A/N: This is a slightly shorter chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Thanks again to AngstyShenko and Vorcha Girl for your reviews. They made my day, as always.

Bioware still owns ME ;)

7. Therum

Ten minutes later Shepard, Alenko and Tali stood beside the Mako, checking their weapons before getting in for the first drop. Shepard snapped her sniper rifle to her back and turned to face Tali.

"Have you ever dropped in a Mako?"

"No, Shepard. Is there anything I have to watch?" The young quarian sounded wary. Shepard's face broke into a wide grin.

"A first-timer! You are in for a fun ride, Tali. The Mako may not be the most comfortable vehicle," Kaidan snorted. Not comfortable was putting it mildly. Shepard shot a short glare at him but continued as if she hadn't heard, "but it is a blast to ride. It has micro-thrusters and a small eezo-core, making it possible for it to be airdropped. It can climb insane inclines, take extreme temperatures and is enviromentally sealed. Not to mention it has a 155mm mass accelerator cannon and a coaxial-mounted machine gun." She was obviously an enthusiast. Garrus and Ashley, who were standing off to the side, were both nodding wildly. They looked envious.

Kaidan had to admit she had a point. Practice runs in the Mako were fun, an airdrop not quite so much. At least not in his opinion. Tali looked at the Mako apprehensively. Kaidan couldn't quite blame her. The Commander seemed a little too enthusiastic.

"Commander, we have geth activity groundside." The sound of Joker's voice interrupted any further explanations concerning the Mako. "There are prothean ruins as well as an abandoned mine nearby. I'll try to drop you as close as possible."

"You heard the man. Time to rock'n'roll!" Shepard double-checked her ammunition one last time. She grabbed another handful of Tungsten rounds only to see Kaidan and Tali doing the same. She nodded to them and climbed into the Mako. She looked over her shoulder and gave some final orders to her ground squad. "Alenko, you take the guns. Tali, keep an eye on the electronics. Radar, shields, everything. I drive." The last words were spoken as she hopped in.

Kaidan now turned to look at Tali with a small grin. "Two words of advice, Tali: brace yourself!"

As soon as they were all settled she called Joker over the radio. "Anytime now, Joker."

"Aye-aye, ma'am," came the prompt response. "Opening the cargo bay door in three...two...one...go!"

As soon as Joker said "go!" Shepard put the pedal to the metal. The Mako lurched forwards, shooting toward the opening at top speed and then...dropping. Joker had left the comm to the cargo hold open so the ground team members remaining aboard the Normandy could hear the radio feed. What they heard was a delighted "Whoo-hoo!" from Shepard and a squealing sound from Tali and something that sounded like "Kee'lah!". Kaidan kept silent.

The Mako had barely touched ground when Shepard slammed on the brakes. She turned around in her seat and looked expectantly at her squadmates. Kaidan just gave her a thumbs up, whereas Tali was still holding on to her seat. Shepard laughed and turned her attention back to the path in front of her.

"Anything on the radar, Tali?"

"No, it looks clear, Shepard. At least no geth. There is a lava stream to our left, though."

"I see it. Ok. Here we go." To Kaidan's surprise she set off at a rather slow speed. After that drop he had expected her to push the Mako straight to its limits. He heard a sigh of relief from Tali and couldn't help but grin to himself.

They had only driven a short way before Joker radioed them again.

"Commander, we have some strange readings from what appears to be the abandoned mine. And I mean like off the damn chart! It's only a few clicks from the drop site. Sending you the coordinates now."

Tali confirmed that the coordinates had been received. Shepard let the Mako picked up speed as the radar showed no sign of enemy forces. They had just driven over a tongue of land dividing two lava streams when Tali suddenly called out.

"Contact!"

"I see it!" Shepard called. "A Geth Dropship of some sort just flew overhead. Let's see what the surprise package was. Alenko, stay frosty!"

"Aye-aye!" He kept a close look out at the road before them. There! The weapons system finally had a mark. Two Geth Armatures, to be more precise. He checked his target and fired the cannon. This wasn't exactly his favorite line of work. He couldn't use the tech skills he had honed over the years, nor could he use his pistol. Not even his biotics were of any use right now. Not to mention that his last practice run in the Mako had been some time ago. And that had been driving and not on the 155mm. Nonetheless he managed a solid hit the first shot. He felt a wave of pride wash over him. Apparently all the training was good for something. As a sentinel he usually didn't get many opportunities to shoot a mass accelerator cannon. Unfortunately the second shot went wide. He cursed quietly as he realigned the cannon for a third shot. He had to hurry as Shepard was closing the distance between them and Tango 1 quickly. The third shot just scraped the Armature, the angle had become too steep. He switched to the machine gun and started firing round after round at the Armature until Shepard deftly rammed it, knocking it over. Then she put the Mako in reverse and ran over it again. This was repeated several times, always evading the second Armatures siege pulse. Kaidan used the short moment of change of direction to fire the mass accelerator cannon at the second Armature. It was a good tactic. They were far enough away that Shepard could evade the siege pulse and the short pauses he had between each shot were just long enough to reload the cannon. In retrospect he was glad Shepard was driving. He wasn't sure if he would have come up with the idea of just flat out ramming the Armature.

They drove on until they were greeted by three mounted turrets guarding a choke point in front of the closed gates of an outpost. Shepard brought the Mako to a halt.

"I don't think we can take that strongpoint head-on!" Kaidan exclaimed as the turrets fired at them.

"There is a path leading east just in front of us. If we can't go in through the door, maybe we should try a window?" Tali suggested. Shepard just grunted in conformation as she backed up the Mako again.

"Do you still have a visual on the first turret, Lieutenant?" she asked. Obviously her affirmative grunt had just meant she had understood them, not that she agreed. She wanted to take out those turrets.

"Only just, Commander." he replied. "But I can take it out."

"Do it!"

When the first turret was down Shepard inched the Mako closer, parking it just so that the salve of the turret just went over their head. Unfortunately he couldn't get the turret into his crosshairs either and he told her so.

"Then we take it out on foot," was her only remark and she signaled for them to exit the Mako. "You two Overload it, Sabotage it, whatever. I'll get into sniping position behind that rocky precipice." She pointed at a nose jutting out just far enough for one person to find cover behind. Shepard dashed to her position, as did Kaidan and Tali. They both sent an Overload at the turret, swiftly followed by a shot from Shepard's sniper rifle. Two shots, a third, and the turret exploded. They did the same thing with the third turret. Before mounting the Mako again Tali groaned audibly.

"Kee'lah! It is so hot! Aren't you two hot as well? I feel like I'm being roasted in my suit. If the quarian fleet ever came here in search of a planet for a colony we would just keep on looking!"

"At least it's a dry heat," Kaidan suggested deadpan as he took place again. "Imagine how bad it would be if it were humid."

Nick shook her head, grinning. Kaidan's humor was apparently just as dry as the heat.

"No, thank you, but I'd rather not. Can't we just stay in the nicely climatized Mako?" Tali shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Don't think I can promise you that, Tali," Shepard stated.

The path Tali had mentioned was a short narrow gorge which led to a path running parallel to the main course. With a turret guarding the choke point. Again. Kaidan took it out with the cannon quickly as Shepard used the same tactic as with the Armatures earlier. As they got close to the outpost it became clear the geth were here in force. Geth Destroyers, Troopers, Rocket Troopers, Shock Troopers and a Juggernaut.

What fun.

After blasting their way through they drove into the outpost and disembarked the Mako in order to find the switch for the gates. Once this was done - after killing a few more lone geth in the gatehouses and finding some loot - they headed on. Several Armatures as well as Rocket Troopers and Troopers later they came face-to-face with a truly intimidating foe. A Collosus. Shepard quickly put the Mako in reverse. Once they were out of range she turned around and looked at Kaidan.

"It's going to take a while to bring that thing down, Commander," was his only comment. "Strong shields, strong armor. Other than that it's just an oversized Armature, right?"

"My thoughts exactly, Alenko." A dazzling smile followed her words. He felt his mouth become dry and quickly focused solely on the Collosus again as Shepard moved the Mako within range again. He felt adrenaline coursing through his veins. His hands were sweating and he quickly tried wiping them off on his armor before sending the first shot at the Collosus. It was a difficult fight and they had to take one or two hits but luckily no more than that. Tali kept them posted on the situation of their shields and the two hits had her voice pitch at least an octave higher. Once it was done they moved on, but not before Shepard turned around in her seat again in order to praise a job well done. Though she included Tali in her praise, her eyes lingered on Kaidan.

"Nice work on the heavies, Lieutenant." She paused and then continued with a grin and a wink, "For a sentinel. Wouldn't have thought that somebody that uses a pea shooter as a sidearm could use the cannon so expertly."

"Live and learn, Commander. Didn't realize you put me on the cannon for your personal amusement. Might've fooled me there," Kaidan deadpanned in return, eliciting a laugh from Shepard.

They followed the road through two tunnels in which they took out several regular Geth Troopers as well as Rocket Troopers on foot because Shepard figured "You can never get enough target practice."

Suddenly their path was blocked. They exited the Mako to take a closer view at the narrow gorge that lead on. Shepard looked at the Mako and back at the entrance to the gorge biting her lower lip. Maybe...she ran her tongue across her lip. Kaidan slowly took in a deep breath and quickly turned away his gaze. His adrenaline-induced high was slowly wearing off and that in combination with the odd sensation Shepard's smile had aroused in him made him feel giddy.

"I don't think the Mako fits through there, Shepard," Tali ventured, guessing Shepard's line of thought.

"If so, it's a mighty tight squeeze," Kaidan threw in, having regained his composure. Shepard remained silent. Another minute passed.

"We go in on foot. Stay frosty, people." She pulled her sniper rifle off her back and signaled for them to move out. Unfortunately, they had to move more or less blindly as their HUDs were being jammed. They had gone only a short ways when they ran into a geth welcome party, apparently determined to grant them an especially warm welcome. Once these were taken care of they moved slowly forward. As they moved around a bend Shepard suddenly dashed for cover.

"Sniper at one o'clock!" she called. "Let me deal with the sniper! You two stay in cover and take out anything that gets too close to me!"

As Shepard focused on nothing but the Geth Sniper Kaidan and Tali systematically eliminated any geth that came too close with a combination of biotics, tech skills and sidearms. Once Shepard signaled the sniper was down they moved into the basin, wary of any remaining geth. Continuing up the hill they met only little resistance which was annihilated comparatively easily. They could finally see the entrance to the mine and sprinted towards it. Suddenly they heard the rumble of a dropship. Skidding to a halt they watch in horror as the dropship deployed its troops in their path. Including a Geth Armature. No sooner had the Armature touched the ground it was as if a ban had been lifted off them and they scrambled to cover.

"Well, that's just fuckin' perfect," Shepard commented.

"Yeah, really sweet," Kaidan groaned as he Lifted a Geth Hopper and then fired at it with his new HMWA pistol. "Didn't anyone tell them they weren't invited?"

"I don't think they got the message!" Tali responded as she hacked a Geth Trooper. One by one they took out the geth infantry using every skill they had. Kaidan sent an Overload at a Shock Trooper and then Threw it further back. Then it happened. One of the Shock Troopers managed to get Kaidan in its crosshairs. He grunted in pain as the shots hit him in the side and he stumbled. Tali Overloaded it and Shepard shot its head clean off with her shotgun.

"Kaidan!" Shepard exclaimed, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm ok. Might've cracked a rib." His voice sounded forced. Breathing was painful but the medi-gel was helping with that already. "I think I have to check my shield generator when we're back on the Normandy. And I have a dent in my armor. I'll just have to keep my Barrier up." Shepard gave him another look, a slightly worried expression in her eyes, and then nodded.

"Ok. Now, let's get this Armature out of our way. Alenko, stay. down. At least until your shields are fully regenerated. Tali, Overload it as soon as it has fired its first pulse. Kaidan, when you're back in the fight help Tali take down those shields." Her tone broached no argument. She pulled her shotgun from her belt and ventured a peak around the corner of her cover. Quickly, she pulled back and scooted away from the edge as a blast from Armature's siege cannon hit the ground close to her. The combination of Kaidan's and Tali's Overloads brought down its shields quickly and she fired her shotgun. Shepard managed one more shot before the Armature fired his pulse siege again. On the fourth try it finally collapsed.

"About bloody time," Shepard muttered as she led them past the smoking remains of the Armature into the mine. The geth infantry they encountered proved little challenge. Kaidan Threw a Geth Sniper off the catwalk, Tali hacked another and Shepard took out two more standing next to a containment cell with a clean shot with her sniper rifle. As they moved further down Tali looked around.

"It looks almost as if these caverns formed around the ruin. After it was built." She looked at her squadmates. "Don't you agree?"

They both looked around and gave a non-committal shrug. Kaidan was about to respond when they heard the tell-tale whirring of Geth Assault Drones. These were taken out rapidly and they entered a rickety looking elevator. As Kaidan stepped into it he glanced over the edge of the catwalk.

"That's a long way down." Shepard just looked at him and pushed the elevator button. As they went lower the elevator short-circuited and came to a stop between two levels. They jumped off of the elevator and down a broken platform when they heard muffled cries for help. They followed the sound only to see a force field blocking their path and an asari suspended in midair on the other side of the field.

"Thank the Goddess! Pease help me, I'm trapped!" the unknown asari exclaimed. "There are geth here!"

Shepard walked close to the barrier until she could touch it with her hand. She ran her hand along the smooth surface of the barrier, her eyes trained on the asari within.

"Dr. Liara T'Soni, I presume?"

"Yes. How do you know my name?" There was a slight hint of panic in the asari's voice.

"How did you end up in there?" Shepard asked, ignoring Liara's question.

"I was hiding from the geth. I must have pushed a wrong button and triggered a security device. Please, get me out!"

Shepard remained silent for a moment. "Why is Benezia working together with Saren and the geth? And whose side are you on?"

The asari looked shocked. "What? My mother? With the geth? I...I don't know. I haven't talked to her in years! I can assure you, I am definitely not on the geth's side."

Shepard was inclined to believe her. She turned to her squad and signaled them to move out. "Let's find a way around this barrier."

"You have to be careful! There is a krogan with the geth!" Liara called to them. Shepard looked back and nodded in confirmation.

They carefully went on and a short while, as well as some geth infantry, later they stood in front of an old mining laser. Shepard looked around the cavern one more time, checking every nook and crevice. There was a small gap below the compartment Liara was in. Perhaps the mining laser could widen the gap far enough for them to fit through. It was worth a try. Tali, she realized, was trying to salvage something from one of the geth. Kaidan on the other hand was inspecting the mining laser.

"Well, Lieutenant, do you think you can get that thing operational?" she jutted her chin at the laser.

"Sure. Just watch." He expertly hacked it and within less than ten seconds the operational light switched from red to green. He glanced at Shepard from the side. "I thought you did some infiltrator training. Shouldn't you be able to do a simple hack? Or an Overload?"

"Eh, no. I mean, yes, I tried to get the infiltrator badge. But," Shepard grinned almost sheepishly, "I flunked tech. I'm just a regular soldier, Alenko. I still prefer my sniper rifle and I learned a lot. But tech was always a November Golf for me. And now we want a hole right there." She pointed at the gap she had noticed earlier.

"Aye-aye, ma'am." He leveled the mining laser and pushed the button. The result was more than satisfactory, as it revealed a compartment similar to the one on the upper level. They went inside and in the back they found a circular platform with a control panel in the middle. It resembled an elevator. Shepard pushed a button and hoped it was the up-button and not the explode-in-my-face button. The prothean elevator began to rise and stopped on the next floor. They stepped into the compartment with the trapped asari archeologist. Liara turned her head in surprise.

"How did you get past the barrier?" she wondered.

Shepard shrugged. "Superior fire power." When she saw Liara'spuzzled expression she explained they had found a mining laser and blasted their way through.

"Ah. Of course." Liara hesitated. "I think that console there should disable the containment field...please."

Shepard looked at Kaidan over her shoulder and nodded. He studied the console shorty and pushed a few buttons. With an 'oof' The asari fell to the floor.

"Thank you," she said. "I..." She stopped short as they heard a nominous rumbling sound and felt the ground tremble.

"What was that?" Tali asked.

"These ruins are unstable. The mining laser must have triggered a seismic event!" Liara answered. Shepard swore and radioed the Normandy, telling Joker they needed extraction ASAP.

"Joker! Get the Normandy airborne and lock in on my signal. Double-time it, mister! We have to GTFO!"

"Aye-aye. ETA eight minutes," Joker confirmed.

Tali gasped. "Eight minutes? That won't be fast enough! He has to move faster!"

"Not much margin for error," Kaidan muttered as they headed for the elevator. The elevator took them to the top level where they were greeted by a Krogan Battlemaster and some geth infanty. Kaidan gripped the handle of his pistol. The krogan tried to convince Shepard to hand over the asari, claiming Saren wanted her and he always got what he wanted. The Commander just shook her head.

"I don't think so. The doctor stays with us."

The krogan attacked.

A few minutes later the Krogan Battlemaster and his geth foot soldiers were history. Shepard had taken out the Geth Sniper,while Kaidan and Tali had focused on the Shock Troopers trying to flank them. Once these were down all three focused on the Krogan Battlemaster. Kaidan Lifted the krogan, sending him flying across the room, and then Threw him smashing against the adjescent wall while Shepard and Tali had their shotguns ready for the kill. It wasn't nessecary. Kaidan felt his amp burning. The Lift had been on of the most powerful biotics he had ever used and the Throw so shortly afterwardshad been hardly less so. It would have been nice to see the asari use her biotics but Liara just cowered next to a pillar, shellshocked. He felt a jab of annoyance but then reprimanded himself. Liara looked overwhelmed. Shepard's voice calling to her to hurry up roused the young prothean expert and she finally got her legs to obey. They ran along the catwalk towards the exit as large boulders began crashing down around them.

"Move, move, MOVE!" Shepard rallied them. Kaidan and Tali sped passed her, Liara following a short ways behind. Shepard brought up the rear. They ran along the passageway and out the door to see the Normandy already hovering there, waiting. As soon as Shepard set a foot in the cargo bay she commed Joker to take them aweigh. She went over to the weapons bench where Kaidan and Tali were already busy cleaning their weapons and began unclasping hers. Once everything was cleaned and reassembled she began to take off her armor. Kaidan, who had just finished squaring away his gear, helped her with a few harder to reach straps.

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Her voice was strictly professional, even if she felt a pleasant shudder run through her body.

"Anytime, Commander."

They went to the elevator and stood silently next to each other as it took them slowly one level up. Shepard went her locker to square away her equipment, while Kaidan went to his sleeper pod to grab his shower kit. He wanted desperately to wash off the sweat and grime from Therum. As he stood under the shower he wished for the luxury of a hollywood shower. He would have to settle for a regular navy shower, though. Surprisingly he didn't have a headache. After the biotics he had used in the mine he had half expected another migraine. Especially after the fight with the krogan. As he dried off Kaidan wondered if maybe his body was just getting used to the more frequent use of his biotics. Feeling clean and halfway refreshed he made his way to the comm room for the mission debrief.

When Shepard entered the room a few minutes later she found her whole team assembled already. Liara was sitting on one of the chairs looking uncertain. Suddenly Joker commed them, sarcasm evident in every syllable.

"Too close, Commander! 10 more seconds and we would have been swimming in molten sulfur. The Normandy isn't equipped to land in exploding volcanoes. They tend to fry our sensors and melt our hull. Just for future reference."

"We almost died there and your pilot is making jokes?" Liara exclaimed in disbelief.

Shepard looked at her and blinked. "Joker pulled our asses out of the fire. I think he's earned a right to a few bad jokes."

"I see. I am afraid I have little experience dealing with humans. I want to thank you again for saving me, Commander. Not only from the volcano but also from the geth. I hesitate to think of what might have happened if the geth had reached me first," Liara said.

Kaidan leaned forward in his seat. "What exactly does Saren want with you? Do you know anything about the Conduit?"

"Only that is in some way connected to the prothean extinction," Liara answered. "That is my real area of expertise. I have spent the last fifty years studying what happened to them."

Shepard raised her eyebrows. "Fifty years? Just how old are you exactly?"

The asari looked embarrassed. "I hate to admit it but I am only 106." This elicited short comments of surprise from the humans present but Liara told them that she was considered hardly more than a child by the asari. She was certain her youth was the main reason her studies and her theories in respect to the prothean extinction were being ignored by other asari scholars. Her research hinted that the protheans were not the first species to disappear and that their civilization had been built on the ruins of those that had been there before. She was certain that the prothean extinction was part of a recurring cycle. She sighed.

"I just wonder what led to their downfall."

"I can tell you," Shepard stated matter-of-factly. "They were wiped out by a race of sentient machines called Reapers."

Liara looked at her in surprise. "The Reapers? I have never heard of them. How can you be so sure? Do you have evidence?"

"There was a damaged prothean beacon on Eden Prime. It showed me visions of the protheans being wiped out."

"Visions? Yes, that makes sense. They must have been used to transfer messages straight into another users mind! You must be remarkably strong-willed, Commander. The beacons were set specifically for the prothen physiology." She rambled on a while until she was interrupted by Ashley, reminding them that this wasn't helping them find Saren or the conduit. Liara apologized. She swayed as she got up, stretching out a hand to keep her balance.

"When was the last time you ate? Or slept? Maybe you should let Dr. Chakwas check you." Kaidan asked, always the medic. Shepard could have kicked herself for not thinking of that. She hadn't even considered asking Liara how long she had been in those ruins. A good thing she had the lieutenant.

"Yes, you might be right. It certainly won't do any harm." Liara sounded grateful as she put a hand to her temple. She looked at Shepard. "Will you allow me to stay aboard? I can't imagine a safer place."

Shepard nodded and a hint of humor tinted her words as she answered. "We have a turian, a krogan and a quarian, so why not add an asari? Welcome aboard. Go and follow Alenko's advice, let the doctor take a look at you. Everybody else - dismissed."

A/N: Ok, I know I wrote this was to be a shorter chapter. In the end it turned out being almost 1000 words longer than planned. The mission debrief was actually supposed to be the beginning of the next chapter but I changed my mind.

And here are some short explanations, just in case:

GTFO pronounced 'Git-Fo' meaning 'Get the fuck out!'

November Golf: NG in the phonetic alphabet, meaning 'No Go'= fail.