A/N: I apologize for the long delay in updates! I had a major case of writer's block along with some other problems. I'm hoping things will improve, but updates may continue being a bit slower than they used to. Thank you for your patience :) Thank you Vorcha Girl, ela11, Impslave, jediserenity82, Kirabaros, Sentrax, and SerenityFalconNormandy for your reviews on the last chapter - they made my day! And of course a special thank you to Vorcha Girl for beta reading! *hugs*
Enjoy!
Chapter 46. Escape
The eerie droning of a Reaper beam filled the air as they dashed along a hallway. Explosions followed, and screams and gunfire rang through the streets outside. Kaidan grit his teeth, worry for his family - and for Nick - slicing through his guts like an icy knife. He didn't have the time to dwell on wondering if they had made it out of Vancouver safely. He had a job to do, and that was getting to the Normandy. Once he was aboard maybe he would find the time to contact his family.
"We need some weapons!" James called over his shoulder.
Straightening up Kaidan rolled his shoulders, his biotics tingling under his skin like a thousand little pin pricks. Vega was right. Getting to a weapons locker would be useful. It was less than half a kilometer to the Normandy, but who knew what they were going to run into.
"Normandy's dock isn't that far, but we'll pick up whatever we find." He looked at James with a stony expression, his voice oddly emotionless, before turning away again, his gaze sweeping the rubble around them. "We have to keep moving."
James followed wordlessly. Kaidan knew he was keeping an eye out for anything they could use as a weapon as they hurried toward the docks.
He strode forward purposefully, only stopping now and then to check on a fallen body before jogging on. He barked orders at any Alliance personnel they came across, either sending them to guard choke points so they wouldn't have to deal with Reaper forces falling into their backs before they reached the Normandy, or to check for wounded. One group had weapons to spare, and both men gladly accepted the offered assault rifles.
"Normandy, do you copy?" Kaidan asked as they moved on, tapping his comm with a curse when he only received static. "I hope Anderson managed to contact them," he muttered under his breath and looked at James. "And that they have a good helmsman aboard."
They reached Normandy's dry dock with little resistance only to find a large group of husks between them and the ship. Kaidan's biotics sprang to life, filling the air with a hint of ozone as the dark energy crackled around him, anger and fear fueling his power. Thrusting his arm forward in a fluid motion he caught a number of husks in a Warp. Before the dark energy dissipated the orangish glow of his omnitool illuminated the smoke-filled air as he sent out an Overload at the husks still enveloped by his biotic attack.
"No wonder you weren't worried about finding weapons," James commented shouldering his rifle after picking off the last husks as the explosion subsided. "Those biotics and tech skills are pretty impressive. Bet they sure come in handy at times."
"Yeah," Kaidan answered curtly as they moved toward the Normandy's airlock. A twinge of guilt ran through him for brushing off Vega's comment so brusquely. They paused briefly to wait for the hatch to open, and stepped inside as the hatch closed with a hiss behind them. Kaidan didn't hesitate, but walked swiftly towards the helm only to stop short as he found himself looking at an old friend he hadn't seen in over two years. Silence spread between them and he could almost feel Vega's questioning gaze jumping from him to Joker.
"Good to see you here, Joker. Anderson and Shepard are on their way," Kaidan said a split second before the silence turned awkward.
"You could have sent a message sometime, asshole," the helmsman replied, turning his attention back to the consoles in front of him. "You're just in time, by the way. We've completed the pre-flight list and were just about to get airborne." He was about to say more when Kaidan's comm crackled.
"... can't make it … Normandy. At downed shuttle by … activating distr… beacon," Anderson's voice cut through the air.
"Joker," Kaidan said sharply as the distress signal lit up on the screen, "get us there ASAP."
Moments later he was down in Normandy's shuttle hold, assault rifle in his hands, watching the loading ramp open. His eyes roamed the scene before him before landing on two figures running along the pier with more Reaper forces appearing at their six. He brought his weapon to the ready.
"Suppressing fire," he ordered, his voice much calmer than he expected as he picked his target to make sure the hostile troops couldn't fire at Shepard and Anderson. He shouldered his weapon as they drew closer and stepped to the edge of the ramp. Kaidan watched Shepard sprint towards the Normandy and extended a hand to help her regain her balance after jumping the gap between vessel and pier. His fingers closed around her hand, pulling her to safety.
"Welcome aboard, Shepard." His eyes met hers, grateful his voice sounded even while his heart thundered in his chest as though he had been running a race. He gave her hand a squeeze before adding, "I'm glad you made it." Lame, a voice whispered in his mind; he was more than just glad. His gaze lingered on her for a moment after she had thanked him and turned to face Anderson. He gave himself a shake and focused on scanning the area for hostiles while listening to the conversation - argument - between the other two officers with one ear. Oily smoke billowed through the air burning in his lungs, and tears stung in his eyes. He resisted wiping them as the ramp closed, blocking the view of the destruction laid to his hometown, but blinked them away rapidly on his way to the weapon's bench.
He had just finished reassembling his rifle when he heard Vega question Nick's order to head for the Citadel. Kaidan winced. He couldn't see Shepard's face, but he could tell by her posture that the lieutenant was in for a harsh reply. His eyes traveled over her form, trying not to think of how shapely she looked in her utility uniform. His line of thought was interrupted by an incoming transmission from Admiral Hackett, and he let out a slow, grateful breath.
A short time later Kaidan let his gaze drift through the shuttle bay as he finished suiting up, wondering what they would find on Mars. It was nearly empty. He glanced over to the weapons bench where Lieutenant Vega was busy, his back toward the shuttle, and watched Shepard climb into the Kodiak. Taking a deep breath he stepped onto the shuttle as well. Shepard was standing behind the pilot's seat, drumming the fingers of one hand on the headrest, the other placed on her hip, and staring out of the virtual window. He stopped and looked back over his shoulder before approaching her.
"Nick," he said softly as he stepped next to her. "With all the chaos I haven't had a moment to catch you alone." She snorted and turned around to face him, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. The small movement was enough to let Kaidan smell the familiar scent of citrus shampoo and spicy shower gel. He fought down the urge to close his eyes and take a deep breath. She leaned against the pilot's seat, her eyes roaming his face expectantly, and he swallowed as he returned the gaze. "This, uh, wasn't exactly how I'd pictured finally getting a chance to talk to you. There were much less explosions and gunfire, and less Reapers," he rambled on, suddenly nervous, and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I certainly hope there were less Reapers." A small smile played at her lips. Her eyes twinkled as she gazed up at him. "I sure as hell hadn't planned on them being there when I finally get those Fish 'n Chips you promised me."
He was about to answer when a noise just outside the shuttle caught his attention. Vega entered the shuttle carrying a crate of grenades.
"We're all set," the lieutenant stated, putting the box down and stepping into the small cockpit.
Shepard nodded towards the seat. "Then get us in the air, James," she said, moving slightly to the side to let Vega sit down in the pilot's seat, her eyes lingering on Kaidan just a moment longer before she turned to face the shuttle's window.
Kaidan suppressed a sigh. Casting a short glance at Nick he went to the back of the shuttle and took place on the bench. He pulled the floor plan of the facility up on his omnitool, trying to memorize as much of it as possible while his gaze kept wandering to the helm.
"And there's a storm moving in, so you'll have to be quick," Joker let them know after telling them that the facility was not responding to any hails, but that it appeared to be online.
The stormfront was clearly visible when they stepped onto Mars' dusty surface. Shepard asked Vega for a time estimate until the storm hit, and motioned them to keep moving. The wind howled around them, growing steadily stronger as they headed towards the facility. Another sign something was amiss at the facility apart from the radio silence was the corpse of an Alliance soldier they passed.
The sound of gunfire echoed through the rocky gorge and they skidded to a halt. Shepard crept slowly towards a barricade and peeked around the corner.
"Holy shit!" Vega exclaimed. "They're executing them!"
"Looks like," Shepard replied quietly, assembling her sniper rifle. Kaidan raised an eyebrow in surprise. It was easily the largest sniper rifle he'd ever seen; he didn't even want to think of the strength needed to handle it. She aligned her shot, and one of the hostile troopers dropped, his head exploding in a spray of blood.
The hostile forces immediately fanned out to engage them in battle. Kaidan gathered dark energy around him and threw one of the troopers crashing into two others. They tumbled to the ground. James whooped, tossing a grenade in their midst while Shepard continued to pick off targets with her rifle.
Moments later the path was clear. Kaidan rolled over one of the fallen bodies with his foot as they passed them. He frowned at the Cerberus emblem on the hardsuit and followed Shepard, gripping his assault rifle tightly with both hands.
Another hostile group stood between them and the entrance of the base. Shepard never slowed down. Jumping over a small precipice she charged at the nearest assault trooper. Kaidan sent a Cryoblast at one enemy. Out of the corner of his eye Kaidan saw her unfold her omniblade and drive it between neck and shoulder of her target. It was a reckless move, and for a moment he was taken aback. Another trooper showed up behind her and Kaidan was about to call out a warning when she spun around in the nick of time, her blade cutting through the soft neck guard of a second trooper. Kaidan returned his focus to the few remaining enemies.
"Doesn't look like they came here in force," James mentioned, looking at the scattered bodies of the Cerberus foot soldiers.
"Maybe they had inside help," Kaidan considered thoughtfully. He gazed at the facility, recalling the schematics of the building he had studied on the shuttle. "You could hold this place forever and a day with minimal forces."
"You might be right." Shepard activated the door console and stepped into the elevator. "We'll just have to be careful as we advance."
An uneasy feeling settled in Kaidan's gut and he stepped close to Nick. "What's Cerberus doing here? Any ideas, Shepard?"
Nick threw a confused look at him. "Why do you think I'd know anything about this? Do you think I wouldn't have told the Alliance if I'd heard a rumor about a possible Cerberus attack?" she growled, her eyes suddenly cold as ice behind the visor of her helmet.
"No, that's not what I think," Kaidan replied quietly, adjusting his thoughts. "I just … you worked for them. They … they rebuilt you, gave you resources."
"Goddammit, Alenko!" Shepard spun around, glaring at him angrily. "I didn't work for Cerberus for fucks sake! I worked with them because our precious Alliance and those jackasses on the Council didn't do a fucking thing! You know that!" She paused to unseal her helmet and pull it off as soon as the elevator was pressurized. Brushing a strand of black hair out of her face she scowled him. "And how exactly should I have learned of this, huh? It's not like I've been getting weekly status updates or so. If you thought I was receiving messages maybe you'd like to explain why you didn't bother getting in touch!"
He closed his eyes and cursed himself mentally. "That's not what I meant -"
"The Commander hasn't been in touch with anybody since being put under house arrest," James threw in. Kaidan shot a quick glance in his direction and nodded once before returning his gaze to Nick. She watched him silently, blue eyes flashing and the corners of her mouth tugging downward.
"I thought we were past this, Kaidan," she said softly, walking past him as soon as the elevator came to a stop, the disappointment in her voice undeniable. "Please trust me."
The sound of gunfire and someone crawling through ventilation ducts caught their attention before he had time to answer. They took cover, eyes roaming through the space in front of them.
The last thing Kaidan expected to see though was Liara jumping out of the ventilation shaft and shooting two Cerberus troopers after catching them in a Singularity. He was impressed; three years earlier she wouldn't have reacted so quickly.
After hesitating a moment he walked over to Shepard and Liara. The asari turned to face him after she had greeted Nick, her bright blue eyes harder than he remembered. "Kaidan, good to see you. Have you heard from Ash? Did she make it off Earth?"
"I don't know," he admitted. "We talked just before the Reapers hit Vancouver, but communications went down quickly. I hope she made it out." He hesitated. "I would have thought she'd try to contact you first."
Liara shook her head. "We talked last night, but I couldn't get through when I tried to call her today. Maybe she had the same problem."
Nick looked back and forth between them. "Am I missing something?"
"I'll tell you later," Liara replied. "Now, what brings you to Mars?"
"Hackett ordered us to come," Nick said. "He told us you knew something."
Liara smiled. "I do. Hackett got me access to the archives while you were under house arrest," she explained. "I discovered plans for a prothean device that could help against the Reapers. It seems to be a blueprint, possibly for a weapon. The protheans came close to destroying the Reapers, but they ran out of time. If I read this all correctly, this is the key to defeating them. If we can build it."
"Or get it before Cerberus does," Shepard muttered. "Because anything powerful enough to defeat the Reapers -."
"Is probably something the Illusive Man would want to get his hands on," Kaidan finished, looking straight at Nick.
Holding his gaze she nodded. "You got it. Okay Liara, where do we have to go?" she inquired.
Liara pointed out of the large windows toward a transportation hub in the background. "That tramway leads straight to the archives, but I don't know how close Cerberus is already. I'm sure they'll try to stop us."
"So it's a race to these archives?" James asked. Liara simply nodded.
Kaidan shifted his weight, the hair on the back of his neck suddenly standing on end as he opened his omnitool with a flick of his wrist to scan the area for hostiles. "Speaking of, we've got incoming. The way back seems clear, but there are tangos moving our way on the upper level."
James checked the clip on his rifle. "Bring it on."
"Not this time, James," Shepard said. The lieutenant began to protest, but she cut him off. "We need somebody to cover our backs. Get to the shuttle, and get in touch with the Normandy. And don't even think of arguing, that's an order." She pulled her sniper rifle and turned away from the junior officer, not worrying about his response.
James swore under his breath as he stepped onto the elevator. Kaidan couldn't blame him. He cast a quick glance at the lieutenant before opening the fabrication unit of his omnitool. A sense of shame for the relief he felt at not being the one having to go back rippled through him. It was the right decision to send somebody to the shuttle, they all knew that, but he could imagine how Vega felt.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed it. Reviews are welcome as always :)