A brief note to my irreplaceable reader,

First off, I would like to sincerely apologize for taking such a long, unplanned break from updating this work. Hopefully, you did not really care to begin with, but if that is not the case, my wish is that I will be able to earn your forgiveness through writing more content for you. I have no excuse to offer, other than my workplace and career has been too demanding over the last two months, and I was unable to write as much as I would have liked to; however, I am seeking to jump back onto the metaphorical mechanical bull. With the start of December, I now have more free time to devote back to you, and I hope to keep it that way permanently. Please stay tuned for more updates and content!

I would also like to make a brief announcement concerning social media. If you happen to follow my Facebook, Reddit and/or Tumblr pages, it is quite obvious the message above was copied and pasted (sorry…it was for efficiency and consistency, I promise!) Furthermore, I plan to continue updating those pages, with the exception of Tumblr. As you may already know, Tumblr is planning to begin censoring all content flagged as "adult", or "NSFW". I do not approve of this; therefore, I will be retiring my Tumblr page effective immediately after this chapter is uploaded. It will remain active, but I will stop updating the page. If you have any suggestions for similar websites for alternatives to Tumblr, please feel free to let me know using any of my contact information available (Facebook, Reddit, Private Messages, ETC) and as always: any feedback, concerns, criticisms or conversation is welcome at any time! Please do not hesitate to contact me, even if you would just like to say hi, or let me know what a huge disappointment I am!

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~AltF5

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Act I : IX

Feros

What…what happened? Where am I?

Tali'Zorah groggily opened her eyes, sickly disoriented and confused, but she was too fatigued to panic. The first thing she noticed was her HUD: it was obviously not her's. The colour scheme was blue instead of her familiar purple, filled with icons and elements which were not in native quarian.

What the hell?

The next thing she noticed was the distinct odour: the musky scent of sweat was present, but was not pungent enough that she needed to gag; however, it was not exactly an enticing smell either. Mixed into this off-putting odour was the faint trace of a sweeter, more appealing smell which Tali focussed on identifying. It was not a natural scent - it was undoubtedly an artificial scent that was engineered to smell the way it did - although, it was sweet, but also bold and harsh at the same time. She vaguely recognized this scent, her olfactory simulators in her helmet had given her an impression of it before, but only now was she able to truly smell it through her own nose.

This is Gabriel's cologne…

Tali now vividly recalled all the times she had noticed this scent when she was around the Commander, happily coming to the conclusion that she was wearing Gabriel's helmet. She tiredly smiled to herself, but her relief was short-lived as a huge bump shook her fully awake.

Wait…why am I wearing his helmet?

She went into a coughing fit and tried to sit upright, but her head began to ache painfully and she could now feel she was suffering from a fever, which would explain her fatigue. Tali continued coughing and wheezing for a few moments before another bump made her realize she was in the Mako.

Oh, Keelah…as if the fever wasn't enough to handle, now I'll get motion sick too. Shepard will kill me if I vomit inside his helmet…but then again, the look on his face would be worth it.

"Well, he won't be a problem anymore!" Gabriel chuckled.

"Commander…" Kaidan began. "I think you are enjoying running over Geth a little TOO much."

"Preposterous", Gabriel snickered.

"No, I think Shepard is just a bad driver", Tali coughed. The Mako abruptly coasted into a full stop and Gabriel left the driver's seat to crawl over to her.

"Oh, thank god you're awake", he breathed. "Kaidan, take the wheel! We were worried sick about you. How are you feeling?" The Mako started to move again as Tali dramatically collapsed back onto her seat and reached her hand outwards towards Gabriel.

"Gabriel, my love, please tell Engineer Adams I died like a hero", Tali jokingly swooned, blushing inside Shepard's helmet as she did.

"Not the time, Tali!" Gabriel scolded. Tali coughed and gagged again before sitting upright.

"Shepard, you're no fun", Tali commented.

"Tali, you almost died", Gabriel chastised. "Now isn't the time to be joking around! Now, are you okay?! You sound like you're going to cough out a lung!" Tali became frustrated with herself as she chose that moment to start another coughing fit. Although she was quite content with all the attention Gabriel was giving her, she did not want him to excessively worry about her. Tali admitted she was delicate, but not fragile and she could take care of herself.

"I'm alright, Shepard", Tali reassured. "Thanks for asking. Why am I wearing your helmet?"

"You took a krogan headbutt to the face", Gabriel reported. "It completely shattered your faceplate and this was the only idea I had. I know it's not ideal, but it was definitely better than the alternative. We tried to call the Normandy for a pick up, but the colonists have gone absolutely insane and they've locked the Normandy into the dock. We need to get you back there ASAP, but that means going through the colony. Some Exogeni scientists gave us a nerve toxin to safely incapacitate the colonists, but we still need to fight our way through. We're almost back at Zhu's Hope, so just stay in the Mako, try not to move and let us know if you're getting worse, okay?" Tali shook her head and looked around for her scimitar.

"You're not leaving me here", Tali argued. "I can still move. Where's my shotgun?" She tried to crawl out of her seat, but Gabriel placed his hands on her shoulders and stopped her from moving.

"Tali", Gabriel enforced. "You are staying here. Do not make me pull rank."

"I'm not in the Alliance", Tali snapped. "You can't order me around, so where's my shotgun?" Tali began coughing again and her breathing was becoming more and more ragged.

"Tali!" Gabriel barked. "You do not need the damn shotgun because you are going to stay here!" The Mako rumbled into a halt and Kaidan crawled out of the driver's seat to open the crew hatch.

"We're here, Commander!" Kaidan called out. "What's our plan?"

"You're staying here, Tali", Gabriel ordered. "That's final." He started to crawl away, but Tali gabbed his hand and caused him to turn around to face her again.

"Shepard", Tali gasped. "If you leave me here and I get worse, I'll be alone without help. You need to bring me with you so you can keep an eye on me. Give me my shotgun so at the very least, I can defend myself in case we get separated. It's just logical, there really isn't any reason to leave me here."

"With all due respect, Commander", Kaidan added. "She's right. Tali's in no condition to fight, but we can't just leave her here. The Mako is safe, but she's sick and needs medical attention, not a safe place to hide." Shepard groaned and reached over to pull Tali's scimitar off a weapon rack on the wall, then held it out towards her.

"I guess you're both right", Gabriel conceded. "But you better not die, Tali, or I'll be pissed." He bent down to pull Tali into his arms and carried her out of the Mako. As Gabriel cradled her to the barricaded entrance, Tali loaded a thermal clip and charged her scimitar.

"I'll shoot, you just worry about keeping us alive", she suggested. "I feel like I have the galaxy's worst hangover, but I'm still a better shot than you. Just keep your barrier up. Deal?" Gabriel smirked and rolled his eyes, giving Tali a worried, but confident glare.

"Alright", he smiled. "Just remember not to shoot any colonists. Oh, and try not to sneeze inside my helmet. It's a bitch to clean."

"Too late", Tali teased. "You probably should have mentioned that a while ago. Besides, this is MY helmet now. You'll have to get another one, cuz I'm not giving it back."

/

Commander Gabriel Shepard slammed his back behind a stone wall for cover, taking a moment to catch his breath and adjust his hold on Tali. They had made it back to the heart of Zhu's Hope colony, which was now a clusterfuck of mind-controlled colonists, Thorian zombie…things and a few leftover Geth. Gabriel could handle all the surprises the planet would throw at him, but he was primarily concerned about Tali's worsening condition. Her coughing fits had now become rattling dry heaves, and her entire body would tremble with every breath she took. She had also become unfit to fire her shotgun, which left her almost lifeless in Gabriel's arms and they were both relying on Kaidan for covering fire. Gabriel would unleash his biotics whenever he could, but throwing gas grenades and shooting those Thorian zombies was mostly Kaidan's responsibility.

"Tali?" Gabriel asked for what must have been the hundredth time. "Status?"

"I'm…" Tali rasped. "Still…alive…kinda…not really…"

She can never take anything seriously, but at least she's still talking.

Gabriel knew time was definitely not on their side, and it would only be a matter of minutes before Tali succumbed to her sickness. They needed to get back to the Normandy, NOW.

"Commander?" Kaidan called out from behind the railing he was crouching behind. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this is my last gas grenade. I still see a few colonists left…What's the plan?"

Shit.

Without the gas grenades, there would be no way to take down the colonists without straight up gunning them down. Gabriel would either need a miracle, or a VERY smart plan.

"Kaidan, pass me the grenade!" Gabriel ordered. Kaidan lobbed the gas grenade over to him and Gabriel just managed to snatch it out of the air without dropping Tali. He then gently lowered her to the ground and leaned her up against the stone wall, flinching as he heard Tali gasping for air. "Okay! Listen up, Kaidan! We only get one shot at this! I'll throw a singularity out into the middle of the field, but it won't be strong enough to pull everyone in! So, I need you to pull anyone who isn't affected towards the singularity. Clear?!"

"On your mark, Commander!" Kaidan bellowed. Gabriel poured all his strength into the singularity field and hurled it into the middle of the field. It burst into action and began dragging the zombies and colonists towards itself. Gabriel was able to pull everyone except three colonists on the far side, and Kaidan was able to pull only two of them, leaving a lone colonist standing. Gabriel armed the grenade and lobbed it into the centre of the singularity. It exploded a few seconds later, engulfing the singularity's victims in green smoke. The Thorian creatures were vaporized by the blast while the colonists fell to the ground, knocked unconscious by the gas. Gabriel had no time to celebrate and used his thrusters to close the gap between him and the last remaining colonist. He pulled out his Hurricane and aimed it at the lone survivor, who was trembling from head to toe, and held a pistol aimed at Gabriel. It was Fai Dan, the colony leader and he was in visible agony.

"I tried to fight it…" Fai Dan growled. "But it gets in your head…You can't imagine the pain…"

"Fai Dan…" Gabriel threatened. "Put the gun down."

"It's not that easy, Commander", Fai Dan hissed. "Although I wish it was…"

"I know you're not in control of yourself", Gabriel began. "But it-

"I was supposed to be their leader…" Fai Dan interrupted. "These people trusted me…"

"Fai Dan", Gabriel called out in a calm manner. "I can help, you just need to-

"It wants me to stop you…" Fai Dan interrupted again. "But…I…won't…" He screamed out in agony and slowly pointed the gun away from Gabriel and towards his own head.

"WAIT!" Gabriel shouted and lunged towards him, but Fai Dan had pulled the trigger before Gabriel could even touch him. He caught Fai Dan's lifeless body as it crumpled towards the ground. Before Gabriel could think of what to do next, Kaidan was running over to him with Tali slung over his shoulders.

"Commander!" Kaidan yelled. "She's lost consciousness! She needs help, NOW!"

Shit, shit, SHIT.

Gabriel threw his omnitool open and hailed the Normandy.

"Joker?!" Gabriel yelled.

"Commander!" Joker answered almost immediately. "How are things going?! We're still on lockdown and-

"Joker, fuck the lockdown!" Gabriel barked. "Tali needs help, NOW! We're on our way to the ship, make sure Doctor-

"Commander, I'm sorry to interrupt", Joker cut in. "Forgive the insubordination, but I can't lift the lockdown. Colonists are still trying to beat down our front door and the lockdown is the only thing keeping them alive. If I lift the lockdown, the Normandy's automatic countermeasures will fry the colonists. We might be stuck inside the ship, but it's the only thing keeping those people alive." Gabriel paused for a moment to consider his options, although he did not have a lot to consider: they were out of options.

"Kaidan", Gabriel ordered. "Start heading to the ship with Tali. Keep her safe and stay out of sight until the Normandy's lockdown is lifted. The moment Joker gives you the all-clear, run your ass into the medbay and hand Tali to Doctor Chakwas. Got it?"

"Yes, sir", Kaidan answered. "What's your plan, Commander?"

"Well", Gabriel answered. "We know where the Thorian is. So, I'll go put it down and hopefully that'll restore the colonists and lift the Normandy's lockdown."

"Sir?" Kaidan questioned. "You're going alone?"

"Unfortunately", Gabriel remarked. "That's our only option. Unless you have a better idea?"

Kaidan shook his head respectfully and began heading towards the Normandy without another word, leaving Gabriel behind as he stared at Tali's limp body, hoping he was not too late.