Mission 12:
G.A.R.M.
As the VTOL nears the G.A.R.M. facility, Chikane tells Adam that it's popped up on radar and he's going to scan the facility. Adam tells him to forget about it and drop him off near the site instead, explaining that he's going to go in on foot. Despite Chikane's doubts about what Adam is planning, he says he'll hover near a side entrance and allow him to go in by himself. Adam disembarks the VTOL a short distance from the entrance and jumps out before it flies off.
When Adam gets to the side entrance and attempts to open the door, he's thrown backwards when it suddenly opens. Marchenko and a group of the gold-masked mercenaries stride out, and he chides Adam for "taking those wrong turns". He injects Adam with an unknown substance and says that he'll understand who he's dealing with very soon. Just before Adam passes out, one of the mercenaries asks why Adam isn't bleeding as much as Rucker did when he died. Marchenko contends that Rucker was just built different, and that the Orchid will kill slowly and painfully, before Adam loses consciousness.
Adam wakes up again to find himself being carried by Marchenko, and listens as the man says that they should start moving supplies out because the facility is compromised. He also tells his men to dose a number of ARC members staying at the facility with the Orchid and to dispose of them as well. Adam continues to listen as Marchenko passes him to another mercenary and says that he's going back to Prague to meet with the Dvali family so they can expedite a "shipment" for him.
The mercenaries drag Adam to a nearby cliff and toss him off. Soon after, Adam wakes up and tries to get in contact with Chikane, but receives no response. He also sees a vial of the Orchid stuck to his chest, and removes it without feeling any ill effects. He decides to contact Vega, and tells her that he was caught in a trap and is now stranded at the facility. She is shocked and says that it will take time to get a VTOL to his location, and that he needs to stay low in the meantime.
Adam begins to sneak through the facility, and discovers a large mass of machines, storage rooms and evidence that the gold-faced mercenaries were based there. He also finds several of their outfits on display in a locker room, along with Marchenko's office, which houses a photo of his wife and daughter. Adam also runs across two mercs discussing how much they're itching to get back into action in Dubai, and wonder how much Adam knew about them.
After sneaking through two sectors, Adam finally discovers what happened to the ARC members Marchenko mentioned earlier — they were poisoned by the Orchid and died in a break room. He sneaks past more mercenaries and eventually finds an exit to a nearby helipad.
Adam radios Chikane, who expresses surprise and relief to hear him and says that he's coming in to rescue him. He tells him not to bother, and to head to the nearby helipad instead. He also radios Vega to let her know that he doesn't need a ride anymore.
Upon getting into the VTOL, Chikane and Adam head back to Prague...
Tropes:
- Bomb Collar: Thorough investigating of the facility reveals a killswitch for Marchenko, which was apparently developed by the Illuminati to keep him in line.
- Call-Forward: According to emails found on Jorge's computer (which have to be decoded), the codename for Bob Page is "Mister Majestic", hinting at the eventual formation of Majestic 12.
- Crazy-Prepared: It's revealed that Page left a killswitch for Marchenko in the possession of two of the mercenaries, in the event that he deviated from the Illuminati's plan.
- Impairment Shot: Seen when Adam is knocked away from the door by Marchenko.
- The Mole: Chikane. Coupled with the information that can be found before this mission (in secret rooms in his workshop) and information from the Art of Deus Ex Universe book, it paints a thorough picture of his actions. Chikane gravitated to the Illuminati after struggling to keep up with medical bills for his brother, and eventually becomes a Deep Cover Agent for them. This explains a lot of things during the mission:
- An email in the facility is addressed to Marchenko from an "Elanus Caeruleus" (a bird species), which is most likely Chikane's codename. If so, this would mean that he tipped off Marchenko to Adam's arrival, and would also make his surprise and apprehension (both when Adam tells him he's going in on foot at the beginning of the mission, and again upon hearing Adam's voice while escaping) much more understandable.
- When calling Miller and getting Chikane instead, an alarm sounds when Adam reaches sector 2 (which would ruin a perfect stealth run). There is no way to avoid this unless the player chooses to call Vega instead after waking up.
- No-Gear Level: Averted. Despite being ambushed and thrown into a gulch, neither Marchenko nor the Gold Masks bother to strip Adam of his weapons and items, thus leaving him well-suited to brave the facility on his own despite the lack of help.
- No-Sell: The Orchid virus has no effect on Adam, due to it being based on his biology (and developed by Megan, who originally took his DNA samples in the first place).
- Posthumous Character: Vadim Orlov (whose body was found during the "Mystery Augs" sidequest) is revealed to have been a researcher at G.A.R.M. After reading the email on one of the computers where he expresses satisfaction regarding the Orchid's effects, it's hard to have any sympathy for him.
- Sequence Breaking: A deliberate example. It's possible to skip a large chunk of the mission if you access the vent right near the start location of the mission, use a spare Biocell to power the Ice Drill, then move it into position and drill through. Doing this allows you to take a shortcut to near the end of the facility.
- Trap Is the Only Option: There is no way to avoid Marchenko's ambush, and you are always beaten up and left for dead.
- Tyrant Takes the Helm: After Rucker's death, Marchenko is revealed to be leading the gold-masked mercenaries as well as what's left of ARC, and is planning to put a scheme into motion via a "shipment" he's having the Dvali family expedite...
- Whole-Plot Reference: The mission has a lot in common with the "Missing Link" DLC from Human Revolution, including Adam being captured and incapacitated at a Belltower-owned facility at the beginning of the mission, being forced to survive in an unfamiliar location (which is filled with storage bays filled with high platforms and rafters to run over), takes place comparatively late in the game and outlines a wider conspiracy at work.
