Mass Effect - A Hero Rises Ch. 06

"VI, tell me everything you can about the Thorian," I demanded.

"The Thorian appears to be a simple plant life-form that displays surprising sentient behaviour. Through dispersion and inhalation of its spores, the Thorian is able to infect and control any local organisms, including humans. Eighty-five percent of Zhu's Hope colonists have displayed signs of infection before sensors went offline."

"Those fuckers are going to pay," I growled.

"I don't believe it," Garrus muttered.

"VI, they are purposely infecting the colonists of Zhu's Hope?" I asked for absolute clarification.

"It was deemed necessary to assess the potential of the Thorian," the VI stated.

I didn't need to hear any more, ordering the group to move out. There is no doubt we were completely pissed off, though as the lone human, I definitely, well, I let the rage flow as we mowed down room after room of geth. As there were plenty of them around, Tali made note that they definitely seemed smarter, the more networked together, the more intelligent they seemed to be. They certainly tried to entice us into more than one trap, thankfully recognising it before we stupidly walked into it.

To be honest, I was amazed we got through it all without any major injuries. Shields failed at times. Armour was marked. We did get some scratches, but no major wounds were taken. Even Tali, who I knew could be killed from any minor wound that could turn into an infection, did not hesitate for a second, though I think the fact we were fighting geth helped her overcome any fear she might have felt. As for Liara, I think after Therum, she certainly felt righteous in taking some revenge. Wrex just wanted to kill things, while Garrus was just happy to be off the Citadel.

Whenever we had a quiet moment, Tali would do some hacking, and that's when she found something interesting. She found a log mentioning an organisation called Cerberus. I'd heard of them before, though only in passing. I did know they were classified by the Alliance as a terrorist organisation, but apart from that, I didn't know much about them.

"What does it say, Tali?"

"It says that ExoGeni has sent samples to a research facility based on Nodacrux. It's in the Maroon Sea Cluster."

"Right, we are going straight there after we deal with all the shit going on here. Download whatever you can find on the server. These fuckers are going to burn."

As we moved up the tower, killing ever more geth, we noticed things on the wall, Tali finally recognised them as clamps that a geth dropship was using to connect itself to the side of the building. Following cables, we finally arrived at a workstation, and were immediately confronted by a fuckload of geth. As Tali got to work, the four of us opened fire. That's when we did take wounds. Nothing life-threatening, but it definitely took medi-gel to get Garrus and myself up and fighting again. My wound was bloody stupid, looking out of cover at just the wrong time, the bullet going straight into my shoulder. In and out, immediately using medi-gel to clear and clean it.

"You okay, Shepard?" Tali asked, hearing concern.

"Oh, hurts like fuck and I'll need to see Chakwas later, but it's fine. Medi-gel is wonderful."

The geth kept coming until I heard a loud noise, glancing back to see something slam shut before there was an enormous groan and then... a series of loud crunches above and below us, Tali reporting that the dropship was now detaching itself. We never heard it crash to the ground below, but if geth felt fear, they would now. "Kill the fuckers!" I cried. Tali joined in as we slaughtered the bastards.

"Commander! Are you there? Commander!"

Taking cover, I put a finger to my ear. "Joker? What is it?"

"Commander? Finally! Sir, the colonists have gone crazy. We're all holed up in the Normandy right now. We don't know what's going on, but whatever you've done there, something has them riled up."

"Okay, Joker. Just stay put. And, whatever you do, leave the colonists be. There are things going on here that you need to be aware of, but as I say, just keep to the ship and you'll be fine."

"If you say so, Commander. Also, keep in mind, there are plenty of geth still around. They appear to be heading your way."

"Thanks, Joker. Keep in contact. We're heading back now."

"Aye, sir."

Once the last geth hit the ground, we moved quickly, finding a stairwell and practically running downstairs, though ensuring we still checked corners, but I was confident the building was now clear. Exiting out into garage where we'd originally entered the tower and found Lizbeth, I was surprised we found her still there. She was relieved to see us, but she almost cowered as I strode towards her.

"You lied," I growled. I noticed her gulp, immediately nodding, her eyes moving from me to my colleagues, back to me. She was definitely afraid. I'll admit, I felt a little guilty, but after everything we'd discovered, I was beyond pissed off. "You'd better level with me here, Lizbeth. There's a lot more going on that you told me before and I think you do know."

She looked across us again before sighing. "May I speak to you in private?" I gestured for my colleagues to move away. Once we had privacy, she continued in a soft voice. "You don't understand, Commander. I never wanted the tests. They were innocent people. I tried to get them to stop but... They threatened me. Threatened my mother. Threatened that we'd end up just like them if we continued to interfere."

"I assume ExoGeni threatened you?"

She nodded. "Yes. That's why I had stayed behind. It was about the data, but I was trying to send it to Colonial Affairs. Someone must be made aware of what they are doing here! But, the geth arrived and cut the power before I could complete the message. I'm... I'm sorry."

I took a moment before stating, "I believe you, Lizbeth. But I think we need to have words with one of your colleagues."

She grimaced but nodded without a word, the six of us climbing into the Mako for the short drive back. The geth were putting up what I would call a last stand, figuring they were now isolated having destroyed one of their ships. Feeling rather incensed, I may have resorted to ramming Armatures over the side of the Skyway, Tali yelling at me occasionally when she needed to re-route power to the shields. I just floored it, Garrus firing the machine gun incessantly, barely able to keep up with how many he killed.

As I drove, we discussed what we had discovered. Liara put two and two together quickly. The Thorian had mind-control abilities. The geth wouldn't be interested in that, but Saren sure would be. I felt nothing but sympathy for the colonists. Here they were, trying to make a life for themselves, and instead they were guinea pigs in the interests of a corporation, doing god only knows what to them.

Slamming on the brakes once we arrived, I slid out of the Mako with pistol in hand. Jeong saw me coming, Lizbeth brushing past me, though coming to a halt when Jeong grabbed Juliana. Thankfully, she managed to put an elbow into his gut, running to her daughter. He stupidly raised his pistol towards me. I heard a shot come from behind, the bullet going into his shoulder, watching the gun fall from his hand. I stepped forward and put a fist into his gut, before sweeping his legs, his back now on the ground, stepping onto the wound for good measure as he cried out.

"I know everything, Jeong. And I mean everything."

"What do you mean, Commander?" Juliana asked.

"ExoGeni are using Zhu's Hope as an experiment. The colonists are unwitting test subjects to the mind control abilities of the Thorian. And Jeong here knows all about it. His name is everywhere. Now, Mr. Jeong, give me one good reason why I don't put a bullet in your head right now. Because, trust me on this, I'm not the only one itching to do it."

"You kill me, the colony disappears. ExoGeni want this place purged, Commander," he grunted through the pain.

I pressed into his wound, earning another cry out of pain. "And why would they want that?"

"Why do you think, Commander? We'll just get a bunch of new test subjects."

I could only sigh as, though he was an arse, considering he'd been left behind, he wasn't that important. An arse, but not worth executing. Didn't need his worthless arse on my conscience. So I removed my foot and let him sit up. "You should get that wound seen to," I suggested as I turned to my team, "Right, Joker reported in earlier that shit was going down in Zhu's Hope. Juliana, my team will head back there first, deal with any remaining geth, before investigating whatever's going on there. Give us around an hour's head start before following us."

"Yes, Commander."

"As far as I'm concerned, the rest of you are innocent in all this, or that's what I think so far. Don't do anything to change my mind, but I will expect your co-operation going forward."

"Commander, I think I speak for everyone when I admit to disgust at what you discovered." I looked around and noticed the nodding heads. "I think we were left here due to our disagreements."

Before we left, Lizbeth pulled me to the side and gave me some canisters, claiming it was an anti-Thorian gas she and a few others had been working on. "Working on it in secret," she whispered, "In case we had the chance to help them."

"Thanks. We'll put it to good use."

"Good luck."

No doubt the seven of us were pissed off in the Mako as it was unusually silent. There were only a few geth we had to deal with before arriving where we had left what felt like hours ago. It had already been a long day and, while I would have liked rest back at the colony, I had a feeling we would need to deal with the Thorian before any of us would rest easy.

Once I'd parked up the Mako and we'd gathered nearby, I gave only one order. Not a single colonist was to be harmed. I handed over a couple of canisters each, with an order to only use pistols on any non-colonist, and any colonist under the influence of the Thorian was to be taken down with non-lethal force.

Opening the garage door, we were immediately greeted by... things. I'm not sure what they were, but as we'd never seen them before, and as I was sure the Thorian knew we were coming, it was definitely something from it. Whatever these creatures were, they were tough, and our pistols barely seemed to damage them. I ordered a switch to shotguns, and that worked immediately, blasting the green things to smithereens.

"Fucking creepy fuckers," Ashley muttered.

"Any colonists we meet who fire at us, use a canister. Do NOT fire your shotgun in their direction," I ordered, hearing immediate affirmatives.

We moved carefully, letting the green creatures coming towards us before blasting them away. Any colonists we came across that did fire in our direction, we threw a canister and it knocked them out. We had to be methodical in our work, ensuring we were never swarmed by the green creatures. Exiting out into the colony itself, we threw a few canisters, green smoke filling the entire area, hearing plenty of coughing. Once the smoke cleared, we spread out, checking the colonists were still breathing while killing the few green creatures that were still alive, the smoke having killed plenty of them.

Then Fai Dan appeared, a pistol in hand. His face was creased in pain, his left hand holding his right wrist. His movements were otherwise jerky, as if he was being controlled... by the Thorian itself.

I didn't approach him but immediately stored my shotgun, taking out my pistol. I felt the presence of others to either side of me, gesturing for them to holster weapons. "Dan?"

"I tried to fight it, but it gets in your head. You can't imagine the pain... I'm supposed to be their leader. These people trust me."

"You're a good man, Dan. Don't let it beat you."

"It wants me to stop you."

"I know, Dan. But you can fight it now. Don't do what I think..."

He lifted the weapon but not towards me. Before I could even lift my weapon, not seeming to comprehend what he was doing, he put the pistol to his head and... That's when I lifted and fired. My bullet hit his hand, ensuring his pistol was aimed over his head by the time his finger pulled the trigger. Before he realised what was going on, I ran forward and tackled him as gently as possible, ensuring the pistol was knocked free before I apologised to him and knocked him out. Putting a finger to my ear, I requested medical support from Chakwas, hearing her reply that she would join us immediately.

Standing up, I turned to my team. "Fast work, Shepard," Alenko stated, nodding his appreciation.

"Just what the hell is this Thorian?" Garrus wondered, "How powerful is it?"

"No idea, but these people have probably been exposed since it was found," Liara replied, "They're probably all indoctrinated. No wonder Saren was interested in it."

I strode back and forth a couple of times before turning to my team. "Okay, I was going to suggest we break for the evening, but I'm not sleeping with that Thorian still alive. So we're heading down now. Anyone not up to it?" No-one replied. "Good. If we run into those creepy green things, do not hesitate. Once we find the Thorian, hopefully we can question it, then we kill it. Anyone disagree with that?"

"Hell no, Shepard. I'm creeped out with it just being below my feet," Ashley replied.

"While I can understand the scientific aspects, it is clearly a dangerous creature," Liara added.

"Can we burn it?" Wrex asked.

I couldn't help laugh, feeling a bit of the tension disappear. "We'll see, Wrex. I just want the bloody thing dead in the end."

The Thorian knew we were coming, and we quickly figured out that it was enormous. I mean beyond imagination. I don't think any of comprehended how such a thing existed, and little wonder that, even if only a plant based creature, it contained such power. We did receive a surprise, though. Instead of running into more of those creepy green creatures, we noticed a series of pods, and from out of one of those was dropped a green skinned asari. She looked across us before her eyes fell on me. I guess the Thorian was reading all of us somehow.

"Invaders! You every step is a transgression. I speak for the Old Growth, as I did for Saren. You are within and before the Thorian. It commands you be in awe!"

"You were an ally of Saren? Peachy."

"Saren sought knowledge of those who are gone. The Old Growth listened. Trades were made. Then cold ones began killing flesh. The Old Growth will no longer listen!"

"Geth. Fantastic," Tali muttered.

"Trust geth to fuck it up for us," I added.

"The Thorian is a piece of this world. You can kill it no more than cut the sky. Your blood will feed the ground and the new growth!"

She shimmered blue, and I was ready to fire, before a warp smashed into her chest and she disappeared over the side. "She talked too much," Liara stated to the laughter of at least a couple of us.

The next few minutes were insane. We must have descended a half dozen levels, full of those creepy green creatures, and on each level was a green asari clone. We generally dealt with her first, though the times we didn't, we certainly paid the price, as she was incredibly strong. The creepers were slow moving but strong, eventually all of us switching to shotguns to simply control the battlefield. They spat a toxin whenever they came too close, more than one of us having our shields fail and armour scarred.

As we descended, we recognised the best way to kill the Thorian. It was attached to the ruins by tentacles, so on each level, we blasted away at each node. Whenever we shot it, fluid leaked from the wound and the Thorian made noise, suggesting it was hurting.

It seemed to last forever. I could feel my forehead covered in sweat, dripping down my chest and back. Despite my own fitness, I was feeling the strain. Liara was struggling due to her biotic use. Alenko no doubt had a headache by now. Even Ashley looked worn out and she was nearly as fit as I was. I fired at what I think was the sixth tentacle attachment. When that detached, I heard what sounded like ropes snapping, stepping to the edge in time to see the Thorian simply plummet however many hundred metres below us.

Our attention was then grabbed by a squelching sound, turning with weapons raised as an asari dropped from a pod nearby. She wasn't green, so while I kept my weapon raised, I gestured for everyone else to lower theirs. "I'm free!" she exclaimed, before her eyes fell on my weapon, then my six colleagues. Any excitement was replaced by concern.

I lowered my weapon slightly before asking, "Who are you?"

"My name is Shiala. I was an acolyte for Matriarch Benezia..."

Wrong answer, or so some of my colleagues figured, as I heard weapons being readied. Shiala took a step back and I knew fear when I saw it. "Weapons down," I ordered, glancing to see everyone responded immediately.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Commander Shepard. Doubt you've heard of me. Alliance Navy and Council Spectre. Now, Matriarch Benezia... Why join Saren?"

"She joined with him to stop him from continuing along his destructive path. But... Saren, and his arguments, are compelling. Benezia could not withstand his influence. We underestimated the strength of Saren's control. We all became believers."

"How did Benezia fall under his control, almost at will?" asked Liara, "How was it so easy? Benezia is a powerful matriarch. It doesn't make any sense."

"It's Saren's warship. The one he calls Sovereign. It dominates the mind of his followers. Eventually, all are indoctrinated. It is subtle. Slowly, but surely, everyone must bend to its will."

"How did you end up in there, Shiala?" I asked, pointing to the sack she'd fallen out of.

Shiala lowered her head. "Saren needed a willing slave to communicate with the Thorian. I was then a chosen sacrifice for the alliance between the Thorian and Saren."

"What about the geth?"

Shiala tried to stifle a chuckle. "Once Saren had what he needed, he no longer needed the Thorian. He attacked because he knows you need the Cipher. He is aware of your pursuit."

"I need to know what the Cipher is. Do you know what it is, Shiala?"

"I do. Your contact with the beacon on Eden Prime has given you your vision. No doubt the visions are unclear. To understand these visions, you must think like a Prothean. Understand their existence. The Thorian has been here far longer than before the Protheans even built this city."

"So what exactly is the Cipher?"

"It's the very essence of being Prothean. You must understand a viewpoint of civilisation rising over generations. The Cipher is that knowledge. It is memory. I sensed this when I merged with the Thorian, our minds intertwining. It cannot be taught."

I knew what she was going to suggest. Without any other option, after she suggested we meld, I let her do it immediately. Liara and a couple of others raised immediate objections, but while I understood, I needed to understand the vision in my head, assuring Liara we could go through it together back on the Normandy. She apologised afterwards if it was uncomfortable, and told me it might take a little time for my mind to sort everything out.

Then it came to what I should do with her. Though she was an acolyte of Matriarch Benezia, she was clearly an unwilling servant to Saren's desires. "I feel awful about everything that happened here, Commander. And I'm also a little pissed off that I was used as a sacrifice. So I propose two things."

"And those are?"

"One, I wish to assist you against Saren and his allies, including Matriarch Benezia. She left me here to... well, quite frankly die. Therefore, any bond we may have shared has been severed. I will now serve you until Saren is dead."