Spectre B. 02

A/N - This is the first chapter of 'Book Two'. It will follow the main plot though I will probably make subtle differences if I think it's necessary. This is where I will start introducing other characters than those seen in the game. At the moment of starting this, the idea is that three male squad characters won't be appearing in Book Two that would otherwise appear in the game. One is being 'gender swapped' and two just won't appear. The idea is to surround Shepard with a lot of women who he can have fun with throughout the rest of the story.

There is no sex in this chapter as the beginning of the game simply doesn't give much opportunity for it. Just some dirty talk. Things will return to normal in the next chapter.

Australian / British standard English. There is a good chance of reading the following: lots of profanity, characters drinking, typos, and bad grammar at times.

Proofreading and editing suggestions provided by OhDave1. Any mistakes are still mine.

Comments are appreciated as always.

Feedback by email is always welcome. Enjoy chatting with anyone who likes my work.

*****

Shepard's back, baby!

*****

Review of Book One:

Commander Mark Shepard is 'Earthborn', a 'War Hero' and 'Ruthless'. These are options taken at the start of the first game to give Commander Shepard a back story. Being 'Earthborn', he grew up on the streets of a city on Earth, living a life of petty crime until joining the Alliance. As a 'War Hero', he saved the colony Elysium from invasion, earning the Star of Terra for his bravery. Being 'Ruthless', he was part of the action that invaded the batarian moon of Torfan and is considered a war criminal by the Batarian Hegemony.

Commander Shepard recruited Urdnot Wrex, Garrus Vakarian, Tali'Zorah nar Rayya and Liara T'Soni to the

Normandy

.

Commander Shepard saved Matriarch Benezia on Noveria. Benezia now resides back on Thessia under house arrest. She also became one of his lovers.

Commander Shepard released the Rachni Queen on Noveria. The whereabouts of the Rachni Queen are currently unknown.

Commander Shepard saved the colonists at Zhu's Hope. The colony is slowly rebuilding. He released Shiala and allowed her to remain with the colonists at Zhu's Hope. She remains with the colonists and was also one of his lovers.

Commander Shepard stopped the asteroid from colliding with Terra Nova though allowed the batarian terrorist, Balak, to escape. The citizens of Terra Nova celebrate their survival every year.

Wrex survived his encounter with Commander Shepard on Virmire.

Commander Shepard spoke with Sovereign, a Reaper, while on Virmire. It confirmed the 'cycles' that occur every fifty thousand years and that the current cycle was the next to be exterminated.

Kaiden Alenko sacrificed his life on Virmire. Commander Shepard escaped with the rest of his crew. Saren also escaped though his base of operations was destroyed.

Commander Shepard spoke with Vigil on Ilos and discovered the truth about the Prothean genocide and what the Conduit was. The Protheans had managed to build a small scale version of a mass relay.

Commander Shepard eliminated Saren during the turian's attack on the Citadel.

The Council was saved. Sovereign was destroyed. The Reaper invasion was halted.

Commander Shepard did not choose who the first human councillor would be.

Commander Shepard was killed during an attack on the

Normandy

from an unknown enemy at the end of Book One.

*****

"Commander, wake up!"

I must have been dreaming. Or I was in heaven. Was I in heaven? I wasn't a religious man. Most religions have dwindled since we discovered that we were not alone in the galaxy. But the fact that I could hear voices was one thing. I wriggled my toes and realised that I could feel them. I lifted a hand and felt my face. I then opened my eyes and realised that I wasn't dreaming nor in some sort of afterlife.

I was alive.

What the fuck?

"Commander. You need to get up. This facility is under attack.

"

"The fuck?"

"There are clothes laid out nearby. There is also a weapon and shield pack. You need to move now."

I lifted my head and noticed that I was naked. Glancing around, I had no idea where the fuck I was though I shook my head and didn't worry about that. I heard alarms blaring. Gunfire. And there was the faint smell of smoke that suggested that something was on fire. I slid off the gurney that I was lying on and checked my body. The one thing that immediately drew my eye was the lack of ink on my arms.

"The fuck?"

"Commander, you need to get dressed and move now.

"

"You're a bossy one," I muttered to myself.

I quickly dressed in the only clothing available. A short-sleeved shirt. Trousers. Socks and boots. There were symbols on each sleeve that I didn't recognise. Having a quick look around, I saw the same symbol on one wall. It looked like I was in some sort of medical laboratory. Picking up the nearby pistol, I looked it over and was startled to see that it was like no pistol that I'd seen before.

"Technology has changed, Commander. You will need to find a thermal clip for the pistol."

"What? Why? That's just stupid!"

Growling to myself, I made sure to stretch out all my muscles, amazed at how fit and healthy I was immediately feeling. I took a deep breath and made my way forward. The door ahead opened after I pressed the button, and I found a cylinder on the ground which I could only assume was the thermal clip that I needed. It slotted into the pistol just fine, shaking my head at the stupidity.

"Hey, what about armour?"

"Not now, Commander. Mechs are headed your way."

Mechs? Did she mean geth or just those useless Vis that performed menial tasks? Why would they be attacking?

The door ahead opened and a lone mech appeared. Before it could raise its weapon, I aimed mine and shot at it. The pistol kicked in my hand, feeling similar to any pistol that I felt before. Checking over the mech, I didn't have a lot of experience with them. Considering all the issues with the geth, people were wary of any sort of 'smart VI' in the worry that it could one day turn into AI.

"You know this just reminds me of the geth!" I shouted out.

"More mechs incoming, Commander. Take cover."

The feminine voice wasn't wrong as half a dozen of them walked through. They had no tactics and very little thought except to shoot in my direction. I took cover and fired back. To be honest, it was likely shooting fish in a barrel. Even while I was busy doing that, my mind was elsewhere, wondering where the hell I was. How long had it been since I'd been spaced? Where was everyone else? And just who the hell was directing me? I didn't recognise the voice.

Once all the mechs were down, I made sure to check them over for thermal clips, still muttering to myself about the stupidity of changing the design of our weapons. I picked up as many as I could, finding that my trousers came with clips where I could put them. As I moved forward, I heard shouting from the other side of a window. Before I could do anything to help them, a far larger mech appeared and it tore them all to shreds. It then turned towards me and opened fire. Thankfully the glass was bulletproof though I jogged on quickly.

Then I found something else on the floor. What looked like a heavy weapon. "That a fucking grenade launcher?" I asked myself, "Happy fucking days!"

I'd been trained in using heavy weaponry though I'd never been one for using them. They were usually cumbersome and a bitch to carry around. It's why I'd never used them during the chase for Saren. But I wasn't going to turn down the opportunity of using it when that big fucking mech was hanging around and I figured more would be ahead.

More mechs appeared and I test-fired the grenade launcher. Despite the situation, I laughed away as I sent mechs or at least parts of mechs flying every which way.

"Keep going, Commander. Time is of the essence."

"Who are you?"

"Not now. Rest assured, getting you out of here alive is my only priority right now."

"Well, that's something, at least," I muttered to myself.

I boarded an elevator that seemed to go up a level or two. The doors opened and there was a fire ahead. I made my way through that, only left feeling warm instead of burned. I tried contacting the voice again though it started to crackle, and I sighed to myself, figuring that I was just going to have to find my way forward myself.

At least there was still power. Doors still opened. And the walls still glowed with holographic charts. Some laptops were also blinking and I pressed a few buttons. I didn't expect to hear recordings and I think they were explaining the situation regarding myself. It was the same voice that had been helping me so far.

"Progress is slow, but subject shows signs of recovery. Major organs are again functional, and there are signs of rudimentary neurological activity. In an effort to accelerate the process, we've move from simple organic reconstruction of the subject to bio-synthetic fusion. Initial results show promise."

I checked another laptop, and a new voice was giving his report.

"Log update: The cost of this project is astronomical. Over four billion credits so far. But nobody seems to care that we've gone over budget. I don't know where the boss gets all his money. Maybe it's better not to know. I just wish he'd kick a little money in my direction once in a while."

Even with all the chaos, I sat back in a chair and gave what I had just heard some thought. The first voice talked about me like I'd been... dead. Well, I guess that made sense. My last memories were of what happened on the

Normandy

and being blown clear of the wreckage. Therefore, I must have been this 'project' the male was talking about. But four billion credits? Surely there was something else going on in addition to helping me live.

"Well, whatever the case, these people are not Alliance," I said to nobody, "So where the hell am I? They all seem to be human. And they seem rather capable when it comes to science. Don't think any of them are soldiers though."

I was proven wrong a couple of minutes later when I walked through a doorway to the sound of gunfire. I checked around a corner to see a few mechs across a gap in the floor and a black woman exchanging gunfire with a pack of mechs to the other side. I slid into cover beside her, noticing her glance in my direction and a slightly surprised look on her face.

"Shepard? You're awake?"

Yep, she was definitely from somewhere in North America with that accent. Lovely lilt to her voice though.

"Yeah, someone woke me up and had been guiding me forward."

"That would have been Miranda Lawson. She wasn't going to let you die now. Not after all the work she's put into bringing you back to life. But shit must be serious if you're awake."

"The hell is going on? And who are you?"

"Tell you what, let's kill these mechs and I'll tell you what I know."

At least half a dozen mechs were firing at us across the gap, and the door opened as even more flooded through. I was left thinking they were specifically after me though they wouldn't hesitate in killing anyone else who got in their way. A woman had an SMG in her hands though she showed off her other talents when she shimmered with biotic energy and made life easier for me, lifting mechs out of cover on the other side of the gap so I could pick them off easily.

When we finished them off, I took a moment to ask a few questions to hopefully ease my confusion. She introduced herself as Georgia Taylor. She was Head of Security for the station though admitted that she had no idea who had hacked the mechs or how. When it came to me being alive, yet I remembered being spaced, the look on her face suggested that it hadn't been pretty, describing me as nothing more than meat and tubes when she first saw me.

"Project Lazarus was different. Cutting-edge technology," she added.

"Lazarus? Like that figure who rose from the dead?"

"You know your stuff, Commander. Because I think that's pretty much what happened here."

"Am I a clone?"

"No, you're you, Commander. But I think those questions are better aimed at the scientists. Or Miranda. But I'm pretty sure that you're not a clone."

"I heard on a recording that this cost billions of credits. How many people did Project Lazarus help?"

"Only you, Commander. This entire project was to simply help you. Even that was a challenge. It's taken two years..."

That's when I knew my face fell. Two years? Fuck... What about my team and even those who had left the ship? Did the Alliance and Council know? I know they had all offered me love and loyalty, but after two years of thinking that I was dead, they would surely have moved on by now. And that meant they could be anywhere across the galaxy. I assumed certain people would be where I'd left them, but others?

"Who's Miranda?" I asked, "I'm guessing she's important or the lead scientist?"

"The station's ranking officer. She led the Lazarus team. It was her job to bring you back, no matter what. I should have guessed that she'd try to save you. Not that she'd give up you now. Not with all the work she's put in. I'd put it as an obsession. I'd see her most nights sitting by your gurney, talking to you."

"She did?"

"Commander, all of us respect you for what you did. You're a bloody hero."

Then someone contacted us. Someone by the name of Wilson. Georgia seemed to know who he was, at least. Wilson gave us a series of directions to get us away from the mechs and hopefully to safety. Something about a network control room. Georgia explained that Wilson was the chief medical technician, answering to Miranda. I guess he was someone who had helped put me back together. His voice did sound familiar. Perhaps one of the network logs that I'd listened to earlier.

It was nice having company and someone capable next to me as we moved our way forward. But Wilson led us into a large group of mechs. Georgia used her biotics while I shot most of the mechs in the head. That put them down quite easily. Georgia complained over the radio though it soon cut out as Wilson cried out about being cornered and then shot.

I found another recording of Miranda making a report.

"Physical reconstruction of the subject is complete, but we still need to evaluate all mental and neurological functions. Our orders were clear. Make Commander Shepard who he was before the explosion. The same mind, the same morals, the same personality."

"That's right, Commander," Georgia stated as she stood next to me, "I know Miranda considered making you a biotic to give you an advantage, but that would have changed how you worked on the battlefield. You were a soldier, and you remain a soldier."

We eventually found Wilson in a room nearby. He had been shot though I could sense Georgia was suspicious. Georgia gave Wilson some Medi-gel that helped patch him up and then Wilson explained what he'd been up to. I had no reason to disbelieve him. Apparently, the mechs had been hacked and gone mad. Whatever had been done to them was irreversible. The pair were about to get into an argument when I whistled loudly.

"Look, I don't know who any of you people are just yet. All I know is that you are helping me so for the moment, we're allies."

Georgia suggested we find Miranda before we leave. I agreed even though Wilson suggested that she was probably dead. Georgia had more confidence in Miranda. Wilson then suggested that she was either dead or a traitor. Even I thought that was quite the accusation, and it pissed off Georgia something fierce. Even I thought she couldn't be a traitor. She'd woken me up and helped until we lost contact.

Whatever the case, I now had two people to assist me going forward. Wilson suggested that we make our way to the shuttle bay and wait for any survivors there. That meant fighting off even more mechs, but they'd proven to not be particularly dangerous.

As we were moving along, Georgia suggested that if she told me who she worked for that I'd trust her. That had me worried about who was responsible. To be honest, although I didn't trust them, I didn't think they'd shoot me in the back. Not if everyone involved in the project had invested all that time and credits just to kill me now.

"It's all been funded and controlled by Cerberus."

"I know the name, but why are you worried?"

"It's just... Well, we know you might have some history with us."

I tapped the side of my head. "My memories are fine, Georgia. The only times that I had anything to do with you was sometimes finding the name in a report. I usually just kicked those upstairs to the Alliance for them to investigate. I was too busy dealing with Saren to be distracted by anything else. If Cerberus was up to no good two years ago, I don't really know anything about it."

"I know the Alliance has us down as a pro-human splinter group."

"Terrorist organisation. But one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter."

I think Georgia was impressed. "I'm surprised by that statement, Commander, given that you were a Spectre and a member of the Alliance."

"Not saying that I agree with what Cerberus represents, but I make my own decisions after research. Truth be told, I know very little about Cerberus. But I won't take what I'm told at face value either."

"That's fair enough, Commander."

"Come on. Enough talk. Let's get to the shuttle bay and off this station."

As we made our way forward, Georgia also mentioned someone called the Illusive Man, explaining that he was the head of Cerberus and the main man responsible for bringing me back. He'd brought forward all the experts and provided the credits that had brought me back. Even though I might not agree with anything Cerberus might do, I'd certainly thank him for that. I liked being alive.

There were far too many mechs ahead of us though the three of us made a good team. Georgia with her biotics and Wilson with his tech attacks helped make easy work of them. I was still only armed with a pistol but even that was powerful enough to take down a mech with only a couple of well-placed bullets.

Wilson ran ahead of us and I could sense he was eager to get off the station. I didn't really blame him, to be honest. I had a feeling there were very few people left alive on the station. Alarms continued to blare, and we could hear explosions in the distance. The whole place was likely going to blow up sooner rather than later.

Arriving at the door to the docking bay, it was locked. Wilson worked on opening it and when it finally did, a woman appeared in the doorway. Wilson took a step back in surprise and called her Miranda. She then took out her pistol and shot him in the head.

"Traitorous bastard," she stated. The accent suggested a similar part of the world to myself. I wasn't expecting that. The accent hadn't come across over the radio. What I didn't expect next was her to look at me and smile. "I'm glad to see you up and about, Commander. I'm Miranda Lawson. I've spent two years putting you back together."

"Guess I should say thank you then."

She looked genuinely surprised yet pleased with those words. "We should really get out of here and I know the boss would want to speak to you."

"The Illusive Man."

Miranda looked at Georgia. Thankfully, Miranda was smirking as Georgia couldn't help smiling. "Should have known that your conscience wouldn't allow you to keep quiet about that," she said.

"He deserved to know, Miranda. He's just woken up after two years and was probably wondering what the hell is going on."

"Should we go, Commander? You can ask all the questions you want on the shuttle ride. We'll head to another facility, and you can speak to the Illusive Man there. He'll no doubt tell you more."