**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

This chapter has only been through one beta and there are still a few minor edits to be made. Please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes (however I would appreciate if they were pointed out so that I can make the fix)

Hope you enjoy!

"We're approaching the spaceport Miss Harris. Do you have transport to your destination?" the shuttle pilot called back to me.

Every damn year for the past six years when I visited home on Eden Prime, I had the same shuttle pilot from the docking station above the planet to the spaceport on the surface. And every damn year I had to endure being called Miss Harris.

"My dad's picking me up, as usual." I called back. "Are you ever going to stop calling me Miss Harris? You know how annoying I think that is."

I heard a laugh. "Not a chance."

"Fine, I'm going to start calling you Mr. Cortez instead of Steve." I snapped. I knew I was being childish, but damn, I hated being called Miss. I wasn't an old lady.

"You know I wouldn't mind that." He responded.

God dammit.

Ten minutes later, we landed.

"See you in a week on your trip back, Miss Harris." Cortez said as I grabbed my bag and waited for the shuttle's door to open. "Make sure you tell your dad Happy Birthday for me."

I rolled my eyes before giving him a smile. "Sure thing. See you in a week."

A short walk and wait later, I got onto the tram that would take me to the main part of the colony.

Once on the other side, I stepped off the tram and closed my eyes, breathing in the fresh air with a smile on my face. I'd become used to the air on the Citadel, though it was filtered and recycled over and over. Nothing beat the smell of fresh air, especially when that's what you were raised on.

Opening my eyes, I spotted my dad's beat up pickup truck; he and my mother had brought it with them from Earth when they came here. Once they got it onto the planet, dad had rigged it to run on electricity instead of gasoline. He definitely had a screw loose to still be using it, and had to have been the only person on the planet — or the known galaxy — to still be driving a vehicle instead of flying a skycar.

My dad and his eccentricities.

"Hey daddy," I said, walking into his open arms and holding him tight in a hug. I was 27 and I loved and missed my father to no end; so yes, I still called him daddy. And no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get him to come live with me on the Citadel. Conversely, he couldn't convince me to come back here for good. Nothing but farming and scientific expeditions. Blech.

"Hey sweetheart." He returned the hug and kissed the top of my head. "How was the trip?" He let me go and turned to the truck.

"Same as always." I grinned, throwing my backpack into the bed of the truck before hopping into the cab. "How have you been? Happy birthday by the way."

He chuckled. "Thanks. And I've been the same as always. Nothing new to report."

Good ol' dad. "So, what are we doing today? Anything in particular you want to do? Can I cook you something?"

Dad chuckled again. "You cook about as well as your mother, if I remember correctly."

I frowned. "Hey now, I've taken some cooking classes. I've gotten better!"

"I'll take your word for it." He started the truck and headed down the path towards the compound he lived in. "I figured we'd just order in some pizza and catch a vid or two today. I'm not feeling so well."

Worry washed over me — he usually didn't say he wasn't feeling well unless he was really feeling bad. "Dad, what's wrong?" I asked quickly, looking him over to see if I was missing anything.

"Nothing, just feeling a little off is all." He replied. I knew he was lying, but I didn't push the issue. He'd let me know if something was really, really wrong. "I think I worked too much yesterday."

"Mmmhmm…"

"Now, Nikki…"

I put on my best angry face."Don't you 'Now, Nikki' me." I scolded, pointing my finger at him like a mother disciplining a child. "If you're not feeling well, you should go to the doctor!"

I watched as he rolled his eyes. "He's a quack." He grumbled.

"He is not a quack, you're just a wimp." I teased. "I'll let it slide for now. But if you start feeling worse, promise me you'll go?"

He glanced over at me; his features softening as he undoubtedly saw the worry on my face. "Alright, I promise."

"Even after I leave?" I clarified. "Mother isn't around to nag you about this stuff anymore."

"You don't have to remind me."

"I'm sorry daddy, it's just-"

"I know, you love me and don't want me to be sick." He finished. "I promise, I'll go see the doctor if I start feeling any worse." He stopped the truck in front of the prefab we called home. I smiled up at it- even though it looked just like millions of other prefabs across the galaxy, it still seemed a little different to me. It was the place where I was born; it held all of my childhood, which I'd left behind at 14 and went to the Citadel on my mother's insistence. My father was supportive but I was always his little girl. He didn't feel comfortable sending me so far away, but the farm needed looking after and my parents couldn't afford to just up and leave themselves.

I had a skill set far beyond what this planet could ever nurture for me. Sometimes I almost resented my mother for sending me away and then leaving my dad. But I can't bring myself to fully hate her, because without her insistence, I'd have become a farmer, and not so happy with my life. Instead I've got a great position with Citadel Security, and I'm one of the most sought after people for anything to do with cyber- warfare.

"Let's go inside, you can drop your bag off in your room while I order the pizza." My dad interjected on my reminiscing.

"Sounds like a plan, daddy."

"Hey, dad! There's a rerun of Blasto 5 coming on, wanna watch that?" I yelled. I was in the living room, setting up the fold away tables for our dinner while browsing through upcoming vids. Dad was in the kitchen putting the pizza onto plates.

"Sure, sweetheart, whatever you want to watch is fine." He yelled back.

I stood with my hands on my hips as he entered the living room. "No, it's your birthday, what do you want to watch?"

He grinned, his eyes twinkling. "You'll call me old."

"And I'd be right." I smiled back as we took our seats. "What do you want?"

"Just put on the news for now. The local channel is doing a piece on the Prothean artifact that was found here recently."

I nearly choked on my pizza. "A Prothean artifact was found here?" I managed to cough out.

Dad nodded. "Yes, and they think it's a beacon of some sort." He took a bite of his pizza and glanced at the vidscreen. "Look…." His voice muffled by food.

The reporter on the screen was standing in front of what looked like the side of a mountain that had been carved away. Mixed in the rubble was a tall, dark structure that was very obviously not made by nature. It looked like workers were preparing to put the device onto a trolley to move it. That must be the beacon.

"Thanks Suzanne. I'm Dianna Allers from the Alliance News Network giving exclusive coverage on this historical find. I'm here with Professor Simon Powell from Cambridge University in London on Earth, our leading expert in Prothean technology. Professor, is it true that this artifact is Prothean? Or could it be something left behind from a civilization that previously inhabited this planet?" The camera turned to focus solely on the professor.

"There are several markers on this artifact that indicate it is distinctly Prothean." He replied. His tone was genuinely excited, like a kid on Christmas morning. "We believe it to be a beacon, similar to the one we found on Mars. If it is, the information it contains could be astounding. We will, of course, need to study it further."

"Of course, Professor." The reporter cut in. "Will you continue to study it here on Eden Prime?"

"Oh heavens, no." He replied, sounding disgusted. "While the facilities and people have been extremely accommodating, there just isn't the room, equipment, or sheer manpower needed to properly study this. The Alliance is making plans with the Citadel Council to move the artifact to a different location soon enough."

The reporter went on to ask the professor a few more questions, but I turned to my dad. "I know they're excited and all, but I'm surprised the Alliance allowed a reporter to come here and do this." I gestured toward the vidscreen. "Don't you think that's a bit of a risk?"

"Look at you, Miss Security expert." He teased. "I think it's alright. Why not show off to the rest of the galaxy that we can contribute. I bet it'll help us get a seat on the council, if the crack-pots running the show are willing to share that is."

I shook my head. "That's not what I mean. Think about it daddy; this colony is on the fringes of the terminus systems. How many times have there been random pirate and raider attacks? Announcing that we have a priceless, intact, potentially working piece of Prothean technology within their reach is a stupid idea." I huffed. Freaking idiots.

"Oh calm down." He chided, patting my leg. "I'm sure the Alliance is on their way as we speak to pick up the thing, and if any pirates land in the meantime, there are Alliance Marines stationed here to hold them off. We'll be fine."

"If you say so…" I mumbled. I had a bad feeling in my gut about the whole situation, and I didn't like that my dad could potentially be in the middle of it. "Hey… let's go for a walk, work off some of the calories from the pizza."

"I'd like that."

We walked down to the far end of the compound, mostly in silence, just enjoying each other's company, when we heard a terrible screeching noise — like the worst feedback from a microphone ever. We both covered our ears and doubled over in pain, looking around to see what could possibly be making the god-awful noise.

A few torturous seconds later it stopped.

"What the fuck was that?" I exclaimed, looking around again. I noticed other people out and about with similar expressions.

"Watch your mouth, Nikki." My dad scolded.

"Sorry… it's just…" I trailed off as I spotted something moving at the end of the road. I squinted, trying to bring it into focus.

It looked like a person in armor, although the more I studied it, the more I realized it wasn't a person at all. The humanoid thing had arms and legs, but it looked like it was wearing a hood, and where the face should have been was a singular orb of light. A quiet hush fell over the few people that were outside as several more stepped into view.

Horror ran through me as I realized these creatures were carrying weapons.

"Daddy, we need to get out of here. NOW!"

"Wha-" My dad started to ask as the creatures suddenly opened fire.