Mass Effect: Another Time, Another Place

Chapter 29: Virmire: A Ride To Remember

Summary:

The Normandy gets a new mission from the Council: an STG team investigating Saren on Virmire have gone dark, but the last message they sent indicated they had found something... The team quickly race to the rescue, finding it will not be a simple extraction mission after all...

Chapter 29:

We got back to the Normandy and wondered where to go next... We all got our armour off and Shepard and I headed to the CIC... As he approached the galaxy map, Joker spoke up. "Good timing, Commanders. We've got a transmission coming in from the Citadel. Top priority clearance." he informed us.

I chuckled then and crossed my arms. "I'm guessing it's not a love letter?" I asked rhetorically.

Shepard rolled his eyes to me. "Probably not... Patch it through to the comm room." he said and gestured with his head for me to follow him.

I did and when we got there, it was the Council. What a shock. "Commanders. We've received information that may be critical to your mission against Saren." Tevos spoke with a little urgency...

We both glanced at each other... Were they actually being helpful for once? "We'll take all the help we can get." Shepard nodded in answer to her.

Valern then explained further. "We've received an urgent message from one of our infiltration regiments in the Traverse." he told us.

I raised my eyebrow then. "Let me guess, they were investigating Saren, and bit off more than they could chew?" I asked him. This was bog standard to me by this point in my life.

Valern looked a little uneasy then. "Unfortunately, the message we received was little more than static. I have a feeling you may be right. The message was sent on a channel reserved for mission-critical communications. Whatever they were trying to tell us, it was important." he told us. "Considering your mission, we felt you may want to explore this. Find out what happened to our team. The signal originated from the planet Virmire." Valern directed us.

We both nodded at the same time then. "We'll look into it." Shepard told the Councillors.

Tevos spoke again. "The Council prefers not to become involved in the specifics of Spectre activities. We only want you to be aware of all your options, including Virmire." she quickly amended. "Good luck, Commanders. We will keep you advised if we learn anything else." she informed us before they cut the link.

Shepard and I both turned and marched out of the room. "Joker, we're headed to Virmire. Sentry Omega System, Hoc Cluster." Shepard called out to him. "On the double." he added.

Joker then nodded and began plotting the course. "Aye, Commander. We're aweigh. Be there in 15 minutes." he informed us. Only 15 minutes? Must be close.

I got on the intercom then. "Squad, this is Commander Warwick, everyone gear up, we're wheels up in 20." I informed everyone. I then jogged down to the Cargo Lift, taking it to the Armoury.

I saw the squad quickly getting their kit on. As I passed Tali at her locker, I leaned down and kissed the cheek of her suit quickly. She shook her head and stayed still for a second before continuing to get her things, albeit a bit slower. I put my armour on and made sure my equipment was in good nick and then headed back up to the cockpit to await our arrival to the planet...

Shepard, and eventually Ash and Kaiden joined us too. Eventually, I saw the planet up ahead... "Commander, I'm reading a signal. Must be our Salarian infiltration team." he told us.

He brought up an enhanced view of the area and my visor brought it to my neural interface. I sorted through the data, and Kaiden spotted exactly what I did... "Check out those defence towers..." he marvelled at the size of them.