*Citadel, Docking Bay D24: 2186*
Leaning over the walkway's railing, Shepard gazed wholesomely upon the ship docked in the bay. Her ship.
The Normandy.
That ship has been her home for so long that she has no idea how she could live on without it. From the moment she joined the Alliance and was put under Anderson's command, to this day forward. Whether it was the SR1 or the SR2, the Normandy would always be the Normandy no matter what.
And she had never been more relieved that she and the team had managed to stop it from being stolen by some knockoff clone of her that was grown by Cerberus.
That's a story for later…
For now, Shepard just gazed at her vessel, taking in every detail of its form and recording it in her memory. The repairs were finally finished and it was ready for active duty once more.
Multiple footsteps could be heard from behind her. Shepard glanced over to her rear and she noticed her crew walking towards her. James, Liara, Joker, Kaiden, Cortez, Tali, Traynor, Javik, EDI… and Garrus.
Last night, the team threw a massive party in Shepard's apartment to celebrate their last day of shore leave before charging back into the war together. It wasn't just the current crew who joined in on the fun, but also members of the crew back when Shepard was fighting the Collectors. Heck, even Wrex crashed the party and nearly got into a fight with Grunt that could have demolished the whole apartment.
And that wasn't the only eventful thing that happened that night. It was wild! Kasumi was cloaking the entire time, popping up when people least expect it. (and got a little handsy with Jane's underwear drawer) Wrex, Zaeed, and Javik all went full on commando and started shooting bottles at the bar. Tali had gotten so drunk that ended up hurling inside her suit. Shepard was able to show her "legendary" dancing skills. James and Liara argued over physical prowess being better than biotics, and the other way around. And Shepard heard something about Grunt eating a lamp?
And Garrus. Oh, Garrus. The things they did in bed together. Thank god for soundproof walls.
But that was all behind them. Now it was back to reality…
Garrus walked up beside Shepard and leaned over the guard rail. "So I guess it's back to the fight?" He asked.
Shepard nodded. "At least we threw one hell of a party." She paused, her smile shifting into a depressed and dreadful frown. "Probably the last one."
She didn't want to admit it, but she was worried. Worried that they wouldn't be able to stop the Reapers no matter what. Tomorrow was when the Alliance would finally launch their all out assault on Cronos Station, also known as Cerberus HQ. Shepard had managed to find its coordinate that's to a tracker that Miranda had planted on Kai Leng back on Horizon, and that ninja wannabe has led them right back to their home turf.
That was where Shepard would find the Prothean VI that Leng stole from Thessia, and hopefully, capture Cerberus leader, The Illusive Man before he can do anymore damage.
But there thoughts running through Shepard's mind about what might happen there. Many scenarios where things could go wrong. What if Cerberus destroyed the VI when they extracted what they needed? What if it was a trap due to Kai Leng finding the tracker? The fate of Earth, the whole galaxy rested on this assault. There was no room for error.
Garrus took note of Jane's distress. He turned to her and gave her a reaffirming look.
"That doesn't sound like my girl. You'll find a way to win." Assured Vakarian. "And when this is over, I'll be waiting for you."
He always would. Garrus looked over the balcony to where the Normandy was docked. He started thinking back to all the good times they had aboard that heap of metal. Back on the SR1, when they first came aboard, he, Wrex, and Tali were constantly at each other's' throats while Liara stayed quiet in her office. When Wrex inadvertently ate all of the crew's food stocks due to his krogan appetite. Kaiden and Liara fighting over Shepard for her affection, and Shepard not admitting it, but enjoying watching them go at it. All those time he and Joker would get into competition over who's jokes were better. Or the time everyone found Ashley passed out drunk in the starboard lounge after downing an entire bottle of liquor.
On the SR2, when Zaeed helped Garrus cope with losing his mercenary team by drinking themselves into oblivion and talking about the adventures they both had when they teamed up back on Omega. The shooting matches between him, Jack, and Grunt; Grunt getting mad when he loses and gets into fights with Jack. The wise advice he received from Samara and Thane when he needed it after deciding to spare Sidonis. Jacob and Mordin helping Garrus make new modifications to his armor after it got blown up. Relating with Miranda when it came to sisters. Kasumi always encouraging him to go for it with Shepard. And Legion… Okay, he can't really recall doing anything special with Legion, mostly because he was the typical geth and was devoid of personality. But he still enjoyed his company.
So many memories. So little time to think back to all of them. But Garrus smiled regardless. "Best times of my life were spent on that ship. Been a damn good ride."
He leaned in close, planting a gentle kiss on Shepard's cheek. It helped perk her up a bit. Garrus then started walking towards the hatch door along with the rest of the crew. Shepard smiled wholesomely as she watched them walk by.
"The best…"
…
…
…
"And they can be again."
Those words hit Garrus' ear hole the second he opened the hatched. He turned his head back around at Shepard.
"Come again?"
She was no longer there. That's odd.
"Shepard?"
A new sound could be heard coming from in front. It sounded like raspy breathing. Garrus turned back to his twelve. That was when a clawed hand violently grabbed him by the throat and raised him up off the floor with no effort whatsoever.
Garrus had a clear view of his attacker. It was some kind of… monster would be the closest thing he could describe this creature as. It was massive, covered head to toe in a thick chitin plating and two large insect wings behind its back, and armed with a massive sword in its other hand. The creatures head had two large protrusions sticking out the top of its head, resembling a helmet of some sort. And its face… Spirits, its face! Three sickly green eyes that glowed bright. The mouth of a corpse. Breath that reeked of death and decay made Garrus want to puke out of disgust.
Garrus attempted to free himself by prying the monster's hand open, but its grip was like a vice. It was so strong that it was getting hard for him to breathe. He needed help.
"Guys..!" The turian choked. "Help me..! Guys..?"
Garrus looked around. His crew were gone. He was the only one there. The monster pulled him in close to its face. It stared at him as though it were examining him. Evaluating his worth.
"YOU ARE ITS CHOSEN?" The monster spoke. Its voice was female, distorted, and almost yelling. "YOU LOOK WEAK. BREAKABLE. LIKE A SPECK OF DUST THAT CAN BE SWEPT AWAY BY THE WEAKEST WINDS! YOU ARE NOT WORTHY OF THE DEEP'S BLESSINGS!"
Garrus squirmed around in the monster's grip, trying desperately to break free. His feet kicked and thrashed around like a child throwing a tantrum. Hands gripping the claw and pulling with all their strength. Yet he was totally helpless despite his best efforts.
"Who are you..?" He gasped.
The creature threw him from its hold onto the ground several feet away from her. Garrus cried out from the pain of the impact and started fearfully scurrying away from her on his backside. The creature flew closer towards him however.
"I AM THE MOUNTAIN UPON WHICH ALL SWORDS SHATTER! THE HAND AT YOUR THROAT! THE KNIFE AT YOUR GUT! YOU ARE NOT WORTH THE AIR SPENT TO SAY MY NAME, TURIAN! YOU ARE-"
"Xivu Arath. Must you be so inhospitable towards our fellow comrade?"
A new voice entered the conversation. It was male, and extremely deep. Garrus noticed a shadow engulfing him. From the angle, it was stretching out from behind him, so he turned his head and looked behind him. He saw an absolutely colossal figure towering above him. It's form was morbidly obese, and clad in some sort of regal looking faded purple and gold armor with multiple crests attached to the belly plate. Its face was partially covered by a helmet that resembled a monolith, but Garrus could make out its small amber eyes and cleft upper mouth riddled with putrid yellow fangs.
The beast knelt down and offered Garrus a hand up. "Arise, Garrus Vakarian. You are among friends." It boomed. Its voice carried a great sense of bravado and hubris, like that of a king.
Garrus was hesitant to accept. Though this large creature seemed friendly towards him, the sheer malice he was picking up from its presence made him wary. And that name it spoke. Xivu Arath. He recalled Crow mentioning that name not long ago during his telling of the High Celebrant. Garrus turned his head back to the monster behind him. Was that her?
"Come, Garrus. There is no need to be afraid." The giant claimed, softening its tone to try and win him over.
Garrus turned back to the giant, its hand still offered to him. He eventually accepted and took hold. The giant helped him up onto his feet again. The monster behind them growled viciously.
"YOU ERODE HIM WITH YOUR MERCY, CALUS. MUST YOU BE SO SOFT?" Xivu Arath criticized the giant's act of kindness.
"If we meet all our allies with the urge to butcher them, would they be willing to lend us their strength in battle?" Argued Calus with a humored smile.
Xivu Arath clenched her fist in anger, snarling like a rabid animal.
"IF HE IS SO DESERVING OF BEING BESIDE US, HE SHOULD PROVE HIS RIGHT TO, BY COMBAT! THE SWORD LOGIC DEMANDS IT!" She screamed maniacally.
Garrus couldn't help but back away from Xivu, accidentally bumping into Calus behind him. The giant reassuringly patted the turian on the shoulder to calm his rattled nerves.
"Don't mind her, Garrus. She is always like this. It is a wonder how Oryx even put up with her for so long."
"SPEAK OF MY BROTHER AGAIN AND I SHALL SPILL YOUR ENTRAILS FROM THAT GLUTTONOUS BELLY OF YOURS!" Xivu Arath threatened as she pointed her sword at Calus.
"Hey, hey! Everyone, just shut up a minute!" Pleaded Garrus as he raised his hands into the air. "Who the hell are you people?!"
Calus let out a loud and pompous laugh, clenching his large gut with his hands.
"Where are my manners? Greetings, Garrus Vakarian. I am Calus, rightful emperor of the Cabal." The giant introduced himself. "That majestic maiden there is Xivu Arath, war god of the Hive."
Xivu Arath merely snorted and turned her head to Garrus. She clearly was in the mood to make friends.
"We are followers of the Darkness, much like you. That makes us comrades, I suppose."
"We are NOT comrades, you fat, hedonistic imbecile!"
Another voice made itself known to the group. Garrus turned to his right, towards the dock lounge. He noticed a new figure lurking in the shadows.
A very tall insectoid creature with four arms attached to her torso. The armor it wore was a deep shade of black and looked as though it were forged from several pieces of junk with an azure blue lining beneath it. Strapped to its back was a white cape with an odd symbols inscribed into it in blue. The cape's collar was made entirely of jagged ice spikes. As for its face, a breathing apparatus concealed its mouth and nose. Two glowing cyan eyes visible on its left side while the right was covered by some sort of patch. Lastly, a helmet with two large prongs sticking upward from each side and looked as though they were made of the same material as that statue in Garrus' apartment.
The insectoid hissed and clicked in aggression. It clearly isn't as friendly as Calus was.
"Our partnerships are merely of mutual benefit. Do not mistake us for peers." Its muffled voice was feminine and very angry.
Calus sarcastically gasped, placing a hand over his chest. "Eramis, you wound me. I had hoped we had something special between us."
Eramis disgustfully gagged in response to such a remark. "Ugh! As if anyone in their right mind would stoop so low as to lay with the likes of you, Cabal. Whirlwind take me if that ever occurs."
"This is Eramis, Mr. Vakarian. Kell of House Salvation, and a master of Stasis." Calus introduced the newcomer.
She approached Garrus and looked the turian over. Garrus leaned away from Eramis due to her invading his personal space. She glared at him, unimpressed and infuriated.
"You are nothing impressive. It makes one doubt what The Witness sees in you."
Garrus froze up. The Witness? The voice in his dreams? These people knew it? What was going on here?
"More importantly, this one willingly assisted those wretched machine-spawn! He cannot be trusted!" Eramis pointed out.
Machine-spawn? Was she referring to Shepard and Fireteam November? Calus spread his arms out and spoke again.
"Now now, we shouldn't make such assumptions until we know for sure. And I for one am glad he did. Jane Doe's hunger for violence has been such rich entertainment. That woman knows how to keep people on their toes."
The turian turned back to Calus. He knew Shepard?!
"Jaaaaaaane Doooooe..!"
Garrus felt his heart skip a beat and his body lock up as his ears picked up a ghastly moan. It sounded at though it was coming from the edge of the balcony to his left. That was when a decayed and disfigured hand reached up and grabbed hold of the railing. Upon seeing this, Garrus' blood went ice cold.
"Reeedd Sentineeellllll..! Liiiightbearerrrrrrr..! Deeeeead Thhhhiiiiiinng..!"
Another hand appeared beside it. The being they belonged to pulled themselves up from the other side of the railing, slumping over it like a corpse before falling limp onto the floor. They appeared to be an insectoid creature similar to Eramis, but this one was fairly different. It was male, covered head to toe in rusty purple scrap metal and chains. Draped behind it was a tattered cloak and its face was completely covered by a metal mask the same shade as its armor. Its entire body was a pale white and looked as though it were decaying like that of a zombie.
"MUUUUUUDERREEEER..!"
"And now appears the putrid Fanatic of the Scorn…" Eramis spat.
Garrus watched in total horror as The Fanatic's limbs and joints cracked and contorted in ungodly positions, like he were possessed by a demon. He rose up off the floor after several agonizing seconds, drawing what looked like a staff from its back with a blue crystal attached to it. The Fanatic let out a nightmarish growl.
"Elykrisssss..! Hiraaaaks..! Aaaaaraaaskesssss..! Rrrreksisssss Vahhhhn..! Kaniiiiiks..! Piiiiiirrhaaaaa..! Yyyyyaaaaaaviks..!"
The Fanatic spoke in disturbing moans as he listed several names that Garrus could barely understand. But he could tell that there was an immense amount of pain behind every one The Fanatic called out.
"Fatherrrrrr…" He muttered, clenching three of his fists and tightening his grip on his staff. "She killlllled them..! Made! Them! DEAD!" Anger was bubbling up from within him like a volcano ready to erupt. The Fanatic turned his gaze to Garrus.
"Maybeeeeee…"
With a quick reverse of his grip on the staff, The Fanatic raised his weapon over his head and lunged at Garrus, aiming to impale him on the crystal. His movement was so surprisingly fast that Garrus didn't even have time to react. All he could do was yelp in fright.
"YOU DIE INSTEAD!!!" The Fanatic roared.
"Fikrul, touch so much as a fringe on that turian's head and I'll blink you out of existence with a snap of my finger!"
The Fanatic stopped. The point of the staff mere inches from Garrus's face. A single drop of sweat ran down the side of his head. The Fanatic reluctantly backed away from him, crouching to the floor submissively.
"Honestly, this is why I prefer to work with humans…"
One more individual approached from the shadows. This one was the most human looking of them all. Upon stepping into the light, Garrus noticed that it was an Exo, much like Whiskey and Zomon, with a smooth and rounded cranial plating that was a deep tone of purple and possessed brilliant cyan eyes that illuminated the darkness. In its right hand appeared to be a wooden kiseru, a Japanese tobacco pipe, lit with smoke emanation from it.
"And the representative of the Vex finally arrives!" Calus stated aloud.
"You're late." Snarled Eramis.
"Hey! You try walking in wooden shoes and tell me how easy it is, Ice Queen!" The Exo defended, justifying his tardiness.
That voice… Though distorted by the Exo dual tones, Garrus recognized it from somewhere. A voice he hoped to never hear again for the rest of his days. Not only that, there was a symbol painted onto the Exo's forehead in a bold orange. The logo of Cerberus.
"Illusive Man?!
The Exo brought the tip of his pipe to his mouthpiece and inhaled the burning tobacco before blowing it out in a plume of smoke. His eyes focused in on Garrus.
"It's been a long time, Officer Vakarian. Or is it "Commander" now? Congratulations." The Exo greeted, smoke still escaping his mechanical, cerulean-glowing mouth. "And nobody calls me that anymore. The Illusive Man died when the Reapers did. Now, I go by Harper-3, while the Vex refer to me as 'The Illusive Mind'."
As if this wasn't getting any more outrageous. The Illusive Man, the infamous head of the human supremacy organization, Cerberus. Alive and now living in an Exo frame. He caused so much trouble during the Realer War in his attempts to gain control over the Reapers. So many lives lost because of him. Like Anderson. Like Shepard!
Garrus backed away in fear. There was absolutely no possible way that this was happening. This had to be another nightmare.
"No way..! It can't be you! You died on Earth-" That was when Vakarian noticed one very obvious detail about the Exo. "Are you wearing a dress?"
Further detailing his appearance, Harper was cloaked in what looked like a long, black kimono robe that draped down to his ankles. There was a white widening patterning spread across the garment with the black fading into white further down the robe's length. Harper was also sporting a pair of wooden geta shoes.
Hearing the remark made by Garrus, Harper's mechanical face did its best to imitate a scowl.
"It's a kimono! Didn't Ms. Goto ever tell you about Japanese fashion when she was aboard the Normandy?!" He barked, sucking on his pipe to calm his nerves. "Though personally, I'm not exactly a fan of this thing… Everything's all loose down there."
Wait. Exoes have genitalia? How does that- No! Garrus shook his head to rid himself of the thought. He didn't want to know.
"Cut the bullshit! What's going on here?! Who are you people?!" He questioned in a panic.
"You're distraught. That's understandable. Don't worry, I'll try to keep this as simple as I can. Hell, I barely understood it at first as well."
Harper-3 approached Garrus slowly. He turned to the balcony of the docking bay and stared out into the horizon before him.
"For starters, we're not actually on the Citadel. This is a mental plain created from your memories when our minds joined together."
Garrus was confused. Mental plane? Minds joining?
"Your unconscious, Garrus. You got knocked out when you passed through the Anomaly with those Guardians." Harper explained, taking another puff of his pipe.
Hold on… It was coming back to him now. Garrus and Jane were in Crow's ship as they flew directly towards the Anomaly. The last thing he remember after that was this blinding light. Well, at least he knew he wasn't dead. Garrus thought his life was flashing before his eyes.
Eramis snorted. "Falling into unconsciousness from entering a special distortion? How laughable!" She clicked.
"Eramis, didn't you turn yourself into an ice sculpture after losing control of your powers?" Harper reminded Dee her.
The kell growled
"As for how we're speaking to you, Calus here joined our consciousness together via a psychic link."
Garrus' vision turned to the large beast in armor. He was psychic? Like an asari?
"As for who we all are…" Harper and Calus walked past Garrus. They both lined up next to Xivu Arath, The Fanatic, and Eramis. "You could say that were your new team."
Eramis: "Temporarily!"
Xivu Arath: "TEMPORARILY."
Calus: "Temporarily."
The Fanatic: "Temporarily…"
That was when the turian commander's eyes went wide. What did he just say? "His new team"? Please say this was a joke.
"W-what?!" Garrus exclaimed.
"We see your confusion, Garrus. Rest assured, you will come to understand in due time." Said Calus surly. "We brought you into this link merely to introduce ourselves, as we all serve the same master."
The giant raised his arm and with a snap of his fingers, the group now found themselves in an entirely different setting. What was once the Citadel, now was the vacuum of space itself. The six of them floating weightlessly in the dark void around them. Our turian wondered how he wasn't exploding due to the vaccum's effects. Then he remembered, this was a dream. Garrus shifted his body to his right.
He wished he did not.
"Behold, friend!"
The blood in his veins froze over and terror flooded his entire system. Off in the distance, hundreds, maybe thousands of massive, black pyramid looking ships. Each one a different size, but there were so many that it was impossible to keep count of them all. But one thing that he was sure of was that these pyramids were exactly like the one Garrus wandered off into as a child back on Palavin.
Memories of that day were now flooding back into his mind. The gentle laughter of a child, soon drowned out by fearful screams of terror. The ear piercing shrieks of small, gargoyle-like creatures flying after him. The panic in his father's voice as he dove in to rescue him. The fleeting image of Alec Ryder disappearing behind them to keep the monsters at bay.
"We are the harbingers of The Witness, the instruments of its will! And we are finally complete now that you have arrived, my boy!" Bellowed Calus.
A hand gently rested down on Garrus' carapace, snapping him out of his fright. He jerked away from it, turning around to see the metallic face of Harper-3, smoking from his pipe.
"While we would love to stick around and give more information on this, we unfortunately have to go. Calus can't hold this link forever." Harper pointed out, blowing out smoke. "Don't worry, we'll meet again soon enough. Hopefully, you'll have come to terms with this by then and we can discuss our plans."
Vakarian was appalled. Speechless. He was left with so many questions, more than half of them he didn't want the answer to at all. What was this? Some kind of sick prank or something? Pyramids. Monsters. The Illusive Man as a robot! When was somebody going to wake him up from this nightmare?!
"Oh, and before I forget. I know that Shepard is with you, Garrus."
"W-what?!" Garrus gasped.
"Don't go blindly following her like you usually do. She's not who she was before, and she'll only end up destroying you."
That was when the world around Garrus started to go white. The faces of the mysterious visitors fading into the light. Garrus tried to reach out to them in desperation.
"Wait! How do you know she's alive?! Illusive Man!"
But his words fell flat as Harper vanished, and Garrus was consumed by light.
…
"…rus! Hey Garrus, you there?"
"I think he's dead, Doe."
"He ain't dead, rust bucket. Heck, we all thought you were dead!"
"Whiskey, Amanda, shut up a minute. He's waking up."
Garrus slowly started to open his eyes as consciousness returned to his body. His vision was blurred and unfocused due to his brief period of slumber, so he could only make out fuzzy shapes right now. Voices however were a different story as he heard Jane, Amanda, and Whiskey calling to him.
"Garrus? You with us?" Asked Doe in concern for her new friend's well being.
A groan reverberated from the turian's subvocals. Focus was finally returning to his vision. Garrus noticed that he was back in Crow's ship. Did that mean that the Anomaly didn't kill them?
"He doesn't sound so good."
Holiday got down on her knees and leaned over Garrus. "Hey hey hey. Blue, over here. Right here." She called to him, snapping her fingers repeatedly before she stuck out three of them in front of his face. "How many fingers am I holdin' up?"
Amanda was likely seeing if he had a concussion or some other form of brain trauma. Asking how many fingers were sticking out from her hand was usually a good way to test that out. Garrus looked over Amanda's hand before quickly giving his response.
"Three?"
"He's talkin'. That's a good sign."
Jane now knelt down as well. She lifted Garrus' head up off the floor and cradled him in her arms. She smiled in relief. "You had us worried there, big guy." She said softly.
Garrus rubbed his aching head with his hand. There was an intense throbbing sensation occurring within it. "I had the strangest dream… Though lately, it seems like I've been having a lot of those tonight. Ow, my head…" Moaned the avian in pain.
Royal was found laying beside the semiconscious turian and let out a gentle chuff. He stood back up and got in closer. Garrus felt a wet and furry tongue run across his face as Royal proceeded to lick his face affectionately.
"Haha… Gee, thanks. You have a very generous tongue."
Funny how this was the same tiger that growled at him earlier. He must have just needed to get used to Garrus, perhaps.
"What even happened..?" He asked.
Appearing in a shimmering flurry of light, Edith flew up to Garrus' face. "As we traveled through the Anomaly, you started seizing and fell to the floor. My best guess is that your body just couldn't handle the strain the wormhole's gravity was putting on you."
That was when he noticed that his lower nostrils were slightly wet. Garrus rubbed the bridge of his nose gently. His finger now stained a deep dark blue. Blood.
"Well, that's macho…"
Jane laughed at his remark and smiled. Her hand gently brushes along Garrus' facial scar.
"I'm just glad you're okay."
Garrus fell silent. Jane was right in front of him, holding him close to her, smiling. The subtle light given off by the subspace gave her an almost luminescent appearance from where he laid. Stars above. She was as beautiful as ever. Vakarian didn't dare move a muscle, lest the moment be ruined. It had been far too long since he was this close to Shepard. The last time Garrus was in her arms like this was after the final assault on the Collector Base and the two of them were resting together in her cabin. Naked, might I add.
It was right after they shared a hot shower, washing off the disgusting Collector blood that had splattered onto their faces. They were already quite playful while getting rinsed clean, and things got more intimate after they dried off and moved to Shepard's couch.
Garrus was resting this head on top of Jane's lap while she was caressing the edges of his scar, as that was also when Dr. Chakwas could finally remove his bandage. The turian had the perfect view of Shepard's face, and cleavage. Though turians weren't so much into breasts as humans were, he appreciated them.
The sensations both of them experienced were heavenly, even better than the night before the raid, as now they both knew what the other one liked. How Shepard traced her finger along every edge and angle of Garrus' facial plates. How she would massage the sensitive spot on the base of his neck and listen to purr like a cat. When her free hand slid down his abdomen until she slowly, yet firmly grasped his…
Spirits…
Garrus began to feel a tingling sensation all across the top of his head. Suddenly, his fringe boldly stood up right behind his forehead plate, similar to that of a cockatiel's head feathers. Upon realizing his body's involuntary action, Garrus' whole face turned a bright shade blue in pure embarrassment while everyone else was left to ponder about why his fringe became erect all of a sudden. Until Garrus finally gave them their answer after five seconds of agonizing silence.
"I sincerely apologize for my visible arousal."
…
Later, after helping Garrus back onto his feet, and everyone aside from Jane squirming at his fringe's excitement, the team were now kicking back and taking a load off from the mission. Now that the Normandy was dealt with, it was just smooth sailing from here on out.
Garrus was looking into a virtual display of the outside of the ship, seemingly staring off into the far reaches of space, as though he were looking for something. From what he could see, everything outside was normal. Stars all around. Occasional space junk. An excellent view of Saturn. It appeared as though they were still in Sol.
But there were some minor details that Garrus had noticed were… out of place, so to speak.
First off, there was no available extranex signal for his Omni-Tool. That made no sense as the extranet was galaxy wide. You could connect to it from any planet or star system in the Milky Way. Yet his device said there was no connection whatsoever. That was odd.
There was another strange thing that Garrus noticed as well. Within Saturn's ring was a large void. The asteroids that made up the famous ring around a specific area had seemingly vanished, like somebody punched a hole in it. Not only that, but there was also a large, derelict ship of macabre design floating in the center of that hole. Now Garrus was sure that ship wasn't there before, and had never seen such a vessel before. Not even during the Reaper War. Not even the batarians would use a ship so odd looking. And there was also one detail he noticed. It wasn't big. Nothing to get all excited about…
It was just that the CHARON RELAY WAS GONE!
When Garrus awoke, the ship had just passed Pluto, which was close to the Sol System's Mass Relay. Mass Relays were what the Alliance uses to travel across the galaxy so quickly, allowing ships to jump to another system in such a short amount of time. The Relays were originally created by the Reapers so they could spread across the galaxy and harvest all sentient life. Now they are merely means of transportation. Discovery of the Charon Mass Relay is also what allowed humanity to advance to the point of matching other galactic civilizations in technology.
But now it was gone. Nowhere to be seen. How does a Mass Relay just vanish all of a sudden? And where were they heading anyway?
"You doing okay?" Asked Jane, walking towards the astonished turian and snapping his focus back to her.
"Huh? Oh, uh… Y-yeah. I'm fine." Garrus lied. "Where are we going?"
"Earth."
Earth? Did Garrus hear that right? But they just flew away from Earth in order to escape the Citadel. What, were they doing a sudden one eighty turn now that they've shaken the Normandy?
"I think it's about time you got that explanation, Vakarian. Guys, huddle up!"
The members of the fireteam, hearing their leader's command, all assembled around her, say for Crow and Amanda, who were busy with something else. Zomon and The Doc loading up visual displays right above her.
"As I've already introduced myself back on that Citadel place, I'm Jane Doe. The head honcho of this possy." Jane stated, cracking her knuckles as well as her neck. "They call me the Red Sentinel because my void shield is always stained in the blood of my enemies."
Garrus shot Jane with a dubious look. He wondered why in the world she would introduce herself in such a goofy way, as though seeing herself as some fantasy character. Jane then pointed her thumb over towards Whiskey.
"You've met Whiskey-21 already. The best damned gunslinger I know."
Whiskey flared the collar of his vest before taking out The Last Word and twirling it in his hand ever so dramatically.
"Make a move on me, and I'll put ya in a box. And y'all know I can from our last little scuffle." He warned.
Yeah. A scuffle that ended with Reeka being buried instead… Doe turned her gaze to Shinazu now.
"The Gandalf wannabe here is Shinazu Dragonsbane, a veteran from the days of The Great Hunt."
Shinazu summoned his amethyst sword, Caretaker, and swung it around himself, finishing his performance by thrusting the tip blade into the floor and resting both hands atop the butt of the hilt.
"By my honor, I have pledged to rid the Sol System of all those who threaten peace! Need they be the Black Fleet or wish granting space dragons! My blade will carve into their flesh in the name of justice!" He declared with stoic confidence and gusto.
Garrus almost laughed. Clearly somebody had watched a few too many human animes- Wait, what was that about "space dragons"?
"The brat there is Lady Ur. Don't underestimate her just because she's small. That girl's a former warlord from The Dark Ages."
Ur took out her crossbow and loaded a bolt, then rested the weapon over her shoulder. Royal encircled her, growling menacingly.
"You've already met me tiger, Royal. Mess with us, will stop ya frozen in yer tracks, won't we!"
Royal added on a deafening roar for extra effect. Now Jane was looking upward at the two displays over head of the Guardians in the neighboring ship.
"That big brute is Valus Zomon-8. The first Guardian accepted into the Cabal as one of them, and the masked maniac in black is Edgar Ainsworth, but we just call him The Doc."
Zomon merely gave a greetive nod while The Doc removed his beaked mask so he could look Garrus in the face properly. There was a large scar running down his right eye, and a serious burn on the right side of mouth, similar to the burn scar Garrus has.
"Hello Garrus, it's nice to meet you." The Doc said openly. But then his friendly smile turned into a threatening scowl. "You'd better not have anything contagious or I'll have to BURN YOU AT THE STAKE! AHAHAHAHAHAHA- Sorry, got carried away."
He was nuts. Got it.
Continuing on, Edith and six other Ghosts appeared in shimmers of light. One of them was gold plated with tusks and blue feathers, another had white fur lined around it with belts hanging off, as though it were wearing a coat. (Coalition and Zira's Shells)
"These here are our Ghosts. There's Edith, Trunbull, Frost, Spore, Yamato, and Mammoth.
Edith: "Hi again!"
Mammoth: "Greetings."
Turnbull: "Howdy, partner!"
Yamato: "Konnichiwa!"
Frost: "Uh… H-hello…"
Spore: "Sup?"
The Guardians present all went into pose together. Each one holding their preferred weapon. Jane had drawn her Ace of Spades, holding it by her hip while making a fist that was coated with purple energy.
"Together, we make up Fireteam November. The toughest, wildest, most ass kicking fireteam the Vanguard has to offer!"
Jane was half expecting her turian companion to light up in awe at her and her team's magnificence, but Garrus instead fell silent with a blank expression on his face. He simply stared at them.
"And… did you guys practice that little routine together or did it just come to you off the top of your heads?"
"Well, fuck you." Spat Whiskey.
"Okay, settle down, guys." Urged Jane. She turned her head over to the corner of the space where Crow and Amanda were. "Holiday and Crow aren't actually part of the team, just close friends of mine. But I trust them both with my life."
A scoff reverberated from Whiskey's vocals. "Just don't trust him with the life of a Psion- Oof!"
Whiskey felt the wind get knocked out of him as an elbow from a certain someone jabbed him in the stomach.
A bit after introducing who they were to the turian, Jane went on to tell Garrus just what exactly they were. They were known as 'Guardians', or 'Lightbearers' as was the technical term. Once humans who were long since passed, they were risen from the dead by their Ghosts and the 'Light' they carried within them. Once revived, a Guardian is given superhuman capabilities and the ability to draw from the Light that restored them to perform incredible feats, as seen with the powers they wield. The only drawback to resurrection was that they could not recall their past lives, likely either from a side effect of the Light, or something more scientific like their brains being without oxygen for so long.
Jane and her team in particular worked for the Vanguard, a group of elite Guardians who were charged with the preservation of the last of humanity from those who would destroy them, need they be ravenous space pirates, cosmic necromancies, genocidal robots, or a wartorn alien empire. Their base of operations was known as 'The Last City', the only safe haven left on Earth from those very forces.
Most of the team were rather unsupportive of Jane telling Garrus everything about Guardians and The Last City, but she insisted as Garrus had risked his life to save them. A detailed explanation was what he deserved.
Garrus listened well to Shepard's interpretation of Guardians, frequently nodding his head in understanding. And even though saying he would keep an open mind… Well…
"Okay. So basically… You joined a cult."
"Seriously? After everything you've seen us do, that's your response to my story?" Jane questioned irritably.
"Well, it kind of does sound like a cult, Shepard. And a xenophobic one, at that."
He wasn't wrong. Protectors of humanity? Warriors of the Light? It all sounds like some kind of doomsday cult, one run by Cerberus, considering that "preservation of humanity" part. That was their actual tagline!
"Guardians aren't against aliens, Garrus. I promise you that." Assured Jane.
"It's just that most of the ones we've met have always tried to kill us." Edith added.
"They're not wrong. I belong to said alien empire." Zomon said.
Well, okay. That's a reasonable argument. Basic self defense.
"And what do you mean by "last of humanity"? Because last I checked, there were human colonies all across the galaxy. And sure, a lot of cities on Earth were destroyed by the Reapers, but not all of them."
"Wait. Colones across the galaxy?" Questioned the female Titan right back. "Your humans are that far ahead with space travel?!"
"And just what is a Reaper?" Asked The Doc.
Now it was Jane and her team who were as confused as Garrus was. Both sides getting lost in their own knowledge of the present. Their banter was cut short however by Amanda calling out to the group from afar.
"Hey guys, we're approachin' Earth now!"
"Loading up a visual." Said Crow, focusing on commanding his ship to show them all an exterior view.
A large display appeared before Fireteam November out of thin air. It was of the Earth, but Garrus could already tell something wasn't right about it. The Citadel was no longer there, just like the Charon Relay back by Pluto. What stood in place of the massive space station and center of the Systems Alliance, was something he could never find the words to describe.
An enormous, luminescent sphere. It was vast white all across, massive in scale. Perhaps as big as Earth's Moon. It hovered just over the planet's skies, as though it were watching over the planet, like a gardener. The turian was left in total awe at the very sight of this object. He had seen plenty of incredible things in his life, but this… This definitely took the cake. And probably ate it too.
"By the Spirits..!" Garrus gasped. "What is that?"
Jane walked up beside him and smiled. "The Traveler. The source of our Light, and the reason why humanity still exists."
This was insane. Absolutely ludicrous. Garrus knew there was something off about already, but he never would have imagined things would be like this. No Mass Relay. The Citadel was gone. Zero extranet reception. And a massive orb just casually floating directly above Earth, and Jane was acting like it was all normal. None of this was right whatsoever.
"Shepard…"
Doe looked over at her turian passenger. She could easily make out the shock in his face, and also a hint of anxiety.
"This isn't the Sol I remember… Where are we..?"
But before she could give him an answer, the entire space around them shook violently. The team almost all lost balance and fell to the floor. And it wasn't just on the Radiant Accipiter, but Zomon and The Doc were experiencing the same phenomenon aboard the Sovereign Order. Their displays abruptly vanished before they could question what was happening at that moment.
"What's going on?!" Cried Edith in disquiet.
Doe shifted her gaze over to Crow in the back. He had fallen over from the shaking. "Crow! Status report!"
"We're being boarded! Both us and Zomon!" Crow responded as he stood back up.
"By who?! Red Legion? Hidden Swarm?"
Crow took a breath and attempted to regain his concentration. Linking his kind to the ship, the Awoken Hunter used the paracausal energy of the ship to try and identify any life forms that were attempting to gain access. Crow managed to detect one form of life, and its presence was familiar… Too familiar. He opened his eyes and let out an annoyed groan.
"The answer is both better and worse than you were hoping for…"
Jane tilted her head cluelessly. "Well, who is it?"
A door appeared before the fireteam out of nowhere and slid open immediately after, and standing in the doorway was the one person that Fireteam November was hoping NOT to run into.
It was a large Awoken man, and oh boy, was he angry. He was a Titan from the looks of it, with a shaved head, white markings across his face, sky blue eyes, and adorned in bulky silver armor with red inner lining. The man gave off an extremely commanding presence all around him, like that of a drill sergeant. And just the sheer amount of Light that they could feel radiating from him indicated that he was powerful. Possibly more than everyone in the pocket dimension put together.
"Hello, November." He spoke in a low, dissatisfied voice.
Jane gulped dreadfully.
"Oh shanks…"
...
OOOOOOOH! Zavala's in the house and he is MAAAAAAD! I've been waiting months to start writing in the rest of the Destiny cast, espacially Saint and Osiris last chapter. Love those gay grandpaws XD
And I bet none of you were expecting the returnnof the Illusive Man either, and reborn as an Exo! Mwahahaha! But hey, you can never have too much Martin Sheen in anything.
Also, regarding that scene with Garrus' fringe. I have always pictured in my mind turian fringe becoming erect like a cockatiel's crest whenever they get excited. It would have been so funny in the games, espicially if when Shepard was hitting on Garrus back in ME2.
Anyway, till next chapter! Merry Christmas and Happy Dawning to all!