My Music Motivations for the beginning, middle, and end:
'Where is my Mind?' A cover by A.A. Williams
'Tobacco Wife' (Orchestral cover). Remixed by Sterben Music
'Silver Pit' by Ben Chatwin.
|Chapter 31|
|Date: 4-23-2185|
|Time: 2145 Hours|
|21 hours and 46 minutes since Aratoht Drop.|
T-Bones. Eight of them. They sizzled beautifully next to a piled congregation of sweating onions, chopped asparagus, and mushrooms in a metal basket to keep them from falling through the grates.
Long tongs in one hand and a cold beer in the other, John smiled as he saw Tali spreading a tablecloth over the picnic table before setting off for the napkins.
"Almost done?" She asked with a voice that sounded to him like a melody that carried through the breeze. She tread across the wooden deck and kicked off her sandals at the breadth of their wide-open bi-fold doors that bridged kitchen and porch. She let the doors stand ajar to invite the day's splendor. The weather was too good not to let the late afternoon air in.
"Just about." Came his reply through a grin. Past the backyard door, he could see her kneeling down and balanced on the balls of her feet somewhere around the cabinetry.
"You find them yet?"
"Uh, no." She stood back up and crossed an arm around her chest and tapped on her lip, a single black ring around a finger.
She turned around a checked the cupboard, "Ah."
Napkins found. "I knew I put them away somewhere," she said, walking back out and foregoing her shoes.
He took a swig from his bottle and set down his tongs before throwing out an arm. "Come 'ere, beautiful."
She stopped what she was doing and went up to him with a beaming smile. She didn't say anything and stepped in close so he could wrap an arm around her waist.
"Excuse the beer breath." He said before pecking her on the lips.
"Blah." She pulled away, still all smiles to get the last of the dinnerware.
He took a quick gander of his steaks, making sure not to open it up all the way. It was important to keep it closed while you cooked. Checking your steaks constantly was a big no-no. He'd learned that from dad.
He could hear the muted clatter of silverware and clinking glasses on a platter as she passed by him once more to set up the table.
"Paper plates or the real stuff?" She asked, setting the rest of it down.
"Paper plates means less to clean up." He said with a scrunched nose and mirthful eye.
She stood in front of that dying sun, its rays radiating a gilded glow through the dress she wore, outlining a slender silhouette of a womanly body that lay beneath it. Fabric a hushed white, its pattern sparse, its touch fine and airy, and not too unlike earth's most regal of cottons. Her shoulders glowed. Her collarbones stood tall. A modest pendant sat just below her neck, a jet satin pearl with an inscription no one could read.
"Oh good. I'm glad you said that because I didn't want to do dishes either." She laughed.
He heard her. But he wasn't paying attention. The angelic halo the sun gave her deafened him. How was it possible that a woman embody a level of beauty that could steal a man of breath if he so much as glanced her way? God, she was gorgeous.
Seeing as how the table was set up for the two of them and their coming guests, she sat down, all pretty, and finally relaxed to enjoy the afternoon sun. He peered over to her.
The canvas of Rannoch stretched wide, its expanse ending short of a dense and distant treeline. Even further were the mountains that stretched up toward the sky, their peaks white and beholding a grandeur that John could hardly describe. Patches of wild grass, woven through the beds of boulders and rocks scattered about the land captivated his eyes to the lush tundra they called home.
"John?"
He stared at her and rose his brows to show he was paying attention to her.
"John, wake up."
He stirred. The hum of the Kodiak. It bled into his ears as if a dial had been turned. The shuttering din of unsecured gear. He blinked. Eyes hard from shadows shattering his dream. The utopia was gone. Back was the dark cabin. Back was the pain. The dirt. The mud.
He blinked more. He looked at Tali cinching down the straps to her dirty plate carrier and dusty backpack.
"Come on." She cooed quietly to him so that way only he could hear, "It's time to lead."
His stare went down to his canteen. He snapped open its cap. "…How long were we out?"
"One hour, twenty minutes." She answered, reaching for her shotgun and going over its frame. She opened its receiver to check its brick. "Still no contact with anyone."
He dipped his head back and downed whatever remained. Then he set it down, put his elbows on his knees, and pressed the tops of his pointers into his eyes to try and push the fog of sleep that'd been muddying him.
"How we looking, Audrey?"
"Nothing, Commander. Zip. We're out FTL in two. I'll try again once we exit."
"Roj. Let's double check our gear, folks. Even you, Audrey. No idea what's going to happen down there."
"Yessir."
Dry mud still on their boots and a film of dust on their gear, John finally stood from his seat and opened the armory closet to begin rearming himself of everything he'd used on Aratoht.
Grenades. Water. Sinks. A protein bar. A real one. 40g's in this bad boy.
Tali did the same. Took a bar as well just in case John would ever need to eat more than one.
"How'd you sleep, hun?"
"I slept okay, boo." She said quietly so that way only he could hear.
He grinned at her.
"You guys sleep?" John called out louder so they could hear him over the Kodiak's ambient thrumming.
"No." Lukh said, "Tried, but no."
"I couldn't sleep." Thane answered.
"What about you, Audrey? You sleep?"
"Oh yeah. The entire time." She said, rolling her eyes. The commander had jokes that could parry dad ones, sometimes. His jokes often lacked zeal, but that was okay. They were always a little endearing.
John did a once over of his sidearm. Then his rifle. Both checked to be green, he inspected each pouch to see they were full of everything he could possibly need.
"Folks, we won't have an idea of what to expect until we drop out of FTL. Once we get feeds of the rendezvous point, I want to get a visual of the Normandy first before we decide anything."
"What happens if we don't see them?" Lukh asked.
"If we don't, then we infiltrate. We have to stay on our toes. At least until we're back with Normandy.
"ROE?" Lukh followed up.
"Well. We shouldn't be seeing anyone but friendlies from here. But ROE is return fire only. Unless we're hot contact with, god forbid, the hegemony somehow. Then it's fire at will."
"Copy that."
They dropped from FTL and the first thing that happened was a violent and explosive rumble that nearly sent the Kodiak into a spiral.
Audrey yanked hard on the yoke and worked against the tide of inertia that smacked them from what was undoubtedly some exploding ordnance. Shrapnel flecked and scorched her frame and the ship rattled out a cry.
"Oh—H—holy ffffUCK! Lock in! Now! Do it! Do it now!"
Audrey's four passengers did exactly as ordered and scrambled back to their seats to secure themselves into restraints. Then the four stole themselves the chance to look out into the expanse to see the mess they'd just dropped into.
They dropped right into a warzone.
Green and red tracer fire danced around them. Missiles arcing and adjusting and chasing. Fighters in formations. Corvettes giving chase and maintaining escort. Countermeasures burning. Warped remains floating in vacuity. A hulk yawning overhead, turning end over end, billowing out an obese helix of fire and smoke.
"Do you know how big space is?" Lukh gasped, hands outstretched from bewilderment, "And you FTL'd us right into this?! What kind of sick luck is that, huh?!"
"Audrey, move! Full throttle! Get us out of here!"
"Aye!"
A fighter sliced by, its white and black wings sporting the unmistakable crest of Cerberus. It flew close enough to the Kodiak for the cabin to pick up and transmit, through its hull, a muffled thunder from its 20mm canon lazing a batarian corvette it trailed, clipping its engine, and birthing a smoldering column of black smoke. Pressing the advantage, the gun opened up again and gifted the crippled ship another volley, one more relentless than the last, gun snarling its thunderous symphony, notes fused into a single, indistinguishable, roar.
Unprepared by the onslaught, the ship rolled into a spiral of death and fractured, splintering into a cloud of warped steel, shattered alloy, and charred composites.
The coming shockwave pulsed the Kodiak and Audrey, again, had to brace and adjust. "Jesus LORD of Christ."
Tali's breath left her. Cerberus's stark palette clashing against batarian ones. She couldn't believe what she was witnessing. None of them did.
What in god's fallen universe was happening.
"Tali, patch me to the Kodiak's radio. We gotta find the Normandy."
Arm enshrined in light, her OT patched him through and she gave him a thumbs up.
"Normandy; this is Shepard. Wagon-1 is out FTL and contact hot. Situation is… kinetic. Course adjustment to follow. Maintaining RV. Do you read, over?"
"W̴͉̩̌̎a̷̛̰͗g̸̗̗̓̿o̶̦̿͛n̶̛͕-̵͇͌̍1̸̫̉ ̵̥̅ẅ̸̻̾e̴̹̋́'̸̪̀w̴̯̤̌ė̸̢̮'̴̠͔͑̆w̵͔̜͒e̷̟̋'̴̣̃̌s̴͔̳̕r̵̪̜̓ë̸̯̦́͘w̴̩̒̔e̸̗͙̽̂a̷̟̒d̸̡͉́͌ ̴̦͍̔̾y̵̮͖͐͑ỏ̴̥̊͜u̵͖̥͝;̷̛̮̥͘ ̸̮͉̓͒ḭ̸̫́F̷̞͛̂F̷̒ ̴̧̈́̂i̴̽͜͝d̵͎̅ͅn̶͕͕̂t̸̜̳̐f̴̡̙̃ì̴͈̗ȩ̴̇d̴̻̖͑;̷̧͌͝ ̸̫͒n̷͉̉̽o̴̪̐t̶̥͂ ̵͍̤̃g̴̣̑̎ȩ̴͈̍t̴̩͎̒̕t̶̮̚i̷̗̯̊n̵͇͈̊͛g̶͖̒ ̴̙̱̕ģ̵̙̿͊ě̶̻t̵͉̾t̶̠̮͘s̴͎̺̒͂i̸̬̞̿͛d̸̻̖͂ņ̸̰̉̾g̷̘̞̒ ̷̙͎́s̶̤͎͋͑i̸̜̒͜g̸̖͔͒̋ṋ̴̆s̸͈̅̊d̷̨͛ä̴̩́̿s̵͉̜͛d̵̗͔̔s̸͍͋l̸̬̆ ̷̛̭͖"
He exchanged glances with Tali. "I could not make that out. What is wrong with the goddamn radio? Is the antennae loose?"
Tali was going to give him an answer, but realized he was probably being rhetorical.
The radio warbled more, but no one paid it anymore attention.
"What's our ETA, Audrey?"
"In five, commander! Get tactical!"
John craned his neck to get a view of the screen Audrey was watching. There sat the asteroid they were trying to reach. A megalith set against an empty backdrop while this quiet war raged.
But in here, it wasn't quiet. It was deathly loud.
The computer gave her a sharp alarm and the instruments on the panels above her glared red. "Missile lock. EVADE." It shrieked into a repeating record, "Missile lock. EVADE."
"Brace brace brace! We're tagged!" Audrey yawed her yoke up high and to the right and flared. The Kodiak spat out a cloud of countermeasures and the missile careened off and detonated. More shrapnel cloaked the Kodiak's back half and they jostled violently in the cabin.
Tali's eyes squeezed shut. With one hand, she gripped the restraints, the other snaking into John's. If they were going to die here, then at the very least, they'd die together. All or nothing. No more of that survivorship bullshit. Hands interlocked, the both of them held on to what they could.
"Missile lock. EVADE."
The Kodiak screamed. Audrey maxed its eezo core and shunted enough power to send them into a sharp curve, flares casting another blinding trail.
Another explosion rocked them. Another missile evaded.
"Missile lock. EVADE."
"SHEPARD, I CAN'T—I CAN'T KEEP THIS UP!"
"Yes you can and you will. Get us there."
Audrey screamed. Screamed harder than she ever had in her life. Sweat marred her face, hair slicked against her forehead, mouth gnashed, face bathed in a red glow. She banked hard left. The Kodiak's eezo core, tasked to complete capacity, dumped what it could to engines and killed dampening entirely. Necks snapped to the right and they all had to fight the incredible force of inertia from the roll she put them in. A rain of more flares. Out the went, enshrining the dark into a cloud of bright white, hazing instrumentation enough for them to, yet again, evade the third missile that was barreling their way.
The missile warped into an atomizing explosion, closer than the last three, and maimed thruster four.
"Missile Lock. EVADE."
"SHEPARD!"
"You can do this. Do NOT let up."
She spit out the last of their flares. Sent them careening off every direction she could and nose-dived into a downward spiral. Thruster four sputtered and spat, its light slipping away to die. She was out of options. She prayed to god and reached for her radio in one final attempt to save the souls aboard her ship.
"MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY—Wagon-1 on blind broadcast, under hot contact. We are engaged and in fade! PRIORITY ASSET AT RISK. HELP US."
The radio spat back immediately.
"D̶͒͐ͅo̴̧͓͈̤̖͚̔̔͋͠ǧ̵̛̹̗̳̮͊͗̓̎͠-̸̣̦͖̼̫̟̏͑̎̑͝1̸̢̪͔̩̈́͊͊͐͛,̴̺̦͈̙͚̀̓̈̉ͅ ̶̡̘̲̰̠̂́͠Ḍ̸̯̮̲̎́̔͆̀͂͠o̸̩͚͔̰̭͂́̍̀̂̅͜͝g̴̦̟̻̃̆͑̿̿͂̅͜ͅ1̷̪͚̤̘̞̬̣̈́͗͐̂.̷̭͔̘͖͉̣̫̿́̈́̎͘ ̵̛̦͙̜͌̐̅̃̕̚ ̵̥̙͊̏̓S̶̛͓̥̼o̴͙̯̖̎̓ļ̷̠̆i̵͎̪̗͑̅̉ḑ̵͚̐̔ͅ ̶̼̻̖̆͛̕ć̶̳̱̕ọ̴͌ṕ̵̗̫̳̾y̷̳̽,̵̦̫͈͛́ ̵̡͉̑̔W̸̖̒͂̀a̶̪̕g̶̯̀o̶̞̎n̷̞̎͘-̵̧̬̎.̷̬̱̖̽̒̅ ̵̧̿̓W̸̫͙̑̀͝W̸̨̱̎ė̸̗̑͝ͅ ̶̘̠͚̍ŝ̶͙̞̌̏͜ė̶̩e̷̝̾̉͗ ̸̨̧̫̈̐ÿ̵̠͔͈ö̶͉͈̻́̿ṳ̶̢̝̊̒.̵͔̫̥̎ é̴̥'̸͈̭̬̐ȑ̴̜̳̥̓e̴͎̳͂̇̀ ̶̟̲͌͜f̵͎̹̅̒̕ę̸̱̑n̶̻̺͚̆c̴̦̥̓ȇ̴̤͓̆͘d̵̛͔̖͇̀.̷͕̥̼͌̄̄ ̸͕͕̤̉̐R̶̡̉̔ë̷͈͈͐l̵̡͘i̵̘̯̲̓̂ẽ̴̖f̸̦͠ ̷̧̦̯̿̓s̴̖̈́̓p̵̼̩̽͜ḷ̵̨̎͗̏a̸̢̦̤̎̓̒s̷̛̭̞͐̈́h̷̰̄͜ ̶̠̌̒ị̴̢̺͂̀n̸̮̬͉͗͝b̸͖́̂͘o̶̠̱͌́ǔ̸̹n̷̻͇̙͂d̵́͊͋ͅ.̴̰́̈́ ̷̨̯̣͋̈́͘H̷̖̖͇͆ȍ̸̘̟̘̔͊l̴̰͓̬̂́̈́d̶͚̞͒̈́̌ ̸̤̝̫̇̽t̷̛͎̻̹͑̉i̸̺̭̇̔g̴͇͔̭̾h̷͍̀̓ṫ̸̖̟̲.̵̻̑̀͒ ̷̖͇̍"
A formation of cerberus corvettes pulled away from the fight, locked in on Wagon-1's transponder, and gave chase to the pair of gunships that'd been harassing the zippy little Kodiak. It wasn't far. Just about an easy kilometer or so.
"Dog̷-̷2̴, Dog-3, T̶his is dog-1. S̷͉̬̓̈́tat-relief̶̩̙͛̄̈ on Wagon-1, over. Fen̸̼̩͊̽̈́̓c̷e in, fence in."
"Dog-2, fenced̸̩̲̈̽͆."
"Dog-3. In fence-̷̛̰͇̪̄̐͑-̵̺̦͆."
"Issue̸͍͊́̉ verdicť̵̬̞̒."
Six 30mm guns spooled up, gimbles adjusting to sightlines to get a bead on the gunships tailing Wagon-1. In a show of incredible force, all six fired a burst lasting two seconds, but sent out a whopping 780 rounds down range.
Just a hair under a second and the offending ships evaporated into a spectacle of dust and echoes.
"This is Dò̵͂͜g-1, brrrrt issue̷͝͠d. Dog-3, esć̴͍o̵̹͝rt Commander S̴̼͗hepard to objective—"
"—T̸̥̎͊̓h̶͕̞̀̏i̴̘̮͉̽̈͘͝ś̸́͑̎͠ ̴̡̉i̸͇̓s Wa g̵̻͗on-1̴,̴ ̵b̸ln̸ d̵ ̵t̷r̵ ransmis̸͔̩̆͛͠s̶̫̼̳̎̕͘͝ion: T̶̃͜h̵̳͓̪̰͆͜a̴͎̝̚n̶̨̨̺͕̺̄̀̎nk̴ you! Thank y̵̛̗̘̩̜̍̓͘͝o̸̢̤̒u̴̙̥̟͇͌͊͋͘ Jesus̸!"
"—Co̷͆p̸y, Dog-1. Ẻ̶scort order receḯ̶̱̜͜ved. We're with them. O̵͉̒͛̄ut."
"Good job, Audrey." John hollered and hooted, "Holy hell That was close."
"We're not out yet. We're out of the fire when we land." She limped the Kodiak forward toward the nav marker they so desperately had been trying to get to.
"Look." Thane said, pointing to the window. A Cerberus corvette flying in parallel with them. They could see both the pilot and co-pilot raise their hands to give them all a thumbs up.
The battle blazed on, but it looked like the two of them were no longer a target for anyone anymore.
"They heard us." Lukh said aloud, "Why are we having such an issue hearing them?"
"Damage?" Thane suggested.
"Maybe." Tali shrugged. "Won't know unless if we check."
"How much longer, Audrey?"
"Three minutes." She said, still catching her breath, "She's limping but she'll get us there."
"You gonna be okay?" John asked her simply.
"I was a second away from pissing myself empty. No. This shit warrants retiring, Shepard."
The pilot's back was still focused on the screen. But then she turned around and gave the commander a smile that betrayed the serious tone she used. Elated would be a good word, she supposed. Elated for still being alive and having just enough skill to show up even Joker.
Three minutes, fourteen seconds passed. They wrapped around the meteor, finally at a reasonable distance from the chaotic skirmish unfurling on the other side of this giant floating rock, and slowly made final on what appeared to be a dock. When they got enough of a vantage point to see everything, they saw that the place was entirely absent of a Normandy. It wouldn't have even been able to berth her.
That was not what anyone wanted to see.
"Can we please just get some answers." Lukh gasped.
"Audrey squinted at the screen and frowned. "Look. It's Wagon-2. We've got a second shore-party. Oh, thank god."
W̴̛̘͇̦̥̙̅â̶͓̽̿̈́͗̇̚g̵̥͑̉ȏ̸̧̞̼͒̉̀ͅn̸̿̽͊-̵͎͎̬̞͆̚1̴͉̅͒̔̀͝,̴̳͍̔ ̵̨̫̹̳̣͎͚͒̍ẗ̷̯̜͈͈̖̙̝́͌͠h̶̭̜̳̫̯͕̺̄́́̚͝i̶̜̲͐̄s̴ ̵̃͂̔̿̽̇i̶̢̟̼͎̪͕̤͋̍̚s̴̛̹͉̍̅ ̵̧͎̦̞̦̓͒͂̓̎̓͝D̵̖͊̃ͅǫ̵̼̖̤͊͌͝g̵͍͂̄̕̕̕-̸̦̈́̌̈́͗̊3̸̛͎̃̐͒͝.̷̛̬̺͍̠̦͐͑͌̈́ ̵̢͕̞̳̞̈́͑́W̸̼̄͂̓̀͛̕ě̴͈̹̓̀̎͊͗́'̶̢͇̱͖̔̆́́́̎̚ř̵̻̠͈̜̻̮̿̇̏͐̌e̷̢̢̫͕̙̱̅̓̐̓̕̕͝ ̵̧͓̞̜̜̐ͅb̴͓̋̄̋̓i̶̬͚̼̎̎̋͝n̷̠̓͗̋̾̓g̷̜̣̹͍͕̝̎̊͒̃o̵̘͓͓̠̩̎̿̏ ̵̼̗̼͋̈́̉͑ͅȯ̴̻̩̅̀́̕n̷͕̾̉̎̾̈̌͌ ̸̨̜̫̜̰̥̾̌̌͐̀̇͝ě̷̤͙̰̙̂͐͌͐s̶̡̬̜̾̀̆̓c̴̛̖̗̀͐͛̇̈́̇o̵̧̖̽͆̇r̸̛̯͇͓̻̻͓̙̍̋ţ̵̺̥͔̞́̈́̐̎̆͜͠͠.̵ W̸͓̣̙̔͆̚͝è̷̢̫̙̬̀̀̃̈̕͘ͅ'̵͇̬̥̻̱̣̖̂r̵͋e̸̞͌ ̴̣̰̓̈́̿͘͝o̸͙̜̼̜͒͊̃̅n̶̮͚̰̈́̐̏̋̕ ̴̩͕̅r̴̿͒̓̚e̴͊́̔c̴͋̔̊a̷̞̻̹̓́̾̆̀l̵̢̢̠̙̈́̂̾̓l̵̛̜͒͗.̴̙̐̎͘͠ ̶̠̍̈̐̌̚̕Ğ̴̎̓͛o̴͈͇̎̿͐̋̇͝͠d̴̅̉͋s̴̈̄p̶͖͉̤̮̚ę̷͕̘̰͈͉̺̏͛͗͌͘e̶̤͇̪̯͎̦̝͊̉͒̄́̐ḋ̴̨̧̝̝͇̯̌͋̆͘͝.̴̮̜͉̦̐̌̏͛̚͝ G̷̅͂i̷̔̋̂v̶̧̡̌̆̌̃̌e̴̹̊'e̶̢͚̝̣͚͒m̸̊ ̵̡̜̲͙͚̍h̵̢̻͎̯̽̍̚e̵l̴̀̏l̴̔̓͝.̷͕͔͕̇̀̅̓̕ ̸̐͊̔͜O̸͚̪̩͕͙̔́ũ̷̎ẗ̵͒̆.̸̀͊"̷̜͇͕͊̉͆̚
The five of them looked to the corvette waving them goodbye. They pulled off, gained 'elevation,' and pivoted back to return to the fray.
"Orders, commander?"
"Land. It's time we get to the bottom of this. I'm sick of being in the dark."
"Aye.
The Kodiak sputtered and popped, but it entered the bay and landed. Its door croaked open and the four stacked up, weapons raised and scanning sightlines.
No signs of anything out of the ordinary save for no one being here. They could tell however that Wagon-2's door was left ajar, but out of view of them.
Seeing that the bay was clear, they relaxed, if only slightly. Tali allowed herself a moment to gaze at the Kodiak they rode in on. It looked exactly how'd you expect a ship to look after everything they'd just been through.
"John. The antenna. It's gone."
"When do you think we lost that?" Aubrey asked, exiting out of the kodiak's hold herself to stretch, "From the four rockets I had to dodge or the explosion that rattled our ass once we exited slip space?"
John cast his gaze there and realized that it was, indeed, missing.
"I'm going to bet it being lost as soon as we dropped FTL." John figured, "But that still doesn't explain why we can't get in contact with anyone or the Normandy."
"Perhaps we're being jammed." Thane suggested, "A batarian electronic warfare system like Normandy's, but without the AI. Somewhere in its vicinity?"
"All good guesses. But EDI should've been able to do something about that if that was the case."
Thane only shrugged at his suggestion. John looked around and made up a plan.
"Audrey. Stay here. Gear up. Keep your rifle hot n'ready."
"Aye, sir."
"We're going to check on Wagon-2. Lukh," John pointed at the only door that would lead them deeper into the base, "Hold security on the door."
Obeying the order, he picked himself a spot next to a forklift and waited.
Thane, Tali, and John approached the second dropship. Wrapping around to the other side of the dropship, they entered and cleared the cabin and saw that it was devoid of anyone or anything.
"Jesus Christ." He set his rifle down in frustration. "Patch me off Wagon-1's radio, Tali. Open us up to everywhere."
She did just that. "Done. We're back on standard coms and on open broadcast."
"This is 'Get'her-1' to any call-sign. Do you read?"
Nothing.
"Shepard to all call-signs. Anyone. Anything. Respond to receipt, over."
Again. Nothing.
A noise. A large one. The giant door from across the bay whined and began to split open at the far end of the bay. Claxons blared and the five lonely members of Wagon-1 rose their weapons in unison toward the offending noise.
Out popped Legion.
It was the most beautiful thing Shepard had seen in his life. He couldn't even begin to describe how much better he was already feeling seeing that thing with its hole in its chest.
They all lowered their weapons with the exception of Lukh who had to pull himself up from his prone position. The five of them all huddled together in a group and waited for Legion to cross the distance to meet them.
"Legion. You are a sight for sore eyes." John yelled out.
Its head flaps undulated as it approached. The eyebrow things might've always been a little unnerving back on Normandy, but here it was something familiar and that's all he wanted to see.
"Acknowledged," It said before stopping in front of them all, "We saw you on the feeds in the security room. We came here to meet you."
"What's going on? We haven't been in contact with the Normandy for hours and find out there's a whole war raging outside." John thumbed behind him out toward the black expanse to make his point. "Why are they here, Legion? Why is Cerberus here?"
"Operative Lawson issued master critical request for force multiplier. This request was authorized by The Illusive Man. Two carriers, the Aegis and Hera, were dispatched to reinforce the Normandy. Operative Lawson remains on station as acting captain in your absence. They are presently maintaining security for both carriers and engaged with six hegemonic task groups attempting to intercept and destroy this station and its propulsion systems."
John took some steps back, completely unprepared for what he was hearing. These developments were diametrically opposed in every way to the original intent of the mission!
"I— this was… —This was supposed to be a covert mission. No human except me! But now we've got a human supremacist group actively engaged in total combat with the Hegemony! In space! How did this happen?"
"Our actions are commensurate with available data. EDI's analysis has revealed jamming activity similar to what was encountered on the derelict old-machine. We have reason to believe an active and undamaged beacon of reaper origin is residing within this facility and projecting an obstructive signal across an estimated diameter of 300,000 kilometers. Wide beam transmissions have recently become ineffectual since three hours ago. Your loss of communication to us was not a coincidence. Additionally, this signal obstruction has become nearly immeasurable from the boundaries of this station. It is cutting us off from any external contact with the Normandy and all present Cerberus elements. We must not delay and stay any longer than necessary to avoid the effects of indoctrination."
John breathed. Didn't say anything. Tali just watched Legion's explanation all unfold, frown growing. She wanted to know what John was thinking, but his absence of an answer told her enough. He was hardly able to believe it. She didn't want to believe it either.
Sensing John's struggle to fully comprehend everything, the geth explained the final details that would wrap up this whole mess onto their plate of shit.
"This was a calculated and cogent decision. Our mission was compromised. We would fail without help. It was determined that batarian operatives under the thrawl of the old-machines disclosed our intent to destroy the Bahak Relay to the Hegemony. It is the only thing that could explain their presence. It is why we are facing what we are."
He looked past the shoulders of Thane and Lukh, gaze beset on the void of space.
"Where's Kenson."
"Dr. Kenson is dead. Terminated shortly after landfall from those operating this facility."
A shadow of malice graced John, but his face remained deft of any emotion. "You are joking."
Legion stared at him with his single eye. "No. We are not."
"Where's the ground team?"
"And where's Brad?" Aubrey butted in, pointing at Wagon-2 and wondering where its pilot had gone.
"Operative Hudson was transferred to the Aegis to aid repelling efforts due to his experience in piloting strike-craft. Vakarian substituted in Operative Hudson's place and dispatched Normandy's ground team in three waves. We have been engaged with Dr. Kenson's security party since and are attempting to gain control of the station to launch the asteroid toward the relay. We are nearing the required window to initiate this sequence."
"And why are you here?"
"I was tasked with holding the rear, protecting the Kodiak, and to wait for you."
"Thanks for holding the door for us, Legion." Lukh said.
"Acknowledged."
"We need to move." Thane said, "How far away are they?"
"Five hundred meters below the surface. The facility is underground."
"Aubrey," John called, "Can you manage by yourself?"
"Aye, sir. I can. I'll hold our rear clear."
"Legion. Get us there."
"Affirmative."