Chapter 27
Shepard and Tali spent the next week and a half studiously avoiding one another. Each was concerned about what their closest friend onboard the Normandy must think of them after their encounter in Shepard's cabin. Tali spent the entire week and a half, outside of missions, trying to write a letter to her Auntie Raan. For some reason, she didn't want to tell Raan that she had felt those intense feelings of desire while looking at a human. As amazing as Shepard was, she just knew that her Aunt wouldn't approve. Tali also didn't want to tell her Aunt that she had already found her Pilgrimage Gift, as she would then have to try to explain why she was delaying her return. In truth, Tali wasn't entirely sure why she wanted to delay her return from the Normandy, just that when she'd told Shepard it was to help him stop Saren, it didn't ring fully true. Additionally, she hadn't told her Aunt that she was now working on the most advanced ship in the galaxy. All in all, she had a lot to put, and not put, into one letter.
Tali was just about done with her missive, though. She was going to look it over once more, then send it from a public terminal on Noveria, so it couldn't be traced back to the Normandy. Tali pulled up her omni-tool and opened the letter for what felt like the hundredth time.
"Dear Auntie Raan,
I have so much to tell you! First, I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to write. I found a ship to serve on, and in all the excitement and confusion, I haven't had a chance to write yet. I apologize. But I've found the most amazing ship, and the crew has been extremely welcoming. You'll never believe what ship I'm on: it's an Alliance warship, and is one of the most advanced ships that I've ever seen! Its drive core is massive! I can't tell you any more than that over an open channel like this, but when I see you, I'll tell you all about it.
I got into a little bit of trouble early on in my Pilgrimage, but a passing Alliance Naval Officer helped me. To be honest, Auntie, he probably saved my life. Then he offered me a spot on his ship as an engineer. I cannot find the words to express the amazing technology they are letting me work with. It is absolutely one of the best experiences of my life! Plus, the crew is multi-species! There are humans, a turian, an asari, and even a krogan on board! And me, too, of course. The captain is unlike anyone I've ever met. He's intelligent, strong, independent, and an amazing warrior. Do you remember when you had Kal'Reegar train me in combat? I mean no disrespect to Kal; because he's a great marine and a good friend, but I have no doubt that the Captain would be able to dismantle a squad of Kal's marines by himself. I've seen him defeat an Alliance heavy turret, on foot, single-handedly! It's as if the Ancestors themselves have blessed him with every combat skill and their combined knowledge of millennia. Perhaps when we see each other in person, I can show you some of the recorded footage from my helmet, showing you just how deadly he is.
There is also something I need to ask you. It is very personal, so I beg you, please don't tell Father. The other day, I was sitting down and just looking at everything there is aboard this ship. Suddenly, I felt bathed in a warm, pleasant feeling. For several minutes, I seemed to be in a haze, unable to control my actions, or move without assistance. It was very perplexing, and more than a little worrying. The captain trusts me to be a part of his team that is on the ground, fighting the geth. I am extremely anxious over the thought that this situation could happen while we are in combat, at which point I would be unable to protect my squad mates. This thought horrifies me. I do not want to be the person who lets down this team, or makes our mission fail. Please, I beg of you to tell me anything you know or can guess about this situation. I love you and miss you Auntie!
Love,
Tali'Zorah nar Rayya"
She read over the letter once more, corrected a grammatical mistake, and then saved the draft as final. I don't think I'm giving too much away. I think I sound just like a little girl excited to play with some new toys. She scowled, as she remembered that that was probably the way Spike thought about her. There's nothing I can do about that, though, except for trying to continue to prove to him that I am much more than a little girl. I am getting better, though. I can hack a geth for almost a full minute now. And I think I'm even better than Kal with a shotgun at this point. I owe it all to Spike. Without him, I would probably be dead somewhere on the Citadel, stuffed into a waste disposal unit. She shook her head, trying to dispel those depressing thoughts.
Admiral Shala'Raan vas Tonbay was sitting in her cabin aboard the Tonbay, caught in a swirling maelstrom of emotion the likes of which she had not felt in years. All because of Tali and her letter. One part of her was overjoyed to know that the daughter she never had was still alive. After so much time without a single message from Tali, she had begun to fear the worst. The worst part of being a quarian parent was that many children never returned from their Pilgrimage, and their families never knew if their son or daughter had died or been killed somewhere.
Another part of the Admiral was laughing at the idea of a human military ship with a quarian aboard, to say nothing of having both a krogan and a turian sharing the same space. This captain must be rather impressive, if he has kept a krogan from going on a killing spree when there's a turian around. Even more impressive if what Tali says is true; I've never heard of even a two-person team fighting a heavy turret to a draw! She made a snap decision to call for Kal'Reegar and tell him about that part of Tali's letter.
Yet a third part of "Auntie Raan" was overjoyed that her niece had found a place that made her happy. That she was ecstatic with her position and her job was crystal clear from her letter. Raan had to admit, she was a little bit jealous. Much of the Fleet was decades, if not centuries old. The idea of living and working on a ship fresh off the line, especially if that ship was using experimental technology (which Raan assumed was the reason for Tali's secrecy), was something that many quarians would give their realks for.
She was about to obsess over the last, and most powerful feeling, when a knock on her cabin jerked her out her ruminations. "Please enter!" She called out, assuming that Kal'Reegar would be stepping through the door. She smiled when he did so. "Hello, Kal."
"Ma'am." He stood at attention.
She smiled and waved at him. "Please, Kal. Have a seat."
"Thank you, ma'am." He said gruffly while he took the indicated chair.
"If I know you, Kal, you're wondering why I called you here."
He nodded silently.
Shala chuckled. "I received some interesting information from Tali, recently."
At this, Kal perked up. "How is she, ma'am?"
"She's fine." She smiled at seeing the marine's reaction, knowing that "perking up" was a large emotional showing for Kal. "Actually Kal, Tali's serving aboard a human vessel now."
"What?" Kal pulled in two quick deep breathes to calm himself. "I thought we warned her to stay away from humans for now, until they establish themselves in the galactic community?"
Raan could hear the worry in his voice. "We did, Kal. From what she told me in her letter, however, the human captain saved her life, and then turned around and offered her a job. It seems almost as though the Ancestors were specifically looking out for her."
"What exactly is she doing for this human captain?" Kal's voice was tinged with something that sounded like disbelief. "Not many people would be willing to take one of us onboard; either because they think we'd steal everything that wasn't bolted down, or because of the cost of keeping us healthy."
"I know, Kal." The Admiral tried to reassure him. "She says she's working as an engineer."
"I suppose that's not too bad." Reegar grudgingly admitted. "Do you think she's being taken advantage of somehow?"
"This captain of hers does not seem to be that type of person. However, he is the reason I called you in here."
"Oh?" Kal leaned forward in his chair. It might be time to get Vera out again. Ancestors, I love that rifle! She and I might have to go teach this human a lesson.
"Apparently she is serving on an Alliance warship, and she speaks very highly of his combat prowess. In fact, Tali even suggested that he would be able to single-handedly eliminate you and your entire squad."
The male quarian scoffed at this notion. "Ridiculous. No one person could take on one of my squads and live to tell about it. I can't believe Tali would say something like that." He paused, his eyes searching the Admiral. "Are you jacking my filters, Admiral?"
"Of course not." She replied, seeming shocked by his suggestion. "Here." She cut out the pertinent parts of the second paragraph and sent them to him. She watched him read it, as his eyes grew wider behind his visor.
"Impossible." He shook his head. "An entire squad on foot would be hard-pressed to defeat a heavy turret. Those are made for anti-vehicle defense!"
"I agree. Yet I doubt that Tali would lie to us. Don't you?"
He sat in silence for a moment. "Yes. But I also have trouble believing that story. What kind of man could he be, in order to do something like that?"
The pair of them were quiet, both re-reading Tali's words. They were also trying to figure out how a single person could have the combat skills Tali described. Suddenly Kal slapped his thigh.
"I know who it is!"
Raan was shocked. "You do? How? And who is it? Tali seemed very careful to not mention a name in her letter."
"Yeah, I noticed that." Reegar trailed off, the shook his head and started answering the Admiral's questions. "I believe it is Commander Shepard of the Systems Alliance Navy."
"How did you figure that out?" Raan wanted to hear his reasoning before she would believe him.
"During my free time, when I have some, I occasionally check the military section of the Alliance News Network. I know it sounds odd, but they get a lot of reliable information. A few weeks back, they ran a segment about the first human Spectre."
"I assume that that would be this Shepard fellow?"
"Yes." Kal nodded, and then he continued. "The broadcast mentioned that the Council had decided to make him a Spectre after he used a multi-species team to investigate one of their top Spectres, Saren Arterius. It was mentioned that he had used a krogan, a turian, and a quarian. They didn't show any pictures of the 'aliens,' of course, so I never thought it might be Tali. If Shepard is the guy, though, I'm not sure how to feel."
"What do you mean?" Shala asked, both intrigued and proud that Tali, if it was indeed Tali, had helped the Council in such a way. This could go a long way towards increasing our standing with the other races, and perhaps someday lead us to a home of our own. She sighed, imagining what it would be like to feel a planet, her planet, beneath her feet. Then she shook her head and re-focused on Kal. Stop acting like a child, Shala. You're an Admiral now. Dreams and flights of fancy have no place in your life.
"Well, on the one hand he's a war hero. Literally. Humans call him the Hero of the Skyllian Blitz."
"I remember that event." Raan interjected. "A group of pirates and batarians banded together to take Elysium, but they were rebuffed."
"Yes. What matters for us, though, is that he pulled together a defense, mostly made up of civilians, and managed to hold off the pirates for several hours, practically single-handedly. In fact, some reports indicate that he alone repulsed a wave of batarians and pirates after they blew a hole in the defender's perimeter by destroying a building." Kal nodded his head, impressed with the man if the reports were true. When the Admiral didn't say anything, he decided to continue. "This was before he was trained as a special forces operative, no less. He now holds the rank of N7, humanity's highest special forces designation. So I suppose if he is Tali's captain right now, he could quite possibly take out one of my squads."
Shala didn't understand something. "If he's a war hero, Kal, why would you have any doubts about Tali serving under him? Surely he knows how to protect people?"
"I think we can safely assume that he does, ma'am. But there's a subtle undercurrent to his story, and that's what worries me. He's known in some circles as the Butcher."
"That sounds very sinister." Raan said, clutching one hand to her chest. "Why?"
"I can't honestly say, ma'am." Reegar looked apologetically at the Admiral. "My guess is that there are times when he doesn't take any prisoners. After enough occurrences like that, the idea that he kills indiscriminately could start to put down roots."
"I understand. Thank you for your honesty, Kal. I wonder if Tali knows?"
"I don't know." Kal shook his head. "On the one hand, if there's anybody smart enough to get into the Alliance databases and learn the truth about Shepard's missions, it's her. But on the other, I don't know if she'd do something like that without a good reason. And I don't know this Shepard at all, so I have no idea if he'd tell her about his past."
"I expect not." Raan said. "Most captains don't tell their crew every one of their dirty little secrets."
Kal just nodded in silence.
"Thank you, Kal."
"Ma'am?" He wasn't sure whether she was dismissing him.
"I was hoping that you would be able to give me some insight into her current situation. Once again, you have performed magnificently."
"Are you going to try to get her back?"
"I can't, can I?" The Admiral responded, slumping her shoulders. "We cannot interfere with Pilgrimmages unless there is a catastrophe within the Fleet. This time away from the Fleet allows them to return as responsible members of our people. My hands are tied, Kal."
Kal shook his head. He, too, knew the rules that governed the mandatory exile of young quarians. "So we do nothing, ma'am?"
"No. I will write back to her, giving her some of the information you've given me. I hope that it will pique her interest enough to do some digging. Tali is a smart girl. If something doesn't seem right, I have no doubt that she will get off that ship as quickly as she can."
She dismissed Kal with a wave. As he left, she re-read the letter from Tali and mulled over the last thirty minutes. This would be so much easier if I could just meet up with Tali and look her in the eyes, I know I could figure out what is going on. The implications of what she said, and more importantly, didn't say, are very worrisome. She can't be . . . No. There's no way. She quickly set about a drafting a message to Tali, then hit send. I pray this satisfies her. She always was an inquisitive girl.