A Matter of Time and Space
THE NORMANDY ENGINEERS
Zakera Café, Zakera Mid-ward, Citadel – 16:35 GSD – 18th May 2185 CE
The image of T'Rani stared at Valni's stunned expression, the asari's forehead creasing with concern. "What's the matter? You look a little shaken."
Valni blinked and looked down at frowning image of her CO hovering above her arm. "I have to go. I'll speak with you later, ma'am."
Before T'Rani could reply, Valni flicked the glowing button on left palm and deactivated her omni-tool's vid-link. T'Rani's face vanished. Valni felt slightly guilty at cutting T'Rani off the way she had, but, at this precise moment, she didn't want any distractions.
She could hear the distinctive voices of Kenneth and Daniels behind her, arguing in much the same way she remembered. The sound actually brought a smile to her lips. The human's relationship didn't appear to have changed overly.
Valni licked her dry lips, trying to stir some moisture around her mouth. Then she turned slowly, as if moving too fast would scare the humans away, or the illusion would be shattered and the pair would vanish like smoke.
She rotated to face the couple by the counter and inhaled sharply.
There, facing away from her, and clutching a shopping bag in his left hand, was the alien man she hadn't seen in over two years.
Valni recognized Kenneth even from the back. He was dressed in a sharp black and white jumpsuit with grey epaulettes and cargo pockets on his thighs. His hair was set in the same style as when she last saw him, though his bare arms, and especially his biceps, were a little bigger than she remembered, as though he'd been working out regularly in the gym.
Perhaps Cerberus required its recruits to be more physically active than the Alliance? Or maybe he simply had more time to train in the gym? Whatever the reason, she couldn't deny the extra muscle looked good on him.
Her gaze wandered to Daniels. She was wearing the same black and white uniform as Kenneth and her arms were also well-defined. In fact, both their physiques were noticeably more muscular, so much so that Valni found herself wondering how Kenneth looked under his jumpsuit.
Then, as quickly as the thought appeared, Valni reminded herself that he was a member of a terrorist organisation and technically an enemy of the Hierarchy.
As a member of C-Sec, it was her duty to arrest him…
Wasn't it?
She took a step closer to him, but stopped when Kenneth suddenly turned his head.
His nose twitched. A fragrance had attracted his attention.
Kenneth frowned as he sniffed the air. He inhaled several times before slowly twisting his head and turning in her direction, looking over his shoulder.
Their eyes met.
There was moment of stupefied silence as Kenneth's eyebrows shot upwards, his eyes threatening to pop out of his head.
Daniels – Gabby – hadn't noticed his surprise and was still talking to the café owner.
The shopping bag slipped between Kenneth's fingers and clattered to the floor. Gabriella turned at the sound. She was about to admonish Kenneth when she looked across the café and noticed Valni standing just a few metres away. Her mouth dropped open.
For a long time, no-one spoke. Even the turian café owner was silent as he watched the scene play out.
Finally, Kenneth found his voice. "Valni," he whispered.
Valni approached him, stepping forward, slightly unsteadily, until she was an arm's length away from his body, within touching distance. His chest was heaving as he took short, uneven breaths. In the past, Valni had tried to imagine what it would feel like seeing him again, but even with the knowledge of who he worked for, she hadn't expected the maelstrom of churning emotions threatening to burst to the surface. She didn't know which would win.
"I didn't think…" Kenneth began.
In a flash, she lashed out, her right palm striking Kenneth across the cheek.
Anger won, it seemed.
"Hey!" Gabriella yelled, stepping protectively to Kenneth's side.
Kenneth hadn't moved; the look of surprise on his face was replaced by stunned hurt.
Valni saw his expression and caught her breathe. She instantly regretted slapping him, but her anger wasn't about to fade so quickly.
She stepped closer.
"Cerberus, Kenneth?! Cerberus?" she challenged in a low voice. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"Valni, I…"
She rounded on Gabriella. "And you, Daniels? What possessed you to want to become a terrorist?"
"Who says we're terrorists?!" Gabriella protested hotly.
"No fighting in the café," the owner said. "Get out or I'll call C-Sec!"
"I'm with C-Sec!" Valni told him.
Kenneth frowned as he rubbed his smarting cheek. "You left the Hierarchy?"
"Yes," Valni replied, casting a guilty glance at his sore face. "Well, kind of… Temporarily, at least."
"When did this happen?"
"A couple of weeks ago. After the fight at the Opera Ho… This isn't about me!"
The owner gestured angrily at the door. "If you're going to fight, take it outside!"
"We're not fighting!" Valni insisted.
"But serving the Hierarchy was your life," Kenneth said to her.
"It's complicated," Valni replied. "I'm leading a taskforce…"
Kenneth smiled. "A promotion?" he exclaimed with genuine excitement. "That's fantastic! Congratulations."
"Not actually the time for that, Kenneth!" Gabriella admonished.
Valni turned her attention back to Gabriella. "How could you let Kenneth join Cerberus? I thought you had more sense than that?"
"Hey, I joined up first," Kenneth insisted. "Gabby doesn't control me…"
"Oh, shut up, Kenneth!"
The café owner activated his omni-tool. "That's it; I'm calling security!"
"You keep your horns on!" Valni told him.
"I honestly never thought I'd never see you again," Kenneth said. "They said you were on the other side of the galaxy…"
"I was," Valni confirmed as she caught a whiff of his all-too familiar aroma. The scent carried a flood of memories with it (most of them involving the feel and taste of Kenneth's naked skin). She swallowed with effort. "You realise I should arrest you both."
"On what charge?" Gabriella demanded.
"You defected!" Valni hissed back. "All our reports said you'd joined a terrorist group with human supremacist sympathies. I didn't want to believe you'd do anything like that; that you'd ever betray the Alliance. I gave you the benefit of the doubt… but it's all true, isn't it?"
Behind the counter, the owner had connected with C-Sec.
"We left the Alliance, that's right," Gabby said nodding hastily, "but to help save lives! The Alliance wanted to tear down everything Shepard had worked for. Cerberus gave us the chance to continue what the Commander had started, so we took it. And now we're working for Shepard; the first human Spectre."
"I know you're on the Normandy," Valni admitted. "I saw Shepard talking to Garrus Vakarian and a quarian when I was last on the Citadel."
"That was Tali," Gabby replied. "We work together in engineering. Look, I don't know what the Hierarchy is saying about us but I haven't met a single member of the Normandy crew who are supremacists. Hell, half of Shepard's squad is made up of non-humans. And the rest of the crew are more than happy to mix with them."
"Yeoman Chambers, especially," Kenneth agreed.
"The Alliance was doing nothing to prevent our colonies from being attacked," Gabriella continued. "Cerberus were the only ones willing to step up and investigate. That's what we're doing. So, yeah, we're not with the Alliance anymore, but we're definitely not terrorists, we're not supremacists, and we're not traitors!"
Something in the way Gabriella said 'traitors' reminded Valni of her last argument with Inquisitor Passcal. He had thrown the accusation of 'traitor' at Valni all too casually.
"C-Sec are on their way," the café owner declared, interrupting her chain of thought.
"Oh, you numpty! I am C-Sec!" Valni barked at the bewildered man.
Suddenly, Kenneth stepped in, standing so close she could feel his hot breath on her neck. She looked him in the eye and inhaled his scent, so much stronger than before. He spoke in a low voice. "If you still need to arrest me, fine, you can do so, but before that happens, maybe we could continue this somewhere a wee bit quieter? Until we've had chance to talk properly? At least let us explain everything?"
Valni hesitated; she was surprised to find she had to resist the urge to reach up and run her fingers through his hair.
"This is a shock for all three of us," Gabby added. "We could do with clearing the air, not fighting."
Valni glanced between the pair of humans, her mandibles twitching in agitation. Then she took a deep breath and nodded.
"Alright, let's get out of here before security arrives." She gestured at the exit.
Kenneth regarded her. "Looks like plenty has changed in the last two years," he said.
Gabby rolled her eyes. "You're the master of understatement, Kenneth."
Valni guided Kenneth and Gabby to a small alcove next to a set of stairs that led down to Level 26. They sat on the corner lounger, Valni to Kenneth's left, close enough that she could reach out and touch his leg, though she resisted the temptation, strong as it might be. Gabby sat on other side of Kenneth, perched on the edge of the sofa as if prepared to defend Kenneth from further attacks by Valni.
They talked.
Kenneth and Gabby recounted everything that had happened to them since leaving Arcadias. Valni listened intently, occasionally asking questions or laughing at one of Kenneth's antics, while becoming increasingly absorbed by Kenneth's smile, his fragrance, and, oh Spirits, his voice! Listening to him rekindled so many feelings she thought she'd suppressed. She quickly relaxed in his presence, falling back into the easy camaraderie they'd enjoyed on the turian cruiser. Gradually, even Gabby seemed to unwind, relaxing her posture and smiling at Valni.
It was like old times.
Kenneth told her of the attack on the Citadel by the geth led by an alien ship that Shepard claimed was the vanguard of an invading 'Reaper' force, and how the SSV Perugia flew in the first wave of the human Fifth Fleet during the Battle of the Citadel. He talked about the aftermath and the careful suppression of facts by the Council; about how the Council had tried to convince everyone that the 'Sovereign' dreadnought was a geth creation. But Kenneth and Gabby had seen the massive ship up-close; they knew it wasn't geth technology. It was far too advanced for that.
The final straw came after the supposed 'death' of Commander Shepard. The Alliance reassigned the crew of the destroyed Normandy, and then the Council quietly dismantled everything the Commander had worked to achieve, suppressing or dismissing any information on the 'Reaper threat'. Kenneth had spoken out publically, earning him the ire of his commanding officers. After everything that had happened on Arcadias and following the Battle of the Citadel, Kenneth figured his career with the Alliance was likely ending. But then a job offer came from a private company, Cerberus. The head of the company asked for Kenneth by name. Apparently, his skills and plainspoken views had impressed the Illusive Man. He offered Kenneth a job as Chief Engineer on a frigate. It was too good an opportunity to pass up, and after some thought, Kenneth accepted the offer, with Gabriella insisting that she also be contracted to join Cerberus.
"He's so wayward. Someone had to keep an eye him!" Gabby jokingly explained.
"You make me sound like a petulant wee bairn," Kenneth protested
"If the shoe fits, Kenneth," Gabby fired back.
Then Gabby described the new Normandy, waxing lyrical about the propulsion systems and the alien crew they'd assembled. She seemed particularly taken with Garrus, but also talked enthusiastically about a drell specialist, and mentioned a krogan warrior who was skulking in the cargo hold next to engineering, which reminded Valni of her own news.
"Oh, yes! I saw Chaill. A lot more of him than I expected, as it happens," she added with a smile.
Gabby stared at Valni, her eyes lighting up at the news. "You did?"
"How's the old armadillo doing?" Kenneth asked.
"He's well. We took him back to Tuchanka to see the clan leader. Coincidently, just before Shepard and the Normandy arrived. We… we met his daughter."
Gabby's face froze, an astonished expression settling on her face.
Kenneth, however, broke into a wide grin. "I dinnae think the reptile had it in him. That's something to celebrate. Good for Chaill, eh, Gabby?"
Gabby gave a minute nod. "Yeah, that's…" She paused. "Chaill is very… Wow!"
Gabby fell silent, the look of surprise replaced by distant introspection as Kenneth recounted how Chaill had nearly knocked him out cold during an impromptu game of rugby with the colonists on Terra Nova.
Valni grinned at the story, but then dragged her eyes to where she'd slapped Kenneth's reddened cheek. Remorse bubbled in her chest. She reached across and gently stroked the pink skin, offering a heartfelt apology. "I'm sorry…"
Kenneth didn't flinch from her touch and tenderly enclosed his hand over hers.
Gabriella frowned as her eyes darted between the couple.
"Why didn't you try to contact me?" Valni asked quietly.
Kenneth closed his eyes and gently lifted her hand away from his face, turning it up to show her the inflamed and angry looking skin of her palm. Valni now noticed her hand was itching madly.
"So I wouldn't hurt you," Kenneth replied sadly. "I didna want you to suffer because of me. If I'd stayed it would have finished your career."
Kenneth released her hand.
Valni frowned at her blue-looking palm, running a finger over the swollen skin. "I'm getting treatment. The doctor thinks she can fix this."
"I hope she's right," Kenneth replied.
"Yeah, me too," Valni agreed, absently scratching her irritated palm.
Like the embodiment of bad timing, two lights on Kenneth and Gabby's palms started to flash as a call came through on their omni-tools.
They looked at the blinking lights and then turned at Valni.
"Are you still planning to arrest us?" Gabby asked.
Valni lowered her gaze and shook her head. "It's a thorny issue. You might work for Cerberus, but technically you're with Shepard. The authority of a Spectre supersedes C-Sec. I don't have the power to arrest anyone working under a Spectre's orders without the Council's permission."
"Diplomatic immunity," Kenneth said with a wry smile. "Good to know,"
There was a lengthy pause until, eventually, Kenneth and Gabby activated their omni-tools and the image of a quarian in a purple hood appeared above their arms: The very same quarian Valni had seen walking with Commander Shepard through the Mid-Wards just a few days ago.
"Finally! I was getting worried," the quarian said. "Didn't you hear my call?"
"Aye, sorry about that, Tali. We, um…" – Kenneth glanced at Valni and smiled – "We got a wee bit distracted."
"We were talking with an old friend," Gabby added.
"Well, you better wrap it up. Shepard's recalling everyone back the Normandy. We're heading out."
"Understood," Gabby said. "We're on our way." She flicked off her omni-tool and turned to Valni. "Wish this could be longer."
Valni frowned. The meeting had been so fleeting. "Can't you… Could you let me know when you're back on the Citadel again?" she asked.
"Of course," Kenneth agreed readily.
"If we're allowed to," Gabby corrected. She stood up and stepped closer to Valni. Valni rose to meet her. "It was great seeing you again." She gave Valni a warm, if slightly awkward hug which Valni returned.
Valni pulled away, her hands still on Gabby's shoulders. "I didn't tell you: Chaill is actually joining our team here on the Citadel. I'll tell him I saw you. Maybe you could meet him?" she told her.
Gabby's shoulders tensed slightly, but she smiled enthusiastically at the proposal.
Then Valni turned to Kenneth.
There was a long silence.
Gabby cleared her throat. "I'll give you guys a minute," she said and strolled around the corner towards the rapid transit station.
Valni and Kenneth stared at one another, the silence lingering between them.
Finally, Kenneth spoke. "I never got to show you that restaurant on the Presidium… In fact, there were a lot of things I never had the chance to show you. Something crazy always seems to get in the way."
"Like working for a rogue organisation and taking orders from a Spectre, you mean?" Valni asked.
"Aye, like that," Kenneth replied with a smile. "Or you leading a C-Sec taskforce."
"And fighting with elcor marines."
"Elcor Marines?" Kenneth asked.
Valni nodded. "A story for another time, I think."
"I'll hold you to that," Kenneth said. They grinned.
Kenneth glanced across to see if Gabby was watching them. Satisfied they weren't being observed, he leaned in and activated his omni-tool. "Here, hold up your arm." Valni lifted her left arm as Kenneth synced his omni-tool with hers. "This is the comm access code for my station in engineering. I don't know if this will get you past the Cerberus firewalls, or even EDI's filtering nets: She's the Normandy's… Virtual Intelligence. But it's a start. I might be able to send a message to you if EDI and Shepard allow outside communication. We run a darkened ship most of the time."
"Better than nothing," Valni agreed. The sync ended. "Thank you."
Kenneth smiled. He moved closer, running his hands up along the arms of her jacket, careful to avoid touching her bare skin.
Valni savoured the rare touch of his hands against her once more, but suddenly, growing bolder, she lunged forward and hugged his body; her fingers sinking into his firm muscled back. Kenneth's shoulders stiffened for a long moment. Then, he relaxed into the embrace and gathered her up in his arms.
Valni drank in his memorable scent; the heat from his body suffusing her like a warm blanket. She could feel his body heaving with every breath, his heart beating rapidly against her chest, his hands caressing her spinal carapace. Valni closed her eyes and, in that moment, she felt like she was back in her cabin on Arcadias.
She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, but when Kenneth eventually pulled away, the reality of her surroundings snapped back into place.
She suddenly felt chilled without his body heat.
"We'll be back on the Citadel," he told her, "for provisions, though I cannae say when exactly."
Valni forced herself to take a step away from him. "Take care. Look after Gabby."
"More likely she'll be looking after me," he joked.
"I don't doubt that."
Valni squeezed his shoulder one last time before Kenneth turned to follow Gabby to the rapid transit station.
Valni trailed after them at a distance, watching the pair clamber into a skycar. They sat down and Kenneth turned and held Valni's gaze as the doors shut and the vehicle rose up from its berth.
Then it turned and sped away until it was lost in the line of traffic.
A peculiar impulse stirred in Valni. Seeing Kenneth and Gabby vanish into the distance roused something in her. She didn't want them to leave, not again. Who knew when she'd next see Kenneth?
Valni dashed towards the rapid transit station. She was about to summon her own skycar to chase them down when a strong hand grabbed her by the arm.
She turned to see T'Rani behind her.
"I've been trying to contact you," her harassed looking asari CO said. "But you turned off your omni-tool. They're demanding to see you up in the Embassies. What happened?"
"I needed some time without interruptions, ma'am," Valni confessed.
T'Rani directed Valni towards a skycar. "Well, I hope your head is clear because this sounded serious. Do you have any idea why you're suddenly the talk of the town?"
Valni groaned inwardly and nodded. "I met Donnelly and Daniels."
T'Rani stopped abruptly and stared accusingly at Valni.
"So that's why you cut me off…" The asari snorted and turned to the skycar landing on the berth. "I need to be kept in the loop, Severan!" she said as she sat in the skycar's pilot seat and gestured to Valni to sit next to her. Valni settled beside T'Rani. The doors shut and T'Rani lifted the vehicle to join the flow of traffic. "Well? You didn't arrest them, what happened? Were you just catching up?"
"If I'd arrested them and brought them in Commander Shepard would have overruled the charges and got them released. That wasn't an option. And, also… yeah, I wanted to know how Kenneth was and what he'd been doing."
"How romantic!" T'Rani steered the vehicle towards the Presidium ring. "Get anything useful from them?" she asked.
"I got Kenn… Donnelly's access code for his station on the Normandy."
T'Rani's eyes widened slightly, but she gave Valni a grudging nod. "Better keep that between us. At least until we know what the higher-ups want with you."
"Am I in trouble?"
"That remains to be seen, but it didn't sound like you were flavour of the month!"
"Who wanted to see me?"
T'Rani let out a sigh. "The Hierarchy Office of Internal Affairs is on your case again. They've been sending me information on you the last few days, including your psych evaluation from when you were expelled from Arcadias. I think they're trying to convince me you're unsuitable for this kind of work and shouldn't be on my team; hoping you'll be transferred. They have an inordinate amount of confidential info on you – including your movements on your old ship. It's almost like someone's feeding them information."
"Someone from Arcadias?" Valni asked.
"Very likely."
The skycar sped towards the Presidium.
There was a ting as the elevator arrived at the Citadel Embassies.
The doors opened and T'Rani and Valni marched out into darkness. The Presidium was currently in its night cycle and the artificial 'sky' lining the inner ring was darkened, showing a panorama of stars.
The Embassies' open auditorium was manned by the night workers. Two turian guards kept watch at the bottom of the main stairs.
T'Rani and Valni moved past them and climbed the stairs leading to the offices. The asari's pace never wavered as she swept in through doors to the office on the right.
The lights were dimmed when they entered. As Valni expected, the black-clad figure of Inquisitor Passcal was waiting for them in front of the central desk, an insufferably smug grin plastered on his barefaced carapace. Behind the desk, and with his back to the group as he gazed out over the Presidium, was a tall turian man that Valni couldn't identify.
"Why, Maven T'Rani, how very nice…" Passcal began.
"Stuff it, Inquisitor!" T'Rani snapped. "I'm not in the mood for false pleasantries. Just tell us why we're here so we can get back to doing real work."
The sneer dropped from Passcal's face. He fixed T'Rani with a penetrating stare.
"As you wish," he muttered. Passcal reached down and plucked up a computer tablet from the desk. "Some interesting developments regarding Officer Severan have come to our attention…"
"We already know you have Severan under surveillance," T'Rani interrupted again, "and I'm well aware of her meeting with the Cerberus operatives."
"Then I'm sure you're also aware of her history with one of the operatives?" Passcal flicked on the tablet and he activated a video from one of the security cameras showing a looped image of Valni and Kenneth embracing. T'Rani was poker-faced as she watched the image. "Such a development offers some intriguing possibilities…"
"Get to the point!" T'Rani said. "What do you want?"
"Oh, where are my manners?" Passcal asked with feigned, oily politeness. "I haven't introduced you to my colleague." He swept his hand towards the man behind the desk "I believe Severan is already familiar with Legate Trajan."
Valni gaped.
The man turned and stepped into the light.
Garbed in a figure-hugging and expensive-looking blue suit was the former Chief petty Officer ofArcadias. Trajan smiled as he turned to look at Valni, his grey facial carapace daubed with green colony markings that swept along his mandibles and up towards a bent and broken nose that Trajan hadn't bothered having surgery to repair, presumably in order to lend weight to his intimidating countenance.
Valni couldn't help but feel a twinge of satisfaction when she saw Trajan's injured nose.
She was the one who'd broken it.