"Tiberius!" She screamed when she saw a bullet hit her partner directly. She ran toward where he fell and felt relieved to see it was only his leg that was injured. That would definitely make things harder, but at least it wasn't a deadly wound. Damn Nemesis. She applied medigel to her partner's injured leg.
"I'm fine, Katlyn" Said the turian quickly when he noticed the concern on the woman's face.
"He's not here." Tiberius surmised. "Let's get the hell out before they start getting reinforcements."
Katlyn nodded in response and they started retreating silently, but it was hard to go unnoticed when the enemy soldiers ran fearlessly through the facility. The change in the enemy's attitude was extremely obvious and they confirmed Katlyn's every suspicion when they tried to catch a Cerberus's soldier to get information about the location of the person they were trying to find. Interrogating them was useless, they were more like corpses than human beings now. Blue skin, hollowed eyes. It was repulsive.
Katlyn and Tiberius finally made it to the shuttle. Both of them were exhausted and felt somehow defeated, but at least they had made it out alive to fight another day. Once they made it to the Citadel, they avoided the most crowded places as usual and arrived at the little apartment they had been renting for that week. They never stayed in the same place for more than a few days, but this time they felt especially comfortable in that apartment. They were beginning to feel the effects of being on the run for three years and changing location three times a week, but they knew there was no time to complain. They had to keep going.
"We should call the doctor," Katlyn said once they arrived at the apartment, "She can take a look at your leg"
"I need to trade the salvage we got from the facility." Tiberius said, "Besides… I don't wanna bother the doctor anymore. If anybody finds out that she has been helping us…"
"Don't worry. I'll make sure that doesn't happen." Katlyn said with confidence. "And I'm pretty sure that the medical supplies we found will come in handy at the Hospital."
Katlyn could tell by the look on the turian's face that he was still reluctant to receiving outside help, but there was no way she was going to let that wound remain untreated. She didn't give him any more time to think about it and contacted Doctor Michel immediately.
Dr. Michel returned Katlyn's call quickly and she agreed to meet them at their apartment. She took care of the wound efficiently and both of them felt relieved to know it wouldn't cause any permanent disability.
Doctor Michel had been helping them since the first day they started chasing Cerberus, three years ago. She used to have a clinic on the Citadel back then and it was a lot easier for her to receive them at that clinic every time something went wrong on a mission. But now she was the medic in charge at Huerta Memorial Hospital and getting in contact with her was becoming a little more difficult.
"We should get rid of the stuff we found today. It will be dangerous if we stay in this apartment any longer." Said Tiberius once the doctor was gone.
Katlyn sat on the bed next to him and let go a little sigh. Unfortunately, he was right. They had been there for a week and security was starting to get heavier on the Citadel with that whole Reaper invasion thing.
"Yeah, you're right. Let's split up the stuff and sell it on the markets," Katlyn said feeling a little down, "Then we can plan our next destination."
"You don't need to worry about that," He said in a strangely optimistic tone, "I managed to get another contact inside the Alliance's forces. If they discover a new Cerberus's facility, they will let us know."
Katlyn shot Tiberius a surprised look and then smiled, feeling satisfied with his answer. It was useless to interrogate the soldiers they had killed in the facilities, so knowing that the turian managed to get information from the Alliance again was definitely good news. She felt a surge of energy and she stood up quickly to start organizing their stuff and get moving.
"Let's move, then." Katlyn said in high spirits.
-o-
"He's getting away!" Katlyn screamed while she and Tiberius ran towards the shuttle. The path was filled with Cerberus soldiers trying to prevent their reaching it. Tiberius threw a grenade and killed some of them quickly, an impulsive decision made in the heat of the moment.
Their target was already leaving the facility and just when they were about to get to their transport, it exploded. She stared at it and then looked at the Cerberus bastard who had fired the missile.
"Shit!" Katlyn exclaimed as she took her sniper rifle out and shot the offending enemy soldier between his eyes. The shot was good, but the situation was not improved by much.
"Damn it!" Tiberius angrily screamed. He started fighting the soldiers who still defended the facility. He was angry and disappointed. How could he have allowed his target to escape? They had been so close this time.
Katlyn and Tiberius hoped that at some point the facility would finally start running out of Cerberus soldiers to defend it. The woman was out of breath and she was almost out of ammo. More soldiers would definitely be a bad prospect for them, especially when their only escape route was the shuttle that Cerberus took down. Katlyn and Tiberius had agreed to stop attacking Cerberus facilities to look for information some time ago, but they decided to try one last time because they honestly believed that they had him that time. It was frustrating.
When Katlyn and Tiberius were certain that there were no enemies left, they stood on the landing pad momentarily, trying to catch their breath. Katlyn was the first to recover and attempt to think rationally again.
"We need to find a way to leave." She said, but the turian didn't seem like he was paying attention.
He had that angry look, probably lost in his thoughts. Katlyn decided to give him a minute and walked around a little, trying to find an alternative. However just as she was starting to explore, another shuttle arrived.
"Tiberius, move!" She screamed, but there was still no response. She ran to him and grabbed his arm to move him into cover, finally getting a reaction from him. He scoured the landing pad with his eyes and after obviously not seeing as far as he would have liked, he grabbed the woman's sniper rifle to take a look through her scope.
"I think it's the Alliance. Though I have no idea why there is a turian and an asari on the squad." He informed, "We need to get out of here before they notice our presence."
"Sound suspicious" She asked trying to imagine another escape route, "Are you sure they're Alliance? I never heard of them sending another species on their missions."
"It's either that or Cerberus has managed to steal an Alliance vessel somehow." He muttered as he watched the asari pointing out the wreckage of the shuttle Katlyn and Tiberius had arrived on to the woman who looked to be her leader.
"Either way, we need to remain undetected." Katlyn advised.
"It's curious, though. I thought we were the only ones who stole stuff from the Alliance…" Tiberius groused.
"Shh!" Katlyn stage whispered, "One of them is coming."
Katlyn remained silent as Tiberius prepared his weapon. He could clearly see a red-haired human female carefully inspecting the perimeter . Her squad mates were nowhere to be seen now. Maybe the turian could use that chance to secure their freedom. The pseudo-Alliance commander was only a meter away from the crates when Tiberius decided to move. However, just before he could point his weapon at her, shivers went through his spine. He sensed somebody behind him.
"Not so fast!" He heard.
Tiberius could see Katlyn spinning quickly to point her gun directly at the stranger behind them.
"Put your weapons down!" the stranger commanded.
Tiberius was about to speak when the asari pointed her gun at his human friend.
Shit. They were outnumbered.
Tiberius looked at the woman beside him. Her gray eyes stared fiercely at the turian stranger whom she threatened. Her hands held her gun tightly. Tiberius knew she would not hesitate to kill if he gave her a reason. It was likely she would not shoot unless provoked, but Tiberius didn't want to tempt their luck. One false move and they could end up on the ground filled with bullet holes. He lowered Katlyn's sniper rifle slowly and the unknown commander did the same. Her features softened slightly as she regarded the woman and the turian.
"So I take it you're responsible for the house-cleaning." Said the unknown woman when she finally got closer to them. Katlyn turned around when she heard her voice. It was extremely familiar.
"Shepard?" She asked, a suprised grin of recognition brightening Katlyn's face, "I never thought I would see you here!"
Katlyn rose to her feet, all signs of hostility forgotten as she approached the commander. Shepard smiled back and called her squad mates off. Her squad mates, ever-trusting of their commander, lowered their weapons.
"Katlyn Toombs?" Said the commander with an enthusiastic smile, "I almost didn't recognize you. It seems like you finally managed to put some muscle onto that skinny body."
Shepard chuckled as she eyed Katlyn respectfully.
"Yeah, says the one who spent two years dead. Beating the odds, huh? Just like old times!" Katlyn said with a nostalgic smile.
Shepard realized she was talking about that incident on Akuze, but fortunately Tiberius intervened.
"So, Commander Shepard." He said trying to keep up with the conversation, "You work for the Alliance again?"
Katlyn noticed he was speaking with suspicion and so she hurried to interrupt.
"Oh, this is Tiberius Nazadus of the turian military" She introduced, trying to change the direction of the conversation. They had been receiving filtrated information from the Alliance for years, and the news about the human Commander being brought back to life by Cerberus wasn't something he could easily forget.
"I'm not turian military anymore, Toombs" He reminded, but the woman ignored him. She knew that little mention would distract him enough to drop the previous topic.
"This is Dr. T'Soni, and Garrus Vakarian" Said Shepard looking at her squad before talking again, "Toombs is an old friend from when I started my military career"
"I didn't know the Alliance had sent a second team to secure this place" Said Liara looking at the crushed shuttle they arrived on. A clear Alliance symbol was on the top.
"Well… We're not exactly an Alliance team" Explained Katlyn, "We came here on our own"
"I'm pretty sure the Alliance won't be very happy to know that someone has been stealing their resources in the middle of a war" Added this time Garrus, getting a severe look from the other turian.
"The Alliance keeps sending troops to places they can't secure. It's a total waste. We're making a better use of it"
"However, it doesn't seem like it is taking you anywhere in the shape it is now. I have enough room to get you two out of here" Offered the human Commander, turning over to leave, "C'mon, there's plenty of time to talk later".
Katlyn could identify the suspicion in her friend's eyes, but she knew he would go if she decided it. He trusted her enough to follow her judgment. Most of the time.
"Alright." She answered in the end, following the Commander.
When the five of them got back to the pickup point, Shepard called her pilot for extraction. He seemed confused due to the mission ending so soon. In only a few minutes, they were sitting on the transport and heading to the Normandy. It was a little tight with five on board, but they fit just fine.
Toombs looked at Tiberius. His amber eyes were totally fixed on the window, giving the impression of his being completely lost on his thoughts. She noticed, however, by the stiffness of his pallets and his body language that he was totally aware of everything around him.
Katlyn knew him. She was aware of his real thoughts about this entire situation. He didn't trust Shepard and Katlyn couldn't blame him for that. The Commander had been wholly rebuilt by Cerberus after all, and back then even Katlyn had her doubts. But she also knew the Commander and she was now more convinced than ever that the woman in front of her was Shepard. Even after all those years, she had barely changed.
Katlyn stared a few seconds at the white marks on her partner's face, which stood out clearly upon his dark orange colored skin and she couldn't help but recall the first time she met him. It had been under strange circumstances, but even in the middle of gunfire she took a moment to analyze him. She had never seen a color like that in a turian before, so it was noteworthy. Or that's what she used to tell herself, because she almost got shot in that moment for staying out of cover too long.
She smiled at the memory, getting back to reality when she realized they had finally arrived to the ship designated as the Normandy. Things would probably get a little more difficult from now on. Katlyn could tell Shepard had plenty of questions on her mind, and she was pretty sure that Tiberius wouldn't be too happy with the prospect of giving them private information. She would have to choose her words wisely.
"Back so soon, Lola?" Asked a brawny man when they exited the shuttle. His gaze passed to the newcomers.
"Just a little change of plans" Shepard answered, "James, the soldiers with me are Toombs and Nazadus."
She turned to Katlyn, "We're going back to the Citadel. We can drop you there when we arrive."
Toombs nodded.
"Alright. Thank you, Shepard." She answered and the Commander started walking towards the elevator.
"Feel free to look around. Come by my private cabin later if you would like to talk." Shepard said before disappearing into the elevator. Garrus Vakarian moved closer to the human they called James and Liara looked at them.
"Shepard's cabin is on the first floor and the kitchen on the third, in case you're hungry. If you need anything, just talk to the ship's AI, EDI. She will answer any questions you have." Liara said before she and Garrus left in the elevator as well.
Katlyn turned to Tiberius.
"I know you're not happy with this. But Shepard's fine." Katlyn said finally. She sat on a crate on the far side of the room. She was exhausted, they had been running for weeks and neither of them had had a good night of sleep for a long time.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Tiberius said, leaning against the wall. Katlyn could tell he was tired as well but he wouldn't let his guard down for any reason.
"You don't have to like her or her crew. But we could use this opportunity to finally rest for a couple of hours."
He looked at her, unconvinced.
"A little snack, at least? They have a turian, there's gotta be dextro food here!" Katlyn argued.
The turian finally resigned and breathed a little sigh. She wasn't going to let this go and he had learned how persistent she could be.
"Alright, you win." Tiberius relented.
"The kitchen is on the third floor." A synthetic voice intoned, surprising them a little.
"Great, so the AI stalks conversations on this ship too." He responded sarcastically.
"You don't have to be so grumpy. She's just trying to help." Katlyn said smiling a little, teasing the turian as they got in the elevator.
"She is a machine." He said accenting the first and the last words.
It had been some time since Katlyn allowed herself to mock around and it felt somehow relieving. She didn't know what they would get from all this, but she was hoping, for the first time in weeks, that this time things would change for good.