SALVATION
Copyrights 343 Industries & Bioware
Rated A for Adult
0901 hours, June 25th, 2303 CE (Galactic Standard Time)
Unidentified alien space station
Asteroid belt, unknown system
Liara was in a hurry.
Gracefully like a dancer, she moved through the alien space station's dull gray corridors, after more than two months, she did it reasonably safely.
Nevertheless, it happened from time to time that she missed a turn and was suddenly lost in a completely unexplored part of the station. Sometimes several hours.
Especially in the first few days, many of the 300-strong crew got lost. Some of them were found days later by a rescue team. Starved and dehydrated.
Fortunately, even the worst cases were able to return to work after a few days in the hasty setup infirmary.
Athame must truly watch over them.
When the expedition teams arrived in this system a little over a month ago, it looked like nothing was interesting or worthwhile to discover.
It was a rather boring system with only a blue star orbited by two small rocky planets and a huge asteroid field at the edge of the system. At least that was the first impression you could get from the Tempests ship sensors.
On closer examination, the science crew found traces of an enormous explosion and even more important element zero.
In addition to the billions of tons of metal and other rare elements, which had been compressed to the size of a raindrop before this event, a huge amount of e-zero was released as well. Unfortunately, the explosion scattered the element zero into the surrounding asteroids, making it too dangerous and expensive to mine.
'A real waste', thought the young asari sadly. 'Especially in these dire times'
Nevertheless, the discovery was a small sensation. For the first time in history, e-zero was created almost live. Liara's species has explored and mapped space longer than any other existing race, and yet the strange element continues to raise questions.
One of them and maybe the most important was its origin. To date, no known person has been able to artificially reproduce it. Still, the researchers on the Tempest were able to record a small success. Residual traces of dark matter were found in the asteroid field, which, according to one of the most common theories, was responsible for the creation of element zero.
All the data collected in the following days substantiated the suspicion of dark matter is involved.
The scientist on board quickly agreed that this thesis was likely to be correct. Despite all that, none of the asari scientists present could come up with a solution to how to successfully mine it.
Should they find a way to harvest the energy of a black hole, it would give them an almost unlimited supply of the rare element and thus an essential advantage over all other species.
Because of this immensely important and groundbreaking discovery, Liara's mother had ordered the strictest secrecy. The matriarch only informed Councilor Tevos of the find. In addition, she sent some of her most loyal followers into the system with additional transports and supply ships.
Even a Janiri class stealth frigate, fresh out of the shipyards over Thessia arrived last month. Officially, the spaceship was on a reconnaissance mission in the Perseus Nebula to uncover potential Geth activity.
Currently, the stealth ship was scouting somewhere in the neighboring systems, looking for potential threats and additional information regarding the space station's former owners.
When the first waves of euphoria subsided and most researchers could think again, Liara asked the second crucial question.
Where did dark matter come from in the first place?
Dark matter only existed in black holes and there was no sign of one in the immediate vicinity.
While part of the crew was still debating her question, Captain Moira T'Varis ordered further and more detailed scans of the surrounding area.
Long in her mother's service, T'Varis was one of the most experienced ship commanders in the Republic. She was born in a small colony world on the outskirts of known space. Her mother was an engineer at one of the largest e-zero mining companies in the galaxy and constantly had to change her workplace. As a result, young T'Varis spent a lot of time on ships and knew even as a child that one day she wanted to command her own.
Her love of ships and the knowledge she acquired from her mother about e-zero made her the perfect candidate for this mission.
So, it was little surprise to young T'Soni that they soon encountered another anomaly.
One of the asteroids showed unusually high levels of radioactivity.
Further scans showed that the measured radioactivity could undoubtedly be assigned to the element tritium. The isotope, which only occurs in trace amounts in nature came from deep inside the rock, to everyone's surprise.
Halfway to the command center, Liara stopped in front of a floor-to-ceiling window and stared into the darkness ahead.
She pressed her face against the window, but couldn't see anything.
But she knew only too well what lay ahead of her in the huge, poorly lit cave.
The crew of the Tempest had long and heatedly debated whether to fly inside the deeply cratered asteroid. In the end, a small team of volunteers was dispatched to a small UT-47 Kodiak Shuttle. They entered via a hole on the surface that was easily 12 km in diameter.
The Kodiak's external headlights illuminated only a tiny fraction of the cave inside the rock.
But what Liara and the others discovered there was unbelievable. From the looks of it, an as-yet-unknown species had blasted its way deep inside and set up a station there.
In the first few moments, it reminded the T'Soni heiress a bit of Omega with its many factories, docking bays, and winding alleys. In contrast to the notorious home of the self-proclaimed pirate queen of the Terminus system, this was much smaller and harder to find.
She could vaguely see what was going on outside on the small screens in the shuttle. The walls were lined with landing platforms and docking bays. Huge cranes, for loading and unloading cargo ships, hung from the ceiling above. They seemed as if they could continue anytime. Over the docking bays were gigantic hangar doors.
Unfortunately, they were locked and all attempts to access the station's system with the Omni tools failed.
Even their scanner could not penetrate the unknown material. Thus, one could only guess what was hidden behind it.
One of the pilots called for Tempest's assistance shortly thereafter. Matron T'Varis reluctantly steered the state-of-the-art, multi-billion credit ship inside, in fear of colliding with the surrounding cave walls.
However, her concerns about the available space quickly dissipated when she and the remaining crew of the research vessel were able to see the cave with their own eyes.
It had a diameter of more than 36 km. More than enough to accommodate a whole formation of frigates.
With the Tempest on site and her advanced sensors, they got a whole mountain of new data.
And what they found shocked them.
The whole station seemed to work without e-zero. Even later, when the scientists managed to penetrate deep inside the alien station, they could not find any traces of the element.
At least the reason for the unusually high radiation was quickly found.
A small leak in one of the fusion generators provided the station with power. It was easily repaired and the remaining radiation disappeared completely after a short time.
If it weren't for the hole, they most likely would have just flown past the asteroid.
Liara pulled away from the cool pane. For a precious moment, her headache had become bearable. Her long fingers glided over the cool grey metal.
It wasn't Prothean. It was some sort of Titanium alloy, nothing she has ever seen. The scientists said it was harder than anything they knew, except for the metal used to construct the Citadel and the relays.
She had studied the Protheans for decades and knew next to nothing about their language or culture.
Even after all these weeks, they knew so little of the species who owned this station. The decryption of their language would take years, decades even.
Although the station was in pristine condition. She didn't need to spend weeks putting things together in the hope it wasn't useless shit in the end. Everything was functioning and you could even read the lettering on the walls.
That made Liara wonder. What made them leave? If you build a base into an asteroid belt you don't want to be found. It was a military place. No doubt.
They must have left it recently. In the past half-century maybe.
The T'Soni maiden closed her eyes. A half-century is nothing to her but a whole life for a Salarian. Her mother once said it was a blessing and a curse.
Now she felt even more tired. The last few days were stressful.
However, she did not want to take a break. There was too much to discover, too much to learn. She wanted to spend her remaining weeks as productive as possible before she had to return to Thessia for an appointment with the high priestess.
She only met the matriarch once or twice in her life. She was an old friend of Benezia and Liara remembered her time at the temple fondly. As a young child, she often played hide and seek with the temple guards whenever her mother visited the old shrine.
It was an honor to meet the priestess. Especially for someone as young as her. Mother said it was some sort of ritual of her house.
Liara knew the rules and century-old rituals of her house, but there was none involving the temple. She knew every face. Maids, commandos, huntresses, acolytes. Every company her mother owned. Every political friend she had and the real ones.
She melded a thousand times with her mother, sharing information and feelings. There should be no secrets left between them.
Benezia's mind was ancient. It was a powerful enigma on its own. It should not surprise her that she had more secrets buried deep inside. Secrets are too dangerous to share.
Even with her.
Be it as it may Liara had to attend and represent her house. Whatever the high priestess wanted it could wait a little longer.
She had other pressing matters at hand.
Luckily the young T'Soni had already completed her report for her mother days ago and now she only had to wait for the arrival of the supply ship.
Every few days, a freighter should bring food, water, equipment, extra staff, and news to the research team. There was no connection to the extranet, so they had no way of knowing what was currently going on in Citadel space.
In return, samples of the substances found, the reports of the individual teams, and everything else that was somehow interesting were sent back to Thessia for study. Metal, screens, clothing, everything they found, even something banal like chairs.
What made chairs so interesting was the fact, that you could get a rough idea of how the species might be built. Some asari already started speculating if they looked like batarians or asari. Preferably like asari.
Such things were the reason why everybody had to fill out the detailed and extensive documentation on their subject area. It didn't matter if you were a xenobiologist, an archaeologist, or just a simple maintenance person. Even Captain Moira T'Varis had to do it.
Benezia had entrusted everyone in her hand-picked group with specific duties and responsibilities – except Liara.
She still didn't have a single clue why she was there. It wasn't like she was desperately needed anyway. Mother had dozens of archeologists, xenobiologists, and whatnot in her service. Anyway, she appreciated the chance to get away from home, but Benezia had the habit of deciding her head.
First, the matriarch assigned Shiala as her bodyguard, along with some of her mother's most loyal commandos, and a few days later she forbade her to leave the estate on Serrice without them.
She was angry. After all, she wasn't 106 anymore. What made her even angrier was the fact that Benezia didn't even ask her nor did she explain her sudden actions.
She loved her mother dearly but all that annoyed her greatly.
With a sullen snort, she turned away from the window and hurried on towards her destination. Her long but well-trained legs carried her through the empty corridors with ease. Every muscle in her body moved in perfect harmony. A side effect of the brutal daily training with her house's commandos and guards.
Her neck started to tingle. The biotic aura surrounding her was thrown off balance for just a fracture of a second. Most asari her age would not have noticed or paid too much attention to the slight tingle.
But the young matron was not like most of her people.
Matriarch Benezia was one of the most powerful biotics of her race. So, it was no wonder that her offspring developed a great natural talent for biotics at a young age. In the last eight decades, her biotic strength had nearly doubled. She was now as strong as a matron in her last one or two centuries before she would shift into the matriarch stage.
But young Liara's biotic talent wasn't the only thing that changed. She has matured.
Liara grew a few more inches and was now almost as tall as her mother. Her dark blue lips became a little fuller and the last bit of baby fat on her face and body completely disappeared.
All parts of her body seemed to change. Her breast became fuller, her buttocks rounder. The entrance into the matron stage changed more things than she thought and hoped to change.
Much to her annoyance she had to adjust or dispose of many of her favorite old clothes. She used to put little value on what she wore. It had to be comfortable and practical. Till today.
She was still slim and fit; thanks to the numerous trips and smaller missions she took on behalf of her mother and her house. Maybe the extensive training with the commandos of house T'Soni helped as well.
One day, in front of the mirror, Liara realized with horror that she was becoming more and more like her mother in many ways. The constant appearances in public, at lectures, interviews, or as a representative for Benezia at important summits became more and more part of her everyday life.
Gradually the shy maiden Liara once was faded away.
She was mistaken for her mother a couple of times because of her increasingly similar appearance. There were quite a few who claimed that she was a spitting image of the older matriarch.
As she got older, she became more interested in politics and economics. Liara wanted to understand how they were connected. Areas that she rarely paid attention to before.
However, archeology and the Protheans remained one of her main hobbies. You could and should learn from the past. At least that was her opinion.
Benezia on the other hand happily nurtured her daughter's newfound interest and under her wing, the young asari thrived.
A few years ago, she started to establish her information network. With her sources and agents who reported at regular intervals. In the beginning, it was just a small trade exchange for Prothean artifacts, which she sold to support her excavations. She started to expand into other areas as well. Step by step.
Benezia herself ruled over one of the largest and most dense information networks in asari space and so it was foreseeable that mother and daughter would become direct competitors in some areas.
Liara always got the short end of the stick. Benezia had far more experience and resources at her disposal. Despite everything, the matriarch made sure that her child learned something from every defeat.
Over time it became and somewhat educational game for Liara.
A barely audible rustling behind her brought her back to reality.
"How long have you been following me?" she asked her shadow without turning around.
The surprised commando with green skin and dark facial tattoos around her eyes stepped out of the darkness into the light. Shiala didn't expect young T'Soni to spot her.
"Not long," she replied.
Liara said nothing. She didn't believe the green asari. Even before she had sensed that someone was nearby. She hadn't expected the person to be so close, however. That the experienced soldier was able to hide her presence from her for so long made her a little uncanny.
Shiala slipped smoothly behind her.
"Since you left your room, Lady T'Soni," she finally confessed ruefully.
The older matron had followed her mother for centuries. She had known Liara from the moment she took her first breath and knew that the young heiress tried to avoid Benezia's influence as much as she possibly could.
Shiala was aware that Benezia tried to keep her inside this illusion of freedom and independence as long as possible.
But in the end, it was just an illusion.
The future heir to the T'Soni empire had been in this bubble since birth. Everyone on this station was connected to the matriarch in one way or another. Whether scientists, security personnel, or the numerous undercover agents. When it came down to it, they would all die to keep House T'Soni alive.
Even Pelessaria and Treeya, who she has become friends with over the last couple of weeks were paid by her mother.
As Liara grew older, she became more and more aware of this illusion.
She accepted this bitter truth only slowly and reluctantly. If she were to die, one of the oldest and noblest houses of her kind would die with her. The vacuum left behind could plunge her people into deep chaos.
"Let us go." She started walking without further ado, not willing to dwell on these kinds of thoughts any longer. Her shadow followed her almost silently.
The two were the last to arrive at the station's control room. The room itself was stuffed with screens, computers, and some data pads that had been connected to the alien computers with the help of self-made adapters.
Unfortunately, almost all attempts to replicate or access the alien machines have failed. Even after weeks of studying they only were able to control the most basic functions of the station.
T'Varis stood on the left in front of the largest of the screens. She greeted the two with a slight but polite bow.
"Now that we are all complete, we better start." In the otherwise so calm voice of the captain Liara could detect a little nervousness.
An image from a surveillance probe at the edge of the system showed tree-blurred ship silhouettes.
"We received these images from one of our probes an hour ago," the experienced asari said before she continued. "And this one about 10 minutes ago."
Another image appeared, clearly showing four turian frigates. Unmistakable by the silver fuselage and the orange-striped wings that protruded left and right from the hull. The triangular shape of the ships was distinctive.
Nervous whispers broke out between the members of the team, even the usually cheerful Peebee looked concerned.
"Silence!" Shiala's voice was enough to silence the room in an instant. None of the asari in this room wanted to mess with one of her Lady's closest and most trusted followers and not when her protégée was standing right next to her.
"Thank you, Lady Shiala." Moria crossed her arms behind her back.
"Could it be a patrol?" Alestia interjected her before the captain could continue.
"Unlikely Alestia. They have set a direct course towards us. We're too far from the borders of the Citadel for a patrol," she replied.
Far was almost an understatement, the nearest explored system was 120 light-years away. Their journey took them through the Maroon system into an as-yet-unnamed system with another primary mass portal and from there to a secondary portal. After that, you had to travel for 6-7 days with FTL.
"Perhaps matriarch Benezia has made the discovery public and the council is sending the turians to reinforce," an asari calls out over the murmur.
T'Vari's gaze swept over the crowd until it settled on Liara. The two held eye contact for a few seconds.
Benezia's daughter shook her head in silence. Liara knew just as little as the captain. The supply ship was already two days late.
The transport ship may have had an accident and one of the nearby border patrols found it. She discarded the idea as fast as it came up. The turians stopped patrolling asari borders a few weeks ago and canceled the associated agreement.
After nearly 1300 years.
Since then, chaos has reigned at unprotected borders. Smugglers and slave traders could fly almost unhindered to the Republic's colonies and plunder at their whim. Above all, attacks by batarian led pirate fleets increased recently.
Some matriarchs suspected the batarians were instigated to do so. But they had no proof.
Honestly, it should not have surprised so many matriarchs.
The last two decades with the turians, but also with the salerians have been difficult, to put it mildly.
There was little to no unity in the council anymore. Every race fought bitterly about every little thing.
And there was another problem coming up soon.
Turians, like quarians, were the only two known races in the galaxy whose biology was based on dextrorotary amino acids. A minority in the galaxy if you look at the overall population.
What made it even more difficult was the fact that there were very, very few planets with natural food based on dextrorotatory amino acids. The turians had fewer colonies than the Volus, but the second largest population. Needless to say, all their worlds were drastically overpopulated.
The population of their species had multiplied over the past hundred years. Naturally, the turian government started looking for solutions.
The ban on opening dormant laying portals has been lifted a few decades ago. Or to be more precise, the turians just didn't give a fuck anymore, even when the other two council members voted against it.
But pandora's box was already open and the euphoria of the turian population could hardly be contained anymore.
New portals were opened almost daily. New systems explored. New planets colonized.
If the asari and the other species wanted to keep up they had to go along. Most governments continued to stoke the spirit of discovery among their people and businesses.
Only Tevos and the other matriarchs voiced their concerns. The Rachni were long gone, but not forgotten by their ancient minds.
Since then, the population of the Turians had nearly tripled and the Salarians and Baterians more than doubled. Only the asari grew by 700 million to just over 24 billion.
In the end, it came all down to the ability of a government to provide for its people. More people – more resources needed.
Resources like e-zero.
"I'm receiving a Specter identification code," Nyxeris, seated at the communications terminal, informed them. "It's Saren Arterius and his brother Admiral Desolas requesting permission to land."
The large screen behind Moira showed the frigates that had meanwhile arrived at the asteroid. Their silver hulls shone in the light of the system star. They flew carefully over the entrance, always keeping an eye on the flying debris nearby. Understandable, every move could be your last inside an asteroid belt.
"A Spectre how unexpected," Liara murmured. Maybe they were the reason their supply ship was delayed or something must have compelled her mother to act.
Behind her, Shiala stiffened noticeably.
'But why didn't mother send her ships? She has hundreds of ships. Ten thousand battle-hardened commandos at her disposal.' Liara mused silently.
'Why a Spectre? And why not an Asari one? Vasir would be willing. Or T'moris. Or Edara. Or anyone else of the two dozen asari ones.'
"Open hangar 3C. I will receive them personally," the captain instructed.
The daughter of Benezia was about to join the captain when she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.
"Yes?" she asked, turning around.
"Let's stay here Lady T'Soni," Shiala's voice sounded worried. Pleading.
Liara never heard Shiala beg and she realized the commando must have had the same thoughts.
Liara's eyes wandered back to the screen. Several shuttles flew in and headed for their assigned hangar.
"A dozen," she stated after a quick count.
One would have been enough for the Specter and his brother. Even with their guard.
Her neck began to tingle again. Stronger than before. She began to tremble slightly.
"Okay, we'll stay and watch the whole meeting over the cameras."
The green-eyed asari behind her was silent, but she felt her gratitude.
What in Athame's holy name was going on?
The heavy hangar doors were already open, revealing the approaching Kodiaks as Moria arrived. Some asari had set aside crates of food and other miscellaneous supplies to increase the landing area.
Slowly, the silver shuttles glided through the bluish, billowing energy shield that kept the oxygen in and the vacuum out.
For a few seconds, they hovered side by side in perfect formation. Only the sound of the engines could be heard for a second before they turned 90 degrees to the left and landed simultaneously on the gray titanium floor.
'Turian discipline at its finest', the matron thought.
The door opened with a soft hiss, revealing the transporter's interior.
Saren jumped out lightly like all his gear weighed nothing.
Captain T'Varis at least assumed it was the Specter. He wore black armor, as did the other turians behind him. Without badges or other declarations giving away his rank.
She had never seen such armor in her long life before.
A Pheaston assault rifle rested loosely in his hands.
He eyed the shorter matron in front of him disparagingly. A contemptuous grin crossed his mandibles.
"Welcome Saren Arterius. I am Captain Moi…", the blue asari took another step forward and suddenly fell silent.
T'Varis felt a sharp pain in her abdomen. Reflexively, she pressed both hands to the spot.
Her head was pounding like crazy. Her heart seemed to burst out of her chest.
Dazed, she lowered her head and looked at her hands.
Blood spurted from the gaping wound in her stomach. Thick drops of blue blood dripped between her fingers onto the floor and formed a small puddle at her feet.
She sagged weakly to her knees. A pitiful sigh escaped her trembling lips.
More and more turians poured out of the shuttles and opened fire on her crewmates in the hangar. The screams of panic from the other asari present were drowned out by the loud gunfire.
But Moira, kneeling in her own blood, noticed neither the one nor the other.
Her eyes were fixed on the monster in front of her, who was walking towards the asari with a static calm and a smoking gun.
"Wah..." she stated to gasp before the Turian hit her in the face with his rifle buttstock.
The brown-eyed asari's head slammed into the hard surface of the floor.
Her eyes were unnaturally wide as she watched with her last breaths how the hangar was turned into a slaughterhouse.
The rest of the station would follow soon.
1743 hours, Juni 25th, 2596 (Military Calendar)
Military hospital, Calais, Arcadis
Eidera System, (Sector L-421), Outer Colonies
" .. an arm that has been broken several times, six broken ribs, a smashed hand, internal bleedings and last but not least a fractured base of the skull," the chief head doctor walked around the bed. "Do you know how lucky you were Admiral?"
William sat on the edge of the bed, buttoning his shirt with his still clumsy fingers. His skull was pounding like it was going to explode any second and his arm was still mostly numb.
"Are you listening to me, Admiral?" The older man in the white coat crossed his arms reproachfully over his chest.
"I wouldn't call three months in a coma luck." He looked up at Doctor Lagarde.
"I could have left you another month in it," the doctor walked up to the small table by the window, which was littered with flowers, get-well cards, and other things. "Maybe that would have been better," he added looking at one of the cards.
He took it in his hand and held the card under Grand's nose.
"There were God knows how many people here. When you got out of the intensive care unit the whole goddam room was full. Like you could get something for free."
With a quick movement, he took the card from his hand and laid it on the bed next to him. He hated it when someone waved his hand in his face.
He hadn't looked at any of them yet and had no intention of doing so.
God how he hated hospitals.
He had no problems shaking hands with sick or wounded soldiers, assuring them the UNSC would take good care of them, what they did in most cases.
But lie in one yourself. Unable to leave or do something. That's something he wanted to avoid desperately.
The time in hospitals hardly seemed to pass. A second turned into a minute, a minute into an hour, and an hour felt like a whole shitty week.
At least the food was decent. That's something.
As he had to wait for the attending in the morning his thoughts wandered back to the last moments before he lost consciousness.
Fredrick, hunched over him, Face pale and helpless, blood dripping from her hands. Her lips had moved constantly, but he hadn't understood anything.
In hindsight, however, he knew that the major must have been screaming for help all the time.
Grand relieved this special moment over and over again.
The doctors said it was a completely normal thing. Everything should settle down in a few weeks.
That made him hate hospitals even more. His thoughts would drive him insane.
William had to get out!
Out and preferably back to his office. Back to his work to distract him, to regain at least some normalcy and control.
He braced himself on the bed with both arms and swung himself up.
"Careful Admiral," Lagarde grabbed his arm. "You should give your body a few more weeks to get back into shape."
"I don't have a few weeks doctor." He staggered to his feet. The left side of his injured body ached and burned from the still clumsy movements.
"I am fully aware that you have a lot of work on your hands, Admiral. That's the reason I decided to put you out of the coma. But I have to say again, you should stay some more days. You are running on painkillers, vitamin shakes, and medi-gel."
"Noted."
Grunting, he put a hand to his side and massaged the spot lightly. It felt like hundreds of ants were crawling through his body.
Under his shirt, he felt a residual scar. She would serve him as a reminder of his stupidity. A small price to pay for his life.
"Have you informed my office?"
Behind him, he heard a deep sigh as the veteran military doctor conceded defeat.
"No. I had hoped that I could persuade you to spend a few more days at the observation station."
Grand took the black coat from him. The soft material nestled against his fingers, but the weight surprised him. It was heavier than the officer had assumed. The three months must have hit him harder than expected.
"I will take a cab."
Grand glanced over at the cluttered table.
"I'll send you everything. Tomorrow or the day after at the latest," Lagarde answered following his gaze.
"Thank you." William shook his hand in farewell.
"It's okay."
The admiral crossed the room but was briefly stopped by the doctor before he could leave.
"I don't want to see you here again, Admiral." Lagarde handed him a small medicine pack.
A bitter smile crept onto his dry lips.
"That makes two of us," he replied, pulling the door shut behind him.
2003 hours, Juni 25th, 2596 (Military Calendar)
Ministry of Defense, Calais, Arcadis
Eidera System, (Sector L-421), Outer Colonies
Panting like an old dog William took the last step of the stairs. His hands were gripping the banister so tight that his knuckles were white, like a drowning man clinging desperately to anything he could find.
He looked back at the stairs again. Grand could almost hear it laughing at him. In all the months he had been stationed here, he had taken the steps hundreds of times.
He should have used the elevator.
The coma must have taken its toll on his body more than he believed - or wanted to believe. It would indeed take a few weeks before he could move freely and without pain again.
He had to look like a dead man walking.
Blue-purple bruises covered every part of his emaciated body. His hands were shaking and his heart hammering like crazy.
He was indeed running on painkillers and adrenaline.
A sight to behold.
Luckily for him, it was a Sunday evening and the building wasn't that busy. It enabled him to slip through the gate and into the ministry almost unnoticed.
Almost. A few soldiers did spot him, however.
William trudged the last few meters to the door, turned the handle, and pushed it open.
He looked forward to his bed. Unlike the hospital bed, which felt more like a cot than a bed, his would probably feel like heaven on earth.
For a second, he briefly considered whether it would make sense to check how much work had been left over the last three months. Still lost in thought, the admiral crossed the antechamber and wearily opened the door to his office.
The room was not as expected completely shrouded in darkness but brightly lit. So bright, that Grand nearly overlooked the person sitting at his desk.
A woman. Around his age.
She wore neither a uniform nor any insignia of rank he could identify on her white blouse.
Her full dark brown hair was tied into a simple but elegant bun. Not a single unruly strand appeared to be out of order. Her hair alone looked like artwork.
He studied her face. While his fuzzy mind was trying hard to identify her, he had no memories of a woman looking remotely like her.
Still, she looked familiar somehow.
Her skin was a little pale as she never had left the building. The rosy lips were pressed tightly together.
She didn't seem to pay him any kind of attention. She surely must have heard the opening door. The lady's gaze was fixed on the display in front of her while her hands seemed to fly over the holographic keyboard on the table.
"What are you still doing here?" she asked, massaging her brow with her left hand. "Didn't you want to go home earlier today?"
William just stood there for a few moments, not knowing what to say. He silently closed the door behind him and took a few steps toward the stranger. He stopped directly in front of her table – his table.
Finally, her fingers stopped. Because of the lasting silence or the looming presence in front of her, he did not know.
The table surface was in a mess, with piles of documents and other paperwork piled on one side and a few empty coffee cups littered the right half.
One or two data pads were laying on the floor.
Grand couldn't remember leaving his office in such a state.
Her head slowly rose and her eyes traveled up his body until she could see his eyes.
What he saw in her tired hazel-brown eyes was sheer disbelief.
"I got held up," he quipped awkwardly.
The brunette stood up, clearly shocked, and staggered around the desk.
"Will…," her voice trailed off in sobs. Big tears ran down her beautiful face, clear as the morning dew.
Her lips trembled.
She stumbled the last few centimeters towards him, losing one of her heels in the process before embracing Grand. The woman's fingers clawed at his back her tears soaking the thin linen shirt.
She nestled against his chest like a cat. The two of them stood in front of his desk like that for a while and William put his chin on her head because the brown-haired woman still didn't make a move to break away from him.
Grand remembered to breathe again. The scent of freshly washed hair filled his nose. Her hair smelled like freshly cut grass. It was probably the best thing he smelled today.
William looked down at the woman in his arms. Her eyes were still closed and her breathing was calm and even again. Everything about her seemed so familiar to him, the almond-shaped eyes, her heart-shaped face, and the brown hair.
She looked confusingly similar to a certain AI. Only more natural.
Reluctantly, he pulled away, got on his knees in front of her, and grabbed the loose high heel that still lay unnoticed on the carpet.
Grand turned the black shoe in his hand. Even after all the years, he couldn't understand how someone could walk in it.
Gently he massaged Charlotte's ankle with his fingers, her skin feeling warm and soft. To his satisfaction, he found her ankle was not bruised neither did she appear to be in any sort of pain.
The former AI leaned on his shoulders as he slipped the shoe over her bare left foot. Gently, he put her foot back on the floor.
"Thank you," she whispered softly after he had struggled to get up. Her eyes were still moist.
"How did you get here William? Doctor Lagarde wanted to contact us, didn't he?"
"I didn't want to stay longer and took a taxi. If Lagarde had his way, I would have spent at least another week in the hospital."
"Rightly so. I should have remembered how stubborn you can be." She shot him a reproachful look. "You belong in bed right now."
Energetically she pushed him through the adjoining door into the bedroom.
It almost looked the same as it did three months ago. Only the double bed had been freshly made and there was a torn pack of tissues and a holo pad on the left nightstand. Charlotte seemed still to be in the office. Judging by the noise, she seemed to rearrange something.
In search of a fresh shirt for the night, he opened one of the closet doors. But there were no shirts in the drawer, but something else that he couldn't see in the darkness.
Suspiciously, he grabbed the first piece of clothing with two fingers and pulled it out.
A pair of brown panties dangled in front of his face.
"That's new," he said with a crooked smile and looked at the piece of clothing if you could even call it that. The panties left little room for the imagination of what might be underneath.
Suddenly the light went on.
"That's mine," Charlotte snatched the panties from his hand. Embarrassed. Face heated.
She stuffed it back into the drawer and slammed the shut. "Try the next drawer, your stuff should be there." She pulled out an olive-colored shirt with the UNSC logo printed on the back and tossed it to him.
Grand bit his tongue to stifle his laughter.
Charlotte rushed to the bed and grabbed a pillow and a blanket.
"Where are you going?"
"It's your bed, William. I will sleep on the couch," she said uncomfortably. "Tomorrow, I start looking for something of my own."
"How long have you been sleeping here?"
"Ever since I got out of the hospital. After your accident everything was so messy, I haven't had time to deal with it."
She looked tired, so tired even that she might fall over at any moment. He didn't have the heart to throw her out. The couch wasn't even particularly comfortable, he knew that from his own experience.
"Charlotte!"
"Yes?" she was already standing at the door.
"You can sleep here too if you want. The bed is big enough for both of us."
"You need your sleep. I don't want to intrude."
Grand snorted, shaking his head and she claimed he was stubborn.
"You are not intruding." He turned and walked towards his small bathroom. "Think about it."
He looked at his reflection while washing his hands and brushing his teeth. His eyes were surrounded by deep, dark circles. On his neck, he discovered another ugly pale scar. The rest of his face was sunken and haggard.
"You look like an old man Grand," he murmured sullenly, rising out the remaining toothpaste.
He ripped his shirt off and tossed it carelessly into a corner. Pants, shoes, and socks followed a moment later. The only things he left on were his shorts. Tomorrow he would get disposed of everything.
And he needed a haircut.
His dark blonde hair was already longer than the norm allowed.
When he couldn't stand his reflection any longer, he turned and left the bathroom, putting the shirt on Charlotte gave him.
She must have turned off the light in his bedroom.
For a few moments, he remained motionless in the dark. His eyes slowly adjust. On the left side of his double bed, he could make out the outline of a body.
"I didn't think you would ever listen to me," he teased.
"Don't get used to it," came her muffled voice as he crawled under the covers.
"Never. Good night, Charlotte."
"Night William."
Sleep caught up with Grand just a few minutes later.
Only once during the night, he woke up briefly. Charlotte had wandered across the bed in her sleep, pressing herself as close to him as possible.