10 - Stage Two: Anger
The somber aura that surrounded the crew for the past week, ever since departing from Aite and dropping David at Grissom Academy, has started to dispel after Shepard's announcement of a much anticipated shore leave at Illium.
During this time Tali'Zorah vas Neema finally got a tour of the ship after her rushed recruitment mission and was officially introduced to the crew. Shepard was ecstatic at having another of her old team aboard, especially after the Ashley debacle.
"And we even have a bar!" the red-headed commander said with a flourish as she made the obligatory tour of the ship.
"Like that is going to help if the AI aboard goes rogue" Tali snarked.
"I assure you Tali'Zorah, I have no intention of doing so" EDI spoke up, "As stated before."
"EDI's alright" Shepard agreed, "See, she's even getting the hang of sarcasm."
"That's actually the opposite of reassuring. But we'll see" the quarian uncrossed her arms and approached the bar that was currently occupied by Trevelyan and Joker in deep discussion.
"Werewolves?" the pilot asked abruptly.
"Got them. A curse and not many" Trev shrugged. Joker's eyes widened in awe and he took a shot.
"Dragons?"
"Yep"
"Wait! Already knew that, so no shot" Joker shook his head, "Dragons. Can't believe it."
The templar shrugged "We thought they were near extinct too but they surprised us."
"Do they really breathe fire?"
"Use frost and lightening too"
"How does that work exactly?" Joker breathed out in disbelief.
Trevelyan tapped her bottom lip in thought "I'm not really sure. Same as the fire I'd imagine. They are magical creatures after all."
"What about unicorns? Do you have those?" the pilot began the game anew.
"Nope" Trev took a shot.
"Elves?"
The Ostwick noble nearly knocked over her glass, she was laughing so hard "Yes! Fourth largest population I'd say. Or maybe tied with the dwarfs. Don't know if anyone has ever done a comprehensive census."
"Are they beautiful?"
"Some yes"
"You're blushing!" Joker pointed at his companion and erupted into giggles, "Oh, Shepard! And Tali! I was just introducing Trev to local alcohol. Do you want a glass? We can hear tales of beautiful elven women together!"
Shepard chuckled "And just how long have you been introducing Trev to local alcohol?"
"I'm off duty!" the pilot quickly defended, "Hello, Tali."
"Hello, Joker" the quarian chuckled, "Good to see you again."
"And this is Ser Trevelyan, you know her as Trev" Shepard introduced.
"Well met"
"Hi"
"We're all pals. Back to elven women now" Joker grinned, "Feel free to include graphing details."
Tali chuckled "You certainly haven't change a bit."
"That he hasn't" Shepard agreed, "So, this concludes our tour. I'm sure that Joker will gladly present you our dextro selections or you can go terrorize the engineers. I have to go, I promised Miranda I'd go by her office."
Tali huffed, no doubt less than happy at the very presence of the bosh'tet cheerleader on the ship, but made a motion to the pilot to fetch her something from his side of the bar.
As the commander left, Trevelyan excused herself and followed "Shepard!"
"Yes?"
"Are you well? You seem… down. Which is peculiar as you have another of your dear friends aboard. Garrus had been practically beaming since she agreed to stay"
Shepard sighed and got into the elevator, making a gesture for the templar to follow "I'm glad about Tali. It is our next destination that has me out of sorts."
"Why?"
The commander stayed silent until the elevator's doors opened to reveal the short corridor to the Captain's quarters.
"Weren't you going to see miss Lawson?"
"I'll go there shortly" Shepard sighed once more, "Come in for the minute."
"Yes, commander"
"Liara"
"I beg your pardon?" Ser Trevelyan arched an eyebrow in confusion.
"She's on Illium. Garrus boasted how you appreciated his narrative so I trust you know who she is"
"I do" Trev said with gentle neutrality - indeed she knew who the asari was. Garrus spoke of the unlikely romance quite often, but never once in front of the red-head.
Shepard seemed bitter "You saw how Ashley reacted on Horizon, am I kidding myself?"
"I cannot say" the templar replied, "I don't know her. But… I imagine she'll be shocked at your presence. But her first reaction will not necessarily be the last. What did Garrus say?"
"I didn't speak to him"
"Why?"
"We don't speak about things like that. He's… too much of a guy. And he'd use humor to make me feel better. I'm not in the mood"
"I can see that. But I can promise that if things go badly on the Liara front, I'll take you to the nearest tavern" the noble smiled almost imperceptibly.
"More sampling of local alcohol?" Shepard chuckled.
"Indeed"
Trevelyan turned to leave but the commander stopped her "I'm scared. I can't tell that to the rest - Miranda would squeal to TIM, Garrus would be lost, Jacob is too starry-eyed about my 'legend' while the rest… no. Simply no. Tali might understand but I don't need more judging, she's adjusting too."
"That's normal," the blonde returned and sat down, "To be scared."
"For me it feels that only a month, and some change, has passed, but it had been two years. TWO years. And I was dead, it's not like we had a little spat or something. And…"
As Shepard continued Trev nodded and hummed in the appropriate places - it was clear the commander needed this off her chest and wasn't really looking for a reply. She did much the same to EDI about her own predicament, rage and despair. And her all-consuming homesickness.
Well, with this 'conversation' it seemed she had been upgraded from teammate to friend, so that was a step in the right direction.
"Thanks Trev, for listening"
"Of course. And Shepard? Ashley will come around eventually, so will Liara. Have faith"
Shepard chuckled "Heh, of course. No quote for me today from, what was it? Chant of Light?"
"Indeed. And no quote. But if you'd be interested in converting…" Trev trailed out teasingly.
"Not today" the commander smirked.
"I have been reconstructing the Chant from memory, EDI will be thrilled to download a copy to your terminal" the templar continued on with her joke.
"Grand" Shepard said dryly but her eyes twinkled with mirth.
Cockpit
"You know, somehow I expected it to be blue" Joker hummed as they approached the planet Illium.
"And somehow I'm not surprised" Shepard chuckled.
"Records show this planet is called Blue for it's predominantly asari population, not its appearance. The term Blue Mall was first used…"
"Thank you EDI" the pilot interrupted grumpily.
"Acknowledged"
Shepard chuckled at the interaction "I'm sure you'll get to see the blue for yourself, we'll be docked here for a while."
"And my baby gets maintenance and upgrades" Joker grinned, "Garrus had been raving about this Thanix Cannon for ages."
"Yes, the engineers and Tali will be supervising. And EDI herself, of course. The crew will work in shifts so that everyone gets to have shore leave"
"Great, I have been looking forward to going to a club called Peekaboobs"
"Peekaboobs" the commander arched an eyebrow.
EDI chose this time to chime in again "A well-known strip-club in Nos Astra."
"Thank you EDI" Joker said tersely.
Shepard laughed and waved in goodbye as she pivoted and left the cockpit "I see the ship will be in good hands. Just, wash them first, yeah?"
"The decontamination procedure at the ship's entrance cleanses all germs, STDs included" EDI was forever helpful.
The commander threw her head back and laughed loudly. And she continued doing so even as she left the muttering Joker who took it up upon himself to confront his artificial co-pilot.
Only a few more hours, the docking on a commercial planet took ages without advertising Spectre clearance, and she would meet Liara again. Her smile froze at the thought as dread ran though her veins - she truly didn't know what to expect. Plus she would have to juggle recruiting two new teammates and Miranda's personal request as well.
"Shepard!" Garrus grinned as he came out of the elevator, "Just who I wanted to speak with. You'll be taking me to see Liara, right? And Tali. They wrote to each other once in a while but I admit to having been negligent in that regard. I'm really looking forward to seeing her again."
The commander nodded "Definitely you two. I'm not showing up with a Cerberus escort. It is enough we have their fucking logo painted on the ship. She doesn't need to be an information broker to be suspicious right off the bat."
"Liara is smart" Garrus smiled, "She'll understand."
"God, I really hope so"
/
"Welcome to Nos Astra. All your docking fees have been waived. My name is Cereena. If you need information about any of the areas or specific shops, it would be my pleasure to assist you"
Shepard eyed suspiciously the provocatively dressed concierge, and her two mech guards "How come we get the free pass?"
"Your fees have been paid in full by Liara T'Soni" the asari said chipperly, "She also requested I direct you to speak with her at your earliest convenience. Here are the directions. Her office is over the trading floor which I can guarantee you has the most diverse goods here you have seen so close to the Terminus."
"Liara?" Shepard perked up, "What can you tell me about her?"
Cereena smiled "She is a respected information broker."
"She might know where we could find our two candidates" Jacob butted in.
"Yeah, right. We'll do that" the red-head nodded absently and thanked the concierge. The asari gave them all a big practiced smiled and left them alone.
Garrus bumped his bff "Me and Tali are ready to go!"
The quarian nodded "Liara seems to be really successful. And hey, it looks like she knows you're alive."
"Liara. Right" Shepard deep breath, "Well, no time like the present."
"Commander" Miranda uncharacteristically antsy.
Shepard nodded "You may go, just radio when you finish or if anything comes up. Oh, and take Trev with you. And Grunt too."
"There is hardly the need…"
"There is" the red-head affirmed sternly, "We have enough people so you're getting back-up."
"Very well" Miranda nodded. She met the eyes of her two companions and it calmed her nerves down some - Shepard had chosen well. The matter of Oriana was of utmost importance to her, as well as its secrecy, and Trevelyan had an unflinching moral compass and considered family a sacred thing. As the late Dr. Archer could attest to. Grunt on the other hand, would not care enough about her sister to gossip about it.
Shepard hummed in satisfaction and then turned to Jacob "You start the resupply, maintenance, contact the cannon guy, the works. Radio if there's a problem. Everybody knows what to do? Great. Disperse!"
The Cerberus operative didn't wait for anything more and started striding towards the trading floor. Grunt and Trev had to jog to catch up.
"What is our assignment?" Trev asked.
Miranda's step faltered minutely "It's… a personal matter. I would really appreciate your discretion on this."
"Does that mean we don't get to know?" the templar arched and eyebrow but then shrugged at the small nod and apologetic smile she got in return.
The small group silently made their way to the Eternity bar, only once commenting about the view. Grunt grinned widely when the stepped into the bar and made a bee-line to the bartender while Miranda slipped into a private room where her contact was waiting for her. Trev sighed and resigned to wait beside the door, listening to the woes of an indentured quarian.
And fending off the attentions of a drunk turian who ventured to her from a bachelor party that was happening in the corner. And who apparently found glaring to be a turn on.
"Something wrong?" Trev frowned when Miranda came out of the room even more rigid than usual.
"Possibly" the brunette swallowed thickly, "Let's get Grunt."
After they wrestled the glass out of the krogan's hand and found transportation, Miranda steeled herself behind the wheel "Ok, here's the situation. We're rescuing my twin sister from my father and the Eclipse mercs he hired."
Grunt grinned "I hope they put up a good fight."
Trev rolled her eyes and focused more on the other piece of information "I assume the mercenaries are the complication, so what was the original mission?"
Miranda frowned, obviously not overly enthusiastic about having to share "I feared that my father might've found out where my sister is hiding so I arranged to have her relocated."
"What is her name?"
"Oriana"
"Miranda and Oriana, huh?" Trev smiled minutely, trying to ease the tension, "Pretty. Never heard those names in Thedas."
The brunette hummed absently "They are star-related."
"Eclipse drop ships" Grunt spoke up.
Miranda turned her head and her eyes sharpened "We'll draw their attention from Oriana. They'll hold fire, wanting to speak."
"If you say so" the templar said mildly. When their third teammate growled in displeasure Trev chuckled "Do not worry Grunt, I will bet you anything we will have to fight. A lot. I called Shepard but they won't make it. It's just us."
"Good" the krogan smiled. Then he turned to Miranda "Bet you're glad we came along."
Miranda pursed her lips. And then again harder as they had to evade weapons fire. Then suddenly the firing ended and they were allowed to land, proving the XO right.
Grunt was practically humming with excitement when they disembarked and were met by the Eclipse. And their especially cocky team leader in tech armor "So you're one that kidnapped the boss' little girl."
Trevelyan stilled behind the brunette but said nothing.
"Captain Enyala's already moving in on the kid. She knows about Niket, he won't be helping you. Thought you've got it all lined up, huh? One last chance to walk away."
A beat of silence passed, no doubt Miranda was trying to think up an appropriately snarky reply. Then Trev lunged forward and with one swift motion she used her new favorite - the omni-blade - to drive it into the man's neck, while Grunt used his assault rifle on a crate that was coming over the rest of the mercenaries. The resulting explosion scattered the Eclipse.
"Hahaha! Did you see that salarian's face!" Grunt laughed loudly.
"I really miss my sword fighting days" Trev lamented instead.
"Evidently you make do" Miranda shrugged as she aimed her SMG.
The fight was over rather quickly, even with only the three of them, mainly thanks to Grunt's quick thinking with the exploding crate earlier.
"Clear" the krogan announced with much satisfaction as they approached the elevator.
Trev nodded at his assessment and turned to Miranda with a hard look on her face "You owe us an explanation. Not half-truths, omissions and need-to-knows. All of it. Now."
"What we need now is to get to Oriana before anyone else does" the brunette said harshly.
"No, operative Lawson" Trev said curtly, "I will not be aiding a child kidnapper."
"I rescued her! And she's not a kid!" Miranda lost control for a moment but immediately calmed down, "She'll be nineteen this year. We are twins, we have the same DNA but father grew her when I was a teenager. She was meant to replace me. I couldn't let what father did to me happen to her. So I took her when I escaped. She has a new, good, family and doesn't know about anything."
"Wait, grew her?" Trevelyan's eyebrows nearly shot from her face.
"Yes" the sentinel gritted her teeth, "Both of us are genetically engineered."
"You grew up in a tank? Like me?" Grunt exclaimed eagerly.
"Well, not exactly. But close enough" Miranda admitted. Then she turned to the noble "Is that enough for you, Ser Trevelyan? Can we go rescue Oriana now?"
Trev nodded and called for the elevator. Mirada nodded in satisfaction and collected the radio the mercenaries were using form a corpse nearby.
"Who's Niket?" the noble asked as they rode up a floor.
"A friend who helped me escape"
"Do you trust him?" Trev asked as they listened to the radio.
"Yes" was another curt reply.
On the next floor the trio encountered more Eclipse - mechs, engineers, biotics and soldiers. Plenty of them. With the amount of cover the loading floor provided they had to proceed slowly. The process was helped by the amount of hazardous materials being transported - following Grunt's example, they used it to their advantages, hoping they wouldn't need to pay for damages.
In a full between fights the radio received another transmission. About how Niket was cooperating.
"That can't be right" Miranda mumbled.
Yet another transmission, this time when they took another elevator. The brunette punched the metal wall "Why can't this thing go any faster!"
Trev was surprised to see the brunette so frazzled and out of sorts. It really did seem she cared about Oriana. And the beginning of the sting of betrayal was starting to show as well. "Why are you so sure about Niket?"
Miranda straightened and replied woodily "He's the only tie I didn't cut when I escaped. He knows why I did it. What I saved Oriana from. And he could've betrayed me at any time but he didn't."
"So he knew about your sister?"
"No. I didn't want anybody to know. I'm very protective of her. I only told him recently, to help with the move"
"Ah"
"No. No 'ah'!" Miranda shook her head, "He knows what I went through."
Trev merely nodded. All three of them knew what was going on, even if the third was still in hopeful denial.
Denial that didn't last long.
"Miri?" the man next to the asari in yellow Eclipse armor exclaimed.
Miranda let her eyes close for a millisecond before stating matter-of-factly "Niket. You sold me out."
The man was indignant right until Trev asked about money. Then it turned into a story as old as time.
Miranda had enough and lifted her weapon, only to have it lowered by Trevelyan in the classic paragon interrupt. She lifted her own pistol but it seemed Captain Enyala was getting bored as well and decided to move things along.
When her old friend's body hit the ground from the shotgun wound Miranda growled and lit up in blue. Taking it as a signal, both the Eclipse and the Normandy ground team rolled into cover and started firing at each other.
When the noise finally died down, the trio stood victorious.
Miranda took a moment to look at Niket once more. Then she shook her head "Let's go. There might be more of them on the landing pad."
Grunt and Trev nodded, brandishing arms once more. Fortunately they didn't have to use them. Instead they had the pleasure to see a girl with an uncanny resemblance to their XO talking animatedly with an older couple that probably were her adoptive parents.
"She looks happy" the Ostwick native commented.
"Good. That's all I wanted for her" Miranda smiled.
A moment later the brunette turned to leave. Trev caught her arm "You're not going to say hi?"
"No. It's better she doesn't know anything. Safer that way"
"Would it be so bad for her to know she has a sister who loves her?" Trevelyan countered.
Miranda stared longingly at her sister and her family. Then she breathed out quietly "I guess not."
"Go on, we'll wait here"
After the brunette reached the family, Grunt and Trev divided their attention between looking out for trouble and watching the heartwarming scene. The parents were quite obviously uneasy and surprised, but Oriana seemed really excited and accepting.
"Seems to be going well" the templar commented. Grunt shrugged.
