Chapter 37
"Well, that went better than expected." Shepard admitted as she, Wrex and Victus watched the salarian dalatrass leave.
"How?" Victus asked, a little disbelieveing and she shrugged.
"I didn't have to shoot anyone." Wrex laughed at that, shaking his head.
"I've missed you, Shepard. Things almost got boring without you around." She grinned at that.
"Yeah, God forbid I should get a moment of peace." She joked, rolling her eyes. "Now, let's go get these females of yours."
"I assume the kid's coming with." Wrex said, still smiling and Shepard shook her head a little, smiling back.
"How'd you even know he was on board?" Wrex laughed at that.
"Because you didn't shoot anyone. When blood tied are sepearated they have a tendancy to go all Blood Rage more than usual." Sheaprd laughed, shaking her head.
"Thanks for the heads up, Wrex." She joked and he grinned back.
"No problem, Shepard." She rolled her eyes as they left the room, headed once more into the battlefield.
"Hey, Mordin." Shepard grinned as she entered the med-bay.
"Shepard. Good to see you. I was just telling Eve about Garrus. Scars considered attractive by female krogan." Shepard raised an eyebrow at that.
"Well, it's good to see your sense of humour hasn't changed." Shepard said, shaking her head. "I've missed you. I need someone to talk science with." Mordin smiled at that.
"Yes. Nice being back at STG but no one quite as fast as you with equations. Or as good at crazy ideas." Shepard shrugged, grinning.
"It's what I do. If you need any help in here, biological promlems would be a welcome change to tactical ones." Mordin nodded.
"Always good to work with you, Shepard. Missed working on our projects." She nodded at that.
"Yeah, I guess there's not much left to modify in terms of my cybernetics, huh?" Mordin shook his head.
"Untrue. Have been working on one last modification." She frowned a little.
"Really? What's this one going to do, make me see in the dark?" Mordin frowned for a moment before answering.
"Second last modification, then." She grinned as he scanned her with his omni-tool.
"Okay, so what does it do?" He shook his head.
"It needs time to adjust your bio-chemistry. Changes won't be significant for a few months." She frowned at that.
"Okay, but that doesn't tell me what those changes will be." Mordin frowned at that.
"Unsure that changes will take affect. Do not wish to get your hopes up." She sighed at that.
"So what you're saying is that you're doing something to my cybernetics and whatever it is will significantly alter my bio-chemistry in some way but you won't tell me what it is?" He nodded.
"Will find out if it works. If not, then no harm done." She sighed again.
"Mordin, I hate surprises." He nodded.
"Understandable. But ask for your trust, Shepard. Don't want to make promises I can't keep." She nodded.
"Fine, but if it was anyone else..."
"If it was anyone else, you wouldn't let them near your cybernetics." She smiled, nodding.
"I guess not. Can you continue to make these adjustments while I talk to Eve?" Mordin nodded.
"Yes, most can be done remotely as long as you stay in the med-bay. Can call you over for any injections. Shouldn't take too long." She nodded, making her way over to the female krogan.
"Thank you for saving my life, Commander. I didn't think the krogan had any allies left in the galaxy." Eve said as she approached and Shepard shrugged.
"We owe a lot to you, even if most people have forgotten that." It had always bugged her that everyone chose to see the negatives of the krogan over the positives. She knew all too well that people only saw what they wanted to see but it still baffled her that they could be so blind.
"They can be forgiven. Our actions have hardly inspired friendship." Shepard smiled a little at that, realising that it was exactly what she would say in Eve's position.
"Part of being friends is knowing each other's name. I feel bad that I don't know yours." Eve nodded at that.
"I surrendered it the day I became a shaman of the female clan. I belong to my sisters now. But perhaps one day, when this is over, you can know it." Shepard nodded at that.
"I'd like that. So, if you're a shaman did you have to undergo the ritual where you're locked in a cave?" Eve frowned at that.
"Yes, although I must confess that I am surprised by your knowledge. Most outsiders know nothing about krogan culture." Shepard smiled a little at that, shaking her head.
"Yeah, well between Grunt acting out and Wrex catching me out with the whole blood tied thing I decided it might be a good idea to look into it." Eve nodded in understanding.
"I noticed the connection between you and the turian. Garrus, right?" She nodded.
"Yeah. Wrex noticed back on the SR1 but he failed to mention the specifics. I'm usually more reliant on science than legends but there's definitely something measurable between us." Eve nodded at that.
"Legends are often borne of fact. It was thought that the blood tied was an evolutionary advantage to ensure strong offspring. Children of blood tied were often great warriors." Shepard raised an eyebrow at that.
"Well, that's clearly not true. At least not with Garrus and I." She tried to keep her voice steady as Eve observed her carefully. She avoided the subject of children. She wasn't even sure she'd make it to her next birthday with this war, so while it was nice to plan a crazy future with Garrus where they disappeared off in the Normandy and went on adventures, she couldn't let it get too real. She refused to hope for a future that would likely never come. So, there was no point in focusing on irrelevant problems.
"Do you know why the blood tied fell into legend?" Shepard shook her head.
"I assumed it was because it wasn't common." Eve nodded.
"It used to be but not since before the genophage. Until you two." Shepard shrugged at that.
"Maybe once the genophage is cured, it'll become common again." She suggested and Eve shrugged.
"Perhaps."
Garrus needed a break from numbers. He sighed as he headed out of the Main Battery, thinking enviously of how easily Jane handled numbers to find the tactical advantage. Of course, she hated the reality of the ruthless calculus, the people being condemned so that others could live, and he had to admit that it wasn't any easier for him. So he decided that he needed a drink. He was going to find his bondmate but she was in the middle of talking to the female krogan and catching up with Mordin. The thought of the salarian's fast paced chatter made his head ache so he decided to leave her to it, knowing that she would catch up with him once she was done.
Garrus entered the lounge to find Victus already there.
"Garrus." Victus said as Garrus got himself a dextro beer.
"Primarch. You get sick of staring at numbers too?" The primarch nodded as Garrus sat next to him.
"Yeah, you reach a point at which you can't do any more and it's infuriating." Garrus's sub-harmonics trilled in agreement as he drank his drink.
"I know what you mean..." Victus nodded.
"You seem better since you came back on board the Normandy." He observed as Garrus looked a little sheepish.
"Well, it's my home. Has been since I helped Shepard chase down Saren. I guess it's just nice to be back." His fingers subconsciously brushed his bondmark and Victus snorted.
"Right, you sure it's the place and not the woman?" Garrus just gave him a blank look. "Garrus, it was clear that you were suffering from separation from your bondmate and the second Shepard showed up, you were fine. Not to mention she has bondmarks on her neck." Garrus sighed at that.
"So much for Shepard's 'we have a week' theory." He said and Victus looked confused. "Vega figured it out a few days ago. Shepard reckoned we had a week before he told everyone aboard." Victus nodded at that.
"You know that the entire galaxy is looking to her right now? A human-turian relationship would be news at the best of times." Garrus sighed again, nodding. He'd never dealt with other people paying attention to him. Hell, on Omega no one outside of his team even knew who he was.
"We figure that with the war there will be more important stuff for them to report on." Victus nodded at that.
"Good luck with that. You two are good together, in spite of the obvious. Though I imagine your father didn't take it well." Garrus nodded.
"You know what he's like but... he knows how stupid it is to try to separate bondmates so he's not threatening to disown me or anything. I, uh... I haven't heard from him or Sol since the Reapers hit..." Victus nodded, his own eyes darkening.
"In this war, knowing isn't much better. No where is safe, at least not for long." Garrus sighed in agreement.
"Yeah. I know Shepard isn't looking into where her parents are stationed. She knows that she'll be alerted if anything happens to them but she says that knowing anything else would just make her stress about them and distract her. I guess this war is taking it's toll on everyone."
"That it is..."