Some very interesting biotic ideas, I like the idea of team work with biotics (as shown with Seph and Miri's 'Swarp') and different applications for Singularities certainly does open up some interesting opportunities... I've answered a few people privately explaining that Seph's biotics are heavily based on Prothean techniques and that in my story the Protheans went about their biotics differently to the Asari whose techniques are the dominant influence in 'modern society'. There is also a third influence on her biotics... linked to the ones who have messed with Miri... Which is why she's so powerful biotically and linked with Miri. You may recall at the end of ch 14 'The Beast Within' Miranda reflects that there are abnormalities in Shepard's brain that couldn't be explained that Rana will begin to sense in this chapter...
Enough of my rabbiting away! Enjoy this next chapter! :D
"Jacob will show you where to stow that." Shepard nodded to Jack's newly acquired shotgun, "Might even have something better for you to play with but while on the ship no guns or knives outside the armoury." She asserted to Jack.
"Don't need 'em." Jack growled, glowing biotically.
"No shit." Shepard growled right back, also glowing in warning.
Jack smirked and sauntered after the dark skinned man.
Before Miranda could leave the airlock Shepard gently touched her arm. She looked to Shepard quizzically.
Shepard waivered on her feet and gripped Miranda's sleeve a little tighter to steady herself. Every step she'd taken since using that molecular attack had been harder and harder, even that small burst of biotic energy with Jack had been a massive strain.
Miranda reached out and firmly held her shoulder, "Are you okay?" she asked softly, Joker was just around the corner and within earshot of the airlock.
Shepard shook her head, "I... can't lift my feet." she admitted in a strained whisper.
Miranda looked over the Commander's armour with a critical eye, she had no injury, not even any scoring from weapons fire as her shields, both from the armour and her biotics had held. That meant it was biotic.
Shepard released Miranda's sleeve as Miri's other hand was keeping her upright now.
Miranda produced a power bar, all biotics carried them and Shepard ordinarily would have but she'd given hers to Jack.
With a grateful nod Shepard accepted it and with trembling hands ripped open the wrapper.
Miranda watched her every movement with the critical eye of a medical doctor, which technically she was given everything she'd learned to put Shepard back together. Shepard's cheeks were slightly flushed, her eyes a little dilated and showing a feint cybernetic glow not instigated by emotion, her breathing was a little shallow and now that she was actually studying Shepard she felt something was different. Frowning slightly she pulled off her glove using her teeth as if she released Shepard the woman would fall.
Shepard arched her brow at the move, then stilled as Miranda reached up and cupped the side of her neck with her bare hand. The touch of skin on skin was electrifying and her breath hitched in the back of her throat, she'd only just swallowed her mouthful in time.
"Your biotics... I can barely feel them." Miranda gasped, wide eyed at the revelation. Shepard felt empty at the moment.
"Neither can I, hence I can hardly move right now." Shepard murmured, her stomach was clenching in knots as her body screamed for nutrients, for energy to replace what she'd burned. She closed her eyes as Miranda's thumb traced along her jaw every so lightly, sending sparks through her burned out body.
"We need to get you to medbay." Miranda asserted quickly, Shepard needed nutrients faster than what digestion could provide.
Shepard shook her head, "Jack can't see me like this, not yet, neither can Grunt." she gave a small smile, "He was pretty damn effective today."
"Brutally. Like someone else I know." Miranda agreed with that assessment. The krogan was a bit like Jack, a wild, powerful weapon to be pointed in the direction of the enemy and let loose.
Shepard chuckled breathlessly, "Calling me brutal Miss Lawson?"
"What you did to Kurill was pretty brutal and I'm assuming why you're like this." Miranda observed.
"Yeah, wasn't sure I could pull it off. Might not have been so bad if I hadn't used my biotics so much beforehand." Shepard sighed then took the last bite of the bar. "You know Joker's gonna start rumours about us taking so long to leave the airlock." she smirked.
Miranda's smile became quite devious, "Not if I have to carry you out of here with a black eye."
Shepard chuckled, that could work. "I'll even give you ammunition. I promised Jack we'd give her all the files Cerberus has on her."
Miranda stiffened at that, "You had no authority to do that!" she snapped.
Shepard grinned and turned her head slightly, pointing to her cheek, "Thought it was only fair considering Cerberus experimented and tortured her to make her some super biotic badass."
Miranda clenched her fist and swung. If Shepard had been at full strength the blow might have knocked her back a step. Barely able to stand as she was it threw her into the hull hard enough to knock her out cold. "Damnit! Shepard!" she rushed over to Shepard's side in surprise and rolled her over.
"Everything okay in there?" Joker called.
Miranda quickly checked Shepard's pulse, it was faster than it should be and she wasn't rousing.
Shepard slowly came to in the familiar bed and smell of the medbay. With a groan she reached up to touch her cheek, she had a splitting headache right now, "Lawson you're so grounded!" she moaned.
A familiar scoff sounded, "You can't afford to ground me."
Shepard smiled and opened her eyes, squinting over at the dark haired angel who was administering a stim of something. "That was so not the plan. How does 'knocked out' equate to 'black eye'?" she grumbled, pretending to pout.
Miranda smirked, "Guess you shouldn't have been showing off your biotics then." she was greatly relieved that Shepard was awake but there was a sense of satisfaction at returning the favour and all the crew knowing that she'd knocked out Commander Shepard.
Shepard chuckled breathlessly as she didn't have much energy right now, "You just couldn't resist could you? You've been waiting for that since Freedom's Progress."
"I'm a little above petty revenge Commander." Miranda returned imperiously.
"Yeah, yeah, you don't fool me Miri." Shepard waggled her finger up at Miranda, grinning from ear to ear.
"Well perhaps it was a little satisfying." Miranda smiled down at Shepard who looked rather adorable grinning up at her like that, though she noticed Shepard was wincing slightly. "Hurting?"
"My pride certainly smarts. You didn't carry me in here did you?" Shepard sighed.
"How else do you think you got in here?" Miranda raised her brow a little.
"Damn and I was unconscious and everything." Shepard clicked her fingers in an 'oh damn' gesture. "Can I get a repeat performance, minus the fist to the face, up to my quarters?" she asked playfully.
"Certainly not." Miranda shook her head.
"Your quarters?"
Miranda glared down at her.
Shepard held up her hands submissively, "Can you blame me for trying? Not every day I get carried around by a gorgeous woman."
Miranda rolled her eyes, "Not going to happen."
"Never say never." Shepard smirked cheekily, a touch of Seph's bubbly personality breaking through with that light hearted banter.
"I didn't. Now you're feeling better I have work to do." Miranda glanced over at Chakwas who was smiling at her console and pretending to ignore them.
"I meant what I said about those files for Jack." Shepard reminded her and what little mirth Miranda had allowed herself to show vanished.
"I gathered as much," Miranda responded coolly, "in case you didn't notice."
Shepard sighed, "Yeah figured." she rubbed her cheek, "By the way, you hit like a girl. Did you even break anything?"
The corner of Miranda's lips twitched and her fine brow arched, "I knocked you out cold Commander, what kind of girl do you think I am?"
The words came out before Shepard could stop them, "My kind of girl."
Miranda's brow furrowed and her lips parted a little in surprise.
Shepard's eyes widened, "Damnit I said that out loud didn't I?"
Chakwas could scarcely contain her laughter and had to bite down on her lip as she laughed silently in the back of her chest.
"I'll keep that in mind, Commander." Miranda wasn't really shocked, given recent developments, but it was still a surprise to hear, and a reminder that she needed to tread carefully. Now was not the time for personal entanglements, especially with Shepard, but Shepard was so different...
Shepard went bright red and suddenly found her twiddling fingertips very interesting, her heart pounding in her ears in embarrassment. She didn't see the small smile that graced Miranda's perfect lips as she strode out of the medbay. When the doors swished shut she sighed, "Let it out Chakwas, I can feel you laughing."
Chakwas did just that and walked over to her, patting her on the arm, "You are such a marine, Shepard."
"Urgh don't remind me. Destroying things is what I do best." she looked away from the motherly doctor, deeply saddened, "Especially the people I care about." she murmured.
The smile disappeared from Chakwas, "That's not true Stephanie. You protect people, even more so the ones you care about. You could have left Jeff to die but you didn't, you gave your life to save him, to give us enough time to escape." she reached down and turned Shepard's face to look at her. "You're a guardian in here." she put her hand over her heart, "You fight for those who can't, you give everything to protect the innocent and bring an end to anyone who would prey on the innocent. That does not make you a destroyer. As for the people you care about, we're right here, with you and others are supporting you, you just can't see it yet. Give it time." she nodded her head towards Miranda's office, "Give her time."
"Doctor Chakwas." Shepard smiled in a mock scandalized tone, deeply touched by the woman's sentiments, "Are you encouraging me to fraternize with my executive officer?"
Chakwas leaned down and actually kissed her forehead, "Make the most of life Stephanie, you've given so much of it in service to others." she murmured.
Shepard blinked up at her, tears starting to glisten in her eyes. Words escaped her right now so she just nodded meekly, she really did love Chakwas like her mum.
Chakwas smiled and returned to her console and the doctorate editorial she was reading.
"So I hear the cheerleader knocked you the fuck out." Jack sneered up at the Commander. She'd made herself a comfortable little hidey hole in the dark confines of the engineering deck. Ordinarily she would have written the Commander off at having had her arse handed to her by someone like that Lawson princess, but she'd seen what Shepard had done to Kurill with her own eyes.
"What, you think I'd let some pathetic little school girl be my XO? Miranda Lawson's a tough, ice cold bitch who'd as soon as put a bullet between your eyes if you cross her as she'd write a perfect little report describing it in detail. This may come as a surprise to you but running a ship and crew this size takes a little more than slamming morons into hulls and I hate writing reports." she grinned, "I happen to like she can do both. Saves me the trouble. She's also good at digging up information." With that she tossed a couple datapads onto the cot Jack was sprawled across. "You can thank her later, let me know if you find anything interesting."
Jack eagerly scooped up the datapads and when she glanced up Shepard's shadow was disappearing around the corner. She was actually kinda glad, 'thanks' wasn't really in her vocabulary. Eagerly she set about reading the data Shepard had given her, keeping her end of their deal which meant more to her than she had the words to express. If Shepard wanted something dead, Jack was all for killing it.
Shepard returned to Miranda's quarters. The information on Jack had been surprisingly quick and easy to get, as though the Illusive Man had been prepared for the request. It had Shepard wondering what would be missing from the data and if that would come back to bite her in the arse. She made a point of touching the door chime and waiting for permission to proceed every time she entered Miranda's quarters. It had yet to impact Miranda's entry to the loft on a permanent basis but hey, she could only try and Miranda had used the chime once at least.
Miranda didn't look up from her console just yet knowing exactly who it was without EDI's introduction, "I've spoken with Rana about the mental block. She's agreed to assist and requires you to speak with her about your background that involves our prior relationship." she glanced up quickly at the use of the word, "I..."
Shepard held up her hand with a smile, "I get it. I'll talk with her in the loft." she saved Miranda the awkwardness of trying to rectify that comment when in actual fact it was quite true in both contexts. She wasn't quite sure if she should ask if Miranda was alright, she looked it but then she was an expert at wearing masks.
"Thank you. For now Rana and I both think it would be in my best interest to... not have anything that could trigger an attack." Miranda looked up apologetically.
Shepard sighed and rubbed her neck, "Right, in other words get out Shepard."
"We need to keep some distance between us, you know that." Miranda's expression and tone remained neutral, hiding away any shred of feeling or emotion she might have had.
"Yeah, we've done pretty well since the other day in the loft. Better not risk it further, send me a message if there's anything... anything you need from me." Shepard swallowed nervously, "But at some point I'd really like to talk about what happened yesterday, the hearing your thought thing."
"Of course. Once this block is dealt with we have a lot to discuss." Miranda acknowledged with a nod, finding Shepard's awkwardness endearing as she fiddled with her nails and refused to look up at her.
Shepard nodded and left her to her work without another word, simply because she just didn't know what to say that wouldn't give away how disappointed she felt.
Rana was very nervous about being invited up to the Commanders private quarters alone. Finding the door open she was surprised at the choice of music being played. It was soft, gentle, emotive and stirred up feelings of wistful longing. Walking in she was surprised at the luxury of the quarters, the massive fish display to her left was certainly unexpected. What was even more so was that the music she was hearing was actually being played by Shepard herself from a holographic instrument piece attached to her omni-tool. It was with wonder that she waited, watching with wide eyed awe as this symbol of destruction and power showed a completely polar opposite side in creating such breathtaking music. There was a sense of vulnerability about her as she sat in shorts and singlet, her chocolate brown hair hanging loosely about her shoulders, eyes closed and her body moving with fluid grace in rhythm with the music she brought forth.
Shepard hadn't heard Rana enter but she did hear her sharp intake of breath and stopped playing quickly in embarrassment, "I, sorry I didn't hear you come in. I lost track of time..." She mumbled an apology, getting up quickly and flicking of the piano before turning to get dressed.
"Don't be sorry, that was beautiful." Rana offered, her breath catching in her throat as she saw Shepard's physique revealed for the first time when she uncurled from the lounge, it was such a shame when she covered up those long slender legs with baggy black track pants.
Shepard gave a shy smile before going over to her cooler and getting out a bottle of wine and two glasses, "Would you like a drink?" she asked hospitably.
"Sure." Rana didn't want to be rude and decline, the whole atmosphere in this luxurious little world away from the rest of the ship was relaxing. For the first time she was seeing Stephanie Shepard and not Commander Shepard or Spectre Shepard. It was most definitely eye opening.
Shepard poured the deep purple liquid and slid a glass into Rana's reach before sitting in her customary position on her lounge. "So can you help her?" she asked softly.
"I've had a look at her preliminary scans and talked with her about her symptoms but at this stage I'll need more data before I can answer that question." Rana didn't think it would be in her best interests to get Shepard's hopes up. With Saren she'd had to constantly be on her guard, always promising results and doing whatever it took, no matter how brutal, to ensure she got those results as her life had depended on it. With Shepard it was different. There was no threat to her life. There was no expectation that she had to do this. She had been asked respectfully, something she had missed for so long.
Shepard just nodded slowly, "What do you need from me?"
"Your memories concerning Miss Lawson." Rana put a small recording device on the table.
"Wouldn't it be easier to share them with you mind to mind?" Shepard glanced from the recorder to Rana curiously, having shared with the numerous asari the idea wasn't at all repulsive or foreign to her.
"You'd feel comfortable doing that?" Rana was surprised, few races were.
"Yes." Taking a sip from her wine she stood up to sit beside Rana.
"Well then, that would be easier." Rana nodded, it would also show her far more about the enigma that was Commander Shepard than mere words and observations could. She turned to face the woman and offered her hand.
Shepard slid her hand into Rana's and leaned forward, gently pulling Rana closer to touch their foreheads together. Having shared with Liara the most she wasn't quite aware of how intimate this position was for the asari or that she'd set Rana's heart racing.
Rana swallowed, pushing back the sudden spike of lust at being so close to the beautiful and powerful human. "Embrace eternity." she murmured and when her mind reached for Shepard's she found it open and ready for her.
Shepard ignored the lust and moved her mind around it with ease, she was used to it from Liara after all and figured it was just a part of sharing minds. She brought up to the fore of her mind the memories of her childhood with Miranda Solheim and shared them in their entirety with Rana.
It was very odd seeing the child Persephone as Shepard. They were so different from each other.
The child was bright, bubbly, effervescent with light blonde hair and less refined features that were hidden beneath a childish cuteness and innocence that was utterly adorable.
The woman was quiet, reserved unless with companions she knew and trusted, that effervescence and innocence bottled away by the terrible things she'd seen and done and there was a darkness that lurked within Shepard that was not felt in Persephone's memories. It was caged away and heavily restrained but Rana could still sense it and it reminded her that what she was seeing now, this comfortable and strangely gentle woman, was incredibly dangerous if her ire was provoked. There was no doubt in her mind that if something happened to Miranda Lawson that inner beast that lurked within Shepard would be unleashed and the wrath of the goddess would pale in comparison.
The only similarity that Rana could see between Persephone and Stephanie was her eyes. She'd changed her hair, her body had changed as it matured but her eyes had remained the same in hue albeit they had matured as well. The open innocence of childhood had given way to the horrors of batarian brutality, of betrayal, of war and were now shuttered as though to keep all others from seeing into her blood drenched and battered soul.
But the problem with her eyes instigating an episode in Miranda was that in the face of a woman she loved so deeply Shepard's eyes softened, that window into her soul unshuttered and managed to reach beyond blood, brutality and anger to reflect some of that childhood innocence that clung desperately to her humanity, that time in her childhood where she had been truly happy, happy and loved and safe. It wasn't something Shepard could control or anticipate.
Then there was their biotics. Rana could already feel that Shepard's were different. It wasn't something she could truly place, a subtle scent that was out of place, like a human rose amidst a blood soaked battlefield. Feeling the effect of Miranda's biotics mingling with Shepard's was... intoxicating. It wasn't unheard of, albeit it was very rare, for biotics amongst asari to be 'compatible', the subtle variances in dark energy flows between individuals discovered to be on a same 'frequency', so to speak, making their merging a truly wondrous experience. For humans who had such limited biotics though, it was unheard of. Especially given how unique Shepard's felt and that Miranda's had been engineered and implanted into her after her birth. It should be impossible.
It should also have been impossible for Shepard to have heard Miranda's thought. It was akin to sharing between asari as Shepard and Miranda's biotics had been mingling, yet in asari that sharing of minds was only made possible by their unique neural structure, something that humans did not have.
But my mind isn't normal for a human. Shepard's voice whispered in response to Rana's musings.
Nothing about you is normal Shepard. Rana responded with a touch of awe within her wry mirth.
Shepard chuckled, Not wrong there. Whatever was left of normal in me was changed by Cerberus in their upgrades.
I'd like to study your mind along with Miranda's. There is... something there. Rana couldn't find the words but in their sharing state Shepard could understand what was felt and not said.
I'll do anything at all to help. She whispered.
Rana released her mind with a profoundly changed perspective on the human woman who was both compassion and destruction. "Thank you for sharing so openly. It will most definitely help me in how I work with Miranda and I could also help you understand more of your own mind and the changes to your biotics."
"I hope so Rana. I really hope so." Shepard sighed, returning to her lounge and sipping her wine lost in thought.