A Cerberus shuttle landed not too far from them, dropping off assault and shock troopers. Kaidan had already dived behind some boxes, hoping the metal crates would hold. James was much closer to the shuttle, as was Kacey while Garrus covered the team from behind with his rifle. The Cerberus troops poured onto the ground from the two shuttles that hovered above, and a shoot-out between the two groups commenced. Kaidan focused on firing his gun at the troops, and he found that he wasn't as distracted as he was on the last mission. Now that he and Kacey had resolved their issues and reconciled, he was able to focus more.
Liara had used Singularity which had helped to ease the flow of soldiers, but more shuttles continued to fly overhead; with more and more soldiers. They didn't have an infinite supply of bullets and the arrival of Nemesis snipers didn't help things. Thermal clips pinged off their weapons as the group fired at every soldier until the area was covered in Cerberus corpses.
"All right." Kacey sighed, "Let's get moving before more of them come back."
Kaidan wasn't entirely sure what it was they were looking for; finding the command signal sounded easier when Liara said it. He kept searching the desolate buildings, hoping to find something that looked remotely prothean. James was nearby, looking through drawers and on desks.
"Any luck?" Kaidan asked.
"No nothing." James replied, "I found some intel to help the colonists, but no prothean signal."
"Yeah, I haven't found anything either." Kaidan replied.
"Alright. Looks like we should try another building." James said, "Maybe the one in the back?"
"Sounds good. Let's get going."
The pair headed outside and where Kacey was just leaving a greenhouse looking building with Garrus.
"Have you two found anything?" Kacey asked.
"No." Kaidan replied, "You?"
"Nothing yet." Kacey replied, "Still got that building to check out."
"Pretty sure Liara went in there." Garrus said.
"Hopefully, she had better luck than us." Kacey mused, "Come on."
The group entered the building and found a dark but sleek looking lab in the back. Liara was looking at her Omni-tool intently.
"Shepard. This lab found footage of the Protheans." Liara said, "Cerberus is studying it to figure out how to physically open the pod."
"Well, let's take a look." Kacey said.
Kacey walked over to the terminal and began typing away before moving away from the terminal. Kaidan looked up at the screen…and saw nothing but static.
"Is it just me, or is the screen showing nothing but static?" James said.
"Not just you." Garrus said, "I can't see anything either."
"I can't either." Liara added.
Kaidan had already tuned out of the conversation. He saw Kacey stare intensively at the screen, like she was in a trance. After a couple of minutes, she stepped away.
"Huh. I think I can duplicate that to open the lifepod." Kacey mused.
"You understood that?" Liara said.
"You didn't?"
Everyone shook their heads.
"We saw nothing but static." Kaidan said.
"Cerberus must've seen the same thing right?" James mused.
"Yes." Said Liara, "Cerberus was trying to make sense of it…without success. So you're the only one who's able to see it clearly."
Kaidan noticed James' confused glace. He didn't know, but Kaidan knew what Liara was referring too.
"The cipher."
"What?" James looked at Kaidan confused.
"Remember Feros?" Kaidan looked at Kacey, "You got the Cipher from that asari that was trapped in the Thorian. Maybe that had something to do with it?"
"That's right." Garrus added, "We were able to find the Conduit with that cipher."
"I'm confused." James said.
"The cipher lets a person understand and see the images as a Prothean would and understand their language. That is why Shepard was able to see the video."
"Either way, I saw the video and I know how they sealed the lifepods." Kacey said.
"Perfect. Then we just need the signal they use to activate stasis mode."
…
"So if I've got this right, Saren basically offered up an asari to the Thorian to get the cipher?"
"Basically." Kaidan replied.
"Wow." James said, "That's…that's a bit fucked up."
"It's honestly pretty tame compared to everything else." Garrus mused.
"You're telling me."
"You understood that one too?" Liara said, looking at Kacey.
"Yeah, even if my head is in pieces." Kacey replied.
"That's everything we need."
"Back up forces are here!" Kaidan shouted.
Kaidan opened fire with the rest of the group, making quick work of the assault troopers. And yet…something felt off about the situation. There weren't any stronger troops around. After a bit of a trek back, the group managed to reach the lifepod.
"Is it just me, or does the lack of Cerberus' heavy troops and artillery seem suspicious to anyone?" Kaidan asked.
"It is rather odd we haven't encountered any Atlas mechs or Phantoms yet." Garrus mused.
"Likewise." Kacey added, "Stay on your guard."
Kacey approached the lifepod, "I'm transmitting the signal."
"Perfect. It'll take a few moments for the lifepod to process it." Liara said.
Kacey sighed, "Cue the Cerberus troops in three…two…one."
The loud rumbling noise of Cerberus shuttles rang out throughout the area. Kaidan quickly moved into position.
"Heavy Cerberus forces inbound!" Garrus shouted, "Looks like we've got a siege on our hands!"
"You two just had to jinx it, didn't you?" Kacey said sarcastically.
Kaidan couldn't help but smirk at Kacey as the first wave troops landed and made their way towards them. While James kept the two Guardians distracted, Kaidan looped round and fired at them from behind, killing them. Garrus was doing what he did best, sniping at the Nemesis soldiers on the roofs while Liara and Kacey remained close to the lifepod, protecting it. Kaidan and James wiped out most of the troops, with any stragglers being finished off either by Kacey or Liara.
"Phantoms! Look out!" James shouted.
Kaidan noticed one close to him and immediately destroyed its shield before shooting them. He kept an eye on Kacey and noticed that she seemed a bit…distracted. While he did know now about those nightmares, he still couldn't help but feel there was more to it than that.
He turned quickly after finishing off another Guardian to barely see a cloaked Phantom sneaking up on Kacey as she was busy dealing with an onslaught of assault troopers. Kaidan knew what he could do, but he hadn't tried it in an actual battle like this. He took a deep breath, and after ensuring there were no troops near him, carefully used Reave on the Phantom, pulling the Cerberus soldier apart. Kacey turned and looked surprised to see the dead Phantom behind her. A sharp pain went through Kaidan's head; Reave wasn't the easiest thing to pull off, and was surprised and relived it worked out well.
"Looks like we've got a second to catch our breath." Kacey said, "Thanks for the save Kaidan."
"Anytime."
"When did you learn how to Reave?" Kacey asked.
"Not long before the war started." Kaidan replied, "You sound surprised."
"Yeah I am." Kacey responded, "The only other person I've seen use Reave was Samara."
"Samara?"
"I'm impressed you were able to pull it off." Liara added, "I've only ever heard of Justicars being able to use Reave."
"Come on, stop you're embarrassing me." Kaidan laughed.
"Okay. If anyone needs fresh clips or a bathroom break now's the time." Garrus shouted.
"Nah I think we're good." Kacey said, "Could use more clips though. Liara, has the pod ended stasis mode?"
"We're almost there." Liara said as Garrus handed Kacey several thermal clips.
"Heavy mech inbound!" James shouted.
An atlas mech dropped into ground with a loud bang. Liara laid down a Singularity to control the smaller troops while Garrus picked off the stragglers, leaving Kaidan, Kacey and James to handle the mech. Kaidan had managed to use his biotics to destroy the mech's shields, but the migraine had gotten much worse as a result; he knew that using Reave took a big toll on him, especially since he wasn't used to it yet. Kaidan ducked behind some crates as Kacey and James trashed the mech, causing it to explode. Kaidan pulled himself back up, trying in vain to ignore the pain.
"Kaidan, are you feeling okay?" Kacey asked, "You look a bit pale."
"Just a migraine is all." Kaidan replied meekly, "I'll be fine."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I'm sure."
"Shepard!" Liara shouted, "You can open the pod now."
Kacey and Kaidan ran over to the pod.
"Kaidan you might want to step away." Kacey joked, "To avoid accidently activating something you shouldn't."
"Oh hardy har!" Kaidan laughed.
Kacey opened a panel and began typing. The pod slowly opened up, revealing the frozen Prothean.
"There. You've got it." Liara said, approaching the pod, "It may take him some time to fully regain consciousness…"
Kaidan watched as the Prothean opened their eyes, looking around confused. Their eyes then landed on the group, and they knocked Kaidan, James, Garrus and Liara back and sent Kacey flying further. They stood up shakily and begun to wander off.
"Careful! He's confused!" Liara shouted.
The Prothean stumbled before looking off into the valley below. Kaidan watched as Kacey approached the Prothean.
"Remember, it's been 50,000 years for us." Liara said, "But for him it's been…"
She trailed off. Once Kacey had touched the Prothean's shoulder she stumbled back, almost colliding into Kaidan. The Prothean was on his knees as Kaidan caught Kacey before either of them fell over.
"How many others?" The Prothean asked.
"Just you." Kacey replied sombrely, "You can understand me?"
"Yes. Now that I've read your physiology, your nervous system. Enough to understand your language."
"So, you were reading me while I was seeing…"
"Our last moments." The Prothean stood up, "Our failure."
"It wasn't a failure." Kacey walked over to the Prothean, "Your people did everything they could. They never gave up. And I could use some of that commitment right now."
"Shepard?" Cortez spoke through the comms, "Whatever you did got Cerberus interested."
"Why am I not surprised?" Kacey said sarcastically.
The prothean looked at the group, "Asari. Humans. Turian. I am surrounded by primitives."
"Its not safe here." Kacey said, "Will you join us?"
"You fight the Reapers?"
"Yes."
"Then we will see."
…
"What the hell is going on?" Kacey asked, "And what's with the guns?"
Kaidan didn't expect to be standing outside the Port Cargo Hold with a rifle in his hands, but James had shoved one in his hands and said they needed to be on standby in case something happened.
"Oh, y'know, just in case." James said.
"Put it away and get inside." Kacey said as she opened the door.
Kaidan looked inside to find the Prothean on their knees again, and Liara pacing the room.
"What's the problem?" Kacey asked.
"I've tried to make the room more accommodating, but they're not letting me talk to him." Liara said.
"Apologies, Doctor." One of the guards said, "Contact protocol with a new species: assume hostility. We had to dust off the regulations."
"But he's not new." Liara protested, "I've spent my life studying Protheans."
"At ease." Kacey ordered, "I don't think our guest will be a problem."
As Kacey approached, the Prothean stood up. Kacey looked at him, "Will he?"
"That depends on you." He replied.
He moved violently and simply grabbed Kacey. Kaidan had the rifle pointed directly at the Prothean, alongside James, Garrus and the rest of the guards.
"I can sense fear in you." The Prothean said bluntly, "Anxiety and distress. The Reapers are winning."
Kacey pulled back quickly, "What do you mean 'you sense'?"
"All life provides clues for those who can read them." The Prothean explained, "It is in your cells, your DNA. Experience is a biological marker."
Kacey gestured for the guns to be lowered, but Kaidan was hesitant to do so. The Prothean confirmed his and Garrus' suspicions.
"Then what exactly did I experience back on Eden Prime?" Kacey asked, "That was a hell of a flashback."
"The battle left its own mark on me, I communicated this to you. It can work both ways."
"Like your beacons?" Liara said.
"Yes. Which…" he closed his eyes briefly, "You found one. You saw it all—our destruction. Our warnings. Why weren't they heeded? Why didn't you prepare for the Reapers, human?!"
"It's Commander." Kacey replied angrily, "And nobody could understand your warnings! The beacon nearly killed me!"
The Prothean scoffed, "Then communication is still primitive in this cycle."
"We pieced together what we could and used it to stop a Reaper invasion three years ago."
"Then the extinction was delayed?"
Kacey nodded. Kaidan could see she was fuming but kept her composure.
"Now we have your plans for a device." Liara interjected, "We're going to build it."
"Device?"
"The weapon your people were working on—I'd hoped you could tell us how to finish it."
"We never finished it. It was too late."
"Then I take it you don't know anything about the Catalyst?" Kacey asked.
"No." The Prothean said, "I was a soldier, not a scientist. Skilled in one art: killing."
"What was your mission?" Liara asked.
"Among my people, there were…avatars of many traits. Bravery, strength, cunning. A single exemplar of each."
"Which are you?" Kacey asked.
"The embodiment of vengeance. I am the anger of a dead people, demanding blood be spilled for blood we lost. Only when the last Reaper has been destroyed will my purpose be fulfilled. I have no other reason to exist. Those who share my purpose become allies. Those who do not become casualties."
"Nothing in our fight against the Reapers has been that cut and dried." Kacey said.
"Because you still have hope that this war will end with your honour intact."
"I do."
"Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls and ask the ghosts if honour matters. This silence is your answer."
"We found this at the dig site." Liara said, "I assume it belongs to you?"
"It is a memory shard."
"Could it help us with the device?"
"No. It brings only pain." The Prothean said, "But I will help you fight. And the last thing the Reapers hear before they die will be the last voice of the Protheans sending them to their grave."
"If you don't mind, I have a few questions I'd like to ask." Liara said.
"Here it comes." Kacey said with a smirk.
"I've written over a dozen studies on your species. I've published in several journals—"
"Amusing. Asari have finally mastered writing"
"I'm sorry?"
Kaidan could hear James snickering as Liara faced the Prothean.
"Never mind."
"Well, thanks for talking with me anyway." Kacey said, "I never imagined meeting a Prothean."
"This has been…amusing."
"Oh?"
"To discover the most primitive races of my time now rule the galaxy. The asari, the humans, the turians."
"There's also the salarians." Liara added.
"The lizard people evolved?"
James and Garrus burst out laughing while Kacey and Kaidan struggled to contain theirs.
"I believe they're amphibian." Liara said.
"They used to eat files."
Liara walked off past the laughing James and Garrus, who followed after. As Kaidan left, he heard the Prothean address Kacey again.
"Commander, you may count on me. I am known as Javik."