A/N: Considering Colburn's future absence (don't worry, he's not dead yet, I think.) and the change in focus of characters, I've decided to categorise future chapters under another story. Therefore, this'll be the last chapter for Metamorphosis. The sequel, Apotheosis, has already had it's first chapter posted. Go subscribe to it! Quick! :D
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
Chapter 37: Alternatives.
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
-Citadel, Huerta Memorial Hospital-
Catherine
"Are you sure this'll work? I mean, he's never even met you!"
"I know he's never met me, but he's met Cole before! After Hanson joined Ceberus, he still continued visiting her brother. He has to know something, right?"
"I don't know...", Napier said, voice heavily accented with doubt. "Just in case you haven't realised, the chap's in the 'mental' department. Guy's probably bonkers!"
"Well, unless you have a better plan, this is our best bet."
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
Napier
"They have made their choice! They need him to continue! It's done! There's no turning back!"
Why am I here again?
"Who are you talking about? What do you mean by 'they need him'?", Catherine asked, refusing to give up.
"Oh come on!", Napier whispered harshly to her. "He's a flippin' nutjob, for Christ's sake! He doesn't even know what he's yappin' on about!"
The sentinel shrugged him aside.
"My sister... She doesn't want to! But it was not hers to decide! You must forgive her!"
"What did she do?"
Michael Hanson proceeded to mumble something incoherently.
Catherine put her ears next to his lips. "What did you say? Say it again."
Napier saw the sentinel's eyebrows furrow, as if she was trying to solve a riddle.
"Well, what it is?", the soldier asked.
"Drake Frost."
"Huh?"
"That's all he said, Drake Frost."
"Who the heck is that?"
"How would I know?"
"Weapon...", Michael Hanson cut in. "Ceberus."
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
Catherine
The past two hours of cajoling and patient persuasion hadn't been as fruitless as Napier had said it to be after all. Even though they left the hospital with even more questions, at least now they knew that Ceberus, Michelle Hanson, and a certain Drake Frost was involved.
"Great. Now we're jobless and have no leads. How and where are we supposed to start with?", Napier asked.
"We're fully qualified N7s! There's gotta be a job that needs our expertise."
"Oh sure.", he said sarcastically. "We could join C-Sec, if we could get a letter of recommendation from the Alliance. But you'll pardon me if I think that's impossible, especially after what happened yesterday. Hackett and Udina will never give us their support."
"We can, actually...", Catherine said, a sly smile on her face. "We just need to go to the right person."
"I don't think I'm going to like this..."
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
Tantus
"You're telling me you want to join C-Sec? And you want me to put in a good word for you?"
The day had started odd enough, with Catherine bringing along a red-haired stranger to his apartment. Coupled with new knowledge of their hasty resignation from the Alliance and a sudden desire to join Citadel Security, the whole thing was nothing less than strange.
"Catherine, I know you're anxious to find Colburn, but I've already initiated my own lines of inquiry. With all the necessary discretion, such a delicate matter will certainly take time. But my informers will let me know of any new clues firsthand."
"Yeah, and by the time we find him, it's going to be his corpse.", she retorted. "Napier and I went to do a little digging today, and we've found out that Ceberus' involved in all of this."
"And there's this guy... I think his name is Drake Frost... Somehow he's got a part in this too.", Napier added. His accent was unusual. Tantus believed the human term was 'British'.
"See?", Catherine pointed out. "Your informers didn't know that! We can do this, Tantus.", she pleaded. "All we need is an opportunity. We'll be able to find leads much faster than anyone else. The reason why we quit the Alliance's because there's too much red tape to go through. If we're C-Sec, we can have both the resources and freedom."
"Yes.", the Briton agreed. "With your backing as a Spectre, we can get in without any problems."
The Turian sighed. "Alright. I'll give Executor Pallin a call."
"Who's that?", Napier asked.
"Executor Venari Pallin. Basically the head of C-Sec. I should be able to deal with him, but be prepared."
MDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMDMD
-C-Sec Headquarters-
Napier
The soldier had to admit, Tantus wasn't as scary as he imagined to be. Friendly, even. The second Turian they were talking to now, though, was another story. When Tantus had told them to 'prepare' themselves, he wasn't joking.
"This is preposterous! You want me to immediately declare them fit for duty, without even any sort of qualification test? That's impossible!"
"They're N7 graduates! The best damned elites of the Systems Alliance! They don't need anymore training!", Tantus argued.
"So what?", the other Turian countered. "You Spectres think you're above the law, don't you? Doing anything that you desire! Unless you give me a bloody good reason, I am not-"
"Let me remind you, Venari. Spectre stands for SPECial Tactics and REconnaissance. The council gave us our powers for a damn good reason! We're the ones who prevent those criminals from escaping the hands of justice because of stupid loopholes in the law!"
"You-"
"And I'm not obliged to give you any reason. It's confidential and classified. If you're not happy, go and complain to the Council. But until then, you do as I say. Are we clear?"
Despite the Turians' absence of facial muscles, the anger in Pallin's eyes were very much evident.
"Fine. But this won't be gone unreported to the Council, Bexcal. Remember that.", Pallin threatened.
The Executor reluctantly turned on the terminal on his office desk. "Vakarian, come in here right now. There are a few new colleagues I want you to meet."
A/N: Well, there you go! Now you know there's going to be Garrus inside Apotheosis, huh? I hope to see all of you at the sequel! Now, here's some facts you never knew about Metamorphosis!
Colburn- As my old readers from SIC would know, Cole's my favourite toy to mess with. Thank God he's not a real person, or I'd be charged with physical torture and mental abuse. :O
Desmont- Armageddon Coconut's character. Desmont's the big brother of the group. He's like that big heavy anchor that keeps the younger members attached to the ground. Don't worry, he's sticking around for Apotheosis.
Michelle- The reason I created was because I felt that the story needed more female characters. There was too much male energy, and Catherine needed someone she could relate to. That Michelle/Cole thing was something of an impulsive thing, I did it because I didn't what else to (What the heck, I know). But this has provided much more plot twists for Apotheosis, so I don't regret it.
Campbell- Another one of my creations. He's something for a background character in Metamorphosis, because I really couldn't find anywhere to squeeze him into. But he has his uses, I promise.
Catherine- She's one of my favourite characters. Her character is actually a combination of a lot of my classmates. We all have/need a spitfire in our lives, that awesome and important friend that suggests crazy ideas, 'abuses' you for no reason, but is ultimately a pal that comes through for you. There will also be those moments where conflicts arise, and going by her dominant personality, won't back down so easily. I'm going to amplify that in Apotheosis, because obviously she's the lead character for it.
Napier- iBayne's character. Believe it or not, this guy's my favourite character (the lead character doesn't always have to be the most favoured one, right?) He's the representation of myself in Metamorphosis. The 'fall guy', the one that gets laughed at, with the lame jokes and all. As goofy as he is, he's the person you'd depend on when you get into trouble. His backstory will be fleshed out in the sequel (which is undoubtedly largely influenced by mine). You've guessed it, he's the secondary protagonist in Apotheosis.
Apart from The Illusive Man and Garrus Vakarian, I'll also be using the chance to expand on very minor characters into main ones for Apotheosis, because I really feel that BioWare wasted a chance to have a really diverse and interesting bunch of characters. Armistan Banes, Detective Chellick, ExecutorVenari Pallin (all of them are from ME1) and even Randall Ezno (from ME: Infiltrator) and Private Campbell (the cameo guard in ME3. Note the surname. *hint hint*) will have a role in Apotheosis.
Once again, it's been a great run with you guys. There's been quite a few new followers! Special thanks go to iBayne, Armageddon Coconut, as well as my classmates (who continue reading even though they have no idea of the ME terminology and game).
Once again, thanks all! See you at Apotheosis!
-ConvictionSC
PS: Tell me who's your favourite character and if they're any romance pairings you want. I'll consider them, but no promises!