A/N: So my prologue was a little disjointed, this is not how I normally write. I like to present the story in a clean sort of way so that's what I hope to continue doing. I did rate the story an M just because I honestly feel that 2nd base or higher is a tad too much for teens to be reading. Now I honestly don't know if I'll do anything smutty, because I don't know jack-diddly about Turian physiology.
Word Count: 1413
Normally Shepard had little patience for crime lords, they reminded her too much of home. There was something about Aria she liked though, charming for such a ruthless women. Shepard especially like the one rule of Omega, "Don't fuck with Aria."
"I like it, easy to remember."
"What can you tell me about Mordin Solus?"
"The Salarian doctor?" Aria leaned forward, going into detail on how Mordin was in the STG and just as likely to shoot you as to kill you.
Really this was the only information Shepard wanted, sure she could try and recruit Archangel, but the guy honestly sounded like an idiot. Not even five minutes after stepping onto Omega, Jane knew that there would never be any justice here. Still it didn't hurt to ask, right?
"What can you tell me about Archangel?"
"Why, you want to kill him too?"
"Excuse me?"
"Oh, I guess you haven't heard, Archangel has cause more than enough trouble for the local mercs. They've all banded together to take him out. Something of an amazing feat really, I didn't think they could do it."
"What exactly did he do?"
"Caused trouble in general, killed too many people and stopped too many illegal shipments. The mercs tracked him to his base and he's managed to hold out so far, won't last much longer though."
"Sounds like my kind of guy."
"You better move then, from what I've heard he's almost done."
Jane couldn't resist aiding someone in need, even if it was some naïve vigilante. He might be a hot-headed kind of problem later, but there was no way Shepard would stand idly by and let a good person die.
~*~
The mercs definitely did not like freelancers, but they had no problem unveiling every detail of their plan to her. A little recon work here, some sabotage there and suddenly this rescue was looking way too easy. Shepard just hoped Archangel wouldn't shoot her or her people before she could shoot a merc for him.
When they finally began the push, Jane stayed behind so that shooting these guys in the back would be a lot easier. Focusing Miranda and Jacob on the mercs who were just running around aimlessly, Jane used her biotics to take down the guys working on bombs. In no time, all the mercs were down and only Archangel was left.
~*~
Garrus had seen her just in time, another second and he would have shot the best human that ever lived. Hell, she was the best person and being human was just a minor detail. He remembered how when they met, Shepard had treated him like everyone else. He had to work to earn her trust and respect; she didn't with hold it or give it out.
He also remembered that damn Lieutenant, Kaiden Alenko. Just when Garrus realized he felt something, Alenko wormed his way into her life. The worst part was that she seemed happy, so he couldn't even really hate Alenko. All he could do was sit and watch with jealousy, wishing for the first time in his life that he was a different species.
She worked her way up to him; he gave her the best cover he could manage without getting killed himself. What was she doing here? Did she even know it was him she was protecting? What would he say?"
"Archangel?" yea that was her, no denying it now.
He shot the last freelancer, bought him some time and kept them safe. He was exhausted, but still managed to stand up.
~*~
Shepard watched as Archangel removed his helmet, and it was like a wake-up smack. She should've seen this coming. Garrus was the kind of guy to do something like this, but she had hoped he stuck with C-Sec. There were at least less chances of dying, but this made it look like he had a death wish. Still, she was glad as hell to see him.
Shepard ended up leaving Jacob with Garrus whenever she had to, that was pretty painful to do. He was her best friend, someone she had trusted completely and look at where he was now. It was unfair.
When the gunship came out of nowhere, she wasn't fast enough. He was down on the ground in a pool of his own blood. That right there was what did it, Tarok was going die and die ugly.
~*~
There was a lot of pain, but he still managed to watch her. She was clearly pissed; despite the circumstance Garrus felt a tug at his heart, at least she still cared about him. It would've been so easy to just to die right there and then. If he did that, he wouldn't be in pain anymore but he would miss her. He wouldn't be able to see her smile or laugh, wouldn't be able to make sure she didn't die this time around. That was enough; it was worth the pain to be her protector.
~*~
Shepard got Garrus back to the ship, into the med-bay, and now she had to wait.
"Commander, is pacing the briefing room really the best thing you could do?" Miranda asked sarcastically.
"Well, I have no medical experience and unlike Christ I can't heal people with my hands. So yes, this is the best I can do."
Miranda stood there for maybe a second more and then just gave a curt nod to signal her departure. Jacob, on the other hand, stuck around. It was clear he cared about her well-being, but Jane didn't have the patience for it. She was worried about her friend, about Kaiden, about the whole damn galaxy.
"Tough son of bitch didn't think he'd be up by now," Jacob's words brought Jane's eyes up to the door, to Garrus.
She started with amazement that he was alive, so much that she didn't notice Jacob leaving. Shepard wanted to give a hug, thank him for surviving so she could have a friend in this mess. She settled for crossing her arms and smiling.
"They won't give me a mirror, how bad is it?"
"Hell Garrus you were always ugly, slap some face paint on there and no one will ever notice," hopefully a joke will make everything less tense.
"Heh, oh don't make me laugh. My face is barely holding together as is. Honestly I'm more worried about you. Cerberus, Shepard? Don't you remember those sick experiments they were running?"
"I remember, that's why I'm going to need you. If I'm walking into the hell I need someone I can trust."
"You do realize this plan has me going into hell with you, right? Just like old times. Look if you need me I'll be working on the ships weapons," with a small mandible flare to mark his smile, Garrus leaves.
Jane feels the pang in heart, mainly from the fact that she wasn't fast enough. She almost lost him, like how she lost Ashley. She made a promise to be faster the next time and not let this ever happen again. She knew what it was like to die.
~*~
As Garrus made himself comfortable in the gunnery he let himself express how he felt. A rush of emotions came over him, making him sit on some crates. It was almost too much to see her again, after all this time. Hearing the news had been horrible, it nearly killed him. Well that was how it felt at least, but he couldn't express it to anyone.
Everyone had expected Alenko to mourn for a long time, but not him. Why would he mourn with the same passion, they were just friends. It was one of many reasons why Garrus left the Citadel, including something of a death wish. He was sick of the galaxy and the scum that got away with everything. He went to Omega to do the most good, knowing it would probably get him killed.
On Omega there was always the next mission, it kept his mind busy. The only time he felt the pain was just before falling asleep. Now that she was alive and back in his world, Garrus felt only confusion and nerves. A large part of him wanted to tell her how he felt, so if he lost her again at least she had known. There was just one problem, Alenko. As soon as she found him, he would join up and that would be that. Alenko loved her too, which guaranteed that he would follow Shepard to hell too, right?
A/N: So the way I'm writing this is that I'll play to a certain scene and then write the next chapter. I've got a good memory for words so it's pretty easy to remember dialogue, plus I take notes during game play. I know I've been doing some direct quotes from the game, but that will probably change starting with the next chapter. Basically I'm setting the ground work. Up next is Horizon, which you hopefully got from the sneak foreshadowing. (Hint: the last sentence x.x)
