My dear and lovely readers. It is time for a great big thank you for those of you kind enough to review my story. A few loyal readers brighten my day by leaving me a nice review from time to time. So, thank you...

Nami Swann, Sandradee27, Dame LeeLee, Mousey57, Alaria von Ravencroft and Krystylsky.

Thank you so much for sticking with this story and letting me know you like it. Then, I got a huge review last night that really made me smile.

Thank you, Donovan94 for your kind and glowing review. It literally gave me a surge of giddy energy this morning which I'm using now to update the story. I know my story is still riddled with grammar and spelling mistakes. English is not my first language and, over the course of the last couple of months, it has improved. The mistakes in my own story make me cringe sometimes :-) Unfortunately, I'm too lazy to go back and correct them. I hope you all will forgive me ;-)

Enjoy this chapter!

Suicide Mission: Infiltrating the base

They left the crashed Normandy in their designated teams. Shepard got off first with Thane, Grunt, Miranda, Samara and Legion. Kasumi set out on her own course while Garrus was followed by Jacob, Jack, Mordin, Tali and Zaeed. Before they parted ways, Garrus and Shepard nodded at each other, both feeling the weight of command on their shoulders. Garrus was more than a little nervous since this was the first time he had a team under his command again since the debacle on Omega.

Both Shepard and Garrus took their designated paths and, maybe a bit redundant, Garrus ordered his team to be careful and keep their eyes peeled.

"I'm inside the ventilation shaft, Shep." Kasumi's voice sounded over the agreed upon omni-tool channel. "It's hot in here, but it's clear."

"Second team, are you in position?" Shepard asked over omni-tool.

"In position," Garrus confirmed. "Meet you on the other side of those doors."

Garrus and his team pressed forward and suddenly found themselves under fire.

His team quickly ducked for cover and Garrus started hollering out orders. Jacob and Zaeed were ordered up front and he ordered Jack to protect them with barriers while the rest dished out harm.

Tali sabotaged and disrupted their weapons and sent out attack drones while Mordin attacked their nervous systems with electrical charges. Garrus took careful aim to blow the heads off the Collector'4s shoulders advancing in the back.

"Vakarian!" Mordin alerted him. "Reinforcements!"

"Keep in position and finish them, just like the last time!"

With the wave of attacks dispelled, Garrus motioned his crew to press on until they were hit with more resistance. They all sought cover again.

"Garrus here," he alerted Shepard over the omni-tool. "We're taking heavy fire, but we're moving forward."

By this time his crew understood what was expected of them and they all fell into their tasks of defending, protecting, sabotaging and attacking.

"Something is blocking the pipe." Kasumi breathed hard. "Gotta find a way through that gate up ahead."

"Shepard, do you have a visual on the ventilation shaft?" Garrus asked while delivering a bullet between some unsuspecting Collector's eyes.

"Yes, you?"

"No, the ventilation shaft runs through your part of the area. There should be valves nearby, try that. And hurry! With those valve gates closed, temperature inside the shaft will rise like crazy. We don't want Kasumi to get cooked alive."

"Very reassuring words, Garrus!" Kasumi panted.

There was silence for awhile until Kasumi acknowledged she could proceed. "There it goes! Heading through the gate now!"

Garrus and his team pressed on again after dispatching themselves of attacking Collector drones.

He hoped Shepard was all right, Harbinger would most certainly make his appearance again and assume control over the bodies of his foot soldiers.

"Damn it! I'm blocked again!" Kasumi hissed. "There's gotta be another valve out there!"

Garrus and his crew were under attack again and he found his attention divided between the onslaught of enemies and the updates via omni-tool. It was ominously quiet for a while.

"Shep, it's getting hot in here!"

Okay, Kasumi was still stuck, that meant Shepard was under heavy fire as well. He could only hope he'd make it to the valve in time. If Kasumi got roasted up there, their mission would end right then and there, and Dani would be lost to him forever.

Garrus roared and smashed the face of a Collector who'd managed to get passed their defenses with the butt of his rifle. Blood splattered over his armor and he heaved while searching for his next victim.

"Nice work, Shep. Continuing down the tube."

Garrus nearly sagged with relief. They were still in the game. There was still hope.

"Look, up above!" Zaeed yelled. Garrus' eyes snapped up to see more drones flying their way.

He sighed deeply. How many of these bastards were there on this ship?

"Keep up the pressure and don't forget to pick up any thermal clips they drop!" he ordered.

Time for another update.

"Garrus here," he called to Shepard. "We're making good progress. Meet you at the rendezvous."

"Looks like another one of those things in the way. Gotta help me out again, Shep."

Damn, how many valve gates were inside that ventilation shaft? Harbinger was probably out for Shepard's blood, he was under heavy fire and had to keep up an eye out for those valves as well? He'd sure hate to be in Shepard's shoes right now!

While Garrus was putting down Collectors left and right and smashing in faces with the butt of his rifle, he kept tabs on the infrequent updates.

"Shep, it's getting hot in here!"

Dammit, hurry up! Garrus thought to himself. Let your team handle the Collectors and search for the next valve!

"All clear. Moving on."

Good, she's doing fine. Cutting it a bit close though, my friend.

Another wave of attacks and Kasumi got stuck in front of a gate again. The enemies and obstructing valves seemed endless!

"I knew I could count on you, Shep. I'll let you know if I need any more help."

Another wave of attacks slaughtered, another obstacle overrun.

Finally, he got the large double doors in his vision and he ordered his team to secure the premise and hold location.

"We're in position," Garrus breathed while bashing in the face of a stray husk with his fist. "Just waiting for the doors to open."

Kasumi got blocked again and all Garrus could do was stare helplessly at the small visible portion of the shaft in the far distance of the area.

Time ticked away and he could tell both Shepard and Kasumi were under a lot of stress.

"Come on, Shepard!" Kasumi pleaded for her life. "I'm getting cooked alive!"

Garrus felt despair clawing at his throat and barely managed to repress a howl of helpless fury.

"It's too hot. I'm burning up. Hurry – open the valve!"

This time a howl did rip from his throat while he angrily pounded his fists against the large double doors.

"Feels like I'm on fire here. You gotta find that valve, Shep!" At this point, Kasumi was near breaking down and quicly running out of time. Garrus had never felt more helpless in his entire life. He closed his eyes, despairing that this might be the end after all, but still praying for some kind of miracle.

After what felt like eternity, the obstacle finally got removed and Kasumi could move again.

Garrus could kiss the ground in relief when he heard her say it looked like she was near the end. And it was about time as well, cause he could already see a huge cloud of seeker swarms homing in on their position, along with an endless wave of husks and Collector drones. Garrus ordered his crew to seek cover near the doors.

Kasumi was likely in place so the doors could open any given moment. They just had to survive this coming wave long enough.

Shots rang out, biotics flared, powers fired; they threw in everything they had to make it through the doors.

"Come in!" Shepard yelled over the omni-tool but at that exact moment the doors on Garrus' side opened up. Kasumi swerved out, covering their asses while Garrus and the rest filed inside the main chamber.

"Look out. Seeker swarms!" Garrus alerted his team seeing the large cloud getting perilously close.

While Kasumi tried to close the doors behind them, Garrus and his team kept firing bullets and powers into the mass of enemies advancing towards them.

"We're in position." Shepard alerted them over omni-tool and even through his current fight, Garrus glanced back at the still closed door with Shepard stuck on the other side. He could hear Shepard was under heavy fire. But with the door still closed, his team were sitting ducks.

"We need this door open now!" Shepard demanded.

Garrus shot into action and shoved Kasumi away from the controls where she was trying to close the door on their end.

"Go, we'll cover you!" he ordered her. Kasumi rushed to the controls of the closed door and started hacking while Garrus and his team covered her ass that would be right in the line of fire without them.

"Something is wrong!" Kasumi cried out. "I can't get the door open!"

At the same time Garrus could hear a blast slam against the door.

"Keep at it!" Garrus yelled and glanced back briefly, just to see her fingers glide over the keys in a flurry of movements.

"Got it!" she yelled back, at the same time the door slid open and Shepard's team dashed inside, followed by Shepard himself.

"Here they come!" he hollered while shooting at oncoming enemies while Garrus and his team tried to keep enemies at bay at their end.

Kasumi was busy trying to close the doors again while Shepard gave the command to fall back.

The doors at Garrus' side were the first to slide closed and he ordered his team to back up Shepard.

"Suppressing fire!" Garrus bellowed. "Don't let anyone through that door!"

Countless rounds of ammo got wasted just to make sure no enemy even got the chance.

Finally the door closed with a loud bang and everyone lowered their weapons in relief.

Shepard slapped a hand on Kasumi's shoulder .

"Good job, Kasumi. I knew you wouldn't let me down." He heaved a sigh and quickly smiled in Garrus general direction. His stamp of approval.

"Shepard – You need to see this!"

The tone in Miranda's voice got Garrus' attention and he turned his direction to whatever Miranda was pointing at.

Deeper inside the main chamber he saw thousands and thousands and thousands of pods lining the interior, most of them still, or already, empty.

A large metal structure of gigantic tubes seemed connected to them all.

Garrus felt a shiver run down his spine and an ominous cold feeling settled in his gizzard. How the hell was he supposed to find Dani in this giant structure? She could be in anyone of those pods!

They wordlessly ventured deeper inside the chamber until Shepard rested his eyes on a pod that was still occupied. Miranda turned to follow his gaze.

"Looks like one of the missing colonists," she surmised. Garrus ventured closer, his heartbeat drumming in his ear holes, drowning out every other sound in the room. All he wanted to learn was if the colonist was still alive. If she was, chances were good that so was Dani. If she wasn't . . . He shivered again and refused his mind to wander further.

Garrus took a look at other occupied pods, frantically searching for the one face that mattered all to him. His eyes snapped back when he saw movement in his peripheral view and saw Shepard touching the glass of a pod with a young looking woman with dark hair inside.

His hearing blasted back to life when he heard Grunt alerting Shepard he found more occupied pods. The moment Garrus wanted to turn around and check the pods Grunt pointed out, he heard something off. Something way off. . . Gas releasing.

He spun around in the direction of the noise and found that it came from inside the pod with the dark haired female colonist. Something weird started happening to her skin and she fought to open her eyes.

"My God! She's still alive!" Shepard choked out. Garrus was paralyzed for a moment while he locked eyes with the scared woman. He knew he would never forget that utter look of horror in her eyes ever again. Her skin was actually . . . melting from her face!

She started screaming in pain and fear, banged her fists against the glass of her confinement until bloody smears obscured the view.

Unfortunately not enough to keep them from witnessing her horrible last moments. Her face was barely recognizable and still she placed her hands against the glass, feeling and looking for some kind of weakness, opening, anything to escape. Shepard frantically searched for a way to release her but found none.

Her skin turned completely black and pieces of flesh and skin fell from her bones. Her screams were muffled by the glass but clear enough to convey the amount of pain and fear she was in.

The screaming suddenly stopped but was replaced by something even worse, an awful gurgling noise like she was throwing up blood. Her hands sank lower as her body withered down.

"Get them out of there! Hurry!"

Shepard's frantic words urged Garrus, everyone, into action. His eyes darted around while everyone picked a pod to open.

"Dani!" he wailed in mad despair when all he could see were faces he didn't know.

"Over here!" Thane called out to him and pointed at a pod a few pods away from where he was trying to free a crew mate. It looked like Kelly Chambers, Shepard's yeoman.

Garrus nearly tripped over his feet to reach the pod and nearly choked on the bile rising in his throat upon seeing her pale face, her eyes closed.

With a roar he smashed the butt of his rifle against the glass shield. He quickly found out it was armored glass and all he was achieving was create little holes with the force of his blows.

He tore of his gloves and slashed at the glass with his sharp talons. He hooked them behind the holes and violently tore out large chunks of glass with his bare hands. The glass was tearing up his hide and flesh but he didn't care. The only thing that mattered was getting her out before that awful gas was released. He knew he would put a bullet in his head if he'd have to watch her undergo the same horrific fate as that poor woman.

His blue blood was steadily coating the bits that remained of the glass shielding. With a last cry of despair he clenched his hands around a large chunk of glass, the sharp edges cutting him deeply, he pulled and tore away his final obstacle through sheer will and force.

He whined and moaned in relief when her body – free from her restraint – fell forwards, straight into his waiting arms. He wrapped them tightly around her as he pulled her entirely free from the pod and sank to the ground. He breathed heavily and terribly uneven as shuddering gasps tore from his throat.

"Dani," he whispered her name, again and again. He closed his eyes, pressing her face close to him.

He awkwardly kissed the top of her head with clumsy attempts and got his mandibles caught in her hair in the attempt. He couldn't care less how ridiculous he looked, he only wanted her to open her eyes. He just wanted her back safely.

"Please love, open your eyes," he implored her, whispering softly against her ear.

Behind him he could hear Shepard calling out for Dr. Chakwas.

"Dr. Chakwas? Are you okay?"

"Shepard? You . . . you came for us."

"No one gets left behind."

Garrus threw a quick glance over his shoulder and watched Shepard pull Dr. Chakwas to her feet.

He then turned his face back and gently stroked Dani's cheek with his thumb. Her eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks and suddenly he found himself staring into those lovely shining eyes.

"Garrus?" she whispered as if she wasn't entirely sure he was there.

"Yes love, I'm here," he managed to choke out before he gently pressed his mouth plates against her lips. She responded immediately by slightly turning her head, giving him access to the sweet cavern of her mouth while she tightly wrapped her arms around him.

He ran his hands over her body, making sure she was really in his arms and she was really okay.

With a shuddering breath Dani buried her face in his deep cowl pressing her body as close to him as she possibly could.

"You came for me. I knew you would, I just . . . I was so afraid, Garrus," she whispered. "So afraid you wouldn't get here in time. I saw them melt, Garrus. So many."

He could feel her tears dripping against his hide, trickling behind his armor and all he could do was hold her close to him and assure her she was safe.

"I know love. I'm so sorry. I just saw it happen myself. I'm just glad . . . glad it wasn't you."

"Thank God you got here in time," he heard Kelly say. "A few more seconds and . . . I don't even want to think about it."

"The colonists were . . . processed," Dr. Chakwas explained disgusted. Garrus gently helped Dani to her feet and kept her close to him as they walked to the rest of the group.

"Those swarms of little robots, they – melted their bodies into gray liquid and pumped it through these tubes."

Garrus hugged Dani close against him when he felt her shiver at Dr. Chakwas words. He couldn't even begin to imagine how she must have felt. Trapped inside that damn pod, all alone, terrified of what was to come, forced to watch how all those people were . . . processed.

"Why are they doing this?" Shepard asked with the same disgust in his voice as Karin. "What are they doing with our genetic material?"

"I don't know." Karin hung her head. "I'm just glad you got here before it happened to us."

"So are we," Miranda agreed. "But we still have a job to do."

Dani stiffened in his arms. Garrus drew her closer to sooth her.

"We've done well so far. Let's hope we can finish the job."

Shepard touched his finger to his ear to activate the in-ear plug.

"Joker? Can you get a fix on our position?"

"Roger that, Commander," Joker replied swiftly. "All those tubes lead into the main control room right above you. The route is blocked by a security door, but there's another chamber that runs parallel to the one you're in."

"I cannot recommend that," EDI piped in. "Thermal emissions suggest the chamber is overrun with seeker swarms. Mordin's countermeasure cannot protect you against so many at once."

"Conventional weapons are pretty much useless. They'll tear us apart," Shepard thought out loud.

"Maybe not," Samara interjected. "I might be able to generate a biotic field to keep them at bay. I won't be able to protect all of us, but I could get a small team through if they stay close."

"I could do it too," Miranda stated. "In theory, any biotic could handle it. Shepard, who do you want to maintain the field?"

"Jack and I will take a small team through the seeker swarms," Shepard decided. "The rest of you provide a diversion by going through the main passage. We'll open up security doors from the other side and meet you there."

"Who should lead the diversion team?" Miranda inquired.

Shepard nodded at Jacob.

"I'll keep the defenders busy while you slip in the back," he agreed.

"What about me and the rest of the crew, Shepard?" Karin asked, the dread clear in her voice. "We're in no shape to fight."

"Commander? We have enough systems back online to do a pickup, but we'd need to land back from your position."

"We can't afford to go back, Shepard!" Miranda protested. "Not now!"

"You'll never make it without help," Shepard said watching his shocked crew. "I'll send someone with you."

When Shepard turned to face Garrus, he shook his head.

"Don't look at me Shepard. I'm seeing this through till the end. I'll remain right at your side."

Shepard walked up to him.

"I thought you'd want the chance to bring Dani to safety," he spoke quietly. "And your hands, they look pretty done in."

"I know and normally I'd take the chance with both hands, which are fine by the way, nothing a slap of medi-gel can't fix. But, I'm not leaving you. "

"If you're not taking us back, Garrus . . . I'm not leaving you."

"Dani, please . . .!"

"No! I'm not leaving. I'll kick and scream all the way and that would endanger the retreat. So you wouldn't want that."

"We'll be fighting soon, Dani! You're not a fighter and you're not a biotic and I can't watch your back all the time."

"I'll keep in cover, I swear. I'll be careful!"

Garrus grumbled in anger when Dani refused to see reason and only clung to him tighter. Suddenly the expression on her face changed. When she pulled back from him, she looked at the small black devices she held in her hands.

"My gauntlets . . . " she whispered in surprise. "When they attacked, in the Underground with Dr. Torque. . . I was testing the gauntlets! It all happened so fast, I - Oh God, I could have helped! I could have saved. I forgot all about them!"

She was starting to panic.

"It's okay, sweetheart. Don't blame yourself, you were never trained for situations like this."

Then again, who ever was?

"But I can use these, I can even help!"

"Dani, if you want to test them, you can bloody well test them while helping the crew get back to the Normandy safe. You can actually help them out. Going with me. . . You might not come back. It would be suicide. "

"This entire mission is a suicide!" Dani protested. "You really think that if you're walking straight into hell, you're walking there without me? No way, I'm coming with you!"

"No!" Garrus simply refused her.

"Are you coming with me to the rendezvous point then?"

"I can't . . . Dani, you know I can't."

"Commander Shepard, it's up to you. You give the order, I'll go. Just know I'll resent you for the rest of my life."

"Dani, how do you think you could help, even with those – gauntlets?"

Garrus felt triumph hearing the doubt in Shepards voice. Good, he was going to order her to get back.

"I can phase with these gauntlets, Shepard. Remember, like the phasing bullets? Those seeker swarms, they are tiny little robots, right? Electronic equipment, all electronic equipment, is very sensitive to change in current. I could disrupt them simply by phasing through them and greatly reduce Jack's burden that way."

Garrus groaned. He recognized a lost battle when he saw one and he just lost this one.

"That settles it. Garrus, suck it up. She's coming with."