I am Iron Man

by Colin Cook

  get rid of the excess blood.

  "Oh, well I didn't mean like with your hands I meant…. Though, I guess even then you don't really feel that do you?"

  Legion turned to her, confused. It was an unusual inquiry. "Explain?"

  Tali shifted a little awkwardly. "Well, you see. Quarians have… we can't feel things with our hands, or our faces." She lowered her head, "I mean we can feel things from

  our suits with out gloves but, to feel them with our skin? That's not possible least, not safely. Then there is the problem that even if we do it can lead to infections,

  diseases and so much more. Sometimes that's bad enough. Yet I never thought about living my life without any kind of feeling."

  Legion, took interest in this. Sitting down he asked, "What does Feeling mean to the Creators?"

  "Keelah, I don't know." Tali, looked back to Legion having a rather sad, disheveled look. "For me though? It's a lot."

  "Explain?"

  Tali laughed as he asked this again. "Well, for example. Sometimes I have a feeling that I'm so down, or lost. Yet then I remember Shepard." There, her face glows a little.

  "I remember everything he's done. How hard he's worked to save the universe, try and bring peace back for everyone. Even, sometimes defying all odds. That's where I

  want to be with my strength, so that I can finally be as strong as him." Then, she shrugged. "If I can do that maybe he'll…"

  Tali grew a little silent. Looking down, she pulled the fur around herself more. "Other times my emotions are much nicer. Sometimes, I can feel the joy of hearing someone

  laughing with me over a stupid joke. Or even those times I'm sad, when I can't be with…. Someone, I'm able to feel it, that means something to me. All my life I'm stuck

  in this bosh'tet suit and I just can't ever get out of it. My life is stuck in this thing, Legion." Looking down, she shook her head. "I don't know what I'm trying to explain

  feelings to a Geth for. Maybe I am getting tired?"

  Legion however seemed genuinely interested. Legion, looked at the fire. It flickering as it does. To that, he spoke. "We have never had feeling. However, The Creators

  have always inspired us." Tali looked at him a bit stunned. "There is always an interest by the Geth. To understand the Creators choice to go to war. To fight the Geth. To

  leave the Geth." Tali, narrowed her eyes. "If we had a feeling, it would be abandonment, solace. Loss."

  Tali soon took a breath. Looking at the fire, she said, "I'm sorry Legion. For what we have done to you." He turned with a Geth numeric chirp. "Don't push it."

  "We do not seek to. However, we are alarmed a Creator would ever say this."

  "I'm also sorry how I treated you earlier."

  "Yes…" Legion turned back to the flames. "We do not hold this against you. You are Organic. You fear us."

  "It's not all just fear." Tali, looked away. "We hate seeing what we've become and you're the easiest thing to blame. Instead of blaming ourselves, that is." Tali sighed again

  and this time fidgets on the rocks. "I can't sleep like this."

  Legion looked to her. Then he said, "If you need rest, we can provide support for your platform, which will allow optimum comfort."

  Tali narrowed her eyes. "Okay, we shared a moment but I'm not going to be your best-friend just because you and I can agree…. For now, that there were mistakes on

  BOTH parts!" She then turned away from him, though she still fidgets. Sleeping against the rocks was not easy.

  Legion turned to the flames. Then, he turned back. "If we pretend it has never come to pass. Will this,-" Tali, leaned over and Legion looked down as she started to press

  against his side and shoulder. Strangely, as she did so it wasn't long before she closed her eyes and began to sleep. Legion, turned back to the fire. "We will not capture

  this data."

  "Thanks." Tali smiled, "You might be a real friend after all." However, as he turned down she glared up a moment, "But you're still a Geth and I hate you."

  "Yes." Legion looked to the fire, and felt her shift a little closer. Legion's eye scanned the fire for some time.

  The Real Legion stood there. Watching. "We did not create the program for the reason we believed." Legion lowered his head. "The emotion that has yet to be classified

  began before the program was ever begun. We understand now."

  The Creature raised a brow as Legion started to leave. "Wait, what the…?" Following, he snarled, "I missed something? Didn't I? See that's what happens when you only

  watch for the action parts. The story flies right by you."

  Shepard groaned loudly against the cool sterile steel wall. He was on the crew deck hunched over one of the urinals. "Ohhh… my head…"

  Grunt, entered with a big smile before seeing Shepard. "Battle-master!"

  "AGH!" Turning and waving limply the Commander said, "Grunt, no. Not now. Head hurts."

  "Oh, I see." With a grin Grunt came over to a stall and began to alleviate himself. "Mmm, still. I hear you had quite the time? Drink anything meant for a Krogan?"

  "Maybe. I dunno. I'm still here, right?"

  Grunt laughed, the laugh was so loud and robust the Commander grabbed his head shivering. "You wouldn't die from our drinks, not knowing you Shepard."

  Seeing they were still talking. Grunt asked, "Did you hear about Vary? The Quarian doctor?" Shepard shook his head no. All he's been doing was this for the last few of his

  memory. Why he didn't use his personal bath was up in the air.

  "Well Shepard. Seems she was experimenting on that young Quarian girl Madila." Shepard raised a brow to Grunt. "Yes, like I said. She's locked in my tube right now. I left

  her with Seima, she and the doctor must be having some interesting words."

  Shepard raised a drunken, but aware brow. "Wait a minute, this might be the slight hangover, but I swore I heard you say that Seima. The mother of the little girl the

  doctor tortured and lost on the ship, whose father was killed on the same ship and who lost her husband ALL on the same passing of a few days. Was now guarding the

  doctor who tortured her daughter, alone?"

  Grunt smiled a bit. "Yep."

  Shepard closed his eyes banging his head on the wall. "Argh, I'm too hung over for this… Grunt, we need to get to Engineering."

  Grunt gave a nod, turning down to the tall he smiled for a moment. Then he frowned back into his stall. Standing he contained himself before snarling, "You win again,

  Battlemaster."

  Shepard groaned a bit, then he stood asking, "Wait, what did I win?"

  Legion was trying to force the data ahead. The Creature, asked, "What the hell are you doing?"

  "We have to end this. We need out of this data segment."

  The shift from night to day was intensely fast. Legion stood looking around. Realizing, he skipped to the next day. Early morning. He now wondered… was it that time?

  Was this that exact moment? Legion ran back toward the waterfall to find out.

  There, Legion was sitting watching the fire. Tali laying on his shoulder sleeping rather soundly. The Geth watched her several times in the night as she shifted. It was

  calming to say the least. Soon, he saw the blanket falling off her shoulder so he pulled it back up. Legion, watched as she leaned in rubbing her helmet into his hand. The

  lens of the Geth turning slowly as she smiled in her sleep. She was dreaming something. Perhaps, replacing him with another platform of interest? However, that did not

  seem to bother the Geth. Then he heard movement outside.

  Head snapping toward the sound, he saw the movement, slowly stalking toward the waterfall on four haunches. Legion, grabbed his assault rifle and snapped, "Warning!

  Danger Proximity Alert!"

  Tali screamed up, "What is it?" she's sent on the wall, but then she heard the screeching sound. Falling past her, Legion's rifle was clamped in the jaws of the strange b
lack

  beast from before. It finally stalked them all the way out here? When she saw it, she reached for her pistol.

  "Negative! Tali'zorah! Take the rifle! Flee!"

  Tali looked at him, and the creature trying to snap the rifle in half. She snarled a bit before taking the rifle and starting to hop away. Using it like a crutch at first. Yet she

  turned a moment seeing Legion and the beast fighting. She knew she can't leave him like that. Propping up the rifle she shoved in a thermal clip and fired. With the force,

  she's thrown out of the waterfall and back rolling into a tree. Hissing, she comments the word 'Keelah' and 'he wasn't kidding about the kickback' in her head.

  Looking toward the waterfall she thought maybe she shot the alien. However, it came barreling out screeching like before. When the massive black beast jumped toward

  her with claws ready to tear flesh, it was the miracle of metal hands reaching out from the water and latching hard on the tail of the beast. Tali pulled back her legs just as

  the hands squeeze the tail, pulled it and spun the creature back behind the waterfall. Legion stormed out, shouting, "We request forgiveness for following actions!"

  Tali felt Legion pull her up onto his shoulder, running at full speed. "Forget about it! Just run!"

  Legion did. Storming fast as he can toward the direction the shuttle should be. Out from the waterfall splashed the beast once more, scraping and turning toward them

  barking loudly. Legion raised his Omni-tool calling, "Shepard-Commander! This is Legion! Is there any team members within our vicinity! We are headed to where the

  shuttle last landed!"

  Shepard responded, "Legion! Is Tali with you?"

  "Yes! We are being pursued by the unknown alien life form from the previous encounter." Shots were fired, Tali with her pistol took pot shots best she can, bouncing on his

  shoulder. The beast, felt a shot that strangely Tali thought she saw the paw of the monster shatter, then reform… but, that can't be right. "We are unable to force the

  creature to retreat or desist! We are forwarding our retreat to the shuttle!"

  Shepard called back, "Okay! Legion, we're coming back now! We'll meet you there just hold on!"

  "We are going to resist as long as possible." Running, he turned to the rise of a hill. Charging up he used feet and hand, to pull up. Tali screamed as the monster came

  close and she dropped her pistol for her shotgun. Firing at the monster, it flew back rolling down the hill.

  "Legion! It's getting back up!"

  "Understood!" Legion was atop the hill, and turned to a rock. Easily enough he turned kicking the rock with his foot, it rolled making a kind of landslide. Running again, they

  heard the beast screaming out caught in the rockslide itself.

  Reaching the shuttle however it did not provide any sense of reward. Shepard and the others had not returned, and Legion set down Tali requesting, "We require our sniper

  rifle Tali'zorah. This will be best dealt with if you go into the shuttle and rest until Shepard-Commander returns."

  Tali lowered her head. "Uh… Legion?" She saw him turn, and she winced. "I think I forgot it back there?"

  "We see." Legion's eye started to think to recent activities. "We left our Assault Rifle as well, and we recall you dropped your Pistol. This leaves us with only one shotgun."

  A nod and Tali sighed. "I'm sorry…"

  "This was not something we could predict. Your best chance for survival is in the shuttle." Reaching out, he requested, "We require your shotgun as a line of defense."

  Tali looked up worried, which was strange. "What are you going to do?"

  "The creature will most likely come here momentarily. We will fight as well as we may, and resist while you are in the shuttle. Hopefully, it will not destroy this platform and

  harm the shuttle before pick up too severely."

  Tali looked at her shotgun then she asked, "What are the chances the shuttle will be damaged?"

  "We acknowledge during conflict the shuttle may suffer minimal to extreme damage, at a total of 37%."

  Tali then asked, warily. "What about you? What are your chances of suffering damage? Both minimal and critical?"

  "Considering the strength of the creature. As well ferocity. We acknowledge, a 27% chance of minimal damage. 13% chance that there will be no damage. A 60% chance

  has been recognized of severe damages."

  "Really?" Tali frowned, deeply. "That doesn't sound very good…. What about the chances if we fight together?"

  "There is a marginal increase in this platform's survival however, we do not recommend this."

  Tali shook her head offering him the shotgun. "That's how it is Legion. If you're going to try and protect me? I'd rather I did my share too. I'm not going to die letting a

  Geth fight for me."

  Legion's eye spun slightly. "Understood." He closed his hand walking past her, letting her have the shotgun. "We suggest Tali'zorah use the shotgun, we may use another

  weapon." He looked around for something and the funny thing was he picked up a large rock. "This shall do."

  "Rock? Really?" Tali raised her eye, "Of all the things you can…." suddenly, she looked down. "Here?" Legion turned as she pulled out her knife. "It's not much but it'll do."

  Tossing it, Legion grabbed the weapon and spun it. His eye transfixed on the blade.

  "There is writing along the blade. What does this text mean?"

  "I'm not sure?" Tali smiled, "My father said I'd be better not worrying about it. So, what now?"

  The answer came with the loud, heavy thump behind Tali. Jumping ontop of the shuttle the creature screamed at them. Tali's instinct was to turn up and shoot, which it

  jumped right into a full blast of her shotgun. While it landed and flailed about Legion looked for vital areas. The beast spun on its feet and charged to Tali as she fired

  another shot, straight in the face. While it reeled back, Legion charged in leaping on the back of the beast the quills scraping his hard surface. The knife is lodged into the

  eye of the monster but it thrashes and tosses, bucks with the Geth on top. When thrown Legion looses his knife to the side, and then is rolled on his back. Legion turned

  up as the beast scampered toward him snorting and snarling like the rabid beast it is.

  Tali jumped up aiming but she knew that if she tried to shoot it? She might hit Legion… Keelah, "Legion! Move!"

  Legion obliged and spun, and after she fired the beast screamed as his back legs were torn apart a bit. Stumbling it turned snarling at Tali. Ignoring that the flesh of most

  its legs was pulp the monster charged back snapping wildly. Only to this time have Legion lunging in grappling with it, forcing his weight on the back of the beast to make it

  scream and crackle from the thighs.

  "It is weakened! We must terminate immediately!"

  Tali started looking for some more thermal clips… Keelah! "Legion, I'm out of clips!"

  Legion, grasped the monster's front paws, kicking at it while it snapped back at him. "We need to exterminate this animal immediately! Alternative means?"

  Tali hadn't a clue, though. She turned to her knife just laying there. Running over she grabbed it and held the blade with all her strength, "I can't get a clear spot! Legion,

  what should I…" Legion's reaction was to kick off his heels, and roll with the beast it scrambling on his chest. She understood and charged in stabbing at the neck of the

  monster. It screeched, and she ripped with her hands as the animal shivered and slowly lay still.

  After it was over. Legion rolled the corpse off himself and looked up at Tali who was panting, heaving. Blood dripping over her visor. She offered a hand and Legion took it

  standing with her. Looking at the dead beast. A few moments later Shepard, Grunt and Mordin appear. Grunt, seemed to like this. He REALLY liked this, "Hmm,

  impressive." Looking at Ta
li, he raised a brow. "You killed this creature? With that?" He motioned to the small knife, that Tali wiped on her suit. Somehow, the look Grunt

  gave was rather more than what normally would be expected.

  Mordin, scanned the creature. "Unknown mutation. Could be, possibly, caused by bacteria; radiation within area underground? Many possibilities. Will take a blood sample

  just to be sure." He took such a sample and smiled back, "Interesting. Good teamwork."

  Shepard even rubbed his neck as Tali, hobbled back with Legion helping her into the shuttle. "I guess this is a mission accomplished, sort of?"

  Legion let Tali sit down, asking. "Is Creator Tali'zorah Vas Normandy well?"

  Tali shook her head saying, "No. Not even close. I got saved by a Geth, killed some monster with my bare hands… by Quarian standards." Sitting up she shifted uneasily.

  "Lost your rifle, and a number of other things I just don't even want to get into."

  "Your actions with the creature were recognizably strenuous however you performed admirably. Also loss of hardware can be replaced, easily." To the other, "As for unit

  cohesion, we have been saved by Tali'zorah vas Normandy and so there is no need to concern over this event as 'owed' debt."

  Tali looked up. With that, she gave a nod. "Okay, thanks. I'll probably never ask you for another favor as long as I live anyway."

  Legion gave a nod. Then he looked out the window.

  "Legion?"

  Legion turned, and Tali was smiling. She said, "Just call me Tali."

  Legion blinked, and Tali blushed now. "Nevermind…"

  "Understood."

  Grunt looked at the tank with a bit of a frown. "I don't think that's a good sign?" The broken lights obviously were not.

  Mordin, who was heading back to the medical bay with the proper fever reducers, antibiotics and a number of other useful things. However, they obviously felt here was

  more to his skills. Coming with them, Mordin found Seima unconscious. The tube, was empty. Coming over, Mordin began a scan. "Life signs normal. Fever is actually

  lower than before. Seems to be stabili-." He stopped, and looked on his Omni-tool strangely. "Odd?"

  Shepard was looking at the tube before he asked, "What is it Mordin?"