New Horizon

part 2

A wide square placed at the center of the city, perfect in its shape and almost devoid of objects save for the dozens of ochre red sarcophagus already found everywhere inside the city. Here, exactly at the center of the plaza, a metal antenna stood tall together with a pair of computers ready to activate the Gardian laser turrets installed near the city of New Horizon; ready to pour fire against the enemy ship abducting its inhabitants.

And for some reason no Collector was here, guarding or destroying it.

Shepard and his crew looked at the empty place with incredulous eyes; there was no Collector, no Herald, no sensor array, not even some Husks!

The only true threat capable of harming the Collector's ship and the Herald never thought about guarding it!

-This is a trap. It must be!- Thought Shepard while looking at his surroundings with the scope of his sniper rifle, but both his eyes and the thermal system of the gun detected no movements. Even Lena gave the signal of the all clear after some seconds.

They were alone in the plaza.

"Well?!" asked Grunt annoyed "Where are they? I still want to kill enemies!"

"They shall come" grimly answered Shepard "I am sure they shall. Grunt, you and Lena stay behind as rearguard. Jack in the middle and ready to blast any unwanted guests. Cover me while I look at the beacon."

His squad members took positions behind crates and sarcophagus while Shepard dashed toward the beacon. Still no one tried to stop them and this someone managed only to unnerve Shepard even more.

"Squad two. Report" said Shepard in the inter-comm

"Shepard….found…..vivor….problem…..signal….jamm…..also….found..." the voice was that of Garrus, but the response was garbled, unclear. Apparently the Collector had finally discovered the simple tactic of disturbing the enemy communications.

It was a problem but Shepard trusted his teammates to be able to take care of themselves, so he pushed the worry aside

"EDI, talk to me." said Shepard the moment he connected his omni-tool with the beacon's systems

"The software program shows many errors and the need of a complete recalibration. The program shows also that the Gardian lasers are unpowered and need recharging before firing. Estimate time: twenty minutes."

"Then begin now."

"Very well Shepard." numbers and datas of various kind started appearing and disappearing inside the main computer, sign of EDI's work. A soft humming began spreading across the air. The Gardian cannon were powering up.

And unfortunately someone else immediately noticed this.

"Shepard, now we are in trouble." said Lena with a worried voice "Whatever EDI did, it just sent all the remaining enemies into a killing frenzy. They are coming toward us double time!"

"Good!" gloated Grunt

"Defensive positions!" shouted Shepard. They all obeyed and steeled themselves, Shepard in the back with his sniper rifle, Jack in the center and Lena and Grunt in the front.

Some seconds passed, and the only sound the squad heard was the wind howling in the sky. Then, the thundering sound of dozens of feet reached their hears. A deep, menacing sound promising terrible deeds and great destruction. Jack flared instinctively her biotic in response and Lena's grip on the sword tightened.

When they finally arrived, they appeared as a flood of chitin and claws ready to tear them apart. Collectors, both winged or wing-less, charged their positions while firing wildly at them. Their Husks slaves in front of everything with the purpose of soaking bullets, their empty eyes as fearful as their disturbing moaning. Strange bloated masses of flesh with legs dangled near the horde, their appearance horrible but their purpose clear considering that guns of every kind escaped from their bloated bodies.

Behind them the Herald herded them like a shepherd would do with its flock.

Everyone reacted as fast as they could: Jack's bionics flared into life and spheres of pure energy collided with the teeming horde, opening large holes inside their ranks; Grunt laughed like a madman all while he happily blasted any enemy stupid enough to attack him with his shotgun, shredding and dismembering enemies left and right; Lena picked her targets with her new brand weapon, the enemies so many that it was impossible to miss them, and killed whoever managed to get pass Grunt's fury with her sword; Shepard picked the toughest targets with his sniper rifle, killing the Herald's current host and many winged Collectors before they even reached the battle.

The horde reeled against the onslaught, but never stopped. Many creatures died but many more filled their place and the battle quickly turned out as a running fight, where Shepard and his squad were forced to fire and run for untold minutes.

For two times the enemy horde withdrawn under the pressure, and for two times the shambling monsters were forced to come back and fight, lashed by their master.

The battle took a heavy toll also on Shepard and his squad: in the end of the second assault all of them were was bruised and battered, their thermal clips supplies were dwindling and the damned laser system charged with agonizing slowness during all this time. Jack was also running out of steam despite snarling against anyone who tried to warn her about that.

"EDI, how much time left?" asked Shepard

"Laser power is at 67% Shepard." Shepard swore under his breath. This battle was quickly getting out of hand.

"Lena, charge!" said Shepard a second later. Lena nodded and quickly sheathed the blade. A second later the young Claymore charged against the horde and started chopping and maiming anything in her path with her sword. Her yoki flared like a lighthouse and all her vital signs skyrocket inside Shepard's omni-tool.

The results proved to be staggering: Lena hit the enemy formation with the power of a battering ram. The young Claymore dived deep inside the enemy formation and all around her heads and limbs started flying everywhere. Black, onix-like hide replaced her fair skin like an armor and the Husk's claws bounced in vain against the young Claymore, allowing Lena to smash her way through the enemy ranks.

"Ignore the fallen and the crazed one." shouted another clone of the Herald. "Shepard is the main target." almost immediately most of the remaining horde ignored Lena and her whirling sword and moved once again toward Shepard. Many bodies now littered the bloodied battlefield along with many incandescent thermal clips and yet still a dozen collectors along with some of their Husks thralls persisted.

"Disengage Lena!" shouted Shepard while trying to open a path for her. Lena simply laughed without even stopping fighting.


Chop, smash, kill and maim. Do not stop, not even for a second. Keep killing or they will end you.

Keep whirling your sword or they will drown you with bodies. It was what Lena's overloaded brain kept repeating over and over, like a mantra. A Husk tried to lash at her and received a bone-shattering punch in the face. Another Husk who tried to attack her in the back got bisected. A Collector tried to shoot point blank at her and its bullets ricocheted against her hard skin.

"Disengage Lena!" Shepard's voice barely reached her ears and for a split second the girl stopped fighting, giving the Husks and Collectors that chance they were looking for. The creatures swarmed Lena en masse using the slight distraction against the Claymore. Some died under Lena's blade but this time they managed to pin the girl down in a sea of bodies. Lena screamed and tried to ward the enemies off but the pressure was too much for her to handle. The sound of gunfire and the screeching screams of the Husks boomed inside her ears. Too much pressure, even her yoki-infused skin was about to break.

"Fucking hell." cursed Lena "I am not gonna die like this!"

A second later Lena went beyond 70% yoki energy.


"What the hell?"

A loud bang forced Shepard and Jack to take cover for a split second. They had just left their previous positions after seeing Lena being literally swallowed by the horde of Husks with the intention of helping her, and now they almost got swept away! The Claymore was once again on top and her sword immediately resumed chopping enemy creatures but this time Lena did not simply killed her enemies. She slaughtered them!

Three Husks died together after one terrifying swipe, another small batch got cleaved in half a second later. Lena had just reached her maximum killing potential and the carnage was so insane that for a second her companions forgot about the battle. They were too busy staring at her, their jaws almost on the ground. Grunt in particular was looking at Lena with a strange expression, one of awe mixed with envy and lust.

Shepard was the first to gain back his senses

"Snap it out troopers!" he spat while firing at the remaining creatures "We still have a battle to win!"

"Not for long at this rate" commented Jack "Lady Oscar is literally thrashing them. I pity that poor bitch that one day will try to fuck her at bed."

"The Herald will surely react, and I am ready to bet that it will not be pretty. Grunt, stop staring and start firing!"

The Krogan finally obeyed, but never let his eyes away from Lena.

They kept fighting but this time the tide had turned in their favor: Lena was practically unstoppable at this point and it appeared that the Herald was running out of meat shield to throw. The plaza was at this point covered with limbs and heads, and there was not a single place not covered with blood splatters. Shepard could also heard the faint echoes of gunfire coming even closer, sign that the second squad was about to arrive.

A sign of relief escaped from the commander's lips. Maybe they were finally done.

And of course right in that moment the Herald revealed its trump card, shattering all his hopes in a second.

A giant, monstrous beetle-like creature arrived on the battlefield descending from the sky like a giant hawk. Its thunderous arrival shake the earth and even the mutated form of Lena looked fearful at it for a second.

The beast was at least three meters tall, and resembling a Collector in its leathery hide and three pairs of glowing eyes. Husks bodies were stuck inside its chest and long, six sharp legs twitched at the flank of its body ready to attack. Its yoki energy was so powerful that it blinded Lena's yellow eyes for a moment.

It was a terrifying sign, even for a veteran like Shepard.

The creature began stalking the battlefield, aiming immediately at Shepard. Grunt and Jack were the first to react with both their weapons and biotics but a strong barriers blocked their first attack. A low whine followed by the creature's eyes becoming bright blue unnerved the entire squad and all wondered what was about to happen.

The beast's answer arrived a second later and a powerful gout of blue energies directed against Shepard erupted from its eyes, destroying anything in its past.

Shepard narrowly avoided the blast by ducking under some cover and fired in response against the creature, all while moving from cover to cover, making sure to not be an easy target. In response the beast stalked the commander step by step, its single-mindlessness fruit of the Herald's orders. Dozens of bullets bounced back against its barrier and, when it collapsed, against its leathery skin but still the creature persisted in its chase, firing wildly at the commander. Thankfully Shepard was now part bionic and not even this endless chase, coupled with hours of fighting and marching, managed to tire him.

This strange chase lasted some minutes until Jack finally managed to break the beast's outer layer with a biotic attack, staggering the creature.

Immediately Lena took the initiative and slashed at the beast, chopping one of its legs clean with one precise strike. The beast reeled and recoiled under the blow but all its frantic counterattacks hit only the air; strange green blood seeped from its wound and for a second Shepard hoped that they had managed to somehow mortally wound the creature.

Lena charged once again under Shepard and Grunt's covering fire, her sword aimed at the creature neck this time. The Claymore burned the last meters in one jump and raised her sword, ready to deliver the killing blow, and right in that moment the beast unleashed something against Lena. A wave of pure energy hit the Claymore with the strength of a tornado; not even Lena's hardened skin was enough to save her. The young Claymore tumbled down on the ground, incapable of keeping her balance. The beast turned toward its would be killer and its eyes began charging up. A Blast of pure biotic power it destroyed everything in a three meter radious and the only thing that saved Lena was Jack's timely intervention. The young biotic quickly snatched the dazzled Claymore with a biotic pull and snatched her away from the jaws of death by the skin of her teeth. Worse still, the blast somehow recharged the beast's shield.

"Tough motherfucker." snarled Jack. Lena looked worriedly at her savior: the girl was sweating profusely and her movements were ragged. She was tired, not like the others looked better; Shepard was finally showing signs of fatigue and Lena knew that the second her body would reject the absurd quantity of yoki inside her body was the second she would collapse on the floor. The only reason she was still alive and kicking was because she was now half-awakened and as such stronger than before.

"Shepard, can you break its barrier a second time?"

"Still have one missile and Grunt's shotgun is ready, why?"

"Give me a chance and I shall hit it in the head with my sword."

"And what if it hit you with the same attack as before?" retorted Grunt

"It is not immediate" countered Lena "And now I know that it can do it. I can do this Shepard."

"Fine. Jack, biotic attack, the strongest you can give me; Grunt, after Jack is done you and I will hit the fucker simultaneously. That will be your window Lena, do not waste it."

"I will not." assured Lena

Unaware of Shepard's new tactic, the beast advanced once again, read to deliver another blow against its enemies. Its movements were now twitchy, the loss of one leg not one to be taken lightly, but it was still deadly in its own right. Its eyes were already powering up for another assault.

"Jack, ready?" asked Shepard. In his hands the missile launcher was resting, ready to fire.

Jack snarled some kind of answer and began charging her powers. A laurel of blue biotic energy enveloped the young girl like a crown; all around her the air shimmered like a living thing and Lena instinctively aimed her sword at Jack's neck, scared by her display of power, but it lasted only a moment.

The beast was now closer, and both Grunt and Shepard scattered in the effort of distracting it. Lena waited for some tensed moments, ready to strike.

"Stop this, motherfucker!" raged Jack finally. Her whole body was now covered in blazing blue flames and a throbbing sphere of pure biotic energy restlessly rested on her hand, waiting to be freed. With a shout of rage Jack launched her biotic attack against the beast. The sphere howled like a living thing and burned the meters separating it from the enemy in the span of seconds.

When both collided, the results were spectacular: the beast's barrier collapsed immediately and Jack's attack shredded skin and bones in equal measure. A small explosion tore part of the beast's chest in an orgy of green ichor. The creature collapsed on the ground, twitching madly while releasing a torrent of foul blood.

Next to her Jack quietly tumbled down from its place, her energies totally spent. Lena quickly checked the girl worried of some potential injuries but there were none. She was simply exhausted.

"Now Grunt!" shouted Shepard. Both him and Grunt fired their weapons in unison. A missile and a hail of bullets reached the creature. Another leg got shredded and one of the beast's eyes exploded like a ballon.

"Lena!"

Lena did not even waste a second. With a quick jump she moved away from her cover and charged the wounded beast. The creature, even in its ragged state, noticed the threat ans fired a blue beam against Lena but the girl quickly dodged the attack.

Lena was now next to the creature, she could smell the stench of its blood. The claymore took her sword with both hands and stabbed the creature in the ruined chest, penetrating the weakened skin and hitting something very important inside the enemy's belly.

Such was the strength behind her assault than the beast flipped from its place and tumbled down on its right flank. The creature twitched and thrashed madly in pain, trying to dislodge away from her body Lena's sword, but the Claymore stubbornly refused to let it go. Green blood seeped from the wound like a flowing river and splashed the girl's face, blinding her for a second, but still Lena refused lot lose the grip on her sword.

Desperate, the beast's remaining eyes sparkled once again with a modicum of power; en eerie blue light shined inside its eye sockets, ready to fire one last beam of energy.

Lena immediately noticed the threat but so did the beast, and all its remaining legs quickly moved against Lena, entangling her movement for some seconds. All the time the creature needed.

A blast of pure biotic power hit the Claymore square in the chest. Lena cried in rage and pain while her armor sizzled and burned near her flesh. All the systems inside her helmet screamed and blared in alarm and clouds of pain clouded her senses.

Shepard noticed Lena predicament immediately but apart from keep firing against the thrashing monster there was little he could do.

"Aaaah" a rancorous cry escaped from Lena's lips. Only some seconds lasted the energy beam but those seconds proved to be more than enough to shatter her armor and the flesh inside it. To make matter worse the beast's remaining five legs sprinted into action. Another got shredded by Grunt's shotgun but the remaining four stabbed Lena in the back. The half melted armor offered little to no protection against such an attack and the legs stabbed deeply inside her back. A new wave of pain coursed against her body and for a second Lena lost control of her yoki energies, allowing them to roam freely inside her brain and body.

Her body quivered and twitched, her muscles receded from her arms and legs, her mind wandered in a drunken haze barely understanding what was happening….and all of a sudden something else entered in her mind.

Lena was unable to understand the vastness of this creature. It felt like looking at a mountain with eyes, unchanging yet at the same time in perpetual movement. Colder than the ice in the north and hooter than the fire of vengeance.

This creature possessed the most insane yoki energy ever sensed by the young Claymore, capable of even eclipsing the power of all the abyssal combined, and its eyes were aimed at her.

No words were heard by the Claymore and yet the girl could feel the accusation inside her mind.

-You should not exist- said the voiceless voice -Your presence is not planned in the great plan. Mistakes must be rectified- There was no hint of malice inside the whispers, just a worker stating the obvious.

And yet these words managed to awaken the dying forces resting inside Lena's body. With a roar worthy of a lion the girl forced herself out of her trance and awakened from her slumber.

-I AM NOT A MISTAKE!-

Blood escaped from her cracked lips but her voice was as clear as the thunder. With a powerful strike Lena ripped her sword from the beast's belly, letting a torrent of blood and ichor escape from the terrible wound, and hit the creature with a vertical slash. The slash ripped away half of the beast's face and destroyed another of its eyes. The beast reeled under the blow and ripped its legs away from Lena's back with such force than the beast managed to take with it most of Lena's ruined armor along with the flesh attached to it. A normal man would have immediately died after suffering such a wound, but Lena's body immediately reacted and patches of raw flesh began to regrow inside her back with supernatural speed. Unfazed by the terrible damage upon her back, Lena charged once again, blood dripping from her wounds, and stabbed the beast in the mouth with such force that the blade pierced through the head and almost split in two the creature's skull with a terrifying sound.

This proved to be finally enough: the beast stopped moving for some seconds, and finally it tumbled down on the ground, dead. Its legs twitched one last time but in the end even them stopped moving, with great relief for Shepard and the rest of the squad.

"It is done." whispered Lena with hoarse voice. Her rage disappeared and with that all her remaining strength. The Claymore felt heavy on her hands and Lena simply dropped it. She was bleeding hard, but she could also feel her body already regenerating. A pair of strong hands grabbed here from her back, Shepard's hands.

"You insane fool, you almost got yourself killed." Cursed Shepard behind her. Lena simply smiled

"Shepard" said another voice behind him. It was Garrus.

"Garrus? You arrived?"

"Only just. The Collectors bottled us for almost an hour. We arrived just to witness the end of the battle. Spirits! That was insane!"

"Tell me about it. Do you have some medi-gel?" The answer was a quick no.

"Then call Mordin, he will know what to do. In the meantime I will administer first aid."

"I do...not need….that" wheezed Lena "My body can….regenerate."

"Shut up, you and your superhuman body! You look like someone who visited a charnel house, as fresh meat."

Lena tried to rebuff but managed only to cough blood.

"Shepard, me and the others can deal with Lena, you need to talk with her."

"What are you talking about, who is this her?" asked Shepard surprised. As an answer Garrus simply pointed his finger at a lonely figure away from his teammates. A tall woman with slightly dark skin and green hard eyes. A woman that Shepard knew very well and that right now was looking at him with accusing eyes.

Ashley Williams, her old colleague, and judging by her scowl she was not happy to see him.

"I...i see." commented Shepard. "I will deal with her. You take care of Lena."

"Will do Shepard."

Shepard quickly raised up and moved toward Ashley. Truth to be told he was a little preoccupied: he knew very well the woman; proud, arrogant, loyal and steadfast. He might have been her commander two years ago but Ashley was truly loyal only to the Alliance. If she believed that he was a betrayer, then a bullet to the head was what was about to receive from her, no matter their past friendship.

-Let's hope she will at least give me the chance to explain. Though Shepard

The distance between Shepard and Ashley was minimal, and Shepard noticed with a sight of relief that Garrus and the others refused to give her a weapon, even a pistol. No chance of being shot then although her look right now could kill a Reaper.

"Ehi Ashley" begun Shepard awkwardly "Glad to see you are alive."

"Odin Shepard." answered Ashley with poison in her voice "First human specter, hero of the Citadel, war hero of the alliance and the youngest soldier inducted in the N7 program. The same Shepard that died two years ago together with most of his crew and the Normandy. They did a great funeral, you know? A lot of talking, proud parents, the entire brass next to your tomb, all your companions…. I was also here, and I cried with them."

"….Thanks?" answered Shepard

"And now I see you here with a Cerberus Commando, doing the will of the Illusive Man and spitting at everything you previously believed." The girl crossed her arms and looked at Shepard with distrust

"Care to explain?"

Shepard groaned. He knew this was going to happen

"Long story short Ashley: I died two years ago. I drifted as a piece of rock in the space until Cerberus found my body and somehow resurrected me. After this process, process that lasted almost two years and transformed me into a bionic man or something according to their top researcher, the Illusive man contacted me and told me that the Collectors were abducting entire human colonies in the Terminus system and both the Alliance and the Council were too busy moving their thumbs. He then offered me a ship and a crew in exchange of helping him deal with this menace. That is why I am here."

It was all true but Ashley still looked at him unconvinced

"I can understand that you do not want to let those people die Shepard, it fit your damn boy scout' behavior, but Cerberus!? Do you really think they care about some thousands of colonists? Have you already forgotten what we have discovered together two years ago?"

"I didn't Ash, and that is why my first reaction was telling the Illusive man to fuck off and leave me alone, but that bastard predicted this and leaked false informations about me working for Cerberus and betraying the Council. Only Anderson's protection and my previous achievements saved me from ending inside a jail. Technically I could still consign myself to the Alliance and let them open an investigation, but things like these require time, a lot of time, and in the meantime the Collectors will kidnap even more people. Cerberus was the only option and besides, I can at least keep an eye of them right now."

"I do not know Shepard. I am still unconvinced. Your ship shows a Cerberus logo, you walk with a Cerberus commando."

"Ash, I destroyed all the Cerberus logos myself, all but the one that need a complete overhaul of the ship, and about my commando?" Shepard waved at his crew

"We have Jacob, an ex Alliance marine, Zaeed, a mercenary, the thief Kasumi, Mordin is a Salarian, Grunt is a Krogan, and you already know Garrus." he pointed at every single member

"And Jack? She hates Cerberus with all her passion, and Lena is a complete mystery."

"I can see that" commented Ashley while looking at the wounded girl "Last time I saw a stunt like that, it was with my little sister while we were watching a cartoon. Still cannot believe that crazy woman is actually alive!"

"The point is, apart from Miranda, no one inside my crew is a Cerberus commando. The Illusive man is just paying the bill in exchange of something. I still do not know what is expecting to gain from all of this but I assure you that I will stop him."

"I do not know, all of this is...hard to believe Shepard." answered Ashley bluntly "Resurrections, Cerberus being reasonable. I do not know what to say."

"Then do not say anything Ash and just give me this: the benefit of the doubt." said Shepard "I know that all of this is insane but do not you remember what happened two years ago? The Thorian, Saren?"

"This is a low blow Shepard." commented Ashley

"Maybe, but remember: they called all of us insane and in the end we were the ones in the right. I ask you now to give me the chance to prove to you, the Alliance and the Council that I am not a betrayer. The Collectors are a threat and they must be stopped, along with whatever the Illusive man hope to gain from this. Only then I will go back to the alliance and submit myself to their authority."

Ashley looked at Shepard with insecure eyes and Shepard could easily see the doubt and mistrust lingering inside Ashley's eyes. In the end the girl made a decision

"Very well Shepard. I still do not trust Cerberus, but I trust you. I will go to the Alliance high command and tell them that the situation is more complicated than we expected. Let's hope that they will not discharge me for this."

"Do not worry: Hackett is harsh but not unreasonable. You will be fine."

"I hope so. Just one thing Shepard: when you decided to go to New Horizon?"

"Just this day, why?" said Shepard. Ashley looked at him with puzzled looks

"This day, then there is something wrong Shepard. The Alliance high command sent me here because one of our spies told us that one of those weeks you would have ended up on Horizon."

"But this does not make sense, I am interested in the Collector so I tend to avoid places like New Horizon. If not for this attack I would have never set foot on this planet."

"Then I suggest you to have a chat with the Illusive Man. Maybe he know more than you think."

"Oh I am sure about that, but I will follow your advice." commented Shepard

"Shepard!" someone from his squad called him. It was Garrus "We have to go: Lena need doc Chackwas's ministrations and we have to decript and analyze entire tera-bytes of data."

"Then let's depart, but first give a copy of all the datas we managed to collect to Ashley."

Ashley looked at him quizzically

"A further proof that Cerberus is only paying the bill, Ash."

"let's hope the Generals will see this that way, and thank you Shepard."

"For what?"

"For saving me a second time, and for giving me the hope that you are not with Cerberus." the girl turned toward Garrus and flashed a sad smile at him

"Garrus, make sure that this damnable wanna be hero does not kill himself once again, please. One funeral was enough."

"Cannot make any promises, but I will try Ash. Good luck out of here."

The transfer lasted only some minutes, and after that both Shepard and all his squad members were inside a shuttle moving toward the Normandy.


The mood inside the ship was ambivalent: one one hand, the enemy attack had been repelled and their omni-tools were packed to the brim with datas and informations, in the other hand 15 000 people had just been kidnapped by the Collectors and some of the squad members were wounded, Lena chief among them.

The moment they reached the Normandy Miranda and Mordin bolted toward their posts, eager to analyze the informations attained, Jacob and the rest of the squad simply went their separate ways and Lena limped toward doctor Chackwas, the same doctor that almost dropped her mug of coffee when she saw Lena's conditions.

The old doctor simply ordered Lena to follow her toward her own cabin because the infirmary was still in pieces, all while muttering something about reckless soldiers and their stupidity.

Shepard in the meantime moved immediately toward the briefing room, eager to have some answers.

"EDI, activate the pedestal. I need to speak with the Illusive Man immediately."

"Very well Shepard." was EDI's answer. A second later the pedestal was already active and Shepard lost no second in entering inside it. On the other side the Illusive Man was already here, with his unfalling cigarette resting on his lips and his enigmatic eyes brimming with satisfaction

"Shepard, you performed admirably on New Horizon. Miranda just sent me all the datas you managed to acquire; they are still in dire need of reordering and translating but my experts assure me that it will soon be done."

"Glad to know that all of this mess produced something. I have a question to you now: you are feeding the Alliance high command with false informations, am I right?"

The Illusive man took a long smoke from his cigarette before answering

"What make you think that I fed the Alliance with false informations, Shepard?"

"I just finished talking with lieutenant Ashley, my old comrade. She claim that the Alliance sent her to New Horizon because someone told them that I of all people was interested in visiting New Horizon in the near future. Now, who in the entire galaxy, barring the Shadow Broker, possess the mean, knowledge and power to infiltrate inside the Alliance headquarter a mole and use it to fed false informations I wonder? Cerberus."

Shepard crossed his arms waiting for an answer

"Well?"

"I suppose is useless lying to you Shepard. Yes, I fed the Alliance with false informations and convinced them to send lieutenant Williams to New Horizon. Apparently the Collectors are looking for your ex-teammates and I hoped that this would have spurned them into action, and so it happened."

Shepard had to suppress the urge of attacking the illusory image in front of him for a second

"Listen, you are a great schemer, but apparently know nothing about how the Alliance brass work. Losing someone like Williams would have spurned the high command into action. She is a veteran of the Saren war and a proved officer. Losing her would have forced the brass into patrolling the Terminus system with disastrous consequences for the mission. You are not a strategist so please refrain from behaving like one."

"True" conceded the Illusive Man "The action of moving lieutenant William was a dangerous one but it bore its fruits. Still I will take your advice Shepard. You are, after all, a soldier and I promise that I will not use your friends as bait anymore. Talking about something else, I have found other promising agents for your mission; specialist Chambers has already received their files. I suspect that it will take some time for the Collectors before they shall be able to travel once again, so good hunting in the meanwhile Shepard. I will inform you in case things will change."

The conversation was clearly over and Shepard simply left the pedestal. He was still angry at the Illusive Man but right now he had a job to do, so he swallowed his rage and went back to work

-At least the Alliance received the informations that now Cerberus possess.-

Shepard thought

"Specialist Chamber, send me the reports received from the Illusive Man inside my computer. Joker, stand by and ready to depart. We are done here." They both promptly answered.

-And now- Thought Shepard -Let's try to find some time for some decent sleep.-


Normandy's engineering deck. Six hours before

"I told you that the problem lie in the primary power coupling." said one voice, a male one

"You stupid idiot. The problem is in the outer valves!" said another one, this time a female one.

And so on and so on and so on. They kept going for minutes, maybe even hours and yet no one inside the engineering team complained about this. Some of them even smiled.

Kenneth Donnely and Gabriella Adams, these were their names, and they were know inside the ship as the most brilliant, loud and chaotic duo of the ship, and also future couple according to everyone. Despite the apparent temper between each other they were actually quite good friends and a great addiction for the crew, just unable to agree on anything when it come to their work. It was a marvel that the ship was still able to fly despite all of this.

Today was another normal day for the two engineers: waking up at 6 a.m. ship hour, releasing the previous shift and begin the work, all while pestering each other because of the umpteenth disagreement.

This day however, something else was about to happen.

"The valves inside your brain need some reworking Gabby! These are fine as they are."

"Excuse me." said a timid voice behind them, but no one heard it

"So are the couplings you stupid oaf. See? They are fine!"

"Excuse me." repeated the voice. Still they ignored it

"Then where do you think is the problem, oh great genius? Enlighten me!"

"EXCUSE ME!" this time the voice screamed and finally managed to catch the engineers's attention. Both the engineers turned their heads and looked at whoever was behind them, and what they saw surprised the couple. In front of them there was a child, a scared child with blonde hairs and silver eyes. Lena's child.

"Excuse me please, but it is important." whispered the girl to the engineers, clearly scared by them

"What is the matter little girl, are you lost?" asked Kenneth only to be rebuffed by Gabby

"Don't be a jerk you oaf, she is just a child! Do not mind him princess, he bark a lot but he is actually a good person at heart. Do you need something?"

"Well...yes! Uh...i do know how to say it." stammered Raina.

"Use your words princess. We do not bite I assure you."

"It is just...i overheard some people talking about you, about how good you are at your job and….because mum is always away I thought..."

"Go on" encouraged Ken

"I thought you could teach me your job." finally said Raina.

That was not what Ken and Gabby were expecting, not in the slightest. For some seconds both the engineers remained on their places, speechless. Raina, mistaking their silence for annoyance, tried to get away

"Ah, sorry, I should not have asked. I will go away."

"No no no!" Quickly said Kenneth "We are just surprised by the request."

"Yes, about that, I fear we cannot help you. You see child, we are full time engineers aboard this vessel. We cannot teach you all the basics needed while doing our job and besides, if you really want to learn some stuff then you should enroll in a school, a school packed to the brim with professors ready to teach curios younglings like you. I am sure that your mother will not block you if this is what you want."

"But I already know the basics and much, much more! I just want to see you work and maybe even give you a hand from time to time! Please! I swear I will not disturb you!"

"Child, you might know something or two about our job, but this does not mean that we can let you stay. What if there is an emergency?"

As an answer the girl looked at the panel behind the two engineers, then at the engines, lost in her thoughts. Then she spoke again

"The problem you are looking for is in the main Tantalus core feeding tubes. The element 0 you are using is not refined enough and the ship is suffering as a consequence."

This time the two engineers were not surprised, they were stupefied: a little girl no more than ten years old we had the gall to give them engineering lessons? Ludicrous, but her voice was so serious!

Gabby decided to give the girl a shot and checked the feeding tubes for the Tantalus core

"It is...true" said after controlling and re-controlling times and times again "This eez0 is of lower quality than we thought. It is damaging the system, albeit only slightly."

"Well I will be damned" commented Kenneth "How did you know this?"

"I studied engineering for two years on Omega with a young Quarian, Keen; he taught me everything he know about engines, ship systems, what powers them and how to properly maintain them. I learned a lot from him, and I am sure I can learn a lot from you too! Please, let me stay. I can help you, and if there is an emergency I will run away and not interfere during your job, I promise!"

"What kind of alloy would you use for an emergency induction port?" asked Kenneth all of a sudden

"One made of 62,1% part of Titanium, 37,9% of iridium and possibly worked with the doppler system." promptly answered Raina

"The optimal temperature for a Braxis core engine?"

"0,985 kelvin."

And so on and so on. They tested the girl for minutes with question of practical nature and Raina did not miss a single mark, something that made her feel quite proud. Ken and Gabby in exchange were looking at her as if she was some kind of strange genius.

"She is better than you during university, Gabby."

"Ah bloody ah! Idiot!"

"So am I good? Can I stay?" asked Raina eager to know. Ken and Gabby looked at her with unsure eyes: the child was good, there was no doubt about that, but she was still a child. How would have Shepard reacted if they decided to recruit her into their corp, even as a mere observer? How would have reacted the mother?

"We will talk with Shepard and your mother. If both are fine then we will allow you to come during our night shift. What do you think Gabby?"

"Fine by me."

Yes!" exulted Raina, "Thank you, I promise you will not regret it." She even embraced Gabby's legs as a thank you, something that startled the young woman and made Ken chuckle

"Not a single word with the crew, Kenneth." she half-whispered half threatened. Ken simply chuckled even louder

"Ok, enough embarrassing my poor colleague, child. Go back to your mum now, we have some work to do."

"I will, thanks for everything!" and immediately she disappeared, running toward the stairs while smiling full of joy.

Ken and Gabby tried to resume their normal shift but they discovered that they simply couldn't. They were too busy digesting what had just happened, so much that some members of the crew looked for them with worried eyes because they were not bantering. Some even asked if they were okay, or if they needed some additional rest, so strange was for the rest of the crew to not hear them bantering.

"Sooo" said Gabby after some time, trying to break this new found ice "We keep her as a mascotte or as a trainee?"

"Both, I guess."

Aaand done. Its late I know but what can I say, it took an awful lot of time writing this piece.

Still here reading this reader. Hope so.

Next step I think will be Tali recruitment mission, still not sure about it.

See ya.

P.S: the enginnering part, I pulled the numbers and names out at random