Hey everybody, welcome to my first Fanfiction!
So, I'm going to go into a little bit of detail for this preface, so if you'd like to skip straight to the story, I won't hold it against you.
I love Mass Effect. It is my favorite game series ever. The stories, the characters, the dialogue, the environments… all make for an immersive, amazing experience that mere words would have trouble painting. My favorite place among the whole universe was Illium. Nos Astra to be specific. Looking out over the buildings, seeing how many different things were happening, how beautiful it was, and generally how perfect a picture it was, really struck a chord with me. I have wanted to write about it for so long, and I swear to you, this was a labor of love. So, anyways, I do not own Mass Effect, nor do I own Bioware.
For imagination purposes, the Shepard that is starring in this Fanfiction is a default male. I suggest listening to music if you are so inclined. It helps with the story, in my opinion. This total document was sixteen pages long, at around 6,000 words or so. This is only chapter one, I will be writing constantly thinking of a chapter two! Please, if you'd like, leave a comment. Constructive criticism is always welcome, and I won't lie to you, I have to force myself to upload this out of fear of my self-esteem.
Anyways, enjoy!
Shepard stood in the hallway of the captain's cabin. He was looking at his prized Illium Skald fish and watched them swim around. They were oblivious to what was happening in the outside world. They were peaceful, safe and happy.
That last word hit Shepard hard.
Shepard had a much darker version of the word. In his mind, it is impossible to be happy alone. He wanted, no, needed someone to share happiness with. Being alone always haunted Shepard. Perhaps it was adaptation for all the horrid things he had to go through as a teen, or maybe it's just the way he is.
"Couldn't a' fixed that during my 'rebuilding', eh?" Shepard had thought sometimes. Shepard always resented himself for having that mental block. It felt like a crutch that was holding him back. It always seemed to affect him; whether he knew it or not. And usually, it was the latter.
Shepard wanted to find love. He wanted to find love, take love, have love, and die with love. He had tried so many times. The one that really, truly seemed to 'click' with Shepard is probably blowing around Virmire somewhere. Ashley was Shepard's 'one' or so he thought. He loved her with every ounce of his being. He couldn't think about that, though.
Shepard always was selective when he chose whom to care about. Because he had reasoned that they could all die in an instant. It was a dark, almost gothic viewpoint, but a reasonable one. He had never thought to date outside of the military, because he was pretty much always in the military. It didn't make sense to try to find someone outside, just to lose contact when he went back in.
He wasn't ever a hopeless romantic, per se. He wasn't hopeless in the sense that he was stupid about it. He never stopped trying to find love, but after Ashley's death, it stopped him in his tracks for a long time. He seemed to have developed a sense of deep depression after her passing, and that transpired into his love life. He knew he had to get better, but he had just not committed. It was like trying to push a cart with no wheels; slow, noisy, and it hurts the cargo in the long run. He stopped that train of thought the moment it switched to Ashley, and decided to survey his surroundings a bit more.
His eyes drifted from the beautiful Skald fish, to the jellyfish he had purchased on the citadel just days prior. "Damn," he thought. "I always forget their names!"
He put his hand half-way up the tank and slowly dragged it down. Stopping when he remembered those 'Don't put hands on the glass' warning labels he read whenever he went to a fish store. He breathed on the glass and turned around.
Shepard looked at his medal case; buried in dust. He never bothered to pick them up anymore. For every accomplishment he had made, he gained two failures. The medals were never varied much; they had the same core principle. Fight, shoot, kill. He couldn't complain about his life though; he was living the dream of many citizens.
He glanced up a bit, and caught a view of the infinite blackness surrounding him.
Space.
"Wow," Shepard thought.
Shepard was stunned with this sudden bit of reality splashing him in the face. That he was, in fact, in space. It could go anywhere, anytime. And Shepard felt humbled to be amongst it. He leaned on the fish tank slightly, and sharply inhaled. He smiled brightly and closed his eyes. Images of his crew, his friends, and the people he called family, flashed through his mind in an instant; images of team-work, of brotherhood, of love. It gave him butterflies in his stomach, and he liked it. He wanted to be rid of this burden he carried with him every day, to be able to find love, once again.
He reopened his eyes and walked to the picture of Ashley.
"Hey, Ash." He started.
"I-I just want you to know…" He began to stutter and lose his voice.
"I miss you."
"And…And…And…I'm sorry."
"I am so, so, so sorry Ashley."
"But I can't do this anymore, Ash."
"I have to let go, for you. I know you wouldn't want to see me this way…"
"But please remember, I will always love you. Always and forever."
Shepard set the picture down and walked to his bed and sat down. His arms in the middle of his legs, he lifted his head to view the picture.
His eyes were fixated on it. It was almost impossible to even think about moving them. Why would he? It was the only way to get continuous joy out of his life. That's not entirely fair, however. He could be happy for a little while. But it seemed like his happiness was doomed to burn and sizzle out. It seemed like Ashley's innocent eyes stared into his very soul. Judging, thinking, hating. He craned his neck to look around the room, and, to his delight, he was alone, save the fish. He kicked off his boots and pulled off his shirt, along with his pants. He rubbed his eyes with his hands and yawned. He laid down on the bed and stretched his feet and cracked his toes. One by one, he felt the knuckles reacting to the action, in a sickeningly satisfying "pop", it felt as though his toes just received an Asari foot massage. He then reached out and touched the head of his bed. Drawing his finger around the metal grate, he felt the cool chill of skin touching metal. He sighed and rubbed the palms of his hand on his forehead.
Shepard decided to read a book on his Omni-tool. He pulled up some old books he bought while he was first starting out in the military. Books ranging from serious dramatic novels, to old cartoons he used to read before starting a mission. He tapped on one of the comics, a comic titled "Vince and Desi". It was a comic starring a lazy Salarian and a hyper-active Batarian. That odd mix alone was enough to spark comedy. The Salarian was disproportioned, with his head looking a little too small for his body. Shepard couldn't tell whether it was the artist's drawing style or a joke in itself. Shepard chuckled and quit the comic. The next thing he pulled up was a novel written by a human, entitled "Basking in Rain". It came out just before he shipped out for his second tour, and, having some extra credits, he decided to pick it up. He only finished about half of the book, because right around the middle, he was assigned to Nihlus' watch. But it was one of his favorite books, specifically because of one quote in the book:
"A wind has blown the rain away and blown the sky away and all the leaves away, and the trees stand. I think, I too, have known autumn too long."
Shepard hung onto those words through his entire career. It became his motto, and something he always thought about when things got rough. He liked to imagine himself as the tree; a firm, strong, stubborn thing.
Although, even the most beautiful quote couldn't fix every problem.
Shepard opened the book on his Omni-tool and began searching for the book-mark he left himself all those years ago. He finally found it on page 245, and picked up right where he left off. He tapped the button right below the power button of the Omni-tool, which made the book's text light up bright enough for Shepard's sleep ridden eyes to interpret. Having lost the image he had painted for himself for the book, which came to him so vividly years ago, he struggled to regain his interest in the old book. He had made it about five pages in before he started to daydream. He imagined himself with someone, sitting in a cozy breakfast nook. It was a female, incredibly beautiful. It wasn't Ashley, nor was it anyone he had ever met. All he could comprehend was that she was stunning. She had a mixture between black and brunette hair. It was a perfect shade. Shepard found himself entranced by her hair alone. She also had a bright, gorgeous face and the eyes of an angel. Her eyes were a dark blue color; radiant in appearance. Her eyes were like an ocean; endless, beautiful and full of mystery. He was in bliss. He wanted to meet this mystery woman. He wanted to meet her and to love her till the end. She leaned into him and pressed her lips to his. He awoke from his dream. He cursed at himself for his lack of dream-control. He hoped to continue seeing her when he went to sleep. He continued reading his book. Realizing he wasn't enjoying the reading currently, he added the bookmark on his page, which happened to double his previous stopping point, at 490. He was a chapter or two from finishing, but, wanting to savor it for a while, decided to not finish it cheaply. He felt that if he completed it now, his tired mind wouldn't react to it the same way it would as an awake, lively mind. He used his Omni-tool to search for soothing music. He wanted to go to sleep; to see that mystery woman again. He bought some music and closed his eyes. Shortly thereafter, he was whisked away to his dream world. He met the woman once again. They enjoyed their time together, dancing, eating, skipping, kissing…
Living.
The clouds surrounding Shepard's psyche slowly started to drift and break apart through those next few days of reading. Throughout the day, he was anticipating the night. The night he could dream about the woman again, and be with her arm and arm for the nine hours he slept. To Shepard's dismay, however, throughout those days, the woman appeared less and less. She seemed like a ghost; just outside of his reach. He wanted to reach her, oh how he did. But he never could. Shepard attributed it to his depression medication. However, that was not the case. It seemed to be his mind kicking him into reality. Shepard had forgotten that that woman was not real. He was sleeping his life away, and it was starting to wear on him. Shepard promised himself that he wouldn't let his growing psychological issues affect his duty as Commander. And so far, he was keeping that promise. But Shepard knew that it was only a matter of time till he snapped. Till his strong charade was broken into little more than a bad mime's act. Shepard always had a lot of mental baggage. Being raised on Mindoir, he had to see everything he knew burned to ashes. He had to see his friends, family, and girlfriend ripped away from him. But he dealt with it, it took a while, but he dealt with it. The Alliance patrol that rescued him from the slavers was an answered prayer, and he vowed to join them, so maybe he could help kids like himself. Akuze was just another god awful thing to happen to him.
On Mindoir, Shepard hid under the house, in the rabbit hole him and his brothers dug to play hide and seek, and watched his parents drug out front and shortly thereafter, executed. Akuze forced Shepard to watch his entire squad be ripped down the middle for hours. All that death, all that gore, all that gruesomeness, had, at least Shepard had thought had, nulled him from the pain of death. Ashley's death proved him wrong, once again.
Days later, Shepard stepped into the elevator and pressed the glowing '2' on the panel. He was transported to the CIC, to answer a request made by Yeoman Kelly Chambers. Shepard looked at his watch. It read, in bright orange letters:
0300
"Three in the morning." Shepard said to himself.
"Three in the fucking morning." Shepard growled. The elevator doors opened, and Shepard stepped out.
"Ah, commander!" the Yeoman yelled.
"Kelly, I really hope this is as important as you made it in the Comm. I really, really need some sleep."
"I wouldn't want to keep you awake for some odd looking debris, commander," Kelly flirted.
John had always thought Kelly was attractive in the physical sort of way. He didn't care for her personality, and on more than one occasion he had caught himself thinking of her as 'easy'. Of course, it's not like that assumption was incorrect, but John was raised to be respectful, and he planned to keep it that way.
John laughed, and lightly flirted back.
"Well, Ms. Chambers, I'd hope it'd be important enough for my…" Shepard trailed off.
"Personal attention." Shepard said in a smooth tone.
"Well, we'll see, won't we Shepard?"
"I suppose so, Miss Chambers."
Kelly regained her professional demeanor and directed Shepard to her computer.
"See, while we were hitting that bump in the Nimos system, I noticed Cerberus still hadn't drained the funds from our Ship-Bank," Kelly said.
"Oh? I like where this is going," said Shepard.
"Then you'll love this," Kelly said enthusiastically.
"At the time, I couldn't see exactly how much Cerberus had left, so I figured I might as well secure the money, in case Cerberus tried to take it back,"
"I had EDI add a thicker level of encryption to the security for the bank, and, while doing so, I managed to unlock the credits so they could be deposited into separate accounts," Kelly said, with her voice rapidly gaining volume.
"And?" Shepard said anxiously.
"I was…surprised, to say the least, at the number of credits that were in there," Kelly said.
"So, what kind of number are we talking about? Triple digits?" Shepard said unenthusiastically.
"No, commander, at least three-hundred thousand credits."
"Ho-lee shit." Shepard said, stopping for just a moment to take in the news. When he regained his composure, he yelled out orders for EDI.
"EDI, make securing those files safe from Cerberus a number one priority,"
EDI responded in her calm, robotic voice:
"Yes, Shepard."
Shepard thanked Kelly for the information and turned to leave, when Kelly asked:
"What exactly are we planning on doing with the money, commander?"
Shepard stopped, thought for a moment and responded.
"I'm thinking Nos Astra," And with that, he exited the CIC.
Shepard had called for an announcement with the remaining crew the next day.
"As you all know, we've been through a lot," Shepard started.
"And I know, technically, you aren't officially tied to us, and can desert us anytime you want," Shepard said, rather grimly.
"But, seeing as how no mutinies have started since we left, I think that's cause for reward. For the amazing efforts everyone has been putting in; especially the people who have family back home," Shepard said, happily.
"So, getting down to business," Shepard said.
"Last night, Yeoman Kelly Chambers requested my presence for a discovery she found late last night,"
Some of the crew giggled and were obviously thinking about what else happened that night. But, in all honesty, Shepard hadn't had any real sexual activity apart from Miranda, and that was a huge mistake, so he wasn't too anxious to get into anything serious.
"And, the discovery was very great, to say the least."
"We have found three-hundred and twelve thousand credits in the Ship-Bank Cerberus accidentally left us."
"Now, I, as commander, have decided what to do with the money."
"We will leave ten-thousand in a fund for essentials, in case of emergency,"
"We will be sending twenty-thousand dollars back home, to those with family"
"We will be giving fifteen-thousand each to every crew member on board,"
"And we will be using a large portion of the rest to fund a vacation, and I will elaborate on that now,"
"We will be going to Nos Astra to have a taste of the high life. It will be a week long excursion, although that can be extended if need be, and every single one of you is invited!" cheers echoed in the crowded meeting halls. Illium – Nos Astra especially – is almost a fable. Nos Astra is famous for its nightlife, and the crew is going to experience it. Most of the crew who were hired was down on their luck. They joined Cerberus more as a last resort than political preference. They never, even in their wildest dreams expected to be able to go to the paradise that is Illium.
"You will each receive a hotel room at The Hilloas" The Hiloas, being the most expensive and posh hotel on Illium.
"We will be set on course towards Illium immediately, and we should be there by Friday, in two days."
"As for the rest of the money, it is still undecided currently, but we will brainstorming on what to use it for."
"Dismissed," Shepard said.
"And that's all, so, back to your stations!" Jack yelled. Jack's mean attitude was undeserved, as the extreme good news was flowing through the ship. It felt different everywhere Shepard walked; the air was cleaner, the people were nicer…the ship just felt more alive.
The days passed quickly, and morale was as high as ever. The crew was ecstatic, and the mood carried over into all but the most emotionally disconnected of the crew, like Jack, for example.
"This is the Normandy, requesting docking permission in bay E-11"
"Granted, Normandy; welcome to Nos Astra."
The Normandy made a smooth landing, and it took just five minutes for the safety prep to be finished. Shepard had already explained directions and the local hot spots. He expressed that it was not required to join in with anyone, but if they so choose, they will be openly invited.
Shepard approached Garrus, who was already packing away his sniper rifle.
"Putting the ol' girl away, eh Garrus?"
"Heh, I doubt it, Shepard," Garrus said, chuckling.
"If we keep following your direction, I'll crumble into dust before I put this piece of fine machinery away for good."
"Count on it, Garrus," Shepard said jokingly.
Shepard turned to go check and see how Joker was doing.
"So, Joker, how's the landing coming?"
"Good, good. We're almost finished with the magnetic alignment, and then we have to put the ship in cool-down mode so…"
"Have we got an ETA?"
"Eh, five, ten minutes tops."
"Great, good job." Shepard said.
Shepard decided to go to his cabin for the remainder of waiting. He hoped this night would help him break the chain of sleepless nights he'd had. His mind shifted to thinking about Miranda.
Like Kelly, Shepard was extremely attracted to Miranda physically, just like every male in the universe. But when it came down to her personality, her general outlook on life and love, she was little more than a stone. He had spent the night in the engineering deck, strictly because he thought she loved him. He really did love her, but it turned out she either didn't feel the same way, or did, but refused to show it. It broke his heart somewhat, but Shepard had gotten used to the feeling, so it wasn't anything new. But when Shepard discovered the emails from Miranda to other men while investigating the Shadow Broker's ship, Shepard lost it.
Shepard was enraged.
At that moment, he let every single thing he had been taught, every single little bullshit rule he ever gave himself, every little piece of love and respect towards her, his life, her life, and the universe, drop. He stomped and stormed to the Normandy, barely being able to muster a "goodbye" to Liara. He couldn't even look at another female at that moment, because he might just lash out. He boarded the Normandy and stomped and stormed his way to the Crew Deck. Heart burning with rage, he entered her office.
"Oh, Shepard. How're you?"
"Shut the fuck up right there," Shepard said, furiously.
Miranda was visibly stunned, and proceeded to give him her patented 'icy stare'.
"Oh, what is it no—"Miranda was cut short by her computer being thrown into the wall.
"What the fuck!?" Miranda screamed.
"You know what the fuck, right? You must, or you must be really fucking stupid. Do you know? Take a guess, really do!" Shepard screamed. He was burning with fury, and the blue glow of biotics much more powerful than Miranda's emanated from around his clenched fist.
He raised his fist and slammed it down on her desk, throwing her things across the room.
"I'm off saving your fucking sister, and you can't stop yourself from fucking every goddamn guy who sends you a message on that bullshit dating site!?"
"To be fair," Miranda started.
"I don't have relations with a lot of men, only those that interest me. You should feel lucky, really." Miranda's smug smile complimented that dialogue.
That little bit of sarcasm threw Shepard over the edge. He said nothing, except stared into her eyes. The disgust, the hate, the anger, all started at once. The stare he gave her would break even the strongest of people, and Miranda was no exception. "What are you thinking?" She asked with her voice cracking.
"She's a slut, it's not your fault," he thought.
Shepard continued to stare down Miranda for a harsh five minutes.
His anger was overtaken with sadness and regret. Anger was still present, enough to continue the stare, but he was on the verge of collapsing. He had to get out of the public eye before they all saw him breakdown. He turned quickly and approached her door with a rush.
"Hey, asshole," Miranda started.
"You can't leave on that!"
Shepard, on the verge of tears, let his inhabitations fly out the window.
"I loved you," Shepard started.
"I see now, that was a huge mistake."
"I hope it was worth it."
He left without another word. He walk-ran his way to his cabin and stepped in the shower. He tried to make himself not cry. He couldn't for very long. He told himself he could never, ever, ever find love like the dream woman. It just wasn't true. He stayed in the shower for a very long time, before exiting and sleeping for the rest of the day.
That was two weeks ago. That happened just a day before the news of the money. He hated Miranda with every fiber of his being. Every single part of him that she helped recreate, loathed, despised, and hated her.
Shepard pushed those thoughts out of his head for the time being. He knew nothing good could come of it, so why try? Before leaving the Normandy, Shepard had mere minutes to double check and make sure he packed everything. He began listing everything in his mind.
"Okay, clothes, check, toothbrush, check, emergency pistol, check, mouthwash, check, money, check."
Convinced he was packed and ready-to-go, Shepard walked over to his fish tank.
"See you guys in a few days" Shepard said while turning on his auto fish feeder. He walked to the door and took one last look at his cabin. He sighed and smiled as he shut the door. He walked off, and felt like he was starting to feel a change in himself. He remembered a saying his father told him: "Over half of life is participating." It was as true as quotes could go. Shepard was eager for change, eager for a difference, eager for something.
Good or bad, Shepard needed it.
Shepard entered the CIC at just the right time to see his crew preparing for their vacation.
Garrus was dressed in a thin suit, rifled with buttons. There were buttons on his sleeve, his collar, his chest, even his groin. And they were all brightly colored gold, which Shepard associated to Garrus' want to 'peacock' for the ladies.
Shepard was surprised at how Jack was dressed; she wore a t-shirt, cut short at her arms to give off that 'tom-boy' look that everyone had come to know. She wore her combat pants and shoes, though, which Shepard thought was cute.
Thane wore a finely tailored suit, which appeared to have been imported from Earth, oddly enough. It surprised Shepard, because aliens rarely wear clothes made by humans.
Grunt put on some different shoes, which everyone was thankful for. His other ones were starting to get pretty ripe.
Jacob wore a t-shirt and blue jeans; nothing too remarkable about them.
Samara had decided to stay on the ship and mediate, which, although it was never said, it seemed like the best choice for everyone. She didn't seem like the partying type, really.
It took some encouragement, but Mordin finally decided to go. Although, he was probably going to stay in the hotel and make voice memos for himself; a thing Mordin loved to do. He didn't bother to change from his lab attire, but he did wash it first, which made it less questionable.
Legion was practically glued to the drive core, so there was no bothering trying to get him out of there. It seemed like an odd idea anyway, who would react to a geth positively, especially on Illium? Hell, who would bring a robot to a party?
Kasumi had, originally, decided not to go. She wanted to reminisce with her gray-box that night. It took some coaxing from Shepard, but she decided to go when she realized how many clumsy rich people would be there, ripe for picking.
Zaeed just went for the hotel bar, and Shepard remembered him saying "A drink's a drink. I don't need any flashing lights and bad music to have good, strong, whiskey."
Tali decided to go to the club with the rest of the crew; she hadn't been out of the engineering deck for weeks, and was going stir crazy. She wore a new veil that covered the back of her head; bright, loud, beautiful is what sprang to Shepard's mind when he first saw it.
It was clear Miranda had gone all out fashion wise. A tight black dress with matching heels, stockings, all complemented her figure. Shepard wanted to stay as far away from her at all costs. "No," Shepard thought. "I'm not going to let her get in the way of my good time. I'll go where I go, and I'll treat her with respect if the situation demands!" However, Shepard made sure to tell himself he would not go searching for ways to 'respect' her.
Shepard began to inspect his own clothes more carefully. He was wearing a suit imported from Kahje, the Hanar homeworld, with the collar open enough to take notice of his chest but not seem desperate. It was loosely fitting, and looked great in his opinion. His pants were extremely finely crafted Thessia brand dress-pants. They looked and felt great.
Garrus walked over to Shepard and tugged on Shepard's collar.
"Shepard, are you ready to, as the humans say, party like there's no tomorrow?"
"I am Garrus, I am." Shepard said, grinning wide.
Shepard walked to the front of the party and called for the attention of everyone.
Everyone tightened their grip on their baggage, preparing for the trampling of feet that would soon occur.
"The hotel is on Jumbet heights, just past the markets. We will be meeting at the club, Razori Kingdom, at eleven o'clock, got it?" Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Joker, are we good to go?"
"Yep, opening bay doors…now."
"We'll meet in the lobby at ten-thirty, okay?!" Shepard yelled, trying to speak louder than the airlocks being removed.
"Welcome to Illium, men and women!" Shepard said.
They all stepped out into the Space Port. A bustling area; covered in so many different species it would be practically impossible to count. Most of them appeared to be here on business. Shepard overheard one Hanar say that he was on a diplomatic mission from the Citadel, to further relations between the Hanar and the Asari. Another person Shepard only barely heard, and couldn't see, was a Drell visiting his extended family.
Shepard needed something to eat, as Mess Sargent Garner's food had left him wanting. He walked to the only human restaurant that looked half decent, and ordered a sandwich. The human woman behind the counter yelled his order to the kitchen staff who confirmed their reception of the message with a "Got it!"
Shepard decided to take a seat and read his email. He opened up the Omni-tool's main interface and skimmed past its many menus. He caught notice of old reports he used to submit to Anderson, and smiled with nostalgia. He had dabbled in writing for a while; he had countless half-finished novels and poems lying around, waiting for him to finish them. He finally found his email application and tapped it lightly.
He had to scroll through countless interview requests, spam and junk mail, until he came to his saved contacts. He had received an email from Kelly Chambers a day prior and had forgotten to check it. "Now's as good a time as any," Shepard thought.
Inside the email was the code to deposit the stolen credits to Shepard's account. He made a mental note to add them when he gets to his hotel room. He responded "Thanks, Kelly," and exited the message. He scrolled all the way up to the very top, and a bright orange message glared him in the face.
"I'm sorry" the subject read. Shepard groaned when he noticed the sender:
Miranda Lawson.
"Son of a bitch," Shepard said under his breath. He opened the email, and the body was less impressive than she thought it would be, he guessed.
"Look, I know I messed up. I made a mistake, and I will live with it for the rest of my life. I didn't know whether or not we were coming back from the mission, and I just thought "Fuck it". That was a huge mistake," the first line read.
"I didn't know what I had until I lost it. Please, just give me one last chance?"
He didn't want to deal with this right now. No, no, this was all wrong. Parts of him were disgusted with her still, but the other, more hopeless-romantic side, wanted to get forgive and forget.
"No, not this time," Shepard thought. He didn't want to reply right then anyway, he was supposed to be on vacation.
His sandwich came shortly thereafter, and his mouth and stomach welcomed it gleefully. Afterwards, Shepard left a generous tip, got his jacket, and left the restaurant.
It was a short trip to the hotel, as Nos Astra's signs pointed to pretty much everything. That was the funny thing about Nos Astra, it was twice as big as New York and Los Angeles combined, but it certainly didn't seem like it from a visitor's perspective. The air was clean, the streets were relatively spotless, and the buildings were all neatly laced together. Shepard appreciated the latter, as he was not particularly comfortable around tight spaces.
Shepard appeared to have been the last to get there, as Garrus was finishing checking in. Shepard approached the counter and began to speak with the receptionist.
"Hi, I have a suite under J. Shepard?"
"Oh, Mr. Shepard," She said, generally surprised to have a galactic celebrity in front of her.
"Yes, it's all confirmed. Your room number is number 1700, one hundredth floor. Do you need help with baggage?"
"No, thank you. I'll be just fine," Shepard said with a smile.
The cashier stuttered to make a response.
"W-well if you need anything, just ask for me!"
Shepard turned his back and looked at her, smiled brightly, and said:
"I think I will…Nicollette."
Shepard walked towards the big, gold elevator doors and pressed the 'going up' button. It was in vain of course, because Garrus had already pressed it earlier. While waiting, Shepard turned his head to look at the beautiful Asari who just helped him, and gave her a wink. She was obviously nervous, and it was showing.
Garrus was still waiting for the elevators to reach the lobby, and was clearly bored. He turned and greeted Shepard.
"Hey, Johnny, how's it going?" Garrus joked.
"Good, Gear-Bear," Shepard joked back.
"What do you think of the hotel?" Shepard asked.
"Good, good," Garrus replied.
"The lobby is a little too, how should I say, 'modern', for my tastes, though." Garrus followed up.
"On that, we can agree." Shepard joked, nudging Garrus' arm with his elbow.
"So, what're your plans?" Shepard asked.
"I have a three step process; get drunk, sleep it off, repeat." They both shared a laugh.
"So you're coming with us to the club?"
"Yeah, probably. Will we be doing that every night, or are there other plans?"
"Up to you. I want to relax by the pool tomorrow, so that's where I'll be for most of the day," Shepard said.
"That actually sounds enticing," Garrus said.
Shepard sighed and folded his arms.
"Y'know when I was a kid, Garrus, I used to dream about coming here,"
"Seriously?"
"Seriously. I watched the vids, saw the pictures and read the brochures. I wanted to come here more than I wanted my own birthday."
"Me too," Garrus exclaimed.
"We actually came here once, but had no money to do anything but stare out of our dingy motel," Garrus said.
"It was still fun, though. My father let us run around in the parks and play war."
"Us?" Shepard asked, quizzically.
"Yeah, me, my brother and sister,"
"I never knew you had siblings, Garrus,"
"Yeah, sis is a doctor back on Palaven, and I have no idea where my brother is. Probably KIA by now," Garrus said, coldly.
They stood in silence until the elevator doors opened, and they stepped inside. Tali walked out of the elevator, clearly annoyed.
"Problem?" Shepard asked.
"The shower only goes to one setting, and I'm going to ask for it to get fixed."
"About that," Shepard started.
"Hold the door, Garrus,"
Garrus sighed and held his finger on the 'open door' sign.
"It was supposed to be a surprise, but I figure now's as good a time as any," Shepard continued.
"You and all of my advance squad are rooming in the suites."
"That includes you, Garrus!" Shepard yelled.
Garrus yelled out a sarcastic cheer out of the side of his face and continued reading his Omni-Tool.
Tali was extremely surprised, and did her best to thank Shepard.
"T—Thank you Shepard."
"No need to thank me Tali. You've certainly earned it." Shepard said sweetly.
"Oh, would you please send a mass email to the rest of the squad, informing them of their new rooms?"
"Okay," said Tali.
"You should probably go visit Grunt in person; I doubt he even knows how to turn his Omni-tool on."
"Got it," Tali said.
"Good." Shepard said while giving her a bright smile.
Garrus tapped his finger on the door open button, loud enough for Shepard to hear.
"Closing doors in five, four, three," Garrus counted down.
Shepard came in to the doors running, Tali following suit.
"If what I'm told is true, you, me, Garrus and the team are staying on the same floor, number 100."
You guys can choose your rooms, going up from 1700, okay?"
"Got it," Tali said.
Tali sent a mass email to the whole squad, telling them the news.
The rest of the ride was uneventful, save for Garrus tapping his foot and whistling a Turian war song.
They finally stopped on their floor, with Shepard walking out first.
"Meet you guys at the lobby! Remember, ten thirty sharp!"
Both Tali and Garrus yelled back:
"Yeah, sure!"
Shepard walked to his room, fumbled through his pockets for his key, and opened the door.
What was inside was simply astounding.