Chapter 22 - Chapter 22, Wrath of the Helldivers

PHEW! I finally did it! Would like to just point out though that this isn't the final chapter. There will be at least one more after this one and maybe another.

In the meantime, Enjoy! This one is epic! Just fair waring though that this chapter contains exterme violence and injury.

Chapter 22

Wrath of the Helldivers

The Thresher Maw husk, or the tunneler as it was called, once again burst out of the ground. Fortunately, that was enough to make the Helldivers regain their composure and they immediately opened fire on the husk. It was difficult though. One minute the tunneler was above ground, the next minute and had dove back into the ground leaving massive holes and chasms in its wake. All the large chasms and trenches on Eden Prime made sense now.

Once again, the Tunneler's tentacles burst out of the ground and started to attack the Helldivers. The soldiers immediately opened fire on the tentacles. They made sure to keep moving and not stay in the same place for too long. A tentacle could easily burst out of the ground and catch them if it did. Austin and the rest of the team also fired. Their job wasn't made any easier by the debris and rocks being thrown everywhere.

The Tunneler's head and body once again burst out of the ground and lunged onto one of the tanks. Its massive jaws dripped with oil and acid. The jaws clamped around the tanks as the head burrowed back into the ground, swallowing the whole tank in the process and killing several Helldivers with the debris and rocks. A few others though saw this as opening and fired on the rest of the Thresher Maw's body that was disappearing. The Tunneler seemed to screech slightly before its head and torso emerged again, along with the tentacles. It didn't try to disappear this time though. The body remained stationary, most likely so that it could see what it was doing. It was from there that Austin was able to get a good look at the Husks body, and at the same time see just how extensive its conversion had been.

There were loads of holes on the Thresher Maw's torso. This was an obvious sign that more than one of the tripods, which they had taken to calling dragon's teeth, had been used to convert it into this Tunneler. He guessed it hadn't been a seamless transformation.

The five tentacles, and also the Thresher Maw's own arms began to swipe at the Helldivers and the crab walkers that where firing on it. It was like fighting a massive squid with drills, saw and knifes, if there ever was such a thing. The Tunneler's glowing red eyes eyed the whole battle as it continued to wrap around the Helldivers and the tanks like snakes. In a vague attempt to try and wound the Tunneler, several Helldivers broke out some of the heavy weapons and fired on the tentacles and metal, segmented body. The rockets didn't seem to do much damage but they definitely seemed to hurt the husk. Unfortunately, it retaliated by spitting huge tons of fiery acid which slowly, but painfully, melted the unfortunate Helldivers and anything it touched.

Austin and the team ran for cover behind a large of the ground that had been pushed up by the tunneler.

"Where not causing enough damage! That thing's too strong!" Zartrack shouted over the sound of Tunneler's loud drilling, ground being thrown up and overturned, massive amounts of gunfire and the screams and shouts of desperate soldiers.

"What about the exo suit mechs? That would at least give us a chance." Austin suggested.

Zartrack took a quick moment to consider this.

"We don't have much of a choice!" he said as he ducked from a large dismembered crab leg being tossed over his head.

"Sandra, contact the Destroyer! Tell them to drop a mech in!" he ordered.

"Yes sir!" Sandra replied. She activated her omni tool and made contact with another one of the Helldiver carriers. "It'll take some time for the mech to get here!" she said.

"Spread out! Try to confuse it!" Zartrack ordered.

Austin, the rest of the group and the Helldivers that still remained employed flanking maneuvers and tried to work around the Tunneler. Still the tentacles and acid continued to claim Helldiver lives. It was almost as if the tentacles had minds of their own and knew exactly where they were. Thanks to large rocks and chunks of the ground being ripped up though, Austin and his team managed to make it to the other side. Fortunately, the Husk didn't notice them. Nor did it feel any of the blaster shots since it had armour plating on its back.

With the Tunneler surrounded, the entire army began to concentrate their fire. The Husk however, was smarter than they had thought and it was a fast reactor. Using its massive arms and long tentacles as a massive clubs, it began to spin its body at a fast rate and swung the arms at the Helldivers. The large knifes, drills and spikes attached to the tentacles caused huge amounts of the ground to be tore up as it did. Just as the Thresher Maw Husk stopped though, a huge barrage of rockets and bullets suddenly hit it.

All the Helldivers that where still left looked up to see a heavy Hellhound drop ship firing at the Tunneler. It appeared to be carrying what looked like a large robot underneath it.

"Dropping Mech in now!" came the pilot's voice over the radio.

"Pull up! Pull up! Your altitude's too low! The Tunneler will…" Zartrack tried to warn the pilot, but it was too late.

The Tunneler noticed the Drop Ship firing at it and dove back into the ground. Before the pilot could react to this, the Tunneler once again burst out of the ground and lunged at the drop ship. The huge gaping jaws clamped down onto the drop ship and it started to violently shake it around. Fortunately, the locks holding the Exo Suit mech to the Hellhound broke. As the Thresher Maw Husk threw the damaged drop ship at a nearby Prothean tower, the Exo Suit fell towards the ground. To make sure that the fall didn't damage it, Austin accessed the controls with his omni tool and engaged the Mech's autopilot. The Exo Suit unfolded from its shut down mode and came alive. Identifying that it wasn't falling properly, it readjusted itself so that it landed upright like a Helldiver did.

Having finished with Hellhound, the Tunneler turned back to the Helldivers. It noticed that they were trying to retreat to the Conduit. The Husk would not let that happen.

"Stay behind me!" Austin ordered as he climbed into the mech. His own armour was clamped into place and the mech closed up.

The Helldiver Panther mechs where one of the most powerful machines ever created by the Arkanes. Able to operate on auto pilot as robot mechs or be piloted by other Helldivers and used as Exo Suits, they were armed to the teeth with heavy weapons and armour. A massive mini gun adorned the right arm while the Mech's left arm had a large blade. In addition to this, the Panther mech had loads of other heavy guns and rifles.

With full control over the Exo Suit now, Austin fired on the maw while he covered the Helldivers retreat. The Tunneler roared and disappeared back into the ground. The Maw's tentacles burst out again and began to pick off the remaining Helldivers one by one. Austin managed to fire on one of the tentacles when it nearly caught Sarah and managed to punch another one away that nearly went for Liara. Just in time, he managed to spot another one underground about to attack. Just as it lunged out, he flipped right over the tentacle and swung the suit's blade arm at it. Timing it just right, he managed to sever the entire mechanical arm in half. The Tunneler recoiled and looked at it's now severed tentacle. For the Thresher Maw, that was the last straw. Seeing the Panther Mech as a more immediate threat, it initiated a loud roar and dove back into the ground. The whole ground underneath the Helldiver rumbled and shook violently. A huge chasm suddenly opened up, separating Austin and the Normandy crew from the Helldivers in the process. The Tunneler's head burst out of the gap and engulfed the Exo suit in its jaws. The mechanical strength of the Husk's mouth was too strong for Austin to break loose.

"Austin!" Liara yelled as she watched the suit struggle helplessly to break free. Just as the Thresher Maw began to start eating though, the suit opened up and Austin just managed to jump out of the Maw's mouth. He landed, feet first on the edge of the chasm that the Tunneler had created. Before anyone could do anything though, the Tunneler spat the damaged Panther Mech out of its mouth, spitting a huge load of acid out along with it in the process. Due to the ground being made very unstable by the Tunneler's drilling, the large piece of the ground where the wreckage landed fell away into the chasm. In the process, part of the ground that Liara had been standing on gave away as well, causing her to lose her footing.

"Liara!" Austin yelled. He immediately leapt over to Liar and just barely managed to catch her hand before she fell.

"Don't let me go!" Liara yelled as she dangled over the massive drop of the chasm. Using all of his strength, Austin groaned as he flung Liara back onto stable ground.

"You alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine." Said Liara as she got her breath back.

The Tunneler refocused its attention on the group. It seemed completely oblivious to the fact that the Helldivers where firing at its back on the other side of the chasm. The gaping jaws of the husk dripped with acid and it looked just about ready to pounce on them. Al of the group readied their weapons; they didn't see how else this was going to end.

Then Sarah suddenly heard another noise. Through her Death Mask she looked to the sky to see a Helldiver atmospheric fighter flying towards them, guns blazing. The Tunneler immediately took notice of this and looked to its new attacker. As the fighter flew at full speed towards the Maw it continued firing. Unlike the drop ship though, the atmospheric fighters where much faster. The Tunneler lunged at the fighter but it missed due to the speed. As the fighter sped past, it pulled a massive turn and came round for another run. As it did, if fired two rockets at the husk. They both hit the Thresher Maw hard and it was temporarily weakened. As the Tunneler slowly used its remaining limbs to pick itself back up, the fighter continued firing and flew at full speed at the spot on the Husk's neck where the missiles had impacted. Before the Tunneler knew what had hit it, the Atmospheric fighter flew right through its neck, severing it completely in half. Due to the fighter's strong armour, it wasn't damaged. The Tunneler's head fell to the ground and the now lifeless body fell into the chasm that it had created. The Atmospheric fighter simply flew away.

"Whoever that pilot is, I'm gonna give him a medal for that." Said Zartrack as he and the rest of the remaining Helldivers took a moment to get their breath back. On the other side of the chasm, Austin and the rest of his team did the same. He then looked at the chasm. There were no untouched bits at all. The Tunneler had dived the battlefield completely. Fortunately, their side had the Conduit.

"General, can you get across?" Austin yelled to Zartrack.

"We can, but it'll take time! You'll have to go ahead without us! We'll try and catch when we make it through!" Zartrack yelled back over the chasm.

Austin and the others understood. They didn't have time to wait for the Helldivers. They would have to go through the Conduit without them. Fortunately, the Mako had ended up on their side as well.

"Good luck, Shepard!" Zartrack yelled.

Austin closed the hatch and floored it.

The Presidium was in complete ruins. Debris and wreckage from the Geth attack was everywhere. Two Geth soldiers had been ordered to stay behind and guard the Conduit. As the Citadel's VI Avina kept issuing the evacuation warning, the small Mass Relay monument started to pulse and the central ring started spinning. The two Geth soldiers walked up to the Relay. To their surprise, a large rover suddenly appeared out of it crashed right into them. The sudden impact though caused the Mako to spin slightly. In the process, it lost a wheel and overturned completely. Austin and the rest of the team climbed out, slightly dizzy from the crash.

"That's the second time that's happened now." Tali groaned.

"Come on, into the elevator. We don't have much time." Said Austin.

Before the group could get to the elevator though, several of the Dragon's teeth that they hadn't noticed earlier retracted and the Husks on top of them dismounted. Everyone immediately pulled out their guns. As they fired on the husks, more and more of the Husks began to swarm around the group.

"Brother, we're surrounded!" said Sarah, a hint of worry in her voice.

"But not helpless." Austin added. "Stand your ground!" he ordered.

The Husks lunged at them, but they gunned down every single one. Despite the husks superior numbers, they were proving no match for the united efforts of the group. Some of the even pulled out their melee weapons and started either slicing or knocking the husks away. Austin in particular slashed away using Excalibur. The blade cut down every Husk it touched with a single strike. The two Krogan resorted to their brute strength rather than their guns and proceeded to smash, punch and head butt the Husks. Apart from Kraan, Alpha Squad used their Omi blades to carve a path through the zombies while the others used all their skills to keep the Husks back. Liara and Alaara in particular seemed to work very well together with their biotic coordination's. Both the Quarians meanwhile where able to use their tech skills to overload the electronics that the husks used. Finally, the group managed to clear a path to the elevator that would get them to the Citadel tower, and hopefully to Saren. There were far too many Husks for them to fight, so they were forced to seal the door. Throughout the transparent glass, they could say the emotionless faces clawing at the glass.

Not wanting to see the sight any longer, Austin pressed the button that would activate the elevator. The elevator slowly ascended and the Husks disappeared from view. As the elevator cleared the Presidium ring, they finally caught a view of the Citadel fully. The whole place was a blaze with ships firing on one another.

"My god." Said Dash.

There where Geth ships everywhere. The entire Citadel fleets where either scattered or destroyed. The massive flagship, The Destiny Ascension, was also under fire.

"Is it just me, or is the Citadel closing?" Sarah asked.

The whole group looked at the Citadel's arms. Sarah was right, they were closing. The station was being sealed.

"Where's Sovereign though? It should be at the head of the Geth fleet." Austin said as he tried desperately to see where the Reaper was. Eventually though, he gave up after the Citadel arms closed completely and any view of the battle was lost. As the elevator neared the top, the whole tower suddenly shook violently.

"That doesn't sound good." Said Ashley.

Then the elevator screeched to a sudden halt.

"We stopped." Said Sarah.

"Saren's locked down the elevator." Said Austin.

"Looks like we're stuck in here then." Said Dash annoyingly.

"When will you learn, Dash? There's always a way." Said Austin as unholstered his pistol. "Everyone suit up! We're going for a little walk." He said.

Anyone that hadn't already been wearing a helmet put theirs on and secured them. With everyone ready, Austin fired at the elevators glass window. It shattered completely and all the oxygen left the confined space. Using their magnetic boots, they gently attached to the wall of the Citadel tower.

"I guess we know where Sovereign is now." Said Garrus.

Austin looked in his direction. The massive Reaper, Sovereign was clamped onto the Citadel tower. The whole group slowly made their way up the tower. From the looks of things, the Geth ships where attacking the inner bits of the Citadel and at the same time defending Sovereign. Despite running into a lot of Geth and Krogan on the tower, they made good progress and finally managed to make it to the top.

The very minute they entered the Council chambers; they were bombarded by Geth laser fire.

"Get to cover, now!" Austin ordered.

Everyone immediately did so. It appeared that they weren't alone either. Several C-sec officers where engaging the Geth as well. Austin crouched behind cover in front of one of them.

"Commander Shepard of the Helldivers. You the one in charge here?" Austin asked as explosions and laser fire echoed around them.

"Lieutenant Armando-Owen Bailey of C-sec." replied the officer. "Nice to finally see some reinforcements."

Austin blind fired a bit at the Geth before speaking again.

"Where's the Council?" he asked.

"They've been evacuated onto the Destiny Ascension. We've been trying to take back the Council Chambers but the Geth are too strong. Plus that Terror Geth of theirs isn't making it any easier." Bailey replied.

Austin risked a quick glance out of cover to assess the situation. That didn't work though as the moment he stuck he head out, he was shot at. Ducking back into cover, he took a small sensor from his belt and threw it. The small wave it emitted allowed him and the other Helldivers to see how many there where. There were still quite a lot of Geth at the top of the stairs. Worse still, they had the high ground and sure enough, the Terror Geth was heading the assault.

"What's the situation so far?" Austin asked.

"We've been trying to make a push on the Geth but we're too exposed. We've take heavy casualties." Said Bailey as he blind fired a few shots as well.

"Have they taken any hostages?" Austin asked.

"Fortunately, no. All they're doing is defending Saren." Said Bailey.

Austin looked over cover slightly to see Saren firing on them as well from his platform.

"The Geth are trying to advance on us as well, but we're keeping them back. At the moment though, there are too few of us. I don't think we can last much longer." Said Bailey.

Austin tried to think up a plan. It was hard though. The Geth had the high ground and more advanced weaponry. But they had more cover opportunities. There still wasn't enough for any of them to get close enough though. Then he noticed something blue on his HUD.

"What's that?" he asked.

"The Geth also have some kind of shield around them. It's kinetically sensitive. Energy and projectiles just bounce off." Bailey answered.

"The Geth never did play fair." Said Tali as she blind fired as well.

Austin took a moment to think. Then an idea hit him. He noticed that the Terror Geth had it's free hand on the shield generator and was keeping it operational.

"If I can get a drone in close enough, I can distract The Terror Geth. That'll knock the shield out long enough for us to take out the generator." He said. "If we can keep them distracted, I might be able to get it close enough."

Bailey considered for a minute.

"It's risky, but we don't have much choice." He said. "We'll concentrate on the shield and make it look like we're advancing."

Austin nodded. He turned to his own.

"Keep me covered." He ordered as he activated his spider walker.

Most of the remaining C-sec officers and Alpha Squad bolted from cover to cover and fired on the shield. Sure enough, it looked like they were attempting to advance and the Geth took the bait. All the while though, they were oblivious to the little robot spider slowly crawling around their defences.

Tali and Leena held back in order to build defence turrets and portable barriers. Liara also put up a biotic shield to protect the wounded while Alaara used her biotics to attack. Dash used his speed and agility to dodge most of the Geth fire before sliding into a safe position.

Finally, the spider made it through the shield and managed to get close enough to the generator that the Terror Geth was using. Austin knew that the spider couldn't destroy the generator, but it didn't need to. He only had to stop the Terror Geth from using it long enough for them to get a clear shot and destroy it. Unable to think of any other option, Austin made the spider jump onto the Terror Geth's face. Blinded by the robot clawing at its eye, the Terror Geth let go of the generator and tried to shake the spider off its face.

"Now! Fire on the generator!" Bailey ordered.

All the C-sec agents and the Helldivers fired on the generator.

The Terror Geth still struggled to get the spider robot off its face, in the process it was firing it's plasma blaster a little madly. Eventually it did manage to grab the robot and crush it, but by that time it was too late. A large concussive shot from one of Bailey's men impacted on the generator and it exploded. Some of the explosion even hit the Terror Geth's eye stalk, causing it's vision to briefly malfunction. Without the shield the Geth where a bit disorganised. Then a familiar voice rang out.

"Helldivers, attack!" it ordered.

Austin and the others looked back to see General Zartrack and the rest of the Helldivers filing into the room and firing on the Geth.

With the Geth temporarily weakened, Austin seized his chance. To everyone's surprise, he leapt out of cover and ran at the Geth.

"Austin!" Liara called. She tried to run after him, but a large amount of laser fire forced her back into cover.

"What the hell's he doing?" said Zartrack.

Austin went mad as he ran. He fired at several Geth as he got closer. He relied on his suit's shields to absorb most of the fire. When he got close enough to another Geth he smashed its face with assault rifle. As it fell he continued running, firing at another and another. He smashed another Geth to the ground using his rifle. Another one came close but he activated his left omni blade and sliced it's head off. Another Geth attempted to melee him with its own rife but he parried the attack and stabbed it in the stomach. With the Geth wounded, Austin then severed its head and smashed one away with his rifle. The Terror Geth was right in his sights now. With a clear path ahead he continued running. The Terror Geth growled at Austin and fired a plasma blast at him. The Helldiver however was quicker and fired a concussive shot just before the Terror Geth fired. As the shot impacted on the Terror Geth chest he rolled to avoid the plasma blast. He narrowly missed the blast as he rolled over it. His earlier concussive shot had temporarily weakened the Terror Geth and it had fallen to its knees. As it slowly got up, Austin shifted his assault rifle into his left hand and brought his right hand back. First he activated his omni blade and then another one flipped out as well making the omni blade now a dual symmetrical blade. The whole of his right wrist and hand was then reinforced with armour and his small wrist blade came out as well. With his whole arm fully armoured, Austin thrust forward. The whole of the Terror Geth right chest and torso smashed apart as Austin punched through it. If the Terror Geth could've felt pain it would definitely have screamed. Instead, it only grunted and tried to reach for the Helldiver. Austin however whirled around and jumped at the Terror Geth. As he made contact, he embedded his super blade into the Terror Geth's face.

"You die!" Austin said as the Geth staggered and fell backwards with him still on it. Using his rifle he fired on the Terror Geth's head slightly to weaken it. Then using all his strength he gripped the Terror Geth's eye and pulled it. The whole of the eye stalk ripped away along with the Terror Geth's brain and memory core. The Geth spasmed for a minute and then the headless body went completely limp.

"And stay dead!" Austin shouted.

"You'll pay for that, Shepard!" Saren shouted from his platform as he aimed his Geth pulse rifle at Austin.

The Helldiver however reacted quickly and picked up the Terror Geth's plasma blaster. He quickly aimed and fired it at Saren's platform. The Turian didn't react quickly enough and the plasma blast impacted on his platform, sending it spinning wildly out of control.

Without their' leader, the Geth where disorganised. Despite this though, they still put up a rough fight for the Helldivers and C-sec. Fortunately, their military precision gave them the advantage.

Saren slowly got up from where he had landed when his Geth platform had crashed. He looked up to see Austin staring at him. The Helldiver was clearly ready for another fight. The other Geth didn't seem to take any notice of him since they were too busy with other Helldivers and C-sec.

"I was afraid you wouldn't make it in time, Shepard." He groaned as he stood up.

"Had to wipe out a few of your followers along the way. Sorry I kept you waiting!" said Austin. "So I'm in time for what?"

"The final confrontation. I think we both expected it would end like this." Said Saren. The sounds of heavy gunfire and explosions echoed around the two opponents. "You've lost. You know that, don't you? In a few minutes, Sovereign will have full control of all the Citadel systems. The Relay will open. The Reapers will return."

"I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve." Said Austin as he held up his still fortified right wrist.

"You survived our encounter on Virmire, and you managed to kill my Lieutenant. But I've changed since then. Improved. Sovereign has… upgraded me."

"Fancy hardware's not gonna save you." Said Austin.

"I suppose I should thank you, Shepard. After Virmire, I couldn't stop think about what you said. About Sovereign manipulating me. About indoctrination. The doubts bean to eat away at me. Sovereign sense 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." Said Saren. Still he believed that what he was doing was right.

"Sovereign's controlling you through your implants! Don't you see that?" Austin asked as he tried to reason with Saren.

"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!" Saren said as he still tried to convince Austin to join his cause.

Austin however, was having none of it. "Sovereign hasn't won yet. I can stop it from taking control of the station! Step aside and the invasion will never happen!" he said.

"We can't stop it! Not forever. You saw the visions. You saw what happened to the Protheans. The Reapers are too powerful." Said Saren defensively. Then a large omni shield, much like the one that the Terror Geth had used appeared from his left wrist. "Even in the face of death you still prefer to follow the fate of the Protheans." He said as an omni blade appeared from his right arm.

Austin could see where this was going. Holstering his assault rifle, he drew Excalibur from his back and also, after so long, removed his shield from his back, slotting it onto his left arm.

"Then we're done talking. This end's here!" he said.

Both opponents lunged at one another and clashed.

"I will help Sovereign succeed!" said Saren.

"Then, you'll have to go through me!" said Austin.

"Gladly!" said Saren as he kicked Austin away and stabbed at him. Austin parried the attack with his shield and returned with a stab from his sword. Saren however blocked it with his own shield. Unlike Balak, Austin knew nothing about Saren's skills with a blade. His attacks where fast and at the same time, ferocious. Plus, the Turian's strength and implants give him an advantage over the Helldiver. Once again though, Austin had more experience than Saren and his reflexes where quick enough for him to counter parry Saren's stab. The only downside was that Saren would occasionally use his shield to bash Austin away in the same way that he himself often did. Eventually though, Austin found another advantage that proved to be a disadvantage for Saren. True, Saren's Geth arm was fast and very strong but it was heavy, so it slowed him down slightly. It also appeared to give him one or two balance issues. Austin risked a quick glimpse of the rest of the battle as he briefly ended up in a lock with Saren. The Geth numbers where dwindling now and the Helldivers where slowly pushing forward. It wouldn't be long now.

As the two opponents continued to clash blades with one another, exchanges flashed. Leaps were side slipped or met with flying kicks, ankle sweeps skidded over and punches parried. Austin tried to force Saren back, slamming his blade down with strength that seemed to flow from his suit automatically. He spun and whirled and sliced razor-sharp shards from the floor as Excalibur continued to clash against Saren's own blade. Saren then blocked a critical attack from the Helldiver and tried to force his opponent back as he continuously pounded away at Austin's swift movements. Austin however kept his cool, his balance flawless as he parried chop after chop. Both opponents then stood their ground and tried to disarm one another. They chopped and slashed and parried and blocked. Both opponents were an even match for one another so it was beginning to seem like they'd be at this all day. Finally, Austin caught a chance. It was a long shot, but he had to take it. He turned Saren's wrist aside with a block from his shield and landed a solid kick that knocked the two apart. With Saren temporarily disoriented by the kick, Austin lunged forward and brought Excalibur into Saren's left shoulder, or rather his Geth shoulder. Saren counteracted slightly by using his wrist to separate Austin's hand from his sword. Despite this though, Excalibur remained buried in the artificial shoulder. Austin quickly punched Saren in the face and pulled Excalibur as hard as he could to the side. Saren grunted in pain as his entire machine arm was ripped off. Taking advantage of Saren's weakness, Austin slashed both the Turian's legs and also cut him across the stomach. Saren fell to his knees as he clutched his torso.

"You, cannot stop it, Shepard. Sovereign will succeed." Saren groaned in pain.

"Saren, some part of you must still realize this is wrong. You can fight this!" said Austin.

Saren seemed to hesitate. "Maybe you're right. Maybe there is still a chance for…" but he was interrupted by a sharp amount of pain. "The implants… Sovereign is too strong. I'm sorry. It's too late for me."

"No it's not." Said Austin as he held a gun in front of Saren.

"There's still one thing you thing you can do, if you've got the guts!" said Austin.

"You're giving me a loaded gun?" Saren asked as he took the pistol.

"There's one round left. Make your choice! Are you gonna let Sovereign control you? Or yourself? It's not over yet. You can still redeem yourself!" Austin asked.

He wasn't worried. He was giving Saren one chance to end it. Even if Saren fired at him, the shot wouldn't do any damage. Saren hesitated for a long time. For a moment he aimed the gun at Austin.

"You're better than this, Saren! Don't let that Reaper control your life!" Austin urged.

Saren once again hesitated. Then he spoke.

"Goodbye, Shepard. Thank you." He said. He then suddenly pointed the gun at his head and fired. All of the blue implants on Saren's face went dark as a gaping hole appeared in his head from the gunshot. He jarred as blood splatted a nearby wall. His body then lost its balance and fell into the small garden area below the platform.

Austin breathed a heavy sigh of relief as he got his breath back. It was over. He looked back to see the rest of the team and the Helldivers advancing. All the Geth where dead now.

"Is it over?" Zartrack asked.

Austin nodded. "It's over."

Everyone else breathed a sigh of relief.

"How'd you get up here? I thought Saren locked down the elevator." Tali asked.

"We managed to get it working again. Good thing we did." Said Zartrack.

"We're gonna head back down to the Presidium and search for any wounded." Said Bailey.

"We'll come with you, Lieutenant. We can cover more ground that way. Besides, I don' think we're needed here much longer." Said Zartrack as he and the Helldivers left the tower with C-sec.

Austin walked up to the holographic interface at the end of the platform. He activated his omni tool and used the data file that Vigil had given him.

"Vigil's data file worked. I've got control of all systems." He said.

"Then, quick! Open the station's arms. Maybe the fleets can take Sovereign down before he regains control of the station!" said Sarah urgently.

"See if you can open a communication channel." Said Liara.

Austin did so and managed to make contact with Destiny Ascension.

"… The Destiny Ascension. Main drives offline. Kinetic barriers down 40%. The Council is on board. I repeat, the Council is on board." Came the voice of the Destiny Ascensions' pilot.

At that moment, Joker's voice came over the radio.

"Normandy to the Citadel. Normandy to the Citadel. Please tell me that's you, Commander." He said.

"I'm here, Joker." Said Austin.

"We caught that distress call, Commander. I'm sitting here in the Andura sector with the entire Arcturus and Helldiver fleet. We can save the Ascension. Just unlock the relays around the Citadel and we'll send the cavalry in!" said Joker.

"You'd sacrifice human lives to save the Council? What have they ever done for your kind?" Wrex asked.

"This bigger than humanity. Sovereign's a threat to every organic species in the galaxy!" said Liara.

"That's why we can't throw away reinforcements trying to save the Council. Hold them back until the Citadel arms open up and the human fleet can go after Sovereign!" said Wrex.

"What's the order, Commander? Come in now to save the Ascension or hold back?" Joker asked.

Austin took a long moment to think about this. Personally, he'd been no fan of the Council. But if they died, it could very easily tear the galaxy apart through war. A war that even the Helldivers would not be able to win. Also, Sovereign was only a vanguard. If there were more Reapers out there, they needed the whole galaxy to work together. After a small wait, Austin made his choice.

"Opening the Relays now, Joker. Save the Ascension!" he ordered.

"I hope the Council appreciates this." said Wrex.

"If they don't, I'm never working for them again." Austin agreed. "But then again, they have already revoked my Spectre status, and I am glad of that."

From out of the massive window, they could see the massive fleets saving the Destiny Ascension and then going after Sovereign. Austin and the others looked down at Saren's body. Austin wasn't taking any chances.

"Make sure he's dead." He ordered.

Wrex and Kraan nodded and jumped down into the small garden beneath the platform and walked up to Saren's corpse. Wrex took out his gun and shot Saren in the head. There was no way the Turian could survive that.

"He's dead." Said Kraan into his communicator.

Before they could all relax however, the whole tower started to shake again and this time pulse with red electricity. Then Sovereign's voice boomed throughout the tower. "Assuming direct control!"

Saren's corpse then started to pulse with Sovereign's energy and writhe as if in pain. A huge explosion sent Kraan and Wrex flying and the whole platform gave way. All of the rest of the team fell along with the platform into the gardens. Saren's corpse meanwhile continued to writhe and pulse with crimson energy. Then it stood up. Everyone watched as Saren's skin slowly seemed to melt off, revealing a horrific sight. An almost skeletal form of Saren stood in front of them.

"I am Sovereign, and this station is mine!" the corpse said with Sovereign's voice.

The husk began to jump from wall to wall as everyone did their best to fire on it. With it jumping around so much though, it was very difficult. The entire room once again became a battlefield of gunfire, tech powers and biotics as the team stood their ground against Sovereign.

Sovereign continued to jump and leap from wall to wall and ceiling as it continued firing its own attacks. Eventually, Austin fired a concussive shot at Sovereign and the husk was sent plummeting to the ground. It would take more than that to stop a Reaper though. Saren's corpse slowly got back up and lunged at the Helldiver Commander.

Austin fired several shots at Sovereign as the husk lunged at him only to be knocked down as Austin smashed it right in the face with his shield. Before Sovereign could do more damage, gunfire from Dash distracted it as the young Helldiver scout leapt onto the Husk's back. Sovereign however grabbed Dash and flung him violently at the wall. Dash hit the side with a very loud and painful clang but his armour prevented any serious damage or injury. The others fired on Sovereign but the husk threw a massive shockwave at the ground, sending them to the ground.

Austin swung it at Sovereign. The Reaper controlled corpse's reactions however were lightning fast and it nearly dodged every single one of them. As Austin attempted to deliver a lunge, Saren's corpse dodged the attack and grabbed Austin's arm. Before the Helldiver could react quickly enough, Sovereign flung him into the wall just as he had done with Dash. Unlike Dash however, Austin hit his head very hard leavig him completely dazed and almost motionless as he fell to the floor.

The rest of the group could only watch helplessly as their Commander appeared motionless. The shockwave had been some kind of biotic field and it was keeping them pinned to the ground. They couldn't move at all.

Sovereign slowly walked up to Austin ready to deliver the killing blow... It prepared for its final attack to fire a beam at Austin's face. It couldn't use Saren's other arm since Austin had severed it earlier. The loose hanging jaws of Saren began to glow as the Reaper charged up its beam.

"NO!" Liara cried.

Using all the biotic strength she could muster, Liara unleashed a massive biotic explosion which disintegrated the barrier completely. Without even hesitating, Liara threw a massive biotic warp at Sovereign. The Husk was thrown back slightly by the warp. Saren's corpse turned back to the now free Helldivers and the rest of the crew and began to shoot huge amounts of red lightning from its hands. They all screamed in pain as hundreds of volts coursed painfully through their bodies.

Austin's vision slowly cleared and he saw what was happening. Seeing Liara in pain was too much. Letting his anger and rage take over, he picked up Excalibur. Just as Sovereign noticed him it was already too late. Austin plunged the sword into Sovereign's head and twisted it violently to make it sure it stuck in there. Then using all the strength he had left, he brought Saren's corpse against his back and pulled. The whole of Saren's head and spine was completely ripped out as Austin pulled on his sword. Saren's now headless corpse staggered slightly and then fell to the ground. There was a small groan and the body disintegrated, along the head and spine still impaled on Austin's sword.

As everyone slowly regained their breath and recovered from the pain, Liara ran up to Austin.

"Nobody... fucks with my friends." Austin panted.

Liara simply hugged him.

Suddenly the whole tower shook violently. All of the team, including the wounded Austin, looked up to see the now non-functional Reaper shell of Sovereign falling from the Citadel tower. A bright blue beam from the Normandy suddenly shot through and the whole ship exploded into hundreds of pieces. Only too late did they notice that one of Sovereign's massive arms was heading for them.

"GO!" Austin yelled as she shoved everyone out of the way. The whole of the tower smashed as the arm hit it.

The C-sec teams and Helldivers combed the Citadel tower for survivors. The whole place was in ruins. Geth, Helldiver and C-sec bodies littered the place and the wreckage of Sovereign was all over the place.

"Captain Anderson, we've found them! They're in here!" one of the C-se officers called.

Lieutenant Bailey, Captain Anderson, General Zartrack and the rest of the Helldivers and C-sec agents rushed over to where all the team here lying. Some of them where a bit injured or damaged, but they were alive.

"Take it easy. It's okay, you're safe now." said Anderson as he helped Liara up. She was completely in tears and sobbing.

"Where's Shepard?" Zartrack asked worriedly.

Liara simply shook her head sadly and looked to where the massive arm had landed. There was no way that even a Helldiver could have survived that.

"No!" Sarah cried. "You can't do this to us, you selfish bastard!"

The N7 marine tried to rush to the wreckage but Ashley held her back. The rest of Alpha Squad hung their heads. Everyone else didn't really know what to say.

"Systems restarting." said the computer.

Austin slowly opened his eyes as he regained consciousness and became aware of his surroundings. He was still inside his suit. From the feel of things, it had gone into lockdown again.

"I must've passed out." Austin thought to himself.

It was only after that that he noticed he was pinned under a lot of debris. Thanks in large part to both his armor and his shield, all the debris had missed him. He did however notice that he had a large piece of reaper sticking out of his left leg.

"Oh blast." he groaned. "Why is it always me?"

As his lockdown deactivated he pushed against the debris with his shield until he was able to stand up. He then reached for the large spike stuck in his leg. Groaning in pain, he finally managed to pull it out.

Though still dazed and with blurry vision from his head knock earlier, he could see the rest of his team. They were all alive and seemed fine. They didn't seem to know where he was though. Liara was on her knees in tears and Ashley was holding Sarah back. They thought he was dead.

"Why? Why'd you have to leave?" Liara cried.

"I'm not going anywhere!" Austin called back.

Everyone immediately looked to the sound of his voice and saw him stagger out of the rubble and move towards them. Liara immediately ran up to the Helldiver and hugged him tightly. He didnt' even hesitate to hug her back. Liara then removed her helmet and did her best to remove his. When she did, she kissed him without even looking at him. After a long time, Liara finally broke for air.

"I thought I'd lost you." Liara sobbed as she hugged him again.

"I'm never leaving you, Liara. I love you." he said.

"I love you too." Liara replied.

Sarah then run up and hugged her brother tightly.

"Don't you ever do that again!" said Sarah as she too cried with tears of joy.

Austin smiled slightly. "Did you call me selfish bastard?" he asked.

"Might have." Sarah replied.

Then Austin's vision began to blur.

"Oh dear. Blood loss." he said just before he passed out.

"Austin!" Liara cried as he fell into her arms again.

"Hold on, Shepard. Medic!" Zartrack yelled as he ran up to help Liara carry the unconscious Helldiver.

Back aboard the Normandy, Austin was quickly rushed into the infirmary with Doctor Chakwas and several Helldiver medics in tow. If Liara could have been with Shepard she would have been but Chakwas had told her as well as the rest of the crew, including Alpha Squad, to remain outside for the moment and had assured Liara that she would be the first one allowed to see the Commander after he'd been tended to.

After less than an hour, Chakwas came out of the medical bay with a clipboard in her hand.

"How is he?" Liara asked worriedly.

"He's fine." said Chakwas unsurprisingly. Small wound his leg and a rather severe knock to the head, but nothing he won't heal from."

"Well, he's had worse." said Alaara.

"He said the exact same thing." said Chakwas.

"He's awake?" Liara asked, stunned.

"Surprisingly, yes. He regained consciousness a few minutes ago." Chakwas replied.

"Can I see him?" Liara asked.

"Of course you can. He asked for you anyway." Chakwas replied. "You as well, Sarah."

Sarah was surprised at first but she quickly joined Liara as they headed into the med bay.

Liara and Sarah entered and smiled at Austin. He quickly noticed them.

"Hey, bro. How you doing?" Sarah asked happily as she and Liara walked up to him.

"Not bad. Bit of a headache, but otherwise I'm good." Austin replied.

Liara simply hugged him again and kissed him on the lips. Sarah also kissed him on the cheek.

"Other than the leg wound and head knock, a few cuts and bruises and nothing major." said Chakwas.

"So how long until he's cleared?" Liara asked as she held Austin's hand.

"One whole week at most." Chakwas replied. She sounded impressed.

"Only a week?" Liara asked.

"Accelerated healing." Austin explained. "Injuries that would normally take months only take weeks."

He winced slightly as more antibiotics where applied to the wound in his leg.

"In the meantime though, you need to rest. If you're feeling better tomorrow, I'll let the rest of the crew in to see you. But for now, get some sleep." said Chakwas.

Sarah and Liara got the message and stood up to leave. Just as they did, Liara and Austin kissed one last time.

"Love you, Liara." he said.

"I love you too, Austin." Liara replied.

Sarah simply smiled. "Couples." she sighed.

And there you have it!

There'll be two more chapters after this involving the aftermath, Benezia's funeral, Liara meeting Shepard's mother, and the Council meeting.

After that i'll be writing a small spin off story involving Shiala and Lizbeth. It will be a sex fic since no one has yet done one involving Shiala, so I thought i'd be the first. I was planning originally for the fic to involve Shiala and a female Shepard and for it to be a seperate story to the Helldiver saga, but I eventually thought "No one says it has to have Shepard in it." and i also came up with enough ideas that would enable the story to be set in the same universe and timeline as the saga. The new story will be written once i've finished this whole story and then once i've done the Shiala spin off i'll start writing ME2. I'm really excited about the second one since i've come up with so many ideas and story changes that'll make it so much more unique compared to other fanfics.