Mass Effect: inFamous
Ch10

**Normandy: Briefing Room**

"Jack, On this ship we follow orders. I am Miranda, Shepard's second-in-command. I expect you to treat me as such."

Jack, rather than responding, turned to Shepard. "Could you tell your Cerberus cheerleader to back off?" She requested. "I don't want or need her as a friend."

"And I don't want you to take that tone with me."

The two glared at each other for a few seconds before Shepard stepped in and broke the tension.

"Can't we all just get along?" She asked, already dreading the friction these two were going to cause. "This is a relatively big ship. I'm sure that you two could manage to avoid each other most of the time. Now as for sleeping arrangements-"

"I'll take somewhere down in the hold, near the bottom of the ship. I don't like a lot of through traffic." Decided Jack, then thought of something. "Hey where's the Ice Queen?" Jack asked, "Looks like my kind of woman."

"Ms. Kuo is currently with Mr. McGrath inside his quarters." EDI replied, "And current temperatures are dropping." Joker frowned, he had hoped to get some blackmail material but nothing was going on, and even if there was, he realized, Kuo had frosted over all the cameras; including those in the women's washrooms.

"Damn it."

**Cole's Quarters**

There was an uncomfortable silence between the two Conduits in the room. Their nervousness betrayed by their powers, Kuo's hands between surrounded in a frosty mist, Cole's was pulsing electric blue.

Cole decided to try and break the silence, "So," he started, "when did you get here?"

Kuo started to form a snowball on her palm, "I don't know, weeks, months? I lost track." Kuo started to shake.

"Kuo? You going to be-" Cole didn't get any further before Kuo threw herself on Cole, hugging him for all he's worth.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" Kuo just kept repeating it like a mantra. Cole wrapped his hands around her and pulled her close, not realizing how some his energy and calm was being transferred into Kuo. "It's alright Kuo, I'm here. I'm here." They stayed that way for what felt like hours, with Kuo, despite all the hardships she had been through, letting out all the pent up emotions onto Cole's shoulder. Cole being who he is and having known what to do thanks to his experience with Trish, used what he knew to comfort her.

**Cereberus: Dwarf star: Orbital Base: Illusive Man's Chambers**

"DAMN IT!" The glass shattered against the floor, "We need more samples!" The Illusive Man took a long drag on his cigar. 'Cole's gene sample has too many markers; we need a comparison sample to isolate the Conduit gene.' Exhaling the smoke he started contemplating his next move, 'if Shepard has managed to pick up both Subject Zero and Agent Kuo, perhaps we can get a sample from her through EDI. Yes, that will be the key; samples from two Conduits should be enough.' He continued reading the data file that informed him of the need for more samples, 'at the very least we managed to procure the Ray Sphere technology, a few more months and we should have the technology ready.'

He took a sip from his glass, 'soon humanity will take its place in the universe, and Conduits shall be its Vanguard.'

"So Doc, how did you get our local deity up and walking again?" Shepard was in the Med-bay after her meeting with Jack and talk with Miranda, speaking of whom, might become a problem, still that wasn't the reason she wanted to talk to Chakwas, "I thought you didn't know what to do because of his condition."

"Deity, Commander Shepard?" Chakwas had a small smile on her face, "Seems Mr. McGrath has made an impression on you, I wonder if there is something there." Shepard started to blush at the statement, Badass commander and Spectre yes, still a woman who can be embarrassed when she's found out, yup.

"I, uh," She never felt more mortified before, scratch that, the last time she felt like this was her last time with Kaidan, before Ilos, when she had to choose between him and Liara, and she remembered how scared she was. She hid it well but it was still there.

Chakwas started to chuckle, "It's quite alright commander, were it not for the fact that I'm far older, I would have an eye on him too. As it is a good far of the female members of the crew have their eye on him also." She allowed herself a small grin at the look of possessiveness in Shepard's eye, 'oh this will be intresting.' "Back on to how I revived him, I gave him a jump."

"A what?"

"A jump, I used batteries to send a strong current of electricity straight into his body." Chakwas held up a hand, "and before you ask commander, take a look at this video. EDI gave it to me; I think you'll be quite surprised." She played the video that EDI had shown her before involving Cole and his regenerative abilities, at the end Shepard had only one question: "How?"

"I honestly don't know, it may be what EDI called his Conduit abilities, his cells are different from ours. I won't try to explain it to you commander but rest assured, I doubt Cole will ever need any form of battlefield aid except in dire situations."

"Right, next time our local walking relay passes out I'll be sure to pass a couple thousand volts to wake him up." Shepard said.

"Make sure it's over 10,000. I went through five batteries before he woke up. He drained another 10 right after." Chakwas called out to her retreating back. "Oh commander, Joker better record this or he's in for so discomfort come next treatment." She looked to her personal cabinet, 'maybe a drink or two wouldn't hurt.'

Jacob was seriously confused. Not only had the onboard production facility crank out something on its own without any commands, he didn't know what 'it' was.

It looked like an oversized tuning fork, but this thing had three prongs, set up so from the front of this thing if it was lying on its side, the points would form a triangle. The 'handle' if it could be called that, had contoured grips. And what looked like capacitors of some sort made up parts of the rods.

That's not to mention the whole bunch of other attachments that came with it, and the name: AMP Mark II. He shook his head, he turned his head when he heard his terminal beep, and "New message" was displayed on the screen. When he turned back, the case that held the AMP and the other add-ons were gone. "Not again."

Back in Cole's quarters Kuo had settled down long enough to tell Cole about what had happened her. About how she woke up on Omega, had made her vow, her powers evolving without any equivalents to blast cores. Along with her meeting with John and what exactly she had done on the station.

"So you've been here for months?" Cole was in shock, hell he'd been in shock since he woke up in this time. He'd only been able to hold it in thanks to his experience in Empire City and New Marais. Now though, along with Kuo's story, it hit him full force. "And why did you make the vow? To follow me wherever I go?"

Kuo sniffled, she had been so relieved to find Cole again and let go of the pressure she felt on her soul. "I thought I was going to die Cole. I was so afraid, I didn't want to die." She paused, having admitted to herself after she had woken up on Omega, she was still reluctant to say it, but she remembered her courage and went forward, "I was afraid of losing you Cole." THAT made Cole's jaw drop.

He could only manage one word, one question, "Why?"

Kuo laughed at the question, "You saved me from Bertrand when you could have just left me behind, to be another of his minions. You taught me how to control my powers, when you could have just sent me away for my mistakes. You helped me in everything I asked because you knew it was right. You stayed firm while I faltered. You forgave me when I betrayed you. How could I not be afraid for you Cole?" She moved forward and embraced Cole, "How could I not fall for you?"She held him tighter, "I made the vow because I have no intention of betraying you of my own volition ever again Cole. I am yours, in everything that matters."

Cole eased his way out of her embrace. "Ok, I forgive you Kuo. Do you mind if we continued later? I'm still drained and need some sleep." She nodded and watched as Cole went to a bunk and simply nodded off. She stayed for a few minutes before you noticed the idle terminal; she approached it and tapped the screen. What looked like a pair of gauntlets, similar to what the other Forced Conduits wore with their suits, but more heavy duty? It looked like it could withstand anything from subzero to solar temperatures. In the corner was a tag marker, Alpha-K49/Omega.

She let it be and sent the computer back into idle mode. Feeling adventurous, she approached Cole's bunk and though it was tight, climbed in with him. Exhausted, he barely stirred and reciprocated when Kuo embraced him. Both Conduits were unaware of two beings who witnessed the sight. One simply smiled as she took a few holos of the pair, the other simply followed orders and sent a holo to Cerebrus prime.