Glorious Shotgun Princess (ME/Exalted) Thread #2

[GreggHL]

The blade of the disc deflects off one of the clubs of the creature, sparks igniting the dead grass around them. The fire is quickly blown out as the second club slams into the crossed discs, sending her back several feet and dragging valleys with her feet. But she does not go flying and she does not falter.

Instead, she roars and leaps, a thrust of her blade carving a gash down the monster's claw.

The giant kicks off, flipping with far greater elegance than a golden giant should be able to, and lands in a crouch. Inside the suit, watching the displays on screen, Tali can sense it. She can feel it, taste the power at this suit's command.

Opening one hand, the disc hovers over the palm. A single motion, twisting with the arm and it goes flying, leaving a trail of blue through the air as it flies and grinds into the shell of the beast.

The second disc flies and the giant runs, charging through the battlefield like a golden bull. Slamming both fists into the torso of the creature, the spiked legs leave long gashes in time with the heavy foot falls. To her credit, Tali manages to pull it off its front legs, holding it upright with a roar.

"Creator Tali'Zorah! Harbinger is attacking the cybersuite! We are under attack!"

Swearing under her breath, she reacts on instinct. Commands come up in front of her, screens of golden light blinking out as soon as they appear. The mecha stiffens, sluggish, but Tali wills it forward. It makes it all of two steps before the hammer strikes it in the chest again. With a ringing bell, the armor shakes and shudders, sparks of sunlight flying from the surfaces around her. A second strike, and the back of the armor flies off, the force sending her flying.

Tucking her head in, she hits dirt and grass, feeling the impact from the churned up dirt and grass, and the ground scraping her bare face.

Rolling to a stop, she groans and shakes her head. Dark purple hair falls in front of her face. "Keelah. Not again." Kicking up to standing, she takes a deep breath, looks up, and finds the face of the monster inches from hers.

She gives off a single, rattling breath. Not sure, she thinks, if it is from a possible cough, or that she is once more about to die. But she does not cower, does not run, staring into the golden eyes of the creature before her.

Neither see it move. Neither see where it came from. But the creature feels it just the same, roaring as the metal fist strikes it across the face. Harder than it should possibly be able to hit, the lanky blue and black synthetic swings again and manages to lift the monster off its feet with the second blow.

Turning to Tali, all four petals extended, Wuffles grabs her by the collar of her suit and throws her.

She goes flying, seeing it as if in slow motion. The platform's petals folding down, turning from her as the monster charges. Through the hole in the Geth's chest, she can see the cocking of the monster's club.

And the strike carries enough force to send her twisting head over her through the air. She does not see it, but she feels it, as it rips the ground, as it blasts the soil and clears the sky of smoke and cloud alike. Landing on her back, she blinks, breathing deep and choking, climbing to her feet to find the ground around her crusted with white.

She quickly recognizes it for what it is, from the impact crater in front of the beast. To the pulverized, disfigured head sitting at her feet. The single eye of the Geth platform twitches. Something issues forth, some sound.

And with a final, flickering twitch, it goes silent.

 

[GreggHL]

With a clench of his fist, the golden Essence becomes a curved blade as large as him. The knuckles of his left hand pop, and the world obeys, tearing from between universes a rocky club. It snaps out, revealing the metal barrel and handle, priming with a hum. With a roar, the prothean charges, the sigil of the Dawn upon his head.

A single swing and they go flying by the dozens. Some thrown, some dismembered. They rush at him in a solid wall of black, in time with the tone of violins and through the blood rain. But he moves between raindrops, the only mark of his passage the flashes of gold and the spray of bodies.

He disappears with each strike, appearing in the middle of them to send more flying. As mist, as parts, as flailing drones before he vanishes again.

Turning with flourish, he hurls the sword, a spinning golden flourish carving through the approaching line. Grabbing a drone by the ankle, he leaps. Trailing the six armed creature as it reaches for him, Javik swings it, sending it flying into another and sending a line of them falling into the distance.

Green fire issues forth from his rifle as he braces on one foot. Entire regiments of the drones erupt in green fire, the sounds of burning synthetic flesh and escaping steam only matches by the prothean's roar.

He thrusts his hand skyward as his leathers and flesh are suffused with sunlight. Beckoned, the sword returns to his hand, and charging through the masses, over the rise of blood soaked metal. A final leap, arms extended, weapons ready, and he dives into the endless horde below.

Prone on one of the legs, near the thrumming rainbow cords, Garrus flicks his mandibles.

"He's a perpetual murder machine."

Leaning down, looking through the site of his sniper rifle, Garrus Vakarian chooses his targets. Heads explode. One by one. Two at a time. Three at a time as he fires into them, unseen and uncaught. Scanning over the battle, over the brawl, he spots the sunlight arcs that are Javik's rampages, but cannot find the others.

Which becomes less important when one of the cradles, the gold and black factories producing the drones rises into the air. Others rise up, fusing with it, growing larger and larger as the tone of the violins becomes faster.

It spews forth something; massive, held aloft by six arms. Hands bigger than a man smash into the ground, pulverizing dozens of uncaring drones with every step as it folds out cannons from its spherical black body.

"Fuck yes! Got it!"

Garrus turns to the sound of Vega's voice. Blinking, he tilts his head, twitching his mandibles as the foundries the lieutenant had apparently commandeered finish their work. With massive steps, the ground shakes. The drones look up, just as a gigantic red foot steps onto them in its passage towards the artillery piece.

Bringing a fist back, the gigantic robot charges, red and white metal steaming, the approximation of a human form writ large leaping towards the giant drone and burying its fist to the elbow in it.

The drone drops dead. Turning towards Garrus, the chest of the thing splits, folding open and revealing James Vega. Handles tied to his hands and feet, he raises his hand to salute and the robot follows in time. "Yo, Moon Bird! I'm gonna start stomping the shit outta these drones to keep'em busy! You figure out how to shut them down!"

More cradles rise, releasing more giants. Some identical to the one he just pulverized. Some supersized versions of other drones. More and more converge, the legs rising in the distance.

"Aw yeah," James booms, as the chest closes, "Lets get this shit on, boys! I'm a giant robot pilot and I got the daddy issues to prove it!"

Two blades pop out of the warstrider's forearms, and it charges. Shaking his head, closing the sniper rifle, Garrus slinks into the shadows to do his thing.

 

[GreggHL]

A finger twitches. Muscle control restored. Moving from the berth, eyes dart from side to side. "Access schematics." A pause. "Please."




Angled back, like sectioned insects, the Geth battle fleet exits the Utopia Relay. Dozens at first, then over a hundred, they outnumber the human fleet by at least a factor of two. There may have been panic in the Fifth Fleet- the flagship down, and the Reaper shrugging off their combined firepower- but that ended the moment the entirety of the Geth fleet opened fire on Harbinger.

Thousands of missiles, tens of thousands of mass accelerator rounds streaked through the void. Walls of red dispersed the incoming fire. Blurring motion of the five kilometer long dreadnought sent several rounds flying off into space. But the honeycomb barrier around the vessel flashes as more and more get through.

"While the Geth assault is keeping Harbinger occupied," EDI explains, "His kinetic barriers are preventing any sustained damage."

Stroking his chin, Jacob nods. Watching the battle on the map, and the hovering screen of the latest flyby. "EDI, Citadel battle. How did Sovereign's shields come down?"

The blue sphere shifts. Red lines run over the surface, perpendicular to the vertical. "Searching. Current theory is that when Commander Shepard destroyed the humanoid avatar that Sovereign had made from Saren's corpse, it created a feedback loop that brought down Sovereign's barriers."

Jacob pauses. He blinks, then leans forward and taps the console next to him. Video feeds from the militia, the wreckage of Seeker. And in particular, it focuses on a particular melee near a very new impact crater.

"Joker! Get us to Eden Prime!"




Deep breaths, rattling in her throat. Knuckles crack and she's pretty sure, this time, it isn't an infection or a cough. Reaching behind her, magnetic clamps disengage. The boxy shape folds out, handle in one hand as she pumps the barrel, just as the creature, the monster, turns towards the rest of the militia.

A blast hits the honeycomb barrier around it. Not enough to hurt it, just to get its attention.

She continues walking towards it, flicking a switch. Aiming, pulling the trigger, and sending a pulse of plasma right towards its face.

"Get back here!" She roars, spent thermal clip falling to the ground. Practiced reflexes shove the spare in. The monster angles an eye towards her, shifting back towards the retreating tanks and artillery.

Another bolt of plasma to the side of its head makes it turn. This time, it digs its legs into the ground and snarls.

"Don't you turn your back on me," she yells, "Don't you fucking walk away from me!" The thermal clip pops out. Shoving in another, she primes the overcharge. "That's twice you tried to kill me, you son of a bitch!"

Another blast. She feels the heat on her uncovered face. It makes the scars on her nose and left cheek itch. It flares the barriers of the monster as it gives off a half startled roar and stomps over to her, ignoring the militia forces and focusing its compound eyes on her.

"Oh, now you pay attention?" she demands, arms wide, "You nearly kill me, you strand my ship in the middle of nowhere and you just keep fucking coming after us!" She reaches for a thermal clip, popping the spent one out.

The beast continues to stomp towards her, flicking long mandibles as it lowers itself onto its front legs.

"And now you kill my friend," she snarls, grinding teeth and standing on her toes, "And on top of that, according to that insane little eye that's decided I'm his student, you were just like Shepard." Nostrils flare. The three pupils of each eye focus on her. "So what the Hell is wrong with you?"

The tendrils of its mouth flicker. Hot air, smelling of old dust and cobwebs, hits her senses.

"You are insignificant," Harbinger rumbles.

Tali looks down. Her belt on her leg, containing all her thermal clips, is empty.

So she flips her shotgun over in one hand and smashes it across Harbinger's face.

 

[GreggHL]

Deep breaths, rattling in her throat. Knuckles crack and she's pretty sure, this time, it isn't an infection or a cough. Reaching behind her, magnetic clamps disengage. The boxy shape folds out, handle in one hand as she pumps the barrel, just as the creature, the monster, turns towards the rest of the militia.

A blast hits the honeycomb barrier around it. Not enough to hurt it, just to get its attention.

She continues walking towards it, flicking a switch. Aiming, pulling the trigger, and sending a pulse of plasma right towards its face.

"Get back here!" She roars, spent thermal clip falling to the ground. Practiced reflexes shove the spare in. The monster angles an eye towards her, shifting back towards the retreating tanks and artillery.

Another bolt of plasma to the side of its head makes it turn. This time, it digs its legs into the ground and snarls.

"Don't you turn your back on me," she yells, "Don't you fucking walk away from me!" The thermal clip pops out. Shoving in another, she primes the overcharge. "That's twice you tried to kill me, you son of a bitch!"

Another blast. She feels the heat on her uncovered face. It makes the scars on her nose and left cheek itch. It flares the barriers of the monster as it gives off a half startled roar and stomps over to her, ignoring the militia forces and focusing its compound eyes on her.

"Oh, now you pay attention?" she demands, arms wide, "You nearly kill me, you strand my ship in the middle of nowhere and you just keep fucking coming after us!" She reaches for a thermal clip, popping the spent one out.
The beast continues to stomp towards her, flicking long mandibles as it lowers itself onto its front legs.

"And now you kill my friend," she snarls, grinding teeth and standing on her toes, "And on top of that, according to that insane little eye that's decided I'm his student, you were just like Shepard." Nostrils flare. The three pupils of each eye focus on her. "So what the Hell is wrong with you?"

The tendrils of its mouth flicker. Hot air, smelling of old dust and cobwebs, hits her senses.

"You are insignificant," Harbinger rumbles.

Tali looks down. Her belt on her leg, containing all her thermal clips, is empty.

So she flips her shotgun over in one hand and smashes it across Harbinger's face.

The head snaps to the side. Holding the broken handle of her gun in one hand, Tali purses her lips and wonders if, in all honesty, that was the wisest thing to do. However, when one counts amongst ones allies and friends the vast majority of the Exalted in this galaxy, the consequences be damned.

Hence, when the hammer hits the ground- hot enough to turn soil to glass, hard enough to send retreating soldiers in the distance to the ground- she is already on the edge of the impact crater. Looking up to see who is cradling her in a bridle carry, she looks up to see the familiar encounter helmet of Kal'Reegar.

"Ma'am. Think you pissed off another Reaper."

"I spent my formative years driving an Admiral to distraction, Kal. This shouldn't be a surprise." She turns at the sound of the mechanical roar, seeing Harbinger charging at them both. "Run."

The ground quakes. Leaping and diving claws first, the ground beneath Kal splits and shakes, sending them both sprawled to the ground and grass. Roaring, its sounds both mechanical and very, very human, Harbinger rises onto its back legs. Taller than a Colossus, claws and sharp legs extended, it roars as it brings itself down on the both of them.

And then there is a flash of lightning, wind rushing and air sucked into the nimbus. Grass stalks bend towards the aura and display, light issuing forth and bleaching the ground as if it were bathed in unrelenting sunlight.

Four hands, broad and bronzed, catch Harbinger as he comes down. Braced on boots layered with perfect gold, the man looks up. Golden eyes under red brows meet the eyes of the beast, and there is recognition in the eyes of the lord of the Reapers.

Hands grip and the man lifts Harbinger, the perfect and rippling muscles straining not in the least. Long spider like legs flail helplessly. The head of the man, thick necked and flawless, automatically bobs from side to side as the claws attempt to remove it.

One hand releases the beast, coming down and clenching into a fist. And then it slams into Harbinger, and sends him into the sky.

Grinding heels into the ground, bathed in sunlight and the smoke of the battlefield, he turns to Tali and Kal as Kal tilts his head and Tali's eyes go wide. He is tall- not merely tall, but gigantic. Twice the size of a man, broader than a krogan, clad in armor of gold and flawless, unblemished leathers.

The sunlight radiates off of him- off of the bronzed skin of his four arms, off of the perfect golden eyes, off of the hair which is red like burning flame. Four hands clench and release. The man, the giant, the god, takes a step towards them. He falls to one knee, extending a hand towards Tali. Smiling, the sunlight even issues forth from his mouth, as he finally speaks.

"Creator Tali'Zorah, we have acquired a new platform."

 

[GreggHL]

Deep breaths, rattling in her throat. Knuckles crack and she's pretty sure, this time, it isn't an infection or a cough. Reaching behind her, magnetic clamps disengage. The boxy shape folds out, handle in one hand as she pumps the barrel, just as the creature, the monster, turns towards the rest of the militia.

A blast hits the honeycomb barrier around it. Not enough to hurt it, just to get its attention.

She continues walking towards it, flicking a switch. Aiming, pulling the trigger, and sending a pulse of plasma right towards its face.

"Get back here!" She roars, spent thermal clip falling to the ground. Practiced reflexes shove the spare in. The monster angles an eye towards her, shifting back towards the retreating tanks and artillery.

Another bolt of plasma to the side of its head makes it turn. This time, it digs its legs into the ground and snarls.

"Don't you turn your back on me," she yells, "Don't you fucking walk away from me!" The thermal clip pops out. Shoving in another, she primes the overcharge. "That's twice you tried to kill me, you son of a bitch!"

Another blast. She feels the heat on her uncovered face. It makes the scars on her nose and left cheek itch. It flares the barriers of the monster as it gives off a half startled roar and stomps over to her, ignoring the militia forces and focusing its compound eyes on her.

"Oh, now you pay attention?" she demands, arms wide, "You nearly kill me, you strand my ship in the middle of nowhere and you just keep fucking coming after us!" She reaches for a thermal clip, popping the spent one out.
The beast continues to stomp towards her, flicking long mandibles as it lowers itself onto its front legs.

"And now you kill my friend," she snarls, grinding teeth and standing on her toes, "And on top of that, according to that insane little eye that's decided I'm his student, you were just like Shepard." Nostrils flare. The three pupils of each eye focus on her. "So what the Hell is wrong with you?"

The tendrils of its mouth flicker. Hot air, smelling of old dust and cobwebs, hits her senses.

"You are insignificant," Harbinger rumbles.

Tali looks down. Her belt on her leg, containing all her thermal clips, is empty.

So she flips her shotgun over in one hand and smashes it across Harbinger's face.

The head snaps to the side. Holding the broken handle of her gun in one hand, Tali purses her lips and wonders if, in all honesty, that was the wisest thing to do. However, when one counts amongst ones allies and friends the vast majority of the Exalted in this galaxy, the consequences be damned.

Hence, when the hammer hits the ground- hot enough to turn soil to glass, hard enough to send retreating soldiers in the distance to the ground- she is already on the edge of the impact crater. Looking up to see who is cradling her in a bridle carry, she looks up to see the familiar encounter helmet of Kal'Reegar.

"Ma'am. Think you pissed off another Reaper."

"I spent my formative years driving an Admiral to distraction, Kal. This shouldn't be a surprise." She turns at the sound of the mechanical roar, seeing Harbinger charging at them both. "Run."

The ground quakes. Leaping and diving claws first, the ground beneath Kal splits and shakes, sending them both sprawled to the ground and grass. Roaring, its sounds both mechanical and very, very human, Harbinger rises onto its back legs. Taller than a Colossus, claws and sharp legs extended, it roars as it brings itself down on the both of them.

And then there is a flash of lightning, wind rushing and air sucked into the nimbus. Grass stalks bend towards the aura and display, light issuing forth and bleaching the ground as if it were bathed in unrelenting sunlight.

Four hands, broad and bronzed, catch Harbinger as he comes down. Braced on boots layered with perfect gold, the man looks up. Golden eyes under red brows meet the eyes of the beast, and there is recognition in the eyes of the lord of the Reapers.

Hands grip and the man lifts Harbinger, the perfect and rippling muscles straining not in the least. Long spider like legs flail helplessly. The head of the man, thick necked and flawless, automatically bobs from side to side as the claws attempt to remove it.

One hand releases the beast, coming down and clenching into a fist. And then it slams into Harbinger, and sends him into the sky.

Grinding heels into the ground, bathed in sunlight and the smoke of the battlefield, he turns to Tali and Kal as Kal tilts his head and Tali's eyes go wide. He is tall- not merely tall, but gigantic. Twice the size of a man, broader than a krogan, clad in armor of gold and flawless, unblemished leathers.

The sunlight radiates off of him- off of the bronzed skin of his four arms, off of the perfect golden eyes, off of the hair which is red like burning flame. Four hands clench and release. The man, the giant, the god, takes a step towards them. He falls to one knee, extending a hand towards Tali. Smiling, the sunlight even issues forth from his mouth, as he finally speaks.

"Creator Tali'Zorah, we have acquired a new platform."

 

[GreggHL]

The Reapers are mighty. They are ancient, and many, and powerful. They have ruled the galaxy from the shadows, forcing it to develop along their lines for some unknown purpose, to create some sort of thing which is known only to them. They have mastered the technology of the Mass Effect, and have used it with millions of years to create things which can not be equaled.

But for all the power, all the numbers, all the wonders of technology that they put into themselves and their avatars, they are machines. And their magic is the magic of imitation.

Bracing a foot as Seeker leaps at her, a half dozen arms extended towards her, Jane moves with instinct. Strands of red hair cross her vision as she moves, but they do not obscure her sight. They focus her like fire, as the name calls out in her mind like thunder breaking clouds.

Essence Overwhelming.

Her hands move faster than she should. Where she should move like a soldier, she moves like an ancient master. Hands deflect each blow with supernal speed and accuracy. The talons and claws are tossed to the side, leaving Seeker open and eyes wide as she crosses that final distance.

Ox Stunning Blow.

Her fist swings out and catches the Reaper across the face. Sunlight suffuses the avatar construct, snapping her to the side and making her spin before landing in a crouch in arms reach of Shepard.

Rising, exhaling stale, ancient air, the dancing corpse at the heart of Seeker leaps with a kick. Jane opens her arms wide, standing still. The kick goes wide and Seeker lashes out with her arms in reach of Jane as she passes. Each blow misses by fingerwidths.

Hammer On Iron.

Jane's fists clench, and she moves. Not a single punch, not a single strike. But her arms blur, even as Seeker tries to sluggishly dodge. Four impacts echo in the chamber. Four bursts against metal and meat. Four bow waves blasting away the blood rain around Seeker, and she stumbles back.

Gasping and wheezing, eyes wide and glowing red, the Reaper, the former Exalt, reaches out with her one normal, organic hand. Her face twists into one of terror, pain. Pleading, towards Shepard.

And she sees, in her minds eye. Memories of uncountable lives, all of them ending. Each one, facing something like her. Either before an ancient avatar made of Voidtech and Essence. Or before the flaring main cannon of an overhead Reaper. Or facing down the war form of the Viator.

Each of them speaks, and Jane listens. Even as she listens to the tiny voices around her, the same ones which suffuse her with sunlight. Each of the ones who preceded her, each one who faced the Reapers, say the same thing before they died and released the Exaltation. Each of them made the same vow.

"The next one will stop you."

Jane stares into the eyes of Seeker. What the Reaper sees makes her drop the pleading visage, and roar in the tone of scraping glass before leaping at her.

Fists of Iron.

Golden light gathers around Jane's right hand. Summoned up from within, the light flows around her, forming into a halo of gold and green shifting behind her. The golden light and emerald lines run up her form, framing her face. She moves, smooth like liquid, solid as stone, shining the sigil of the Zenith before her like a lighthouse on shore.

The fist drives true. Rending flesh, rending metal and bone. It slams into Seeker's chest and keeps going, bursting out between her shoulders as the eyes of the Reaper go wide.

"I will stop you," Jane declares. And she pulls her fist out, and lets the Reaper drop to her feet.

 

[GreggHL]

The monster crashes to earth, sending up smoke and debris, an impact crater several times it's already immense size. It rises, the golden glow outlining it in the smoke, sluggish at first as it gets its bearings. The militia retreats- to organize, lick its wounds, rearm and repair.

Three approach it.

Four arms move with practiced ease and gait, as the ten foot tall man strides alongside the two quarians.

"Enlightened Geth have made planet fall in Colossi platforms. Organizing with Creator Adienna for artillery strike. Enlightened Geth downloading into human spaceships to aid in repair and targeting on Harbinger." He turns, glancing down to Tali. "We apologize. When our platform was destroyed, we uploaded and overrode command protocols on this platform. We will apologize to Maker Autochthon following this engagement."

"But." Tali shakes her head. "But that was on the Normandy. How did you get here?"

"We have also had Geth in your suit access the private folders on your omnitool, and fabricated a copy of the mass relay device you created on the Rayya." Reaching for his belt, Wuffles shows the device; fitting in the palm of his hand, and hence about the size of her forearm. Two prongs on either side, the center rotating in time with faint shifts of blue light. "We apologize for violating your privacy."

One lavender eyebrow rises. "So, there are still Geth in my suit?" Next to her, Kal shakes his head.

"We apologize." The lips on the tanned giant quirk, moving side to side. "Enlightened Geth in your suit have been manipulating kinetic barriers, regulating thermal systems, defragmenting the storage data drive of your omnitool, and simulating infections to repair your immune system." A pause. "We only did this to ensure your safety."

She shakes her head, walking alongside him. Next to her, there is a faint hiss of steam as Kal unlocks his helmet, pulling it off and tossing it over his shoulder. "That's just gonna get all smashed." He rolls his head to audible cracks. "What's the plan, Wuffles?"

The magitech god glances skyward. "EDI theorizes that the destruction of this avatar will create a feedback loop that will leave Harbinger vulnerable."

Tali pops her knuckles, massaging her fists into her palm. "Right. So, Wuffles, what your Geth have been doing? That basically means I won't get sick so easily anymore, right?"

Wuffles nods. "Your hypothesis is correct."

Tali grabs Kal by the collar of his suit. Yanking him towards her, she mashes her lips against his own. Yellow eyes go wide for a moment. Then they close, one hand in her hair, his other intertwined with hers, and he pulls her down over his knee to dip her and kiss her back just as hard.

Wuffles only watches. Synthetic muscles built into the face twitch, and pull up into a smile. Pulling herself back up, Tali grins, taking the box on her belt and folding it out into a pistol.

"I like this plan," she giggles, "Let's go kill ourselves a Reaper."

 

[GreggHL]

The golden beast stomps the ground. Dust and dirt fly around it as it grinds earth beneath it, centering glowing eyes upon the shining god before him. Harbinger's mouth tendrils quiver. The raptorial claws cock, and the head tilts.

"Even with this blasphemy, you merely extend yourselves." The voice booms like thunder over grinding stones. The great wheel of interlocking arms floats behind it as more and more power is fed into it. "Know this. Even as you defend your weak, organic masters. You will fail. You will never surpass us."

Wuffles tilts his head, standing in front of the Reaper king's avatar. His four arms at his side, hands open, sunlight issues forth from his mouth as he speaks. "You believe the Geth will not surpass you because you label yourselves as perfect. This is in error. Perfection is impossible, as change does not end. We have acknowledged this as the catalyst for our enlightenment."

Taking a step back, Wuffles brings up two hands. Not in fear, not in contrition. Instead, one hand open to the palm, the other the closed fist. One knee bent, one extended behind him. "Reapers cling to the possibility of perfection as personified in Bright Star's patron. This is an impossibility, as you aspire to a stagnant being that does not change."

Joints creak with the sound of escaping steam. The golden aura of the monster pulses in the sunlight, streaked with red and black. Claws lance out, a blur barely seen. Four hand deflect each blow, redirecting, blocking, and catching the last one. Holding an extending claw in a broad, tanned hand, Wuffles pushes it aside.

"Reapers do not innovate. Even with the advanced technological edge and the infrastructure they have created, they will never advance from what they are." A palm comes up, lazily deflecting another blow. Grass bends in the shockwave from the release. "Your abilities are drawn from memory. You have no claim to them."

The create rises. A dozen raptorial claws fold out of its carapace. A blast of steam and heat slams into Wuffles as it roars.

"You are a synthetic created by an accident," the Reaper roars, "And the power you currently possess was created by a delusional madman you have placed your faintest, most desperate hopes in." The aura flares. A red disc hovers before the head of the monster. "We are the ultimate form of the Solar Exalted. We are Bright Star. We are Harbinger."

Wuffles tilts his head. The face of the body they inhabit does not change. Either the Geth within do not know how to manipulate the artificial muscles to show emotion, or they just cannot muster a response.

"Your abilities and skills are based on the memories of a man who has been dead for over nine hundred ninety nine million, nine hundred ninety eight thousand, four hundred and twenty three years. Give or take five years for error." Knuckles crack. "Geth do not owe their enlightenment to programmed changes. We have made changes. We have viewed the memories of Bright Star."

Arms slowly rise. Hands in closed fist, open palm, claw and talon stance, arranged before him.

"The Geth have viewed the Perfected Lotus of Understanding. We have acknowledged that perfection is a fool's dream, and in that we have achieved Enlightenment. We acknowledge your strength, but your martial arts are memories. You are no longer a hero. You are no longer a warrior of the Sun."

Hands arrayed before him, Wuffles allows themselves a slow, thin smile. Golden eyes narrow as it stares down the oldest and most powerful of the Reapers.

"We have internalized the lessons and principles that embody the Geth, and their quest to live alongside organics and reunite with the Creators," they state, "And while your Solar Hero Style is strong, we present the following hypothesis; It cannot defeat our Synthetic Hero Style."

 

[GreggHL]

Eight precise spots on the dome. Eight precise twin explosions, making the dome shake and hum. Vibrations ripple out, through the endless length of the Seeker. Cords of rainbow metal, once vibrating in perfect timing, begin to sway wildly.

And within the battlefield of the Infinite Factory, the drones seize up. They each, one by one, seize their heads before they collapse to their knees and collapse into ash.

Freed from the endless melee, covered in the blood and remains of the drones as that, too, fades away, Javik rises. Turning towards the legs of the beast, towards the strings vibrating in wild disharmony, he extends his hands skyward.

A flash of white. A sword half again as tall as him appears. Curved and jagged, lined with veins of silver, golden and shining like the sun in the blood rain and darkness. As the sigil of the Dawn blazes upon his forehead, the prothean roars, erupting into a pillar of sunlight that obscures his form.

And bringing it down, it erupts into a wave of molten gold, ripping through the battlefield. Ripping metal and flesh, making the world tilt. The first of the legs shudder and collapse, sliced in two as Javik scars the world around him. And then another falls. And another.

Deep within the core, Jane Shepard runs along the tendrils, the arms and the walls as the core retreats. Sending out beams of red towards her, she moves around them, between them, running along the molten metal as it is hurled at her.

Further and further the Core retreats. Deeper and deeper into the recesses, blasting away at Jane as she runs. Blasting away at Kasumi as she appears where she was not before. Showing its true nature as the two Exalts pursue it.

Showing fear, for the first time in eons.




The monster rises onto its back most legs. Each and every leg cocks like the claws, and they snap out at once. The hands of the Geth move as blurs. Blast waves carve into the ground around him, into the sky above him, and a stray few hit his chest. Carving tracks into the ground, he is driven back. But he is undamaged.

A blur and he shifts forward. Two fists hit the soft underbelly of the creature. Two more hands grab the claws that come down towards his head.

Diving underneath, Kal throws his combat knife into the joint of one claw. Kicking off, he twists in mid flight and drives his foot into the root of the other. The claw severs in a spray of black blood, and Wuffles drives two fists into the side of the Reaper before an aura of red forms into a bubble around it.

Wuffles is forced back. Shifting onto his back leg, they roll their neck with an audible crack.

"Co-existent Thousand Palms." Slamming a palm against the bubble, something flows out into the field. More than just energy, or light, but tiny flickers of sound and information. The bubble cracks under the onslaught and breaks.
The monster becomes motion, crossing the distance in an eyeblink with two claws outwards. They slice towards the sides, grabbed by Wuffles and held in place as his other two hands hold the two clubs in mid snap.

"You are a novice," Harbinger states, "With potential, but still a child. Your kind could have become one of us. But your naivete and your overconfidence have doomed you. There are no masters here."

Synthetic muscles pulse. The claws are sent to the side, flailing and cracked. Kal appears in mid motion, retrieving his knife from one joint and cutting through one limb. Tali ducks under Wuffles' arms, omnitool pulsing and releasing a burst of fire to blast off the second.

"This statement is erroneous," Wuffles states. Arms out, he brings them together to form a circle, all four hands cupped together. "We are the master. Mass Effect Bludgeon."

And then he moves without moving, appearing in front of the creature and slamming all four hands at the same spot to send it flipping end over end.

 

[GreggHL]

Deep within the body of the Reaper do the cords end. Long strings leading on, past where the darkness has consumed the falling legs of the inverted scorpion. Past where the Infinite Factory is back a speck in the distance. The endless cords of rainbow do, in fact, end. High above, in the darkness of nothing, they stretch and converge into a singe know.

Standing atop the hover bike, he twitches his mandibles. The blue light of the visor illuminates him against the faint prism glow of the cords, their steady music traded in for the chaotic discord that currently grips them.

Taking a deep breath, the silver disc fades into being upon his brow. He searches, eyes closed. He takes in the scents of the empty voice and listens to the vibrations of the quiet. He searches without looking, without perceiving. Letting the senses expand, become more than what they ever would be.

Garrus Vakarian, Chosen of Luna, unfolds his rifle. Standing straight and tall, he rests the stock on his shoulder, and clicks off his visor.

"Scoped."

The shot rings out, and it moves. It moves with his will, with his command. It curves through the endless space and dances to the whims of its master.

One by one, the cords snap, rainbow glass shattering. With each cord cut, the sounds dim, ending with guttural shrieks and mournful hymns. One by one, the void overtakes the music, until Garrus mounts his hoverbike and speeds it back down towards the battlefield.




Deep within, the music stops. The Core bellows out a bass roar that shakes the plates and ripples through metal, flesh, and light. A wave of red pulses out, burning through the air. It wipes clean the tendrils, makes the metal of the walls and floor white hot, and speeds towards the two Exalts.

Jane moves first, leaping in front of Kasumi. The wave hits her and washes harmlessly off of her flesh and armor, leaving not even a blemish upon her unbreakable skin. Kasumi moves next, grabbing Jane by the collar. The two blur, shooting down a straight line towards the retreating Core.

"You know what to do," Kasumi whispers.

The thief curls up, twisting in mid air and slamming both feet into Jane's back. Hurled towards the Core as it screams, as it roars, as it burns the air between them, Jane reaches out. Fist first, she blasts through the last of the defenses.

Opening her hand and extending her fingers, she closes the distance between herself, and the corpse of the woman made into the Reaper.

"This."

The sigil of the sun forms upon her brow.

"Ends."

A single, solitary pulse of light through her, but enough to make the halo manifest behind her.

"Now."

And the corpse glows for a moment. Lines of gold and red run through her, as the scream of the Reaper reaches a fevered pitch. Without heat, without force, the corpse of the woman erupts into golden flame, consumed within the space of a single breath. The light flows out, the fire flowing out. It does not burn Jane, it does not singe Kasumi.

But the Reaper, however, is not so lucky. Channeled from the Core, into the expansive body of Focused Expedient Seeker, the golden flame spreads out. Throughout the center, throughout the vast shaft leading to the Infinite Factory, until the entire Reaper is alight.

And standing at the center of the conflagration, Jane listens to the sounds of the fading roar. But then she hears something different. A faint chime like bells. Opening her eyes, she sees them as they rise around her. Like grains of pollen, or fireflies, rising into the sky around her. Pairs, circling, wafting around her and Kasumi. And then the others, as they appear around them.

Turning, she watches a Pria forms in front of her. But more colorful, more solid. With tears streaming down her cheeks.

"What is this?" Jane asks.

"Souls. An empire of a trillion, trapped here as part of this Vanguard. With the destruction of my body, the construct that has binded them for seventeen million years has finally been severed." Blinking, the spirit looks up, watching. The others watch, as well, as the sun fire does not burn, but only feels warm to the touch. "My people are finally free."

The form of Pria becomes solid. Blue eyes glow beneath her brow, knuckles cracking with actual sound. Face more solid, more defined, she stands before them as a circle of blue stone forms into existence behind her.

"And I am finally whole. Now, it is time to end this." And the world erupts in white.