Chapter 07: Truce

Once safe inside the confines of the Normandy, the team began to gear down. The human members, that is, as the others seemed to live and sleep in their armor. Noticing Rick having some difficulty to remove his own she decided to have some petty pay back by chidding him.

 

“You needed help to put it on, and now you need help to remove it. What’s next? Someone to hold your hand at all times?” she said as she began to remove part of his armor with a grin. When he let out a grunt in response her grin widened.

“I think his injury is preventing him from doing it himself, commander.” said Liara, who had kept an eye on the man the whole time.

“What injury?”

“He took the krogan’s charge to the side.”
“What?!” the redhead exclaimed, clearly having missed his fight, too busy dealing with the geths.

“That and the multiple blows to the head I received during the mission.” Rick added in a reproachful tone as he turned his head to the side to look at Shepard behind him, making her feel like an ass.

“How bad is it?” she asked in concern and with a bit of guilt as she moved in front of him from his back, finally noticing the nasty crack in his helmet.

“He said that he had possibly a concussion and that a few of his ribs were tickling a bit.” the asari answered when Rick clearly wasn’t going to.

“There is no way that’s true.”

“It’s alright.”

“How bad?”

“I’m fine.”

“How. Bad?” she finally said in a forceful tone full of authority.

“... I feel like someone is hammering inside my head, and I can’t raise my right arm above waist level.” He finally relented.

 

Shepard felt worse, of course he couldn’t remove his armor by himself if he couldn’t even raise his arm.

“Forget the armor, you’re going to the med-bay, now. Chakwas will help with it.”

“I would have healed by the time I reach the med-bay with how slow the elevator is going. Honestly I’m good here, I’ll just take some medi-gel from our supplies and I’ll be as good as new in no time.”

“I will drag you there myself if I have to. Don’t make me.”

“Riiight.” Rick replied not believing her for a second.

 

He should have as Shepard grabbed his left arm and pulled him up to his feet from the crate he was sitting on. Without break she dragged him towards the elevator. Her captive tried to make her let go but she had an iron clawed grip on his wrist.

 

“What’s going on?” asked Ashley in worry to Liara, with a curious Kaidan by her side.

“Your friend fought a krogan and got badly hurt and he refused to go see the doctor so the commander dragged him there.”

“How bad?” the human biotic inquired.

“I don’t know. But probably a concussion and several broken ribs.” 

“What exactly happened down there?” asked Ash.

 

____________________________________________________________

 

In the elevator, you could have cut the tension with a knife. Shepard was still holding onto Rick with her fierce grip and both were quiet. It didn’t last long as the redhead had questions and needed answers.

 

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I wanted to see the guilt on your face once you realized how much of a bitch you were.”

“Is this a game to you?! The “ let’s pissed off Shepard’ game? God how did you ever get friends, heck how did you even get a woman to marry you with a personality like that in the first place.” she said, lashing out at him.

“It’s just you. I get a glimpse of you and… I don’t know, I just want to mess with you as much and as far as I can.” he replied.

 

Shepard turned her head and looked at him, wondering what kind of mess she embarked herself in by bringing that man in her team. He clearly was unstable. She knew she needed to do something. While she had nothing to say but praises for his behavior during the mission, the part in the mako not counting, his attitude in down time was problematic and it could, if not will, spill onto the field. The one and only positive point about it was that he acted this way with nobody else but her.

 

“You need to get a hold of that and fast. I can’t have you angering me at the wrong time.”

“I know. I’ll…work on it.”

 

The silence returns in this endless elevator ride but was once broken by a whisper of the commander, who hoped Rick didn’t hear.

 

“Thank you.”

“What for?” he replied clearly having heard.

“Saving my life.”

“My body just moved on its own.”

 

Any further conversation never happened as the elevator’s door opened. She dragged him to the med-bay where Dr. Chakwas welcomed them.

 

“Commander, mister Wald, how can I help you?”

“He’s hurt.” replied the redhead curtly.

“I took a krogan to the side and I may or may have not headbutted him.”

“Why would you do that?” asked Shepard in disbelief. Krogans were known to have a very sturdy head, hence why the charge.

“Lost my pistol, didn’t have time to draw my shotgun.”

 

Karin directed him to sit on one of the beds and began to remove his armor to see the extent of the injury. Shepart joined her to be done with it faster. When the doctor asked him to remove his helmet he declined.

 

“The helmet stays.”

“I can’t examine your head with it.”

“The. Helmet. Stays.” he insisted.

“Why?” inquired Shepard.

“Wasted question, we both know you’ll either get a joke out of me or no answer.”

 

The doctor gave the commander a look, forcing her to pinch the bridge of her nose.

 

“Fine. I’ll bring Ashley here and let her have a look. She saw you without it, right?”

“Plenty of times.”

“Good. If she sees anything wrong she’s to report to Dr. Chakwas who will do her job and treat your head. Is that acceptable?”

“Yes.”

“No! Commander, just because nothing is wrong outwardly doesn’t mean everything is alright.” Karin protested, making the redhead sigh again in exasperation.

“Okay, Rick… When you got on this ship, you gave me your word and nothing else. You asked me to trust you based on nothing. I did. Now I’m asking you to do the same with Dr. Chakwas.”

“... Alright.” he finally agreed after a moment of hesitation before quickly adding some conditions.

“No sampling of any kind, and no talk about what's under the mask.” to which Karin acquiesced.

“How long will it take to patch him up doc?”

“I don’t know. Depending on the injuries, I might keep him for observation.”

“Okay, we’ll do the debriefing without you then. Take care of him doc.”

 

That was all Shepard said before leaving the med-bed to go back down to gather the team to the brief room. Exiting the med bay she saw Garrus and Kaidan working on the mako, probably fixing the damages the geths did on it. Ashley was apparently on cleaning weapons duty at the workbench and Wrex was at what she was now dubbing his corner, since every time she came here he was at this spot. Tali was absent, probably in engineering. Dr. T’soni was… in a corner too, not really knowing what to do with herself. Needing some answers she walked towards the gunnery chief, who actually was the one to start the conversation.

 

“Skipper! Is he alright? Liara, told me what happened.”

“Liara?”

“Dr. T’soni, but it’s a bit long so I called her by her first name.”

“Ah, okay. Well… I left before Chakwas began her examination, which wasn’t easy to make him agree to. He categorically refused to have his helmet removed. Do you know anything about that? He said that you saw him plenty of times without it.”

“I did. I admit I’m surprised too. I don’t think he ever removed it once since Eden Prime which is new. I mean, yes, he constantly wore it in public, but at home or in private he was without it.”

“So it’s not unsual for him?”

“No. Even when we’re here alone he has it on, which he didn’t do before.”

“Any reasons you can think of as to why?”

“Hmmm…Apart from Analysse’s death, no.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“From what she told me, she never saw his face before they were six months into their relationship. No one before her ever saw his face from what  I heard here and there. So perhaps since she’s gone, he went back to his old habit. But I doubt it.”

“Wait a minute, you’re saying she started dating him without knowing what he looked like? And went on for six months like that?” the redhead asked bewildered.

“Yeah, I couldn’t believe her too when she told me that. When I asked her how she could do that; I mean he could have been butt ugly or greatly disfigured, she simply said that it didn’t matter to her. She got interested and then fell in love with him when he was wearing it and that it didn’t matter what was under it. Appearance mattered little to her when the subject was love, the mind on the other hand…”

“That’s… unusual.”

“They both are… were. You should have seen her eyes when she secretly watched him, working on something all focused or talking about something nerdy, they lit up like a christmas tree.” Ashley confessed, giggling.

“She really didn’t care about his appearance.” Shepard stated in realization.

“And that’s the height of irony.” 

“What do you mean?”

“Rick is far from ugly, skipper.”

“I’ll… take your word for it.”

“You wouldn’t say if you had seen him cutting wood topless, hair floating in the breeze, and sweat glistening his big, hard, juicy muscles.” Ashley whispered, a blush on her face and a faraway look in her eyes while biting her lower lips. She clearly was reliving the memory.

“Is he really that handsome?”

“Oh, skipper, he’s not handsome, he’s gorgeous. Analysse won the jackpot in looks and was only interested in this brain of his.”

“You almost sound jealous.”

“I am jealous. Were she not my friend and were they not married, I would have jumped his bones long ago.”

“Woah, too much information there, Ash.” exclaimed Shepard, raising her open hands in a sign of surrender.

“Anything else, skipper?”

“Yes, I came down to warn everyone to meet in the brief room immediately, since the mission is still fresh in our mind and it’s quickly done and over with.”

 

Ashley nodded and went to Garrus, Kaidan and Wrex to share the information while Shepard went to look for Tali. To avoid wasting time the former’s group, plus Liara, waited for the latter's before riding the elevator. It turned out to not be such a great idea as they were quite cramped inside the metal cage and for a very long moment. Many let out a sigh of relief when their little trip was finally over. Wrex even swore he would never share an elevator ever again.

 

They quickly went up the stairs and entered the room, where Shepard explained to Liara the recents event from the discovery of a prothean beacon on Eden Prime to her rescue. That was a lot of information for the doctor to take in a short time, especially since her only involvement at first glance was through her mother. When the asari was asked why exactly Saren was interested in her and if she really knew nothing about the conduit, she gave them a long reply.

 

The only thing she knew about the conduit was that it was connected to the protheans extinction. Her real area of expertise and field of study, contrary to what everyone believed. That may have explained why Saren was after her, as no one ever really cared as for why the protheans went extinct in favor of the study of their technology. Asking if she found out anything about it by Shepard, she answered no as there are very few traces left of the prothean but that lack was a very big clue in itself. Apparently the prothens were not the first advanced civilization like everyone believed. Many others existed before and everytime they were at their peak, they quickly declined in violence and vanished without trace or very, very few. A constant cycle of rise and fall, a cycle of extinction. She had absolutely no proof of that, and she said as much, that it was only a theory that everyone dismissed because of her very young age but was certain it was the truth and hoped that eventually she would prove it.

 

When Shepard told her it was the Reapers’ doing, an old race of machines, she asked how she knew that and to see some proof. The asari was fascinated when she heard that the beacon on Eden Prime had imprinted that information onto Shepard’s and Rick’s brain and was surprised they were still alive as the beacons were calibrated for prothean physiology. When the redhead invited her to join the mission, both for her protection and her expertise she readily agreed.

 

The meeting concluded everyone left the room bar Shepard who was told by Joker that the council was on the line..

____________________________________________________________

 

It was only the first meeting of the mission with the council that she already hated it. The turian councilor had constantly questioned her decisions and actions, the salarian patted her on the back and the asari just told her they were counting on her.

 

What an utter waste of time.

 

Going down one floor she went to the med-bay to see how Rick was doing and one of her eyebrows rose when she saw shutters drawn on the windows, completely isolating the room from external view. When she entered  she saw Chakwas removing her gloves on the side and Rick locking his helmet in place. A very topless Rick with big bruises on the right side of his torso and very, very nice muscles.

 

No! Bad Jane! Bad! Don’t let what Ash said corrupt your mind. You don’t like the guy, remember?

“How is he doing doc?” 

“Two ribs splintered, three more bruised as for the head, a simple concussion. Nothing that can’t be fixed within a month.” Karin replied to the commander who nodded in acknowledgement.

“Don’t count me out yet.”said Rick from the side.

“I have to, you’re clearly unfit for duty.”

“No, I’m unfit for anything physically strenuous. Doesn’t mean I can’t work behind a desk.”

 

The commander has nothing to retort to that. It was true, he could still be useful with his set of skills, just not in the field. That was something that always bothered her after Elysium. She had been badly wounded and out of commission for a while but since she was just a simple soldier she couldn’t do anything else than just wait for her recovery.

 

“So, what about debriefing? Anything new?”

“Well, Dr. T’soni believed that the protheans were not the first species wiped out by the reapers. While she didn’t know of her existence, she did find out that many civilizations preceding, the protheans disappeared quickly without leaving any traces if at all.”

“Hmm… that makes sense.”

“How so?”

“Think about it, the universe is nearly fifteen billion years old and yet only the protheans, a bit more than fifty thousand years ago, ever conquered the galaxy? And then fifty thousand years later more than half a dozen races are on their way to catch up? Unlikely.”

“What do you think then?”

“That the reapers have been in activity far longer than we believed at first and that the name is perhaps literal, making them even more terrifying.”

“You mean that they kill everyone?”

“No, they don’t. Humanity and all of the current species knowing spacecraft were there more than fifty thousand years ago and we were not dealt with like the protheans. The only reason I can think of is that they were not interested in us, probably because we were not technologically advanced. Otherwise the galaxy would have been devoid of any organic life long ago. There is a pattern here. A civilization rises to the top and quickly falls. It’s a cycle, ending and beginning anew with the Reapers but only for very advanced species. The question is why? It’s like they are waiting for a species to rise then wipe them out and the most likely explanation I can think of is because they’re not killing but harvesting. Perhaps, so no organic species grew advanced enough to destroy them? Hmm, no that doesn’t make sense, since they harvest technology and seem to have been in existence for a very long time, the chances are low that a new species could do so…”

 

Shepard was now observing him rapt attention. It has started as an explanation and developed into a brainstorming of ideas. It’s like he was alone in the room, speaking aloud or mumbling, completely oblivious to the world around him, focused on the mystery at hand. She had to admit, she was fascinated by what was happening right before her eyes. Emergence of theories based on some little bit of information and facts with no, at first glance, relation between them. She wondered if that was what Ashley had briefly talked about. If it was, she could understand his wife's reaction, that was rather cute. Cute but irrelevant for the task at hand: stopping Saren.

 

“It doesn’t matter what the reapers do.”

“Hmm?” was the simple sound Rick made, being brought out of his musing. He heard her but hadn’t been listening.

“What the reapers do does not matter, for now at least. What matters is stopping Saren, the reapers come after.”

“True. I’ll see if I can find out anything about him but I don’t have much hope. He’s been a spectre for a long time, there is very little information about them. I don’t even know where to search for it, I tried the extranet but I ended up with nothing; the info would not have been accurate anyway.”

“Anderson had some dealings with him years ago, maybe he knows something, wouldn’t hurt to find out.” Shepard said to which Rick nodded.

“What now?”

“I was thinking of going to Feros, that way when we’re done there we’ll stop by Noveria on our way to the citadel.”

“And Dr. T’soni? What are we doing with her?”

“She’s staying with us, both for protection and her expertise.”

“You intend to have her on the field? We’re going to need more equipment for her. When I purchased our supplies I didn’t take into account we would be recruiting more.”

“Really? You, who’s always thinking ahead?” she replied, her surprise obvious.

“My credits are not illimited, you know?”

“I’ve been wondering about that. How do you have so much money with the salary of a tech expert?”

“Let’s just say… I always lived a frugal life, and that money comes from before I settled on Eden Prime, so it piled up over the years.” he answered with a very irritating knowing smirk.

“Please, tell me you didn’t steal it.”

“I didn’t break any laws, I can assure you. You won’t have any problem in that regard.”

“... Okay, I’ll trust you on that.”

 

____________________________________________________________

 

Their departure for Feros was halted when the crew received several urgent missions from Admiral Hackett. She may have been a spectre but she was still a member of the alliance and had to obey orders. It was then that Shepard understood what Rick meant when he said that she was now both the bitch of the council and the alliance. The latter were fully using her new status in the galaxy for things they couldn’t before. She wasn’t upset about it, she knew that would have been the case but she didn’t take into account that it would be so tiring. It has been almost three weeks since their mission on Therum without any break and the team was ragged. They needed some R&R. That’s why they were currently on their way to the citadel.

 

Dr. T’soni, or Liara as she preferred to be called, has proven herself to be quite a competent soldier. The asari confessed that her mother had provided her with the best tutors in many disciplines, including fighting, when she was a child, Her equipment may not have been tailor suited for her but she did well regardless. Shepard didn’t regret inviting her in the crew.

 

The biggest change was with Rick. He was still being sassy with her but he didn’t mess with her anymore. Much. It was obvious he was really trying like he said he would. In fact their relationship was almost friendly if it wasn't already. It was all thanks to one particular event that she still remembers fondly.

She was riding down the elevator with Rick, talking about the mission Admiral Hackett had just given the crew. A rogue element of the alliance had created a biotic cult and was holding some important Alliance’s mining ground. The alliance had sent two emissaries to negotiate but they were promptly killed, their job was to resolve the situation, preferably peacefully.

They were barely out of the cage that Tali, followed closely but Ashley, was immediately on him.

 

“You old perverted Bosh’tet!”

“What?” was the reply Rick gave, clearly confused and taken aback by the usually shy quarian’s outburst.

“Centerfold? Really?”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“What’s wrong is that I’m not some slut posing for lonely, horny men in a magazine!”

“No, but you have the perfect curves for it. You have very beautiful hips and an ass to die for. It wasn’t meant as an insult but a compliment. ” he explained.

“R-really?” asked Tali, suddenly very embarrassed, perhaps not used to such blunt praise for her body.

“Yes.”

“Wait a minute! How come she’s centerfold and I’m Pinkie?!” interjected an angry Ashley.

“Because your armor had pink in it?” he replied even more confused as if her nickname was obvious.

“I have very nice curves too, why didn’t I get a nickname reflecting that?”

“You do?” Rick answered tilted his head to the side in a sign of reflection.

 

That was the wrong thing to say as Ashley gasped in disbelief then in anger took both of his hands putting them on her breasts and ass.

 

“Wow.” exclaimed Shepard at the gunnery chief bold move

“Keelah.” whispered Tali even more embarrassed by the turn the conversation took.

“Is that proof enough?” Ash asked.

“Yes. I admit I… never look at you that way.”

“Good! Now I want a new nickname but first, stop groping me.” she said, removing his hands from her body.

“You’re the one that put my hands there.”

“To see that I have the curves, not to cop a good feel.”

“Meh, I take what I can get, bombshell.”

“Bombshell?” asked Tali not understanding as Ashley pumped her fist in the air in clear victory.

“A very attractive woman.” replied Shepard who had watched on the side in both bewilderment and amusement that unreal talk.

“Now if you’re done with it we have a mission to prepare for.”

“You’re just jealous your nickname isn’t as good as Tali or mine, skipper.”

“I don’t…” began the quarian becoming even more uncomfortable with the discussion but was cut off by the redhead.

“I am not and I will have you know Ash, that I have multiple and thankfully not as crass. By the way, why is that?” she asked, turning to Rick.

“Hmm? Why did you say Jessica Rabbit?”

““Jessica Rabbit?”” inquired the two human females, while Tali was fumbling with her omni-tool.

“A very famous redhead.”

“Keelah.” Tali said in wonder as her omni-tool was displaying many pictures of a very gorgeous and sensual long haired redhead with perfect curves and really, really big breasts.

“Holy cow! She has bigger tits than you, skipper! I didn’t think it was possible.”

 

Shepard’s mouth had never gaped so much, her emerald eyes glued to the woman Rick had called her after. Speaking of him he was discreetly walking away from all what was happening. Sadly he didn’t get very far as he was caught by the back of his collar. Turning around he found himself face to face with the commander who had recovered her wits.

 

“Not so fast.”

While she failed to make him squirm as he didn’t seem to care one bit, she liked the casual talk they had. Well.. as casual as talking about a woman’s body can be. Secretly she was pleased to be compared positively to such a gorgeous woman. She has been in the Alliance for fourteen years and has accumulated numerous scars on her body. To hear that she was attractive made her feel good even though she never particularly put any thoughts on it. She entered the military at 16 and had focused on her career, she didn't have time to wonder about such things. Sure, she had compliments over the years, but she didn’t give them any credit when they came from drunken men clearly horny wanting to get some with just a look at her chest. They would have flattered a female salarian if it meant getting their dick wet. 

She was brought out of her memories by Joker's voice telling her that they’d be on the citadel in less than an hour. Thanking him, she focused herself back on the task at hand. Having a talk with Anderson and finding something to do, allowing her to relax and rest.