"The Illusive Man wants to speak with you, Commander."
Kacey wasn't exactly happy when Chambers told her that. She didn't particularly feel like dealing with the Cerberus leader right this second. And yet she still went to the briefing room, her curiosity getting the better of her. She entered the room, setting up the weird interface that the Illusive Man used to speak to her before, and stood there with her arms crossed.
"Shepard." The Illusive Man said, blowing out smoke from his cigarette, "I think we have them! Horizon—one of our colonies in the Terminus Systems—just went silent. If it isn't under attack, it soon will be. Has Mordin delivered the countermeasure for the seeker swarms?"
Kacey's mind drew a blank; had Mordin managed it? She had no idea.
"Not yet." She replied bluntly. The Illusive Man narrowed his eyes, before smirking.
"Let's hope he works well under pressure." He replied, "Oh, and there's something else you should know."
"Oh really?" Kacey replied.
"One of your former crew, Kaidan Alenko—he's stationed on Horizon."
Her heart stopped; her eyes widened in shock. If that was true, then…
'No. It can't be true,' Kacey thought to herself, 'He's Alliance; they don't operate in Terminus Space.'
"Last I knew, Kaidan was Alliance." Kacey said, "Why is he out in the Terminus Systems?"
"Officially, it's an outreach program to improve Alliance relations with the colonies," The Illusive Man replied calmly, "but they're up to something. And if they sent Commander Alenko, it must be big. Perhaps you should take it up with him."
She knew the Illusive Man was hiding something. He had to be. Kacey saw the Illusive Man glare at her. She simply smirked back and shrugged her shoulders.
"Bit convenient though, isn't it?" Kacey snarky replied, "The Collectors just happened to pick a colony with one of my former crew mates there? I don't buy it."
"Neither do I." Kaidan replied, "Seems too…perfect to be true."
"Seems too planned out to be chance? Yeah, pretty much." Kacey replied, "I can't tell if it was denial or the fact that I didn't trust the Illusive Man but…I kinda hoped you weren't there."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I mean if the Collectors were there," Kacey explained, "I didn't want you captured by them. Especially now that I know what they were doing to those unfortunate souls."
"It shouldn't be a surprise the Collectors are interested in you." The Illusive Man said, "Especially if they're working for the Reapers. They might be going after him to get to you."
Kacey was one to rarely get angry. Her position and responsibilities meant her actions carried weight; and lives depended on those actions. But right now, she was livid. But it wasn't just blind rage but worry too. Kaidan was a good soldier, a really good soldier, but there was no chance he was prepared for an attack like that. And that was what worried her the most.
"Notify the Alliance. They can give us reinforcements." Kacey said.
"Not until you investigate." The Illusive Man countered, "I don't want the Alliance getting in our way."
"You mean your way?"
"Once you have the situation under control. I'll send the message personally."
"I sincerely doubt that."
"Believe what you want, Shepard." The Illusive Man said, "I've sent the coordinates to Joker. If you are lucky, you'll get there before the Collectors do. Good luck."
The Illusive Man ended the call, leaving Kacey alone in the room. She was infuriated, but she knew she had to stay as calm as she could.
"Joker, set a course for Horizon pronto!" She said, "And tell Garrus to get ready to head out."
"Aye, aye Commander!"
Kacey headed to the lab at a brisk pace. As she entered, she saw Mordin observing a single seeker. He turned to face Kacey as she approached.
"Tell me you have something." Kacey said.
Mordin smiled, "Yes."
It was like a wave of relief washed over Kacey for a few seconds. Mordin headed over to his terminal, showing the Commander the countermeasure.
…
"Can't this thing go any faster?!" Kacey complained.
She was sitting in the shuttle with Mordin and Garrus, the latter of whom was becoming increasingly concerned. As Kacey paced about, fidgeting with her gear, Garrus pulled her aside.
"Okay, what's going on?" Garrus asked.
"What are you talking about?" Kacey said, "I'm fine."
"I know you, Shepard." Garrus said, looking directly at her, "You don't do this on missions. You've never been this jumpy before."
She hadn't noticed how jumpy she was. Her mind was so caught up in her worries over Kaidan, her anger at the Illusive Man, that she didn't notice she was consistently pacing in the shuttle.
"You seem so sure." Kacey deflected, "Clearly you didn't see my early days in the Alliance."
Garrus narrowed his eyes, "Kaidan's down there, isn't he?"
Kacey's breathing hitched as she turned away from the turian, "Yeah, he is."
"And you're worried." Garrus added, in which Kacey nodded, "Well, that's all the more reason to kick ass out there, isn't it?"
"And here I thought you had lost all that optimism." Kacey replied.
"This is your doing, Shepard." Garrus snorted, "Your influence. Even up against a deformed, crazed husk of a Spectre, you still managed to keep positive."
"What can I say, it helps morale." Kacey replied, with a small smile.
"And right now, I'm doing what your best friend should; having your back. And boosting your morale."
"Honestly, I'm happy you're here Garrus." Kacey said, "It's nice to have a friend to watch your back."
"Especially if they're turian." Garrus laughed.
The shuttle landed, and Kacey felt much better after Garrus' pep talk. As they landed, Kacey saw the massive Collector ship. It looked almost the exact same as the one that destroyed the first Normandy and killed her.
"Mordin, you sure these armour upgrades will protect us from the seeker swarms?" Kacey asked.
"Certainty impossible." Mordin replied, "But in limited numbers, should confuse detection, makes us invisible to swarms, in theory."
"In theory? That sounds promising." Garrus said sarcastically.
"Experimental technology." Mordin explained as the trio headed towards the colony, "Only test is contact with seeker swarms. Have to test them in person. Should be exciting."
"I think you're in the minority there, Professor." Kacey said as the ground started to shake.
It stopped almost as quickly as it arrived. Kacey saw a couple of Collectors fly down towards them and dived into cover. She switched over to her incendiary bullets as Mordin incinerated the bipedal creatures. Garrus was carefully picking his shots as the barriers of the Collectors went down, leaving them vulnerable to Kacey's bullets, which roasted them alive. Some of them put up large defensive shields, blocking Garrus' bullets. Kacey peered behind to see several explosive canisters and shot them. The explosion destroyed the shields and even killed a few of the Collectors. Garrus finished off the last one and the trio then moved along the path towards the colony.
The air was disquieting, still, with not a single sound in the air. The memories of Freedom's Progress came back to Kacey; the parallels between the two were unmistakeable. It was tense, but unlike Freedom's Progress, Kacey had her best friend to back her up.
"Comman—" Joker's voice rippled through Kacey's comms, "—tting all kinds—ference. We can't maintai—"
"Collector ship disrupting communications." Mordin said.
"Great. We're on our own now." Kacey replied, pessimistic.
"We'll be fine." Garrus said, "I think."
"You think?"
"We've survived worse." Garrus explained, "If we could survive going through a Mass Relay in a tank, I think we can survive this."
"Still not letting that go, are you?" Kacey couldn't help but smile at the memory.
"No. No I'm not." Garrus replied.
"I haven't forgotten that either." Kaidan said, "I still can't believe you did that."
"Desperate times, desperate measures." Kacey replied laughing, "And besides, we survived."
"Still, it scared the shit out of me." Kaidan admitted.
"Garrus too, remember?" Kacey said, "Honestly, I want to do it again."
"I think you're the only one who wants to, Kacey." Kaidan laughed.
"Standard Alliance tanks incompatible with Mass Relays." Mordin mused, "Impossible to survive event. Care to explain?"
"Maybe later Mordin." Kacey said as they reached the colony, "We've got more hostiles to take care of!"
The trio were making quick work of the Collector troops. That was, until the all too familiar groans of husks appeared. Kacey wasn't even surprised; if anything, she was expecting them to have arrived on the scene sooner. She opened fire on the husks, drawing them away from Garrus and Mordin, who she instructed to focus on the Collectors. She was able to incinerate the husks with little effort while Garrus and Mordin finished the Collectors off.
"I swear those were the husks the Geth used on Eden Prime." Kacey said.
"I thought the Geth got that technology from Sovereign." Garrus mused.
"Illusive Man was right; Collectors working with Reapers." Mordin added.
"I hated having to admit it. I really did. But it was true. The Illusive Man was right. There was no point in denying it by then. We knew for sure the Reapers were involved, and they needed to be stopped. No matter the cost."
As the trio wandered through the empty colony, Kacey kept her eyes peeled for any sign that someone, anyone, was still around. She had no idea where Kaidan was, or even if he was here at all. She started to think the Illusive Man was lying to her; she wouldn't be surprised if he was. But it was preferable to the alternative; he was taken by the Collectors. She shook such dystopian thoughts out of her head as she walked up some stairs, holding her assault rifle steady as she went, and nearly tripped over the corpse of a husk.
"Hmm." Mordin mused, "Husks have human characteristics. Possibly repurposed colonists?"
"No." Garrus answered, "The Geth impaled their victims on giant spikes to turn them into husks. But we haven't seen any. The Collectors must have already had the husks. They want the colonists alive for something else."
"The Collectors must be experimenting on the colonists." Kacey mused, "What are they up to?"
"Maybe its better not to know the details." Garrus said.
"Find out for sure when you stop them." Mordin mused.
"Maybe you're both right but these husks aren't the same."
"Explain." Garrus said.
"These aren't the husks I fought on Eden Prime, they're more advanced, evolved." Kacey said.
"They still die if you shoot them." Garrus replied.
"Except now they're faster and take more bullets to kill them." Kacey replied, "Come on, the Collectors aren't getting away with any more people. Let's move out!"
…
"All these empty buildings…" Garrus mused, "It's unsettling."
"No signs of resistance." Mordin observed, "Must have happened quickly."
They had been wandering around the colony for a while. With no signs of any humans, Kacey assumed they were all but gone now. As they searched the colony, Kacey nearly jumped as she saw what she had tripped over.
"What the hell?!" Was all the scarlet-haired commander could say.
Mordin had already began scanning the frozen colonist. The woman was stuck in place, with a weird aura around her.
"Victim appears conscious." Mordin said, "Fully aware. Trapped in stasis. Fascinating."
"They've been like this a long time." Kacey mused.
They saw more as they pressed forward through the colony. It was disheartening to see, and Kacey couldn't help but wonder what had become of the colonists from the previous colonies. As they entered a small clearing, several Collector drones appeared. The trio watched as one of them writhed in pain, glowing an eerie shade of yellow.
"THE FORCES OF THE UNIVERSE BENDS TO ME." The Collector said, "YOU CANNOT RESIST. YOUR FORM IS FRAGILE. I AM THE HARBINGER OF YOUR DESTRUCTION."
"Oh great. It talks." Kacey complained.
The transformed Collector was difficult to deal with. The orbs it shot shattered their shields instantly and the other Collectors weren't making it easy. Kacey instructed Garrus and Mordin to focus on the Collector drones while she handled the transformed one. After taking several grenades to the face, the transformed one went down at last.
"Well, that's new." Kacey said.
"Why do I get the feeling that's not the last we'll see of it?" Garrus said.
"Because you are experienced enough to know better." Kacey quipped, "Come on."
They approached a locked door that led into a warehouse of sorts. Kacey quickly hacked it open. They entered the darkened warehouse and heard someone drop something.
"Company." Kacey said, pulling up her sidearm, "Get out here. Now!"
A human male peeked his head out from around the corner. Kacey lowered her weapon as the man walked out from behind the crates.
"You're…you're human!" The man said, "What are you doing out here? You'll lead them right here!"
"So will your shouting." Kacey said calmly, "Besides they knew you were here. You had to hear them trying to get in, right? Seems like it's hard to hide from the Collectors."
"Those things are Collectors? You mean…they're real?" The man said in shock, "I thought they were just made up. You know—propaganda. To keep us in Alliance Space. No! They got Lilith. I saw her go down. Sten, too. They got damn near everybody!"
"Calm down." Kacey said calmly, "What's your name? What do you do here?"
"Name's Delan." Delan replied, "Mechanic. I came down to check on the main grid after we lost our comm signals. Then I heard screaming. I looked outside and there was…swarms of bugs. Everyone they touched just froze. I sealed the doors. Damn it—it's the Alliance's fault! They stationed that Commander Alenko here and built those defence towers. It made us a target."
"I figured as much." Kaidan said, "Delan was never really fond of me. No surprise he pinned this on me."
"What I found funny was how he knew you were some kind of hero during the battle with Sovereign but he didn't recognise me at first." Kacey mused, "Then again, I probably wouldn't have got any info out of him if I told him."
"You wouldn't." Kaidan replied, "He hated me, so chances were he probably despised you."
"Yeah, I assumed so."
"Tell me more about this Alliance Rep." Kacey said.
"Commander Alenko? Heard he was some kind of hero or something." Delan said, "Didn't mean nothing to me though. Would've rather he stayed back in Council space."
"Any idea what he was doing on Horizon?"
"Supposed to be helping us get the defence towers up and running. I got the feeling he was here for something else. Spying on us maybe."
"We could use those defence towers against the Collector ship!" Kacey said.
"You'd need to calibrate the targeting system first." Delan said, "It's never worked right."
"Shouldn't be hard to figure out." Mordin said, "Just need location."
"Head for the main transmitter on the other side of the colony." Delan said, "Pretty hard to miss. The targeting controls are at the base."
"Okay. Although it's probably best if you stay here." Kacey said.
"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too. I'll let you out, but I'm locking the door behind you. I'm not taking any chances. Good luck, I feel like you're going to need it."
…
"It's odd we haven't come across any more frozen colonists." Garrus mused.
"Colonists loaded onto ship. Collectors nearly finished here. Need to hurry." Mordin said.
"We're nearly there!" Kacey said, "Just let me hack this door open, and we'll be at the transmitter."
Kacey managed to hack the door open. She was still filled with worry over Kaidan's whereabouts. The mechanic confirmed he was in the colony but…maybe she was too late? She was snapped back into reality as she saw a scion hiding behind the computer. She opened fire, with Mordin using incinerate on the scion. Thanks to their combined efforts, the scion was killed. They reached the terminal and Kacey hacked into it. After a couple of minutes, Kacey could hear Joker's voice through the comms.
"Joker here." Joker said, "Signal's weak, Commander, but we got you."
"Good. EDI—can you get the colony's defence towers online?" Kacey asked.
"Errors in the calibration software are easily rectified." EDI said, "But it will take time to bring the tower to full power. I recommend a defensive posture. I will not be able to mask the increased generator output."
"Collectors will respond with force to stop it." Mordin mused.
"Hold them off, got it." Kacey said, "Simple enough."
"Maybe not." EDI replied, "Enemy reinforcements closing in. I suggest you ready weapons."
"Let's go!" Kacey said.
Collector drones and husks came swarming into the area. Kacey knew the fight wasn't going to be easy. Garrus had positioned himself in a secure spot, and fired at the enemies with his sniper rifle, providing adequate cover fire for Mordin and Kacey, who handled the bulk of the troops on the ground. Kacey managed to deal with the Collector drones easily enough, but several husks forced her out of cover, and in the firing line of a scion. It hit her with a blast that had sent her flying into a crate and broke her shields.
"Shit." Was all she could say.
The husks were heading towards her, but were stopped in their tracks by Garrus, who was killing each of them with a perfectly-aimed headshot. Some of the husks started to head towards the turian, giving Kacey time to recover and reload her rifle as her shields recharged. She shot the husks from behind while Mordin finished of the scion.
"Reinforcements!" Garrus said as he joined Kacey behind a railing, "It's nice to be noticed."
Swarms of husks began to overwhelm the area. Kacey pulled her grenade launcher out and fired several grenades at the large groups of husks, causing them to be torn apart by the blasts.
"You could've started with that." Garrus said.
"I know, but I've got to at least give them a fighting chance." Kacey replied before looking up, "The hell is that?!"
A husk-looking drone came flying into the area, causing shockwaves as it slammed it's body down, creating a barrier.
"Uh, EDI, we need that system online!" Kacey said.
"A new one!" Garrus said, "Whatever it is, don't get too close!"
"Why do you sound vaguely excited by this?" Kacey said, to which the turian smirked.
"GARDIAN anti-ship batteries at 100%. I have full control." EDI said.
"So does anyone have anything to deal with the barriers?" Kacey shouted as she moved from one piece of cover to the next.
Mordin used his limited amount of tech to the best of his abilities while Garrus and Kacey darted around, unloading full clip after full clip of bullets into the praetorian.
"Firing anti-ship batteries at Collector vessel." EDI said.
By the time they were done, the bodies of Collectors, husks and scions littered the ground. The trio watched as several missiles were launched at the Collector ship.
"They're pulling out!" Garrus shouted as the ship's thrusters activated, causing the area to shake repeatedly.