Mass Effect - A Hero Rises Ch. 26

Book 2, Chapter 7 -- Horizon

*****

Grunt settled in relatively quickly. We cleared the crates out of the otherwise empty room opposite to Zaeed on the engineering level, and he was happy enough to stay there. He simply couldn't stay in the crew quarters due to his sheer size but the krogan didn't complain. Straight away, he was eager to get off the ship, ready to join my team and start killing things, ready to prove himself to me and the others. Chakwas had given him a clean bill of health.

I asked Miranda if we had any more dossiers. When I was told no, that left me scratching my head as, apart from blindly searching for the Collectors, or trying to figure out where they might strike next, I wasn't exactly sure what to do next. At least when I was chasing Saren, I had objectives and was generally given plenty of work to do by Admiral Hackett and other members of the Alliance. So far, apart from some recruitment, I had some minor jobs to do but, otherwise, I was tempted to just head to Omega or the Citadel and simply wait for news. The only problem is that, without knowing where the Collectors were, colonies like Freedom's Progress would continue to be hit and we'd only arrive after the fact. We needed to arrive somewhere either before or during, and hopefully we'd stop them in their tracks.

Thankfully, it was only two days after we left Korlus that we received news. The message didn't come directly to me. Kelly received it first, busy at my terminal as I was, I felt an arm around my waist then soft lips on my cheek before I felt her hot breath in my ear. "The Illusive Man wants to speak to you," she breathed.

"God, you even manage to make that sound erotic," I replied with a chuckle.

"Well, I thought you'd be annoyed by it otherwise. Your opinion about him is quite clear, at least."

"Where will I be speaking to him?"

"Conference room." She handed me a datapad. "Instructions to get the link set up."

"Hopefully it's news. I'm enjoying all the training. I feel like I'm still getting fitter and stronger..."

She ran a hand up my arm. "Definitely stronger, Shepard. You can certainly carry me around the bedroom with ease."

"You are rather light, Kelly." I couldn't help sigh. "Better go talk to him."

Heading through the armoury, I let Jacob know that I would be chatting with the Illusive Man. He knew exactly what it would be about. He knew I'd tell him as no doubt Miranda would already be aware of the meeting, and would probably have been told before me. I should find that annoying but I already knew the score. The Illusive Man would only tell me what I needed to know. Miranda was basically his spy within the ranks. Whether she saw herself as that, or even realised she was being manipulated like that, I couldn't exactly be sure. During our conversation, she'd proven to be surprisingly naïve about the man.

After inputting the code, the table in the conference room disappeared, stepping onto some sort of pad and after some technical magic, I could see the Illusive Man sitting in front of me, smoking a cigarette, which was a nasty habit, and holding a drink in his left hand. I couldn't see much else behind him, but the light suggested a star, something like the sun. I figured he wasn't located planet-side but on some sort of space station.

"What are you drinking?" I asked.

"Bourbon, Shepard. A tipple I'm aware you enjoy as well."

"Well, guess we share one similarity at least."

"Perhaps more, Shepard, but I am aware of your opinions. But this isn't a social call. I think we have them."

"Where?"

"One of our colonies out in the Terminus Systems, by the name of Horizon, has just gone dark."

"Gone dark? For how long?"

"Reports indicate at least a few hours. And if it's isn't already under attack, it soon will be. Has Mordin delivered the countermeasure yet?"

"He's working on it. I believe he's close to cracking it. Last time we spoke, anyway."

"Then he'd better work well under pressure, as you need to get to Horizon ASAP." When he paused, I knew, I just knew, he was going to tell me something else. "There's something else, Shepard."

"Yes?" I asked carefully.

"One of your former crew, Ashley Williams, is currently on Horizon."

"What's she doing in the Terminus Systems?"

"Officially, it's an outreach program by the Alliance. They're endeavouring to improve their relationships with the many colonial governments."

"Think that's shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted if they've only just started doing it."

"While that might be true, if they've sent Operations Chief Williams, who was one of the companions of the 'Saviour of the Citadel', then it would suggest that the Alliance is starting to take the threat seriously."

Operations Chief? So she's finally been given a promotion? She should have been at that level years ago considering her talents. But she just so happens to be at Horizon. Can't be a coincidence. The Collectors know, they know I'll be told, and it's a trap. I kept the thoughts to myself for now. I'm sure the Illusive Man would know I was suspicious already and certainly would never trust him completely. But I wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. This was the news we needed. Find the Collectors, pray that Mordin's countermeasure works, and then hopefully save a colony.

But first... "Have you notified the Alliance?"

"We have sent a warning through back-channels. They won't know it's from us. But, as you're already aware, their resources are already stretched thin. You're the only one who can get in and possibly stop the Collectors right now."

"Fair point. We'll head there straight away."

"Do what you need to do, Shepard. And good luck."

I closed the link, immediately returning to the CIC and the galaxy map. Inputting the data, I didn't have to tell Joker as it would have appeared on one of his bank of screens. "Horizon, Commander?"

"Get us there ASAP, Joker. Whatever you need from engineering, demand it."

"Collectors?"

"Exactly."

"Well, it's about damned time. Tired of hearing and reading stories about the latest abductions."

"How long?"

"Even if pushing to the max, we won't arrive until tomorrow morning, Shepard. The relay is in the same system as the planet, opposite side of the main star, but we're in the wrong position right now. It's going to be a few hours flying to make it to the nearest relay and we're going to burn fuel."

I groaned. "We need to stop?"

"Unless you want us drifting aimlessly, Shepard. And there are fewer depots out here in the Terminus. It's not something we think about while flying around Council space as there are fuel depots everywhere."

"Okay. Do whatever you can."

Mordin at least had good news for me. The countermeasures against the Collectors had been tested and he was confident it would work, though the real test would be during our mission on Horizon. I let him know that he would be on the ground with the rest of us. If the Collectors had arrived in force, I would want a similar force at my disposal. He appeared pleased that he'd be taken off the ship and able to show off other skills than those he could show in the laboratory.

Heading back to my terminal, I continued to check news about Collector attacks. There'd been a couple more after Freedom's Progress. The Alliance had only arrived in the days afterwards, reporting the same as always. An empty colony but no sign of where they had gone or who had taken them. As yet, they were not reporting any link to the Collectors, which annoyed me. Anderson had been told, and he would have fed that information through to the top brass. Why not tell everyone about what was happening so colonies and the Alliance could go on the front foot? It boggled my mind, stank of bureaucracy more than anything. Politicians likely interfering in matters that should be left to the military.

Confidence was in the air that evening at dinner, plenty of comments about how we were going to kick Collector arse and that they'd rue the day they faced Shepard and his companions in battle. These comments were from those who would remain on the ship. Those who would be beside me on the ground smiled at the fact confidence was high but we knew the situation on the ground. It wasn't going to be easy.

Kelly knew she wasn't going to be invited to my room that night, aware I wouldn't want to be distracted before such an important mission. At least she wasn't disappointed, or didn't appear to be, happily heading to the crew quarters with other members as I had one last chat with Miranda, going over the finer details regarding the next day. She agreed with everything I had to say, which was a surprise, and I headed upstairs to take a shower and at least relax for a little bit before bed.

I was woken by EDI the next morning, announcing we'd just arrived in the Iera System and that Horizon was only a couple of hours away. I headed straight downstairs to the mess, one of the first to arrive as I hoovered down my meal, joined by nearly everyone except Jack. "EDI, have you woken her up yet?"

"I have, Shepard. She told me to fuck off."

"Try again."

Silence for a few seconds before EDI reported. "I have been told that if I don't shut up, my head would be shoved so far up my arse, I'll be eating shit until Christmas."

"Fine. I'll go deal with her." I wiped my mouth with a napkin and stood up. I felt quite a few pairs of eyes on me as I rounded the partition and stepped straight onto the elevator. Gabby and Ken had been in the mess for breakfast, so it was empty of people as I headed down the stairs. Jack was covered in a thin blanket. Whether she was faking being asleep or not, I didn't care. She knew the expectations on her shoulders. I tore the blanket off her. "Up now," I ordered.

"Fuck off, Shepard."

Wrong thing to say. I'd already warned her about that. I grabbed her by the arm and hauled her out of bed onto the floor. She summoned her biotics immediately. "I'd think very carefully about what you're going to do in the next five seconds, Jack," I growled.

"Get off on ordering people around?"

"I'm doing my fucking job, Jack. And part of that job is getting people like you who can't follow orders. Don't want to follow them? I'll gladly hand you over to Cerberus."

That pissed her off even more, but the fact her eyes glistened suggested the very idea that I'd even said it had upset her. "You wouldn't?"

I took a step forward. "Don't try my fucking patience then," I growled, "EDI told you to get up as we have a mission this morning. When EDI asks you to do something, it is only after I have ordered her to relay the message. So telling EDI to fuck off is telling me to fuck off." I held up three fingers. "You get no more chances, Jack. That's three times now. One more and I'm done. Be the angry little shit you want to be, but I will not tolerate disrespect. You will follow my orders while you maintain a position on board my ship."

She glared at me, breathing deeply, her biotics still summoned, ready to attack. "I could wipe the floor with you, Shepard."

"Give it your best shot. Trust me on this, you can kill me if you want but you won't make it off the ship alive. But you kill me, you kill our only hope of stopping the Collectors and the Reapers."

She snorted. "Surprised you can fit down here with that massive fucking ego."

"No, just being honest. Council won't believe me. Alliance are useless. We're the only people doing something about it. I can't do it alone. I need help. I chose to keep you around because of your unique gifts. But if you want to throw the opportunity in my face..." I shrugged. "I won't take responsibility for what happens to you next. So, you've got two options. One, calm the fuck down, go upstairs and have some chow, then get ready for a mission. Two, try and fight me, I win, knock you the fuck out, tie you up and then I'll figure what to do with you next. But your chance at freedom is gone." I took another step forward until we were only a couple of paces apart, looking down at her. "So what's it going to be?"

"I could kick your arse. You've seen my power."

"All I need to do is get my hands around your throat and I'd snap your neck like a twig. Then I'd dump your body on the ground and forget about you within five seconds." I leaned down closer. "Really want to test me, Jack? Really want to see what I'm capable of? Think you're the only one who has committed murder? I've killed on the job in cold blood, Jack. I've got plenty of blood on my hands. What's a little more?" I stood to the side and pointed. "Get your arse up those fucking stairs right now. You've got three seconds."

I waited a breath. "Three."

She didn't move.

"Two."

She didn't move.

"One."

She moved before I got ready to grab her and do god only knows what. I waited until she was walking up the stairs before sighing with relief. What an absolute pain in the fucking arse. We'll be having a very long chat once we are back from Horizon, that's for damn sure. Following her up the stairs, I stood next to her as we ascended one level, letting her get off first as I stayed on for a few more seconds, simply to calm down. The adrenaline was flowing. I'd been very close to lashing out but I was in command and couldn't give into those sort of emotions.

I did pop my head around the partition, letting those who would be joining me that I was heading to the armoury before heading downstairs. Garrus joined me and could see we'd had a face to face. "So..."

I made a gesture with two fingers. "That close to slapping her and a lot more, Garrus."

"She'd probably enjoy it." I gave him a look as he added, "Seen her psych profile, Shepard. Doubt that woman has a loving bone in her body. She'd probably get off being slapped around a bit."

"Had no idea you thought about such things," I said as we headed off the elevator into the armoury.

"I'm not as innocent as you think I am, Shepard." He paused as he looked away. "Though Chloe certainly provides some eye opening moments."

"Oh, how so, Garrus?"

"Well, I've obviously done my research on human females, and also on human-turian relations. I know we have significant differences in practically every way imaginable. But she has really enjoyed it when I... um..."

"Just spit it out, Garrus," I said with a chuckle as he stumbled over his words.

"She seems to really like it when we make love but it's in her other... hole, so to speak."

I was busy getting into my armour and couldn't help stare. "She's into anal?"

"Yeah, quite a bit actually. Really enjoys it."

"Are you not used to it?"

"Well, no. It's not a big thing in our culture, between a man and woman anyway. We love sex but... well, generally it's pretty vanilla. But you know about our... um..."

"Jesus Christ, Garrus, are you this awkward with her? You mean you have weird cocks compared to us? Yes, everyone knows after the first few humans tried to have sex with you. Word spread like wildfire actually."

"Well, I always wonder if I'm hurting her. She says I'm not, and the thing is, when I'm done, we stay... together for a little while. It's just weird, that's all." He paused before sighing. "How the hell did we end up on that topic?"

"You were talking about Jack."

"Yeah, that's right. Um... she's certainly unique. Never seen a human with so many tattoos before."

"Me either. I'll need to go get a couple next time I'm on Omega or the Citadel. I had a couple before I died."

"Anything in particular?"

"Alliance Marine insignia and N7 emblem on one arm. A white rose with Annie's name on the other arm."

"White rose?"

"It's a symbol, Garrus. Everlasting love and eternal loyalty. Probably the main reason I'll never settle down. She was taken from me so I never had the opportunity to do it with her."

"She was the one?"

"Sometimes, I wish I'd died there with her, Garrus." I grabbed the last weapon, the assault rifle that would attach itself to my back, before adding, "But I'm not going to say I'm not glad to be alive. I live for this shit now."

He patted my shoulder. "Glad to have you back, Shepard."

"Thanks. Now, that conversation got a little deep. Let's leave it there and go kill some evil things."

"Sounds like a plan!"

The Normandy was soon in orbit of Horizon, the entire team boarding the shuttle and we were soon heading towards one of the main colonies. Checking the vidscreens, it looked like the sort of colony world that humanity had settled as it spread across the galaxy. Temperate climate. Plenty of farmland. Fresh water. Pretty much Earth but either on a slightly smaller or grander scale.

Touching down on the surface, I opened the door and stepped out, immediately noticing the Collector ship in the distance. Even from as far away as we were, it was enormous. Once the shuttle was empty, it immediately took off, and soon there was near silence. Apart from the sound of a few insects around us, it appeared to be relatively peaceful.

Taking the shotgun from my back, I gestured and we moved forward. Mordin certainly received questions about the countermeasure as we marched, and his responses were rather honest. He'd done tests but without contact with the seeker swarms, he had no idea if it would actually work. All his work was based on a theory. He seemed excited at the prospect of a live action test. The rest of the team... not so much.

Ahead lay a series of portable units, the sort that made up most colonies until more permanent fixtures were designed and built. Many colony worlds focused on agriculture, farming and producing crops for the expansion of humanity. Many would have called in an empire. In many ways, it was. But as the focus was on farming, there was mining but it was limited in scope, and focused more on the sort of metals required for the military than for civilian use.

Our first contact with the Collectors took place a few minutes later. It was the first time we got a good look at them. Ugly looking bastard. Almost like some sort of giant insect. Their weapons were definitely of a different technology, almost like beam weapons rather than firing bullets. No-one needed instruction from me as I immediately set about causing carnage, charging at the nearest Collector, slamming into it then firing, before doing the same again, this time into two of them, knocking one back, shooting the other in the head, before shooting the one on the ground.

I could hear the thump of other biotic attacks, turning to see three Collectors flying into the air, a shockwave from Jack before Miranda launched a warp into one, and Garrus timed a shot with the other. We continued moving forward, firing as we moved, most of them trying to keep up as I continued to charge. I knew there'd be plenty of Collectors ready for us to kill, and the last thing I wanted was for us to get bogged down in a pitched battle. Our numbers were still smaller than them, so we speed of movement was key, hopefully keeping them off balance.

When we ran into our first group of husks, that was all the confirmation I needed that the Collectors were agents of the Reapers. Saren was dead. The geth were not present. So how else would husks show up on Horizon? Garrus echoed his thoughts over the comm, as he was at our rear but likely finding elevation. No-one else has seen a husk before, so when we had a moment of silence, we gathered around the body of one.

"Was it human before?" Zaeed asked.

"Yeah, we ran into plenty of them before I died. Reaper technology. Very little left that would be considered human." I glanced at Mordin. "Need samples or..."

"No. Read mission reports. Saren. Sovereign. Matriarch Benezia. Indoctrination. Best we don't mess it, Shepard."