So here is chapter three. FYI, i'm sorry about all of the big time jumps, but this could still be considered the prologue. the next chapter will be the real start of the story. anyway, i hope you enjoy, and as always, please review. i could use all the info i can get.


Three Months Later

Tali settled into her usual spot her, on a low window sill, just staring out into space. Ships slowly drifted by in silence, and she eventually turned off her audio so she wouldn't have to listen to the crowds of people swarming past. Even with the amount of destruction caused by Sovereign when it exploded, life on the citadel went on.

She slowly opened her eyes as she heard the sounds of distant voices. Pieces of rubble and the Reaper ship surrounded her and Garrus, creating a small dark cavern, the only light being from a sparking power conduit where the piece of the ship had smashed through the Citadel atrium.

"She-Shepard?!" her voice was weak as she tried to move toward the upper area of the atrium. It was covered in debris, the ship piece having literally slammed into the floor and bounced as it shattered into hundreds of smaller pieces. She felt Garrus grab her arm and her eyes shifted to him. He just shook his head as tears slipped out of Tali's eyes. Suddenly, she was blinded by light as someone moved a piece of debris out of the way behind them.

"Anderson! We found them!" she shielded her eyes as they adjusted to the new light, coming from the C-sec officer's omni-tool. Omni-tools were made from flash created matter, held in suspension by mass effect fields to create a holographic interface around the user's fore arm. Different omni-tools could do different things, depending on their program. Using a micro fabricator system, they can flash create parts and other pieces to even the most complex equipment, provided the material is provided. Some even had programing to flash produce melee weaponry. Most could be used as a flashlight, although, not as good as an actual flashlight. Captain Anderson, a dark skinned, aged soldier, and the previous commander of the Normandy before it was given to Shepard, stepped through behind the officer. The group was silent as a couple more officers helped Tali and Garrus to their feet. A sound behind her drew Tali's attention, and she turned her head in time to see a flash of a figure, dropping form a piece of rubble. She shoved off from the C-sec officer, nearly falling over as she took a step toward where she had seen the figure. After a second or so, Shepard came over a rise in the debris, his armor battered and scarred, but clearly having done its job. A wave of relief seemed to wash over the group as he limped down to them, cheers erupting from everyone, herself included.

A single tear fought its way out of her eye as newer memories started to flood her mind. It had only been a few weeks since she had left the Normandy, and she missed everyone that had been on board. She had wasted her money away, never having gotten work again, and not having enough to return to the Fleet, she found herself just drifting across the Citadel, out of money and scavenging for scraps, sleeping in window sills to try and make it look like she was just watching space. No matter how much she fought it, memories flooded her vision again.

The escape pod was well and clear of the Normandy when she yanked the clamp free of her shoulders, staring back at the crippled vessel behind them. The once beautiful vessel had been torn to pieces in a single attack, only two of its engines still operating. Someone was clearly fighting to keep the ship flying, but she knew a dead ship when she saw one. And the Normandy was definitely a dead ship. Suddenly, yellow beams of destruction started ripping through the ship again, cutting clean through the ship. The engines stopped flaring as an escape pod launched from the bridge. He made it! The thought had barely crossed her mind when the ships reactor suddenly blew, blasting the once beautiful ship into nothing but ragged pieces. One flailing piece drew her attention and she grabbed Garrus's sniper rifle, using it to magnify the image. She recognized the armored form, the blood red stripe along his right arm unmistakable. Air was venting from his suit as he squirmed in agony. His movements stopped, just before flame engulfed the corpse as it fell into the atmosphere.

More tears started to flow out of her eyes as a ship drew her attention. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the quad engine design, only to realize that it was nothing more than a bulky human transport, likely carrying supplies for use in repairs to the citadel. She sighed as she closed her eyes, hugging her legs closer to her and rested her head against the window to try and get some sleep. She was just starting to nod off when she was jerked off her feet. She almost smiled when she saw the Turian, only to realize that the C-sec officer gripping her arm was not her friend.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she went wide eyed rushing to find an explanation.

"I was watching the ships go by. It… it reminds me of home." He grunted as he pulled a pair of cuffs out of a pouch on his belt.

"Yeah, and what about the other dozen times I've seen you sleeping here, ya damn vagrant." She felt her heart start racing as he forced her hands behind her back, and was starting to put the cuffs on her when a voice startled both of them.

"What are you doing with my friend, officer?" even though the voice was wrong, she half expected to turn and find Garrus standing there. She was shocked to see an Alliance soldier, his deep blue formal uniform all too familiar, with a handful of medals pinned above his name. The tag on his chest read Wolfe.

"Friend? Hah, get lost kid. No damn way would a human be friends with a Quarian." The officer finished cuffing Tali as the human raised an eyebrow at him.

"Her name is Tali Zorah nor Rayya. Now will you let my friend go?" he grunted at the human, who had caused Tali's mouth to drop.

"Hmph, you're bluffing. Quarian, do you know this man?" she saw the almost imperceptible nod the human did.

"Yes, I do. He's First Lieutenant Wolfe. He's a soldier in the systems alliance." Human soldiers usually had rank insignia on their uniforms, and she had picked up on what the different symbols meant during her almost four month stint on the Normandy.

"Alright, then explain to me why she's been sleeping in this window here for the past two weeks?" he smirked as he glanced at it.

"She hasn't been sleeping there, she just likes to watch the ships. Reminds her of the migrant fleet. Although, I have caught her nodded off a few times." He winked at her, almost as if he was making it a personal joke between them. "She's been staying with me for the past few weeks. It's only while she tries to make enough money to buy a ticket home, so she isn't registered as a resident. Now will you let her go before I start calling captains down here?" the Turian cursed and uncuffed her.

"I'm watching you. If your story doesn't check out, I'm arresting you for obstruction of justice." The human shrugged as the Turian stomped away.

"Thanks…" she was about to continue when he shook his head, again, almost imperceptible. He lead the way throught the crowded streets before he subtly jerked his head at a code locked door.

"Eight-eight-one two." She punched the code in and walked into the private apartment complex, shocked when he suddenly spoke. "I'm sorry but, you are probably going to need to actually stay with me for a few days. Until this blows over at least." She nodded, still shocked that he was helping her.

"How did you know my name? And, why are you helping me?" he smirked as he opened a door into a small but cozy apartment, letting her go first.

"Saw you a few days ago. You still have an active Alliance IFF tag. Wasn't hard to connect the dots. Heard your name in a report about the 'saviors of the Citadel'. And you needed help. Wouldn't do anything less, even if you didn't help stop the Geth. What are you even doing sleeping in a window?" she sighed, dropping into one of the chairs.

"I didn't have enough money to go home, and no one wants to hire a Quarian these days." He nodded as he pulled some combat fatigues out a closet, leaving the top in the closet. He slipped into the bathroom, and came out a few minutes later, dropping a small wooden box on the counter before stowing the dress uniform in the closet. While he was doing that, she gingerly opened the box, too curious to stop herself. There was gold star shaped medal inside that she recognized from Shepard's office.

"Why do you have a medal of honor? If I may ask." When she looked back at him, there was a flash of pain that quickly disappeared, replaced with one of annoyance. He grabbed to wooden box, closing it before stuffing it in the closet.

"Are Quarians always sifting through other peoples stuff?" she shook her head before she spoke.

"No, I'm sorry, curiosity got the best of me." Silence fell between them, making Tali more and more uncomfortable by the minute. "Was it a family members?" he looked up at her, confused. "The Medal of Honor?" he shook his head, that same pained expression as before.

"No. it's mine." She knew from Shepard that it was rare for anyone to receive a Medal of Honor while they were still alive, which made her even more curious.

"But, then how did you earn it?" he glared at her, clearly becoming annoyed very quickly.

"When your whole unit dies, and you don't, they like to slap a medal on you and call you a hero. Why else would I be wandering the Wards in a dress uniform? Was on my way back from the ceremony when I ran into ya." she sighed as she moved to the couch. If I'm not going to get along with him, I might as well get some sleep. She curled up on the couch, about to close her eyes when he spoke again. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Going to sleep." He walked over to her and forced her to stand up, marching her over to the bed and forcing her to sit down.

"Then use the damn bed. Can't sleep on it anyway." She stared at him for a few seconds, watching him as he prepared a meal for himself. She watched him for a while, not knowing what to think of him as he ate his food, then proceeded to clean a rifle and pistol she had never seen before. Finally, exhausted, she fell back on the bed and fell asleep.


I glanced over as the Quarian stirred from her sleep, slowly sitting up and stretching. My attention shifted back to the disassembled Mattock in front of me, finishing the adjustment to the electro magnet before reassembling the weapon.

"I'd be hoping too much for there to be Dextro based food in here, wouldn't I?" I nodded as I hit the switch that collapsed the Mattock down for storage. There were two main forms of carbon based life, each relying on either Dextro based amino acids or Levo based. Only two races were Dextro based, the Quarians and the Turians. Levo based food literally does nothing to a Dextro based lifeform, simply flowing through the system, unless you happened to be allergic to it, then it kills you.

"Gimme a bit, and we'll go get you some food." She just watched as I slipped the rifle back into my assault pack, sitting on top of the gear pile in the closet. I pulled the tactical belt out and strapped it on, having already pulled the rifle magazines and the drop down rig that had my knife on it, off of the belt. The rest was still on it, including the pistol, a barrier generator located in the pouch at the back of the belt, along with the cloaking systems and the HUD systems. I pulled a small eyepiece up under my white t-shirt and out the neck, letting it dangle over my shoulder as I pulled a black leather jacket on. The Pistol was loose on my thigh, only because I had not adjusted the straps for my unarmored leg. I signaled for her to follow me and we marched out into the streets of the Wards.

"Alright, whatever you want, just lead the way." She nodded and led the way through the streets, eventually stopping at a Turian street vendor. I stared at the floor as we sat on a bench, herself stuffing food through the intake as fast as she could until it was all gone.

"Thank you…." She hesitated, clearly not knowing what to call me.

"Damion. My name is Damion." She nodded as silence fell between us again.

"How much do you need to get home?" she stared at me for a few seconds, puzzled.

"Why?" I smirked as I opened my omni-tool.

"Because I want to help pay you're ticket. Gets you out of my hair." She shifted where she was sitting as she spoke.

"Thank you for the offer, but, I'd rather handle it myself." I shrugged, not surprised by her saying that.

"Well, one way or another, I ship out in two weeks for training and reassignment. You got till then to make the money you need. Otherwise, I'm buying you that ticket. We clear?" she nodded staring off into the distance. Even though I couldn't see her face, I knew what she was feeling. "Who'd you lose?" she startled at the sound of my voice.

"I… What?" her voice sounded totally bewildered.

"It's in your body language." She nodded, staring off into the distance for a while.

"I lost a close friend of mine. Shepard, THE Shepard. He saved my life, and now, I can't repay him for that." The silvery orbs that were her eyes disappeared and her body shuddered.

"Well, I'm going to head back to the apartment. Unlike you, I haven't slept. You remember how to get there right?" she nodded and I continued. "And the code is?"

"8-8-1-2. And I think I'll join you. Didn't get much sleep myself." I nodded as I stood and stretched, letting her led the way back to the apartment.


Tali slowly sat up, desperately wanting to rub her eyes and sore muscles, cursing suited life. She had a friend pull strings to get her work, repairing damaged C-sec sky cars from the Geth attack. Problem was, after three days, she already had all but one operating at above spec, leaving her to soon be jobless again. She sighed as her eyes adjusted to the dark room she expected to see Damion asleep on the floor, as was his usual. Instead, he was leaning up against the wall, sidearm and jacket already on. His eyes were fixed on something in his hands, but what shocked her, was the tears in his eyes.

"Damion?" he jumped slightly at the sound of her voice. She slung out of the bed and sat beside him.

"Morning. Didn't see you were awake." She gestured toward the silver chain she could now see in his hands as she responded to him.

"What's that?" he sighed and held it out to her, letting it drop into her hand. It was a small necklace, the main piece of it being a small blue gem, surrounded by a dozen much smaller clear gems. "It's beautiful. Who's was it?" she handed it back to him, but he remained silent for a while.

"A…a friend of mine. She's dead now." Tali frowned and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. He made no movement to even acknowledge her hand, continuing on his own. "Her name was Natalie. I was stationed on a colony world called Ariel with the one-forty-second Air Assault battalion. I met her on patrol and we became, well, closer than close. When the Geth fleet passed through the system on its way to the citadel, a detachment was deployed to Ariel to annihilate the population. Within three hours, the entire population was either dead, or a husk. I managed to fight my way back to her home, but…" his voice froze, more tears slipping out of his eyes. "They turned her into…" she gently squeezed his shoulder as he buried his face in his hands. She had fought Husks, but had never known who they had been. She knew they used to be people, but she couldn't imagine fighting one that used to be someone she knew.

"That's horrible! i…" her voice cut out, not knowing what to say. He took a deep breath before wiping the tears from his eyes. He laced the chain through the strap release that held his handgun in the holster, running it through a few times before dropping the pendant through the loop of the chain, securing it in place.

"It's the past. Not like it's the first time I lost someone. I was stuck on planet for three weeks, fighting the husks the Geth left behind. Spent a month in the hospital, rest of the time since here." she stood and offered him a hand up. He accepted it and she was pulling the slim soldier to his feet when his Omni-tool began to ring. He answered the call and an image of Councilor Anderson appeared, shocking Tali.

"First Lieutenant Wolfe. I would like your presence in my office, as soon as it's convenient for you." Tali stepped around so she was visible in the camera.

"Captain Anderson?!" he smiled when he saw her.

"Tali? Is that you? And actually, it's officially 'Admiral' now. What are you doing there?" she smirked, knowing they wouldn't see it.

"Found myself being pulled out of the fire by a human again." Anderson rolled his eyes as he continued.

"And please bring Miss Zorah nor Rayya as well." Wolfe nodded, his face no longer sad, instead, looking like it was made of steel.

"Sir I'll be on my way now, sir." He closed the call and looked to Tali, some of the earlier signs of pain returning. "Well, best be on our way." She nodded and followed him out of the room.


Anderson opened the holo terminals in his office, beginning the call with the other councilors. One by one, they appeared. First the Asari, then the Turian, and finally the Salarian.

"Councilor Anderson. May we ask the reason for this unscheduled call?" the female like Asari was the one to speak.

"Yes, councilors, I have called a person to my office who I believe you should meet. He should be here in a few minutes, what I want to discuss with you before he gets here, is the possibility of him becoming a Spectre." The group seemed to nod in unison, the Turian councilor already speaking.

"What makes you think he is qualified?" Anderson typed a few keys on his Omni-tool as he spoke.

"I have just sent you his official military record. Little is known of his civilian record, but his military one is outstanding." The Salarian Councilor spoke up before he could continue. Salarians were an amphibious race, with very thin bodies and massive, insect like eyes, not to mention the two horns, curving toward each other from the top of their heads. They were a very short lived species, the average life span only being about forty years. Although short lived, they made up for this with an average intelligence near what a human would call a genius.

"It says here his range scores are average, and his combat range scores are actually below average." Anderson put up a hand for silence.

"It isn't his weapon accuracy we are looking at. He survived for three weeks, in a city filled with Husks, after a brutal battle with Geth forces without support. There is also strong evidence that he was engaged by Batarian Mercenaries and Slavers as well. He may not be the best fighter, but he excels at tactics and surviving. He is already scheduled for an accelerated version of the N7 program, focusing on the investigative side." The Asari councilor cut him off this time.

"Wait, it says here he is only nineteen years old? I am not altogether familiar with human years, but, is that not extremely young for your species? Shepard was almost ten years older." Anderson nodded before he continued.

"That is why I am suggesting he goes through the N7 program, then works with a Spectre in the field, so we can have direct eyes and reports on his abilities and skills." The Asari nodded, and they were about to say more when Ambassador Udina's voice spilled out of his rooms intercom.

"Anderson, you have two visitors, First Lieutenant Wolfe and a Quarian." He nodded, speaking back.

"Alright, ask Tali to wait in there, send Wolfe in please." The door opened, letting a slim soldier step through. He had an outdated side arm on his thigh, and although he was wearing uniform pants, his top consisted of a white T-shirt and thin leather jacket. His light brown hair was just out of regulation length, and his steel grey eyes searched the room with a sort of experience and caution that did not fit the features of his youthful face. He saluted the second he saw Anderson, and Anderson returned it.

"Fellow Councilors, I would like you to meet First Lieutenant Damion Wolfe of the One-Forty-Second Air Assault Battalion." He nodded respectfully to the councilors, instantly speaking.

"Respectfully Admiral, but I cannot be a member of a unit that no longer exists, sir." Anderson nodded as he continued.

"As you may know, he is one of the few living recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest commendation a member of the Alliance Military can receive." The Asari councilor was the first to speak.

"It is an honor to meet a rare individual such as yourself." He frowned as he responded to her.

"Respectfully ma-am, but I just survived. I'm no hero. Just a survivor." The Turian councilor grunted, crossing his arms.

"So you don't respect the opinions of your superiors?" he stuttered for a second, clearly caught off guard by the response.

"I.. Respectfully, I do value the opinions of my superiors, I just, well, my job was to protect my team mates, and I failed. Honestly, they should be the ones standing here, not myself, sir." The Turian unfolded his arms, nodding in approval.

"Then you have earned that medal." Anderson finally took over.

"I assume you have not been briefed as to the nature of the training you shall be receiving before re-deployment, have you?" he shook his head and Anderson continued. "You will be going through an accelerated version of the N7 program, initially testing your current abilities and training you in the areas you are lacking in to be an N7 operative. At the end of such training, you will be assigned to a new task force, to be working under complete control of the Citadel and the council. I want to ask your opinion on this before I send the final orders." He glanced between the councilors and Anderson before he spoke.

"It's not a matter of opinion or choice, if you believe me to be needed as an N7 operative, then that is where I will go." Anderson sighed about to speak when he continued. "But, you asked for my opinion, so here it is. This isn't about me and the N7 program, I would say that this is about something else. Maybe the Spectres, maybe some new kind of task force, I don't know, but I intend to find out, sir." Anderson raised an eyebrow at him, glancing at the counselors. All three of them were visibly impressed by the soldier.

"Well, that is settled. Councilors, if I may, I will call you back later." They nodded as he keyed up his intercom again. "Udina, please let Tali in." Wolfe spoke up as soon as he finished speaking.

"Request permission to leave, Admiral?" the door opened and Tali walked in, her usually beautiful exo-suit filthy and poorly maintained.

"Why?" Wolfe glanced between the two of them, already speaking.

"Well you two clearly have a history of some sort or another, and I am not one to step between things such as that. Keeps life simpler that way." He nodded and Wolfe saluted before leaving.

"Tali, it's good to see you. How have you been since…" she sighed, leaning on the railing and looking out at the lake that ran around the presidium.

"Not good. I miss Shepard. A lot. I've lost most of my money, but I'm surviving. Just hope that Geth data Shepard shared with me will be good enough for my pilgrimage." Anderson squeezed her shoulder gently.

"You know you could have come to me for help." She nodded and shrugged.

"I know, but you have enough on your plate with the mess the Geth left you. Anyway, I should go, before I'm late for the work Garrus scrounged up for me." She waved goodbye and left, leaving Anderson alone with his thoughts.


Tali sighed as Wolfe and herself walked toward the gantry for the transport ship she had booked passage on. She could hardly believe that it had already been two weeks since they met. He was wearing his full armor, looking very intimidating even with his helmet dangling off his belt. He also had a duffel bag over his shoulder, filled with his clothes, and extra slugs and magazines for his modified rifle and pistol. Much to her surprise, she didn't want to say goodbye to the human, feeling like he was an adopted brother rather than someone she had met just weeks prior. And given the disappointed expression on his face, he felt similarly. She had already given him a way of sending messages to him through the Extra-net, but she knew it could easily be lost in cyber space, especially with how often the migrant fleet moved around.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye." She nodded sadly, staring at the air lock to the small ship. "I'm going to miss you back on the fleet." He chuckled before he responded.

"Well, I'll do my best to message you when I can. No guarantee's though. No telling what's in store for me." She nodded and he pulled her into a rough hug, made all the harder by the fact that they were both wearing armor, but no less heart felt.

"Thank you for all of the help. It really means a lot. And if you ever happen to be near the migrant fleet, swing by and ask for me when you're hailed. Or call, whatever you can do." He let go of her and nodded, the two of them standing in awkward silence when a third voice joined them.

"Well, I didn't expect to find you here Tali." She instantly threw her arms around the fully armored Turian, her head didn't even come up to the Turians chin.

"Garrus! It's great to see you! Come to see me off?" she let go of her friend, puzzled to see the duffel bag over his shoulder.

"No. I quit C-sec. tired of all the red tape. Don't know where I'm going, just far away from here." Tali nodded, understanding where he was coming from. After working with a Spectre, life did feel rather restricted.

"Just be careful." He grunted, his eyes smiling for what his mouth could not do.

"Always am. You too Tali. I'm guessin this is the slick tonged human you mentioned. Tali nodded as they shook hands. "Glad to meet you, and thanks for pulling my friend out of the fire. We ever meet again, I owe you a beer." Wolfe grunted, a smirk on his face.

"I'll hold ya to that. I really got to go. Military docks are a bit of a hike away." He gave another quick hug to Tali before disappearing into the crowd like a ghost.

"Well you two seem cozy." She glared at Garrus as she responded.

"He's been kind to me, like I'd imagine a brother to be. Just hope he stays in touch." Garrus grunted before gesturing toward the gantry in front of them.

"I think your ship is about to cast off." She nodded and waved goodbye slipping onto the small personnel carrier and watching as the ship left the Citadel behind, venturing back out into space.