Adult-FanFiction.org : Games

Mass Effect: The Helldiver Saga, Alpha Origins	By : Veyron722skyhook Category: +M through R > Mass Effect Views: 6171 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect or it's characters. They belong to Bioware and EA. No money/profit is made by me from this.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
(Sigh) Another apology for how long it took to do this.

I'm pretty it's not writers block. I still definitely wan to write this story, I'm just struggling with the motivation to actually write it all down. And I don't mean to point fingers, but I fear part of that is because I don't receive as many reviews as I used to. It's still nice that the ones I do get are positive, they're just not as many as before. Some people who used to comment a lot kind of stopped. Whether they've lost interest or simply left fanfiction altogether, I don't know.

I know it's wrong to ask anymore of those who take them time to read my work and review it (which I cannot express my appreciation through words alone) but if there is any advice or motivation you could give, I would owe you one.

Anyway, enough about me. Let's get on with the chapter. Hopefully it will have been worth the wait at least.

YEAR 1, The Formation of Alpha

2173: 11 months after the battle of Elysium

15 Years Before the Battle of Arkadia

"For many more months, it was just loads of different missions. Nothing too special or exciting. But then there was this illegal arms deal near the end of the year. That one ended up being more than just a simple recovery mission. That was when we realised we weren't the only ones with advanced training."

Chapter 4

The Red Skulls

This time, Alpha had been sent to small world on the edges of Terminus space. Many kind of illegal activities went on in this sector and very few Helldivers came this far out. It was said that only the brave and the bold ventured there.

It was fair to say that in this corner of the galaxy, there was no such thing a seeing neutral. You were either the predator, or the prey.

Right now, Alpha had to avoid becoming the prey. The Arkanes had got a tip about an arms deal that would happening between some Batarian terrorists and a human mercenary faction. The mercs would selling to the Batarians, something that would not bode well for the Helldivers. Despite how advanced they were, the Batarians were ruthless and they certainly gave the Helldivers a challenge. If they got their hands on new weaponry, the scales would tip even more win their favour. The Helldivers already had enough trouble with the Citadel Council breathing down their backs about how they'd risk starting a war and all that nonsense.

Getting to the sight of were the deal would take place however was complicated. Both sides had already secured a vast amount of the area in advance, landing a Helldiver shuttle anywhere near would be suicide. So a sneaky approach had to be taken.

They'd been able to get hold of a smuggler who could get them past enemy lines, and hopefully close enough were they could intercept the deal. Obviously they didn't want to give the Terminus systems anymore reason to hate them. In this case, it was better to remain anonymous and make it look to each see as if the other was going back on the deal (like was often done in the old days of Earth military).

"Can't we go any faster?" Austin sighed, getting bored with the driver's rather slow speed.

"Not on these roads." the driver replied.

Austin simply rolled his eyes.

"Were are you from?" the driver asked, trying to make polite conversation. "You're not local."

"We're paying you to drive, not to chat." Austin simply replied.

He did at least count it good that the driver wasn't asking questions or suspect him and the others. He'd even grown his goatee out even more specifically for this to draw lest suspicion and to also fool the driver into thinking he was a bit older. He'd trim it back to it's usual length when they got back after this.

"How much longer?"

"Just over those hills." The driver replied.

The sun was starting to go down, leaving the sky a very dark pinkish colour in the distance. By the time they arrived it would be dark. Fortunately, it did mean that Alpha would have the cover of darkness when it came to doing the deal.

Austin Thought's on the upcoming mission were interrupted though when he suddenly saw a vehicle drive out into the road ahead of them and several armed mercenaries stepped out.

"Crap."

The driver was forced to slow down until he came to a halt. Austin simply remained calm. True he hadn't planned on this.

"This area is sealed off. You'll have to find another way around." One of the mercs said.

The driver cast a worried look at Austin who simply nodded.

"I can't do that. If I go any other route I'll miss the schedule. I can't afford to fall behind you must understand." The driver said, trying act casual an innocent.

"What have you got back there?" one of the mercs asked demandingly.

"Basic supplies for the colonists, nothing more."

"Out of the truck. Now."

The driver reluctantly sighed and stepped out. Austin meanwhile remained inside. He'd only get out if specifically asked.

"Who's he?" a merc asked, pointing to Austin.

"My cousin, Winston." The driver replied.

"Really?" Austin asked in his head.

"Let's see what you've got in the back." a merc demanded.

"This is ridiculous! You're not the local authorities here." the driver argued.

"No, but we're the ones with the guns. Open up the truck and we won't have to shoot you." The merc leader replied, waving the barrel of his gun warningly in the driver's face.

"Fine." The driver sighed as he led them to the back of the truck.

"You... stay in the truck. Hands still." The merc ordered to Austin, who simply nodded and kept his hand in sight. Just out of sight though, his other was moving to a hidden compartment.

"You're not gonna find anything out of place, man. I assure you." Said the driver

"Well then you won't mind us checking just to be safe. Open it up."

The second the door was unlocked though, it suddenly swung open, hitting the driver in the face and causing him to fall to the floor. To the merc's utter surprise all the rest of Alpha Squad, currently out of armour opened fire on them. At the same time, Austin also pulled out his pistol from the hidden compartment while still remaining seated and shot the merc who'd been left behind.

Soon it was nothing but silence until he heard the driver rambling in shock at the sudden appearance of the others. He quickly stepped out and walked to the back. Everyone else was already taking the ammo from the mercs.

"Don't shoot!" the driver begged, holding his hands up. "Who are you all?"

Despite this, the Helldivers simply ignored him for now.

"That could've gone smoother." Said Ventra.

"We'd better keep moving." Said Austin.

"You sure we still need this guy? I don't like him." Said Kraan.

"We don't have to like him, Kraan. We simply have to pay him." Said Austin.

What happened next however came as a huge surprise to everyone, including the driver. Sandra suddenly pushed everyone out of the way, leapt out of the truck, ran to the side of road and literally threw up.

Once she finally stopped, she walked back to the group. She did her best to wipe her mouth and not look like she'd just been sick. She looked very pale and was still panting a bit.

"Chert chto voditel'" she swore in Russian.

"Bloody hell, are you alright?" Austin asked, extremely worried by this sudden and unforeseen event. As far as they knew, Sandra had never been sick, most especially at such a random time like this. Austin was even worried that might be something very serious. Had she caught something? Was it something she'd eaten?

"Yeah. Sorry I never told you this before, but I often get travel sick. Usually the dropships are okay, but in that truck on these roads… quite frankly I'm lucky we stopped." Said Sandra.

"Are you okay now?" Austin asked.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'll be fine." Said Sandra.

"I'm done! You didn't say anything about this." Said the driver defensively, there was still signs of nervousness in his voice though. The sudden appearance of these aliens and other people had shocked him. Plus, he was just one thin guy against several tough aliens and well-built muscle bound men and women.

"Listen, sweetie. You either drive us there, or we do." Said Alaara as she stood over the driver.

For a moment, the driver stopped being in shock. He felt entranced by the beautiful Asari.

"If you do, maybe you'll get your truck back..." said Alaara. Her tone of voice then became even more seductive to the point where she sounded "And maybe something extra if you're a good boy."

"I must be out of my mind." He sighed.

"Good man." Austin simply said. "Let's move it."

Having reached their destination, Alpha was now finally armed up. Leena had even got their recon and combat drone up and running. Chances are they were going to need it.

"Drone up?" Austin asked.

"Up and working." Leena replied.

"Okay, people, gather round." Austin ordered.

Everyone gathered round as Sandra tossed a device onto the floor and it began projecting a holographic 3D map of the entire base that was where the weapons deal was going to take place.

"This base was decommissioned last year. They're going to make the deal here. Both sides are in two sets of blocking positions here, and here." Said Austin as he indicated to the positions and they highlighted themselves on the model.

At the same time, several small transports appeared on the 3D map as well.

"Ok. There's the Batarians." Said Kraan.

"Wait a minute, there were three." Said Ventra suspiciously.

"Advance party is clearing. Looks like their leader is hanging back." Said Sandra.

"Okay. I've got security. Dash, you're with me." Said Austin.

"Understood." Dash nodded.

"Ventra, I need you up top."

"Roger that." The Turian nodded.

"Alaara and Sandra , you got the perimeter and monitoring incoming comms. Kraan and Leena, wait for my orders if I need you."

"Fine." Kraan sighed reluctantly.

"Understand, Commander." Leena simply nodded.

"Alright, let's move it."

"Heads up, we've got a visual on the merc boss." Said Leena as she observed the feed from the drone which was hovering just out of sight.

"Roger that, keep moving." Austin replied.

Proceeding further into the abandoned base, Austin soon caught sight of a merc on the high ground.

"We got a sniper up top." He said. "Leena, take him down quietly."

Leena nodded and engaged her cloak as she moved out into the open.

Ventra meanwhile was one level below the sniper, waiting until the coat was clear and also keeping an eye out for the Batarian leader.

Within just a few moments, he caught sight of the third vehicle.

"Batarian leader inbound, thirty seconds." He said.

"Copy." Austin replied.

"Is this your boss?" the merc leader asked as he noticed the transport enter the area.

"Yes." The lieutenant replied.

Despite that no one was coming out of the transport yet, the merc leader seemed content to move the deal forward and he motioned to one of his men.

"Bring it up." He said.

"Okay. Let's move in closer." Austin ordered.

Now that Leena was in the clear out of the sniper's sight, she could safely manoeuvre the drone into position.

"Drone inbound." She said.

From up top meanwhile, Sandra and Alaara had the high ground to not only alert the team if there was any backup, but also so that Sandra could monitor communications better. Higher ground meant she could not only monitor comms, but also jam them if she needed to.

"Handy little spy camera, that thing." Alaara commented.

"Hmmm." Sandra simply nodded, not taking her eyes off her portable device.

"Okay. If you don't wanna talk, have it your way." Alaara sighed.

"Sorry. Just a lot on my mind. These mercs appear to be Russian. Just gives a bad name for me." Said Sandra.

"Don't think like that. You're not them. Besides, I thought you said you were only half Russian." Said Alaara.

"In a way."

"When are you gonna tell us the whole story?" Alaara asked.

It did make a lot of people wonder about Sandra. Although it was true that the rest of Alpha had yet to truly share stories as well, many of them were rather interested in Sandra's. She was half Russian and half American, so it did beg the question why.

"Another time, Alaara." Sandra simply replied. "And no, I am not going to fall for your attempted seduction, even if your are very sexy."

Alaara was actually surprised to hear Sandra say that. Had the Comm expert, which had often refused her advanced, just complimented her?

"Did you just say..."

"I heard. It slipped." Sandra sighed.

"Don't be ashamed. I like being complimented." Said Alaara, smiling naughtily under her helmet.

"Yes. Maybe a little too much."

Leena meanwhile had now got the drone into position. It was ready to strike.

"Target in sight. Sick 'em, boy." She said.

Activating it's auto pilot, the drone locked onto the sniper, and fired a single shot which carved right through the Batarian's face and sent him falling off the edge.

"Sniper down."

Back on the ground, the two backup mercs were patrolling the area. As one of them looked up, he suddenly noticed the legs and arms of the dead sniper. Before his brain was about to properly process this and realise he need to sound an alarm however, he was suddenly shot in the back of the head by Austin as Dash and Leena also took out the others. Leena especially was rather brutal with hers. She hit so hard she literally cracked her merc's armour before then using her Tomahawk on him and then then breaking his neck.

"Backup neutralised." Austin said into his comm.

"Anyone ever tell you fight ugly?" Dash asked to Leena.

"Not when they're dead they don't." said Leena as she yanked her tomahawk out of the dead merc and wiped his blood off.

"It just seems nasty." Said Dash.

"Cut the chatter, you two." Said Austin. "Ventra, you in position?"

"Yes, sir. Got a visual on the deal." Ventra replied as he crouched down on the spot where the merc sniper had been and pulled his bow out. He also fixed a scope to it so that he could gety a closer look at the deal. At the same time, Leena joined him up top.

"You got eyes on the merc boss?" Austin asked.

"Check."

"Batarian leader?"

"Negative."

At that moment, another very large transport carrying what looked like a massive crate suddenly joined the deal, being driven by the mercs.

"What the hell is that?" Leena asked.

"I don't know what the hell they're doing, but if it's that big it can't be good." Said Ventra.

'He's coming." Said the Batarian's lieutenant.

"Coming?" said the merc leader, unimpressed

Still in the transport, was the Batarian leader. He was speaking to the anonymous source who'd hired him. He had no idea who they were, but they were offering plenty of money for this deal, so what the hell.

"I'm at the deal now." The Batarian leader said.

"Good. I trust this to go smoothly." Said the figure.

"You need not worry about that. It's under control."

"Is he coming or not?" the merc leader asked, now rather irritated.

"Yes."

"That's it! The deal is off. You understand? Take it back."

"Wait!"

"Do not fail me. We've paid you good money for this job. There will be repercussions if we don't get what we want."

"I know better than to try and double cross you. Even if you do hide your identity." Said the Batarian leader.

"Just get the package."

"As you wish."

With that, the Batarian leader finally stepped out of the transport.

"There he is." Said Ventra.

"Any known ID matches?" Austin asked.

"None in the database." Leena replied.

"No shot." Said Ventra as the leader temporarily vanished behind a part of the base.

"Show me the credits." Said the merc leader.

The Batarian was handed a case and he opened it up, showing the merc leader the credits inside.

"All there as promised." He said.

Satisfied with what he saw, the Batarian leader proceeded with the deal.

"Open it up."

The second the cargo doors on the massive track opened, a unbelievably loud noise hit all of Alpha's comms, practically deafening them.

"Ow! Fuck!" Austin swore. "Cut the drone's mic! Cut it now!"

Very quickly, the loud noise stopped and everyone turned their attention back to the drone's feed.

"Something's down there. Whatever it is, it's jamming the signal. Strong as hell, whatever it is." Said Leena, a hint of concern in her voice. There were very few things in this galaxy that could be that strong, and none of them were harmless.

"Let's take a peek." Said Austin.

Leena changed the drone's camera display mode. What it revealed only increased her worry even more.

"Boshtets!" she swore.

"What is it?" Ventra asked.

"It's a warhead."

"Fuck. That'll complicate things." Austin sighed. "Okay, I think we've waited long enough."

The Batarian leader simply smiled, then turned to the merc.

"We have a deal."

The second the last word left his lips however, a shot hit him straight in the head as it carved right through and then also hit the merc leader, taking them both out at the same time. Almost immediately, both sides turned one each other and an instant firefight erupted.

"Got 'em both. We're out of here." Said Ventra.

"Negative. Stay put." Austin ordered. "Neutralise the area. We need to get to that warhead."

Two of the merc lieutenants retreated into one of the transports and it sped away.

"Two in the transport. Your call." Said Austin.

Ventra quickly drew another bow and fired, taking out the transport's engine directly and causing it to explode.

"Got 'em."

Soon the fighting down and only a few strays from both sides were left. Alpha now had a clear line to the warhead. As Austin looked out of cover at it, he saw it had also been armed. That would complicate things even more.

"Bloody hellfire." He groaned. "Alright, we're gonna secure the warhead. Leena, can you disarm it?"

"We're gonna find out." Leena replied as she and Ventra headed down from the tower.

"Everyone else, secure the area."

A lone Batarian scooped up a pistol and aimed at Austin from behind only to be knocked down by Kraan.

"Don't even think about it." He said. "Drop it!"

The Batarian reluctantly threw the gun to the ground.

"Ventra, cover Leena. Keep your eyes open." Austin ordered as Leena began working on disarming the warhead while Ventra covered her from behind a nearby crate.

"Oh boy." He sighed, noticing how exposed they were out in the open. This was as good an opportunity as any for a surprise attack and ambush.

"You ever done this before?" he asked.

"Sure. Except it was a different warhead, and it was a simulator." Leena replied.

"Right." Ventra sighed. "This can only go well."

"Get together! On your knees!" Austin ordered as the rest of Alpha rounded up the Batarian's and mercs.

As Ventra risked another glance from behind cover, he was almost sure he saw something. It was only faint, but he was certain he wasn't just seeing things.

"Sir, there's something out there." He said into his comm.

The sound of a machine of some kind powering up could then be heard, but no one could tell where it was coming from. Kraan, out of the corner of his eye then suddenly spotted something hiding in the shadows.

"Get back!" he yelled as he pulled Austin behind the wreckage of one of the vehicles as hundreds of minigun rounds suddenly fired right at them from out of the shadows. Everyone quickly scattered into cover as well.

"Holy shit!" Dash swore.

"What the hell was that?" said Kraan.

Using the feed from the drone, Alpha were soon able to see their attacker. A giant Heavy mech slowly stepped out of the dark.

"Heavy mech, and a heavily modified one by the looks of it." said Austin with concern. "Leena?"

"One down. Five more to go." Leena replied.

Ventra once again risked a glance from behind cover. Now he could see several figures moving in on their position.

"Unknown contacts are also closing in on our position. More Batarians by the looks of things, only these one are in red armour." He said. "I got nine, no wait... ten inbound. They got flankers."

"Stay on that weapon. Ventra, Kraan, cover her." Austin ordered.

"Got it." Kraan nodded as he joined Ventra covering Leena.

Ventra meanwhile maneuverered the drone into position and it locked onto the incoming red Batarians. Almost immediately, it opened fire, forcing the attackers to scramble for cover.

Kraan meanwhile fired some rockets to join the incoming fire, only for them to suddenly be shot down by the mech's minigun.

"Okay, that was a bad idea." He said.

The mech scanned the area and quickly spotted it's targets, despite that they were hiding behind stuff.

"TARGETS IDENTIFIED!" it said as it fired again, forcing the Helldivers back into cover.

"Dash, you got this. That thing's slow. Once it clocks you, head south." Said Austin.

"Well... shit." Dash swore.

Unsure exactly how to get the mech's attention he simply jumped out and threw his arms wide open.

"Look at me! I'm a target!" he yelled.

The mech fired again and Dash almost immediately broke into a sprint.

"Shepard, you asshole!" he yelled as he ran right past the Commander.

To everyone's surprise, the mech then did something most unexpected. It seemed to somehow change as some of its limbs seemed to rotate and wheels then flipped out of hidden compartments. Putting itself on all fours, it then sped off after Dash.

"Four to go." Said Leena as she continued working on the warhead, despite the incoming fire that was often hitting the container while Kraan and Ventra returned fire.

"Hey Boss! This thing ain't so slow!" Dash yelled into his comm as the Mech gave chase.

"Dash, get it to the canal." Said Austin.

"I'm trying!"

Ventra and Kraan were managing to hold out rather well against these well-armed Batarians. It wasn't easy though. These Batarians seemed to fight a lot better than normal Batarians. They had better armour, better weapons, and even better training from the way they coordinated their attacks.

Ventra managed another head shot on another Batarian soldier as he temporarily

"Nice shot, Krogan." He said.

"You're not too bad yourself." Said Ventra.

"Where the fuck are you, Shep?!" Dash yelled as he kept running at full speed to avoid incoming fire from the mech, which was closing the gap between him and it. "God dammit, where are you?!"

The mech skidded to a halt and switched back to its upright position and once again fired at Dash. This time though, the shots came so close that he was forced to skid in order to avoid them.

"Shiiiiiit!"

Dash narrowly managed to grab onto something as he fell off the edge of the canal.

A stray shot suddenly hit the drone, causing it to spin out of control and crash.

"Drone's down!" said Ventra.

"How much longer, Quarian?!" Kraan yelled, narrowly avoiding a shot aimed at his head.

"Two left." Leena replied.

A sudden shot however suddenly hit Leena right in the head, causing her to fall.

"Leena!"

Fearing that the Quarian had just been killed, Ventra quickly ran up to her, taking cover behind the crate as he checked her pulse. To his relief, she was still alive. Her helmet had deflected the round, but it had failed to absorb the impact, which had thus knocked her unconscious.

"What just happened?" said Austin through the comm.

"Leena took a hit. She's out, but alive." Ventra replied.

"I don't care what you do, just wake her up. We need that warhead disarmed." Said Austin.

"Easier said that done." Said Ventra.

"Hold on. We're on our way." Said Alaara.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Dash swore as the mech towered over him while he struggled to continue hanging on.

"TARGET ACQUIRED!" the mech said as it took aim.

Right as it was about to shoot however, a rocket suddenly hit the mech from behind causing it to topple over into the canal. The water mixing with the electrics caused the mech to short circuit and explode.

Worried at first who had made that shot and it it had been intended for the mech, Dash didn't yet try to pull himself up until he saw the familiar helmet of Austin appear over the edge and extended his hand out.

As the Helldiver commander pulled Dash up, the Scout noticed that he had a used rocket launcher in the other hand. It had been him who'd made the shot.

"That was too close." Austin sighed.

"Thanks, boss." Dash panted once both his feet were back on ground.

"Am I still an asshole?" Austin asked.

"Yes, Shepard. You're still an asshole for making me do that…" Dash replied. "…but thanks."

Alaara and Sandra soon joined the fight as they ran up to the fallen Leena while Kraan and Ventra continued covering them.

"Cover us. We'll take care of this." Said Alaara.

"You even know if this'll work?" Sandra asked as Alaara began charging up her biotics.

"No. I've only down it once, and that was during sex. I've no idea if she'll even feel this." Alaara replied.

Once she had charged up enough, Alaara then put her hands on Leena and literally sent a massive biotic surge through her entire body. Leena practically burst back up onto her feet the second Alaara stopped. She wobbled slightly as her mind and body struggled to overcome the shock and readapt to where she was and what had happened.

"Okay, that went better than I thought it would." Said Alaara, rather surprisingly.

"Where do you learn this stuff?" Sandra asked.

"You don't wanna know." Alaara simply replied.

"Actually, you're right. I don't."

For some reason, something about that hurt Alaara. She had more meant it as a simple teasing joke, but Alaara it seemed had taken it seriously.

Many thoughts began to race through the Asari's mind. Perhaps now she was realizing the truth that Sandra didn't like her. But why? As far as she could remember, she hadn't said or done anything to upset the human woman.

Then another thought occurred to her. Her obsession with sex. Maybe that was why. Was this why she'd never had a proper relationship before? Did this mean she would forever be alone, even without any true friends?

Alaara's thoughts though were interrupted by the more sudden incoming fire and she and the others went back into cover and covered Leena as she went back to disarming the warhead.

"One left! Just keep them off me a bit longer!" the Quarian yelled over the noise of shots hitting everywhere and gunfire all over the place.

For a moment, Ventra struggled to find an opening for him to get a shot at the Batarian firing at him. To his surprise though, the firing then stopped. Risking a glance from behind cover, he saw that Austin and Dash had re-joined the fight and were now flanking their attackers.

With the red Batarians boxed in, it was only a matter of time before all of them were dead.

"We good?" Austin asked as he and the others secured the area.

"Yep. Warhead's disarmed." Leena replied, finally standing back up.

"Who the hell were these guys? Those were not normal Batarians." Dash panted.

Austin walked up to one of the dead bodies and scanned the skull symbol it had on it's arm. They revealed a surprising result.

"Well, I'll be dammed."

"What is it?" Sandra asked.

"Their symbol is a perfect match for the Red Skulls." Austin replied.

"Seriously?" Sandra said in surprise. "I thought they were just a rumour, a story created the Batarians to keep us out of their territory."

Rumour was the Red Skulls where a special group of Batarians. Each one of them wore a suit of red armour that had been extensively modified. A few years or so ago, the Batarians had attempted to copy Helldiver technology so that they perhaps stood a better chance against their enemy.

Resources for the Batarians however where scarce, not to mention that it was impossible for them to get any Helldiver tech to reverse engineer since Helldiver armour always vaporized itself when it's user died.

Capturing Helldivers as prisoners never worked either as the armour could never be removed by hand and they had all sorts of defence mechanisms, the lockdown being the most hated.

Despite this though, the Batarian had eventually managed to make some armour that could in some way compete with a Helldiver. Although this had worried many Helldivers at first, those who had encountered them simply said that compared to their technology, the Batarian versions where nothing but cheap knock offs. In some ways, they were right. The Red Skulls, named mostly due to the colour of their armour, in truth only had enhanced strength and not many of the other features that Helldivers had. The suits where indeed cheap knock offs.

However, what the Red Skulls lacked in technology, they gained in their advanced training. Unlike the suits, their training did actually help them. It very easily rivalled that of a Helldiver's and enabled the Red Skulls to compete with the Helldivers not just on a physical level, but also a mental level as well. Up till now, they had only ever been thought to be stories in a vague attempt to intimidate the Helldivers.

But now it seemed the Skulls were real. All too real.

"The Arkanes aren't gonna be happy to hear about this." Austin sighed. "Still, at least we prevented this warhead from falling into Batarian hands."

"All in all, not a bad day." Said Sandra.

"Yeah. Not bad." Alaara sighed.

Back on Arkadia, mostly everyone had turned in for the night.

With Alpha having been deemed by the Arkanes as an official success, the squad all now lived together as room-mates. They're apartment like room was nothing particularly special, but it had all the essentials and was homely enough.

Alaara stood in the bathroom, dressed only in a simple bathrobe, gazing at her own reflection. She was still somewhat upset and hurt about what Sandra said.

She noticed that Austin was in the next room sat in one of the big chairs reading a magazine.

"Hey, Shepard?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"Would you date me?"

"I'm sorry?" Austin asked, somewhat taken aback by the question.

Would you date me?" Alaara repeated, this time at a slower pace.

"You're asking me to date you?"

"No, stupid. I'm asking for your opinion. If you wanted to, would you date me?" said Alaara.

"Oh. Well, in that case, of course I would. Any man would be lucky to have you. I mean, you're stunning." Said Austin.

"Or woman." Alaara added.

"I do beg your pardon. I mean that as well." Austin said quickly.

"Even knowing about my condition?"

"What condition?"

"Oh, like you don't know!" said Alaara crossly.

"No seriously. What condition?" said Austin, his tone now turning to concern.

"I'm obsessed with sex." Alaara sighed.

For a moment, Austin simply stared at her. Alaara could tell he didn't believe her. She knew that look when she saw it.

"I'm not joking, Shepard. I really am." She said, turning her back to the human and looking out the window.

"I'm sorry… I didn't…" Austin tried to say.

"It's okay. It's not your fault." Alaara sighed.

"What's the matter?" Austin asked as he stood up and walked up to the Asari.

"It's just something Sandra said." Said Alaara, doing her best to not cry. Her eyes were already beginning to water.

"What did she say? Did she offend you?" Austin asked

"No, no, of course not. It's just… when I resuscitated Leena, she asked where I'd learned that biotic trick. I told her she didn't' want to know, but I meant it in a teasing sort of way. She just said "Actually, you're right. I don't." I know that's not an insult, but it did hurt a bit." "I guess I'm just being too sensitive. But I get the sense she doesn't like me. Am I really so annoying? Is this why I don't have a bond mate?" said Alaara.

"No. No, of course not. You don't have a bond mate because…" Austin said comfortingly. "I don't know why you don't have a bond mate. You should have a bond mate."

"Oh come on! I'm the only daughter of two Asari porn stars. I owe my obsession to them. And I was an accident!" Alaara nearly yelled.

At this, she practically burst into tears.

"Hey, hey, come here."

Austin gently pulled Alaara into a hug and she eventually hugged him back.

"I'm practically a whore already." Alaara sobbed into his shoulder.

"Now you listen me to me, Alaara. You are not a whore. You're not a stripper, you're not a slut, you're a beautiful Asari, you're a soldier, and you're my friend." Said Austin. "You are one of my favourite people, and the most beautiful Asari I've ever known… well, in real life that is."

"I'm the only Asari you've known." Said Alaara, her mood brightening a bit and a smile made its way onto her face.

"Thank you. That's nice." Austin laughed. "But listen, I'm sure Sandra didn't mean it in a way that she doesn't like you. If I recall she even said you were sexy."

"How did you know that?" Alaara asked.

"You're comms were stuck open, I heard everything. I'm sure Sandra does see you as a friend, she's just yet to get used to you properly. I mean we have only been working together for nearly a year and we still don't know that much about each other." Austin replied.

Alaara was starting to cheer up a bit now.

"Besides, you're willingness to sleep with anyone and also to not be afraid of showing your body to everyone is actually of big help to us. You can get intel in ways we can't." Austin continued. "Also, it makes you rather fun in some ways."

"Thanks, Shepard." Alaara smiled.

The two finally separated from their hug.

"You know, for a commanding officer, you're awfully friendly."

"You'd be surprised. Believe me." Austin smiled. "Are you sure you're going to be okay? If it helps, I can get Sandra to apologise to you."

"No, it's okay. You don't have to do that. You're right, I'm pretty sure she didn't mean it in a mean way. I just took it wrong." Said Alaara.

"If you're sure."

Austin went back to where he'd been sitting and went back to his magazine.

As Alaara turned to head for her room, she temporarily stopped.

"Did you really mean it though? You would date me?" she asked.

"I don't lie to my friends, Alaara." Austin replied.

"Well, then I'm honoured that you would. And to be fair, I'd date you too. You're a nice guy, you're handsome, and girl would be lucky to have you." Said Alaara.

Austin had to temporarily clear his throat after hearing that.

"In that case, I appreciate the thought." He finally managed to say.

"Thank for cheering me up."

"You're welcome."

As Alaara was about to disappear into her room, Austin suddenly spoke again.

"That errr, condition… It doesn't… apply to tonight, does it?" he asked.

"Are you trying to flirt with me, Commander Shepard?" Alaara asked, somewhat surprised.

"I'm just asking."

"You are, aren't you?!"

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"I promise you, I'm not."

Alaara soon started to feel very naughty. She decided to call Austin's bluff.

"Alright then, prove it." She said as she reached down for the belt on her robe.

"What are you doing?" Austin asked.

Before Austin could say anymore, Alaara shrugged her robe off completely, leaving her completely nude right in front of him.

"Just the sight of me naked is enough to drive someone to pounce in me. If you were serious about not trying to flirt with me, you can handle it." She smiled seductively.

"And what happens if I don't resist?" Austin asked.

"Well, then you'll find out just how… sexual I can really be." Said Alaara

It was awfully hard for Austin to tear his eyes away. Words alone could not express how beautiful Alaara was.

Despite the temptation, he turned back to his magazine, averting his gaze from the nude Asari.

"Alaara, I'm incapable of thinking about you that way." He said, trying to sound calm and relaxed, even though his heart was beating like mad. It wasn't made any easier by the fact that she's suddenly walked up behind him and rested her forearms on his shoulders.

"Don't you wanna have your first time with an Asari?" she asked seductively as one hand ruffled his short brown hair and the other stroked his beard.

"One day, yes. But I'd rather have it with one that won't cause to me to feel wrong about doing it." Austin replied, still keeping his eyes on his magazine, even though he could even feel the warmth of Alaara's large breasts touching the back of his head.

"Just one night?"

"You're not gonna change my mind."

Alaara then suddenly grabbed his face and kissed him hard on the lips. Despite this though, Austin refused to give in.

"I'm afraid that isn't going to work either… although it was a good kiss." He said.

Alaara simply smiled and let Austin go.

"You passed my test." She said as she walked back up to her robe and put it back on. "I'm impressed actually. Apart from Sandra, you're the only one who's been able to resist. You have quite a strong will, even for a human. I'm glad you're our leader."

"And I'm glad to be leading you." Austin smiled.

"Good night, Shepard." Said Alaara as she finally entered her room.

"Sleep well, Alaara."

As the door shut, Austin went back to his magazine. He was suddenly interrupted however by a figure stepping out of the shadows.

"I didn't mean to upset her." Said Sandra. "I'm just not… used to aliens."

Sandra walked up to the window and folder her arms. Austin at the same time put his magazine down and walked up next to her.

"Well, you're in the Helldivers, Sandra. And as far as I know, Alpha Squad is here to stay. You, me and the others are stuck together like it or not." He said. "And if we're going to survive, we need to work together, and trust each other."

Sandra sighed. She knew Austin was right. Being a Helldiver meant working with aliens. She should've known what she truly signed up for.

"I should apologise to her." She said.

"I actually agree." Said Austin.

"You did a good job talking to her."

"To me this squad is more than just soldiers. It'd be nice if we were all friends."

"Couldn't agree more." Sandra smiled, stretching her hand out. "Friends?"

"Friends." Austin smiled back as he shook her hand.

I'm actually quite proud of that bit. It was nice to sort of show the start of Alpha bonding withe ach other, and also make hints of the imminent romance between Alaara and Sandra.

Some good news for the next chapter at least is that we now cross into Year 2, and that's when we start seeing a more significant part of Alpha's story. Previous chapters have just been a few significant missions, the next one however will be the start of a somewhat longer story. It'll also introduce a recurring villain. Those who have read my version of ME2 may even spot a little Easter egg. ;)

Until next time!

Could use a lot of support at this time, so please don't hesitate to review.
- 3
- 4
- 5
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Mass Effect: The Helldiver Saga, Alpha Origins