Mass Effect - A Hero Rises Ch. 35

He simply took a drag on his cigarette, glaring at me before replying. "We're a war, Shepard."

"Don't even think about starting to preach with me. War is all I've known since before I even joined the Alliance."

"While that might be so, the Collectors are taking humans, and every minute we waste is one more we give the enemy to prepare."

"You think I'd don't know that? I've fought a Reaper, faced it down, and I defeated it. I know what's at stake and I know what the cost might be. But that is my decision. I am the one who chooses to put my team in harm's way, not you. Your only use to me is information, and if I can't trust the information you're giving me, then what's the fucking point of all this?"

He paused for a moment, actually considering his words. A first. "Without the information you retrieved, Shepard, we don't reach the Collector homeworld. And you and every other human may as well be dead. Yes, it was a trap..." Oh, I was about to unleash both barrels, but he held up his hand. "Let me finish. Yes, it was a trap, but I was confident in your abilities, and those of your team, considering I was the one who gave you the dossiers. And in all this, don't forget EDI. The Collector's couldn't have anticipated her."

I couldn't help sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. It was just endless bullshit, but I knew I couldn't do this alone. But I also couldn't trust him. Rock, meet hard place. "Look, I see some sense in that, but if you would actually just level with me, there is always another way to do thing. You lying to me isn't going to make this a harmonious relationship. You spend billions bringing me back, give me everything I could hope for when it comes to achieving victory, yet you send me into a trap, almost as if you want me killed."

"Fair point, Shepard. So I'll level with you now. I needed the Collectors to believe they had the upper hand. Telling you could have tipped them off in any number of ways. Besides, I wouldn't have sent you in if I didn't think you could succeed." I'll admit, there was the foundation of a solid argument. Many soldiers were sent in to fight without knowing the facts. But I was in command of the mission, and since he was my direct superior, so to speak, I should at least be privy to most details. He added, "Shepard, you know as we as I do that these are sometimes the decisions that need to be made. And, more importantly for all of us, it paid off."

"Okay, let's move on. What did EDI find for us?"

"The Reaper and Collector ships use an advanced Identify Friend/Foe system that the relays recognise. All we need to do is get our hands on one of those IFFs."

"Where do we get one of those?"

"I already have my best people looking into that for you, Shepard. As soon as I receive word, be sure that I will let you know. In the meantime, I suggest you tell your crew I didn't risk their lives unnecessarily. It will make things easier going forward."

He cut the link as the lights of the conference room blinked on. I turned to Miranda, who had been standing in the corner, simply watching and listening. "We're pawns," she finally said, "Nothing but pawns. He is going to sacrifice every single one of us, Shepard. I know it. We are expendable in the face of his ambitions."

"What's his ambition?"

"Power. But I'm not sure how defeating the Collectors allows him to attain more. Not yet, anyway. I've always thought him rather megalomaniacal, but there was always the brilliant genius side to him that helped you ignore that part of his personality." She slumped against the wall. "God, I've seen it almost since the first day we met, but because of what he did for me, it's almost like I've subconsciously ignored it."

I walked towards her, stopping near her, reaching down to take her hand. "So what will you do?" I asked.

"I honestly don't know, Shepard. I still believe we're doing the right thing here. And there are parts of Cerberus that are working for our benefit. But after what you've told me, then what we did to Jack... I've even heard Tali mention an incident within the Migrant Fleet that apparently we were behind."

Gently pulling her towards me, I gave her a hug, which she seemed to appreciate at least. "Just keep me updated with what you want to do. If you want to make some of great leap, I'll make sure I provide a safety net."

Heading back downstairs, some of the team had returned to their quarters. Joker asked where we should head and I said Illium. After what we'd all just been through, I figured a couple of days' shore leave would be perfect for everyone. That meant I immediately headed upstairs to send a secure message to Liara, letting her know I would be arriving in a couple of days. I received a message back within an hour and she was rather excited to hear, and that she would put in place some plans for me when we arrived. I had a feeling I knew what plans, but just told her I looked forward to arriving.

After dinner that evening, I headed straight upstairs as I wasn't the only one exhausted after the day we had. Miranda barely made it to dinner, almost falling asleep in her chair, before she finally just picked up her tray, telling me she'd eat at her desk, but have a pillow nearby in case she crashed. Jack didn't even make it to dinner, while Samara, as powerful and athletic as she was, looked as tired as I did. Everyone felt the strain, so it was no surprise the mess was empty of life far earlier than normal.

A hot shower is normally invigorating, particularly when it's a shower shared with a certain Kelly Chambers, but though she could coax life into certain parts of my body, I simply didn't have the energy. Just the thought of having an orgasm made me exhaustion feel worse, so she simply led me by the hand to bed, curling her body into mine and I barely remember her kissing me goodnight before I'd fallen asleep.

Still exhausted the next morning, I simply squeezed the naked body lying next to me, hearing her giggle as she was already awake. Neither of us even thought about moving as I was rather comfortable, as was Kelly.

"EDI?"

"Yes, Shepard?"

"Tell my ground team that they are not expected to do anything today. If they're as exhausted as me, then I doubt they'll want to leave their quarters."

"I'll pass the message on, Shepard."

"Another day off?" Kelly whispered, "Some would think you're getting soft."

"Considering we all came out of that alive, they blood well deserve it."

In the end, the only reason we got out of bed was that we were hungry. Heading downstairs, neither of us bothering to dress in anything close to resembling uniform, it wasn't a shock that the mess was practically empty. Garrus seemed in decent enough spirits as he wandered down to grab himself a drink, keeping himself busy by calibrating as usual. Other than that, we saw no sign of anyone. Kelly suggested she would try and do a little work, leaving me in the mess alone, so I figured I'd pop into see Miranda. No surprise she was up and working, though as soon as I entered, she stood up, grabbed me, and dragged me to bed. To my surprise, all she wanted was a cuddle, burying her head into my chest. It was rather nice, and we lay there for at least an hour or so, quietly discussing a number of topics I knew were on her mind.

I spent the rest of the day wandering around the ship, chatting with everyone, making sure they were in the right frame of mind after the previous day. I didn't need to tell them about my conversation with the Illusive Man the previous day, they all knew the truth, but they trusted me to keep them alive, so they were willing to look past it. The mission was the most important thing.

Heading downstairs to see Jack last of all, she now had a larger, wider bed, far more comfortable than the cot she'd been sleeping on. She looked fast asleep, though opened her eyes upon seeing me. She pulled back the sheets, and I found myself kicking off my shoes again and cuddling into someone else. Jack did turn around and kissed me, likely in an attempt to get something intimate started, and while I liked the idea of a little kiss and cuddle, I didn't want to go any further. She understood and appreciated the fact I was happy just to give her some comfort. After everything, she quietly admitted that it was just another betrayal by Cerberus, though this time, it also impacted certain people she gave a shit about.

Joker informed me after dinner that we'd arrive on Illium the next day, which was a relief. We'd been on the go for a while, or at least stuck on the ship, so getting off just for a day or two would be a relief. Miranda suggested that the ship would be basically evacuated, locked up tight, and the entire crew would be treated to accommodation. Sounded good to me as I wasn't the one footing the bill.

Sitting back with a datapad on the couch in the cabin later, the recruiting phase of the mission was definitely complete. Now was... I wasn't sure. I had a feeling people would want to tie off certain things before we went through the Omega Four, such as Garrus wanting to track down the man who betrayed him, and Samara tracking down the fugitive she had been chasing on Illium. Both were keeping me informed of their progress.

Kelly wandered in, having been chatting away with some of the girls. She seemed to be in a good move as she walked towards me, standing before me as I moved my eyes from the datapad to her. "You have something on your mind," I stated.

"I do, Shepard. Would you like to join me in bed?"

I couldn't help laugh before I stood up and gave her a gentle kiss. "Yes, I would. Are you planning something?"

"I am, Shepard. Just for the two of us."

"Oh, and what would that be?"

"Well, first of all I will need to be naked. I think you can help with that." So I slowly started to undress her as she added, "Then you will need to be naked as well."

"Shocking, Kelly. What happens once we're both naked?"

"Well, I'm hoping there'll be a lot of kissing. Maybe some touching too. Perhaps you could run your hands all over my body?"

"Oh, I guess I can do that. Is that all you'd like?"

"No, Shepard. Next, I'm going to use my mouth on you, particularly by sucking on your cock. While I'm doing that, I'm hoping you'll use your mouth on my pussy. How does that sound?"

"Fantastic. Something to look forward to. But surely that's not all, Kelly?"

"Oh, definitely not, Shepard. After that, I'm hoping we'll make love." I couldn't help grin as I leaned down to kiss her again as she was down to underwear by now. "Maybe we could do that for a little while, at least."

"It's an offer I simply cannot refuse, Miss Chambers, particularly as you have explained it all so well."

"A girl has to let her man know what she wants."

We ended up on the bed a couple of minutes later, and everything Kelly described happened over the next couple of hours. I think she knew that, once I was on Illium, I would be distracted, so wanted my attention and affection for as long as possible until we arrived. I honestly didn't blame her one bit, though she knew, if things got heated enough with certain people, she was going to be invited anyway. But I certainly sent her to sleep later than night with a big smile on her face, as exhausted as I was the night before, and again suggesting she was going to be feeling a little tender between her legs the next day. She'd loved every second though.

I had a feeling I might be enjoying a long couple of days on Illium.