Love, Blood and Tears: Chapter 31

Love, Blood & Tears
Chapter 31:



The Normandy arrived near Palaven undetected.  Shepard, T'Soni and Vega took off in the shuttle along with the Normandy's new shuttle pilot, Steven Cortez. Shepard's heart broke as she looked out the window…Palaven was burning and many turian ships were doing their best to combat the Reapers in space.  Their shuttle flew by undetected as it headed for one of Palaven's moons…Shepard could see little explosions happening across its surface.  

Liara looked out the window, "Oh no…no!"

"Holy hell! They're getting decimated," James said.

"Strongest military in the galaxy and the Reapers are obliterating it," Shepard sighed.

"Was it like this on Earth?" Liara asked.

"Yes."

"I'm so sorry."

"Yeah…well, right now I'm more concerned about getting the Primarch and…" Shepard's voice started to crack.

"We'll find him," Liara reassured her.

"Find who?" James asked puzzled. "Oh wait…yeah yeah…I remember…sorry…how could I forget.  Liara's right - we'll find him."

"Thanks you guys," Shepard whispered.

"Approaching the landing zone," Cortez shouted. "Get ready."

The shuttle came down for a low drop…Shepard slid open the door and saw husks on the cliff nearby.  She shot down every single one she saw.  She noticed towers set up with turrets and turians were still commanding them…that was a good sign.  Cortez brought the shuttle down low enough for Shepard and her squad to jump out.

"Alright, let's move," Shepard said. "Get in and get out. Move it people!"

They took out any husks in their path as they walked around the turian defense barriers and found an entrance.  The turian guards allowed Shepard access and she made her way through the camp looking for the turian in charge.

She found him commanding his officers on what their next task was.

"General?"

"Commander Shepard, heard you were coming but I didn't believe it. I'm General Corinthus."

"I've come to get Primarch Fedorian."

He hung his head low, "Primarch Fedorian is dead…his shuttle was shot down an hour ago as it tried to leave the moon."

"That's going to complicate things... how bad is it General?"

"We just lost about four hundred men in half an hour. We set up camps on this moon as an advanced position to flank the enemy. A sound strategy…just…"

"Irrelevant."

"Exactly. The sheer force of the Reapers seems to make them immune to that kind of tactic. The Primarch and his men found that out the hard way."

"I'm sorry…I hear he was a good man."

"And a friend…he would have made an outstanding diplomat."

"So what happens now?"

"The turian hierarchy makes clear lines of succession," Liara said.

"Right, General Corinthus?" Shepard inquired.

"With such heavy casualties, it's hard for me to be certain who the next Primarch is. Palaven Command will know. However, at the moment contacting them is impossible. The comm tower is out and husks are swarming that area - we can't get close enough to repair it."

"Don't worry, General. I'll get your tower operational."

"Thank you, Commander. I'll take care of things on this end."

Shepard looked at her squad, "Let's move out!"



***



They made their way out of the barricades and past a squad of turian soldiers that would provide back up.  As they approached the tower…swarms of husks came out from every direction.  

"Liara! James! Keep them back!" Shepard yelled as she climbed up the tower to repair it.  

She made her way to the top and worked at repairing the connection.

Okay…I think that does it…I hope.

"General Corinthus, can you read me?" Shepard said into her comm.

"Yes, much appreciated, Commander. I'll contact Palaven Command."

Shepard climbed down the tower and helped her squad take out the remaining husks.

"C'mon! Let's get the hell out of here and back to the General," she said.

They ran back down the pathway, through the barricades and back over to Corinthus.

"What have you got?" Shepard asked him.

"As your partner said, succession is usually very simple. But right now the hierarchy is in chaos; so many dead or M.I.A."

"I need someone, I don't care who - as long as they can get us the turian resources we need."

"I'm on it, Shepard," a very familiar voice said.

Her heart jumped at the sound of his voice and her hands started to shake as she caught sight of him walking up the ramp towards her.

She locked eyes with him as he continued to speak, "We'll find you the Primarch."

"Garrus!" she gasped.

"Vakarian, sir, I didn't see you arrive," Corinthus said.

"At ease, General," he replied as he turned his attention back to Shepard.

"You're alive…" her voice strained to say as she reached out for him.

He reached out and grabbed her hand in his, "I'm hard to kill - you should know that."

"It's good to see you again," she choked out as she held back tears. "I thought you'd be on Palaven…I…"

He squeezed her hand firmly, "I can't believe you're here…"

General Corinthus cleared his throat behind them.

Garrus retreated from Shepard as he continued, "If we lose this moon…we lose Palaven. I'm the closest damn thing we have to an expert on Reaper forces so…I'm…advising."

Shepard turned to Vega, "James, this is Garrus Vakarian. Garrus, this is Lieutenant James Vega."

James reached out to shake Garrus' hand.

"I've heard so much about you," Vega chuckled. "Nice to finally put a face to the name."

"Uh…Lieutenant…nice to meet you. Nice to see you too, Liara."

"Good to see you in one piece, Garrus," Liara replied.

Garrus turned his attention to Shepard once more, "General Corinthus filled me in - we know who we're after."

Corinthus spoke up, "Palaven Command tells me the Primarch is General Adrian Victus."

"Victus? His name's crossed my desk," Liara said.

"Know him, Garrus?" Jane asked.

"I was fighting alongside him this morning. Lifelong military, gets results, popular with his troops…not so popular with military command; has a reputation for playing loose with accepted strategy."

"Do you think he can get the job done?"

"We both know conventional strategy won't beat the Reapers. Right now he could be our best shot and I trust him. He'll do whatever it takes to get the job done; reminds me of an old human spectre I knew…"

"That's good enough for me," Shepard said with a warm smile. "Let's get him on the shuttle and get out of here."

"Commander, it's Joker. Come in!"

"What is it, Joker?"

"We've got a situation on the Normandy…it's like she's possessed; shutting down systems, powering up weapons. I can't find the source!"

"Liara, head back to the Normandy - see if you can figure out what's going on."

"I'm on it, Shepard," Liara replied as she took off.

Just then a Harvester flew down…it attacked the barricades and then flew off…but not before dropping something in the nearby distance.

"General, tell Primarch Victus that we'll rendezvous here," Shepard said.  Then she looked over to James and Garrus, "In the mean time, let's go take care of whatever that thing dropped off.  You coming, Garrus?"

He could see the hopeful look in her eyes as she waited for his reply.

"Are you kidding? I'm right behind you," he replied with a smirk.

They made their way over to the air field…taking out husks and something else…marauders.

"Holy shit! Those look like turians!" Vega exclaimed.

"Yeah, they do," Shepard replied.

They took out all enemies and made their way back to the barricades.  Enemies were dropping down on the other side of the walls.  Shepard climbed up the ladder and into the defense turret…she took out the husks as they approached.  Garrus set up against the wall next to her and took out husks with his sniper rifle.

Just like old times…

Suddenly, a new enemy dropped from the sky…

"Holy hell! What is that thing?!" Vega yelled.

It was an armored brute…it was huge and terrifying.  It charged the wall and slammed into it with all its might…causing Shepard to lose her balance and fall over the wall…down onto the ground by the brute.

"Shepard!" Garrus yelled as he jumped over the wall and down to her.  James followed after him as he drew the brute's attention away from Shepard.  The three of them ran around the brute; avoiding its charges as they fired round after round into the armored beast.  Finally, they were able to take it down.

"Commander, I still can't get a stable comm link with Victus."

"Okay General, I'm going on foot then. Shepard out."

She walked over to Garrus, "Can you take me to the last place you saw Victus?"

"Yes. C'mon, this way."



***



She followed Garrus as he led them down cliff faces towards the area that Victus was last seen.

"When did the Reapers attack?" she asked him.

"Two days ago."

"I'm sorry Garrus. Where's your family?"

"Hopefully, they're on one of the evacuation ships.  I don't know though…haven't had contact."

" Earth was hit too…it's terrible.  It won't be long before they hit the other systems…God, I can't believe how fast this is all happening."

"I'm sorry about Earth, Shepard.  We'll find a way to stop them…we have to. C'mon! It's not much further…should be quick as long as we don't run into trouble."

Shepard was right on Garrus' heels as they continued down the path…she looked up in the sky to see Palaven…it was a sad sight to see.  Garrus stopped suddenly and Shepard knocked into him.  She shook it off and walked around him to see his face. He was staring up at Palaven…her heart ached for him.

"Damn it," Garrus sighed. "Look at Palaven…that blaze of orange…the big one…that's where I was born."

"Oh Garrus…I'm so sorry," Shepard said as she reached up and placed a hand on his armored chest.

He looked down at her…the sadness in her brown eyes…the comforting pat she gave him.  Seeing her there with him in that moment…it gave his heart a little jolt…the first real feeling he had felt in months.

"We better keep moving," he said as he took off running again. "We lost three million lives the first day, five the second."

"How's your military holding up?" Vega yelled from behind Shepard as he kept pace with them.

"Look around - that should give you some idea," Garrus snidely replied.

"You're putting up a good fight," Jane said.

"For now…but how long does it take before the fight is kicked out of you," Garrus replied.  "If they'd only listened to your warnings about the Reapers…we might have been ready."

"Maybe…it's hard to figure out how to prepare for something like this!" Vega shouted.

They rounded the corner and were greeted by many husks climbing the cliffs.  They took them out quickly and continued on their way.

"Shit I hate those things!" James yelled. "And New York is crawling with those creepy bastards?! Aaagh…I never should have left Earth!"

"It's going to be bad all over," Garrus said.

"Leaving the fight just pisses me off!" James replied.

"But you're here asking Victus to do the same thing; leave the fight to make nice in some board room," Garrus hissed.

"This summit is the only chance we've got," Shepard said. "None of us are beating the Reapers alone."

They made it to the camp where Garrus had left Victus that morning.

"Soldier, you okay?" Garrus yelled out to the nearest turian.

"Yes sir, we'll make it," the turian replied.

"Have you seen General Victus?"

"Half an hour ago…headed south."

"Okay, good luck."

"Yes, sir."



***



They continued heading south down the cliff pathways and made it up to the top camp which was infested with marauders and cannibals.  

"God damn it! The Primarch better be alive!" Shepard yelled.

They ran into the compound…taking out the enemies as they ran to cover.  As they made their way further into the camp…Shepard could see turian soldiers on the buildings up ahead firing everything they had at two brutes that were in the center of the camp. With a little help from Shepard and her squad, the brutes were down within a few minutes.

Jane neared the building against the cliff's edge where General Victus was.

"General Victus," Shepard said as she approached him.

"Yes?"

"I'm Commander Shepard of the Normandy."

"Ah, Commander…I know who you are. I can't wait to find out what brings you out here," he replied and then looked over at Garrus. "Vakarian, where did you go?"

"Heavy Reaper unit on the right flank. I believe your exact words were Get that thing the hell off my men".

"Appreciate it," Victus replied.

"General, you're needed off planet," Shepard said. "I've come to get you."

"It'll take something beyond important for me to leave my men or my turian brothers and sisters in their fight," Victus replied.

"Fedorian was killed, you're the new Primarch," Garrus said.

"You're needed immediately to chair a summit and represent your people in the fight against the Reapers," Jane added.

The General stared at Shepard for a moment…then walked past her and stood at the edge of the cliff…looking up at his home world.

"I'm Primarch of Palaven?" Victus said softly. "Negotiating for the turian hierarchy?"

"Yes," Shepard replied.

He turned back around to face her, "I've spent my whole life in the military…I'm no diplomat; I hate diplomats."

"What makes you think you're not qualified?"

"I'm not really a by-the-book kind of guy…and I piss people off. My family's been military since the unification war. War is my life; it's in my bones. But that kind of passion is…deceptive; it can make you seem reckless when you're anything but."

"You sound perfect; war is your resume and at times like this we need leaders who have been through that hell."

"I like that…you're right."

"And honestly…uniting these races is going to take as much strength as facing the Reapers," she said as she walked over to the cliff's edge. "See this devastation, Primarch? Double that for Earth. I need an alliance…I need the turian fleet."

Garrus stared at Shepard…then looked over at Victus to see what his response would be.  Victus walked over to Shepard and stood in front of her with only a mere foot or two between them.  She stared into his eyes…there was nothing but silence as the turian studied her face…as if he was judging her character by what he could see in her eyes.

"Give me a moment to say good-bye to my men," he finally said.

"Of course," Shepard nodded.

Victus walked away and gathered his men around to say his farewell.  Garrus walked over to Jane…she looked at him with anxious eyes.  Nothing much, other than war talk, had crossed their lips since they saw each other…she searched his face for some sign of happiness to see her…it was difficult for her to figure out.  

Garrus however, had spent many hours studying her face during their time together and their six months apart had not changed his ability to read her.  The look in her eyes…the slight trembling he could see in her face…her reaction to his approach told him everything he needed to know…she still cared for him.

He didn't hesitate to touch her; if she didn't like it she could easily swat his hand away and that would be the end of it. A soft gasp escaped her lips as he reached out and ran his talons through her hair.  

"You never were good at keeping your hair back during a fight," he chuckled as he studied her reaction to him.  

She let out a sigh of relief as she enjoyed the tender moment between them. She was in a daze; unable to move and barely able to breathe. A few tears escaped her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.  For the second time since seeing her, he felt his heart jolt…he tensed at the sudden feeling…the emotions he felt stirring in him; everything he had suppressed was finding its way to the surface.

"Do you think we can win this, Jane?" he said softly.

"I don't know, Garrus.  I'm sure as hell gonna give it my best shot."

"I'm damned sure nobody else could do it."

"I can't do it without you though…I want…no, I need you back at my side."

He couldn't recall a time when she looked as vulnerable as she did right then…waiting for his answer. And for the third time since their reunion, he felt his heart react.

"I'm with you, Jane. There's nowhere else I'd rather be," he replied as he wiped the tears away from her cheeks.

Victus walked over to them and raised his brow plate as he saw the tender moment being exchange between the two of them.  Shepard could see him approaching from the corner of her eye and she looked over to meet his gaze.  Garrus dropped his hands and took a step back.

"Are you ready to go, Primarch Victus?" she asked.

"One thing…Commander, I appreciate your need for our fleets but I can't spare them…not while my world is burning. But…if the pressure could be taken off Palaven…"

"That's a pretty tall order."

"We need the krogan. I can't see us winning this thing without them. Get them to help us and then we can help you."

"The krogan…really?"

"Looks like your summit just got a lot more interesting," Garrus smirked.

"Wow…alright, we better head out then. My "to do" list just got a whole lot bigger."



***



Shepard had barely stepped foot on the ship and everything was in chaos; the ship was still having problems; EDI was offline and people were scrambling around trying to figure out the problem.

"I'll check out the main battery," Garrus said to Shepard as he took off.

"Primarch, I can escort you to the conference room for now until we get this mess sorted out," Shepard said.

"Thank you," Victus nodded as he followed her further into the ship.

Once she led Victus to the conference room, she excused herself and checked with different members of the crew for their input on the situation. She made her way to Liara's quarters next.

"Shepard, what's happening?"

"I have no idea…I thought maybe you knew something."

"I haven't got a clue.  I'm checking through my computers and running safe-mode diagnostics. If I find anything, I'll let you know."

"Okay Liara, keep me posted."

She exited her quarters and headed for the main battery.  She saw Garrus checking an open battery terminal and he was talking to Joker over the comm.

"The problem isn't here. Systems all look green on my board," Garrus said.

"You sure? Maybe something was miscalibrated."

"You do know who you're talking to, right?"

"Yeah, yeah…just had to check. Well, if you see Shepard, tell her to get over to the AI core and figure this out."

"Will do," Garrus replied as he looked over at her.  "You heard him, Shepard. We're dead in the water."

"Okay, I'll go check it out," she replied as she exited the room.

She made her way to the AI core and was met my Engineer Adams who was by the door.

"Automated systems have the fires contained. It should be safe to enter," he said.

"Fires? Damn…what the hell is going on?" she replied. "Okay, open the door."

"Yes, Commander; we'll follow your lead."

They opened the door and Shepard slowly walked in as smoked filtered out of the room.

"EDI? Talk to me."

There was no reply but suddenly the AI core lit back up…all systems were back online.

"EDI? You there?"

Shepard heard the sound of footsteps…she scanned for signs of movement in the smoke and soon she saw a figure…the female android.

"Is there a particular topic you wish to discuss, Shepard?" it asked her.

"EDI?!" Shepard gasped.

"Yes."

"You're in Dr. Eva's body?"

"Not all of me, but I have control of it. It was not a seamless transition."

"A transition? You blacked out on us for a while there!"

"Correct. When we brought this unit on board, I began a background process to search for its information on the Prothean device. This eventually triggered a trap; a backup power source and CPU activated and the unit attempted physical confrontation. Fortunately, I was able to gain root access and repurpose it as I saw fit. During this process, it…struggled. Thus, the fire."

"That was very dangerous, EDI. But…if it means having full access to the Prothean data in its head…then good work…I guess."

"I reasoned along similar lines."

"So if you're in there, are you still in the ship?"

"I exist primarily within the ship. For optimal control, this unit should remain within the Normandy's broadcast or tightbeam range."

"Uh…are you planning to take that body somewhere?"

"The Normandy's weaponry is not suited to every combat situation. This platform could provide limited-fire ground support."

"You mean you could come with us?"

"Correct. This body could accompany you to areas the Normandy cannot reach. "

"Uhm…yeah…before we do that, I need you to guarantee this mech doesn't have any more surprises in it. So, run whatever tests you can, then we can talk about using it in combat situations."

"One moment…I am running trials…complete. I can send you a full report if you wish. However, my first step should be restoring functionality to the Normandy to reassure the crew that all is normal."

"Yeah…let's start there and…just don't be surprised if the crew is a little wary of your new body. After all, it was shooting at them a little while ago."

"An excellent point. I will take to the bridge - Joker will also want to see it."

Shepard chuckled, "Uh…yeah, on that we can agree."

EDI exited the room as Shepard scanned the AI core to make sure everything was in order.  After finding everything to her satisfaction, she exited the room and walked by Dr. Chakwas.

"Was that EDI that just walked by?" the doctor asked surprised.

"Yes, yes it was," Shepard replied with a smirk.

Chakwas laughed, "Oh my…Joker is going to have a field day with this."

"That he is."



***



Shepard made her rounds to check on her crew and to make sure everything was in working order again.  She told Joker to set a course for the diplomatic ship in the Pranas system and let her know when they were a couple hours out. Then she headed back to the main battery. As she entered the room she could hear Garrus on the comm with Victus.

"Two of our dreadnoughts have been lost in a matter of hours."

"I know, Primarch. I'm seeing the same numbers myself. They don't look good."

"We have to turn this around…and fast."

"Well you can trust Shepard, sir. If anybody can get the krogan to cooperate, it's her. She's an old friend of Urdnot Wrex."

"Let's just hope friendship still counts for something in this war."

"I'm sure it will, sir."

Garrus looked over as he saw Shepard approaching him.  He closed off his comm and turned to face her.

"Didn't waste much time getting to work I see," she said.

"Yes well, after what I've been through…calibrating a giant gun is a vacation," he replied. "It gives me something to focus on."

"I'm going to need you for more than your aim."

"Oh I'm ready for it…but I'm pretty sure we'll still need giant guns and lots of them."

"That's not what I meant…"

"Yeah…I wasn't sure about the protocol on reunions…or if you even still felt the same way about me."

Her eyes widen at his confession…he had doubts of her feelings?  Her heart melted as she saw the anxious turian before her.  She had been worried of whether or not he still felt the same way and here it was…the other way around.  

The warm smile that crossed her face was the last confirmation he needed that her feelings remained intact for him.

He took a step towards her, "The scars are staring to fade…I remember they drove you wild."

She laughed at his remark but quickly fell silent as he drew even closer to her.

"But I can go out and get all new ones if it'll help," he said as he reached out and brushed his talons down her arm.

She reached up on her tip toes and threw her arms around his neck, "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too…Spirits Jane, you have no idea," he replied as he nuzzled his face into her hair and breathed in her scent.  He wrapped his arms around her waist. He could hardly believe it…she was back…with him…they were finally together again.  This time, his heart didn't just give a jolt; it felt as though it would burst through his chest.  The feeling of her body against him…her soft hair brushing his mandible…her scent flooding his senses…he silently thanked the Spirits for that moment with her.

She brushed her lips down across his mandible, "I thought about you a lot."

"Glad to know my romantic skills made an impression; because it's going to take more than Reapers to come between this cross-species liaison," he chuckled as he nuzzled her forehead.  "I thought about you a lot too."

She brought her hands to his face to gently brace him as she leaned in for a kiss…every doubt…every sad thought…washed away as she felt everything falling back into place as it was before.  Her tongue danced with his as he caressed her back.  A low rumble started in his chest…

She broke their kiss and looked up at him with beaming green eyes, "You're purring."

"Yeah Jane," he said softly. "For the first time in a long time; I haven't felt like this since the last time I saw you."

She felt her eyes welling up with tears again as she pondered the thought…had he not found one moment of peace while she was gone?

He nudged her forehead, "I can't be content without you…it's impossible."

"Uh, Commander? Can you come to the bridge for a minute?"

"Damn Joker and his stupid timing," Shepard whispered as she kissed Garrus one more time before pulling away from him.

"Yeah, give me a sec," she replied over the comm.

"So…I guess I'll meet up with my expert Reaper advisor later?" she said with a wink as she stepped further away from Garrus; knowing that if she dared touch him again she wouldn't be able to leave that room any time soon.

"Yeah, it's not as impressive as it sounds.  I…well, my dad and I, ruffled some feathers and then they gave me my token title and a token task force so I'd shut up. Yell loud enough and someone will come and see what the fuss is about - not that they'll actually do anything about it."

"Until hell shows up at their door - then they put you in charge."

"Not like the old days, is it? Rogue spectre and C-Sec agent running and gunning outside the lines…making it up as we went along. We're actually respectable now."

"We've lost enough friends trying to make sure this day never came…I'd say we've all earned some respect."

"Then the first Reaper we take out with this gun will be in their honor; just give the word."

"I like that…thank you, Garrus. I'm so glad you're here with me," she said with a heavy sigh. "And as much as I don't want to leave you right now…I better go see what Joker wants. But stay close - we've got some catching up to do."

"You know where to find me and this time…I can afford the good stuff," he said as he walked over to his bag and pulled out an expensive bottle of wine.  "There are a few perks to being an expert Reaper advisor."

"Sounds wonderful.  I'll meet up with you later."

"Looking forward to it."

"You got plenty to keep you busy?"

"Oh yeah, I'm sure somebody screwed up something down here and I'm gonna get the old girl back in fighting shape."

"Glad to hear it," she chuckled.

She gave him one last glance before turning around and exiting the battery.  She had a bounce in her step as she made her way to the elevator.  Garrus was back with her and with that…she felt ready to take on anything.