I don't own mass effect
So many people quickly followed my new story and got a few people interested in the Priestess story.
I also have an idea on male shepard x solana pairing that ends with them both ending up in the Crucible. Since it wont be that much different to cannon I won't write it until after all the mine effect sequels and Priestess stories are done.
Oh, Captaindickscratcher when you carry over a me1 to me2 profile you only get a small amount of credits. I can't remember the details but you can look it up. I think it was a certain amount if your level was over 40, more if it was 60 and some more if you were rich. The way to get the most credits through is to do new game plus and the only way you can buy everything. As for why Shepard came back so much faster is that in cannon she crashed into a planet, with this story she floated out into space making it harder to find but a lot less damaged. Plus they could have gotten everything for the Lazarus project ready in advance. Also, about Miranda I'm not talking about mods but I swear Miranda had a bigger chest in the original game.
Also the krogan in the first chapter wasn't Grunt but you did remind me of a fic called 'And the meek will inherit the galaxy' by full paragon it had Grunt fighting with the Reapers before switching sides.
Keyweilder thanks for the corrections, already corrected the name, but haven't corrected the second mistake.
Story Start
"You, what are you doing here and more importantly...why?" asked Shepard
In front of her was the unmistakable form of...Miranda. A person she had just left moments before.
"I'm sure you have questions." said Miranda
"You bet your tits I do, starting with the one I just asked. I thought I was here to see the Illusive Man." said Shepard annoyed. While she might have to work with Cerberus to deal with the Collectors she certainly didn't have to like it and already she was liking it even less.
"As of now, I am the leader of Cerberus. For the last week and a half the Illusive Man started to transfer control of everything to me." answered Miranda "Not even Jacob or the others knew."
"And why would he do that?" asked Shepard, crossing her arms and giving her a stare.
Instead of answering a message played out.
"My name is Callum Maclean, born in Australia February...1994."
"How...how did you get that?" asked Shepard. This was bad, there was no telling what they could have been up to with that information. As soon as this meeting was over she needed to find out what happened to the rest of the Normandy, especially her groundcrew.
"We always had it, Tali Zorah might be a skilled engineer but she still lacked experience when she joined you. She narrowly missed picking up our bug." explained Miranda
"That means you know everything...what did you do?" asked Shepard worriedly
"For the most part, things you'd agree with." said Miranda calmly
"I doubt that very much." argued Shepard crossing her arms
"That doesn't mean it's not true. Though there are some decisions you would not like and a few even I disagreed with, even if they were necessary. " said Miranda
"Where's my ground crew? You better not have done anything to them." threatened Shepard, her mind instantly going to Liara, Callum and Gamora. Callum was the source of that information while Gamora and Liara both melded with him in order for the information to be exchanged. If they wanted more information all three would be prime targets.
"Your ground crew is fine." pacified Miranda "Kaiden and Ashley are still in the Alliance, and Solana is on the turian homeworld part of an anti-Reaper taskforce. I believe her brother is currently causing trouble for every single mercenary on Omega but we can't be sure. Liara is currently digging through the Prothean Archives for anything that could help. Wrex is currently unifying the krogan clans, there have been a number of attempts on his life so far but we try and send him word when we can about those while Tali has become the most influential quarian out there. Not only inside the migrant fleet but outside of it as well."
"What about Callum and Gamora?" asked Shepard noting that she didn't bring their names up.
"We don't know, our last sighting of Callum was on Omega talking with Aria. We believe he is organising forces to get ready to fight the Reapers. While the last we heard of Gamora was when she, Tali and Callum bought a ship and headed towards the Perseus Veil. Other than that we have no clue where or what they have been doing. I don't expect you to believe me but you can ask Joker when you see him. Just like before he will be the Normandy's pilot."
"I'll be sure to ask him later. Now what did you do with the information you got with your bug and why isn't the Illusive Man in charge?" asked Shepard
"At first I didn't believe Callum's story, it was just too ridiculous to take seriously. The Illusive Man however wasn't so sure. Especially not after the events on Noveria happened just as Callum said they would, almost as they were happening. As for what we've done...I assume you remember the missing bodies on Noveria, or Shiala on Feros?" asked Miranda
"I assume that was you?" asked Shepard getting a nod from Miranda
"It was, thanks to them we were able to find a cure for indoctrination as well as a way to detect it. There was also another asari named Rana, the asari scientist you ran into on Virmire. They were my project before you."
"And where are they now?" asked Shepard
"I have no idea." answered Miranda "Shortly after I worked out a cure they were taken away and I haven't seen them since. After that I was brought in to run the Lazarus project.
"Really, I thought you were now in charge...a sort of Illusive Woman." questioned Shepard not believing her.
"Please don't call me that, and yes it's true. But while I am now in charge the Illusive Man didn't share everything. There are a number of things he's hidden from me. From what I can piece together he sent them off to the colony that Jacob's father formed when his ship crashed along there with a number of other Cerberus agents. I believe he hopes that humanity will rebuild itself there should the Reapers win."
"And what about the people there...more importantly the women that he's possibly been taking advantage of this entire time?" asked Shepard
"You might not like it and I agree with why, but those women could be the ancestors of those who might one day take back the galaxy. If it helps I'm certain that the senior Taylor has been taken out." said Miranda
"You could still do something, bring them back after we defeat the Reapers. " said Shepard
"I'm afraid I can't, the Illusive Man was very careful to remove anything that could narrow down on the location of that colony. I would not be surprised if he had a number of people killed to keep it that way if he didn't send them to the planet in question." answered Miranda
"You still haven't explained why you're the one in charge. From Callum's told me Tim wasn't the one to share power." said Shepard
"He's not, however the Illusive Man values humanity's survival above all else, including himself and he was no longer suited to lead Cerberus. After Callum revealed everything the Illusive Man started going through every decision he made over the last two decades. Sure enough, there was enough evidence to say that he was becoming indoctrinated and my findings only confirmed it. The Illusive Man has always been about how the end justifies the means but over the years less and less has been gained while more and more was deemed an acceptable sacrifice."
"What about that cure you mentioned?" asked Shepard
"Perhaps 'cure' isn't the right word. It's more of an anti-body than anything. An antibody that I've already given you, you can still become indoctrinated but by the time you start showing symptoms you would have long been fully indoctrinated. Whether consecutive dosages work is uncertain so still avoid possible contact with anything that could cause indoctrination and use other indoctrination preventive measures such as a specially shielded helmet that should protect you. Unfortunately in the Illusive Man's case it didn't take. Either the indoctrination method was different and thus works differently to their standard or too much time had passed. "
"So the cure isn't 100 percent effective?" asked Shepard
"Unfortunately not, it works in most cases that we tested. As long they had some measure of control over their actions it worked. Repeated dosages would halt the indoctrination process for him but it wouldn't reverse it. There was the possibility that Thorian spores would remove the indoctrination completely but then there would be the problem of it having access to his mind." answered Miranda
"And we can't have that can we?" asked Shepard sarcastically
"No, we can't. Now as you know the Collectors have been targeting human colonies. " continued Miranda
"How bad is it?" asked Shepard
"Considering how bad it could be...living in colonies in the Terminus systems was never safe but now it's worse than ever. A few colonies have gone but it's hard to tell which is from Collector attacks or batarian slavers. Humans have become more desirable recently, no doubt due the Collectors interference. While I can't say for certain, I believe that they captured significantly less humans than they would have originally. Both because you were brought back so much sooner and because of the better protection systems Admiral Hackett has been pushing for. However, there have been unforeseen...consequences." said Miranda
"Please don't tell me that the Council are still denying the existence of the Reapers." asked Shepard
"They tried, and they started to make progress too but it's hard to argue when living Protheans start appearing and that's where the problems start." said Miranda "On the plus side the Council lost a lot of what little credibility they had left."
"A living Prothean? Does that mean someone found...what was his name? Javic?" asked Shepard
"He's one of them, however he's not the only one. They're keeping the numbers secret, even from those in the know about the Prothean's survival but we estimate that there are at least eighty living Protheans if not more." answered Miranda
"How's that possible?" asked Shepard shocked
"You can thank Liara T'soni. After Illos she went through everything. Thanks in part to the Cipher she was able to find the locations of multiple bunkers. There weren't many survivors but there were still some. They've become a hidden fifth Council member until their survival and the Reaper threat is made public in the coming months. It coincides with the Andromeda mission leaving."
"That's good, right? No one can say that the Reapers don't exist if the Protheans say they do. Plus they know about the Collectors and the link they have with the Reapers. We can get the Alliance to help us take out the Collectors...maybe even some of the other races as well."
Sighing Miranda answered
"Unfortunately, that won't be happening. "
"Why?" asked Shepard
"First of all preparations are about the immediate arrival of the Reapers. They're keeping things quiet to avoid panic until the time is right, they want to say they have a solution before they admit the threat that they've been ignoring is real but each race has been increasing their military strength in the mean time. Since this is purely a human matter and the loss of life has been so far limited to the Terminus the Council sans the Human seat feel that it is best to use all available resources in getting ready for the Reapers, not worrying about the Collectors. A second-rate threat in their eyes."
"What about the Alliance? I know Hackett and Anderson will want to help?" argued Shepard
"Wanting and being able to help are two very different things they can't help us and we can't ask." responded Miranda
"And why is that?" asked Shepard
"We're a terrorist organisation, if they help us it will be used against them especially considering our recent actions. Unfortunately, it looks like the Normandy will be on its own but there might be a third party or two you can get help from but that's not the worst bit. The Protheans are trying to insist that they should be the ones running things, the hana are more than happy to let them have their way as are a significant portion of the Asari Republic. The human and turian Councilors don't agree and the salarians don't seem to care either way but who knows what they really think."
"Would the Protheans running things be so bad?" asked Shepard "They've had the most experience dealing with the Reapers, plus with them at the front people will have a hard time arguing that the Reapers don't exist."
"The Protheans don't want to win against the Reapers...they want to destroy them. There's a big difference between the two, the Protheans are the main ones arguing against doing anything about the Collectors, saying that everyone should focus on building weapons to destroy the Reapers and that the Collectors will be dealt with later when the time is right. I have a feeling things will only get worse when the Reapers arrive." responded Miranda
"How so?" questioned Shepard
"Their leader is Javik, the Prothean Avartar of Vengence, the one Callum was talking about being discovered on Eden Prime. He's got a lot of hate for the Reapers which isn't surprising but it is hard to tell if he's using that hate...or if the hate's using him. Anger is all well and good but not if you can't control it, not as a soldier and definitely not as a leader. The way he speaks about destroying the Reapers makes me think that there is nothing he wouldn't do to kill even a single Reaper, even if it meant sacrificing a planet in the process. I understand that the Reapers need to be destroyed and if that meant the sacrifice of a species or their homeworld I'd do it. I wouldn't sleep afterwards but one species or planet being lost is a lot less than everyone losing everything. Javik however would sacrifice that and a lot more much more readily. One of his suggestions included shutting down Relays the second the systems they were in became overwhelmed, taking anything they can use while leaving everyone else there to fend for themselves and be harvested to buy everyone else time."
"Sometimes a tough call is needed. I know Hackett had to do something similar, I can't agree with it but I can see why he might see it as necessary." pointed out Shepard
"You say that but we both know neither you nor Hackett would abandon Earth unless you were planing on coming back or unless you had no choice. Javik seems happy to let the galaxy die a death of a thousand cuts just as long as the Reapers suffer as well. No, the Protheans cannot be the one leading things. We might have more success working with the turians though, thanks to you and Hackett turian relations have never been better. Both in the lower ranks and well up the chain of command, the benefit of fighting for your lives next to each other it seems. Also, aside from Adrimal Hackett and Councillor Anderson the main one insisting that the Collectors be dealt with sooner rather than later was Councilor Spartacus."
"I find that that hard to believe." said Shepard with no small amount of disbelief that someone who had criticised her the most would do such a thing.
"Spartacus's attitude has changed since the last time you saw him. You wouldn't know it but his favourite nephew was a high-ranking officer on one of the turian ships that the Primarch sent in during the battle of the Citadel. The fact that if he had listened to you or placed more stock in what you said might have meant the survival of his nephew weighs heavily on him. He believes that the Collectors should be dealt with as soon as possible to avoid the same mistakes as before."
"Fine, so where do we go from here?" asked Shepard
"I've already left with a couple of Cerberus's elite to guard me. You however will be heading to the Normandy SR2 along with Forbes, Hayden and Jacob. You'll find there are a few more additions than you were expecting." answered Miranda "From there you get ready to face the Reapers, we've already procured the Reaper IFF so you don't have to worry about retrieving that. A certain tank-grown krogan is also in the lower decks...though I'd advise you wait until you have more crew members that can handle him before you wake him up just in case. Some other crew members that would have been originally joining the Normandy won't be. They include Zaeed and Jack who are working for a small but elite mercenary team, a certain Kasumi has also dropped off the grid."
"What about the rest of them?" asked Shepard
"Samara is currently looking for her daughter on Illium, however it is a big place and it will be difficult to find her. We're keeping an eye on it and should she flee to Omega like she would originally we'll let you know. Mordin has only recently set up his clinic, it is up to you if you want him on board, merely give him one of the seekers we've procured or if you want him at all. The Normandy will have people capable of research and weapon modifications regardless."
"How did you get the seeker?" asked Shepard suspiciously
"The Collectors trade their tech for certain samples. A few months ago we 'procured' some seekers from some batarians."
The way Miranda said procured told Shepard quite clearly what had happened to the batarians who had originally had those seekers.
"So we can work on a cure to their bites? As well as a way to get them to ignore us?" asked Shepard hopefully. If could find a cure they would be able to inoculate potential targets giving them time to prepare while the Collectors tried to find a workaround or redesign whatever they used. Even if the Collectors didn't stop their attacks it would give each colony a fighting chance. Unfortunately, Miranda's next words squashed that hope.
"That won't be happening. Whether at the request of the batarians or the Collectors not wanting to give out samples they're completely different. What these seekers inject is much more painful, and deadly than whatever the Collectors are using to paralyse their victims. However, we can still find a way to make them either ignore us or be rejected by our presence. Now unless there is anything else you've got a friend waiting for you upstairs, when you get there send down Jacob." said Miranda
"What are you going to tell him?" asked Shepard curiously
"The truth, or what we know for sure is the truth. Jacob's a good person, I'm not going to tell him that his father is a rapist who's been taking advantage of women for half the time he's been alive or that the Illusive Man had likely ordered his death. Callum has already said that there have been a number of differences, for all we know Taylor Senior died during the crash or survived under completely different circumstances."
"Understandable." answered Shepard, if someone told her that Anderson was a monster and a rapist it would certainly shake her foundations to their core. It made sense, not only would such a blow stop Jacob from being fully mission-ready any time soon with such a stain hanging over them plus all the self doubt it would start but as a friend you wouldn't want to say something that awful unless you were a thousand percent sure it was true.
With nothing else to say, Shepard climbed back up the stairs. There she found a certain pilot waiting for her.
"Hello, look who the cat dragged in...or in this case the three-headed dog." welcomed Joker "It's good to see you Commander."
"It's good to see you too Joker." replied Shepard
"It's good as long as that's really you and not some Cerberus drone wearing Shepard's face." replied Joker, half joking, half serious.
"It's me, cleared your extranet history recently?" asked Shepard with mirth
"As long as my boss, aka you doesn't look into it, it should be fine right?" asked Joker before walking away "Now come on I've got something to show you and trust me you're going to like it."
"It's good to see you Joker." replied Shepard before following Joker "Jacob you're wanted downstairs."
"I am?" asked Jacob surprised "Okay, I'll head down. Forbes, Hayden I want you both situated. I don't know where Miranda went off to but she'll join us later."
Following Joker, Shepard was quick to notice something. Joker wasn't using his canes or walking as gingerly as he usually did.
"Is it just me or are you walking better than usual?" asked Shepard
"Not just you, thanks to an adaptation to a bone weave cybernetic treatment I can walk around like a real boy. I won't be running around or playing sports anytime soon but its a hell of difference and hell expensive. Cerberus footed the bill though, they seemed to think that saving the galaxy might come down to whether I can walk somewhere quickly enough." said Joker
"So...you joined Cerberus?" probed Shepard
"Things changed after you got spaced. The Council did everything they could to sweep up everything you stirred up. Hackett and Anderson did everything the could to keep things stirred up. Made everything very uncomfortable, especially if you were part of the Normandy. The number of times I was taken from one place to another asked the same questions by every single person who could ask them? It got old real fast, especially when one person wanted certain things sealed while others wanted them made public. In other words I was grounded without any hope of flying any time soon. You know how much flying means to me, how I worked my ass off to become the best pilot out there. Without that what am I?" asked Joker "So when Cerberus came knocking making an offer to let me fly again I gave it some thought, especially when they said I'd be working under you. Despite all the problems they caused you in the past. Have to say though, I wasn't too sure they could pull brunging you back off."
"Do you trust them?" asked Shepard
"Hell no. The guy in charge is literally called The Illusive Man, that said some of them aren't that bad. At least the people on this ship aren't. Speaking of which here she is." said Joker stepping through one last door.
As Shepard followed him into the next room. On the other side of a window lights started flickering on, revealing a glimmering ship of black and silver with the words NORMANDY and SR2 written on the side.
"She's beautiful." breathed Shepard. She wasn't the original Normandy but she'd do just well.
"That she is, now come on I'll show you the best part." said Joker
Five minutes later
"This is the best part?" asked Shepard incredulously "A whole brand new ship with who knows what kind of upgrades over the original Normandy and this is your favourite part?"
In front of her was an unbelievably happy Joker with a wide-ass grin. Shepard didn't think he could be happier even if Tevos and the Consort both came up to him at once and said they wanted to have a threesome.
"Oh come on commander." protested Joker "Have you felt this leather? Say what you want about Cerberus about being an evil organisation bent on human supremacy but damn do they know how to pick the seats. This thing feels like it was moulded for me and I don't know what animal this leather comes from but it feels like it was massaged and pampered every minute of it's life...until it was made into this seat that is."
As soon as Joker finished talking a blue hologram appeared. It honestly reminded Shepard of a chess piece.
"The pilot and copilot seats were made from the finest lambskin available that have been specially treated to be as durable as possible. Since they are likely to spend a great deal of time flying the ship steps were taken to ensure that both would remain in optimal condition for as long as possible. The remaining console seats asides from the commanders were made from a much more standard seat leather in order to reduce stress."
"And there's the downside." moaned Joker turning to face the controls "Commander do we really need this thing? The seats on the old Normandy were awful and the mos as well been made out of brick but at least I didn't have anyone constantly watching me and telling me what to do."
"No just every now and then or when you were taking your long sweet time picking us up. I won't even count the time Pressley caught you with a Fornax magazine." joked Shepard, a joke that ran cold as she remembered that Pressley, as a number of other that had been under her command were no longer among the living and hadn't been for nearly a year. Inoring those feelings Shepard turned to the glowing chest piece. "And you are?"
"I am the Enhanced Defense Intelligence, or EDI for short." started the AI only to be interrupted
"Commander do we really need this thing? I'm the person flying this ship, it's like buying a remote control ship then making a second remote and trying to use them both at the same time." after the words left Joker's mouth EDI vanished "Hah, got rid of it."
Behind them, a voice started speaking
"My role is to either support you and to run the electronic warfare and cybernetic suits while in combat. I will only take up the pilot seat when you need to be relieved or are off-duty."
As Joker spun around, likely to make one some kind of cutting remark only to freeze. His eye's were literally bugging out. Turning around, Shepard could see why. Behind her was the fulfilment of anyone and everyone who ever wanted a robotic girlfriend. She was wearing a black version of the outfit that Miranda was wearing and her proportions were quite similar, aka big ass tits which currently had Jokers full attention.
It took a few seconds for Joker's brain to reboot.
"Hold on, they gave you a body...and actual body?" asked Joker "Why did they give you a body?"
If Shepard knew Joker, his mind was probably going from Terminator to a script for an adult movie and back again as quickly as a ship went through a Relay.
"It was felt a disembodied voice would make the crew uncomfortable so a body was built to allow face-to-face communication. I can also follow Shepard into battle or act in defence should the Normandy ever be boarded." answered EDI
"Hold on, I thought you were limited from doing sorts of things...say venting all the air? What's to stop you from undoing those limitations?" asked Joker. In all fairness making a good point.
"While I can physically access the majority of the Normandy there are a number of locations my programing prevents me from entering. They include the Commander's quarters, life support and the AI core." replied EDI
When EDI said that, a glimmer of mischief appeared in Joker's eyes.
"So Cerberus won't let you touch your..."
"Joker!" interrupted Shepard "Play nice, also start warming up the engines. We'll be heading for Omega as soon as possible."
Leaving the cockpit Shepard traveled further into the Normandy. The layout was similar to the SR1 but bigger and more spread out, there was also a big orange hologram of the Normandy SR2 displayed near the back.
Approaching it Shepard was quickly, and warmly greeted by a red-headed woman with short hair.
"Welcome aboard Commander. I'm Yeoman Kelly Chambers, I've been assigned as your administration assistant." greeted Kelly with a salute "I'll manage your messages, notify you if something especially important comes hrough and help you monitor the crew. Also, I want to say that it's an honour working under you."
"What's this?" asked Shepard nodding her head at the hologram of the Normandy.
"As you have probably guessed, it shows the status of the Normandy in real-time. As soon as the problem starts to develop it is shown here. When you wish to use it, the galaxy map."
"It was good meeting you Ms Chambers, now which way to the armoury?" asked Shepard
"It's to your right, in the centre as you can see is the elevator. One the left is a small lab and between the is the briefing and communications room. One floor up is your own private quarters, one floor down is the crew quarters where the bulk of the crew sleeps and eats. A few other areas of importance that are also there include the med bay, gun battery and the quarters of the XO/ information officer. The fourth level is engineering and finally the hanger bay at the bottom."
Leaving Kelly behind Shepard headed to the armoury. There she found Jacob working on a console. Noticing her entry Jacob was quick to give a salute.
"Commander."
"At ease." ordered Shepard
"Thank you Commander. I just want to say that it's a privilege to be working with you and an honour to be on the Normandy. Hopefully, we'll all make a difference." said Jacob
"What are you doing now?" asked Shepard
"Getting settled in. I'm running inventory, making sure that we have everything we should. After that I'll start working on a maintenance schedule." answered Jacob
"And what weapons do we have?" asked Shepard
"The majority of the weapons we have are the stock standard pistol and assault rifle, the same ones you used on the Lazurus station. They lack any bells and whistles but they are dependable and reliable, they wouldn't be the alliance standard if they weren't. They use a combination of heat sinks and clips as do most of the weapons we have onboard.
They don't deal a lot of damage but they have a decent rate of fire and cooling. We have enough of them to fully stock you, your ground crew and all security personnel. We also have more specified weapons such as a designated marksman rifle, not as many but enough for your ground crew plus a few spare for any security guards who have a marksman certificate.
Weapons that we have in the least supply are the heavies, sniper, LMG, grenade and rocket launchers. Of those we have only a few each. If we don't have something you want or you want more certain weapons let me know and I'll put and order in, it will however cost you. I'm afraid the budget doesn't cover any extras, Commander."
"Speaking of the weapons I used, I'm looking for an upgrade. Something with a bit more punch. As you pointed out the assault rifle isn't that bad, but I need something to take out those tougher targets. There was a certain vicious looking krogan that I nearly ran into and I doubt anything other than the grenade laucher would have done anything but piss him off."
"Hold on...did this krogan have a carved varren skull on his armour?" asked Jacob worriedly
"You know him?" asked Shepard
"Yeah, not only is he the one that nearly took out Miranda but he's one of the most vicious of the Shadow Boker's agents. Even with her strongest barrier his shotgun still cracked her ribs. His name is Rarax though most know him as the mad varren."
"So he's a bit like Wrex before he joined me?" asked Shepard
"No he's nothing like your former comrade. The broker only sends in Rarax when he wants an example made...a very messy example. His brand of cruelty hasn't been seen since the krogan Rebellions at their worst. Rumour is his own clan kicked him out for being too violent." said Jacob
For a krogan to be kicked out of his clan for beig violent said alot. Thanks to Wrex Shepard knew krogans weren't the viscous thugs a lot of people painted them as. That said a bar fight that was viscous enough to guarantee some jail time for any other species was just friendly bickering to them, as long as everyone could walk a week later.
"If he's that bad why hasn't some taken him out?" asked Shepard
"He's far from the only monster that calls the Terminus home, also I'm sure that working for the Shadow Broker has given him a level of protection. But make no mistake commander, he's nothing more than a rapid varren that needs to be put down. Most krogan like the fight, he likes how much pain he can give. The more the better, even the Blood Pack want nothing to do with him."
"Understood. Now back to the weapons, what would you recommend?" asked Shepard. She was probably going to go through them later but she wanted know if Jacob knew his stuff.
"How many were you thinking of carrying and what are your preferences?" aksed Jacob
"At least two, though three feels like a nice round number. I want something that can deal out a lot of damage at close and medium range and something else to take care of anything I can't get close to with a possible third gun to round things out."
"Well I read from your file you like your shotguns so lets start there." said Jacob
"You read my file?" asked Shepard raising an eyebrow
"Nothing personal, just your prefered weapons and tatics." answered Jacob "Now there are a few options, those who carry a shotgun among the security staff use a katana shotgun, I use one myself. Their nice and light with a decent magazine and cool time, their range however could do with some work however. For you though I would recommend the N7 Crusader." said Jacob pulling out a large shotgun. Human large, not krogan large.
"N7?" asked Shepard taking the gun. It was a fraction heavier than she'd like but not deal breaking.
"Guns that were designed or redesigned for or by N7's." explained Jacob "There hard to get unless your in the military and due to how effective they are any gun that has that mark is in high demand in the black market, often going for double if not more than their retale value. We only have a couple N7 weapons in stock and I have know idea how hard they were to get.
Now back to the shotgun. It's got good range, a bit more than standard for a shotgun due to good grouping. Its damage is up their as well, the only downside is a it's weight and a slow cooling time compared to the Katana however it is also sturdy, you could give a krogan a concussion with it."
"...I'll take it." said Shepard concluded after getting a feel for it "What else?"
Moving down Jacob pulls two guns out.
"Let's go with assault next, there are a couple of choices. First we keep the rifle you had before, I take it apart, add a longer barrel and a few other alterations to increase damage. Then finally add an armour percing mod. It should give you the punch you want or get you near its weight range. The other option is the Harrier, its a Cerberus design modeled after the Mattock, an old colony weapon.
A lot of people doubted that a weapon modeled after such an old weapon but the results speak for themselves. The standard modes are a three round burst and semi auto, the first is better for punching through amrour while the second is good for barriers. However, these can be switched to full auto. Its a reliable and accurate weapon with decent cool rates and does a lot more damage than the Avenger. Especially at range, the only downside to the weapon is a less-than-ideal clip size. However thanks to passive cooling if you time your shots right you can easily get an extra round or two.
There is also the option of buying another rifle, however since money is going to be a bit tight for a bit any rifle you buy isn't likely to be that much better, unless it's a lot more expensive I wouldn't recommend it. If you do decide to buy another gun though I recommend either buying a rifle from just before the switch from heat sinks to the fusion system we use now, maybe one of those Spectre-only weapons. You might be able to get one for cheap and it will be a simple matter to make the alerations to allow it to use heat clips. Or you could look at getting the N7 Valkyrie, as I said in blackmarket areas its exceedingly expensive but as you are an N7 yourelf you might be able to get it for its retail value or at a military discount. If you do, you will easily have the best rifle on board without any upgrades and still didn't cost that much more than they did."
Feeling the Harrier in her hands Shepard thought it over.
"I like the idea of the Harrier but show me what else you have first." said Shepard
In response Jacob went to a different section and pulled and some more weapons.
"Finally let me show you pistols. We have three to choose from, the first is the Predator. It used by our security and just like the assault rifle and shotgun its nothing fancy but will be easy to improve. We also have a few Carnifaxes, a heavy pistol that gives out a lot a damage and has the kick to prove it. I has a small clip size though. Unless you make any adjustments or improvements you'll only get six rounds per clip unless you give it time to cool between shots. Finally we have the N7 Eagle."
"A few of ground crew of the original Normandy had a gun with that name." informed Shepard
"That's were the original design came from. Alliance took it, and after hundreds of hours of simulations and the live testing they smoothed it out and refined it. I'm not saying the ones you used weren't good but the N7 version is even better. Its got the performance of a decent if not better than decent assault rifle. It's low profile makes it good in close quarters as you can ready and aim it quicker. There is also less for someone to grab onto if they try to disarm you. If your a biotic or engineer this gun is perfect for you as you can easily wield it with a single hand or use two hands to steady it."
"...put aside a Harrier and N7 Eagle for me." decided Shepard. That combined with the grenade launcher she picked back up after she threw it would be a more carry weight than she would like but until she picked Garrus she lacked a long-range specialist. Afterwards, she could always drop one or swap things around.
"Understood Commander, now do you mind if I set aside one of the remaining N7 for myself?" asked Jacob
"That should be fine, as long as no one else needs it for a mission." replied Shepard
"Thank you ma'am."
"Are there any more weapons that we need to go through?" asked Shepard
"Just two really, a sniper rifle Mantis and an smg Rain. The snipers nothing to write home about, unless you need to hit something you need a scope to see clearly ot hit every shot you're better of with the Harrier. The smg however is another Cerberus design, it was an attempt to create something similar to the N7 Eagle but it was only somewhat of a success. It has a similar effective range to the N7 Eagle but it falls short of a standard assault rifle. It deals less damage per round than the Avenger and is less accurate than both. It does however make for this in rate of fire and weight. The weight is low enough that you feel like you're running around without a weapon out and it has an integrated forestock to help control recoil. Because of both of these, it is a good choice for biotics and engineers. It's also a good alternative to an Eagle as long as you don't have to deal with heavy armour." said Jacob
"What about heat clips?" asked Shepard "Do we have enough to go around?"
"We do, as long as you don't throw them away you shouldn't need to by any, not any time soon at least. The majority we have are extended, suitable for assault rifles and snipers. They can fit in pistols but the end tends to stick out, bit of an eye soar but makes it easier to reload. We also have plenty of standard heat sink which fit the pistols perfectly. They can also be used in the assault rifles but they offer less shots per clip but they work, we also have a similar number of large clips, they only really work on assault rifles but we have them."
"Any custom or weapon-specific or custom heat clips?" asked Shepard
"For the most part those have gone to the wayside. While they make a difference they cost more and make logistics harder. It is easier to bring in ten standard heat clips and twenty extended ones than buying five of each individual weapon. It also makes it easier for the soldier, carrying eight heat clips that can be used for every single weapon they're carrying instead of five for one weapon and three for another. They are still made though, whether for those who wanted to get the most out of their weapon or those who many used a single weapon over a selection of them...thus dealing with the issue of needing multiple compatible clips. On board we currently have two guns that have unique heat clips, your Crusander and the smg. That foregrip I was talking about? It's also functions as a heat clip, since your hand would already be on it makes reloading quicker."
"And what if I run out of heat clips?" asked Shepard
"Both guns have a second slot for another heat clip at the back." said Jacob showing her "The heat clip not in use becomes another heat bank. Sometimes when a gun is designed to have a unique heat clip the standard clip won't work properly so they add a secondary one just in case. It won't hold as many rounds but if you are in a pinch you can just slap in an extended heat clip."
"Thanks for the info, I'm going to look around the ship a bit more before hitting the sack." said Shepard
"Have a good day ma'am." saluted Jacob
Taking the weapons with her so she could get used to replacing the heat clips on them, Shepard moved on. Making a quick stop to the communications room...that was one nice desk.
Next came the research lab it was...nice? She didn't know labs but it looked like the lab she would want if she wanted a lab. The only person in the room was a person later in years. Mid or late 40's to early 50's.
"You must be Commander Shepard." greeted the man
"And you are?" asked Shepard
"Professor Davin Athy, I'll be the one running the lab." answered the man
"What are you a professor in?" asked Shepard curiously
"This and that." answered Davin "I'm not a specialist in any given field but a generalist, that and I don't have a problem if someone else takes the lead is why I was selected."
"And what do you do here?" asked Shepard
"As I said I run this lab, my job is to research anything and everything that could make a difference or give you an edge. If it's possible gun upgrades and improvements I'll be working with Mr Jacob Taylor. By the way, if you find any weapons that are better than what you have or are equipped with unique modifications bring them in and we'll see if it's possible to recreate or reverse-engineer them. For any bio or chemical research, such as increased bone or muscle density I will be working with Dr Karin Chakwas."
"Dr Chakwas?" asked Shepard
"Yes she's on the next floor." answered Davin "I'll also work with people off-site, working on a way to deal with any Reaper or Collector tech or see if it's possible to recreate it. The Collectors seem to have sort of naturally forming armour from the reports I've seen, if we can recreate that. A sort of biologically forming armour, an armour we can literally grow rather than make, well that could make all the difference."
"Assuming it doesn't grow out of control." pointed out Shepard
"True, but imagine if you had armour that could maintain itself? That could rebuild itself with medi-gel? If what you said about the Reapers is true than we might need an armour system that will thrive in an environment that lacks the equipment to repair it."
"Just be careful nothing crazy happens...say the armour starts growing into the person wearing it." advised Shepard
"I will, unfortunate as it is Cerberus has enough horror stories without me adding to them." responded Davin
Leaving the lab Shepard headed for the elevator, she had a couple more stops to make before she retired for the night, or whatever time it was. She would have liked to see every part of the ship and everyone who crewed it before she went to bed but asside for a few moments she'd been fighting the entire time she'd been awake and there was another fight soon coming.
While the elevator wasn't fast it was still a lot quicker than one in the old Normandy. Idly Shepard wondered that if Cerberus had a bug in the commication room, did they hear any of the many times she bitched about the slow elevator?
When the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened Shepard made a bee-line for the med-bay. She had an old friend to say hello to.
Entering the med bay she caught Karin starring at a screen displaying someones siliet, seemingly going through their medical files.
Noticing the open Karin turned her chair to face her.
"It's good to see you Karin." said Shepard
"Commander Shepard as I live and breathe." greeted Chakwas with a smile "I was wondering how long it would take you to come down here. I half expected you to walk through that door with a gunshot arm. Though I have to say you don't seem that surprised to see me."
"Sorry Davin ruined the surprise." answered Shepard
"Ahh Davin." signed Chakwas "He's a nice elder gentleman that I think I'll enjoy working with very much. We had a nice chat over lunch the other day discussing the places we've seen and gone."
"Am I sensing something in the air?" asked Shepard with a smirk
"I'm an old woman Shepard, I'm not dead. It's nice to talk with someone who's travelled as much as I have and understands when I get technical. Now on to more serious matters, I've been going over what I've been sent. Your muscles have atrophied by quite a bit, considering that you've gone nearly a year without a workout they haven't atrophied nearly as much they should have. Cerberus clearly did all they could to keep you mission-ready. While building back up your muscles to your previous level is a given I'm more worried about reflexes and muscle memory. Aside from your very eventful awakening, it's been a while since you have been in combat. My worry is that when the time comes your body won't move as fast as you're used to or in a way you expected. I've designed a workout regime that should help you bring your strength and muscle density back to where it should be while getting you used to moving around again."
"Do you need anything?" asked Shepard
"Actually this lab is an improvement over the last one. More space and the latest and best equipment rather than the best for the budget that I had on the old Normandy. The only thing that it doesn't have is a lovely bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy that I had stashed away for a special occasion."
"Us beating Saren and saving the galaxy asn't enough of one?" asked Shepard dryly
"In hindsight it probably was, and hindsight is always 20/20." answered Chakwas
"I'll pick you up a bottle if I ever see one." promised Shepard
"You don't have to do that Commander, the bottles are quite expensive. Besides I can make do with the selection that we have at the on board bar." protested Chakwas
"...we have a bar?" asked Shepard immediately interested
"Yes, I suggest you check it out after you've gotten some rest." answered Chakwas
"I'll be sure to do that, talk to you later."
"Goodbye Commander." farewelled Chakwas
Leaving the med-bay she headed for the room opersite. On the original Normandy it would have been Anderson's room. She never got a hundred percent comfortable calling it hers. On the SR2 though it belonged to the XO and information officer..whatever that meant and whoever that was.
Opening the door Shepard was greeted with the sight of a woman with tanned/olive skin wearing a blue dress. Like everyone else she had checked on she was working on a console making her wonder if everyone had work they needed doing or just didn't want to look like they were slacking off. Behind the woman was a large bed that looked significantly more comfortable than the one she had on the SR1 and one wall was covered in screen.
"Hello Commander, can I help you with something?" asked the woman looking up breifly before continuing whatever she was working on.
"An introduction would be nice, as you are apparently my XO." said Shepard, stressing the my.
"Very well, you can call me Maya Brooks. I'll be the one incharge of the ship when you're not around." answered the woman
"Just like that? I would have thought since I'm the one who's supposed to be in charge I would get to pick the second in charge." argued Shepard
"And you can, but the vast majority of the crew are Cerberus. They would certainly listen to you if you told them to do something but they might not take orders as well from anyone else. My job is to keep the Normandy SR2 running and safe while your off saving the galaxy. You want me to pick up groceries while your off saving an asari in destress or knocking out a krogan I'll make sure it happens, I'll also write reports to our new boss, let her know if there are any potential problems or if we need some."
"I doubt grocery shopping and writing reports are the only reason you're here." said Shepard
"It's not, I'm also the information officer. There's a lot of people onboard that will be searching for anything that might impact the mission and I'm the one at the head, another reason why I should be the XO. I'm an experience Cerberus Operative who deals in infiltration and espionage.
My specialty throwing distractions at my target to keep them occupied while achieve my real goal. Say making them think I'm after their bank account when I'm really after their list of clients, some of the list of potential crew members have a lot of enemies. I'll be distracting them as much as possible, removing any leads that will have them looking our way and also keeping an eye out for potential ambushes or plans to corner us.
The person we're heading for now, Archangel? He's got three of the biggest mercenary gangs after him, yes he's an asset but anytime we're near a location where they operate they could try and cause problems. I'll try and keep them from finding out he's there for as long as possible and make sure they have bigger concerns if they do." said Maya Brooks
"Can't say EDI keep an eye on everything. She's an AI, she could read through ever report in moments and find connections that no one else would notice." said Shepard
"That might be true but EDI is still an AI. We don't yet have a firm grasp on it's capabilities. It is very likely able to think faster and process data faster than me. However it might only be able see a few steps ahead or plan linearly instead of eight with multiple possibilities. No matter how well a plan is made, if it's predictable it won't work. EDI might be impressive but the Reapers are also AI and they have been active for far longer. Hopefully EDI will spot any mistakes I make while I cover any gaps in their programming. "
"I see, two heads each covering the flaws of the other." said Shepard
"Exactly Commander, I have to say its a relief to be working with you."
"That's an odd choice of words. Most said they're glad to be working with me ." said Shepard
"Most aren't me. You know our new boss?" asked Maya
"Miranda? What about her?" asked Shepard curiously
"You wouldn't know this but on a number of occasions I made attempts at her job. Taking her place as one of the few that get near to The Illusive Man, our previous boss. In most businesses when someone you tried to replace becomes your boss it doesn't end well. In the case of Cerberus it's more final that trying to find another job. Thankfully it seems that thats not going to happen to me. I wouldn't have remained assigned to the Normandy if it was."
"What do you think of Miranda taking over things?" asked Shepard
"She's got a hard road ahead of her. The Illusive Man founded Cerberus and no one know knew his real name. I still don't. Nearly everyone however knows Miranda's, she's not an unknown quantity watching from the shadows, she's a known one and that weakens her position." answered Maya
"That will be all." finished Shepard leaving the room
However, before she went to be she first needed to get something to eat.
Assuming that the food stock was in the same location it was on the SR1 Shepard made a quick left and headed towards a well built and slightly...mediumly balding man.
Commander Shepard! Hero of the Citadel! You certainly did humanity proud that day. I'm Mess Sergeant Rupert Gardner. How can I help?"
"I need something to eat." answered Shepard
"No problem, I'll get something whipped up for you in no time, something that has the meat and greens every soldier needs." said Rupert
"You know those are supposed to be two separate things right?" called out a voice from behind her
"Oh shut your pie hole Hawthorne before I shut it for you!"
As Rupert got to work Shepard descided to ask him some questions.
"So your the one that will be cooking our meals?" asked Shepard
"That and more. I'm a combination of cook, janitor, IT support and electrician. If it wasn't for EDI helping out my days would be a lot more busy." said Rupert
"You don't have a problem working with an AI?" asked Shepard
"If they're like her? Not at all, she seems like a hard working girl. I've got a nephew who could do well to have even a tenth of her work ethic."
"Do you need anything?" asked Shepard
"Some better ingredients would be nice. I'm a good cook but I'm no miracle worker." said Rupert
"I wouldn't even say you were that!" called out the same voice as before
"Hawthorne I swear one more word from you and my foot is going so far up your ass I'll be able use you to mop the floor!" shouted Rupert before quieting down "Anyway better ingredients would be nice but don't go spending everything you have for fresh potatoes, I can make do with what I have. Anyway here's your meal."
Sitting down Shepard was quick to finish the meal. While it was far from the worst thing she had ever eaten...it might be a good idea to give more thought in getting better ingredients.
Heading back the elevator she selected her quarters. When she got there she didn't bother inspecting them but just stripped of her armour and dumped them near the desk. She then spent ten minutes on each gun practising venting and swapping heat clips. The secondary heat clip for the Crusader was a bit awkward but she'd manage
With that done she started on those exercises that Chakwas had given her to do and soon those too were finished.
"EDI?" asked Shepard
"Yes Commander?" answered EDI popping up nearby
"I'm going to get some rest, if I'm not up an hour before me make it to Omega I want you to wake me up." ordered Shepard
"Understood Commander. "
"I also want Jacob and Maya to meet me in the communication room ten minutes later." added Shepard
Leaning back, Shepard was asleep almost the second her head touched the pillow.