Hello again, everyone, and welcome back to my Gears of War/Mass Effect crossover.
My apologies for not updating for a few weeks. Working out how this chapter needed to go was a bit rough, plus I wasn't feeling up to it at the time. Now, though, I fully intend to finish this crossover.
After this crossover, I might be starting a rewrite of my Halo/Star Wars crossover, since I feel that it need some reworking. Stay tuned, as this story is going to be finished soon!
As always, leave a review, and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Gears of War or Mass Effect franchises. They are the respective properties and trademarks of BioWare, Electronic Arts, The Coalition, Microsoft Studios, Epic Games, 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.
Presidium
Citadel
March 20th, 2183
Marcus had to admit it; he never thought the Citadel would look so inviting after that last mission they did at Grissom. It's good to be able to unwind and relax, he thought to himself. All work and no play makes for a dull man indeed.
Looking around from the bench he was sitting at, Marcus could see the Presidium in all of it's glory. This reminds me what we were fighting for, he thought to himself. A future were we could build wonders like these, and where we could live in peace. That… that is what I am fighting for. It's always worth fighting for.
At that thought, he pulled out a small necklace that he was wearing that day. On the end was a small locket that he opened up. Inside was a picture of Anya and JD, both of whom were kneeling next to a flower plot that was just barely within the photo frame. He traced a finger down the photograph, eyes focused on it.
He was so focused on it, in fact, that he nearly didn't hear someone sitting down. Turning around, he found Garrus sitting down next to him, the Turian's eyes focused on the picture in the locket. "Who's that?" he asked.
"My wife, Anya," Marcus replied. "That young kid there's my son, JD."
"She looks beautiful, as does your son," Garrus observed.
"Yeah… she is," Marcus nodded, a faint ghost of a smile on his face. "It's people like her that remind me what I'm fighting for. Helps remind me why we're going after Saren in the first place."
"So that we can enjoy a future with our children as well," Garrus nodded. After a moment, he said, "I… I spoke with my father a few minutes ago."
Marcus cocked an eyebrow at that. Not too shabby, he thought, considering the fact that they've been butting heads, just like I did at times with my father. Still, some part of him hoped that this family reunion had gone better than his own. "What happened?" he asked.
"We talked for a while," Garrus shrugged. "While we were doing so, he asked me why I was being more… considerate than I usually was. I told him that it was because of you and your friends."
"What'd he say?"
"Nothing, funny enough. He just listened as I told him about you, Baird, Carmine and Cole, some of the horrors you went through on your homeworld of Sera, as well as how you ended up here. In the end, he remarked that you and the others were good soldiers. He was surprised when I told him about the insights that Baird shared with me, and how he shone a light on some of my faulty thinking."
"And?"
"In the end, I apologized to him for everything, for the way I acted and so on, so forth. All he asked is that, when we're done here, that I come back to Palaven so that we can heal our broken relationship, and he's right. We've been fighting each other for too long. It's time that we begin bridging the gap."
While Marcus nodded on the outside, inside he was quite happy that Garrus and his father were making up with each other. If only more people did that, a part of him wondered. Then we wouldn't be in this shitty mess. He was about to speak some more when his omni-tool chimed. Opening it up, he read the message and said, "Time to head back to the Normandy. Shepard's got a meeting with us."
"Alright," Garrus nodded. "Talk later?"
"Yeah."
. . .
Onboard the Normandy, Shepard was speaking with the Councilors, who had called him just seconds before. Seeing the worried looks on their faces, he knew that something was up. You don't look worried unless you know that bad news have come in, he knew deep down. Clearing his throat, he asked, "Is there something you need?"
"Commander Shepard," Tevos began. "We've received information that may be critical to your mission against Saren."
"I'll take all the help I can get," Shepard nodded. "What's the lead?"
"We've received an urgent message from one of our infiltration regiments in the Traverse," Valern added.
"You mean spies."
Tevos, hearing Shepard's remark, explained some more. "Spectres tend to attract attention, Shepard. They are, however, but one arm of the Council. Special Tasks Groups are often a better option for monitoring a developing situation."
"We currently have several infiltration units scattered throughout the border regions of Citadel space," Valern continued. "This particular unit was gathering intel on Saren."
"What did they find?"
"Unfortunately, the message we received was little more than static. The infiltration team must be in a situation where they can't set up proper interstellar communications. However, the message we received was sent on a channel reserved for mission-critical communications. Whatever they were trying to tell us, we know it was important. Considering your interest in Saren, we thought you might want to investigate this. Find out what happened to our team. The signal originated from Virmire."
"I'll look into it," Shepard replied.
"The Council prefers not to get involved in the specifics of Spectre activities," Tevos explained. "We only want you to be aware of all of your options, including Virmire. Good luck, Commander. We will keep you advised if we learn anything else." With that, the comm transmission faded.
Finallly, we have a lead on where Saren's at, Shepard mused. I'd best inform the others. Keying his omni-tool, he keyed a simple message. Regroup at Normandy. New Development.Closing the omni-tool, he sat down in a nearby chair and waited.
It wasn't long before the rest of the ground team showed up, entering the comms/briefing room. "Yo!" Cole smiled. "What's up, Shepard?"
"I'm kinda curious as well," Wrex nodded.
"Well, since we're all curious, I'll explain," Shepard decided. Clearing his throat, he said, "I just received a message from the Council. We have a lead on where Saren might be at."
"You do?" Garrus asked. "Where?"
"According to the Council, they got a transmission from an STG team that was also hunting for Saren. All they got was static, but the channel indicated that it was mission critical information. According to a trace, the transmission came from a planet known as Virmire."
"Virmire?" Wrex asked, then he groaned. "Ah, shit."
"You know that place?" Marcus asked.
"Yeah," Wrex nodded. "I once had to do a protection job there. Escort and retrieve; a few scientists were studying the flora on the planet. Thought it would be an easy job. Biggest mistake of my career at that point."
"What happened?" Shepard asked.
"We were ambushed by pirates," Wrex explained. "Not all of us made it out of the ensuing firefight. We lost a couple of the scientists and most of the protection team. I barely made it out alive, and I have the scars to remember that day." With that, he pulled some of his armor off and, taking his bodysuit, pulled it off his upper body.
Shepard had to admit, he'd never seen a Krogan without armor plating on, and it was quite an interesting sight. Wrex's upper body was, in certain places, armored with chitinous plates similar to those on a Turian's body, but fewer in number. They were also less overt, and between them were thick and tough brown and red scales that would protect against some of the nastiest predators out there.
It was there, just above the chest plating that helped protect Wrex's body, that Shepard saw it: three circular scars that were just below where the collarbone was at. "This," Wrex explained further, "was done to me by the current crime lord of Omega, Ara T'Loak. Three bullets in the chest. Severed the aorta and I nearly bled to death as a result. It was only thanks to one of the scientists that I survived the fight."
"I never thought you'd show gratitude for a scientist, given the Genophage and all," Shepard remarked.
"At the time, I never thought so too," Wrex agreed. "However, that day showed me that not all scientists and doctors were like the ones that made the Genophage." Putting his body suit and armor fully back on, he said, "Let that serve as a warning to all of you if we ever enter the Terminus Systems to never let your guard down. I did that day, and it nearly cost me my life. I'm sharing it because it's important now."
"Wise words," Carmine agreed. "I lost a few brothers because of things like that happening. I certainly won't forget them."
"Me neither," Marcus added. Looking at Shepard, he asked, "So, we heading to Virmire or what?"
"First, we'll finish restocking our supplies," Shepard decided. "Then we'll head out and see if we can rescue that STG team. If we find that Saren is at Virmire, we'll do what we can to bring him to justice. Everyone, dismissed."
. . .
It was around six hours later that the ship was fully restocked. After that, they began to make the journey to Virmire, located in the Sentry Omega system. Getting to the Sentry Omega system was fairly easy, since it they could get there using the primary Mass Relay system. Once that was done, it was a simple manner of finding the planet in question.
While the ship was heading to Omega, Marcus looked at the Codex entry for Virmire, and frowned immediately. Just like Shepard told us, he frowned. Virmire's right on the border of the Terminus Systems. Damn shame too. The planet looks like it would be perfect for settling.
His attention was drawn to Baird when said Gear came over and patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, Marcus. You alright?"
"Yeah," Marcus nodded. "You?"
"Doing great!" Baird beamed. "Remember when we dragged that info out of Tonn Actus when we got Wrex's armor?"
"Yeah. What about it?"
"Turns out, the Alliance sent in a team and retrieved the weapons on that planet that Tonn mentioned. Vorenus got the contract to examine them, and he's sent us upgraded versions of those weapons. We've got a new ML-150 Longspear Missile Launcher and a few other explosive toys to play with!"
"Shit yeah!" Cole beamed as he hefted out a massive contraption. Marcus, upon seeing it, immediately recognized what it was: a Mortar. In this case, though, he noticed a targeting computer, as well as what appeared to be a magazine of some kind.
"Is that a Mortar?" he asked.
"Oh, hell yeah!" Cole smiled. "We ever run into any Geth, they gonna have bits flyin' everywhere!"
"That ain't all," Carmine smiled. "Marcus, get a load of this!" A moment later, he hefted out what appeared to be a massive, shoulder mounted machine gun that had six barrels, and a long cable extending to a large ammo box. Straps on the box indicated that it was to be worn on the wearer's back.
That, however, had Baird's eyes widen. "Is that what I think it is?" he asked.
"Yep," Carmine nodded, a megawatt grin under his helmet's faceplate. "It's the new and improved Vulcan Gatling Gun. When we fire this baby up, those Geth will be nothing but scrap metal!"
"That'll be good for defending any locations we need to hold down," Marcus noted.
Just as he said this, Shepard and the others entered the cargo bay. "You guys armored and ready?" Shepard asked.
"Yep," Marcus nodded.
"Good. Marcus, you, Garrus and Kaidan will be coming with us. The rest of you will remain aboard the Normandy. Joker will land at the STG base when possible so that we can extract the survivors if necessary. Understood?"
"You got it," Cole beamed.
"Alright. Load up. We've got some Salarians to save." With that, Marcus and the others got aboard the Mako.
"Before you go!" Baird added. "Vorenus did a favor for Tai, your Varren, Marcus."
"Oh?" Marcus asked. In response, Tai came into the Mako, though Marcus spotted a major difference already. For one thing, the Varren was wearing what appeared to be an armored bodysuit specifically built around Varren physiology, with a specially designed helmet protecting Tai's head. On the armor's back was a single mass accelerator weapon, likely for self-defense.
"Not bad," Marcus noted, petting the Varren which prompted it to growl happily. "Vorenus did this?"
"Yep," Baird nodded. "Told him about Tai, and he did that. Good luck on your mission!"
"You too," Marcus nodded as the doors to the Mako's interior closed.
Keying his comm, Shepard asked, "Joker, you find that team?"
"I'm reading a signal," Joker replied. "Must be our Salarian infiltration team."
"Careful. We've got defense towers down there," Kaidan reported, seeing a readout Joker had sent to them.
"Likely anti-ship batteries," Joker agreed.
"We'll go in hot and take them out," Shepard decided. "We're in the Mako and waiting."
"Roger. I'll get you in underneath their RADAR, Commander." The ship banked slightly as it quickly zoomed in towards the ground.
Moments later, the cargo hold doors opened, and Shepard gunned the throttle. Marcus was thrown around slightly in his seat as the vehicle came to a stop. Looking through the video feed, he found that the Mako had landed in what appeared to be a large, beachside area. Rock formations chiseled out by the water stood tall and proud, while shallow pools of water formed by breaking waves surrounded the area. Sand was near each of the rock formations, along with plants that survived in the tropical environment.
"Clean drop, Commander," Joker reported.
"Stay out of range and continue evasive maneuvers until we bring those AA towers down," Shepard ordered.
"I know the drill," Joker replied. "Meet you at the camp once those AA towers are offline. Joker out." With that, the comm line went dead.
"Let's go," Shepard decided, gunning the throttle a moment later. "Did Baird work on the Mako?" he asked.
"He always works on the Mako," Garrus beamed. "I distinctly remember him calling it a 'worthless piece of shit.' Why do you ask?"
"It's a lot more responsive than before," Shepard noted. "Give him my compliments when we find the STG camp."
"I will." With that, they began to drive along in-land.
As they did so, Marcus noted the flora and fauna that were present. Hhmm… he mused internally. Reminds me of Azura, though we never had any alien crabs that were present there. He frowned as other memories of what happened at that island came to the fore. Not now, he growled at them. I've got a job to do. His musing was interrupted when he spotted something on the feed. "We've got drones!" he called out.
"I see 'em," Shepard replied. "Garrus?"
"You've got it," Garrus replied. The team heard a slight whirring sound as the co-axial machinegun went to work mulching the drones up ahead. While their barriers were strong, they weren't designed to stop rounds capable of penetrating light armor. As such, each drone was destroyed in quick fashion. "All contacts down," he reported a moment later. "Let's keep moving."
Just as they rounded the corner, they ran into more Geth drones, along with anti-tank teams. Fortunately, they were at a far enough distance to dodge the missiles fired at them, if only barely. Firing the main gun, Garrus smiled as the shell blasted apart a tight cluster of Geth Rocket Troopers. "Got you," he smirked. It wasn't long before those hostiles had been neutralized. Continuing on, they carefully scanned any area they entered, not letting their guard down for even a micro-second.
It wasn't long before they encountered a structure of some kind. As they drove, Shepard spotted what looked like a large, perimeter wall of some kind. Built into the wall were a pair of gates that were high enough for the Mako to proceed through. Those gates, though, were sealed shut, which meant they would have to get them open before they could proceed.
"Ah shit!" Shepard snarled. "Gates are closed. Marcus, I need you, Garrus and Kaidan to head out and get that gate open!"
"You got it!" Marcus nodded, nearly kicking the door to the outside world open. "Form up! We gotta get that gate down!"
With that, everyone piled out of the vehicle, but not before Garrus reached inside and pulled out a One-Shot. "Just in case we encounter an Armature," he explained to Marcus. Seeing the sense in that, Marcus nodded, with the team quickly moving up a ramp to the left of the gate.
Reaching the top, Marcus ducked into cover as a few bullets zipped his way, while Kaidan flared his barriers to protect himself. Popping out of cover, Marcus fired at a few Geth Troopers and a Saboteur that were in the area. One of the Troopers went down, while the others quickly took cover and opened fire.
Shit, he thought as he ducked into cover, noting that his barriers were going down faster than usual. They've modified their guns! Well, they had to use their brains eventually. Gotta make sure they don't get through the armor! Nearby, he heard a loud, concussive banging.
Looking to his left, he noted, to some interest, that Garrus was using a Battle Lancer, likely having assembled a spare from spare parts that Vorenus had sent with the weapons themselves. The fact that he'd decided to use one was impressive, but what made it even more so was how accurate he was with it. Garrus was firing in short controlled bursts, nailing a Geth Rocket Trooper in the head, while cutting down a couple Geth Troopers.
"LOOK OUT!" Marcus shouted as he spotted an incoming missile, knocking Garrus to the ground. He was just in time, as the missile flew directly overhead just half a second later.
"Thanks!" Garrus shouted. "I owe you one!"
"Thank me when this is over!" Marcus shouted. "Kaidan!"
"I got it!" Kaidan shouted, using his omni-tool to sap the Rocket Trooper's shields, before yanking it towards the team. Marcus, having gotten up by this point, cut the Rocket Trooper in half with his chainsaw bayonet, splattering fluid and pieces of metal everywhere.
"S'KAK!" Garrus shouted as he spotted something at the gate controls, which were in a chamber on the other side of a tunnel. "We've got an Armature!"
"Then take it out!" Marcus howled. Nodding, Garrus quickly picked up the One-shot that he'd gotten earlier and, taking cover behind a half-wall, rested it onto the half-wall and took aim. Once the reticle had come into focus, and a beeping sound was heard, he aimed at the Armature and fired.
He was just in time, as the Armature was about to fire when he did. A 50mm MAHEM warhead zipped out of the One-shot's barrel, careening down the tunnel at extreme velocity. A moment later, the tandem charge warhead smacked into the Armature, with the warheads downing the barriers in an instant. Seeing that it had withstood the first shot, Garrus fired the next one an instant later.
This time, he got much better results, with the Armature's head exploding as the MAHEM warhead did it's job. The rest of the Armature's body toppled to the ground like a sack of potatoes, while Garrus targeted the other Geth in the chamber. Those were incredibly easy pickings, with the warhead and the force of the round blasting them apart with a single hit. "All clear!"he reported. "Let's head in and get that gate open!"
"Good!" Marcus nodded, while Kadian lowered the gate. Heading back to the Mako, they quickly loaded up and continued to head along the river route. As they drove along, he spotted something big, something that made him shout, "INCOMING!"
"Shit!" Kaidan shouted. "COLOSSUS!"
"Take it out!" Shepard ordered Garrus. Garrus, spotting the threat, quickly fired off a shot from the Mako's cannon, hammering the kinetic barriers on the Colossus. It fired, sending a bolus of energy fast enough that Shepard couldn't dodge it. The bolus splashed against the barriers, though the modifications that Baird had made came into their own, as the barriers flared, but didn't shatter.
Apparently, he had helped tune the railgun as well, as Garrus' next shot brought the Colossus' barriers down to a fraction of their former strength. This time, Shepard was able to dodge the next bolus of energy, allowing Garrus to down the barriers with a third shot. Lining up a fourth shot, he blasted apart the Colossus' head, sending it to the ground. "Got him!" he shouted.
"Whew, that was close!" Shepard whistled. "Baird's mods to the kinetic barriers really held out. I've definitely got to congratulate him."
"Get in line," Garrus remarked. "That man's a real genius."
With the Colossus down, they proceeded to the next gate, where they met only token resistance before they got it open, while shutting down the AA turret that was set up nearby. "I'm reading that the grid is down, Commander," Joker reported. "On approach to the Salarian base. Out."
"We're almost there," Garrus smiled. "I can already smell that rest coming up."
"Yeah, but for how long?" Marcus asked. "I'm betting somethin's gonna happen, and we won't like it." Shepard nodded in agreement. He'd been in the military too long to think that it was going to be easy.
True enough, Marcus' prediction came true, as moments later, Joker came back in over the comm. "Normandy's touched down at the base," he reported, "but it looks like we're grounded. The Salarian captain can explain it once you're here."
"Yep," Marcus nodded. "I knew it was too easy."
"Damnit," Garrus grumbled.
"We'll find out what the problem is," Shepard decided. "Right now, let's get to the STG base and talk to their CO." Before long, they managed to reach the base.
Calling it a base was generous, at least in Marcus' opinion. It was more like a makeshift camp, with three prefabricated hard-shell tents that had been set up. There was some makeshift equipment present, but for the most part, it was very bare bones. Nearby, the Normandy was on the ground, it's landing gear having been deployed.
Getting out of the Mako, Shepard and the others spotted Ashley talking with one of the Salarians. A tall individual, the Salarian had dark brown eyes, and his skin was a green that was mottled with brown. From the way he held himself, he was likely the leader of the camp. "So, what do we do now?" Ashley asked the Salarian.
"Stay put until we come up with a plan," the Salarian replied.
Walking over, Shepard asked, "Are you in charge here? What's the situation?"
"I'm Captain Kirrahe," the Salarian replied, "Third Infiltration Regiment, STG. You and your crew have just landed in the middle of a hot zone. Every AA gun within ten miles has been alerted to your presence."
"Aw, shit," Marcus frowned. "That's not good."
"Shit. That figures," Baird frowned as he walked over. "We'll have to blast those AA guns to pieces if we're to get out of here."
"My thoughts exactly," Shepard nodded. "Any ideas on what to do?" he asked Kirrahe.
"We stay put until the Council sends the reinforcements we requested," Kirrahe replied.
"Are you kidding me?" Marcus asked, "Kirrahe, we are the reinforcements."
Kirrahe was the first Salarian that Marcus thought looked visibly shocked. "What?! You're all they sent?! I told the Council to send a fleet!"
"I understand your confusion," Shepard nodded. "We got your message, but it was only static. The Council sent us to investigate, though I feel that's a repetition of what you're doing here, if the tone of your voice is anything to go by."
"That would be correct, Commander. I've lost half of my men investigating this place."
"So, what have you found?"
"Saren's base of operations. He's set up a research facility here, but it's crawling with Geth and very well fortified."
That got Shepard's attention firmly. "Is he here? Have you seen him?"
"No, but his Geth are everywhere, and we've intercepted comm transmissions referring to Saren. This is his facility. There's no doubt about that."
"Shit," Carmine, who walked over, remarked. "We found the asshole's main base! I can't wait to beat his ugly shitbag of a face in."
"Haha!" Cole smiled as he too came over. "I can already see the headlines: The Cole Train Splatters Traitorous Spectre! This is a game he ain't gonna have fun with. WHOO!"
Kirrahe, noticing them, asked, "Are your teammates usually this exuberant, Commander?"
"Not usually," Shepard replied. "Cole is just like that, though. I take it you know of the Gears?"
"Everyone within STG does," Kirrahe replied. "Many of their exploits are worthy of their own tales. Even so, they are usually considered 'extremely dangerous.'"
"That's reasonable," Marcus remarked.
"What gets me is why Saren's out here in the first place," Baird mused. "You don't set up a base in the middle of nowhere unless you're trying to hide something. What's that little shit up to anyways?"
"An astute observation," Kirrahe agreed. "He's using the facility to breed an army of Krogan, and to perform other experiments."
Aw shit, Marcus frowned. "That's not good," he frowned. "Krogan are tough bastards to handle. An army of them would be more terrifying than even the Locust's Boomers were. What other things is he doing?"
"He's apparently experimenting with the parasitic organism you call Imulsion," Kirrahe added.
That got Shepard's attention. "Wait, back up! Are you saying that Saren's experimenting with Imulsion! What for?!"
Kirrahe frowned as he looked towards where the facility was at. "We don't know," he explained, "only that Saren has somehow acquired Imulsion and is using it in experiments. Logically speaking, I believe he's using it to try to enhance the Krogan he's breeding to even more terrifying levels."
Wrex, who happened to hear this, asked, "How is this possible?"
"Apparently, Saren has discovered a cure for the Genophage," Kirrahe surmised. "Now, he's combining those Krogan with Imulsion, likely to create supersoldiers as I said earlier. Which is why we must ensure that this facility, and it's secrets are destroyed."
Wrex, though, protested at this. "Destroyed? I don't think so. Our people are dying. This cure could save them."
"If that cure leaves the planet, the Krogan will be unstoppable," Kirrahe countered. "We can't make the same mistake again."
That got Wrex quite angry, as he walked up to Kirrahe and snarled, "We are not a mistake!", before stalking off. His entire body was quivering with barely contained rage as he did so.
"Is he going to be a problem?" Kirrahe, not intimidated in the slightest, asked. "We've got enough angry Krogan to deal with as it is."
"I'll talk with him," Marcus reassured him. "Still, he's right in that his people's not a mistake. Your kind fucked up when they failed to teach the Krogan how to live peacefully. Had you done that, you could've avoided this whole mess in the first place."
Kirrahe was about to reply, then thought better of what he was going to say. "For our sakes, I hope you are right," he said to Marcus as the latter walked towards Wrex. Looking at Shepard, he said, "Anyways, my men and I need to rethink our plan of attack. Can you give us some time?"
"Sure," Shepard nodded.
While Shepard and the others began milling around and talking, Marcus walked over to Wrex, who was shooting at fish in the water with his shotgun. I've gotta get him to see reason, he thought to himself. If I can't, then someone's going to shoot him dead, and I'd rather not have that happen.
As he came over, Wrex looked at him and said, "This isn't right, Fenix! If there's a cure for the Genophage, then we can't destroy it!"
Hearing this, Marcus considered his next words carefully. He didn't want to make Wrex angry, nor did he want to appear weak. Then he remembered some of the things that Colonel Hoffman would say whenever he was in this kind of a situation. Here goes, he decided. Walking over, he asked, "Can we talk a minute?"
Wrex appeared confused, then he nodded and walked with Marcus to another area. Once they were in private, Marcus cleared his throat and said, "Wrex, I understand that you're upset. Believe me, I've been in the same situation before, but Saren is the real enemy here. He's the one you should be angry with, not the Salarians."
"Really?" Wrex asked. "Saren created a cure for my people. You and Shepard want to destroy it. Help me out here, Marcus. The line between friend and foe is getting blurry from where I stand."
"I know," Marcus nodded. "Hell, it's gotten blurry for me more than once, but you have to remember this. Saren is using the cure as a slave collar in order to control these Krogan. If you decide to work with him, he'll enslave you, just as the Locust did to innocent civilians they captured on my world. If he gets to use it, none of us will live to reap the benefits!
"I know that it's hard. We're talking about the fate of your people here, after all, but we can't lose sight of our goal. I don't know how, but I promise you that we'll find another way to save your people, but not with them becoming tools and slaves for a madman that would see the galaxy destroyed! Is that what you want for your people, Wrex? To be turned into the mindless tools and slaves of a madman?" He let the question hang in the air.
While Wrex didn't appear to be shocked outwardly, he was shaken to his core by Marcus' words. In that moment, he thought back to what he had seen of Marcus' past, to what he'd seen the Locust do to any human beings that were innocent. By my ancestors, he realized as he reexamined the events of his life, from the time of the Genophage's deployment up to the present. Marcus is right. If I decide to work for Saren… The thought was too horrible for even him to consider.
A moment later, he put his shotgun away and said, "No, Marcus. I don't want that for my people. We were tools for the Council once, and they thanked us by neutering us. You're right, Marcus. Saren wouldn't be as generous." Rubbing the top of his faceplate, he asked, "Have I allowed my fear to overwhelm my rational mind? Have I allowed my desire to save my people get in the way of the greater good?"
"I understand how you feel," Marcus replied, patting Wrex on the shoulder. "Hell, I've had to make hard decisions like that myself, and I've had to ask the same questions. If those doubts come back, remember what you saw on my world, and that'll help."
Wrex nodded, his doubt replaced by a renewed determination. "You're right," Wrex nodded. "You've made your point, Marcus, and I would rather die than damn my people to serve a monster. Just one condition though: when we find Saren, I want his head."
"You'll get his head," Marcus nodded. "I'm sure of that." With that, the two walked away, with one having regained his determination to forge a new future for his people.
(Author's Q&A)
edboy4926: Thank you.
Just a Crazy-Man: Thank you.
IDYGOFENIKS: Don't worry. The answer to that question is in this chapter.
Blaze501st: I understand fully. The next few chapters are going to become downright dirty.
Chronus1326: Thank you.