Chapter Text
Chapter 10
Same year, 2183, 1 day later
After getting the files from Vigil, they made it to the conduit and left the planet in a hurry. John get to the conduit with only seconds to spare. They leave for the Citadel in the mako.
Meanwhile, the Citadel is prepared for any attack against the station. Ready for Saren and his geth. ships were armed, command alert. Soon, the geth arrived along with Sovereign and they began the attack. The reaper blocked the arms of the Citadel. The asari tried to closed them but it wasn’t working, so they evacuated the council. There was no answer.
Saren was now inside the Citadel with his geth.
By the time John and his team go to the Citadel, it was on fire. Everything damaged. The whole place was in smoke. When they got there, they were attacked by husks. They spoke to the VI asari to find out what’s going on. It said that the presidium is experiencing severe system malfunction across the entire level. It said that they have lost all primary power, environmental controls weren’t responding. Fires were burning in sectors 2, 3, 6, and 7 and civilian casualties were high. It also said that numerous unauthorized synthetic life-forms throughout the station.
John asked about the council. The VI says that council has been evacuated to the Destiny Ascension. He also asked about Captain Anderson, Ambassador Udina, Kaidan and his sister. The VI said there was no information available on specific individuals. He also asked about Saren. The VI told him that he was in the council chamber and that a warrant was placed for his arrest but the security is not available at this time.
Shepard and his team heads for the council chamber. Saren was already here and he shot the keepers and heads toward the center of the room. There, a terminal appeared and works on getting the system transferred to Sovereign.
The Citadel was closing. The fleets had to stop the enemy from getting inside. But Sovereign made its way inside without trouble. It went to the center of the Citadel and sat at the top of the chamber.
By the time John and his team were getting close, the elevator stopped and they had to go on foot. They fought geth along the outside of the Citadel walls. They saw Sovereign just further away. The damn reaper was huge, indeed. John, Dar and Liara activated the turrets to attack the geth ship.
Krogan traitors also made their appearance and they were killed as well. This time, the geth set up their own turrets and were aimed at the commander’s team. Looking for cover, they quickly disabled the guns. They finally made it the council chamber. Like everything else, it too was in ruin. Geth everywhere.
They finally got to Saren.
He made the final touches until he dropped down and got on his hoverboard. “I was afraid you wouldn’t make it in time, Shepard.”
“I’m here now. Let’s end this.”
Saren says, “You’ve lost. You know that, don’t you? In a few minutes, Sovereign will have full control of all the Citadel’s systems. The relay will open. The reapers will return.”
“We’ve still got a few tricks up our sleeves.”
“You survived our encounter on Virmire. But I’ve changed since then. Improved. Sovereign has…upgraded me.”
John asked, “You let Sovereign implant you? Are you insane?”
Saren chuckled, “I suppose I should thank you, Shepard. After Virmire, I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said. About Sovereign manipulating me. About indoctrination. The doubts began to eat away at me. Sovereign sensed my hesitation. I was implanted to strengthen my resolve. Now, my doubts are gone. I believe in Sovereign completely. I understand that the reapers need organics. Join us and Sovereign will find a place for you, too.”
“I can’t sense any trace of Saren. His mind seems to be struggling.” Dar said in a whisper. But Liara heard it.
“Sovereign’s controlling you through your implants! Don’t you see that?” John asked.
Saren continued, “The relationship is symbiotic. Organic and machine intertwined, a union of flesh and steel. The strengths of both, the weakness of neither. I am a vision of the future, Shepard. The evolution of all organic life. This is our destiny. Join Sovereign and experience a true rebirth!”
John shouted, “I’d rather die than live like that!”
“Then you will die. And your companions. Everyone you know and love. Everyone you’ve ever met. Don’t you understand? You will all die! The reapers can’t be stopped. Not by the protheans. Not by you. The cycle always continues.”
John said, “Sovereign hasn’t won yet. I can stop it from taking control of the station! Step aside and the invasion will never happen!”
Saren growls, “We can’t stop it! Not forever. You saw the visions. You saw what happened to the protheans. The reapers are too powerful.”
“Some part of you must still realize this is wrong. You can fight this!”
“Maybe you’re right. Maybe there is still a chance for—ungh! The implants… Sovereign is too strong. I’m sorry. It’s too late for me.”
John get out of hiding to face him, “It’s not over yet. You can still fight Sovereign. You can still redeem yourself!”
Saren took the gun and shot himself in the head, but not after saying his farewells. He fell through the glass floor. They now got control of station. Dar says to open the arms so the fleet can get in. Liara said to check for communications. It was checked and they got in contacted with the Destiny Ascension. They said that the council is on board. Joker soon got in contacted as well. John responded. Joker said they can save the Ascension but they had to unlock the relays around the Citadel. It was a tough decision to make either to save the council or let them die and force on Sovereign. John choice to save them. As much as they were assholes, it was the right thing to do. The relays were opened. The Alliance ships were armed and ready to attack.
Admiral Hackett order the ships to engage on the geth and protect the Destiny Ascension. Sara was in one of those ships as well as Kaiden, Anderson and Udina. With the geth destroyed and the council safe, the Alliance ships head for Sovereign once the Citadel was opened.
John could hear his sister Sara, “The Citadel’s opening! All ships move in! Concentrate on Sovereign!”
John told Liara and Dar to check on him. Once they get down, Dar shoots Saren in the head again. Liara called Shepard and said he’s dead. But something was wrong. The ground shucked and moved. Sovereign, apparently got control of Saren’s body. John fell in the hole. Saren’s body changed. It was more machine than organic.
“I am Sovereign! And this station is MINE!”
John, Dar and Liara begin to attack. Shooting Saren’s dead controlled body in order to destroy it.
The Alliance ships were attacking the reaper. But Sovereign was attacking as well. Destroying the ships. One of the command ships said that it was too strong and had to pull back, but the admiral said no and to kept firing.
John struggled to destroy Saren’s controlled body from Sovereign. Eventually, it was destroyed. Sovereign was losing, eventually it lost power and released its hold on the Citadel. The Alliance fleet began to finish it. One of the legs from the reaper, crash landed in the window of the council chamber. Everyone got out of the way. It made a serious damage inside.
Dar and Liara got separated from John Shepard. When the Alliance tried to find them, they only found those two and not the commander. Anderson was among to search teams. Sara and Kaidan too.
Sara found Liara and held her tightly. She was worried she didn’t make it. “Where’s John?”
Liara couldn’t answer.
Dar was held up by Kaidan, until he sensed the commander somewhere in the chamber. Anderson followed Dar’s eye sight and saw something coming their way. “He’s alive. John Shepard is alive.” Dar said.
Soon, John ran up the edge of the rubble and smiled at those friendly faces. “John…! Thank god!”
“You were worried?” He said.
Sara chuckled a smile, “You know I am, stupid.”
Soon after, the council were back on the Citadel in order to speak with John, Anderson and Udina. The asari councilor began to speak, “We are gathered here to recognize the enormous contributions of the Alliance forces in the war against Sovereign and the geth.”
“Many humans lost their lives in the battle to save the Citadel,” the salarian councilor said, “Brave and courageous soldiers who willingly gave their lives so that we—the council—might live.”
The turian councilor continued, “There is no greater sacrifice, and we share your grief over the tragic loss of so many noble men and women.”
The asari said, “The council also owes you a great personal debt, commander. One we can never repay. You saved not just our lives, but the lives of billions from Sovereign and the reapers.”
“Commander John Shepard, your heroic and selfless actions serve as a symbol of everything humanity and the Alliance stand for.” The salarian says.
“And though we cannot bring back those valiant soldiers who gave their lives to save our, we can honor their memories through our actions.”
The asari says, “Humanity has shown it is ready to stand as a defender and protector of the galaxy. You have proved you are worthy to join our ranks and serve beside us on the Citadel council.”
Udina then says, “Councilor, on behalf of humanity and the Alliance, we thank you for this prestigious honor and humbly accept.”
The salarian suggest, “We will need a list of potential candidates to fill humanity’s seat on the council.”
She soon said, “Given all that has happened, I am sure your recommendation will carry a great deal of weight, commander. Do you support any particular candidate?”
John then says, “We need someone with the courage to stand up for what he believes in. Someone like Captain Anderson.”
Udina didn’t like the responds, “Him? You must be joking. Anderson prefers to let his fists do the talking.”
“Only with you, Ambassador. Only with you.”
“Are you about this commander?” Udina asked, “The captain is a soldier, not a politician.”
John nods, “We’ve already got too many politicians on the Citadel. The captain would be perfect for this job.”
She agreed, “I think it’s an inspired choice. The council would welcome him with open arms, should he accept.”
“I’m honored, councilor. As humanity’s representative, I’ll do everything in my power to help the council rebuild.” He said.
The turian councilor says, “Sovereign’s defeat marks the beginning of anew era for both humanity and the council.”
John knew it wasn’t over. He says, “Sovereign was only a vanguard. The reaper fleet is still coming. Hundreds of ships, maybe thousands. And I’m going to find some way to stop them!” He soon left the area.
Anderson, now Councilor Anderson, steps forward, he says, “Shepard’s right. Humanity is ready to do its part. United with the rest of the council, we have the strength to overcome any challenge. When the reapers come, we must stand side by side. We must fight against them as one. And together we will drive them back into dark space!”
After one month later…
John makes his way towards the Normandy and they take off into space. They were given a mission, to search for the geth. They’ve spent four days in the Terminus System for any signs of geth activity. Joker said three ship went missing in the past month. Pressly says it could be just slavers. One of the crew members just catch something on the scanners. Unidentified vessel, maybe a cruiser.
It changed course and is now on intercept trajectory.
It would have been impossible because the stealth systems were on, but Joker knew better. It wasn’t geth.
He tried to drive the Normandy out of the way. The unknown ship began to attack them. They got hit. The barriers were down, weapons offline. Several casualties. The Normandy was in bad condition. Joker tries to call for help.
Ashely runs to find John. They both were suit up. John tries to stop the fire. He told her the distress beacon is online. Hoping to get reinforcements in time. She tells him that Joker is still in the cockpit and he won’t leave. Neither will she.
John didn’t want to argue, it wasn’t the time. He said that he will take care of Joker and told her she needed to go. Ashely goes to evacuates everyone onboard. Dar was among those in the ship, as well as Liara, Garrus, Tali and Wrex. They all got inside the escape pods and left the Normandy on fire. Only John and Joker were still there.
Dar and the rest of the crew saw the ship in flames. He sensed something was wrong as his head begins to hurt. “Argh! I can still hear them. Shepard, and Joker… He’s being stubborn. He won’t leave.”
Liara tries to calm him, “Try to relax, Dar. Breathe.”
“What’s happening to him?”
“Dar has a gift. He can read people’s thoughts.” She said.
Tali asked, “What? How is that even possible?”
“When John found him, he brought him to your human base on earth. Sara and I were within the same room as him and he spoke to us, telepathically.”
Back on the ship, John went after Joker in the cockpit. Once he got there, he took him out of the cockpit and into the last escape pod, but there was an explosion. John managed to seal his friend inside but couldn’t save himself. The unknown ship came back around for another attack and destroyed the Normandy. John was shot into space and his helmet was damaged.
Dar can hear the screams in his head. He heard Joker calling out to John. And heard John struggling with his helmet until there was nothing left. The young marine heard nothing. The voices in his head were gone. He looks towards his crew members in shock, especially towards Ashely. She looks to him and he said, “I’m sorry. He’s gone.”
John Shepard fell straight towards the planet.
TBC…