John rubbed his thumb absently over the rifle's fore-grip as he thought over the past day and a half. His crew was biting off more than they could chew. Crash landing on a planet far from civilization was one thing. But when you're already spooked about falling ghost rocks...? And then being attacked by the collectors?
Of all things? He felt a frown tugging at his lip.
Jesus Christ.
"So..." John mustered to say before finally looking up from the floor and giving everyone a quick glance, "Any thoughts guys?"
No one bothered to give him a straight answer.
"...No?" He said before facing their driver, "What about you lieutenant?"
The lieutenant shook his head immediately. "None sir. Sorry."
"...Yeah." John nodded mostly to himself before staring at Chief Kala sitting just right across from him, "Just thought I'd ask."
He closed his eyes, leaned back on the headrest, or as comfortably as he could, and let his mind wander.
Naturally, he started thinking about Tali. His frown turned soft and a tired grin despite the doom and gloom started to show again.
One year.
One year of adventure and wonder. One year to fall stupidly in love with her.
Now he could openly admit it.
Well.
To himself.
And her.
But you know what? It sucked. Why?
Because they were stranded when he should've been taking her out to a fancy dinner and some mini-golf.
He smirked. Tali playing mini-golf. That'd be a sight worth seeing. He'd make a promise to do it someday if they'd ever get off this rock. Or more optimistically, when they'd get off this rock.
His marines, the two in front of him and those sitting right beside, were having light conversation. How their families were doing. What the kids were up to. Or the dog even. You know. Stuff to keep the morale up.
"—and what about you, Commander?"
John looked up to see Heathers looking at him expectantly.
"Hm?"
"Anything to share?" She added with a smile.
"Ah, nothing." He said with a shrug, "Could go for a beer and a turkey sandwich I suppose."
"Pretty sure we've got leftovers from Thanksgiving still, Commander." Wallace jumped to say, "But the microwave's broke. And we're out of bread and mayonnaise."
"And the turkey's probably dry by now." Kala piped up.
John rolled his eyes. "More reason to get the hell out of here."
The next minute or so was carried on in silence. Until the sky turned completely dark.
The lieutenant stomped on the brake to stop the Mako before looking up at the sky with a shocked expression on his face. "Whoah. What the fuck."
"What the hell's going on lieutenant?" John demanded as he careened his head to try and get a better look himself.
Any sign of the sun had been snuffed out and blocked with brownish black clouds about twenty feet above them.
Except they weren't clouds.
Wallace's eyes widened with panic. "What the hell are those?!"
"Drive!"
The lieutenant slammed his foot back on the pedal. "You tell me, Wallace. Holy shit."
John kept his gaze on clouds with a slack jawed frown.
"Guys...?" Heathers murmured hoarsely, "Those aren't clouds."
The inky black clouds drew closer to the Mako.
Heathers frown started bearing teeth. "They look like... locusts."
John grasped the lieutenant's shoulder to get his attention. "Lieutenant? Don't stop driving. Full throttle to the Normandy! Now!"
"Aye sir!"
Shepard looked to Heathers.
"Radio the Normandy and tell them to get inside!"
Heathers tried her radio.
"Break-break, posting one to Normandy, we have a swarm of locusts converging on your position, how copy?"
Static answered her.
"I say again, posting one to Normandy, we have a swarm of insect like fauna converging on your position, you need to get inside the Normandy! Respond, over."
Heathers shook her head. "I don't think they're getting anything! Orders commander?"
"Man the gun, Heathers. Wallace? Keep trying the radio. Something tells me it's the collectors and not the local wildlife."
"I don't think we'll be able to outpace them!" The lieutenant called out as he glanced between the sky and the ground, "They're going faster than we are!"
"Then go as fast as you can and don't stop!"
"NN̷͕͌ó̵͜rmandy to—ostingone, repeat-tt...ast, ő̴̟v̵̭̽e̵̛̹̮̒̐r̷̨̬̗̐͗̍.
Wallace turned to the Commander.
"Sir, they're replying, but it's a weak signal."
"Keep repeating yourself until they get everything."
Wallace nodded and did as he was instructed.
John felt sweat trickle along his brow.
This was bad.
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Ashley tried the radio again while she stared at the looming darkness. "Shepard, where are you?!"
"What the hell is going on?" Garrus said as he came up on Ash's flank in a hurry, "Please tell me you know what's happening."
Ash started to panic. The clouds were just over the hill and were going to be on them in a matter of seconds. "Everyone! Inside the Normandy! Go! Now!"
Dozens of the crew that were outside watching the spectacle started scrambling toward the Normandy. No one was really willing to find out what would happen if they stayed outside.
"No, Garrus, I don't know what's going on! Where's Tali?"
"Down at the Normandy's nose..." Garrus said as he took several steps backward, "I need to get her!"
Ashley saw the Mako make it over the hill.
"John's right over the hill! Go and get back here as soon as you can!"
Garrus tried to run. But then a thrum of buzzing stopped him dead in his tracks.
As he turned around to face the offending sound, the Normandy was suddenly engulfed by millions of little scurrying locusts.
People screamed. Many of them dropped to the ground. Others covered their ears and cried.
And the last thing Garrus could remember as he fell to his knees in the midst of total chaos, was watching the Mako stop near him as John jumped out after him.
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The first thing Tali did when she woke up was yawn. Then stretch before smacking her lips and looking to see if Garrus was still sitting next to her.
He wasn't.
"Garrus?" She called out groggily to see if he was nearby, "You there?"
She didn't get an answer.
"Garrus?" Tali sat up as she grabbed her shotgun, "Hello?"
Still no answer.
Tali looked around and, seeing how no one was around, decided it be best to climb out from under the Normandy's nose to see what was going on.
When she climbed out of her hole, her mouth went dry.
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Wait...
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No, this wasn't right. There was supposed to be people out here.
A distant howl of wind chilled her to the bone and she decided to flick the safety off her shotgun.
"Hello?" She called out in a slight whimper, "Anyone?"
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Nothing.
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Where the hell was everyone?
She came up to the Mako parked near the Normandy's entrance with its door ajar.
This was starting to freak her out. Bad.
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"Guys?"
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As she reared around the Mako, her heart froze.
She saw Garrus face down in the dirt with his rifle at his feet.
"Garrus...?"
Who was she kidding. Was he really going to reply like that?
She fell to her knees and rolled him over to see if he was still breathing.
Good. He was.
She graced the immediate area around her with a careful stare before picking Garrus up under the pits of his arms and dragging him toward the Normandy to get inside.
When she finally felt the Normandy against her back, she dropped the turian so she could open the door and heard him clank against the floor.
"Sorry." She rasped apologetically as she keyed the code.
She grabbed Garrus and pulled him inside before propping him up against the wall. Then she looked down the Normandy's long neck toward CIC.
The same as outside. Dark and empty.
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"What is going on..."
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ
Tali began walking down its length with her shotgun up high and ready.
When she made it to the inert galaxy map, she found Liara sprawled on the floor the same way Garrus had been.
Tali checked over Liara the same way she did Garrus.
She was still breathing and there weren't any obvious signs of injury.
Luck upheld, Liara was fine too.
She passed Liara and made her way downstairs carefully, her finger hovering just over the trigger well.
When she made it down, she saw Wrex leaning on the elevator door with a slack-jawed frown.
"Wrex...?"
His eyes bolt open and he looked around before finally laying his eyes on her.
"Tali." He murmured before standing up, "What happened."
Tali felt her knees tremble. "Wrex, thank god you're okay."
"Tali," Wrex repeated, "What happened?"
She stammered. "I... I don't know."
"Where is everyone?"
Tali shrugged. "I don't know. Only Garrus and Liara are here."
Wrex put a hand on his forehead before stepping up closer next to her. "What do you mean?"
"No one else is here, Wrex. They're all— gone? The crew's gone."
Wrex said nothing and briefly tried piecing the puzzle together.
"...The collectors must've taken them." Wrex murmured with a disappointing huff.
Tali shook her head. "But... that means..."
Her eyes widen and she stared a Wrex.
"John."
Tali ran to his room and opened the door.
"John!" She yelled as she searched the corners of his room with her flashlight, "John! Answer me!"
John didn't answer.
Tali's voice bubbled into a cry.
He wasn't here.
"No. No, No, No."
She stood at his doorway and yelled even louder to see if he could've been anywhere else. "John, goddamnit, answer me!"
Wrex went up to her with his long face. "Tali," He said before shaking his head, "He's not here."
"No." She jabbed a finger into his chest, "Do not say that."
She turned back around to check the infirmary, "John...!"
Wrex stared numbly at her refusal to accept the fact. It didn't take much for Wrex to know she was in total denial. He waited until she checked both rooms in the infirmary before coming back out.
"Wrex, we have to go downstairs, check all the hallways, and the cargo b—"
"Tali." He repeated with a little more force than necessary, "Shepard. Isn't. Here."
"I told you not to say that." She growled in a poisonous tone, "Don't you dare tell me he isn't here if we haven't checked every goddamn millimeter of this ship."
Wrex gave her a steady glare. "So be it."
He turned around and headed toward the stairs, "I'll get our guns ready and wake the others. Meet us when you're done. We've got work to do."
Tali turned away immediately without the heart to answer him and headed into the service ducts.
She made it to the third floor and checked the storage spaces before checking whatever was left of her room.
Then she went down to the cargo bay to check engineering.
Still no sign of him.
When she went back to the cargo deck, she searched every box big enough to berth a man before dropping to her knees and crying.
John was gone.
Gone.
Taken away.
Is this what the universe wanted from her? A foul end to a foul life? To have everything and everyone ripped away from her in their last moments together? Death on this planet seemed imminent. Nothing could really convince her otherwise.
But with John gone now...?
It was inevitable.
She cupped her hands over her visor and continued to weep before whispering hoarsely to herself.
"Goddamnit, John. I'm so sorry."
She stayed that way for a several minutes and felt her body and mind go limp.
Eventually, with as much resolve as she could muster, she stood back up, shotgun in hand, and made her way back up to meet Wrex and the others.
When she made it back up, she went outside to see Liara and Garrus awake with Wrex putting supplies inside the Mako.
Garrus caught wind of Tali walking from the Normandy. "Tali... Did you...?"
She looked up to him and shook her head to tell him she hadn't found him.
Wrex didn't bother saying anything and certainly didn't bother looking at her either.
She knew he was right. But Wrex sure as hell didn't want to be.
"I'm glad you're both okay." Tali said to Liara and Garrus.
"Same to you." Garrus answered.
"What're you doing." Tali asked somberly.
Liara looked to Garrus before looking back to Tali. "We have a plan."
Tali perked up slightly. "What?"
"This morning Tali, we found the collector's ship."
Tali frowned until she was bearing teeth. "Why didn't you tell anyone about this earlier?"
"I... don't remember." Liara admitted with a stutter.
"What do you mean?" Tali asked, nonplussed, "Wrex can't remember anything either. Garrus? What about you?"
"No."
"What…? How could none of you not know what happened?"
Garrus tied a rucksack onto the Mako's side before standing in front of Tali to try and explain.
"Look Whatever happened to us? Happened when you were asleep. The last thing I remember was walking out of our foxhole. That's it. Everything else is... black."
Tali shook her head. "What about you, Wrex?" She asked, "What's the last thing you remember?"
"Walking into the Normandy for something. Don't remember what." Wrex answered.
"And you, Liara?" Tali asked.
"Finding out where the collectors were."
Tali shook her head. "This still doesn't make sense."
"No." Garrus agreed, "It doesn't."
"Keelah. We haven't the slightest clue of what we're doing then."
"Not completely true." Liara answered, "Whatever this is, happened eight or so hours ago. That much we know. And I think we can all agree the collectors are probably behind this."
Tali faced Garrus again and sighed. "So, I'm assuming we're going to the collectors then."
"It's the only lead we have." Garrus answered before giving her an edged glare, "We're going to find the crew. And then we're going to kill anyone who gets in our way."
Tali fixed him a nod. "Okay. Tell me the plan."
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"Go over it again."
Liara obliged.
"One hundred twenty kilometers due west of ground zero. The collectors have set up a small base with their ship directly overhead."
Garrus nodded. "Armament potential of forces deployed on the ground?"
"Unknown." Liara answered with a shrug, "Expect a sizable resistance."
"Right. What's there?" Tali asked even though she already knew.
"Based on an educated guess, a supply cache is here. A barracks of some sort there, Research equipment and stations spread in the middle, and a small vehicle depot on the northwest perimeter."
Tali chewed on her tongue. "Do we have any reasons to believe the crew could be still on the surface?"
"No." Liara answered, "I have no reason to believe the crew is still on the ground."
"How do we know?" Tali questioned, just to make sure, "Are you for certain?"
"Yes." Liara said as she zoomed in on the map, "Look again. None of the structures here gave any indication of being capable of holding prisoners. If they're still alive, they have to be in their ship."
Tali relented. "Okay."
Wrex studied the display. "Tell me what the barracks are exactly. How big?"
"From what information I've gathered from our drones, not much. If you're looking for numbers, expect dozens, possibly hundreds, of soldiers. That's all we have. Now to our plan."
Garrus kept driving and the others nodded.
"Okay then." Liara continued, "Wrex and I will be dropped off here to make our way to the lower right quadrant of the base to serve as a distraction. In that time, Tali and Garrus will make their way to the vehicle depot on the upper left quadrant. Get one of their gunships, pick us up on an LZ I'll provide, and find a way into the ship."
"That's a long shot." Garrus croaked, "But it's a shot."
"Garrus," Wrex said, obviously flabbergasted, "We killed a reaper. I'll be damned if these insects give any bigger push than Sovereign."
"There's that, I suppose." Garrus shrugged.
Tali felt sweat bead her brow when she saw two blips come up at her radar station. "Garrus. Look. We've got contacts on approach. Gunships."
"Patrol maybe?"
She nodded. "Possibly... I wouldn't put it beyond me though if it wasn't."
Wrex took control of the Mako's gun. "I'll deal with them if we have to. Keep driving Garrus."
"Right."
A high-caliber gun from behind them in the air opened up abruptly before throwing soot and charred sand into the air from the resulting explosions.
"Well. Definitely not a patrol then."
"If you stay in the canyon Garrus, they won't be able to get a lock on us!"
"And what happens when I run out of canyon, Liara!?"
"I don't know!"
Wrex returned fire with the Mako's coaxial machine gun.
Then, when Wrex got the chance, fired the main gun and clipped an engine before watching the whole gun-ship explode into a thermobaric fireball.
"Yeah. Take it."
"That's one down! One more to go!"
Garrus turned sharply left and realized he'd just made a mistake.
He just drove out into an open field.
With no cover to drive behind, they were looking at suicide if they didn't think of something now.
"Wrex, take it down! Do it! Now!"
Wrex bellowed and fired the machine gun again. "Die!"
The last gunship stopped tailing the Mako and increased its speed to stay in front of them.
"What the hell is it doing?!"
Garrus got his answer. The ship cloaked the ground ahead with what looked like explosives on the ground in front of them.
"Hold on."
Garrus, going with his gut, yanked a lever back to give life to the Mako's thrusters. Wheels lost to the ground, they gained air and soared high, mashing their pursuers with an unsolicited twenty-ton kiss of tank.
Overwhelmed by the impact and the inertial transfer exerted by the Mako, it banked right into a sharp dive, crashing into an overhang and keeling into a giant fireball.
The Mako landed in a thunderous sound and everyone, including their six-wheeled monster, were okay.
"Stop the Mako Garrus." Tali breathed, "Stop."
Garrus put the brake on and stopped. They all needed to catch their breath from that.
"That was not what I planned," Garrus said, hands on the wheel in a death grip, "but I'll take the win."
Liara actually laughed. And Tali allowed herself a small, if not brief, smile.
"Okay. Alright. Let's keep going. No doubt they know something's up." Liara said.
Garrus nodded and eased his foot on the accelerator. "Okay. Here we go. Back to it. Hopefully we don't run into anymore."
"I hope they send more." Wrex hummed his growl.
Liara gave him a high brow. "Now why would we want that?"
"I want them to see what's coming for them."