Author's Note: Well here's chapter 7, a little late… Anyway currently working on chapter 8.
Chapter 7
"Shepard can I speak to you?" Tali asked, voice quick, as Shepard entered the engineering deck.
"Sure. What seems to be wrong?" Shepard asked taking a position next to Tali.
"I don't think we can trust Sean." Tali said as she began to nervously wringing her hands together.
"Why?" Shepard said stunned by the accusation.
"I think he has something planned, something bad." Tali said.
"What makes you think that?" Shepard asked.
"Well I found a slip of paper in his jacket. It had a location and time written on it."
"It's just probably a reminder. Don't jump to conclusions." Shepard interjected
"No, wait! I checked his computer and he had multiple encrypted messages. I managed to decipher one and it was a contract!"
"What kind of contract?"
"I don't know most of it was a jumbled mess, but the words I could make out made it seem like it was set on the Citadel."
"The Citadel?" Shepard said, shocked.
"Yes, why?" Tali asked confused.
"Sean asked me to go to the Citadel, for a 'personal thing'." Shepard said
"See! We can't trust him!" Tali said throwing her hands up in triumph.
"Don't go there yet." Shepard warned. "I want you to tail him when we land. I need to know what he's up to."
"But." Tali protested. Giving in, she said, "Alright Shepard."
"We land in three hours. I'll check in with him." Shepard said walking away.
"Be careful." Tali warned.
Sean sat behind the crate, tweaking his weapons. He did that when he was nervous and as the time counted down until they landed on the Citadel, he was plenty nervous. He looked up as he heard the doors open.
"How's it going Shepard?" Sean greeted cheerfully as Shepard entered his quarters.
"Not bad. Just came in to tell you it'll be three hours until we touchdown on the Citadel." Shepard said walking closer.
"Thanks." Sean said, breathing deeply to calm himself. He didn't want to appear weak in Shepard's eyes. He smiled as the butterflies in his stomach slowly faded. He placed the tools down on the crate and tipped his chair back.
"Mind if I ask what you're doing on the Citadel?" Shepard prodded.
"Personal stuff. Don't worry, nothing sinister." Sean teased.
Shepard tensed, but quickly hid it as she leaned against the wall. "Got a minute to talk?"
Letting out a painful laugh, Sean said, "I have three hours."
"Alright, well tell me about yourself."
"It's hard to say. I don't remember much."
"What do you mean?" Shepard asked, leaning into the conversation.
"I don't remember my past."
Tilting her head sideways, Shepard asked, "So basically you are saying you had amnesia."
"Basically." Sean said rocking back and forth on his chair.
"Why didn't you go see a doctor? There are many that specialize in that field and could have you fixed up within a week."
"That's the problem. I went to see multiple of those doctors. They couldn't help me. They all said I had suffered a powerful electrical shock to that part of my brain." Lightly chuckling, Sean added, "I guess I'm lucky it didn't fry something important." Shepard stood silently, slowly taking in the story. "My only problem is that I could have been anything before my amnesia. I could have been a ruthless criminal. I could have been someone that people depended on. I just want some closure." Sean said, looking down into his lap. He sighed as he massaged his forehead with his hands.
"Do you remember your name?" Shepard asked, trying to help Sean cope.
"No. I remember nothing. Sean was just a name I was given." Sean said, his voice growing frustrated.
Shepard laid a comforting hand on Sean's shoulder, "You've made the right choices."
"Thanks Commander. I'd like some time to think." Sean said, brushing her hand off.
"Alright. I'll leave you alone." She said stepping back.
"Alright. Thanks for stopping by." Sean said looking up.
Shepard slowly walked out, watching Sean.
The air lock hissed open as Shepard, Garrus, Tali, and Sean stepped out. Sean paused and marveled at the Citadel. He couldn't believe that an entire city was built on it. It was a marvel. He couldn't wait to see Kate again.
"Alright! Well I'll see you guys later." Sean said waiving as he walked away from the docks.
As Sean turned his back to them Tali quickly glanced at Shepard. Shepard nodded and Tali began to follow Sean. Tali was equipped with her shotgun and pistol, just incase the worst would happen. She couldn't help but wonder where Sean was going. She tentatively followed him.
As Sean drew nearer to his destination, Tali couldn't help but notice how comfortable his figure seemed. He was oddly calm, almost like he didn't expect anything to go wrong, much less have someone follow him.
Sean entered a small bar, Tali did so quickly behind him. Tali took position in a corner as Sean neared a table where a black haired woman sat. The woman stood up and gave Sean a long hug before offering him a seat.
Tali was puzzled by their reactions. That wasn't how most contracts started off. She sat there and watched quietly.
As the conversation progressed, Tali became worried. Something was very different about this meeting. Sean's movements became angry and very erratic. Curious, she moved closer into hearing distance.
"… you can't assume that!" Sean said
"But it sounds like you haven't changed." The woman accused, showing no expression.
"Changed. My life was destroyed! Everything is different about me!"
"But how do you know if you're safe if you don't remember anything about your past?"
"What do you want?" Sean said frustrated, tears welling up in his eyes.
"I don't know."
"Don't know! It's been a month, you must know something!"
"It's just too different. Everything has changed."
"I can change." Sean offered, desperate.
"That's not what I want to hear." The woman sighed. "I'm just too confused."
"Please don't end this like before." Sean begged.
"Just give me some time to think about it!" The woman cried. She then stood up and walked away, leaving Sean alone at the table.
Sean sat still for a while, rubbing his temples. Tali couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Tali felt horrible assuming that Sean was up to no good when he was trying to rekindle a ruined friendship. She buried her face into her hands. She knew how it felt to be left unwillingly. Memories of Shepard's death entered her mind as she relived that day onboard the first Normandy. Tali wanted to say something to Sean, to comfort him. She couldn't risk him discovering that she had been listening in on his personal conversation.
Sean then angrily stood up, throwing his glass to the ground and stomping out of the bar. Tali tentatively followed him. As Sean rounded the corner, he began to speed up his pace, causing Tali to break into a run. As Tali rounded the corner she had lost sight of Sean. He began to hurriedly sprint through the streets, desperate for answers.
Suddenly a hand pulled her into an alleyway. The attacker pulled her into a headlock and pressed a knife, pressing it against her throat.
"What do you want with me?" a familiar voice growled.
"Sean! It's me, Tali." She said struggling desperately.
"Tali?" Sean said, quickly releasing her. "I'm so sorry! I thought someone was following me. I guess I'm just paranoid." Sean said sheepishly laughing.
"You scarred me there!" Tali admitted turning to face Sean.
"Did you see anyone following me?" Sean asked.
"N- No." Tali lied.
"Oh. Well sorry about that anyway." Sean said. Sean paused for what felt to be minutes. "I'm just having a rough day." He admitted. He looked spent. The conversation looked like it took a lot out of him.
That conversation must hurt him deeply Tali thought. "Is there anything I can do?" Tali offered.
Giving a faint smile, Sean said, "I really don't know, but thanks for asking."
"You want to talk about it?" Tali asked
Sean sighed as he slowly slumped to the floor, mentally exhausted. "I think I just need some time."
"I understand."
"You headed back to the Normandy?" Sean asked standing up.
"Yes." Tali said quietly.
"You mind if I walk with you?" Sean said.
"Not at all." Tali said. Their walk back was silent, as both of them were in deep thought.
As the pair entered the airlock of the Normandy, Sean spoke up. "Thanks Tali. It's good to know that there is someone on this ship I can rely on."
Tali bit her tongue until Sean walked away. She couldn't tell Sean that she had been the one following him, but now he was making her feel guilty. She sighed as she slowly made her way to Shepard, who was standing in front of the Galactic map.
"Good to see you again Tali." Shepard greeted. Sensing something was wrong with Tali, she walked up to Tali and lowered her voice, "What did you find out?"
"I was wrong." Tali said sheepishly.
"Tell me about it." Shepard said.
"He was meeting up with an old friend. He was trying to amend broken bonds." Tali said staring down at the ground, empathy taking hold of her.
"Well that's good to know. Did anything go wrong?" Shepard asked, putting a friendly hand on Tali's shoulder.
"No. Everything went fine." Tali said looking up. "How'd your mission go?"
"Perfectly, we have a new recruit. Kasumi Goto." Shepard said smiling. "Fair warning, you won't have anymore secrets with here onboard."
"I might be able to use that to my advantage." Tali teased, feeling better. They both laughed as the tension dissolved. "Alright. I think I need to return to the engines." Tali said walking away. "Thanks for talking to me."
"Anytime Tali." Shepard said smiling and returning her attention back to the map.