Percpetions

Chapter Ten: Geth Interests

Chuck Shepard ushered his squad out of the door of the Normandy, and into the docks. He rubbed his face and looked to his companions.

Garrus simply nodded at his Commander, and then looked to Derek. "That armor starting to get heavy, rookie?"

Derek shrugged. His walking was a little stiffer than he liked, but otherwise he seemed to be looking acceptable. "It's alright. I can touch my toes. In the end, that's all that matters."

The Commander gave a laugh. "I'd hope so."

As Derek saw the entrance to the rest of the building, two women stopped the three. One spoke, a harsh but youthful voice cutting through their chatter. "That's far enough." She said.

Chuck raised his hands to chest level. "We're not here to cause problems."

The dark haired woman spoke again. "This is an unscheduled arrival. I'm going to need some credentials."

The Commander nodded. "I'm a Council Spectre. My name is Charles Shepard."

The blonde woman next to the officer interjected. "Load of horsecrap ma'am."

The dark haired woman gave the other an uneasy stare, but she looked to Shepard as she acknowledged her statement. "We will need to confirm that." She said. "I also must advise you that firearms are not permitted on Noveria." She looked to her coworker. "Sergeant Sterline, secure their weapons."

But as the blonde woman started to approach, Shepard and Garrus pulled their pistols on the women, the others doing the same. Derek widened his eyes, looking between the two groups as he reached for his own.

Garrus spoke up. "It's not exactly wise to search for Geth unarmed."

Shepard gave a tense stare, looking from the women to his squad. He lowers his gun, the other two mimicking. "Stand down. Their house, their rules."

Garrus muttered. "So you'll be my makeshift cover, then? Hell, Derek can join in. He's skinny enough."

A canned voice from the speakers echoes through the docks. "Captain Matsuo, stand down. We confirmed their identity. Spectres are allowed to carry weapons here."

The Captain narrowed her eyes. "You may proceed, Spectre. I hope the rest of your visit will not be as confrontational. Parasini-san will meet you upstairs. Behave yourself." She said, as the two moved out of the squad's way.

The cylindrical looking door split open, as Derek ran a hand through his blood red hair. "So… are we going to talk about the fact we immediately pulled our guns on them, or…?"

Garrus spoke. "I suppose we should thank the person who called out for calling her attack dogs off. That was almost frightful."

Derek blinked. His jaw dropped as they walked up the stairs. "But..."

Shepard nodded. "It's a very uptight, business sort of place. A lot of rules. Expect to navigate loopholes."

Derek flatted his lips. "Alright. So I'm just the weird one."

Floating scanners started to emit a loud, harsh noise along with a verbal warning for detected weapons.

A darker skinned woman in a slim pink dress spoke. "Those are just the weapons scanners, don't mind them." She said, as Shepard reached the counter. "My name is Gianna Parasini, assistant to Anoleis. I apologize for the incident at the docking bay."

Chuck gave a warm smile as he usually did, and a curt nod. "I appreciate your help."

Parasini nodded. "You're welcome. You have to understand that our Security Chief was only doing her job. One of my jobs is orientation of new arrivals. Do you have any questions?"

Chuck nodded. "Mm. Has anyone unusual passed through here, recently?"

The woman blinked at the question. "Well, an asari matriarch came through a few days ago. Lady Benezia."

Shepard crossed his arms. "Can I speak with her?" He asked.

The assistant replied, "Benezia left for the Peak 15 research facility days ago. To the best of my knowledge, she's still there."

Shepard's face was far less tense, letting out a sigh of relief. "Could you tell me how to get me there?"

Parasini gestured towards the next entrance. "You will need to speak to Administrator Anoleis for clearance."

Chuck quirked a brow. "Where can we find the admisitrator?"

She gave a nod. "His office is on the main floor. Left at the top of the elevator."

Shepard waved as he turned to walk away. "Your assistance is appreciated." Derek and Garrus followed their Commander, as they walked past the door and into the elevator. Shepard activated the lift, the center of gravity falling as the sinking feeling came back. Another canned voice, a man resonated in the elevator. It was clear it was a recording, and Derek didn't bother to pay attention to the words.

The elevator door opened, the squad walking out and heading to the left as the woman said to. It seemed Shepard was focused more on the mission, than anything.

At the desk of the room ahead was Parasini again, curiously. "Hello again, Shepard." She smiled.

The Commander placed one of his hands on the desk and leaned on it. "I'd like to see the Administrator."

Gianna nodded. "Of course, one moment." She pressed a button, and held it down. "Mr. Anoleis?"

A nasal, jittery voice replied. "What, what? Yes?"

"Commander Shepard is asking to see you, sir." Parasini said back.

Anoleis spoke again. "Right, fine. Sure. Come in."

Shepard gave a grateful smile, and pushed himself from the desk he was leaning on. He beckoned his squad again, the two following Shepard to the Administrator's office.

Inside the room was a salarian at the desk. He looked to Shepard, then to the two others. Anoleis narrowed his eyes a Derek. "I asked for Shepard. Not for children and bodyguards. I will ask that the meeting be between Shepard and I."

Garrus snorted, while Derek crossed his arms. Chuck raised his hand up. "You two can wait outside. This won't be long, hopefully." The Commander said.

Derek glowered and stomped out of the room, Garrus following with a shrug. The door closed.

The seer grumbled to himself. "The nerve of that guy."

Garrus shrugged. "I'm sure he has his…." He trailed off, before shaking his head. "Nah. He's a jackass. But Shepard can deal with jackasses. He can charm things he can't shoot, and he can sure as hell shoot things he can't charm. I guess that's why he's the Commander."

Derek took the time Garrus was taking to talk to size the turian's aura up. It was suppressed somewhat, but what raged inside was a desire to do good. He understood a bit more the gripes the C-Sec agent had on his station. "I suppose he can." The seer replied. "How long have you been working with him?"

The turian leaned against the wall. "Not too long. But you don't need long to see what Shepard does best." He crosses his arms. "But I'm sure you've seen some of it."

Derek snickered. "He's a good shot. He also carries like… five weapons around. I'm pretty sure he could punch out an elcor, too."

Garrus laughed to himself. "That last one's a new one. Maybe if an elcor Spectre decides to go crazy, we'll find out."

The door opened. Shepard looked to his two squadmates as he walked out of his room. A brow briefly creased in consternation lifted as he relaxed. "Don't follow, for now. It's better if I try and do this alone. I need to apply a bit of subtlety to what I'm about to do." He then walked off, turning his head briefly to address his squad again. "I'll radio you when I'm done."

Garrus uncrossed his arms, mandibles twitching. His beady eyes narrowed. "Strange. I've never thought Shepard one to approach anything besides conversation with tact. Whatever that salarian said struck something, because I've never known him to hide anything."

Derek shrugged. "That's strange, then. Maybe he doesn't want to get seen so he doesn't have to kill." He tilted his head at Garrus. "I assume he's the type of guy to minimalize casualties."

"That he is." Said Garrus.

'Odd fellow, my Commander.' Thought the seer.