Author's note: Thank you all for the positive response. I am glad that many of you are enjoying this. As for the reviews that talk about revealing the old races, yes it will be a bit dramatic and also once they are in, the story's pace will slow down.
Disclaimer: I don't own Halo or Mass Effect franchise.
Chapter 4: Legacies:
Commander Shepard was in his spectre grade gear with weapons loaded as he was standing in front of a big hologram that projected the Milkyway galaxy with many markers. Shepard was contacted and briefed by Admiral Hackett about an Alliance archeological team that recently lost contact with the science headquarters. While that's just the traditional military aspect of the mission, Shepard was concerned about what the team truly uncovered. Evidence of a civilization hundreds of millions of years old.
But Shepard now has one top priority mission, to meet with Dr. Liara T'Soni on Therum to get more information on her mother who is now working with the rogue Spectre Saren Arterius. Also additionally gain intel or any other useful information on Prothean beacons and the vision he had.
"Joker, how are we doing?" Shepard asked from the CIC.
"All systems running good, we are ready to hit the relay, ETA 10 minutes, for the specified destination" Joker replied.
"Good, Pressly? Chart a course to Therum" Shepard ordered.
"Aye Aye Sir!" Pressly saluted as he entered the coordinates that setup the track for the Therum planet, located in the Artemis Tau cluster. The navigation data was then sent to Joker's terminal which he acknowledged as he cruised the Normandy towards the mass relay.
Mass relay transits usually work in the form of a network. Every species in the galaxy only navigate through these networks. Each system in the nebulae that possess the relay is termed as a transit node. Hundreds of such nodes are what makes the galactic mass relay network. So travel between any source and destination only happens through a certain path and may require multiple relay transit. For example, to reach the destinations that are 2 or 3 nodes apart from the ships current position, then the ship has to make the first jump to the first intermediate node, then once again use the relay in that system to get to the next and so on.
Longer jumps take even several hours to complete and also sometimes ships exit the mass relays with an offset of 1000 kilometers in case of negligible navigation error. The Citadel council has set the mandate for all the races that only certain systems within the range of a mass relay in the nebulae is allowed for mining or colonization to avoid hostile first contact with any unknown lifeform. And no new relays have to be opened without the council's say which caused the Rachni wars. Because of this restriction, even though the relays have been opened and used across the galaxy, only 6580 planets have been discovered for use.
Unknown to them, there are millions of worlds that host life that the citadel is not even aware of, advanced lifeforms and civilization that could exist only in their wildest dreams.
Shepard left the CIC for the elevator as he descended down to the cargo section. He saw Wrex leaning back on his locker which the ship crew provided him. Ashley was nearby a table working on her weapons nearby Wrex. Garrus was near the Mako, a land based exo-vehicle, using his datapad, reading the Mako stats.
"Ashley, Garrus, Wrex" Shepard called out. The three walked towards him.
"Finally, do you have some action? I was getting bored" Wrex quipped.
"What is it Commander?" Ashley asked.
"We are now headed to Therum to meet with the Asari scientist T'Soni. I need you three to come with me on this mission" Shepard said.
"Sure Shepard, do we know anything about this scientist and the planet?" Garrus asked.
"Not sure about the doctor. But Therum is a human outpost colony used extensively for mining by companies like Eldfell-Ashland. But few decades ago, many experts identified signs of early life forms and ruins that indicates Prothean presence" Shepard explained.
"Prothean? Hmm, maybe this Asari doctor's presence on Therum makes sense. Their people are so obsessed with the dead race" Garrus said.
"And for that very reason we are headed there" Shepard said.
"Then we better get ready commander" Ashley said as she walked towards her locker to pack her armor and guns to her quarters.
"Me too. I hope this place gives me some action" Wrex said as he walked to his position and took his shotgun to check. Garrus shrugged his shoulder as he went to get ready for the mission.
Shepard went to his quarters to suit up in his spectre hardsuit and load up the weapons. he then made his way to the cargo section.
"Commander, we are hitting the relay now, will reach Therum in 10 mins from there" Joker said over the ship speakers.
"Ackowledged Joker" Shepard said as he descended down to the cargo where he noticed Wrex, Ash and Garrus were combat ready.
"Do we expect any resistance on the ground?" Ashley asked.
"There shouldn't be any. But lets be prepared" Shepard said.
"Commander, we have arrived at Therum...ohhh crap!" Joker said which got everyone's attention.
"What was that?" Wrex asked.
"Looks like we're gonna have a problem here. I am reading multiple geth ships in orbit. Activating stealth" Joker said which alarmed everyone.
"Wait, geth? here!? What do those damned robots want in this rock?" Garrus asked the question on everyone's mind. This didn't sit well with Shepard, but the next thing that came to his mind was the numbers.
"Joker, what's the force count we are looking at?" Shepard asked.
"A lot. Geth troops, juggernauts, primes, armatures...you name it!" Joker said.
"Armatures? Those are pretty damn big! We will need the Mako's guns to blast through them" Garrus said which Shepard agreed to.
"Agreed. Joker, take us to the surface and put us down in a safe distance. Then open the bay door" Shepard said.
"On it, get ready" Joker said as he flew the Normandy towards the planet. Slowly the vessel was illuminated by the sun from the horizon and then suddenly it turned dark. There were thick clouds due to the volcanic ash and dust collected over the upper atmosphere. The place where they were landing has magma flowing on the surface through cracks in the crust.
Shepard, Wrex, Ashley and Garrus entered the Mako as Shepard took the driver seat and Garrus took control of the main gun.
"Okay we are touching down the surface, opening the bay door" Joker said over the comm as the bay door opened with a loud hiss as the air started to collide and mix. Shepard immediately drove the Mako out as it stood on the ground. The pathway was limited due to the magma flow. Therum has many active volcanoes and the crust is thin enough for the magma to flow outside.
"Joker, once we find the doctor, will signal you for extraction. Keep the Normandy out of the geth's sight" Shepard ordered.
"Aye aye sir! Good luck" Joker said as the comm channel was closed. The Normandy flew above in stealth mode hiding from geth's radar.
Shepard drove the Mako upon the rough surface where it bumped multiple times shaking the crew like hell.
"Shepard, did anyone tell you you are a terrible driver?" Wrex quipped.
"Well, that's not me. Its this place, the pathway has dried up lava" Shepard said. Garrus and Ashley couldn't even say a word as they felt like throwing up.
"Remind me never to take a mission that involves puking" Ashley jested.
Suddenly the radar beeped.
"Whoa, hostiles detected" Shepard said.
"Well, I see them!" Garrus said who had direct outside view through the Mako's main gun scope.
*BOOM*
"SHIT! fire the weapon. I will get past them!" Shepard said as he increased the speed. The geth spotted them as the units fired missile launchers.
*BOOM* the Mako's main gun shot a shell that exploded and took out the ground units. Then the sensors spotted two units that fired explosive sniper round from two geth watch towers in left and right. Garrus marked the one on the left and shot a round which exploded and destroyed the tower and the geth sniper.
"One sniper down!" Garrus yelled as he marked and loaded the gun again, but that's when
"Hang on tight everyone!" Shepard yelled as he charged at full speed towards the tower on the right, which was only few meters from their position. The others understood what the commander was trying to do and panicked.
"Ahh crap!" Ashley yelled as she got down. Garrus held on to the cannon tight for grip.
BAAM* the Mako rammed the geth watchtower and broke it down and kill the geth sniper.
"Ah HAH HA HA! I like your style Shepard! Even if you suck at driving!" Wrex said with a maniacal laugh seemingly enjoying.
"Shepard, a fair warning, next time. Our job is to kill the geth, not us!" Garrus said calmly, but with a sarcastic element to it.
"Yeah Commander, what did we do to you in the previous life!?" Ashley asked nodding her head with a grave expression in her face.
"Sorry the main gun seemed slow to me. Besides, the kinetic barriers are still holding up at 65 percent, so I call it a win" Shepard said with a cheeky grin, as he drove faster.
"Yeah, its so convincing!" Ashley quipped.
Soon the Mako took a path that went spiral to the right. The pathway was more rocky as the vehicle was bumping more. That's when they saw a compound. with buildings or precisely cubicles arranged along the length and width, with watch towers.
"Shepard, you see the compound? Must be one of the research facilities" Wrex said as he peeked into the monitor.
"Then we may find this Asari doctor there. Shit! Geth units firing missiles and-..." Ashley said the monitors beeped in red. But that was not all.
"Uh ohh-...we may have a big problem" Garrus said as the four watched a huge geth machine dropped to the ground with a heavy thud as the dust and rock dirt flew across. Then they noticed its robotic face glow bright bluish white with energy and shot a powerful energy bolt.
"Brace for impact!" Shepard said as he couldn't maneuver the mako in time. The bolt hit the vehicle as its kinetic barrier flared in response. Also the force behind the shot was so much that it toppled the Mako, but Shepard used the micro thrusters to safely land the vehicle on the ground with minimal damage.
"Damn! Kinetic barrier is down to 20 percent, we can't take another shot like that commander" Ashley said.
"Commander, there is small cliff edge to the left. We can climb there and use the main gun to kill it. Mako won't survive a close encounter" Garrus said.
"Agreed" Shepard said as he too know they are one shot away from death as Armatures are hard to kill and will take atleast 3 round to kill them. They have very high chances to die during the reload.
Shepard rode the vehicle as fast as he can towards the cliff as it climbed the rocky surface with crest and troughs. Then they safely reached the top and now they are ten meters above the geth armature's position at a vantage point.
"Firing the main gun!" Garrus yelled as mako shot the first round that exploded on the geth. Its kinetic barrier flared. But by then, the armature fired its round. But this time, Shepard moved mako backwards to evade the shot. Then he moved it forward again as Garrus fired the second round and this time, the kinetic barrier is down.
"Great! One more round and that sucker dies!" Wrex said as they once moved backward and forward to escape its energy bolt. The third round was fired and the armature had a big burning hole on its body. The light in its robotic face flickered and powered down as it fell dead.
"Phew! That was a close call commander. Shall we walk from here into the compound?" Ashley asked.
"Yes, lets get out" Shepard said as the four exited the mako and did some stretches to relax their muscles as they felt the roll and crash of the vehicle.
"Lets move. Garrus, cover our six" Shepard said as they climbed down the rock and walked towards the large white gate. Suddenly, the geth units that were hiding after the armature died, came out and open fired on them.
"Take cover" Ashley said as she fired her assault rifle towards the geth units. She killed one as Wrex charged at a geth juggernaut and bashed it to throw it off balance and then fired his shotgun to kill it. Shepard used a biotic lift to suspend two geth units which he killed using his assault rifle. Garrus used his sniper rifle to kill the other geth sniper that was firing at them from the watch tower near the gate.
"All clear!" Shepard said as the four walked towards the gate. There was a console in the nearby security cubicle. Shepard entered the building and pressed the holo terminal in the console which opened the gate.
Then the four made their way inside the compound only to find the place was in shambles. Equipment toppled, fire here and there. It looked as if a fight broke out.
"Why is there a heavy geth presence in this place? What do they want?" Garrus asked voicing the question on everyone's mind loud.
"Could it be the geth interested in whatever the asari scientist is trying to do here?" Ashley asked running multiple scenarios in her mind.
"We can't say anything for sure. Lets check this place and see if we can find anything that could point us in the right direction" Shepard said. The four walk to four different buildings to check if they can find anything. There were powered down machineries as if they have been abandoned for a while. Therum was only in the beginning stages of colonization, but the planet attracted a lot of archeologists, paleontologists etc.,
"Shepard, I think I found something. Its about the asari scientist" Wrex said which made Shepard anxious about what info they can dig.
"On our way" Shepard responded as the three reached Wrex's position within a cubicle they saw him standing near a terminal.
"You got something?" Garrus asked.
"Yes, this is her personal note. Quite interesting" Wrex said. Shepard turned on the audio for the notes to be said loud and everyone heard the information.
"Doctor Liara T'Soni, Colony world Therum, Day 4: After extensive study conducted on many other asari colonies, fossil samples and prothean artifacts recovered from the prehistoric sites, it all points to certain conclusion. One of them being the Protheans didn't simply vanish from the Milkyway. Before their species went extinct, in their final days, they were looking for something desperately. While there are no evidences on what that is, a pyramid excavated on a remote world had prothean inscriptions. Our scholars in Thessia studied and translated them. It was-...a message, probably to the future races of the galaxy. It said "Seek out our ancestors, for they are your only salvation in the coming storm".
Weird, right!? Not sure what the Protheans found but this message is clearly a warning, though its odd for a species that built the citadel and mass relays to send a message in such a primitive way-...or is there more to it? Either way, the apex of the pyramid artifact had carvings, protheans looking up to the sky, stars precisely. When I analyzed it, I was able to identify them, they were star charts. Star charts of known and unknown space. The archeological department pulled my funding since its against council policy to roam the worlds beyond the scope of mass relays. But that didn't stop me. With whatever resources I had, I set out on a journey. Easier said than done though, the ship I came in didn't have enough resources, crew or fuel to go to these uncharted planets, actually no exploratory vessel currently has that capabilities. This limited my option to Therum, one of the planets I identified from the artifact. I am here now, setup dig sites and the mining laser has dug sufficent depth and the crew is setting up walkways"
The four listened to Dr.T'Soni's recording and were stunned.
"Risking personal safety this much to get here, with no funding from home? What was she looking for exactly? Something tells me, this is not just about the Protheans" Ashley said observing the recording.
"My thoughts are on the prothean message, something about the ancestors" Shepard said as this somehow irked him as it reminded him of what Admiral Hackett said, about the discovery of a pre-historic artifact.
"Could this be related?" Shepard thought before bringing himself to the present.
"Everything is dramatic with the Protheans" Wrex said undeterred by the situation.
"There seems to be one more recording, lets play that" Garrus said as he pressed the button to play the recording.
"This is day 5 of my stay in Therum. My security team has spotted the geth ships landing over here. It seems, they are looking for me. Its not safe, I am moving to the underground dig site. I-...hope to be safe there. I will stay here till I uncover what the Protheans were looking for. If I don't make it. please send this terminal to the department of xeno-archeological studies in Thessia...*STATIC* "
"This recording was done only yesterday. That means there is a high chance she could be alive" Garrus said.
"Lets not waste anymore time and get to the dig site" Shepard said.
The four exited the control room only to find a geth ship fly above them.
"SHIT! GETH!" Ashley yelled.
"TAKE COVER!" Shepard barked as the four took cover behind huge supply boxes.
The geth ship dropped 2 geth walkers that were getting ready to fire. Suddenly one of them fired a big blue bolt towards their position.
"Damn! spread out!" Wrex growled as the bold exploded in their position.
*BOOM*
They managed to escape the blast as they moved behind the metal bars stacked one above the other.
"Okay, here is the plan. Me and Garrus will take care of one walker. Ash and Wrex, you both take the other one. We have one biotic in each group. Lets make use of it" Shepard said.
"On it commander" Ashley said as Wrex nodded in approval of the plan. Then they crouched and moved to another defensive position.
"Garrus, I need you to fire explosive rounds on it while I hold it with my biotics" Shepard said.
"Fine, ready when you are" Garrus replied with a nod. Shepard took a deep breath and came out of the cover as he through a biotic bolt that hit the walker hard as it was pushed a feet back. But the damage was not enough as it fired another energy round that exploded their way. Shepard summoned a biotic barrier to shield himself and sent another bolt. Garrus was ready with his sniper rifle with explosive round as he aimed for its face light.
Meanwhile Wrex did the same providing cover for Ashley using his biotics. But his krogan physiology helped him to tank the geth's attacks as he fired his shotgun simultaneously. Then at the nick of time, both Garrus and Ashley fired their sniper rifle. The explosive round pierced the face of the walker as it flickered and powered off. The body was surging with sparks as it exploded in grand fireworks.
"YEAH! HAH HA! We took down two walkers without your vehicle Shepard!" Wrex yelled in enthusiasm. Others were chuckling as they too felt like they have achieved the impossible. Killing 2 geth walkers without Mako is no easy feat.
"I have to admit, as Wrex says, this was fun!" Shepard said smirking at the group.
"Next time, I'm in the citadel, I'm gonna annoy Pallin with this story till he gives up. Huh, a sweet revenge was cutting me out in Saren's investigation" Garrus said letting out his turian grin.
"Commander, no geth presence from there. The dig site is just above the plateau" Joker said over the comm.
"Thanks Joker, let move" Shepard said as they hiked through the rough uneven and rocky pathways with twists and turns to finally reach the topside. The crew finally managed to see the dig site where the entrance was created.
They climbed the stairs as Wrex pressed the button to open the door. The big circular door opened wide, letting out a hiss. As they proceeded inside, they saw equipment, cables and an elevator. But what captivated is the ruins around. Full of artificial structure that had rounded rectangular shaped halls. There were many halls arranged one above the other in multiple columns. Strangely, all these halls some kind of energy barrier in the entrance. The whole ruins was supported by the crust rocks.
"Wow! These must be the prothean ruins. They sure have a good taste in architecture" Wrex commented as they looked down from the narrow pathway they were walking, only to see that the ruins stretched so deep.
"Agreed Wrex. Now where is our good doctor? Perhaps that elevator should take us down" Ashley said as they walked inside the elevator. Shepard pressed the button as the elevator went down. They all looked around the ruins as the artificial prothean structure stretched out.
MECHANICAL FAILURE*
Suddenly the elevator started to give screeching sound as the sparks flew out and stopped midway hitting a boulder a bit hard that made the crew stumble.
"Hmm, guess its pretty beat up" Garrus said as they 4 came out of the elevator and walked through the uneven broken pathways. That's when they heard a mellow voice.
"Hello! Hello, Is anyone there!? Help me!" a woman's cry for help was heard by all.
Shepard and the others rushed down the pathway and turned to the right to see a young asari in a scientist's robe. She was trapped in some kind of an energy bubble. It was within the same rounded hall that had its entrance blocked by the barrier.
"Doctor Liara T'Soni? This is Commander Shepard with the Alliance" Shepard called out.
"Ohh! By the goddess! I thought I was stuck here forever and no one would come! Please! You have to help me!" Liara said with greater anxiety after seeing he would be rescuers. But the Normandy crew were a bit wary since they know who this doctor is and they have be prepared.
"You are matriarch Benezia's daughter and your mother is working for a rogue spectre named Saren. How do we know if we can trust you?" Shepard asked being careful as he didn't want his team to be screwed over with lies.
"Saren!? No-...I-...Listen, I may be Benezia's daughter, but I am not with her or Saren! I am a scientist and all I wanted was to explore these ruins-...that it until the geth showed up" Liara said afraid she might be abandoned by them because of the fact that Benezia is running with a criminal.
"Did Saren send geth after you? We came across your recording in the outpost" Garrus asked.
"Yes, but I'm not sure why the geth or Saren is looking for me. Its been 24 hours since I came down here and when I explored this hall, I might have tripped on a prothean security system that trapped me in this bubble and raised the barriers. You need to find a way inside and disable the security system. There is an elevator behind me" Liara said.
"Okay, calm down while we get there" Shepard said.
"Shepard, this mining laser still has power. Maybe we can use it" Wrex said as he stood near the machinery console.
"Good, lets make a way down there and take that elevator" Shepard said as he turned on the mining laser.
*BAAM*
The laser immediately drilled a hole beneath the hall. Then they moved towards the new route they just made and reached a circular platform with a green colored console in the middle. As they walked front, the console glittered with the hologram.
"uhh, anyone knows Prothean language here?" Ashley asked looking at the hologram with no idea on what to press.
"Actually I do, not sure how, but I can understand it" Shepard said as he pressed a button and immediately the circular platform started to move up.
"Shepard, I'm pretty sure the Asari are gonna be jealous with this quick learning" Garrus joked. the platform reached top straight behind Liara's position. Shepard and the other walked casually and Shepard used the same prothean terminal to deactivate the security system.
"Oof!" Liara was freed from the bubble as he fell to her knees and got back alright.
"Thanks Commander, for saving me from this. I thought I would die here" Liara said still feeling anxious about what happened in the past 24 hours.
"No problem, Once we are back on our ship, you can relax yourself" Shepard said reassuringly that calmed the young asari.
"What were you doing here? Going by your recordings, you were hellbent on staying here" Ashley asked curiously.
"I was-..." Liara was going to answer before hearing a voice. Everyone turned towards the direction where the voice came from in unison.
"Well well! Thank you for bringing the barrier down" a krogan came out of the shadows as multiple geth units walked besides him. Shepard grabbed Liara's hands and pushed her backwards to keep her safe as the others were aiming their weapons.
"Now hand over the Asari scientist to me" the Krogan said menacingly.
"Are you one of the pyjaks working for Saren? Pathetic!" Wrex commented that made the other krogan battlemaster grit his teeth.
"You should have stayed in the traverse, Wrex! I don't have time for this. Kill them all and bring the doctor alive. If she dies, no problem. I'll inform Saren" the krogan said to the geth troops as he took his shotgun and activated a barrier up on himself.
The geth started firing their weapons.
"Liara, get behind! Others, open fire!" Shepard said as they hid behind the rocks and fired on the geth units. Shepard used a grenade that blew up 2 geth units. Garrus used his sniper to take down the geth snipers while Ashley used her assault rifle to open fire on the nearby geth troops.
As the geth were dealt with, the crew and Liara came out of the hiding spot and the other krogan merc looked upon them. He immediately opened fire as Wrex raised a biotic shield and fired a concussion explosive that sent the krogan fall to the ground. Wrex then charged towards him and fired his shotgun straight to his face that killed the krogan.
"You should know when to keep your mouth shut" Wrex said calmly.
"*SIGH* This is getting too much for me. I didn't know the geth were still here waiting for me. Guess, I owe you again Commander Shepard" Liara said and suddenly the place started to create deep rumbling sound and shake.
EARTH CRACKLES*
"What's happening!?" Ashley asked the whole place started to shake. They moved to safety.
"I think that mining laser must have created a seismic activity, a weak spot. This whole place is falling apart!" Liara explained.
"Joker! We need evac now! Lock onto our signal, on the double mister!" Shepard barked over the comm.
"On your way commander" Joker replied.
"Move! This place is gonna bury us!" Garrus yelled as they all ran towards the circular entrance through the metal pathways. Shepard made sure everyone ran front and then started sprinting behind them. The rocks from the ceiling to started to fall down. At the bottom, to their horror, the magma was set free.
"GO! GO! GO!" Ashley yelled as they reached the entrance of the ruins. Shepard ran as fast as he can. He could see the pathway was breaking behind him faster. Garrus and Wrex made it out first, then followed by Ashley. Liara tripped over and fell down as Shepard grabbed her arm and lifted her up in hurry and pushed her front. She ran fast and jumped into the entrance to come out followed by Shepard who immediately ducked as the rock particles blew out in force.
Shepard then got to his feet and knocked the dust on his body and legs.
"Everyone in one piece?" Shepard asked as they watched the Normandy reached their position, opening the main airlock door.
"We are good" Wrex replied as they all entered the ship. Joker then flew the Normandy out of the planet's gravity field.
Once inside the ship, the crew then helped Liara to settle down as Doctor Chakwas did medical examination on her to treat any injuries. Then she gave her some asari rations that were in stock in the ship which replenished her.
After 30 minutes, Shepard gathered everyone in the comm room for debriefing, except Joker who was patched through the room speakers. They were all seated in circle except Shepard, who was leaning behind the comm terminal.
"Hope you are doing well, Doctor T'Soni" Shepard asked as he saw her to be relaxed from the stress.
"Yes, thanks Commander. Doctor Chakwas took care of my medical examination and I have to admit, her knowledge on Asari physiology is astounding" Liara said with a smile.
"She is one of the best medical experts we have here" Kaiden said.
"Commander, gotta say, that was real close! You see, Normandy is not rated 'V', V for exploding volcanoes. 10 more seconds, the ship's hull would have been fried and we would be floating in molten Sulphur-...just for your future reference" Joker spoke through the comm speaker.
"We were on death's throes and your pilot is making jokes?" Liara asked without understanding the humor.
"He saved us all, so I bet he has earned a few bad jokes" Shepard said calmly.
"I guess I need to learn a lot about human expressions, sorry, I'm quite new to this" Liara blushed in embarrassment.
"Its alright, we would like to know what were looking for in Therum? The ground team came across your recording but most of it didn't make sense" Kaiden asked first.
"I am an Asari scientist, expert in Protheans. I spent years travelling the galaxy, looking for old prothean worlds to learn much about them. But as my research grew over time, the fossils and some artifacts we uncovered says a different story about the old ones" Liara explained.
"Which is?" Garrus asked curiously.
"The Protheans didn't vanish just like that. They were mysteriously hunted down to extinction. But not sure by whom or what. There were no evidences to back that up. But a certain pattern among the pre-historic fossils began to emerge and it dawned upon me. It didn't start with the protheans but the latest to end with them" Liara said which was quite alarming.
"Are you saying that this has happened before the protheans?" Tali asked with curiosity.
"Precisely, every time, an advanced species take over the galaxy only to be struck down by something unknown. Then this all gets repeated again and by my estimates, it has been happening for many millions of years. But I couldn't prove this in my thesis since there are no evidences for this, as if someone came and wiped the galaxy clean of these evidences. It was because of this reason, many experts rejected my research paper. They felt I'm too young and naive" Liara said which intrigues Shepard as he decided to go full on into this conversation.
"Kee-lah!" Tali exclaimed.
"You mentioned Protheans were searching for something desperately, that led you to Therum. Care to explain that?" Kaiden asked.
"Yes, that was the most important part of my research and a great timing that my government decided not to fund me anymore. I managed to uncover some prothean pyramids on remote colonies that had inscriptions of a star chart that led to planets beyond the mass relay scope and some within the artemis tau cluster. One of the systems led me to Therum. The Protheans had a message inscribed in it" Liara explained.
"Yes, we know of that. Something about search for the ancestors and salvation and all that crap" Wrex said indifferently. Liara was quite taken back by the attitude of the krogan.
"It is not-...what you say! The Protheans were looking for something that could save themselves from the possible extinction. Because three such pyramids were recovered in different worlds, light years apart and all had the same message and the star chart. This was the reason why I decided to look into this. But if I had more information, we might have uncovered what the protheans were looking for" Liara said as her face soured.
"So do you think you have been misled?" Ashley asked.
"Not true, I was quite right. The geological expert in my team analyzed some soil samples in proximity to the dig site on Therum. It had traces of unknown elements, engineered at the molecular level, hundreds and thousands of times harder than the hardest material we've known in the galaxy. The geologist was so sure that no natural phenomenon in the universe can actually create something like that. It was artificially created by someone or something we don't know yet. It has been sent to a facility for further study. But the most concerning fact was the sample's radioactive dating puts its hundreds of millions of years in the past" Liara finished which stunned the crew.
"Wait, what!?" Shepard became wide eyed as he walked fast towards the asari which confused her.
"That can't be right! What could have lived that far in the past!?" Kaiden asked confused.
"And you believe these samples of artificial element has something to do with the Protheans search?" Tali asked still reeling from the story Liara just told.
"Yes, but I'm not sure whether they found it or not. There are no traces for them either. Anyway, they were wiped out from the Milkyway, so it matters little. Though there are many mysteries about the protheans extinction" Liara said.
"I think I have the answer to that. Does the name 'Reapers' mean anything to you?" Shepard asked.
"Reapers? No, what are they?" she asked curiously.
"They are a race of advanced sentient machines that wiped out the protheans 50,000 years ago" Shepard said which confused the asari as she was in denial.
"What!? No! It can't be. What proof do you have?" Liara asked as she stood up in petrified at what Shepard suggested.
"We uncovered a prothean beacon on Eden prime. It etched the visions into be mind and knocked me out. I couldn't make sense of most of it" Shepard said. That's when it dawned up Liara. She was able to connect the pieces.
"By the goddess! That was the missing piece and now I can connect the dots. That's what must have happened to the Protheans" Liara said.
"Now Saren, a rogue spectre is using the geth forces to bring the reapers back and for that, he is looking for the conduit. Do you know what that is?" Ashley asked.
"The Conduit? No, never heard of it" Liara said to which she sighed.
"Great!" she said nodding in disappointment.
"It doesn't matter, you are still a prothean expert. You could be a valuable member of our crew especially on our next venture" Shepard said to which she smiled.
"Thanks commander. I will help you in every way possible to stop Saren" she said.
"Okay, our next mission is to stop geth forces in Feros. But before that, we need to take a detour" Shepard said which brought their attention.
"What is it commander?" Kaiden asked.
"Admiral Hackett called me to take care of something. A joint human asari science team uncovered an object in the Hong system of armstrong nebula. Guess what, that object, more precisely a hull part of a star ship, has been dated hundreds of millions of years. Now that team has gone dark and we need to find what happened" Shepard said which made everyone glance at each other in confusion.
"Commander, that-...can't be a coincidence. Are you sure about these timelines?" Garrus asked in suspicion.
"Yes, the team has the object with them and we need to go there. But every moment we delay is an advantage for Saren. So I want all of you to go to Feros and assist the colony people in repelling the geth. Liara, I need you to take rest and get ready. Something tells me I may need your help with this one" Shepard ordered.
"Sure commander" Liara nodded.
"Hmm, more geth? Count me in" Wrex said.
"Once myself and Liara are done with Hackett's mission, We will join you guys in Feros. Joker? I hope you got that" Shepard spoke.
"Yes commander. Plotting course to the Hong system" Joker said over the comm room speakers.
"Then rest of you are dismissed" Shepard said as everyone left the room. Shepard went to his cabin to get ready as the others went to their places to get ready as well to land on Feros. Its been a long day for Liara so she decided to take rest before landing on Hong system. Anyway its going to take some time for them to reach there.
...
Aboard the Sovereign...
Saren was sitting on his chair in the flagship Sovereign as Benezia entered the chambers.
"Saren?" she called out in monotone. Saren turned his head to his right as he got out of his chair. Then he slowly walked towards the Matriarch.
"Did you find it?" Saren asked with piercing cold blue cybernetic eyes, gazing at the asari.
"Yes, the star alignment in your vision behind the mysterious planet, I have identified it. It is part of what the humans call as the Orion constellation. But the based on what I saw, this planet is beyond the reaches of the mass relays. These are systems that have never been explored before by any species" Benezia said.
"So how do we get there?" Saren asked as he rubbed his chin.
"Even if we drop out of the nearest relay, those systems are going to take months or even a year to reach. You and I both know, this galaxy has seen only few thousand planets. But there are millions of worlds out there, unexplored and uncharted. We don't even know what kind of life exists" Benezia said.
"WE DONT HAVE THAT MUCH TIME! I NEED TO FIND THAT WORLD BEFORE SHEPARD DOES!" Saren growled as his eyes turned red.
"That means diverting our resources which will stall our progress in finding the conduit. Without that, your efforts to bring the Reapers back will never be fulfilled" Benezia said trying to reason with him. Saren calmed down as he too understood the logic behind it.
"What is the progress of finding the cipher? I will need it to fully understand the vision from the prothean beacon to locate the conduit" Saren asked.
"Feros colonists have unearthed an ancient Thorian species in the underground. Our geth contingent has gained the intel on the surface. Thorians are as old as the protheans and our people have encountered a few of them in the past and none were ever the same. They are like clairvoyants, using lesser beings to communicate. The one in Feros must have known the protheans. We can possibly talk to it to understand the vision. But we will need an asari to communicate" Benezia explained.
"Good, then I will take a geth platoon and an asari commando to Feros secretly to cut a deal with the Thorian to find the conduit. Meanwhile I need you on Noveria to prepare the Rachni test subjects. Once that is done, take a geth ship and find me that planet and never return until you have found it" Saren said.
"Didn't you hear me back then!? I told you it may take a year to get there!" Benezia said in anger.
"Well, Sovereign has an idea on how to get you there fast. It says the relays can be programmed to change its orientation in space and launch you to the particular region much quicker. You shouldn't have a problem to get there soon" Saren said which confused Benezia.
"Changing the axis of the relay!? How can sovereign do that? This ship is much more than its letting out. Saren knows something about Sovereign that he didn't tell me" Benezia thought to herself in extreme wariness.
"Do you understand, Benezia? I am heading to Feros now. You go to Noveria and then to the mysterious world before Shepard does. Failure is not an option here" Saren said in a tone that left no room for doubt or bullshit.
"Understood Saren, I will depart now" She said as she left the chamber. Saren was gritting his teeth as his cybernetic eyes turned red once again.
"Shepard will fail and the Reapers will return. It is-...inevitable!" Saren said as he grinned.
...
A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I will updating this story as much as possible since I also have a tight office schedule which I need to manage. Anyways, see you all in next chapter!