Chapter 9

"I'll go around and flank 'em from the back," Bailey grunted as he and Shepard hurried through the ward. A turian C-Sec officer followed behind, grabbed from his desk by Bailey on their way out of the interrogation room.

"Sounds good." Shepard watched as Bailey and the turian headed off in a different direction, and slowed his steps as he approached the front entrance to the warehouse, wishing he had his armor. At least he had his sidearm. He palmed the door console.

At first, all he could see were crates and a Tupari vending machine. Then a flicker of movement on his left: Kolyat and Asaera were talking in low voices—and she didn't look armed. Shepard didn't let his guard down, but hopefully this could end without violence.

Keeping his arms away from his body, Shepard rounded the corner of the crates he'd hidden behind.

"Kolyat, what's going on?" Shepard kept his voice as friendly as he could make it, while still keeping his eyes on Asaera. Her dark eyes narrowed at the sight of him, but otherwise she did not move.

Kolyat blinked, shifting on his feet. "She… she says she's family. That's she's going to make sure I'm taken care of."

Shepard threw a glance at Kolyat. The young drell was rubbing his arms as if cold. Shepard turned his attention back to Asaera.

"Family, eh? Is that how you lure the kids in these days?"

She frowned, yellow eyebrow ridges coming closer together. "There is no 'luring.' Kolyat has been told exactly what we mean to do with him. He will be a tool for the greater good, as his father was."

"Thane had little choice in the matter," Shepard spat. "His parents gave him to the hanar when he was barely old enough to talk, let alone murder someone for money."

The look Asaera gave him was disdainful. "I will ask you to not dishonor Thane Krios' memory in the hearing of his son. He was honored to serve the Compact."

"Kolyat, you don't have to listen to her. Let's get out of here." Shepard jerked a thumb behind him, his pounding heart belaying the casual tone to his words.

"Kolyat, would you rather stay with this… human who leaves you on this garbage heap of a space station every chance he gets? We're family, Kolyat. Family should look after its own." The female drell laid a slender hand on Kolyat's arm, a little trill to her words.

"I can't argue with blood," Shepard said in a quiet voice. "But you know me, Kolyat. You're as good as family in my books—I know I haven't replaced Thane, and I don't want to. But I do want to be there for you—to you let you choose your own path, have the kind of life your father wanted to give you. He didn't want you to end up like him, it was his greatest fear."

Kolyat's shoulders hunched and for a moment, no one spoke.

"What…" Kolyat's voice broke, and he cleared his throat. "What good is family if they only show up when they want something from you?" He looked at Asaera, his eyes cold. "Where were you in the ten years I spent separated from my father?"

Asaera's eyes widened in surprise.

Kolyat turned his back to her and walked over to Shepard. "Let's go," he muttered.

Shepard nodded, then everything seemed to move in slow motion. He'd had the experience a few times in battle, when adrenaline raced through his veins, making his enemies' movements seem slower; his own faster.

Over Kolyat's shoulder, he saw the yellow drell raise her hand, a slender stiletto blade in one elegant hand. Without thinking, Shepard pushed Kolyat to the side. Everything sped up again to normal time: Bailey and the other C-Sec officer were shouting at Asaera, guns aimed at her head; Kolyat was standing over him, mouthing words he couldn't hear.

"I'm fine," Shepard grunted, trying to sit up, wondering how he'd ended up on the floor. He glanced at Kolyat, but he didn't seem injured. "She didn't get you did she?"

Kolyat blinked. "She got you."

"Huh?" Shepard looked down at his arm; the slender blade Asaera had thrown at Kolyat was embedded in his arm. A thin trickle of blood was running down his skin.

"Don't pull it out—" Bailey said, running up to him on a floor that seemed to tilt sideways.

Shepard blinked, but the black spots dancing in his vision didn't go away.

Bailey brought up his omni-tool, his voice sounding very far away. "I need a medic and prisoner transport at the warehouse on 27—we have a code red…"

The last thing he saw before the blanket of darkness claimed him was Kolyat looking young and scared.

"Hanar poison? You mean the stuff they secrete from their tentacles? Gross."

Shepard laughed at Kolyat's expression and hopped off the examination table in the medical bay of the Normandy. "Must have passed the security checkpoint though. The sensors must automatically disregard hanar toxins—they can hardly turn off their own bodies after all."

"Nevertheless," Dr. Chakwas said, giving Shepard's chart another once over, "even with the quick thinking of Captain Bailey, it was, in the end, your Cerberus upgrades that saved your life. I'm not clear exactly how the poison was neutralized—Operative Lawson is not very forthcoming with Project Lazarus secrets—but I suppose if it works, I shouldn't complain." She set down the datapad and patted his arm. "However, your electrolytes are a bit lower than I would like. Get a nutrient drink from the kitchen, and I expect you to sleep a minimum of eight hours tonight."

"Will do, doc."

Shepard and Kolyat filed out of the med bay. Knowing that Chakwas was watching from her windows, he headed straight to the fridge in the kitchen area. Rupert always kept leftovers, snacks, and nutrient drinks handy for the biotics on the team—Shepard figured Jacob wouldn't mind if he snagged one of the drinks. He popped the cylindrical container and downed a few quick swallows, leaning against the counter.

"So," Shepard began, eyeing the young drell over the rim of his drink, "want to tell me what you and Mouse were fighting about?"

Kolyat looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. "He, uh, said something stupid. That's all."

"Something 'stupid'?" Shepard frowned.

"Mouse… well, he'd been having a bad day, I think." Kolyat shrugged. "A client didn't pay as expected, so I guess he was angry. But he said something… disrespectful about… you."

Shepard opened his mouth in surprise.

"I know it was stupid to let him goad me," Kolyat said hurriedly, inner eyelids blinking. "It won't happen again."

Shepard cleared his throat, a warm feeling flaring unexpectedly in his chest. "All right."

Kolyat leaned against the edge of the counter, looking at Shepard curiously. "Did you mean what you said… back in the warehouse?"

Shepard swallowed the liquid in his mouth. "Yeah. I keep my promises, Kolyat."

Kolyat nodded, but he still seemed troubled. "She… she said that you wouldn't have time for me. That you'd always be out saving the galaxy."

Shepard lowered the drink. "Kolyat—"

"I know it's true," he said quickly. "I mean, you stopped Saren and the geth and the Collectors. I know that there's always going to be something more important—" His words stopped as Shepard put his hands on the young drell's shoulders.

"You're important to me too, Kolyat."

The young drell blinked rapidly, nodding.

Shepard lowered his hands, gulping down the last of the drink. "But there is something I need to discuss with you. If you don't like the idea, then we don't have to do it."

"What?"

Shepard gestured to the mess table. "Sit down and we'll talk."