Well, I did say that I would wait with updates till Sunday, like a routine, but... let's make that a "that's the latest date" deal, so that Sunday is the latest date for me to update... if that makes any sense.
Aaaand... i got a review from a guest, that's what he posted as, where I was notified that some things were... off, in the last chapter. How the email was written for starters. also, Apparantly Aasari-names are without appostrophs, which I honestly didn't know. I do not know who you are, but that is what I call constructive critisism. Gracias :)
Alright, this chapter is a bit shorter than the rest. Look at it as sort of a small intersection, as it focuses on... well, I'll let you see for yourselves now. Enjoy :)
An Aussie a day keeps the doctor at bay
October 4th
MSV Fedele - Cargo-hold
22:23 (Ship time)
"Breaching, breaching!" Kaidan shouts, kicking in the door to the cargo-hold of the MSV Fedele, a medium-sized freighter currently owned by a Salarian by the name of Doctor Heart. Kind of a sick joke, if you ask me. The entire room is stacked with crates and boxes of varying sizes. There's little to no lighting in here, and we all have our flashlights on, scouring the room as we move in, checking the corners of the large room.
"Check corners!" John orders, swinging his shotgun around a crate to search for hostiles. So far we've seen none, not even scared techs or other normal stuff.
"All clear over he- wait, what's that?" Garrus says, highlighting a form huddled up on the floor. Stepping closer, I notice how the form resembles a human in fetus-position. There's a slight moaning coming from it;
"Holy… guys, we've got a live one here!" I say, turning to face the others, only to notice the look of horror on Garrus's face.
"What?" I say, not really getting what he's afraid of. I'm answered soon enough though, when the person on the floor suddenly grabs a hold of me, making a sick gurgling sound instead of talking. Quickly turning my head to face him, I look into a pair of empty sockets; there are not even dead eyes there, just holes where the orbs used to be. The skin is colored a sick grey, almost like the zombies back on Feros, just more… just different. The teeth are all gone from the mouth, removed or simply disappeared, and instead the mouth is reeking with the stench of some kind of rot or acid. It's sweet, almost like when tossing some kind of sugary substance on a fire and smelling the sugar boil. Only, this is way, waaay worse;
"Holy Fuck! What the hell?" I shout, humping back from the creature in front of me as it unleashes a small cascade of fluids from its mouth. Upon hitting the floor, the yellow substance starts boiling away on the floor, leaving a large burn mark on the metal. Better not get hit with that. I think as I place a round in the skull of the creature with my hand-gun. Upon collapsing on the floor, the sound of the shot being fired echoes in the hallways. Not even a second later, choirs of moaning echoes along with it, causing my blood to freeze in the veins. Not good!
"Fisher, Alenko, secure the left side, nothing gets through. Vakarian, help me secure the right side of these crates. The last thing we need right now is to get swarmed." John orders. We all comply, falling into position. Having secured our places, we all sit tight, not even daring to speak a word. Soon, the moaning gains strength, as well as being supplemented by the sound of feet scraping along the floor.
"Don't shoot unless you are sure to hit. Don't break formation at any costs. Alenko, use your biotics to hold them off if the gun-fire proves insufficient." John orders with a voice little louder than a whisper. Holstering my pistol, I yank out the M-22 Katana John told us all to equip for the breaching mission. It's the first time I ever use a shotgun, seeing as Home Defense never really valued the use of them. Now I'm probably going to pay the price for it. Still… remembering how difficult the Thorian zombies were to bring down, I'm quite happy to suffer a sore arm, as long as it keeps the creepies at bay.
"Target in sight…" Garrus says while aiming the Katana at the oncoming shadows.
"Wait for them to get closer." John whispers.
"I see 'em too Shepard… can we shoot now?" I say as the walking dead comes into view. They look like regular humans and a few turians, just without skin, gray tissue and empty sockets. And, if that last one was anything to go by, they barf acid.
"Shepard…" Kaidan growls, fingers gripping tighter on his shotgun.
"A little closer… fire." He whispers, unloading the first shells from his own shotgun. We all follow up instantly, mowing down the rows of walkers as they just keep walking towards us, each row coming closer than the former. After a few volleys, they are almost upon us. Firing of the last shot before my shotgun overheats, I pull out my pistol and turn towards Kaidan, who himself is currently busy making a new asshole in the middle of one of the turian zombies;
"Kaidan, we could use some space-magic now!" I shout at the biotic. Giving me a hectic nod, he stretches his palms outwards, firing up the dark energy. Suddenly, a large orb appears in the middle of the room, starting to tug its surroundings towards its core. That includes the multiple zombies nearby as they are simply lifted off their feet and sent floating towards the orb, constantly bumping together as they near the middle.
"Good enough?" Kaidan shouts as he unloads his own shotgun towards the mass of bodies tangled up a meter above the ground.
"That'll work!" I shout back as I follow his example and unload my now cooled-down shotgun towards the bodies, many of them starting to leak a sickly greenish and yellow liquid from the bullet wounds.
"Mara, they just don't know when to stop!" I shout, noticing that a new bunch of them have appeared, completely ignoring their friends caught up in a singularity. Aiming my shotgun towards then newcomers, I'm joined by Garrus firing of shots in quick succession, taking down seven of the foremost walkers his shotgun overheats from the action. As soon as Garrus stops firing, I keep it going, blasting a few of the walkers to smears with the Katana. Despite the fact that each shot hurts like hell, it isn't all that bad a weapon. I might even get used to it… even though that's a pretty dark thought. That would mean I would have to shoot more things, even if it would just be geth, Legion prove that they have a sort of life of their own… so it is in essence the same as shooting a mentally handicapped. That kinda puts things into perspective.
"Aaaargghh! Kazuat nol fríné! Get it off me!" John suddenly shouts, something resembling panic filling his voice.
"Fisher, get over here! I gnnnhh… can't get it off him!" Garrus shouts with a frantic voice. Fuckfuckfuck!
"Go, I'll hold here!" Kaidan shouts, borderline kicking me in the direction from where John's voice is coming from. After a short run, I discover Garrus to be pulling and tearing at one of the walkers, the thing clutching at a tumbled over John. No no no, we can't lose people already! I scream at myself as I arrive at their position, throwing the shotgun to the side.
"Move over Garrus, watch my back!" I have no idea what I'm saying, or why, but Garrus just obeys, moving back to his position. Taking a grip on the creature currently latched on to John, I start pulling. Oh no you don't you mutated son of a whore! Feeling the artificial muscles tensing in my left arm, I decide to take a gamble and let go with my right hand, only to grab even tighter with the left. Ignoring the soft beeping from my shoulder, I tear at the creature, instantly yanking it off of John and on to the floor next to him. As it's trying to get up, I bring down an armored boot and destroy its head, resulting in an explosion of stinking tissue and sickly colored liquid coating the floor and the soles on my boot as well. I then grab the body by one of the legs, tossing it towards the remaining walkers as Garrus and Kaidan continues thinning them out with a combination of bullets and biotics. John gets up again, nodding a thanks and grabs his shotgun. Man, if anything, this guy is one hell of a tough one. I would have pissed myself there. I mull to myself as I bring my shotgun to bear on the last of the walkers, removing the torso and shoulders, causing the head and legs to fly back in an almost comical fashion.
"I… I think that was all of them… Jesus, what were those things?" Kaidan calls with an exhausted voice. I can feel my own legs begin to shake beneath me, threatening to give away at any moment.
"Fuck… Hell… if I know. They looked like those zombie-things on Feros, but… there were a few that looked turian here… Garrus, do you… know what these things were?" I stammer, trying to catch my breath. My hands are shaking, and I find it hard to keep the finger form touching the trigger on the shotgun. Mara, what the hell is wrong with me?
"I believe you are experiencing a mild case of PCS, or Post Combat Stress. It's fairly normal, especially among those not used to the chaos of battle. I'll try and make it pass a bit faster."
"Thanks… whoa, that was pretty extreme!"
"I… they might have been the people, the hostages from Saleon's ship, but there wasn't this many aboard his craft when he fled the Citadel… the slime has been busy." Garrus mutters, just loud enough to overpower the growl coming from him as well.
"Well, there's only one guy left then. 'Heart' himself. Let's see if we can't find the captain of this ship." John says, grabbing his shotgun in a more relaxed posture before heading down the hallway.
Doesn't even take us five minutes to come across an aging Salarian hiding in a storeroom;
"Doctor Heart?" Kaidan asks. The Salarian looks at us, eyes lingering a bit longer at the Turian in our group, before looking at the Canadian biotic;
"Y-Yes… thanks for saving me from those things… don't know… know where they came from." He says, black eyes twitching.
"So, they weren't the poor folks you invited on a trip when you left the Citadel?" Garrus says, stepping forward and grabs the Salarian by the neck of his lab-coat;
"N-no! I… my name is Heart! Doctor Refral Heart! I don't know who you are or why-" He is interrupted before finishing, as Garrus slaps a talon across the amphibian's face.
"Shut it Saleon, I've been looking for you for more than seven years… do you have any idea how much I've looked forward to this moment?" Garrus says with a cruel smirk. The Salarian is clearly affected by this, as he begins to stammer;
"Ga-Garrus! Come on I'm sure we- find out… let's talk about-!" He struggles to talk as Garrus's hand is placed around his throat.
"So, you are just doctor Heart now eh? Or was there something you would like to tell the nice humans before I decide to rip out your entrails and stuff you inside them? I hear it's quite a delicacy among Krogans."
"Please, please I don't wanna die!" the Salarian screams. Garrus is unfazed, lifting the Salarian above the ground as he tightens his grip around the guy's throat;
"Well guess what? You should have thought about that before playing Frankenstein, costing me seven years of my life, and killing all those people out there..." Garrus sneers, and with a wet snap he breaks the Salarian's neck. Saleon instantly goes limp, dangling from Garrus's grip like some macabre doll. The rest of us simply stand there, starring at what just happened, none of us really capable of comprehending what just transpired before our very eyes. Letting go of the Salarian, Garrus slowly raises his hands, starting to shake frantically;
"I…I…I didn't…I…" Is all he says. All he can say, I guess. None of us speaks a word, but with sort of a non-verbal agreement, we start heading back to the ship, Garrus following a short distance behind.
I need a drink.
…
October 5th
Normandy
Mess Hall 01:03 (ship time)
Emptying the mug in one large sip, I place it upon the table, after which I instantly pour a new one, repeating the movements from earlier, downing my fifth cup in a row. My head is killing me, and my mind is still sketching out the image of Garrus breaking the neck of the Salarian, screaming for his life.
Mara… that Garrus did that… just… did that?
"I do not know if I should be surprised really, seeing as he just did spend seven years of his life hunting the maniac, and I checked the corpse, it was him."
"I… didn't know you could do that…" I am still having some difficulty forming a response. That the conversation is going on inside my head doesn't make it any easier.
"I wouldn't be much of a divine being if my only powers lay in controlling your body and speaking through you, now would I?"
"I… guess…"
Speaking of the Turian, Garrus is sitting across the table, just looking at his hand. I don't really know what he is thinking, but if the silence is any indication, I don't think he is about to boast about it. Having endured the silence for most of the night, I decide to try and snap him out of it;
"Hey… you alright Garrus?"
"Hmm?"
"I asked if you felt alright." I repeat, trying to get a look at his eyes.
"That man was my purpose in life for almost seven years, only replaced by Saren a few months ago… if he is dead now… did I just kill a bit of myself as well? I mean… it's like… if you suddenly declared no more need for martial training, and that all war was ended. All Turians spend more than ten years in the military, including training… it would be like saying that they wasted ten years of their lives… not a , very good metaphor, I know… but I don't really know what else to say."
"So… you regret killing him?" I ask, remembering the screams and then the snap.
"Not for spirits-damned second. He had terrorized innocents for too long, but… let's say, you finish a book… do you have a book-series you loved reading, that became part of who you were?"
"Yeah… the Harry Potter series…seven books in total."
"And when you finished the last book, what did you feel like?"
"A bit… empty, actually. Like I had just completed one of the main missions in my life and now didn't know what to do… I think I see what you mean, but there's still a difference between killing someone, and finishing a book Garrus."
"I know, it was just for explaining… but no: I don't regret killing him. The galaxy is better off without him running his sick experiments on innocents. I think I just need something to drink. You know if there's alcohol on board?" He suddenly says, turning to face me after just starring into the wall;
"I… sorry Garrus, but despite all the weird stuff that's happened here, I don't think an Alliance ship carries booze. Or I would have found it myself already." I reply with a small and tired smile. Dammit I'm tired. The next time there is a raid on a ship at twenty-two in the evening, have Tequila or Nic partake in it, and let me have my sleep.
"Oh well… it couldn't hurt to ask. Now, if you don't mind, I think I'll hit the bunks. I feel like I need some extra sleep."
"Me too… hold a sec while I throw this in the dishwasher, and I'll be right there."
"Fine, but… don't take too… too long, alright? Damn, I really need some sleep right now." Garrus says, and having discarded the mug and tea-pot, I follow him and before a full minute has passed, we're each in our respective beds, allowing sleep to wash over us.
…
October 5th
Normandy
Training room 10.11 (Ship time)
"Hey…Ash. Do you… know where we're headed…now?" I ask between doing crunches. We are in the gym, trying to improve upon my condition, and so far I'm actually on seventy crunches. It's hard to imagine having improved that much over night. But it could be the massive amounts of oatmeal served for breakfast today. I love oatmeal, as long as it isn't made with military provisions, but by someone who actually cares about whether people like it or not. I still don't know what they put in Dextro-amino oatmeal, since they don't have oat… or other versions of grain normally found on Earth. Groaning, Ash pushes herself up in a seated position before answering;
"Well… I think we're actually heading back to the Citadel… something about Garrus wanting to rub something in his former boss's face, and John needing to see the council about something else. Don't know much other than that." She says, returning to the crunches. The Citadel…again already? I follow her example;
"How many yet?" she asks, not stopping her own streak;
"Seventy…or seventy-one, I'm not sure." I moan, feeling the muscles in my abdomen tense as I pull myself upwards again.
"See, we're making progress… still, you are falling behind. Ninety-one… ninety-two…" Hell…
"Ash… how… can you… do that many?"
"Practice… practice, and a good six-pack. That… really all… there is… to it."
"Still… why don't we just say that you won this time again, and we'll…. Try again… later?" seventy-seven…
"Alright, but that means onwards to the push-ups." Ash says, quickly getting up and swinging her legs over the bench.
I follow her example and take a quick inhale of air before following her to the uplifted platforms Ash believes will force more out of the pushups. Not that I understand how that is supposed to work, but I don't feel like asking stupid questions right now, so I just follow suit, looking at Kaidan and Nic competing on the weights. I can faintly pick up Nicolai accusing Kaidan of suing biotics to lift the bar.
"You do know… that by the time we're done with these push-up thingies, I'll probably hate you like mankind hates the plague, right?" I say, giving her a wry smile.
"Oh I'm counting on it. One!"
…
"Citadel control, this is SSV Normandy, requesting permission to dock with the Citadel." Joker says, as always focusing more on his job than any of us would be capable of. Plus, he enjoys his work more than I would. I'm not really one for steering a plane let alone a starship.
"SSV Normandy, this is Citadel control. You have been given docking cradle B-40. Have a good stay, and say hey to Karrin for me." A female voice says.
"Thanks will do." Joker responds, ending the transmission. So apparently, Chakwas knows someone in the CC… cool.
…
Citadel
Docking cradle B-40.
15:38 (Citadel standard time)
"John left already?" I say, looking at the ramp leading away from the ship. Tequila and Nic are standing next to me, just as unused to this place as I am. Which I guess is a small comfort.
"Yeah, he said he had to go see the council in person… something about diplomacy between the council and his people." She says shrugging.
"Right… the deal… I wonder if Kasumi has dropped by at Anna's place yet… she haven't been onboard the ship since we left."
"Yeah, you really left me behind there. Seriously, a girl can't go shopping without you people leaving her at the first chance?" A voice suddenly says. Spinning around like a pissed off cat, we all three stare at the materializing form of a woman clad in a black body-suit and a hood.
"Dammit Kasumi, stop scaring the piss out of me like that!" Nicolai shouts, holding a hand to his chest. Kasumi seems like she can't hold back a giggle. And she can't.
"Seriously girl, that isn't the best way to make friends, scarring the living daylight out of them." Tequila says, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Well, can't help the way I am, can I?" She says, leaning against the railing on the ramp. Sighing, I just shake my head;
"Well, it wasn't intended to leave you behind, but did you at least get the engines?" Well, she already got the LA/AT gunship, so I can at least hope that she did this as well, right?
"The… engines?" She says, no longer smiling.
"Right… well, I need you to go back to wherever you found that gunship, the new sci-fi one, and try and get some schematics for the engines from the big ships. If you want to, feel free to snap anything else you find there, as well as any cool tech or just credits. You know, for good service." I say the last part with a grin, feeling like some kind of boss, giving his employees orders.
"Baka… then I have to get back with all those boring plastic-boys… I was almost caught last time you know, a guy with a blue plasma-thingy and beard almost caught up with me… the most annoying part is that he didn't even seem pissed…" Wait… Star Wars…blue sword… did she meet Obi-Wan?
"Man… girl did you outrun a Jedi?" Tequila asks, looking at Kasumi with something akin to disbelief. Nicolai must have told her about Kasumi's small adventures.
"That what they're called? Well, it was more like I hid, then once I felt safe, I de-cloaked and… well, we'll take that later, okay?" She says, turning transparent again. And that leaves us just standing there. After some moments of silence, Nic breaks the ice;
"Well… aside from that small occurrence of randomness… I do believe we have some plans today. Wanna join Tequila and me in the arcade Thomas?" He says. I can't help but notice the faint pleading look from Tequila. She is not all that secure about him in that way… well, better correct that. Even though the arcade did sound fun. And I'm even going to be alone on the ship then, seeing as ash is out shopping, and I wasn't allowed to come along;
"Nah, you two go have fun. I've got some stuff I've gotta do on the ship anyway." I say, shrugging with a small smile. A look of defeat comes over the corporal as she and Nic walks down the ramp, heading for the nearest elevator. Sighing, I stretch out and head back towards the docking tube, not really noticing the blond-haired woman suddenly tailing me. The sound of footsteps does catch my attention though, and I stop walking;
"Excuse me, but this is the SSV Normandy, right?" A female voice says, sounding somewhat familiar. Turning around, I shrug;
"Yeah, it is… who are you?" I ask, noticing a young blond woman standing in front of me, dressed not unlike Jilani, but with a more pleasant face. And a pair of really shrewd eyes.
"Ah, I forgot to introduce myself again, didn't I? Sorry, I'm really new to all this." She says in a thick accent, but I can't make out just where it's from, or where I've heard it before, but I know I've heard it before.
"So… who are you?"
"Ah, Stephanie Watson, Citadel News Net. I'm doing a piece about humanity's involvement in the hunt for… Saren Arterius, that's his name, no?" She says, a hint of nervousness in her voice as she extends her hand. With a bit of reluctance, I take it;
"Ehm… Thomas Fisher, corporal on SSV Normandy." When I say my name, her face lights up for some reason, as if to giggle or because of relief;
"Yes, I remember now. You were recently promoted, no? I saw the interview with Udina where he told about your promotion and the Purple Heart. By the way, I can't help but notice that you've got it hanging from you neck. Is there a reason for that?" She says, pointing at my medal. She is a little… personal. It's a bit weird, especially since I'm sure I've seen her before.
"You really do not recognize her?" Roku says with a hint of mockery.
"No… but I feel like I should… a little help?"
"Give her black hair and think two years into the future."
"Holy hell… now I recognize her alright… Damn, wonder what she's doing here." Now that I know, it's really quite clear who she is. Little miss perfect human.
What do I do about her?
"Don't know… could be interesting to see what she wants, especially since she disguised hersel journalist… for now, I say we play the act of the unknowing. What do you say?"
"Sure… but if she tries blowing up the ship, I'm taking her down, Miranda or not."
"So… miss Watson. How can I help you?" I ask, keeping the same mask as before, but I fear a bit of my internal grin might be visible. Looking delighted, the Australian woman answers;
"Well, I was actually wondering if I could get an interview with a crewmember, as well as… well, a tour on the ship… if that is okay." She asks, looking a bit nervous. Now that I know who she really is, it could be fun to watch her play the role as a newbie reporter. Somehow, I doubt I'm going to get bored.
"Well, I can probably help you with the interview, since I'm pretty much the only one left on the ship right now… but I'll have to contact the commander first to make sure the ship-tour is alright." I say, receiving a happy nod. I press the intercom, getting in contact with Shepard. We all made sure our head-pieces were aligned to John's, so that if trouble should arise, if for example that ass of a turian C-Sec guy would try and jump me, I can call John with the press of a button, not having to go through the halfway restored list in my new Omni-tool;
"Commander John'Shepard here, who is this?"
"Hey Shepard, Fisher here. Look, I've got something of a situation here, no it's nothing bad, just curious if journalists are allowed tours on the ship while we're docked?" There is a pause on his end;
"Well… as long as you don't let him or her out of your sight… then I suppose it wouldn't hurt… Just make sure that it… it isn't that Jilani-woman, is it?" He suddenly asks, a worried tone in his voice;
"Nah John, the only way I would let her near the Normandy again would be to tie her to the outer hull."
"Good man. Well, I suppose I don't see anything wrong in it then. If you need some help guiding, I think Joker is still onboard."
"Alright, thanks commander." I say, ending the comm. Turning to face Stephanie, or should I just call her Miranda? I nod, beckoning for her to come closer. It must be strange for her, to have to obey a lowly corporal. If she remembers me in two years, I'm probably going to hear some shit for today.
"Well? Can I… come aboard?" She asks with a surprisingly genuine anxiousness. I still wonder what she's got planned, since John isn't aboard, and Jane is occupying the big bed in the captain's cabin, sleeping. Or reading… at any rate, it would be dumb to disturb her.
"Yeah, it's alright. Just stay where I can see you and it should be fine. Shall we?" I say, beckoning at the docking-tube. She follows me inside, looking around with big eyes as the VI runs its course;
"Can I conduct the interview while we're walking about, or would you prefer to wait till the end?" She asks, as the door to the ship glides open, revealing the corridor next to the cockpit. She walks in first, probably forgetting her place upon seeing the interior;
"Hey Tho- eh…. Who are you?" Joker asks, having swung around in his chair to greet the first person he would have suspected entering. Following Miranda inside, I look at Joker, sitting there in what could almost seem like a starring contest with the young woman;
"Hey Joker, this is Stephanie… Watson, I think, from Citadel News Net. She's asked to be given a tour on-"
"Oh my God! You're Jeff Moureau!" Miranda suddenly exclaims, apparently sticking even closer to her cover story.
"Eh… yeah?" It's obvious Joker isn't used to being recognized. Especially not by young blondes.
"Your sister Hillary told me so much about you, especially about your Vroliks-syndrome. Can I interview you? Best pilot in the Alliance, please say yes!" I am not sure who is most surprised right now, me or Joker.
"Well this is unexpected…"
"That's an understatement…"
"Think it's a bluff?"
"Has to be, its Miranda we're talking about here… but… why would she care about joker or his sister… does Joker even have a sister?"
"Apparently, he does…"
"I… sure… hey Thomas, looks like even I have some female admirers eh?"
"Yeah, and that's probably all it's gonna be. But I'll just be staying here till the two of you are done, and I'll show her around the rest of the ship is she still wants to." I shouldn't have said that.
Half an hour later, Miranda is finally finishing up the interview with Joker. Dear Gods, that was stretched. Finally ending the recording from her drone, the woman turns around and looks at me;
"Can we continue now?" I ask, not being able to conceal a small grunt as a big dea of my 'yank Miranda around' time has been spent on her chatting with Joker.
"Sure, if you'll still show me around." She says, a cheery smile on her lips. I've gotta admit, she is deserving of the title 'perfect woman'… but I'm not interested, especially because I know who she is, and what Cerberus did to John. We continue walking down the CIC, only greeted by one or two crewmembers still on duty. She takes some pictures of the Galaxy map, and we proceed down the stairs, with an odd stare from Pressly following us as the older navigator just returned from what looks like liquor-shopping. He especially looks at Miranda. I really hope he isn't looking for the same reason most would.
Entering the mess-hall, I notice that besides one girl eating a roast beef sandwich, there's no one in here;
"Well, this is the mess-hall. This is where the crew eats, as well as where we have the medicinal department located to our right, over there, and the captain's cabin, over there." Say, pointing as I'm speaking;
"So that's where Commander John'Shepard sleeps?" She asks, turning the drone to film around the room. Maybe she is here to spy out the interior for a boarding mission?
"hmmm… well, Shepard sleeps in there, yes, but not at the moment, and crewmembers are not allowed in there unless it's an emergency. Do you want to go down a level, or to stay here a little longer?" I ask, searching her face for a reaction that could betray her intentions.
"Actually… is there a bathroom on this level?" Okay, points for saying unexpected things miss Lawson…
"Well… yes, right over there, around the corner." I say, pointing to the restroom next to the kitchen. She is immediately off, leaving me and the drone to wait. Me not fully understanding just what is going on here.
A few minutes later, Miranda returns, a slight frown on her face;
"Something wrong Miss Watson?" I ask, not sure if I should be concerned or gleeful over her expression.
"The faucets here are… mediocre, to say the least…" She says, pinching her nose.
"Yeah well, it's a military ship. They don't allow booze here either…" But hey wait a… then what was it Pressly had bought? Sure as hell looked like bottles of wine to me.
"A pity. Well, I… have to get back. Just received a call about an accident I'm supposed to cover."
"B-but…"
"Sorry we didn't get to the interview mister Fisher. Next time, okay?"
"I…" And she's already at the top of the stairs. Her drone floats after her, exiting the ship some seconds after her with me and some other looking after her. Well… that was unexpected… she wasn't even interested in the Tantalus drive core…
"Hmmm…. Yes that is a pretty strange inde- wait… check the women's bathroom."
"What? I'm not going in there."
"Lawson left something in there… some kind of mechanical contraption."
"On the bathroom? Tell me you're kidding."
"Afraid no- it moves? I'm no expert on tech, but small boxes shouldn't be able to- and it climbs on the ceiling as well?"
"Slow the hell down, where or what is it?"
I didn't even have to ask, as a faint skidding sound alerts me of a presence nearby. Looking around, I can't find anything out of the ordinary, but the sound persists. I wonder what the hell makes that sound.
"Look up!"
Hmm? Following Roku's advice, I look at the ceiling, just in time to see a small form skitter across it. it looked remarkably much like a spider, but way to big, and it didn't look organic either. Well… now we know what Miranda left us…
I follow the small robotic thing as it takes a turn and skitters around the elevator, coming back out in the mess hall. Constantly walking with my eyes on the ceiling, I nearly walk into the table and the ensign sitting there, looking at me like I'm behaving retarded;
"Corporal? What are you doing?"
"I… can you hear that sound?" I ask, being quite to allow her to listen in as well.
"Well… a faint skittering… where does it come from?" She asks, looking around as if she expects a jukebox to be making the sound from a corner of the room.
"Look in the ceiling. There's some sort of small robotic spider in here. It's not ours." I say, continuing to scour the room for the small artificial arachnid.
"Sheit… where is it now?" She says, forgetting about her sandwich.
"Don't know, but run up and tell Joker to bring us out of dock. If it has taken something, info, data, anything, I don't want it to leave just yet."
"Yes sir." She says, running up the stairs. Yes…'sir'? Well that's a first…
Continuing my search, I notice the small bugger at the entrance to the captain's quarters. If it spots Jane, or if Jane spots it… I'm going to be in trouble either way. Jumping into the air, I manage to knock it down, but it just skitters away, as if it isn't even programmed, but is actively controlled. I wonder if it's got cameras and mikes, that would explain the smartness in its movements.
"Come out, come out wherever you are…" I mumble.
"I don't think that will help…"
Spotting the metallic bug headed for the elevator, I follow suit. The bitch in this is just the fact that, as soon as I've entered the elevator, the small thing skitters away again. Okay, so apparently I can't just knock it down and expect it to stay down… I wonder if we have a glass-jar somewhere in here…
A few moments later, I'm tracking the escapist, armed with a large jelly-glass. I just hope this will work. Haven't done this since pre-school, so I'm probably not that good at it anymore. This may be gravely serious, but for some reason I can't help crack a smile. This is just too surreal. I'm on the Normandy, armed with a jelly-glass, hunting a robotic spider. How can this place just keep the surprises coming?
"All personnel, this is your pilot speaking. We are currently experiencing a small maintenance-issue, so we'll take a few loops around the station to see if everything works. That'll be all." Joker's voice calls over the comm. system. I guess that takes care of the 'escapist' part. Now to catch the bugger. Speaking of… where the hell did it go now?
"By Kaidan's work-station, the terminals." Roku says, almost pointing my body towards the location. Running over to the place, I spot the probably weirdest thing yet. She small spider looks like it's… dancing on the holographic interfaces. It's moving way too fast for me to catch, even though I try more than once.
"For Talos' sake, hold still you crazy bug!" I sneer, almost expecting it to actually obey me. Finally, it slows down enough for me to jam the glass over it, effectively trapping it inside.
Looking at the small robot scuttle around inside the glass, I'm getting an uncomfortable sort of déjà vu, remembering those large cuttlefish-like machines the collectors use. The differences aren't that many really. Well, except for the size and the lack of human heads inside it. Quickly screwing the top back onto the glass, I hold it up in the light to get a better look at it. It looks like there is a small camera and mike mounted on it. I just can't resist the temptation, so I open the glass just enough for sound to enter it;
"Hello Miranda, look what I found." I say in an, admittedly, really smug voice. The small machine instantly starts scratching about, almost as if mimicking the controller's mood right now, pissed as she no doubt is;
"How did you know?" A voice suddenly speaks from the tiny robot. I almost drop the glass from sheer shock. Okay, two points for surprises now! I manage to collect myself before answering;
"Let that be my little secret, alright? Now, why did you let this thing loose on my ship?" I ask as I sit down at the end of the corridor leading to the gun-control. It does have its advantages being capable of ushering other people out, though I need to figure out what to do with this thing, and fast;
"Do you actually expect me to answer that question Fisher?" She says, a very strong tone of anger in it. Probably because she was bested by a lowly jarhead like me. Gods, I wish I could see he face right now…
"If you want your little fellow here back, then yes, I do actually expect you to answer that Question, or should I just give it to John'Shepard? I'm sure he would just be overjoyed knowing that a couple of Cerberus agents are near his ship." This is a bit of a gamble actually, seeing as I only expect Jacob to be with her. I mean, they were a thing as far as I remember.
"What do you mean by a couple? How can you be sure it's not just me here?" She asks, the sound of a smug smile in her voice is a bit annoying, to be honest. Alright, time to see if I'm right. I can probably still turn it even if I'm wrong;
"So, there's no big, strong guy by the name of Jacob around? A pity, he's quite popular among a few people here on board." I say. There's no response for the first few moments, only a quick intake of breath. I can hear some people arguing in the background. Holy crap, this is by far some of the best stuff I've done on the Normandy so far: Pissing off Miranda. Damn it's gold!
"You do know I'm going to figure out who you are to know all this right?" She says in a less secure voice. I'm guessing she's getting a bit nervous now.
"Oh, I'm counting on it Miss Lawson. You wouldn't be much of Timmy's right hand if you couldn't figure out a lowly marine like me, now would you?"
"Why you- how the hell do you know this!?" Miranda now shouts so loud into her mike that it's actually echoing through the corridor I'm in. I'm starting to get a little worried now. If I'm pissing her too much off, she might just have the ship boarded when we dock again. If she can actually do that, of course.
"Miranda, do you really want to argue, or do you want to trade? You get your little robot back, as well as perhaps the data I'm guessing it was here to steal, and I get a favor from your boss in the future. A favor I might not even have to ask. Doesn't that sound like a good deal to you?" I say, rubbing my temples as the small spider-thing just sits still in the jar. There's no response for some minutes, and my back is starting to hurt, so I try and reposition myself as there is finally an answer.
"Why would you do that, hmm? Give information to a terrorist organization? What do you stand to gain from it?"
"And they said you were bright… as much as I dislike your organization, especially for what you did to John when he was little more than a fucking child… we both know that humanity needs Cerberus. Just not the fanatical experiment-on-aliens kind of Cerberus."
"Just so you know, I didn't even know about Shepard's experiences until a few months back… but you do have a point. Where do you want to meet?" She says, earning a small grin from me.
…
Citadel
Zakera-ward - 'Delan's Sushi'.
16:27
"I don't like this Fisher… meeting with two members of that organization… you sure it was smart asking me to tag along?" Wrex says, leaning against the counter since the last stool he tried, broke under him.
"Well, you are kinda the toughest guy on the ship, and I feel a lot safer knowing that they'll think twice before starting to shoot at a Krogan… especially one as big as you." I shrug.
"True, you would probably just wet yourself if they started shooting." He chuckles, a rough yet oddly calming sound.
"What, you don't think I have a quad? Wanna arm-wrestle on it?" I smirk, flexing my left arm
"Nah, Williams would just kill me for tearing your arm off…" he scuffs, looking like he's feeling a bit insecure without his shotgun on him. But, we agreed to come unarmed. Besides, Wrex is a biotic, and you can hardly disarm a biotic, now can you?
"So you are scared of a human woman, yet you call Thomas the one without a quad?" Kaidan butts in, sitting with a plate of small pieces of sushi.
"Hey, Williams is pretty scary when she's pissed. I don't know if you saw her after Feros Alenko, but she could have been on a blood rage for all I know." Wrex retorts. Kaidan shifts his gaze to me;
"By the way Thomas… are you sure this meeting is a good idea? Meeting with… that kind of people?"
"I know what they are… what they have done and probably are doing, but… it's hard to explain, but in the end, this may help us more than you can imagine Kaidan… just trust the Ghost-guy on this one, alright?"
"Fine, but I still don't like it. Especially after you told me what that bunch did to the commander. I'm guessing that's why you haven't told him?" He says, pinching down another piece of shrimp with the two sticks. I'm starting to get a little hungry myself as well… wonder if I could get some sushi as well before-
"They are here…" Guess not.
Turning around, I poke Kaidan on the shoulder. Wrex is already looking over the crowd of people, probably searching for someone standing out from the rest. Looking as well, I spot a blond head standing out from the crowd, as well as a pair of muscular men in civilian clothes. One of them, the darks-skinned one, looks really familiar, if it wasn't for the longer hair and the cleanly shaven face. Putting my hands behind my back, I press the small button in my left hand;
"Jane, you seeing all this?"
"And hearing. Go ahead with the meeting. We'll provide overwatch." Jane says, ending the conversation. She and Garrus are somewhere above us on either the Keepers' catwalks or some balcony. I just found it smarter to have some more backup in case I would be attempted kidnapped and tortured to press my secrets out of me. I can already feel the cold-sweat running down my back, soaking my shirt.
I don't suppose you can turn off the cold-sweat and give me a poker-face of stone while you are at it?
"I can take care of the sweating, but the poker-face? You are on your own there." Roku says, all the while I'm feeling the sweating subside again. My shirt is still damp though, and my heart is beating against the ribs.
"Alright, let's get the show on." Wrex says with a grin, looking at the three Cerberus agents with what looks like contempt.
"Just watch for any sudden movements, and try not to kill anyone." I say, giving him a mildly amused look. The three people walking towards us don't seem to be armed, but it's Miranda. She could kill you with a plastic-cup if provoked.
When her group reaches us, she doesn't say anything, just gestures for us to move away from the café. Nodding to the rest, I follow her, walking to the side of the large room that is this part of the ward.
"Alright, hand over the robot." She says, holding her hand out. She actually thinks I am that stupid?
"Just like that, hmm? Miranda, Miranda I thought you were bright. You are, undoubtedly, but you also seem to misjudge my intellect, not to mention my knowledge." I respond, earning a raised brow from the woman, as well as a tensing in my two teammates.
"I don't really care about your knowledge Fisher, if that is even your real name. I just need that drone back."
"Oh? But I wanted the rest of my interview miss Lawson… oh sorry, I mean Miss Watson. Seriously: the next time you try to infiltrate a ship, at least try a little harder with the disguise. Besides, I recognized your voice right away when you spoke to me first time." Miranda steps forward with what look like the fires of hell burning behind her eyes.
"Was it something I said?" I ask in half-way mockery. I know this is probably stupid beyond reason, especially since there's a chance we're going to be working together in two years time, but I just can't help it.
"Have you been spying on me?" She says, her voice etched with anger.
"Well… not in the way you might be thinking… but let just say I know pretty much everything about you… but that's not why we're here. We're here to discuss the terms for which I return your toy to you." I wonder how I can actually be this hardass in a negotiation. Normally I would have cracked or something by now.
"I always work on optimal capacity."
"That… was just downright creepy. But thanks."
"No, now we discuss how the hell you know about me, and then we can discuss the drone." She says, her voice on the edge of shouting. I'm guessing she doesn't like not being in control of everything.
"Sorry, wasn't part of the deal. The deal was I get a favor from your organization, and you get your robot, and some info, provided it isn't classified." Kaidan places a hand on my shoulder;
"You sure that's wise? That would be like if the Americans had given the Taliban weapons."
"They did. As far as I know, things went bad after that. But these people still think they are doing humanity a favor, so I'm willing to give them a chance. I'll explain later, if I get the chance." Kaidan removes his hand and nods. He probably still doesn't agree with it, but at least he trusts me enough to let me take point. He could actually overrule me anytime he want, seeing as he is a lieutenant, and I'm just a corporal;
"Fine, you get your favor if we get the info."
"Then I keep the drone." I state, not making compromises.
"Listen here you little arrogant prick-" Miranda bursts out, pointing a blue-glowing fist at me. Fuck, I forgot. Miranda is a biotic as well! The dark-skinned man next to her grabs her hand and forces it down.
"Miranda, we do not want to cause more trouble than we already have. Calm down." The man says. his deep voice strikes the proverbial cord. Holy hell, Jacob Taylor! I knew he looked familiar!
"Thanks mister Taylor, now can we proceed?" Me uttering his last name seems to make him flinch, just a bit.
"Fine, you get the favor, and we get the drone. Happy?"
"Very much so." I say, handing over the small robot, gift wrapped in tin-foil for the occasion. Opening it, Miranda studies it, probably looking for a probe or a tracking-device.
"Now, can she ask her questions?" Jacob says, giving me a look somewhere between wonder and mistrust.
"Sure, fire away, just don't expect answers to them all." I say, leaning against a wall with my arms crossed across my chest.
"How do you know me and Jacob?" Miranda asks, glaring at me like a pissed off dog.
"Sorry, classified. Next question?"
"If you knew it was me, why did you even allow me aboard the Normandy in the first place?"
"You mean other than the entertainment value? I was curious to see just what you wanted from the ship, and seeing as your little bugger seemed quite interested in both Shepard's cabin and the ship's computers… I'm guessing it had something to do with the crewmembers we have recently acquired, am I right?"
"Annoyingly so. But yes, it was about the crewmembers. What are you willing to tell me about the new commandoes, as well as the red-head sitting in a sniper's perch up there?" Miranda says, nodding towards Jane's position. I can pick up a long line of swear-words from my ear-phone. Most of them aren't even English.
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you about them, but the 'red-head'? She will have to be the one telling you, and I doubt she will do that. But the commandoes?" This is where I need to improvise a bit;
"They are a squad of ex-mercenaries. I do not know what happened to the rest of their group, but they have pledged their service to the Normandy."
"Why do they look like the same person?" Aww fuck, the interview. She must have seen it, or stalked them on shore-leave.
"Well, they were part of a band that only took in people with Maori ancestors. Don't know why."
"So they are not clones?" Miranda asks, giving me a hard, yet curious stare. Eh, better come up with something fast.
"Clones? Of course not. Just because you and O- I mean, no they are not clones." Her eyes flicker when I stop myself from mentioning Oriana. Probably a bad sign.
"What were you going to say before? Something about me and someone with an O as the first letter… speak… now." Her voice has suddenly become several degrees harder. Oooooh crap…
"Nothing. Miranda, I may not care for you or Cerberus, but that doesn't mean I have anything against your sister… or that I intend to reveal where she is. Just leave it at that. Other questions?"
"What do you know about the Reapers?" Jacob says, seeing as Miranda for some reason refuses to say a word.
"Ah… I suspect you deserve to know, standing for humanity and all… the Reapers are a race of sentient starships returning to the galaxy every fifty-thousand years. They posses' incredible weapons and shields, and look like giant robotic squids. My guess is that since they wiped out the Protheans fifty-thousand years ago, they are going to return pretty soon. But I bet your boss already knows a bit about them."
"Well… that's certainly unnerving. Are you sure this is true?" Jacob asks, giving me a strange look.
"I wouldn't bother meeting you if I was just going to lie to you. Now, unless there are other questions, I'd say this little meeting is done with, and that we each go our own way. Oh, and I'll hold you to that favor." I say, nodding before I turn to walk away;
"Wait." Jacob calls. Sighing, I turn to face him. Jacob is a cool guy, at least he was in the game, so I decide to give him a chance.
"Yes Jacob?"
"Honestly, how did you know my name?" he asks, a defeated and wondering look in his eyes.
"Like I said: classified. But let's just say that… I know both of you, very well." I smile, turning, walking away and this time, no one calls after me. Though Wrex for some reason can't stop chuckling. Sounds like he really had fun. Still, I'm surprised he pretty much stayed quiet during the entire meeting.
"What's so funny?" I ask.
"The way they just stared at you… I swear it was just glorious. I take back what I said earlier: you do have a quad Fisher." He says, slapping my back as we return to the sushi-bar. I press my ear-phone;
"So… got anything good?" I ask Jane.
"Pictures, voice-recordings… facial traits and names. Hell, were you a cop in your former life?" She asks, not being able to contain a small laughter;
"Nope, dockworker… but in some cases, I guess it's pretty much the same thing." I say, hollering at the waiter.
Well... that sure as hell didn't happen in the game... I gotta say, I hope this last part was recieved as well as i suspect it will, seeing as I found the idea to be pretty damn fun when I wrote it down. Anyway, I'm in a pretty damn good mood right now, seeing as one of my favorites justp posted chapter 13 in his story "the first war"... Damn that was a good one... the chapter I mean.
Anyway, I've decided to let the poll go on to the end of this "book", seeing as I think it's better to let people decide over a longer period of time. Well, see ya ;)