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The crimson colors of the sunset flooded the silent world with blood. The sun was slowly sinking below the horizon, blinding sensitive eyes, and it smelled acutely of smoke and burning. A tall building in the distance smelled of heavy smoke from a fire. The trees rustled softly, the dry soil creaked under the soles. A heavy, oppressive picture.
Alenko shivered.
"It smells of smoke and death." The fighter's quiet, hoarse voice sounded organic in the atmosphere of a world drowning in sunset.
I nodded silently, lowering my visor. The sniper rifle clicked softly, coming into firing position. I don't like rushing headlong into the unknown. I may remember the canon, but my knowledge has already been blurred by time, and I cannot guarantee its absolute accuracy. Embodied reality is not a game. Minor changes that do not affect the key chain of events are quite normal and can easily cost me my life.
"Let's go."
The fighters followed me, looking warily around, only Alenko muttered softly: *Damn!*, plunging into a murky greenish slush. Nihlus landed a little earlier. I really hope that he interprets my warning correctly, and I won't find him on that ill-fated spaceport in a pool of blood and with his head smashed open. That would be extremely insulting and annoying. He can be too useful in the future. Anyway, he's interesting. It would be a pity if he died because of absolute trust.
Alenko grumbled, trying to wipe the smelly green stuff off his shoes. That's how he managed not to notice this huge puddle? And I was hoping that the real Kayden was at least a little different from his canonical image. Right now! A pretty face with an eternally wistful expression and universal sorrow in brown eyes, caused only a desire to slap a good one on the back of the head so that he could think faster and stop slowing down. He seems to be a handsome man, but... Let's see what kind of fighter and biotic he is. I hope he doesn't disappoint me completely.
"Alenko, finish cleaning and be careful."
Kayden lowered his head in embarrassment, carefully wiping his shoe. Shame on him, asshole. Well, you have to look at your feet! What if there was something more serious? Is there a mine, toxic stuff, or something else equally kind? I would like to throw it into ancient tombs, in which traps are set under every convenient cobblestone. I would have learned quickly not to click himself beak. If he had survived the first day and the first kilometer.
And the demons were with him, with Kayden. I went forward, motioning for the fighters to follow me. We found the first bodies on a rock very close to the landing point: black, burnt to slag, they lay losing their greasy ashes in the gusts of wind. Alenko shuddered.
"What happened here?"
"We'll find out soon enough." catching the fighter's gaze, I dryly retorted: "Stop being hysterical! It's like seeing a corpse for the first time!"
Kayden looked down and shut up, and I walked slowly forward. A little further on, there are more bodies scattered along the road. The same burnt ones, crumbling into pieces of ashes and more smoldering coals.
A barely audible whistling sound made me abruptly raise my clenched fist. The soldiers froze, listening to the whistling of the wind. Was it just my imagination? It shouldn't be... There are three Geth drones out there somewhere. I pointed my fingers at my eyes and waved my hand. Jenkins nodded, examined the bushes and trees, cautiously stepped out onto the road and... slowly stomped towards the cobblestone chosen as a shelter.
I wanted to give a kick to speed up.
The drones appeared unexpectedly, emerging from behind a large rock. There was a short burst of blue pulses, and Jenkins, with a muffled cry, collapsed onto the road.
The sniper rifle jerked in his hands, and the drone fell to the ground, sparking and smoking. The subtle beep of reloading, catching the next one in the sights, firing. Alenko took off the last one.
Damn it! Three flying things and immediately — a corpse on the ground! That's how you could put yourself up like that? Lowering my weapon, I cautiously approached the fighter's body. Is dead. And here's the reason: I forgot to turn on the kinetic shield. Once again, inattention and clumsiness caused a stupid death...
A confused Alenko stopped nearby.
"Jenkins..."
"He's dead! Alenko, take cover!" I growled, hiding behind a rock.
"But Jenkins!" the biotic pointed to the corpse, as if I hadn't just made sure there was no pulse.
"In! Shelter!"
Alenko nodded curtly, frowning at me. What did you expect, I'm going to be hysterical and upset? Just the case! Jenkins, somewhere in the depths of my callous soul, was still a pity. A little bit. A self-confident, enthusiastic young guy whose life was so stupidly cut short at the very beginning. I remember him bragging to Dr. Chakwas. Unfortunately, such people are the first to die. It's good if you're alone, without dragging everyone else down with you.
I moved forward, moving from stone to stone. These drones are not the only ones here.
The connection clicked softly and Nihlus reported:
"Shepard, there are several burnt-out buildings and a lo-ot of corpses." A vibrating voice stretched it out *a lot*, letting me appreciate the scale of the tragedy. "I'll try to scout out the situation and meet you at the excavation site."
"Don't you remember what you said before we landed?" I asked quietly.
A short pause and a muffled reply:
"I remember."
"Don't disappoint me, Nihlus. I don't want to find your body. Jenkins is enough for me."
"Died?"
"He died. Try not to add to our losses."
The connection is gone. Alenko looked at me strangely, but, thank all the gods of this reality, if they are here, he did not comment in any way.
"Be careful! Alenko! These drones are not the only ones here!"
The fighter shuddered, tightened his grip on the rifle and slowly walked forward.
"And move!"
The biotic shuddered and stomped faster.
I walked a little to the side, peering into the rustling foliage, at the massive tree trunks, at the boulders. The drones attacked twice more, but now, knowing what to expect, they were easily killed. Only Kayden had taken a couple of shots in the shoulder, and now, hissing obscenities, he was treating his wounds with panacelin, trying not to meet my eyes. Shame on the parasite!
How can you be so clumsy? I wish I had a migraine, but no...
Shots rang out ahead. Kayden jumped up and grabbed his weapon.
"Finish the dressing. I'll check it out."
The fighter nodded and returned to the treatment, and I climbed up a small hill and peered through the scope, peering into a rather vast valley stretching along steep hills to the excavation site, whose lamps dispersed the sunset twilight with bright arrows of white light.
Gunshots and the already familiar drone whistle sounded closer, a woman in gray-steel armor jumped out from behind the rocks, slipped, caught a shot in the back, absorbed by the bluish film of the shield. Ashley Williams. A short thrust of the butt into the shoulder, the drone somersaulted in the air and crashed to the ground. Ashley rolled head over heels behind a rock, removing the last one and catching another shot. There were no storyline getaways, but there was a body on a spike behind a huge stone, and more than one, fortunately, it was still fresh, and you didn't have to wait for husk's from here for another couple of hours.
I examined the area carefully. There are no enemies. No drones, no Geth, no Husk's that are still maturing. Grabbing my rifle, I slid down the slope and went to Ashley, standing behind a large rock so as not to run into a stray shot.
The woman noticed me.
"Thanks for the help." she gasped, getting to her feet. "I couldn't even hope to survive."
"Don't thank me."
I left the end of the sentence unsaid. Why upset her and tell her that we didn't come to rescue her, but to carry out a very specific task: to pick up a lighthouse from the planet. It did not include saving people. Will you be able to save someone on the way? Good. It won't work... Well, we're not a rescue service. Although, I think Kayden won't understand or approve of such an attitude.
"Who are you?"
"Sergeant Ashley Williams," the woman replied clearly, giving a short salute. "Platoon 212."
Well, at least she didn't stand at attention and didn't come out from behind the shelter. And that's good.
"Commander Imrir Shepard," I said. "She arrived on the frigate of the Alliance Air Force Normandy."
Behind him, pebbles began to fall from the slope. I spun around, raising the rifle, and clung to the scope, but quickly lowered it: Kayden, having finished bandaging, was coming down to us, holding the assault rifle with one hand.
"Lieutenant Kayden Alenko." I introduced the clumsy one.
I stood up, but I didn't put the rifle away in a non-combat position. Imrir was good at handling this type of weapon, but I got some of her skills, and the weapon was pleasantly soothing. Of course, the skill would have to be honed, and I even knew who would help me in this good deed. In the future.
Ashley greeted Kayden briefly, quickly introducing herself to him.
"What happened here, Sergeant?"
The woman sighed wearily.
"We missed the start of the attack, ma'am. Our squad was patrolling the perimeter when the attack began. We tried to send a distress signal, but the enemies were jamming the communication."
"We have received your signal. Where are the rest of your squad?"
"They died. We tried to return to the lighthouse, but were ambushed."
"Who attacked you?"
"The Geth, ma'am."
"The Geth have not been seen outside the Veil for almost two hundred years!" Kayden exclaimed. "What are they doing here?"
"I guess they came for the lighthouse." I replied. "I don't think there was anything more valuable on Eden Prime than a functioning Prothean device."
"That's quite possible, ma'am. Excavations were carried out here to build a railway and expand the colony. A few weeks ago, workers dug up the Prothean ruins." Ashley grimaced. "And suddenly the whole colony seemed to be obsessed with this lighthouse. We were sent to guard him."
"Was he working?"
"As far as I know, yes. I don't know much about it myself, but one of the scientists said it could be the greatest discovery of the century."
"We need to pick up the lighthouse. Sergeant, take us to the excavation site."
"That's right, ma'am."
That's the good thing about Ashley, so it's not the habit of arguing with the commander. Is it said to spend? That means he will. And why, it was none of her business. Although his eyes twinkled with curiosity. I didn't have to go far.
After half a kilometer, we came to a small lowland, a little further than which, behind piles of cobblestones and fragments of rocks, the excavation site and the Geth scurrying through it, beautifully illuminated by numerous searchlights, could be seen. At this distance, even the optics of the rifle did not allow me to examine the synthetics in more detail, but, sensibly reasoning that I could easily examine their broken platforms in all details, I pressed the trigger. The Geth, hiding behind a rock, somersaulted from the impact of a heavy bullet and sank to the ground. The creatures got nervous, scattering into hiding, and I shot them down steadily and methodically, preventing them from leaning out and approaching the range of fire, fortunately, these Geth did not carry sniper weapons.
Of course, they didn't have any canonical light bulb in their heads. A complex optical system took its place, which is quite logical.
Kayden's attempts to rush into battle were cut short by a short mat and Ashley's hand, which pulled him behind cover. Shots slammed into the stone, where his evil head had been a moment ago, knocking out fountains of stone chips.
"Alenko!" I looked up from the optics and shook my head reproachfully.
Alenko just cringed guiltily and lowered his eyes.
"Check it out."
Ashley and Kayden turned to the right, skirting a wide stone disk in an arc, hiding behind huge boulders. Shots rang out, and the geth screamed thinly. I must have really missed someone.
"Clear." Ashley's back.
I put the rifle away and came out of hiding. The ancient ruins spread out before me in all their glory... It sounds like it! In fact, all I saw was a shallow excavation with an excavated massive double disc of yellowish stone and a pair of collapsed columns, whose purpose will remain lost in the darkness of history. The lighthouse, tellingly, is missing.
"As I understand it, the lighthouse was here?" I nodded at the playground.
Ashley nodded:
"Yes, it was dug up here. Apparently, they've already rescheduled it."
"Who! Ours or the Geth?" Kayden asked.
"It's hard to say." The woman shrugged her shoulders. "Let's check out the research camp and maybe find out more."
"Do you think anyone survived?" he asked.
Ashley shrugged her shoulders.
"Maybe they survived if they hid. The camp is over there."
The woman waved her hand, pointing to the hill at the base of which the lighthouse was found.
The connection clicked.
"Plans are changing, Shepard." Nihlus' low voice sounded tense. "There is a small spaceport here. I'll check it out. I'll be waiting there."
I didn't answer, looking around the neighborhood: the decision has been made, and my words are unlikely to change it.
I didn't find anything interesting. The tripods I already knew with the bodies of people strung on spikes stood in disarray along the ruins, but the rebuilding process had just begun and was not outwardly noticeable, although I could see the limbs of the definitely dead people twitching slightly.
"To string on a stake ... Instead of shooting him... Shouldn't that make sense?" Ashley whispered, looking away.
"They intimidate as." Kayden muttered.
I turned over the Geth corpse and shook my head.
"These are synthetics, Kayden. They act from the point of view of cold logic, but not emotions. They can't bully. They just don't know what it is. It makes some kind of sense. Rational."
Geth stared up at the bloody skies. A massive humanoid creature with an elongated metal head, light black armor covering the sternum, shoulders, partially legs, and three-fingered hands. Geth's flesh was dark, almost black, as if twisted from tourniquets and pseudo-muscles, faintly glowing with bluish lights that slowly but surely went out.
"An interesting creature." I stood up abruptly. "Let's check out the research camp. And try not to expose yourself."
A well-trodden path led to the camp, winding along the very edge of a steep rocky hill. It's wide enough to walk comfortably, but not wide enough for even a small military vehicle to pass through. The path wound between hefty boulders, hiding the town ahead.
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