Spectre Team
"You're sure you're fine."
Shepard glanced up. Kaidan, as usual, had devoured his sandwiches, and she glanced back at her plate and poked the half-finished meal.
"Yeah," she replied. "I just . . ." She made a face. "I feel . . . gross."
She hadn't wanted to say anything. It'd just worry him. And from the look on his face, it had. A biotic not wanting to eat usually meant something was terribly wrong, and he knew that. Of course he'd know that.
"Gross," he said pointedly.
"Gross," she repeated. "I'm fine, I just . . . I don't want to eat. For some reason."
"You probably overextended yourself with your charge. Go lay down."
"I'm fine." Shepard rested her forehead in her hand, poking at her plate.
"Are you just not hungry?"
"I'm starving." She looked up. "I never said this made sense."
"Go on." He picked up the plate and handed it to her. "Go up and lay down. If you need anything, just get EDI to call. I can take the ship for now."
"You're a lifesaver, Kai," she murmured, getting to her feet. She didn't want to go off duty yet, but she knew there wasn't much choice if she wanted to go on the next mission when they got to their next former-Cerberus base. If she wasn't back to one-hundred percent she knew Kaidan would force Chakwas to keep her on the ship. She accepted her plate and headed for the elevator, even looking at her food making her queasy.
Once up in the Loft, Shepard set the plate on her desk.
Maybe it'd be a good idea for her to stay in the bathroom for a little bit.
Possibly a shower. Yes. A shower may be good.
#
"Doctor Chakwas?"
Chakwas looked up from her screen. "Major." Kaidan leaned his hip on the edge of her desk, arms crossed. "Everything all right?"
"I'm worried about Shepard."
The doctor glanced at her screen, then leaned forward on her desk. "What's going on?"
"Are we sure her implants weren't damaged?"
Chakwas nodded. "She was re-implanted with the same ones she had before, and you helped her get back in control. She shouldn't be having problems. Why?"
"She just went upstairs to lay down. Doesn't want to eat."
". . . strange." She paused, then looked back up at him. "Are you sure that you two haven't skimped on your suppressants recently?"
Kaidan held up his hands. "Yes."
"Just a question, major, no need to be defensive. Did she do something on the mission?"
"Turned an enemy pull into a charge-nova, but that's it. Nothing different, but -"
"No, that shouldn't be a problem, especially if she's been actively using her biotics." Chakwas shrugged. "I can go up and talk to her, if you'd like."
Kaidan considered it for a moment. "Would you mind? I . . . I'm just worried. If she's not eating . . . It wouldn't be a side effect of the PTSD, would it?"
"Maybe." Chakwas stood. "I'll head up there, Major."
"Thank you." He straightened and left the medbay, and Chakwas headed for the elevator.
Getting off at the Loft, she knocked on the door. "Major?"
Nothing.
"EDI, is Shepard still in her quarters?"
"Shepard is currently in the head."
"Thank you. Open the door?"
The Loft door flashed green and slid open. "Shepard?"
There was a groan from the bathroom, and Chakwas stepped through. Shepard lifted her head off her arm, slung over the edge of the toilet.
"Any particular reason that you're vacating your stomach contents?" Chakwas asked, kneeling down next to her and letting her omni-tool bloom around her wrist.
"I don't know," she moaned. "I just feel awful."
"Something you ate?"
"I don't know." She finally pulled herself up, and Chakwas closed her omni-tool. "I just feel sick."
"Kaidan says you charge-nova'd on the mission. Did you overextend yourself?"
"I . . . I don't think so." Shepard let Chakwas help her out of the bathroom and back to the Loft's bed, where she collapsed down. "I just feel sick."
"Hm." Chakwas rubbed her chin. "Are you sure you've been keeping up with your suppressants?"
"Yes," she snapped.
"Mm." Chakwas pulled Shepard's pills out of her desk and examined the number remaining. Seemingly satisfied, she set it on the desk. "I can give you something for the nausea, if you want. Is that the worst?"
"Yeah." She looked up. Shepard was looking seriously glum from where she was sitting on the edge of her bed, and Chakwas pursed her lips.
No, nothing would show up on a scan or blood test yet, if this was her first bout of illness.
"Have you felt like this before?"
"No."
"All right, Major." Chakwas helped her back to her feet. "Let's get you something for this."
And when they got down to medbay, Chakwas made sure that what she mixed up was safe for pregnancy.
Just in case.
#
Kaidan was just finishing relaying the information they'd gotten out of the former Cerberus operative when he spotted Shepard out of the corner of his eye, quietly joining him. He noted she still looked a little green, but fairly better.
::Shepard. Nice of you to join us,:: Sparatus said.
"Anytime, your highness," she replied flippantly. Kaidan hid a smile. Since the Reaper's defeat, Sparatus and Shepard had gone back to sniping at each other - apparently, not even the war-to-end-all-wars could permanently stop that. "Apologies, I was being violently ill in my quarters. Have you filled them in, Major?"
"I have," Kaidan said. "We're en route to the first base she specified as we speak. We should be there within the next few days, and Shepard and I will be heading groundside again."
"Hopefully we'll find out more." She quietly thanked everything that Kaidan hadn't decided against taking her groundside yet. "I don't like the lack of information we're getting. Even Cerberus left more of a paper trail than this."
::Keep us updated,:: Tevos ordered. Both Spectres nodded, and the Council disappeared.
"You're sure you're all right?" Kaidan asked, settling his hands on her shoulders. Shepard nodded.
"Chakwas mixed something up for the nausea. I've already been by Gardner. Ate about twice what I usually do, so I think I'm a lot better."
Kaidan chuckled, then kissed her forehead. "I was worried."
"I know." She grins. "But I'm fine, Kai. Promise."
"As long as you're sure. Just . . . keep the biotics simple, for now. For my sake." He pulled her into his arms, and Shepard closed her eyes as she nestled against him. "I almost lost you on the Citadel. I just want you to be safe."
"I like that it gives you greys," she said quietly, reaching a hand up to touch his greying temple. He shook his head.
"You do that enough without nearly dying," he retorted. "I'd prefer that kept to a minimum, you realize."
"I didn't just nearly die," she snapped, then suddenly clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oh god, Kaidan, I . . ."
He stepped back, holding her shoulders again. "Shepard, are you sure you're all right?"
She dug her palms into her eyes. "I-I'm fine," she murmured quietly. "Just, I think I'm tired. I might . . . I might go try and sleep. I didn't sleep well last night."
Kaidan studied her a few more moments, brows scrunched. "Okay," he replied. "Just . . . get EDI to call me, if you need anything. Promise?"
"Yeah," she replied. "Promise."
She sighed, and turned. Kaidan watched her leave, worried. "EDI."
::Yes, Major.::
"Please keep an eye on Shepard."
::Absolutely. I will inform both you and CMO Chakwas if there are any changes in Shepard's vital signs.::
"Thank you." He sighed and stared after her.
Something was wrong. His stomach turned as he thought about pulling her off the next mission. Technically, he couldn't stop her. They were equal rank, and she was the senior Spectre. But . . . he had pull, as her husband. He didn't want to go that route, but he'd do it if it meant protecting her, and to hell with the consequences.
He squared his shoulders and went to go check that his marines were sending in their reports.
#
Kaidan didn't restrict her from the next mission, though Shepard was back to sleeping longer seeming more tired and still seemed nauseous almost constantly. He also noticed she wasn't relying on her biotics as heavily as usual, over that and subsequent missions.
They hit four bases over the next two weeks, all in a relatively localized cluster. Three were still abandoned; at the last, they captured a pair of scientists but couldn't save any of the guards.
After the last base, the Normandy docked at the Citadel. Part of the crew left on shore leave - Kaidan and Shepard retreated to their quarters for a well-deserved quiet evening.
"How many times is that?" Kaidan finally asked the second time Shepard collapsed back into bed, the light from the head still blaring in his eyes.
"I drank a lot," she defended, snuggling back into him. Kaidan kissed her shoulder, then frowned.
"Marra."
"Mm?" She already sounded as if she were falling asleep.
"Are you . . . are you absolutely sure you've been taking your suppressants?"
That had gotten her attention. Shepard's head snapped up. "Of course I have been!" she replied. "Have you?"
"Of course I've been." He shook his head. "It's just . . . never mind."
"You've been talking to Chakwas." Shepard shook her head. "She's convinced. Besides, Miri told me I probably can't get pregnant anyway. I'm just coming down with something. So you should probably not be all handsy."
Kaidan chuckled and pulled her closer to him. "Never," he murmured, nuzzling her neck. She giggled, wiggling in his arms.
"Stop," she complained, a huge yawn breaking the word. Kaidan laughed, nuzzling harder. Shepard squirmed, finally pulling up his head and kissing him. "Stop," she repeated, more seriously. Kaidan stuck his lip out slightly, and Shepard leaned forward to draw it between her teeth. "Sleep now. More in the morning."
"Deal," he murmured, tightening his hold on her. She smiled and nestled impossibly closer.
Kaidan watched as her eyes closed, his fingers tracing the cotton shirt she was wearing. His cotton shirt, really. She slowly drifted back to sleep, and he sighed before tucking her head under his chin. He wouldn't sleep.
Not when he was preoccupied with the complete conundrum that was his wife's current health.
#
"Sir. This weeks' cloning reports."
He rifled through the reports briefly, sighing. "Nothing worthwhile," he summarized.
Damn galactic ethics regulation. Cloning research had never been a focus of Cerberus, and the wider more ethical scientific community meant that most of the research (that wasn't on non-sentients) was impossible to locate or poorly done. As he was now finding, after trying to implement a major cloning program in one of the few Cerberus bases that had managed to remain undiscovered by the Alliance.
"Another batch destroyed," he continued, dropping the datapad onto the table.
"They were initially solid," Oxley explained. He was nervous. Understandable, really. "But gained too much personality too quickly. The scientists were not able to compensate in time." He shifted on his feet, silent on the metal floor but still apparent. "One nearly rampaged through the base and had overcome the built-in failsafe. It had to be destroyed manually."
He was silent for a few moments, which prompted Oxley to shift on his feet again. But he was thinking. Running Echidna was no small feat, as he was quickly learning - business was nothing compared to an underground terrorist organization.
"Tell them to allot another hundred thousand credits to the creation of a new clone experiment," he finally said. "Perhaps choosing a less volatile subject." He paused again, tapping the arm of his chair. "And there are other plans in motion, should that one fail."
"Yes, sir."
"My meeting with Mr. Wahlgren is in three hours. Bring me his dossier." Oxley nodded. "His backing will be essential, and he previously donated large sums to Cerberus."
"Right away, sir."
Oxley hurried out, and he stared at his terminal.
No. He wasn't obsessed, he decided, as he typed Marrakech Shepard into his database. She was a threat to the furtherment of humanity, and always had been. The Illusive Man had been a fool to think otherwise.
He tapped his desk again, staring at the picture that had been snapped at her recent wedding by a extranet news source. She could yet be useful.
He just had to keep that in mind.
A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews I woke up to this morning. I had just been talking to a friend about how it felt like no one was reading this, and then BAM. :D
Faretta: Thanks! And yeah, drunk wedding antics. Gotta love 'em. Especially with that group!