We ended up walking through the markets of whatever Ward the first game took place in. We passed by the volus merchant Expat and the hilarious ME throwaway where a Human customer was trying to return something to a racist-
Or was it speciest?
-Turian shopkeeper. I decided I might even try to help the poor guy out in the future if I ever got the chance. Because two years from now, the guy was still apparently trying to get that damn refund. And hell, we might have even passed Conrad Verner on our way downstairs too, though I hadn't been sure. There were a lot of white guys in the markets.
Once we were particularly in the Lower Markets, I sat myself up on a pile of crates across from Morlan's shop.
"What are we doing here?" Kaidan finally asked as he realized I was done window shopping.
"Just admiring the sights," I replied scanning the floor.
He should be here...unless we missed him.
I looked at the crowd shuffling through the area for several more minutes before Kaidan piped up again.
"...am I supposed to be looking for someone?" he queried.
I waited a while to respond.
"I guess not..." I replied, frowning as I hopped off my crate. "Follow me."
I now walked up to Morlan's booth, which was curiously being ignored by a lot of people.
"Hello there. Welcome to Morlan's famous shop! You want many good supplies yes?" the Salarian said eagerly.
I eyed the amphibian suspiciously. "You wouldn't happen to remember talking to a Turian recently would you?"
"A...Turian? No..I didn't talk to any-Why? Why do you ask?"
"Thanks," I said walking away from him.
"What was that aboot?" the Canadian now asked me.
I was just about to answer him when I suddenly found exactly who we were looking for. The man had just walked down from the way we had come in.
And so, I decided to yell out to him. "Vakarian! Long time no see!"
He returned a shocked look before gathering himself and approaching.
"Shield. Lieutenant. What are you two doing down here?" he questioned when we got into earshot.
"I was actually asking the same thing," Kaidan replied.
I couldn't help it as a sly grin came across my face. "I thought you might come down here. For that shop keeper Dr. Michel mentioned. I said we'd help you with that didn't I?"
I couldn't quite read the expression the Turian had on his face.
But he seemed...concerned?
"How'd you know the merchant blackmailing her was down here?" Garrus asked.
"The shadiest shop keeps are here in the Lower Markets. Thought the one you were looking for probably was too," I said lying through my teeth.
"I guess some back-up never hurt." He looked around. "Where's Shepard?"
"She's taking care of some other business," Kaidan told him this time.
"...well." He turned his head towards Morlan. "Let's not keep him waiting."
Garrus took the lead as we walked back to Morlan's booth. The Salarian didn't look as pleased to see us this time.
"I heard you were looking for a delivery of medical supplies," Garrus said when the Salarian didn't acknowledge us, additionally looking around, albeit shiftily.
"But...I was told the doctor would be bringing them," Morlan replied, wiping his forehead.
"Change of plans," Garrus bluntly told him.
"A change? But...the doctor...I'don't...this is not right Turian," he started chattering.
"Shut up Morlan! I told Banes you'd screw this up!"
We all looked to the voice in alarm. The Krogan wasn't as big as Wrex but...
I can't imagine who in their right mind would willingly fight one. I mean...oh shit. I realllllly hope we can talk him down-
"What the hell is going on here? Who are you?"
"Why don't you leave the good doctor alone?" Garrus 'asked'.
"We can end this if you just bring me those supplies. Otherwise, I'll start telling people about the doctor's little secret."
In the face of quite likely death, I channeled my inner Shepard in an attempt to settle things before we all got hurt. Which we assuredly would.
"If you do that, you'll shut down that clinic," I pointed out. "What if someone needs help?...What if you need help?"
I recited the line to the best of my memory. And I had to say, my grizzled voice made it sound pretty threatening.
"Hey! Hold on there! I'm just a middleman."
I breathed a sigh of relief as he did. As intimidating as he looked, he was just a coward. Luckily for us that is.
"This is way more than I bargained for," the Krogan said last before high tailing it away.
Thank god.
"Thank you Human," Morlan said popping out from under his counter. "It is good to see him humbled so."
"What do you know about Banes?" Garrus interrogated.
"I never met him Turian. I only worked with the one who spoke with the Doctor."
"Then I guess we should inform the Dr. Michel on what happened here," I told Garrus.
"Yeah, she might be able to tell us more about Banes," Kaidan added.
Moments Later.
"Oh, Garrus. How did things go?" Dr. Michel asked upon our arrival.
"With Fist? Pretty good. We found the Quarian and she agreed to help us with our investigation. We also happened to come across your blackmailer Doctor. He won't be bothering you anymore either."
"Really?! Oh, that's such a relief to hear," she said quite clearly happy. "I can't pay you for your help but I can give you a discount on any supplies you purchase here."
"Oh, that's not necessary," Garrus tried to tell her.
"Nonsense. You've helped me so much. It's the least I can do!"
"Well in that case, thanks Doctor!" I said cheerfully.
A discount here will definitely score us some points with the boss-
"Dr. Michel, does the name Banes mean anything to you?" Kaidan asked.
"Banes? Do you mean Armistan Banes? I worked together with a man by that name a long time ago."
Wait, long time ago?...How old is this chick?
"What do you know about him?" Garrus questioned.
"Last I heard, the Alliance Military was contracting him for some research in the Traverse."
"The Captain might know something about that," Kaidan interjected.
"I wish I could tell you more..." she trailed off.
"Don't worry about it Doc. I know where to go from here," I replied.
"Do you?" Kaidan asked incredulously.
Anderson's too busy getting our arrangements for us to go bother him right now.
And since I already knew what the next step was, there was no need to go running all across the Citadel.
"I realized who Banes was when the Dr. Michel gave us his full name. He was contracted for work on an Alliance research ship. Unfortunately, the Alliance recently found that ship drifting in space. And Banes was found inside...dead," I finished while looking at Dr. Michel. I had realized too late that she probably didn't need to hear that.
"That's horrible," the Dr. Michel said horrified.
"That Krogan seemed to think he was very much alive," Garrus pointed out.
"The dude was apparently doing high level stuff for the Alliance. The news of his death isn't exactly public. Someone might have stolen his name to get this equipment. Someone who must have had high enough clearance to know that." I thought of a way to segue to where we needed to go. "I was actually supposed to look into it for the Broker. Apparently the marines under the command of an Admiral Kahoku were the ones to find it. I actually overheard from someone that the Admiral's been trying to get an appointment at the Citadel Tower."
"Sounds as good a place as any to start," Garrus concluded.
I turned to Kaidan and asked if he was in.
"Well, Shepard did order me to watch you," he said.
"Well Then. It's decided," I said.
Several Moments Later.
In the elevator ride up the tower, our conversation was mostly about how we had taken care of those thugs in the Doctor's office and alleyway. And there was quite a large amount of back patting going around.
"I have to say, your biotics are impressive, Lieutenant," Garrus complimented Kaidan. "I'm surprised that humans stopped using the L2 configuration with results like yours."
"Hey, my headaches can be pretty bad, and I'm one of the lucky L2 implants. The L3's are a lot safer," Kaidan replied in turn.
"If that was true, why don't you get retrofitted?" I asked next.
Now's as good as any to get his sad, sad childhood backstory of being a Biotic and his time at BAaT training camp.
"The retrofits from L2 to L3 can be dangerous. Few people come away from those unscarred. My migraines are bad but I'd rather have them then become a paraplegic."
"Fair enough," I commented.
"But why change at all when the L2's spike stronger? Humanity will be judged by the sacrifices its people are willing to make. The Turians would have kept the L2 implants," Vakarian remarked solemnly.
"There's a fine line though between self-sacrifice and unnecessary hardship. Not every one needs to have the biotic capabilities of an Asari," Kaidan bit back.
"If you want the people you care about to live in safety and comfort, sometimes you have to sacrifice your own," Garrus replied sagely.
Both had good points. But thankfully, they didn't have time to continue their debate as the doors of the elevator slid open.
And the beautiful scenery of the Tower's interior erupted into view.
We had actually walked a good amount, maneuvering around a lot of boulders and ducking under the intermittent, low hanging branches of the trees everywhere before our group came to a stop. Or specifically, me. In fact, they were wondering why I had suddenly just frozen in place. And I couldn't find my breath to respond as I stared at the giant ass bug in front of me for the very first time.
The creature was busy tapping away at a console attached to one of the Chamber's pillars. It had a cute little rose bib around its neck, which greatly contrasted with the green monstrosity it was being worn by. The head and body of a man-sized caterpillar sprouted from the neck of what seemed to be some kind of Lovecraftian nightmare. And I tried to stay the horror that crept across my face, with tried being the key word.
Garrus finally seemed to notice the reason for my pause. "First time noticing the Keepers huh?"
I just stood in place, making sure I didn't make any sudden moves.
I can see how they were created by the Reapers. No other sick, twisted, depraved-
"Not many people actually see them when they first arrive. They're so unimposing, most go by unnoticed. When you do see your first however, you start to see them just about everywhere."
Unimposing my ass! That thing's the product of Satan. But Garrus was right. There was no way we hadn't run across ANY back in the Presidium or Wards-
"But after a while, they just kind of slip right back into obscurity. Blend into your daily routine. They're completely harmless though. Worst thing they might do is rearrange your desk. They're notorious for that," Garrus continued.
I can't believe I hadn't noticed these monsters. Horrors walking around in plain sight. The Reapers had picked the perfect thralls to attend to their doomsday device. Dah bastahds-
"What do they actually do?" Kaidan asked curiously.
"Their believed to be made by the Protheans for the sole purpose of maintaining the Citadel. Probably always have," Garrus responded.
I realized that we didn't have time for this. Bravely overcoming my paralysis, I finally forced my legs to move, and I circled around it, making sure to give the abomination a wide berth. Once we passed the Keeper and continued on, Kaidan was the one to spot the Admiral. He was near the staircase leading to the Council Chambers, dressed head to toe in Alliance uniform. A blue overcoat, blue shoulder pads, blue cap, the whole shebang.
"Admiral Kahoku?" Kaidan was the one to ask once we got close enough.
"That would be me," he responded, turning away from his console. Kaidan gave him a salute in turn. Kahoku mimicked it. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"We're here on behalf of Commander Shepard. Your men were the one who found Banes am I correct?" I asked him.
He seemed to take pause. I could tell he was already sizing us up. The fact that a C-Sec agent and two 'marines' were the ones asking him about this top secret case though were enough to placate his suspicions.
"...Yes, one of my crews found him. Frozen stiff on board a derelict vessel. I sent a recon group to investigate the system where we found the body," he told us. Then his face grew grave. "But we lost contact yesterday. Now I can't get clearance to check it out...suddenly it's a restricted area! But if you are with Shepard, that doesn't apply to her. Spectres can go anywhere they want. You could find out why my team dropped out of contact."
"We'll find them Admiral," Alenko assured him.
"I appreciate that soldier. I was running out of options. I'm going to stay here and see if I can find anything out through official channels. Won't hold my breath though."
"We'll get back to you as soon as we find them," I said. He nodded and turned back toward his console.
"I'll upload the info where my team was last seen to your omni-tool. Maybe YOU can get some answers."
I wanted to tell him then and there about what happened to his soldiers. Tell him about Cerberus. Tell him to just drop everything and let it go. Tell him to hide. I know I could have. But I didn't. I just turned and walked away with the others. I couldn't see how I could address the issue without seeming sketchy...
So I was going to just let him die.
Fuck.
Because I was too concerned with my own hide.
We need to go back.
"Dead scientist. Missing marines. Restricted area. This whole thing smells fishy," Garrus said.
"Yeah, I don't like it either," Kaidan agreed.
No. There'll be other opportunities to save him. Giving Shepard the info on this mission will prove your part of the team.
So...I just decided to voice aloud my own opinion to the group. "We should probably tell the Commander about it."
Great contribution.
"Agreed. Think it's about time we all met back up?" Kaidan pondered.
"I think she would give us a call if she was ready," I assured him. Then, in a stroke of brilliance, I thought of something to keep us occupied. "...you guys ever been to Flux?"
Even More Moments Later.
"I got big news for you Shepard. Captain Anderson is stepping down as commanding officer of the Normandy. The ship is yours now."
The news hit her like a punch to the gut. She looked to Anderson in disbelief.
"She's quick and quiet and you know the crew. Perfect ship for a Spectre. Treat her well Commander."
His complacency with this boggled her mind.
"What? The Normandy belongs to you!" she found herself protesting hotly. There was no way-
But Anderson simply replied with a matter of fact tone. "You needed your own ship. A Spectre can't answer to anyone but the Council. And it's time for me to step down."
She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
It can't be true. There's no way in hell you'd willingly take yourself out of a fight.
"Come clean with me, Captain. You owe me that much," she decided to force her hand and pry.
Closing his eyes, he turned toward the Normandy and spoke.
"I was in your shoes twenty years ago, Shepard. They were once considering me for the Spectres."
That degenerate at the club...he couldn't have been telling the truth-
"But I failed. I couldn't make the cut. It's not something I'm proud of," he said now staring at her. "Ask me later and I'll tell you the whole story. For now, all you need to know is I was sent on a mission with Saren, and he made sure the Council rejected me." She could clearly see the regret in his eyes. And she had some in hers too. In all her years of knowing him, she had never heard of this. Not even once. "I had my shot. It came and went. Now you have a chance to make up for my mistakes."
She clenched her fists.
And Saren was to blame. Everything always came back to Saren didn't it?
"Saren's not going to get away with this. Not this time," she growled.
Anderson frowned at her. "Saren's gone. Don't even try to find him. But we know what he's after: the Conduit. He's got his Geth scouring the Traverse looking for clues."
The Ambassador pushed his way back into the conversation. "We've had reports of Geth in the Attican Beta shortly before our scouts there dropped out of contact. And there have been sightings in the Horse Head Nebula as well."
"Find out what Saren was after in the Attican Beta and Horse Head. Maybe you can figure out where the Conduit is before he does," Anderson briefed her.
"Anything else?" she asked, trying to grasp everything she had just heard.
"We have one more lead. Matriarch Benezia, the other voice on that recording. She has a daughter, a scientist who specializes in the Protheans."
Shepard was sure it wasn't a coincidence.
Saren and Benezia must have been planning this for a long time.
"We don't know if she's involved but it might be a good idea to try and find her. See what she knows. Her name's Liara. Dr. Liara T'Soni. We have reports she was exploring an archaeological dig on one of the uncharted worlds in the Artemis Tau Cluster," Udina finished.
Shield interrupted their conversation. "Hey! You know one of those experts I had mentioned worked on Therum? I'm pretty sure Dr. T'Soni was one of them. We should definitely stop there first. An expert on the Protheans would definitely be helpful in finding the Conduit. I'm sure of it!"
Shield just suggested we find the daughter of one of Saren's allies. A woman who also just happened to be studying the Protheans. The race that created the Conduit that Saren and we are now searching for.
It was so sickeningly obvious.
The fact that the Krogan mercenary who joined their group was connected with him through the Broker only further confirmed her suspicions. She just needed to wait for Fist's OSD to return to her decrypted from Alliance Command. She had a copy of it sent to them before fulfilling Shield's bargain with the Volus. The data on that disk would be the evidence she needed to prove that Saren and the Broker could still be working together in fact. And Shield's claims along with the Broker hiring Wrex could have just been a ruse to cover their partnership. She fully expected the two to already betray her at some point in their mission. And she decided to make it sooner rather than later.
She responded immediately after Shield had finished talking.
"Sounds like we should head for the Artemis Tau cluster," she said still facing Anderson and the Ambassador. She noticed Anderson was staring at Shield with an expression she couldn't quite place. But the Captain turned his attention back to her after she spoke.
"It's your decision Commander. You're a Spectre now. You don't answer to us."
She grimaced as the Captain said it.
"But your actions still reflect on Humanity as a whole. You make a mess and I get stuck cleaning it up," Udina reminded her.
I only have one thing to worry about cleaning up.
"I'll take care of Saren," Shepard said. "You can take care of the political fallout."
"Not exactly the answer I was looking for Shepard. Remember: you were a Human long before you were a Spectre."
Remember...Remember I was a Human?! How dare you...
Anger swelled inside her as she stared at him. She gritted her teeth to stop herself from doing something she might regret. She had been feeling much more on edge than she normally would in fact. It was starting to make her question how much the mission to Prime had affected her.
"I have a meeting to get to. Captain Anderson can answer any questions you might have," the Ambassador said, taking his leave.
She waited 'til he was out of earshot before addressing the Captain.
"You can't tell me you're just planning on staying here?!"
"Honestly? Yes, this isn't how I pictured my career coming to an end. Pushing papers isn't really my thing." She fully agreed. "But you're the only one who can stop Saren. I believe in you Shepard. If that means I have to step aside, so be it."
Her agreement with him ended there. This was his ship.
She just ended up muttering "I should go," when they were done talking.
Though she almost went blind with rage when she thought she heard Shield suppressing a snicker behind her.
What the hell does he find so funny-
"I'll be here on the station if you need anything," the Captain told them before saluting her and leaving for the elevator. She then turned around for a moment, watching the man leave for the dock. She wouldn't fail him. Not again.
She then turned to glare at Shield, daring him to laugh again.
Somewhere in Time.
The Geth ships were swarming towards the space station.
Joker counted no less than seven.
He'd be damned though if he let the Geth attack the Citadel and all the defenseless children aboard it.
He kicked the Normandy into high gear. Banking above them in the deep vacuum of space, Joker then pulled the Normandy into a nose dive upon the enemy fleet. The bastards didn't even know what hit them as the Normandy's prototype Javelin torpedoes rained down upon them from above. Only two cruisers were left after the onslaught. Clicking several buttons on his interface, he activated the Normandy's GARDIAN lasers just in time as he sped past the last two Geth ships under razor thin margins. Their hulls were torn to shreds due to their proximity to the Normandy, and they shot out through the debris, unimpeded. Joker was just about to celebrate before he looked back on his radar to find that they weren't yet done. A Geth dreadnought rivaling the Destiny Ascension had just dropped out of FTL. And it seemed to be dead set on destroying the station and all the helpless baby animals aboard it too.
"Oh...you want some more do you?" Joker whispered under his breath.
He disengaged the Normandy's stealth drive and piloted the ship right into the Geth's line of sight.
"Oh No!" the robots said in their robotic voices, frightened like school girls. School girl robots that is. "It's Joker!"
"Say hello to my little friend," Joker said with a grin as he activated the Normandy's mass accelerator. "Pew pew pew."
The dreadnought blew to smithereens. The explosion could be seen by everyone on the station. They all chanted his name as its vapor trails showered over the Presidium. The newly crowned Ms. Alliance came up behind him and laid her arms across his chest. "Wow Joker, you're too much man for me. I'm going to have to share you with the rest of the Alliance's lingerie cover girls," she whispered into his ear.
"Yeaaaah," Joker said kicking back in his chair, admiring his handiwork. Just another day's work for the Alliance's number one pilot.
He jumped as a feminine voice announced Shepard's arrival over the intercom.
"Logged. The Commanding Officer is aboard. XO Pressly stands relieved."
Stupid VI.
Joker swiveled his chair around to face the Commander and the new members of the crew just now arriving. Udina had just left announcing the Normandy's newest assignment. And that the Commander would be the one overseeing it instead of the Captain. As if that wasn't shock enough, the make up of Shepard's shore party lent even more insanity to the day. The single file line of well trained soldiers he thought would exit the airlock turned out to be a weird parade of aliens instead.
His eyes practically bugged when he saw the Krogan enter the ships' bridge. He had to do a double take to make sure he wasn't seeing things. The behemoth was practically twice his size and had a look that said "I'll beat you to death with your own arm." The alien could snap him in half like a twig if he wanted to. Probably did. Although a trip to the shower could do the same to him too. The two made brief eye contact before the Krogan snorted and started trotting toward the ship's Command Center.
Holy shi-
Joker didn't have time to process the thought as the next person he saw walking aboard was a Turian.
Oh man, where the hell is Shepard getting these guys?!
He was wearing blue and black armor with a prominent headpiece covering his eye. Obviously C-Sec. He followed the Krogan's path down the neck of the ship. The absurdity didn't stop there as a Quarian walked out next, talking about Alliance Admirals or something with Shield. He had never seen one in person before and her suit left a lot to the imagination. Then Kaidan and Chief Williams exited, giving each other the stink eye. He didn't know what that was about and he didn't want to ask.
And Shepard was the last one out of the airlock. And she did not look happy.
Probably didn't take the news well. She and the Captain have been pretty close.
His blatant staring caught her eye, and in return, she started to approach. He slowly swiveled his chair back to his console.
"I heard what happened to Captain Anderson. Survives a hundred battles, and then gets taken down by back room politics. Just watch your back Commander. Things go bad on this mission, you're next on their chopping block."
He had said it half in jest, but there might have been some truth to his words.
"Captain Anderson should be the one in charge. It's like I'm stealing the ship from him."
The news obviously had her down. But he tried his best to cheer her up. Had to live up to the name of course.
"Yeah the Captain got screwed. But it's not like you could've stopped it. Nobody's blaming you. Everyone on this ship is behind you, Commander. One hundred percent."
He looked down at the Normandy's controls and clicked a few buttons. A small square turned green in the left uppermost corner.
"Intercom's open. If you've got anything you want to say to the crew, now's the time," he told her.
She took almost no time leaning over him to speak into the comm.
"Listen up Normandy. This is your Commander speaking...and we have our orders: find Saren before he finds the Conduit."
She paused for dramatic effect.
"And I refuse to let anything get in the way of that mission! We all know what happened on Eden Prime. We saw the destruction. We saw the bodies. We saw what Saren did. And I plan to make him pay! Wherever Saren goes, we'll follow. Wherever he searches for the Conduit, we'll be there. We will hunt him to the very ends of the galaxy and bring him down!"
The words left her mouth without a break. It was like she had practiced the thing the entire day.
"None of the other species has the guts, grit, or balls to deal with this. So it's up to us. We're the only ones who can stop Saren. And I swear to you all, we WILL stop him."
Her fiery oratory definitely had him feeling something.
Patriotism. Duty. Or maybe it's just hunger. Probably a little of columns A, B, and C.
He had skipped lunch today. Joker then looked up to Shepard once he realized she was finished.
"Good job Commander. You'd make him proud."
"The Captain gave up everything so I could have this chance. We can't fail," she said already walking away.
"Yes ma'am!" he replied, flicking on the rest of the Normandy's primary systems. He undocked the Normandy from the bay's arms and brought the ship around. Joker suspected the dampeners might need a little tuning as he felt a kick with the ignition of the thrusters. Once it was fired up however, the Normandy's engines propelled them away from the space station at light speed, and closer towards the Relay.
The Hunt for Saren had begun.
Author's Notes:
On that note, Thank God the Prologue is finally over! I had planned for Chapters '1'-10 to just be Act 0, laying the foundation for our story. I also had hoped to finish it before New Year's but Oh well ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
With this we can officially move on to Act 1: The Throwdown on Therum!
Less standard ME dialogue. Less canned events. More twists, original content, and...things!
In the Next Chapter: Revelation. Convocation. ME-nation! The Normandy's First Assignment!
Tune in next time on Mass Effective: A Hero Made!