Ok all, Enjoy.
Clark was leaning back against the wall of the alley way, the same place he dropped off the others when they teleported onto the station. Still within the presidium itself and close to the regular streets that where full of the regular everyday people. But every place has the back alleys that people wanted to avoid, it seems not even a place like the Citadel is free from that.
He knew that the time he gave Garrus and Thane to get their own missions done was getting close so he would wait here for them. It shouldn't be too long until they arrive now, being honest Clark was expecting them to arrive together. He didn't doubt that Thane would take the chance to speak to his son, he knew that the assassin didn't want too or most likely didn't think he deserved to or felt it would be for the best if he didn't. But he wouldn't, he could tell that Thane was a good father deep down, he wouldn't be able to pass up the chance to speak to him, even if it was hard.
Being completely honest, Clark didn't want to be here. After that conversation with Anderson, being way more honest than he thought he would be. He just wanted to go home, a dry chuckle escaped his mouth as he thought about that, that might have been the first time he thought about Genisis being his home, he knew it was but this was the first time thinking about it as home.
He needed to figure out what they were going to do next. Unless someone else in the crew needed him for something, he doubted they would be able to do much other than wait, try and find more information about the Reapers or collectors. The Reapers were of course the main concern but he wasn't an idiot, he knew that he couldn't underestimate foot soldiers which the Collectors seemed to be if what he suspects is anything to go by.
He brought up his hand and rubbed his head, trying to ignore this headache that seemed to be festering. Was that how bad this was getting? Was he really this annoyed by being back in the spotlight again? Though to be fair to himself, it was never something he liked, he never did what he did for publicity. He did it because he felt that he had a responsibility to not just humanity but the Earth as well, the planet that took him in. That cared for him.
When he first started to be seen as a symbol, he didn't hate it, not really at least. But he would be lying if he said it didn't add to his burdens, the bigger the spotlight he had, the more pressure that was on him, the more feared he became and the more enemies he made. Though there where some good parts to it all, he remembered the people smiling when they saw him coming, the children who looked at him hopefully, wiping away their tears. He liked how he could make the day better for others around him.
Another sigh escaped him before he rested his head back against the wall, there was no point thinking about this now. His starting out days where long in the past and he didn't want to do that again, even now if he tried, he could hear all the people on this station, some of them cheering for him, others yelling. There would always be those who hated him for what he was and what he could do, the simple and sad truth was that he just couldn't be bothered dealing with all that again, there was a reason that he was always a blur when he saved people these days.
Oh sure, he still saved people and that was something he would always do if he could. That was a part of his personality that would always be there, he accepted that a long time ago. But dealing with all the politics that came with wearing the cape always weighed on him 'why couldn't they just be happy I was there?' he asked himself before shaking his head, he knew the answer to that, of course he did.
It was just in their nature to be suspicious, he used to think that it was just humans but it was all of them. He didn't want to use the word mortal, but it did fit. They would never change, they couldn't. No matter how many of them asked or begged there was a good chance they only did that because it was them in danger and not someone else, did they really deserve him?
"If you knew you were going to die, how would you live your life differently" he closed his eyes and let out a sigh, trying to ignore Lois who appeared next to him, she did this so much that he was starting to think that this was just his conscience. Letting out another sigh, wondering if she was the cause of this headache.
Though before he could even take another moment, he stopped. Headache? He lowered his hand and look of intense contemplation came over him, he doesn't get headaches. He doesn't get sick in any way shape or form, that was something that just didn't happen, not to him.
He kicked himself up off the wall and looked around himself, closing his eyes and trying to focus on where the pain was coming from. It was his own head but that just didn't happen to him, there had to have been an outside factor coming from somewhere that was affecting him somehow. Opening his eyes, he started to go through everything, his eyes opened the window to every spectrum. He looked through every object, he could see every type of radiation and spectrum of light. Radio wave, micro, Xray, gamma, electromagnetic, everything.
Something on this station was causing him pain and he wouldn't rest until he found it, he needed to know what this was because no species on this station should have been capable of that. That was when he first saw it, a small line of colour going through the air that was connecting to him. He moved out of the alley and he could see it go further down the road. This line was waving through the air like a large snake, it was ignoring everything else and focusing on him. So, it was targeted, that was worth knowing.
He was so focused on that he didn't notice his two crew mates coming up behind him until he felt Garrus tapped him on the shoulder "Clark, are you alright?" he asked him.
He didn't turn to face them "I'm fine" he said clearly not convincing the others "let Kelex know when you're ready to be picked up and he'll get you guys back up" he told them before he started to slowly walk forward, following the line.
"Any chance we could avoid the teleporting again?" Garrus said after him but not following.
"No!" he shouted back before he slowly started to float into the air, allowing him to follow the line at a quicker pace.
This of course is what caused him to get the attention of a lot of people, some of them started to shout, yell and record him as he gently floated by, just slightly above the hight of one story. Though he didn't pay them any mind, his own mind not allowing his curiosity to not be sated, something on this station was giving him a headache, that shouldn't be possible and he would find out what it was.
"Randa" the happy voice of her sister said to her. Miranda found herself smiling back at the terminal screen. She decided that she needed to take a break from her research into what could be giving Clark his power, she was getting close. That much she knew but she also knew that she couldn't over work herself or it would take longer. So, seeing as everyone else was busy with their own work and she wasn't particularly close with the others. She thought that she should reach out to the one she wanted to get closer too.
Of course, this ship was had the best communications equipment out of any ship out there. So, speaking to Oriana was easy, while Genisis was more than capable of using holograms. Her sister didn't have anything that could do that so regular calling would have to do "Hello Oriana" she said smiling back at the image of her sister who looked like she was in her university dorm.
"ugh" her sister groaned for a moment leaning back in the chair she was sitting on "so formal, just call me Ori, all my friends do that. How are you? is everything ok?" she asked back, quickly getting her smile back.
"It's going fine, I'm just taking a break from some work I'm doing" she said before crossing her arms and trying not to look to tense.
Something she noted quickly "what is it?" she asked with a small frown on her face.
"It's nothing" she said quickly but based on the way her sister raised an eyebrow at her. She sighed before speaking "Clark just had a confrontation with the council. I knew he wouldn't be peaceful about it, you'll most likely see it in the news in a day or two once word travels but he went off on them more then I was expecting" she admitted "it's not a bad thing" she quickly added "being perfectly honest, I liked it, it felt good to see someone take the council down a beg or too" she let out a sigh "but he didn't mean to go off on them like that. He's going to be in a mood" As she spoke Oriana couldn't help but smirk at her as she did so, something she noticed "What?" she asked her younger sister.
She let out a chuckle "I just still can't believe it. Not only do I have a sister but she gets to have sex with Superman" she let out a small shriek "please, give me details"
"No" Miranda said back quickly.
"Come on" she moaned "this is what sisters do. Give me some details about what the man of steel is like, you're living every womans dream. It's the least you could do" she added.
Miranda let out a sigh "Ori, this really isn't something I like to do"
Oriana let out a small sigh "ok, I just thought you'd want to bond like real sisters but if you don't want to..." she trailed off, giving her a knowing look as she did so.
Miranda stopped and gave her sister a deadpanned look "I know what you're doing?" she said crossing her arms.
Her sister held the look for a moment before she let it go with a sigh "I'll tell you about my sex life" she offered.
A dry chuckle escaped her as she heard that "What? With that Allen kid?" she said.
"Yes, exactly..." she stopped for a moment "how do you know about Allen?" she asked him, her teasing face turning to a mix of annoyance and suspicion.
"Don't worry about it" she quickly added, looking a little guilty herself.
Now it was her turn to look angry "Randa" she warned "I don't want you spying on me" she said to her.
She let a small sigh escape her "I know you don't like it but you're a target, I'm sorry but I need to make sure you're safe and keeping an eye on you will do that" she explained as best she could.
Oriana held her gaze for a moment "tell you what" she started "tell me what Superman's like in bed and I won't do everything I can to make spying on me difficult"
That was crappy offer, Oriana was capable. Miranda knew that, she was her sister after all which bad her a cut above the rest by default but at the same time, she had most of her life experience in a corvette agency, there would be very little she wouldn't be able to find out if she tried. But knowing that she didn't want to do the extra work, she relented "fine. He's spectacular, Happy?" she asked her.
"No" she said back very quickly but with a bright smile and shake of the head. Her eyes even wider "I need more" she smirked.
Miranda gave her sister a deadpanned look "you get two questions" she said.
"Five" Oriana countered.
"Two" she said back but this time with her own temper thrown into the mix.
"Three" she was told back, her sister seeming to not care about her angry voice.
There was a silence for a moment "fine" Miranda crossed her arms "go ahead"
"How big is..." she started.
"No" Miranda shook her head "I said you can ask about my sex life, I am not going to tell you about that, let the man have some privacy"
Thankfully her sister seemed to understand that at the very least. Though that didn't stop the excitement in her sister "how good is he with his tongue? what's the best position? Do you take charge or does he? How long does he last? Can you do while flying? Does his cum taste weird or like other humans? Would he be open to the idea of a one-time sister's threesome?" the number of questions that came out was a surprise.
That last one caused her to choke on air and look at her sister with a shocked expression "Ori!" she shouted.
"What?" she said back with an innocent shrug "my sister has an in, I need to take the chance"
Que another deadpanned look on the older sister "Well, I only said three questions. He's great with his tongue, any position we're I'm on top is best though that's mainly my preference, sometimes I do and sometimes he does" she answered all the question before her sister could stop her "and to make it very clear, no. He is not going to be open to a sister's threesome" she added at the end to make it clear.
Oriana wanted to argue, she could see that clearly enough but thankfully her sister seems to have had her fun "Oh" she raised an eyebrow "getting possessive, are we?" she asked with a smirk.
A dry smile came onto her face as she heard that "maybe a little" she admitted, surprising herself at how honest she was when she said that. She didn't even think about a sister threesome before saying no, not even for herself but hearing Clark explain how sex worked for him, the only thing he would get out of a threesome would be sex with her and the view of another good-looking body on top of him. While she was sure that Oriana would be a skilled lover, a threesome with her sister involved wasn't something she wanted.
"So, he's going to be in a mood for a while when he gets back" her sister let out a shrug, going right back to the previous topic "he might be Superman but he's still a man, you already know what you need to do to help him relax and unwind"
"I know that" Miranda agreed, leaning forward and placing her crossed arms on the table "and I don't mind that" she even shrugged slightly "I like it, I like being the one person he can do that with. I just... I don't know" she sighed.
"No, come on. What is it?" her sister encouraged her.
Looking at her for a moment, she continued "I don't mind being used for sex, not by him at least. I like that he lets his guard down when we're together, I know I do, and I know that if I'm down I could use him for the same reason. I just can't help but think the more we're together, the more my emotions are going to cloud my judgment about the choice I need to make" she explained as best she could.
Her sister stayed silent as she spoke but she frowned slightly when she heard that last part "what choice?" she asked him.
She didn't need to say anything more about that, she could just drop it and Ori wouldn't bring it up again but she didn't. Miranda didn't want to admit it because she wanted to do this on her own but at the same time, if she didn't talk to someone about it, she would lose her mind "Clark made me an offer" she started.
Oriana's eyes shot into her head "he proposed!?" she shouted back at her with a voice of complete shock.
"No!" she said back just as quickly "at least... maybe?" she added with an unsure voice. Seeing that her sister no longer looked like a mix between happy and shocked, was now shocked and confused.
So, she told her, she told her everything. The truth about Clark's long life, his plan to leave and the syringe that could give her his power or a copy at the very least. The younger of the two sisters didn't say a word during the explanation, she just sat there and listened. When all was said and done, she just sat there for a moment longer and looked at her elder "so, a sort of proposal" she started.
"I guess" she said back calmly even though she was anything but.
"Well, what do you think about that?" she asked, speaking gently.
A dry and sarcastic laugh escaped her "what do I think?" she sarcastically asked back "I've been offered the power of Superman, even if it just some bastardised version of it. What's a fraction of infinite?" she asked back, already knowing the answer.
"Is it infinite?" her sister asked back with a tile of the head, a tone of awe in her voice.
Miranda sighed back "I don't know, I'm still trying to work that out" she commented "if I was offered this even a year ago, I wouldn't have thought twice about it" she laughed slightly "who could turn down that much power? Who would want to?"
"But... what? You don't want too?" Ori asked her back gently.
"I don't know" she admitted "I... I know I should be saying yes but at the same time I..." Miranda stopped herself before she could continue.
"What?" she probed.
Miranda looked into the eyes of her sister "Do I deserve it?" she asked quietly, it sounded like it was more to herself then her sister, when the statement left her. It was like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders "I've been in this line of work for a long time, I am responsible for the deaths of... a lot of people" she admitted "who the hell am I to think I get the chance to get that type of power, spend who knows how many years being loved by one of the most amazing men in the galaxy with a power that could make me unstoppable"
The response from her sister came immediately "It doesn't matter" she added with a shrug. She was so dismissive of her statement that Miranda gave her a double take "yeah, you work for Cerberus, you've probably done a lot of evil terrorist shit. But if you say yes to the offer, if you gain fraction of infinity, how much good could you do" Oriana leaned forward and looked right back into her sister's eyes with her own hardened unblinking ones "I've lived with the Asari for most of my life, I know emotions when I see them. You might not love him yet but I know you will. If you take this offer, you could be his ear, you could convince him to put the cape back on, to be the hero again. How many lives could you safe through him alone?" she asked her.
The elder of the two stayed quite for a moment as she thought about it, could she do that? Convince Clark to do it, to put the suit back on. Most likely, she couldn't imagine it would be too difficult, they would be in this galaxy for a couple of decades. Miranda wouldn't leave with him while her sister was still here, she would set that condition up front "and even if you couldn't" Ori continued "how much could you do? If you want my opinion, I would say take the offer. Try to understand how to use whatever power you will get and use it. Take your boyfriend, partner, husband, whatever he'll be to you and then step out of shadows and back into the sun light" she added with a smile.
Miranda found herself smiling back as she processed the words, then the smile was wiped off her face and her eyes widened "sun light" she whispered to herself and she looked away from the screen, her eyes going back and forth as her mind started to go over it in her head "oh my god. SUN LIGHT!" she shouted standing up from her chair "Ori, you're a genius!" she shouted before bolting from her chair and out the room.
"Randa?" she asked, facing the empty chair that was left in her elder's wake "hello?" she asked.
"Who are you talking to" a male voice called from her side. Oriana turned her head and looked at someone.
"No one Allen" she dismissed "I guess that's the end of the call" she said to herself before standing up herself and hanging up her end of the call.
He'd been following that thread for the past thirty minutes now, Clark moved a little faster than when he started in order to stay ahead of the word that he was in the area, he didn't doubt that news crews would be making their way towards him, in fact they should be near him within the next couple of minutes so he really wanted to find the source of this headache before it was too late. Unfortunately, he couldn't go as fast as he wanted to because he didn't want to risk this thread disappearing. It was still within the presidium, that much he knew but where it was coming from, he didn't know.
Thankfully he hadn't gotten a crowd chasing after him, though many still looked up at him as he passed them and a couple tried to follow him but he was going too fast to be worth chasing. Though that didn't stop all the recording of him and the shouts, screams, yells, cheers.
He started to float over the artificial lake and move to another section of the Presidium circle. When he did, it looked like he could see a building that the thread was going into. He picked up the pace slightly in order to avoid any more attention, the building didn't look any different from all the others around the area. A very high-class apartment like structure, glass walls, a garden in the front that overlooked the water.
Though it was hardly empty, in fact it was full of people. All of them seemed to be Alliance personal and they were packing. The front garden was full of three different shuttles that was being filled up with a lot of equipment, it was being done by a mix of soldiers and scientists. Though they all stopped when they saw him approach, Clark didn't let this stop him, not for a moment. When his feet touched the ground he kept on walking forward towards the front door, everyone else got out of the way when he approached, he calmly opened the door and stepped inside of half torn down lab, there were a couple of other people inside all packing up and a handful of others who were typing up on a data pad, no doubt making sure that the inventory was all being properly catalogued.
It wasn't the most advanced lab that he's seen but it was definitely above average, he started to find himself wondering what they were doing here "Dad, is there a reason why we have to leave? Surly we can still do our work here?" a womans voice spoke to the side of him.
Turning his head he could see two people, a man and woman facing each other. Well, the woman was looking at him, the man's head was faced downwards looking at a data pad "we can't risk the chance of the Council getting in the way of our work" he said to her.
While the two were in their own world, everyone else inside started to stare at him and stopping their own work in the process "I just got everything set up" she complained.
"I know Ann" he said back, letting out a sigh as he looked up to face her "but we have to do this somewhere no one will get in the way, it's too important" he explained. Before looking at a couple of people standing behind him "and will someone try and get into contact with Garneau again" the woman Ann turned to face him first and froze in place. Those that the man was looking at didn't answer him and just kept looking at Clark "What?" he asked them, confused as to what they were all looking at. Turning around to see, he himself froze at the sight of Clark standing in the middle of their half torn down lab.
No-one said a word for a moment as all the humans stared at him "what work are you doing here?" Clark asked them suddenly.
The question seemed to snap the man out of the trance at the very least, he opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself before turning back to all the others "Everyone! Keep packing, we're on a timer" he shouted, it seemed to work though they worked much slower and looked at him while they did it. The man handed the tablet to the woman, Ann. His daughter if her words where anything to go by.
He walked towards Clark with a notable nervousness in those steps "Super... Mr. Kent" he said reaching out with his hand "to what do we owe the pleasure?" he asked him.
Clark reached out and shook the hand "what work are you doing here?" he asked bluntly as he let go.
The man looked very uncomfortable at the question "I'm sorry sir but that's class..." he started but Clark just gave him a deadpanned look and tilted his head. He let out a sigh before continuing "I'm doctor Bryson, our mandate is to investigate legends, rumours, old stories about the Reapers before Commander Shepard even heard of them. Officially we started up just after the attack on the Citadel but over the last couple of months we've gotten a lot more attention and funding" he said as he started to walk to another room attached to one, they were in and Clark followed after him.
Though he couldn't missed the Reaper tech that was being loaded into a crate that was shielded "Sovereign?" he asked out loud.
Bryson let out a chuckle at the question "the vanguard of our destruction. We've been looking at the unique energy signature it gives off to give us a better idea of what to look for in the field" he explained.
When they made it into the next room, one thing was immediately seen by Clark. On the far side of the wall, there was a glass panel that seemed to protect a random assortment of objects, but one thing was made clear. In the middle of them all was a type of crystal ball that swirled with dim colours, that was what was causing his headache, he could see that the thread was clearly coming from it "What is that?" he asked as he started to walk closer towards it.
"Hhmm" Bryson said as he turned away from the large galaxy map and looked at what he was seeing "oh, that is one of best leads we have" he started "with some help from Alliance black opps, we were able to find out that around twenty-six years ago, the Batarian's found a Reaper corpse that looked like it died in battle, not too dissimilar to the one you found. They covered it up and denied it existed. Of course, we wanted to know more but I was intrigued by the larger implication"
The statement was left hanging in the air for him to grab "What could have done that to the Reaper in the first place?" he finished for him.
"Exactly" he nodded "There were a couple of voices saying it was you, but they were dismissed. We're calling it the Leviathan of Dis, seemed appropriate, the leading theory is that it's a Reaper Killer, based on the damage that we could see, it was a type of animal. An Apex predator"
Clark hummed slightly before walking up to the glass, the orb was being shielded by a collection of barriers. Somehow, this thing was reaching out to him, trying to do something. He reached forward for a switch that would lower the shield "wai..." Bryson tried to stop him but before he could he pressed the button and the shield dropped.
Clark was watching the orb very closely and he was doing everything he could to keep himself calm. The colours just beneath its surface started to intensify and there was a slight humming coming from it, then it hit him. A wave suddenly hit him and he was forced to take a step back and stagger slightly, it wasn't physical, it was mental. Whatever this thing was doing was trying really hard to get inside his head.
He closed his eyes to the outside and kneeled down slightly, he could make out the confused shouting from everything going on around him. He could feel all the vibrations coming from around him as everyone approached. He made out the sounds of someone moving in front of him quickly, he was able to tell what they were planning. Despite the pain in his head, he moved quicker and within the blink of an eye, he was in front of the button and crushed it so it couldn't be used. He wouldn't surrender here, whatever this thing was it wouldn't have an easy time taking him over. He takes very special care when it comes it his mind.
Gritting his teeth, he surged to his feet and walked forward, he was sure that he nearly knocked someone out of the way when he did so. Moving to the glass barrier, without any form of struggle he smashed the glass and wrapped his hand around the orb. Bringing it out and looking at it closely, doing everything he could to keep his mind protected from whatever this thing was trying "BREA...CH...TH...DAR...NESS" an old and powerful voice echoed in his ear.
"K..." he started to speak but found himself struggling "Kel...lex" as soon as the word left his mouth, there was a flash of light outside his field of view. He heard shouting from outside, even more then there was before. Then just in front of him, he could make out a wave of blue.
Then it all stopped.
The weight on his mind lifted and he staggered back against the wall and both his hands fell, he took a moment to check, and his headache had now left him. Taking a couple of deep breaths, he looked around him. This time with clear eyes. He was up against the back wall of the lab. In front of him, two of the construction drones where hovering in front of him. Each one was acting as a base of a shield that was much thicker than the one the lab used. The Orb was nestled comfortably, no longer humming and he could see no colour coming from it.
Beyond them, he saw that every solider that was standing outside was now in and they had every weapon trained on him, though he could tell that they were scared, very much so as the aimed their weapons with shaking hands.
Seeing as he had work to do, he stood up straight off the wall and took a moment to catch his breath. It having been a long while since someone tried to get inside his head and got this close. He wasn't anywhere near actually being taken over but it was closer than anyone else had went before "Alright" he started, looking past the soldiers and towards Byrson who was making sure his daughter was behind him "I'm taking this" he pointed to the orb "stop looking for this Leviathan, I'll do it myself" with that, he pressed a button on him Omni-Tool and before anyone could say anything, he, the drones and orb disappeared in a flash of white.
Clark stepped off one of the many different teleport ports on Genisis and was met with two Marauder's standing guard near the edges of the pads that he appeared onto. The drones stayed in the air for a moment as he walked forward a couple of steps and made it to the door "Kelex, do me a favour and put that thing in my study, but make sure that shield doesn't go down" he ordered.
"Yes Master El" Kelex said as the door opened and the one of the many bodies that Kelex used came through.
"Did anything happen while I was away?" he asked his old friend as he left the room and started to calmly walk down the corridors of the ship. Kelex calmly hovering by his side as he did so.
"The Citadel forces have attempted to attach twenty-six different trackers to the ship" he started "One fleet from both the Asari and Turian navy's our ten minutes away, though it is unknown how they will react to us as I do not know if they have been informed of us. The Citadel defence fleet have started to regain control of their ships and will be back to normal within the hour"
Clark turned around and entered one of the transit lifts, stepping inside his spoke calmly "bridge" he spoke. When he did, his body was lifted into the air and he started to move towards his destination.
As he moved, Kelex didn't follow him. Instead, a hologram of the body appeared in the air next to him "I believe the Lady Lawson is coming close to understanding how you got your power" a smirk appeared on his face as he heard that, he knew she would get there eventually "Ashley Williams would like to speak with you regarding matters of the Alliance, EDI has informed me the Normandy has received a message from TIM that is directed towards you, she claimed it was urgent" he was told as he started to stop moving and his feet where lowered to the ground.
Turning around he stepped out into another corridor. Without stopping he opened a large door and walked onto the bridge of the ship, he walked across the long bridge, taking a glance at all the workers bellow him and made his way to the command chair. Though he was quick to notice Willams standing there waiting for him, her back to him as she looked out the front window and at the connecting arms of the Citadel "Kelex said you wanted to talk" he said calmly as he walked around the chair and walked up the steps before sitting down on it, leaning back he lowered the neural link onto his head and braced himself for the sudden jolt as his mind connected with the ship.
"Yeah" she said turning around the look at him "I had a talk with Admiral Hackett earlier, he said that pretty much the entire Migrant Fleet made its way to the Sol system. But they're not going to commit to an Alliance with... The Alliance until you do what you said you would?" there was a hesitant to her voice that he noticed easily enough, clearly she wasn't told about what he would do for the Quarians.
"They're all there?" he asked her, as he did that. He made the mental commands that needed to be made, Ashley turned her head and could see the view of the Citadel begin to shift as Genisis started to pull away and turn around, the two could see the floating defence fleet that slowly started to shift themselves upright, seemingly starting to get their power back on.
"I don't know about all" she said turning back to look at him "but from what Hackett said, most of the fleet is in the Sol system with the live ships further out. But they're ready to commit but you need to do... something about helping them find a world to settle on" she added.
"Yeah" was all Clark said as they were many different flashes happening in front of them and they both turned to look outside the window multiple ships coming through the Mass Relay "It's about time" he muttered to himself as Genisis' thruster burst with flame and the Super Dreadnought moved forward right towards them. All everyone on those ships started to panic at the sight of this Titan in space coming towards them.
The space in front of the ship burst open and the wormhole opened wide enough for it to fit through, before the Turian and Asari ships could even lock their weapon onto them. Genisis disappeared through the rift and it closed behind him. Every trace that the ship was there was now gone.
"Either way" Ash turned to look at him "Hackett would like to speak to you about... all this" with her piece said, she turned and started to walk away. Clark's eyes lingered on her for a moment as she walked around him, then turning his attention to the front window. Looking at the ocean of colours that this wormhole showed him. His mind started to go over everything that had happened in the last fifth teen minutes.
He knew that he should head to Earth and sort this out with the Alliance and Quarians. It would be something he needed to do, after all he was a man of his word and it did seem that they kept their own, surprisingly but he was glad they did. Though he also couldn't help himself, that orb was staying in his head and not going anywhere 'what the hell was that thing?' He asked himself as he mind started to go over all the different things it could be.
Moving his right arm, he pressed a button on the arm rest of his chair, a digital screen appeared in front of him and he started to type away. Kelex automatically starts to go over the data of the places he goes to, it doesn't always stayed saved in the ships databanks because that would just be too much. It would stay for a few hours and if it didn't prove useful then it would be deleted, though some of this stuff wouldn't be.
He to look at any files that where related to the word Leviathan and started to go through the data. It wasn't much, it was barely anything at all. In fact, this orb was the only lead they had on the theory of this Reaper killer. The Batarian thread was an interesting one that might be worth following, the team also sent a Dr Garneau was sent to a mining asteroid in order to follow a lead on another orb but seems to have gone dark. Also something worth following.
Swiping it to side so he could look into it later, he brought up this email that TIM sent him. It shouldn't be about Genisis, news from the Citadel shouldn't have reached him yet so he didn't know what this was about. It opened in front of him.
From: Illusive Man
Mr. Kent,
We caught a break, it took longer than I would have liked. But we've been able to decode the needed data from the ship that was taken down on Horizen. I would have preferred to tell you in person but it seems you're unavailable. Sending the message was the next best choice, attached to it is the coordinates for what we believe to be the Collector home world. I would like to speak to you before you head off so let me know before you attack them.
'Well, it took them long enough' he thought to himself. He looked at the attachment and when he saw a set of coordinates, a galaxy map in front of him opened up. It wasn't the largest, no bigger than Grunts body. Though it was far more detailed than anything the others would have on hand, after just a moment, a marker was pinned right in the middle of the galaxy. Seemingly in the centre of the galactic core.
His eyebrows rose as he saw that, that was one of few places he didn't think about. His leading guess was deep space, slightly outside the galaxy so any type of sensor or radar wouldn't be able to detect them. But the galactic core was way worse, all that was around there was exploding stars and black holes. Not something anyone wanted to deal with.
Of course, there was a chance that the Collectors had the tech to survive in that much of a hostile environment. The biggest question he had though, was why? He hoped they had a good reason for being there of all places. Either way, it would be a good way to test out Genisis properly. In a real combat sense at the very least, though the Normandy would need to be used as a dropship in any attack. Having two ships would be better than one.
He moved his fingers and made the mental commands. The image of the galaxy disappeared and was replaced with a camera feed coming from the hanger that the Normandy was in. He smiled slightly as he saw many different drones and cranes halfway putting the ship back together, he didn't tell any of them that he would be working on upgrading the Normandy. Not too ridicules of course but enough to give it the edge in most situations.
He made the commands and Genisis left the wormhole and appeared in real space. He plotted the course of where they should go but also lowered the engine power so it would take longer. After all he felt he needed slightly more time to start really looking into this orb. There was also the possibility that Miranda would want to celebrate if she finished her work in the lab.
"Well, I'm glad you were able to talk to him at the very least. All well that ends well, right" Joker smiled as he sat at the table. In one of the many different cafeteria areas of the ship. Most of the Normandy crew had decided to meet up here. Now that they had enough time get a lay out of the places on Genisis they wanted to explore.
"As am I" Thane said as he took a drink from the cup he had in front of him "I was difficult and loud but I was able to convince him that this isn't what is mother wanted for him" he explained before he turned to look at Garrus who was sitting next to him "you have my thanks for your help"
The Turian nodded back at the Drell "I was happy I could help and you have my thanks for taking out Sidonis. I'm upset that I couldn't do it myself but I am happy that it's done" he admitted before taking another sip of his own drink.
Kasumi who was sitting next to the Normandy pilot said what he was thinking a second before he could say it "so you guys did a Strangers on a Train" she said to the two.
At the mention of the name, many of the others sat around them turned to look "that's such a great movie" Gabby said and Kenneth nodded in agreement.
"Strangers on a what?" Garrus asked her, confusion clear in his voice.
"Strangers on a Train" Joker answered for her "it's like this old Earth Vid with a great story. These two guys meet on a train and talk about their lives, they realize that it would be so much better for them if someone they each knew was dead" he started to explain to the two aliens.
"So, they decided that they would help each other by killing the others target" the thief continued "that way, they wouldn't be connected to each other's murder, great movie"
Thane looked slightly confused by her "but only one of us killed someone" he started.
Before either Joker or Kasumi could try and explain the similarities, the familiar body of Kelex appeared before them all "apologies for the interruption but Master El has requested that all standard personal onboard return to the Normandy for retrofit completion" he didn't disappear when he said that and allowed all of them to take in the information.
"Retrofit?" Kenneth spoke with a shocked and clearly panicked face, no doubt knowing that if the Normandy was being retrofitted, it would mean that they wouldn't be here for much longer "no!" he suddenly surged to his feet and started to run "I can't leave, I need to know tha secrets tha ship 'as"
"Kenneth!" Gabby shouted after him "don't worry Kelex, I'll get him" she said, running after him.
All the others just starred at the two for the moment before turning back to the hologram "so we're leaving?" Kasumi asked.
"Indeed" Kelex said "but I believe I shall leave it for your colleague to explain" with that the image faded.
"What colleague?" Joker asked the table but none of them said anything as they had no idea what the A.I was talking about either. Though in that silence the sounds of footsteps could be heard, more accurately the sound of heals. Turning to the sound, they all watched as a human woman approached them.
Though the closer she got, the clearer it was made that none of them could recognize her. When she reached them, she simply stopped at the end of the table and waited for a moment as they all looked at her closely and with confusion. Joker turned away from her and looked at the others "Kelex said she was our colleague, right? No chance it got it wrong?" he asked them.
"He did not get it wrong Jeff" the woman said to them. Joker's eyes widened as his mind registered what they voice sounded like. Everyone else looked at her in shock but the pilot rounded on the woman quickly.
"EDI!" he shouted looking at her, his eyes wide and mouth open.
"Hello Jeff, it is nice to meet you in person" the Normandy A.I said to him.
He didn't say anything back to her for a moment, his head moved up and down as he looked at her properly. She had tanned coloured skin, dark hair tide in a tight bun behind her head, slim but muscular waist and arms and at least C sized breasts, if what Kasumi could see was right. He turned back to look at the others "I have so many conflicting feelings right now" he admitted.
Kasumi smiled at the situation they were now in "this is a good day" she admitted to the others.
The smirk didn't leave her face as she typed away on the console "I can't believe we didn't think about it like this" she said aloud to Mordin and Legion, both of which were gathered around her computer and forgetting about their own "how could we be so stupid?"
"The possibility of solar power was considered" Mordin spoke up as he watched her work "but no amount could match the power he has" he added as he crossed an arm across his chest and placed a hand to his chin.
"That would be a false assumption" Legion spoke up as all the different programs continued to filter through its body "assuming the organic body is capable of holding the needed amounts to achieve the feats Clark Kent Superman is capable of, the residual amounts would leak from him and be detected" it added.
Miranda nodded to both of them as she finished typing and pressed enter. The others all watched as the vile of blood in the middle of the table started to shimmer under a bright light that came down from the ceiling "that's assuming getting sun light is the only thing happening" she started, still staring at the blood "But think about the sun light doing nothing more than providing a jump start" as the light started to get brighter, the blood started to almost shine and glow with more power.
Then every light around them lit up with a green hue "YES!" she shouted, turning around she wrapped an arm around both Mordin and Legion who did nothing and just stood there. Normally she would never be so unprofessional, but she not only just answered the riddle of Superman's power but also did it on her own... well, their own but it was close enough. Needless to say, she was very happy with the results "We do not understand" was what Legion had to say to the positive reading.
Letting go of the both of them and composing herself, Miranda leaned back and placed both her hands on the table behind her "When I said sun light, I assume you both thought I was going for solar power. The same that's been used by pretty much every single race in the galaxy at one point or another" the two shared a look with each other and nodded before turning back to her "But that's not it, everything he can do. The flying, the strength, the senses, the laser eyes, all of that on a god like scale. That would require so much more energy than he could possibly absorb. He doesn't use solar energy for his powers, he's using it as a means of creating his own energy"
As she explained it, Mordin's eyes widened even more than they already were "like nuclear fusion powering stars" he continued for her.
"His body only requires the light of stars for the process to take place" Legion added as it looked towards the blood that was now returned to normal "this suggests that every cell within Clark Kent Superman's body functions same as stars do through the use of nuclear fusion"
Before anyone could say anything else the image of Kelex appeared next to them "Well done, might I offer my congratulations for completing your research" it nodded at each of them "I apologies for the interruption" it turned to look at Miranda "but Master El has requested your presence in his study, I will direct you" the door to the lab opened and Miranda gave another nod at her two colleagues before leaving "Doctor Solus, Legion. Master El has given you permission to use the lab as you see fit, with a handful of restrictions of course"
"This unit would like to know what the restrictions entail" Legion said as it looked to the hologram.
"I will let you know when you try and cross them" with that, the image of its body vanished from the lab, leaving the two of them alone.
Deep within the darkness of the ocean, the three great, ancient and power beings dwelled. Their powerful minds fluttering with a greater understanding. They used their own creations to see out into the galaxy and finally, after so many millennia they would finally have their freedom. Their target was located 'he must be brought before us' one of them spoke deeply within the minds of the others.
'He will come, he cannot ignore his own mind. He shall breach the darkness' the other added.
'His desire for understanding, his drive to solve the puzzles and mysteries our existence. He will not ignore us' the final of the trio spoke.
'He shall become our tool like the lesser did before, the Harvest shall end' the first added.
'Yes, it shall' they all agreed.
I'm not going to lie, I'm getting excited. We're getting close to the end game now. From what I can see we're only going to have four chapters of the main story left and maybe one more for an epilogue. This will be the first story I actually finish and I can't believe it's taken this long. A part of me wants to spend the next month just finishing this one up but that wouldn't be fair to those who like the other stories I do.
Anyway, let me know what you all think in the reviews down bellow and I'll see you in the next chapter.
Next Story Update: Project Atlas.