They landed the shuttle outside the walls of the main settlement on Taurius prime. Kaidan was restless, disturbed by the fact that the girl he had fought so hard to protect on Jump Zero was on the receiving end of a Geth attack. Rahna. The girl he had alienated by killing the instructor that had broken her arm. Rahna. So it was that he ran ahead of the others, with no heed for his own safety, abandoning any attempt at stealth. Rahna would survive. She deserved to live. Of course, any concerns that John or Maria might have had were dispelled when his anger crumpled a colossus. His only thoughts were of Rahna.

Rahna blasted another Geth away, crushing it with her biotics. She couldn't keep this up much longer. Sooner or later, she would burn out from the sheer amount of energy she was using. Gathering herself, she prayed for a miracle.

Kaidan sent a Geth flying with a biotic push, turning it to metallic slush. Another one came at him, but he atomized it with his mind. The city was in sight. Rahna was close. Nothing else mattered. Nothing.

Rahna had stopped using her biotics for a time, but was now recharged and ready to go. As she stepped forth, however, she felt a biotic assault batter her defenses. An indoctrinated Asari swept down in front of her. "Care to dance?" "Always, you lying, traitorous bitch."

Kaidan swept through the ranks of Geth, his fury cutting them down. As he neared the centre of town, he saw Rahna being biotically lifted into the air by an indoctrinated Asari. Screaming in rage, he charged.

Rahna heard a voice, and then the pressure on her throat stopped. Another biotic, an Alliance marine by the looks of him, was picking the Asari up and throwing her what seemed like a hundred miles. He ran to her, taking her face in his hands. "Rahna, it's me, Kaidan. You're okay now. You're safe." He seemed to be trying to convince himself that she was safe, as well as her. "Kaidan?" She said hesitantly, "Kaidan Alenko?" Then she passed out.

She awoke to the sound of a concerned voice. "Will she be okay?"

"She's just tired. That amount of power... I'm shocked that she didn't just explode." She hauled herself onto her elbows. "Where am I?" Kaidan spoke. "The Normandy. This is Doctor Chakawas, and that's Liara T'soni." She saw the Asari in the corner, and scrambled back. "Hey, it's okay. She isn't going to pull a Darth Vader on you." "What?" She hadn't understood those star wars jokes on Jump Zero, and she didn't now. "You know, lift you up and choke you with her mind. That was what the other one was doing." She knew what he was doing. He was trying to distract her from what had happened in the city. It was almost working. Almost.

Doctor Chakawas left, and Liara said that she had a date with someone called Jacob. Alone with Kaidan, all she could think of was Vymnus' head snapping back, and how vulnerable she was right now. Could she beat Kaidan? At full strength, maybe, but at the moment he would take her apart. Suddenly, she realised she was thinking of him as an enemy. He had done nothing but protect her on Jump Zero. She felt ashamed. One fight, and now she trusted no one. "So...you're a marine now?"

"Yeah. I figured that if I was going to be dangerous and uncontrollable, I might as well do it professionally." She then brought up the one thing he had hoped he would never have to talk about with her. "Why did you lose control?"

"Do you want the truth?"

"Yes. Tell the truth, Alenko."

"I lost it when Vymnus hurt you."

"When he..."

"Broke your arm, I saw red. I had a bit of a schoolboy crush on you, to be honest. I stepped up to him, and the knife came out. And there you have it. The most I have ever admitted to anyone about that." Tears were pricking at the edges of his eyes. Suddenly she didn't see him as a killer, but as a good friend and a protector. She looked at him. "You really had a crush on me?" He smiled shyly. "Kinda. I guess. If that's not weird. Sorry. Maybe. Yes. Crap, I'm babbling like a dumbass aren't I? I feel like I am. Should I stop? I should stop." She shut him up with a kiss.

Kaidan led Rahna on her tour of the Normandy. Her kiss still burned on his lips. "And these are the crew quarters. That one is mine, and yours is over there." She took his hand. "Do you need to do anything in the next two hours?" "Unless the Reapers show up early, no." She guided him towards his quarters. "Well, let's have a more...in depth tour of your quarters." His jaw dropped slightly, and he followed.

John and Maria stood outside Kaidan's quarters. Slowly, Maria took out her wallet and handed over ten credits. "Ok, so you won this bet."