A second fist was sent flying through the air; this one had every bit of intent on hitting home. When that fist was equally caught in an iron grip all Echo could do was growl again, he was truly furious over this. This man in front of him could perhaps even be called something akin to a brother but their strange relationship was also built on the fact that they only met perhaps two or three times a year and then tried to kill each other.
"For lotus sake, Echo calm down!" yelled Karick
"I'll calm down when you tell me how the hell you got here!" yelled Echo in return
"I'll tell you, just come with me back to base and I will try and explain everything" said Karick calmly
Echo gazed over Karick for a good long while before the pleading in his golden irises caused Echo to stop fighting and calm down himself. Karick released his fists and padded him on the shoulder
"I am sorry I vanished, my friend, but I had no choice in the matter" said Karick
"No… no I suppose you didn't" answered Echo with a knowing voice
Karick just nodded and gestured towards a nearby private landing pad. The two old friends quickly made their way over and into the skycar waiting for them, once they had taken off Karick began speeding towards one of the lowest level in the wards.
"I can't believe you're still alive, Karick…" mumbled Echo
"It is a strange tale my friend I will agree. Tell me, how did everyone react when I disappeared?" asked Karick with a smile
Echo just snorted "Lotus damn near held a party when we suddenly realized you hadn't been seen for ten years. Then after thirty years everyone agreed you were dead and someone actually did throw a party"
"Did you go?" asked Karick amused
"I couldn't get myself to, as much as I hate you for killing so many of my brothers and sisters you were still my best friend at the time, I simply couldn't celebrate your death" replied Echo
Karick got a somber look on his face before nodding "Thank you…"
The rest of the trip was spent in absolute silence as neither of the two men wanted to have their conversation inside a skycar. Once they touched down on a private landing pad next to a large warehouse that seemed reinforced Echo quickly took in every possible escape route and was somehow relieved to find none, once you enter you only leave when Karick wants you to.
Once they stepped inside the sounds of four sets of feet could be heard running towards them, Echo noticed that Karick didn't react so he chose not to either. Soon enough four individuals was standing in front of him, the young woman named Marie from earlier, a set of what looked like twins with blue dyed hair and light skin and a large bulky fellow that was shaved bald with a skin tone that looked like he had taken just a bit too much sun.
"Marie, Morth, Korth, Boris, meet Echo" said Karick while gesturing towards Echo
"Echo, meet Marie, Morth, Korth and Boris, my four students" repeated Karick now with a gesture to the four
Echo gave them all a quick one over; none of them beside the woman seemed to be that impressive. Sure the Boris fellow looked huge as hell but his muscles betrayed the fact that they were more for show than actual use. The pair of twins, or so Echo suspected, seemed to be decently trained but it was also painfully obvious from their stances that they still hadn't learnt to be cautious around other since Echo could see at least seven openings on either twin that allowed him a killing blow.
"But Master he is that strange guy that stopped me earlier" said Marie confused
"He is an old friend of mine Marie and my guest, you will treat him as such" replied Karick
"I do not see what could interest you Master, he looks weak" commented Boris
"Lower left jugular, primary artery, primary tendons on upper left arm…heart" said Echo in a robotic voice
"That, Boris, was the current four easiest targets to either kill or incapacitate you. Make no mistake, Echo here could kill all four you on his own" said Karick with an evil smirk
Boris suddenly felt very scared, a chill was running down his spine from just looking at the weird man that his Master had brought with him, something about him didn't seem right, it was the same feeling he got around his Master when they were sparring.
"Marie, go practice your stances. Morth, Korth you two will practice perception. Boris you will do your usual routine" ordered Karick
A chorus of "Yes Master" was followed by the four individuals leaving the two men alone. Karick then gestured for Echo to follow him and lead him through a door that led into a large room that was furnished and built to look like an Orokin Tower hall. Echo's eyes quickly saw the red and black armor that was sticking out like a sore thumb in this white room, even offline that armor still gave him chills.
"Even standing there, inactive and unmoving, your armor still makes me fear for my life, old friend" said Echo
"Then I did what I did well. Did we ever talk about why I became like I did?" asked Karick
"No, during our fights it was usually just talks about either myself or what the Tenno was currently doing" replied Echo
"I see, I see. Then perchance we shall wait a bit longer before I divulge my biggest secret. Oh and do you mind me calling you Marc?" inquired Karick which Marc replied with a shake of the head
"Have a seat my friend, we have much to talk about and I believe some of it will be vital for one of us" said Karick
Marc quickly went over and took a seat across from his old friend, when he was offered a drink he simply requested water which prompted Karick to joke that he never was much for a drink.
"Then perhaps we should begin with business rather than personal inquires?" asked Karick to which Echo nodded
"Then let me start us off. We have both by now obviously realized that this is not our world, from the way you talk I can only assume you were not moved by your choice either?" asked Karick
"Indeed. I however have a suspicion that you got way more choice than I ever did" replied Marc
Karick adapted a thoughtful expression as he mulled over some facts in his head "You never met one of them did you?" asked Karick now incredibly serious
"Them?" was Marc's only reply
"It would seem you didn't… when you came here to this world did you hear anything? A voice perchance?" continued Karick
"I… I did. All I can clearly recall was the voice asking me to "Find him" and I have no idea about who "him" is" replied Marc
Karick retained his serious expression but now Echo felt an old feeling he hadn't felt since his friend in front him disappeared, real unfiltered and smothering fear. Whatever Karick was about to reveal to him it was big.
"When I was… moved… I was met by someone. I cannot reveal who due to some details but I can reveal that I too was asked to locate a certain man, his name is Eric do you recognize the name?" asked Karick
Marc stiffened in his seat as the entire thing played out in front of his eyes again; every little word rang clearer as Marc now fully got the message.
"Eric was his name, I am supposed to find him he supposedly knows something" replied Marc
Karick nodded "I think I know what Eric is supposed to tell you, but I will leave it to you to find him and be told. You must understand my friend that I was taken here and given a mission, a mission I intend on completing"
Marc just nodded, he knew that he couldn't be told anymore then that if Karick said so.
"When the time comes I am to assist this Eric who is on the same mission. Our "reward" for completing this mission is to be returned home. Supposedly if I fail to complete the mission within the allotted time frame I will also be returned home. While there was no punishment mentioned it was heavily eluded to that should I fail it would cost me" continued Karick
"So I must assume you are currently doing everything you can to locate this Eric individual?" asked Marc
"Correct. While training my students I have also begun building a small network of spies and informants to keep me informed of various dealings around the universe, it was how I found you when you first arrived" answered Karick
This caught Marc's attention "Wait you knew I was here? Why the hell didn't you contact me?" asked Marc in disbelief
Karick shrugged "Simple really. When I first observed you I noticed something… The way you behave, the way you walk the people you talk to, everything began falling into place and it only got confirmed when that attack on that human colony came on the news, at the time I didn't know what set you off but it wasn't even half an hour later when you were down in the wards preventing an attack on a Quarian… You have walked this world before haven't you?" asked Karick
Marc leaned his head back and let out a loud sigh as he contemplated telling Karick everything, but it was almost too big a risk who knows what changes could come of it? But then again… the very fact that him, Karick and this Eric person was in this world had already created a large change, so perhaps this could work in his favor. When Marc leveled his head once more and stared into Karick's eyes it was now Karick's turn to feel a shiver run up his spine.
"What I am about to say will remain between you and I. No one else, not even Sivra has heard this" began Marc which caused Karick to nod "This world and our own, I have indeed "walked" both before. But not in the way you suspect I didn't walk these worlds on my own legs… Do you know what a video game is?" asked Marc to which Karick gave a nod "That is what this was to me, as was our world… they were both video games from my own world, that is how I know where I am going and whom to talk with. Even our world I saw before I arrived" finished Marc
Karick just sat stock still and stared at his old friend, he didn't know how to take this. But how could he deny it? He himself was now in a different world so how was it a stretch that in Marc's original world everything was but a game? His hands found their way to his eyes as he rubbed them tiredly
"So what you are telling me… is that this, all of this, is nothing but a game?" asked Karick
Marc just gave a stern nod "I'm sorry, but it's true"
"So I guess you played this game?" continued Karick
"I played it a lot, yes" replied Marc
"So do you know what will happen to this world?" asked Karick
Marc gave a loud sigh "I do. Every event with a certain form of impact on the greater scale I know about, just like I know what impact certain important individuals have on these events" finished Marc
Karick adopted his thinking pose once more and sat unmoving for a few minutes while he was debating what his friend had just told him, something didn't add up though
"How come you haven't prevented certain things from happening since your arrival? The kidnapping of the councilor cannot be counted as that was a set up by me, an unknown variable. I am however sure that certain events could have been prevented entirely, the attack on that human colony for example" said Karick
"My friend what you must understand is that I know how everything plays out, and I have already begun to change things by simply joining the crew of Commander Shepard. The events I have set in motion will change the entire way this plays out. For now I might be able to predict the coming months but past that I really don't know how much impact my presence will have made. There is also this Eric character to factor in, I don't know what changes he has created or you for that matter" said Marc
"So you are changing nothing in fear of losing grip on everything?" asked Karick
"In a way. I have set myself to change certain events, I will try to let certain people survive the coming events but I cannot be sure if it is possible. When it all comes down to the last stand I hope we are ready for it, because in the games my friend it wasn't pretty" replied Marc
Karick grumbled a few words before looking back to his friend "Why do I get the feeling you just moved up my time table?" asked Karick
"Because I have, in a 3 years' time an ancient race of organic machine's called The Reapers will arrive and begin their destruction of this universe" replied Marc
Karick just sunk down into his chair and glared at his old friend from between his fingers "It is time's like this I remember why I tried to kill you so many times…" muttered Karick
"Be that as it may. I assume you will adjust your plans accordingly?" inquired Marc
"I will have to. I will also increase my attempts at locating this Eric person, he will most likely hold important pieces of the puzzle. What about you? Planning anything that could potentially assist us?" asked Karick in return
"Not really, I will of course pass you any information that deviates from the norm of this world… Now perhaps can we talk about why you have four students out there?" replied Marc
Karick got a bemused look on his face as he glanced towards the door leading out into the main hall
"Well first off I do believe you told me I had been gone for 36 years, correct?" Marc nodded "Well I have only been in this world for 10 years, this does provide a rather amusing idea does it not? Then again I do wonder why I was given 50 years when those who sent me here clearly knew what would transpire in three years… I must inquire about that at a later date" began Karick
"So you have only been here for 10 years, how did you come across your for protégés?" asked Marc
"Well I met young Marie out there nine years ago when she was but fifteen years old, she was attempting to steal some food and showed decent talent for stealth. I followed her for a time and realized that she knew her way around extremely well and at the time I was in need of someone with extensive knowledge of the Citadel so I met up with her and offered her a deal, come train under me and I would ensure she never needed to steal again" said Karick
"So she has been studying under you for 9 years? How much has she learned?" asked Marc
"She is a good student, I have thought her various forms of stealth as well as the silent step which you noticed" Marc gave a grunt at that "I thought her some forms of assassination as well as a few martial arts forms, and I do believe you noticed I thought her the first few steps of our little dance?" the last bit was said with a smile
"Indeed I did, hence why I crushed her windpipe. Why would you teach her that though? It isn't of any use since all the moves are indeed intended to kill but needs to be countered equally for the entire thing to make sense" questioned Marc
"Indeed, but you must not forget the on their own each of our strikes have an intention behind them. Take my fifteenth strike or your twentieth, each of them is meant to paralyze the other for a short moment allowing us to conduct our sixteenth and twenty-first strike separately" summed up Karick
"Correct but I still don't see the overall point in teaching a 24 year old a series of strikes that was developed and honed over the course of a few hundred years" shrugged Marc
"I will admit that only a few of the steps might seem rather useless when looked upon but that is why I stuck with teaching her the striking steps, you did after all notice how she didn't block your strike" Marc just snorted "Aside from learning that she has also gotten basic training in a lot of minor fields like hacking and infiltration along with a lot of smaller skills" finished Karick
"You're turning that girl into a specialist?" asked Marc
"In a way" was Karick's short reply
"If you had to rate her against the Tenno then what rank are we talking?" inquired Marc
"Somewhere mid-hunter if we go without the Frames, with them she would only be low disciple" answered Karick
"Impressive for a human and one so young as well. What about the twins out there?" continued Marc
"Ah yes, Morth and Korth. Would you believe I found the pair in an underground fighting tournament down in the lowest part of the wards?" said Karick with a smile
"Really? They don't look like they can fight in close combat" replied Marc wide eyed
"Alone? Never. Together? I have not seen something like that in many years" Marc got a questioning look in his eyes at that "When those two fight together there is a connection between them, I haven't seen anyone fight together like they do. When one moves the other guards him or strikes on his own, their fighting style is like a well-choreographed dance, not one step out of place and not one movement wasted…" Marc didn't miss the way his old friend was hesitating "You might not believe me old friend, but they passed the Two Man Team simulation…"
Marc almost shot out of his chair "You can't be serious?! Do you mean to tell me that two humans have passed a test that even Tenno who have worked together for a thousand years have trouble passing?!" half-yelled Marc
Karick ever the image of tranquility (most of the time) just gave a lopsided smirk "Indeed they did, trust me I was just as surprised as you"
"I almost don't want to ask this, but what happens if you separate them?" asked Marc carefully
Karick's eyes steeled once the question had been spoken "I tried that. Took one of them away while they slept and put him in a different room and locked both of the rooms. When they awoke they tried to beat down the doors and where yelling and screaming for the other, something isn't right about the two that much is for sure. But if they think the other is in danger they will move entire planets to find them"
Marc gave a whistle at that one "Incredible and a bit disturbing. Is their names really Morth and Korth?" asked Marc with a bit of humor
"I suspect not but it is what they refer to each other by so I simply do the same" replied Karick with a shrug
"I suppose. Then I guess there is just Boris out there left" replied Marc with his own shrug
"Yes indeed. He is the most recent addition to the team; he however found us rather than the other way around. He snuck in here and tried to attack Marie for whatever reason he has yet to divulge to me. He got beat so thoroughly that he still isn't saying more than five words in a row to Marie" said Karick
"And because of that you decided to train him?" asked Marc a little confused
"He showed exceptional stealth skills when he infiltrated this place, he did manage to hold out thirty seconds against Marie, that was fifteen seconds longer than the twins before they were beaten. So I took to him and decided to train him, if he fucks up I will kill him" said Karick with yet another shrug
Marc gave a snort at the last comment "Yes that seems to be your MO. So what have you been up to besides training these four?"
"Most just getting familiar with the world I am in. Marie has been a great help in that department and has shown and taught me a lot about the various species and so forth. I must say though, the technology of these races are woefully behind when compared to the Orokin" said Karick with a bit of humor
"Yes of course, let us compare the ancient empire with these species that have relied on technology found primarily from an extinct species. I still wonder why the Orokin developed the Warframe for us though, it's curious" said Marc
"They didn't" was Karick's very short reply, a cold glare form Marc made him go on "Humanity developed the first Warframe prototype, when we first encountered the Orokin we shared that technology with them and they improved it with their own. Soon the first Warframe's were created and the Tenno came into existence, do you know your kind's origins?" asked Karick
Marc just shook his head "Then allow me to tell you the short version. Humanity joined the Orokin Empire not long after they encountered them and lend their assistance in the fight against the Sentients… do you know of the Sentients war?" asked Karick
Marc nodded "An ancient race that turned your technology against you and eventually you stood to lose the battle, the Orokin then took those who managed to survive returning from the void and build the Warframe's around them to contain their affliction which was killing them because of their Void exposure. That just never made sense to me, you just said the Orokin build the Warframes with the help of humanity?" asked Marc clearly confused
"The archives were falsified for safety reasons… It is true that we built the Warframes around those who survived the Void but there was a part of that we never mentioned to anyone…" Marc could see how difficult this was for his old friend "Orokin couldn't survive going into the Void, only humanity ever survived going into the cursed place. Only after many years of study did we build our Orokin Towers that could sustain life in the Void, but even then we couldn't have any connection to the Void outside the Tower, if we did we died"
Marc was genuinely shocked by that revelation, but if only Humanity could survive returning from the void… "The Tenno… they are Humanity evolved after exposure to the Void aren't they?" asked Marc while rubbing his eyes
"Yes… when the first human's returned they carried the taint of the Void and needed to live inside their Warframe's to survive, but as the years passed Humanity adapted faster than the Orokin could ever comprehend… soon one of the humans that returned from the Void and was placed in a Warframe began showing strange tendencies" Karick seemed to have a mental battle for a short moment "He stepped out of his Warframe… just like that the first of the new Tenno walked among us. This one man started it all, he showed that he could now live outside his Warframe, his body had turned completely pale and his eyes were a shade of gold. Soon most of the returning humans began living outside their Warframes and it was clear to the Orokin what they had done, they had forced Humanity to become more than they were" finished Karick
Marc leaned as far back as his seat would allow "My god… how come the Tenno doesn't know this? They always looked at me with great reverence like I was truly unique but they evolved from my kind?"
Karick's fist tightened around the armrest of his chair and a crack sounded as they broke "After their betrayal the Tenno decided to abandon all connection to the Orokin besides their Warframes and chose to never speak of their true heritage again. I do not know how many years went by before they completely forgot their true origin"
"I-I don't know how to react to that… to think that so much time would have passed? But the Grineer and Corpus seem like they have only been around for a few hundred years if not less…" suddenly Marc's head snapped up and stared directly at his old friend "Karick how long were the Tenno in Cryo-sleep for?"
"I don't know… When they first chose to enter Cryo I chose the same, I couldn't afford to die before I had fulfilled my purpose… Many of the Tenno suffered from memory loss due to Cryo and when I awoke the Tower had entered a form of Stasis that ended with my awakening so it had no data on how much time had passed either… but I walked the world a few hundred years before the Tenno awoke" replied Karick now deep in thought
"Unbelievable…" was Marc's singular reply
"But can they truly have forgotten? I know why the Corpus refers to them as the betrayers… Tell me Marc did the Tenno ever mention any of this in your time with them?" asked Karick
"No never, in fact a lot of resources have been put into understanding just why the Corpus calls us as such; we know they praise the Orokin as some sort of mechanical gods. I honestly can't say if the Tenno truly have forgotten… they remember about Hayden Tenno and the time before the Orokin but even that information seems to be shaky at best, I am actually now beginning to wonder just how much of our information is either wrong or based on assumptions of the past…" said Marc now a little distressed
Karick grumbled a few words that Marc missed but he assumed some were relevant and others were… colorful… "I would be inclined to believe you my friend, it would certainly also assist your theory that every Tenno I ever faced, with you and few others as the exception, asked why I was doing what I was doing. It does not please me to think that these Tenno died without knowing the reason for their demise, nor do I find any solace in that the Orokin could potentially have been well and truly forgotten…"
Suddenly Marc just threw his arms into the air in a gesture of complete surrender "We don't have time to deal with this!" Shouted Marc "As much as I want to get to the bottom of this seemingly glaring hole in history we both currently have a mission that is vitally important, or at least yours seem to be"
Karick sighed loudly and leaned back in his chair "You are right, what is done is done and we can always uncover what caused all this in the future. Perhaps we should turn towards more pleasant topics?" asked Karick
Marc heartily agreed and the two old friends turned their conversation towards much more enjoyable topics. Their talk lasted for some good hours, they managed to cover quite a lot of ground both about Karick's ten years in this world and Marc's 36 years following Karick's disappearance and his subsequent year in this World before he joined Shepard. The two friends rose and began making their way towards the exit while still talking about the weapons of this world.
At the same time two almost identical silhouettes were hanging from the ceiling and looking down at their Master and his guest, both thought they could perhaps prove themselves a little to their Master by catching both of them off guard with a sneak attack. Sadly for the poor set of twins Marc had felt their presence as soon as he entered the large hall, he made a few subtle gestures to Karick indicated their presence above them and Karick didn't show any signs of acknowledgement but he didn't need to either.
So when the twins dropped down with every bit of intent in striking down and potentially pinning their targets they were not ready when their two targets in perfect sync swung their legs upwards in a circle motion that would see their feet meet directly above their heads. The twins both quickly brought their arms in front of their faces in an attempt to defend but realized their mistake when a foot struck each of their arms and sent the back of their heads ramming into each other and giving them both a concussion.
The sound of two guys landing on the ground with a loud *thump* were enough to draw Marie and Boris out of their respective rooms so they could see what was happening, Marie was not really surprised when she found the twins on the ground, holding their heads in their hands in pain. Karick knelt down next to the twins and shook his head while sighing
"I have told you two over and over again to never perform a sneak attack on targets you have no information on. My guest here spotted you the second we left my chambers and gave me the signal for two opponents hiding above us poised to strike, it was bad enough you got found out but your strategy of just falling straight down hoping to take us by surprise is what led you two to getting your heads bumped" commented Karick
All the response that got was to grunts and moans of pain, neither twin was really capable of doing much talking right now.
"Boris take these two into the med-bay and patch them up" ordered Karick
Seconds later two still moaning twins were dragged away by the collar of their shirt by an angry Boris who didn't want to waste time on such nonsense. Back with the others Marie was glancing curiously at her Master's guest, sure her Master had told them that his guest was capable of killing them all should he want to but she still wasn't convinced.
"Return to your studies Marie, I will escort my friend here back to the Presidium" ordered Karick
"Yes Master" said Marie before turning to leave
"23 times since you entered the room, in case you were wondering" said Marc seemingly out of the blue
Karick gave a low chuckle at the way his best student froze before walking again, he knew that his old friend had just pointed out the amount of opportunities he had to kill her since she arrived in the room but he also thought Marie was smart enough to realize that on her own, or at least he hoped so after nine years.
"Let's get moving my friend, we need you back before someone becomes suspicious" joked Karick
Marc snorted and followed his old friend out towards the shuttle… it was good having one of his oldest friends back and now he also had someone who knew his biggest secret, it was nice to get that off his chest in a way.
Somewhere on Thessia
A middle aged man that looked like he was somewhere in his late thirties, he had brown hair that was cut very short and his skin was nicely tanned, though the most peculiar thing about the man was his eyes; they were a deep shade of purple, not something common to the human race. This man was currently sitting in his living room and enjoying a nice bit of green tea, how he had managed to get regular human tea to Thessia no one really knew. Every so often the man would glance out of his window and gaze at the forest outside his home, given that there was only forest for 100km around his home it certainly did ensure he couldn't look at much else, unless we count the lake that was two minutes from his home, he had that to look at too. He was currently reading today's newspaper on his omni-tool, he read about the destruction of a prothean ruin on Therum which made the man chuckle for a few moments, the chuckle echoing in the large home. It was quiet in his home, it had been since his wife passed on a few short years ago; Goddess guide her.
He had a daughter as well; she had recently involved herself in some unfortunate business. The man knew he could have prevented his little girl from ever coming close to that foul Turian but he had many years ago convinced himself that everything needed to play out as it was supposed to. He even had a grand-daughter he could look after as well, though currently she was out having crazy adventures with a Spectre. This didn't soothe the man in any way, he really didn't want his only grand-child to be messing around with Spectres that always went out and got into serious trouble and the one she was following was almost destined to find trouble wherever she went.
The man took a sip of his tea as a bright light erupted in his room; the middle aged man chose to ignore it as he knew what would be coming out of the light, it was after all not the first time it happened. Sure enough what looked like a human made completely out of light stepped out of the giant shining light before slowly transforming into what could best be described as a an average guy, the human that was now standing in his room had no features of which to identify him, in fact if you looked at his face and then looked away you were more liable to simply forget what you had just looked at then actually remember anything. The middle aged man gestured for the open seat across from him and the new guest nodded in thanks before taking a seat.
"Some tea?" asked the middle aged man
"Ah no thank you Aikar, sadly I am not here on a social visit" said the strange human
The middle aged man apparently called Aikar scoffed "When do you ever come for social visits huh, Mact?"
The strange human apparently called Mact smiled "Why do you insist on calling me by that name? You know I have none" asked Mact
"I need to call you something otherwise I wouldn't be able to address you and "Shiny bright light thingy" was only funny when my little girl was… well, little" replied Aikar
"Very well. Would you terribly mind if called you by your real name since it is only you and I?" asked Mact
Aikar looked verily at his guest "If you wish to use my real name then this must be serious" said Aikar as he closed his omni-tool
"Indeed it is" began Mact "Eric I have come to inform you that you have been sent another one to assist you" finished Mact
This seemed to annoy the newly named Eric "Have you not learned from the past?! The last three met their end barely a month after they arrived, the longest lasting "assistant" I have had survived a year before she got herself blown up! Why do you even send them anymore? After all these years I still haven't gotten any closer and their help only hinders me! No more assistants, I will not have you kill more of my cousins over this!" yelled Eric
Mact was trying to soothe his host "Please Eric calm down! This one is not like the others; this one is even older than you, he has experience in fighting and will survive I promise he even has a super advanced armor to protect him"
This sent Eric back in his seat, staring at his guest "Who?"
"His name is Karick, I do believe he was called "The Stalker" in his old Dimension" replied Mact
"The title rings a bell but the name means nothing to me, you say he is older than me? By how much?" asked Eric
"That is not for me to tell, you know that" answered Mact
Eric just grumbled a few swear words before glancing out over the forest again. This was not a welcome development, he had spent most of his life here on figuring out a way to complete his mission but the constant arrival of "Assistants" had indeed only hindered him until now and it was beginning to become aggravating.
"This time my brother have however tasked him with locating you on his own time, rather than telling him of your location" spoke Mact
"Good, perhaps he will actually come to me with a lead to go on" commented Eric
"Yes, let us hope" Mact began shifting a little in his seat which earned him a glare from Eric that almost screamed "what?" it was with great reluctance that Mact spoke again "There is something else… someone else has arrived as well"
Eric's eyes flew wide open as he stared at his guest "What do you mean someone else arrived?! Were you and your family so incredibly stupid as to bring TWO of my cousins here?!" yelled Eric
"No! He came on his own Eric! He is one of the few who somehow managed to walk on their own! This is the second time he has done it now! I was informed by my brother than he managed to direct his second shift to be closer to a time he should be familiar with…" Mact then suddenly became very quiet which only caused Eric to grow suspicious
"What" growled Eric
"If what my brother told me is true… then he is of your dimension…" spoke Mact weakly
Eric was out of his seat and was now towering over his sitting guest "Are you telling that not only do I have TWO of my cousins in this dimension now, one of them is from my OWN?! Do you realize what the chances are of two of us being alive at the same time?!" yelled Eric now clearly angry
His guest rose to his full height which met Eric's own 200cm almost perfectly "Of course I know! But there is nothing we can do! Those of you that developed the ability to walk on your own we cannot shift! We can direct your shifts once they have begun, but only if we catch them in the beginning! Beyond that we are helpless to watch them as they walk the dimensions and we can only hope the survive to return home!" yelled Mact in response
"Why not contact him then? Tell him of us all, our mission and the situation at hand?" asked Eric now slightly less angry
"You know we can't… We are not allowed to inform them of their origins until they meet the first arrival, you in this case, my brother told me he instructed this one to find you once he arrived. Now my brother doesn't know how much of his message got across but he hopes that there was enough so that you two would eventually meet… Once he finds you, you must inform him of everything you deem important even the mission if you think he will be an asset. But from what we have observed he seems to have found his own purpose in this dimension as well, I ask that you do not take that from him as it could potentially lead him to perform a shift back to him home dimension" ordered Mact
"I understand… I will need to depart Thessia soon as well; perhaps I will rejoin the world and renew my search on my own until I meet this Karick individual. For now however I will watch and hope for the best" said Eric
"Good, I wish you the best of luck Eric perhaps soon we will be able to send you home and strip you of your curse" said Mact
Mact began disappearing in another flash of light but Eric spoke before he could vanish completely "This is my home. When I finish this mission my only wish is for her to remove this curse from me so I may finally die and rejoin my loved ones" said Eric in a sad tone
Mact gave a nod before he vanished completely from sight and the light disappeared. Eric fell back down into his seat and looked down at his now cold tea… he then looked over at the small shelf that was above his fireplace, again no one knew why he had an old human fireplace in his home, and looked at the picture that was standing on top of it. In the picture was a clearly ecstatic Eric with a big stupid grin planted on his face, standing alongside a purple skinned Asari with brilliant blue eyes that still to this day made Eric weak in the knees, and in Eric's arms was a little bundle of cloth wrapped in that cloth was a little blue skinned Asari who was clearly smiling with her hands pointing out towards her father's face. Eric smiled at the picture before a tear rolled down his cheek
"I am so sorry my little angel, I am so sorry for what will happen"
Eric then looked out into the forest again and got a cold hard look in his eyes before he began muttering to himself.
"Of all things to happen… two of my cousins arrive, one is supposedly older than me, another is a free walker and lord knows when he will up and vanish from this dimension… take into consideration we are now in 2183 and that means the events have begun, I have three years before the Reapers descend if everything is going as planned… I am so fucking screwed that it isn't even funny anymore.
A quick glance at the cabinet in the corner and Eric had made up his mind, he was getting blindingly drunk tonight and tomorrow he would nurture his hangover while figuring out a way off Thessia without almost causing an interspecies incident, again.
Back on the Citadel with Marc
Marc had found his way down to the restaurant area of the Presidium and was currently looking for a place to have a decent bit of food; he was actually feeling slightly hungry since he hadn't eaten at all since he left the ship earlier. It took a few more minutes of mindless wandering but he did come by a restaurant he recognized from his time on the Citadel, it was a really high end place that required formalwear. He had eaten here once before with Sha'ira when she had asked for his help with a small problem, if he remembered correct the food here was excellent and he could certainly afford it, but unlike last time he where he was dragged through the front door by a frantic Nelyna, this time he actually needed the formalwear to enter.
It actually sounded like a decent idea, he could enjoy a good meal and he knew for a fact that the restaurant was silent as people preferred to watch the other guests dance or talk quietly among themselves. He didn't mind paying a few credits for a new suit just to get in; the suit might even be needed again in the future. With a slight nod of his head Marc was about to turn on his heel and go back towards the shopping district when a black pony-tail caught his attention, it would seem Shepard was out looking for food as well.
"Hello Shepard" greeted Marc
Upon hearing her name Shepard turned around and smiled when she saw Marc standing there
"Hey Marc, you out looking for a place to eat as well?" asked Shepard
"Indeed I was but I have found a place to eat already…" a stray thought passed through Marc's mind that let him to a question "Would you care to join me?" he asked
Shepard blinked a few times before grinning "Why Marc, are you asking me out on a date?"
Now it was Marc's turn to blink… was he asking her out on a date? He didn't think so "You can call it what you wish Shepard" was Marc's reply
Shepard frowned a little at her failure to rile him up a little but none the less smiled and nodded
"Do you have a place in mind?" she asked
Marc gestured with his thumb behind him towards the high end place he had just looked at. When Shepard followed his finger her eyes almost bulged out of her head
"Are you crazy? How would we even get in, much less pay for it?" asked Shepard completely confused
"Credits are of no mind to me, so if the price is worrying for you I will pay for you. As for the table? That is easily handled" replied Marc with a shrug
Shepard looked him over a few times before she decided to trust his words
"Okay sounds good; I better go back and change into something a little more formal then. What about you?" asked Shepard
"I will go acquire a suit for me to wear. Meet me back here in a hour" replied Marc
Shepard gave a smile and a nod before turning and walking off towards the shuttle. Marc looked after her a little before he himself turned and headed in the opposite direction, he needed to go see the consort about that favor she owed him.
Getting to the consort's chambers didn't take long and Marc now found himself standing and waiting for Nelyna to return from whatever she had been doing. When the mentioned Asari finally showed up at the front terminal she almost jumped out of her skin when she noticed Marc standing there.
"Mr. Echo what a surprise. Are you here to see the Consort?" asked Nelyna
Marc gave a nod before Nelyna simply told him to head up since the Consort wasn't seeing anyone at the moment. On his way through the small establishment he did get a few jealous glances from both men and women but Marc ignored all of them, he wasn't here for that after all. Inside the private chambers of Sha'ira he was greeted warmly with a hug.
"Echo how good to see you again! I suppose you are finally collecting on that favor I owe you?" asked Sha'ira with a smile
"That would be correct. I need to borrow your table at the restaurant we met at last time" was Marc's reply
Sha'ira smiled intrigued at that "I see… who is the lucky woman you have are eating with?" she asked
"I am eating with Commander Shepard tonight" replied Marc
This practically made Sha'ira beam with happiness, almost so much that Marc was actually considering to bribe the owner of the restaurant for a table, instead of going through this.
"Then I insist that you borrow my table! The Commander did me a great favor so I am only happy to help" said Sha'ira while gesturing with her arms
'Yes I am almost positive after meeting Shepard that she did you a great deal more than just a "favor"…' thought Marc after seeing Sha'ira's reaction. He then felt Sha'ira's eyes on him and he was correct as she was currently looking him over.
"Are you going to be wearing that to dinner?" asked Sha'ira a little disgusted
Marc looked down at his clothes before shrugging "I was thinking of getting myself a tuxedo for the night"
This made Sha'ira smile once again "Then I must insist you let my personal tailor make one for you"
Knowing it was an exercise in futility to try and argue with Sha'ira when she is like this Marc simply nodded and followed her out of the building and towards her tailor.
The before mentioned tailor turned out to be a matriarch Asari who looked like she could be younger than Liara… it actually made Marc a little uneasy that this woman in front of him was around 800 years old and yet she looked younger than Liara, that just shouldn't happen and he was quite sure there was foul play involved, but chose not to say anything.
The tailor had also taken it as a personal challenge to outfit a tall person such as Marc since she didn't get someone with his height and build very often. So out came various materials, buttons, lining and lord knows what else was used, the only thing Marc actually recognized was the omni-tool the tailor used to take his measurements.
After 45 of the most trying minutes in Marc's life he was leaving the tailor wearing an old school black human Tuxedo that was modified with a bit of Asari style making the entire thing look quite nice in all honesty. Under the Tux was a clear white shirt and around his neck was a black tie to complete the look. It was a grateful Marc that said goodbye to Sha'ira and thanked her for all the help which she replied to by pointing out the fact that he paid for tux.
Marc arrived at the terminal closest to the restaurant just two minutes before he was meant to meet up with Shepard. Almost on the two minute mark a shuttle landed and the door opened to reveal Shepard in her dress, once she stepped outside the shuttle and actually caught sight of Marc she was quite amused by the way he was looking at her. In Marc's defense Shepard had decided to let her hair down which meant it was reaching just a little lower than her shoulders, she was wearing a subtle red lipstick that seemed to make lips seem fuller and her makeup only enhanced every other feature on her face.
The dress she was wearing was a nice black one piece dress that reached down to just above her knees and was being held up by a strap that went over her left shoulder; the dress also revealed a tasteful amount of cleavage which Shepard herself appreciated. She was wearing nothing else as Shepard didn't exactly have any jewelry on the Normandy and the Dress itself was only because she once had to attend a formal event as Anderson's date… or as his protection if you ask Anderson himself.
Marc had been caught off guard when Shepard had stepped out of the shuttle, mostly because he had spent so many hours playing Mass Effect so he just had this one singular image of the character he had played as for all those hours, but the individual standing here in front of him was so much more and that he couldn't deny no matter how much he wanted to.
"My, my you certainly look handsome when you dress up" said Shepard with a small smile
"I must say you are quiet beautiful yourself Sarah" replied Marc with a kind smile
Shepard felt her cheeks heat up at the sincerity in the compliment and simply nodded in thanks, not trusting her voice not to squeak. She was a little surprised when Marc turned around and offered his arm for her; she took it and let herself be led towards the restaurant. Once they reached the entrance she was mesmerized how calmly Marc simply stated he had a reservation and spoke his alias. When the greeter had confirmed that he reservation he just smiled at them, apparently when he saw what table it was he almost turned frantic and began apologizing for his lack of respect as he let them towards an table that was sitting in a semi-closed booth with a view out over the dance floor. When they had both been seated Shepard couldn't hold back her question anymore.
"Okay whose table is this? That guy seemed like he had just insulted one of the councilor's to their face or something" asked Shepard
Marc gave one of those half evil, half jesting smiles "This might be the Consorts private table, so in a way he might have done something a little worse than insulting a councilor"
Shepard froze and stared down over the table, was she really sitting at the Consorts' private table?
"How did you get this?" she croaked out
"Sha'ira owed me a favor, but when I mentioned I would be eating with you she insisted I borrow it as a favor to both of us" replied Marc as he looked out over the dance floor
"You just keep surprising, you know that?" returned Shepard
"Indeed? Well do you care to explain how it is that Sha'ira was so insistent that I borrow this table after I mentioned your name? It isn't because you are the first human spectre, I know that for a fact" countered Marc
Shepard felt her cheeks flush over as she looked away and mumbled something that Marc didn't quite catch over the music.
"I'm sorry what did you say?" he asked
"I might have helped her with a slight problem she had" she answered
"You slept with her afterwards I assume?" he returned as if it was daily conversation
Shepard was staring at him with wide eyes before she nodded and tried to look away again. She didn't really care that he knew but there was still something about talking about her sex life at a dinner that didn't sit all that well with her.
If one of them had intended to say something it was interrupted by the arrival of the waiter with their menu's, once Shepard had a look at the first item on the list she almost slammed the menu shut but she closed it calmly and put it down before staring pointedly at Marc
"Have you seen the prices?" she asked quietly
Marc nodded behind his menu "I have eaten here before Sarah" he then looked over the menu at her "I told you I would pay so don't hold back on my account"
Shepard looked at him a little warily before picking the menu back up from the table and began looking through the various dishes available; she couldn't pronounce half of them and didn't know what the other half was.
When the waiter returned and asked for their order Marc calmly ordered a vegetable soup for his entrée, a type of beef that came from an animal native to Thessia as his main and for dessert he went very basic and ordered a small bit of vanilla ice-cream with some chocolate at the side, for drinks he deferred to the waiter's suggestion. Shepard was a little shakier in her order but she got a salad dish for entrée, the same beef dish as Marc for her main and a small chocolate cake for dessert, she also took the waiter's suggestion in drinks. Once the waiter had left Shepard looked at Marc with a bit of surprise
"You are very calm about all of this aren't you?" she asked
"I told you, I have eaten in places like this before" was his reply
Shepard nodded in response "Have you tried any of the things you ordered before?" she asked
"I ordered the same two dishes when I was here with the Consort" he replied
"Oh…" was her silent reply.
When the entrée arrived they both began eating and the comfortable silence eventually gave room for light conversation. They talked about the military again and Marc divulged a little more about the various ranks within the Tenno and how one goes about earning a promotion. Shepard talked about her time in the Alliance and some of her past missions that she felt defined her career more so than Elysium. The topic also swayed to the mission and the two spoke in length over the main course about the various points of the mission, they also talked about where they should be going next and eventually Shepard divulged she would like to go to Feros next as she didn't feel right leaving the colony alone for much longer, Marc agreed with her assessment. As the dessert arrived Marc noticed that Shepard seemed a little hesitant
"Sarah if you have something you wish to say, say it" he commented
"I know, I know it's just I don't know how you will react to me snooping around in your past" she replied
"I highly doubt you found anything about me Sarah, but I am curious what you found regardless" he said with a smile
"It wasn't about you specifically I found out. You see I searched in general for any record of "The Tenno" and found only one lead" this actually made Marc put down his cutlery and gaze at Shepard with undivided attention "I found a person… a man to be specific. His name was Hayden Tenno"
Marc's eyes widened at the name and Shepard didn't miss it. He did indeed recognize the name, but how couldn't he? What was more prominent was how the hell Hayden could have existed here if he had, should some information about the Technocyte virus have leaked out?
"Marc, talk to me" said Shepard a little concerned when he wasn't answering
"Shepard" he began carefully "Hayden Tenno is a very dangerous name to throw around the Tenno… what did you find about him?" he asked
"Not much, he lived some 180 years ago, give or take 10 years. Most of his records are completely redacted and no matter which of my ranks I throw around I couldn't get my hands on the un-edited versions. But from what I could gather he worked for the government and was subsequently killed in an accident some years after being discharged from service" she answered
"Sarah before I say anything else you must promise me something" she nodded "You must promise me never to talk about this to anyone else but me, you are unearthing things that was buried for a damn good reason. I can't reveal the extent of my involvement but just understand that Hayden was a good man and life went bad for him. I promise to one day tell you more but for now that is all I can reveal" was Marc's answer
Shepard nodded a few times "I promise and I am holding you to yours"
After Marc nodded his acceptance they returned to their desserts and also returned to some more pleasant topics, at least until Shepard began asking about his tuxedo and he suddenly turned very quiet and almost refused to talk about it.
When their plates had been taken away for the last time they both fell back into that comfortable silence as they looked out over the dance floor where currently a slow tune was playing. When Marc looked over he saw the look in Sarah's eyes and he shrugged to himself before standing up and reaching his hand out to a confused Shepard who took it and smiled when she realized she was being led out towards the dance floor. Once they were among the other couples on the floor the two just fell in with the rest and danced slowly to the music.
Shepard was smiling into Marc's chest and was doing her best to hide how exited she was about actually be doing something this… normal… she didn't think she would ever get to try something like this while the mission was still going on. She also felt quite content with the slow swaying they were doing as she felt Marc's arm around her waist and her own hand in his.
"You know it's nice that we could do something like this despite what is going on" commented Shepard with a sigh
A low chuckle escaped Marc "Yes indeed, it is nice to escape from reality be it only for a few hours where we can pretend we aren't facing down one the biggest threats in the universe"
"Exactly" said Shepard
After a minute of more dancing Shepard began chuckling which prompted Marc to ask what was so funny
"Our whole situation really, I mean you and me. I have barely known you for two weeks and look at what I have done, I have told you more about myself than I have ever done before, I cried in front of you… and don't ever mention that to anyone" this drew a chuckle from Marc "Also and most importantly, I trust you more than I should. I don't know why I trust you as much as I do but something in my gut just tells me that you won't leave my side in the middle of a fight, and now you have managed to lure me out on a date as well" finished Shepard with a chuckle of her own
"I certainly didn't lure you into anything and you called it a date, not me. Though I feel I should apologize for how little I have revealed about myself in view of how much you have truly revealed about yourself to me" replied Marc
"I know you will tell me about yourself when you feel it is time, that's just the way you are" returned Shepard
"Yes indeed it is and it is a bit unnerving how quickly you found that out" said Marc
"Call it one of my talents" mused Shepard with a laugh
The two then fell into silence as the last of the song played out and their dance came to an end. They returned to the table to grab their check and then went up to the front so Marc could pay which he did with a smile and a thank you to the cashier. Outside Shepard gazed up and noticed that the night cycle of the Citadel had begun and the entire area was now coated in the artificial moon light.
"It's so beautiful out here during the night cycle" began Shepard before a grin came to her face "All that is needed to finish this "date" is for us to take a little night stroll around the Presidium" joked Shepard
Marc gave a smile of his own and decided to call her joke by gently placing his arm on her lower back and begin leading her towards a set of stairs. Shepard let herself be led and soon she found herself walking in the garden part of the Presidium which was filled with trees and small ponds here and there, it was one of the most beautiful places in the Presidium. She wanted to speak but Marc kept leading her forward until they came to a small row of benches by the side of the Presidium Lake. After sitting down they both enjoyed the view out over the lake where you could look all the way along the curve of the Presidium, a small content sigh escaped Shepard at the sight
"You know it's sad that this sort of thing can't be a regular occurrence, not for people like us anyway" began Shepard
"Because once this mission is over, something will have changed no matter how it ends someone will come out with losses and we don't know how that will affect everything" finished Marc
"Exactly… I hate it" commented Shepard
Marc looked at the woman at his side and he felt that she deserved at least some hope, so perhaps using some of his future knowledge would be okay.
"In the times to come… it will be more important than ever that we all stand together and face what comes side by side" began Marc
"I know and it's true, but I'm still afraid all the same. I fear we are going to fail everyone in the end and then all of this will have been for nothing" interrupted Shepard
Marc then did something he probably wouldn't have done in normal circumstances, he reached over and took Shepard's hand in his own and gave it an assuring squeeze.
"Don't be afraid Sarah; you have a strong team made up of loyal friends and comrades who will follow you into the mouth of hell if that is where we are going. We all care for you in our own way and we will never waver from your side, so don't ever fear that we will fail simply trust in that we will be by your side to ensure we won't" finished Marc with a gentle smile
Shepard squeezed back and returned the smile "Thank you Marc…" her warm smile then turned a little mischievous "you know that almost sounded Romantic for a second" she joked
Marc snorted before laughing, Romantic? Him? Yeah that would be the day hell froze over and heaven burst into flames. When he had finally calmed down he stood up and helped Shepard stand as well and they began their walk back towards the Normandy, still holding their hands tightly.
The walk to the Normandy was spent in comfortable silence and both of them had maintained something akin to serene smiles the entire way. They stopped right outside the boarding tube as Shepard stopped walking and turned to face Marc and then she leaned up and planted a lingering kiss on his cheek
"Thank you for a wonderful time Marc, it was nice to get to do this once before everything blows up in our faces" said Shepard with a smile
Marc was a little surprised by the kiss and very confused at his enjoyment of the feeling of it.
"Thank you for accepting the invitation it was indeed a good time. Should we ever have the time perhaps we could repeat the evening?" the words had left Marc's mouth before he had thought it over, but any doubts he had about the statement vanished when Shepard's smile grew
"I would like that very much" was her almost silent reply.
They then walked into the ship side by side and together they made their way towards the crew deck where they split as Marc was heading down to his ship to relax.
Down in his ship Marc quickly stripped out of his tuxedo and put it away for future use and then stepped into the shower to rinse off before he finally lay down in his bed and thought the night over. It had been a good time much to his own surprise and it surprised him how easy Shepard was to talk to. Right before sleep claimed him Marc got a small smile on his lips as he thought perhaps it was indeed time to move on…
When Marc finally opened his eyes again he didn't feel as tired as he thought he would, actually he felt way better than he should have because according to his internal clock he has only been asleep for two hours. Upon further inspection of the surroundings which turned out to be nothing but white, white and more white as far as the eye could see, hell if Marc looked down he wasn't sure whatever he was sitting on a flat surface or actually floating. After standing up and dusting off he tried to take a few steps forward only to feel like he didn't move an inch… this was troublesome.
"Are you still trying to apply logic to places where logic isn't to be found?" asked a voice from behind him
Marc froze on the spot as the voice reached his ears and registered in his brain… 'It can't be…'
"Well are you going to turn around and let me look at you or not?" asked the voice in a teasing tone
Something wet began sliding down Marc's cheek and when he reached for it he found it originated from his eye… he was crying. With shaky steps he turned his body around slowly, as if he moved to fast the voice might disappear. When he was finally facing the voice his eyes instantly found a golden pair of irises and his legs buckled under him.
The owner of the voice put her hands on her hips and looked at the downed hybrid with ridicule in her eyes
"For god's sake stand up and come over here you crazy excuse for a husband" teased the woman again while opening her arms with a wide loving smile.
His legs obeyed the command before his mind had registered it and carried him with large steps until he had both his arms around the slender and pale body of his beloved wife, his own shoulders were shaking from the sobs that kept him from talking. When the hug was returned that was all his mind could take and his legs gave out again but this time he pulled his wife down with him.
"Eee! Marc don't scare me like that!" scolded the woman
When Marc didn't reply and just kept crying into his wife's shoulder she knew that her death must truly have shaken him a lot harder than she previously thought, she knew the cure for that. In one swift motion the woman had her husband's head in her hands and smashed her lips onto his. It was as if reality had finally caught up with him as his lips met those of his wife he finally found his voice
"Sivra… but how, I saw you die I couldn't save you… I couldn't…" whatever Marc had intended to say it was cut of harshly when Sivra squeezed his face between her hands
"Don't you dare say it was your fault! Don't you even think about shouldering all the blame for my foolishness!" yelled Sivra now with tears of her own running down her pale cheeks
Marc just stared into her golden eyes and nodded despite not believing it, some part of him would always feel that he was to blame for her death. Sivra just gave a light peck to her husband's lips which seemed to bring his focus around a little more.
"You about ready to listen to me now?" asked Sivra
A smile danced across Marc's lips, perhaps the first real heartfelt smile he had worn since her death "When was I ever given a choice in that matter?" teased Marc
Sivra just slapped his arm in mock offence "Why I have never!" began Sivra while huffing before shortly after collapsing into a fit of giggles which quickly turned into quiet sobs "I missed you so much…"
Marc just held her even tighter "I missed you too. You have no idea what your death did to me…"
"779 souls…" replied Sivra which caused Marc to stiffen and hold her even tighter "When your time arrives my love you will have a lot to answer for, but I will stand at your side through it all"
"I would have it no other way…" commented Marc
A few minutes passed in comfortable silence and yet to Sivra her husband seemed incredibly silent, she suspected something was on his mind
"I don't suppose she is here as well?" asked Marc
Sivra just smiled warmly down at her husband "You mean our little girl?" Marc nodded "She is not with me, not here. But when your time is up and you come here she will be standing by my side, waiting for her father"
This almost cracked Marc once more but he simply nodded and his smile grew warm and loving once more.
"Now for the reason I went out of my way to come here" began Sivra
The warm smile suddenly turned mischievous as the fun loving boy Marc used to be was finally allowed to come to the surface now that his wife was in his arms once again.
"What?! You mean you didn't just come here for my good looks? My love, I am insulted" interrupted Marc which earned him another slap this time over the head
"Love, keep quiet or I will castrate you" Marc gave a silent gulp and kept his trap shut, that wasn't the first time that threat had been made… he still wasn't risking it "Good boy. Now my reason for being here is awfully simple, I am here to ensure that you get on with your life and find someone else to spend the remainder of your life with" said Sivra
Marc just looked at his wife with his face all scrunched up, she couldn't mean that could she?
"You know I won't love anyone but you, I refuse to" stated Marc with conviction
Sivra ran her hands through her love's hair before answering "You will need the love and support in the times to come, and I happen to know you are a little partial to a certain raven haired Commander" said Sivra in a teasing tone
Marc sat there staring for a good few minutes before something akin to a revelation raced across his eyes and Sivra began to snicker "You didn't realize did you?" asked Sivra
Marc shook his head a few times, attempting to clear it "I haven't dealt with the emotion of love since you died so do cut me some slack here…"
Sivra's snickers became full on laughter at her husband's whiny tone. When she finally managed to regain some sense of control she resumed "I find it comforting that I left a strong enough impression for you to not even realize you have become interested in another woman" Sivra smiled as she said that
"Yes well… I don't know okay? I am still having difficulties seeing why you want me to fall for someone new, I mean when I die what happens if have indeed fallen in love with Shepard and perhaps even had kids with her? Not that I think I can since it will probably be like us all over again…" commented Marc
Sivra smacked her husband over the head once again "Need I remind you that you have your ship with you, and on said ship is an emergency storage of Nanites that I am quite sure Eva is fully capable of programming hmm, mister senior engineer and co-inventor of that stupid Alpha-Frame?"
Marc blinked a few times before it dawned on him "You want to program the nanites to protect the fetus? Or attempt to at least? But I thought that didn't work, or we would have done it with you" asked Marc now a little confused
"Need I also remind you that our child would have been only a quarter Human, and the human DNA was what caused the trouble, you know that one type of DNA our nanites were never programmed to deal with? Hell, just program the nanites to protect and restrain any Tenno DNA to the fetus and there you go! It wouldn't have worked for me since we discovered it too late but with her you can simply check once a month to be sure" said Sivra
Marc just gave a wide smile before kissing her "You know I knew there was a reason I married one of the senior medical staff"
"What? You didn't marry me for my astonishingly good looks?" asked Sivra again with mock offence
"Yes sweetie your rather shapely behind was also a big reason I asked you to marry me" came Marc's snarky reply
"Are you saying I have a big ass?" threatened Sivra
"Do I look like I have a death wish?" replied Marc
"You sure you want that answered?" countered Sivra
"…no" mumbled Marc conceding to defeat
"As for your earlier question with what will happen once you die" Marc's attitude changed back to serious mode almost instantly "Well… we are going to be cheating a little. You are a hybrid are you not, meaning half of you is human and half Tenno?" Marc nodded "Then I will take the Tenno half and your Commander can get the human half" said Sivra with a goofy grin
Marc looked at his wife with a bit of a curious expression "Let me see if I get this straight, you want me to go and fall in love, potentially have kids and then when I die you just assume that my soul will be split in two and then you will snatch the Tenno half and hand over the human half to Shepard?"
"Did I give you a choice in the matter?" asked Sivra
"As per usual, no" replied Marc
Another smack "Yes well that is how it's going to be so learn to live with it will you? And for heaven's sake stop blaming yourself so much for my death!" half-yelled Sivra
"Of course dear" said Marc in his best "whipped husband" tone, never mind the fact he was about as whipped as one could be… "Don't expect me to go around changing how I behave though, that is too heavily engraved for me to change on the flip of a dime"
"Well alright, now I haven't exactly watched everything so do tell me about your life since I died" ordered Sivra
And so the pair of lovers spoke for what seemed like endless hours about everything Marc had done since her death. Marc overcame a lot of demons during that talk and once he had spoken his fill he felt like a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders, Sivra had even managed to give him some pointers towards his little anger episode problem. Though he had his doubts he would succeed in putting it into practice anytime soon, but hopefully he could do it before the side effects killed him.
When the endless white room they had been in began growing brighter it caused a sad smile to appear on Sivra's face as she gave one last kiss to her husband
"It seems our time is done, you couldn't be asleep forever after all" a few tears fell as she said this
"I won't be seeing you again until my time comes are I?" asked Marc
"No you won't, but I will be waiting for you at the end as will our little girl. Now go and live a happy life, you have to live for both of us" said Sivra with a big smile
Marc nodded as the brightness in the room consumed them and soon the light was overcome with darkness. When Marc sat up in his bed he could still feel the trail that the tears had left and he got a sad smile on his face, it however quickly turned around as he felt like his very reason for living had been returned to him, yes he was going to move on but a part of his heart would always belong to Sivra.
He really wasn't lying when he said he couldn't change his behavior so easily, but he was going to try. He then turned and gazed out through the window and into the dark. He now knew what awaited him at the very end, but now, now he was going to make sure the journey there was one for the history books.
A/N: Yes well, done for chapter 9 folks. I will let you choose yourself whatever you think this last sequence was truly just a dream for Marc, or if he truly was visited by the soul of Sivra, I know what I personally have chosen but I feel like this is one of those things you need to choose for yourself. A lot of character interaction in this chapter, in fact that was the only thing we got around to in this chapter… well next time we are heading off towards Feros and I can promise you now that I am "finally" going to be using a different Warframe than the Excalibur.
Have a good one
- Bundlejumper