Note: Hello, everyone. Thank you for your patience on this...as you may have guess...I got sidejacked with another story and Destiny 2.
Thank you for the favorites and follows, I was very proud of that last chapter by the time it was finished. I do hope you enjoy this one here. As always feedback is appreciated.
Please enjoy Chapter Two: What Doesn't Kill You
Mass Effect
"Foreign Relations"
Chapter Two: What Doesn't Kill You
Earth under attack…I told you so somehow just didn't quite cover it. A complete invasion of the Sol system was underway. The dreadnaught Krakatoa got into a slug fest over Vancouver with a Reaper and they didn't even make a dent. Hackett called skyfall, the military code for the homeworld invasion but that was the last she heard before he ordered her to go to Mars with the Normandy and retrieve Liara and a Prothean research. It was all a bit of déjà vu for Sidda, all those years back except the planet was the hotbox known as Therum.
The Normandy had a skeleton crew that included Joker. It had been in dry dock for upgrades and transformation from a Cerberus ship to an Alliance one. She was half done, decking, bulkheads, and wires were exposed as the retrofit was still in progress.
Sidda grabbed a set of armor and an Avenger from the armory and prepped for the flight down to the Mars base. With her was Lt. James Vega, her guard, for lack of a better term, the whole she was on Earth. He still called her Commander although her sentence had been carried out and she was discharged from the Alliance. It was Hero Worship, even he called it that, and he seemed like he was a completely solid soldier. She didn't have much choice in the fireteam as the options were slim. The lack of options was the only reason that Kaidan was second member. He made her bristle even months after he hung her out to dry with his appearance at her hearing. He'd made it to the Normandy with Vega when Earth was attacked and was along for the ride. Major Kaidan Alenko…they saw fit to promote him. She scoffed quietly as Vega piloted the Kodiak to the surface.
He said very little, but never talked much anyway, on the flight down. He was there when Anderson reinstated her, and he deferred to her command. Despite transitioning to the Marines, she still outranked him as a Commander. He didn't want to pick a fight with her so he kept his mouth closed. They hadn't spoken since that day and he'd encountered both sides of the coin, those who praised him for his actions and those who condemned him. All he did was tell the truth and he was treated like a leper by some for it.
For Kaidan, Mars was old hat. He'd been stationed there and knew the place like the back of his hand. The base being offline was troubling for the three of them. The Reapers had attacked Earth but so far there had been no sign of them around Mars, why would there be…it was an outpost something they could take care of later. To make things a little worse was the incoming storm. A Mars dust storm was a nuisance that you got used to if you lived there, like tornados or a hurricane on Earth but they were just as inconvenient. The storm was an average sized for Mars but it would play havoc with the communications and visibility.
Running into Cerberus created more tension between Kaidan and Sidda. They were executing base staff outside and didn't expect Vega, Kaidan, and Sidda. They quickly searched the bodies outside after the impressive biotics between Sidda and Kaidan allowed Vega to quickly mop of the stragglers. Kaidan observed Sidda's combat, it appeared her abilities had changed; shockwave, warp, throw, and singularity were all there, but she seemed more powerful and she also sported Reave the life sucking power common among Asari. Cerberus gave her a serious upgrade; he was getting stronger as he aged and achieved Reave on his own. The benefit to being an L2 was that he was stronger than any other biotic out here.
"This is Cerberus, Sidda, what are they doing here?" he asked bluntly and saw Sidda's annoyed shake of her head.
"It's commander, Alenko." She said and then heard how petty that sounded.
"I'll call you whatever I want, Sidda, I didn't do anything wrong." He snapped back. "Now what are they doing here?"
"How the hell should I know?"
"You worked for them. They spend millions bringing you back. I figured you'd know."
She rolled her eyes under the helmet and sighed heavily. "Oh for fuck sake, I haven't seen or had any contact with Cerberus since I turned over the Normandy." She grumbled. "I do not know why they are here."
The attitude between hem made Vega uncomfortable, they'd all watched the Tribunal and his testimony. He didn't know what to make of Kaidan, did he just tell the truth, or did he screw her because he didn't like Cerberus? It appeared that Sidda firmly believed the latter. "It doesn't look like they came here in force." Vega commented successfully redirecting the conversation.
"No, just a few trucks."
Kaidan was familiar with the base. "No one could take this base with anything less than a full battalion."
"Inside job?" she questioned to either of them and they both agreed. They weren't thrilled with the idea, but it would make sense. Finally, a moment they all agreed on. The timing was what made everyone uncomfortable, Cerberus attacking just as the Reapers did. Hell of a coincidence or something else was going on.
They had to fight through another group to gain access to the base, but it was still the same strange feeling. "Enough of this. What are they doing here?" he demanded as they entered the airlock for the base. The timing was suspicious, and he didn't think he could trust Sidda anymore…not fully.
The animosity between them was getting worse because he was a little too narrowminded. He believed what he saw and didn't look past it. "How many times do I have to tell you that I don't work for Cerberus." She snarled to him. "If I have to do it again, I swear I might shoot you this time."
He was tired of being talked to like that and wasn't afraid to stand up to her. She had a command style he was used to and he'd learned a lot from Cerrus on how to deal with it. "Don't threaten me, Commander." He growled back. "It's a valid question. You used to work for or with them and now they are here…convenient."
"Major," Vega interjected before they got into another argument. "since Shepard's been on Earth there's been no contact Cerberus at all. She couldn't have known anything about this."
Kaidan wasn't sure if he believed it all but there was a piece of him that felt it was the truth. "Don't bring it up again." She told him and he ignored that completely. He would do what he liked if he felt that he needed to. Sidda was someone he respected but it was too difficult now.
Finding Liara wasn't hard, she came to them but with two Cerberus operatives in tow. It wasn't hard for her to take them out. After that things continued to backslide and Kaidan fully expected Sidda to send him back to the shuttle for the escape plan but was surprised when she sent Vega. Sidda always went with the tactical option; bringing Cerrus onboard was the prime example. She couldn't stand him but used him to her advantage. Kaidan knew the base so he was an automatic asset.
He quietly followed both Liara and Sidda through the base to get the blueprints for a Prothean weapon that was supposed to be the magic bullet for the Reapers. Like Sidda, he would believe it when he saw it. He got more and more irritated as they went on because Cerberus had a scorched Earth approach to anyone in their way, they killed everyone. Civilians and soldiers alike.
The tram was heavily defended and Kaidan warned Sidda of that, what they didn't count on was the tramway's defenses were active…and controlled by the other side.
"That's a big fucking gun, Commander." He commented making himself as small as possible behind cover to avoid the spray of bullets flying down the corridor. "Move up and stay in cover. We should be able to skirt around it until we can get under it."
"My thoughts exactly, Major." She replied with a nod. The tactic was sound.
Kaidan moved up first followed by Sidda then Liara. It was simple enough to get around it and then shut it down, but the issue of the tram remained. The only way across was the tram…and Cerberus had it. Kaidan kept watch as Liara and Sidda discussed the situation. It had to have been an inside job and from the security footage they'd seen he was correct. Someone on the inside allowed access to the base so it could be infiltrated, and all the staff killed. It pissed him off…fucking Cerberus. He just couldn't let it go.
"How do we get them to send us the tram?" he heard Sidda ask out loud as they worked the problem out.
Kaidan looked at one of the dead Cerberus troopers and then turned to Sidda. "I have an idea." He said and wasn't prompted to continue. "They should have a short-wave radio in their helmet…we can use that."
There had to be more than that to his plan and she scoffed her reply. "I doubt they're gonna send it just because you ask."
Kaidan snorted. "I can be charming." He said and she cackled sharply.
"How about be convincing." She retorted as Kaidan removed the helmet of the trooper. What he found shocked them both and he jumped back out of reflex. "What the hell?"
"My god…he looks…" he stammered and trailed off. "like a Husk." The trooper wasn't totally a Husk but he had the 'traits' of one. Like he had been modified and it made both of them uncomfortable. Cerberus reached an all-time low in his book. He was still haunted by the shit he'd seen in their labs. Toombs, Kahoku, the colonies devastated by Husks and Creepers, the ship infested with Rachni…but this was a new low. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they modified their own soldiers with Reaper tech. "Is that what they did to you?" he asked. The scenario played out in his head and it horrified and angered him. Sidda was his friend and the thought of that happening to her pissed him off.
The looked she gave him was one for the books. In the past hour he'd angered her more than he ever had and that included the Tribunal. "How can you compare me to that?!" she demanded in complete shock that he would even consider that. They had their differences, but it was way out of line.
"Cerberus rebuilt you. Modified you with new tech."
"Do I fucking look like a Husk, Kaidan? Huh!?" she barked.
"I don't know what they did to you." He fired back and that answer was the root of it all for him. He didn't know what they had done to her which meant he didn't know if he could trust her at all.
"They saved my life, Kaidan." She replied with a raised and angry tone. "If it wasn't for them I'd be dead…truly dead not brain dead on a slab. Damn you for thinking that I am anything like that. I am nothing like that…I am still me." He looked down, realizing that his suspicion had gone too far. Cerberus had their hooks in her but it certainly wasn't to the extent of what was at their feet. His silence didn't mean he conceded the argument it just meant that he knew he upset her and backed off. His blunt approach wasn't helping anything. All of this he was handling poorly. Sidda's anger boiled down but her glare said everything. He hurt her. "Get on the damn radio and be fucking convincing." She hissed and he obeyed her colorful order.
There was a lot he'd done wrong lately and most of it centered around someone he cared a great deal for. Sidda was his friend, a mentor, and the best commanding officer he'd ever had. When she died, he took it extremely hard so seeing her roaming around Horizon was like a kick to the gut not to mention the ties to Cerberus. On a deep level he felt betrayed by the person he trusted the most and that was a hard thing to let go of. After this mission they needed to clear the air…if they managed to get off Mars.
The tram was harder to gain access to than it really needed to be. He convinced them to send it on over so they could secure the base but the squad that brought it to them didn't fall for the ambush. The fight didn't last long but it was hard, and it didn't stop there. Most troopers met them halfway after they blew up the track. The three of them were injured in some way and he did his best to care for it all.
After his biotic explosion knocked Sidda off her feet at the tram checkpoint he held out his hand to help her up. She was in very close proximity when the dark energy collided, and it clearly dazed her. "You alright, Commander?" he asked and helped steady her. He'd be surprised if she didn't have a concussion.
She took a moment to gather herself and felt her head do one spin before settling back down. "Yeah." She answered after a minute. "You've gotten stronger…impressive."
Human biotics usually didn't, he was exhibiting a typical Asari trait where biotics got stronger as they aged. "Yeah." He acknowledged and she shrugged his hands off of her.
"I'm fine. Let's go. Liara-…"
"We're almost there, it's just on the other side of this door." She finished and bypassed the security so they could enter.
The room was enormous, a giant rotunda that had been poked, prodded, and studied, for decades. Kaidan had been assigned to the base but he'd never been here before. In the center was a green glowing Prothean beacon and he flashed back to Eden Prime. It unsettled him and he glanced at Sidda to his right, she was uneasy too and he could only imagine what was going through her head right now. The Eden Prime beacon changed the course of her life in an epic way. She saw the destruction of a civilization and it was burned into her for good. He'd always felt for her when it came to that. If she hadn't acted as quickly as she had on Eden Prime, it would have been him in the hot seat…not her.
"Major, check the room." She ordered and he side-eyed her. Busy work.
"Yep, giant empty room…sounds like fun." He muttered as he headed off to the right. There was a walkway that circled the whole room but it was at a lower position from the center platform that had the beacon on it. After Feros he knew Prothean architecture when he saw it and this was exactly that.
Being still tied in on the comms he could hear the bullshit the Illusive Man was laying down. Trying to get in the way so he could capitalize on the Reapers. It didn't make sense to try to control them, the Reapers needed to be destroyed and that was the argument happening above him. Maybe Sidda was telling the truth, Cerberus was a means to an end, someone willing to help protect the colonies from the Collectors and that was all. Good thing was that Sidda wasn't buying the shit he was selling but he heard something in an alcove ahead of him.
"Hey!" he barked sharply to the woman hacking the controls. "Step away from the console now." He ordered and trained his rifle on her. He recognized her from the security footage, she was the one who allowed Cerberus access. She was the insider. "I said now." He barked again but she whirled and attacked him so fast it was inhuman. She hit him so hard in the chest he skidded back about fifteen feet before stopping. "There's an operative down here." He reported and got to his feet. "She destroyed the console.
"Don't let her escape," Liara shouted in his ear. "she's got the data!"
Kaidan gave chase and made it up the ramp just ahead of Sidda. The woman they were chasing was fast…too fast and ending incendiaries back at them to cover herself. The chase ended in a spectacular fashion, they never actually caught her but Vega took matters into his own hands and rammed the Cerberus shuttle with the Kodiak, violated about a dozen regulations in the process. The Cerberus shuttle crashed in a fireball that nearly landed on top of the three of them.
"This mission sucks." Sidda muttered as she slowly sat up after being knocked off her feet. She and Liara had been pretty close to where the Cerberus ship crashed and it was too close for comfort for Sidda.
The Kodiak landed hard as its stabilizers were damaged beyond repair after the impact. "What the hell were you thinking?" Kaidan asked sounding like a superior to a subordinate.
"That they couldn't get away." The Lieutenant replied as he turned and looked at the ship he just wrecked. "Normandy's on route. Should be here any second."
"Sidda, we need that data." Liara said as Sidda surveyed the wreck on the platform. The Cerberus ship was in flames so getting to the remains of Dr. Eva Core was not going to be easy or fast. Movement from the wreck caught her eye and she turned to see what it was. The form that had been Eva Core stood up but not as a human…a mech. It was a Cerberus mech which explained a lot.
Fuck. She said to herself and as she drew her pistol the mech was on her faster than she expected. Knocked the gun away and punched her hard in the face. The helmet truly saved her life in that moment but it was a minute detail as the mech just grabbed the face of her helmet and lifted her off the ground.
Kaidan and James responded to the struggle but once the mech had Sidda it stopped. "Let her go!" Kaidan ordered with his weapon trained on the mech. He was certain he could put the mech down so long as he didn't miss. There was a pause from the mech as if it was awaiting orders. "Let her go!"
Instead of letting her go, Kaidan saw the next few seconds in slow motion. The mech smashed Sidda into the side of the burning shuttle with force enough to dent the metal. For something that was supposed to stand up to combat and the perils of space travel that was a sickening sight. "No!" he shouted as he watched Sidda be pummeled and then haphazardly dropped. The mech then charged him and his focus narrowed. He fired six shots and each one right exactly where he wanted it to go. Right into the mechs head and it crashed to the ground at his feet.
His focus lingered for a moment or two to make sure it was down for the count then he shifted is eyes to crumpled body of Sidda. "Sid." He breathed and ran to her. He skidded to his knees next to her and had the Omni-tool geared for the medical option before he hit the ground. She was still alive, and he breathed a sigh of relief, but her vitals worried him. She was seriously injured.
"Major, we have to go!" he heard Vega yell as the Normandy arrived with the Reapers hot on their tails.
He gathered her up in his arms and flashed back to Eden Prime, this was the second time he had to carry her off the battlefield. He looked down at her, only able to see her closed eyes through the mask. "Don't die on my now, Shepard." He muttered, the same words he'd said before.
Kaidan didn't stop anywhere until he reached medical and gently put Sidda down on the bed. Vega was behind him with the mech that he plopped on the bed opposite. "Joker, get us out of here. Take us to the Citadel." He ordered over the comm as she rapidly removed armor and assessed Sidda's condition. He could see bruising already in a location that worried him, behand the ear…Battle's Sign. The medic in him took over completely as soon as they crossed that threshold.
He kicked the bio-bed into gear and within 30 seconds he had a preliminary reading. Broken bones and a massive concussion. It was the head injury that worried him, her vitals were indicating a brain bleed of some sort and he could see that on the monitor. Her vitals were critical, and alarms were announcing that. "Damnit. Come on, Sid, hang in there." He said out loud to himself. He had an audience, but he didn't care at the moment. There were many fractures, both shoulder blades showed a break but the occipital bone fracture was causing the Battle's Sign he was seeing far too early. Liara had served with him but had never seen him like this, as a medic he was efficient and focused. He knew exactly what he needed and never second guessed himself.
"Commander, Adm. Hackett's on the QEC." Joker said as Kaidan injected something to stem the swelling of her brain into her vein.
"Shepard's incapacitated, Joker, take a message." He said quickly and kept his eyes on the monitor as he pushed the medication in. Her vitals didn't change, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that. No reaction was okay…sort of.
"I think someone needs to talk to him, Major." Joker added after a moment. Shepard being incapacitated probably worried him or he pulled up the feed from Medical and watched.
Kaidan didn't care, he was concerned with Sidda. He regretted all the trouble he'd put her through. Everything he's said and did over the past few months, there was a real possibility she was going to die…permanently this time. He ignored Joker and set an IV in record time so he could administer more medication to keep her stable. The monitor stopped screaming but that was only barely. She needed a hospital and a doctor…not a medic in a half stocked medical bay.
"Kaidan," Liara said trying to get his attention but his focus remained on the slow push medication. "Kaidan." She said louder getting his focus this time. "Go and talk to Hackett. I'll watch her."
He didn't want to leave. Karma was biting him in the ass, he'd done enough to her lately and now he was paying the price. The person he'd been fighting with was now fighting for her life. Liara got him to look at her and reluctantly nodded. "Keep an eye on those vitals. If they change tell me. I want her blood pressure to come down and her heartrate to come up. Joker, tell Hackett I'm on my way."
The QEC was new for him but he'd been on the Normandy already right before the shit hit the fan so he knew where to find it. The image of Hackett was distorted and garbled and his patience was gone. "Joker, clean it up." He ordered curtly.
"Working." EDI responded. The AI he knew about…it creeped him out but that was the last thing he was thinking about.
"Commander?" Hackett questioned as he wasn't sure who he was looking at. The distortion was on both ends apparently. "Commander Shepard?"
"Major Alenko, Sir." He answered as it all became clear. "Shepard was injured and is incapacitated at the moment." He explained.
Hackett was visibly taken aback. "How bad?" All of his soldiers were important to him but Sidda…she was a whole different sort. She inspired more loyalty then any military commander in history.
"I don't know yet." He answered honestly. "She needs a hospital."
Hackett looked down and then gathered himself. He couldn't lose Sidda, she was the backbone of the fight against the Reapers…too important to lose but life went on and in this case they had a dismal looking war to fight. "I'm sorry to hear that, Major. Did you get the data?"
"Some of it. We weren't alone on Mars. Cerberus beat us to the data and made a copy. There was an infiltration mech that overrode the security protocols on the base and killed the staff and nearly killed Shepard."
"Cerberus?" he questioned trying to wrap his head around that. "What's their interest?" he wondered out loud.
Kaidan shrugged. "I don't know but they made a mess of the place." He said simply. He wanted to get back to Medical so he could monitor Sidda. "Sir, Anderson ordered us to the Citadel and that's where we're heading. Shepard needs a hospital and I can speak to the council."
It was a sound plan; Hackett had his hands full with the worst possible scenario. Enemy invasion and they weren't in the least bit prepared for it. "Very well. Until Shepard is back on her feet you are in command, Major."
"Yes, Sir."
"Good hunting. Hackett, out."
Kaidan leaned forward on the console and replayed all the things he regretted lately. It was funny that everything that seemed righteous and important then just seemed petty and vindictive now. He single-handedly ruined his friendship with Sidda because he wouldn't listen. His stubbornness could lead to the last thing he remembered of her was her anger toward him.
"Kaidan," a soft, gentle voice said from the door.
It startled him and he turned to see Liara. "What are you doing up here?" last he told her was to stay with Sidda and keep an eye on her vitals.
"Vitals stabilized. Blood pressure came down and her heartrate went up. Lt. Vega is with her." She said and Kaidan remained distant and quiet. "Kaidan, she needs a hospital."
"We're on our way to the Citadel." He told her and his brain cycled through the mission parameters. "I need that data ready to present to the Council. If the Protheans did design a weapon to stop this then we all need it."
Huerta Memorial was the largest hospital on Zekara Ward and was supposed to be the best hospital on the Citadel. It had the most diverse staff and specialists and when the Normandy reached the Citadel, Sidda was taken there immediately. Kaidan went as well letting Liara go on ahead with he Prothean data, he would catch up with them once he made sure Sidda was in good hands.
Huerta offered a familiar face for Kaidan, though, Dr. Michel who was the on-call doctor that took Sidda on as a patient. "What happened?" she asked him as she began her exam.
"Blunt force trauma, mech smashed her into the side of the Kodiak three or for times. Vitals were stabilized but barely, this is what I gave in route." He said and sent the list to her Omni-tool. "Battle sign already showing, multiple fractures to back and shoulders, and a fracture to the occipital bone. Only responds to painful stimuli."
"We need to get the brain swelling under control, prep her for surgery." Michel ordered and looked to Kaidan. "Thank you, Major, we'll take it from here."
In the lobby for the hospital Kaidan sat down and put his head in his hands. He'd been a combat medic for a long time and had patched everything from a gunshot wound to broken bones but it was always harder when it was someone he cared about. Sidda he cared about despite the bad blood between them. He gathered himself with a deep sigh the Council was probably waiting and he should get to it.
Nov managed to gather enough of the Reliant pieces together and get the paralyzed heavy frigate to the Widow Nebula by making one, all or nothing, jump. As soon as the jump was completed they lost all power and barely functioned on the reserves. Luckily, the Citadel was able to slowly tow the wounded ship to the station. There was nothing on the Reliant that wasn't damaged, and Nov had never worked so hard to get minimum viable product out of whatever system he needed.
From the crew he learned what happened, the Reliant was credited with firing first as they and the Pontius engaged the Reapers. Sometime during the fight, however, they lost their entire command staff excluding a comm officer when the CIC took a direct hit. After that the Reliant was useless in the fight as it's critical damage effectively paralyzed it. The crew was demoralized after losing so many people so quickly, a quarter of the crew went with the CIC when it was blasted into space. They did speak of Oraka like a hero. He was, truly, to them. Once the Reliant was disabled he put his cruiser in the line of fire like a shield to allow them to limp far enough from the fight. They'd all be dead otherwise.
The only surviving member of the command staff was Lieutenant Enya Kovir, communications. She was the ranking officer onboard and for being thrust into the role she was doing well. When the Reliant completed the jump and they didn't explode he leaned down onto the console with tired relief.
"You are a magician." She said to him and patted his shoulder. Nov had worked nonstop for almost ten hours to pull the poor ship together
"I don't think I've been that worried about every system I touched blowing up in my face." He muttered and then looked over at her. "You did well, Lieutenant, thanks for the help." She was young, probably not even 25, and from Palaven. She kept her cool though, through it all and that was impressive.
"No, thank you, Sir…on behalf of us all." She said sincerely and he didn't have it in him to correct or comment and keyed the only working comm line he and Kovir were able to patch through Omni-tools. "Reliant to Currazza," he began. "…well…we didn't explode."
The only one left after this was the Havincaw. Damaged as well but a little more functional and still had her command staff. Before he made the trip back with the Artimus he was summoned to Sparatus' office. Once the Reliant put in he found his way to Sparatus and found Darius, Oraka, and Sevescus already there. Full house as it were.
Nov hadn't slept or even stopped moving for hours, if he did his head would fall to his mother, his cousin, and Sidda. Sidda…he still didn't know where she was. The comm buoys were all clogged with missing links and interference. He couldn't stop or he'd fall apart. Because he'd run himself into the ground, he looked like shit.
Darius gave his nephew a critical eye. "You look like hell, Cal, when was the last time you slept?"
"I don't remember." Nov replied simply and leaned on the wall. Present but tired.
"The Reliant?" Oraka inquired.
"Safe and sound at Dock 68. That ship is barely holding together. The crew…the crew's demoralized but they sing your praises, Captain." He said to Oraka. The tall Turian didn't look for the glory. Caelius was difficult at times but he always had one goal. He protected his people even if it made him unpopular. In that regard he was very similar to his father. "I think they need some reassurance. They lost a lot of people when the CIC went up."
Oraka took his comments under advisement. "Alright," Sparatus began. "this is what we have so far. Palaven and Earth under attack, Rylo and Taetrus as well and the Batarians seemed to be the first hit and are no longer transmitting anything from the system."
The Reaper attack needed to make sense. Rylo was the odd man out…or so it seemed. "So, they attack the military might's but leave the Asari out?" Sevescus asked and it was a fair observation.
"The Batarians were hit first so they must have used that relay to enter since they couldn't use the Citadel or the Alpha relay." Nov commented, Sidda effectively thwarted those options so the Reapers improvised.
Darius agreed with his assessment. "Then they hit us, with the strongest military. Food." He pointed to Rylo. "Fuel at Gemmae, the 79th engaged the Reapers at the Depot and are now permanently committed if they move off it, they'll likely be destroyed in the escape and we lose access to fuel. Largest colony in Taetrus for a demoralizing hit and our seat of power at Palaven."
All of that made sense, it was a sound tactical plan. "And Earth?" Oraka asked.
"Sidda." Nov answered drawing the attention. "She killed a Reaper and stepped on Sovereign's plan…she's a nuisance." Again, his assessment made sense and Sparatus moved on. He had a few assets to work with now that needed to be distributed.
"As for the remainder of the 3rd Division, Darius, consider yourself reinstated. I'm told the Artimus lost its captain, she's yours. I'm placing you in command of the 3rd Divisions remnants with the exception of the Reliant. Once it reaches battle readiness, we'll fold it into Citadel Defense Force. Sevescus, the Defiant will do the same."
Sparatus was a de facto superior at the moment. He had a strong military background and knew Darius personally so him giving them orders wasn't an issue. He received a chorus of affirmations and he turned his attention to Nov. He had new for him and it was clear the Turian hadn't heard yet. "Cal," he began. "I apologize for not say this earlier but I needed all to focus. The Normandy is here." He said and they all saw a surge of energy shoot through Nov as he stood up straight and was suddenly on high alert. The Alliance lost Earth and are in danger of losing the system. The Normandy came in about seven hours ago, Shepard is at Huerta Memorial."
Nov didn't even care that he waited to tell him, a result of his military training, but now he knew where his wife was. Another drilled in aspect of his military training was trying to get out of the room, he couldn't just up and leave. "Permission to-…"
"Go." Before the word was finished Nov was gone at a dead run.
Kaidan met with the Council and they were entirely unhelpful…as usual. This time there really was a threat and they were all scrambling to protect their own while point fingers at each other. It was maddening really and all Kaidan could do was sit back and watch the nonsense. Udina offered him a job as a Spectre though and he would have been elated if he wasn't worried about losing his friend in a hospital bed. He told him he'd think about it. Udina stabbed Sidda in the back before and after the Citadel…no reason to think it would be any different for him.
"Chloe," he called as he saw Michel out of surgery finally. "how is she?"
"She's stable-…" she began before someone barked a name.
"Kaidan!" Nov called as he fast approached them.
Kaidan was surprised to see him to say the least. "Nov?" he questions and shook his head. Of course it was Nov, he had a radar when Sidda was in trouble but Kaidan judged his appearance. "You look like hell."
Nov gave a brief studder step to the comment but leveled a glare at him. He really must have looked like hell if people kept telling him that. "What happened?" he asked then recanted. "Nevermind. Is she okay?"
The question was directed to Michel and he cut Kaidan off. Nov was tired and clearly a little frazzled and both Kaidan and Michel could see it. "Who is this?" Michel asked to Kaidan.
"Her husband. Callus Nov, Chloe Michel." Kaidan introduced.
"Is Sidda okay?" Nov asked again only a little less patient.
Michel was used to deal with impatient people when it came to family. She didn't realize Sidda was married to a Turian. "She's stable. We did a small procedure on her brain to relieve the swelling, administered bone healers for the multiple shoulder fractures and the skull fracture. You did everything right, Kaidan." Michel told Kaidan. "The medication you administered so quickly probably saved the Commander's life."
Nov looked from Michel to Kaidan but said nothing of what he was thinking. Kaidan was there when she was hurt, he wanted to know the details but that would wait. "Can I see her?"
She nodded and gestured for him to follow. "Try not to disturb her she'd resting now and should come out of the anesthesia soon." Nov nodded and follow but turned to point at Kaidan.
"I want to talk to you later." He announced then disappeared into the surgical wing.
Seeing Sidda in a hospital bed wasn't new to Nov, it was a hell of a thing to be used to but in the end he was. She never backed down from a fight and sometimes the consequences resulted in what he was looking at. She was still unconscious, and he saw bruising around her eyes and ears, whatever did this to her must have been massive and powerful.
Kiadan appear next to him as he looked at Sidda lying motionless in the bed. Nov hadn't sent for him but there was no time like the present. "What happened?" he asked quietly.
"Cerberus Mech on Mars. Tried to put her through the side of Kodiak drop ship." He said and Nov thought about that for a moment. "I did my job and gave her all the meds I could and had Joker haul ass here."
"Michel said you saved her." He commented and Kaidan nodded. Medics didn't look for glory or recognition so saying so made him visibly uncomfortable. Deliah was the same way. The thought of her unearthed all the bad memories and he forced them into the back of his mind again. "You take down the mech?"
Kaidan nodded quietly. Kaidan was always quiet…he was a lot like Cerrus which is why they got along so well. "Put half a clip in it before it dropped."
He looked over at him in quiet observation Kaidan Alenko…a younger, nicer Cerrus. He was a good man; he didn't have anything against him. He did was he had to do during the Tribunal, and he couldn't fault him for it. He was glad that he was there and he was forever in his debt for keeping her alive. "Thank you, Kaidan." He said sincerely and extended his hand to him.
Kiadan shook his hand. "I'll leave you alone." He said. "You should sleep, you don't look so good."
Nov was tired of hearing that but everyone he came across made the same observation there had to be reason for it.
Sidda's head throbbed from left to right then back again when she opened her eyes. The ceiling didn't look familiar and she was alarmed when she didn't know where she was. She remembered Mars and the Mech…two hits from the Mech and then she remembered nothing beyond waking up here. Her head hurt but she managed to focus her eyes to her surroundings. She saw Nov to her right with his head down on the side of the bed.
Moving her arms didn't feel good but she tapped his head. "Cal." She said and cleared her throat. "Hey."
The tap and the second noise she made successfully woke him up. He sat up and looked around before he noticed she was awake. He shot to his feet and hovered over her with the worried look on his face. "Oh, Sid. Baby, you okay?"
"My head hurts." She said and he gently stroked her cheek with his right hand.
"Let me get Dr. Michel." He said and disappeared for a second.
Michel? She was on the Citadel. With her out of commission Kaidan probably took over which she found herself strangely okay with. He knew what he was doing and was a good a good officer…apart from a few things she took issue with. Her mind raced with all the tasks she needed to do. Talk to the council, help Earth, stop the Reapers…Michel appeared with Nov and the flood of to-do's stopped. "Been a long time, Doc." Sidda commented and tried to move but found that was a mistake even before Michel's warning to not move. Her back, shoulders, and head screamed their protest in a myriad of ways and she stopped moving with a whine.
"Don't move, Commander, you have multiple fractures in your shoulders and occipital bone." Michel said in a tone that was half plea and half order. "Bone healers will take at least a week to knit fully."
There was a vague recollection of what happened but at the moment that was all she could muster. "What happened?"
"You suffered a massive head injury which Maj. Alenko was able to stabilize, and I was able to relieve the swelling in your brain." She explained and Sidda understood where the headache from hell came from. "I'll run a few more scans in a little while but for now you should rest."
Sidda gave a nod and looked to Nov, the way he looked wasn't sitting well with her. Something was wrong with him. "I'll leave you alone. You need to rest." She repeated and then looked at Nov. "You should too."
When Michel left, Sidda looked at Nov was as critical an eye as she could manage. "You okay, Cal?" He would have scoffed if he'd thought of it, she was in a hospital bed after surgery and she was asking him if he was okay. He didn't answer and that concerned her more. He just gave her that look reserved for someone who didn't know what to do or say. Something was wrong. "Cal?
"Uhh…" he began with a shaky breath. Saying it out loud was going to bring it all back…and make it real. "Mom and Pollux died on Rylo." He said finally, his words were tight as if he was saying them through a held breath.
The confession shocked Sidda too and she immediately felt empathy for him. "What?" she breathed as it was all she could muster at the moment. She wanted to hug and comfort him but as she tried to sit up the broken bones in her back told her that it was a bad idea. "Ow! Fuck."
He appreciated her attempt, but he grumbled. She was more Turian than anyone gave her credit for. "Don't get up damnit." He cursed and moved to sit next to the bed.
"How?"
He hesitated, reliving it was painful. "The…the Reapers attacked Rylo, engaged the 3rd Division and Kavaius ordered a planet wide evacuation. During the evacuation Pollux and my mother were shot down." He went on and felt Sidda take his left hand in hers.
"Cal, I…I'm so sorry." She had nothing else that she could say that would come anywhere close to what he was feeling right now.
Now that he was talking about it he felt both better and worse at the same time. "I'm not done." He said quietly in a defeated tone. If he were human Sidda was certain he would be sobbing right now, Turians didn't cry but his body language was something she'd learned to read. He was emotionally drained and on the ragged edge. "Deliah's dead too…and that was my fault." The memory play over in his head. Her yelling at him to pull back and then the sound of that fucking cannon tearing through her armor. At least he'd washed the blood off.
One more shock to the system, Deliah was a friend. She and Sidda had their issues but hearing she was dead brought Nihlus back to Sidda. It was a bad memory that Sidda still couldn't shake even after death. "What do you mean your fault?"
Nov was jaded and not in a good mindset. "I wasn't where I was supposed to be."
To a Turian, who believed in service before self, causing the death of a teammate was an ultimate mistake while in combat. They prided themselves on precision, plans, the ability to follow orders. Nov being out of position and causing the death of someone he cared for like Deliah was going to mess with his mind to a significant degree. "Don't blame yourself."
"You weren't there." He bit back with a slight snarl but Sidda only hardened her stance.
"Don't blame yourself." She repeated harsher this time. She didn't want to fight with him or force him past something he wasn't ready to let go of. "You need to sleep." She said instead. Cal was simple for her to read now. He was exhausted.
His reply was honest, and her heart went out to him. "I can't." Not because he wasn't tired, but he was afraid to and Sidda knew exactly what he was eluding to.
"Every time you close your eyes you see it." She said and Nov looked at her with an apprehensive expression. He was almost ashamed of it. He was trained not to be emotional. "I know. I see Nihlus a lot, but you still need to sleep." Nihlus' death was burned into her, the emotion of watching him be murdered was amplified by the Prothean Beacon. Inextricable. She knew exactly what her husband was going through.
She was right, as usual, and he resigned. The bed was too small for both of them and she was too damaged to deal with a Turian trying to get comfortable on the impossible bed so he rested his head where it was. He was tired and hoped he was tired enough to just go into a deep sleep.
Two hours was what he got then he was startled awake by his Omni-tool alert. Someone was calling him. He rubbed his neck which had a crick in it now and smacked the icon. "What?" he growled like the grumpy, groggy Turian he was at the moment.
"Artimus is ready, Kid, Havincaw awaits." Darius said and he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"Right. I'm on my way." He said and looked at Sidda still fast asleep due to the meds that were still in her system. He didn't wake her, just leaned over her and kissed her forehead…the only place not bruised. "I love you." He said quietly, words just for her. On the way out the door he dictated the message to her and sent it to her Omni-tool.
Michel soon realized that Sidda wasn't best patient in the world, broken bones, and gunshot wounds didn't keep her down for long. When Sidda got Nov's message she cursed, it was a price she paid for being married to an engineering prodigy. He jetted off while she was a knocked out but him being gone was becoming old hat…not really a good thing. They'd spent most of their time apart and it was starting to grate.
The bone healers still had days to finish knitting the fractures and her head still hurt but of course she was on her feet. The tech Cerberus put in her helped heal the brain injury so that was one Christmas card she needed to sent to The Illusive Man. Now she had Kaidan standing before her. The last time she saw him they were arguing. He was accusing her of being a mindless husk but this was also the man who saved her life. Michel went in more detail about how he did it. The first medication he gave her to stop the swelling. Kaidan quietly briefed her on Hackett's orders, the weapon, and the Council and seemed much more like the Kaidan she knew a long time ago. Something changed from Mars to here.
"Anything else?" she asked after he gave her the last bit of the Council being entirely unhelpful.
"Udina wants to make me a Spectre." He said and she couldn't help but smile. Kaidan would be a great Spectre, he knew when to bed the rules and when to keep them.
"You'd be great at it." She told him and he almost blushed.
"That…that means a lot coming from you." He nodded and let out a nervous chuckle. "Thank you."
She shook her head. "No, thank you. I'd have died out there if you hadn't been with me."
The praise still made him uncomfortable but that was highly possible. "I wasn't wrong about Cerberus, but I was wrong about you. I just hope we can forgive each other one day." He said and Surprisingly, she did too. It took time to work past the anger but there was nothing better than combat to get back on the same page. He dismissed himself so she could take on the task of getting dressed.
Sidda's left shoulder felt like she broke it into a million pieces and the right just felt broken. Michel assured her that it wasn't that bad but she wasn't feeling what she was feeling. Sidda couldn't see them but the bruises on her back and shoulders had to be atrocious considering they felt as tender as ever. The bone healers weren't even close to finishing and her head still hurt.
The door to the hospital room opened as she negotiated with her body about pulling a shirt on. Movement in the shoulders was like a personal challenge but she soldiered through it.
Sparatus froze as the scene he walked in on, Sidda was trying to pull a shirt on over her naked torso, her back was covered with deep bruises and that was all he saw of her. "My apologies, Commander." He stated obviously embarrassed by invading her privacy. "I'll come back."
Sidda succeeded in getting the shirt over her shoulder and buttoned it up quickly. She had never been shy and this was no different. Between the Alliance and the Lante she was used to a little nudity and unless the Turian could see around corners he didn't see anything anyway. "No. It's okay." She managed out in obvious discomfort. "What can I do for you, Councilor?" she asked as the discomfort began to subside to a degree.
Sparatus turned back toward her and looked the human battlemaster up and down. She was battered and bruised but she still looked better than she did when they dug her out from under what was left of the tower. "First of all, how are you?" he asked. The council had been briefed on what happened on Mars by Kaidan and he found himself more worried about her condition then he'd expected.
Sidda brushed it off but it was obvious she was in pain. "I'll survive. I think."
He didn't expect a different response from her. The short amount of time serving on a Turian ship made her pick up some of their habits. Injuries came with the job and they healed. Because of the habits she'd picked up he tended to speak to her like he would a Turian and he understood what Victus and Nov were attracted to. He couldn't help but feel a little of that attraction himself. "I trust you know how the session went."
Sidda snorted. Kaidan just briefed her on it but she knew back on Earth when Anderson sent her away how that would go with the Council. "What? That you're burying your heads in the sand again? I could have bet a year's pay on that." She replied disdainfully. "It's a mistake…if we don't pull together the Reapers will wipe us out."
He respected her honesty, but the past had told him that he needed to work with her and believe her even if he didn't believe it himself. "I agree." He stated and she figured he as much but he was as hard-headed a Turian as they came. She didn't forget that he was her biggest naysayer when it came to the Reaper threat, the question now was would he step up now. "But we must look after our people, they're scared and if Palaven falls so will the galaxy."
Sidda scoffed to the ego…the gall. "That's quite the ego there, Sparatus." She replied and he narrowed his gaze in a you know better than that look.
Sparatus didn't yell or raise his voice most of the time. In this instance he leveled his gaze and sighed. "Think about it, Commander, the majority of the Reaper forces are occupied by our fleet above Palaven, where do you think they'll go if our fleet falls?" he asked and Sidda relented seeing his point.
"I see your point." She stated now regretting her words to him. "So, I'm assuming you're not here to tell me how much you can't help me."
"Indeed." He replied and took a deep breath before proposing his plan. "I can't give you what you want but I can tell you how to get it. We need help, Shepard, uniting us in a war summit is a start but we cannot leave Palaven undefended, all our forces are needed where they are. Go to Menae and extract Primarch Fedorian."
Sidda narrowed her eyes to him. "How does extracting Fedorian help me?"
Sparatus snorted and cocked his head to her. She was a very good strategist, or at least that's what Victus had reported. "You never struck me as short sighted, Commander, a grateful Primarch would be a tremendous ally in your bid to unite us."
"Fedorian doesn't like me. Like Adrien, I don't play by the rules." She said and Sparatus' expression didn't change. She thought a moment, he had a point. They needed him. The last time she had anything to do with Fedorian he forced her off the Lante because Victus pissed him off. "Alright, I'll do it." She stated and Sparatus nodded sharply pleased with her decision.
"Excellent." He said and turned to leave but paused turning back toward her. "And one more thing, I've chosen to uphold your Spectre status."
It was an interesting choice of words when he said 'I've' and it made her curious. "You?"
Sparatus bickered with Valern for an hour over her and longer with her own damn representative. Udina really didn't think much of her. It was sad that he as the Turian councilor respected her more than her own people did. "It was my vote." He began to leave and she stopped him again.
"Wait." She began and the tall Turian turned toward her. "I never got a chance to thank you for the letter at my Tribunal. I didn't get to read it but whatever you said made an impression and I wanted to thank you for that."
Sparatus gave a single nod. "Save the Primarch, Commander, and you may just save the galaxy."
Note: I saw the mod that had the roles reversed on Mars a long time ago and always wanted to use it.