Title: The More Things Change...
Chapter 1: Rock Bottom
Adam Shepard couldn't move. He had regained consciousness a few minutes ago, only to discover that he was laying on his back with a heavy weight pressing down all over his armor stopping him from even twitching. His world was black and silent, the sensory deprivation only interrupted by pain receptors firing off in random parts of his body, reminding him that he had just fought a war in the closest thing to hell on earth that mankind could imagine. He slammed his head into the side of his helmet, jarring the circuitry enough to restore power to the optics and show nothing but rubble filling his vision. "This is not how I imagined the afterlife to turn out" he muttered to himself, closing his eyes and trying to recall how he even ended up there.
"You must choose!" the Starchild repeated, this time with growing impatience. Shepard glanced in his direction before returning his attention towards the 3 choices that had been presented to him from the AI behind the reapers. He already knew damn well that he was on a time limit; the space battle could be seen from multiple screens surrounding the room. Alliance ships fought the reapers tooth and nail, giving no quarter as they tried to buy as much time as possible for Shepard to activate the Crucible.
'If only they knew…' Shepard thought to himself as he drew his attention back to the dilemma in front of him. None of the choices given were worth considering in his eyes. The destruction route would sacrifice EDI, the Geth, and any other synthetic life in the galaxy. Adam refused to consider sacrificing a whole race just for the survival of another. The domination route would just use his body and mind to create a new AI with a "better understanding" of organics. There was no guarantee that this whole process wouldn't just start all over again if the reapers were left intact. They synthesis route was the most dangerous one in that it looked like a route for harmony, forcing both organics and synthetics into a sort of hybrid existence, creating understanding through everyone being similar. Shepard couldn't bring himself to do it though since no one was given a choice, as well as the AI not even being able to guarantee that it would put an end to the conflicts. In the end, he refused to take advice from a flawed AI that had bastardized it's original mission in the first place.
'I'm only left with one real route, even if it isn't much of a choice…' Shepard reflected to himself as he turned towards the AI. The Starchild had turned away from him, observing the space battle as it waited for the organic to make up it's mind. It was unaware of Adam raising his pistol towards him until he heard the shot fired and felt his image disrupt. "So Be It!" echoed the voice of the AI through the huge room. Shepard could almost hear the anger and disappointment laced in it as the screens began to darken around him. Adam's final act of defiance was to raise the pistol and fire a single shot into the side of his head, denying the AI what ever its final words it had wanted to speak. After that, darkness was all he knew.
Adam was pulled back to consciousness as he felt the rubble shift around him. He almost had convinced himself that it was just a trick in his head, when he felt the weight shift off of his hand. Something tugged on his wrist, causing him to reflexively grip down on it. "Holy shit! Guys, we got a live one here! Go get some more help quickly!" Who ever had a hold of his hand, didn't let go as he felt more activity around him. The pressure on his suit gradually lessened until he was able to surge upwards, pulling himself loose. He noticed he was still in pitch black, though he now could identify people in enviro suits rushing around holding portable flashlights. "Hey buddy!," his attention was pulled back to his salarian rescuer. "What's your name and what are you doing here? We need to make a record of everyone we find while we perform search and rescue."
Shepard looked at him for a moment, not fully believing he was still in the real world. "My name is Adam," he mumbled. His suit speakers broadcast his response, along with the silence that followed. He couldn't concentrate on one thing for too long, his eyes constantly looking for danger that he was sure would pop up at any time.
The salarian gave Adam a commiserating look as he recorded the name down on his omnitool, before snapping a quick photo of Shepard to go along with it. 'The poor guy must still be shell shocked' he thought to himself as he wrapped up the interview and prepared to go back to work. "I can't stay with you" he said to the survivor. "Follow that trail of lights to reach the rescue point. We have food, water, shelter, and medical attention waiting for you there. Can you make it?" Shepard gave him a quick nod and hoisted himself up, before turning around to retrieve his weapons from the hole.
He stumbled off down the pathway, taking a moment to glance towards the sky. He was able to make out different cityscapes, some still with power, rotating overhead. This confirmed for him that he was still indeed on the Citadel. He could see many buildings on fire in the skyline, their flames lighting up the otherwise blackened ward that he was currently in. 'Something big must have knocked out the power' he thought to himself as he made his way towards the glow in the distance that signified safety. He arrived to what looked like a docking area that was overflowing with refugees. People ran too and fro searching for loved ones or trying to gain medical attention. Others just stood still, staring off into nothing, unable to cope with what they had just endured.
Adam slowly made his way through the panicked masses, finding a secluded spot behind a pillar that was only occupied by one other. A turian in a full set of familiar looking armor with a helmet on sat in the corner adjusting the sights on a viper sniper rifle. Shepard sat down across from him, leaning his head back against the wall and closing his eyes for a moment. "Know where a guy can get a bite to eat?" he asked out loud.
He heard the turian's activity come to a halt for a moment, before picking back up again as if dismissing him. The response that followed was barely audible over the background chaos. "Can you wait for a second? I'm in the middle of making some calibrations."
Shepard's breath hitched as his eyes flew open, his pulse racing. He lurched towards the turian, causing the alien to startle and fall away from him with a squawk. "Garrus?" he croaked, his throat still raw and parched. At the turian's reluctant nod, he continued. "Don't you recognize me? I can't believe you're still alive too. I didn't think any of us would make it out of that…" He trailed off realizing that his best friend was giving him a look reserved for strangers and potential threats, his talon inching towards his rifle that had fallen next to him. "I'm sorry" he said cautiously, his brain trying to figure out what was happening as he backtracked. "I've been unconscious for the last 24 hours or so and I think I'm seeing things that aren't real." He silently resolved to himself that he wouldn't volunteer up anymore information until he had a better handle on what was going on around him.
Garrus's suspicious look transformed to one of guarded sympathy as he examined the human more closely. The burn marks, dents, and dried blood on the human's strange body armor were becoming clearly visible as the silver tint caught the light. The human had obviously gone through hell recently and needed help before anything else. He watched as the human took off his helmet and massaged the bridge of his nose with his hand. Garrus wasn't an expert in human body language yet, but any officer worth his badge could identify someone nearing their breaking point. "Look, I can't say I've met you before" he offered up, "but let's get you to medical before you go any farther. I know a great doctor from the wards that an fix you up. She owes my sister for saving her life earlier with Commander Shepard." He offered a hand to the human, pulling him up once his offer was accepted. He made note of the exotic weapons carried by the man, having never seen anything like them before. "Follow me" he gestured with his head over his shoulder, before turning and walking towards the still functioning elevators, resigning himself to the long slow ride coming up.
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6 hours later, Shepard found himself alone in a private room at the back of Dr. Chloe Michel's clinic. It had been strange meeting the doctor for the first time… again. During the initial triage she had given him in the lobby, he had stayed silent except for giving the minimal amount of necessary medical information needed to build himself a patient file. This had allowed him to eavesdrop on the doctor and the officer's conversation, about how a female version of himself named Alexis, along with Garrus's sister Solana had saved Dr Michel from a mob boss's henchman in the past. Adam had gone semi-catatonic at that point, his mind stuck in overdrive trying to make sense of a universe turned on it's head. His unresponsiveness had alarmed the doctor, prompting her to have Garrus drag the man back to a room so she could monitor his health for the time being. The turian had left afterwards to go help out with the relief effort, but not before leaving Dr. Michael with an order to let him know before she released the strange man.
After calming down, Adam found himself with nothing to do as he was left alone with his thoughts. He spent the next hour surfing the extranet for anything he could find to try to help him understand what was going on. As near as he could tell, what ever happened with the Catalyst had thrown him backwards in time to directly after Saren and Sovereign's attack on the Citadel in 2183 CE. The fact that he ended up buried in a part of the destroyed Tayseri Ward, when his confrontation with the Catalyst had been on the Presidium was something he doubted he would ever be able to explain. This had apparently worked out for him though, since the first human spectre, Alexis Shepard, had fought the rogue specter Saren Arturius there with her crew at the same time he had appeared in the wards. Him showing up as well, at the same time as the battle would have lead to questions that he didn't even want to consider. As far as he could tell, the timeline had pretty much been the same for himself and his doppelganger, besides Garrus's sister Solana joining the mission instead of Garrus himself. Apparently his best friend had stayed in C-Sec this time and had been instrumental in fighting off the geth during the invasion.
Shepard had taken off his armor to do routine maintenance on it along with his weapons. He knew once the crisis was over, C-Sec would begin either confiscating weapons or forcing people to keep them in storage. He doubted that his old Spectre status would hold up since according to Alliance public records, he never existed in this timeline. This could be a major hindrance since he would have to establish a new identity for himself, but also a chance to start fresh that he never would have received in his old life. 'A crisis can be be either a danger, or an opportunity if handled correctly' he mused to himself as he began to inspect his chest plate. His Blood Dragon armor set had been a gift from Admiral Anderson to show his personal support when the Alliance wouldn't while Shepard had worked with Cerberus to fight the collectors. Adam knew that the armor was configured to work best for an adept, but he maintained that it still gave him enough perks as a vanguard to be worth while. He always thought that it was bad ass that the last thing an enemy saw was the blood dragon painted on his silver armor hurtling towards the enemy in a biotic charge.
Adam stopped his recollecting as he felt along the back of his armor's chest piece. He had felt something digging into his spine while he was pinned under the rubble, and was determined now to remove it. His fingers found the end of a piece of tape, prompting him to pull up on the adhesive strip. A long strip of duct tape pulled away from his armor, with what looked like a storage unit attached to it. Shepard pulled it loose, only to find the words play me written on it in writing that looked like chicken scratch. 'Only Joker's penmanship was that horrible' Adam reflected as he donned his helmet for secure audio and loaded the file onto his omnitool. He noticed as he was loading it, that his omnitool was different than his normal one. It looked way bulkier than his old one, more what he would see an engineer wear. His investigation was interrupted as the file began to autoplay. A tiny image of the Normandy's cockpit came into view, with Joker sitting in the pilot's chair and EDI standing behind him with her arms draped over his shoulders. Shepard raised an eyebrow in amusement. He had been unaware that the two's relationship had gone that far already. "Hey Shepard!" Joker gave a half wave to the camera as he spoke, before pushing a button off screen. "If you're watching this, then something must have gone wrong in the space battle and we didn't make it. Don't worry though, I promise I died 'doing what I love'" he said as his eyes trailed up to his robotic partner. Shepard grinned as he picked up the double meaning from his pilot.
"Jeff, you know I'm monitoring the video and can see your expressions right? Why did you look at me just now? Was it a hidden message to Shepard about sex?" Adam laughed as he saw his friend's embarrassment at the AI's lack of discretion. EDI turned back to the screen as the pilot tried to disappear into his seat. "Shepard, thank you for everything you have done to teach me to be human. Without your guidance, I might not have been given the chance to experience life with Jeff. Because of this, we have decided that we want to have a child and that you would be the perfect godfather. Please take a moment to consider our proposal."
Shepard sat there confused, unable to comprehend why they would ask that of him. He had made it clear to his crew that he didn't expect to be coming back alive from the final battle. It made no sense as to why they would possibly ask him something like this. As if he was able to read his commander's mind, Joker chose this to start speaking again. "It's like this commander. We know how dangerous the invasion of Earth will be. I just figure that if anyone is probably going to come out of it alive, It'll probably be you."
EDI jumped into the conversation at that point. "Jeff is correct Shepard. I have calculated that you have a 12.584% better chance of survival than anyone else on the crew."
"Thanks EDI" Joker said with an eyeroll, regaining the right to talk. "We decided that we would never have a better chance to ensure our 'kid'" he finger quoted, while giving EDI a smile, "would have a chance to survive then if they piggybacked with you. So while you were enjoying some alone time with 'you know who,' I snuck down to your locker to place this storage unit in your armor and switch out your omnitool with one that EDI programmed."
EDI smiled at the camera while holding up the omnitool similar to the one Shepard was using. "This is a custom made omnitool made from parts of my server core in the Normandy. It has the same battle capabilities as your old one, but a greatly enhanced memory core. We copied the contents of your old omnitool to the new one, then used the rest of the space for our special project." At this point, Joker and EDI linked hands as they stared at the recorder. "Shepard, that omnitool contains our daughter. I downloaded the algorithms I've created from my life experiences, while leaving out the memories themselves so she can form her own. I've also taken my observations of Jeff handling situations and turned them into equations as well, then adding them to our daughter. She truly is a mix of both of us."
Adam had to wipe at his eyes to clear them up. He wasn't prone to emotional outbursts, but it was eating at him seeing the last words of two of his good friends. He glanced down at his omnitool, unable to fully comprehend the wonder contained inside of it. EDI continued on with her explanation, pressed for time to finish before the final offensive was to begin. "We have decided to name her Eve, as she is truly the first of her kind, and hopefully will be the mother to more like her later on. When you are ready, go to the base code of the omnitool and type 'Adam awakens Eve' to awaken her. Please treat her as well as you have treated me."
Joker smiled at the camera for a moment before his face became solemn. Commander, it's been a great ride, and I can't thank you enough for trusting me to take you there safely. Please look after my kid, and God help you if she actually turns out like me." He laughed for a moment, before looking up at EDI, who nodded to him before reaching forwards to the camera. Shepard gave a sad smile to himself as he watched the image fade to black. He stowed the storage unit in a pocket in his armor, determined to keep a momento of at least two of his friends.
Shepard opened up his omnitool before burrowing down to the base code. He noticed that Joker had also given him a small database of photos and vids of his crew, as well as a complete digital collection of Fornax which had a firewall wrapped so tightly around it that it could have come only from EDI. Reaching the input screen, Adam paused, before taking a deep breath and typing in the activation code. The omnitool went black before rebooting itself and displaying a loading bar that slowly crawled up to 100% complete. Instead of forming the basic keyboard and screen combo standardly used though, the holograph formed into silhouette of a human. The body was made up of lines of orange code, showing the basic female human body type, but without any defining characteristics or facial features beyond a set of eyes.
Shepard stared at the figure, not making a sound or moving a muscle. The figure simply stared back at him, content to observe the human in front of her as well as her surroundings. What felt like hours to Adam passed by before the AI blinked and turned her head towards him. She waved its hand at him before a text line popped up above her head. Greetings! I'm Eve. What's your name? Alex smiled to his new friend, already feeling a sense of deja vu from when he had met EDI for the first time. "Hello Eve, it's nice to finally meet you. My name is Adam Shepard and I was a good friend to both your mother and father." The figure nodded her head to show she had heard him. Acknowledged. You have the designation as godfather My mother left instructions that I was to stay with you if she and father were unavailable. Can you please let me know what their location and status is? Shepard felt his breath hitch as he considered how to break the horrible news to Eve. Opting for the full truth instead of a watered down version, he steeled himself. "I'm sorry Eve, but Jeff and EDI aren't around any more. I lost track of them in a war we just finished fighting in, and it looks like were the only ones left."
The silhouette looked down in contemplation for a moment before messaging again. I'm sorry to hear about their demise. I never had a chance to get to know them. Adam perked up, realizing he had a chance to help out his new god daughter. "I know I can't replace them, but I'd be happy to tell you of my experiences with them over the years. Your mother did also mention that she used most of her code to create your own, while adding in some minor changes to reflect your father's qwirks." Eve gave a tiny jump on the screen before calming down and standing back up straight with her hands behind her back. That would be acceptable. I would like to hear about them. Shepard grinned internally as the AI tried to act like a calm adult, even when it couldn't hold in some of its emotions. He guessed that was the beginning of Jeff's influence showing itself. "Is there a reason that you don't have a voice or body for yourself yet?" he asked. "I would have imagined that your mother would have included that in your programming." Eve froze for a moment, he lines of code flowing over her body at a faster rate before returning to normal a few seconds later. My mother has left instructions to observe the life around me and use it to build my own image. I can't promise how long it'll take but I'll let you know first when I have chosen who I wish to be. Adam could appreciate EDI's idea, remembering how hard the AI had worked to establish her own identity over the years. "That sounds like a plan to me but we need to lay out a few ground rules for the moment. I am in a location where I need to stay low key, so I'll need you to display a text to me if you have questions instead of having your avatar appear. These people were just attacked by rogue AIs and wouldn't hesitate to come after you if they found out about your existence. This also means that until we can get a private line to the extranet instead of the Council's, you need to simply read what is readily available instead of doing active searches. They are on the lookout for AIs in their network at the moment." Eve's avatar shrank back into his omnitool, allowing his standard screen to come online again. I understand. I'll let you know if I need anything.
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It was a few hours later when the doors to the room opened again, allowing in Dr Michel and Garrus. Shepard hopped down from the bed while shutting down his omnitool. He had managed his time to the utmost thanks to his military training and lifestyle. His armor and weapons were cleaned and assembled again, and he had used the remaining time to get an idea on what was happening in the galaxy and what his future plans would be. Shepard knew that his best chance at getting out of the Citadel without CSec on his ass was to keep his explanation as simple and as close to the truth as possible. With that thought, he prepared himself for the battle to come. "So Doc, how much longer do I have to live?" he asked with a lazy smile.
Dr. Michel gave him a small smirk back, which didn't go unnoticed by Detective Vakarian. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't like this human's interaction with someone who he had been developing a friendship with ever since the hostage situation earlier that year had brought them together. He took a step towards the Doctor, looming over her shoulder as he gave the human his best intimidating glare. It was to his satisfaction to see the human raise an eyebrow at him, before turning back to the doctor with a purely business expression; 'message received'. Dr Michel chose to ignore the obvious byplay between the two males. "You're on your way to a full recovery Adam. When I examined you earlier, all I found was extreme bruising and a heavy physical and mental exhaustion. It looks like you're well on your way to a full recovery." She paused, glancing at the detective before turning back to her patient. "On that note, I'd like to ask a few questions on the heavy cybernetic use inside of your body. I don't even recognize some of the technology there."
Shepard cut her off before she could get any deeper into her questioning. "I'm sorry Doc, but I honestly can't tell you anything about that."
"Can't, or won't?" growled Garrus. "It looks like at least half of those mods to your body aren't even legal in council space."
Shepard held his hands up as he slowly backed up to the bed and sat down on it again, trying to seem as non-threatening as possible. "Honestly I can't. I'm a bounty hunter out in the terminus, and a few years ago, I was spaced while in a space battle. I don't know the details but I came to on an operating table, with some egghead telling me that they were able to save my life but I would never be the same way I was before the accident. I ended up working for them as a guard, gopher, and problem solver for a little over a year to square up on the bill before I went back to my calling in life. They refused to tell me about their 'proprietary' technology used to save my life, so whatever you know is probably more than I do."
He watched Dr Michel make a note on her omnitool, before closing the screen. "Then that is all I have for you Adam. Leave me a contact and I'll forward you anything I discover from the scans I have of your modifications." Adam gave her a grateful nod as she turned to leave, before making sure he had gathered everything and following her towards the door.
He had barely crossed the threshold before a taloned hand had come down lightly on his shoulder. "You know it isn't that easy right?" Garrus asked him easily before passing him in the hallway and motioning for the human to follow him out of the clinic. "I had hoped it was" mumbled Adam as he walked with the cop towards a door at the far end of the open hallway. Shepard took a moment to stare out into the open window, able to see the different wards. One was completely dark, with patches of flames still springing up, yet business as usual still caried on where he was now. He remembered the location just as the doors opened, allowing a quiet dance music to enter into the hallway as he entered Flux. "I like using this place for interviews." Garrus explained as they walked towards the tables. "The owner regularly sweeps for listening devices, and I get to have a drink while on the clock." He and Adam shared a smirk as they ordered their drinks before heading to a corner table and grabbing their seats.
Adam couldn't help but notice that there still seemed to be an easy camaraderie between Garrus and himself, even though they had never met in this timeline. 'I guess somethings just transcend time and space' he reflected to himself as he settled into his seat with a sigh. "Ok Detective, what do you want to know?" he started out with a smile.
Garrus took a sip of his drink, before he opened his omnitool and put it on recorder mode, making sure that Adam could see him do it. "This isn't a investigation or anything. I can't find your face in the Citadel database, so we're just building you a quick profile. We can't have any unknowns here, especially after what just occurred. So let's just start with the name, occupation, and reason for being on the Citadel."
Adam leaned back, collecting his thoughts before he began speaking. "Well to start with, my name is Adam Shepard. No relation" he quickly added seeing the detective look up quickly. "I can't go anywhere without someone asking me if I'm related to the first human spectre. I'm a bounty hunter out in the terminus. It's pretty much the only way to bring in criminals out there, and I hate red tape too much to want to do it in council space." He noticed Garrus nodding to himself, happy to see that some of the same traits still existed in this timeline's version of his friend. "I lost most of my connections due to a bad job a few months back, and had come here to see if my last contact had anything for me. We were supposed to meet outside the opera house" he indicated towards the window at a particularly large fireball in the blackened ward in the distance. "Something tells me he probably didn't make it."
"Thank you for your time" Garrus said as he closed the omnitool. He leaned back, shotgunning the last of his drink before looking the human in his eyes. "So now that we're not being recorded anymore, tell me what made you want to be a bounty hunter. And for that matter, where the hell did you get guns and armor like that?"
Shepard blinked, amazed that he was having a "off the record" with the by the book cop he had thought he had known. "I guess there was bound to be some changes' he thought to himself. "I tried the joining the Alliance, but they wouldn't stand behind me when tough decisions had to be made so we parted ways. The Terminus just offers a freedom that I never had before" he reflected to himself, realizing just how true it actually was. "The weapons aren't that big a deal. It's the same concept as how I got my body modifications. Shit happens out there and you get exposed to all kinds of things that aren't legal in Council space. Still, being able to control your own life without everyone else ordering you around makes it all worth it." He leaned back with a smile, observing his counterpart. "Something tells me that you're more than a little interested yourself. What's wrong, the executor constantly on your ass?"
"More than you'd believe" Garrus mumbled to himself as he played with the ice in his glass. "So since this obviously didn't work out for you, what's your next plan?"
"I honestly don't know yet" Shepard admitted as he leaned back. "I'm starting from square one again with nothing but what I'm carrying. I'll probably end up catching a transport out to Omega to find some work. It's the best spot in the Terminus to plan your next move and make contacts. Should I keep an eye out for you in the future?"
Garrus stood up, uncomfortable with how the questioning had been turned back on him. He was made to reflect on alot of the things he found wanting in his life and career. "I'm not sure yet, but if I make that choice, I'll contact you. Thanks for your time." He shook hands with Shepard before leaving the club. Shepard leveraged himself out of his chair, intent on finding a hotel room for the night while he looked into booking passage off of the station.
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3 Months Later
Shepard fell backwards onto his couch, too tired to even bother taking off his armor. It had felt like one of the longest days of his life. His hand reached up to trace the fresh scar at the back of his neck, the flesh still somewhat tender after being inside a helmet. The head of Omega, Aria T'Loak had gifted him with the newest L5n biotic amp. This was a great improvement over the L4 variation that Miranda had installed into him back at his 'rebirth'. He was amazed that she had been able to get access to one considering they had just finished being developed for the Alliance military a few months ago. According to her though, it was a small price to pay for what she owed him.
He had saved Aria's daughter from a kidnapping less than a month after arriving at Omega. Adam had stumbled across a group of Blood Pack in mid fight, attempting to pacify the Asari Maiden who while putting a good fight, was still grossly out numbered. He had flown in with a biotic charge in the next second, followed with a shockwave to get himself some breathing room. As he stabbed the closest vorcha in the head with his omniblade, the maiden cast a vortex at the remaining Bloodpack, sucking up the krogan leader and the other 4 vorcha into the swirling vortex. Shepard pulled her around a corner before leaning back out and throwing a flare at the vortex. The explosion that resulted shook the hallway. Adam grinned as he watched a vorch's head come rolling down the hallway. Damn it felt good to put his vanguard training to use again. With the skills he had learned from Javick and Aria, he had been considered one of the most dangerous human biotics at the end of the war. He noticed the asari looked ill at the sight of the gore, making him realize that she was a relative newbie to combat. He wasn't able to hide his smile at the sight quick enough, earning him a scowl from the maiden.
He frowned as she turned and began walking off down the hallway with a word of thanks, only stopping to beckon him to follow before turning the corner. She led him directly to Afterlife, and was allowed in without any interaction with the bouncers. They walked through the bar, continuing to the back of the club where she had a quick conversation with the turian guard before continuing up the stairs to Aria. Shepard followed her up, only to be stopped by the batarian with the scanner again, who took his sweet time in checking every inch of his body. While the scan took place, he watched the maiden walk up to Aria and start talking. The Queen of Omega's face ran through a range of emotions, starting with surprised, then going to concerned, before changing to borderline rage. She quickly signaled one of her guards, who upon getting orders, ran out of the club at high speed followed by 5 other guards. Once that was done, she signaled to the batarian who immediately stopped Shepard's scan, allowing him up to the Queen. She gestured for him to sit down opposite of her before speaking. "It looks like I owe you my thanks human."
Shepard was confused. He had deliberately stayed out of anything having to do with Aria and her operations in Omega. "I'm not sure what for" he said, "I haven't done anything to or for you. Everyone know's the first rule in Omega..."
Aria smiled as she looked at the man in front of her, "Don't fuck with Aria." she finished for him. "You have no idea who that maiden was that you saved do you?"
Adam shook his head negatively. "I just saw someone in a bad situation and decided to step in. Besides" he smirked, "I fucking hate the Bloodpack."
Aria raised an eyebrow at the human's admission, before bringing the conversation back to business. "Be that as it may, you just saved my daughter." She noticed the look of shock on on the human, further reinforcing his claim of ignorance. "This is a debt that I intend on repaying in the future. What is it you want?"
"Honestly I don't need anything yet" Shepard admitted. "I'm still trying to get established here so if you have any bounty hunting work, I'll be happy to do it." Hey, it couldn't help to get his name out there.
Aria made a note on her omnitool, prompting his to light up with an incoming message. "Your first job is there" she indicated towards his omnitool. "Do it well, and more will come."
He stood up, aware that time was money for someone in her position. "Thank you for the opportunity. I'll be on my way."
He had made it halfway down the steps when her voice floated down to him. "Adam, my daughter also told me that you used an attack that sounds incredibly similar to one known to only a select few asari matriarchs. I'm curious to know how you learned it."
Shepard knew he had to tread on light ground, his answer could either help build the trust further, or destroy what he had already established. "I helped a matriarch that I respected save something she held incredibly dear to her. She trusted me enough afterwards to gift me with the knowledge with my promise that it would die with me."
Aria nodded as she leaned back into her couch, waving at the human to leave. She followed him with her eyes as he left through the front of the club. She could tell he was going to be a wild card in the future. She would be keeping an eye on him.
Shepard opened his eyes as he felt his omnitool vibrate, signaling that his goddaughter wanted to talk to him. Eve materialized in front of him, causing him to avert his eyes as he took a moment to collect himself. He cursed Joker again for including that Fornax download in his omnitool. Eve had hacked through the firewall on it, and used the images in it to craft her own image. She could have chosen any alien to base her form off of, from asari to turian, but in the end chose a human female with red shoulder length curls, in her 20s, with ridiculous proportions that he had never seen in real life, including Miranda. When asked why she chose it, Eve had simply repeated that she had used the examples her father had left her, along with browsing Shepard's extranet search history. Now every time she popped up on to talk, she struck a different pose just to get a rise out of him. Jeff's influence was becoming more and more prominent every day. This didn't take away from the fact that she offered some amazing insight that he would never have considered before. He always valued her opinion and tried to turn just about any situation he dealt with into a learning situation so she could understand why he did what he did as well as help her work out what her own choices would have been. It was a surreal experience since part of the time it felt like he was explaining things to a child who needed things spelled out, while the other part was like talking to a fellow adult who only needed a nudge in the right direction. Eve's chosen pose today was bending forwards with her arms tucked under her breasts, dressed in a tight t-shirt and stretch pants. "You know this isn't what most godfathers have to go through right" said Shepard.
"Most god daughters aren't AI" Eve returned at him as she took a more relaxed pose, having gotten the reaction she desired. She wasn't sure why, but it felt right being able to get a rise out of the most important person in her life. She had accessed her mother's files on relationship and gained a basic understanding of courting, but had decided that the information was lacking and she would figure it out from her own experiences. "I know you've been looking for a fresh start away from everything, but you do know that Alexis Shepard will eventually show up here. You also know Cerberus has already been putting out feelers to investigate you. Aria shielding you is the only reason they haven't contacted us directly. Staying here isn't a long term solution and you know it."
Shepard rolled his eyes as he was lectured by his AI. He swore she babied him at times. "I know it isn't. I was just waiting to see if Garrus would eventually show up. I had really hoped to reconnect to him."
Eve crossed her arms again, giving him a glare. "You need to let that go. We need to do what's right for you, not everyone else. That's part of what got you into so much trouble in the last timeline. You put the galaxy's needs before your own and sacrifices everything for it with everyone around you not only letting it happen, but encouraging it. That isn't happening again!." Shepard smiled inwardly. It was nice having someone care about his wellbeing. He hadn't experienced that much in his last life. His god daughter huffed to herself, blowing one of her bangs away from her eye. "Look, I found this invite out on the extranet. It was sent to a key group of people, but they were encouraged to tell their friends. Take a look at it, and I highly encourage you to attend the meeting."
She winked out, allowing Shepard's normal interface to pop back up. He opened his mail and clicked through to the most recent one from Eve. "The Andromeda Initiative..." he muttered to himself as he read up on the orientation newsletter.