At that moment in time, John silently thanked the universe for the wonder that was indestructible chest-high walls. As Esone hurled the sphere of annihilation, John ejected the shotgun's overheated thermal clip and hurled himself behind cover, as did Shepard and 42. His armor's internal Geiger counter ticked angrily, biotic barriers overloading from the sheer destructive power of the Charm. Radiation warnings, heat warnings, pressure warnings--John's display was awash with alarms and damage readouts. The emerald fire washed over the wall, engulfing anything and everything still caught in the open. And was that...laughter?<br/><br/>And then, suddenly, it was over, the flames and light gone.<br/><br/>John rose up from behind cover, shotgun ready as his senses struggled to readjust.<br/><br/>'Son of a<span style="font-style: italic">bitch</span>,' Shepard hissed, coughing as she poked her head out from behind another wall. 'Harbinger was right.'<br/><br/>'Saw that one coming, too,' John said.<br/><br/>The Human Reaper hung on its gibbet still, battered and seared, but not destroyed. Its torso armor had been burned away, the great Soulsteel heart exposed and beating, a sickening fusion of biology and technology. It was alive, but it was also more vulnerable than ever.<br/><br/>'Voidtech,' the Geth said. 'An affront to all sapient life. Terminate on sight.'<br/><br/>John and Shepard took aim. The Geth's autoloaders clacked and clattered as they cycled a new set of heatsinks into its weapons.<br/><br/>'Couldn't have said it better myself,' Shepard muttered. The weapon she held, an M-920 Cain, thumped once as it fired. The railgun round sped towards the Reaper's heart. By all accounts, it should have been overkill. It wasn't.<br/><br/>The Reaper came to life, its right arm tearing free of the cables holding it still to shield the monster's chest. The Cain round detonated against the Reaper embryo's arm, vaporizing the appendage, but leaving the rest of the creature otherwise unharmed. A dead god's birth cry shook the chamber as the Reaper charged a weapon in its gaping maw.<br/><br/>'Ah, crap,' Shepard said, switching the emptied launcher out for her Revenant.<br/><br/>This ended here and now. No more villain banter, no more corridors, no more minions. They'd been on this damn station for long enough. John channeled Essence through his gun once more, but this time, his prayer was a bit more succinct.<br/><br/>'DUST THIS BITCH!'