Mass Effect - A Hero Rises Ch. 40

"Find him. Kill him."

Chloe knew he killed. He hadn't taken many lives while working for C-Sec. But he'd killed plenty while alongside Shepard. He'd killed even more on Omega. And he was still killing with Shepard again. Very few if any of the deaths rested on his mind for long. They were criminals, the enemy, the unworthy. He wasn't sure if anyone actually deserved death, but if someone was trying to kill him, he'd make sure the bastard firing at him died in return.

"If you think that is best, Garrus, then I will agree with you."

"You don't think..."

She handed him a mug of coffee as she stood just in front of him. "He betrayed you, Garrus. To many, that would make him a traitor. Even on Earth, traitors, those who commit treason, are put to death, even to this day. There is no more heinous crime someone can commit. The only question I have is, are you sure?"

"He was the only one not among the bodies. He was the only one not there fighting when Shepard arrived. It was him. An eye for an eye, Chloe, though he is responsible for ten lives. I will take only the one. After that, those who fought and died alongside me will rest easy."

"Are you taking care of it today?"

"I sent a message to Shepard earlier. We'll meet later this morning and handle things from there."

"Will you back tonight?"

"Of course, though Shepard won't want to remain on the Citadel for too long."

"If you come by the surgery once your job is done, we'll at least grab a little bite to eat before returning here. Would you like that?"

"I'm sure I won't be great company."

"You'll still be with me, Garrus. That's more than enough at the moment."

He finished his coffee and hugged her tightly against him. He still didn't know what she saw in him sometimes. Turians and humans were different in nearly every way imaginable. He was silent and gruff most of the time. She loved to talk, and he loved listening to her. But even being intimate proved challenging, though when he watched her ride him, seeming to enjoy every second, as he tried to be as gentle as possible whenever touching her...

"I love you," she whispered.

"And I you," he whispered back. And he meant it. He'd had a string of girlfriends while on the Citadel, but none of them lasted long. Most found him too sullen, too quiet, too serious. For some reason, Chloe seemed to look past the exterior and figured he was worth it.

With a last peck on the cheek, he headed out into the madness of the Ward and straight back to the Normandy, where Shepard was waiting by his desk, Kelly alongside him at her own. He was already dressed in his armour, though clicked off his screen and followed him into the armoury.

"What's the plan?" he asked.

"I meet a contact. His name is Fade," Garrus replied as he started to assemble weapons on the bench. Trusted sniper rifle, assault rifle, pistol, "I talk to him, I'm given the location of Sidonis."

"Okay, then what?" Garrus met his eyes. Shepard returned the look. "Don't want to be heading in blind here, Garrus. Know what you want to do. Backing you one hundred percent. But we don't know if this Sidonis will be alone or will have a bunch of people looking after him."

"He's on the run, Shepard. He fled Omega and I hope he can feel my hot breath on his neck as we close on him right now. There is nowhere in the galaxy he can run to. We will find him, Shepard, then I'm going to put a bullet in his head."

"How do you know this Fade has the information you want?"

"Sidonis has been seen with him. An old friend has kept an eye out for me."

"Is it just the old Shepard and Vakarian show?"

He nodded. "I'd prefer that, Shepard. This is personal. Intensely so. I don't really like the idea of even you being involved, but I am turian enough to admit I also need help in this."

Shepard picked up a couple of weapons, giving them a once over, before gesturing he was ready. "Let's get to it then."

As the pair headed out into the Wards yet again, Garrus suggested something that did surprise Shepard. That they should head to C-Sec and speak to Bailey. While he knew about Fade, he didn't know where he was, and figured C-Sec would have a good idea. Bailey wasn't surprised to see the pair of them again. Garrus hadn't worked with Bailey but knew of his reputation. Generally by the book, clever investigator, and hated corruption.

And he knew where to go looking for Fade, which is exactly what he wanted to hear. That's how, twenty minutes later, he and Shepard were in a warehouse, face to face with a volus who both would have known would not be Fade. And, if it was, it certainly wasn't either of them had expected. The two krogan bodyguards would have been a concern until one recognised Shepard, and they were immediately compliant. Word of what happened on Tuchanka with the thresher maw had apparently spread even to the Citadel.

Realising his bodyguards were useless, Shepard expertly leading them away and talking about life on Tuchanka, that left the volus alone with Garrus. He didn't have to get physical, he could do intimidating as well as any other turian. And the volus caved quickly, admitting he wasn't Fade, naturally, but that he worked for him. When asked for the information he needed, the volus couldn't have been more co-operative, eagerly sending information by omni-tool to his own.

Telling the volus to piss off, Shepard shook hands with the two krogan, the pair following out the volus, as Garrus read over the information. "Shit, this could be interesting, Shepard. Blue Suns have set up quite the little operation out of the factory district. And it seems an old friend of ours is heading it. Harkin."

"Name's familiar."

"We dealt with him a couple of years back, during all that nonsense before you became a Spectre. Anyway, I was aware he was fired, gross misconduct, but he left with all the knowledge learned over the years, and it seems he's changed sides now."

"We're going to need back up now, Garrus. We can't do the old one-two against an entire operation."

He nodded. "I agree. Zaeed? He'd love killing Blue Suns. Grunt, simply for the muscle. And Jack, biotic power and I'm sure she still has a bone or two to pick with them after Purgatory."

Shepard put the calls through, the three agreeing to join in, of course, and they all gathered half an hour later. The warehouse noted by the volus appeared quiet, and making it inside was child's play, Garrus managing to hack the lock easily. But once inside, they knew it was going to be a fight, as there were Blue Suns mercenaries everywhere.

"Any sign of Harkin?" Shepard asked.

Garrus put the eye to his scope and search possibilities. "If he's anywhere, it's the office at the rear."

So that's where the five of them headed, and the warehouse floor became a killing field. The first few Blue Suns didn't know what hit them. Shepard charged in a ball of blue biotics and disappeared, Jack following behind, a shockwave sending a trio of mercenaries into the air, Grunt and Zaeed moving forward at least a little more carefully.

As for Garrus, he looked for elevation and set to work. Getting comfortable, eye to the scope, and he methodically put a bullet into the head of anyone in his sights. In a warehouse, he didn't have to adjust for things like wind conditions. It was a simple case of aim and fire. Even he grew bored of that, though, keeping an eye on the office. Looking through the glass, now he could see Harkin, bellowing orders into a microphone. It didn't seem to be connected to any speakers, so must have gone directly into the earpieces of the mercenaries. The only reason he didn't shoot Harkin is that he needed him alive... though that didn't stop him blowing out the glass windows, giving him a fright.

Storing his sniper, he took the assault rifle from his back and joined the other four, passing by numerous dead bodies as he caught up with them. The Blue Suns sent mechs in their direction, which was almost laughable, though a pair of the bigger mechs, the YMIR heavies, did cause a few moments of concern. With no heavy weapons, they had to focus on disabling shields first, and none of them were experts at that. Still, Garrus could eventually disable them long enough for Jack to really prove her power, sending such a shockwave that it even blew the mechs over. Shepard charged forward, unloading shotgun blast after shotgun blast, Grunt joining in to prevent the two mechs from getting back up.

There was a last line of defence, but it seemed the mercenaries knew they were going to die. None of them tried to surrender. He certainly wasn't going to accept it, nor would Zaeed, and he figured Shepard would laugh, tell them to piss off, then shoot them. Approaching the office door, they formed to either side, Shepard opening it and Harkin fired a pistol.

"Harkin, drop the pistol or we will come in there and kill you."

"I know that voice... Commander Shepard?"

"You bet your arse it's me. So, throw the weapon down, kick it this way. Or we walk in and shoot. Trust me, our shields will take at least two shots and I won't need more than one to deal with you."

No doubt Harkin gave it some thought before there was the clatter of a pistol thrown, looking down to see it slide outside past them. Shepard immediately moved forward, shotgun raised, Garrus following in right behind, rifle raised. Shepard went straight for Harkin, who immediately lifted his hands, though that didn't stop Shepard putting the butt of the shotgun into his gut. Harkin crumpled to the ground, and he wasn't exactly sure what stopped Shepard giving him a good kick. "I don't appreciate mercenaries shooting at me, Harkin. Particularly when under the orders of pieces of shit like yourself."

Storing his shotgun, Shepard lifted Harkin up and then threw him at Garrus. Storing his rifle, Garrus simply grabbed the human by the throat and threw him against the wall. "I will ask you only once, Harkin. Where is he?"

"I don't what you're talking about!"

He put a fist straight into his gut, probably the same place Shepard had put the butt of his shotgun. Lifting him by the back of his collar, he made sure to slam his head against the wall. He feigned a sigh. "I said I was only going to ask once, Harkin. Why do you insist on always playing games?"

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about!"

Garrus kept a hand around his throat as he looked at Shepard. "Well, to be honest, Garrus, we haven't actually told him why we're here."

"Hmmm. Good point." He looked back at Harkin. "I'm looking for someone. Someone you helped disappear. You're going to tell me where this person is."

"Perhaps we can work something out?"

Garrus put his forehead into his nose. Harkin cried out, blood immediately pouring from his nostrils. He was fairly sure he heard a good crack, so it was probably a broken nose and other injuries in that area of his face. "Wrong answer, Harkin. He's a turian. Name's Sidonis. You are going to tell me where he is."

"Yeah, yeah. I know where he is." Then the eyes of the human grew defiant. "I ain't telling you squat."

This time, Garrus did sigh, taking the pistol from his hip and putting a bullet in his leg without hesitation. "Wrong answer, Harkin. Trust me, I can do this all day. My colleagues around me? They're going to sit around and enjoy the show." He held the pistol in front of his eyes. "There are plenty more bullets in here, Harkin, and you have plenty of places where I can put them. How long will you last until you bleed out?"

"Fucking hell, Garrus, what happened to you?" Harkin wondered, the look of defiance now one of absolute fear.

"Omega happened. Now, organise a meeting with Sidonis. Any funny stuff, and the next bullet goes in your head. Understand?"

Harkin looked around and, realising he had no hope, finally nodded and hobbled over to a nearby terminal. He listened into the conversation, making sure there were no code words, but it was fairly easy to understand. They'd meet at the Orbital Lounge in a couple of hours' time. More than enough to set up a hit. Then Harkin saw a chink of light, perhaps hope he'd get away scot free.

"Oh, I'm done with you, Harkin. I'm sure C-Sec might have some questions, but my colleague here..."

Shepard simply raised his pistol and put a bullet into Harkin's head, the human dropping with a thud, blood and the remains of his brains splattered against the wall. Garrus shrugged but noticed the surprise of at least Jack and Zaeed. "Fucking hell," the mercenary muttered.

"Dirty cop now criminal. This is exactly what I'm employed to do. Judge. Jury. Executioner. Sometimes, the job does have its perks. And no-one is going to miss a sack of shit like him."

"Ready, Shepard?" Garrus asked.

"Let's go take care of business."

Leaving the warehouse, Shepard did call into C-Sec, letting them know about the operation they'd found, and that there would be plenty of incriminating evidence around. As for Harkin, he simply said that the man had been dealt with. Bailey didn't say anything to that, simply thanking them for the assistance.

As they drove towards the lounge, he did wonder if Shepard would stop him. He'd seen Shepard take the law into his hands often enough that he didn't think he would. Shepard seemed to almost read his mind and eased it. "Want me to do anything before you take the shot?"

"A confession. I want to know why, Shepard. Why he betrayed us. I had him picked as my most loyal companion, the man I worked with closest on the hardest of missions. He was a man I thought would have died for our cause, something noble and worthwhile. Instead, he turns traitor and leaves all of us to die."

"Okay, get him to talk. Easy enough. And once that's done?"

"I'll have him lined up so all you need do is take a step left or right. I'll do the rest."

"He's all yours, Garrus. That I can promise."

"Thank you, Shepard."

"Trust me, Garrus, if it had been me, I'd have left a trail of bodies behind looking for him."

Making sure they were in contact, he headed up into the rafters, picking a perfect position that would allow him to lie prone, setting up his rifle so he was comfortable, able to wait in position for as long as possible before taking the shot. Shepard waited around, sitting on one of the lounges. He noticed Sidonis straight away, walking into the lounge. He could have taken the shot immediately, but he needed to hear why. That was the only reason why the turian still breathed even now.

"That's Sidonis," he whispered into the mike.

Shepard heard, rose to his feet, and gestured to Sidonis. "Lantar Sidonis," Shepard stated.

"Please, don't use that name." Then Sidonis stared at Shepard, as if he almost recognised him. "Who are you?"

"Your new contact, and there is someone new in charge. There are new conditions to the help you are receiving. Understand?"

"What do you mean?"

"There's a bounty out for your head, Sidonis. A big, fat juicy one. And let me tell you, there are a lot of people on your trail. My benefactors and I are wondering if it's worth our while keeping you protected. They want to know what you did that apparently has some of the leading assassins scouring the Citadel, looking for you. Here's a question; why'd you do it?"

"Because I'm no hero. I'm not brave. I'm a nobody."

"You're going to have to give me more than that. Let's start simple. The burning question. Why'd you betray your team?"

"How do you know..."

"Because of the contracts has been issues by someone named..." Shepard feigned looking at his omni-tool. "Here we are. Says his name was Archangel. Worked on Omega. Seems you're responsible for a number of deaths, Sidonis, and this Archangel is willing to pay top dollar to have you killed. All he wants at the end is your head. Guess he's going to put it on his desk, maybe his wall, after whoever kills you is done."

"I was a recon mission. Trying to follow a Blue Suns operation. I made a mistake. Got too close. They caught me. They knew who I was. Who I was working with."

"I can only assume you were working with this Archangel then?"

Sidonis nodded. "I don't know how long I was kept for. They... tortured me. You think I'd reveal anything about the team easily? I may not be brave, but... there's only so much a man can take. You know what I mean?" Shepard nodded. "Still have the scars if you want to see that I'm telling the truth."

"No, that won't be necessary. But you still sold them out in the end. Ten deaths are your responsibility. Betrayed because you couldn't keep your mouth shut. Because you were weak. Because you wanted to save yourself over the lives of your companions."

"I know. My life is over. I don't sleep. I don't really eat. There's no enjoyment in anything I do. Some days I think I should just kill myself and end it. But I won't, because that would be taking the coward's way out. The easy way out. No, I must pay for what I did. I will live with those ten men on my conscience. I'll live with that choice for the rest of my life."

Garrus had a moment of pause. Killing him might actually be giving him the easy way out. Killing him would relieve him of the guilt. He was now a tortured soul. No doubt he closed his eyes every night and saw the faces of those he was responsible for. But did Sidonis deserve to keep breathing while ten noble warriors were dead on Omega?

He could only lower his head and emit a low growl as his mind split in two different directions. "I think I've heard enough," Shepard said, "And, quite frankly, I'm rather disgusted by it all. If you were a human and in the Alliance, I can assure you the best you'd receive would be jail time, though many would clamour to have you strung up by the neck. But, in the end, it's not up to me."

Garrus had his eye back to the scope already as Shepard stepped out of the way. In that moment, Garrus had an open shot. He stared into the eyes of Lantar Sidonis from a distance through the scope. His finger feathered the trigger... ready to pull... ready to pull...

Spirits, he so desperately wanted to pull and just end him right there. But knowing he would be living with the guilt for the rest of his natural born life? Garrus could only admit that was a better punishment. Death was instantaneous, a release from the burden he carried. No, make the bastard live with that every day from now on. "Shepard, hold him there. I wish to see him."

"Of course. One moment, Sidonis. One of my benefactors wishes to meet with you."

When Sidonis saw Garrus stride towards him, he almost broke and ran, Shepard grabbing his forearm. The turian slumped as Garrus came to a halt a couple of paces away. He growled and gave his fellow turian an almighty backhander, causing most conversations around them to halt as everyone stared at him. Grabbing the turian by the collar, he dragged him closer. "Lantar," he growled.

"I'm sorry, Garrus," Sidonis, whispered.

"Not good enough, Lantar. Not for them. Not for me. You betrayed them. They are dead because of you. I have these scars because of you. Everything that happened in those final hours is because of you. I could have so easily taken the shot then and there, ended your pathetic existence. But I'm not. I'm going to ensure you live with the guilt for the rest of your life. Knowing the pain you are going to suffer, living with the knowledge that you could so easily betray those closest to you, simply to save your own skin. You're pathetic. Certainly not a turian. To think I once trusted you so closely, considered you a friend and ally. That mistake falls on me. The rest falls on you." He let the turian go, pushing him back. "Get out of my sight, Sidonis, before I change my mind and put a bullet into your worthless head. Trust me on this, I have contacts and will ensure you are watched. Do anything, and I mean anything that I consider not befitting the sort of life you should be living going forward, trust in knowing that you will receive a knock on your door, followed by a single bullet to the head."