Mass Effect: Archangel
06-20-2011, 04:35 PM
This came from somewhere. Dunno
where. Anyway, Mass Effect and all characters are the property of
Bioware.
Belehk Formigj has been having a bad
day. This is not a bad thing, as Belehk is a bad person. A
batarian, a four eyed inhabitant of this floating rock of viciousness
and hate, he is also a slaver. Normally, the words 'batarian' and
'slaver' are synonymous, and nothing special, but this is a special
case. Even discounting that not all batarians are slavers, there's
the fact that Belehk is a slaver of children. Children which he
abuses, personally.
That particularly got under his craw.
A rendezvous was arranged. Belehk
thought he was going to meet a Quarian girl, young and innocent, on
her pilgrimage and new to the world outside the Migrant fleet. They
exchanged lovey dovey messages, Belehk passing himself off as an
older Quarian youth. They were going to meet, tonight. Belehk told
her to bring her favorite flower: Posies.
The look of Belehk's face when he saw
who was holding the flower was something he will commit to memory.
Much like the look on his face, now.
Because as the batarian pedophile runs
down the open transit tube, deep in the bowels of Omega, he glances
over his shoulder, half convinced he's lost his pursuer. That belief
is naturally shattered by the sight of the four wheeled, gunmetal
gray tank leaping into view, four jets firing underneath its chasis
as the oversized wheels land, propelling it forward.
Breathing batarian epithets, Belehk
continues his run, running into a maintenance shaft, climbing the
ladder inside as fast as his arms will carry him. He ascends,
propelled by panic, by fear, by denial that he could be caught. His
brow is shifting to green, soaked with sweat from the terror and
exertion. This shouldn't be happening. This has never happened
before.
The ladder ends at a platform, and
Belehk swings open the door, running out onto the rooftop of one of
the many buildings in the Omega centerline.
And straight into a blue armored fist.
His jaw ignites in pain, several teeth
loosened as the force of impact sends him off his feet. He grabs at
his holster, pulling out his gun, only for it to be kicked away
before a three fingered hand grabs the collar of his jumper and
tosses him across the roof.
Struggling onto his hands and knees,
Belehk looks behind him, and get's a good look at his nightmare.
Tall, lankly, cracking his three fingered knuckles. His armor is
blue, lined with white, a full helm with a T-shaped black visor
hiding his identity. But there's no mistake of the species, at
least, and there were these rumors from earlier this year...
“Belehk, Belehk, Belehk,” he says,
almost conversational as he continues a slow, steady advance, “You
really have no idea how much trouble you're in, do you?”
Reaching for his boot, Belehk pulls
out his hold out pistol, the cube unfolding into something that, on
Omega, is considered a decent killing tool. Belehk never gets the
chance to see if he was ripped off or not, though, as the pistol
explodes in his hand, the shockwave shattering the bones in his
digits. The batarian screams, grabbing his hands, as the turian
before him clicks his tongue, shaking his head.
“So, the good news is, I'm not going
to kill you,” he says, “Instead, you're going to do something for
me. I want you to find all your lowlife friends, and I want you to
give them a message. Tell them I'm back. Tell them that they tried
to kill me, but they failed. And now I'm coming for all of them.”
He grabs Belehk by the collar, lifting
him up, Belehk's ineffectual kicks bouncing off the kinetic barriers
covering the armored turian.
“And then you're going to turn
yourself in, because I just hacked your network and sent the entire
contents to the local authorities. Or you can run, which means I'm
coming after you, again. You're call. Or I can just drop you.”
Holding him up by one hand, Belehk
chokes, wheezes, and looks down to find himself held over the chasm
of Omega's centerline. A drop of miles is below him, and Belehk
nods, a stain spreading over the crotch of his jumper.
“Good man. For a pedophile and
slaver.”
“Who the Hell are you?” Belehk
breathes.
He's pulled close, eyes staring at the
visor.
“I'm Archangel.”
With
not even visible effort, Archangel pitches Belehk across the roof,
slamming into the wall next to the ladder. A groan, and Belehk
collapses into unconsciousness. And tapping his belt and the button
therein, Archangel glows blue, and disappears.
Mass
Effect:
Archangel
So, the basic idea behind this, especially since I've talked it over with some of my cowriters, is that Garrus Vulkarran is going to go from 'angry vigilante with a sniper rifle' as we see him in the beginning of ME2, to Turian Batman. Which is where the fun begins.
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you had me at 'Turian Batman', sir!
"No can brain today. Want cheezeburger."
From NGE: Nobody Dies, by Gregg Landsman
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5579457/1/NGE_Nobody_Dies
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Okay, this is good 
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depending on how the PC interacts with Garrus in ME1, I can easily see him turning into a batman analogue.
Is this going to be post ME2, where he returns to clean up the station? or some AU where he never gets picked up in the first place?
Are there any plans for Garrus/Aria interactions? Cause that could be fun depending on how Aria views his activities (it's not like anyone else is the law around there).
and if there was any doubt, more please?
-Terry
-----
"so listen up boy, or pornography starring your mother will be the second worst thing to happen to you today"
TF2: Spy
sweno Wrote:depending on how the PC interacts with Garrus in ME1, I can easily see him turning into a batman analogue.
Is this going to be post ME2, where he returns to clean up the station? or some AU where he never gets picked up in the first place?
Are there any plans for Garrus/Aria interactions? Cause that could be fun depending on how Aria views his activities (it's not like anyone else is the law around there).
and if there was any doubt, more please? This will be after ME2. It's about 2 weeks after the destruction of the Collector Base and about four days after the death of the Shadow Broker. Hence, Garrus using intel from ManBearPig's base to establish himself in Omega once again, not as a vigilante with a sniper rifle but an actual superhero. And yes, Aria will be his Catwoman equivalent. Well, Catwoman/Ra's Al Ghul. Dear lord this will be turning her on.
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yay for dysfunctional team dynamics
-Terry
-----
"so listen up boy, or pornography starring your mother will be the second worst thing to happen to you today"
TF2: Spy
You know who would make an awesome villain for Archangel?
Maelon.
That's right. Mordin's assistant. He hopped, skipped, and jumped over the Moral Event Horizon when he started torturing and killing Krogans, humans, and whatever else he could find to cure the Genophage. And now he's coming to Omega.
Herr Bad Moon
Unregistered
GreggHL Wrote:You know who would make an awesome villain for Archangel?
Maelon.
That's right. Mordin's assistant. He hopped, skipped, and jumped over the Moral Event Horizon when he started torturing and killing Krogans, humans, and whatever else he could find to cure the Genophage. And now he's coming to Omega.
Another potential villian? Aresh, the other surviving subject of Pragia. Batshit insane biotic who has a crazed plan and travels around with a bunch of mooks? Sounds like a Rogue to me.
---
Jon
"And that must have caused my dad's brain to break in half, replaced by a purely mechanical engine of revenge!"
Herr Bad Moon Wrote:GreggHL Wrote:You know who would make an awesome villain for Archangel?
Maelon.
That's right. Mordin's assistant. He hopped, skipped, and jumped over the Moral Event Horizon when he started torturing and killing Krogans, humans, and whatever else he could find to cure the Genophage. And now he's coming to Omega.
Another potential villian? Aresh, the other surviving subject of Pragia. Batshit insane biotic who has a crazed plan and travels around with a bunch of mooks? Sounds like a Rogue to me. Yes, indeed.
And also?
Garm. Garrus talked about how freakishly fast a regenerator he was. And we didn't stick around to make sure he was dead after they shotgunned him.
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What sells it is that the spoken portion sounds like Garrus. Although I doubt he'd go solo again right after the Collector incident. He'd want to be in on the final accounting too much. Not to mention he clearly loves working with Shepard.
Edit: Although... I'm not a fan of the third person present style. Third person past is the conventional way, and easier to read. The present style is jarring.
---
Those who fear the darkness have never seen what the light can do.
DRAG0NFLIGHT Wrote:What sells it is that the spoken portion sounds like Garrus. Although I doubt he'd go solo again right after the Collector incident. He'd want to be in on the final accounting too much. Not to mention he clearly loves working with Shepard.
Edit: Although... I'm not a fan of the third person present style. Third person past is the conventional way, and easier to read. The present style is jarring. Oh, he's not alone. He's come back to Omega with support. He has a sidekick, an Oracle equivalent, and at least one AI hooked into his computer system. Given, said AI is based off an absolutely homicidal AI, but he's efficient, at least.
SSV Normandy-2.
2
weeks after the destruction of the Collector Base.
“Shepard. I've been thinking.”
The red haired woman at the desk looks up, adjusting her reading
glasses and leaning back on her couch. The Loft, the nickname given
to the oversized personal quarters of the Normandy's commanding
officer, currently has two inhabitants. One of them, the human
woman, is a person well known through Citadel space at this point.
Her name, spoken in hushed whispers by the criminal element and
jubilant tones by the straight and narrow, is a well known commodity.
Her guest, on the other hand, is...
“Garrus,” she says, “I'm listening.”
“I've been talking to Liara,” the turian says, pacing in front
of the couch, three fingered hands clasped behind him as he twitches
his mandibles in thought, “And she's given me some ideas.”
He continues pacing. His mandibles twitch, the tell tale sign that
he's trying to pick his words. As much as he's changed in the past
two years, Garrus Vakarian remains the person he's always been- soft
spoken, nervous, but quick to action when he perceives it's for a
good cause. Everything he does, from their first meeting when hew as
trying to bring down the most famous Spectre in the galaxy to his
actions on the suicide mission, reinforce that.
Especially his personal trial that she helped him through four weeks
ago.
“Do you remember Omega?”
“Where you pissed off every merc company in the Terminus Systems?”
she asks, snapping off her glasses and closing her PDA, “You mean
when you were Archangel?”
He nods, pausing in his pacing for a moment and clearing his throat.
“Well, I've been talking to Liara. She's told me that I've had an
actual effect,” he explains, “And I want to do more. So
I've talked to her, and Mordin has a few ideas for gadgets and stuff
and-”
“Hold on a minute,” Shepard says, “You want to go back
to being Archangel? Garrus, they almost killed you!”
“It took a gunship for them to do that,” he says, “And I was
only in that situation because I was betrayed, and Sidonis only
betrayed me because he was put in real danger.”
His mandibles twitch again, and he stops pacing. Folding his arms,
a shadow passes over his face, but is gone just as quickly.
“If I do it right, I can make a difference,” he says, “I've
talked to some others. I'm putting together a new team. And this
time, I think I can really make a difference on Omega...and if I can
make a difference there, I can do that anywhere.”
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It occurred to me that if you mix up a few Batman plotlines, you can get a very interesting team. Take Jack, in the "Huntress" role, for instance. She'd get off on the violence, and it would be a fairly safe way to keep her aggression pointed in a useful direction, instead of risking her just cooking off in some random fashion from sheer boredom. And she'd love playing to the masked avenger schtick.
Grunt would also take to the "diversion" while waiting for the Reaper invasion to kick into gear. Plus, it would be an opportunity for him to test some of his urban commando training.
Mordin would be the Bond-movie "Q", providing them with all the toys from the vantage point of the Normandy's minifactory. As long as Shepard doesn't mind harvesting minerals a little more often and letting him build stuff. And for Shepard, supporting Garrus even in an indirect way would let her keep tabs on him.
Oh, and kudos for the hair color. My favorite Shep is red hair/green eyes. She also got Liara, although I'm not sure what yours did.
---
Those who fear the darkness have never seen what the light can do.
Garrus will have a team, but some of them will be surprising. His rationale is that Sidonis betrayed them because he was put in real danger. So if he's going to do this right, this time his team will be able to put his old team to shame. He's not going to have an army, just a core group, better equipment, and better plans. It's less an army and more a movement, this time around.
And yes, Mordin provides the gear. That thing he did in the initial scene? That allows a Non-biotic to simulate the Charge ability, providing site to site teleportation.
“Right. Experimental array. Much study has been made of the
Charge biotic ability, and using an Element Zero core, I've been able
to replicate the effect. Observe.”
Pressing a button on the side of the pistol, the weapon glows. An
aura of crackling blue surrounds it, spinning for a split second
before disappearing. A blue bolt travels across the room, expanding
out and once more taking the shape of the Carnifex hand cannon,
hovering in the air before dropping into Jacob's hand.
“Hot damn,” the former Cerberus operative says, “It's a
teleporter?”
“More to less,” Mordin says, returning to his desk, “It is by
large short range site to site. It uses the same properties of a
Mass Relay for transit, but please. Do not use it to transit between
systems. Short range. Only.”
A sucking sound from the Salarian as he shakes his head.
“Also, do not use it to go behind opaque surfaces like walls and
bulkheads. May end up embedded in wall. Poor hamster.”
On the other side of the lab, Garrus twitches his mandibles in the
approximation of a grin.
“See?”
“I admit, that's pretty impressive,” Shepard says, “Who's on
your team?”
“Since you're returning to the alliance, I've talked with a few
who would not be going back with you,” he responds, “At least,
the ones not likely to be on an alliance ship. Jack's coming.
Legion, too. Samara will be coming over with me, as well. I'm also
looking into a few others.”
Shepard nods, walking out of the lab, Garrus by her side as there is
a sound like a table teleporting across the laboratory and Mordin
telling Jacob in clipped tones that it is not a toy.
“Makes sense,” she says, “Anyway, we can drop you off at Omega
after we stop by the Citadel. I need to report to the Council, and
we have one other thing to do there.”
“Which is?”
“Now that we've got that info from the Collector's base, I can
confront the Council about the Reapers,” she says, “And see if we
can get some reinforcements.”
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I've always wondered if maybe, since the Citadel is a Reaper construct, there might be some kind of localized Indoctrination field effect working over whoever is appointed Councilor, so that they tend to dismiss reports of Reapers, even in the face of overwhelming circumstantial evidence. It wouldn't be overt, but you'd have to slap them in the face with incontrovertible evidence to sway them. And their seeming inability to see what others do suggests even solid computer evidence isn't convincing without real, in-person data.
---
Those who fear the darkness have never seen what the light can do.
DRAG0NFLIGHT Wrote:I've always wondered if maybe, since the Citadel is a Reaper construct, there might be some kind of localized Indoctrination field effect working over whoever is appointed Councilor, so that they tend to dismiss reports of Reapers, even in the face of overwhelming circumstantial evidence. It wouldn't be overt, but you'd have to slap them in the face with incontrovertible evidence to sway them. And their seeming inability to see what others do suggests even solid computer evidence isn't convincing without real, in-person data. I had an idea for a similar story. It was a ME/Star Trek Online fusion, where the events of the first ME happened about 200 years earlier and the Citadel hadn't encountered humans, yet. Sovereign was destroyed by the combined efforts of the citadel fleets, and the Council, realizing what the Citadel was, decided to abandon and shut down the Citadel to keep it from being used.
Unfortunately, they ended up moving the seat of the council to Feros.
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DRAG0NFLIGHT Wrote:I've always wondered if maybe, since the Citadel is a Reaper construct, there might be some kind of localized Indoctrination field effect working over whoever is appointed Councilor, so that they tend to dismiss reports of Reapers, even in the face of overwhelming circumstantial evidence. It wouldn't be overt, but you'd have to slap them in the face with incontrovertible evidence to sway them. And their seeming inability to see what others do suggests even solid computer evidence isn't convincing without real, in-person data. Eh, I've always had a hard time believing that theory. One, because Anderson clearly still believes in ME2, despite the lack of evidence he has access to. Two, the Council doesn't exist in a vacuum. They're the representatives of their governments, not literal royalty. If their government believed it, they'd be telling their representatives to follow the party line or be replaced. And lastly... Well, like Anderson says in ME2, there's not much evidence. Most of Sovereign exploded and parts were stolen by scavengers (The Council can only work out where a third of his remains are, if that), and the parts left only suggest that it was a really advanced spaceship. The AI on Illos is broken, and the only person Saren ever mentioned the Reapers to is Shepard, who really doesn't have much evidence of her own to provide. If that dead Reaper Cerberus was sitting on hadn't fallen into a gas giant, then maybe she would have, but for most of ME2, all she had was theories.
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That holds together as an explanation, until you realize what you could do with even a cursory examination. You start by carbon dating the components. You might get some components that are *only* a few thousand years old, but you're going to start realizing that a substantial percentage of the vehicle is several million years old, if not older.
Once you have that as a starting point, the most logical framework to operate from is that this ship somehow influenced Geth technology over the last few centuries. Even if you assume the ship is unique and the Geth aren't actually worshiping a sentient warship, you've still got to deal with the fact that they have had access to technology which predates all Council races by eons. And there's no guarantee they don't have *more* of these things stashed in a corner somewhere.
Once you have that, the next step is to start analyzing tech. Add to that the fact that Sovereign was clearly demonstrating self-awareness, and the dead-but-still-functioning Saren showed far more intelligence, and raw hatred than any mere Husk ever had in the past, and there's enough circumstantial evidence to at the very least mount a first-rate scientific study of what you collected, and start being cautiously very concerned about the origin of the giant spaceship. Even if the Council put on a public "It was all a Geth attack" face, the Spectres would be told the truth, and told to head out and start collecting more data. It's the cautiously pragmatic approach, and the Council's inability to do that is what makes me go "BWAH?"
---
Those who fear the darkness have never seen what the light can do.
DRAG0NFLIGHT Wrote:That holds together as an explanation, until you realize what you could do with even a cursory examination. You start by carbon dating the components. You might get some components that are *only* a few thousand years old, but you're going to start realizing that a substantial percentage of the vehicle is several million years old, if not older.
Once you have that as a starting point, the most logical framework to operate from is that this ship somehow influenced Geth technology over the last few centuries. Even if you assume the ship is unique and the Geth aren't actually worshiping a sentient warship, you've still got to deal with the fact that they have had access to technology which predates all Council races by eons. And there's no guarantee they don't have *more* of these things stashed in a corner somewhere.
Once you have that, the next step is to start analyzing tech. Add to that the fact that Sovereign was clearly demonstrating self-awareness, and the dead-but-still-functioning Saren showed far more intelligence, and raw hatred than any mere Husk ever had in the past, and there's enough circumstantial evidence to at the very least mount a first-rate scientific study of what you collected, and start being cautiously very concerned about the origin of the giant spaceship. Even if the Council put on a public "It was all a Geth attack" face, the Spectres would be told the truth, and told to head out and start collecting more data. It's the cautiously pragmatic approach, and the Council's inability to do that is what makes me go "BWAH?" Who's to say they aren't? Remember, the games are told from perspective. The first game is told from the perspective of the newbie spectre who's trying to stop someone you have no evidence of being connected to the Reapers, save for the visions from the beacons. In the second game, you're the spectre who's been missing for two years, and who is now working for a known terrorist organization. If you were a council member, and you had no idea if this Shepard in front of you was the real one and not some sort of Cerberus deep cover agent, would you tell them the whole truth?
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Carbon dating only works for organic material that has been grown on Earth, because the atmosphere has a known proportion of carbon 14. Finding the age of a material from an unknown origin would be MUCH more difficult.
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