Post by Duncan Ryder on Aug 29, 2021 18:48:00 GMT -5
Even if Devil May Cry hadn't been just around the corner and with it Duncan's first defence of his hard won Power Championship, this was going to prove to be a busy week for Level Up's own Commander Shepard. He had flown back in to Reno from Chicago earlier in the week so that he could pick up the van that made for his four wheeled home and move it four hundred and fifty miles to Las Vegas so that it would be waiting for him when the show was done.
The van looked like a piece of crap, it had done ever since Duncan bought it back in February. It wasn't a colour so much as it was just rusted all over, it creaked and there was a musty smell to it that wouldn't disperse no matter how much Duncan tried to air it out. Despite all that though, in the six months Duncan had owned it it had never let him down once, even going so far as to make the three day trip from Indianapolis to the Sonoran Desert for Wrestlestock without so much as a misfire. However, around five hours into the seven hour journey down Route 95 the van started to make a disconcerting rattling noise. There was nothing to do about it other than press on and hope and Duncan was counting his blessings when he arrived safely in Las Vegas two hours later. It couldn't simply be ignored however and having checked in at the trailer park that would be his home for the next few days Duncan set to finding a mechanic that could look into it for him.
That was just the start though, because as he scrolled through pages of Yelp reviews more things occurred to him that he had to get done before flying out to Atlanta on Sunday. Important things, so Duncan did what any sensible person with a bunch of important things and habit of forgetfulness would do. He made a list.
Each of these things would wait for tomorrow though. Seven hours on the road in the Nevada heat was exhausting so for today, Duncan slept.
Excelsis Station was a top of the line facility. It was situated on Paestrom, a world both remote yet comfortably situated inside Alliance space. After Commander Shepard had secured the Reaper artefact from the ruins of Archimedis II this was where had brought it, somewhere safe, somewhere secure, somewhere out of the reach of Cerberus or any number of Terminus System mercenary groups.
That had been almost two months ago. Life and responsibility had taken Shepard away and besides, there wasn't much he could do to help in a scientific research station.
Now he was back though. Alliance brass needed someone to check on the progress being made at Excelsis. Shepard wasn't a scientist, wasn't a researcher, wasn't an analyst or a bureaucrat but when it came to the Reapers no-one knew or understood better than him.
With the Normandy settled in low orbit above Paestrom, Shepard mounted aboard the Kodiak shuttle and descended to the planet's surface. It brought him down to a landing pad set among a red sand desert. As soon as the shuttle's side door rose up Shepard saw a woman in a white lab coat, flanked by two Alliance soldiers in red camouflage body armour coming towards him. Shepard stepped out onto the pad and walked to meet his welcoming committee.
“Doctor Callahan,” he said, extending a hand in greeting.
“Commander Shepard,” the doctor replied, meeting his hand with a firm grasp. Doctor Callahan was the lead scientist at Excelsis Station. The two of them had met on Shepard's original visit. The commander had been swiftly impressed by her keen mind and greatly appreciated the seriousness with which she treated his arrival and the security of the unorthodox cargo he had brought with him. The two of them turned and fell into step side by side, walking back towards the station proper. “I'm relieved to see you've had a safe journey.”
“Did you expect otherwise?”
“No, it's just,” she hesitated, “Our long range comms have picked up a number of unusual signals from neighbouring systems. They're heavily encrypted and we don't have the kind of specialist personnel or equipment we'd need to crack them. We've contacted Alliance Command to look into it. When I first got the message that you were returning I thought it was to investigate.”
Shepard shook his head, “This is the first I'm hearing of it. I was only sent to check in on your progress with the artefact.”
“Well, hopefully the lack of a response is the Alliance's way of telling us not to worry but still, it's had us on edge.”
“Send your data to the Normandy. I'll have EDI take a look at it.”
“That would be greatly appreciated commander, thank you.”
Shepard, Callahan and their Navy escort re-entered the station. It looked like most Alliance research facilities. Smooth dark grey floors and sterile spotless white walls. The place wasn't on fire after holding the artefact for two months which already made them more successful than Archimedes II had been. Dr. Callahan led Shepard through the winding hallways, walking purposefully always just one step ahead of him. She led him to an elevator which took the four of them down, underground.
“So,” said Shepard as the elevator began it's slow descent, “what kind of progress have you made so far?”
Callahan looked at him, “It'll be easier to explain once we're at the containment lab.”
“Right, sure,” said Shepard, “sorry. I have trouble with long silences on elevator rides.”
“I see,” replied Dr. Callahan, clearly unsure what else she was supposed to say to that.
The elevator took them eight floors down. When the doors opened again they revealed the entrance to the central lab directly ahead. Callahan stepped out first, Shepard following close behind.
The lab was vast and octagonal. All the equipment was arranged around the edges of the room with a second circle of consoles halfway between the walls and the room's central point. All of it was set around a broad central pillar, though it was far more than a means of supporting the roof. Dr. Callahan gestured to one of the many assistant arranged around the laboratory and with a few wipes of his fingers four equal panels from the central pillar separated from each other and lowered down on mechanical arms. In the space that they had uncovered was a swirling blue containment field and inside that the flawless black sphere of the reaper artefact. Shepard stared at it, remembering the horror that had been Archimedes II and the ordeal he had gone through to ensure that thing was safe, and where it wouldn't be able to hurt anyone.
“Have any of your staff showed any signs of indoctrination?” Shepard asked.
“None. We are taking the threat this artefact presents extremely seriously. We have multiple containment fields acting simultaneously with a robust system of redundancies and back-ups.”
“Good,” Shepard nodded, “that's good. So what have you found out about it?”
“Progress has been difficult. The artefact stays inert for long periods, days, even weeks at a time. It's as if it knows it can not reach us so does not expend its energy or knows that we are trying to study it and so guards its secrets jealously. That said we have been able to make some headway inspiring activity through different stimulus and we believe this is not an ordinary reaper artefact like most you have spoken of in your reports commander. We believe this is something else. Something that's purpose is more specialised.”
“How so?”
“Here,” said Callahan, raising her omni-tool and pressing a few buttons which brought up a holographic display from a projector at the base of the central pillar, “Allow me to explain...”
“It's only got one rattle?” asked the mechanic with a sly grin. He was older than Duncan, thick white streaks running through a beard that touched his chest. He wore oil streaked blue overalls but the top half had been shrugged off and hung around his waist revealing an equally oily white t-shirt that wasn't quite big enough to over the man's gut. “Hell this thing looks like it'll shake itself to pieces if you go over thirty.”
“I know how it looks,” replied Duncan, “but it's got good bones and I'd like to keep it running a little longer if I can. You think you can help?”
The mechanic nodded, “I'm sure we can figure it out. Leave it with me for the day and I'll call you, let you know what I find.”
“Sounds good to me. I'll speak to you later,” said Duncan and turned to leave but the mechanic stopped him.
“Wait a second. Do I know you from somewhere?”
Duncan turned back and gave a slight shrug, “I couldn't say. Do you?”
The mechanic looked at him intently, “hard to say. There's just something real familiar about you. You on TV or something?”
“Sometimes.”
“You an actor?”
“Wrestler.”
The mechanic snapped his fingers, “that's it. You're one of them Uprising boys from up in Reno right? My kid watches that show all the time.”
Duncan shook his head, “no actually I'm in town with the company called Level Up. We've been touring out this way for a few weeks.”
“Right, right. Yeah I think I remember him saying about that. I struggle to keep up sometimes. What's your name? I'm sure he'll get a real kick out of hearing I helped you out today.”
“Duncan Shepard.”
“Duncan Shepard. Alright. You any good?”
“I like to think so.”
“You don't sound too sure about that.”
“Well, I am Level Up's reigning Power Champion.”
“Until Devil May Cry!” came a new voice. It sounded distant but was still loud enough to be heard over the din of power tools and engine noise.
Duncan's head snapped around trying to find the source, “What the fuck?” he muttered.
“You heard that too?” the mechanic added looking around confused.
“Yeah.”
“Good. Thought I was going crazy there. What's a devil may what now anyway?”
“It's the name of the show we're in town for. I'm defending my title against a guy called Don Tirri. For weeks now it's felt like any time I've said anything about being the champion he's popped up out of nowhere to tell me it'll only be until that show. I mean, I get it and all, but at the same time it's kind of annoying. It's like having tinnitus except instead of the usual ringing noise it tells you it's going to kick your ass.”
“What? You think he's here?” asked the mechanic.
“No, worse, I think he's inspired an army of copycat fans. They could be anywhere now, everywhere even,” said Duncan, looking around paranoid.
“I see. Well uh, as I said, leave this with me I'll call you before the end of the day.”
“Yeah,” said Duncan without looking at him, he was too busy looking intently at every other person in the garage one at a time as if he could figure out who the Tirri fan was just by sight. He kept doing this, unsuccessfully, until he had backed out of the door.
Walking towards the nearby bus stop Duncan took his list out of his back pocket. He crossed out the first item but while doing so recalled a promise he had made Don Tirri around two weeks earlier.
“You see,” began Dr. Callahan, gesturing to the holographic display, “when it's been active we've been able to record a distinct energy signature coming from the artefact. A different signature then has previously been recorded prior to reports of indoctrination. We believe it's a transmission of some kind.”
“You think it's trying to contact the Reapers? Like a distress signal?” asked Shepard.
“Unfortunately that is an option we've not yet been able to entirely rule out but it's not our primary hypothesis at this time. Look,” Callahan pressed some more buttons on her Omni tool and waved her hand, bringing up new data on the display. “We've attempted to trace the outbound signal. A typical distress call would go out on a wide band, attempting to reach anyone it can. This is going out on a narrow band. It's a targetted transmission.”
“So it knows where the Reapers are.”
“Also a possibility, but we have traced the signal to two precise end locations. Both of them are inside Council space. Inhabited worlds no less. Worlds that are still in contact with the galaxy at large. If the Reapers were there we'd have heard about it. Also,” Callahan changed the data display again, “the same signal is coming back to us from those locations. If it were a distress signal, why would it be sent back to the source?”
“So what're you thinking doctor?”
“It's hard to say for sure. We're waiting on the arrival of personnel and equipment more specialised for analysing this kind of communication but if I were to give you my best hypothesis based on the data we have I believe it is some kind of homing beacon.”
“A homing beacon? To what end?”
“Unknown, but it seems that this artefact, along with whatever is at the other two locations are intent on knowing where each other is at all times.”
Shepard made to respond but was interrupted by a communication coming in from the Normandy.
“Commander,” said the equally robotic and feminine voice of the ships on board A.I. EDI, “we have a situation.”
“What kind of situation?”
“There is an incoming fleet headed our way from the mass translation point. It is the Blue Suns. We must assume hostility.”
It didn't exactly go with the tough guy persona most people associated with professional wrestlers but there was no denying that Duncan loved a good Whole Food Market. Subsisting the last few days on backstage catering, airline meals and fast food stops on the side of the highway had left him feeling lethargic and sluggish, a state of being that was unacceptable given the level of violent athletic competition he was going to be partaking in in a few days time. He had to be at his peak, both mentally and physically and for Duncan that began with nutrition. Sure he was conflicted since the company's purchase by Amazon but in the unsurprising absence of a convenient farmers market this was far and away the best option.
He had been looking around for about twenty minutes. His basket was stocked up with fresh vegetables that were piled up on top of an official black Magdalena Lockheart tote bag.
He was moving out of the fruit and veg section at the front of the store and into the aisles when he heard:
“Ho-lee shit.”
Duncan didn't really register the expletive at first. He heard it, sure, but there was no reason for him to believe that it was in any way relevant to him. As he turned around from taking a carton of long life almond milk of the shelf though he almost walked right into an excitable looking young man who had evidently been stood a little bit too close behind him.
“Whoa,” said Duncan as he flinched away from the unexpected obstacle, colliding with the shelf hard enough to dislodge a block of organic butter that fell to the ground with a muted thud. The young man, Duncan would have guessed was in his late teens or early twenties, was completely unperturbed by Duncan's startled reaction and continued looking up at him with expectant eyes.
“You're Duncan Shepard right?”
Only at this point did Duncan realise that the young man was wearing a t-shirt with his name and face on it. Suddenly everything made sense.
“Yeah,” said Duncan, straightening himself up, “cool shirt.”
“I know right, what're the chances. It's like fate or something.”
“I guess it is,” Duncan replied, feeling like stating it was nothing more than an unlikely coincidence may upset the moment.
“It's like, I knew you were coming to town and stuff, because you're at Devil May Cry right? At the MGM. But I never would have thought I'd just run into you in the supermarket. This is insane.”
“You know your stuff.”
“Says it all on my ticket bro. Imma be there, row R, seat 24.”
“I'll watch out for you.”
There was a pause that stretched out a little too long, venturing into uncomfortable silence territory. It was clear the young man had no idea what to say but didn't want to let the chance run in with one of his heroes end.
“So uh, what's your name?” said Duncan.
“Ethan.”
“Good to meet you Ethan. Do you wanna get a picture?”
“Really? Yeah!” Ethan pulled a phone out of his pocket so quickly he almost dropped it and he laughed awkwardly as he got the device securely back into his grip and under control. He took a few steps to position himself next to Shepard, then reached up with one hand to get his arm across the shoulders of the taller man while using the other to take a selfie. “This is going to be my profile picture on everything, thank you.”
“Any time.”
Ethan took a step away, looking down at the picture on his phone with undisguised glee. He took a couple of steps like he was going to allow the moment to end and walk away but he stopped and turned back. “Do you think you're gonna win? Are you gonna beat Don Tirri?”
“No!”
It wasn't Duncan who replied and once again the Commander was stunned and confused. The two of them were the only people in the aisle. No-one else was in their eyeline but the voice had been clear. Duncan thought that perhaps it had been a coincidence and was going to shake it off when he heard:
“Don Tirri! Power champ at D.M.C, whoo!”
“Who said that?” asked Ethan.
Duncan was slowly shaking his head, “I have no idea.”
“I'm gonna go find them and shut them up,” Ethan said, his expression changing from childlike joy to grim resolution.
“No, it's fine don't-” Duncan was saying but Ethan had already run off and wasn't listening. Duncan stood rooted to the floor for several seconds as he weighed the moral quandary he found himself in. He had no responsibility for Ethan. He had only just met him and the lad was old enough to make his own decisions, but was he still responsible if something happened or someone got hurt doing something in his name? With a long sigh Duncan walked in the direction Ethan had run off in. At the end of the aisle he looked each way but the kid was nowhere to be seen. Duncan shrugged, “Eh, I tried,” he said to himself then headed for the registers, thoughts of a fresh decent meal filling his mind.
Despite it's superior technology the Normandy alone was not a match for the Blue Suns fleet that had fallen upon Paestrom. Joker's expert piloting combined with EDI's cyber warfare capabilities accounted for the crippling of two mercenary vessels but when the ship started taking heavy fire Shepard ordered it to fall back out of the combat zone. Before then even the first blue and white dropships was descended to the surface, their cobalt and alabaster armour making them stand out starkly against the deep red sand. Anti-air guns cycled up and filled the sky with laser fire, destroying several dropships before their cargo could disembark but were soon in turn silenced by orbit to surface bombardment weapons from the fleet, now uncontested miles above. The Blue Suns that reached the ground were well drilled and moved with the precision of a state military force.
Shepard watched this all playing out on the monitors in the stations central security room. As soon as EDI had warned them of the attack Shepard had leapt into action, taking control of the stations defence and coordinating the deployment of its detail of marines. It was clear though that they were not going to be enough. Paestrom was supposed to be safe. It's main security measure was its remoteness and secrecy and to maintain that its physical defences had been kept to a minimum. In opposition the Blue Suns had arrived with what was clearly intended to be an invasion force, an army prepared to lay siege to the base and fight a war of attrition if it was made necessary. How the Blue Suns had found them and how such a large force had been able to penetrate this far into Alliance space he did not know, but there was no time to focus on such things. They were here now, that was all that mattered.
“They've breached the surface level at landing pad B,” reported a marine at the console to Shepard's left.
“Pull those troops back. Pull back the defenders on pads A and C, have them rendezvous here,” said Shepard, pointing on the facility floor layout to a bottleneck where the Alliance troopers could negate the Blue Suns superior numbers.
“Yes commander.”
Shepard turned to the marine on his right, “Open me a channel to Dr. Callahan.”
“Channel open commander.”
“Dr. Callahan, do you read me?”
“ I hear you commander,” said the doctor, “what's going on up there?”
“We're not going to be able to hold the facility doctor. There's too many of them and coming at us with everything they've got. Right now our priority has to be securing the artefact and what research data we have. Prepare the artefact for transport and download the data then torch the drives. Begin evacuating all non-essential staff right away.”
“Shit,” said Callahan, it was the first time Shepard had seen any kind of a crack in her typically composed professional manner. “Understood commander.”
The battle for Excelsis Station raged on. Under Shepard's expert coordination the outnumbered and outgunned Alliance marines made a strong account for themselves, making the tide of blue and white armoured mercenaries pay for every inch of ground they took. The defenders on the surface level choked the bottleneck with dead and injured Blue Suns until they were smashed aside by the enemy's deployment of a YMIR mech. The surviving marines fell back to the elevator, a small rearguard selling their lives for a high price to allow their comrades to escape to the lower levels then scuttle the elevator to hinder the Blue Suns advance.
There was more than one way to reach the lower levels though.
The Blue Suns destroyed the cameras and sensors on the surface level and for a time everything was agonisingly quiet. Then contact reports started pouring in from every level of the station. The sounds of gunfire that had been faint and distant became deafeningly loud. Shepard barked rapid orders to the two marines with him who relayed them across the station but in return came only reports of losses and defensive points being overrun and there was swiftly becoming fewer and fewer troops for Shepard to command.
He heard footsteps behind him and turned, drawing the Carnifex hand cannon at his hip and firing it in one smooth motion. He blew a batarian mercenary off his feet, then the human behind him but not before the second got off a burst from his assault rifle that blew out one of the consoles behind Shepard, killing the marine that had been sat there. The second marine dived out of his seat and added the fire from his own Avenger rifle to that of Shepard's pistol, taking down the two turians who had been the last to enter the room.
“Commander! Commander Shepard do you read me?” the desperation in Dr. Callahan's voice was clear even over the sounds of gunfire and the static on the channel.
“I hear you doctor.”
“They're here commander. They're breached the lab.”
Shepard gestured for the surviving marine to follow him and and strode out of the control room. “What's the status of the evacuation doctor?”
“Data had been downloaded to my omni tool and the drives are deleting as we speak. The artefact isn't yet ready to be moved though.”
“Get out of their doctor. I'm on my way down now. Protect the data, I'll secure the artefact.”
“They're too close commander. You won't make it.”
“I'll make it. Just go.”
The pause told Shepard that Doctor Callahan was strongly considering ignoring his instructions. That was all they were after all. She wasn't military, they weren't orders and she was in charge of this facility. To his relief though she said, “yes commander,” though her voice was sullen and dejected.
The security centre was two floors up from the main containment lab. With the elevators offline Shepard and the last of the marines were forced to navigate the narrow maintenance passageways that ran through the station like rat tunnels. They descended the two floors down to the lap, Shepard kicking out the final bulkhead, sending it skittering noisily across the floor. The passageway brought them out in a narrow gap between two consoles at the perimeter of the room. From his point of arrival Shepard could see the opening to another passageway on the other wide of the room while the main entrance had been sealed. It gave him hope that Dr. Callahan had gotten away safely. Shepard ran for the middle of the room. The process of unsealing the artefact had been started but had been interrupted somehow. Accessing the system with his omni tool Shepard kicked the process back into life.
WARNING. QUARANTINED ARTEFACT TRANSITIONING TO SECURE TRANSPORT DOCK.
The artefact was lifted up in its containment field, disappearing into the top of the pillar, out of reach.
The main doors opened. A second passed as the Blue Suns assessed the situation in the room. Shepard ducked into cover but the marine with him wasn't so fast. A hail of fire from the door struck him high in the chest, overwhelming his shields and blowing him off his feet. Shepard looked at his omni tool which was tracking the artefact's progress. Two minutes, he just needed to buy himself two minutes.
He looked out from his covered position. Five Blue Suns had filed into the room, a batarian, a turian, a krogan and two humans. One was a woman Shepard didn't know but the other was a man he immediately recognised. It was the mercenary who had possibly saved his life on Archimedes II. The last member of the Blue Suns contingent that had attacked the station. The only person besides Shepard who had escaped the station alive. Shepard poked his head out of cover just enough to be recognisable.
“I thought we had an agreement,” he said.
The Blue Suns all spun towards the sound of his voice, weapons raised but the man from Archimedes II held up with hand before they could open fire.
“Shepard,” he said cheerfully, as if greeting an old friend, “small galaxy.”
“I said I thought we had an agreement. I let you live on Archimedes II because I thought you understood how dangerous these artefacts were.”
“I did and so did my bosses when I told them all about it, but here's the thing, dangerous things are worth a damn lot of credits. So the Blue Suns came up with their own agreement. We all agreed that we'd do whatever it took to claim the artefact and once we got paid, we didn't care what happened with it.”
“You're a damn fool,” Shepard bit back, “you don't know what you're doing.”
“You're not wrong, but like I said, we don't care. That thing is coming with us. Damn the consequences.”
“I can't let that happen. I know what these things can do, the ruin they can leave in their wake. You've seen it before, just as I have. You know that there's far more to this than credits, so if you want to take it, you're going to have to go through me. This artefact is mine to defend. You want it, you're going to have to kill me.”
“Very well.”
Just as the Blue Sun spoke Shepard's omni tool notified him that the artefact was ready for transport. Gunfire tore overhead, shredding the console Shepard was hidden behind in a shower of sparks. Shrapnel bypassed his shields and cut into his armour. Shepard pushed up to his feet. Dark energy coalesced around him, absorbing the full force of the incoming fire into a biotic barrier, then Shepard unleashed it into a powerful biotic singularity. A miniature black hole opened in the middle of the Blue Suns that overpowered the force of gravity and pulled them together and off the ground, leaving them dangling helplessly three feet off the ground. Taking his opportunity Duncan set off into a full sprint. The containment system had deposited the artefact into an alcove at the back of the lab. When Shepard reached it he hit a button that clamped it into an armoured case like the one he had used to bring it here from Archimedes II. With the artefact in hand he made for the opening to the maintenance passageway opposite to where he had entered, the one he assumed Dr. Callahan had used to make her escape. Gunfire chased him as the singularity blinked out of existence, dropping the five Blue Suns in a series of dull thuds and pained groans. Shepard ignored it and disappeared into the bowels of the station.
Duncan is stood in front of the camera in his ring gear in a manner in which Level Up viewers have become quite accustomed. This time though there is no green screen, nor is he alone. Duncan is stood in the casino of the MGM Grand and flanking him are two showgirls in skimpy jewelled costumes with elaborate feathered headdresses. One of them has been painted blue and made up to look like an asari.
“Tuesday, August 31st here at TopGolf at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, Level Up Wrestling presents Devil May Cry. On a night where the first ever Courage Champion will be crowned the biggest question on everybody's lips is this, who is going to walk away the Level Up Power Champion?”
“Don Tirri and I have a lot in common. We're both strangers from strange lands who made new homes and new lives here in America, to the point that we've both lost touch with the lands of our birth.”
“We're both veterans of this business, most likely with more years behind than we still have laid ahead.”
“We're both guys that people try to paint as villains because we're not afraid to speak out against the real evils in this world and voice truths that people don't want to hear.”
“We both have a wealth of respect for one another and we both want this match, despite the nature of the title on the line, to be a display of skill and talent, and not a display of savagery and barbarism.”
“But there are plenty of differences between us too. Unlike Don Tirri I am already a champion here in Level Up. Unlike Don Tirri I have defeated a reigning champion in Level Up and unlike Don Tirri I am yet to be pinned or submitted while competing under the Level Up banner.”
“Now Don, I hope this doesn't all come across too harshly because you're a good guy and honestly I want to see you succeed. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I can even see us standing side by side and taking that success together one day, but the thing is, I don't want to see you succeed enough to let you do it at my expense. I don't want to see you succeed enough to let you take the Power title, my title away from me because I am far from done with it.”
“Let me take you back to late April, before Combat Evolved. While you were preparing to face Maggie Lockheart for the Final Boss Championship I was competing in barns and school gymnasiums for fifty dollars a night. I was at rock bottom. Level Up Wrestling changed that. When Level Up brought me on board and gave my a chance to shoot my shot at the Power title it gave me hope, hope that I hadn't felt in a long time. When I won the Power title it gave my pride, pride that I thought had all been drained out of me. When I went to Wrestlestock I may have done so as Duncan Ryder but the truth is that Duncan Shepard was the man that won that tournament. Without Level Up, without Duncan Shepard, Duncan Ryder had no hope, he had no pride, he was a different man, a man who couldn't possibly have overcome everything the Wrestlestock Cup entailed.”
“Now, now I'm in this companies debt, a debt I intend to repay in full by establishing the Power Championship as a title of prestige. I do that each day with how I carry myself and how I represent this company but more than that I'll do it by defending this belt. You see, no-one cares about a title that changes hands every week, every month, like a hot potato. They care when a title is held by someone who can hold onto it, who takes on all comers and defeats them, who tells the world that this is a title worth fighting for.”
“In the end Don we both want the same thing. We both want the Power Champion the be the first to become Triforce Champion, we just both want to be the one to do it and you see Don it should be me. It should be me because I was the first. It should be me because I already set the Power title ahead of the pack when I beat Sidroy Covington. It should be me because I owe it to this company to make the Power title the best it can be.”
“There's one other thing above all that though Don, one either reason why I can't let your success come at my expense. You know what that reason is Don? Because you just plain pissed me off. You pissed me off right from jump zero when you couldn't even wait a day after I won this title to break out your pencil and start scribbling asterisks next to me achievement, as if the fact that I beat four people to win this belt made my achievement less valid than if I'd only beaten. Gotta say that smacked of sour grapes. Now I could have said after Dead By Daylight that you'd already used your shot and lost it and waited for a new challenger to separate themselves from the pack but I didn't. I gave you shot you asked for, the shot we each promised to give one another. In return you've turned a whole swathe of fans against me, fans who now question the validity of my victory in the Skeleton Key match and who don't believe that I'm the rightful champion and I like I said, that pisses me off.”
“So I'm gonna leave you with just a few last words. I'm sorry Don. I'm sorry if you feel like my words haven't held up to the level of mutual respect we've tried to uphold these last weeks. I'm sorry if I've come across cranky and irritable. The truth is I'm tired. I've had a long week, but you know what? When I'm done talking here and I promise, I almost am, I've only got one thing left on my list of things to do and that's the up hold one more promise that I made you.”
“So I hope you're ready done, because Tuesday night, with the Power title on the line, I'm gonna give you the first degree ass whooping you asked for.”
There's a long pause before someone calls out, “Tirri's gonna win!”
Shepard's eyes break from the camera and start scanning rapidly around the room, “who said that?” he said angrily, stomping out of shot.
Shepard's flight from the lab was a desperate one. Gunfire chased him every step of the way. As he climbed, up and up, floor by floor, more and more of the Blue Suns pursued him, snapping at his heels. When he reached the surface again though it was still he that held the Reaper Artefact, he who kept it safe and he who kept it out of the hands of those who would use it only to bring pain and suffering to the galaxy.
With its stealth drives enabled the Normandy ran the Blue Suns blockade in orbit. Not willing to risk the deployment of a shuttle the Normandy dived into Paestrom's atmosphere itself, only deploying the Kodiak the last fifty metres to pick Shepard up and with him safely on board Shepard, the Normandy and artefact were gone.
The van looked like a piece of crap, it had done ever since Duncan bought it back in February. It wasn't a colour so much as it was just rusted all over, it creaked and there was a musty smell to it that wouldn't disperse no matter how much Duncan tried to air it out. Despite all that though, in the six months Duncan had owned it it had never let him down once, even going so far as to make the three day trip from Indianapolis to the Sonoran Desert for Wrestlestock without so much as a misfire. However, around five hours into the seven hour journey down Route 95 the van started to make a disconcerting rattling noise. There was nothing to do about it other than press on and hope and Duncan was counting his blessings when he arrived safely in Las Vegas two hours later. It couldn't simply be ignored however and having checked in at the trailer park that would be his home for the next few days Duncan set to finding a mechanic that could look into it for him.
That was just the start though, because as he scrolled through pages of Yelp reviews more things occurred to him that he had to get done before flying out to Atlanta on Sunday. Important things, so Duncan did what any sensible person with a bunch of important things and habit of forgetfulness would do. He made a list.
Each of these things would wait for tomorrow though. Seven hours on the road in the Nevada heat was exhausting so for today, Duncan slept.
Excelsis Station was a top of the line facility. It was situated on Paestrom, a world both remote yet comfortably situated inside Alliance space. After Commander Shepard had secured the Reaper artefact from the ruins of Archimedis II this was where had brought it, somewhere safe, somewhere secure, somewhere out of the reach of Cerberus or any number of Terminus System mercenary groups.
That had been almost two months ago. Life and responsibility had taken Shepard away and besides, there wasn't much he could do to help in a scientific research station.
Now he was back though. Alliance brass needed someone to check on the progress being made at Excelsis. Shepard wasn't a scientist, wasn't a researcher, wasn't an analyst or a bureaucrat but when it came to the Reapers no-one knew or understood better than him.
With the Normandy settled in low orbit above Paestrom, Shepard mounted aboard the Kodiak shuttle and descended to the planet's surface. It brought him down to a landing pad set among a red sand desert. As soon as the shuttle's side door rose up Shepard saw a woman in a white lab coat, flanked by two Alliance soldiers in red camouflage body armour coming towards him. Shepard stepped out onto the pad and walked to meet his welcoming committee.
“Doctor Callahan,” he said, extending a hand in greeting.
“Commander Shepard,” the doctor replied, meeting his hand with a firm grasp. Doctor Callahan was the lead scientist at Excelsis Station. The two of them had met on Shepard's original visit. The commander had been swiftly impressed by her keen mind and greatly appreciated the seriousness with which she treated his arrival and the security of the unorthodox cargo he had brought with him. The two of them turned and fell into step side by side, walking back towards the station proper. “I'm relieved to see you've had a safe journey.”
“Did you expect otherwise?”
“No, it's just,” she hesitated, “Our long range comms have picked up a number of unusual signals from neighbouring systems. They're heavily encrypted and we don't have the kind of specialist personnel or equipment we'd need to crack them. We've contacted Alliance Command to look into it. When I first got the message that you were returning I thought it was to investigate.”
Shepard shook his head, “This is the first I'm hearing of it. I was only sent to check in on your progress with the artefact.”
“Well, hopefully the lack of a response is the Alliance's way of telling us not to worry but still, it's had us on edge.”
“Send your data to the Normandy. I'll have EDI take a look at it.”
“That would be greatly appreciated commander, thank you.”
Shepard, Callahan and their Navy escort re-entered the station. It looked like most Alliance research facilities. Smooth dark grey floors and sterile spotless white walls. The place wasn't on fire after holding the artefact for two months which already made them more successful than Archimedes II had been. Dr. Callahan led Shepard through the winding hallways, walking purposefully always just one step ahead of him. She led him to an elevator which took the four of them down, underground.
“So,” said Shepard as the elevator began it's slow descent, “what kind of progress have you made so far?”
Callahan looked at him, “It'll be easier to explain once we're at the containment lab.”
“Right, sure,” said Shepard, “sorry. I have trouble with long silences on elevator rides.”
“I see,” replied Dr. Callahan, clearly unsure what else she was supposed to say to that.
The elevator took them eight floors down. When the doors opened again they revealed the entrance to the central lab directly ahead. Callahan stepped out first, Shepard following close behind.
The lab was vast and octagonal. All the equipment was arranged around the edges of the room with a second circle of consoles halfway between the walls and the room's central point. All of it was set around a broad central pillar, though it was far more than a means of supporting the roof. Dr. Callahan gestured to one of the many assistant arranged around the laboratory and with a few wipes of his fingers four equal panels from the central pillar separated from each other and lowered down on mechanical arms. In the space that they had uncovered was a swirling blue containment field and inside that the flawless black sphere of the reaper artefact. Shepard stared at it, remembering the horror that had been Archimedes II and the ordeal he had gone through to ensure that thing was safe, and where it wouldn't be able to hurt anyone.
“Have any of your staff showed any signs of indoctrination?” Shepard asked.
“None. We are taking the threat this artefact presents extremely seriously. We have multiple containment fields acting simultaneously with a robust system of redundancies and back-ups.”
“Good,” Shepard nodded, “that's good. So what have you found out about it?”
“Progress has been difficult. The artefact stays inert for long periods, days, even weeks at a time. It's as if it knows it can not reach us so does not expend its energy or knows that we are trying to study it and so guards its secrets jealously. That said we have been able to make some headway inspiring activity through different stimulus and we believe this is not an ordinary reaper artefact like most you have spoken of in your reports commander. We believe this is something else. Something that's purpose is more specialised.”
“How so?”
“Here,” said Callahan, raising her omni-tool and pressing a few buttons which brought up a holographic display from a projector at the base of the central pillar, “Allow me to explain...”
“It's only got one rattle?” asked the mechanic with a sly grin. He was older than Duncan, thick white streaks running through a beard that touched his chest. He wore oil streaked blue overalls but the top half had been shrugged off and hung around his waist revealing an equally oily white t-shirt that wasn't quite big enough to over the man's gut. “Hell this thing looks like it'll shake itself to pieces if you go over thirty.”
“I know how it looks,” replied Duncan, “but it's got good bones and I'd like to keep it running a little longer if I can. You think you can help?”
The mechanic nodded, “I'm sure we can figure it out. Leave it with me for the day and I'll call you, let you know what I find.”
“Sounds good to me. I'll speak to you later,” said Duncan and turned to leave but the mechanic stopped him.
“Wait a second. Do I know you from somewhere?”
Duncan turned back and gave a slight shrug, “I couldn't say. Do you?”
The mechanic looked at him intently, “hard to say. There's just something real familiar about you. You on TV or something?”
“Sometimes.”
“You an actor?”
“Wrestler.”
The mechanic snapped his fingers, “that's it. You're one of them Uprising boys from up in Reno right? My kid watches that show all the time.”
Duncan shook his head, “no actually I'm in town with the company called Level Up. We've been touring out this way for a few weeks.”
“Right, right. Yeah I think I remember him saying about that. I struggle to keep up sometimes. What's your name? I'm sure he'll get a real kick out of hearing I helped you out today.”
“Duncan Shepard.”
“Duncan Shepard. Alright. You any good?”
“I like to think so.”
“You don't sound too sure about that.”
“Well, I am Level Up's reigning Power Champion.”
“Until Devil May Cry!” came a new voice. It sounded distant but was still loud enough to be heard over the din of power tools and engine noise.
Duncan's head snapped around trying to find the source, “What the fuck?” he muttered.
“You heard that too?” the mechanic added looking around confused.
“Yeah.”
“Good. Thought I was going crazy there. What's a devil may what now anyway?”
“It's the name of the show we're in town for. I'm defending my title against a guy called Don Tirri. For weeks now it's felt like any time I've said anything about being the champion he's popped up out of nowhere to tell me it'll only be until that show. I mean, I get it and all, but at the same time it's kind of annoying. It's like having tinnitus except instead of the usual ringing noise it tells you it's going to kick your ass.”
“What? You think he's here?” asked the mechanic.
“No, worse, I think he's inspired an army of copycat fans. They could be anywhere now, everywhere even,” said Duncan, looking around paranoid.
“I see. Well uh, as I said, leave this with me I'll call you before the end of the day.”
“Yeah,” said Duncan without looking at him, he was too busy looking intently at every other person in the garage one at a time as if he could figure out who the Tirri fan was just by sight. He kept doing this, unsuccessfully, until he had backed out of the door.
Walking towards the nearby bus stop Duncan took his list out of his back pocket. He crossed out the first item but while doing so recalled a promise he had made Don Tirri around two weeks earlier.
“You see,” began Dr. Callahan, gesturing to the holographic display, “when it's been active we've been able to record a distinct energy signature coming from the artefact. A different signature then has previously been recorded prior to reports of indoctrination. We believe it's a transmission of some kind.”
“You think it's trying to contact the Reapers? Like a distress signal?” asked Shepard.
“Unfortunately that is an option we've not yet been able to entirely rule out but it's not our primary hypothesis at this time. Look,” Callahan pressed some more buttons on her Omni tool and waved her hand, bringing up new data on the display. “We've attempted to trace the outbound signal. A typical distress call would go out on a wide band, attempting to reach anyone it can. This is going out on a narrow band. It's a targetted transmission.”
“So it knows where the Reapers are.”
“Also a possibility, but we have traced the signal to two precise end locations. Both of them are inside Council space. Inhabited worlds no less. Worlds that are still in contact with the galaxy at large. If the Reapers were there we'd have heard about it. Also,” Callahan changed the data display again, “the same signal is coming back to us from those locations. If it were a distress signal, why would it be sent back to the source?”
“So what're you thinking doctor?”
“It's hard to say for sure. We're waiting on the arrival of personnel and equipment more specialised for analysing this kind of communication but if I were to give you my best hypothesis based on the data we have I believe it is some kind of homing beacon.”
“A homing beacon? To what end?”
“Unknown, but it seems that this artefact, along with whatever is at the other two locations are intent on knowing where each other is at all times.”
Shepard made to respond but was interrupted by a communication coming in from the Normandy.
“Commander,” said the equally robotic and feminine voice of the ships on board A.I. EDI, “we have a situation.”
“What kind of situation?”
“There is an incoming fleet headed our way from the mass translation point. It is the Blue Suns. We must assume hostility.”
It didn't exactly go with the tough guy persona most people associated with professional wrestlers but there was no denying that Duncan loved a good Whole Food Market. Subsisting the last few days on backstage catering, airline meals and fast food stops on the side of the highway had left him feeling lethargic and sluggish, a state of being that was unacceptable given the level of violent athletic competition he was going to be partaking in in a few days time. He had to be at his peak, both mentally and physically and for Duncan that began with nutrition. Sure he was conflicted since the company's purchase by Amazon but in the unsurprising absence of a convenient farmers market this was far and away the best option.
He had been looking around for about twenty minutes. His basket was stocked up with fresh vegetables that were piled up on top of an official black Magdalena Lockheart tote bag.
He was moving out of the fruit and veg section at the front of the store and into the aisles when he heard:
“Ho-lee shit.”
Duncan didn't really register the expletive at first. He heard it, sure, but there was no reason for him to believe that it was in any way relevant to him. As he turned around from taking a carton of long life almond milk of the shelf though he almost walked right into an excitable looking young man who had evidently been stood a little bit too close behind him.
“Whoa,” said Duncan as he flinched away from the unexpected obstacle, colliding with the shelf hard enough to dislodge a block of organic butter that fell to the ground with a muted thud. The young man, Duncan would have guessed was in his late teens or early twenties, was completely unperturbed by Duncan's startled reaction and continued looking up at him with expectant eyes.
“You're Duncan Shepard right?”
Only at this point did Duncan realise that the young man was wearing a t-shirt with his name and face on it. Suddenly everything made sense.
“Yeah,” said Duncan, straightening himself up, “cool shirt.”
“I know right, what're the chances. It's like fate or something.”
“I guess it is,” Duncan replied, feeling like stating it was nothing more than an unlikely coincidence may upset the moment.
“It's like, I knew you were coming to town and stuff, because you're at Devil May Cry right? At the MGM. But I never would have thought I'd just run into you in the supermarket. This is insane.”
“You know your stuff.”
“Says it all on my ticket bro. Imma be there, row R, seat 24.”
“I'll watch out for you.”
There was a pause that stretched out a little too long, venturing into uncomfortable silence territory. It was clear the young man had no idea what to say but didn't want to let the chance run in with one of his heroes end.
“So uh, what's your name?” said Duncan.
“Ethan.”
“Good to meet you Ethan. Do you wanna get a picture?”
“Really? Yeah!” Ethan pulled a phone out of his pocket so quickly he almost dropped it and he laughed awkwardly as he got the device securely back into his grip and under control. He took a few steps to position himself next to Shepard, then reached up with one hand to get his arm across the shoulders of the taller man while using the other to take a selfie. “This is going to be my profile picture on everything, thank you.”
“Any time.”
Ethan took a step away, looking down at the picture on his phone with undisguised glee. He took a couple of steps like he was going to allow the moment to end and walk away but he stopped and turned back. “Do you think you're gonna win? Are you gonna beat Don Tirri?”
“No!”
It wasn't Duncan who replied and once again the Commander was stunned and confused. The two of them were the only people in the aisle. No-one else was in their eyeline but the voice had been clear. Duncan thought that perhaps it had been a coincidence and was going to shake it off when he heard:
“Don Tirri! Power champ at D.M.C, whoo!”
“Who said that?” asked Ethan.
Duncan was slowly shaking his head, “I have no idea.”
“I'm gonna go find them and shut them up,” Ethan said, his expression changing from childlike joy to grim resolution.
“No, it's fine don't-” Duncan was saying but Ethan had already run off and wasn't listening. Duncan stood rooted to the floor for several seconds as he weighed the moral quandary he found himself in. He had no responsibility for Ethan. He had only just met him and the lad was old enough to make his own decisions, but was he still responsible if something happened or someone got hurt doing something in his name? With a long sigh Duncan walked in the direction Ethan had run off in. At the end of the aisle he looked each way but the kid was nowhere to be seen. Duncan shrugged, “Eh, I tried,” he said to himself then headed for the registers, thoughts of a fresh decent meal filling his mind.
Despite it's superior technology the Normandy alone was not a match for the Blue Suns fleet that had fallen upon Paestrom. Joker's expert piloting combined with EDI's cyber warfare capabilities accounted for the crippling of two mercenary vessels but when the ship started taking heavy fire Shepard ordered it to fall back out of the combat zone. Before then even the first blue and white dropships was descended to the surface, their cobalt and alabaster armour making them stand out starkly against the deep red sand. Anti-air guns cycled up and filled the sky with laser fire, destroying several dropships before their cargo could disembark but were soon in turn silenced by orbit to surface bombardment weapons from the fleet, now uncontested miles above. The Blue Suns that reached the ground were well drilled and moved with the precision of a state military force.
Shepard watched this all playing out on the monitors in the stations central security room. As soon as EDI had warned them of the attack Shepard had leapt into action, taking control of the stations defence and coordinating the deployment of its detail of marines. It was clear though that they were not going to be enough. Paestrom was supposed to be safe. It's main security measure was its remoteness and secrecy and to maintain that its physical defences had been kept to a minimum. In opposition the Blue Suns had arrived with what was clearly intended to be an invasion force, an army prepared to lay siege to the base and fight a war of attrition if it was made necessary. How the Blue Suns had found them and how such a large force had been able to penetrate this far into Alliance space he did not know, but there was no time to focus on such things. They were here now, that was all that mattered.
“They've breached the surface level at landing pad B,” reported a marine at the console to Shepard's left.
“Pull those troops back. Pull back the defenders on pads A and C, have them rendezvous here,” said Shepard, pointing on the facility floor layout to a bottleneck where the Alliance troopers could negate the Blue Suns superior numbers.
“Yes commander.”
Shepard turned to the marine on his right, “Open me a channel to Dr. Callahan.”
“Channel open commander.”
“Dr. Callahan, do you read me?”
“ I hear you commander,” said the doctor, “what's going on up there?”
“We're not going to be able to hold the facility doctor. There's too many of them and coming at us with everything they've got. Right now our priority has to be securing the artefact and what research data we have. Prepare the artefact for transport and download the data then torch the drives. Begin evacuating all non-essential staff right away.”
“Shit,” said Callahan, it was the first time Shepard had seen any kind of a crack in her typically composed professional manner. “Understood commander.”
The battle for Excelsis Station raged on. Under Shepard's expert coordination the outnumbered and outgunned Alliance marines made a strong account for themselves, making the tide of blue and white armoured mercenaries pay for every inch of ground they took. The defenders on the surface level choked the bottleneck with dead and injured Blue Suns until they were smashed aside by the enemy's deployment of a YMIR mech. The surviving marines fell back to the elevator, a small rearguard selling their lives for a high price to allow their comrades to escape to the lower levels then scuttle the elevator to hinder the Blue Suns advance.
There was more than one way to reach the lower levels though.
The Blue Suns destroyed the cameras and sensors on the surface level and for a time everything was agonisingly quiet. Then contact reports started pouring in from every level of the station. The sounds of gunfire that had been faint and distant became deafeningly loud. Shepard barked rapid orders to the two marines with him who relayed them across the station but in return came only reports of losses and defensive points being overrun and there was swiftly becoming fewer and fewer troops for Shepard to command.
He heard footsteps behind him and turned, drawing the Carnifex hand cannon at his hip and firing it in one smooth motion. He blew a batarian mercenary off his feet, then the human behind him but not before the second got off a burst from his assault rifle that blew out one of the consoles behind Shepard, killing the marine that had been sat there. The second marine dived out of his seat and added the fire from his own Avenger rifle to that of Shepard's pistol, taking down the two turians who had been the last to enter the room.
“Commander! Commander Shepard do you read me?” the desperation in Dr. Callahan's voice was clear even over the sounds of gunfire and the static on the channel.
“I hear you doctor.”
“They're here commander. They're breached the lab.”
Shepard gestured for the surviving marine to follow him and and strode out of the control room. “What's the status of the evacuation doctor?”
“Data had been downloaded to my omni tool and the drives are deleting as we speak. The artefact isn't yet ready to be moved though.”
“Get out of their doctor. I'm on my way down now. Protect the data, I'll secure the artefact.”
“They're too close commander. You won't make it.”
“I'll make it. Just go.”
The pause told Shepard that Doctor Callahan was strongly considering ignoring his instructions. That was all they were after all. She wasn't military, they weren't orders and she was in charge of this facility. To his relief though she said, “yes commander,” though her voice was sullen and dejected.
The security centre was two floors up from the main containment lab. With the elevators offline Shepard and the last of the marines were forced to navigate the narrow maintenance passageways that ran through the station like rat tunnels. They descended the two floors down to the lap, Shepard kicking out the final bulkhead, sending it skittering noisily across the floor. The passageway brought them out in a narrow gap between two consoles at the perimeter of the room. From his point of arrival Shepard could see the opening to another passageway on the other wide of the room while the main entrance had been sealed. It gave him hope that Dr. Callahan had gotten away safely. Shepard ran for the middle of the room. The process of unsealing the artefact had been started but had been interrupted somehow. Accessing the system with his omni tool Shepard kicked the process back into life.
WARNING. QUARANTINED ARTEFACT TRANSITIONING TO SECURE TRANSPORT DOCK.
The artefact was lifted up in its containment field, disappearing into the top of the pillar, out of reach.
The main doors opened. A second passed as the Blue Suns assessed the situation in the room. Shepard ducked into cover but the marine with him wasn't so fast. A hail of fire from the door struck him high in the chest, overwhelming his shields and blowing him off his feet. Shepard looked at his omni tool which was tracking the artefact's progress. Two minutes, he just needed to buy himself two minutes.
He looked out from his covered position. Five Blue Suns had filed into the room, a batarian, a turian, a krogan and two humans. One was a woman Shepard didn't know but the other was a man he immediately recognised. It was the mercenary who had possibly saved his life on Archimedes II. The last member of the Blue Suns contingent that had attacked the station. The only person besides Shepard who had escaped the station alive. Shepard poked his head out of cover just enough to be recognisable.
“I thought we had an agreement,” he said.
The Blue Suns all spun towards the sound of his voice, weapons raised but the man from Archimedes II held up with hand before they could open fire.
“Shepard,” he said cheerfully, as if greeting an old friend, “small galaxy.”
“I said I thought we had an agreement. I let you live on Archimedes II because I thought you understood how dangerous these artefacts were.”
“I did and so did my bosses when I told them all about it, but here's the thing, dangerous things are worth a damn lot of credits. So the Blue Suns came up with their own agreement. We all agreed that we'd do whatever it took to claim the artefact and once we got paid, we didn't care what happened with it.”
“You're a damn fool,” Shepard bit back, “you don't know what you're doing.”
“You're not wrong, but like I said, we don't care. That thing is coming with us. Damn the consequences.”
“I can't let that happen. I know what these things can do, the ruin they can leave in their wake. You've seen it before, just as I have. You know that there's far more to this than credits, so if you want to take it, you're going to have to go through me. This artefact is mine to defend. You want it, you're going to have to kill me.”
“Very well.”
Just as the Blue Sun spoke Shepard's omni tool notified him that the artefact was ready for transport. Gunfire tore overhead, shredding the console Shepard was hidden behind in a shower of sparks. Shrapnel bypassed his shields and cut into his armour. Shepard pushed up to his feet. Dark energy coalesced around him, absorbing the full force of the incoming fire into a biotic barrier, then Shepard unleashed it into a powerful biotic singularity. A miniature black hole opened in the middle of the Blue Suns that overpowered the force of gravity and pulled them together and off the ground, leaving them dangling helplessly three feet off the ground. Taking his opportunity Duncan set off into a full sprint. The containment system had deposited the artefact into an alcove at the back of the lab. When Shepard reached it he hit a button that clamped it into an armoured case like the one he had used to bring it here from Archimedes II. With the artefact in hand he made for the opening to the maintenance passageway opposite to where he had entered, the one he assumed Dr. Callahan had used to make her escape. Gunfire chased him as the singularity blinked out of existence, dropping the five Blue Suns in a series of dull thuds and pained groans. Shepard ignored it and disappeared into the bowels of the station.
Duncan is stood in front of the camera in his ring gear in a manner in which Level Up viewers have become quite accustomed. This time though there is no green screen, nor is he alone. Duncan is stood in the casino of the MGM Grand and flanking him are two showgirls in skimpy jewelled costumes with elaborate feathered headdresses. One of them has been painted blue and made up to look like an asari.
“Tuesday, August 31st here at TopGolf at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, Level Up Wrestling presents Devil May Cry. On a night where the first ever Courage Champion will be crowned the biggest question on everybody's lips is this, who is going to walk away the Level Up Power Champion?”
“Don Tirri and I have a lot in common. We're both strangers from strange lands who made new homes and new lives here in America, to the point that we've both lost touch with the lands of our birth.”
“We're both veterans of this business, most likely with more years behind than we still have laid ahead.”
“We're both guys that people try to paint as villains because we're not afraid to speak out against the real evils in this world and voice truths that people don't want to hear.”
“We both have a wealth of respect for one another and we both want this match, despite the nature of the title on the line, to be a display of skill and talent, and not a display of savagery and barbarism.”
“But there are plenty of differences between us too. Unlike Don Tirri I am already a champion here in Level Up. Unlike Don Tirri I have defeated a reigning champion in Level Up and unlike Don Tirri I am yet to be pinned or submitted while competing under the Level Up banner.”
“Now Don, I hope this doesn't all come across too harshly because you're a good guy and honestly I want to see you succeed. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I can even see us standing side by side and taking that success together one day, but the thing is, I don't want to see you succeed enough to let you do it at my expense. I don't want to see you succeed enough to let you take the Power title, my title away from me because I am far from done with it.”
“Let me take you back to late April, before Combat Evolved. While you were preparing to face Maggie Lockheart for the Final Boss Championship I was competing in barns and school gymnasiums for fifty dollars a night. I was at rock bottom. Level Up Wrestling changed that. When Level Up brought me on board and gave my a chance to shoot my shot at the Power title it gave me hope, hope that I hadn't felt in a long time. When I won the Power title it gave my pride, pride that I thought had all been drained out of me. When I went to Wrestlestock I may have done so as Duncan Ryder but the truth is that Duncan Shepard was the man that won that tournament. Without Level Up, without Duncan Shepard, Duncan Ryder had no hope, he had no pride, he was a different man, a man who couldn't possibly have overcome everything the Wrestlestock Cup entailed.”
“Now, now I'm in this companies debt, a debt I intend to repay in full by establishing the Power Championship as a title of prestige. I do that each day with how I carry myself and how I represent this company but more than that I'll do it by defending this belt. You see, no-one cares about a title that changes hands every week, every month, like a hot potato. They care when a title is held by someone who can hold onto it, who takes on all comers and defeats them, who tells the world that this is a title worth fighting for.”
“In the end Don we both want the same thing. We both want the Power Champion the be the first to become Triforce Champion, we just both want to be the one to do it and you see Don it should be me. It should be me because I was the first. It should be me because I already set the Power title ahead of the pack when I beat Sidroy Covington. It should be me because I owe it to this company to make the Power title the best it can be.”
“There's one other thing above all that though Don, one either reason why I can't let your success come at my expense. You know what that reason is Don? Because you just plain pissed me off. You pissed me off right from jump zero when you couldn't even wait a day after I won this title to break out your pencil and start scribbling asterisks next to me achievement, as if the fact that I beat four people to win this belt made my achievement less valid than if I'd only beaten. Gotta say that smacked of sour grapes. Now I could have said after Dead By Daylight that you'd already used your shot and lost it and waited for a new challenger to separate themselves from the pack but I didn't. I gave you shot you asked for, the shot we each promised to give one another. In return you've turned a whole swathe of fans against me, fans who now question the validity of my victory in the Skeleton Key match and who don't believe that I'm the rightful champion and I like I said, that pisses me off.”
“So I'm gonna leave you with just a few last words. I'm sorry Don. I'm sorry if you feel like my words haven't held up to the level of mutual respect we've tried to uphold these last weeks. I'm sorry if I've come across cranky and irritable. The truth is I'm tired. I've had a long week, but you know what? When I'm done talking here and I promise, I almost am, I've only got one thing left on my list of things to do and that's the up hold one more promise that I made you.”
“So I hope you're ready done, because Tuesday night, with the Power title on the line, I'm gonna give you the first degree ass whooping you asked for.”
There's a long pause before someone calls out, “Tirri's gonna win!”
Shepard's eyes break from the camera and start scanning rapidly around the room, “who said that?” he said angrily, stomping out of shot.
Shepard's flight from the lab was a desperate one. Gunfire chased him every step of the way. As he climbed, up and up, floor by floor, more and more of the Blue Suns pursued him, snapping at his heels. When he reached the surface again though it was still he that held the Reaper Artefact, he who kept it safe and he who kept it out of the hands of those who would use it only to bring pain and suffering to the galaxy.
With its stealth drives enabled the Normandy ran the Blue Suns blockade in orbit. Not willing to risk the deployment of a shuttle the Normandy dived into Paestrom's atmosphere itself, only deploying the Kodiak the last fifty metres to pick Shepard up and with him safely on board Shepard, the Normandy and artefact were gone.
Feb. '22 - Jul. '22
2022
2021/2022
Jun '21 - Jul '22