Dolphin-san: Hey everyone! Not too sure how good this is going to be. It's my first attempt at a Mass Effect story so please be gentle.
Chapter One
"Just one more I need to find, Garrus."
Commander Shepard's voice carried over the usual Citadel hubbub, as citizens and commuters alike wearily made their ways home. The artificial light shining down from the roof of the presidium, however, sometimes made you unaware of how late the hour was. Garrus glanced at the time stamp on his Omni-tool. 22:17. He sighed as he followed Shepard up yet another flight of stairs.
"Remind me again why we need to do this in person? Surely the Council can just send for these people and they'll come to us." Garrus' two-toned voice sounded as tired as he looked. Shepard turned to look at his best friend.
"Well they could, but I prefer to meet new crew mates face to face first. It would be really awkward if they came on to my ship, I didn't notice them for a while and then find out what an ass they are." The Turian smirked at this. "Meeting them gives me a chance to get to know them a little, and for them to know me. Besides, this is really just like, well, an interview if you like. I don't need to take this one, or the next. It's entirely my choice, that's why the Council didn't just send them to me. At least the one's I've already brought on board are alright, because if you're tired of it already, you should have seen the list of people the Council wanted me to talk to. Three pages long, and that was for each position."
Shepard laughed at Garrus' horrified face.
"But you only need to find a new cook now, right?" Garrus rolled his eyes. "Well that shouldn't be too hard, should it? Just need to find someone who can cook levo- and dextro-amino safe food. It'll be like, what is it you humans say? 'Finding a needle in a stack of straw'?"
"It's 'haystack', Garrus."
"Whatever. Still, I suppose I should be grateful as long as we get someone who knows what myself and Tali can actually eat, instead of one who depends on us to find it ourselves."
They rounded a corner, narrowly avoiding a collision with the legs of a Hanar, and into view came the storefront of a small café. It looked as though the shopkeepers were closing up. The younger of the two women was stacking boxes of some type of vegetable Shepard didn't recognise, while the older one was typing at a workstation. The description the Council's notes had given him of the chef was quite vague; merely listing that the woman he was looking for was human, dark haired, was highly skilled and worked in this café. Hoping that he was right, Shepard walked over to the older of the two and held out his hand.
"Hi there. Are you Ahlenso Mullen?"
The woman smiled at him, leaning forward to rest her arms on the desk between them. There was no way of denying that she was flirting with him.
"That depends entirely on why you're looking for her," she purred.
"Better watch yourself, Commander. Don't want to get into any trouble with Tali now, do you?" Garrus asked innocently. His eyes wandered over to the other girl, still focused on her task. She didn't think he'd noticed, but he had. That brief pause when her name was spoken.
"We're currently looking for a few new crew mates aboard my ship. The Council have recommended Ahlenso as a top chef with skills in cross-species cuisine." Shepard looked a little sheepish as he continued. "They just didn't provide me with a picture. You still haven't told me if you are her or not, by the way," he said, frowning.
The brunette in front of him smiled, showing off pearly white teeth. Shepard noticed one had a tiny diamond in it. Her staring was starting to annoy him a little bit. He was sure he felt eyes on his back too, just without the same kind of intensity as those on his front.
"Well, you say you're looking for a chef. One that works here. I'm the head chef of this establishment. I could be the one you're looking for." She leaned forward more, so that her cleavage was more prominent.
"Susan, would you please stop flashing your body about and get back to work? If you want this place to open next week you need to put in that order for those panshii roots and the otana sauce needs refilled as well."
Shepard turned to face the young girl he had walked past. She was still holding one of the boxes and was watching the other woman with something close to distain. The woman behind him, Susan, sighed, straightened up and turned back to her computer terminal.
"Panshii root is quite a delicacy on Palaven, you know," Garrus said to the young girl. He took in her appearance. She had black hair, the kind that shone blue in the light. She wore a long green apron over her jeans and plain white T-shirt. Her eyes, he noticed as she turned to face him, were piercing green. He suspected that she could be an apprentice of the chef.
"I know that. I also know that when prepared with certain spices, the chemical composure is slightly altered and can be eaten by any species." Garrus and Shepard stared at her. "I'm Ahlenso Mullen."
"You?" Shepard asked. "But you're so young. When the Council said you were experienced I thought you'd be, well, a little older." He knew that his cheeks had coloured slightly at being caught out.
"Experience doesn't mean age, you know. You just need to look at my boss to realise that," Ahlenso added in an undertone. Garrus, standing close enough to hear, had to cover his mouth to hide his smirk.
"Sorry. Anyway, like I said, I'm looking for a few new crewmates. I'm-"
"I know who you are, Commander Shepard. You get mentioned in the Academy textbooks quite a lot. And as for the cross-species cuisine, the Council was right. You won't find anyone better at creating meals that can be eaten by everyone. And anyone else who can has probably either learnt it from me or read one of my books."
"So why are you working here? For someone instead of opening your own place?" Garrus asked. Ahlenso shrugged.
"It just seemed easier. Since the battle against the Reapers ended and the Citadel was moved back in place, I just. . . didn't know what to do with myself really. I'd served my time in the marines, and I didn't have anywhere else to go. Then the Turian Councillor came to me with a proposition. He had heard that before I'd joined the marines I was a chef, one who had travelled around a lot and had bothered to learn things about the food of other species, unlike most of the other human's in the catering business. He had even read one of my books on the differences of levo- and amino-based foods and how with even only slight changes in their chemical structure with the addition of certain spices or special preparation they can become safe for those who would otherwise suffer a severe allergic reaction to the food."
"Well I can definitely see why you were at the top of the Council's list for my new chef," Shepard said, smiling. "There are a few members of my crew that have 'special dietary needs', and you seem to know what you're talking about." Ahlenso rolled her eyes slightly. She had seen how her words had gone over the head of the Commander. "Would you be interested in joining my crew? The Council and Alliance Navy have assigned us to do some deep space research." Shepard glanced sideways at the girl behind him. Ahlenso knew that she was listening to every word the Commander said, and that he was being smart for not mentioning more in front of her. "If you want any additional details, we could talk about them on board. That is, if you decided to join us."
Ahlenso was quiet for a minute. Her hand reached up and gently touched the thin rope that hung loosely round her neck and disappeared into her T-shirt. A necklace, Garrus thought to himself. She brought her eyes back up to meet Shepard's.
"Alright, Commander, I'll join you. Susan," she began addressing the other girl, "I've left you a list of ingredients and condiments that you still need to buy. All the recipes have been added to your list as well. You should find them easy to follow. And your accounts are up to date now, though I seriously suggest you get someone to take a look at them from now on. You were wasting so much money before. It's been good working here, and I hope you don't have a hard time replacing me." She said this with a smile.
Susan smiled back. "Of course it's going to be hard. You volunteered your free time to work here. Anyone else is going to expect to be paid."
Shepard and Garrus watched as the two girls shared a hug and, with an air of formality, Ahlenso handed the apron over to Susan. She looked over to Shepard as Ahlenso went to get her coat and bag from the back room. All former flirtation was gone from the serious face he was now presented with.
"You had better take care of her, Commander. That girl has dealt with enough already." Having said her piece, she went back to work with only a passing wave as Ahlenso walked out the door followed by the two men.
Dolphin-san: So what did you all think? This first chapter was more about introducing the character Ahlenso than anything else, but there's plenty of story brewing up in my head still to come! Well, review please. I'd like to know if anyone thinks I should continue.