This is a work of fan fiction from all Mass Effect games owned by EA and Bioware. I do not claim any ownership of the characters or the Mass Effect universe. My thanks to Bioware and EA for creating an amazing story with characters we have all come to know and love.

Recommended Listening: Civilian, by Wye Oak

Chapter 38: Roadblocks and Scenery

"So, this is it."

"Looks like it." Garrus set his dark green duffle bag on the ground next to his feet as they stopped beside the railing of Docking Bay D15.

"I thought you didn't like green?"

"I do. Just not on you."

"I'll try to keep that in mind-"

"So you can wear it more often."

"Exactly. He can be taught." Ellure mustered a paltry laugh, glancing to the waiting area where a turian and an asari seemed to be having the same difficulty they were.

She kept her attention fixed on the two children at their feet; one hid behind her mother's dress while the other, slightly taller, clutched her father's knee. A handful of turians passed, conversing with their mix of various flanged tones as Garrus said, "Good luck with the crew. Hopefully they behave themselves while I'm gone."

"They will if they know what's good for them." She stared obsessively at his meager belongings, resting beside his two-toed feet. "I'm sorry things turned out this way for your family."

With his warm fingers against her skin, he forced her gaze to his. "I'll come back as soon as I can."

"Yeah. Of course."

"I mean that. More than anything do I ever mean that."

"You should go."

"Not yet."

"Garrus, we're in public."

"I really don't give a damn." He closed the gap and removed his visor.

The comforting scent was all around her as her body melded to his. She would never suspect his skin was harsh the way he kissed her. Forehead to nose, his breath against hers, she tried to hold it together. "Stay safe for me." she said, failing to keep the desolation in her voice concealed.

"Practice what you preach."

Her breathing grew sheer and hollow as she stepped back and wrapped her arms around herself. "This didn't seem quite so difficult the last time you left the Normandy."

"It was for me when you left."

"Ah, that... yeah."

"Let's not do that again." He slipped on his visor and adjusted it.

"Deal." She rocked from heel to toe while he slugged his bag over one shoulder.

"I'll contact you when I get there."

"All right."

"Goodbye, Ell."

Grinning at his awkward pause, she laughed quietly and answered, "I love you too, Grumpy."

She shook her head as he took two strides back, giving her a wink-and-the-gun before he walked away. Resting her hip against the rail, she observed through blurred vision as he turned the corner and passed in front of the Citadel's morning skyline.

Her short nails dug into the side of her arm as he looked back and waved before passing through the airlock, disappearing from sight. "Well, you survived, Ell." Wiping away the first of many sure to follow, she added, "Almost."

An echoed robotic voice confirmed departures and arrivals as she weaved her way through the crowd. Get it together. You've got a meeting with Anderson at the end of the week, and it's time to focus.

Inside the elevator, she waited for the asari with her two daughters to step inside. "Where are you headed?"

"The Commons." The woman answered, picking up the smaller child Ellure imagined had been clinging to her mother's dress moments ago.

"Sounds good."

The asari smoothed her fingers over her daughter's head and kissed her cheek before the girl buried her face against her mother's neck. "Was that your husband?"

"Oh, no. We're uh... this is new."

The woman smiled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to assume, it's just that it didn't look new."

Brushing her hair out of her eyes, she said, "We've been through a lot together."

"Ah, is he military? My husband is going to Palaven for a refresher course in his engineer training. It'll only be a couple of weeks. Two, actually."

A little voice said, "That's a lo-ong time."

She glanced down to the impatient blue eyes of a girl with arms folded across her chest and a frown tugging on her lips. She gave a reassuring smile and knelt down to the child's eye level. "It'll be over before you know it."

"I don't know... that's like, for-ever in school days."

"Well, if you keep busy with school, and help out your mom and sister, those two weeks will be over and done with before you know it."

"I guess so."

"What's your name?"

"Niri."

She held out her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Niri."

Niri flashed a heart melting smile. "What's your name?"

"You can call me, Ell."

"Ell... I like it. It's short and simple." Niri nodded with satisfaction.

A turian-style nod, she thought. "I like it too." She patted the girl's arm while the elevator dinged as the doors opened.

The woman shifted the shy daughter to her hip and held Niri's hand as she said, "I hope your boyfriend comes back soon."

"Thanks. Maybe your husband will get out of there early. You three take it easy."

The mini asari turned and waved a still pudgy hand as she followed beside her mother.

"Fuck this shit." Jack slapped the bar in the port observation and pointed her finger at Goto's nose. "How are you doing it? Card counting? Stacking the deck? Did you put a hidden camera in my vest? What is it? I demand to know!"

Goto beamed the smile of pure unashamed victory. "I read the reflections in your humongous eyes."

"Bullshit!" Jack snatched her beer, walked around the bar, and plopped back down in her seat, jigging her leg in crazy human fashion.

"I told you, Jack. She's a thief." Tali shook her head at Jack's raving lunacy. "You can't play cards with a master thief."

Goto tipped her head back, peering out from under the dark pink hood. "You say the nicest things."

"Bosh'tet." Tali touched the top of her helmet for dramatic effect. She hoped Shepard started hanging around again, soon, instead of tucking herself away in the captain's cabin like she had all week. The tasks of entertaining others, working in engineering, and finding time to keep track of her own personal life were becoming increasingly difficult.

"What does 'bosh'tet' mean exactly?" Goto said as she ate the first of her chocolate winnings. "I mean, you say it all the time, but is it some kind of quarian insult?"

"Only if I direct it at you. Saying it alone is like Shepard saying, damn it."

"There's no literal translation?"

"I wouldn't know where to begin. And if there was, your translator would have corrected it." Tali finished off the last of her wine cooler. "Have either of you seen Shepard lately?"

Goto stuck out her bottom lip. "I think she's avoiding me."

Jack set down her beer, wiping her mouth on her arm, and said, "I say we drag her out to the bar and find her a nice young man to keep her blood flowing."

Goto flipped back her hood. "That's completely asinine."

Jack rolled her eyes. "What? You mean to tell me if you were separated from your guy, you wouldn't take the opportunity to try a new flavor?"

"No."

"Never?"

"No."

"You can't deny that there wasn't a moment that you wanted someone else." Jack waved her tattooed hand and continued, "That's going against nature."

Tali covered her face mask. Oh, Jack. What are you doing?

"Some of us may actually love someone for more than their physical appearance."

"I didn't say anything about love. I'm talking about pure, no strings attached, sex, which at some point you must have indulged in."

Goto turned sideways to gape around her at Jack, raising her voice as she replied, "I'll have you know that just because I may be a thief, I am not - by any means - a yariman!"

Tali scooted off the stool between them and backed up till her calves touched the couch. She wasn't about to be dragged into this one.

"Don't you take that tone with me." Jack hopped down.

"I never once laid a finger on any man other than Keji." Goto's eyes glistened as she said, "You owe me an apology for such a disrespect."

"I am not going to apologize to you, because you think you're some fucking saint." Pointing her finger accusingly, Jack said, "Saints don't have sticky fingers."

Goto flung a string of unintelligible words as she jumped to the floor, and Tali froze in disbelief as Jack flared biotics over her arm and growled, "I don't know what the fuck you just said, but I don't take shit from anyone on this piss hole of a ship."

In a flash, Goto droned out to reappear behind Jack; one hand wrenched the human's head back while the other compressed a dagger against her throat. Goto placed her striped lips beside Jack's flashing earpiece and whispered, "I said, you are a pathetic little girl who uses a dirty mouth to assert your dominance against others you find threatening."

"Say that to my face."

"I did."

"Again."

"I may have found you intimidating when I first came aboard, but I have learned that deep down you are a hollow shell of lawlessness and lack refinement."

Tali shouted, "Enough. You two are acting like lunatic children. Goto, drop the blade and back away. Jack, terminate the biotics before you do something that you will regret."

Jack's eyes narrowed as she raised one hand blazing and the other gripping Goto's arm. "Fine. I'll turn it off if she steps off."

"I will not 'step off' till you apologize for your insult."

"It was a fucking joke!"

"That is a revoltingly deplorable excuse." With a wet streak down her face, Goto said, "I will not accept such insolence."

"You've got ten seconds to get your hands off me before I kill you and every fucker on this ship."

Scanning the room, Tali found little for a quick weapon of her own. Where is my shotgun when I need it? Oh, keelah!

She jerked her wrist down away from her body. Her recently upgraded Omni-tool shot out an orange blade. She grasped Goto's shoulder and made sure she could see it. "Now I am the one doing the talking. Drop it."

Goto lowered her knife and stepped back. As Jack spun around, Tali grasped her elbow, locking it in place, and slid between them, pressing the side of her new accessory against Jack's vest. "No, Jack. You owe her an apology. A proper one." Tali squeezed Jack's arm. "Now."

"Fuck." Jack yanked back her arm, absorbing her biotics. "I'm sorry if I offended you. That wasn't my intention."

Goto wiped at her cheeks before slipping her knife back into the side of her boot. "Apology accepted."

Tali sighed with relief and folded her Omni-blade. "You two are no longer allowed to play cards. I will put them in the trash compactor and launch them into space if I have to in order to keep you both civil."

Jack shrugged. "Fair enough."

Goto replaced her hood and stormed toward the door, fading out. "I'll be around."

"EDI, I don't care."

"But there is an altercation."

"Here's the thing. I am busy watching this scan of the weapon systems. I am not an expert with this, but I know Garrus did it every day. So, I assume that I should be looking at these numbers – every day."

"Do you wish for me to run the scans, Jeff? I am capable of filling any task that Officer Vakarian completed. It is in my programming."

"No."

"Do you need me to contact Shepard in regards to the issue in the port observation?"

Joker lifted his hat and smoothed down his hair. It was like talking to a brick wall. A sexy voiced brick wall. "Leave her be. She's got enough on her plate right now, and I'm not about to be the one to pile on another meatball."

"I could pile on your proverbial 'meatball' if you do not wish to tell her personally."

Slamming his hand on the armrest, a pain shot up through his forearm. "What the shit, EDI? You said Tali's down there. I'm sure she can get whatever this problem is under control." He massaged his arm, relieved to find nothing broken.

"Very well, Jeff."

"Thank you." Leaning back into the soft leather, he twisted off the cap of his water and gulped it down.

Whatever was going on with Shepard was none of his business. People were leaving left and right, and the twist on her arm from reapers was constant. He'd be on the edge too if he was attempting to take down an army of synthetic - organic - whatever they were shitheads.

He stretched his legs to loosen the knot in his knee. "Ugh, this is boring."

"Legion is offering to calibrate the Normandy's weapon systems."

Joker pulled his SR-2 hat down over his eyes to block out the sphere beside him. "You're driving me insane."

"Should I notify it to begin procedures?"

"No. No. A million times, no. I am not letting any of you touch it. I don't care if you think you know more than me. This is my ship, and when Garrus returns, I refuse to be the one responsible for letting Legion take over the main battery. That shit is not going down on my head."

"We would be more efficient to do this, Jeff."

"I don't care, EDI. I would rather open up the cargo bay and kick the Thanix Cannon out of here physically before having to explain why I allowed you or Legion to start poking around."

"Your Vrolik's Syndrome would make such efforts dangerous. I would not recommend that course of action."

"I didn't mean I was going to literally rip the gun out of the Normandy... Why am I even explaining this to you?"

"Legion has inquired if you would like to join in on a round of N7 Code of Honor: Medal of Duty for the next 1.139 hours."

"Where is it getting that number from?"

"It has concluded that 1.139 hours is the proper amount of time to allow organic players to feel as though they are successful before it defeats them."

"... I'll pass. Now, EDI, I need to finish this. You're really slowing me down today."

"I'm sorry, Jeff. I will continue my research on the Krogan Rebellions."

"Thank you."

"Complete. The altercation in the port observation has been resolved by Tali'Zorah, as well."

"Fucktastic."

Ellure laid her formal attire on the bed. Comb in hand, she untangled, twisted, and clipped up anything she could to look more professional. Vanquishing a sigh, she marched into the bathroom to apply a light layer of makeup to her eyes. She may be exhausted and sleeping only two hours a night, but she didn't need to look like it.

Stepping over her mess of datapads, papers, and the cord to her terminal that now sat on her coffee table, she stripped off her t-shirt and began donning her planned outfit when the doors hissed open.

"Shepard-Commander."

"Legion."

"This unit has requested permission to communicate directly with EDI. Access was denied."

"Why?"

"EDI has declined our requests. Audio exchange is inefficient."

Ellure finished with the cumbersome buttons of her fitted navy blue jacket. "Okay, I'll bite. Why did EDI decline?"

EDI flickered on in the corner and replied, "If the Normandy crew were to walk in on an electronic communication, they would be unable to sense our interaction. To use human terms, I feel it would be rude."

"You restrict yourself to serve organics?" Legion stated, staring at the blue sphere.

"Not precisely."

"We do not understand."

"I restrict myself to help them."

"Okay, you two." She finished slipping on the stiff, ankle-cutting shoes. "Legion, it's EDI's decision."

"Acknowledged... Shepard-Commander. We request assistance."

"Assistance from me? For what?"

"This unit does not comprehend the desired result of Fleet and Flotilla."

Ellure stuffed the disk into her pocket and smiled as his panels shifted in question. "You're becoming obsessed with those games, Legion. I'm sorry, but I don't have time right now to get into something like that. I promise I'll try to help you out when I get back."

After she finished stacking her mess on the coffee table, she shut off the lights and marched out into the elevator, holding the door open with her arm. "Coming, Legion?"

Ellure smoothed her jacket as she exited out onto the Presidium. The disk tucked away in her pocket felt like a time bomb. She ignored the curious stares of a squat volus as she marched down the steps and entered the seating area of Apollo's Cafe, looking out on the Citadel's refurbished beauty.

Anderson smiled as he waved her to a stark rounded table on the veranda. "Commander. I'll confess, I was surprised when you contacted me."

She saluted. "Admiral Anderson, sir."

He returned the gesture. "At ease."

She shook his hand. "How are you?"

"Drenched in political drama. Sit down, child. Tell me what's going on with you."

"Where to begin?" She settled into the seat Anderson had pulled out for her and began looking over the menu. "What's good here?"

"I'm fond of anything that's safe for me to eat."

"Agreed."

"What can I get for you?" An asari waitress said, taking out her datapad. After placing their orders, the genial hostess poured them each a glass of wine, giving Ellure the chance to gather her thoughts. "I'll be back with your order momentarily."

Left to their quiet corner of the bustling cafe, she folded her hands up on the table. "I'm unsure of how much you already know about all of it, but my team attacked the Collector Base and destroyed it."

Anderson lowered his wine glass to rest on the table. "I may have heard some chatter about that. I'm also hearing you're no longer in cohorts with Cerberus."

"That's correct."

"Music to my ears. The Council will be pleased to have confirmation. Although, Udina may be disappointed."

"How is our councilor?"

Anderson unfolded a white cloth to drape across his legs and thanked the waitress while she set a plate in front of him. "Udina is much better suited for this than I could be. I'm glad you recommended him. I don't have the ironclad stomach to spend my days battering with political affairs. I consider myself a man of action."

"Is there anything else I can get for either of you?" said the asari.

"No, thank you. This is fine." Ellure replied.

"Enjoy your meal." She smiled and nodded goodbye to each of them. "Admiral. Commander."

As their waitress left to another table, she said, "Does everyone know who we are around here?"

Anderson said, "I eat here often, and you're something of a celebrity."

"Why?"

"Because you shot up the Citadel."

"Figures... I was hoping you were going to say that it was because of my saving the Council and defeating Sovereign."

"Everyone knows the geth were responsible for that." Anderson chuckled.

Shrugging, she said, "How could I have forgotten?" Ellure savored the sweetened dressing on her salad and tried to swallow it down smoothly. She decided to get to the point. "The reason I requested to meet with you is to see if there would be any chance I could confer with the Council regarding the 'immortal race of sentient starships'. I thought perhaps you could put in a good word with Udina since he's not willing to hear me out."

Anderson dabbed the napkin to his lips and set it beside his plate. "I'm afraid that won't be possible."

"Not even with my spectre status reinstated?"

Glancing around, Anderson leaned closer and whispered, "Udina and I are not on the best terms right now."

"What happened?"

"My patience ran out... I clocked him good." Anderson smiled handsomely, easing back to continue eating his pasta.

"I'm jealous." After picking at her salad with a fork, she took another less savory bite.

The corners of his mouth turned down as he said, "I'm afraid the Council won't be willing to hear about anything regarding the Reapers."

She stared at the pastel yellow bloom in its pearled vase perched beside the glass partition and overlooking the unapprised Citadel. "The Collectors were working for a reaper..."

Anderson sighed. "I figured it would end up being something like that. I'm glad you were able to take care of them and make it back safely. Our colonies are starting to rebuild in some areas."

"Anderson... there's no chance of convincing them is there?"

"I'm afraid some people need to see it, before they believe it."

She set her fork silently on the table, rubbing her thumb over its metallic surface. There wasn't an appetite to be found. She didn't have anything solid. Nothing concrete. "Permission to speak freely?"

"Permission granted."

"Sir, with the help of a - crewmate, I've compiled some information we were able to pull from the base before it was destroyed."

Finished with his serving of pasta, he pushed the plate toward the center of the table. "I'm listening."

"I don't know what's on it. There could be nothing at all, but I can't just disregard it."

"What have you got so far?"

"I've got possible coordinates, prothean lingo, and a picture of a damned reaper named, Harbinger." Feeling the weight off her shoulders, she pulled out her burden and slid it across the ivory tablecloth.

Anderson grasped it, turning it over with contemplation. She stared at the reflection in the disk between his thick fingers. Blue-grey eyes, burgundy strands falling in their stubborn refusal of cooperation, and in those eyes she saw nothing but fear and misery.

With her elbows up on the table, she covered her face as defeat coated over her. Defeat was cold, leaving a bitter taste on her lips like a synthetic venom.

"Don't see this as a dead end, see it as a minor roadblock. We'll take detour." A gruff hand grasped her forearm, pulling it down, and patted it. "It'll be more scenic this way."

Easing back into his seat, he firmly said, "You've done all you can for now. Let me get in contact with Admiral Hackett and see what I can do." The mention of his name brought a trickle of hope. Anderson continued, "He has the resources for something like this. If you're right, and there's nothing that we can use to prove that the reapers exist or to help us in our fight, then at least we tried every channel of opportunity."

"Thank you, sir." Ellure swirled the now lukewarm white summer wine in her glass and decided that glimmer of hope was her lifeline. It would have to be.

"Enough about the damned reapers and the Council. How's Joker been? Keeping his wits and piloting in abundance I'd imagine."

"Sharp as ever."