Commander John Shepard
Curiously, TIM wanted to greet Mordin personally. Had some information for him. So, when the Professor arrived in the Normandy, I escorted him to the briefing room behind the elevator on CIC. Afterall, I was curious what this news was myself, and it's a decent enough place to explain the situation to Mordin anyway. The Salarian was clearly taking in everything, memorizing it perfectly, analyzing whatever he could. Wonder what gears were turning inside that head. The briefing room was all white and very clean. A table in the center with a hologram of the Normandy in the center. The table began descending as Mordin and I entered, with Jacob having decided to tag along as we had passed through the armory. He stood in the corner of the room, leaning against the wall while the table descended to the floor, the lights going dark. All replaced with an image of TIM's office. He took a drag of his cigarette.
"Professor Solus. I'm glad to see you accepted the offer to work with us."
"Collectors created plague in Gozu district. Killed many. Dangerous. Glad to help stop them."
"I see. Has Shepard told you the stakes, yet?"
"I was going to after this," I shrugged.
"While no doubt telling stories about my organization," TIM eyed me. Yeah, figured he knew about that. I just gave him the finger, my face stone. He took another drag of his cigarette, and let loose a breath, blowing plenty of smoke through his nose. "The reason your name was on one of our dossiers, Professor, is that we know the Collectors have a way of incapacitating an entire colony. Whether by stasis or a nerve agent, we don't know just yet. But we do know how it is administered. In the latest abduction site, one of the Collector's seeker drones was left behind. We acquired it, and it is being delivered to your location. Can you examine it and find a countermeasure?"
"Of course. Interesting challenge. Will make top priority of my other experiments," Mordin answered. TIM nodded.
"Good. The drone will arrive at Omega by tomorrow morning." The others will finish the briefing." The visual of his office faded, the lights came back up, and the table rose again.
"Collectors must be getting sloppy," I mused.
"Speaking of Collectors, what exactly are they doing?"
"Kidnapping entire colonies. The entire planet's worth of colonists. Currently, they're targeting only human colonies. Not sure why yet."
"I see," Mordin began scratching his chin. "Distressing. Stopping them, worthy cause. Back in clinic, mentioned puppet masters?"
"A race of ancient AI called the Reapers. Sovereign was one of them. The massive dreadnaught that attacked the Citadel."
"Concurs with STG reports on Virmire. And Dr. T'Soni's research."
"You read Liara's work?" I asked, surprise.
"Indeed. Light reading for boring weekend. Interesting thesis. True or not, never hurts to prepare."
"Then welcome aboard, Professor. Honor to be working with you," Jacob offered a handshake, which Mordin accepted.
"Yes, very exciting. Collectors changing methods. Cerberus working with Aliens. Both unexpected. Illusive man branching out maybe? Not so human-centric?" I barked a short laugh and smirked.
"Sure as hell wouldn't say that. Just some extenuating circumstances. They're still the same pricks with a superiority complex they have been. But those on board aren't quite so aware of that."
"Understood. When specimen arrives, will require lab."
"There is a fully equipped lab on the CIC, just to the starboard side of the ship. If you find anything lacking, please place a requisition order, and it will be provided," EDI informed, her hologram not appearing just yet. Mordin was, comedically, though likely not intended as such, glancing around, searching for the source of the voice.
"Who's that? Pilot? No, synthesized voice, feminine, pilot male. Simulated emotional inflections. Could it be… no. Maybe. Have to ask. Is that an AI?" Mordin asked, surprised, but not… fearful? No sign of a negative response. I chuckled.
"Damn, nothing gets past you. Yeah, that's an AI alright. Surprised me, too."
"An AI on board? Non-human crew members? Cerberus more desperate than I thought," Mordin hummed. "Will examine lab. Remove bugs and see if equipment is adequate." He turned on a dime right out the door. Doesn't even have to see a bug first, knows they're there. I'm still surprised that a scan of my quarters confirmed that the only amount of surveillance was the vitals monitor in EDI's panel. Jacob, chuckling, took his leave back to the armory. And I got curious.
"EDI, how is it that we can contact TIM so quickly?"
"The Normandy is fitted with a Quantum Entanglement Communicator linked to the Illusive Man's office. Allowing instantaneous, lag-free communication even when off the comm grid, and in FTL."
"Surprise surprise," I whistled. "Should have expected QEC, but didn't think we had the tech yet," I murmured. "So, while the ship is on my mind, tell me about her. The drive core. What's different about that?"
"The Tantalus drive core has seen many smaller improvements since the latest iteration. Such as speed and efficiency, as well as a stronger power supply. The most notable improvement, however, is that now the Normandy is able to remain cloaked when entering and exiting FTL speeds."
"Very nice. Very nice indeed…" I nodded. "Shields and armor?"
"The kinetic barriers are standard for that of a ship this size, however, this is because of the limitations of Kinetic Barrier technology. As for armor, the Normandy utilizes a recent Asari development known as Silaris armor. It is made with carbon nanotube sheets that have been woven with diamond chemical vapor deposition, and crushed by mass effect fields into super-dense layers that can withstand extreme temperatures while compensating for diamond's brittleness."
"Nice, nice. So, I already know of the weapons, anything else I should know about?"
"There are no further unique upgrades to the ship, Commander."
"Sounds good, thanks." I decided to exit through the armor to give Mordin the time he needs.
"So, the professor is certainly, interesting," Jacob chuckled.
"I haven't worked with many Salarians in the past, but, yeah, none of them talked as fast as him," I remarked, deciding I'd try and talk to the man instead of just leaving. He noticed I was staying, and took that as his cue.
"So, I haven't gotten the chance yet, but I wanted to say that I'm proud and honored to be part of your crew. Doing something that matters."
"Might not be so eager if we end up like the last one."
"Maybe, but I think everyone involved plans to bring their best into this. Not saying the first one didn't, it just helps our odds is all." I just nodded and thought of a good subject change.
"So, what have you done for Cerberus? Before Lazarus, I mean."
"Technically? Lazarus was my first job officially working for them. But not my first run-ins. I left the Alliance after Eden Prime, having survived it. No, I didn't know Williams. But keeping long stories short, I met Miranda soon after. Think that was my first scouting. Took us to the Nemean abyss and back. Saved the Citadel from a Batarian bio-weapon. Got hushed real quick. Just like you," Jacob explained. Hm, certainly didn't hear about this. But I could check, and I don't think he wants to lie. "Basically, like pissing in black pants. Feels warm, no one notices. Next, I was drinking away after the Geth attack, and Miranda got me to help on another op. The more official scouting, I suppose. That was actually helping her try to find you. Turned into a small fiasco with slavers, but ended with us freeing a group and ending a slaver ring."
"Huh. Figured someone with your rank here would have had more time," I remarked.
"Probably Miranda's good word. And reports," Jacob shrugged. "If she's one of TIM's top operatives, whoever she scouts out wouldn't be put to grunt work."
"True."
EDI chimed.
"Commander, Doctor Chakwas is asking that you come to see her. She says, 'we keep forgetting to talk about something.'"
"Ah, right. Should probably go take care of those things," I murmured. I think one of them is the scars, but the other… my mother. That is… I have no idea how that's going to turn out. I wasted no time in getting to the medical bay, and Chakwas was at her desk, waiting.
"Scars first? Or your mother?" she asked.
"Scars first. Definitely scars."
"Let me get a look at them," she stood and grabbed me by the chin, turning my head, and studying the marks. They hadn't been burning since I woke up. Though I know they're still there. "Strange. Very strange indeed," she murmured to herself.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, actually. They're looking better. I don't know if you noticed, but when you first arrived on board, they were… flaring. Signs of adverse reactions to the implants. Not lethal, and mayhaps not even uncomfortable, but, very visible. But, since Garrus has been on board, and you've been in a better mood, they seem to be healing."
"Doc, you can't be suggesting that I just have to think happy thoughts to get rid of these scars. If they looked good, I'd consider keeping them, but the fact that they're a bit orange? I'd rather not keep them." Chakwas scoffed.
"While it seems that would work to help them heal, I understand life. And more importantly, I understand you. Part of life is the variety of emotions we have. No matter how hard you try, no one will always be able to have a positive outlook. Especially not in our line of work. Not while you're working with Cerberus. Not with what lies ahead. You died, you can't just smile and walk that off. Your death hurt people and I know you're already blaming yourself for it. If I were to recommend you heal these physical scars by never feeling angry, upset, depressed, I'd be condemning you. If you were to try, you would eventually break. And the outcome of that would be far worse than a few scars. No, absolutely not. Instead, a minor surgery will insulate these implants and accelerate the healing regardless." Well. She has me pegged. I took a deep breath and moved to lean against one of the medical beds, my hands propping myself up on it.
"You pull no punches, doc," I murmured.
"It's the benefit of knowing you since birth, but not having the rose tinted glasses of a parent," she chuckled. "Then again, I think if pressed, your mother would have been just as truthful."
"Sure you don't mean harsh?" I teased, in part to make myself feel better.
"Harsh my ass," she murmured. "I'm willing and able to do the procedure whenever. Perhaps during the trip to the Citadel? I'm sure you'll want to look nice for David and the Council." Anderson… damn, I'm sure my death hit him as hard as it did mom… and Tali.
"Sounds like a plan."
"Now. Your mother. You told me you wanted to talk about contacting her."
"Yeah," I scratched the back of my neck. "It definitely needs to happen before we reach the Citadel. No one's going to listen to claims of me being alive again if it comes from Omega. Probably a few freaks out there who took surgery to look like me. But, uh, I want to give her a choice. I just don't want to hurt her a second time." Chakwas was quiet for a moment.
"I can't say I don't see where you're coming from. But what I'm hearing so far is that you still wish to contact her?"
"Yeah. I thought maybe you could send a vague message. Something about asking her if she'd want a lost loved one back in her life if only to potentially lose them again shortly after. Depending on the response, ask her to call the ship within the next twenty-four hours have EDI route it to me. Or, if we miss one another, reschedule. If she wouldn't, then I'll do everything I can to hide on the Citadel. Keep me on the down-low."
"Yes…" Chakwas murmured. "I can do that."
"Thanks, Doc. Thanks."
"No need, you know that. Hm, times like these I wish I still had my private reserves?"
"Oh?"
"From the original Normandy. Even had a bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy I had been saving for a special occasion. Ah well, I suppose I can always get another when this is done," she mused. Ah, there's an idea.
"Maybe," I shrugged. "Well, we'll be staying here for another day, so I think Garrus and I should go get some clothes."
"Yes, you won't want to be wearing the same two pairs of clothes when Tali arrives," she teased.
"Would that be so bad? She wears the same one every day," I retorted.
"But hers has built-in sanitation," Chakwas chuckled.
"Semantics," I remarked. "See ya, Doc." She just gave me a nod, and I made my way to the gun battery. "Garrus," I began as the door opened. Then stopped, Garrus was in the middle of a call, judging as he was in the process of talking already.
"Uh, just a moment, Shepard. Yeah, I'm back with him. He's back again. And uh, I'm… sorry I didn't call sooner. I spent most of today in the field and yesterday, well, either recovering or forgetting." Garrus paused a moment. Listening. "I'm sorry, dad. I can't. Not just yet. Shepard needs me. And, well, it's something big." Another moment. "Yeah, I promise to explain if I make it back. And… tell Sol I miss her, alright? Thanks. Bye, dad." The call ended. I walked in at a bad time. He took a deep breath.
"Sorry, you had to hear that, Shepard."
"You know I'd be more than happy to go to Palaven, let you see them," I offered.
"You don't need to worry about it," Garrus tried to reassure. "It's my family, my choices, my mistakes."
"And as your friend, I want to help you through them," I pushed.
"Can we just, not, Shepard? Not right now, please," he pleaded. A defeated look in his eyes. I released a deep breath.
"Alright, I'll drop it for now."
"Thanks. So, what did you need?"
"Was just coming to get you to head out, get some real clothes. We can stop in Afterlife when we're done."
"Sounds perfect right now. I know the markets right by Afterlife are decent. Go there?"
"Lead the way. We'll grab shields and a pistol."
"Hm, never go anywhere without them. Especially here," Garrus managed a chuckle.
"Then let's go." We made our way to the elevators, and during the trip, I sent a quick message to Tali. Just letting her know we'd be staying put for a day. She can, of course, fill in the blank that that's time to leak her mission to me. We got what we needed from the armory, and disembarked the ship. Garrus leading me through the streets of Omega. Crowds of people from every species but Quarian, Drell, and Vorcha. The latter just because they're probably crawling through ducts or trash cans. And more than a few hookers calling out for… business.
Eventually, we reached the markets. Stalls and vendors lining the sides of what was basically a large bazaar. The higher end ones sporting some Krogan guards. There was also the smell of various foods being served. Some were familiar, hinting at human foods, others less so. Ranging from still being pleasant, to anything but. And a few looking like little more than just fried vermin. Or just mystery meat.
"There, that vendor's not black market. He's legit," Garrus pointed to a larger vendor who had himself a storefront, a back room, and even an aide. I could tell who the owner was, as Garrus was pointing right at him. A Batarian. Well, might as well. He saw us approach and didn't bat a single one of his four eyes.
"Human. Should have something for you. Now sure how much, but something. Should have more for your Turian friend."
"Caught you low on stock?"
"Me? Never. Thing is, I don't get many Human customers. Most Batarians they see here are Blue Suns. They're just skeptical that I won't press them for protection money," the Batarian shrugged. "Name's Marsh. You?"
"Sh-" I stopped myself. Let's not use the last name. "John."
"Garrus."
"Good to meet you both. Feel free to browse with your eyes there, but I've got a lot in the back. Here," he typed on his Omni-tool, and a display popped up on mine. Asking if I wanted to view the store's catalog. "Full list of everything I've got, and the price. You can make your payments there, and I can answer any questions, grab what you buy for you." I started browsing. Out of curiosity, I took a look at the armaments he had.
"Decent equipment you've got. Merc surplus?"
"No. Actually, have an old friend who got signed on by Elanus Risk Control. He's important enough that I can place some orders from time to time. At a deal too. Looking for recommendations?"
"I was just curious. My friend and I are not in need of weapons right now," I flashed my Phalanx at my hip. Not to threaten, just to show."
"Ah, a Phalanx. You military?"
"Grew up on the Citadel together. Still talked when he went off to boot camp and I enlisted. We had shore leave together, I thought we'd have some fun on Omega this time," I made up.
"Fun's definitely something you'll find here. Depending on your definition," Marsh chuckled. Man, this is the friendliest Batarian I've ever met. Garrus began chuckling.
"I see something perfect for Joker." He pointed to a shelf with magazines. My eyes followed his talon.
"Shit," I laughed. "I mean, I guess he deserves it."
"It's coming out of your credits," Garrus warned. I took a closer look.
"It's four credits and I'm getting sickeningly curious as to how he'll react. Fuck it." Marsh, smirking, retrieved the magazine and set it down. Causing Garrus and I to both burst into laughter. A Hanar that looked like it was trying to strike a sexy pose. Its underside facing forward, some of its tentacles behind the top of its… head? "Draw me like one of your French jellies." We continued browsing and found a few clothes that we could take. We only took ones that were plain. Not trashy shirts with half-naked Asari, or decals for some show or game we know nothing about. And I picked up a ship model too. If I have the displays, I might as well waste some time with it. We made the purchase and arranged for it all to be delivered to our ship. Only a small additional fee.
We left Marsh to his business and continued moving through the bazaar. To my surprise, I spotted a Quarian with a small stall, selling… salvage. Kenn's salvage. He was working on cutting some metals as he, unfortunately, was not getting much business.
"What's he doing here?" I muttered under my breath. I went over to take a look. Garrus following. When we arrived at his counter, he did a double take, noticing he had potential customers.
"Oh! Hello there. Any chance I could interest you in salvaged tech? Each credit goes toward my ticket off this Ancestor's forsaken rock." He was young. Has to be a pilgrim.
"You a pilgrim?" That question took him by surprise.
"You know about it? Yes. Yes, I am."
"Then what got you stuck here?"
"What credits I had got stolen within a few days. Decided to sell salvaged parts, but Harrot, another merchant, is forcing me to sell high. Can't afford a ticket like this." I gave Garrus a look.
"I see we're saving another Pilgrim, Shepard," he chuckled. Kenn tilted his head to the side.
"That name… sounds familiar."
"Commander Shepard. Tali'Zorah served on my crew during her pilgrimage," I explained. His glowing eyes went wide.
"Keelah, I didn't even know! I'm so sorry!"
"Don't worry about it," I reassured. "Look. I'm willing to do two things. First, pay for your ticket, right here, right now."
"I-I'm sorry, I can't just let you do that. It's-It's my mistake on my pilgrimage."
"Thought so. Then, a second option, but first, a question. If you're selling salvaged tech, I assume you have engineer training?"
"Yes, I worked engineering on my birth-ship."
"Then how'd you like to work engineering on mine? I'm sure you'd find a worthy gift out there."
"I-I'd be honored, sir!"
"No need for that, Kenn. But, I do need to warn you about one thing. Something unsavory. If you accept the offer, while you will not be working for them, you'll be working for me, you will be working alongside Cerberus."
"That is… unexpected," Kenn shuffled his feet.
"I understand completely. If it matters at all, I've learned that few are through and through loyalists. Plenty of the crew are new to the organization who joined only because right now, whole Human colonies are disappearing. That's what I'm up against. If you accept, you'll be working safe and sound in engineering. The two other engineers are good people and tossed aside their Cerberus logo once they learned what the organization has done," I explained.
"I haven't had any problems on board so far, Kenn. And I'd figure most of Cerberus hates Turians for Shanxi," Garrus shrugged. "Oh, and I don't think you'll be the only Quarian on board for long."
"Well… I suppose anything's better than Omega."
"You sure? I'd still be more than happy to just drop you off somewhere friendlier. And I'll be willing to let you go whenever you want. Wait, shit, forgot one last detail. There is a heavily shackled AI on board. Cerberus installed it before I even knew the ship existed. So far EDI's been friendly enough. All she does is monitor the crew."
"Keelah. This is… very, very strange," Kenn murmured. "But… I suppose I'll give it a shot."
"Great to hear. Now, what was it they needed again?" I hummed as I checked my Omni-tool. "Right. Any chance you got some T6-FBA couplings from NSD?"
"I do. A pristine set I found a few days ago. I'll bring them to the ship."
"Good. Go home, get your things together, and go here," I transferred docking information to his Omni-tool. "Garrus and I are going to be out and about a bit longer, so head there in a few hours, I'll get you situated."
"Thank you, Commander. I'll get the couplings and head home right away."
"See you there, kid." I turned to Garrus. "Afterlife?"
"Afterlife."
We wasted no time in making our way to the club, then took seats at one of the many bars. This one tended by a Turian. Hm, how to start talking to Garrus about what happened… I think I have a way to get to it. We got our drinks, and both took a swig.
"So, how different was living out here from what you expected."
"Hm… the firepower, maybe."
"How's that?"
"I thought I saw every kind of weapon in the galaxy during our campaign against Saren. I mean, plasma weaponry, Sovereign's gun? Nothing can beat those. But I was surprised out here. The amount of unconventional weaponry. Scrap metals and old mass effect accelerators combined together to just shoot rusty old nails. And it does it effectively. Or shooting sawblades. I mean, just, why? You know? What crazy bastard thinks of that?"
"My money's on Krogan."
"Probably right," Garrus chuckled. "Then Cerberus rebuilds you and the Normandy, both with a few upgrades. Maybe we should have joined up sooner," he tried to joke. It didn't land. He noticed. "Sorry. Just trying to help lighten it."
"I know, I know. Just, you know that feeling when you just know you're about to be ambushed at any moment? That tense, nerve-wracking feeling? Yeah, that's how I feel whenever I put even the slightest thought into them."
"Yeah. I know what you mean," Garrus murmured, taking another swig. "Not like I can doubt your judgment. Not after getting my own squad killed."
"Squad?"
"Wasn't it in the dossier they had on me? Not all the bodies you saw in that hideout were mercs and freelancers." I can't start telling him it's not his fault. He'll brush it right off because I haven't heard the whole story yet. Chances are if he brushes it off the first time because of that, once I have heard it, and say it again, he'll just brush it off again as just ignoring what he said.
"So… you made your way here after being fed up with more red tape?"
"Yeah. No red tape here, and to find a criminal, I just point my gun and shoot. People here needed someone to believe in."
"How'd you find your squad?"
"Not too different than how you did, actually. Prove you get things done, people join up. Everyone in my squad had lost someone to Omega. They followed me to make sure no one else would."
"And you were all vigilantes, taking down criminals."
"Right. No civilian casualties, just the criminals. They have a hostage, we save the hostage. Like you taught me." There's a hint in there. Think I have an idea, but let's try to piece more together first.
"Tell me about them." Now, a faint, ghost of a smile. "There were twelve of us. Former military operatives, C-Sec agents, the usual. Our demolitions expert was Salarian. And I'm certain he was STG. Tech was a Batarian, surprisingly. Not the friendliest, but a damn impressive hacker. Wonder if he could give Tali a run for her credits."
"And then?" Garrus sighed. He knew what I meant with that.
"And then I got them all killed. Really showed em all what I knew. We were betrayed. A Turian named Sidonis. The first one to join me, actually. He had been gone a few days before the attack, then called me for a meet up on a lead. I got there, found absolutely nothing. By the time I got back, all but two of my squad were dead. They didn't last long." Garrus then downed the rest of his drink, slamming the empty glass back down. "Everyone except me is dead because of him. Because I didn't see it coming."
"You sure he sold you out?"
"Absolutely. I put out feelers with some contacts I still have. He booked transport and emptied his accounts just before the attack. His trail vanishes just after he left. But I'll keep hunting. I lost my whole team except for him. One day, I'll find him. And I'll correct that," Garrus muttered with cold, quiet fury. It's reminding me of Dr. Saleon. Though, this is clearly far more personal.
"It's not your fault, you know." Garrus just signaled for a refill and took a swig. "The only people who count on their friends betraying them, are the people who don't have any friends."
"So much of it was off, Shepard. A new meeting place? Come alone? Why wouldn't he just go to the hideout?"
"Have you ever heard of the hindsight bias? The only thing that makes any of that suspicious, at least for a vigilante group, is when you already know the end result. If he didn't want to go to the hideout, maybe he thought he was being tailed. Wanted you to come alone? Again, being tailed, and maybe fear of an ambush. If I was in your shoes, I'd have made the same exact decisions." Garrus scoffed. "I'm serious." I put a hand on his shoulder. "You know I blamed myself for Akuze?"
"How could you have known it was a massive thresher nest? You were following a distress beacon."
"Yet I ordered my men to cross an open desert field because there could have been slavers around the beacon. Bringing them right over the thresher nest. Took me a long time to accept that I did everything I was supposed to do when approaching a potentially compromised distress beacon. To accept that it was the Threshers. Now, Cerberus. It's not easy, I know. Just, I'm here for you. Alright?" I patted his shoulder. Garrus turned his head, looking at me.
"Thanks, Shepard." He downed the rest of his drink. "There's… one last thing I want to do before we leave."
"Name it."
"I want to bury my men."