Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to my MechWarrior/BattleTech - Mass Effect crossover.
Thank you all for your wonderful feedback and support. I greatly appreciate it.
Now we come to the end of the Tuchanka sub-story arc. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well as I did when I was writing it. There will be a sad part, though.
As always, leave a review and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own the MechWarrior/BattleTech or Mass Effect franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of BioWare, Electronic Arts, FASA Corporation, FASA Interactive, Catalyst Game Labs, WizKids, Piranha Games Inc., etc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers and publishers. Any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original components and/or artists.
Tuchanka
Approaching Shroud Facility
September 17th, 2186
It wasn't long before they were heading to their destination. This time around, the Tomkah's were being accompanied by a few Badger IFV's, along with Victor's Gurētodesu, two Marauders and a Shadow Hawk. Inside the IFV he was in, Shepard could hear the leaders of the AeroSpace Wings on his comm. "Krogan convoy, this is Turian Wing Artimec and AFFC Wing Delta. Flight vector to the Shroud is locked. We are ten minutes out and counting."
"Copy Artimec," Shepard replied. "We're on our way. Trying to make up for lost time. Shepard out." With that, he sat down in the interior of the IFV, next to Eve.
"Wreav isn't the only Krogan who wants revenge for the Genophage, Wrex," she informed him. "You'll have to placate them somehow."
"I'll demand that the Council return some of our old territory," Wrex decided. "We'll need room to expand and recapture the glory of the ancients."
"Glory of ancients led to Krogan Rebellions," Mordin chided him. "Countless deaths, creation of Genophage. Expansion plan… problematic."
"What were the ancient Krogan like?" Shepard asked.
"Tuchanka wasn't always a wasteland," Eve explained. "In the old times, the Krogan were a proud people. We had dreams… a future to look forward to."
"Until Salarian interference," Mordin added.
"No," Eve countered. "We destroyed Tuchanka ourselves. Technology changed us; it made life too easy. So we looked for new challenges – and found them in each other. Nuclear war was inevitable."
"Reminds me of the Massacre of Tintavel," Shepard frowned. "The Free Worlds League and Capellan Confederation fought over the planet with indiscriminate nuclear warfare. It died under their feet. That led them to create the Ares Conventions to prevent that from ever happening again, even if that led to war becoming a blood sport of sorts, something I don't approve of."
"I know," Wrex added. "It's because of warmongers like them that our planet is now rubble. We'll need a better place to live."
"I'd say helping defeat the Reapers would be worth a new planet."
"Or ten," Wrex smiled. "You haven't seen how fast we can pop them out."
"Wrex," Eve said chidingly.
"What?" he asked innocently. "With the Genophage cured, we'll have a lot of catching up to do."
Eve shrugged. Remembering what Shepard had said earlier, she asked, "Commander, on the shuttle, was there something you were going to say?"
"Yes," Shepard nodded. "I was going to tell you, and I'll do so now." Clearing his throat, he said, "The Salarian Daltrass tried to cut a secret deal with me."
That had Wrex's attention, as his blood-red eyes snapped towards Shepard lighting fast. "What kind of deal?"
"She said they sabotaged the Shroud years ago," Shepard explained. "The cure won't work unless we fix it." A moment later, he played the audio recording Victor had sent him of his meeting with the Daltrass.
It was a testimony to Wrex's self-control when he didn't devolve into a fit of rage at the Daltrass' words. Instead, his facial expression became that of anger and disgust. "And she thought we wouldn't know any better?"
"Thought correctly," Mordin answered. "Would likely have fooled tests, but familiar with STG work. Can adjust. Didn't come this far for nothing.
"Thank you, Commander," Eve sighed, relief suffusing her veins. "You just spared our race another genocide."
"I knew he wouldn't let us down," Wrex nodded. Just as he said this, the IFV turned, before coming to a halt. "Why are we stopping?" he asked. Moving to the cockpit, where a trio of AFFC personnel were at, he asked, "Why have we stopped?"
"Take a guess, genius," the driver snarked, pointing out the viewport. Looking outside, Wrex spotted the problem. There was a bridge nearby, but it was in poor condition, as large chunks of concrete were missing from the roadway, leaving rusted rebar plainly visible. "The bridge is out."
Walking outside, Shepard looked around to get an idea of what his surroundings were like. They were currently driving on an intact section of the freeway that headed to the Shroud, with a number of arches built directly over the road. Looking beyond their position, he could see wasteland, as well as the Shroud off in the distance. Dark green motes of energy were emanating from it's top, likely due to the Reaper.
As Garrus, Javik and EDI came out, Shepard said, "Wrex, stay with Mordin and Eve. It's looking ugly out here."
"Will do," Wrex replied.
Looking out towards the wasteland, Garrus said, "Look at that Reaper! It's the end of the world out there!"
"Not if we have anything to say about it," Victor said over the comm. "Wrex, we'll stay with the convoy. I'd rather not be separated from it if I can help it."
"Copy that," Wrex replied.
Heading towards the IFV, Shepard keyed his comm. "Turian Wing Artimec, AFFC Wing Delta, this is Shepard. Delay your attack! We've had a slowdown here!"
"Negative commander," came the Turian commander's voice. "Our approach is locked! The Reaper already knows we're here." Just as he said this, sever Turian fighters flew over head, while a flight of eight Morgensterns flew overhead.
"We'll do an initial attack, then sweep back to avoid fire," the Wing Commander for the AFFC fighters added. "After that we'll hold off until your forces get into position!" As he said this, they flew towards the Reaper, before firing their weapons.
Said Reaper took notice, before firing it's main gun. The Morgensterns were barely maneuverable enough to avoid being hit, while one of the Turian fighters got hit. Trailing smoke, the pilot shouted. "I've lost control! GET CLEAR!" A moment later, his fighter automatically ejected him from the dying craft.
Said dying craft promptly smashed into the area where the convoy was at. Fortunately, no vehicles were hit, though the impact was powerful enough that massive chunks of debris were sent flying. One barely missed Shepard and his team, while another smashed into a Tomkah, knocking it onto it's side. A large hole in it's side indicated that it had been penetrated, though the roars of surprise and pain indicated the crew inside were alive.
"Shepard, what's happening?" Wrex asked.
"Wrex, get the female out of here, NOW!" Shepard roared. Wrex didn't need more prompting, as the drivers of the Badger he was in immediately gunned the throttle. The XL Fusion Engine inside seemed to roar as the vehicle lurched forwards, driving over the compromised section of road fast. It held only long enough for the last Tomkah to jump the gap before collapsing.
"Moving out!" Victor shouted, with his 'Mech advancing. "We'll keep the convoy safe, Shepard! Just get your ass out of here! MOVE!"
As the 'Mechs moved out, Shepard asked, "Artimec! Do you copy?!'
"We're pulling back, Commander," The Turian Wing Commander replied. "That Reaper nearly tore us to pieces!"
"Understood! Save your pilots! We'll find another way!"
As Shepard closed the comm, EDI said, "Commander, I have found a potential path around the blockage." She said this as the bridge was now being neatly folded up.
Walking over, and jumping a small gap, Shepard found that it was a stairwell that led down into the dark interior of what appeared to be an underground pedestrian tunnel. Hopping inside, he activated a pair of lights just above the visor of his helmet. Powerful lights cut into the darkness, illuminating a wide tunnel that was ahead of their position. "Wrex, you OK?" he asked.
"Yeah, just some scratches," Wrex replied. "We've got Mordin here, and a few AFFC Corpsmen. Nothing they can't fix. Wreav's truck made it out too."
"The Turians had to pull back and regroup. We'll need a new plan for dealing with the Reaper."
"First, we'll have to find you. Where did you end up?"
"Underground. We see ruins and a tunnel of some kind."
"Commander, that's the city of the ancients," Eve added.
"How do we get out of here?"
"No maps exist," Eve replied. "It's been abandoned for thousands of years."
"You're a trailblazer, Shepard," Wrex butted in. "Get through there and we'll find a place to meet up. Nothing's gonna stop this cure."
"Understood." Closing the comm, Shepard asked, "Any ideas?"
"I have a suggestion," EDI replied. "Garrus, if you could?"
"With pleasure," Garrus nodded. He held still while EDI, opening up the armored 'pack on his back, rummaged through it. A moment later, she pulled out two small orbs. The orbs were around the size of a baseball, were dark gray in color, and had a line surrounding the entire circumference of the orb. Eight small fans were built into each one, with each one able to rotate 90 degrees in one direction.
"What's that?" Shepard asked.
"A technology the Federated Suns uses for mapping out underground areas," EDI explained. "The development of advanced SONAR technology allowed the AFFC to develop small robotic devices in order to scout out areas that do not have any maps, or to locate survivors in a collapsed building. Known as 'Tracker Probes', they're designed to use Element Zero to hover between .05 to 2 meters in the air, while using pulses of ultrasound to map the area ahead. They'll inform us of any exits they find and lead us out of the area."
"Smart," Shepard nodded. With that, EDI activated each of the devices. Both of them turned on, with the fans whirring to life, before EDI released them, allowing the Trackers to fly away from them and down into the dark. On his HUD, Shepard watched as the probes sent information to his HUD, with a small map appearing in the bottom center portion. That's useful, he noted.
As they moved along, following the probes, he thought he heard something, with the sound being followed by a rumble. "Did you feel that?" Javik asked.
"Felt like a tremor," Garrus nodded.
"It's not a tremor," EDI corrected. "Tremors are not usually this violent. This 'tremor' is more closely associated with survivors accounts of Thresher Maws in the region."
"That's not good," Shepard frowned. Keying his comm, Shepard asked, "Wrex, we're getting tremors down here. Feel anything?"
"Nothing here," Wrex replied.
"It could be something else, Shepard. It is said that Kalros, the Mother of All Thresher Maws, lives in this region," Eve explained.
"Which is another reason to get your ass out of there! Step on it, Shepard!" Wrex added.
"Kalros, the Mother of All Thresher Maws…" Javik noted. "Sounds troubling."
"When the Krogan name a Thresher Maw, you know you're in trouble," Garrus added. "They don't think anyone's ever going to kill it."
"Right," Shepard added, a frown on his face as he did so.
As they moved along over mounds of debris, Shepard was surprised to see what he thought was art. Looking more closely, he found that it was art of a line of Krogan bowing to another one that had a staff. The artistic style reminded him of herioglyphs he'd seen when he was on shore leave at Earth. "Never figured the Krogan for the artistic type," Garrus mused.
"Notice they chose obedience as their subject," Javik added. "It indicates that ancient Krogan were of an imperialistic mindset."
"Tell me about it," Shepard remarked. As they moved along the tracker's path, he spotted another drawing. This one looked like a skeletal snake, only the head was the wrong shape. "I'm guessing that's Kalros," he remarked.
"Definitely," Javik noted.
"I hope that's to scale," Garrus frowned. "Any bigger…" He had a nervous growl at that.
"It is likely not to scale," EDI added, prompting Garrus to groan.
As they moved along, Shepard heard a loud beeping in his helmet. Looking at his HUD, he noted the cause of the alarm. Apparently, the Tracker Probes had detected organic tissue that had recently expired. Moving up, Shepard found the source. When he saw the insectoid shape and the tan colored belly, eh frowned. "Rachni," Javik noted, remembering a mission where he and Shepard had liberated the Rachni Queen from the Reapers.
"There were bound to be more than what we killed before our universal adventure," Shepard frowned. "Wrex, we've got Reaperified Rachni here."
"We know," Wrex replied. "We just killed some recently. All that matters is getting to the Shroud. Find us, fast!" With that, they proceeded onward, weapons at the ready. Just as they did so, the Tracker Probes returned, before deactivating and allowing EDI to pick them up.
Looking up, Shepard saw why: up a flight of stairs, he spotted a glow, a pale, out-of-doors kind of glow. Moving up the steps, he found that he had entered an atrium of some kind. To the left was a wall and some rubble, while to the right, he found himself looking at a statue of a Krogan on a pedestal down below. He could also see, much to his surprise, water, as well as what appeared to be a massive sluice gate.
"Well, this is new," Garrus noted. "A part of Tuchanka that isn't rubble."
"Fascinating," EDI remarked.
"Remnants of the past," Javik noted. Finding another stairwell up ahead, they walked up it.
That brought them outside, and to a surprising discovery. Looking outside, Shepard found that his guess that they were at an aqueduct of some kind was correct. Down below, he could see running water, but what had his attention were the presence of plants growing in the area. "Greenery?" Garrus asked, surprise suffusing his features. "I didn't think plants grew here anymore."
"They're pretty hardy alright," Shepard noted. "You'd be surprised. I once went on a tour of Chernobyl at Earth when I was in the Alliance Navy on shore leave. The entire area is completely overgrown with plants."
Eve, who had overheard them, said, "You're looking at hope, Shepard. What's left of it. Given another chance, this planet will thrive again."
"That means you've gotten outside," Wrex butted in. "Try and get to us, Shepard. That Reaper's still up to no good at the Shroud."
"We're on it," Shepard replied. With that, they began to move out, weapons at the ready. Surprisingly, there were no hostile contacts in the area, which was what had Shepard concerned. I smell an ambush, he frowned.
It was when they reached a partially destroyed bridge that his premonition turned out correct. "Incoming!" Garrus shouted. "Reaper troops inbound!" Just as he said this, several Husks came into view, along with a few Cannibals and Marauders. Ducking into cover, Shepard fired his rifle, cutting a Husk apart.
Then the Marauders did something unusual. Rather than charge into the open, two of them stood up and, extending their arms, projected a kinetic barrier in front of them. Firing his rifle, Shepard was surprised when the laser beam bent. It wasn't enough for one of the Marauders to avoid being killed, but it was enough that it got him concerned. "Whoa!" he shouted. "The Reaper troops are adapting to our weapons!"
"That's not good," Garrus frowned. "You still killed one, though."
"Yeah," Shepard nodded as he neutralized the last one. "It's bad news, though." Keying his comm, Shepard said, "Victor, you there?"
"Copy that," Victor replied. "We're inbound on your position. What is it?"
"The Reapers are adapting to our weapons. Two of them created a barrier that refracted the laser beam of my rifle! Watch yourself!"
"Copy that," Victor replied. "We'll adjust our tactics accordingly. Victor out."
As they fired, Shepard spotted, much to his dismay, two Reaper Brutes advancing towards them. "Anyone have heavy weapons?" he asked.
It was just then that the cavalry came to the rescue. Hearing something, Shepard turned to see a familiar suit of Battle Armor flying into view. "GUESS WHO, REAPER STRAVAG!?" came Calbot's voice as he fired his Plasma Cannon at the Brutes, killing one with a headshot. A moment later, he fired two missiles, blasting the other Brute apart.
"Calbot!" Shepard beamed as Calbot landed. "Good to see you again, man!"
"It is good to see you again as well," Calbot beamed behind his helmet visor.
"How'd you manage to get here?"
"I was dropped off in another shuttle when Wrex encountered the Reaper corrupted Rachni," Calbot explained. "He wanted some heavy firepower, and to make an impression on his rebellious brother. Now, I get to blood my Battle Armor with more Reaper blood. HAHA!"
"Alright," Shepard nodded. "We've got a chance. Just so you know, the Reapers are attempting to use kinetic barriers to refract our laser beams."
"Thank you for the information, Shepard. I will teach those Reaper cowards a thing or two about war. ONWARD! DEATH TO THE REAPERS!" With that, he charged ahead to neutralize any heavily armored hostiles, while Shepard and the others got to handle the rest.
As they moved, the ground shuddered again. "Wrex, you're right about Karlos," Shepard reported. "She's on the move again."
"Right, we've got some ideas for that," Wrex added. Apparently, someone said something to him, as he asked, "What?"
"Not now, Wrex," Eve butted in. "The Commander has enough to worry about."
"What's happening?" Shepard asked.
"Some crazy idea we'll tell you about when we're near the Shroud," Wrex explained. "Talk to you later."
"Alright," Shepard frowned. "Let's go, people."
With that, they continued onward. Apparently, Calbot had done an excellent job of clearing the way, as Shepard found a number of Reaper troop corpses that were lying on the ground. Scattered here and there were the occasional Brute and Ravager. Near a bridge, they found Calbot waiting for them, his armored foot tapping the ground patiently. "Looks like you had a party," Shepard noted.
"That I did," Calbot beamed. "The way ahead is clear. Let us move."
As they moved towards a bridge, Shepard found that he was, once more, looking out at wasteland, and another structure. Just then, several Tomkah's, a lance of BattleMechs and the two Badgers approached. "Shepard, get down here!" Wrex shouted. Just then, the shaking increased. Looking towards the wasteland, Shepard watched as a line of what appeared to be spines began moving through the dirt towards them.
"FUCKING SHIT!" he heard Victor shout. "MOVE! INCOMING THRESHER MAW!" With that, everyone scattered as quickly as they could, and Shepard saw the 'Mechs actually running as though their lives depended on it. "GOOD THING I INSTALLED MASC INTO THIS 'MECH!" Victor shouted as Kalros' spines wrecked part of the bridge Shepard was on, narrowly avoiding him and his team.
"Kalros territorial instinct confirmed!" Mordin shouted.
"She's not gonna get us!" Wrex shouted back, with the Combat Vehicles and 'Mechs down below moving fast. "Go on ahead, Shepard! We'll try to shake this thing and find you!"
"Thresher Maw getting closer!" Mordin shouted, his voice indicating he was in a panicked state.
"Tell me something I don't know!"
"Metal in truck an excellent iron supplement for maw's diet!"
"And the thing is I bet Wrex is enjoying this," Garrus deadpanned.
"War's not a sport, it's a means to an end," Javik corrected. "Still, even I think the Genophage was a step too far."
"That's a little odd, coming from you," Shepard said to Javik.
"What can I say? I'm not too old to mature," Javik remarked.
"Fair point."
With that, they continued to move up ahead, weapons at the ready. Moving through more elevated plazas, Shepard spotted movement up ahead. "Reapers!" he shouted. "Calbot, get the big guys! We'll handle the small fry!"
"On it!" Calbot shouted, shooting ahead in order to take out any Ravagers up ahead. Firing his rifle, Shepard brained a few Marauders and Husks, while Garrus fired on any Marauders he spotted. EDI also added her own firepower to the mix, with Javik providing biotic support. Continuing to move up, they fought like mad to get to the rendezvous point.
Replacing the spent battery on his rifle, Shepard peered up to see Garrus blast a Marauder in half with his sniper rifle, while Javik tore a pair of Cannibals apart with his biotics. Two Husks were lit on fire by EDI, before she gunned them down with her MP-20. Eventually, after a considerable amount of fighting, they reached the rendezvous point.
As soon as they were there, the Combat Vehicles drove into view, along with the 'Mechs, which were running, but not as fast as before. "Shepard, get over here!" Wrex shouted. "Wreav, keep an eye out for that maw!" As he said this, the IFV he was in came to their position. "Get in here!" he shouted as Shepard and the others came along.
Looking ahead, Shepard spotted more spines coming in. "HERE SHE COMES!" the driver for their IFV shouted.
"GET THIS FUCKING THING MOVING!" Shepard shouted. With that, they quickly drove, but then something happened. To their surprise, Kalros ignored them completely, with the Thresher Maw targeting Wreav's Tomkah instead. They heard a brief scream over the comms, then everything went quiet, just as the Tomkah in question was devoured whole.
"SHIT!" Victor shouted. "FUCKING MAW ATE HIM WHOLE! REMIND ME NOT TO COME BACK TO THIS PLANET, WREX!"
"DEAL!" Wrex shouted as they quickly drove away.
. . .
Finally, after another hour of panicked driving, they managed to get to the Shroud facility. Up ahead, the Reaper loomed like a Lovecraftian monster waiting for them to come into it's trap. Getting out, Shepard found that they had come to a pair of facilities that formed a gate-like opening to the facility beyond. I wonder what this place was used for, he thought.
As the others got out, the 'Mechs approached. "We're definitely going to have a hard time getting around that," Victor noted. "My 'Mech's guns aren't big enough to destroy that thing."
"Vengeance is the goal, suicide is not," Javik agreed.
"We're curing this Genophage, no matter what it takes," Wrex reiterated. "Everything my people stands for depends on it."
"Then I hope this idea of yours works out," Shepard remarked.
"It was her idea, actually," Wrex smiled, pointing at Eve.
"Kalros," Eve stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "We summon her to the Reaper."
That had Shepard surprised, and more than a little afraid. "Would that even work?" he asked. "I'm no expert on Thresher Maws, but I do know from experience that we need giant-ass hammers to bring one here."
"Already discussed strategy," Mordin informed him. "Just need to distract Reaper, draw it from tower while cure synthesized, then released."
"What makes you so sure she'll come?"
"Legend says that she is the Thresher Maw from which all others were born from," Eve explained to Shepard. "This is as much her home as it is ours."
"If Tuchanka has a temper, Kalros is it," Wrex added. "No one's ever faced her and survived."
"I've taken some risks in my time, but this is crazy," Shepard frowned.
"And going head to head with Sovereign didn't, or taking on ComStar for that matter? This is the only way to get to that tower and release the cure for the Genophage. There's no other choice."
"I take it there are giant summoning hammers ahead, yes?"
"Correct," Eve nodded. "The Shroud was built in an arena devoted to Kalros' glory. The Salarians thought she would scare away intruders."
"Appears to have worked," Mordin observed.
"There are two Maw Hammers there, the largest in existence. If you can activate them, Kalros will come. That will distract the Reaper."
"Meanwhile laboratory nearby," Mordin added. "Will finish synthesizing cure."
"Alright," Shepard nodded. "Let's make sure we all get out of here alive. We're gonna have one hell of a story to tell."
"Wait!" Wrex added as Shepard moved to enter the area. "I want you to know that no matter what happens, You've been a champion to the Krogan people, a friend of Clan Urdnot... and a brother to me. To every Krogan born after this day, the name "Shepard" will mean "hero"! Now let's show them why!" With that, Shepard squeezed Wrex's hand, with the other doing the same in a show of comradeship. A moment later, they heard the IFV's opening fire, blasting a few Ravagers to pieces.
"Let's get a move on!" Shepard shouted. Moving with his team, he advanced ahead, while the IFV's and 'Mechs began doing what they could to distract the Reaper from what Shepard was doing. In addition to Shepard and his team, some of the infantry that had come along with the IFV's moved to support them, M61B's and M42C's firing rapidly as they moved along.
Moving along stairwells and bridges, Shepard and his team advanced forwards. Again, the Marauders were making barriers in order to refract the laser beams the M61B's fired, but that allowed the M42C equipped soldiers to gun them down. "MOVE UP!" a Sergeant shouted. "SUPPORT SHEPARD!"
"FEDERATED COMMONWEALTH ALL THE WAY!" another soldier shouted as they advanced. No matter what the Reapers troops threw at them, the soldiers advance was relentless. A few were killed, and some were wounded, but the soldiers did not stop hammering the opposition.
As they continued ahead, Mordin reported in. "Shepard, some luck. Original Genophage strain in storage. Preparing the cure now!"
As they crossed a bridge, Shepard spotted the Reaper firing at him, forcing him to jump to the other side. Before he could, it's main weapon cut the part of his bridge he was on, causing it to fall to the ground below. Jumping before impact, he landed on some softer debris, with the Commander rolling on the ground before getting up. Huh, he noted. That Reaper unintentionally helped me go where I needed to.
"You OK?!" he heard Garrus call out.
"I'm fine," Shepard replied. "That Reaper unwittingly helped me get to our destination. Keep moving, all of you!"
"We are coming down to you!" Calbot shouted, jumping down a moment later, with Garrus and Javik hanging onto his missile pods. "Now let us finish this!" With that, they began to advance.
Apparently, the Reaper knew what they were up to, as it turned to engage them. Before it could, however, explosions rang across it's barriers, just as the Turian ASF's and the AFFC Morgensterns flew overhead. Nearby, the 'Mechs were firing their weapons at the Reaper. "Hey, stupid!" Victor shouted. "You want some of this! COME AND GET US!" That got the Reaper to focus on them, though it sent a parting gift to Shepard and the others.
"Brutes!" Shepard shouted. "Calbot!"
"I will distract them!" Calbot shouted. "Get those hammers raised!" Running like mad, Shepard dodged Reaper troops and Brutes, while Calbot, Garrus, Javik, and the AFFC soldiers fought like mad to keep them down.
One soldier screamed as his arm was severed by a Brute. It was about to charge when a MAHEM round from a Medium Recoilless Rifle blasted it's head off. "That's for Richard, you son of a bitch!" the soldier holding the weapon shouted!"
Reaching the first Maw Hammer, which looked like the one he'd seen at Tuchanka when he conducted Grunt's Rite of Passage, Shepard activated it, with the massive weight lifting upwards to it's apex position. Sprinting back towards the other one, he dodged more Reaper Troops. Feeling something grab him, he watched as a Brute brought it's other arm around, before Calbot blasted it's head off with a missile. "GO!" the Elemental roared, with Shepard quickly activating the other one. A moment later, both hammers began to hammer into the ground, causing it to shake with every impact.
"Hammers are firing!" Shepard shouted. "MOVE! GET BACK TO THE VEHICLES! I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE CURE!" With that, his team, and the soldier quickly scrambled back to the vehicles.
Then a battle, the likes of which would not be seen until the end of the Reaper War, began. Hearing a loud warbling screech, Shepard turned to see Kalros moving towards them. The Reaper, noticing this, gave a bass roar as it advanced. It fired it's main gun, but Kalros, being much smarter than she appeared, ducked down back into the rocky ground, narrowly avoiding the beam. A moment later, she surge out of the rock, jaws and tendrils extended.
There was a loud SMASH as Kalros collided with the Reaper with maximum force. The Reaper was knocked backwards, it's main gun missing the Thresher Maw. Running like mad, Shepard ducked behind cover, his eyes wide with awe as he watched two Titans of old clashing with one another. Narrowly avoiding being crushed by Kalros, he ran forwards, continuing his mad charge towards the Shroud.
The Reaper, now thoroughly angry with the Thresher Maw, smashed Kalros against the Shroud. A scream of pain, mixed with overwhelming rage, erupted out of her maw as she went back under, narrowly avoiding being shot. The Reaper, spotting Shepard moving towards the Shroud, was about to fire when Kalros emerged out of the ground again, this time smashing into the Reaper's upper half.
Again, the Reaper missed Shepard, the beam missing him by just meters. Looking up, Shepard watched as Kalros, thoroughly angry with the Reaper for intruding into her territory, coiled herself around the Reaper, until she had the entire thing wrapped up with her body. A moment later, she squeezed.
Metal groaned, before screeching loudly as the Reaper was crushed like a tin can. Shepard watched, eyes wide with awe as the Reaper was crushed meter by meter into a decorative metal pole. The Reaper screamed, a loud howling bass roar as it was crushed by the Thresher Maw. Bio-organic alloy crumpled under tonnes and tonnes of pure muscle, chitinous armor and hardened flesh.
A moment later, Kalross unwrapped herself from around the Reaper, before wrapping around it top to bottom, spinning round and round until the Reaper was buried in the land. Her head emerged moments later, before she gave off a terrific roar of triumph. She paused, and Shepard could swear that, for a moment, she looked directly at him and the 'Mechs, before diving underground again. That shook him out of his stupor, allowing him to get to where Mordin had gotten to.
Inside the lobby, he could see Mordin approaching the elevator, before stopping to fiddle with a panel. Explosions rang out, as the Reaper's tampering with the Shroud overloaded systems and began to cause the machine to fail. It would take time, time that they could use to reverse the Reaper's tampering and inject the cure. "Mordin, is the cure ready?" Shepard asked as he ran over to the elderly Salarian.
"Yes!" Mordin nodded. "Loaded for dispersal in two minutes! Procedure traumatic for Eve but not lethal. Maelon's research invaluable!"
"She's OK?"
"Headed to safety now! Her survival fortunate! Will stabilize new government should Wrex get any new ideas! Good match! Promising future for Krogan!"
Some debris landed near Shepard, causing him to jump. "DAMN!" he shouted.
"Control room at top of Shroud Tower!" Mordin added, not alarmed by the falling debris. "Must take elevator up!" He motioned to the elevator moments later.
"You're going up there?!" Shepard asked in disbelief.
"Yes! Manual access required in order to counteract STG sabotage! Ensure cure disperse properly!"
"Mordin, this whole thing is coming apart! There has to be another way!"
"Remote bypass impossible. STG countermeasures in place. No time to adjust cure for temperature variance! No, no other option! Not coming back! Suggest you get clear! Explosion likely to be catastrophic!" With that, he marched towards the elevator.
"Mordin, no!" Shepard called out. He was surprised, as such, when Mordin, turning around, roughly pushed him backwards, sending him tumbling ass over teakettle.
"Don't try to stop me, Shepard!" Mordin shouted, eyes flashing with grief and rage all mixed together. "I made a mistake by continuing the Genophage! I'm responsible for the deaths of millions of unborn children, children who will never get the chance to see the sun, all because I let my fear get the better of me!" Taking a breath, he said, "This is my penance, Shepard! This is why I was born! The very reason why I exist: to die, ensuring that the Krogan can survive my mistake and have a future! Please, just go! Go! GO!"
Shepard, eyes misting up, nodded reluctantly after getting up. "I'm sorry, Mordin," he replied. "I'll miss you."
Mordin nodded, wiping a tear away from his eyes. "I will too," he nodded. "Besides, it had to be me. Someone else might've gotten it wrong." As he entered the elevator, he said, "It's been an honor, Shepard."
Shepard's eyes widened as he remembered that old creed. "Likewise," he added, before running outside.
As the elevator ascended the Shroud tower, Mordin made sure he was ready to go. As he did so, he looked up to see that he wasn't the only one in the elevator. To his shock, he could see the ghostly silhouettes of Krogan, both born and unborn, standing around him. They looked at him, but not with angry and accusing faces as they had in nightmares that he had in his sleep; rather, their faces were sad, but joyous.
While not a spiritual individual, Mordin knew why they were looking at him that way: he was about to right a wrong that had led to the near-genocide of the Krogan. A wrong I perpetuated, he knew. As the elevator reached the top, he said, "This is my penance. If there was ever an apology that I've made, it's this. Can you ever forgive me, for what I did? Can you accept my cure as an apology for the wrong I committed?" To his surprise, the silhouettes nodded, before they vanished.
At that, Mordin felt strength flooding his body, a strength that he never knew existed. As soon as the elevator reached the top, he strode out of the elevator, into the burning control room. "WARNING: Temperature Control Malfunction Detected!" the VI of the facility informed him. Braving explosions, Mordin marched over to the control panel and began working at it, quickly reversing the STG sabotage from his previous visit here, along with the Reaper's tampering. "Temperature Now Within Acceptable Range," the VI reported. "Dispersal Commencing." Outside, he watched as the sickly green energy vanished, and was replaced by a heavenly gold-white cloud.
Standing back, he turned to see the Krogan ghosts once more. Kneeling onto the ground, he extended his arms as explosions began to consume the control room. The ghosts marched forwards, and an explosion rang out. Mordin felt pain lance through his body, his sight fading to black just as the lead ghost reached out a hand to him. Then, he felt nothing more.
. . .
Outside, Shepard watched as the gold cloud that was the Genophage cure surged out of the Shroud, with the sickly green energy it had once emitted disappearing, before being replaced with a wonderful gold-white color. Falling to his knees, he felt tears streaming down his face as he mourned the loss of a friend, while also cheering on his victory.
Nearby, Victor was standing next to him, his eyes wide behind his sealed Neurohelmet. "He did it," he began, before cheering. "He did it! The crazy son of a bitch did it!" All around him, the Krogan looked on in awe as the cure fully dispersed. As it continued to do so, the Shroud tore itself apart, the last monument to the terror of the Genophage dying out.
An hour later, they were inside the Hollows once again, with Wrex leading Shepard and Victor over to an area of the place, with Eve in tow. Pointing at a rock, he said, "A long time ago, my father betrayed me in this place, his own son. He tried to kill me, so I had to kill him, right there on that rock. That is what the Genophage reduced us to: animals. But you changed that today, Shepard, and you as well, Victor."
"Now we'll fight for our children," Eve declared. "Not against them. It's just a pity Mordin had to die. If only he could've lived to see his dream come to fruition."
Walking over to a rock, Shepard said, "He wouldn't have had it any other way. I'm sure that wherever he is… he's putting in a good word for us."
"We'll name one of the kids after him," Wrex beamed. "Maybe a girl."
"But you, Commander and Kommandant, we can thank in person," Eve added.
"Tell the Turians I'll be deploying troops to Palaven immediately. And when you're ready to kick the Reaper's ass off Earth, you let me know. The Krogan are back in business."
"Goodbye, both of you," Eve smiled.
"What will you do now?" Shepard asked, though it was clear that Victor had the same question.
"Spread the hope you've given us," Eve beamed. "Even now, there are clans gathering in the Kelphic Valley. I'll go speak to them and make sure this gift isn't squandered. Thank you for all that you've done, and know that Urdnot Bakara calls you a friend." Shepard bowed after Eve, before walking to the Kodiak II with Victor.
"This routine for you?" Victor asked.
"Yeah," Shepard nodded, "but today is an exception. We just did something wonderful."
"That we did. Let's go now. We have work to do."
(Author's Q&A)
SulliMike23: I doubt it, though the Reapers are going to learn that their chickens are coming home to roost.
Just a Crazy-Man: Thank you.
MarauderPrime12: Thank you.
edboy4926: I'm sorry, but I have to disappoint you, as you've no doubt found out by now. It's a rule of thumb when it comes to writing: sometimes you have to kill off a character to keep the story good.
Guest: Thank you.