Lost Souls

by Archer83

During the early months on their ongoing mission, the crew of the Enterprise D are the first to respond to a nearby distress signal. They arrive to find a battle scarred derelict ship and her surviving crew. A discovery that will have far reaching repercussions for both crews, and the entire galaxy.

2. Culture Shock

Chapter 2: Culture Shock

USS Enterprise, Sickbay

"If I have offended you in some way-" Data paused, quirking a curious eyebrow as La Forge lunged forward and grabbed at the terrified alien woman's arm just as the holographic device discharged.

If not for Geordi's desperate intervention, Tali's Overload pulse would have hit Data square in the chest. Instead, it wound up striking the ceiling, where the pulse momentarily shorted out the lights and interrupted power to sickbay. "Security! Data, get out of here now!" Geordi shouted as he and a determined Shepard tried to restrain the suited woman. The officer had a feeling he wouldn't have been quite as successful if not for the Commander's assistance. "What's the hell going on Shepard?! Why'd she try to kill Data?!"

Yar's hand immediately dropped to her phaser, only to find her holster empty as she noticed, much to her frustration, Joker aiming her own sidearm at her chest. "Sorry. Please don't move...or I'm gonna have to start pressing buttons." Jeff gave a nervous shrug, even as his hand remained steady. "It's my first raygun."

Tasha took one menacing step closer to the pilot, her icy glare boring into him. She could see it plain as day in the sarcastic man's olive eyes, he was no killer. "I'm going to find out exactly how brittle your bones really are before your treatment sets in if you don't hand over that phaser in the next three seconds."

The pilot's aim never wavered. Joker only gulped in response, seemingly accepting his fate after all this was over. "As tempting as that is blondie, I ain't letting my friends get zapped twice in one day."

Kara ignored the brewing disaster around her for the moment and grabbed the quarian by the sides of her helmeted head so they were eye to visor. "Tali'Zorah, stand down! That's an order!" Tali ceased fighting and jerked herself away from the redshirted officer, but thankfully remained still. Taking a breath, Shepard squeezed the girl's shoulder in an effort to calm her before turning to La Forge. "Long story, but let's just say we have a problem with most forms of synthetic life. They usually try to kill us. A lot."

A split second later two security teams burst through the door, pausing immediately as Yar gave them a slight shake of her head. All of Shepard's other present crew members were standing suspiciously close to the shocked medical staff. She knew better than to provoke a close quarters fight when there was still a chance it could be avoided.

"Commander, let me save them the trouble of scrapping that thing." Tali growled through her teeth as she openly glared at Data, as she implored anyone who would listen to realize the deadly threat in their midst. "In our galaxy's history, every form of synthetic life eventually gets the idea that they don't need their creators around anymore and slaughters them. I'd be doing you all a favor!"

Data glanced around the room with a slight look of confusion before addressing the quarian. "I can assure you with absolute certainty, I have absolutely no desire to 'slaughter' any of my crewmates."

"Yet." Tali growled, while Data continued quietly explaining as if she hadn't spoken.

Data nodded to her, addressing the woman as if she were an unruly child. "My creator, Doctor Noonian Soong, was very thorough in eliminating any such negative impulses in my programing when he constructed me. I am able to learn and adapt the more I interact with my fellow crew members aboard the Enterprise." Data patiently held up a hand, interrupting another rant from Tali before it could begin. "While it is true that I am capable of defending them and myself from harm, I would never take another life if it could be avoided in any way." Data finished his explanation with a curt nod, not approaching the frightened alien woman but maintaining his distance in the likely event he was forced to assist in subduing her.

Tali wasn't convinced as she turned to the others around them, her voice growing more desperate by the second at their apparent apathy. "Like I said, yet. This thing is just biding its time! You can't believe it, you can't trust it! What's wrong with all of you?!" Data seemed to frown in confusion, curious as to why he would provoke such a sorrowful plea from the young woman.

Shepard gently rubbed the distraught quarian's shoulder. She obviously knew why, but didn't feel right in discussing it then and there. "Tali. He tried to help us. He didn't attack us, even when we gave him good reason to." Shepard turned to the android for confirmation. "And he certainly would have disabled some of us while we were in the shuttle if he'd wanted to." Something about the android told her that he'd make a formidable enemy if they ever made the mistake of forcing his hand. Far more so than any geth anyway.

Data gave her another curt nod in reply. "That is correct. For the record, I did stun the one you refer to as Urdnot Wrex after you lost consciousness Commander. Three times to be exact."

"Can I rip the pale talking geth apart now Shepard?" Wrex muttered as he cracked his massive knuckles and stepped closer to the gold shirted android.

"That's enough! You're all going to the brig. If you resist, we'll be forced to-" Yar's bright blues eyes widened in anger as she heard a beep next to her and turned to glare at Jeff.

"Huh. So that one changes the setting...I mean, my finger slipped." Before Tasha could lunge at the man, he moved a finger over the phaser's firing stud. "Probably means the red one is the trigger huh?"

Tasha looked ready to beat the pilot to death with her bare hands. "You arrogant, sarcastic little-"

"Lt. Yar, I would strongly advise against antagonizing our guests further." Yar and Moreau stared at Data as if he had grown a second head while he returned his attention to Tali. "Ms. Vas Normandy, as for your mistaken assumption that I am a danger to you, I believe Lt. Worf could assist in discouraging your highly irrational feelings. Humans often had the same misconception about the Klingon race upon first meeting them. Unfortunately, this played a role in the sporadic conflicts that ensued between the Federation and the Klingon Empire in the approximate two centuries that followed."

If not for Shepard's restraining hand on her shoulder, Tali might have been tempted to take another shot at the artificial officer. "Irrational feelings?! There's nothing irrational about my hatred for synthetics, not after what they did to my people!"

"As I do not know the particulars of whatever most disagreeable event involving other artificial life forms occurred, I can only offer you my assurance that you have nothing to fear from me." Data took a moment to glance at the slightly scorched ceiling before continuing as if nothing had happened. "I am curious as to the nature of the energy disturbance several of your crewmates are generating. If I am not mistaken, my sensors indicate that Commander Shepard, Urdnot Wrex, Lieutenant Alenko, and Doctor T'Soni are all generating small amounts of this same type of unknown energy. I would posit that this is the cause of the glowing energy fields displayed by the Lieutenant and Urdnot Wrex."

"Well there goes the element of surprise." Kaidan muttered with a dark chuckle, but anyone within earshot could clearly tell he was only half joking. At Data's curious look, Kaidan looked to Shepard, who only shrugged.

"I can assure you Lieutenant, you never possessed it in the first place. Our sensors are reliably accurate down to the subatomic level." Data helpfully offered as the rest of his crewmates warily observed the standoff around them.

Not exactly confident that Tali was going to refrain from trying to fry the android again, Shepard gently removed her omni-tool. Ignoring the look of betrayal she knew was being directed at her from behind that tinted visor, Kara firmly sat the young quarian on a nearby bed. "If you ever trusted me Tali, trust me now." She whispered, and Tali reluctantly nodded her head in acceptance. It was enough for her as she squeezed Tali's shoulder again in silent thanks. Shepard was quick to change the subject away from her engineer's attempt to murder one of Captain Picard's crew while arguing Data's point as she kept herself between Tali and the self described android, just in case. "Trust me, you might know about the existence of our ability to manipulate dark energy, but that's a far cry from understanding what we can actually do with it."

All eyes in sickbay carefully watched as Shepard walked over to Joker, cautiously taking the phaser from his hand, and presenting it to Yar, grip first, as her snarky pilot started to sweat profusely. "Ah crap. Thanks for that Shepard, really." To his immense relief, one look at the blonde security officer's mildly stunned expression told him that she was too surprised by the Commander's actions to think of harming a hair on his head. At least for the moment.

A loud, concerned voice filled the infirmary a moment later making a nervous Jeff jump, much to Tasha's apparent satisfaction. "Riker to Security, report! Is anyone hurt?! I need to know what the hell is happening down there now!"

"We're all fine sir. Just a slight….misunderstanding is all." Yar muttered, still not taking her eyes off of the formerly shy and polite alien engineer.

"Is that so? I'll be down shortly to deal with our guests." Riker growled before cutting the comm link.

Jeff winced at the venom in the man's voice. "Wow. He sounds super pissed."

"You have no idea." Tasha quietly whispered.

Data meanwhile returned to his original line of thought after nodding his approval of Yar's efficient handling of the situation. "If I were to make an educated guess, I would hypothesize a person with your abilities could form protective barriers, create micro singularities and other disruptions in spacetime, and affect a subject's mass directly, making it easier to move the subject in question as you wish. I have extrapolated two hundred and fifty-seven specific examples if you would like to hear more."

Kaidan was the first to summarize their current predicament. "Yep, we're screwed." The biotic cast Data a curious glance, lightly rubbing at his forehead. "And does he always ignore everything going on around him like that?"

"He's certainly persistent, you gotta give him that." Shepard wasn't so easily dismayed as she grinned towards the highly sophisticated android. "As I said, you can analyze us all you want Data, but sapient ingenuity can still surprise you. Trust me, I know. I once Threw a batarian slaver out an open airlock before he could get a shot off. Never knew what hit him."

"Correction, two hundred and fifty-eight." More than a few people could swear there had been a flicker of amusement on the otherwise emotionless android's face.

"Let's not tell him about the creative uses one can apply while in the bedroom." Liara replied barely above a soft whisper, hoping her comment wasn't heard by the android.

She was mortified when he turned his gaze on her next. "I have already included many possible applications which can be safely used to enhance coitis, Doctor T'Soni. Do you wish to hear-"

"No! I mean, that's quite alright Data." Liara quickly and loudly interrupted in badly hidden mortified shame.

Data's mouth snapped shut before he finally replied. "I see. As you wish Doctor."

Shepard sighed and rubbed at her forehead this time before turning to the rest of her crew. They were hiding it, but they were just as shell shocked as she was. And despite Tali's desire to turn Data into a smoking pile of spare parts, she too was just as shaken up as the rest of them. "Is there...I know after that incident we should probably just be thankful you haven't thrown us into a brig by now, but is there any way we can just start over? It's pretty damn clear you people aren't a threat, and I promise to keep my people on their best behavior from now on."

"What are you gonna do, toss us out an airlock Shepard? You don't even know where the nearest one is." Wrex bellowed with a mocking laugh, until Liara handed Shepard a data pad that was.

"Hmm. Let's see...twenty-three meters close enough for you Wrex? Now sit down, shut the hell up, and let me think, before you really start piss me off."

"This is her calm?" Yar whispered towards Joker, who only grinned and nodded his head.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." The huge krogan grumbled. "My feet were tired anyway."

"Might I suggest that all of us get some much needed food and rest?" Karin chimed in, drawing the Normandy's crew collective gazes. "We've been running on fumes since we arrived. And I know how cranky you can be when you haven't slept Commander." While it had come out as a joke, Chakwas wasn't smiling. "And before any of you say a word, being 'stunned' doesn't count."

At that moment, the door to sick bay hissed open as Commander Riker shoved his way past the guards that had ran in five seconds ahead of him. "Alright, that's it Shepard. From now on you and your people will play nice with my people and be treated fairly, or I'd be just as happy to dump all of you in the brig for the rest of your hopefully short stay aboard this ship."

"Riker..." Shepard's defensive glare softened and she took a moment to choose her words carefully. Maybe using blunt honesty would serve her better than threatening Riker with the closest heavy and or pointy object she could get her hands on. "You know what, I wouldn't blame you in the slightest." Shepard finally replied as she glared at Tali, who had thankfully calmed down enough to look ashamed for her earlier outburst. Well, at least Shepard could tell she was clearly ashamed. "Don't worry, if my people cause any more trouble, I'll gladly stick my boot up their ass."

Riker was slightly taken aback by Shepard's calm demeanor, but he recovered quickly. "Well then...the Captain, despite my strongly worded objection, has authorized guest quarters for you and your people, as well as access to non essential areas of the ship. I'd stick to your quarters mostly if I were you."

"Tell Captain Picard that I deeply appreciate his generosity. And Riker?" Shepard took a step closer to the clean shaven XO, looking slightly abashed. "I don't know how, but I'm going to make up for all the bullshit I've managed to put you and your people through. You...happened to catch us on a very bad day."

"Just make sure it doesn't get any worse." Riker replied, his tone containing a measure of sympathy for their plight even if he was still angry for the trouble they had caused already. "I'm going to have to insist you and your people hand over any and all additional weapons Commander. That's not something I'm willing to negotiate on."

"Understandable." Kara said with a slight shrug before turning to the rest of her people. "Everyone, if you've got hidden weapons still on you, I want them in a pile on the deck next to me along with your omni-tools and your amps in the next two minutes." Shepard rolled her green eyes as Kaidan, Liara, Tali, Joker, and Wrex all shared less than subtle glances. "And no, this is not a 'I really want you to hold onto anything you can get away with' situation."

To show she wasn't screwing around, Shepard was the first to pull the omni-tool from her arm before going for the hidden knife in her right boot. It wasn't until she started for the amp in the back of her neck that Riker saw the first sign of hesitation.

At his raised eyebrow, she answered his unspoken question as she finally disengaged the amp and slowly pulled it free of its port. "To me, I might as well be removing a hand. It's a vital part of being a biotic."

"It'll be well taken care of, you have my word on that Commander." Riker said before he nodded his head towards Yar and her people to start collecting the crew's gear that they'd missed.

He personally collected the small 'amp' devices from Alenko, Liara, Wrex, and Shepard as her crew followed Shepard's lead and divested themselves of any possible weapons, before handing them to Yar for safe keeping. It wasn't until Yar got to Tali that Riker briefly wondered if they'd have enough storage as the young quarian kept turning her deceptively tight suit's pockets inside out, creating a pile almost half as big as the others combined.

The fact the massive krogan merely grumbled to himself as he had handed over his own amp and a bare bones omni-tool was a testament to Wrex's obvious loyalty to the Commander. Not exactly one to be easily startled, Will almost jumped back when Wrex held up a finger, reached into his right boot, and pulled out a holdout weapon that was almost as big as the human's arm. Riker was shocked when Shepard looked at the krogan in surprise, to which Wrex merely chuckled and scratched the back of his head in sheepish resignation.

"There, happy now Number One?" Shepard smirked at the man's astounded look as he took in the small arsenal the security teams were currently cataloging. Will opted not to openly notice as Shepard's eyes widened in realization a moment later. "Oh crap... Garrus. I swear to God, if he-"

Riker chuckled and held up a hand to stop her tirade before it could gain anymore steam, slapping at his comm badge. "Not a problem. Riker to Ensign Hernandez, I need you and you team to disarm Mr. Vakarian. Politely."

The amused chuckle on the other end was slightly unexpected. "No need sir. He already handed over an impressive collection of knives and various other weapons along with that holographic device they all seem to have on their arms. Personally, I think he was trying to impress his 'dinner date' Commander."

Shepard leaned in unnecessarily close and spoke into Riker's comm badge as he gave her a dubious stare. "Search him again. And then one more time just to be on the safe side. Trust me, you'll thank me later." 'Dinner date?' Riker silently mouthed, as Shepard held up her arms in exasperation. "It's Garrus, what can I say? He's harmless, Nurse Melein is probably the safest person on this entire ship right now."

"Right. I might need to have a talk with her about her...overzealous welcome. Being friendly is one thing, I just don't want to see her get hurt." Riker knew full well just how hypocritical he sounded to his own people right now, but they were at least professional enough not to call him out on his own rather overly friendly behavior when it came to members of the fairer sex in front of Shepard.

"And they say chivalry is dead." Chakwas snarked, delighted to see the hint of a blush on Riker's cheeks.

"All of this has been most fascinating, but if you don't mind, I think I'd like to see these guest quarters we were promised." Liara stated as she started for the doors.

"Oh, of course, if you'll all follow me?" Riker offered, as he straightened his uniform and gestured towards the door.

"Um, I wouldn't blame you for saying no, but, if the Lt. wouldn't mind, could I finish the tour?" Tali's crewmates looked at the suited woman with astonished expressions, even Wrex seemed mildly impressed. "Keelah, I'm sorry, I'll just shut up now."

La Forge sighed at the petite quarian girl, who couldn't quite bring herself to look him in the eye, and finally relented. "If you promise not to try and vaporize anymore of my friends, yes, I'd be happy to."

Tali nodded her head slowly and held up her hands to show she had no intention of doing anything rash again. "I couldn't even if I wanted to Lt. La Forge." She stated before a nervous chuckle escaped her.

"Oh, I think you'd be clever enough to think of something." La Forge offered her a grin, an obvious olive branch to try and get back on the right track with his fellow engineer.

"Perhaps I could be of assistance-" La Forge's cough was enough for Data to get the less than subtle point. Shepard frantically waving him off behind Tali's back was even less subtle. "Ah, I see. I believe I am needed on the Bridge, Geordi. Enjoy the remainder of your tour Ms. Vas Normandy." With that, Data headed towards the corridor, careful not to get too close to Tali on his way out.

"Why do I feel like a total bosh'tet all of a sudden?" Even Tali wasn't blind or arrogant enough not to notice the almost hurt look on the android's face when he had left sick bay. Even if it had been her imagination at work, the quarian couldn't help but wonder if she might have made a mistake before shaking her head in an effort to clear her thoughts.

"Don't worry about it, Data doesn't exactly hold a grudge, and I'm to willing give you another shot." The officer shrugged as he offered the girl his arm. "Wouldn't be much of a galaxy without second chances." La Forge grinned as Tali's bright eyes flicked away from his VISOR for the fifth time in the last hour. "You can ask me about it you know. I won't bite."

"Enough of this mushy crap. Where can I get some food and a decent bottle of ryncol?" Wrex grumbled as he hopped off of the biobed and started across the infirmary.

Will frowned as he paused mid step, obviously hoping to just get them in quarters and have one less headache to worry about. "If you insist, Ten Forward should have-"

"Got it."

Riker's frown deepened as Wrex headed for the door, utterly ignoring the four security officers following him. "Um, the computer can give you directions to-"

"Let me guess. Deck Ten, at the bow. I'm not a moron you shaven pyjack infant." Wrex grumbled on his way out with a wave over his shoulder.

Jeff took that moment to lean closer toward a disgusted looking Yar, the leer on his face probably not helping matters. "Sounds fun. Don't suppose I could buy you a drink?"

Tasha managed to loom over the hunched man, her blue eyes burning with a cold fire. "I would rather clean every lavatory on this ship with a sonic toothbrush."

"So...is that a yes or a no on the drinks thing?" When Yar put a hand on Jeff's shoulder and squeezed hard, Joker went still as a statue. "Definitely no, got it! Um….you can let me go now Touchy? Ow! Damn! Tasha, Tasha Whatever-Hell-Your-Name-Is!"

"That's Lieutenant Yar to you." With a barely audible hiss, Tasha yanked her hand away, leaving Jeff with a bruised but unbroken shoulder.

Kara chose that moment to open her mouth in an effort to defuse the tension between Joker and Tasha. "Anyone else wanna go join Wrex, maybe start a pool on how long it takes for him to throw something? Or someone." Shepard laughed at Riker's frown. "Don't worry, we'll work on your sense of humor, or lack there of Bab- Commander Riker."

"I was planning on taking a hot shower, eating a hot meal, and getting some much needed rest. Shepard...why don't you join me?" Liara asked, more like demanded, as she started to pull Shepard towards the door after her only stopping at a panel by the exit. "Computer, please direct me to the location of our guest quarters please."

"Work work work." Shepard chuckled even as she was yanked towards the door with Liara all but dragging her away. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I can handle this one on my own Riker."

"Very funny." William grunted in reply, having a pretty good idea what the woman had hinted at before she and the asari had disappeared, nodding to himself with a quiet whisper. "Lucky woman."

"Well, guess I know where I'm going. Hey Commander, does this place have a gym by chance?" Kaidan asked as he hopped off of the biobed and started towards the same panel Liara had used, prepared to ask for directions.

Riker was at his side a moment later, apparently not needed here. He needed to go back to the Bridge anyway, and the mildly crestfallen look on his face certainly didn't have anything to do with a woman who had had a gun to his head hours earlier continuing to walk all over him. "We have a number of fitness areas on this ship, but we also have a state of the art holodeck. I'm sure Lt. Yar would be happy to show you the way."

"Yeah, let's do that Alenko." Joker added, much to Tasha's blatant frustration.

"Please follow me gentlemen." She managed to get out past her grinding teeth.

"Could you stop trying to piss her off every chance you get?" Riker heard Kaidan grumble as he helped the pilot to his feet before they started to catch up with Tasha. "She seems like a good person Joker."

"Yeah, good at terrifying me." Jeff muttered back.

Kaidan stared down at the grinning man and glared at him in exasperation, not even bothering to lower his voice. "Then why are you joining us?"

"Seriously? Have you seen her?!" Joker exclaimed, a bit too loudly for Yar's taste, lightly touching her shoulder before jerking his hand away when her eyes looked about ready to sear his hand off at the stomp. "Kaidan, Tasha, Tasha, Kaidan, the most mind numbingly decent guy I know. Seriously, total bore fest. I'm way more interesting."

"Joker..." Kaidan muttered, feeling a migraine coming on already.

Joker shook his head in annoyance while still managing to keep both eyes on the shapely officer next to them. "Fine. But seriously Alenko, take a look at a woman sometime. Ya won't regret it. Probably."

"You do know I can hear both of you right?" Yar shot over her shoulder. "Even though I'm desperately trying not to."

Kaidan sighed heavily, having a feeling his day was about to get a lot longer. "Sorry ma'am...I'll apologize for him since he's not going to. Joker's just...well Joker."

"Hmm, I like a man with manners." Yar smirked at the flush in Alenko's cheeks as she took her time looking him up and down.

"What the shit Alenko?! I can't get her to stop scowling at me for two hours and you get a smile in five minutes?!" Joker quietly whispered to the taller man as they followed the shapely Lt. into what had to be an elevator. "It's official, my life sucks."

Ten-Forward

Twenty Minutes Later...

"You're an interesting fellow." Wrex looked up from his small glass of something that was supposed to be similar to ryncol, and narrowed his red eyes when his gaze fell on a strangely dressed older human woman. "Not the talkative type huh? You kinda remind me of Worf."

"Worf, you mean the bone headed whelp I've heard about?" Wrex asked with his usual lack of tact. "I owe him, shot me with one those puny children's toys you call a weapon."

"I'm gonna take a guess and say you're used to something with a little more kick." He didn't miss the way her gaze fell on his glass nor her accurate observation regarding his preferences towards weaponry. Without a word, she took his glass and replaced it with something far stronger before an already irritated Wrex could say a word. "Try this. A big fellow like you might appreciate something that bites back."

"It's green...and glowing." Wrex said after staring at his glass for a couple of seconds.

"My, aren't you the observant one. It's a little something from the Ficus sector. Try it, I think you'll like it." The older woman said with a nod of her head towards the glass.

With a grunt Wrex grabbed the glass and downed it in on shot. "Huh. Not bad I guess."

"Give it a second." She warned, and grinned when Wrex coughed when the drink hit his stomach. She knew better than most what happened when Firebrandy mixed with the contents of someone's stomach. It usually felt like a bomb had gone off, leaving the drinker stumbling away after one shot. "Another?"

"Why not?" Wrex said with a just noticeable grin pulling at his scarred, grizzled face.

"Mind if I join you?" The woman asked with a smirk, already having poured two more glasses of the odd brandy. "Name's Guinan."

"Urdnot Wrex. Most just call me Wrex." He shrugged since he didn't care one way or the other what she called him, tossing back the second glass and feeling the pleasant burn down his gullet.

"Nice to meet you Wrex." Guinan impressed the old krogan battlemaster as she downed her drink without so much as a grimace. "You know, you seem like the type that's seen his fair share of adventure."

"Funny. Was gonna say the same thing about you human. It's the eyes. You're an 'old soul' as your people say."

"Been around the galaxy a few times." Guinan admitted, leaving Wrex to unravel her cryptic response. "But I'm not that interesting. Not human either. But I'm sure you've seen a few things that would surprise an old woman like me."

"Huh. I thought you smelled wrong for a human." Wrex noted with a nod of his head.

The long lived bartender smiled. "I'm gonna try to take that as a compliment Wrex."

"Take it however you like." Wrex muttered, shrugging as Guinan poured him another drink.

Laughter from the far corner of the lounge caught their attention as Wrex looked over his massive humped shoulder with an annoyed huff. The sight of Garrus flirting with the infatuated female from their med bay was enough to make him roll his beady red eyes before turning back to his drink.

"He is quite the character, isn't he?" Guinan grinned at the pair, nodding her head towards Garrus. "I can see why Vanessa is so taken with him."

"She must have a thing for morons." Wrex grumbled to himself.

The bartender seemed to consider the less than generous opinion for a moment. "Hmm. Makes up for it with his charm though. First thing he did when they walked in here was offer to buy his chaperones a round of drinks." Guinan tilted her heads towards the trio at a nearby table who were keeping an eye on the turian while they quietly sipped their synthol.

"Good plan." Wrex nodded in admiration before downing another shot.

Guinan leaned over the bar, a conspiratorial smirk on her dark lips. "Plan?"

"Get your security escort drunk off their asses and then slip away. Or kill them. Either way works I guess." Wrex offered with a casual shrug of his massive shoulders.

"Aren't you the pessimistic one. I'd say that, right now, Garrus' only plan is to try and relax after a pretty stressful day." Guinan gestured towards the battered wreck of the Normandy outside the large forward view ports. Several tiny craft moved about the vessel like an angry swarm of bees, attempting to strengthen her hull so that the Enterprise could safely tow her to the nearest starbase. "You should try it some time. Some of my regulars even take a load off and grab a bar stool for instance."

"I'll stand. Besides, I'd probably crush your flimsy crap furniture anyway." Wrex grunted, but a tiny grin tugged at his scarred face.

Giving a melodic chuckle, Guinan poured the fellow 'old soul' another drink. "I like you Wrex, you're funny."

"If you say so human. 'Cuse me, gotta knock a righteous turian down a peg or ten." Wrex said as he started away.

Guinan stopped him from leaving the bar however when she spoke again, an amused smirk on her dark skinned face. "I get it, you're obviously good friends. Messing with each other is just how you show it. It's actually kind of-"

"Confusing?" Wrex offered with a frown. "Garrus is not my friend."

"Just keep telling yourself that big guy. And I was going to say cute. Almost like he's your little brother."

"He is not my brother, little or otherwise." Irritated, Wrex stopped leaning against the bar, and brought himself up to his full height. "And cute. Cute? I'm a krogan, not a clown. We don't do cute."

Wrex cocked an eye ridge as the woman gave an involuntary shudder. "Personally, I think clowns are terrifying. You're downright adorable in comparison Wrex." Guinan leaned towards the massive glaring krogan before pointing a finger at him. "Actually, you remind me alot of someone I used to know. Doctor Leonard McCoy. Man had a terrible bedside manner, but a heart of gold-pressed latinum."

Blanching at her comparison, a taloned hand slapped Wrex on the back before he could say a word. "Hey Wrex, making new friends already I see."

Glad for the interruption, the krogan didn't look over his shoulder as he addressed the turian. "What do you want Vakarian? Advice on how to properly satisfy a female maybe?"

"Nah. Got that covered buddy. Thanks anyway." Garrus threw a talon over his shoulder at the security escorts as he turned to Guinan. "Another round for my watchful friends over there, and what would you suggest for the lady?"

Guinan thought for a moment before raising a finger with a knowing grin. "Hmm...two Cardassian Sunrises it is."

"Whatever works." Garrus replied with as a grin appeared on his mandibled face.

"You tell the female human about that varren scale itch problem you've got yet?" Wrex muttered just loud enough to ensure that Garrus' 'date' heard him. Garrus sputtered into his glass and shot the krogan a withering glare for the blatant lie. "Figured she might want to know before you start testing your reach and her flexibility in her quarters."

Garrus' mandibles drooped in shock as he turned to find Vanessa standing right behind him. "He's joking. Trust me, we don't get scale itch. We have a little more class than some species I could name."

Vanessa took that moment to join the alien duo at the bar. "You can be completely honest with me. Do I have to take you back to sickbay and run another scan?" The nurse eyed Garrus closely, looking far more concerned and far less disgusted than Wrex would have preferred.

"NO! I mean, unless that's an invitation to play doctor…." Vanessa grinned at Garrus' proposal while the turian smirked at the disgusted krogan next to him.

Guinan meanwhile had since moved on to tend to another patron, a giant grin of her own at the playful banter she had overheard. Life aboard the Enterprise promised to be a bit more entertaining for a while if Wrex and Garrus were any indication. In her opinion, they were exactly what the Federation's flagship needed.

Guest Quarters, Deck 9

Shepard felt the breath knocked out of her lungs as Liara practically threw herself at the woman, smashing her into the closest bulkhead. "Whoa! Someone's awfully eager to please…"

"Oh? And what does my lovely Commander wish for?" Liara asked seductively, a predatory gleam in her bright blue eyes.

"Pretty much this, maybe just with a little less bruising." Shepard chuckled, even as she pressed her right hand against the middle of Liara's back.

"You'll survive Kara..." The asari stated before bringing her mouth crashing against the human woman's lips.

"No so sure about that." Shepard gasped as she hesitantly pulled away for air roughly thirty seconds later.

"This coming from a woman who took on a pack of krogan mercenaries, and won." Liara countered.

"Being around you is much more dangerous...not to mention strenuous." Shepard playfully winced as she made a show of stretching her arms over her head.

It was all Shepard could do not to satisfy the hunger in the young asari's eyes, wanting to make this moment last as long as possible. "You didn't complain when we were preparing for Illios. Or any of the nights since... I suppose we'll just have to work on improving your stamina my Commander."

"You got me there Liara. Passing out on you last time was sort of embarrassing." Melding with an asari for the first time was not something you forgot. Melding with an asari like Liara was even more memorable, especially since there was something more to them than simple physical attraction.

"And I don't recall complaining about it. You needed the rest. Goddess knows when you last slept Kara…." It was her turn to pull away as Liara gently ran her fingertips along the woman's cheek.

"Well, still impolite to fall asleep next to a beautiful naked woman..." Shepard whispered as she gently nuzzled Liara's neck before running her fingers across her head fringe. A small, quiet moan escaped the asari at the gentle caress across her scalp. "I've had time to read up on….asari physiology."

"I noticed. That explains….what you were doing at all hours of the night...watching those 'instructional' pronographic vids. I was starting to get jealous."

"You know me, I like to be prepared for anything." Just as she was about to reach the back of Liara's head, where there were a few nerve bundles just waiting to be touched, an annoying chime alerted them to someone wishing to enter. "You've gotta be kidding me. If that's their idea of a doorbell, I'm shooting the damn thing." Kara hissed, half tempted to grab her gun and do exactly that at that moment. She hardly eyed a stylish, heavy looking, vase instead when her hand slapped against her thigh.

Liara wiggled her finger seductively. "Shepard... these people have been exceedingly generous to all of us. I don't think it's too much to ask that you try and be civil in return. If only for a few more minutes...then you can be as savage as you like..."

"Hey! I can be civil. I just don't like to be interrupted when I'm trying to entertain you." Kara grinned before reluctantly pulling away from the beautiful asari and straightening her clothes before she hit the door control.

Troi's knowing smirk wasn't helping Shepard's mood as she stared down the ship's counselor. "Hello...maybe I should come back later..."

"Oh no, it's alright. Liara was just reminding me to be kind to our saviors. She's right, but then again she usually is." Liara rolled her eyes at Shepard's sarcasm, but Kara smiled despite her irritation at having been interrupted. She had been honest about most of what she had said since Liara was right, even if Kara didn't want to admit it so easily.

"Well 'saviors' is a bit much. More like concerned and helpful people. Besides, you seem like a very ingenuitive woman Commander. I'm sure you would have thought of something if we hadn't come along when we did."

"Thanks, I guess."

"Yes, our Commander is most ingenious. As a matter of fact, Shepard was in the process of kicking the only inoperative escape pod when your vessel first arrived."

"Traitor." Liara giggled at Shepard's comment before she turned to Troi again. "I'm a marine, not an engineer, that's what I keep Tali around for. Give her time and a box of scraps and she can always find a way out of a sticky situation."

Troi grinned at the woman's slightly flushed cheeks. "You remind me of Will, I mean Commander Riker. He's also tends not to be very...technical minded at times."

"Sometimes the only solution is a straightforward one." Liara said as she nodded to Shepard with open admiration. "Other times, it takes someone to think their way around a problem."

Shepard's eyes twinkled as her own knowing grin appeared. "And Will huh? You guys must be a little more lax on the regs if everyone is on a first name basis around here..." It was Troi's turn to blush, not used to others reading her own facial expressions as easily as she could read theirs. "Don't worry, I'm not one to judge. You could certainly do worse than Baby Face. Be honest, the sex is great right?"

"Kara!" Liara growled, the woman she loved causing her to shake her head and facepalm yet again that day.

Ignoring the mortified asari, Troi cocked her head to the side and crossed her arms. "If I didn't know any better Commander, I'd hazard a guess and say you've had training in basic psychology or its equivalent."

"Not quite. I've always been good at reading people, that's all. It helped me pull a disparate crew together, to form something that no one thought could ever work as well as it has for us."

Nodding in understanding, Troi got to the point at hand. "Captain Picard asked me to check on you and your crew, to see how well all of you are settling in so far. I'd also like to provide my services as ship's counselor. With your permission of course, Commander."

"I don't see a problem with it." Kara said with a shrug. "This is usually the part where I say I'm fine, that you or your captain don't have to worry, but I get the feeling you wouldn't buy that. Besides, we've been through a lot in the past several hours. I'm not pigheaded enough yet to try and weasel out of being shrunk."

Much to Shepard's semi delighted shock, Liara promptly started backing Troi into the corridor, the petite archaeologist almost managing to look intimidating. "Thank you Counselor Troi, and thank the Captain for his concern when you see him again. But I would appreciate it if you kept everyone away for the next...few hours."

It took a great effort on Deanna's part not to laugh at the look on an embarrassed Shepard's face as a downright possessive Liara all but shoved the raven haired counselor out the door. "Something tells me I should go now." Troi stated just as the door to the guest quarters slammed in her face.

She stayed a moment, letting the rather intense feeling of their love, need, and almost desperate desire wash over her before she walked away. Despite what they had tried to say to the contrary, they weren't as alright as they had tried to appear. She'd pass the asari's request along, give them their time to try and come to terms in their own way, but she'd also recommend to Picard that she be allowed to try and help them in her own unique way. That was what she was onboard the Enterprise for after all, to provide emotional support and direction to those that had lost their way.

"You got kicked out I take it?" Troi turned and smiled warmly at Tali, sans Geordi. The two guards on her tail were trying their best not to smirk, having seen the whole incident. At her nod, the quarian chuckled and started towards the closest turbolift. "That happened a lot on the Normandy. Don't take it personally. Nobody can bother those two when they want to be alone, short of someone attacking us anyway."

"They truly love each other." Troi didn't need her empathic abilities to see that for herself. The way they looked at each other was the first of many dead giveaways that she had observed.

"Yeah they do. But that tends to happen when you constantly face impossible odds and tomorrow could be your last day." Tali replied, and Troi couldn't help but sense something that felt close to jealousy emanating from the young quarian mechanic.

Before she could try and probe further, they were forced to make way for another group. "Ladies." Kaidan offered with a nod as he helped dragged a groaning Joker between himself and Lt. Yar.

Facepalming, Tali glared through her visor at the dripping wet trio as they trudged down the hall. "What did our sarcastic bosh'tet of a pilot manage to do now?"

"Ow! Watch the....everything!" Jeff muttered as he winced in pain with every step. "See if I go anywhere with you guys again. Almost preferred having Shepard try to rip my arm off."

"Took a little walk around a forest, their holographic tech is amazing!" Kaidan all but gushed before looking towards Joker. "Unfortunately, it proved a little too real for him and he slipped when we tried to cross a stream. He ended up taking an unexpected dip in the cold water and we had to go in after him."

"I might have forgotten to tell your talkative friend there was a loose rock in the stream." Tasha admitted with a mischievous gleam in her eyes. "It didn't help that he wasn't watching where he was going."

"Hey, I liked the view I had just fine." Joker declared with a shit eating grin, scanning the sopping wet Lt. from head to toe as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I bet." Tali said with an audible roll of her eyes. "So he was staring at your butt I take it Lt. Yar? No wonder he slipped."

Troi chose that moment to quietly whisper into the blonde security officer. "You pushed him in didn't you?"

There was a hint of more than amusement behind Yar's face, and it brought a subtle smirk to the counselor's lips. "I might have given him a little help, he needed to cool off." Tasha shamelessly admitted with a slight shrug.

"We can hear you, you know. And I love a woman that can't keep her hands off me." Not even Yar's icy glare could dispel the grin Joker was flashing her now.

An amused Troi glanced at Tasha before she locked her gaze on the limping pilot. "Normally I would encourage you to better control your impulsive emotions Lt, but in this case, I think it was clearly justified."

The look on Jeff's face made it clear Deanna's comment had deflated his oversized ego. "Ow. Even the hot shrink doesn't like me. There goes that awesome threesome idea."

With a sigh, Troi put a hand on the man's shoulder, careful not to apply too much pressure. "Any woman would be lucky to have you Mr. Moreau, provided you could lose some of your snark and try to act a little more mature ." Joker perked up at Deanna's words as Kaidan and Yar helped him back to sickbay.

"You realize you just gave his ego a giant boost right? Still, he is a good man, for a crazy bosh'tet." Tali stated, her visor covered eyes giving off their own share of amusement and respect for the pilot. "I wish he'd be more careful, but just try telling him that and see what happens."

Deanna's small smile disappeared as she regarded the quarian with renewed interest. "Be honest, how long has he used this sarcastic veneer to keep others from getting too close to him?" Feeling Tali's surprise and wariness, not to mention seeing her saucer sized eyes, Troi quickly explained. "He hides his true feelings well, almost as if he has had a great deal of practice doing so. On the outside at least."

"How could you possibly know that so quickly?" Tali asked, taking a nervous step back before she could stop herself.

She knew that question had been coming since the moment they had determined the Normandy's crew were apparently not of this galaxy, if their scans of the odd ship and crew were correct. So Deanna was prepared with the same answer she had given many others in the past. "I'm half betazoid, which means I am empathic. I can sense other people's feelings, no matter what species they are." Feeling the frightened emotions pouring off the girl, Deana was tempted to try and physically comfort her, but knew better. "Like the nervous panic and distrust you're experiencing right now. I could help you alleviate your chronic mild panic attacks if you like."

"Thanks but no thanks." Tali started away, but stopped and looked over her shoulder at the strange woman. "...I appreciate your offer, but there are few people I trust on this ship. But if you don't give me a reason otherwise, you might be one of them. One day."

It was a step in the right direction in the counselor's opinion. "I'll take that as a good sign then." Deanna told her with a confident nod as the quarian turned to look over her new quarters.

Troi hadn't made it five meters down the corridor before Tali was dashing back towards her, her grinning escorts in casual pursuit. "I-I think there's been a mistake." Wringing her lithe fingers yet again, Tali didn't seem to notice it this time, only stopping to gesture towards the quarters she must have mistakenly entered. "Sorry, could you point me toward my room? In the Flotilla, not even an admiral would be assigned these quarters! You could fit two families in one!"

Troi nodded to the younger woman, smiling as she pointed at the room Tali had just dashed out of. "They truly aren't that special Miss Zorah. They are standard fare for most of the Enterprise's guests and crew. And since some of the crew have brought their families with them, their accommodations need to be big enough to support more than one person comfortably. We do have smaller quarters aboard however. If you'd prefer, I can ask someone to move you to a smaller unit." Just the hint of a grin pulled at Troi's lips as a thought crossed her mind, quickly reviewing Tali's words. "You might even have to share one."

Deanna managed not to smirk as the alien girl stared at her from behind her visor for a good ten seconds. "Really?! Thank you! I mean- That would be more than sufficient." Tali was bobbing her head so fast Troi found herself mildly concerned her envirosuit helmet might fall off.

Crossing her arms, Deanna gave the fascinating woman a curious look. "If you don't mind me saying so, I'm surprised you haven't requested a sterile room for your private use. It wouldn't be any trouble, I assure you."

"I couldn't possi- I mean I appreciate the off- I'm rambling aren't I?" Taking a breath, Tali started wringing her hands, much to Troi's silent amusement, and immediately jerked her hands apart when she realized what she was doing. "I must look like a stupid bosh'tet right now."

Troi shook her head, flashing the quarian her most reassuring smile. "Not at all Miss Zorah."

The girl was quick to hold up a hand. "Tali….call me Tali. Miss Zorah was my mother. I'm not that old yet."

Making a mental note of Tali speaking of her mother in the past tense, Troi kept the cheery smile on her face, even if it couldn't quite reach her eyes. "Alright, Tali. Just speak with one of your ridiculously stoic guides, I'm sure they will be able to help you." Flicking her dark eyes towards the members of security, Troi smiled as the pair stood a little straighter. "I know you have no reason to trust us, but give our people a chance. You won't be disappointed, I promise."

"I'll try and keep an open mind." It was the closest Tali could get to what Deanna was asking of her. Deanna hadn't come out and said it, but there had been a none too subtle hint about the synthetic she had almost fried earlier she was sure.

"Good. I'm going to take a wild guess here and ask that you be assigned a roommate from engineering. Unless you'd rather ask one of your crew mates to join you?" Deanna asked with a quirked eyebrows and a gleam in her eyes. "Someone who shares your taste in food, perhaps?"

"Garr- I mean he- I- we're just fri- oh keelah. I'm going to go crawl into a hole now. A member of your engineering crew would be perfect."

"As you wish Tali. I'm sure Ensign Gomez wouldn't mind the company, she prefers having a roommate and her last one was just transferred off ship a week ago. I can arrange a meeting between you two." Deanna didn't hesitate to put a hand on the nervous but brilliant engineer's shoulder this time, and stopped her from running in mid stride. "It's okay to be afraid. To be uncertain. You've endured a lot just to make it this far. If you ever want to talk, I am always willing to listen Tali. I am immensely curious about you and your friends anyway, so even if it's just small talk, it'll be worth every second of my time."

"Thank you...thank you for everything." Troi nearly blushed at the grateful emotions bombarding her as Tali almost skipped over to her escorts who were all too happy to help her find the young Ensign. Deanna smiled warmly at the trio, having a feeling at least one of the Normandy's truly unique crew would be just fine here.

"I saw what you did there Counselor Troi." For once, Troi was taken by surprise when she spun on her heel and saw that Garrus Vakarian had left Ten Forward, and was apparently alone save for his own escort. The officer merely shrugged at her questioning look. "My date was nice and all, but Wrex ruined the mood. We made plans to go out again though, see what happened. Your computer told me to head here. Gotta say, this is one big ship. Not as big as a turian dreadnaught mind you."

Troi pretended to ignore the mandibled alien's intense stare. She figured he was going for tall, dark, and charming, like most of the emotionally insecure men she'd met over the course of her career. "Oh? Well I think you'll find Vannessa to be...very persistent at getting what she wants."

"Most doctors and their assistants that I've come across seem to have that in common. Doctor Chakwas is far more intimidating though." The tall mandibled alien seemed to be waiting for her to say something before giving a quiet sigh. "So, am I going to have to just say it?"

Deanna played dumb, but she knew exactly what he was hinting at. "I have no idea what you mean."

"Patient confidentiality notwithstanding, Tali is a good friend of mine Counselor. I appreciate what you did for her, really. She deserves better treatment than what she dealt with before she found her place on the Normandy. You probably aren't aware, but quarians...they aren't treated very kindly where we come from."

"I sensed that. I can also tell that from your less than positive feelings concerning her treatment that you're politely understating things." Troi admitted with a slight nod, her voice turning a bit more somber. "Tali has to be the first guest we ever had that is ecstatic at the thought of sharing spartan living quarters."

Garrus only nodded, understanding all too well why the quarian would be happy to share a room with anyone. "Quarians are a very close knit people Counselor. If you only knew what you've actually given her, you'd truly appreciate the enormous gift she sees your 'generosity' as. Trust me, all that space, even if it is considered spartan by your standards, is far more than she wants or needs."

"And what about you Mr. Vakarian? Any needs or wants that I can address for you?" Troi offered with a playful smirk.

Garrus had to take a moment as he rubbed the back of his neck in an effort to consider his next words. "I know Shepard won't ask, not without prompting anyway, but if you can ask the Captain to help arrange a service for the people we lost… I mean, I know we can't even give them a proper funeral, Shepard made sure to get everyone, and I mean everyone she could on the escape pods. She won't ask because she wouldn't want to inconvenience anyone, especially after that little standoff in the infirmary, and considering you were nice enough to save our lives in the first place-"

Troi stopped him mid stream. "Remembering those that have fallen is never an inconvenience on this ship Mr. Vakarian. I'm sure Captain Picard will be more than willing to let you use one of our private lounges for a memorial service."

"Um, of course. Thank you. I'm not sure what human burial rites pass for while we're in space, but Shepard will know I'm sure. She's clever like that." Garrus muttered, the closest any of the crew had ever seen him to getting emotional since coming aboard.

"You admire and respect her a great deal." Troi stated rather than asked.

"Please, call me Garrus. And you have no idea."

"You'd be surprised, Garrus."

Garrus surprised her slightly though when he pointed out what she had hinted at. "Half betazoid, I heard from Vanessa. Must be quite a handy trick with the work you do Counselor. You've made a lasting impression on me already."

"Your perpetual need to flirt with every woman you meet is almost as endearing as it is archaic." She countered, open amusement plain as day on her face as she cocked her head minutely to the side.

The turian chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck again. "Ow. Think you just shot my ego in the heart Counselor. But, for the record, I don't flirt with every woman I meet, I prefer to keep all of my talons attached. Like Shepard for instance. Probably helps that I don't have a death wish."

"Dr. T'Soni does seem like the jealous type to me, but very eager to make up for her lack of romantic experience." Deanna said with an amused flick of her eyes towards their shared quarters.

"Let me put it this way. Before she met us, Liara was a skilled archeologist. If I were to piss her off, I'd likely wind up buried in a forgotten tomb, mummified alive, and never seen from again until someone stumbled across my dried up remains. Not something I'd want to put into practice."

Deanna laughed lightly at the turian, who she sensed, despite his words to the contrary, trusted the asari scientist almost as much as he did Kara Shepard. It was the same trust those on the Enterprise felt for the Captain, but that she kept to herself. "And on that note, I believe I should go. I've spent a bit more time here than I had originally intended, but as I told Tali-"

"If I want to talk, I'll be sure to find you Counselor. Don't worry, I'll try not to ramble on too much about how my father never loved me enough, or something like that. Isn't that what humans talk to counselors about?" He asked with a noticeable shrug to his shoulders.

"It's a little odd that you're so specific, don't you think?" The well disguised bitterness that had emanated from the turian at the mention of his father Deanna filed away for future reference, as she looked up into his mandibled face. Something told her that there was history there, something to discuss at a later date perhaps.

She already knew from the irritation flowing her way that the conversation was over long before Garrus started to walk away. "It's been a long day. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to check out my quarters and try to get some rest." She only nodded and stood to the side as his two escorts started on their way once Garrus disappeared into his quarters. She lingered out in the hallway for a moment, caught between the love struck couple in one room and the lonely officer in the other. With a sigh, she chose to head for sickbay next, determined to defuse the strange sexual tension that had somehow formed between Yar and Moreau. The fact he was still relatively in one piece despite having done his best to annoy Tasha said something about his underlying charm and maturity, when he chose to apply it. And then there was Kaidan Alenko. He was as different from Mr. Moreau as night was to day, yet they were obviously good friends.

"Hey, human. You seen a turian around here? His female wouldn't leave me alone until I promised her I'd give him this message." Wrex held up a small datapad with a wince, as if he expected it to blow up in his face. "Read it by accident. Damn thing is gonna haunt my dreams."

Deanna had to bite the inside of her cheek when she saw the message that Vanessa had asked Wrex to pass along. The message, at least in her opinion, was relatively harmless in its content, but to someone as obviously fearless and certain in combat as Wrex, the uncertainty of the romantic arena must be far more terrifying. "He's in B-3, right over there." She said a moment later.

"Thanks." Wrex grunted and started towards the door, but stopped and stared at Deanna for a moment. He started to open his mouth, but seemed to change his mind before knocking on the door. Not quite managing to dent the duranium door panel might be a better description. "Hey! Garrus, move your ass and open the door!"

With a smirk, Troi leaned over and gently tapped at the door chime. "This tends to work better than slamming your fist."

Wrex only had time to grumble in response before an annoyed Garrus glared at him before rubbing at his eyes. "Wrex. I'm really tired. Can't this wait until morning, or whenever five hours from now is on this ship?"

"That would be late evening." Troi helpfully volunteered as her dark, amused eyes flicked between the truly odd pair of aliens.

"Depends, should I delete this message your new mate wanted me to pass along to you scale face?" Wrex grumbled, ignoring Troi completely as he grabbed the pad in both hands, looking to snap it in half, save to give her a subtle smirk before scowling at Garrus with renewed intensity.

Garrus perked up almost immediately as he snatched the pad away from the massive krogan. "Vanessa pestered you to death didn't she? I like her even more already. But I gotta ask, you couldn't just send it to my quarters why?" He muttered as his predatory eyes quickly scanned over the datapad.

"More fun this way." Wrex huffed as his smirk fell into a frown. "And she made me promise to give it to you. Damn females and their mind tricks."

"She didn't happen to wave her arm when she asked you did she?" Deanna asked with a chuckle, barely managing not to bend over belly laughing at the thought of a petite nurse getting the better of the massive, prideful warrior.

"Star Wars? I didn't know you were a fan Counselor." Garrus chuckled in reply, the same image flickering through his mind. "Shepard insisted that we have movie night on the Normandy." He offered in explanation when he saw the questioning look on the raven haired woman's face.

"Laugh it up you two. I'm going back to Ten-Forward." With an evil grin, Wrex jabbed a finger at Garrus. "Maybe I'll even point out that little chafing problem you turians have with squishy species to your new conquest. And any other female I bump into along the way."

"Chafing?" Troi asked with a curious glance.

"He's kidding...mostly." Garrus nervously said as he rubbed at the back of his fringe, glaring daggers at Wrex's massive humpback. "Let's just say that...these plates of mine weren't exactly made for...well-"

Deanna took mercy on the embarrassed, flustered man and held out her hands to silence him. "I think I get the idea." With a nod, they parted ways as Wrex stomped off with a huff, Garrus headed back to his room and Troi to the nearest turbo lift. But a mischievous smirk pulled at Deanna's lips a split second later as she glanced over her shoulder towards the exhausted turian. "Garrus? I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you, sickbay has a wide array of various personal lubricants in stock."

If it were possible, Deanna was sure Garrus would have sunk into the floor if it would have allowed him to escape his shocked embarrassment. Although, his drooping mandibles really told her all she needed to know. "I ah...um...thanks for the tip?"

"Get some rest Officer Vakarian." Deanna gently chided as she nodded to his open door.

"Yeah, good idea." Garrus muttered, barely able to stop himself from dashing out of the corridor.

When she reached the turbolift, Deanna stopped and stepped to the side when she saw Kaidan Alenko step out, a tired but contented look on his face. "Oh, pardon me ma'am." He started forward, but recognition dawned on him as he locked his whiskey colored eyes on the Counselor's face. "You're, the ship's counselor, Deanna Troi right? Normally I'd stay and chat, but I'm dead on my feet."

After lugging Joker to and from the holodeck, and likely sparring against Tasha at some point during their 'forest trek', she could understand why he looked ready to fall asleep right there in the hallway. "It's not a problem Lt. Alenko-"

"Just Kaidan will do ma'am. I'm not on duty. Don't even have a ship anymore, but I'm still breathing, so there's that." Alenko offered with a grinning shrug.

Troi nodded in approval, liking this clearly kind hearted man already. "Well aren't you the optimist? Every crew needs at least one."

"I guess you could call me the voice of reason ma'am." He offered, a light smile flickering into existence as he started towards the guest quarters. "Someone has to keep Shepard's crew together when she isn't busy blasting apart merc bases and taking down giant deadly machines."

Troi was half tempted to ask the man what he meant as he gave her a casual wave, right before he headed for Shepard's quarters. Before he could open the door or ring the chime to see if it was occupied, Deanna hurried to his side. "Lt. Alenko! Kaidan! I would strongly advise against that."

Half asleep, Kaidan instantly perked up at her warning. "Huh? Oh….oh right, gotcha. Let me guess, this one's taken?" He said as he realized what he had nearly walked into and jerked his hand away from the door controls as if they were about to bite him. "Thanks for the warning."

Troi gently tugged the man back a few paces just to be sure they were out of the automatic doors sensor range. "The Commander and Dr T'Soni seem to greatly value their...privacy."

Alenko's bushy eyebrows shot up. "Okay, I owe you a drink for one death trap narrowly avoided. I'd rather walk in on a thresher maw attack than that. Scuttlebutt on the Normandy had it that they….like to explore when they get the chance. Biotics really are more fun, just in case you were curious." Kaidan's whiskey colored eyes widened at Troi's knowing grin. "Not that I meant...I mean, I didn't mean me and- I'm going to go to bed now before I manage to jam my other foot in my mouth."

"Good night Kaidan." Troi chuckled lightly, having not been offended in the slightest at the man's wayward comment brought on by his exhausted state. Before he managed to slip away though, she called out to him. "As I said to your friend, any woman would be lucky to have you Kaidan. With your very useful biotics and all."

There was a tinge of uncertainty at her words that had nothing to do with her praise, and Deanna again made a mental note to explore it at a later date as Kaidan replied. "Thanks, really. Now I'm going to go pretend this was all a horrible nightmare, if that's okay with you."

Troi took some solace in the fact her laughter managed to get a grin out of the man before he quickly retreated to one of the vacant rooms. With that, Deanna shook her head in amusement, even as she made a beeline for the Bridge. She had a lot to discuss with Picard and the command staff regarding their new guests. But first, she would deal with asking the Captain to arrange for their memorial service.

End Notes; Archer83; This chapter was a bit more lighthearted than we had originally intended, but the two crews are only just getting to know each other so far. Once Starfleet Command hears about Picard's interesting new guests, things are going to be getting very complicated, very quickly. And not in a good way. For those familiar with the trial over Data's rights in his near future, you'll get a fair idea of what we plan to do. You've been warned.

Vergil1989; Here's a hint folks, Archer is a bad, bad man. : P A certain Section 31 prick that I shall not name will be at the head of this particular shitshow. At any rate, sorry it's been so long since our last update for this. Our RL situations have been a bit rough, to say the least, but this was a much needed reprieve for both of us. Besides that, this was one of the better stories we came up with in the middle of the night, when we should have gone to bed hours ago lol. As always, fave, follow, and review. Adios!