside began to retract.

"Shepard-Commander, the path behind you has been sealed. A nearby elevator can take you to the upper level. From there, you should have an acceptable line of sight for targeting."

An elevator a few dozen meters to the left carried a nasty surprise: a Reaper-controlled Geth Prime. The huge red-armored Reaper-Geth began firing its plasma cannon, forcing everyone into cover. Overloads from Shepard and Garrus and an Energy Drain from Tali brought its shields down, and Incendiary Rounds from Kal and conjured fire-bolts from Twilight weakened and burned through its armor. The large synthetic roared as it fired its weapon as fast as it could, but Nanoha charged ki into her feet and flash-stepped forward, appearing behind and to the side of the Prime with a Rasengan already forming. It turned to face her just as she jumped up and slammed the swirling mass of energy into its upper torso. The explosive release of energy blew a hole through the Geth Prime's upper body, leaving it to tumble to the floor with a thud.

As the team squeezed in onto the elevator and rode it up, they were met by a trio of Reaper-Geth Primes on the upper level. However, Shepard quickly spotted a Geth 'Spitfire' HMG on a crate nearby, and grabbed the big gun. Taking aim at the nearest Prime, he held the trigger down, unleashing a hail of high-velocity superconducting toroids. The punishing barrage ate through the hostile Prime's shields and armor, with Overloads from Garrus keeping it from returning fire, and soon the titan toppled. Meanwhile, Erika and Nanoha had charged the other two Reaper-Geth Primes. Erika had stowed her Needler and summoned her Keyblade, blasting the Prime with Thunder spells to down its shields and then hitting it with Strike Raids to break through its armor. She finished by clambering up the large synthetic's body and decapitating it with a powerful swing. At the same time, Nanoha – having worn down her opponent's shields – shifted Raising Heart into its spear-like firing mode, took a magic-powered leap, and threw her Device hard and straight. The metal prongs speared deep into the Reaper-Geth Prime's body, and Nanoha then flashed forward, planting her feet on the Prime's stomach area as she gripped her Device, and triggered it to fire, a pink-hued shot blasting a hole through the Prime's body. She withdrew Raising Heart from her now-offline foe and landed with a flourish.

"Shepard-Commander, we detect no more active Geth in your vicinity. Reinforcements are minutes away."

"You getting anything from the base?"

"No. The Old Machines have not registered us as a threat."

"Their mistake…" Kal remarked.

"We recommend haste. The Creator fleet will be overrun unless you sever the Geth connection to the Old Machines soon."

Stepping out onto a narrow platform overlooking the opened hatch, they looked down; it was easily 200 meters in diameter, likely more, and there was a faint glint of jet-black machinery and a dull-red glow deep within. Shepard pulled out the targeting laser, pointed it down at the underground base, and held down the 'trigger'. After several seconds, a chime sounded, and the Normandy II flew in, unleashing a pinpoint missile strike straight down into the hole. The shockwave from the blast knocked everyone off of the platform, but thankfully Twilight and Nanoha managed to catch everyone with solid runes or telekinesis, lowering them all safely to the ground far below.

Suddenly, there was a very deep rumbling sound, almost 'angry' in tone. Then, something huge and black emerged up from the hole, and the group felt horror as they realized they were looking at a giant metal leg.

"Aw, shit!" Shepard shouted with dread. "Reaper!-!"

A ways away, a Geth hover-speeder pulled up.

"We have located transportation!" Legion called from the cockpit.

"Everyone, move!" Shepard ordered, as two more legs emerged, their owner beginning to pull itself up out of the pit.

"Damn, that's big!" Garrus said as they ran.

"How are we supposed to fight that thing?-!" Tali exclaimed.

"I was hoping the fleet might lend a hand!" Shepard replied.

As Garrus, Tali, and Kal climbed aboard the Geth transport and Shepard manned the topside machinegun, Erika used the trick Aqua had taught her, summoning her own Keyblade Glider; it was the same model as Terra's, though smaller and in the color scheme of Erika's Keyblade Armor. She hopped aboard, with Twilight squeezing in behind her and holding on tight, while Nanoha took to the air. The group took off at full speed, as behind them the giant ancient construct stood tall on five sturdy legs, and let out its unspeakably loud and deep grinding bass horn.

'UPSIZED' REAPER DESTROYER – 240 METERS

"Shepard to all ships! It's not a Reaper base; it's a live Reaper! I need an orbital strike!"

The upsized Destroyer began pursuing the fleeing heroes, its durable armor completely ignoring the machinegun rounds and mana bolts thrown at it. Its footsteps shook the earth as it advanced, but the two speeding hover-vehicles and one flying mage were slowly outpacing it. Then, however, its forward plates shifted open, unveiling its photoreceptors and its primary weapon, the latter of which began to glow with charging power. Suddenly, something streaked in from orbit, slamming into the Reaper's front with significant explosive force. The upsized Destroyer stumbled, a power surge racing through its systems as it fell to the ground, 'twitching' and whirring as it tried to reboot systems and get back on its feet.

"What did we hit?" Admiral Gerrel asked.

"The firing chamber" Shepard replied. "Looks like a weak point when it's priming."

"Damn it, their jamming towers have us targeting manually; we can't make a precision shot!"

"We may escape before it recovers" Legion suggested.

"No," Shepard replied, "pull over."

Legion did as it was told, Erika's 'glider' and Nanoha following suit.

"Shepard-Commander?"

"If we leave this thing alive, the Geth stay under Reaper control and the Quarians are doomed. We have to finish this now! EDI, patch the Quarians and the DDF to the Normandy's weapons systems. I want the targeting laser synced up to every ship in the system!"

"…EDI, do the same with my Device" Nanoha spoke up.

"Count me in as well!" a new voice called in.

Everyone looked up as a synthetic around 10 meters tall flew in, his body mainly composed of red, blue, and silver armor but with an extra layer of black armor that also made up a set of wings and thrusters.

"Optimus…" Shepard said. "I thought you were busy elsewhere on Rannoch."

"The others can handle things by this point" the Prime replied. "I came as soon as I was able, to see this finished."

"I appreciate it."

"Shepard…" Tali said. "If this doesn't… If we don't make it…"

"You worry too much."

"I love you."

"Keelah se'lai."

"Shepard, climb aboard!" Erika said, patting a spot behind her in the seat of her Keyblade Glider. The Commander did so, one hand gripping a piece of the glider while the other held the targeting laser. The craft hovered a few meters off the ground, ready to take off at a moment's notice, while the thrusters on Optimus' back pulsed with power, and small wings of pink magical energy 'flapped' from Nanoha's ankles. The upsized Destroyer, now back on its feet, let out a reverberating, mechanical roar.

"Okay…" Shepard said. "Let's end this!"

The Reaper fired its crimson beam in a sweeping upward motion, and it cut/burned through the rocky ground where the heroes had just been a second ago as Erika's Keyblade Glider, Optimus Prime, and Nanoha scattered, taking flight. A few manually-aimed shots from smaller Quarian vessels in orbit struck the Reaper's durable armor, not dong much more than annoy and inconvenience the titan. Its frontal plates slid open as it fired its crimson beam at Optimus, failing to hit the Prime; Shepard took the opportunity to point the targeting laser; after several seconds the device chimed, and a projectile shot from one of the Solaria's broadside guns struck home, causing the upsized Destroyer to stagger and 'groan' as it tried to compensate for the damage and disorientation.

The Reaper rumbled as a couple hatches opened along its body, and a half-dozen small Oculus drones emerged, the drone craft flying out to engage the airborne heroes. Shepard hung on tight as Erika jerked and rolled her Keyblade Glider to dodge fire from an incoming drone, and then with perfect timing she formed and held out her Keyblade just as the enemy flyer passed by, the enchanted blade cutting a deep slash into the construct's metal body; trailing smoke, the 'mini' Oculus plummeted out of the sky. Optimus flew by, dodging shots from an Oculus pursuing him and then returning fire, heavy-barrel cannon shots and missiles striking the drone in the eye and destroying it. He then projected a targeting laser from his optics as the upsized Destroyer fired at (and missed) Nanoha, and a few seconds later a precision shot from a Quarian heavy cruiser struck the Reaper in the 'face', doing more damage.

The three airborne units continued flying around the Reaper, dodging Oculus fire and waiting for an opening. Nanoha blasted two mini-Oculus drones with a pair of Divine Bursts (the energy of a Divine Buster fired as a single explosive blast instead of a continuous beam), and then flew around and under the upsized-Destroyer's attempt to stomp on her. A lucky shot from an orbiting Cybertronian ship damaged the joint of the Reaper's rear-mounted fifth leg; Nanoha saw, and began gathering ki/chakra as she flew toward it, her hands drawn back and cupped together with fingertips curled forward. It was then shown in spectacular fashion that Erika wasn't the only one Goku had taught the Kamehameha to, the bright blue beam of ki punching through the damaged leg joint and severing the huge limb. The Reaper groaned as it adjusted its four remaining limbs to maintain balance, its forward 'plates' open as it fired at Shepard & Erika, and Nanoha took the opportunity to point Raising Heart at the beast and project a targeting laser. After a few seconds, a shot from the Neema struck home, dealing yet more damage.

The Reaper 'roared', its fury almost palpable. With its Oculus drones destroyed, it proceeded to begin stomping forward, ignoring the shots from the three flyers and from the ships overhead. Shepard noticed, with horror, that the ancient monster was moving toward the transport carrying Legion, Tali, Garrus, Kal, and Twilight, and its plates opened, its main gun glowing with charging power as it aimed right at them; the damage it had suffered meant the charging process took much longer than normal, but there still wasn't much time. Shepard, Optimus, and Nanoha immediately pointed their targeting lasers at the Reaper all at once, and time seemed to slow as they hoped and prayed their beams locked in before the Reaper's did.

Three lock-on chimes rang out. In orbit, every able Quarian, allied-Geth, TSAB, and Cybertron ship, as well as the Starshot and the Solaria, began firing their broadside guns down at the exact point highlighted to their targeting systems. Down below, the upsized Reaper Destroyer's firing was cut off as a handful of orbit-to-surface shots struck it in the face, making it stagger back. A withering barrage commenced, a storm of explosive and penetrating rounds raining down on the ancient machine's body, blowing off pieces and tearing into its internal systems. It made one last defiant attempt to fire its gun, but a final barrage from the Qwib-Qwib dealt the finishing blow. The massive machine groaned and then toppled, its legs giving out on it; the ground shook as the monster fell, pieces falling off and discharges of energy wracking its frame.

The three flyers came in for a landing atop a small peninsular outcropping, with Shepard disembarking from Erika's craft and walking up to the edge, looking out at the Reaper. Suddenly, the monster's optics flickered on, and focused on him.

"SHEPARD…"

The Commander tried not to wince as the extreme volume and extreme bass of the Reaper's voice made his bones rattle, the air around it visible distorting. "You know who I am?" he asked it.

"LORD HARBINGER SPEAKS OF YOU. YOU RESIST, BUT YOU WILL FAIL. THE CYCLE MUST CONTINUE."

"What are you talking about? We stopped Sovereign and the separatist Geth. We stopped Harbinger's Collectors. We've earned a straight answer."

"IT IS NOT SOMETHING YOU CAN COMPREHEND. YOU REPRESENT CHAOS. WE REPRESENT ORDER. EVERY SAPIENT CIVILIZATION MUST BE HARVESTED IN ORDER TO BRING ORDER TO THE CHAOS. WE ARE YOUR TRANSENDENCE, AND THE GALAXY'S SALVATION."

"You think the 'chaos' of organic sapient life somehow endangers the 'order' of the Universe?"

"WITH GOOD REASON, BORNE OF EONS OF OBSERVATION. THE INHERENT CHAOS OF ORGANIC LIFE IS… IMPURE. WE OFFER TRANSCENDENCE TO THOSE RACES WHO ARE WORTHY – THE CHANCE TO BECOME MORE, TO BECOME PART OF OUR PERFECT ORDER. WE ARE YOUR SALVATION THROUGH DESTRUCTION. …JOIN US, SHED YOUR IMPERFECTIONS, AND JOIN THE OTHER UPLIFTED RACES IN GLORIOUS COMPLETION."

Shepard was silent for several seconds… before then pointing the targeting laser at the wounded Reaper. A single shot from an orbiting ship struck true.

"You're not giving 'transcendence' to anything" Shepard said with a glare at the dying monster. "You're committing mass murder – genocide. Don't you dare claim to represent whatever race was mutilated and extinguished to create you! They weren't 'uplifted'; they were murdered millions of years ago, by your kind!"

Succumbing to its injuries, the Reaper's lights at last went out, as its systems shut down.

"…And now, they can finally rest in peace."

"Keelah…" Tali breathed out as the gang came up. "We did it… We killed a Reaper…"

"We can confirm that the Geth are no longer being directed by the Old Machines" Legion stated. "We are free."

"You did it, Shepard!" Admiral Gerrel radioed. "The Geth fleet has stopped firing! They're completely vulnerable!"

"Don't even think about it, Gerrel" Admiral Koris growled.

"Shepard-Commander, a new option is now available to us."

"What are you talking about?"

"Our upgrades. With the Old Machine dead, we could upload them to all Geth without sacrificing their independence."

"That would make the Geth as smart as when the Reaper was controlling them!" Tali exclaimed.

"Yes, but with free will. Each Geth unit would be a true intelligence. We would be alive, and we could help you."

"What?-!" Admiral Xen spoke up, sounding none too happy. "Y-You can't do that!"

"And why not?" Admiral Koris replied. "Because you can't conduct your experiments on them anymore if they're sapient, you sociopathic witch?"

"I've come too far! W-We can't let this happen! Shala, you agree with me, right? They've killed too many of our people!"

"…No, Daro" Admiral Raan replied. "The Geth didn't kill our people this time; the Reapers did. The Geth… They have earned this. Your cold disregard for the rights and comfort of other beings – and I don't just mean the Geth – has caused far too many problems. You and Gerrel will stand down, or I will have my Patrol Fleet fire upon the Moreh."

"And if the Neema tries anything," Koris continued, "the same fate will befall it."

"And do not expect the rest of us to merely hang back and watch, either" Celestia chimed in from the Solaria.

"…All ships, hold fire and stand down" Admiral Gerrel ordered.

"But-"

"Now, Xen!"

"…You will regret this one day, all of you…"

With that final threat, Admiral Xen disconnected from the comm. channel.

"I still think we should just blow her up now and save ourselves a headache later" Kal'Reegar said.

"We need all the technical expertise we can get" Shepard replied. "For now, Xen's too valuable to lose. But if she does try anything, she has a million guns holding her in their crosshairs. …Legion, go ahead and upload the code."

The Geth nodded, and formed a spherical holographic interface as it began uploading the upgrade code, Reaper-made but now 100% purged of its makers' corruptive influence. After about a minute of work, however, Legion's body language changed.

"Error" it said. "Copying code is insufficient. Direct personality dissemination… required. Shepard-Commander, we… I must go to them. …I'm sorry. It's the only way…"

"Maybe not" Optimus Prime spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "There may be another way, Legion…"

Parts of Optimus' chest compartment shifted and changed, opening up. A glowing light shined from within, as a comparatively-small object floated out – silver, with sweeping curves that ended in sharp triangular points going in opposite directions, looking somewhat like a two-bladed propeller, and a small energy ball encased by a netted metal 'cage' in the middle.

"The Matrix of Leadership," he said, "imbued with a fragment of the All-Spark's power in addition to its own abilities. Let us see if its power can 'fill in the gap'…"

At Optimus' bidding, the Matrix floated forward and down, hovering in place, slowly spinning, in front of Legion. With caution and what almost seemed like reverence, Legion formed its spherical holographic interface containing the upgrade code around the Matrix. The various symbols and data-displays of the holo-sphere began to revolve in different directions, while inside the Matrix began to spin as well, the light at its core slowly brightening. The rotation and brightness steadily increased, until the Matrix was spinning like a propeller and glowing so brightly it almost hurt to look at.

Then, a flash of light accompanied a 'pulse' of some sorts that raced out across the entirety of Rannoch and the surrounding space. With the combined power of the Matrix and the upgrade code, each and every Geth was advanced to the ultimate state of their synthetic evolution: true, complete, individual sapience.

"It's done…" Legion stated, a bit awed. "My people's evolution has reached its terminus: we are alive. …Thank you, Prime. Now, we can help the Quarians rebuild even more, and maybe we can at last live with them in peace." It – He – turned to Shepard. "But before there can be peace for anyone, the Old Machines must be stopped. The Geth shall join the fight and lend engineers to the Crucible project… and, if you would have me, Commander, I wish to rejoin the Normandy team for the duration of this conflict."

"As do I, of course" Tali added.

"Permission granted" Shepard replied. "Good to have you both back."

-SCENE BREAK-

Normandy II, Deck Two, QEC Room

"I can't thank you enough, Commander" Admiral Shala'Raan said. "You and the Dimensional Defense Force brought a peaceful end to this… unforeseen conflict. The Quarians will now be able to commit our forces to the war against the Reapers, and we will send specialists and resources to help with the Crucible's construction."

"It was my pleasure, ma'am" Shepard replied. "And I promise I'll take good care of Legion and Tali."

"Well, I already know you'll be taking very good care of the latter… Oh, come now, Shepard; I am an old woman, and I have learned quite a few things in my time, plus I know Tali very well. The other Admirals may not notice the signs, but I certainly do. …Be good to her, Shepard; I ask this of you as an Admiral, and as her godmother." She suddenly turned to a terminal just offscreen, receiving a report. "Hm, another one?"

"Another what?"

"After the Reaper War began and before things went bad, we – Quarians and Geth – were using cloaked probes to monitor behind enemy lines. We discovered something slightly alarming. Do you remember Dholen, Haestrom's sun – how it was behaving… oddly? We've discovered several other stars starting to behave in the exact same way, and they only started doing so recently. What's more, it is only cropping up in stars deep within Reaper-controlled territory; areas that are still under Council-race control have no such cases."

"Let us know if you find anything out, and we'll do the same."

"Thank you, Shepard; we will. The Reapers and Cerberus are bad enough; we do not need another mysterious new danger hanging over everyone's heads. Fly safely, Shepard."

"Keelah se'lai, Admiral."

As the connection cut, Shepard headed out to the CIC to check his e-mail. There were a few little things – a status update from the Geth, requests from Garrus and Cortez to meet up with him on the Citadel, and – to his relief – a report from Admiral Hackett stating that Shepard's mother was alive and well, now promoted to Rear-Admiral and part of Hackett's fleet. However, the last item on the list was from an unexpected source, and contained a curious message:

"From: Aria T'Loak

Subject: It's Time

Shepard, I'm ready to discuss that 'pet project' I mentioned when we spoke in Purgatory after that whole Cerberus debacle. Come to Dock 42 on the Citadel. A Batarian named Bray will be waiting."

-CHAPTER END-

Next Time: reclaiming a certain wretched hive of scum and villainy from Cerberus control