A/N: Sorry for the really long wait, I had rewrite the entire chapter again a week ago, due to changing in how Nihlus survived. Still deciding whether to kill him off or not in the next chapters, but I would like him to stay alive – so please give your shout to our Turian friend if you want him to live more than a few chapters!
Special thanks goes to Wiggs Magee and Harold Genhi for being my beta readers so far and for helping to smooth this chapter out! Those guys are awesome! Without further due, I present. Chapter 1! A war of words.
"Nihlus, how did you survive?" I asked with uncertainty.
"You seem awfully surprised commander." Ow crap, I am not going to like this am I? I do not like that wicked grin that he's giving me "Turians are tougher than you think. And humans apparently, after what you experienced." He joked. My eyes tightened. His face suddenly became slightly more serious, "You broke radio silence. Defeated the Geth that almost erased the colony." My eyes shot open. "Destroyed the beacon in the process and convinced me to stall my progress long enough to see the true extent of Saren's betrayal." Continued Nihlus as Captain Anderson lost his composure, leaving his jaw slightly slacked and his eyes popping out of his head.
"Your wild accusations may have saved my life, but Saren is the Council's top agent. As respected as I am, my current source needs some better evidence to be able to mount a more successful accusation before the Council." Nihlus warned, pulling a finger into the air to show his seriousness.
"Where did your source come from?" Asked Nihlus, as he eyed me carefully and suspiciously, waiting for a response which seemed like it would take an age sat the time.
"Not here," I replied; he nodded.
"I suggest that everyone leave this room" he commanded. The Captain started to object, but he was cut off before he had said a word. "You may stay Captain Anderson. As I also have some questions for you " Ah crap, everyone's leaving me in a room with an angry Turian spectre, one who looks ready to kill – well at least I have Anderson with me
"I meant that the evidence is not on this ship." I added; my eyes locked with Turians, as I tried to deduce his next move, but his face hardened – suddenly changing the atmosphere from neutral to hostile.
"Now is not the time for games commander." He warned, his words were biting with venom.
"The evidence is on the Citadel," I explained, at those words, his eyes shot open and his glare grew worse.
"Spectre archives are off-limits to all but a few Spectres and the Council. You..." I cut the Turian off, before he could continue.
"Someone has obtained the evidence in a legal manner and recently; a Quarian to be precise."I said. A smirk appeared on my face as his face shifted slightly with shock, before becoming blank once again.
"And the Quarian's name is?" He asked, swirling a hand around in annoyance to the speed of the conversation. Me and my big mouth, actually my mouth is quite small, but that's not the case.
"She knows her own name. But she will be in great danger with such evidence, she will likely try to exchange such information for protection and be double crossed. The Citadel being the most useful location for both objectives" I stated, Nihlus nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Indeed she will, we shall report to the Council of our findings when we reach the Citadel and our mission shall continue." He said, satisfied with what I had told him.
Aboard the Reaper, Sovereign, a different mission was being discussed.
"Was the colony destroyed?" He inquired, as he sat upon his battle hardened battered face.
"No, the bombs were disarmed and the colony saved." Replied a monotone voice, as a well proportioned motherly, but cold figure walked beside the dangerous individual before her - keeping her composure for what she envisioned would happened next.
"And the beacon?" He demanded. His voice slightly hurried as his eyes darted around as if searching for the truth in the floors of the ship and his claws dug into the confines of his throne as if to prevent the ship escaping his grasp.
"Destroyed, but a human, Commander Shepard may have gotten to it first. There is also the mention of the Turian spectre, Nihlus, having survived as well. We traced their ship to the SSV Normandy, an Alliance stealth frigate, commanded by Captain Anderson." Informed the female figure.
The seated figure took to his initiative to destroy the surrounding objects with a snarl before finally coming face to face with the silent female, who remained calm; still and monotone as if devoid of life itself. "Find them and kill them!" Spat the enraged form as the glow beneath his skin emulated his anger.
Back on the Normandy, survival was at stake, but not my survival – well, not yet for now.
"We must find her, before they do!" I protested.
"Be as it may Commander, the Council decides what missions we do and do not pursue." Stated Nihlus, as he remained neutrally diplomatic throughout the discussion.
"Saren attacked a human colony! We must have a say in taking action against him!" Supported Captain Anderson – putting fist into hand to emphasise his point.
"How well connected is this Quarian?" Inquired Nihlus.
"I believe that she just started her pilgrimage, so not very I suppose." I replied, looking away from his eyes. They were making me nervous, as I feared that my face would reveal my unwillingness to reveal far more than I was willing to letting on.
"Do you keep constant contact and what evidence did she give you to convince you or Saren's betrayal?" He asked again. Oh crap, this was a difficult question – without lying of course, because I hated lying. Half truths were always much better for me and my conscience.
"We do not keep constant contact and she has recorded evidence" I said. Short, simple and I answered all his questions.
"And what was in the evidence?" He asked again, betraying none of the eagerness that was embedded inside of him.
"She kept it very close to her, she wanted protection and I will respect her wishes" I replied. Nihlus's face instantly turned to anger. "Then why didn't you take her with you, when you had the chance?" He questioned.
"Because we didn't meet face to face" I said, while trying to hide the smug that was building upon my face. Hell, we had never met before - damn I love it when I am winning in a game of half truths.
"But she showed the recording?" He asked.
"She wants protection first." I repeated once again to Nihlus.
"So how did she convince you?" He asked angrily. My facade started to crack and both men saw it.
"What matters is not how the Commander knew right now, what matters is finding what he found to convince him of Saren's betrayal." Intervened the Captain. I sighed inwardly, thank god for that, but it was not over.
On a distant planet, a room was filled with blood, bodies and very bad things. But an armour clad female figure stood amongst them, a gun pointed to a figure on the floor.
"Your research is over, Cerberus scum" she spat. Her eyes were blood shot and her body ravaged with marks under her hastily strung armour.
"Oh, but it won't, my death won't be the end of the research, our research is for the good of humanity. Your survival at the hand, claws, of the thresher maws gave birth to new goals, human goals. What you fail to see, is that Cerberus will continue its research and humanity will continue its domination over the stars.
"Then the rest of humanity will see it; see it for what it truly is. Sickening." She stated, before shooting the dying scientist.
Back on the Normandy however, the same description was given to a livelier subject. "
"Those monsters, they were sickening. I have never seen anything like it! My whole platoon, died or turned into mindless zombies." Spoke a distressed Chief Gunnery Ashley as the memories came flooding back.
"No one deserves such a fate, but it will end someday" Reassured Kaiden Alenko, as he tried to console the Gunnery Chief, while his mind travelled fleetingly back to his distant past. The day the Alliance liberated him.
"Speaking of which, it looks like the commander's conversation just ended, well almost." He continued, taking note of Captain Anderson and Nihlus who were still talking, as Ashley spun round at the mention of the commander.
Walking out of the medical bay gave me a headache, knowing that I had just narrowly avoided spilling a lot of future events within the mass effect universe that would have caused extreme suspicion around me – drawing attention from unwanted crowds, the Shadow Broker being one of them, as being an accurate fortune teller is a rare thing.
"Commander, are you alright?" Asked a worried Ashley. Relaxing her stance when I waved a hand away at protocol.
"I'm good chief, but how are you holding up?" I replied, anything to get the topic on anything else but me – after my interrogation at the claws of Nihlus.
"I'm coping commander, thank you and I am glad that you're okay. The crew could use some good news after what happened to Jenkins." She said, bowing her head in respect, as her eyes flickered between my face and chest.
"Jenkins is a valuable part of the crew" I replied autonomously, while trying to not look like a dazed man with a hangover.
"Part of me feels guilt over what happened, if you hadn't come to save me, I might not be here and Jenkins might not have been in critical condition."She confessed. My eye brows shot up again for the umpteenth time this day, or were it this hour. Williams seeing me in shock again, rushed to apologise "I'm sorry commander, I..." She stuttered, but I raised a hand to stop her barrage of apologies.
"You're a good soldier Ashley, you belong on the Normandy." I said. Her eyes twinkled at my respond and her body relaxed posture, releasing the tension that she had been holding throughout the conversation.
"That means a lot from you, I've never met anyone who was awarded the star of Terra." She stated, but I knew better and my mouth got the better of me.
"You mean that you've never met anyone met any with a Star of Terra, or anyone who looks as good as me?" I joked with a smirk on my face. Oh shit, I just chatted up Ashley, ah crap. However, Ashley remained silent, while blushing furiously as my grin widened.
"Jokes aside, how are you holding up?" I ask, as I try to salvage my dignity and the situation at hand. As soon as Ashley saw my more serious side, she jumped at the chance to respond, hoping to divert her blunder as I did.
"I've seen friends die before, it comes with being a marine. But to see my whole unit wiped out and you never get used to seeing dead civilians."She said. I grimaced slightly at the thought of seeing so much death. "But things would have been a lot worse if you hadn't showed up." She thanked, beaming eyes at me once again, as she recalled her saviour's efforts to keep her safe.
"You made a difference that day Williams, keep it up." I reply, trying to steer the conversation in a more professional manner.
"Thanks commander. I have to admit, I was a little worried about being assigned to the Normandy. It's nice when someone makes you feel welcomed" She thanked once again. The more I talk to Ashley, the more I like about her now, she's generally a nice and polite person – as opposed to the brash Ashley that I think I used to know in the team meetings during the game.
"I think you going to fit in here just fine Williams" I said, before hurriedly leaving the scene - afraid that my brain would produce another flirtatious quote that would put me in an uncomfortable, and not too professional, position.
"Glad you're okay commander. I hope Jenkins is alright." Said Pressly as I walked past him, deciding that I have some time, I walked over to him.
"Jenkins will pull through, he's a tough soldier. What's the state of the crew?" I asked.
"The crew is on edge after the Geth attack on Eden Prime, but apart from that everyone is relatively calm and collected. News of your recovery, as well as Jenkins will boost morale, but some of the crew's friends and family were on Eden Prime. – their state of mind will be occupied, but they will do their duty." He reported. Reassured by Pressly's confidence within the crew, I moved on.
As I walked down the aisle, heading towards the cockpit, I can't feel anything but amazed, at the many bright lights and holographic interfaces that I am seeing. It's like watching Ironman all over again, without the bad script of course. It also felt too quiet; the game always had music wherever you went. Here. Here, it just feels quiet, save the occasional banter.
As I approached Joker, my eyes suddenly catch the incoming sight of a mass relay.
"Good timing commander, I was just about to bring us into the Citadel" I cut Joker off, before he could continue.
"We're here already?" I asked, surprised at how close we were to the central hub of the galactic community.
"That's what happens when you recruit the best pilot in the fleet. Time flies by." He casually stated. "Time to see this tax payer money at work." He continued, as his fingers rapidly danced across the holographic board – making me feeling less sober than I felt.
"You mean now?" I asked jokingly
"For, now you watch the pilot. In fact, just watch the pilot. Because it's all the pilot's work, not the tax payer's money that makes this thing run smooth." He responded proudly.
As we approached the mass relay, its appearance became more majestic, more hypnotising and more sinister. I questioned myself, the challenges ahead and if I were ready for them; as I watched the mass relay draw nearer towards us, or so it seemed to be.
From darkness to dust in all, but a few seconds as the Normandy passed through the mass relay, lurching enough to send me tumbling slightly forward. Seriously, where were the handle bars on this ship – all spaceships need handle bars for zero-G emergencies.
It didn't take long for me to regain my composure, before losing it just as quickly as the Citadel came into view, gaining a snigger from behind and a smile as Kaiden and Ashley approached the cockpit.
"Look at the size of that ship!" Exclaimed an amazed Ashley as her eyes widen at the colossal form of the nearing ship.
"The Ascension, flagship of the Citadel fleet." Pronounced Kaiden, as his eyes moved from ship to ship that were guarding the Citadel from harm.
"Well, size isn't everything." Pointed out Joker.
"Why so touchy Joker?" Inquired Ashley, as she raised an eyebrow at him. I grinned and shook my head at their little argument - damn that woman, always with the sexually references.
"I'm just saying, you need firepower too." Answered Joker, in an innocent manner, but Ashley continued smiling.
Refusing the back down on the argument, sexual or not, she further examined the Ascension. "Look at that monster, its main gun could rip through the barriers of any ship within the Alliance fleet." Stated Ashley as her eyes became inseparable from the ship.
"Good thing it's on our side then." Commented Kaiden, his tone every bit as relieved as me.
Moments later, I braced myself for my first steps upon the death trap known as the Citadel.
"Time to move out team" I said, as I led Chief Williams and Sergeant Alenko towards the bay doors, walking towards to Captain Anderson and Nihlus as I did."
"A word, commander." Ordered Anderson. I walked to the Captain, while instructing the other two to stay put, slightly agitated at the Captain's words.
"The events witnessed upon Eden Prime must not be made public yet" Instructed Nihlus. Puzzled, I looked towards Captain Anderson for guidance.
"The council will want to discuss matters first, before taking action" Commented Anderson, his eyebrows betraying his eagerness to have Saren brought to trial and brought to justice.
"I will place my findings and report to the council first. You should wait in your embassy, until the council calls you." Instructed Nihlus, leaving us to arrange our transport to the embassy, as he went towards the lift.
My eyes were glued to what was beyond the glass of the rapid transport, as the beauty of the Citadel's inner circle captivated me. I smiled as I remembered Joker's memento, "Bring flowers or a nice steak okay? You wouldn't want me flying us the next cantina instead of our next mission would you?" He said.
We're here." Stated Captain Anderson, as I painfully attempted to pull my eyes away from the lush exterior of the Citadel's walkways for a few seconds.
It didn't take long, before I heard the voices of a familiar argument, as I waited with in the embassy.
"This is an outrage! The Council would step in if the Geth attacked a Turian colony." Blasted Udina.
Metres away from Udina's meeting, I started wandering if I would get through the impending adventure alive and whether I could really trust that I knew what was happening – now that Nihlus was alive.
It didn't take long, before Udina started debriefing me with his cold, sarcastic voice.
"Captain Anderson, I see you brought half your crew with you." Commented Udina in his usual cynical manner.
"Just the ground team from Eden Prime, in case you had any questions." Informed Anderson, his voice calm and reassuring.
"I have the mission reports, I assume their accurate?" He asked, folding his arms as if to brace for unpleasantries
"They are, sounds like you convinced the Council to give us an audience" Stated Anderson, his manner cutting straight to the chase.
"They were not happy about it, Saren is their top agent. They don't like him being accused of treason." Commented Udina, his face lined up for a perfect falcon punch.
"Saren is a threat to every human colony out there and it's not just us that he's after. It's the entire galaxy. He needs to be stopped. They must believe Nihlus." I said.
"Settle down commander, you've already done enough to prove your candidacy for the spectres. If you pursue it, the Council might think that you're in league with Saren, delaying Nihlus enough so that you ensured that only Saren retrieved the information from that beacon before it was destroyed." Warned Udina.
"The Council have Nihlus to listen to." Supported Anderson.
"Then we'd better hope that C-Sec investigation turns up evidence to support our accusations to back up his story in case his fails. Otherwise, the Council might use this as an excuse to keep you out of the spectres" Cautioned Udina, his eyebrows dipped as he thought his position as a Councillor.
"Come with me Captain, I want to go over a few things before the hearing. Shepard, you can meet us at the Citadel tower, top level. I'll make sure that you have clearance to get in." Instructed Udina, as he waved Captain Anderson forward – man that guy has some nerves talking to a war hero like that.
"And that's why I hate politicians."Added in Ashley. I chuckled at the comment and beckoned the group to follow me out of the room.
Not when I had taken a few steps from the embassy did my omni-tool beep, after a fiddle, it revealed a message that did nothing but shake me.
Nihlus here, you're in danger. We're being followed; assassins are probably positioned all over the Citadel. Get to the Citadel tower as quick as possible. I'll be waiting.
Not far outside the human embassy. A Drell in a long coat waited outside.
A/N: Please review. More reviews mean more motivation! More motivation means more chapters per week! You do want more chapters per week don't you?
Also, I am trying to stay away as much as possible from the Mass Effect game script and dialogue, please tell me if you think that I am straying too close to it.