Chapter 16: Shore Leave
The docking bay marked D24 allowed for a spectacular view of the ship that had nestled itself there. Leaning on the railing, first human specter, Commander Shepard, simply looked, taking in a view that he thoroughly missed the past few days, locked up in a C-Sec cell. In spite of being totally aware of the sound of approaching footsteps, his attention didn't falter from the gleaming metallic hull of the Normandy.
Shepard, came a voice behind him, forcibly drawing him back to reality. What are you doing out here?
Just taking in the view, he replied, still staring at the ship. He turned around and looked at the source of the soft feminine voice that called him. Her long dark hair was flowing down her shoulders, ending in thick curls. She wore a simple white jacket with a black shirt underneath it and a matching, but simple, pair of slacks. A pair of short heeled sandals accentuated her feet. Well, there's something I could stare all day, he remarked with a smile.
You ass, Miranda replied, followed by a soft giggle. I was just saying goodbye to a friend. She approached the railing next to him and looked at the ship as well.
He's a good man, the specter added.
You ... you knew? the operative asked surprised.
You're not the only one reading other people's emails, the commander informed her, a smirk forming on his lips.
I see. I'll need to chat up Liara at some point, she tried sounding collected, but her tightened fists and her flushed face indicated otherwise. It took her a while to calm herself down, before speaking again. This, she paused, thinking how to word it more accurately, thing you've got with Jack.
I know you don't approve, Miranda, Shepard interrupted her, but I have no intention of breaking it off.
She is a burden to our mission, her authoritarian problems constitute her a liability and she is likely to kill you, if you just react to something wrong. It's not whether I approve or not, she's dangerous, her reprimand sounded sincere.
His reaction was a small laugh. You'd think that, but you'd be wrong. Jack actually behaved herself on the investigation and even though she spent a lot of time cooling off, she was punctual, she listened to Garrus, she worked well with the group, in spite of personal frictions and pushed them harder when pursuing Billy through half of lower Kithoi. He took a deep breath, lifting his upper body from the railing and settling himself in a straight position. Truth is, we couldn't have done this without her.
Miranda sighed and rolled her eyes. I understand that there are special conditions at times that may require her assistance, but I still don't trust her.
You shouldn't. Not yet, anyway. She's still out for your blood, he resigned himself. I don't think I can ever get her to ease up on you, but she has been making some remarkable progress the past few days.
Well, I'll believe it when I see it and so far, I don't, she commented, rubbing her forehead. I'll be in the Normandy if you need me, she took a few steps back smiling.
I'll just stay here and enjoy the view for a while, Shepard replied.
Oh, so I'm 'the view', now? Miranda's expression changed to a stern one.
What? No, I-I meant, with the ship and, he stammered, frantically pointing around.
Shepard, she exclaimed, making a stop motion that halted him on the spot. Gotcha, she smiled, her hand switching to a firing gun, before resuming her walk back to the Normandy. The specter laughed heartily, settling himself back on the railing, as he shook his head.
The sound of pacing echoed around the mess hall. Jack stalked the observation deck, seemingly undecided over something. Finally finding the courage, she took a few steps towards the door, then regretted and returned to her original distance. She cursed herself for being a coward and forced herself forward. No, this will never happen, she thought to herself and started to leave. But I just want to talk. She likes to talk, right? she monologued. Oh, who the hell am I kidding? Why would she want to talk to me.
The door chimed and slid open, revealing the asari woman that resided behind. The justicar looked around, but only saw Jack, frozen solid in mid step, her eyebrows contorted, her teeth clenched, as if she was hoping that through some miracle Samara wouldn't see her. Jack, she said, her pupils dilating and contracting in accordance. I wasn't expecting you.
Yeah, she started. I'm still pissed about what you did earlier today, she pointed her finger accusingly at the justicar.
You are right to be angry, Samara admitted. I intruded your consciousness without permission, her pupils focusing on something on the lower right corner of her field of vision. It will not happen again, I assure you.
I don't care if it does, Jack snapped at her. I mean, I do but, she trailed off and cried in frustration. She didn't know how to word it. What you can do, what you showed me, it's fucking incredible. She looked at the justicar, as if she'd thank her for the complement, but Samara wasn't one for that. She was more interested in where Zero was going with this. I don't know how you do those things, but, she paused, I want to be able to do them too.
The expression on the asari's face changed to a softer one, almost resembling motherly affection. There is a very finite line between what a human, a biotic and an asari can do, Samara explained. I can't make you an asari, she shook her head, and I have little knowledge on humans, but I can show you what more you can do, as a biotic.
Zero pursed her lips together, swallowing what pride over her power she had and walked towards the justicar. Yeah, yeah, just spare me the lectures already, she replied, entering Samara's quarters.
The airlock to the ship opened, the hydraulics that kept the door shut, sounding like a locomotive that blew its steam. The commander walked in. Commander Shepard is on board. Commander Shepard has the deck, the AI announced upon his entry. The crew itself hastened up from its seats, hitting their salutes as fast as they could. The commander smiled as a few amongst them fumbled their chairs, smacked on other people in their surprise, but still held their salutes.
At ease everyone. And thank you all for your continuous hard work. You may return to your posts, he relieved them and the men and women of the Normandy shuffled back to their seats. His steps took him to the cockpit. As always, Joker sat on the helm, ready to cast off at any moment, but for now, just doing some rudimentary checks.
Hey commander, the pilot sounded nonchalant.
Joker, Shepard acknowledged with a nod. Haven't been in the cockpit for a while. Why don't you give me the rundown.
She's as fine a ship as you left her, commander, Jeff simply shrugged, I don't see why anything should have changed in the meantime.
So no firefights, no batarian raiders, no nothing while I was gone? The specter quizzed him.
Whatever ruckus happened in Omega, was mostly for the away team. Nothing really to harm the ship, the pilot filled him in. I'd be more worried about Kelly, though. She got the brisk of it.
Kelly? the commander wondered. How did Kelly got involved?
You'd better ask her yourself. All I know is that she messed with the wrong person on Omega, he informed him.
She pissed off Aria? What was she even doing with her? Shepard snapped.
Miranda's orders, commander. I'd tell you more, but the XO and I have an understanding; I don't question her and she stays out of my cockpit, Joker explained.
The specter slapped himself in the face. This was all just too much bother for him, after spending the past couple of days in lockup. Alright, I'm going to talk to Kelly, he resigned himself, taking the small corridor, past the numerous crewmen stations to his left and right, that led to the galaxy map. The chirpy redhead had resumed her post, next to Shepard's private terminal.
Commander, she greeted as soon as he was close enough to hear him.
Kelly, he beckoned. I heard you had a rather difficult run in with Aria. Are you alright?
Oh, nothing I couldn't handle, the yeoman dismissed with a puff, even waving her hand accordingly.
Really? the commander quizzed. Because that's not what I heard. He lifted his gaze from her and tried to catch a glimpse of the cockpit. If Joker was pulling his leg or eavesdropping, he wasn't quite sure yet.
Well, I did spend about an entire day in the infirmary, but I'm fine now, Kelly admitted.
An entire day? he asked surprised. What happened?
Commander, like I already said, it was nothing, she reassured him, sounding as confident as she possibly could. It's just that negotiations with Aria can be arduous, but also quite enjoyable. I just needed some rest when we were done. I was up all night.
So what you're saying is that you had fun? The specter concluded.
It was more than just fun, she added, her gaze focusing on something apparently far and away. As Kelly brought the memory of the previous day in mind, her body shivered and her fingers toyed seductively with her hair. It was wonderful, she admitted to herself, her voice turning to a huskier tone. Shepard raised both eyebrows in surprise and Kelly, upon seeing his reaction, snapped out of her daydream. That I could be of assistance, I mean, she tried to salvage it, but the damage was already done. C-could you excuse me for a moment, commander? Shepard simply nodded and Kelly did half a bow before darting off to the elevator.
Joker! The specter demanded for the pilot.
I hear you commander, he replied.
What exactly did you mean when you said Kelly 'messed' with Aria? he questioned him.
The trash compactor bay wasn't accustomed to seeing this many visitors. Sure, Massani had made it his home, littering the place with his arms and armor, even going as far as turning part of a wall into a dart board, but nobody hardly ever came down there, the rancid smell being bad enough to keep most everyone away. Still someone would walk down to hear a story or simply to dispose of some of his, or her, trash. Somehow, it still managed to be one of the more welcoming rooms this low in the bowels of the Normandy. Roomier then Grunt's room where all it could fit was his tank, Grunt and, well, basically nothing more. The other option was the noisy engineering room, where Tali would usually spend most of her time, along with Gabi and Ken, but it wasn't the best place to start a chat. Then, of course, there was the part that the crew had baptized 'The Pit' but nobody would venture there. The pit was stationed below engineering and, legend had it, was the domain of an evil, powerful witch named Jack. Few had the courage to venture, fewer had made it out intact. For now, however, most everyone that could be found in the lower deck had gathered in the mercenary's quarters.
So get this, Joker's voice sounded over the inter-comm, she tells Jacob that she's arranged for a friend to help.
What's wrong with that? Tali wondered, not sure where the pilot was going with it.
What's wrong with that? he repeated, as if it should have been obvious to everyone. She said A friend. As in one, the number? Then both Kaidan and Wrex show up?
Maybe one of the two hadn't responded and only expected one to show up? Gabi intervened. The room was quiet for a moment, as this seemed like a plausible explanation.
What? No! No way! The pilot snapped. She would never have gone with the plan on the notion that her second backup might show up! There's no way.
I still don't understand what you're getting at, Tali complained.
The cheerleader fucked a krogan, oh yeah, Jack mused with a smile.
Oh, that's a horrible thing to say! The engineer argued.
Look, I'm not saying she had sex with Wrex, Joker retracted, but if one is her friend, then what's the other? And which one's which?
Oh this is too good to keep Taylor out of the loop, Zaeed joked. He'd be sweating like an asari dancer abandoned on the Yagh homeworld.
Is this some kind of fetish I'm unaware of? Ken tried to contribute to the conversation, only to receive an elbow to the stomach by Gabi.
You'll piss him off and then he'll kill us both, his fellow engineer hissed her warning through gritted teeth.
Maybe the reason her previous relationships with other men failed was because of their inability to satisfy her sexually, EDI chimed in.
I told her to go fuck a krogan once. Glad she listened, Zero monologued.
Yeah, I mean, as the perfect woman, she could have higher sexual standards, Joker agreed.
Grunt looked around, hopeless and oblivious to everything. He wasn't sure what to make of all this talk about quads and brunettes. This whole conversation was making him feel awkward. All he wanted was some fish. I shoulda stayed in my tank, he told himself.
Spent, tired, filthy, oily. Those were the thoughts going through Shepard's head as he opened the door to the loft. He had hardly made a step towards the right direction, the bed, before EDI's voice sounded within the room. Commander, there's an incoming transmission of unknown origin trying to patch itself directly to your terminal.
Allow it, the commander grudgingly ordered.
Commander, the AI objected, it is trying to bypass our protoc-
It's just Liara, Shepard scolded her.
As you wish, Shepard, EDI conceded after a pause, probably because she run some tracking protocols of her own to ascertain the intruder's identity.
The monitor on Shepard's terminal, as well as one across the room, lit up with Liara's visage on them. It's good to see you're cleared, Shepard, the asari beckoned.
Are you spying on me, Liara? The specter sighed, tired.
I didn't know that was a secret, she smiled.
I'll have someone return the bugs to you, once I found them, he informed her.
You can try, but my bugs are much more sophisticated then the ones Miranda uses and I don't hide them in obvious places, like under your desk, she challenged him.
What? Shepard snapped and fumbled on the underside of his desk, till he found a small circular object that seemed to be out of place. He yanked it out and gave it a good look, before throwing it in a jar, filled with similar devices. So, what did you find out? He continued leisurely.
Well, I ran the description of the mech you found through my operatives. It appears to be, as you said, a modified version of the YMIR mech, set to accommodate a single pilot. Its codename, as far as I could get a hold of, is ATLAS. I even found some schematics that I'm already broadcasting to you, Liara explained.
Any word on the manufacturer? Shepard quizzed.
You're not going to like this one, she said, shaking her head. It's Cerberus.
He lifted his arms and dropped them, thoroughly disappointed, as if saying why am I not surprised, only to do so, not a second later.
There's a production facility for them somewhere and I'm trying to find out where, but so far, I've been unable to do so, Liara elaborated. Another thing that came up was something called Sanctuary, but I've yet to uncover its whereabouts. Shepard went to sit on his chair, resting an elbow on his desk, supporting his head with his hand. Shepard? Liara asked concerned. Is everything alright?
Yeah, it's just, he paused, collecting himself, it's a lot to take in all at once. I wish I knew what the Illusive Man was thinking right now, the commander took a long intermission. Listen, Liara, I've got another favour to ask.
Liara's head cocked up. What is it?
The alliance is going to come down on me hard. Soon. It's going to be about the alpha relay and my association with Cerberus. You know it and I know it. Now, I'm not going to run away. I can use this to tell them about the Reapers. We need to prepare, Liara, but I can't do it, if she's in danger, Shepard was so preoccupied with his train of thought, he forgot to mention who he meant.
She? You mean Jack, Liara filled herself in.
Yes, the specter confirmed. She can't be here when Alliance comes knocking. The others know how to handle themselves. Garrus goes to Palaven, Grunt to Tuchanka, Tali back to the flotilla, Legion to Rannoch, Thane and Kasumi vanish, but Jack, he trailed off. Jack leaves a path of destruction wherever she goes that even a destroyer could follow from orbit. I want you to hide her and give her something to keep her occupied so she doesn't blow up a planet out of boredom. The asari couldn't help chuckling at his last remark. She knew how much of a handful Zero was. Most importantly, though, I can't know where she is.
Liara's eyebrows contorted at his last remark. Why not? She couldn't find the reasoning behind it.
Shepard sighed and tried to explain it to her. Say that the Reapers arrive and I'm sent to defend or capture an important strategic position. What if her hideout is being attacked at the same time? I can't know if she's dead or in trouble. All I will need to know is that she is safe. And if you know, if I ask you, that's what you will tell me. You're going to lie to my face, if you have to and tell me she is safe. You're going to tell me like you believe it, so I can believe it. Because I don't think I can do this if she dies too, he shivered at the thought.