SfS-17

Chapter 17 - Guilt by Association

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Part 1

Modified DropShip Calypso
Briefing Room
Hyperspace in Citadel Space
3080

"The planet is called Therum," Mrs Oliveira began the briefing with an image of the brown planet. "it is rich in raw resources, but more importantly several Prothean ruins have been found. Most of them have been plundered already, but our target Liara T'Soni is an archaeologist, and she's reported to be at one of the previously overlooked sites." Garrus glanced towards the others in the cramped room, taking in the varying expressions of interest on the humans' faces. The quarian, the only other nonhuman on the Calypso, was the only one who seemed uneasy, if her body language was anything to go by.

"Before anybody asks, the planet is abandoned. There were some attempts to establish mining sites for heavy metals, but none succeeded. The last one we know of was destroyed by mercenaries two years ago, hired by a competing megacorporation. There were rumours they found a new Prothean site, hence the raid. There may be unregistered settlements on the planet, but it's unlikely. Only thing that made the place special was the Prothean ruins, and once those were picked clean, the hellhole wasn't worth dying over."

"So what's T'Soni doing there then, if there's nothing left?" Rosby asked.

"The target's an archaeologist, Bonesaw," Mrs Oliveira reminded him. "Maybe she found something new, or maybe she's not picky about the junk she's collecting. Don't get your hopes up for Prothean salvage. Official records from her research institute suggest it's a small expedition. Maybe only a platoon of infantry for protection detail. If there was anything big, there'd be BattleMechs at least."

"Or maybe they're trying to avoid attention. Not the first time somebody chose secrecy over firepower."

"Keep dreaming." Mrs Oliveira waited for the murmured speculation to pass before resuming. "It should be a straightforward operation. We vastly outmatch whatever our target has, so it'll be easy to secure her without any problems."

"You just jinxed it, Ollie." Virtanen groaned. "Not again."

"Come on, Virtanen," Rosby chimed in. "What's the worst that can happen?" Chuckles filled the room as the engineer twisted his face.

The massive Elemental interrupted the banter with a slam of his armored gauntlet onto the table, leaving a shallow dent. "I bid myself alone against the enemy. Those infantry shall be no match for me."

Commander Shepard, quiet up till now, finally spoke. "Not happening," the mercenary commanded. "We go in with everything we have. I'm not giving the asari a chance to spring a surprise on us."

The Elemental stood up, helmet almost scraping the ceiling. "I can handle them alone, Commander Shepard. I am a trueborn Elemental of Clan Hell's Horses. I do not require your support."

"This is not your Clan, Point Commander Alenko, this is the Normandy Initiative," Commander Shepard retorted, still sitting. "But if that's what you want, you can clear the rooms of the site out by yourself. BattleMechs can't fit into them." Apparently mollified, the giant Elemental sat back down, the heavy crate creaking under his weight.

"What is my role, Commander Shepard?" The second human Clan member on the ship asked.

"The target may attempt to escape off-planet before our arrival. While not confirmed, the dig site likely houses a civilian transport for emergencies. Can you bring their ship down without killing the occupants?"

The Clan pilot nodded. "Affirmative. Easy enough."

"Right then, if I may resume?" Mrs Oliveira impatiently demanded. "There are quite a few details I still need to cover, but that covers the essentials. Your datapads should contain dossiers on the area of operations and a summary of information relevant to your roles. Any questions?" The occupants of the room began talking to each other, trading opinions on the upcoming operation.

"Are we sure this is the right thing to do?" The quarian, Tali'Zorah nar something, asked. "Dr. T'Soni could be innocent."

The discussions died down. Commander Shepard turned to look at her. "Her mother is Matriarch Benezia. T'Soni must know something, and I intend to find out." His voice was flat, calm, firm.

"You could just ask her politely, Commander," Garrus pointed out. "There's no need to go in violently."

"You must've dealt with such situations before, Officer Vakarian. T'Soni could lie. She will escape if we give her time. No, this is the only way. And she's useful for more than just information."

"You plan on holding her hostage." Garrus realised.

"I plan on finally doing something against Saren and his allies." Shepard spat.

"Commander Shepard, listen to me," Garrus insisted. "the Normandy Initiative is supposed to fight Geth, not Citadel Spectres."

"Saren is working with the geth, Officer Vakarian. Don't you dare tell me he isn't."

"The circumstances are suspicious, but Spectres are the best of the best. Spectre Arterius going rogue is unlikely." Garrus cautiously defended his fellow turian, aware of the proximity of the large Elemental. "And you don't even know if Dr T'Soni knows anything! And what proof do you have Matriarch Benezia is involved with the geth attack on Coromodir? What if both of them are completely uninvolved?"

The ship's intercom chose that moment to crackle. "Heads up, everybody. We just arrived in system, and I'm picking up something in orbit around the planet. Looks like geth."

"Well, that settles it," Commander Shepard announced with grim satisfaction. "Like mother, like daughter. She's with Saren."

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Part 2

Surface
Therum, Cidetal Space

"The Clanner's keeping the Geth ship busy, but I don't know how long he'll last. He's good, but he can't be that good. Commander, we don't know anything about the Geth ship. For all I know, they have enough long-range firepower to tear us to pieces. The Calypso isn't built for combat."

"Stick to the plan. Let the Clanner run interference, and focus on getting us groundside." Shepard told the dropship's pilot. "Once Shepard Lance has disembarked, withdraw and wait for an all clear before dropping the infantry team." Miss Zorah and Officer Vakarian needed to be kept alive, and he didn't trust the Elemental would follow orders on the ground.

"Aye aye, Commander. Beginning terminal descent."

Strapped into the Bloody Igor's cockpit, neurohelmet on head and cooling suit active, Shepard awaited deployment onto Therum with bloody anticipation. The Hunchback had last fired its weapons on Feros against Saren's mercenaries. Today, his BattleMech would finally stride into battle again, and against Saren once more as well. Shepherd Lance was alone, dropping in blind, against a foe he'd never faced before, but he was not going to back down.

Hunchback Medium 'Mech

"Remember what Miss Zorah and the Clanners told us, [lance]]." Shepard reminded his comrades. "The Geth don't need neurohelmets, they are the Mechs. And watch out for their tricks." A timer to release appeared on his HUD, and the bay door in front of the Bloody Igor began grinding open. "Get ready."

The Calypso was descending rapidly towards the landing site, shedding speed and height quickly as its engines burned. This was the most vulnerable phase of deployment, and Shepard knew everyone on board was awaiting the unexpected ambush, hoping the armour plating would hold out. He could see the ground approaching and watch the altimeter drop, until the dropship levelled out just above the barren rocks. The clamps holding the Bloody Igor in place opened with loud clanks, and the BattleMech slammed into the ground, knees bending to absorb the impact. The Hunchback staggered against the backwash of the engines as the Calypso took off again at full throttle. Straightening again, Shepard took in his surroundings, clear except for the rest of his lance.

"Heads up, Commander, picked up some signals incoming between you and the target." Calypso warned him. Shepard acknowledged the message, already picking up interference from enemy ECM. Contact was imminent.

"Shepherd Lance, form up on me," he commanded. His Hunchback took the lead, followed by Rosby 'Bonesaw' in his Quickdraw on one flank and Asahi's Dragon on the other, with Taylor holding her Jenner in the rear. The lance advanced in formation towards the edge of the plateau they had landed on, and as missile volleys began streaking forwards from Rosby and Asahi, Shepard had his first look at the Geth coming over the incline.

Dragon Heavy 'Mech

His first impression was of a pack of running dogs, only these beasts were much larger and swifter. The four Geth split up, aiming to envelop his lance from both directions. In response, Shepard led his lance right, inaccurate long-range fire from the robots skimming past him or throwing up rock fragments as they cratered the ground. He responded with his own autocannon, spotting sporadic flashes of kinetic barriers in the distance.

Taylor sprinted her Jenner forwards to cut ahead of the Geth, nearly skimming the ground with bursts of her jump jets. The enemy machines responded to her probing approach rapidly. The Mechs contorted disturbingly, suddenly jogging on their forelegs as their torso folded upright and the rear legs twisted and changed configurations. In an instant, the high-speed quadrupeds became bipedal Mechs, unleashing a wave of destruction at the Jenner.

Jenner attempting to dodge

Taylor flung her BattleMech into a desperate backpedal, clawing for extra acceleration with jump jets at full power. Shepard tuned out her cursing as light kinetic barriers failed and armour disintegrated, covering the light Mech's retreat with his weapons. Rosby peeled off to keep the quickly incoming second pair of Geth Mechs at bay, leaving the Bloody Igor and Dragon to face the first pair.

The bipedal forms were harder-hitting, but slower. Yet the Bloody Igor was heavily armored, and finally approaching optimal range. One eye on his heat sinks, Shepard concentrated fire on the leading Geth Mech. Lasers cut glowing grooves into the smooth armour, followed by high-speed shells, depleting the kinetic barriers enough for Asahi's missiles to hammer the armour underneath. The Geth Mech responded by falling behind its comrade after battering Shepard's Hunchback with one final volley from its weapons. The torso rotated, presenting the undamaged rear towards Shepard and Asahi, while the arms bent around to face them again.

"Oh, come on!" Asahi complained. "That's not fair."

"Shepard Three, follow me and break left!" Shepard snapped at Asahi. It was risky, putting themselves between the two pairs of Geth, relying on Bonesaw's Quickdraw to guard their backs. "Shepard Four, whenever you're ready." The Geth tracked him, turning to follow and damage him as he passed them while hammering them with everything he had.

The Jenner sprinted past the damaged Geth's rear, lasers slicing into already weakened armour while they were fixated on him. Shepard couldn't tell if anything vital was damaged, but the Geth withdrew from both him and Taylor. With a swift pair of orders, Asahi and Bonesaw switched roles. The Dragon pivoted to the other pair of Geth, now deploying into bipedal form, and the Quickdraw leapt into the wounded quarry's vulnerable arc with a quick burn from its jump jets. Heavily armed with lasers, Bonesaw inflicted the crippling blow, something failing within the Geth's chassis. The Geth staggered, and fell over to a final wave of rockets from Bonesaw.

Now outnumbering the lone Geth, Shepard pressed the advantage. The Bloody Igor and enemy Mech savagely battered each other as he backed away from the suddenly recklessly advancing machine, unwilling to test the grappling skills of the flexible foe. One organic-looking leg of the Geth was torn open by another strafe from Taylor. It fell onto the three remaining limbs, parts reconfiguring themselves before it stood upright again, with the damaged leg now a non-functional arm. Shepard simply activated his weapons again, and battered the Geth's torso into scrap.

"They're falling back," Asahi reported from her Dragon. The two surviving Geth Mechs, quadrupedal once more, were sprinting away from Shepard Lance. They slowed down at a considerable distance and began circling them, trading potshots with the Star Hunters.

"Shepard, should we pursue?" Bonesaw queried.

"Negative, Bonesaw," Shepard decided. "they might try delaying us. The longer we take to push through the rest of the Geth, the longer T'Soni has to pull some trick. Shepard Lance, proceed to Waypoint Alpha. We'll finish them if we have the chance, or we'll force them to come defend our target."

Part 3

Therum, Cidetal Space

There was a difference, Liara T'Soni had discovered, between being underground and being trapped underground.

She was acutely aware of the nigh impenetrable layers of rock hemming the expedition in, of the lack of natural light, and how little room they had. The Prothean materials seemed quiet and foreboding, waiting to become tombs. And always, her pacing kept bringing her back to the sealed entrance, dreading the moment the kinetic barriers would fall and the geth finally enter.

This time around, Captain Dewdry of the Water Angels was already there, engaged in quiet conversation with the heavy weapons team nestled in a pile of Prothean debris. She would have protested against the gross mistreatment of the precursors' legacy, but the the humans had argued for the necessity, and she had sifted through the heap twice already, before everything had gone horribly wrong.

Seeing her, Captain Dewdry slid down from the entrenched position and met her in front of the glowing barriers, generated by reactivated Prothean machines. It was relatively safe, since the geth had withdrawn after the first exchange of lasers through the barriers, and concealed cameras watched for their return. "Dr T'Soni," he spoke to her in a low voice, "is something wrong?"

Plenty, but she didn't want to say that. "No, nothings changed." she replied. "No sign of geth activity. Some of my colleagues want to continue excavations, just to have something to do. I intend to grant them permission."

"Go ahead. Maybe they'll find a BattleMech. Now that'll be something." The human laughed softly. "Unless they dig open another entrance for the geth, I don't see the harm."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" T'Soni asked. "Maybe some of us can use the spare weapons, help guard the entrance."

Captain Dewdry shook his head. "No, best not," the veteran informed her gently. "I don't trust civilians on the frontlines. Besides, they won't make a difference. Chances are, we won't last a minute if those barriers drop." He whispered the last sentence, looking away from his people.

"It's that bad?", she asked

"Could be I'm being a tad too pessimistic," Captain Dewdry conceded. "You saw the readings we picked up before evacuating underground. A dropship that big? If they get a Mech down here, we're finished. Even if they don't, they outnumber us by far too much. If it comes to that, hide in the ruins. Maybe they'll miss a spot."

"The Geth are after me. I don't think they'll just give up." The synthetic beings had offered to spare the others if she surrendered, but Liara didn't believe them. Nonetheless, the geth wanted Liara alive. Or the bluffed threat of a cave-in wouldn't have stopped the tunnelling attempt.

"Well, good thing the barriers are up and running. The Protheans sure built their stuff to last. I don't think the old Star League caches can last a thousand years like this place."

"The Protheans built these ruins fifty thousand years ago." Liara corrected him.

"One thousand, fifty thousand, what does it matter," Captain Dewdry shrugged off his ignorance. "As long as their stuff doesn't break, we might come out of this alive. You sure help is coming?"

"I am," Liara affirmed. "My expedition was only approved if options for rescue were arranged beforehand. My mother, Matriarch Benezia, is keeping an eye on me." For once, she was grateful for her mother's attention. "The research institute must have noticed our silence and informed her. She must be on her way by now."

"Well, let's hope your mother really loves you," the leader of the Water Angels replied. He looked at the glowing barriers again, then back to Liara. "Out of curiosity, since I might not have another chance. Why did you choose to hire us? You must be able to afford a Mech company at least, if your mother's so rich."

"I didn't want to hire any help," Liara admitted. "I thought it unnecessary. Many archaeologists before me were able to conduct research without much security, and I knew I could defend myself from the occasional looters or pirates if necessary." She flexed her biotics and briefly levitated a rock to demonstrate. "but then humans arrived, and made everything difficult. No offense."

"None taken," Captain Dewdry smiled. "Us humans hate each other too."

Liara's lips twitched upwards. "Well, nobody else really cares that much for Prothean ruins. Most of our technology is now as advanced as theirs, or at least close enough to not make a difference. There may be some marvels we haven't been able to replicate, like the Citadel or mass relays, but you won't find anything like that somewhere like this. There are some threats, or competition from private collectors, plunderers, eezo scavengers or others, but all in all, it was quite manageable." She frowned. "I'm sorry, I'm rambling again."

"It's fine, my duties include listening. So, then we humans discovered you existed. That made your job harder?"

"Where do I start? The proliferation of human weapons, sold to anybody willing to pay with element zero? The massive interest your species has in any sort of Prothean artefacts? The increased demand for eezo and how the rising prices encouraged scavengers? In any case, archaeology became more hazardous than I expected. I mean, just look at Feros. I was part of a Thessian expedition to salvage what we could from the… strip mining the human League was doing. We were two days from departure when the Word of Blake attacked."

Feros had appeared in her news update recently as well. Her mother's name had been mentioned, but Liara had mostly concentrated on the information regarding how 'archaeological expeditions' had been indefinitely suspended. She'd been of two minds whether to cheer the stop of further damage to the irreplaceable planet, or mourn the additional damage that must have occurred beforehand.

"In any case, Captain Dewdry, before I hired you, I was at an archaeological dig. It came under attack from BattleMechs. Most of us were able to escape, but the site was plundered." Some of the items Liara had been cataloguing resurfaced shortly thereafter in an Interstellar Expeditions auction, but they'd denied any connection. "My mother demanded I increase the security of future expeditions. She would have given me her commandos, but I refused. So she insisted I hire protection from the MRB instead, and used her influence to block my field work until I agreed. She did offer to pay the cost. Mother probably thought I'd hire somebody with 'Mechs. Instead, I requested a list of reliable candidates from the MRB who were small and didn't have Mechs or heavy vehicles. I chose you because I considered religious groups more palatable."

"Sorry, what?" Captain Dewdry furrowed his brows, looking very much like a confused asari. "My translator must be malfunctioning. Did you say religious group?"

"Yes? It was a misunderstanding on my part. Your name, Aqua Angels, was tagged as having religious connotations by my translator. Justicars are a respected part of asari culture, so I'd assumed you were similar. Don't worry, I realised the truth quickly enough."

"Well, I can think of worse ways to get a job," the red-faced human grunted. "Didn't think that mix-up was possible."

"So, why call yourselves Water Angels?"

"My grandfather started everything up." Captain Dewdry explained. "He was a veteran, became part of a militia. Met a person who knew how to fix old Star League water purifiers, either picked up the skill somewhere or had some lostech tool or something. He could make good money repairing those old purifiers, but the worlds that would pay him best were not exactly safe. So my grandfather teamed up with him to form a mercenary company. They'd travel from planet to planet, offering to repair or maintain the purifiers. The soldiers would protect the expert from harm, also defend the settlements while they were at it. Maybe train up some locals to protect themselves too. My grandfather chose some fancy name, but the others called them Aqua Angels, cause of all the lives they saved by fixing the purifiers, and the name stuck."

"Is that your speciality, then? Repair and defense?"

"No, that expert's long gone by now, and he didn't leave a replacement. The Aqua Angels just did minor garrison or training jobs or we subcontracted with one of the larger mercenaries when they needed infantry. At some point, we had a chance to come to the Relay Systems to make our fortune, so here we are."

They were both silent again, Liara contemplating the kinetic barriers. "The Prothean systems were well-preserved, so deep underground," she broke the silence. "I haven't noticed any malfunctions emerging, so if all goes well, we can hold out for months at least." Rescue must have come by then.

"Food might not last that long," Captain Dewdry commented. "With your permission, I'd start rationing it."

Liara was about to agree when her communicator started beeping and Captain Dewdry turned away with a hand to his earpiece. Accepting her own call, she asked, "What's going on?"

"Dr T'Soni, picking up activity on the surface!" The breathless voice of her salarian co-worker informed her. "Signals are deviating from previous patterns, geth jamming fluctuating as well."

"I'm on my way. Start transmitting our distress signal." Liara glanced to Captain Dewdry, who nodded. Hastily, they scrambled through the narrow tunnels, emerging into the makeshift command center after a short sprint. Mercenaries and researchers crowded around the central console, speculating on the data pouring in from buried sensors around the dig site.

"Lieutenant! Sit-rep!" Captain Dewdry barked.

One of the humans wearing fancier insignia on his uniform saluted and began reporting. "Multiple tremors, Captain, don't match the geth Mechs we'd picked up beforehand. We're picking up some audio as well, can't make out much, but Jerry thinks it's weapons fire. The sensors are ready to go active on your command, sir."

"Do it," Captain Dewdry ordered. Additional information appeared on the console, sensors meant for penetrating deep underground to probe at ancient remains directing their attention to the surface. Liara tried to make sense of the crude readings, while Captain Dewdry nodded. "Looks like a battle." he decided. "Your mother did come through, Dr T'Soni."

Ragged cheers bounced around the chamber. "Don't celebrate just yet." the captain snapped. "The geth may attempt to break in one last time. Lieutenant, take a squad and reinforce the entrance."

As Liara watched, sensors failed one by one, something approaching each shallowly buried node one by one before the connection was lost. With the remainder, she could tell that the activity on the surface was diminishing, while the previously intense geth jamming broke down.

Finally, some time after the last sensor was lost, somebody answered their hails. "This is Dr T'Soni," Liara announced to the other side. "Thanks for the rescue, whoever you are. Is it safe to come out?"

An unfamiliar human voice answered her. "Drop the helpless damsel act. I'm not interested in playing around. Your geth are gone. Lower the shields and surrender."

"My geth?" Liara asked, confused. Captain Dewdry was frowning. "Surrender? I don't understand. Please, identify yourselves. Didn't my mother send you?"

"Don't pretend to be friends with me. You and your mother have a lot to answer for."

"Patch me in." Captain Dewdry quietly instructed his subordinates, then transmitted, "This is Captain Dewdry of the Aqua Angels, on MRB contract as site security to Dr T'Soni. State your identity and purpose."

"Captain Dewdry, I am Commander Shepard of the MRB-registered Star Hunters, here on behalf of the Normandy Initiative. Your client is implicated in the geth invasion of a human world on the other side of Tartarus Relay. I doubt you were aware, so I'm offering you a chance. Surrender and turn Dr T'Soni and her associates over to us, and I'll support you when the MRB reviews your performance."

"I'm standing right next to her, Commander Shepard." the captain drily responded. "I have no proof you're speaking the truth. This is the first time I've heard of such a thing. We've been hiding underground ever since the geth arrived, and they've been demanding we turn Dr T'Soni over."

"That's true." Liara affirmed. "I've never encountered the Geth before now. You must be mistaken. Please, just tell us what's going on."

The channel was silent for long, agonising moments. One of Captain Dewdry's soldiers, a long-haired female, whispered. "MRB database entry on the Star Hunters reports they're a small BattleMech mercenary unit, with ties to the Periphery, led by Commander Shepard. According to the last update, they're supposed to be on the Citadel. Reliable, good ratings by previous employers. Decent track record, they probably won't kill the non-combatants."

"That doesn't make sense." Liara muttered. "Why are they out here? Are you sure they're really the Star Hunters?"

"You know very well what's happening, asari." the stranger finally spoke coldly before anybody could reply. "Don't pretend to be ignorant. I know you and your mother are working with the Spectre Saren Arterius. I know the geth are working with you. You've either been lying to Captain Dewdry or he is lying to me. Or perhaps he's dead already. Surrender and cooperate, and the Normandy Initiative may show leniency. Or don't, and see what happens."

Captain Dewdry was briefly distracted by a message in his earpiece. "Stay concealed and observe." he commanded, then looked to Liara. "Movement outside the kinetic barriers. Infantry, including at least one Battle Armour. That has to be carrying a laser." A laser which could penetrate the barrier. The geth had used their own lasers before in an attempt to destroy the barrier generator and failed, so they were still safe for now, hopefully.

The ground shuddered. "Seismic disturbances from above us," one of her colleagues reported with a quavering voice. "I think they're trying to widen the passage to us. They-they might really cause a cave-in if they aren't careful. We have to warn them!"

Somehow, Liara doubted the people outside would listen. She frantically thought, trying to consider her options, as the mercenary officers argued over plans of action. Finally, she sighed and straightened her back, staring at the console. "Commander Shepard, if I surrender, you will let the others go?" Liara demanded.

"What?" Captain Dewdry exclaimed, muting their side of the channel so the new besiegers couldn't listen in. "Even if they are the real Star Hunters, we have no idea of their intentions."

"I don't have a choice, captain," Liara weakly replied. "First the geth, now these newcomers demand me? For some reason, I'm important now, important enough somebody is willing to fight the geth to obtain me, and I won't continue endangering the lives of everybody else here for my own sake. It's better if we surrender. Your troops won't be able to hold them off, and this way you'll live."

"You hired me to defend you," the human argued, "and I intend to do that. If the Aqua Angels simply gave up, we'll never wash the stain off our records. We can retreat into the Prothean ruins. The Mechs will have difficulty flushing us out of the tight spaces, and they can't have more than a few Battle Armors. It's possible."

A turian spoke on the still open channel to the outside. "Dr T'Soni? This is Officer Garrus Vakarian from C-Sec." Liara exchanged befuddled glances with Captain Dewdry. "Wait, you can't verify my identity, just believe me. I'll do what I can to guarantee your safety, and the freedom of the others."

"You have my word, Captain Dewdry," the still faceless Commander Shepard added, "one mercenary to another. Just a few questions, then you'll go free, without repercussions to your reputation. The same goes for the other archaeologists. All I want is Dr T'Soni."

Captain Dewdry opened his mouth to protest, but Liara stopped him with a raised hand. "You've done what you could, Captain Dewdry, but this is it. For the record, I'm satisfied with your performance, and I am releasing the Water Angels from their contract obligations without complaint. Turn off the barriers long enough for me to pass through, and then decide whether they can be trusted. Just," she paused to gather her thoughts. "Just get word to my research institute, and to my mother if you can."

"Commander Shepard, I surrender. The barrier will be lowering in a moment."

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