Alex, now under heavy fire, uses the last second of his enhanced state to dash for cover. But before he can reach the nearest shelter—a pair of large stones, remnants of a crumbling Prothean wall—the buff fades, and the storm of Geth fire catches up with him.
STR and AGI normalized
You have received 51 damage (blocked by shields)
You have received 46 damage (blocked by shields)
…
You have received 45 damage (blocked by shields)
Shields broken
You have received 44 damage
You have received 34 damage
His shields absorb the brunt of the damage, but some shots tear through and hit him, dealing significant damage. Alex throws himself behind the broken wall and immediately uses a dose of [Medigel], breathing heavy from the strain, his heart beating fast.
You have recovered 50 HP
You have recovered 50 HP
You have recovered 50 HP
You have recovered 50 HP
The Geth continue firing relentlessly at the stone barrier, which miraculously holds. Still, cracks are spreading, chunks of it are breaking off under the force of concentrated fire.
Alex activates En, scanning the area. He quickly spots two Geth Troopers flanking him from the side.
Anticipating their path, Alex grips his [Executioner’s Blade R2] and prepares to intercept them as soon as they appear behind his cover. As the troopers round the corner, he stops his En and uses Ko, empowering his weapon. Then, in one clean horizontal sweep, he executes a Thunder Sword directly onto them.
You have dealt 154 + 66 = 220 damage to Geth Trooper
You have destroyed Geth Trooper
You have dealt 111 + 43 = 154 damage to Geth Trooper
One Trooper is cleaved in half, while the other stumbles back, severely damaged. Alex immediately follows up with a tight, precise slash.
You have dealt 71 damage to Geth Trooper
You have destroyed Geth Trooper
Fuck this—my sword's already in bad shape. Striking these damn Geth, especially those Armatures, is ruining it. And the blade's special effect is gone now. This world is really the worst for me.
[Executioner’s Blade R2]
Durability: 61/120 (Can’t be destroyed)
Alex notices the gunfire has stopped. He steps out from cover and sees Shepard and the others finishing off the last of the Geth. The remaining enemies had thrown themselves at him, leaving themselves exposed—and the crew had taken full advantage.
Alex jogs over to regroup. The entire squad stares at him, stunned.
“What was that, Kerber?! You killed those Armatures in seconds! You moved so fast, I could barely keep up,” Shepard yells.
“New trick. Don’t expect me to do it more than a few times, though,” Alex says, brushing himself off.
Not thinking too deeply about Alex’s actions, Shepard orders, “Let’s go ahead! That was their main force, I hope. We’re aiming for those ruins in the distance. There’s nothing else.”
They advance through the dense, wild vegetation—gnarled vines, brittle grasses, and dry brush covering the path. Despite the greenery, the dominant hue of Ilos is not green but a corroded, reddish-brown, like dried blood and rust—a reflection of the Protheans’ fate.
Scattered Geth resistance is swiftly eliminated by Tali and Liara, who expertly combine tech and biotics. Tali’s Overload strips the Geth of their shields, and Liara’s powerful Warp finishes the job in a single, devastating attack.
As they pass twisted, grotesque statues—long-limbed, alien figures with horrifying faces—Alex takes a moment to stare at them.
These are the Inusannon… A race older than the Protheans. Creepy as hell. They look like those damn Banshees from Mass Effect 3. This is really creepy! No life, nothing but this copper-colored hellish plant-life.
Soon, they reach a sealed door with an old console beside it. Somehow, it still has power.
To their surprise, activating it causes the floor beneath them to shift. The entire section begins to descend—an ancient elevator revealing itself, sinking deeper into the complex.
“This place still has power. There must be a self-sustaining generator somewhere—this is incredible!” Tali exclaims.
“The Protheans might have left behind clues that can help us! This must be the command center for the entire complex. Saren’s troops must have sealed the doors from here after he went inside. We will have to figure out how to disengage the security lockdown if we ever want to get inside that bunker,” Liara explains.
As the elevator reaches the bottom, they step out into a massive underground facility. Though buried deep below the surface, the area is just as overgrown as the surface—thick vines and copper-tinged moss coating the walls like rot.
“This is it… There must be Geth guarding the complex,” Alex mutters.
“Kerber! You really outdid yourself earlier, but be careful! Don’t die senselessly—I need you to kick Saren’s ass later on!” Shepard orders him, staring at him sternly.
They push forward into a wide hall—and just as Alex feared, the Geth are waiting.
A huge group has set up a position within the hall. Every known Geth variant is present… and towering in the center is a Geth Prime—the largest and deadliest Geth infantry unit. Covered in thick armor, armed with a pulse rifle, and equipped with advanced shields and technology, enabling it to use various tech abilities. It looks extremely intimidating.
“Kaidan, Liara! Help me take down the big one! Stay back once I’ve dealt with its shields—it’s time for your biotics!” Alex shouts, sprinting forward.
He slides behind a fallen statue for cover. As before, the Geth immediately lock onto him—focusing fire his way, however, this time they do so without completely ignoring the rest of the team.
These fuckers… always gunning for me. Fuck you, Saren!
Peeking out briefly, Alex spots the towering Geth Prime in front of him.
A split second later, he’s forced to duck as a hail of shots are aimed at him, grazing his shields.
You have received 21 damage (blocked by shields)
You have received 16 damage (blocked by shields)
Seeing no other option to progress, without prolonged fights and the heavy use of MP, Alex activates Release Rage once again.
Release Rage activated
You have lost 100 HP
STR and AGI + 20 for 10 seconds
As the effect kicks in, Alex bursts from behind cover, sprinting directly toward the Geth Prime.
I can’t risk breaking my damn sword. Even if it can’t be destroyed, it can still become useless. I need to be smart. At close to mid-range, my flying sword doesn’t lose damage… I can preserve durability that way! This attack is probably not as easy to crit with, but I have no choice.
From up close, he releases a Flying Thundara Sword aimed straight at the Geth Prime.
You have dealt 261 + 111 = 372 damage to Geth Prime
You have stunned Geth Prime
Using the remainder of his enhanced speed, Alex dashes to a different statue and dives behind it for cover. From the corner of his eye, he sees Liara and Kaidan supporting him—hitting the Prime with powerful biotics.
Right before his Release Rage ends, he winds up another Flying Thundara Sword, sending it straight at the stunned target.
You have dealt 262 + 109 = 371 damage to Geth Prime
You have destroyed Geth Prime
With the Prime destroyed, Alex uses the last second of his boost to retreat toward the crew, leaping behind a large stone pillar as a hail of fire chases him.
STR and AGI normalized
Damn, this is so fucking stupid! Why do they always go after me?! I'm running and jumping around like some fucking monkey.
Feeling his Aura and worse, his MP depleting, Alex decides to leave the remaining fight to the others. He switches to his [Brawler-Pistol] and [Enchanted Runeblade].
I have an idea.
He briefly peeks out from cover, firing off a few inaccurate shots—just enough to draw attention. Predictably, several Geth immediately turn toward him and open fire.
Perfect.
He ducks again, then repeats the tactic—baiting enemy fire with each exposure. The Geth continue prioritizing him, making it easy for the crew to dispatch them without much resistance.
Finally, Alex hears the last Geth collapse.
To his surprise, a purple chest appears where the Geth Prime collapsed. A grin spreads across his face as he walks over and picks it up.
You received Chest (Purple)
The squad moves on. Up ahead, a worn stone ramp leads up to a security room. Despite the overgrowth, the control panels still glow faintly with power.
Shepard grits her teeth. “Damn, Saren already has a head start! Tali, I need some help.”
Working together, they bypass the lock and get the gate open. Just as they're about to leave, a sudden light flashes—and an orange hologram appears, shaped like an ancient VI.
“Hold on!” Shepard says, raising her hand.
The group pauses to listen. Alex doesn’t understand a word of it—but from his game knowledge, he knows exactly what the message is:
“--too late. xxxxx unable to… xxxxxx … invading fleets… xxxx no escape… xxxxx….”
“I can’t understand it!” Liara admits, looking frustrated.
“Just gibberish,” Ashley mutters.
“Certainly doesn’t sound Krogan to me,” Wrex adds with a grin.
“I can understand it. It’s a warning. The message is all broken up, but I recognize some of the words. It’s a warning against the Reaper invasion,” Shepard explains.
Liara nods, seemingly understanding. “Of course! Between the beacons and the Cipher, an understanding of the Prothean language would have been transferred into your mind.”
The hologram plays more audio, but it’s completely broken. To Alex, it’s nothing but static.
“Can you understand it?” Liara asks Shepard.
Shepard shakes her head. “It said something about the Conduit, but it’s too degraded to help. We should go.”
The team rushes back. With no Geth in their path, they make it to the Mako in under ten minutes.
Once inside, Shepard wastes no time, immediately speeding up and driving through the now-open gate.
Liara watches the outside through the monitor, completely overwhelmed. “I have spent my life studying the Prothens, but I never dreamed I would discover anything like this! This bunker might have been the last refuge of their entire species. Just imagine what mysteries it might hold. Imagine what secrets it might reveal!”
Garrus narrows his eyes. “Hey! Try to remember why we’re here. Saren, the Conduit, the fate of the entire known galaxy?”
“I am sorry… I was swept up in the moment. I am all tense after what happened earlier, and I’m still feeling euphoric. I just hope we have the opportunity to study this place in detail after this is done,” Liara says quietly, sneaking a glance at Alex.
What the…?
“What happened earlier, huh?! You?! Damn Asari Prat’ya,” Tali snaps, glaring at both Liara and Alex.
Not wanting to deal with this issue now, he chooses to ignore it.
Better change the subject…
“These pods lining the walls look suspicious… think there could be Protheans inside?”
“We can check later,” Shepard cuts in, “but we don’t have time right now.”
“They look like stasis pods,” Liara explains. “The Protheans probably tried to keep themselves alive through cryogenic freezing. Something must have gone wrong. Thus bunker became their tomb. The pods are dead, as well as anyone inside.”
Might still be worth collecting a few corpses… maybe for genetic research? Well, whatever.
The Mako drives deeper and lower into the bunker. Hundreds—maybe thousands—of pods line the walls, silent and cold, now merely acting as coffins.
Finally, the Mako stops before a glowing yellow energy barrier.
It’s time to end this! We are so close.