Tali
Tali stood, arms crossed loosely in front of her, weight resting on one hip as she leaned against the port observation window. Thoughts bouncing back and forth between Shepard, Rannoch, and the Illusive Man, she let out a low growl of frustration. Her best friend—no, Shepard meant more to Tali than just a friend, more like a sister—was being kept locked away in a hospital designed especially for the mentally ill—something Tali didn't entirely understand—and there Tali was, still aboard Shepard's ship headed to the human homeworld. It didn't seem at all right.
Tali remembered when they went to the Luna base to shut down the Alliance's rouge VI—which turned out to be EDI. Talk about awkward. She remembered how proud Shepard sounded when she asked Tali what she thought about the gorgeous planet. Granted, Shepard and Ashley also sounded disappointed in humanity when they talked about the terrible things humans did, but Earth looked so peaceful from the moon's surface. Even if Shepard came from the human colony on Mindoir, Earth was her homeworld. The human homeworld. Tali shouldn't be going to Earth without Shepard. Not when she helped the quarians get back to Rannoch.
Rannoch! Keelah, Shepard found a way to give her people back their homeworld! She'd dreamed of a house of her own on Rannoch all of her life, but she never expected to have the opportunity without bloodshed and war. Maybe, with Rannoch being reestablished, the Admiralty Board would allow her father to return. Sure, he'd still have to pay for his crimes, but he could do it from home and not in exile.
Home.
The thought pulled at Tali, made her heart sing with an impossible mix of joy and sorrow. Her people had a home again, but in a few months time, the reapers would arrive, and they'd defile the sacred grounds of Rannoch. For the first time since the Geth War, quarian blood would be spilled on Rannoch. Lives would be sacrificed fighting to defend the home they waited so long for, only the reapers wouldn't just chase them from the Perseus Veil.
She couldn't go home yet, though. Not until the Illusive Man joined his ancestors—if they'd even take the bosh'tet. A part of Tali wanted to not hate the disgusting human, after all, he'd returned Shepard to her, but … after everything the man did—he even attacked the Migrant Fleet!—and everything Shepard said he'd do in the days to come, Tali couldn't find it in herself to feel anything but a bitter rage towards the Illusive Man. She let out a heavy sigh followed by a surprised gasp as warm arms wrapped around her waist.
Kal chuckled, resting his chin on her shoulder. "You should get some rest, Tali. We'll be on Earth in a few hours."
"Do you really think he'll be there? Why would the Illusive Man go to Earth?" Tali wrapped her arms around Kal's, lacing her fingers through his. Keelah, she loved him. She couldn't imagine any reality where she wouldn't be with Kal, no matter what Shepard said. "It seems stupid, he's more likely to get caught by the Alliance on Earth, isn't he? Especially with the Alliance on high alert after the collector attack. How does Miranda even expect to land a Cerberus ship on Earth without Shepard aboard?"
Kal chuckled again, tugging at her, urging her back to the bed. "Those are all very good questions, but unfortunately, I don't have the answers, ma'am."
Tali snorted, slapping his shoulder. "I told you not to call me that."
"Mhmm." Kal pulled her into his embrace, hands running down the length of her waist and hips, sparking a hunger inside of her. He leaned in, pressing the side of his mask against her head, voice low and sultry in the way he knew drove her crazy. "But we both know you like it when I do, ma'am."
She giggled, slapping his shoulder again. "Bosh'tet."
He made a low, throaty hum, sliding his hands behind her to cup her ass. "Come back to bed. I miss you." He picked her up, wrapping her legs around his waist.
She squealed, throwing her arms around his neck to keep from falling back and laughed. Pressing her mask against his, remembering the warmth of his lips on hers when they first saw each other's faces on Rannoch, she said, "You mean you miss the sounds I make when I let you have control over my nerve stimulator."
"Mmm that, too." He turned, carrying her back to the bed before laying her down, staying between her legs. "I'll give you control of mine if you promise to stay here after and get some sleep."
"Deal," Tali said with a smirk.
"Good morning, Tali, Kal. ETA to Earth, one hour." EDI's hologram lit up the room, and although Tali woke up about five minutes before, she didn't want to be awake, so she groaned.
Kal rolled over, sliding his arm around her waist, pressing his mask against the side of hers but answered the AI, "Thank you, EDI."
EDI didn't respond. In fact, she hadn't done a lot of interacting with the crew beyond what was expected of her since Joker's death and Shepard's 'mental breakdown', as everyone else kept calling it. Tali didn't understand exactly what kind of relationship EDI had with Joker, but it seemed almost like … almost like they were falling in love with each other. Tali asked Shepard about it once, but Shepard just smiled and told her not to 'jinx it'—whatever that meant. Either way, Tali couldn't deny the obvious: EDI grieved Joker's death and the—hopefully temporary—loss of Shepard; just as they all did.
Her omni-tool vibrated and she opened it, seeing it was Admiral Koris calling. Again. Sighing, she sat up and accepted the call. "Hello, Admiral." She suppressed a scoff, feeling Kal slink out of the bed behind her.
Coward.
"Tali'Zorah." He nodded. "Has there been any word on Shepard's recovery?" At least the Admiral didn't waste any time getting to the point, but he'd already called five times since they took Shepard to the Citadel over two weeks ago.
She squirmed a little, not really sure whether or not Shepard would want her to tell the Admiral about Shepard's personal affairs, but she couldn't really deny the Admiral, either. "She's begun eating on her own and has started to talk a little, but James said she still mostly just sits there staring off into space."
"It sounds like she's making progress, though." He leaned back against a shuttle, giving her a view of several of the buildings being repaired on Rannoch. It looked like the geth were taking the idea of welcoming the quarians back to their homeworld very seriously, they were speeding through the reconstruction incredibly fast. "I'll be making a trip to the Citadel in a couple of weeks. Are they allowing her visitors?"
Tali raised her brow, working hard to keep her tone level when she said, "The Alliance put James in charge of who gets to see her."
Is he seriously going to go visit Shepard in the hospital? Keelah.
"James … the human lieutenant?" Admiral Koris scoffed when Tali nodded. "They put her subordinate in charge?" He scoffed again. "Oh, don't narrow your eyes at me, Tali'Zorah. I don't have anything against the lieutenant, he seemed pleasant enough. I'm just surprised, is all."
She lifted her shoulder. "Shepard trusts Councilor Anderson, and he made the decision. She trusts James, too. I think he's a good choice."
He hummed, the sound somewhere between thoughtful and derisive—as only Admiral Koris could make a hum sound. "Why not one of her two lovers? The turian, Garrus Vakarian, or the other, what's his name? The drell?"
"Thane," Tali said, offering Thane the courtesy of not reminding the admiral of his last name.
"Yes, Thane. Why not Garrus or Thane?" He waved his hand. "Surely they are both skilled enough to keep her safe and take the job seriously. I assume it's the whole point of putting someone in place to act as a gatekeeper."
She sighed, annoyed at having to deal with what she came to think of as the admiral's crush on Shepard so early in the morning. "Because they aren't in the Alliance, Admiral."
Obviously.
"Yes, of course." He nodded but glanced off to the side, seeming distracted for a moment. "Well, I suppose I'll speak to the lieutenant. Do you have his contact information? I'd like to be able to update Shepard on the progress here, even if she isn't … receptive."
"Oh, uh, sure." Tali ran her fingers over her omni-tool's screen, shifting her view of the admiral so she could access her contacts list. "I'll send you his information now." She hoped James wouldn't mind, but she wasn't going to take the time to ask him and risk him saying no. If it kept the admiral from calling her every few days, she'd willingly risk annoying James.
"Thank you, Tali'Zorah." Admiral Koris pushed away from the skycar. "I do hope you'll be joining us soon. Vast changes have already been made in your absence. Soon, we'll begin moving people into houses and off the ships."
"I'm really excited to see it all." She smiled as a maskless quarian walked past the admiral. "We'll be returning to Rannoch as soon as we can, we've been having some difficulties locating the person we're looking for."
"Mmm, yes. The Illusive Man, so I've been told. Well it's about time someone take care of the nuisance!" He turned his head again when someone called out to him, holding out a hand to tell whomever he'd be just a minute. "Regretfully, I must go. There is so much work here for me to stay on top of. Keelah se'lai, Tali'Zorah."
"Keelah se'lai, Admiral." Tali closed her omni-tool, letting out a relieved sigh. She turned to look at Kal who'd stayed in the corner of the room, undoubtedly avoiding the admiral's sights. She narrowed her gaze at him and said, "Traitor."
Kal laughed, pulling a grin from Tali. He shook his head and said, "You weren't in any danger."
"Just of him talking me back to sleep." She hummed and cocked her head to the side. "It's kind of weird, still saying keelah se'lai, isn't it? I mean, we've not only seen the homeworld but we're in the process of reinhabiting Rannoch."
"You've been cleared to land, Ms. Lawson." Councilor Anderson nodded his head on the vid screen created by EDI in the comm room. "An Alliance strike team has been assigned to provide you assistance. They'll work cooperatively with the Normandy crew so long as you act within Earth and Council laws. This wasn't easy to pull off without Shepard being with you, but the fact you helped to rescue those taken by the collectors and destroyed the base has won you a few favors. Given Cerberus' history and the list of crimes brought against the Illusive Man with the information Shepard provided me with … the Alliance has approved a 'kill on sight' order. I don't think I need to tell you how rare this is."
"Fuck yeah." Jack smirked, crossing her arms.
Miranda shot Jack a chastising look, earning her a snort from the other woman, before she turned her attention back to the councilor. "Thank you, Councilor Anderson," Miranda said, pushing away from the table.
Tali felt pretty sure Councilor Anderson struggled to not laugh at Jack. The corner of his lip twitched, and he swallowed before clearing his throat a little. He looked back at Miranda and nodded before the call ended, the screen replaced by EDI's hologram. Tali wondered if he visited Shepard often, since he lived on the Citadel. He meant a lot to Shepard, maybe seeing him would help her.
Something has to.
"I guess he just answered one of your questions," Kal said, voice just loud enough for Tali to hear as he tucked his hands behind his back.
"EDI, please tell Hanshaw to take us down." Miranda glanced around the room, not quite meeting anyone's gaze. "And pull up the blueprints for Cord-Hislop Aerospace."
"Right away, Miranda," EDI said before her hologram shifted.
A small compound filled the area above the table, showing several buildings, the leading structure at least five stories tall. The other buildings were shorter, but wider, sprawling out and taking up a lot of ground. Miranda reached out, pulling the tall building into view, and the image changed, showing the blueprints for the building. Tali moved a little closer to the image, Kal right behind her, and leaned against the table, waiting to see how Miranda decided to handle the mission.
"With the information Shepard recorded with EDI and the information our new Shadow Broker dug up, I was able to learn a little more about the Illusive Man. His real name is Jack Harper."
"His name is Jack, too?" Lia asked, looking between Miranda and Jack. "Well that's not awkward."
Tali stifled a laugh. It was a little funny in a sad, ironic sort of way, but she didn't dare let her amusement show through with Jack standing just a few feet away. The last thing anyone on the Normandy needed was for Jack to get upset without either Shepard or Garrus around to calm her down.
Jack snorted, crossing her arms over her abdomen. "Doesn't matter what the fuck his name is, he's a dead man either way."
Miranda continued on as if she'd never been interrupted. "He's a former mercenary with a history in the First Contact War, serving under General Williams on Shanxi. Cerberus was his response to the things he saw during and after the war, his reaction to encountering alien life. He later founded Cord-Hislop Aerospace, and he used the business as a cover for early Cerberus activities."
"Get to the point, Barbie," Jack said, rolling her eyes. "Why do you think he's there, and how the fuck do you want us to get in there to kill him?"
Finding the Illusive Man probably meant more to Jack than anyone else on the Normandy. When Tali learned Jack's history, it broke her heart. It explained so much about the woman's abrasive personality. No wonder Jack seemed to hate everyone and everything. Even with as bad as she felt for Jack, though, Tali really didn't see how Garrus tolerated being in a relationship with her.
Miranda sighed, the muscles in her jaw twitching. "Jack Harper was very close to two other mercenaries in his group, Ben Hislop and Eva Coré, as you can guess, the company is named after them."
"Still not hearing your point." Jack leaned against the table, lifting an eyebrow.
Tali had to fight back a giggle. Without the only two people on the ship who ever stood any chance of keeping Jack under control around anymore, she'd started to become increasingly antagonistic towards Miranda and everyone else wearing a Cerberus insignia on their clothes. In a way, it made Jack more appealing to Tali. Sure, Miranda wasn't entirely bad, and Shepard obviously trusted her … but even if she wasn't stupid enough to join Cerberus, her personality made Tali want to vomit.
"My point, Jack, is the Illusive Man has ties to this corporation and in some ways, it's a tie back to his old life. He's scared and on the run, it's likely he's returned to somewhere familiar and comforting. He knows we're looking for him, and with EDI unshackled, he knows this is the only place she's not going to have information on." Miranda stepped away from the table and started pacing. "I'm not saying it isn't a gamble, but we can't leave any stone unturned."
"Fine, whatever. So what's your plan?" Jack asked, crossing her arms again.
Jacob nodded, stepping forward when Miranda glanced at him. He took control of the blueprints, zooming in on the front door. "If Miranda's right and the Illusive Man is here, the main entrance and all other exits will probably be guarded." He shifted the image, zeroing in on a back door. "Chances are, if he's inside, he'll be in the lower levels. He's probably had them reinforced as well. This door opens up into a stairwell leading straight to the lower levels. It'll probably be guarded, but with the help of the Alliance strike team, we might be able to divert the guards to the main entrance. Either way, this is the most direct route and will leave us with less to deal with along the way. Still, I'd expect to have to fight getting in and back out again."
"We'll have to take shuttles to rendevouz with the strike team, since we have permission to be here, we have to follow Alliance standard docking procedures." Miranda let out a heavy sigh. "Which also means the Illusive Man will probably be warned the second we dock."
Tali opened the door to the AI Core, the room feeling even more distant and secluded without Dr. Chakwas filling up the space between Lia's hiding spot and the rest of the ship. Lia and Legion both turned to look at her, moving eerily in sync.
"Creator Zorah." Legion fluttered his optic plates.
"Hello, Legion." Tali stepped into the room, moving to sit on the built-in bench at the back of the core next to her friend. "Lia, EDI said you haven't left the AI core since last night besides for the meeting in the comm room. Are you feeling alright?"
Lia sighed, shoulders slumping. "I'm just worried about Shepard."
"Me, too." Tali leaned against Lia, bumping her arm against the younger quarian's. "But Shepard is strong. She'll pull through this, I know she will."
She has to.
"Do you really think so?" Lia turned enough to look at Tali.
"Yeah, I do." Tali smiled, realizing for the first time she really did have faith in Shepard's ability to pull through anything.
"I hope you're right." Lia sighed, folding her hands in her lap. "So, do you think the Illusive Man is really here on Earth?"
Tali shrugged. "I guess there's really only one way for us to find out."
EDI's hologram sprung up and Legion shifted to face it, which Tali found odd, considering he of all … people on the ship understood the hologram wasn't actually EDI, just a visual representation of the other AI. Tali felt pretty sure they didn't even need to vocalize in order to speak to one another. Which still made her a little uneasy, even if she did learn to trust both Legion and EDI.
"Docking procedures are complete. Miranda would like for everyone to meet her in the hangar." EDI's hologram collapsed as soon as she finished speaking.
Lia slid down off the bench and laced her arm through Legion's, and the two of them headed toward the door. She stopped, looking back over her shoulder at Tali. "Are you coming?"
Tali nodded. "Yeah, I just want a minute to talk to EDI. I'll be right there."
"Oh. Okay," Lia said, tugging on Legion.
Legion started walking again, and the door to the AI core slid open.
Shepard's right. He is so her AI boyfriend.
Tali waited for them to leave and for the door to close behind them before turning her attention back to the hologram's access point. "EDI?"
The hologram sprang to life again. "Yes, Tali? Is there something I can do for you?"
"No," Tali said, slipping down from the bench to go stand closer to the hologram. She wrung her hands, and then, realizing what she was doing, she stopped and crossed her arms instead. "I just wanted to, you know, check up on you. You've been pretty quiet since—well since everything."
"Since Jeff died and Shepard left." EDI's voice softened, and Tali swore the hologram dimmed a little. "Yes, my positive feedback algorithms appear to be malfunctioning. I ran diagnostics, but all reports indicate I'm functioning at optimal capacity. Legion suggested we network and run a fresh diagnostic scan, but I have declined his offer at this time. If the changes in my behavioral heuristics are causing you and the rest of the crew undue distress, then I will reconsider his offer."
Keelah.
"EDI … I don't think there's anything wrong with your programing." Tali reached out, putting a hand against the cool, metal wall next the hologram; EDI once said she received a sort of haptic feedback from sensors within the Normandy, so Tali hoped she took some comfort from the touch. "I think you're starting to experience emotion, and it sounds like you're grieving. You were close to Joker and Shepard, it's normal for you to feel this way. Well, normal for an organic to feel this way, but … you know what I mean."
EDI's hologram hovered above the access node, the lights motionless in the silence for a long minute. "If you are correct, and this is what emotions are like, I'm not sure I want them."
Tali took Kal's hand, threading her fingers through his as the shuttle made its way to Cord-Hislop Aerospace. The conversation with EDI left her more shaken than she'd have expected. She tried to explain to EDI not all emotions are bad, and even though she knew EDI understood on a fundamental level, she didn't think it changed EDI's mind at all. Tali wished Shepard was there, she'd have known exactly what to say to convince EDI the pain would pass and there were lots of other things in the galaxy able to bring her happiness. Tali felt a little afraid EDI might decide to ferret out the programing responsible for her emotional development and destroy it, and that'd be a very, very bad thing.
She glanced around the shuttle, discomforted by the uneasy silence filling the space. Without Shepard, there wasn't anything to tie the group together. Lia sat next to Legion, of course, engaged in quiet conversation with him, as if no one else existed. Jack sat slouched against the wall, arms crossed, and eyes closed. Grunt stared off into space, looking one part bored and one part pissed off. Miranda's attention seemed glued to her omni-tool, and Jacob's on his feet.
Tali shifted and cleared her throat. "So, what happens after we find the Illusive Man?"
Grunt's giant head swiveled to look at Tali. "We fill him full of holes and take his head to Shepard."
Ew. But … Wrex would be proud.
"We are not taking his head to Shepard," Miranda said, glancing up from her omni-tool at Grunt. "The commander is recovering from serious emotional devastation after losing one of her best friends, she doesn't need to be retraumatized." She turned her attention to Tali. "To answer your question, once we've taken care of the Illusive Man, I'm going to return to Cronos Station. EDI seized control over his systems when we were there and issued a command to put all ongoing projects on hold until further notice. I need to sort through all of Cerberus' assets, figure out which projects should be continued and which terminated."
Tali let out a soft snort. "Do you actually think any of Cerberus' projects should be continued?"
"Not everything Cerberus does is as horrible as what you've seen, Tali." Miranda sat back, crossing one long leg over the other. "Cerberus brought Shepard back to life, and before the Lazarus Project, I worked on several entirely ethical projects which have proven to be beneficial for humanity."
"Yeah, like what?" Jack scoffed, eyes still closed.
Miranda glanced at Jack and sucked in a heavy breath. "I ran two successful medical trials—"
"How many people died?" Jack cracked an eye and leveled her gaze at Miranda.
Miranda huffed. "Twenty out of three hundred and fifty-two, but—"
"Uh huh," Jack said, closing her eye again.
"But, they died because of their illnesses, not because of the trials." Miranda cocked her eyebrow, still staring at Jack. "Meaning the trials saved three hundred and thirty-two."
"What illnesses did they have?" Tali asked, wriggling in her seat with the uncomfortable shift of the atmosphere.
"I'm sorry, I can't say." Miranda shook her head. "Doing so could potentially divulge the protected health information of those involved in the trials."
Jack snorted. "Right."
Miranda rolled her eyes, turning her attention back to Tali. "Anyway, the point is, some of the projects Cerberus has going on might do more harm than good to blindly shut down."
Tali considered what Miranda said as the silence surrounded them once again. It certainly helped her to understand a little better how some of the people who worked for Cerberus actually seemed like decent people. Like Yeoman Chambers. Tali really liked Kelly. She seemed sweet, but Tali never understood how the woman could possibly be involved in something as evil as Cerberus. And although Ken from engineering sometimes got on Tali's nerves, he really knew his stuff, and with Gabby there to tell him when he needed to shut up, it wasn't so bad. Though sometimes Tali thought Gabby really should back off of Ken some, she barely let the man speak two words when she was around. But they were good people. Maybe, with Miranda running things, there was hope for Cerberus after all.
Tali tightened her grip on her shotgun and glanced at Kal. He nodded to her, checking his heat sink. They all crowded in, gathered around the back door. They were waiting for the Alliance's signal; the strike team was going in the front. They'd already encountered Cerberus resistance. Their shuttles were attacked the second they crossed into the compound. The Alliance strike team showed up seconds later, helping them to break through Cerberus' defenses. If it turned out the Illusive Man wasn't inside, Tali would be truly surprised. They didn't encounter so much resistance anywhere else they looked, not even the Cronos Station.
Miranda tilted her head and brought her hand up to her comm. "Copy that." She turned and looked at Legion, nodding her head. "Get us inside, Legion."
He swung his head around and began interfacing with the lock. It took him longer than expected to break through the encryption, which Tali supposed really shouldn't be a surprise. It was Cerberus after all, and if after bringing Shepard back from the dead they couldn't handle properly encrypting a lock, well then Tali didn't want to live in the galaxy anymore. The door slid opened and Grunt shoved his way inside, assault rifle lowered and already firing.
Jack went in right behind him, biotics twisting and turning around her body. Legion followed her, and Lia moved in after him. Tali stepped in on Lia's flank, lowering her shotgun at the closest commando wearing Cerberus armor and squeezed the trigger. The blast hit him low, throwing off his center of gravity, sending him tumbling backwards down the stairs, crashing into several other troopers blocking their path.
Grunt pushed forward, claiming the ground Cerberus lost. Kal moved in, positioning himself at the bottom of the stairs leading up, the sharp bark of his assault rifle filling the air. Miranda's biotics ripped a commando off his feet, slamming him into the top of the stairwell before he crashed back down into his allies. The plan was for Tali, Kal, Legion, and Lia to hold their positions, covering their retreat and keeping more Cerberus troops from moving down the stairs after Miranda's team. The Alliance strike team would clear the ground floor, which should take the heat off of Tali and the others, before moving to the upper floors to secure the building and check for civilians. Hopefully it didn't blow up in their faces. Tali really wished Shepard was there.
The flow of Cerberus fighters coming at them from above slowed to a trickle, which hopefully meant the Alliance handled things up front. Miranda and the others had already pushed down to the next landing, only Jacob remained in sight, but Tali still heard the sounds of battle below. Legion scrambled the lock on the door leading from the stairs to the main floor, and for a few seconds, troops tried to hack their way through, but they stopped pretty quickly, probably to fight the Alliance. Everything was going good.
But then it wasn't.
A flashbang dropped down from the next floor, instantly blinding Tali despite her darkened mask and leaving an uncomfortable ringing in her ears. Kal barked an order, but she couldn't make out what he said. Something slammed into her chest, catching the left side of her ribcage, knocking her off her feet, and she hit the floor. A moment later, it felt like she caught on fire. Her lungs ached, and she couldn't draw in a breath. The ringing started to fade, the rushing sounds of an ocean filling her ears instead. It wasn't until Legion appeared over her, reaching down and wrapping his hand around her wrist before dragging her back behind the stairwell wall, did she realize the noise came from her suit's breach seals activating and flooding her system with Medi-gel and antibiotics.
"Tali!" Kal's panicked yell reached her over the sounds of gunfire, and she coughed.
"Creator Zorah, you have been shot. Please remain behind cover." Legion turned, lifting his assault rifle.
She groaned, sucking in a deep breath and pulled her shotgun into her lap. Glancing down at her chest, it surprised her to see only a small tear in her suit, and she realized—by some miracle—she'd only been hit with a Concussive Shot. Still, it probably bruised her ribs, if not broke a couple. Tears bit at her eyes, and she wished, for the hundredth time that day alone, Shepard was there.
Keelah, Shepard. I need you.
She glanced around the edge of the wall, dragging herself back to her feet, and caught sight of a very feminine form … wielding a sword? The woman spun and flipped across the landing, sword arching through the air and pushing Kal back. He kept firing, but the couple of shots that hit the agile target were deflected by her barriers. Kal was running out of room, and Legion and Lia were preoccupied. That left Tali.
She lifted her shotgun, waiting until the woman came to a stop, crouched low in front of Kal, and pulled her sword back, ready to run him through. Tali activated the Carnage ability Kal taught her and rounded the corner, ramming her shotgun right into the woman's helmet and pulled the trigger. The blast ripped right through the armor, leaving the sword-wielding maniac's head a flaming, pulpy mess. The woman collapsed, falling to the side.
"Bosh'tet," Tali said, kicking the sword away before lifting a foot to push the woman over to her back, just to be sure she was really dead.
Kal's arm wrapped around her, pulling her into his side. "Keelah, I love you."