Mass Effect
Massive Shock Redux
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Mass Effect or BioShock franchises or any characters or property that BioWare or 2K games have staked claim upon. Original Characters that I create may be used or distributed for use at my leisure.
A/N: Welcome back! It's been a long time. Long ass note at the end of the chapter.
I recommend rereading the fic in preparation for this Arc if it's been a while since you've read it. But for a brief recap of the story so far, the important bits, go all the way to the bottom of this chapter. You can refresh and then just come right back here and start reading. Cheers!
Ch. 11: Citadel Besieged Part 1
Dawn of Battle
09:14 AM March 07, 2182
Chellick
"Still holding out?" Chellick asks as he enters the observation room, staring through the quantum glass at Splicer, passing a human-grade coffee to the officer who's standing guard.
"Yup, he's got endurance I'll give him that." Officer Lang responds, taking the coffee and having a sip, then suppressing a face to be polite. "A couple of badges came by to try, again, to get him out of his armor. Forcefully this time, since he hasn't been complying. I don't know who made that stuff, but it can't be removed, except maybe with a grenade or something. Short of cutting it off of him, I doubt he's going to change his mind."
"He might if we tell him that we're going to cut him out of it." Chellick responds, thinking for a moment. "Anyone else come by to speak with him?"
"Nope. And so far, the only thing he's said so far is that he wants a lawyer… Guess he's not really aware of how things work here." Lang responds, shrugging. "Oh well. If he wants to sit there for eternity, that's on him."
Chellick nods. "You know who's on the case yet?"
Lang looks at Chellick, giving him a suspicious look. "You're not?"
Chellick taps his badge. "I transferred to Customs a few weeks ago."
Lang shrugs. "Beats me then… so why are you here, if it isn't your case?"
Chellick shrugs. "Figured I'd be able to have a word with him since he knows me. You know? Just get the ball rolling. I did make the arrest anyway."
Lang scoffs and waves Chellick on. "It's your paperwork."
"How long have you been here?" Chellick asks after a moment of thought.
Lang looks at Chellick, quizzically, clearly picking up Chellick's meaning in part.
Chellick laughs, dramatically. "Oh shit! I totally forgot that you humans like sweetening in your coffee, huh? Sorry about that. Here."
Chellick holds out a credit chit palmed and concealed from the cameras to Lang, who glances at it, takes it subtly, and nods. "Oh yeah, thanks, man. I didn't want to say anything to be polite."
"So how long have you been here again?" Chellick asks, crossing his arms, looking into the interview room.
Lang scoffs again and gets to his feet with a groan. "Say no more, say no more. I'm going home. My relief will be here in 10 anyways."
Chellick nods. Officer Lang leaves the room and Chellick steps over to the control terminal nearby. He makes sure that the recording equipment is off, before he activates the quantum glass, making it transparent for Splicer as well.
Splicer perks up slightly, now that he can see outside of the interview room where he's been kept for the last 12 hours or so.
"I've been trying to remember your name." Splicer says, his voice a little gravelly from disuse. He might have been sleeping. Although his voice is also altered by the helmet so it's hard to tell. "It's Chellick, right?"
Chellick nods, after a beat, measuring the moment. "That's me. Have we met?"
"We have. I remember your eyes. Just like in the game. You're memorable for a side character." Splicer responds crossing his arms. "I'd like a lawyer."
"That's not how it works here." Chellick responds, playing off an assumed ignorance and hoping that Splicer will buy it, also trying and failing to interpret what Splicer just said. Side character? "The best you can hope for is being cooperative."
"They say that to people on Earth too." Splicer says with a scoff.
Chellick rubs his chin, thoughtfully. "Earth, huh? Safe to assume you're human then?"
Splicer curses under his breath, clearly upset at the slip. "If you won't give me a lawyer, then I'll speak to Garrus."
Chellick frowns, wheels turning in his mind. "Why him? You understand he's been investigating you?"
Splicer nods slowly. "Yes, well, because of that he's one of the few cops I know; and he also hasn't shot me yet… I think. It's hard to keep track nowadays. I know you shot me though."
Chellick simply sighs and turns the glass back on to opaque, figuring he's not going to get anywhere with this one. He steps out of the holding room and starts heading for Garrus's cubicle in the Investigations Department. This is a mess. Chellick is stuck directly between two of the most powerful individuals in the galaxy without much leverage between them. If he's not careful he's just going to get crushed. Not to mention that now Garrus might be in danger too. Of all the things that could have gone wrong, that was one of them. Chellick sighs. There's not much hope. He can't keep walking this tightrope without falling to one side or the other. There's only one way to go right now and that's forward. And it centers on Splicer. All he has to do is keep the peace. Shouldn't be too hard. He's been doing it for 20 years after all.
Not long into his walk to the Investigations Department, his OT alerts him to an incoming call from an encrypted number. Chellick frowns and answers it. "Chellick."
"You didn't report complications." Comes the response from a hard, gravelly voice on the other end. "To us, the omission is lying. You know we always find out eventually."
A bead of sweat forms on the back of Chellick's neck and he quickly measures his words before he speaks. "I don't see the point in getting upset about it, especially if you always find out anyways. Besides, I'd hardly refer to these events as… complications."
"They are when they complicate things for me." The voice, whom Chellick believes is the actual Shadow Broker, replies. "You've just arrested a useful asset. One of many formidable weapons in my arsenal. Release him. Immediately."
Chellick feels the first bead of sweat join to another. "Come on now, be reasonable. If I'd known, I might not have arrested him. Besides, what's done is done! I can't exactly just let him go without explanation. I'm kind of limited in my capabilities as a C-Sec detective you know."
"Your resistance is duly noted." The Shadow Broker responds, before hanging up.
Chellick straightens, cold sweat beginning to wet his shirt beneath his armor. Though it is very unlikely that Chellick is making contact with the Shadow Broker themself, he's been working his way up the ranks for years. And for a long time, this person, that Chellick has never seen, nor knows anything about has been his handler. And this individual seems to have unlimited reach, unlimited intel, and unlimited resources to draw on. If this individual isn't the Shadow Broker then they're a part of the Shadow Broker's inner council or something. Regardless of who they are, Chellick probably has no choice in the matter. When the call came down to kill Barla Von, Chellick saw to it personally to ensure its completion. And when the call came down to get Splicer arrested by Cerberus, Chellick saw it as an easy way to kill…
What was that human expression? Kill two somethings with one stone. What was that human word for those flying Earth things that they kill with one stone? This'll bother him all day, no doubt about it. Chellick sighs in frustration and stress, just before another call comes in, once again from an encrypted number. Chellick groans and rubs his face before he answers. "What?"
"I expect my requests have been taken care of promptly." Miranda Lawson asks.
"Yes!" Chellick responds, hotly. "The 1,001 things you asked for are all done! I have a day job you know."
"Splicer is in custody?"
"Yes!" Chellick barks loudly. "A thank you would be nice, your majesty?"
"Where is the ship?"
Chellick rolls his eyes. "As far as I can tell it's in a maintenance bay somewhere on the wards. Not sure where exactly just yet, but I'm working on it."
"How soon can you find out?"
Chellick rubs his eyes in frustration. "I have more pressing matters at hand at the moment. The ship isn't going anywhere anyways. There can't be that many ships of that size dry docked on the wards. Just give me a few hours."
"Good. You've ensured that your partner won't get involved?" Miranda asks.
"You leave him out of this! Spirits, we wouldn't be in this mess if you'd told me that you kidnapped the damn guy! You come to me yesterday, all pissy that Garrus was snooping around your business and that I helped. Well, how could I possibly know that your bullshit target and Garrus's kidnappee were the same person?! You're really over-reaching here Miranda. You've made your goddamn point but mark my words: if you take this too far and put Garrus's life on the line, your plans will fail. Whatever they are, they'll fail and it'll be because you don't know the damage I can do." Chellick hisses into his communicator, twisting his head to one side as if that makes his point come across better.
"...Splicer will remain in custody for the next few days?" Miranda asks, ignoring Chellick's comment.
Chellick hesitates for the slightest moment and immediately recognizes it as a misstep. "O-oh, for fuck's sake! Ask for the two moons of Palaven while you're at it? Spirits. I'll do what I can… There are complications but he's not going anywhere for now, I assure you."
Miranda Lawson is silent for a beat. "Ensure there are no further complications. Get it done, Chellick. You know what's at stake."
Chellick tries to swallow a lump in his throat. "I'll get it done. You have-"
"Who are you talking to Chell?" Garrus asks, rounding a nearby corner and walking towards Chellick. Chellick's heart skips a beat and he measures Garrus's expression for a second.
"Just another contact… As I was saying, you have 20 hours to get me what I'm looking for Scraps. Then you'll get your payment. Don't call me again until it's done." Chellick hangs up, hoping Miranda got the message but also that Garrus didn't hear too much.
"That was a heated conversation. Scraps being trouble again?" Garrus asks, crossing his arms, clearly attempting to be friendly but not meaning it.
Chellick sighs. "What do you want, Garrus?"
Garrus frowns. "What is Splicer being charged with?"
"Murder. Why do you care anyway?" Chellick asks.
Garrus seems taken aback for a moment. "Murder? But-"
"Look Garrus. It's best if you just stay out of it." Chellick says quickly, feeling suddenly like Garrus is in danger. "You have to trust me on this, no good is gonna come out of this if you choose to get involved."
Garrus is silent for a moment. "Chell. I know you and I have had some differences recently. But I'm happy you got the cushy spot you've been wanting. And honestly? I've changed too. I don't think Splicer is a bad person. Sure, he doesn't do good things all the time, but I've met him, and he seems like he has good intentions and the right goals."
"I thought you were an 'it's the results, not the intentions that matter,' sort of person Garrus. Fucking hell, you were on him more fervently than I've ever seen you chase a perp. Fuck his intentions and his goals. He breaks the law, he's busted, end of story." Chellick responds, writing disappointment across his face. There's a length of silence before Chellick sighs.
"I'm telling you Garrus. If you get involved in this one, you're not going to like the outcome in any case… But if you're so motivated to help your friend, he's in interview room 6. I doubt you're going to get assigned but if you want a minute or two to talk to him, I'll keep an eye out."
Garrus nods and grins. "Thanks, Chell."
Splicer
Moments Later…
I sit, trying to relax as many muscles in my body as I can and keep my mind empty, but my mind constantly goes back to being on the defensive. I'm trying to figure a way out of this, but it's my word against theirs. Not like I had much experience in my life with the police, but my understanding is that a cop's word is worth three times mine or more. As of now, it's Chellick's word against mine. I don't know his reputation but I doubt mine will hold up against his. I mean, sure, I'm on the Executor's good side but Chellick was right in his assumption: I really don't know how things work here. If it's anything like an early 21st-century American system of justice then the cops aren't the ones who are going to be charging me with a crime anyways, that's the district attorney's job… but I really doubt that this justice system is anything like America's was 250 years ago. Nevertheless, I doubt Executor Pallin's general approval of me will have any effect on how this'll play out.
I sigh.
First a Cerberus cell, now a C-Sec one. Seems I'm destined to be confined and just when I felt like I was on the cusp of something significant. Things were starting to look up and then everything just gets turned on its head… all at once.
Hm. Well, now I'm starting to think that all of this is connected somehow. Does Cerberus have this much pull with C-Sec, that they can get me charged with a crime and thrown in prison at the drop of a hat? But how does that benefit them at all, if it's me that they want?
The opaque glass separating me from the opposite room clears again, but this time Garrus is standing in the small room next to a terminal.
"Can't stay out of trouble, can you?" Garrus asks, sounding serious.
I shrug. "It seems to follow me wherever I go… I didn't do it Garrus."
Garrus sighs. "I'm not supposed to discuss your case, but honestly it's not a solid one at best. Evidence linking you to the crime scene seems pretty circumstantial and if it was the case that you were just checking it out then that would follow through… But you have another problem. It's almost guaranteed you'll be charged and not just with this case but with others that you're being investigated for as well."
"There's no hope for me then?" I ask, feeling despondent.
Garrus is quiet for a moment. "Looks bad, but there's a chance. You haven't been charged yet. We'll need to move quickly, but if we can prove your innocence without a shadow of a doubt and present the evidence to the prosecutor before you're charged, I doubt they'll press charges for anything else. If they do, they'll need to present evidence to support their charges and frankly, there isn't any. Nothing solid at least."
"How do you know that for sure though?" I ask, skeptical. This seems a little too good to be true.
"Because I've been the one investigating you. I have for some time. I haven't found much of anything concrete enough to charge you with the crimes you're accused of; and before you have anything sarcastic to say, it's not for lack of trying on my part." Garrus explains.
I chuckle. "Well, that is good news. I can prove my innocence as it just so happens."
"How?" Garrus asks.
"Well, this armor is custom. Some time ago, I had small quantum memory chips installed, courtesy of some close friends. My armor collects data into those memory chips, including video feeds when my helmet is on and the armor is functioning. In other words, when I'm fighting, the armor is recording it." I say.
"So… you'd have as much to incriminate you as exonerate you?" Garrus asks, giving me a look.
I point a finger at him. "Before you get any funny ideas, this is new armor. Like new within the last day or so. The chip in here should only have recordings from last night."
"Why do you have that?" Garrus asks with a frown.
"A couple of reasons, but among them is to record some of what I experience so I can review it and see how I can improve later… but if it also proves my innocence in case I'm falsely accused I guess that's useful too." I say with a shrug.
I reach behind my head and feel for the slot cover that holds the memory chip on my helmet. I flip it open and pop the chip out and put it in a transfer receptacle in the wall. "That should be more than enough to prove my innocence."
Garrus nods. "I'll review it and hand it off to the prosecutor… can I ask: why are you giving this to me?"
Taken off guard a bit I shrug. "Uh, well I was going to give it to my lawyer, whoever that is but I trust you. And I know that you're a straight shooter and that if you're saying what you're saying to me then it's true."
Garrus nods and closes his hand around the chip. "Well. Thanks for trusting me. I don't know when it happened but I guess we're friends now."
Chellick
Meanwhile…
Chellick leans against the wall just outside the interview room. A fabricated cable runs from his OT to the door panel and audio from the room is being streamed into Chellick's earpiece.
Hm… Memory chip, huh?
Chellick sighs and pulls the cable out from the door, letting it disintegrate back into raw materials that are absorbed back into his OT.
"Sorry, Garrus." Chellick mumbles as he concocts his plan.
Splicer
Many Hours Later…
This must be a coercion technique. Just making people wait for hours and hours and then giving me very little to go on when they do come to speak with me. I remember when my dad bought a car once and they stretched the process out for 8 or 9 hours and he was so exhausted by the end of it that he was more open to even a bad deal. I think they just wore him out, made him impatient.
Man. Haven't thought of my dad in a long time, let me just bury that right back where it's supposed to lie; sorry about that.
Anyways, hopefully, that doesn't come up again. They offered to feed me twice on the condition that I take my armor off. I mean, obviously, I can't eat without taking my helmet off. So instead I told them that quid-pro-quo is a pretty archaic way to compel a suspect to do something.
They didn't leave the food.
Whenever I ask about what's going on outside, they either ignore me or tell me they can't tell me, which is annoying. And no matter how many times I ask for a lawyer, they don't say anything to me.
Suddenly, the glass wall clears again but standing before me is Vaga. I'm about to say his name in relief but he holds up his hand quickly, silencing me.
"Splicer, my name is Namiq Polisius. Please call me Namiq. I'm your legal representative." Vaga says from the other side of the glass. "I'm pleased to tell you that I've been working closely with the assigned prosecutor and your charges are being dropped."
"Good, so Garrus got the chip to them?" I ask with a relieved nod.
Vaga looks at me perplexed. "Chip? No… my peers and I at the firm convinced them to drop the charges… what chip?"
I lean back. "Well shiiiit… Hm. Anything else?"
Vaga shakes his head, looking now a bit concerned behind the hyper-positive mask he puts back on. "Not really. You'll be happy to hear that you've been cleared for release. Your possessions are at the front desk."
I get to my feet, finding Vaga just beyond the interrogation room, and he escorts me out of the room and past a few C-Sec officers standing guard.
Vaga leans close as we walk. "The Shadow Broker asked me to get you out. They want you to know that you owe them a favor."
I sigh. "What is it?"
"Not now. Soon though. They'll get in touch when something needs to get done." Vaga responds. "For now, try to lay low. Things are getting a lot tenser, a lot quicker than we want them to. What were you talking about with the chip?"
"There are chips in my armor that store data. Ram made them. I was hoping they'd be used as evidence to exonerate me." I reply, stopping in a quiet hallway.
Vaga groans. "Well, that fucking explains it… I got a call from Tyrannax."
"And?" I ask.
"His workshop was raided by the cops." Vaga says, gesturing intently. Instantly I feel a wave of worry wash over me. "He wasn't there at the time, luckily. And he took measures to cover his tracks in case this happened so there isn't anything to tie him to the workshop, but some of his stuff is gone… Something weird is going on Splicer. Did you mention Tyr to the cops at all? Any cops?"
I shake my head. "No. I just gave him the chip from this helmet… there's no way they could know that I was connected to Tyr at all. How did this happen, Vaga?"
"I don't know, and that's what worries me." Vaga says, rubbing his chin. "As I said, I think there's something weird going on… Anyway, there's not much we can do now. Try to lay low for a while and I'll get back to you when I finally figure out what the hell is going on on this damn space station. Until then, try not to get in touch with me either; it'll just arouse suspicion."
"Fine, but get back to me when you can." I say.
Vaga nods. "I will but I'll be leaving the Citadel for a while until things calm down a bit. I'm heading straight out right now, got my ride all fueled and ready. I covered my tracks, but this alias needs to disappear for a while... honestly, we should be thankful nobody's noticed me yet; I am famous after all."
"Doing porn is quasi-fame at best." I reply, still whisper-shouting. "And you know people don't look at faces when they watch porn."
"Hey! I don't just do porn you know!" Vaga snaps back.
"Right, you also pretend to be public defenders." I mumble back in reply. "Listen, I need to do a bit of damage control. You'll get in touch soon?"
"When I know something I will." Vaga responds with a nod.
Vaga begins to walk away but I remember something very important and now I feel guilty for thinking of myself first. "Shit! Vaga! What about Nelyna? She was the asari arrested with me."
Vaga shrugs. "No idea… she cute?"
"Why does that matter?" I ask, throwing my hands up. "… but yes. Very."
"It matters to me!" Vaga whisper-shouts back at me. "I'll speak to someone on my way out but there isn't much else I can do Splicer."
I wave him off. "Whatever you can do is appreciated. Good luck."
"You too buddy," Vaga says, turning again and walking away.
I sigh and look at a nearby directory, looking for the investigations department so I can find Garrus. As of now, I need to find out what happened with that chip. I get the feeling that that was in part what the raid on Tyr's place was about. Luckily there are a few failsafes in place that'll help. First, the chip can't be removed without power. Second, the armor only powers on if it is all in one piece. And finally, the armor can only be donned and powered on by me or Tyr. So, short of completely destroying the armor in just such a way that the chip isn't damaged in the process, they shouldn't be able to get the chip out of my old armor… you know, the one that I did all of my illegal activities in.
I get moving once I figure out the direction that I need to be moving in. If an absolute mess could be any messier, I'd love to see it. Honestly, where did I go wrong?
Oh yeah, choosing a life of anonymous vigilantism and contract killing. That was probably the turning point there. What even am I exactly? Like what is my job description? Better yet, what is my superhero equivalent? There must be one.
Not Batman. Not Deathstroke. What's in between?
I stop dead in my tracks. Oh no. I'm Deadpool, aren't I? Fuck, where did I go wrong?
I shake my head in despondency and continue down a long corridor, where the right wall is all offices with glass partition walls and the left wall is just a big long window overlooking the Presidium.
I need to keep my mind on track. I get too distracted. There's too much to do right now, but like I told Vaga, as of now my mind is focused on damage control. I need to figure out what Garrus did with the chip that I gave him; because it definitely didn't end up in the prosecutor's hands, otherwise Vaga would have known about it…
Maybe. I don't know if I exactly trust prosecutors in general anyway, particularly not when I don't understand the justice system they have in place here.
Anyway, either Garrus turned it over to someone else or something happened to Garrus. Either possibility is bad. After I figure out what happened with that chip, I need to see if I can find out what happened with the evidence seized from Tyr's shop. If I can find my other armor, I can get the other, more incriminating chip back and then destroy it. Somewhere along the way, I need to find a way to help Nelyna get out of here too because she doesn't deserve to be in here, particularly from a legal perspective since my charges are being dropped. THEN I need to make sure Caspar gets off the Citadel safely and smoothly because if I don't, he's in danger of being found out.
I pause for a second and put my hand on my forehead. Man, Cerberus caused a lot of mess in my life without much effort on their part and circumstantially. Imagine how bad things would get if they actually were trying to come after me with retribution. Maybe I should just get off the Citadel for a while with Caspar once I get all this sorted out. Some distance might help to allay some of this attention on me. Maybe I can go see some of the galaxy, that might be nice… Or I can tie up loose ends.
Speaking of. Once I've checked to make sure I'm alone in this corridor and there aren't any people in these offices next to me, I call Vaga.
"Something else come up?" Vaga says, all business once he picks up the call.
"Where are you headed, when you're going off Citadel?" I ask, leaning up against the wall between offices. "I need something taken care of, off Citadel."
"I'm already on my way out. We just disembarked a few minutes ago. Where specifically?" Vaga asks.
"Illium," I reply, sighing and shutting my eyes. I feel like going down this route will be a slippery slope. It just doesn't feel right.
"Okay, what do you need taken care of?" Vaga asks. "I'm wasn't planning on heading there myself, but I can have something taken care of."
"There's a girl there. Oriana Lawson. I just need her watched." I say and then pause, taking a breath. "And captured should the need arise."
"And when do you think that will be?" Vaga asks, not fazed by the implication whatsoever.
"Hopefully it won't be necessary. But just wait for my go ahead." I reply firmly. "Can you get it done?"
"I'll see to it personally. I wasn't planning on going to Illium, but a little detour there might be nice. I do love the glamour of that planet." Vaga says wistfully.
I sigh. "Thanks, I appreciate it. All you've done, really."
"No problem." Vaga says before ending the call. "Hey by the way, something weird is--"
"Vaga?" I ask, frowning as the call dissolves into static. I look at my OT and it reads Call Failure. Weird, never seen that before.
I put my head back against the wall. Now, I can tell myself that I'm being cautious or protecting my friends by taking out this insurance plan, but the fact is that I'm using a teenager as leverage against her sister. It doesn't feel right at all.
But I can't take the risk. Miranda is gonna come back for me and I need to have a plan in place. I'm going to need leverage against her because lord knows that she'll have calculated every possible leverage she can use against me and exploited all of them. Still… it feels wrong. Even if I didn't know what I know, about all of this, about this world, I'd feel guilty. So guilty, I doubt I'd act, no matter how bad things got. I sigh and push myself off the wall, hoping I don't end up regretting this.
But almost just after I push myself off the wall, I get caught off balance and fall back against it as the ground starts to shake. It's not insanely violent but the motion along with a sudden shift in gravity, sensible from the weightless stomach feeling that you get when falling or accelerating quickly, causes me to lose balance. Along with the quaking and movement, there's a deafening sound that echoes through the Presidium. It's pretty intimidating because I can hear it come as the quaking starts, hear it as it crescendos to a deafening roar and then quiet as it continues to travel across the entire Citadel. A sound wave, from something big.
The sound is a loud, distant metallic groan. Like a huge metal hanger door is opening or moving for the first time in weeks within a vast cavernous room. It's shrill and grinding and then low and moaning and then it's gone. And the shaking calms a bit.
Suddenly the quaking becomes more violent than ever, so violent in fact that I throw my hands out and soften my knees like I'm riding a surfboard for the first time, and I am suddenly bathed in darkness. The darkness doesn't last more than a few seconds, but it is rather replaced by much dimmer night hour light and flashing red emergency lights that I can see across the Presidium and not just in this corridor.
"Attention to all residents of the Citadel, this is not a drill. The arms of the Citadel are closing for your protection. Please remain calm and seek shelter." Avina announces across the Presidium, her calm and amicable voice echoing loudly from multiple points.
What the fuck is going on?
Suddenly I hear a distant pop, like the crack of a whip inside a storage container. That was an explosion. Then there's another. And another. Then a quick, staccato repeating snapping. Automatic gunfire. Then individual snapping mixed in among the staccato tones and the pops which are getting louder and closer. Gunfire. Explosions.
The Citadel is under attack.
There's a deafening explosion and outside, the Presidium darkens significantly as a huge chunk of the fake sky ceiling is blown open. From it, several small vessels fly down into the Presidium itself and begin spreading out. A blinding light appears before me, lowering from above. I shield my eyes but hear the definitive hum of big guns getting ready to fire. Instinctively, I Aero Dash, and I'm just in time. I hit the ground and stumble to the floor and look back just as rapid, high caliber gunfire akin to that of the spinning cannons of gunships from the early 21st century tear into the spot where I just was, ripping through the glass and tearing the floor and wall apart like they're made of tissue paper and not metal.
The gunship outside then begins strafing towards me and continues to fire, no doubt in the hope that it'd catch up to me. I quickly scramble to my feet and Aero Dash again to gain both momentum and distance as the gunship can move faster than I can and was quickly catching up.
I sprint as hard as I can, the sound of the bullets tearing through the building is deafening. Thank goodness this armor is lighter than the old stuff. Still not enough though. The guns keep catching up.
So close to the end but I need to open the goddamn door still! I'm dead for fucking sure.
Shit, what can I do?
As I sprint down the hall I look into an office and throw up my hand, activating Telekinesis. I don't aim and just pull, hoping something comes. A metal coffee mug flies through the glass and stops just a few inches from my hand, hovering there. I point my hand forward, aim carefully, and release. The mug shoots forwards like a bullet and hits the door dead center in the digital control. The door then begins to open. Someone's watching out for me I guess because that shouldn't have worked. No way I'm that lucky!
On top of the sound of gunfire, I hear a whoosh and then several more. I don't even bother looking, I just Aero Dash one final time and make it through the doorway into a large dark room. Just as I slow to a stop at the end of the dash, several explosions propel me forwards and through a few cubicle walls. I look back at the burning hall and see the bright white lights of the gunship through it. It'll probably be hanging around. Even if it isn't, I think it's safer to assume that it is. The door then closes automatically.
The room is nearly pitch black, save for some ambient lighting from windows in offices on the other side of the room. Hopefully, I'm safe from the gunship in here for now. Someone approaches me.
"You okay?" I hear the voice ask.
I grunt and get to my feet, looking at the salarian C-Sec officer, "Ugh, yeah."
Across the room, I see a door open and a few armored figures with flashlights on their assault rifles. They enter with weapons raised and quickly scan the room.
"Nobody moves!" A commanding voice from the group shouts, "Everybody put your hands in the fucking air!"
I see the lights swing this way and illuminate the salarian and me.
"Target Bravo! Take him down!" I hear one of them shout.
I dive forward, throwing my arms around the salarian and tackle him to the floor just as gunfire tears over us. I leave the salarian there to clutch at his stomach that I just threw my shoulder into and crawl over to a nearby but not the closest cubicle as gunfire continues to shoot in our general direction.
No weapons or omni-tool weapons, only plasmids for now. Please don't fail me new armor.
I wait.
The gunfire dulls to just one or two of them shooting generally in the direction of where I was sporadically to keep me down. A flashlight appears at the end of this row of cubicles and quickly moves down it. They probably spotted the downed salarian. No doubt someone else is circling out around the other side. I'll only have a few seconds. Just as the one coming towards me passes, I kick my leg out hard, using the edge of the cubicle as a pivot point to get more leverage into the kick.
The soldier's legs fly out backward from under him and he slams into the ground face first with a grunt like a Kiai, his assault rifle clattering to the ground just in front of him. I quickly roll onto him, knees next to his ribs. I curl my torso down, wrap my arm around his neck, and cinch down on his torso with my knees. I try to straighten my body as explosively as possible, maintaining my grips on his neck and on his ribs. His neck snaps loudly, his spine disconnecting from his skull.
He only manages a wheezing death rattle as his body twitches and then goes totally slack. Rather than immediately dive for the assault rifle, I raise my other hand with a plasmid ready. Not a second later, the other soldier rounds the corner and I greet him with a bolt of lightning, courtesy of Electro Bolt. The bolt hits him and he stumbles backward, limbs flailing.
I quickly grab the rifle and rush forward, keeping my head down as the gunfire from the others redoubles as they see their two comrades go down. I reach the stunned trooper and shoot him until his shield and armor fail and blood squirts out of his body. I ditch the heated rifle and pick up this new one here.
I then turn around and head away from where the other two soldiers are, moving quickly in a crouch. God my quads and glutes are gonna hurt later. I move fast on a path that they aren't covering. I pause and quickly peek over the top of a row of cubicles and see the two remaining soldiers are moving along the perimeter of the room. Since the cubicle rows run lengthwise of the room, the one moving perpendicular to them moves slowly, aiming down each row before cautiously moving to the next. The other trooper, being that he's moving parallel to the rows, sprints down the length of the room opposite me. They're trying to flank. What to do, what to do…
With seconds before I'm spotted by either one of them, I hide in the closest cubicle and wait until they reach the last row. Now that they're in a crossfire, I doubt they're going to shoot immediately. Let's hope. Fuck I can only aim at one at a time.
They slowly move down from either end of the rows, checking each cubicle as they go. I'm about at the middle. I look around the cubicle and grab another metal coffee mug that sits on the desk. I lob it across the room towards the other side.
I hear it clatter loudly and don't wait. I dive out of the cubicle, landing on my back roughly. I point my left hand out and blast another Electro Bolt down towards the soldier there just a few feet from me. I then roll to my side without delay and shoot wildly at the other soldier. I miss a lot but enough bullets hit and take him off guard to down his shield, but he just barely manages to dive into the cover of a cubicle. I roll back onto my back and point my hand at the soldier who I hit with the Electro Bolt but whose shield managed to take the entirety of it. Before my shield breaks, I activate Incinerate and set him ablaze. With his shield having been knocked out by Electro Bolt, he becomes engulfed in flames and is immediately screaming and flailing.
Shield depleted, but determined to finish the fight, I sit up and get to my feet. I grab the top edge of the cubicle and vault over, landing on the desk on the other side. I then take a standing leap forward and just barely clear the length of the jump and the top lip of the other cubicle. I land, rather unceremoniously or gracefully, on the desk, rolling off of it right on top of the other soldier.
With an instinct gained only by experience, I roll around on top of him and take hold of his torso with my arms. I get my feet down beneath my me and lift, throwing him over my head and backwards as I bend back and suplex him. I hear his assault rifle skitter across the ground as it slides away.
I twist and get to my feet, raising my foot up high enough that it comes almost up to my eye level, before bringing my heel down with all the power I can muster on his neck. Modern armor is mostly made of ceramic composites in the hard parts, but doesn't offer much protection on the flexible parts, like the neck, particularly from a boot coming down on it. I hear his neck snap and I'm satisfied he's dead immediately.
Breathing heavily, adrenaline winding down, I drop to a knee and catch my breath. I'm in the midst of collecting myself before I'm bathed in light again. I look up at it and see the dark figure of another enemy there. Shit, where did he come from?
Suddenly, the soldier is tackled down just as he pulls the trigger, but my shield, just now recharged, takes it. I see an omni-blade rise and fall several times and then the ragged breathing of my savior.
I get to my feet and step out of the cubicle cautiously. The person who saved me rises too and I get a better look at them. To my surprise, it's Alex, the CSI who was part of the group who came to save me. Call it what you want, providence, serendipity, or pure coincidence; regardless I'm happy to see her. Alex looks me up and down, breathing hard. She wipes blood spatter off of her face.
I can say with strong confidence that for every person out there, there are a handful of people that they've encountered in their lives that instantly strike them. Whether that be by presence, personality, or attraction, everyone knows what I mean. Alex is one of those people for me. She has that X-factor for me.
Alex is a small woman, maybe 5'5" in the black duty boots she's wearing. She has a noticeably athletic figure. Even though she's petite, she has a sort of lithe-ness to her that implies considerable strength and agility for someone of her size. It's most noticeable in her shoulders, upper arms, neck, waist. You probably know what I mean. Everyone has seen that person who looks athletic even in unflattering clothing. You can see it in the subtleties. The way their neck slopes into the trapezius, or the way their upper arm and deltoid changes shape as it gets closer to the body. But with Alex, wherever there's subtle or obvious firmness, there's also a softness, a femininity. She has a heart shaped face and devastating big dark green eyes. Her upper lip is a little darker, naturally, than her lower one. Her hair is short and tomboyish but it both compliments and provides contrast to her gentle features. And above all she has freckles. I love freckles.
Right now, she's wearing a variation of the C-Sec uniform. It consists of loose fitting dark blue pants with cargo pockets bloused into black boots and a tightly fitting long sleeve dark blue shirt with silver trim. Even in these functional clothes, I'm smitten by her. I quickly shake off my stupor.
"Alex!" I say dumbly, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I work here dude." she responds still breathing heavily and wiping some more blood from her cheek with her shirt sleeve.
"In investigations?" I ask, glancing around the bland cavernous room.
Alex gestures around. "These are the Crime Scene Investigations offices."
I nod slowly. "Guess I was speed reading the signs… Shit. You know where Garrus is?"
Alex stares at me for a moment, "What? Who cares? … well I do care, don't get me wrong, but what the fuck is going on?"
I shrug, "You know as much as I do. Who are these guys?"
Alex takes a deep breath and swallows before moving to the one she killed. "Not sure. They have blue armor."
I squat down and roll the soldier over. He's heavily armored in true blue armor, with distinct white symbols painted on the chest and shoulders. His helmet, rather than sporting a visor, has two round eye holes with a blue glow.
"Blue Suns?" I ask with a frown.
Alex is quiet for a second. "Mercs. Why are they here? Why are they attacking the Citadel?"
I shake my head. "No clue…"
I wish I could say because I want to understand too. Why is something that never happened in Mass Effect, happening now? I mean, I would have heard about this for sure. I would have remembered if this had happened in the game. This isn't right…
Meanwhile…
"What's happening?" Miranda asks, pacing back and forth in the small control room. Funny how the arms of the Citadel are controlled from this tiny nondescript room among other places.
"Fuck." The Blue Suns commander of this sector of the galaxy and OIC of this operation, Commander Vosque, curses and kicks a wall panel, denting it deeply. "Retrieval team Sierra is down, no response. Alpha through Echo are still engaging C-Sec…"
"I'm sending in my people," Miranda says, turning to Ben King, hands clasped behind her back. "I'll lead them personally."
Ben, who is sitting in a chair tucked into the corner with his hands steepled on top of a black and silver cane, shakes his head. "Miranda, please! Be patient! And give these good folks a good chance! We paid them quite a bit, you know."
"I know." Miranda responds, her voice tight but nonetheless managing to not roll her eyes. She remembers the conversation well. When Santiago made the astronomical estimate, Ben added 20% to it as a 'show of good faith,' and as a means to negotiate for a larger fighting force. 'All hands on deck,' were his exact words.
Ben turns to Commander Vosque. "So, Commander, what's your alternative plan?"
Without responding to Ben, Commander Vosque turns back to face out the window overlooking the Citadel. The sight of the closed arms of the Citadel is a once in a lifetime view. It's as if once a generation the Grand Canyon shut itself for a few moments.
Commander Vosque, who is silent for several moments, curses again and waves to one of his soldiers. "Get me the fucking freaks. Now."
The soldier doesn't move and hesitates a moment. "Sir, they're deployed to retrieve the Council right now."
Vosque rounds on him. "Send them after bravo, now!"
The soldier turns and opens his OT. After a few seconds, a female voice answers with the sounds of battle clear in the background. "What?!"
"Vosque needs you back at OB Alpha." The soldier says, tension clear in his voice.
"Tell him to suck a dick. We're busy." the woman responds and Miranda can clearly hear that she has a slight South African accent as well.
Vosque rounds at the soldier again but it's clear he's angry at the woman. "This is Vosque! This is a direct order from me. Your master turned your leash over to me and if you don't do as I say, I'll wash my hands of you and those other freaks of nature and chalk it up to reasonable losses. Am I fucking clear?!"
The woman groans, "Ugh, for fuck's sake. Calm down, you weirdo. We're going, we're going! I was just teasin'."
Ben snickers in the corner. "I like her!"
Suddenly, Vosque shoots a look at Ben but it backfires. Something in Ben's eyes, or his expression causes Vosque to pale a bit. He gulps. "Listen. Just go to the Presidium C-Sec precinct. Now. Rendezvous with the support teams. You're on asset retrieval."
"We're close. En route." The woman responds. "Next time ask nicely, and I might be nicer too."
A vein bulges in Vosque's neck again but the call is ended before he has a chance to blow up again.
"Oooh that goddamn bitch." Vosque grumbles.
"Who is she?" Ben asks with a small smile.
"No one!" Vosque barks back at him. "Now be quiet and eat your damn kippers."
Ben scoffs. "So moody. Miranda?"
Miranda moves to Ben's side. When he motions to her, she leans forward and moves her hair to the side, so her head is near his.
"Something tells me Mr. Vosque has his own little secret to keep." Ben whispers to her. "Send some of ours to watch this team, the so-called 'freaks.'"
"And the asset?" Miranda asks.
Ben waves her off. "I'm sure he'll come into custody in due time. But with luck, we might leave with more than we came in with."
Meanwhile…
I get to my feet and turn to look at the small number of people standing near the door that the Blue Suns soldiers came out of. I wave Alex along and we head over there. I grab two assault rifles off the dead soldiers as I go and from the waving light behind me, I know Alex grabbed one as well.
Heading up to the group I see an asari, a human man, and the salarian I body slammed earlier. The asari is diligently working on the door control panel.
The human man turns to look at us. "More are trying to get in, but we put an emergency seal on it."
"Will that stop explosives?" I ask looking at the group.
The human looks nervous and the asari looks back at me.
"Unlikely." Alex answers for them.
"You're Splicer?" The human asks, looking me up and down.
I look down at myself. "Well, would you look at that? Guess I am?"
Alex laughs and the human looks disappointed.
"No need for sarcasm." The human mumbles.
"No need for this discussion either. We have more important things to worry about. How many are trying to get through?" I ask, taking a mental tally of how many I might be able to kill.
The asari types into the door control and a fuzzy live feed appears on the screen. I see about a dozen Blue Suns troopers gathered outside the door.
"That might be a bit more than I can take all at once." I say with a sigh. "Uh, well I came in the other way and there was a gunship."
"Attention all C-Sec personnel, this is Commander Falion! Congregate in the lobby! We are under attack and are setting up defenses in the lobby! To all attacking Blue Suns, we will attack on sight without scrutiny. No quarter will be given if any civilians are harmed." An announcement blasts over the building's PA system before shutting off.
"Going the other way is a more direct path to the lobby." The salarian says, pointing back at the way I came.
I sigh. Shit, these are bad options. The possibility of gunship without cover or a firefight with 12-plus mercenaries? If we go back the way I came, we'll be completely exposed in a good 30-yard long hallway at the mercy of a gunship that may or may not still be there. At least here, the mercs are bottlenecked in the doorway and I can get the drop on them and there are a few of us with assault rifles…
"I'd rather take my chances with the mercs. I can't take down a gunship." I say, trying to pump myself up to fight a dozen at once. "We'll need a plan though. They'll be bottlenecked in the doorway, so Alex, you and the salarian can get a good crossfire on them when they're coming in and-"
"Wait!" The asari says, pointing at the screen. "More are coming."
I watch as the dozen Blue Suns gathered near the door part and back away as a trio of Blue Suns soldiers approaches the door. They all appear human or at least humanoid in shape. The one leading the trio is a woman wearing heavy armor. In all, she doesn't look too different from your typical Blue Suns trooper, except that she has an asymmetric armor design where her right arm has much lighter armor than her left, and perhaps her armor is custom as it doesn't match a typical troopers'.
The other two following her look a bit more unique in comparison to your average trooper. One looks male. He's not as tall as the other two, in fact, he looks rather short in general. He has a stocky build with broad shoulders but narrow hips and strong legs, giving him a Wolverine-like build. His helmet is what sets him apart. It looks sort of like a mask where it covers his whole head except for his mouth and nose.
The third one also looks female, is the tallest of the three, and unlike all the other Blue Suns soldiers I've seen, her armor looks extremely light. In fact, her 'armor' is more like what Miranda wears in ME2. She's wearing a matte black skinsuit with a white logo painted over her torso and she has small blue armor plates on her shoulders, forearms, chest, thighs, and calves. She's also wearing a helmet but it's beveled at the front like the edge of a blade. Speaking of blades, I also notice she has a sword on her back.
Great. Swords.
"Special forces or something?" Alex asks, watching the feed with me.
"Eh. They don't look so tough. We can take 15 I think." I say watching the feed.
The leader of this trio, the woman with the lightly armored right arm, passes her gun over to the stocky man and rolls her shoulder. She takes a step back and winds up a punch. Is she going to punch this foot thick, magnetically sealed door? She trying to break her arm?
She then punches the door.
And the door yields. A convex dent appears on my side of the door, extending a few inches from the door.
"Whoa." Alex mumbles, staring at the door wide-eyed.
"Ooookay." I say tossing one of the rifles I'm carrying to the salarian. "Gunship hallway it is."
Alex passes another extra rifle over to the asari as I run toward the other door with the rest of the group in tow.
I motion for everyone to take cover and open the door, glancing out cautiously. The gunship is gone, though outside, the Presidium has gone completely dark. The only illumination down this hall is from an eerie, moonlight-like ambiance from what I assume are emergency power lights and from the fires burning nearby. The hallway is full of thick smoke and I can barely see the other end, let alone get a good view of the area outside of the building. Nonetheless, I would be able to see and hear the gunship if it was close. I look back at the door where the Blue Suns are trying to breach. I hear it screeching and groaning. They'll be in soon.
"Aw fuck. Go! Quickly! I'll cover you!" I say to everyone, waving them on.
They don't question it, thank goodness, they just go. With Alex in the lead, the four of them sprint down the smoky, glass strewn hallway. They all slip on the glass at least once. All of the falls, except for the asari's, looked minor. The asari's fall was a full-on, feet flying out from under you, kind of fall. And onto the glass, I could tell she was hurt even from here. They persevere and continue though.
I hear a bang from behind me and I see from across the room that the door is open and that Blue Suns leader is standing in the doorway, arm raised over her head as she's holding the door open with pure strength alone
I put my assault rifle on my back and activate Telekinesis and Afterburn, pumping myself up. I point my hands at a nearby desk. My plan is to hurl it at the door, slow them down a bit. Just as I begin to use Telekinesis to pull the desk, I see a blur of movement in a straight line from the open door at the other side of the room to the corner across from me. I see the tall, light armored soldier skid to a halt and turn her head to look at me, appearing as if from nowhere directly ahead, maybe 60 feet away. She pivots on the spot, gets into a runner's stance, and then in the blink of an eye appears directly in front of me skidding to a halt, sword raised.
SHIT WHAT THE FUCK?!
In my shock, my plasmid deactivates and the desk, which I was just pulling towards me, slams into the soldier's back causing her to slam into me. I fly into the hallway and land on my back, sliding a few more feet. I scramble to my feet and look at the Blue Suns soldier face down near the doorway, unmoving.
Suddenly, the other two special forces Blue Suns appear, vaulting over the desk one at a time. The leader kneels next to the tall one, looking at me angrily. I turn to run.
"Take him out Donner." I hear the leader say.
I hear the crunch of glass and I look back as the man, Donner presumably, takes an action-like pose a distinctly wide straddled position, as if he's getting ready to brace something very heavy. I watch as he takes a few big deep breaths, before taking one big one.
First, one with super strength, then one with super speed. This one going to breathe fire or something?
I see his mouth open and for a second I'm worried that I'm right. Then, I wish he did just breathe fire.
I see a literal shockwave come out of his mouth and travel at me with the speed of a bullet. It kicks up a wall of shattered glass and is so forceful it distends the walls of the hallway with such intense power they actually tear apart. The shattered glass that's propelled ahead of the shockwave is actually turned to glittering dust that washes over me before I'm hit with what feels like a literal train. I fly forward like I was a bullet shot from a gun and everything happens so fast and violently, that I'm sure I lost consciousness for the duration of it. For a second, I'm completely numb. Then, pain slowly blooms all over my body, and I feel blood dribbling down my face from my ears. I see spots. I don't hear anything. I look up, slowly, at these soldiers.
The male, Donner, is rising to his feet, stepping forward again. The force of his shout seemed to have knocked even him back several feet.
I take a deep breath and activate Afterburn. I let it do its work, healing my broken ribs and resetting my displaced vertebra. The unbearable pain all over my body subsides and is replaced by an internal, muscle fatigue-like heat.
I get to my feet.
Donner stops dead, looking at me shocked. Of course, he's shocked. The absolute devastation that his shout caused is more than most high powered explosives might cause. The hallway is practically falling apart and there's not much left between him and me, but he's given pause, despite his power. It comes from his mouth. Is he doing a Dragonborn Skyrim shout or something? I mean, it's effective. The pressure wave caused by it did all of this.
Gonna need to make a plasmid like that.
Geez, I don't think I can fight this guy. It's taking all my strength just to stay standing. I pound a fist on my chest, trying to seem tough. Oh. That wasn't a good idea. Hurt like a motherfucker. Bet it looked cool until I flinched from my own aggression display. I continue regardless.
"You want a piece of me Dovahkin?! Come at me Black Canary!" I scream, raising my arms at him.
I see him take a deep breath again, then another and another. He then gets down in his pose again before taking a huge breath.
Okay now.
I throw my hand up and quickly shoot an Electro Bolt his way. Lightning is faster than sound… I think. Turns out it's at least faster than a guy can expel a breath. The Electro Bolt hits him and he stumbles from his awkward pose and cries out. I see another shockwave distort the air as it flies out of his mouth. It misses me just barely but it does the hallway the rest of the way in.
I feel myself bounce around the torn apart hall before falling unconscious as I am buried in it.
A/N:
Hey, y'all. Sorry I pulled a George R. R. Martin/ Patrick Rothfuss on y'all.
Initially (and this is only partially an excuse), I was taking my time because I wanted to actually complete this arc before I posted anything. The thing about posting a story chapter by chapter is that once it's posted I always feel like it's set in stone, so I need to make sure all my set up and stuff is there because once it's done it's done. I don't feel that I can go back and add things or change them. I really don't want this story to feel episodic because that's often the folly/flaw/tone of most fanfics (including the original version of this story). So to avoid this, I'm trying to set up and foreshadow and have things lead up to one thing or the next. Obviously, though, this is more challenging than just writing an episodic narrative, where each chapter is more or less self-contained narratively. So again, I'm really trying NOT to go back and add or change things. I feel like it'd be kinda messed up for me to tell you guys "Hey I changed something in chapter 6, go back and read it." I mean it's been so long you might want to reread from the start to refresh your memory on this anyway, but rest assured I haven't changed anything from when it was originally posted.
I was working on this arc in early 2021 and actually ended up getting COVID for the first time during that process. It got me pretty bad and I ended up having that "long COVID" y'all might have heard about. I had this horrible brain fog, where I couldn't focus on anything and it really made life difficult for me, let alone writing. Anyway, it put me out of basically everything and I kind of completely stopped working on all my projects. It took a lot longer than I would have liked, but I got back in the groove of things after like half a year of dealing with that. But life has a way of catching up to you whether you like it or not and the past two years or so has been really, really busy for me. Adulting is hard y'all.
Believe it or not though, I've actually been working on these next 5 chapters on and off the last 3 years. It was a process that was coming in bits and pieces. Recently I realized that in order to get this moving again I had to reread all of Massive 1, Massive 2, and the Redux. Seeing my progress as a writer was big motivator to keep going, but I also just really loved getting involved with the story again. It was a big task but this has always been a labor of love for me and I don't think I'll ever fully drop this story. At this rate though I'll probably be working out the kinks on Massive 4 or 5 when I'm 80 years old. It's crazy to think I started doing all this like… 12 years ago or something. Yikes.
Anyway, if you're still here, know that I truly appreciate it and I hope you're doing well in these troubling times. Again, I'm sorry this took so long; trust that I've been doing my best.
Anyway, so yeah, this is the start of Arc 2. For old fans of this series, this may seem familiar, but I hope you like it better than the original. I'm attempting to make it make more sense overall as well as insert more plot build overall rather than mere regional effects.
Thanks, once again, for reading. Oh, and I'm reading and taking account of the feedback in the reviews. Thanks to those who are helping me develop this story. It never ceases to amaze me that even if I'm not posting, and haven't in a long time, people still engage with this content. I'll continue to try to work on my flaws and my strengths as we work through this together.
Speaking of, the following chapters are going to get a little complex (hence why this took a minute and a half). We're not only introducing a lot of characters but bringing around some old ones too that we haven't seen in a while. We're also bringing back a lot of plot I set up earlier in the story. I really want to grow the fic into a deeper narrative. I'm not trying to add more plot, but rather narrow down on what makes the characters compelling. We're going to try and focus harder on our more important main characters, so expect to see side ones a little less often going forward after this arc.
Whenever I switch character perspective, I'm going to do a Game of Thrones sort of thing and just put the character's name right at the start of the section, just to help y'all keep track of things and whose perspective we're observing. After this arc, cutaways will likely be less frequent, we'll stick to our MC's perspective, but it makes sense for this part of the narrative.
I have to make a few small changes to previous canon that have come up as I've written this arc, errata if you will. I'm choosing to do it this way because again changing earlier chapters is something I want to avoid. You'll probably not even notice or care but here they are in case you feel like calling me out on it:
Tyrannax lives on the same ward as Splicer. It was previously written that they lived on separate wards, but for the narrative going forward they live on the same Ward.
Splicer lives on Zakera Ward. If it mentions otherwise anywhere in the story, disregard it. I've never really been consistent with this and I apologize for that. I'll try to pay more attention to that going forward.
The Citadel is a space station, thus traditional cardinal directions (North, South, etc.) don't make sense. I realized this when writing about a building with an Eastern Wing but realized that was stupid. So, I've come up with some directional terms for the Citadel:
The Wards connect to the Presidium and each of them have an end. The "Upper" Ward refers to the part of the Ward closer to the Presidium. The "Lower" Ward refers to the parts of the Ward that are further from the Presidium, towards the end or the "Point" of the Ward. Zakera Point, Aroch Point, Teyseri Point, etc. refer to the terminal end of their respective Ward.
"Going Lower" means to head towards the Lower Ward, towards the Point. "Going Higher" means to head towards the Upper Ward, towards the Presidium
I'll utilize the nautical terms Port and Starboard to refer to the left and right cardinal directions on both the Wards and the Presidium. This assumes the point of the Wards is the front or the bow of the station. Therefore, if you're facing the end of the Citadel, Port is to your left and Starboard is toward your right. If you're facing the opposite way, toward the Presidium, Port is on your right and Starboard is on your left. This assumes you know which direction the Presidium or the end of the Wards are at any given time anywhere on the Citadel though for the purposes of the story I think we can take for granted that a character would know such a thing at any moment.
On the Presidium, we'll use traditional nautical directionals assuming the point of the wards is the bow and the opposite side is the aft. Port is left if you're facing the bow, starboard is right. Going Fore or Forward means going towards the Wards if you're on the Presidium. Going Astern means going away from the Wards, toward the Presidium Tower side. Again this all assumes you know which direction the Wards are relative to which direction you're facing even on the Presidum which is an enclosed structure unlike the Wards. And again, I feel like we can assume all the characters know this, unless I otherwise say so specifically.
Okay so one last order of business: I again appreciate all of your patience. As a reward for that, the entire arc of this story is fully completed and will be coming shortly. I'm reluctant to release it all at once, because it might take a bit of time for me to write a couple more chapters to follow this arc. It'll also allow you all time if you wanted to reread the first 10 chapters of this story to refresh your memories. I'll include a recap of the important points of the first 10 chapters down below if you'd rather just get the important bits.
Thanks again for reading! Love you all.
Stay safe out there.
J.
EDIT 02/15/24: I apologize for any glaring errors/inconsistent formatting in this and future chapters. My laptop keyboard decided to stop working all of the sudden so I've been forced to do all my edits on my phone. Future chapters beyond 16 may be delayed due to this issue. But I'm working to resolve it. Peace!
Massive Shock Redux
Chapters 1-10 recap:
As a teenager, our MC, Splicer, was transported to the Bioshock universe, where, for 6 years, he did anything he could to survive. This included imbibing the gene altering substance known as ADAM. Splicer has a unique capability when using ADAM: his body absorbs the ADAM slowly and integrates genetic alterations seamlessly. This allows him all the benefits of genesplicing, with few of the consequences such as direct substance addiction, psychological degradation, or physical deformities.
As the city of Rapture fell, Splicer was once again transported across universes to the Mass Effect universe. With the help of 3 individuals, he escaped death and capture. These people would each become a good friend of his in time: Nata, a quarian on her pilgrimage, Nelyna, a handmaiden for the Consort, and Zurin 'Zero' Sagaeus, an officer with C-Sec.
With Nata's help, Splicer established himself on the Citadel and he quickly found himself undertaking dangerous mercenary work. His actions being highly illegal and stacking up numerous bodies, Splicer started gaining attention from C-Sec. Detective Garrus Vakarian and his partner Detective Decian Chellick, both members of an overworked and understaffed homicide division, were assigned numerous cases following Splicer's prolific crimes. With the help of CSI and Analyst Alex Silva from the sidelines, Garrus in particular became nigh obsessed with Splicer's case but lacked the evidence to make an arrest. Garrus often wanted to take matters into his own hands, but Chellick often discouraged him from this course of action. Eventually, Splicer's actions crossed the line into legitimate mercenary work. Proving himself to C-Sec by catching a serial killer, much to Garrus's dismay, it seemed like Splicer's future was all but secured. At the same time, Garrus lost his partner as Chellick, finally tired of the grind of the homicide division, transferred to an easier spot in customs and contraband.
But Splicer's unique powers were gaining attention. Cerberus, specifically, took notice. Cerberus assigned one of their agents, particularly skilled in subterfuge and Miranda Lawson to capture Splicer. Under the false pretense that they'd also kidnapped Nata, Splicer's closest friend, Splicer willingly went with Miranda. In her custody, Cerberus began invasive experiments on Splicer. Meanwhile, back home, Garrus discovers Splicer's kidnapping and chooses to rescue him simply because it is the right thing to do. But also in part, perhaps Garrus can't give up this case and feels he needs to bring Splicer to justice by any means. Unable to rely on Chellick's help anymore, Garrus enlists the assistance of CSI Alex Cisoto who'd been helping on the case from the sidelines. Together, they investigate Splicer's disappearance and discover a good working dynamic together. By the end of the investigation, they've recruited further assistance from Nata and Zero, with whom Garrus has a tenuous relationship, and Garrus pledges to put Alex's name forward for detective candidacy.
Narrowly escaping Minuteman Station where he was imprisoned, Splicer and his team abscond with a strange vessel: the Talon of Ebony. Within the Talon, the team discovers the ship is host to an AI who Splicer inadvertently frees by giving it full access of the ship's systems. Brokering a deal with the strange AI, who chooses the name Caspar for itself, Splicer and team return safely to the Citadel. Caspar merely desires freedom, but agrees to frequent check-ins and oversight. Caspar also reveals he's the creation of the richest human in the galaxy, Sir Benjamin King, who is also a high-ranking member of Cerberus. In addition, the group discover a strange wooden chest containing books from the 20th and 21st centuries belonging to King.
Meanwhile, King meets with Miranda back on Minuteman Station, expressing his displeasure over the failed operation. He enacts a bold plan to reclaim his lost property. Finally, back on the Citadel, Splicer reckons with a build-up of loneliness and mental trauma, something he feels he can only mitigate through action and danger (definitely unhealthy). He messes up a job because of its loose connection to the story of Thane Krios, concerned it will impact the canon of Mass Effect. Reeling from his failure and without anyone to consult, Splicer visits Nelyna at the Consort. The Consort herself expresses interest in Splicer and delves into his mind to help him cope with some of the trauma he's dealing with. From within his mind, Sha'ira tries and fails to interpret Splicer's past and his pain. But what she does figure out is that whatever that thing he has nightmares of, the thing in the dark that brought him here, it's real, it's alive, and it wants him.
Shortly after his appointment with Sha'ira, Splicer discovers the Shadow Broker agent Barla Von dead in his office. Splicer and Nelyna are both then arrested on suspicion for Barla Von's murder by none other than Detective Chellick.