"Thrusters... check," Joker said. "Navigation... check. Internal emissions sink engaged. All systems online. Drift... just under fifteen hundred K."
"Fifteen hundred is good," stated Nihlus, impressed. The Spectre never offered praise or criticism, but he made an exception this once. Few ace Turian pilots would be able to compare with the human. He turned and stalked away. "Your captain will be pleased."
Joker hated that guy, and when the Turian left, he said as much.
Lieutenant Alenko gave Joker a mystified glance. "Nihlus gave you a compliment… so you hate him," he said.
"You remember to zip up your jumpsuit after you go to the bathroom, That's good." replied Joker, irritation burning in his words. "I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead. That's incredible!" He shook his head slightly, quiet once more. "Besides, he's a Spectre and I don't like having him on-board." He shrugged. "Call me paranoid."
The LT happily obliged him. "You're paranoid," he said. "The Council helped fund this project, they have every right to keep an eye on their investment." It was common sense to Alenko. Why couldn't it be to Joker?
"Yeah," said Joker, "and that is the official story." He'd been covered in official stories himself several times in the past, none of which expressed facts in any way. "Only an idiot believes the official story."
Shepard timed his response with a smile. "Official story says this doesn't make sense to me and that Nihlus could be doing better things with his time," he said.
Joker glanced over his shoulder. "You know something we don't Commander?"
"That information is on a need to know basis," said Lieutenant Alenko. "And I'm sure Shepard has good reasons for keeping it under wraps. It's simple."
"Hey," said Shepard. "Check this out. Captain Anderson in three. Two. One."
Right on cue, David Anderson's voice snapped over the comms. "Joker!" Status report!"
Joker hesitated before answering. "Just cleared the mass relay, Captain," he replied, glancing back at Shepard again. "Stealth systems engaged, everything… looks solid."
"Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network," said Anderson. "I want mission reports relayed back to the Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."
Joker had executed the orders before Anderson finished giving them. "Neat trick Commander," he said, muting his microphone. "Mind giving up the secret?"
"Not just yet," said Shepard. He leaned past the pilot and switched the microphone back on. "Captain, meet in the communications room ASAP. Nihlus, you be there too."
"Actually, I was…" Anderson trailed off, realizing Shepard had cut through the request he didn't yet make. "He heard you," Anderson said, referring to Nihlus.
Shepard nodded at the LT and Joker."Gentlemen." He walked away, leaving everyone confused.
On the way to the comm room, Shepard stopped by Pressly, overhearing the tail end of an argument between him and Engineer Adams.
The Navigator cut the channel and saluted. "Congratulations Commander, looks like we've had a smooth run," he said. "Heading down to see the Captain?"
"Nihlus is just doing his job, Pressly," said Shepard. "Same as any of us." He smiled and walked right on by. Pressly turned to look after him, a puzzled expression on his face.
Up ahead, Chakwas and Corporal Jenkins were having a little chat.
"I grew up on Eden Prime, Doc," Jenkins was saying. "It's not the kind of place Spectres visit. There's something Nihlus isn't telling us about this mission."
Shepard stepped up beside the Corporal, laying a hand on his shoulder. He stood a full head taller than the younger Marine. "You're completely right about that," he said.
"What do you mean?" Jenkins asked, excited that Shepard spoke directly to him.
"Just do everything I say when I say it, and you'll be a hero," Shepard promised. "Don't, and you'll wind up dead."
"That seems a little binary, Commander," said Dr. Chakwas.
"Binary or not, Jenkins, you heard what I said." He released the Corporal. "Internalize it now."
The Corporal snapped off a nervous salute. "Yes sir."
Shepard returned it. "You were meant for great things, Corporal. Stick with me and we'll get you there in one piece." He dropped his hand and winked at them before heading into the communications room. He heard Chakwas say something about military bravado and chest pounding as the door closed.
Nihlus stood alone within.
"Ah, Commander Shepard," said Nihlus, turning around at Shepard's entrance. "I have to admit, you caught me off guard with your message to the Captain. Capable foresight on your part. But I wanted a chance to talk."
Shepard remembered this conversation well. Nihlus, playing cool, probing carefully, expecting to have months, years even, to get to know him.
"You want a chance to talk, Nihlus? Well, here it is. It might be our only chance to talk," said the Commander. "So what do you want to talk about?" he asked. "How Eden Prime isn't as safe as we'd like it to be? How I managed to survive my entire unit getting killed on Akuze? I'm Commander James Fucking Shepard. Ask me a question that means something."
Nihlus Kyrik's mandibles flexed in surprise. Nihlus prided himself on his command of language, but this time, he had nothing to say. To his credit though, he managed to pull his mask of indifference back together quickly.
"As you ask," Nihlus said, thoughtfully, churning over what Shepard had said. This human didn't fit in with who he had been observing for the past several hours. He had more confidence. More spirit. More Shepard. Nihlus looked him dead in the eye, a question in mind. "What changed you?"
Shepard grinned. "You did," he said. "When you looked at that list of names and put mine forward to the Council. I have no idea if you made the right choice, but I haven't survived this long by ignoring an opportunity when it comes my way."
Intrigued, Nihlus raised an eye-ridge. "What gave it away?" he asked, mandibles dropping in a smile.
"You behind over my shoulder every time I turn around," said Shepard. "And Anderson. The Alliance wouldn't have sent our former Spectre candidate on this mission if it was only about retrieving a Prothean beacon. He's here to make sure a Turian doesn't screw us over again."
Captain Anderson entered the room just then. "Sounds like both our secrets are out of the box," he said, looking from Nihlus to Shepard. "Nihlus told you about the beacon then?"
Nihlus chuckled. "I think he found out on his own," he said.
With all the stuff he made up, Shepard knew this one would be more important than the others. He'd thought about it a little bit beforehand though. He felt prepared. "Does the name Colonel Shepard sound familiar?" asked James.
Captain Anderson nodded. He knew Harper as well as he did James, and he knew the Alliance had stationed her on Eden Prime for the time being. It would have been easy for her to hint at the beacon's existence in communication between them.
"Harper Shepard was on that list right by you, actually," said Nihlus. "Both of you were uniquely qualified for Spectre candidacy, even above the others. It was quite the task picking only one of you. In the end, I felt your record of diplomacy sat better with the subtleness the Spectres are known for than your twin sister's… more straightforward nature."
"Whatever your sources," said Anderson, "I don't need to remind you that the last time humanity made a discovery like this beacon it jumped our technology forward two hundred years. But Eden Prime doesn't have the facilities for something like this. Only the Citadel has that capacity." He paused to let that sink in. "We need this, Shepard. The beacon and you."
" Humanity wants a larger role in shaping interstellar policy," said the Commander. "I know. The Spectres represent the power and authority of the Council, and if I get accepted, it'll show how far we've come. This has been on the board for a long time—you know that better than I do, Captain."
Anderson got the hint that Shepard understood more than he let on, but Joker interrupted before he could press the matter.
"Captain," said the pilot, his voice tense, "we've got a situation here."
The typically unruffled pilot's worry wasn't lost on Anderson. "What's wrong, Joker?"
"It's a transmission from Eden Prime, sir. You better see this."
"Then bring it up on screen."
