Awakening

Chapter Four

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Shepard is stolen out from under Cerberus's nose before they can wake her. The warring factions who still want her body lead her right to Omega… and Garrus. Shepard/Garrus.

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Disclaimer: This author in no way profits from the writing of this story. All characters, dialogue, or other referenced material from the Mass Effect trilogy belong to Bioware.

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To Miranda, this second chance was everything.

It took way too long to get this op up and running, but she was determined to make it successful. Cerberus had been the victim of severe cyberattacks for the past several weeks. Someone, or more likely, a large organization, had targeted them. They were having trouble with their files and systems, their banking and payroll, and even with new recruits dropping off the map before they could be secured at a Cerberus base.

The Illusive Man assured Miranda that the situation was being taken care of and that she should focus on her own mission, that of finding Commander Shepard. That brush off irritated her, but she was focused. She was in control. And she wouldn't make the mistake of trusting again.

Even though her team was made of lifelong Cerberus employees, she ensured that they would never find out the reason they were delving so deeply into Blue Suns shipments and activity.

The other team of hackers, looking into the Collectors, would never know about the first team. Though they worked on the same space station, it was unlikely they would cross paths. Technically they didn't even work in the same division, despite their departments being nearly identical in purpose and skills. Fortunately, the Illusive Man saw the wisdom of her methods.

Miranda would keep this locked down. She would get Shepard back and keep her safe.

It had been a few days, the Illusive Man would be expecting results soon. Miranda called the Blue Suns team lead through the intercom. "Anything good today?" she asked. It was nearly the end of the work day, she'd been hoping to have something.

"There's been some unusual activity on Omega," he said. "Hard to say what's relevant when we don't have all the information, ma'am."

"Putting together the information is my job," Miranda responded coldly. "Forward the information you have on recent Omega shipments and activity. I will do the rest."

A call into her Collector team produced similar results—unusual activity on Omega.

She smiled at her screen as their reports were delivered. Now they were getting somewhere.

"Delete your copy and delete the originals from wherever you found this information," Miranda ordered the Collector team. She provided the same instructions to the Blue Suns team.

Her own copies would be saved on a device she would disconnect from the extranet once the download was complete. Some might call Miranda paranoid, but she considered these to only be reasonable precautions. She'd been betrayed before. She would not allow such a thing to happen again, either from the inside or out.

She had a starting place now. It seemed that the Blue Suns and Collectors both believed Commander Shepard to be somewhere on Omega.

She sighed, and made a note that the first two hacking teams should be released to other projects. They were going to need a third team of hackers, one with no connection to the previous teams. This one would be searching for something different—any sight or hearsay of a woman of Shepard's description on Omega. Possibly disabled, certainly scarred. It was unlikely that she was still crated after so many weeks had passed.

…

Shepard was alone on Omega for the first time in a while when she went to visit Mordin's clinic.

She took her time visiting the shops on the way, at least until her knees started to ache and lock up, and she remembered her purpose after that. She regretted her detour when she arrived at Mordin's limping, but the salarian didn't comment.

"Ah, yes, Commander!" he said, sporting a wide salarian grin.

"Elizabeth, remember?" she replied quickly. "Or Liz."

He waved her off. "No effects from poison, I see? Excellent experiment. Never seen cybernetics like yours!"

"My legs, doctor?" she reminded him, impatient.

"Right, yes!" Mordin motioned for Shepard to climb onto the table. "Must combat cybernetic rejection. Dampen immune response."

"Will I get sick if you dampen my immune system?" Shepard asked, concerned.

"No," said Mordin. "Targeted attack, using samples from last visit." He pulled out a syringe. "Shot in each leg. Will hurt."

Shepard laid back and waited, unconcerned with the pain. It couldn't be worse than being shot or spaced. A burning sensation spread through her legs as Mordin applied the injections, but it wasn't any more than she could handle.

After Mordin disposed of the syringe, he turned to her. "Checkup, three days. Improvement will take time. Go now."

Shepard blinked at the abrupt dismissal, but got up to go, hoping beyond hope that this would be the solution she needed. She wanted to go out in the field with Garrus. She wanted to feel like herself again.

…

"How are your legs?" Garrus asked, running a taloned hand along one of them. He could hardly believe how soft and smooth her skin was, now that he had permission to touch it.

"Getting a little better," Shepard said, smiling. "I've been itching to go out in the field with you, but Mordin says it will take time." He'd said that a full recovery might not be possible, but at this point she was happy to see any improvement at all.

"I had a thought about that," he said. "Have you ever used a tactical cloak?" He was almost bursting with pride at this solution, but tried not to seem too eager in case she wasn't a fan of the idea.

When Shepard shook her head, he continued. "Monteague uses one. He can essentially disappear at will on the battlefield. He uses it to sneak up on enemies, but I was thinking you could use it to escape a sticky situation if your legs became an issue." She was staring at him almost blankly, so he rushed to continue. "You're in a position now that I feel comfortable putting you in a sniper's nest for some missions. And if you have the cloak, you can take care of yourself in an emergency, right?"

Before he could react, Shepard pounced on him with a kiss. "You are brilliant," she said. "And I love the shit out of you."

Garrus blinked at the admission but was immediately swept up in the sensations Shepard was causing with her lips all over his face and sensitive neck. His subvocals sang out in surprised pleasure, and his hand slipped up her leg to grasp her hip under her loose shorts.

Her little moan almost drove him to distraction, and he felt his plates loosening already. It was fast, but he'd been dreaming of her body for so long now that it felt like he couldn't be inside her soon enough.

He fumbled around for the hem of her shirt, and she helped him lift it over her head. Her lips captured his mouth and he felt her feeling around the edges of his tunic. She pulled away in frustration.

"How the hell do you get turian clothes off?" she growled, and he laughed in response before leading her fingers to the hidden zippers. "Human clothes are vastly superior," she insisted before placing kisses along his now-bare cowl. She had placed herself partially above him now, knees on either side of his bare waist. Her skin brushed against him as she moved, and he knew she had no idea what she was doing to him.

In a move, Garrus flipped her on her back and took control, using his long, dexterous tongue to rasp her clavicle, her bare breasts, and down to her own waist. He knew it wasn't a human erogenous zone–he'd done his share of extranet research since Shepard came back–but he couldn't help admiring the way her waist nipped in above her shorts.

She moaned at his tongue on her breasts, and when he reached her waist, she started pushing at her shorts. "I want you." Nothing more need be said when their desires were in such perfect alignment.

Every stitch of clothing was removed until they were bare to one another in perfect trust. Garrus marveled at how different he felt about her body now than he had when he'd opened the crate to see her alive. Then he'd cared little for her nudity except for any embarrassment it caused her. Now seeing her bare meant Garrus returned his eyes to her face, he saw her hungrily devouring his body in a way that made him want to both blush and preen.

He returned to his ministrations, using his tongue and fingers along her body to find the places that made her squirm and moan. She returned the favor, scratching along the seams of his plates, inside his cowl, down to his waist. And then she put those human lips around his cock and he saw stars.

He came embarrassingly fast then, and there was no helping it. He'd never felt anything like it before. He knew he needed to return the favor, so when he was recovered, he rolled her over and delved into her with his tongue. He feared that the roughness would be a detriment, but if anything, Shepard begged for more and more until she was all but screaming.

She came hard, nails digging into his plates, and he collapsed down beside her. As they lay there panting, Garrus surveyed her body and felt his cock throb. He nuzzled her neck. "If you give me ten minutes or so to recover," he said, "I'd like nothing more than to be inside you."

Shepard laughed, a low warm sound. "You read my mind."

Until then, he was happy just to touch. He nipped, licked, and nuzzled until he found himself rising to the occasion once more.

…

Shepard's white armor seemed to glow under the dim light of the armory as Monteague hovered over her with a few last minute bits of advice.

"You've got the hang of the tac cloak," Monteague said seriously. "Do not be afraid to use it. There's a long cooldown, sure, but I don't want to see you get cornered because you thought you didn't need to burn it yet."

Shepard rolled her eyes. "Yes, dad."

He punched her in the armored shoulder. "For the last time, I'm not old enough to be your dad."

"Funny," she smirked. "You sound so much like him!"

"Stuff it kid. Now I think some of the others have some goodies for you, I'll let them say their piece."

Sensat approached with his hands full. He dropped three grenades into her hands. "Flash bangs. In case you need a distraction."

She smiled. "Thanks Sensat, that's thoughtful."

Weaver was next to him holding out something with a lot of exposed wires.

"I'm really not that high tech, Weaver," she said hesitantly, hands raised to avoid whatever that thing was.

Weaver shook her head, wispy brown hair flying with the movement. "You don't need to be. Just attach the loose ends to any standard electronic lock and it will get you through. I made the ends red so you can't miss them."

Shepard took a look and saw three bright red connectors. "Thanks. How long does it take to work?"

Weaver shrugged. "Depends on the complexity of the lock."

Sidonis was the last to approach, waiting for the others to clear out. "I, uh… don't have anything fancy," he said awkwardly. "Just thought I'd get you something for your first mission. It's always good to have an extra knife." He held out a small knife that would be easy to conceal in a gauntlet or boot.

"Thanks," she said, giving him a slap on the back. "Good luck out there today."

"Good luck to all of us," he replied before moving on.

Melanis, leaning against a wall nearby, held her hands up as Shepard looked to her. "I've got nothing." They both laughed. "Actually, I do have something. It's advice."

Shepard shrugged. "Lay it on me." She was both amused and touched by the care Garrus's team had expressed for her on her first Archangel mission. It hadn't been that long, at least in her memory, since she'd been a decorated soldier who everyone else looked to for advice and help. But she'd learned not to discount help from unusual places.

Melanis pushed herself off the wall. "Don't go out there today with anything to prove. To us, to Garrus, or to yourself. Your number one job is to get yourself home safe. Number two to get your team out safe. Three is completing the mission. Don't show off and don't get cocky. Just make sure you come home."

Melanis, as usual, was perceptive. Maybe Shepard did feel like she had something to prove. She was Commander Shepard. Or at least she used to be. And therein lay the problem.

She nodded slowly, meeting the turian's gaze. "That's good advice."

Melanis smirked. "That's just one of the many thing's I'm excellent at. You'll see another one on today's mission. And the third, well, only if you're willing to give up one turian's bed for another."

The pair laughed again, and Shepard smacked Melanis on the shoulder. "Get out of here, you menace. Don't know what all your bar conquests see in you!"

…

It was strange to be above the battlefield rather than in the middle of it, but Shepard was getting used to the idea. This mission in particular she was pretty far from the action, but she did have to admit she could see a lot from this vantage point.

And as much as she'd had misgivings about her ability to follow orders after years in command, she found Garrus as a leader to be extremely attractive. She reveled in the feeling and had plans to act on it once they were back home.

"Ghost, are you in position?" Garrus's voice rang through her comm.

"Affirmative," she replied, from her sniper's perch. "Sights trained on the back door." Omega was such a rabbit's warren of passages that she may as well have been miles from the nearest teammate. If she was caught, she was alone. But on the other hand, her distant position made it easier to decry any relation to Archangel if necessary.

Her comm buzzed to life again. "Anyone goes in or out, let me know. I'll let you know when to act. Archangel out."

Shepard listened to the comm chatter as the infiltrators did their job. She could see the power go out in the warehouse. Now it was showtime for those inside.

She smiled at the sounds of her teammates and friends as they cheered their successes. She grimaced hearing of Krul's injuries, though the krogan brushed them off.

She saw motion at the back door and straightened. "Two escapees, vorcha. May I?"

"Take them out, Ghost." She did so with precision. Garrus would be pleased with her new proficiency with the rifle.

But soon, there were more. "Second floor window," she called into her comm. "Big breakout rappelling down to the ground level. There's too many for me to get everyone."

She didn't wait for orders this time and started firing. Garrus confirmed acknowledgement and promised reinforcements. But those didn't come quite soon enough.

"I've been spotted. Have to leave my perch," she reported, hitting her cloak a moment later. Her perch wasn't directly accessible from the warehouse—she was a couple bridges away—but certainly the Blood Pack was more familiar with the paths around their warehouses than she was.

She used the time under the cloak to get as far away as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, that sent her right into the path of a few stray gang members. It was the perfect opportunity to use one of her flash bangs. For short-range, her pistol would do the job. She was able to take out the two vorcha with ease, but had no choice but to run from the krogan.

Things were getting dicey. Her cloak was still on cooldown. She was out her biotic abilities without an amp. And she could hardly run faster than a krogan. Fortunately, she saw a familiar face appear behind the krogan. Vortash had barely spoken to her, or really spoken much in her presence at all. But he was a reliable soldier, and his shotgun in the krogan's back made him howl with rage and turn towards the attack.

Shepard took her chance, not to run away, but to line up a shot. With the krogan's attention drawn away, she was able to perfect her aim. It was a headshot Garrus would be proud of. Vortash sent another volley through the krogan's visor for good measure.

He crooked his head. "Come on, Ghost. Maybe the others have left something for us." She followed him back towards the warehouse.

…

Liara threw a datapad at the door hard enough that her assistant peeked in. "Everything okay?" the young woman asked. Liara waved her away.

No, everything was not okay. She'd traced Shepard to the Blue Suns but couldn't find anything suggestive of what they'd done with her. So much was wiped, and she knew who to blame.

She would have to redouble her efforts attacking Cerberus. They were the only ones other than here who would be tracking Shepard. They must have the intel she needed, and if she couldn't get it from the source, she would get it from them. She'd search their files first. Then more cyberwarfare. They wouldn't know what hit them.

…

"Well?" Garrus asked, naked in bed. "How was your first Archangel mission?"

Shepard shrugged a bare shoulder. "Not too different from any other mission, I suppose. Except for one thing."

"And what's that?" Garrus said, his plates vibrating against her with his subvocals.

She smirked at him. "I've never wanted to fuck my commanding officer before."

"Insubordination," Garrus growled, grinning, and pulled her atop him.

…