A/N: Hey all! Sorry, it's taken so long to update. Months flew by quicker than I thought. Those of you that are still with me, thank you so much for your continued support. For those of you who have just found this story, I hope you are enjoying the story so far. Leave a comment if you want, they do encourage me to write (but aren't necessary for me to continue writing this). Anyway, here's the next chapter.
Seconds after La'Dauna landed the transport down, her omnitool's medical alert blared to life. Shoving the door open, she raced to the Presidium Tower's medical center - Chakwas, Zaeed, and Anderson close behind her. The group entered the medical center to a flurry of activity. La'Dauna noticed a turian nurse moving with purpose towards Shepard's room as Ashley Williams poked her head out of the doorway and hollered for help.
La'Dauna's brief hesitation ended once she'd assessed the scene. She moved towards Shepard's room, concerned with the readings her omnitool showed her, arriving moments after the turian nurse. "I'll take over now, Nurse Cavaius. Thank you." The turian nodded his head and squeezed past the humans entering. La'Dauna tapped her omnitool and started scanning Shepard's biotically encased form.
"What's going on?" asked an anxious Ashley.
Before La'Dauna could answer, another worried voice filled the small room. "Williams, what happened?" Anderson asked as he and Chakwas entered.
"I'm not sure. She was dreaming or something, then…" Ashley waved her hand at Shepard's biotic field in explanation.
Anderson looked over at La'Dauna and demanded, "What's wrong? Is this another night terror?"
"Everyone who doesn't have a medical degree, please leave the room," La'Dauna said, brooking no argument. Her eyes never strayed from her scanner.
Stubborn as ever, Ashley ignored the asari. "I'm not going anywhere until I know she's going to be okay."
La'Dauna paused only long enough to lock a glowering stare at the woman. She knew Ashley was only worried and scared but having her and Anderson hovering over her shoulder would not help. Keeping her voice calm and professional, she said, "That's what I'm trying to figure out, but I can't do that with everyone asking questions every two seconds. Now you can leave willfully, or I will call security to escort you. I don't want to, but I will." She went back to her scans, noticing that Dr. Chakwas moved to intercept the Captain and Williams.
"David, do as she says," Chakwas told him, grasping his upper arm in support. "The sooner you leave, the quicker we can figure out what's going on." She looked over to Ashley, who had yet to remove her eyes from Shepard. "Chief Williams," Chakwas said in a commanding tone. Ashley's eyes were wide as they jumped to her own. Karin's eyes softened, "Ashley, go grab some coffee or a snack from the vending machine. We should have answers by the time you return."
"But…"
"Go," Chakwas said more sternly, "that's an order."
"Aye, aye," Ashley said, moving towards the door even as her eyes had moved back to the prone Shepard. Anderson's hand on her shoulder startled her, but Ashley gained her composure once she realized who had grabbed her.
"Come on," Anderson said, guiding Williams out of the room, "I'll buy."
Once all non-medical personnel were out of the room, Chakwas approached the opposite side of the bed from the asari. "What can I do to help?" A trained eye glanced over Shepard. The woman was taut as a stretched rubber band. Her hands clenched so tightly Karin could see blood from where Cara's nails had cut into her palms. Cara's breathing was labored, and when Karin looked at her face, she could make out tear tracks on Cara's cheeks and the side of her face. "I won't lose her again," Chakwas added firmly.
"We're not losing her," La'Dauna agreed.
Grotesque horrors charged Cara from every side. The biotic barrier Cara managed to erect had kept them away from her thus far, but her energy was waning, and her muscles cramped from the strain of holding it. A pistol had appeared in her hand at some point, and Cara had not stopped firing it, taking down one disfigured creature after another.
Somewhere in her mind, Cara knew it didn't make sense. Her mind whirled with questions. Where were these monsters coming from? Where did the gun come from? Why was she the only one around? What happened to her parents' bodies that had lain at her feet not moments ago? But she pushed the thoughts away and kept firing and holding onto the biotic barrier, hoping she could hold out long enough for someone to help.
Ashley allowed Anderson to guide her out the door and to the vending machines. She mindlessly took the drink and food Anderson put in her hands. She sipped at the hot, bitter liquid as she was led to a chair. Her eyes wandered to the closed doorway of Shepard's room.
"She'll be fine," Anderson assured her, "Cara's a fighter. Always has been."
Ashley nodded and took another sip. Her thoughts were running rampant in her head. What the hell was happening with Shepard? Why did she even care, it's not like they knew each other that well? They'd had one nice night, then lies and insanity had followed. She leaned forward, bracing her elbows on her knees.
Ashley had never expected to see the blonde woman again after they'd hooked up on Eden Prime. She glanced at the door again and nibbled at her bottom lip. She sat her empty cup down under her chair and ran a hand through her hair. Why couldn't she just hate Shepard? She wanted to, but there was something, "Ugh," Ashley groaned and relaxed back into her seat. Her building anxiety released through her bouncing knee.
Anderson reached over and patted her knee, making her jerk straight in her seat, then calm enough that she stopped her knee bouncing. She quirked her lips into a small, thankful smile as she looked at him. He returned the gesture and removed his hand after giving her knee a squeeze of support.
As she relaxed back into her chair, Ashley looked around the hallway. A few nurses and other doctors were around, but the large man in the bright armor drew her attention. He had stripped most of it off, he only wore the leg guards currently, and it sat in a nearby chair while he paced the floor. She had noticed him for a moment before when Chakwas forced her out of Shepard's room. Ashley's eyes followed him back and forth as he paced. The repetitive motion somehow helping keep her calm and relaxed. She watched as his eyes went to Shepard's door every other rotation.
"Hey, Captain," Ashley said in a low voice, "who's that?"
Anderson looked at Ashley then followed her nod to the man who had accompanied them from the wards. Good question, he thought. "Not sure exactly. Someone who knows Cara," he answered aloud.
"Where'd he come from?"
"One of his friends was getting patched up at the clinic Dr. Chakwas was helping. It would appear that both Dr. Onassis and he know Cara very well."
"Hm," was all Ashley said to that revelation. Was he part of the group Shepard had on Eden Prime? Ashley didn't remember seeing him, but that wasn't telling. Did it matter? "Dr. Chakwas told me a little about Mindoir."
"Did she?"
Ashley nodded. She continued watching the man pace. "What was Shepard like when she was younger?"
Anderson looked at Ashley with a raised brow. "Well," he began, then paused, collecting himself before trying again. "Cara was a precocious child. Confident. Stubborn. Fearless. Full of life."
"Some things haven't changed,'' Ashley offered. "She's still cocky and pigheaded..." Ashley said. She thought back to Eden Prime, adding in a whisper, "and fearless."
"I'd say stealing a prothean artifact from underneath the Alliance's nose was more foolish and boneheaded," Anderson said with a chuckle.
"I never..."
"I can read between the lines, Williams," he said as the side of his mouth lifted into an amused smirk. "That woman in there isn't the Cara I remember, but for the short time I've known her, I've caught glimpses of my Cara in her." He turned to look Ashley in the eyes. "Don't judge her yet. Give her a chance."
Ashley looked away from Anderson and back to the pacing man. "I want to be furious with her. She nearly got me court-martialed. If the Geth hadn't attacked..." Ashley turned back to Anderson, "Do you believe in fate?"
"Can't say that I ever gave it too much thought," Anderson said, not missing a beat at the odd question. "Do you?" he asked, turning the question back on her.
Ashley was quiet for a long moment, thinking. Leaning forward onto her knees, she sighed, "Maybe."
"Whatever happened with the second exposure to that Prothean artifact seems to be affecting Cara's memory storages," La'Dauna explained to Karin. "Her brain waves indicate a type of lucid dreaming, but more. Almost as if she's awake and taking in information."
Karin nodded her understanding. "When we got her on the Normandy after her exposure, her beta waves were unusually high for someone unconscious."
"Can you transfer those scans to the monitor?" La'Dauna asked, sending her own to it.
Karin did so without pause. Both of their readings were now shown side by side, on the monitor beside Shepard's bed.
"All right, Dr. Chakwas," La'Dauna began.
"Call me Karin," Dr. Chakwas said.
"Okay, Karin, and you can call me La'Dauna or Dauna," La'Dauna said before continuing. "These are Cara's normal patterns." She pointed to the first set of readings. "I took those a month ago when she complained of a migraine. These here," she said, pointing at the next set, "are right after the first time she got exposed to the Prothean device. Very slight theta elevation, but nothing too concerning. Cara awoke with a serious headache but not much else. She didn't mention anything out of the ordinary." La'Dauna looked to see Karin studying the monitor. "This is minutes after the second exposure," La'Dauna said, checking with Karin to make sure she was correct. She received a nod. "Theta waves are still elevated, but now, odd as it may seem, so are her beta waves." La'Dauna tapped a couple of buttons on her omni, cleared the monitor of the two oldest readings, and added a fourth. "This is the most recent."
Karin gasped. Both Cara's beta and theta waves were extremely high - something unheard of in humans. She looked to the asari doctor. "What's happening to her?"
"I'm not sure, to be honest. This is unlike anything I've dealt with, even when considering the other races," La'Dauna sighed. She ran a hand over her head and grasped at the back of her neck. "It's obvious whatever the artifact did is affecting her brain someway, but goddess be damned if I know how. I'm afraid to try another sedative."
"Agreed. Is there anything else we can try?" Karin asked, "What about one of your asari melds?"
"The thought crossed my mind but…" La'Dauna stopped when Cara released a pained moaning gasp. "Ah, fuck it," La'Dauna said to herself, approaching Cara's side. "This could be dangerous for her," she warned Karin.
"Could it help?"
"Yes."
"Okay, then," Karin said, coming round to the opposite side of the bed. "Do I need to do anything? Prepare anything?" Another pained gasp from Cara caused both women to look at her.
"Keep a scan running on both of us. If my vitals get too high, apply a small dose sedative to me." She watched Karin walk to the medical dispenser. "I'm calling in a biotic crash cart, also," La'Dauna said, tapping at her omni. "As soon as Cara drops her biotics, we need to pump her full of electrolytes and carbs to keep her from crashing."
"Ready when you are," Karin said.
La'Dauna took a deep breath and sent a small prayer to the goddess. "Here goes nothing. Wish me luck." She placed a hand on Cara's forehead and held her hand with the other.
"Good luck, La'Dauna."
La'Dauna's eyes turned black as she reached out to Cara's mind.
Reaching out with her consciousness, La'Dauna brushed against the surface of Cara's mind and was rejected. It surprised her, at first, until she felt the echoes of fear, grief, pain, and rage that followed the rejection. She attempted the meld again, this one more like a mother's caress against the walls Cara had erected. La'Dauna called out to Cara with her mind, sending feelings of protectiveness and comfort with a hint of worry. The mental barrier eased, and La'Dauna could feel the anxiousness and sudden hope Cara also felt. Moving forward through the barriers, one by one, La'Dauna carefully joined her consciousness with that of Cara's. The scene she observed unsettled La'Dauna greatly.
The atmosphere all around her was a hazy deep red color. Thousands upon thousands of bodies lay scattered on the blood and ash-covered ground for as far as her eyes could see. Some were horrific mockeries of the current races, while others were unlike any race she'd ever seen. Her surroundings were silent except for a thunderous pulsing hum that she felt in her bones. Motion to her left caught La'Dauna's attention.
Turning her head to get a better look, La'Dauna gasped at what she saw. Cara stood in the middle of a pile of bodies as wave after wave of monstrosities ran at her. As the creatures closed in, Cara pulsed with biotic energy. It swept through the charging things and threw them backward. Some got up; others didn't. La'Dauna watched a pistol that wasn't there before appear in Cara's hand as she fired at her remaining attackers. From the set of Cara's shoulders, La'Dauna could tell that the young human was exhausted and hurt. The biotic barrier, La'Dauna thought, it's draining her. She moved towards Cara navigating the body-littered terrain.
Despite the realistic, if horrible, surroundings, the paltry distance she covered between herself and Cara, reinforced that La'Dauna was indeed in Cara's mind. She used her own conscience to let Cara know she was here to help. "Cara," La'Dauna called out, "I'm here, but I need you to let me help."
"Please," Cara cried out, "help them."
Confused and alarmed, La'Dauna moved forward, relieved she was able to make progress towards Cara. "I'm here, Cara," La'Dauna repeated, sending soothing mental caresses of comfort and warmth. She could see Cara begin to relax, and as she did, the waves of monstrous creatures slowed. Closing in on Cara's position, La'Dauna looked down at the bloated and mutilated creatures. She recognized them by their eyes as batarians. She was close enough now to make out the shape of two human figures laying at Cara's feet. Neither moved at all. Looking around, La'Dauna noticed that the landscape had changed. They were in a small colony town. Oh, La'Dauna thought.
The creatures had stopped attacking, finally, and she watched as Cara looked down. Through the meld, La'Dauna could feel Cara's anguish as the young woman dropped to her knees beside the prone bodies. One of them moved slightly, and Cara's head shot up and looked around. La'Dauna was suddenly much closer.
"Help, please!" a much younger Cara demanded. "Hurry before they come back."
La'Dauna felt a lump form in her throat. She knew, exactly, who these people were. "Oh, Cara," La'Dauna spoke through the meld, sending as much love and support as she could through the meld, "it's too late. They're already gone." She worked to keep her tears at bay.
"No!" young Cara said, shaking her head, tears streaming down her cheeks, "they're…" she looked back to where there was now empty ground. "Where'd they go? I have to help them. I can't leave them."
A growling roar came from behind them. La'Dauna watched Cara look back and could see and feel the fear emanating from her. "Cara," she said, trying to gain her attention. "Cara, listen to me. I need you to focus on me." Cara didn't seem to hear her.
"They're here, again," Cara said, pushing to her feet. She looked utterly exhausted. "I can't stop them. I tried." She faced La'Dauna, and surprise registered on the human woman's face. "Are you here to help?" Cara asked.
A feeling of relief passed over La'Dauna, from both herself and Cara. "Yes, but I need…"
Cara interrupted, "Here." Cara handed her a pistol. "It's not much, but it's all I've got."
La'Dauna was now within reach of Cara's outstretched hand. She took the pistol from her. "All right, I'll help, but can we talk for a moment?" La'Dauna asked, still trying to break Cara free from whatever hell her mind had imprisoned her.
"Make it quick," Cara said, readying the pistol she suddenly had in her hand and staring off in the direction from which the growl came.
"Cara, look at me, please."
Cara looked over. Confusion washed over her features.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Who...Dauna?!" Cara said, looking around, confused and a bit angry.
"Cara, focus on me," La'Dauna said, glad to have made some progress. The ground around them had cleared of dead bodies.
Cara looked back at La'Dauna. "What's going on?" she asked. "Where are…? No." Cara began to step away from La'Dauna. "Why are we here?"
"Calm down, Cara. You're stuck in a night terror of sorts caused by the Prothean artifact. I'm using a meld to help you, but you have to let me help."
"Prothean?" Cara began but stopped when the sound of a thunderous bassy horn filled the air. She started again in a ramble. "They're coming, Dauna. They're coming, and nobody knows. We'll all be destroyed. Everyone in the galaxy will be wiped out. We have to do something. There's nothing we can do. We have to warn them. We have to do something!"
"All right, all right, just try and keep calm, Cara," La'Dauna said, taking the woman's hand and holding tight. "I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. We'll get the crew together and figure something out, but right now, I need you to relax and breathe with me. Can you do that?"
Cara's eyes were wide with fright and helplessness. She looked into La'Dauna's as the asari sent waves of comfort and love and peace through the meld. Cara swallowed hard but nodded as she worked on matching the asari's breathing.
"Good, Cara, good," La'Dauna encouraged. "Now, think of your happy place. Picture it." The landscape around them changed again. They were in the lounge of the Night Fox. "Good, good. All right, how are you feeling?"
Cara breathed in deeply once again, then released. She opened her eyes and looked around. "Better. Thanks, Duana."
"Of course, kiddo," La'Dauna said, still holding onto Cara's hands. "Now, can you tell me anything about what's going on in here?" She tapped the side of Cara's head.
Cara released La'Dauna's hands and sat on one of the couches in the lounge. La'Dauna followed suit. "Memories that aren't mine."
La'Dauna cocked her head to the side, "Like the ones of the other you?"
Cara shook her head. "No, I'm pretty sure they're Prothean memories - from the thing on Eden Prime."
"Okay. You said something about, 'They're coming', who's coming, Cara?"
"Who the Protheans call, the Reapers." Cara ran a hand through her hair. "At least, I think. It's a bit of a mess in here if you haven't noticed." Cara shuddered.
"Okay, Cara. We'll figure this out. I've got a few contacts, and I'm sure your Aunt Karin can ask around."
"Aunt Karin? You've met her? How?" Cara asked. Nervousness breaking through the meld.
La'Dauna decided to leave how they met a secret until Cara was doing better. "Your Uncle David went and got her, remember." She watched Cara nod. "She's actually waiting for you to wake up. She's very concerned."
Cara looked a bit sheepish. "Maybe don't tell her what we do yet? Mercenary isn't the most respectable occupation."
"Not my place to say, kiddo," La'Dauna said. "For what it's worth, though, I don't think either of them would care. They're both just glad your alive."
"Yeah," Cara sighed and ran her hand through her hair again. "I guess I should wake up now then."
"If you feel you're ready," La'Dauna said.
Cara was quiet for a long moment. She looked over to La'Dauna. "I'm scared, Dauna. I can feel something's not right." She waved a hand to her head. "It's not the Other Me dreams, or whatever, either."
"I'm here, Cara. So are Karin, David, and the rest of the crew. We won't let anything happen to you. We'll figure something out. Even if we have to go to the edge of the galaxy to do so." La'Dauna reached for Cara's hand and squeezed it in comfort.
Cara wiped a tear from her eye before it could fall. "Okay." She squeezed the hand back.
"See you on the other side, kiddo," La'Dauna said, releasing Cara's hand and standing. A few seconds later, she was looking down at Cara in her hospital bed. The biotic barrier, no more, and Cara's features relaxed. La'Dauna sighed in relief.
Karin watched the La'Dauna settle into the meld. A dark blue hand reached towards Cara's head. Karin watched the biotic field reject the hand and keep it from passing through. It felt like hours passed as the hand hovered over the biotic field, but it was only seconds before it gently pressed its way through and settled on Cara's forehead.
The blue thumb caressed Cara's forehead occasionally as the biotic field started to diminish in strength. The Biotic Crash Cart was wheeled in and parked next to the bed, brought in by the same turian nurse she'd seen exiting the room when they arrived. Karin prepared the IV and drip bags for when the biotic field dropped.
Finally, after a couple of minutes, the field disappeared, and Cara's body relaxed. Karin immediately inserted one IV into Cara's arm and hung the drip bags of electrolytes. She then prepared the Invertrose bags and inserted a second IV into Cara's opposite arm. With that finished, all she could do was stand back and wait as patiently as possible. A moment later, Karin saw the asari doctor blink her eyes and watched the black fade from them.
"Is she okay?" Karin asked, approaching the asari.
"For now," La'Dauna nodded.
A groan and grunt from the bed drew both doctors' attention. Cara's eyes were opening and closing very slowly. Another groan, and a hum. "Why.." it came out as a croaky rasping noise.
La'Dauna looked at Cara then back to a concerned Karin. She placed her hand on the other doctor's shoulder for comfort and squeezed. "I'll let the others know and be right back."
Ashley's thoughts had wandered again, but only for a moment it seemed, before the door to Shepard's room opened. Ashley was on the edge of her seat in a second.
The asari doctor exited the room, and Ashley was on her feet, Anderson right beside her. The pacing man finished up a call that had come in while they waited and joined them. The doctor informed them that Cara was okay, and they could see her in a moment then returned to the room. Ashley released a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
The pacing man held up a hand to get their attention. "Mind if I went in first? I've got people waiting to hear about Cara."
Opening her mouth to tell this man he could wait, Ashley stopped when a hand settled on her arm, and Anderson answered for them. "Go ahead," the Captain said. "We can wait here."
Karin watched Dr. Onassis leave, then grabbed a water canister from the Biotic Crash Cart, popped it open, and offered it to Cara. "Drink slowly," she said.
Cara lifted her head far enough to take a suck on the built-in straw then collapsed back to the bed when she had a mouthful of water. She swallowed slowly, enjoying the cold, wet feel as it slid down her throat. She cleared her throat and tried again, "Why the hell does it feel like someone tried to use me as a power source?"
"You've been holding a continuous biotic barrier for the past twenty minutes or so," Karin informed her. "We've got you on biotic crash supplements to help restore what you used as quickly as possible. You're looking at a bit of muscle weakness and headache for the next few hours."
"The headache's nothing new, Aunt Karin," Cara said. "I've had one of those since that damned artifact zapped me."
"The first time or second time, kiddo?" La'Dauna asked as she returned to the room, her brow raised.
"Um.. the first time," Cara said, her shoulders up to her ears as she tried to hide.
"Cara Jane Shepard," Karin scolded. "Why didn't you tell me the artifact caught you not once but twice?"
Cara grimaced. "You didn't ask?"
"Seriously, Cara Jane," Karin said with her arms crossed and shooting a hard stare Cara's way.
"Ugh," Cara said, "can we do this later? I feel like varren shi…" Cara saw Karin raise an eyebrow. "Terrible."
"I suppose," Karin said, a hint of mirth in her response.
"Thank you", Cara muttered. Silence fell over the room for a moment. Both doctors checked Cara over and conferred with each other. "Soooo," Cara said, breaking the silence, "sleeping doesn't seem like a good thing right now. Right?"
La'Dauna could hear a slight wavering of Cara's voice. She ran her fingers through Cara's hair to soothe the young woman's worries. "Karin and I discussed keeping a meld while you slept for the time being. Another asari doctor and I will take turns until we can figure out a better solution. For now, relax. You'll have company until you can't hold your eyes open any longer."
"We'll figure this out, Cara," Karin assured, grasping her hand and squeezing it.
Shepard squeezed back and nodded her head. "Okay."
"Okay. There are a few people outside waiting to see that you're not dead," La'Dauna said. "I'll send them in. I'm going to get in touch with some of my contacts. See if we can figure out what's going on in that skull of yours." La'Dauna caressed Cara's head once more before moving towards the exit.
Karin released Cara's hand. "I'll do some research of my own, then join you, La'Dauna, to discuss what we've found."
La'Dauna stopped in the doorway, "Sounds good. Meet me in my office, let's say in two hours?"
"I'll see you then," Karin agreed.
Both women left the room, and Shepard sighed, but she wasn't alone long before Zaeed poked his head in the doorway.
"Hullo, Cara," Zaeed greeted. "Guddam mess you've gotten yourself into." He grabbed the single chair in the room and pulled it close to the bed, turning it so he could sit and rest his arms along the back of the chair.
"Does that surprise you?" Cara asked, a glint of mirth in her eye.
"Hah," Zaeed laughed, "not a bit. The crew says hi. Jack said she owes you an ass-kicking still, so you have to get better." He sobered a little. "Dauna said she's gonna fix you up, good as new."
"Yeah," Cara agreed.
"Hey, kid, she'll do it. Don't worry," Zaeed said, attempting comfort.
"I know, old man," Cara said. A comfortable quiet settled between them before Cara asked, "How's the rest of the crew doing? Keeping out of trouble?"
"Everyone's back on the Night Fox. Vetra's been keeping everyone busy," Zaeed said, mulling over whether he should tell her more or wait.
"How's Jack?" Cara asked, knowing the younger woman didn't like sitting still.
"Jack will be fine," Zaeed said, assuming from Cara's question that La'Dauna had told her about the tattooed woman's injury.
Cara's head turned to Zaeed and her face scrunched in worried confusion. "What do you mean she'll be fine? What happened to her?" Cara asked, trying to sit up in bed.
"Woah, woah," Zaeed said, standing and pushing Cara back into the bed, "hold on a guddam minute. You're going to hurt yourself."
"Tell me what happened to Jack," Cara demanded.
"Jack's perfectly fine, luv," Zaeed said calmly, holding Cara down with a hand to her shoulder. "She and I helped Wrex with a little job. Jack got tagged, but your Doctor Chakwas there patched her up real nice. Like new."
Cara calmed down. Her body's complaints at her for all the extra exertion encouraged her to do so. "She's okay? You're not just saying that?"
"Now, does that sound like something I'd do, Cara," Zaeed asked, slightly offended.
"No," Cara mumbled, embarrassed. She cleared her throat after a moment. "So, what happened? What job did Wrex need help with?"
"That good for nothing bastard, Fist, double-crossed the wrong information broker," Zaeed said, a smile at the memory of taking the man out spreading across his face. "Turns out, he was fucking two-timing the Shadow Broker with an unknown third party. Guddam idiot barricaded himself in his club." Zaeed smiled again, remembering. "Three of us and almost sixty of them. They never stood a guddam chance. Anyway, Jack over-extended her biotics as she does, and one of the shitheads got lucky before both myself and Wrex turned him into a guddam pulpy puddle of goo."
"So, that's why Fist was dodging you," Cara hummed. "Did you find out if he had anything to do with the artifact?"
"Wrex interrogated Fist. Fist didn't say much, just a bunch of whimpering. After he finished taking care of Fist, Wrex found a communication on Fist's computer from the unknown party. He tried to track it or find a name, but it was scrubbed. The message was about a quarian with information about the geth. She was to be eliminated after the information was collected."
"What!? When?!"
"Don't worry," Zaeed chuckled, pushing Shepard down again by her shoulder, "Vee notified me while you were deciding to wake up. We got to her in time. Fist had set up a meet with a kill squad. Vee, Reyes, and Cael interrupted it and got the quarian girl back to the ship. She's safe and willing to share what she found. Sid is parsing through the info now."
A knock on the door interrupted them. "Hey, Uncle Dave," Cara said, waving him in. "Have you met, Zaeed?"
Anderson entered the room and approached the bed, eyeing Zaeed with a shrewd look. "Not exactly," he said, holding out his hand to the man. "I'm David Anderson."
Zaeed grasped his hand cordially but released it quickly and stayed silent.
Cara could feel the tension but ignored it for now. "What's up, Uncle Dave? Checking in on me?"
Turning his attention towards Cara, Anderson let a small smile lift the corners of his mouth. "Yes, actually. How are you feeling?"
"Okay. Worn out. Like someone stuck an electrical cord up my…" Cara started to say before trailing off and changing directions. "Like a battery on its last dregs." Her eyes flickered up to her Uncle Dave sheepishly. She felt like a kid again.
"Hmmm," Anderson hummed, trying to hold in a chuckle, "I see." Cara shrugs. "I'm glad you're okay, Cara. You had us worried there for a moment." He nodded his head towards the door where Cara could see Ashley waiting outside. "I need to take care of a few things with the Council and the Alliance. I'll be back later. Don't try any more crazy stunts until I get back."
"Sure, Uncle Dave," Cara agreed, not giving her full attention to either man anymore. Her eyes watched Ashley instead, who was looking everywhere but at her. Cara's eyes flickered to Anderson, and she offered a smile, "Bye, Uncle Dave." They returned to Ashley.
Anderson shook his head in playful exasperation. "See you later, Cara," he said, patting Cara's foot in farewell then left.
Assessing the situation, Zaeed decided that he needed to grab a bite to eat. "Hey Cara, I'm gonna grab a bite. I can bring you something back."
"Not sure if I'm allowed anything solid right now," Cara replied.
"I'll stop in at Dauna's office, ask her."
"Yeah, sure, sounds good," Cara agreed. She finally diverted eyes from the hallway long enough to look at Zaeed. "Will you send Ashley in?"
"That the feisty brunette pacing in front of the door?" Zaeed asked. Cara growled in response, and Zaeed held up his hands. "Okay, calm down. It was a joke."
"Uh-huh," Cara smirked.
"See you later, Cara," Zaeed waved, leaving the room and sending in Ashley.