Chapter Seven

Normandy SR-2 Medical Bay, 1041h

"Hey, Ash," Shepard greeted his executive officer as she strolled inside. When he noticed the mug of coffee that she brought with her, his eyebrow lifted. "Is that for me?"

"Uh…" A guilty expression came over her face, and she set it down onto Chakwas' desk. "I'll be right back." She was about to spin around and leave the infirmary, but he shook his head 'no'.

"Relax, Ash. I've had enough this morning."

"Good." She beamed with relief and retrieved her beverage to sip it.

"First of all, let me say how hard I know that it's been for you in the past few days. Hell, it hasn't been easy since we ended up pointing guns at one another on the Citadel," he mused. "But I wanted to thank you for your understanding, and…your restraint."

"I've already lost track of how many times my fist has wanted to crack her with a big one right across that perfect mug of hers," Ash grumbled.

"Remind me to tell you about her and Jack," Shepard declared with a grin.

"Well, just to let you know, Commander, after talking to Garrus…I've had some second thoughts about Lawson. Some better ones, at least."

"How'd you like leading the squad down on Amaranthine?"

"It felt good, sir. Thanks for the opportunity; it really shows how much we've come to trust one another over the years."

"Would you like to possibly do it again after I'm on my feet and back to 100%? We'll be hitting Cerberus HQ ASAP. Alliance Command isn't the only one getting antsy about it, you know," Shepard shifted underneath his top sheet.

"Yeah, it's time for some payback. Has Dr. Chakwas given you a time estimate on your recovery?" She took one final drink from her mug and finished the coffee.

"Well, I've been given permission to finally leave this prison this afternoon," he glanced around him and groaned. "But I won't be ready to fight for probably another two or three days. So in the meanwhile, we'll just have to keep hunting for supplies, survivors, salvage, and any more straggling allied forces on or orbiting uncharted planets."

"I sent a mission report to Admiral Hackett already this morning, Commander. I hope you don't mind my doing it," Williams announced and shifted around upon one foot to another nervously. "I know that it wasn't exactly a mission objective, but I also destroyed the complex. It's officially another crater on the planet now."

"You did, huh? Well, then, we won't have to worry about more Reaper tech screwing with anyone else's mind. I'm just sorry that Toombs had to suffer…again." He shrugged it off. "And much obliged, LT, I hate paperwork. Now, what's your decision?"

"Sir?"

"About the Illusive Man's base…you leading a second team…-"

"Shepard, there is something I'd like to interject before this conversation goes any further," EDI's synthesized voice came over the P.A.

"Just for once, could I have a private conversation, please, EDI?" he moaned.

"I am truly sorry, Shepard, but I would not interrupt you for something insignificant. You are discussing tactics for your assault upon Cronos Station, and this is a paramount matter."

"Tell me what's on your mind, EDI."

"Since I was created by Cerberus and am aware of all protocols, it would be highly logical for me to accompany you on this mission. I also have extensive knowledge of Cronos Station's defenses in my databases. Sending two teams with two former Cerberus team members would give us a significant tactical advantage that you cannot afford to lose."

"That's a no-brainer, EDI. If the LT says yes, it's a plan. Thanks for the interruption…for once," he mumbled the last two words.

"You are welcome, Shepard."

His gaze turned to Williams. "So, what's it gonna be, Ash?"

"I need a little bit of time to think this over, sir. I promise that if I have my mind made up either when I see you in person or not, that I'll send you an email with my answer."

"Okay, I can wait," he nodded and watched her leave.

Chakwas re-appeared, activated her omni-tool, and approached Shepard. As she swept it over his body, she gave him a nod of approval. "You're in relatively good form, Shepard, and it's a good thing that you made that deal with Tactus on the Citadel last month. Our medi-gel efficiency has been vastly improved, and it's only because of that upgrade that you can walk out of here this afternoon."

"So when can I get back into action?"

Her lips pursed and she shook her head. "I'm not going back on my word, Commander. Three days with no heavier duties than cleaning your guns or re-stocking your armor's supply of medi-gel. And should you get any ideas, Ms. Lawson's already been informed of your situation."

"Oh has she? Well, then…the wheels are already turning," he said with a juvenile grin. "And they involve two words: sponge bath."

"Whereas I can laugh, I can only pray that she would find some amusement from that particular joke," Chakwas snorted and sat back down at her desk.

Orbit of Pragia, Osun system, Hourglass Nebula

Normandy SR-2 Crew Deck, Liara's Office, 1742h

The ten foot wall of monitors that could swivel and track the user's movements was directed at Liara's bed where she presently sat as Shepard entered the room. She held a stalk of celery in one hand and a data pad in the other. "Hello, Shepard," she greeted him without looking away.

"You are one goddamned workaholic, Liara," he told her and came closer. "I don't remember the last time I've seen you eat in the mess with everyone else."

"Remember those solitary dig sites that I used to work on? Well, that hasn't changed about me in the last few years." She inserted one end of the celery into her mouth and bit down upon it.

"You know, I've never actually asked you about it, but I think that I will now." That drew her attention away from the data pad. "Does eating fruits and vegetables make us biotics able to focus any better before a fight?"

"There have been some studies that have positively concluded it, yes," she agreed. "But I love the taste of celery, and it's been about a week since I've had any."

"Some cream cheese would make that taste a helluva lot better." Shepard folded his arms across his chest.

"Cream cheese?"

"You don't have cows on Thessia?"

"We most certainly do, but what does that have to do with…oh, does this come from the cow's milk?" she gave him a puzzled eyebrow and finished her celery.

"Hell, yeah. In fact, I know for a fact that there's a decent supply of it in the refrigerator. When I saw it on sale last time on the Citadel, I almost bought a gross of it," he confessed. "And the good stuff, too-low fat cream cheese is disgusting. While I was growing up on Mindoir, my mom had this amazing cheese cake recipe that also used sour cream in it and…." He noticed that she had gone back to work. "Have I been rambling on again?"

"I'm listening to you, Shepard. There's just so much for me to do here that I can't take a break right now," she said with a sigh. "Would you care to sit down?"

Shepard strolled over to the vacant rolling chair near her workstation and did so. "Thanks. I've got a favor to ask of you, but it can wait if you're in the middle of something truly important."

"What is it?" the Asari tore her eyes away from the data pad briefly.

"I'd like to get some intel from you, about Oriana Lawson's boyfriend, if possible. He was living on Freedom's Progress."

"Hmm…I think one of my agents has been there." She tapped her fingers onto her chin, cast the data pad onto the bed, and arose to go to the terminal in front of the wall of monitors.

"Really, Liara, it can wait…"

"This task will likely take me two minutes or less, Shepard." Liara's head turned towards him as she spoke. "I can certainly spare it for her. And you," she murmured the last two words and returned her concentration to the holo key pad.

"Would it be rude of me to ask a question about our past? Or is doing that considered impolite in Asari culture?"

"Well, if you had sided with Joker about his frivolous question, I would be less inclined to talk about it," her eyes darted towards his and then back to the terminal.

"When we were together that night before Illos, did you," he looked upward to the ceiling as he tried to word his question carefully. "Did you see what happened to my family on Mindoir?"

"Not in those moments, no. But afterward, when we both fell asleep…let's just say that you were the one to do so first." She instinctively ran her tongue over her lips.

"For someone who never actually, uh, well…" He let the sentence trail off and cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up."

"It's quite all right. It was a long time ago," Liara said with a wistful smile.

The awkward moment was broken by Glyph, who chirped positively, and floated around her shoulders to face her. "I've found something, Dr. T'soni."

"Excellent. I knew I was right." Her face brightened; her beam disappeared just as quickly as it had come as her eyes sped over the report.

"What happened?" Shepard demanded and leaned forward upon the elbow rests.

"The colony was…wiped out by Cerberus, Shepard. It was a similar circumstance as to what occurred on Benning." Liara spun around to face him with a morbid frown. "The citizens had a choice to go to Sanctuary or else."

"What? When did this-"

"I know, I know. It happened while you were on Rannoch aiming that syncing laser at the Reaper destroyer; so you couldn't have helped them even if you had wanted to, Shepard."

He got up and balled up his fists.

"There's more. The Alliance had no resources to allocate to Freedom's Progress at the time; my agents made an effort to search for survivors, but unfortunately, there were none present. I'm guessing that the remainder of the colonists who weren't there were taken to Sanctuary," Liara quietly finished. "I'm sorry, Shepard."

It took all the inner strength that he had not to ram one of his fists into one of the servers next to him. "Thank you, Liara," he returned softly and trudged out of her office.

Normandy SR-2 Crew Deck, Port Observatory, 2107h

The ambient soft jazzy music that had been playing was now an upbeat house track, but it was thankfully at a low volume. Otherwise, Javik would have turned right around and left as soon as he came. He ignored the inebriated quarian that was sipping her drink and strolled towards the window. "Javik vas Normandy, wanna join me?" she slurred as she turned her head.

"I prefer to be cognizant of my environment, Quarian. The view from this window is somewhat calming," the Prothean responded without looking at her. "Why have you been consuming drink that dulls your senses?"

"Why not? If life on this ship gets any crazier, I think I might just have to permanently install one of these bottles onto my environmental suit to deal with it all." She lifted the glass upward and brought the straw back to her helmet's opening.

"And your commander would not approve of such dangerous behavior. Why did you leave your home world and the rest of your kind?" He crossed his arms.

"I wanted to help Shepard. And I was just joking about the alcohol; I'll be back to work in the ECR in the morning."

"You are in a state of emotional distress. Why?"

"Well, maybe it's because of the appearance of a certain bosh'tet from Cerberus. And…another crew member from before…Jack…she called her a certain word. What was it? Ah, a Cerberus cheerleader."

"There was a mission that involved this crew member Jack; I met her. And I have been to the ship's lower levels where she resided. There was much hostility in her; she was a prisoner of this Cerberus. Did they do the same to you as well?" Javik finally glanced in her direction.

"No. They attacked one of our ships once; I was away from the Fleet at the time. But I still don't like the cheerleader."

"What is a cheerleader?"

"I…uh…" she sipped more of her drink and shifted around upon the stool vicariously. "It's a person that encourages or supports a team or organization. That was Miranda. She was the second in charge here on this ship before."

"The human female who had deep genetic artificial modifications," he nodded. "I have felt her presence, even before she came back." He rubbed his fingers together as if he were testing a substance that he had come into contact with. "She has a strong will and a dominating personality. Those are two good qualities for a leader."

"I don't care; I still hate her," Tali's head lifted up from the glass. "She's rude, dismissive, and haughty." She paused to think for a moment. "But she stopped her father from completing his horrible experiments, unlike me."

"In this war, it is unacceptable to disrespect the work of another colleague, especially if it turns the tide toward a potential victory," Javik sneered and crossed his arms.

"I do respect her, though. I just don't like her. My father was…somewhat…like hers. But I always wanted to please him. She never did to my knowledge."

"Do not let your feelings compromise your judgment, Quarian. There is much work to be done in preparation for your up and coming battle with the Reapers. Sitting here and dwelling upon your past is self destructive."

"Do you always have to be so harsh?" she whined. "Didn't you Protheans ever sit down to drink in your cycle?"

"The ones who did were either killed by the Reapers due to a lack of being aware of their surroundings or died by their own hands due to despair. I will not allow the Reapers to inflict that damage to my body. Do not allow yourself to walk down that path, Quarian."

"You know, I think, in a way, that was an example of back-handed encouragement. Thank you." Tali raised the glass towards him. "Keelah sa lai."

He made a simple bow of his head in return. "It was not, but you may consider it as such."

"So, what else do you think about the cheerleader?"

"That name is inappropriate; she no longer sanctions this Cerberus organization. If you feel that it strengthens your self-esteem, you should select another insult."

"Well, James calls her 'Legs', but I don't think that that's a total ridicule. And you didn't answer my question." Her arm wobbled as she tried to find the bar behind her, and Javik stepped towards her to help. He seized the glass from her hand and steadied her.

"What I think does and should not matter to you, Quarian. I have said this to the Commander many times. You are all too concerned over everyone else's opinions."

"But-"

"I came to this room to find some 'peace of mind' but instead I have been forced to keep you conscious and away from harm." The Prothean removed his grip from her arm as if he were touching a dirty object, and his four eyes narrowed. "Do not become a liability in my presence again." He coldly stormed out of the observatory.

"Bosh'tet," Tali mumbled to herself and rested her head upon the bar.

Orbit of Eletania, Hercules cluster, Attican Beta System

Normandy SR-2 Crew Deck, Crew Quarters, 2208h

Miranda brushed past one of the ensigns on his way out, who gave her a second glance but said nothing. Oriana sat at the table deep in conversation with Specialist Traynor, who was teaching her some new concepts and illustrating how they worked with a data pad. She glanced up as she heard the door open and gave her a beam. "Hey, 'Randa. What's up?"

"Nothing much, I just came to say hi. But if you two are in the middle of something, I can come back later," the Aussie said and took a step backward.

"Oh, no, I've been prattling on for far too long about long range data streams. I'm the one who should be off and on my way. I believe that there's a container of yoghurt in the refrigerator who's been calling my name for the last ten minutes," Traynor dismissively waived her hand and let the data pad fall onto the table. She arose from her chair, and Miranda claimed it as soon as she left the room.

"You two seem to be getting along splendidly," Miranda stated with a genuine smile. "I was a bit worried at first if anyone would…well, if anyone would even speak to you because of me."

"Why didn't you ever tell me that you worked for Cerberus? Were you trying to protect me?"

"Yes. When I hid you away the second time, I didn't even want to use the private investigator that Cerberus had hired to follow you, but the Illusive Man insisted upon it. I wanted to hire one my own, but I simply just didn't have the time to track one down then." She scoffed at herself. "Things could have turned out a bit differently if that had happened."

"Could they? Father still would have tracked me down somehow. He's relentless. And cruel. 'Randa, are you really sure that he's our father?"

Miranda shook her head and sighed. "As much as I hate to admit it, yes, he was. Henry Lawson owned a large conglomerate of defense contracting companies located in Melbourne, Australia, back on Earth. I'll probably end up having to deal with his estate sooner or later. All his fortune is probably mired up in fake dummy charity corporations, so that the government wouldn't be able to truly track down all of his assets or claim any of them."

"People who do that make me sick," Oriana bristled. "Maybe after we win this war, we could use some of his riches to help build new colonies?"

"One thing at a time, Ori." Miranda tapped her sister's hand and stroked it affectionately. "But that sounds like a great idea to me. Remind me again later."

"I will. So…" her fingers squeezed Miranda's. "How's Shepard?"

"He'll be just fine in a couple of days. And it'll be up to me to ensure that he doesn't do any hard physical labor. That job, in itself, will be a challenge."

"I hope that the two of you will really be happy. Did you really rebuild him piece by piece? One of the engineers here told me that he died when the Collectors hit their ship in a surprise attack," Oriana recollected. "And that this ship is a copy of the original Normandy."

"Yes, well, I had a full staff to do that." Miranda reclaimed her hand and bit her lip. "And I lost them all thanks to a traitor. I should have seen that one coming from a mile away. He was always griping about his salary, or the fact that I didn't compliment his every breakthrough, or-"

"What happened?"

"It's a long story, but slightly after Shepard regained consciousness, my chief medical tech Wilson tried to sabotage our base of operations as well as kill him." She paused as she recalled the events and narrowed her eyes. "That was the second attempt, actually. If I hadn't been present in that med bay, he probably would have succeeded the first time around."

"So then what happened?"

"Later that night after I fixed Wilson's blunder, I went back to my office to finish up a report to the Illusive Man. I had my suspicions then, but they were immediately confirmed as soon as I heard gunfire coming from the security wing. All of the light mechs had been hacked and were killing everyone. So I woke Shepard up, informed him of the dire situation, and contained the matter with his help. My lieutenant Jacob Taylor was also very instrumental in our survival."

"And what happened to your chief medical tech?"

"I took care of him before he could escape or cause any more harm to Shepard," she shrugged. "To say the least, I wasn't all that shocked to see Shepard holding a gun at me. I did just shoot someone who had supposedly been helping him at point blank range."

"I'm glad that that bastard got his just desserts. Do you think that he was a double agent?"

"Mmm, yes, he was likely a mole hired by the Shadow Broker to infiltrate our ranks within the Lazarus cell," Miranda nodded. "The Shadow Broker had come into possession of Shepard's body before Cerberus did, and thankfully due to Dr. T'soni's assistance, we were able to recover it. He was going to trade it over to the Collectors. There was a lot of collateral damage, though. Neither party walked away from that mission without losses; so the Shadow Broker found another way to get Shepard back."

"I've noticed the way that she looks at Shepard whenever she's around him. Did they have something going on in between the two of them before?"

The Aussie rolled her eyes. "Yes. She's had an attachment to him for a while, and they did end their relationship. But you're right. I can see it as well."

"Does she know that you know?"

"It doesn't matter, Ori. What does matter is that he's fully invested in the two of us, and probably wants to stay together after we defeat the Reapers."

"That's so romantic," she gushed and smiled. Oriana gazed upon the data pad. "Oh, look at the time. I should probably try and see once more if Danner's online. It couldn't hurt, could it?"

"Don't give up hope, Ori. We'll talk again." Miranda patted her on the shoulder, arose, and left the room.

Two days later, Normandy SR-2, Shepard's Quarters, 1906h

Shepard was relieved to hear the sound of the shower running as he wandered back into his cabin. He shuffled about the room and tried to busy himself by tidying it up or finding an appropriate playlist of music on his stereo. He even tried to stare at the fish for a few minutes. But nothing seemed to settle his jitters, so finally, he picked up a clean high ball glass from his night stand and opened a drawer in his desk to pull out a bottle of Crown Royal whiskey. Without even bothering to fill up up the glass with ice, he poured himself a straight shot and drank it down seconds later. The decision to have the next one was instantaneous, and so was the third. He stopped himself from filling up the glass again and set the bottle down.

How in the hell could he break the news to Oriana? Or even Miranda, for that matter? The past two days had been awkward; very little conversation had been actually shared between the two of them. He kept himself occupied with calls to diplomats and generals as well as another invasive interview with Diana Allers. Miranda helped sort out the Crucible's supply chains with Liara and spent some social time with her sister. Would Liara have told her about Freedom's Progress? No, Liara respected the two of them. As much as she had longed to continue her relationship with Shepard, she knew that she could never truly satisfy him like Miranda could.

A part of him was extremely tempted to open the bathroom door and join Miranda, but he decided against it and took out a woman's silk robe from his closet instead. When he strolled back up the steps, the steam poured freely out of the bathroom as she did indeed open the door. The water was still running.

"I thought that I heard someone skulking about in here," she said and poked her head out. "I never thought that I'd have to resort to actually asking you to join me, but-" Miranda stopped herself as she noticed the bottle sitting upon his desk next to the private terminal. She went back into the bathroom, turned off the shower, and began to towel herself off.

He watched her while she had her back turned to him, but then when she faced him, he averted his eyes and outstretched his hand to give her the robe. Seconds later, she did indeed accept it from him, and padded into the bedroom. She kept a towel with her and began to dry her hair. "What's wrong, Shepard? You've been extremely distant for the past two days."

We are eternal, the pinnacle of all evolution and its existence. We have no beginning, we have no end. We are infinite.

"I…I…um…have something to tell you," he admitted and leaned upon his chair.

"What is it?"

"Well, it's about…" His thoughts were so conflicted now that he was really starting to lose his nerve to even talk to her. "It's about…the assault on Cronos Station. I've…moved it up to tomorrow morning."

"I see." She wrapped the towel around her head. "Who's coming with us?"

You don't understand, Shepard. There is a place for organics in the new order. The Reapers need men and women of action, people like us. Saren's haunting voice whispered to him. Sovereign recognizes your value; you've impressed it. Surrender to the Reapers and you will be spared. Join us, and we can find a place for you.

"Shepard?" Miranda touched his shoulder. "Who's coming with us?"

"Uh, well, EDI, for one. And I asked Ash if she would mind taking a second team there, you know, just in case I screw up," he replied and exhaled through with mouth. "Do you still feel up to it?"

"Of course, why not?"

"You may want to take Oriana and go. I…I want you here, but neither of you may want to stay when…well, after you hear what I have to tell you." He turned around, and his face wrinkled into despair as he tried to look at her in the eyes. When he finally did, he turned his head away when she attempted to run her fingers through his hair. Shepard poured himself another shot.

"Isn't it fair to let me decide that?" she inquired gently.

With one final heavy sigh, he agreed. "Yes. I went to Liara after I left the med bay two days ago, to see if I could find out about Freedom's Progress."

"Well, she obviously did uncover some intel. Was it bad?"

He silently nodded. "Everyone was either gunned down or taken to Sanctuary. Yet another group of poor colonists I couldn't help."

"You know, Shepard, you aren't the only one to carry that burden." Miranda watched him pick up the bottle as well as the glass and make his way down the stairs to his couch. "There were some of my fellow colleagues that wanted out of Cerberus but never had the chance. I couldn't go help them because I had to follow the leads concerning Father's work."

"I had a feeling that there were more."

"One of them was a mentor of mine, a man who had helped me get to where I was in Cerberus when you and I met. His name was Charon and was my first case handler." She joined him on the couch and crossed her legs. "Naturally, that wasn't his real name. Like the Illusive Man, I still have no clue what it is."

"Where was he stationed?"

She gave short laugh through her nose. "Last time I heard, he was aboard Cerberus' Highlander Station, but who knows now?"

"Did he ask for your help?"

"Not directly, no. But he noticed what had begun to happen to Cerberus scientists who had completed their work on the Collector projects. Then he also saw evidence of the indoctrinated troops first hand; I can only hope that he escaped somehow."

"Yeah, well, if he's the one who trained you, then I'd bet that he'd have at least blown up the station into nothing."

"Thank you, Shepard, for taking the time to find out about Freedom's Progress. I'll be sure to thank T'soni as well for her help." Miranda reached for his hand and covered it with hers.

"Are you going to tell your sister about this?"

"I'll wait until we've destroyed Cronos Station. I don't want Oriana distracted or worried about my safety. Losing a boyfriend is difficult enough."

He eyed the shot that he had poured earlier, picked it up, and was about to consume it until she seized it herself and did so. As the hard alcohol hit the back of her throat, she exhaled deeply. Shepard reached for the bottle on the table and motioned towards her for the confiscated glass, but Miranda shook her head 'no'. With little more than a twirl from her fingers, a blue projectile launched itself at the whiskey, and the Crown Royal went soaring into the stereo. The bottle shattered into no fewer than one hundred pieces. "If we're truly going to strike the Illusive Man's base tomorrow and we don't make it out alive, I don't want you numb tonight. Don't you want to remember it? I know that I do."

The corners of her mouth pulled away to give him a seductive leer.

"We won't fail," Shepard stated and unabashedly made eye contact with her. "And we're coming back alive. I plan on carving my initials into Kai Leng's dead forehead with my shotgun's bayonet."

She arose, set the glass onto the table, and undid the tie from her robe. "Now that's the stubborn ass I fell in love with. I had wondered where you'd gone." The robe partially opened as she sauntered closer to him.

His eyes practically devoured her, and his olfactory senses were driving him wild as he inhaled the scent of cherry blossoms that were emanating from her body. "Damn, woman, you're intoxicating." Something about her tonight stirred his primal urges more than usual. "I must be the luckiest man in the galaxy." He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it.

With one final derisive snort, she bent down even closer to him and came dangerously close to his lips. "Is that truly the best you can do, Commander?" she whispered and reclaimed her hand as he let go.

"Not a chance." He closed the centimeters between their mouths, wrapped his body around hers, and suddenly charged the both of them onto the bed. She activated her implants, and one of her knees gingerly nudged his groin. Just as his tongue was about to enter her mouth, he grunted with pleasure. She took advantage of this moment to force her tongue into his instead and continued to assault his nether regions. One of her hands soon replaced where her knee had been, and that leg snaked itself around his hip.

"Nn…not…so…hard there, Jesus, Miranda!" he exclaimed and tore himself away from her lips and began to pant. "I…won't be able to…last…-"

"Hmm…you are wearing far too much clothing for my taste, Commander." Miranda halted her torture and seized hold of his belt buckle.

"Shepard, is this a bad time?" Ash's voice came over the intercom.

"Well…you could say that," he returned and watched his former XO's hands strip him of his belt in less than five seconds. Suddenly, the belt flew across the room and crashed into the holo screen near his desk.

"What the hell was that?"

"Nothing, everything's fine."

Miranda chortled and yanked him back to her lips. "Say that now," she stated in between kisses. "You'll change your tune in approximately thirty seconds."

"Ha, well all righty, then, Shepard. I just wanted to let you know that I've made my decision, and the answer is a hell yes." She paused for a moment as she heard a few more of his groans. "I think I'll let Ms. Lawson get back to calibrating your weapon.