Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to my Gears of War/Mass Effect crossover.
Thank you for all the wonderful support that I've been getting. I deeply appreciate it.
I also appreciate the ideas that you've shared with me so far. I'll definitely be putting them to good use soon.
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Disclaimer: I do not own the Gears of War or Mass Effect franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of BioWare, Electronic Arts, Microsoft Studios, Epic Games, The Coalition, etc. Any material original to the franchises belongs to their respective developers and publishers. any material not original to the franchises is of my own invention. I do not own any music listed in each chapter. Any music listed belongs to it's original composers and/or artists.
SSV Normandy
Citadel
March 8th, 2183
The return journey to the Citadel was fairly uneventful, though Shepard did note that the Gears were a little more tense than they usually were. That, and they had been through extensive decontamination due to the Council's worries over Imulsion contamination. It's not hard to see why, he thought to himself. They found a shipment of weapons that came from the Locust Horde that, somehow, ended up in our universe via wormhole. If that's the case, then it's likely that the Locust might've come over as well.
The thought hadn't been a pleasant one, and he already knew that, given the armor that the Locust wore, hammering them into the ground would be quite difficult. I've heard that Tali and Garrus, along with Wrex, have taken quite well to using the Gear's weaponry, he noted. Perhaps, while we're heading to another mission, I can learn how to use those firearms myself.
It was also the reason why he was following the Gears to Vorenus' gunshop. They had invited him along, after talking with Vorenus, who had been interested in receiving the weapons the Gears had liberated from the late Tonn Actus. I can see why they go to him, Shepard noted as he looked at firearms that were securely attached to various racks or locked inside of cases with strong locks. This guy doesn't mess around.
Walking up the steps and into the upper floors of the gunshop, the Gears soon found Vorenus, who was working on another project. "Vorenus?" Marcus asked.
Hearing them, the older Turian put the weapon he was working on down and turned towards them. "Marcus," he beamed a moment later. "It's good to see you again. I take it you've been treating the new guns well?"
"Yep. How's your friends?"
"Doing very well. All of my employees are in the best health, and business is booming." Spotting Shepard he extended a hand and said, "Commander Shepard. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"You seem well informed," Shepard noted as he shook Vorenus' hand.
"I make it a point to learn as much as I can about a potential customer," Vorenus nodded. "That way, you can satisfy their wants and needs to the best of one's ability. Still, I doubt that you, and Marcus, came all the way over here to check on this old Turian."
"Good guess," Marcus nodded. "We brought along a few new weapons from our colony for you to check out." At that, Baird pulled out the One-Shot that Cole had found, along with the Hammerburst II's and Gorgon SMG's.
"Interesting," Vorenus noted as he hefted the Hammerburst II. "No stock, but it appears to be a well built weapon. Who designed it?"
"Another colony on the same planet," Marcus replied. "We… had a few irreconcilable differences of opinion."
"S'kak," Vorenus frowned. "I guess it was too much to hope that everyone got along. Still, a very fine weapon indeed. A little bulky, but the frame feels solid, and the magazine makes a good bit of sense." Noting the swing-down magazine well, he said, "That's odd, but I can make that work."
The Gorgon Machine-Pistol, though, was a bit of a different story. Hefting it, he said, "Spirits, that's a heavy machine-pistol." Noting the odd firing mechanism, he went to the gun range and, once it was locked and his hearing protection on, fired the weapon.
Even with the sound-protection he and the others were wearing, Shepard could still hear the loud report of the weapon. Vorenus, though, seemed to frown, before he unloaded the weapon and, with a little help from Baird, reloaded and fired again. "Interesting," he noted at the test. "I thought I could feel something moving around in there. Can you explain that?"
"Certainly," Baird nodded. "I studied these weapons, so I can explain. The Gorgon's a funny pistol. For one thing, it uses a hydraulically loaded spike to work the action. You fire eight rounds, and then it locks the mechanism. You have to pull the trigger to fire the next set. Also, as you noted, when you reload, the mags have to be folded up and locked in place again to fire properly."
"I see," Vorenus noted. "That seems unnecessarily complex to me. A historic Glock 18C could easily do the same thing, but with significantly reduced mechanical complexity." Picking up the Hammerburst II, he test fired the weapon as well.
This time, though, his opinion of the Hammerburst II was much different than that of the Gorgon Machine-Pistol. "Much better," he noted. "The weapon's six round burst was a little odd, but certainly useful in close to medium range engagements. The magazine size of 30 rounds, though, is a bit odd. I'll see if I can boost that. Beyond making it less bulky, and the addition of a stock, this looks like a solid weapon design. Now, how about that big gun?"
"Here," Cole replied, hefting the One-Shot. "Be careful. It's got a hell of a kick."
"Good thing I've got a big guy to help out," Vorenus nodded. Putting two of his fingers into his mouth, he blew hard. A shrill whistle came from his mouth, which was soon followed by the sound of footsteps approaching them. A moment later, a large Krogan with a dark brown headplate and brown eyes walked inside. "Gentlemen, this is Tonarg, my Heavy Weapons Specialist. He specializes in manufacturing and using heavy weaponry."
"Gentlemen," Tonarg nodded.
"Damn!" Cole beamed. "That's one big-ass guy!"
"Same can be said of you," Tonarg remarked. Sniffing the air, he said, "Y'all have been through a lot, haven't you?"
"Yep," Marcus nodded.
"Alright. That's fine with me. Shows that some of you know how to fight, especially given that armor and weaponry." Turning to Vorenus, he asked, "So, what have you got for me?"
"This," Vorenus replied, hefting the One-Shot.
Tonarg whistled. "Interested," he mused, before picking up the weapon. "Heh, now that's a hefty gun. What kind of ammo does this thing fire?"
"20mm rounds," Baird explained. "It's a recoilless rifle. We typically used it for neutralizing heavy infantry or lightly armored vehicles. The handgrip that's on the right side is also for reloading the weapon. Just crank it a few times to load the weapon."
"Alright," Tonarg nodded. Doing just that, he heard a satisfying click as the new round was loaded. Before he fired, though, he waited until Vorenus put up a thick metal plate on the other side of the firing range. Once he was clear, and the others had cleared the backblast area, Tonarg fired.
There was a loud KRA-THOOM as the One-Shot fired. Thanks to be a recoilless rifle, the weapon, and Tonarg, didn't budge an inch. A flash of fire erupted from the barrel, with a similar jet of fire extending back behind them, scorching the back wall. The thick metal plate rang like a gong as the 20mm round impacted and penetrated it, smacking it against the wall.
Torneg fired it four more times before leaving the weapon unloaded and standing up. "Now that is a powerful gun," he noted. "I could feel it from the way it vibrated when I fired. That metal plate didn't stand up too well." Looking at Vorenus, he asked, "How far did it penetrate?"
"Let me see," Vorenus replied as he scanned the weapon. "S'kak! It penetrated roughly 150 millimeters into the metal plate! Now that is what I call firepower!"
"Definitely," Torneg nodded. "This would be useful against the Thresher Maws that live at Tuchanka." Turning to Marcus, he asked, "You want an upgraded version of this?"
"Yep," Marcus nodded.
"Good thing Vorenus brought me along," Torneg smiled. "I'll definitely upgrade this guy, while Vorenus will redesign that rifle I saw him testing out on the video feed." For some reason, Marcus had a feeling that the 'upgrades' in question were going to make quite a powerful difference.
. . .
The next few days were spent getting some errands done, before Vorenus and Torneg informed them that the new weapons were ready. They were about to head out when Shepard was contacted by Admiral Stephen Hackett. Pulling up the call in the comm room, Shepard asked, "Admiral, there something you need?"
"We've got a situation and you're the only one that can handle it," Hackett replied.
"What do you need, Admiral?"
"There's an Alliance training ground where we test weapons and technology in live-fire simulations," Hackett explained. "One of the VI's we use to simulate enemy tactics in the drills is no longer responding to our override commands. It's gone rogue."
That had Shepard worried, and with good reason. Clearing his throat, he asked, "Are you telling me it's thinking on it's own? I thought that couldn't happen."
"We're not stupid, Shepard," Hackett replied, a hint of irritation in his voice. "Though I do understand why you ask. This is a Virtual Intelligence, not a true AI. It's not self-aware, and it can't access any external systems. We didn't do anything illegal here.
"Virtual intelligence support is critical to our military success. VI's process thousands of status reports and react in nanoseconds. No human can do that. We need you to fight your way through the training ground to the VI core and manually disable it."
"And you can't disable it remotely, yes?"
"Correct. Our failsafes aren't responding. The VI is operating on a closed network. It can't affect any external systems, but we don't have any direct access to it's processes. We could bomb it from orbit, but the damage to the facility would be catastrophic. We'd prefer to have someone manually shut down the core. Someone like you. I know Spectres answer to the Council, but you're still human. You're still part of the Alliance military, and right now we need you."
Shepard thought to himself for a few seconds. He's right, he decided. Taking the VI offline will prevent further casualties and stop unnecessary loss of life. In addition, the Council will have a fit if they learn about this incident, and we can't afford that kind of backlash. Nodding to himself, he said, "I'll get it done, Admiral."
"Good," Hackett beamed. "I knew I could count on you, Shepard. The VI controls all of the facility's weapons, drones and automated defenses. You're the only one who can pull this off. Good luck."
"Same to you," Shepard nodded. As soon as the transmission was out, Shepard keyed the 'com and said, "Joker, once we're undocked from the Citadel, I need you to have Garrus, Baird and Tali head to the comm room. We've got a new mission to handle."
"Aye aye, Commander," Joker nodded.
Around four minutes later, Baird, Garrus and Tali were in the comm room, each one of them fully suited up in case something happened. "So, what's going on?" Baird asked. "I've got the feeling that you wouldn't have all three of us if this wasn't a tech problem."
"Good guess," Shepard nodded. Clearing his throat, he said, "I received a transmission from Admiral Hackett around four minutes ago. According to him, a training VI at Luna, Earth's moon, went rogue and killed a few Marines before they realized what went wrong. They could bomb the facility, but they'd rather have the site intact."
"It's gone rogue?" Garrus asked.
"That's impossible!" Tali frowned. "A VI isn't self-aware. They're not designed to do that."
"Well, this one did become self-aware, if what Shepard's saying is true," Baird frowned. "Reminds me of when Marcus and Dom had to deal with Niles, a semi-sentient computer program at the New Hope Research Facility. We just gotta do what we did there: find the power switch and pull the plug, or wreck the actual computers themselves."
"Good thinking," Shepard nodded. Pulling up a map of Earth's Moon, he continued speaking. "According to the layout Hackett sent to us, the facility is located here, at a small plateau near Lacus Verus." Zooming in on the area, he pulled up a map of the facility that Hackett had sent them. "According to the layout, the VI has three main areas where each Core is located at. We need to either shut them down, or destroy them, in order to disable the VI."
"Has the VI taken over weapon systems?" Tali asked.
"Yes," Shepard nodded. "The VI has taken over the drones, weapon systems and automated defenses at the facility. We'll need to shut those down as well."
"Well, it's a good thing we've got me coming along," Baird beamed. "Just give me a few minutes in there, and I'll have either one of those places taken down."
"No need to be cocky," Garrus frowned. "Teamwork's going to help out here."
"I know."
"Enough," Shepard chided them. "Joker's set a course for the facility. "We'll be there in about two hours. Get your gear collected and put together, then once we arrive, meet me in the cargo hold." As he walked away, he said, "Also, we've got a special guest coming aboard. Nihlus is coming on this mission, and any others we receive."
"That's good to hear," Baird smiled. "I was wondering what he'd been doing all this time."
"From what I recall, he was pursuing some of Saren's contacts in the Terminus Systems," Shepard explained. "Either way, it'll be good to have him on the team." With that, he left for his quarters, while the others got ready for the mission.
. . .
Two hours later, as expected, they arrived at the Sol System, before quickly making the flight towards the Moon. Inside the cargo bay, Baird and the others were getting ready for the mission. Once his armor was in place, Baird decided to take a look at the new Hammerburst II, or the M-40 Hammerburst as Vorenus was calling it.
Compared to the older weapon, it was much less bulky than before, courtesy of the use of lighter and stronger materials. The weapon, like the Battle and Assault Lancers, retained the standard configuration, but the weapon now had a stock. The mechanical magazine guard had been replaced with a fixed magazine guard, and the weapon now had a rail system that allowed for the mounting of optics. Finally, the weapon's six round burst had been kept, thought to accommodate this, the magazine capacity had been dramatically increased.
Fitting the weapon onto his back, he made sure he had enough ammunition to last the entire engagement before making sure his other weapons were ready. Hearing footsteps approaching, he turned to see Nihlus walking towards him. "Nihlus," he beamed. "Long time no see. It's good to have you aboard again."
"Same here," Nihlus nodded. Looking Baird up and down, he said, "Hhmm, not bad. You've certainly upgraded your gear. I'm surprised you're sticking to older weapons, though."
"Well, as they say, you can't beat the classics," Baird shrugged. "Besides, the new guns are pieces of shit. I much prefer my older weapons."
Nihlus chuckled at that. "I understand completely. Heard about some of the upgrades the four of you made to your weapons. Caseless ammo and overhauled armor plating? Nice stuff, if you ask me. Maybe I can learn to use some of that eventually."
"Eventually," Baird agreed. Moving towards the Mako, he boarded it with Nihlus, just as the others came over and got inside.
"Joker, we're good to go here," Shepard said into the mike. "What's our ETA?"
"Five mikes," Joker replied. "I'll drop you off about three clicks from the facility. You'll drive the rest of the way on foot."
"Roger that." Just as Shepard said this, the cargo hold doors open, with mass effect fields keeping the atmosphere inside of the ship. Gunning the throttle, he drove the vehicle out, before using the jump jets to bring them to a slow and safe landing.
As they landed, Baird looked at the video feed. To him, Earth's moon was a barren wasteland; a hostile and lifeless world that seemed to have a foreboding feel to it. The landscape was a grayish color, like certain types of concrete or sand that he'd seen before. The sky, or lack thereof, was a pitch black color, and with the sun shining overhead, it looked empty of stars.
What caught his sight was the planet that was hanging above them. Compared to the dull, monochrome moon, the planet was vibrantly colored. Looking at it, Baird noted the dazzling blue oceans, the brownish-green continents, and the large wisps that were obviously clouds. That's Earth, he realized as he looked at the orb of blue-green that rested in the void. Certainly as pretty as Sera, before we fucked over our world.
"Here we are," Shepard beamed as he began to drive the Mako towards their destination. "This was the first planetary body that Humanity set foot on, around two hundred and fourteen years ago."
"Really?" Garrus asked. "According to your calendar, that would be around 1969, if I recall correctly."
"That's a long time," Nihlus noted.
"It is," Shepard nodded. "While we were heading to Earth, I pulled up a few images of what it was like back then." Pulling out a photograph, he said, "This is what the interior of the Lunar Excursion Module looked like." He handed it to the others a moment later.
Seeing the photograph, Baird was quite surprised by what he saw. Rather than the fancy consoles and controls of the present, he found that they had to work with dozens of gauges, switches, and were likely using notepads and slide rulers. They made it to the Moon with that, he wondered. Damn, that's impressive.
Nihlus and Garrus were even more impressed. "By the Spirits," Nihlus whistled. "That is very much a showcase of Human ingenuity."
"I agree," Garrus nodded. "How'd y'all pilot that thing?"
"Slide rulers and the first third generation digital electronic computers," Shepard explained. "The Apollo Guidance Computer, which was installed on the Command Module and LEM, was one of the first computers making use of IC's or Integrated Circuits for short. The computer in there has just a tenth of the processing power that an omni-tool today has."
"Spirits," Garrus whistled. "The fact that your species made it to the Moon and back with that kind of technology is impressive. None of the other races, if I recall, have made similar advances like that. How'd you manage it?"
"I don't know," Shepard replied. "I can say, however, that when Humans are determined to get something, they find a way. Just look at people like Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Alan Turing, Richard Feynman, or Albert Einsten. They helped shape what Humanity is today, even after they were long dead and gone. To use an old adage we have, 'where there's a will, there's a way.'" With that, he continued driving, while the others mulled over the information they'd just heard.
Eventually, they came to what appeared to be a trio of bunkers on a plateau up ahead, with each bunker shaped like a flat-topped dome, while a small hallway and door protruded out of each one, likely an airlock. Peering over the rise of the hill, Shepard frowned when he spotted a pair of automated turrets on each of the hills. "Looks like we're going to have to destroy those turrets before we can get close enough to get inside," he decided. "Garrus, you have the gun."
"Yes sir," Garrus nodded. Moving to the front of the Mako, he quickly manned the gunner's seat. "Good thing I calibrated this beforehand."
"Is it me, or are you obsessed with calibrations?" Tali asked.
"He is, but it's necessary in this case," Baird explained. "I've had to 'calibrate' this fucking vehicle after every mission. Stupid piece of shit if you ask me. When this is all over, and we're tidy again, I'm going to found my own company and make shit that actually works!"
"You have a name for it?" Nihlus asked.
"Yep!" Baird beamed. "I won't tell you, though. Don't want to spoil the surprise, after all." Just as he said this, Garrus opened fire on one of the turrets. While the barriers on one of the turrets flared, it held, with the turret firing high velocity missiles.
Fortunately for the team, the terrain worked in their favor this time around. The Mako was resting on the top of an incline, allowing Shepard to pull back and avoid the missiles. He couldn't dodge all of them, as a few smacked into the barriers and detonated, but he was able to avoid the majority of them, much to the team's relief.
As such, while it was quite tedious, they were able to neutralize all of the turrets. "Alright," Shepard beamed. "They're down. We're going to split up into squads of two, though Nihlus gets to go with one of the teams. I'll take Tali to the first bunker. Baird, Garrus, you handle the other. When we're done with those two, we'll move inside of the third bunker and destroy the VI Core. Understood?"
"Got it," Baird nodded. "So, Nihlus, who you going with?"
"I'll go with you," Nihlus replied. "I'm interested to see how your gear works. Plus, you might need the extra firepower."
"Good idea," Baird nodded. "You sure you and Tali can handle yourselves?"
"Yes," Shepard nodded. "We'll take it slowly and carefully." With that, they made sure their armor was sealed and their helmets on and tight before stepping outside. There was a loud WOOSH as air escaped, then pure silence.
For the first time in a while, Baird understood just how silent a vacuum was. While the Moon had a tenuous atmosphere, it was so thin that it was practically nonexistent. The only sounds he could hear came from vibrations as he moved around, as well as the sound of breathing. He also felt much lighter, with a single step propelling him forwards by a considerable amount.
Moving to the first bunker, he waited for Garrus and Nihlus to catch up, then he opened the airlock's outer door and went inside. Once they were all inside, he closed the outer door, with the interior repressurizing a moment later. Once full pressurization was complete, the inner door opened, and the light gravity of the Moon was replaced by a full G. "Nice to feel normal again," Baird noted.
"Agreed," Garrus nodded. "I felt so light that a single step could launch me into orbit."
"Same here," Nihlus agreed. "Either way, we have a rogue VI to deal with. Baird, I know from your dossier that you have experience leading a fireteam. Orders?"
"You and I will take point," Baird decided. "We're the muscle of this operation, so we can take a few hits. Garrus, you'll provide support. Once we're at the VI Core, we'll blast it, or them, apart. Any questions?"
"No."
"Then let's go."
With that, the three man fireteam advanced forwards, weapons at the ready. Moving through a room, they passed a few power junctions and some crates. Entering a hallway on the left, they slowly advanced forwards, with Baird stopping and raising a fist.
Looking at his motion tracker, he spotted a large red blob of contacts. According to the computer, there were likely two dozen drones inside, which meant they had to draw them out. Using a few hand signals, he had Nihlus stack up on the door with him, while Garrus got ready to open the door. Clenching his hand into a fist after a short countdown, he watched as Garrus opened the door, while he leaned out with Nihlus, rifle at the ready.
As soon as the door opened, gunfire rang out. Garrus was just in time to avoid a few shots before he got behind Baird. Spotting a drone, Baird fired his M-40 Hammerburst. The rifle roared as six rounds spat out of the muzzle, with the muzzle brake installed helping him wrangle the weapon under control. Four of the six rounds landed on an Assault Drone, blasting it apart, while the other two hit a Rocket Drone, knocking it about and keeping it from firing.
"Overload out!" Garrus shouted, firing off the program from his omni-tool. There was a bright flash of sparks as the barriers on three drones went out like a light, with Nihlus firing and destroying them with his rifle, a Katana IX. Baird, focusing on another pair of drones, fired the Hammerburst again, blasting part one, though the other quickly ducked behind cover.
"Pull back to the door behind us!" he shouted. Nihlus, realizing that Baird intended to use the hallway as a chokepoint, immediately complied, with Garrus and Baird following quickly after. The drones, following their programming, quickly followed, only for the trio to blast each one apart.
A few minutes later, all of the drones were terminated. Moving up quickly in case anymore came, Baird and the team quickly cut through the main room of the bunker and towards the door on the other side. Clearing the hallway, they found that it split into two paths, each one leading towards a VI Core room. "Start tearing shit up!" Baird ordered.
With that, they fired on each one, blasting apart servers and other computer equipment. As he fired on the first one, Baird spotted a message on his HUD. ALERT: Toxic Gas Detected. Sealing Suit Systems. A moment later, he heard his suit's life-support systems engage.
As he blasted apart the second one, he heard Shepard over the comm. "Baird, we just detected toxic gas. Was that you?"
"Yep," Baird nodded. "We're destroying the first VI Core. You OK?"
"Doing fine," Shepard replied as the sound of gunfire came over the comm. "We're having to lure the drones into a chokepoint. Tali nearly got injured when we breached the room, but I've given her medi-gel for any wounds that she has. Keep it up, though! The VI's getting disorganized."
"Good," Baird nodded. "Nihlus, Garrus, what's your status?"
"Just got rid of the last VI Core," Garrus replied. "We're all good here. Let's get out of here."
"Don't have to tell me twice." With that, they made their way back to the entrance to the bunker. Baird was just about to step through the door when he found himself being hurled ass over teakettle towards Nihlus, who was promptly bowled over. When he saw the source of what happened, a kinetic barrier that had deployed before him, he growled, "Oh, that's bullshit!"
"The VI's deployed kinetic barriers," Garrus frowned as he helped the two up. "Any ideas?"
"I have one," Nihlus snarled. Raising his rifle, he fired at the kinetic barrier, before there was an audible popping sound. "Barrier down," he reported as his rifle vented. "Time to get out of here."
. . .
As soon as they stepped outside, they waited for Shepard and Tali to emerge from the other bunker. When they stepped out, Tali had a slight limp, though she was still more than capable of moving. "You OK?" Garrus asked Shepard.
"We're fine," Shepard replied. "Tali took a hit, but I got her patched up. I got a bit dinged up as well. How about you three?"
"I'm fine," Garrus beamed. "Nihlus took a hit to his armor, but he's OK. Baird took a few hits as well, but no penetration into his armor."
"Good," Shepard beamed. "Expect extreme resistance on the next bunker."
"Copy that."
. . .
True enough, the final bunker was the most difficult of the trio. As soon as the inner airlock door opened, the five man squad found themselves being fired upon by Assault Drones. This time, though, the combined firepower of the group was able to tear through those drones, though they had to quickly get inside. "How many more of these fucking things are there?" Baird asked.
"You really want to know?" Shepard frowned. "Dozens."
"Oh… bollocks," Baird snarled.
"Tell me about it," Tali frowned. "I'm doing good, but I really need to make sure that I don't get an infection from this mission. That would be insulting."
"We're almost there," Garrus beamed. "We just have to neutralize these last drones."
"You guys want to hear a prediction?" Baird asked.
"NO!" the others replied.
"We're going to be facing a shitload of drones on the other side of that hallway. Watch." Moving up, the team quickly reached the other side of the door, after shooting through the kinetic barriers. Reaching the door, Shepard had Tali pop it open.
Just as she did so, bullets rang out, with a few bouncing off her barriers. Leaning in and firing, Shepard found nearly four dozen drones inside of the room, with half of them being Rocket drones! "More like ten shitloads!" Shepard shouted as he opened fire with the others. "Remind me not to have you make predictions, Baird!"
"Deal!" Baird nodded as he fired at the drones, the Hammerburst roaring in his hands. The firepower presented was so much that they pulled back to the entrance to the hallway, using the same tactic they had used at the other bunkers. That allowed them to manage the tide of automated defenses being hurled at them.
Once there were few enough drones, they surged forwards, running as fast as they could towards the other end of the bunker. "Here we go," Shepard frowned as they entered the VI Core rooms. "Take them out! Nihlus, Baird, you two cover the doors!"
"On it!" Baird replied.
"Incoming!" Nihlus shouted as the VI activated more drones. Without another word, both men opened fire on the incoming drones, blasting each one apart after wearing down their barriers.
Just as they did so, Baird roared as a peal of white noise echoed inside of his helmet. He nearly tore his helmet off, barely stopping himself when he remembered that the air was poisoned by toxic chemicals. A moment later, he watched as a series of 0's and 1's flashed onto his HUD. His mind automatically cross-referenced them with information in his brain. When done, he realized what the VI was saying: HELP.
A moment later, the sound came to an end, replaced by intense tinnitus that slowly wore off. Working his jaw to clear his ears, Baird winced. "You guys alright?" he asked.
"Yeah," Shepard replied. "That was fucking loud."
"Tell me about it," Garrus winced. Shepard felt sympathy for the Turian. Given that Turian ears were more sensitive to sound than Human ears, it must've felt like someone was using a jackhammer on his head. "I think I'll check with Chakwas after we get out of here.
"Good idea," Shepard nodded. Looking at Baird, he asked, "What was that coding for?"
"I know what it was," Baird replied. "It was a distress call from the VI. All it said was 'help.'"
"Why would a VI ask for help?" Tali asked.
"No idea," Nihlus frowned. "Still, the mission's complete. Let's get out of here."
"Don't have to tell me twice," Shepard nodded as he and the team left.
(Author's Q&A)
edboy4926: I might explore that in the sequel to this story.
OmegaDelta: Oh the Locust will have a hard time if they've survived. The best cure for the Locust problem: send in Delta Squad.
Dark Lord Xenahort: Maybe. I think I might explore that idea.
Nitro54: We'll be seeing that in the sequel, I think.
THATs1I3ntGUY: Food for thought.
GodzillaMaster: Yep.
Beowolf 43: I don't know. Good question.
Guest: I see. Interesting idea.
CommandantCo: Don't worry. That'll happen soon.