Preface: All you need to know
Craig Hugenault – during the Sovereign conflict, he is a 26-year old man, with a fairly built, well-maintained figure, standing at about 6 feet even. He wears a rather unique hairstyle, in that it is a Mohawk that is always combed over, and his voice is uncharacteristically deep, with a gravely undertone. If you see him in public, he is always wearing darkly tinted sunglasses. Something of note is that he is scarred rather profusely from his previous misadventures and the rigorous testing which was performed on him, and he is known to be ruthless. He is of genius-level intellect, and prefers an infiltrator's approach to combat. That being said, he possesses CQB skills that put most others to shame, including many forms of martial arts. As a final note, his eyes are unnatural, in that they are grey-green, with a slight undertone of a reddish-copper colour. In short, if you get into a staring contest with him, you'll lose.
John Shepard – he is the standard, Soldier-type, basic body Shepard, and he completely follows the Paragon pathway in life. However, despite all his losses on Mindoir and Akuze, his loss of his friend Craig weighs heavily on him. Often times, when talking about himself, he gets very distraught when you try to bring up his past with him, making him act irrational. As well, his inability to cope with his loss makes it rather difficult to build any sort of relationship, deep or otherwise.
HSA = Human Systems Alliance. Basically the U.N. of the future.
ATC, as used in the prologue = Air Traffic Control. A vital part of aviation in today's society, with an obvious relevance to the events of the future as well.
APC = Armoured Personnel Carrier. Anything like the Mako, which is a fast-moving, militarised vehicle, built for safely moving troops and sometimes civilians.
.45 ACP = .45 calibre Automatic Colt Pistol. A type of bullet, with an excellent capacity for Anti-Personnel use.
MRE = Meal, Ready to Eat. Your basic military-grade ration, used primarily by soldiers on the field.
C-SEC = Citadel Security force. This is the organisation responsible for policing the Citadel.
Haemochromatosis = A rare genetic disorder, which makes the blood unable to properly process Iron. Developed in Ireland during the great potato famine, anyone of Irish, Scottish or sometimes English decent is at risk. Prerequisites for the possible development of the disease is that your parents are both either affected or 'carriers', and it is also noteworthy that males are more susceptible than females.
Hemophilia = A rare genetic disorder, where your blood is unable to clot. This is the result of a genetic mutation in the DNA.
Geosynchronous orbit = the point where the distance from a large, heavy body in space counteracts the force of gravity, allowing an object to fly over it without falling.
... Before anyone asks, there is no blood or legal relation between Craig and John.
Finally, if you have any questions about the words or theories used/expanded upon in the story, please feel free to post a review, and also keep in mind that the Main character of this story is a very intelligent man... one that is incredibly knowledgeable and has a capacity for debate, rhetoric and verbosity that goes nearly unmatched in the M.E.A.U (mass effect alternate universe), as well as most of any of the Main characters on this site. Now, without further adieu, read the first chapter.