Into the Howling Dark Chapter 8, a Halo + Mass Effect Crossover fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own Halo or Mass effect franchise.

Author's notes: I can see you all enjoying the story and many of you can't wait to see the MasterChief. We are nearing that part. Here is the next chapter for you!

Chapter 8: Hard choices Part 2

On Virmire

Shepard managed to get a crew on the ground on Virmire nearby Saren's outpost. The Normandy successfully established contact with salarian STG unit. Now they need to plan an assault on the base. Shepard and crew also came to know that Saren has found a cure for the genophage which stirred Wrex to make sure the facility is intact to get the cure for him and his people. But the others have a different plan which is to destroy the facility with no traces. This angered Wrex so much and now Shepard has to talk to Wrex and make him understand the criticality of the mission.

"So commander, what shall we do now? Will Wrex listen to reason?" Liara asked.

"He should. This mission is too important to let this distraction go on. If we lose Saren here-..." Shepard said as they heard the shotgun sound.

*BAAM*

This made everyone turn to look at Wrex as they saw him shoot the distant rock that was floating in the water. Wrex kept reloading his gun and kept shooting the rocks as if he was venting all his anger and frustration with that.

"Well, I don't think he is in talking mood right now. Damn! This whole genophage thing stirred him up" Ashley said. While she, like Shepard focused on the mission, she too didn't like the way it turned out to be with Wrex as they all started to bond like a family in the Normandy and the last thing she wanted was that to be screwed.

"Can you blame him though? His people are low in numbers and dying with low birth rate. This reaction is to be expected" Tali said as she understood Wrex's motives can even relate to her own kind. Quarians are very few in numbers standing at 17 million, in their flotilla after they were driven from their homeland Rannoch by geth. The population count to be honest is not actually much to sustain their existence in the long term.

"But we have our priorities too. Saren and the Reapers are the biggest threat in the galaxy now and we need to find the conduit. So its better to clear things with him" Kaiden said to which others agreed.

"Commander, its better you speak to him. Maybe he will listen to you" Garrus said.

"I hope so. But if things go south, be ready" Shepard said as he decided to talk to the Krogan. He hoped the conversation to go smoothly and not be at each other's throat where one of them end up dead.

"Sure Commander" Ashley said with a nod as he readied her pistol. Kaiden stood besides her. Garrus, Liara and Tali walked into one of the camp to check on the supplies.

Shepard made his way to Wrex where he was still shooting at the rocks with his claymore shotgun looking so pissed off.

"Shepard, you know how much we need that cure. You know our people's history" Wrex started the conversation before turning to look at Shepard. Shepard took a deep breath and decided to reason with him.

"Listen Wrex, I know you are angry at what the council races did to your people. But you need to understand that Saren is the real enemy here. He is the one you should be angry with!" Shepard said.

"Oh really!? Yet Saren is the one who has found the cure to my people and you want to destroy it" Wrex said which quite tensed Shepard as he started to doubt himself if he could convince Wrex.

"Help me out Shepard. The lines between friend and foe is getting blurry from where I stand. I didn't have to join your crew yet, I helped you out on Therum, Feros. Think about that" Wrex said as Shepard now started to see Wrex slowly changing his attitude towards him.

"You really think, this is a cure!? This is a weapon for god's sake! Saren won't be giving that cure to you out of the goodness of his heart. None of us will be around to reap the benefits" Shepard raised his voice to make his point heard loud. The others in the shore could see the tension rising between the two.

"I am willing to take that chance and the risk that follows. I can't think of others when it is my people that are dying. This is the survival of my race we are talking about" Wrex said in anger as he took one step towards Shepard which made Shepard alarmed as he was ready to take his side arm at any minute.

"If you can't give me a better reason than this to destroy the hopes of my people, then I'm done with you Shepard!" Wrex said as he pointed the shotgun at him. Shepard pulled his own shotgun and pointed it at Wrex.

"Shit! I'm going in!" Ashley said when she saw the commander and the krogan pointing guns at each other.

"No wait!" Kaiden held her arm and stopped her as they both watched from a distance.

"Wrex, If we don't stop Saren here, the entire galaxy is in jeopardy! Do you really want to screw up this mission!?" Shepard yelled back which took the krogan by surprise.

"So you only care about your mission, even after all those points I made to make you understand!" Wrex said as his reptilian eyes burned in anguish. Shepard let his guard down and holstered the shotgun on his back which confused Wrex.

"Do you really think Saren cares about your people? The only reason he has this cure is to breed an army of mindless krogan that will be his slaves doing his bidding. Once his job is done, he will throw them away like trash cans. Is that the kind of future you really want for your people!? If yes, you are welcome to shoot me. Go ahead!" Shepard said standing before him as Wrex was pointing the gun at Shepard. But Wrex didn't make a move. He was pondering on the last part of Shepard's argument. He was right about Saren. Even he has seen what the turian spectre is capable of. Is this the future he really wants?

"No. We were once slaves to the council. In stopping the Rachni, we were thanked by getting us all neutered. I doubt Saren will be any generous and we certainly don't want to be puppets again" Wrex said as he calmed down and pointed the gun down.

"Alright Shepard, you've made your point. I don't like it. But I have come to trust you enough to follow your lead. Just one thing, I wanna come with you and when we meet Saren, I want his head on a plate" Wrex said to which Shepard finally cooled down after a near death confrontation. He was happy that Wrex listened to the reason and now this has been taken care of, they all can together, focus on the mission.

"Ofcourse Wrex, that's the plan. Come, lets go talk to the captain" Shepard said with a smile to which Wrex nodded. Then they both walked together towards the STG campsite.

"Commander! Glad you both sorted things out" Ashley said who watched Shepard and Wrex walk together in friendly manner.

"I am still pissed off. But like Shepard said, that turian bastard has to pay for his crimes" Wrex said to which others glanced at each other. Even though Wrex is angry, they are still glad that he saw through the reason which is quite unique for Krogan as they are all usually kill first and talk later.

"Shepard, we have got some supplies from commander Rentola for the mission, Will be useful. Liara and Tali are checking them on what to take" Garrus said as he watched Shepard and Wrex have cooled down from their heated argument.

"Thanks Garrus. I think we have waited long enough. Lets go talk to Captain. Time to make the next move" Shepard said to which the others nodded. Shepard, Ashley, Kaiden, Garrus and Wrex walked into Kirrahe's camp as Liara and Tali joined them.

"So Commander, are we good to talk now?" Kirrahe asked as he glanced at the krogan.

"Yes, captain. We are ready to hit Saren's base" Shepard answered leaving the STG captain no room for any doubts, much to the salarian's relief.

"Good, we have a plan. We can convert our ship's drive core into a 20k ton explosive that will wipe this place off the map" Kirrahe said which Shepard approved since he too had a similar idea of that sorts.

"Good, drop a nuke from the sky and Saren can kiss his ass goodbye!" Ashley said with a smirk and enthusiasm.

"But it wont be easy. We need to place the bomb at the precise location. Normandy can do the drop off while we enter the base to take care of AA guns and finish off any geth forces inside" Kirrahe said which surprised the others.

"Wait, you go in with that much fortification, you get killed!" Kaiden interjected at the salarian's plan.

"Wait a minute, are we talking about infiltration on the ground? That's suicide! We don't have enough crew strength" Garrus stepped in.

"Hmm, this sounds quite risky to me too, as Garrus mentioned" Shepard said.

"I know. Its not going to be easy. We will have to divide our crew into 3 teams. While we kick the front door, your team can sneak from the back. I have no illusions of this mission. I don't expect any of us to make it out alive, despite the experience" Kirrahe said being honest about the nature of the objective.

"Fine, at this point, we don't have much of a choice. So what's the plan?" Shepard asked.

"Commander, I told you splitting our teams into 3 is the only option. But what I'm about to ask you next is even more difficult. I need one of your men to coordinate the ground team" Kirrahe said which took Shepard by surprise.

"Uhh, you want one of my soldiers committed to you?" Shepard asked wary of the request.

"We all know the risks in this mission and if your soldiers are not willing to work on that risk, do you even want them on your team?" Kirrahe asked to which Shepard nodded in agreement. Of course, when it comes to suicidal missions, only soldiers who are committed to the cause despite knowing they won't make it, will be able to achieve victory. This is one of those missions.

"Commander, we need the best of both teams. I volunteer to lead the group" Kaiden said stepping forward.

"Not so fast, lieutenant. We will need your help to secure the landing zone and arm the bomb. I will take care of the ground unit" Ashley stepped forward too. Others were watching this debate on who should lead the unit. Liara was surprised to see that the two humans were ready to take the big risk and sacrifice everything if needed for the mission. She always found this trait among humans fascinating.

"Who do want, captain?" Shepard asked in dilemma as both are firm in taking the spot.

"Both are willing to do what is necessary and both are great soldiers. You know them well than I do. Its your choice, commander" Kirrahe said as he was proud to see both humans ready to uphold the task. Shepard gave some thought into this, analyzing the strengths of both his squad mates. Ashley is a damn good soldier and she has already led units before. Kaiden has a knack for technology and he could handle the bomb by himself.

"Ashley, you will lead one of the STG units. Kaiden, I want you to take care of the bomb and arm it. Liara, Tali, stay with Kaiden and help him out, clear the zone of any hostiles, if you see one" Shepard ordered.

"No problem commander" Tali said loading her shotgun.

"Let's say we arm the bomb, what happens next? Do you have an escape plan for your team? Normandy will pick us up" Garrus asked which was in others mind too.

"Well, we will hold the geth as long as possible. Once the bomb is set off, we will fall back to the safe zone to escape the blast radius. If we are lucky, we will make it with acceptable casualties. If not, our memories will live on with the satisfaction that we served a bigger cause" Kirrahe said in a monotone, with no illusions about himself or his team's fate.

"You sound like this is a suicide mission" Shepard said even though he too is well aware of the risks involved.

"I have no illusions commander. There is a high chance none of us would make it. The drive core is impenetrable so it should be safe till we arm it" Kirrahe said to which others agreed though Shepard didn't want to lose anyone in this mission.

"Then I guess we are done here. Garrus, Wrex? You both will come with me. We will charge in through the front gate" Shepard said to which Garrus and Wrex came forward and stood besides him.

"Do you need any time to talk to the crew commander? Because, once we are committed, you wont get a chance" Kirrahe said to which Shepard turned his head back glancing at them with a smile.

"We are ready captain. No time to waste anymore!" Shepard said with firm conviction.

"Ver well. Then give me few minutes, I need to prepare my men" Kirrahe said with a nod, as he clapped his hands to call on his team.

"So this is it, I guess. We missed Noveria, but something tells me we will catch up to Saren here. Don't you guys see we are kinda like nearing the end of this mission?" Ashley asked feeling thrilled on the mission.

"Not so fast Gunny! Don't do anything stupid while you are with the salarian team. Same goes for you all, including you commander" Kaiden said to which Shepard smirked.

"Once we get to Saren, I will have his liver served raw to me" Wrex said which drew puzzled looks from the others though they didn't mind.

Meanwhile all of Kirrahe's STG squad mates gathered around as the Normandy crew entered the camp, standing behind him. Shepard understood he is about to give some motivation speech to his fellow team mates.

"Fellow soldiers, we know what this mission entails and what is at stake. I have come to trust each one of you and also hear murmurs of discontent from some of you which I understand" Kirrahe said as everyone listened.

"We are trained for espionage. We would be legends, but the records are sealed. Glory in battle is not our way" Kirrahe said now with more determination.

"Think of our heroes, the Silent Step, who defeated a nation with a single shot. Or the Ever Alert, who kept armies at bay with hidden facts. These giants do not seem to give us solace here, but they are not all that we are" Kirrahe said now with his voice louder than before mustering courage.

"Before the network, there was the fleet. Before diplomacy, there were soldiers! Our influence stopped the rachni, but before that we held the line! Our influence stopped the krogan, but before that we held the line! Our influence will stop Saren, in the battle today, WE...WILL...HOLD...THE...LINE!" Kirrahe finished his speech which earned grunting sounds from his team.

"Well, he sure knows how to talk. Captain Kirrahe reminds me of some of the Asari Commando leaders" Liara said to which others glanced at her.

"Lets hope we all pull this off and go home in one piece" Shepard replied.

Deep in the Research facility

Saren was standing inside the facility structure with multiple salarians in the holding cells and there were few humans who were turned into blue cybernetic monsters, Husks as the Normandy crew called it, just like the ones on Eden prime was placed in mass effect stasis fields. There was a terminal in each generator that showed readings of the blue creatures. They were inert for the time being.

"So Rana, What is the status of the study on indoctrination? Were these salarians responding to sovereign's signal and is there a way to reverse the effects?" Saren asked an Asari scientist named Rana Thanoptis.

"Negative Saren. The signal somehow corrupted their psychological nerve center and they are already exhibiting violent reaction. I am trying to generate the same signal of opposite polarity, but they keep failing. Sovereign's signal and its hold on to the sentient life is much stronger than anticipated" Rana said which turned Saren's face sour in despondence.

"By the spirits!" he murmured.

"This is just the beginning phase for these salarians, Saren. But you have spent too much time in the ship and posses implants of the likes I have never seen before. The signal's hold onto you could be astronomical. I don't know what to say" Rana said regretfully.

"Damn it! When sovereign started acting weird after it learned of the knowledge of an unknown planet, it's control over me started to fumble for a moment. Even in that blink of clarity, I understood I was being controlled like a puppet. But if what this asari says is true, is it already too late for me!? Am I a slave, a tool for the Reapers cause at the end of its lifespan!?" Saren was in deep thought as he could visibly showcase mild fear even amidst the cybernetic face. He didn't feel sovereign's influence as of now, but it won't stay that way for long. He don't even know what happened to Benezia and Sovereign acts like it knew what could have turned out to her and is keeping it from him. He slowly understood Sovereign is just using him for something he doesn't understand. While he still believes the Reapers would come no matter what and doing Sovereign's bidding would put the galaxy in its good graces, he still don't want to succumb to its full control.

"Fine, keep studying the signal and let me know as soon as you make progress. I don't have much time. Where is the beacon?" Saren asked.

"Its in site B. The tank bred krogan squad and the geth moved the beacon there" Rana replied.

"Finally, I will have the answers I seek" Saren said.

"But the geth forces reported that the alliance vessel Normandy has landed on the shore side and are moving towards our position" Rana said which alarmed the turian spectre.

"What!? Shepard is here!? Damn it! Send reinforcements and make sure they don't get inside the facility. I don't know if he is aware of the prothean beacon, but Shepard must be stopped. I am leaving to Site B now" Saren said to which Rana nodded and uploaded the coordinates to Saren's omnitool.

Saren left the facility and summoned a circular disc like platform to him which had thrusters underneath. He climbed onto the platform and guided it in the air. He hovered and flew to another facility past a big structure from where he watched the krogan and geth units mobilizing to face the Normandy crew. He then landed nearby another building in front of the door as he stepped out of the platform. He opened his omnitool and it showed him that he is at the right spot.

He walked through the doorway and it led to a semi-circular walkway which he took to reach another door. After opening the door, he entered a chamber and locked the door behind. He then slowly walked in and turned left to get the full view of a Prothean beacon that was standing majestically, glowing with green energy field.

"Finally, the secrets that are long buried will be mine. I hope this leads me to the conduit" Saren said to himself as he slowly approached the beacon carefully. When he reached the beacon's field proximity, the object glowed much more humming with power. Saren then relaxed himself and pierced his cold cybernetic gaze towards the object and immediately, he felt a cold sensation. The world around him started to blackout and he couldn't even see his own arms and legs until the darkness consumed him. He was then levitated above the ground by the beacon's energy field and

Images of protheans fighting the reapers flashed as the reapers were casually killing them with ease. Some were kidnapped and surgically grafted with reaper cybernetic implants that slowly turned them into indoctrinated servants. Then the images of strange bulbous creatures with 2 tendrils grabbing the protheans and turning them into horrific monsters as they started killing the other protheans. Images of never before seen monsters growling with excruciatingly mutated arms ripping through the prothean soldiers and turning their dead meat into some kind of biomass. Then images of reaper ships that looked so different with the same biomass all over the reaper bodies started to land and destroy prothean ships. Then images of protheans searching the galaxy for something, a star system precisely as the image shifted organically deep to reveal a planet so big. But that was not the destination, it revealed a strange ring like object that orbited the planet, an artificial structure that even dwarfs certain planets. But before the protheans could make the journey, they were destroyed. The last images revealed another world where the protheans constructed a small scale mass relay and suddenly the word 'Conduit' got etched into his mind. Then the image started to pull off at great speed that revealed the entire planet and a huge reaper ship suddenly launching itself towards him

Saren was thrown back as he fell to the floor with force. His body slid for few meters before coming to a halt.

"Ahh-...Rrrrr-..." Saren grunted in pain. He then slowly got up as his breathing was quite erratic. He held the rails in the staircase and sat on the steps to take a deep breath to calm himself down. Once he was stable, he stood up and walked slowly into the beacon's vicinity as he gazed at the object. He was dwelling on the things he just saw in the visions.

"By the spirits! The reapers-...they are not our salvation! They are the vanguard of death, misery and destruction! Sovereign has been lying to me! Those monsters-...! They consumed the protheans and mutated them into one of those things. The Reapers didn't even stand a chance! What was that ring structure!? The protheans were desperately looking for it before being destroyed! Could-...Could that be the same thing Benezia saw through the first beacon!? The planet looks the same-..." Saren was trying to recall the horrors he just witnessed to piece it together. He understood, this beacon finally gave him the missing piece he needed to find the conduit.

"The last world that referenced to the conduit-...I know that planet! Its Ilos! But NO!-...What have I done! Sovereign should never know this! I should escape this facility and warn Shepard-...I need to-...AAAHHHHHHHRRRRR-..."

Saren said and immediately felt an excruciating pain in his head. He then started to throw himself left and right, holding his head.

"NO-...! Just-...leave me-...RRRAAAHHHHH-..." Saren growled as his eyes flashed red and red lightning like energy consumed Saren as he was forced to surrender to the flow. Then he became calm as he glared with his red glowing eyes and gave a sinistral smirk.

"Yes-...I will kill...Shepard!" Saren said as he walked through the doorway.

At the outskirts

Shepard, Garrus and Wrex entered the research complex through the flood gate. The STG squads one led by Kirrahe and another led by Ashley diverged their paths to enter the facility from two other fronts. Kaiden, Liara and Tali took the bomb back to the Normandy, awaiting an all clear from Shepard's squad who's job is to clear the landing zone to drop the nuke.

"Alright, we are inside the perimeter. Proceeding towards the large structure" Shepard said.

"Roger that commander. Team Aegohr and Jaeto have encountered the geth units. On your way, if you find any opportunity to disrupt the geth forces, it will be helpful" Kirrahe said over the comms.

"Understood, will keep an eye out. Shepard out" Shepard said as he grabbed his shotgun.

"Let's move, fellas" Shepard said as they proceeded to move forward.

*MULTIPLE GUN FIRE*

"Spread out and take cover!" Shepard barked as he, Garrus and Wrex took cover behind the rocks.

"Eat this, machines!" Wrex said as he sent an incendiary explosive that blasted heavily killing 4 geth units.

Shepard used his shotgun to target the geth platform that were coming towards him. He also kept his sidearm ready to aim the geth units that are in higher range. Shepard sent a biotic shockwave that sent a geth prime flying and crashing over the rocks.

"Damn! The geth are really pissed off! There's too many here!" Garrus yelled as he used his sniper to target the far off geth units loaded with infernal ammo.

"Saren must be protecting something else here" Shepard said as he fired his assault rifle to kill the geth troops that were firing from a vantage position 20 meters from his position.

*BOOM* *BAAM*

Multiple explosion rocked their place as few more geth rocket drones flew towards them and fired micro missiles.

"I-...AM-...KROGAN!" Wrex growled in anger as he sent a huge biotic shockwave towards the drones and raised a self barrier. Then fired his shotgun at the downed drones and then suddenly multiple geth troops opened fire on Wrex which his biotic barrier was taking it barely.

"Shit!" Shepard grunted as he and Garrus came out of defensive position and opened fire on the troops using assault rifle and sniper rifle. Shepard sent a biotic lift that had 3 geth units levitating. Shepard killed them all. Garrus sent a tactical grenade with incendiary explosive that exploded and melted the geth parts. The geth have been cleared in that zone after a rough fire fight.

"Phew! That was a hot welcome party! We still need to go deeper through these rocks. I see two pathways, one in the left and another in the right. Both leading to some sort of structure. Multiple geth signature and-...damn! Krogan life signs" Garrus said as his omnitool presented a radar image. The last one made Wrex flinch in anger.

"Must be the army Saren's using. Will be more than happy to grind them to dust!" Wrex said as he loaded his shotgun.

"Then lets pick one direction and head to the facility" Shepard said as the three moved towards the path in the left between the tall rocky cliffs. Once crossing that path after 100 meters distance, they all saw a huge structure.

"This must be one of the facilities. Lets move quite and surprise the hostiles" Garrus said to which others agreed. Meanwhile Shepard contacted Ashley over the comm to get status.

"Ashley, how is it going on your end?" Shepard asked.

"*MULTIPLE GUN SHOTS* MOVE! COVER THE LEFT FLANK!-...Facing quite a resistance from the geth and the Krogans. But we are managing for now, commander!" Ashley replied. Shepard could understand that there is a heavy fight on her side too and hoped she could pull off without any mishaps.

"Understood. Keep me posted, Shepard out" Shepard said as he took his focus back into his fight. He along with Garrus and Wrex proceeded towards the structure.

*BOOM*

"TAKE COVER!" Wrex yelled as an incendiary explosive flew towards them and exploded sending dust and dirt splattered on them.

*MULTIPLE GUN SHOTS*

Shepard used his assault rifle to target the geth troopers while Garrus used his sniper rifle to target the geth elites that were firing missiles at them. The geth units were able to deploy mass effect barriers which he had to take it down with 3 rounds. Then there were 2 krogan fully armored from head to toe that were sending splashes of incendiary bullets from their shotgun.

"Shepard, give me cover. I'll handle the krogans" Wrex said as he activated his biotic barrier.

"Fine! Garrus, lets keep pressure on the geth!" Shepard barked as he fired his rifle.

"If-...only it were easy as you say!" Garrus yelled as he sniped a geth elite unit through its head which free fell to the ground with a thud.

Wrex took advantage of that as he charged towards the 2 krogan units. They saw wrex running towards them and activated the shield which acted as 2nd layer of protection whereas the armor acted as the first. Wrex shot one round at one of the krogan and used a biotic push to slam the other few feet away. Since they had shields and heavy armor, the force generated was not enough. Wrex immediately charged with his head down and rammed one in the left into its torso which managed to push it a few feet back, but the krogan regained its composure and gave knee jab to Wrex's face to which grunted in response. Then a punch to his face that depleted the biotic barrier. Then the krogan fired its shotgun at point blank which sent Wrex crashing down as his shields got depleted. But unknown to the krogan, wrex secretly planted a grenade with incendiary charge when he rammed it.

"Huh-...!?" the krogan grunted as it looked at the grenade that was beeping fast.

*BANG*

The grenade exploded and completely depleted the krogan's armor. Wrex grinned as he fired his claymore at its torso that tore through the suit and the body revealing a giant hole with blood oozing out. The krogan was killed. Wrex didn't waste time as he rolled on the floor and shot another round at the other approaching krogan that flared its shields. Wrex got up to his feet and sent a biotic slam that lifted the krogan high in the air and dropped it to the ground with immense force that shattered the armor. Wrex then took his sidearm and shot its head killing the second krogan.

Meanwhile Shepard sent a biotic lift towards the 3 geth troopers and then proceeded to run towards the inclined platform where a geth elite was in defensive position. Shepard could still see through the scanner as barrel rolled to the right and pointed the shotgun to its face and pulled the trigger. The shotgun round tore through the geth's head as it dropped dead. Shepard immediately took out his sidearm and shot all the levitated geth troopers. But unknown to him there was one more geth elite charging from back. Shepard turned around and was stunned to see it about to attack him. But before that, a bullet tore through its chest as the electricity crackled and dropped dead on the ground. Shepard saw the general direction the bullet came from and found it was Garrus who sniped the elite.

"I guess I owe you one. C'mon, lets move" Shepard said as he and Garrus joined Wrex.

"The resistance here is heavy. I believe we are headed in the right direction" Wrex said. The three then moved to the next level where they found a geth device, it was a transmitter.

"Look, a high band transmitter! If we sabotage this, may be it will throw the geth battlenet into chaos giving others a solid chance" Garrus explained in excitement. Ofcourse, these hurdles could buy Ashley and others sometime and breathing room from the geth assault.

Shepard then took a few steps back and shot two round into the transmitter. The transmitter exploded as it shut itself down.

"We are done here. Lets move through that door. My scanners are showing the next pass leads to one of Saren's main facility" Shepard said as they proceeded to walk towards the end of the pathway that had a door.

"Good, can't contain my excitement to look at Saren face to face!" Wrex replied with hatred in his tone.

Shepard opened the door and it led to another stairs that declined to the ground.

"Captain Kirrahe, what's your status?" Shepard asked over the comm.

"The geth's comm system got scrambled somehow and they are running in random directions. We can focus on the turrets and take the heat of team Aegohr and Jaeto" Kirrahe said to which Shepard smirked that wrapping things on his side is helping them out as expected.

"Thanks captain, Shepard out" Shepard responded and closed the comm.

They proceeded to walk through the water and entered another narrow pathway between two cliffs. They jogged through the space and saw multiple geth rocket drones swarming their position.

"Take cover!" Shepard barked as the 3 took defensive position behind the rocks and opened fire on the drones. The rocket explosion sent waves of water splashing everywhere. The 3 managed to destroy the 5 drones and moved forward.

Then after a few meters distance, they saw another facility crawling with geth units and a krogan.

"Lets take them out silently after getting close. Seems they are not alerted to our presence" Garrus said to which others agreed. They moved close as much as possible without spooking the geth and the krogan. Once they were in firing range, the three opened fire on the geth units that were taken out by surprise. Garrus used powerful proton phasic rounds in his sniper to take out the krogan in just 2 shots. Then they proceeded to climb the stairs and saw another geth device.

"This is another geth toy which we can break" Wrex said.

"Looks like a satellite uplink. Destroying this should cutoff any geth comm system" Shepard agreed. Wrex immediately threw a grenade towards the device that was in the roof which latched on to it. The grenade exploded as it destroyed the uplink.

"Nicely done, Wrex. Now we need to walk through this pathway. The other end of this place is Saren's facility. Let's move and stay sharp" Shepard said. Then they walked through the metallic pathway that went in semi-circular fashion. Once reaching the end of the walkway, it led to two different circular pathway all leading to the same place.

*GUN SHOTS*

"Shit! Get down!" Wrex growled as the three took cover. They saw 3 krogans firing incendiary explosives and shotgun rounds at them, some of which hit Shepard and the others deflected by the shields and some missing the target.

"Let me handle this" Garrus said as he tuned the sniper with phasic proton rounds and disruptor. Then he aimed at the krogan and killed all the 3 with just 6 rounds. The disruptor in the round scrambled their armor with high voltage shock which the phasic ability bypassed the shield and proton round tore through the armor at the same time. But the sniper was overheated with too many modifications at the same time.

"Damn! Can't use the sniper for sometime, need to cool it down. Switching to assault rifle" Garrus said as the three proceeded to take the right circular pathway. Shepard, Garrus and Wrex walked through the pathway and finally they saw the huge facility in front of them.

"That's gotta be it. There are 3 doors in that corridor. Guess, all the 3 leads to the same room whatever's inside" Wrex said.

SNIPER SHOT*

"Whoa!" Shepard fell down as a sniper round hit him and ate 75% of his shields.

"Get to cover! I was wondering when they would show up" Garrus said as the three took cover behind heavy crates.

"Open fire" Shepard said as he holstered his shotgun and took out his sniper rifle as Garrus was using his assault rifle. Shepard used biotic lift on 3 geth troops and then took them out with his sniper rifle. Wrex sent a concussive shot towards a geth prime that stunned the machine, which was then killed by Shepard immediately. Wrex then fired an incendiary explosive shot towards another geth prime that drained its shield and heated the armor. Garrus then killed it with his assault rifle. With no more primes in sight, Shepard decided to break out of his cover since the troopers weapons deal less damage. Shepard used his shotgun and started firing at each geth trooper at point blank tearing through the armor. Wrex and Garrus did the same as they finished killing the remaining 10 geth platforms.

"That went well. But we've got a problem right now. Look at the doors" Shepard said pointing to the doors whose control panels turned red.

"Ahh crap! The doors are locked. Let me just blast it open!" Wrex said as he walked towards the door in front which tensed Shepard and Garrus.

"Whoa! Easy Wrex! We don't wanna set off the geth alarm all over the place. I will try to hack it" Garrus said as he walked towards one door and turned on the omni-tool and started running the decryption program.

"Pansy" Wrex quipped in response. After 5 mins, the door opened and the control panel turned green.

"The geth must have initiated a lockdown to prevent us in. That means if Saren is here, then he knows we are coming" Shepard said as he felt they are getting close to him than ever.

"Lets get in" Wrex said as they all entered the facility. But what they saw on the other side was not a facility, but another semi circular pathway to the right.

"Hmm, not quite what I expected" Garrus said as they proceeded to walk the pathway and reached a junction that had multiple terminals side by side.

"Hmm, what is this?" Wrex asked. Shepard took a closer look and understood what was it.

"Right, these are the geth alarms that initiated the lockdown. This has been wired into the sensors all over the perimeter" Shepard said.

"Wait, then shutting it down will no longer trigger the alarm. It will be helpful to us, Kirrahe and Ashley's team" Garrus suggested to which Shepard nodded in agreement. Then he pressed a few buttons in the console.

"I have shut the alarms. We should be good now. Let's move through one of the door" Shepard said as Wrex pressed a button on one of the door which opened. Once inside they saw a huge hall with equipment and machinery and weapons. But no sign of geth.

"Hmm, odd. The facility had swarms of geth, krogan and geth drones covering the perimeter. But nothing inside. Do you think, Saren was confident that no one could get in?" Garrus asked confused as they didn't encounter any resistance inside the facility.

"I'm not sure. But if that's the case, its pretty sloppy" Shepard said.

"What is he been up to apart from building a krogan army? Surely a facility this big must have some deep secrets" Garrus said looking around. They took the stairs in the left side that took them to the next level where there were multiple holograms with research data. But then, what they saw got their attention.

"What the hell!? This research-...is about indoctrination" Wrex looked at the hologram that showed an image of a husk and an image of brain with implants and neural network analysis data.

"Why would Saren study about the indoctrination?" Wrex asked.

"You forgot? Remember, back on Feros, Shia'la said that Saren's ship Sovereign emits a signal that can control minds. Saren was using it subjugate others to his will. Maybe he is trying to improve or upgrade his ability" Shepard said as he recalled his conversation with Shia'la back on Feros.

"Hmm, then we have one more reason to destroy this facility" Garrus said feeling more hatred towards the rogue spectre.

"Let's move then. There-...another door" Shepard said as they proceeded to walk towards the door to the right. Shepard opened the door which led to another room. But there was another level below them and they could see some sort of containment cells.

"What the-...what is this place?" Shepard asked looking around curiously and cautiously.

MULTIPLE GUN SHOTS*

Multiple geth troops and a geth juggernaut started to open fire on that from the lower level.

"Damn! Open fire!" Shepard barked as they used the wall as cover. Shepard then used a biotic push to send the juggernaut a few feet back as it lost its composure. Then everyone rained bullets on the geth troops and Wrex used another incendiary explosive shot that blew multiple geth troops. The juggernaut woke up meanwhile and fired geth shotgun rounds at them. One round managed to deplete Garrus's shields.

"Shit, shields are down" Garrus yelled as he backed against the wall and loaded a concussive shot.

"Let me distract it for you" Shepard said as he got up from his cover and fired his shotgun at the juggernaut as its shield flared. Then Garrus jumped out his cover and fired a concussive shot that exploded and took out the shields. Shepard then used biotic lift to levitate the juggernaut and fired his shotgun that blew its head and kill it. The geth body dropped to the ground in free fall.

"Who-...who is there!? What is happening!?"

a voice came out all of a sudden that drew everyone's attention.

"What is that? It came from one of those cells" Wrex said as they all glanced at the containment cells.

"Then lets move down. Its not far, so-.." Shepard said as he climbed upon the rail and jumped down to the lower level. It was only 7 feet below so it didn't hurt his legs. Wrex and Garrus did the same as they both dropped with loud thud.

"No-...no! Go away!" the voice trembling in fear once again came from the cell. The others identified it was coming from the 1st cell in the extreme left. There were 5 cells in total.

"Who are you?" Shepard asked as the three finally took a lot at the source of the voice. It was a salarian.

"What-...ohh! Thank goodness! You are not geth. I am Ganto Imness, 3rd infiltration unit from the salarian regiment. I was captured during recon. I hope the fleet is here to destroy this base" the salarian spoke in a hurry.

"Easy there, I take it you are part of Captain Kirrahe's team. He mentioned about a squad getting kill/captured during a recon" Garrus said.

"Kirrahe is still here?" Ganto asked surprised.

"Yes, we are working to stop Saren in this base and blow it up sky high. There a bomb being setup deep inside" Wrex answered.

"Ohh, good. Finally the abominations will be stopped" Ganto said which made the others give a puzzled glance at each other.

"So what is Saren doing here?" Shepard asked curiously.

"He is studying the indoctrination, its effects, symptoms, progress. The geth captured us and were using us as test subjects. There are others in the nearby cell, my squad mates turned into mindless husks by the indoctrination signal. I was almost turned into one, except I was not. They wanted me as a control subject. Some died during the experimentation, quick and painless. I almost feel jealous of them. No one wants this fate" Ganto spoke with anger and sadness.

"Why is Saren studying the indoctrination? Is he trying to get more powerful?" Shepard asked curiously wondering if the salarian commando has the answers they seek.

"No, Saren doesn't dully understand the indoctrination process. He is looking for an answer, but not sure what that is. I can't turn into one of those mindless things. Please, let me-...out!" Ganto begged. Shepard and the others were a bit skeptic whether to trust him or not. If this facility has more indoctrinated subjects crawling around, then he can't risk letting him out. He was in a dilemma. Garrus meanwhile slowly moved to the next cell to take a look at the other salarians as they all stood looking down in silence. Suddenly one salarian turned its head in a creepy way towards Garrus and lunged at the door that sent a banging sound.

"Damn!" Garrus got spooked as he jumped a feet back.

"Not sure if I can trust you Ganto" Shepard said with honesty. But Ganto understood his skepticism.

"Well, I understand your concern. Like I said, I am the only one intact right now" Ganto spoke calmly. Shepard, Garrus and Wrex glanced at each other and finally nodded in agreement.

"Hmm, guess we can trust you then. I am opening this door, but after that you are on your own" Shepard said.

"Huh, outrun the blast from here? I'll take that chance as its much better odds than what I had few minutes ago" Ganto said with a chuckle. Shepard then opened the cell as Ganto walked out stretching his limbs.

"Thanks and good luck with your mission" Ganto said with a nod and he immediately jogged through the exit door.

"Well, now that he is gone, what to do with the rest? I say we kill them. Its better that way and this miserable existence" Wrex said as Garrus and Shepard took a moment to process that.

"Well, you are not wrong there. Its better to give them a quick death and put them to rest" Shepard said as he took out his pistol and opened the cell door. Then everyone shot the 4 indoctrinated salarians and put them out of their misery.

"Well, lets move" Shepard said as they used the door behind them. It led to a staircase and another circular pathway to another door. Shepard opened the door they entered another room. What they saw there spooked the three. The salarian test subjects wandering aimlessly.

"What the hell!? These are the subjects Ganto spoke about!?" Shepard asked horrified at the sight.

"Ar-...ARRR-...ARRAHHHH-...!" a salarian screamed and started shooting at the three and the rest followed the same.

"Open fire!" Shepard barked and they finished all the mindless salarian husks. It was an easy kill since they didn't have any shields. It took just few rounds to kill one.

"Poor bastards! They didn't deserve that" Garrus said with pity.

"Agreed. Stay sharp people. I think we haven't seen the last of them yet" Garrus said as they slowly proceeded towards a staircase. After reaching the next level, there were few geth troopers, few salarians and 2 krogans.

"Ahh man! Thats a lot to deal with" Garrus said looking at the hostile numbers, doing a threat assessment.

"Wrex, throw a incendiary shot at them. That would throw them off balance. Then we all will take them out" Shepard said to which Wrex nodded. Wrex then loaded the shot and then sprung out of the cover and fired the explosive round that blasted through the geth troops sending smoke. Shepard and Garrus immediately rolled out of their position and fired their rifles that killed the geth and the salarians. Shepard then sent a biotic push towards a krogan and fired two rounds of shotgun on the other. Wrex then rammed the other which fell down out of balance. Then Wrex fired his shotgun blasting its face. Garrus sent a concussive blast at the last krogan and Shepard used his shotgun to punch a hole in its body as it dropped dead.

"Shepard, I guess the facility is crawling with geth, krogan and the husks. We need to find an alternate route if we don't want to be delayed. Kaiden will be ready with the bomb anytime now" Garrus said voicing his concern. Even Shepard and Wrex agree on that since they too felt like they are being slowed down by the resistance.

"Unfortunately, there is no other way. Right now, there is an elevator in this room. It says it leads to the labs. I think that's the only way we are reaching the main facility" Shepard said to which Garrus sighed. He knew it wasn't gonna be easy. But this wasn't the time to second guess anything, so he decided to see this through.

"Fine, then lets get to the labs" Garrus said. Then the three took the elevator in the far side of the room. Wrex opened the elevator door and the three entered inside. Then Shepard pressed the button which closed the door and moved 2 levels up. As the door opened, the three stepped outside only to be shocked by what they saw.

"No way in hell!" Shepard muttered loud as his eyes widened in shock and anger and his face turned bilious.

It was long hall that had multiple machinery that held a human husk in a mass effect stasis field and there was a terminal near by the stasis machine. There were 8 machines in the hall.

"These are husks! What is Saren doing with these husks!? Is it part of studying the indoctrination!?" Garrus asked horrified at the sight. The three walked slowly across the room as the husks were held by the stasis field. Shepard walked near one of the machine.

"Be careful Shepard. Don't wake them up" Wrex warned as Shepard went to take on a closer look. The husk was still and it didn't respond to his presence so close. Then Shepard looked at the terminal and understood what was happening.

"Looks like these husks are sedated" Shepard said.

"We need to move Commander. Lets leave them here" Garrus said as he felt nervous to be in the place.

"Leave? I say we destroy them, just to make sure they don't get loose and follow us" Wrex said.

"Wrex is right. Lets set charges to this place and blow it up. Too risky! Not that the husks are a threat, but the research data here shouldn't fall into anyone's hands" Shepard said as he took a timed C4 charges and placed it on the wall. 3 charges placed, with one on the floor and 2 on the wall. Shepard turned the timer on.

"Quick, lets move!" Shepard yelled as the three sprinted towards the exit door on the far side of the hall and closed it behind.

*MULTIPLE EXPLOSIONS*

The hall was completely destroyed and the husks along with it.

"Phew, that was close" Garrus said with a smirk.

They were now outside in the open, standing upon a metal walkway. It was a bridge as they saw the beach sever meters at the bottom. This bridge pathway led to another building. They walked through the bridge and reached the door in the other side. Shepard pressed the button and opened the door. It was another hall way. There was a holographic computer on a desktop at the other end of the hall. Shepard spotted something moving behind the desk.

"Who is there!? Reveal yourself!" Shepard said as he raised his shotgun as the other did the same.

"NO-..NO! Don't shoot! I am just a scientist!" a female voice broke out as they saw a pair of hands raised itself from behind the desk for Shepard's crew to see. Then the figure revealed itself in fear. It was an asari scientist.

"Who are you?" Shepard asked being cautious to notice any sudden movement from her.

"My name is Rana Thanoptis and I wanna get the hell out of this place! This job-...it isn't worth dying for!" She said with much tense in her voice.

"Why should I trust you? Everyone here tried to kill us" Shepard asked.

"Wait, I'm just a neuro-specialist. I-...I can help you get to Saren's private lab. You will have full access to his personal files" Rana said as she slowly walked towards a door and unlocked it.

"See? You can now pass through. Are we good? Can I go now?" Rana asked playing nice.

"What kind of research is going on here?" Shepard asked.

"Its about the indoctrination. Saren wanted it to be extensively studied. Its the ship he has, called 'Sovereign'. It emits some kind of signal that scramble the neural pathways of a being. Saren uses it to control other people" Rana explained.

"So those indoctrinated salarians are your test subjects?" Garrus asked.

"Yes, the exposure to the sovereign's signal completely turns the subject into mindless husks, no longer capable of higher thought process" Rana said.

"Wait, did you say the sovereign emits the indoctrinated signal? I thought Saren was the one that is controlling others" Shepard asked now suspicious of the situation. He believed Saren was indoctrinating others until now.

"No, the sovereign emits the signal. But it helps Saren use it to control other people's mind. But its collateral damage. The indoctrination process is slow and subtle. It starts as a tingle in the back of your skull. The more you stay exposed, the more you start to fell different, like hallucinations, a voice that keeps ringing in your head and makes you do things and you don't even know why" Rana explained. This slowly started to raise more doubts about Saren and the Sovereign which is a Reaper ship.

"Why is Saren interested in researching the indoctrination? What is his goal?" Wrex asked. He was never interested in learning anything and the only thing in his mind was to kill him. But the things he saw here started to sow some questions in his mind.

"Its because, he is afraid. He believes the signal is controlling him too as he was exposed to it for a long time. He wanted to make sure he is able to keep his mind intact under his control and asked me find a way before he loses himself" Rana said which shocked Shepard. All this time, he thought Saren was just pure evil. But that wasn't the case, he knew he was losing his mind and wanted a way out.

"Does that mean-...Is sovereign making him do this? But why!? Why and how a Reaper ship make someone do something? Do the Reapers pre-program their ships to force others to do what they want? Is that even the case?" Shepard ran his thoughts no answer to be found.

"*SIGH* I think there is something much more going on here than what we know. We need to move folks" Shepard said with determination.

"Wait, what about me?" Rana asked confused.

"Well, we can always kill you. After all, you work for Saren and experimented on those husks and salarians" Wrex said pointing his shotgun at her which stunned the asari.

"Wait! NO!-...Lemme out of this place. I don't want to work for him. He is mad!" Rana raised her arms as submission to show herself as not hostile. Shepard thought twice for a moment about her predicament. Ofcourse Saren has only coerced others so far to work for them and its not their fault.

"It's alright Wrex, Let her go. But, we are about set off a nuke and blow this island up. Better start running" Shepard said which shocked the asari.

"What!? You can't just-...ahhh-...!" Rana screamed as she ran for her life.

"Hehehe! I kinda enjoyed that" Wrex said as he followed Shepard and Garrus.

"Well, recently we've been putting up with lots of Shepard Shenanigans" Garrus quipped with a chuckle.

Shepard opened the door which led to another walkway in the outside. Shepard, Wrex and Garrus jogged through the walkway as they looked around for any threat as they reached the other door. Garrus opened the door as they entered a small hall with stairs in the middle. The crew turned left and walked slowly towards an object that was glowing in green.

"There is something there-..." Garrus said as he walked fast in front and stopped as he lowered his weapon. The turian's eyes were widened in surprise.

"What spooked you Garrus-...What-...the-...hell!" Shepard asked as he walked behind Garrus only to be shocked by the sight of the object that was emitting the green light. Wrex stood by his side as he too was in awe of the structure.

"Commander? I think we've just-..."

"Found another prothean beacon" Shepard finished Garrus's statement.

"Remember, back in the ship, Liara said that your visions were incomplete. Maybe this thing could fill in the gaps" Wrex said looking at him.

Shepard was gazing at the beacon in silence. There was a strong feeling, something he couldn't explain. It was as if, he felt everything was about to come to an end. He doesn't understand why he feels that way, but that urge made him to slowly walk towards the beacon. As he was in range, the beacon's energy field hit him like a battering ram and burned his senses, no longer in control of his body and mind. He was seeing the final hours of the prothean existence and this time, it was very clear to him.

Shepard immediately snapped out of his trance as he walked a few steps back and rubbed his eyes and let the burning sensation cool down.

"Shepard! Are you alright!? What happened? What did you see!?" Garrus held the commander as Shepard took some time to clearly hear his voice. He slowly turned to look at Garrus and Wrex, but he was still trying to process what he just saw.

"I saw everything-...I saw the protheans fighting ships that look similar to sovereign. The protheans were destroyed and some turned against their own kind. But that was not all, there was something else, Some kind of slimy green things that mutated the protheans into monsters that can't exist even in nightmares. These things turned the entire planets into some organic biomass. Its gotta be some reaper weapon. But then-...I saw the protheans searching for a world, a ring like object, size of a planet orbiting a bigger planet. The protheans were destroyed before they could reach it" Shepard said.

"Wait, Liara mentioned that the protheans were searching for something desperately before their kind bit the dust. Could it be that ring you saw?" Garrus asked recalling the earlier conversation they all had in the Normandy.

"Possibly, but I can't say for sure, But it was huge and never seen like that before. Its not all of it. Near the end of the vision, there was a planet and as soon as I saw it, the word 'conduit' struck me. There is a small scale mass relay unlike ones we have seen so far. I think that last planet I saw has something to do with the Conduit" Shepard said in an urge.

"Finally, we can deny Saren his prize and put him down for good" Wrex said bumping his fists.

"Yes, We need to hurry!" Shepard said as he walked fast toward the same door, but stopped midway when he saw a red light above the stairs.

"What happened commander?" Garrus asked as he and Wrex walked towards him.

"There is something here" Shepard said as he climbed the stairs and reached the next level where he saw a red holographic project that looked very familiar. Garrus and Wrex followed him and stood behind looking at the hologram in stunning silence.

"What the hell is that?" Wrex asked loud and suddenly the hologram started to talk much to their surprise.

"YOU ARE NOT SAREN" a deep baritone voice spoke.

"Some kind of VI interface?" Garrus asked spooked by the voice.

"RUDIMENTARY CREATURES OF FLESH AND BLOOD, YOU TOUCH MY MIND, FUMBLING IN IGNORANCE, INCAPABLE OF UNDERSTANDING" the voice said which tensed everyone.

"Shepard, I don't think this is a VI" Wrex said as he was cautiously looking at the hologram. Even he felt something ominous about the voice.

"THERE IS A REALM OF EXISTENCE FAR BEYOND YOUR OWN, YOU CANNOT EVEN IMAGINE IT. I AM BEYOND YOUR COMPREHENSION. I AM SOVEREIGN!" the voice said which turned all their faces in a mix of fear and tense. For Shepard, he now understood who or rather what sovereign was based on what it said.

"My god! Sovereign isn't some reaper ship that Saren found. Its an actual Reaper!" Shepard said which made the others silent.

"REAPER? A LABEL CREATED BY SPECIES LONG EXTINCT EONS AGO, RECENTLY PASSED ON TO PROTHEANS, TO GIVE VOICE TO THEIR DESTRUCTION. IN THE END, WHAT EVERY BEING CHOOSE TO CALL US IS IRRELEVANT. WE SIMPLY ARE" Sovereign said which confused Garrus.

"Wait, it can't be. Didn't the protheans vanish 50,000 years ago. How is it you are still existing? Its impossible!" Garrus said.

"ORGANIC LIFE IS NOTHING BUT A GENETIC MUTATION, AN ACCIDENT. YOUR LIVES ARE MEASURED IN YEARS AND DECADES. YOU WITHER AND DIE! WE ARE ETERNAL. THE PINNACLE OF EVOLUTION AND EXISTENCE. BEFORE US, YOU ARE NOTHING. YOUR EXTINCTION IS INEVITABLE. WE ARE THE END OF EVERYTHING. WE-...ARE THE MONUMENT TO ALL YOUR SINS!" Sovereign said which sent chills in their spines. But Shepard mustered his courage. All this time, he didn't what the Reapers were. But now he does and he no longer have to hold back. He is talking to one right now.

"Whatever your plan is, its going to fail. I'll make sure of that" Shepard said determined.

"CONFIDENCE BORN OF IGNORANCE. THIS CYCLE CANNOT BE BROKEN" Sovereign said which made the others to glance at each other in confusion.

"Cycle? What cycle?" Wrex asked.

"FOR EONS, WE HAVE WATCHED THE EVOLUTION OF ORGANIC LIFE. THE PATTERN HAS REPEATED ITSELF MORE TIMES THAN YOU CAN FATHOM. ORGANIC CIVILIZATIONS RISE, EVOLVE, ADVANCE. AND AT THE APEX OF THEIR GLORY, THEY ARE EXTINGUISHED. THE PROTHEANS WERE NOT THE FIRST. THEY DID NOT CREATE THE CITADEL. THEY DID NOT FORGE THE MASS RELAYS. THEY MERELY FOUND THEM, THE LEGACY OF MY KIND" Sovereign said which stunned the three.

All this time, the species in the galaxy assumed the citadel and mass relays are prothean engineering. But that all changed. Its not protheans, never was.

"Why would you construct the relays and citadel and then leave them for the others to find?" Shepard asked the ultimate question to understand the bigger picture.

"YOUR CIVILIZATION IS BASED ON THE TECHNOLOGY OF THE MASS RELAYS, OUR TECHNOLOGY. BY USING IT, YOUR SOCEITY DEVELOPS ALONG THE PATHS WE DESIRE. WE IMPOSE ORDER ON THE CHAOS OF ORGANIC EVOLUTION. YOU EXIST BECAUSE WE ALLOW IT. AND YOU WILL FALL BECAUSE WE DEMAND IT" Sovereign said which struck like a lightning upon them.

"They are simply reaping us, like crops after they are grown full, a harvest!" Garrus said as his voice trembled in fear.

"What do you want from us!? Why are you doing this!? Is it for slaves!? resources!?" Shepard yelled in anger.

"MY KIND TRANSCENDS YOUR VERY UNDERSTANDING. WE ARE EACH A NATION, INDEPENDENT, FREE OF ALL WEAKNESS. YOU CANNOT EVEN GRASP THE NATURE OF OUR EXISTENCE" Sovereign replied with no disdain, but as stating mere facts.

"Where do you come from? You are a machine. Someone must have built you" Shepard asked curiously about its nature.

"WE HAVE NEITHER BEGINNING NOR END. WE ARE INFINITE. MILLIONS OF YEARS AFTER YOUR CIVILIZAITON HAS BEEN ERADICATED AND FORGOTTEN, WE WILL ENDURE. WE ARE LEGION! THE TIME OF OUR RETURN IS COMING. OUR NUMBERS WILL DARKEN THE SKY OF EVERY WORLD. YOU CANNOT ESCAPE YOUR DOOM" Sovereign gave a chilling warning.

"You are not even alive! You are just a machine. And machines-...can be broken" Shepard said.

"HUMANS-...YOU STILL CARRY THE RESILIENCE OF YOUR ANCESTORS HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO. I MUST AGREE, FOR 20 MILLIONS YEARS, WE WERE DENIED ENTERING THIS GALAXY AND YOUR HUMANITY, FORERUNNERS, ALL OF THEM DOMINATED THE STARS. OUR NUMBERS COULDN'T STOP YOU, EVEN THE GRAVEMIND COULDN'T STOP YOU. BUT EVENTUALLY, YOU ALL FELL BECAUSE OF YOUR HUBRIS. AND WE RETURNED AND CONTINUED OUR HARVEST. YOU WILL FAIL THIS TIME" Sovereign said which shocked Shepard. After all the evidences that couldn't convince him before, he now believed them all.

"Holy shit! So it is true that there was an ancient human civilization hundreds of millions of years ago. And you know them and they have managed to defeat you! That means, we still have hope to stop you!" Shepard said loud with confidence.

"Then what ever you found in Casbin's moon was legit" Garrus added as he too was surprised to learn that the existence of ancient humanity was true after all and they got confirmation from a reaper itself.

"DONT GET YOUR HOPES HIGH UP HUMAN! YOUR WORDS ARE AS EMPTY AS YOUR FUTURE. I AM THE VANGUARD OF YOUR DESTRUCTION. THIS EXCHANGE IS OVER" Sovereign said as the hologram vanished.

*CRASH*

Suddenly all the glasses around shattered.

"CRAP!" Garrus yelled as he and Wrex covered themselves from the glass pieces.

"Commander? Its Joker. I have a bad news" suddenly the comms flared in the public channel.

"Go ahead, Joker. That's exactly what I need right now" Shepard said with sarcasm.

"That ship, sovereign? I don't know what you did down there, but it has started to move. Just pulled a turn which would tear our ships in half. Its headed your way and its coming for you hard. You need to wrap things up from your end, fast!" Joker said.

"This terminal is fried, Commander. What to do next?" Garrus asked.

"Time to blow this place up, skyhigh. We need to get to the breeding facility fast. Let's move!" Shepard said as he pulled his shotgun.

"Sure Commander, I will bring the Normandy there. See ya all" Joker said as the comm was closed.

On the shield world Iridescent...
Unknown date and time...

Matriarch Benezia entered an unknown facility following the path lit by blue floor lights. She then reached the end where there was a door. Suddenly a blue scanner beam lit from the top and scanned her top to bottom. Then the scanner was off and the door hissed and opened in 4 fragments which revealed a big hall that was bright.

"By the goddesses! This is magnificent!" she said as she walked through and entered the hall. She saw weird equipment, energy machinery, totally unfamiliar in design, several hologram terminals, some on the wall that represented some kind of digital flow. Then she saw a couple of sealed containers, huge in size. There was no indication on what that was or what is present inside.

She walked across the hall that hummed in power. She was wary enough not to touch anything since she doesn't understand what she was seeing. She felt like a caveman in this place. She reached the other side of the hall where a door hissed and opened. It led to a similar pathway with the floor lit with blue lights. She walked along the path and turned left leading to another door. As it opened, it revealed a big platform in a pentagonal shape. As she stepped in the platform, a hologram popped in the middle in the air, before her.

She curiously touched it and it responded by manipulating itself and vanish. Suddenly the platform started to move downwards in straight.

"Oh, this is an elevator" Benezia muttered.

After 4 minutes, the elevator reached a bottom level and the door opened. She walked through a similar pathway reached a door which scanned her once again like before and opened it. The doorway revealed another hall with dim lights, but nothing else. It was much smaller than the previous one. She also saw similar sealed containers here. Then at the center of the hall, there was a pedestal.

"Not sure what is this" she muttered as she stepped into the pedestal and it started glowing.

"Oh no! What did I do?" she asked to herself in tense.

Then suddenly, a bright bluish white energy surrounded her and immediately she vanished from the place.

After sometime, she popped out of the same bluish white portal.

"Uhh!" she immediately felt dizzy as if she was about throw up all her insides out.

"Goddesses!" She muttered as she took few minutes to catch her breath. She understood she just went through teleportation just like the one on Halo installation-04. She then slowly stood her feet and what see saw was something she never hope to see even in dreams. There was a big artificial structure in front of her, a facility of sorts. She realized she was standing on a grassy ground with rocks, dirt and sand particles. She slowly looked around and felt flabbergasted. She saw all sorts of natural constructs like hills, waters falls, streams. But what confused her was she saw several cities, some closer, some very far away near the vanishing point. But they appeared as if they are on a curved surface that went upwards which she didn't understand. She could see sky and sunlight. She turned to her right and she could see similar curved surface thousands of miles away that slowly rose above.

"What is this place!? Where am I?" Benezia yelled in frustration as she couldn't take it anymore. She has been through too many unknowns for a long time that she now wants answers immediately.

"You are now inside a dyson sphere within a time dilated pocket dimension" a voice of a woman came from Benezia's back all of a sudden. Benezia for all her 1000 years of experience still felt spooked by the voice of the unknown. She could feel her blood rushing inside in fear and anxiety. She slowly turned back only to see a hardlight hologram of a human female, appearing in blue and white. She appeared as if she was wearing some kind of armored uniform. Benezia took a few steps back in wariness. Benezia identified peak femininity in her appearance and her voice.

"Which is housed within the shield world Iridescent, an artificial planet constructed by humans" the female voice finished saying a with a smile.

"Who-...who are you?" Benezia asked, her stance looked like she was ready to get into action should things escalate.

"Ohh, sorry if I spooked you much, hehe. I am a human contender class Artificial Intelligence CTN04-529. You can call me Cortana" she said which confused Benezia for a moment. On one hand she was terrified that she is talking to another AI, but on the other, she was having all the human attitude, she has seen before.

"An AI!? By the goddess!" she said which confused Cortana.

"Why so gloomy? Besides, when you arrived in a forerunner ship. I was awakened and been guiding you to get to this place. *SIGH* I thought we have been awakened soon, but then the clock pulse in this world revealed that 480 million years have passed. You are the first organic to set foot here Ms-..." Cortana explained which didn't make sense to Benezia.

"My name is Benezia, I am an Asari. I was sent here by a Forerunner AI called 343 Guilty Spark" Benezia explained which turned Cortana look bug eyed.

"Spark!? Ohh my! That means you have found the Halo installation. If that has happened-...that means-...Damn it! The Reapers and flood are still around aren't they!?" Cortana asked seriously which made Benezia feel overwhelmed.

"Whoa! Slow down. I have more questions first. I am already feeling out of place with whats been happening these past few days" Benezia said to which Cortana felt sorry and decided to let her talk.

"Fine, shoot your questions, Benezia" Cortana said as she folded her hands awaiting to respond.

"You said this is a dyson sphere? Humanity made this?" Benezia asked shocked at the first revelation.

"Ofcourse, this was the ark for every surviving species back then when Humanity, Sanshyuum, Forerunners and the Covenant fought the galaxy overrun by the Flood and the Reapers. This dyson sphere is 500 million kilometers apart. Forerunners built the Halo array to purge the galaxy of all life to destroy the flood and reapers before reintroducing the galaxy to the survivors who will give rise to other life forms from their ashes" Cortana explained which stunned Benezia in silence.

"So it is true that humanity is hundreds of millions of years old and technologically hyper-advanced! I can't believe this! Then that means, the present humanity are your descendants! We always thought the Asari were the most advanced. But to think that your people are much older than the protheans-...goddesses above!" Benezia said which surprised Cortana.

"Wait, are you saying that humanity exists in present time!?" Cortana asked.

"Yes, they are one of the galactic member species, part of the citadel embassies" Benezia explained which made Cortana chuckle.

"Well well, what are the chances! Would love to see the current state of the galaxy. Guess I have much to learn too" Cortana said with smile.

Benezia was still in shock that she can't deny anymore about humanity's past. Humanity was indeed much older than anyone could imagine and were hyper advanced enough to build a planet and a dyson sphere, the size of 4 astronomical units within a pocket dimension. She couldn't even fathom the concept of it. She has never heard of any civilization capable of such a feat. She always had a pride that the Asari are the most advanced species in the galaxy and that the others are inferior to them. They were the first to find the citadel and the mass relays. They were the first to form the council. They were highly critical in making galaxy spanning decision making process that decided the fates of other species. But now, that all changed. They are not the giants they so much thought so. And they have no idea how big the galaxy is and many of its hidden secrets. All of this took a great hit to her Asari pride. If this knowledge ever gets out, if current humans find out that they are indeed an old race, this would completely destabilize the council's superiority and Benezia couldn't even begin to understand the ramifications of this.

"You told that the Reapers and this-...'Flood' are still around. Guilty Spark too mentioned that Humans, Forerunners and the others fought reapers in your time" Benezia said curious to learn about their history with Reapers.

"Yes, we never knew where they came from. We were already fighting among ourselves, then together against the flood parasite. Then these AI machines started to pop out of nowhere using devices capable of manipulating mass through dark energy" Cortana explained bringing the hologram of the mass relays.

"Those are the mass relays! But thats not possible! Mass relays are prothean technology and protheans are only like 100,000 to 50,000 years old! But if you have seen in your time, then-...by the goddess Athame, this rewrites history itself. Everyone in the current galaxy assumes these are feats of prothean engineering" Benezia said to which Cortana silently processed. She understood that the galaxy has been misled for a longtime. Her fear now is if the Reapers have started doing this again with the Flood's help after the great purification. If that was the case, then their efforts have gone in vain all these times.

"Hmm, guess the Reapers have played you all. Besides, your presence in this world was part of a genetic imprint we sowed long ago to be passed on to generations. If you are the first organic here after 480 million years, then others before never had a chance. That only means the Reapers still exists to this day, so does the Flood hive and they are threatening you" Cortana explained. Benezia now understood why she was there. It wasn't just fate that sent her down this path, but was a genetic imprint in the organics that guided her here.

"Yes, there is one Reaper now on loose, its name is Sovereign. A turian named Saren is using that Reaper ship and doing all his biddings. He was talking about bringing the Reapers back as a means of salvation. But no one is aware of this reapers and the council denies their existence" Benezia explained which turned Cortana's face visibly despondent.

"That's indoctrination. This Saren, you speak of is being used to unleash the Reapers and the Flood again. We need to hurry then. This galaxy is in danger and based on what you said, they are oblivious to it" Cortana said as she walked towards the facility and Benezia followed here.

"Wait, what are we going to do now? Besides, I still have a lot of questions! I need to know more about your history" Benezia said wondering what was gonna happen next.

"I will provide you a copy of our Codex, within this facility's archives that has complete history you seek. A warning though, some of the information might be too disturbing, so read at your own discretion. Right now, its time to wake the others" Cortana said which confused Benezia.

"Wait, others? Who are you referring to?" Benezia asked with a puzzled look on her face. Cortana stopped for a moment and looked her.

"After we purged the galaxy, we had the some of the members of humanity, forerunners, sanshyuum and the covenant, key people that fought the great war to be placed within the entropy chambers in temporal stasis in hopes that their help might might be needed by the future galaxy if the threat returns. Right now we need to wake them all up. But I have to do a routine check on this entire sphere and the outside world, need to prepare the ships and ready the weapons, move the GAIA station outside into the system's orbit. So I will be waking one super soldier to help you all" Cortana said.

"A super soldier? Who?" Benezia asked curiously though she didn't understand much. Cortana smiled before answering.

"Spartan 117, commander of the Naval special warfare" she answered.

"Do you think one soldier is enough to handle the threat at hand?" Benezia asked confused as she thought she might be getting an army to fight the Reapers.

"For now, that's more than enough. Back in our time, The Forerunners called him demon, the Flood saw him as their biggest threat, the Reapers feared him. And now-...he is your hope to stop the Reaper's arrival. Follow me inside the facility" Cortana said as she walked towards the facility's main door and her hardlight form vanished.

Author's notes: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Many more exciting chapters to come. See you all in the next chapter, Cheers!