A/N: Usual warning, slightly left of canon. Though I know me saying that is pretty much the same as me saying 'hey guys, I put words on paper,' but…**shrug**
Also, more shmexy. Yeah, pretty hard-core too. It might ACTUALLY get slightly above a G rating this time. **nods solemnly**
Oh…and **teehee**
Sometimes, you just gotta **teehee**
"Something the matter?" Kelly asked, straightening from her station as she caught sight of the look on Miranda Lawson's face. The dark-haired XO was watching Shepard walk away toward the lift after having handed her an acquisition approval.
"She was smiling," Miranda noted with barely a glance at the yeoman. She said it in the same wary manner someone would normally note something like 'she looked pissed'.
"Smiling is generally a good sign," Kelly pointed out.
"This is Shepard," Miranda reminded her. "She only smiles on three occasions: when Liara is aboard, when she's about to kill something, or when she's trying to be subversive."
"That's not true," Kelly defended, then gave a wry smirk. "Sometimes she smiles when she's drunk."
Miranda gave the yeoman a look, and Kelly chuckled. "Look, maybe she's just happy. We are on our way to Hagalaz-"
"And then we'll be heading directly into the Omega Four relay," Miranda told her. She didn't point out that they would likely not be coming back out…it was a fact everyone on the crew was all too aware of.
"In a few days," Kelly hedged. "We've still got several hours at least before the IFF is fully integrated and even then, we've got to test it first. It's not like we're just going to power it on and go jumping through blind…Shepard is reckless sometimes but not with her ship or her crew."
Miranda wasn't convinced, folding her arms. Every fiber of her body was saying the same thing.
Shepard was up to something.
"Mei Mei, what's our status?" Shepard asked without preamble, striding into engineering. Tali turned around, her posture speaking of slight surprise even if her expression could not be seen.
"Well, the hardware integration was successful. EDI is working on the software translation protocols."
"With secondary systems on manual overview, the expected time until completion has been greatly reduced," EDI told her. "My initial examination of the necessary protocols is more favorable than I had expected. I believe I will have the IFF ready for the first full test in just under six hours."
Shepard blinked. "That quickly? You thought it would take days."
"My expectation was that the programming language used by the IFF would be beyond our interface formatting. I was incorrect. While the language is foreign, it seems to be prepared with universal translation algorithms, allowing the IFF to be more easily used across incompatible software. Also, that time estimate is merely for the testing to begin. Provided favorable results, the Normandy could access the Omega Four relay in just under seventy-two hours."
"That doesn't make sense," Tali pointed out. "Why would the Reapers create their IFFs to be more easily used by others?"
"Perhaps to facilitate transference of the technology to species it integrates or repurposes as resources," EDI posited. "Slave species such as the Collectors or the Geth heretics would need a safe means to travel and would not necessarily have compatible programming translation."
"Good point," Shepard said, folding her arms. "So Tali's part in integrating this IFF is complete?"
"Any aid Tali could further render could easily be provided by Daniels or Donnelly…or any other crewmember with a working knowledge of program languages," EDI told her.
"Good. What's our location status?"
"We have just entered solar orbit of Hagalaz," EDI told her. "Joker was preparing to inform you."
"Tell him I'm informed," Shepard said sternly, her eyes sparking. "And tell every goddamn specialist on this ship I want them in the shuttle bay in thirty minutes."
"Understood, Commander."
"Tali, that means you too. Ma shang." Shepard said as she turned to go.
"Why do you need every specialist to go down to Hagalaz at once?" the quarian asked, baffled.
"That's classified, engineer!" Shepard snapped tersely, never breaking her stride. "I need you ready for an operation that is vital to the success of our mission. Now move it, Zorah! Thirty minutes!"
"Miranda, do you know what this is about?" Kasumi asked, just as confused as the others gathered in the shuttle bay. The vehicle itself was powered though idle, the low hum of its engines filling the vast space. No one else seemed to know what was happening, and the small thief had all but pounced on the XO as soon as she appeared. If anyone had more information about this besides Shepard, it would be Miranda.
"I am not in the habit of questioning the orders of my superior," Miranda said with mild irritation. Kasumi smirked.
"A simple 'I don't have the foggiest' would have sufficed," she teased.
"Eh, I just hope we get to kill something," Grunt rumbled.
"On Hagalaz?" Tali folded her arms with a scoff. "Doubtful. Maybe Liara found some new intel or more weapons-upgrades or something…"
"Shepard would hardly need us all to go down to the Broker ship for intel or weapons-upgrades," Jacob shook his head. "I don't like this. Classified? Something so big she needs all of us? No, I don't like this at all-"
"Reason is obvious, as is motivation," Mordin Solus told them as he crossed the floor, overhearing Tali and Jacob's comments. "Not unexpected move, considering…surprised at confusion."
"What? What 'obvious reason?'" Miranda asked. "She told you what this is about?"
"No. Figured it out. Took less than ten seconds."
"Are you going to tell us?" the XO demanded. Mordin looked absolutely scandalized.
"Would never do that! Classified information, would be treason…capital offense. Not big fan of execution."
"I hate you so much," the Australian grumbled, ignoring the faint smile that appeared on the salarian's face.
The door opened again, admitting Samara. The Justicar looked as cool and collected as always, and right on her heels came Shepard herself.
She clapped her hands twice, firmly. "All right people! Let's get on board and move out. Time's wasting!"
As the specialists started to climb on board a voice rang across the bay. "Shepard-Commander!"
The group paused as Shepard turned her head, eyes fixing on the geth as he walked toward her.
"Legion?"
"Are we…considered among the specialists?" it asked. "We heard your order and we would prefer to accompany you."
Shepard straightened a little. She could feel the weight of a dozen gazes upon her as the others waited to see what she would do. Images of the geth heavy shoving the ruined MAKO aside on Noveria filled her mind, seconds before it was consumed in flames. Memories of Eden Prime, of the civvies impaled on dragon's teeth, jumbled together in a torrent.
Then, her own voice seemed to fill her ears, words she had spoken to Ashley so long ago.
Say you're right. Say everyone's out for himself…speaking in the scope of sentient galactic species. Now we as humans enter the picture, and your answer to this is to do the same thing…which changes absolutely nothing. Doesn't change anyone's mind, does no one any good, no lesson learned. Someone's got to take the first step into something new. Someone's got to try something differently.
Squaring her shoulders a little, Shepard strode forward toward the geth unit, and damned if the thing didn't look sheepish again. Halting in front of it, she firmly stuck out her hand.
Legion regarded the hand for a moment, its tiny little flaps shifting a little, before it tentatively reached out with its own hand, taking hers. She gripped it tight a moment, then nodded.
"Permission granted, Specialist Legion," she said. "Now get your metal tun on board."
"All right, ladies and gentlemen, listen up," Del barked at the group. Crowded as the small vehicle was there was standing room only, and she was planted just in front of the door, bracing herself with a grip on the rail over it. All eyes turned toward her, silence falling. Shepard waited until she had their undivided attention…a feat which took only nanoseconds…before she continued.
"What we are about to embark upon may be the most pivotal operation thus far in our pursuit of the Collectors. I know that I can count on you, but each and every one of you absolutely must give your all to what lies ahead of us. In just a few short minutes, this door behind me will open again and everything that follows will depend on you. I won't lie. If I had my way I'd have every single one of Normandy's crew about to face this with us. Unfortunately EDI needs the additional monitoring overview and man-hours on the secondary systems to dedicate her runtime to the IFF integration. So…this is solely up to us."
The shuttle bumped slightly as it lowered to dock. Shepard's eyes were solemn and her voice low as she cleared her throat. "Whatever happens…it has been an honor to serve with each and every one of you."
The door swung open, baring Wilcher's grim face. As soon as it had lifted far enough he thrust his hand out, passing Shepard a long-necked bottle. She took it with a stern nod and then turned back to them, gripping the cork.
"There is booze," she barked as she yanked the cork free, the champagne foaming in a jet before spilling along its side. "There is music, and there is a fuck of a lot of food! You will disembark this shuttle immediately and you will go and have some goddamn fun! That's an order! Eat, drink, be merry…for tomorrow, we blow some big goddamn shit up!"
Liara smiled faintly as she watched the large group gathered in one of the spare cargo bays. Beyond the specialists from the Normandy, every member of Thanatos that was not on necessary duty was there as well.
They had been planning this ever since the successful acquisition of the IFF. Shepard knew as well as any commander that soldiers needed to decompress…especially before something so dire as what they were about to face.
Liara had procured alcohol of twelve different varieties and obscene amounts of food in both dextro and levo varieties, insuring that even Tali and Garrus would be able to stuff themselves. Ori and Sydney had worked to provide music, which spanned across almost all cultures and genres.
Liara's smile turned somewhat sad as she realized that this was, in fact, her first real party…and was likely her first good-bye party as well. In her mind, the hours between now and when the Normandy would carry Shepard off into the Omega Four relay were far too few…and vanishing quickly.
Shepard will make it back. If anyone could, you know it would be her.
"Hey, you…"
The subject of her thoughts drew close to her side, an arm sliding around her waist as Shepard smiled at her. She had a half-consumed beer in the other hand, and using it she gestured at the gathering.
"Looks like this is going better than I thought it would," she said. "Sydney's even managing to stay in the same room with Thane without tearing him apart."
"Yes," Liara agreed, her own arm sliding around Shepard's waist. "She has found an acceptable peace with what happened, I believe. It was never truly him that made her angry. To be honest, my real concerns lay elsewhere. I was…worried, when I realized you had brought the geth unit on board."
Shepard nodded. Legion stood on the far side of the room, more than one suspicious or distrustful gaze cast its way. Ori, it seemed, was having the opposite reaction. She was talking quite animatedly with it, clearly fascinated by being so close to a working troop unit.
"It seems to be all right. Looks like its shine has drawn the little spitfire's attention, anyway."Shepard took a swig of her beer, then smirked. "You should have seen Miranda's face, Tianlán. It was killing her that she didn't know what was going on, and when she finally found out I thought she was going to gut me alive with her glare alone."
"That does not seem to have changed," Liara noted, indicating the distant XO with a nod of her head. Miranda was lingering near one wall, arms folded, watching the goings on with her usual stiff disapproval. "She does not seem to be enjoying herself."
"You're right- hey, Lawson! LAWSON!"
She shouted to be heard over the music, watching as Miranda straightened a little, tilting her head as she sought out the source of the calls. When she noted Shepard, the human commander waved her hand, directing her to come over.
Miranda strode over, posture no less stiff, her tone as formal as ever. "What is it, Commander?"
"Shepard," Del insisted. "And this is a fucking party, if you hadn't noticed."
"I had noticed, thank you," Miranda replied coolly.
"Would a little R&R kill you?"
"There are a million things I could be attending to aboard the Normandy," Miranda pointed out. "I don't do R&R."
"Jesus fuck, does that explain a lot," Shepard told her. Stepping back a pace she half-turned and pointed at a wide table that had been set up behind her. Garrus, Zaeed, Tali, and several of Thanatos had already sat down at it, but a few seats remained empty.
"Poker. Now."
"Shepard-"
"You still remember what orders are, don't you?" Shepard challenged. "Poker. Now!"
Narrowing her eyes, Miranda turned with a frustrated sound, and strode obediently toward the table. Garrus blinked at her as she drew near, shifting his chair slightly to give her more room as she moved to sit down. His expression still surprised he looked toward Del.
"You joining us, Shepard?" he asked.
She was on the cusp of motion when Liara's light touch to the small of her back distracted her. Glancing over at the asari, she watched as Liara arched an eyebrow slightly, inclining her head. The intent behind the motion was faint but unmistakable.
"Uh…not right now, Garrus," Shepard called back. "Maybe in an hour or two, I think. You make sure Miranda stays there and plays at least four rounds, you hear me?"
Though his blue-grey eyes twinkled a little with knowing, the turian pretended indignation. "C'mon, Shepard…what could possibly be more fun than playing a few hands with your friends?"
Liara had stepped away from her side, and Shepard's gaze shifted a little as she watched the asari walk with a deliberate and incredibly distracting saunter toward the door leading deeper into the ship. Del quickly knocked the remainder of her beer back, swallowing.
"Uh…" A wicked grin appeared on her face as she answered him. "Calibrations…"
"Oh, ha ha! Yeah, that one never gets old," Garrus snorted after her, chuckling and shaking his head as he watched the commander trot after Liara.
Shepard was not far behind when Liara stepped into her room. Taking a few bold strides forward, Del caught the asari up with a sweep of her arm around her waist, turning her around and drawing her in.
"Well, hello. Look what I found," she teased gently with a smile, before ducking in and kissing her. Intent as it was, the kiss was still tender, lingering and breathless.
Liara's arms wound around her shoulders as her fingers tangled into that soft dark hair. Her very being seemed to capture the moment in her mind, sealing it within to keep it safe and treasured.
As Del's kisses travelled down her neck, inciting thin trails of fire wherever they landed, Liara's lashes fluttered, eyes rolling shut.
"We cannot be absent for the entire party," she warned breathlessly. Shepard dipped a little, hooking her hands around the asari's thighs and lifting her. Liara instinctively wound her legs around Del's waist as the commander carried her the few steps over to the bed, lowering her down and spilling atop her without allowing a single centimeter of space to develop between them.
"We won't be," Shepard promised, dragging her teeth over the folds on Liara's neck until the asari arched a little at the sensation. Shifting , Del looked down into her Tianlán's eyes and gave another wicked little grin. "Just most of it…"
The sensation of separation was, as always, a lonely feeling. Two souls so perfectly intermeshed being parted into full individuality once more was something that always made Del shiver just slightly, a loss she only endured because she knew it would never be a permanent one.
Tangled in Liara's sheets, the asari draped over her, Shepard closed her eyes and held her tightly, listening as their hearts began to slow their rhythm.
"By the Goddess," Liara whispered against her ear. "I shall never get enough of that."
Shepard cocked a grin, chuckling a little before putting on a drawl. "Why, thankee kindly ma'am. Ah do aim to please."
Liara giggled, giving the human woman a light pinch to the ribs, before she shifted to the side. Del turned with her as their legs tangled together. Her thumb lightly drifted over the faint freckles on the asari's face, and she blinked when Liara suddenly gripped hold of her, hugging her almost painfully tightly.
"Li, what's the matter?" she asked, alarmed. A breath later Liara released her, drawing back to sit on the edge of the bed, her head lowered.
"I am sorry. I am…I am here with you. I should be happy-"
"Li, talk to me…" Shepard whispered, shifting into a sit as well and taking hold of her shoulder. "It's the relay, isn't it?"
"This could be the last time that you are with me," Liara told her, her aqueous blue eyes shifting to meet Del's dark brown.
"No," Del whispered in return, voice soft but intent. "No matter what happens, Liara…I will always be with you."
"I know that you must go through that relay," Liara murmured, her lashes dipping as she turned her gaze downward. "So many depend on it…Nan, the stolen colonists…thousands, if not millions of lives. Perhaps I am selfish. Even knowing all of that, knowing the scope of what is at stake…all I can focus on is that I am most likely losing you…again."
Shepard sighed, resting her forehead on Liara's shoulder. After a moment, the asari's fingers tangled in her hair once more, gripping lightly. She felt a gentle kiss on the crown of her head, before the soft weight of Liara's cheek.
"I will be all right, Shepard," she whispered. "You have accomplished the impossible before. If anyone can make it into that relay and return back again, I know it is you."
"Liara…"
Drawing back a little and turning more toward the human woman, Liara lifted her hands and cupped Shepard's face. Leaning in, she gave her a soft, almost chaste kiss.
"I know," she murmured. Then she shook her head. "So…Legion. Tali cannot have been too happy about that."
"No," Shepard sighed, accepting Liara's need for a change of subject…though it was odd to be sitting naked on a bed while discussing geth. "She wasn't too happy with it or with me, I'm afraid…especially when I agreed to rewrite those heretics so they could rejoin the consensus."
"Tali loves and respects you," Liara told her. "She trusts you enough to follow your lead."
"I know. Problem is, I'm hardly the best example for someone to follow-"
"Now, none of that," Liara chided gently. "I will accept no insult to you, Shepard…not even from your own lips."
"Hmm," Shepard gave her an unconvinced little smirk. "I talked with it for a while…after the mission. It told me that the geth called Sovereign Nazara…did you know that? It also said that Sovereign referred to me as Iovino, as well as Commander Shepard."
The asari's brows knit a little, sounding it out. "Yo-vee-noh?"
"Mmhmm. I asked Legion what that meant and he simply said, 'Shepard-Commander'."
"That makes little sense. Why would Sovereign call you by your name and this one if they mean the same thing?"
"Beats me. Maybe it's just my rank, the way they understand it. Maybe it really means 'irritating bitch' and it was afraid I'd shoot it if it told me that. I don't know."
"Iovino…" Liara murmured. Shepard recognized the sudden inward shift of her eyes and smiled.
"I just put another puzzle in front of you, didn't I?"
Liara smiled, her eyes refocusing, before she leaned forward and lightly kissed her love again. "Come. We should get back to the others…for a little while at least."
Shepard nodded, then hugged her close. Truth be told she could stay in that room with Liara forever, forget about the relay, the mission…everything but them.
Leaving Nan lost and forgotten on her own…leaving them all lost and forgotten.
Shepard couldn't do that, no matter how tempting the prospect.
"Yeah…I guess we should."
Music enveloped them as they rejoined their friends, Liara trailing behind Shepard with their hands entwined. The poker game was still in full swing though some of the players seemed to have changed. To Shepard's astonishment, Miranda was still at the table, scrutinizing the cards in front of her like she was examining a particularly virulent strain of bacteria.
Grunt, typical of being both a krogan and a growing boy, had all but decimated an entire banquet's worth of food on his lonesome. He was standing at the edge of the spread, a haunch of roasted meat the size of a small child in one hand, a rather large bottle of ryncol in the other.
"Shepard…?" Liara questioned as the commander didn't head directly for the poker table, nor for the food or booze. With an enigmatic smirk, Del kept on right into the middle of the floor, before stopping and turning.
Releasing Liara's hand she took a half-step backward, sketching a very elegant bow before offering her hand again. When Liara hesitated a moment, Shepard cocked that teasing grin of hers.
"C'mon, T'Soni," she said. "Don't tell me you don't know how to dance?"
Liara's cheeks heated slightly, remembering that Shepard had said those words to her before, on that night so long ago in her quarters when Liara's affection for the human woman had tipped the balance straight over into love.
Reaching out she took that hand and allowed herself to be drawn in, held close as the music took them over.
"I'm going to get a fucking toothache," Jack grumped, glancing over the poker table to see Shepard and Liara on the dance floor. Beside her, Tali giggled.
"I think it's sweet! Can't you dance, Jack?"
"I can dance a fuck of a lot better than Shepard," the ex-con smirked. "Ain't gonna dance to this fucking sappy shit though."
Wilcher cleared his throat, then got to his feet, setting his cards down. "Well, I for one will dance to this 'sappy shit,'" he grinned, then half bowed as he held his hand out to the woman sitting beside him. Miranda looked at the proffered hand with shock.
"Would you do me the honor?" he asked.
"Go on, Cheerleader," Jack taunted. "It'll help get that stick out of your ass!"
Miranda's blue eyes shifted to ice as she glared at the other woman, then lifted her chin. Setting her cards down crisply, she took the ex-marine's hand and rose. "Sure, why not?"
When the song ended, Del smiled at Liara, then blinked around, startled to see they were no longer the only couple on the floor. Wilcher had joined in with Miranda, Garrus with Tali, and shockingly enough, Zaeed with Deirdre, the expression on both the asari's and Sydney's faces greatly amused.
"Looks like we started a trend," Shepard teased her partner, bending in and kissing her cheek.
"Stop that," Jack ordered as she walked up, shoving a beer in Shepard's face. "Here, get drunk like a normal goddamn person, would you? Then I'm going to plaster your ass at Skyllian Five."
"Oh really?" Shepard smirked, accepting the beer. "I'd have to be seriously drunk for that bullshit to happen. I-"
"Shepard!"
Turning her head, Del's eyes fell on Grunt as the young krogan strode across the floor. He pointed at Ori with the half-eaten haunch of meat in his hand and ordered, "Turn that shit off!"
Raising her brows, the little redheaded engineer obediently switched the music off as Grunt faced his puzzled commander.
Thrusting the flask of ryncol up into the air he grinned. "Here's to Shepard," he declared. "The greatest Battlemaster ever to draw breath! May the bodies of her dead foes pile to the stars!"
Around the room, her crew and several of Thanatos lifted their own drinks, voicing their agreement. Liara affectionately touched Shepard's elbow as the woman lowered her head a moment.
Then Shepard grinned, thrusting her own beer up into the air. "To my crew…my friends. To the sorriest lot of criminals, cutthroats, brutes, mercs, killers, pirates…and Tali."
A roar of laughter filled the room as the quarian ducked her head a little, giggling. Shepard winked at her, and then lifted her voice again.
"Someone wise once said this to me and so I say this to you, motherfuckers. Never trust a private with a loaded weapon or an officer with a map, and goddamn never share a foxhole with anyone braver than you! Motherfucking shit-sucking amen!"
"Amen!"
It had edged past midnight, ship time, but hardly anyone seemed of a mind to retire. Shepard sat at the poker table, the latest in a long line of cigars smoldering in her teeth and a whiskey parked at her elbow as she regarded her cards.
Grunt, it seemed, had found an odd kindred spirit in Wilcher. Both krogan boy and human man were drunk, and Wilcher had introduced Grunt to the ancient human art of arm wrestling…a task for which they thankfully seemed evenly matched. Anyone other than the massive Wilcher likely would have gotten his shoulder ripped out of the socket.
Liara sat beside Shepard though she was herself not playing, leaning against the commander with her chin resting on her shoulder, long fingers tracing idle patterns against the back of her t-shirt. She was smiling faintly as she listened to Garrus.
"…so there he was, the last merc standing," the turian was saying, his mandibles flapping slightly in amusement. "He's got his pistol aimed right at Shepard, see, but he's flat pale. I figure he's been winged, that he's probably lost a lot of blood at this point. Still, he's got her dead in his sights so of course I think Shepard is going to take him out."
"This story is greatly exaggerated, I just want to put that out in advance," Del said dryly, giving the turian an even look.
"So what happened?" Jacob wanted to know.
"Shepard walks up to the merc like she's got all the balls in the galaxy, completely ignores the weapon in his hand. She's got this look on her face like she could spit and light a fire-"
"Oh for fuck's sake," Shepard snorted.
"-and she goes right up, her throat maybe an inch from the barrel of his gun, and just snags it right out of his hand."
Garrus punctuated this with a demonstrative grab at thin air, a moment before he chuckled. "Turned out the kid wasn't wounded at all, he was just scared shitless. When she grabbed that pistol, he fainted."
Laughter rumbled over the group and Shepard huffed a cloud of smoke. "I would just like to point out that the dumb fuck left his safety on. A blind FNG could have seen that from fifty paces. He barely knew what end of the weapon to hold on to."
"Face it, Jie Jie," Tali teased. "You're just terrifying. I don't think you even shoot your enemies any more, you just look at them and they drop dead voluntarily."
"Is it possible for organics to 'drop dead voluntarily?'" Legion asked. He had been lurking near the table, unmoving and silent for so long they had all but forgotten he was there. Shepard shook her head.
"No, not really, Legion…Tali was just making a joke."
"We see. Was it…funny?"
"It was fucking hilarious, Tintop," Sydney grinned, using the nickname she'd adopted for the geth almost the instant he'd set foot on the Broker ship. "Shepard, are you in or are you just going to stare all night at your cards looking intimidating until they faint as well?"
"I'm in, smartass," Shepard snorted, tossing a pair of chits into the center. "And I raise just for that bullshit remark."
"Shit…" Sydney scowled, pitching her cards down. "Fucking fold. I fucking knew-"
"Commander Shepard!"
Ori's voice drew all eyes as she ran across the room, both her tone and her expression immediately banishing all thoughts of revelry. Shepard straightened in her seat, removing her cigar from her lips.
"What is it?"
"We have a communication for you on emergency channels, from the Normandy," Ori reported breathlessly.
Immediately Shepard was on her feet, almost in concert with nearly everyone else at the poker table. Cancelling the music, Ori used the console to access the emergency channel, stepping aside as Shepard strode up. The silence that suddenly filled the room behind her was ominously thick.
"This is Commander Shepard," she stated.
"Commander, we have a situation," EDI replied, speaking quickly. "Our first test run of the integrated IFF revealed an exceptionally sophisticated reductionist communication code that was not apparent during my analysis. The moment it was powered on, the IFF began an encrypted transmit of the Normandy's location through background static."
"Transmit? Transmit to who?" Shepard demanded.
"The Collectors," EDI replied. "They were upon us in moments, Shepard. Thanks to Joker's efforts I was able to preserve the Normandy, however the crew was taken."
Shepard felt time stop around her, the breath seeming to still in her chest. Behind her she thought she heard someone's soft gasp of shock, but couldn't tell who it was.
"EDI…would you repeat that please?" she asked, her voice sounding a million miles away even to her own ears.
"Shepard…the crew is gone."