W.i.t.G
Hi guys!
This is my first attempt at writing Fanfiction, so if you could review the hell out of this, that'd be great!
I just want to say thank you to TheSneakyFox as her stories were some of the first I have ever read on this site, and were a great source of inspiration. Also special thanks goes to Calinstel for his ideas and concepts on Quarians and their culture, along with 1054SS325MP for his additional help and advice.
Just to note: my Shepard will have a few twists and turns in regards to his character. I wanted to initially have a story mainly focusing on character development, but I've grown to love writing combat scenes. So expect quite a few of those!
That's enough of me blabbering on... Without further ado, let's begin the story!
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
'Oh for God's sake. Five more minutes Lucy...'
With an almighty thud, Shepard lurched forward into the sleeper pod cover.
Quickly bolting upright to flinch away from the cold, metallic contact that had just invaded every nerve in his body, Shepard fumbled around for the holo-alarm clock he had set in the sleeper pod. After an extremely lengthy amount of time and a large amount of curse words; enough to have shocked a nun into cardiac arrest, Shepard eventually located the source of his annoyance.
'Stupid piece of shit! I was having the best amount of sleep I've had for a long time. No nightmares; no Akuze; no Elysium; no dead partners...
After dragging himself from his inner rant, Shepard took stock of his surroundings; as he had always done - as he was always going to do.
'Well, at least the sleeper pod is big enough for my bulk. And the Normandy's not that bad... Better than the rest of my assignments. Although, I still have no idea why I'm XO; CO of the marine detachment, sure, but someone must have screwed up in the allocation of roles.'
The commander's mind went blank for just a moment. The only sound that could be heard was Shepard's light breathing.
Out of nowhere in particular, a sudden thought struck the man, relieving his mind of its silence:
'I should really get up and check the ship. We should be finished with this stupid "shakedown" run soon, and I'd like to be one of the first ones to know what we're actually doing. In that case, I better get my arse out of this pod and into my armour. After all, it's the only thing that fits...'
And that, was no exaggeration.
Shepard was a hulking beast of a man. When he stood tall, he stood at around 6'11; a respectable height. His width, however, was one of the most intimidating parts of his body. The only thing more frightening to look at, were his cold, unnerving hazel eyes.
His general muscle mass was larger than that of any other human he could remember serving with in recent memory.
He was a living, breathing tank on legs.
Like a smaller Elcor.
And when clad in his Heavy Onyx armour, and equipped with his usual assortment of weapons and ammunition, even a Krogan would think twice.
But that wasn't the extent of his skill; throwing a biotic amp into the mix, and skills that make you as silent as the wind, like a true infiltrator, no wonder the Alliance sent you into the pan, day in and day out.
'Maybe that's why the brass were keen to approve the request and put me on this ship then?'
He couldn't however, forget to acknowledge the recommendation that his new captain and long time friend, David Edward Anderson, must have given him.
'Is it classed as favouritism? I should ask him about it.'
So, to this extent and to come back to Shepard's current problem, none of the traditional alliance marine uniforms that were on the ship, fit his body.
He had only been on the Normandy for a couple of days, but the supplies were not generally made for a man of that size. He'd managed to get by just wearing his armour, but even that had started to stink to the high heavens after the amount of drills and exercise he'd done.
Captain Anderson, however, had said that the next time they were on the Citadel for shore leave, proper supplies would be acquired.
At least there was some light at the end of the tunnel.
With a sudden glance outside of his pod, Shepard's face burst into a grin:
'Today's challenge, get down to the armoury and put on my armour as fast as possible without being caught by the engineers coming off of second shift... Again.'
Stepping out of his sleeper pod once his plan had been established, and one of his sidearms had been comfortably tucked into the back of his shorts, Shepard set off. The coast seemed clear, and so the commander made a mad dash for the elevator, stopping only to collect a shirt from his locker, to wear with his shorts, as an under layer once in his armour.
Once in the elevator, the commander breathed a long sigh of relief, and waited for the maddeningly slow elevator to reach its destination.
The cargo bay was clear.
The armoury looked clear.
'Should be smooth sailing now...'
Silently creeping across the cold metallic bulkhead, which was the floor of the Normandy, Shepard reached out towards the locker that contained his armour, when a sudden crashing sound startled the commander out of his tunnel-vision.
With instincts that were finely honed, and fuelled by many years of experience, Shepard rolled towards the crates at the side of the lockers; his eyes darting around for the offending noise's source.
"For fucks sake! Why are these crates so goddamned heavy?!"
Standing above a fallen crate of - now leaking - medi-gel, was his old friend, Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko.
He had known Kaidan from previous service, roughly three years ago, when Kaidan was attached to Shepard's squad as an additional biotic marine.
The squad was sent all over the Attitcan Traverse, solidifying the hold the Alliance had out there with its colonies, and destroying established pirate bases. It was on these missions, that Kaidan, and ultimately the rest of the Alliance learnt why Shepard had earned the moniker of the 'Butcher of Torfan' - in hushed whispers though, the grunts preferred to call him 'The Maniac'.
After all he'd been through, he was simply a loaded gun waiting to go off on the unfortunate soul in front of it.
With a grunt, Shepard exited his hidden position before silently making his way over to the lieutenant. Before any words were shared, the human juggernaut leant down and picked the fallen crate up with one arm; his three-lined scar that traced over his left eye to the left uppermost portion of his mouth, twisted with the grimace on his face as he realised that the crate was - in fact - pretty damn heavy.
Kaidan could only chuckle at the sight as the large N7 placed the fallen crate back onto its previous position; his next words laced with humour: "I could have used my biotics to do that, you know. No need to pull a muscle on my account."
"Wouldn't be the first time I had to pick up after you, Lieutenant."
Kaidan couldn't help shaking his head as he pulled a strap across the crate; making sure it stayed still this time. Muttering under his breath, Kaidan's words held the same undertone of humour, "You're such a jackass..."
"You're such a jackass-?"
"Jackass, sir."
"Copy that."
Both humans stood for a moment, before sharing another laugh. The larger human slapped his friend on the shoulder, nearly causing the smaller biotic to fly into the secured crate.
As a comfortable silence threatened to fall across the cargo bay, the lieutenant cleared his throat: "You, uh, should probably put some clothes on Commander. I heard the Captain was asking around after you, earlier. That Spectre was too, weirdly enough."
Staring down at his half naked form, the commander couldn't help the blush that raced across his cheeks. Wordlessly moving across to his locker, the large human started to pull his armour pieces out, one by one. Unconsciously lifting his pauldron to his nose, he was pleased to find the armour cleaning solution had worked pretty much flawlessly, overnight.
With another grunt, the large titan started to get dressed; Kaidan having disappeared into the engineering department when no further conversation was forthcoming.
After he affixed his sidearm into its respective holster, and was fully suited, Lieutenant Alenko gave an appraising whistle. A short twirl around was Kaidan's reward as Shepard's face broke out in a good-natured grin.
"Did you get much sleep, Kaidan?"
A slight grimace darkened the marine lieutenant's features as he unconsciously rubbed his neck: "No, sir. I had another migraine again. What about you?"
The N7 grunted out his response as he began affixing his usual loadout of weapons to his back; on the magnetic strips of his armour; "So-so. Could have done with sleeping longer, but you know it goes. Your L2 playing up again?"
Alenko nodded his head in response before bringing his omni-tool up; his eyes glancing over another report he had to file, "I think you're the only other person on this ship that understands the joys..."
Before Shepard could respond, the lieutenant approached; his tone lowering to a conspiratorial whisper, "What do you think's going on, Commander? Do you think the Council wanted to get an inside look into how we operate - sending a Spectre to evaluate us?"
Contemplating his words, the commander merely shrugged his broad shoulders, "I don't know Kaidan. Something doesn't seem right, that's for sure. I can't even go for a piss without bumping into Nihlus half the time. And I'm starting to think the Captain's not being fully upfront with me. When I asked what his orders were concerning the marines exercise training regimens - all I got back was to 'have them ready for anything'. I tried to press him further and just got shut down straight away."
At this, Kaidan once again nodded his head, chuckling before responding; "Well, rather you than me sir. I'm more than happy dropping crates of medi-gel on my feet and dealing with the logistical aspects of jumpy marines getting bored on humanity's most advanced warship." With a quick salute, the lieutenant excused himself and went about his duties once more; starting with cataloguing the Normandy's vast armoury.
Shepard continued watching the XO of the marine detachment go about his job; carefully handling various assault rifles and other implements of warfare - a somewhat pleasant memory flitting into the forefront of his mind...
"Listen here maggots! By the end of today, you will all learn how to sort your equipment and be prepared for anything. You will learn how to fight like marines, you will learn how to equip yourselves like marines; you will learn how to be Goddamned marines! Is that understood?" barked Drill Sergeant Jacobson.
"Yes Drill Sergeant!" came the immediate reply of thirty voices, Recruit Shepard's included.
"Your equipment, is your life! You treat it like you would your weekend sweethearts. You will keep your rifles clean; you will keep your armour even cleaner; and you better fucking well learn that, like this equipment, you are now the property of the Alliance Marine corps! You will bleed for the corps; you will kill for the corps; you will fucking die for the corps, if so needed. You only stop being property of the corps when you're buried six feet under the Lord's bountiful Earth, and even then - your asses belong to the Goddamn corps!
"OO-RAH!"
"Fuckin' A. Now listen up, the first technique I'm going to show you for bundling your equipment, is favoured primarily by the 'Devil Jumpers'. Now those cocky sons-of-bitches are some of the baddest motherfuckers we have in the Alliance. You can only dream of being accepted into their ranks; but who knows? Maybe some of you might even impress me one day and climb higher than that. I fucking doubt it..."
Remembering his training in the Alliance marines, was a bitter-sweet feeling for Shepard.
Although he was glad that his life now had a purpose, the costs of making such a discovery were too high - in his opinion.
After escaping one of the many orphanages he was constantly being dumped in, in the sprawling metropolis of London, at the age of eleven Shepard had to fight for every inch he could. Every opportunity was fought for, every day of living was fought for, every scrap of food was fought for...
He was offered a choice by a gang on Earth shortly afterwards. Join up, and never go hungry again. Join up, and you could rise through the ranks - taking anything you wanted. Join up... And finally have the family he'd always dreamt of.
But, Shepard refused.
He may be a vagrant now, but crime was not the answer. Making others suffer for his own benefit, just didn't sit right with the young orphan.
After some choice words, and punches having been thrown, Shepard eventually snuck away on an Alliance freighter one day, when life was becoming unbearable; the hunger was too much; the thirst was excruciatingly painful, and the constant struggle for survival against other vagrants left him weak.
Weak and pitiful.
It was then, that Shepard vowed to better himself. He was going to try and change his life around, so that he would never suffer again at the hands of others.
At the age of thirteen; not realising where he was going to end up, Shepard journeyed away from his 'home' of Earth.
Of course, as luck would have it, Shepard would then later be found by one of the crew on the ship. But, instead of the crewman harshly reprimanding him, one look at the weak and dishevelled frame that slept soundly on top of a cargo crate told him all he needed to know.
This boy was homeless, and it was his duty as a decent human being to help give him one.
He wouldn't tell the others - they would just send him back to Earth when they had the chance. Rather, he would see that he would be given a home on Arcturus.
When Shepard arrived and was woken by the crewman, he was escorted to the local authorities on the station, to which he was officially registered as a citizen of Arcturus Station.
Finally, Shepard had a home.
However, it may have appeared to be a home, but Shepard had no family, no parents.
He was an orphan. Always would be.
Therefore, Shepard grew up on Arcturus without someone guiding his every decision.
But, Shepard did something with his new life. He did not waste away his new found freedom.
He had attended one of the four schools on the station; The Buzz Aldrin Academy for an education; for a purpose. Shepard was allocated a tiny room of his own, and a small allowance of credits to sustain himself on. Of course, Shepard got a part time job to earn extra funds, as well as doing as many activities as possible to occupy his time, to drive away his isolation.
Although he was surrounded by people on a day to day basis, Shepard was alone.
But still, he worked hard at school, and took a great passion to learning about 'ancient Earth history'. One of his greatest joys was learning of battles and wars that divided the human race, and what was done to bring people back together again - maybe there was something there that he could emulate?
At the age of sixteen, Shepard knew that his only avenue for the future was to join the Alliance; to repay his debt. And so he worked harder than ever, honing his mental and physical bodies in preparation for his eighteenth birthday.
When he could finally join the marines, on his eighteenth birthday: 11th April 2172, Shepard finally felt happy with himself.
Private Shepard rose through the ranks quickly to reach Corporal, along with other leadership awards. He met every challenge head-on, with a determination his superiors had never seen before.
Because of his outstanding record over a period of four years in the corps, Shepard was sent with forty-nine other hand-picked marines and a scientific convoy on a special mission, to a planet that was in the early stages of colonisation. A planet that had only recently fallen out of radio contact in early 2176...
The horrors Shepard would experience on Akuze would haunt him for the rest of his life.
The screams of dying soldiers; dying friends, the putrid smell of singed flesh and fresh blood that permeated the air, the screeches of monsters feeding... They would stay with him for as long as he lived.
But the worst of it all, was the destruction he witnessed: the mangled corpses of his fellow soldiers, limbs strewn about, lying next to sizzling acid patches in the sand, the screams for help, the screams for loved ones, that went unheard...
Thresher Maws - the apex predators of the galaxy, set about feeding on the marines like pigs at a trough.
Akuze was where Shepard received his first major injury in the service of the Alliance. A rather nasty acid burn on his lower left leg would require extremely painful skin grafting surgery to repair and give the appearance of normality. There was, however, no mention of the mental toll of the events ever making their way into any official report. The night terrors, the screaming... None of it was ever logged.
The massacre would have broken any normal man, but Shepard had suffered enough in his life already. That was saying a lot, as he was only twenty-two. He was merely to suffer more; in silence, preferably.
Because Shepard was the only survivor found, the Alliance spun a tale of an outstanding example of human ingenuity in the face of adversity; the kind of quality that was expected out of every one of their marines. The survivor was evaluated multiple times, and every time the same result came back: he could still fight for the Alliance. He was still valuable.
After more physical testing, it was discovered that Shepard was a latent biotic; not as conventionally powerful as other biotic humans, but still - he could harness dark energy. The doctors didn't definitively have an answer as to how, or why his powers had manifested - they owed it to the fact that the young man had been sleeping on leaking containers of dust-form element zero when fleeing Earth, and the stress of trying to survive the feeding frenzy on Akuze had proved to be a catalyst for his activation. There were no other records from his infancy to establish the biotic connection. He must have been exposed to element zero at some point in-vitro, but seeing as he couldn't explain his parentage, Shepard had no way of truly knowing.
Either way, the survivor could be patched up and sent back to the frontlines of the Alliance's aggressive expansion campaign.
However before the corporal could be sent back into the meatgrinder again, he was ordered to the garden world of Elysium, in the Kepler Verge, to undergo life-altering surgery. An L1 biotic implant was to be fitted, before further tests would be performed. If the survivor's results were more than satisfactory, then the Alliance would have gained not only the face of a new recruitment campaign, but a biotic marine too.
Alas, for the survivor - another monumental fuck up would drastically affect his life. Instead of having a safer, weaker L1 implant fitted, the young man had an L2 installed instead. Shepard should have died on the table; fallen into a vegetative coma at the very least. His physical recovery, if he could even manage it, should have taken decades.
Somehow though... Shepard pulled through. Not only did he pull through, but he apparently didn't suffer any of the negative side affects the other L2 biotics did! It was another miracle for the Alliance - another story to spin for the recruitment campaigns.
Before Shepard could be enlisted in a biotic training program however, another major battle lay ahead...
'How wrong I was, to believe I would be allowed to rest...'
Late in 2176 Elysium was to become a hell in the galaxy, during the Skyllian Blitz.
Endless hordes of Batarian slavers and pirates; wishing for an easy haul of human slaves, no matter their age, race or gender - descended upon the human garden world.
As the sun broke through the clouds on what should have been an insignificant day, the first Batarian frigates broke through the then disintegrating Alliance blockade, and darted straight for Elysium. Straight into the recovering corporal's path...
'That didn't end too well for them did it?' Shepard thought; the hint of a vicious grin splitting his lips, whilst he subconsciously reached up to graze over the scar over his left eye. Another trophy, from another impossible situation.
Shepard remained impassive as he leant against his locker - his mind swimming through his memories. He could still see Kaidan, working away now at a terminal next to the Mako, looking deeply engrossed in his work.
Elysium may have been crucial in breaking the slaver bands from growing in strength ever again, but the cost of the battle was too high for Shepard.
'Lucy...'
With a shake of his head to dispel the depressing thoughts that threatened to overwhelm him, Shepard recalled how his life had changed from there:
Elysium had become the changing point in Shepard's career.
Because of his heroic defence of a heavily populated civilian quarter of the city, and the saving of over four hundred captured civilians from the Batarians, Shepard had been skyrocketed up the chain of command. The 'Lion' was apparently on a first name basis with everyone who survived that day, and everyone had differing stories of how the wounded marine kept fighting on...
He was awarded a battlefield commission as a junior officer, and was subsequently accepted into the Interplanetary Combative Training program. After graduating, he was rewarded with joining a sacred and elite brotherhood within the marine corps; he became one of the Alliance's deadliest... An N7 operative.
Shepard was given his pick of postings after the Skyllian Blitz - he could have served anywhere and raked in the plaudits... Commendations would have kept pouring in after what he'd achieved.
The freshly commissioned Lieutenant Shepard however, wanted one thing and one thing only - the utter annihilation of the slavers who'd escaped that fateful day.
In the July of 2178, Shepard would have his wish granted as he was transferred to the strike force that would seek retribution for the Skyllian Blitz.
Torfan would prove to be the most influential event in recent history, that solidified the N7's reputation in Batarian and Human history.
Major Franklin Kyle landed on the moon of Torfan in the early hours of the morning - leading a force of over three hundred well armed marines; Lieutenant Shepard being assigned as the operation's XO. The details of the battle are highly contested, but what is known is the Major was relieved part way through the battle, and Lieutenant Shepard took command of the assault. The massacre that occurred would change the face of galactic politics on a scale never before seen. Shepard made sure that the Batarians had a special place reserved for him in their version of hell.
Young Batarian children were told stories of 'The Shepard'; to stop them from misbehaving. New slavers and pirates were constantly reminded by their superiors in the Batarian Hegemony of the bounty placed on the human titan's head - the one who spearheaded the charge. So much was offered, but no one could ever say they came close to claiming it... Anti-human sentiment reached fever pitches among the more xenophobic aliens across galactic civilisation due to the N7's actions. The Siege of Torfan was spoken about in hushed whispers by Batarians and Humans alike...
The N7 didn't care. The job needed doing, and he'd got it done.
Of course, he had his own reasonings as well - but that wasn't any of Alliance High Command's business.
There would always be more pirates and slavers however, so Shepard was sent back out to do what he did best.
In 2180, the 'Butcher of Torfan' was given his own squad to hunt down slaver remnants; Kaidan Alenko had joined Shepard's then, and would accompany the Alliance legend across the galaxy.
For the next three years, the Lion of Elysium hunted down and systematically eradicated any slaver camps he could find. Eventually, they started to become fewer and far between; the slavers and pirates actively trying to hide from the Alliance hit squad. Eventually, Alliance High Command deemed their mission a success, and disbanded the group.
For his efforts, Shepard was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander and again offered his selection of postings.
When he received an offer from his old friend David Anderson to join him on the SSV Normandy, however, he couldn't refuse.
Luckily, Shepard was able to use his substantial influence to get the freshly promoted Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko transferred across as well - he was happy to be reacquainted with two old friends, once more.
After his thoughts had dragged on long enough, the human titan blinked slowly several times - his hand reflexively opening and closing as he dragged himself out of his inner reverie.
'I better go and see what orders the Captain has for me.'
With movements that belied the marine's large stature, the commander swiftly made his way towards the elevator.
As soon as the elevator had reached its destination, the commander, now seething in annoyance, strode with a purpose up the stairs and towards his destination; the bridge.
'I swear, I am going to fix the damn elevator myself one of these days... How can we be on the most advanced warship in the Alliance Navy but it takes me more than ten minutes to get from the cargo bay to the bridge!'
As Shepard was wrestling with his thoughts on how crappy Alliance elevators were, he failed to notice that all hands on the bridge were braced and ready for the approaching jump in the Mass Relay.
Shepard continued his walk towards the head of the bridge; the cockpit.
Respectful salutes were thrown here and there by the bridge crew, who, although they had not known the man for a long time, all knew of his exploits, and the respect he commanded.
Shepard was used to the attention at this point.
With that thought in mind, Shepard stopped at the boundary of the cockpit to the corridor, listening in on the conversation between Nihlus, the Turian Spectre, and the Normandy's Helmsman.
"The board is green. Approach run has begun."
As Shepard watched the view from the cockpit, he couldn't help the smile that erupted on his face - childlike wonder enthralling him.
Just ahead, a solitary Mass Relay lay, suspended in space, and yet it emanated a lightning-like blue energy which quickly wrapped around the Normandy once it got close enough.
'Space travel. I will never understand it. And I really don't want to ruin the magic of it...'
Shepard watched as the Normandy lurched into FTL travel, and rocketed through the relay.
"Thrusters... Check. Navigation... Check. Internal emissions sink... Engaged. All systems online. Drift... Just under 1500K" stated the pilot, in a matter-of-fact tone. A subtle undercurrent of pride laced the pilot's words.
A deep, reverberating sound rang through the cockpit, and the Turian Spectre spoke up, "1500 is good. Your captain should be pleased."
And with that poor attempt at congratulations, Nihlus turned about face, and walked past Shepard, offering a small nod in acknowledgement to the human.
Without waiting a moment after Nihlus had left, the helmsman muttered, "I hate that guy..."
Kaidan, who had been seated on the pilot's right-hand side, commented incredulously, "Nihlus gave you a compliment... So you hate him?"
With a snort of amusement and without looking away from his controls, the pilot responded in a humorous, if slightly pissed off tone, "You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom? That's good. I just jumped us half-way across the Galaxy, and hit a target the size of a pin-head. So that's incredible! Besides, Spectre's are trouble. I don't like having him on board. Call me paranoid."
"You're paranoid. The Council helped fund this project. They have a right to send someone to protect their investment."
Without realising the commander was stood there listening, the pilot haughtily retorted back, "Why would we need two N7 Operatives and a Spectre to accompany a full crew for a shakedown run? It just doesn't make any sense... Something isn't adding up, and I don't like being played for a fool."
Now was as good a time as any for the commander to add to the conversation; "Joker's right. Something else is going on - I can feel it in my gut. And I'm gonna try my best to find out what."
Captain Anderson's voice suddenly rang out over the comm system in the cockpit, "Joker! Status report."
Without a moment of hesitation, Joker responded, "Just cleared the Mass Relay, Captain. Stealth systems engaged. Everything looks solid."
The captain responded in a slightly stressed out tone. "Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."
"Aye aye Captain. Better brace yourself sir, I think Nihlus is headed your way..."
A warning that dripped with sarcasm.
In an irritated tone, the captain replied, "He's already here Lieutenant. Tell the Commander to meet me in the comm room; Anderson out."
"Did you get that Commander?"
There was no reply.
"Commander?"
Again, there was no reply.
With a sigh of exasperation, Joker simply muttered to himself instead, "Of course, he's left already."
Kaidan, however, heard what Joker had said. The lieutenant let a small silence settle in for a moment, before responding jovially, "Of course he has. You should have seen him when we got to this pirate camp this time a couple of years ago. You couldn't have known where he was if you tried..."
As the commander neared the comm room, Corporal Jenkins and Doctor Chakwas were stood talking nearby. Once Shepard was close enough, the corporal suddenly snapped of an enthusiastic, and crisp salute to his commander.
The commander acknowledged the man as he moved to get past but found the corporal in his way. Doctor Chakwas chuckled softly at the sight in front of her: the beast of a man had suddenly been cut off by the corporal; questions poised and ready for a verbal bombardment.
"Commander! We won't be too long on Eden Prime will we? I'm itching for some real action!" Jenkins exclaimed with an enthusiasm that was strangely infectious.
Still chuckling, Doctor Chakwas tried to respond in as serious a tone as best she could manage, "I do sincerely hope you are kidding Corporal. Whenever someone gets 'an itch for action', I end up having to patch them up."
Now it was the commander's turn to reply, "Don't worry Corporal. Just keep calm and collected, and everything will go just fine."
"I know! It's just you don't have to prove yourself Commander. You survived Akuze; saved all of those civilians on Elysium during the Blitz and butchered those Batarian slavers on Torfan!"
The Commander could understand the enthusiasm, as it reminded himself of what he was like when he first started, "You're young Corporal. You've got your whole career ahead of you. Keep calm and collected, and make sure you live to fight another day. Got it?"
"Okay, Commander." Jenkins' tone wasn't dejected, if anything, it became even more enthusiastic.
Doctor Chakwas decided to ask the N7 if he needed any more information, "Anything else we can help you with, Commander?"
"I should go."
"Okay, Commander."
Shepard exited the conversation, before walking through the rapidly opening doors of the comms room.
He was slightly disturbed to find Nihlus the only occupant of the room; the Turian was facing away from the door and staring at a diagram of a garden planet.
As the commander was preparing himself to leave, Nihlus spun around to face the large human.
With mandibles splayed, Nihlus began, "Commander Shepard. I was hoping you'd get here first. It will give us a chance to talk."
'I do not like the sound of that...' Taking on a guarded tone, the Commander replied, "What about?"
Not noticing the defensiveness the Commander held in his tone, the Turian stated, "I'm interested about this place we're going to, Eden Prime. I've heard it's quite beautiful."
"I've never been. Apparently it's supposed to be a paradise. You'd be better off asking Corporal Jenkins - he grew up there, I believe."
"Yes... A paradise. Serene, tranquil, a safe haven. Eden Prime has become something of a symbol for your people, hasn't it? Proof that humanity can not only establish colonies across the galaxy, but also protect them. But how safe is it really?"
"Do you have something to say, Nihlus? Because that sounds awfully like a threat..." Anger laced Shepard's words.
"Your people are still newcomers Shepard. The galaxy can be a dangerous place if one isn't careful." A condescending tone, from the condescending Turian.
Nihlus crossed his arms over his chest plate and continued to eye the commander, "Is the Alliance truly ready for this?"
Shepard's curse-filled answer was abruptly cut off as Captain Anderson entered the room.
Before either the Turian or the Human could say anything, the Captain cut in, "I think it's time we tell the Commander what's really going on."
Nihlus dropped his arms, and approached Shepard slowly, voice muted, "This mission is far more than a simple shake-down run."
'And the prize for most obvious, goes to...' Shepard held his tongue to Nihlus, but turned to face his Captain instead, voicing his thoughts, "I knew there was something you weren't telling me, sir."
Captain Anderson continued on his journey to the hologram, before turning around to face Shepard, "We're making a covert pick-up on Eden Prime. That's why we needed the stealth systems operational."
'Covert pickup... What could possibly be on Eden Prime that requires all this secrecy?' Again, Shepard held his tongue, quashing the surging feeling of annoyance in his gut before locking it up deep inside himself.
With a slightly cooler frame of mind in position, the commander replied neutrally, "What's the package, sir?"
"A research team on Eden Prime has unearthed a beacon of some kind. They believe it to be Prothean in origin."
'Protheans... I remember learning about them. Wait, aren't they supposed to be missing?'
"I thought they disappeared fifty thousand years ago?" Shepard asked with a hint of confusion in his voice.
Nihlus, who had previously been silent in the background, spoke up, "Their legacy still remains. The Mass Relays, the Citadel, our ship drives... It's all based off of Prothean technology."
Anderson gave a curt nod before continuing, "This is big, Shepard. The last time humanity made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward two hundred years. But Eden Prime doesn't have the facilities capable to handle something like this. We have to bring back the Beacon, to the Citadel, for proper study."
Again, Nihlus contributed to the shocking revelation; "Obviously this goes further beyond mere human interests, Commander. This discovery could affect every species in Council Space."
'I suppose a Prothean Beacon does warrant two N7's and a Spectre then...' Still confused, the Commander just had to ask:
"Are we going to be expecting trouble of any kind?"
Nihlus was the one to answer in a cryptic tone, "I always expect trouble."
Anderson continued on from the Spectre, "There's more Shepard. Nihlus isn't just here for the Beacon, he's here to evaluate you."
'Ah crap. What have I done?' Almost hesitantly, as if not wanting to hear the answer, Shepard ventured his question, "What's going on, Captain?"
With a smile on his face, which soothed Shepard's fears, Anderson answered as best as he could, "The Alliance has been pushing for this, for a long time. Humanity wants a larger role in galactic politics. We want more say with the Council. Spectre's represent the power the Council wields. If a human can get into those ranks, it will show what the Alliance, and humanity can achieve."
Shepard nodded his head slightly, before Nihlus' voice interjected in the explanation:
"Your file is extremely impressive Commander Shepard. I must admit, I still have my doubts... For someone as young as yourself, your military service record is littered with historical events that will have no doubt immortalised yourself in the annals of the Alliance's history. Your valiant service during the Blitz, for example, is commendable. Rescuing captured civilians; killing a large number of hostile combatants by yourself... Not to mention your personal intervention during the Siege of Torfan. Almost seventy percent of your strike force was killed that day; but you put the Batarian slavers to the sword. Not a single one made it out of those tunnels. Very Turian of you, I must say. Let's see, what else... Slightly manifested biotics; stealth technology, and you are proficient with all types of firearms. You would make the perfect Spectre. That's why I put you forward myself."
A hint of pride filtered into the end of the Turian's explanation.
'Huh. Maybe he's not as bad as I thought.'
And then, Nihlus' words sunk in.
'I'm being nominated to be a Spectre! Humanities first!'
At that moment, if it wasn't for the fact that his captain and his Spectre nominator were present, Shepard would have fist pumped the air and screamed victoriously until he was blue in the face.
Shepard suppressed these urges, however, and tried to keep his face as neutral as possible. Addressing Captain Anderson, Shepard coolly said: "I assume this is good for the Alliance?"
With the hint of a smile on his face, and his tone taking on a sense of pride, Anderson replied, "Earth needs this Shepard. We're counting on you."
Nihlus nodded with the statement and added, "I need to see your skills for myself, Commander. Eden Prime will be the first of several missions together."
"You'll keep your role as Ground Team Commander, Shepard." Anderson said, "Get to the Beacon, secure it, and the Normandy will come in for extraction. Nihlus will be observing you."
This was it.
Another big opportunity was placed before Shepard. If he managed to pull this off, he'd be solidified in the galactic history books for centuries to come.
"Just give the word, Captain." Shepard said, voice swelling with his own pride.
'The first human Spectre!'
"That's the spirit! We should be approaching Eden-"
Suddenly, the internal comms system blared to life: "Captain! We've got a problem!"
Panic filled the captain's response, "What's wrong, Joker?"
"Transmission from Eden Prime, sir! You better see this!"
"Put it on the screen, Joker!"
Immediately, video footage was being played in the previous place of the hologram of Eden Prime.
The footage was shaky at best, and heavy breathing could be heard quite profoundly.
Shepard realised it was someone's helmet feed. The breathing stopped for a second, while a large cacophony of gunfire rang out. The camera looked upwards to see two marines being blown apart by the blast of a rocket propelled grenade; shredding limbs and opening gushing wounds. The commander already knew, they wouldn't make it.
The breathing continued; the cameraman was running again.
Then there was a loud slam, as armour impacted rock.
The marine peered upwards from his makeshift cover to make out a distinct image, a massive dreadnought of epic proportions, shaped like -an Earth squid?- With appendages snaking off from the sides of the purple metallic hull.
A massive flash of crimson light shot out from one of the ends of an appendage. The marine ducked down, swearing and praying for help. Another explosion rocketed the screen and the marine was flung backwards.
Suddenly an Alliance marine, clad in white and pink Phoenix armour stood over the marine, firing shots off at an unknown enemy.
The marine got back up to assist, but a grenade bounced nearby.
All that was heard in the video was the shout of 'Get down!' by the marine and then the strangled grunts of a dying man, along with the high pitched warnings of multiple wounds by the on-board medical VI. Finally, the escaping of air from the man's lungs could be heard.
The marine was dead.
After that, the video cut out and only loud static remained.
Joker spoke once more: "Everything cuts out after that. No comm traffic at all. It just dies - there's nothing."
Anderson, with his head tilted to the side; an expression of curiosity, spoke aloud: "Reverse and hold at 38.5."
The ship, of massive proportions appeared on the screen again. Its metallic purple hull, gleaming in Eden Prime's evening sunlight. Red electricity crackled around the gigantic ship.
'Oh God... What the fuck is that?!'
It was Anderson who suddenly brought Shepard out of his thoughts with his usual gruff tone, "Status report."
"Seventeen minutes out Captain. No other Alliance ships in the area."
"Take us in, Joker. Fast and quiet. This mission just got a lot more complicated."
Anderson rounded on Shepard now, "Get Jenkins and Alenko to suit-up Commander. Be prepared for anything."
Shepard's reply was but a whisper as he stood, staring at the image of the massive dreadnought, in a mixture of fear and awe, "Aye aye, Captain."
So there you have it! Chapter one all done and dusted.
Not sure about release schedule. I'll try and get out as many as possible when I can.
Cheers.
(07/02/2025): Hello, me again. Just wanted to say that I'm currently in the process of heavily editing/rewriting at least half of this story. So, if you see some parts that are a bit disjointed, out of place, etc. please bear with me. I'm trying to get it done as fast as I can.
For clarification as well, the Shepard in this story will predominantly embody the Vanguard class from ME1; before the Skyllian Blitz, he'd trained and been equipped as an Infiltrator. After the Blitz, and the discovery of his latent biotic abilities, he'd transitioned to being more akin to a Vanguard.
But, every marine's a rifleman - so don't be too surprised if he just focuses on using his rifle more so than wielding space magic.
That's all from me.
Take it easy!