Mass Effect

Collected Fates

The first of the Adrian Shepard trilogy

Prologue - Arrival

"Thrusters... check. Navigation... check. Internal emissions sink engaged." Jeff 'Joker' Maoreau stated "All internal systems online. Drift... Just under 1500k." at this another presence on the bridge of the SSV Normandy, a Turian Spectre named Nihlus, piped up

"1500 is good." he replied nonchalantly, the distinctive flange that all Turians possessed when their voices went through the translator even more present than normal "Your captain will be pleased." and with that he turned about and left, leaving the newly arrived Adrian Shepard, Joker, and Lieutenant Kaiden Alenko on the bridge in an uneasy silence. One that was broken by the helmsman

"I hate that guy." he stated plainly, his face blank as he continued to monitor the piloting interface of the Normandy, which looked like a large, flat omni-tool screen. Kaiden managed to hear the pilot mumble "the other one even more." and promptly began to make an argument to it

"He gave you a compliment, so you hate him?" he countered swiftly, looking away briefly from the screen he was sat in front of, only to be rebuffed by Joker almost immediately

"You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way from the bathroom? That's good." he argued, as the Commander walked up silently behind him, back from a talk with one of the other crew members who worked on the bridge, and remained quietly behind him "I just jumped us halfway across the Galaxy, and hit a target the size of a pinhead, so that's incredible!" he remained unaware of the Commander shuffling behind him as he continued "Besides, Spectres are trouble. I don't like having them aboard call me paranoid." at this he realised his folly, and the sentinel leapt on it

"You're paranoid." Alenko reprimanded "The Council helped fund this project, they have a right to send someone to keep an eye on their investment." the pilot scoffed, yet never turned away from the piloting interface of the ship

"Yeah, that's the official story," he stated "Only an idiot believes the official story." at that moment both realised far too late that their Commander was situated right behind Joker

"That's enough." he said calmly, causing Joker to very hastily look away from the screen before resuming his work yet the words were backed with a direct order "You're soldiers, act like it!" Alenko remained unfazed, and only bobbed his head with a polite

"Sorry Commander." moments later the comms activated and the deep voice of Captain David Anderson called out

"Joker! Status report." Joker gave an inaudible sigh, and Alenko gave a very slight grin at whatever face the pilot was pulling and Shepard couldn't see

"Just cleared the mass relay, Captain." he reported "Stealth systems engaged. Everything looks solid."

"Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network." Anderson ordered "I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."

"Aye aye, Captain." Joker responded dutifully "Better brace yourself, sir, I think Nihlus is headed your way. No idea about the other Spectre." at that moment he once again realised his mistake as two sets of distinctive voices - both variations of the usual Turian flange - could be heard in the background of the Captains side of the comms

"They're already here, lieutenant." was the swift response "Tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the comm room for a debriefing." the comms shut off almost immediatly afterwards. Joker's eyes darted away from the screen for a moment

"You get that commander?" he asked, Shepard nodded

"Great. You piss off the Captain and now I'm going to pay for it." Joker shrugged and scoffed lightly as he walked away

"Ppf. Don't blame me, the Captain's always in a bad mood." once again he realised he'd left himself open to a quip from Alenko

"Only when he's talking to you, Joker."

Adrian Shepard continued back towards the comm room, ignoring the gossiping of the crew and the friendly bickering of Navigator Pressly and chief engineer Adams down at his workstation in engineering. Preferring to carry on with his job he quickly made his way towards the door of his destination and entered, barely surprised at the presence of the two Turians. What did surprise him was the lack of Captain Anderson. The first Turian, Nihlus, turned to face him

"Ah, Commander Shepard, I was hoping you'd get here first." Nihlus greeted, his tone positive as the other Turian merely continued to watch the still screen depicting Eden Prime's largest colony - the capital, Constant "It will give us a chance to talk." Shepard, meanwhile, was suspicious

"The Captain said he'd meet me here." he stated in a level voice, trying not to give away his suspicions. Nihlus chose to ignore them

"He's on his way." he informed him, before adopting a curious tone "I'm interested in this world we're going to - Eden Prime. I've heard its quite beautiful." Shepard decided to play along

"Most of my crew are from there." he told the Spectre "They say its a paradise." Nihlus nodded and turned back to the screen, where the other Spectre stood unmoving, just watching the screen

"Yes... a Paradise. Serene, tranquil, safe." he replied, in a tone of voice that said 'lets try to be friends, for the sake of morale' "Eden Prime has become a bit of a symbol for your people, hasn't it? Proof that Humanity can not only establish colonies across the galaxy, but also protect them... but how safe is it, really?" The question did not catch Adrian Shepard unprepared, and he leapt on it

"Are you trying to scare me, Spectre?" Nihlus hastily turned back to face the commander again, and the other Turian turned his head away from the screen, watching the two from the corner of his eye

"You're people are still newcomers, Shepard." Nihlus noted "The galaxy can be a very dangerous place. Is the Alliance truly ready for this?" it was that part that managed to catch Shepard unprepared, and his mind stumbled at it. Before he could ask a question about it Captain Anderson arrived

"I think its about time we told the Commander what's really going on." almost immediately Nihlus stepped out of the way and the second Turian walked towards them. Anderson tensed

"This mission is far more than a simple shakedown run." the second Turian stated

"I already figure that out" Shepard scoffed, though the second Turian chose to ignore it. Before he could continue Anderson interrupted

"We're making a covert pick-up on Eden Prime. That's why we needed the stealth systems operational." he explained. Immediately Shepard calmed down, taking on the usual respectful demeanour he had when speaking to the captain - who had effectively taught him everything he knew

"There must be a reason you didn't tell me about this, sir." Anderson could only shake his head

"This comes down from the top, Commander." he expounded "Information on a strictly need-to-know basis. A research team on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of beacon during an excavation, they confirmed it as Prothean." Shepard's eyes widened slightly at the mention of the ancient aliens

"I thought the Protheans vanished 50,000 years ago." he queried. Nihlus piped up again from beside the large view screen depicting Constant

"Their legacy still remains, the mass relays, the Citadel, our ship drives - its all based on Prothean technology." Anderson chose that moment to continue talking

"This is big Shepard. The last time Humanity made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward two hundred years." Anderson clarified "But Eden Prime doesn't have the facilities to handle the something like this. We need to bring the beacon back to the Citadel for proper study." once again Shepard was on the alert, and the other Turian chose this moment to speak

"Obviously, this discovery goes beyond mere human interests, Commander." he stressed "This discovery could affect every species in council space." just to test the waters, Shepard pressed harder on the Batarian rendition of humanity

"Why didn't we just keep the beacon to ourselves?" he contested, and Anderson caught onto it, nodded approvingly. Likewise the other Turian followed

"You humans do't have the best reputation." he answered "Some species see you as selfish. Too unpredictable and too independent Even dangerous." Anderson piped up once again

"Sharing that beacon wil improve our relations with the council." He justified "Plus they know more about the Protheans than we do." Nihlus stepped forward and fell in alongside the other Turian, who began to speak

"The beacon's not the only reason we're here, Shepard." Nihlus explained. Anderson nodded

"The council sent Spectre Arterius to evaluate you, Commander." at this Saren Arterius smiled, his mandibles extended in true greeting.


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