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Mass Effect: The Helldiver Saga, The Last Cycle	By : Veyron722skyhook Category: +M through R > Mass Effect Views: 6104 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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
- 5
- 6
- 7
This was rather fun to do due to the changes I made.

Not much more I can say really...

By the way, a review asked when I'd bring Urz back. Wait no longer, my friend Also, he will be used on Tuchunka missions. It's his home too after all.

Chapter 6

The Last Prothean

Austin hadn't ventured into the cargo hold for a while, so he decided to do that. As soon s he stepped out of the elevator, he was greeted his pet Varren, Urz.

Urz had once been a former pit fighting champion on Tuchanka before his master got exiled and he was retired, despite his still very young age.

During his mission against the Collectors, Austin had visited Tuchanka and had met the Varren while trading.

Somehow, the Varren had taken a liking to him. Even more so when Austin had given him some Pyjak meat, something Varren were known to love.

Seeing how well Urz seemed to get along with him, the Varren's current owner had asked if Austin would be interested and taking over ownership of him. The Helldiver of course had accepted and Urz had proven himself more than capable in battle.

"Good boy." Austin smiled, patting Urz on the head, much to his approval. "Stay."

Urz obeyed and lay down near his little door.

The SR3 had been built with a special tunnel system allowing Urz to travel around the Normandy without the use of the elevator. It was the use of that, that allowed Urz to often roam freely around the ship before he then retired to his built in kennel in Austin's quarters to sleep. The new freedom made the Varren even happier than he had been in the SR2.

As sat back down for a little nap, Austin went over to James who was doing pullups on one of the bars.

"Hey, Major." He said. "You down here for a reason?"

"Just came down here to talk." Said Austin.

"Great." James grunted in-between pulls. "Not sure what there is to talk about though. Your Helldiver, I'm Alliance. We don't' have much in common. Besides, you know my service record."

"I don't actually." Said Austin.

"Well-" said James, dropping down. "Think you can dance and talk at the same time?"

"I think I can handle it." Austin replied, accepting James challenge.

"Okay, Loco. Let's dance."

"Don't push you luck, Vega. With age comes wisdom." Said Austin as the two started sparing with oen another. Austin usually fought better in his armour, but he still had his advanced training.

"You sound like my old CO." said James.

"Oh really? And who was that?"

"Captain Tony. He was a hard ass son of a bitch."

"What do you mean was?"

"Died, with most of my squad. Protecting a civilian colony from a Collector attack."

"And the colony?"

"It was either them, or the intel we had on the Collectors. Intel we could've used to destroy them. I chose the intel."

James swung a bit too hard of a punch at Austin, but the Helldiver managed to back away and avoid it.

"Sorry. That's a tough call." He panted.

"The best part was, we didn't' really need the intel in the end. Because you were out saving the galaxy by taking down the entire Collector homeworld."

"You didn't know. You can't blame yourself."

"Who says I'm blaming myself."

"Just a guess."

"You're a shrink too?"

"No. But that stunt back on Mars was reckless. You're lucky to be alive."

"So?"

"So… maybe you don't' care whether you live or die."

"Or maybe… I'm just willing to do whatever that fuck it takes to win this goddamn war!"

Austin could tell James was getting a bit too aggressive for this, so he decided to end it there. He dodged under another swing, grabbed the Lieutenant's arm and tackled him to the floor.

"Maybe you are." He said. "But if you're half as good as you think you are, we need you alive."

"Thanks for the pep talk." Said James as Austin helped him up. "And thanks for the dance, Loco."

"Loco?" Austin asked.

"I can think of worse names to call you." Said James.

"I guess there's no harm in it." Said Austin, friendlily.

As James went back to his own work, Austin noticed his omni tool bleeping again. That could only mean he'd received another message.

From: Helldiver Command

Major,

Cerberus has attacked Eden Prime and is now occupying the colony. Alliance forces are stretched too thin right now to attempt to liberate the colony, but we're doing what we can to covertly aid the local resistance.

In the process, we've learned that Cerberus has uncovered a major Prothean artifact. We don't know what it is, but it appears to be the reason for the attack on the colony. We need you to infiltrate the colony and recover the artefact.

"Eden Prime." Said Liara. "This is where it all began. Where the Prothean beacon gave you the vision that warned us about the Reapers."

As expected, when the Asari had learned about this, she'd practically begged Austin to take her with him. Austin had barely got the chance to speak before she'd thrown him onto the bed and made love to him.

If only she knew that he'd planned to take her anyway… Then she probably wouldn't' need to make so much effort.

Not that Austin minded Liara being like this however. He treasured love making with his wife just as much as she did.

"Eden Prime also marks Saren's first major attack with the Terror Geth and his army." Said EDI.

Austin had brought EDI along again because he felt she should also see how she performed planetside as well. Grissom academy had been in space, so she probably still needed to test a few things.

Coincidently enough, Edi had said the same thing when she'd asked to come as well.

"Yes. And now with Cerberus here, Eden Prime's colonists are under attack again." Said Liara.

"At least this time, you'll be able to help with whatever we find." Austin smiled.

"I'll do my best." Liara smiled back.

"Do you have any idea what Cerberus found?"

"The Helldivers didn't get any specifics about what Cerberus has uncovered. But whatever it is, it's better off with us than with those terrorists."

"I'm bringing you in as close to the dig site as I can. No way we'll avoid detection, but you should have a few minutes. Said Cortez.

"All right everyone. Get ready to move." Said Austin as everyone unsheathed their weapons.

"With luck, we can get to the dig site before Cerberus knows we're here." Said Liara.

The colony seemed very quiet, just like last time.

It felt very familiar to how it had five ears ago, and yet it felt different as well. Probably because Eden Prime wasn't in as much mess as it had been last time. The Terror Geth and his armies, along with the Thresher Maw husk had practically laid waste to it.

Cerberus wasn't quite as… destructive.

"Professor T'soni, have you ever encountered dinosaur fossils during your digs?" EDI asked as they saw a massive Prothean spire overhead.

"NP. Dinosaurs and other fossils would palaeontology. I'm an archaeologist. I study artefacts left by sapient races. The two fields are completely different, and… you were joking." Liara chuckled.

"No. Jokes have specific structures. That was "messing with you." Said EDI.

So far, there was no sign of Cerberus so Liar went to work on accessing the information about the artefact uncovered. What she saw took her completely by surprise.

"Goddess… that doesn't seem possible." It's not a Prothean artefact, it's… a Prothean." She said.

"You believe Cerberus has uncovered the corpse of a Prothean unmodified by Reaper technology?" EDI asked.

"Cerberus hasn't recovered corpses. This Prothean is still alive." Said Liara.

"You're right. That doesn't sound possible." Said Austin.

"You saw Prothean stasis chambers in the archives on Ilos. The only reason those failed was lack of power. This one on the other hand seems to have its own power supply which is still working. This Prothean has been in stasis for the past 50,000 years, waiting for us. Think of what we could learn." Said Liara, accessing as much data as she could about this Prothean that Cerberus had found.

"What can you tell me about the Protheans? The people, not the technology." Austin asked.

"Given your experience with the Prothean cipher, you probably know as much about them as I do. The Prothean empire spanned the known galaxy. They uplifted countless other species to help them join the galactic community." Said Liara.

"By galactic community," are you suggesting that Protheans had a structure similar to the modern Council?" EDI asked.

"Yes, exactly. Their cultural and artistic expression are actually quite close to those of the ancient Asari. And given their similar interest in helping other species, it's clear that they believed in inter-species cooperation." Said Liara.

"Sounds like he'd approve of us then." Said Austin telepathically.

"Save that for later tonight, my love." Liara replied back, smiling under her helmet.

"The way you describe them, they sound lot like the Asari. The only difference being your much prettier." Said Austin. Also sending a thought to Liara that he was winking at her under his helmet.

"Darling, please. Don't' embarrass me in front of EDI." Said Liara, nearly blushing. "Anyway, I'm certain I'm colouring their culture with my own perceptions. Whatever the Protheans were, finding one alive represents an incredible opportunity."

"Good thing we bought our Prothean expert." Said Austin.

"I hope I can help." Said Liara. "If this Prothean was sent into stasis, he could be the foremost scientist of his time."

The Asari examined the info a bit more before she found something that seemed to take the shine off the moment.

"Ah. It would seem there is a problem." She said. "The pod has an extensive safety system to prevent forced entry. Simply breaking open the pod will kill the inhabitant or it will engage a lockdown mode similar to our armour. We have to find the command signal that ends the stasis mode. We also need to figure out how to physically open the pod without doing damage. Cerberus are trying to do the same thing. They took over the labs nearby to research whatever was found at the dig site. That's likely our best bet."

A Cerberus shuttle suddenly zoomed over their heads.

"There they are!" said Liara.

"Liara, deploy a singularity!" Austin ordered, unsheathing his Revenant and going into cover. "EDI concentrate on the engineers!"

Both the two complied. Liara threw up a singularity, catching some of the Cerberus troops and Centurions in the process,, allowing her and Austin to gun them down while EDI focused her fire on the engineers before they could build any turrets. EDI was even able to use her new decoy ability, allowing a hologram of herself to be projected and draw most of Cerberus' fire while she delivered some surprise attacks.

A shot suddenly hit Austin in the helmet. A shot that usually came from…

"Watch it! Snipers!" he yelled, now spotting several Nemesis' hiding in some of the homes.

Liara was able to put one in stasis when it popped out to fire at them, allowing EDI to dire on it. The Asari then deployed another singularity which pulled the rest out of their hiding places.

"Fire in the hole!" Austin yelled, throwing a grenade.

"Wait! Don't throw it at…" but Liara spoke too late.

The grenade exploded as it hit the singularity, making the explosion even larger and sending everyone flying.

Austin gently picked himself up as his vision cleared.

"Huh. That's never happened before." He said, helping Liara up.

"Did try to warn you." Said the Asari.

Austin made sure EDI was okay before he then checked his grenades.

"Dammit, Griffin! Stop messing with my grenades!" he said, noticing that his had been modified.

With Cerberus dealt with, finding one of the labs was easy. Austin walked up to the console and accessed it. To his surprise, an image very similar to the visions he'd received from the Prothean beacon on this exact same planet.

The vision showed what looked like Ilos in its glory years. Most noticeable of all were the Protheans themselves.

Most of the Protheans were dressed in a red sort of armour which oddly enough looked very Samurai like. One however stood out form the rest. His armour was white and he even had a few cloak parts hanging around his legs which clearly gave the appearance of a lab coat. He also had a headdress of some kind.

The others were obviously soldier while this one was a scientist.

"I never thought our empire would fall." Said one of them.

"It won't, soldier. We will sleep here until the Reapers return to dark space. Then we will rebuild, and this time we will be prepared for their return." Said the white Prothean.

"For the empire." Said the red one.

"Get to your stasis pod." Said the scientist. "Vigil, broadcast the stasis readiness signal to all lifepods."

The green hologram of a Prothean the appeared speaking in the same voice that Vigil had before it had shut down. Hardly surprising that this was Vigil's true appearance since it had been a Prothean VI and it's distorted appearance when Austin had met it was a result of old age and critical power levels.

"And the refugees who have yet to reach the bunker?" it asked.

"Their sacrifice will be honoured in the coming empire." Said the Prothean.

There was a sudden explosion and what looked like several Collectors started running at them. Several of the Prothean soldiers drew their weapons. Even the scientist did the same.

"Well, I've got the signal." Said Austin.

"You understood that?" Liara asked.

"You didn't?"

"No. All I saw was static. Cerberus was trying to make sense of it… without success." Said Liara.

"Must be because of the Cypher I received on Feros." Said Austin. "Anyway, I saw the signal they used."

"Perfect. Then we just need to figure out how to physically open the pod." Said Liara.

That of course simply required finding the other lab, which was very easy since they had dealt with most of Cerberus and any others had died from the unexpected singularity explosion.

Once again, another vision flashed before Austin's eyes.

The Protheans were holding steady against the Collectors, but they were starting to take heavy casualties. The scientist was fighting with all his might with both biotics and his gun before another soldier was hit.

"Vigil, seal the bulkheads!" he yelled.

"Acknowledged." Said Vigil as the Prothean pulled a red soldier inside and the bulkheads sealed.

"Is everyone alright?" he asked.

"No significant injuries." One of the soldiers replied.

"How many have we lost?"

"Reaper forces have destroyed approximately 300,000 lifepods." Vigil replied.

The scientist walked up to a nearby pod and accessed it. It opened to show a dead Prothean.

"A third of our people." He sighed. "If only I'd had more time to work on these pods… make them stronger…"

"Alert, north-side bulkhead cannot be sealed. Hostiles detected." Said Vigil.

"All forces to the north. Buy me as much time as you can while I secure the other pods!" said the Prothean.

"We'll do our best, Professor." One of the soldiers nodded.

"You understood that one too?" Liara asked.

"Yes." Austin replied.

"Excellent, then we have everything we need to open the pod."

Liara worked on accessing the terminal, only to find something rather unexpected.

"Wait. I've had it wrong. The pod isn't here." She said.

"What do you mean?"

"When I read the report, I assumed the pod had been discovered here. But I was wrong, it's on Ilos." Liara explained.

"You're sure?" Austin asked.

"Absolutely."

"So Cerberus is on Ilos as well?"

"Fortunately no. They found out about the pod's location through some Prothean data found here. They've been unwilling to send troops to Ilos until they got past the pod's safety mechanisms. For now, the pod is safe there." Liara explained.

"Guess we know our next stop then."

Despite the war going on, it was still fairly easy to get to Ilos. Surprisingly the Geth corpses from their last visit five years ago were still here. Not to mention tire tracks form the Mako and Helldiver army…

It certainly brought back quite a few old memories.

"Didn't think I'd ever see this place again." Said Liara, looking out of the windows of the Hammer head.

Since the Mako had been a casualty of the SR1's destruction, the M-44 Hammerhead served as it's replacement. It would certainly allow them to find the Prothean easier than having to search on foot.

"Didn't you ever come back here?" Austin asked, gently piloting the vehicle through the archives.

"I couldn't after you died. I was too focused on retrieving your body and on my Helldiver training after that. At least you're with me again for this." Said Liara, her mood brightening slightly

"Wouldn't have it any other way, love." Austin smiled.

From the visions Austin had received and the intel Liara had got from the terminal on Eden Prime, it didn't' take too long to find the bunker that was supposed to contain the pod.

Disembarking, the group foud themselves in a room of some kind. There was a large platform in with a console and a chair attached. Some very old bits of debris were scattered about the place.

"Is it in here?" Austin asked.

"It's supposed to be, but I don't see anything pod like. Said Liara.

Everyone looked around, but still they saw nothing pod shaped. Will EDI and Liara continued looking, Austin took a closer look at the console. Strangely enough, it still looked as though ti could function, despite probably being over 50,000 years old.

Austin couldn't help but find the buttons a bit curious. He reached forward and pressed one.

"Don't touch anything!" Liara warned, but she'd said it too late.

There was a faint hum and the chair in the room slid back.

"Sorry." Austin apologised.

As Austin worked on examining the chair a bit, he failed to notice the holograms now being projected in the room.

"Shepard." Said EDI.

Everyone looked. The holograms were that of 3 Prothean scientists, one of which was the one Austin had seen in the visions. One of the other two suddenly walked right past Austin and sat in the chair as it then readjusted back into position. This was obviously a recording of some kind.

"Remarkable." Said Liara, almost in awe at the sight.

The Prothean in the visions meanwhile was stood on top of the structure addressing the one in the seat. It was clear compared to the others now that this one was obviously the head scientist.

He then gave an order to the one in the chair who obeyed by activated something. There was a bright flash and a massive blue star map was suddenly projected all over the room.

"Goddess! This is just like our galaxy map." Said Liara.

"Yeah, only way bigger." Said Austin.

Both he and Liara walked into the middle of the map and gazed in wonder at it as they found themselves essentially in the middle of it. It was an incredible sight.

The recording went on for a long while as the map cycled through every single star cluster while the 3 Protheans went about their science work before it finally ended. There was another bright flash, and all the holograms vanished. The only thing left was a small hologram of some kind of pod structure floating in front of the chair.

"Still doesn't' tell us where the pod is." Liara sighed.

Austin however wasn't so sure. That hologram of that pod…

A thought crossed the Helldiver's mind and he changed his visor's vision mode. Sure enough, it showed a massive mechanical structure right under the feet, inside of which was a life form.

"Yes it does. It's underneath us."

EDI then walked up to the panel and began accessing the controls again.

"EDI, what are you doing?" Austin asked cautiously.

"I think I can get the pod up." EDI replied.

A large part of the floor suddenly retracted and sure enough, the massive structure gently rose up. It was indeed a pod, but it was different to the ones Austin had seen in the vision. It was larger and looked a bit more experimental. As expected, a loud but gentle heartbeat could be heard from within.

"Well, here goes nothing." Said Austin, applying the signal and activating the pod.

"Are we sure about this though? I know it's a bit late to reconsider, but suppose he doesn't understand our language?" Liar asked concernedly.

"I will be able to communicate with him." Said EDI.

"What? How?" Liara asked.

"I was able to study that recording enough to hear their language. I may at least be able to speak basic to him." Said EDI.

The pod hissed and then very gently slid open.

A rather surprising sight greeted them.

The Prothean inside the pod was massive, in fact he was twice as tall as them. Very strange considering that the Collectors had all been human sized. He wore some kind of breathing mask over his nose and mouth and several tubes were connected not only to the mask, but also to sockets on his body.

"Goddess!" Liara gasped. "He's massive! Is he meant to be that tall?"

"No. He looked smaller in the visions." Said Austin.

The Protheans eyes then gently opened and blinked a few times as they readjusted to their environment. He then reached for the edges of the pod and gently pulled himself up a bit, the tubes on his mask dethatching and falling off as he did.

"Shepard?" EDI asked.

"Give him a minute. Let him adjust first." Said Austin.

The Prothean gently removed his mask and coughed slightly, his throat obviously a bit dry from the constant air.

Austin then nodded. EDI gently walked up to the Prothean and began speaking in his language. Since Austin had the cypher, he understood it as though it were plain English. Only Liara was left a bit confused. Despite being Austin's bond mate, the cypher didn't' seem to carry over to her for some reason.

"Eety quentom prtoom startoseyosm. Yatavestarter tetecravastent." Said EDI.

The Prothean didn't respond immediately and simply looked at EDI for a moment before then looking at Austin and Liara. He then gently pulled himself up even more until he was able to step out of the pod, the rest of tubes detaching. He took several deep breaths before then gently putting his foot on the ground. He seemed to lose his balance slightly and fell to his knees, causing everyone to back away slightly. Then he finally spoke, his voice echoing throughout the room and making Austin and Liara shudder slightly at hearing a Prothean speak.

"Mah voolek taavard! Var grog nor vylarr?!"

"What did he say?" Liara asked.

"He asked to know how many years it has been." EDI replied.

"Give him the truth." Said Austin. "Tell him it's been almost 50,000 years now."

EDI nodded and once again turned to the Prothean who was gently standing up and trying to keep his balance. Perhaps this new height was new even to him.

"Eeedah madmammy. Pyanoo mutoostavr poyvar itharstartarcraydah." Said EDI.

"Oohar inyordan idarmaryo gatgarrgasday?!" The Prothean replied back.

"He asked why have we woken him." Said EDI.

Austin thought for a moment. It would be better if the Prothean heard it form him, but he didn't know if it could understand him.

"Ask him if he can understand what we are saying." He said.

"Eetaryou sardoofar. Yeeso carlooneeon feedarmarl?" EDI asked.

The Prothean simply nodded.

"We face the same threat that your kind once did. Your race came the closest to defeating the Reapers. We hoped perhaps you might be able to help us." Said Austin.

The Prothean didn't respond for a moment and simply gazed down at Austin. He then gently reached up and touched Austin's helmet.

"Try to remember." Said Liara. "To him it's only felt like-"

Another vision once again flashed before Austin's eyes. The Prothean was once again speaking to Vigil.

"-a few minutes!"

"No, the bunker is falling. There is no other option." Said Vigil.

"There are pods online! Those people are still alive!" the Prothean objected.

"Their sacrifice will be honoured in the coming empire!" said Vigil, much to the Prothean's annoyance. "Preparing neutron bombardment. Get to your lifepod now."

The Prothean reluctantly did so and headed for his own pod. Just before he could reach it however, an explosion suddenly caused the bunker to shake and some debris collapsed on it.

"How many empty pods are left?" the Porthean asked, seeing that this pod was definitely unusable.

"Just one." Vigil replied.

The Prothean looked at a nearby door that Viggil was looking at. He knew immediately what the VI was suggesting, and he did not agree with it.

"No. It's not been tested. The risks are too great." He said.

"There are no more useable pods. They have either been destroyed, or been filled. This is your only option." Said Vigil.

"Very well. Seal this part of the base. I need time to activate the pod." Said the Prothean.

"Acknowledged."

The Prothean quickly made his way into the same room and worked on accessing the controls.

"Neutron bombardment underway." Said Vigil.

"Come on! Come on!" the Prothean muttered.

A circular part of the floor retracted and the pod gently rose up.

Wasting no time, the Prothean climbed in and sealed the pod just as debris started to fall all over the place as it shook. He took a deep breath as the pod's breather mask gently locked itself around his face, all the necessary tubes already connected.

"The bunker is secure, Professor Javik." Said Vigil.

"What is left of it. A few hundred people. How are we to rebuild an empire from that?" Javik sighed.

The pod slowly disappeared back into the floor in order to keep it absolutely safe. The inside of the pod went completely dark and the only light the Prothean could now see was the holo displays on the inside.

"Further adjustments may be necessary. The neutron purge compromised the facility." Said Vigil.

"Clarify."

"Sensors are damaged. Automated reactivation is not an option. You will remain in stasis until a new culture discovers this bunker. This may lead to a power shortage."

"Do not shut off more pods! I need the few that are left!" Javik shouted.

"Power needs will be triaged appropriately." Said Vigil. "You will be the voice of our people."

"I will be more than that."

Everything went dark…

Austin felt his vision return to normal. The Prothean, now known as Javik slumped to his knees. To Liara's surprise, he then spoke a language she could understand.

"How many others?" he asked.

"Just you. I'm sorry." she replied.

"Wait, you can understand him now?" Austin asked.

"Yes. Now that I have read your physiology, your nervous system. Enough to speak your language, or a language she can understand." Javik replied.

"So you were reading me while I was seeing…"

"Our last moments. Our failure." Javik sighed, slowly getting up, still trying to get used to his new height.

"Your people did everything they could. They never gave up, and we could use some of that commitment now." Said Liara.

"You are machines. Why would the Reapers attack you?" Javik asked.

"EDI is, but we're both organics." Said Austin. TO prove this, he and Liar aboth removed their helmets.

"Asari. Human." Said Javik observantly. "This cycle has mastered exo suits? Most fascinating."

"Will you join us?" Austin asked.

"We will see."

"A living Prothean?" Hackett asked in surprise.

"That's correct, Admiral." Austin nodded.

"I can only imagine the help he can no doubt give us. Just hope he's willing to cooperate." Said Hackett.

"I have faith he will." Said Austin confidently.

"Good. Cerberus slipped up and gave us a new weapon. Don't let it go to waste. Hackett out."

As Austin walked away from the vid com, he suddenly heard Liara's voice over the speakers.

"Austin, I need you down in the cargo hold. It's about our new guest."

Austin walked into the cargo bay. Several soldiers were surrounding Javik as he simply sat calmly on the floor, apparently meditating.

"What's the problem?" Austin asked.

"I've tried to make the room more accommodating, but they're not letting me talk to him." Liara complained.

"Apologies, Professor. Contact protocol with a new species, assume hostility. We had to dust off the regulations." Said one of the soldiers.

"But's he's not new. I've spent my life studying Protheans." Liara objected.

"At ease. I don't think our guest our guest will be a problem." Said Austin.

"But sir…"

"That's an order."

The troops reluctantly stood down and left.

"You should not be so harsh to your troops. It can lead to distrust." Said Javik.

"What do you mean?" I thought you were a scientist?" Austin asked.

"I am. But I had to train and fight alongside soldiers when the war came. It helped me see things in a new light." Said Javik, slowly standing up and reaching for Austin. "If I may…"

Austin slowly let Javik's hand touch him.

"Hmm, interesting. Your mind feels… familiar." Said the Prothean.

"I have something called the Cypher in my head. It lets me see things as you see them." Austin explained.

"Good to see that survived. It certainly explains how you understood my last memory so clearly." Said Javik

"I can use it for your beacons too."

"You found one?"

Javik once again touched Austin. A very familiar sight flashed before the Helldiver's eyes as he saw the Prothean vision he'd received over 5 years ago.

"You saw it all. Our destruction, our warnings. Why weren't they heeded?! Why didn't you prepare fro the Reapers?!" Javik nearly shouted.

"Some of us did. Though not everyone believed your warnings." Austin replied.

"Who did then?" Javik asked.

"Well for starters, we did. Then there's the race that made our armour, the Arkanes…"

"The Arkanes? I am not familiar with that name." said Javik.

"There a race that resemble insects in appearance. You don't know about them?"

Austin activated his omni tool and it projected a holo image of an Arkane.

"Ah yes. Now I recognize them. I'm surprised that they evolved so quickly though. I and other scientist always believed their evolution to our stage would take at least two cycles, not one." Said Javik. "So they made this technology? No wonder I did not sense any traces of my kind in it."

"They're the only race that haven't reverse engineered from your technology." Said Liara.

"Then why are they the only ones who believed us? Why did no one else listen?" Javik asked, repeating his earlier question.

"I did. But only just. We couldn't understand your signal at first. The Beacon nearly killed me." Said Austin.

"Of course. You minds are not like ours. I should have considered this when I had the beacons built." Javik sighed.

"It wasn't a complete failure though. We pieced together what we could and used it to stop a Reaper invasion 5 years ago, and another one 2 years ago." Said Austin.

"You delayed your extinction?" Javik asked, in surprise.

"Yes, and now we have your plans for the Crucible. We've started building it." Said Liara, walking up to the console and bringing up the Crucible's designs. As expected, Javik recognized it easily.

"I had almost forgotten we left plans for that in an archive." He said. "I'm afraid you will be disappointed though. Despite our best efforts, and my own, we never finished it. We ran out of time and there was a component missing."

"The plans mention something called the Catalyst. Do you know what it is?" Austin asked.

"No. I never found out. I heard rumours that we did eventually, but I never got told. The Reapers struck hard before I could learn anything. I'm sorry." Said Javik regrettably. "But I do have extensive knowledge on the Crucible. I was in charge of its' construction after all."

"What about this? We found it near your pod. I assume it belongs to you?" Liara asked, indicated a strange small object that was hovering on a nearby desk.

"A memory shard."

"Could it help us at all?" Liara asked.

"It contained all my knowledge on the Crucible. You may use it if you think it can help in your own construction." Said Javik.

"Thank you. It could help us a lot." Said Liara gratefully.

"As will I, if you will allow it. I may be a scientist, but I am trained to fight as well." Said Javik. "You have seen me in action, have you not, human?"

"It's Major, and yes, I have. Your skills would come in handy." Said Austin.

"I would not do you much good in overseeing your Crucible being built. Without knowledge of the Catalyst, or anything you do not already know, there is little I could do out there." Said Javik. "With your permission, I will help you fight. Among my people, there were… avatars of many traits: bravery, strength, cunning. A single exemplar for each."

"Which are you?" Austin asked.

"The embodiment of willpower. Many of my kind agreed that I was one of the smartest they had. It is why I became the lead scientist during the war, why I oversaw the construction of the Crucible, and why I was chosen to be the voice of my people. In doing so however, I became another at the same time. Now I am also the embodiment of vengeance. I am the anger of a dead people, demanding blood be spilled for the blood we lost." Said Javik. "Those who share my purpose become allies. And the last thing the Reapers hear before they die, will be the last voice of the Protheans sending them to their grave!"

"If you don't mind, I have a few more question I would like to ask." Said Liara.

"Here it comes." Austin sighed, smiling at the same time.

"I've written over a dozen studies on your species. I've published in several journals…" said Liara. She stopped however when she saw the Javik was chuckling at this. "What's so funny?"

"Forgive me. It simply fills me with pride to see another scientist like yourself be so fascinated with their work. You remind me of a student I once had." Javik smiled. But at the same time, there was a hint of regret at him saying this.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring back memories…" Liara apologised.

"It is alright. What do wish to know?" Javik asked, his mood brightening again.

"My wife here would never forgive me if I didn't ask…" said Austin.

"Your wife?" Javik interrupted, not quite understanding the meaning of the word.

"Mate? Loved one?" Austin asked, trying to see if the Prothean would recognise those terms instead.

"I see. I thought I sensed an alien presence in your mind. You are mated with this Asari." Said Javik, almost with fascination.

Liara though didn't like that Javik wasn't using her real name though.

"I have a name. It's Liara." She said.

"Very well, Liara. I will call you that from now on." Said Javik respectfully, much to Liara's surprise and delight.

"I'm surprised at how well-mannered you are. I would've thought you'd be more suspicious of another species." She said.

"If I were a soldier, then yes. But I am not. I studied much in my time, including other species. I always sought knowledge. Even now, my mind burns with questions about your own races. Much has changed while I was asleep. Anyway, you were saying?" said Javik.

"Liara wouldn't forgive me if I didn't' ask you. What was Prothean civilization like?" said Austin.

"Yes. I've always wondered. What sort of government did you have and can you tell me a bit your religious beliefs or perhaps…" said Liara, quite fast.

"ONE AT A TIME!" Javik yelled, startling the both of them.

"Forgive me, I didn't' mean to…" Liara apologised

"No. Forgive me. I should not have shouted like that." Said Javik, almost painfully for some odd reason. "I was afraid of this."

"What do you mean?"

"My whole life I have had a small problem with my emotions. I believe you would call it, Temper." Javik explained.

"I see." Austin nodded understandingly.

"Now it is even harder to control. I fear the pod may have done something to it."

"It did something to your height as well, didn't it?" Austin asked. "Protheans aren't meant to be as tall as you, are they?"

"No. We were always your size."

"How could the pod do this to you, though?" Austin asked, somewhat confused.

"You saw my memories, did you not? The one I placed myself in was just a prototype, an experiment. Some of the technology in it was reverse engineered from a Reaper we managed to kill. But we never got round to testing it." Javik explained. "My extended time in it obviously had some side effects."

"I do not mean to put pressure on you. It's just that, studying your history has been a lifelong passion of mine." Said Liara.

"I cannot tell you much. I was born only a few years before the Reapers arrived. I doubt I saw much before all the death and destruction." Said Javik.

"You must know something though, surely?" Austin Asked.

"We were the dominant race of our cycle. We practically ruled the galaxy." Said Javik.

"My studies indicated you were the only race engaged in space travel at the time. I always found that curious." Said Liara, with fascination.

"So did I, admittedly. It was that same thing that led to my personal fascination of observing and studying other species." Javik smiled proudly.

"We've uncovered quite a few Prothean ruins. Were you observing our ancestors?" Austin asked.

"Before the war, we cultivated species who showed potential. I hoped to one day see what you would accomplish. But when the war came, we ceased all study. We hoped they would see you as too primitive to harvest." Said Javik.

"Well thank you, I think." Said Austin. He then decided to ask another question. "Why do you think your own people lost the war?"

"What had been our strength, our empire, became a liability. All races conformed to one doctrine, one strategy. The Reapers exploited this. Once they found our weaknesses, we could not adapt. The subservient races became divided and confused. Then it was only a matter of time." Said Javik.

"I'm happy to say our cycle is different. Most races cooperate, but they still remain unique." Said Liara.

"Then that may give you hope." Said Javik.

"Thank you for talking with us. I never actually imagined meeting a Prothean." Said Austin gratefully.

"This has been enlightening for me also. It fascinates me to see to the evolution that your cycle has reached. The Humans, the Asari, the Turians."

"There's also the Salarians." Said Liara.

"The lizard people?" Javik asked in surprise.

"I believe they're amphibian." Said Liara.

"They used to eat flies."

Javik still needed time to adjust after the freezing and he had also requested that he be given some time to adjust to his new height and get used to controlling his temper better. Fully understanding, Austin and Liara left the cargo bay and headed up to their quarters.

"A real live Prothean. It almost feels like a dream." Said Liara.

"Certainly is a once in a lifetime opportunity." Said Austin.

"I'm surprised also that he is so willing to cooperate with us. I had feared he might find my fascination with him… a little frightening." Said Liara.

"He's scientist like you who studied other species in the same way. He's probably just as fascinated about you and learning more." Said Austin.

"I hope not though. Because I only want one person to be fascinated with me, and that's you, my love." Liara smiled, kissing Austin on the cheek.

"Oh I'm definitely fascinated by you, darling. Would you like to find out just how much?" Austin asked suggestively, putting his arms around Liara's waist and hugging her from behind as he planted gentle kisses on her neck.

"I love you." Liara moaned in pleasure.

"I love you too." Said Austin. "And consider this my way of saying thank you for your… little persuasion this morning."

The two slowly mad their way towards the bed, clothes gently falling to the floor. Liara had a feeling that she was definitely going to sleep tonight after her husband was done… repaying her.

Think we've delayed the summit long enough now.

Next one will be that, and S'urkesh.

See you soon. Do let me know what you think of this one. And Javik fans, please don't be too harsh towards the changes.
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Mass Effect: The Helldiver Saga, The Last Cycle