Author's note: Decided to post a little early.

Enjoy!

This was the second time in the span of five minutes that the blue drell had managed to surprise the Commander. Her eyes widened in visible shock; her lips parted but no sound came out.

She turned instinctively to her associate, trying to gauge his response. She certainly had not expected Kolyat's question, but from the sober look on Thane's face, it was apparent he knew, and he did not care for the idea. However, she had the distinct impression he was leaving this up to her, probably feeling that he had no right to insert his objections into Kolyat's decision.

After being completely absent from the boy's life for over a decade, Thane understood that there were significant boundaries he had no right to cross with his adult son. Whatever parental influence he had ever had was dead and gone.

"Thane?" Selene said after several beats had passed, many questions in her eyes.

Thane's resolved silence was answer enough.

Selene gave up trying to receive answers from the green drell, and turned towards the blue one that was staring determinedly at her.

"Why do you want to join?" she asked Kolyat with a deep sigh.

She searched his black eyes, looking for something she was not sure was there. He met her eyes unflinching, emotions unreadable. She could see the fierce determination he felt to prove himself, to be capable of joining the Normandy. All traces of the nervous boy from before were carefully swept away. Maybe the quick mastery to disguise his emotions was another quality he shared with his father.

However, Shepard would need more proof to accept him on the team. His combat skills had yet to be seen, and she would bet the entire ship that Kolyat had an obedience problem.

He paused in the wake of her question, carefully formulating a response.

"I took the assassination contract on Tallied for many wrong reasons," he began quietly, sounding out the words carefully as if he did not know the answer himself. "I believed I could prove myself, somehow . . ." he faltered, collecting his thoughts before he continued. "to myself, I suppose."

Kolyat's determined expression faltered slightly. The Commander continued to stare evenly at him, waiting for him to continue. She suspected he had not fully fleshed out the answer to this question, or the drive behind this burning determination. Without focus, that determination could dissolve and extinguish.

Kolyat continued to search inwardly for a tangible answer that would satisfy the Commander. Kolyat's gaze shifted to the people around them, each person seeming to hold their breath in anticipation.

I have nothing, he thought miserably. Just be honest.

"I am not sure why I want to join your crew, Commander. All I know is that when I took that contract, I wanted to prove myself also," he paused and averted his gaze. "To my father's memory."

A deep-rooted sense of shame welled up within Thane after Kolyat's confession. The guilt he felt over abandoning his son, allowing Kolyat to be swept away in a sea of anger and confusion, festered in the older drell's soul. There was a tangible grief within that hit him like a blow to the chest: he had left his son when he needed him, when he needed anyone, the most.

The hope he felt to mend the bond between them sharpened into a fierce determination; he would be present now. If his son wanted to embark on the deadly missions that required the Normandy crew to risk their lives constantly, he would be there for Kolyat. To watch his back, to protect him, to be a presence in his life the way he never could before.

If Kolyat would allow this much, he could die peacefully.

"I was foolish, and selfish," Kolyat continued, his resolve strengthening. Thane felt pride watching this brave man stand toe-to-toe with Selene. "If I am meant to dedicate myself to something, I want it to be something worth dying for. I want to help the galaxy; I do not wish to cause more pain in it."

Kolyat stood there, the two staring at each other in tense silence. She valued honestly above anything else; it was not every day that she found a person truthful enough to admit what they did not know. There was a part of Kolyat's struggle that spoke to something deep within her, a burning need to find a higher purpose, to discover where he belonged.

Selene knew that good soldiers lost themselves to their duty by dedicating their entire existence to the mission. Part of her knew that firsthand. However, she empathized with the part of Kolyat that felt lost, directionless and alone. With guidance, surrounded by people who could point him towards a worthy cause, she had a feeling he could become something special.

"Alright. We can try this out."

She decided she would allow him to remain in a supportive role for the crew, training with them and aiding in duties. She prayed for both Kolyat and Thane that this would allow them the time to reconnect, as well as give Kolyat the chance to decide whether he wanted to commit fully to the Normandy.

Kolyat's eyes widened in shock, lighting up with surprise and excitement. He schooled his expression into a subdued mask quickly, offering her a small smile and a deep bow instead.

Shepard nodded her head in respectful acknowledgment.

"First things first: if you want to continue with us, you need to learn to respect authority," she said bluntly. "You need to learn how to take orders, and to remain loyal to something beyond yourself."

Silently, she added that if he showed progress, she would reconsider his position and discuss making him a permanent fixture of the ground squad.

Before he could respond, she trudged on, "Can you fight?"

Kolyat paused, thrown off by her directness. He considered his rudimentary fighting experience, most of which were lessons taught in his youth. His mother had insisted on enrolling him into classes, claiming that it was important for him to know how to defend himself.

In retrospect, he wondered if her insistence came from knowing how his father's profession might disrupt their lives. He had acquired basic knowledge about shooting and military hand-to-hand combat from his uncle. He had managed to survive a few schoolyard brawls with his rudimentary skills, but that did not equate to being proficient enough to handle a real combat situation.

Instead of revealing this to Shepard and the surrounding group, Kolyat answered evasively, "I can hold my own in a fight."

Selene's eyes narrowed, spotting the deception as he averted his gaze. Noticing this, he squared his shoulders and raised his chin immediately. Attempting to appear confident in his deception. It did not work.

Kolyat was going to learn fast, and most likely the hard way, that when Selene ask for an answer, she expected transparency one hundred percent of the time; not only part of the time.

If Kolyat felt the need to pad his responses, even just slightly, he was of no use to her. Not when people's lives were on the line.

Her face brightened suddenly, shifting into a way too sweet smile. His shriveled pride noted with dread that she had sounded like this when they arrived at the docking bay.

"Great! Glad to hear it. Then, you can meet me in the cargo bay in twenty minutes so I can . . . evaluate your skills."

"But," his face fell, panic settling in. "There is no way I can beat you."

"I didn't say you had to beat me," she smiled, striding past him. "Actually, I fully intend for you not to beat me. This is just an evaluation of your skills. You said you could hold your own. Well, you should be able to survive a short eval. Right?"

Thane and Kolyat watched with worried eyes as Shepard continued down the hall, looking completely unfazed. She called over her shoulder to Thane before reaching the galaxy map, "You should get your kid some sparing gear. I fully expect him to put in a good showing."

She disappeared through the elevator doors, presumably to get ready herself.

"Come on," his father said in a grave tone. Thane looked him over as if he were already thinking about how much pain his son was about to experience in a moment. "I believe you will fit into my sparring clothes."

Kolyat cast a worried glance around the room, seeking solace in one of the unfamiliar faces around him. The pilot, Joker, simply looked amused. The other female human looked on at him with large, concerned eyes. She gave him a sympathetic smile when their eyes met.

Thane placed a consoling hand on his son's shoulder and turned to the unnamed turian. "Garrus," Thane called to him. "Will you help me prepare Kolyat for Shepard's test?"

Garrus nodded kindly and followed Thane and Kolyat down the hall of the CIC.

"Come on kid," Garrus spoke from his chest, his sub harmonics conveying empathy. "We'll get you ready. All Shepard wants is a good showing. With luck, she will only hurt your pride."

Garrus paused, considering his next words carefully, and ramping up Kolyat's anxiety in the process. Garrus considering telling the kid that the likelihood of Selene stopping at just embarrassing him was as likely as him declaring his undying love for Grunt.

"Uh, maybe we should get you a mouth guard. Just in case," Garrus cleared his throat gruffly.

Kolyat wondered with trepidation what he had gotten himself into, as he climbed into the elevator between the two older men.

As the trio disappeared from the CIC, Joker and Kelly shared conspiring glances. Both silently debated the wisdom of their shared idea.

They both came to the same conclusion simultaneously.

"I'll message engineering?" Kelly offered.

"I got the crew deck and the CIC." Joker agreed.

The two rushed off to complete their tasks. Five minutes ticked by before the entirety of the ship's crew made a mad rush for the cargo bay.

Almost everyone was eager to watch the Commander give her "evaluation" of the new crew member.

Twenty minutes later, Selene made her way down to the cargo bay.

She rocked back and froth on the balls of her feet as she waited for the elevator to stop. The doors slid open and she halted before the massive crowd gathered in the hallway.

It appeared everyone from engineering, and a few members from the CIC, were pressed against the windows that revealed the cargo bay below. The chatter in the hall was loud, and no one seemed to notice their Commander standing amongst them

Selene attempted to clear her throat to get everyone's attention. She scowled when her attempt clearly failed.

She placed two fingers in her mouth, and released a sharp whistle that made everyone in the group jump. A startled silence washed over the crowd, and several members with previous military service fell into parade rest or a salute.

"What the hell is going on here?" Selene demanded.

A brave communications specialist from the CIC, Shepard thought her name was Terry, spoke up.

"Commander Shepard! We received Joker's message about a new crew member joining the Normandy," she barked in clipped tones, her salute never wavering. "We were all curious about his evaluation, ma'am."

A low growl built in the back of her throat, and she rolled her eyes at the mention of Joker.

Of course, he had taken it upon himself to inform the entire ship about her little training exercise. She was willing to bet Kelly had taken part in this gathering also.

Shepard almost took a gleeful satisfaction in the two weeks of custodian duty they would face after this display.

"Stay alert. Stay sharp," she ordered, instead of returning the crew to their duties.

The ship was still in dry dock, after all.

As the crowd parted for her, some crew members gave a whoop of encouraging cheers as she passed by. A few were brave enough to slap her on the back, but she rolled her eyes and allowed them their fun.

As Shepard descended the stairs into the cargo bay, she could tell the group gathered down below was just as large as the group in the hall. When she reached the bottom, she made her way into the training circle.

Selene noticed that the majority of the group gathered in the cargo bay was her ground team. All twelve of the squad members were clustered around the space, with a few support staff scattered among them.

Selene located Kelly chatting with Tali and Kasumi at a table furthest from her. When Joker registered the Commander's presence, he nudged Kelly's arm. As she approached, narrowing her eyes, he tried harder to get Kelly's attention.

By the time the red head had caught on to what Joker was trying to do, Shepard had already reached the group. Everyone looked up at her, a mix of anticipation, fear, and admiration reflected in their separate faces.

"I'll be dealing with you both later," Selene peered between the two of them, an ominous promise hidden behind a lazy smile. The group around them erupted into laughter as Kelly and Joker winced.

She turned and removed the shirt she was wearing, revealing a standard sports bra underneath. As the Commander set her shirt, her necklace and a ring down on the table, the chatter around the makeshift seating area resumed.

Joker recovered first out of the nervous pair that had arranged for the impromptu audience, and he smirked as Selene began to stretch. "Eh, it will be worth it to watch you kick the kid's ass," he shrugged.

Shepard strode towards the circle, pulling on her sparring gloves as she went. Thane, Kolyat and Garrus were already waiting for her in the middle.

Kolyat stood there with a set of fresh loose-fitting pants, sparring gloves, head gear, and a mouth guard. The blue drell's chest and feet were bare.

She noted that the choice to remove his shirt was likely a calculated decision made by Thane, as it limited the chances of Shepard being able to get ahold of him. It was intelligent, but it would not help Kolyat if he was lacking in speed and endurance.

The absence of Kolyat's shirt revealed a twin set of ribbing along the sides of his torso, the same magenta color as his neck. The lines curved inward over the V-shape of his hips and disappeared into his black pants. Shepard had learned long ago from her time training with Thane that the soft skin folds were a particularly vulnerable spot for drell.

The white bandage on his left bicep also stood out against his dark completion.

Kolyat's eyes followed the Commander as she neared them, her eyes sweeping across his body as if she were making a mental checklist. It was unnerving how sharp and calculating her eyes were, as if nothing went unnoticed by her.

His nerves skyrocketed as she moved closer, the unnatural glow of her orange scars pulsed under the fluorescent lights. His father had explained to him that the glow was caused by the cybernetics that were still repairing damaged skin from the project that had resurrected her.

Garrus had warned him not to take the scars as a sign of weakness; Shepard was as healthy and dangerous as ever. Kolyat had no trouble believing him.

Thane's last-minute instructions fell on deaf ears as Kolyat surveyed the Commander. He noticed that she was only wearing a pair of black fingerless sparing gloves, lose-fitting shorts, and a chest binding. Those same orange scars created a large X across the left side of her ribs, disappearing under the binding around her chest.

A webbing of orange stretched over the top of her right thigh, dipping underneath her shorts and crawled out of the bottom all the way to the top of her knee cap. Her arms and feet were marked with shallower scars beneath her brown skin.

She was genuinely more intimidating than a woman her size had the right to be.

He could not help but take in the waves of black and gray ink that flowed down her right arm. An unfamiliar tattoo design coincided with the orange scars along the left side of her rib cage. Both of her legs were almost completely covered in ink, bits of smooth skin peeking through the artistry.

He would be lying if he said he was not intrigued.

Kolyat could not tear his eyes from the Commander.

Garrus and his father took notice, and turian gave Kolyat a firm slap on the back of the head. Kolyat was startled out of his thoughts as he rubbed at headache forming. His attention returned sheepishly to the two men trying to give him last minute advice.

"Staring at her isn't going to save you from the beating she is about to give you, kid," Garrus remarked.

"She is as fast as she is powerful," Thane told him seriously, their gazes firmly locked. "She has years of military training and combat experience that most people could only dream of. Shepard is also incredibly intelligent; she knows exactly how to exploit weaknesses."

His father's eyes fixed Kolyat with a serious stare, attempting to convey how skilled the small woman across from them really was. The next few moments were not going to be pleasant for his son.

"You are going to lose this battle," Thane continued, not even trying to hide the cold, hard truth. "This is meant as a lesson, and a test of your skills."

Here Kolayt had assumed this was a punishment for lying, rather than a lesson.

"Are you ready?" Thane asked, a heavy hand on his shoulder. He resisted the urge to shake it off, instead focusing on the turian.

"Yes."

Both men gave Kolyat an encouraging look and ducked out of the training circle. He watched as Garrus and Thane joined the group behind the Commander. A loud cheer erupted from the large crowd gathered, the floor beneath them vibrated as they pounded on tables and cargo crates, the walls and the floor.

Selene and Kolyat were officially alone in the ring.

The Commander moved closer to the center, deciding in that moment, under her heavy stare, that Kolyat was certainly not a coward.

Her calm voiced carried over the heavy din, "Are you ready?"

Kolyat could not hide his nervousness, but he nodded and shifted into a weak defensive stance regardless.

"Yes," Kolyat answered, the deep vibration of his voice sounding calmer then she expected.

"Good."

Shepard lifted a hand to the group behind her, taking a step back from the center.

"Jack, count it out!" she called, never breaking eye contact with her opponent.

"One," the biotic began.

Both opponents remained frozen in place.

"Two."

Kolyat's heart pounded, his mind racing through his limited inventory of fighting techniques and lessons that he had learned over the years.

"Three."

Shepard flexed her fingers, the squeaking of the leather over the growing silence of anticipation ramping up his blood pressure. Taking a deep breath, he stared her down. Selene recognized the determination in his stare.

"Fight!"

Author's note: I am sure some of you noticed, but I took some creative liberties with the layout of the Normandy. Now there are stairs to the cargo bay accessible from the engineering floor.

Hope you enjoy!