Spectre 117 (Halo & Mass Effect Story)

Chapter 18: Hacker Attack

(I do not own Halo or Mass Effect)

09:03 Hours, March 1st, 2560
ExoGeni: Feros Headquarters
Surface of Feros
Thesseus System, Attican Beta Cluster

"Clear." Garrus reported after sniping the two Geth troopers.

They were kneeling before what looked like a glowing orb of light before they each got a shot through the chest.

The Turian hopped down from the far end of the ledge he was standing on, the rest of the squad behind him.

The SPARTAN-II walked up to the orb. It shone a white light so brilliant that his visor had to polarize to compensate. It was framed inside four claws, faintly resembling a cage.

"Tali. You're the Geth expert. What are we looking at?" Chief asked.

"I'm not sure." The Quarian answered. "The orb seems to be a lantern of some sort, but I don't know what its purpose is."

"The two Geth I just shot were kneeling in front of it. Almost looked like they were praying." Garrus said. "In fact... the heavenly glow of that orb does make those claws look kind of like an... altar?"

"They were praying?" Joe asked.

"The Geth blur the lines between organic and synthetic life." Tali replied with a shrug. "It's not impossible that they would seek understanding from a higher power."

"Alien religious fundamentalists trying to wipe out Humanity..." Cortana commented. "Once again; the more things change, the more they stay the same."

"What are these things?" Echo asked as he gestured to the upper reaches of the room.

Huge machines, Geth in design, seemed to burst from the walls as cables snaked out from them around the floor.

"The claws of a Geth ship." Tali answered. "The Geth use these claws to anchor their ships to the sides of buildings."

"Look at the cables." Fives pointed out. "Now we know for sure that the ship is powering the kinetic barriers."

"Any ideas on how we can take it out?" Chief asked the Quarian.

"Well... We could check the other claws for weaknesses." Tali suggested. "If one claw fails, the others might not be able to support the ship's weight and it'll fall and crash. But I don't know if we can find any weaknesses. The Geth are very thorough."

"Good news Chief. I think I've got an idea." Cortana said in a chipper tone.

She highlighted a nearby computer terminal on the Master Chief's HUD. The computer's well-polished dark gray metal covering and bulbous shape betrayed it as a Geth terminal.

The Geth probably erected this terminal and most likely several others like it around the building to set up an on-station computer network.

"Alright." Chief said over TEAMCOM. He pointed towards a doorway leading down a hall. "Head down that corridor and make sure the way's clear. I wanna take a look at this Geth terminal."

They all nod at him, as he begins walking towards the computer. But in the reality of things, it's just for Cortana to hack into the claws of the Geth ship.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Tali asked, as she stayed behind a bit.

"I've got this." Chief said as he stopped in front of the terminal and activated his Omni-Tool, tapping random buttons.