Joker walked out of the elevator and onto the shuttle bay floor, he could feel his face hurting from the grin still plastered on his face but he did not care, he was too focused on getting to Elissa and finding out what happened on Lilonani. He saw the top of the shuttle and his heart quickened, he was so close, rounding the corner he saw her sitting in the doorway of the shuttle her hands were clasped together and her face was tight with tension. When he saw the look on her face, his smile faltered, just from the subtle signs he knew the mission had not gone as she had planned and she was upset by this. He watched as she scanned the room and when her green eyes landed on him her face instantly changed and she jumped up and practically ran to him, he did his best to meet her halfway but she was too fast, she was in his arms and he was glad.
He pressed her against his chest, not even caring that her clunky armor was digging into his skin, he was just so relieved that she was still there and that he could hold her again, he wrapped his arms as best he could around her, "Ellie, oh Ellie, thank God you're alright." Joker buried his face into her neck, breathing in deeply her familiar scent of roses and vanilla now mingled with sweat, he never wanted to move again he just wanted to remain here wrapped in the embrace of the woman he loved for all eternity.
Elissa felt every bit of tension and anger leave her body the moment Joker's arms were around her, the sound of his voice a welcome change from the beating of her heart in her ears, she allowed herself to relax in his embrace not caring that several pairs of eyes were watching them. She closed her eyes and rested her forehead in the nape of his neck, she could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks though she did nothing to stop them, for once she did not care at all that she was crying instead she let them fall. It was then that she was aware of a warmth on her neck that was not Joker's breath, she knew he was crying too, something she had never seen him do despite all of the hell they had gone through he had always kept it together as much as she had.
"I knew you'd get us out of there," said Elissa against his neck, she felt him suck in a deep breath as a new wave of tears warmed her neck. She pushed slightly out of the embrace so she could see his face, he was trying to cover his eyes with the brim of his cap but she quickly lifted it so she could see. His eyes held no mirth, only relief and love, and she was pretty sure hers looked the same way.
Joker looked reluctantly into her eyes, the last thing he wanted her to see was the tears in his own eyes but something inside told him she would understand and he knew she did when he saw the tear tracks cutting through the grime on her cheeks. He found himself lost in the green of her eyes, unwilling to look away now and he closed the small gap between their lips, the euphoria coursing through him like adrenaline only better. Her mouth opened slightly and he slid his tongue inside feeling her own against his, the grip they had on each others' form became even tighter though she was still careful not to crush his bones and he felt love swell in his heart at this gesture. With her cheeks so close, he could feel the wet trails her tears had made as they fell, and he was sure she could feel the ones on his own cheeks. He lightly brushed his fingertips across her neck eliciting a soft moan from Elissa, she deepened their kiss in response and he could feel his uniform trousers tighten slightly, as much as he wanted to figure out what had happened down on Lilonani he would rather take her to her cabin and show her exactly how much he was glad she was back.
Somewhere in the back of their minds, Joker and Elissa heard the elevator ding and the doors slide open, reluctantly they broke the seal of their kiss but Joker did not let her go instead he pressed her against his chest and lowered his forehead so it could rest against hers. She gave a breathy laugh as he maneuvered so part of her head was underneath the brim of his cap so their skin could touch, and he smiled in response. All around them they could hear the reunion of other lovers, each one bringing a new wave of relief to Elissa, she knew that despite all that had happened in the facility hearing her friends' happiness made the sacrifice almost worth the cost.
"Tali!" exclaimed Garrus when he saw her walk into view, from what limited view he had, Joker could see the Turian's mandibles flex into a smile as he rushed towards Tali.
"Garrus!" called Tali and Joker heard her feet shuffling on the floor as she met Garrus, and out the corner of his eye he saw them wrapped in a tight embrace and he could feel a smile stretching across his own face.
"What happened to your helmet?" asked Garrus as he looked at the cracked glass on the formerly smooth surface of Tali's helmet.
"It's a long story," sighed Tali, resting her head against Garrus' chest, "I'm sure we'll get the chance to debrief you all about what happened while you were on Lilonani."
"That can wait," said Garrus softly, "I'm just glad you're alright, Tali."
"The feeling's mutual on all counts, Garrus," said Tali, "I couldn't imagine going on in a galaxy that did not have you in it."
"You're really into this romance stuff aren't you?" asked Garrus, his face looked almost normal but his tone suggested he was glad she enjoyed the romance stuff.
"You know it, my saera," cooed Tali as she looked up into Garrus' eyes.
"I'm not even going to ask what that means," said Garrus, "let me live in the illusion that you called me something like 'badass' or 'killer'."
Tali laughed, "Okay, Garrus, whatever you say."
"James!" called Miranda from the shuttle, she was laying on the floor still too exhausted to really move, with Samara beside her giving her some power bars from Steve's supply in the shuttle.
Joker and Elissa felt a rush of air hit them as James ran from his position to the shuttle, they moved their heads so they could see what was going on behind them properly and saw James scoop Miranda into his arms and cradle her against his large chest as he sat on the floor beside her. Miranda smiled weakly up at him, brushing her gloved hand across his jawline, even from a distance Elissa could still see the tears shimmering in his eyes as he looked down at the woman in his arms.
"Rosa, mi amor," purred James as he stroked her hair, "I'm so glad you're safe. How're you feeling? Is there anything I can get you?"
"I'm fine, James, just tired," sighed Miranda, "Samara's been giving me some power bars to bring my strength back up. How're you doing? You look like hell."
"Thanks," said James giving her a smirk before kissing her forehead, "I'll find Chakwas in a little while and see what she thinks of my injuries."
"Speaking of Chakwas," said Jacob as he sat down on a metal crate, Kasumi perched on a crate behind him, "Where is the good doctor?"
"I'm right here, Lieutenant," said Chakwas, emerging from behind a few stacked crates, she scanned the crew taking note of their various injuries, "Looks like you lot went through the ringer, I'll just pop back up to the medbay and get some supplies to take care of those cuts."
The group that had defended the Normandy shared a look, none were sure how to tell Chakwas or Elissa that the medbay had been practically destroyed in the fight.
"Is there something we should know?" asked Elissa, now turning around to face her crew, her arms crossed as she stared at them.
"Uh, yeah, Shepard there is," said Jacob standing up straight, "Falere destroyed the medbay with a biotic blast, there was nothing we could do to stop her. That's actually how we all got injured . . . including your mother, Elissa."
Elissa felt the color drain from her face, she heard what Jacob said but the words were foreign to her ears, 'Injured? My mother? Impossible.'
Joker came up behind Elissa and wrapped his arms securely around her waist, he felt her body relax against his and he smiled inwardly.
"How bad were her injuries, Doc?" asked Elissa, her voice wavering.
"The landing from the explosion broke a few ribs and she has a minor concussion," reported Chakwas, "I've given her some acetaminophen and put a cold compress on her head, both should reduce the swelling for her head and the acetaminophen should also take care of the pain from her broken ribs. She'll survive, Shepard, she's going to be just fine."
Elissa released a sigh of relief, she closed her eyes and rested her head against Joker's shoulder, "Thank you, Chakwas, now see to the crew. I believe there's some medical supplies down here in one of these crates."
"Thanks, Shepard," said Chakwas smiling, "I'll go and search for those supplies." She started walking towards the section of the shuttle bay that contained basic supplies.
"I'll help her," said Kasumi, jumping down from her perch behind Jacob and walking in the direction Chakwas had.
"Do you want a debrief now or later, Shepard?" asked Garrus, still holding Tali.
"The debriefing can wait until after everyone that needs medical attention has been seen," said Elissa firmly, "In the mean time, those of you who are uninjured can go back to your quarters and relax, you've all earned some rest. When we're all rested and ready, we can debrief then, until that time dismissed."
"There's one more thing, Elissa," said Jacob, his voice quiet.
"What's that, Jacob?" asked Elissa, concerned that they might have lost someone in the fight.
"EDI's mobile platform's been destroyed," said Jacob, he noticed both Elissa and Joker looked rather distressed at the news.
"Damn," whispered Joker, "Can she be repaired?"
"I'm sure we can find someway to fix her good as new, Joker," said Tali, "Between myself, Adams, and Gabby we should be able to put her back just like she was."
"Good to hear," said Joker, smiling and he felt Elissa tense in his embrace, he was sure she still thought he had feelings towards EDI, he made a note to remedy that later.
"We'll get to work on her as soon as we can," said Tali and she and Garrus walked over to the elevator, Samara behind them her face still as impassive as it was on Lilonani.
"I have a feeling whatever happened on Lilonani was pretty bad," whispered Joker in Elissa's ear.
"You don't know that half of it," Elissa whispered back, "Come on, lets go up to my cabin."
"To talk?" asked Joker a sly grin etching across his lips.
"Sure, talk," said Elissa coyly as she led him to the elevator.
Joker looked up at the stars above, his body entirely relaxed as he lazily drew circles on Elissa's bare shoulder, who's head was resting on his chest. How he loved the feeling of her body against his, it was much better than his fantasies this was real, she was real, and all his no matter what happened. He glanced down at the top of her head and sat up enough to kiss it, breathing in deeply, these were the moments he enjoyed the most when they could shed off their personas and just be themselves, just be two people in love with each other.
"What are you thinking about?" asked Elissa, looking up at him through her eyelashes, her heart racing when his eyes met hers.
"How do you know I'm thinking about anything?" asked Joker, leaning back against the pillows.
"You're quiet," said Elissa, moving up so her head was against his shoulder, "You're only quiet when you're thinking about something."
"Doesn't happen often, does it?" asked Joker, raising an eyebrow playfully.
"More often than you give yourself credit for," sighed Elissa, snuggling closer to him, he could tell she too was enjoying this moment of peace as much as he was, "What are you thinking about?"
"Guess," said Joker, playing with a strand of her hair.
"Us," said Elissa and Joker laughed, she knew she had at least gotten that part right.
"Good guess," said Joker, a grin on his face, "Now, what about us?"
"Sex?" asked Elissa, looking up hopefully.
Joker laughed louder, "Not currently, but in the next fifteen minutes, that might be the only thing on my mind."
Elissa glared at him and he laughed harder, "What? I'm a pig."
"Nah, you're just horny," said Elissa, kissing his neck, his beard tickling her nose, "So what are you thinking about us?"
"We've never been on a real first date," said Joker quietly, his face serious and Elissa was surprised, of all the things he could have said that was the last one she expected. She could tell this had been weighing on his mind, and she wanted to say something that would make him feel better but nothing she thought of seemed to be right.
"Well," said Elissa slowly, moving to the pillows beside him so she could see him better, "there was that dinner at the sushi place on the Citadel."
"I'd count that as a date if it weren't for the fact you were with Major Asshole, we were attacked by mercs, you fell through the fish tank and you used me as fucking bait!" said Joker, feigning insult at the memory of being used as live bait during that attack, Elissa scowled at him and he laughed.
"Okay, fine, we haven't actually been on a date," sighed Elissa, she now felt slightly empty at that thought, as wonderful as her relationship with Joker was going it did seem to be lacking those essential elements that every other relationship seemed to have, the most important being having at least one actual date.
"I'm sorry about that, Ellie," said Joker, turning over and kissing her shoulder, "I promise, as soon as we're somewhere decent, I'll take you out for a night on the town. You deserve that much considering all that's happened these past few months."
Elissa felt her heart swell with love towards him, she appreciated that he was trying to make their relationship as normal as possible given the circumstances, "I love you, so much, Jeff."
Joker grinned as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, "I love you too, Elissa, so very much." He leaned in and kissed her softly, his hand traveling down her back, stopping just before he met the sheets.
Elissa pulled away, he could see in her eyes she was unsure of something though of what he did not know.
"Can I ask you something?" asked Elissa, her eyes now looking at the mattress.
"You already did, but I'll allow another question," teased Joker and she rolled her eyes.
"Do you still have feelings of any kind for EDI?" asked Elissa quietly, from the look on her face he guessed this had been something she had been thinking quite a lot about and just now was getting up the courage to ask him.
Joker leaned back against the pillows and thought about her question and his answer, looking back on his relationship with EDI there were not a lot of feelings involved, rather it was more he liked the novelty of EDI being in a sexy robot body and they were friends in a way so it just made sense to him to go out with her. 'That's probably not what she wants to hear,' thought Joker as he glanced over at Elissa, she was biting her lower lip and he knew she was nervous about his response.
"With EDI and I, there weren't really any feelings per say," started Joker slowly, he had a feeling he was treading on thin ice with Elissa right now and he wanted to be careful not to hurt her with his answer, "We had this mutual understanding of each other, how we worked, what we liked, stuff like that and that was the basis of our relationship. To me at least, she's still a good friend so I'll always be worried about her wellbeing, but no I don't have any romantic feelings for her whatsoever, they're all reserved for you, Ellie Belly."
"Good," said Elissa happily, resting her head against his shoulder, "and don't call me that."
"No promises," said Joker grinning down at her, "that's way too damn cute not to use."
Elissa groaned, "Fine, but if you say it once in front of the crew, your ass is mine."
"I thought that was already established," said Joker waggling his eyebrows at her, she hit him in the shoulder playfully and he rubbed the spot in mock pain, "Careful, I'm fragile."
"Sure you are," said Elissa wryly, kissing the spot she had hit him, "So what should we do while we wait for the rest of the crew to find their way to the debriefing room?"
"Well, there was that suggestion you had earlier," said Joker, his hand sliding down her curves and beneath the sheets, he watched as her face relaxed and a lazy smile stretch across her lips.
"I like where this is going," said Elissa in a husky voice as her fingers trailed down his chest, following the trail of hair down his chest stopping just at the hem of the sheet.
Joker pulled her in and kissed her, their kisses becoming more fervent and passionate, he was glad to have this time with her when nothing else in the galaxy seemed to matter except the two of them and their happiness.
"Is everyone here, EDI?" asked Elissa sometime later in the debriefing room. She, Joker, Garrus, Tali, Miranda, James, Samara, Jacob, Liara, Kasumi and a few others from the crew were seated around the terminal.
"Everyone is accounted for, Commander," said EDI in orb form.
"Thanks," said Elissa, giving a half-smile to the AI, "EDI, contact Admiral Hackett, he needs to hear what I know."
"Yes, Commander, connecting you now," said EDI and in a few seconds a holographic image of Hackett appeared in the center of the terminal.
"Shepard," said Hackett, "what an unexpected surprise, am I to assume your business on Lilonani has concluded?"
"An accurate assumption, Admiral," said Elissa, reclining in her chair, "I was just about to debrief the crew on what happened down there and I thought you might like to hear what I've learned instead of waiting for the report."
"Of course," said Hackett, "proceed Commander."
"We arrived at the monastery on Lessus as per Justicar Samara's suggestion," started Elissa, getting up and pacing now, "Upon arrival we intercepted a distress signal sent by Samara's only living daughter Falere, the message said the monastery was under attack and killing those who resisted capture and taking the dead bodies. After examining most of the monastery we found the body of Falere, she was alive by all accounts so we brought her back with us to the Normandy. She underwent emergency surgery and her life was saved. Then, Joker flew us to Lilonani where myself, Mr. Garrus Vakarian, Ms. Miranda Lawson, and Justicar Samara departed the Normandy with Steve Cortez piloting the shuttle and landed at a facility thought to be the hide out for the Ardat-Yakshi army. I turn the floor over to Lieutenant Taylor to explain what happened on the Normandy while I was planet-side. Jacob?"
Jacob stood up and faced the crew, "Admiral, after Shepard and her crew left for Lilonani we were approached by Dr. Chakwas who informed the remaining crew of strange behaviors she noticed being exhibited by Falere as her wounds were healing faster than expected."
"Who was part of that crew, Lieutenant?" asked Hackett, who appeared to be writing down what was being said during this meeting.
"Myself, Lieutenant James Vega, Admiral Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, the ship's AI EDI, Ms. Kasumi Goto and Lower Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard," said Jacob.
"Thank you, Lieutenant, please continue," said Hackett and Jacob nodded.
"Yes, sir," said Jacob, "The six of us went to investigate Falere in the medbay, upon further investigation we saw she had a glowing orb-type insert on the back of her neck, similar to what we recognized as being used by the creature Leviathan. When she woke up, she went into a rage, throwing Hannah Shepard on her back then she exploded a biotic like bomb in the medbay sending some of us against the walls and myself, Tali, and Hannah through the windows of the medbay. Several of us sustained non-life threatening injuries, our AI's mobile platform was mangled but our engineers are hopeful that she can be repaired, the only one in somewhat critical condition is Hannah Shepard with several broken ribs and a mild concussion."
Joker noticed Hackett's face tightening at the mention of Hannah's injuries, and he gave Elissa a look trying to ask why Hackett would react like that, she simply shrugged her shoulders in response.
Jacob continued, "Falere was driven back to the mess hall where we made our stand, nearly running out of ammunition in the process, trying to prevent her from gaining further access to the rest of the ship. Kasumi was finally able to stop her by firing a bullet into the orb on the back of her neck while the rest of us provided cover fire. We are currently in the process of repairing and cleaning up the medbay and mess hall."
"Thank you, Lieutenant," said Hackett, he turned to Elissa, "Commander, do you have more the report?"
"Yes, sir," said Elissa, "My ground team and I investigated the facility on Lilonani, discovering that the army was being given the chance to develop their abilities through sexual intercourse, which I was told for an Ardat-Yakshi is equivalent to a human being using performance-enhancing steroids and illicit drugs. We found several hundred dead bodies of various races in a room in the facility, we were unable to recover any of the bodies."
Joker heard Elissa's voice catch, he knew in her heart she had wanted to give closure to the people whom had lost a loved one to the Ardat-Yakshi army, and it pained her that she was unable to do that for all of those people.
"We went further on into the facility," continued Elissa as if nothing was troubling her mind, "near the center we found Justicar Remaldia and her Ardat-Yakshi army, through her we learned several interesting pieces of information. To start, she had made a deal with Leviathan to gain the ability to control the Ardat-Yakshi who were unwilling to cooperate with her, this ability also gave her the power to bring the dead Ardat-Yakshi back to life and under her control all of this achieved through indoctrination. We also learned that she was seeking revenge for the death of her daughters, Rila and Morinth, exacting it against myself, Samara, and the Asari people."
Joker's eyes went wide, he looked around the room and saw everyone who had not been on the ground team looked similar, not one of them had expected to hear that connection.
"This made Remaldia reveal her connection to Justicar Samara as her former bond mate," said Elissa, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Samara, "something we had not been told beforehand. We fought against her and her army, only to be interrupted by a volcanic eruption, we were unable to save anyone in the facility but we managed to escape and rendezvoused with the Normandy shortly after the facility exploded in the eruption."
"Thank you, Shepard," said Hackett, "I'm sure you're eager to track down Leviathan once again, but until the necessary repairs have been made to the Normandy, I'm afraid I cannot allow you in good conscience to hunt them down just yet."
Elissa was slightly disheartened, while she knew Hackett was right, she had hoped just a little bit that he might let her track down Leviathan right after this meeting.
"Is there anything else, Admiral?" asked Elissa, sitting back in her chair beside Joker.
"Yes, a friend of yours wanted to talk with you," said Hackett and he motioned to someone off screen and he stepped out of view, only to have his position filled by a familiar face that Elissa had not expected to see.
"Hey, Shepard," said Jack, looking down at Elissa, a smug grin on her face, "heard you were back in action, had to see it for myself."
"Jack!" exclaimed Elissa smiling, "How the hell are you?"
"Been better, but that's a story for when you get your ass to Omega," said Jack, she looked around the room at everyone else, "I see most of the old crew's still sticking it out with you, glad to know I don't always have to be there to save your sorry ass."
"Still as pleasant as ever, I see," said Elissa shaking her head.
"You know it," said Jack, she turned to Miranda, "Hey Cheerleader, I heard you're actually getting laid for once, any improvement to your stuck-up attitude?"
"Fuck you, Jack," snarled Miranda.
"I'd say that's an improvement, a step above your usual self at least," said Jack smirking at Miranda before turning back to Elissa, her demeanor becoming serious, "We have a lot to discuss when you get here, Shepard, and none of it's good."
Elissa furrowed her brow, 'Great, just what I need, more bad news,' then she looked up at Jack, "Alright, we should be at Omega in twenty-four to thirty-six hours, depending on how fast Joker wants to get there." She looked over at Joker and winked at him.
"The fucker better get you here sooner than that if he knows what's good for him," sneered Jack, glaring down at Joker who merely chuckled.
"Five credits in the swear jar," laughed Joker, "By the way, how much is that up to? Think you could use it to repair the medbay?"
"Screw you," said Jack, then she again turned her attention to Elissa, "You better get him laid soon; robot, Hanar, Asari whatever he just needs a piece of ass. He needs a serious attitude adjustment."
"Like it's done any good for you," teased Joker, glancing at Elissa who just shook her head in response.
"Why you little—" started Jack, her hands balling into fists.
"Kids, kids, can't we all play nice?" interrupted Elissa, shutting the chatter up, "Jack, tell Hackett we'll be at Omega by dinner time tomorrow, we'll resupply there and make the necessary repairs."
"Understood, Shepard," said Jack, crossing her arms, her voice softening, "and for what it's worth, I'm glad you and the crew are safe."
Elissa was taken aback, she had never heard Jack openly show that she cared for anyone, she knew deep down Jack had always cared but it was different to hear her vocalize that affection.
"Thanks, Jack, I'm glad you're safe too," said Elissa feeling that the tender moment was fleeting.
"Alright, Jack out," said Jack, and Elissa heard a crack in her voice just before she closed the connection.
The crew sat in the silence after Jack got off the channel, they were all stunned at the news about Lilonani and the fact Jack was working with Hackett now, James was the first to speak.
"Samara, I'm sorry about everything that's happened," said James, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Thank you, James," said Samara calmly, she looked at Elissa, "Shepard, I would like to know what your plans concerning my place on the crew are."
Elissa blinked, "I was hoping you'd stay on with us, Samara, I might be upset with you that you didn't tell me right away that Remaldia was your bond mate but I'm not going to hold that against you. I'm sure you had your reasons for not telling me."
"I did, and I thank you for your understanding," said Samara quietly, "I would be honored to remain a part of this crew, you have all become very dear to me and I would be displeased to leave so soon."
"You're special to us as well, Justicar," said Liara, inclining her head slightly.
"Do you want to tell us about Remaldia?" asked Joker carefully, not sure how touchy of a subject Samara's bond mate was to her.
"In time, perhaps," said Samara, "for the time being, I wish to mourn, I have lost much today and need some time to process the deaths of my daughter and mate."
"Take all the time you need, Samara," said Elissa, "If you need anything, you know where to find us."
"Of course," said Samara, rising from her seat.
"Samara," said James, standing as well, "Falere's body is currently in the life support room, if you wish to see her, she's there."
"Thank you, James," said Samara kindly, "I might visit her, but for now I shall meditate in my quarters."
"If you want us to hold a funeral for her, we'd be more than happy to," said Garrus, Elissa cocked her head at him and he shrugged in response.
"I will consider the offer, Garrus," said Samara, "now if you'll all excuse me." She walked towards the door and out of the debriefing room, all eyes on her as she left.
"So . . . what now?" asked Kasumi, all eyes now focusing on Elissa who was now standing.
"Get some rest," said Elissa, putting her hand on Joker's shoulder, "I'm sure once we get to Omega, calm will be a luxury we can't afford. Joker, set course for Omega, make sure we get there undetected and safe."
"Aye, aye, Commander," said Joker, giving her a mock salute, winking at her as he did.
"Crew dismissed," said Elissa and the room emptied out, she helped Joker stand up and they walked out of the room arm in arm, both prepared for whatever was to come next.
