AN: Sorry for the late update but life you know. Anyway here is chapter three. enjoy.


Chapter three

"Liara?"

Marcus couldn't believe it; like Wrex he hadn't seen Liara in a long time. Five years to be exact, since the funeral. "What are you doing here Liara?"

"Is that any way to greet your aunt?" Liara said lowering her hands. A smile breaking free as Marcus had the decency to look ashamed for pointing a gun at her. Switching the safety on, Marcus set the pistol on the kitchen counter then proceeded to give Liara a hug that caused her laugh. "Now that's a better greeting," she chuckled as Marcus released her.

"Why are here?" Marcus asked Liara, getting a better look at her. Liara looked tired not that she'd ever admit it, even to him. "And why are you digging through the cupboards?"

"I'm here because I haven't seen you in five years." Liara told him, "and I'm looking for cups."

"Third cupboard on the left, top shelf." Marcus told her, turning to the coffee maker while Liara got some cups, after setting them on the counter next to Marcus she went into the dining room.

Liara examined the apartment as she waited for Marcus to bring the coffee. The living room held a couch, a coffee table, and a holo projector set on the far wall. The dining room had a table big enough for four people, data pads lay next to each other on the table, one of the chairs held his uniform jacket along his hat on the seat. Few pictures lined the shelf that she saw most were of his family, friends, and squad mates but there was one face down. Ever curious Liara went over to the shelf to examine it, picking it up she saw that it was a photo of Marcus and his sister when they just graduated from basic at Arcturus. Marcus had his arm draped around Helena's shoulders, both smiling at the camera with an Alliance cruiser in the background.

A single tear dropped onto the image as Liara remembered that day.

Liara wandered through the crowds of Arcturus trying to find the Shepard siblings. After five minutes of searching she finally found them at one of the observation windows smiling and joking with each other. As she got closer to them she picked on their conversations.

"I still can't believe you pissed off Instructor Keith an hour before graduation." Helena said to Marcus who just chuckled.

"The guy irks me. He's irksome." Marcus said smiling to Helena, who just laughed as she leaned against the glass.

"Liara!" Helena shouted which caused some the bystanders to look in her direction, Marcus just smiled at her antics. Liara finally reached them, giving them both a hug as tears fell from her eyes.

"Your parents would be so proud of you both," Liara told them both as she released them. Both Marcus and Helena just smiled at the statement. "How 'bout a photo?" Liara asked them, changing the subject which seemed to work as Marcus ruffled Helena's hair, effectively undoing her bun which caused her yell at him. Liara brought up her omni-tool as Marcus draped his arm around Helena's shoulder bringing her close as they both smiled for the photo.

A cough drew Liara from her memories as she turned around to see Marcus standing next to the dining table with two cups of coffee in each hand. His eyes on the photo that Liara was still holding in her hand, "I…wasn't sure how you take your coffee." Marcus said his gaze shifted from the photo to Liara face, which caused her to visibly flinch.

"Black is fine," Liara said, setting the photo back on the shelf next to the others. Marcus held out one of the cups to her which she accepted. "Why are you really here Liara?" Marcus asked just as Liara was taking a sip which caused her to cough. Taking a seat at the table Liara gestured for Marcus to do the same which he did, taking the seat across from her.

"I know about the transmission and the councils offer," she said taking another sip of her coffee. Marcus looked at her not really surprised, she wouldn't be doing her job as the Shadow Broker if she didn't. "Wrex is right you know." This caused him to look at her surprised, 'her too?' he thought to himself. "You should take the position."

Marcus took a sip of his own coffee before answering. "You gonna give me the same speech about 'outdoing jane,'" he said, doing his best impersonation of Wrexwhich caused Liara to smile as she took another sip of her coffee.

"No, Wrex covered most of it," Liara said setting her coffee cup on the table. "He is right though, about 'you wasting away.'" Marcus glanced down into the coffee cup, his own muddled image staring back him, Liara took his silence as a cue to continue. "Reckless on missions, drinking, volunteering for every mission that borders on suicidal, and not to mention the nightmares," she said folding her hands on the table. Looking at Marcus confirmed everything.

Marcus exhaled slowly, losing interest in his coffee. "You think going to Andromeda might help?" he said, barely a whisper that Liara almost didn't hear it.

"I think…it might be the change you need," Liara told him, it was the truth over the years she noticed him gradually withdrawing himself from society. "Over there you could do some real good. You have a chance to escape the pressure of being the descendent of Commander Shepard." Liara said unfolding her hands, "maybe meet someone that understands you."

Marcus looked at Liara after she hinted at Christie, his former girlfriend of six months. Christie only dated him because of his last name, when it became apparent that the relationship wasn't going anywhere she dumped him faster than a ship going into FTL. Marcus was damaged from the war and from his experience women don't like damaged goods.

"So…are those your two reasons for me going." Marcus asked taking a sip of his now cold coffee.

"As you humans say 'in a crab shell,'" Liara said confidently, which caused Marcus to spit out his coffee in a coughing fit.

"Nutshell," Marcus said in between coughs. This drew Liara short as she looked at him with confusion lining her face. "'In a nut shell' is the correct saying," Marcus told her after his coughing subsided. Liara blushed at her mistake, "700 years old and you still get human idioms wrong. Been staring at monitors for too long Liara."

"True, I do need to leave the Shadow Light more often but I seldom have an excuse too." Liara told him, honestly she rarely left the ship, sometimes she really hated being the Shadow Broker. Without her there to reign in her agents and remind them who is in control any of her operatives could replace her as the Broker, someone who doesn't have her restraint or empathy. "Take the position."

Liara once again told Marcus as she rose from her seat, Marcus followed suite and escorted her out of the door. Upon opening the door Marcus wasn't surprised to see the Shadows in civilian clothes, wouldn't do any good to advertise to the entire station that the Shadow Broker was on board. Liara turned around to give Marcus a hug.

"Think about what I said," Liara whispered to him before she released him, smiling at him. "Admiral," Liara nodded slightly before exiting into the hallway, the Shadows following close. Marcus looked at her retreating figure with confusion.

"It's Captain you know," Marcus told her, Liara stopped and turned around to face him once again.

"Of course, my mistake." Liara said with a slight bow before stepping into the elevator. Marcus was confused by Liara actions, 'not like her to mix up my rank and what was with that bow?' he contemplated as he stood in the doorway to his apartment, closing the door behind him as he made his way back into the dining room to clean up.

Grabbing both the cups he went into the kitchen to deposit them into the sink and maybe grab another one. He definitely needed it before he gave anymore thought to the council's offer, more so after Liara's visit and words of wisdom. Now armed with a fresh cup of coffee he made his way back into the dining to think about the councils offer.

Both Liara and Wrex wanted him to take the offer and both bring up great points for him to take the offer. Marcus will admit that he does get tired of being reminded of the Shepard legacy that his ancestor left behind and his need to prove that he can 'live up to the legacy'. In Andromeda he would have a fresh start, no one would expect great things from him because of his name, and he could forge his own path. Marcus looked around his apartment, he owned few things so he wouldn't leave much behind if he left.

Marcus looked at his collection of photos that he amassed over his military career, most of the people in the photos were either under his command on the Normandy, moved on, or dead. His gaze fell on the photo that Liara left propped up, the one he put face down five years ago, the photo of him and Helena. Marcus rose from his chair and went straight for the photo holding it in his hands, 'another reason to leave' he thought as he set the photo once again face down on the shelf. Marcus exhaled slowly as he made up his mind.

Taking a quick shower and brushing his teeth afterwards to get rid of the coffee taste and a shave. Once again in his dress blues he left the apartment making sure to grab his jacket and hat from the dining room table on his out. In less than an hour he was back in the slow elevator making its way to the top floor, Marcus occupied his time in the elevator listening to the news broadcast.

"Rumors continue to spread as the new trailer for Blasto: Resurgence has been leaked on the extranet.

"Protests continue in the streets of Omega to the new curfew laws that were announced last week. Citizens on the citadel fear that another uprising is imminent."

Marcus closed his eyes as he listened to the news. Tips on how to make your apartment look bigger, pirates targeted a turian cruiser, new clothing lines for asari, and so on. The elevator finally reached the top floor just before Marcus learned how to "drive her wild in five easy step". Marcus opened his eyes just as the elevator doors parted revealing Va'alor along with four council guards waiting.

"Welcome back, Captain," Va'alor spoke as she gestured for him to follow which Marcus did just like the last time he was here. Two of the guards led the way back to the councils private meeting room while the other two brought up the rear. The entire trip to the meeting room was pretty much the same route as the one Va'alor took when she brought Marcus to the council, in thirty minutes they were once again outside the doors to the meeting room. As before Va'alor escorted Marcus inside, announced his presence and left, sealing the room behind her.

Marcus felt strange being back in the meeting room maybe because he now knew what to expect, remembering to keep his cool during the meeting. "Councilors," he said as he stood at attention and saluted them.

"At ease Captain," Essex spoke, admiration apparent in his voice. Marcus relaxed as the councilors took their seats but Marcus remained standing, "have you decided?"

Marcus slightly squirmed as every single councilor looked in his direction. He inhaled and exhaled slowly, 'nothing ventured, nothing gained' his sister's favorite quote ran through his head before he answered. "I accept the position to lead the fleet."

"This is not a decision to be made lightly Captain."Zelaspoke in a tone that would rival any of the instructors at Arcturus, "So, we'll ask you again. Do you accept the position to lead a fleet to Andromeda to assist the Initiative?"

Marcus remained silent for a few seconds but to him it felt like minutes, looking at a spot on the floor gathering his thoughts. 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained', looking from the floor to the councilors. "I…accept the position to lead the fleet," he repeated with conviction.

"Take a seat Captain. We have much to discuss." Zela gestured to the seat in front of Marcus which took, placing his hat on the table as the holo projector came to life displaying the Andromeda Galaxy. "From what we have been able to piece together from records, the Initiative's plan was to colonize what was named the Heleuscluster," a section of the galaxy map highlighted green. "unfortunately we haven't been able to pinpoint the origin of the transmission. That will have to be done once you reach the cluster."

"Alright, there is still the problem of getting to Andromeda though councilors." Marcus said respectfully, giving the briefing his full attention.

"We have a solution to that problem Captain," Jor said as the image of the Andromeda galaxy changed to show a Mass Relay. Marcus looked at the image confused.

"With all due respect councilors I don't think a Relay is going to be of any help." Marcus spoke, "I doubt that there is a Relay in Andromeda that just so happens to be linked to a Relay here." Marcus told the councilors, hoping that he didn't anger them.

"While you are correct Captain, this however is not a standard Relay," Jor said, which caused Marcus to take another look at the image. The Relay in the photo didn't look any different from any other Relay, although he did notice more rings in the center to contain the eezo core, but other than that he just couldn't spot the difference. Jor seemed to notice, he typed some keys into the holo keypad. Another image of a Mass Relay came up.

"This is a standard Relay," Jor clarified for Marcus. The second image overlaid over the first image, "and this is the Delta Relay." Marcus could not believe his eyes, this "Delta Relay" was twice as large as a standard Relay, 'if this is a photo, can't imagine the real thing' Marcus thought.

"Twice the size, power, and speed." Inbra vas' Rannoch, the quarian councilor spoke, admiration lining his voice. "The Delta Relay is the epitome of hybrid Reaper/Milky Way tech. Unlike standard Relays that require two to function, the Delta Relay is unique in that it doesn't require a sister Relay to function." Inbra continued after taking a sip of dextro tea. "The Delta Relay actually 'drops' a ship out of FTL at specific coordinates that are inputted before activating the Relay."

Marcus could not believe what he was hearing, a Relay that could transport ships anywhere in the galaxy without needing a sister Relay and was twice the size of a regular Relay. 'Why would the council build it though?' that one thought drifted in his mind.

"Our plan is to aim the Delta Relay at the Andromeda galaxy, more specifically the Heleus cluster." Zela now spoke up. "The speed and power of the Delta Relay will turn a 600-year journey into roughly a four to five-month journey."

Marcus once again could not believe what he was hearing, 'four to five months. Might have a real shot of helping these people,'but there was one problem to this whole plan that he could see. "How are we going to discharge the static build up." He wasn't an engineer but he knew that static charge builds up on the hull of ship and in the drive cores of ships traveling at FTL speeds and that it has to be vented. "We're not going to be able to vent once we're inside the FTL tunnel."

"Let us worry about that particular problem Captain." Zela spoke.

'Comforting thought', Marcus thought to himself privately. "When do we launch?" he asked. Zela looked to her colleagues then to Marcus.

"We plan to have the fleet ready to launch within a year," she said which caused Marcus to choke on his water that he was drinking. When the coughing subsided Marcus looked at Zela wondering how they would retrofit a thousand ships within a year.

Before Marcus could ask his question Va'alor entered the room. "Councilors sorry for the interruption. The representatives from the Hanar Collective are here." she told them.

"Thank you Va'alor," Zela told her as the holo image of the Delta Relay disappeared as the holo projector shut down. "Excuse us Captain. We have a prior engagement with the Hanar Collective," Zela told him as she rose from her chair. "Va'alor will give you an OSD with all the necessary information," she gestured to Va'alor who nodded. Marcus took the hint as he rose from his chair and followed Va'alor out of the room.

After Marcus left the room with Va'alor, Zela turned to Inbra. "Can the retrofits be done in time?" she asked Inbra who just sighed, rubbing his eyes before he spoke.

"It's…possible." Inbra spoke, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes or no?" Zela asked him. Inbra exhaled slowly, taking a sip of his dextro tea before answering. "Yes…but the funding and the personal needed to retrofit a thousand ships are going to be…" Inbra said before Zela cut him off.

"Worry about the retrofits. We'll handle the funding." She said looking to each of her colleagues who simply nodded. "Anything else?" she asked Inbra.

"The S.D's are going to be problematic. There is also the issue of venting the discharge." Inbra finished.

"I trust that your people and the geth will come up with a solution to the venting problem." Zela gestured to Isac, the geth councilor who just 'blinked'.

"Acknowledged, we will consult with our engineers along with the quarians." Isac spoke, the panels on the side of his head opened and closed as he communicated with the geth.

"If that is all. The representatives are waiting for us." Zela spoke.

Back in front of the elevators both Marcus and Va'alor waited. Marcus was thankful that the council guards didn't follow them to the elevator. Once the elevator arrived and Marcus stepped inside, Va'alor handed him an OSD.

"The data is encrypted and has been coded to your biometrics." She told him as he stuffed the OSD inside his jacket. "Also the council is requesting that the Normandy be taken to the coordinates on the OSD."

Marcus simply nodded and said his thanks as the doors closed. Marcus sighed as he leaned against the wall waiting for the doors to open. Thankfully the long elevator ride gave Marcus time to reorganize his thoughts. 'No going back now,' he thought crossing his arms across his chest, the OSD pressing into his chest reminding him that he needed a S.C.I.F to view the information on it. The one installed in his quarters onboard the Normandy will work. Once the elevator released him, he made his way down to the wards to the C-Sec academy, which you had to pass through in order to get to the Alliance docks. Another elevator and an agitated officer later he was finally in the docking bay that held the ship that he called home, the Normandy SR-6.

The design of the Normandy hadn't changed much from the original but new designs were implemented over the years. The tail fins were now placed at an angle on the wings that held the engines instead of being placed on the body of the ship. The placement of the engines also changed, two are now closer to the main body of the ship while the other two were further down on the wings, the tips of the wings now extended from the second engine instead of just ending there. The fins on the nose now hold sensors for navigation and detection of enemy ships and to top it off she's painted in Alliance colors.

The sleekness of the Normandy reminded Marcus of a shark swimming through the ocean, beautiful in way but dangerous at the same time. She's equipped with the latest technologies and weapons and had the finest crew in Marcus's opinion serving onboard her, whether or not they would follow him to Andromeda he didn't know.

Making his way up the ramp to the airlock door. He pressed the open button on the side panel that opened up the airlock and entered, the airlock door closing behind him which began the decontamination protocol. Marcus waited for the decontamination to end, finally after the thirty seconds the onboard VI told him he was cleared to enter the ship.

The entire ship was quiet as most of the personal were on leave when they docked, leaving only a few security personal on board to prevent hijacking attempts.

"Welcome back Captain" the intercom came to life with a woman's voice. Marcus looked to the terminal next to the pilots' chair. The terminal displayed a holographic woman wearing a simple white shirt with black leggings and boots, her purple hair tied into a ponytail with some lose strands tucked behind her ear "Is leave cancelled? She asked.

"Hello Ava and no, leave is not cancelled. Need a S.C.I.F to view some info." Marcus told the A.I who just cocked her head to one side, "twenty-four hours into leave and already have a mission." Ava stated which caused Marcus to smirk at the A.I before he turned down the corridor to the C.I.C.

"I'll be in my quarters," Marcus said over his shoulder.

"So, should I recall the crew when you emerge from your quarters?" Ava asked the retreating figure of Marcus. "No," he told her.

Marcus walked into the C.I.C, the massive table in the center came to life displaying the galaxy map as he walked by to the elevator. Stepping inside he hit the button for the top floor which held his quarters and waited. Thankfully the elevators in the Normandy were much faster compared to the ones in the citadel tower. Stepping out of the elevator when the doors opened, entering his cabin he walked toward his desk that held his holo terminal, removing his jacket and hat which he draped over the back of his chair before he sat down.

Marcus turned on his terminal, the holo screen immediately came up. Removing the OSD from his jacket pocket he set it on the desk next to the terminal. Bringing up his omni-tool he activated the S.C.I.F mode for his quarters. The door clamps built into the door sealed him in, the green holo outside the door turned off, a kinetic barrier extended over the walls in his room which effectively cut all transmissions in or out. Not even Ava the ships A.I could listen in

Marcus watched the outline of his quarters blink red twice then to the lockdown was complete a message appeared on the holo screen in red letters, 'S.C.I.F mode engaged. Lockdown complete.' Once he cleared the message from his terminal, he inserted the OSD into the OSD slot on the side of the terminal.

The screen displayed the councils seal before the image changed to a blank screen, a message appeared. 'Place hand on screen for identification', which Marcus did and waited as his hand was scanned twice. The image changed again displaying another message, 'identification confirmed. Captain Marcus Shepard'. Once again the screen changed to a white background, different files lined the screen. Marcus touched the file named 'Delta Relay'.

Various background information came up, when construction began and when it was finished. Noting nothing of interest except the Relay was large and extremely powerful. Back in the home screen one of the file interested him, 'Stasis Gel'.

Opening the file revealed that in order to survive travel using the Delta Relay, a person must be submerged in a gel like substance that reminded him of omni-gel. There was even a video file attached which he played. The footage looked like it came from a bridge camera.

The crew walked from station to station checking to see if their systems were okay when the Captain and his X.O stepped on the bridge.

"Captain on deck," the Captains X.O shouted, the crew stood at attention saluting the Captain who saluted them back.

"At ease." He told the crew who went back to what they were doing before. The Captain went to the yeoman. "Status?" he asked.

"All systems are green. We are ready to go." The yeoman told him as he went to the galaxy map when the comms officer told him that the council were calling. The galaxy map changed to display the holo images of the councilors, all of the crew saluted them. Zela smiled at them and told them to be at ease.

"Captain, how are things looking?" she asked the Captain who answered. "Everything is in the green. We are good to go through the Delta Relay," he told her.

"That's good to hear. We are receiving everything on our end and recording should the worse happen." Zela told the Captain who just nodded. "You are clear to use the Relay. Goddess guide you Captain," Zela said with a bow before the holo projection went back to the galaxy map.

"Right, you all heard the council. Helm how are we looking?" The Captain asked. "We are good to go from here Captain. Coordinates are inputted," the intercom blared. The Captain sighed slowly before he spoke, "activate the Relay."

The bridge was enveloped in a bright blue light that caused the crew to shield their eyes from the light. "Sir, the drive core just lit up like a Christmas tree. Power output is reaching critical levels," one of the engineers said over the intercom from engineering. The auto filter dimmed the light down to tolerable levels for the crew.

"Sir, we are picking up massive amounts of static buildup on our hull." Another engineer spoke through the intercom.

"Prepare to drop o…" the Captain was cut off when blood started to flow from his nose. Everyone on the bridge seemed to be suffering from the same effect. Blood soon flowed from their eyes, ears, and mouth. The Captain grabbed his stomach as he coughed up blood that splattered on the console, one of the crew fell to the ground coughing up blood. The scene was the same all across the bridge, crew members coughing up blood and falling over.

"Dro…dro…" the Captain tried to speak but found it impossible due to the amount of blood he was coughing up. The sounds of the hull creaking, almost like the hull was twisting and bending on itself, the sound of someone screaming soon filled the bridge.

The Captain was now on the floor screaming bloody murder when he exploded in a gory fashion.

Marcus hit pause right at that moment. He wasn't a stranger to blood and gore but the way the Captain exploded was disturbing. Seeing that only ten seconds remained he hit the play button.

After the Captain exploded the rest of the crew followed suite and based off the screaming on the intercom it was happening all over the ship. The footage ended with the ship tearing itself apart

Marcus exhaled after the footage ended. 'And they want us to use the Delta Relay,'he thought. Reading more about the stasis gel showed that it was invented after a second attempt to use the Delta Relay also ended with the ship and crew exploding. Going back to the file about the Delta Relay showed that he missed a very important detail. The static buildup and power consumption from the drive core tripled when the Delta Relay is used and that a special hull plating is also needed for ships.

After eight hours of reading Marcus didn't even come close to being finished with the files, cracking his neck he rose from his chair and went to his bed where he collapsed on it. Staring at the ceiling,reviewing everything he read so far. Delta Relay causes any organics to explode in a gory fashion. Need to be submerged in stasis gel to survive the FTL, the Mrk. 14 Drive Core needs to be installed in order to use the Relay without the ship exploding. Stasis pods also need to be installed for the crew.

"How do they expect this to be done within a year?" he asked to himself, draping his right arm over his eyes. Marcus still needed to inform his crew, rising from his bed he walked over to the terminal, removing the OSD and deactivating the S.C.I.F mode. Grabbing his jacket, he made his way to the elevator and pressed the button for the cargo bay.

"Ava," Marcus said as he put on his jacket. "You rang?" Ava spoke through the elevator intercom.

"You need to stop watching old earth vids," Marcus told the A.I, looking at the camera in the elevator. "Recall the crew to the ship. I have to tell them something," he asked her.

"Recalling the crew now. Shall I have them meet you in the cargo bay?" she asked Marcus who just nodded.

Within an hour most of the crew of the Normandy were inside the cargo hold, a couple of the crew had yet to arrive so Marcus let the crew relax until everyone was present. The crew whispered among themselves wondering what the Captain has to say.

"What do you think the meetings bout?" Someone said.

"I betcha we have a new op in the Terminus systems." Another spoke.

"Think he's moving on to another post?"

"No way, the Captain loves the Normandy too much to just give it up."

Different reasons for the meeting continued to spread. Finally, when the last crewmember arrived Marcus nodded to his XO, Sasha Beckett.

"Attention on deck!" the entire crew stood at attention. Marcus stood on the balcony overlooking the crew with Sasha to his right. "At ease," Marcus ordered them which they immediately did.

"Thank you all for coming. I realize that some of you are worried that this means another mission for us." Marcus told them and based off their reactions, he was right. "Let me tell you right now that this is not the reason for this meeting." he said that caused some of the crew to exhale with relief, they had just come back from a three-month looked at the faces of his crew before he continued.

"The information that I'm about to reveal comes straight from the council. This is beyond classified and we need a S.C.I.F. but the war room won't fit all of us," this caused some of the crew to chuckle while the others remained serious. Marcus knew that by telling his crew everything he would be thrown into the brig and served a dishonorable discharge but he trusted the men and women under his command with his life. Marcus told his crew everything. The transmission, the fleet, and the position that he accepted.

The entire crew was silent when Marcus finished. Some of the crew felt that they shouldn't do anything, after all the Initiative left them to the Reapers then why should they help them. The rest simply couldn't believe it while others felt like they should help them.

"I understand that this is a lot to take in." Marcus told them after a minute, the attention of the crew back on him. "I'm not asking any of you to join me to Andromeda," he told them. "This has to be your decision. Take some time, think it over, and come back tomorrow." Marcus said to the crew as he dismissed them. stepping into the elevator with Sasha he pressed the button for his cabin.

"You know they are going to follow you no matter what." Sasha said during the elevator ride, Marcus looked at her. Sasha stood out in any crowd due to her pale skin, her light auburn hair was in a bun, and she had dark brown eyes.

"I know. I just want to give them the chance to choose." Marcus said to her honestly. He never made nor ordered the crew to follow him on impossible ops, he always gave them the choose to follow him or back out. "Some of crew have families and I'm not going to be responsible for tearing them apart." He said, now looking at the elevator doors. "I've made my choice," he told Sasha just as the doors opened. Looking down at the ground then to Sasha, "I'm not going to make the crews choice for them."

Marcus stepped out of the elevator leaving Sasha behind as the doors closed. Marcus entered his quarters deciding to spend the night instead of going back to his apartment. Changing into his night clothes and performing his nightly ritual before climbing into bed. The nightmares never changed, they always remain the same. Waking from his nightmare when his alarm rang, climbing out of bed he went to the small bathroom in his quarters for a quick shower.

Stepping out of the shower, he dried himself and wrapped a towel around his midsection before making his way to the dresser to grab his fatigues. "Sir, the crew has gathered in the cargo hold," Ava told him over the intercom just as Marcus was pulling on his jacket.

"Thank you Ava," Marcus said to her, zipping up his jacket before going to the elevator. Within minutes Marcus was back in the cargo hold with his crew, making his way back to his perch overlooking the crew. "Attention on deck!" Sasha shouted, the crew stood at attention.

"At ease," Marcus told them, "I'll make this simple. Step forward if you're coming." Marcus told them, making sure to look at each face before speaking again. "I won't think any less of you if you decide to stay."

The crew looked to one another before looking to their captain. One by one the entire crew stepped forward. Marcus smiled slightly at the sight before him, "thank you." He told his crew.

"We've been to every hell imaginable in this galaxy. That makes us family, sir." Vlad Belikov, the Normandy's quartermaster spoke up.

"And the pilot seat already has my ass groove in it." Chloe Springer, the Normandy's pilot also spoke up which caused the crew to laugh.

"I'm not trusting the Normandy's maintenance to anyone else." Walt Langford, chief engineer to the Normandy spoke up. "She needs a gentle touch."

"Hmm, you know all about the 'soft touch' don't you?" Victoria "Vic" Langford spoke up which caused Walt to blush and cleared his throat. The crew laughed at him, when the laughing quieted down Marcus smiled at the crew's antics before he spoke up.

"I know that by joining me some of you will be leaving families behind." He said to them, "I swear to you right now that I'll do everything I can to get your families clearance to come." Marcus promised them, he didn't usually make promise but just this once he would.

"The Normandy needs to be taken in for retrofits." Marcus told the crew slipping back into his Captain persona. "Chloe, Ava has the coordinates. Talk to her to receive them and get us there," he told Chloe who nodded. "I want a report of all systems in two hours," he told them. "Dismissed."

"Yes sir!" the crew saluted Marcus who saluted them back. Within an hour the Normandy was on its way to the Utopia System in theExodus Cluster. Marcus spent most of the journey in the QEC room trying to convince the council to clear the families for his crew. Thankfully after two hours of "negotiating" he finally managed to convince them to clear the families just in time too as Chloe announced.

"Coming up on the Utopia System,cap'n." she said over the intercom, "figured you want to see where we're headed." She said as Marcus made his way to the cockpit.

"You're right," Marcus said to her when he entered the cockpit. "Exiting the tunnel in three, two, one." Marcus watched as the blackness of space replaced the blue glow of the FTL tunnel as the Normandy exited FTL, almost immediately after dropping out of FTL they were contacted.

"SSV Normandy, this is the CSV Thessia's Light we've been expecting you." The comms officer for the Thessia's Light spoke through the communication terminal. "CSV Thessia's Light, this is Captain Shepard of the SSV Normandy. We have been given these coordinates from the council." Marcus spoke.

"We have sent you a flight vector Normandy. Do not deviate from it, we'll escort you in." The comms officer for the Thessia's Light said before the communication terminal went dead.

"So nice of the council to send us an S.D for escort," Chloe said as she inputted commands into the flight console.

"Where are we headed?" Marcus asked her as he looked over her shoulder. "The flight vector they sent us leads to Eden Prime." Chloe said.

"Take us in." Marcus told her.


Codex

Stasis-Gel

The first two attempts to use the Delta Relay proved disastrous to the ships and their crew as the resulting static buildup proved too dangerous to organics and ships. After the second attempt it was discovered that the FTL tunnel created by the Delta Relay emits a unique signal that targets organics. This signal causes the organs and cells within a person to liquefy, this happens in three stages. The first stage is subtle as the vessels in the body are the first to liquefy, this causes nosebleeds soon after blood begins to flow from the eyes, ears, and mouth.

The second stage is when the organs save for the heart begin to liquefy slowly, the excess blood buildups in the body, causing the person to expel more blood through their orifices, (eyes, nose, mouth, and ears).

The third stage is fatal when the last organ, the heart explodes instead of liquefying. This causes all the excess blood in the body to explode outward in a gory fashion. The skin having already begun to liquefy at this point can't contain the excess blood.

Attempts to block the signal on a large scale have been unsuccessful as the signal is able to bypass any signal blocker. However, it was discovered that nano machines could effectively block the signal when many are linked together. Stasis-gel is comprised of thousands of nano machines suspended in a gel, these nano machines are programmed to neutralize the signal before it can reach the person suspended in the gel.

Eden Prime

Eden Prime is the lead in Reaper research along with R&D for the Alliance Military and the Council. They are responsible for unlocking the secrets of the Reapers technology. They are responsible for creating the Stasis-Gel along with the Phoenix Armor Plating for ships.


AN: So I sat at my desk trying to come up with a way to transport a fleet from the Milky Way to Andromeda while trying to keep it in the realm of science of the Mass Effect universe.

Originally I planned to have an undiscovered Relay be connected to another in Andromeda but that would have brought up a whole set of other problems. Like why would the Reapers build a Relay in Andromeda when their sole focus is the Milky Way and are there other Reapers in Andromeda, if there were then why didn't the Jaardan (I think that's how you spell it) report them. Did the Reapers cause the Scourge to eliminate them but why would they do that when they can just harvest them. Does Andromeda have their own cycle?

Then I remembered from the original ME trilogy that the Asari were planning to build their own Relays. So I took that idea and expanded upon it and thus the Delta Relay was "born". Now, this brought its own set of problems like how does it work when it doesn't have a sister Relay. So instead of traveling from Relay to Relay like before they could just enter coordinates and off they go.

I also wanted the Delta Relay to be dangerous, it was after all built using Reaper tech. I wanted to show that even though the Milky Way species conquered the Reapers that they still don't fully understand their technology even after 600 of research.

I will be reposting the first chapter that will include an explanation as to how the Milky Way was able to pick up the distress call from Andromeda.

Lastly, thank you to everyone who took the time to read this story. (Chapter four is coming)