More than a week later the Normandy came into dock at the Citadel. A side mission had taken them to dock with a ship full of bizarre experiments for the extermination of a 'Dr. Heart' at the request of Vakarian.
Garrus would never forget what the turian Spectre had said after allowing him to gun down the criminal.
"Remember that feeling." Kryik said. "That's how it should be."
Shepard stayed on the Normandy for that mission. It was just the Spectre and himself. He wondered if she would have agreed with her mate's words.
Kryik accompanied Shepard to the Council Chambers where Ambassador Udina was waiting for her.
"Good job, Shepard." Udina greeted her. "Thanks to you and Kryik the Council is finally taking real action against Saren! They may even grant you Spectre status... just in time if you ask me."
"The Ambassador is correct." the asari Councillor interjected. "If Saren is foolish enough to attack the Citadel we will be ready for him."
The turian Councillor clasped his hands behind his back and puffed up with pride. "Patrols are stationed at every mass relay linking Citadel space to the Terminus Systems."
"What about reinforcements to go to Ilos?" Kryik added.
"Ilos is only accessible through the Mu relay deep inside the Terminus systems, Spectre. If we send a fleet in there the only out come is full-scale war," the salarian Councillor rebuked.
"One ship going into the Terminus systems won't start a war. The Normandy is equipped with the best cloaking technology out there. I can be discreet." Shepard said confidently.
"You detonated a nuclear device on Virmire!" Shouted the turian Councillor. "I wouldn't call that discreet. Ilos requires a deft touch. We have the situation under control."
"The nuke was the Salarians' plan, not hers," Kryik defended her. "If you don't want to send s fleet, send me. You already know my abilities to perform my duty quietly." Kryik stepped forward, volunteering.
"We won't invade the Terminus. However, as a Spectre you can investigate this matter on your own, after the threat from Saren is neutralized." the asari Councillor said, attempting to appease.
"Yes, speaking of Spectres," Udina interrupted. "Despite the actions taken on Virmire, Shepard has performed admirably. I believe the Spectre has even issued a recommendation for her inclusion on the elite team."
The Councillors all turned to look at each other as if communicating through telepathy. They each nodded in agreement and taped something into the consoles at their fingertips.
"Commander Shepard, step forward." The asari requested.
Kryik stepped back to allow Shepard to move forward. She exchanged a quick glance with him and Captain Anderson who stood behind Udina before taking her place at the front of the platform. Udina stepped aside. On lookers gathered around the rails of the observation balconies. Shepard became very aware of their stares. She hoped her hair was in place as she stood at attention before the Council.
"It is the decision of the Council that you be granted all the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel."
"Spectres aren't trained. They're chosen." added the salarian, as he crossed his arms. "Individuals forged in the fire of battle. Those who's actions elevate them above their rank and file."
"Spectres are an ideal. The embodiment of courage, determination and self reliance. They are the right hand of the Council. Instruments of our will." continued the asari.
"Spectres bare a great burden. They are protectors of galactic peace. Both our first and last line of defense. The safety of the galaxy is there's to uphold." the turian Councillor said with pride.
"You are the first human Spectre, Shepard. It is a great accomplishment for your entire species."
"I am honored." She answered.
"This meeting of the Council is adjourned." The asari ended the meeting.
Shepard immediately turned to Kryik.
"If Saren finds the conduit we're all screwed. We have to go to Ilos."
"I agree."
"You're not going anywhere." Interjected Udina. "You've done a great deal for humanity, but we need you here. The Normandy's primary systems have been locked out. Until further notice, you're grounded."
"You bastard." Shepard spat. She was ready to punch him in the face when Anderson stopped her.
"He's not worth it, Shepard."
"You'd better listen to the Captain, Shepard." Udina smirked at her before leaving.
"Meet me in Flux in an hour. I may have an idea." Anderson said under his breath and followed Udina out.
Shepard stormed off, Kryik hot on her heels. She didn't know where she was going, she didn't care. As long as it wasn't the Council Chambers or anywhere near Udina. She ended up staring out into space by the upper market. The violet colors of the nebula outside seemed to help calm her.
Kryik was frustrated with the Council and angry with Udina just as much as Shepard was, but somehow his state of mind remained calm. It was his turn to be there for her, only instead of a lake it was the nebula she focused her energy into. He took the rail next to her in silence. He was there if she needed him.
They stood in a hazy beam of light in front of a large window. The violet light shimmered on the metallic surface of his plates and lit up his eyes like gems as he gazed at the wonder of the nebula, something he'd never really done before. He glanced down at Sonya. Her hands were balled into fists hanging over the rail. Her angelic face was hard, brow knitted in a scowl. She was better at this sort of thing than he was.
"I'm so pissed off." She grumbled.
"I know." He replied, unsure if he was glad she was talking or not.
"How can he do that? It's not his ship! Technically it's not even the Alliance's ship any more. It belongs to the Council and ergo me. They just made me a Spectre and a Spectre needs a ship!" She slapped her hands around the rail, squeezing it as hard as she could.
"Captain Anderson said he had an idea. Maybe he has a plan to help us. Another ship, perhaps."
"We can't do this with another ship. It has to be the Normandy. No other ship has her stealth systems."
"There's no use worrying about it until we talk to Anderson." He said softly.
Shepard sighed and released her death grip on the rails.
"You're right." She paused and looked up at him. The light shimmering on his plates had a halo effect on him. "Why are you so calm any way?"
"You need me to be." He answered simply.
Sonya grinned up at Nihlus, the light catching in her eyes making them glow like embers of a fire fighting to live. In a room full of people from all species, including human and turian, Nihlus bent toward her and pressed his forehead to hers marking his bond with her for the first time. For a brief moment the rest of the Citadel disappeared and all that existed in the galaxy was their pocket of sureality.
There were certainly advantages to the both of them being Spectres. No one said a word. Those that saw them thought a great many things, most of them not polite, but they were left in peace. Had they not held a reputation for being both dangerous and capable things might have been different. Eventually someone would be dumb enough or brave enough to confront them, but it would not be that day.
For the next half hour they stood side by side, his arm around her as she leaned against him. He held the rail with his other hand and they watched the ships float by.
"We should go." Nihlus spoke softly into her hair.
"Yeah, I know." She said almost mournfully before he released her from his embrace.
They took a transport to the nearest hub to the bar, simply for the privacy. They held the other's hand across the console that divided the seats. Nihlus and Sonya leaned in and kiss each other over their clasped hands in the privacy of the cab, then became Spectres once more when the taxi stopped.
Anderson was easy enough to spot. He was the only one in the bar in military issue blues and the only one not dancing or chatting it up with drunken buddies. Shepard and Kryik took the two open chairs at his table. Anderson leaned over his hands, clasped on the table. He met each of their eyes before speaking.
"I'm glad you both came. I'm sorry about what happened. I tried to send a message to warn you, but there's no way you would have gotten it in time. I found out shortly before you arrived. I know you're pissed off right now, but I also know you won't give up. They believe it's over, but we know it's not."
"Fine. So what's the plan?" Shepard asked.
"Citadel Control locked down the Normandy's systems, but if we can override the Ambassadors orders we can get them to bring her systems back online. You can be in the Terminus System before anyone even knows you're gone."
"If we steal the Normandy, you're the one left holding the bag." Sonya pointed out.
"I know, but if Saren finds the Conduit life as we know it is over. The Reapers will destroy us. Humans, asari, turians, everybody. So I'll do whatever it takes to get you on the Normandy and off this station." Anderson said with a heavy conviction in his voice. "I can unlock the Normandy from one of the consoles in the Citadel Control Center. You'll have a few minutes before anyone realizes what's happened."
"That is a restricted area, patrolled by armed guards. How are you going to get in?" Kryik asked.
"Leave that to me. Just make sure you're in the Normandy when the systems come back on line."
Kryik wondered if this is where Shepard got her quads.
"There has to be another way." Sonya said.
The last thing she needed was someone else to get hurt or die because of this mess, especially her 'dad'.
"Ambassador Udina issued the order. If I can hack into the computer in his office, maybe I can override it." Anderson replied, nervously rubbing his arm. "Hopefully he won't be in there. If he is... I'll just have to think of something." He glanced down at his hands and made a fist under the table. Udina had it coming anyway.
"Stealing the Normandy is mutiny, Captain, a capital offense." Nihlus said respectfully. "But we don't have a lot of options."
"I think you'll have a better chance if you go after Udina's computer." Sonya suggested.
"I was hoping you'd say that. The Ambassador has made this personal. Are you two ready to get the hell off this station?"
"Yes, sir." Shepard nodded and stood up.
"Good. Tell Joker to stand by."
Nihlus hesitated. He planed on talking with the Captain about more personal matters, but he jumped his own gun. Now it seemed there was little point and more at steak than the condition of his romance life. He nodded in agreement with Shepard and they left together, taking the shortest route possible to the Normandy.
David Anderson watched the two of them leave. He knew Sonya was capable of taking care of herself, but he also knew she could be reckless. Nihlus had a similar reputation. Perhaps between the two of them they might both survive this mission. They had to or the galaxy would suffer. He had a feeling Udina was going to suffer whether they did or didn't. The ambassador almost never left his office. David cracked his knuckles. He was going to enjoy this, but not too much.
Kryik hovered over Joker's shoulder, waiting for the green light. Joker rubbed his thumb against his fingers, ready to let them fly to the controls the second the Normandy got cut loose. He gave Kryik a look with a raised brow. The lockout indicator on the Normandy's helm control board went green.
"Get us out of here, Joker. Now." He left the helmsman to it.
Joker smiled as he reached toward the controls with a glint in his eye. He was really starting to like the Spectre. Shepard came to check on him a few minutes latter.
"Aww, damn it! No sign of pursuit? I was hoping the Council would send some ships after us! I was looking forward t'puttin' the Normandy through her paces. Figured I'd get to see what this ship could really do!" He looked up at Shepard with a grin.
"Saren's still out there. Maybe we'll get a chance to play hide and seek with Sovereign." she said, half teasing.
"You know it doesn't sound like much fun when you say it, Commander."
"I'll see ya later." Shepard laughed and headed for the elevator. Everyone she passed was whispering about their disbelief that they had stolen the Normandy. Garrus had a different take on it, as well as Wrex. They both agreed with the 'crazy' diagnosis, but they were loving it.
The Mu relay was on the other side of the galaxy. Even in FTL it would take some time to get there with no pit stops. There was no time to piddle around the ship, however. Armor needed repaired, guns checked, cleaned and rechecked, training exercises to keep everyone sharp, and data to read. They kept busy. But when the day slowed to a craw because the crew was sleeping at their stations from exhaustion, Nihlus and Sonya found solace in each other's arms.
All was not as well with a few others. Kaiden Alenko lay in his cot staring at the ceiling wondering about things that would never be. The 'what if's' running through his mind like children at play. What if Ashley hadn't died? What if Shepard had fallen for me instead of the Spectre? What if the mission failed?
On top of that the migraines plagued him daily. They seemed to get worse the closer they got to their goal. He hated the idea of becoming dependent on meds to sleep, but if he didn't take them he wouldn't and that made the migraines even worse. Lately it was getting to where he needed them to function on duty. He was afraid to tell the doctor. She would surely take them away from him and put him in detox. No, I can't do that. They had too few people as it was. He had to complete the mission. Any rehab would have to wait.
Kaiden thumbed the blue and green circles in his palm. Somehow they reminded him of the L-pill the Commander had helped Jenkins take. It seemed like a life time ago. He popped the pills and dry swallowed. Turning the lamp at the head of the bed off, Kaiden did his best to get comfortable before falling asleep.
Garrus was also having trouble sleeping. The new scent on Shepard was a bonding scent. They were bond mates. Bond mates! How was that even possible? What would the Council think? What would their societies think? There was still tension between the species over the wars. People were going to freak out. Then again, maybe it was the first step, an innovative step, in a more positive direction. No one ever said change came easy or was widely accepted. Pioneers almost always caught slack for forcing others to consider new possibilities.
Tali. Poor Tali piratically lived in the engine room. She couldn't sleep in the silence of her quarters. The sounds reminded her of home as much as they drowned out the thoughts in her mind, pining for the affections of the handsome turian Spectre. But Garrus was nice too. A little too sarcastic for her taste, but at least he had shown a mild interest in her. She wasn't sure Nihlus remembered she existed. Eventually the hum of the engine lulled her to sleep where she dreamed of turian love.
Liara's interest in the Commander had easily faded into a friendship. She was happy with that. One day she would find love, but they had to defeat Saren and stop the Reapers first. Besides, she owed Saren a few rounds for her mother. True, Benezia had chosen her fate, but that didn't make Liara feel any better about the state of her mother's mind when she passed. Her last words haunted her. 'No light! They always said there would be a...'
"Light." Liara finished her mother's dying words.
If Saren had denied her the return to the embrace of the Goddess, there was much to pay for and she would take it from his metallic hide.
ETA to Ilos was roughly twenty-four hours. The Normandy was as ready as she was gong to be. Nihlus sat in the co-pilots' seat in the cockpit. Sonya was checking in with the crew, being social. She said it was good for moral. He was worried about his own moral.
What if Saren is right? What if what he was doing really was the only way to save anyone from the Reapers? Saren thought he was protecting the galaxy by doing this, exactly what a Spectre is supposed to do. Once again his methods were extreme, but he got the job done. Does it make him wrong? Saren was succumbing to the indoctrination, as hard as he might try to fight it. How much of his judgment had already been affected when he had agreed to help it? That was the real question. And if Saren is wrong... and I did nothing? The galaxy would pay too high a price. This was the only option. Maybe if I had not hesitated on Virmire, if I had buried my knife in the flesh of my enemy, maybe I would have stopped this madness.
"Hey, Spectre, you keep staring at the console like that you're going to burn a hole through it." Joker teased, sort of.
Jeff realized the turian had a lot on his mind. He had to admit the helm was a great place to just sit and think. Hardly anyone ever came up there for more than a few seconds, if they came at all. Joker liked the quiet, but he liked company too. Either way was okay with him, especially if it was a cute girl, but then the ship might get jealous. It was best this way.
Nihlus ignored the comment. He understood the helmsman's point. Perhaps I should go eat something.
Kryik left the helm and headed toward the stairs. Maybe Shepard has the same idea and we can have lunch together. The few of the crew that knew didn't care that they were an inter-spices couple, which Nihlus found to be quite surprising from the ones that were human, but they still had to be careful. Not every crewman would be as open minded or willing to stay their tongues. Nihlus continued to refrain from biting her, as hard as it was at times. It was too great a risk. Her casual wear would not cover the marks.
The moment on the Citadel mildly concerned him. The crew on board had not seen. To those on the Citadel, they could have been anyone. Even if some knew who they were, they had no proof. It would be hear say. A rumor. In the end, it didn't effect his ability to do his job. There wasn't anything anyone could do about it, not really. As he had said to Sonya; what better example to all that the species could be more than merely tolerant of one another, that the galaxy could truly be an inter-stellar community. He smiled to himself thinking about Terra Firma and their supporters, especially the more extremest ones. He'd almost pay to see the looks on their faces if they found out.
He rounded the corner and kept the grin when he saw Shepard at one end of the table with a data pad and a bowl of soup. He fetched his own meal from the MRE cabinet for dextro's and sat down across from her. She glanced up to offer a weak grin then returned her attention to the pad.
"I don't think you could stuff any more information in your head if you tried. It's going to leak out of your ears." He teased.
Joker had been trying to teach him humor. This was his first real attempt at getting a laugh.
Sonya looked up at her mate with a cocked brow and sarcastic smirk.
"Did Joker teach you that?" She asked.
"I thought I'd give it a try." He shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Maybe you should leave the jokes to Jeff." She teased.
"And maybe you should give the data pads a break." He said reaching across the table and snagged the pad away from her.
"Please give it back." She requested with an open palm. Her face was mildly amused.
"No. You need to take a break. A real one. Eat your soup." He nodded to the steaming bowl of yellowy liquid.
"Is that an order?" She asked with a smile.
"Does it need to be?" He teased back.
"I'm a Spectre now, ya know. At least before we stole the Normandy." She glanced down at the last.
"You may be, and if we still are, I out rank you by seniority." He said, raising his chin up in defiance.
"Fine." She giggled, and picked up the untouched spoon on the table.
Nihlus glanced at the pad before tossing it to the opposite end of the table.
"Liara's studies?" He raised a brow plate at her.
"It may be useful if I retain any of the information in them. I'm not asari, I doubt I remember anything we will need."
Her shoulders relaxed with the admission and spooned some stew into her mouth.
"You give yourself too little credit sometimes, my love."
Nihlus opened the silvery package that contained his breakfast. The hard, brick like nutrients inside was less than appetizing, but he would need the energy. He glanced over at Sonya's soup and wondered why they couldn't keep more delectable provisions for dexros on board.
Sonya saw him eyeing her bowl and offered him a spoonful.
"Want some?" She asked teasingly.
"Yeah, sure I'll have a bite. Warn the doctor. I'll be by her office in a few minutes with severe stomach pains."
He narrowed his eyes at her in playful annoyance. She giggled at him, which made him chuckle. He hadn't gotten a laugh out of her yet, but the girlish giggle was better. It was, in a way, more gratifying. She was rarely allowed much femininity. His ability to draw it out in her was more rewarding than he imagined making her laugh might be. His mandibles remained a little wider than usual in a grin as he munched on his dried food.
Kaiden shifted his weight a few meters away at his station. It still made him a little uncomfortable when he saw the two of them together. He couldn't imagine what drew her to the turian, physically. They weren't the most attractive species. Now if she had ended up with an asari, like Liara... he could understand that. He found the young (for an asari) doctor to be quite lovely and charming. He found himself often just looking into her silvery blue eyes whenever she spoke to him instead of listening. In the end he looked foolish and insensitive. The opposite of how he wanted her to see him. Maybe he would try to talk to her, take the initiative next time.