Chapter 15
"I'm not amused..." Executor Pallin said as he stood before a restrained Harry and Wrex, sitting on a bench at c-sec headquarters.
"I am. Did you see those guys? I think that one dude crapped his pants." Harry said, Wrex laughed.
"Now is not the time for jokes, Potter." Pallin said, scowling down at him. Harry sighed, looking bored.
"The Shadow broker put out a valid, legal contract. You are aware of his agreement with the council. The contract was executed with a minimal loss of public property, which I've already agreed to pay for. The only life lost was the criminal you apparently failed to investigate even though he was sitting right under your nose... or whatever it is Turians have. Issue the fine, or contact my lawyer. Consider my companion also under said representation." Harry said, gesturing with a nod towards Wrex. Pallin spat and turned, storming out of the room.
"You're right, this is so much more amusing than fighting our way out would have been." Wrex said with a laugh.
"Yeah it is." Harry said, and with a bit of magic his and Wrex's handcuffs were released. Wrex laughed even harder.
"So what you got going on next, if you don't mind my asking?" Harry asked. Wrex shrugged.
"Payment's already in my account, minus your credit. I have a few projects that I'm working on, the next being retrieving my ancestor's armor, it was taken by some Turian shitheel during the rebellions. After that, and a few more broker contracts I'll have what I need to knock my brother off that throne of his and start trying to pull my people's heads out of their asses." Wrex said.
"Any leads on the armor?" Harry asked. Wrex nodded.
"I heard some pirates might have it somewhere in the Argus Rho cluster. This job ought to pay for a transport out there." Wrex said.
"Argus Rho, eh? Hmm... There's a planet out there in the Phoenix system that supposedly has a rich Lithium deposit, which one of my companies could use for its manufacturing processes... Tell you what. After this Saren business is taken care of, if you haven't found transport before then hit me up and I'll take you out there." Harry said. Wrex pondered.
"I'll do you one better. I heard you've got two Asari, a Quarian and a Turian on your crew. No Krogan representation yet. Let me tag along, bringing down Saren might open up some more opportunities with the Shadow Broker." Wrex said.
"I'll ask Jane, er Commander Shepard." Harry said, smiling. The door opened and Executor Pallin walked in beside a Volus woman in a very nicely decorated environmental suit.
"You were restrained..." Pallin said.
"And now we're not!" Harry said, flipping Pallin off with both hands.
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"Uh, Commander? Admira- Harry just got arrested." Ashley said, reading a notification that appeared on her omnitool.
"Oh?" Shepard asked, seemingly uninterested.
"Yes... C-sec claims he and a Krogan killed a crime boss in Chora's Den." Ashley said, looking worried.
"They kill anyone else?" Shepard asked as she pulled her pistol out of its locker and examined it. Ashley scrolled down the report.
"No, it seems they incapacitated all of the hired guards, the rest of the club workers and customers all made it out unscathed." Ashley said.
"Cool." Shepard said, breaking down her Carnifex to service its electronics.
"This is serious, Commander!" Ashley said
"Not really. I'm guessing the 'crime boss' was Fist, right? Guy's got a rap sheet longer than a dreadnought. Harry would have reached out if he was in any real trouble." Shepard said.
"If you say so." Ashley said, still looking concerned.
"When's the Asari rep coming to talk to Shiala again?" Shepard asked.
"About twenty minutes." Ashley said.
"Good. I'll go get her. Go take a walk around and explore the citadel, Ash. We might not be back here for a while." Shepard said, reassembling the gun and putting it into the locker again.
"Understood, Skipper." Ashley said, walking off. She turned a corner and made her way to her locker, and gasped when she saw what was sitting in front of it. An armor case with the Armax Arsenal logo embossed on the front was waiting for her with a note stuck to it, which had been addressed to her.
Ash, that worthless shit they issued you at Eden Prime wouldn't keep you safe from a paper cut. This Predator VII medium armor is far better, and more suited to your fighting style. I might have also upgraded the shield capacitors. And added auto-sizing and warming/cooling charms. And a few other goodies. Enjoy!
-Harry
Ash gaped at it. The Predator VII was not the best armor on the market, that went to the Colossus X, but it was heavy less maneuverable, more suited towards someone using heavy weapons. She tended to never stop moving on the battlefield, and relied on agility and speed more than anything, and the predator line of armor was far better suited to that. She smiled brightly as she unpacked the armor and placed it into her locker, she'd try it out when she got back. For now she had a citadel to explore.
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Shepard looked herself over in the mirror. Her uniform was as always in perfect condition, and had been pressed that morning. She smirked as she looked at the N7 patch Harry had insisted she add her Alliance issued garments. She'd resisted at first, worrying that it would come off as bragging, however on more than one occasion she was able to avoid a physical confrontation when her would-be assailant recognized it. The chime on her door went off and she nodded at her reflection, a habit she had gotten into, it was a simple way of self-reassurance.
"Come in!" She said. The door opened, and Shiala still in her alliance uniform entered, along with a surprisingly simply dressed, short Asari matriarch whose skin tone was more purple than the blue she'd come to associate with most of the species.
"I'm Commander Jane Shepard, Alliance Navy and commanding officer of the Normandy." Shepard said. The matriarch smiled politely and offered her hand, which Shepard took and shook.
"I am Narula, representative of the Conclave of Matriarchs on Thessia." Narula said. Shepard's eyes widened.
"Wow, I was under the assumption I'd be meeting with a clerk or secretary." Shepard said. Narula laughed.
"Normally you would, however you've done me a great service and I wished to thank you in person." Narula said.
"What did I do?" Shepard asked, genuinely confused. Narula smiled and gestured at Shiala.
"You saved my daughter's life." She said. Realization dawned and Shepard grinned.
"It was our pleasure, she has been a wonderful addition to the crew." Shepard said. Shiala blushed but said nothing.
"Of that I have no doubt. My Shiala has always excelled at what she pursued." Narula said.
"Mother, please..." Shiala said, clearly uncomfortable with the praise.
"Of course dear. I have the paperwork here, in both Asari and English, that is your language, yes?" Narula asked. Shepard nodded.
"Yes ma'am." Shepard said, looking down at the paperwork. Narula was surprised when she saw Shepard's eyes bouncing back and forth between both sets.
"You read Asari script?" Narula asked. Shiala looked at her in shock.
"I'm learning. I definitely need the English one though. The written language is harder to pick up than the spoken." Shepard said, her eyes still darting back and forth. After a moment, she handed both to Shiala.
"Everything look good to you?" Shepard asked. Shiala nodded.
"I read through it on the way." Shiala said, passing them back. Shepard nodded and signed both, each in the appropriate language.
"Remarkable. How long have you been studying?" Narula asked.
"About ten months." Shepard said, grinning.
"Would you mind terribly demonstrating? I'll turn my translator off." Narula asked.
"You don't have to." Shiala said but Shepard halted her
"No, it's fine, I rarely get to practice with an actual Asari. I think Avina might be just trying to butter me up." She said with a grin. Narula punched in a command to her omni-tool and nodded at Shepard. Shiala did the same.
"Savasha truun all delao... Shiala feera nun talav Normandy. Esala all denuura couvera." Shepard said, her tone rising and lowering in patterns that would seem strange to a Human. Shiala gaped at her, but Narula smiled and clapped excitedly before re-engaging her translator.
"That is wonderful! Our language sounds beautiful with a Human accent." Narula said. Shepard blushed and smiled.
"It's a work in progress. Once I've mastered it I'm debating between learning Volus or Turian. Obviously with Turian I'll only be able to speak about a third of their words, I don't have the vocal structures for most of it, but the writing looks interesting." Shepard said.
"Are you studying to be a linguist?" Shiala asked. Shepard shook her head.
"No it's something Harry instilled in me. You should always be trying to learn something new. Doesn't matter what. Our minds grow weak if we're not constantly challenging them. Also it keeps me busy." Shepard said, standing.
"Come, let me give you a tour of the Normandy... If you have the time." Shepard said.
"That would be lovely!" Narula said. She and Shiala stood and they made their way out into the corridor. As Narula was not under contract with the Alliance, engineering was off limits but Shepard happily showed off the rest of the ship, introducing her to the crew. Narula was pleased to see Tali and Garrus milling about. It was extremely rare to see a warship crewed by more than one species. The last time an Asari warship had a non-asari crew member was during the Krogan rebellions, when many ships marine compliments and weapons officers were the newly uplifted Turians. The only exception nowadays tended to be the Citadel Defense fleet.
The tour ended in the mess hall, where Gardner delighted Narula by offering to make her favorite stew. While they were waiting , they kept discussion light, Shepard didn't want to upset Shiala by bringing up her captivity with the Thorian.
"I'll have clothes and armor delivered before the Normandy leaves, dear." Narula said.
"If it's all the same, I'd prefer to order more of these alliance uniforms." Shiala said timidly.
"They do look flattering on you. Would that be a problem, Commander?" Narula asked. Shepard shook her head.
"Not at all. She wears the exact same size as our Gunnery Chief Williams, I'll requisition them as soon as I can." Shepard said.
"I'll cover the costs." Narula said.
"I can pay for it, mother." Shiala said, rolling her eyes.
"Neither of you will pay for it. Shiala is with those signed an official member of the Normandy crew, we provide food, clothing, weapons and armor. We can even requisition commando armor from the Asari consulate." Shepard said, pointing at the documents in Narula's hand.
"That would be best, I haven't had time to train with Alliance issued armor." Shiala said. Teri attention was caught by the sound of thundering footsteps as a heavily scarred Krogan entered the room followed by Harry who was grinning like an idiot.
"I owe Kaidan an apology later. I almost owed him a new pair of pants." Harry said.
"I think hanging out with you is definitely going to be worth it." Wrex said. They both stopped near Shepard's table.
"Are you recruiting more people without my knowledge again, Harry?" Shepard asked with a grin. Harry shrugged
"Not my fault you don't' read your email. Allow me to make introductions. Commander Shepard, this is Urdnot Wrex. He does contract work for the Shadow Broker and has a significant amount of information regarding our target, he's also more than capable in a ground fight." Harry said.
"Wrex, this is Commander Shepard, she is in charge here. With her is the lovely Shiala, an Asari Commando, and I'm afraid I have not been introduced to her companion." Harry gestured at Narula.
"I'm Narula, representative of the Matriarch Conclave on Thessia." Narula said, bowing her head slightly to Wrex. She was surprised to see him reciprocate the gesture.
"Urdnot Wrex, it's a pleasure to meet you- all" He said.
"Glad to have you aboard, Wrex. Harry can you get him set up? I don't think the sleeper pods can accommodate him." Shepard said. Harry nodded.
"I'll conjure something up in the cargo bay." Harry said.
"Sounds good to me." Wrex said, before following Harry to the elevators.
"Is that the infamous Harry Potter?" Narula asked, intrigued. Shepard nodded.
"In the flesh." Shepard said with a grin.
"He's smaller than I'd expected." Narula said. Shepard laughed so hard she snorted.