So chapter 10! Woot! Sorry I am not pelting them out as fast as I would like too but meh, also thank you all for the wonderful reviews, keep them coming! For now though, enjoy!
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Victory sailed through the groups hearts as they watched the giant Geth begin to flare and spark. Taking a few shuddering steps for them, it attempting a final pulse shock, the Geth's legs gave and the giant colossus crashed to the ground with a fiery screech, destroyed in a roaring fire.
Hearing the whoop from Kal'Reegar on the com link, Shepard looking at her two team mates nodded. Guns tightly gripped, the three rose from their concealment firing at the scattered Geth while charging their final advance.
That was when the woman after taking down a Geth felt fuzzy headed, her vision blurring. Blinking trying to rid any reason why her eyes blurred, Shepard shaking her head side to side quickly, pressed onward ignoring the sickness growing within her stomach.
Nearing the door Shepard lifting her hand to her ear piece, opened the com link to Tali who was still concealed within.
"Tali, all Geth have been dealt with, the area is secure." As the Commander spoke her vision would simply not clear as her stomach gave a faint lurch as if she had dropped a few stories. Hunching forward lifting her hand from the receiver within her ear to reach out and brace herself against a bullet littered wall, Shepard hung her head; eyes tightly shut.
"Commander Shepard? Is everything all right?" Thane's voice sounded like an echo pinging from all directions around her causing her temples to throb. "I am fine, just feeling a bit ill. No doubt the radiation from the solar rays." She grumbled rising tall, burying the uneasy feeling in the pit of her gut as the door to her right hissed open with a very uneasy Tali emerging out into the open.
"I am glad that this whole ordeal is over with and I hope the Admirals are happy with what was found for the loss of so many good people." Tali spoke with such bitter loathing within her words. Her eyes scanning the remains of her squad and former friends.
"Not all of them were lost."
Tali gave into a excited sound as she rushed over to Kal'Reegar who staggered into view. Shepard squinting her eyes to try and focus her vision, had a small smile flitter across her lips watching her friend fuss over the male Quarian. Last time she had seen the young woman she was still on her pilgrimage and still so young. Now here she was fussing over a male with more interest then she has shown in the past and that made the Commander smile more as she shut her eyes, feeling dizzy.
Her stomach heaved; placing her other hand against the same wall Shepard hunched forward felt her stomach reject what she had eaten before coming upon this planet.
"Commander?!"
"Shepard!"
She heard their surprised and worried cries; yet finishing her dry heaving, contents long since expelled, the woman groaning pressed her throbbing skull against the wall, from shoulders up throbbed painfully. She felt sick but thankfully her mind after the expelling seemed to grow slightly clearer even though her body shook from the sudden violent expelling. Her skull screamed with every motion to a small breath escaping her shaking lips.
"The radiation from the sun may be causing a allergic reaction. Summon the transporter here and let's get off this rock." Shepard growled the words, her voice still broken yet uncaring the Commander refused to move to avoid any more pain in her body as she heard Thane summon the ship.
Time seemed choppy; she had felt the quarian's arms around her shoulders and small of her back while leading her to the transport. That was all she could clearly recall, all voices seemed muffled, unable to understand anything spoken.
Every time she tried to focus on anything or anyone the woman was suddenly hit hard with dizzy spells and throbbing temples.
She remembers Mordin setting her onto a soft surface, shining a bright light into her eyes before making her remove her armor and lie down. She felt his cold touch upon her neck, a sharp pain in her arm and darkness swiftly falling on her aching skull.
*
Removing the needle from her arm, the doctor shaking his head in annoyance glanced at Chakwas then glared right Garrus who in full armor other then his cast covered leg stood at attention right at the med bay door having entered just to freeze under the doctor's glare with Tali slinking in from behind him, also going still under Mordin's glare.
"Is everything all right?"
The turian spoke, uncertainty in his words as Mordin crossing his arms tightly over his chest, tapped the empty needle on his right elbow. "You did this." Was all he spoke making Garrus's breath hitch causing the Quarian to watch her old friend with an odd stare.
"I- I didn't mean… what did I do?"
Sighing deeply and rubbing his eyes with the free hand, Mordin traded his glare for a weary look at the Quarian who blinked at him behind her helmet. "Would you leave? This is personal matter to attend to. Unless Vakarian wishes for you to learn-"
Throwing her hands up in defeat with a feeble laugh passing by her mask, the Quarian took a step back.
"Uh, no- no I think I am good not knowing what is going on here."
With a very uneasy laugh, Tali left the med bay and disappeared as quickly as her feet could carry her. Garrus though remained locked, standing to attention with his mandibles tightly clutched to his face. Discomfort and fear rode in his eyes making the doctor look at him with concern and wondering once more of the Turian's mental state.
"Counter active medicine that acts as a heavy sedative for humans."
Holding up the empty needle for Garrus to see, Mordin going to the right tossed it into the small trash receptacle of used medical products before turning and looking at the Turian once more.
Chakwas looking at the two men shook her head and went to Shepard's side, omni tool active as she scanned the Commander's vital signs.
"Vital signs are good, her breath is proper, heart beat normal. Mild fever but that too is dissipating quickly."
Hearing her words, his mandibles shifted as he looked right at Shepard's slumbering form. "Tell me Vakarian, what was it that you did with her last night? It was a slow reaction but a reaction none the less."
"Reaction to what?" Garrus near whispered never removing his eyes from the Commander as he answered Mordin's question with another.
"She had an allergic reaction; by the mild symptoms yet delayed time in the reaction something got into her system that was not blood but of a genetic code causing said reaction."
Mordin fired off the words quickly as his mind snapped back to a scientific mode as Garrus hearing his words, peeled his eyes from the ailing woman to the bantering doctor. Fear in the Turian's eyes, Garrus tried to speak but nothing left his lips; only a few small sounds escaped.
He… he had failed to protect her from- Himself.
His talons were gripped into tight fists as he shutting his eyes hung his head. A shuddering breath shaking his shoulders as his body was held stiffly. "I was not thinking- when I saw her alive I- I couldn't stop myself. I bit Shepard." The turian whispered the last few words, his self loathing returning to ten fold. All he ever was good for was failing; no matter how hard he tried to succeed he failed in the end.
Mordin hearing this nodded and scratched the underside of his chin while still watching the turian. "So it was your saliva that got into her blood stream. No doubt you bit and held on then simply biting and letting go. Interesting; curious; why would a turian do such a motion with a human due to the past they share? No matter; now new concern; Shepard's blood within you. Did you consume any?"
Garrus snapping his eyes open slowly pulled his gaze up to Mordin's making the doctor nod at him and proceed to type away on his omni tool. "Doctor Chakwas, both Shepard and Vakarian are to remain here for at least twenty four hours to make sure no allergic shock happens. I will treat him as a precautionary either way. EDI you will watch their vitals through out the night and inform me of any radical changes. To avoid inaccurate readings; place turian in a separate room away from Shepard."
"Wait… Stop; what is going on?"
Hearing the rising panic in his voice, Chakwas with a soft smile went over to the frantic turian. His eyes fell on hers as she lifting her hand touched his lower arm making his claws twitch from the contact. "Come with me Garrus." Was all she said as she headed for the side door leading into another room with gurneys, medical machines and medicines.
"Garrus; go with her. Will have injection ready soon."
Looking at Mordin who having turned his back to pick up a new medical needle, a shaken turian stumbled after the female doctor. His eyes not leaving Shepard's sleep face, the thick bandage on her neck exposed after relieving herself of her armor.
All he could do was watch her with defeated eyes as Chakwas grasping hold of his left wrist, pulled him into the small room. Though her body blocked with the shut door, Garrus weakly remained staring at where he knew she lay on the other side.
"Garrus?"
Hearing the woman's voice, Garrus without a sound sat down hard onto the nearest gurney. His claws burying his face as his skull thrummed with pain. Chakwas watching him, gave into a sad sigh as she going to his side was uneasy of the Turian's actions having seen how broken his mind has been and no doubt still was even if not as bad. His mind needed mending that would take much longer then a few weeks.
"Garrus?" Chakwas softly speaking his name, tempted trying to receive a response again as she reached her hand towards his armored left shoulder. "I failed her; again." The doctor pulled her hand away upon hearing his voice croak the painful words.
His mind was still fractured. Though memories were there, his emotions; his stable mind were so far shattered and gone, it was hard to believe if he would ever recover to what he was in the past.
"Vakarian; look."
Grabbing the small roller chair from nearby, Chakwas pulling it underneath her sat down and faced the turian who sill concealed his face within his claws. The woman unsure what to say that would help the poor Turian's heart.
"I will admit it, when I first joined the SSV Normandy those two years ago I had no knowledge of who was upon that Alliance ship except for Anderson because I had worked with him on previous missions. I found it even more bizarre to find Commander Shepard bringing aliens on board, especially a turian seeing I was on Shanxi when it had been liberated from the Turian's take over."
Garrus's body tensed when he had heard Shanxi. He remembered the First Contact war; so many fine men and women had died by the humans hand… then again so did many of their best fighters to his peoples own hands. It was not long ago that war had happened and much hate still remained in the hearts of so many turians and humans.
"But- I am glad what Shepard had done and allowed aboard this ship. I have grown fond of Tali's wonderful stories of her home, I had respect for Wrex's honor and strength, and I learned that I can trust a turian when I had believed it was impossible with not only getting the needed missions completed but with my very life."
Garrus slowly slipping his claws from his face, shoulders still hunched looked at the doctor who showed kindness with her gaze and smile.
"Now know this, I have watched you and Shepard for the past two years. I have gotten to know a war hero as the true woman she is; a hero she may be but she is still human. I viewed Turians as well; the bad guys. Yet I got to know you, I have tended your wounds that were gained by helping us humans"
Dusting something unseen from her left knee she braiding her fingers together rested them on her lap and had a thoughtful smile as her gaze drifted unfocused while memories filled her mind.
"I also watched something that was so unforeseen by most. A human and a turian becoming not just team mates having the same goals, but turning into a true friendship. You had her back as she had yours; you always worked together as if two halves of one whole."
A light laugh passed her lips as she looked at the turian who having lowered his claws to his lap watched her with those pain filled eyes.
"I simply cannot recall a time when you were not on a mission with her. Always by her side and never flinching; that takes more then just being a good soldier."
"it takes more then a good solider to protect his commanding officer."
Hearing his hushed voice, Chakwas watched the turian with sad eyes as he turned his own to the floor between them, glazed with who knew what haunting memories.
She watching him suddenly understood one of the reasons why his mind was so shattered since that passing day in the upper wards. Her expression growing solemn, Chakwas reaching out rested her hand upon his right knee making his dead eyes turn to hers.
"Garrus; no one could have saved her those two years ago. She chose to protect us, and she chose to save Joker's life. From what had happened no one could have predicted she would die in action like that. You are not the only one who wept for her fall."
Garrus's eyes focused on the doctor before him as her eyes going over bright, removing her hand from his knee proceeded to with the same hand wipe away the unshed tears from her eyes. "Even when she had died, we learned something from her, one final lesson to be had. We learned to be strong even if our hearts are broken and minds shaken. We all went on living and continuing our lives trying to make things better no matter how small is this dark galaxy. When I heard she had been brought back from the dead I simply could not believe it; I-"
Her voice cracked as a single tear slipped from her eyes down her pale cheek as she with a watery laugh brushed it away while looking at Garrus, a small smile twitching upon her lips.
"I am grateful she is back with us and I have learned just how much she meant to me when she was taken."
"A second chance…"
"What?"
Chakwas had barely heard the murmured word as the turian closing his eyes, intertwined his claws together and rested his chin upon them. "She was given a second chance as were we all to fix what has been wronged in this galaxy; the reapers, the collectors and the geth. A second chance to also realize that maybe..."
Garrus fell silent; his eyes half open and distant, his mind in memories Chakwas had no knowledge of as she watched him. She remembered that day that seemed so long ago now in the mess hall where Shepard had run into him. She had seen him watch her with those pain filled eyes; that sorrow when he had touched his scars. She knew they were good friends but the possibilities of them falling in love as Mordin in his scientific mind babbled on about…
How could that be? With the history of humans and turians such an idea never seemed to cross anyone's minds.
Opening her mouth to ask him of said idea, Chakwas and Garrus looked over as the door hissing opened exposed a grinning Mordin with needle in hand. Nodding to the fellow doctor as he stepped in, the salarian looked to the uneasy turian whose mandibles twitched with unease yet like any good soldier, began to remove the armor and guards on his right arm. "All is good. Shepard is sleeping off the effects. You are lucky she had only mild symptoms." Mordin shot off the words as he going to the turian with no warning grabbed his arm and injected the medicines into Garrus' blood stream.
Withdrawing the needle, a single drop of blue blood slipped out right before the cotton swab was applied. "I will research into a allergy block so not happen again. Should be simple matter. Medications already exist to counteract reaction. So materials to stop before it happens are available. Just need to know proper chemical codes to make work with very little side effects. Will be interesting to see results."
Garrus watched as the rambling doctor turned and left the room, summoning Chakwas to follow leaving him in the small side room sitting on the gurney holding the small wad of cotton on his inner elbow where the needle had gone in. His eyes followed the small blue drop that slipped down his arm and onto his armored upper leg.
The Turian's mind was at a blank yet filled with many thoughts that were not focused in the slightest possibility. Too much was there, his raw emotions were bleeding from within as uncertainty of anything plagued his mind.
A heavy breath passed his lips as Garrus swinging his legs up onto the gurney, positioned his head onto the pillow, with hands on his belly, the turian looked up at the metal ceiling above. The gentle hum of the Normandy's engines lolled him into a deep slumber.
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So hope you enjoyed it, again R&R if you could, please and thank you. till the next time!
