Commander Elle Shepard has got to be the sexiest woman in the galaxy. I can't keep my eyes off of her, Spirits damn me.
It's not until I realize that she keeps glancing at me too while we fight through Fist's thugs in Chora's Den that I manage to focus on the battle...and even then, it's mostly because I'm not above trying to impress her. It helps a little that the thugs give us a good fight. They've already got every possible vantage point in the club when we arrive, so it's like walking through a funnel of gunfire.
I take a little extra pleasure in shooting down the asshole who thought he was smart and positioned himself on the light fixtures above the bar.
"You know, I think it actually looks better this way," Williams - the human woman on Shepard's squad who wouldn't shake my hand - quips about the seedy club once it's wrecked and covered in dead mercenaries. I hate that it's funny when she's been so rude.
We press on through the back door into Fist's office, taking out a few more thugs on the way. Through the next set of doors, we're all stopped short by the presence of two more people inside. They're armed, but instead of just opening fire, like everyone else has, one of them shouts, "Stop right there! Don't come any closer!"
Shepard catches my eye and frowns a little, sensing the same thing - these guys aren't mercs, just civilians with guns. I know at a glance that Shepard doesn't want to shoot them, but we need to get past them and can't waste a lot of time.
"On your six," I promise her, giving a nod. I lean around the wall and take aim so that with one bullet, I could end both of them. Even with the shot prepared, I'm still surprised by how confidently Shepard strides into the room with her hands raised, unarmed.
"See that Turian? Yeah, he doesn't miss," she informs the two human men inside, nothing in her voice suggesting she believes that is anything other than absolute fact. These guys aren't even wearing armor, and I'm pretty sure one is missing a heat sink on his rifle, so I'm not surprised they look damn scared now. "Do you two really wanna do this?"
I watch them exchange a glance through my scope, still prepared to take a shot if one of them so much as looks at the redheaded Commander wrong. It's unnecessary since they evidently have more than half a brain between them and take off, muttering about Fist not paying them enough.
Shepard turns back to us and winks at me before arming herself again and motioning for all of us to follow her. Before she moves, she gives me an approving nod, and warmth blooms in my chest.
I kind of hate how happy it makes me feel that she trusted me, like she's proud of me now...and I don't know why I care.
"Oh, pretty boy," Wrex chuckles, punching my shoulder as he walks past me. "You're in big trouble." I scowl at him, which only makes the Krogan laugh.
Any happiness he's feeling fades immediately when Fist's voice rings out from the next room, apparently having taken cover in his office. "Why do I have to do everything myself?" the human shouts. "Time to die, little soldiers."
I hear a high-pitched whine I recognize all too well as Shepard starts to enter the room. I react purely on instinct, catching her around the waist and slamming her back into the wall. It's just in time to keep the high-powered turrets from riddling her with bullets.
"Son of a…" Shepard swears when she realizes that Fist is well defended and might have taken her out if I hadn't heard that sound. "Shoot for the turrets, take them out. Without them, he's down four to one, and a bitch like that always surrenders."
I glance at Wrex, wondering if he'll obey the Commander or if I should worry that he's a risk to her.
"Gonna let me off the wall here, big guy?" Shepard teases, still pinned. She doesn't seem to mind if the light in her eyes is any sign.
"I'm kind of enjoying it," I tease back even as I step away to let her move.
She smiles at me and then takes position at the edge of the wall. I watch as she turns to signal Williams, doing something with five dexterous fingers that I couldn't manage. The other human understands, and with one more signal from Shepard, the brown-haired human rolls forward and lands behind the couch a few feet in front of us.
Positioned where she wants us, Shepard gives the command, and we all start firing on the turrets. Wrex is either obeying or agrees that this is the right plan, and with our combined firepower, we're able to take out the turrets pretty quickly.
Again, Shepard's instincts were spot on, and without his defense, Fist gives up. He starts pleading immediately, scrambling out from behind his desk and falling right to his ass.
"Wait! Don't kill me, please, I surrender!"
Shepard marches up to him, and we follow; I keep my rifle ready just in case even when she draws a pistol which she aims right at his face. "Where's the Quarian?"
"She's not here, I don't know where she is!" Fist stammers. "That's the truth."
Wrex ambles up beside her, standing on the opposite side of Shepard from me. Fist's eyes nearly bulge out of his head when he realizes that Shepard isn't just going to shoot him in the face but that she's flanked by giant aliens. "He's of no use to you now," Wrex growls. "Let me kill him."
"No! No, wait, please!" Fist seems to at least have enough sense not to take that threat lightly. "I don't know where the Quarian is, but I know how you might find her." He takes a shaky breath, still not looking up at Shepard so that he doesn't have to face the barrel of her gun directly. "The Quarian got here and said that she'd only deal with the Shadow Broker himself."
"Nobody meets the Shadow Broker," I argue, not exactly an expert but well-versed enough to know.
"He's right, it's impossible," Wrex chimes in. "Even I was hired through an agent."
"It's true, I know that - even I don't know his true identity," Fist agrees. "But she didn't know that. I told her I'd set up a meeting, but when she shows, it'll be Saren's men waiting for her."
My stomach twists at the idea of Saren working with this asshole, setting up an assassination for some innocent Quarian girl.
Shepard puts her pistol on her hip - the wrong hip for her shooting hand, I note - and for a moment, I think she's done. Then the human steps forward and grabs Fist by the collar, yanking the grown man right to his feet. My hands tighten around my rifle when he's standing in front of her, wary of any moves he might make even while Shepard has a hold on him.
"Give me the location of the meeting. Now!"
The way she terrifies this grown man turns me on more than a little.
"Here, on the wards! Back alley by the markets." Fist glances toward a console on the wall that displays the current Citadel time. "She's supposed to be meeting them right now. You can still make it if you hurry." He's likely just trying to get us away as soon as possible, but we have to rush there anyway.
I hate the idea of more blood on Saren's hands.
Shepard no sooner releases Fist than a shotgun blast rings out, making me and Shepard jump while Williams swears loudly from behind us. Wrex casually pops his heat sink and stares down at where Fist lays in a puddle of crimson blood, his chest a mangled mess from the short-range blast.
"What the hell are you doing?" I demand, furious he fired with Shepard so close.
"The Shadow Broker paid me to kill him. I don't leave jobs unfinished." I know the Krogan well enough to know he has a quad the size of an Elcor, but I wouldn't have let him anywhere near Shepard if I thought he was going to be trouble. "Besides...don't we have something bigger to worry about?"
Before I can tell him off, Shepard turns toward the Krogan and shoves him boldly - hard enough that Wrex stumbles back, and the closest thing I've ever seen to shock passes over his grizzled features.
"I am in charge here, and we do not kill unarmed hostages," she informs him, voice hard. "You ever pull a stunt like that again, and I will shove that shotgun barrel down your throat. Are we clear?"
I tense in the second that passes before Wrex speaks, prepared for just about anything. "It was the only contract I had left. I had to see it through."
Shepard seems to accept that, for now at least, and steps away from him again. It surprises me that she got so impassioned over the death of a mercenary, a criminal, instead of about her own safety. I've been in service, either the military or the police, for nearly half my life, so I've seen situations like this before. I know officers who would have approved of the shot Wrex took, others who wouldn't, even some who would have taken the shot themselves.
I start to wonder what I would do, how I'd feel if this was my squad and one of my men made the shot, but Wrex's reminder runs through my mind. "Commander, the Quarian. We need to get to her, or she's dead."
Shepard nods to me and gives the command to move out, Wrex sticking with us.
We have to fight our way back out of the club, just like on the way in. I can't help but wonder how Saren even got this many mercenaries to work for him. Spectres make a pretty nice salary, but I didn't think they were this kind of loaded.
Once they're all dead, we're in a race against time, and since I'm most familiar with the station, I lead the team toward the back alley Fist talked about.
We slow down on approach, watching several people at the end of the alley, and wait behind some crates where we can listen.
The Quarian is there, along with a Turian and multiple others. "Did you bring it?" the Turian asks.
"No clan markings?" Shepard breathes from her hiding spot beside me, also seeing the Turian.
"Barefaced. Our worst criminals and traitors are stripped of their clan markings so they can't live, work, or be buried on Palaven," I tell her. My throat gets tight when I finish, "If he goes back, Saren will be stripped of his marks."
I can feel Shepard's eyes on me, and I don't want to see her pity, so I focus on the scene in front of us instead.
"Where's the Shadow Broker? Where's Fist?" the Quarian demands, her accent lilting and her voice suggesting that she's pretty damn young - and pretty damn bold.
The Turian saunters up to her and raises one hand, running it suggestively down the hood of the Quarian's uniform and to her shoulder. "They'll be here," he lies, subtones announcing his arousal loud and clear. At least to me. "Where's the evidence?"
The Quarian smacks his hand away. She's definitely brave for something even smaller than Shepard. "No way. The deal's off."
On her word, the armored Salarians who have just been guarding the space until now turn toward the Quarian with their weapons raised. Before we can move to defend her, she does something on her Omni-Tool that sets off a ringing blast and launches all of them several feet away from her. With the distraction she provided, it takes just seconds for us to eliminate all of them.
When it's over, the Quarian kicks the dead Turian in the face and swears in a language that my translator doesn't pick up. "Fist set me up!" she shouts indignantly, to no one in particular. I'm fairly certain she would have shouted it even if we weren't standing here. "I knew I couldn't trust him."
"Were you hurt?" I can see my surprise reflected on Williams and Wrex, even the Quarian turning around so quickly I assume she's shocked. Shepard seems genuinely concerned about this stranger instead of just worried about the evidence she needs so badly.
My stomach knots in shame, knowing immediately that my concern has been selfish. She's a much better person than I am.
"I know how to look after myself," the Quarian informs her. She softens almost immediately and lowers her head a bit to add, "Not that I don't appreciate the help. Who are you?"
"Commander Shepard." They grasp forearms in greeting. "I'm looking for evidence to prove that Saren is a traitor and get him disbarred from the Spectres."
"Then I have a chance to repay you for saving my life...but not here. I don't feel safe." No one could blame her for that.
"We can take her to the human Embassy," I suggest. "Your Ambassador is going to want to see the evidence anyway." Shepard agrees and asks the Quarian to come with us so everyone heads for the end of the alley where we can grab a rapid transit.
Shepard glances at me before she slows, and I follow suit so that we get some distance from the group. It's the first bit of privacy we've had all day, even if it's not actually private.
"I'm kind of hoping I'm not the only of us thinking about the last time we were in a rapid transit," she says softly, walking close enough now that her armor is brushing mine with a soft clang of metal.
"Spirits, Shepard. You know, I try not to think about things that are going to make my armor tight in really bad places," I groan at her, honestly trying to manage my insta-erection without outright grabbing my crotch. It's just as much the memory of our last ride in a rapid transit as it is the fact that she remembers that turns me on.
Shepard laughs, seemingly oblivious to my pain even if I'd love to show her. I catch her hand for just a second and squeeze. "Maybe when we're done here, we could recreate that."
"Maybe." I don't have a chance to push my luck further than that when we escape the alley and have to join the others to get a skycar.
I'm definitely going to push it later. I thought I was attracted to her before, that Shepard turned me on in the club. But seeing her in battle? Damn.
Wrex was right. I am so screwed.
Ambassador Udina is a vile little man. I've spent maybe an hour with him today today and I detest him. I'm not sure what I expected when bringing him the evidence that he sent me looking for, but being scolded was definitely not it.
"You are not making my life easy today, Shepard," he informs me as soon as we walk through the doors, shaking his head with his back to us.
He hasn't actually bothered to look at us since I led my squad in here.
"Firefights in the halls, an all-out assault on Chora's Den."
"I would argue it was an assault on us," I hear Garrus mutter softly from beside me. I have to bite my tongue to keep from letting out a very rude snort of laughter.
Udina finally starts to turn to grace us with eye contact while he continues, "Do you know how many - " He stops short at the sites of the mixed species squad standing in his office. "What is all this? What are you up to now, Shepard?"
"I'm making your day, Ambassador," I inform him. Anderson looks curious now and approaches, standing beside Udina instead of intentionally keeping his distance. I motion to the Quarian and tell him, "She has the information we need to link Saren to the Geth."
"Really? Maybe you'd better start at the beginning, Miss…?"
The Quarian girl who held her own against a squad of Saren's hitmen steps forward, still just as confident. I like her.
"My name is Tali. Tali'Zorah nar Rayya." She goes on to explain that she's on a pilgrimage, the traditional rite of passage for her people when they reach adulthood. The goal is to find something of value they can bring back to the Migrant Fleet's flotilla of ships. I wish I could ask her more about it but I know we need to focus.
"During my travels, I began hearing reports of Geth," Tali explains. "Since they drove my people into exile, the Geth have never ventured behind veil. Curious, I tracked a patrol of Geth to an uncharted world, waited for one to get separated from its unit, and disabled it to remove its memory core."
"Wow." I try not to feel jealous at Garrus clearly being just as impressed by the woman as I am. He shakes his head, like he's trying to clear his thoughts, and then notes, "I thought Geth fried their memory cores when they died. A defense mechanism."
I can almost see the nerd gears turning in his head and make a note to tease him for it later.
"My people created the Geth," Tali reminds him with a casual shrug. "If you're quick, careful, and...well, lucky, you can grab small caches of data. I managed to get something from its audio banks." She looks to me from behind a mask that prevents me from seeing her face, which I hate.
I give her a nod and she uses her Omni-Tool to pull up the recording. I recognize Saren's voice immediately. "Eden Prime was a major victory. The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit."
"That's Saren's voice!" Anderson confirms, his tone excited. "This proves he was involved in the attack."
Garrus, on the other hand, turns away from all of us and takes a few steps away. I itch to go to him, comfort him. I can't even begin to imagine what it must feel like to hear a friend call the day that he murdered your best friend a victory.
If it were me, I would have been holding onto some small measure of hope...and that was just crushed for him.
And I have to pay attention to things other than Garrus.
"He said Eden Prime brought him closer to the Conduit. Any idea what that means?" I ask the room.
"The Conduit must have something to do with the beacon," Anderson surmises. "Maybe some kind of Prothean technology. Considering what's happened so far, we can't rule it out as a weapon."
"Wait, there's more," Tali tells us. "Saren wasn't working alone."
She plays the rest of the recording and after Saren, a woman speaks. "And one step closer to the return of the Reapers."
"I don't recognize the other voice," Garrus tells us. I wonder if the others in the room can tell how torn, how hurt he looks right now.
"The Reapers?" Udina responds. "Are they some kind of new alien species?"
Tali shakes her head and then drops the biggest bomb yet, still going through the information on her Omni-Tool. "According to the memory core, the Reapers were a hyper-advanced machine race that existed fifty thousand years ago. They hunted the Protheans to total extinction and then they vanished." She shrugs one shoulder and adds, "At least that's what the Geth believe."
As she speaks, I feel all the pieces start to click together in my head...everything that I saw when the beacon grabbed me on Eden Prime. It's all there.
"It sounds a little far-fetched," Udina mutters, but I only half hear him.
"I understand it now," I tell them. "The vision on Eden Prime. I was seeing the Protheans being wiped out by the Reapers." I can feel Garrus watching me closely and I recall he was concerned about the vision when I told him. Of course, I think that was mostly because it made me pass out.
"The Geth revere the Reapers as gods," Tali tells us. "The pinnacle of non-organic life. And they believe that Saren knows how to bring the Reapers back."
There's pindrop silence for a moment and it hits me that all this actually makes sense. It's the only way to explain how Saren got the Geth to come out from behind the veil and to fight on his side.
And it's seriously bad news for all of us.
Udina scowls and crosses his arms, managing to look even more sour than normal. "The Council is just going to love this."
I scowl back at him, pretty much done with the little asshole and his obsession with human reputation. "The Reapers are a threat to every species in Citadel space. We have to tell them."
"No matter what they think about the rest of this, those audio files prove Saren is a traitor," Garrus reminds us. "They'll have to throw him off the Spectres which limits his power a lot."
"Your Turian is right." I force myself not to respond viscerally to the suggestion from the human Ambassador that Garrus Vakarian is my Turian. "We need to present this to the Council right away."
Wrex motions to Tali and asks, "What about her? The Quarian?"
"My name is Tali," she snaps back at the Krogan. She turns to look back at me. "You saw me in the alley, Commander. You know what I can do. Let me come with you to take down Saren, to bring down the Geth."
I'm immediately intrigued, but I can't let her knows that right away. "I thought you were on your pilgrimage. Shouldn't that be your focus?"
"The pilgrimage proves we are willing to give of ourselves for the greater good. What does it say about me if I turn my back on this? Saren and the Geth are a danger to the whole galaxy, every species - like you said. My pilgrimage can wait."
The Quarian's impassioned tone makes me smile and I hold out my hand. "I'll take all the help I can get." She accepts my hand and thanks me earnestly; something makes me think she's beaming behind the mask. Tali tells us that she'll meet us at the Presidium and then leaves, Anderson and Udina following her out to prepare for the Council meeting as well.
I turn to the remaining three, taking a deep breath and counting down the minutes until I can sit down. Or get Garrus alone. "Listen, Ash, go ahead back to the Normandy. I want the crew well rested since this is clearly just the beginning."
"I...well, who are you going to bring with you, Commander?" Ashley asks in response, immediately floundering at her dismissal. "I shouldn't leave you alone."
"I'm a big girl, thanks. And I have these two," I tell her, motioning to Wrex and Garrus. The two men exchange a glance and look just as surprised as Ashley does. When the human continues to stare at me for another beat, I have to swallow my temper. "I don't like to repeat myself, Williams."
"Yes, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am." She salutes me and then marches briskly from the room, not missing a chance to throw daggers in her glare at the two who get to stay.
"Now that I have the weirdest squad on the Citadel...let's go get Saren kicked out of the Spectres."
The second meeting with the Council ends up being the highlight of my day. In preparation and so that he could prepare his own defense, Saren was sent a copy of the evidence against him. It surprises no one at all when he doesn't show up for the trial this time; the Council reports that they can no longer reach him at all and they have no idea where he is or where he's going.
That's probably part of the reason they decide to make me a Spectre, but I don't much care. I'm going to need credentials if I'm supposed to track down a rogue Spectre, stop the Geth, and figure out what the Reapers want.
It doesn't bode well for me that the Council doesn't want to hear a damn thing about the Reapers. They don't even seem particularly concerned that Saren is working with Matriarch Benezia, a powerful Asari and the woman we heard on the voice recording that Tali has. At the very least, I get some leads and permission to do whatever it takes to stop Saren.
It's all the permission I need to leave this station and put an end to that asshole Turian. I'm going to kick him once extra just for calling me girl earlier today when I finally get a hold of him. With the Normandy under my command, I have what I need to make it happen.
I leave the Council meeting with Wrex and Garrus, my thoughts already racing about what happens next. Wrex said that Fist was his last contract, so I'm well on my way to recruiting the Krogan for my squad. A badass like that with biotics and a shotgun is too hard to turn down.
Garrus, however, leads in investigative unit for C-Sec here on the Citadel. It's not like I have any right to ask him to leave his whole life and career here to run around the galaxy with me...no matter how badly I want to. As we reach the bottom of the stairs on the Presidium, I realize that I should probably figure out where Garrus stands on all this.
"Hey, Wrex, will you head toward the docks and meet me at the Normandy?" I ask, stopping Garrus with a hand on his forearm. I swear I can feel how warm he is even through his armor and my gloves. "I, uh...we need a minute. Bay D-24."
The Krogan glances at us, his eye focused for a beat on where I'm touching Garrus, and then barks out a laugh before walking away. Garrus seems mildly amused by the reaction when I turn to face him. The sexy little smirk on his face does nothing to help clear my thoughts.
"Commander Shepard?"
I turn away from Garrus again at the sound of an unfamiliar man's voice. I don't recognize him but salute on instinct when I recognize his uniform and insignia that mark him as an Alliance Navy Admiral. I'm grateful Garrus has the good sense and respect to do the same beside me.
"At ease. I'm Admiral Kohoku. Congratulations on your promotion, Shepard. We've all come to expect big things from you."
"Thank you, sir." I drop my arm but keep my shoulders tight.
"I need to ask you for a favor that requires someone with credentials that allow for...unique tactics," Kahoku tells me. I'm intrigued right away and Garrus' slight shift beside me signals that he's listening. "A unit of my men has disappeared and I'm being stonewalled by Alliance command when I ask for details. They shouldn't have been anywhere near danger and I'm concerned. I want to give closure to their families, Shepard."
"I understand," I assure him with genuine empathy. I feel bile rising in my throat at the thought of Akuze, surrounded by my dead squad members and making a last ditch effort to collect their tags before the thresher maw killed me. I needed to give their families closure. "How can I help?"
"If I send you their last coordinates, will you investigate? I know that you're busy - "
"It's not a problem, sir. I'll make it a priority and figure out what happened. The truth."
Garrus clears his throat like he's unsure about interrupting but when Kahoku looks up at him, he says, "Barla Von is an agent for the Shadow Broker. When C-Sec needs leads that don't exist, we go to him."
"I can start there. Will you introduce me?" If Garrus realizes that I'm excited about staying with him, he doesn't show it and just gives me a nod in confirmation. Kahoku seems relieved already and thanks us before leaving.
"You have no idea how hard it was to stop myself from saying something entirely inappropriate about all the things I'd like to introduce you to in front of an Admiral," Garrus announces at the same time that he starts walking away from me.
"Hey, you can't say something like that and leave!" I call, chasing him and laughing. I ignore the Salarian who scoffs at me because Garrus picked up his pace so that I'm forced to chase him.
"How did you become a Spectre when you can barely walk?"
"How did you become a cop when you're so ugly it should be illegal?"
His rich laugh echoes around the Presidium, attracking more than a little attention just as he ducks through the doors into the elevator. I have to practically dive through after him to avoid missing it. "Smooth, Elle."
"Solid excuse for using my first name, Vakarian."
"And now I'm using that as an excuse to kiss you."
I barely have time to process that he said it before Garrus sweeps me into his arms and up against his chest. He pauses, blue eyes blazing with a lust that calls to me. And it turns me on even more than he's waiting for permission.
I've been waiting for this all damn day.
I push onto my toes and kiss him first, well past any need for hesitation. Garrus kisses me like he absolutely couldn't wait another second and his kiss is exactly how I remembered, his mouth warm and soft and his touch setting me on fire. I've never been more grateful that the Citadel elevators are unbearably slow; I don't want this descent to end.
Garrus groans with need and steps forward to slam my back into the wall, his hand flexing restlessly against my armored hips. I know that he wants to pick me up, to wrap my legs around his waist, and I hate how badly I want him to.
"Any chance C-Sec taught you the code to stop this thing for a while?"
"I really might just rip the wires out of the panel," he growls against my lips. The growl changes to something much more frustrated when we can feel the box slowing.
Even still, we take our time parting. Garrus catches my bottom lip in his teeth, amazingly gentle for having such sharp teeth, and I can't help a whimper.
"So glad you're back," he breathes after finally releasing me.
"So not ready to leave again," I confess.
He smiles a little and kisses me once more, far too briefly, before stepping away as the doors open. I can't bring myself to make eye contact with the Asari standing on the other side as we dodge out of her way.
If we weren't wearing armor, I would probably do something really stupid and hold his hand again.
I hold onto some self control instead and manage to walk like a professional with my squadmate across the Citadel and into the Finance District. "Is there like special protocol for talking to an agent of the Shadow Broker?"
"I'm sure that there is...in spy movies. You're such a nerd, Shepard," he teases in that carefree way that makes me feel just as carefree.
"The guy calls himself an agent!"
"He doesn't call himself anything, actually. It's supposed to be a secret, of sorts." Garrus jerks one shoulder in a shrug. "Worst kept secret on the Citadel, but still. He'll have what you need to help Admiral Kahoku."
Garrus is right and meeting Barla Von, while not nearly as exciting as I might have built it up in my mind, is very useful. The Volus is apparently pleased that we helped Wrex kill Fist since he hired the Krogan for the job in the first place; I choose not to tell him that I would have stopped Fist from being killed if I was given the option.
Still, I'm promised an email with the real coordinates of where Kahoku's men went down and I don't ask how.
"That went well. Maybe the first thing to go right all day!"
Garrus laughs at me but can't hide his discomfort...now that we actually have to part. The thought makes me feel kind of cold in my gut, erasing the butterflies I've had fluttering around gloriously since he kissed me on the elevator.
Butterflies. I'm a grown ass woman, a decorated soldier, and now a Spectre. I don't have any business getting butterflies over some guy.
"So, what's next for you Officer Vakarian?" I hate myself for saying it even when I know I have to.
"Back to C-Sec in the morning." Garrus doesn't try to hide that he's not happy about that in his voice. I can't blame him; I might not have known the guy long, but I've learned enough to know that he's not a rules and regulations kind of a Turian. "And you're off to start trouble. Another Spectre with too much power."
I laugh and have to fist my hands to fight the urge to touch him. "You were pretty impressive today. We couldn't have done this without you."
"Yeah, well, I told you. I'm good at what I do, Commander."
I know exactly what he's doing, why he chose that phase. He's made a reference to something he said during our one night stand to see if I'll react.
I couldn't hide my reactions to him even if I wanted to, a fantastic heat blooming deep in my core. His response becomes just as obvious and a dangerous light sparks in his eyes before he asks, "When are you leaving?"
"First thing in the morning. And I'm an idiot, so...I didn't schedule any shore leave."
I want to kick myself but Garrus keeps it together, takes a deep breath, and smiles when he nods. He's not going to push me.
He's not going to push me? Well, that's new.
"Just don't forget that we have a date planned on your next visit to the Citadel. And maybe don't forget my Omni-Tool info this time."
I laugh easily, still amazed at how easy laughing with him really is. "I'll be in touch, big guy. Behave."
"Absolutely not. Be safe, kid."
"Not my style."
I hold his gaze, impossibly blue eyes shimmering happily at me for a beat too long before I step forward and rap the side of my fist against his chest twice. Before I can talk myself out of it, I march away and head for the Normandy.
We both have jobs. I have a mission.
It's not the right time to fall for gorgeous C-Sec officers who happen to be of a different species. No matter how badly I might want to.
I'd give just about anything to be able to call Nihlus and tell him about today.
He'd laugh at me for chasing around some human like a smitten fledgling. He would also be just as scared for Saren as I am, and he'd understand why that concern is so conflicting for me. Nihlus would get it. He always did, he was always…
I have to swallow hard around a lump in my throat. I refuse to break down and cry in the shower. I refuse to break down at all, instead finishing methodically. Leaving Shepard today only to return to my depressingly small apartment has been tough on me. It's the worst I've felt since the day I heard Nihlus died.
It's bad enough that Shepard is heading out to do justice I can't deliver, that I won't see her again for Spirits know how long, and that Saren might get a shot at her.
But Nihlus not being here is…
My Omni-Tools beeps softly with an alert that someone other than me opened the door to my apartment but I don't need the warning when the soft woosh of the doors carries through the silent apartment and into the bathroom. I discard the shirt I'd been changing into and move quickly into the living area, unarmed but more than prepared to take the intruder on.
The sight of a redhead with legs for days and incredible curves standing next to my couch nearly knocks the wind out of me.
"Hey, you," Shepard breathes, smiling sheepishly with her hands tucked into the pockets of a zip-up N7 sweatshirt. "I hope you don't mind too much. And that I don't look like a total creep. I realize that this is impulsive and maybe even rude, but I - "
I cross the room while she's speaking and shut her up with my mouth on hers, taking advantage of her surprise to slip my tongue into her mouth. Shepard melts into me, her hands clinging to my neck while she kisses me back.
I can't believe she's here, can't believe she came back for me.
Shepard lets me pull her body flush against mine and slip my hands under her jacket and shirt, already desperate to be in contact with more of her soft, warm skin.
"I thought you didn't schedule shore leave," I manage to growl out around all the ridiculous panting while walking her backward to my couch.
"I didn't," she responds, just as breathless. "What's the fun of being in charge if you can't break the rules sometimes?"
I laugh but the sound is lost in a moan when she pulls my mouth back to hers. This kissing thing is so much more than I expected...damn, she turns me on. I keep her close when I sit on the couch and pull her onto my lap, her knees straddling my thighs.
Shepard pulls her mouth from mine and I melt when that soft tongue runs over my mandible. Clearly she was paying attention to the tour of my sensitive areas and I'm so very grateful. "Something is wrong," she breathes.
I freeze, my heart stuttering with fear, and pull my hands from her hips. "Am I hurting you?"
"Please, you're not that tough," she teases, pressing her hands into my chest as she sits up enough to look down at me. "Something is wrong with you. I know you think you've distracted me from noticing, but you're wrong."
My stomach clenches again, this time in a bad way, and I drop my gaze from hers. It's the first time that feeling naked in front of her hasn't made me happy.
"You don't have to talk to me about it, Garrus. I don't mean to intrude."
"No, no, it's not you. I…"
I look up at where she sits on top of me, flickering lights from the Citadel outside my window flashing neon colors over her skin and hair. My hands come to rest on her thighs and I absorb the kindness I can see in her eyes. The familiarity. Like we're old friends.
"Rough day," I admit. It's only most of the truth, but I think it's simple enough that Shepard will probably accept it and move on.
Instead, she smiles softly and takes my face in her hands. My heart skips when she angles my head up, exposing my throat. If she were Turian, the move would suggest that she wants me to submit and I'd have to show her just how not submissive I am. Part of me damn well wants to anyway.
But she's not Turian and from a human...I really don't know how to respond.
Her eyes are gentle, the green no longer blazing but soft. They still pierce right through me just as effectively. Something in her gaze tells me that this isn't a challenge for dominance. It's concern, caring. The way her thumbs graze down my jaw softly does more than it should to soothe the lingering ache inside me.
"You said that Saren was a friend, too. I can't imagine having to hunt down one friend to get justice for another."
"It's not easy," I admit, a harsh sounding laugh escaping me. "Saren was my mentor but Nihlus was my best friend, and I…" I scoff and shake my head, my hands flexing into her thighs as my agitation grows. "Knowing that I want Saren's head for this, that he deserves to pay for what he did…"
"It doesn't make hearing all of these things about him any easier," Shepard murmurs to finish when I trail off, nimble fingers still caressing my jaw line. "It doesn't totally change who he was to you."
I nod but eye her cautiously. "I'm not sure how I feel about how well you read me, Shepard."
"Get used to it, Vakarian," she breathes with a laugh. I lose my breath when she leans forward to kiss the end of one mandible and then the other gently. My eyes flutter closed when her breath gusts over my mouth. "I'm going to be doing it a lot."
"Is that so? I thought you were leaving."
I'm surprised I manage to make words at all with incredibly soft, warm mouth sucking on the end of my mandible. It's an entirely foreign sensation, Turians incapable of sucking, but I'll be damned if it's not fantastic. It's making my body tingle from the tip of my fringe straight down through my cock which is stirring to life with vigor.
"I am," she murmurs, moving to the other mandible and dragging her mouth across mine slowly on the way. I lean forward to catch her lips but she never lets me and I hate how much that bothers me, how badly I want to do something that should be totally foreign to me.
That incredible tongue of hers slides slowly down the entire length of one mandible and I swear I can feel it as if she licked my dick. I shudder and grip her ass, reveling in the sound of her gasp when I tug her against my now emerged and very erect cock. "Stop teasing me. I don't like it."
"You're lying and your cock proves it."
I blink, surprised by her boldness, and she laughs at my reaction. I can't let her keep all the advantage so I roll my hips up into her, feeling the heat of her body through her pants and wanting nothing more than to sink into her.
Shepard's head falls back on a moan and she rocks her hips into me, our bodies grinding slowly together like no one ever told us that we shouldn't fit. It amazes me that this woman can move like an Asari dancer when I know that she's probably the most capable soldier I've ever met.
When she grinds down hard against my cock, I can't help a growl. "Damn it." My hips buck up into her without any permission from the brain in my head. "I want to cum inside you, Elle, not in my pants." She gasps out my name in the most fantastic ways and I take it as permission, moving for the zipper on her jacket and yanking it down roughly.
She finally kisses me, her mouth frantic and rough against mine. I match her pace and have no problem matching her level of need, more desperate by the moment as we strip one another. When she's naked and back in my lap, I take the opportunity to explore.
"You're even more sensitive tonight." I wonder if I could make her cum just by playing with her breasts as she moans and gasps loudly. "You've been thinking about this all day, haven't you?"
"Garrus," she whispers. "Yes."
"Thinking about me touching you, licking you. Thinking about my cock inside you. Is that you what you want?" She moans and grips the back of my fringe, her body shuddering when my cock meets her clit on a grind. "Take what you need, Elle."
Another moan and she leans forward to kiss me, but then it's me whimpering helplessly when her hand grips my cock with all the strength I would expect from a soldier.
I let her guide me inside her incredible little body and then I take her onto the coffee table and drill her for all that I'm worth. I drag three orgasms from her before she begs me for mercy and I spill all that I have into her body right there on my living room floor. When the orgasm finally releases me, I roll onto my back because I don't trust myself not to crush her, and we lay there for a long moment, panting and sweating.
I hadn't realized how much stress I was carrying from the day, but I feel about ten times lighter now.
"Well, shit Vakarian. You are...really something. It's going to be a lot of fun keeping you around."
I laugh but note that it's the second time she's said something like that since coming into my apartment unannounced. "Are you transferring to C-Sec from the Alliance and just didn't tell me? Or is there something I should know?"
Shepard laughs at that, her breasts bouncing with the movement and almost enough to distract me. "No, I'm not transferring to C-Sec. You're transferring out." I turn my head toward her and find her already watching me and smiling. "I want you to come with me. Finish this out."
My heart leaps so hard that it drags me up and I sit up straight, turning toward her. Shepard laughs again and follows me up, shifting so she can sit between my legs with her thighs draped over mine.
"You want me on your team? On your ship?" I clarify.
"Hell yes." She says it like it's the most obvious thing in the world. "I've done my research. Special Forces Sniper, top ranked sharpshooter, and hand-to-hand combat specialist. Well hung and rather generous in bed."
I laugh at the last part and pinch her side gently as punishment. "Shepard, seriously. You said goodbye a couple hours ago. What changed your mind?"
"Captain Anderson, actually. When we were talking about what happened today, he said that it sounded like we made a great team. And we did! Like...really great."
"I agree," I assure her, lost in green eyes wide and glowing. We flowed together easier, even with Wrex and Williams. I didn't need Shepard's commands to know where she would want me, and I trusted her to make the right decisions. Even if this mission sucks, today was kind of fun.
Shepard takes a breath and puts her hands on my shoulders, nimble little fingers massaging gently. "I realize that asking you to put your career on hold is a big deal, but I want you out there with me. I already had it cleared with C-Sec and the Alliance; you report to the Normandy in the morning." She shrugs and I assume it's supposed to look casual when she adds, "As long as you want to."
I dive forward and crash into her, loving the sound of the squeal she releases as I take her back to the floor and nuzzle into her neck. "Do I want to finally get off this station for some real action? Do I want to see this thing through and get real justice? Are you kidding? Spirits, Shepard, yes."
"I was hoping you might say that," she replies, laughing while she accepts my kiss. When I pull away just slightly I can see her eyes darken and she shifts, pushing me away by the chest until we're both sitting up again. "We do need to talk about one thing though, Garrus."
She motions between us, but it wasn't hard to figure out what she meant anyway.
I watch her for a moment, finding the woman who sits in front of me absolutely gorgeous. Before I can think better of it, I reach out and tuck a stay curl behind her ear. As my hand falls away, I tug on the lobe gently. It makes her smile, and somehow that makes her even more beautiful.
I swallow to get the words out, begging some blood back into the head at the top of my body.
"You know how much I respect you and your command, Shepard. I can serve with you, under you."
She doesn't meet my gaze when she asks softly, "If we were Turians or serving on a Turian ship...what would happen between us now?"
The question makes me nervous in a way that makes it feel like there are bubbles in my stomach. I haven't felt that since I was a kid and had to confess to breaking a vase in my mom's house.
"Turians...we, uh, don't take sex among crew as seriously as humans seem to. We get that soldiers need the stress relief so it's not uncommon." I throw in a shrug to try and look casual, hoping that the raging difference between our species and cultures don't turn her off completely. "As long as it's consensual and no one is getting pregnant or diseases, it doesn't really matter."
"Even between a Commanding Officer and a subordinate?"
I smirk at her because I can't help it and pull her a little closer, brushing my mouth against hers as she settles into my lap willingly once more. "Rank doesn't determine dominance in bed, Elle. It's a little more complicated, but as long as there's no insubordination on missions...and that's really unheard of for Turians anyway. Most of us follows order - even bad ones."
Now Shepard laughs. "I can't imagine you blindly following orders."
"I've never pretended to be a good Turian." She laughs at that while rolling her pretty green eyes. I get serious for a second and assure her, "I wouldn't do anything to jeopardize this mission, Shepard."
"I know you wouldn't." She exhales slowly and for a long time.
I wait patiently and consider what's happening here, between us. I really would miss this. I would miss her, being like this. I've never in my life sat naked on the floor with a woman, but I already want to do it again.
The problem is that I can't imagine doing it with any woman except for her.
"I've been conflicted about this since we started working together today. I haven't made it a secret that I want you, but Alliance regs are pretty strict about fraternization."
"I - "
"Hush or I might never get this out." She presses a finger to my mouth to stop my words, and I nip the pad softly but nod for her to continue, earning a stunning smile in response. "The Alliance takes it seriously. I could lose my rank, and you being Turian means that any xenophobes with rank could ruin my reputation."
I can see her have to brush off frustration at that. Then she takes a deep breath and continues, "It's also not technically an Alliance ship or crew anymore. I work for the Council and they don't seem to take any interest in the personal lives of Spectres."
I can't help but wonder if she can hear or feel the way my heart is starting to pound. My body is instantly eager and aroused at the idea of getting to continue this regularly. If she can hear it, she doesn't react or call me out on it - too distracted by her own thoughts.
"I don't want to distract my crew," she adds. "It'll be enough that we're bringing so many new and different people together. And I…" She takes another deep breath, looking up at me warily now. "I don't really do relationships."
"I'm not going to ask you to marry me, Shepard," I offer with a grin. She laughs but smacks my arm for it. I catch her hand and tangle my fingers through hers. "So, we need ground rules."
She seems to consider that for a moment. "Actually, yeah, I think ground rules would help me a lot. First rule is that this stays between us, no talking about it or making out in front of crowded clubs."
I laugh and agree, "Works for me. Rule two is mine. You've been an exception for me in terms of protection since you're a human." I can't get her pregnant and that was really my only concern our first night together since I know our military's require regular testing. "But I think we should be honest if we decide to, uh...take on other partners."
Shepard blinks at me and I can see the wheels turning in her head, taking my ground rule and turning it into me asking to have sex with other people.
"Hey, quit that." I pull her to me by her hair and kiss her lips firmly. "I don't want anyone else. I said it in case you do."
"Hmm." She kisses me, hard and quick. "Keep this up and I promise to be far too distracted to be worried about anyone else."
"I don't hate the sound of that at all." I find her lips once again and this time, I keep them. All I want now is to get back inside her, more than ready to go if she'll let me.
Shepard leans heavily into the kiss, her arms wrapping around me. She doesn't pull away completely when she murmurs, "One more rule. No falling in love."
I nearly laugh. "Deal."
We seal it with a kiss that lasts until dawn.
